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2018 is over y'all and I COULDN'T BE HAPPIER. This was truly an interesting year for me as a blogger, and a double interesting year for me trying to put together a favourites list for 2018. As regular readers might know, very few things that I received this year were "new" as I was on a no-buy from February onward. While I did receive some products from PR and other methods, I still had significantly fewer products to choose from and I even considered NOT writing this post at all! But when I thought about it, I realized that instead of focusing on products I purchased or received in 2018, I'd focus on things I used all year long, and then this list came to me in seconds. Please enjoy my favourite and most-used makeup of 2018!

NYX Bright Idea Illuminating Stick in Sandy Glow

So this illuminating stick actually came to me from a a contest that I won RIGHT around the time I started my no-buy! It was a fifth anniversary giveaway from The Happy Sloths and this product was a welcome addition to my collection. Up until this point I'd only used powder or cream-to-powder bronzers with varying levels of success. This stick was actually SIGNIFICANTLY easier for me to use, as you apply it to your skin like a crayon, and can buff or blend it in with a brush or blender of your choice. I reached for this almost every single time I did my face, only occasionally moving to my Too Faced Chocolate Soleil when I wanted a more structured look. These sticks come in a variety of styles, from blush colours to highlighters and are worth every penny of their $11CAD.

Covergirl Exhibitionist Mascara

I received this product from Influenster later in the fall and I've been SO IMPRESSED WITH THIS MASCARA you guys. I shouldn't be so so surprised since I've had good luck with Covergirl productws before, but, similar to my experience with IT Cosmetics Mascara, I've spent the better part of the last few years reaching for stubby mascaras, not thicker bristled mascaras, and it's to my detriment. This wand DOES cake on a good amount of product so be careful with application, but it dries quickly and does a great job adding volume to my lashes. It also LASTS ALL DAY and has no flaking and that is really shocking as a non-waterproof. It PROBABLY won't last through a sad episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, but everything else? Excellent. I'm also very excited because Covergirl is now cruelty-free and Leaping Bunny certified, something I'll keep in mind as I move towards a more mindful 2019. You can buy this mascara for about $14 online from Shoppers Drug Mart or from everywhere you buy makeup.

Revlon Full Cover Matte Foundation in 200 Nude

This was a product I received for review earlier in the fall and I had started a review for it, but I was being picky with the photos I took, and during that time my camera died and I had to replace it! Luckily, I have a new camera now so you can look forward to a full blog post soon! Basically I was really surprised by this foundation because it offers a good medium coverage that somehow feels very lightweight and lasts ALL DAY on me. I've had fantastic luck with this formula and I would highly recommend it to anyone with combination skin who doesn't like HEAVY foundation but wants something that will do the trick when needed. You can get these at Shoppers or anywhere else makeup is sold for $16-20CAD.

Smashbox Cover Shot Ablaze Eye Palette

This was actually another prize from The Happy Sloths giveaway I mentioned above, and I was so excited to receive it. Before I embarked on my no-buy challenge this year, the one thing I thought I still wanted to purchase at some point was Urban Decay's Naked Heat palette. But it turns out, all I needed was the firey hues from this little palette instead! Smashbox really outdid themselves with their Cover Shots collection because if you're anything like me, you don't actually NEED another large palette in your collection. These little thematic palettes offer great quality and can help fill in the gaps of your collection, while being travel friendly to boot. In the future I might grab another one of them, currently I have my eye on Pinks & Palms and Ultraviolet which have some highly pigmented shades as well. The Smashbox Cover Shot palettes sell for $29CAD but they do go on sale semi-frequently.

Anastasia Beverly Hills Aurora Glow Kit

This was another product I really wanted to buy before starting my no-buy journey, but I couldn't justify spending money on it as I didn't NEED any more highlighters in my life. LUCKILY, I was doing some trading of makeup on Bunz this summer and was able to put together a trade with a fellow Bunz member and ended up getting this palette basically unused! (Bunz is a free online trading community that is very popular in Toronto and I use it quite a bit, sign up here if you're interested!) I use this palette on a daily basis, often reaching for Eclipse, Luna or Helia, but I have used Lyra quite a bit, and dabbled with Spectra and Orion as well. What I might start doing is using the darker shades for eyeshadows more frequently to get more use out of them, because they are GORGEOUS. You can't really buy this kit any more as it was limited edition, but it does show up at Winners from time to time.

IT Cosmetics Superhero Liner

I received this product from PR earlier in the summer and I already wrote a huge rave about this eyeliner a few months ago. Now that I've had it for several months, I can safely say that my love for this eyeliner has not subsided. It has a fancy felt/gel tip liner that is unlike many others ones on the market, and I can do a wing and a flick in SECONDS. It's so easy to work with, and once it's on it does NOT budge. I love this eyeliner so much that now it is literally competing against last year's favourite, the Lancome Grandiose Eyeliner, as my go-to eyeliner right now. The only catch is the liner is $32CAD at Sephore, but I'm already used to paying for Lancome for my liners so it's my splurge.

fresh Sugar Lip Caramel Hyrating Balm

This is actually a deluxe sample product I received from Sephora in a sample bag during Boxing Day last year. Normally I wouldn't include something like a lip balm on this list, but it's literally the best smelling lip balm I've ever had. It smells like a candy apple and does a great job hydrating my lips with a comfortable balm texture that isn't too sticky or heavy. It absolutely helps rehydrate my lips and it's been super useful during this dry winter we've been having. I've used Fresh Lip Balms before, but this one is tops for me now and I'll definitely be buying the fullsize for $22 from Sephora when I run out of this.

Bite Beauty Amuse Bouche Lipstick Musk

Last but not least, this lipstick! For somebody who usually reaches for aggressively bright lip colours, somehow this pinky beige became my go-to lipstick in 2018! I actually purchased this lipstick two summers ago, so this lipstick is the product I've had the longest of anything on my top list this year, but I also BARELY WORE IT until this year. I'm not sure what happened but I'm actually getting pretty close to finishing it! This lipstick is now discontinued but you can see more swatches and pictures on this review from 2016 here. I recommend Bite Beauty lipsticks in general and Sephora has a great collection of them for $30.

And there we have it! What were some of your favourites in 2018? Anything like mine? Let me know in the comments!