L'Oreal 24 HR Infallible Eyeshadows for Summer 2012

     Everytime I feel like I have all the L’Oreal 24 hour Infallible eyeshadows colors that I want, they release a few more. This summer L’Oreal brings us 6 new-to-the-U.S. shades and they are gorgeous!

     I bought four of them because the brown color didn't seem particularly special and I knew I would never use the pink shade...though I have been thinking, absentmindedly, about it for the past few days.

    I bought



    

     The only shade of the bunch with outright glitter is 335 Golden Emerald, but that fallout isn't that bad. All of these shades are gorgeous and shimmery with excellent color payoff. 337 Endless Sea and 556 Smoldering Plum are the least complex of the four, but still lovely. 996 Liquid diamon is my favorite by miles. It's ethereal and complex.  I reccomend all of these colors.

     Where to buy: Drugstores and such for $8-$10.

Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stains

     The idea of a lip stain is incredibly appealing to me. This is, mostly, because I am lazy, but also because I have a weird habit when it comes to lip products. I wipe off my lipstick/gloss before eating or drinking anything, all the time. I hate the ring of lip-gunk around a glass almost as much as alarm clock buzzers. It just drives me crazy (short drive).

     Therefore since, hypothetically, stains last an extraordinary amount of time on the lips without fading or smearing I feel more comfortable eating or drinking while wearing them. Usually, though, stains just cause my lips to shrivel painfully and when I try to put chapstick on to soothe my pain, the stain vanishes. The promises of a semi-permanent lip product entice me every time, though, and I keep getting my little heart torn apart when staring into a bathroom mirror.

     The new Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stains do a good job of lifting my spirits, much like an 80’s rom-com.

     They are packaged similarly to Clinique Chubby Sticks (of which I have none) and Tarte LipSurgence tints (of which I have one mini). They are like a pencil, but they are housed in plastic, not wood, and twist up so no sharpening is required. They have a pointed tip, but eventually that will flatten with use.

     I have seven lovely colors.

055 Adore is a dark cool toned red. The stain it leaves is suprisingly light in color and wearable.

 045 Romantic is a warm tomato red that fades to orange quickly.

040 Rendevous is a bright orange. It's not a neon, but pretty close. It's pretty opaque, as well.

030 Smitten is cool, purple toned pink.

025 Sweetheart is bright, watermelon pink.

005 Crush is a warm berry with ultra-fine pink/red sparkle. This stain isn't as opaque as I would like, but it is very easy to build.

001 Honey is a brownish pink leaning slightly mauve. I can't get this one to show up on my extremely pigmented lips, so buyer beware.

(L-R: 001 Honey, 005 Crush, 025 Sweetheart, 030 Smitten, 040 Rendevous, 045 Romantic & 055 Adore)

     These apply like a shiny balm, but last like a stain. The finish dries down after about an hour and though they aren’t nearly as moisturizing as the Revlon ColorBurst Lipbutters, they don’t become even slightly uncomfortable on my lips until after two or more hours. What’s really nice about the formula is that they are moisturizing enough that I can keep reapplying the balm whenever my lips feel dry and the stain doesn’t disintegrate, like it would if I applied a regular chapstick. I can eat or drink and the balm will remain, I can reapply throughout the day (usually only about 4 or 5 times) and my lips never feel unbearably dry (matte lipsticks damage my lips more than these babies).

     In comparison to Tarte LipSurgence tints, the Revlon JBKBS (no, I am not gonna spell it out again) are a little less moisturizing, but they do last longer. I think the moisture you lose is so slight compared to the wear time you gain that it’s worth it. Also, they’re a fraction of the cost. What can I say, I’m cheap.

     Overall, I’m a huge fan. I love the minty scent and creamy texture. I love the crayon-like packaging. I am just in love. They’re basically Pokémon for grow-ups (gotta catch ‘em all). So go on— get catching.

Where to find: Try your local drugstore or Target. They retail for about $8-$9.

Special Saturdays- MAC Club as a Lipgloss & Usher

     It’s Saturday! And Saturday’s are spectacular! In honor of that spectacular-ness (yeah, I went there) I’m going to start a tradition. On Saturdays (sometimes it will be the only post & sometimes it will be in addition to other posts) I will talk about a song/artist that I’m really loving or an interesting YouTube video (which will usually be about music anyways) as well as some sort of interesting makeup thing like a gimmicky product or the look I did that day. Sound fun? Good, cause I’m doing it.

     This week is about the 90’s. I was just a kid in the 90’s (I was born in 1991), so I didn’t wear makeup, but I did love the music and 90's Usher was awesome!

     Let's compare this

     To this

     See where I'm going with this? Now, I like the new Usher. I’m good with the songs he puts out and I own a few (including OMG).  That being said, I prefer the Usher who smoothly sings about heartache and torn loyalties to the Usher who has a song with the word “boobies” in the first verse. Maybe this is my pretentious English major sensibilities surfacing, but honestly, I think he’s just been too swept up in current song trends. And it’s not like all his songs in the 90’s were deep (I’m looking at you “My Way”), I just think that overall his songs used to have a little more substance.

     He’s still as catchy as ever, though!

     Next up is 90's makeup. I'm kind of glad that I was not wearing makeup in the 90's because there would have been way too many pictures of me wearing frosty brown lipstick. Let me tell ya' that is not my color.

     I like Jennifer Anniston & I don't think that brown lipstick is universally hideous. In fact, I don't do blank statements like that, especially where makeup is concerned because it is is personal. That being said...

...What is up with that? I'm gonna go out on a limb and say no to the dark lipliner & light lipstick. Just no. For everyone- no.

   What actually brought about this whole post is a lipgloss that I bought. It looks like MAC club eyeshadow, but for your lips, which is kind of cool. I think it’s a pretty lipgloss, but cannot think of where I would wear it. If only it were still the 90’s!

    It looks a bit browner in real life, but you get the idea. Honestly, I don't even know why I got this. My mom offered to get it for me and I thought "why not?" It's really pretty and I love glitter so it definitely belongs in my life. I'll think of somewhere to use it.

     I got it at Sally's Beauty Supply for a couple of bucks, so if you're intrigued (and I know you are) check there.

     That was my first random Saturday post. What do you think of 90's music or makeup? Did you like my lipgloss? Let me know in the comments.

Maybelline Dream Bouncy Blushes- A Bouncy Ball for Grown Ups

     I feel like the new Maybelline Dream Bouncy Blushes have gotten a bad rap from other beauty bloggers. Yes, they are sheer and, yeah, that probably sucks if you have dark skin. If you are freakishly (awesomely) pale, though, they are kind of splendid. I have two and though I don’t think they are “my colors” they are quite lovely.

     The packaging is nothing special but it is pretty sturdy. I like how little space it takes up. I think the blushes are rather cute.

     We have to talk about the texture, right? They are…weird. You can press your finger into them and create a little finger print, but I’m not willing to use the adjective “bouncy” to describe these. It’s like putty, not a bouncy ball. Despite the seemingly dense texture in the pan, they go on light and smooth. They are easy to blend and layer. Really they are super fun to play with and apply. It’s almost equal parts toy to blush. I feel very whimsical when applying these.

     I can see how these might be an epic fail for darker ladies, but for my skin they show up just fine. In fact, on my NC10 skin, it’s easy for me to overdo it (story of my life). They last pretty well on my normal cheeks, without a powder on top. On the skin there is no discernible glitter or shimmer, but they provide a satin sort of finish.

     The two colors I bought are Plum Wine (cool dark purple, with a bit of red) and Coral Crush (medium soft orange). I don't find either color to be particularly flattering on my skin tone and Plum Wine is decidedly corpse-ish. I think it will be suitable base for other colors, though. Coral Crush is definitely something I will use on it's own.

(Coral Crush & Plum Wine)

(With Flash)

(Without Flash)

     Conclusion: I like them well enough. If I were a cream blush person I would probably go back and get some other colors, but I prefer powder formulas for my blush. With that being said, I’m still desperately tempted to get a pale pink shade.

Where to buy: Drugstores. $6-10, 5.6 grams.

Do you own any of these? What do you think? Any colors I should get? Let me know in the comments :)

Review: April MyGlam Bag

     I just received my first MyGlam bag in the mail today and can I just say “wooooooooooo?” Okay, Woo. In case you don’t know, MyGlam is one of those monthly services where you pay a fee each month (usually around $10) and they send you a package of beauty samples in return. It is a wildly popular concept and there are about 3,000 services like this. MyGlam is a bit newer than some of the others and I picked this one because, when looking at all the other services, this one had the most samples, overall, that I liked and it seems like they have the most makeup samples from brands I recognize.

     I filled out a survey when I signed up, but I don’t think it had much to do with what anyone got in their bag. The only thing that really differed for everyone was the color of the eyeliner and style of the lashes. In my profile I list myself as more natural when it comes to beauty, yet got some pretty dramatic lashes and a very bright eyeliner.

     This service sends its packages out in cute little bags and you get 5 items. This month I received an Urban Decay 24/7 eyeliner pencil in Radium, Dermstore Lip Quench, a set of All-Belle lashes & two MyGlam makeup brushes.

     The bag is a pretty metallic pink and will probably be my new makeup bag for my purse. It smells kind of chemicall-y, but I think that’s just because it’s cheap. I’m not saying the cheapness is a bad thing. It's not like they have to include a bag with every month. I didn’t expect a really high quality, designer type bag. It’s cute and simple.

     The eyeliner I got is not full sized, but travel sized. A full size 24/7 eyeliner is .04 US oz and the one I received this month is .03 US oz. Since a full size is $19 and I paid $10 for the whole bag, I think the eyeliner covers the cost of the bag. I’ve been dying to try a 24/7 pencil, but have never gotten around to buying one so I was thrilled to see it in my bag. I received the color Radium which, as far as I’m aware, is only available in the Electric 24/7 Travel-Size Set of 5. Please correct me if I’m wrong. It’s creamy, glides well and is a pretty bright blue.

     Next I have a set of false lashes. Again, I was super excited for this because I have never used false lashes before, but had wanted to give them a go for a while. I mean, that’s what this whole service is about- letting the consumer try out products that are new to them. So far so good.

     Next is the Dermstore Lip Quench, which is actually a weird product. It claims to give “thin, dry lips a fuller, smoother, hydrated appearance,” and I’m kind of indecisive about whether it does or not. The sample I got is full size (.21 OZ), which is nice, and it typically retails for $12. Again, this bag is a really good deal. It smells like chemical berries or berry punch. It does have some shimmer and a slight pink tint. It comes in a squeeze tube, but it is very thick. It isn’t sticky, but it is waxy. On the lips it feels like an EOS lip balm (which is much cheaper and cuter and smells better). The product does moisturize my lips well, and I’m glad to have the product, but I would never buy it on my own. I’d just get another EOS. I wouldn’t do that either, but only because I have a million of them.

     I have tiny lid space so I love small brushes. Not only are these pink and cute they are pretty good quality. The eyeshadow brush is pony hair (which I don’t like, but since I didn’t get to pick it, okay, fine) and the eyeliner brush is nylon. I am over the moon about the eye liner brush because it is perfect for filling in my brows. My brows have a kind of thin shape, so the brush is precise and it is very narrow, which is great for getting between hairs. I had actually been looking for an eyeliner brush just like this one and then, BAM, here it arrives in my mailbox. Fantastic.

     Conclusion: Overall, I am very pleased with this bag and think it is well worth the $10. From what I’ve heard this is one of the best bags MyGlam has put out, though, so be wary. Next month could be terrible. That’s just the nature of these services. I think MyGlam would be perfect for someone who has just gotten into makeup, has a small collection or has very few expensive items (like me) because each month is more likely to send you things that you don’t have already.

     Where to buy: MyGlam is not accepting subscriptions right now, but you can go to their website (http://www.myglam.com/) and sign up to be added to the waiting list. They’ll email you when subscriptions become available and if you want it, when you get that email, jump on it. It sells out quick.

Review: L’Oreal Color Riche leGloss

            I love lipgloss. And I hate it. I love it for a low maintenance finish to my look that adds color, and shine while keeping my lips moisturized. Pretty much all lipsticks dry out my lips to some extent, but with a lipgloss I don’t have to deal with that. I always try new lipgloss formulas that I see, because I’m always looking for a gloss that actually shows up. My lips are pretty pigmented and I have gotten so many promising lipglosses, only to have them end up looking clear. I’ve just come to expect that from lipgloss, it’s okay, I’ve come to terms. Sometimes, though, I’m pleasantly surprised.

            I have been so excited to try out the L’Oreal Color Riche leGloss, because they have some lovely colors and I’m always on the hunt for a new gloss. It’s not a hobby; it’s a state of being. I finally got one at CVS with a coupon and sale and blah blah blah and was so excited! Did I mention that this lipgloss was exciting for me? Yeah.

            It comes in a common squeeze tube, though this one is thinner than normal, which I like. I prefer wand applicators, just because I usually squeeze too much out with these tubes and make a crazy mess on my face but, since it is thinner it makes application a little more precise. It looks sleeker than other squeeze tubes, as well, and I love the gold accents. I think gold is kind of uncommon in drugstore makeup, so it’s a nice change. The scent is kind of cupcake-frosting-ish, but not strong. I only notice it if I sniff the tube. I got the color 159 Golden Splash which is a really nice corally/peachy-pink yumminess with golden shimmer.

(No lip products at all)

(L'Oreal leGloss)

Look! You can see my jacked up teeth!

           The formula isn’t too thick or sticky, but it is very present. I never forgot I was wearing lipgloss or anything, but it didn’t drive me batshit. It lasts pretty well (4+ hours) and doesn’t migrate terribly. And the color showed up! Hallelujah! It was fantastic and I was already planning the other lipglosses I wanted from this line, when tragedy struck. It dried out my lips. When I say “dried out” I mean desiccated. I’ve eaten dried fruit that was juicier than my lips after this gloss. About an hour into wear I smooshed my lips together (like I do) and I still felt the thick layer of gloss I had applied, but underneath my lips were dried and icky. It was so weird, especially since I had lip balm beneath the gloss. I don’t know what happened, but I’m disappointed, since I loved the color on my lips so much.

           Conclusion: This lipgloss gives me sadness. I was excited to find a lipgloss color that worked for me, but saddened by the weird reaction my lips had. It always leaves my lips dry and in desperate need of chapstick. It does more damage to my lips than some of my lipsticks even. We are in the lip Twilight Zone here people. I’m going to see if I can’t make this work, though, and I’ll probably still wear it (why yes, I am a glutton for punishment).

Where to Buy: Drugstores, Target etc. Price ranges from $6-$8 methinks.
Have you tried one of these glosses? Did you have the same crazy experience I did, or did they work out okay for you? Let me know in the comments :)

Tresemme, Tresemme, Ooh la la...

          When it comes to my hair, I’m very, uninvolved. I’m just not good with hair, especially not my own. I think my hair is a consciously aware creature that devotes it’s time to messing with me. Depending on the humidity it’s a frizzy curly mess or a frizzy straight mess. Sometimes, about twice a year, it looks nice for no reason at all. A temporary fit of mercy, I suppose. Either way, I’ve just about given up with the whole thing. It drives me crazy to have a full face of makeup, though, and then, just…my hair.

            Every once in a while I stumble on a hair product in a store and think “why not?” Usually, a reason “why not” becomes apparent after I purchase the product and use it. This time though, I’m not so sure.

            The product I speak of is the Tresemme Split Remedy Split End Healing Serum. As far as I know, this is a relatively new product, but I could be wrong. It promises to reduce split ends by up to 80% after 3 uses. Like I said, I’m kind of stunted when it comes to working with hair, so I’m not sure if I have bad split ends or not, but I do have very fine, frizzy hair that is pretty oily at the roots and kind of dry at the tips.

            It was the packaging that caught my eye initially, since I’m a sucker for pastels paired with black. The price ($5) didn’t hurt either and, again, I thought, “why not?”

Here are some pictures of the packaging

(Lets all ignore my trash can, shall we? It's a game called "I'm not messy, dad." I've played it for years- it's real fun)

            The product is pretty heavily scented, but it doesn’t overpower anything else I put in my hair. It’s kind of a sweet, clean scent. It smells like my Suave Clarifying shampoo. It’s not exactly unpleasant, but I certainly don’t want a perfume version. For reference, I’m not sensitive to moderate scents, so this does not bother me.

            The product itself is very thin, and I have to be pretty careful when pumping it in my hands because it will slide right out of my palm. It’s a milky color and one pump dispenses a good amount. It’s easy to work into my hair, but only if my hair is damp. If my hair is still very wet, then the product just sort of slides around and doesn’t get dispersed as evenly.

Here we see that it is already running down my hand.

Conclusion: I’m a fan. It doesn’t leave a horrible greasy residue on my hands (or my hair), though there is a little stickiness. It smoothes out my hair wonderfully and makes it really soft to the touch. My frizz is drastically reduced when I use this product and if I go a day without using this product, I can tell. I really enjoy using this product on my hair, but it’s not a life changer. I still hate my hair, but less so I think that makes this product worth it. If I ran out, I’d probably repurchase. It’s cheap and nice to have on hand.

Where to buy: Drugstores, Target & Wal-Mart. It’s somewhere in the $5-$7 range.

A Face Wipe That Leaves No Residue? About Time.

When I first saw the Simple skincare line I, literally, thought "Oh, another one," meaning another skincare line. I didn't think about it much. I liked the packaging (GREEN!), but otherwise I walked right past it.

When I take off my makeup at night I use a make-up remover wipe and for the past few years my wipe of choice has been Yes To Cucumbers. I was pleased, until the formula was changed, or something. After two years of using the same freaking wipe every night it started to burn my face. I don't know why it happened, but I immediately started looking for a new face wipe and I am overjoyed that I did.

I now use Simple Skin Care Experts Exfoliating Face Wipes. You know how when you're experimenting with your skincare routine you find products, every once in a while, that revolutionize your process? In the history of my skincare routine, I just discovered philosophy, or toilet paper, or something else monumentally revolutionary (don't try and tell me TP was not revolutionary).

Anyways, Simple Skincare is a U.K. brand and I'm sure you've seen tons of ads for it or even seen it in stores.

This, my lovelies, is the packaging. You can see that is comes in the typical bag-thingy, where you just pull up that sticker that seals the package shut and take out a wipe as needed. Nice, simple, effective.

 Here is the back, with the ingredient list and all that jazz. Let me zoom up on that for you.

Ahhhh, much better. So there's a couple things in here that I can't pronounce (simple, yeah, right...) But we also have some familiar skincare faces (pun much?) like aloe. I'm gonna tell you right now, these are pretty soothing for my face, which has some slight redness.

This has a little more info for us. In the wipes we also have vitamins (totally read this in a British accent) B5 & E. Nice.
I have never used a face wipe that leaves no residue, though they all make that claim. These wipes, though, feel really nice. I feel like they clean my face and if I want to, I can just use these and hop into bed without moisturizing or toning. I don't do that often, but I love having the option without fearing a zit in the morning as retribution.
You know what else? These suckers exfoliate. I should probably type it as "ex-fol-i-ate" to provide some emphasis about how truly awesome these are. Let me show you.

Check that out. Unfortunately, I don't have any face wipes to show you a comparison of the textures, but if you are an avid face wipe user, you'll be able to spot the difference.
This amazing exfoliating texture does have its downside, however. The texture feels lovely all over my face, except for in my eye area. OUCH. Unless the skin around your eyes is made of steel, you're going to have some trouble in that department. These are not going to help you take off your eye makeup or the residue left by a separate liquid remover. It can -- the wipe does remove eye makeup nicely, but it took a painful experiment to find that out. I just take my toner around my eye area and so far I've had no problems, but it is kind of inconvenient.
Conclusion: That's the only downside to these wipes, that I've found, though. I'm still totally in love with these and I'll keep buying them as long as I can. The lack of residue and the exfoliation on the rest of my face is just too good. I'm a bit of an exfoliation junkie, though (It's genetic. My mom's the same way), so it's worth it for me. If you have more sensitive skin, you may not want to buy these. Maybe try the cleansing wipes from this brand? I just bought some, but haven't tried them out. When I do, though, ya'll be the first to know.

The overall grade I would give these is a "B+," because while the only downside is how painful these can be around the eye area, that is a pretty significant problem for something that goes on your face.
Where to Buy: You can find these for around $5-$7 at drugstores, Wal-Mart, Kmart & Target.
http://www.simpleskincare.com/

Have you tried anything from this line? What did you think of it? Anyone try the eye makeup remover? I've been looking it and would love to know what you thought of it. Comment below :)

I Found a Pixi! Eyeshadow That is...

Who doesn't like Faeries? Don't answer that. I, for one, love them in all of their incarnations, whether it's dark and scary or full of light and glitter. Personally, I'm never against glitter. When I first saw Pixi at Target a few years ago I was ecstatic and wanted to try everything out immediately. Unfortunately, my skepticism kicked in (I thought the packaging was too pretty to have a good product inside of it) and I didn't buy anything until just a few weeks ago.

The box doesn't tell you on the front, but it's an eyeshadow. I'll show you later. How about some more packaging pics first, though? Yes? Yes.

This is the back of the box and it has all kinds of blah, blah, blah on it.

Here are the ingredients. It's made in China, but what isn't?

This costs $15, but I got it for $12 with a coupon, which is always nice.  For reference, MAC eyeshadows cost $16 and you only get 1.5g, so Pixi is a pretty good deal. I would call this brand a high-end drugstore brand. It's about equivalent with a mid-end department store brand.

Now on to the swatches & product pics!

The above picture shows the eyeshadow a little darker than it is in real life. The swatch is much more accurate.

(Left to Right: Matte light brown from NYX palette, MAC Jest, Pixi Nude Nouveaux, Shimmery Taupe from aforementioned NYX palette)

I'm going to admit that while the color may not appear very unique, for my collection, it really is. In the store it looked sort of taupe-y and when I got it home it seemed more like a dark champagne shade. The picture makes it look like a golden-brown-peachy shade and it really is quite versatile.

The above swatch is color accurate (on my monitor) and the swatch is without primer. The eyeshadow is creamy and smooth and it wears really nicely over my Too Faced Shadow Insurance. Overall, I'd give the formula an "A." The only, slightly, annoying thing is how bulky the packaging is.

This picture has my Android phone, next to the eyeshadow, sitting on top of the bottom part of my HP laptop. As you can see, it's thicker than my phone. If you've ever seen an Android in person, you know that they are ginormous. I really want to depot the eyeshadow, but the packaging is so pretty!!!! For these reasons I think the packaging gets a "C."


Conclusion: I'm pleasantly surprised by the quality of the eyeshadow, I suppose, since I thought the packaging was too cute to be true. In some ways it is, but I don't regret my purchase and I think this eyeshadow will get plenty of use.


Where to Buy: Check your local Target or their website   http://www.pixibeauty.com/


Have you tried anything from this brand? What did you think? Let me know in the comments below :)