Beautiful Disease

Epic, Epic Haul.

2011-09-23T22:52:00.001-04:00

Well, I'd like to say that I do this all the time, but unfortunately, I don't. I usually just buy a couple things at a time, but due to a lack of posting, and a surplus of money (Thanks, student loan check!), I have managed to accumulate a whole lot of stuff in a relatively short period of time. Here's the rundown of all the stuff I've gotten recently.

1. Urban Decay Book of Shadows vol. 4
2. Tarte for True Blood Glamour Me Cheekstain
3. Smashbox The Look Book Kit
4. Too Faced Beauty Insurance Set
5. Too Faced Shadow Insurance Glitter Glue
6. Stila Deluxe Lip Glaze Trio in Warm
7. Sally Girl Baked Eyeshadows in 120, 127, 128
8. Benefit They're Real mascara
9. Hard Candy Visibly Wet lip pencil in Jezebel
10. Elf Hypershine lipgloss in berry cherry
11. Kat Von D True Romance Palette in Metal Orchestra
12. Ulta nail lacquer in Smoke Screen
13. Butter London Nail Polish in Chimney Sweep
14. Butter London Nail polish in Henley Regatta
15. Ulta Nail Lacquer in Concrete

Nail of the week

2011-09-21T13:23:00.001-04:00

Please ignore the excess polish, I took the picture before I cleaned it off. This polish is one of the Butter London polishes in Chimney Sweep. I got it during Ulta's 21 days of beauty sale yesterday as part of a buy one, get one free. I'd been a bit apprehensive to buy these before, admittedly because of their price. At $14 each, I was a bit uncomfortable. Mind you, when I was a teenager, and my mom bought all my makeup, I wore Lancome polishes almost exclusively, because when it wasn't my money, I had no problem blowing her money on high end expensive nail polish. Then, I moved out, and after she quit bankrolling my cosmetics addiction, I had to buy my own. Suddenly, Wet'N'Wild's $1 polishes didn't look too bad on my nails. But regardless, at $14 for two, I felt much more comfortable with the Butter London polishes. The review is forthcoming, but for the moment, I'm having a bit of a love affair with this color.

Things to come....

2011-09-12T00:26:00.001-04:00

Admittedly, sometimes, real life gets in the way of my blogging. Over the last month or so, Life has really gotten in the way. I won't bore you with all the details, but there are a LOT of posts that will be making their way here, as soon as I can find the time. (And when I say find the time, I actually mean pry myself away from my Nook and my girl Lori Whitwam's super fabulous book Make or Break). One day soon, that will happen. Remember, just because real life bitch-slapped me rather abruptly out of SUPER-FABULOUS-HAPPY-MAKEUP-LAND doesn't mean I wasn't stocking up on all kinds of lovely goodies for my wearing, and your reading pleasure. Because I was definitely still collecting. So, I leave you tonight with a photo of what is to come. Soon, very soon.

Hey!

2011-09-11T22:24:00.000-04:00

Check out Makeup Zombie's epic giveaway... there are just a couple hours left!
http://www.makeupzombie.net/2011/08/epic-800-follower-giveawayfinally.html

Product Review- Hard Candy World Balmination Tinted Lip balms

2011-08-28T19:35:00.000-04:00


Starfish and Miss Independent

I've been having a bit of a moment with tinted lip balms. Most of the time, I wear crazy elaborate eye makeup, so to balance it out, I wear nude or soft pink lipstick. Or, I go the complete opposite end of the spectrum and wear really bright or really dark lipstick. Recently, I've been going for the tinted balms, because it gives a nice pop of color without being overwhelming.

After Kaye Eh suggested I try these, I decided to go for it. Here's my initial thoughts:
1. These lip balms are packaged really attractively. They're cute, and they're not too bulky.
2. They smell amazing. Think lemon creme pie, but more delicious. It took everything in me not to just take a bite out of the stick. No kidding.

Then I tested them.

First of all- the balms aren't really pigmented. At all. In fact, they're pretty much clear.
The packaging, while attractive, is atrocious. First of all, you can't twist it down. It is almost touching the top of the cap. This is incredibly problematic for me, because I will definitely nick the stick on the cap, or have some other unfortunate event in relation to this balm. Not especially thrilling.
Here's some swatches:


Miss Independent


Starfish


Top- Miss Independent. Bottom- Starfish

Overall, if you're looking for a lip balm, I suppose this isn't the worst one you could ever get. It smells and tastes delicious, it's moisturizing, but it is not tinted on me, and my lips aren't really pigmented. Because of that, if you're going for the tinting aspect, there are infinitely better tinted balms you could get for a couple dollars more.(Covergirl Natureluxe or Say Yes To Carrots, for example)
So overall, I'd say save your money, and get a better product, because these aren't that great.

Looking for a different opinion? Check out Syn's review here.

Product Review: Hard Candy So Baked Bronzer- Tropics

2011-08-15T01:41:00.000-04:00

Ever wanted to be the shiniest person alive? Want a fake tan so bold that you make the cast of Jersey Shore look like they've been hiding in a basement for years? This is the product for you then! My god, this bronzer is the shimmeriest product I've ever seen, let alone for your face. Who would wear this as a face product? Who would do this? Tell me!

Behold the shimmery glory!

Now, in all seriousness, I can't actually imagine what this would look like on ones face in any conventional sense. Maybe if you were really dark skinned, but even then, I think the shimmer would be too much.

That being said, this product isn't entirely worthless... It does make a really nice, heavily pigmented gold eyeshadow! So while it utterly fails as a bronzer, It isn't a bad eyeshadow.

Product Review: Maybelline The Falsies- Flared Mascara

2011-08-14T23:22:00.001-04:00

If you read my review of the waterproof version of this mascara, you're probably thinking I'm positively insane for spending my money on the regular formula of this particular mascara. Maybe I am, but this made its way into my collection regardless.

For the record, I'm glad it did. When I bought the waterproof version, it was so horrifyingly terrible that I was actually a bit upset that I'd even bought it, and that Maybelline was marketing this product, and that people were saying it was even remotely okay. Then I bought the regular formula. Now, I'm not going to say that it completely changed my mind, but it is definitely an improvement. The mascara doesn't add heaps of volume, it doesn't lengthen your lashes remarkably, but the one thing it does well is that you can shape your lashes, and they stay in place. So if you want your lashes to be shaped a certain way, you can use this to your advantage. That being said, I use it with a primer, and another mascara over it to get the full look that I want, but it does do that one thing well enough to almost make it worthwhile.

So I will still not give this product a great review, but if you can get it on sale, and want to sculpt your lashes instead of wearing false ones, I guess you could probably find some merit in this.

Product Review- Studio M Blushes

2011-08-14T23:10:00.000-04:00

Disclaimer: I am a paid employee of Meijer, but this product review is not supported by, encouraged by, or in any way involving my job at Meijer. I do not even work in a department in which it would be part of my job to endorse Studio M Cosmetics. While I receive wages from Meijer for my work I do in the store, this review has no relation to my job I did not receive any free samples of the product, and both of these (and any other Studio M products I use) were paid for out of my own money.

For those of you who have no idea what Meijer is, it is a regional chain of grocery/superstores in the Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky and Illinois area. Basically think Wal-Mart, but privately owned. I've been a lifelong Meijer shopper, and it is where I've always gotten the majority of my drugstore cosmetics. When Meijer released their own line of cosmetics, I was pretty interested. They started out with a line of brushes and tools, which were modestly priced, and pretty decent quality. Then, they started adding the cosmetics. This week, all the Studio M cosmetics were buy one get one free, so I figured this would be a good time to try them out, so I picked up two of the blushes, which retail for $5.99 each

Wish- this is a shimmery rose color with a silver shimmer. The consistency is nice on it. It's not super chalky, and it's really well pigmented, as well as going on smooth. The only downside to these blushes is that they are a bit on the small side, so it makes the particular brush you use important.

Blushin'- This one is a peachy blush with a sizeable gold-toned shimmer to it. Like the other one, this blush is a pretty decent quality with a good payoff. It's not the most unique colored blush, and I probably own a dozen like it, but it's definitely a good color.

Overall, these products are very decent. While they aren't widely available, nor are they available online, if you happen to be near a Meijer, and you need cheap, decent makeup, Studio M is a viable option.

Product Review: L'Oreal Color Riche Le Gloss

2011-08-14T22:38:00.000-04:00

I am a total sucker for new products. These glosses are no exception. When the displays went up, I spent days lusting after them before I finally decided to buy one. I bought Baby Blossom, because I love light, peachy colors on my lips. I don't usually wear crazy pigmented, bright colors, so I thought this one would be something I would actually wear.

The gloss is a thick, slightly sticky formula that smells just like vanilla frosting. It applies easily, and it seems to stay put pretty decently. It's not crazy pigmented though. I'm left with a light, glazed look on my lips.

My overall thought on this gloss is that it's alright, but its way overpriced. For a basic lipgloss, a $6.99 pricetag is way too high. The gloss itself just isn't that remarkable to warrant spending that kind of cash.

Product Review: Covergirl Natureluxe Gloss balms

2011-08-14T21:53:00.001-04:00

I admit it.... Advertising totally works on me. After seeing enough ads for these Natureluxe products, I was curious. Then, I got a coupon in the paper for $5 off two, so my curiosity could be satisfied at a reasonable price. It does't get better than that. I decided to go for the gloss balms, because that seems to be the safest product, and with a retail of $5.99 each, it was the least expensive choice too.

I picked up Coral (Left) and Tulip(Right). The balms themselves are a soft stick, with a cherry candy flavor, that thinly covers the classic lipstick taste that most women are accustomed to. I'm indifferent to this, but I must admit, I wish that it was either a stronger cherry flavor, or it had no real flavor, as the cherry isn't strong enough to cover the lipstick taste.

As far as wear goes, these gloss balms go on pretty smooth, with just a very slight touch of color. They leave your lips smooth, and you get a couple hours of wear before you need to reapply, which is nice. Plus, the color doesn't feel too heavy on your lips, which is nice if you're one of those people who doesn't like to feel heavy makeup on their face.

Top- Coral, Bottom- Tulip

Coral is a medium orange color with a slight gold shimmer. On my lips, it is almost unnoticeable, but it does moisturize and even out the pigmentation.
Tulip is a soft pink, with a hint of shimmer. This is a shade lighter than my lips naturally are, and it is a bit more noticeable than Coral.

Overall, These gloss balms are nice, but they don't do anything magical. That being said, if you want a nice lip balm that adds a touch of color without breaking the bank, these are a good option.

Nail of the Week- Vol 3

2011-08-14T21:06:00.002-04:00

Please excuse two things about this week's nails- First, the polish on my fingers; I ran out of remover as I was cleaning it up!
Second- The photo quality- It is really hard to get a photo of the glitter, as the topcoat is crazy shiny- probably as shiny as I've ever seen.

Here's what I used- First I painted my whole nail with the Fuchsia color- Studio M in Vintage Vamp. After that dried, I put on the french manicure nail guides halfway across my nails, and painted the black on (I used the Wet 'N' Wild black) Then, after that dried, I very carefully peeled off the guide stickers, and painted my whole nail with Studio M in Tru Passion. (Which is an almost an identical dupe to Nicole by OPI's One Less Lonely Glitter)

I have been in a bit of a crackle mode for awhile, so I thought this was a nice change of pace, plus it was a great way to test out the Studio M polishes!.

Product Review: Kat Von D True Romance Palette- Ludwig

2011-08-09T18:34:00.001-04:00

Admittedly, I will not be posting as many photos with this post as I normally do with product reviews. I've had this palette a long time. It's (barely) survived two flights across the world, and TSA playing catch with my cosmetics bag, which most of my makeup didn't survive. :( So I will be using stock photos, except with the swatches.

This was the first Kat Von D cosmetic purchase I ever made. Actually, it was part of my first Sephora purchase too for that matter. I fell in love with the colors, and decided I needed it in my life. I bought it on my way to Australia, and on the flight, before I even got to do anything with it, Lucifer, the black shade broke! OH NO. I managed to get it out of the palette without it completely destroying any of the other shadows, but I didn't get to use that color until much later, when I got another palette with it in it. The rest of the colors in the palette definitely made it into my daily rotation really quickly though.

Lucifer- a matte black- It's not bad for a matte black, but it's not the most remarkable matte black I've ever used.
Orbi- A darker green with a gold shimmer- I use this color at least 2-3 times a week because of how much I like it. The pigmentation is great, and it's very buildable.
Dimebag- A brighter, lighter green with a gold shimmer- This color is really fun. Admittedly, it's not as pigmented as I'd like, but it is still wearable, although it goes better with a highly pigmented primer.
Tequila- a soft yellow with a slight shimmer- This color makes an excellent highlight color. It has a subtle shimmer to it, so you won't look too shiny with it.
Clay- a soft yellowy tan with a slight shimmer- I like this color. It is a fun highlight, but it would also be a decent candidate for a subtle almost no makeup-type look
Downtown- a pale, shimmery champagne color- Another really pretty color. This shows up similar to Urban Decay's Sin, but with a slight bit more pigmentation
Baroque- A darker, shimmery brown- From a non-utility standpoint, this is my favorite color in the palette. Leather is more useful for me, but this one is prettier.
Leather- A matte chocolate brown- This is the most useful color in the palette for me. It's the color I use for my brows, and it is a good shadow color as well.

Overall, this palette is pretty fabulous. There are a couple colors that are a bit less standout than others, but it's a favorite of mine because it has a great multitude of looks that can be done with it.

Swatches (primer on top, no primer on bottom):


Left to right- Lucifer, Orbi, Dimebag, Tequila

Left to right- Clay, Downtown, Baroque, Leather

Product Review: Maybelline The Falsies- Flared Mascara (Waterproof)

2011-08-09T17:43:00.001-04:00

Let me start off by saying one thing- While wearing this, there is no way whatsoever anyone will mistake you for wearing false eyelashes... Unless they're drunk and gullible. Even then, it's doubtful. Well, let me rephrase that- Someone might accuse you of wearing those really gross, crusty Halloween lashes for the unsexy witch costume. That's more accurate.

I normally love some Maybelline mascaras, but this one... Not so much. In fact, it might take over Urban Decay's Skyscraper as the worst mascara ever. At least when you layered Skyscraper, all you got was one sad, pathetic layer of nothing. With this, I am currently suffering from mono-lash. That's right, I pretty much have one giant, chunky, crusty eyelash. Ew.

This is the "spoon-shaped applicator". I actually like the applicator- it does a pretty good job of getting a nice curl. Too bad the formula is so terrible!

Here's a swatch, after several layers.

I'm hoping that it's just because it's waterproof that the mascara is so bad. Look for a review of the non-waterproof pretty soon!

Product Review: Kat Von D True Romance Palette- True Love

2011-08-09T17:12:00.001-04:00

I got this palette as part of the Look in a Box from Sephora. I was curious about the other products, but mostly I just wanted this palette. So much so, actually that I spent ~~days~~ Weeks lusting after it. Finally, on my birthday, I decided to buy it. (Happy Birthday to me!) Here's what I think about it.

It's no secret that I shamelessly love pretty much everything from the Kat Von D makeup line, and this is no exception. In fact, I think this one might actually be my favorite so far. The colors in this palette are so fabulous, and I have found dozens of ways to wear them that I love.

Here's the rundown of the colors:
Peanut- Soft, shimmery gold- the shadow itself is very soft, and a bit crumbly actually, but it's really, really pretty!
Benji- A very bold gold with a hint of copper- This is a cream shadow with a lot of pigmentation. The only downside is that it did dry out pretty quickly, which did make it a bit harder to work with, but even when it's a bit drier, it does still work, it's just a bit trickier.
Rebekah- Medium chocolate brown, with gold glitter- Really pretty, with a lot of pigmentation. The glitter is pretty fine in it, but it doesn't have tons of glitter fallout, which is awesome!
Lucifer- a matte black- As far as matte blacks go, this one isn't the best matte black on the face of the planet, but it really isn't bad. Nothing too remarkable though, just a matte black.
Cholita- a reddish burgundy- This is definitely my favorite color in this palette... Actually, for that matter, I think this is my favorite in all the Kat Von D Palettes. It's so pretty! The pigmentation is nice, and it's very buildable, which makes it even nicer.
Skiba- A medium purple with gold glitter- It's not super bright, but the gold glitter adds a certain level of boldness to it, which makes it really pretty
Babe- A bold, bright, light purple with a subtle blue duochrome- I really like this one as well. It reminds me a bit of Flash by Urban Decay, but a bit prettier.
Missy- A bright shimmery white, with a subtle purple duochrome- This color is really pretty. I use it mostly for highlighting under my brows.

Swatches:

Top row- with primer, bottom row- no primer. (Left to right- Peanut, Benji, Rebekah, Lucifer. Second set- Left to Right- Cholita, Skiba, Babe, Missy)

Nail of the week- Vol 2

2011-08-09T16:35:00.000-04:00

I'm having another crackle moment. I didn't want to do the basic one color with a crackle over it, so I decided to change it up and do two... (ooh, exciting, I know!) The best part about the crackle is that I didn't have to use guides to make sure my split color was even, since the crackle covered it up pretty well! (laziness FTW!)
I used a basic black, a shiny silver with no glitter, and I put a white crackle over it, and there we have it, Nail of the week!

Kat Von D Green look

2011-08-09T16:23:00.000-04:00

I have to confess... I've been having a love affair with the Kat Von D True Romance eyeshadow palettes. They've pretty much become my go-to palettes for just about any look that I could possibly come up with. It's almost become an addiction, really. I don't know what to say... I guess I just love these things.
Here's what I used:
Face primer- Hard Candy illuminating face primer
Foundation- Maybelline Fit Me! in 115
Blush- Hard Candy- Fox in a Box in Smooth Talker
Blush- Nars- Orgasm (Over Smooth Talker)
Bronzer- Cargo Mini bronzer in medium
Lipstick- MAC Viva Glam Gaga 2
Mascara- Maybelline Great Lash in Very black
Liner:
Top- Physicians formula lash booster serum in blackest black (Flare out to make the cat-eyes look)
Bottom- Maybelline Define-a-Line in Ebony Black
Eye Primer-
Kat Von D High Voltage Primer in Smoky (from lash line to almost the brows)
Kat Von D High Voltage Primer in Skin (between Smoky and brow line)
Shadows: Ludwig Palette:
Kat Von D shadow in Lucifer (lids)
Kat Von D Shadow in orbi (outter edges of eye, to cover smoky primer)
Kat Von D shadow in Dimebag (center of eye, above lid, next to Orbi, covering smoky Primer)
Kat Von D Shadow in Leather (eyebrows)
Truth palette:
Kat Von D Shadow in Snake Eyes (inner corner of eyes, covering the last bit of the smoky primer)
Kat Von D Shadow in Sugar Skull (Covering Skin primer)

Product Review: Tokidoki Polpettina Quad

2011-08-02T03:31:00.000-04:00

Let me state once again, in case you haven't gotten it from any of my other many Tokidoki-related posts. I am a sucker for all things adorable, and i find myself getting enticed by pretty much every Tokidoki product made, because of how cute they are. This was no exception. Admittedly, my review might not be the greatest on this, as I feel really dumb for buying it, because the second I opened up the box, I realized that I already had 3 of the 4 colors from the Robbery Palette. Oops. Regardless, I will try to set aside the fact that I basically spent $19 on backups on products that I wasn't even close to needing to worry about running low on, and do the most objective review I could.

The quad is double-layered. The first layer has the eyeshadows in it (LA Gun, Polpettina, Candy Cane and Adios). The second layer has an adorable little charm inside it!

Shadows:
Adios- Matte black. Not the blackest black on the face of the earth, but not bad.
LA Gun- Dark, shimmery green. On its own, I'm not in love with the color, but over a black, it looks really pretty! Definitely my favorite in the quad.
Candy Cane- Sparkly, shimmery silver- It's a bit on the crumbly side, but it is really pretty. Just watch out for the glittery fallout of doom!
Polpettina- A soft, matte pink- The formula is kind of chalky, and it doesn't have a ton of pigmentation on my skintone, but it is pretty if you're trying to do a softer look.

Swatches! (Left to right- Adios, LA Gun, Polpettina, Candy Cane With Too Faced Shadow Insurance as primer)

Nail of the week- Vol 1

2011-08-02T03:13:00.000-04:00

Here's what I used:

Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear in Lime Lights

Sally Hansen Crackle overcoat in Distressed Denim

Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear clear topcoat

FOTD- Kat Von D Angeles Palette/Tokidoki Robbery PaletteTeal and Blue

2011-08-02T02:17:00.002-04:00

Products used:
Face primer- Hard Candy illuminating primer
Foundation- Maybelline Fit Me in 115
Blush- Nars blush in Angelika
Bronzer- Cargo mini bronzer in Medium
Powder- Physician's Formula Happy Booster in Translucent
Lipstick- Flirt Chickstick in Angel
Eye primer-
Kat Von D High Voltage eye primer in Smoky (eylids, leaving a gap below eyebrows)
Kat Von D High Voltage eye primer in Skin (between Smoky primer and eyebrows)
Liner-Maybelline Define-A-line in Ebony Black (line bottom, then top after shadows are applied)
Brow Gel- ELF Brow gel/mascara duo
Brows- Kat Von D shadow in Leather (Angeles Palette)
Shadows:
Tokidoki in Adios (on your lids, the whole way across, to the crease
Tokidoki in LA Gun (do a couple layers over Adios)
Kat Von D Shadow in Peggy (From the crease almost to the browbone in the innermost third of your eye)
Kat Von D Shadow in Bukowski (middle third of the eye, above the crease to just below the browbone)
Kat Von D Shadow in Bellbottom (Outer third, above the crease)
Kat Von D Shadow in Morphine (Covering the "skin primer up to the brows)
Tokidoki in Candy Cane (covering Morphine)
Lash Primer- Diorshow Primer
Mascara- Lancome Oscilation mascara in gunmetal

(close up on the eye- Ignore the rogue eyeliner in the inner corner of my eye.)

Product Review: Kat Von D True Romance Palette- Truth

2011-08-01T00:32:00.000-04:00

I got this palette in the Kat Von D sale at Sephora as well, although I bought this one online. I'd been looking at it on the website, and I just couldn't get over how pretty it looked. I'm a total sucker for purples and greens, so I was pretty excited about it..... that is until I got it in the mail.

(Left to right- Sugar Skull, Long Distance, Snake Eyes, Finland, Prayer, Galeano, Rehab, Sister)

The colors are so light! there are 7 powder shadows, and one cream shadow, like most of the other True Romance Palettes. The problem is most of the colors are so light in this palette that they don't even show up on me!

Sugar Skull- White with a green duochrome- makes a nice highlight color
Long Distance- Chartreuse shimmer with a gold duochrome- has decent pigmentation
Snake Eyes- Medium green shimmer- Not a ton of pigmentation, but it is pretty.
Finland- Shimmery aqua cream shadow- The most pigmented on the green side.
Prayer- Matte dark wine- The most wearable shadow in the entire palette. It has the most pigmentation.
Galeano- Lavender shimmer- Super pretty, but barely pigmented at all. I was really bummed, because I was pretty excited about this color.
Rehab- Light brown shimmer- Pretty, but doesn't have a ton of pigmentation.
Sister- Matte pink-ish peach- Like most of this palette, it's pretty, but it barely shows up on my skintone.

Swatches: (top- no primer. bottom, KVD high voltage eye primer in Skin)

(Left to right- Sugar Skull, Long Distance, Snake Eyes, Finland)

(Left to right- Prayer, Galeano, Rehab, Sister)

Overall impressions- I was really disappointed in this palette, because it looked so pretty on the website, but when it came time to go on my eyes, it was so light that you could barely tell I was wearing eyeshadow. Most of the colors look good as highlight colors, but I found it tricky to craft a single wearable look out of the entire palette. If you like pastels, this palette might work well for you, but I found it to be a bit too bland for my tastes (or the pricetag)

Product Review: Kat Von D True Romance Palette- Angeles

2011-08-01T00:09:00.000-04:00

I got this palette during the Kat Von D sale a couple weeks ago at Sephora. I'd bought a few other KVD palettes, and I liked them, and the colors on this looked really pretty so I figured for $24, it was worth a shot.

(Left to right- Venus, Leather. Specimen, Rehab, Peggy, Bukowski, Bellbottom, Morphine)

It comes with 8 shadows- 7 powder, and one cream. One half is warm tones and the other half is cool.
Venus- Shimmery coppery brown with hints of orange. Very pretty and pigmented
Leather- Matte chocolate brown- I use this color to do my brows in.
Specimen- shimmery light brown- not crazy pigmented, but pretty
Rehab- a shimmery peach- pretty, but rather similar to my skintone, just shimmery
Peggy- light teal with a gold duochrome- nice pigmentation, and a really pretty shade
Bukowski- medium teal with a blue duochrome- a bold color with a lot of pigmentation.
Bellbottom- Medium blue with a darker blue duochrome
Morphine- White cream shadow with a blue and green duochrome- makes an excellent base and highlight color

Swatches: (first row is without primer, second one is with the Kat Von D High Voltage Eye Primer in Skin)

(Left to right- Venus, Leather, Specimen, Rehab)

(Left to right- Peggy, Bukowski, Bellbottom, Morphine)

Overall thoughts: This palette has some pretty colors, but most of them aren't ones that I'd wear every day. That being said, there are enough different looks you can get out of this particular palette that it is worth the price. With a lot of the Kat Von D Palettes, each half doesn't really mix together very well, but most of these colors look very good together.

Product Review: Hard Candy Fox in a Box- Smooth Talker

2011-07-31T19:19:00.000-04:00

I bought this on a whim when I was at wal-mart, because it looked really pretty. I am never too sure about Hard Candy products, because they're either really awesome, or really terrible. I decided to take a chance on it because I liked the colors in it.

The product comes in a box (Obviously, with a name like "fox in a box"), and it has a little brush on the inside. I threw the brush out, because it's tiny, and it's kind of stiff.

The consistency is smooth, but when you put it on the brush, you get a ton of product. It looks nice on, but there is a lot of fallout, so make sure you tap the brush off first!

The end result is a subtle orangey-peachy glow.

Product Review: Maybelline Great Lash- Colors

2011-07-31T18:02:00.001-04:00

Maybelline Great Lash mascara has been around for a long time. In fact, it's one of the best-selling mascaras of all time. I've been a longtime fan of it, even though it's not necessarily the best mascara out there, because it does everything well, and for $4, with enough coats of it, you'll end up with some pretty awesome lashes. So when Maybelline released two limited edition colors, Green Envy and Teal Appeal, I had to try them out.

Formula-wise, they both have the exact same formula as all the other Great Lash mascara, which is nice. It gives decent volume, holds a curl reasonably well, and adds some length, all without giving you crunchy, spidery lashes.

As far as the colors go, the color is pretty subtle. If you were looking for a very noticeable, bright pigment, you won't find it here, but you will get a nice, decent subtle pop of color. Green Envy is a foresty green, and Teal Appeal is a bold, but not fluorescent teal.

(Left- Green Envy, Right- Teal Appeal)
Overall, if you're already a fan of Great Lash, you'll like the colors, but if you're not, these probably aren't spectacular enough to change your mind. At the low price of $4, they're the best colored mascaras you could probably get.

Product Review: Tokidoki Prisma Lip Gloss

2011-07-27T00:41:00.000-04:00

First off, let me say, these are the most difficult products on the face of the earth to photograph, so these will not do it justice whatsoever, they're really pretty!

I bought Bullets (left) and Rocketeer (right) online for $5 each from Sephora. I had never tried any Tokidoki lip products, but I positively love all their other products that I'd tried, and these were too cute for me to pass up.

The glosses feature a tokidoki character in a snowglobe-like top without the water. Seriously, Tokidoki, why must you make such irresistibly adorable products?!?

Bullets

Rocketeer

The formula is a lightly pigmented sheer blueberry flavored gloss. It goes on smooth, but it has a slight bit of stickiness to it, although not enough to bother most of the sticky gloss haters out there. The flavor is pleasant without being overpowering. The main difference between this and other glosses is the applicator. It's a flexible almost silicone-like paddle. It's kind of a different transition from the typical brush tips or sponges, but it doesn't bother me.

Bullets:
this one goes on almost completely clear on me, so there's not much to write about. It's a nice clear-ish gloss, but that's about it.

Rocketeer
This one looks like it would be super dark, but it goes on sheer, so it just has a bit of what Sephora describes as a "sheer deep black red" tone to it. It's pretty, but again, nothing terribly remarkable. The gloss formula is pretty long lasting, so you'll get a quality color, but if you have strongly pigmented lips, it probably will come out pretty clear on you.

Overall, These glosses weren't bad for the $5 I paid for them. If I'd paid their original $15 retail, I probably would have been disappointed though. I'd say pass on them, unless you're a serious Tokidoki collector like I am.

Product Review: Kat Von D High Voltage Eye Primer

2011-07-26T23:31:00.000-04:00

I bought one of the Kat Von D "Get the look" kits from Sephora on my epic birthday trip that Kaye Eh and I went on. I'd been coveting it for awhile, because I really wanted the palette, and I was curious about these primers. Finally, I broke down and bought it as a birthday gift. The kit came with both the "skin" and "smoky" colors (there is also a shimmery beige called "stellar" which I don't have).
Here's my thoughts on them in general:

The formulas on both are kind of thick, and it makes it a bit hard to work with. The wand also pulls out a lot of product. If you put it on with the wand, and don't blend it, it will take forever to dry, or you will end up with smudges or creases, so you definitely want to blend it with a brush or a sponge, or even your finger.

look at all the product that comes out!

Skin:
This is the one I would use most often. It is a bit of a strong color, so one downside is that with light shadow colors, you have to be a bit heavy-handed to cover it up- at least on me, because I'm pale, and it's definitely more yellow-toned than my skin is. The upside is, it brings out the subtleties and duochromes in a lot of the lighter shadow colors. It has a lot of coverage, so it definitely makes your shadows look very bold, which is nice.

Smoky:
I like the idea of this primer, but in practice, it has a couple downsides. First is, you can't use it all over your eye, unless you want to look like you have a black eye. So because of that, when I use it, I have to also use another primer color for the highlight area under my brows. That is slightly inconvenient. The other problem is that it's a lot more noticeable when you make mistakes. You have to take care to make sure you have the same shape of it on both eyes, or you'll end up with Very different eyes. What I do like about it is that it brings a whole new layer of depth to colors. Lighter colors instantly turn sultry, and dark colors just get richer and have more depth.

Swatches:

(top- skin, Middle- no primer, bottom- smoky... Left to right KVD in Rehab, KVD in Bellbottom, KVD in Babe, KVD in Cholita, Smashbox eye brightening quad orange color)

Overall:
While these primers aren't the best primers I've ever used, I do think they're pretty good quality products. They're good it you wear a lot of bold colors. If you do a lot of neutrals and more demure looks, you could probably skip these for a different brand, but the formulas on these are long-lasting, and are overall pretty good, but just a bit harder to work with than some other primers on the market.