Five by Five

Benefit "Hervana" Powder

2012-01-03T18:12:00.000-08:00

I've been a big fan of Benefit's Coralista blush for a long time now and when I saw Hervana, I knew it was something I wanted. Stat.

I find the the way Benefit does blush--in boxes--to be very appealing. I like that there's no fall out when you're swiping your brush.

It comes with a little brush and a mirror inside the top. I actually don't mind these brushes either. I know the quality of brushes that come with a product is sometimes questionable and while these aren't amazing, I find them to be soft enough and usually use them because it's so convenient.

Love the swirl of colors... Isn't it pretty?

Finger swatches of darker and lighter colors.

And an arm swatch... This is very subtle on me as you can tell. I had to build the powder to get the heavy swatch and then next to it (to the left), and I'm not sure how noticeable it even is, is a blended out swatch. I like subtle blushes a lot, actually. It's better for me to have one you need to build a little than a highly-pigmented one that I make a mess with.

And lastly, here is a shot of the powder after a swirling of the brush and my fingers... The colors stay separately intact.

Did anyone pick up this blush? It's available at Sephora and on Benefit's site. It costs $28.

Requiem for Some Makeup

2012-01-02T17:10:00.000-08:00

I'm a bit ashamed to say that I hold onto old makeup, gross brushes and empty containers (none of them being used, just sitting around) far too long. Today I was doing a bit of cleaning and I was living out of my travel makeup roll for awhile but now that is over and I chose (for some reason) to share with you the items that didn't make it.

bareMinerals Mineral Concealer I didn't seem to review this item for some reason but I did use it all up (a long time ago). I would be happy to do a full review if anyone was interested but the short and sweet version: nice enough but not enough coverage for me.

Physicians Formula Mineral Wear Correct Conceal Trio (The "highlight" tube.) I didn't review this product either but it's a three-in-one concealer where you use the different little bottles to "correct," "cover," and "highlight." I never used the highlight but held onto it long after I threw away the other two. (Again, if you want a review, drop me a comment!)

Random Awful Brush I had had a couple of these brushes from a mysterious set that had neither brand nor a place of origin that I could remember. Scratchy and cheaply made; what was I even doing with this?

Sephora Concealer Brush This was the first brush I ever bought! Aw. It's a Sephora brand brush that came with a sticker on it that left sticky residue on the handle so I stuck some address labels on there because I'm classy like that. I had no problems with this brush but I never use a brush for concealer and it had gotten kind of gross at the bottom of the overstuffed pocket I found it in. Time to let go.

MAC Haute & Naughty Mascara I keep mascara much, much longer than I should. This one wasn't very old in comparison to other mascaras I have laying around but it also always kind of gooped out of the tube and made a mess and annoyed me from day one. I really liked the idea of two different brushes in the same tube but this guy could have used a better formula. I bought for the concept and the packaging and I'm not apologizing for that.

Amazing Cosmetics Concealer with missing top... I reviewed this here. Luckily I lost the top close to the end of the product but I never did find said top. Held onto that tube for dear life though.

Boi-ing Concealer This is really old because I haven't used this kind of concealer in quite some time. I always used up any pot of these I had though... All the way to the point where I was desperately scraping at the ring of concealer left at the very end.

Ahh feels good to get rid of stuff. Also, I found several lipsticks and eyeshadows I hadn't seen in awhile in the big clean-up.

Five by Five Comeback (Oh and Also a Tiny Bit of Makeup)

2012-01-01T13:37:00.000-08:00

ACK!

Okay, so I started this blog, I kept up with it very consistently and then I dropped the ball. I thought about throwing up a reason on here time and time again but that seemed pointless so I just waited until I felt like updating again and I finally do. I kinda went through a rough spot (personally speaking) and for awhile makeup was the last thing on my mind. I won't get into anything any more than that. I'm feeling better. It's a new year. I'm buying makeup again. I'm reading about it. Blah, blah.

So, hello again!

The first thing I'm going to post is the small little haul I made after taking my makeup hiatus. Not a big deal but it was so nice to get a package in the mail again after having been very, very, very broke for a long time.

I purchased these items from Ulta.com. Ulta's website often gives me issues but I love how you can use PayPal.

Pictured:

Essence gel eyeliner in "Midnight in Paris"

Benefit "Hervana" blush

NYX lipstick in "Margarita"

So just a tiny little haul but it really lifted my spirits at the time. Do any of you have Hervana? I haven't used it in a look yet, only swatched.

To wrap this up... I'm glad to be back and I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season!

Pop Beauty Sweet Goodmorning Kiss Lip Exfoliator

2011-09-30T13:19:00.000-07:00

Hello! Wow, it's been awhile, I know. I wanted to take a short break and a short break turned into a really long break to the point I was asking myself if I wanted to keep doing this. As it turns out, I do. As I was taking the photos for today's review, I fell right back into the process comfortably and I think stepping away was just what I needed. I was mostly stepping away from the internet, not so much from this blog specifically. Also, I haven't had the money to buy any new makeup or beauty products so that was definitely hindering me too. It will continue to hinder me seeing as I still don't have a job but that just means I'll have to improvise and work with what I have. Okay. That being said... Let's get back to business here.

I bought this Pop Beauty sugar scrub lip exfoliator "pen" because I really liked the idea of having the product in a tube that you could apply to your lips without the direct use of fingers. I reviewed one of Lush's lip exfoliators and while I do really like their little jars of sugary goodness, it does get a little messy so you have to use it over a sink or something.

So this product includes sugar, shea butter and vitamins and works by twisting the bottom to disperse a bit of product and then rubbing the applicator on your lips in a circular motion.

This product is clear and the applicator is only pink on mine because I tried this on my lips while I still had some lipstick on (why, I don't know, dumb move). The little applicator tip is soft and would make more sense to me if it were a bit rougher. I am not adamant about exfoliating my lips so I tend to wait too long and thus it's harder to get the job done. The reason I mention this is because this pen doesn't do a terribly great job at exfoliating lips that are in serious need of exfoliation. What would happen is it would sort of "unhinge" the excess skin so that it was really noticeable how much was there but it wouldn't do the job of completely removing the dry skin. Every time I used this product I ended up having to resort back to my Lush lip scrub to finish the job.

Now, when I would manage to exfoliate as often as I *should*, using this product was a nice treat for my lips as it's a bit like a grainy lip balm that made my lips feel really soft but not sticky.

If you've ever used the Lush lip scrubs, you know that they taste really sweet (and, to me anyway, pretty yummy). This sugar pen doesn't taste bad but it doesn't taste particularly good either... Just like if you were to lick your lips after using a normal gloss. I couldn't really detect any smell from this pen, so if you're looking for a tasty, yummy smelling lip scrub, this might not be for you. But if you're good at maintaining exfoliated lips, it is handy and there's no mess.

You can find this on Amazon.com for $14.95 whereas Lush scrubs go for $8.95. As far as I'm concerned, I'm sticking with my (slightly messy) Lush scrub for now.

Redken Shine Brilliance Shine Flash 02 Glistening Mist

2011-08-21T09:31:00.000-07:00

Ok the first thing I want to say about this product (which I received in sample form from July's Birchbox) is that "brilliance" is misspelled. I googled this product to see if maybe Redken had purposely misspelled it for some strange reason but I couldn't find anything that said "Shine Brillance" so... Smooth move, Redken.

Moving on!

This mist is supposed to add shine to your hair while remaining "lightweight." I've tried this spray a couple of times now and my initial thought about it is that I really don't feel compelled to ever buy the full-sized product.

So I was a little confused about the numbering system that they use with all of their styling products but it has a little key on the back of the bottle and on Redken's site, you can see the whole range of different products that are all numbered from 01-26. The numbers pertain to the level of "control" you get from any given product; intuitively, one being the least amount of control and 26 being the highest. I think what threw me was the fact that I don't expect a product like this, that boosts shine, to have any level of "control"--it seems irrelevant to me but whatever...

Moving on (again)!

When using this mist, I would brush my hair and then spray it all over, making sure to hold it as far away from my hair as possible so that it wouldn't be sprayed overly concentrated on any one spot. Did it add shine? Well, I think I noticed a slight change. Because it kind of tames frizziness to some extent, it does make my hair look a tad bit shinier but the effect isn't drastic.

It has a scent and it's pretty distinct and a bit more over-powering than I'd like. It doesn't smell bad per se but the scent is a little chemical-y and I could see it being an issue if you're sensitive to fragrance. The smell does fade so it's not as if you're stinking things up all day but even so, I think I'd prefer no scent at all or a milder version of it.

As far as it being lightweight... I agree that it doesn't weigh my hair down. It didn't make it feel like I had a lot of product in my hair or anything like that which is saying something because most of the time if I'm using anything, it's a small spritz of hair spray because so many products do make my hair feel greasy or dirty which, obviously, I hate. Still... That being said, spraying anything on my hair is kind of a turn-off for me. I hate adding any hair product unless it's absolutely necessary and usually that's never the case in my opinion.

So all in all, this is kind of one of those beauty products that just seem overly superfluous and unnecessary. It doesn't do anything bad to my hair but the good that it does is outweighed by the fact that the effects are so small.

I had a bit of a hard time finding this product online to buy but Birchbox's site says that a full-sized bottle costs $17 for 4.4oz and I'd assume you could find it wherever Redken is sold which is most drug stores, Target, etc.

Suave Professionals Shampoo for Dry or Frizzy Hair

2011-08-14T12:59:00.000-07:00

I was at the drug store the other day and I needed to pick up some new shampoo. I kept remembering that Suave commercial where the hair stylists are using "unknown" products and they're loving it and then they find out it's Suave and they're all surprised and their opinions are changed forever and blah blah blah. Plus, this ginormous bottle of shampoo (32 oz) was only three-something and it is a huge bottle, I have a hard time picking it up with one hand in the shower sometimes, haha.

I chose the one for dry or frizzy hair and I've been using it for several weeks now.

I am quite pleased with this shampoo! I don't find that many shampoos give me crazily drastic results and I wouldn't say this one does either BUT it definitely tames my frizziness to a certain extent and makes my hair really super soft and it doesn't weigh it down.

This line of Suave Professionals shampoos and conditioners comes in four different varieties: Sleek (the one I bought for dry or frizzy hair), Volumizing, Humectant (for dry hair) and Color Protection.

I didn't buy the conditioner to go with it but I am interested in trying it out. I'm happy with this purchase as it does well for my hair, it comes in a large volume of product and it's very, very well-priced.

Suave is available almost everywhere and the price for this 34 oz bottle of shampoo seems to range somewhere between $1.50-just under $4.

Have you tried out any of these shampoos yet? What's your opinion or experience with Suave products?

Milani "True Black" Eye Pencil

2011-08-04T10:31:00.000-07:00

These days money has been tight and I'm rediscovering my drug store's cosmetic aisle in search of cheaper prices for my makeup staples, especially; the things I re-buy over and over... Such as, in this case, black eyeliner. Based on a recommendation from Tiffany of Will Work for Makeup, I picked up a Milani eye pencil to try out.

I've used this pencil a few times now (my usual pencil eyeliner of choice is Urban Decay's 24/7 liners) and I must say that I'm pretty impressed. I'm not sure I can say that these are exactly as smooth as the UD pencils but they are of good quality none the less. I don't always do the trick of lightly pulling your eyelid tight to apply liner but it does kind of have to be that way with this one... It doesn't tug per se but it kind of sticks a bit if there's too much give to your eyelid/waterline... But this is easily overcome by lightly pulling the skin of your eyelid so that you get a taut area for application.

I mostly wear black eyeliner and this pencil is black enough for me, smooth enough for me and it managed to stay in place through a whole day of wear. I'd definitely recommend this pencil to those on a budget or not.

These pencils cost about $4 or $5 and are sold at most drugstores, Meijer, Drugstore.com, Amazon... They're readily available is what I'm getting at here.

Do you have a favorite drugstore eyeliner?

Revlon ColorStay Liquid Makeup

2011-08-02T13:27:00.000-07:00

For at least the past couple of years I've been going up and back between Makeup Forever liquid foundations and have been pretty happy with them. However, a few weeks ago, my skin was going so crazy I had to find and visit a dermatologist. It's at least worth noting here, because of the mere probability of it, I was surprised that the one I finally decided to go with was one that I really liked. I don't like doctors, usually, and I was surprised to learn just how much I liked my new dermatologist. Anyway, let me get to the point... She had me run down my current skin care routine including cleansers, moisturizers and makeup. Then, she basically told me to trash all that and gave me a new list of products to buy. "Get rid of the hope," she told me--throwing me a pun after I said I used Philosophy's Hope in a Jar moisturizer--"you don't need it."

So, on her recommendation, I immediately made a trip to the drug store (a place I had been avoiding for years now) and bought a new kind of makeup (among some other things). She told me to pick up Revlon's ColorStay liquid makeup so I chose the shade that looked right (Golden Beige, in my case) and got a bit of a thrill from the price tag. I'd been spending $40 for the same amount of makeup that now cost me $13. A definite plus given my current financial state, which isn't good.

I've been trying to go without makeup on most days while my skin fixes itself, with the help of my new regimen. But I've given this new makeup a few goes, including wearing it in severely hot and humid weather...

... And I'm very happy to say that I'm pleased with the cover and the wear time. Even in the hot hot heat.

I'd say this is probably medium coverage and buildable. The bottle says it's for normal to oily skin. It is pretty lightweight so I don't feel like I have a ton of thick product on my face and although I do get a little shiny throughout the wear time, it's minimal which is about as good as it gets for my oily skin I think. I do a little blotting throughout the day here and there and it's manageable. The formula is oil-free and hasn't caused any new breakouts.

All in all, I'm thrilled. It had been a long time since I've used a drugstore foundation (having less than stellar luck in the past) and so I'm surprised and impressed. Great job, Revlon!

I paid $12 or $13 for this at Walgreens, but it's available at other drugstores, Target, Wal-Mart, Meijer... According to Google it seems to vary a bit in price the lowest being $9.99.

Has anyone else tried ColorStay? I'd like to hear your experience with it, too.

Tangle Teezer

2011-07-24T10:56:00.000-07:00

After reading several very positive reviews on the Tangle Teezer hair brush, I knew I had to try it for myself so I ordered the purple one and have been using it for a couple of weeks now and just let me say to begin with: this baby works!

Here are a few shots of the plastic box that it comes in...

It claims to detangle hair effortlessly and increase shine. It also notes that you can use it on wet or dry hair which is one reason to love it alone. I have long hair and it can often become a tangled mess. My sister lovingly refers to it as "The Rat's Nest" (which is often literal since I have pet rats that like to snuggle up on my shoulder in my hair--and sometimes they get stuck in there, haha!). Anyway, washing my hair often causes an incredibly tangled mess once my hair dries. As does wearing it up in a messy bun on the top of my head. So being able to brush my hair right out of the shower is important to me and I wasn't able to do that with a normal hairbrush less I incur breakage.

I haven't noticed a huge difference in shine, but that doesn't get me down, my hair is already pretty shiny.

I tried this out immediately on dry hair and I was able to brush my hair from root to tip without any painful tugging--it really did glide through my hair effortlessly. Next, was to try it on wet hair--same outcome... Detangled easily without pain. It also collects much less hair than a normal brush. When I would use my old brush, I'd lose so much hair every time and with the Tangle Teezer, the loss of hair is very minimal.

When my hair is extra tangly, I find that you have to brush through a couple of times to get it all detangled again but it still doesn't tug roughly or pull out lots of hair.

I'm a true Tangle Teezer convert! Sooo happy with this little brush that's shaped to fit very nicely in the palm of your hand.

The plastic bristles are two lengths and it alternates longer and shorter rows of bristles.

The Tangle Teezer website shows all the different colors and you can choose the original size or the compact version that comes with a little cover which would be good if you want to throw it in your bag and take it with you. The site also notes that you can find these at Sally Beauty Supply Stores (if you're in the U.S.). I bought mine from Amazon for a very reasonable $9.50... And this brush is worth at least three times that in my opinion.

Milani Baked Blush in "Corallina"

2011-07-16T11:46:00.000-07:00

I'm kind of a sucker for corals and when I was perusing the drugstore for new makeup, I found this blush by Milani. It's a bright, fun coral and it packs a lot of pigment with a little bit of shimmer. I used to avoid shimmer in blushes at all costs but I'm warming up to it as long as it's not a messy glitter bomb.

The lighter shades disappear once you've swirled it together a bit. All these photos were taken pre-swirl.

A tiny applicator comes with it and can be stored within the packaging, under the blush.

Swatched and Blended. Taken with Flash.

Swatched and Blended. Taken in Sunlight.

Milani's other blushes are also very pretty shades--have you guys picked any of these up?

July 2011 Birchbox

2011-07-13T20:32:00.000-07:00

I received my second Birchbox today. This one was put together with the help of Cynthia Rowley. I'm not sure what she did besides design a sleeve to go over the box but it is a pretty sleeve. Once you slide it off, it looks like the other boxes. &Here's what's inside this month...

July 2011 Birchbox Items

The first sample is .58oz of Ahava Mineral Hand Cream "loaded with Dead Sea minerals."

Ahava Hand Cream for All Skin Types

Next is a 2.1oz spray can of Redken Shine Brillance. It says "a must for all Cynthia's runway shows, this weightless spray gives hair a brilliant finish."

Then there's 1oz of Purity cleanser by Philosophy which I've used before (and reviewed here).

A sample of Zoya's "Shay" nail polish from the Touch Collection. I wasn't thrilled with this collection from the swatches I've seen and I wouldn't buy a full-sized bottle but it is pretty for a nude polish. This is a smaller bottle than the full-sized Zoyas.

Lastly there's a Kind fruit and nut bar (Almond & Apricot) which Cynthia says are her "favs! I always have one in my bag just in case." These bars are all natural and free of wheat, gluten and dairy.

I tried the bar and it's pretty good... Tastes very healthy but it's still enjoyable. One bar contains 190 calories and 11g of fat--which kind of blew me away--as one Snickers bar contains 220 calories and 10g of fat.

Did you get a July Birchbox? Or have you tried any of these products? I think I'm most interested in giving the Redken spray a try.

AcneFree Therapeutic Sulfur Mask

2011-07-12T14:11:00.000-07:00

I bought this product because I a) wanted a sulfur mask and b) didn't want to spend an arm and a leg on the more expensive brands. I've been using this now on a semi-weekly basis for over a month or two.

It's different from other masks I've used in that it directs you to massage it into your skin for 2-3 minutes until the mask turns from a creamy beige to a light blue. To be honest, I get really impatient even though it's just a couple of minutes. Like George says on an episode of Seinfeld, "it's a tough minute. It's like waiting in the shower for the conditioner to work." So I usually would work it into my skin for about a minute instead. It has these little exfoliator particles (not many, though) that tinge the mask blue once you've kind of broken them open so to speak by rubbing it in. The directions say to leave it on for 10 minutes but I rarely time it and just rinse it off once it's gotten hard and dry

Sometimes it is hard to tell with products if they're doing their job or not considering all the other products you use alongside it. With this mask, I barely noticed any effect whatsoever. My face was dry (but not dried out) and clean feeling after washing this off but that's about the extent of it--that I could notice, anyway.

Ideally a mask like this would shrink any blemishes I have (and I've had plenty the past month or so) and help keep me from getting oily and shiny the next day. From what I could tell, it didn't change the appearance of my face at all and I was just as oily the next day as I would be without using the mask.

So I'm disappointed in the performance and I've given it many opportunities to improve my skin and it's failed me. Luckily it's only about $7 for 1.7oz of product so it's not as if it set me back.

You can find this mask at Walgreens, Amazon and Drugstore.com (and perhaps other drugstores as well, I'm not sure). It seems to get mixed reviews but I personally wouldn't recommend it. There's nothing particularly bad about it, there's just nothing great about it, either.

Kiehl's Ultra Facial Oil-Free Lotion

2011-07-10T10:48:00.001-07:00

I received this Kiehl's facial lotion in my June Birchbox and I've been using it as a nighttime moisturizer. It is formulated for normal to oily skin types.

Kiehl's says that it is a lightweight moisturizer that eliminates excess oil for a shine-free appearance. It deeply conditions skin and restores its moisture barrier.

After removing makeup and washing my face at night, I slap some of this on before climbing into bed. I'd say that it absorbs pretty quickly for the most part but I do find that if I lay my cheek on my pillow, even after letting it soak in, the pillow case sort of sticks to my face, which I don't like.

I don't find that it makes me any less oily than I would be with any other moisturizer, which is disappointing since I fight a major battle with the oil on my face.

When I wash my face the next morning after use, I can still feel the remnants of this lotion on my face. It's not incredibly noticeable but I definitely feel it when I splash water on my face... It feels slippery, like I'm washing off a layer of oil, despite it boasting a "non-greasy" formula.

I also dislike the smell of this product--this is the worst aspect of it, in my opinion. The first three ingredients are Water, Glycerin and Alcohol denat. and the smell is a bit strong and a little alcohol-ish. It smells too chemically to me, I like my moisturizer to smell natural or gentle and this doesn't do it for me.

The consistency of the lotion is nice enough, it doesn't feel heavy or light but somewhere in between.

All in all, I dislike this product for the most part. I definitely wouldn't buy a full-sized version. It's not as if this lotion does anything bad to my skin but it doesn't help much, either. If you have oily skin, I don't think this is a great product for you. Slightly dry skin may benefit more but I can't attest to that 100% because my skin is far from dry.

You can find this product and other Kiehl's products at Nordstrom. The full sized bottle (4.2 oz) costs $24.50. I was a bit surprised to see that on the Nordstrom site, people gave it high reviews. But for me, this just isn't a great product.

What do you use as a nighttime moisturizer? I'd like to know because I need to resume my search of finding a good one for my oily skin.

Dermablend Professional Setting Powder

2011-07-05T13:18:00.000-07:00

I've been using this setting powder for awhile now and am ready to review it... I used to use Makeup Forever's HD Setting Powder, which is a pretty popular powder but it always killed me to spend $30 on less than half an ounce of powder so I stopped buying it and stopped using a setting powder altogether. Then I found myself wanting it back so I did a little searching (very little searching) and found this powder by Dermablend. With this powder you get a full ounce for $22--so it's cheaper AND you get more product.

This powder comes in three shades, although the original is meant for all skin tones, or so it says on the website. There is also a "cool beige" powder which can be used as a bronzer or to set makeup for more medium skin tones. And lastly there is a "warm saffron" powder for deeper skin tones. I just went with the original which is what you see pictured here. It's fragrance free and transparent once blended.

I find that Dermablend's powder works about as good for me as MUFE's HD powder. Dermablend is a talc powder and MUFE's powder is silica. I get a little of the Dermablend powder on my brush, tap it to get rid of excess and apply on top of my foundation. Neither of the two powders solved my oiliness problems but they both went on nicely and gave me a finished makeup look.

I haven't heard a lot about Dermablend so I kind of bought it from Amazon on a whim but I'm happy enough with the product, I just wish it lasted longer on my face because I still end up shiny.

I know that Costal Scents also makes a powder similar to MUFE's HD powder, though I've yet to try that one. You can find that one here--it's also 100% silica but MUCH cheaper. You can find MUFE's at Sephora and you can find Dermablend's on Amazon, Ulta.com and several other online retailers. I think when I go to replace this setting powder, I'm going to try the Costal Scent's version because that seems like the best deal to me and I've heard good things.

So, just to break it down:

Dermablend Setting Powder

Talc

$22/oz.

Makeup Forever HD Setting Powder

Silica

$30 for .35oz OR ~$85/oz!

Costal Scents Setting Powder

Silica

$4.75/oz

As soon as I buy the Costal Scents powder (which will be awhile since I have a lot of the Dermablend powder remaining) I will review that.

Do you use a different setting powder? I'd love to hear about it.

Essie Protein Base Coat

2011-07-03T09:39:00.000-07:00

I have issues with my nails chipping and splitting, like I'm sure most people do, so I decided to try Essie's Protein Base Coat. I've been using it for many weeks now--not always consistently--but I do use it whenever I paint my nails.

The base coat itself is a translucent milky white and it goes on clear, adding just a tinge of brightness to your nails.

It dries really quickly so it doesn't add a lot of time if you add this step to your manicure.

Here are my nails before and after using the base coat:

Naked Nails

Nails with Essie Protein Base Coat

You can see how it adds a bit of shine to your nails and helps ward off dullness. I actually really like the look of my nails with just the base coat.

Essie says that it "helps to strengthen and protect nails while leaving a smooth finish. Wheat protein enriches healthy nails for strength and elasticity. Protein Base Coat extends the duration of the manicure."

Since using this, I've noticed that my nails split less and chip less. My nails don't exactly feel any stronger but this product really does seem to fortify them and prevent those little splits and chips. It also keeps my nails from staining--I've had a lot of staining issues in the past but this product really helps a lot to keep polishes from leaving a stain. As far as extending the life of my manicure, I'm not sure I see a big difference there... It still tends to depend on what polish I'm using.

If you're looking for a new base coat, I'd recommend trying this out. You can find it at Ulta for $8.

Hard Candy Visibly Wet Shockingly Glossy Lip Pencil

2011-07-02T11:54:00.000-07:00

The Visibly Wet, Shockingly Glossy Lip Pencil by Hard Candy is quite a long name. Names aside, though, this is a pretty nifty lip pencil.

Normally I don't go to Wal-Mart but I was doing a CP for someone and ended up there anyway so I grabbed myself some Hard Candy since I probably won't be going back any time soon.

The Visibly Wet lip pencils come in ten colors according to Hard Candy's website but I only saw three when I was looking.

I really am loving this product! It goes on sooo smoothly and it's INCREDIBLY pigmented. The shade I chose was "Babe":

Taken with flash

Taken in sunlight

They sharpen easily and you only need to apply a little bit to get rich, beautiful pigmentation. They aren't too sticky and have good wear--they last pretty well.

My one gripe is that it's incredibly soft so it gives way really easily and the tip of the pencil becomes a bit smooshed (is that a word, haha) when applied to the lips so it has the potential of being messy but I applied it lightly and didn't have any problems.

They also tend to transfer the color heavily to anything your lips touch. I kissed my boyfriend while I had it on and it looked like he'd put some gloss on.

Those points aside.. I highly recommend these, I have it on my lips right now to try it out and I can't stop looking at them in the mirror. Great color, great formula (even if it is a bit soft--it sort of has to be to glide on so nicely) and good price. You can find them at Wal-Mart for $6. I don't know of any other place that sells HC besides Wal-Mart--except eBay; I found a few on there.

June 2011 Favorites

2011-07-01T10:32:00.000-07:00

I've never done one of these monthly favorites posts but since I've been in a bit of a makeup rut lately, I've been grabbing the same products day after day. Here they are--my makeup basics & staples, so to speak.

Benefit's Coralista blush is my go-to blush. I even use the brush that comes with it. So quick, so easy, and a beautiful color blush. (Swatched in this post)

MAC's Hibiscus lipstick is a another go-to in my collection (that is also coral too, I love coral colors in the summertime). It's bright and beautiful. (Swatched in this post)

A new favorite of mine is Dermablend's Setting Powder. I used to use MUFE's famous setting powder but $40 a pop got to be expensive. Dermablend's works just as good for about half the price. You can find it on Amazon or Ulta.

Amazing Cosmetics Concealer has been good to me since my skin started freaking out--it helps me cover up anything and everything. (Reviewed here)

I go up and back with MUFE foundations. I have used HD and, pictured here, Mat Velvet. I like them both a lot and I'm not quite sure which one I like more. Right now, I'm using Mat Velvet and I love how it looks on.

Also pictured above is MUFE's Lab Shine gloss in M12 which looks brighter on my lips than it does in the tube. On my lips it's a cheerful red. (Swatched here)

And last, I have Urban Decay's Zero 24/7 Liner which is the only eye makeup I've been wearing these days other than a few swipes of mascara.

I just need makeup motivation to roll around to me again.

Small Missha Haul and Store Review

2011-06-27T10:55:00.000-07:00

Recently I did a small Missha haul--my first time at the Missha website. I had heard about their BB creams and wanted to try at least one of them and thought I'd write up a little review of my shopping experience.

First my haul:

- Travel size Vita BB Cream (7 vitamins to improve skin with continued use by calming redness)

- Speedy Solutions Anti-Trouble Patches (which I already did a quickie review of here.)

- Lucid Nail Care Shine Top Coat

- Nail Polish in "BE002"

- And as a first time customer, I got a full-sized Perfect Cover BB Cream as a free gift.

I was excited about the BB creams as I've never tried one before and heard pretty good things about Missha's brand when it comes to their BB's. So far, I've started trying out the Perfect Cover cream and I will be reviewing it soon.

As far as my experience ordering from Missha goes, I have no complaints. The products are (in most cases) very, very reasonably priced. The nail polish and top coat were both under three dollars each. The travel sized Vita cream was $8.99 for 20mL.

I received my items quickly and all were packaged safely. My one gripe was that they used those damn styrofoam peanuts which are a bit of a pain to deal with--but definitely a minor point!

There is free shipping for orders over $50 (and you could get quite a few things for $50) and comes with a free sample item to try.

Overall, I'm happy and would recommend this store to someone looking to try a new line or if you're interested in trying a BB cream.

Visit Missha to explore for yourself :) (Unfortunately, they only ship within the US, sorry international ladies.)

Missha Speedy Solutions Anti-Trouble Patches

2011-06-25T10:43:00.000-07:00

While I was perusing the Missha site for BB creams awhile back, I found these cheap "anti-trouble" acne patches for 50 cents for a small sheet. You get ten little clear patches on one sheet. When I had received the patches in the mail, I had just had the breakout of a lifetime so I had several pimples differing in size to try them on. What luck! Haha.

I put them on as instructed and went to sleep for the night... The directions say leave on for 8-12 hours and so you're probably going to want to use them while sleeping since that's a large chunk of time.

I figured since my breakouts were new and quite large that these patches would help them shrink in size and dry them out a bit... Well... I tried these for three nights and they didn't do anything to help me restore sanity to my skin.

Being as they were so cheap, I wasn't too disappointed but I'm sorry to say that these definitely did not work for me.

I'm going to do a Missha online store review soon--I got a few other products to try out including two different BB creams so check back soon for those (more promising) reviews.

Amazing Cosmetics Amazing Concealer (The World's Best)

2011-06-19T11:20:00.000-07:00

Today I'm going to review The World's Best Concealer! Haha, no, actually, it's Amazing Cosmetic's Amazing Concealer... But, it kind of is the best and it's the concealer I've used pretty religiously for a long time now.

There's several good things to say about this concealer so I'll just start with why I use it. It's got really good coverage and I know a lot of people may not need SERIOUS COVERAGE like I do, but there's got to be more like me who do, too. It's a liquid concealer that comes in a tube and the consistency is kind of sticky, I want to say, not so much that it's off putting but it stays really well once you've got it on. A little bit goes a LONG way and once you get it blended out, it looks really nice and covers really well. Even if you don't need serious coverage, it's still a great concealer and it's a *tad* bit heavier than other concealers I've tried but so worth it. And once I have it blended nicely, I don't think about it again so it's not like I constantly feel like my skin is weighed down.

It comes in a range of ten shades and you can buy the regular sized tube (.5oz) or you can buy "A Little Amazing Concealer" which is smaller at .2oz. Now, .2oz might sound like a tiny bit of product (it does to me, anyway) but I almost always get the little tube (only once have I gone nuts and bought the bigger one) and it lasts me a loooong time. The larger tube is $42 and the smaller is $28.

The one gripe I have about this, and it's probably more my fault than the product itself but when I get down to the end of a tube, I'm working at it to get some out and way too much comes out. I hate that. But I guess I just need to calm down with the squeezing. I like to squeeze out a little bit and do one area of my face that needs covering and then go from there so I'm only using a little bit at a time. If you do use too much, it will feel a bit tacky and heavy.

I blend with my fingers by patting it into place and it's always kind of amazing (haha) how much area a little bit covers.

a bit of concealer and a bit partially blended

I prefer to use this concealer with powder foundation and a setting powder or otherwise I'm putting a little too much liquid makeup on my oily skin but sometimes I do use it with a liquid foundation, depending on how my skin is acting and looking on a particular day. Either way, it stays on my skin alllll day with or without a primer.

You can find this concealer at Sephora and Ulta in both the smaller and larger tubes.

What's your holy grail concealer? I'd love to hear about it.

Laura Geller Blush -N- Brighten in "Honey Dipped"

2011-06-14T10:33:00.000-07:00

Now that I've had a chance to wear and swatch and play with my Laura Geller Blush -N- Brighten powder, I wanted to post about it. It was one of the items in my June Birchbox. I'd never used any Laura Geller makeup before, so it's always nice to get something totally new to try.

The shade I received was "Honey Dipped" which is a lovely sounding name, I think. To look at it in the pan, it's a little boring looking and it's especially boring looking in this picture because the photo didn't pick up the slight shimmer it has. However, I think the swatches are prettier:

In the Sunshine :)

It's a very pretty shade and very soft, silky and easy to blend. You can see the shimmer in the swatches better than you can in the other photo. I'm -not- a fan of shimmer (although, I've been dipping my toes in the shimmer pool these days) but this is really subtle and I didn't think "woah, shimmer mess!" when I looked in the mirror. Very, very subtle.

Taken with Flash

So I was happy with my shade and didn't even second guess anything until Laura sent me a link to her Birchbox post and I found it interesting that she had a different blush shade than I got (she received "Apricot Berry"). I guess that makes a lot of sense and all that they wouldn't send out a bajillion Honey Dippeds but I hadn't thought about it and I have to admit, I was suddenly a little jealous when I saw her blush and swatch because it just looks so much more exciting than my shade, haha!

Formula 10.0.6 So Totally Clean Deep Pore Cleanser

2011-06-11T09:15:00.000-07:00

Let me first start by saying that when I see something at a good price, I don't tend to look a lot further. I was in the market for a new cleanser and this baby was $5.99. Once I got it, I realized it wasn't a cleanser in the traditional sense but more like a cleansing toner. I wanted something I could slather onto my Clarisonic and this wasn't going to do the trick (as it's a thin liquid). However, I decided I would give it a test drive anyway and put my Clarisonic away for the time being.

The instructions read: "Apply to cotton pad and wipe face and neck. Do not rinse. Avoid the eye area."

The first thing I noticed once I started to clean my face was the smell. A quick check of the ingredients revealed denatured alcohol and it's strong. And I know a lot of people say you shouldn't use alcohol on your face... I'm not one to really worry about dryness because my skin is -never- dry so that isn't something that made me gasp and throw the product away but it is important to note and perhaps a good reason not to buy... The smell alone is a turn off, even if maybe the alcohol isn't.

I did as instructed and used a cotton pad. It easily removed a lot of my makeup but I wanted to do another wipe-down to see if it had removed it all... And it didn't. I did another and another and another and no I'm not exaggerating. This was the amount of makeup removed on the fourth try:

I'm going to continue to use this until I can pick up some more Purity cleanser (I like to use a simple cleanser to remove makeup before embarking on my actual skin care routine) but I wouldn't recommend this product to you guys. The smell, the alcohol, the need for repeated use... What's good here? Well, my skin did feel clean (and not dry or tight) once I'd ran through about five or six cotton pads--no joke--I wear quite a bit of makeup but come on...

Next time I spot a "deal," I'll do more research, I hope. And this only set me back $6... If you're so inclined, you could find it at Ulta.

Bliss Lemon & Sage Supershine Shampoo

2011-06-09T12:51:00.000-07:00

Today I have for you a quick & easy review of Bliss's Lemon & Sage Supershine Shampoo. I've been trying this shampoo out for several weeks now and I'm ready to share my findings.

Does it make my hair shinier? Yes and no... I've found that my hair does look shinier and well-nourished near the scalp but it doesn't do a ton for my dry & sometimes frizzy ends.

The directions on the back say to use generously and lather for 1-3 minutes. I usually will lather for less than this amount of time but I have tried going a minute. A full minute when I'm washing my hair tends to feel like an eternity but I'm sure that's just me being entirely too impatient.

I did not buy the conditioner to go with this because most of the time I skip conditioning anyway. It only wears my oily hair down more. That's not a comment about this conditioner but about conditioners in general.

Would I recommend this shampoo? Probably not and this is why... I love earthy scents more than the average person, I think but this shampoo has a woody scent that does not smell like fresh sage & lemon to me. It's not a horrible smell, I just don't care for it. Luckily, the smell doesn't stick with your hair and once it's dry, you're only left with a clean, fragrance-free smell. Still, if I'm going to be shampooing for any length of time be it one minute or less, I don't want to have to smell something I don't like. Period. However, maybe this smell is for you, I don't want to say that it's something horrific to be avoided, I think it's probably more of a personal preference kind of thing. So, if you're looking to pick this up, I'd give it a sniff first and see if it's a scent you want to deal with or not.

All in all, this isn't a bad shampoo. It does keep my hair looking shinier than it would using some other shampoos and overall my hair does look healthy but I won't be repurchasing mostly because of the scent and also because I'm on a mission to find a holy grail shampoo and this just isn't it for me so... Moving on...

You can find Bliss products at Sephora but I'm not seeing this shampoo on their website (but I have seen it in stores). To buy online, try Amazon. Bliss Lemon & Sage Shampoo retails for $18 which is another reason I'm not re-purchasing; it's not as though it's the cheapest product out there.

Sinful Colors in "Innocent" With OPI "Silver Shatter"

2011-06-08T10:56:00.000-07:00

A friend of mine sent this polish my way and I finally got around to using it. The formula was a little gloopy going on (which is to be expected in this humidity, I suppose) but it evened out nicely and dried quickly. I often nick or smudge my manis before they completely dry but I never had any problem with this one.

Taken With Flash

Then I added a layer of Opi's Silver Shatter polish... I was just over at Kizzy's blog talking about how I'm not a fan of crackle polishes--and for the most part, I'm really not--but I liked the look of the silver shatter from some reason and picked it up with one of the Pirates of the Caribbean polishes.

I mentioned on my Twitter that it was fun to see the shatter effect take place, even if I'm a little tired of seeing crackle manicures in general. I had to admit, it was pretty cool.

Natural Light (Shade)

Sinful Colors can be found at Walgreens, Meijer and various other stores and usually cost $1.99 per bottle. Opi's Silver Shatter I purchased from Amazon (for $6.99) and you can also find them wherever OPI is sold.

My First Birchbox (June 2011)

2011-06-07T09:30:00.000-07:00

I signed up for Birchbox what seems like ages ago (it was less than a month, though, obviously) and today I was thrilled to find my first box in the mail! I'm not going to do a photo post every time I get one but I did want to take pictures and post about my first box. Then of course I'll review the products too... Let me know if there's something you'd particularly like to hear about.

I came back into the house and announced to the boyfriend, "I got my first Birchbox!"

"What?"

Haha.

Without further ado... Let's look at what's inside... & For anyone who might not be familiar with this, a Birchbox is a monthly box of deluxe beauty samples delivered to your door.

Xen-Tan fake tanner, Kiehl's oil-free facial lotion...

Laura Geller Blush N' Brighten cheek powder, orange towelettes for cleaning up your hands and Kate Spade's "Twirl" perfume--I'm not a big fan of perfume so this will go in my sample bag to hand out in swaps. But as far as the other stuff goes, I'm excited to start trying them out! Especially the fake tanner--I was *just* about to buy my first fake tanner last night and then decided against it. So glad one came in the box!

Here's the included card with all the products and some explanations and prices for the full-sized versions.

Group shot!

I'm especially impressed with the Laura Geller powder--it seems to be full-sized to me or at least a very, very generous sample. The Xen-Tan and Kiehl's lotion are also pretty large and I assume the lotion in particular will last a while. I haven't played around with fake tanner so I don't know how much you use in one go but I'm going to have fun experimenting with it.

Anyone else get Birchboxes? Or if you have any opinions on any of the products, I'd love to hear about it.

The Birchboxes cost $10/month and you never know what you're going to get!