Makeup Geek Fantasy Foiled Eye-Shadow

I have a thing for mint green eye shadows.  They look great with my eye color.  Mint also just has this clean fresh look that I think I really end up longing for.  When I decided to give foiled eye-shadows another chance after not being impressed by Houdini and Mesmerized but liking In the Spotlight, I had to go for the mint green.

Makeup Geek

Makeup Geek Foiled Eye-Shadow in Fantasy is $9.99 for 1.8 grams of product that is in a refill pan that fits easily in Z Palettes.  It isn't tested on animals and made in the USA.

I'm bad at selfies

Right now this type of green is popping up in a lot of tutorials on YouTube.  It's generally used in the center of the lid, like I did in this terrible selfie on my birthday. I based my look on this one by Amy Macedo.  But recently similar looks by Manny MUA and Young Wild and Polished have shown up as well.

Fantasy

Fantasy is a beautiful silvery green with yellow undertones.  It has good pigmentation and unlike some of the other eye-shadows from the foiled collection, this applies well with a brush.  It has a buttery texture, which will need a primer if you have oily lids as it may crease other wise.

Frosty mint green

With a primer it is long lasting, I don't generally go sans primer, so I can't say how long it will last without this.  But with a primer it will last at least nine hours.  With a thicker one, like Mac's Painterly, it lasted longer than that on me.

This does not require wetting your brush or using a spray to give it a foiled look.

I do love this color and I think it is on its way to being a popular color for this season.  It doesn't look chalky like some of the others become.  I like how it can transfer into different seasons, depending on what you wear it with. I give it a thumbs up.

* I bought into my own Fantasy.  It didn't pop out of my dreams into reality.

ColourPop Juice Bar Lippie Stix

When ColourPop came out with the sheer line, I was "meh" about the whole idea.  But I had to try it,  I write a blog, so some sacrifices must be made ;)

No matching pencil 

Like the other lippies, ColourPop Lippie Stix Juice Bar is made in the US, vegan, gluten free, and not tested on animals.  It's $5.00 for 1 g of product.  It has the usual light vanilla scent.

Juice Bar

It comes in a simple white tube with a tip that has been designed to keep its shape.

 It's a cool toned berry pink color and it just looks juicy on the lips.  As a sheer formula, it doesn't have the pigmentation of some of the other colors, however it does have decent pigmentation.

Wash of color

It has a light, comfortable feel on the lips.  It feels moisturizing without being sticky.  It has coconut oil and vitamin e.  While it is moisturizing, it isn't highly moisturizing.  It isn't going to last as long as a matte or satin, but for what it is, it lasts about four hours.

It has a light shine and Juice Bar has a slight patchy application. It does work well for those days you don't want a strong lip and you just want something easy and pretty.  It's not perfect, but it has made me willing to try more colors.

* I got juicy all by myself.  No one offered me this with free candy or anything.

ColourPop Clueless Ultra Matte Lip

By now I think my love of Colourpop is pretty obvious.  I have issues and may need to be stopped.  When Colourpop came out with the Ultra Matte Lips, I was ambivalent.  They had such great matte lip products already, could they possibly improve their magic?

Ultra Matte Lip

The Ultra Matte Lips are more like a liquid lipstick rather than the usual formula.  I decided to give ColourPop Clueless Ultra Matte Lip a try because who doesn't need another dusty mauve rose in their lip life?

Clueless

The container feels sturdy and is a clear plastic.  It has a silver lid and trim.  The printing is the holographic print you see on the boxes.  It contains 3.2 g of product for $6.00, which is about half of what I normally pay for a liquid lipstick.  Which is on par with the usual low price point of Colourpop.

Doe foot close up

It has a hard doe foot applicator.  It is rather on the small side, which makes application quite easy.  It doesn't have a strong scent, but the scent isn't the normal vanilla.  It has a chemical scent.

 Like most of the Colourpop products, this is Vegan, not tested on animals, made in the US, and is gluten free.

Dusty mauve rose swatch

I did find the color description to be quite apt.  It would be very flattering on a medium toned warm skin.  But even on me, it's really pretty.  It's a nice neutral that will play well with some of the more dramatic fall eye looks I plan to play with.

It has a powdery finish and should be applied in a thin layer.  If you apply it thickly it may ball up.  If applied thinly it's also much more comfortable.  When applied in a thicker layer it will be more drying.  It is very long lasting.  As with other liquid lipsticks, you should make sure that your lips are in good condition, exfoliated, moisturized, and clean before applying this.

Overall, I do like this formula and I love this color.  I'm so sad that it's limited edition.  Colourpop just removed the Fern lippie and the Chipper Super Shock Shadow.  I love those two so, I'm pretty sad.  I'm thinking I need to buy more Toosti and Westie, because they're my lipstick friends.

* I got Clueless all by myself, although some might say that's a natural state ;)

Becca x Jaclyn Hill Shimmering Skin Perfector Champagne Pop

After trying Becca's Shimmering Skin Perfector in Moonstone I had blah-ish feelings about it.  It wasn't anything I was overly impressed by.  Which was quite sad as it was $38.00.  I have barely used any of it since that review and my opinion hasn't changed, even though Nikkietutorials loves the stuff.

When I saw that Jaclyn Hill was collaborating with Becca to create her own shade, I had mixed feelings about it.  Some of the Jaclyn Hill collaborations I've tried have been pretty much hype.  I decided to take the plunge anyways.  I'm a forgiving sort of woman.

Becca

Champagne Pop comes in a gold box with what looks like drops of water.  It's actually quite lovely.

Back of the Box

The back of the box is also gold with the water drops and Jaclyn's picture with a description of Champagne Pop.

It has a clear plastic shield over the product

Champagne Pop is .28 oz for $38.00.  At this time, it's considered Limited Edition.  The site lists it as "soft white gold w/ pinky peach undertones."  The former jeweler in me takes exception the the white gold part.  If it were white gold it would be white or silver.  Gold is alloyed with nickel to achieve the white gold color.  So, I think perhaps soft gold would be a better term, okay back on subject now that I have had my little tangent.

It has the same packaging as the other Shimmering Skin Perfector shades.  Hopefully that means they are considering removing the Limited Edition status in the future.

It is a very fine powder with a lovely shimmer.  It creates a peachy glow.  I was concerned that this would be too much for my skin, perhaps turning orange, however with a fluffy brush and a light application, on my fair skin it is a beautiful highlight.  Darker skin tones would be able to handle a more dramatic application.

Heavy swatch

If you like a subtle high light, this wouldn't be for you.  This is a punch in the face, hello strobing, high light.  It can work on fair skin if you're not over zealous in your application.  If you are lighter than me, it probably wouldn't work on you.  I might not be able to wear it in the winter.  Doesn't mean I won't try.  This will be much better on darker skin though and I can see why this is so popular right now.

Overall, I was impressed.  It makes my skin glow and provides a touch of warmth that really looks wonderful in the summer.  I like this just as much as my Ofra one that I was wearing every day before this.

* I popped my own Champagne Pop.  I paid for it using the logic that it was almost my birthday and I should have presents.

September 2015 Birchbox First Look

Birchbox is another $10.00 per month subscription box.  It has sample sized beauty items.  They have both men's and women's boxes.  The men's boxes are $20.00 and sometimes they make me jealous.  I really like their points system.  You receive 10 pts per review and 50 for referring friends.  100 pts is $10.00 in the Birchbox store and you can use it towards anything in their store.  Birchbox also includes a a card the describes the theme on one side and the products and the prices for the full sizes on the other.  This month's theme was a thank you to their subscribers.

This year Birchbox took a step out of their usual brown boxes and has had some very cute boxes.  Last month's was adorable, but there was that whole issue I mentioned in my Ipsy First Look.  Next month will give you a choice of two featured boxes with the theme of Breast Cancer Awareness or a selection of mascaras.  I was hoping for a Halloween theme, but Breast Cancer Awareness can play the trump card on that, it's pretty important.

Davine's

My first item was Davine's OI All in One Milk.  The full size is 4.56 oz for $16.00.  It also came with a bonus of the shampoo and conditioner in packets..  Davine's is an Italian brand that believes in creating the best products with as little impact on the environment as possible.  It is supposed to control frizz, detangle, moisturize, give shine, and heat protect.  It has a light herbal scent.

Tocca

I was also excited by the next product, Tocca Esfoliante da Corpo in Giulietta, I mean who doesn't love a body scrub in the autumn?  The full size is 7 oz for $32.00.  It smells delightful and has gritty texture that doesn't feel too harsh.  Because exfoliating is one thing, ripping off the next layer of skin and leaving scratches is another.  I really like this, but again, I hope not to fall in love with it at that price.

100% Pure

I like eye creams, especially in the colder months when occasionally that area dries out and can age me.  Which is not something I'm a fan of.  I was happy to see an eye cream in my box.  This one was the 100% Pure Organic Coffee Bean Caffeine Eye Cream.  The full size is $25.00 for 1 oz.  I haven't seen that it does much for dark circles but it does moisturize well.  

Anastasia

I have this exact sample from a Sephora kit.  It's the Anastasia Beverly Hills Perfect Brow Pencil which is $23.00 for the full size.  It has a good firmness for brows and the colors are very natural.  It's not exactly the Brow Wiz or the pomade, but it is good for a quick brow or for a brow beginner.

Montale

I don't know if Birchbox looked at my Favorites, but the Mondale Intense Café has been in there.  I have wanted to try it for quite some time.  The $120.00 for 50 ml is a little daunting though.  This smells like coffee and vanilla and roses.  It's delicious for the autumn.  I hate that I want it, because... well, that's a pretty penny.  

There were so many things I liked in this box.  I have to give it to Birchbox.  They tied up the numbers and we're now 4 to 4.

* I bought my own Birchbox, no one thought I should try a box on someone else's dime.

September 2015 Ipsy First Look

This month Ipsy's theme was Face Fashion.  Ipsy is a $10.00 a month subscription service.  You get four to five sample products.  There is a referral program where you earn points.  It usually costs 500 or 1000 points to get anything with your points, however it can be hard to get and to use your points.

Loved this months bag

Every month you get a bag with your samples.  Last months bag was super cute.  I have a thing for hounds tooth.  I had a Broke Woman issue last month with having to decide between things like paying bills and eating or having internet.  Guess which one I picked?

I still have the pics from last months bag, so if you require proof that last months bag was cute, I could post it.  Other than that, you'll have to trust me.  And enjoy this bag, because it's pretty cute too.

Acure

First in the bag was Acure Brightening Facial Scrub.  The full size of this is 4 oz and $9.99.  It has a very mild scent and is vegan, sulfate free, paraben free, petroleum free, silicone free, and cruelty free.  It has a grainy texture for a scub, so it doesn't feel too harsh.  It is thick and dark green, it's kind of amusing how gross it looks.  When you scrub with it, it looks like you put tea leaves all over your face, which would be the kelp.  I like a good scrub, so we'll see how this performs over time.

Naobay

There was also Naobay Oxygenating Cream.  The full size is 1.7 oz for $36.00.  It has rose hip oil and sweet almond oil.  It isn't tested on animals.  It doesn't have much of a scent and is a thick white cream.  It absorbs quickly and will be nice to have for the coming colder weather.  It does feel light weight and good for under makeup.

I'm not too into cream blush, but I'm not above giving one a chance.  This one was by Evelyn Iona and is in the color Ash.  It's apparently named after the founder and CEO's boyfriend, which is pretty cute.  The container is a little small and you can see where my nail decided to carve out a little piece of the action.  I'm not sure how big the full size product is, but it's $18.75 for the full size.  It's supposed to be good for sensitive skin, cruelty free, and vegetarian. $1.00 from every sale is donated to YWCA Canada.  It is a pretty color and blends out well, if you can get it out of the tiny little container.

 Next up was an item exclusive for Ipsy subscribers this month.  It is a trio of eye-shadows by Nyx.  There is a champagne, a bronze, and a black.  They are on the sheer side, but the colors are pretty.  The package has a cute black bow that you lift up on to open it.  There is a gram of each color.

The last item goes really well with the bronze shade in the trio.  I was very excited to see a color like this, it's wonderful for autumn.  It's J.cat Beauty's Waterproof Slide on Pencil in the color MOE107 Bronze.  I believe this is the full size and it's $3.99.  While this does swatch well, it doesn't apply to the eye area very well.  It tugs and doesn't deposit a lot of pigment.  This may be one that requires a little heat to help.

Overall, this was an okay bag.  I wasn't over the moon about any of the products although the bag was cute.  I guess it's all up to Birchbox now....

* I have my own Ipsy subscription that I pay for monthly.  No one sends me free bags.  Unless you count the grocery store when they deliver.

September 2015 Boxycharm First Look

As always this is an exciting time of the month.  I mean who doesn't love a big box of presents every month?  Boxycharm is one of the more exciting boxes.  For $21.00 a month you get four to five full size products.

The new box look

The boxes come with a card that shows the theme, (this month was Runway Ready) it shows the items you will receive, and the prices for the items.

Also included, pink paper worms

There is also a charm thing as rewards, but I have no idea how it works.  I also have to say that their customer service is swift and helpful.  I was double charged this month and they issued my a refund and were quick about it.  So, yay for that!

Coming up to Scratch

My first item were Scratch nail wraps.  The style I received was "Lacework," but I think that's what everyone else received too.  They are $12.00, for 16 wraps.  Which isn't too bad.  It does say to use within one month of opening.

Next up was a brush.  One of my favorite things to find in a box.  Granted, this isn't my favorite type of brush, I love the flat top kabuki if you were taking notes or something :)  I am still happy to have it for the time where I might need it.  It is the Vasanti Professional Foundation Brush.  This is a full size brush and is valued at $32.00.  It has a lovely pewter handle and silver ferrule.  It feels nice but still light weight.  The bristles are dense and quite soft but not super soft if you know what I mean.

Chella

I also received the Chella eyebrow defining gel.  This was also full sized and is $18.00.  It is clear, which is nice.  It is .21 oz.  It doesn't have any scent and it isn't supposed to leave any weird residue.

I was very excited when I saw in the sneak peaks that there would be a Tarte smolderEyes waterproof eyeliner.  Some got the thin one and others got the thicker one like I did.  It also said various colors.  I received the color, Fig, which I adore.  It's a great shade for autumn.  It's $22.00 for the full size, which this, of course, was.  It does last a long time and it has been living in my makeup bag since I got it.  I wonder what other shades people received?

Previse

The last regular item in my box was a full 2 oz Previse Skincare HydroMilk Hydrating Lotion, which is $48.00.  It has a spa-ish scent (yes, I made that word up, but I don't think I'm the first to make it up.  So no bonus points for me). It has antioxidants and hyaluronic acid.  My skin has been liking it.  For $48.00, I hope my skin doesn't fall in love with it.

At a value of $132.00 for $21.00 dollars, I think my return on investment was there for this box.  To add a little icing on the cake, they included a bonus item.

Kardashian Beauty

The bonus item was a sample size of the Kardashian Beauty Black Seed Dry Oil.  The full size is $16.49 for 3.0 oz.  It's supposed to be nourishing and make your hair shiny and smooth.  It was a nice bonus to receive.

* I pay for my boxes myself.  No one thought I should be Runway Ready for free.