E.L.F. Studio Blush Review and Swatches Part 1

If you have read some of my posts last month, you may know that I hauled quite a few beauty products when I went to the States. I have heard a lot of great things about the E.L.F. Studio Blushes so when I went to New Jersey I didn't waste time looking for these babies! I found these blushes at Target and bought 6 but thought to feature them into 3 separate posts.

For this post, I will be writing about the shades Tickled Pink and Candid Coral.

Company Description: The soft sheer texture blends into the skin for a silky finish. Designed to be worn alone or layered for more depth. Highlight your complexion with a subtle healthy glow!

Packaging: The packaging is very reminiscent of the NARS blush packaging except for the texture, E.L.F. has a matte texture while NARS has kind of a rubbery texture. Once opened, a mini mirror is revealed on the lid with a thin plastic film at the top of the blush itself.

Tickled Pink: is a very pale pink with a slight shimmer. Since I have a medium toned skin and this blush is pale, I have to put on about 3 layers of this blush to appear on me.

Here are some pictures of the product

And here is a swatch

Candid Coral - is a peachy - coral colour with fine golden shimmer. Since I think peachy - coral blushes look the best on me, I really enjoy wearing this blush for a natural looking glow.

Here are some pictures of the product

And here is a swatch

Overall: I do recommend the E.L.F. Studio Blushes for a number of reasons; 1) these blushes are velvety soft, not chalky at all and easy to apply, 2) they have decent shade selection for every skin tone, 3) their packaging is sleek and simple which can be easily stored in your make up bag, 4) the best part? they only cost $3.00 USD!

Have you tried the E.L.F. Studio Blushes? 

Urban Decay Naked Palette Review and Swatches

About 2 weeks ago, I received an email from Sephora that I am now a V. I. B. or "Very Important Beauty Insider" where a member spends a certain amount of money at the store and get exclusive rewards and special privileges. As an introduction to being a VIB, I received a 10% discount on my recent purchase and double the points on my account. So to take advantage of the discount, I finally bought one of the items on my Beauty Lemmings.

As someone who loves and mainly uses neutral eyeshadows, I thought it would be a no-brainer to add the Urban Decay Naked Palette in my makeup collection. 

Company Description: You can look great NAKED! This long, lean, seductive case is packed with TWELVE gorgeous neutrals. Shades range from delicate champagnes to dark, gritty gunmetal, with names like Darkhorse, Virgin and Buck. We've also included a range of textures: everything from glitter to shimmer to matte. The chocolaty velvet case is emblazoned with the word "NAKED" in gold foil lettering. (Just wait 'til your friends see you pull this sexy thing out of your bag. Jealous!) The mirrored case also includes a professional quality, cruelty-free Good Karma Eyeshadow Brush, AND a travel-size Eyeshadow Primer Potion in original formula. This is a shadow palette EVERYONE can use, and a truly spectacular gift. Experiment with office-appropriate neutrals, summertime bronzy looks, or sultry smokiness. With such a diversity of neutral shades at your fingertips, there's more to neutral than meets the eye. 

Packaging: The Naked palette is housed in a sturdy cardboard with a chocolate brown, velvet exterior which is very sleek and classy looking. Although the packaging is sleek, the velvet material attracts dirt and finger prints easily so I think I'm gonna keep the plastic it came with. Once opened, a small mirror is placed across the lid and the word "NAKED" and the 12 gorgeous shadows. There is also a well where the Shadow Karma Brush is placed. 

Here are some pictures of the palette

So on to the shadows

Virgin - is a shimmery nude beige

Sin - frosty pink champagne 

Naked - matte medium brown

Sidecar - shimmery taupe-y brown

Buck - matte reddish brown

Half Baked - metallic neutral gold

Smog - shimmery dark bronze

Darkhorse - shimmery deep chocolate brown

Toasted - shimmery medium dark pinky brown

Hustle - shimmery dark purple-brown

Creep - charcoal black with silver shimmer

Gunmetal - shimmery blue-gray

The palette includes a mini original Eyeshadow Primer Potion

And also a Shadow Brush

Overall: This will be a great addition to any person who loves makeup. I think this is a versatile neutral palette where you find everyday, "work appropriate" shades but also find "going out" shades. My favourite shades are Naked, Sidecar, Smog and Toasted. The shadow brush that it came with is I think a solid addition to the palette and does the job of packing the colour. And the eye primer is superb quality even though I'm not crazy about its packaging. My work day is about 12 hours (that includes the travel time) and my shadow did not crease at all when I use this primer! I am completely in love with this palette and I'm excited to play with it and come up with future looks.  

Price: $60.00 CAD / $50.00 USD

Place to buy: Sephora, Shoppers Drug Mart Beauty Boutique

Neutrogena Oil-Free Eye Makeup Remover Review

Here is a review for my go-to of the moment, the Neutrogena Oil-Free Eye Makeup Remover. I purchase this remover after finishing my makeup remover wipes that I normally use and decided to try something different. 

Product Description: This dual-phase 100% oil-free liquid activates when shaken to gently whisk away even waterproof eye makeup without any tugging, pulling or stinging. Your skin is left feeling clean and fresh with no oily residue. Aloe and Cucumber extracts soothe skin. 

My thoughts: I think this remover lived up to most of the claims as it effectively removes even waterproof eye products with ease and doesn't give my eyes any stinging sensation. I use this product with a cotton pad to remove eyeshadows and use a Q tip to remove eyeliner to prevent the product from  getting into the eye. The only claim that the product did not live up to is the no-residue claim. Once you take a look at some pictures below, you will see that the product left a film of oil after swiping the makeup off. Although the remover left some residue it's not a deal breaker for me because I cleanse my entire face afterwards. 

Here is a picture of a few waterproof eyeliners I use

And here is a picture after using the product to remove the liners

Price: $7.99 CAD
Place to buy: Drugstores

EcoTools Beautiful Expressions Kabuki Set

Hey guys!

For today's post I would like to share a set of face brushes by EcoTools. EcoTools is an earth-friendly brand which is 100% cruelty-free and their products are made from recycled products. This set that I have is limited edition that comes with 4 mini kabuki style brushes that are made with synthetic taklon bristles with short recycled aluminum handles (which are so cute btw!). These brushes are incredibly soft, doesn't scratch at all and are very well made. And I've had these brushes for about 5 months now and have not experienced shedding yet.

"Conceal" Brush - This is a round pointed kabuki that can be used to apply and blend concealer around the undereye and nose area. This brush can also be used to apply liquid foundation but it may take some time with how small it is.

"Bronze" Brush - This angled kabuki is not just for applying bronzer but is great for blush as well.   You will not get any harsh edges from this brush because its nicely tapered. 

"Contour" Brush - This is a domed kabuki that is great for contouring not just in the cheek area but also the nose and forehead. 

"Buff" Brush - This is a flat top kabuki great for buffing maybe a finishing or overall face powder because its not too dense and stiff. 

Overall: These brushes may be hard to use for some because of their short handles but I was able to get used to them quickly. If you happen to see this set I suggest you pick it up, the brushes are great quality!

Price: $12.99 CAD
Place to buy: Winners

Revlon ColorBurst Lip Butter Review and Swatches Part 1

Since their release about a year ago, the beauty community has been crazy about the Revlon Lip Butters. These lip colours are a great combination of lip balm and lipstick with a wide selection of shades. 

Company Description: Buttery Balm + Shiny Colour. Buttery Balm with beautiful shiny colour to give you baby soft, healthy glowing lips. 94% of women felt lips were softer, smoother, and instantly hydrated. 

For part 1 of the swatches, I have the shades Raspberry Pie and Berry Smoothie. 

Raspberry Pie is a dark raspberry pink that almost looks like a deep red shade with a really glossy finish. This shade is incredibly pigmented and rich in colour that would be a great shade for the fall, I think. But because of its buttery texture, the colour lasts for about 2.5 hours before re-application. 

Here are some swatches

Berry Smoothie is a muted berry pink shade which is a good colour for everyday wear. Out of all the lip butters I have, this is the shade that I wear the most. I think this shade is very versatile and will suit all skin tones. 

Here are some swatches

Overall: This is a great product and I would recommend this to those who like the feel of lip balms with the pigmentation of lipsticks.

Have you tried the Revlon Lip Butters? What's your favourite shade?

Lush Hottie Massage Bar Review

Today I would like to share with you a great product in helping sore muscles that I have recently discovered. I went to Lush one day searching for something that would help my body relax while because I have been feeling a little stressed lately. The friendly Lush employee suggested for me to try some bath bombs and bath melts but since I'm more of a shower person, I wanted a product that I can massage my body with. So when I was browsing through their selection, the Hottie Massage Bar caught my eye because of the ridges that the bar has. 

Company Description: Hottie is our go-to bar for seriously sore muscles. It’s specifically molded with bumps to enhance your massage with extra pressure to really fire up your circulation. The rich jojoba oil and butter base melts onto the skin quickly to allow for a smooth, and sensual experience. We use vanilla absolute for its sweet, comforting aroma; it's also moisturizing for the skin and softening in combination with the shea and cocoa butters we blend in. And, for those who like it hot, spicy black pepper and ginger oils are warming, stimulating and help to release muscle tension… exactly what you need to get you going.

My Thoughts: First of all, I just love the scent of this bar! I'm normally not a fan of vanilla scented products but I think the mixture jojoba oil, shea and cocoa butter just make this smell so heavenly. Sometimes I like to be tough in massaging my body because I feel that really works in helping my body relax so I really liked the "bumps" this bar has. I think the bumps are like those metal massage balls that helped with my circulation. Since this is a very moisturizing bar, I mainly use this in the evening and have a good night sleep afterwards. 

Have you tried any of Lush's massage bars? What is your favourite?

Price: $8.95 CAD

Place to buy: Lush Cosmetics

Neutrogena Healthy Skin Liquid Makeup Review

Hey guys!

Last May I went to the States for the first time and visited some family members that I have not seen in for years. Since there are a great deal of makeup products not readily available here in Canada, I took that opportunity to purchase some of the things that I wanted to try. One of products I've purchased is the Neutrogena Healthy Skin Liquid Makeup!

The shade I have is 60 Natural Beige

Company Description: Neutrogena Healthy Skin liquid makeup takes over where your skin care leaves off. Silky-light coverage glides on for a perfectly natural look, whole the exclusive blend plus SPF 20 work together to visibly improve skin's luminosity, tone, and texture. 

My thoughts: For my skin, I prefer medium to full coverage foundation as I have some blemishes I like to be concealed but I still wanted to try this out because of its claim to help improve the skin. I know wearing foundation is not really the healthiest thing but if the product can cover my blemishes while making my skin healthy then I would give that product a go! Anyways, this foundation gives light to medium coverage and feels light on the skin. Neutrogena Healthy Skin gives more coverage than CoverGirl Natureluxe Foundation I would say but they have the same light feeling. For the finish, it's not matte, not dewy, but more like a satin finish. Since I have very oily skin, I still set the foundation with a powder and if I want more oil control I would spray some Urban Decay De-Slick. I like that my skin does not look dull when I put this on so I would agree with the brand's claim of giving the skin luminosity. It has SPF 20 so that's a pretty good level of protection without giving that heavy feeling. Overall, I am pleased with this product would recommend it for those who like lightweight foundations.

Here are some swatches

    

One thing I don't like about the product is the packaging. I have to be careful in opening this foundation because of the big spout to avoid spilling the product. Also, because the packaging is so open and the product is exposed to air, it affects the longevity of the product's shelf life.

Price: $11.99 USD
Place to buy: Sadly, this is only available in US drugstores

Rimmel ScandalEyes Mascara Review

Hey guys!

Today I would like to share my thoughts on Rimmel ScandalEyes Mascara in Extreme Black. I was attracted to this mascara because of the brush, as I have always used mascaras with skinny brush so I thought to give this a try.  

Company Description: Introducing ScandalEyes, our first big brush mascara that quickly reveals even shy, unnoticeable lashes in one simple stroke! So big, so fast! Supersize formula! Triple collagen + keratin formula plumps even the thinnest lashes. Lash Out Loud! 12x more volume and scandalous eye opening impact! No clumps. Lashes so big, volume so fast! Volume so loud your lashes will scream!

Here are pictures of my curled bare lashes vs my curled lashes with mascara

Honestly, I didn't see any of these claims happen on my lashes! This mascara didn't plump my lashes, didn't give them volume and didn't supersize them. The formula is very wet so it's a bit messy to apply, I had to wait for some time before I could even blink. And I have to say, I poked my eyes at least three times with the big obnoxious brush that this mascara came with!

Look at that brush!

I saw that Rimmel has launched a few other mascaras from the ScandalEyes line and I don't think that I will try them based on the original one.

Price: $4.99 CAD (I bought it on sale)

Place to buy: Walmart, Rexall, Shopper's Drug Mart