Lip Liners -Bare Escentuals - Earth
josette 3/31/2006 8:59:00 AM
My HG lip liner for so many reasons. Perfect taupey-brown shade with no orange or red in it - that's what I have against MAC Spice - too orange. Earth is dark enough to show but not too dark - depending on how heavily or lightly you apply it. And it's an automatic pencil so you don't have to sharpen it. The color is so all-purpose it goes with lipstick and lipgloss in all shades from pink to peach to orange to mauve to red to brown. I love it with MAC Lust gloss especially. It can 'calm down' reds too. I think the purpose of liner is to give a little character to the lipline - not just match your lipstick or be so reddish it 'throws off' your lipcolor. I have bought it repeatedly from QVC so I hope they never discontinue it!
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Mascara -Lancome - Hypnose
josette 8/30/2005 9:07:00 AM
This is my HG high end mascara. Having searched for years all types and brands for my short, straight lashes; this is the best for lengthening and volume. Plus I don't find it smudging under my eyes after several hours - a problem for me for some reason. My best low end mascara is Maybelline Sky High Curves and I would buy either one of them again. That's saying a lot for finicky, experimental me.
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Loose Powders -T. LeClerc - Loose Powder in Banane
josette 6/24/2005 1:55:00 AM
I have finally found my HG powder. The texture is the most refined and the banane color is perfect for my NC25, Stila 30 Watt skin. I like a powder that gives a bit of color rather than translucent. Rather than use a foundation with lots of coverage, I use a TM, then my trusty Stila eye concealer [light], then brush on this powder w/ a Sephora kabuki/bronzer type brush. With these 3 semi-sheer steps my skin looks perfect but natural. The price is high but a pot of this will last ages - using so little each morning. Love love love!
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Polishes -OPI - Malaga Wine
josette 6/13/2005 9:52:00 PM
Thank you MUA and you helpful posters for my finding this beautiful nail polish! I bought it this morning and just put it on - what a flawless shade of rich burgandy with no brown or orange in it; just a blue based deep red that is bright enough but not too bright. Typically good OPI quality - very shiny. I used base coat, 3 coats of this color, and a coat of Wet Look top coat that I get from Sally's.
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Lip Gloss -Chanel - Cristalle Gloss - Tutti Frutti
josette 6/3/2005 9:28:00 AM
This l/g comes in a high quality, attractive tube but I would never purchase another. The 2 reasons are that it is not nearly pigmented enough so you could never just wear it alone, or with only lip pencil. Secondly, the consistancy is a bit liquidy and not as shiny or lasting as my MAC glosses.
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Liquid -Stila - Illuminating Liquid Foundation
josette 5/28/2005 8:13:00 PM
This is my favorite liquid foundation. It gives light to medium coverage and a lovely neutral finish - neither matte nor dewy. The 30Watt is perfect for my NC25 LLL/MMM yellow undertoned skin; and the shade is yellow toned rather than orange toned as so many are. I don't notice any strange shimmer to it as I found with the MAC HyperReal. It's got such perfect texture-not watery-dry and not heavy-oily. It was around $35 but I use so little and I apply it with my fingers. Then I blot with tissue, then a little concealer under the eyes, then a bit of loose powder - looks flawless. I usually use tinted moisturizer but this is for when I want to be more polished.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Crème -Chantecaille - Future Skin
josette 5/28/2005 7:58:00 PM
This foundation has nice creamy texture, medium coverage and a neutral finish - neither dewey nor matte. I have combination skin and have learned not to get 'matte' makeup which has the undesireable effect of sucking the moisture out of my skin and pointing up wrinkles I don't even have. The Vanilla shade was right for my NC25, 30Watt LLL/MMM yellow toned skin. Would not purchase it again because the price is around $60 and was not as perfect for me as my Stila Illuminating Foundation which is half the price. This felt heavier to me.
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Eyeliner -Chanel - Le Crayon Khol in Amber
josette 5/28/2005 2:32:00 PM
This is the very worst eyeliner I've ever used. $26 and I'm allergic to it. I usually use MAC Powerpoint Stubborn Brown and never had a problem with it or any other liner. But this Chanel one made my eyes red, irritated and runny. Plus the line is no thinner than my less expensive products. I'm not usually sensitive so my recommendation is to apply it in the store and wear it all day and see if your eyes are ok before going back another day to purchase.
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Fragrances -Unlisted Brand - Carven - Ma Griffe Parfum de Toilette
josette 5/14/2005 11:45:00 PM
This is my life-long favorite scent and I've been wearing it since I was 15 years old. It's clean, sophisticated, and feminine. Fragrance can bring back such sweet memories - I remember the first time I smelled this with my mother while visiting a friend of hers. I've never smelled it on anyone else but me since then. How can this lovely scent be forgotten?
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Stick -Bobbi Brown - Foundation Stick
josette 3/26/2005 9:36:00 PM
I got this thinking it would be foundation and concealer all in one and thus portable for travel. Well I applied it time consumingly with my trusty MAC foundation brush, patted with tissue, then applied it with a little BB concealer brush on my [major] undereye circles and the redness area on the cheek. Well after all that care the effect was not natural. Too thick and heavy for a natural foundation and, conversely, too light for a conealer. I'm going back to my former system of TM applied w/ fingers and Stila Eye concealer applied w/ a small brush, then a bit of loose powder.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Concealers -Stila - Eye Concealer
josette 3/4/2005 10:53:00 PM
This is my HG concealer and I use it on areas of my face as well as under the eyes. I have very dark circles under my eyes, some brown spots, and a red blood vessel area on my cheek. This concealer is the perfect consistency and color to hide them when applied with a small BB concealer brush. I am now using up my Cle de Peau concealer and look forward to going back and buying the Stila when it is gone and it is a fraction of the price. I have LLL/MMM NC25 skin with yellow undertones and the Stila in 'light' matches perfectly.
3 out of 3 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Lip Gloss -MAC - Lipglass in Lust
josette 2/12/2005 9:27:00 PM
This is one of the few things my fickle self has bought repeatedly. It's just so very shiny and a beautiful YLBB color. I love it alone and also rimmed with brown lip liner. Not too dark or light - a perfect pinkyish mauvish brownish nude - prettier in person at the counter than on the MAC website.
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Scrubs -Cottage Shoppe - Brown Sugar Scrub
josette 2/12/2005 9:17:00 PM
I got this in 'sugar cookie' and for various reasons felt disappointed despite the low price. The smell was very weak and artificial. Also made my tub bottom so slippery and oily. Also could not email them to report a problem I had because their email does not work even trying over several weeks. Makes me wonder what is going on there.
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Eyeliner -Bobbi Brown - Long Wear Gel Eyeliner - Black Plum Ink
josette 2/12/2005 9:04:00 PM
This color sounded so interesting- so I bought it to bring out the gold in my brown eyes. But it is too light for me to really show up when wearing eye shadow so I have to apply 2 coats. I am LLL/MMM NC25 with brown eyes and highlighted hair. This might work better with someone with a lighter eye and skin color. I really should have gotten the Espresso.
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Lip Gloss -Laura Geller - Lip Gloss
josette 2/12/2005 8:57:00 PM
I ordered Parfait Flavored Lip Glosses in melon/raspberry on QVC and they looked so good on tv but at home on me - a different story... It was $26 plus tax and shipping. The raspberry was runny and old-lady dark fuschia. The melon is a peach-orange milky color. Real waste of money.
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