Blush -MAC - Cheekhue
AlliSwan 7/12/2008 11:10:00 AM
These are packaged just like MAC's paints, but in a slightly bigger tube. I personally love the packaging, it's clean and keeps the product from drying out at all. Which is especially good because these babies have long since been discontinued. I use Da Da Delight as a base almost every day to make my contouring blush or bronzer really last. The brighter ones are fabulous on their own, and a tiny bit is really all you need.
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Eye Shadow -MAC - Untitled Paint
AlliSwan 7/12/2008 11:06:00 AM
I have gone through probably three tubes of this, but I have been into MAC for the better part of a decade, so that really says something about how long the product lasts. It comes in an artist-style paint tube, which some people can't stand, but I love because it really keeps the product fresh and keeps it from drying out at ALL. I have tried a dozen other eyeshadow primers, and I always come back to my beloved Untitled. It has the perfect consistency, covers all the little veins and discoloration on my uber pale eyelids, and if I'm in a hurry, I can just use it as an eyeshadow. Love it.
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Makeup Brushes -NARS - Smudge Brush 15
AlliSwan 7/12/2008 11:03:00 AM
I was finally able to swap for this, and if I had known how amazing it is, I would have bought it a long time ago! I have trouble getting under my lower lashes to create that smudgy, smoky look, and it always comes out looking TOO messy or too clean. This brush makes the PERFECT smoky line.
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Powder -Laura Mercier - Mineral Powder SPF 15
AlliSwan 6/8/2008 1:26:00 PM
Love this product! I was using BE for a couple years, then the market got flooded by other mineral foundations and I realized BE really wasn't that great. It made me itch, it would get chalky and build up in tiny lines in my face, and I'm fairly certain it was the cause of my cystic acne. Laura Mercier is definitely worth the price (you get a LOT and it lasts for ages). The shades are more natural and seem to match skin a LOT better, IMO. With BE and Everyday Minerals I had to mix 2-3 shades to get a good match. It doesn't break me out at ALL. Laura Mercier's mineral foundation has calmed my skin to the point where I don't even need it every day. Give it a try!
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Self Tanners -L'Oreal - sublime glow moisturizing MicroFine Mist+ Natural skin tone Enchancer
AlliSwan 5/29/2008 5:12:00 PM
Can't agree enough with the original poster/reviewer! I've tried so many self tanners over the years. I don't get decent color, even if I bake in the tanning beds or the sun, so to keep from being ghastly pale I have to resort to the fake bake in a bottle method. I love that this stuff doesn't require you to rub it in. No need to wash your hands like crazy and make sure you got every last bit off for fear of stained palms, knuckles, etc. I love that it's gradual. It doesn't leave any immediate color, so you may not get yourself evenly, but that's OK. After a few days, you'll develop a "natural glow." If you want a super dark tan, find another product. I LOVE that there is little to no scent. My #1 problem with self tanners is that they reek! No matter how good they might smell going on, they always develop that nasty smell later on. This doesn't! Sure, I wish it were dirt cheap, but the $10 or less can lasts me 2-3 weeks with pretty regular use on my legs and occasionally a spritz on my arms.
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Lipstick -MAC - Slimshine in Bare ] [DISCONTINUED]
AlliSwan 5/26/2007 11:28:00 PM
Easily one of my favorite MAC products. Makes my lips look amazing, not dead, it's not too warm like ALL other "bare/nude/neutral" lip colors I've tried. I want 100 backups.
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Mascara -Clinique - high definition lashes
AlliSwan 8/28/2006 5:54:00 PM
I've used MANNNNY mascaras, from L'Oreal to Lancome and had been settled with my Clinique Lash Doubling mascara. It worked well and I just couldn't go for the $25 and up mascaras with how quickly I go through them. This new one from Clinique intrigued me, but I had my doubts. It's AWESOME. It's definitely more work than just a quick brush-and-go mascara, but it's definitely worth it.
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Hair -Bumble & Bumble - Hair Powder
AlliSwan 6/24/2006 1:56:00 PM
A friend of mine (who works in a salon) gave me the 1oz bottle of the newly reformulated Hair Powder and I. Fell. In. LOVE. I went through it VERY quickly because I loved the texture it gave my hair. I have baby fine, shiny blonde hair, and I always wanted that over-dyed, uber-dry, piece-y but not greasy, look--you always want what you don't have, right? Well, this hair powder (I use White but my hair is pretty much a medium blonde color) gives me all that and more. I could literally go DAYS without washing my hair if I needed to. This will DEFINITELY be coming with me everywhere I travel this summer. I only wish it wasn't SO EXPENSIVE!! I have been buying Psssst dry shampoo from CVS and Walgreens as a daily use stand-in and saving my B&B for nights out.
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Cleansers -LUSH - Angels on Bare Skin
AlliSwan 10/2/2005 5:36:00 PM
The smell put me off quite a bit at first (but then again, I don't like lavender at all). Sure, it's not the cheapest, and the container isn't posh or anything, but it's all natural and better for the environment that way, right? Anyway....After massaging this onto my face (the smell wasn't so strong once wet), rinsing it off, and patting dry, I must say my skin has NEVER felt so soft! And to think I was going to swap away this lovely little pot...NEVER!
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Lipstick -MAC - Bare Venus
AlliSwan 9/30/2005 6:34:00 PM
Five stars across the board. I've tried half a dozen other MAC lipsticks (blankety, freckletone, fresh brew, peachstock), trying to find a good nude color that would tone down my highly pigmented lips. THIS IS IT. Lovely, it's the first lipstick I bought rather than B2M'd and I'm very happy!
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Lip Gloss -MAC - Damzel Lipglass
AlliSwan 8/29/2005 10:07:00 AM
I haven't been liking that many of MAC's new lipglasses because they're so loaded with glitter, but this one is amaaaazing. I've been hearing people liken it to Prrr, which I don't get at ALL. It's more of a reddish pink than a peachy pink. Gorgeous!
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Bath Treatments -LUSH - Honey Bee Bath Bomb
AlliSwan 8/10/2005 7:30:00 PM
While I still can't bring myself to mail order LUSH because of the shipping costs and waiting game, I try to stock up whenever I fly out of Orlando...or whenever my boyfriend flies out of Orlando...or whenever a friend of a friend catches a flight into Orlando...or....Anyway, this ballistic is AWESOME in my opinion. The yellow water didn't really bother me because I added 1/2 a Ma Bar which bubbled up and covered the water, and with just candlelight I didn't really notice it. The scent (alone I prefer) was INCREDIBLE. Honey, but not too sweet, almost had an incense-scent too it, but not too hippie-ish. It smells just like my best friend's house in 9th grade--very comforting, vegan-type smell!
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Bronzers -NARS - Laguna
AlliSwan 8/10/2005 7:27:00 PM
While I try to swap for this because it's a bit expensive for me, it's totally worth the $ when I am forced to buy it. I go through it pretty quickly because I use it so liberally, but it's AWESOME for my fair skin, and it layers well to add intensity. Don't love the rubber packaging because it attracts all kinds of shimmer.
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Brows -MAC - Eyebrows Crayon in Lingering
AlliSwan 8/10/2005 7:25:00 PM
I already have bought this again, and this pencil is AWESOME. The MAC girl tried to get me to buy the lighter shade (I'm fair with light blond hair), going so far as to even ring up the lighter shade, but I insisted on getting Lingering, and it's PERFECT. It's a good shade if you want your invisible brows to actually show up. I use this, wedge eyeshadow, and a tiny bit of charcoal brown eyeshadow (usually at night) to make my eyebrows really defined. But alone, this pencil will do just fine by itself, and the twist-up, no-sharpening-necessary feature is my best friend.
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Lipstick -MAC - Craving
AlliSwan 8/10/2005 7:23:00 PM
I got this with back 2 MAC (I never really buy lipstick, but who doesn't love getting one free every few months??) and it's the first one I would actually have BOUGHT on my own. I will probably never use the whole tube because it's a nighttime only color for me, but WOW it's gorgeous. As another reviewer said, it's the perfect muted raspberry color. And the texture? Wow. I'm in love with this color.
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