Makeup Brushes -MAC - #187 Duo Fiber Face Brush (Stippling, Skunk Brush)
Bulbasaur 10/23/2011 8:46:00 AM
Wow, how can I have lived without this? I used to apply my liquid foundation with a flat brush (much like the 190 from MAC) and would always complain from uneven application and streakiness. Now this, this is amazing. Perfect for stippling and for an airbursh effect. The brush is really soft, doesn't irritate the skin at all (my skin is very sensitive to brushes) and applies the foundation very evenly. It was definitely worth the 50.50$CAD. If I ever lose this brush, I'm running to purchase another one.
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Lipstick -MAC - Sheen Supreme Lipstick - Bare Again
Bulbasaur 10/22/2011 4:55:00 PM
Great lipstick! I LOVE the texture, it has a glossy finish that's very subtle and it has the holding power of a lipstick. It doesn't feel sticky AT ALL. It looks amazing on my NW15 skin. Really a MLBB kinda lipstick for my skin tone. You can definitely build up a little color when layering application. This is my first sheen supreme lipstick and I will definitely continue buying this as opposed to sticky watery glosses. The smell is nice and I can't say anything bad about the taste. It retails at about 17.50$CAD, which is a fair price.
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Styling Products -Aveda - Control Force
Bulbasaur 10/9/2011 9:21:00 AM
Let me start my review by telling you how I would normally (pre-Control Force) curl my straigher-than-straight hair. I would apply heat protection with a curl awakener , blow dry my hair with a round brush, curl in small locks using a straight iron, add tons of extra holding power hairspray (drugstore brands) at once, three to four times in a row. I would then go out, even though my hair was really sticky, move a little, and two to three hours afterwards, my hair would be wavy and my curls almost gone. I decided to give this hairspray a go based on the reviews I had read here and on their website. It seemed expensive (31$CAD) but I was tired of my old formula and willing to give it a try. When I went into the store, the SA quickly commented on my purchase and asked if I wanted to see a demonstration of its holding power. He curled my hair using a straight iron and as soon as it was done, asked me to flip my hair down. He started putting hairspray like two feet away from me. In layers. After, he asked me to flip my hair back up, move it a little with my hands, and then proceeded to add layers of hairspray, still about two feet away from me. It was already a win situation, because my hair did not feel sticky AT ALL. It didn't feel greasy from product build up like it did from other cheap brands and I couldn't WAIT to test it's holding power. So amazed by the soft feeling in my curls, I kept touching them the whole night. I knew that this would wear them down, but I couldn't help it. I went to bed tying my hair in a low ponytail, ready to say goodbye to my curls. The next morning I woke up and still had curls in my hair. Granted, they weren't small bouncy curls, but more long pronounced waves. My hair still looked really good. All in all, this gave me curls/waves for more than 24 hours. Something I had never thought my straight hair would achieve. I also used this to control the direction my bangs are going in and it's wonderful as well. Even though the wind would sometimes blow some hair strands back into my face, as soon as I pushed them back where I wanted they would return back there and hold. This is definitely HG status for me and I don't even think I'll ever try another brand of hairspray. It is expensive, but then again, it takes a lot of time to go through an entire bottle of hairspray.
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Eyeliner -Revlon - ColorStay Liquid Liner
Bulbasaur 10/9/2011 8:58:00 AM
I thought I had found the perfect eyeliner with this one, but it's back to the drawing board for me. The good? The color is a matte vivid black. So far, it's the best eyeliner color I've EVER tried. It does stay on all day long which I'm amazed at. The formula also dries quickly on your eyelids. The bad? I don't really like the packaging. I find the wand is a bit too short to create perfect lines - I do have long hands though. I also think the tip is too short and bulky and the pointy end isn't long enough. That makes it a bit hard to get into those corners for a small thin line. The ugly? Because of the color I was willing to overlook the packaging issues, because you can get used to pretty much anything when you use a product daily. Though lately, my formula seems to have dried and I've been experiencing a lot of problems with flaking. The flaking creates holes in my line and looks like I have makeup from the day before that I forgot to wash off. I've had this bottle for less than three weeks and have taken good care of it so I'm kinda disappointed. I do have a history of flaking with drugstore mascaras and eyeliners so I guess I really do need to go higher end on this stuff. Sadly, I don't think I will repurchase in the near future. UPDATE: I did figure out why the staying power was gone. For some reason I stopped wearing eye shadow for a while and that wouldn't set my eye liner like it used to. So if you're complaining about the staying power of that eye liner, you really should set it with an eye shadow and you'll find out it does stay throughout the whole day. So I'm bumping it to 5 lippies.
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Eyeliner -Revlon - ColorStay Liquid Eye Pen
Bulbasaur 10/9/2011 8:48:00 AM
Can't recommend this at all. What a waste of money. I thought the felt tip would get filled with deep black color, but as another reviewer mentioned, all I got from it was a watery color. You know like when you're a kid and you paint with water colors and you wonder why your black is pale grey instead of black? Well it was the same thing with that liquid eye pen. The flow of the eyeliner onto the felt tip is very irregular, sometimes you have to press really hard to get a little product on your eye and other times you take off the pencil cap and it's already flowing out of the felt tip. I would' ve thrown it away, except I find that I can use it on my lower lashes (if I manage to control the flow) to create the illusion of a fuller lash line. Because the color is so watery, it does look more natural on my lower lashes than a really black color. I would DEFINITELY NOT recommend this to anyone.
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Eyeliner -L'Oreal - Carbon Black Lineur Intense Felt Tip Liquid Eyeliner
Bulbasaur 10/9/2011 8:41:00 AM
I have a love/hate relationship with that product. I love the felt tip. It's so smooth and malleable, you can trace perfectly with it. This was also my first liquid eyeliner and even though I was a beginner, my lines were still perfect. I also love that it's a longer pointier felt tip than most eyeliners, so you cant really get some liner wherever you want. So the love stops here... I don't like the color of this product. It's really a shimmery black and I prefer matte eyeliners. Also it's reaaaally flaky. Crazy flaky. I had to put eyeliner several times (4-5x) a day just to make sure the line didn't disappear or looked like I hadn't removed my makeup from the day before. I tend to have a lot of flaking problems with drugstore mascaras or eyeliners, so I guess I'm going to have to stick to the higher end stuff. If you have a problem with flaking with cheaper products as well, you're probably not going to like this eyeliner. Also, I did use it with an eye primer base (tried two different brands just to make sure). My verdict? If you're a beginner and you're scared of the whole application process with liquid eyeliners I would definitely recommend this one for practice. It's cheap (7.99$CAD on sale) and it gives ok results. If you're prone to flaking or are looking for a really matte look, don't bother buying.
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Polishes -OPI - Uh-oh Roll Down the Window
Bulbasaur 10/9/2011 8:17:00 AM
I bought this color because ''army greens'' are said to be fashionable for this fall 2011. As usual with OPI nail polishes, the application went really well. Two coats and you have a perfect, non streaky, lustrous finish. As for the color, I'm not really sure I really like it. It's really what you would call an army green, so mostly kaki with a hint of brown. It does look good and natural on my NW15 skin, but I can't say I'm in love with it. I also feel it's a color that isn't very versatile as you have to match it with neutral colored clothes otherwise it really clashes. Given the opportunity I wouldn't repurchase, but for someone who has a lot of beige/brown/kaki clothes, I guess this could be a great fit. Great funny name for this polish also!
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Polishes -OPI - Do You Lilac It?
Bulbasaur 10/9/2011 8:03:00 AM
I really did not like this nail polish. I'm quite surprised because the reviews here have always translated more or less what I think of a product, but this time, it's opposite views. First off, the color did not look good on my NW15 skin. It was way too dark and grey-based I guess?! and didn't have any oomph if you know what I mean, even with light reflection. I might have way too much redness/pink undertones on my skin for it to look good - I don't know. Also, the application was a nightmare, the nail polish was really streaky, even after two coats. I usually rave about OPI nail polishes to everyone, but this one has definitely been a let down. I don't know if my formula was different or anything, but it looked horrible. So I guess I'm going to try it again this summer (at 9.99$CAD I can't just throw it away after one use), when my hands are a little bit more tan, but I'm not going to hold my breath for this one. It's so sad because I had been looking for a perfect lilac.
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Top/Base Coats -Essie - Good to Go! The Fastest Drying Top Coat
Bulbasaur 10/8/2011 9:39:00 AM
I just can't live without this. Two minutes after application, my nails are dry and hard and ready to resume normal activities. I'm really a lunatic person so before this, I would smudge my nail polish all over before it even had a chance to dry. It also leaves a really smooth soft glowy finish on the nails that I just love. The formula is siliconey and the application goes on really well. I can't complain on the smell, I really don't mind it at all. I don't feel like it protects 100% from chipping, but what I look for in a top coat is more about reducing the drying time than protecting. I'm a nail polish junkie so I end up changing my nails every 3-5 days, so I can't really say whether it helps keeping your manicure pretty for two weeks.
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Polishes -OPI - Ate Berries in the Canaries
Bulbasaur 10/8/2011 9:24:00 AM
Great product! It's such a fabulous color, even my boyfriend complimented on it. Looks great on my NW15 skin. I also love the wide (but not too thick) brush, the application goes on really smoothly with only three strokes. One coat would have been enough, but I played it safe and put two.
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BB Cream -Skin79 - Super+ BB Cream Pink Label
Bulbasaur 10/8/2011 9:10:00 AM
Great BB cream! It's the first one I've tried though, so it's not like I have anything to compare it to. My skin is fairly light (NW15) and it oxidizes to match my skin tone perfectly. I set it with a blot powder and the results are really natural. I wouldn't suggest using a moisturizer or a primer beforehand, as your skin will probably look really oily if you do. I have combination skin (dry on higher forehead and cheeks, oily on lower forehead, nose and chin) and this cream formula seems to suit all of my skin needs. My boyfriend usually complains with foundations that my skin looks clogged or cakey, but he couldn't even notice I was wearing makeup with this one. The downside? I don't like the floral smell of this product, it's not that strong, but it kind of bugs me during application. Also, like other reviewers mentioned, you can't tell when you're close to finishing the product because of the packaging. The bottle is really cute though and the pump is really hygienic. The price is ok, I purchased this at a korean shop for 21.99$CAD instead of buying online. My skin is really thin and sensitive to scarring so I can't wait to see if that products has a positive impact on some of my pimple scars on my chin. Will update after using for a few weeks.
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Mascara -Christian Dior - 360 degree mascara
Bulbasaur 10/8/2011 8:51:00 AM
This mascara really didn't do much for me. The formula was too thick and clumpy and my lashes would sometimes stick together instead of being defined. I used this with the DiorShow lash plumping serum (which I love) but it was way too much volume. Also the bottle seemed to dry out much quicker than most mascaras I've ever used. The packaging, although really pretty, was also terrible, because the formula would clump and dry next to the lid and then it would be a nightmare to seal and close. I didn't care much for the rotating wand, but the battery seemed to last long enough. Will definitely not repurchase.
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Eye Shadow -Annabelle - Haute Chocolate Trio Eyeshadow
Bulbasaur 10/8/2011 8:47:00 AM
I've had this eyeshadow trio forever and I just LOVE it. My mainly use for it now has been for my eyebrows. I use the medium brown to fill them in and the results are amazing. It helps frame my face beautifully. You get a lot for the price, as I can't ever seem to reach the end of this. I also use the darker brown for eyeliner on my lower lashes. Great quality product!
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Mascara -Lancome - Hypnose Drama
Bulbasaur 10/8/2011 8:41:00 AM
LOVE this mascara. Definitely one of the best ones I've ever tried. I have medium-lenght really straight lashes. I also have very oily lids and undereye circles. I look for three things in a mascara: 1) lenght, 2) holds the curl and 3) doesn't leave me with the racoon eye look for most of the day. This product does everything I ask for in a mascara. It gives beautiful long lashes, that are really dark and thick without being clumpy and that hold my curl throughout the day. The only reason I use higher end mascaras is because drug stores brands usually end up flaking on my skin and leaving me with big black circles under my eyes, waterproof or not. I use this after using my eyelash curler and my DiorShow lash plump serum and the results are amazing. I find that the serum gives me the volume and the Hypnôse Drama mascara gives me the lenght and holds my curl all day long. Love the wand too, helps getting every lash! The only downside? The smell is awful. Just awful. And it's a powerful smell too. Oh well, it's not like I smell it through the day it's only during application.
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Pressed Powders -MAC - Blot Powder - Medium/Dark
Bulbasaur 10/8/2011 8:18:00 AM
HG product for me! My skin is very light (NW15) and really oily on my nose/lower forehead/chin. I use this over my foundation or BB cream and this sets it so well. I just LOVE the matte finish it leaves on my skin. It doesn't look fake or like you have a mask. I don't really care for the puff, I use a brush for the application. It is a little pricey (27.50$CAD), but I don't see finishing this powder anytime soon so it's definitely an investment! The color medium-dark is perfect for my fairly light skin and I don't see myself using any other lighter color.
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