Mascara -Borghese - Superiore State-Of-The-Art Mascara 
Tovah 3/30/2013 1:08:00 PM
I bought a "two-pack" of this at Costco and while the price wasn't bad, this mascara wasn't worth a dime. The mascara tube is fancy-looking, and gives off the appearance of being "expensive" makeup, but the product inside was garbage (literally...tossed both containers). My experience could be that I got very old product that's been stored in a warehouse here in Phoenix for goodness knows how long...but that's my point, I suppose. Be careful if you buy this mascara, because you just don't know if you can trust the packaging! The mascara I purchased was in a contraption made of two pieces of cardboard fused together by vacuum-packed plastic bubbles, each bubble containing a mascara. Me opening the package was worth of a "Lucy" episode...and I resorted to getting a boning knife from my kitchen and slicing through the cardboard. When I tried the mascara it did not seem dried out, but it didn't do anything for my lashes but make them stick together. If I coated and coated my lashes they got thicker, but I don't like thick gooey lashes. I like my lashes separated and longer-looking. This mascara isn't a "dark" black, so it looks grayish after awhile, too. Perhaps I just got old product, but please be careful when you buy this stuff.
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Bronzers -It Cosmetics - Bye Bye Pores Anti-aging Airbrushed Bronzer
Tovah 3/27/2013 4:32:00 PM
This is a brilliant, brilliant product...one I've been hoping someone would FINALLY invent! It's a bronzer with the texture, setting ability, and oil control of an HD powder; completely devoid of glitter, and all that shimmer-schmimmer. It looks incredibly, truly natural and a little bit goes a long way. I would buy this by the vat if I could!
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Lipstick -It Cosmetics - Pretty Woman
Tovah 3/27/2013 4:25:00 PM
Pretty Woman is a buttery soft lip stain that leaves a sheer maraschino tint on lips that lasts all day. It can be layered easy for a dramatic, gorgeous red. This feels incredible on my lips and it looks beautiful. It Cosmetic's lipsticks are a must-try.
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Lipstick -It Cosmetics - Love Story
Tovah 3/27/2013 4:22:00 PM
Love Story is a lip stain in buttery balm form. It can be layered for deeper color, but one coat creates a lovely peachy-pink shade that really brightens my face and brings out the green in my eyes. The color lasts all day, and so does the moisture! Incredibly good.
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Lip Gloss -It Cosmetics - Je Ne Sais Quoi
Tovah 3/27/2013 4:19:00 PM
Fantastic product! This is a lip treatment product that "self-adjusts" on your lips to a signature shade. On me it's a sheer my-lips-but-better rosy red. This balm is a stain that lasts all day, and it can be used as a cheek stain as well. It's so moisturizing I wear it to bed and I have pretty lips in the morning. You will not believe how soft and moisturizing this is, and the color is irresistible.
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Blush -It Cosmetics - Vitality Cheek Flush, Matte Sweet Apple
Tovah 3/27/2013 4:13:00 PM
A soft, smooth powder that's a cheek stain! Who would have thought it possible? This product is outstanding - it performs well and the color is just beautiful. This blush is matte, so it looks very natural, but it's also nice to add some va va voom to the color with luminizer. This is the prettiest, long-lasting blush I've ever used.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Mascara -It Cosmetics - Hello Lashes! 5-in-1 volumizing
Tovah 3/27/2013 4:06:00 PM
This isn't the most dramatic or showy mascara I've ever used, but for length, separation, no flaking, no smudging, and gentleness this is one of the best mascaras I've used in years. For a couple of months I was using BeneFit's "They're Real", which is quite similar to this mascara, however it smudged on my lower lashes. Also, BeneFit's brush always pricked my eyelids. IT's brush is much more pliable and soft - it's easy to get every lash without pricking myself. I think this is a terrific mascara and I'm surprised at how many negative reviews I see here. It's not that I expect everybody to like what I like, but I would have thought more people who like defined, curled lashes would like this mascara. Maybe they're recently updated the formula? My tube is brand new.
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Lipstick -MAC - Costa Chic
Tovah 3/26/2013 5:07:00 PM
Beautiful! Perfect summery color for my medium-olive warm toned skin.
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Powder -It Cosmetics - Celebration Foundation
Tovah 3/26/2013 4:49:00 PM
Outstanding product! I've never before found a compact foundation that works with oily skin but doesn't cake in fine lines or glimmer with glitter...but this is IT. This is soft as butter, has medium-full coverage, and can be used for touchups without turning into mud. I wear the Tan shade on my NC35 skin and it looks great. This is perfect for summertime for an easy all-day, natural look.
3 out of 3 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Powder -It Cosmetics - Bye Bye Pores Poreless Finish HD Micro-Powder
Tovah 3/26/2013 4:38:00 PM
Love this! It controls oil, mutes pores, sets makeup, doesn't look white. High quality, wonderful product.
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Powder -Unlisted Brand - Numeric Proof Compact Powder
Tovah 3/8/2013 6:50:00 PM
Even though I'm no makeup expert I've been an artist of the painting and sketching sort my entire life. My early exposure to color theory, theater/theater makeup, and continual "experimentation" allowed me to discover "banana" or yellow powders as finishing powders decades ago. I always got a kick out of purchasing my good old Ben Nye Banana powder, awkward "shaker" bottles and all, for pennies compared to other powders. In addition to yellow as a primer or a base, peach tones even out my skin by muting discolorations or darkness under my eyes. I can get pretty "sallow" without coloring from the sun, so I use lavender color corrector when I want to go "lighter" and peach color corrector when I need warmth, and to cover melasma. When I use color-correcting finishing powders I can use them over foundation to set it and neutralize discoloration, or use it as a touchup powder any time. Numeric Proof powder is matte, but it has the texture of velvet. It's not cakey or heavy, and, best of all, it comes in corrective colors. As much as I love my Ben Nye Banana in loose powder, every time I've purchased it in a compact the powder has broken up and shattered into a mess. NUmeric Proof powder is portable, and durable. I have Peach, Golden Peach, and Banana, and I love each one. Lately I'm finding myself using the Peach the most. The powder appears to be extremely light in the compact, but it's so sheer and light it doesn't look pale or white on my skin. Everything about this product is top notch quality and for me it's thrown T.LeClerc out of the game.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Liquid -Unlisted Brand - Numeric Proof Smart Skin Foundation
Tovah 3/8/2013 6:29:00 PM
What an incredible product! If, like me, you are a fan of Face & Body foundations you MUST try Numeric Proof Smart Skin Foundation. For some insane reason Numeric Proof makeup is hard to find in the US. I purchased my foundation online from Alcone Co., a professional makeup supply company. I always look for makeup that lasts on my skin, because I'm not one to stop and "freshen up" unless it's really necessary. With oily skin, "long-wear" makeup that doesn't look like a hardened clay coating on skin is difficult to come by, especially in these days where sunscreen is a necessary inconvenience. (MAC Face & Body is lovely, but it's too moisturizing for me most of the time). I purchased Smart Skin Foundation in Golden Beige for my NC35 (MUFE #40, MAC C4) skin. In the bottle the liquid appears to be NC40ish, but when applied on my skin it blends in exactly. This is an incredibly light, "watery" liquid that instantaneously seems to become part of my skin. It sets in a few seconds, but it's a gentle set; not the kind that has the potential to streak. The finish is matte, and applied over bare skin, setting powder is not necessary. This does not have a "flat" finish, but there's no shimmer, glimmer, glow or other "brightening" additions to make me look like I'm sweating my brains out. The finish is sheer, and absolutely, flawlessly, perfect. Truly "sheer" makeup usually comes in the form of greasy tinted moisturizers, but this foundation is nothing like that. It's somewhat similar to Make Up For Ever Face & Body Liquid Makeup, but it's even lighter and smoother! Truly an amazing formulation. This foundation has that "rosey, makeup-y" fragrance that French companies seem unable to help themselves from adding into their products, but, personally I like the scent. The reason makeup artists use this foundation for HD work is obvious when you see it (or don't see it, actually) on skin. It's practically undetectable, yet it's impeccable, even over pores! This foundation comes in a 1.02 oz. (30 ml) glass bottle with a pump spout that's perfect for squirting the liquid onto a brush or a sponge. When it comes to foundations, there's little question that high quality ingredients look better, perform better, and, in many cases, treat skin better than average or cheap materials. This is unmistakably high quality in every way, and the price is reasonable! ($32.00 at Alcone). I hope this product starts getting wider distribution in the US, because I'm sure many, many people will love this foundation.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Lipstick -Ben Nye - Lustrous Lipstick - Peachy Keen
Tovah 3/3/2013 5:11:00 PM
This is a beautiful shimmery nude peach that can be very sheer or layered for an almost-coral shade. It's gorgeous for enhancing a "warm glow" or a tan. Ben Nye lipsticks are incredibly long-lasting, non-drying, and highly pigmented. They leave a slight stain behind on lips, so lips never get washed-out looking. I love this lipstick - it's one of my favorites. I adore the color as well as the formula and I highly, highly recommend giving this a try!
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Blush -Ben Nye - Ben Nye's MediaPRO Crème Blush
Tovah 3/3/2013 5:00:00 PM
I can't imagine a blush that could be better than this one! It's really an outstanding product. I bought the color "Guava" which, depending upon application, can be a soft peachy-pink or a bright, vivid coral. (In Nars-lish it's within the range of Orgasm/Deep Throat to Taj Mahal/Torrid. Gorgeous!) This is an incredibly highly pigmented gloss-to-powder blush cake. Don't worry if you have oily skin...this is not oily or creamy and it seems highly moisture-resistant. There are many products that claim to do what this one claims (i.e. Maybelline Bouncy Blush, and Too Faced Full Bloom Cheek stains...) but they pale in comparison to this one. For me, when I say this lasts all day, I mean this lasts ALL DAY until I wash my face before bed. This has not left a stain on my skin after cleansing, but I use sunscreen and/or foundation daily. For application I "dot" a damp makeup sponge lightly on top of the blush - I don't even swipe it, I just blot a little, and then I blend the color onto my cheeks. Even with this light application there are times when it can be too much...I have to be careful to get just a dot of color on my face if I want a sheer, natural daytime look. At this time, this blush comes in 8 colors that can be mixed/matched, used with powder blush, and, of course, used on their own. Ben Nye Makeup has always had quality products, but they used to be much more "stage" oriented. Now that they are conquering the media world in addition to the theater world, their MediaPRO makeup is just beautiful for everyday and glamour-wear. Most costume shops and stage-oriented beauty supplies stock Ben Nye products, and there are many online retailers of professional stage/screen makeup that sell the Ben Nye line. Other than Ben Nye products, (manufactured in good old LA), it is simply impossible to find makeup of this quality for the relatively inexpensive prices!
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Liquid -BeneFit Cosmetics - "Hello Flawless!" Oxygen Wow
Tovah 2/9/2013 11:56:00 PM
I am so disappointed in this product because I was hoping for a light, gel-like foundation with a matte finish. This seemed extremely promising because it has SPF 25. My shade would be between Beige and Toasted Beige, but both have unnatural looking undertones on my skin; they aren't golden or yellow enough. I can't believe how oily this foundation is...yes, I have oily skin, but this is like greasepaint. The coverage of this really isn't that light. It rubs off on everything, too. I accidentally brushed my cheek on a corner of a wall in my house, and, to my horror, a streak of makeup was left on the wall! I'm not sure but I think this is more for dry skin, and my skin never gets dry enough for such a moisturizing foundation.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No