Blush -Milani - Smooth Finish Blush - Luminous
b3l0vEd 2/11/2011 10:53:00 AM
NC30 here and this blush doesn't really show up on my skin unless I pile it on. And when I do, it shows up as this chalky and unnatural pink that's not at all flattering against my skin. The texture is very smooth and blendable, but it lacks pigmentation. If you're looking for cheap but great drugstore blushes, try Rimmel. Their peach blush is amazing
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Styling Products -TRESemme - Instant Heat Tamer Spray
b3l0vEd 2/8/2011 7:57:00 PM
This is a staple product in my hair routine. I love this heat protectant. It smells amazing, it works great at protecting my hair from flat ironing every morning, and it doesn't leave my hair greasy, sticky, or weighed down. I love the packaging, it's super user friendly and the spray pump sprays out a fine and even mist. It's super cheap too, under $4 at Target. I hope they never discontinue this, and I would keep repurchasing for life!
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Bronzers -Physicians Formula - Baked Pyramid Matte Bronzer - Tan
b3l0vEd 2/7/2011 1:23:00 PM
I don't consider myself tanned (NC30-NC35) but this bronzer didn't show up on my face at all. Its smooth but it can get a bit chalky. I couldn't use it as a bronzer, but I do use this in the summer as a setting powder on top of my TM. I wouldn't repurchase since PF has much better bronzers out there.
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Mascara -Cover Girl - Lash Blast Fusion
b3l0vEd 2/2/2011 8:18:00 PM
Very nice mascara, I like it, but I don't love it. Pros: - dark glossy black color (very black) - can be built up from natural (1 coat) to dramatic (3 coats) - vibrant purple packaging - nice big rubbery brush - doesn't flake or smudge at all!!! - leaves lashes soft and not crunchy Cons: - takes a while to get to my desired effect (dramatic) - doesn't hold curls very well - lots of definition and length, not too much volume Basically, it's a pretty good mascara. The selling point for me is that it doesn't smudge or flake at all, being a contact wearer, this is very important to me. After 3 coats my lashes can look pretty dramatic, but not dramatic enough for night time, and definitely does not measure up to the advertisement. My lashes do look very defined, fluffy, and dark though. I would repurchase this, because it's probably the only mascara I've ever tried that doesn't flake or make my lashes crunchy
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Toners -Neutrogena - Alcohol-Free Toner
b3l0vEd 1/22/2011 11:57:00 PM
I like this toner a lot. It removes any foundation that I have left on my face after washing, and it retains the moisture on my face. I don't really care for the smell, but it's not offensive or anything. It does leave my face a little sticky, but after a couple of minutes, the stickiness goes away a little. It doesn't burn or irritate my face at all, and I have not broken out from it. I don't love it, but I do like it. It's the first toner I've ever used, so I can't really compare it to anything else.
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Eye Shadow -Revlon - Colorstay 12-Hour Eyeshadow Quad "Coffee Bean"
b3l0vEd 1/16/2011 1:16:00 PM
Only the bottom 2 darker colors actually show up on my lids. I'm NC30, the highlight cream shade and the slightly darker cement shade just blend right into my skin. The 2 colors that do show up are gorgeous thought. For day time wear, I mix the darker shade with the lighter shades in this quad to tone down the intensity, and that works great. I would not repurchase though, because there are better out there
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Eyeliner -Revlon - Colorstay Eyeliner
b3l0vEd 1/16/2011 1:00:00 AM
I switch between this and the almay amazing lasting liner, it just depends on which one is on sale when I buy it. I do prefer the almay one over this because the almay one is softer and doesn't skip on my top lid like the revlon one does. I use it in black, and its a pretty dark black. It lasts for 6 hours or so with primer, then it starts to melt off and smudge in the corners of my eyes. I would repurchase, especially revlon seems to have better sales than almay.
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Powder -Bare Escentuals - Bare Minerals ALL
b3l0vEd 1/16/2011 12:38:00 AM
I hate to admit it, but I actually love the bare minerals foundation. Its expensive for the amount, but I find that with daily use, a jar lasts me about a year. I don't use this by itself because I find that it enhances the dry spots on my face and that it enhances my pores too. But, I absolutely love using this to set my liquid foundations. Liquid foundations (other than revlon colorstay) don't last very long on my face. By mid-day, it would be sliding down my face and I'd look blotchy. I buff a little bit of bare minerals on top of my liquid foundations to set, and my face MU would last a whole day. I love how it makes my face look so healthy and dewey too. I may be the minority here but I actually like the slight "glow" or "sheen" it gives. Its another plus that bare minerals also acts like a color corrector too. 2 of my DS foundations run a little pink, but the BE color I use (Light) has yellow undertones and corrects my too-pink liquid foundation to make my face match my body. When I first bought it I thought I was allergic because my face would itch and burn and my skin would turn rough, but I found out quickly that I was actually allergic to the BE brushes, not the foundation. I would definitely keep repurchasing this, even if its the most expensive thing in my daily MU routine
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Makeup Brushes -Essence of Beauty - Dual Use Eye Shadow Brush
b3l0vEd 1/8/2011 8:01:00 PM
I absolutely love this brush and I use it everyday when I do my makeup. I use the fluffy wide end to highlight my browbone and it works great for that purpose. The wide end is soft and dense and it distributes the highlight perfectly on my brow bone. I also use this end to blend out the harshlines between my crease and highlight because the brush is large and soft enough for that purpose. I use the smaller pointed end for smuding out the top and bottom liner with a dark shadow, or for highlighting inner corners. The point is small enough for both purposes. One lippie off because while the wide end is super soft, the black bristles on the smaller end is harsh and scratchy. I love this brush, and I've had it for 3+ years now and its still as good as new. I will definitely repurchase, especially when it sometimes comes with a free EOB crease brush!
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Cleansers -Kanebo - Naive Cleansing Oil
b3l0vEd 1/4/2011 10:59:00 PM
This is now called the Kracie naive deep cleansing oil. With that said, I really really like it. I own both the olive oil one (green bottle like in the picture above) as well as the orange oil one (orange bottle). They both work the same for me, but when I bought it, the green one is $1 more than the orange one ($6). I was able to get this at a local Japanese shop. I have used the Shiseido perfect oil cleanser previously and really really loved that one, but I wanted to try something a little cheaper. The Kracies cleansing oil smells great, but I can detect a faint alcohol smell to it. I'm not sure if alcohol is part of the ingredients or not because I can't read the Japanese on the bottle. It works great at removing my waterproof and smudge proof makeup. What I do is, I squeeze out a dime size amount of product into my dry hands. (BTW, the packaging isn't great since it's a squeeze botte) And I apply that to my face and rub it into my face without any water. After I rub for about 30 seconds, I wet my hands and continue to rub my face and work the oil in to a emulsion. After I remove all of the makeup that way, I just simply rinse off with water. What I really like about this cleansing oil is that I don't get a greasy residue left after rinsing. It doesn't irritate or dry out my skin or breaks me out. I will repurchase, but I still want to try out more brands and see what else is out there.
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Eyeliner -Christian Dior - Kohl Pencil
b3l0vEd 12/26/2010 12:36:00 AM
I don't really know what some reviewers are raving about, because my eyeliner was NOT like how they described theirs to be, which lead to me thinking that I may have had a bad batch or something. I agree with the reviewer directly below mine in that my liner is terrible hard and unpigmented to apply. For the $$$, its quality is really subpar. I had to push really hard, repeatedly, to make any color show up, and when it did, it showed up a gray, instead of black. The staying power sucks too, it smudges and fades within 10 mins of applying. The $2 NYC liner I got had better pigment and staying power than this, and it didn't poke my eyes out either. It went back to sephora straight away. If you want to spend $20 something on a liner and get your money's worth, I suggest lancome. I will never ever repurchase this.
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Makeup Brushes -E.L.F. - Studio Complexion Brush
b3l0vEd 12/21/2010 6:41:00 PM
This brush is totally not what I expected it to be. The bristles are a little too flimsy and not dense enough for me to use as a blush or bronzer brush. It would be great for powder, but the brush head is a tad small for that purpose. The bristles are extremely soft, and it comes with its own brush guard. I wouldn't repurchase again, because I really don't know what to use this brush for.
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Eye Shadow -Wet 'n' Wild - Color Icon Single in Brulee
b3l0vEd 12/21/2010 6:19:00 PM
WOW! I've been using MAC's brule for years before I stumbled upon this little gem. To me, it's a complete dupe in both color and texture, but the WnW one is more loosely packed into the pan. It's super pigmented and the texture is buttery smooth. I would definitely start repurchasing this instead of MAC from now on and save $12 :)
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Eye Primer -Victoria's Secret - Pro Lasting FX Eyeshadow Primer
b3l0vEd 12/19/2010 11:44:00 PM
This primer is very comparable to TFSI both in packaging and in the actual product. It comes in a squeeze tube with a slim applicator where you can very well control the amount of product used. Yes, its true that it separates upon first use and a little bit of oil comes out, but my TFSI does the same thing. Performance wise, the VS primer and TFSI works identical on me. They make my shadows more vibrant and crease and fade free for 8+ hours. The only difference between the two is that the VS one has a little bit more "slip" and is a tiny bit thinner and take a tiny bit longer to dry. For $10 less than TFSI, I'm willing to overlook the minor imperfections and continue to repurchase this primer.
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Highlighters -E.L.F. - Studio Blush in Gotta Glow
b3l0vEd 12/16/2010 2:14:00 PM
Super chalky and powdery, and not at all comparable to NARS albatross. The shimmers in this is not very finely milled, so whatever product you end up applying to your face, your face ends up looking dirty. I blame it on the visible shimmer chunks. Its too powdery so that when you apply it, the product goes everywhere but your face, and you end up wasting a whole lot of product just trying to get it to show up. The price is cheap and the packaging is great. But its essencially a waste of my $3. Will not repurchase.
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