BB Cream -L'Oreal - Magic Skin Beautifier BB Cream
edgexofxdesire 3/16/2013 2:55:00 PM
I generally love L'Oreal face products. TrueMatch and TrueMatch Lumi are two of my favorite foundations, so I figured I'd give their BB Cream a try. I mix shades N3 and W2 in the TrueMatch lines, so I picked this BB Cream up in the shade "Light". I tested it out on the back of my hand and it blended in perfectly, so I immediately assumed that I would absolutely adore it. When I applied it to my face, the coverage was light, but it gave my skin a soft airbrushed look and the texture made my skin feel so smooth and silky. The finish was even perfect, natural matte that didn't look flat or powdery. This product was quickly reaching HG status...until I realized that it was one of the worst colors I've ever seen. Almost immediately it began to turn orange. Not even a golden tan with a slightly orange undertone...flat out orange. And to make matters worse, it was turning a dark orange/brown around my cheekbones and my nose. I looked like a rotting carrot. My boyfriend caught a glimpse of me and stopped dead in his tracks. He *never* comments to my makeup, so when he frantically asked me why I was orange I knew this product was destined for the trash bin. So disappointing. I've never had a base product turn so bad so fast. Complete waste of $10 and if I could give it a 0 overall, believe me I would.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Crème -Revlon - ColorStay Whipped Creme Makeup
edgexofxdesire 2/2/2013 11:35:00 PM
I loved the original Colorstay Liquid for Combination/Oily skin, but I could never find a shade that matched me and grew tired of mixing two shades on a daily basis, so when this product came out I was hesitant to pick it up. Thankfully I gave it a shot anyway because I really do like it. I have the shade 200 Sand Beige, which is admittedly still a little too pale for me, but it works. The consistency is interesting. It's very thick and creamy, almost like the texture of pudding, but it doesn't feel that heavy on my skin. I apply this with a damp beauty blender sponge and definitely get that ever elusive airbrushed effect, but at the same time it still looks like my skin. I have noticed that I have to smooth it out a number of times while it sets or it settles into the fine lines underneath my eyes. But it does set well (not as well as the CS Liquid, but well enough) and I almost don't need a powder. Or at least I wouldn't need a powder if I didn't have oily skin. When I use this in conjunction with a primer and my Maybelline Dream Matte powder it is lovely, but when used alone I don't get more than a few hours of wear before it starts to separate and slide around. I honestly do like it for a number of reasons. The finish is gorgeous, the color matches fairly well, it doesn't feel heavy or look unnatural on my skin...but there are some downsides. It's not a "slap and go" foundation for me, and sometimes I feel like the extra work just isn't worth it. The packaging is bulky and heavy and I cannot imagine that it would travel well at all. And there is such a small amount of product in the jar that the $14 price tag seems a little out of control. So while I did like this foundation, I'm still uncertain as to whether I would purchase it again and whether I give it my recommendation. If you can get it on sale (I only paid $3 for mine at Rite Aid) then it is absolutely a product to pick up and try out for yourself. But at the retail price of $14 I genuinely don't know if it's worth it...
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Mascara -Hourglass - Film Noir Full Spectrum
edgexofxdesire 2/2/2013 11:17:00 PM
I'm usually very hesitant to try out a high end mascara because I feel like the drugstore mascaras are just as good as anything in Sephora for 1/4 of the price. But I'd never seen so many people rave about a mascara before I came across the Hourglass Film Noir, so I had to give it a try. This mascara is 100% worth the hype. Like all high end mascaras the Hourglass Film Noir is grossly overpriced, but the product itself is lovely. The color is rich and black without being sooty or greasy looking. The formula is perfect--not too wet, not at all dry--and the brush is amazing. Again, I was hesitant at first because I've never had an hourglass shaped brush and I was unsure of how my lashes would react. But the brush is the perfect size and shape to coat, separate and define every single eyelash. On top of that, I haven't had to worry at all about mascara getting onto my eyelid or my browbone as I'm applying this, and I've never experienced any flaking or smudging throughout the day. I did take one lippie away because Hourglass claims that this will add volume, which is something I haven't seen at all. Other than that (and the price), this is a top notch mascara that I highly recommend.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Toners -Boscia - Clear Complexion Tonic with Botanical Blast
edgexofxdesire 7/10/2012 9:21:00 PM
My skin absolutely adores Willow Bark, so I figured that this was going to be a product that would work well for me. It does, for the most part, but I will not waste my money on this again. While it is a solid toner--light and refreshing without being sticky--and my skin loves it, it's not worth the $24 that I spend on it. To start, the texture of this liquid is kind of strange. Like any other toner, it's a watery consistency. Unlike any other toner, this is the driest liquid I've ever seen. I don't mean that it dries my skin out (because it absolutely does not). But I use this on a cotton ball--I'll explain why in a moment--and the cotton ball seems to drag on my skin, rather than gliding smoothly and depositing the toner. It's very strange, but not unpleasant, although it does waste a ton of product. Now the reason that I use a cotton ball to apply this is because the spray mechanism on the two bottles that I've had did not work. Instead of a nice mist on my face, the product was coming out in a hard, steady stream (think Lysol or Clorox cleaning sprays). So after a few uses I just took the spritz cap off and replaced it with a regular cap, hence the need for a cotton ball. This didn't bother me much until I realized how much product was wasted because the toner is clearly not meant to be used on a cotton ball. And this tiny little bottle is $24! I will genuinely be lucky if this lasts me another week or two, and I only just purchased it at the beginning of the month. That is terrible :( Honesty, it is incredibly similar to my HG Burt's Bees Natural Acne Solutions toner...only I like the Burt's Bees a whole lot more.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Masks -Mario Badescu - Special Mask for Oily Skin
edgexofxdesire 7/2/2012 10:18:00 PM
I have very, very oily skin, so I'm always intrigued when products claim to minimize oil. I've tried a ton of masks with kaolin clay for this specific purpose, and they've all worked well, but this is the first one that's actually dried my skin out. Not necessarily dry to the point of flaky patches or irritation, but my skin has never felt so tight and parched before, even after moisturizer. I found myself reapplying my moisturizer twice within a half hour of rinsing this off because it was so uncomfortable--and slightly itchy. So I certainly recommend moisturizing very well after using this product. Now that being said, this definitely does the job that it claims to do. Several hours later and my skin is still shine free (whereas I normally don't stay matte for more than 20 minutes). It feels clean, tight and healthy. I also noticed that a few of the blemished I've been battling lately finally came to a head after using this mask, which is certainly an added bonus. Only having used this once, I'm certain that this mask would be ideal for oily skin right before a big event like a wedding or a particularly long day in the heat/humidity. It will absolutely keep your skin looking matte all day. Now I definitely wouldn't use this two to three times a week (as the website suggests) because I feel like it would severely dry out my skin. But once a week, or even a few times a month, would work well. All in all this mask does exactly what it claims to do, so it gets a thumbs up from me. I did take 1 lippie off because this does really *really* dry out the skin, but I'm sure using it only occasionally will be wonderful.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Eye Shadow -Urban Decay - Naked 2 Palette
edgexofxdesire 6/26/2012 10:30:00 PM
It's funny...I read the reviews on here and cool-toned girls hate it because it's "too warm," while at the same time warm-toned girls hate it because it's "too cool." Ladies, you have to know what works for your coloring. Naked 1 is good if you like predominantly warm tones, Naked 2 is good if you're more a fan of cool tones. #1 has a few cool tones, just as #2 has a few warm tones, but overall 1 is warmer and 2 is cooler. And just because you're warm doesn't mean you can't wear cool shadows, and vice versa. Know yourself so that you don't waste time and money on products that won't work for you. Keep that in mind. Now that being said...I am a huge fan of both (I have a separate review for Naked 1), but Naked 2 has some of my favorite colors of all time. I have light/medium olive skin that I won't categorize as either warm or cool because it can truly be either. I love the cool-toned shades in this palette and I think they're amazing "Winter" type of colors. Busted, Verve, Pistol and Suspect are all gorgeous and my personal favorites. Snakebite and Blackout are beautiful, as well, especially to smoke out the lashline. Foxy and Bootycall are your typical highlight shades, but still very nice. YDK, Chopper and Half Baked are great in terms of texture and pigment, but I do not like them on my skintone and thus rarely wear them. Tease is a unique color in swatches, but I find that it doesn't transfer well on my eyes. It's the only shade in the palette that I was truly disappointed with. The majority of what I said in my original Naked review still applies here--including the gripe about price. Overall you're getting the same quality from both palettes, it's just a personal preference in regards to color. The eyeshadows are all very smooth and easy to work with, but keep in mind that they will always look and wear better if you apply a base (any kind..even concealer will do) underneath. I will say, though, that Naked 2 is much more travel-friendly with the solid metal case and snap-close lid. Definitely better packaging than Naked 1. In terms of product quality, though, I think they're equal. It's just a matter of which color palette, warm or cool, works best for you.
11 out of 12 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Misc Beauty Tools -Tarte - Picture Perfect Eyelash Curler
edgexofxdesire 6/26/2012 10:03:00 PM
Tarte's eyelash curler is quite a bit different than others that I've tried. And I'm not a fan of it. First, the finger-grip is atrocious. The plastic is too shiny (and, as a result, slippery) for any amount of control. I don't like the idea of and open grip anyway, as you're able to manage the curler better with the circle grips, but the problems with this are only intensified by the fact that the plastic is so shiny that the curler slides around on your fingers. I had to attach a rubber bit to the curler just to prevent any major accidents. Second, the curler itself is definitely tailored for someone with more of a round shape to their eye. (My round-eyed cousin thinks it's okay, so if you have rounder eyes, this may work for you.) I have predominantly almond-shaped eyes, but my right eye has a slight roundness to it. Interestingly enough, this curler works fairly well on my right eye, but pinches like *mad* on my left eye. It definitely takes a lot of work to make this usable on almond-shaped eyes. And I'm not a fan of the spring action that you get from this curler. I've never had another eyelash curler that had to be hooked together in order to keep it under control. Word of wisdom, ladies: if you get this, please keep the plastic bit that holds the curler together. Otherwise the grips fly apart and it takes up significantly more room. I gave this curler two lippies because there are exactly two things that I like about it: 1) I like the curl that I get out of it (on the days when I have the patience to play with it for 10 minutes). It gives a very dramatic curl and it holds quite well, even without mascara. and 2) I really like the rubber pads on this one. It's the only lash curler that I have that doesn't break, snag or adhere to my eyelashes. I've actually taken the extra pad and put it into my old curler. All in all, this does have some pros (and I think people with a more rounded eye shape will certainly find it more appealing), but it's not at all for me and I would not purchase it again.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Brows -Revlon - Brow Fantasy
edgexofxdesire 6/26/2012 12:52:00 AM
I have chocolate brown hair with natural red highlights and I bought the shade "Light Brown." This product has both good and bad qualities. First of all I love that it has both a tinted brow gel and a brow pencil. You can use each side separately for a more natural, understated brow or you can use them together for a nice defined look. But it is quite pricey for a drugstore product (just under $10 here). The pencil is a good texture, nicely pigmented and waxy and great for catching onto the brows. The formula allows it to hold up very well through the summer heat (even without the brow gel to set) and looks very natural. The Light Brown color works perfectly for my coloring, just a shade or two lighter than my natural hair color, which is an effect that I've grown to really like. The brow gel, while it is a great idea, is severely lacking in quality. I normally love brow gels because they're effortless and allow you to tame and lightly define your brows in one quick, easy step. The pigmentation with this product is good; not too heavy, not too light and perfect for a very natural "my brows but better" look. On initial application the brow gel is very nice, either alone or applied over the pencil. But in only a few minutes the gel becomes very, very stiff and dry, causing a chalky look. Eventually the dryness leads to the product flaking and, unfortunately, causing you to look like you've got dandruff on your eyebrows. I wanted to love this product because it is difficult to find a drugstore tinted brow gel, but sadly this falls short of my expectations. And for a drugstore product, this is certainly overpriced, especially considering the quality. I gave this two lippies because the pencil is fair quality, but I don't recommend spending your money on this product. A much better alternative are the ELF Brow Kits. They don't have the brow gel that I'm so fond of, but their wax/powder combinations are lovely and much better quality than the Revlon Brow Fantasy.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Primer/ Corrector -Rimmel - Fix & Perfect Pro Primer 002
edgexofxdesire 3/17/2012 11:29:00 PM
Best drugstore primer for oily skin, hands down. I've been shelling out $30+ for Too Faced and Smashbox primers for years now because the drugstore primers just couldn't handle my skin. I've got to hand it to Rimmel for this one, I think I like my F&P Pro better than my Smashbox PPL. The texture is quite thick and creamy, but it's a surprisingly light feeling on the skin. I enjoy that this is a thicker primer, as compared to something like the Smashbox (which I sometimes feel disappears too quickly because it's so thin). The Rimmel gives me a lovely, smooth base for my makeup and it actually does mattify my skin (not for very long, but longer than any other primer). It doesn't have any sort of strange smell, it doesn't break me out, it doesn't irritate my skin and it works beautifully with the large variety of foundations that I have in my arsenal. I can even wear this alone many days just for the mattifying and smoothing benefits. The Rimmel Fix & Perfect Pro is a definitely win for drugstore makeup, and at only $5-6 a tube, you can't go wrong. Highly recommend that oily-skinned girls give this a go. It really is a fantastic primer.
5 out of 5 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Crème -Maybelline - Dream Smooth Mousse
edgexofxdesire 3/17/2012 11:20:00 PM
Not at all for us oily skinned girls. I should have known, based off the reviews, that I wouldn't like this, but of course I had to check it out for myself. It's just too slick and too glowing for my already shiny skin. The texture is strange as it's not really a mousse, it's more of a solid gel/cream. It feels very slick to the touch, very wet and oily, and it feels quite heavy and thick for something that's supposed to be light (as the name mousse suggests). It blends quite well, but the finish is very, very glowy (but not luminous and healthy looking). On me it just looks dirty. And to make matters worse, this transfers onto everything and didn't last more than an hour or two before sliding off. Word of advice: don't even think about touching your face. This foundation will jump onto anything it comes into contact with, even after a setting powder. I think it would probably be a lovely finish and texture for someone with dry to very dry skin, as that type is really going to cling to a formula like this, but it's certainly not made for oily skin.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Brows -E.L.F. - Eyebrow Kit
edgexofxdesire 3/17/2012 11:12:00 PM
I've gone through two of these and I'm on my third now. Best eyebrow kit ever. I've used pencils, powders, creams, gels and everything else on my brows for years and nothing has even come close to this little kit. I've used the shade Medium in the past, but I find it's a little too light and a little too warm toned for my hair and skincolor (light olive with dark brown hair), so now I'm using the Dark shade and it's a perfect match. The only thing is that I don't use the powder (the only time I touch that is to use it as a crease color). The gel, used alone on a flat eyeliner brush, is amazing. It's so natural looking and it lasts forever. It doesn't smudge or fade, it's not too dark or too light and it just gives the illusion of absolutely perfect eyebrows. And it's only $3! I highly recommend this to anyone who likes to or needs to touch up their brows. Such a great value and it's really incredibly versatile. You're bound to find the right combination for you. 5/5.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Eye Shadow -Victoria's Secret - VS Hypergloss Eye Shimmer (Night Lights)
edgexofxdesire 2/26/2012 8:56:00 PM
This product is so much more than I expected. The name "Hypergloss" is a perfect description of what this little tube provides. It's a very glittery, sparkly--almost like topcoat for your eyes, it just makes them glow. I'd describe it as a better version of a loose glitter. Same concept without the hassle of fallout or the intensity of huge glitter chunks. The "Night Lights" Hypergloss is a thick, cream-like texture and it comes out of the tube almost a taupey/bronze color, but the color disappears upon application, leaving only the silvery glitter effect. Patted over eyeshadow or alone on the lid, the effect is amazing. It's bright and sparkling, but not overly glittery. It almost looks wet, it's so luminous and glowing. And what's even better is that this absolutely does not budge-no creasing, no transfer, and no wandering glitter particles all over my face. So for anyone who really likes the luminous, sparkling eye look but hates the hassle and fallout that comes with using glitters, I highly, highly recommend the VS Hypergloss. Amazing, amazing product and kudos to the brand for such a fantastic idea. I'm definitely going to check out the gold and black colors on my next trip to Victoria's Secret.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Eye Primer -Too Faced - Shadow Insurance - Candlelight, Softly Illuminating Anti-Crease Eye Shadow Primer
edgexofxdesire 2/26/2012 8:19:00 PM
Ew. I like the original Too Faced Shadow Insurance just fine (it's not my favorite by far, but it's sufficient), but this stuff is terrible. Forget the greasy texture or the diminished quality of this as compared to other primers, those aren't the main problems. I just can't get over how much this cakes up and how terrible it looks on my eyelids. I use a very tiny amount, just enough to cover each eyelid and my bottom lashline area, but this genuinely just looks like I've put a glob of Revlon Photoready Foundation on my eyelids. I thought this would look glowy and luminous, like it did when I swatched it on my hand, but I'm very disappointed. And it doesn't last more than five or so hours before creasing (compared to the original formula, which generally gets me 8 or 9). Definite waste of money. If you like Too Faced, stick to the original. And if you want the shimmer, just use an eyeshadow.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Eye Primer -NARS - Pro-Prime Smudge Proof Eyeshadow Base
edgexofxdesire 2/26/2012 8:10:00 PM
This is hands down the best eyeshadow primer ever. I've gone through Urban Decay, Too Faced, NYX, ELF...every eye primer that I could get my hands on, and nothing compares to the Nars Pro Prime. It's so silky and smooth and easy to blend, it's completely invisible and anytime I use it my eyeshadow doesn't so much as *budge* from where I put it. I've worn my eye makeup for 15 hours, then slept for 6 hours--I certainly dont recommend doing that, but it happens sometimes--with this as a base and they still looked immaculate when I woke up. It is about $5 more than the Too Faced or Urban Decay, and it comes with less product, but it's the best as far as wear goes. I absolutely adore this.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Primer/ Corrector -Hard Candy - Sheer Envy Primer
edgexofxdesire 2/22/2012 11:17:00 PM
Nope, definitely not for oily or sensitive skin. It's a weird texture, but sort of nice. It's very greasy feeling though. It doesn't look greasy on the skin, but it felt like I just rubbed olive oil on my face when I used it. That didn't bother me much because it looked okay and my foundation went on very smooth and nice. But two things are keeping me from ever using this again. 1) Two hours later and my makeup was literally melting off of my face. Not good when it's only 30 degrees outside. I wore this to class and by the time I got home--maybe five hours after application--there were streaks all over my face and my foundation caked up so badly on my cheeks and forehead, my pores looked the size of the grand canyon and my face now looked like I had olive oil slathered everywhere. No go. And 2) It broke me out all over my cheeks, from my cheekbones down to my jawline. Not big, ugly spots, but tiny little whiteheads all over. It almost looks like a rash, it's terrible. I'm disappointed that this didn't work for me because it seems like a great primer at a great price...but it's definitely not for my skintype at all.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No