Lipstick -Maybelline - Color Sensational Lipstick - Warm Me Up
greenidentity 3/13/2013 6:17:00 PM
I went to Target the other day, and picked up Maybelline Colorsensational in Warm me Up. I have trouble finding a good "nude" shade since I am very pale. I have to say that I like it quite a bit! It's not too light, not too pink or brown. It's a good combination of the two, and I feel it makes my lips look fuller! It isn't full on color, I can reapply it often and never feel like it's too strong. It is a more dry formula, but it did not dry out my actual lips. I also really like the smell, it has kind of a cocoa butter smell. I really like the packaging, it is a square tube that is a pinkish/brown on the outside, and silver mirror on the inside. This will definitely be an everyday lip color for me, and a great starting point for delving into the world of nudes!
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Blush -NYX - Rouge Cream Blush - Natural
greenidentity 2/18/2013 8:57:00 PM
I've recently begun experimenting with blush for the first time. For reference, I am very fair with normal to dry skin, with redness and some hormonal acne. I've never found it necessary to use blush because of my redness. But after seeing a few tutorials on how to apply blush, I discovered it can really define and "finish" your look. The ony comparison I have to this blush is Wet N Wild's Pearlescent Pink powder blush, which everyone raves about. At first, being quite inexperienced, I used MUCH too heavy of a hand with it! Even with lighter applications, I still found it a tad too dark for me. I will keep it around to practice with, but went off in search of an even lighter blush. I had heard of cream blush, and thought it'd be perfect for my dry skin. So I decided to give Natural a try, which is the lightest color out of Nyx's cream blush selection. The good: It's very creamy, making it good for dry skin, and easy to blend. It can also be doubled as a lip color. The finish is dewy and gives a nice sheen, without being overly shiny or full of sparkle. For the cost and quality, it scores very high with me, as I anticipate this pot lasting me a long time. This blush is unscented, so you don't have to worry about any off-putting smells during wear. The bad: It's VERY pigmented. Some people say that's a good thing, but for my pale skin, it's very easy to get too much product if applying with a brush. I've since used it with my fingers, and I mean literally one whisper light touch into the pot with 3-4 light dots onto my cheeks, and then blending it in. Overall: While this blush is a bright "baby" pink, a very light hand adds a nice glow of pink to my face, opposed to enhancing my redness. My skin is fairly clear and cream otherwise,, so the overall effect comes off quite nice when I do a bare lip + black eyeliner. I think this color would work well for almost any skin tone! I like the packaging. It isn't too bulky nor flimsy or easily breakable, as tested by my 2 cats who knocked it off my kitchen island and had a good time playing hockey with it last night. :)
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Moisturizers -Josie Maran Cosmetics - Argan oil
greenidentity 2/18/2013 7:27:00 PM
I had recently discoverd Burt's Bees repair Serum with Attar of Rose. A friend gave it to me, because it broke her out. Initially, I used it for undereyes only, since I tend to have moderate dark circles on my very fair skin. I found it to be very softening, and the smell was very calming, with lavendar and rose at the base. Since my skin is usually dry during the harsh winters, I tried some out on my skin. I found it to have the same softening affects, but it did aggravate my hormonal acne a bit. Fast forward to Josie Maran Argan oil, which I received in one of my Glam Bags. The good: A little goes a long way. I use 4 drops on one palm, rub palms together and then pat and smooth them over my damp face, after nightly cleansing. I do not use anything else with it, besides a few dabs of witch hazel on my acne areas. Literally after the first use of this, I noticed my complexion was smooth and hydrated. I suffer from redness, and it has even slightly reduced my redness. After 5 uses of this, my skin is poreless, smooth, and flake-free! I did get one pimple after using it, but instead of panicking and stopping, I decided to use it normally 1-2 more times a s an expirement. I know, seems like a crazy thing to do! But my acne is reducing as it normally would when I applied lotion each night, so I'm hesitatnt to name Argan oil as the culprit. The bad: Literally none. Despite being expensive, the price is not an issue for me. This little bottle will last me a very long time!
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Eye Shadow -NYX - Eyeshadow in Aloha
greenidentity 2/18/2013 6:00:00 PM
Being very fair and cool toned, I find myself gravitating towards lighter, champagne based eyeshadows, keeping with my bare eye/strong lip look. I find that the right swipe of brightness and glow to my eyelid can make my skin and red lips pop. So I was eager to try Aloha, which eventually won out over Nyx's My Favorite Color eyeshadow. The color is a very light pink/taupe color. It Isn't obviously brown, but the pink has a neutral aspect to it. The good: I didn't find it to be chalky, or have much fallout, as described by others. The bad: For my pale skin, the color simply isn't pigmented enough. It's a very light, glittery color. It barely shows up on my lids, only adding a hint of shimmer. I can see this working for medium or darker skin tones, and would be good for oily eyelids since the consistency isn't creamy. The packaging is nice, I like the flip-lid, but I will not re-purchase this color.
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Lipstick -NYX - summer love
greenidentity 2/18/2013 5:10:00 PM
I recently went out in search of Nyx products, hearing many great things about them. One big challenge for me is finding the right everyday lipstick shade. I am very fair with redness in my skin, and some acne. My lips are also quite thin, and have good pigment on their own. One good thing about my skin tone and lip type is that I can pull of red lipstick very well. The downfall is finding a neutral shade. Many pink based lipsticks are either too light, to bright, or too rosy, causing the redness in my skin to stand out. Lighter colors also make my lips seem thinner. Mauve seems to be about the only shade I can pull off, but even then it has to be very neutral. The good: The lipstick applies nicely. Very smooth. The color also lasts well for a more creamy lipstick. The bad: When I came upon Summer Love, the swatch came off as a sheer, light nude. But when applied to my lips it looks frosty lavendar! Much too light and cool for my skin tone. I can fix it by putting a neutral mauve gloss on top, but my search continues for a good neutral for very pale, thin lipped gals! Edit: I took one lippie off, because after using this a few times, it dried my lips out a lot. Unfortunately, this lipstick needs a lot of doctoring up to be acceptable.
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Scrubs -St. Ives - Green Tea Scrub
greenidentity 11/6/2010 11:19:00 PM
After using Neutrogena's Redness Soothing scrub and being quite disappointed, I decided to switch and try this. I am very fair skinned with cool tones, so I get red quite easily. I also have some small breakout areas on the sides of my face and chin, though I am prone to dry skin and live in a cold climate. When I bought this, I will admit both the smell and consistency was off-putting. It's smells very earthy, and the consistency seems thick, with granules as fine as sand. However, I've used this product now for only 2 weeks and I LOVE it. My breakouts are cleared out by at least 30%, and my after using it my skin is clear and clean. The Neutrogena Scrub smelled like weird medicinal bubblegum, and stung my face. I will continue to use this, unless I see Eucarin's Redness Relief on sale somewhere.
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Mascara -Avon - SuperFULL Mascara
greenidentity 10/7/2010 11:43:00 PM
I don't know if I have a special on this mascara, but the tube is black, and the name is "SuperFULL Midnight." The product color is black pearl, so it has some glimmer to it. My lashes are normally pretty long, but also very fine, so clumping is a problem. What I need most is volume, and most volumizing mascaras are a clump-o-rama. Not this one! This one defines my lashes well and clumps little to none. The volume factor is moderate, but I don't get spider-lashes as I do with most mascara. The bristles are sharp and pointy, not soft like with rubber bristles. I will never understand the rubber-wand craze, as it offers no definition and usually clumps a lot. Sadly, I believe this is no longer available fro Avon. Double sad, because Avons mascara products usually disappoint me greatly. I took one lippie off just because it doesn't give you the wow factor with volume, but it does define. lift and the pearl effect does come through lightly.
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Makeup Brushes -E.L.F. - Foundation brush
greenidentity 1/13/2010 6:30:00 PM
I used to use sponges to blend my foundation. I find now that I prefer to use this brush, especially with the e.l.f. all over cover stick. It's literally like "painting" on your foundation coverage. I didn't personally find it left me streaky at all, but then again I am light skinned and use pale foundations. It also is good for blending thich undereye concealor! The only gripe I have is that it gets visibly dirty very easily, and the handle already broke where it connects together. For a buck, you can't beat this.
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Lip Gloss -E.L.F. - Plumping Lip Glaze - Ruby Kiss
greenidentity 1/13/2010 6:12:00 PM
This is my first plumping lip gloss. I have thin lips, so any plumping is appreciated! First off, the smell/taste is not that bad. I hear about people who just spaz over how e.l.f smells and tastes. I guess I'm not that sensitive. It just smells/tastes lke strong minty toothpaste, doesn't bother me a bit. The white gloss tingles a bit, but doesn't burn like some others I've sampled. I notice a definite plump from this - maybe because i have such thin lips to begin with. The color gloos end is just awesome. It isn't too cakey or too runny - it isn't too dark or too pigmented. It's really just a sheer, medium red that doesn't scream out nor is it too subtle like a balm. I was also quite pleased to see this lasts well through eating and drinking, and stays on the lips without smearing. It is not at all sticky and is quite moisturizing. A++++!
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Highlighters -E.L.F. - Shimmering Facial Whip in Lilac Petal
greenidentity 1/13/2010 5:47:00 PM
I am fair skinned, so I am always on the lookout for a good highlighter. I got this in hopes I would get a little shimmer and a little color. I don't care for this product. First off, the consistency is so dense. It looks kind of "caked on" and it does nothing to make me look better or highlight any featuers. It just kind if "sits" on my face. I do use it on my eyes underneath some glittery eyeshadow, and it's ok for that. Otherwise, it just makes me look ashy and kind of like a clown.
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Foundations -E.L.F. - All Over Cover Stick in Fair
greenidentity 1/13/2010 5:20:00 PM
I have fair. dry skin, and am prone to redness. This is my first ever "foundation" stick. I was worried about it being too "cakey" for my dry skin. I was completely surprised and impressed with this product. The product is a little yellow - however instead of turning me yelow, it balanced out my redness - which has seemed IMPOSSIBLE until now! I have normal-dry skin (i live in a cold climate - so winters get rough) and this doesnt dry me out at all. It is quite thick, but it's perfectly blendable if you use any foundation brush - I find finger/sponge blending doesn't work as well with this product. It also covers my undereye circles very well! I just dab some on, and blend it with my e.l.f foundation brush! I will not go back to using my Physicians Formula concealor stick over this stuff. This is an awesome product for the price - i think this would work well on most any skin type. Overall, very good cover and A+++ for balancing skin tone and redness!
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Bronzers -E.L.F. - Healthy Glow Bronzing Powder -- Sunkissed
greenidentity 1/13/2010 4:22:00 PM
I have pale, redness prone skin. I never use blush (don't have to), but I've been a little bored with my makeup routine and wanted to try and "warm" my skin up. So I decided to try out the bronzer. One of my biggest fears was that I would turn orange and streaky. However, I found this doesn't turn me orange at all. Instead, it acts similar to a blush on my fair skin. It doesn't look bad, but it also doesn't warm me up the way I hoped. I brush this over the apples of my cheeks only, and give it a lighter hand as not to cake it on. It does add a little more color to my face. It is a very loosely packed powder, but that doesn't bother me. It's ok - but I think I should stay pale and try out the Luminance "bronzer" next time!
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Makeup Brushes -E.L.F. - Concealer Brush
greenidentity 1/13/2010 4:11:00 PM
My review is not much different from anyone else's here. The brush is much to small for concealor, and it doesn't blend well at all. However - I use this for applying glittery eye shadow and it's AWESOME. You can be super precise in the application of eyeshadow or eyeliner without getting it ALL over your face (my biggest glittery eye shadow pet-peeve.)
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Eyes -E.L.F. - Under Eye Concealer & Highlighter
greenidentity 1/13/2010 3:41:00 PM
I purchased this in fair, as I am very light skinned. I'm not a heavy makeup person, and I prefer a more classic look (bare eyes, dark lips, lots of mascara) and this is perfect for that. The concealor is sheer, but it's easy to blend and provides light coverage for slight blemishes. It isn't too good for undereye circles however. I like the highlighter a lot - i use it in the outer and inner corners of my eyes, as a shadow primer, on the bridge of my nose and on my cupids bow. I like that it's a little shimmery - it just adds a good sheen to my otherwise pasty skin! This doesn't beat Maybelline's Double Face Perfector, but for the price and amount of product, it's a fine substitute! I would not recommend this for anyone who is darker skinned, or wants medium-full coverage in a concealor.
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Lip Gloss -E.L.F. - Super Glossy Lip Shine SPF 15 - Malt Shake
greenidentity 1/13/2010 3:19:00 PM
I think I am the only person who doesn't care for this lip gloss. The shade is not flattering on my pale skin - it's too "nude" to really do anything to make me look better. I do find it a bit sticky, and it also dries out my lips. Maybe next time I will try this in a different shade. I did love the slant-tip however. It was very easy to apply and not too big for my thin lips.
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