Polishes -OPI - Tickle my France-y
ltnla 3/17/2013 9:08:00 PM
This polish underscores what I already knew -- that "nude" or "natural" (polishes, lipsticks) are usually the hardest to come by. I had high hopes for this since it seems to work on so many different skin tone. The color of the polish is about half a shade darker than my nail bed -- so you'd think that it would give me natural/polished looking hands. Instead, I now understand what people mean by "dirty hands". One coat is not great, but not terrible, but two makes my hands look... dirty? aged? Formula is OK only, a bit stringy in my opinion. Not sure if this will help anyone, but the nude/neutral polishes that work on me are: Zoya Cho and Orly Pure Porcelain (two pretty different polishes, one pulling pink and other pulling yellow). I've found good use for this though -- I use it in addition to a base coat whenever I use dark nail polishes, or really, just about anything other than very sheer or light polishes, to prevent staining. Seems to work. Wouldn't repurchase though.
3 out of 3 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Moisturizers -Unlisted Brand - Embryolisse
ltnla 3/13/2013 7:49:00 PM
3.5. The one I'm reviewing is "Embryolisse Lait-Crème Concentre". Bought two 75ml (2.5oz) tubes for 18 euros ($24) total at a French pharmacy on a recent trip. Yes, I know... the hype, I had to try. I don't have much to say other than, yes, it's a nice light moisturizer (I have normal to slightly dry skin), has nice light smell, seems to sink in quickly. But I can say the same thing about various Oil of Olay, Neutrogena moisturizers I've used over the years. Not that I expected miracles, but I didn't see or feel much of a difference (I have good skin overall...so maybe too much to expect a "glow" or whatever that people seem to talk about). The test for me is this -- if available in the US at similar price, would I buy it, and I think the answer is well, maybe, or sometimes but this isn't anything amazing to me. Just a basic moisturizer. I do like the utilitarian tube though. You can easily get it online in the US at maybe a little over twice the price in Europe. So not that expensive if you want to see what the hype is all about.
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Polishes -Orly - High on hope
ltnla 3/13/2013 11:58:00 AM
Gorgeous slight purple leaning blue with visible coppery pink shimmer. Applies well. The shimmer doesn't get eaten up by the dark base. This is an obvious point but I'll say it anyway, his isn't "foil-y" or super sparkly, it just has a subtle shimmery depth to it. Not an exact comparison, but this is what China Glaze tried to do w/its new color Fancy Pants -- dusky blue w/pink shimmer where the shimmer is pretty much nonexistent (I have it and like it enough for the color, and it's a different blue than this one but I like Orly's much better). Limited edition so if this sounds like your cup of tea, grab it before it's gone.
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Polishes -OPI - A butterfly moment
ltnla 3/7/2013 5:00:00 PM
This is a true surprising like for me. It looks boring and a bit dated in the bottle -- peachy pink with slight frost (similar to an old Revlon from years ago, nude something, that actually always got me complimented). Well, the color on the nail looks pretty much the same, and yet I find it very soft and attractive and I think would work well on most women as a neutral alternative to nude (I'm NC 25/30). Just on this side of frosty, but in your face or tacky at all. Reminds me of MAC Nymphette lipglass, or Love nectar, or Pink lemonade. More peach than pink. Probably needs two coats (I've used only one, but that's bc I put it over a fairly sheer nude polish after a few days' wear). Would look great in summer on anyone w/a tan.
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Polishes -Zoya - Angelina
ltnla 2/25/2013 7:35:00 PM
So glad I bought this on a whim. Agree w/other reviewers. Looks mostly black indoors, but much softer. And definitely dark brown in the sun. The color is simply beautiful and I think should suit most skintone. What impresses me the most is how glossy and reflective it is, even without a topcoat. No shimmer. Just a really shiny creme. Two easy to apply coats. I find myself even more fascinated by this on my nails than all the shimmery, holo-y, foil-y, sparkly other polishes that I have. And this could be my imagination, but seems to take a bit longer to dry than I'm used to, but nothing horrible. Give this a try if you want to try a dark sophisticated color without going black (a bit like comparing apples and oranges, but if I had to choose, I'd choose this over Essie Wicked...also a great polish, but takes more coats).
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Polishes -Orly - Nail Polish
ltnla 1/17/2013 7:21:00 PM
I'm a recent convert to Orly polishes. In the past I ignored them, partly b/c I think the bottle looks clunky (I know... never judge a polish by its bottle), plus they don't usually get a nice display in the stores like OPI or Essie does, and OPI always does a better advertising job. I've changed my mind -- they're just as good as OPI or Essie or any high end polish and have a range of interesting shades seasonally. A couple of colors that I absolutely love are Sea Gurl ("basic" warmer toned gunmetal gray that applies like a dream, and as classy looking as any Chanel metallic polish. Love!); Miss Conduct (gorgeous shimmery raspberry pink); many from the foil FX collection; just about any of the blues (ex lunar eclipse, stone cold), and the list goes on. Do give this line a try if there's a shade that appeals to you. Same price as OPI $8 or $8.50 but you can get for a few dollars less at a chain beauty supply store like Sally's. Rating more like 4.5 (I can't see ever giving an entire line of product a 5, so this rating is as good as it gets for me)
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Polishes -Revlon - Nail Enamel - Blue Lagoon
ltnla 12/13/2012 11:20:00 AM
I should have checked here first before buying ! Agree w/all the bad reviews about lousy application. Totally streaky with two coats, a bit better with 3 but still subpar (and I know how to apply polishes, as I have many/but just don't review them here). Probably one of the worst polishes I've ever used, application wise. Don't see the shimmer either, but that's not reason for low score Color is nice pale blue, but not pretty or unique enough to overcome the horrible application issues. Lost receipt and can't return and so I'm salvaging this by using it as a base for one of my harder to find indie blue polishes, but other than that, not even worth the $3 I got it on sale. Edit: tried a few times and not even worth it as a blue base so off to the dump bin it goes.
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Eyeliner -NYX - Studio Effect Liquid Liner (all colors)
ltnla 8/25/2012 7:07:00 PM
Fantastic product and I'd buy even if 3x the price (around $5). I have extreme coffee and extreme gold and will be getting more. Intense color, shiny/not glittery. Fairly long lasting though probably not waterproof (I'm not a big fan of waterproof products and don't really seek them out). I'm not an "expert" at liquid liners (tried years ago and gave up and only recently retry) -- but find these to be very easy to use. No complaints with brush. Note though that the brush is on the thin side, and so is liner liquid. So it takes a few times if you want a nice thick line, but I don't see this as a down side bc a thinner brush is more forgivable if your initial line isn't quite perfect. Really worth trying out.
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Eye Shadow -Maybelline - Color Tattoo 24hr Cream Gel Shadow in Bad to the Bronze / on and on bronze
ltnla 8/21/2012 8:22:00 PM
Love! Like others have said -- long lasting, little creasing, easy to blend/just use your fingers, more like a neutral taupe-y bronze than true warm bronze (means it should be wearable by most people). Beautiful by itself--just gives a bit of warmth and shimmer to my lids (NC 25/30). But what I love most about this product is using it as a base, because it revives and gives a new spark to multiple eyeshadows that I've ignored (b/c they're too "boring", not enough pigmentation etc). I hear that this is similar to MAC paint pots, but frankly this works so well, and there's so much product that I'm not in the least bit tempted to try MAC (or even buy another color tattoo--at least not for a while).
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Lipstick -MAC - Rocker Lipstick
ltnla 8/11/2012 3:21:00 PM
NC 25/30, lt-medium olive/yellow toned. Agree w/reviewer right before me. Nice burgundy red. I don't really see glitter. Not as dramatic a color as I thought, based on pictures I've seen online, though I'm sure it would look more dramatic for fair-skinned women (and would be great at night especially for fairer women). Should be wearable by most, and a good fall color. Not unique, as I've had similar colors in the past. Good texture for a matte (doesn't feel as drying as other mattes). But I definitely wouldn't pay more than retail price getting this if it sells out. Edit: not changing score to 5, though I'm liking this much more than in original review. Not unique, but very classy, and texture is just right. Can wear matte for a vampier or trendy look, or add a bit of gold gloss to tone it out and bring out the slight shimmer in the lipstick (I've used Chanel's Constellation, but any clearish gloss w/gold bits would do).
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Lipstick -MAC - Cut a Caper
ltnla 7/23/2012 5:51:00 PM
I have a number of peachy/ coral lipsticks from Mac that I love (eg See Sheer, Pleasureseeker, Fashion City, Crosswires) and this "should" have worked on me (NC 30) but didn't. It's not bad, but just a bit too whitish milky, not flattering. Would have given 4 for the color in general, but I found that it didn't apply as evenly as other lustre lipsticks, which is my favorite formula in Mac. That was the deal breaker. Tried hard for a week to make it work but sadly had to return.
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Lipstick -MAC - Amplified Creme - Girl About Town
ltnla 7/11/2012 10:46:00 PM
Wow. Stunning. I'm NC25 winter/NC30 summer. Not much purple or blue tone, fairly "neutral" hot pink fuchsia. Should work on most people. I never bothered trying this in the past, thinking it's way too loud, too young etc (though mostly b/c I've abandoned Mac for last few yrs). Tried various pinks like Lickable, Lustering etc and never liked those enough (though I do love Speak Louder, totally different from this). I should have tried GAT in the first place! Can't say enough good things about this, amazing texture, comfortable, doesn't change color or get icky after a few hours. Just go for it, and don't bother trying to find a drugstore version (unless that's fun to do for you) -- my experience is that for bright intense colors, all the elements have to be "right", texture etc, so if a drugstore product looks the same but doesn't wear quite right, it can look really cheap. Any age can wear this, even day time, as long as you keep skin and rest of face fresh and clean. I apply straight from tube, no liner needed.
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Lipstick -MAC - Venus
ltnla 7/5/2012 8:41:00 PM
Have this for one day, but writing review in case it helps anyone. I'm NC25/NC30. Very pretty neutral to slight warm pink, with a slight sheen. Takes several swipes to get full color; after all, it's a lustre. Easy every day color that should work on just about anyone. Pretty but not all that special on my skin tone/coloring. I have yellow tone, and slight mauvy lips, which I think deepens color a bit. Though I think this looks good on warm skinned gals like me, I think it'll be way better on cooler toned women (could also be bc I'm much more partial to coral sthan pinks on me). I don't have many pink lipsticks to compare, but don't think it's all that unique -- though I think if you like or might like it, you should get it rather than spend time trying to find a cheaper version. I don't regret buying, but probably wouldn't have bought if it's not "limited edition"... so MAC's marketing does work after all ! Edit: agree w/reviewer below that it also reminds me of Bombshell ! (which I tried several times but never bought bc I didn't like enough). Maybe a tad warmer. Also frostier than other lustre lipsticks.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Lipstick -Cover Girl - Lip Perfection - 405 Fairytale
ltnla 7/2/2012 8:32:00 PM
Most people probably won't experience this, but this was like a love affair gone completely wrong. Agree w/positive reviews re color (beautiful on trend corally pink), good coverage and texture. But problems for me were -- it stains incredibly strong/after one hour or less/which I realize can be good or bad (I scrubbed vigorously w/vaseline, sugar scrub etc but to no avail). BUT bigger problem was that it kind of bleeds/migrates, such that the stain is mostly gone in middle of lips, but dark stain all around -- leaving me with a noticeably lip color middle part surrounded by dark color. Not good. Also stains to a darker coral/almost red color, which is not what I bargained for. If this had stained evenly, the color change wouldn't have bothered me as much. Maybe a unique experience to me, and I envy those who don't have similar problems, bc it is a lovely color -- at first.
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Lip Gloss -Chanel - Rouge Allure Insouciance 51
ltnla 6/26/2012 11:32:00 PM
The best nude gloss I've ever purchased. "Nude" color is hard to describe and individual, bu I'd describe it as light beige with touch of pink. It subtly brightens my face (I'm now NC 30, and NC 25 in winter)--without lipstick underneath or even liner. Superb texture, both sheer and sort of opaque at same time, zero streakiness, moisturizing and even a bit plumping. Both sexy for a date, and appropriate for a job interview.
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