Blush -Chanel - Orchid Rose [DISCONTINUED]
spriley1 7/10/2011 4:09:00 AM
This blush is soooooo beautiful. I hate bright blush (by my definition even Nars Amour is bright) but this blush is a very subtle, delicate, pink that makes my cheeks GLOW. The sparkles that look so obvious in the pan translate to this gorgeous sheen on the cheeks. It's not a doll colored pink, it's very much a natural human flesh toned pink. It basically makes you look lit from within. Gorgeous. The only two drawbacks are the price and somewhat the packaging (I hate the little brush thing, and think it would be much classier if packaged without it).
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Lipstick -NARS - Pure Matte Lipstick in Tonkin
spriley1 6/21/2011 5:13:00 PM
I have NW20 skin, large dark brown eyes, and pale blonde hair, and this lipstick looks FABULOUS on me. I'd imagine it's the kind of lipstick that looks fabulous on a lot of people, but if you're at all the same coloring as me I would highly recommend this to you. On my lips the color is a light peachy brown with just enough pink to make it look healthy (it's really hard to describe this color). The formula+color makes my lips look really defined, natural, and polished, which makes them look fuller. It's a really classy color. You know a lipstick is truly beautiful when a guy comments on it, and I've gotten compliments from both my boyfriend and one of my male friends. Try it out! Oh and I put balm on under it out of habit, but this formula is not drying at all! And it lasted through a three hour movie when I was snacking on popcorn.
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Masks -Unlisted Brand - Aztec - Indian Healing Clay
spriley1 9/18/2010 3:30:00 PM
Skin background: oily skin, prone to breakouts mostly on my forehead and cheeks near my mouth and I scar pretty easily. I was sick of my acne so I tried Acne Free thinking it would help but NOOOO it was a terrible waste of money. The benzoyl peroxide in this wayyyy harsh system made my skin red, flaky, dry, tight especially under my eyes I literally had WRINKLES. I had crows feet. I'm 19 years old. After that I decided I was going to try an all natural skincare regime and now I'm using: Dr. Bronner's tea tree oil soap, witch hazel toner, pure jojoba oil as a moisturizer, pure tea tree oil as acne medication and this clay. My skin now: CLEAR, smooth, no whiteheads lurking under the surface, no blackheads, no pimples, NO CYSTS, scars are still there but I might try an AHA lotion to get rid of those, but mostly CLEAR CLEAR SKIN. I haven't had clear skin since I was 13. It's just a testament to the power and gentleness of natural products. I definitely attribute most of this marked improvement to this clay. It's amazing, I saw clearer less congested skin on the first application. I've applied it for two weeks every 2-3 days and it's seriously a miracle. Other reviewers have talked about what it feels like so I won't go into it, but I do suggest mixing it with apple cider vinegar and NOT water as the first time I mixed it with water and it was a clumpy, nasty mess. Still worked beautifully but it was a pain in the ass. The ACV makes it smooth and almost a whipped consistency. This clay is basically a vacuum for yours pores and gets everything out, oil, dirt, blackheads, whiteheads, bacteria, you name it. When I wash it off my skin is soft, smooth, a bit red (only for around 20 minutes) and BLACKHEAD AND WHITEHEAD FREE. I always moisturize with jojoba oil after because I don't want it to dry my skin out. In conclusion: this is a miracle product and my HG face mask and it's awesome for oily or acneic skin. GO BUY IT. Plus I got a HUGE 2 pound container at Whole Foods for $10. It will probably last me a year.
5 out of 5 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Palettes -NARS - 9950 Modern Love Palette
spriley1 9/18/2010 3:18:00 PM
Gorgeous colors, great variety (lid, highlight, crease, liner), portable, compact, super blendable (I didn't have my brushes with me once and I managed to do all my eye makeup with my fingers, including highlighting and blending out the crease). I'm cool toned and I was a bit wary of jezebel (reddish bronze color) but it's actually one of my favorites in the whole palette and doesn't make me look bruised as I suspected it would. Overall this is an awesome value for money: 1. The shadows are the same size as MAC eyeshadows, and you get six, which in MAC you'd be paying $66-$84 and this palette cost me $55. I also think these shadows are far superior in quality to MAC, so it's a great value for money. 2. The value wouldn't be so much if I only liked two or three of the shadows but they're ALL gorgeous. Alhambra is a shimmery champagne highlight, Jezebel a red toned brown, India Song a shimmery medium brown, Tokyo a silver highlight, habanera is also one of my favorites it's a shimmery brown based plum, and FINALLY pandora which I'm SO glad they included because so many shadow palettes forget about dark smokey/liner colors it's a SUPER pigmented blackest black matte shadow that I love to use as a liner for day or in the outer corner for a smokey eye. I went on a vacation recently and I took: tinted moisturizer, lipgloss, mascara, two eyeshadow brushes, and this palette. I've never had all my vacation makeup fit in such a small bag. Great, great buy.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Blush -NARS - Amour
spriley1 9/18/2010 3:05:00 PM
This is a really beautiful blush that I can see complimenting many different skintones. If you like deep throat but don't like shimmer in your blushes I recommend amour- it's a bit like deep throat with a good dose of coral and a matte finish (which I prefer as I don't want to highlight the pores on my cheeks). $26 is really expensive for a blush but it will last you FOREVER I seriously can't see myself ever hitting pan, because I literally pat my blush brush in the pan once for each cheek and that's PLENTY of color.The packaging is gorgeous but annoying as I apply my foundation with my fingers and then my blush so I have foundation colored finger prints all over it, which is a pain in the ass to take off. Nars blushes in general are a great investment, and amour is one of my special favorites. I'm NW20 for reference.
6 out of 6 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Blush -Bobbi Brown - Pot Rouge for Lips and Cheeks - Powder Pink
spriley1 8/26/2010 6:14:00 PM
This is a beautiful, subtle rosey pink that looks fantastic with my NW20 skintone. Be careful though, when I say subtle I don't mean sheer, it's HIGHLY pigmented and extremely easy to overdo- often what looks good under the yellow lights of my bathroom looks overdone in natural light. I suggest applying it next to a window and only using two tiny dabs on each cheek (one of the apple one a bit higher) and blending well. The result- subtle, gorgeous, blushing cheeks that brighten my whole face up.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Lip Gloss -Chanel - Bikini Peach (257) Glossimer
spriley1 8/3/2010 6:12:00 AM
I bought Bikini Peach because I wanted a pale pinky/peachy lipgloss. I've owned other glossimers before and I've never had problems with them being long-wearing but for some reason this lipgloss barely lasts more than 30 minutes on my lips. If I were to review the glossimers in general I would review them favorably but for some reason I haven't had the best of luck with this one. Beautiful packaging, classy, typical chanel, but I would go for a different shade or formula.
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Lipstick -MAC - Cosmo Lipstick
spriley1 7/15/2010 5:09:00 PM
I've been searching and searching for my HG MLBB shade and I've finally found it!! I'm NW20 and my lips are fairly pigmented and this is just a beautiful medium dark pink with a bit of brown so it's not too fluorescent and it's soooooo pretty and moisturizing (I love the amplified creme formula). I wear this every day for a lipstick that doesn't look like I'm wearing much lipstick, it just makes my lips pinker and smoother and fuller-looking. Gorgeous. Highly recommended.
4 out of 5 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Primer/ Corrector -Unlisted Brand - Monistat - Chafing Relief Powder-Gel 
spriley1 7/15/2010 5:04:00 PM
While I won't dispute this works well as a face primer, if you really do your research on it's ingredients you would know that unless you have perfect, acne-free oil-free skin, YOU SHOULD NOT BUY THIS PRODUCT. A lot of face products contain silicones (including dimethicone) which essentially are barriers that sit on top of your face (much like saran wrap). These products are marketed as "moisturizers" and "primers" because they lock in moisture and create a smooth canvas for makeup application. However, they also lock in dirt, oil, bacteria, and other impurities and make it impossible for your skin to breathe. This product is comprised of a whopping 1.2% dimethicone, which essentially is like slathering your face in plastic, trapping in all the oils and bacteria in your skin. This is the "oil control" people are talking about- the oil is "controlled" because it's being trapped in your skin, causing clogged pores, blackheads, acne, and cysts. In order to heal acne breakouts your skin needs to breathe, and this product (and all products that contain high amounts of silicones) chokes your skin and makes it basically guaranteed you'll break out if you use it enough. It is highly advisable you rethink buying/using this product (and all silicone based face primers) unless you happen to be blessed with perfect, oil-free, blemish-free skin. If you don't believe me google search "dimethicone pore clogging".
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Lipstick -NYX - Round Lipstick - Tea Rose
spriley1 7/14/2010 2:22:00 AM
I went out and bought this lipstick after hearing all the rave reviews on MUA but I'm really not impressed with it. When I apply it, it goes on almost too creamy and looks cheap. It's not an expensive lipstick but I've bought drugstore brands for a similar price that look more luxurious than this lipstick. I have full lips and for some reason this lipstick doesn't cover them well and settles into the fine lines in my lips. I tried applying a moisturizing balm beforehand but the same thing happened. When I apply a lot of it and blot it off the color does look really beautiful on my cool toned fair skin, but that defeats the purpose of a lipstick if you have to blot most of it off after application (which also makes it fade faster). I think the price is a big draw for this lipstick, but I would rather shell out the extra $11 and buy a MAC lipstick that I adore and will wear every day (and don't have to fuss with lip balm and blotting) that spend $3 on something that just sits in my makeup drawer without use. This is my first NYX lipstick purchase and I'm disappointed because I love their lipglosses.
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Lipstick -MAC - Rebel Lipstick
spriley1 7/8/2010 6:14:00 PM
If you're looking for a "going out" lipstick, or something more intense than a typical coral or pink this is the lipstick for you because it's dramatic without being gaudy.This lipstick is FANTASTIC because depending on how you apply it, it can look like a beautiful medium magenta, or applied with a heavier hand, a very intense pigmented dark pink to wear with understated eyes, and if you really pack it on it looks like it does in the tube, a deep purply pink color for really vampy lips. It also fades beautifully and evenly (not just on the inside with a ring left on the lips like some lipsticks) and as it fades it looks like you've applied a beautiful lip stain. I don't find that this lipstick makes my teeth yellow at all. For reference, I'm a MAC NW20. EDIT 9/18/10: I feel like I haven't said enough good things about this lipstick- I'm wearing it today and it's simply FANTASTIC and makes my face look glowy, my eyes brighter, and my lips fuller. My boyfriend NEVER notices or makes comments about my hair or makeup but whenever I wear this he says I look gorgeous. Go buy it!!
6 out of 6 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No