April Glambag Review

Hello lovelies!! It is that time again! As always, if you would like a Glambag of your very own please, please use my referral link:  http://www.ipsy.com/r/1bhk  !

This month's theme is beauty rocks. Since it is my birthday month (where are all of my fellow April babies at? April 30 for me!) I was so excited to get a theme like this. Rockstar beauty is basically my style. I am heavily influenced by my favorite rock/metal/alternative bands.

I love the bag for this month, it is so cute! I will definitely find a use for it. Now on to what I got in it:

                         Cover FX Mattifying Primer with Anti Acne Treatment (Travel Size)

I was a little confused when Ipsy gave me this product. In my introduction survey, I put my skin type as dry. My skin does, however change to combination during a certain time of month and during the summer months so I can find a use for this.

I happened to have a little breakout when I got my bag this month so it was as good a time as ever to try it.
The tube I got is a travel sized tube, the smallest one (.5 oz) available on the Sephora website. It is a pretty good size for travel sized. This primer is a clear silicone based one. It glides on nicely and absorbs quickly. It didn't feel drying at first, but after a few hours of wear it started to feel dry. It also started flaking off towards the end of the day. It did keep my skin matte.

As for the anti acne aspect, this primer contains willowbark extract, ancient African tree bark extract, and Vitamins F, C and E. This primer claims to be able to help heal acne, soothe inflammation and protect the skin. I personally felt none of these benefits, but you probably need to continue using this primer every day for a certain amount of time for it to work.

                                       Urban Decay 24/7 Velvet Glide On Pencil (Travel Size)

Although travel sized, this is about 3/4 the size of the full sized pencil. The shade is called Black Velvet. As with any other UD eyeliner I've tried it glides on like butter. I really loved the velvet like, more matte finish. The color is very black! It is the blackest I've ever worn. It stays on all day even on my waterline. I would definitely buy the full sized.

City Color White Gold Shadow and Highlight mousse (Full Sized)

                                                    (Inner cap to keep product protected from air)

I was really excited for this product, but personally it was a bit of a let down. This can be used as a highlighter or a cream eyeshadow. The amount of product isn't much, but a little goes a very, very long way. It is very pigmented, but for me anyway too pigmented to use as a highlighter. This also is a messy product to work with. You need to dip your finger into the little jar to use and the product can get everywhere. It may work out better for those of you reading this, but personally it didn't work great.

Demeter Jasmine Perfume Oil Roll On (Roll On - Basically Travel Size)

I'm normally not a huge fan of floral perfumes. I favor sweet and fruity scents. However, I surprisingly loved this! It smells like fresh cut flowers, a perfect spring scent. The scent lasts all day and isn't over powering. The fact that this is an oil is a big part of that, as oil tends to stay on skin better. I would love to try the spray version to compare.

Mary Kay At Play Jelly Lip Gloaa in Teddy Bear (Full Size)

I'll be blunt: I really did not like this product. For starters, I'm not much of a lip gloss person. It has to be a really good lip gloss for me to use it. This is not one of them. It was pretty horrible: very sticky and thick. The color is sheer, but it felt heavy. The shade, Teddy Bear is a nude color. I didn't test wearability because I couldn't stand the stickiness of the product.

Overall, I was kind of disappointed with this bag. I didn't get any of the products that I really wanted (The Lollitint, the Rainbow Honey nail polish and the Acid Pink Cailyn Tinted Lip Balm) but I luckily found some products I did like.

Weekly Beauty tip #67 Turn any eyeshadow into eyeliner

Mix some eyeshadow with an eyeliner or makeup sealer to turn any eyeshadow into eyeliner.



This can also work with water, but in my experience it doesn't last as long with just water. A great and cheap (also what I use) sealer is ELF Makeup Lock & Seal. It is this great little kit  that comes with a little bottle of the Lock & Seal, a small mixing pot and a brush.

You can also mix any setting spray, such as Urban Decay All Nighter, or ELF Mist and Set with eyeshadow and get the same result.

August Glambag review

It's the end of August, know what that means? Time for my review of the Ipsy August Glam Bag! For those of you that still may not know, Ipsy is this great beauty subscription service that sends 4-5 products (a mixture of full and deluxe sample sized) for just $10 a month. This is my fourth bag and by now I can for sure say these bags are worth it! They are great if you want to try new products. If you decide to sign up, please use my refferal link ( http://www.ipsy.com/?refer=u-h051r3lzwoa89xn ). If you do, I'll be sure to thank you in a post on the blog.

Here are the products that I got in my bag this month: 

Smashbox Photofinish foundation primer

 

Size: Deluxe sample

This is one of my favorite primers, I was very happy to get this in my bag. I have already reviewed it in my Smashbox Try it kit review. If you would like to check it out, you can read it here.

                                   Pixie Beauty Lash Booster mascara in Blackest Black

Size: Deluxe sample

This mascara didn't do much for me. I naturally have very long lashes that usually need a bit of volume. This mascara lengthens, defines and even curls a bit. The extra bit of curling I got from it was nice. I wear glasses and often have a problem with my eyelashes hitting the lenses if not curled enough. If you have shorter lashes, this would probably great for you. It is indeed waterproof as promised. It survived through rain and some emotional moments. I personally wouldn't buy this mascara, as it doesn't have the one crucial benefit I need.

                                                  Micabeauty Eyeshadow in Bronze

                                                                                                                                                                                                         
 

Size: Full

This is a great eyeshadow. It is a beautiful bronze shade which looks great paired with my blue eyes. Although I have a few similar colored ones, I still really liked this.  It is a loose eyeshadow. Many people don't like loose shadows simply because they don't know how to work with them or think they're too messy. I personally love working with them. The packaging is simple and good for a loose shadow. It has a two holed sifter rather than a four holed one which I have seen a lot in loose powder products. I like it, as it doesn't allow too much product out. The eyeshadow its self is really pigmented. It blends very easily and has a great texture. I never apply eyeshadow without primer, it lasted well with it. I didn't notice any fallout.

                                                   Urban Decay Revolution lipstick in 69

 To clarify, I am pale, but not that pale! I had to take this picture on my phone and it just happened to make me paler.

Size: Deluxe sample

I was really excited that I got this. Urban Decay is one of my favorite brands. When I saw this new lipstick line, I was over the moon! I was a bit disappointed at the size, but I am just happy I had the chance to try it at all. The shade I received is 69. In the tube it looks like a classic bright red. When applied it has a pink undertone. It is a pretty unique shade of red. On me, the pink undertone is more obvious. In the swatch picture above, the pink undertone was captured a little too much. The actual product is a bit redder, but this is a great representation of what shade of undertone there is. This is a very pigmented lipstick! One layer contains full opacity, which is nice. It goes on smooth and creamily. You may want to wear a lip primer with this lipstick though and you may need touch it up a few times as it transferred easily. It did feel a tad dry after a while but for me that isn't a problem. I absolutely loved this lipstick. I am a queen of red lipstick, I have a lot. I always say I have too many and won't get more...but then I find another shade that I have to have. This is one of those. I will for sure eventually be purchasing the full size and it will be a great addition to my lipstick collection.

                                    Michael Todd Pumpkin Nutrient Rich Facial Mask

 Size: Deluxe sample

This is another product I was excited for. I love face masks. I have been looking for one to have around to use when I run out of my beloved Lush ones and can't get to Lush to buy more. This is deluxe sample/travel sized which turned out to be a pretty decent size. This mask claims to be nutrient rich and provide anti wrinkle as well as softness benefits. It also says it is suitable to all but sensitive skin types. Although I'm not old enough to have wrinkles, it made my skin feel amazing. My face definitely felt full of nutrients. Very soft and notably smoother. The texture is good, it isn't heavy and you only need a thin layer. To me, it looks like pumpkin baby food. The pumpkin scent is nice but strong. Perfect for pumpkin lovers. The only issue I had was that this mask burned for about the first 5 minutes of wear. It is definitely not for super sensitive skin. I didn't particularly enjoy the burning but I didn't mind it. This face mask won't replace my Lush ones, but I did like it. If you don't have sensitive skin and love pumpkin, try it!

In all, I really liked this bag. My favorite item being the UD lipstick. The bag its self this month was super cute! It is purple with a gold crest print all over it. The crest has little makeup pictures in it. It is a sturdy material. I really want to use it as my purse makeup bag. The theme was Glamour Academy which I think fits well with the products in it. Great for beauty beginners with some basics and some new products to try. I would have loved to try the cheek stain that some people got, but I am very satisfied with what I did get.

I can't wait to see what  I will be getting next month!

Holiday haul!

Here is my very delayed next haul post! This is all of the makeup that I got for Christmas.There are also some mini reviews in here.

I got the first Urban Decay Naked Palette as I mentioned in a previous post. It came with a mini primer potion. This is what the gorgeous palette looks like:

I will eventually write a review on both Naked Palettes, so keep an eye out for that!

The next thing I got is this E.L.F palette:

I really like this palette. It is pretty compact and you can fold out the drawer, it's really good for if you're in a rush and you need some makeup all in one place. The pigmentation in this was better than I expected, but I haven't had too much of a chance to play around with this yet so I can't completely comment on pigmentation. I would recommend getting this if you want some sort of compact kit to keep in your car, in a bag or in a drawer.

The next palettes I got were the E.L.F Glitter Eye Palette and the E.L.F Natural Eye Palette.

I am putting these two palettes together because they are similar, just with different colors. I haven't had much of a chance to use the Natural Eye Palette, but I have used the Glitter Eye Palette. The Glitter Eye Palette really disappointed me. It is not very pigmented. If there was more pigmentation it would be a great palette. I love E.L.F, but sadly this is the case with some of their palettes. A while back I bought the big limited edition Studio Spring Palette on clearance. I was really glad I didn't pay full price because the colors weren't pigmented at all. I wish E.L.F would step up their game and make more pigmented palettes.

Here is my next palette, E.L.F Sinister Smoky Eyes

This palette is from a series of Limited Edition Disney villain palettes that were released around Halloween exclusively at Walgreens. I had wanted to get one but sadly I could not get to a Walgreens. I was ecstatic when my best friend got me this palette for Christmas. I haven't used many of the shadows yet, but so far I love everything about this. It is a beautiful palette. I love the design and I really love the eyelashes it comes with. I have seen other bloggers complain about the pigmentation of this palette. So far I have only used the two colors that you see in the top left corner, and I didn't have any problems with them.

Last but not least, this set of E.L.F eyeliners:

I am so glad I could finally do this post, I have had it planned out for some time now. I was going to have one giant post of everything I got from people and of the things I bought after Christmas, but I'm going to break it up. There will definitely be some more haul posts coming up! I am in the process of taking pictures for them so stay tuned! 

I won an Urban Decay contest!

The title of this post says it all, I won an Urban Decay contest! Urban Decay's twitter ( https://twitter.com/UrbanDecay411 ) had a contest just before Christmas and I won it. I have always loved Urban Decay and now after receiving more of their products and dealing with their awesome customer service, I love them so much more.

This is my first of (surprise!) a few haul posts I've had planned. I'm not reviewing anything in this post, the reviews will come later.

For this contest I was able to pick 5 products of my choice. So I chose the Naked 2 palette ( I already had the Naked palette, but that's for another post), primer potion in Eden, 24/7 liner in Perversion (I had been dying to get this nearly as much as the naked palettes), the brow box in Brown Sugar, and naked skin foundation in .5.

As you can see the people at Urban Decay sent me a very nice note with everything and they sent me everything very fast.

Here are some closeups of the product. Just a heads up since I have good pictures of them already, I will probably use these same pictures when I post reviews of these products.

So there's my first haul post! I have been wanting to do one for so long! I do have a few more planned out that I will be posting sometime soon and I have SO many things to review so keep on the lookout for that!

Weekly Beauty Tip #14: Use a setting spray

If you are finding that your makeup is still wearing off even when you use a face primer, use a setting spray. Setting spray is like hairspray, but for your face.

There are two setting sprays I would recommend using. The first would be the very popular and much raved about All Nighter Long-Lasting Makeup Setting Spray by Urban Decay.




This spray is raved about by everyone from beauty bloggers to top makeup artist. If you want your makeup to last as long as 16 hours, this is your setting spray. If you have problems with your makeup melting by the end of the day, this is your setting spray.  You can get this product from Sephora, Sephora.com or by purchasing it from Urban Decay's own website at www.urbandecay.com

The next setting spray I would recommend getting is E.L.F's Studio Makeup Mist and Set.

This is a cheaper alternative to Urban Decay's setting spray. I have never tried  All Nighter (although I plan to someday so I can do a comparison), but I do own this setting spray. This is a good setting spray, I would recommend it for those that are on a tight budget and can't afford to buy All Nighter. When I wear this my makeup lasts me all day. You can purchase it from E.LF's website (I am always talking about E.L.F's products, for those of you who still do not know the website it is www.eyeslipsface.com).