I've been doing a lot of swapping lately, on Makeup Alley and on the smaller, mineral-focused forums I also frequent. It's a good way to pass things I don't like so much on to someone else who might use them more and also to try new things without spending a lot of money, which is good because substitute teaching does not really pay so well.
One of the best things I've gotten is the Sephora Pure palette in Wanderlust. It has six eye shadows and a blush. The colors are pretty much perfect for me - neutral browns with a pearly, but not too shimmery, finish, a bright blue, a bright green, and a dark blue. The blush is also nice, but I'm going to have to use it with a duo fiber brush because my EcoTools blush brush applied way too much. The blush is matte, which I like.
Hope you are all enjoying life! Things have been looking up around here.
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Sunday, March 21, 2010
EOTD - Aromaleigh Spring Solstice purples
I used:
Bellflower - inner lid
Ondberry - outer lid
Lupine - above the crease
I really like all the purples except Lupine, which is a bit too cool for me.
Sunday, March 14, 2010
EOTD - adorned with Grace fall 09 colors
This is why I wanted Enthralling so much: I did this look with some sample packets I got in my first order from Franchesca.
Products used:
Fyrinnae shadow primer
awG Enthralling - inner lid
awG Remarkable - outer lid
awG Enigmatic - crease
Milani Infinite Eyes liner - Forever
Gabriel Color mascara
Products used:
Fyrinnae shadow primer
awG Enthralling - inner lid
awG Remarkable - outer lid
awG Enigmatic - crease
Milani Infinite Eyes liner - Forever
Gabriel Color mascara
Saturday, March 13, 2010
Review - Physicians Formula HealthyWear powder foundation
I am serious about sun protection. You would be too, after having had a skin cancer cut out of your face at 26. I never go outside in the daytime without proper protection. I usually use an SPF 50 spray sunblock (CVS brand, full-spectrum) on my neck and body, or sometimes Neutrogena sensitive SPF 30, which I don't like as much because it makes me even paler. For my face, I've been using MyChelle Sun Shield, which is a silicone-free, fragrance-free, physical blocker only SPF 28 product, and generally top it with mineral makeup. I've heard great things about Neutrogena's Helioplex compound, but avobenzone is degraded by titanium dioxide, which is in all my makeup.
Sometimes, though, a cream sunblock isn't what I want, and sometimes, I just want my face SPF to match my body SPF. So I was really excited by the new HealthyWear line from Physicians Formula - a pressed powder foundation in SPF 50! It combines chemical and physical blockers, so it'll last awhile. How is it, as a foundation?
A. Color Matching
4. Close, but not quite. My face looks slighty pinker than usual with this on. I'm using translucent light.
B. Coverage.
3. Covers blemishes. For a sheer coverage product, it mostly evens out skin tone and covers smaller spots. Does nothing for the scar, but that's faded a lot and nobody but me really notices it.
C. Adhesion/durability.
3. Gets me through an eight-hour day. Doesn't rub off too easily, but it does settle in the creases by my nose.
D. Combination skin friendliness factor.
4. By mid-afternoon, some oil spots have broken out or some areas look dryer than normal. This does that think where my face looks a little shiny, but not oily - but if you touch it? Slimy.
E. Irritancy.
3. No problems at all.
F. Presentation
2. Functional packaging. It comes in a plastic compact with a pink sponge in the lower compartment and the product on a tray above that, with a mirror in the lid. The compact is hot pink and orange. Orange is not my favorite color. However, as others have stated, you will not lose this in your purse. The product pan on mine also isn't glued into the compact very well, and I'm going to have to fix it soon. Also - I emailed them to ask about the sponge - it's latex-free.
G. Value
2. Costs about what you'd expect. Roughly $15.
H. Company is nice to work with, good customer service. 1 point. Yup! They have slow, but reliable, service.
Total: 20/30. If this matched my skin better, I'd be all over it. This is not for those days I want to look flawless, but it's amazing for when I want to go running and not have sweaty sunblock dripping into my eyes. As a sunblock in pressed powder form, I really like it. As a foundation, it does ok. I've used better. It's the easiest to use foundation I have, and would be great for travel. I have mixed feelings about the sponge - it feels a little rough. I think I like how the product applies with a baby buki better.
Would I buy it again? Probably, if for no other reason than it will help me avoid needing to have more skin cancers cut out of my face. A powder sunblock is great for hot, summery weather - all liquid sunblocks make my face sweat in the summer. I like how well this performs when I run, and can see it being useful for other outdoor activity in warm weather. And, it looks alright for when I'm pressed for time and don't want to have to tap out and brush on loose powder foundations.
Sometimes, though, a cream sunblock isn't what I want, and sometimes, I just want my face SPF to match my body SPF. So I was really excited by the new HealthyWear line from Physicians Formula - a pressed powder foundation in SPF 50! It combines chemical and physical blockers, so it'll last awhile. How is it, as a foundation?
A. Color Matching
4. Close, but not quite. My face looks slighty pinker than usual with this on. I'm using translucent light.
B. Coverage.
3. Covers blemishes. For a sheer coverage product, it mostly evens out skin tone and covers smaller spots. Does nothing for the scar, but that's faded a lot and nobody but me really notices it.
C. Adhesion/durability.
3. Gets me through an eight-hour day. Doesn't rub off too easily, but it does settle in the creases by my nose.
D. Combination skin friendliness factor.
4. By mid-afternoon, some oil spots have broken out or some areas look dryer than normal. This does that think where my face looks a little shiny, but not oily - but if you touch it? Slimy.
E. Irritancy.
3. No problems at all.
F. Presentation
2. Functional packaging. It comes in a plastic compact with a pink sponge in the lower compartment and the product on a tray above that, with a mirror in the lid. The compact is hot pink and orange. Orange is not my favorite color. However, as others have stated, you will not lose this in your purse. The product pan on mine also isn't glued into the compact very well, and I'm going to have to fix it soon. Also - I emailed them to ask about the sponge - it's latex-free.
G. Value
2. Costs about what you'd expect. Roughly $15.
H. Company is nice to work with, good customer service. 1 point. Yup! They have slow, but reliable, service.
Total: 20/30. If this matched my skin better, I'd be all over it. This is not for those days I want to look flawless, but it's amazing for when I want to go running and not have sweaty sunblock dripping into my eyes. As a sunblock in pressed powder form, I really like it. As a foundation, it does ok. I've used better. It's the easiest to use foundation I have, and would be great for travel. I have mixed feelings about the sponge - it feels a little rough. I think I like how the product applies with a baby buki better.
Would I buy it again? Probably, if for no other reason than it will help me avoid needing to have more skin cancers cut out of my face. A powder sunblock is great for hot, summery weather - all liquid sunblocks make my face sweat in the summer. I like how well this performs when I run, and can see it being useful for other outdoor activity in warm weather. And, it looks alright for when I'm pressed for time and don't want to have to tap out and brush on loose powder foundations.
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Mini-haulettes!
Recently, I made two of the world's tiniest makeup orders ever. Like, seriously tiny.
I wanted to double check my foundation shade at adorned with Grace, pick up some clearance eyeshadow, and try out their new Merciful color corrector in Apricot.
Franchesca threw in samples of Merciful corrector in yellow and pink, too! The eyeshadow, Enthralling, was a free sample in my last order. I didn't have much in the way of yellow, so I snapped up five sample baggies for 1.63 - when decanted into a 3g jar, you end up with slightly more than a Fyrinnae sample.
I also wanted to find out what all the fuss about Sassy Minerals, a new player to the game, was about. So I ordered Warm Fair foundation and a sample of Gasoline Rainbow eyeshadow. They threw in samples of Warm Light foundation and Apparition eyeshadow. Good thing, too, because Warm Light is a much better match for me, and Apparition is pretty nice. Haul pictured below with two Fyrinnae colors that looked similar.
As you can see, Gasoline Rainbow and Fyrinnae Immortality are pretty similar - GR has more brightly colored shimmer, and I think I like it better. Apparition, on the other hand, is a very different beast from Fyrinnae Equality. Apparition looks lavender in some light, is more metallic than sparkly, and doesn't have Equality's rainbow shimmer. They are both really nice colors, though I have to quit with the gray shades, because they're not the best on me (but I love them anyway!).
I wanted to double check my foundation shade at adorned with Grace, pick up some clearance eyeshadow, and try out their new Merciful color corrector in Apricot.
Franchesca threw in samples of Merciful corrector in yellow and pink, too! The eyeshadow, Enthralling, was a free sample in my last order. I didn't have much in the way of yellow, so I snapped up five sample baggies for 1.63 - when decanted into a 3g jar, you end up with slightly more than a Fyrinnae sample.
I also wanted to find out what all the fuss about Sassy Minerals, a new player to the game, was about. So I ordered Warm Fair foundation and a sample of Gasoline Rainbow eyeshadow. They threw in samples of Warm Light foundation and Apparition eyeshadow. Good thing, too, because Warm Light is a much better match for me, and Apparition is pretty nice. Haul pictured below with two Fyrinnae colors that looked similar.
As you can see, Gasoline Rainbow and Fyrinnae Immortality are pretty similar - GR has more brightly colored shimmer, and I think I like it better. Apparition, on the other hand, is a very different beast from Fyrinnae Equality. Apparition looks lavender in some light, is more metallic than sparkly, and doesn't have Equality's rainbow shimmer. They are both really nice colors, though I have to quit with the gray shades, because they're not the best on me (but I love them anyway!).
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Physicians Formula Shimmer Strips Gel Liners!
So you all know how I got the blue eyes cream liners in return for some tinted moisturizers. I have another good story about how I got the green eyes ones!
I shop at CVS a lot - I like that I can return things that I buy there if I don't like them, and I like the savings you can get with the card.
I had five Extra Bucks burning a hole in my pocket. I wanted something new! So, I wandered over to the PF display, and saw the green liners I wanted so much. Now, getting those for half price would normally be good enough - but then I saw the new BambooWear compact. It also earned the buyer five Extra Bucks. AND it had a try me free rebate sticker!
So, I went up the register, bought the compact with my debit card, tore off the new Extra Bucks coupon, went back to the display, got the liners, and handed over the two coupons plus $1.41, and left the store with both products. I am good at the deals!
Here are all the jars open, so you can compare the colors.
I also did new swatch photos - these are all done with a Q-tip, so they aren't as precise as you'd get from the brush, but they do give a good idea about the color. The blue eyes ones are on the right, the green eyes ones on the left. All the colors are different! Even the black colors have different color sparkles - notice how the green eyes one has green shimmer, and the blue eyes one has blue shimmer?
I am probably not going to get the other colors, because I'd just end up with slightly different shades of purple and brown - but if they came out with new colors and included a white liner, I'd buy it in a heartbeat.
Have I mentioned that these are my favorite liners ever? I only wish they'd stay a little better on the lower lashline.
I shop at CVS a lot - I like that I can return things that I buy there if I don't like them, and I like the savings you can get with the card.
I had five Extra Bucks burning a hole in my pocket. I wanted something new! So, I wandered over to the PF display, and saw the green liners I wanted so much. Now, getting those for half price would normally be good enough - but then I saw the new BambooWear compact. It also earned the buyer five Extra Bucks. AND it had a try me free rebate sticker!
So, I went up the register, bought the compact with my debit card, tore off the new Extra Bucks coupon, went back to the display, got the liners, and handed over the two coupons plus $1.41, and left the store with both products. I am good at the deals!
Here are all the jars open, so you can compare the colors.
I also did new swatch photos - these are all done with a Q-tip, so they aren't as precise as you'd get from the brush, but they do give a good idea about the color. The blue eyes ones are on the right, the green eyes ones on the left. All the colors are different! Even the black colors have different color sparkles - notice how the green eyes one has green shimmer, and the blue eyes one has blue shimmer?
I am probably not going to get the other colors, because I'd just end up with slightly different shades of purple and brown - but if they came out with new colors and included a white liner, I'd buy it in a heartbeat.
Have I mentioned that these are my favorite liners ever? I only wish they'd stay a little better on the lower lashline.
Monday, March 8, 2010
Aromaleigh mini-haul swatch pics!
As promised earlier today - pics!!
I got some Gothic Lolita eye samples, and requested HiFi mattes as my freebies.
I also got the entire Spring Solstice 2009 collection in samples. Love!!! :)
Sadly, I either forgot to take or deleted my swatches of this from the camera. :( They are lovely, though. Take my word for it.
Then today, in resolution of a customer service issue, I got all of this, plus a full size lookinforakiss shadow (not pictured). I had only asked for one of the Nocture Lite and the Gothic Lolita shimmers. This is people who want their customers to be happy!!!
Lookinforakiss
I got some Gothic Lolita eye samples, and requested HiFi mattes as my freebies.
I also got the entire Spring Solstice 2009 collection in samples. Love!!! :)
Sadly, I either forgot to take or deleted my swatches of this from the camera. :( They are lovely, though. Take my word for it.
Then today, in resolution of a customer service issue, I got all of this, plus a full size lookinforakiss shadow (not pictured). I had only asked for one of the Nocture Lite and the Gothic Lolita shimmers. This is people who want their customers to be happy!!!
Lookinforakiss
Aromaleigh mini-haul, parts one and two (text only, sorry)
In February, I decided to use a gift code that my awesome boyfriend got me for Christmas. Nea (Fashioned in Finland) had raved about Aromaleigh's Spring Solstice eyeshadow collection, and it was on sale! So I picked out a complete sample set, and a few Gothic Lolita collection shades, knowing that with the discount, the gift card would cover it exactly. Unfortunately, with Aromaleigh's new sale system, it's impossible to use both a gift code and a coupon code at the same time. I emailed Steve (Mr. Miss K), and he said that he wouldn't charge my card for the extra $5.
Somehow, my card ended up getting charged. So I emailed back, and Steve told me that he'd tried to refund the card, but it had expired (D'oh!). So he offered me the chance to pick out $5 worth of stuff, and he'd send it to me.
I picked out samples of the Gothic Lolita shimmers in the apricot and blue colors, and a sample of Nocturne Lite treatment powder.
I got:
1. The shimmers (amazing!)
2. TWO sample of the Nocturne Lite (saving these for when it'll be possible to order a full size if I like it).
3. Five Bete Noire samples.
4. A FULL SIZE Rocks! Sonic lookinforakiss.
5. And - a whole pile of lip balm samples. I can't use these (stupid beeswax allergy), but I'm hoping a swap partner loves them, especially since Aromaleigh is discontinuing all of their lip products.
I'm VERY impressed by the customer service experience. When I have disposable income again, I will TOTALLY give Aromaleigh more money.
Swatch pics coming!
Somehow, my card ended up getting charged. So I emailed back, and Steve told me that he'd tried to refund the card, but it had expired (D'oh!). So he offered me the chance to pick out $5 worth of stuff, and he'd send it to me.
I picked out samples of the Gothic Lolita shimmers in the apricot and blue colors, and a sample of Nocturne Lite treatment powder.
I got:
1. The shimmers (amazing!)
2. TWO sample of the Nocturne Lite (saving these for when it'll be possible to order a full size if I like it).
3. Five Bete Noire samples.
4. A FULL SIZE Rocks! Sonic lookinforakiss.
5. And - a whole pile of lip balm samples. I can't use these (stupid beeswax allergy), but I'm hoping a swap partner loves them, especially since Aromaleigh is discontinuing all of their lip products.
I'm VERY impressed by the customer service experience. When I have disposable income again, I will TOTALLY give Aromaleigh more money.
Swatch pics coming!
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Updates
Hey all!
I've been a bit lazy on the makeup blogging front lately, but I still have stuff to say!
Coming up soon:
Pictures of a bunch of tiny makeup hauls, a full review of Physicians Formula stuff, some EOTDs, three more foundation reviews, and reviews of the two mascaras I own - I wrote a rubric about it, anyway! Sadly, I can't order more mascara to try anytime real soon, but I can talk about the stuff I already have.
Oh, and I got the green eyes Physician Formula gel liners! So swatches of those coming up, too.
I've been a bit lazy on the makeup blogging front lately, but I still have stuff to say!
Coming up soon:
Pictures of a bunch of tiny makeup hauls, a full review of Physicians Formula stuff, some EOTDs, three more foundation reviews, and reviews of the two mascaras I own - I wrote a rubric about it, anyway! Sadly, I can't order more mascara to try anytime real soon, but I can talk about the stuff I already have.
Oh, and I got the green eyes Physician Formula gel liners! So swatches of those coming up, too.
Awesome forum!
I just joined this (relatively new) makeup forum, and wanted to let you all know about it.
It combines two of my favorite things - makeup and a sense of humor! If you're into those things, I highly suggest checking it out.
It combines two of my favorite things - makeup and a sense of humor! If you're into those things, I highly suggest checking it out.
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