January '13 Empties

Here's what got used up this month. Some of these are good products, which I enjoyed using even if I wouldn't buy them again, and the rest were more miss than hit.

 

1. Giovanni 2chic body wash - Brazilian Keratin and Argan. This is good stuff to have around in the winter, and I liked it ok. I might buy it again, but I haven't really found any body washes that I really love. This is why I have five of them in my shower right now and still want more. Back to this stuff: mild, somewhat nutty scent, little exfoliating grains, good foam, creamy feel. Not bad, but on the more expensive side of the body wash spectrum.

2. Tarte Smooth Operator tinted moisturizer - Agent 00. Yes, I really used up a full-size foundation product! I'm kind of moving away from tinted moisturizers in favor of more traditional foundations. Since I used up the whole damn thing, I'm pretty qualified to say how it worked for me. As a replacement for foundation, this product failed for me. It started to slide around on my face (which gets oily) fairly quickly. So I decided to sub it in for both foundation and moisturizer. Used that way, it worked a lot better for me. Since it's the dead of winter, I'm not exposed to as much UV radiation, and the SPF 20 seems sufficient. I also got better coverage when it wasn't being diluted by other products already on my face. 

3. Salma Hayek Nuance Firm and Smooth Serum. This is a great moisturizing product, but I didn't feel like it had that much other benefit. 

4. Salma Hayek Nuance brow pencil - blonde. A little hard for my taste, but otherwise a good product.

5. Cover Girl LashBlast Length mascara. Note to self: in future only buy orange tube and green tube. Definitely no to future buys of purple tube, red tube, or yellow tube.

6. Tarte Gifted Amazonian Clay mascara. I honestly noticed no difference between this formula and the older Lights, Camera, Lashes one. They both give me great volume and length, they both smudge a bit under my eye, and they both dry out and get clumpy way sooner than a mascara that costs this much should.

7. Wet'N'Wild Mega Plump mascara sample. Ok, so I didn't really use this so much as it dried up waiting to be tested. I think that's enough said.

8. Lush Cupcake Fresh Mask face mask sample. I think I liked this, but it wasn't amazing enough to repurchase. There's a floral scent there that I don't think adds anything. I'd rather the natural ingredients be allowed to shine more.

9. Korres Quercetin and Oak primer sample. I really like this, as a moisturizer. It doesn't seem to make a huge difference with makeup longevity, and it doesn't have sun protection, so it occupies that niche of evening makeup, for something so fancy you redo your whole face.

10. E.L.F. wipes. I love wipes but hate paying for the convenience of them, so I was hoping these'd be good. They're not. They leave behind a grimy feel and they smell like floral lotion on dirty feet.

11. Pantene Age Expert shampoo and conditioner samples. You might like this if you like drugstore products and a silicone party in each bottle. I got these for free from Walgreens, so I used them.

12. Garnier Fall Flight shampoo and conditioner samples. Ditto.

I was going for surly teenager...

Did I nail it?

Eyes are heavily foiled Fyrinnae Calavera Cupcakes on the lid, the orange shade from the Sephora Pantone quad in the crease, and the purple shade from the same palette in the outer V. I used Tarte Lights Camera Lashes mascara and some very light UD Perversion liner to finish it off.

Lips are Korres Purple Red lip liner topped with Evil Shades Zombie lipgloss.

Close up on the eye:

Yellow

Eyes:
TFSI
TheBalm Overshadow - Work is Overrated from lashline to brow
Aromaleigh Livewire to wetline
Black with green glitter gel liner from Physicians Formula
Tarte Lights, Camera, Lashes mascara
Korres Soft Eyeliner - White on waterline

Lips:
Morgana Cryptoria Violet Banana lipstick

Cheeks: Physicians Formula pH booster - Light Bronzer

June Used It!

Alba Botanica Even Deep Sea Mask*
- Buy again? No. I didn't find that this either degunked or soothed enough to really do anything.

Alba Botanica Hawaiian Hibiscus Toner* (not pictured)
- Buy again? Probably not. This was my second round, because I was tempted when it went 50% off at CVS, but like the mask, it didn't really do anything special.

Anthony Logistics for Men Glycolic Cleanser
- Buy again? Maybe. I kind of liked how I could use it as a mini-peel by leaving it on for a few minutes prior to rinsing, so it's good if you don't like foaming and do like multi-use products.

CoverGirl LashBlast Mascara - Very Black*
- Buy again? Most likely. It would be nice if they sold it in smaller sizes so it wouldn't dry out and clump up on me before I'm done, though. 

Ecco Bella Botanicals Long Lasting Lip Crayon - Raspberry Port*
- Buy again? No. This product would have worked so much better in a slimline twist-up tube, and the color was also REALLY DARK on me.

E.L.F. nail polish - Golden Goddess*
- Buy again? No. I'm starting to get really annoyed with most glitter polishes and I end up using them up in crafts projects.

Josie Maran Argan Sun Protection for Body SPF 30 sample
- Buy again? Yes! Stay tuned for next week's Sunday Sunblock feature to learn more!

Korres Mattifying Pomegranate Primer sample
- Buy again? Undecided. I think I might like it as a no-foundation foundation, but it did nothing as a primer and I'm not sure if it's worth the cost.

Make Up For Ever Mat Velvet foundation sample decant
- Buy again? Maybe. I'll have to do a half face test with this (I have another sample, the Sephora lady forgot to write the shade on it the first time!) and Revlon Colorstay first.

Neutrogena Naturals Purifying Pore Scrub*
- Buy again? No. It smells floral, and I don't think it scrubs quite enough.

Nuance Salma Hayek Cooling Eye Gel*
- Buy again? No. It sometimes felt burny, which is not what I want on that delicate skin!

Origins Plantscription Anti-aging eye treatment sample packet (x2)
- I used both of these and did not notice any change to my undereye area, so I will not be buying this.

Pacifica Body Butter - Tuscan Blood Orange (2.5 oz)
- Buy again? Nope, but only because I like the solid perfume format better. This is really quite amazing if you like citrusy scents, which I do. A lot.

Philosophy vitamin C powder sample decant
- Buy again? Maybe? I'm not sure it did enough to be worth the extra cost or extra step in the routine, but it did seem to brighten my face a little.

Philosophy Hope in a Jar SPF 30 sample tube
- Buy again? Probably not, unless it was on sale. See this week's Sunday Sunblock for more!

Philosophy Marshmallows for Toasting 3-in-1 4oz size
- Buy again? Nah. I think I'm over the Philosophy 3-in-1s. They're a lot more drying than I expected.

Real Purity foundation sample
- Buy again? No. It was an ok foundation, but I'm uncomfortable with a water-based product that does not use any preservatives at all. 


Shea Moisture African Black Soap shampoo*
- Buy again? No, but only because my water's too hard to rinse this out properly without an acidic rinse. If you have scalp issues and like herbal scents, you should try this.

Silk Naturals Camellia Moisturizer sample
- Buy again? No. I like my moisturizers either serumy and packed with goodness or creamy and cheap!

Tarte Aqua-Gel eyeliner - brown*
- Buy again? No way. For the price, you get a teensy tiny amount, and the tip breaks off super easily, which I find annoying. It does have a nifty cooling feel when you apply it, though.

Wet'N Wild Gray's Anatomy nail Polish*
- Buy again? No, but only because butter LONDON Knackered is a lot alike but so much nicer, what with the sparkles. 

* - full size product

This is Silk Naturals shadow in 4Matic, which I got as a sample baggie free with an order a while back. I mentioned it in my May Used It post a few days ago, and wanted to elaborate my thoughts on this color.

It's from the Fall 2011 collection, and it's described as a "light champagne color with just a hint of green." I like it. It definitely needs a primer to pop - it's very sheer without one. Here, I'm wearing it over Silk Naturals Stick'Em primer. It has sparkle and sheen, and I thought it worked really nicely. I'd buy it if I didn't already own a truckload of neutrals.

A lot of SN's colors are unique enough that I don't feel the need to combine them with other shades into looks - so all I did here was a winged brown liner (if you must know, Tarte's Aqua-gel brown eyeliner and Physicians Formula Eye Booster™ 2-in-1 Lash Boosting Felt-Tip Eyeliner + Serum, also in brown). Honestly, any liquid liner you like and get precise results with would work here. I could have saved myself a lot of time by skipping the Tarte. I think I'm wearing CoverGirl LashBlast mascara here, but I could be very wrong about that.

Anyway, this is something easy you can do for work or a casual around-town sort of day. You could easily ramp it up a notch for evening with either a darker color in the crease or a colored liner above the brown.

I'm Back! Let's Look at May's Empties

Hi! I'm back. I went on a trip to visit my family and the out-laws out of state, and I've just been busy/apathetic.

Also, I got a new iPad (yay birthday money!!!) about six weeks ago, and I spend a lot of time on that now. I'd blog more on that, but then there's the photo issue. I'd use my real computer more frequently, but the battery won't hold a charge or take a charge unless it's been run down to zero power, so my laptop is now a desktop. That makes me do a lot less leisurely blogging from my sofa.

So, what did I use up in May? Let's take a look!

Benefit Stay Don't Stray primer sample (not pictured). Can I say for a minute how much I hate packaging liquid products like this? I get one wear out of them on the liquidy-ness level I'd get out of a full size, then they start to get dry and crusty. I think this worked ok. But I'm totally not sure and can't say if I'd buy more.

Giovanni Frizz Be Gone serum* (not pictured) This serum is ok at helping prevent tangles, but it's not magic, and I don't think the fruity floral smell is a good thing. I was hoping for something more neutral. 

Giovanni Wellness Conditioner* This product claims to use a fusion of Western science and traditional Chinese remedies for a conditioner that nourishes hair from the root. I picked it up at Target because it was on sale for two bucks and change. After using the entire bottle, I can say that this stuff smells strange, makes your scalp tingle, and softens hair without providing any additional slip. Also, I think that the peppermint oil in it is doing the tingly action, not the botanicals.

Kiss My Face Rough Seas body scrub* This product was more fun than paying the same amount of money to ship a new blow dryer to me from Walgreens.com due to not buying enough to get free shipping. It wasn't so fun that I'd repurchase. The jojoba beads didn't quite scrub off dead skin like I'd hoped.

L'Óreal Smooth Souffle foundation* I didn't so much use this up as give up on it. But oh boy, did I try. It worked ok when it was new, but within a couple weeks, it started pilling up on my face midday. Application methods did not make a difference, and neither did mixing it with powder.

Physicians Formula Mineral Wear Correcting Pebbles* This was another instance of "I give up!" While it wasn't as bad as the smooth souffle foundation, it also didn't mattify, correct skintone irregularities, cover, or really do anything except make me shiny. I pass. However, the container it came in will make a nice travel swirly dish.

Silk Naturals 4Matic eye shadow sample (not pictured). This is a really pretty taupe, and I might buy it if I didn't already have a million taupes (slight exaggeration).

Silk Naturals Oatmeal Serum* This is a solid product, and it was the second one I'd used up. It's thin, absorbs nicely, smells calming, and seems to reduce redness. If you have no major skin issues and just want a little light water-based hydration, then you should buy this. You should also buy this if you have a tendency to hurt your skin with too-harsh treatments.

Tarte pink lip gloss mini (the one that came with the ULTAmate kit - not pictured). I keep getting these as parts of kits. They keep not wowing me. I'll keep not buying full size ones.

Trader Joe's Tea Tree Oil Cleansing Pads* You should buy these if you like your face to burn and your eyes to water. If you don't like those things, then you should stay away from both these and the Desert Essence product they're a knockoff of.


May's tally: 10 products used up, 7 of them full size!

Have you tried any of these things? Same or different opinion?

April 2012 Used It! Part II

Orly Glosser* I used this up by coating some wooden hairsticks I'm decorating with it. It's not really anything as a top coat, and I never just paint my nails clear. 

Self-made shea butter hair cream* This was my second batch of this. Now, I'm on my third. I use it as a pre-shampoo treatment, as styling paste (can either calm down flyaways or help braids stay sleeker longer), and as a leave-in conditioner for my ends.

Silk Naturals Awesome Sauce* This was my second bottle of this. It's pretty great stuff, and I highly recommend it, but I'm trying their Super Serum instead now.

Silk Naturals Equalizer sample - I'll probably get a full size of this yellow-green powder at some point. It's great to tone down redness and even out skintone a bit without looking made up.

Simple Cleansing Wips travel size - Wow! These work! They're just not a fun experience, and they feel a bit too rough, even though they're designed for sensitive skin.

Tarte Amazonian Clay Foundation sample - I did buy a full size tube of this. It's not bad stuff. The shade "fair" matches me pretty well, and it looks good on my skin. More to come on this, probably.

Yes to Blueberries facial wipes* - Smell nice, sort of work, not worth the price. Also, they kind of sting if I use them to take off eye makeup.


I am going to be talking about the rest of the stuff I used this month in another post more focused on my opinions on acids in skincare.


*Juice Beauty Green Apple Peel (full strength) - little tube. 
*Brazilian Peel sample vial

*Dr. Dennis Gross blemish treatment sample
*Dr. Dennis Gross serum sample

Better late than never, February's Used it!

Look! I took a picture!

*Alba Botanica Hawaiian sunblock - spf 45 Buy again? No. I'm not happy with the UVA protection - it looks like it doesn't get all the waves.

*The Body Shop Wild Cherry Body Butter Buy again? No. It smells kind of fake and only moisturizes so-so.

*ELF nail polish remover pads Buy again? I have - it's cheap, portable, works, and fairly easily available. The only downside is that it seems to leave my fingertips a bit sticky, so I have to wash my hands.

*Garnier Nutrisse Anti-Dark Circle Rollerball Buy again? Not a chance. I didn't so much use this up as throw it out in disgust. It looks nice for the first hour or so, then creases. Who needs it? I don't.

*Physicians Formula Brow Definer Buy again? Nope. Formula is slightly too waxy for my taste.

*Silk Naturals Awesome Sauce Buy again? I did! I like it. I'm not sure if it's magic or not, but I like it and it seems to help a little.

*Tarte Lights, Camera, Lashes Mascara Buy again? Maybe. I like the stuff, I really do. It looks great, makes a good natural but impressively so look, but it's expensive and dries out too soon. This stuff dried out before I wanted it to.

*Wet'N'Wild Rocking Rubies nail polish Buy again? Oh hell no. While pretty, I found that this had the tendency to flake off within a day or two. When I found a thumbnail-shaped flake in my snack bowl, that was the disgust point. I tried lots of top coats, base coats, etc - flake city!

*Evil Shades Gossamer Blush sample Buy again? Complicated question - I like the brand's blushes, but this color was too cool for me.

*Tarte Amazonian Clay powder sample Buy again? Nope. Too expensive for what it is. Glad this was a trial size - it works, but so does anything with that much silica.
 
*Too Faced Shadow Insurance Lemon Drop sample Buy again? Nope. If my primer's gonna be tinted, it had better double as a cream shadow. This doesn't. Also, it makes my eyelids gray. So there we go! 8 full sizes, 3 samples demolished in February

Products I hated

1. Garnier Fructis Pure Clean conditioner. This made my hair feel sticky and tangly, and I did not like it, so it went back to CVS. I think my hard water makes it not rinse out right, but I didn't want to go through the effort of making it work.

2. Tarte Four-Day Stay lash stain. This is more a waterproof mascara than anything else. Except that it budges a lot less easily, even in the face of oil. It most certainly did not last four days, and if I'd left it on that long, I'd be eyelash-less, because the stuff it plenty crunchy. I had a trial size of it, which is now in the bathroom trash can. Every time I tried to remove it, I'd lose a few lashes from each eye. I say no more of that.

Thoughts on some recently demolished samples

I am sick again. :( So I haven't worn any makeup really the past few days. I haven't even put real clothes on. (I am making sure to shower and put clean underwear on, though.)

I also am holding steady to my promise to not buy any more beauty-related products until my birthday. And, I've thrown out a bunch of stuff I didn't use, and swapped away a few things, too. A pile of sample foundations/ tinted moisturizers. I may have to make an exception for skincare - I'm now out of crappy stuff to shave my legs with so I need to get some oils for that.

Big news is the recent demolition of all my sample-sized liquid foundations and tinted moisturizers. I didn't push myself to use up all of these, but it's nice to not have the packets and vials cluttering up my drawers anymore.

Thoughts:
-Hourglass illuminating TM - ivory - This was way too dark! I can't even comment on formula, because I had to wipe it off so quick.

-L'Oreal souffle - the new stuff that comes in the glass jars with the pink lids. This was also too dark, but this time I was smart and did a hand swatch first. I did like the texture, but I'm not sure I'd like it all over my face. Maybe I'd try it if there were a killer sale on.

-Stila illuminating TM (shade 1). If by "illuminating" they mean "make me into an oil slick," then I guess there's truth in advertising. If not, well, er, we have a problem.

-Tarte smooth operator (00, 02). This was pretty good. I think I like Agent 00 better, Agent 02 seemed a little too pink on me. Did a decent job of being lightly moisturizing on its own, and evened out my skin tone. I'd have to try it out again before committing to buying it, though.

-Laura Mercier TM (nude, both regular and oil-free). Both of these were slightly too dark for me. I liked the regular formula better than the oil-free, which seemed somewhat thick and sticky in comparison, but this wasn't the Holy Grail for me or anything. Which I guess is good, because it costs a pretty penny.

-Maybelline FitMe. I got the free sample cards, which give you enough to swatch them. The two lightest colors are the only ones that might have worked - the lightest is too light, though, and the second lightest is too pink. I guess they FitYou if you don't have pale warm skin. For me, it's FitMeNot.

The Tarte was the only winner. I'll have to compare it to Urban Decay Urban Defense and Cover Girl Nature Luxe before I decide which one gets to stay in my routine, though.

Ice day fantasy shopping

I'm home from work today because my city is iced up. It's kind of crazy! The man and I spent half an hour scraping ice off my car, and that was AFTER letting it run for 15 minutes. Now I'm just hoping that not too much more crap accumulates on it.

I'm kind of on a very low buy right now because I have very little money right now due to most of it going to bills and such. (Boo!)

So anyway, I thought I'd think about how to spend the money I don't have, and what might I buy once my financial picture improves a bit:

1. Physicians Formula airbrushing kabuki brush. I have not seen this anywhere! :( Did I mention that it's blue?

2. Wet n Wild Comfort Zone 8-pan palette. This should be a cheap thrill, but I'm making myself use up 8 eyeshadows first.

3. Shiro Cosmetics Kawaiishadow collection. I don't really have much in the way of pastels. These look beautiful. Also some of the intertubes lip products also look awesome. I can't really pull off blue or purple, but there's a nice looking reddish pink.

4. Some stuff from Scaredy Cat - I'd like some sample vials and a full size Love Stinks. I think if the packaging were normal, I wouldn't want it. But it's adorable, so I do. She's smart.

5. A few lip tints from Epically Epic Soap, and maybe a lotion tin, too (I'd love to smear some nice smelling gunk on my hand eczema for once - a nice balm would stay put and leave the rest of my hands free of gunkiness.)

6. Sobe Botanicals - most interested in the lip products, but a few of the eyeshadows look nice too (Extra Virgin and Blue Moon mostly - blue grays usually look terrible on me, but this one is warm-toned, so it might work. And you know me and my love of green eyeshadow *heart*.)

7. I'm not sure if I even want this, since I found that the Femme Naturale colors all turned kind of muddy on me with wear, but Tarte has a new palette out with mostly neutral colors - it comes with a brown gel pencil liner. Mostly I just love the exterior of the palette - it's so pretty.
I've also been waffling over the Naked palette. But I want the double-ended liner, and not the brush. One or the other will be my graduation present to myself - but that's not until May.

Anyway, anyone tried any of this stuff? Thoughts? Care to share your fantasy shopping lists?

Rant against combination palettes

Hiya!

I've been having a fairly good Christmas home with my parents, and it's been really nice to see them again. In a few days, I'm going to visit with the man's friends and family a bit, too, and I'm also looking forward to that.

Anyway, I haven't used up or bought anything new lately (SN order did come through, yay! And I also have a new luminzer!) but I have been looking at a lot of makeup.

Every November, gift sets and palettes come out from brands of all prices, and even from brands whose sole purpose is cheapie makeup kits. Invariably, no matter what the price, these palettes suck for me.

The very first allergic reaction to makeup I ever had was to a Color Workshop kit that I bought at Wegmans when I was fifteen or sixteen. The stuff turned my eyelids and lips into a dry, red, flaky mess. On principle, I will not buy from that brand again. Ever. I have no idea what ingredient caused the reaction as I've looked at the kits they sell now, read the lists, and not found anything that usually bothers me - so all I can assume is that they're so cheap that something nasty snuck in. I don't remember the stuff being of super great quality, anyway.

In my mid-twenties, I developed an allergy to beeswax that I talk about incessantly in hopes that it might spare someone else the medical trauma I went through before I figured that out. This rules out most palettes that include lip glosses or cream shadows because if it's from a brand I recognize, it's usually got that ingredient; and if it isn't, it's usually cheap as hell and I don't trust it. ELF might be the exception, but I talked about my ELF hate in my last post. Most of their lip products skeeve me out because they're essentially a gooey mess of dyed petrochemicals, and gooey messes of dyed petrochemicals like that only come off on everything I eat, drink, or kiss; dry my lips out because they seal moisture OUT, and don't even last that long. I don't mind one or two petroleum-based ingredients in a product where the bulk is natural oils and butters - but if there's nothing from a plant that didn't die in the Cretaceous in there, I don't want it.

Plus, allow me to point out the sheer idiocy of packaging cream and powder products in the same container - you drop that and not only are your shadows broken, but you also have to dig them out/off of the cream products. And lip products are the only thing I reapply throughout the day, so not being able to take that color with me would be very irksome.

Some companies make palettes that look awesome, then package them with a bunch of stuff I can't use. Tarte is terrible at this - they either include beeswaxy eyeliners or mascara in the palette/set or they include lip gunk. I got halfway through a deluxe tube of their lipgloss before I got sick and had to throw it out, and it was ok - but not really enjoyable.

Urban Decay seems better at sticking with eyeshadows in their palettes, which I prefer (a coordinating blush is ok, though, and blush/eyeshadow palettes are the only combo I find acceptable).

All in all, I despise these palettes that everyone seems to want so bad.

RIP bacteria-infested lipgloss

This morning, I had to throw away three lipglosses that had become contaminated with the bacterial throat infection I came down with on Tuesday night. I had been in the process of using them up, but I had to send them on their way sooner rather than later. Figured that if the nurse at the clinic recommended replacing my toothbrush, it was also time to say goodbye to the gloss.

1. Tarte Vitamin-Infused lipgloss mini in 40 Winks. Not too bad, I got through about 75% of it before I had to junk it. The glitter was a bit too chunky for my taste, and it was sticky, but it wasn’t bad. That said, I probably won’t be repurchasing.

2. Sally Hansen Soothing Lip Tint in Pinkberry. Got through about half of it. Sticky and not super great. I'm always looking for something shiny, colorful, and lasting that feels more like balm than anything else.

3. Aubrey Organics lip shimmer in Sugar Frost. Clear, slightly shimmery minty lip gloss. Not sticky at all, and probably the thing I’m saddest to see go. If AO repackaged this in a squeeze tube, I’d be all over it – but I’m going to be limiting my collection of wand-style lip stuff from now on (I’ll probably keep a few around at a time, but not amass a huge collection of them). I’d only gotten to use about a quarter of it.

Used up a few more things

1. Aveeno shampoo sample packet (I always use at least twice as much conditioner than shampoo). Eh. The clean doesn't last long enough. Silicones do not belong in shampoo. I only had these packets because they were attached to body wash.

2. Tarte ReCreate silicone free primer sample. As with many of the primers I've tried, this one is a better moisturizer than a primer. Add some SPF to it, and I think it might be a nice product. Primers don't work as primers on me, but sometimes they're a nice substitute for foundation. I still think they're a scam, though.

3. adorned with Grace Illuminated blush sample baggie. This would be a great highlighter for someone with much darker skin than mine. As is, it's a half shade darker than me.

I also chucked a few things.

1. L'Oreal roll on foundation - Somehow made me patchy and oily at the same time, with highlighted dry spots. I just didn't want to fight with it anymore.

2. Cover Girl Lash Blast fusion mascara in brown (purple tube). Orange tube lash blast is great. Purple tube sucks.

Keep your eyes peeled for an upcoming blog sale - I have some stuff I'm not using that I need to get rid of. Also, I'm kind of hard up for cash and could use some.

Used up some more stuff!!!

Go me!

1. Garnier Nutrisse Triple Nutrition conditioner. This is my second bottle. I like it alright, it's cheap and moisturizing. But I like a little bit more slip.

2. Sample pod of Tarte Green Siren cheek stain. I didn't like the shininess on this one, so I swapped the full size away. But I finished the sample!

3. Sample tube of Kat Von D eye primer. Sucks as primer, much better as a concealer. Seriously, my eyeshadow creased with this. It doesn't do that with my other primers. If you want a good primer, do not buy this. I'm glad I was at least able to get some use out of it as a concealer, though.

4. Sample baggie of adorned with Grace Minerals Supreme Smoothing Powder. Good stuff, but I'm still planning on making my own silica-based powders in the future. If you like silica, don't like expensive, and want a peach tint, I can recommend this.

This brings me to 37 used-up products. I also gave up on a couple purple shadow samples because they show up grayish on me, and I found three baggies of green shadow that are too close to other things I own to keep around.