I broke another brush...time for a detangler

Sigh...here we go again. Officially on the hunt for yet another brush. Why? You may ask. Well this smart one broke it. No, no my brush wasn't involved in some catastrophic apocalyptic war that caused it to split in half, it was my hair. Yes ladies, my flippin hair broke my brush!

After years of damaging my hair with color treatments, heating tools and overall abuse, after each shower it becomes a hot mess of tangled tresses that are...well...capable of snapping a brush. Ever so frustrated and annoyed I called up my BFF aka my sister, to spill my heart and shared my woes, when she introduced me to probably the most genius product of all time....Suave Detangler...FOR KIDS!!

Yup, I just admitted it, I now shop in the kids aisle! But what am I supposed to do, this stuff is AWESOME! One quick spritz and poof! My hair is instantly transformed and can run a comb through it without a single snag!

Now before you dismiss me as a total weirdo, check out the pros and cons

PRO:

1. Two quick pumps is all it takes

2. Smells AMAZING (green apples is my fav)

3. Doesn't sting your eyes, yes I speak from experience (tastes ok too)

4. CHEAP ($3-$5 USD)

5. Light weight formula doesn't cause build up

6. Obviously child safe

7. Lasts forever! Totally depends on how much and how often you use

8. Adorable packaging

9. Reduces flyaways

CONS:

1. .....cant think of any :)

So ladies, if you have a pile of hot mess on your head that you call hair, go give this product a try. I can't begin to tell you how elated I am not to see a pile of hair on the floor every time I comb my tangled hair.

MY FIRST JULEP MAVEN BOX!

I'm a sucker for nail products especially nail polish. So after reading about all the lovely ladies subscribed to the Julep Maven box, I  just had to get in on it.....Oh did I forget to mention it only cost me 1 penny!!!! what!!! Yup!!!!

Meet my Julep Maven Box....shes so sleek :)

Do not tell me there are goodies inside a box and  then expect me to patiently open it. NOPE I tore the box open and look what came out :)

This is the Julep glycolic hand scrub. Think St. Ives Apricot Scrub but more citrusy smell. it left my hands feeling very soft and slightly hydrated

Now to the nail polish!! On the online test, I tested as BOHO GLAM. While the words sound exactly like me, I wasn't too in love with the nail colors, but I am so glad I stuck to the BOHO colors because I really really  love one of the colors.

The grey is called "Meryl" and  it is a very nice creamy grey. While I like the muted color, I already have a grey that is an exact match for this.

The yellow one is called "Blake" and I love Blake :) Normally  I love crazy vibrant colors on my nails, but this the PERFECT buttery yellow to make me turn towards pastels

OVERALL: For a penny I love what I got! I mean how can you complain when you literally paid nothing. However would I become a monthly subcriber.......for $2o/month probably not. Ouch, I know. I love nail varnish but I mean come on I can go to the drugstore and pick up polish for like a buck, so sorry Julep Maven, although your introductory offer is AWESOME, I just can not see myself paying that much each moth for nail polish and hand products.

TO GET IN ON THE DEAL TYPE IN COLOR2012 when you check out!!!!

E.L.F Eyelid Primer

I put some eyeshadow on, eyeshadow comes off. So, I put more eyeshadow on, even more comes off. WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON!....My darn oily eyelids is what is going on :)

I just recently got into makeup, and one of the first products I bought was cheap eyeshadow, because I thought that would make the biggest difference in my attempted dramatic change. But instead of these epically awesome eyeshodow colors sparkling on my eyes, hence captivating all the boys attention, I managed to create clumpy, chalky  messes all over my eyelids.

What  I figured out eventually was my  greaseball butt needed to use some eyelid primer to help my eyeshadows stick and last all day. Therefore, I began my journey on finding the perfect  eyelid primer.

What I discovered however, was that primers work almost the same, and while I do own higher end primers, I can't afford to use them eveyday, so I found this E.L.F eyelid  primer, which in my opinion is a great substitute :)

Packaging: The primer comes in a typical tube type of style. with a doe foot applicator. The color comes off very beige-ish and the consistency is comparable to that of a liquid foundation.

Product: After applying the primer, I usually wait about 20 seconds to let it dry just a bit, and then I apply my shadow however I wish. For a typical 8 hour work/school day, this primer fairs pretty well. I have some creasing and color lose by the end of the day, but you  have to remember I have greasy eyelids. On the other hand, my sister also uses this product and has normal/dry eyelids and this primer helps her eyeshadow stay on all day perfectly fine.

Overall: If you are looking for a cheap eyelid primer, that has no gimic and does the job, then this is the product to try. It stays on for a long time and even with the eventual creasing at the end of day, its well-worth the $1-$3 USD!

:) :) :) 1/2

Massive E.L.F Lip Product Review!!!!

When I first started experimenting with makeup, E.L.F is the first place I went, and ladies let me tell you, this company was NOOOOO WAAAY  and as nice as  it is today. They had like 10 products, all just low quality and gross.

I tried to be the shiz nits and wear their pressed powder to school one day, and instead of the "oooooooo's" and "aaahhhhh" that I wanted, I got "ewwwwwwwww's" and " "Are you ok, you look really sick." (Later realized the powder had formed ghostly patches and made me look like I was peeling)

However, in the past few years, they have really listened to their customers and have created some really nice products :) Here is my mass review of lip products that I have tried.

Lip Primer/Plumper

For some this is their go-to product, for others this is trash. For me personally, I  noticed  nothing too different. Yes, it helped prime lips, but it came off in a waxy consistency, and I saw no plumping.

Lip stain:

These are part of the E.L.F  '12 spring line. Typical lip stain design, you color you  lips and you are done. I felt these stains had a nice color pay off but they were very drying . Not a lot of color selection.

Hypershine Gloss:

To me these are very similar to the  Stilla Lipglazes. For $1 USD these are great. They come in a variety of  colors, supper glossy and the color payoff is just enough. Yes, they don't last as long as you would like, but come on, what gloss stays on for that long anyways? Most definitely give these a try.

Plumping Lipglaze:

Don't fall for the name, there is nothing plumping about these lipglazes. They are dual sided, one for the color, one for the glaze. I found the colors to be cute  but gloopy and the glaze nothing more then a shiny gloss.  There is a pepperminty taste to the product and the methanol does help give the illusion of slightly plumper lips for like 10 minutes.

Mineral Gloss:

Part of ELF's mineral line, these  glosses are great. They come in a nice range of colors, and they go very smoothly. The lasting power is like that of any gloss, but I think they are well worth the price. My only complaint is that some have shimmer in them so when you apply them you can sometimes feel the particles on your lips. These are a staple in my purse.

Lip Shines:

Once again, some girls love them, others hate them. I'm divided between the two. I think the color selection is great, very moisturizing and easy to travel with. However, I find them to be thick and a bit messy. I recommend these more for girls in high school or college who need something cheap that gives quick color. Nothing special.

Essential Lipstick:

Love these! For just $1 USD each, these lipsticks are awesome. A little difficult to work with when first applying, these lipsticks not only have great color payoff, by lasting power as well. For me at the end of the day, they leave a really nice stain like effect. Plus with the huge color selection, there is something for everyone :)

Mineral Lipstick:

My favorite E.L.F lip product :). These lipsticks are smooth, moisturizing and long lasting-ish. Rosy Raisin is my go to lipstick and I absolutely love it!. The color payoff is great and once again with the huge color selection, there is something for everyone.

ELF Studio Line Blushes with Swatches

Okie dokie, so the last couple of nights, I have been up till almost 1am reading beauty blogs. Why? I don't know, I'm just weird like that, but because of my sudden fascination with reading blogs, I have gotten a good feel about what products people are blogging about. One surprisingly controversial product I have  read about are the E.L.F Studio Line Blushes. While some girls swear by them, others loathe them. So here's my review, hope it helps y'all out :) (Yup, a Cali girl just said y'all)

Okay so I own three of the Studio Line blushes:

Tickled Pink: A gorgeous baby pink, that can be built up to a true cotton candy color (this is my current favorite)

Candid Coral: A beautiful coral/peachy color. It is VERY similar to NARS Orgasm. It has small shimmer particles making it a really nice highlight on darker toned women. I usually layer this over other colors for a nice glow.

Blushing Rose: This is really nice berry colored blush. I use mostly around the holidays, but it's still a great buildable color. This one has small gold flecks which look really nice when they catch the light, yes even on oily skin :) Don't worry they are so small, you won't look like a disco ball.

Packaging: The blushes come in a rectangular black case. In my opinion the packaging is a knock off of the NARS, packaging, but then again, most of E.L.F's packaging is a knock off of a higher brand. Becareful when handling these blushes they break very easily. As you can see from my pictures, I've done some damage :)

Product: Here's where the trouble begins. While some girls complain that the blushes are to rough and chalky, others rave that they are so pigmented and soft. In my opinion, it depends on the color. While some colors are chalky and others are soft, I feel they are all very wearable and workable. For example, on of favorite blushes is Tickled Pink. It's a light baby pink, gorgeous color, but it is very chalky. I have to swipe with my brush a few times to get some color, but the color that I do get is really really nice.

Price: $3 USD

Overall: It's a luck of the draw. I personally love theses blushes because they are so cheap, blendable and versatile. Yes, some of the blushes are chalky and maybe a little difficult to work with, overall, E.L.F offers a beautiful range of colors, that you really can't hate on. So, in my opinion, I would say give these blushes a try, all you gotta loose is $3, and when you compare it to some of the $25 USD that the blushes are dupes are for, these are a real steal. Plus, they are surprising very long lasting. For a girl, whose face looks greasy within and hour, these blushes last me all day without fail :)

:) :) :) :)

PS: Sorry for the low quality pictures, bad lighting + cheap camera = bad pictures

BAM Bitches! Spring is here! (Current polish obsession)

Excuse the profanity in the title, but for the first time in my life I'm purposely following a "fashion trend," therefore I felt it necessary to go over the top.

So if you follow fashion blogs or read magazines, then you have probably read all of them tootin' and hollerin' about how pastels are in for the spring. The thing that gets me though is that, aren't pastels ALWAYS the "thing" for spring. Whatever.

Anywhosizzles, back to my post. So this week I'm feeling very spring-y so I wanted to wear a fun color that reflected that. Hence my lavenderish nails :)

I love purple so of course it would only  be fitting that my first post about  nail polish be purple.

Color: The color that I am wearing is called "Fun in the Sun" by L.A Colors. It's a gorgeous pastel purple with a semi-matte finish.

Lasting Power: Okay here is the bummer. I put this nail polish on and it chipped within a day. While this could be because I didn't wear a top coat or base coat, I have found LA Colors to be a very cheap company. BUT, I am okay with that because I hate wearing the same nail polish for more than a week....don't ask me why...it's just a "thing" that I have.

Higher End: If you are a nail polish snob and refuse to wear anything worth $1.50 from the drugstore, O.P.I has a great dupe called "A Grape Fit."

Overall: Obsessesed with this color, can't get enough of it! By the way, fellow bloggers and readers, this is probably the simplest you will ever see my nails. As I stated in my confessions blog, I love the bling, but being weary of scaring off my readers, I toned it down for you, but as you can see, I couldn't resist a little accent glitter  :)

Covergirl Lip Perfection Lipcolor

Rich, Creamy, Smooth......sorry girls, I'm not talking about peanut butter or even chocolate :). These words describe  the Covergirl Lip Perfection Lipcolors perfectly!

A few months ago I saw this fancy display at my local drugstore, but chose to bypass it because the lipsticks were $9 USD, and sorry but that was just $5 too much. So for months I kept passing the display, hoping the prices would go down and when they didn't I finally said,  "Gosh darn it!!! I NEED this lipstick!"  (I rationalized since I love Drew Barrymore, it was duty as a super fan to try the products she promotes ) :)

Packaging: Very sleek. Its simple yet fun and I really appreciate that the color is visible on the bottom on the tube. I keep all my lip products in a drawer and I hate having to open multiple tubes to find the color that I want. However,with  the peek of color, its soo much easier, I just open  the drawer and BAM there are my colors.

Product: It is pure velvet on the lips! So smooth and silky and in a weird way, the lines on my lips seem more filled in and smooth as well. The lasting power is also great and as the day wore on, for  me the color left a really pleasant lip stain effect that I really liked. the only down side is that because the product is so creamy, it has a tendency to slip, so I highly recommend using a lip pencil or maybe even using a light hand when applying.

(Ladies ignore the EPIC stache shadow!!! Trust when I say there is no hair there but apparently my camera wants me to believe I'm rocking a 5 o'clock shadow! haha!)

Price: $5-$10 USD depending on location and availability

Overall: I am really glad I tried this line of lipsticks! The color selection is CRAZY! There are so many fun and vibrant colors that really appeal to the teenage spirit. Usually hesitate to recommend lipsticks for girls in highschool, but these colors are just to fun to skip :)

:) ;) :) :) 

Revlon Double Twist Mascara

Continuing on with MASCARA MONDAY, if you read my previous post, then you  know that I was purging through my makeup this past weekend. As I was reminiscing and rediscovering some long lost treasures, I found this HORRENDOUS product, so I just had to warn all my fellow bloggers.

This product was advertised as "the next big thing." With its double twisted brushes, this mascara promised to give oodles of volume while separating and lengthening the lashes. What it really did was make a huge gloopy mess and ended up at the bottom of my makeup drawer :(

Formulation: The actual formula of the product was soooo wierd! It was thick, dry and chalky. It was messy and got all over the place.

Wand: I think structurally this is where the problem is with this product. While one set of brushes is supposed to add volume the other set is supposed to lengthen. The odd mix of synthetic and rubber bristles was not a good mix.

Overall: NO NO NO NO!!!!!! AVOID AVOID AVOID!! Too buLky, too dry, too messy!  Instead of fabulous long lashes it gave 4 goopy spider lashes!!! 

If anyone has gotten this product to work for them, please leave a comment below and let me know HOW!!? :)

Revlon Photoready Airbrush

Why oh why do I do this to myself? If I didn't like the product the first time, what made me think I would like it in a different form?

For those of you that read my post on the Revlon Photoready Foundation, you know that I called it "glitter in a glass bottle." Well everyone meet that foundations sister "compressed glitter in a can."

Packaging: It comes in an aerosol type can that you push on top to dispense the product. While this is a great idea for those of us that do not want to be unhygienic, the pump has no control, meaning I push it once and even after  I let go, product still oozes out.

Product: The product is a mousse consistency and very airy to the touch. It blends very well into the skin but you have to be quick because it dries fairly quickly and will streak if you try to blend it after its dry

Coverage: I would consider this medium coverage. It covers minor blemishes and discolorations but anything more obvious and it kind of cakes around the blemish and makes it stick out.

Pricing: Too much! I paid $14.99 but I returned it, so if you want to try it, buy  it on sale or a BOGO sale.

Overall: I wanted to like this product so much, I really did. It felt great on the skin almost non-existent, but my problem was the darn glitter again. My skin is already oily and  shiny so I definitely do not want a product that helps me shine like a disco ball. However, to be fair I tried this product on my sister who has dry skin and it look great on her. My only suggestion for dry skin would be to MOISTURIZE because the foam sticks to ever pore, blemish, and piece of dry skin. This product is best left for the few people who have near perfect skin but just want some minor color and coverage.

Oh yeah, like advertised it looks good in pictures

: )  :) 3/4

Review: Rimmel London Scandaleyes!!!

It's big, it's flashy, and it's new! Needless to say I got suckered in by the bright bold color, but if you've read my previous posts you know that's nothing new :)

So here is Rimmel London's answer to the new craze of full voluminous eyelashes. It's called Scandaleyes and it promises to increase your lashes by three times and its supposed to be healthy with all the extra infused keratin in the product.

Yeah....cough....so here's my review.

Brush: The brush is made up of huge synthetic fibers that slightly taper down towards the front. The one complaint I do have is that the brush is a little too big  so you have to be careful when applying the mascara or you will get all over your eyelids, lower lid and nose bridge

Packaging: It is a huge chunky neon orange tube,  which kind of  looks like the Covergirl Lash Blast (this is the only reason I bought this mascara)

Pricing: $5-$10 USD depending location and availability.

Overall: It was ok. I felt it was nothing spectacular or life-changing as promised in the ads. What I did find it to do was give my lashes a fuller appearance. The small gaps between my lashes were filled and it gave me a fake "natural" appearance .

Before: Kind of chunky and gapy

After: Nothing too dramatic just  more filled in

Review: E.L.F Powder Brush

The reason I started this blog was to share some hidden gems with the world that others may have overlooked because the product was too simple. Case in point: the ELF Powder Brush.

This is a brush. This is a black brush. This is a black flat top powder brush. Nothing shiny,  nothing glitzy nothing eye-catching or gimmicky, and I think that is what is the best part about this brush.

Designed as a powder brush, I use it as a foundation buffer, and I can honestly say, my makeup application has never been more flawless! I just dab  on my foundation and then stipple it on with this brush and then buffer it in. The ELF Powder brush not only helps distribute the color evenly but it also helps give an airbrush finish.

Brush: The bristles are soft synthetic fibers that are attached to a wooden handle.

Price: Online or at Target it is about $3. I got mine at the dollar store for...you guessed it $1 USD!

Overall: Do I think there are better foundation brushes on the market...yes. However, for the price this brush is unbeatable. Definitely a must try if you are just beginning to experiment with makeup or if  you are looking for a kabuki style foundation brush.

Review: L'Oreal Lip Balm

Sigh...they got me again you guys. Those evil genius' at Walgreen's knew I was coming so they put this pretty pink product right on checkout counter because they knew I wouldn't be able to resist it. But isn't it so pretty! See so you can't really blame me for buying something I didn't need :)

Product: What this essentially is, is an overpriced tinted lip balm. it goes on smooth and is  VERY moisturizing and the slight hint of color  and baby shimmer make the lips look refreshed and pouty. Although the color pay off is very minimal, it can be built up depending  on what shade you purchase.

I purchased Mauve, and this is after a few swipes of color.

Container: It comes in a basic lipstick form. There is nothing special with the packaging but the soft color caps make the product not look cute but very sleek as well. It almost looks like the Dior Lip Balm.

Pricing: Ughhh.....Alright I paid $7.99!! I know, I know, but I told you it was an impulse purchase.

Overall: I really like this product! Besides the sleek, high-end look of the packaging, the lip balm is very mositurizing, long-lasting and the color pay off is  soft and natural. So my dear readers, if you have the money or if you can find this product on sale, go ahead give it a try

:) :) :) :)

Rimmel London Stay Matte Pressed Powder

Alright my fellow grease monkeys, here is a product you are sure to love! I discovered this product a few years back, but kinda forgot about when it got lost among the hoards of other matifying products  I had. Well, thanks to a sudden warming of weather and the oil glands on my face going into overtime while trying to make me look extra shiny, I have rediscovered Rimmel London's Stay Matte Pressed Powder :)

Product: The product comes in multiple shades, but I would recommend the "translucent" powder so you can use it year  round without worrying if it matches your skin color. When applying I usually use a Kabuki or large powder brush and evenly distribute it over my problem areas (MY WHOLE FACE :) ) and retouch throughout the day as seen needed.  My one warning however, is that the product can appear to be very chalky if not blended in well, so BLEND BLEND BLEND

Coverage: This product gives no coverage since it is a translucent finishing powder, however it wears very well. This means that depending on how much you apply the product blots the oil without giving your face a flat look. Over foundation, I am still able to maintain a nice "natural" glowy look without looking flat and washed out

Packaging: I think the one downfall of this product is that it has very flimsy packaging. Designed like a large disc,the lid is very loose and if you are not careful you  can easily break it, or loose it in your purse if you choose to carry it in your makeup bag.

Pricing: Between $4~$7 USD depending on size, location, and availability

Overall: I think this is a great oil control product. Even if you choose not to wear any foundation, on bare skin this product works just as well. My only warning is not to overload on the powder because it will leave a white caste if you put on too much.

:) :) :) :)