A Birthday Gift from Sephora

It's that time of year again (for me) where Sephora doles out a birthday gift to their beauty insiders around their birthdays. It happens to be a few weeks away from mine (June 2nd) so when I went in recently they stowed upon me their "Smokey Eye Kit." I honestly can not tell you what this kit had to do with smokey eyes. Enclosed was a white shimmery eyeshadow that I am guessing is their version of a highlight. Next came a tiny eyeliner in a color that can only be described as teal. Not a bad color, don't get me wrong, but what does it have to do with a smokey eye? Finally there was a mini mascara that was fine, but not noteworthy.

All I can say is...I'm glad it was free, happy future birthday to me!

Benefit Bad Gal Lash Mascara

Benefit Bad Gal Lash Mascara:

I am finally a proud owner of this Benefit mascara. I've heard fabulous things about it for too long and I just needed to try it out for myself. When I was in line at Sephora this weekend and saw a cheap little mini version of the traditional tube I knew it was fate.

I have to admit, I think this mascara really does live up to the hype. It created long, full coats over my lashes without a single clump! I'm not sure how long this little tube will last, but I think it's safe to say that I'm a Bad Gal convert.

MAC Paint Pot in Bare Study

MAC Paint Pot in Bare Study:

After a whirlwind love affair with my MAC Paint Pot in Rubenesque, I figured I would expand my color range. Rubenesque has some serious copper/gold reflects in it and I love how it really makes my eyes pop, but I picked up Bare Study after checking out all of the color options because it is a more toned down shade. I can wear it under light/neutral eye makeup as a base or just swipe some on in the mornings before I run out the door as an excellent color all by itself. How versatile!

Loreal HIP Shocking Shadow Pigments in Restless (918)

Loreal HIP Shocking Shadow Pigments in Restless (918):

To start off I need to make a confession. I have never owned or tried MAC's pigments. This seems sacrilegious in the makeup community, but I just want it to be known that I cannot compare that product to this one.

That being said, I really like this drugstore-brand pigment. I got the highlight shade so it was not showing up when I tried to swatch it, but it is a shimmery cream color with peach, pink, and gold reflects. I love the instant shimmer it gives my eyes. I like applying it under the brow bone and in the inner corner of my eye to really highlight those areas and make my eyes pop. It is also surprisingly a great highlighter for just above the cheek bones. It brings a glow to my face and makes me look a bit angelic.

An Eden tip: Apply your favorite lip gloss and then press a bit of the pigment onto lips, concentrating on the center of the lips, for a little extra shimmer.

It even comes with its own little brush. How convenient!

Anastasia Lash Lifting Mascara in Black

Anastasia Lash Lifting Mascara in Black:

I got this as my free gift for getting to yet another 100 points on my Sephora Beauty Insider card. It is a nice little mascara sample size, good for traveling, and it is very black which I like. I don't really see the "lash lifting" element of this. My lashes were just where they normally are after applying and I even needed an eyelash curl with this when I normally don't when using my CoverGirl LashBlast. However, the more I use this the more I like it. It is the most natural looking mascara that I have ever tried. It's my lashes, just longer and fuller. There is nothing I dislike more than clumpy, flaky, gunked-up eyelashes and I feel like I spend most of my time with my favorite mascaras trying to avoid this in the application. With this product I don't even have to worry about it. Bonus? It will fit nicely in a clutch so it's good for evenings out.

I was not initially convinced on this one, but I am definitely a convert. I'm glad that I stuck it out!

Shu Uemura Eyelash Curler

Shu Uemura Eyelash Curler:

This much talked about eyelash curler lives up to the hype. The rubber pad is very gentle and allows even a curler-aphobe like me to curl my lashes without having too much of a freak out. The curler also comes with an extra rubber pad which is very handy. I have tried other eyelash curlers before and this one, I can honestly say, creates a curl that will last for days. This tool is definitely worth the copious amounts of publicity it gets (Hello! Shout out by Gisele in The Devil Wears Prada, anyone?).

It's expensive (I got it as a gift...thanks Houle!) but it will last a lifetime...especially with that extra pad they throw in there. For a serious lash curl, this is worth it.

Glitter!

So I just finished a post about how I only go for boring neutral shadows and I need to break out of my comfort zone a bit more, which got me thinking about this quad...

So this year (my final year of college) I live in a house off campus with 5 of my friends and we decided to do a roommate secret santa before we left for our winter break. I had my roommate Jenn and I made her a collage of magazine cut outs (I buy every fashion magazine the second it hits the stand so you would be surprised at the things I come up with to the lower the growing stacks) and each cut out reminded me, in some way, of her. She is vegan and the absolute best chef I know. You haven't lived until you have tried her tofu pot pie!

My secret santa happened to be my roommate Laurel and Laurel is not only an amazing friend, but a great listener. We were watching ELLE Video Star videos one night (we love watching these makeup tutorials while we get ready to go out at night) and I mentioned that I really should get some more vibrant/sparkly/crazy eye shadow shades because I always wear boring neutrals. It was the briefest mention, said almost to myself, but months later as we're sitting around our living room exchanging secret santa gifts Laurel presents me with this quad of the most glittery eye shadows that I will ever own in my life. Hey Laurel! Check out the bottom left hand corner! Yeah, I used that one on New Years Eve.
:-)

CoverGirl Lashblast Length

CoverGirl Lashblast Length:

I told you the mascara hunt would continue! So after falling in love with the CG Lashblast Volume I knew I had to try the Length version. The brush is much longer and thinner than the Volume mascara and gets just a tiny coating of mascara on the wand. The fat, chunky Volume wand creates thick, full lashes and the thin, long Length wand creates long skinny lashes. I like how precise the wand is. It coats each lash individually and makes extend out just as far as they can.

I am beginning to think that the perfect mascara look would be a coat of Length followed by a coat of Volume. Who says you can't have it all?

Vincent Longo Eye Shimmer Souffle in Copperleif

Vincent Longo Eye Shimmer Souffle in Copperleif:

This is the softest, silkiest, most luxurious eyeshadow I have ever used. The mousse-like texture is heavenly and the color blends effortlessly onto the eye lids. This color in particular is fabulous because it looks just like liquid gold. On the eyes it is a deep bronze/gold shade that adds instant glam.

The Mascara Challenge

I had been a Dior DiorShow mascara junkie for some time when I saw an ad in a magazine for CoverGirl LashBlast Volume mascara. The ad actually said to compare CoverGirl LashBlast Volume to DiorShow. I had heard good things about LashBlast so I was willing to take CoverGirl up on their challenge. After all, it wasn't too expensive and I had to go to CVS anyway.

The CG brush was a bit smaller with spiked synthetic bristles and did not look much like my Dior full and fluffy bristled brush, but once I tried it on I was very pleased with the overall look. My lashes were long, full and dark without any flaking or clumping. Now I wouldn't go so far as to say my LashBlast took over for my DiorShow, but considering the vast price difference I think I will stick with the LashBlast once my DiorShow runs out. If I like how the LashBlast looks and it's much cheaper then I can't exactly convince myself to purchase a 24 dollar mascara when the 7.50 dollar mascara works just as well.

CoverGirl has also come out with a new LashBlast Length mascara that I am excited to try! So the mascara saga continues...

NYX Jumbo Shadow Pencils

NYX Jumbo Shadow Pencils in Pots & Pans and Black Bean:

NYX is another one of those brands that creates good quality makeup without the huge price tag. These pencils are great as a base for any eyeshadow look. Using a colored base under a shadow really adds depth and dimension to the shadow colors. It is also an easy way to deepen an eye look without having to spend forever building up the eyeshadow color on the lids.

Pots & Pans is a silver pencil and Black Bean is a jet black pencil. These come in a huge variety of colors and go for only a couple bucks each. They are very creamy and easy to blend.

Battle of the Eye Primers

Urban Decay Primer Potion versus Too Faced Shadow Insurance:

I am a huge fan of eye primers and I use them under all of my eye looks. They prevent creasing, make your eye makeup last longer, and give your shadows something to stick to. These two seem to be the most popular eye primers and I have used them both. I have always been an Urban Decay Primer Potion kind of girl, but I have heard good things about the Too Faced Shadow Insurance and thought I should give it a try. I have used it for about 4 months now and it is safe to say that I am not converted.

The Shadow Insurance often seemed to separate so when I squeeze some onto my finger I just get a finger full of a greasy, oily substance. It also had a liquid-like texture as opposed to the Primer Potion which has a more creamy consistency. I have to say that I prefer the thicker cream of the Primer Potion to the greasier texture of the Shadow Insurance, but to be honest, I don't see a big difference in which keeps my shadow on longer. I think they both work equally well as a primer, but because my skin tends to be more on the oily side, I have to stick with the Primer Potion. For dry skin/eye lids, however, I would recommend the Shadow Insurance.

No clear winner here...just a matter of skin types, I suppose!