BEAUTY REVIEW: Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion

SOURCE:  urbandecay.com

I noticed that my most recent posts have consisted of bad reviews regarding drugstore cosmetic products, so I thought I would stray from this trend and post a review about a cosmetic product that I love.  As I mentioned in a previous post, I have oily eyelids, which affects the lasting power of my eyeshadows.  I am a big believer that drugstore cosmetics can be just as good as department store brands, so I usually try drugstore varieties before investing my hard earned money on more expensive high-end products.  Thus, I tried the L'Oreal De-Crease Eye Shadow Base first.  Unfortunately, I didn't see any remarkable results or improvements when I used the De-Crease product.  My eyeshadow still faded and creased within no time at all.

I finally caved in at Sephora one day and decided to purchase the Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion.  Virtually every makeup guru on YouTube owns a tube or bottle of this eyeshadow base.  I bought the original primer potion in the professional size because I figured that I would get more bang for my buck.  I also heard that the squeeze tube was easier to use and last longer than the original potion bottle with the applicator wand.  The salesperson at the case register at Sephora said that I would not be disappointed and she was totally right.

I have been a fan of this product since the first day I used it.  The primer is light and creamy and dries invisible on the skin.  It helps to brighten your eyeshadow shades while providing the best last power that resists fading and creasing.  I was so impressed with how my eyeshadow and eyeliner held up way past my lunch hour.  During my pre-eyeshadow primer days, I would always find myself in front of the bathroom mirror after lunch carefully wiping away my raccoon eyes.  Now, all I need is powder touch ups for my face and rarely have to wipe away raccoon under eye circles...only the outer eye corner areas at best (I have teary eyes from time to time).

The squeeze tube bottle is easy to use and the needle point dispenser top makes application as breeze.  I usually dab a small amount on the tip of my finger and blend the product with a finger tip along my entire upper eyelid.  I find that just a little bit goes a long way and am so impressed with the staying power of my eyeshadow when I use it, which is daily.

I am still a fan of drugstore makeup products, but make exceptions for higher-end products that work, especially when they work better than the drugstore products.  A huge thumbs up!

BEAUTY REVIEW: Maybelline Dream Mousse Blushes -- DISCONTINUED

Maybelline Dream Mousse Blush in Pink Frosted, Soft Plum, and Rose Petal (L to R)

I came to the conclusion the other night that I have too many items in my makeup stash that I don't use anymore.  I also realized that rather than tossing these used and neglected products into the trash, I was saving them to do a review.  By the way, I take total blame for my procrastination.  Due to my procrastination, some of these neglected or rejected items have been discontinued in the interim by their manufacturers, such as the Maybelline Dream Mousse Blushes.

I previously fell in love with the Maybelline Dream Mousse Concealer many moons ago until Maybelline decided to discontinue the concealers, but still stick with blushes and bronzers.  In fact, one of my very first blog posts was about my frustration over discovering that my favorite concealer was no longer available on the market.  I guess Maybelline decided that it was time for the blushes and bronzers to go as well because I noticed on Maybelline's website that these products have been discontinued.

I am not fretting over this news like I did when I found out about the concealer because the Dream Mousse Blushes were just okay.  Perhaps I am too used to powder blushes, so anything that is in mousse or cream form is a little suspect to me.  However, I used these Dream Mousse Blushes periodically for over two months and I was just not sold on them.

I bought and used three shades:  Pink Frosted, Soft Plum, and Rose Petal.  The product comes in a small heavy clear glass paint pot jar.  The blushes really look and feel like a mousse dessert--light weight and a little fluffy.  The color selection was not very large as I recall (maybe five or six different shades?), so I picked the shades that I thought would match my skin tone the best.

The positives:

• Easy application.  I just used my fingertips in lieu of a blush brush.
• The mousse consistency applies with a powdery finish, but more on the finished look below under the negatives.
• Easy items to pack while traveling.  The packaging and blush consistency make these blushes a great product to take with you when you travel because you don't have to worry about your powder blushes cracking or breaking.

The negatives:

•  Limited blush shade selection.  All of the shades looked fairly similar to each other with just fine differences between them.  None of the shades available were particularly bright and most fall along the lines of a subdued pink or health rose shade.  The brightest shade was Pink Frosting.
• The powdery finish does not blend well and has a bit of a glittery finish.  The more I tried to carefully blend the product, the more it started to clump together.  The product also has a bit of a sheen, so if you are looking for a matte finish, this is not the product for you.
• There is not much of a color payoff .  I was a bit disappointed in the limited color payoff of this product.  The shades were pretty in the paint pots, but washed out once applied to my cheeks.  Pink Frosting had the best color payoff compared to the other shades, but not by much.
• The product is not long lasting.  Perhaps it is due to my over blending, but I found that the cheek color faded away by noon.  Rose Petal performed the worst.

I am assuming Maybelline discontinued the Dream Mousse Blushes to replace them with the Maybelline Dream Bouncy Blushes.  However, after the lackluster performance of the Dream Mousse Blushes, I am not interested in the Dream Bouncy Blushes.  Oh well, one less product to keep in my makeup stash and with this post, off to the trash can!

BEAUTY REVIEW: L'Oreal Concentrated Lash Boosting Serum

SOURCE:  Drugstore.com

I admit it.  I am a puny eyelash sufferer.  No matter how many layers of volume boosting mascara I apply, I am still a victim of puny eyelashes.  Don't get me wrong.  I am not ashamed.  I take my less than stellar eyelashes in stride.  And, after trying the L'Oreal Concentrated Lash Boosting Serum, I will continue to take my eyelash shortcomings in stride.

My local drugstore was having a sale on all L'Oreal cosmetic products several months ago, so I thought that would be a perfect opportunity for me to try out the lash boosting serum that several YouTube beauty gurus were raving about.  Again, I wanted to see if the product really lived up to all of its hype.  Sadly, this product did not.

The description for the lash serum states on the L'Oreal website that it contains "Centella Asiatica extract and Arginine to reinforce, condition, and protect each lash."  To tell you the truth, I have no clue what Centella Asiatica extract or Arginine are, but I'll give it a whirl!

I applied the lash serum daily to my bare lashes at night by using the soft serum applicator that was gently curved in the shape of the average eye.  I placed emphasis on "average" because my small Asian eyes do not normally fit the size of the average eye, but I tried my best not to poke my eyeball!  The lash serum can be used twice a day, underneath mascara and on bare lashes at night.  Perhaps my failure in applying the lash serum under my mascara contributed to the downfall of this product because I didn't see much results, especially after four weeks, like the website claims.  My eyelashes essentially looked the same as they did when I first started to use this product...puny.

However, I do have some positive things to say about this product.  First, the product conditioned my lashes.  I found that my lashes became softer thereby preventing them from breaking or falling out.  Second, the serum did not leave a residue or dark markings.  I read that one of the side effects of using some of these rapid growth lash treatments is darkening around the eye line.  The clear serum applies and dries clear without a sticky residue.  Lastly, the serum does not burn when applied.

Oh well.  I guess I will just keep applying mascara and eyeliner.  It's totally fine with me.

BEAUTY REVIEW: Maybelline Fit Me Blushes & Bronzer

From upper left hand corner going clockwise:  Blush in Light Pink, Bronzer in Golden Tan, Blush in Medium Pink, and Blush in Medium Coral.

I've started getting into blushes recently.  Perhaps I am starting to realize that I have enough eyeshadows to last me several lifetimes (okay...that's an exaggeration, but I admit that I have more than enough), but not that many blushes.  I was starting to get tired of using the same coral blush and wanted to branch out and explore different shades and colors, so I figured I would start with the drugstore brands first before laying down some hard earned cash on department store blushes.

My local drugstore was having a sale on Maybelline cosmetic products several months ago, so I thought it would be a perfect opportunity to try out their new Fit Me line of cosmetics.  The Fit Me! line has an assortment of liquid foundations, face powders, concealers, blushes, and bronzers to fit your skin tone.  Maybelline claims on its website that its blushes "provide a natural, fade-proof cheek color that leaves the skin the way it was meant to be...fresh, breathing, and natural."  The bronzers claim to also provide the a fade-proof bronze color.

The blushes come in twelve shades and the bronzers come in three different shades.  I bought the blushes in Light Pink, Medium Pink, and Medium Coral and a bronzer in Medium Bronze (see, picture above).  My local drugstore didn't have all of the twelve blush shades available, but I thought the three that I purchased would be a good start for me and neutral enough to match my skin tone.

Being that I consider myself a newbie on blushes and bronzers, I shouldn't cast stones, but these products failed to even live up to my naive expectations.  The blush and bronze colors look very pretty in their packages, but unfortunately, the compliments stop there.  The blushes and bronzer I bought are not blendable and in fact, the product is so dense that I had a difficult time lifting the blush or bronzer onto my makeup brush.  You actually have to use deliberate scrubbing motions in order get get any product onto your brush.  Furthermore, the blushes and bronzer are not very pigmented.  You need to build quite a bit onto your cheeks in order to see any color payoff.

All in all, the Fit Me line of blushers and bronzers are a huge disappointment and will be tossed into the trash as soon as I am done posting this review.  What's the point?  Maybelline needs to go back to the drawing board with this product.

RAVE FAVE: Korean Amethyst Jewelry

Amethyst & Citrine 4-in-1 Necklace

I know, it has literally been FOREVER since I blogged.  While a busy work schedule is not the best excuse to offer, that is actually the honest reason for my long absence from this blog.  I am hoping to get back to the swing of blogging.  I admit that I have been engaging in quite a bit of retail therapy since January.  Stress at the office fuels the little shopping monster in me, so I should have no problem with what to write about when things start to calm down.  That's something to definitely look forward to!

There is a recent addition that I wanted to share, which incidentally I did not purchase.  My amethyst and citrine necklace from Korea.  Last October, my parents went on a 10-day tour of Korea.  One of the tour stops included a huge jewelry shop selling Korean amethyst.  My mom usually doesn't go nuts in a jewelry store.  She will look through all of the glass cases, but always stops short of asking the salesperson for the price of the sparkly bauble she is eying.  Her mantra is, "If it's in a locked jewelry case, then it's probably out of my price range, so why bother."  My dad, on the other hand, rarely if ever steps foot in a jewelry store.  He would rather poke his eyeballs out than to suffer through the torture of combing through the jewelry cases.

Thus, the fact that my parents (1) entered and perused through a jewelry store, and (2) BOUGHT a few baubles at the jewelry store is nothing short of a miracle.  Perhaps it was the excitement of being in a foreign country.  Whatever it was that tickled their own little internal shopping monsters, I am thankful because I received a great present!

My mom told me that as soon as the woman at the jewelry store showed her this piece, she knew that I would love it.  Moms do know best because this is one of my favorite pieces of jewelry that I own.  It is literally four necklaces in one.  The round pendant is two sided with purple amethyst on one side and yellow citrine on the other.  The round pendant pulls apart to four smaller triangular pieces to create a beautiful and dainty citrine or amethyst choker.  The sterling silver chain is also adjustable so that I can wear it as a choker or at a longer length, or even adjust it to the collar line of my blouse, shirt, or dress.  This necklace is so versatile that I can wear it for the daytime or evening with dark or light colors of clothing.  I seriously love, love, love!!