makeup Archives - Page 2 of 15

November 2, 2018

BECCA COSMETICS LILAC GEODE HIGHLIGHTER + GLOSS

Happy Friday everybody!

Today I’m sharing some quick swatches of a product I saw in Ulta last week and randomly decided to buy– Becca’s Lilac Geode Duo.

Becca cosmetics lilac Geode Highlighter & Gloss Duo

I hadn’t seen this highlighter release up close and was really pleasantly surprised when it swatched slightly duochrome-like with a pinky base and gold reflect. It was insanely wearable and right up my alley (I love anyyyyything gold/pink ESPECIALLY when both colors are involved). The lip gloss was similar with a warm pink base with gold glitter that, much like Becca’s Liquid Crystal Glow Glosses that I liked the formula of, was not gritty.

On-arm swatches of Becca Cosmetics Lilac Geode Highlighter & Gloss Duo

The swatches barely do these products justice and what really won me over for this duo was the price tag. Both of these come for only $25! $25 for a full sized lip gloss and a mini highlighter– and a mini is all you need in a funkier shade like this, anyway.

Next time you’re in Ulta, give these a swatch and see how you like them. I’m sure you will.

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October 26, 2018

DOSE OF COLORS ‘SLINKY’

Happy Friday everybody reading this!!! On a Friday!!!! or just happy day if you’re reading this any other day!!!

Today’s post is highlighting a single eyeshadow I recently picked up by Dose of Colors. This is my first product from Dose and so far, so good.

image of dose of colors slinky block party eyeshadow

This is ‘Slinky‘ from their Block Party shadow collection. I have heard good things online about these shadows for a few months so when I passed by them in Ulta the other day I knew I wanted to pick one up. Okay, well, because I had heard good things but also because I had heard you should buy in-store because the formula and/or press of these shadows makes them very breakable and they supposedly always break in shipment when you order online.

So, to reiterate, I passed these in-store and knew I wanted to try them but also figured I was in the store so I may as well pick one up!

Jokes on me. First one I bought was shattered– had to go back to exchange so even if you’re buying at an Ulta store, check the shadow before driving away!

On-arm swatch of dose of colors slinky block party eyeshadow

‘Slinky’ is a muted grey-brown with silver reflective sparkles in it. What I like about this shade in particular (can’t speak for the entire collection) is that upon application, the base and shimmer are melted together as one (read: no glitter fallout) HOWEVER, when I wiped away the shadow from the various parts of my body when I was swatching it out, the sparkle fluttered away easier than the taupe base did. Knowing that, I would suggest only applying these shadows as your final pop in a look that requires you to blend minimally.

I’m going to rock this shadow so much this season and into next because it walks the line between warm and cool and it’s so powerful while still coming across fairly understated.

Below are two photos to showcase the movement and dimension of this shade between different lightings:

On-arm swatch of dose of colors slinky block party eyeshadow in different lighting

This is such a stunning eyeshadow and if you’re willing to splurge $20 on a product that will truly transform a look, splurge on a Block Party shadow. I will 100% be trying out more shades from this range! Have you tried any of the Dose of Colors shadows? Let me know below if you have any recommendations for me.

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October 22, 2018

MASCARA FACEOFF: HOURGLASS ‘CAUTION’ VS. MILK MAKEUP ‘KUSH’

Happy Monday my friends!

Today I’m comparing two newly-released mascaras. Kush by Milk Makeup and Caution by Hourglass Cosmetics. If you would like to hear what I have to say in video format with a side-by-side on-the-eyes demo, scroll to the bottom of this post to watch my YouTube video on these products!

hourglass cosmetics caution mascara milk makeup kush mascara

Please ignore the beat-up packaging.. it just goes to show that I’ve actually had these in my makeup bag and purse for the past few months!

I bought these mascaras fairly close to one another.. kind of.. (Kush on May 10th and Caution on August 24th) but at the time of their respective releases, they were each highly raved about online. I have never purchased a full-sized mid to high range mascara because I’ve never been unhappy with my drugstore Maybelline faves. I decided to give these both a go because of the hype and I feel that one of these were a waste of money while the other was not! See the below photos to try to guess which mascara matches with which response…

On-eye before and after swatch hourglass cosmetics caution mascara

On-eye before and after swatch milk makeup kush mascara

To further explain what’s going on in the above photos, both mascaras are fine. They both lengthen and give body to the lash. The main differences are in 1. how much length they give, 2. clumpability and 3. depth of color.

1. Length — The Hourglass Caution mascara ($29) gives my lashes a bit more length than the Milk Makeup Kush mascara ($24)

2. The Kush mascara clumps SIGNIFICANTLY more than the Caution mascara and is unable to get those clumps out.

3. The Caution mascara is a deeper black that stays true all day.

I much prefer the Hourglass Caution mascara because it applies beautifully and is never finicky, doesn’t flake and stays a deep black all day. The packaging of the Hourglass mascara is sleek and pretty while the Kush mascara is heavy and clunky. The two mascaras are about the same amount of product (.34 oz Kush versus .33 oz Caution) with dissimilar price tags but if I had to choose one of these mascaras to repurchase, I would splurge the extra amount to buy the Hourglass for the formula.

I reviewed these mascaras side-by-side in a YouTube video, too! Check it out below:

I would love to know if you’ve tried one or both of these mascaras and what your opinion is on them! Mascara is such a personal choice– I’m always interested in how one formula could work so well for one person and horribly for another. Let me know!

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October 17, 2018

FINAL OPINIONS: GLOSSIER

Today’s post is all about Glossier!

Honestly, does it need any introduction? Glossier is the “barely there” makeup brand. Think: cool LA model girl makeup

Okay let’s get into it.. I’ve been purchasing Glossier on and off for the past four years and have tried a fair amount of products by the brand. I no longer own….. all but one of them. That’s not to say I didn’t like all of the items that I tried but— you’ll see. Let’s get into my Final Opinions of Glossier.

Milky Jelly Cleanser: This cleanser was the first product I tried from Glossier in 2014. I’d heard about it for a little while and was intrigued by word of a cleanser that also removed makeup. This cleanser lived in my shower for about two years after I bought it and I did not repurchase it. It did remove makeup. I just feel like it didn’t clean my skin very effectively. The smell was a bit strange to me as well. It wasn’t bad nor was it good.. it was just a little grandma-y.

Boy Brow: Boy Brow is my favorite product by Glossier. BB is a brow pomade in a brow gel component that helps thicken brow hairs and gives them a tint (unless you use the clear one). What makes it superior to other brow gels is that it truly thickens the hairs that need it and the thick pomade formula stays in the hairs pretty well (although not holding the hairs stiff like some other gels). I did repurchase Boy Brow once or twice but do not currently own any right now because I don’t feel like placing an order with Glossier for only one product.

Cloud Paint: If you want something that will give you the most bang for your buck, it’s Cloud Paint. Unlike other Glossier products that require you to truly slather them on for them to make an intense impact, CP requires suuuuuuch a smaaaall amount of product to be overly pigmented that it’s almost unbelievable. I bought the color ‘Puff’, which was a cute baby pink. I did not repurchase and I got rid of it before finishing because I wasn’t reaching for it over my powder blushes.

Haloscope: Haloscope was the original “glossy” highlight. It was so good at being glossy because it never actually dried down on the face. I would wear Haloscope when I had my hair up in a power ponytail and pulled away from my face otherwise I would have been touching my sticky cheekbones everytime I tucked my hair behind my ears. That being said, it really is pretty. You can layer up a lot of product for an intense glow or keep it natural with just one application/swipe. I recently got rid of Haloscope when I did my last makeup collection clean out because I never reached for it over my powder options.

Generation G: Generation G is truly an innovative product. It applies like a lip balm and had a completely matte finish. I bought the color ‘Crush’, a magenta-wine hybrid and the color did show up on my fairly pigmented lips but I cannot imagine it would have shown up on anyone with pigment in their lips at all. I feel all of the colors would be like this except for their red shade. I ended up selling this on Poshmark after only using it a handful of times. The buyer said that it didn’t show up on their lips…. oops?

Balm Dotcom: I purchased the ‘Birthday’ balm dot com, which is a clear balm with glitter in it and it smells like cake. I do like it but not enough for it to be my everyday lip balm. I keep it at my desk at work where I don’t usually need to apply anything to my lips. I could easily live without this product but the Birthday shade is kinda fun to have on hand for random applications. It moisturizes my lips pretty well so there’s no harm in holding on.

Invisible Shield: I loved the idea of a more inclusive sunscreen that also managed to not smell like sunscreen. I ended up throwing this product out about halfway through the bottle because I read that it doesn’t have the proper ingredients to actually protect your skin from sun damage… just whatever is used to avoid getting sunburnt. Sorry, that’s not enough for me. I want TRUE sun protection. It did smell fine though and was truly invisible!

Stretch Concealer: Stretch concealer is an emollient, tinted, balmy product. I can only assume it would be better suited for somebody who has dry undereyes because the product doesn’t dry down on its own. With powder you are fine but once I start to get oily throughout the day, the product won’t feel or sit right. Additionally, there wasn’t enough coverage for me (which I understand is the Glossier schtick). I no longer own this product.

All in all, I have tried some things that I’ve enjoyed from Glossier but for the most part I feel that I am not the right gal for the brand— which is fine! There are plenty of people they cater to and who knows, I may go back and buy another Boy Brow one day because I really do like it.. but for now, no more Glossier aside from my random work chapstick!

What are your favorite and least favorite things from the brand? They have expanded massively over the past year and I would love to hear if they have any awesome new products that I may have not paid any attention to.

October 15, 2018

MAKEUP OF THE DAY: 10/13/2018

selfie showcasing lilac purple makeup with makeup geek pillow talk eyeshadow

I rocked a lilac-y eye this weekend. Here are the details:

Face:
–Fenty Beauty Pro Filt’r Instant Retouch Primer
–Fenty Beauty Pro Filt’r Matte Longwear Foundation in ‘120’
–Urban Decay Naked Skin concealer in ‘Fair Warm’
–YSL Touche Eclat Radiance Perfecting Pen in ‘2’
–Rimmel Stay Matte powder in ‘Translucent’
-MAC Wash & Dry Studio Sculpt Defining bronzer in ‘Delicates’
–Tarte Amazonian Clay blush in ‘Exposed’
–Tarte Amazonian Clay highlighter in ‘Exposed’

Eyes:
–Urban Decay Anti-aging Primer Potion
-Makeup Geek eyeshadow in ‘Petal Pusher’
–Urban Decay eyeshadow in ‘Tease’
–Urban Decay eyeshadow in ‘Secret Service’
–Makeup Geek eyeshadow in ‘Pillow Talk’
–Colorpop eyeshadow in ‘Glass Bull’
–Kat Von D Tattoo eyeliner
–Hourglass Caution mascara
–Eyelure x Nicole Guerriero lashes in ‘Casually Glamorous’
BROWS: Anastasia Brow Powder Duo in ‘Medium Brown’ and clear brow gel

Lips:
–Tarte Tarteist Quick Dry Matte lip paint in ‘Exposed’
–Lancôme Matte Shaker in ‘Nude and Roses’

I ended up actually wearing Sugarpill’s ‘Cupid’ out to the event I went to!

I love a good purple eye and although I did not intentionally go for a lighter, lilac kinda thing I really liked how it came out. Would you have added anything more to this look? Glitter? What about less? No false lashes? LMK your opinion!

October 9, 2018

MY BITE AMUSE BOUCHE COLLECTION

Back at it again with a collection post! Today’s collection showcase is of my Bite Beauty Amuse Bouche lipsticks. If you have a soft spot for bullet lipsticks like myself, you’ve gotta try this formula by Bite. These lippies are comfortable, pigmented and come in such a fun range of shades. My personal collection is a good example of that, I think!

bite beauty amuse bouche lipstick bullets in sugarcane quince pepper lavender jam and kale

On-arm swatches of bite lipsticks lavendar jam, kale, pepper, sugarcane and quince

The first Amuse Bouche I bought was Sugarcane. Sugarcane is my favorite, natural kinda pink.

Unfortunately, I failed to realize that Quince was not a part of the AB formula. Quince is a brighter magenta that I don’t believe is even available any longer (sorry! Major F-up on my part) A dupe for this shade in the AB family appears to be Radish (thanks Temptalia!) The best part of the real formula of these lipsticks is that while comfortable, they are also fairly thick and hold their position on the mouth aka no bleeding even for the brightest or darkest of shades.

Pepper is that 90’s “greige” that we all seemed to love in 2016 made a bit warmer to allow your look to appear a bit livelier.

My funky colors are Lavender Jam and Kale. I’m realizing now there is some kind of food theme going on here… but anyway, Lavender Jam is such a fun color. It’s pretty blue which IMO makes it fairly less wearable than a warmer purple so I don’t go for this shade that often but I like having the option for a fun purple pop whenever I want it without having to buy a cheap costume-quality lipstick. Kale is a deeeeeep forest green. Really deep. I bought this at TJ Maxx at a discount otherwise I probably wouldn’t have ever bought it. I love me a dark lip– Deep wines, purples and even black are my thing. The issue for me is that my lip shape requires a bit of overlining for shades SO deep and I am at the point in my life where I don’t rock a deep lip (especially one that requires extra work) as much anymore but just like Lavender Jam, I enjoy having this in my collection as an option for whenever the right time comes.

On top of the great options for shades, Bite’s Amuse Bouche lipsticks get released fairly often as part of different promotions so there’s always a new, exciting shade to be looking to purchase. I was tempted to buy their ‘Cancer’ shade in July from their on-going Horoscope collection but decided against it as it was similar to Pepper. LMK below your personal Amuse Bouche recommendations for me to try out next!

October 9, 2017

NYX IN YOUR ELEMENT ‘FIRE’ AND ‘METAL’ PALETTES

Happy Monday! I am here to share some photos and swatches of NYX’s new In Your Element palettes in Fire and Metal. This post will be short and sweet.. here is the outside of the packaging:

and the two palettes side-by-side (SWOON)

Here is Metal post-swatch…

The Metal palette is not good. There are a few shades that are and I was dying over the shade second from the right but overall these guys are glittery, flaky and seal after just one finger pass. No good. This puppy went back to Ulta!

HOWEVER

The Fire palette is sooooooo gooooooooooooooooood. If you’re going to get some of these palettes, the Fire palette needs to be one. The first yellow shimmer (far right) is a bit lacking and the dark shade four from the left isn’t as exciting as I expected it would be but the rest are buttery and beautiful.

I’m also interested in the Earth palette but it seemed too similar to Fire to make sense enough for me to purchase it. I bought these two palettes when Ulta was having a 30% off NYX sale so the price tags weren’t too out of bounds for my wallet!

October 5, 2017

FENTY BEAUTY ON A PALE GIRL

Woooooo hoooooooo!!!!!

New and exciting release alert!!!!

I have TRIED Fenty Beauty— Rihanna’s makeup line that released a couple of weeks ago. I LIKE it!

For someone who considers themselves in tune with the beauty community, this release came and went without me knowing anything of it. It wasn’t until I kept seeing Instagram stories… and posts… and blog posts… and articles on the products did I quite literally get up and run out of the door. To Sephora I went!

I tried four of her products— her face primer, foundation (I know), and two “Match Stix”.. one for contouring, the other for highlighting.

fenty beauty amber porcelain match stixs on pale nc15 skin

Fenty Beauty Match Stix in ‘Amber’ (top) and ‘Porcelain’ (bottom)

As someone who is not afraid to take advantage of Sephora’s incredible return policy, I am proud to announce that I only returned one of these products. And it wasn’t even because of the product, really but here I am getting ahead of myself…

Let’s start off with the fact that I don’t really need to introduce the brand. Everyone else has and if you don’t know about Fenty Beauty, just give it a Google 🙂 As for the products, I will begin with the moisturizing primer. As a “no foundation” kinda gal, I appreciate this primer because it preps my skin for foundation in ways that I didn’t know it needed. It makes your face slightly tacky and ready to layer while moisturizes so you aren’t scaly or flaky underneath that MATTE FOUNDATION!!!!

Woo hoo! I love Fenty’s foundation! First off, I’m not the lightest shade. I am not even the SECOND lightest shade. I wear 120— the third lightest. How amazing is that?! The formula of this foundation is light coverage with a matte finish so my frecks get their time to shine while my oil stays under control. I have found that dotting the foundation around your face with your finger and then following up with a Beauty Blender is the best way to apply this product because if you go in with a sponge from the get-go, the sponge will absorb most of this watery foundation.

The foundation has a liquid-to-powder feel and is marketed to not need setting powders so you’re able to go right in with Fenty’s Match Stix. These multipurpose cream sticks come in many colors to be used as a contour, bronzer, blush, highlight, eyeshadow and lipstick. I purchased ‘Amber’ to contour with because it is unbelievably cool-toned. It’s similar but slightly darker, cooler and much easier to blend out than Colourpop’s ‘Dove’ Sculpting Stick. The second shade I bought was ‘Porcelain’, which appears darker than it applies. The matte shades that are meant for concealing/highlighting are pretty natural looking so if you like a super highlighted undereye, this is not the product for you. I really liked Porcelain but I felt my spending was getting a little crazy and Porcelain wasn’t a drop-dead unique kinda deal so I let it go over the others.

I did not buy any of the shimmery highlighter sticks or powders because they were all intensely glittery and I just know I would have hated them on my face. When it comes to the ones I did try, they’re great. I’m excited to see the future of Fenty Beauty (although the sneak peek of the Holiday collection looks…….. ehhhh….. but we will hold out to truly form an opinion).

Have you tried any products that I didn’t include in this post? I love seeing everyone’s opinions on this line because it seems everyone has a different thing they like and don’t like.

September 29, 2017

BITE BEAUTY LIQUIFIED LIPSTICKS IN ‘ECLAIR’, ‘FLAMBE’ AND ‘BRAISED’

Welcome to my first feature of Bite Beauty on Beautymunson! I had been slowly building up a collection of Bite products when they released their Amuse Bouche Liquified Lipsticks. Not a LIQUID lipstick, a liquified lipstick. Do you remember where we all used to be before the liquid lipstick trend? Here!

I bought my typical, mid-Pink aka ‘Èclair’, a fun red-orange aka ‘Flambé’ and a deeper (and my go-to) red aka ‘Braised’.

I really like these. One of the reasons I really like this product is because of the gel-like texture and the easy application. The product is very thick and luxurious, which is nice because the colors stays on your lips and doesn’t travel outward. ‘Braised’ does feather a bit so I would recommend a liner with the deeper colors.

Now, would I say to wear your hair down and drive in a convertible rockin’ ‘Flambé’ on your lips? No. But I recommend that anytime? No! I hate convertibles! They’re always ruining my hair and makeup. Windows up, AC on— please.

If you want to try out the formula of this product without owning full sizes, Sephora has a holiday set out that features four minis including ‘Flambé’ and ‘Braised’ for only $22!!!

I’m all for a good, budge-proof liquid lip but I’m excited to see brands come out with different formulas alongside them as well.

April 2, 2017

MAKEUP GEEK SHOWSTOPPER CREME STAINS IN ‘DO-SI-DO’, ‘FOXTROT’, ‘FLAMENCO’ + ‘TWERK’

I grabbed four of Makeup Geek’s newest lip products— their Showstopper Creme Stains in various different shades the day that they dropped. The packaging is so sleek and beautiful that I couldn’t stay away! Unfortunately, I don’t like the product inside of the packaging 🙁

But let’s get some photos out of the way first…

and here are my four shades swatched on the lips:

Starting with just the base shades, I do like them. I didn’t expect to like ‘Foxtrot’ and do. Same with ‘Do-Si-Do’ and ‘Twerk’ is just light enough to really show it’s color well. I thought ‘Flamenco’ was going to be deeper but it’s still a pretty red. I love the dancing theme of the shade names, too.

Now we can get into the obvious. The formula is horrific. I’m so confused by this product and I’m begging people to help me understand them because they are lightweight, yes. They’re lightweight because they are so thin and streaky on the lips and once you get enough on your lips to make the color even, the product gets thick and cracks (see: Do-Si-Do)

They don’t “stain”, either.

I’m very sad with these 🙁 I’m going to pair them with liners so I can get SOME wear out of them but ultimately on their own, they are not the best on the market. Stick with eye products, MUG.

Did anyone else pick them up ASAP? I would LOVE to start a discussion on them so I can understand them better. Since they’re stains, I wouldn’t expect that they’re “supposed” to be layered over liners but if someone knows something I don’t, my ears are open.

Have an awesome week!

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