Sephora Nano Eyeliner in 11 Silver Green - Review and Swatch

I think I got this eyeliner free from Sephora quite some time ago. Thank God it was free. It's really awful. As you can tell, I am going to get to the point quite quickly today. The colour, 11 Silver Green, may now be discontinued. I don't see it on Sephora's website. Anyway, the colour looks like dirt on your eye. It's very muddy. It does not transfer onto the eye easily either. I was a bit of a struggle trying to get a decent amount on. Within a few minutes of applying it, I noticed it started disappearing before my very eyes. It smudged, slid and absorbed into my skin on its own which is never good.

Just looking at the eyeliner, I thought that it was a pretty colour. I don't have anything like it in my collection. The colour does not transfer as silver green. This eyeliner is not very pigmented at all and has zero staying power. I just have a small travel size pencil. I really have nothing good to say about this eyeliner I am afraid except that the ingredients are surprisingly good. Based on the formula, I don't think that it is just this colour that is the problem. I would imagine all of the colours would be sub par. I had no idea how much this eyeliner cost until I looked it up just now. It's $8 Canadian. That explains a lot. Considering there are much better eyeliners at the drug store for the same or less money, just pass on this one please.

I don't own much Sephora brand makeup. What I do own, I haven't really tried. I hope the rest of what I have isn't as poor quality as this product is. Here is the swatch...ugly and blah isn't it?

 

 

Packaging: 8/10  

Pigmentation: 3/10
Easy to Work With: 2/10
Longevity: 0/10
Colour Stays True: 0/10
Texture: 4/10
Price: 10/10
Ingredients: 9/10
Travel Worthy: 10/10
Attractiveness of Product: 0/10
Would I buy this again? No Way 
Overall Rating: 2/10

Liebster Award Nomination

I got nominated for a Liebster Award today by Sue Miller from Healthy Skin Canada fame. I must say it was the highlight of my day. Thank you very much Sue!
 
I would like to nominate Jenn from Scarlet Beauty, Chelsey from My Beauty Full Adventure and Blush Overdone.
 
So how does this work? Here are the rules:
 

• Thank the blogger who nominated you through your blog and on social media
• Answer the questions given to you and post in your blog
• Nominate 3 bloggers you follow who have less than 500 followers
• Post 5-10 questions for your nominees to answer
• Tag your nominees & post a comment on their blog or via social media to let them know you nominated them

Here are the questions that I was asked:
 
  
1. What are your favorite skincare products?  

Overall, I have to say Origins has the best skincare line overall. In particular I love Dr, Hauschka  Rose Day Cream, Origins Plantscription, Origins Night-A-Mins, Kiehl's Ultra Facial Oil-Free Cleanser, any body cream from L'Occitane and my recent find the GlamGlow Youthmud Tingleexfoliate Treatment.  

2. When did you start making skincare a regular part of your life?

I  would have to say in my mid-20's. My teenage blemishes were still paying me a visit even though I was no longer a teenager and I noticed in winter my face starting feeling dry after I washed it.

3. If you were stranded on a desert island what are the three beauty products you can't live without?

Toughie. Some kind of lip balm for sure. I'll say any of the Burt's Bees lip balms would do. Also, I think I would need some SPF and coverage (in case I got rescued) so Origins VitaZing. The third would likely be Origins Plantscription.

4. What got you interested in Beauty Blogging?

I got obsessed with You Tube beauty gurus and their makeup tutorials back in late 2009. After a while, I started to scout blogs for swatches. I started to think to myself that I am a makeup addict so why not channel my addiction in a constructive way and save people money by writing honest reviews.

5. If you had to choose - Manicure or pedicure?

No contest. Pedicure. Lasts a lot longer.

6. What is your favorite piece of jewelry and why?

I would have to say my engagement ring and wedding band. Sentimental obviously. Second would be a tie between two things. One is a gold bracelet that my parents gave me as a child with my name engraved on it. I don't wear it anymore because it is so delicate and I almost lost it once. The other item is my grandmother's engagement ring and wedding band. It's from the 1930's and has rubies and diamonds. I used to wear her engagement ring on my right hand but it currently needs some restoration.

7. You can have dinner with 3 people living or deceased - who would it be and why?

Okay the first would be my maternal grandmother. She died when I was 11. She had 3 strokes prior to her death and was very sick from the time I was 8. I was her favourite and the only granddaughter. I think about her all of time. While I don't have as many memories of her as I would like, I have always felt a huge attachment to her since she has been gone.

I hope this dinner doesn't have to be with all 3 people at the same time! That might be weird. The second is Paul Walker. I have had a crush on him since the late 1990's. My husband is aware. I thought he was the hottest thing since sliced bread. Would love to have met him once. I actually have a co-worker that did meet him in Italy very briefly many years ago and she has a picture of them together with some of her friends that she was with at the time. She said he was the nicest guy and happily posed for a picture. She says she has never washed the shirt that she wore that day. He had his arm around her in the pic.

The third would be my parental grandfather. He died when I was two. He was most handsome. I have always heard wonderful things about him. I would love to talk to him and have a personal memory of him.


Here are my questions for my nominees:

1. What is your favourite makeup brand and why?

2. What is your favourite MAC eyeshadow? If you don't like MAC, your favourite eye shadow would be fine.

3. What is the stupidest or craziest thing that you have ever done?

4. Who is your favourite You Tube beauty guru?

5. What colour are you planning to "rock" this spring?

6. What is your favourite eye shadow palette of all time?

7. If you could be anyone living for just one day who would it be?

8. What is the best book that you have ever read?


I hope that gives you a little more insight into me. Can't wait to hear your answers!

March 2014 Empties

As I have mentioned before, I hate empties piling up around the place. I am no neat freak, but I hate those empty containers lying around, crashing about etc. so I am doing this blog post before the end of March. So I might have two "Empties" posts in April. I am sure you won't mind. I am still fiddling with the settings on my camera, so I apologize for the "yellow" hue. I have 8 empties for you today. In no particular order:

1. Wen by Chaz Dean Sweet Almond Mint Cleansing Conditioner - I love the way this detangles my hair and makes it shiny and soft. Since I signed up for a regular mail delivery, I have a ton of this stuff in my cupboard. I am not sure if this product is contributing to some nasty split ends that I have been plagued with over the past several months, but I seemed to have the problem more under control before I started using this all of the time.

2.  Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair - I have a million tiny bottles like this kicking around. I swear I get a free one whenever I buy something at the Estee Lauder counter. This was the first bottle that I finished. Can't say I noticed that it did anything for my skin. I got 30+ uses out of this little bottle. I mostly targeted specific areas of my face for it but sometimes I used it all over.

3. Tarte Clean Slate 360 Creaseless 12-hr Smoothing Eye Primer - I already did a review on my blog on this awhile ago. I have had the same tube for a year and a half and I use it pretty much every day. Crazy! Did I get my money's worth? Hell yes. Already repurchased.

4. Origins Plantscription - This previously made my blog list of the Top 10 products that I can not live without. I still feel the same way about this product. Will be repurchasing a.s.a.p.!

5. Estee Lauder Double Wear Zero-Smudge Lengthening Mascara - Another of my holy grails. The only mascara that I have ever found that does not smudge on me when I wear glasses. I have gone through at least 5 or 6 of these to date and I will be repurchasing another one stat!

6. Lush Rock Star Soap - I thought it would be weird to post this to my empties when I had nothing left to show you. Seeing as I maybe have another day or two left of this, I thought I would show it while I had some evidence of it's existence. I love the smell of this soap. It makes me happy. My husband doesn't like it so much. It smells of Edinburgh Rock Candy to me. I swear the smell used to be more powerful though in previous bars I had. After I used it, my bathroom would smell of the stuff for a day or two. No, you can barely tell it was used. My husband also doesn't complain anymore. It's because he can't smell it anymore! My Mom, however, told me I smelt very nice today when I went to visit her after my shower....

7. Origins GinZing Refreshing Eye Cream - I didn't notice that this eye cream did anything for my dark circles. I have a full review on this elsewhere on my blog. It was refreshing though. I tried to use it religiously but never did for more than a few weeks at a time. Once the jar is opened, the product is only supposed to be good for 6 months. That is true! It got really gooey and not spreadable near the end . There is a little left at the bottom but it is no longer any good. I will not likely repurchase.

8. Boscia Thermal Black Cleanser - This makes my skin super soft. It neither lathers nor reduces my blemishes much. I don't think I will repurchase. Full review of this on my blog.

So that's it! I have some pan porn coming (oh that didn't sound good) and hopefully a Back to MAC soon to show you. Also, I am feverishly trying to use my Naked 3 palette so I can do a review soon.

Too Faced Better than Sex Mascara - Review and Pics

I got this in a Holiday Set of Too Faced goodies that I got back in November. I believe this is a travel size since it is 4.8g or 0.17 oz. The regular full size is 0.27 oz. The cost is $30 Canadian or $23 U.S. I didn't expect much from this mascara, but some reviews that I have read have been most favourable. I have to say that this mascara works pretty well. It lengthens and volumizes. It is one of the better mascaras out there. The wand is pretty nifty and has bristles on the top of the wand like Benefit's They're Real mascara. That is a great thing to have if you want to get in corners and get some product on tiny lashes.

Here is a picture of the wand. I am afraid that I do have a beef with this mascara though. It's the size of the wand. Too Faced, why do you do this to me???? Too Faced loves to use big wands. That's great if you have big eyes and long lashes to begin with, but if you are like me, and most people are, you don't have large eyes and you don't have long lashes! The brush is very hard to work with. The bristles are also extra scratchy so you have to be careful. I have gotten the hang of it, but it sure is trickier than it needs to be.

Now for your laugh of the day, since I am in a rush this evening, here is a picture of me, in my hot rollers, showing you how large the brush is. The base of the wand is resting on my nose. It was not easy to take this pic by myself, but here it is. I believe this mascara only comes in black. It is not the blackest black in the world, but it is black.

 

 

Packaging: 8/10

Pigmentation: 8.5/10

Easy to Work With: 5/10

Longevity: 7.5/10

Texture: 6.5/10

Price: 7/10

Ingredients: 8/10

Travel Worthy: 10/10

Smudge Proof: 9/10 (without glasses haven't tried it with)

Flake and Clump Proof: 8/10 (a bit clumpy but no flakes)

Attractiveness of Product: 8/10

Would I buy this again? I would consider it

Overall Rating: 7.5/10

Chanel Illusion D'Ombre Long Wear Luminous Eyeshadow in 84 Epatant - Review and Swatch

Sorry I have been missing in action for a few days. I got a new camera and I am still getting the hang of it. I went to take some pictures yesterday, only to realize the camera needed a few hours of charging first. Bummer. Anyway, I am back in action. Please forgive my pictures as I am still playing with the settings. They look a tad yellow hued.

I was on a waiting list at the Chanel counter in The Bay in Toronto for a year and a half for this product. Technically, I am still on the list. Totally ridiculous. I told the salesperson at the counter that they shouldn't have a tester jar out for a product that they haven't stocked in months to over a year...Anyway, I went online one day a couple of months ago to The Bay's website and ordered this just like that! For some reason I didn't think they had Chanel products on their website. So I can get it on their website with the click of a mouse, shipped to me in 48 hours, but their flagship store doesn't have any, zippo for over a year. Crazy...cuckoo.....

Back to the product at hand. Epatant is a silver cream shadow with a green undertone. Very unique and very hot! I saw this ages ago on Nic from Pixiwoo and I had to have this! The cream shadow comes with a brush that I thought would be useless, but actually is really good. I would totally use this brush with other cream shadows and then I wouldn't have to get my fingers in there. The texture is weird. Reminds me of those damn Maybelline bouncy blushes. Soft and bouncy. Creepy. The product is very soft to the touch and blends super easily. It looks fantastic on with some black gel or liquid liner winged out. Love it!

I don't own anything else like it. I had to have this colour and nothing else would do! I wear a primer underneath it of course when I wear it. My only complaint is that the product fades and creases after a while. I would say the fading starts at the 6 hour mark. Creasing by about the 7th or 8th hour. Now I have oily lids, so if you have drier lids you might be fine. By the 13th hour the product has significantly faded (but it's still there) and creasing in now in full effect.

My recommendation: only wear this if you are going out for the evening or clubbing for a short period of time. If you are going to be out wearing this for 6+ hours you will see some meltdown. It looks fantastic for the first few hours though! Out of this world good!

Okay, here are the swatches. Sorry again for the yellow background! Ahhh! I will fix this. That wall is actually a grey purple! The swatch colour looks accurate though.

I can't say that I would run out and buy another of these Chanel cream shadows simply because they are not long lasting. However, this colour is the bomb. The product is $38 Canadian. The ingredients in this are a lot better than most other Chanel products.

Packaging: 10/10  

Pigmentation: 10/10
Easy to Work With: 10/10
Longevity: 4/10
Colour Stays True: 7/10 (it fades though)
Texture: 10/10
Price: 6/10
Ingredients: 7.5/10
Travel Worthy: 10/10
Attractiveness of Product: 10/10 (for the first 6 hours and 6.5/10 from then on)
Would I buy this again? Yes (just this colour)
Overall Rating: 8/10 (the gorgeous colour brings the score up despite everything)

Estee Lauder Pure Color 01 Vanilla Pods Eyeshadow Duo - Review and Swatches

I have wanted this eye shadow duo for a couple of years now. I saw it at the Estee Lauder/MAC sale back in the Fall so I snatched it up. I think I paid about $14 for it. It normally retails for $36 Canadian or $30 U.S.. The eye shadow on the left looks like a shimmery cream sand colour and on the right is a sparkly taupe pewter colour which has notes of silver, brown and purple in it. I wore the left side one day on its own with some black gel liner and it was a big bore. Looks matte and not a good matte! There was nothing interesting or unique about the colour. I thought the quality was so-so. It wasn't chalky but it also wasn't soft nor silky to the touch.

When I wore the two together, with some black gel liner, the result was much different. I sometimes find that some eye shadow duos, trios or palettes have colours that only work with the accompanying colour(s). On their own, they aren't always the cat's ass. That is certainly the case here. These two work perfectly together and are very complimentary of each other. This eye shadow duo would probably look good on almost anyone. It looks like expensive makeup when it is on. It is very classy and sophisticated looking.

While I think $36 is a lot for a duo, you get a lot of product in this palette. Both eye shadows are 0.12 oz. or 3.5g total. Both colours are very pigmented and a little of this product goes a long way. It will likely be an eternity before I hit pan on this one. These colours would also work with almost any outfit. The colours are super easy to apply and it's difficult to screw up a look with these two. If you had to travel for a couple of days, were pressed for time and didn't know what makeup to take, I would just pack this with some eyeliner and mascara for the eyes part of things. A total no brainer. My only complaints about this duo is the price and the fact that I think the sand colour on the left could have better texture. These are long wearing shadows though, creamy and are both well pigmented. Here are the swatches:

 

 

Packaging: 10/10  

Pigmentation: 10/10
Easy to Work With: 10/10
Longevity: 10/10
Colour Stays True: 10/10
Texture: 6/10
Price: 6/10
Ingredients: 7.5/10
Travel Worthy: 10/10
Attractiveness of Product: 10/10
Would I buy this again? Yes
Overall Rating: 8.5/10

Hourglass Ambient Lighting Palette - Review and Swatches

This blog post has been a long time in the making! I bought this palette back in October and I am only getting to the review now. Crazy! Hourglass came out with this palette in the Fall, just in time for the Christmas Season. I am sure it was sold out before Christmas. I snatched mine up while I could. This palette was $67.00 Canadian (ouch!) and $58 U.S. You get 3 of the famous Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powders - Dim Light, Incandescent Light and Radiant Light. Incandescent Light was a limited edition shade, but the other two are permanent.

Each powder is 0.116 oz. or 3.3g. The full sized powders are $52 Canadian or $45 U.S. each and are 0.35 oz. each. I like the idea that I got to try out 3 powders without shelling out $156! I don't think I would have shelled that out. Maybe over time, but not at once! Okay, so where should we start? I liked 2 of the 3 powders very much - Incandescent Light and Radiant Light. Incandescent Light is basically a highlighter. It is gorgeous! You need very little to see an effect on your face. I think I am still applying too much. When light hits your face it's "wow". The amount I have in the palette will last me forever.....

From left to right we have Dim Light, Incandescent Light and Radiant Light. Radiant Light is also gorgeous and is the best of the three. You could wear it alone as a bronzer. It is shimmery so you wouldn't necessarily want it as a contour colour. You can seriously layer Radiant Light over any blush or the blush over Radiant Light if you prefer, and it's instant va-va-voom. Very St. Tropez. Look out J. Lo. A beautiful sun-kissed glow on your cheeks every time! While you shouldn't be heavy handed with Radiant Light, it is not a heavy colour or mega intense, so this is a great product for beginners who are getting used to bronzer if you can stomach the price tag. Even if you don't apply it 100% evenly, it still looks good.

This picture looks a bit creepy.....from left to right Radiant Light, Incandescent Light and Dim Light. Then below on my arm in a different order - Dim Light, Incandescent Light and Radiant Light. All three powders are finely milled and soft. I do understand the fuss over these puppies.

Dim Light. I have used this repeatedly and it just isn't for me. It's too dark to use as a face powder. Makes me look like George Hamilton. Some of my younger readers might not get the joke. Just google his name if you don't get it. Dim Light does seem to blur or mask skin imperfections, but it is just too peachy beige for me and makes my skin look thicker??? It's not a good look for me. It holds up all day by the way, they all do. Maybe I need to try Diffused Light or something. So I recommend two of three. I realize one is a limited edition colour - sorry! However, I believe Luminous Light, which is a permanent shade, is similar.

Since the palette is gone...if you want to try out one of these powders in the full sized format, I would say get Radiant Light. Second choice, get the Luminous Light. Maybe they will bring the palette back one day? I will likely buy a full sized other coloured powder at some point from the line, I am just not yet sure which one. Any suggestions?

Packaging: 10/10

Pigmentation: 10/10
Easy to Work With: 10/10 
Longevity: 10/10 
Texture: 10/10
Price: 6/10
Ingredients: 7/10
Travel Worthy: 10/10
Attractiveness of Product: 10/10
Would I buy this again? Yes
Overall Rating: 9/10

Tangle Teezer The Original - Review

I have something slightly different for all of you today. It's a hairbrush. Yes, these are exciting times my friends lol. I picked this up at Target on a trip to the States back in November. I have naturally curly, frizzy hair. Sometimes when I get out of the shower, I have a full on rat's nest on my hands. I also don't have a lot of time to fuss with my hair most mornings. I have been using a detangling comb from Sally Beauty for the past few years. It works decently, but I wanted something better.

I have seen a lot of knock-offs of this product lately in a rainbow of colours. It doesn't look like it would be rocket science to replicate, however, this hairbrush appears to have patents in full force. It says on the package that this brush has won The Queen's Awards for Enterprise: Innovation 2012. The brush was made in Great Britain if you hadn't already guessed. I think I paid about $10 U.S. for this brush.

The first few times I used this I thought "Meh, it's ok" but after 3 times or so I got the hang of it and I was able to comb out my freshly washed hair in record time - maybe under 2 minutes. It really works! My only beef with this product is the so called "ergonomically designed" for a "palm friendly, non-slip fit". What a lark! I have yet to use this brush and have it not at least once fly completely out of my hand and across the bathroom. Thank God I haven't broken any tiles or my mirror yet. In the interest of full disclosure, I have fairly large palms but short fingers. Does that sound hot or what? My point is that perhaps this brush was designed for people with longer or regular length fingers. I can barely wrap my hand around this thing! So maybe the problem is me.

Sorry about the stray hair or two. I did my best to clean it out before I took the picture. This brush works in both dry and wet hair. I recommend it, especially if you have nice, long piano playing fingers. I am not sure how to rate this so I will give it an overall rating of 9/10.

Josie Maran Argan Lip Treatment - Review

This is the cutest lip chap/balm/treatment jar ever.......I really wanted to love this and was hoping that it would be my holy grail of lip balms. It wasn't. I am sorry but it's awful. I expected much better than this from a Josie Maran product. A youtube guru that I follow said this stuff was the bomb and that she loved it. Since I have been having on and off lip issues for a while, I thought "what the heck, maybe I will love this". I didn't read the Sephora reviews before I bought it and I now kicking myself.

It appears that you either love this lip treatment or you hate it. I am in the latter category. It just doesn't appear to work for some people like me. As soon as I put it on, I feel it sliding off of my lips and going south to my chin. It will not stay on my lips no matter what. If I put it on and lay down it slides up, sideways, you name it. I have used a little at a time and I have used a lot at a time and it doesn't matter either way.

 

 

I like the smell though. Some people think it smells like melon, but it smells a bit like strawberries to me. I also find that sometimes my lips are in worse shape after I use it (within 20 minutes) than they were before I applied it. This product actually chaps my lips. I feel the skin hardening. I am really hoping that I will have a better experience with this once the summer comes. Maybe this doesn't work for me because I am in a cold climate???? But if it slides off, I can't imagine it would work better in a warm climate???? Sigh. Maybe it doesn't work for oily skin types? I don't know. If anyone has any insight into this product and the type of people it works for, please let me know. I am mystified.

 

This is $23 Canadian. Not cheap. It's $18 U.S. I should return it to Sephora, but I have really dug into it as I used it a lot in the hopes that I was losing my mind and it really worked. No cigar I am afraid my friends. It feels good as you are applying it but then the feeling is gone as soon as you remove your finger from your lips.

 

Packaging: 10/10 

Pigmentation: N/A 

How Does it Feel On: 1/10

Longevity: 0/10

Texture: 0/10 (It's like water when it's on, just slides off)

Price: 4/10

Ingredients: 10/10 

Travel Worthy: 4/10 (I just don't like to take things in my purse that I have to stick my finger in to apply)

Attractiveness of Product: 0/10 (disappears upon application) 

Smell and Taste: 8/10

Would I buy this again? NOT IF YOU PAID ME

Overall Rating: 2/10

 

**Product Update 10/23/2014 - this product ended up redeeming itself a little please see my updated blog post http://mymakeupissues.blogspot.ca/2014/10/two-products-that-i-have-changed-my.html 



Makeup Geek Eye Shadows in Duchess, Creme Brulee and Frappe - Review and Swatches

I recently purchased two new eye shadows from Makeup Geek. They are Crème Brulee and Frappe. Jaclyn Hill on YouTube was extolling the virtues of these two and of course they looked fabulous on her! You should check her out if you haven't already. Anyway, I figured I had a million eye shadows just like those two, but hey for $5.99 U.S., I thought "what the hell?". I really, really like them, but I will get to that in a sec.

I discovered a few weeks ago, much to my horror, that I had a Makeup Geek eye shadow still in the package in a box that I was throwing out! Ahhhhhh! How stupid of me. This is what happens when you own too much makeup my friends. The colour is Duchess which is a royal violet colour. I have to say that I think I like this purple the best of the Makeup Geek purples. The colour isn't chalky, is well pigmented and blends well. It's also the nicest purple they have colour-wise in my opinion.

Okay, back to the other two. Crème Brulee is the one on the top row next to Duchess above. Crème Brulee is described as a medium sand colour. I think it's more like a peach sand colour. Looks great in the crease or blended in with a darker crease colour like Frappe. Crème Brulee is a warm shade. It blends well, has decent pigment and is actually a bit different from other similar colours that I have in my collection. A pleasant surprise!

Here are the swatches (L to F - Duchess, Crème Brulee and Frappe):

On to Frappe. It's a medium maple brown matte. I love this colour! It is more cool toned, which is right up my alley. It reminds me a bit of MAC's Wedge, but Frappe is more of a Satin and is a bit warmer. Dare I say, it is more pigmented than MAC's Wedge.....may lightning strike me now.....I think I will be using Frappe in the crease for a classic look on a go forward basis and I will put Wedge on the back burner. Yes, I like it that much. I still love Wedge though, but Frappe is cheaper and a bit more bold yet still subtle, if that makes any sense.

If you don't have Frappe or Crème Brulee, you need them. It's that simple. These two would definitely be on my Top 10 Makeup Geek (MUG) eye shadow list if I were to do it again. Duchess is nice, but is not a must have.

Packaging: 10/10  

Pigmentation: 10/10
Easy to Work With: 10/10
Longevity: 10/10 Crème Brulee and Frappe   8.5/10 Duchess
Colour Stays True: 10/10
Texture: 8.5/10
Price: 10/10
Ingredients: 9/10
Travel Worthy: 10/10
Attractiveness of Product: 10/10
Would I buy this again? Yes to Frappe and Crème Brulee and a Solid Maybe for Duchess

Tarte LipSurgence Lip Creme in Admired - Review and Swatch

This colour is described by Tarte as a sheer merlot. I think it is more on the plum brown side than merlot per se. It doesn't appear to be available on Sephora.com but Tarte sells it on their website. I bought mine from Hautelook when they had a Tarte sale. I don't remember what I paid but I think it was less than $10. What a deal! This retails for $29 Canadian.

This lip tint is super moisturizing. I have a matte one that is crazy bright, but this Admired is a super subdued colour. Right up my alley. I like sheer deep colours if that makes sense. Nothing to heavy, but nothing nude. It's sheer and totally wearable. I used this a few times quickly a couple of months back and then I recently brought it out again. It's a very "winter" colour as far as I am concerned but you could wear it anytime. My lips are singing when I wear this. Super comfortable especially in this wretched polar vortex business that is still going on. I find the colour is quite long lasting. Even after you eat, there is still some on and the colour is still there, not an ugly stain like some lip stains or lipsticks. I wore this to work today and I think I only touched up twice and I had a 12 hour day from door to door. Most impressive. Totally recommend this. Here is the swatch:

 

 

Packaging: 8/10

Pigmentation: 10/10
Easy to Work With: 10/10
Longevity: 10/10
Texture: 10/10
Price: 7/10
Ingredients: 8/10
Travel Worthy: 10/10
Attractiveness of Product: 10/10
Would I buy this again? In a heartbeat
Overall Rating: 9/10



MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in Stereo Rose - Review and Swatch

I missed picking up Stereo Rose the last time it was out a few years ago. I had been kicking myself ever since, but lo and behold it was repromoted recently in the MAC A Fantasy of Flowers collection. It is $35 Canadian and $30 U.S. I think that is pricey, but these Mineralize Skinfinish products last forever. You get 9g or 0.32 oz. of product.

This product has virtually no smell. I am really loving using it. It is described as a coral with golden/bronze shimmer. I think this might be better for me in the summer when I have a little tan, but heck it looks decent now too. I think a natural blonde or redhead could really rock this colour if they have a nice honey complexion.

The formula is really smooth and silky. Glides on easily. Blends easily. There is nothing bad I can say about it!

 

Here are the swatches. If you have been thinking of picking this up, run, do not walk to your nearest MAC counter before they are gone. I believe they are not yet sold out online which is great!

 

 

 

Packaging: 10/10

Pigmentation: 10/10
Easy to Work With: 10/10 
Longevity: 9/10 
Texture: 10/10
Price: 7/10
Ingredients: 8/10
Travel Worthy: 10/10
Attractiveness of Product: 10/10
Would I buy this again? Yes
Overall Rating: 9.5/10