Clinique Superbalm Moisturizing Gloss in 16 Black Honey - Review and Swatch

I have this pile of empties from May and I really need do a blog post on them asap. I am so behind in everything this month. I also have a Bobbi Brown palette that I have been meaning to review for like a month. Next two posts, promise.

On to the matter at hand. Today I have a review on the Clinique Superbalm Moisturizing Gloss in 16 Black Honey. I have a small sized tube that I got from Sephora I think as a promotion or with rewards points or something. Mine is 0.17 oz. or 5ml. The regular sized tube is 0.5 oz. and is $21 Canadian or $16.50 U.S. I have been using my little tube almost nonstop for 2 months if that gives you an idea of how far a little bit goes.

My first impression was that I couldn't believe how glossy this product is. The colour looks dark in the tube, but like all Black Honey products by Clinque, you basically get a slight cherry tint that has a warmth to it. If that makes any sense. I like to use this with a dark lip liner and mix the two colours together. I also do this to add some staying power. I find that this gloss disappears from your lips fast. You definitely have to keep reapplying throughout the day regardless of whether or not you are drinking or eating or not. Here is a swatch:

This is one of the most comfortable glosses that I have ever worn. Not sticky. The colour also goes with just about any look or outfit so it's a no brainer lip product to apply. I will be repurchasing this. The price isn't bad either. I would prefer if it wasn't in a tube and maybe had a wand applicator. Squeezing it out is not my preferred method of lip product application and once you get near the end of the tube, it's a pain in the ass to get the last bit out.

My main complaints are the need for frequent application and the packaging could be a lot better. Otherwise, it's a solid product anyone could use in their stash.

Packaging: 6/10 

Pigmentation: 5/10 (but I think that is the point of the product to be sheer)
Easy to Work With: 10/10
Longevity: 5/10
Texture: 10/10
Price: 10/10
Ingredients: 8/10
Travel Worthy: 10/10
Attractiveness of Product: 10/10
Would I buy this again? YES,
Overall Rating: 8/10

Beach Day Must Haves

It's that time of year again, beach season! I hope many of you have beach plans for the summer. I do! I'm going to Florida for a few days and then on a cruise! Can't wait.

I thought I would do something a little bit different today. I have some Beach Day Musts for me and I am going to talk about swimsuits, beach accessories and of course, beauty products.

Let's start off with swimsuits. I don't know about you, but there is something timeless and fun about a polka dot bikini. I have a pink one with yellow, white and red polka dots. I got it years ago from American Eagle. I don't think it will ever go out of style. Since mine is no longer available, I have to say that Adoreme.com has something similar called the Jules Push-Up in a gorgeous aqua green as shown above. I also love a white bathing suit. I have a couple of white bikinis, mine are from Victoria's Secret and American Eagle. Both styles are no longer available. Adore Me has a great one piece called Kaia in white, also shown above. You can't go wrong with a one piece.

I'm really into flutter swimsuit tops this year and I think the black with white and black checkered print style called Monyca by Adore Me hits the mark. Adoreme.com has so many cute, affordable swimsuits and lingerie. You should check them out and their Instagram!

I recently bought a Madewell Packable Straw Hat online from Nordstrom. It's on sale right now for $25 U.S. I don't know about you guys, but I find it so hard to find a reasonably priced packable sun hat. Any regular hat that I pack for a trip or in a beach bag gets destroyed. This hat is great because the ribbon band doubles as an elastic to wrap up the hat when you pack it. I am totally going to go full out Joan Collins in the Dynasty era with the big sunglasses and hat this year! Seems appropriate since her character's name was none other than Alexis.

Speaking of the big hat and sunglasses, I recently found a pair of sunglasses that that I love at The Bay by Jeanne Beker called the Alannah. Picture is shown above. I love these and the little bows at the sides are adorable. I'm all about affordable sunglasses. These are normally $44 Canadian but I snagged mine for $35 on sale.

I recommend getting a lined beach bag, ideal for wet swimsuits and towels, if you can find one. I have one that I bought on a cruise ship a few years ago. Winners/Marshalls and sometimes The Gap have smaller pouches for this purpose that you can throw into a beach bag. Super handy.

Finally for beach accessories, I have the Lauren Conrad Valencia Flip Flops shown above in the Flamingo Bird print. I had these in my hand when I was down in the States recently in Kohl's and for some bizarre reason, I didn't buy them. I have been kicking myself ever since. If you can find these, and they come in several colours and patterns, you need to pick them up! They are only $9.99 right now.

Okay, beauty products! I personally don't feel comfortable hitting the pool or the beach with nothing on my face. Habit of a lifetime. At the same time, you want to protect your face from the sun's damaging rays while still not wearing a mask of makeup. My solution is to wear Origins VitaZing SPF 15. This is a tinted face moisturizer with SPF. There are little beads in it that look orange, but they work in with the moisturizer instantaneously to even out your skin tone and provide you with light coverage. It's a win win. Available at Sephora.

I love me some Burt's Bees and their After Sun Soother may be their best product. If you get too much sun or a nasty sunburn, this product will fix you up in a snap. I've used it for years on myself and my husband and I swear within an hour you can seen your sunburn fading and by morning it's pretty much gone and turns into a tan for most people. Totally takes the sting and pain out of a sunburn too. Nothing compares. You can purchase this at Wal-Mart and many drug stores.  

Bite Beauty's Agave Lip Mask. I cannot live without this. It comes in a few colours now so you can have it look like coloured lip gloss if you prefer, but the clear one still gives you nice, shiny lips. I prefer the clear personally. It will save you from windburn, not sure about sunburn though. Completely moisturizing and soothing. I get prune city after being in the water and I want comfortable lips. Available at Sephora.

Bumble and Bumble Surf Infusion is fantastic. When my hair is frizzy or dull and lifeless, I reach for this. Keeps your hair soft and gives it natural looking waves. This is perfect for the beach or poolside. Works great on wet hair while it's air drying. It's like coiffed hair to go. This product is so much better than its predecessor, Bumble and Bumble's Surf Spray. That left my hair dried out and crunchy. You can get it at Sephora and many fine beauty salons.

Mascara. My holy grail, no fail, won't smudge, run or bleed is the Estee Lauder Double Wear Zero-Smudge Lengthening Mascara. You need this for the beach. End of story. You can pick it up at Sephora and most department stores.  

Last, but certainly not least, if you like to do bronzer for the beach, my favourite bronzer is the tarte Amazonian Clay Waterproof Bronzer in Park Avenue Princess. If you haven't tried this, you don't know what you are missing. It is so easy to use and looks amazing. Sold at Sephora and Ulta.

There it is, my Beach Day Must Haves in a nutshell. What are your Beach Day Must Haves? #BeachDayMusts  

Murad Resurgence Renewing Eye Cream - Review

Ever try a product that you neither loved nor hated? That's the case for me with the Murad Resurgence Renewing Eye Cream. I got a travel size sample of this back around Christmas time. That sample lasted me for a number of weeks and I used it twice a day. A full sized bottle costs $90 Canadian or $80 U.S. for 0.5 oz. The travel sized sample I had is 0.14 oz. Or 4 ml. Based on how long I had mine, I would guess a full sized bottle would easily last a number of months.

I found that the product was comfortable and refreshing but not uniquely so. My big problem is dark circles not eye bags or wrinkles as yet. This product is supposed to address all of these issues. As far as the dark circle help is concerned I didn't notice any difference after using it for several weeks. I can't really comment on how well it works on eye bags or wrinkles since those aren't my issues.

One thing I did notice is that this product is not well suited for the eye area close to your actual eye. It burns like crazy if you get any in your eyes! I would only suggest using this under your eyes only and not close to your tear ducts or lash line. I wasn't thrilled about this as I felt I needed to use another eye cream with it to cover areas closer to the eye. That doesn't impress me. I believe there is a disclaimer on the packaging about avoiding the immediate eye area....for an eye cream, that doesn't work for me.

This is an expensive product and it did not wow me. I didn't find it to be any better nor as good as my regular eye cream. For those reasons this will not be a repurchase.


Packaging: 8/10
Easy to Work With: 4/10
Moisturizing: 8/10
Texture: 8/10
Reduces the Look of Dark Circles: NO
Price: 2/10
Ingredients: 7/10
Quantity of Product: 8/10
Travel Worthy: 10/10
Would I buy this again? No, because it doesn't do anything for my dark circles and it burns.
Overall Rating: 6/10 points off for price, burning and doing jack squat for dark circles.