Makeup or Breakup

ALBEIT

pic from shefinds

I’m definitely on a lipstick kick these days, here’s my next review: Albeit, a new line of lipsticks by Anthropologie. I will admit that I am a sucker for this store, they seem to have a pulse on what gals who don’t do department stores are into, I mean for christ sakes I virtually did almost all my Christmas shopping at this joint. I can’t help but to pick up presents for others and a lil something for myself either! These new lipsticks were already on sale so I had no excuse not to try. For $10 I’d say they were worth the trial but not the retail price of $18, no thanks, here’s why: 

1. Pretty sheer which isn’t a bad thing but not a great thing either. Pretty moisturizing though and thats helps.

Here’s a swatch courtesy of makeupandbeautyblog:

• Bisque:a slightly rosy, warm beige
• Peony:a clean, fresh, medium pink
• Mauvette:a dusty mauve, muted pink
• Claret:a rosy berry shade
• Vermilion:a dramatic creamy red with blue undertones
• Mulberry:a red-tinged, deep aubergine

3. Sucker for packaging. Not gonna lie, the gold case is to die for. 

In the end definitely not worth the $18.00 retail price, on sale, its can be fun but I will not be purchasing another one, these three were too disappointing. To sum it up this is like buying a fancy tinted chapstick. 

lipstick queen - medieval

Ok so i’ve had my eye on this lipstick for a looooong time but the $20.00 price tag made just cringe away in shame, I can’t spend that much on something that I have no idea if I’m going to like plus I’ve only seen it at Anthropologie which doesn’t carry testers; double whammy. But look at this packaging, are you telling me you don’t want to take this home right now? It kept intriguing me. 

Thats where Christmas came in handy! I got this as a present so its was like WOOT WOOT but on my lips. Basically this is the kind of lipstick the younger me would have adored, its light and it looks natural and fully hydrating. I might even say it makes your lips feel plumper. Check out these reviews and these and last one. 

Some of you might be wondering what the older me wants…  and I say bold lips are here to stay! I think its an age thing, I never felt comfortable in bright colors when I was younger because I didn’t like all the attention and now that I’m in my 30s and pretty comfortable in my skin I say bring it on! So there you have it, Lipstick Queen Medieval is nice for everyday wear, great as a present but kind of crazy splurge and not as fun as the bold hues I’ve reviewed below. 

orange lipstick

Orange has been trending so hard lately that this post just feels redundant. I dont need to justify my love of orange but to be honest I think orange lipstick is the ultimate best, its just better than regular red and practically all skin tones can pull it off.

So here we go!

I started off a couple years ago with Nars Red Square but I lost that at a Art Basel party and then i didn’t want to drop big bucks for a replacement so I bought the trusty and reliably cheap Palladio’s Nutmeg. Now I’ve moved on to Make Up For Ever #40, I have to admit, it’s quite nice. I can still use my lip liner from Palladio, it works perfectly together and last as long as you think a good lipstick would, and its pretty conditioning, doesnt feel gross - very important.

Here’s more options and ladies wearing the shades, check it out!

This link leads you to another lady trying out red square on her blog.

mascara womp

hello lovely ladies on the internet. 

i’ve been postponing this review because it’s a negative one and i greatly dislike putting out negative vibes in the world but every morning as i apply my mascara (not every morning who am i kidding) the thought goes across my brain like the typewriter’s zing. 

And I ask myself why did i buy the Lorac Multiplex 3-D Volumizing & Thickening Mascara? Could it be the plastic wand? Sounds promising yes. Could it be the Lorac branding? Hm, perhaps. Obviously it wasn’t the 22$ price tag. This leads me to believe it must have been the packaging. Have you seen the packaging?! Anyone who is a sucker for design or perhaps just sparkly goodness is going to buy this product. No doubt it my mind. It’s very hard to resist. Look at these pics and marvel:

photo via scrangie.com

photo courtesy of Clumps of Mascara

The downfall: does not even come close to DiorShow or any of the Lancome’s mascaras which are in the same price range. What this masacra most resembles is the drugstore L’oreal and Maybelline brands. I kid you not. If you want performance don’t get tricked by the glitz and glamour this tube appears to provide.

glowing lipstain

It’s time to talk about the mother of all lipstains. I have been avoiding the subject but my little bottle is all done and I can’t hold out any longer—-you know what I’m alluding to? Perhaps the best known, hardest working lipstain out there.. still don’t know??? Oh the suspense is painful, I know!

Benetint from Benefit Cosmetics. Theres so many pros and cons to this little lip stain and yes I’m willing lay it all out for you incase you were wondering if the hefty $29 dollar price is worth it.

Pink fingers. There, I said it. The most annoying thing about this is that whether you use this product for your cheeks or your lips, you are going to have to spread the product around and you will most likely utilize your fingertips and yes they will stain. I mean its not a huge big deal but don’t touch anything else otherwise you will leave a trail. 

If you use this for cheeks its kind of marvelous. It leaves a “i just had a romp in the bedroom” flush, i swear to god. But if you have big pores or noticeable pores, it will make them even more noticeable, stick with powder blush. Also staying power is long, long enough to forget about it and still look good which is important. 

If you are going to use this product always moisturize first and I mean your face and lips, otherwise you are going to end up looking patchy and funny. 

Also can’t forget the light smell of roses when using this product- subtle but just right. 

Applicator is a bit cumbersome when using it on the lips. There is no get it on and go, you kind of need to paint it on, smooth it out with finger and then let it dry or it will run down lips or something awful. Maybe I like the stronger color so i put on a few coats.

My solution will be buying Cha Cha Tint next! It’s the orange colored looking lipstain that feels like it has a built in moisturizer and goes on the lips much smoother. Color looks amazing. This review is great too!

Overall the best thing about this product is that it leaves you looking like a glowing fresh faced lady, the I’m not trying to look awesome, I just do - look.

Eyeliners

I forgot to tell you how freaking awesome this Palladio eyeliner is, the purple color is just outrageous! You know how when you wake up you wanna look cute for work but you don’t want make it seem like your making tons of effort? Meaning black liquid eyeliner is kind of too much for a mid week morning look but you need something to help you push the blah blah away? This purple colored eyeliner is the answer, its sublte and sweet and it’s purple!! An ode to Prince perhaps? Maybe not really but you’ll look super great and when someone gets up close to notice the color and compliments you on being so awesome then you can think of how awesome I am for sharing this with you.

Moisturizers

I was just chatting with my good friend about how ladies out there are either aging gracefully or becoming monsters. So in that vein or vain let’s talk moisturizers! i found one that i think is worth trying out, the quality feels nice, not like a liquid quilt on your pores, i hate that. It’s inexpensive and totes great benefits:

Alpha Hydrox Enhanced Cream 10% Glycolic AHA - this stuff is awesome! 

Reccently I’ve been using Burt’s Bees Natural Acne Solutions Daily Moisturizing Lotion:                                       

but you definitely feel the cream on your face. At first i think my pores were revolting and making an oil spill but after continuous usage it did actually lessen the breakouts and minimize the shine. Sort of surprising, i thought i would hate it but not sure if i would buy again. I think i’m going back to the AHA.

Gosh I hope this isn’t boring because now I’m moving on to eye cream. Seriously though why do only women get targeted for this stuff? Men age too and they don’t use any creams and why do they become more handsome and rugged as they get older? I’m dumbfounded. Here is the newest eye concotion I’m using from Kiehls:

I will let you know in a month or so if I like it. The consistency of the cream is fabulous but the magic ingredient? C’mon now. Its hard to take any of these claims seriously. I guess you either want to splurge on this or you don’t but its hard to find any eye creams priced under 30.00. Oh wait here’s one I used last month that was pretty awesome:

What the F is up with this product line? It just seems like too good to be true, the ingredients, the prices, the textures, the smells? Is it local? (uh no it’s not.. getting ahead of myself here) Well I can buy it at Whole Foods and at my go to beauty supply GBS, which is super cool and the prices are insanely affordable, what hizzell?! Ok i know what you are thinking, the labels and the boxes leave something to be desired here, (get yourself some real graphic designers Reviva!) but I don’t know seems like a diamond in the rough. Oh and yes this cream was the bomb dot com, left me super hydrated, smelled good and felt good. Done. 

Shout out to myself

Yeah you read that right. my own very shout out to myself dj’ing on the radio via this tumblr of mine. if there wasn’t so much talking you might be able to use this to work out to.

dj oly 

if you like to dance, once heard of the now archaic beepers, enjoy peanut butter + jelly and grandma’s you might enjoy this rave mix.

Eye moisturizer

You readers are going to think I’m super ADD. I know I am, it’s horrible. Maybe it will make sense all these postings. One day. 

I want to review Ahava Gentle Eye Cream. I had high hopes for this small jar. Why you might ask? Well their hand cream is insanely hydrating. I can’t say I love the smells but its good stuff. So why would the eye cream not be super amazing. I mean these products rave about their Dead Sea quality ingredients? 

Well for one the cream kind of tingled, sort of stung. I was surprised, my skin is not super sensitive. Also it was not like intensely hydrating, it was ok. Overall it was ok but it was pricey ($30-$40), not going there again. 

Plus the new packaging gets a thumb down. Super meh.