Tag Archives: Review

Battle of the Makeup Setting Sprays! Urban Decay vs. e.l.f. vs Avon

Posted in Acne, Avon, Combination Skin, Dry Skin, Favorites, Foundation, Make Up, Makeup, Normal Skin, Oily Skin, Review by

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If you have been a reader of this blog for any length of time you know that I have oily acne prone skin.  So I’m always looking for a way to prolong my makeup wear and keep it from melting off my face and becoming an oily, gross mess.      With some foundations I can tell a difference when I use a setting spray and with others it makes no difference at all, my foundation will crease and/or just disappear.   No setting spray has been able to stop my oil production so I do still have to use a blotting sheet and/or powder touch up, but I can go longer and/or not use as much powder if I don’t use a spray.

 

Urban Decay::

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Several years ago while perusing the aisle of Sephora (dangerous territory…) I came across the Urban Decay Setting Sprays.  UD has three types of sprays, De-Slick (oily skin), All Nighter (described as a long lasting spray… so normal skin?) and Chill (cooling and hydrating). I have bought and used De-Slick and All Nighter, I think that they both performed the same way on my skin.  De-slick may have been a tad more mattifying but not that much to make a difference in my mind.  Over all I think this product has helped in my fight against oily skin and I think that it does its job as it claims. A full size bottle is 4oz and the price is $30.00 which breaks down to $7.50 per ounce.  So this isn’t exactly budget friendly but I don’t use it every day.  I’d say out of the days I wear makeup (which is usually 5-7) I will use a setting spray 2 times a week.

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e.l.f.

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e.l.f. has a Studio Makeup Mist which it advertises as “hairspray for your face”.  Which in the world of setting sprays sounds about right!  Out of the three, this is the least effective for me.  e.l.f. has a lot a great products that I love and swear by and others aren’t so great.  On the website this product has a 4.1 rating out of 5 so somewhere there are people that love this, I am not one of them.  When first applied it does what the UD and Avon sprays do. But I find that out of the three this one is the least long lasting and I have to do more touchups.  Also the spray nozzle is strange and sometimes it gets stuck or it sprays out in more of stream then a spray.  For someone which combo or dry skin, this could be an option for you.  However my skin is very very oily and this was a no go.  But for $3.00 for 2.2 oz I would say give is a try, you never know it could work for you!

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Avon

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Avon Makeup Setting Spray is A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!  It does the same thing for my makeup as the UD spray at a fraction of the cost!  I almost didn’t buy this when I say it in a catalog as I just assumed that it wouldn’t work as well as the UD.  I talked myself into buying it for review purposes and I’m so glad I did.  I will not be buying another UD setting spray again as long as Avon makes this.  I really can’t believe that it does everything the UD spay does but is soo much cheaper!  The size is the same 4oz but the price… are you ready for it…$10.00!! that is $2.50 an ounce compared to $7.50.  At this price you could get three times the product for what you pay for one bottle of UD Setting Spray.  And Avon is always having sales, so I make sure to stock up and got it for even cheaper.

Products Mentioned:: 

 

Urban Decay Setting Spray: $30.00

e.l.f. Studio Makeup Mist: $3.00

Avon Makeup Setting Spray: $10.00

Mask Monday:: Mario Badescu Whitening Mask

Posted in Acne, Combination Skin, Dry Skin, Hits, Hits and Misses, Masks, Normal Skin, Oily Skin, Review by

Mario Badescu Says:: This hydrating mask will help brighten uneven skin tones and gently minimize the look of old acne scars and discolorations from the sun. Skin lightening, natural ingredients like Kojic Acid, Licorice and Mulberry make this mask gentle for all skin types. Contains no Alpha Hydroxy Acids making it safe and gentle for acne erupted or very sensitive skin.

 

Lara Says:: While you will look like the 5th member of Kiss this mask is great.  I use a mask 2-3 times a week and this one is used at least once of those 2-3 times.  I think several things I’ve been doing differently has improved my skin but I really think this mask has made a vast improvement on my acne scars.  Right after I wash it off I can tell my skin is noticeably brighter and it just feels nourished.  It is not tight and dry but balanced.

Products Mentioned::

Mario Badescu Whitening Mask $24.00 

theBalm Stainiac

Posted in Birchbox, Blush, Hits and Misses, Lipstick, Make Up, Makeup, MIsses, Review, the Balm by

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Stainic is a lip and cheek stain by theBalm.  I received a deluxe sample size in my birchbox a few months ago.  I have used this as both a stain for my cheeks and my lips.

If you are using this as a lip stain I would suggest is to make sure your lips a moisturized and are free of any dead skin.  The first time I used this product I had slightly dry lips and this did not look so hot clinging to the dry patches on my lips.  This is a light rose color which can be built up to a semi medium color.   My lips are natural pretty pigmented so I had to add 5 coats before I achieved my desired color. As a cheek stain I swiped to strips on my cheeks and blended with my fingers.  I did this twice to achieve the color you see below.

Overall I like this product and I would put it on my wishlist.  If someone wants to buy it for me, I will be happy, however it is not the type of product that I plan on purchasing myself.  It rates OK in my book, not bad or horrible but not overwhelmingly amazing either. In the picture below I am wearing it on my lips and my cheeks.

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the Balm Stainiac Tinted Gel Blush retails for $17.00

Follow this link to sign up to receive your very own Birchbox for only $10 a month!!http://birch.ly/11hDxM6

Smashbox Full Exposure Mascara

Posted in Hits, Hits and Misses, Make Up, Makeup, Mascara, MIsses, Review by

Hey Everyone!

Today I bring you a review of Smashbox Full Exposure Mascara.  I received a sample somewhere, I don’t remember but I was cleaning out my makeup and found it and thought I would give it a try and let you know what I thought.

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First things first lets see what my eyelashes look like without anything on them…

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Yeah pretty hum drum… Now lets see the beginning of the lash transformation, It should be pretty obvious that my left eye is the one with mascara.

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and the finished look, Picture on the left is my lashes with no mascara and the one on the right is two coats of the Smashbox Full Exposure Mascara.

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So what is the verdict?  The Verdict is Blah, yes I said Blah.  This is an OK mascara, I didn’t feel that it delivered any results that I haven’t had  with a drugstore mascara and in fact there are several drugstore mascaras I like better then this one.  Also a lot of product gloops up on the end of the brush.  It is definitely not worth the $19.50 that this retails for. 

 

Covergirl Smoochies in #tweet me

Posted in Favorites, Hits, Hits and Misses, Lipstick, Make Up, Makeup, MIsses, Review, Style, Walmart by

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Eleventh Gorgeous turned me on to the Covergirl Smoochies and I have to say so far I am liking the one I have picked up.  After surveying the aisle at Walmart for a good ten minutes, I decided on #Tweet Me which is a red tone.  I have never in my life wore a red lip because I think I look ridiculous ( like a kid who raided her moms make up drawer ridiculous).  I decided that this sheer balm would be my foray into “trying” a red lip.  This really looks a little more coral on me then red but anywho, I like it!  The formula is a bit waxy for my taste but it isn’t horrible.

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Avon Mega Effects Mascara

Posted in Avon, Hits, Hits and Misses, Make Up, Makeup, Mascara, MIsses, Review, Uncategorized by

I have mentioned on this blog before that I hoard mascara like a crazy cat lady on the TV show Hoarders. I am still searching for the holy grail of mascaras and if there is a new one out you can bet I will buy and try. So I was very interested when AVON announced they had a new mascara they claimed was a breakthrough, provides 24-hour volume, and leaves your lashes darker, denser and more dramatic. If it sounds to good to be true it probably is… But I fell for it and snapped one up.

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And the mascara wand looks like a paint brush…I can see myself literally losing an eye and all in the name of lush, voluminous lashes! Also When your mascara comes with instructions, you know it has issues. So onward to the application which hopefully doesn’t result in the loss of an eyeball. Below are pictures pre and post applicaion.

PicMonkey Collage3Ok so it isn’t terrible. Definitely not the best mascara I have ever used but it isn’t the worst. I am horrible about getting mascara all over my eyelid when I apply it and I was worried that the mascara wand/paintbrush would have me looking like I was punched in the face. But…It was a pretty easy application and I only got a little bit of mascara on my eyelid. I will say that my lashes are thicker and I do think the mascara gave my straight lashes a bit of curl and lift. One complaint is that the wand is hard to maneuver in the corners of your eyelashes. Also I have been known to poke myself in the eye with a mascara wand and I would imagine that this paintbrush looking wand would be particularly painful. I would give this mascara a 3.5 out of 5. Again not the worst but not the best. You can purchase Avon Mega Effects Mascara for $10.00

 

 

Follow-up Review of Revlon Grow Luscious Plumping Waterproof Mascara

Posted in Makeup, Mascara, Review, Uncategorized by

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I originally posted my initial review of this mascara on June 19th.  I have used it several times since them and I am not impressed.  It seems to me with high end mascaras, they work wonderfully for a short time but tend to dry out rather quickly.  Drug store mascaras seem to get better the older they get.  Don’t ask me why but I have mentioned this to several people and they all agreed. I have used this mascara for a little over a month now and I will be putting in my dud pile. This mascara does plump up your lashes a little; but it tends to get spidery very quickly and I didn’t find that it added any length. If you have long lashes naturally this may be an OK mascara for you.  I just found that it made my lashes fuller but didn’t add any length so I had short fat lashes. I have never used a mascara from Revlon before, so I am anxious to try others and see how they fair.

Have you tried any Mascaras from Revlon?  If so what was your experience? Which Revlon Mascara should I try next?