Clinique Fresh Bloom 13 Plum Poppy Blend - Swatch and Review

Aww man...I can't believe weekend is over already...but as promised, I'm doing my best to keep up with the reviews.

Packaging

• Not too small or too bulky plastic case. White at the bottom and reflective metallic silver on top. It's a finger print magnets. 
• There's a good size mirror on the inside
• The blush powder is embossed with a pretty flower design. 
• .31 oz or 9 g

Product

• Plum Poppy Blend is a lovely medium rose mauve with a subtle pink and gold sheen. It's very finely milled and the texture of the blush is very velvety soft.
• It is a bit powdery but has good pigmentation, blends easily, and show up well on the skin. 
• It wears well for up to 6 hours before fading. 

Final Thought

There's nothing that I don't like about the blush. It is a little powdery but has a nice texture, color, and last well. Love it.

Rating: 9.5/10

Price: $29.50
Availability: Clinique, Macy's

IT Cosmetics Naturally Pretty Eyeshadow Palette - Swatch, Review, Makeup Looks

Happy Saturday!

I was attracted to this palette because of the lovely neutral colors and the fact that they are matte. I also read some positive reviews and some negatives but overall most people liked it so I thought ok, it's probably not that bad.

Packaging

• The packaging is made of a velvety light pink fabric cover with magnetic closure and paper and cardboard. It also includes a good size mirror. 
• The palette size is close and similar to the Naked Palette.  
• Net weight .8 g or .028 oz x 14 
• 1.82 g or .064 oz for the Transforming Pearl

Product

• This palette contains 14 neutral shades that have a soft, smooth, and buttery texture with colors ranging from warm to cool and light to dark to create a variety of looks. 
• The shadows aren't completely matte. They have a subtle sheen yet they appear matte on the eyes. 
• The lighter colors have a sheerer pigmentation. The darker shades have better pigmentation but overall the pigmentation is not as wonderful as I expected, they just look a bit muddy. That was rather sad because they feel so nice when swatch them with the finger. 
• They really need to be paired with a good primer in order to look their best. 

Sheer Joy, Soft Light, Warmth, Soulful

• Sheer Joy - definitely sheer off white with subtle pink undertone
• Soft Light - very light taupe brown
• Warmth - light beige nude with a slight pink undertone
• Soulful - medium warm pinkish brown

Mocha, Violet, Midnight, Noir

• Mocha - medium brown with grey undertone
• Violet - medium violet purple with grey undertone
• Midnight - dark grey with bluish undertone
• Noir - medium black

Love, Sunrise, Sunset, All Heart

• Love - light peachy pink 
• Sunrise - medium warm orange with a slight brown undertone
• Sunset - medium warm brown with pink undertone
• All Heart - medium mauve

Java, Iconic, Transforming Pearl

• Java - dark brown with a purple undertone 
• Iconic - medium grey with slight brown undertone
• Tranforming Pearl - shimmery white. The shimmers are fine and subtle. It looks good on its own but I found that mixing Transforming Pearl with the other shades make them look very sheer and more washed out. I did not like that. 

Eyeshadows mixed with the Transforming Pearl

Final Thought

I'm not a fan of the packaging as it can get dirty easily. This palette has such a beautiful range of neutral color and had so much potential but the pigmentation and formula felt short. I can still find use for them. They are soft and blendable and would make good transition colors and would be perfect for the crease. The Transforming Pearl is kind of a joke although the concept was good, it didn't perform well when mixed with the other shade.  If you like subtle colors, I suppose you may enjoy this palette but for the price, it just doesn't compare to other neutral palettes in the market.

Rating: 7/10

Price: $42.00
Availability: Ulta


In spite of the raves and good reviews, this palette just doesn't impress me. It's just ok but if I'm paying $42, I want it to be excellent, you know what I mean? What do you think?

Sunset on lid and lower lash line, Java on outer V and crease

All Heart on lid, Mocha on crease, Midnight on outer V

Mocha on lid, Sunrise on crease, Midnight on outer V

Sunset on lid, Noir on outer V, crease, and inner corner

Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Grape Shifter

I've been contemplating this nail glitter many time at the store whenever I walk by it and every time I was tempted to pick it up until one day I told myself, just get it already! So glad that I did. Now, I don't have to keep staring at it in store anymore, lol. You know and I know that if you keep coming back to stare at a product over and over again that you just NEED to buy it. 

Grape Shifter has a mix of small blue glitters, medium pink glitters, and larger silver holo glitters in a clear base. The formula appear thick at first glance but it wasn't goopy and glides very easily on the nails. The glitters also spread out evenly and effortlessly. 

I dislike the packaging, the wide wand and narrow opening makes it a pain to move the brush in and out of the bottle but this mix of glitter is sure gorgeous and worth the trouble. 

On the swatches below, I have one coat of Grape Shifter over Orly Mysterious Curse. So sparkly and pretty. I love it!

Tried it? What base color would you pair Grape Shifter with?

Revlon Colorstay Skinny Liquid Liner Green Spark - Swatch and Review

Few days ago, I spotted this new Revlon liner at Walgreens and made a spontaneous purchase with it. Other than the fact that I am an eyeliner junkie and collector, I was drawn to the color and the fact that they advertise the applicator to be skinny or thin. That just made me want to try it out. These new liners come in 4 shades: Green Spark, Black Out, Electric Blue, and Mahogany Flame.

Packaging

• I do like that it comes sealed. That way I know that no one tampered with the product. 
• It has a long plastic handle with a color corresponding the shade inside. The handle is long but the wand is short. Nonetheless, I find it easy to handle. 
• It comes with a flexible skinny foam tip applicator. I would have liked it better if the applicator was just a little stiffer but otherwise, I didn't really have too much trouble working with it. The skinny applicator allows you to create really fine lines. It is .1mm if that matters. I don't think I have another liner that can make lines this thin. So if thin lines is what you want, you should check this liner out. 

Product

• Green Spark is a medium dark green with blue undertone and a subtle shimmer. I love the color and the pigmentation is decent. Definitely needs to be shaken before use. I do find myself going over it 2 or 3 times in order to get the result that I want and it could be in part because the line is so skinny, perhaps a little too skinny for my liking. 
• Although this liner doesn't claim to be waterproof or long-wearing. I didn't have any issues with smudging or fading. It stayed put all day long. 

Final Thought

They're not kidding about the skinny line. This liner does make really skinny lines. If you do like them a little thicker or more defined, you'd have to go over it 2 or 3 times. Pigmentation is fairly good. Applicator is flexible. The wear is also good as long as long as you don't rub your eyes, cry, or get the liner wet, it will remain intact through most of the day.

Rating: 9/10

Price: $7.99
Availability: Walgreens, Target

ELF Studio Maximum Coverage Concealer Sand - Swatch and Review

That's pretty bold of ELF to slap maximum coverage on the packaging, heck a claim like that sure makes me wanna find out if it's true because I would love it to be.

Packaging

• Flat plastic squeeze tube. I think this is a pretty generous amount for a concealer. 
• .7 oz or 20 ml

Product

• I got the shade Sand, which is a light neutral color and the perfect match for my skin tone, which is about NC25 in MAC shade if that helps. 
• Texture is creamy and easy to blend. Pigmentation is good but does not offer maximum coverage unfortunately. I say it gives light to medium coverage and honestly this feels more like a foundation than a concealer. I read some people use it as a foundation so I tried that myself and I too like it much better that way. 
• it doesn't wear very well as a concealer and offer little coverage to my acne scar. As a foundation, it evens out my skin tone and stay put through most of the day. 

Final Thought

Maximum coverage is misleading. It's medium coverage at its best. Honestly, I think they should've just called this a foundation because I think it suits it better that way. If you're looking for a heavy duty coverage concealer here, you will be disappointed. If you're ok with medium coverage, I think you'll like it.

Rating: 8/10

Price: $3.00
Availability: ELF

Have a nice weekend! :)

Benefit Cheek Me Out Set High Beam and Posie Tint - Swatch and Review

One thing I love about Benefit products is that they offer many trial size versions and sets so you get to try more product for the money.

Packaging

• Small and cute but contains enough products for several uses. Both has a brush applicator similar to nail polish brush applicators.
• .13 oz each or 4 ml each

Product

• High Beam is a pearlescent white shimmer highlighter. The shimmers are very fine and subtle and adds just the perfect amount of glow without looking harsh or overdone. With the brush applicator, apply just a few dots on the area you want to highlight and quickly blend with your finger or a brush before the product sets. A little goes a long way.
• Posie Tint is a medium cool toned pink liquid/gel blush tint. This one is a trick pony and I don't recommend that you apply directly to your skin because it will stain almost immediately and may look patchy on your cheeks. What I do is I use a small stippling brush and dab a bit of Posie Tint around the stippling brush and then quickly blend it on my cheek area. This is help create a more even application.
• I really like how natural both of these product look on me. They last up to 6 hours before I notice some fading.

Final Thought

I love Posie Tint. As long as you work with a brush and blend it quickly, you'll get a lovely and natural flush that will last fairly long. High Beam is also a nice highlighter although personally I don't feel that there is anything special about it. This is a nice set though. The price is just right and you will get several uses in spite of the little packaging. If you're a makeup hoarder like myself, you will find these trial size pretty convenient and satisfying without having to invest on a full size product and they make excellent travel buddies.

Rating: 9/10

Price: $13
Availability: Ulta

Wearing Posie Tint on cheek and High Beam above it

Tried it? Tell me what you think or which is your favorite Benefit product.

ELF Lipstick Swatch and Review - Charming and Voodoo

Been testing out a few of the recent ELF products I purchased lately and I'm ready to tell you what I think of these lipsticks.

Packaging

• Silver plastic casing with a clear view of the lipstick in the middle. The both of the tubes I got were defective. It was tough twisting the product out of the tube. Also I noticed that the lipstick inside tends to lean on one side rather than staying in the middle. 
• .012 oz or 3.5 g

Product

• Charming is a light slightly warm tone pink. The texture of this lipstick was somewhat creamy. I didn't find it moisturizing or drying but it was fairly comfortable and lightweight. The pigmentation was medium. Not fully opaque or sheer but has enough pigment to give lips some color. 
• Voodoo is a medium warm red. I found it a little less creamy than Charming. You definitely need to layer the lipstick in order to build up the color payoff. Formula was neither moisturizing or drying but comfortable and lightweight.
• The color last about 3-4 hours. 
• The lipstick has a fruity synthetic scent. 

Final Thought

Overall, the formula is pretty decent for the price. It is light-weight, somewhat creamy, and has medium to almost opaque coverage depending on the shade and how many layers of colors you put on. It has an average lasting power and an ok scent. The only thing that I would really like to see improve is better packaging. I read many others also have trouble with the packaging as well.

Rating: 8/10

Price: $1.00
Availability: ELF Cosmetics