Zoya Blues - Breezi, Jo, and Mosheen

Few weeks ago, Zoya had a promo going where you could get 3 nail polishes for $12, including shipping.
It prompted me to place an order...I wasn't sure what I needed, lol, but after googling for swatches, I figured I liked these shades of blues...

Breezi is a medium slightly dusty blue creme. What I find interesting about this color is that it can look slightly teal depending on the lighting. So simple yet gorgeous and has a nice shine to it. The formula was not too thick or thin. Applied a bit patchy on the first coat but only needed a second coat for an even and opaque color pay off.

Jo is a medium periwrinkle blue with a subtle purple undertone and subtle light blue shimmers, giving it a pearlescent/satin finish. It's probably one of the most unique shade I have and my favorite out of the 3. If you love blues, I'd recommend you get this one. The formula is lovely and easy to work with. It yield full coverage in 2 coats.

Mosheen has a lightly bluish tinted base with lots of small holographic blue and teal bar glitters and small silver glitters. I have one coat of Mosheen on the swatches below over Breezi. It packs a decent amount of glitters and spread evenly. The base has just the right consistency. It looks prettier in the bottle I think.

So did you pick up any Zoya polishes with this past promo?

Milani Mauve Medley

I picked up this shade about a month ago. It was on clearance at CVS for 50% off. 

Mauve Medley looks slightly dusty in the bottle but when swatched I get a medium dark reddish brown with a creme finish. Definitely looks darker on the nails. The formula isn't too thin or thick. It's pigmented and has a nice flow to it but it looks uneven and patchy on the first coat. The second coat yield a much more even application and full coverage. To be honest, I'm not too crazy about this color. It looks nicer in the bottle than it does on the nails, I think. I'm tempted to top it with some glitter or some kind of design to make it look more interesting. 

Mephisto Makeup Look

Fyrinnae Mephisto is quite an interesting and unique eyeshadow. It's a deep blurple with garnet shimmers. I wouldn't call this a true color shifting duochrome because in actuality, it does not change color with the angle of the lighting but you can definitely see that it is a dual colored eyeshadow. Once applied, the two colors appear to form some sort of pattern. Weird or cool? IDK, but I like this look. 

Product Used

Face

• Sally Hansen Natural Beauty Luminous Matte Pressed Powder Deep
• MAC Minerealized Skinfinish Center of the Universe

Eyes

• I applied LORAC Behind The Scenes Eye Primer on my lids.
• With Milani Eyeshadow Paint palette, I used the pink color and blend it on my crease.
• I then applied a little dab of Fyrinnae Pixie Epoxy on the lids and with a flat shading brush pat Fyrinnae Mephisto all over the lid.
• On the lower lash line, I applied Sephora Flashy Liner waterproof Flashy Mauve and with a smudge brush applied Fyrinnae Wicked over it. 
• On the upper lash line, I used Rimmel Glam'Eyes Liquid Eyeliner Black Glamour
• I filled my brows with Illamasqua Cream Eyeshadow Intrude
• and finished off the look with Ardell Sexies black false lashes

Lips

• H&M lipstick Being Perfect

Bare Minerals Prime Time Shadows - Swatches and Review

A while a go, I purchased these primer shadows at my local Bare Minerals outlet store. They had a pretty good sale on them so I snatched 2 sets for around $15 each.

The first set I have here is called The Gold & The Beautiful. It contains 5 shadow primer. They are 1.5 ml/.05 oz each. They come in these little squeezable tube that reminds me of paint tubes.

Swatches from left to right:

• Sundance - shimmery light peach
• Silver Spoon - shimmery light silver with a bit of silver sparkles.
• Bronzed Twig - medium cool toned shimmery brown 
• Gold Nugget - medium shimmery gold
• Sandalwood - medium shimmery bronze

The second set is called It's Show Prime and contains 3 shadow primers of 3 ml/.1 oz each.

Swatches from left to right:

• Golden Peach - this one looks more like a pale shimmery gold. 
• Lavender Ice - pale shimmery lavender with a bit of silver sparkles
• Toasted Almond - medium light shimmery taupe. 

Final Thought

I believe these were limited edition sets and you may still be able to find them in store or on Amazon/Ebay. All the colors were beautiful and much prettier in person. They're not too bold so you can wear these every day if you want to. I typically wear them as a quick wash all over my lid.
Pigmentation is excellent. As far as texture, they do feel a little drier although I didn't have any issues with application. You need a good squeeze to get them out of the tube because they are thick. They spread out nicely and evenly but you have to work quickly because they set quickly.
Once they're on, they wear like iron. They won't budge, smudge, or crease until you take them off.
Overall, very nice primer shadows. I just wished they were a little creamier.

Rating: 9/10

Anastasia Dipbrow Pomade Dark Brown - Swatch and Review

Heard of great reviews about this new brow product from Anastasia and I was intrigued. I like the fact that it is a cream formula and supposed to be waterproof and budge-proof. There is now 8 shades available. At the time that I purchased it, I think there was only 4 or 5.

Packaging

• Small glass jar container with beautiful logo design on the cap. 
• .14 oz or 4 g

Product

• I got the shade dark brown and that's exactly what it is. I also liked that it was a cool toned brown. It looks very natural like my brows but better lol.
• It has a nice creamy consistency, not too thick or too thin. It is also very pigmented.
• I found it a bit tricky to use because it's so pigmented and dark and sets quickly. I use a dense small angled liner for application and lightly pick up some product from the pot and apply quickly and blend quickly with my natural brows. You can also use a spoolie to soften the color and give it a more natural appearance.
• It only takes a few seconds to set and once it does, it doesn't budge or smudge. 
• It's definitely waterproof. I swatched some on my hand and even through several hand washes, it doesn't budge. You will need a waterproof makeup remover to get this off. 
• I'm able to wear this all day with no issue but I tend to get a bit oily on my forehead and even more so in hot and humid weather so I have to be careful not to rub my hand around my brows because in that case it would smudge.  

Final Thought

The pigmentation and wear is excellent. It may wear off quicker if you have oily skin. Application definitely takes some practice to get it right because the product sets so quickly. The dark brown works ok for me but I have to be careful and blend it well with my brows. I think the medium brown probably would've worked out better because I don't want my brows to look too dark.


Rating: 9/10

Price: $18.00
Availability: Sephora, Ulta

Bare brows

Brows filled with Anastasia Dip brow Pomade dark brown

ELF Essential Smudge Pots Swatch, Review, Makeup Look - Crusin Chic, Aint That Sweet, Ocean Bound

What a day! Got a little shaken up this morning on our way to work with a minor car accident. A car pulled up from the Walgreen's driveway and ran into my car when he tried to make a left turn. I thought he totally effed up my car but miraculously only my tire and hubcap was scratched. He's got a dent on his bumper and broke his headlight. Could have been worst but thank God it wasn't. Still, it killed my mood for the day and I got to work late.

Other than this unfortunate event, I have a review to share about these beautiful cream eyeshdows...


Packaging

• Clear plastic jar with screw top.
• .19 oz or 5.5 g

Product

• Crusin Chic is a shimmery cool toned medium brown with a subtle gold sheen. It's a gorgeous neutral color. Definitely my favorite between the three. It applies easily and evenly and has good pigmentation.
• Ain't That Sweet is a shimmery pearlescent white with some pink shimmers in it. Very seashell like. This shade could have been a lot prettier but the pigmentation was lacking and applied slightly blotchy. 
• Ocean Bound is a medium shimmery blue with a grey undertone. I felt this color was a little drier than the other two and also applied a little unevenly. 
• The texture of these smudge pots is actually thin and buttery. I was a little surprised at how much slip I was getting at first but within a minute or so of applying them, they start to set, which give you plenty of time to blend and even out the application. You can apply 2 or 3 layers to even out application and build up the color without the shadow looking cakey and flaky. 
• Once they set, they last up to 6 hours before showing signs of fading and that's without a primer. I experienced a bit of creasing with Ain't That Sweet but the other two colors wore just fine. 
• They are easier to apply and blend with your fingers. Brushes just aren't effective with these. 

Final Thought

Formula, consistency, and pigmentation vary a bit between the shades but overall, I was surprised they lasted up to 6 hours without creasing and smudging. I would have liked the jar to be a little more wide so that I can dip my finger in it if I wanted to but since the opening is a little narrow, I avoid doing so that I don't end up with product under my nails. I normally use a spatula and scoop a little bit at a time.


Rating: 8/10

Price: $3.00
Availability: ELF 

Crusin Chic

Ain't That Sweet

Ocean Bound

Cruisin Chic, Ain't That Sweet, Ocean Bound

theBalm Schwing Black Liquid Eyeliner - Swatch and Review

Yesterday was a busy day spent with family, cooking pho, and some shopping. I am so tired today. Was up most of the night watching Scandal on Netflix and I feel like I want to sleep some more in spite of sleeping in already. I normally don't watch TV shows and don't care much for it but I find Scandal interesting and addicting to watch because it's a mix bowl of politics, scandals, conspiracies, spies, murders, deceptions, love triangles...It's crazy. I like that.

Anyhoo...My blog has been little slow because I've been slacking off a bit. Been feeling more tired than usual lately and a little depressed. Secondly, I'm not hauling as much as I used to and I'm glad in a way because I'm tired of spending money on things I don't need or can't finish. I know I'll still buy things here and there but only if it is something that really excites me and I find that the more I have the harder it is for me to get excited now, especially if I see products that look too similar to others that were previously released.

I purchased this liner from Hautelook a little while back when they had it on sale. I tried it numerous times already so I'm ready to give you my thoughts on it.


Packaging

• Sleek with a long handle and foam tip applicator. I would prefer the applicator to be just a little more flexible. It doesn't glide as smoothly as I'd like, which also creates jagged lines and makes it difficult to create that perfect winged cat eye.
• .05 oz or 1.7 ml

Product

• This liner is very black and pigmented and quickly dries to a matte finish. You can draw fairly thin lines if you're careful and apply very light pressure. 
• I used liquid liners a lot and I would consider myself an experienced liquid liner user. With that said, even I have a bit of problem getting a straight and crisp line with this foam tip. I find this is where brush tip applicators excel cause they glide more smoothly on the skin. Basically, what I'm trying to say is that it is doable but not fool-proof. If you're new or have difficulty using liquid liners, this one wouldn't be the best choice for practice. 
• The liner isn't smudge-proof or water-proof. I've worn it on humid and hot days and it will quickly smear and run when you get oily and perspire. Other than that, it performs just fine under cool temperatures. 

Final Thought

It's a very pigmented black liner but I would not recommend for those who aren't experienced with using liquid liners. I would also avoid using it during warm and humid weather or if you have watery eyes because it will smear and run like water. Not a pretty sight if you're going to be around people because you're guaranteed to get raccoon eyes. They should definitely tweak the formula and make it water-resistant at least, especially for the price.

Rating: 8/10

Price: $17.00
Availability: theBalm

Hope you had an enjoyable weekend!

L'Oreal Visible Lift Blur Blush Soft Peach

I was at Ulta last weekend and picked up a couple products. Of these items, I got the new L'Oreal Visible Lift Blur Blush. They come in 3 colors.

Packaging

• Squeezable plastic tube with sealed opening. 
• .6 oz or 20 ml. I think this a generous size product. 

Product

• Soft Peach is a lovely peachy pink with a satin finish. The texture is light and creamy. Feels silky and slightly silicone-ish. Easy to blend.
• The color payoff is light to medium light and would work well for lighter complexion. 
• I get up to 4 hours of wear before I notice fading.

Final Thought

I heard that the other colors had an odd texture to them so I opted for Soft Peach, which indeed had a more even texture. For my light skin, the color payoff works out. The only drawback is that the product doesn't last very long and will need touch up. 

Rating: 8/10

Price: $12.99
Availability: Ulta

Too Faced Chocolate Bar Makeup Look

I decided to pull out my Chocolate Bar palette and create this look since I haven't done a full face makeup look in a while. Plus with all the new eyeshadows I've been getting lately, I haven't got a chance to with it or get a feel for it. So far, I like it!

Product Used

Face

• Milani Baked Blush Fantastico Mauve
• Sally Hansen Natural Beauty Matte Pressed Powder Deep

Eyes

• Lorac Behind The Scenes eye primer
• With Too Faced Chocolate Bar, I used Champagne Truffle on inner corners, Marzipan on center of lids, Black Forest Truffle on outer V, Cherry Cordial on crease, White Chocolate on brow bone, and Candied Violet on lower lash line. 
• Rimmel Glam'Eyes Glamour Liquid Liner on upper lash line
• Illamasqua Cream Eyeshadow Intrude on brows with Anastasia Tinted Brow Gel Espresso
• Ardell Curvy false lashes 414 black

Lips

• Revlon Matte Balm Shameless with Revlon Superlustrous lipstick Va Va Violet

What's your go to neutral palette?