Collective Haul and Swatches (Pic Heavy)

WHHHHEWIE! I'm sowie for being away but while I was away from me blog I was also busy shopping. It's been crazy in my world and needed some serious retail therapy. So here's what I've collected from the past few days.

These new NYX Prismatic eyeshadows are now available at Ulta for $6 a pot. So far, my first impression is wow, these are so pigmented and swatch beautifully! They feel so creamy! Need...to...get...more! It's currently on BOGO sale at Ulta right now.

Hard Candy GlamoFlauge Lite Blendable Concealer Duo Medium Light - Swatch and Review

I am a fan of the Hard Candy Glamoflauge heavy duty concealer so when I spotted this new dual ended concealer, I was intrigued to find out if it is as good as the original.


Packaging

• Dual ended concealer stick with a clear snap-on cap on each side. You twist on each end to retract the product. I think there's quite a generous amount of product. 
• .184 oz or 5.2 g

Product

• I got the shade medium light and I think it works for my skin tone. One side is a cool toned medium light with a peach undertone and the other side is a warm toned medium light with a beige undertone. I thought it was genius incorporating the two. 
• When I swatched the concealers, they both feel creamy on my hand but when applied to my face to conceal dark spots or scars, I find them a bit dry. I wouldn't recommend these for under eye concealing as they tug and pull the skin in that area. 
• One thing that bothered me about the formula is that it doesn't set. So as I spot conceal and use a brush to blend it with my skin tone, the concealer would blend away, which defeats the purpose of concealing. 
• Also because the formula doesn't set, it fades completely within a couple hours of wear. 

Final Thought

I like the packaging but these concealers don't conceal the way a concealer should and blend away easily and doesn't last. The coverage is light to medium. I'm pretty disappointed in this product. Their Glamoflauge heavy duty concealer is way better.

Rating: 7/10

Price: $6.00
Availability: Wal-Mart

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! :)

NYX HD Photogenic Concealer (CW04 Beige) - Swatch and Review

I've been using this concealer a lot to cover up some scars and blemishes since I've been breaking out like crazy lately. I picked it up from Ulta a few weeks ago during a sale and here's what I think of it.


Packaging

• This concealer comes in a clear tube with a doe foot applicator
• .11 oz or 3 g

Product

• CW04 Beige is a medium light color with beige undertone. It's close to my skintone but just a little darker. 
• It's pretty pigmented and creamy, which allows for flawless blending. It offers medium to almost full coverage, sets within a minute, and offer lasting coverage that will get through most of the day with just minimal fading at the end of the day. 
• This concealer works great for covering blemishes, scars, and under eye dark circles. It's my do-it-all concealer and I love that I can use it for any cover up I need. 

Final Thought

This is a pretty good concealer and one of the best I've tried. It's so easy to work with and offers almost full coverage and last fairly well too. For the price, you really can't beat that. Do try it!

Rating: 9.5/10

Price: $5.00
Availability: Ulta, NYX

Hard Candy Glamoflauge Heavy Duty Concealer Review & Swatch

TGIF! Today seemed like the longest day of the week. Maybe because I had to deal with so many issues at work.

I've used this concealer for a while but previously I had the light shade, which ended up being way too light for me. The product was getting old so I repurchased the medium shade this time. It's not an exact color match but it's much closer to my skin tone than the light version. The light would work best if you have very fair skin. The medium shade works better for light medium skin color. I like the fact that it has neutral undertone, which works better for my complexion.

Packaging

• The concealer is packed inside a squeeze plastic tube. I find it convenient and practical.
• A matching concealer pencil is also included, which is nice cause I like it. I would have liked it even more if they made a full size version of it. 
• .71 oz or 20 g for the tube.
• .023 oz or .65g for the pencil.

Product

• This is labeled as a heavy duty concealer and it does not disappoint. This is my do-it-all concealer. It's creamy enough that I can apply it on my eye area to conceal dark circles. It's thick enough and pigmented enough to cover spots, blemishes, redness, and discoloration. 
• Because it's so concentrated, a little goes a long way. I squirt just a little drop out it. I use a brush to apply and blend the product where I needed it, and then I go over it with my foundation. 
• Lasting power is great also. It last all day on my face.

Final Thought

This is one of the best drugstore concealer I've tried and definitely a favorite. It covers everything and can make me look flawless if I wanted to. Great for special occasions and photoshoot where you want your skin to look your best. It comes in 5 shades but for some reason my local Wal-Mart only sells 3 shades, which can be difficult to find a shade to match.

Rating: 9.5/10

Price: $6.00
Availability: Wal-Mart

L'Oreal True Match Super-Blendable Crayon Concealer Light - Review and Swatches

I'll need to work on some more reviews this weekend. I'm running behind schedule again. It's been a hectic day at work...Well more like a pretty busy week for me. I didn't get home until 9 pm tonight and couldn't finish and run my reports so Boss Lady isn't going to happy when she finds out tomorrow morning but there was no way I was going to finish it tonight without camping at work. They don't want to pay me OT so that means I'll probably get to leave early tomorrow. Early dismissal might be the highlight of my week.

Anyhow, this is the review for the concealer I've been using pretty much every day since I got it.


Packaging

• Jumbo retractable pencil with a pointy tip. The tip is perfect for precision but eventually that's going to wear off and I haven't figured out how to keep it pointy. Otherwise, I really like this kind of packaging because it's convenient and easy to use.
• I like the ridges on the cap. You can feel it click when you put the cap back on and I think it's a pretty neat way to keep the cap secure. 
• .1 oz or 2.8 g

Product

• I got the shade light/neutral. There is two kind of light shade. One with cool neutral and one with warm undertone. I think it's nice that they did that because some concealers are too yellow for me and it looks weird. The light was a bit too light for me and that's another problem I run into sometimes because I can be between shades if they don't have that many color selection but if use it under foundation or with a powder over it, I can make it blend with my skintone. 
• The texture is very creamy and decently pigmented. I like that it sets fairly quickly after applied so make sure you blend it as soon as you apply it.
• Lately, I've been breaking out, one pimple after another which left some nasty scars behind. I'm usually not acne prone but who knows. Perhaps it's the new samples that I've been dabbing on my face but stress may also be the culprit. This concealer does a pretty good job at covering up those scars but I can't use it alone since it's too light. It also minimized redness when my pimple was still inflamed. 
• I tried using it for covering dark circles and it covered well but might not work for everyone, especially if you have dry skin or mature skin. I prefer liquid concealer for that area. 
• Another thing worth mentioning is that it also lasted well throughout the day. As long as I don't rub my fingers on the areas where I applied it, it won't budge or disappear.

Final Thought

It's got a convenient packaging. It's creamy and great for spot concealing. It might not cover major skin problems but for the occasional stubborn pimple and scars, I find that it helped for me. It covers well and last through the day. I really wished they had more colors though. They have light, medium, and deep with neutral and warm shades. Finding the right shade might be difficult if you're between colors.

Rating: 8/10

Price: $8.00-$9.00
Availability: Walgreens, CVS, Wal-Mart


Tried it? Tell me what you think of it or which is your favorite spot concealer?

Yucky scars!

I used a powder over the concealer in order to blend it with my skin tone.

NYX Wonder Pencil Light - Swatch and Review

The NYX Wonder Pencil is marketed as a multi-purpose pencil. You can use it to line your waterline, line your lips against bleeding or to add definition, and to conceal blemishes. I primarily purchased it for use on the waterline so I got the lightest shade. It is rather too light to be used as a concealer for my skintone.


Packaging

• Thin pencil that will need sharpening.
• .04 oz or 1g

Product

• When I swatched it on the skin, I noticed that the pigmentation was decent but the product doesn't seem to set so if you were to rub your finger on it, it will rub away. I doubt that it will work well as a concealer. I think the best uses would be the waterline and to add more definition to your lips. 
• On the waterline, the brightening effect is subtle but noticeable and looks very natural. 
• The pencil is not too creamy but creamy enough that you won't need to use so much pressure to deposit the color. It also has a waxy feel to it. 
• After a couple hours, I noticed a good amount of fading. Alas! It's hard to find a pencil that last on the waterline. 

Final Thought

Thought this pencil is multi-tasking, I would be cautious when used for the eyes and for blemishes. Must either sanitize between uses or better yet, use a different pencil. Longevity is a bit disappointing but texture and pigmentation is fairly good.

Rating: 8/10

Price: $4.50
Availability: Ulta, nyxcosmetics.com, and Cherry Culture.

NYX Incredible Waterproof Concealer Review

A name like that is bound to attract a lot of people, well at least people like myself. With the upcoming warmer weather, it totally makes sense to have a waterproof concealer in my arsenal for days I'll be out in the sun and sweating bullets. So on a whim, I picked up this new NYX concealer while I was able to get on sale at Ulta few weeks ago.

Packaging

• Twist up or retractable pencil concealer with a medium round tip. 
• The packaging looks a bit cheap but I guess it's not too bad
• .052 oz or 1.5 g

Product

• These come in a few shades and I picked up the shade light, which best matches the color of my skin.
• The first thing I noticed is that the concealer is quite creamy and blends easily. It doesn't go on matte and has a slight hint of shine to it. 
• The coverage is rather light so it doesn't do a good job at covering blemishes but works decently for my mild under-eye dark circles.
• One thing that annoyed me is that the concealer doesn't seem to "set". It just sits there on top of your skin and remains creamy. I highly recommend you use a powder foundation to set it. Even after a few minutes after application, if you touch the area you applied it, it will smear. 

Final Thought

The formula was rather disappointing. Totally not what I was expecting from a waterproof concealer. The coverage is light and the fact that it doesn't "set" and will smear at the slightest touch is an indication that it doesn't last very well on the skin. 

Rating: 5/10.

Do you know a good waterproof concealer? If yes, please tell me which one you recommend I try.

Coastal Scents Camo Quad Light & Color Corrector

I purchased these concealers from Coastal Scents about a month ago. At that time they were having a sale, I think 20% off. The regular price is $7.95 each, which isn't bad in my opinion. I was thorn between the light and the medium so I decided to go with the light. I must say that the pictures of the concealer quads on CS's website is not true to color. They appear lighter on the website. My pictures are pretty close to the real colors.

On the Light Camo Quad, you have 4 different flesh-toned colors to choose from to match the area you want to conceal. The white is suggested for highlighting and brightening your eyes. I particularly like to use the darker shade, which kinda looks like a salmon color to cover my under eye circles. FYI, these apply lighter than they look in the pan. See the swatches below.

The Color Corrector Quad may seem more complicated to understand if you are not familiar with how they are supposed to work and the theory behind color counteracting. Basically, each color there has a specific purpose. When used accordingly, they will even out your skin tone.
- Green helps counteract with redness such as pimples and rosacea.
- Yellow helps counteract with blueish and purple discoloration such as bruises and under eye circles.
- Lavender helps counteract with yellow discoloration such as uneven skin tone.
- Blue helps counteract with orange discoloration such as tanning.

Packaging

• It's approximately 3 inches in diameter but it's pretty thin
• 4 different colors in each quad for different purpose and usage
• Easy to open and close
• Made of plastic. Pretty cheap-looking but feels sturdy.
• Very good amount of product.

Product

• It's not as emollient as my other concealers. The consistency leans on the drier side
• It needs a little warmth so you will need to use your fingers to apply. Make sure your fingers are clean before dipping in.
• Even though it feels like a drier paste, I do not experience cakiness because it applies pretty thin and evenly once you blend it on your skin
• It's very pigmented and offer full coverage

Verdict

Overall, I do like this concealer. I have pretty normal/combination skin so I did not experience any problem when using the product. It last all day and works best "under" liquid foundation. It may not work as well for you if you have problematic skin such as dry patches or severe acne. I believe it works best on a smooth surface and give pretty good coverage. You may not need to make use of all the shades and probably will use one or two more than the others but at least you have options if you needed them. I'm still unsure of how long they will last before they dry out. I don't know if I'll repurchase since I like to try out new products but it's definitely worth a try if you are looking for a concealer. I'd give it a 8/10.