Author: Nikki

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Milani promises that the **Gilded Mini Eyeshadow Palettes ($10.99) will have major color payoff, buttery high-intensity shadows, minimal fallout, and a seamless blend. While I don’t agree that these eyeshadows are buttery or have major payoff, I can agree that they have minimal fallout and are easy to blend. Despite getting a little carried away with the marketing claims, I think these are good eyeshadows that perform well for me. Whiskey Business is an all-matte palette, and It’s All Rose has 3 mattes and 3 shimmers. 

Overall, the mattes are a little dry, loosely pressed, and powdery (not too messy though). The mattes in the It’s All Rose Palette are a little creamier than those in the Whisky Business Palette. However, you aren’t likely to notice that difference when using them with a brush.  Although the shimmers in It’s All Rose aren’t as powdery as the mattes, all of the shades benefit from a slight tap over the pan to dust off excess powder before applying them to the eyes. This minimizes fallout, but it does not sacrifice much pigment. However, the shades still need building, especially if you are close to my skin tone (NARS Tahoe/Estee Lauder 4W4) or darker. The shimmers have a translucent quality that doesn’t necessarily keep them from showing up, but it does leave me wanting more pigment. I wouldn’t say these lack pigment, but more pigmented options exist.

The Revlon Powder Blush ($9.98 at Walmart) has been around for a while, but the packaging got an update a few years back. I’m unsure if the formula was changed when they updated this packaging since I hadn’t tried it when it came in the previous format. However, since at least 2020 (when I first tried the formula), it has been in this square compact with a large window and no longer has an included brush.

Walmart lists Revlon Mauvelous (not affiliated) as a satin finish, but I would expect to see more sheen from that type of finish. However, it is not a flat matte or shimmery, so I can also see why they called it a satin. I wouldn’t consider this formula messy, but it is a little powdery, which becomes more apparent over time. What I mean by that is that I didn’t notice that it was powdery when it was brand new. Regardless, it blends easily. I’ve used it with several different brushes, both synthetic and natural hair, and it works easily each time. It sits nicely on my dry skin type, even on days when I do not set my foundation with powder. It doesn’t accentuate any of my texture and always looks smooth. It wears well throughout the day, and I’ve never noticed any fading.

When I saw Pat McGrath’s Holiday 2024 collection (Luminous Legends) revealed, I immediately knew I wanted this palette. No matter what this brand releases, I always feel like there is something for me. And I don’t just mean from a personal preference standpoint. As a woman of color, there are so many releases in the luxury beauty category that just won’t work for me. I have never had that issue with Pat McGrath, and I really appreciate that. Now, we can talk all day about the brand cutting some corners on packaging and some of the customer service and shipping issues I’ve heard about. But when it comes to the products themselves, I am continually pleased with shade selection and formulation. I also know there are a lot of complaints about repetitive colors being released, and I get it. If you already own something similar, it is disappointing when there isn’t something you want to buy. I don’t think it means the brand is doing anything wrong or out of the ordinary. However, I don’t buy every Pat McGrath release because all of the items don’t suit my preferences. So, that likely helps me stay excited about the brand’s products. So, with that said, let’s get into some swatches of the Dawn Divinity 5-pan Eye Shadow Palette from Luminous Legends.

For me, the answer is no. Makeup can’t be absolutely creaseless. I often think about this because people frequently ask for recommendations on creaseless concealers. I share swatches and my thoughts on the most crease-resistant formulas I’ve experienced further down, if you’d like to skip to that section. I’m sure you’ve seen those questions on various platforms. You can minimize creasing, and some products are less prone to creasing, but that varies from person to person. We move our faces constantly throughout the day, so things can and will shift. However, when we find a foundation and concealer that work well for us, it shouldn’t be very noticeable from a regular viewing distance. Another indication that a foundation and concealer work well for your needs is when the settling or creasing you see can be blended again later in the day without losing significant coverage or looking dry. These are, of course, only my personal opinions as someone who only tests makeup on myself. So, when I saw the Makeup By Mario Masterclass from this year’s (2024) Sephoria and someone in the audience asked about creasing, it felt like a good opportunity to share this information from a professional makeup artist’s perspective.

If you don’t know, Mario Dedivanovic owns the Makeup By Mario brand. He is best known for being the makeup artist for Kim Kardashian but has also worked with Jennifer Lopez, Ariana Grande, Mary J. Blige, Ciara, Katy Perry, Priyanka Chopra, Demi Lovato, Gabrielle Union, and the list goes on. Over his almost 25 years in the makeup industry, he has not only worked on various skin tones but also on various ages. Mario Dedivanovic got into the makeup industry in 2000 when he started working at Sephora, and by 2001, he was assisting makeup artists who worked on “Sex and the City.” Source: Rachel Syme. (2020, August 31). The Makeup Artist At Ground Zero Of Internet Beauty Culture. The New Yorker. https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2020/09/07/back-to-school-with-mario-dedivanovic

I’m giving you his background because while I agree with his thoughts on creasing, and mention it often (especially in my concealer reviews), he has much more knowledge of makeup and how it works across different skin types and ages. The quote below is transcribed from the video that I posted above by the automated program that YouTube uses. I went through and added punctuation as it made sense to me, but I’m by no means trained to do this kind of thing. It might look strange, but I did my best 😆. I didn’t want to alter what he said too much, so hopefully, my added punctuation didn’t do that. The video linked should start at 36:50, where he begins his answer to the person in the audience. (see update below to understand why I’ve crossed this out) I encourage you to watch at least that part if you’d like to hear it from the horse’s mouth, so to speak.

“…yea, not to put as much makeup into the under eye creases. But here’s the thing guys when a face has creases, when a face has wrinkles, we can’t you know, we can’t remove that. We have to understand that that is there, that’s part of the the person, that’s part of yourself. And so you can only enhance things a little bit you can conceal things a little bit, but you can’t remove it. Um the lines and wrinkles and so you want to find ways to work around it, but the general rule is any deep lines or wrinkles, you don’t want to put makeup into those areas heavily because they are going to start creasing. And that’s okay things can crease, you just take a finger or a sponge and you just pat it out a little bit, you know, throughout the day if it’s, if it’s a problem. I think a lot we see a lot on social media. We see so much perfection you know, but there’s lights and there’s tricks and cameras and things like that. And so you have to always remember to stay grounded in the real physical world, and that you know we’re not living our lives 100% on social media. And so we want to look good in the real world. Um so if you can, it helps a little bit to release that sort of um pressure to feel like you need to have everything so perfect…”

Update August 17, 2025: Sephora cut the Sephoria Masterclass video down to make it shorter, and some of Mario Dedivanovic’s conversation about foundation and concealer creasing got cut out. Linked below is the new, shorter video. In the new, shorter version of the video, he reiterates his comments about creasing at the 12:28 mark.

The NARS ’24 Karat Collection for Holiday 2024 has been released on their website, and while it is a beautiful collection, I won’t be buying anything. Since I’ve already tried the Afterglow Sensual Shine Lipstcks, I figured I could share some swatches and quick thoughts. I also stopped into my local Sephora @ Kohl’s and swatched more lipsticks featured in Holiday 2024 sets.

NARS Sensual Shine Lipstick Dolce Vita, $32

The Sensual Shine Lipstick is featured in the Afterglow Lipstick and Mini Liquid Blush Duo ($35, SOLD OUT) this holiday season. The full-size lipstick in the shade Aragon is included in the set, so you’d only pay another $3 for the mini blush. It is a great price if you are interested in these products. Dolce Vita is the shade I have to show you in the full size, and I have 4 more shades that I could swatch from a sample card. However, I have a swatch of Aragon at the end of this post with the lip products that I swatched while at Sephora.

As usual, Westman Atelier has me scratching my head about whether I’m happy about this purchase. You may understand what I mean if you saw my review of their Vital Pressed Skincare Powder. This brand hasn’t missed with packaging for my taste, and this is no exception. The concealer is housed in a heavy, coated glass bottle with a doe foot applicator. The length of the doe foot is short, but I haven’t personally struggled to use it. So why am I confused with this one? My problem is not that it is a bad concealer. I was just having trouble justifying the price in my head after spending some time getting to know the formula. The truth is that I have cheaper concealers that can match the performance of this for my 41-year-old, dry eczema-prone skin type. Let’s get into the details.

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**Westman Atelier Vital Skincare Concealer, $48

Update October 2, 2024: Sephora has updated the size information to reflect the correct amount of product. I want to start by pointing out a discrepancy in the Sephora product information. The Sephora website lists this concealer as having 10mL of product, but my box and the bottom of the concealer state that it has 6mL. I have included a photo of my box so you can see the size for yourself. Hopefully, you could tell in the images at the beginning of this post how small it is, but if not, check the size comparison below. The Lancome concealer I used is only for reference in size and shade. The formulas are not dupes.

The name of this blush might be a little misleading, but I’m not sure I could have done a better job naming them. Of course, they could have just called them powder blushes, but where’s the fun in that? 😆 There is one shade in the range with noticeable shimmer, so the glow/luminosity is apparent. If you look at the other shades, there is a minimal sheen that you can see in the pan due to some mica in the formula. The finish is natural, and it smooths the skin. I would say they have a little radiance to them. I just don’t think of glow when I wear them. They are close to looking matte without being dry or textured, but at least when looking in the mirror, I don’t think “glow.” You can see the radiance in my swatches, but it doesn’t translate that way when blended out on the cheeks.

I’m not wearing highlighter in either of the looks shown below. The glow is coming from my base products and the way the light is hitting my face. In the first photo, I am wearing 30 Offbeat, and my foundation that day was the Anastasia Beverly Hills Luminous Foundation in the shade 365C. In the second photo, I am wearing 40 Mania, and my foundation is the NARS Light Reflecting Advanced Skincare Foundation in the shade Tahoe.

This blog uses affiliate links (marked with **).  I may earn a small commission when you purchase through links on my site.  Learn more here.

If you have to avoid products with lanolin or fragrant lipsticks, these will be a pass for you. But for many, the L’oreal Colour Riche Lipstick ($6.99 @ target.com) is still a cult classic from the drugstore. From what I can find, the Colour Riche line was released in 1985. In 2015, L’oreal released a collection of shades to celebrate the 30th Anniversary of the Colour Riche Lipsticks. If you are curious, I found a blogger (Simon Simons of Smoonstyle.com) who featured some of the shades in that collection.

I can’t tell if the colors I’m featuring today (Worth It and Worth It Medium) are new releases or repromotes. I assumed they were new since I think Emily Noel on YouTube got them in a recent PR package. However, sometimes, brands send out older releases just to increase awareness. She tried Worth It Medium (635) first in this Brand New Makeup video, and she tried Worth It (601) in this Lip Color Try-On video. Emily Noel is also the inspiration for these “What’s Old at X” types of posts that I do. I’ll list other posts like this if you are interested.

• What’s Old at Sephora (VIB Sale April 2021)
• What’s Old at the Drugstore (L’Oreal Infallible 24HR Eye Shadow in Bronzed Taupe)
• What’s Old at Sephora, Vol 2 (VIB Sale April 2022)
• What’s Old at Sephora, Vol 3 (VIB Sale April 2023)

Back to the lipsticks. I have always loved the shades and formula of Divine Wine (762) and Nature’s Blush (840) from this line. However, my gripe has always been with the added fragrance. Oddly enough, I’m not having an issue with the scent of Worth It or Worth It Medium. I also currently own Nature’s Blush (840), but I can’t remember how I handle that one because it’s been a while since I’ve actually worn it. The scent doesn’t strike me as having been changed, though, so I guess my tolerance for it has just shifted. I do think the scent is strong, though, so again, if you prefer fragrance-free lipsticks, these won’t fit the bill. I did add Nature’s Blush to the swatches below as a point of reference. Hopefully, if you are familiar with that shade, it may help. I also have swatches of Worth It and Worth It Medium with Pat McGrath Negligee, Charlotte Tilbury Nude Romance, and Estee Lauder Covetable. Again, just as points of reference, none of the formulas are dupes.