Category: Beauty

I have been using Chanel’s Ombre Premiere Longwear Cream Eyeshadow formula since 2017 and I still feel the same way about them. They could be easier to use and for the $36 price tag, there are certainly cheaper options that likely perform better for most people.  This formula was the first cream eyeshadow I was able to find that didn’t make my eyes look dry or crepey. While I do like the results I get from these, they can be difficult to work with. The dry down time is fairly quick and I find that it works best with either the included brush or a finger.  The enclosed brush is tiny and easy to lose so that is a downside. Unfortunately, I don’t have the little brush anymore so I can’t show it next to something for scale.

Continue reading “Chanel Ombre Premiere Longwear Cream Eyeshadow (Patine Bronze Swatch)” →

This Forgotten Best Sellers series allows me the opportunity to talk about older products that still dominate a brand’s best sellers list. To keep it simple, I use the brand website’s best seller list rather than separate retailers. I have already done a best sellers post on MAC, MAC Vol. 2, NARS, Bobbi Brown, Clinique, and Laura Mercier if you’d like to check those out.

I have to admit that it was January 2023 when I initially looked at the best sellers listed on the Maybelline website, and the products have definitely shifted since then. Maybelline has also changed the website design since then, and it is not easy to view more than 8 best sellers. So I also checked Walmart, Ulta, and Target to at least make sure the items I’m talking about today make sense to feature. So getting into it, today I’ll be spotlighting the Nudes of New York Eyeshadow Palette, The Falsies Lash Lift Mascara, and the Color Sensational Made For All Lipsticks.

Maybelline Nudes of New York Palette, $13.99 (Walmart.com and Amazon)

In my opinion, the Maybelline Nudes of New York Eyeshadow Palette is a standout product at the drugstore. It’s a shame that it seems to have disappeared from actual store shelves, but it is still a permanent product and I’ve seen it on both the Walmart and Amazon websites. Overall, the Nudes of New York is a warmer neutral palette, but if you lean into shades like soloist, pioneer, protector, heroine, and self-starter for some of your looks, you can keep things from looking overly warm.

Continue reading “Forgotten Best Sellers: Maybelline” →

Charlotte Tilbury seems to be a very polarizing brand. People either love it or hate it. I haven’t tried enough of the products to make a definitive statement on the brand as a whole, but I think the products that I have tried are good. The two lipstick colors that I am showcasing today are part of the Hot Lips 2 line. It is $38 to purchase these shades that come in a refillable casing and the refill bullet is $26 (shown below). There are 5 collectible cases available with the Hot Lips 2 shades in them. Charlotte Tilbury does occasionally release new shades in differently designed refillable packaging, but they also have a classic bullet available for $35 although, the shade availability is different.

Charlotte Tilbury Glowing Jen, K.I.S.S.I.N.G Formula – Tawny Beachy Rose (Soft Rose according to Sephora)

I think this is a nice lipstick formula with a satin (slight sheen) finish. It wears well, which for me, is about 4 hours. That is typical for the bullet lipstick formulas that I consider to be good. The wear-down is subtle and not at all patchy.  I drink water and tea all day, so for lipstick to hang on and have enough color left to not need a touch-up until the 4-hour mark is great for my expectations. The K.I.S.S.I.N.G formula is comfortable to wear (doesn’t dry out my lips), it doesn’t accentuate my lip lines, and it sits nicely even if I have some dryness/chapping. With one caveat, it doesn’t slide around, get on my teeth, or bleed into the fine lines around my upper lip.  The caveat is that this formula does cling better to my lips if I don’t use too much lip balm, or at least wipe off excess lip balm before applying it. This is not necessarily unique since I use emollient lip balms, but it is something to keep in mind if you are someone who has dry lips and applies lip balm right before lipstick. It isn’t that you can’t, but I do think it wears better and moves around less when my lips are not slippery before applying it. For a point of reference, there are several formulas that I don’t have to make sure to remove excess lip balm to get good wear. Some that I can think of right now are the Propa Beauty Luminous Satin, Huda Beauty’s Cream, Chanel Rouge Coco Ultra Hydrating, and Maybelline Color Sensational (which contains lanolin).

Continue reading “Charlotte Tilbury Hot Lips 2 Lipstick Swatches (Glowing Jen, Viva La Vergara)” →

You don’t need me to tell you that $75 is a lot of money to spend on a powder, so that leaves me at a loss for what exactly to tell you about the Westman Atelier Vital Pressed Skincare Blurring Talc-Free Setting Powder. That name is obnoxious to go along with the price, but it does clue you into what is “special” about this particular setting powder. If you are not familiar with Westman Atelier, it is a luxury clean beauty brand. Although there can be overlap in which ingredients are left out of clean beauty products, each brand determines what “clean” means for them. So I encourage you to visit the Westman Atelier About Us Page to see what they consider “clean” before you decide if you even want to know about my experience with this powder.

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The Packaging

Before I get into the performance, I want to gush over the packaging. At this price, you are in fact paying for the way these products are presented, so it matters. It comes in a linen, drawstring pouch to protect the compact. I bought mine in April 2023 and haven’t gotten any scratches, but I do keep it in the pouch, and I’m also generally not rough on things. The pouch is also more of a blush pink color that doesn’t really come across in the image.

Continue reading “Westman Atelier Vital Pressed Skincare Powder Review (Dune)” →

I finally took the plunge and tried something from the Makeup By Mario brand. I went into the store to check this out very soon after launch so that I could pick a shade (380 Medium Golden). The only thing I really heard about it before trying it for myself was that it was self-setting so I didn’t have many expectations for the formula. I avoided watching other reviews of the SurrelSkin Concealer because the Makeup By Mario brand does get a lot of hype so I didn’t want to be influenced by what others were saying. The brand promises a natural finish with medium coverage that is buildable, creaseless, self-setting, and long-wearing.

Continue reading “Makeup By Mario SurrealSkin Awakening Concealer (380 Medium Golden Swatch)” →

Early last year Bobbi Brown added the Skin Corrector Stick to their lineup. So far, it has not replaced the cult classic Undereye Corrector that comes in pot form. Unfortunately, the original formula did lose some shades (16 cut down to 12) but it is still being sold. I’ve always had trouble with the original formula creasing badly, so I was very curious to see how the Skin Corrector Stick would perform in comparison.

According to the product information, the shade dark peach corrects brown/grey/greenish discoloration. My undereye discoloration is a greenish-brown, so I stuck to the dark peach shade that I have in the pot form when I purchased the Skin Corrector Stick. The shades are close, but the pot form is a touch lighter and has more yellow. This makes more of a difference for me on the face than under the eyes, but I rarely use it on the face so it doesn’t bother me. Under the eyes, I do enjoy the extra brightening that I get from the Corrector in the Pot. For reference, my best foundation matches are NARS Natural Radiant Longwear Tahoe, Estee Lauder Double Wear 4W4 Hazel, and MAC Studio Fix Fluid C8.

Continue reading “Bobbi Brown Skin Corrector Stick (Dark Peach Swatch and Comparison to Original Undereye Corrector Formula)” →

I’m excited to finally be writing this update for the Givenchy Prisme Libre Skin-Caring Concealer after realizing that it was not the cause of my under-eye irritation. I say finally because my first post about it was back in March and while I wanted to post this update sooner, I wanted to be absolutely certain it wasn’t a problem. Initially, I was convinced that this concealer was causing a feeling of soreness under my eyes. However, after I stopped using it for a while the issue didn’t go away. Turns out the skin irritation was because of a skincare product. I’ve had a consistent skincare routine that was working for years, but my recent move to the Northeast pushed me to try some different moisturizers.

I want to reiterate that I did make sure to rule the Givenchy Prisme Libre Concealer out as the issue before using it again. I am by no means encouraging anyone to ignore skin irritation for the sake of using a certain product. It’s also important to keep in mind that one person having a problem with a product does not mean it will be a problem for everyone. So anyway, I’m glad that this concealer was not to blame for any discomfort because it’s a good one.

The main thing I want to share today are swatches of 2 additional shades of the Givenchy Prisme Libre Skin-Caring Concealer (W310 and N345). This is a solid medium coverage, radiant finish concealer that works well for my dry skin. I do think there is a potential for building this for higher coverage, but on me, that causes creasing that looks bad. All things crease to some degree. To me, it’s bad when you can see lines created by the creasing from a distance. If you don’t tend to have issues with creasing, or if using a setting powder typically takes care of any creasing, you may be able to get more coverage out of this. For a point of reference, this isn’t as radiant on me as the Armani Luminous Silk Concealer, but it does have more coverage than the Armani. If you are looking for more details on this concealer, you can read my original review here.

Continue reading “Review Update: Givenchy Prisme Libre Skin-Caring Concealer (Swatches W310, N345, N385)” →