Estee Lauder Pure Color Creme Lipstick Swatch (Covetable 818)

For some reason, Estee Lauder recently made the decision to reformulate the well-loved Pure Color Envy Lipsticks. The new line of lipsticks is now called the Pure Colore Creme Lipstick but they are still offered in 3 different finishes (creme, hi-lustre, and matte). I’ll only be talking about the creme formula today. The Creme lineup comes in 31 shades and retails for $36.00.

A note on the packaging before we get into the formula. I miss the dark blue tube of the old Pure Color Envy Lipstick. This new one is the same size and shape, but all gold. I just don’t think it looks as elegant and it is ever so slightly lighter. It still has a magnetic closure which is always a nice touch, but I do think they lightened the weight of the tube a bit.

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esteelauder.com – Pure Color Creme Lipstick 818 Covetable**

If you’ve read some of my older lipstick reviews you may recall that the Pure Color Envy formula is my favorite lipstick of all time. Some of my favorite things about the previous formula were the coverage, shine, graceful wear down, and nourishing feel. So does the new formula live up to the old one? Not really. Let’s get into the reasons why.

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What’s Old at Sephora, Vol 3 (VIB Sale April 2023)

As always credit for this overall concept goes to Emily Noel on Youtube. She has some older videos about What’s OLD at the Drugstore and I’ve always loved the idea. I’ve done this Sephora VIB Sale version two other times, so if you’d like to see more products you can check those out here and here.

So anyway, while neither of these concealers is the newest thing to the market, I’m taking this time to highlight them because I think they still hold their own against new releases. The sale dates are 14 April 2023 – 24 April 2023 depending on your membership tier. All of the dates and discount levels are listed at the bottom of this post. Keep in mind that you can also shop the sale at Kohl’s locations that have Sephora sections and Kohl’s online. Often things sell out at Sephora and they are still available at Kohl’s.

NARS Soft Matte Complete Concealer Caramel Swatch
NARS Soft Matte Complete Concealer

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NARS Soft Matte Complete Concealer, $32.00**

This was released in January 2017 and I still see a lot of people using this which says a lot considering how fast new releases tend to dominate people’s routines. This is a standout concealer in both form and function. I think we can all agree that there aren’t as many pot concealers as there are liquid doe foot style concealers. Also, it just seems like most people don’t even want to try a pot concealer. I think that is because they are seen as being heavy. Although this NARS Concealer is definitely full coverage, you can apply it lightly to minimize the amount of product sitting on your skin but still get the coverage you need. The texture is almost a mousse and it has a lot of slip due to dimethicone being the 1st ingredient, so it blends easily. This sets down to a matte finish as promised and I personally don’t have to set it with powder (which I love). It stays in place all day and doesn’t crease very much.

For shade reference, you can see me wearing NARS Natural Radiant Longwear in Tahoe by clicking here and Estee Lauder Double Wear in 4W4 by clicking here.

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25% off Select Beauty at Bergdorf Goodman (ends January 26, 2023, 10PM CT)

Lancome, Bobbi Brown, and Estee Lauder have the most products available, but there are many other items to be found from Chantecaille, Hourglass, Laura Mercier, and Cle De Peau among others. I do want to give you a heads-up that some items are listed as being on backorder, so keep an eye out for that if it’s something you need soon.

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

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Estee Lauder Double Wear Stay in Place Foundation – select shades ($36 on sale)**: For my full review on this foundation with swatches of shades 5W1, 5W1.5, and 5W2 you can click here and you can see me wearing the shade 4W4 by clicking here.


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Bobbi Brown Powder Blush – select shades ($24 on sale)**: I do have swatches of the Bobbi Brown blushes in Tawny and Slopes (both available in this sale) that you can check out by clicking here and scrolling down to the section on blushes.


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Bobbi Brown Undereye Corrector (potted version) – select shades ($24.75 on sale)**: I do have a review and swatch of the Bobbi Brown corrector in the shade dark peach that you can check out by clicking here.


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Lancome Dual Finish Highlighter – select shades ($31.50 on sale)**: I do have a quick review and a swatch of the Lancome Dual Finish Highlighter in the shade 5 Sparkling Peche (available in this sale) that you can check out by clicking here.


You can shop this sale now through January 26, 2023, at bergdorfgoodman.com.** As a bonus, Rakuten has up to 10% cashback for Bergdorf Goodman today, so if you place an order don’t forget to take advantage of that.


If you enjoyed this post, please give it a like down below.  If you’d like to check out more of my content, here are some places to start. 

  • Brands A-Z: Check out this index if you want to know what products I have posted about in the past.
  • MAC Cosmetics:  I likely have some swatches you’ve been searching for if you love Mac as much as I do. 
  • The Wanderlust List:  Join me as I search for alternatives to new releases.

Disclaimer:  I purchased all products featured with my own money.  This site receives a minimal commission from participating in the WordAds program and using affiliate links.  For my full disclosure policy, click here.

Skin Tints/Tinted Moisturizers for Dry Skin (Smashbox Halo Healthy Glow Tinted Moisturizer, Estee Lauder Double Wear Sheer, and Mac Studio Radiance Face and Body)

MAC Studio Radiance Face and Body C5, Estee Lauder Double Wear Sheer 5W2, and Smashbox Halo Tinted Moisturizer Medium Tan Swatches (Skin Tints)

Now that summer is underway, many of you might be looking to lighten up your makeup so it feels like a good time to talk tinted moisturizers. Whether you are looking for something with less coverage than normal or something that just feels lighter on the skin, there is a product here that would work for you. I’ll be talking you through my experiences with Mac Studio Radiance Face and Body Radiant Sheer Foundation (C5), Estee Lauder Double Wear Sheer Long-Wear Makeup SPF 19 (5W2 Rich Caramel), and Smashbox Halo Healthy Glow All-in-One Tinted Moisturizer SPF 25 (medium tan). For context, I have dry, eczema-prone skin so hydration is a huge plus for me as well as how complexion products sit on top of texture/dry patches. For shade reference, two of my best matches are Estee Lauder Double Wear 4W4 Hazel and MAC Studio Fix Fluid C8 and you can see me wearing them by clicking here.

Continue reading “Skin Tints/Tinted Moisturizers for Dry Skin (Smashbox Halo Healthy Glow Tinted Moisturizer, Estee Lauder Double Wear Sheer, and Mac Studio Radiance Face and Body)”

If I Could Only Keep One Tag/Shop My Stash

MAC Eyeshadows (What Clout, Couture Copper Dazzle Shadow Extreme, Cranberry, Swiss Chocolate), NARS Savage Blush, NARS Punta Cana Bronzer, Dior Skin Correct Concealer 4WO, Estee Lauder 4W4 Hazel, Chanel Antoinette, Laura Mercier Hydrating Primer, Sonia G Soft Cheek, Smashbox Blurring Foundation Brush, Sigma F79

I’ve wanted to do this for a while, but I always took it way too seriously and got overwhelmed 😂. I’ve been spending the last few weeks shopping my stash and getting reacquainted with a lot of my things and suddenly I felt like I could probably do it. It’s only hypothetical after all. This tag pops up ever so often, but I believe it was initially started in 2018 by Kelly Gooch on YouTube. As Kelly points out in her video, the interesting thing about doing this is that it narrows things down and not necessarily to your favorite products. If I had to just use one product every day (and of course, I want a cohesive look), it really did change the products that I initially would have picked. So let’s see what made the cut.

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50% off MAC Studio Radiance Face and Body Foundation On March 31, 2022 (Ulta 21 days of Beauty Sale)

MAC Studio Radiance Face and Body C5 Swatch Medium Deep Skin

Ulta’s 21 Days of Beauty is well underway at this point, so I won’t go too much into that. But, if you by chance have never heard of the sale, during the sale you can get select high end beauty products for 50% off. Since it will be $18.00 on March 31, 2022, I wanted to share my experience with the MAC Studio Radiance Face and Body Foundation.

I honestly have had a hard time getting my thoughts together on this foundation. It is so well loved that I really wanted to love it too. I guess it is not so much that I don’t like the product as much as it doesn’t suit my preferences. There has been some debate on whether or not this shade expansion is also a reformulation. The brand has stated that this formula is the same as the original Face and Body. I did try Face and Body back in 2014, and regardless of a change in formula, I didn’t like that one either. Since it was so long ago, I can’t directly compare them, but my thoughts are the same on both. This formula is so sheer, I don’t understand the point of taking the time to put it on.

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

When I hear people talk about the MAC Face and Body Foundation**, the phrase “skin-like” always comes up, and I can absolutely agree on that point. When I apply this with a brush I get the promised radiant finish and it does, in fact, look like skin. The problem for me is that I just want more coverage. When building the coverage, I get a light coverage at best. The brand claims this is a sheer buildable formula, so I can’t say that it doesn’t perform as intended. I did try applying this formula with my hands as is commonly suggested for more coverage. This didn’t work for me at all. Oddly enough, using fingers resulted in the formula setting to a matte finish on me. I do have dry skin, but other than that, I can’t explain it. 🤷🏽‍♀️

Continue reading “50% off MAC Studio Radiance Face and Body Foundation On March 31, 2022 (Ulta 21 days of Beauty Sale)”