Bobbi Brown no smudge mascara review

Every now and then I try a Bobbi Brown product. I'm usually impressed, the quality is always pretty good.
One thing that irks me is that Sephora doesn't ship BB products to Canada. It's 'restricted'. If anyone knows why I'd really love to know!

Anyways, no smudge mascara - is it really 'no smudge'? Let's see...

Like most BB products the packaging is plain, I don't mind since I like black.

The mascara brush is composed of soft bristles that really grab onto your lashes. I love it, it's not too big or too small, just right.

no smudge wand:

The formula has a sort of gel texture, it's thin and spreads on easily.
It adds a lot of length and holds up a curl very nicely, I'm quite happy with that!
In fact, if I build it up enough I sort of get this false eyelash look. It's pretty amazing.
Unfortunately, if I do put on a lot of layers it tends to flake off within a few hours.
With 2 coats it's fine and doesn't flake smudge or smear at all, lasting all day long.

2 coats no smudge mascara:

So, I have to say that I really do like this mascara. It's unique in the way that it makes your lashes look dense and almost fake. It's excellent for every day wear since it doesn't move.
I like to really cake on the mascara sometimes depending on the look I'm going for and this one just doesn't do well with more than 2 coats, so that is one little drawback.
I also find it to be a bit pricey, but overall if money isn't a concern I say try it!

repurchase? probably

rating: 4/5

price: $24 USD

MAC surf baby blushette in bound for love, photos and swatches

I have something special to show you, something that was only released in a very limited quantity!
MAC blushettes were part of the surf baby collection released back in May 2011. I believe these were only available in certain countries.

I found this baby at Winners (Canadian TJ MAXX) over the past weekend.
I tried to search for some info on them, and found nothing. In fact, a very popular beauty blogger even commented that 'Blushettes never went into production'.

Well, I'm here to show you that they did go into production, because I have swatches and photos of it :)

Blushettes are packaged in little twist up tubes, with the same striped floral design that is all over the other surf baby products.
Bound for love is a lovely light cool pink shade, with subtle pearl iridescence. It looks so dewy and glowy on, I can't get enough of it.
The other color released is 'Barbara Ann' and it is a bright coral orange. I didn't get that one because it didn't look like it would suit me.

Swatches of Bound for love:

This goes on very sheer. I used about 3 swipes in these swatches. The light reflecting particles make such a nice finish on the skin.

Wearing bound for love on my cheeks:

This little blush is my new best friend. It adds a subtle wash of color and a little bit of glow.
I don't usually go for cream blush, but I think I might try more from now on.
The lasting power is pretty good, for me it stays on all day.

Has anyone else seen these before?
Any recommendations for more cream blush for me to try out?

Sleek oh so special palette photos and EOTD's

If you ever have the chance, I'd say grab this palette!
It is versatile, and very unique. It has a range of mattes and shimmers that would look great on any skin tone or eye color. The colors are both warm and cool, and the quality is super.

I have 4 Sleek palettes now and I reach for this one the most. It's just fun to play with too.

Here are my EOTD's to show you the different sorts of looks you can create with this:

Smoky neutral matte eye:

Shimmering golden smoky eye:

I always feel confident wearing the colors in this palette.
This is one of those products I can see myself completely using up and repurchasing again and again.

You can expect more posts about sleek products soon! I have a bunch of blush swatches and more eyeshadow palettes to share.

On a side note, I just realized the Sleek website ships to the US and Canada! Excellent :)

Have you tried any sleek products? Did you like them?

NOTD: playing with flakies and duo chrome polishes

I did this NOTD a while ago, and it is one of my favorites ever.
I was bored, and I decided to try layering a few different polishes, to achieve a really cool finish.
I used a duo chrome base, added flakies and then added a sheer multi chrome glitter on top.

Here is what I used:

- 2 coats Rimmel night before (deep violet blue with slight gold/pink duo chrome)
- 1 coat Sally Hansen Hidden Treasure (rainbow flakies)
- 1 coat Nicole OPI count on me (iridescent pink/gold/blue/purple multi chrome)

The result:

check out the gold/green flakies in this light:

The Nicole polish brought out the red and blue flakes in Hidden Treasure:

This combo was awesome to look at. I had it on for at least a week.
I got lots of compliments too.

I plan to play around more with layering polishes, especially flakies. They take on a whole new look when you put a sheer polish over them.

What do you think? Any ideas for layering?

Revlon colorburst lip butter in Gumdrop photos & swatches

Ok I lied, this new Revlon lip butter is my latest drugstore purchase.
The cute colors and packaging had me in one glance. I could not resist.

Gumdrop is a light lilac color, there are many different color choices in these - nudes, browns pinks and reds.
Gumdrop looks almost identical to Revlon super lustrous lipgloss in lilac pastelle which was limited edition.
The color is so pretty, I love it. It goes on sheer but you can layer it on for more color saturation. There aren't any large shimmer particles in it, but after it's worn off there are tiny sparkles left on my lips. So, it does have very subtle shimmer.

swatch of gumdrop:

wearing gumdrop:

What I like about it:

- The cute color (obviously!)
- Affordable ($8 CAD)
- Packaging is nice
- Somewhat moisturizing

What I don't like about it:

- No detectable fragrance or flavor. with names like 'creme brulee' and 'strawberry shortcake' I was hoping for yummy scents. Disappointment there :/
Fragrance is listed in the ingredients, but near the end so there is only a tiny bit. I do get a faint whiff of vanilla when I first apply.
- Not long lasting at all (1 hour max)
- After it wears off my lips start to feel dryer than they were before

Overall these are cute and cheap lip glosses. If you have ever used L'oreal color juice sticks, these lip butters have an identical texture. Like a tinted gloss and balm in one.
I don't think I'll buy any more but I really love the color of gumdrop so I'll keep using it :)

Hard Candy smooth talker fox in a box blush photos and swatches

My latest drug store purchase was this little box of blush by hard candy. I hate cardboard packaging but the colors just called to me so I got it anyways.

I have had my eye on Benefit's sugarbomb blush for a while, and smooth talker has very similar colors to it. From swatching them both I don't think they are dupes at all though. Sugarbomb seems much more pigmented, and shimmery.

The packaging is nothing special, just basic cardboard blah. But like all hard candy packaging there are cute designs plastered on it.

The colors are very muted and natural looking. There is a light peach, light lavender, light pink and light rose. They aren't pigmented at all.


swatches of each color layered 3 times:

all 4 colors mixed:

The end result is a very light neutral pink/beige. It barely shows up on my skin. I really have to layer it. The finish is slightly shimmery, but only up close.

Wearing smooth talker mixed together:

It just gives a little color to my cheeks. Hardly noticeable unless I really pile it on. Even then it hardly looks like I'm wearing anything.
I think I need to save my money and get Benefit's sugar bomb!

If you like very natural looking blush, this might suit you. But only pale skin because it won't show up on any darker tones.
I'm not impressed with this fox in a box blush. The other blushes they make are much much nicer and more pigmented. I really like honeymoon, it's a really pretty.