REVIEW: Glossybox February 2013

The morning after walk of shame, the rumpled clothes, the guilt and the scent of bad decisions - I cheated on Birchbox and had a rather sordid dalliance with Glossybox.  After hearing people rave about their previous boxes, and the grass looking so much greener, I went and swallowed the $21/month subscription price and went for it.

My first box was a bit of a let down after all that build up.  Kind of like that flirtation that had been bubbling for months only to find out he was a slobbery kisser.  The box arrives late in the month, even though you get charged for it early in the month, and I bust that thing open as soon as I saw it, hoping for some goose bump inducing beauty deliciousness.

International traveler themed Glossybox

Nice packaging but I would have been happier with craptastic packaging if the products were amazing. The magazine was nice to flip thru but nothing earth shattering.

The first thing I pulled out was a liquid eyeliner from a brand I'd never heard of before, LiSi.  A full size which was nice, but unfortunately, in a color that I will never wear.  How old is your target market Glossybox?  Cause 2 out of the 4 items are completely ridiculous for me.  Couldn't you have sent me a glittery black, or bronzey brown, even anything green olive blue or purple would have been preferable to an iridescent white.  I can't even use it as a shadow base like I could if it were a cream eyeshadow.

Full size in a color I'd never wear, yay?

The eyeliner itself isn't bad, its very similar to Stila's glitter liners, and need a couple of minutes to dry but once dry resist rubbing.  They are not waterproof however and come off easily with a rinse.  The color is a tad streaky, so if you are hoping for a one swipe opacity, you aren't getting it with this.  (Stila's liners also suffer from this problem).  I MIGHT use this for an inner corner highlight, but it seems a bit of a pain when I have a great NYX jumbo pencil in Cottage Cheese that works fabulously for that already.

Swatches of the eyeshadow and liner

Nail Rock polish stickers, from the same company that makes LipRock and EyeRock makeup stickers.  *sigh*  For reals?  Half leopard print and half metallic hot pink?  I mentioned in a previous post that I thought LipRock stickers made you look like you had an exotic form of herpes, and it would seem the sores can be spread to your nails too.  If the stickers had been entirely leopard print OR pink I could have considered wearing them, but I'm about two decades too old to pull this off.  And by the way - get off my lawn!

From lip herpes to nail herpes?

The soap sample was the one thing in the box that I thought was lovely.  The scent is from the White Tea perfume and I am looking forward to using it.  It made the entire box smell really good, but the scent is strong.  Hopefully it doesn't translate quite as strongly onto the skin.

Nice size, very strongly fragranced

I don't really have a problem with blemishes aside from maybe a hormonally induced zit once a month but not enough to really see much use out of the Evologie sample.  Hey Glossybox, why did I fill out a questionnaire again?  Just curious.

I'm kind of over the whole loose mineral pigment thing.  They are messy, a pain to apply sparingly and really don't have much appeal to me when there are so many pressed alternative.  Hmm.. I may just turn it into a pressed highlighter.  I'll post a Tutorial on how to do that later this week.  The color is a pretty shimmery golden beige and I'd use it very lightly to the tops of my cheek bones for a highlight color.

Eyeshadow/highlighter

Overall I'd give this month's Glossybox a C grade, and will check out one more month before deciding if I want to continue my subscription. 

Come on Glossybox - impress me!  Make me forget all about my old flame, Birchbox!

Nail of the Day: Sally Hanson Mermaid's Tale

Using Zoya's Storm as a base coat really makes Mermaid's Tale shine.

REVIEW: Maybelline The Rocket Volume Express Mascara (waterproof)

You know those girls with the super long naturally thick curled lashes? Yah, that's not me. I'm pretty much the exact opposite of that. My lashes are quite nearly invisible without several coats of mascara, so I have a well developed appreciation for a good formula.

Not too wet or it will lose the curl, not too thick or the few lashes I have will clump together to resemble a hairy spider leg, and not too dry or it will leave tiny black flakes all over my cheeks. This delicate balancing act disqualifies the vast majority of mascaras out there. The extra waxes in a waterproof formula are almost a requirement or the minuscule curl I can coax out of these stumpy babies will disappear. The only non waterproof formula that has EVER worked for me is Shu Uemera, and that is also the brand of my holy grail lash curler.

I am a big fan of a few of Maybelline's waterproof mascaras: The One by One, The Falsies, Lash Discovery, Define a lash and Full & Soft. Since mascaras should be replaced every 3-4 months, I prefer to not pay for high end mascaras when the drugstore has so many great affordable alternatives. I had high hopes for this one when I saw the new displays at CVS.

I picked up the Very Black shade and the first time I used it I hated it. My lashes clumped together, didn't seem lengthened at all and the result was a smudgey awful mess. It went into the TO RETURN pile. Yes, there is a pile, don't judge me.

Before - straight barely visible lashes

A couple weeks later I had received my Ipsy bag and tested a LashCard out with the Rocket mascara. I am not sure if it was the LashCard or if it was the week or so where the formula dried out a little, but it was like a different mascara. My lashes were nicely volumized, hung onto its curl like a CHAMP, and looked fluttery fabulous. I do find that this mascara needs a little extra babying with lash separation, and a quick brush thru with a clean spoolie or a lash comb works wonders.

Curl? check.  Length? A little.  Volume?  Check.  

Don't let it dry in between coats or you may see a wee bit of flaking.

Testing out the waterproof claim in the shower, the mascara stays on but the curl droops and pretty much is gone from the moist heat. Removal is easiest with an eye makeup remover that is for waterproof mascara. Using soap and water will just leave you with raccoon eyes and force you to use eye makeup remover afterwards anyhow.

Retails for about $8 at the drugstore

OVERALL GRADE: B+

REVIEW: Revlon Colorstay Ultimate Suede Lipstick

Let me just say that I normally love Revlon lip products. Lip butters, Kissable balm stains, Super Lustrous lipsticks, all are in heavy rotation on my lips.

When I saw the new displays for the Ultimate Suede lipsticks I couldn't wait to try them. The colors were all vaguely fashion inspired and I picked up Fashionista which was a warm rosey brick color.

When swatched on the hand the texture was buttery smooth and felt quite moisturizing. HA how fooled I was... On the lips the color was lovely and glided on feeling a lot like the lip butters which I love.

After a few minutes tho, this lipstick goes Dr Jekyll on you and transforms into a sticky, demi-matte finish that is nothing short of unpleasant. The once glossy color becomes dull and luster less and the pigment starts to settle into fine lines and bleed around the edges even with a lip liner. Every time I press my lips together they stick like Post It notes.

Once it sets into that semi matte texture, my lips remind me of the 90s cholla just missing the ultra dark liner and feel like they are in dire need of a gloss.

This was one of the few times I had to wipe it off because the tacky feeling grossed me out. Sorry no comments on how long this stuff wears, this one is going into the DUDS pile

PIGMENTATION - B
TEXTURE - D
PACKAGING - C

OVERALL: C-

REVIEW: Maybelline Instant Age Rewind The Lifter

I've been working on my review of the Maybelline Instant Age Rewind "The Lifter" foundation for a few weeks now, with a break in between to whore myself out to the Covergirl 3in1 Stay Fabulous foundation. Being an older gal, a foundation that can smooth my fine lines and mask my pores as well as give me enough coverage to conceal my sun damage is my Holy Grail foundation.  

"Lifting foundation with peptides firms skin and covers instantly, while primer smoothes lines and rough texture."

It comes in 12 shades and I picked up the shade Sandy Beige 220.  I skipped the primer since it advertised itself as a primer built in, and tried applying it four different ways: with a damp beauty blender, with a foundation paddle brush, with a kabuki style buffing brush and with my fingers.  Perhaps not surprisingly, the best application came from the recommended method, fingers.  The other methods just gave me so little coverage that I was almost ready to give up on the foundation.  Luckily I actually read the directions on the bottle, ha! RTFM people.  

Speaking of the bottle, it comes in a bottle with a pump (kudos Maybelline - now why doesn't Superstay 24Hr have a pump eh?) and you can see the neato swirl of foundation and primer throughout the bottle.  Looks kind of fancy doesn't it.  

The pump itself was easy to control, dispensing as little as a 1/4 pump to the full pump amount.  Here I have both the Lifter and some of the more liquid CG 3in1 Stay Fabulous on my hand, and the texture is very mousse-like.  Similar to the Dream Mousse foundation I think.  The texture is part of what makes finger application the best, because the foundation doesn't seem to spread very well using a brush or a sponge applicator.  Your fingers also help warm up the foundation as it smooths over your skin.

As you can see with the shot of my right cheek in all its uncovered natural glory, I have a lot of sun damage, visible cavernous pores and plenty of fine lines.  After working the foundation into my skin, it blurred some of my imperfections and filled my pores in really well without pooling pigment into them and drawing more attention to them.  I would call this a light to medium coverage foundation, at the most buildable to medium so if you have more than minor imperfections that need overage, you will need a separate concealer.  I didn't notice any "lifting" effects from this foundation but really, you aren't expecting a face lift in a bottle for $13.99 (kind of on the high end for a drugstore foundation)

The finish is a demi-matte and very natural looking.  I would definitely reach for this foundation on days that I'm kicking back and not wanting to fuss too much but still look put together.  It goes very well with minimal natural makeup look.  As far as wear time, if you are oily skinned like me, make sure you set your T zone with a translucent powder and expect to blot at the 3-4 hr mark.  It does not seem to fade in a blotchy way and by the end of the day it still looked decent, down to a light coverage I think.  

Hooray for no cake face!   The primer in the foundation works very well in filling pores and lines, you might extend the wear of the foundation by using a separate primer underneath, but I was plenty happy without one.

My only complaints about this foundation are the lack of sun protection (an anti aging product without sun screen?  Are you insane?), the speed at which it wears away on my oily skin, and a teeny bit more coverage would be nice.  Overall tho - it's a great product.  Very pretty natural look, and if you have dry or normal skin, with not too much coverage needed or wanted, this might be the perfect foundation for you.

Packaging: A

Color Match: B

Longevity: B

Finish: A

OVERALL GRADE: B+

DISCLAIMER: I bought this with my own money and am not affiliated with Maybelline at all. All opinions are solely my own

What Else I'm Wearing:

Concealer:  Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Eraser for Dark Circles in Neutralizer 150

Eyes: Maybelline Color Tattoo in Rich Mahogany on the lid, Bad to the Bronze blended up into the crease, UD Snakebite on the lid, Tease blended into the crease, W&W Creme Brulee on the brow bone.  Bobbi Brown Slate on the brows with Lioele's Auto Artist Eyebrow Pencil in Grey.  Forgot to curl lashes and put mascara on

Cheeks:  Milani Dolce Pink on the cheeks, W&W Reserve Your Cabana as a highlight, and NYX Matte Bronzer as a contour shade

Lips: Vasoline and NYX Nude lip pencil

REVIEW: Lashcard - goofy gimmick or effective makeup tool?

What if I said yes to both?

Retails for $6.99 for a pack of 10

I received four of these in the Ipsy February 2013 box and the first reaction was a big ol' eyeroll. People actually pay money for stuff like this? This was up there on the list of ridiculous purchases along with lip stickers and Evian spray water. Pay me $15 and I will come and spritz you with water. And those Violent lips things just make you look like you have an exotic strain of herpes. Really.

These retail for $6.99 for a pack of 10 cards and they suggest you use a new one with each makeup session.  Of course they did, what would you expect.

Armed with a healthy dose of skepticism and my mascara, I took these babies for a spin.

It lifts the lashes upward making it easier to coat them with mascara

The cards have two curved cut outs, different sizes meant to fit a large number of eye sizes and shapes. What I found was the smaller side worked great for my lower lashes and the larger side for my top lashes. You align the card with the curve of your eyelid and gently press against the lash line which then lifts your lashes upward, making it easier to coat your lashes from root to tip with mascara.

As expected, it did a good job of preventing mascara from transferring to my lids and ruining my eyeshadow. Any barrier including a plain old business card would do the same.

What I did not expect was that it made me love a mascara that I previously was struggling with. Maybelline's The Rocket Volume Express Waterproof was in the pile of TO RETURN until I tried using it with the LashCard. My main complaint was that the formula seemed to clump my lashes together and it did not really lengthen my lashes at all.

The Eye of Sauron minus all the evil

When used with the LashCard the mascara lived up to the advertising. My lashes were thick, held a curl like a champ, not clumpy (I do run a clean spoolie brush thru them at the end out of habit) and looked great! I was extremely happy with the results. I'm not sure if this was because the card tilted my lashes into the perfect angle for the wand to optimally coat my lashes or what.

Is it worth the money? I'm still on the fence with this. I've been reusing the same card for the last week, so I know I would not replace them nearly as much as they suggest. I can't deny that I do love the results, but having to order them online and pay $0.69 for essentially a business card with a half moon cut out?

For now I'm going to just do the business card thing I think.

Spring is in the air, and on the nail

I love bringing out the bright happy colors when the weather starts to warm up. There is just something about a pink polish that just screams girly to me.

L'Oreal Members only with Revlon Whimsical on the accent nail

Another month of meh from Birchbox February 2013

Ok Birchbox, seriously, I'm putting you on notice. There has to be a way to better profile your customers. Either a better questionnaire at the beginning so I can tell you directly I am not interested in skin care or hair care or food items. Or you need to keep track of the reviews of the items I receive and use some fancy algorithm to figure out what I'd really like. Cause the last few boxes have been duds for me and Ipsy is making you look really bad.

This month's box consisted of:

Lancôme Hypnose Star mascara - volumizes nicely but doesn't hold a curl so I have lovely thick lashes that point straight out.  And the stuff is flaking all over my cheeks - lovely.

Jouer Matte Tint in Hazel - BB cream light, the finish is nice, but there is almost no coverage and I likes me some medium coverage to hide my sun damage.  If I don't want to wear foundation I'll be reaching for my Missha Perfect Cover BB Cream, not this.

Vasanti Brighten Up! Enzymatic Face Brightener - I'm actually curious to see if this works because my cheeks have a good bit of sun damage.

Skin & Co Roma Sicilian Body gel - shower gel that smells nice enough but nothing terribly exciting.

I get excited every month when the pink box comes only to feel meh about it when I open it.

Glossybox thoughts, anyone?  I just signed up for Glossybox and between that and Ipsy I hope I will satisfied in my monthly beauty box needs.

TUTORIAL: Gradient nails

Here is one no fuss nail art technique you can use to jazz up your mani, cover up chipping tips on an old mani, or get more use out of all those chunky glitter polishes languishing in your collection.

What you'll need:

Sponge tip eyeshadow applicators
Two coordinating polishes (or three or four)
Clear top coat
Nail polish remover for clean up

1. Start out with a base color and allow to dry
2. Take one of the sponge applicators and brush some of the second polish onto the bottom half, don't worry about it being even or a perfect swipe
3. Take the loaded applicator and pat it along your nail tips, adding more polish to the applicator as needed until you finish all your nails.
4. Turn the applicator over and swipe a 3rd color onto the bottom 1/3, not as high as you did the previous color
5. Dab that onto your nail tips making sure not to cover up all of the previous color creating a nice gradient
6. Use the nail polish remover to clean up any excess polish
7. Put a top coat on and be fabulous!

Voila! Fancy eh?

REVIEW: Makeup brushes from EBay - Insanely great!

For the record, I am not a makeup brush snob. I do not own a full kit of MAC brushes or know all of the brush numbers by heart. I have plenty of EcoTools, Real Techniques and drugstore brand brushes in my collection. That being said, if I could afford it I would absolutely invest in a set of quality brushes. The density of the bristles, the quality of the animal or synthetic fibers make a huge difference in make up application.

I own a couple of Laura Mercier, MAC and Bobbi Brown brushes and really enjoy using them.

Recently I found a set of Bobbi Brown travel sizes brushes with a case on EBay for a little under $10.

In comparison the Bobbi Brown essential brush kit that only gives you SIX brushes retails for $188. Yah, that wasn't a typo. Single brushes cost between $25-40 a piece. There had to be a catch, either the brushes were defective, or cheaply made knockoffs or fell off a makeup truck in China? Do they have make up trucks in China?

Anyhow it was only a $10 loss if the set was crap so I bought it. Shipping from China took about 2.5 wks and when the set came in I was pretty blown away. The brushes looked and felt identical in quality to the existing authentic Bobbi Brown brushes I already owned. The density and softness of the brushes are excellent and the only blemish is a misspelling on one of the eye brushes.

You can compare the two of my own Bobbi Brown brushes at the bottom of the last photo. Trust me tho, they are fabulous

Amazing! I would absolutely recommend picking up a set if you are inclined and I've ordered a 24 piece set of MAC brushes from them for the ridiculous price of $23.98 with free shipping.

MAC 217 you will be mine!

REVIEW: Milani Color Statement Lipsticks

"Make a statement without saying a word! True Instant Color. One stroke, full coverage application. This next generation lipstick gives the ultimate in color, texture and finish. The lightweight creamy formula contains Vitamins A, C, & E to moisturize and nourish lips. Paraben-free. Available in Vinyl, Metallic, Cream, Shimmer, Pearl & Matte finish."

When they say that these new Milani lipsticks are pigmented, they are not messing around. The swatches were only a light swipe and came off completely opaque. The revamped formula and packaging live up to most of its claims and at the very affordable price of around $5-$6 at CVS (even less when you wait for a good sale), they are well worth the cost.

The previous formula had a strong scent which put some people off, but I really liked how hydrating they were and took advantage when CVS put the on sale for 75% off.

This new version comes in a ton of colors & 6 different finishes so just about everyone should be able to find something that works for them. The scent is faintly watermelon, not unpleasant at all and doesn't hang around when on the lips. It has about a 2-3 hr staying power and will require some reapplication during the day. Even though it is advertised as moisturizing, in reality it feels very similar to W&Wild's Megalast lipsticks. If you like those you will love these.

Ipsy FEBRUARY 2013 bag

So I have a couple of beauty subscriptions at the moment, Ipsy (formerly myGlamBag) and Birchbox.

I've been a Birchbox subscriber for a couple of years now, since my sister originally gifted me with a year subscription. Over the last few months I've considered canceling my Birchbox subscription because frankly the boxes have been a let down. The sample sizes leave a lot to be desired and they don't give you enough makeup - it's been a lot of skin care and hair care with weird crap like designer Cynthia Rowley BandAids (wtf seriously Birchbox? if you are going to send me something as silly as those, they better have WonderWoman on them), note cards and nutty fruit bars?!

I signed up for makeup - where is my makeup? (Although I did LOVE my Eyeko liner, that didn't make up for the BandAids and note cards.)

So I strayed and got an Ipsy subscription after Christmas and so far it has not disappointed. This month's box contained:

Full size Mica Cosmetics gel liner in black!
Deluxe sample of Pixi Poreless primer
Coastal Scents eyeshadow sample quad in Glitz & Glamour
POP Beauty Smoky Lash KaPow Mascara
LashCards (4)

Total value of this months bag $68.88 for the price of $10!

Aaaaahmazing, and so excited to try everything out.

Watch out Birchbox - we may be about to break up. It's not me, it's your BandAids.

REVIEW: Maybelline Super Stay 24 HR foundation

I seem to be on a foundation review kick lately but I'll be the first to admit, I love me a good drugstore foundation.

Some of the things I look for in a foundation:

Color match to my NC25-NC30 skin, a light medium with distinctly yellow undertones
No pooling in my pores or fine lines or emphasizing dry patches
A demi matte to matte finish that balances out my naturally combination to oily skin
Minimal blotting and no major touch up required throughout the day
A smooth flawless look with a minimum of fuss,
And a pony.  Just kidding about the pony, kind of.

I dragged myself away from the current favorite foundation (CG 3in1 Stay Fabulous) to give the Maybelline SuperStay 24HR foundation a decent go.  It had been sitting in my medicine cabinet for about a month after a couple of test runs, and I had remembered really liking it so it went for a hard core spin this weekend.

I wake up early, and I mean EARLY, as in 5am before the sun is up early.  It's an occupational hazard when you are a Mama to 2 very active little boys.  Putting my makeup on is part of a daily ritual that helps me wake up every day, and trust me, the dark circles under my eyes could use all the help I can get.  I had originally started out with the shade Classic Beige 60 which after wearing a few times I thought was a bit too dark for my winter skin.  I've been religiously wearing sunscreen as well so my color has gotten progressively lighter than my summer swatched NC30.

I picked up Nude 50 which has a good bit more yellow in it than the Classic Beige and is a tad lighter as well which I think suits me nicely.  I primed my skin with some Smashbox Photo Finish light primer first, then applied two thin coats of the Maybelline using a damp Beauty Blender.  It has been my go to method of liquid foundation application lately.  My poor Sigma F80 languishes away in a corner writing lovelorn poetry to me that remains unread.  The consistency is a bit on the thick side, and the lack of a pump on the bottle makes for a bit of a mess.  I really wish Revlon and Maybelline would get with the program when it comes to pumps for all their foundations.  Neutrogena too come to think of it (Healthy Skin I'm looking at you).

After letting the foundation set for a few minutes I took a tissue and swiped my forehead to see how much would transfer to clothing. There was a very faint hint of foundation transferred, so I would say that it's transfer resistant but not transfer proof by any means.

Pretty good match with a decent amount of yellow undertone

Pores galore baby :(

As you can see in the close up, this foundation doesn't pool or settle into my pores but it doesn't smooth over them either like some foundations do. If you have prominent pores like I do, invest in a good pore filling primer to wear underneath this foundation.

I took this foundation along for a 5 mile run to see how it would hold up to serious sweating. As you can see below the coverage is largely intact, with a bit of wear along my forehead (where it rubbed against my hat) and around my nose. When I touched my skin the foundation had lost its smooth finish and had a very subtle grittiness to it. That wasn't very pleasant but not noticeable to anyone else.

Over all tho it performed really well.

           

\

Packaging: B-
Color Match: B+
Longevity: A
Finish: B

OVERALL GRADE: B

DISCLAIMER: I bought this with my own money and am not affiliated with Maybelline at all. All opinions are solely my own

REVIEW: Neutrogena MoistureSmooth Color Sticks

The YouTube and blogosphere has been abuzz lately about these Neutrogena MoistureSticks and after seeing Emily from emilynoel83 post a glowing review about them on YouTube I had to check it out.

They are one of those twist up fat lip crayons in a similar vein to Tarte's LipSurgence, Clinique's Chubby Stick, and Revlon's Kissable Balm Stains. I believe CoverGirl also has one out now but I have yet to try it.

Just to cut to the chase - I. LOVE. THESE.

They are smooth and buttery in texture similar to the Tarte version, and actually live up to the hype about leaving your lips in better condition than before application. I have even reached for this and applied it before bed like I would normally do with my EOS lip balms, and woke up with smooth soft lips. The form factor is great for no fuss application and no sharpening is required which is nice.

The color lasts for 2-3 hours before needing touch ups on me and it is not a super pigmented or long wearing formula. It gives your lips a lovely wash of color and keeps them very moisturized. I'm going to have to say that I like these even better than the Revlon Lip Butters which I do like A LOT.

I picked two colors up during a BOGO 50% off sale at CVS and they were retailing around $10-11 each before the sale. Like the entire Neutrogena line I thought they were a bit over priced but I will be definitely picking up a few more colors.

Sweet Watermelon - shimmery bubble gum pink

Soft Raspberry - cool mauvey pink

REVIEW: Aero Minerale Foundation

During a recent Haute Look promotion I picked up an Aero Minerale foundation that I thought looked pretty interesting.  I will admit to having been sucked in by the marketing that this was the foundation they used during the Twilight Breaking Down movie on the female characters.

Who doesn't want that perfect luminous (undead?) complexion?

Anyhow, I got it in the mail today and was quite excited to try it out.  I had been rather intrigued by the concept of airbrushed makeup, and regularly try to duplicate the effect with a Beauty Blender or my trusty Sigma F80 brush with liquid foundations.  The Tempu airbrush foundation is way out of my price range and the Aero Minerale at $12 was just a hair more than what I'd spend on a drugstore foundation so I figured, what the heck right?

Picking a foundation color sight unseen was a gamble but luckily the one I selected BUFF worked out ok on my skin.

A couple of initial thoughts on this stuff - it dries FAST, so you only have about 30-45 seconds to get it on your face and blended in before it starts to set.  The spray radius is WIDE, so it is pretty hard to control where this stuff is going, especially since you will probably have your eyes closed when you spray it onto your face (unless going blind is your thing - eyepatches can be sexy I guess).   Cover your hair and do your foundation before any other makeup cause the blast radius is kind of crazy.  Applying it this way also can make the foundation stick to the tiny hairs on your face, so make sure you check for that and blend it into your skin with your fingers in a light tapping motion.

After a few tries, I decided that spraying it directly onto my face wasn't the best method of application.  This of course completely missed the point of it being an airbrushed system since I'd be applying it like any other foundation that I already own.  (Lame.)  I'll be the first to admit that this might be because I wasn't used to the aerosol application method, but it seemed a pretty wasteful learning curve and more trouble than it was worth.

I ended up spraying some onto the back of my hand and applying it with a Sigma F80 flat top kabuki brush, stippling it onto my skin, working as quickly as I could before the stuff dried.  The coverage was very buildable without looking cakey, but it oxidized a bit on my skin and took on a bit of an orange cast.

The Twilight vamps can keep this foundation to themselves, cause it didn't float my boat and I could not wait to wipe the stuff off.

Julep Maven box for February

I am a polish addict. Well to be fair I am addicted to cosmetics in general, but I do love me a good nail polish.

I recently signed up for the Julep Maven subscription service and received my first box at the beginning of February. I was pleasantly surprised with the contents :

Ginger - a shimmery beige polish
Laura - a dusty olive cream
Freedom polymer top coat
Oxygen nail treatment
Eyelash curler

While the polishes were pretty enough, I was very pleased with the top coat. It is very close to displacing Seche Vite as my go to top coat. The wear is really good, dry time isn't quite as fast as Seche Vite and you need to wait a couple minutes for your polish to set before applying it. But I like that it is no where as gloppy as the Seche Vite gets.

My main complaints about the Julep version is that it's less than half the amount of the Seche Vite, and not nearly as easily accessible.

My previous Julep box had polish drying drops (just ok) and cuticle oil (love this) as the extras. Keep it up Julep and Ill be singing the Maven subscription praises to the skies.

Oh and don't send me crap like fruity nut bars - I'm looking at you Birchbox.

REVIEW: Covergirl 3 in 1 Stay Fabulous Foundation

Covergirl's latest contribution to the long wear foundation trend is the Outlast 3 in 1 Stay Fabulous Foundation.

"All-in-one foundation with a long-lasting formula that fuses primer, concealer, and foundation in one easy step! The 3-in-1 formula provides a flawless look that lasts all day long"

I saw it in the drugstore over the holidays but since it was so new, I wasn't sure which ones were yellow undertones or pink undertones.  It comes in 14 different shades and retails for around $9 at the drug store.  I ended up picking it up during a BOGO 50% off sale, and got two shades, Buff Beige and Natural Beige.  The Natural Beige ended up being a bit too dark for my skintone which is somewhere between an NC25 and NC30 these days, and went back to the store.

It comes in a nice pump bottle which I really like.  The pump itself is pretty controllable and easy to dispense as little or as much as you need.  Turning the top of the pump wil lock it closed which is nice to avoid any accidental dispensing.  The inside of the cap can get a little smeared with foundation if you don't wipe the top of the cap off after using it.  Overall tho - the packaging is pretty good.  The consistency of the foundation is liquid but not runny, and it did not have any offensive smell that I noticed.

Swatch comparisons

Buff Beige 825 - lighter medium with yellow undertone

I skipped the primer with this foundation since it supposedly doesn't need one in it.  After moisturizing my face I used two pumps, using a damp beauty blender I put on two thin layers over my entire face, and found that it builds very nicely without looking cakey.   The coverage is medium and easily buildable to full coverage with extra layers.  I set it with a light dusting of Revlon's Nearly Naked Powder in Light.

You can't see this in photographs but this foundation could really have used a good primer.  My skin has some drier patches as well as pretty large pores on my nose and the foundation emphasized the pores.  The staying power wasn't the problem, it was more the smooth canvas that a good primer provides that this foundation didn't quite negate the necessity of.

Freshly applied, very nice match for my NC25-NC30 skin

Matte finish without looking flat

During the day I kept an eye on how the foundation felt as my natural oils blended with it, and thought that it held up admirably well.  The areas right around the bottom of my nose and tops of my cheeks seemed to wear down first, but by the end of the day my face still looked quite flawless.    My T zone was not overly greasy and I'd say by the end of the day my skin had taken on a rather lovely luminosity.  It did become more settled into my pores as the day wore on, especially on my nose, and using a finger to blend out any minor creasing seemed to work pretty well.

It held up as well as Revlon Colorstay Whipped, Maybelline SuperStay 24hr, or Rimmel's 25 Hr foundations and has definitely become a favorite. I would recommend this to anyone with oily/combination skin who is looking for medium to full coverage that has some serious lasting power and doesn't feel or look heavy when applied.  This is what I wish the Kat Von D Lock It Tattoo foundation felt and looked like.

8hrs after application

Minimal wear down after 8 hrs

I think this foundation would work really well if you have normal/combination/oily skin, the mattifying properties might be too drying otherwise.  I highly recommend using a good primer so you are starting with a smooth base, and using either a damp Beauty Blender style sponge to stipple/bounce it against your skin to give you the best finish.  I tried it with fingers (cakey), a Real Techniques buffing brush and a Sigma F80 (emphasized pores) and the Beauty Blender did the best job.  Your mileage may vary.


What else I have on:

Eyes: UD Snakebite on the lid, Bare Minerals Ready The Star Treatment palette (peachy bronze shimmer in the crease, Wet n Wild's Brulee under the brow, Bobbi Brown Slate on the brows

Mascara:  Maybelline One by One Waterproof to set the curl, The Falsies to lengthen and volumize

Cheeks: Milani Luminoso blush, LORAC Spotlight highlighter, and NYX Matte Bronzer to contour

Lips:  Revlon Lip Butter in Peach Parfait


Packaging: A
Color Match: B+
Longevity: A
Finish: A

OVERALL GRADE: A

DISCLAIMER: I bought this with my own money and am not affiliated with Covergirl at all. All opinions are solely my own

ADDENDUM: I've been wearing this foundation exclusively for the last week and I can say emphatically that it is AMAZING. The finish stays flawless all day (with the use of a primer) and my skin just looks incredible. I've never gotten as many compliments on my skin as I have since I started using this foundation. I'd even say that it makes me look 10 years younger than I am (full disclosure - turning 40 in December). It is magical folks and has displaced Revlon Colorstay Whipped as my HG drugstore foundation. Do yourself a favor and try it. Buff beige is a teeny bit on the too light side for me but I think it is still a pretty good match when used with a touch of bronzer.

Adding a picture of a few different shades that are near to NC30 - hope this helps! They seem to be a peachy undertone so neither too pink or too yellow

After some trial and error, I think the best match I've found for my particular skin tone is the Medium Beige 842.