Jane Blush in Berry Bouquet - Review and Swatches

Disclaimer: All products mentioned in this post were purchased by me. All opinions are my own.

I'm spending a Sunday afternoon trying to get some blog posts scheduled while watching a Harry Potter marathon on TV. Does anyone else watch movies on TV that they already own? It seems silly to me, but I do it anyway. Most of the time I do it when I'm just looking for something to have on as background noise.

I've been enjoying trying out products from the relaunched brand Jane Cosmetics. I haven't tried a lot yet, but I have other items on my wishlist for the next time I'm shopping at Ulta and  they are on sale.

One of the products I've been testing out is their Multi-Colored Cheek Powder in Berry Bouquet.

Price: $12

Packaging

The compact is a basic black with a clear window. It is serviceable without a lot of bulk or frills, which I like. When purchased, it comes with a cardboard band with bright and colorful pictures, but that obviously gets thrown away. The flower pattern on the product itself is eye-catching and pretty.

Product

This berry shade is exactly that, a bright berry color with a matte finish. The swatch above is all of the colors mixed together. After some experimenting, I have decided that I prefer avoiding the deepest shade in the blush when I use it. The difference doesn't show up very much when I swatch it, but I notice the difference more on my cheeks. The powder feels smooth and not overly dry and blends nicely on the skin. It lasts well on my skin, making it through a workday without problem.

Final Thoughts 

I like this blush, but at the same time, it doesn't wow me either. It's a little pricey for a drugstore brand as well. I wouldn't have purchased it at regular price; I picked it up on sale. There are only two other colors in the range, and the colors aren't of interest to me, so I won't be picking those up.

Have you tried the new Jane blushes or other products in the range?

Disclaimer: All products mentioned in this post were purchased by me. All opinions are my own.

Surprise Love! Physicians Formula Nude Wear Blush in Natural - Review and Swatches

Disclaimer: All products mentioned in this post were purchased by me. All opinions are my own. 

I usually like products from Physicians Formula, and when there is a good sale on the brand at CVS, I usually can't resist picking something up. It's rare for me to discover a product from them that I'm really excited about though.

I've already posted about picking up a blush and bronzer from their new Nude Wear line when I was able to get them for a fantastic price.

Price: $12.95 on Physicians Formula's website; I got mine for much cheaper at CVS with a sale and coupons.

Packaging

Just like pretty much everyone else out there who buys Physicians Formula, I have a love-hate relationship with their packaging. Their packaging is usually really cute, and this line is no exception. I love how girly it is with the pale pink and the metallic bow.

Just like every other Physicians Formula powder product though, the packaging is really bulky so they can include their terrible, scratchy brush. I would so much rather they skipped the brush (and even the mirror) and made the packaging half the thickness. I don't expect that to happen though, and it is just something that has to be expected with the brand.

Product

A shimmery over-spray is another one of Physicians Formula's quirks, so if you aren't familiar with the brand and are hoping that shimmer runs throughout, you are out of luck. If you don't like the shimmer, don't worry. It is gone after one use.

The four tones of the Nude Wear Blush in Natural combine to make a soft pink with just a little bit of sheen. It feels smooth to the touch and blends easily onto the skin.

It honestly doesn't look like anything special, so what makes me love it? There are two things. The first is that the color is practically impossible for me to over-apply, which is a near miracle on my fair skin. The second is that it lasts all day on me. I'm talking 12+ hour wear time here. Those two things combined is probably going to make this a blush I'll reach for regularly.

Final Thoughts

I'm obviously really happy that I purchased this blush. If you have fair to light skin and are looking for and easy-to-apply blush, keep an eye out for sales and give this one a go. I have a feeling this shade might start to look a little bit ashy on medium to dark skintones, but that is obviously just a guess on my part.

Have you tried any products from the Nude Wear line? Have you had any products that surprised you with how much you like them?

Disclaimer: All products mentioned in this post were purchased by me. All opinions are my own. 

Be a Bombshell Blush and Eye Shadows - Review and Swatches

Disclaimer: The products mentioned in this post were prizes that I received from a blog giveaway. I was not required to write a review, and I have no affiliation with the company. All opinions are my own. 

Over the summer, I was a very lucky lady, and I won a giveaway hosted by Valentine Kisses for six full size items from the brand Be a Bombshell Cosmetics. I think I had seem this brand mentioned a couple of time before then, but I didn't know much about it. According to their website, they are cruelty-free. If you have heard something different, please let me know.

Today I've got one blush and two eye shadows that I'm finally going to review.

Price: Blush - $16; eye shadow - $14 each

Packaging

There's not really much to say about the packaging. It is pretty standard with a matte black case and a clear window on top. It's functional and isn't overly bulky. I will say that I do like their brand logo on the top. I find it cute.

Product

Be a Bombshell Blush in Raspberry Tart

The blush that I was lucky enough to win is called Raspberry Tart. It's a pretty deep pink that leans just a little coral. It has a little bit of shimmer and sheen, but it isn't excessively shimmery or shiny. It just adds a little bit of glow to the color.

Be a Bombshell eye shadow in Bright Eyes

The first eye shadow that I received was Bright Eyes. I think this shade is relatively unique in my collection. It is a gold, but it has a somewhat strong green undertone. It is a shimmery shade with some gold glitter in it, that, unfortunately, doesn't show up in my picture.

Be a Bombshell eye shadow in Starstruck

The second eye shadow shade in my prize pack was Starstruck, which is a warm leaning purple with rainbow shimmer. It plays right in to the Pantone's Color of the Year, Radiant Orchid. I even happened to pick up a paint swatch of the shade, so I could compare the two.

Both colors pulled more blue in this picture than they are in real life, but you can see that they are pretty close in color.

Swatches:

From left to right: Raspberry Tart, Bright Eyes, and Starstruck

How do these product perform?

The blush is finely milled and blends easily. It lasts well throughout the workday, but it is something that I would probably end up wanting to touch up if I had to head back out in the evening. I like the color because it is slightly outside of my pink comfort zone, but it is still pink enough that I'll still grab for it on a normal day.

The eye shadows are also finely milled. They don't feel as creamy as other shadows on the market, but it isn't something I notice on application since they apply smoothly. I mentioned earlier that Bright Eyes has glitter in it, but that glitter doesn't really transfer to the eyes or, thankfully, to the face. I'll maybe see a fleck or two, but it isn't a glitter bomb that is going to leave you covered in gold glitter. Both shadows wear well over primer (the only way I wear shadows) and last all day.

Final Thoughts

I like these products from Be a Bombshell. They are good quality. I'm glad I got to try them out. Will I buy more of the brand? Maybe. I'm a sucker for sales and deals, and I rarely buy anything at full price. I can't see myself paying $16 or $14 respectively for these products (I've never paid full price for an Urban Decay shadow either). The brand does occasionally run some awesome sales, including 50% off (they did one for Black Friday and another one for Valentine's Day). If something catches my eye, I might grab it during one of those, but my wishlist for products from other brands is so long that I don't see it happening any time soon.

Have you tried anything from Be a Bombshell? Are you a sale-fiend like me who rarely pays full price for makeup?

Disclaimer: The products mentioned in this post were prizes that I received from a blog giveaway. I was not required to write a review, and I have no affiliation with the company. All opinions are my own. 

Silk Naturals Valentine's Day Collection Haul and Swatches

Disclaimer: The products mentioned in this post were purchased using a gift card from a giveaway and with my own money. I have no affiliation with Silk Naturals, and all opinions are my own.

I know I've mentioned the brand Silk Naturals quite a few times here on my blog, but I still like I haven't given the brand enough love here. I've been buying from them since the summer of 2009, and I almost always do a haul whenever they release a new collection. Sadly, whenever I start editing my pictures to do a post, my pictures just feel so flat. They never seem to do the colors justice, so I never end up posting them. I'm working on it though and hope to go back and post more pictures from my eye shadow collection in the future.

Recently, I got an email from Makeup Detox saying I won her giveaway for a $20 gift card for Silk Naturals, and I was thrilled. The fact that I got my code on the same day that Silk Naturals released their Valentine's Day collection was just the icing on the cake.

Here's a look at what I got:

This is my whole haul, minus a few skincare samples a friend asked me to pick up for her. I'll also point out here that there was a mistake with my order. The little pods on the right are concealer samples, and I had ordered full sizes. I sent a message to Silk Naturals right away letting them know. They got back to me within about 30 minutes. That was on a Monday, and I had my full size concealers in my hands by Thursday (along with three extra gift with purchase shadows). Silk Naturals has amazing customer service!

Now for a close up look at each item.

HD Cream Blush in Dollface - $4.50

Dollface is a gorgeous rosy pink with lots of gold shimmer. The formula is soft and creamy. I prefer to apply this by brushing a small duo-fiber brush over the top of the tube and then blending it on my cheeks. I haven't tested longevity yet.

HD Peach Concealers - $0.99 for a sample pod and $5.50 for a full size

I'm always on the hunt for the perfect concealer to hide the dark circles under my eyes, so I was thrilled to see Karen release these concealers. I wasn't sure which shade to choose, so I chose the lightest two. As I already mentioned, I ordered the full size, but I was originally sent sample pods, which works out well since I can show was the samples look like. The full size comes in the same slimline tube as the cream blush. I've only tried each shade once, so I'll have to follow up with a review later.

Eye Shadows in Touch, Kismet, and Rendezvous - $4.50 each

From left to right: Touch, Kismet, and Rendezvous

From left to right: Touch, Kismet, and Rendezvous

From left to right: Touch, Kismet, and Rendezvous

I have a serious weakness for eye shadows from Silk Naturals, so I couldn't stop myself from picking up the three new shades they released. Touch is a pale yellow gold shimmery shade. Kismet is a medium grey with purple undertones, and Rendezvous is a deep matte purple. This trio actually works beautifully together. I was also pretty surprised by how much I like Rendezvous. Darker crease shades intimidate me, so I was a little worried. It applied nicely and blended like a dream, so it wasn't overpowering on my fair skin.

Slick Stick in La-Dee-Da - $4.50

I'm not a lipstick person, so while I've tried a few lip colors from Silk Naturals, most of the time, I pass them up. The color La-Dee-Da was just too interesting to pass up though. I liked that the color was a sheer plum shade, and the green shimmer adds an unusual touch.

Products not Pictured in Detail

If you kept track from the original picture, you'll notice that there were a few items that I haven't shown up close yet, and I'm not going to in this post (it's long enough as it is). On the far left was the weekly gift with purchase shade, so it isn't available anymore. The two jars in the middle are samples of the Medium Sleep in a Jar and the relatively new Cloud powder. I find the Sleep in a Jar a bit drying, and the Cloud powder is supposed to help retain moisture, so I want to try mixing them. Then on the far right is a mini sample of the eye shadow Mousse (they always include a sample like this in every order).

That's my haul! Did anything in particular catch your eye? Did you pick anything up yourself?

Disclaimer: The products mentioned in this post were purchased using a gift card from a giveaway and with my own money. I have no affiliation with Silk Naturals, and all opinions are my own.

Tarte Amazonian Clay Blushes in Flush (New Version) and True Love - First Look

Disclaimer: All products mentioned in this post were purchased by me. All opinions are my own.

I was so excited last weekend when I found out that Ulta was having a 20% off sale. It seems like these are becoming more frequent, which is fantastic. I love them even more when they happen to coincide with Ulta Rewards bonus points offers. I plan on hoarding all of my points for the holiday season so I can get a bunch of products for free!

My order came in yesterday, and I was able to take pictures this afternoon. I plan on waiting to post about most of the items in my order until I've had a real chance to try them out, but I wanted to get some swatches up today because I haven't been able to find any yet.

I picked up the new Tarte Amazonian Clay 12-Hour Blushes in Flush and True Love. I skipped out on the third new color, Fearless, because I already have a blush by Tarte with that name from a QVC set, and I assumed they were the same (apparently, they are not).

Price: $25 each

Packaging

The first thing I noticed when I opened my box from Ulta and looked at my beautiful new blushes was that Tarte has changed the packaging on their blushes. I don't know if the packaging will change on all of their blushes or not. I personally prefer the old design with the raised floral pattern around the word Tarte, but the change isn't huge, so I don't mind it.

Inside the blush, the compact looks like the old ones. 

Flush

Just like most of the Amazonian clay blushes, Flush is matte. Tarte describes this shade as a pink berry, which is accurate to my eyes.

Here's a picture comparing the new version of Flush with the old version. If you like the look of the old version and don't already own it, you can get it along with a cream shadow and a shadow brush for $19 here. Considering the blush itself retails for $25, this is a fantastic value. I don't know how long it will stick around, so I would suggest grabbing it quickly.

The first swatch picture is the new version of Blush by itself. The second one shows the difference between the new one and the old. The third picture compares the new Amazonian clay version with the old formulation of Flush cheek stain. The new version of the powder blush is much closer in color to the cheek stain. It's a little more pink than berry though.

True Love 

 

 Tarte describes True Love as a watermelon shade, which seems accurate as it is a pink with a hint of coral. Just like Flush, it is matte. 

 Just like with the new version of Flush, I happened to have the cheek stain in the same shade (still the old cheek stain formula). As you can see in the picture, the colors are nearly identical.

First Impressions

Since I haven't actually tried these on my cheeks yet, I can't give an official review. However, I do love the Tarte Amazonian Clay 12-Hour Blushes in general, so I expect that I will enjoy these as well. I'm also really excited about the colors. The new version of Flush seems like it is going to be a great shade for fair-skinned girls like me. Most of Tarte's blushes are really bright, so adding another more subtle blush to the line was smart. 

Will you be picking up any of the new colors?

Disclaimer: All products mentioned in this post were purchased by me. All opinions are my own.

Products I Want to Use Up - 2014

Disclaimer: All of the products mentioned in this post were purchased by me. All opinions are my own. 

Last year I did a couple of posts about products I wanted to use up. It went okay. Looking back, I thought I had done more updates than I actually did.

I'm going to try it again this year.

When I went through and picked out the products that I plan on working on, there were a couple of things I looked at. Some of the products were chosen because they are products in which I've already made a big dent. I also chose products that were getting old.

Another motivation for doing this is to get rid of some of the products I own that aren't cruelty-free.

Tarte Amazonian Clay Full Coverage Balancing Foundation in Fair - I've had this for a really long time, and you can see in the picture that I've used a lot of it, so I'd like to go ahead a finish this off.

Nars Sheer Matte in Siberia - This foundation is in the same boat. I've had it for a while, and it is about half gone, so I want to try and finish this one too. I know using up both will take a while.

Hourglass Mineral Veil Primer - I have several full-sized primers in my collection, so I decided to use up all of my mini sizes. This is the last mini size that I have. It's hard to see in the picture, but it is about half gone already.
 

Benefit Erase Paste in Fair - Benefit isn't a cruelty-free company, so I'd like to get this gone. I would guess I have about a third of this left.

Tarte Park Ave Princess Bronzer - I have a lot of bronzers, so I'm taking the same approach that I took with my primers. I'm using up my mini ones first. I'm just about to hit pan on this one.

Hard Candy Concealer Pencil - This little pencil came with the Glamoflage Concealer, which I threw out a long time ago. I've been using this to clean up the edges of my lips. I can't sharpen it anymore, so it should be finished in the next week or so.

Urban Decay 24/7 Concealer Pencil in CIA - I've had this for a long time, and it seems like it is drying out a little bit. It's crumbled a couple of times when I've tried to sharpen it. I've really like it though, and I might repurchase it once I work through some other concealers first.

Too Faced Wrinkle Injection Extreme Wrinkle Filler - I got this in a swap a long time ago, and I tend to forget to use it.

Milani Eye Shadow in French Vanilla (largest pan) - I need to work my way through my extra matte browbone shades. Wet n Wild's Brulee is my absolute favorite, so I'd like to clear the clutter and stick with that one in the future.

ELF Shadow from the Day to Night Palette (triangular pan) - I pulled this out as a shadow to use up a while ago because the pan is relatively small. It's a cream with gold shimmer that I can use on the inner corners of my eyes nearly every day.

Everyday Minerals Eye Shadow in Funnel Cake (darker brown) - I have a ton of mineral eye shadows that I've pressed, and I don't use them often enough. I pulled this out because it is an easy crease shade. It does have some shimmer, but it doesn't show when applied.

Everyday Minerals Eye Shadow in Driftwood (lighter brown) - Another pressed mineral eye shadow. Again, I chose it because it is an easy color to use.

Stila Lip Glaze in Splendor - I was really sad when it came out that Stila is no longer cruelty-free. This is an easy gloss to throw on, so I hope I can finish it relatively quickly.

Chapstick Lip Balm in Cake Batter - Chapstick isn't cruelty-free either, so this will be living in my pants pockets until it is gone. I have another Chapstick balm to go through after this one.

Tarte fRxtion Lip Scrub and Balm - Another old product. The darker side is the sugar scrub, and the white side is the balm. I have a feeling this will break off before I can finish it.

Silk Naturals Blush Samples in Candie and Tart Light - I have a lot of mineral blush samples sitting around, so I pulled out a couple to work on. 

Tarte Double-Ended Lip Liner - I got this at the same time that I got the lip scrub. The colors are okay, but I'm much more likely to swipe on a balm or gloss.

Stila Smudgestick Eye Liners - Again, with Stila's change in cruelty-free status, I'd like to clear out what I can. Eye liners are easier to go through than powder products, and these colors are pretty easy to wear, so I'm going to try and wear them as much as possible to finish them off.

Urban Decay 24/7 Liner Pencils in Whiskey and Rockstar - It should be pretty obvious why these made the list. They are nearly gone to begin with, so I might as well use them up.

Those are all the things that I specifically pulled to use up. I've already mentioned that I'm working on my stash of lotions too. I didn't add in any pictures of them because I'm going through them relatively quickly using them twice a day on my arms and legs.

Are you trying to use anything up in the new year?

Disclaimer: All of the products mentioned in this post were purchased by me. All opinions are my own.