L'Oreal Infallible Eye Shadow Review

 One of the new drugstore products that has created a lot of buzz on the internet is the L'Oreal Infallible eye shadows. I've read a lot of really good reviews on these already, so I'm going to try and keep mine short and sweet. If you want to read a more detailed review, there's a really good one here.

I've gotten all of mine at CVS. In my town, they currently retail for $8.29.

Overall, I really like these shadows, and I think L'Oreal did a good job with the color range for this collection. It has a good mix of neutral and darker/brighter shades. They last well on me when I use a primer. I haven't tried them without just because I automatically use primer as part of my routine and don't feel the need to cut that step.

So far, I own Endless Pearl, Iced Latte, Amber Rush, and Eternal Sunshine.

Swatches done with one swipe using my fingers (no primer was used):

Endless Pearl and Iced Latte

Endless Pearl and Iced Latte

Eternal Sunshine and Amber Rush

Eternal Sunshine and Amber Rush

So far, the only shade that I'm not really happy with is Endless Pearl. Every time I've tried to use it, it has looked cakey and patchy. I haven't completely given up on it yet though, so if you have any tips for me, please feel free to share.

One thing that has been a bit of a learning curve with these is what to use to apply them. The flat shader brushes that I use most of the time don't seem to want to pick up these shadows. After doing some experimenting with the other brushes that I have, it seems that fluffier brushes with tapered bristles do a better job of picking up product with these. I have also had good results applying with my fingers and with sponge tip applicators (I knew there were a reason I kept those around).

Brushes like this did not work for me (sorry they are dirty):

The brush on the left is from Lumiere Cosmetics, but it is no longer on the site. The brush on the right is from Everyday Minerals, and it can be found here.

These brushes worked:

The brush on the left is from an Eco Tools brush set that I bought at Wal-Mart. You can see the set here (it apparently isn't carried everywhere, and I can't even find it on Eco Tools website). The other two brushes are from the Studio Tools line found at Target. The one on the left is the medium shadow brush, and the one on the right is the smudge brush. Please note: They have made changes in the Studio Tools brushes, so I don't know if these newer versions work the same as the ones I have.

If you haven't checked these out yet, I would highly recommend picking one up. If you have these already, how do you apply them? What works best for you?

Revlon PhotoReady Perfecting Primer

As someone who has struggled with acne and acne scarring, foundation has been an important part of my routine for a long time, but it's only been about a year that I've been trying out foundation primers. So far, I haven't really found one that has completely wowed me.

When I saw the Revlon PhotoReady Perfecting Primer in CVS, I figured it was worth a shot. It cost $13.29 and contains .91 oz of product.

Going off of first impressions, the packaging is nice. It is in a glass bottle with a pump, which I know a lot of people prefer. I would rather have a squeeze tube that makes it easier to get the last of the product out and to make it more travel friendly, but I don't hate the pump.

The pump itself does a good job of dispensing the right amount of product. One pump gives me what seems to be the right amount for covering my face. The feel of this primer is less slick than Smashbox's Photofinish primer  or Tarte's Clean Slate primer. It feels soft and a little powdery to me, and, thankfully, it doesn't have any of the shimmer associated with the PhotoReady line.

One pump of product.

Blended out.

 I don't notice a huge difference in pore size or in how my foundation applies after using this primer. It does, however, seem to add about an hour or so of extra wear to my foundation. I tested it on back-to-back days, going the first day without it and the next day with; I purposely checked the condition of my foundation right after work. On the day that I wore the primer, my skin was less oily and my foundation looked better overall.

When I first started testing this product, I was worried that it was breaking me out. I seemed to be getting a couple of pimples popping up every day I wore it, but after giving it a break for a few days and trying it again, I haven't noticed any extra breakouts from it.

Overall, I think this is a decent primer. Like the other primers I've tried, it hasn't wowed me. I doubt I will repurchase it because I want to keep looking for a primer that does really impress me, but I'm not annoyed that I spent the money on it. If you are looking for a drugstore primer, this one might be worth checking out.

Have you tried this primer yet? Do you plan on it? What are your favorite foundation primers?

L'Oreal Infallible Never Fail eye liner

I picked up the L'Oreal Infallible Never Fail eye liner in Navy last week to get to the $15 mark required for an ExtraBucks deal at CVS. I figured it was worth a shot since I only had one blue pencil liner that is brighter than I prefer for everyday looks. The full retail price for this liner was $9.79.

Claims/Features:

• Rich creme formula for smooth application
• Smudge-resistant, up to 16 hours
• Built-in sharpener and smudger
• Ophthalmologist tested
• Suitable for sensitive eyes and contact lens wearers

 I thought the smudger was interesting because it was rubbery instead of the typical sponge tip. I'm guessing that might make it more sanitary because bacteria can't build up in it, but that's just a guess. I would also assume that it would hold up better than the sponge-tip smudgers.

When I swatched this liner for the first time, I wasn't thrilled. It didn't swatch very well.

In the above picture, the top swatch is one swipe with the pencil. As you can see, there isn't a lot of color payoff, especially when you compare it with something like Urban Decay's 24/7 liner pencils. The second swatch is two swipes, and the third is multiple. The last swatch was lightly blended out with the smudger tip.

Note: I just swatched this liner again, and the color-payoff with one swipe is a lot better than the above picture, so it appears to have softened up a bit with some use.

Now on to the standard staying-power test. After letting the above swatches sit on my hand for a few minutes, I rubbed them with my fingers with a good amount of pressure and speed. Here are the results:

Not exactly outstanding results for something that claims to be smudge-resistant (notice that it doesn't claim to be smudge-PROOF).

On Monday, I wore this liner to work, and here's how it looked when I got home (sorry there isn't a before picture):

This picture was taken after about 9-10 hours of wear. I do still have color on the outer corner of my eye, which is good. That tends to be where liner disappears on me. However, you can see that it looks faded and the color has smudged down a little bit under my eyes. From a normal distance, this wouldn't be noticeable, so I was happy enough with it. If I were going out to dinner in the evening though, I would probably feel the need to do a quick touch-up before heading back out the door. While I can imagine that there would be a decent amount of product left at the 16-hour mark, I don't think it would hold up well enough to live up to its 16-hour claim.

Overall, I would say this is a decent liner. I will continue to use it because I do like the color of it, but I don't plan on repurchasing it. There are better liners out there. From my somewhat limited collection of pencil liners (I used to almost exclusively wet-line with eye shadows), I much prefer the Physician's Formula Shimmer Strips eye liner trios. They are more smudge-resistant and you can get a pack of three for about $1 more than I paid for the L'Oreal liner.

What are your favorite pencil liners? Have you tried these L'Oreal Infallible ones? What was your impression of them?

Maybelline Dream Lumi Touch Highlighting Concealer

I am constantly battling with dark under eye circles. Being fair, they tend to make me look like a zombie. Think I'm exaggerating?

Here's my eye area without makeup:

Zombie eye - Eeek!!!

Okay...maybe not quite a zombie, but I swear they are darker in real life.

I have been testing out the Maybelline Dream Lumi Touch Highlighting Concealer in Radiant to see if it can keep me from looking like I want to eat brains for lunch. 

Swatches: 

Heavy swatch on the right; Blended out on the left

Aside from offering Radiant, which is their peach correcting shade, this line also has 5 other shades that are more flesh toned. The name of this product implies that there might be shimmer in it, but, thankfully, I can't detect any shimmer at all.

Here's the results:

The only products I've applied here are my Revlon Photoready Perfecting Primer and the Maybelline Lumi concealer. It, of course, blends in a better around the edges once I apply foundation.

 This concealer is packaged in the click up brush applicator like the one used for Stila lip glazes.

I don't particularly care for this type of packaging. I find it harder to get the correct amount of product out, and it also tends to be packaging where you get less product. This particular concealer only comes with 1.5 mL/.05 oz of product. My Hard Candy Glamoflage concealer has .71 oz, and my Maybelline Super Stay Concealer comes with .18 oz. That's a pretty big difference in size, and I think (it's been a long time since I bought the Glamoflage or Super Stay concealers), that the Lumi concealer was the most expensive of the three.

As you can see from the pictures above, this concealer has a pretty thin consistency. It doesn't have completely opaque coverage, but I think it does a decent job of covering the circles under my eyes. I do get a little bit of settling into the fine lines under my eyes, but because the formula of this product is so thin, the settling isn't really obvious like it is with a thicker, creamier product.

I also get pretty good staying-power with this concealer. I still look human when I get home from an average work day. I would want to touch up under my eyes (and a little bit everywhere else) if I was doing something else in the evening because I wouldn't trust it to last all the way through, but it would probably make it through part of the evening as well.

Overall, I like this product enough to overlook my annoyance at the packaging, and I will probably end up repurchasing it when I run out unless I happen to run across something better before then.

Do you struggle with looking like a zombie? What helps make you look human again?

CVS Haul - Hooray for Coupons!

I had a bunch of CVS Extrabucks and a couple of other coupons burning a hole in my pocket, so I went in today and picked up:

Almay intense i-color shimmer-i kit for green eyes - original price: $8.29 - on sale for $5.99 with card
L'Oreal Infallible eye shadow in Eternal Sunshine - $8.29
L'Oreal Infallible eyeliner in Navy - $9.79 (Ouch! This was more expensive than I thought.)

My haul

I used the following coupons:
$3 off any Almay color cosmetics item
$13 in ExtraBucks
20% off my  entire purchase

With all of my discounts, I ended up paying a total of $6.33 today AND...

I also walked out of there with $8 in ExtraBucks ($3 for the Almay product and $5 for buying $15 in L'Oreal products).

Needless to say, I'm quite pleased with the results of my little shopping trip. Have you gotten any good deals lately?

Maybelline Dream Bouncy Blushes

When I first saw that Maybelline was coming out with a product called Dream Bouncy blush, I was intrigued. I wanted to know how a blush could be described as bouncy. It didn't help that I've been addicted to cream blushes over the past several months. When I happened to run across a display for these blushes before Christmas, one of them practically leaped (or should I say bounced?) into my hand. I've since gone on to pick up three more, so I now own Fresh Pink, Plum Wine, Pink Frosting, and Rose Petal.

Top row: Fresh Pink and Plum Wine / Bottom row: Rose Petal and Pink Frosting

While these aren't bouncy in the literal sense of the word, it still seems to be a fitting word to describe these blushes. They have a fascinating (at least for me) spongy, play-doh like texture that shifts around when I lightly press down on them, but they still mostly stick within their molded, dome shape. I will admit that I've had a bit too much fun poking at these blushes and watching them shift around in the pan, which you can see from the above pictures (note to self: take pictures BEFORE you start playing with the makeup).

I have applied these with both my fingers and a stippling brush. I prefer using my fingers, but the brush worked as well. They blend into the skin easily and smoothly with very little tugging on the skin. It's a nice cream-to-powder type of formulation that doesn't feel sticky/tacky while applying or after it has been applied.

Several reviews I have come across about these blushes complain about the lack of pigmentation of these and how sheer they are. I would agree on both counts; they aren't overly pigmented, and they go on quite sheer. For me, I consider that a positive thing. I usually have to be really careful when it comes to applying blushes because they are so pigmented. With the lighter shades of these blushes that I own (Fresh Pink and Rose Petal), it is pretty much impossible for me to over-apply. It also makes it possible for me to grab for the darker colors because I know I can blend them out and make them work.

Swatches:

Top row: Fresh Pink and Rose Petal / Bottom row: Pink Frosting and Plum Wine

Fresh Pink: heavy swatch and blended out

Rose Petal: heavy swatch, blended out, applied more heavily and blended

Pink Frosting: heavy swatch and blended out

Plum Wine: heavy swatch (sorry it is blurry) and blended out

 These blushes have good lasting power for me. I can apply them at around 7 a.m., and when I get home at 4 p.m., they still look pretty good. From the times that I was able to check, it looked like it was around 6-7 p.m. when it had faded enough that I would have felt the need to reapply. Every time I have applied them, it has been over a face primer, foundation, and powder. Most of the time I end up applying a little bit of powder on top as well, especially with the darker shades to help blend them out. I purposely went one day without applying powder on top, and it didn't seem to affect the lasting power. I would also like to note that I didn't use any blotting papers or powder during the day to touch-up.

Although I have been enjoying these, I had a minor issue last week when I tried Rose Petal for the first time. It is such a light color that even I had to pile it on a bit to get it to show up. When I looked closely in my mirror, the product had caked into my pores. Thankfully, I grabbed a kabuki brush to blend it out, and it was no longer an issue. I haven't noticed this with any of the other colors that I own. I also haven't noticed them settling into my pores throughout the day.

Bottom line: Would I recommend these blushes? If you like cream blushes, I say it is worth giving them a try. I would suggest starting with one blush though because I have read and seen a lot of mixed reviews on these, so you might not enjoy them like I do. Consider the depth of your skintone and pick a color accordingly. When in doubt, I would suggest grabbing a darker color. Even with my fair skin, I can wear Plum Wine with just a little bit of extra blending and a light dusting of a tinted powder on top.

Have you tried these yet? How would you describe the texture? Since I'm obsessed with cream blushes, what other ones should I add to my wishlist?

New Drugstore Products I'm Testing Out

There's been a lot of fun new beauty products showing up at the drugstore lately. Being the addict that I am, I haven't been able to resist. CVS isn't helping with good sales and giving me coupons and ExtraBucks to spend. I think the people who work at my CVS are going to start thinking I'm nuts because I've been going in there so often.

Here's a first look at the new products I'm testing out (all products were bought at CVS unless otherwise noted):

Revlon PhotoReady Perfecting Primer - $13.29

I've used this a couple of times. I like how it feels when I apply it. It feels soft, but it doesn't feel as slippery as Smashbox PhotoFinish primer or Tarte's Clean Slate primer. 



 

 Maybelline DreamLumi Touch Hightlighting Concealer - $8.29
Revlon PhodoReady Eye Primer + Brightener - $9.99(Note: The Maybelline one comes with 1.5 mL of product. The Revlon one has 2.4 mL.)

Drugstore brands seem to be figuring out that peach concealers are good for under the eyes. I'm currently on the hunt for a better under eye concealer, so I couldn't help but grab these.

Maybelline Dream Bouncy Blush - $8.29

The texture of these is really fun. It truly does feel bouncy.  The colors that I have are Fresh Pink and Plum Wine. Plum Wine looks scary in the pan, but it blends out nicely.

Maybelline Color Tattoo eye shadow - $5.84 (at WalMart)

I have these in Bad to the Bronze and Tough as Taupe. When I took these pictures, I noticed that Tough as Taupe appears to have a lot more product in the jar that Bad to the Bronze. Has anyone else noticed this with the ones that they've picked up?

L'Oreal Infallible eye shadow - $8.29

From left to right: Endless Pearl, Iced Latte, Amber Rush


 These are an interesting hybrid of a powder and a cream shadow. So far, I'm not impressed with Endless Pearl. It applies patchy compared with the other two.

Maybelline Super Stay 10 Hour Stain Gloss - $6.94 (at WalMart)

I picked this up in Mauve Dream.

I've only tried this once, and I haven't tested the 10 hour claim yet. I will say that the smell is a bit odd. It is like a cross between fruit punch and cherry cough syrup. Those who are sensitive to smells might want to avoid this product.

Is there anything that you would like to see an extended review on? What new products for 2012 have caught your eye? I have $9 in ExtraBucks for CVS. What should I pick up with it? I'm going to try and make it my last purchase for a while. I've clearly been on a spending binge lately.