Nail Mail: More MoYou Plates!!!

I think these plates are really works of art.... I don't think I can manage the shirt images though, they're just too wide.

I just wish I had more time, I haven't stamped or even looked at nail polish in a long time!

These are marked with the brand on the back, the others I bought weren't.

I even have the perfect size box to store these: 

But Hakuhodo hasn't sent boxes with my past few orders, only a cardboard insert.  :( 

Rimmel Glam'Eyes Eyeshadow: True Union Jack

I got this on a whim several months back.....have you ever been to the store, and there was really nothing to buy, but you don't want to waste a trip? Well that's what I did, and it didn't turn out too well- this is not a very good eyeshadow, even for drugstore stuff. Texture was nice, but pigmentation was really lacking, and it was frustrating to dig for the blue shades- I had to either use the little sponge that came with it, or a big liner brush, and it just wasn't worth the trouble since they seemed to be even worse performers than the pink and silver. Even with a primer they wore off pretty quickly.

Did anyone else try these??

Spotted: Lush Christmas

Lush is having Halloween and Christmas stuff out... At the same time.

I only bought this- I tried the Santa lip scrub but it was too too sweet for me.

Maybelline Color Show Eyeliner: Black Gold

I always find it interesting when the same brand has different products in about every country it's in. I was looking for a Maybelline gel liner in the color "black gold", but I ended up finding this. It says "made in Brazil" and I can't find it on any of the Maybelline sites, but I think it's Italian. Anyway, it's a pencil eyeliner, and its really a nice shade- it's like a blackened antique golden olive. At many angles, it looks mostly olive. It's a lot softer than the pencil liners I've used, and that's great for me, I have no problems using it on my upper lash line. It doesn't say anything about being waterproof, so it washes off easily, but it doesn't smudge off once it dries down a bit.

Did anybody else try this??

Too Faced Lip Insurance Primer: My Experience

So since I've bought so many new lipsticks, I notice that they all tend to feather after some time, especially on my lower lip. I wanted something to prevent that, and I haven't had much success with lip balm type primers, so I gave this a try.

I have been using it consistently since the beginning of the month, and it mattifies every single lipstick I've used it with. It doesn't intensify the color, it doesn't make it last longer, it just completely parches my lips. It does, however, eliminate the feathering. It did not work for me with any gloss or balm, not the twist up revlon thing either- it just totally pilled up, like what happens with smashbox face primers for some people, myself included.  As far as 'smoothing', it appears to do that too, because it creates a thin layer between lips and lipstick.  But every time I've worn this, I have to really scrub my lips because its such an unpleasant, uncomfortable feeling to feel so dry and chapped.   But just to clarify, it doesn't make my lips look cracked or peeled, it's just the feeling of it that bothers me.

I've used this for hours at a time, and if you can tolerate it, it's worth it to use for an event where you will be photographed a lot, or anytime you don't want to risk your lipstick wearing off. But I'm looking elsewhere for a lip primer that doesn't make my lips feel so bad.

Essence I Love Rock Gloss Eye Pencil

This is a standard pencil eyeliner.  I've been using it a lot in the past couple of weeks, and it's not too bad.  It's really soft though, and I had some issues with smearing-it's not very water/heat proof.

It's hard to show up in the photos, but it is really a glossy pencil.  I'm showing it on the left, next to a regular black eyeliner; I think the glossiness can be seen here: 

LEFT: Essence

Overall, I think it's a nice eyeliner as long as you don't have high expectations. I prefer the waterproof ones though.  

Elf Lustrous Eyeshadows: Festivity, Gala

I've been meaning to write about these for a while, but I wanted to make sure I tested them thoroughly.....they're almost too good to be true!!

This is how spongey they are: 

This is how it held up after all day, and right after a quick gym shower: 

I didn't want to do anything too much because I thought at any minute it would start creasing and fading, but it never did. Ive worn these with powder eyeshadows, using these as the lid color, and no problem getting the powder ones to blend in. The texture is really nice, I thought I would need a lot of product but I really didn't- a little more than a powder shadow, that's all.  And no fall out, seriously, I love these!!! These are going to make it into my top products of the year, for sure.  My only suggestion would be to buy these before splurging on the Dior one (like I did!) which costs 10 times more.  

Essence Lipstick "All About Cupcake"

I didn't really like this lipstick, a little balmy but kind of greasy feeling. It's a light shade but it doesn't have much pigmentation either, it basically comes right off. It also has a highly perfumed/synthetic taste which was unpleasant to me. Bad packaging but that was to be expected from such a low price. I've found a few great lipsticks recently, and I do like a lot of Essence products but I would not repurchase lipstick from this brand.

Holika Holika Jewel-light Eyeliner #15

This is Burgundy Garnet, #15. This is an amazing eyeliner, I wish they had nude matte and I'd be set!

In case you're wondering what the blob is to the right of it.... I thought it was similar to L'Oreal Burning Black eyeshadow...

It's not, but I love the colour anyway! 

Now when I they say waterproof, they mean it!! This is what was left after makeup remover: 

Definitely have to use oil to remove this!! 

Maybelline Colorsensational Lipsticks: Feel Pink, Hollywood Red, NeonRed, Pink Punch

I ordered these from a UK seller since I was getting some Bourjois stuff anyway- the prices, even shipping, were really low!

I like the texture and pigmentation of these a lot! I hadnt seen these in the store, I think they are UK shades, so Hollywood Red was a gamble....but I love it! It's not primary color red, but so much more wearable for me as is. Pink Punch, not so much.... That shade is so bright and vibrant that I had to take most of it off, so now I apply it with a brush, and it stains so no problem wearing it that way. Feel Pink is an awesome everyday shade, I can see myself using that up completely- not good if I want to repurchase though, as I can't seem to find it anywhere on the Maybelline sites!

Next I want to get the Color Elixirs and the Colorsensational Pearls!

FEEL PINK 

HOLLYWOOD RED 

NEON RED, PINK PUNCH 

And this is everything I got: 

Inglot Single Blush Palette

I have three Inglot blushes, but only two were in palettes (with other products, not alone). I was going to buy the four pan blush palette and another blush, but then I saw this single one. It's ok but the brush is (as expected) quite rough, and the palette is so bulky for just blush. It does have a mirror in it though, and its the only Inglot palette I have that does. I think I will buy the big blush palette at some point though.

Some photos:

Besides this and the single one, this is their only just blush palette: 

Brushes: My Inventory and Clearout (Text Heavvvy!)

I have been working on this for the past week, and I know there's no way I can review or even photograph every brush I own- I keep recounting but it's somewhere about 170 brushes. I don't even know if that's a normal amount- or too many, too few??? I have no idea.  I've gotten rid of at least 20 in the past year or so, but I've purchased a lot as well. I'm just going to list them, it's not like I expect anybody to read all of this but maybe a search by name will help if anyone is interested in something specific, I can do a more thorough post on it.

Nars:
2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 21, 28
Botan, Yachiyo, Lip Yachiyo

Bdellium Tools:
365, 540, 731, 763, 777, 787, 955, 957

Sigma:
E05, E10, E20, E45, F80, F82, and some in a set

MAC:
128, 159, 179, 187
217, 219, 226, 228, 234, 235, 239, 266, 272, 286

Trish McEvoy:
29, 48, 50, 65, 66

Sonia Kashuk (none of mine have names or numbers!):
Blush
Lash comb
Stippling
XL eyeliner
Retractable dual eye
Angled contour
Bent eyeliner
Pointed
Tiny smudge
Eyeshadow
Wood handle large eyeshadow
Concealer
Brow
Pointed eyeliner
Angled eyeshadow
Flat top synthetic

Chanel: 2, 11, 12

Laura Mercier:
Cheek
Smudge
Fan Powder
Brow/Spoolie

Hakuhodo:
210
Kokutan SG
B162BkSL
B214BkSL
G545
G5520BkSL
G5521
G5554
J214
J214R
J242H
J5523
J5529
K002
K007
K019
S113
S133
S142
601

Koyudo:
Fu-pa 10
Fu-pa 11
C003
BP014
BP023

Hourglass: 2, 3, 5, Ambient powder brush - these are my favorite synthetic brushes so far! Made and perform extremely well.

Napoleon Perdis: br8, 8a, 19b

Illamasqua: Blush-up, Highlighter, eyeshadow shader, blender

That's it for the brands I have a few of, the rest of them I only have one or two of each brand. Some I'm not listing cause either they're small (lips, brow) or else ones I think I'm just going to get rid of anyway. The worst offender is the Guerlain Meteorites brush, quite possibly the worst brush I've ever owned, a real tragedy that does not reflect on Meteorites product at all.

Inglot: 13P, 80 HP

Le Métier de Beaute Powder
Too Faced Retractable Kabuki
Shu Uemura 18r
Shiseido 131
Body Shop Blusher
MUFE 132
Dior eyes, lips, concealer
Mirabella flat foundation, face blender
Chantecaille eyeshadow
Royal & Langnickel "Smudger"- why its called this I don't know, it's a large crease/blending
Smashbox 30, 32 (undecided if I will keep)
Posh crease, larger crease (sentiment- two of the first non-branded brushes I loved a lot!)

These are the ones I immediately decided to get rid of- they're all either old, crappy, or I just don't use them. Some of them I never used, actually.  Maybe somebody would like to have these, but I'm not sure who.  I will probably get rid of more, but this is a good first step, about 20.

The brushes I use the most are MAC 187 and all the dupes of it- The Bdellium one was really nice, but the wood cracked a little bit and it's not got much life left.  I like the Sonia Kashuk one a lot, and I don't think I have another high end brush of that type.  The next most used for me is eyeshadow, just a basic one like a 239, I have tons of those thankfully so not one gets used up all the time.  There are other brushes I 'need' and use a lot, but those are my top two most used. 

I do have a (kinda) small brush wishlist still, but I've learned (the hard way, obviously!) that its much better to be selective, since good brushes will last a lot longer as well. I have a few that I want based on type, others based on brand. Some brands I've had a really hard time tracking down, and I'm not too keen on spending $80 plus shipping on a brush I've never seen from a company I've never tried.

The other piece of advice I wish I wouldn't have listed to, is painting clear varnish on MAC brush numbers.  1, it looks really tacky, and 2, it doesn't even work because eventually it will chip off too, and when it does, the lettering goes right along with it.