Nars Foreplay cheek blush palette 2012 REVIEW and swatches

Nars comes out with a couple of limited edition palettes every year and I happened to skip last years because I bought a bunch of other blushes around the same time. I also didn't like the color combinations too much. This year, Nars came out with Foreplay Cheek Palette and I love the colors. I prefer more matte colors rather than the shimmery or sparkly ones that were in last year's Danmari palette. This year includes two matte blushes, one shimmery one (Orgasm), and a highlight color. The light shimmer in the Orgasm blush allows you to create different combinations with the other two matte blushes! See below for swatches and comparisons.

Nars Cheek Palette in Foreplay, 0.36 oz/10g, $49, sephora.com (exclusive)

As you can see, Nars Foreplay palette comes in their signature black case with a mirror.

Foreplay has four separated blushes/highlight, which makes it easy to keep the colors apart.

top left: peach matte blush

bottom left: bright pink matte blush

top right: gold shimmery highlight

bottom right: Orgasm blush (pinky peach shimmer)

Hand swatches

Sinful Colors line up July 2012 Swatches and REVIEW

Sinful Colors nail polishes are on sale this week at Walgreens for $0.99. They usually sell for $1.99 so if you have your eye on some shades, pick them up asap! There are a ton of "collections" that came out recently, though most of them were colors we have seen in previous collections. Study in Style came out recently- see my review on two of the polishes here.
I have decided to do a swatch of all the ones I currently love from Sinful Colors. Hope these will help you decide whether you want to go out and look for them. Some of these were limited edition, but I was still able to find them randomly in the stands.

 left to right: Bare (LE) and Be Happy, two coats each

Stila Stay All Day Liquid Lipstick in Carina, Bellissima, and Dolce REVIEW and swatches

After seeing Sephora's offer to give one of Stila's Stay All Day liquid lipstick for free with purchase, I tried to place an order asap. Within hours both shades (Dolce and Tesoro) was gone. So when they finally became available on Sephora's website for purchase, I ordered right away to try. There are some pros and cons, which I will list below along with swatches! Hope this will help you decide whether to purchase one for yourself.

 Stila Stay All Day Liquid Lipstick in (left to right): Dolce, Bellissima, and Carina

0.1 fl oz/ 3ml, $22

All of Stila's Stay All Day liquid lipsticks have this doe foot applicator that is very flimsy and soft. 

 Bare lips for comparison

Givenchy Noir Couture 4-in-1 Mascara REVIEW and swatches

I was very intrigued by the Givenchy Noir Couture Mascara when I first heard about it on Sephora. I really like the sleek packaging and the unique brush. I was even more interested in the 4-in-1 feature: volume, length, curl and care. So I purchased the Black Satin shade first chance I get from Sephora.

Givenchy Noir Couture, 8g/0.28oz, $32
in Black Satin.
Available at www.sephora.com late July and in Sephora stores in August.

A closer look at the brush. Triple Sphere Wand.

Similar to the "sphere" wand on Givenchy's Phenomen'Eyes Mascara, Noir Couture has three of these for faster application, but still giving the option of reaching the corners of your eyes.

Milani Color Play Felt-tip Liquid Pen in Black line REVIEW and swatch and comparison to ELF and Lancome Artliner

Strolling through Walgreens today, I saw the Milani Color Play Felt-tip Liquid Pen display. As mentioned in Nouveau Cheap's blog, the collection is limited edition and will be sold at select Walgreens and Fred Meyer stores this month as well as online at Milani.

According to the press release from Milani, these pens can be used on the eyes, face, or body. Milani also advertises that these are "fine felt-tip point for easy application. They are water-resistant & long lasting." The Color Play pen comes in 6 colors: black, blue, green, grey, white, and pink. I chose to stick with the tradition shade of black.

Milani Color Play Felt-Tip Liquid Pen in Black line, .59ml/0.02 fl oz, $6.99 

Comparisons with other felt liners:

 Black liquid liners, left to right: ELF waterproof eyeliner pen, Milani Color Play, Lancome Artliner

Top row is thin lined, bottom is thick lined.

Left to right:  ELF waterproof eyeliner pen, Milani Color Play, Lancome Artliner

Revlon Super Lustrous Lipgloss in Coral Reef, Pop Pink, and Peach Petal

I love Revlon Super Lustrous Lipglosses and I decided to show you my top three favorites in this blog. There is also a 40% off sale on all Revlon cosmetics and tools this week (7/15/12 - 7/21/12) at RiteAid so I wanted to get this out as soon as possible in case this helps you choose a color! See my other Revlon product reviews and swatches if you need more inspiration :)  Revlon Balm Stains and Revlon Colorstay Whipped creme Foundation

Time for Review and Swatches:

Revlon Super Lustrous lipgloss in (left to right): Coral Reef, Pink Pop, and Peach Petal

5.9ml/0.2 fl. oz, $7

Each tube of lipgloss comes with a doe foot applicator. Also notice the fancy gold hardware on the top of the lipgloss. So elegant and pretty!

Bare lips for comparison

Revlon Colorstay Whipped creme foundation REVIEW and Swatch

When it comes to foundation, I prefer mineral or powder rather than liquid. I just don't like that heavy feeling on my skin. On top of that, my skin is combination normal-oily so I would get quite shiny near my tzone by the time half the day has gone by. Seeing that Revlon has come out with a 24 hour, whipped creme foundation, I decided that this might be worth a shot. I waited for a sale and I got it! RiteAid is having a 40% off all Revlon cosmetics and tools this week (7/15- 7/21) so take advantage of it! I also have other Revlon products swatched and reviewed so check them out to help select your Revlon goodies: Kissable Balm Stains and Super Lustrous Lipgloss

On with the review! I got the whipped creme foundation in #250 Medium Beige. I am a NC 30-35 for reference.

 Revlon Colorstay Whipped creme foundation, 23.7ml/0.8 fl oz, $14

 Once you screw off the top plastic black lid, you come to a white plastic cover. Upon lifting the white cover, you see the liquid whipped cream in a glass container. The glass container is fairly heavy.

Sinful Colors Study in Style: Leap Flog and Winterberry REVIEW and swatches

Good news, everyone! If you have been trying to get your hands on the Winterberry shade from Sinful Colors the last time it was released in Fall 2011, it is now back in the Study in Style collection. In fact, most of the Study in Style collection are repeats of previous colors with the exception of one shade: Leap Flog. Yep, Leap Flog, didn't spell that wrong :)
I chose to purchase Leap Flog and Winterberry in this collection- see below for swatches and review.

Sinful Colors- Study in Style collection, the two shades missing are the ones that I purchased!

Winterberry: a shimmery deep grape purple
Leap Flog: A dark teal cream
15mL/0.5 fl oz, $1.99

Swatches:

Essie Yogaga in Pilates hottie and Yogaga REVIEW and swatches and comparison

I was surprised to find Essie's Yogaga collection at my local Walgreens since I haven't heard about this anywhere. I was looking forward to the Fall 2012 Stylenomics collection, but instead this popped up first. I was able to take a photo of the Yogaga display, but note that there is a bigger display at other stands that includes two additional polishes.

Essie Yogaga, left to right: Marathin, Boxer shorts, Pilates hottie, Yogaga

 

I purchased two shades from this collection: Yogaga (left) and Pilates Hottie (right)

13.5ml/0.46 fl oz, $8

Yogaga: a grayish nude. Almost like a stone color.

Pilates hottie: A creamy pale white with a hint of lavender

Swatches:

Dior Rouge Serum Luminous Color Lip Treatment in Coral Crystal REVIEW and swatches

Dior has won my heart again with their Rouge Serum Luminous Color Lip Treatment in Coral Crystal. This product isn't new to the Dior line, but I was introduced to it recently by a lady at the Dior counter. I was mainly looking for their Addict lipsticks and glosses, but found I like the texture and staying power of this Rouge Serum a lot better.

Rouge Serum is a lip treatment that delivers color to your lips. It packs in 10x the amount of nutrients than other lip treatment products while giving your lips a very nice color. I personally have very pigmented red lips and most balms or lip care color won't show up. This one, however, did and is a very nice my lips but better shade. 

 Dior Rouge Serum Luminous Color Lip Treatment in Coral Crystal, 0.07oz, $34

Swatch of Coral Crystal 

Dior Le Vernis Incognito REVIEW, swatches, dupe

I can't believe I haven't discovered Dior's nail le vernis until now. I have heard so much about it, but I have always went for Chanel nail polishes if I ever felt the need to splurge on nail polishes. Today, I stumbled upon the Dior counter and instantly was drawn to the color Incognito (257). I am a sucker for very neutral and earth tone colors and this nude pink was right up my alley.

Dior Le Vernis in Incognito, 10ml/0.33 fl.oz., $23 

Dior Incognito released Spring 2012

Closer look at the brush. For those of you who have not seen closely or have not used Dior's nail polishes, they are very similar to the size of the new Wet n Wild nail polish brushes. It is wider than most drugstore nail polishes, but applies so quickly! 

Also note the shape of the top of the bottle. The edge of it slides downwards and makes removing excess polish from the brush so easy! It doesn't collect and become tacky on the edge of the lid :) 

 One coat of Dior Incognito

Comparison with Milani:

Maybelline Dream Fresh BB cream REVIEW and swatches

I have heard a lot about BB creams from USA cosmetic brands in the past few months and it has made me want to compare it to Asian BB creams. Though BB creams have been around a long time in the Asian markets, those aren't as easy to get a hold of. I decided to finally try some readily available BB creams in the States and landed on Maybelline's Dream Fresh 8-in-1 BB cream.

 Maybelline Dream Fresh BB Cream in Medium sheer tint, 30ml/1 fl. oz, $8.99

There were a few reasons why I decided to try Maybelline's versus L'oreal or Garnier or other brands.

1. They have sample testers at Walgreens and CVS for you to test your shade! 
2. The tube has a safety seal inside (see below) to prevent tampering with. I hate it when I feel like someone has tried the product!
3. SPF 30! L'oreal Youth code has spf 15, L'oreal nude magique has spf 12, and Garnier skin renew has spf 12. None of which feels enough to me.

Duality Nail Pak polish REVIEW and Swatches in Ellen

Hello, Everyone. I am pleased to show you my new nail polish kit. This kit is called Nail Pak and is from a company called Duality. Some of you might have seen this before on the TV show Shark Tank. Duality's Nail Pak is one of the company/ideas that was supported by big business people (aka shark). Anyway, on to the product :)

NailPak in Ellen, 0.8 fl.oz, $15

Ellen is a bright turquoise cream color. It is very appropriate for summer. I swatched it with a few of the popular turquoise nail polishes down below for reference.

 After you twist off the polish bottle, you see an emery board that has "duality" printed on it. You can file or smooth out your nails on this board. Pulling the black tab right above the file, you can see nail polish remover pads underneath. There are 20 of these so that should last you a while. These remover pads are soaked with non-acetone remover so they won't dry out your nail. Push the tab back on and twist on the nail polish and you are back to the original product.

This is a good way to carry everything you need to touch up nails on the go. However, I found myself not bringing this in my purse at all. I don't usually need to touch up nails, and if I ever do, I probably will wait till I get home. This is a good idea for travelers, but I don't think I will be purchasing other Nail Pak products because I find it as easy to bring a file, nail polish, and remover pads with me than bringing this. Since this is on the pricey side, I will stick with the traditional nail polishes unless they come out with a very unique color.

Dry time/Application: Overall dry time was fairly fast. It was similar to the dry time of Wet n Wild and Zoya nail polishes.