Friday, March 29, 2013

PRODUCT REVIEW: Lancome Tient Idole Ultra 24 Hour Foundation

The Lancome Tient Idole Ultra 24 Hour Foundation is another product I have been using for a while and finally think I have the hang of, and the hang of saying all of that crazy long name.  It's not an everyday item for me, but I have been incorporating it a lot more lately, simply because it's helped with coverage around my eyes.


I was not really sure about this shade, which is 100N and I believe is the lightest one they offer, but it seems to be working pretty well, despite being WAY pinker than I would otherwise go with. The girl at the counter applied it under my one eye and around that area and some woman that was at the Jo Malone counter was watching along while she sniffed candles waiting for her daughter to pay for something, and she walked over and said "oh my god, that is just...incredible. It almost erased your circles!"  She could've been a drone, a robot, a shill (she wasn't) but I was sold at that point. Because it really makes a noted impact to me. Since I focus it around my eyes, and less around my face, I am ok with the color being a little pinker than I'd wear otherwise.  I had a perfect color match with the Estee Lauder Double Wear but it would not stay on my face and didn't play nice with concealers.

PRODUCT REVIEW: VanityMark UltraBrow in Gingerella

So after discovering and confirming that Covermark changed the formula on my beloved Brow Markers, I started looking for a replacement that was not in a goofy ass purply color that makes no sense with a coppery red head of hair.  I had been using my fallback powder from BareMinerals, a mix of Redhead and Strawberry, more Strawberry than Redhead. But the looseness is a mess, so I was hoping I'd find similar in a pressed format.  I wanted the Urban Decay Brow Box, but they no longer cater to redheads, which is an annoying trend with cosmetics and hair companies.


I read about Vanitymark's UltraBrow on Phyrra's site a while back, and saw that they carry TWO redhead options, one for lighter and copperier heads, and one for auburn and darker/cooler reds. I went with Gingerella, for the coppertops.  I ordered it from Brett Friedman's site directly on a Monday and had it by Thursday. I see now that they have a nice special too, 2/25 so I might order a couple backups.

PRODUCT REVIEW: Yaby Cosmetics Concealer and Paint Pot/Eyeshadows

Yaby Cosmetics was new to me until about a few months ago, it was wildly popular all the sudden on some makeup forums, especially related to bridal makeup, and it started popping up on blogs.   It was raved about, esp the eyeshadows and pearl paints, for color payoff, blendability and longevity which I assume is why bridal artists love it so much.  


The products were developed by a Canadian makeup artist who has a huge portfolio, esp in editorial work. Their swatches are PRETTY amazing. They offer great, close up shots of the pan. I ordered from Yaby's site, on a Thursday, and got it exactly 6 days later via UPS international. The company is based in Canada and shipping was 1/3 of the total price for the order, pretty insane, so plan for that. I went with the cheaper UPS option bec I didn't want to risk extensive damage from the postal service and while it was really pricey, I am kind of glad now that I did. 

Friday, March 22, 2013

PRODUCT REVIEW: Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer

Photo credit: CafeMakeup.com

This new concealer from NARS was a hotly anticipated product, and I was really excited to get my hands on it. I generally disliked NARS concealer sticks, they were just a disgusting texture for me, and they didn't stay put at all or blend well on my face.  So seeing a liquid from him, that got me going.  I planned on going the day it was released to counters...and wish I had. Because by the time I got there the next day it was sold out already.  I ended up ordering it through Nordstrom at the counter after I played with the shades in person.