NARSskin - Brightening Serum - Review

Before nails, before perfume but after makeup, I was really obsessed with skincare.  Being about all things beauty doesn't seem that odd to me, but I know for some people they like to stay in their own corners of the universe.  If you are afraid to branch out into skincare because it can be overwhelming, it may help to go with a brand you are already familiar with.

At my recent Nars makeover (click here if you missed the post), Tina walked me through the skincare line.  I had never paid much attention to their skincare, aside from a sample of mud mask which had impressed me.  Shiseido, Nars' parent company, takes the science of skincare very seriously, and Nars' skincare line, NARSskin, is definitely worthy of your attention.

One item that particularly drew me in was the Brightening Serum.  Imagine MAC Strobe Cream but with a luxurious sink-in texture and good for you ingredients. NARSskin claims that helps improve skin's texture and protects against free radicals.  I haven't used the product long enough to see if these claims are true, but I do definitely see a radiance and brightening effect, from the pink pearl iridescence in the product, upon application.

I love "glow" products like MAC Strobe Cream and By Terry Skin Enhancers.  But NARSskin Brightening Serum actually feels to me like good skincare too.  This serum just melts into the skin, and you have to figure that the fennel and Active Phytoseed Complex couldn't be hurting you either right?  So the Brightening Serum is not only a quick fix to help illuminate the face upon application, but hopefully these other ingredients will make a difference down the line in how your skin looks.  Until then, I'll be putting on this serum in the mornings!

The Brightening Serum retails for $61 and is available on Narscosmetics.com, Saks, Neiman Marcus and other prestige retailers.  Check Nars' website for more locations.

1 pump.

Love the pump applicator.

Same dollop - smeared thickly.

See the pink pearl iridescence?

Rubbed into skin.

I didn't get a sense of overwhelming shimmer on the skin.  Just a nice glow and brightening.

To Review:
Pros: Good for you ingredients.  Better texture than other "glow" and "radiance" products (e.i. MAC Strobe Cream and by Terry Skin Enhancers).  Iridescence is subtle after makeup application (no disco face here).  Hygienic pump applicator.
Cons: Slightly pricey at $61 but you do get 2.5oz.  Opaque bottle may make it hard to determine how much is left in the bottle.
Overall Rating: A-

Have you tried NARSskin products before?  If so, which have you liked?  Are you also a fan of "glow" products?

Sally Hansen Xtreme Beauty Kit - Night Lights Xtreme Wear

I remember about two years ago, Scrangie had posted about being really disappointed with a gift set from Sally Hansen that she had purchased.  The photos on the box were misleading, and the contents were an epic fail.  Here is the post if you want to take a look (I would have been confused too!!). 

So back to today... almost two years later... I have avoided any Sally Hansen sets, which have been popping up for the holidays, thinking that nothing good could be inside. 

Until........ I saw this! 

Hold.The.Mother.F'ing.Phone....... IS THAT A HOLO?!

I think I did a double take in the store because these kits never have anything interesting.  I decided to buy it to check it out. 

Night Lights Xtreme Wear in this Xtreme Beauty Kit.

Night Lights is a graphite gray very sheer jelly with holographic microglitter.  After asking the Nail Board on MakeupAlley, I found out that Night Lights was an older color (not a part of the current line), hence the white bottle cap. I had seen a post on GetchaNailzDid from February 2009, where Brooke found Night Lights at her local Dollar Tree.  This kit was $7.99, but Night Lights was totally worth buying the kit for. 

 In the shade.

 Holo-y goodness.

This is 3 coats.  I might try it over 1 coat black.  See what happens.

Would you get this kit just for the polish?

Urban Decay Book of Shadows Volume III - UD Hearts NYC - Swatches and Review - Holiday Gift Guide

 Urban Decay Loves NYC as much as me!

Another product to consider for our Holiday Gift Guide is Urban Decay's third rendition of highly popular, limited edition Book of Shadows series.  Last year's Alice BOS (Book of Shadows), still shows up on Ebay for x3+ it's original retail price.  This year's version is still readily available, though probably not forever.

I was really impressed with the quality of these shadows.  Not a gritty or dry shadow in the bunch.  All applied very smoothly with great pigmentation (yes, even the ones with chunky glitter).  The pencils and PP (Primer Potion) are classics and will be used up probably before you get close to hitting the pan on any of these shadows.

This would be a great kit for someone who loves vibrant colors.  Not for someone looking for a "neutral" kit, obviously. 

My only complaint about this palette is that I wish they had altered some of the shadow names to be more about NYC (as they did with Alice).  I just think it adds to the theme... but that's no biggie.

This set contains:
16 x 0.03 oz uber pigmented eyeshadows (see swatches below, 7 shades are new)
2 x 0.03 oz 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencils
0.13 oz Mini Eyeshadow Primer Potion in Original

$54 available at Sephora, Ulta, UrbanDecay.com

Zero and Ransom

What combinations would you put together?

Any colors that strike out at you?

To Review:
Pros: Excellent pigmentation.  The standard of texture has be up'ed a few levels. Go-to pencils and eyeshadow primer. Super cute illustrations and packaging design.
Cons: No NYC-themed names.

Overall Rating: A

NARS Makeover, Haul and Swatches - Holiday 2010

My haul from my Nars makeover.  

Scroll down to see swatches.

This past weekend, I had a NARS makeover at Nordstrom at the Stanford Shopping Center in Palo Alto, CA.  They were having a beauty event, and Kimberly, the counter manager, set me up with Karolin, regional artist(?) makeup artist with Nars, for my makeover. 

Karolin did an amazing job creating a fun, party look with some of new Holiday 2010 colors.  Tina, also an artist with Nars, was introduced me to the Nars skincare line.  As a product junkie, I'm always skeptical about skincare products, but I was really impressed with the line.  I purchased the Brightening Serum, which I will review at a later post.

Karolin of Nars, Me and Marlowe.

Marlowe is wearing Casino bronzer (hehe not really).

A close up my makeover.

I love Karolin's liner in this photo.

Here is a breakdown of my makeover:
Foundation: Punjab Sheer Glow
Concealer: Vanilla/Honey
Powder Foundation: Fiji applied with Boton Brush
Smudge Proof Eyeshadow Base
Lid base color: Silvery lilac side of Mélusine with Étrusque on top.
Lid (darker color) and close to lash line: Purple side of Mélusine eyeshadow duo
Mascara: Volumizing and Lengthening
Brows: Bali eyeshadow
Bronzer: Casino and Laguna mixed
The Multiple: Luxor (highlighter used in a C-shape around the eye to the top of the cheek bone)
Cheek: Oasis (used as the contour) and Sex Appeal (on the apple)
Lip: Terre de Feu Pure Matte lipstick
Lip: Moon Fleet lipgloss on top

Nars is available at Nordstrom, Nars' website and Sephora.

A close-up of the eye look.

 Étrusque

Eyeshadow single.  Gilded antique warm gold shimmer.  $23.

 Étrusque

 Mélusine

Eyeshadow duo: silver soft lilac shimmer with purple irridesence and matte mid-toned violet purple.  $32.

Mélusine

Sex Appeal

A soft pale peach pink.  $26.

  Sex Appeal swatched.

For reference, I'm MAC NC35.  Sex Appeal was very light on me.  You could build it up, but this color may be best for those with paler skintones. 

What do you think of this look?  Silver, purple and gold all on the same eye?  I didn't think it would work, but it does!  Check back for a review of Nars' Brightening Serum.

Zoya Haul Part 2 - More Duochromes, Cremes - Bottle Shots

More Zoya bottle shots from a recent haul.  If you missed Part 1, click here. Special thanks to Ange at Scandalously Polished.  Her post, click here, was a major contributing factor into shade selection for my haul.

 

 Duochromes/Shimmers.

Left to right: Cheryl, Glora, Kym, Crystal.

Left to right: Cheryl, Glora, Kym, Crystal.

 

Cheryl - a dark cherry with pewter, copper, wine duochrome shimmer.

The Wicked Collection.

This one is like if Cola and Valerie had a baby.  I really have to try this one on.

Gloria - pretty metallic mauve pink with golden and magenta duochrome.

The Flame Collection.

Kym - a coppered metallic red with red, pink shimmer.

The Wicked Collection.

Kym, you are beautiful, though your name is spelled in a typical Zoya flare. 

Crystal - soft royal blue with golden and silver duochrome shimmer.

The Flame Collection.

Now this reminds me of brocade.  I know that was the goal of Rescue Beauty Lounge's Tudors collection.  But Crystal is straight-up brocade in my mind.

Cremes!  I don't really own enough creme shades.

Left to right: Casey, Maura, Asia, Cola.

Left to right: Casey, Maura, Asia, Cola. 

Casey - a vampy, dark brown purple jelly.

This was one that made me drool from Ange's swatches at Scandalously Polished.  This is on the *top* of my "to-try" list.

Maura - a bright, slightly vermillion warm-toned red.

Stephanie at Imperfectly Painted did a post on this color recently.  Click here to see it.  It looks pretty on her.

Asia - another red creme.  Cool toned, dark velvety rose red.

Cola - warm cherry brown.

The Wonderful Collection.

This is what Cherry Coke would like if it were a nail polish.  I think I am going to love this one.

All polishes are available at Zoya.com. 

Again if you missed Part 1, click here.  More delicious Zoya spam to be enjoyed.  Swatches to come soon!

Review and Swatches: LORAC - Box Office Sensation Holiday 2010 - Gift Guide Series

Continuing with our Holiday Gift Guide series, here are some swatches of LORAC'S Box Office Sensation set.  In case you missed it, here is our First Look review.  Box Office Sensation is described as a "full face train case," which I think is a more applicable description than "palette."


 This set contains:
- 36 x 0.05 eyeshadow (mix of matte and shimmer)
- 9 x 0.04 lip colors
- 3 x 0.15 blush
- 1 x 0.15 bronzer
Retails for $56 ($660 Value according to the box).
Available at Sephora (exclusive and limited edition).

This is a great gift for someone who loves makeup and maybe wants to expand their collection.  I could see a college student taking this to their dorm.  It's a small kit, but there are tons of options for creating color combinations.  The packaging is very tough and sturdy (unlike Sephora's Blockbuster or the Tarte Jewelry Box, see the Holiday Gift Guide tab for more details). 


My girl Jbrobeck reviewed this palette on her blog Polish Insomniac as well.  Check out her post for more photos and her thoughts!

 Palette opened.

Top layer has two sides of warm shadows.  Middle layer contains cool shades of eyeshadows.  Bottom layer has lip and cheek colors.

 Warm side 1

Remember to click on image to see them in closer detail.

 Warm side 2

I love how there are more than just neutrals here.  Blue, green, yellow.  I love the variety.

 Cool side 1

 

Cool side 2

Overall, the eyeshadows in this palette are so far the best quality I've seen in a holiday kit (see our Holiday Gift Guide tab for other reviews).   The mattes and satins are very smooth and buildable.  The more glittery and shimmery shades are slightly grittier, less silky.  There are colors that would work well for day, as well as some fun shades for going out or if you're just in the mood for a more colorful look. 

 3 blushes and a bronzer. 

The bronzer was a little too red to work all over the face for most skintones.  But the pigmentation on these were amazing.  I also like how the blushes were both cool and warm.  All three blushes are slightly shimmery.  Texture and application were very good.  Colors were very blendable.

9 lip colors

I was actually really impressed with how pigmented these were.  They are definitely all more like lipsticks vs lipgloss.  I would have liked to see a "nude" taupe, flesh color.  The eyeshadows in this kit just scream "do a smoky look!" to me, and I would probably rather pair that with a nude lip vs a peach, pink, red lip. 

 

 Similar eyeshadows shadows

36 eyeshadows is a lot.  But.... there were a few too many colors for my liking that were too similar.  Above are four separate shades swatched (one from each side) that are all relatively similar.  There are tiny variations in the amount of shimmer vs matte etc, but I think I could have lived with two of them... and maybe have a bonus of two other fun shades.

To Review:

Pros:  Great value.  Sturdy packaging.  Good for travel or for someone who wants a lot of color options and not a lot of bulk.  Eyeshadows have good pigmentation and texture, good variety of matte and shimmer.  Blushes and lip colors are pigmented. 

Cons:  4 very similar eyeshadow colors.  Bronzer has a reddish tone (may not work all over face for most).  Would like to have seen a "nude" color for lips.

Overall Rating: A-

Zoya Haul Part 1 - Sparkle Shimmer Reds, Duochromes Purples - Bottle Shots

Long before I fully immersed in nail polish, I had known about Zoya.  I had ordered a few bottles after reading about the brand in a magazine.  At that time, I was deeply into makeup and fragrance (which I'm still into) but never spent much time caring about my nails.  Most days, I would go unpolished and unfiled.  When I had first received my first Zoya haul, early 2008, I definitely noticed that there was a difference in the quality and application of these polishes.  I hold Zoya responsible for peaking my interest in lacquer.  As you can imagine, it's been a downward spiral from that moment.

I took advantage of a recent sale at Zoya to catch up on recent collections that I had missed out on.  If you don't follow Zoya's blog or Zoya's twitter, I highly recommend doing so.  It's the best way to get the latest info on upcoming promotions.

Here are some bottle shots of my haul.  I will definitely be doing swatches of all of these over time, but the difficult question is which one first?

Shimmery reds!

Left to right: Nidhi, Jade, Karina, Carrie Ann

Left to right: Nidhi, Jade, Karina, Carrie Ann

 Nidhi - duochrome pink, purple, yellow, orange.  

Cannot wait to try this one!

Nidhi is from the Sparkle Collection

 Jade -looks like a jelly in the bottle?  Gotta try it on.

Jade - Red with red microglitter.

This one was hard to photograph, but I hope you can get a sense of the texture from the bottle.

Karina - cool metallic wine red foil.

The Wicked Collection.

Carrie Ann - pink/red foil with copper shimmer.

The Wicked Collection.

Purples

Left to right: Julieanne, Roxy, Valerie

Left to right: Julieanne, Roxy, Valerie

Left to right: Julieanne, Roxy, Valerie

Julieanne - Joker purple duochrome with violet, green, sapphire shimmer.

The Wicked Collection.

 Roxy - deep magenta jelly with grape candy colored glitter.

Valerie - super cool-looking violet duochrome with copper, gold, green shimmer.

The Flame Collection.

China Glaze Holiday 2010 'Tis The Season To Be Naughty And Nice - Part 1 Swatches

I love the idea of being Naughty and Nice.  Why can't we have it all?  China Glaze has done a great job playing up the idea of holiday without making it boring.  There are some twists on traditional shades and some surprising new colors that I'm sure will be classics (Party Hearty I'm talking about you).  Overall, a really fun collection.  I would definitely grab these colors for stocking stuffers or look into one of the gift sets as a present (for you or someone else).

Frosty

A semi-sheer pearly shimmery pure white.  If Snow, the pure white creme offered in this collection, is too whitewhite for you... then Frosty is your answer.  Such a pretty and soft pearly pure white.  It was a great base for Party Hearty, the 3-color/multi-shape glitter top coat that is a part of this collection.  Below are photos with Party Hearty applied to complimentary shades from this collection.

 

 Frosty with Party Hearty

Snow

A pure creme white. Great application and pigmentation.  Got excellent, opaque coverage with two coats.  Works great as a base for Party Hearty or any other holiday top coat you may want to try.  The only other pure white I have is actually tinged slightly yellow, so I was happy to add this to my collection.

Snow with Party Hearty in 4 different applications.

Index 2 coats, Middle 1 coat, Ring tip gradient, Pinkie tip.

 Snow with Party Hearty in 4 different applications.

Index 2 coats, Middle 1 coat, Ring tip gradient, Pinkie tip.

 Ruby Deer

The brighter/lighter of the two reds. Creme but has that glow of a jelly. I loved this shade.  This one is especially festive with Party Hearty on top!

 Phat Santa

To me Ruby Deer is the color of Santa's suit and Phat Santa is the color of pointsetias.  (But that's just my opinion).  A bright, red's red creme.  This is the darker shade of the two.

Party Hearty over Ruby Deer

Isn't this fun?

Party Hearty over Ruby Deer 

Who is ready for a holiday party?

 Naughty and Nice

Love this burgundy, wine, vampy dark purple jelly.  Definitely a darker side of the holiday collection. 

  Naughty and Nice

I loved this color on my skin (NC35).  I would wear this for the holidays, Valentine's and well into spring and summer.

 Sugar Plums

Now this is something I really have to apologize for.  I try to do my best to always bring the best photo to my abilities to you... but here is an epic fail.  Sugar Plums is a gorgeous shimmery wine color with tiny multi-colored holographic glitter.  

Sugar Plums

Again, I am not doing this color justice. It's really gorgeous.  My photo is not.  An extra coat of top coat probably wouldn't have hurt either.

Jolly Holly

Gorgeous evergreen forest green with shimmer. I am absolutely in love with this green.  The application was excellent (probably could have done 1 coat), and the pigmentation was superb. Beware of staining upon removal.  I didn't really like this or it's sister, Little Drummer Boy, with Party Hearty on top.  It was a little too busy and took away from the beauty of these colors.  Definitely pretty enough to wear alone.

 Little Drummer Boy

This makes my heart beat.  A beautiful prussian blue shimmer.  This nail color should be on hands in a white fur muff a la Dr. Zhivago.  Not technically Christmas, but I think that's why I like it.  Again, like Jolly Holly, you may get staining upon removal, but don't let that deter you from this awesome color.


The rest of the collection is be posted shortly!  What do you think of this collection so far?   I didn't want to take off Jolly Holly.  What color is drawing you in?

REVIEW and EOTD: Eyes Lips Face ELF's The Beauty Encyclopedia Smoky Edition Palette - Holiday Gift Guide Series

ELF's The Beauty Encyclopedia seemed like a really good deal when I saw it in Target a couple weeks back.  In part with our Holiday Gift Guide series, I posted a first look about this budget-friendly palette, and it drew a few interested parties!  So here is my review with swatches and an application example. 

This set contains:

12 eyeshadows

1 eyeliner pencil in black

1 mirror

1 applicator

$5 at Target stores

Different versions of the The Beauty Encyclopedia are available on Elf's site.

The palette opened.

  

First row: matte and shimmer.

 Second row: The blue was built up a lot to show that much pay-off.

Sadly, the purple was built up as many times, but the efforts were futile.

No color pay-off from that purple.

 

 Very weak last row.

 Instructions.

 

 Eye diagram.

I didn't follow the Encyclopedia's instructions.

See below for which colors I used (you may find it surprising!).

Diagram of the colors applied.

No, that's not a mistake.  I *did* apply that bright robin's egg blue.  

Color pay-off?  Zilch.

D, the navy shade, was oh-so disappointingly hard and didn't show up at all.

Nars eye primer and MAC Haute and Naughty mascara were used on both eyes.

An eyebase to help bring out color from these weak shadows.

This is Cyber, a Metal-X shadow from MAC (discontinued).

If you missed Metal-X shadows the first or second time, more on on their way.

Base applied.

A metallic silver cream-to-powder shadow base.  

Now let's try this again.

 

What a difference a base makes.

Pow... now THAT'S blue.

This is C, patted on.

The base made all the difference.  

See the colors actually showed up!

 Side by side, the eyeshadow base really brings out the colors.

Sadly, these shadows are just not that pigmented, but it's $5...

Seriously, what do you expect?

 Another edition of the Beauty Encyclopedia.

 The quality was very similar to the Smoky palette.

To Review:

Pros: Good gift that's very wallet friendly.  Would make a good stocking stuffer or a nice Secret Santa/office present. 
Cons: Hard, dry, mediocre quality shadows.  Dry eyeliner pencil.  Not a gift for someone who is really into makeup.  They will be disappointed with the quality.... but then again, it's $5 (pro).

Overall Rating: C+ (only because it really is such a good value)

Tarte The Jewelry Box Palette - Swatches and Review - Holiday Gift Guide Series

In part with our Holiday Gift Guide series, here is Tarte's The Jewelry Box palette. You may have seen our first look here, but now here are swatches and our review.

Price: $52
Available at Sephora (exclusive)
This set contains:

- 16 x 0.06 oz full-sized shimmering eyeshadow
- 16 x 0.06 oz full-sized matte eyeshadow
- 8 x 0.03 oz lip gloss
- 0.21 oz Mineral Powder Bronzer in Park Avenue Princess
- 0.25 oz highlighting powder in soft pink
- 5 x 0.02 oz long-wearing eyeliners

This palette also comes with 1 detachable chain necklace for festive holiday wear.

The palette opened.

(Matte eyeshadows are below shimmering ones that wing out). There isn't a button, clasp, anything to keep this palette closed, which is one complaint I had about this palette. There is a magnet, but it's not strong enough to keep everything in place in case your palette should go any direction but flat. I would not take this out of my bedroom/bathroom (wherever you apply your makeup).

The eyeshadows

Overall, I was really excited about this palette! I loved how the palette split the shadows into shimmer and mattes. Some of Tarte's previous palettes have tended to lean to cooler tones. This palette was a nice mix of cool and warm shades. Lots of everyday shadows (1, 4, 5, 7, 9, 14, 17, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26) and some fun vibrants for party looks (28, 31, 32). The texture of these shadows was good but not superb. Tarte's Eye Couture palette, which came out a couple years ago and is still available at Sephora, had a smoother, silkier quality to their eyeshadows. Not to say that The Jewelry Box's shadows are poor quality, but let's just say it went from being a 9 to about an 8. And if we are talking dollars and cents, Tarte's Eye Couture palette is 10 eyeshadows for $44 vs The Jewelry box that has a whooping 32 shadows for $52 (not to mention the bronzer, the highlighter, the eyeliners, the lipglosses and the necklace).

Level 1: Shimmers, left side.

Level 1: Shimmers, right side.

Level 2: Mattes

Level 2: Mattes

The mattes were definitely less saturated than the shimmers, but still overall a good shadow. The quality of all these shadows wasn't butter-smooth (like Shiseido, Inglot), but it was definitely on par with some other high-end brands. The colors are buildable and have decent color pay-off.

The value of 32 eyeshadows for $52 is great. The pan size (0.06 oz) is larger than that of a MAC single eyeshadow (0.05 oz for $14.50 each).

Now onto the rest of the palette.

Soft Pink Highlighting Powder and Mineral Powder Bronzer in Park Avenue Princess

The highlighting powder is definitely a great universal shade. Some darker skin tones (maybe anyone above the MAC 40's range) may not be able to use this palette's bronzer for blush or bronzer, but the shimmer in it would be great for highlight, contour.

Again a note on the value of this palette, $52 for all those eyeshadows + 0.21 oz of Bronzer? A single Mineral Powder Bronzer retails for $29 for 0.32oz. So if you do the math, you are getting $19.03 worth of Bronzer in the Jewelry Box.

Here are the lipglosses. I was impressed by how pigmented they were. I love the festive holiday red!

I *love* these pencils. Very very smooth. But most of all I love the colors selected. A shimmering black, military shimmering green, bronze, deep purple and matte black.

Recap:
Pros: Good value! You can create a complete look with this 1 palette: eyes, lip, cheeks. Eyeshadows had a good mix of matte and shimmer/cool and warm. Lipglosses are highly pigmented. Pencils are smooth.
Cons: Shadows are okay but not uber pigmented. Previous Tarte palettes had better shadow quality. Packaging is pretty, but there isn't a way to keep it closed or keep layers from sliding out unless lying flat.

Overall grade: A-

Marlowe's Halloween Romance + Model's Own Mystic Mauve

The Princess and the Frog

Yes, Halloween is over, but Marlowe is still thinking about his beautiful princess. I loved her costume, and I thought that Model's Own Mystic Mauve would be a pretty compliment to her royal look. Mystic Mauve is a soft lavender mauve foil with lots of shine and bling. It screams, "kiss me frog."

Model's Own Mystic Mauve


Princess approved.

Muahhhhhh! Would you kiss this frog?

FIRST LOOK: Eyes Lips Face ELF's The Beauty Encyclopedia Smoky Edition Palette - Holiday Gift Guide Series

e.l.f.'s The Beauty Encyclopedia - Smoky Edition

$5 for a book of 12 eyeshadows and an eyeliner? Seriously? Yes, $5.

Well that's exactly what e.l.f.'s The Beauty Encyclopedia - Smoky Edition. These are available at Target stores, but other Beauty Encyclopedias in other "editions" are available at e.l.f.'s website

Instructions

The Encyclopedia's cover


The Encyclopedia's back


The Encyclopedia open - mix of shimmer and matte shades.

Want to see this purple on.


Already have a look in mind with the silver and purple!


Love the top neutrals.

I will be swatching this palette and others as part of our Holiday Gift Guide Series. Keep checking back for swatches, comparisons and reviews! If there is anything here that you would like to see, please write us at beautyburg@gmail.com.

Thanks!

Wish Come True - Smashbox - Wish For The Perfect Pencils Kit Review - Holiday Gift Guide Series

Smashbox Wish For the Perfect Pencils Kit

Continuing with our Holiday Gift Guide series, here is a great idea for a small gift or a good stocking-stuffer. Smashbox ish For the Perfect Pencils is a kit containing 4 waterproof, long-wearing Limitless eyeliners. The colors are Graphite (shimmering charcoal grey), Orchid (deep purple), 14K (not gold as you would think, more of a light champagne shimmer), Onyx (standard black). These shades are extremely wearable for all skintones. They are not as "gel" like as Urban Decay 24/7 liners but go on very smoothly and have good pigmentation. I didn't find smudging, and I have seriously greasy lids.

Smashbox Wish For the Perfect Pencils Kit is available at Sephora, Ulta and Smashbox.com.

This set contains:
- 4 x 0.03oz Limitless Eye Liners

This is not a shabby deal considering that a single Smashbox Limitless Eye Liner, size 0.04 oz, retails for $16 each and you are getting 0.12 oz in this kit for the same price!

BONUS!!! A gift within a gift!
Another plus is that Smashbox will donate $1 of every purchase up to $25,000 to Children's Miracle Network, a non-profit organization that grants the wish of life by providing medical care, life-saving research and on-going education to help millions of kids overcome diseases and injuries of every kind.
Not bad huh?!

4 wearable shades.


The Limitless Eye Liner singles come with a sharpener in the cap, but these do not.

Top to bottom: Graphite, Orchid, 14K, Onyx.
Smooth application.

Review:
Pros: Great value, good product, wearable colors, long-lasting, helping charity.
Cons: No sharpener.
Overall Rating: A

First Look: Sephora Endless Color Blockbuster palette Holiday 2010 - Gift Guide Series

Sephora Endless Color Blockbuster

UPDATE: for swatches of the palette!

Links to other swatches:

First Look

Warm Eyeshadows

Cool Eyeshadows

Cool Lips

Warm Lips

Pencils, Blushes, Cream Eyeliners

Here is another first look for our Holiday Gift Guide series. In recent years, Sephora has come out with a large eyes, lips, cheeks palette that seems to get bigger each year. Appropriately named, these yearly releases are dubbed as "Blockbuster" palettes. This year's version, Endless Color Blockbuster, is a huge offering of eyes, lips, cheeks, face options.

This set contains:
- 98 eyeshadows
- 70 lipglosses
- 6 cream eyeliners
- 2 lip liners
- 3 pencil eyeliners
- 1 mascara
- 3 blushes (one could be used as a bronzer)
- 4 applicators

The iconic shopping bag shape

The palette.

The bag opens in half to reveal two eyeshadow levels.
One side cool, another side warm.


The warm toned shadows.


Detail of the cool-toned shadows.

The shadows slide out to reveal the lip layers.


Cool lips. Purples, wines, berries.

Detail of glosses. Pearly, shimmer, glitter.

Warm toned glosses. Neutrals, reds, corals, pinks.

Blushes, mirror, applicators.

Dusty bronzy rose, pink and coral.


2 lip liners, 6 cream eyeliners (sorry didn't get a photo of the pencil eyeliners).

We will be posting extensive swatches, reviews of this palette and hopefully looks too. This is all a part of our Holiday Gift Guide series to help you pick the best purchases for your money. In past years, I had never paid much attention to the Sephora Blockbuster palettes, but after having this one a few days, I do see the appeal. There are literally thousands of combinations right at your finger tips. I'm excited to see how this stands up against other palettes that are offered this season. What do you think? Would you like this palette for a holiday present? Have you ignored these in the past too? Or have you bought one in the past? Did you like it?

Wet n' Wild - Wild Shine Fall 2010 Collection - Limited Edition

Wet n' Wild - Wild Shine Collection Display

Seriously folks. What's not to love about Wet n' Wild. For $0.99 you get a decent bottle of nail polish in an array of colors and, from time to time, they come out with fun collections like Wild Shine for Fall 2010. These colors are limited edition, but there are some bottles that are perm that are simply relabeled.

Nouveau Cheap and KarenD have already written about dupes within the Wet n' Wild brand from the collection. Please check out their posts!

Left to right: Midnight, Fireworks, Tipsy, Extravaganza.


Left to right: Midnight, Fireworks, Tipsy, Extravaganza.
Bottle views.

Left to right: Midnight, Fireworks, Tipsy, Extravaganza.

Midnight
Midnight is violet purple with multi-color holographic glitter.
Very vibrant!

Midnight - 2 coats with 1 coat top coat.
2 coats top coats would probably be ideal for a smoother finish.

Midnight

Midnight is supposedly a dupe for a long-gone discontinued Wet n' Wild shade called Wild Orchid. I don't own Wild Orchid, but Chloe from Chloe's Nails did a comparison of the bottles. Click here to view her review of this collection.

Fireworks - a mix of micro yellow gold glitter with holographic octagonal bits.

Fireworks - 4 coats.
Would look sparkling over black.

Fireworks

Tipsy - a golden peach glitter.

I put Tipsy over orange creme for Halloween.
It added just the right amount of subtle sparkle.

Tipsy

Tipsy reminded me a bit of Sally Hansen's Complete Salon Manicure's Golden Ticket. The shade of gold is very similar, but Golden Ticket is really dense in application (lots of glitter per stroke). I can get almost complete coverage with two coats of Golden Ticket and Tipsy above is pictured at 4.

If you would like me to do a side-by-side comparison, let me know in the comments below.

Extravaganza - a cool fleckled glass red with bits of red and gold shimmer.

Extravaganza - reminds me slightly of Ali's Big Break from OPI's Burlesque.
A similar glass finish, but Ali's Big Break stands out more as a red.
Extravaganza is the muted version.


Extravaganza - 2 coats with top coat.

BONUS! I was really impressed with these and picked up Spectacle too. Spectacle is a pink, purple, silver glitter.

Spectacle
3 coats pinkie and ring, 4 coats middle and index.

Spectacle
3 coats pinkie and ring, 4 coats middle and index.

First Look: LORAC - Box Office Sensation Holiday 2010 - Gift Guide Series

LORAC's Box Office Sensation

Continuing with our Holiday Gift Guide Series (it's own tab coming soon!), let's take a look at another big, all-in-one style palette from LORAC. LORAC's Box Office Sensation is a eyes, cheeks, lips palette priced at $56, limited edition and exclusive to Sephora.

This set contains:
- 36 x 0.05 eyeshadow (mix of matte and shimmer)
- 9 x 0.04 lip colors
- 3 x 0.15 blush
- 1 x 0.15 bronzer

The traincase packaging.

Click the photo to enlarge.
The top layer of eyeshadows seems more warm toned.


Detail. Top left.


Detail. Top Right.


Detail. Bottom left.


Detail. Bottom right.


Detail. Lipglosses.


3 blushes. 1 bronzer.

I'm interested to see how this holds up against the Tarte - The Jewelry Box palette. I wanted to bring Beautyburg's readers a comparative analysis on which is the better palette for their buck. I hope that I can offer a little bit of insight for you guys! Look for my upcoming detailed reviews with swatches and look for our Gift Guide tab at the top of this page.

First Look: Tarte - The Jewelry Box Palette for Eyes, Lip, Face Holiday 2010 - Gift Guide Series

Holiday season is coming soon! I know in this economy everyone wants to get the best bang for their buck, so I have decided to start a Gift Guide series comparing similar products to take all the guess work out of beauty gift giving this year.

Here is a first look at Tarte's The Jewelry Box palette exclusive to Sephora. It retails for $52 and is limited edition. This is just one of a few all-in-one palettes that I will be reviewing for Beautyburg's Gift Guide.

This set contains:

- 16 x 0.06 oz full-sized shimmering eyeshadow
- 16 x 0.06 oz full-sized matte eyeshadow
- 8 x 0.03 oz lip gloss
- 0.21 oz Mineral Powder Bronzer in Park Avenue Princess
- 0.25 oz highlighting powder in soft pink
- 5 x 0.02 oz long-wearing eyeliners

It also comes with 1 detachable chain necklace for festive holiday wear.

The necklace.

The eyeshadows.
Top layer has the shimmers. The bottom is all matte.

Layer 1: The shimmers. I love how they are #'ed!

The left side of shimmer: 1, 2, 5, 6, 9, 10, 13, 14.


The right side of shimmer: 3, 4, 7, 8, 11, 12, 15, 16.


The mattes: 17-32.


Below the eyes are cheeks and lips.



8 lipglosses (I was surprised by their pigmentation. Swatches to come.)
Right: Highlighting powder in soft pink.
Left: Tarte's best-selling bronzer in Park Avenue Princess


Next layer: the eyeliners!

5 eyeliners

Would you like The Jewelry Box by Tarte under your tree this holiday?

I will be comparing this to Sephora's famous Blockbuster palette and LORAC's seasonal holiday palette offering. If there is something specific you would like to see me evaluate this against, please let me know either by email beautyburg@gmail or leave a comment below!

Will You Merry Me? Sephora by OPI Merry Me for Holiday 2010

Sephora by OPI's Merry Me

I say, "I do" to Sephora by OPI's Merry Me. Merry Me is a pretty jelly cranberry red base with red, pink and silver glitter. The effect is like glittered vinyl. This color is limited edition and is available now at Sephora for $9. Remember today is the last day of Friend and Family, so use code FF2010 for 20% online.

3 coats with 2 coats of Seche Vite.
Application wasn't too bumpy or gritty.

Photo in shade.
You can get a better sense of the glass-like effect.

Love the color in the bottle too.
See the silver glitter?

Would you wear this shade for the holidays? Maybe even after?
If you haven't tried Sephora by OPI and would like to, enter my giveaway for 18 minis!

OPI Burlesque - Part 1 - Ali's Big Break and Let Me Entertain You

Ali's Big Break

Here are two colors from OPI's Winter/Holiday 2010 collection Burlesque, nail polishes inspired by the movie starring Cher and Christina Aguilera.

Ali's Big Break is a fleckled glass cool red with bits of pink, red, gold irregular shimmer. Very hard to photograph!! Undeniably beautiful. I did not want to take this off. Very festive for holiday.

Ali's Big Break

Ali's Big Break
You can see the tiny flecks of shimmer.

Let Me Entertain You is a bright fuchsia pink with tons of magenta, pink, silver sparkle and shimmer. Definitely a color to be noticed.

Let Me Entertain You


Let Me Entertain You

Let Me Entertain You

The Show Must Go On! Sorry this isn't a proper swatch, but I wanted to repost its side by side comparison to MAC's Bad Fairy from Venous Villains. I will do a proper full hand swatch soon.

Bad Fairy vs. The Show Must Go On!
For more photos see this post.

I love this collection. There are fun, attention-getting colors that make you stare at your hands all day long. Next I will posting about the glitters. I purchased my bottles from TransDesign.

What do you think of these colors?

Sephora by OPI Giveaway! 18 Adorable Minis! - CLOSED!

Another giveaway? Yes, why not?! When I first saw this set on Sephora, I had to post right away. I wasn't the only one to get excited about this set, so I thought it would be a great item for a giveaway.

If you haven't had a chance to try many Sephora by OPI (or $OPI as this brand is often referred as), this set seems like a great way to try a lot of different shades and finishes. Retail is $48. The main complaint about this brand is the high price tag ($9 per bottle), and unfortunately, this set isn't really cheap either. But $48 for 18 shades seems like less of a pill to swallow. And if you enter this giveaway, it could be yours for free!

The colors close up.

How to enter?

Simple:
1. Leave a comment with your email for 1 entry.
2. For additional entries (all worth 1 each, make sure to add the link in your comment when applicable):

• Tweet about this giveaway
• Blog about this giveaway (sidebar is good for us)
  
• Post the link on your Facebook
• Put Beautyburg on your blogroll
• Follow Beautyburg
• Follow me on Twitter

This giveaway will end November 25th, 11:59pm PST. Open to international and domestic friends! Retail value is $48.

Good Luck!