Revlon Colorstay Moisture Stains: Quick Review & Swatches

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Revlon Colorburst Moisture Stain

Hello! I am in DC visiting my best friend K. and we happened across a display of the new Revlon Colorstay Moisture Stains at Target (which will be permanent).   We each purchased one, and I have swatches and a quick review for you.  Please note that these are all iPhone photos; I didn’t bring my camera with me.

I purchased the shade New York Scene, a neutral red, and my friend purchased Barcelona Nights, a hot pink / fuchsia.  These are two of the brighter shades in the range, so please note that the lasting power, evenness, etc may be different for the more muted shades. Continue reading →

Revlon Standout Matte Balm Review & Swatches

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Revlon Standout Matte Balm

Revlon Standout Matte Balm

A while back, I reviewed Revon’s matte balm ($8.99 at Ulta) in the shade Shameless.  I was not a fan; I found that it was somewhat patchy and accentuated dry patches.  However, after reading several positive reviews of the matte balms, some of which acknowledged Shameless as poorly performing as compared to the other shades, I decided to try one more shade – and I’m glad I did! Continue reading →

Sinful Colors Summer 2014: My Picks

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Sinful Colors Summer 2014

Embers Only // Hot Chili // Curry Up // Peppered Amazon

Sinful Colors has released three new collections for Summer 2014, each with a mix of permanent, repromoted, and new shades. You can read all the details about each collection on Nouveau Cheap. I bought one new shade from each collection (plus a repromote), and have quick swatches of them for you today. Continue reading →

My Favorite Brushes – Face Edition

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Favorite Brushes - Face

Hi all! First, a quick note about the blog – I’ve been unusually swamped at work, which means less time for posting. I do apologize for scarcity of posts lately – hopefully everything will be back to normal soon!

Today, I’m going to talk about my favorite face brushes (favorite eyes, brows, and lip brushes are here). I think of my face brushes as being in two separate categories – brushes for powders, and brushes for creams.  For powder products, I generally prefer natural hair, as I feel like it picks up product better and distributes it more easily. For cream products, I prefer synthetic hairs, as they’re easier to clean (yet still soft). Continue reading →

In My Travel Makeup Bag: A Casual Weekend Away

Purchased – Press Sample – Affiliate Links

Travel Makeup Bag

I’m at my parents’ house this weekend, so I thought I’d do a quick post on what makeup I brought with me.  I packed lightly this time – it’s going to be a casual weekend at home for the most part, with two nice-but-not-fancy dinners.  My makeup-packing philosophy is to bring items that are small, light, non-breakable (usually this means creams instead of powders), and replaceable (in case I lose them – so, not too expensive and not limited edition).  I’m fairly relaxed on the “replaceable” criterion when I visit family, as if I leave something there, I’ll get it back eventually.  This weekend, I also tried to pack items I could apply with fingers so I’d be able to get away with minimal brushes – just powder, eyeliner, and cream blush/ cream contour.

Here’s the same photo as above, but numbered for reference:

travel makeup bag - numbered

  1. Skindinavia Finishing Spray (originally a gift from a friend; I actually finished it and refilled with Embryolisse rosewater toner). I love using a spray after powdering for a more natural finish.
  2. Ben Nye cream contour in 01 Neutral
  3. Decant of Make Up For Ever Face & Body foundation
  4. L’oreal Infallible in Sahara Treasure – this shade isn’t available in the US, but I love it. Can be patted on with fingers, so no eyeshadow brush required. // swatched here
  5. Wet n Wild single eyeshadow in Brulee
  6. Dollywink liquid eyeliner // swatched here
  7. Maybelline Master Shape Brow Pencil in dark brown. This is a repurchase – I just finished my first one! // reviewed here
  8. Maybelline One by One Volume Express mascara
  9. Too Faced Shadow Insurance
  10. L’oreal Gel Liner in Dark Slate // reviewed here
  11. Sample of Hourglass Mineral Veil primer
  12. Guerlain Illuminating & Mattifying pressed powder (sadly discontinued! I’m on my fourth compact and I have one backup left).
  13. TheBalm Time Balm concealer // swatched here
  14. Addiction Cheek Stick in Tea Rose  // swatched here
  15. Maybelline Color Elixir in Intoxicating Spice // reviewed here
  16. Dior Fluid Stick in Vie d’Enfer // reviewed here
  17. Canmake Cream Cheek in Clear Red Heart  // reviewed here

*The Skindinavia finishing spray was a gift from a friend; the Embryolisse rosewater spray was a PR sample; the Hourglass primer was a free sample from Sephora. I purchased all other items featured in this post. This post contains affiliate links. Please see my disclosure policy for more information.

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