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the Loves & the Regrets reviews

Hello my lovelys,
For the past 2 weeks, I had a shopaholic attack and picked up lots of goodies.  I will get around to reviewing everything that Ive tried out, but todays review will focus mainly on one product that I LOVE and one product that I REGRET buying.  Im not saying that the results I encountered will be the same for everyone, but for me it was.  Enjoy!

Face Atelier Powder Eye Pencil in Onyx
-the one I regret

So I have very watery eyes, and Powder pencils  tend to stay on me the longest when used before setting it with black mineral powder.  Face Atelier is a cosmetic company geared towards professional makeup artists and has a pretty good reputation.  They are known for their foundation line, a mixture of foundation and primer in one!  However, in my opinion their pencil is =( not good at all.  Especially for the price of $19.50.  The color is not the truest black.  Its more of like a really dark grey and kind of transparent when applied to the waterline.  After application, 15 minutes later... I had raccoon eyes and the liner powder had seperated all over my waterline. Very disappointed.  I hate throwing away products , so I tried the pencil on my top lid eyeliner and smudged it for a smokey effect.  Other than that, I dont recommend this liner.
Pros:
  1. good for smudged effect
Cons:
  1. Pricey @ $19.50 
  2. No staying power
  3. Not a true black color
Rating:  2 out of 5

For an alternative, with much better quality and bargain, I recommend Katie B's powder eyeliner.  It can be found here:
 http://www.katiebco.com/shop/eyes/powderliner.php  


or if you would like the set, it can be found here:
http://www.katiebco.com/shop/eyes/liner.php

These liners have the truest black pigmentation and stays longer than face atelier's liners. The texture is very soft and almost giving a  silky feeling.  The liners are available in 3 colors, while the set is only available in black.   The liner by itself is sold for only $16.50 and the set with a liner and powder is $34.  With the set, it is a bit pricey, but you recieve a huge pot of black powder that will last you forever!!! It is also very pigmented and a little will go a lonnnggggg way.  So in the end its very worth it because of its quality, size, and multiple uses (liner, shadow, etc.).

Benefit Cosmetics Lipscription 
-the one I love

For months I was on the hunt for a quality lip exfoliator and I finally found it.  For a person that loves lipstick, I have very chapped lips naturally.  This product is a must before lipstick application!!  The set includes a tube of exfoliating cream and a tube of lip balm.  I really mean it when I say that a little goes a long way with this.  Its pretty pricey, so dont be wasteful!!  The buffing beads in the exfoliator is gentle on your lips but strong enough to buff away all that dead skin. The exfoliater cream is not oily, but rather creamy.  So you wont get that disgusting oily feeling.  The balm is thick enough to give you a long lasting moisturizer for your lips, but isnt annoyingly sticky.  These two put together gives you a perfect canvas for lipstick application, just like those models in covergirl!! Ofcourse, your lips will be flushed with red, since you just applied pressure to them when exfoliating.  So, having nude lipstick or lipgloss will tone down the redness.  But if you like the red tone on your lips , then throw on some clear gloss and you are set!  I would buy this product again and again, but from the looks of it, this set will last me for quite a while. <3

Pros:
  1. Gentle exfoliating beads
  2. It actually works
  3. Balm is a good lip conditioner
  4. A little goes a long way
  5. No irritating smells or fregrances
Cons:
  1. A bit pricey @ $34 for the set
  2. Exfoliating cream dries out rather fast during application (does not effect outcome, because it looses moisture to remove dead skin)  
Rating: 4.8 out of 5  (perfect other than the price)

Makeup Session and Reviews

 Before
 
After
  Hello my Lovelys,
Yesterday, my best friend and I had a makeup session for her date later that night.  The pictures above are before and after pictures.  Hair and makeup done by yours truly =)  She wanted a natural and sophisticated look, so I softened up her face with a light foundation, a pinch of bronzing powder for a sun-kissed look, and pinkish brown eyeshadows for her eyes.  For a  sophisticated look, I used a straightener to curl out the bottom layer and curl in the top layer of her hair.  Hope you guys like it =)

Products that I used on Miss Siripa here was:
  • Bare i.d. Minerals mineral foundation (medium beige & medium tan)
  • Smashbox Photo finish primer
  • Beeroyal Rose Bouquet Blush (Autumn flower)
  • Mac lipstick (Blankety)
  • Mac Lipglass (C-thru)
  • Katie B. Faux Lash mascara
  • Physicians Formula bronzing powder (blushing mocha)
  • The Balm Eyeshadow eyelid  V**drama shadow color (jealous jordana)
  •  *the V drama is the outer corner of your eyelids directly underneath the tail of  your eyebrows, by dramatizing this area with a darker color, it creates a 3D  effect, forming bigger eyes
  • Benefit cream eyeshadow/liner all over eyelid base (honey bunny)
  • Benefit powder eyeshadows:
(these powder shadows are on clearance for only $9 (originally $19) on benefitcosmetics.com)
  1. eyebrow highlighter color (low profile)
  2. eyelid blender color (guess again)
  3. eyelid crease color (getaway)



I did use one product that I absolutely love and recommend.  That would be........ (drumroll)........
   Benefit creaseless cream shadow/liner
This product was recommended to me by a professional makeup artist and I do admit it is a pretty good product.  When I picked up "honey bunny" and "marry up", I did a test run.  The results were impressive.  The colors are creamy upon initial application, and slowly dry to a smooth texture and not powdery like some other cream eyeshadows.  They are relatively easy to blend , but it does take a little getting used to.  The color intensity is buildable, so you can get anything from a sheer look to a more intense color coverage.  

I also used this cream as a base to intensify my eyeshadow colors on top.  After I was done , I took my finger and dragged it on my eyelid reallly hard to test how well the staying power was.  and NOTHING was on my finger.  I was pretty impressed by that.  All through the day my shadow did not budge.  So it does live by its claim... creaseless eyeshadow/liner.  I didnt even have to use my urban decay primer!!  

Pros:
  1. Strong staying power
  2. Buildable color
  3. Pigmented
  4. Creamy texture
  5. Multiple uses ( as a primer, base color to intensify eyeshadows, by itself, eyebrow highlighter, cheekbone highlighter, blush ... endless possibilites !!)
Cons:
  1. pricey $19 for a 4.5 g
  2. wish there was more product
Here are some swatches of the two Benefit cream eyeshadow/liners that I bought and the four other that I picked up after my little test hehe =) enjoy and have a great weekend!!

In order from left to right:
Recess, Honey Bunny, Marry Up, Stiletto, Bunny Hop, Skinny Jeans



Green Smokey Eyes and Reviews




Hi Guys!!
Today I am going to review Beeroyal Rose Bouquet Blushes, Lorac eyeshadow in "after party" & "goddess", i.d. Bare minerals in "tortoise",  and the Balm eyeshadow in "jealous jordana".  All of which I used in this completed look. Lets do this!!




Beeroyal Rose Bouquet Blushes

These are definitely a collectors item.  The deep imprint of the rose is absolutely beautiful.  The color that I am wearing is in Garden Bouquet.  I did happen to purchase Garden Bouquet, Autumn Flower, Wild flower, and Rose Petal.  The textures of these blushes are silky soft and the color payoff is good, but not wildly intense.  Given that this series is a brides collection, the mixtures of colors give off a very subtle and soft appearance ( but color is buildable ).  Garden Bouquet and Autumn flower are very similar in color, with an exception that Autumn gives off a softer pink hue.  They currently are having a 25% off on entire order on beeroyalproducts.com!! yay for sales!

Pros: 
  1. Pretty print!!
  2. Silky texture
  3. Even balance of colors
  4. Subtle and natural colors
  5. Buildable coverage
Cons:
  1. A bit on the pricy side: $35
  2. Tacky plastic brand sticker (peels right off, leaving a black matte plastic case)
  3. Not for people who want an intense colored blush
Rating: 3 out of 5






Lorac eyeshadow in "after party" & "goddess"

These shadows are comparable to stila eyeshadows.  Its very silky and is not powdery at all.  Color payoff is great, esp for the shimmery purple ( after party). The size of these are about the same size as Macs and coastal scents eyeshadows. I would purchase this again.

Pros:
  1. Silky texture for super easy blending
  2. Very pigmented
Cons:
  1. A bit pricey : $19
Rating: 4 out of 5


i.d. Bare minerals in "tortoise"

Very pigmented shadows.  Bare i.d. minerals have these distinct glitters in most of their shimmery shadows, with tiny interference glitters that almost have a rainbow effect.  Very eye-catching.  

Pros: 
  1. Pigmented
  2. A little goes a long way
  3. Subtle micro glitters that dont look tacky
Cons:
  1. A bit pricey: $13 for .57g
  2. Mineral shadows, so a bit harder to work with due to fallouts
Rating: 4 out of 5


the Balm eyeshadow in "jealous jordana"

One of my favorite eyeshadows.  The sizes of these are twice the size of MACs pans and about the same size as Stila eyeshadows.  Textures are similar to Urban Decays shadows, where they are evenly powdery and silky for easy blending.  Very pigmented.  

Pros:
  1. Very cute packaging ( sturdy cardboard with inside mirror)
  2. Only $14 for big pan that goes a long way
  3. Very pigmented
  4. Easy to blend 
Cons:
  1. ....nothing really =)
Rating: 5 out of 5

pwhew!! that was a long post.  If theres anything I didnt answer, please feel free to ask so that I can satisfy your curiosity =]  

Yours Truly,

Kim Kay
 
Makeup Heaven | TNB