satojoko
Member Since: April 14, 2010Reviews
Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Even Finish Foundation
I initially got a sample of this in Beige to test out at home. Considering you'll pay around $50 for this product, I wasn't going to buy before trying it. I ended up buying it after a couple weeks of wear, and it turns out that it's well worth it... +
I initially got a sample of this in Beige to test out at home. Considering you'll pay around $50 for this product, I wasn't going to buy before trying it. I ended up buying it after a couple weeks of wear, and it turns out that it's well worth it. I've rated the price as 'average' because it's no more expensive than many other brands at this level, but it definitely isn't what I would consider an 'affordable' or 'budget' product for many people. It's definitely worth shelling out some money for, however.
The other 'longwear' foundations in my arsenal of oily skin friendly formulations are Esteé Lauder Doublewear & Doublewear Light, and while they are great in terms of coverage & wear time, Bobbi Brown Long-Wear is far more natural looking. Even when using more product on not-so-great skin days. Not to mention that it's an exact match for my NC25 skin.
This formula truly is long-wear, never feels heavy on the skin, never clogs my pores, can provide light to medium coverage, doesn't take much product at all to cover my entire face past my jawline, comes in a heavier frosted glass bottle with a black pump (bonus - I'm looking at you NARS & Esteé Lauder), and is ridiculously easy to apply without having to waste 10 minutes blending it out (I use a synthetic bristled Real Techniques buffing brush). I'm done - including setting powder - in less than 5 minutes. I love the shades of Bobbi Brown foundations as well, which are more yellow-toned, which neutralizes the slight redness around the center of my face & look like skin. Not like a face full of foundation. I normally only need to blot a little shine by the middle of the day with a little bit of Kett setting powder, and I do mean a little, but only once. Any more often is too much. Even if I'm too busy to do this, this foundation never transfers, never wears off, never becomes uneven or patchy, and never looks like I've got an oil slick going on.
Definitely glad I picked this puppy up. It's now my most-used foundation. Seeing as I own over 35 different formulas & brands - pro & regular department store formulations - that's saying a whole lot.
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NYX Slide On Glide On Waterproof Eyeliner
After being incredibly disappointed in Urban Decay's pencil eye liners, which everybody raves about, I started hunting for another that really delivers what the company promises. For a fraction of the crazy price that UD charges for their pencil... +
After being incredibly disappointed in Urban Decay's pencil eye liners, which everybody raves about, I started hunting for another that really delivers what the company promises. For a fraction of the crazy price that UD charges for their pencil liners.
These NYX liners come in a wide variety of gorgeous jewel-toned shades that are extremely pigmented, apply like a high end pencil liner with zero tugging on the eye area, and are not only smudge-proof once they set, they're totally waterproof. These are two areas where Urban Decay failed me miserably. I've compared these liners to Stila Smudge Sticks, Too Faced Perfect Eyes Waterproof Eyeliner, Urban Decay pencil liners, Smashbox Limitless Eye Liner, Stila Kajal Eye Liners, Makeup Forever pencil liners, and several others. The only brands which comes close to these NYX Slide On Glide On pencils are the Too Faced Perfect Eyes Waterproof liners and the Makeup Forever pencil liners, but the NYX pencils are 1/3 of the cost of both brands.
Not only is the price of these NYX waterproof liners much lower, their colors are very vibrant, they wear much better & much much longer with no fading or smudging when compared to all of the above liners. These NYX liners seem to grip onto the skin. Once they set - in about 10 to 15 seconds - they aren't going anywhere, no matter what. You can swim, shower, rub your eyes, cry, sweat during your workout, get caught in a downpour, even apply these liners before going to your favorite hotsprings. I've tested these under many conditions, in various types of weather. They never EVER fail. Not even on the waterline. If you're a fan of lining your waterline with pencil liners in gorgeous shades other than black, these are the ones for you.
To get the best price on these, buy them online. Canadian prices for NYX products are outrageous, although a lot of them can now be found in London Drugs. NYX was also one of the vendors at IMATS this year, where all their products were being sold at a decent discount. But that only comes once a year & only in specific cities. Your best bet for these NYX liners & other NYX products that I've found on the Internet are at The Beauty Joint. I believe I picked mine up for $4 to $5. Shipping is very reasonable & their customer service is far better than Cherry Culture. NYX products are at least double that price at London Drugs. The one thing I forgot to mention is that these waterproof liners are also very gentle on the eyes. Not only do you not have to press or tug on your eyes at all when using these, I've had zero eye irritation with these, even when my eyes were sensitive due to my allergies.
Plain & simple: nothing beats these waterproof liners. Good riddance to your overpriced, substandard products, Urban Decay!
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NARS Bronzing Powder
Sorry, but I have to disagree with absolutely everybody who says this is the be all and end all as far as bronzers go. I have tried a lot of bronzers from many different companies - cream, solid in a compact, loose mineral, gel/liquid, you name it -... +
Sorry, but I have to disagree with absolutely everybody who says this is the be all and end all as far as bronzers go. I have tried a lot of bronzers from many different companies - cream, solid in a compact, loose mineral, gel/liquid, you name it - and can tell you that this one is another over-hyped, over-priced product. I got this in Laguna in a limited edition zipped case which included Orgasm blush and Albatross highlighter. Out of the 3, I wouldn't buy any of them again. Especially not the bronzer. This is $58 later! *ggrrrr*
Is it ok? Sure. But for the price of this product, you could get a tonne of either ELF Studio products. Sephora even makes a far better bronzer with no sparkle in it, spectacular color, great pigmentation, which applies smoothly and lasts all day. I picked that up for a mere $6. The ELF Studio bronzer/blush product I picked up for only $3! And the colors in it are so close to Laguna and NARS Deep Throat blush it isn't at all possible to tell them apart when applied. They even apply more smoothly than NARS products! For $3! Then there are the cream bronzing sticks from NYC and NYX which are also absolutely beautiful and are between $3 and $7 each, depending on where you buy them from. Try Cherry Culture or Beauty Joint online. Beauty Joint has far better customer service and sells products at a discount, with cheap shipping to Canada.
Give this bronzer product a miss and hit Target for ELF Studio products, or just shop onlone at their website (eyeslipsface.com). You won't be sorry you did, but you will be sorry if you buy this first and then find out lster the ELF products are just as good, if not better. I have found NARS to be seriouisly over-hyped in all cases, be it with their eye shadows, blushes or bronzers. Not worth the dosh at all. Wish I would have known that before I bought into all the hype which so many women are perpetuating all over the internet. I have learned my lesson, although it has been a very expensive one :-)
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Benefit Cosmetics Hoola Matte Bronzer
Sadly, I have found ALL of Benefit's products to be over-priced rubbish, with this one being no exception. All of their boxed products are all hype and no real 'benefit' at all. Don't even get me started on the crappy HighBeam, etc... +
Sadly, I have found ALL of Benefit's products to be over-priced rubbish, with this one being no exception. All of their boxed products are all hype and no real 'benefit' at all. Don't even get me started on the crappy HighBeam, etc. RUBBISH.
Shortly after I bought this one, at $28 12% tax mind you, I bought an ELF Studio combo product at Target - which has a blush and bronzer in the compact with a great mirror - for a mere $3, which is far better than this and obviously FAR cheaper. Benefit never ceases to p1ss me off with their over-hyped, over-priced products. I always feel ripped off every single time I buy something they manufacture. Needless to say, I never buy anything from them now. Never. Even if the stuff was 50% off, I wouldn't touch it with a 10 foot pole.
Save your cash and get yourself a whack of ELF Studio products, which you will love. Try one of their blush and bronzer combos, which honestly do rival NARS in quality and are VERY different from ELF's 4 color in the pan bronzers which are very powdery and not worth getting. Their blush/bronzer combos are amazing. Have also stopped buying NARS after trying ELF Studio products.
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Rimmel London Vinyl Voluptuously Shiny Lip Gloss
These are some of my favorite lip glosses, by far. I got mine in a 2-for-1 package at Superstore for next to nothing. Maybe $3.50 or so. They are worth every penny in comparison to some of the Smashbox, Lancome glosses and other more expensive... +
These are some of my favorite lip glosses, by far. I got mine in a 2-for-1 package at Superstore for next to nothing. Maybe $3.50 or so. They are worth every penny in comparison to some of the Smashbox, Lancome glosses and other more expensive brands I have bought and returned. When I realized how good these actually were, I returned to the store and picked up a whole bunch of the 2-for-1 packages to stock up before they ran out. Killer deal!
They are completely non-sticky, very pigmented, non-gritty like many glosses are, have no offensive fragrance/flavor to them like some glosses absolutely reek/taste of, and really cover your natural lip color very well. Due to the castor oil in them rather than mineral oil and petroleum by-products which so many brands use as a way to cut corners - always the sign of a higher quality lip product - they also keep your lips well-moisturized. I have yet to find any other lip gloss which comes close to the quality of these for this price. They even blow my more expensive glosses out of the water completely.
Would definitely buy these again and will continue to do so until they one day stop making them, as all companies eventually do stop manufacturing their best products.
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Mac Cosmetics Plush Lash Mascara
This mascara is so much better than MAC's Opulash, which I absolutely detest. I own both and still use my Plush Lash very happily, a long time after buying it, but rarely reach for my Opulash. Whereas Opulash flakes, clumps and doesn't... +
This mascara is so much better than MAC's Opulash, which I absolutely detest. I own both and still use my Plush Lash very happily, a long time after buying it, but rarely reach for my Opulash.
Whereas Opulash flakes, clumps and doesn't lengthen very well at all, Plush Lash never flakes on me, lengthens and volumizes very well, and doesn't clump much at all. I never have problems with 'coon' eyes' when using this product. Never have. The formula is black in the extreme, making lashes look almost like they have been dyed, and of a medium thickness. Really makes my lashes show up and pop out. Does it make them curl? Not so much. A lash curler is still necessary, but it really does make lashes look 'plush', as claimed. It also layers really well over other mascaras which are lacking a bit in the volume department.
The only thing I don't like about this product is the brush. The bristles are very nice, long and 'plush, for lack of a better word, and the brush itself is straight rather than curved, which I definitely prefer as most curved brushes aren't long enough or are curved too much. But each side of the brush is completely flat. The bristles stick out only on 2 sides. They don't go all the way around. Really wierd, and this can sometimes be annoying when you're in a rush and trying to apply the product quickly.
Overall, I'd buy it again, and definitely would buy it over Opulash any day. The price is not too bad when compared to some other more expensive brands and the formula is not bad at all. Have been using this product for quite a while and will probably continue to do so as long as MAC keeps making it. One of the few products MAC makes which actually doesn't disappoint me.
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Hard Candy Curl Up & Dye Mascara
This is definitely one of the better mascaras I have used which does deliver on a number of counts. Although I was expecting very very little from this product, I was pleasantly surprised. Firstly, the brush is probably one of the thinnest... +
This is definitely one of the better mascaras I have used which does deliver on a number of counts.
Although I was expecting very very little from this product, I was pleasantly surprised.
Firstly, the brush is probably one of the thinnest, longest, skinniest ones I have ever seen - with just a slight curve and very short bristles. I was worried about this when I first opened it as I have not had good results with thin brushes and short bristles in the past. Not a problem. With one swipe it covers all of my lashes from the outside corner to the inside corner, with NO CLUMPING. I have not had this experience with any other mascara.
Secondly, it DOES curl my lashes. A LOT. Even with only one coat. No other mascara does this, not even any MAC/Lancome/etc mascaras which promise to do so. I compared it side by side with MAC's Opulash, and this Hard Candy product blew it out of the water. This one curls my lashes like crazy, as well as lengthens and volumizes them like nothing I have seen before without a primer. I am able to use just one coat for lengthening to the extreme, or several - 4 or 5 - for great amounts of volume AND length. Opulash clumped, did very little to lengthen my lashes, and definitely did NOT curl them. The only difficulty I had was when using the brush on my lower lashes, due to the length of it. It takes a bit of getting used to for that.
Next, the fact that it doesn't flake at all - ALL DAY - is yet another plus with this product. This is something I have found to be very rare with most mascaras.
Lastly, the packaging is great. It's got a little see-through window which allows you to see the exact color you're buying. I haven't seen this with any other mascara. I myself got it in a very deep navy blue - Mr Night - but it comes in several other colors as well.
For $6 or so, you really can't go wrong with this product. The fact that it outperforms all of the higher-end/more expensive mascaras I have tried, including MAC, Ojon, etc as well as cheaper ones such as Cover Girl, Maybelline, etc makes it well worth every penny. To get it even cheaper, head to the US if you live near a US border like I do, and get it at one of the stores that carry it there. The only other mascaras which have impressed me to this degree are L'Oreal's, but they are a tad more pricey, although very well worth it.
Definitely pick this one up. I bought mine nearly a year ago and it has not even come close to drying up. And no, it is definitely NOT necessary to replace your mascara every 3 months. Not even every 6 months. That is a big fat myth. Laboratory tests have been done which prove the exact opposite. Mascaras do not get overloaded with bacteria even when they are years old due to the preservatives and anti-microbials used in the manufacturing process. You can use your mascara as long as you wish, as long as it doesn't dry out. Don't waste your money and fall victim to yet another cosmetics myth.
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MAC Cosmetics Opulash Mascara
Really disappointed in this product. The formula is more or less standard, although it is quite a deep black. BUT it does absolutely nothing to curl my lashes, it DOES clump, the brush is so big that it leaves smudges on my lower lash line and it... +
Really disappointed in this product. The formula is more or less standard, although it is quite a deep black. BUT it does absolutely nothing to curl my lashes, it DOES clump, the brush is so big that it leaves smudges on my lower lash line and it FLAKES like absolute crazy. I always have to carry paper first aid tape in order to remove all the flakes under my eyes throughout the day whenever I wear it. Which is rare. If they still carry it, I will be returning it for a credit. Receipt or not. It is totally mental to pay this much for any mascara and have it flaking off under your eyes a few hours later, especially when you can buy an excellent L'Oreal mascara for a fraction of the price and get everything you need from it, including volume, curl, length, a primer, a deep deep black WATERPROOF formula and NO FLAKING. MAC can't even touch L'Oreal as far as mascaras go at this point.
I would never buy this MAC product again. It seems many of their products have gone downhill since Estee Lauder bought them out. I have rarely bought any MAC products in the past few years because of that. From their shadows to their mascaras to their shadow sticks, I find far more affordable, high quality products in drug stores when compared to what MAC now offers. And I say this as a former die-hard MAC fan. MAC has a great deal to fix with their company and their products as far as I'm concerned.
Give this one a miss if you don't like throwing your hard earned money in the toilet. This one is a total dud, for sure.
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Rimmel London Moisture Renew Lipstick
I bought this product a few days ago in Summer Angel, which is a frosty/pearlescent beige/nude with a pinkish undertone to it. Really nice for the summer and very much wearable by people with all skin tones. It's a universal shade, for sure... +
I bought this product a few days ago in Summer Angel, which is a frosty/pearlescent beige/nude with a pinkish undertone to it. Really nice for the summer and very much wearable by people with all skin tones. It's a universal shade, for sure. Nude lipsticks of this color are difficult to find. In Rite Aid they had a $2 coupon attached to the display, so I got it for a very good price. Have been using this a lot as I can use it when I am wearing full makeup, like with very dark smokey eyes, or when I am wearing very little makeup. It supposedly has a sun screen or two in it, which would be good if they weren't chemical sun screens. It applies very smoothly and stays on a decent amount of time, and looks slightly glossy. It is also quite pigmented and doesn't dry my lips out. The only real downside is that it has a noticeable fragrance in it, which is really unnecessary. I would prefer it without the perfume.
Definitely would buy this again, and am thinking of buying a couple of backups of this particular shade just in case they discountinue them. It has become the lipstick I grab on a regular basis, several times a day, even though I just bught it. It will likely be one of the few lipsticks I actually use up. Well worth the 3 odd bucks I spent on it.
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Maybelline New York Eye Studio Eyeshadow Quad
First of all, there are no such thing as 'silk pigments', unless Maybelline is talking about pigments which are used to dye silk clothing, which would be poisonous. So that's just a bit of marketing BS. However, these were a lot better... +
First of all, there are no such thing as 'silk pigments', unless Maybelline is talking about pigments which are used to dye silk clothing, which would be poisonous. So that's just a bit of marketing BS.
However, these were a lot better than I expected them to be. The palette I liked most when testing them was Green With Envy. I beliebe that was the name, anyways. Really gorgeous pigmented colors, they grab the skin well and stay put, are very soft, but not so soft that they come off with a mere swipe.
Did not buy them that day as I had already dropped over $60 on a Smashbox palette, but will pick some of these up eventually. Most likely when they are on sale and when I have coupons :-) Each shadow is not very big, so the price they are asking for them is a tad over the top.
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