November 2015: Ipsy Bag

This month my ipsy bag arrived really late. Usually it is here in the second week but this time I got it almost at the end of the month. But anyways, for $20.21 CAD I received five products: Coolway Strong Hold Spray, Inspr Eyeshadow, Model Co Highlighting Trio, Trestique Lip Crayon and Smashbox Full Exposure Mascara.

 

Coolway Strong Hold Hair Spray: I personally did not feel that there is anything special to this spray. It holds well but so do my tressame tres two, which retails for under $5 CAD while coolway retails for $19.95 US.  



Inspr Eyeshadow in Carnival



Inspr Eyeshadow in Carnival: When I saw it online I didn't think I will like it but it is my favorite product from the bag. It is a beautiful shimmery taupe that has the slightest pinkish tint to it, which unfortunately is not showing up in the picture. The formula is very smooth and creamy so barely any fallout. I would definitely check out more shades.

 



Champagne, Peach Bellini & Bronze

 

Model Co Highlighting Trio in Champagne, Peach Bellini & Bronze: This is a cream product with somewhat thick consistency. It looks beautiful in the swatches but I find it to be very heavy and difficult to blend on the cheeks. So I would not recommend it.  



Trestique Matte Lip Crayon in Chile Red

 Trestique Mini Matte Lip Crayon in Chile Red: I am really into matte products these days but this lip crayon was quite disappointing. Even though it is in stick form, the formula feels very slick and watery. I am not sure how to explain that but its just weird. Also, it is quite sheer and it took me numerous strokes back and forth to build up the swatch in the picture. Therefore, I will not recommend it.

 

Smashbox Full Exposure Mascara: This is the only product that I have not tried yet so can't really say anything about it except that it has a huge brush.

 

Overall, this month's bag was kind of blah for me except the Inspr eye shadow. What did you get in your  bag? And what was your favorite product?

 

Thank you for taking time to read this post. Hope you have a great day!

NOTD: Chocolaty Brown & Rose Gold

Today's nail look is mix of deep dark chocolaty brown polish topped with rose gold sparkle. Even though it does not look like it but for some reason it reminds me of Ferrero Rocher packaging, I know that's totally random but it does.

 

 

Revlon Hot Chocolate: Very deep dark chocolaty brown color that looks almost black at times. It is a very pigmented polish and gave me full coverage with just two coats.  

 

Julep Jane: Beautiful rose gold glitter polish. I have just one coat of it over hot chocolate on ring finger and it bought the whole look together.

 

 

Adding an accent nail is a really easy way to jazz up the look, especially for those who are not very proficient with  nail art.

 

 

I wore this dark chocolate brown shade after years and totally fell in love with it all over again. What do you think about dark brown polishes? What are some of your favorites?

 

Thank you for taking time to read this post. Hope you have a great day!

Covergirl LashBlast Mascara's

Covergirl and Loreal are my two favorite drugstore brands for mascaras. Especially, the Covergirl Lashblast is the one that I always have in my collection. Covergirl Lashblast line has around ten different varieties but today I will be talking about three of them: Volume (orange tube), Clump Crusher (green tube) and Full Lash Bloom (pink tube).

 

 

For some background information, I do not have very long, full lashes so mascara is a necessity for me.  Also, I like defined and separated lashes that look fuller but I absolutely despise the look of heavily coated and thick lashes. So, just keep that in mind as my review is based on those points.

P.S. I have issues with my camera so I couldn't take the pictures of my lashes for the comparison as it was either getting hazy or out of frame but I will add them later. I am sorry about it.

One quality that I truly love about the whole Lash Blast line is that even the non-waterproof versions do not smudge. I never buy waterproof mascara and always use one of these on my bottom lashes and it works like charm every single time. Also, these are really good at holding the curl.

 

 

 

Lash Blast Volume:

This is probably one of the most talked about mascara's of this line. It comes and in an orange tube and has a huge round plastic wand with tiny bristles all around. The bristles kind of tapper off towards the tip, which makes it easier to go over the tiny lashes in the inner corners of the eyes. It's wand looks very similar to the Fusion (purple tube), which I have used in the past. Fusion is targeted towards both length and volume while Volume is specifically marketed as a volumizing mascara and I personally found that the Volume version gave me more defined and fuller lashes as compared to Fusion. So, I would definitely repurchase it.

Lash Blast Clump Crusher:

It comes in a really nice vibrant green tube and has a curved brush. It has a plastic wand with smaller bristles on the edges and slightly longer in the middle. It does give nice definition to the lashes but not as much as the Lash Blast Volume. Even though, now I am used to the curved  brush but I found it a little bit odd in the beginning. Also, I really do not understand the point of having a mascara specifically targeted towards clump free lashes as none of the other Lash Blast mascara's give clumpy lashes due to the tiny closely placed bristles. So, it is not my favorite and I would probably not repurchase it.

 

Lash Blast Volume; Full Lash Bloom, & Clump Crusher

Lash Blast Full Lash Bloom:

It comes in a beautiful pink tube and has a slightly thinner and longer wand as compared to Volume. Also, the bristles are not as tightly packed so for me it takes a couple of extra strokes to get the desired volume. In addition, even  though there are tiny bristles on the top of the tip for inner corner lashes, but those  bristles are almost unusable because the stopper does not clean off the excess product from the tip so usually there is a lump of mascara there. Also, the main selling point behind this mascara is that even after putting it on, the lashes are soft to touch. But for me personally, that it is not a big deal unless a mascara is uncomfortable to wear or it is so dry and crunchy that it flakes off. However, with that being said, this is a nice mascara that gives me decent amount of definition but still it is not as good as the Volume, so I would probably not repurchase it.

You probably already know by now but my favorite is the Lash Blast Volume as it gives me volume and definition without clumping. Also, I use the non-waterproof version and it lasts all day without smudging, even on my lower lashes. So, I would definitely repurchase it and will always have it in my collection for my lower lashes.

What are some of your favorite mascara's?  Or do you have a holy grail mascara? I have been hearing a lot of buzz about the new Lash Blast Super Sizer, have you guys tried it? Do you think it is better than the Lash Blast Volume?

Thank you so much for taking time to read this post. Hope you have a wonderful day!

 

January 2013: Ipsy Bag

Today I received my Ipsy bag in the mail and this month's theme is 19 reasons, which I think, has something to do with new year's resolutions. The products came in a nice sky blue bag. However, I felt that this months bag is quite plain and boring when a new years theme could have made it way more glamorous and cool.

Willa Naturals On The Go Face Towelettes: There are 10 lavender scented moist towelettes in a very compact pack, making it perfect for traveling. However, I found the scent to be somewhat off and not very pleasant. Also, I would prefer the L.A. Colors wipes that I received in a previous Ipsy bag over these Willa ones, because of all the unnecessary ingredients used.

Healthy Sexy Hair Soy Tri-Wheat Leave In Conditioner: This is a more natural and supposedly healthy leave in conditioner i.e. made with soy and cocoa. I have not used it yet but I'm definitely looking forward to it. Also, this is one of the only products that I am excited to try from this month's bag.

Elizabeth Mott Smooth Shadow in Penny: Firstly, this pencil looks more like a liner than a shadow pencil. Secondly, it is quite sheer and needs a couple of swipes to build up some color that still looks very light. Therefore, I am definitely not going to swipe this tiny pencil back and forth on my eyelids. However, it does not budge once it sets, I literally had to scrub my hand with soap to get off the color and there is still some left.  As far as the color is concerned, it is a true copper color with noticeable shimmer particles. On a side note, this is my second product from this brand that was sent by Ipsy, first being a mascara and unfortunately I don't like either of the two. 

Elizabeth Mott Smooth Shadow Pencil vs NYX Jumbo Pencil

Nourish Organic Lightweight Moisturizing Face Lotion: I have never heard about this product before so I went onto their website to have a look at it. I found that it is formulated with all organic plant based ingredients and without any chemicals and parabens. Also, the 50 ml bottle of this product comes with a pump and retails for only $21.99. However, the issue is that I understand, it is a  lightweight product but despite of ingredients like argan oil, almond oil, vitamin e, shea butter etc, it is just not moisturizing so I'll not buy it.

Mica Beauty Tinted Lip Balm in Natural: As you all know I am not a huge fan of this kind of pot packaging due to hygiene reasons. Other than that, the color is really beautiful rosy nude shade and the product is more like a lipstick than a lip balm as it is quite concentrated and sets to a semi-matte finish. 

Overall, this  months bag was a fail for me as I liked only one product i.e. the Healthy Sexy Hair Leave In Conditioner and that is the only that that I am probably going to use out of all. Also, it is not just what I received but all the products listed under myglam this month are kind of blah. Apart from that, I found the theme to be quite boring and not special enough to represent the new year. Hopefully, next month there will be something interesting for Valentines day. 

What did you get in your Ipsy Bag this month?

Thank you for taking time to read this post, I hope you enjoyed it. Have a great day!