Physician's Formula Cashmere Wear Bronzer (review)

Hello my dears! I have another review for ya!

Have you seen the Physician's Formula Cashmere bronzers? After wanting to try these for quite some time, I ended up finally giving in one day at my local CVS. With the adorable packaging, this product seemed to "jump" right into my shopping basket, lol!

So, I purchased the shade "Light Bronzer". Did it work for me? Keep reading for my review, more photos, and color swatch!

Physician's Formula Baked Collection Trios

Hello there my dear readers!!!!

I am here today with a Physician's Formula Baked Collection Wet/Dry Eye Shadow Review for the shades Baked Oatmeal and Baked Sugar. I have had these for quite some time and am just getting around to reviewing them! I picked them up during the fabulous CVS 75% off sale. What a score for about $2.00 each. You just can't beat 75% off! :)

These shadows are actually my first experience with Physician's Formula Eye Shadows. For a drugstore line, Physician's formula leans on the pricier side. So, I tend to pick up items from this brand only when on a good sale (ya'll know I love a bargain!). I just don't want to pay more than a few dollars if I am purchasing something from the drugstore.

Keep reading after the jump!

Stila Custom Color Blush: review

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With my penchant for blushes, I just had to try out this new Stila Custom Color Blush!!!

So, i just love the idea of this product! A blush that "adjusts" to your own personal shade? The concept reminds me of the mood ring that I used to wear in middle school, lol!!! I am SURE many of you had those??? But, seriously, they make mood lipgloss and nailpolishes so why not a "mood blush"?

I was thrilled when I stumbled upon this pretty blush when browsing online to spend my Birchbox points! So, with my Birchbox points, this blush ended up being "free" for me! What is Birchbox? Check out my Birchbox Intro Post! But, if not redeeming points, this blush will cost you about $20.

Not only am I intrigued by the concept of a Custom Color Blush or a "self-adjusting mood blush",  but also I flat out love the color of the product in the pan! But, will it wear that color on me??? Please keep reading for my review, swatches, and photos!

Finley Hair Powder: Dry Shampoo Review

Since I don't like having to wash my hair every day, I am highly intrigued by all of the dry shampoo products on the market. I have tried Psssssst! and Tresemme Fresh Start, covered in my previous Dry Shampoo Review. Both Psssssst! and Tressemme are spray products; and I think both work great! 

What are dry shampoos? They are essentially hair powders or powders in a spray form. The powder works to absorb extra oils near your scalp. This, in turn, makes your hair look and feel cleaner. Also, the products usually have a fresh scent to mask any odor. The spray products also may contain clays, citrus, and some alcohol which all work to minimize and oils and make your hair look and feel fresher. 

My experience thus far with all of my dry shampoo testing has been fabulous! Honestly, now that I used dry shampoos, I don't think I can live without them! Not only do they extend how long you can go between a full washing, but also they add great volume to your hair! With my thick yet fine long hair, a volume boost is always needed and appreciated. 

So, how did my hair fare with Finley Hair Powder? For my review, keep reading! 

Urban Decay "Book of Shadows Vol. III" (pic heavy)

Urban Decay Book of Shadows III: UD <3 NYC Review

Hello readers! I am so happy to finally be reviewing this *amazing* palette! This palette came to me through a giveaway from Officially Superficial, and let me tell ya'll...I am *loving* this palette!!! Whenever I want to go out in the evenings, or really want a stand-out or dramatic look, this is what I reach for!!!

Also, I must say, this is my first review featuring photos from my new iPhone with an HDR camera! I am so excited about this as the photos are so much more vivid than in previous blog posts and the colors are showing true-to-life! Yay!!! Can ya'll tell the difference in photo quality? I had so much fun shooting these photos and doing a ton of swatching. Also, another change...I am now swatching with q-tips (don't know why I never did this before-previously I have used my clean fingertips)...but, I just feel the q-tips are more sanitary and display the colors more like how you would actually apply them.

Okay, now, on to the review!

Look at these amazing colors! Wow, vivid!!!

The low-down:

• This kit contains 16 eyeshadows, 2 small-medium sized eyeliners, and one mini Primer Potion. 

• The palette itself is a work of art! Definitely a palette for the collector or makeup enthusiast. I mean, this palette literally *lights up*! While the artwork, pop ups, and light-up effects are totally unnecessary, it certainly makes this palette unique and a stand-out piece. You will WANT to display this on your vanity (if only I had one, lol!). 

• The pan size of the eyeshadows is very generous. You are going to get plenty of shadow here ladies!

• The shadows themselves are a mix of finishes, but generally leaning towards bold colors and glitter/shimmer. Your only matte shade here is the black Perversion (the others are all satin, metallic, or glitter). If you love to experiment with color, you will LOVE this palette! Some have complained about the glittery finishes from this palette, but honestly...when I think glitter, I think Urban Decay. So, I am down with that. 

• The quality of these eyeshadows is just amazing!!! Urban Decay is one of my "gold standard" eyeshadows for good quality. You really won't find any shadows out there with better overall quality than Urban Decay, IMHO. The pigmentation is just amazing!!! The texture is beautiful! These just glide right on and blend like a dream. Be careful with application of glittery shades as you really have to tap these on to minimize fall out. But, these are also beautiful shades! 

• I honestly am surprised with how frequently I use this palette. I am generally a neutrals shadow girl, but am amazed at how "wearable" the colors are in this palette! What a pleasant surprise!!! 

These are all swatched on unprimed skin.

You can see the glittery shades had some fall out.

The Shadows: I won't go into descriptions of each individual shadow, but I will describe my favorites from this palette as there are some real stand-out shades here! 

• Perversion: A great matte black. Probably one of the blackest blacks that I have used!
• Rockstar: Possibly one of my fav eyeshadow shades ever. Seriously!!! I love this and this color is often the reason I reach for this palette. Who knew a deep purple could wear so neutral!!! This is just the most gorgeous shade in the crease. Absolutely love this. Looks amazing on! I can take pretty much any daytime eyeshadow look from day-to-night by adding some of this in the crease. You can also create a lovely smoky purple look with this! 
• Last Call: Beautiful plummy purple color. Looks amazing when paired with Rockstar and love it with my blue eyes. 
• Money: This is another unique shade. A beautiful light blue-green shade with a lovely metallic finish. Looks lovely on the lids. 
• Smog: Beautiful metallic coppery brown (is also in the Naked palette, great color!)
• Radium: A very bold medium blue. I love this to line the lower lashes with a neutral lid. Very bold!!!
• Snatch: Glittery metallic pink. Love this on the lids. Tip: tap on to help avoid fall-out. 
• Suspect: Rich metallic medium brown. I love this on the lid. 

Last but not least: The 24/7 Liners and the mini Primer Potion!!! 

These 24/7 liners have quickly become my fav pencil liners!!! They glide on effortlessly and wear all day! LOVE these. Ransom is a deep purple and Zero is a rich black. Honestly, the only thing that wears better than these pencils are potted gel liners. I will certainly be buying more 24/7 liners when I run out of these! All my other pencil eyeliners are "feeling neglected" since I have started using UD 24/7 liners! ;)

Hope you enjoyed the photos, swatches, and the review! I totally love this palette. I was amazed with how I could create not only standout and vivid "going out looks" with this palette, but also surprisingly "neutral"/wearable daytime looks. You get great quality with these amazing products! What a great value with this set, too! It retails for about $54, but when you consider how much product you get (and the cost of individual UD shadows, liners, primer potion)...not too bad! I mean, yes it is steep, but great products!

This is certainly a must-have for any collector or anyone who loves bold-yet surprisingly wearable colors! What do you readers think of this palette? Anyone else loving this palette as much as I am? I am certainly looking forward to more Book of Shadows sets from Urban Decay as this is my very first one! Thanks for reading!!!

Aveda's Intensive Hydrating Masque: A total treat for my Winter-dry skin!

Is anyone else having a terrible time with this cold weather drying out their skin? I know that I sure am! When my skin starts feeling super-dry, I always whip out Aveda's Intensive Hydrating Masque for a moisturizing treatment for my skin.

Aveda Intensive Hydrating Masque: Review

This soothing aloe-based facial mask is such a nice treat for my dry skin! Like all Aveda products, it contains natural ingredients and good-for-your-skin ingredients such as plant extracts. My foray into Aveda products began at the hair salon that I go to, Van Michael's Salon. Aveda makes not only great hair products, but also some truly great makeup and skincare products as well! If you haven't read-up on Aveda. Head on over to their website, they are truly one of the most environmentally friendly companies that I know of. From ingredients, to production, facilities, all-in-all, a great company! High quality products with minimal environmental impact. Who doesn't like that! This is the first of many future Aveda posts on this blog!

So, on to the mask! Here are some highlights!

• This mask provides a non-oily moisture boost to skin! Since it is a gel-base, this would be suitable for all skin types including acne-prone. Contains great ingredients like humectants (attract moisture to the skin), aloe, kelp, rosewater, and lavender.

• Very lightly scented, I mean...practically scent-free! Would prefer no-scent (less irritating for us sensitive girls, but this fragrance does not bother me). 

• My skin is highly sensitive; but, this mask does not irritate my skin. Yay! Not only does it not irritate, but it soothes it! 

• I always bring this mask with me on vacations! Perfect for sunburns. Now, ya'll know I always wear my SPF and try to stay in the shade, but even with all that protection I still sometimes get burned. So, I always pack this. Just in case! 

• Soothes any skin irritation: dryness, windburn, sunburn, etc! Aloe promotes skin healing, so soothe this on for any skin irritations! I even put this on when I accidentally burn myself (straight aloe gel would work for that too!). :) 

• This mask immediately makes my skin "feel good" when I apply it. It is like a refreshing "drink" for my thirsty skin, LOL! Leaves my skin soft and smooth! 

• This mask retails for about $20. Which is not bad for a good quality mask! 

• I seriously love this and have been using this for years! I will never be without my mask.

Here is how I use it:

• I apply this wonderful mask on those mornings that I have extra time (which is usually only the weekends). 

• When I get up, I wet a washcloth with tepid water to remove any treatment products from the night before. 

• I then pin back my hair (this mask is *sticky*!) and apply a generous layer all over my face.

• I leave this mask on either until I rinse it in the shower or about 30 minutes and remove with a warm wet washcloth.

• I follow with a moisturizer.

• This leaves my skin feeling so moisturized and refreshed!!! 

• Another option: Apply overnight and sleep in it. Now, it is sticky, so your hair might get stuck in it and you will probably want to change your pillow case the next day. But, it works well this way too! You can leave this mask on for as long as you want! :) 

Overall, I have nothing but love for this great mask!!! Thanks Aveda! Generally, Aveda makes some great skincare. I used to use primarily their All Sensitive Line, which is fabulous. But, unfortunately, they discontinued most products from this line. Here's to hoping that Aveda will bring back some of that line, especially the All Sensitive Toner, which used to be my HG toner! 

What do ya'll like from the Aveda line? I am planning many upcoming Aveda reviews! 

Wet n' Wild: Color Icon Holiday Palettes Review Series: Golden Goddess

Hello there dear readers! Here I am with the last of my Wet n' Wild (WnW) Holiday Palettes reviews! Please see my previous posts for the WnW Sugar Plum Fairy review and the WnW Night Elf reviews. This review is for the WnW Color Icon Holiday Palette in Golden Goddess.

While I find all the WnW Color Icon Holiday Palettes to be of extremely high quality for a drugstore brand, this is my least used palette amongst the group. This is due largely to the fact that this particular palette is just a tad "too warm" for my generally neutral-cool coloring (some of the shadows look down-right orange on me, not a good look!). I find that to make these shadows wearble on my complexion, I need to add other shadows from my eyeshadow collection to tone down the warmth and make the overall eye-look that I create more wearable. With that said, there really are some beautiful colors in this palette!

My thoughts:

• As with all the WnW Color Icon Holiday Palettes, the quality of the shadow is just phenomenal for a drugstore brand (not to mention a very *inexpensive* drugstore brand). Such fantastic quality for the low $4.99 price tag!!!

• If you are a warm-toned girl, then you MUST pick up this palette. Women with cooler skin tones might have more trouble pulling off some of these shades. I found 3 of these shades to be wearable on my neutral-cool coloring with the other 3 shadows looking either too yellow or too orange on me. But, don't let me totally dissuade you! I think the palette is still worth it for the 3 shadows that I can wear.

• This palette, like the other WnW Color Icon Holiday palettes, is packed with shimmer, glitter, and metallic finishes. As a fan of glitter and shimmer and everything in-between, I think that this whole series of palettes is a fantastic choice for creating festive and sparkly holiday looks. While the glitter can be a negative for some, I say bring it on! Especially this time of the year. ;)

• The texture of these shadows is soft, "buttery", and totally blendable. As always, I recommend using a nice eyeshadow base (am loving Too Faced Shadow Insurance lately, but any eye primer should work to increase the vibrancy of the colors and make the shadows last all day).

• These shadows are easy to work with. They blend so easily and would be easy for a makeup beginner to apply.

• On another note, these shadows would be great for the experienced makeup aficionado, too! Or any makeup collector who can't resist those words..."Limited Edition"! LOL-you all know who you are!

• Holy Pigmentation! These shadows pack in the pigment! Just look at the swatches below!!! The whole palette is very nicely pigmented.

• My particular faves are the champagne highlighter shade (beautiful micro-fine gold sparkle), the bronze (beautiful metallic finish!), and the dark brown (it has a lovely copperish micro sparkle).

• If you want this palette...and see it, I would recommend going ahead and purchasing as these will not be available for long and are already extremely hard to find. I know I had to search for a while before finding them myself. And, if you are lucky, you will find one during those awesome 50% off sales! You readers know I *love* a good bargain!!!

In summary, I highly recommend *all* of the WnW Color Icon Holiday Palettes (well, all that I have tried...I never did pick up the Blue/Green one...but, apparently there are some MAC dupes in that one!). I am consistently impressed with the pigmentation, texture, finish, and *price* of the WnW Color Icon series (Holiday collection as well as the Permanent line). What a great value for a low price. This is a fantastic way to experiment with colors that you might not have tried otherwise at a higher price. My personal favorite of the WnW Holiday Collection is the Sugar Plum Fairy Palette. Love, love, love that one!!!

Thanks for reading!

"Get Naked" with Urban Decay: The Naked Palette: Review (pic heavy)

Good morning dear readers and blog followers! :)

I am sure this will come as no surprise to any of you, but, I *heart* the Urban Decay Naked Palette!!!!

I have been meaning post a review for quite some time now; but, I really just wanted a good/long chance to play around with it first. I mean, after all the hype, I really wanted to be able to experience the product for awhile so that I could review it well. What can I say, I have been having so much fun "playing" with this amazing palette!!!

As you readers may know, I was on this search for this palette for quite some time (we are talking *months* here ladies). Every time I went to order it, out-of-stock (grrr!). I pretty much stalked my Ultas and Sephoras with frequent visits and phone calls to see when this palette would arrive. Luckily, I won Vyile's blog gift card giveaway right when the Urban Decay Naked Palettes were back in stock at Macy's.com. Total Serendipity! Thanks again to Shelley!!!

For me, a neutrals palette is the ticket. While I love bright and fun shadows for that "pop of color", in general, for day-to-day, neutrals are what I reach for. So,  if you are like me, a neutrals gal, then this palette might be ideal for you. I know it was "calling my name"...lol (I'm a nut ya'll). :)

So, the hype surrounding this palette has been unreal! After all this effort to find the palette and crazy Internet hype, will it really be that great??? In a word...YES!!! My expectations had gotten so high during my wait that I almost expected disappointment. Well, that certainly was not the case. I love this palette!!! Honestly, I have nothing bad *at all* to say here!

So, here are my thoughts:

• The range of neutrals are extremely well chosen colors. The full range is here...light to dark. Love it that the palette contains highlight and liner/smoke shades and everything in-between!

• Love that there are a variety of finishes: matte, satin/shimmer, metallic, & glitter!

• The shadows themselves are of the highest quality. Seriously, I can't stress that enough! I really consider MAC, Urban Decay, and Stila to have the nicest texture for shadows (IMHO). These shadows totally set the bar high! Fantastic quality. The texture is perfect and they apply like a dream! Truly, I love my drugstore shadows, and there are great drugstore brands that are of good value and quality considering the price. But, these Urban Decay shadows are really a step above in quality and showcase how great high-end shadows can be. The texture, pigment, blendabilty, finish, staying power of these shadows are just superior to most of the other shadows in my makeup collection. 

• 12 beautiful shades: Some of the stand-outs (my personal faves, and the shades that I would purchase shadow singles of separately): Virgin, Sin, Toasted, and Hustle. Love, love, love these!!!

• LOVE the size and shape of this palette! It is big enough that the shadow pans are of decent size, but not too bulky for travel. The layout and shape makes it easy to hold and work with during application. Also love that the dual ended liner is stored inside the actual palette. So handy!

• The 24/7 liner duo (dual ended: Whiskey-brown and Zero-black): I absolutely adore the texture of these UD 24/7 liner!!! Its a pencil that applies like a gel. Genius really! It just glides effortlessly onto the lash line (no "tugging" of the lid nor a need to "warm" the liner up like a typical eye pencil to allow it to glide). The pencil feels sort of "wet" upon application. I believe this is what gives the product its great staying powder...this liner will absolutely stay put (and perfect) all day long! Love, Love, Love these! I will totally purchase more 24/7 liners in the future! And, it is super travel friendly as the dual ended pencil gives you both your black and brown in one pencil! :) Two liners in one! The only other liner that I could compare these to are the Prestige Total Intensity liners that are of similar gel-like texture.

• Packaging is NICE! Love the brown fuzzy palette and the gold lettering. Nice sized mirror on the inside too. Love that it is actually "fuzzy"! I am such a "butter fingers". This palette won't slip out of your hands when in a hurry (and yes, lol, I have had shadows fly around in my bathroom when I am in a super-hurry in the morning, doh!) :)

• I believe these shadows would suit most people! I am neutral-cool toned and they work very well with my coloring. Great assortment! My only *teensy tiny* wish is that there were more cool-toned colors in this palette. Wouldn't it be great if Urban Decay came out with a UD Naked II for cooler tones? But, really, I can wear all these shades in this palette, even with my neutral-cool coloring. 

• You can use this palette for neutral school/office appropriate daytime looks *OR* for sexy and dramatic evening/nighttime looks. You have everything you need to go from day-to-night in one convenient palette. How great is that!!! 

• This set retails for $44, which is a good deal considering you get 12 amazing shadows, a dual-ended 24/7 liner (which rocks by-the-way: will do a top 5 pencil eyeliners post in the near future and this is on it!), and a mini Primer Potion. Not sure if any of you saw some of the eBay listings for this palette??? OMG! Clearly people are willing to pay much more for this palette...upwards of $80+! Shhh

A breakdown of the shades and some descriptions (I have*starred my faves):

• *Virgin: One of the prettiest highlight colors that I have ever seen! Absolutely love the finish on this one. It is a gorgeous shimmery buttery champagne shade (that description doesn't even do it justice). This light and shimmery shade gives you such a beautiful highlight without being overly "white" (if you know what I mean)...its just the *ideal* highlight shade! Love it for a brow highlight, inner corners, and to line under my lower lashes. It really brightens up my eyes! I can already tell that this is the first shadow that I will "hit pan" on in this palette! I will, no doubt, repurchase this as a shadow single!

• *Sin: The *perfect* lid color! Darker than Virgin, this is a pinkish/champagne metallic hue that is somewhat reminiscent of Stila Kitten (which I totally adore as well). This color is beautiful worn on its own as a "wash" of color all over the lid with dramatic winged liner. I also like to wear this on the lid with some of the darker shades in this palette worn in the crease and outer "v". Love this shade!

• Naked: This matte tan (or very light brown) is the perfect shade to blend out smoky colors above the crease. I also love using this in the crease when using lighter colors to give the eyes more dimension. Overall, a very versatile and wearable shade. Urban Decay is generally "known" for its glittery and shimmery shades, but this shadow proves that UD can do matte very well!

• Sidecar: This is the most glittery shade of the palette. It is a beautiful gold metallic with fine milled glitter. You have to be careful upon application of this one as you might experience glitter fall-out if you are not careful. It is best applied by "tapping" it on with a flat shader-style brush. A fluffy brush would cause the glitter to scatter and fall-out. And, while glitter is great on the lid...glitter fall out is just a hot-mess. The color of this is so pretty on the lid!!! LOVE! (fan of glitter here!)

Wow, those swatched well...look at the beautiful metallics! 

• Buck: This is the matte medium brown of the palette. Again, I find that UD does mattes *so well*! It has a smooth and "creamy" texture. Not even slightly chalky! I like this one in the crease or to define the outer corner. Great eye contouring shade.

• Half Baked: This shadow is a very shimmery gold/copper metallic color. The finish is just beautiful on this one. This shade is a bit warm on me. But, with that said, the shade itself really makes my blue eyes pop (see my previous article on Color Theory).

• Smog: Smog is a beautiful shimmery metallic bronze shadow. It looks very nice paired with Half-baked. Love it for the crease or outer corner. Beautiful finish!

• Dark Horse (okay, lol, I can't think of this shade without thinking of one of my favorite bars in Atlanta of the same name...sorry, I digress!): This is a deep and dark shimmery brown hue. I *love* this one used as an eyeliner or for a deep/dark outer "v" shade.

• *Toasted: I totally LOVE this shade. It is a copper metallic with a strong brown hue. It is absolutely beautiful. Truly stunning with my blue eyes. Would purchase this as an eyeshadow single in a heartbeat!

• *Hustle: This is probably (well, next to Virgin) my biggest fave of the entire palette!!! I would, no question, purchase this as a single as I never want to be without this lovely shade! I love wearing shimmery plummy dark browns like this in the crease. Such a beautiful and truly dimensional color. The finish is just so beautiful! Gives great depth to your eyes!

• Creep: Creep is the palette's deep/rich and pigmented matte-ish black shadow with very fine milled micro-glitter. Fantastic to finish off a beautiful smoky eye look. The black applies very "black"! What rich pigmentation! Great for smoky looks, topping pencil liner, or on its own as a liner.

• Gunmetal: Gunmetal is a deep and dark rich metallic grey color. This is, hands down, my favorite shade for a smokey eye. Love this paired with Creep (Gunmetal on the lid and smoked out with creep for liner and outer corner). I also love this worn on its own for a smoky grey eye. Is also beautiful when used as a liner.

In summary: Love, Love, love this palette! So many wearable and versatile shades. The finishes on the metallic shadows are absolutely beautiful and the mattes are so wearable and basic! This palette packs in the best variety of colors and textures that I have ever seen in a neutrals palette. AND-the best part: I found 4 HG (Holy Grail) new neutral shadows that I seriously will never be without! I highly recommend this palette to everyone who can get their hands on it!

I guess my only "complaint" is that this palette was extremely hard for me to find! But, the good news is that Urban Decay has added this to their permanent line. So, if you have not had the opportunity to check this out, or your Ulta or Sephora is out of stock, then you should be able to get one soon! It is certainly worth the wait!

Thanks for reading!!! Hopefully everyone out there that is searching for this palette will find it soon!

Coming Soon:

-Urban Decay Book of Shadows III (UD<3 NYC): Review and swatchs, Top 5 Eyeliner Pencils, and My Basic Manicure (Tips and Tricks)

Too Faced "Glamour to Go" Fairy Edition: review and swatches

Hello Lovely Readers! I have another Too Faced review for ya: Too Faced Too Go Fairy Edition!

As ya'll know, Too Faced has become on of my favorite makeup brands. I adore my Too Faced Enchanted Glamourland Palette so much, that I was intrigued by this pocket-sized palette in the same "Fairy" themed collection. Too Faced has had a number of these "Glamour to Go" pocket sized palettes. I believe they are Glamour to Go, Glamour to Go II, Glamour to Go III, and this new Fairy Edition. The idea is to have a very small compact with all your color cosmetics for eyes, cheeks, and lips.

My thoughs on Too Faced "Glamour to Go" Fairy Edition:

• This Fairy Edition houses 8 eye shadows (2 matte and 6 shimmer), a blush, a bronzer, and a lipgloss. 

• This compact really holds a LOT of product considering how TINY it is! Wow!

• The compact itself is quite sturdy. Its a black shiny/hard plastic with a light blue sticker on top that has the Too Faced Fairy Design. Very girlie and cute packaging. The top snaps opens to reveal the shadows and a nice size mirror. The bottom slides open to reveal the blush, lipcolor, and bronzer. The design really is pretty genius for getting as much product as possible into a tiny little compact. There is no wasted space!

• I like that there is a mix of matte and shimmer shadows in the palette (good variety and adds dimension to your look).

• Interesting color selection! These shades coordinate nicely with my blue eyes. I especially love the peachy/pink shimmery shade, the blue shade, the bronze shade, and the brown matte shade. I love using the dark brown as an upper lash line liner and the pale blue as a lower lash line liner. The shimmery peachy pink is great on the lids and really makes my blue eyes "pop". While I like the colors, I find that I need to reach for other shadows from my makeup collection to "complete" my eye looks.

• Pigmentation seems to vary with these shadows. I find that with my uber-pale skin that the matte pink and the shimmery champagne shadows dont really show up on my skin. So, really, I find that I am not using all the shadows in this kit. Kinda hit-or-miss with me on the shadow colors. The bronze, blue, gold, and peach are nicely pigmented and I reach for these shades the most. The liner shades are well pigmented too.

• Lets talk about the blush: I *totally love and adore* this beautiful blush!!! It is a matte medium-bright, well pigmented, pink. Wow! I apply with a light hand (as it is VERY pigmented) and it *really* brightens up my winter-pale complexion. So pretty!!!!

• The lipcolor is a nice sheer neutral brownish pink. It is one of those colors that I find universally flattering to all skin tones. It has a lovely vanilla-like scent that just makes the entire palette smell yummy. I mean, serious, LOL, I smell this palette every time I open it. Yes, I know...I am a NUT! :) The lipcolor is very creamy and moisturizing and applies well with a lipbrush.

• Okay, lets talk about this bronzer...OMG, I LOVE it!!! This is the *ideal* bronzer for my fair skin. I just apply a light sweep of bronzer with my mini Ecotools kabuki brush (because of the small pan size) to the "3" areas. It makes me look instantly "healthier". I have to be careful with bronzers on my fair skin because they can look "muddy" on me...but not this one...just lightly shimmery and beautiful sheer color.

• For me, this palette is worth it for the blush and bronzer alone...but, you also get a very wearable lipshade and 8 shadows...so, really, you can't go wrong here. Especially for the great price of $19.99.

• Great for travel or for your purse! The small size of this compact makes it perfect for "On the Go" (hense the whole "Glamour to Go" name). This gives you most of the products you need for a complete look (but as I mentioned, I tend to add other shadows from my collection when creating eye looks with this palette).

• I find that I reach for this palette mostly for the blush, bronzer, and when I want to use that beautiful blue shadow to line my lower lash line.

You can clearly see how pigmented this blush is! 

I wouldn't apply this heavily on my face :) Just wanted to show 

you a good swatch! 

So, in summary, a rave for this palette (especially because of the bronzer, blush, and the peachy/pink and blue shadow). This palette would make an adorable stocking stuffer. Especially for girlie girls because of the Fairy theme. Have any of ya'll tried any other Too Faced "Glamour to Go" palettes? Would love to hear how you are liking those. I love a good "travel" palette and would love to investigate the other "Glamour to Go" compacts.

Hope you enjoyed reading! Have a great day!!!

Wet n' Wild Holiday Palettes (part 2): Sugar Plum Fairy Review

Held sideways

Hello lovelies!

This is "part 2" of my Wet n' Wild Color Icon Holiday Palettes review series! See "Part one" (here). This review is for the Sugar Plum Fairy palette set.

I have, yet again, nothing but raves here!!! I must start out by saying that I have been *majorly* into purple shadows lately! I am normally a total neutrals shadow type girl...but, have found that, on me, purple shades are surprisingly "neutral" and just lovely for the colder months! Of all the holiday palettes this one is my favorite just for the sheer fact that it is an array of pretty purples! I have so much fun creating looks with this great palette!!!

Note: it is hard to see the lightest shades here

I had poor lighting for the photo 

(but these shades are of the least pigmentation in the palette)

The low-down:

• Extremely low price! $4.99 for entire set! And, if you are lucky, you will find it during a WnW sale! :)

• Hard to find in my area. Good luck finding this!!! But, just keep looking! I would say snatch this up if you see it! :)

• Shadows are soft and somewhat powdery/chalky. The whiter shades seem especially more chalky than the other shades in this palette (and less pigmented...but, still pretty!). Generally, the darker shades seem to "wear" better. But, despite that, I still totally *heart* this palette!

• This palette contains all shimmer/glitter shades. This might be a minus for some people...but, shimmery/glittery never bothers me! If you want to tone down the shimmer you can pair with some matte neutral shadows.

• These purple shades are surprisingly neutral! I have been reaching for this palette very frequently! Love this for even every-day wear (despite being so shimmery...love it for daytime or anytime!). These colors look lovely with my cool-neutral very fair skin tone!

• Pigmentation varies: Now in comparison to some of the other palettes, as my fellow blogger Turtle Beauty has pointed out (check out her review here), this palette is of the least pigmentation of the series of holiday palettes. But, even so, I still totally love it!!! And really, in this palette, the pigmentation depends on which shadow in the palette. As you can see in my swatches, the pigmentation varies depending on the shade.

• As always, I suggest using these shadows over an eyeshadow primer (like UDPP) to get the best color payoff and wearablilty.

• Standout shades: Totally LOVE the bottom two shades used as a liner shades! I typically wear either the left column together or the right column together. I also really love the middle right hand shade. Love this in the crease.

• On my light blue/grey eyes...purple shadows really bring out the little bit of green in my eyes! So, I love wearing this palette as it is like "changing" my eye color for a day. Too cool!!! :)

• The liner: Purple shimmery liner. I really like the shade but the texture, like the other color icon liners, is quite hard. But, once you warm it up, is pretty wearable. I just hate having to "tug" on my lid with a hard liner. The shade is very pretty though! And works well with one of the darker liner shades topping the pencil liner for long wear.

In summary (if you can't already tell, LOL), I totally adore this palette! So much so that I bought a couple of these for girlfriends as gifts! :) I hope that WnW does a variety of Holiday Palettes every year! I will always look forward to these. I love that you can get pretty good quality shadows at a great price with Wet n Wild!

Hope you enjoyed reading. Are you ladies enjoying your Sugar Plum Fairy Palettes?

XOXO!
Pammy

EOS Lipbalms: Cute giftset (review!)

evolution of smooth (eos) Lip balms

Don't you love stumbling across unexpectedly cute things while on a random trip to the drugstore!!! This cute little set literally "jumped out at me" while I was waiting at the beauty counter to checkout. I have been wanting to try the eos balms for quite some time and figured this gift set was the way to do it! 3 cute lip balms and an *adorable* case. This is great because I can keep one balm in my purse, one by my bedside, and one on my desk at work. :)

My lips get so dry in the colder weather so this is a *perfect* time to test out new lip balms. So, for the purposes of this review. I have used *only* eos balms for moisture this past week.

In the gift set:

• Honeysuckle Honeydew: (light green container) This is my fave scent/flavor of the group! It really does smell like Honeydew melon (which I love). :) 
• Lemon Drop (the only one with SPF 15): Smells of lemon (hence the name), love that this one includes an SPF 15, wish they all did! This is the one I keep in my purse because of the SPF 15. 
• Summer Fruit: Not that crazy about the scent of this one (reminds me of cough syrup!), but that's just me! :) 

Cosmetic Case: The case has a "summery" feel and would be a great addition to any pool bag! I am thinking that this will become my new makeup case for my purse as I love makeup bags that you can see through. When I grab my cosmetics bag from my purse, I am usually in some sort of "hurry" to reapply and I just think that a see-through case minimizes the digging you do to find your desired product.

The low-down:

• Totally cute and unique packaging. I have honestly never tried a balm quite like this!

• Unique size and shape make it easy to find in your purse. And, it looks cute sitting out on your counter or nightstand. :)

• Love the "soft" texture of the container. Its that "fuzzy" plastic feel. :) Hard to describe (does that make sense)...kinda like the NARS soft packaging. 

• After using these exclusively (no other lip balms used) for over a week, I must say, my lips are in great condition! The only other product that I used before starting this "test" was LUSH's Bubblegum Sugar Scrub (which really prepped my lips well for this test).

• Somewhat hard balm. It warms a bit as you rub it into your lips.

• Waxy, yet moisturizing base makes it the *ideal* prep for lipstick/liner/gloss. I had been using Smith's Rosebud Salve to prep my lips for makeup. But, I think that was almost too moisturizing and color would not last as long. I feel the EOS works much better as a "base" for your lip color!

• Because of the cute shape and flavor/scent of this lip balm, I actually felt myself "wanting" to apply it more!

• These  would make a great gift/stocking stuffer!

• Petroleum and Paraban free

Verdict: I *LOVE* these cute little balms! I will totally repurchase these! :)

Hope you enjoyed reading!

XOXO!
Pammy

Coming Soon:
-November Favorites
-Redken: Blond Glam Review

NYX Palettes: Champagne and Caviar Palette "Total Rave"!!! :)

Hey there dear readers! Any NYX lovers out there? If you have not discovered NYX cosmetics yet...you must check out this great brand!!! NYX offers good quality cosmetics with nice sleek packaging at a remarkably low price.

This review today is for the NYX Runway Collection: Champagne & Caviar 10 color Palette. I can't believe I have not reviewed this wonderful palette yet...because I love it!

This aptly named palette provides all the shades you need for a totally classic and elegant look that can easily go from day to night! The colors in this palette are timeless and elegant. This palette contains a nice array of soft neutrals for fair-skinned cool-neutral toned ladies like myself. I find that I reach for this great palette very often for a lovely/wearable daytime look!

Here is the low-down:

• This palette contains 10 lovely shadows in a very sleek and elegant compact. Colors include: a white, a light neutral pink, an array of browns and taupes, and dark black and brown liner/smoke shades. The shadows are a combination of matte and satin shades (with some shimmer). I love that there is a combo of shadow finishes as this gives such dimension to your look!

• Some of the medium browns/taupes seem to be near-duplicates, but I don't mind that as those are the shades that I seem to use the most often.

• I LOVE it that this palette contains both a white *and* dark smoke shades as this gives you everything you need to complete your look! I especially love it that there is a matte white as I love that shade for inner corner work. The dark shades work very well when applied over pencil eyeliner for a long-lasting lined eye.

• You can go from day to night with this palette. Apply light and medium neutral shades for day...and then smoke it out at night! All with the same palette.

• These shadows are soft, about "medium" pigmentation (the effect here is soft and subtle), and blendable, but a little bit powdery. But, I'm not complaining as they apply so easily! I think this would be a great palette for beginners because of the ease of blending with these shades. Also a great palette for anyone who loves neutrals or needs an "easy" daytime look.

• I personally love this palette for a work-appropriate daytime look!

• The packaging is sleek and elegant. It looks expensive, but its not! Love the shiny black compact! Features a full sized mirror inside and the shadows are of decent size. You get a good amount of product here!

• Packaging is also very sturdy and it is a nice size for travel. I have traveled with this palette a few times and did not have any shadow breakage. Even with the heavy use this palette gets, the outer packaging is not too scratched up (and this makes me happy as I like my makeup packaging to look nice and clean and pretty). You could easily travel with this palette as your only eye shadow. Maybe add a colorful shadow single if you want a pop of color. But, all your "basics" are covered with this palette!

• What a great value at $10 retail! Check the sales at your local Ulta as they frequently run sales on NYX.

• Tip: for longer lasting shadow and better wear, apply over an eyeshadow base (I like e.l.f. mineral eye primer, UDPP, or TF Shadow Insurance: comparison review coming soon on all these primers)

There is absolutely no question that I would purchase this palette again many times over. I totally love this palette! Big rave from me!

Great news for you readers! I just purchased an additional NYX Champagne and Caviar palette to add to my makeup goodies for an upcoming blog giveaway! So, keep stopping by my blog to check on that! The giveaway is a "thank you" to all you wonderful readers and subscribers. I appreciate all of you for stopping by! I am waiting for the milestone of 100 followers on Google Friend Connect before posting my giveaway. Hopefully I will hit that number soon ya'll! :)

Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed it! What NYX products do you all love?

XOXO!
Pammy

Coming soon:
-Rimmel Lash Accelerator Review

BeneFit Powder Pop Palette

BeneFit Powder Pop Palette

This little blush/bronzer palette is adorable! 3 GREAT BeneFit powders in one box!!! Great for on-the-go or travel! True to BeneFit's style, the packaging is adorable!!! This kit contains small/travel sized pans of "best sellers" from BeneFit including: Hoola (bronzer), Dandelion (blush), and Dallas (blush/contour).

Hoola is a medium matte bronzers. Perfect for those who don't like shimmer and use their bronzer for contouring. Tip: Apply in a "3" shape with a light-hand on your face hitting the top of your forehead, down your nose, and the hallows just under your cheekbones. I like this for contouring.

Dandelion is one of my "top 5" blushes; and, certainly my favorite pale blush. It shows up as a baby pink color on my uber-pale skin. It is just one of those face powders that makes my skin look "naturally healthy" (yet, not overly "made up"). But, I could see how this might not show up much on darker skin tones. It has an ever-so-slight shimmer that just looks beautiful on the skin (no noticeable sparkles, just a "glow"). I reach for this blush when I want a very natural look. So super pretty!!!

Dallas is a pretty bronzy-berry color with a slight shimmer that can be used as a contour or a blush. I love it as a blush. It gives a nice rosey-bronzy glow. I apply this with a light hand on my fair skin. I think this would look good on a variety of skintones.

One down-side to this product is that the pans are so small. So, depending on what bronzer/blush brush you use, it might not fit into the pan. The brush that comes with this set is pretty useless (I prefer a fluffier blush brush and use a kabuki for bronzer). Luckily, I have a small travel-size kabuki from my Ecotools travel kit that fits perfectly into these small pans. These blushes and bronzers apply great with that tool. But, the small-size is also a plus when you consider this item for travel. You get 3 products in a size just slightly wider and flatter than a normal BeneFit blush/bronzer package. So, I certainly plan on traveling with this!

I lucked out and found this for a steal on ebay! I believe it is discontinued???, but you can still find it at places like TJ Maxx and online (ebay). Hopefully BeneFit will bring this back with a new assortment of shades!

I admit, with BeneFit, I do fall for the cute packaging...but, the products are really fantastic too!

Love this little blush/bronzer palette! Super great for travel!
Hope you enjoyed this little review!

XOXO!
Pammy

BeneFit Ooh la lift "instant under eye brightening boost": Product review

BeneFit Ooh la lift "instant under eye brightening boost"

Here I am with another BeneFit review for an "eye brightening" product. Unfortunately, this product was just "meh"/"so so" for me. So, for eye-brightening, I am going to stick with my beloved BeneFit Eye Bright pencil (LOVE!) which I find works MUCH better than the ooh-la-lift (see my previous review/rave for BeneFit's Eye Bright). 

BeneFit's Ooh-la-lift is a light pink liquid product in a tube with a doe-foot applicator. BeneFit recommends using this on bare skin or over makeup. Because it is liquid, when I apply it over my concealer and in my inner eye corners I find that the "liquidness" of the product causes my carefully applied concealer to smear/slide. So, for me, it does not work well as an inner corner highlighter, nor under eyes...and this was the specific use that I purchased it for. Perhaps if your dark circles are less apparent than mine (and need less concealer under your eyes) then liquidness of this product over your concealer would not be an issue. I suppose you could also use this product *under* your concealer if you were using a more "sheer" concealer. This product used on its own does not have any real "coverage" (so it wouldn't work for me on its own, nor would the color look natural all over my under eye area). Or, if you didn't have dark under-eye circles (lucky!), then I suppose you could use this under your eyes, if you didn't need concealer at all, for brightening.

But, luckily, I did find another use for this product: You can use as a "brightening" eyeshadow base on the lids. The product has some subtle light diffusing pigments in it. It works pretty well in this capacity for my generally normal-dry eyelids. Not sure how this would hold up as a primer on ladies that apply eye primer to control oil. I will be using this occasionally as a eyelid primer until I use it up, but will not likely repurchase. Also, it could be used for a highlighting effect on eyelids for days that I do not wear shadow, but want a highlighted look.

So, overall just a "so-so" from me! Don't love it and don't hate it...just "meh"! BeneFit certainly has other/better products on the market for eye-brightening. I am pleased that I found another use for it: as an eyeshadow base. How are you ladies out there using this product? Are you getting any better results? If so, I would love to hear your tips!

What do you ladies like to use for under eye-brightening? As you readers know, I am always on the look-out for products to brighten the eye area. :)

Thanks for reading!
XOXO!
Pammy

Coming soon:
-Too Faced Enchanted Glamourland Palette Review (yay!)
-Protein Treatment Series (continued)
-How to tone down brassy color
-Fitness Post: my workout routine