Sparkled Beauty

In that Colour Pop order besides the To Go sets, I also grabbed a few creme gel liners, seeing as they were pretty new back in November.

Supposed to have long wearing formula with full coverage, smooth and creamy application without tugging/ pulling, these liners could potentially fit in my trusted lineup of Avon SuperShock gel eye liner pencils and LA Girl Glide gel liners.

I figured pastel liners are the new black so I got Cry Baby and Zulu to contrast the dark ones I am always drawn to - Bee Sting and Workout.

Cry Baby, described as a pastel lavender, and Zulu, a pastel sea foam green, are amazingly opaque. I love them on the lower lash line.

Bee Sting, a turquoise blue, and Workout, a blackened forest green, are equally gorgeous.

I find most of the claims stay true. Pigmentation does not disappoint and wear time is almost as good as my favorite lines mentioned above. The swatches set after a few minutes but do smudge with a swipe of my finger. On the eyes, they start to fade late afternoon. In short, these not a complete winner for me.

A note on the format: the thin core of these liners does not seem to work with the twistup mechanism, as 2 of the 4 shades came broken inside the tube, and the pieces fell right out when I opened the cap.

I managed to push them back in to make swatches, but don't think application on the eyes will be precise. And because the package arrived while I was on vacation, it missed Colour Pop's 2-week claim period, so I have to swallow this loss.

There are 24 liner shades, with matching creme gel colours. The pencils are 0.2g/ 0.01oz, $5 each.

After a small disappointment with Colour Pop Ultra Matte To Go sets, I am happy to say the Lippie To Go set in Trippin is better, with 5 dual-ended Lippie Stix - Lippie pencil minis.

No weight indication on the tubes so I can't comment on the price ($20, I paid $16), but I included a size comparison with the Ultra Matte To Go sets yesterday (linked above).

My gut tells me each end would probably also be around a third (or less) of the full size of 0.04oz, reg. $5, but I like the fact that each end can be worn alone or paired with others in the set.

So among Bound, Tootsi, Scandy, Bossy and Flawless, we have endless combinations. Lippie Stix formula contains Vitamin E, mango, avocado and shea butter for added comfort and moisture, while Lippie pencils are supposed to be long wearing, glide on easily, act as a barrier for lipsticks and prevent feathering but like I said, also perfect on their own.

Let's see the swatches, with the Lippie Stix first, then the Lippie pencil in each pair.

Bound (described as a glossy light nude pink) is the only case where the 2 ends don't match, colour wise, but the mauve liner makes the pale baby pink more wearable on me.

Tootsi (matte cool-toned greige) is a well known nude. Scandy (satin cool toned neon pink) is as bright as it looks, with Bossy (matte classic blue red) as its red partner.

Flawless (satin deep red violet), though not as dark as the indication on the tube packaging above, is very lovely on, my favorite in the set.

I cannot tell a big difference between the 3 finishes but Colour Pop says the glossy finish has medium full coverage and more moisturizing, and the satin and mattes are full coverage and more long wearing. On me, most colours wear through lunch with minimal fading/ transfer.

I would say this set is worth the money and you have a bunch of colours to travel with. There is another set now on the site called Stellar with Button, Brink, Brunch, Frenchie and Dalia.

I was in such a rush to order the mini sets from Colour Pop, hoping they arrived before my vacation. Well they didn't, so I only get to them now.

First off, they are tiny (see comparison shots below). Colour Pop did not mention the size (only that they were minis), so I was surprised to see how small they are.

The Ultra Matte lips in the sets are 0.0317oz/ 0.9g (less than a third of the full size of 0.1128oz/ 3.2g, reg. $6), which means 5 mini tubes only make about 1.5 regular sized tubes. That $20 retail price (or even $16, what I paid) for each set does not sound attractive now.

Let's see the colours in the 2 Ultra Matte to Go sets today, and the Lippie to Go set tomorrow.

I reviewed Colour Pop Ultra Matte lips before, so just brief say that they do transfer lightly on me (not kiss proof as advertised) but are long wearing enough.

This is the Foxy set with best selling shades:
- Beeper (warm mid-tone taupe)
- Clueless (dusty mauve pink)
- Tulle (dusty mauve burgundy), which I already have the full size of, shown in the original review linked above
- More Better (deep violet wine) and
- Creeper (classic blue red).

I include a full sized tube in the shot for comparison.

I'd say the set includes a good range of colours, a nice representation of the line. However, if you have been hauling a number of full sized shades before, there might be repeats in the set.

The Kitty set is a whole new game, with all new/ exclusive LE shades, i.e. no repeats.

From L-R:
- Bianca (soft dusty pink)
- Time Square (muted pink beige)
- Be Merry (mid tone warm pink)
- Last Dance (brick red) and
- Glitter (rich red violet)
also next to a full size for comparison.

Surprisingly, I do not prefer this Kitty set than the Foxy set above, mainly because the nudes are too nude and wash me out instantly. I have been leaning towards nude shades more lately, but still cannot make Bianca and Time Square work for me, unless with a bright base.

Swatches - Foxy (left pic, with Beeper, Clueless, Tulle, More Better and Creeper) and Kitty (right pic, with Bianca, Time Square, Be Merry, Last Dance and Glitter).

Just to help with your purchase decision, here is a comparison of the 4 nude shades from the 2 sets.

From L-R: Beeper, Clueless, Bianca and Time Square.

Putting them next to each other confirms the fact that the nudes in the Foxy set are more wearable. Maybe that is why they are best sellers.

I do think the mini sets are easy to travel with, but the colours are pre-determined and the price could be a lot lower to fit the size difference.

The matte liquid lipstick trend goes on with Colour Pop Ultra Matte Lips, in a beautiful range of colours and the signature holographic label! I swallowed the $12 shipping to get 7 colours to try.

Right off the bat, I will tell you that these Ultra Matte Lips are lightweight, quite a bit lighter than LA Girl Matte pigment glosses. And there are pros and cons to that.

The thinner consistency gives the Ultra Matte Lips a lighter feel on the lips (more comfortable to wear, even when they are fully matte) but at the same time lightly loses the strong grip that a liquid lipstick normally offers.

For that reason, they do transfer when I drink/ eat and start fading from the inside of my lips out. Touchup is necessary, especially with darker shades. I make sure have the tube with me in the purse during the day.

The doe foot applicator for these has smaller tip with quite long handle. No application issues.

Colour Pop suggests to apply the product on bare and dry (exfoliated) lips, prepped in advance with a lip liner.

I have read a few reviews where bloggers said they could not layer/ blend the product much as it dries quite fast. I do not have that problem, but still try to be precise with the first swipe so I don't have to fix any feathering/ smudging. After all, it is still more long wearing than regular lipsticks.

Here they are, from L-R:
- Donut, described as a bright peach, looks nude on my pigmented lips
- Bumble, dusty warm terracotta (dupe of LC Riot), is quite neutral for me
- Tulle, dusty mauve burgundy (dupe of Stila Amore, minus the shimmers), is of course darker on my lips than in the tube/ on my hands. It is probably as dark as I can go for work :)
- Avenue is a nice darker red and Lychee is a violet, on a brighter side.

A tip: try not to interrupt the product until it dries and becomes almost smudge proof. I find the colours do transfer to my finger during the swipe test, and with constant rubbing, the products crumble. That does not happen on my lips, probably because we don't rub our lips that often.

I only got two bright colours: Highball (red pink) and Mars (red fuchsia). They sure are the "in your face" type of colours, make sure you pick one that works for your skin tone :)


I decided to pass on the popular shades - Trap (dupe of LC Cashmere) and Midi (for Anastasia Pure Hollywood), don't think they would work on me.

The Ultra Matte Lip line is extensive with 25 shades, 0.1128oz/ 3.2g, $6 each (vs. LC 0.088oz, $20, Anastasia 0.11oz, $20, LA Girl 0.17oz, $5).

If you have spent enough time on YT, you probably heard about NARS Velvet lip liner in El Agua and how hard it is to find.

I share the struggle, trust me. I found it, but being a good blogger, I have been around town in the last month or so looking for its dupes.

So here we are today. Let me tell you where to find El Agua (in Canada) and its supposed "minions", accompanied by comparison swatches.

First off, the original - NARS El Agua, $28 (0.01oz/ 0.5g).

It is a thin automatic (pointed) pencil liner. The only place I was able to find it in Canada is the Bay website. My store does not carry the brand but check yours in case they have it too.

Described as a lavender rose colour, this colour is definitely on trend, I can see and am happy to have it. Do take care applying it, cause the pencil is quite easy to break off under pressure.

On to the possible dupes, starting from the most affordable version.

This is Elf Studio Matte lip color in Tea Rose, $3 (0.05oz/ 1.4g). Elf website runs sales quite often but there is shipping charge to Canada.

I found Tea Rose at Old Navy (of all places lol) for $6. Superstore also carries limited selection of the brand.

Still can't beat the price tag for that much product, especially with the chubby and twistup format. The product is creamy, easy to apply but does not have long lasting power.

Next, ColourPop Lippie Stix in Lumiere, a dusty mauve pink, $5 (0.0352oz/ 1g).

Similar packaging format as Elf with a bit less product, ColourPop Lippie Stix, however, has  a slanted and wider tip (see below). Again, very affordable price but shipping to Canada does cost extra.

I find the quality and lasting power are similar to Elf as well, with a much better colour range and finish.

Lastly, Clinique Quickliner for Lips in Sky Violet, $20 (0.01oz/ 0.3g), the same size as El Agua.

Clinique is probably the easiest to find among all 4 brands, anywhere with a Clinque counter really (Shoppers, the Bay, Sears, etc.)

Described as a light violet but Sky Violet seems more pink than El Agua (also see below). The packaging and quality are similar to NARS as well but for some reason, mine doesn't swivel back down.

Here are all 4 side by side.

Swatches, in the same order - El Agua, Tea Rose, Lumiere and Sky Violet. Not really dupes in all cases, sadly.

Sky Violet is the closest to El Agua but without that purple tint (despite the name). Tea Rose is too muted and Lumiere is too red.

All 4 will earn their spots in the stash but the hunt for dupes continue. I also heard NARS Audacious lipstick in Dominique is also a possible dupe but it is even harder to find and costs more than El Agua.

Have you found an El Agua dupe anywhere?

It is the end of April, where is Spring still, anyone? Halifax welcomed its first cruise ship of the season on Monday with below 5 degree weather, and flurries!

Thought I have to record this "record breaking" (pun intended) phenomena on the blog somehow, to look back later. It sure is rare to have frozen lakes in May.

Anyway, it is the "YT made me buy it, despite the yucky weather" FOTD today, just for fun lol.

From Colour Pop Not a Box of Chocolate set, I used:
- Tinsel as transition
- Drift on the outer half of the lids and sheered out on the cheeks
Equally lovely, and I like it both ways.

I could not decide on just one shade Gerard Cosmetics Color Your Smile Lighted lip glosses so I wore both - Wild Orchid on the upper lip and Seduction on the lower lip, pressed together to mix the colours.

Other products used:
- Skindinavia primer and finishing sprays
- Hard Candy Glamoflauge foundation in Light Medium
- Cover Fx Conceal Fx Camouflage concealer in Light
- MUA Poptastic palette (the baby blue shade) and Heaven & Earth palette (brow bone highlight)
- Rimmel Scandal Eyes waterproof kohl kajal liner in Light Blue on the inner half of lower lash line
- Yves Rocher eye pencil in Copper Brown on outer half of lower lash line
- Milani Runway Lashes Instant Volume mascara in Black
- Wet n Wild Color Icon brow & eye liner in Dark Brown.

Have you switched your makeup and skin care to summer mode yet? For the reason stated above, I haven't and don't know when I will be lol.

The little box and its gorgeous teal sleeve (and what's printed on it lol) are no stranger to you, are they?

I caved when they ran a little 20% off sale on eyeshadow sets and got the (LE) Not a Box of Chocolates, reg. $30. Shipping to Canada was over $11, which hurt a little less after I used a $5 discount code.

Be warned, the pots were photographed in natural lighting, which toned down the glitters a lot. Under indoor light (or flash, as with the swatches below), the Metallic shades glow like a disco ball.

The 3 shades in the first row, from L-R: Halo, Tinsel and Partridge.

Halo is a champagne with scarce specks of gold glitter, with a Satin Luxe finish that looks almost matte to me.

Tinsel and Partridge have a similar base (purple & brown taupe) with different sheen. Tinsel (Metallic finish) has lots of fine silver glitters while Partridge (Pearlized finish) has that green duochrome that we are too familiar with :)

Here are the swatches, using my fingers. They would appear more sheer with a brush.

Second row: Sleigh, Drift and Doe-A-Deer.

Sleigh is properly described as an icy sage sprinkled with tons of multicolored glitter (Metallic finish).

Drift is a cranberry (Pearlized finish), great as a blush when sheered out.

Doe- A- Deer is a darkened purple (Matte finish), looks a lot darker in the pot.

I find the finishes vary among shades. The Metallics (Tinsel and Sleigh) are more consistent, the glitters make them more like toppers for me instead of eyeshadows on their own. The Pearlized finish gives Partridge a duochrome sheen but a semi-matte look on Drift.

Pigmentation overall is good, especially for the price tag. Do note that the eyeshadows look more intense on your fingers than when transferred to your lids.

Finish wise, for practical reason, I'd stick with Satin Luxes and Mattes for work, Pearlized and Metallics for the weekend :) Here is a FOTD with Tinsel and Drift.