Sparkled Beauty

It's lip product week! It seems all I have been buying are lipsticks and the like, might as well show them to you back to back :)

Gotta start with Maybelline Color Sensational Loaded Bolds lipsticks, supposedly with honey nectar, hyper-colour pigments for creamy and opaque one-stroke intensity.

According to Beauty Geek, Canada gets 12 of the 20 shades available in the US. The display I found at Shoppers didn't even have 12, so I got 5: Raging Raisin, Smoking Red, Dynamite Red, Berry Bossy and Violet Vixen.

I could not, for the life of me, get colour accurate on the dark blue cap (it just showed up black in the picture), so I did not include the full tube shot.

In the shade, the colours are a lot more toned down, but don't let that fool you. They stay quite true to the name, quite bold and pigmented.

Mind you, there are neutral toned shades besides the crazy blue and black, so I trust that everyone can find a colour (or two) they like from the range. And it is worth it, because the Color Sensational lipstick quality maintains and I could not find anything I don't like about the Loaded Bolds.

So just let me show you the swatches then encourage you to grab a few when you find the display. They do carry a sheen, not matte, if you are wondering.

Raging Raisin is on the darker side, with similar colour tone as Smoking Red, both are very beautiful on the lips. Dynamite Red is classic, with light orange undertone, flattering on medium skin tone. Berry Bossy and Violet Vixen are slightly less pigmented in the sense that I needed to go over the swatches again for consistent opacity.

The other 7 that are supposed to be in Canada: Midnight Blue (LE), Pitch Black (LE), Gone Greige, Mauve It, Fiery Fuchsia, Midnight Merlot and Rebel Pink. The 8 shades we are missing out on include Sapphire Siren, Chocoholic, Coffee Addiction, Orange Danger, Nude Thrill, Greyed Over It, Wickedly White and Blackest Berry.

Have your shopping list ready :) The tube is Color Sensation standard size - 0.15oz/ 4.2g, reg. $12.99 at Shoppers, I got them on sale for $5.99 each.

I managed to resist Maybelline Face Studio Master Contour palette for quite a while, until YT'ers started raving about the highlighter in it. Like I need just one more reason to buy it :)

Supposed to be a 3-step face contouring kit with a bronzer, blush and highlighter, Master Contour is compact and convenient, great for traveling.

I decided on the Light to Medium shade, for that highlighter of course and totally ignore the fact that the bronzer might be light for me.

The palette is thin and sturdy enough, with a brush that might work in a pinch, I use a proper blush brush.

Stated as the "contour" step is a bronzer that is warm but not orange, works well to warm up the face but is slightly light for contouring on medium skin tone.

I heard from a few people that the blush did not perform well, but on me, it shows up, subtle but can be built up slowly. A daytime blush.

Now the highlighter is not as strong as I wanted it to be, but is decent, easy to apply and blend. Ultimately, I probably should have gone for the Medium shade of this palette so it shows up better on me.

Overall, Light to Medium (0.35oz/ 10g, $13.99 at Walmart) works ok on me, and I enjoy the matte bronzer and blush. If you don't mind scarce shimmers, however, I would recommend Quo Prismatic face palettes instead (15.4g, $18).

I was holding out on Maybelline Master Prime products for a while, not really looking for more primers. When I heard about the matte eyeshadow base in the line called Prime & Matte though, I had to try it.

The brand describes it as a matte long-lasting eye shadow primer that smooths and preps the area for enhanced colour payoff and wear. And to that, I have a few things to say.

First off, the sponge applicator (and the squared tube) works really well for an eye primer product. It is soft, gentle on the eyes and the size is right to deposit the amount of product needed.

Blending is super easy, either with a synthetic brush or a finger. On my skin tone, the colour just disappears, which means it cannot do any colour enhancement for my lids.

I also appreciate that it dries matte, quite a nice change from other cream eyeshadows I have been using as base. My problem is it also dries smoothly and does not leave much trace behind, so no sticky canvas for the eyeshadows to adhere to.

The result is the eyeshadows look awesome at first, like I have great blending skills (ha!), but they start creasing along the fold of my lids at about 5-6 hour mark. No greasy mess thanks to the matte base, but the crease is still visible just the same.

Here is Prime & Matte next to Elf smudge pot in Cruisin Chic, my everyday eye base.

So for my oily lids, Maybelline Master Prime base does not last all day, but if you have dry skin, it would perform better. It is said to be safe for sensitive eyes and contact lenses, 0.23oz/ 6.85ml, $8.96 at Walmart.

There are 2 more versions of Master Prime base in the US: Prime + Smooth, and Prime + Illuminate that I have not seen in Canada.

Despite the tittle, this post is more of a value comparison, with 2 mini reviews thrown in as the starting point. So let's start!

You all have probably seen it - Maybelline Brow Drama pomade crayon. Yes, a chubby (but short) pencil of brow pencil. What's new, you asked?

The answer will depend on how you plan to use it :) The way I do, this pencil gives me a lot of product - creamy and pigmented at that - to fill in my brows (and not to shape it). And it works well for that purpose, but you still need a brow gel to set though.

I like the fact that the pencil is safe in the sealed-in packaging, no contamination. But that also means I bought the shade blindly, and Deep Brown turned out to be pretty dark for me. I might go with Soft Brown next.

The brand says the pencil is meant to help create bold and beautiful brows, and I agree with that. But since you need to go over the brow hair a few times with the pencil, the colour gets dark very quickly. Go with shorter strokes and light hand, unless you want bold brows.

There is also Blonde shade in Canada, and Auburn in the US. The pomade crayons are 0.04oz/ 1.1g, $10.

I also bought L'Oreal Brow Stylist definer to pair with the pomade.

Also sealed inside the packaging is the tiny pencil with precise little core (0.5mm) and a brow spoolie on the other side. Not much product in the pencil so I save it specifically to shape the brows only and leave the filling work for the chubby "guy" above.

Very new in my stash but it is a good one. The texture is just right, not too hard on the hair but not super soft to wears off too quickly either.

Also available in Dark Brunette and Blonde. The pencil is 0.003oz/ 0.09g, $11.

Good colour match between Maybelline Brow Drama pomade crayon in Dark Brown (left) and L'Oreal Brow Stylist definer in Brunette (right) if you use the same amount.

Now the fun part: what we pay vs. the amount of product we get :)
Examples: Jumbo brow pencils:
- Maybelline Brow Drama pomade crayon, 0.04oz, $10
- Annabelle Brow Show brow liner + highlighter: 0.07oz, $10
- Elf eyebrow lifter & filler: 0.16oz, $3 (US).

Micro brow pencils:
- Anastasia brow wiz: 0.003oz, $27
- MAC brow pencil: 0.003oz, $19.50
- NYX Micro brow pencil: 0.003oz, $12
- L'Oreal Brow Stylist definer: 0.003oz, $11.

The jumbo pencils are at least 10 times the weight for the same price or a fraction of it in some case! If you are after the precise edges and tails for your brows, sure, use a micro pencil but don't fill them in with it.

I haven't been makeup shopping as much as I used to, am still trying to catch up with new product launches on here.

I know Maybelline Lip Studio Color Blurs are not super new in Canada but hope the swatches are still helpful to you. I bought them probably a month ago when Shoppers had them on sale for $7.99 a piece (0.04oz/ 1.25g, vs. $9.96 at Walmart) but didn't have a chance to share until now.

Color Blurs are supposed to be cream matte pencils with vivid colour and blurring smudger. I am not into the blurred look so I won't be using the smudger, care more for the colour on the other end of the tube.

The shades I got: I Like to Mauve It, I'm Blushing, Berry Misbehaved and Partner to Crimson. The tip is flattened to the pointed edge, so I am showing them in different angles here.

Except for the unnecessary smudger, there is nothing to not like about these Color Blurs. The slim twistup pencil format, the good range of colours, the matte finish, the decent wear (4-5 hours on me) are all good :) I hope Maybelline comes out with more shades!

I Like to Mauve It and I'm Blushing are probably the best selling shades in the range, quite similar base. I like I'm Blushing a tiny bit more but with a red liner underneath, I Like to Mauve It looks great too.

Berry Misbehaved is a great bright red pink while Partner to Crimson is more red, slightly darker than a traditional red but is an awesome red nonetheless. After they wear off, these two did leave more visible stain on my lips compared to the two lighter shades.

I would sound like a commercial if I keep talking, so I'll leave it at that :) The Color Blur line currently has 10 shades to choose from. Have you find your favorite shade yet?

Maybelline celebrates their 100 Year Anniversary this year with a LE collection in special printed packaging. I cannot see myself missing out on the collection and had wanted more than one thing. It would boil down to what Canada gets.

It took a few "hunting trips", but I found the collection at Walmart. Since there was no sign of the matte Master Glaze blush stick (Pursuit of Pink) that came out in the US, I decided on the 3 Color Sensational lipsticks - Purposeful Mauve, Magenta-bulous and Berry Chic.

Since the caps are not see-through, I thought I should show you the bullet colours before getting to the swatches.

The flash brings out the beautiful blue sheen that Magenta-bulous have, and Berry Chic appears more metallic while Purposeful Mauve appears to be semi matte.

The scent is the typical Maybelline lipstick scent, if you are familiar with it.

Purposeful Mauve is a peachy nude, more flattering on me than a pure nude but I find it a bit more drying than other Maybelline lipsticks. Magenta-bulous has the best pigmentation and ease of application. Berry Chic builds up nicely on the lips and becomes my daily darker pink work shade.

I enjoy the sheen and the colours of these lipsticks, though are not particularly unique. If you come across the display, I would suggest a look before it's too late :)

It's the week of Valentine's and I am celebrating it with Marsala, colour of the year.

Maybelline kindly sent over a few items from their makeup lines for the purpose of this post, saving me the guess work.

Here are Maybelline Color Tattoo Leather in Vintage Plum, Master Glaze blush stick in Make a Mauve and Color Sensational lip liner in Mocha.

You already read on here how often I use Maybelline Color Tattoos on the eyes, and I liked the (LE) Master Glaze I had - Barely Pink, so the only new-to-me item is the lip liner.

Here is the look I came up with.

Vintage Plum is subtle on its own, and the matte finish makes it very work appropriate.

Make a Mauve is beautiful and fits the "darker" colour scheme on the cheeks that I have been leaning toward. Definitely recommend!

Similarly, Mocha compliments Make a Mauve in the look. However, the texture was a little hard on the lips, with a few hours of wear time.

Other Maybelline products from my stash I pulled out:
- Baby Skin Instant pore eraser
- Fit Me Shine Free foundation in 230 Natural Buff
Have anyone tried the new Fit Me matte?

- Dream Lumi Touch highlighting concealer in Buff
- Master Glaze blush stick in Barely Pink as a highlighter
- Mineral Power foundation in Pure Beige to add a bit more coverage and set the concealer
- The Falsies Big Eyes mascara in Blackest Black.

More products:
- Make Up For Ever HD Microperfecting primer #2 Mauve
- Annabelle Smudgeliner in Wired
- Annabelle InstaGlam Brow Design + Fix in Medium to Dark and Wet n Wild Color Icon brow & eye liner in Dark Brown.

Have a great start of the week, and stay warm :) We are around -20 windchill again, nothing new eh? No wonder people still think Canadians live in igloos all year round lol.

I gotta tell you, vacation is great but my skin is not. With the change in climate and humidity, I have had some breakouts and the skin looked so dull and grey. This is my best attempt to show you the products on not-so-great-looking skin.

I use The Body Shop Dolly Pastels palette on the eyes:
- Pale pink on brow bones - wish it was not shimmery
- Violet as transition, very light
- Brown in the crease, the only way to darken the look
- Peach dabbed on mid lid - the shimmers are more visible IRL.

On the lips, you could probably guess, is Maybelline Color Sensational creamy matte lipstick in Touch of Spice.

I did frame the lips with Milani Color Statement lip liner in Brandy before the lipstick for photos. This won't be necessary for everyday wear, since Touch of Spice is pigmented enough on its own. It is the perfect introduction shade to darker lips without going to the extreme vampy colours.

Other products used:
- Make Up For Ever HD Micro-perfecting primer #0 
- Marcelle CC cream in Golden Glow
- It Cosmetics Bye Bye Under Eyes full coverage concealer in Neutral Medium
This concealer has been very handy, considering my skin condition mentioned above
- Cover Fx Setting Fx translucent mineral powder in Light
A must in this heat
- Too Faced Chocolate Soleil bronzer
- Too Faced powder blush in Raindrops on Roses
- Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-on eye pencil in Radium on lower lash line
- InstaGlam Brow Design + Fix in Medium to Dark and Wet n Wild Color Icon brow & eye liner in Dark Brown
- Skindinavia makeup finishing spray, the Oil Control version.

Have you fallen in love with Touch of Spice yet?

I finally found a full display of Maybelline Color Sensational creamy matte lipsticks at Shoppers more than a week ago when they were 20% off (reg. $10.49 each).

I don't know if these dark plum tubes are still hot commodity anymore to you guys, but they are to me and the latest release from Maybelline Color Sensational (Rebel Blooms, with hot pink tubes) does not interest me much.

So if you need to be reminded of how some of the colours look and feel, let me show you :)

Like I mentioned before, the line has 10 shades in total but 2 are US exclusives - Nude Embrace and Divine Wine.

Divine Wine, since the moment it came out in the US, has already been the center of the collection, and once again, like Brazen Berry in the Vivids collection, it did not make it to Canada. I was lucky to have a friend CP'ing it for me.

Here I have Touch of Spice, Lust for Blush, Siren in Scarlet and Divine Wine to swatch for you today.

Even with high anticipation, I still gasped when I twisted up the tubes and saw the bullets. I'm just gonna be short and sweet and tell you they were just as beautiful and dreamy as everyone said.

The swatches are in the same order as above. Divine Wine (far right), being a darker shade, does need a bit of smoothing over to avoid a bit of patchiness but the colour is worth it. Touch of Spice (far left) is my everyday shade, leaving Lust of Blush and Siren in Scarlet in standby rotation :)

If you haven't got yourself some creamy mattes, what are you waiting for? Check out my FOTD with Touch of Spice while you are at it :)

Last weekend, I went all ethereal with Maybelline Bleached Neons :) We have been having rain after that, for 4 days and counting now, so I opted to use these products as bases for brighter colours since. Can't wait for the sun to be back!

On the eyes were Maybelline Colour Tattoos in Sunwashed Sky (inner half of the lids) and Shimmering Sea (outer half), darkened in the outer V by a dark brown from MUA Heaven and Earth palette.

I like how these Color Tattoos looked on the eyes, with quite strong shimmering effect. Because of the creasing problem with Sunwashed Sky, I will wear them alone on the lids on work days with nothing else to do after.

On my lips was Maybelline Color Elixir in Glowing Garnet, the most pigmented and darkest pink among the 3 shades in the collection. No lip liner, so you can see the true colour of it.

Totally different from how it swatched in yesterday's post right? On me, Glowing Garnet gave a hint of pink and some pretty shimmers. So yeah, no luck with wearing these Elixir alone, unless you want the sheer lip look which has become more popular this summer.

Products used on the face:
- Marcelle DD cream SPF25 in Medium to Dark
- Cover Fx Conceal Fx Camouflage concealer in Light and Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Eraser Dark Spot treatment corrector in Light/ Medium
- CoverFx Setting Fx translucent mineral powder.

Other products:
- Rimmel Scandal Eyes waterproof kohl kajal liner in Light Blue in the inner lower lash line
- Milani Liquid Eye Liquid-like eyeliner pencil in Black, smudged with a dark navy eyeshadow
- Annabelle Expandable mascara in Black and Annabelle Le Big Show mascara in Black
- Make Up For Ever HD Second Skin cream blush in #510 Raspberry and
- Wet n Wild ColorIcon brow & eye liner in Mink Brown.

Trying my best to finish up some products I have forever so I can move on to new things but it's slow. I don't know how YT'ers have so many makeup empties to show every month lol.

A reminder, The Body Shop Girls Night Out event is tonight. Have a great day, shopping or not :)

Maybelline (LE) summer collection (Bleached Neons) was out for a while now. I had full intention to skip on it, as I have enough products of the same kinds, but couldn't pass it up at Lawtons' 40% off sale couple weeks ago :)

I bought all 3 Color Elixirs - Glowing Garnet, Radiant Raspberry and I'm Blushing, and both Colour Tattoos - Sunwashed Sky and Shimmering Sea (reg. $8.99 each).

If you don't know my Color Tattoo "collector status", I have almost all shades (LE and permanent), except those that swatch patchy. For the Color Elixirs, I enjoyed the ones I have. So yeah, hard to justify not to get more.

So here we are, the Color Tattoos in Sunwashed Sky (left) and Shimmering Sea (right).

Swatches  with a synthetic brush which sheers out the colours a bit. Like most Color Tattoos, these two work well as bases for powder eyeshadows. On their own, Shimmering Sea fares better, as Sunwashed Sky creases on me after about 5 hours of wear.

I heard Sunwashed Sky is very close to Cool Crush from the duochrome collection, and I agree, colour wise. I do think the blue sheen in Cool Crush is stronger and Sunwashed Sky builds up a little better.

Same comparison between Shimmering Sea and Seashore Frosts, more similar sheen here with Shimmering Sea having a bit lighter base.

In both cases, you don't need these new Color Tattoos if you already hauled the duochromes.


And here are the Colors Elixirs in Glowing Garnet, Radiant Raspberry and I'm Blushing, from top to bottom.

Swatches below in the same order, from L-R.

Glowing Garnet is a natural sheer pink on my dark lips. I won't count on it for pigmentation but it gives a gorgeous sheen and makes my lips look plumped when topped up another lip colour or lip liner.

Radiant Raspberry is the most pigmented shade among the 3, but still needs layers to show up decently on its own. Good for the no-makeup look.

I'm Blushing is also sheer. For the colour that it is, it does not show up much on my lips, but again is a perfect gloss to jazz up other colours on the lips without altering the colour tone.

I do wish Maybelline ventured out outside the pink colour range a little with this collection.

All in all, these colours from Maybelline for this summer are great, but not must-haves if you have already stocked up on similar colours from the line. Here is a FOTD I did with a few of the colours.

It was a super busy weekend with Squirt's bday party, I didn't have much time to browse around, so this is a small (but a good) haul :)

The moment I saw Lancome Star bronzer from the LE Golden Riviera collection, I had to hunt it down.

The brilliant colour placement makes the compact glow from the core, too pretty to miss.

I found it at Sears, with a GWP offer, so there gone my money. It is a good buy though, 1.5oz/ 30g, $52 compared to the regular Star bronzers selling at $47 for 0.47oz/ 13g. It is meant for both face and body, which explains the large size.

Also grabbed the (matte) Color Design 5 Shadow & Liner palette in Beige Brulee from the Hypnotic Eyes collection (also LE).

I was watching for this collection like a hawk when I heard it has 3 matte palettes. Beige Brulee swatched beautifully and there was only 1 left, I gotta do what I gotta do right? 0.14oz/ 4g for $55, not super affordable but I caved anyway.

On to the 2-day sale at Shoppers on selected Maybelline for $6.99. Most of the items are $11.99 and up regularly, incredible savings to be had.

I got some backups and a few things I wanted for a while.
- Dream Lumi Touch highlighting concealer in Buff
- Eye Studio Master Glaze in Make A Mauve
- Dream Wonder powder in Natural Beige, and
- the Elixir in Petal Plush.

There are other lines on sale too - Dream makeup, mascaras, Colour Tattoos, etc. One could definitely go crazy :) Bonus sizes and LE shades are excluded though. The sale is still on today, if you missed it yesterday.

As a bonus, I found a bunch of Quo by Orly nail polish on clearance for $5 each. Recognized some repeat shades from the Orly line at Sally, but I do want to own to Quo versions, especially glitters :)

From L-R: Star Formation, Light Years, Redshift, Mind, Smooch and Trash Glam.

Stock definitely varies among locations, but keep an eye out on the clearance corner at yours for these :)

How have you enjoyed the weather where you are?

Nothing says "Welcome to Halifax" better than a frost warning (check out the windshield cry @haligonia tweeted on the left) and near-zero temp this morning while Toronto's high for the day would be 29. Isn't Canada fascinating you guys? :)

I will announce the giveaway winners in the next few days. Didn't get a chance to verify entries yet. thank you for your understanding.