Benefit Porefessional

This primer is a cult favorite in the beauty world. A smooth, poreless complexion with a slight colour to even out redness? Sign me up! I did not buy this primer but got it free when I cashed in points. I don't think I could bring myself to spent $36 on a primer. Having of tried it, would I buy it again? Not a chance.

This primer is described as professional balm to minimize the look of pores. It is "oil-free, lightweight, translucent, and silky". I agree with all those statements, but does it minimize my pores? Not very much. I have large, dark pores, mostly around my nose and cheeks. If there was a product that actually covered them, I would be thrilled. Foundation covers the colour of them, but they are still noticeable. The Porefessional minimizes the look SLIGHTLY when I'm an inch from the mirror, but nothing anybody else could notice. And I feel like part of the reason could be the tint of colour disguising them as well. As far as foundation application goes, again, nothing really outstanding. And for foundation longevity, its about the same. I'm very oily so I love mattifying products, but this didn't do anything worth noting. I put porefessional on half my face and applied my foundation and there was really no difference once the foundation is on. Don't get me wrong, I like how it feels on the skin. It's very smooth and silky feeling. It doesn't feel greasy or make my foundation slide off like some silicone primers do. I just don't think it is worth the $36 price tag. Maybe I just don't like primers? I wish there was a Primer Potion equivalent for the face...

Looks thick but blends out very silky

You can barely see it...blends translucently into the skin.

I'll use up this tube but I would not repurchase. Does anyone agree with me or am I taking crazy pills?? Are there any miracle primers you have tried?

Mini Lip Haul- Revlon Colourburst Matte Balm and NYX Jumbo Lip Pencils

A lot of people have been talking about the Revlon Colorburst Matte Balms and I wanted to try them out. I went to the store to pick up a few, but unfortunately most colours were sold out. I picked up 2 and figured I'd try them out first. While I was at the store I saw that NYX Jumbo Lip Pencils were on sale for $3.99 so I decided I'd pick up a few of those too. They swatched nice in the store, so I was excited to try them. I picked up a few other things, but I'll keep this most about the lip pencils.

From left to right- Revlon Colorburst Matte balm in Audacious and Striking, NYX Jumbo Lip Pencil in Honey Nectar, Chaos, and Plush Red

My first impression about the Revlon Colourbust Matte Balms is that they seem a bit drying and not as pigmented as I'd like. There was another girl at the store buying some and she said that she loved them, but that she found them drying so I'm not the only one. For a balm the pigment is good, but as a lipstick, its not great. And its not hydrating enough to be a balm. I wore one out the other night and I did wear a lip balm with it because it does show every little flaw on the lips. I have dry lips so matte products are usually out of the question unless I've done some good preparation. The staying power was decent. I did have to touch it up a few times during the night. As far as the pigmentation goes, I'd say its pretty good. Again, nothing amazing. It does show up well, but as you can see from the swatches above they look a bit dull compared with the NYX ones. That is probably the matte formula more so than the pigmentation I guess. Overall, I'd say these lip products are nice and I will continue to wear them, but I'm not going to run out and buy any more colours.

The NYX Jumbo Lip Pencils on the other hand though, are really nice. I was surprised how much I like these. They are super creamy and have a nice sheen to them. Not glossy, not matte. I wore the colour honey nectar to work since it is neutral, and the staying power isn't bad. I was drinking through a straw all day, plus eating, and I touched up only a few times. Even when it rubbed off, it still left a bit of colour behind. I swatched these on my arms and washed them off only minutes later and the red stained my arm! The pigmentation is great and they come in a ton of colours. I got the 3 that appealed to me most but I want to go back and get some more since I like these so much. And at $3.99, it doesn't get any better.

                                                   

                                                                  Bare Lips (Bad lighting, I know)

                                               

                                                          Revlon in Striking- Orangey Red

Revlon in Audacious- Wearable Orange

NYX in Honey Nectar- A nice neutral, MLBB

NYX in Chaos- A wearable bright pink (Love this one!)

NYX in Plush Red- Really nice, classic red with good staying power

Naked 3 Smokey Eye

I made the decision today to be lazy after a night shift and not leave the house. What a better time to create a smokey eye than when no one will see it. Don't mind the crazy hair or the PJs. I was running out of light so I apologize for the photo quality. Hope you like!

Products used:

Urban decay Naked 3 palette:

Lid- Factory
Crease- Blackheart
Blending- Limit and Nooner
Brow- Strange
Center of lid- Dust

Mascara- L'Oreal carbon black 2 coats, L'Oreal million lashes 1 coat

Brows- Anastasia Brow Wiz in ash blonde

Lip stick- Revlon matte 002 'pink pout'

Foundation- Rimmel Stay Matte liquid mousse

Contour- Nars Laguna

I just used Blackheart as a liner for a softer look, but I would probably add some black liner if I was going out. Lashes would also be awesome.

                                     

                                       What are some of your favourite Naked 3 colour combos?

The Best Body Lotion...Gold Bond Ultimate

So this isn't the most glamorous post, but I have to give this lotion a shout out. I was having dry patchy skin on my stomach of all places and no amount of moisturizer was doing anything. I told my friend about she recommended this lotion after our manager recommended it to her. Sure enough, my dry skin was pretty much gone as soon as I used it. I now use it everyday on my legs and they haven't had any dryness since.

This lotion comes in 3 different formulas (at least that I saw at the store), Aloe, CoQ10, and Sensitive. I first bought the Aloe one. It is a very thick lotion. It is super moisturizing. It leaves your skin feeling like you just moisturized pretty much until you shower next. I have always found with lotions that I'll moisturize my legs and once it absorbs my legs look dry again. This is the only lotion I've used that actually leaves my legs soft until my next shower.

Ingredients list

Super thick

The only downside is that because it leaves your legs feeling like you just applied lotion, it doesn't really absorb. So it can be hard to squeeze into skinny jeans right after applying it. Also, in the summer when its hot and you get sweaty, it can leave your legs feeling a bit slick and sticky (probably the glycerin). But because this moisturizer heals skin skin instantly, I can usually skip a day if I know its going to be a hot day. Also, I'm not crazy about the smell. It smells a little bit like grandmas lotion. I don't need such an intense moisturizer on my arms because they're not dry, but the smell is another reason I don't apply it to my upper body. I use a nicer smelling lotion on top.

So I just bought the CoQ10 version just to try it, so I can't do a full review because I just got it, but so far I really like it too. It's not as thick and feels more like a regular lotion but is still as moisturizing. The ingredients are quite a bit different from the Aloe one as you can see in the pictures. The second ingredient is urea. According to wikipedia "Urea dissolves the intercellular matrix of the cells of the stratum corneum, promoting desquamation of scaly skin, eventually resulting in softening of hyperkeratotic areas." In simple terms, urea exfoliates the top layer of the skin, getting rid of the dry skin. Again though, this moisturizer smells a bit granny like. More so even than the Aloe one. Although scent is a personal thing.

Less thick, more like regular lotion

So basically if you have dry skin, you need this lotion. It's amazing and it costs anywhere from $10-15 depending if it's on sale.

MAC vs Anastasia Brow Pencils

I'll start with saying I have blonde hair and never got in the habit of filling my brows. I always thought filled in brows looked really over done and unnatural. I decided a few months ago to try a brow pencil to lightly fill in my brows and I've never looked back. The first pencil I bought was the MAC "fling" brow pencil. I really liked this pencil but thought I would try the Anastasia brow wiz after all the hype I've heard about. After trying both, these are my thoughts.

MAC fling- This pencil is very soft and transfers very easily to the brow. The colour for me was perfect. This is the pencil that got me hooked on filling in my brows. That being said, the downside is that being so soft, I had to twist it up a lot. I had to twist it up for each brow, if not twice a brow. I kept it pretty short (didn't twist it up too far) as a common complaint is that it breaks off easily. I only had it break off once when I twisted it up a bit far, so as long as you keep it short, it's fine. Because I had to twist it up so much, I felt like I was going through it pretty quick. I probably used it 3-4 days a week on average (I don't fill in my brows for work) and it lasted about 5 months. It is 0.09g and costed $19 CAN.

Anastasia Brow Wiz Ash Blonde- I just bought this pencil and so far I really like it. It is also a twist up but it isn't as soft as MAC. It has more of the consistency of a pencil. For that reason, I find you have to work with it a bit more, but the results are very subtle and natural. It comes with a brush on the end which is handy so you don't have to go back and forth with a brush and it's easy to travel with. I would say this product is good for beginners or people who are more hesitant to use a brow product. The only downside is that the colour is not quite right. Looking up close in the mirror the colour seems a bit off but standing back it looks fine. I don't think anyone will be staring at my brows that closely. I can't tell you if this one lasts longer because I just got it, but I don't have to twist it up as much which I like. This pencil is also a bit pricier at $27 CAN for 0.085g.

I think these are both great brow pencils, but I think I prefer the Anastasia Brow Wiz slightly more.

Clarisonic Mia

I got the clarisonic for christmas so I have only been using it for just over a week. From the reviews I've read and videos I've watched, a lot of people said that your face "purges" during the first two weeks. The theory being that the clarisonic deep cleans your pores and brings all the dirt to the surface which can result in breakouts, similar to how your face can break out after a facial. Personally, I didn't find that. I don't know if it's because I went from using the Olay pro-x cleansing brush to the clarisonic, but it didn't break me out. If anything, it's helped my breakouts. To start with, I have oily, acne prone skin. Usually I just have hormonal break outs, but for the past 3 months or so my skin has been breaking out pretty bad (I'm now blaming Revlon Colourstay foundation, but I'll review that later). Since I've been using the clarisonic my skin has started to clear up and is so soft.

The Clarisonic Mia is a rechargeable brush that "oscillates at a sonic frequency of 300 movements a second". The website claims it doesn't vibrate but uses sonic technology to clean the skin. If you ask me, it feels like it is just vibrating. It does feel nice on the skin though. The Mia has a 60 second timer on it and you brush your cheeks for 20 seconds each, chin and nose for 10 seconds, and forehead for 10 seconds. The Mia 2 gives a little pulse to tell you when to switch locations, but for an extra $70 or so, I can count myself, thank you.

How does it compare to the Olay pro-x brush? For starters, the Olay brush head only rotates, doesn't oscillate like the Clarisonic. The Olay brush is battery operated, but I used mine probably on average of 5 days a week for a whole year and never needed to change the batteries, so that isn't a deal breaker. The Olay brush is water resistant but not water proof, so you're not supposed to use it in the shower. However, I used it in the shower, I just stepped out of the stream so it wasn't submerged in water. It never broke.Size wise, the Olay brush and brush head is a bit smaller. And maybe most importantly, I got the Olay brush on sale for $20 where as the Clarisonic is $99-140 (it's currently on sale for $99)

So is the Clarisonic worth the money? Now that I have both, I definitely like the Clarisonic better. I find that it is helping to clear up my skin but it's too early to tell if it will help evem skin tone. So far it hasn't done anything for the visibility of my pores or blackheads. It just keeps your skin exfoliated which will eventually help all that. If you're unsure I suggest doing what I did and get the Olay brush first (it goes on sale frequently so keep an eye out) and see if you actually use it regularly and if you like it. If you like it, chances are you will love the Clarisonic too.

Pros:
Oscillating system is exfoliating and leaves skin super soft
Turns off after 60 seconds
Rechareable
Lathers (any) soap up nice

Cons:
Hard to clean around the nose and I find it super ticklish on the nose!
The brush is expensive as well as the replacement heads ($30 each)

Favourite Drug Store Lipsticks

I buy exclusively drug store lipstick. There is some really good stuff there and it's affordable! There's always an alternative at the drugstore for a $30 lipstick. So these are just some of my favourtites. And I apologize fore the bad pictures, I'm still trying to figure out my lighting!

~Everyday/Lighter Colour~

Revlon Matte 002: I bought this lipstick a long time ago and I haven't seen it around recently, so I hope they still have it. This is a my lips but better colour. It's a neutral pink that I can wear with any make up look. It's not nude, but just pink enough that it looks fun but not so pink that it's in your face. It's a matte formula so it can be a bit drying, but still not as bad as MAC. I find it similar to MAC Hue but it's not quite as nude and a bit darker.

MAC Hue on the left, Revlon 002 on the right

~Dark Colour~

Rimmel Lasting Finish in Bordeaux 124: I was on the hunt for a dark red colour and couldn't find one that wasn't too brown. I saw a girl wearing this colour and asked her what it was because it was just what I was looking for! This is a nice dark red shade that does have some brown undertones but less so than most I tried. I'm pale and I love this shade on me, so don't shy away. I find this shade more flattering than other classic red shades so I reach for it a lot.

~Spring/Summer Colour~

Maybelline Vivid in Pink Pop 860: I love the vivids collection from Maybelline. I want to get some more colours, but haven't yet because I find them to be more spring/summer colours and I have been wearing dark shades lately. This is my favourite colour because I love pinks. The formula is super pigmented and goes on really smooth. I always get compliments on this colour.

~Fall/Winter Colour~

Maybelline Colour Sensational in Blissful Berry 410: Nicole Guerriero mentioned this colour in one of her videos and I immediately went out and got it. This colour looks really dark in the tube, but it goes on your lips much lighter. It looks more of a berry colour on this lips. This is my favourite formula of lipstick at the drug store. It is so creamy and hydrating and has a nice sheen to it. I always have dry lips, so I find this formula much more forgiving if your lips aren't perfectly smooth. I wanted to buy a bunch more of these lipsticks but they were all picked over and used at the store. I've been wearing this colour a lot this fall and winter.

Didn't show up well, it's much darker than this as you can see below

L'Oreal Voluminous Carbon Black vs Voluminous Million Lashes

I bought these mascaras based on the recommendation of Nicole Guerriero and TiffanyD from youtube.

The L'Oreal voluminous carbon black is more traditional mascara brush. Pulling it out of the tube is alarming cause it looks so clumpy. And it is. You need to work with this mascara to get the clumps out, but the results are worth it. It is one of the more dramatic mascaras I've used. It is volumizing and lengthening. The only downside to this mascara is having to work with it quite a bit and it also can smudge throughout the day.

Clumps galore!

The Voluminous Million Lashes is a plastic brush. This mascara is more separating and lengthening, but less volumizing. I like this mascara for everyday use as I don't need to work with it as much as the carbon black so it's quicker. This mascara, for me, is nothing special. No better than the Lash blast or any other those other plastic brushes. The good thing is that it doesn't run like the carbon black.

Between the two, like the look of the carbon black better. The million lashes is nothing special, just a basic mascara and I would take the lash blast over it (for cheaper too). But I like to use these two in combination. Days when I'm not working I'll put on a layer or two of the carbon black on then do another layer of the million lashes to separate the clumps from the carbon black, but still keeping the volume and drama. This is the same idea of Nicole Guerriero. She uses the carbon black as her base and puts like 5 coats of other mascaras over.

Benefit Creaseless Cream Shadows

In the past I have tried the benefit creaseless cream shadow in "birthday suit". These appealed to me as someone with oily lids prone to creasing as they are called creaseless. I thought this would be a good alternative to the MAC cream color bases which do crease. So do they work?

My first impression was the pigmentation. With birthday suit, I put on one layer with my finger and it barely showed up. So i put on another thin layer. A little better but still not very noticeable. I put on a THIRD layer and it showed up as a light, iridescent taupe colour. Still nothing dramatic, but nice. I liked this colour (with 3 layers) for an everyday look or as a base under other taupe shadows. I brushed off the lack pigmentation to this shade. After all, it is called birthday suit, maybe it's supposed to be sheer. So giving it the benefit of the doubt, I bought another colour in R.S.V.P. Unfortunately it has the same problem. Its a light, neutral/pinky shade that I thought would look nice with my new Naked 3 palette. With one layer, barely noticeable. But is it creaseless? Not completely. By itself without a primer, it lasts longer than a powder shadow without a primer, but still not as good as using an eyeshadow primer under powder. If that makes sense. For me, it lasted only a few hours before creasing. You could put a primer under to increase the longevity, but doesn't that defeat the purpose of using a creaseless product? I feel like I shouldn't have to. I get that more putting on more lays would make it crease sooner, but applied thinly, it doesn't show up at all. The other downside is they dry out. My first one dried out after maybe 1 year? When you pay $26 for one eyeshadow I feel like I should get more uses out of it than that. I'll stick to powders.

It swatches nice, but doesn't show up at all on the lid! So annoying!

So basically, if built up enough, the colour is decent at best and it lasts a bit longer than a powder, but it's nothing that special. I would rather stick with my powder shadow and a primer. I would not repurchase.

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It's a 10 Miracle Leave-in Product

Now to switch it up to some hair care. I tried this stuff after trying Moroccan oil and some other drug store brand leave-ins and my hair just felt dry, damaged, and tangled. I thought for once, I would splurge on a hair care product (which I rarely do). I bought this stuff based on other online reviews and paid $22 for a little 4oz bottle that didn't last that long. The 10oz bottle was $44, so not much extra value.

My first impression was not very good. The product itself is more of a gel like consistency whereas I was expecting a liquid. After using it and drying my hair for the first time my hair felt sticky and weighed down. I thought this stuff was terrible. But then, like an hour or two later, my hair was SO soft. I couldn't stop touching it. It felt so nice and healthy. I don't know what it is, it's almost like it has to absorb or something. So I find if I towel dry my hair, spray it in (minimally) and let my hair dry for 30-45 before blow drying, it helps with that sticky feeling a little bit. Also, this product detangles my hair like no product I've ever used. I'd buy it for that reason alone.

I used up my little bottle and I'm on the hunt to find it on sale. I saw it at a salon for 50% off but didn't have time to buy it and forgot to go back. Blast! So I'm waiting for it to go on sale. However, I like this stuff enough that I would pay full price, but just knowing that it goes on sale makes me want to hunt. Cause who doesn't love a good deal. I love this product, but the only reason I wouldn't give it 5 stars is the cons list below.

Pros:
Leaves hair feeling super soft
Detangles your hair like nobody's business
Leave your hair feeling super healthy feeling.

Cons:
At first, leaves your hair a bit sticky feeling at first
Can weigh your hair down a bit
Expensive for the amount of product you get
Can be hard to find in stores (In Canada)
Can't get the last bit of the product (which you can see in the picture) which is annoying when its so expensive!

Punx

Who's Punx, you ask? This is Punx...my cat...

Urban Decay Primer Potion

So this is not any new, ground breaking product. I was actually pretty late to the boat with this one. I used to think priming my lids with foundation was enough. How I was mistaken. This is one of those miracle, don't know how I lived without it products. I'm pretty sure ANY eyeshadow primer would do the same thing but since this is the only one I've tried, it's the only one I can review.

It pained me to spend $25 on eyeshadow primer. Like, really? Seemed a bit gimmicky. But it is worth every penny. First of all, you barely need to use any. You only need the smallest amount you can possibly squeeze out. I bought mine in April and it still looks new. The tube should last forever. I have oily lids, and I found that after 2-3 hours my eyeshadow (with just foundation as a primer) was creasing and/or fading. With the primer potion, my shadow looks good pretty much until I wash off my makeup. If I do my make up in the morning and go out around dinner time or after, I'll touch it up just to brighten the colour a bit but it still looks good. I basically have nothing bad to say about this product. Five stars. If you don't own an eyeshadow primer, GO GET ONE! Any one. That is all.

Urban Decay Naked 3

I just got this palette two weeks ago so I haven't used all the colours or done a ton of looks yet. But everyday I've worn make up since I bought it, I've used it. So far, I'm really enjoying it. It is rose hued colours which I was skeptical of at first because I don't wear a lot of pink shades because I find they can make you look either really young or tired, depending on the shade. But I like the shades in this palette, especially when blended together. I own the original naked palette which is my go to, everyday eyeshadows. Between the two? I still prefer the first one. What I like about the first one is that it has everything I need- highlight, blending, lid, crease, and liner colours. When I travel it's all I need to bring. You could get away with blending with "limit" from the palette, but I find when I'm using all pink shades, I like a more neutral colour to blend with, like "naked" from the original. It comes with a two sided brush and it's actually pretty good. I use the smaller side for highlighting and the fluffier side for the crease. It also comes with a sample side of all the urban decay primer potions which I'm excited to try. Overall, I would give this palette a 4/5.

Pros:
Fun, pretty colours
Matte blending shades compliment the colours well
Matte highlight shade (which I don't have any of)
Transitions well from day to night
Packaging is nice

Cons:
Blending shades are pink (I still reach for my naked 1 palette for "naked" and "buck" for blending)
Some of the lighter shades are not as pigmented and harder to work with
It's pricey

Favourite colour combo:
"Liar" on the lid
"Nooner" in the crease
"Factory" in outer V