February Favorites :)

It's been embarrassingly long since I've done a favorites post,

I'm ashamed to say.

Sorry about that!

Things have just been insane with my student teaching the past semester and a half.

Now  I finally have some time to do it, though.

So here they are!

1. Revlon Matte Balm Stain in 'Elusive'.

*NOT my picture. Credit to allurabeauty.com

This has quickly become my newest favorite lip color.

It's muted/dusty enough that it works for Winter,

but it's also bright enough that it works for the coming Spring.

See my swatch of this bad boy here.

2. Too Faced Jingle All the Way makeup set

This makeup set has been my go-to to create my everyday daytime look.

The neutrals in it are fantastic,

with lovely shimmer.

See a FULL review of it that I just did here.

3. Victoria's Secret perfume 'Tease'

I AM IN LOVE WITH THIS FRAGRANCE.

That is all :)

Go buy it if you know what's good for you.

4. Mystic Nights pt.2 Look

I was really pleased with how whimsical and fun this look turned out to be.

It's a bit more dramatic than I usually do,

but it's been probably my favorite from this month.

See the crazy purple/blue lip I paired with it here.

Zoya 'Layla'

I bought this polish LAST Valentine's Day,

but every time I use it, I'm thrilled all over again that I bought it.

Such a bright, happy pink! 

Also, my daughter's name ;P

5. Soft Valentine's Day look

This has been my other favorite look from this month.

I really loved how soft the purple and pinks were together,

and the gradient of that light to dark purple in the crease.

I'm quite pleased with it :)

What are ya'll's thoughts on these?

Which is YOUR favorite?

Revlon Matte Balm in 'Elusive'

I just can't get enough of these bad boys from Revlon.

Every one I try is as good or better.

Here's 'Elusive' !

This balm is a muted, blush, rose and is just lovely.

It's perfect for any season.

I am completely in love with it :)

* REVIEW * Wet N Wild Mega Slicks Lip Balm Stain

So i've been seeing these bad boys bounce around the blogging world recently,

and thanks to my newfound love for this style of lip color,

(all thanks to Revlon)

I figured I'd give one a go.

The Product:

I'm not sure if Wet N Wild or Revlon started this whole lip balm thing first,

( I just know I tried Revlons first),

but I'm pretty sure these by Wet n Wild came afterwards.

Regardless of the inspiration for the product,

these balm stains are designed to be like lipstick,

but not the... how do I word it?... 'thick' texture that comprises most lipsticks.

The balm stain I scooped up was 'A Stiff Pink':

Ok, so aside from the weird and slightly sexual name, here are the claims...

Some of its Claims:
- Provides a smooth, "kissable" pout
- Conditions the lips, thanks to the Acai Palm oil
- No feathering
-6 shades
- Gives a unique, "minty", cooling sensation
- Long lasting power

The Review
The product caught my eye in the drugstore mainly because it appeared to be similar
to the Revlon balm stains I love so much,
and also because I'd seen some hype about it in the blogging world.
I bought 'A Stiff Pink' and promptly swatched it when I got home:

As you can see, it's a bright, bubblegum pink.
Though it's not so bright to look like something a 15 year old would wear :)
I would pleasantly, pleasantly surprised with it!!

PROS
- bargain price, cheaper than Revlon's balm stains
- SUPER smooth & soft
- Lovely, pink color
- Easy to apply
- No bleeding or feathering

CONS
- Only comes in 6 shades, but I expect they'll make more as the product sells
- I didn't notice any "minty cooling" effect, if that's something you're looking for
- Not quite as long lasting as it claimed, but definitely still lasts a while

The Verdict
This product FAR outweighed any expectations I had. It went on so buttery smooth
and felt great on my lips, definitely conditioning them as it claimed.
Being that this baby is a great bargain price,
you definitely get a bang for your buck!
I'm super anxious to try the other shades, too.
RATING (OUT OF 10): 9

Mystic Nights 2.0

So last year, about this time, I created a look called Mystic Nights.

I really love the dark, forest-y, mysterious shades together,

so I figured I'd recreate it :)

Here's version 2.0 WITH a funky lip!

I tried to do an ombre lip with my two favorite lime crime lipsticks,

but it didn't work out too well :/

Other than that,

I freaking love this look.

I used solely UD's Vice2 palette on my lids.

Here are the specifics:

Too Faced's Shadow Insurance

'Prank' & 'Madness'- crease

'Damaged'- lid

'Prank' & 'Lovesick- outer corner of lid

'Betrayal'- waterline

Covergirl Bombshell mascara

Covergirl Line Exact eyeliner

Lime Crime 'Airborn Unicron' & 'Oh No She Didn't'- lips

Obsessive Compulsive lip tar- 'Black Metal Dahlia'

I've been wanting to try a lip tar from Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics

for AWHILE now, especially in Black Metal Dahlia.

Lo and behold, I was able to get it for Christmas! :)

Black Metal Dahlia is a metallic lip tar

in a shimmery maroon-burgundy...

one of my favorite colors right now :)

Depending on the light,

this lip tar goes from purple to red.

*outdoor light- shade

You can see this tar did bleed.

Honestly, being new to lip tar,

I'm not sure the best ways to prevent that from happening, if there are some.

So any suggestions are welcome with that!

Annnnnd there's this:

*outside- sunlight

BAM.

A gorgeous, shimmery red in the sunlight.

Just lovely.

Have any of you tried lip tars from OCC?

What are your thoughts?

Revlon Matte Balm Stain 'Complex'

I've got my second balm stain from Revlon to show you today.

(see the first one here)

Here's 'Complex'.

'Complex' is a lovely, nude matte and is hardly complex at all!

Nice little irony you got there, Revlon.

Regardless, it's a very nice shade that will obviously go with almost anything.

It would be really pretty paired with a smokey eye and a clear, glittery gloss over it.

:)

Beauty Mail!

My purchases with my Sephora gift card I got from Christmas arrived yesterday!

Here they are:

Too Faced's Jingle All the Way palette

& iPhone5 case

Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics'

Lip Tar 'Black Metal Dahlia' 

I have never tried any Too Faced shadows,

so I'm stoked to try this.

Also, I've NEVER tried any Obsessive Compulsive products,

but I've seen this lip tar blogged about and it looks

UHMAZING.

What do you guys think about these products?

What have your experiences been with them, if any?

Lime Crime 'Snowsicle'

Today I have a lip gloss I got several months ago,

but i've been waiting to post about it until it got colder.

Being that it feels like 8 degrees outside here today (but really),

I figured now is the perfect time.

Here's LC's Carousel Gloss in 'Snowsicle'

This is an ice colored, clear gloss with holographic glitter :)

Here I've just worn it over plain lips,

but it would definitely look pretty layered over something else.

Think I'll try that next.

What are your thoughts on this gloss?

*REVIEW* Lime Crime Velvetine in Red Velvet

YAYAYAYAY.

I have finally acquired a product i've been lemming for forever,

thanks to my bestie :)

She got me the Velvetine I've wanted most, 'Red Velvet'.

AND IT'S AMAZING.

The Product:

A gloss that dries matte, giving your lips a smooth, velvet look.

This product has been around for well over a year now,

but they're still wildly popular and coveted :)

Some of it's Claims:

-A gloss that dries totally matte

- Touch/smudge proof

- Long lasting

- Comes in 3 shades

The Review:

As I said, i've been wanting this bad boy for a long time now.

Anyone remember my recent Revlon matte balm post?

Yeah, I bought that because it appeared to me a cheaper version of what I really wanted-

this velvetine!

Here it is:

:drools:

Yeah, this. is. awesome.

The velvet, matte look is to die for, for sure.

PROS:

- Does in fact dry to that sultry, velvety finish :)) LOVE.

- Goes on as a gloss, which makes it super easy to apply

- The brush is a standard gloss brush, but different from the Carousel Gloss 

brushes that LC uses now.

- LAST A LONG TIME. I ate, drank, sang, etc and it still took me awhile

to get off once it was time for bed haha. Definitely long lasting!

CONS:

- Pricey, with a price tag or $20 if you buy from their website

- Just comes in three colors. They've expanded their color options

by recently adding a pink, but I still wish they had more color choices.

They may be working up to that, though.

Verdict:

Whether or not I would suggest you buy this gloss depends on your budget, really.

If you don't have one (either because you're made of money or you're going to ask for it as a gift, ASK/BUY IT. Though it's $20, it does everything it claims and really is gorgeous.

However,

if you're on a stricter budget, Revlon's Matte Balm stains will do nicely.

'Standout' is a very similar shade to 'Red Velvet' and will suffice as a replacement.

It won't last quite as long as this one from LC<

but it will be a great compromise.

RATING (OUT OF 10): 9.5

Covergirl Fall/Winter lipstick- 'Smoky'

Today I have the first of my two last Covergirl lipsticks for you

that are Fall or remotely winter themed.

Tis one was a dud for me since the color turned out to be
nothing that I would wear,
but what do you guys think?
Would you like this shade?

Here's Covergirl's 'Smoky'.

You can see that 'Smoky' appears to be a chocolate brown color

with gold shimmer.

Sounds yummy, right?!

Once on my lips, however... it just wasn't what I thought it would be.

Now, if this really looked in real life like it does in these pictures,

I wouldn't mind it at all!

In reality though, this brown is significantly darker,

ESPECIALLY indoors.

It looked a bit too gothic for my liking.

Plus, in certain light, it looks like I have mud or dirt on my lips.

Not very sexy :c

This is just my personal opinion, though.

Have any others of you tried this color?

What are your thoughts?

Covergirl 'Burn' lipstick

I have another Fall lipstick from Covergirl for you today.

This is one I picked up at the same time I bought 'Temptation',

'Burn'.

'Burn' is a warm red with orange undertones and gold shimmer,

which you can juuuuust faintly see in the above picture.

In these pictures,

it looks WAY more red than it actually is,

which really bummed me out.

No matter what light I photographed it, though,

it came out looking more bright red.

Humph.

The coolest thing about this lipstick is that gold shimmer effect on my lips!

Regardless, here are the pics I got:

^*sunlight

^*indoor lighting

The indoor lighting is closer to the actual shade of the lipstick,

but you still can't see the awesome shimmer.

Meh.

Anyway, I totally loved this lipstick.

It's yet another shade from Covergirl that is perfect for Fall.

CG is still not my favorite of drugstore brands for lipsticks,

(Maybelline takes the cake on that one),

but this is still a great buy!

What do you all think?