October Favorites

I could say "Where has the time gone?" or "Sheesh! I can't believe it is already November!"  ....but I won't jibber-jabber. Let's cut the small talk and just jump right in with the favorites!  

I have three favorites that should have been in this skincare-esque section but only two have been photographed.  The first are these facial cleansing pads.  They are soft on one side and textured on the other for exfoliation.  I have been using these to apply my toner after cleansing my face and also in the morning with my astringent as a morning refresher to remove my evening skincare products. They work well, do the job, but I will say they aren't actually lint free.  No big deal, though.

The second item is the Burt's Bees sensitive eye cream.  It only takes a tiny bit.  It is gentle, but applies a perfect amount of moisture under my eyes.  It has a slightly minty scent that I quite enjoy. I don't feel any kind of tingle, though, from that.  

The third item, which isn't photographed, is my pure virgin coconut oil.  The brand doesn't matter so much, as long as it is as pure as I can get it.  I have been slathering myself in it.  I've loved using coconut oil as a body moisturizer for some time now, but have really appreciated it since being pregnant.  I feel good about using it, it smells fantastic, and is a godsend for a pregnant belly.  I think of the hot sauce commercial... "I put that sh*t on everything!"  I use it to remove my makeup, I use it in the ends of my hair (lightly) after showering, I use it all over my body as a moisturizer, I will eat a tablespoon of it for health benefits, I cook with it......  it is amazing stuff!  Get some!

In the fragrance field there are two perfumes I have reached for the most often.  The first is Coach Poppy.  My husband tells me this is one of his favorites from all of my perfumes.  That is my queue to wear it more often! HA!  Who doesn't want to smell delicious for their husband?  I have a full review on Coach Poppy HERE!  

The second perfume is L de Lolita Lempicka.  This is one of my favorites from my stash.  I've come to enjoy it year round.  I also have a full review on this perfume that you can find HERE!

This last grouping of products is mostly eye shadow but I also have a blush and eyeliner tossed in.  I have gone simple with my shadow this past month.  I've let my lips be the stand out, but because I have rotated with numerous different colors I couldn't include any for an actual favorite.

In the top, left is Ulta Mystique eyeshadow.  On the bottom, center is Ulta Truffle eyeshadow.  In the top, right is Milani baked blush in Rose D'Oro.

To the left is Michael Marcus Amazing eyeshadow. In the middle is Ulta Toast eyeshadow. To the right is Ulta Silk eyeshadow.

The eyeshadow here is from the Wet n Wild 8 pan palette Comfort Zone. The very bottom pan on the right side is the one I have been using a lot.  The eyeliner is Rimmel Scandaleyes in nude.

All of the shadows I have shown (with the exception of one) have been worn completely (or nearly completely) on their own.  As I said, I have been going for a very simple eye this past month.  The colors I have been wearing hold their own, though.  I may go in and define the crease with a deeper color, but beyond that, these are pretty much it.  

The exception that I mentioned above is the Michael Marcus shadow.  I haven't been wearing that on my eyes.  I have actually been using an angled liner brush and brushing it through my brows.  It defines nicely and isn't overpowering or too bold.  

As for the blush, it is an amazing fall color.  It gives that chilled look to the cheeks, but if you tap off your brush to remove the glitter specks, it is quite natural looking.  I highly recommend that color for everyone, light or dark complected. 

I think I may have included this liner in my favorites for last month.  It lasts nicely and also gives a bright eyed, awake look.  I can sometimes have reddish on the waterline and this perfectly cancels that out.

That is pretty much it for this month.  Let me know the items you have been wearing/using through the month of October.

Michael Marcus Refillable Eyeshadow: Amazing

Now that I have had a good chance to wear this eyeshadow, I wanted to put up a post with my thoughts on it.  First let me start by saying this was one of the products I received in my Wantable Box. You can click that link to be taken to my other blog where I posted an unboxing.  You can see all of the products I received. 

The packaging is very simple.  It is a silver compact with a clear flip-top lid and the shadow sits inside.  I did notice that the name of the color is nowhere to be found, except on the outside box.  I don't keep the boxes, so if I ever wanted to know the name, I'd be out of luck.  Now, the name could very well be on the underside of the pan itself.  However, I didn't try to pop it out because I didn't want to ding the shadow. Even if the name IS on the underside of the pan, that is still less than ideal because I don't plan on pulling the pan out of the compact each time I need to see the name.  This is a very minor detail, though, and I'm nit-picking.

As I mentioned in my unboxing post, I was originally underwhelmed by this color.  I like the color and it is something I can easily see myself wearing.  However, it just seemed like a very safe color to send in a box.  Also, when I had test swatched it on my finger it was extremely pale.  I could hardly see any color transfer to my finger.  That had me worried. Now that I have worn it several times, I have changed my mind.  I love the shadow.  Absolutely love it!

It is a greyish brown in the pan, so I suppose you'd just say taupe.  When I put it onto my lids (over TFSI) it shows more brown than the grey.  It can be worn as an extremely light wash or with a flat shadow brush and a bit of "packing on" it can be built up for more color pay off.   I did layer it just a bit to get a deeper color from it, but I am satisfied with the color I can get it to.  I still can't claim it is highly pigmented, though.

I will say this isn't the most buttery and smooth shadow I've ever worked with.  It is somewhat powdery, but nothing that really causes too much of a problem.

Something that I love is that it is a matte shadow.  Mattes are my favorite.  I find them easy to wear and give a nice, clean look to the eye.  Don't get me wrong, I enjoy a bit of shimmer every now and again, but if given the choice between the two, I'll always pick matte.

It does look like there is some sheen to the shadow, but that is coming from another shadow I lightly brushed on with this shadow.  I'm wearing Amazing with a bit of maroon from one of the Wet n Wild trios as well as Nutty from the Wet n Wild single. 

This retails for $24.00 USD.  While I enjoy wearing this shadow and will continue to do so, I can't say that I'd pay $24.00 to repurchase it.  That seems rather steep considering it doesn't have high pigment and is a bit powdery.  I am able to purchase other high end and even drugstore shadows that are better.  Since this isn't a unique color either, it is easily dupable with something more affordable.  

Maybelline Color Tattoo-Inked In Pink

I have had this product for a little while, but I wanted to wear it a couple of times before I gave my thoughts.  This is a new Maybelline Color Tattoo cream eyeshadow in the color Inked In Pink.  It is part of their new Metals Collection.  I only picked up two from this collection.  I purchased Inked In Pink and Barely Branded. (My thoughts on Barely Branded can be found: HERE!)  It would seem that these are the two that received the most attention.   This is probably because they are the most wearable in the group.

I really enjoy the Color Tattoos.  I tend to avoid the bright colors and stick with the more tame, wearable ones.  This is just my personal preference of colors I wear most often.   I find these to be long wearing and highly crease resistant.  I say it that way because some days I have absolutely no creasing, and then on other days I will notice some slight creasing after several hours.  It just depends on my skin and the weather that day, really.  As a note, I do have oily skin and lids.   If I wear a primer, I have absolutely no creasing what so ever.   These don't crease nearly as bad as a lot of other creme products that can be found (drugstore or otherwise).  They go on smooth and blend nicely, but after a couple of moments they set up and adhere to the skin.

I love that I can lightly dab these on and get a light wash or go back in with a second layer and really build up the color.   When I go in a second time, I don't find that it goes on patchy or creates balling of the product.  It still goes on smooth. 

I like to use my fingers to apply these.  I have tried brushes, but I just find that the warmth and texture of skin vs bristles applies a more smooth, uniform layer. I start by just dabbing it into place and then swipe (gently) to smooth it over.  

This particular color brightens the face nicely.  It is pink, but it has a sort of pink champagne or rose gold quality to it.   It gives color to the face but can be done up or worn minimally.  I find it looks fantastic when simply worn with a bit of mascara, blush, and a light gloss/lipstick.   It is a no fuss kind of color. 

If you are someone who likes to set a powder over all of the Color Tattoos, a good pairing is the L'Oreal Infallible shadow in Amber Rush.  It isn't identical, but it pairs lovely.  At times I also just set with a translucent setting powder, that works fine as well.  

Maybelline Color Tattoo-Barely Branded vs Barely Beige

I recently stumbled across the new Maybelline Color Tattoo collection while in a Meijer store.  I decided to go ahead and pick up the two colors that had caught my attention because I know so many others haven't been able to track these down in their area (yet). I didn't want to come back later only to find them sold out. I only really wanted two: Inked In Pink and Barely Branded.   

Because Barely Branded has been suspected to be a dupe for Barely Beige (from their fall collection launch), I wanted to pick it up to compare for myself.  I already have Barely Beige plus a back up, however, curiosity  got the best of me.   I will be posting up a review/my thoughts on Inked In Pink soon, but for now, this is just to compare and discuss Barely Branded

Here, you can see Barely Branded and Barely Beige in their pots, side by side.  It is a bit difficult to tell here, but Barely Branded is slightly more golden champagne in color and Barely Beige is more golden-nude pink. 

Here they are again, but with the lid off so you can see directly in to the product.  You can see I have been using my Barely Beige.  When I took this photo I hadn't used Barely Branded yet (but have since). 

They are extremely close in color, and I don't have a preference between the two.  I enjoy them both.  When I put them on my skin, it is extremely difficult to tell a difference.  The subtle difference (one being warmer and the other being cooler) doesn't show up very strong on the lids.  It just looks like a frosted, nude-champagne kind of color.  

However, I did notice a slight difference in the consistency.  I can remember thinking that Barely Beige was super creamy and smooth when I first got it, and in comparison to some of the original Color Tattoos that were released in the first batch.  I still think it is creamy and smooth.  But, now that I have Barely Branded, I can safely say it is even more creamy than Barely Beige!  It is the best of all of the ones I have tried.   It is easy to apply, blends on well, doesn't skip or create a patchy look on the lids, yet sets up nicely and holds up all day.    It was a dream to work with.

The differences were more noticeable on this swatch while in person.  But, even in person it was extremely close.  

If you don't already own Barely Beige, I think Barely Branded is an excellent one to pick up.  I don't feel as though you'd be missing out in the least.  If you already have Barely Beige, I don't think it is entirely necessary to run out and buy Barely Branded.  That is, of course, unless you are like me and curiosity is encouraging the buy (which I totally understand!).  

My understanding is that, while Barely Beige was limited edition, Barely Branded will become a part of the permanent, core collection. This is good news for all of us who have wanted a good quality, affordable option for cream shadow/eyeshadow base!

It would seem that a lot of places are selling these for between $6-$7 (and some change).  I found mine at Meijer for $5.99.  Since that was the cheapest I had heard of, and the only place, at this point, that I had seen them, I went ahead and bought it.  These should start showing up in some BOGO 1/2 off sales, though, so you can likely get it for cheaper.