Lip Factory September 2014

Hey everyone!

Since September is my birthday month, someone on Youtube told me about Lip Factory, and Lip Monthly was a bit disappointing, I decided to go ahead and sign up for Lip Factory just for September. I'm not sure how they are able to, but on their website they advertised that the September box is still available, but I only had 1 day to do it. I saw the previous months for Lip Factory and I was in awe with all of the wonderful products they got. I had to do it!

Lip Factory

-is a beauty subscription box that costs $22.00 a month
-lip products oriented such as lip glosses, lip liners, lipsticks, lip creams, lip balms, etc.
-can include other makeup besides lips products
-they include 5-7 products 
-uses variety of brands for lips and other makeup products (from the website it looks like drugstore to high end)
-create a beauty profile
-there is currently no wait list to be subscribed
-they allow you to order that months boxes whereas with other subscription services you have to wait til the following month to get a box (i.e. on September 20, 2014 I bought the subscription and I got my September box today)

Box Overview:

With this lip subscription the products come in a brown box that says LIP FACTORY on it with a picture of lips between the word LIP and FACTORY. It's cute. The box is taped. Once you take the tape off and open the box on the inside you find a bright redish, orangish, brownish card that reads, "LIP FACTORY, SEPTEMBER 2014 AUTUMN ARRIVES." When you open the card the first thing you see is black wrapping paper with a giant lips sticker. On the inside of the card it says, "Product Descriptions," it lists what product is inside, how much the retail value is, and describes the product. The packaging is super simple, but they actually made it kind of cute with how they put it together. When you peel the sticker and unwrap the black wrapping paper you find all of your products mixed in with some wavy cardboard packing stuff. I will admit that I was a bit surprised and not in a good way with how this was packaged. I'm glad that my items appear to not be broken from the shipping.

I am really surprised in a good way about how many products and the colors that they sent me for the first month! Wow! I got 7 full sized products in my box! That is awesome. Most of the colors represent Fall or are neutral colors that someone can wear any time they would like. That is pretty cool. I like how they have a mix of colors instead of Fall only because I think that would be a bit much. I am going to be honest and say that I am happier with my Lip Factory box than my Lip Monthly bag and I would have been way more excited for the Lip Factory box for my birthday.

List of Products:
Ofra Lip Gloss in Spicy $12.95
soft creamy formula for an ultra sheer finish enriched with antioxidants. This gloss contains natural sun filters and may be used alone or over lipstick.
JCat Beauty Jar Eyeliner Water Proof in Black Jet $5.99
Create the classic cat eye with the Jar Eye Liner! Tight line or significantly line your eyes with the intense yet smooth creamy texture that includes the brush applicator.
Angle Eyeliner $9.50
'A stroke of elegance' with its smooth application this brush is perfect for applying liquid, gel and cake liner. Get those perfect, controlled lines for fabulous eyes.
Girlactik Pout Shine in Pretty $19.00
Achieve kissable pouty lips with this luxurious high-shine lacquer lip color. Girlactik Pout Shine hydrates and nourishes your lips with botanical extracts while delivering brilliant electrifying color. High shine lacquer tube glosses that will give you those pouty lips you've always wanted.
ModelCo Eye Shadow Trio in Palette 01 Naturally Neutral $26.00
Create effortless, beautiful eyes with ModelCo's Eye Shadow Trio. Featuring three complimentary hues, each high pigment color can be worn alone or together to shade, shadow and define like a pro. The slim-line compact contains a collection of lustre and matte finishes, alongside a convenient in built mirror for makeup on the go. This shadow trio is the essential color palette you need for easy, amazing, beautiful eyes!

Total Retail Value according to LIP FACTORY is $73.44 in total. 

Lip Factory was having a promotion where if you ordered September's box you got an extra item included. For some weird reason instead of just getting one extra item, I got two. I am not going to complain because I was beyond excited for one of the extra items! The other one I could have done without. The two items that I got that are not on the card and are not included with the regular box are...

Extra item 1: NYX Butter Gloss in Devil's Food Cake
Extra item 2: a brush that is in a silver packaging. It has no identifying marks on it so I have no idea who makes it.

When I opened my box and saw the NYX purplish lip butter I was super excited! That is awesome! I have no idea who makes the brush though. I really like the packaging of the brush because it's cool, but I don't like the brush itself. It feels kind of cheap.

I am pretty happy with this box. I am super excited to try out the products! I already know I love NYX cosmetics. The color is awesome. I personally have never heard of Ofra, JCat, Girlactik or ModelCo. I like how the NYX came in a purple color and Ofra in a reddish color because they included two Fall colors. I also like how they included some neutral colors in the box too like the JCat eye liner in black, Girlactik color in a pretty lavenderish color, and the eye shadow trio in neutral. This box had a lot of variety in it. I think if they had been all Fall colors, it would have been too much, so it was nice that they included a couple colors for Fall and some neutral everyday colors! They probably included 2 extra items because this is my first Lip Factory box and they claim to give 5-7 products. It seems like they either watched my video or read my blogs because the colors are on point and the products are on point.

September 2014 Pros:

-full sized products
-gave me seven products in all
-seem like good quality products although I will have to test them out further because there are a lot of brands I am not familiar with
-gave two Fall colors and some neutral everyday colors- I love the variety of colors!
-had a lot of variety of products that were included such as eyeshadow, two brushes, three lip products, and an eye liner
-Overall I am really happy with this box and it is definitely worth the $22.00
-NYX Butter Gloss in Devil's Food Cake was the best surprise ever!

September 2014 Cons:

-Even though the box packaging is cute and they put the items together well, I don't really like that they don't package the products better for shipping. None of my items got damaged, but they easily could
-I feel like Lip Factory is a bit confused on what it wants to be because it advertises itself as lip focused, but I got three lip products and four non-lip products
-I personally don't like the price, it's not bad, but it's a bit more than what I can afford, especially when doing 3 subscription services a month
-I only got three lip products from a lip subscription service
-the random brush in the cool silver packaging, but totally random and not something I would use

Overall, I was super excited about this box because I had seen it on Lip Factory's website before I ordered it so I knew some of the products that were coming. I really wanted to try Ofra and Girlactik because I have never heard of these lip products. I am always interested in learning more about lip glosses! I think that it is definitely worth the $22.00 for this subscription, it's just a bit much compared to the other two I'm subscribed to.

Sincerely,
Marina

E.L.F. (EyesLipsFace) Eye Lid Primer in Sheer

Hi everyone!

In today's blog I am bringing to you the E.L.F. (EyesLipsFace) Eye Lid Primer in sheer. I bought two of this product at the same time because they were small and I wanted it for everyday use. I am not a big fan of this eye lid primer because of the way it feels and I don't feel like it lasts a long time. I think this is a great product for quick errand runs, but I would not trust this product to last through a lot of activity, heat, sweat, or a long time, especially if you have super oily eye lids like I do. It is very difficult to find a good product for that. I think that if you use really good quality eye shadows that are highly pigmented that then this product works really well in lasting.

On the official eyeslipsface website, it appears that this product exists and has the same packaging as mine. I don't recall them having as many options for the colors to choose from for the eye lid primer because now they have Champagne, Pearl, and Golden. That is pretty cool that you get to decide what color of eye lid primer you want from these four options.

Rating:

Price: 10/10
Packaging: 10/10
Amount of product: 10/10
Longevity: 7/10
Application: 10/10
Smell: 10/10
Effect on eyeshadow: 7/10
Creasing: 7/10
Different types of eye lids: 7/10
Website description: 7/10
Overall product rating: 7/10
Would I repurchase: 8/10
Total rating: 100/120=83.33%=83.3%=B

My personal rating: 8/10=80%=B

Comments:
The price of this eye lid primer is $1.00 which is amazing because you cannot find an eye lid primer for that price. The packaging is cute because it starts wide at the top and slims down as it gets to the other end. Inside the cap it includes a doe foot applicator brush to apply the product with. I have not had any problems with the packaging leaking the product out. Even though you don't get a lot of product in general, I do think that for the price you do get a decent amount of product. I think the longevity of the eye lid primer depends on what activities you are going to be doing, how hot it is, how sweaty you are, and how long you want this product to last for. I would use this eye lid primer for short events and/or errands. I find myself on important things using the MAC paint pots because I trust them better than this product. The application of the product is smooth and even. I have not had any problems with the application of this product. I think that this product has a slight smell to it, but it's so slight that you can barely smell it. Once applied to the eye lids you definitely cannot smell it. I'm not sure what to think about the effect this eye lid primer has on the eye shadow because without this eye lid primer the eyeshadow has more pigment and with this eye lid primer the pigment is dulled a bit, but the shimmer in the eye shadow really stands out. I also feel like the eye lid primer shows my lines and cracks in my skin which then makes the eye shadow appear to not have applied smoothly. The eye lid primer did make the eye shadow easier to blend out if you were doing a smokey eye because without the eye lid primer it's a bit harder to blend the eye shadow out. It definitely has it's pros and cons and really depends on what look you are trying to achieve. I feel that once again with this eye lid primer it depends on how high of quality eye shadows you are using with this product, but after a few hours this eye lid primer does start to crease the eye shadows on me, probably because I have super oily lids so it starts breaking down quicker and easier. As I have mentioned throughout this blog I do not feel that this product works well on super oily lids. I'm not sure I would use this eye lid primer on dry eye lids either because it will bring out the dryness of the skin into focus and because this eye lid primer is drying, it will further dry out your eye lids. I think that this eye lid primer would work really well with normal to normal-slightly oily eye lids. Dry eye lids and oily eye lids I would caution to use for everyday use, for running quick errands, etc. I agree with the website description that it does make the eye lids smoother and that it feels lightweight on the eye lids. I disagree with the website description that it is longer-lasting, crease proof, and increases eye color longevity. Overall I feel that this is a good eye primer for quick runs and for those with normal to normal-slightly oily lids. I would repurchase this eye lid primer for the price and for everyday use where I want to wear some light makeup, but where I don't need it to last.

Sincerely,
Marina

MAC Splashproof Mascara in Blacksplash

Hi everyone!

A while back when I was doing my Macy's online MAC hauls I decided that I really wanted to try MAC's waterproof mascara because I was finding that the drugstore ones that say waterproof on them were okay and would last a couple of hours, but then would eventually start getting into my eyes, irritating my eyes, so I would rub them and smear all of my makeup. It was super frustrating! I decided that it was time to try a higher end waterproof mascara. I absolutely fell in love with it. I love the wand, I love that it actually is waterproof, and I love that it lasts a long time. This is the best mascara that I have ever tried. That being said I've only tried drugstore brands before this one. I already really like a lot of the MAC products that I have tried so far. When I discovered this mascara I was in awe. It was like, 'where have you been all my life?' type of moment. I'm just sad about the price.

NoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo! I just checked the official MAC website and I can't find this mascara under their mascara tab. I am going to cry. I love this mascara. I cannot believe it got discontinued. I should have bought like 100 of these. What a sad day...

*Fair warning: the MAC Splashproof Mascara in Blacksplash appears to have been discontinued.*

 

Rating:

Price: 9/10
Packaging: 10/10
Amount of product: 10/10
Longevity: 10/10
Application: 10/10
Formula: 10/10
Eyelash Breakage/Fallout: 10/10
Wand: 10/10
Pigment: 10/10
Lengthening/Volumizing: 7/10
Overall product: 9/10
Would I repurchase: 3/10
Total rating: 108/120=90%=A

My personal rating: 9.5/10=95%=A

Comments:
I think a few years ago when I bought this mascara it was priced around $15.00. The current waterproof mascara they have is priced at $17.00. I'm going to say I paid between $15.00 and $17.00 for this mascara. I think that spending $15.00+ on mascara is a bit too much for what I can personally afford. The packaging of this product is round with a twist top cap that has a wand. The wand is straight, not like the curved ones they make now. I think that you get a decent amount of product and makes the price and quality of it worth it. This is my go to mascara when I know that I am going to be gone for a long time and/or it's a hot day and/or I will be participating in some activity then I will definitely use this. I trust this product to last through activity, sweat, and heat. I love the application of this product. The application is smooth, non-clumpy, and the wand, even though it's straight, does a really good job of grabbing the lashes and applying the product. You can put multiple coats on without it clumping up. I put on about 3 coats and it did just fine. I really like the wand. I don't know what they did to it, but this is the only wand that I have experienced where it does that. What ever formula they are using to make it waterproof and last works excellent. It doesn't irritate my eyes even when they water, it works well with my oily lids, and it lasts through the Summer heat. I have not personally experienced any eyelash breakage or fallout from using this mascara when applying, wearing, or taking off. I will continue to rave about this wand because from the first time I tried it to now, I love the way it grabs my lashes to apply the product. I cannot say enough about that. The one thing I would change about the wand is that it is straight instead of curved, but even without it being curved it does a wonderful job! The wand grabs enough product without being too much. The pigment of the mascara is strong. I have not had any issues with the pigment not being there. You can definitely see it. I do not feel that this mascara lengthens or volumizes the lashes, but it's not advertised to be as such, I bought it for it being specifically waterproof. I took a few points off because it definitely does not volumize the lashes. I think that it kind of lengthens the lashes because the wand grabs the lashes and does a really good job of going to the end of the lashes unlike some mascaras that don't. This product gives volume in the fact that it applies the product on the entire eyelash instead of some of it. It does a really good job of it. Overall this product does what it claims which is waterproof. I would definitely repurchase this mascara, but MAC decided to get rid of it so I can't which is why I had to give it such a low score =-(

Sincerely,
Marina

E.L.F. (EyesLipsFace) Natural Lash Kit

Hi everyone!

A while back when I did one of my two E.L.F. hauls I decided to purchase some false lashes because they were really cheap which is why I decided to try them. I have never worn or purchased false lashes before. I figured I would start and learn on some cheap ones, but for these being my very first false lashes, I actually really enjoyed them. I bought two sets of the E.L.F. Natural Lash kit that are Natural Looking Lush Lashes in Black Lashes. When I first looked at the lashes in the packaging, I was kind of shocked because to me, they do not look natural. I thought they looked like they would look unnatural on me, but I was very pleasantly surprised when I did try them. I like them a lot!

I just went on the official E.L.F. website and it appears that they still sell these, exactly the same and with the same looking glue, but the outside packaging changed colors. It went from being white and looking like a black color smudged to one side being dark brown and fading into white. I'm not sure why they changed the packaging.

*Fair warning: it appears that the outside packaging has changed colors.*

Rating:

Price: 10/10
Packaging: 8/10
Longevity: 8/10
Amount: 8/10
Eyelash glue: 9/10
Eyelash feeling: 8/10
Taking off eyelashes: 8/10
Overall rating: 8/10
Would I repurchase: 10/10
Total rating: 77/90=85.55%=85.6%=B

My personal rating: 9/10= 90%=A

Comments:
The price of these lashes are only $1.00 which is absolutely perfect for those who are just starting out and need to use these for practice or more seasoned false eye lash wearers could get use out of these. The packaging is cute, but definitely cheap. They use a box with a clear film to see the eye lashes inside. When you pull the packaging out of the box there is a cheap plastic container that is shaped like an eye with the eye lash wrapped around it and the glue is on the bottom in a little holder. The tray design allows for the lashes to be put back so that they hold their shape for reuse. I like the glue because it has a twist cap for reuse and when you pull it up there is a long wand that the glue sticks to so you can easily apply the glue to the false eye lash line or you can use the wand to apply the glue to your face. For it costing only $1.00 for the whole thing I can't be too harsh on the packaging. They seem like they tried to make it cute. The longevity of these false eyelashes is that you can reuse these false lashes or because they are so cheap you can purchase multiple of these. I can get a couple of uses out of them. I would say that the longevity of the glue is that it does last for a few hours. I'm not sure I would trust these to last very long, especially if participating in activity and if you have super oily lids like mine. For the amount of this product you get two false eyelashes (one for each eye) and a tiny little glue tube. I think you could get about 5-10 glue uses out of it because it does not take a lot of glue to get the product onto the eye. I wish they would have given a bit more glue to get more use out of it and the packaging does allow for a longer glue tube. The sad thing is that you can't just buy the glue separately like you can with the false eyelashes so once it's gone, you have to repurchase  the eyelash kit. Speaking of the eyelash glue, it is not a bad glue. The glue is clear so it applies clear and dries clear so that you don't have to deal with that. The glue feels a bit tacky, but once applied and given the chance to dry the tacky feeling goes away. This product isn't advertised to last a long time so I think the glue holds for a few hours. I would say about 2-5 hours, depending on the activity level. The glue is actually a lot better than I was expecting it to be, especially for the price. These false lashes feel pretty comfortable. I was not expecting that either. When I first put them on I could feel that there was something on my eyes, but after a couple of minutes that feeling goes away and they do feel pretty comfortable. I like how these eyelashes have movement because then they don't feel stiff and they don't feel too plastic like, but they are a bit too easily to bend. Being easy to bend is a good and bad thing, in my opinion. It can be good because then you can use a lash curler and it makes it easier with the mascara, but it can be a bad thing because these don't seem to hold the curl. I like how these false lashes have a very thin lash line. I'm not sure why, but I do, probably because then it's easier to hide that these are false lashes. The glue does a good job of unsticking when taking these off. It does pull on the skin, but it doesn't hurt. It doesn't appear to take any actual eyelashes with it. Overall, these are really good eyelashes to practice with and to wear for a few hours while running errands. I would definitely repurchase these false eyelashes.

I am not a false eyeshadow pro so I don't have a lot of experience to it, but for starters these seem like a good fit.

Sincerely,
Marina

E.L.F. (EyesLipsFace) Mineral Infused Face Primer

Hey everyone!

In today's blog I am bringing to you the E.L.F. (EyesLipsFace) Mineral Infused Face Primer. I bought this face primer a few years ago because I wanted a cheaper face primer to use on a daily basis. I figured there is no face primer cheaper than E.L.F. I was worried that it would be too cheap, but it actually does an okay job. I would recommend this primer for people who have dry skin because it is super slick so it goes without saying that I would warn those with oily faces to probably stay away from using this product as a face primer because it will just slide off. I have dry skin and even still it feels too slick for me.

I just went on the official eyeslipsface.com website and this product has gone through some changes, except for the price, which is awesome! I really like how E.L.F. has been able to keep their prices low. It appears that the packaging has changed slightly, it has a different design on the neck of the bottle than the one I have. The name has changed from E.L.F. Mineral Infused Face Primer to now E.L.F. Mineral Face Primer on the bottle and on the website they call it the E.L.F. Studio Mineral Infused Face Primer. I love the fact that they added different colors to it because when this primer first came out they only sold the clear. Now they have options for a green, lavender, and pinkish one. I think that is super cool that they did that. I also noticed that they added a few different types of face primers which is cool too.

*Fair warning: the E.L.F. Mineral Infused Face primer still exists, but it appears to have gone through a name change, the neck of the bottle has changed, and they have added different colors of this primer for different purposes (i.e. green primer to cover redness) than the product discussed in this blog.*

 

Rating:

Price: 9/10
Packaging: 10/10
Amount of product: 10/10
Longevity: 7/10
Application: 10/10
Smell: 10/10
Covers redness: 8/10
Covers large pores: 8/10
Website description: 8/10
Different skin types: 7/10
Overall rating: 8/10
Would I repurchase: 10/10
Total rating: 105/120=87.5%=B

My personal rating: 9/10=90%=A

Comments:
I think that E.L.F. makeup product prices are awesome, but I will admit that I was a bit surprised that they charge $6.00 for this primer. I am not saying that it is too much or anything, but compared to the prices of their other products, it is a bit of a shock. I love this packaging, it is super cool. They used a clear plastic bottle, put a white plastic bottle inside with black writing on it, a silver cap that hold a white pump with a clear plastic cap. I love that it comes with a pump. I have not had any problems with the packaging as a whole or leaking the product. Even though this item is a bit more than their usual, you actually get a decent amount of product for the price. I feel that this face primer moves around with non-long wear foundation, especially if you are being active. I would strongly recommend a long wear foundation when using this primer. I had to knock some points off because the longevity depends on what kind of foundation you are wearing as well as what activities you are doing. The application of this primer is smooth and even. I have not had any issues with the application of this product. I don't smell anything for this product so I am guessing there is either no scent or it's very slight. I would say the smell is neutral. The clear face primer that I have does cover some redness to the face, but not because it's supposed to, but I think because it is a bit on the thicker side. I feel that the slight thickness with a foundation does cover redness. I have not tried their green primer yet so I cannot say with certainty about that. This specific clear primer is not advertised to cover redness, but I feel that it kind of does. At least better than some of the other primers I have tried. I don't think that this face primer covers large pores, but I do think that it feels in the large pores so that when you go to apply foundation it glides smoothly over the large pores and in that way it does cover large pores. I hope that makes sense. When you apply this face primer the product fills in the large pore so even though you can still see the large pores on the face with the clear face primer, once you apply the foundation, the foundation glides over the large pore and the primer product creating a smooth transition so that the foundation covers the large pores. It does a decent job of that and I have been fairly happy with it. Let me just reiterate one more time. When you apply the clear face primer on the face you can still see the large pores, but the product fills the large pore in to create a smooth surface for the foundation. The foundation is what covers the actual appearance of the large pore. I do agree with the website that this face primer creates a smooth surface to apply foundation. I also agree that this product fills in large pores, fine lines, and does a good job of smoothing out dry skin. I do not agree with the website when they say that it combats oil or that it lasts a long time. As I said above, it depends on your foundation and you activity level. As I stated in the above paragraph that I would be careful using this product with oily skin and I would also be careful using this product with non-long wear foundation. Even for normal skin this might be too slick. I would recommend this primer for those with dry skin. Overall, I was surprised at how well this product works and I think it is a perfect primer for everyday use to run errands and you want to have some makeup on. I would definitely repurchase this for everyday use and I would definitely try the green one for correcting redness.

Sincerely,
Marina

E.L.F. (EyesLipsFace) Hypershine Gloss in Mauve

Hi everyone!

In today's blog I am bringing to you a review on the E.L.F. (EyesLipsFace) Hypershine Gloss in Mauve. I was super excited when I first saw these on the eyeslipsface.com website because of the packaging. I thought it was super cool, cute, and it wasn't anything that I had seen before. Plus during that time it was new and then other companies started doing similar things. I love lip gloss so that is hands down why I bought it, but the packaging made it even more exciting!

According to the official eyeslipsface.com website, it looks like this product still exists, but this specific color is not available anymore. I did not notice anything dramatically different about the packaging. The description of the product is that it is supposed to be super shiny because of something like micro-mirrors that are supposed to reflect light and it is supposed to last for hours. This product is described as subtle and sheer color. It looks like this is supposed to be more for shine than for color.

The packaging is pretty cool. The product is shaped like a marker (but not as ugly, I'm trying to describe about the thickness/look of this product) with a see through middle so that you can see the lip color, one end has a brush to apply the lip product with and the other end has a twisty cap to twist the product out. I know I'm not describing it as elegantly as it should be, but I think it is super cute!

*Fair warning: the E.L.F. Hypershine Gloss still exists, but this specific color has been discontinued.*

Rating:

Price: 10/10
Packaging: 10/10
Amount of Product: 10/10
Pigment: 10/10
Longevity: 8/10
Smell: 10/10
Taste: 9/10
Texture: 10/10
Application: 10/10
Different lip types: 8/10
Overall rating: 9/10
Would I repurchase: 5/10
Total rating: 109/120=90.83%=90.8%=A

My personal rating: 9.5/10=95%=A

Comments:
The price of the E.L.F. Hypershine Gloss is $1.00!  For a lip gloss addict like me, you cannot beat spending $1.00 for this product. I think the packaging is super cute! I described it in the above paragraph. I have never had a problem with the product not coming out, although at first it does take about 10-20 clicks before the initial product comes out, or leaking. For the price you do get a decent amount of product. I feel that with Wet and Wild products you get more product for the same price, but it's decent. The E.L.F. website describes this product as sheer in color, but super shiny. The pigment of this lip gloss is fairly sheer. I personally wish they made this product with more pigment. That is the only negative I have about this product. Honestly, I'm not sure how to rate it on pigment because I would like to see more pigment, but the website describes it as a sheer color... so I guess I will have to go by what the company claims. I have to judge it on it's glossiness. I would say that this has decent shine, but I don't think it's super shiny. I do think that it is a bit drying on the lips instead of moisturizing. E.L.F. claims that this product lasts a few hours, but I don't agree. I think that this lip gloss lasts as much as a normal lip gloss, especially if you are not doing a lot of things with your lips like eating or drinking. This product has a bit of a sweet smell to it, but it's not overpowering and it doesn't smell bad. Once applied to the lips you can't really smell it. The taste of the lip gloss is also a bit sweet mixed with a slight chemically aftertaste to it. It's definitely not as bad or as overpowering as some of the other lip products I have bought. This product does not feel heavy on the lips and it's not sticky like some lip glosses can be. It is very pleasant. I love that they included the lip brush on the end of the product because it gives it a bit variety from the other lip glosses, but also because I think I personally like the brush application better. The brush is more precise and this doesn't give too much product like some doe foot applicators can and then it goes outside the lip lines and creates a mess. You can control how much product by how many clicks and the brush small enough to outline the lip line as well as big enough to fill in the lips. They describe this lip product as moisturizing to the lips, but I don't really think that it does. I was able to apply this product to dry lips, but I feel like this product is more drying than moisturizing. Overall, I love the packaging. This is a nice product to have when you want to apply something to your lips for quick runs. I just personally wish it was more pigmented. I would repurchase this product if I could because I like the Mauve color, but they don't carry it anymore so I can't.

Sincerely,
Marina

E.L.F. (EyesLipsFace) Hypershine Gloss in Fairy

Hi everyone!

In today's blog I am bringing to you a review on the E.L.F. (EyesLipsFace) Hypershine Gloss in Fairy. I was super excited when I first saw these on the eyeslipsface.com website because of the packaging. I thought it was super cool, cute, and it wasn't anything that I had seen before. Plus during that time it was new and then other companies started doing similar things. I love lip gloss so that is hands down why I bought it, but the packaging made it even more exciting!

According to the official eyeslipsface.com website, it looks like this product still exists. I did not notice anything dramatically different about the packaging. They still offer the hypershine gloss in Fairy. The description of the product is that it is supposed to be super shiny because of something like micro-mirrors that are supposed to reflect light and it is supposed to last for hours. This product is described as subtle and sheer color. It looks like this is supposed to be more for shine than for color.

The packaging is pretty cool. The product is shaped like a marker (but not as ugly, I'm trying to describe about the thickness/look of this product) with a see through middle so that you can see the lip color, one end has a brush to apply the lip product with and the other end has a twisty cap to twist the product out. I know I'm not describing it as elegantly as it should be, but I think it is super cute!

Rating:

Price: 10/10
Packaging: 10/10
Amount of Product: 10/10
Pigment: 10/10
Longevity: 8/10
Smell: 10/10
Taste: 9/10
Texture: 10/10
Application: 10/10
Different lip types: 8/10
Overall rating: 9/10
Would I repurchase: 10/10
Total rating: 114/120=95%=A

My personal rating: 9.5/10=95%=A

Comments:
The price of the E.L.F. Hypershine Gloss is $1.00! For a lip gloss addict like me, you cannot beat spending $1.00 for this product. I think the packaging is super cute! I described it in the above paragraph. I have never had a problem with the product not coming out, although at first it does take about 10-20 clicks before the initial product comes out, or leaking. For the price you do get a decent amount of product. I feel that with Wet and Wild products you get more product for the same price, but it's decent. The E.L.F. website describes this product as sheer in color, but super shiny. The pigment of this lip gloss is fairly sheer. I personally wish they made this product with more pigment. That is the only negative I have about this product. Honestly, I'm not sure how to rate it on pigment because I would like to see more pigment, but the website describes it as a sheer color... so I guess I will have to go by what the company claims. I have to judge it on it's glossiness. I would say that this has decent shine, but I don't think it's super shiny. I do think that it is a bit drying on the lips instead of moisturizing. E.L.F. claims that this product lasts a few hours, but I don't agree. I think that this lip gloss lasts as much as a normal lip gloss, especially if you are not doing a lot of things with your lips like eating or drinking. This product has a bit of a sweet smell to it, but it's not overpowering and it doesn't smell bad. Once applied to the lips you can't really smell it. The taste of the lip gloss is also a bit sweet mixed with a slight chemically aftertaste to it. It's definitely not as bad or as overpowering as some of the other lip products I have bought. This product does not feel heavy on the lips and it's not sticky like some lip glosses can be. It is very pleasant. I love that they included the lip brush on the end of the product because it gives it a bit variety from the other lip glosses, but also because I think I personally like the brush application better. The brush is more precise and this doesn't give too much product like some doe foot applicators can and then it goes outside the lip lines and creates a mess. You can control how much product by how many clicks and the brush small enough to outline the lip line as well as big enough to fill in the lips. They describe this lip product as moisturizing to the lips, but I don't really think that it does. I was able to apply this product to dry lips, but I feel like this product is more drying than moisturizing. Overall, I love the packaging. This is a nice product to have when you want to apply something to your lips for quick runs. I just personally wish it was more pigmented. I would definitely repurchase this product!

Sincerely,
Marina

E.L.F. (EyesLipsFace) Studio Contour Brush

Hi everyone!

In today's blog I am bringing to you the E.L.F. (EyesLipsFace) Studio Contour Brush. I bought this brush because I wanted an easier way to deposit eye shadow in the inner corner of my eye and the crease. The EyesLipsFace.com website describes this brush as an eye shadow contouring brush. But this brush can also be used to contour the face. I'm not entirely sure what this brush is supposed to be used for, but I am going to assume contouring of the face and of the eye shadow in the crease.

Rating:

Price: 10/10
Packaging: 10/10
Quality: 9/10
Longevity: 10/10
Application: 10/10
Design: 10/10
Bristle fallout: 8/10
Bristle feeling: 10/10
Blending ability: 10/10
Overall rating: 9/10
Would I repurchase: 10/10
Total rating: 106/110= 96.36%=96.4%=A

My personal rating: 9.5/10=95%=A

Comments:
I think that I paid $3.00 for this product and according to the official E.L.F. website the product is still going for $3.00 for this brush. I love the price! I have not had an issues with the packaging. The E.L.F. Studio brushes have a black handle with white writing and a black plastic bristle holder. The bristle holder might be metal painted in black. I'm not sure. I think that the quality of the studio brushes are better than the essential brushes. They use different bristles that seem to be softer. I have had this brush for a couple of years and I have not had any issues with it. I have not experienced the bristle holder breaking or anything. The bristles do shed a bit during use and when washing. The application of this brush is that it fits perfectly in my inner corner and my the crease of my lid making for excellent application. The application is smooth and even. The design of the brush is that it is dome shaped which is perfect for contouring the crease on the eye and other parts of the face. There is some bristle shedding/fallout during application and washing of this brush, but it's not full bristles so I wonder if the bristle sheds or parts of it are breaking off instead of the full bristle coming out. I'm not sure, but I did notice some. This brush is super soft which should be okay for super sensitive skin, but has a bit of stiffness to provide enough contour. I think that this brush blends very well because of that bit of stiffness to it. Overall, I am really impressed with this brush because of the low price. I think it works well and lasts a long time. I would definitely repurchase this brush and I can because eyeslipsface.com still sells these =-D

Sincerely,
Marina

E.L.F. (EyesLipsFace) Studio Stipple Brush

Hey everyone!

On one of my E.L.F. hauls a few years ago I went brush buying crazy. I ended up buying the E.L.F. (EyesLipsFace) Studio Stipple Brush. I had been watching Youtube videos and around that time a lot of people were raving about stipple brushes. I liked the idea of them. So when E.L.F. came out with their version of the stipple brush I had to try it! I was so excited that I bought 2 at the same time because I wanted to make sure I had a backup for it. I was so excited, but when they arrived, I was a bit disappointed because the brush did not look like the brushes I had seen other people use. The E.L.F. brush had long very fluffy bristles when I was expecting short stiff bristles. I was going to use the stipple brush to stipple liquid foundation on my face, but this brush would be an absolute nightmare to try to use for that. I ended up using this brush to apply the E.L.F. HD Finishing Powder and the L'Oreal Mineral Finish in powder. It works great for finishing powders.

I checked the official eyeslipsface.com website and it looks like they have since make some changes to this brush and added another version of this brush called the Small Stipple Brush, which appears to have what I was looking for a few years ago that they did not have. It appears that they made the stipple brush less fluffy than the ones I have.

*Fair warning #1: the E.L.F. Studio Stipple Brush appears to have gone through some changes from the product talked about in this blog.*

*Fair warning #2: the E.L.F. Studio Stipple Brush is not what I think of when I hear stipple brush. My idea of a stipple brush is one with short, stiff bristles. This brush has fluffy, long bristles that would be better used with powder makeup. If you want a stipple brush for applying liquid foundation then this is not the brush for you. *

 

Rating:

Price: 10/10
Packaging: 10/10
Quality: 9/10
Longevity: 10/10
Application: 10/10
Design: 6/10
Bristle Fallout: 8/10
Bristle feeling: 10/10
Blending ability: 7/10
Overall rating: 6/10
Would I repurchase: 5/10
Total rating: 91/110=82.72%=82.7%=B

My personal rating: 6/10=60%=D

Comments:
I am pretty sure that I paid $3.00 for this brush and according to the eyeslipsface.com website they are still selling it for $3.00 which I don't have any complaints with the price. The E.L.F. Studio line's brushes have a bit thicker black handles with a black plastic holder. I'm not sure what kind of bristles they use for their Essential and their Studio brushes. These brushes look better in quality than the E.L.F. Essentials brushes and they used different bristles. I have had these brushes for a couple of years and I use them fairly regularly to apply finishing powder. I have not had any issues with the brushes breaking after washing. The tips of the brush are stained from the makeup a bit, but that is to be somewhat expected. I have not had any issues with the application. In fact, I really like how this brush uses the fluffy ends to spread the product evenly and smoothly. The fluffy ends are super soft. The design of the brush is the reason why I am so unhappy with this brush. As I stated above I was expecting it to be the stippling brush which to me means short, stiff bristles that can be used to apply liquid foundation. This brush has fluffy long bristles that cannot be used to apply liquid foundation. I would only use this brush to apply powder makeup products. This brush does have some fallout when applying makeup and when washing, but not as bad as the E.L.F. Essentials brushes. I love the bristles on this brush. They are super soft and seem like they would be good for even super sensitive skin. I really like the way the bristles feel. I think that this brush blends super well, but only if you are using powder makeup. If you use liquid or cream it does not work as well. The brush picks up and takes off liquid makeup and with liquid makeup the brush has fallout. For the reasons stated in the above paragraphs as well as in this one I would personally not repurchase this brush for a stipple brush. I would repurchase this brush to apply finishing powder because the long fluffy bristles help to spread the powder. The answer for this question is yes and no. Yes, I would repurchase to use this brush for other reasons and no, I would not repurchase this brush because it is not my idea of a stipple brush. I wish they would change the name of it so I can review it better without it being confusing.

Sincerely,
Marina

E.L.F. (EyesLipsFace) Bronzing Powder in Warm Tan

Hi everyone!

During one of two of my E.L.F. hauls that I had a while back I decided to try the E.L.F. Bronzer because I was looking for a cheaper alternative to my beloved MAC Bronzer that I could use more frequently without spending $25.00 plus. I think I might have picked the wrong bronzer because I got it in warm tan thinking that it would give me a bronzed look without looking fake/orange/dirt, but I was wrong. I have only worn this bronzer a couple of times because something was off about it. The first time I applied this bronzer it looked like I had orange dirt on my face. So I tried a different technique in the application by going lighter when applying and I got it to look somewhat normal. I think that this bronzer has too much glitter/shimmer in it for me. I would definitely advise using this E.L.F. Bronzing Powder in Warm Tan in a very delicate/light application with the brush. I would definitely tap it before applying too. I think that this bronzer has potential to be good and can be used normally if you apply lightly.

Whoa... I just went on the official eyeslipsface.com website and I could not find this product on there. They have bronzers, but none of the ones that look like mine. I'm kind of surprised, but I'm kind of glad that this specific one is gone because it was kind of bad. They do carry E.L.F. Essentials Bronzer in a different case with a brush. The names are different than the one I have also. I am going to assume this product was discontinued.

*Fair warning: the E.L.F. Bronzing Powder in Warm Tan appears to have been discontinued. *

Rating:

Price: 10/10
Packaging: 10/10
Amount of product: 10/10
Pigment: 6/10
Application: 6/10
Texture: 6/10
Different skin types: 7/10
Longevity: 10/10
Overall rating: 6.5/10
Would I repurchase: 1/10
Total rating: 72.5/100=72.5%=C

My personal rating: 6/10=60%=D

Comments:
I don't remember exactly how much I paid for this bronzer, but it must have between $2.00 and $3.00. That is not a bad price for a bronzer. I have no complaints about the price at all. The packaging is pretty cute because it has a clear round plastic case with a metal pan inside. I think the idea of it is cute and I have not had any issues with the packaging breaking or falling out. I think for the price you get a decent amount of product. This product has pigment, but not in a good way. You either get too much pigment or not enough. It could be cause I should have gone lighter, but it looks orange on my skin and looks like I put orange dirt on my face. It has way too much shimmer in it to be taken seriously. Shimmer galore! It's way too much shimmer for a bronzer. The application is uneven because you either get too much product or not enough product. When you get too much product it is difficult to blend it out to make it look normal. It does not go on smoothly and evenly. In the pan the product feels rough like there are tiny chunks of something in there. The product itself feels a bit grainy. I would not use this product on dry skin because it is very unforgiving. The tons of shimmer would draw attention to the dry patches and would dry the skin out even more. Once this product is applied it does last quite a bit. I have never had any issues with it rubbing off too easily. In fact, it is quite the opposite, where it is difficult to get this product off and even to blend this product out. Overall this product is not very good. There is way too much shimmer and it is a bit difficult to work with. I was not a fan of the product and I am still not a fan of the product. I do not want my face to look like an orange pumpkin that got sprayed with glitter. I don't need help in looking silly. I will say that if you are looking for a Halloween customer makeup this product would have been absolutely perfect for that! If I could repurchase this product I probably would not. I would look else where to see what other brands have to offer when it comes to bronzer.

Sincerely,
Marina

E.L.F. (EyesLipsFace) Professional Brow Comb Brush

Hi everyone!

In today's blog I am bringing you the E.L.F. (EyesLipsFace) Professional Brow and Comb Brush. I originally bought this brush because I like using the comb part to come out my lashes after I apply mascara to get the clumps out. But I have tried to use it for brows recently in the last few months because I am learning how to fill in and shape my brows.

On the brush handle it says, E.L.F. Professional Brow Comb and Brush, but on the official eyeslipsface.com website they have it listed under E.L.F. Essential brushes and they call it the E.L.F. Essentials Brow + Comb Brush. It is a bit confusing, but when I click on the picture it looks and says the same thing as the brush that I have.

Rating:

Price: 10/10
Packaging: 10/10
Quality: 6/10
Longevity: 10/10
Application: 10/10
Design: 6/10
Bristle fallout: 8/10
Bristle feeling: 6/10
Blending ability: 7/10
Overall rating: 6/10
Would I repurchase: 3/10
Total rating: 82/110= 74.54%=74.5%=C

My personal rating: 6/10=60%=D

Comments:
The price for this brush is $1.00. The price of this brush is absolutely unbeatable from anywhere else unless you just happen to stumble upon a really good sale with a coupon or something. Usually this type of brush is very hard to find for this price. I do not have any issues with the packaging, it is quite simple, but it is cute. The handle is long and thin in the color white with a shiny pearl finish. On the handle of the brush there is writing in silver. The brush head holder is silver. The brow comb and brush combo is black. I do not think that the quality of this brush is very good. It has lasted me a couple of years which is good, especially for the price, but the actual quality of the brush looks very cheap and plastic like. I have admitted that I did not use this brush as often as I could have, but it has lasted me about 2 years. I think this brush does last. The application category doesn't really apply here so I will give it the full points. The brush and the comb do a good job of combing and brushing the eyebrow hairs to prepare it for applying eyebrow products. I hate the design of this brush. The comb looks and feels like plastic. It does not do a good job of getting rid of mascara clumps at all because I can barely fit my lashes through the comb. I have never experienced that problem with another comb that I used to use to do that. This comb is really hard to work with the way I want it. It does a good job of combing the eyebrows, but not getting rid of mascara clumps in the lashes. Don't even get me started on the brush part of this. There is one bristle that is way longer than the other ones and it bends and sticks out like a sore thumb. It looks obnoxious. It feels like plastic. I don't know how E.L.F. did it, but they did manage to make plastic bristles that bend/are flexible because the brush does not feel as rough as it looks like it should. It does feel scratchy on the skin and on the eyebrows, but not as bad as it looks. The material looks and feels like plastic, but also bends and doesn't feel as harsh as it looks. I don't know how to explain that one. But I would be careful with super sensitive skin and this eyebrow brush product. I have not personally had an issues with the brush bristles falling out, but like I said above, mine came with one bristle that is longer than the others so it sticks out. The bristles on this brush look like they would really hurt, but they are actually not as bad as they look, but they do feel scratchy on the skin and brows. The comb part feels very plastic and is very unforgiving on eyelashes. I think that the eyebrow comb does an okay job of blending out eyebrow product, but it does take off a lot of product and you can definitely find a better one. Overall I did not like this brush when I first received it a few years ago and I don't like it even more today. There are definitely better eyebrow combs and brushes out there, they may be a bit more, but are definitely worth it to pay the extra cost. I would only repurchase this brush if I really needed it and could seriously not afford anything else.

Sincerely,
Marina

E.L.F. (EyesLipsFace) Professional Bronzing Brush

Hi everyone!

In this blog I am bringing you today the E.L.F. (EyesLipsFace) Professional Bronzing brush. I bought this brush because I needed a brush for contouring bronzer under my cheek bones.

On the actual brush handle it says, E.L.F. Professional Bronzing brush, but on the official eyeslipsface.com website the product is listed under E.L.F. Essentials and is being named as E.L.F. Essential Blushing, Bronzing, and Blending Brush. That is a bit confusing, but when I clicked on the picture the brush appears to be the same as mine and says the same thing as mine.

Rating:

Price: 10/10
Packaging: 10/10
Quality: 7/10
Longevity: 10/10
Application: 9/10
Design: 10/10
Bristle fallout: 7/10
Bristle feeling: 10/10
Blending ability: 10/10
Overall rating: 8/10
Would I repurchase: 10/10
Total rating: 101/110=91.81%=91.8%=A

My personal rating: 9/10=90%=A

Comments:
The price for this brush is $1.00. I think that is an excellent price because it is hard to find brushes for so cheap. I don't have a problem with the packaging of this brush. The handle is white with a pearl/shiny finish. The writing on the white handle is in silver. The bristle holder is silver. I think it is cute. The quality of the brush is not as good as some other brushes. This one seems to have more fallout. I think that for the price the longevity of this brush is excellent. It has lasted me about 2 years. I think that the application of this brush is decent, although, it does appear to eat some of the product in the bristles. I think the design of this brush is good because it is angled and the bristles are on the larger side so that you can cover more surface area. This brush has a lot of fallout while using and when cleaning. A lot more than the eye shadow brushes. The bristles on this brush are super soft and fluffy. I really like it. I think that even on super sensitive skin this brush would be good. I feel that this brush does an excellent job of blending the product. Overall this is not a bad brush to have for bronzing purposes. I think it can be used for blush too, but I don't wear blush. I would definitely repurchase this brush for the price, for the softness/fluffiness, and the blending is good. I don't have any major issues with this brush.

Sincerely,
Marina

E.L.F. (EyesLipsFace) Professional Eye Shadow Brush

Hi everyone!

In today's blog I am bringing to you the E.L.F. (EyesLipsFace) Professional Eye Shadow Brushes. I bought two because I wanted to have multiple eye shadow brushes for when I am using multiple eye shadows at the same time. I think it's good to have a couple eye shadow brushes. Plus for the price you can afford to have more than one.

On the actual brush handle it says, E.L.F. Professional Eye Shadow Brush, but on the official eyeslipsface.com website the brushes are located under the E.L.F. Essential brushes and are called E.L.F. Essential Eye Shadow brushes. That's a bit confusing, but they appear to be the same brush because when I clicked on the picture it looked and said the same thing as my brushes that I have. 

Rating:

Price: 10/10
Packaging: 10/10
Quality: 8/10
Longevity: 10/10
Application: 8/10
Design: 9/10
Bristle fallout: 8/10
Bristle feeling: 9/10
Blending ability: 8/10
Overall rating: 8/10
Would I buy it again: 10/10
Total rating: 98/110=89.09%=89.1%=B

My personal rating: 8.5/10=85%=B

Comments:
The price for this brush is $1.00 each. I'm sorry, but when it comes to price I honestly don't think you can find a cheaper brush on the market. I think that is as cheap as brushes get. That is an exciting brush that a lot of people can afford. I don't have anything against the packaging of the brushes. The handle is white with a pearl/shiny finish and the bristle holder is silver. They are a bit on the small side, but that can be a good thing because they can be easier to use, especially when trying to do detail with eye shadow on the eye lids. I think the quality looks and feels a bit cheap. I got the same brushes at the same time and the writing on the brushes is a bit different from each other, but that is small detail. I have had these brushes for a couple of years and I use them quite a bit and I have not noticed any considerable issues with it. For only being a $1.00 and getting a couple of years of use out of them I would consider to be a good thing! I feel that this brush does a decent job of applying the eye shadow to the lid, but I do feel that it does eat some of the eye shadow in the bristles. I think that the design of the brush is good because the bristles are dome shaped on the end and the bristles are stiff, but not overly stiff because they have a little bit of movement. I noticed that this brush does have fallout and leaves bristles behind on the eye lids as well as when cleaning. I think that the bristles feel soft on the skin and the eyes. With extra sensitive skin the bristles might feel a bit prickly, but it's not overwhelming. I think that this brush does a decent job on blending, but it does better with the dark colors rather than the lighter colors. I think the brush does a better job with powder eye shadows and not so good with creamier eye shadows. Overall these are cheap handy eye shadow brushes to have for everyday use. I would definitely buy these brushes again when I need to.

Sincerely,
Marina

E.L.F. (EyesLipsFace) Professional Foundation Brush

Hey everyone!

In today's blog I am bringing to you the E.L.F. (EyesLipsFace) Professional Foundation brush. I bought this brush because I wanted to try other foundation brushes than the Studio 35 foundation brush that I had. Plus I was in the brush buying mood and decided to try the E.L.F. one.

On the actual brush handle it says, E.L.F. Professional Foundation Brush, but on the actual eyeslipsface.com website they have it listed under E.L.F. Essential Brushes and call it the E.L.F. Essential Foundation brush. That is a bit confusing, but they appear to be the same brush, it looks the same, and in the picture it says the same thing on my brush as the picture.

Rating:

Price: 10/10
Packaging: 10/10
Quality: 6/10
Longevity: 7/10
Application: 9/10
Design: 10/10
Bristle fallout: 7/10
Bristle feeling: 9/10
Blending ability: 9/10
Overall rating: 8/10
Would I repurchase: 10/10
Total rating: 95/110=86.36%=86.4%=B

My personal rating: 8/10=80%=B

Comments:
The price for this brush is $1.00. Honestly, I don't think that you can find a brush for that price from any other brand. It is very well priced and can be affordable for a lot of people. I love the price! The packaging is cute. It has a white pearl/shiny handle, with silver writing, with a silver bristle holder. I had to give it a low score for quality because this particular brush only had a couple of uses before the bristle holder detached itself from the handle while I was washing it. I have been using the broken brush because I can stick it back on there, but it did fall off and it does make the foundation brush harder to use. I also gave it a low score on quality because this brush has a lot of bristle fallout. The quality of this specific brush is not up to par to the other brushes. I had to knock a few points off on longevity because I had only used it a few times and the first time I washed it the bristle holder fell off the handle. The brush itself has lasted a couple of years which is good, especially for the price of the product. I think that the application is good for this brush. It needs a bit more work with the brush to get it blended out to make the foundation not look streaky, but it is able to be blended enough to not look streaky. I just think that with this brush you have to know how to blend well in order to use it because it's not as forgiving as some other foundation brushes. The design of the brush is good. It looks just like any other foundation brush. I will be honest that I'm not sure why it is designed the way it is, but I assume it is for a purpose. This brush does have a bit of a fallout problem when applying and when washing the brush. I feel like this brush has more fallout than the other brushes I have. I feel that the brushes bristles feel a bit stiff, but do have some movement in them which is good because with applying foundation the bristles need a bit of flexibility. I do think that the bristles are soft, but with extra sensitive skin it might be a bit stiff. I think this brush does a good job of blending the foundation in, but I feel it's a bit less forgiving than other brushes so it does require a bit of work. Overall this is a good cheap foundation brush for everyday use. I would definitely repurchase this brush because of the price!

Sincerely,
Marina

E.L.F. (EyesLipsFace) Waterproof Lengthening and Volumizing Mascara in Black

Hey everyone!

In today's blog I am bringing to you a review on the E.L.F. (EyesLipsFace) Waterproof Lengthening and Volumizing Mascara in Black. I bought this mascara because it was cheap and because it said it was supposed to be waterproof which is the only kind of mascara that I can wear. I have never been able to wear regular mascara because for some reason it always gets in my eyes. Then my eyes burn and water so that I rub to make it go away and then my makeup gets all kinds of messed up. Ever since I discovered that there was such a product as waterproof I was all over it. The same goes with eye liner too, it has to be waterproof. Ever since I discovered waterproof products I have been searching for waterproof mascara that lasts. I decided to give the E.L.F. waterproof mascara a try because it was cheap and because if it worked then I could use it daily without having to use the MAC Splashproof mascara which is a bit costly for me, especially to use everyday.

Rating:

Price: 10/10
Packaging: 10/10
Amount: 10/10
Longevity: 7/10
Lengthening/Volumizing: 8/10
Application: 8/10
Formula: 9/10
Eye Lash Breakage/Fallout: 9/10
Wand: 9/10
Pigment: 10/10
Overall product: 8/10
Would I repurchase: 9/10
Total rating: 107/120=89.16%=89.2%=B

My personal rating: 8./10=85%=B

Comments:
I'm pretty sure that I paid $3.00 for this mascara and E.L.F. still currently carries this product for $3.00 which is pretty cool. I'm not sure how they have been able to keep their low prices, but kudos to E.L.F. for that. The packaging of the product is kind of weird. The bottom that holds the product is square and the top that holds the wand is square also and gets slim as it goes up. I'm not sure what the point of this design is, but I do find it cute. It's different. I'm not sure how to rate the amount of the product because the packaging is small, but for the price... I think it is a fair amount. When I was active the mascara started going into my eyes after about 2-4 hours. When I am not active this mascara lasts about 4-6 hours before it starts getting into my eyes. According to the EyesLipsFace.com website it is "supposed to last all day," but I don't think they mean to claim 24 hours because it doesn't technically say it. But I still took points off because it varies so much between activity/non-activity and there are other mascaras out there that last longer who have similar claims. I think that this mascara does a good job on volumizing, but not necessarily on the lengthening. I feel that the product fills the eye lashes to create volume and I feel that the product does not lengthen my lashes as much as I would like. The application of the product is decent. I feel that the product goes on smoothly on the eye lashes except when you start applying more than one coat the product can start getting clumpy and the eye lashes start sticking together, but you need to do more than one coat in order to coat the lashes. The formula itself is smooth and does a fair job. The formula dries fairly quickly. I have not noticed this product breaking or pulling out my eye lashes which makes me super happy =-D I do feel that there is some fallout and after how long depends on how active you are. After about 5 hours of me not doing much it started getting into my eyes. The wand is a straight line (although I think from what I saw on the official website they may have changed the wand to be curvier) so it makes it a bit difficult to apply the mascara to the lashes, but I can't be too harsh because most mascaras use a straight wand. The pigment of the mascara is black and it goes onto the eye lashes as such. I have not noticed it streaking or not applying the black color. Overall this product is good for short slight activities where it has the most longevity, especially on oily lids where the oil/sweat might leak onto the product causing it to break down faster. I would definitely repurchase this product, especially for everyday use and on special occasions I would use my MAC Splashproof mascara.

Sincerely,
Marina

Lip Monthly September 2014

Hi everyone!

 

I am super excited! I got my very first Lip Monthly bag yesterday =-D I will be honest that I was debating on whether I wanted to open my very first bag in front of a camera or not. I decided that I was going to wait, but by 3:30PM I just couldn't hold myself back anymore. I have decided to open it to check it out before I do a video on it. I will also be honest in saying that I tried to sign up for Ipsy first, but I am currently waitlisted and have been for almost a month so I decided that I would sign up for Lip Monthly while I wait on Ipsy. I am still debating on whether I am going to continue Lip Monthly if I get off Ipsy's waitlist. I signed up for the 4 month subscription because if you sign up for 4 months at the same time then they give a discount of the first bag costing only $2.99. I paid a total of $32.99 for 4 months. I heard about Ipsy first back around January 2014. I heard about Lip Monthly some time after and I will admit that I was curious because I am a huge lip gloss fan and always have been! It definitely caught my interest. I think I am going to really enjoy it for the next few months =-D

Lip Monthly:

 -it costs $10.00 a month
-is a makeup subscription service that is aimed at lip products (lip balms, lipsticks, lip glosses, lip liners, lip pencils, lip crayons, etc.
-they usually include 3-4 lip products and 1 beauty product that is not necessarily lip related
-they offer subscription services in intervals of monthly, 4 months, and 1 year subscriptions
-currently there is no waitlist, as long as you sign up before the first of the following month you will get a bag  (i.e. I signed up August 23, 2014 and I got my bag September 15, 2014)
-you get full sized lip products 

Bag Overview:

I heard from people on Youtube that Lip monthly used to send their products in a box, but recently Lip Monthly has switched to a really cute teal makeup bag that says LIPMONTHLY on it with pink lips. It is super cute! The bag itself is actually a lot bigger than I was expecting it to be. The bag smells a bit funky, like a bit plastic/chemically.

I unzipped my bag and the first thing I saw were the products. I had to dig a little bit to find the card that they put in there that introduced the bag. The semi-theme for September 2014 bag is Fall is here. But I do not feel this bag is Fall themed at all. I don't know if September is just a filler month because Summer is ending/Fall is starting or since this is my first bag they just threw filler items in it. I'm honestly a bit confused. I heard they were going to start doing themes with their bags, but I don't know if they have started doing that yet. I would say not.

On one side the card reads, "Dear Lip Lovers, Fall is here! We've lined up a unique variety of items this month that you'll love. This month we've included 3 lip products as well as a nail polish and a moisturizer. We feel the nail polish will compliment your lip items from this month and previous months. Your moisturizer is a great goodie to have as fall approaches =-)" On the other side of the card it lists the products and the retail prices.

List of Products:
Makeup by Cherimoya Lip Crayon in Coral $8.00
Eco Lips Lip Balm (organic) in Kiwi-Strawberry $3.49
Makeup by Cherimoya Retractable Waterproof Lip and Eye Liner in #24 Latte $3.99
Jessie's Girl Nail Polish by Julie G in #70169 Anthony $3.99
Purlisse Pur-Moist Hydra-Balance Daily Moisturizer for Normal-Dry, Sensitive-Anti-aging $18.00

I will say that I was a bit disappointed when I first went through my products because I only got 3 lip products and 2 other makeup products. From what I have seen from other people on youtube they have only received 1 non-lip product and I got 2 non-lip products. It's not that big of a deal, but they do say you get 1 non-lip product. Oh well. I'm also and more disappointed in the fact that the card said Hello Fall, but none of the colors really represent Fall. I got a lip crayon and nail polish in a Summery coral colors. I'm not a big fan of lip balms. I am super excited to try the lip crayon and the lip/eye liner. I think Lip Monthly must have read some of my blogs because them sending the lip/eye liner pretty much saved the entire bag this month. I love retractable eye/lip liners. I don't know why, but I do! I think it's because I hate dealing with the whole sharpening thing. I am beyond ecstatic that they gave me a waterproof one because if it was not waterproof I would not be able to use it as an eye liner. I can only use waterproof mascara and eye liners on my eyes.

September 2014 Bag Pros:

-I love that it comes in a bag and the bag is super cute
-I am super excited to try the lip crayon
-I am super excited that I got a retractable waterproof lip liner in what looks like a really pretty color
-I did some research on the nail polish and someone named Julie G on Youtube partnered with Jessie's Girl to create nail polish that is supposed to be good, but I do wish it was in a more Fall than Summer color
-It was definitely worth the $2.99 that I paid for it with the discount for a 4 month subscription

September 2014 Bag Cons:

-The welcome card said Fall, but none of the colors represent Fall
-The bag is not themed or did not follow the Fall theme with its color selection
-I only got 3 actual lip products and I got two non-lip products
-I got a face daily moisturizer in a trial size, but it is a decent trial size with 0.5 tube 


Overall it's not bad for a first bag. I am super excited about a couple of the products. I cannot wait to try it. I do hope that I don't get two none lip products in my next bags. I have been reading here and there on their facebook page and they are apparently in the process of making a lot of changes in the coming months.

Sincerely,
Marina

Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick in #663 Va Va Violet

Hi everyone!

Today I am bringing you a blog about the Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick in #663 Va Va Violet. I bought this lipstick about a year or so ago when I was trying out different lip products from different companies. I usually buy muted colors which is why I love lipgosses because you get a bit of color but it's not overpowering because sometimes I am a bit reserved about wearing bright bold colors or I tend to stick with more natural colors, but I found this I think at Target when I was looking around and I had to have it. I wanted to try a dark bold color and I love the color purple. I've played around with it, but never had the courage to wear it out in public. I went on the official Revlon website and they still carry their Super Lustrous Lipsticks and they still carry this color. Va Va Violet which I would describe as a very deep dark purple color. I love it, but I'm sure someone else can rock this lipstick color better than I can =-D

Rating:

Price: 9/10
Packaging: 10/10
Amount of product: 10/10
Pigment: 10/10
Longevity: 10/10
Smell: 9/10
Taste: 7/10
Texture: 10/10
Application: 10/10
Different lip types: 10/10
Overall rating: 9/10
Would I buy it again: 10/10
Total rating: 114/120=95%=A

My personal rating: 9.5/10=95%=A

Comments:
I honestly do not remember how much I paid for this product, but currently on Target.com it is listed for $7.99 for this specific color, but other colors vary in price. On Walmart.com the pricing varies from about $4.50-$7.00 depending on the finish (i.e. matte, pearl, creme). I must have used a coupon or it happened to be on sale or something. I am going to say I paid between $4.00 and 7.00 for this lipstick. I think that is a bit pricey for a drugstore lipstick, but not as bad as it could be. The packaging is a normal round lipstick tube that says Revlon on it. It's cute. I think that you get a decent amount of product for the price. The pigment of this lipstick color is really good. I like that it's a dark purple that you can tell is supposed to be a dark purple. The nice thing about lipsticks with pigment is that you get to choose whether you want to apply it light, medium or the full dark color depending on how you apply the product. I think that the longevity of this lipstick is the same as a normal lipstick, but maybe a little bit more so because it is so pigmented that  evenwhen the bold color wears off you are still left with a muted purple underneath. This lipstick does not appear to have a smell to it and if it does it is super faint. This lipstick does appear to have a chemically aftertaste to it and you can tell. The texture of the lipstick is that it does not feel heavy or like you are wearing a blanket on your lips like some lip products can feel. This lipstick goes on fairly smoothly and I have not had any problems with the application of the product. I feel that you can put this lipstick on semi-dry lips and it won't feel super drying on the lips because it does have a bit of moisture to it. The nice thing about this dark color is that you can hide the inner lines on the actual lips that can sometimes show with other colors. I really like this lipstick and I have definitely thought about purchasing more colors. The awesome thing is that I can repurchase this product and try out some different colors that they carry which is something like 72 or 82 different colors! Yes, I will definitely be repurchasing this product in this color and trying out different colors! If this lipstick had any kind of a sweet scent and not so chemically of an aftertaste I would definitely have given it a 10/10, but those things do bother me so I think the score I gave it is fair.

Sincerely,
Marina

Japonesque Salon Collection Eye Shadow Brush

Hey everyone!

Today I am bringing you a single eye shadow brush that I bought from Walgreens at the same time as I bought the Studio 35 brushes which was quite a few years ago. I bought this brush separately because the Studio 35 package that I bought had 4 double ended brushes, but on the packaging none of them said that it included an eye shadow brush so I bought one. I don't remember the brand that it is, but on the brush it says, "SALON COLLECTION." I put in the search bar, salon collection brush, and it brought me to another beauty bloggers page for Japonesque and the picture for the product looks exactly like the one I have. The brush handle is a very pale yellow/off white with the words on there with a coppery attachment. The bristles look very similar too. Walgreens does sell Japonesque makeup tools, but it looks like they don't sell their brushes anymore. I am going to assume that the brand name of the product is Japonesque and it was part of their Salon Collection. They were selling the eye shadow brush as a single.

*Fair warning: it appears that Walgreens still carries a few Japonesque makeup products, but not the brushes and this brush does not appear to be available anymore on the official Japonesque website. I think it is safe to say that this brush has been discontinued and/or changed packaging/name/etc.* 

 

Rating:

Price: 9/10
Packaging: 10/10
Quality: 9/10
Longevity: 9/10
Application: 9/10
Design: 10/10
Bristle fallout: 9/10
Bristle feeling: 9/10
Blending ability: 9/10
Overall rating: 9/10
Would I buy it again: 5/10
Total rating: 97/110=88.18%=88.2%=B

My personal rating: 8.5/10=85%=B

Comments:
I honestly do not recall how much I spent on this brush, but a few years ago people were saying it was around $9.00 for a Japonesque brush. I know that I definitely would not have paid $10.00 for one brush so I must have either caught it when it was on sale or it was between $6.00 and $8.00 for one brush. I do think that is a bit high for a drugstore makeup brush though. I think the packaging is well done because I have had this product for quite a while and I like the color combinations. It really stands out from my Studio 35 and E.L.F. brushes. I think the quality of the brush is very decent because as I've mentioned a few times that I have been using this brush for quite a while. It definitely has to be over 5 years so I would say somewhere between 5 and 10 years. In terms of quality it is a good price for it because it lasts a long time. I think this brush does a nice job on applying eye shadow, but I do feel that the brush does eat some of the eye shadow in the brush. I still think it applies the eye shadow smoothly and evenly to the eye lid. The design of the brush is that it is very small, but it gets the job done and because it is on the small side it does make it easier to work with. I have not noticed too much bristle fallout, but I have experienced a couple here and there. The bristles feel fairly soft on the skin without feeling too scratchy. I would say it feels a bit scratchy, but it doesn't leave marks on the skin and it's not too annoying. Someone with super sensitive skin might feel it a bit more, but overall I would classify it is fairly soft. I feel that this brush does a decent job on blending the eye shadows. I have not noticed any issues with it not blending or messing up the eye shadows too much. Overall this is not a bad brush to have in one's collection. I honestly am not sure if I would repurchase this product if I could because I am currently branching out to try other companies brushes, but I will definitely continue using mine for as long as I can.

Sincerely,
Marina

Revlon Colorstay Overtime Lipcolor in Eternal Petal

Hey everyone!

Yesterday I took a day off for my birthday, but I am back here today bringing you the Revlon Colorstay Overtime Lip Color in Eternal Petal. I wore this lip stain/lip gloss on my wedding day because it is a very muted pink color. It matches my lip color so it looks like my lips but with a slight color to it to make it look nicer. I might describe this color as more of a red-purple color. It's too dark to be pink and too light to be purple, but it's like in between those two colors. I really like how this color looks on my lips. I do not remember exactly how long this lip product lasted on my lips, but I would say it lasted for 3-4 hours. I am so sad that this specific color appears to be discontinued because I would definitely repurchase it. The packaging is similar to Covergirls Outlast lip product where it is double sided where there is the lip stain product on one side and the clear lip gloss on the other end. The lip stain part has a small doe foot applicator while the clear gloss has a small brush to apply the product to the lip. The Revlon packaging is also round, but it is smaller which is nice because the doe foot applicator is smaller and it is easier to use on my lips to apply the product. I don't mind that this lip product has a doe foot applicator because it's not too big so I can use it to apply product on my lips and it doesn't bunch up the product near the lip line. I do like the brush for the clear gloss although I would prefer it for the actual lip stain. I feel that the brush provides more control of the product than the doe foot applicator. I would prefer this product over the Covergirl Outlast product just because of this small, but significant difference. As you can tell I love the color and I love the application.

*Fair warning: it appears that Revlon still carries the ColorStay Overtime Lipcolor and it appears to still be in the same packaging, but I could not find the color Eternal Petal on the Revlon website so I think they discontinued this specific color.*

 Rating:

Price: 9/10
Packaging: 10/10
Amount of product: 9/10
Pigment: 10/10
Longevity: 7/10
Smell: 8/10
Taste: 9/10
Texture: 9/10
Application: 10/10
Different lip types: 8/10
Overall rating: 8/10
Would I buy this again: 7/10
Total rating: 104/120=86.66%=86.7%=B

My personal rating: 9.5/10=95%=A 

Comments:
I don't remember how much I paid for this product, but according to Walmart for a similar product (for some reason Walmart calls it the Revlon Colorstay Sheer Lipcolor even though the Packaging itself says Revlon Colorstay Overtime Lipcolor ) is going for between $6.50-$8.50 for this product. I do think that is a bit high for a drugstore brand lipstain, but the Covergirl ones are not cheap either and you do technically get two products. I love the packaging, especially on this Revlon lip product because it is double sided- one side lip stain other side clear gloss, it is smaller in size, the doe foot applicator is smaller so it's easier to work with on my lips and I love the brush for the gloss. The packaging says that you get 0.07 FL OZ for both the lip stain and the clear gloss which seems a bit small to me. Since the packaging is smaller it holds less product so it ends up being kind of expensive when comparing product to price, but it depends on which color you get. I kind of agree with Walmart when it calls this product a sheer lipcolor because even though it's not totally sheer color like some other products that I have seens, the color does appear to be a bit muted. It gives a little bit of color, but not overpowering. I think it gives just the right amount of color to make it look like you are wearing makeup, but you could get away with saying that you aren't, if that makes any sense. According to the Revlon package this lipcolor is supposed to last up to 16 hours, but honestly I have never worn it that long and I don't recall it lasting that long, especially if you are participating in activities like drinking/eating. I am going to say that it does not last 16 hours, but for me it lasted about 3-4 hours with eating/drinking. It might have lasted longer if I had not been eating/drinking. I think for me it is safe to assume that this product does not hold for the full 16 hours so I had to knock some points off for that. I really don't like how companies can advertise 16hrs or 24hrs products that on me barely last 3 hours. It drives me a bit bonkers! This product has a bit of a fake/chemically smell to the lipcolor portion. I can't quite tell what it is, but it's trying to smell sweet, but comes off really chemically. The clear lip gloss does not appear to have any smell to it at all. There is no offending odor and there is no good odor either. It just smells neutral. The taste/aftertaste of the product is a bit chemically, but it's not as offensive as some of the other lip products I have had where I could not stand having that lip product taste in my mouth. It doesn't taste overly chemically, but it doesn't taste good either. I would say it is neutral which is okay. The lipcolor part when applied to the lips does feel drying and I can feel there is something dry and sticky on my lips, but once the clear lip gloss is applied it feels smooth, not heavy, and not thick. As I have talked about above multiple times that I love this packaging because during the application process it makes it so much easier. The lipcolor and the lip gloss apply smoothly and evenly to the lips. I just applied this product to dry lips and the lipcolor dried out my lips and felt super dry, but the lipgloss helps with it not feeling sticky or dry or drying out the lips. Overall I love the color of this product, I love that it is smaller for easier application, the product does not bunch up at the lip line and it works well. If I could repurchase this color I totally would, but I am excited to try out some of their other colors for this product.

Sincerely,
Marina

Covergirl Outlast Double Lipshine in #245 Berry Blast

Hey everyone!

Unfortunately, today I am bringing another discontinued product. I'm pretty sure when I checked about a year ago they still had it around so it might have been recently that they decided to discontinue this product. Today I am bringing you the Covergirl Outlast Double Lip Shine in #245 Berry Blast. I'm not sure why they would choose to discontinue this product because I really like it. The package was a two in one with one side being a long lasting lipgloss/lipstick and the other side having a very glossy clear coating.

*Fair Warning: the product in this blog seems to have been discontinued in packaging, lip product color, and product name.*

Rating:

Price: 9/10
Packaging: 10/10
Amount of product: 10/10
Pigment: 10/10
Longevity: 7/10
Smell: 10/10
Taste: 7/10
Texture: 9/10
Application: 8/10
Different lip types: 8/10
Overall rating: 8/10
Would I buy this again: 5/10
Total rating: 101/120=84.16%=84.2%=B

My personal rating: 9/10=90%=A

Comments:
I honestly do not remember how much I paid for this product. A similar product on the website is going for about $8.00. I think that's a bit on the pricier side, especially for a drug store brand. I would say this probably cost some where between $6.00 and $8.00. The packaging is super cute! I really like the way they packaged this product. Over the years I have not had any issues with the packaging leaking the product which is a huge bonus! You get a decent amount of product, especially since you are getting two in one- one side color and the other side clear gloss. I think that the pigment of this lip product is decent and goes on the lips fairly accurately to the tube color. What you see in the tube is the color you get. I would say that this product on my lips lasts about 4 hours before it starts fading, but it depends on what I'm doing. If I don't drink or eat or lick them a lot I can get about 4-5 hours, but if I do eat, drink, or lick them a lot then they last about 3-4 hours. I forget how long it was advertised to supposedly last, but I think it might have been around 8 hours. It did a fairly good job on my lips. There is a very slight smell to this lip product, but it is definitely not overpowering and once applied to the lips you can't smell it at all. The lip gloss portion has a decent sweet smell to it that can kind of be smelled once on the lips. There is a bit of a chemically taste to the lip stain portion of this product and the clear lip gloss tastes neutral. It definitely does not have a good taste to it the way I like my lip products to have so it's neutral leaning to a chemically taste. The texture of the lip product is smooth and light, it does not have a thick or heavy feeling to it, but I can definitely feel something dry on my lips and I'm not a fan of that feeling. It feels a bit tight if that makes sense. The application is fairly smooth and even, but you have to work quick with it because once applied it only takes about 30-60 seconds for it to fully dry. Quick drying is a good thing, but if you make a mistake, then it's not. I also knocked it down a point because I don't like the doe foot applicator because I feel like it makes it more challenging to apply the lip stain without making a bit of a mess near the lip lines. I feel like the product bunches up near the lip lining making it difficult to spread without going over the line making a bit of a mess. That could just be me though. I think that this product applies smoothly and evenly over dry lips, but I do not recommend it because this lip product appears to be super drying on the lips. It feels as though it dries the lips as the product dries which dries out the lips even more. Overall I love the color of this lip product and how accurate the color is on the tube to the way it applies to the lips. I love the color. It lasts a decent amount of time, I would not say up to the amount advertised, at least on my lips. If I could I would definitely buy it again, but I can't because they decided to discontinue the product and now the color.

Sincerely,
Marina

Covergirl Wetslicks Lip Gloss in #318 Honey Talks

Hi everyone!

In today's blog I am bringing a discontinued product that I believe just recently in the past year has been discontinued. I think I remember seeing it on the Covergirl website in a different packaging, but with the same name. I guess they got rid of the packaging and the name now. I've been wanting to do a review on it for a while, but didn't get a chance. So I'm doing it now.

*Fair Warning: the product in this blog seems to have been discontinued in packaging, lip product color, and product name.*

Rating:

Price: 9/10
Packaging: 10/10
Amount of product: 10/10
Pigment: 7/10
Longevity: 10/10
Smell: 9/10
Taste: 7/10
Texture: 10/10
Application: 10/10
Different lip types: 10/10
Overall rating: 9/10
Would I buy it again: 3/10
Total rating: 104/120=86.66%=86.7%=B

My personal rating: 9/10=90%=A

Comments:
I honestly don't remember how much I paid for this product. It must have been some where between $4.00 and $7.00. I looked at Walmart.com and their current lip products are between that price range. I think it's a good price for this lipgloss. The packaging is cute and I have not noticed any problems with the product leaking out. I definitely think that you get a decent amount of product for the price. I was expecting it to be more pigmented than it is. It has a slight pale pink/tan-like pigment to it, but it's very subtle. It looks very glossy/shiny. I think that this lipgloss lasts about normal amount to other lipglosses. It's not going to last a super long time, but it doesn't advertise it as such so I can't complain. The lipgloss has a sweet flowery smell to it, but I think once applied to the lips you can't smell it. It's not overpowering, but I'm not sure if I like it or not because it does smell a bit chemically. This lipgloss does have a bit of a waxy/chemically taste to it. I feel like this lipgloss has a very nice smooth texture to it. It doesn't feel thick or heavy or sticky. I think that this product applies evenly and smoothly to the lips. I just applied it to my dry lips to test it and I didn't have any problems with the application. And this lip gloss is good for all different lip types from moisturized to dry. I do think that if you apply something underneath it like chapstick or primer then it is going to mute the slight tint even more. I think this is a cute lipgloss for a quick application for running errands where you want a little something, but not too much. This lipgloss would go great with dramatic eyes and a nude/muted lip. If it was available still I probably would not buy it again because I personally prefer my lip gloss to have more pigment like the MAC lipglosses so I would look for a lipgloss that provided a bit more pigment even for nude/muted lips. But that's just my personal preference. This is a great lipgloss and color as a go to for everyday.

Sincerely,
Marina