Lip Factory, September 2014: NYX Butter Gloss in Devil's Food Cake

Hi!

In today's blog I am going to be talking about the products I received in my Lip Factory September 2014 box. Unfortunately, from the research I have done, this company may not still be around. I can't find the official website, when I clicked on the website it lead me to a godaddy.com page that said something about how the site name was not renewed. I can't find the company on facebook. I am so sad because I absolutely loved my first and only Lip Factory box. It is the only beauty subscription box that I have and always will absolutely love. The price was a bit high at $21.00 or $22.00, but you got 5 decent sized products and a variety of products! If it had not been so high I would have kept it, but you get what you pay for.

Lip Factory was having a promotion where if you bought the September 2014 box then you would get two extra products in your box. I bought it because it was my birthday month, because I wanted to try the beauty subscription Lip Factory, and because if I did then I would receive two extra products. It was a win-win!

In this specific blog I am going to be talking about the NYX Butter Gloss in Devil's Food Cake! This made the Lip Factory beauty box even more worth it because I got this as an extra item. I really wanted to try the NYX Butter Glosses and I got to because of this extra gift that I got. I was beyond excited because I was not expecting that at all. It just made everything worth it and I was able to forgive Lip Factory for the other item being an unidentified silver brush =-) The other awesome part is that I think it is a full sized product!

Rating:

Price: 10/10
Packaging: 10/10
Amount of product: 10/10
Pigment: 9/10
Longevity: 10/10
Smell: 10/10
Taste: 9/10
Texture: 10/10
Application: 10/10
Different lip types: 10/10
Overall rating: 9/10
Would I purchase: 10/10
Total rating: 117/120=97.5%=A

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

Comments:

On the official NYX Cosmetics website they are saying that the butter glosses are $5.00 each. I think that is a really good price and I would definitely pay $4.00-$6.00 for this product! The packaging is cute and simple. It includes a doe foot applicator wand in the cap. They might have wanted to use white lettering instead of black on dark packaging because I am having a difficult time reading the package. I have not experienced any problems with the product leaking out of the packaging! I think the amount of product versus price is really good! It looks like 0.27 fluid ounces. The packaging made me believe that this color was a redish/purplish color, but when I applied it to my lips it came off more redish. I like it, just was not expecting red. Actually, this might be a dupe for the Ofra lip gloss in Spicy. They were both a muted redish color. The only slight difference is the Ofra lip gloss was more sheer unless you added a second layer, but the NYX Butter Gloss has more pigment. One coat gives pigment and another coat adds even more pigment. According to the official NYX Cosmetics website describes the color as a deep plum, but I'm not getting that. I feel like on me it's showing up as more of a deep redish color with maybe a hint of being on the purple side. I really do like it though! The longevity of this butter gloss is the same as any lip gloss. The more you lick your lips or do things with your mouth the more it will come off. The less you do with your mouth the less it will come off. It's pretty standard. I'm not offended by strong sweet smells and this has a strong sweet food cake smell to it that makes me want to eat it, lol. It smells so good... wow! I would probably give it like a 50/10 on smell. Wow! There is a slight after taste that does not even remotely compare to the deliciousness of the smell. There is a slight after taste, but not horrible or super offensive. When they say butter they mean butter. The texture is super smooth! I love the fact that it is not sticky. The application is very smooth and very even. With how super smooth it is, I can definitely see it being able to go on different lip types from normal to dry evenly with no problems. Overall, I am in love with this lip butter gloss! One slight complaint is the pigment seems a bit off to me, but other than that I absolutely love it and now I want to go try out different colors! This question doesn't even need to be asked, I would definitely buy this lip butter gloss and in many different colors. I am so excited because this product did not disappoint at all =-)

Sincerely,
Marina

Lip Factory, September 2014: Silver Face Brush

Hi!

In today's blog I am going to be talking about the products I received in my Lip Factory September 2014 box. Unfortunately, from the research I have done, this company may not still be around. I can't find the official website, when I clicked on the website it lead me to a godaddy.com page that said something about how the site name was not renewed. I can't find the company on facebook. I am so sad because I absolutely loved my first and only Lip Factory box. It is the only beauty subscription box that I have and always will absolutely love. The price was a bit high at $21.00 or $22.00, but you got 5 decent sized products and a variety of products! If it had not been so high I would have kept it, but you get what you pay for.

Lip Factory was having a promotion where if you bought the September 2014 box then you would get two extra products in your box. I bought it because it was my birthday month, because I wanted to try the beauty subscription Lip Factory, and because if I did then I would receive two extra products. It was a win-win!

In this specific blog I am going to be talking about the Silver Face Brush. Unfortunately since this was an added item, it was not part of the pamphlet and they did not send anything talking about this product and the packaging is just silver metal without any identification on it so I have no idea where they got this brush or how much it is. I have to be honest, I was very disappointed when I realized one of the extra products was a brush. But it was free so I can't complain.

Rating:

Price: 0/10
Packaging: 10/10
Quality: 9/10
Longevity: 10/10
Application: 10/10
Design: 10/10
Bristle fallout: 10/10
Bristle feeling: 10/10
Blending ability: 9/10
Overall rating: 9/10
Would I purchase: 5/10
Total rating: 92/110=83.63%=83.6%=B

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

Comments:
I don't know the price and I couldn't even begin to guess so I will just give it a 0/10 because it could be either really cheap or expensive. Who knows? The packaging is pretty cute. You take the lid off, then you pull the silver thing down and the brush pops out. To put it away you pull the metal thing up to cover the brush and put the lid back on. It's a cute concept! The quality of the brush seems good, the silver metal outside seems a bit cheaply made, but the brush itself seems good. This brush seems to have good longevity. I've opened quite a few times and used it a few times. The application of this brush is seems to be very smooth and even. It's a nice brush. It does the job. It's really good with powdered products. I really think the design of the brush is pretty cool! I'm a dork, but I think it's cute the way they did that. I have not experienced any bristle fallout when using this brush to test it out. Usually you can tell pretty quickly whether the bristles are going to come out or not. The bristles on this brush are very soft and very flexible. It doesn't feel like it's scratching my skin or irritating it in any way. I am surprised at how soft it feels. I like it. I would not say this brush has precise blendability, but it does blend the face product out all over the face. I used this brush to apply the E.L.F. High Definition Powder which usually goes on all over the face after everything else and I feel that it did an excellent job of covering the face and making sure to spread the product all over the face. No complaints. It doesn't apply the product streaky or anything. Overall, this brush would be good for applying loose powder foundation, HD powder, and anything that uses loose powder and maybe even powder. This brush seems good and I'm sure I'll sure it, but it's not what I wanted or was expecting though. I don't usually get excited about brushes. I've only recently started using brushes when I bought the E.L.F. ones like 4 years ago. I'm still learning brushes and how to use them and such. Without knowing the price I can't really say whether I would purchase it or not, but it would be the last thing on my mind for purchasing so probably not.

Sincerely,
Marina

Lip Factory, September 2014: Girlactik Pout Shine in Pretty

Hi!

In today's blog I am going to be talking about the products I received in my Lip Factory September 2014 box. Unfortunately, from the research I have done, this company may not still be around. I can't find the official website, when I clicked on the website it lead me to a godaddy.com page that said something about how the site name was not renewed. I can't find the company on facebook. I am so sad because I absolutely loved my first and only Lip Factory box. It is the only beauty subscription box that I have and always will absolutely love. The price was a bit high at $21.00 or $22.00, but you got 5 decent sized products and a variety of products! If it had not been so high I would have kept it, but you get what you pay for.

In this specific blog I am going to be talking about the Girlactik Pout Shine in Pretty. I have never heard of this brand either, but I am always willing to try out lip products from new companies! Don't have to force me =-)

Descriptions:
Girlactik Pout Shine $19.00
Achieve kissable pouty lips with luxurious high-shine lacquer lip color. Girlactik Pout Shine hydrates and nourishes your lips with botanical extracts while delivering brilliant electrifying color. Vitamin E softens your lips while providing rich antioxidant protection. High shine lacquer tube glosses that will give you those pouty lips you've always wanted.

Rating:

Price: 7/10
Packaging: 10/10
Amount of product: 9/10
Pigment: 8/10
Longevity: 10/10
Application: 10/10
Smell: 10/10
Taste: 9/10
Texture: 10/10
Normal/Dry lips: 10/10
Overall rating: 9/10
Would I purchase: 8/10
Total rating: 110/120=91.66%=91.7%=A

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

Comments:
Whoa... I don't think I would pay $19.00 for a lip gloss unless it's a MAC one. That's way more than I would pay for an everyday lip gloss. $10.00 and definitely under is more of my price range. The packaging is simple, but cute. Most tube lip glosses do not come with a built in a doe foot applicator, but this one does. When I opened it the first time I was super surprised, but in a good way! I think that is really cool! I think the product to price ratio is still fairly good. The tube is huge and seems to have a lot of product in it. It says it has 0.42 fluid ounces of product. I think that is pretty good even for the price. The pigment I am not sure exactly how to describe it. The description says it has pigment and it does, but the color is so light that it may not come off well with my skin tone. If I was tan and I put on this lip gloss you could probably see the pigment, but since I have light skin, it comes off kind of muted on me. I like the way it looks, I really do, but I think it would look better if I was tan. On me it looks more pale and shiny than it does pigmented. You can kind of see the baby pink color, but on me it comes off kind of weird pale color with a lot of shine! This lip gloss is not advertised as being long lasting or anything so I think it lasts as long as a normal lip gloss would. I think on me the pigment gets kind of lost especially when I lick my lips, but it is super glossy that the gloss still stays on. The application is smooth, even, and super easy, especially since they included the surprise lip wand in the cap of the packaging. This product has a very slight chemical smell in the packaging, but once it's on the lips you cannot smell it at all. I don't think this lip gloss has any after taste when licking the product, but if it does it's very slight. The texture of this lip gloss is smooth and glossy, but without being sticky! I think this product goes well on normal and dry lips. I didn't try it on dry lips because I had previously tried on another super glossy lip gloss, but this went on very smooth too and I can see it going on smoothly on dry lips. Overall, this lip gloss is super cute and does not have any smell or overly offensive after taste. If this lip gloss was not $19.00 I would most definitely purchase this product. $19.00 for a non-MAC product is not something I can see myself pursuing, especially for a lip gloss. I absolutely love the color of it and I will definitely try to find a dupe for the color and if I can't I can definitely see myself splurging on this product!

Sincerely,
Marina

Lip Factory, September 2014: Ofra Lip Gloss in Spicy

Hi!

In today's blog I am going to be talking about the products I received in my Lip Factory September 2014 box. Unfortunately, from the research I have done, this company may not still be around. I can't find the official website, when I clicked on the website it lead me to a godaddy.com page that said something about how the site name was not renewed. I can't find the company on facebook. I am so sad because I absolutely loved my first and only Lip Factory box. It is the only beauty subscription box that I have and always will absolutely love. The price was a bit high at $21.00 or $22.00, but you got 5 decent sized products and a variety of products! If it had not been so high I would have kept it, but you get what you pay for.

In this specific blog I am going to be talking about the Ofra Lip Gloss in Spicy. Once again, this is a company that I have never heard of before, but I am always willing to give companies a try. I think I received another lip product from Lip Monthly from this company. I'm not sure.

Description:
Ofra Lip Gloss $12.95
A soft creamy formula for an ultra sheer finish enriched with antioxidants. This gloss contains natural sun filters and may be used alone or over a lipstick to add brilliant shine.

Rating:

Price: 9/10
Packaging: 10/10
Amount of product: 9/10
Pigment: 7/10
Longevity:10/10
Application: 10/10
Smell: 10/10
Taste: 8/10
Texture: 10/10
Normal/dry lips: 10/10
Overall rating: 8/10
Would I purchase: 8/10
Total rating: 109/120=90.83%=90.8%=A

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

Comments:
I am a huge lip gloss fanatic! I used to buy lip glosses all the time. That's what I usually go for when I am testing out a company. Although, I don't usually spend $12+ on lip glosses, especially ones that are sheer. The price is a bit on the high side for what I would normally spend. The packaging is cute and simple! I have not had any problems with the product leaking out like I have with some other similar packaging. It comes with a doe foot applicator wand just like other lip glosses. I think that you get a decent amount of product, even for the price. It's normal sized and maybe a bit more than it should be, but it's decent. The only reason I did not give it a lower score on the pigment is because in the pamphlet it describes this lip gloss as sheer. If it had not done that then I would have take a lot of points off. Through the packaging it looks like it would be pigmented and the name of it sounds like it should be, but it really does go on fairly sheer. I did a double layer on the bottom lip and the pigment showed up a bit better. I would say this product can reach about medium pigment if you try. I'm good with that because it is advertised as sheer, but knowing that I can put a second layer on to add more pigment is good. I absolutely love the color! It is like a dull red color. It is definitely a color I would wear regularly. This lip gloss is not advertised as long lasting or anything so I think the longevity is pretty good, because of the red color the color does stay on the lips. I don't want to say the red color stains the lips, but you can definitely tell you put something on your lips and the dull redish color does not fade away quickly like with most light colored/sheer lip glosses. I hope that makes sense. The application of this product is super smooth, even, and easy. The one good thing or bad thing depending on how you look at it is the smell. The smell is pretty strong and it stays strong on the lips. The lip gloss smells like it's trying to smell sweet and like strawberries. I think that's the smell I'm getting. It is very strong of sweet and strawberry to me. I don't mind it, but I know some people do mind the smell. I personally don't have anything against it. When I lick my lips and get the product in my mouth it does have a slight chemical taste to it, but is is actually not over powering like some I have tasted, but is there slightly. The texture of the lip gloss is that it is smooth and glossy without being sticky! I really like. The texture is very nice. I think this product goes well with normal and dry lips. I have dry lips and this product went on glossy over them. In fact, with the second application the product went on even more smoothly. This product definitely adds wetness to dry lips so that it goes on smooth and even on dry lips! Overall, I love the color, I don't like that it goes on sheer, but you can build about a medium coverage of this product on the lips which is good. I love how glossy it is without being sticky. I can definitely see myself purchasing this product, especially if I can't find a dupe for the color of it in a cheaper variety. It's a very nice lip gloss.

Sincerely,
Marina

Lip Factory, September 2014: Model Co Eyeshadow Trio in Naturally Neutral

Hi!

In today's blog I am going to be talking about the products I received in my Lip Factory September 2014 box. Unfortunately, from the research I have done, this company may not still be around. I can't find the official website, when I clicked on the website it lead me to a godaddy.com page that said something about how the site name was not renewed. I can't find the company on facebook. I am so sad because I absolutely loved my first and only Lip Factory box. It is the only beauty subscription box that I have and always will absolutely love. The price was a bit high at $21.00 or $22.00, but you got 5 decent sized products and a variety of products! If it had not been so high I would have kept it, but you get what you pay for.

In this specific blog I am going to be talking about the Model Co eyeshadow trio in Palette 01 Naturally Neutral. I have not heard of this company until I got it in my Lip Factory beauty box. I think Lip Monthly and/or Ipsy may have sent a Model Co product also in their beauty subscriptions. I want to say it was Lip Monthly, but it could have been Ipsy too.

Description:
ModelCo Eye Shadow Trio $26.00
Create effortless, beautiful eyes with ModelCo's Eye Shadow Trio. Featuring three complimenting 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!

Rating:

Price: 7/10
Packaging: 10/10
Amount of product: 10/10
Pigment on fingers: 7/10
Pigment on eye lids: 5/10
Longevity: 6/10
Application: 7/10
Blendability: 6/10
On different lid types: 6/10
Quality: 3/10
Overall rating: 6/10
Would I purchase: 0/10
Total rating: 73/120= 60.83%= D

My personal rating: 4/10=40%=F

Comments:
When I saw the price my reaction was no way could a company get me to pay $26 for eyeshadow, but it does include 3 really decent sized eyeshadows so I did the math. $26.00/3 eyeshadows= about $8.67 each. That is still a bit higher than I would like to pay for eyeshadow, but it brings it down to earth a little bit more. This product is probably a full sized palette which is nice. Originally I was going to give it a 3/10, but after doing the calculation, I have spent a lot of money on MAC individual eyeshadows so this is actually not that bad. MAC trios would probably be more than this trio palette. I think the MAC 4 eyeshadow palettes were like $46 or something crazy like that. If this had been an individual eyeshadow that was priced at $26.00 my 3/10 rating would have stood. The packaging gets a good score because you get 3 decent sized eyeshadows and the palette comes with a peak-a-boo window at the top where you can see the colors from the outside as well as including a small mirror. The packaging is simple, but cute. It does include a 2 sided brush, one side comes with front and back big applicator and the other end comes with front and back smaller applicator. I like how they thought about doing different sizes so you can get in the crease and do other things with the eyeshadow. As I have stated multiple times that you appear to get full sized eyeshadows in the trio palette. It says 2.35 grams of eyeshadow. When I swipe the eyeshadow with my fingers the pigment seems good, the light color I had to rub twice to get more pigment. I would say the middle which is the brown matte color came off the most pigmented, the 3rd color which is a brown shimmery color came on well. The light one is the only one I had to swipe more than once to get a decent pigment. The pigment on the eye lids is even worse, the light color doesn't show up at all, especially when you try to blend it. It seems to just come off with each swipe. That was bad. The middle brown matte color showed up the best out of all 3. It was decent. The third color with the brown shimmery color did not show up in contrast to the brown color. On my eye you cannot tell that they are two different eyeshadows. Yikes. I am very picky about eyeshadow and I can honestly say I am not a huge fan. I love the light color in the pan, but it doesn't show up. I did a comparison on my hand between without and with E.L.F. eye primer, it didn't really do much. The brown and the brown shimmery ones showed up maybe a bit more, but the light one just gets lost. It reminds me of the Almay trio palette I bought a really long time ago that had beautiful colors in the pan, but that did not translate well onto my eyes. This eyeshadow needs a super good eye primer and then it might have a chance of the pigment showing up and it lasting longer on the eyes, otherwise, I don't think this eyeshadow would last very long. On me it would probably last a few hours if that. Although, I can't knock it down too much because it doesn't advertise as being long lasting eyeshadows. The application is not good because I had to press hard which the product then got lifted out of the pan and created a lot of fallout. If you press normal/light you don't get pigment payoff, if you press too hard you lose product, but the pigment is a little bit better. Applying the eyeshadows to the eyes is not good either because it does not go on evenly. I had to keep going back to get more product. Either the eyeshadows are not good or the applicator they included is not good or worst case scenario, both. On blendability I think I am being over generous by giving it a 6 because the blending is not good. The two dark colors melt into each other so you cannot tell that there are two different eyeshadows being used and the light color blends out into disappearing. I swiped it under my eyebrow once and then picked up more product and tried to swipe again and it ended up taking the previous swipe off. I would not recommend this product for oily or dry eye lids, normal eye lids may be okay. I think the oily lids would slide this product right off within an hour and I think with the dry lids the product would go on streaky. The quality of these eyeshadows just does not seem to be there at all. These are actually quite bad. I was really excited about the product, but it was a complete fail for me. I really want to like it, but that would be a lie... Overall, I am not a big fan of this eyeshadow palette. The eyeshadows look super cute in the pans, but don't translate the color out of the pan which is really disappointing. The price that they are asking for these 3 eyeshadows even together is outrageous. I would not spend that kind of money on this product! I don't think I have ever said this about any product, but between the price and the quality of the product I would never purchase this product.

I honestly do not remember giving any product a 0/10 before. Correct me if I am wrong, please. But this was just bad.

Sincerely,
Marina

Lip Factory, September 2014: J Cat Beauty Jar Eye Liner in Jet Black

Hi!

In today's blog I am going to be talking about the products I received in my Lip Factory September 2014 box. Unfortunately, from the research I have done, this company may not still be around. I can't find the official website, when I clicked on the website it lead me to a godaddy.com page that said something about how the site name was not renewed. I can't find the company on facebook. I am so sad because I absolutely loved my first and only Lip Factory box. It is the only beauty subscription box that I have and always will absolutely love. The price was a bit high at $21.00 or $22.00, but you got 5 decent sized products and a variety of products! If it had not been so high I would have kept it, but you get what you pay for.

In this specific blog I am going to be talking about the J Cat Beauty fantabulous Jar Eye liner in JEL101 Jet Black. I was not very familiar with J Cat Beauty and their products, but from Lip Factory to Lip Monthly to Ipsy sent me at least one J Cat Beauty product each. I am definitely getting familiar with the line and their products.

Description:
JCat Beauty Jar Eyeliner $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 for a beauty like you that's always on the go. 

Rating:

Price: 10/10
Packaging: 10/10
Amount of product: 10/10
Pigment: 10/10
Longevity: 9/10
Application: 10/10
Formula: 9/10
Different eye lids: 9/10
Overall rating: 8/10
Would I purchase: 3/10
Total rating: 88/100=88%= B

My personal rating: 7/10=70%=C

Comments:
I am not familiar with cream or gel eye liners, but I think the price for this product sounds good. I would pay $5.99 for a cream or gel eye liner. The packaging is super cute! I like the design on the packaging and I love the design of the packing. At first I was a bit confused as to why it had such a long cap, but once I discovered it comes with a super small thin brush everything made sense. Even though I read it in the pamphlet it still took me some time to discover that it was a brush, lol. I like that you don't have to carry a brush with you to touch up if you need to. Even though the packaging is a bit on the small side which is good for carrying with you, it does seem like a small amount of product. It says it is 2.5 grams. I guess I still think it is decent for the price versus the amount. If you are looking for a pigmented eye liner, then this is it! Wow. The intensity of the black color is spot on. I love it. The longevity of this product is decent. It is not advertised as waterproof/semi-permanent so I don't think it is meant to last a long time, but I feel that with how intense the pigment is, it does last quite a few hours. I'm afraid that it would not last too long on me, especially if I'm sweating or my eye lids are oily so that makes me sad. I would probably wear this sparingly, but for special occasions I would find another product that does specify waterproof. I have to have waterproof on and near my eyes. Otherwise the product leaks into my eyes and stings and my eyes start watering. It is horrible. The application of the product was very smooth. I tried it around the time I first got it a couple of times and I remember it being very smooth and creamy. Now that it has sat around for about a year and a half it has dried up quite a bit. It is not so easy to work with. But that is not necessarily the product's fault I let it sit around. The formula could have been a bit better to not dry out so quickly. Maybe if it used more oils in it. The formula of this product originally is super smooth and super easy to work with and glides on easily, but the fact that it does dry out from sitting is not good. I am going to try a few different ideas to see if I can bring it back to life. I hope so. I think this product originally before drying out would do well with all the different types of eye lids from oily to normal to dry. Once the product sits for a while it does not do well on dry eyes. I think the natural oils in the eye lid would help to loosen the product up to become smooth like it used to be. I guess maybe I would warn those with dry eyes to be weary of this product and not allowing it to sit too long so that it doesn't dry up and becomes unusable. But I think to a certain extent that is normal with many products, especially mascara. Overall, this appears to be a very good product with a good price, but I had to take off a few points for the formula drying out and because for me personally it is not waterproof so I would not be able to use this product, especially for special occasions. Honestly, I really hate saying this, but unless they have a waterproof version of this product I would not purchase it but and it's a big but only because my eyes are sensitive to non-waterproof because the product leaks into my eyes causing tears and itchiness. It's a huge mess. Maybe in the winter I would wear this product because it wouldn't be a problem because it is cold and dry out, but any other time where there is even a chance of sweat or the product coming off is not a chance I would take.

I feel horrible giving this product a D because it doesn't necessarily deserves it, but if I can't personally wear the product then I can't give it raving reviews. The product itself is decent, I just can't wear it. I can say that I think people with normal and dry eye lids can use this product well when it works the way it is supposed to. When the formula dries out it might work well on normal and oily lids better. It's a decent product. If I could wear it, I totally would! I am really grateful that I got to try it.

Sincerely,
Marina

Lip Factory, September 2014: Unidentified Angle Brush

Hi!

In today's blog I am going to be talking about the products I received in my Lip Factory September 2014 box. Unfortunately, from the research I have done, this company may not still be around. I can't find the official website, when I clicked on the website it lead me to a godaddy.com page that said something about how the site name was not renewed. I can't find the company on facebook. I am so sad because I absolutely loved my first and only Lip Factory box. It is the only beauty subscription box that I have and always will absolutely love. The price was a bit high at $21.00 or $22.00, but you got 5 decent sized products and a variety of products! If it had not been so high I would have kept it, but you get what you pay for.

In this specific blog I am going to be talking about the black handle, orange haired angle brush. The pamphlet with the list of products does not have a brand name for the brush and the brush itself does not have a name on it either. I have no idea whose brush it is or how to purchase it. It may not be purchasable.

Description:
Angle Brush $9.50
"A stroke of elegance" with its smooth application this brush is perfect for applying liquid, gel and cake eye liner. Get those perfect, controlled lines for fabulous eyes.

Rating:

Price: 7/10
Packaging: 10/10
Quality: 9/10
Longevity: 10/10
Application: 9/10
Design: 9/10
Bristle fallout: 10/10
Bristle feeling: 10/10
Eye lining ability: 10/10
Overall rating: 9/10
Would I purchase: 6/10
Total rating: 99/110=90%=A

My personal rating: 7/10=70%=C

Comments:
Since I don't know anything at all about this brush and because I would personally not pay almost $10 for a brush, I would say that the price is fairly high for a single brush. The packaging on this brush is simple, but functional and standard. It doesn't stand out, but if it does the job then it's worth it. The quality of the brush seems very well put together. I like the long handle and I like the bristles. It doesn't seem cheaply made. Like when you see and feel an E.L.F. brush you can tell it's quality is okay, but with this brush it seems it was well put together. There is some thought and effort that went into making this brush. I have had this brush and used it a few times since September 2014. I don't usually use liquid or gel eye liner, but that's the whole point of signing up for beauty boxes is to try new things and I would like to start getting into it. I don't have a lot of washing experience with this brush, but it seems like it would hold up well. The application of the brush is smooth and even.  When I first saw and felt how thick the brush is I thought it seemed too big, but for the top lid it is perfect, especially if you are doing the lash line. It doesn't appear too thick or odd looking. The lines do appear on the thicker side so if you want precise thin lines this brush would not be the one to use. I think this brush is designed to have a thicker line and not a precise brush, but I did knock a point off for the bristles being a bit too thick. This brush is really easy to work with. The design of the brush itself seems well done, but my own personal complaint is that I would have used less bristles to make the brush a little thinner. I have small eyes and I can use this brush so it's not bad, like I said just a personal preference. I think this brush would be really good to use when doing a cat eye though, especially on the top lid. The bottom lid would come down to preference of how thick or thin you like your eye liner and this brush would be better used for the lash line and not in the water line. I have not had any issues with the bristles falling out. Once again with the E.L.F. brushes you tend to get bristle fallout on your face when using it, but this brush had none. Even after the product dried on it. That is always awesome! I personally think that the bristles do feel a bit stiff, but do have a bit of flexibility. It is stiff, but not overly stiff. Depending on what you are using the brush for depends on if you will appreciate the flexibility of it or not. The other awesome thing about this brush is that even though the bristles are a bit stiff, they feel soft on the end. The bristles don't feel scratchy. I have fairly sensitive skin and I think it does fine. I think that this brush does a fine job of eye lining and a lot better than I thought it would at first glance. The lines are a bit on the thicker side, but I don't mind. If you are looking to make thick lines then this brush does a really good job. The top of the lash line does very well. I like the way it looks. It is something I personally would probably use. Overall, it is not a bad brush at all and if you are looking for an angle brush that gives a semi-thick line then this is it. I also used this brush to get some eyeshadow in the inner corner of my eye and it worked really well. I also used this brush to line my upper and lower lash lines with eye shadow and it worked great too! Honestly, I personally would not spend $9.50 on an angle brush so I would find a cheaper alternative, but if I couldn't find a quality alternative then I would purchase this brush, but I don't even know if purchasing it is an option. Why test out a product that you can't buy? That's kind of weird.

Sincerely,
Marina

Maybelline Fit Me Bronzer in Golden Tan

Hey everyone!

In today's blog I am going to be reviewing the Maybelline Fit Me Bronzer in Golden Tan. If you have been reading my blogs for a while you will know how obsessed I was with my MAC bronzer, but the cat knocked it over, and I lost a lot of product. I have not re-bought the bronzer because I think it went up in price quite a bit. I remember I paid at least $23 for it not including tax. Once again I wanted to find a bronzer that I could find cheaper and could use more on a daily basis. I think I bought this at the same time I bought the L'Oreal foundation at the Ulta.

Rating:

Price: 10/10
Packaging: 10/10
Amount of product: 10/10
Longevity: 10/10
Pigment: 8/10
Application: 10/10
Different skin types: 8/10
Realistic: 8/10
Overall rating: 7/10
Would I repurchase: 9/10
Total rating: 90/100=90%= A

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

Comments:
I am pretty sure I bought this bronzer at my local Ulta store when I picked up the L'Oreal Infallible foundation. I don't remember exactly how much I spent on this product, but according to the official Ulta website they are $5.99 and that sounds about right. I think the packaging is cute. It is rectangle with a see through cover, one side has the pan with the bronzer product and the other side comes with a little brush. I think that you get a decent amount of product for the price. The side with the pan with product is a little bit bigger than the brush that it comes with. I have not had any problems with longevity with this product. I usually put it over waterproof foundation and I have not had any problems with it disappearing or moving on me. This is another Maybelline product [reminder: Maybelline eyebrow pencils] where you have to work at getting the product on. It took me two or three times before the pigment really showed up. I have light skin so for the product to take a lot to show up on me can't be very pigmented. It does get the job done and it is a way cheaper alternative to the MAC bronzer I love. But the pigment is buildable if you work at it. I have not had any problems with the application of this product. The only thing is that I do have to apply this product a few times to get the result I want, but it has not caked up on me yet. I would recommend this product for people with oily or normal skin type, people with dry skin can use it, but just be careful because it is on the dry side. Putting too many dry products on dry skin can dry out the skin even more or show things that you probably don't want to be seen like lines. I think this product gives off a realistic bronzed look. I had a bad experience with the E.L.F. bronzer where it had so much shimmer in it that my face looked dirty. I think I went too dark on the shade, but E.L.F. went overboard on the shimmer. I still have that bronzer. This Maybelline Bronzer gives off a more natural somewhat orange glow. I think it looks good. Overall, for the price and amount of product makes it worth it and the fact that I can either use it to lightly dust or build up the pigment some. Honestly, I will probably look into trying other bronzers to see what I can find, but for an everyday or wearing it once in a while I'm okay with. For special occasions I would probably use a different bronzer. I would repurchase this product, especially if I couldn't find another bronzer that is similar in price.

Sincerely,
Marina

Maybelline Expert Wear Eyebrow Pencil in Blonde

Hey everyone!

In today's blog I am going to be reviewing the Maybelline Expert Wear Eyebrow Pencil in Blonde. I finally broke down and bought an eyebrow pencil to try because I have really light eyebrows and I thought coloring them in would give my face more definition and might make my makeup stand out more around the eyes. It looks like I don't have eyebrows and I can't wear dark eyebrows because I think it looks weird, like they don't belong. I am not very good at coloring in my eyebrows and I'm too afraid to cut them because I have never done it before. I just wanted some eyebrow definition. I'm not sure how I feel about the color of this product.

Rating:

Price: 10/10
Packaging: 8/10
Amount of product: 10/10
Longevity: 9/10
Realistic: 7/10
Pigment: 9/10
Application: 8/10
Blendability: 7/10
Overall rating: 7/10
Would I repurchase: 7/10
Total rating: 82/100=82%=B

My personal rating: 7/10=70%=C

Comments:
I think I bought this at my local Walgreens. I don't remember exactly how much I paid, but I do remember that I got it as part of a deal I think where if I bought mascara I could buy a product same or lesser in value for half price or free. The most I spent is about $2.00 or 2.50 for two eyebrow pencils because the package included 2. Walgreens website says that the package of 2 is $4.29. That's not a bad price. The packaging is red on the outside and includes 2 pencils. I'm not a fan of the plastic cap that goes on the end and I ended up losing one of the caps. I also am not a fan of shaving this pencil because I think it sharpens too thin and then it makes it more difficult for me to use. I like the pencil to be a bit on the thicker side when working with eyebrows. You get two pencils in one packaging for $4.29 which I think is pretty good. You can definitely use this product daily without running out too quickly. Even though this product is not technically advertised as waterproof or long wearing, if I had known they had those options I would have jumped on the waterproof instead, but this product does appear to have some longevity to it. Once you pencil in the eyebrows and you don't touch it in any way, I think this product lasts with even with sweating. They lasted quite a bit of time on me which no makeup does that is not specifically waterproof so I'm happy with it. I'm really weird when it comes to penciling in eyebrows. It is probably my fault, but I feel like the color either doesn't really go on or goes on darker than I want it to. There seems to be no happy medium. I also feel like the color is not an accurate representation of what I would think of blonde eyebrows... but that could just be me being picky. I feel like the color really stands out, but not necessarily in a good way... You can tell I totally penciled in my eyebrows. I would prefer a more natural look personally. It does the job for a good price though. Initially it gives off very little pigment, but the more you work with it the darker the pigment shows up. It's kind of an all or nothing type of pencil, but you can definitely build up on the pigment. I think the application of this product is on the difficult side. Once the pencil starts then it is easier to work with. It does not go on smoothly, but this eyebrow pencil on the Walgreens website says that it is long wearing/waterproof. Even though it is, you can definitely take your time applying this product without having to rush in fear of it drying quickly. The blendability of this product is not very easy. Once you can get the product on the eyebrow it is difficult to work with too in terms of trying to blend it. You can try to blend it, but I probably would not recommend doing that. Once the product is on it is pretty much on until you wipe it off. The product does wipe off easily with a little bit of pressure applied. Overall, you get what you pay for. This product is on the cheaper side and it is difficult to work with at times, but for the price and a quick brow outline it does the job. I would repurchase this product, but honestly, I would probably look at other options before coming back to this one. If I couldn't find a similar priced product that might be a bit better or easier to work with, then I would definitely come back to this product, especially for daily or regular use. For special occasions I would definitely look for a better product.

Sincerely,
Marina

L'Oreal Infallible Make-up Foundation in #603 Classic Ivory

Hi everyone!

In today's blog I am going to be reviewing the L'Oreal Infallible Makeup Foundation in #603 Classic Ivory. I was at Ulta one day and I wanted to buy a good cheaper alternative to my MAC Studio Fix foundation that I could wear more on a daily basis. I only wear the MAC Studio Fix for special occasions when I need makeup that I know works on me the way that I need it to. I didn't have a drugstore foundation that I could wear more regularly. I decided to try the L'Oreal Infallible makeup foundation because I think it was the cheapest foundation at my local Ulta location which is why I decided to try it. When I first brought it home and tried it on, I freaked out. I pumped a little bit on my hand and it came out super wet/oily. I thought I had misread the label that it was supposed to be long wearing. I was really sad and disappointed. I decided to put it on my face to try it anyway and that is when I realized that it comes out wet, but after a few minutes dries out quite a bit. That was a very exciting surprise for me! After applying this foundation and waiting a few minutes I looked at my hand and saw that it was dry so I ran my finger over it and sure enough, it was set!

Rating:

Price: 9/10
Packaging: 7/10
Amount of product: 10/10
Longevity: 8/10
Coverage: 10/10
For different skin types: 9/10
Application: 10/10
Fights the 5 signs of makeup meltdown: 6/10
Smoothing pigments resist fading/rub off: 6/10
Oil absorbing mattifiers stop shine: 7/10
Overall rating: 8/10
Would I repurchase: 9/10
Total rating: 99/120=82.5%=B

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

Comments:
I bought this L'Oreal Infallible makeup foundation at my local Ulta store. I remember the foundation being about $10.97 so some where between $10.00 and $11.00. I think that is a better price than the MAC foundations, especially the Studio Fix ones, but I still feel like for daily this foundation is a bit at the top of what I would prefer to pay personally. But honestly even at Walgreens or Walmart foundations are between $7.00 and $11.00 so I guess that's not too bad for price. At first I was okay with the packaging of this product, there was nothing particularly wrong with it, but after sitting for a few months without me using it daily, the pump that came with the foundation is clogged. I am assuming since the foundation dries that the foundation dried up inside of the pump. Only my husband knows how to open it so any time I want to use it I have to ask him to open the top for me so I can wear it which is really obnoxious. Even though I like the pump idea for foundations, with ones that go from wet to dry, should probably not use one. I've had my MAC foundations for a few years and they still work because they don't use the pump. When I first got this product I would have given the packaging a very high rating because it is cute, I like the idea of the pump being there, and it doesn't leak product which is always a good thing, but since the pump won't pump out the product it is very disappointing. The top is not easy to take off. I was just pumping it and moving it around and a giant dry ball of foundation came out and now the pump works again. YAY! The bottle reads that you get 1 fluid ounces, but it looks like a decent amount of product. I have used it quite a few times and I still have more in there. I think most foundations come with about 1 fluid ounces of product. This product claims 18 hours on the packaging for duration, but I can honestly say I don't think I have ever worn this foundation for 18 straight hours. One of the reasons I bought this product was because it said 18 hours. I do not believe that it actually lasts 18 hours on my skin. It does last for a few hours before it seems to start breaking down on me a little bit. I would say this foundation lasts at least 6-8 before starting to break down on me depending on how intensely I'm sweating. I personally tend to look for foundations that are more full coverage because I feel that I have redness on my face that I need to cover up. The official L'Oreal Paris USA website says that this product is medium coverage and I would agree with that. I do feel this covers somewhat, at least enough to conceal my redness, but I would actually prefer more coverage. I think that oily, normal, and dry skin types can all wear this product, but oily skin type may take a bit longer to dry and dry skin type may show some lines and imperfections because it is not full coverage. From far away it looks smooth, but up close I feel like it shows and settles into lines. The application of this product is smooth for the most part, once you pump the product out you will want to apply it fairly quickly because it does start drying after about 30 seconds, but can take up to a minute or more to fully dry. The times depend on my combination of dry and oily skin type. It may take a bit longer on oilier skin. I don't necessarily agree that this product fights the 5 signs of makeup meltdown because I have had this product meltdown on me before where in parts it started failing on me, especially around the nose area. I also disagree that this product resists rub off especially. Even though this foundation dries, it doesn't dry 100% and with a lot of sweat it breaks down and I was able to get rub off on the tissue paper I used. I would say this product is about 90-95% rub off free. The less you sweat, the more it stays on. The more you sweat, the less it stays on. I feel like this product does an okay job of stopping shine, but I do feel like with time the oils do start breaking down the foundation and oily spots do come through, especially where the makeup is starting to break down. Overall I think this a fair priced foundation for more then special occasion use. It does the job that I need it to for a few hours. This is my go to foundation for when I need to look nice, but not completely rely on it to get me through special occasions. I would definitely repurchase this product.

Sincerely,
Marina

NYX Roll On Shimmer in RES09 Purple/Violet

Hello everyone!

In today's blog I am going to be reviewing the NYX Roll on Shimmer in RES09 Purple/Violet. I am not entirely sure what I was thinking when I bought this. I don't usually wear glitter or too glittery things. I might have been thinking it would be fun for a birthday or something. In any case, I did buy it. I think the color is absolutely gorgeous and the glitter makes it a lot of fun. According to NYX you can use this product on eyes, face, and body. The product is not promoted for hair, but if you have light hair you could probably get away with putting it in your hair. My light hair shows the purple color along with the tons of glitter. If you want glitter in your hair you could try using it that way too!  I'm pretty sure I bought this at Ulta a few years back. I just thought of something, I wonder if you use special kind of eye lid glue or body glue if it would help the pigment stay and last longer. It might.

Rating:

Price: 10/10
Packaging: 10/10
Amount of product: 10/10
Longevity: 5/10
Pigment: 7/10
On eyes: 9/10
On face: 7/10
On body: 7/10
Product claim, "you control intensity of pigment': 6/10
Overall rating: 7.5/10
Would I repurchase: 10/10
Total rating: 88.5/110= 80.45%=80.5%=B

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

Comments: I don't remember how much I bought this product for at my local Ulta beauty supply store. I know I kept the receipt, but I forgot where I put it for safe keeping. I'm sure I will find it one day. The official NYX website says $4.00 and Ulta official website says $3.99. I don't think that's too bad of a price. I like the product packaging because I cannot imagine what a mess a container of glitter would be. I like the fact that it is in a tube packaging with a rolling ball that disperses the product. The only way the packaging would be an issue is if you are trying to apply it more precisely and the rolling ball does not allow for precise application, but you could always use a brush for that purpose. You get 1.5 grams of product which is a decent amount. You can definitely good decent use out of it. The longevity of this product in terms of pigment is non-existent. The only reason why I even gave this product a 5/10 on longevity is because once the litter gets on your skin, hair, eyes, the glitter part definitely stays on. Maybe if you use a really good primer or something underneath it, I was thinking maybe some kind of eye glue and rolling this over it, then the pigment might stay longer, but otherwise don't expect the purple/violet color to last very long. The pigment of this product goes like this, when you first roll it on, the intensity of the pigment is there and it is beautiful, but as it sits there, it starts fading out. If you just put this product on and don't do anything, then the pigment lasts, but if you put this on and plan on being active in any way, then the pigment fades out into just looking like you put glitter on. The product is very glittery. Yes this product has very good pigment, but if you don't put something under it then the pigment fades, but the glitter stays. I would recommend this product for the eyes, but I would highly recommend using a brush, especially if you want to apply this product precisely. The roller ball will not give accuracy. It is good for putting all over the lid, but probably could use a brush to kind of make it look more together. On the face and body I would recommend it, but unless you plan to stand or sit some where the whole time, don't expect it to last very long. It is perfect for applying a purple tinted glitter. People may not be able to tell that it is purple necessarily, but they will see that you put glitter on. In certain lighting they might be able to tell the pigment is purple/violet. I would even recommend putting it in your hair even though it doesn't specify that on the website. I put it in my hair and initially I could tell it was a purple streak in my light hair, but after a few minutes it faded into looking like I just put glitter in my hair which is still fun! After putting in your hair you might try spraying it with some hair spray to kind of help the pigment adhere or they might have special glue for hair that you could use. This is meant to be a fun product, not necessarily one that you would take seriously. I do agree that you will want to carry this product with you wherever you go just to touch it up if the pigment fades or just to touch it up in general. The official NYX Cosmetics website says something along the lines of that you can control the intensity of the pigment, but I heavily disagree. Initially when you apply this product, yes, it does have quite a bit of pigment and you can build the pigment up to your desired intensity, but that doesn't mean it is going to last. Yes you can control intensity of pigment, but no because once again unless you use something with it or under it the chances of it staying pigmented is not very high. I threw that point out there multiple times! Overall, if you want a fun/cute little product to add some glitter to your eyes, face, or body, then I think that this is the product to use. It does the job, it's not badly prices, and I do like the packaging with the roller ball. I would definitely repurchase this product for the glitter/purple glitter aspect of it. It would be fun to wear out for a night. I don't plan to use this product a lot, but on special fun occasions I definitely would!

Sincerely,
Marina

L'Oreal 24Hr Infallible Eye Shadow in #890 Bronzed Taupe

Hi everyone!

I am so sorry that this is about a year or year and a half late! In today's blog I am going to be reviewing the L'Oreal 24Hr Infallible Eye Shadow in #890 Bronzed Taupe. I bought this because I wanted to try the L'Oreal version of the Maybelline Color Tattoo eyeshadows to see what the difference was besides the prices. I think the formulas are a little bit different. The L'oreal ones were very fine pressed pigment which gives more pigment while the Maybelline ones seemed to be more creamier ones which were supposed to last longer. Unlike the Maybelline ones, the L'Oreal ones were not compared to the MAC Paint Pots.

**I wrote this down below quite a bit, but I just wanted to make sure that everyone was aware. I tried this product on with and without primer. I noticed that even though the pigment is strong for with and without, I did notice that this product does change color a bit depending on whether you are wearing it alone or over eye lid primer! I want to make sure that is known about this product. I don't know if it's just on me or if it is because I used an E.L.F. mineral primer or what, but just wanted to give a heads up. The color of the product without eye primer appears to be more coppery/tan/brown. The color of the product with E.L.F. mineral eye primer appears to have changed more to a dark brown/purple. Without eye lid primer appears more shiny/glittery while with eye lid primer appears more matte with glitter.

Rating:

Price: 9/10
Packaging: 9/10
Amount of Product: 10/10
Longevity: 9/10
Pigment on fingers: 10/10
Pigment on eye lids without primer: 9/10
Pigment on eye lids with primer: 9/10
Application: 10/10
Blendability: 10/10
On normal/oily/dry lids: 9/10
Overall rating: 8/10
Would I repurchase: 9/10
Total rating: 111/120= 92.5%= A

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

Comments: I think I bought this product at my local Walmart I want to say between $6.00 and $9.00 because my local Walmart priced the product depending on color. Now they appear to have gone down in price to between $6.00 and $7.00. I think for a 'drugstore' product that price is on the higher end for a single eye shadow. I like the Maybelline packaging better because they use glass, L'Oreal packaging uses plastic. They have a little plastic round thing in the packaging to help hold the pigment in. You get 3.5 grams of product which I think is decent even for the price. You can definitely get a lot of uses out of it, depending on how pigmented you want to wear it. The longevity of the product increases with really good eye primer. I just used the E.L.F. Mineral eye primer for a quick comparison, but I think this product longevity depends on the quality of eye lid primer, the better the eye lid primer the longer this product will last, the lower quality of eye lid primer the less likely the pigment will last. I noticed that once this product is on the eye lid it will last until you wash it off, but the pigment fades quickly, but the faded color still stays, if that makes sense. I hope so. The pigment when I swipe it on my finger is excellent. With two circular motions around the pan the pigment really shows on the finger. On my right eye I just put the L'Oreal eye shadow on with nothing underneath and on my left eye I put the E.L.F. mineral eye primer with the L'Oreal eye shadow product over it. The one huge difference I can tell is the color difference when looking at the two is that the right eye with no eye primer looks more tan/brown color and the left eye with the eye primer it looks more dark brown/purplish. Both sides are very shimmery. I think the pigment of the eye shadow without primer is very good. It is highly pigmented. I think the pigment of the eye shadow with the primer is very good. Both sides to me seem fairly pigmented. Something I did notice about this product is that the color of the product does vary depending on whether you are wearing it alone or with a primer which is why I did not give the pigment the full 10 points. Most of the time the actual pigment color does not change, but for some reason with this product it appears to. The application of this product is super smooth! I don't think you have to rush applying this product because even though it does dry onto the skin a little bit. Once you apply the product it will be difficult to get it off unless you use a makeup remover cloth, but it doesn't appear to dry on the brush for application. It's not a product you have to work quickly with that dries quickly. Although, a bit of a heads up that once you apply it to a location getting it off might be a bit tricky, but I think a makeup remover cloth should be no problem. I think that this product is easily blendable. The product is super smooth and might actually be too blendable. I think this product would be very good on normal and dry eye lids because of how smooth the product is it should glide over dry areas. I would be a bit careful and I would recommend using a good eye primer underneath for those with oily eye lids like mine because the initial pigment will slide off easily. Unless you are going for the faded, I may or may not be wearing eye shadow look, then a really good primer is your best bet! The overall rating I gave it an 8/10 because the color difference between with primer and without primer is pretty huge and because initially when you put this product on, it is super pigmented, but seems to fade out over time, at least on me... The product appears there, but less pigmented so looks more faded out. It looks like I put two different products on each lid. One good thing about that is then it's like you have two eye shadows in one. I didn't find anything too offensive about this product so I would more than likely repurchase this product and try out some other colors.

Sincerely,
Marina