Shakeup Your Makeup

Look at these adorable, bright, mini-size shades of Revlon colors!  This limited edition collection consists of two trios: one set in cool tones (Garden Party) and one set in warmer tones (Tea Party). 

The cool set:  This has a pale sky blue, an iridescent chunky glitter, and a bright apple green.  The blue looked like it had the slightest shimmer undertone, but I really doubt it would be apparent once applied.  The green was a creme.

Back at the beginning of the year, Rimmel put out some new displays for their Glam Eyes sets and singles.  There were eyeshadow quads and single shadows, like Night Jewel (shown above).  I'm typically pretty happy with Rimmel's products, although I have rarely used their eyeshadows, so I thought I'd give this smokey pewter color a whirl!

Night Jewel is a deep pewter with almost iridescent shimmer strewn throughout.  This is a very frosty-frost, and the pigmentation is quite nice as well.  There are two pictures below - one with a flash and one without.  I think you can see the various iridescent shimmer in them below, especially if you click to enlarge the photo.

I swatched this shadow without any primer, using the sponge applicator in the package.  Like I mentioned above, this is very pigmented.  The color is creamy and smooth, as well, not chalky at all, making blending and application a breeze. 

Seeing as this shade is a frosty pewter color, what better to do than a smokey look.  Something quick and simple below, using the Rimmel "Night Jewel", Milani's Baked Eyeshadow in "Lilly White" and "Silver Charm".

Urban Decay Primer Potion

Milani "Silver Charm" - inner corners

Rimmel "Night Jewel" - outer corners, crease

Milani "Lilly White" - highlight

Physician's Formula Gel Eyeliner Trio - black

NYC Show Time Mascara - black

So, have you tried any of these Rimmel Glam Eyes shadows?  Which is your favorite color?

I'm so excited that spring is right around the corner.  Unfortunately, the weather we've had here in the Midwest has been anything but accommodating to the change of the seasons.  Cold, damp and rainy has been the name of the game recently, and it doesn't look to be letting up anytime soon!  Like they say, "In like a lion...".

I tried to get a good snapshot of the wand because I think it is what sets this mascara apart from the other inexpensive drugstore brands out there.  When I pulled the brush out, it instantly reminded me of the Tarte "Lights, Camera, Lashes" brush.  A thicker brush, made with thick bristles, which are not the typical pipe-cleaner type bristles, nor are they rubber.  The formula on the mascara is thick, not overly drying, and with the help of the wand, pulls through the lashes and lengthens while it volumizes.  I did not experience any clumping, flaking, or smudging with this.  I think the clumping thing is a huge "pro", as well.  take a look at the closeup of my bottom lashes below - it's truely an elongation of my natural lashes, which is amazing.  I will definitely be using this as my everyday mascara once I run out of my Tarte.  The price to value is fantastic, and the quality really is there.  My only complaint is I would like to see a blacker-black.  This is a little smokey in color.

A "before" and "after" shot...

After yesterday's post and discussion about geoGIRL Cosmetics, I thought I'd post a FOTD using the two mineral blushes.  I used QTPi all over and URA* as the highlight. 

See what a nice color this is?  It's not overly pigmented at all, totally blendable, smooth and the URA* adds a really nice shimmer to the cheekbones.  I really like them simply because sometimes loose blushes are difficult to work with, especially those found in drugstores/mass merchandisers.  I did have a comment from the lovely Femputer over at Shop My Stash, who said she has used the geoGIRL 2Nite lip Treatment, and that she likes it a lot, so I might be hitting up their skincare line before long!

A few months ago, Walmart introduced a new beauty lined targeting tweens and teens called geoGIRL.  Now, this caused a lot of buzz around the Internet and actually in national media.  Now, I understand that there is an age that is too young to be wearing makeup out and about, but am I the only one who remembers playing dress up and trying my mom's makeup when I was little?  And, I'm pretty sure that being eco-friendly wasn't part of the repertoire back in the early 80's either.  Regardless, and more importantly, my mother was in control of where, what and when I was allowed to wear the makeup. It's not like I was paroozing around town on a day-to-day basis with a full face of makeup at age 10!  Ok, enough of my pontificating...

Outside of all the hoopla, I thought it might be nice to see what this brand was all about, so I picked up a few of the blushes available.  Besides the broad spectrum of products available (from skincare to lipstick), I was intrigued by the packaging of geoGIRL.   They truly are targeting an "ecofriendly" audience - the packaging is made of cardboard and is biodegradable.  The only plastic I found in my blushes were the sifter in the mineral blushes, and the "push up"mechanism of the cream blush. 

The first thing I noticed about the product was the packaging's details.  Like I said above - Ecofriendly is the focus here.  Not only is the outer packaging cardboard and discuss the product inside, but it actually has stories about what "tweens" are doing to keep the Earth a clean and healthy place.  Each color has a different snippet or idea as to how to reuse products, which I find pretty unique. 

Something else I found interesting is the the slogan "DIRT" or DoTheRightThing.  This focuses on what the products are made of.  Straight off the packaging:

First up, QTPi: a bright coral with light pink shimmer.  The packaging has cute little hummingbirds outlining the lid.  When you take the lid off, you'll see the typical sifter-style filter to prevent spillage.  There is also a mini puff to apply, although I threw mine in the trash to use my blush brush.

This color does look quite bright in the picture below, and in real life honestly.  It actually goes on quite lightly, which I'll show you in the swatches below. 

Next up is URA*, which is a pale shimmery peach.  I would consider this to be more of a highlighter.  This packaging has daisies around the lid, matching the color of the product inside. 

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Last up, the geoGIRL cream blush in "KOC".  Similar to the URA*, this is a pale peach but without shimmer. I find that this could be used as a lip balm, too.  It's moisturizing, but not greasy.  There's just a hint of color.  Although this is a cheek color, the stick isn't so overly chunky that you couldn't use it for other things. 

Ok, onto the swatches.  These are *not* overly pigmented, so the target audience of the "tweens" is right on (also note the texting slogans as the names).  I now that QTPi looked like a clown's cheek color in the pot, but as you can see below, it's a nice shimmery coral.  I used my finger tip to swatch these, so the streaks are quite dense with product.  I've used them all for the primary purpose, blush, and they have worn wonderfully, no irritation, and the colors blend well into the skin. 

My only complaint about the product is the packaging.  I can appreciate the attempt at having an ecofriendly or mainly biodegradable package, but they are difficult to open.  My sister had two separate products that she could not take the lid off at all, and ultimately returned.  Although I didn't have that particular problem, I will say that the blue or adhesive used to package the product tends to create quite a seal and make removing the lids difficult. 

All in all, these are quite nice.  I am loving how natural the products are, both on and in composition.  I wish that when I was growing up there had been more products like this for me to dabble with instead of the Disney character pallets from the Barbie aisle! 

If I recall correctly, the retail ranged from $2.99 on up. 

Have you seen these?  What did you think?

Below are the Bronzing Duos - your options are basically a warm coral and bronze (Skinny Dipping) or a bright pink and bronze (Truth or Dare).   Yes, the coral is that bright!  I did not buy this, but it would be interesting to see if the bronze portion tones down the intensity of the colored sides once swirled together, giving that "perfect finish".

The Blushing quads looked promising.  These are not super shimmery, so for those of you that prefer a more matte look, but still want a *pop* of color, these might be a nice and inexpensive alternative. 

For those of you EOS lovers (me included - I have the Lemon and Spring Fruit and can't live without it!), there is a set for spring including two new flavors: Strawberry Sorbet and Passion Fruit! 

I'm sure by now you have seen the new Physician's Formula 100% Natural Origin Jumbo Lash Mascara during your hunt for those adorable Mood Booster blushes.  Well, for one, the packaging definitely stands out, so it's hard to miss!

Obviously, being from Phsyician's Formula, this is going to be as natural as it gets.  From the website, the product is the following: