theBalm Cosmetics: Smoke Balm Smokey Eye Palette

Swatches & Review

After seeing theBalm's new eyeshadow palettes on Kohls online, I waited for them to show up at the retail locations so that I can see them in person. My local Kohls was able to get them in this week so I went to Kohls as soon as I could. I do not know when the official release of these are supposed to be or if it is exclusive to Kohls because I have not seen it on theBalm's website. The Smoke Balm has two separate palettes, but they are only named by "Set One" & "Set Two". The one with the grey packaging is Set One, and the one with the green is Set Two. Each palette has three eyeshadow shades.

As always, the packaging for theBalm is super cute. In Set One, it says, "Warning: Men may stop drop and roll" & in Set Two, it says, "Warning: May cause shortness of breath in men." Totally theBalm-like. This is also packaged in cardboard packaging with the design on the sleeve exactly like the design on the product itself.

Set One: These were swatched with my fingers, but I will also have swatches with a brush later on as well.
Blaze: Black with silver glitter
Spark: Matte grey-taupe
Flame: Shimmery pearl

Set Two: These were also swatched with my fingers.
Kindle: Shimmery blackened-green
Glow: Matte light brown
Combust: Shimmery beige

Set One & Set Two applied with a brush with two swipes, except Flame & Combust, which only required one swipe.

When swatched using my fingers, both of the first two shades in each palette apply a bit patchy. The third shade in both palettes, the shimmery pearl & beige were very pigmented and a little goes a long way. However, the eyeshadows itself felt like most of theBalm's eyeshadows I have tried, which are smooth and buttery.

When swatched using a brush, the eyeshadows applied better, which was not as patchy as when I applied it with my fingers. The eyeshadows are very smooth, so it did kick up a bit of powder, which may lead to some fall-out, so tapping the brushes used with these are definitely recommended.

Overall, I feel like both of these are pretty similar to actually purchase both. These are perfect for a simple little palette for a smokey eye and each eyeshadow contains 0.12 oz of product, which is like twice the size of a full-size Urban Decay eyeshadow. I also like how it has different finishes in the three eyeshadows provided in each palette because there's a glittery one, a matte one, and a shimmery one. These retail for $12 and can be purchased online at Kohls(link)--non-affiliated & at Kohls with an extended beauty department.

What do you think about these Smoke Balm palettes? Do you prefer Set One, or Set Two?

Click to read more!

NYC City Proof Twistable: Gramercy Park Plum (031)

Swatches & Review

For 2014, NYC has a new collection of lip products called the City Proof Twistables. I was super excited because I love lip products that come like a chubby stick/lip crayon. When I first saw the display, I grabbed a bunch, but I ended up only purchasing two of them since they are supposed to be permanent so I am in no rush to get it. One of the colors I purchased was Gramercy Park Plum.

The plastic packaging of these have colors that coordinate with the shade itself. Like the name of this, these are twistable so no sharpening is required.

The product itself is shrink-wrapped, so you would definitely be able to tell if the item has been opened or not before buying it.

When applied, the color is pretty true to color to how it looks like in the tube. After I purchased this, I realized it was a bit brighter than when I saw it in the store because of the lighting, but it is a nice pink berry, but not very plum-my to me. This was very pigmented & applied smoothly and evenly. It is kind of glossy, so the product does transfer. I also noticed that there was slight feathering around my lips after a few hours of wearing it, so I would recommend using a clear liner with it. There is also a sweet scent with this, which really reminds me of Rimmel London's Kate Moss lipsticks that come int he black tubes. I'm not really a fan of the scent, but it does fade away after applying. This wore for about four hours on me and it faded into a slight even stain on my lips. I still have one more to try that I haven't yet, but I do like how pigmented these are.

The suggested retail price of this is $2.99, but this retails for $3.99 at all locations for me and has 0.07 oz of product. I purchased mine at K-Mart, but these can also be found at CVS and Rite Aid locations.

What do you think about jumbo lip pencils/chubby sticks? Which is your favorite brand for lip crayons like these?

Click to read more!

Wet n Wild Megaslicks Balm Stain Lip Colour: Lady and the Vamp (124), Red-Dy or Not (125), Rico Mauve (126)

Swatches & Review

It's 2014!!! I hope everyone had an amazing ending to 2013, and a fabulous start to 2014! :)

For Spring 2014, Wet n Wild have a new line added to their lip products called the Megaslicks Balm Stain Moisturizing Lip Colour. There are six shades in this line, but I have purchased three to test out. The Megaslicks Balm Stain are basically like Revlon's Balm Stains or Clinique's Chubby Sticks, where the product twists up and down with no sharpening needed.

From left to right: Rico Mauve, Red-Dy or Not, Lady and the Vamp

Like almost all Wet n Wild lip products, these are shrink-wrapped so you would be able to tell if it has been opened in the stores or not. The shrink wrap was actually really hard for me to take off, so maybe it will prevent some people from trying to open them without purchasing.

Rico Mauve: Pink-ish mauve. This was pigmented, applied smoothly & evenly. It left a nice pink stain behind.

Red-Dy Or Not: Bright classic red. This also applied smoothly & evently. This left a nice light red stain behind.

Lady and the Vamp: Brownish-berry. It was a bit sheer so I had to build the color up and applied kind of streaky. This also settled into lip lines, but it is not very noticeable unless it is upclose. This left a bright pink stain behind.

When I first smelled it, I didn't smell any scent, but if you really sniff it, you will smell a very very faint minty scent. It tingles a bit on the lips, nothing major, and it was comfortable to wear because it really felt like a balm. They all had a glossy finish, but it did not bleed/feather. However, it does transfer since it is glossy. They wore for about three hours and once the product itself is off the lips, an even colored stain is left behind so it looks like there's still lip color on the lips. For $2.99, these were actually really good. I'm definitely hoping that Wet n Wild will come out with more colors for this line!

These retail for $2.99 and contains 0.10 oz of product. Each of them had a $1 peel off sticker, which made them $1.99 when I purchased it.

What do you think about these Wet n Wild Balm Stains? Have you tried any of them yet?

Click to read more!

Maybelline ColorSensational The Buffs: Maple Kiss (925)

Swatches & Review

Maple Kiss is one of the ten shades from Maybelline's new ColorSensational The Buffs collection. Maple Kiss is supposed to be one of the lighter shades, but it has more color than the usual "nude" lipstick, which makes it very wearable to many skintones.

From the tube, the lipstick looks like it has a shimmer in it. The color from the tube really makes me think of maple syrup!

When swatched on my lips, it looks kind of like a copper shade, which I actually like. The shimmer does not show up once applied either.

Like the last shade I reviewed, Maple Kiss applied evenly & smooth. The formula of this was not very slippery, so I did not see any unevenness on my lips. Since the finish of these are kind of glossy, this does transfer, but it does last a while on the lips. Like all of the Maybelline ColorSensational lipsticks, this has a sweet honey scent to it, but the scent fades quickly after applying. I would not really call this a "nude", but it definitely is a lip color that is easy to wear.

What do you think about Maple Kiss? Which color from the three that I have reviewed do you prefer?

Click to read more!

Maybelline ColorSensational The Buffs: Touchable Taupe (940)

Swatches & Review

The other day, I reviewed Untainted Spice from Maybelline's ColorSensational The Buffs collection and today, I have Touchable Taupe for you! Touchable Taupe is one of the lightest shades from the four that I purchased, but there are definitely ones lighter from the display that I did not purchase.

Like the name, this applied like a taupe, but not one that is too light for me. It ended up being a nude that I can wear that is not too light or too dark for me.

Touchable Taupe applied very creamy & evenly. I did not see my natural lip color with two swipes and that's pretty good since nudes sometimes end up applying unevenly, which normally does not look too natural for me. Before trying it, I was kind of worried that Touchable Taupe might be a bit light for me, but it turned out to me my favorite so far, and it might be one of the favorite nudes that I own. Like all of the Maybelline ColorSensational lipsticks, this has a sweet honey scent to it, but the scent fades quickly after applying. I felt like this was moisturizing, but after about three hours, it started fading, but I'm not surprised since it was so creamy and it is a nude, so you would need to re-apply it after eating or drinking. I would actually buy a back-up of this because I feel like this would be a nice everyday color for me and it is not often that I am able to find a nude that works for me.

What do you think about Touchable Taupe? Have you seen the shades offered in The Buffs collection? What color do you think will suit you best?

Click to read more!

Maybelline ColorSensational The Buffs: Untainted Spice (950)

Swatches & Review

Hi Everyone! It's been a while, but I just submitted my last final for the Fall semester so I will be back blogging during my break & I definitely have a lot to catch up on! Anyway, one of the newest lip collections out are the new Maybelline ColorSensational The Buff's lipsticks. These lipsticks are supposed to be part of the new lipstick collection for 2014 and it contains 10 brand-new, neutral/nude shades.

The Buffs lipstick line is packaged with a soft looking beige cap. I actually really like this tube compared to the orange from the Vivids because it is very soft-looking and just nice.. to me at least!

Untainted Spice looks kind of like a pink-ish medium brown. (It should a bit browner, but it showed up like this in most of the pictures. It looks like this when it is under a light indoors, but a bit browner when outdoors)

All of the pictures were taken outdoor except the lower right picture, which was taken indoor.

When I am outdoors, you can see that the lipstick is like a pink-brown, but once I am indoors, it looks darker and just a medium-brown. Untainted Spice is creamy with no shimmer, so it was not drying for the first three hours. It applied evenly and it was pretty pigmented. Because it is creamy, is does transfer, but it did not feather or bleed within the time that I tried it. It is a bit on the darker side so if your skin-tone is fair or light, this may actually look very dark on you instead of a "neutral". The scent of these are like the usual Maybelline ColorSensational Lipstick scent, which is a bit sweet.

Overall, I like how there is a wide range of neutral shades so that many people would be able to find one that will work for them instead of washing them out. Like all other Maybelline lipsticks, I wish there was a safety seal on them because it has nothing, so people can easily just open these and test them without buying them, which makes it frustrating for those who do want to buy them.

I purchased mine at Rite Aid, and they retail for $9.49 at Rite Aid locations near me. The prices may vary depending on location, where it may be cheaper at Target & Walmart, but around the same price I paid for at CVS & Walgreens.

What do you think about Untainted Spice? Have you seen colors from The Buffs collection that you are interested in?

Click to read more!