Review: e.l.f Jumbo Eyeshadow Sticks

I love e.l.f. products - they're super cheap but you can find some really great products. I have to admit, it is hit or miss with e.l.f., but when I find a hit, it usually becomes a staple product that I love and continue to use regularly. These are my two favorite shades from the jumbo eyeshadow sticks - forest nymph (left) and turkish coffee (right). They're soft and creamy and come off really pigmented. The forest nymph is a shimmery dark brown olive green, and the turkish coffee shade is a warm brown with some shimmer. These are super easy to swipe on, blend, and go. They don't have amazing lasting power, but I use an eyeshadow primer or set these with a powder shadow and they last long enough for me. These are more of a casual, everyday eye product for me, so I don't mind that they aren't super long-wearing.

Forest Nymph (top) & Turkish Coffee (bottom)

As you can see, they're highly pigmented and they have just the right amount of shimmer to them. I prime my lids with some type of eye primer or a MAC paint pot to minimize creasing and make the color last longer. I swipe a few strokes onto my lid and then blend it out with my finger. If you want extra insurance against creasing, top it off with a powder shadow all over the lid & into the crease so that it sets the cream shadow. I have a few other shades, but these are my favs and I use these most often. The best part is: these huge twist-up shadow sticks go for $2! I love a good e.l.f. find and these are definitely worth it. I pick up my e.l.f. products mostly at Target but you can order online, too and they often have sales and deals going on. 

What are your favorite e.l.f. products? How do you prefer to wear cream shadows? I'd love to hear your opinions!

Until next time! xoxo

Review: e.l.f. Stipple Brush

I've been loving this e.l.f. stipple brush lately! I have had this for a while - I initially purchased it to blend in e.l.f. cream blushes, but found out that they blend better with fingers rather than a brush. This is the first stipple brush I've ever owned and I had thrown it into a drawer, deciding it's just easier to use my fingers for cream products. I recently took this out and tried it on a powder brush and finally discovered its purpose! This works so well to blend in powder blushes onto the cheek bones. It picks up a light amount of product and evenly distributes it onto the skin so you can blend it out for an airbrushed look.

It's a duo-fiber brush so it picks up the product and deposits it onto your skin without catching too much of the powder on the brush. It's a light brush and the hairs are more sparse than a regular blush brush but I find that it really gives a flawless, natural finish. The best part about this brush is the price - for just $3 you could easily stock up on these and have plenty of clean blush brushes ready to use! I'm definitely planning a Target run to pick up more of these stipple brushes! So glad I was able to put it to good use.

What do you use your stippling brushes for? Have you tried any other e.l.f. brushes? Let me know if there are any others worth trying!

Until next time! xoxo

GIVEAWAY - Products I Love (closed)

**Giveaway is now closed**

I've reached my first blogging milestone and I wanted to do a giveaway to thank my viewers. I have tried (and loved) all of the products in the giveaway and wanted to share them with you. Thank you for your views, your tweets, your comments, and support! I would love to continue to do this routinely to show my thanks and gratitude. I will list the rules for the giveaway at the end of the post. Here's what will be included in the giveaway...

e. l. f. Eyebrow Kit - This is my favorite dupe for all those brow duos - HD Brows, Anastasia, etc. This is a staple in my vanity. I use the gel side everyday on my brows to add shape and also help keep them in place. I've included this in the shade "medium."

Clinique Bottom Lash Mascara - I've done a review post about this mascara here. Love this!

Benefit Hervana Blush - Raved about this blush here.

e.l.f. Plumping Lip Glaze - these are double-sided glosses that plump and add color & shine. I've included these in the shades "oasis," "fuchsia fanatic," and "baby doll." Love these shades for fall.

The Body Shop Face Masks - I talked about these masks in my Nighttime Skincare Routine. I picked up the Tea Tree Mask, Vitamin E Sink-In Moisture Mask, and the Vitamin C Microdermabrasion (not technically a mask) sachets. I've done an in-depth review here. I also included the Seaweed Ionic Clay Mask, which I haven't tried (because it's not meant for my skin type) but it's part of the collection so I wanted to put that in the giveaway as well. 

Make Up For Ever - Mini Rouge Artist Natural moisturizing soft shine lipstick in the shade "Copper Pink" (N9). This is a sample size to test out the shade. I also have the mini version of this and I love it. This is a pricier item so it's nice to be able to test it out before you go for the full size. These lipsticks are infused with mother-of-pearl and they're super moisturizing.

Make Up For Ever Sens-eyes - This is a waterproof eye makeup remover. It's a creamy consistency similar to a cream cleanser, rather than the typical oil formulation. Sensitive on the eyes but gets the job done. This is also a miniature - perfect for traveling. 

NYX Butter Lip Balms - I recently discovered the butter lip balms and fell in love. I went back for more shades because I could wear these everyday. They're moisturizing and soft like a chapstick but they have a tint to them. I picked these up in the shades "red velvet" and "biscotti" - the perfect red and nude.

Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure Nail Polish - One of my all-time favs! I did a review on this nail polish collection here. I wear these polishes all the time and I love this grey shade ("Commander in Chic") for fall & winter. It lasts for ages without chipping.

L'Oreal Voluminous Original Mascara - My all-time favorite mascara! I love to try other mascaras, both high-end and drugstore, but I always go back to this one. It's just the absolute best. It's dark black, it thickens and adds volumes to lashes, but it also lengthens like crazy. I don't use this on bottom lashes because it can flake and smudge, but paired with the Clinique bottom lash - it's the perfect combo! 

Wet 'n' Wild Megalast retractable eyeliner - This is smudgable, very black, and retractable. This means it's always perfectly pointed and tapered at the tip. It even comes with a smudger on the other end. It lasts all day and it's super affordable. Always a handy staple.

Flowerbomb - This is a sample of my favorite perfume - Victor & Rolf's Flowerbomb. I save this fragrance for fall and winter because it's my absolute favorite and it's such a special scent. I definitely consider this a luxury because it is pretty pricey. This is a great sample - it's large enough to get tons of wear out of it so that you can test it out before you make a big purchase. It's slightly floral - with notes of orchid, rose, and jasmine, but has a muskier scent from the patchouli. The bottles (sample and regular sized) are all really beautiful as well. 

Sephora VIB Tote Bag - I will also include the Sephora VIB exclusive tote/shopping bag (pictured in back). 

**Giveaway Rules**

- Subscribe to my blog - you can do this with or without a google + account.

- Comment on this post telling me one of your all-time favorite beauty products.

- Follow me on Twitter (@beautyhisandlos) & Instagram @beautyhighsandlows

This giveaway will close on Friday, November 14th at 11:59pm (CST). A viewer who has subscribed to this blog, and followed the associated social media accounts will be chosen at random.

Benefit Gimme Brow Review

    

 I love this concept - a tinted brow gel with fibers to add thickness. I have very blonde brows so I'm always trying out new products to darken them, shape them, and keep them in place. I get my brows threaded to shape them, but I don't have much of an arch, so I use some type of gel or pencil to add some shape to them and no matter what I need a product to darken them. Even if my brows are dyed, I still like to fill them in at least slightly. It helps frame your face and your eyes especially. Benefit 'Gimme Brow' is a mascara-like product to help add thickness and volume to brows, while lightly tinting and holding them in place. It comes in a small tube (0.1 oz) with a tiny mascara brush inside. The range consists of 2 shades, light/medium and medium/deep. I use light/medium and it's the perfect light brown with ash tones. The formula itself is also very similar to mascara, with little fibers in it that are meant to attach to your brows to make them appear fuller. I have used this both on top of already filled in brows and alone, and I like it both ways, but for different reasons. On a "no makeup day" I sweep this onto my brows by itself for a little color and to keep them neat. It adds enough color to tint my brows without being a bold brow. On regular makeup days, I fill in my brows (I use the e.l.f. Studio Eyebrow Kit in medium) and then use the Gimme Brow as a setting gel and it adds some extra volume. I like the product for it's tint and it does keep my brows in place all day. Since I have lighter brows, I like anything that makes my brows appear darker and fuller. The only thing I don't like about Gimme Brow is that after a few weeks the product starts to build up on the end of the tube (at the opening) and gets dry and flakey. For some reason this is more of a problem with this than with any mascara I've ever used. 

     Gimme Brow typically goes for $22 and it has lasted me a couple months so far. Even though it has gotten dry on the opening of the tube, the consistency of the product inside hasn't changed. I think I will be able to continue using this tube for another month or two. I like the convenience of being able to swipe this on and I get a tint, additional thickness, and the hold that the gel provides all in one. I definitely think I'll repurchase this when it runs out. Once again, Benefit has made an excellent product!

*Note: The product claims to adhere to both skin and hair, however I don't agree. The tint will color your skin, but the fibers don't adhere to my skin. From my experience, the fibers only adhere to hair.

Here's where you can find Benefit Gimme Brow:
Benefit Cosmetics
Sephora
Ulta
Amazon (priced higher)