Disappointing Product: Maybelline Dream Lumi Touch highlighting concealer

Sorry, Maybelline, I still love you... but this product was a miss for me. I picked up the Dream Lumi Touch highlighting concealer hoping it would be a similar product (maybe even a dupe) to the YSL Touche Eclat, which is a pricey $41. The Dream Lumi Touch is around $8 so I thought I'd give it a try. I was pretty disappointed with the product. Disclaimer: I have not yet mustered the strength to splurge on the YSL original, so I can't compare the two. I can only tell you what I thought about the Maybelline version on its own - compared only to my thoughts on how it should or is supposed to look. The YSL touche éclat is definitely on my wish list, but a major splurge item. 

There are tons of Maybelline products that I love, but I do find it hit and miss with skin products sometimes. I believe this is solely because of my skin tone. Maybelline tends to be on the warmer side of the spectrum and a lot of their face products can be too warm or too orange on my skin. This is no fault of the brand, it just simply doesn't work as well as some other brands with my skin tone. That being said, I still have several Maybelline foundations, concealers, powders, etc. that do work with my skin and look great. 

The shade I picked out is a pink-toned highlighting color. I knew I would be using this as a highlight rather than a concealer. I understand the same is true with the YSL product - it's not so much an under-eye concealer as it is a highlighting pen - meant to highlight, not necessarily cover up. Because I had read reviews on the touche éclat, I went for a pinky/salmon shade rather than a normal "ivory" shade because I wanted to test this out as a YSL dupe, rather than just another under eye concealer. I was planning to use this on my cheekbones as a creamy highlighting product.

My first complaint is the packaging. I'm not a big fan of the twist-up brush applicators. As you can see in the photo, things get messy pretty quickly. The packaging also felt very light and cheap, which is probably true as it only costs $8. Also, I had to twist forever to get any product to come out. Another reason I hate this sort of packaging is because you can't tell how much product you're dispensing. I might twist 5 times and get nothing... so I twist another 5 times and tons of concealer comes spewing out. My advice is twist slowly and be patient. The color is my second complaint. I know I chose a rosy shade (radiant 310), but it's much too pink. It comes off as a salmon color that's a little too orange and a little too pink. It just doesn't look good on my skin. I think I could possibly make the shade work better if it had a different formulation, but the consistency of the product is my biggest and final complaint. It's thick and dry... it doesn't blend well or easily and it ends up just being a cakey mess. You can see the lines where the highlight ends and your skin begins. It never seems to blend in seamlessly no matter what application method I try. 

You may be able to tell just from the photo how it settles into fine lines, looks thick and cakey, and doesn't have the right silky consistency that these type of products need to look good. You can also see the color here - it's a very bold salmon color that just isn't flattering on my skin tone. I have not tried any other shades of this product simply because I wasn't a fan of the formulation, but I could have just picked the wrong shade for my coloring. Maybe I should have gone with my trusty "ivory" pick, instead. I don't think I'll be finishing this product as I can't figure out a way to use it that works. 

Have you tried the Dream Lumi Touch highlighter? What were your thoughts? I'm also open to other drug store highlighting pen suggestions! I will still keep the YSL touche éclat on my list - let me know your thoughts on that as well! Is it worth the splurge?! Let me know in the comments!

Until next time! xoxo

MAC bronzing powder & Sigma F05 Brush Reviews

MAC Bronzing Powder in "Golden" & Sigma Small Contour F05 Brush

Bronzer can be really tricky when you have fair skin. It takes a lot of trial and error to find the perfect one, and when you do - you tend to stick to it. I have been using this bronzing powder by MAC for years, and I always come back to it. It is probably my holy-grail bronzer. As always, the quality is very good and it's just formulated really nicely. I don't use a lot of bronzers, but this has always been a staple in my makeup drawer. It's not matte, but it isn't shimmery either. It has a glow to it, but it's subtle enough that this can still be used as a contour shade. I use this not only as a cheek bone contour  but all over my face, too. Golden is the lightest shade, and it's the perfect color for my skin tone. I struggle to find a good bronzer because they're always much too dark and I have to dip my brush in very lightly, be sure to dust off most of the product, and then blend like crazy to make sure it doesn't look scary. I also struggle with finding bronzers that don't show up orange. In my opinion, an orange face is one of the biggest makeup faux pas. This is light, but buildable. I start off with just a little, and if I wanted a more intense contour, or to add more color to my face, I can build up the color to be pretty dark. I definitely see myself continuing to repurchase this - even if I try out other products, it's nice to have this as a trusted back-up. On darker skin tones, this would give a really nice glow all over the skin, perfect in the summer. 

I recently placed an order with Sigma specifically for a small counter brush. I found the F05 small contour brush and knew it would be perfect. I'm a big fan of Sigma brushes - I always check their website before I look anywhere else. They are really high quality brushes - right up there with MAC brushes, but they're a fraction of the price. Literally, they are half the price of MAC brushes. This small contour brush is $21 which, in my mind, is still a lot to spend on one makeup brush. The MAC version of this particular brush is a whopping $35. I still think the $21 was a splurge, but I had really been wanting a small brush with this exact shape just for contouring, which is something I do quite a lot, so I felt it would be worth it. As usual, I was not let down! I love this brush - it's perfect for contouring. It gets right into the hollow space under my cheekbone for a really precise application. As with all Sigma brushes, it's super soft and never sheds. Another perk about shopping with Sigma is that they always have a promotion or sale going on. Free shipping? Yes, please!

These two products are a match made in heaven. I have been using them together daily and have a feeling they will be making their way into my January favorites! What are your favorite bronzers? I would love to try out a good drugstore bronzing powder. Let me know in the comments!

Until next time... xoxo



PS - Don't forget to check out my "52 Books in 52 Weeks" book giveaway! 

Clinique Bottom Lash Mascara Review

Bottom lash mascara. At first I found myself questioning the necessity of a mascara specifically for bottom lashes. However, if you pay attention to your bottom lashes throughout the day you might notice smudging, flaking, smearing, etc. I started to notice these problems and then I realized I had just been dealing with it... constantly wiping under my eyes and checking my eye makeup in the mirror to make sure I didn't have raccoon eyes. When I first heard about Clinique Bottom Lash Mascara, I thought that it was a good idea, but maybe slightly unnecessary, but I decided to base my final decision on the price.

I was happily surprised to find the tiny mascara at Sephora for only $10. I decided to give it a try and I'm so happy I did. I can't go a day without this mascara, now. It comes in black & black/brown - I'm currently using it in 'black.' I love this product so much and can't imagine ever switching back to a regular mascara for tiny bottom lashes. The brush is sized perfectly and applies mascara neatly and precisely without clumping. I even use this on my upper lashes sometimes in the inner corner where my lashes are very small. This mascara never smudges or flakes. This summer, with temperatures in the triple digits, I never had a problem with my bottom lashes melting or smearing. 

I can swipe this on quickly at the end of my makeup routine to coat my bottom lashes and go. I don't have to worry about wiping away flecks of mascara or cleaning my under eye area. It makes my bottom lashes stand out and it's extremely convenient. I will definitely continue to repurchase this product. Its formulation makes me want to try other Clinique mascaras (which, by the way, are all priced very well). 

You can find this at Clinique booths in department stores or online, Sephora, and anywhere that sells Clinique cosmetic products. 

Benefit 'They're Real!' Review (Mascara & Liner)

     This summer, Benefit launched their "They're Real!" range. It includes a mascara, push-up liner, and eye makeup remover. I purchased the mascara and liner from Sephora in August and I wanted to share my review of them with you. These products have received tons of reviews and most of them seem to be positive. If you haven't jumped on the bandwagon yet, read my review and you can decide for yourself.

Benefit 'They're Real!' Mascara - I have really loved this mascara. I'm usually not a fan of plastic brushes, but this mascara has changed my mind. It's not only a plastic brush, but it has some bristles on the tip of the brush so that you can use the wand vertically as well. This is great for outer lashes and the inner corner. I love the formulation of this mascara, too. It's a thin consistency and it separates lashes, but mostly, it adds serious length. It really gives the appearance that you're wearing false lashes. One coat of this is plenty, and I even like it for bottom lashes since it's waterproof. It's priced perfectly at $23; I will definitely repurchase when it's used up! 

Benefit 'They're Real!' Push-Up Liner - I'm sorry to say I hated this product so much I returned it immediately. The concept has potential... I like the idea of the flexible chisel tip, but the consistency of the liner was way too thick. It was really difficult to apply and I wasn't able to ever get the wing right. The liner was too thick so it was difficult to apply accurately and ended up being clumpy and all over the place. It seems like you have to push some liner out and then wipe it on the back of your hand to get rid of the excess product. When I tried to clean up my mistakes, I could not get it off. I had to dig around for all different kinds of eye makeup remover until I found one that could remove this and even then I had to scrub. I don't like anything that's too difficult to take off my eyes because the skin around the eyes is so sensitive and delicate I hate to agitate it. I put this liner back into its box and returned it the next day. I have read reviews saying it took some time to get used to, but I just couldn't handle the consistency long enough to get better at application. Maybe I was too impatient but this was a very disappointing product. If you DO end up purchasing, I would definitely try out the makeup remover also, because it's impossible to get off otherwise. The liner goes for $24 at Sephora.

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)

For the Love of Makeup Wipes...

I LOVE makeup wipes. I fully depend on them. If I'm out of makeup removing wipes I make a mad-dash to Target no matter what time of day it is. I've been using them for years and while I do have my favorites, it's hard for me to turn down a makeup wipe. Here's why I love them...

Late nights. Makeup removing wipes are perfect when you're too tired to get up and wash your face. If you've been out late and you need to fall into bed immediately... they're a lifesaver. I keep a pack in my nightstand for nights when I've already gotten into bed but then remember I haven't taken off my makeup (the worst feeling ever). I used to think this is a horrible habit and that it would leave me terribly broken out in the morning, but it actually doesn't (more on that later).

Pre-face wash. When I wash my face, I typically like to remove my makeup before I use my facial cleanser. That way I know that my cleanser got to actually do some work on my skin, and it wasn't wasted simply removing my makeup. Sometimes I'll use a wipe to do this, sometimes a cleansing oil, etc.

Quick. I don't know about you, but I love the feeling of removing makeup. It doesn't bother me to have a full face of makeup on all day, but I enjoy the feeling of a freshly cleansed face. Especially in the summer. Sometimes if I get home from a long day or I come home and know I'm done for the day, I take off my makeup as soon as I get in. I just remove it with a wipe and then when I'm ready for bed I can cleanse and go through with my usual routine, but that way you don't have makeup sitting on your face for unnecessary lengths of time. This is a good idea when you're having a breakout. Let your skin breathe as much as possible. This is also handy sometimes when you're putting on makeup. Wipes can be useful to clean up liner or shadow or a mascara fleck. I also usually carry a pack of wipes in my yoga bag, so that if I come to yoga with makeup on, I can take it off before class to avoid running mascara/breakouts/etc.

I can't get away with using wipes as my ONLY cleanser, but I do find that they clean my skin well enough to stave off breakouts if I use them periodically. My favorite wipes at the moment are the Burt's Bees Facial Cleansing Towelettes with White Tea Extract. The towels have just enough liquid, they're not greasy, and the smell is really nice and fresh. I tried the Cucumber & Sage version and they were a little rough on my under-eye area, and I wasn't a fan of the smell. The Burt's Bees wipes are one of the cheapest options, which is (pleasantly) surprising because they're all natural. I also like the Simple Skincare Cleansing Facial Wipes. They're also all natural, have a non-offensive smell, and I like to formulation. For many years I used various Neutrogena wipes, but haven't gone back to them because they're usually the priciest and I've been enjoying my other options.

Do you ever rely on makeup wipes? Which are your favorites and how do you use them?


Products mentioned in this blog:
Burt's Bees Facial Cleansing Towelettes
Simple Skincare Cleansing Facial Wipes
Neutrogena Makeup Remover Cleansing Towelettes