Urban Decay Ocho Loco 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil Set (Review and Swatches)

Urban Decay Ocho Loco 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil Set

When Urban Decay released this limited edition Ocho Loco 24/7 eye pencil set last year, I was all crazy about it. ha ha seriously! But I told myself, no you already have enough eye pencils. So when Sephora sent out free $15 reward card with $50 purchase, I thought I'd use it on this eye pencil set since this was something I really really want, and I know I'll get tons of use out of this set! I'm really glad that I got it. It's such a great value: 8 full-sized eye pencils plus one sharpener, $162 worth of product for only $59 (used $15 reward card, I actually paid $44). Aside from the amazing price tag, the overall pigmentation and formula are really great.

Urban Decay Ocho Loco 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil Set

Urban Decay Ocho Loco 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil Set

Urban Decay Ocho Loco 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil Set

Urban Decay Ocho Loco 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil Set

Urban Decay Ocho Loco 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil Set

Urban Decay Ocho Loco 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil Set

Swatches on bare skin, no primer used.

Left to right: Stash, Junkie, LSD, Perversion, Psychedelic Sister, Rockstar, Hustle, Mushroom

swatches on bare skin (no primer)

Left to right: Stash, Junkie, LSD, Perversion

 Stash: olive-green with gold shimmer. So beautiful and very wearable, and very pigmented in just one stroke. 

Junkie: blueish teal with gold and teal sparkles. Color payoff was quite good, but not as good as Stash.

LSD: dark, blackened navy blue with blue sparkles. The color payoff is the worst out of these 8 pencils. I did need to layer it for desired opacity. 

Perversion: is a really, really, really deep and rich black. I don't think I have any pencils that's blacker than this one. It has a matte finish which I love. The pigmentation is greaaaatttt! Sooo black, Love it!

Swatches on bare skin (no primer)

Left to right: Psychedelic Sister, Rockstar, Hustle, Mushroom

Psychedelic Sister: It's a medium to deep purple with luminous sheen, no glitter. I have this shade in eye shadow form, so beautiful. The color payoff is great, too!

Rockstar: is a dark eggplant purple with luminous sheen, no glitter. The purple is so dark that looks almost like brown, and the pigmentation is great! 

Hustle: is a medium-dark warm metallic brown with bronze shimmer. 

Mushroom: is a grayish brown taupe with sheen. So so so beautiful. one of my favorite!

Urban Decay Grindhouse Sharpener

In addition to 8 full-sized eye pencils, they included a double barrel pencil sharpener which is great. Once side for regular eye/lip pencil, one side for jumbo sized pencils. But I found NYX pencil sharpener is almost exactly the same as the Ueban Decay one, and works as great! See below pictures for comparison.

Left: NYX pencil sharpener (Black)

Right: Urban Decay Grindhouse Sharpener (Purple) 

They all have the same shape, same blade, same design. The only difference is the price tag, really. I use it since it's included in the set, but I will buy the NYX one if I were to buy a new sharpener. (NYX one was $3.99 when I bought it, so cheap, but great quality!)

All in all, I really really enjoy using these eye pencils. Wonderful pigmentation, creamy, long-wear and waterproof! Although I'm more of a neutral person, Junkie and LSD didn't get much use, still, it's a great value for 8 full-sized pencils. My top picks: Stash, Perversion, Rockstar, Hustle, Mushroom. Love it! And I found these don't irritate my sensitive eyes, which is a great plus! 

What do you think of this eye pencil set? What are your favorite Urban Decay 24/7 eye pencil shades?

L'Oreal Smoldering Plum Infallible Eye Shadow (Swatches and Review)

L'Oreal Smoldering Plum Infallible Eye Shadow 

L'Oreal infallible eye shadows were released for quite a long time (last year), and I have been passing these as I thought they might not live up to all the hypes. Couple weeks ago I did manage to pick up a couple at ULTA during their sale event (BOGO 1/2 Off + $5 Off with $10 Purchase). After playing around with these eye shadows, I was quite impressed with the color payoff as well as the lasting power.

Smoldering Plum is one of the new shades for Summer 2012. It's a rich, dark and intense blackened red toned brownish plum shade with a pretty subtle sheen/sparkle. The texture is creamy, soft and smooth. I like to use it for my outer v and sometimes along (and above) my upper lash line. I have tried it with and without eye shadow primer, either way, the color stay put for a pretty decent amount of time, at least 6-7 hours without primer and longer with primer! For application, I like to use damp brush and dip into the jar to get the eye shadow. This way there's less fallout and the color stays intense and rich even after it dries. 

L'Oreal Smoldering Plum Infallible Eye Shadow 

The jar is made out of plastic but it doesn't look cheap. I just wish there's plastic seal wrapped around so no one will dip their germy fingers at the stores trying to test out the colors... 

L'Oreal Smoldering Plum Infallible Eye Shadow 

When opened, there's a plastic press thing that you can use to compact and keep the eye shadow in place as the texture of the eye shadow is more like loose pigments, but in a compact form. They will loosen the more you use it so it is important to keep the "do not discard" plastic thing in the jar in the event you might need to re-press the eye shadow.

L'Oreal Smoldering Plum Infallible Eye Shadow 

L'Oreal Smoldering Plum Infallible Eye Shadow 

L'Oreal Smoldering Plum Infallible Eye Shadow

swatch with my finger (with flash) 

L'Oreal Smoldering Plum Infallible Eye Shadow 

Swatches on bare arm (without flash)

Left to right: lightly swatched ~ layered

L'Oreal Smoldering Plum Infallible Eye Shadow

Swatches on bare arm (with flash)

Left to right: lightly swatched ~ layered

Do you own any L'Oreal Infallible Eye Shadows? What shades have you tried? and What's your favorites?

L'Oreal Iced Latte Infallible Eye Shadow (Swatches and Review)

L'Oreal Infallible Eye Shadow 888 Iced Latte

L'Oreal infallible eye shadows were released quite a long time (last year), and I have been passing these as I thought they might not live up to all the hypes. Couple weeks ago I did manage to pick up a couple at ULTA during their sale event (BOGO 1/2 Off + $5 Off with $10 Purchase). After playing around with these eye shadows, I was quite impressed with the color payoff as well as the lasting power.

 

 L'Oreal Infallible Eye Shadow 888 Iced Latte

Iced Latte is a gorgeous champagne beige shade with a shimmering metallic finish. It is great for all over lids, inner corners, and center of the lids. But I love using this just for my inner corners for highlight. It instantly brighten up the eyes. Not so great for brow bones highlight as it has that shimmering metallic finish.

The jar is made out of plastic but it doesn't look cheap. I just wish there's plastic seal wrapped around so no one will dip their germy fingers at the stores trying to test out the colors... 

L'Oreal Infallible Eye Shadow 888 Iced Latte

When opened, there's a plastic press thing that you can use to compact and keep the eye shadow in place as the texture of the eye shadow is more like loose pigments, but in a compact form. They will loosen the more you use it so it is important to keep the "do not discard" plastic thing in the jar in the event you might need to re-press the eye shadow.

L'Oreal Infallible Eye Shadow 888 Iced Latte

L'Oreal Infallible Eye Shadow 888 Iced Latte

L'Oreal Infallible Eye Shadow 888 Iced Latte

Swatches on bare arm, no primer used, no flash

Left to right: lightly swatched ~ layered

L'Oreal Infallible Eye Shadow 888 Iced Latte

Swatches on bare arm, no primer used, with flash

Left to right: lightly swatched ~ layered

For application, I have tried using both brushes and fingers to apply. And I found it best to use finger to dab on the desired eye area first (so there's less fall out) and then blend away with brush. It has a silky creamy like texture with great pigmentation so a little goes a long way. The color payoff is great even without the use of eyeshadow primer. And it lasts pretty much the whole day! For $7~8 on a single drugstore eye shadow I think it's pretty pricey. So shop around, and I'm sure you'll find some good deals. I got mine for $3.22 each jar (after BOGO 1/2 off and coupons) I thought it's a awesome deal^^

Do you own any L'Oreal Infallible Eye Shadows? What shades have you tried? and What's your favorites?

Wet n Wild Blue Had Me At Hello Eyeshadow Palette and EOTD

Wet n Wild Blue Had Me At Hello Eyeshadow Palette

(Click image to view larger)

Last week during CVS's Wet n Wild BOGO FREE sale, I was going to pick up both Petal Pusher and Comfort Zone eyeshadow palettes. But the only 2 Comfort Zone left on the display were all shattered so I told myself, ok, I already have enough neutrals, maybe I should try some "colors" so I grabbed this along with Petal Pusher to the cashier. (for review/swatches/eye makeup look on Petal Pusher, click here)

Urban Decay Naked2 Palette (Swatches and Review)

I don't know why I've never post anything about my beloved Naked2 palette. I got it from Sephora in April this year during their 15% off sale event (my haul here) and have been using it mostly on a everyday basis! I love this palette and it's been my go-to everyday neutral palette since then. So here we go...

Wet n Wild Petal Pusher Eyeshadow Palette and EOTD

Another item I got early this week during CVS's Wet n Wild Buy One Get One FREE sale. Petal Pusher is a great eyeshadow palette for purple eye makeup looks. I didn't expect much when I pick this up, but I'm glad I got it! The pigmentation especially the darker shades are great, and the colors are just gorgeous. 

Lancôme Color Design Lipstick - Pale Lip

Lately I have been so obsessed with this Lancome Color Design lipstick in the shade Pale Lip. I got this in a Lancome Gift with Purchase at Nordstrom a while ago. Lancome describes this as a cream pale muted soft pink. I really love this lip color! It goes so well with pretty much everything - smokey eye or very minimal makeup! I have medium to fair (NC20~25) with yellow undertone and a lot of neutral pale/light pink lipsticks wash me off (or look dead), but definitely not this one! Pale Lip is so beautiful, and has a fabulous wear, very hydrating with the perfect amount of pigmentation!

Koji Dolly Wink Liquid Eyeliner

Koji Dolly Wink Liquid Eyeliner in Deep Black

When it comes to liquid eyeliner, I am no expert. I prefer pencil eyeliners or gel/cream eyeliners as they are easier to control. Last month when my sister visited me, she brought me this Dolly Wink liquid eyeliner. I've been wanted to try this Japanese liquid eyeliner for quite a long time because I've heard/read so many good reviews. And I was pretty happy I gave this a try!

Sephora Beauty Insider 500-Point Reward: Laura Mercier - Flawless Colour Shimmer, Shadow & Shine Set

I have been waiting for so long for Sephora to release their new beauty insider 500-point reward that I might be interested in. This Monday I saw their new reward which is this Laura Mercier makeup kit hit my inbox and I thought this might be something I will like. So I decided to use my points for this kit. Very lovely.

Shiseido Natural Eyebrow Pencil - Natural Black

I LOVE this eyebrow pencil from Shiseido! It was truly one of my favorite 'new-find' beauty products for the past month! I got the shade Natural Black (GY901), a grayish black that's great for my natural black hair. It goes on super natural and beautiful like I have natural fuller eyebrows. ^^

MAC Studio Finish Concealer SPF 35 (NC30)

MAC Studio Finish Concealer SPF 35 (NC30) 7g/.24 US OZ 

($18.00 as of  August/2012)

Even since I used Make Up For Ever's Mat Velvet + foundation (my review here, it's still my favorite foundation!), I found myself  skipping concealer quite often because of Mat Velvet+'s great coverage. But in summer when I want less foundation or go foundation-free and use BB cream instead, Studio Finish Concealer from MAC works just great. Plus it has SPF 35, which adds another protection to sun spots or any hyperpigmentations! 

Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain (Rendezvous and Sweetheart)

Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain

Top to bottom: 040 Rendezvous, 025 Sweetheart

Last week I reviewed 3 Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in Honey, Darling, and Cherish. I love them so much that I got 2 more in early this week from CVS^^ (they're running a great deal this week! run get them if you want to try these, it's the time!^^) I was surprised that these balm stains didn't receive as much hype as the lip butters, seriously, these balm stains are way way better in my opinion. They have better and longer (well...way longer!!!) lasting power, pigmentations are wonderful, and they even hydrate and moisturize the lips better than lip butters! I also love the packaging, the minty scent and the superior "stain" performance. 

Christian Dior Diorskin Forever Compact Foundation SPF 25 PA++

I have dry skin, and not a fan of powder foundation, but this Diorskin Forever Compact from Christian Dior is an exception for me! My sister introduced this powder foundation to me about a couple years ago and I loved it! Even though I still prefer liquid foundation for everyday makeup basis, but when I am in a rush and need something super quick or when I am out for a longer period of time and need some touch-ups, this is it! It also has SPF 25, PA++ which is another great plus! It's super easy and quick to apply and it provides a pretty nice coverage. Since the weather is getting a lot warmer, I started to use this more often. (my skin was too dry in the winter time so I usually skip this and save it for the warmer months) I believe his product has been changed to a newer packaging (here) which I think is nicer! I haven't got the chance to get the newer pkg as this is one of my stock-up items I just started to use^^

Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain (Honey, Darling, Cherish)

Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain

Top to bottom: 001 Honey, 010 Darling, 015 Cherish

These have been my go to everyday lip products for the past month especially the 001 Honey shade and I absolutely LOVE it! I thought I'd never give up my NARS velvet matte lip pencil (here), but I was wrong. These balm stains are my new favorite, yes, they're that good! They looked and packaged very similar to Clinique's Chubby Stick lip colour balm or tarte's LipSurgence lip tint, yet in a more affordable price tag with fabulous quality! I was very impressed! (retail for $8.99, I got mine for $5.39 each after 40% off sale at Rite Aid^^)

Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain

Left to right: 001 Honey, 010 Darling, 015 Cherish

Revlon Colorburst Lip Butter

Revlon Colorburst Lip Butter 

Left to right: Strawberry Shortcake, Peach Parfait, Lollipop

Last Friday I got my very first Revlon Colorburst Lip Butter in the shade Strawberry Shortcake. (my haul here) I tried it and liked how it felt on my lips as well as the butter like application that I went back and bought another two shades, Peach Parfait and Lillipop.

Left to right: Strawberry Shortcake, Peach Parfait, Lollipop

Revlon Colorstay Whipped Creme Makeup (Swatches and Review)

Since I got this highly rave Revlon Colorstay Whipped Creme Makeup foundation last week at Rite Aid (my haul here), I've been using it for a full week now. I thought I'd share my thoughts and comparison swatches here. Although this is my first time using drugstore foundation, I must say I'm pretty pleased with this one (staying power, coverage, etc.). Keep reading to find out why :) 

Rite Aid/Revlon Haul

Long time no blog ♥ and Happy Friday (the 13th^^) Today I picked up some beauty items from my local Rite Aid because they have 40% off sale all Revlon cosmetics! I thought I'd take advantage of this opportunity to try something I've been wanted to try... so here they are!

NYX Mega Shine Lip Gloss - LG131 Golden Pink (Swatch and Review)

Hello ♥ Recently I have been loving this mega shine lip gloss from NYX in the shade Golden Pink. I picked this up at ULTA a while ago, and absolutely love it since then!!! Golden Pink is a beautiful pink (between baby pink and rosy pink, not too dark or too light) with super fine shimmers. The texture is wonderful, not sticky at all and the lasting power is pretty great! I especially love to layer this on top of my NARS lip pencil, so lovely!

Tarte Amazonian Clay 12-hour Blush - Blissful

This is a long lasting warm peachy pink blush, so beautiful. It's very similar to NARS Deep Throat blush, but without the shimmers and has better and more natural ingredients! I was looking for a peachy pink matte blush and thought I'd give tarte amazonian clay 12-hour blush a try as I've heard a lot of good reviews. It certainly did not disappoint me. The color is very beautiful and natural. Even though I haven't tried to test it for its 12-hour claim, but 6-7 hours lasting power on me I think it's pretty great!