Tell Me How You Feel....Part 3

Greetings!

It is almost the weekend and once again here is another installment of a discussion post.  This week I want to know how important is it to you that you have good skin.  When I type "good skin" I mean a face with little to no blemishes, little scar marks, dark spots, things of that sort.  I am curious to know because recently I met a woman who said that having good skin was irrelevant to her, all she needs is for her makeup to look good.  *crickets*  Whilst her face is reminiscent of a porous planet in our solar system.......cough.......Saturn.........cough........lol 

Now I know that a part of having a flawless makeup application is having great skin, a smooth enough surface that will enhance your beauty and not diminish it by trying to cover up texture and other underlying face issues.  In my humble opinion I think having great skin is actually better than having all the NARS products that I can fit in my makeup kit because I know at the end of the day it's my face that I have to live with and I am making sure that I preserve it so that I'm looking tight in my 60s! lol 

What I do think is that a lot of woman contribute their confidence to the makeup they have as if having that certain holy grail product saves them from having to actually face the dark circles they see every morning.  I take great pride in taking care of my skin and making sure that I am not too dependent on the crutch of cosmetics.  I can honestly say that I feel just as beautiful walking around the city without makeup as I do with it on, why? because I know that makeup comes off and it is really the person inside that makes you exude beauty, not that limited edition blush.  But alas, that is my sole opinion.  I want to hear yours!

What is more important to you?  Good skin? or Flawless makeup application?  or  Do you think they go together?  Tell me in the comments!  :)

Urban Decay Rollergirl Palette--The Deets

Greetings!

I hope everyone is enjoying hump-day and looking forward to their weekend plans! :)  As for me, I look forward to burying my head in a sea of research journals and books preparing for a huge paper that I have due at the end of the semester (extreme sarcasm).  Well, it must be done!  But in between that writing I will be hauling and scouring the internet for awesome makeup finds that I haven't tapped into yet.  Just recently this scouring led me to the annual Urban Decay Friends & Family sale that allows consumers 20% off all purchases including sale items!  Of course I took advantage of this because I already knew that some of their sale items were already cheap and with the added bonus of 20% off I couldn't resist.

I was surely surprised when I happened upon this sale because it wasn't really marketed as much as it usually is which surprised  me because I know so many devoted fans to the brand.  *shrugs*  More for me I guess. lol

I hauled two items which I will be separating in two posts because of time constraints at the moment but I know you all don't mind.  This post is dedicated to the Rollergirl palette that normally retails at around $36 but with it being in the sale section of the site and with an added 20% off I got it for about $11.50.  I squealed in excitement too because I was always interested but never willing to dish out that much money.

Here's the product packaging:

Front View

Back View

Binding View

I really appreciate Urban Decay for gracing the cover of this palette with a Black woman that is donning natural hair.  It lets me know that they know who their consumers are and appreciate us for helping make their brand a staple in the makeup community.  Kudos!  I always like how Urban Decay's palettes are like books in that they have sturdy binding and decorative covers and this was no different.

Now let's get to the good stuff:

Here lays the beauty that is within, lol.  The palette consists of four eyeshadows, (from left to right) Woodstock, Verve, Suspect, and a repeating culprit, Darkhouse, one of my favorite and also limited edition eyeliner pencil, Whiskey, and a mini size lip junkie in Crush.

The eyeshadows are all very beautiful and extremely pigmented as is expected of Urban Decay, no surprise there.  The pencil is smooth and offers good color payoff.  The lip gloss on the other hand is quite sheer though not a deal breaker, what did turn me off is the weird minty/vanilla smell.  I may just end up giving this to my mom who doesn't mind wearing a sheer color on her lips.

Below are swatches:

Urban Decay Eyeshadow in Verve

Urban Decay Eyeshadow in Suspect

Urban Decay Eyeshadow in Woodstock

Urban Decay Eyeshadow in Darkhorse

Urban Decay 24/7 Eyeliner Pencil in Whiskey

Urban Decay Lip Junkie in Crush

Overall, I love this palette!  The packaging is terribly cute and versatile, I look forward to using this on trips for easy access without the hassle of looking for a gazillion single eyeshadows.  Look forward to seeing me use this in a FOTD, when? I don't know, lol.  I would recommend to those who are interested and at a price like $13 (the sale is over but the price is still reasonable) you should!

What do you think?  Yay or Nay?  Do you have this palette already?

Might Not Make It- Wet n Wild H2O Proof Liquid Eyeliner

Greetings!

I hope you all enjoyed your weekend, I know I did!  I spent time at my city's fair with my nephew and had an "interesting" time.  I don't know what it is about going to these things but as I get older I realize how much emphasis I used to put in attending these types of events from the outfit to how much games I won, now I'm just glad to get in a funnel cake without feeling guilty afterward, LOL.  Enough about that, let's get into the review, shall we?

As some of you may know I have been on the search for a decent liquid eyeliner ever since my favorite ran out a couple of months ago and since then I have been on a search for a new favorite.  I first wanted to start on the drugstore brands first and work my way up to the more costly liners.  I happened across this Wet N Wild H2O Proof liquid eyeliner at my local drugstore and figured since it was priced right at $1.99 I'd give it a try.  The color I chose is in Black-Brown, a darkened brown that leans more black than brown.  See for yourself.

One Pass

Two Passes

Let's first start with the obvious, definitely not an opaque liner, even with two passes it was still giving me streaky pay off, a no go for me as I do not have the time to wait for it to dry and then give another passing.  The color is pretty spot on in terms of color name.  There was no scent to this product which is wonderful for those afraid of scented cosmetics, then again, I don't think I've ever heard of scented eyeliner, lol.

Next, is the packaging, pretty weird but I don't really care, I'm more concerned with the product than I am the packaging but for those of you that care, here goes.

The actual product is in the lower half of the packaging and the long silver part is the liner brush/sponge/toothpick.....more on that soon.  I felt with this kind of packaging that I would get a brush applicator but I was sadly disappointed when I pulled it out and saw this:

From your perspective it looks like a soft, felt-tip applicator but in reality it is not.  Applying this to the lids is the equivalent to taking a toothpick to do the job of applying eyeliner.  I was definitely bothered by this because I was expecting more.  It is flexible when swatching but when actually doing the job as eyeliner my eyes were not pleased.  The color was NOT opaque and takes a good 2 minutes to dry.  :(

Now I bet your curious, "Is it really waterproof?"  First of all, this product does not claim to last for a certain amount of time but I took it upon myself to swatch it on my hand at 3PM and check back at 3PM the next day.  Keep in mind I was washing my hands, washing my hair, greasing my scalp, washing dishes, etc.  This did not budge so if you're looking for a waterproof liner this may be it.  Here's how it looks after that 24 hours:

Minor cracking but overall it lasts.  I'm pretty sure that you all wouldn't be wearing liquid liner for 24 hours but I wanted to show you how this product held up to its waterproof claim.  I think it did pretty well.

Overall, I would not recommend this product because of the liner applicator and the lack of color opacity.  I know there is better out there than this and I wouldn't want you to succumb to this. 

So what do you think?  Have you tried this liquid eyeliner before?  Do you use it?  Do you like it/ hate it? 

Revlon Photo Ready Perfecting Primer Review

Greetings!

Remember a few weeks ago when I blogged about my love affair with face primers?  I promised to do a more thorough review once I was able to use it for a while.  Well, I think I got more than enough use out if it and I must say that I am impressed, then again, Revlon rarely disappoints.  Here is what the company says:

Revlon’s NEW primers are lightweight primers that soften skin and diffuse light to help minimize flaws and even out skin texture. It creates a perfect canvas so that your foundation will glide on more evenly and smoothly. Primers can be worn alone or under foundation, and are oil free, talc free, fragrance free, paraben free.

Try Revlon PhotoReady™ Perfecting Primer to soften skin, reduce the appearance of pores and fine lines, and smooth skin texture and tone.

Source 

Yup, everything stated is just about right!  Using this primer made my skin look and feel and look noticeably smoother.  I loved the fact that it didn't have a greasy feeling after application like other face primers can do.  If anything it feels more like a regular skin lotion than a face primer and I like that alot.  There is no scent to it which is good for those that are sensitive to cosmetic scents.  The product comes in a pump much like its foundation counterpart that dispenses just enough product.  

Another thing I really appreciated about this product is that my face was less oily throughout the day.  Normally my face can get oiler in my t-zone later in the day but with this product I was left with a matte face.  Also, I tried using this sans foundation and the results were the same.  My skin was left matte and my pores looked smaller.  

I honestly can't find anything negative to say about this product because it worked so well for me.  If I had to chose a gripe it would be the glass bottle it comes in, this could be a problem for those that travel.  I knew I had that concern when I took it with me on a recent flight.  

The price and availability of this product is decent too.  It can be purchased at your local drugstore between $8 and $11, and if I were you too, I'd get this when Revlon is having their Buy One, Get One 50% sales, that way you can get two, ;).

I hope you all found this review helpful and I really hope that it works as well for you as it did for me.  

What do you think?  Yay or Nay?   

 

Tell Me How You Feel....Part 2

Greetings!

Last week I blogged about the hype surrounding limited edition cosmetic products and how quick they are to sell leaving many of us kicking shrouds of dust around us bitter and disappointed at others "I need to have" mentality.  I was actually surprised at how many of you felt about the topic and I'm glad that I am able to share those thoughts with you.  Since it was received so well I've decided to make it a weekly post here at Cosmetic Diet because frankly, I have alot of thoughts when it comes to beauty and I feel that it will benefit us all if we have a platform to discuss these issues, after all, a pretty face doesn't always mean a pretty mind.  So let's get on with today's topic, shall we?

Imagine yourself walking across the street, face done, hair done, nails done, only to have someone misconstrue your desire to be "done up" with the idea that you're trying to snag a man.  Assuming that most of you don't apply makeup or spend hours at the salon for a man's affirmation of your beauty, I think that others who persistently identify your good looks with trying to find a companion are ridiculous.  Granted, as women, we have the tendency to perhaps spritz that perfume that he likes or wear those bangles he complimented you on the last time you wore them because hey, you like to be admired.  But for the most part, you should be doing these things for you not him, her, or they. 

"Why are you always dressed up all nice like that? "  Why the hell not?!  Who doesn't want to wear nice clothes, look presentable with some blush and mascara?  Instead you may be questioned on your motives and not how your confidence level allows you to stand a little straighter, walk alot stronger, and speak a little louder all because you took the extra time out to make sure that your eyeshadow was blended well.  I cannot describe how these types of questions used to irk me back in undergrad from those who would walk around campus with pajamas and slippers.  Excuse me for having the decency to actually give a damn about my appearance.  At first it would bother me because I felt that maybe I should dress down a bit, but that thought process was quickly dwindled when I thought about the woman that I wanted to be.  I am strong believer in "act the part, be the part," if I look like a milliion bucks, well damn it, I am and who's to tell me otherwise.

I know often in the beauty community many of us get these same comments, questions, and side looks from others because we like the process of enhancing our beauty because we know it can be the difference between being greeted at the door by the help or being mistaken for the help.......

So what do you think about this topic?  Tell me in the comments. :)