Review: Clinique Lash Doubling Mascara

Hello, my Pretties!

As you all know by reading my blog, I am not one to buy "high end" makeup products. I am more of a "drugstore" makeup kind of gal. And I am alright with that. The only reasons I ever even have high end makeup is because it was a gift or something like that. I don't like to shell out so much money for one single item. I tell you, I'm a frugalista!

For instance, my sister gave me this mini, I guess trial size, mascara by Clinique. I've only bought Clinique once in my whole life and that was back in high school because I wanted the free makup bag with a $22.50 purchase or more. Something like that.

I love their products but not the prices so much.

So anyway, my sister gave me the Clinique Lash Doubling Mascara in Black and I love it. She gave it to me because she thought the formula was too wet. Which it was. Every time I would apply it, I got the little black dots on my eyelids. Ugh! But, as all mascaras eventually do, it started to dry up.

I love the length this mascara gives me. I have semi long lashes that naturally curl up. I like that. I don't like that they are somewhat sparse, to me, at least. I get complimented on my lashes a lot but I've noticed that they are not as thick as they used to be. Maybe it's old age...

This is the one item I have been using religiously. Even on days that I don't want to wear makeup at all, the only thing I do wear is this mascara. It makes my lashes look so much longer and therefore, my eyes appear much more open and bright. And without makeup, it seems like they are my natural lashes!

Here are some pics so that you can see the difference between my natural lashes and my lashes after a couple of coats of this mascara. I am not wearing any kind of makeup in these pictures, only the mascara.

Clinique Lash Doubling Mascara in Black.
Full size product retails for $14.50.

Wand.
I like that it gets tapered off because that allows me
to get into the corner of my eye and get those tiny lashes.

My natural lashes.

My lashes after 2 coats of Clinique's Lash Doubling Mascara.
Looks like my natural lashes just better!

See the difference?
Eye on the left: with mascara.
Eye on the right: without mascara.

I don't know. What do you, Pretties think? I, personally, like this mascara very, very much.

According to the Clinique website, http://www.clinique.com, this specific mascara costs $14.50. It's benefits are "volumizing and thickening". It also shows a 4 out of 5 star rating. Good deal. Since this was a mini mascara, and I've been using it everyday for such a long time now, I need a new one and I am seriously thinking about "splurging" on this item and handing over the $14.50 plus tax.

I love it.

But I'm always looking for good mascaras because it's the one makeup item I cannot be without. So, leave me your recommendations for your favorite must have mascaras in the comment box. I'd love to see what you  ladies love.

Luv & Luk,
--L.

Almay Intense I-Color Trio for Hazels

At the end of last month, I won a giveaway hosted by Nicole V. of NV Beauty and I was so thrilled!! I don't have much luck when it comes to giveaways so this was so unexpected.

I blogged about this prize I won, already, which you can check out HERE. Nicole included much more than just the eyeshadow trio I was hoping for. So go take a peek and see.

This post is to focus on the main prize, the reason why I entered the giveaway in the first place. Nicole was giving away an Almay eyeshadow trio. I've never tried Almay before and the swatches that she showed off were so pretty.

Here, take a look and see for yourselves.

Almay intense i-color
trio for hazels

Directions on how to apply shadows.

Eyeshadows in the pan with flash.
Platinum (top shade)
Charcoal (middle shade)
Steel Gray (bottom shade)

Fingertip swatches with flash.

Swatches on hand with flash.

Eyeshadows in the pan without flash.
Platinum (top shade)
Charcoal (middle shade)
Steel Gray (bottom shade)

Fingertip swatches without flash.

Swatches on hand without flash.

Wearing the shadows as per package directions.

Obviously, I don't have hazel eyes but I loved these shadows. I believe that anyone with any eye color can wear any eyeshadow they want.

These colors are so pretty. I loved them all but my most favorite is the bottom shade, the steel gray shade. It is such a pretty shimmery taupe color. I loved it. I think it will look very nice all on its own for days that I don't feel like doing a full face of makeup.

All three shadows are shimmery and very soft. They apply very easily due to their great pigmentation. Blending these shadows was not a problem at all.

Thank you, Nicole, for choosing this trio as your giveaway prize. It's so great!

Luv & Luk,
--L.

♥♥ Products mentioned in this post were free to me. I won this item in a giveaway hosted by a fellow beauty blogger. These are my own thoughts and honest opinions. ♥♥

Review: Born Pretty Part 3

OK, here is the final part of my Born Pretty review.

The nail polish.

I ordered the Violet Color Matt Dull Polish Nail Enamel Nail Art Polish Item ID: 1030. You can see the webpage HERE.

This is what I ordered.

This is what I got.

Yay! When I took the nail polish out of all the wrapping, which I am so happy for because it arrived in perfect condition, I was happy to see that the actual bottle looked like the one on the website.

With flash.

Pretty color.
Typical brush.

One coat of Violet.

After 2 coats of Violet.

Two coats of this was all it took to get full coverage. I am in love with this color. I really am. I do enjoy matte finishes in nail polishes and purple is my favorite nail color so this was a win win for me.

The application was effortless. It applied smoothly. It was not thick or too thin. It was not gloopy or clumpy at all. The smell, I would say, was a little bit stronger than most nail polishes. Downside.

This nail polish did give me 3 days wear without any chipping. That's average for me. My nail polish never lasts too long on me. I work with my hands too much. And my favorite part was when I removed this polish. There was no staining of nails left behind! I have had that problem quite often. Sometimes when I use blues and dark greens, my nails are stained after I remove with nail polish remover. I was hoping not to have that problem and I didn't. Big plus!

Over all, this nail polish was a winner for me. I did get compliments on it and I even have my sisters who want to borrow it. That's a good thing.

Great polish. Great price. Good stuff.

Luv & Luk,
--L.

♥♥ Items mentioned in this post were sent to me by http://www.bornprettystore.com for review purposes. These are my own thoughts and honest opinions. I did not receive monetary compensation, but I did get the products for free. ♥♥

Review: Born Pretty Part 2

Here comes the fun part! The swatches!!

I ordered Shimmer 12 Colors Eye Shadow Eyeshade Makeup Cosmetics Item ID: 316. You can view the webpage HERE.

This is what I ordered.

OMG, look at these colors! I was super thrilled when I saw the glitter orange (2nd column, 3rd one down), the glitter green (1st column, 4th color down), and the teal (2nd column, 4th color down). So pretty and bright!

This is what I got.

I was pretty disappointed to see that the eyeshadows were not the same ones that I saw in the picture on the website. And to top it off, I didn't like that the gold eyeshadow had spilled. Tsk, tsk. I'm anal when it comes to having my makeup clean. Especially if it is brand new.

The colors are not the same as described
on the Born Pretty website.

I also did not like that the eyeshadows did not have names. I love it when my products have names. These did not even have numbers to identify them by. OK, well a couple of them did have a sticker that said 13 or 36 on the bottom but most of them did not have anything at all.

Gold, Light Pink, Light Brown.
(My description of the shadows.)

Pinky-Brown, Teal, Pink Glitter.
(My description of the shadows.)

Swatches with flash.
No base, primer, or concealer underneath.

Swatches without flash.
No base, primer, or concealer underneath.

I did not swatch the pink glitter because it would not stay. You need to apply some thing so that it can stick to. I once used a Leishi glitter given to me by Cathy (of My Pinktastic Life) and I used Duo Lash Glue to stick the glitter on to my eyelids. It's the same kind of glitter in the same little jar that says Leishi on it. You can see the look I did using the glitter on Duo Lash Glue HERE.

Lavender, Pink, Mint Green.
(My description of the shadows.) 

White, Lime Green Glitter, Purple Glitter.
(My description of the shadows.)

Swatches with flash.
No base, primer, or concealer underneath.

Swatches without flash.
No base, primer, or concealer underneath.

As you can see, all the shadows are shimmery. I love shimmery shadows.

You can also see that the second group of shadows did not swatch so well. They appear a little light and washed out. I will say that I did have high hopes for the mint green color but was a bit disappointed when I applied it to my forearm.

These shadows are very soft. They feel like talcum powder. Very smooth and velvety. The glitters are very coarse, a little rough since they are big, chunky glitters. I say be careful, you don't want to get this glitter in your eyes.

I did like the majority of the colors. My favorites being the gold, light brown, teal, lavender, and white. I did like the feel of them. I love how easily they blend. But they are so, so messy! Ugh. Tons of fall out. Beware. But you must know by now that fall out is a must with any kind of loose shadow.

Here is a look I did with these shadows.

Light brown on the lid. Teal in the crease.
Gold in the inner half of the lash line.
Teal on the outer half of the lash line.

The shadows are very shimmery and
blend well.

My biggest disappointment with these shadows is that I did not get the colors that were in the picture which I thought I would be getting. But other than that, I do like these very much.

I must say that these remind me very much of the only other eyeshadows I have that are similar to this--Face Candy Couture. You can see those swatches HERE. I honestly think that the Face Candy Couture shadows are a little bit better and more pigmented than these.

I used the light brown wet just to see how it would look and it was amazing! It had an amazing foil like appearance to it. I should have swatched these wet as well because I know that the colors will be so much more intense.

For the price of $5.59, these are a steal. Very good product. I will say that I would like to try some more for sure.

Luv & Luk,
--L.

♥♥ Items mentioned in this post were sent to me by http://www.bornprettystore.com for review purposes. These are my own thoughts and honest opinions. I did not receive monetary compensation, but I did get the products for free. ♥♥

Review: Born Pretty Part 1

Hello, my Pretties, today I come to you with my very first ever review for a company. I'm not sure at all how to go about this so I'm going to wing it and I hope it turns out well. *Crosses fingers*

On April 13th, I contacted Born Pretty about trying out some of their products for a possible review. I was soon contacted back by a very friendly customer service rep with the details. I would be given a $9.00 and change limit to choose the items that I wanted to review. I emailed her back with the items I chose and my mailing address and my items would be shipped out to me for free. Sweet!

I picked my two items, that's all I could get without going over the limit, and I waited for my package. On April 15th, the same customer support rep contacted me via email that my items had already been shipped. Woo hoo!

On May 1st, I contacted the Born Pretty customer support because I had not yet received my package. I wanted to know how much longer I was going to have to wait.

On May 3rd, I was told the package would take between 2-4 weeks because it was coming all the way from Singapore. OK. I will wait some more. Through all this, the customer support reps remained very helpful and super polite.

On June 15th, I emailed them back to let them know that I never did receive their package. I told them that I was sorry that it did not work out, that I was really looking forward to trying out their products. Basically, no hard feelings.

That same day, I received another email from them telling me that they were sorry for any inconvenience. My items must have been missed during shipment. They even asked me if it was OK if they reshipped my package. All I was asked to do was to confirm my mailing address which was correct. I agreed to let them send me another package.

And on July 12th, my package finally arrived!

This was inside my package.

A Born Pretty business card.

6 of the Shimmer 12 Color Eyeshadows.
Item ID 316

The other 6 of the Shimmer 12 Color Eyeshadows.
Item ID 316

Violet Color Matt Dull Polish.
Item ID1030

I know I took forever to do this review. I waited so long for my package and when I finally get it, I am in the middle of moving mayhem. It took us practically the whole month to move out of our old apartment and settle into the new homestead. I'm so sorry.

I will have to divide this into 3 parts, I think. One was to let you know the over all experience with this company. Another part will be focusing on the eyeshadows and the third installment will be on the nail polish.

I just wanted to say that the ordering was a breeze. The waiting for the package was a disaster but like I mentioned, the customer support reps were so helpful and kind. I didn't mind communicating with them about my lost package. Very kind people. I thank them all for all of their help.

Stay tuned for the eyeshadow swatches!

Luv & Luk,
--L.

♥♥ Items mentioned in this post were sent to me by http://www.bornprettystore.com for review purposes. These are my own thoughts and honest opinions. I did not receive monetary compensation, but I did get the products for free. ♥♥

Pink Wednesday: August 3, 2011

It's 11:38 p.m. and I just realized like an hour ago that it was Wednesday. Doh! I just had to do a Pink Wednesday post tonight. I'm trying to get back into blogging and I didn't want to miss this Wednesday.

So, I'm sorry that I just thew this post together quickly for you guys.

I had to search my little nail polish stash for a pink nail polish. I don't have many pink polishes at all because I am usually drawn to the blues and purples, greens and greys. Anything that is not the "norm" like pinks and nudes.

I found this Avon nail polish that is so old I can't even tell you when I got it. The packaging is even the old bottle. I'm not sure they still sell this color. But when I saw it sitting in my little nail polish box, my eyes lit up. I used to love this color!

You can tell from the bottle that I didn't use up much of the nail polish at all. But that's how I am. I buy a nail polish. I use it once. Twice if I loved it.

This specific nail polish is very VERY sheer. I applied 3 coats of this nail polish to reach full coverage. It's a very romantic pink, I think. Super feminine. I detect lavender in this polish, I don't see it as full on pink.

But the nail polish name is Pink Glaze.

I love how glossy this nail polish is. Even when fully dry, it still looks wet. Love that.

Enough chit chat. Here is what it looks like.

Avon Nailwear Nail Enamel
Pink Glaze

3 coats of Pink Glaze.

Closer look.
Very pretty, neutral pink that would look great on anyone.

I apologize for not having pictures taken in natural light. I usually like to compare the two because you get totally different looks in natural light than you do with artificial light. But I did do this late this evening so, I didn't have a choice.

I think I'll keep this nail polish around. Even though it's really old, it's like an antique, it still worked great. I shook it vigorously to mix up all the components as they had pretty much all separated. But then, it was like new! The application was perfection. Not clumpy, thick, or gloopy at all. Might as well use it.

It's such a nice shade. Perfect for everyday use.

Luv & Luk,
--L.

♥♥ Products mentioned in this post were purchased by me with my own money. ♥♥

Finger Painting: Boy Oh Boy

In yesterday's blog post, I showed off my goodies given to me by Nicole V. that she included with my Almay giveaway prize.

Amongst my gifts, were two nail polishes which I had never tried before until she gave them to me.

Jordana Nail Polish 978 Boy Oh Boy
Sally Hansen Crackle Overcoat 06 Antiqued Gold

One coat of Boy Oh Boy with flash.
Still a bit streaky.

Two coats of Boy Oh Boy with flash.
Completely opaque.

One coat of Antiqued Gold.

I wore this look on Saturday for the first time for a family reunion on the beach. I thought the colors were perfect beach themed colors. There is a pretty sea blue and a beautiful sandy gold.

The Jordana nail polish is very glossy which I love. The label on the bottle recommends between 2-3 coats. Two was enough for me.

The Sally Hansen nail polish was so fun to use. I don't have any crackle nail polishes. I tried to take a picture of what it looked like when I applied it but it began to crack very fast. What I did notice with this crackle formula (it might be the same with all crackle formulas) is that you cannot apply crackle polish to your nail that already has crackle polish. It won't crackle if you layer it on. I find that a single, thin application works best. Correct me if I am wrong. This is my first experience with any crackle nail polish.

All in all, I really like these two nail polishes. When I saw that Nicole had included nail polish in my package, I was really excited because I have been wanting to grow my nail polish collection. This is a good start. Thanks, Nicole.

Luv & Luk,
--L.

♥♥ Items mentioned in this post were given to me for free from a fellow blogger. ♥♥