Victoria's Secret Brilliant Lip Shine in Torrid

     Victoria's Secret Brilliant Lip Shines are described as "patent-finished gloss that drenches lips with gleaming, shimmering color."  These lip shines are, obviously, available at Victoria's Secret for $12.  They are housed in a click-pen type applicator, in which you click the end of the lip shines until gloss comes out of the lip brush on the other side. The thing I don't like about applicators like this is that it is hard to measure how many clicks it takes to get the perfect amount of product out.
     Torrid is a berry-pink gloss with purple and blue glitter that is sheer, but you can build it up to acheive more color. Lip Shines are better than your average lip gloss because they have such an array of colors and the sparkle and shine are gorgeous. There is definitely no stickiness with this gloss, which is a huge plus! I wouldn't say they are the best lip glosses on the market, but they are definitely steps above many drugstore options. Wear time is probably between one to two hours, depending on how much you drink and lick your lips.
      What do you think about this color? Have you ever tried VS Brilliant Lip Shines?

MAC Wonder Woman Lipglass in Athena's Kisses

     MAC's Wonder Woman lipglass in Athena's Kiss is a beautiful fuschia-pink with blue and white sparkles, and I was very surprised at how much I really liked this color!  The Wonder Woman collection showcased four larger-than-life lipglasses (0.37 oz. compared to the regular lipglasses at 0.17 oz.), and believe me when I say they are really jumbo-sized! I love that these lipglasses are so much bigger than the permanent lipglasses, as you get so much more for your money. The permanent line of lipglasses are $14.50, and these WW lipglasses are $19.50, so for only $5 more you are getting more than double the product.
     This lipglass is such a gorgeous color, and I really didn't think I would like it. I didn't plan on purchasing it, so it was kind of an impulse buy. The reason I didn't think I would like it is because of the blue undertones in the color, and I didn't know how that would look with my more yellow skintone. Well, I'm here to tell you that no matter what undertones you have in your skin, this will look fabulous on you!
     The applicator is also jumbo-sized, which is perfect because you only need one application to cover your whole lips. The applicator also has an indentation so that it fits your lips when applying the gloss. The only aspect that does irritate me is that when you try and pull the appicator out of the tube, right before you pull out the sponged tip, it is so tight that a little bit of gloss pops out and lands somewhere. Everytime I pull the applicator out, I do it really slowly, and the gloss does not come out. It is still bothersome that I have to do this, though.
     However, this is a great color to add to your stash. It's a little bit sticky so that it stays for hours, and I feel like it also leaves a bit of a stain to your lips when it wears off, which I like. Let me know what you think!

Wet N Wild 'I'm Feelin' Retro' Eyeshadow Trio

     Wet N Wild normally has very cheap options availabe for those who love pigmented and colorful eyeshadows, and it's just recently that the beauty bloggiverse has started raving about the quality of these eyeshadows.
     This is one of the trios from the Spring 2011 collection, aptly titled "I'm Feelin' Retro." It contains a shimmery white for the browbone, a deep blue turquiose for the crease, and a fuschia with purple shimmer for all over the eyelid.
     I haven't played around enough with this trio, but when I do I will post more eye pictures. However, with the swatches I've done I will agree that they are very pigmented, and they do kick up a lot of product when you use an applicator to obtain color. They also go on the lid very pigmented, and seem to last a while. I will update more on the longevity of these eyeshadows after more trials.
     This particular trio would be perfect for a funky, spring look. They can be found at CVS for $1.99 each.
     Read on for more swatches and photos!

      The first three on the left are swatches of "I'm Feelin' Retro."

     In the look below I used:

•Wet N Wild 'I'm Feelin' Retro" Eyeshadow Trio
     -I used the fuschia color on the inner side of the eyelid, the turquoise color on the outer side of the eyelid, and then then blended used the pearly white color. I also used the white color on the brow bone and inner corner of the eye.
•Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencils in Binge, Electric, Ransom, and Asphixia
     -I used Binge on the lower waterline, Ransom on the upper lash line, Asphixia on the lower lash line, and Electric on the inner corner of the eye.
•Stila Major Lash Mascara in Black
•Maybelline Dream Liquid Mousse Foundation in Classic Ivory (which I think is too dark for me!)
•Maybelline Dream Mousse Concealer in Ivory
•Too Faced La Vie En Rose Blush mixed with MAC Peaches Sheertone Blush
•NARS Highlighter in Albatross
•MAC Wonder Woman Lip Glass in Emancipation

Weird Face.

My Attempt at a Valentines' Day Classic Pinup Look

For Valentines' Day this year I decided to make an attempt at the classic 'pinup' girl look, with thick, black, winged eyeliner, a neutral eyeshadow, bronzed cheeks, and a fiery red lip.

In the look below I used:

Chanel Mat Lumiere Foundation in Clair 1.0 all over face

Tarte Park Ave Princess Mineral Bronzer under my cheekbones

Urban Decay Primer Potion as a base on the eyelids

Smashbox Eyeshadow in Vapor on the eyelids

Stila Smudge Pot in Black for winged eyeliner

Stila Major Lash Black Mascara

Benefit Eye Bright Pencil for lower waterline

Stila Kitten Eyeshadow (I know it's an eyeshadow, but I love it for a highlighter!) for above the cheekbones and brow bones

For the above lip look I used Tarte LipSurgence Natural Matte Lip Stain in Fiery as a base with MAC Venomous Villains Cruella DeVil Lipglass in Wicked Ways on top for a glossy finish.

    Overall, I was happy with the look, however, I wish I would've made the winged eyeliner shorter and more curled at the edges. Have you ever tried the 'pinup' look? How did you do your makeup this Valentines'? ♥

Stila Lip Glaze Stick in Orange

     Stila's Lip Glaze Stick in Orange is pure, soft, glossiness. It's like a lipstick and a lip gloss all in one. It's a big chubby orange/coral lip glaze pencil with specks of glitter, and it is so soft, so easy to apply, and it lasts at least a few hours on me. (Keep in mind that in the photos below, the pencil is not sharpened, as I have used it plenty since it was new!)

     Stila's Lip Glazes are so easy to apply, they're just like huge lip pencils, and they don't make your lips sticky at all. I love these pencils because they are easy to just throw in your bag to make touch-ups throughout the day.
     In the picture of the color on my lips below, you can see how shiny this lip glaze is, as there is no lip gloss over top; the lip glaze is the only product on my lips.
     These lip glazes are currently not availabe on Stilacosmetics.com, however, they are available at a spectacular price on the great website Allcosmeticswholesale.com for $3.49 in this color. You can't beat that price at all! It's really hard to find a even a quality lipstick for that price! I would recommend this lip glaze 100 times over, as it is a lovely shade for Spring and Summer!

Product made in USA.

NARS Lip Gloss in Misbehave

     NARS lip gloss in Misbehave is a semi-sheer ruby red grapefruit color with gold sparkles. I actually love this lip gloss because it is low-maintenance, meaning I can keep it in my pocket at work and just add a swipe from time to time. It is not sticky, nor does it feel uncomfortable when it starts to wear off - when it wears off, it just kind of disappears until you reapply. I can probably get a couple of hours of wear time with this gloss.

     However, there are two not-so-great aspects of this lip gloss.

1. Smell - this lip gloss has this strange plastic smell to it. You don't really notice it after application, but you can smell it when you pull the applicator out of the tube.

2. Price - this lip gloss retails on the NARS website and at Sephora for $24. Yeah. A big chunk of change. Luckily, I bought this gloss at a lower price on eBay, but you have to watch when you buy cosmetics on eBay, because in the past, I have unknowingly bought some fakes. If you can find a good deal, and you're pretty sure they're real, then you have a steal.

Do I think it's worth $24? No. I do think it's better than a drugstore lipgloss, and I would probably price it somewhere between $10-$15 based on other glosses on the market.

     You can see in the photos above that while it does have a nice color, it is sheer enough to wear to work, or with a dark smokey eye. My favorite look to pair this with is a nice gold eyeshadow with black liner on my waterline and upper lash line. A simple look, and this gloss goes wonderfully with golds and peaches.
     As I said, this gloss is what I use when I don't feel like putting much effort in my lips, but when I still want a very shiny, just bitten lip color.
     I do recommend this gloss if you can catch it on sale or at a discount cosmetics store.

This product was made in Canada.