Alamar Cosmetics Reina Del Caribe Vol. 1: Palette Collection Review Series

October 12, 2018 littlebeautyloves5 Comments

I must admit, I was beyond excited when I saw this palette in my BoxyCharm. Then I swatched the colours and was super impressed. This was a palette I wore in the summer and enjoyed all the bright and fun looks I was able to create with this.

What It Is

Eight highly opaque shades, reminiscent of the beauty and culture of Cuba. (alamarcosmetics.com).

Price

$28.00 US, for a palette this good and pigmented the price is just right! Even converted to Canadian it’s $36.00 (11.2g – $2.50/g US ($3.26/g CAD).

Packaging

This packaging is so fun! I can spot this easily in my collection and I love that the palette speaks to the fun colours you are getting inside. It’s a cute cardboard booklet style palette that’s thin. It’s about 4×6 inches in size and I like that the pans are large flat squares – this makes it easy to go in and grab a colour.

I also like the way this is laid out. Although you can mix and match the colours, you can also very easily create a look by separating this into two quads – one orange and one blue.

The doesn’t have a mirror which I’m perfectly fine with because this keeps the palette thin and light.

Colour

Like I said, these colours are bright and fun but still super wearable. I think this is a good palette if you don’t have too many palettes with colours and just one that one palette to add some spice to everyday looks or to create fun looks using all the colours in the palette. Omitting the blue and orange colours, the rest of the palette is pretty wearable if you wanted to keep things looking natural as well.

Application and Wear

Even though the palette has some bold colours, this is one of the easiest palettes I’ve used. I find blending everything is effortless. It’s very pigmented so you get instant colour pay-off right away, which makes application really quick when you are in a rush. The shades have some fallout, which I’m not surprised about so I would recommend applying shadow first then your foundation afterwards so you can clean up any fall-out before moving on to the rest of the face.

You will notice that some shade names have a water droplet next to them and some have a sun next to them. Basically, all the shadows apply well dry but the ones with the water symbol apply more intensely with water. It makes sense that this symbol is next to all the shimmer shades.

I used a makeup base before applying these shadows and found that they did last me quite a few hours of wear. This does fade closer to the 7-8 hour mark but it still has good lasting power.

My Looks

In the look above, I started with Coco-Taxi in the crease then applied Tropico on 3/4th of the lid. On the outer edge of my lid, I applied a little Cafecito just to deepen the look. On the inner quarter of my lid, I applied La Costa to brighten everything up. I finished off with Tropico on the lower lash line.

For this blue look, I again started with Coco-Taxi in the crease. On the outer and inner part of my lid, I blended Celia and deepened it slightly with Varadero. In the centre of my lid, I applied El Malecon and then topped that with La Costa. For the lower lash line, I applied Coco-Taxi to tie it all back together.

My Thoughts

I might not have bought this palette on my own since I’m not sure what the shipping situation is to Canada. However, having received it in my subscription box I’m super happy I have it. When I got this there was so much buzz around it and so many positive reviews and I was excited to follow some tutorials to come up with eye looks for the summer. Now with it transitioning to Fall, I won’t use the palette too often but I might still go for the warmer shades in some Fall looks.

Do you have this palette? What do you think of the Reina Del Caribe Palette?

Lots of Love,
Dal

Stila’s Magnificent Metals Glitter and Glow Liquid Eye Shadow in Kitten Karma Review

October 9, 2018October 8, 2018 littlebeautyloves12 Comments

I don’t wear glitter eyeshadow all the time, but I do enjoy them whenever I have an event or wedding to attend and I want to add sparkle to my eyes. I used to keep a bunch of loose glitter in my collection, but I find that they can be too messy for me, so I like the formula of Stila’s Glitter and Glow Liquid Eye Shadows because it’s glitter dispersed in a liquid which makes it easier to apply.

What It Is

Dazzling, long-wearing liquid, sparkle eyeshadow. The perfect mix of pearl and glitter adorns eyes with incredible lustre and shimmer. (Stila.ca)

Price

$31.00 CAD (4.5 mL) This is a pretty pricey, to be honest. However, when I want glitter, I’m always glad I have this in my collection

Colour

I have the shade Kitten Karma, which is a champagne shade with silver and copper glitters, it gives off a pink tone which is pretty on the eyes. I like this shade because I feel like it goes with the majority of my eye looks and a lot of the outfits I tend to wear. The glitter is very intense which is perfect for when you want bold-looking eyes.

Packaging

I think the tube is very practical. I like that you can see the colour and glitter inside which is useful if you have a few of these guys laying around. It’s also designed in a way that contains any access product inside, so it doesn’t get messing (I’m thinking of my loose glitter jars that would almost explode glitter everytime I opened them). The applicator is flat which makes sweeping this on the eyelids pretty easy. I still prefer to use my fingers to apply this though.

Application & Wear

Although I would say this is easier to apply compared to loose glitter, it still does have some fallout so you need to be careful when blending it with a brush. I find that it’s easier applying my eyeshadow first, then doing the rest of my face because I can clean up any glitter fallout. Once it’s dried down though, it locks onto my eyes and will last an entire night.

The base of these glitters is quite sheer as you can see in my photo above where I’ve blended it out. I really like that because you can change the way this looks depending on what colour eyeshadow you wear underneath and if you just want a wash of glitter on the eyes, you can apply a bit over your bare lide.

In the look above, I took some warm shades into the crease but kept my lid fairly bare. I then just placed a few layers of glitter all over my lid and blended it out slightly. I didn’t wait for it to completely dry which is why you see a little transfer on my crease. Either way, you can see that it adds quite an impact.

It’s extremely comfortable on the eyes too. It doesn’t feel like I’m wearing chunky glitter and once it’s dried down it really doesn’t budge so even after a long night, I don’t see it moving onto the rest of my face.

My Thoughts

Overall, I think that the Stila Glitters make a great addition to any makeup collection. Even if you don’t wear a lot of eye makeup, swiping this all over the lid instantly transforms any look into a glam one. I recently picked up another one of these (diamond dust – which is a silver glitter with colourful reflects) because I just like the formula and how easy this is to use!

Have you tried any of the Magnificent Metals Glitter and Glow Liquid Eye Shadows? What shade is your favourite?

Lots of Love,
Dal

Bye Bye Empties, September 2018

October 1, 2018September 30, 2018 littlebeautyloves2 Comments

It’s officially Fall! Hurray! I have actually been enjoying the transition to the cooler weather, I just need to rummage through my closest for my sweaters!

September was a fantastic month for doing things about in the city. It was the Toronto International Film Festival and I saw three great films! I also took a couple of really nice walks in the parks/paths near my home. I’m excited for October because one of my closest friends is getting married and I’m in her bridal party. If I have the chance, I’ll try to share some of it on my Instagram.

On to what I used up in the month!

Skincare

Wander Beauty Baggage Claim Gold Eye Mask. I received three of these in my August BoxyCharm to reduce wrinkles while hydrating and cooling under the eyes. Ingredients include hyaluronic acid, lavender oil and aloe oil. I didn’t notice anything amazing happen but it was hydrating under the eyes and wasn’t uncomfortable to wear. Unlike other eye masks, this actually stuck to my skin. I wouldn’t purchase these but I do have 2 others to enjoy.

The Face Shop Collagen Pomegranate Pack Masque. I got this in my May 2016 Topbox and then shared it in a Faves From the Boxes in October 2016. I didn’t wear this too often, but every once in a while I would use a pea-sized amount all over my face before I went to bed. It is a good moisturizer and left my skin very hydrated. I won’t be repurchasing this too soon as I have other moisturizers but it is a really good one I would get again.

Drunk Elephant Lala Retro Whipped Cream. This is maybe the first Drunk Elephant product I’ve tried and I must be honest, I wasn’t impressed. The formula wasn’t whipped and actually looked dry in the tub. I’m not sure if maybe this particular product dried out quickly or if it’s supposed to be like this. Either way, with the full-size being $75.00 CAD I’d want it to be much, much better than this. I won’t be purchasing this.

Body Care

Yves Rocher Cotton Pads For Makeup Removal. I wish I kept the last round cotton pad so that you could see what it looked like but it’s just a very normal cotton pad. I don’t know what I was expecting, but it wasn’t like a crazy great cotton pad. I won’t be repurchasing this – I’d rather get ones from Shiseido and Muji 😛

Aveeno Calming Body Wash in Lavender Chamomile + ylang-ylang. I love the scent of this body wash. It’s really calming and relaxing which is great when showering before bed. This creates a nice lather and cleans my skin very well. It also doesn’t leave my skin fairly moisturized. I like this as an everyday body wash. I would repurchase this.

Marvis Toothpaste in Whitening Mint. I shared this in my June Empties if you wanted to read my thoughts on the Ginger Flavour. Like I mentioned before, Marvis toothpaste doesn’t have a harsh mint flavour which makes it really easy for me to use to brush my teeth. I have another open right now!

Samples

Juicy Bamboo Natural Facial Cleansing Cloths. I used this sample cloth in the morning and it left my skin feeling clean before I applied my makeup. It even removed mascara residue I didn’t even know was still there! I like that the cloth is biodegradable so I was able to throw it in my organics bin. I’ve already put in an order for these on Amazon.

Philosophy Time in a Bottle. I picked up this sample from Sephora because I always like trying anti-ageing products. The sample lasted me 3 days and it was really hydrating on the skin. I like it, so next time I’m in need of a new moisturizer I’ll take a look at the ingredients and see if a full size is worth picking up!

Ole Henriksen Sheer Transformation. Although I have a little packet emptied here for this post, I also have a little tub sample of this moisturizer that I’m currently testing out. I do hope to do a post solely devoted to Ole Henriksen on the blog but so far I’m really liking this moisturizer. It has a light formula that is slightly sticky when you first apply it but that goes away. It’s perfect for application before I put on makeup.

Kiehl’s Midnight Recovery Concentrate. This little sample was good for 4 nights to use. I didn’t notice it do anything dramatic to my skin. I’m not sure I would repurchase this but I guess right now I’m in a serum testing phase while I decide whether I repurchase my Peter Thomas Roth serum that I emptied last month. Check out my review of the PTR serum here.

At last, these are all the products I was able to use up in September. I am actually pretty happy with the number of items I was able to use up.

What items are in your empties collection for September?

Lot’s of Love,
Dal

Project Pan: 18 for 2018 Update #3

September 26, 2018September 26, 2018 littlebeautyloves4 Comments

Last time I did an update I had emptied one item! My Shiseido Foundation. I really hoped I could empty at least one more item but as the year comes closer to the end I feel like I won’t be able to.

I’ll toss out a lot of the lipstick items because they are definitely getting old! I am also still missing one item in my project pan, it’s the Too Cool for School tinted lip balm I mentioned before. So I’ll only have 16 items to update.

Most Used Items (5-7 days a week)

MAC Powder Blush in Fleur Power. I have been wearing other blushes every once in a while but I enjoy the colour of this blush for every day. Over the summer I did wear more coral/orange blushes but now that we into Fall I will likely stick with this. Even though I wear it every day I feel like I haven’t made much progress since last time.
Was 3/4 full, no change

Physicians Formula Super BB InstaReady Bronzer. I can start to see the edge of the pan which is a good sign for me. I’ve been using this so much over the last few months and because it’s really light I have been very generous with my application.
Was 5/8 full, now 1/2 full

Smashbox Covershot in Golden Hour. Can you see a dent in the golden shade Hotline? I’ve been using this for much of the summer. The next shade I’ve been wearing the most is Turned Up which is the pink shade right next to it. Both of these are easy, one sweep shades that I’ve been wearing over the eyelid with Dope, the cool brown shade, as a transition colour in my crease.
Was 3/4 full, no change

Yves Rocher Youthful Glow Powder in 100 Teint tres Clair. I have only been using this under my eyes to set my concealer, especially if I’m wearing the Becca Concealer I mention below.
Was 3/4 full, now 1/2 full

Medium Use Items (2-4 days a week)

Becca Under Eye Brightening Corrector. I will wear this under my concealer to help brighten under my eyes. Since this is a sticky formula it helps my concealer stay in place.
Was 3/4 full, now1/2 full

NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil in 611 Yogurt. I wasn’t using this product too much until I made a recent purchase from Nudestix. Since I’ve started wearing those cream products on my eyes I am reaching for this to add a little brightness to those eye looks. This does make a really good inner corner highlight so I’m going to try to use this more often.
Was 5/8 full, no change

Fresh Sugar Lip Polish (deluxe size) I continue to use this every week or so and I feel like I’m starting to see a difference in the product amount. If I can use this a little more frequently I might be able to empty this.
Was 2/3 full, now 1/2 full

CoverFX Custom Enhancer Drops in Moonlight (deluxe sample) I have been mixing this in my foundation almost every day since the beginning of September. I wasn’t using this so much in the summer. I don’t imagine there is too much product left, but since I only use about half a dropper it is emptying slowly.
Was 3/4 full, now 1/4 full

Tarte Cosmetics Amazonian Clay in Exposed (deluxe sample) I am using this every once in a while as an all over highlight. I’m not using any other highlight in my collection at the moment. Still, it doesn’t seem to have changed much over the last few months.
Was 7/8 full, no change

Least Used Items (0-1 days a week)

Marc Jacobs Black Liner (deluxe size). I feel like this is getting to a point where it might be unsafe to continue use. I’ve had this for quite a while now. I did use it a few times in the summer but the more I use it, the more I realize I don’t like the formula.
Was 1/2 full, no change

Colourpop Lippie Pencil in Aquarius. I don’t wear lipstick too often, but this colour matches my natural lip colour so well that I will wear it under a lot of my lipsticks when I do wear them. Otherwise, I never use this!
Was 2/3 full, now 2/3 full

Estee Lauder Pure Color Envy Lipstick in 220 Powerful (deluxe size). Of all the lipsticks I originally put in my project pan, this is the only one I actually use every once in a while. I haven’t made a dent in it since the last update but wow am I really loving this formula!
Was 3/8 full, no change

Unused Items

I haven’t used the items below at all! Now they are lipsticks and I think they are just getting old that I don’t want to chance to wear them and then breaking out around my mouth.

Too Faced Melted Liquified Long Wear Lipstick in Melted Candy (deluxe size)
Was 1/2 full, now retired

Bite Beauty Matte Creme Lip Crayon in Glace
Was full, now retired

Teeez Cosmetics Material Girl Lipstick in Hyped Taupe
Was 7/8 full, now retired

Well that’s my Project Pan nine months in! We will see how much more progress I can make before the end of the year!

Are you doing a Project Pan this year? How many items have you been able to empty? Any items you’ve stopped using?

Lots of love,

Dal

Unboxing Topbox, September 2018

September 24, 2018September 22, 2018 littlebeautyloves9 Comments

Price: $12.00 CAD (plus tax, free shipping) 4 items.

Topbox is a Canadian monthly beauty subscription service. Each month you have the option of getting a surprise box or to swap it for a prive box where all the products are from one brand or fall within a theme and you know what they are. This month I opted for the Benefit #Benefaves Prive Box and got it!

I really wanted this prive box because I love Benefit products and love the little mini sizes for travelling. If you weren’t familiar with Benefit products this is also a good way to discover a lot of the popular makeup items.

Prices in Canadian Dollars

They’re Real Lengthening Mascara
Full Size: $32.00 (0.3 oz), Sample Size: $10.67 (0.1 oz)

I’ve said many times on the blog that I love this mascara. It’s my favourite for adding so much length and volume. I own the full size of They’re Real in both the black and the brown and always keep backups. If you’d like to see how it looks on my lashes you can read my post here where I compared the Band Gal Bang against They’re Real and Roller Lash mascara.

Gimme Brow+ Brow Volumizing Fibre Gel in Shade 3 Neutral Light Brown
Full Size: $32.00 (0.1 oz), Sample Size: $9.60 (.03 oz)

I have semi-full brows but when I want them to look really full and natural, I’ll run some of this through them. It just coats the hairs I have in the brown shade and the fibres add a little bit of thickness. The brush tip is tapered and short which makes it easy for me to brush this through my brows. Since this is a gel, it also helps to keep the hairs in place.

The POREfessional Primer
Full Size: $42.00 (0.75 oz), Sample Size: $5.60 (0.1 oz)

I don’t use this primer too often, but whenever I’m wearing a full face of makeup I like to put this around my nose and cheek to fill in my pores and leave that area smooth for makeup application. I do have other products that do the same thing but I will always enjoy this one the most because it leaves my skin feeling matte and works well for my dry skin.

Hoola Matte Bronzer
Full Size: $38.00 (0.28 oz), Sample Size: $13.57 (0.1 oz)

This is one of my favourite cool-toned bronzers. I like that there is no orange in this, so it gives me a more natural glow. It works so well with my skin tone and I just love how fine the powder is. I like the style of this packaging because although this is a sample, it’s not in a small round pan, but a flat square one which makes it easy to dip my large brush into.

Watt’s up Cream to Powder Highlighter
Full Size: $40.00 (0.33 oz), Sample Size: $9.70 (0.08 oz)

I used to have another little sample of this highlighter that I used all the time before I started purchasing powder. I do really like this when I’m doing all cream makeup on my face. It does transform from a cream to powder but I find that it just applies a lot easier when there is little to no foundation underneath. It’s a gorgeous light champagne colour that I’ve worn numerous times on my cheeks and eyes. I’ve even popped it on the centre of my lips when I wanted a little-highlighted lipstick. It’s maybe not as popular as the other Benefit products above, but it’s still really good!

My Thoughts

Well, if you couldn’t guess, I’m extremely happy with this box. These are all Benefit items that I really enjoy. The only suggestion I would make is that Topbox offers two versions of this prive, this one and maybe one with more recent Benefit products, like the Bad Gal Bang mascara or new Hoola light bronzer. Either way, I’m going to use all of these products right away!

Total Value: $40.14 CAD!

Did you get Topbox this month? Did you opt for a surprise box or prive box? What did you enjoy from your box?

Lots of Love,
Dal

Unboxing BoxyCharm, September 2018

September 18, 2018September 17, 2018 littlebeautyloves12 Comments

Price: $21.00 USD (+$5.00 shipping to Canada)
Number of items: 4-5 full-size items

Boxycharm is a monthly subscription box of full-size makeup, skincare and beauty tools. The theme for this month is “Wild Flower”.

ALL PRICES IN USD CONVERTED TO CAD AT THE END

Pretty Vulgar Nightingale Smokey Eyeshadow Palette
MSRP: $35.00 USD

Oh yes! An everyday type of palette, this so my style. I love that the colours are cool/neutral rather than warm because I have so many warm palettes in my collection. I was tempted to do swatches for this post but I actually wanted to test the eyeshadow and do a review on it so look out for that soon!

This is described as a highly pigmented shadow, the shades are soft and smooth for easy blending and long-wear. I saw a few first impressions of this online and they look really positive.

Laura Gellar Baked Blush-N-Bright in Tropic Hues
MSRP: $28.00 USD

This baked blush leaves your skin with a glowy flush to the cheeks. It’s very shimmery and lightly pigmented which is great if you like a stuble wash of colour on the cheeks and a little dewy finish.

I love bold cheek colours so for me I might wear this as a cheek topper. I think it’s absolutely gorgeous. This is paraben free and infused with antioxidants.

Alamar Cosmetics Ojitos Brush Set
MSRP: $18.00 USD

I fell head over heals for the Alamar eyeshadow palette that I received in my June BoxyCharm so I’m really excited to see more items from this brand in my box! These brushes are 100% synthetic but are extremely soft.

This three brush set includes;

Flat Pointer Brush, to apply shadow all over the lid. It’s very dense so I think this would be really good for glitter or metallic shadows.

Fluffy Blender Brush, to blend colours together. This one is extremely soft and flexible so I think it will work really well to blend out colours. It’s very fluffy. I am most excited about this one.

Flat Tight Liner, well, to do just that line your eyes. I actually really love using brushes like this to apply shadow on my lower eye lids. I know some people like to use brushes like this for their brows too.

I’m pretty excited about this set. I like that the handles are thin making it easy for me to store them and to hold.

Hank & Henry Liquid Lipstick in Petal Pusher
MSRP: $17.00 USD

This smells like icing! OH MY GOODNESS how I find it so delicious! This packing is actually pretty cool too. I thought it was a bullet lipstick in a clear case but when I screwed it open I realized it was a liquid lipstick.

I like the raspberry colour and the pigmentation of this liquid lip is amazing. One sweep and you have bold colour. It’s also very comfortable on. I think the applicator is interesting but useful. It’s got a wider base and comes to a sharp tip which makes it really easy to be precise with application.

Butter London Stroke of Wow Roll On Liner
MSRP: $19.00 USD

I was unimpressed when I saw this item in my box. It’s a liner with a roller tip, kinda like a pizza cutter. It’s supposed to make application much easier but I’ve seen a few youtubers try it with not much success.

I’ll give it a shot and see how I like it. I wear liner a lot but I don’t know if this would be easier than a felt tip. When I did a swatch on my hand I was really impressed with the formula which makes this a lot my disappointing in my opinion, why couldn’t they just make this felt tip!

Swatches!

My Thoughts

Over all I’m pretty happy with this box! Beside the Butter London eyeliner, everything else is an item that I’m pretty excited to try. I’m most excited about the eyeshadow palette and brush set!

Did you receive BoxyCharm this month? What was in your box?

Lots of Love,
Dal

My Most Used Makeup Brushes

September 10, 2018September 8, 2018 littlebeautyloves7 Comments

I took a count of the number of brushes I currently own and have over 50. Now, as I was growing up and getting into makeup I was constantly purchasing new brushes as I tried to find what was right for me and how I like to apply my makeup. That’s how my collection became the size it is now. I’ve purged a lot of brushes since then too.

Every once in a while I’ll pick up a new brush here and there as I feel like my skills improve or when I need a brush to do something specific. From all these brushes I’m sharing the five that I enjoy using the most and feel I reach for almost everytime I do my makeup.

MAC 129SE Powder Brush

This brush is one of the oldest brushes I own and one of the first in my collection. When I first began building my collection I knew I wanted MAC brushes but couldn’t afford to just buy three or four large brushes at a time. Instead, I’d wait until they would release their holiday collection brushes and buy those sets. The handles were shorter but generally, the quality of the brushes were the same.

I’ve used this brush for powder, blush and recently it has transitioned to my main bronzer brush. It’s extremely soft and fluffy which makes it good for dispersing product very lightly and evenly all over the face. I also like the shorter handle because it makes it much easier to grip and control.

Tarte Foundation Brush from the 2017 Holiday Collection

I shared this in a Tarte Boxing Day Sale Haul at the beginning of this year. I was so happy that a snagged the 5-piece brush set for only $21.00CAD! That’s less than the cost of one brush. All of these brushes are pretty great but the foundation brush has actually been the one I reach for the most. Since the brush is large it makes applying foundation super quick. The brush is densely packed but extremely soft so it spreads my makeup evenly without leaving any streaks. I like this when I’m applying a light to medium coverage foundation because it really spreads it out nicely.

I took a look at what they were offering this year as far as a brush collection, but I’m not sure I can recommend any of them. The closest this brush appears to be is to the Airbrush Finish Foundation Brush which is currently $44.00CAD – but if I know Tarte, it’ll be on sale soon enough at a price that is much less with a discount on top so keep an eye out for that if you were interested in buying one.

Crown Brushes Pro Brush For Concealer

This was part of a trio I received in my February 2017 BoxyCharm. The moment I got this brush I wanted to use it for concealer. Crown brushes are really affordable and nice brushes. I definitely think they are great if you want to start building a collection without spending too much money. This brush is dense and great for blending out concealer both under the eyes and over the lid when I want to use concealer as a base for eyeshadow.

I find this way easier for me to use compared to a beauty blender. I just find that I can spread the product further with this compared to a sponge. Also, I don’t feel the need to wash my brush as often as I might a sponge. I know, maybe that’s not super hygienic, but I think this brush absorbs less product than my sponge does so I get more mileage out of it.

Inglot 4SS Large Blending Brush

This brush is newer to my eye brush collection. I bought this in an Inglot Haul back in October of 2017, but it’s my most favourite blending brush. It’s really large, so you could even use it as a highlighter brush. I like using it to diffuse my eyeshadow or when I’m building a light shade in my crease. This has really made blending out my eyeshadow super easy and it leaves it looking like I’ve been blending for hours! I also love it for one sweep eyeshadow looks because it’s so large.

It makes it look like I’m a pro blender when it comes to eyeshadow. It’s a brush I was missing in my collection for a long time and I didn’t think I would use it as much as I do now but it really makes eyeshadow application (especially in the crease) so much easier. If you have large eyes or a large lid space like I do, I think you’d really enjoy a brush like this.

MAC 222 Blending Brush

Finally, we round it all up with another MAC brush and another blending brush! My collection is full of blending brushes because that’s what I think I struggled the most to get right as I was building my collection. I think I have about 10-15 blending brushes in different sizes and shapes because that’s where I spend the most time when I’m applying makeup. For me, this size brush fits perfectly in my crease and really helps blend colours there.

I have considered purchasing multiples of this brush so I’d have some on hand for when I want to use multiple colours on my eyes, but the price of MAC brushes always holds me back. The brush hairs are long and have a medium density which is perfect for blending colours. It’s also a good size that I don’t feel like it spreads my eye makeup outside where I want it to be.

Thoughts

If I could share ALL the brushes I love using, I’d have such a long post so I kept it to brushes that I find make makeup application the easiest for me and I use the most. There was a time when I was obsessed with brushes, even more so than makeup itself and I wanted to collect as many as I could because like I mentioned before I really struggled to find ones that were right for me. Has anyone else had that?

How was it for you when building up your collection of brushes? Did you know what you were looking for or was it trial and error as it was for me? I’d love to know! Also, what are your fave brushes?

Lots of Love,
Dal

Unfaves From the Boxes

September 6, 2018September 5, 2018 littlebeautyloves4 Comments

I mentioned in my last Faves From the Boxes post that I wanted to share some items that I wasn’t a fan of from my subscription boxes. Usually, if I get an item I know I’m not going to use I pass it along to my friends, family or donate them. Sometimes, I’m intrigued by the item and try it and it doesn’t live up to my expectations. Below are a few that didn’t work out for me.

BareMinerals Face Perfecting Brush
Received in BoxyCharm September 2017

I used this brush quite a bit in the beginning and liked it. I would pump a bit of my foundation into the dip in the centre and blend it over my face. The brush was dense but still soft and I thought it did a good job of applying foundation to my face. That was until I got a bit closer to the mirror and noticed the terrible amount of streak it left. It really just moved product around and I didn’t like the finish it left. The one way I could get it to perform better is if I continued to blend or followed it up with my beauty blender. Now if I’ve got to grab another application tool to make this work, then I’m out!

It’s too bad it didn’t work out for me because the idea behind the brush was really good. I will try this with my mineral foundation and see if it’s better (it is a BareMinerals product after all) but for liquid foundation it’s a no go.

South Mane Beauty Under Eye Gels
Received in BoxyCharm March 2018

The moment I tried these I did not like them! This came in a pack of three so I decided to give it a second shot, but still, it was awful. It has a very uncomfortable tingle and after I removed the gel I felt like it accentuated my dark circles.

Now, there may be an ingredient in this that I’m unaware I’m sensitive to but it just didn’t do what it claims to do on me. If you have sensitive skin, I would not recommend this product.

Laritzy Cosmetics Silicone Makeup Blender
Received in Topbox November 2017

Now I knew I didn’t like these style blenders. I had one from Amazon and it just smeared my foundation everywhere on my face. However, when reading the description of the Laritzy blender they suggested using it to blend skincare products and I thought maybe it could be better for that. I tried it on and off for a few weeks with my skincare and I felt the same way I did about foundation. It really didn’t help spread the skincare and it would just sit on top of my face and didn’t feel like it aided with anything.

I’m much better off using my fingers and gently tapping products in. I also thought this might be good for spreading around clay masks but it was terrible for that, it left everything in a streak. I really don’t know what would be best used for these blenders!

My Thoughts

I know not everything will always work for me and I did try to make the items above work. I’m sure someone is probably really enjoying these products and that’s good because I’m sure it’s what the brands intended.

Have you tried any of the items above? If you get subscription boxes what are some items you’ve received that you did not enjoy?

Lots of love,
Dal

Bye Bye Empties, August 2018

August 31, 2018August 29, 2018 littlebeautyloves7 Comments

August was so much fun! I enjoyed a few trips to the beaches, spent a day at the Toronto Islands and went on a bachelorette trip with my girlfriends to Le Spa Nordik located in Chelsea, Quebec! I took about a week and a half break from blogging to enjoy the weather! I’m so excited that September is around the corner because it’s the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) and I always try to see some movies during that time.

Anyways! Below are the items I was able to finish up for August!