ProductWhores

Show Some Moxie

New lipsticks make me so happy.  Like, irrationally, skipping down the street with a smile on my face happy.  So you can imagine how big the grin was when I found out that bareMinerals has come out with a new collection of lip products called Marvelous Moxie Lips.  There are three different sets of products in the collection - Lipstick, Lipgloss and Lipliner - with a total of a whopping 42 new shades in all.  That's a lot of playing around to do!

I tried out a few of each and kudos to bareMinerals because the entire collection is awesome.  I'm not much of a lipliner girl (I think my fear stems from college where there was a girl who used to walk around with the most ridiculously drawn on lipliner - she seriously made herself look like a clown.  How did none of her friends tell her?  It used to boggle our minds.  We called her "Lipliner Girl."  Clearly, we were super inventive with nicknames) so I probably won't use these a ton, but with 10 different shades available, lipliner fans will have a field day picking their favorites.

The lipsticks come in really inventive packaging.  It has sort of a little knob (for lack of a better word) on the side that you slide down to pop the lipstick out of the top.  Neat! The formula on these is great - the lipsticks are really moisturizing and very pigmented, plus they don't seem to have any weird taste or smell to them.  I'm kind of obsessed with Risk It All (a hot pink) and Lead the Way (a dark wine).  I might have to go pick up a few more shades just to round out my collection.  (There are 18 total).

I'm also really enjoying the lipglosses.  They have a minty tingle to them that I love (a slight plumper maybe?) and a great wash of color.  My favorite is Trail Blazer - a nude gold that's absolutely perfect with a smoky eye.  Again, they're very moisturizing and seem to last a good couple of hours on me, which for a gloss I'm very satisifed with.  I need to get my hands on Game Change, a deep red.  I'm perpetually on the hunt for the perfect red gloss and at least online, this one looks like it could be a contender.

Also, I kind of love the word moxie.  I have no idea why, but it just makes me giggle.  It always makes me picture some man in the '40's asking a woman out by telling her, "You've got moxie!"  We really need to bring that word back in a big way.  Who's with me?

Note:  A sample of this item was sent to me by a PR representative working with bareMinerals

Bare Minerals Spring 13 - Remix Collection!

BareMinerals' new Remix Collection for Spring 13 is out and it's so so pretty you're going to want it all!  At first glance when I saw the colors in the Ready Eyeshadow 4.0 Quad - the Wild Thing - palette I thought there would be no way I could pull of this very spring-y, fresh look (the greens terrified me).  But man, from the first swipe of color, I realized I was so wrong!  The shades are beautiful, blend effortlessly and really brighten my whole face.  After coming to terms with the fact I could pull off the greens, I thought adding the Flawless Definition Aqua mascara would definitely transport me back to the 80's (honestly, a little excited as I did love my colored mascara) but it's so shockingly modern there's no way anyone would mistake it for being from the era of Ah-ha and Duran Duran.  The beautiful deep aqua shade which really brightens the eyes and defines the lashes (without clumping, I have to add).  The new blush - The Natural High - is the perfect pinky/coral and actually is buildable (I found that I needed two swipes to get the nice color I wanted).  It's very a very subtle glow of color which accentuates cheekbones without over-doing it (no worry that you'll have to try and smudge some off in the car when you actually see yourself in natural light on your drive into work).  The one part of the collection I haven't yet tried and am absolutely dying to get my hands on are the new Loud & Clear Lip Sheers.  They look amazing - especially interested in the Tangerine Trance (curious to see if the orange would translate well on my lips - looks like it could be a really pretty spring coral).  I'm embracing the new Spring colors, even though I'm not sure I'm ready to get back into tshirts just yet...

Note:  Samples of the above products were sent to me by a PR representative working with Bare Minerals.

Skip To The Escentuals

I'm having an eyeshadow moment.  I've been buying a ton of it lately and playing around with the ones I already have to find new combinations.  (That's a good thing to accomplish on your vacation, right?)  Most of my new favorites are the color combinations available in bareMinerals READY Eyeshadow 2.0. The duos aren't new, but they've just recently released a bunch of new shades and out of the ones I've played with, they're all winners.  The formula is just great - the colors are pigmented and easy to blend, plus they last all day on me when layered over a primer. They also contain bareMinerals' special SeaNutritive Mineral Complex and antioxidants, cold-pressed borage oil, caffeine and cucumber, which are all known to have anti-aging benefits.  I mean, it's not a requirement for me in a shadow, but it's definitely a nice benefit!  I also like the wide range of different shade pairings - there's everything from neutrals to more fun colors (the one above is The Grand Finale), so there's really something for everyone. Love!  

Note:  Samples of this product were sent to me by a PR representative working with bareMinerals    

R.S.V.P. Today

bareMinerals, hands-down, has the best gift for anyone in your life who loves make-up.  I, for one, freaked out when I had the opportunity to check out their R.S.V.P. set which is ridiculously awesome.  This amazing collection of products perfect for achieving a party-ready look, come housed in a cute two-drawer chest perfect for storing cosmetics or jewelry (or both, actually).  R.S.V.P. comes with SPF 25 Mineral Veil Finishing Powder, Prime Time Primer Shadow in Golden Peach (one of the best shadow primers I've used either alone or as a primer base), After Party Eyecolor (bronze shadow, perfect for all skintones and eyecolors), Celebration Blush (delicate light pink blush), Round The Clock Waterproof Eyeliner in 7 PM (fantastic bronze liner which I adore so much I tried to get other shades, but alas, they don't sell separately), Double-Ended Flawless Definition Mascara (volumizes and lengthens), Pretty Amazing Lipgloss (Rowdy is a gorgeous plum color), Tapered Shadow Brush and Soft Sweep Cheek Brush.  Every single product in this set is perfection - and I assure you, you will use every single one.  I love how everything works so well together, or you can pull out and wear just a few for daytime look.  The Prime Time Primer Shadow with some black mascara and the Pretty Amazing lipgloss makes for a stunningly glamorous appearance (you'll actually look like you spent more time than you did prepping yourself).  Love, love, love this set and it retails for only $54.00 which is a steal!  Plus, if you order today or tomorrow and use the code SHARELUV you get 20% off and FREE Shipping.  Go there right now - you'll be so happy I forced your hand into this one.

Note: A sample of this item was sent to me by a PR representative working with bareEscentuals.

Awesome Eye Cream Alert!

I have already raved about RareMinerals facial moisturizer, but now I have to spread the word about their amazing eye   cream - Active Triple Treatment Eye Cream - which is releasing soon!  This wonder cream seriously keeps my eye area looking brighter and has minimized my wrinkles in a short amount of time.  Incredibly non-irritating (especially fantastic for those of us with sensitive skin who also wear contacts), it sinks in almost immediately so there's no greasy or sticky afterfeel.  Fantastic, fantastic stuff!  I'll keep you posted as soon as I know when it's hitting shelves.  Put me down as a big, big fan.  Wow, never thought I'd get so excited about eye cream.

A sample of this product was sent to me by a PR representative working with bareMinerals.

Holiday Gifts!

I seriously cannot believe that it's already Holiday Gift Set time.  Where did the year go?  I'm torn between thinking I should've accomplished WAY more than I have and being slightly giddy because it's almost the holidays and the holidays mean presents!  If you have a makeup junkie to buy for, bareMinerals has tons of great sets this year.  I'm seriously loving the two above. 

The Ruby Collection is a limited edition kit that's infused with authentic ruby powder (it's meant to inspire passion and beauty in whoever wears it!)  At $54, it's a great bargain - you get 6 colors, 2 brushes and an adorable little faux-crocodile clutch in Ruby to store it all in.  The Eyecolors include Golden Ruby (a peach gold) and Vintage Ruby (a rose-tinted fawn), the Liner Shadow comes in Wild Ruby (a plum chocolate), and you also get bareMinerals' famous Mineral Veil and their Ruby Radiance powder.  The brushes that are included with this set are the Soft Sweep Cheek Brush and the Double-Ended Tapered Shadow & Eyeliner Brush (a great addition to my brush repertoire!)  I think my favorite item in the collection though is the Ruby Buxom Full Color Lip Polish.  It's a shimmering mauve and looks gorgeous on, plus it acts like a lip plumper, so you get bigger lips AND great color.  (Can you tell I'm kinda obsessing over the Lip Polishes right now?)

The Topaz Collection is another great set that would make a perfect gift.  Topaz is known for its natural beauty and is believed to enhance well-being (and who couldn't use THAT around the holidays?)  For $59, you'll get enough colors to play around and create different looks with, all perfect for the many holiday-themed parties you're sure to be rushing off to.  The kit contains: Topaz Eyecolors in Luminous Topaz (a vanilla champagne), Smoky Topaz (a mint chocolate hue - my favorite ice cream AND my favorite product in the collection), Liner Shadow in Lush Topaz (a smoky forest green), Rosy Topaz blush (a dusk rose), Mineral Veil, and a Full Color Lip Polish in Tempest Buxom (a wine rose).  You'll also get the Tapered Crease Defining Eye Brush, the Precision Liner Brush, and the Soft Focus Face Brush.  (I love that the bareMinerals kits come with brushes - it's the makeup item I least like spending money on and I always get a lot of use out of theirs).

The Ruby Collection is available now exclusively at Sephora stores and Sephora.com.  You can find the Topaz Collection exclusively at Ulta and Ulta.com.   

Photos courtesy of Sephora and Ulta