Real Techniques Expert Face Brush Review

I knew all of the hype on YouTube and elsewhere about this brush, yet I waited so long to finally pick it up!

I am in love.

It does not leave foundation looking streaky at all!  Although it looks a little small, it doesn't take an excessive amount of time to apply product all over the face.  It is an excellent density and I know understand why everyone raves about it so much!

This brush kicks butt at applying foundation (although I honestly still prefer my Beauty Blender), but I particularly love it to death for blending out cream blushes and especially cream contour colors.  I love using my Flower Beauty stick foundation in SF7 under my cheek bones, then pulling this wonderful brush out to buff it in.  Beautiful! Every time.  It doesn't leave the contour looking streaky whatsoever, it doesn't blend it away too much, it is simply just perfect!

I would recommend this brush!

Thanks for reading!

Love,

Alaina

NYX Suede Eyeshadow Palette

1.7 grams of product per shadow.

$11.99 at Ulta

I love NYX products, don't get me wrong.  So many of the items I have tried from NYX have been excellent quality, especially given the price point.

However... (you just knew there had to be a "but") this palette made me sad.  I was disappointed in this palette because the pigmentation is just not there!  Even with primers and even with nice sticky bases, such as Maybelline Color Tattoos, these shadows just don't show up as beautifully as they do in the pan.  They are decent, but surely not as intense and pigmented as I would have liked them to be.

I saw this palette and thought, "what an excellent jewel-toned fall appropriate eyeshadow palette," but it simply did not live up to my expectations.

Would I recommend it?
Unfortunately, no.

Thanks for reading!
Love,
Alaina

Jordana Made To Last 24 Hour Pencil VS. NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil Milk

Pigmentation:

The NYX pencil has a more intense, pigmented white color to it, but that's not to say the Jordana is not pigmented.  The jordana still shows up very well but blends out to have less pigmentation than the NYX pencil.  

Consistency:

The Jordana pencil sets to a very solid state and does not budge, whereas the NYX pencil never really sets, it stays tacky and is still smudge-able after several minutes.

Lasting Power:

The NYX pencil will crease on my eyes with and without primer.  The Jordana pencil does not crease at all, with or without primer.

As a Base:

Both pencils hold eyeshadows very well and work excellently as bases to make colors pop. 

As you can see in this blended out picture, the Jordana pencil had already started to set in just the moment it took for me to take the picture of it unblended.  The NYX pencil blends out more smoothly.

Overall, I would recommend the Jordana for anyone who has oily eyelids or hooded eyes that crease easily.  NYX is still a great product if you can find a way to keep it from creasing on you.  For me personally, I can only make the NYX last a few hours before creasing, whereas the Jordana pencil lasts all day.

I hope this was helpful.

Thanks for reading!

Love,

Alaina

OCC Lip Tar Test Tubes - Champagne Shores - Trollop & Pris Swatches & Review

(pictures above are 1st: a mixture of Pris and Trollop, 2nd: Trollop alone)

I love using Pris as a highlight in the center of my lips for so many different colors! However, sometimes it can wear off strangely.  Sometimes Pris leaves behind chunky glitter on the lips instead of a nice sheen.  And it doesn't take long for it to get that way either.  Not even a couple of hours in, Pris will start to look too glittery and less shiny. 

 I don't find that the primer does much to help this particular lip product stay put or last any longer.

The color lasts a long time, however, this product tends to bleed outside the lip lines for me personally.  

They are both beautiful colors but I still need to figure out a way to keep it from bleeding and stay looking nice throughout the day.

Overall, I'm unsure if I would recommend this particular pack of OCC lip tars.  It is my first purchase of OCC products, but I'm somewhat on the fence about them thus far.

Let me know what you think, have you tried this particular set?

Thanks for reading!

Love,

Alaina