Montagne Jeunesse Chocolate Masque Review

Hey there! Check it out, another blog. this is going to be a review on a face mask by a brand called Montagne Jeunesse. These masks are widely available: we sell them at Ulta and I've seen them at Meijer, Walmart, Walgreens, and Targets. I have a love/hate relationship w/ face masks. I'm so bloody impatient, that waiting for masks to dry is absolute torture. Plus, I wear glasses, so when I'm waiting for a mask to set, I can't do anything else b/c I am blind as a bat w/o them and I don't have contacts. Sometimes I just wear them anyway, but then my nose piece gets all funky and dirty. (FIRST WORLD PROBLEM ALERT!)

I received this mask from Influenster in my Holiday 2012 VoxBox. (For my initial thoughts and unboxing video, click here!) This was a product that not every person was eligible for (it said on the info card that it was based on demographics) but I guess I lucked out! I don't want to go into my whole Influenster spiel again, but I did an introduction post right hurrr. But, basically, Influenster is a site based on the idea of social media; you sign up and can actually get involved w/ different brands and receive products to test and review, etc. It's pretty cool, so check it out!

FTC Disclaimer: I received this product free through Influenster. I am not being paid or compensated in any way by the company being reviewed. My opinions are entirely my own! :)

Influenster Holiday 2012 VoxBox Initial Thoughts & Unboxing Video

This is so annoying. Guys, I really need to get a laptop so that I can blog and vlog and shit on a regular basis. I'm either at the library, and really uncomfortable, or I have to beg to borrow my mummy's laptop, lol. Sadness. Anyway, I am super behind on a ton of posts, so let's talk about Influenster a bit. Or, specifically, the Holiday 2012 VoxBox. Now, normally I like to be surprised by stuff. So when I got the College one, I refused to actually watch other people's videos or see their pictures.

Sadly, this time something went wonky w/ my email I guess, because I never got a confirmation email. Since I didn't think I'd get this box, I looked at reviews and such already. So it wasn't a surprise in the sense of what came in the box, but more a surprise that I got the box at all! I'll be reviewing all of the beauty products on this blog and all of the non-beauty products on my tumblr and doing a round-up post once I've tried everything, w/ the links and stuff.

This is just my initial thoughts and some pictures, lol.

FTC Disclaimer: I am not affiliated w/ any of the aforementioned companies. All products were free from Influenster, but I am not being compensated for my reviews, and all opinions are, as always, my own. :D

imPRESS Press-on Manicure by Broadway Nails® REVIEW

Here is the second review for the College 2012 VoxBox I received from Influenster! There were two makeup products in this box, and that's all that I'll be making actual reviews on because, well, I write makeup reviews! And I'm not about to do a review on, say, the Necco Wafers or something, haha.

I've done an intro post for Influenster before, but really fast - Influenster is a site anyone can join, although I believe you need an invite now. You can post reviews, showcase your videos/blog reviews, and interact with other people. And, well, you can get VoxBoxes of things pertaining to your interests and participate in Brand Challenges to win more free products to review. You don't need to be an established blogger at all.

Anyway, this is going to be the second College 2012 VoxBox makeup review. The other review was on the N.Y.C. Show Time Glitter Liner; if you were interested, you can find that review here. These are the imPRESS Press-on Manicure by Broadway Nails®. I have no clue what the name of the design is though, sorry! They have a white tip and a flower design w/ little dots of silver glitter, if you were interested, haha.

FTC Disclaimer: I always forget to do these. I am not affiliated w/ Broadway Nails®, they are not paying me for this review, and my opinions are my own. I am receiving NO compensation for this; considering I am not fond of this product, it's unlikely that I'd be paid for this anyway. I DID receive this product free from the site Influenster. Y'all know the drill.

N.Y.C. Show Time Glitter Eyeliner REVIEW

Yes. I know. An actual review, OMG. I know, I am so hellaciously behind and I'm not even going to give some shitty sob story. Let's get right into this. This is part of my College 2012 VoxBox (brief review of the whole box here)from Influenster. Many people have done blog posts about Influenster, and so have I! You can find THAT post here! But, basically, you can interact, post reviews, answer questions, and get boxes of free stuff pertaining to your lifestyle and interests. I, being a college student, liked most of the stuff in my box.

Plus, I feel bad for being so bad at blogging lately, so mini reviews it is! This is obviously on the N.Y.C. Showtime Glitter Liner.

FTC Disclaimer: I never remember to do these because I never get free shit, ya know? But this liner was free through the VoxBox program at Influenster. Neither N.Y.C. Cosmetics nor Influenster are paying me to do this review, opinions are my own, etc.

Influenster - Oral Aesthetics & College 2012 VoxBoxes! :)

Okay, let's do this! First off, I'm so, so, so sorry that I've been MIA lately. It's not even that I'm ridiculously busy or stressed...well, okay, I've been creepering on this random barista which involves me sitting around, pretending to do homework at 3 AM. And I've also been trying to focus on school. It's paying off! I have 100+% in three out of four classes, and in the fourth, I still have an A! :)

So here's the dealie-o: I'm cheating. I'm combining my two VoxBoxes into one post. And then I'll do individual product reviews on some of the stuff. The makeup stuff, that is. I'm not about to do a review on a ball-point pen, even though it is pretty fab. And y'all don't wanna hear me go on and on about Necco Wafers, LOL.

So. This post is going to touch on the Oral Aesthetics VoxBox and the College 2012 VoxBox (Those aren't links; they're page anchors. That way, if you ONLY want to go to a particular box, you can, and cut out all the rambling shit, lol. I'M LOOKIN' OUT FOR YOU GUYS!). I will post a review on the Crest 3D White Whitestrips Professional Effects when I am done w/ the box, so this will just be an initial kind of thing-bob. I'll also post reviews on the N.Y.C. Show Time Glitter Eyeliner and the Im-Press nails by Broadway Nails.

SHOW ON THE ROAD TIME, OUI?

Influenster and some personal stuff

Hi! Long time, no blog, I know. :( I don't know how much I mentioned this in previous posts, but I am currently laptop/computerless, which is why it's taking me forever to update my blog. I have to find people to upload stuff for me and that's kind of a hassle, so...sorry! Anyway, I have a haul video and some reviews to post, so I will be trying to get that up over the weekend!

The NARS Andy Warhol collection has been released...and I'm giddy with excitement. I don't know if I've ever talked about my huge love of Warhol and the Velvet Underground but...well, I love Warhol and the Velvet Underground! I would have liked if the collection had included Nico in it, but what can you do? Debbie Harry, Edie Sedgwick, and Candy Darling, who are all gorgeous people, are the three in the collection and I'm super excited for the Edie Sedgwick parts. She's one of my beauty and style muses, so I shrieked out loud when I found out about this collection, haha.

So, let's talk about Influenster. This is a pretty cool site, y'all. And you don't need to be a big name blogger or vlogger to participate! Once you register, it's this interactive site where you can post reviews, read about new products, and interact w/ the brands via FB and Twitter.

You can try out for badges in things you're interested in (I've been working on the Beauty Badge and the cat lovers one, haha!) and work on improving your all-over score on the Influenster site. What is really neat is the Vox Boxes. They do all sorts, depending on your needs and interests and when you have certain badges and scores, they'll send you boxes of free (who doesn't like free??!) products to try. Most of these are full size or jumbo sample sizes!

So, basically, you can try new or nearly new products for free, which is neat as hell, because who doesn't like trying new stuff, right? Then you can post reviews, link your blog, and interact with other people.

A couple of other sites along similar veins would be Klout and Mylikes where you can get free perks or even get paid! And, again, you don't need to be anyone "special" to join - it's open to EVERYONE

I have some Maybelline stuff to talk about and new Hard Candy products, so stay tuned because I plan on posting that this weekend!

<3!

Neutrogena Shine Control Foundation & Powder Review

Okay, so I know that I've been on a slight roll with blogging, haha. So let's keep this going, right? I recently posted a haul post and I had mentioned that I picked up the Shine Control Powder and Foundation from Neutrogena. Well, I've had these for about three weeks now and have been using them pretty regularly, so it's review time, yes?

I would just like to say that I've only used two methods to apply this. I'm not a big fan of paddle style foundation brushes, so I didn't use one, plus I don't think this foundation would be that great with one. Using a wet sponge will usually get a decent effect, but I'm out of sponges. So, yeah, sorry. This will be the easiest foundation review to read, especially from me, haha.

L'Oréal Magic Skin Beautifier B.B. Cream in "Light" REVIEW

This is a going to be a review on a product that I imagine a lot of people are interested in. This is the L'Oréal Magic Skin Beautifier B.B. Cream, which is the B.B. Cream that can be found in the actual makeup displays. I know that they've also come out w/ at least one other type, but that one is stocked w/ the rest of L'Oréal's skincare line, and not w/ the makeup.

I would like to preface this review by saying that, while I am interested in trying out Asian BB Creams, I have not had the opportunity to do so, so I cannot compare the two w/ experience. That being stated, I've read a ton of reviews and such, and it's the general consensus that the American BB Creams are nothing like the Asian ones. So, w/ the idea of "one step fits all makeup AND skincare", the American ones just aren't up to par.

So I will be reviewing this product like I would a foundation. NOT as a tinted moisturizer, because the Asian BB Creams are supposed to have pretty decent coverage and be your primer, foundation, and concealer, along w/ your skincare. I might compare the American brands to each other, but I'm not going to review these things on the basis of being a good BB Cream or not because I simply do not know.

Long bloody introduction aside, let's get this review on the road!

boscia Skincare Review

I actually kind of like doing those product battle posts. I know the first one is going to raise people's hackles but it happens. We don't all like the same things. I have another one planned, actually, between Benefit and Revlon (spoiler: Revlon wins, by a long-shot.) ANYWAY, this is a review post. About skincare, that I've been using for little over a month now, albeit on and off.

I should mention that I have oily/combo skin. It gets severely dry in random little spots, but, for the most part, is oily as hell. I do not have sensitive skin, nor do I have issues w/ acne. I got in a car accident eight years ago and the airbag left some rough, red patches along my jawline; I also have typical redness. I am sensitive to heat, so my face is often red, but the redness is usually my only skin issue. Sometimes it looks a bit textured and dull.

I'm not even sure if there is a crazy demand for boscia reviews, but whatever, let's get this started!

Korres Raspberry Antioxidant Liquid Lipstick Review

Yeah. I know. I'm doing a ton of Korres reviews today. Well, I took all of the pictures in one great group AND got them all edited at the same time as well. I was pretty impressed w/ myself, TBH. Anyway, this review is on two lip glosses I purchased from the JCPenneys Sephora. I believe they were phasing out the Korres makeup line from that particular location and put all of the color products on special clearance. When I bought these, I looked online and they were fairly new products to the Korres line and also still available on Sephora's website.

I am really liking these Korres lip products, so let's get this review started!

Korres Quercetin & Oak Concealer (Light) Review

Okay, this is the next Korres product I want to talk about. This is the Quercetin & Oak Anti-aging/Anti-wrinkle Concealer in "02 - Light". I purchased this on clearance at the JCPenneys Sephora but this product is actually still available. In fact, when I bought this it was a newer product. I really enjoy this concealer. It's not the absolute best I've used but it's definitely up there. I don't really notice the anti-aging or anti-wrinkle properties, but I also don't really suffer from those issues yet (knock on wood).

The one thing I really like about Korres products is that they're all natural-based and have good-for-you ingredients. Now, whether or not products w/ "good" ingredients ACTUALLY work is another story, but I enjoy this concealer for concealer's sake, haha. Onward!

Korres Wild Rose Powder (04 - Medium Beige) Review

So, this was going to be part of a little Sephora haul I meant to post...ages ago. It wasn't that interesting though - most of the stuff I had purchased were all on clearance, so no one was missing out because, well, these things aren't normally on clearance. In fact, they're still being sold for full price! However, the Sephora in my local JCPenneys had it on clearance. So that's a little recommendation I have: if you have a Sephora in a Penneys near you, I suggest checking it out every so often. Because it seems that, since they're smaller, they will mark down products that they are no longer going to physically carry. I have a couple more Korres products to talk about, and I just checked Sephora - they're all still available.

Anyway, this particular review is about a couple of face products I picked up from that clearance sale. I got a face powder and a concealer and lemme tell you: they are fantastic. I'm always getting different concealers so it's somewhat silly to repurchase those, but the powder is on my "need to repurchase" list! Anyway, I don't want to ramble TOO much, so let's get this review started!

Revlon Colorstay Whipped™ Crème Makeup REVIEW

Okay, I imagine this is a review that I am, yet again, tardy to the party here. This foundation has been out for a couple of months or something now and I'm just now getting to this review. Obviously, I need to get my ass in gear. ANYWAY, as I'm sure is evident by the title, this is a review on the Revlon Colorstay Whipped™ Crème Makeup. I know that a lot of people are pretty excited about this foundation and a lot of people are reading numerous reviews on it, but I'm throwing my ring in the hat - er, hat in the ring as well.

This review is SUPER long and SUPER picture heavy so...you've been warned, lovelies.

But anyway, w/o further ado, onwards to the review!

Contouring & Highlighting - Favorite Blushes

Okay, so here is the last post in my little mini series thing on contouring and highlighting. I figured I mentioned my favorite bronzers and highlighters, so why not go the whole nine yards or whatnot and talk about ALL THE CHEEK PRODUCTS. So here it is, my favorite blushes. They run all over the place in terms of price. Some of them are harder to get a hold of, sadly, and others might be location-based only, but this isn't necessarily meant as a review, just as a "BAM! here it is" type of list.

There are a lot of blushes that are huge favorites of a lot of people that just don't work on my skin coloring and tone. (MAC's "Well Dressed", I'm lookin' at you.) So, this isn't meant as a "THESE COLORS ARE GREAT YOU WILL LOVE THEM I DEMAND YOU BUY THEM NAOOOOOOO," and more of an excuse for an easy blog post, haha. If I have reviews or whatnot on any of these, I will link below, as usual. I changed the format a bit, because I didn't want to say a lot about these blushes, to be honest. So no list, but I will still put names and prices and the like! Unfortunately, I'm lazy and didn't organize these by color theme so it is one GIGANTIC cluster, sorry!

This is picture-heavy and will still be pretty long, so let's get this show on the road!

Contouring & Highlighting 101 - Favorite Highlighters

I AM ON A BLOGGING ROLL RIGHT NOW. And it feels so good. I think sometimes you just need breaks...or in my case a hibernation cycle or something. Anyway, I'm getting back into the game. This is a part of my little mini series on contouring and highlighting and this post is on the highlighting products that I like.

It ranges from all different price ranges and a lot of these products are not actually meant to be highlighters but I use them as such anyway. I didn't swatch any of the products in any of these "favorite" posts because, well, I'm lazy and also these are cheek products and not eye shadows and a super sheer swatch does not necessarily mean the product would be sheer when applied to your face! That, and, uh, I'm lazy. Some of these products might have reviews, and if they do, I will link to them.

This is picture-heavy and will still be pretty long, so let's get this show on the road!

Contouring & Highlighting 101

Okay, so let's get right down to it. There's this makeup technique that has been around for ages in the industry but is fairly new when it comes to regular people like us. And it's getting a lot of buzz. Why? Because this is one of the ultimate secrets - sculpting your face. It's a method of making your face look amazing in pictures which, being a 2-D medium are, by default, flat. But it can also be used in everyday life! It's one of the questions I get asked a lot and it's one of those things people seem to be a bit wary of (which, fair enough, if done wrong, you can look crazy!)

I've always known that I was never super happy w/ how my face looks in photos. I'm Asian (obviously, haha) so my face is flatter and I also have monolids. In photos, I can look pretty damn flat, even though in real life, I do have cheekbones and eye sockets. When I first discovered contouring, I was thrilled. In fact, I went super crazy and probably looked utterly absurd for the longest time (streaks of bronzer right down my face anyone?) But this is something that everyone can do. And, yeah, there are a million tutorials on this, but I'm throwing my hat into the ring also, okay? Haha, enough rambling, right?

This is picture-heavy and will still be pretty long, so let's get this show on the road!

Contouring & Highlighting 101 - Favorite Bronzers

Okay, this is the bronzer suggestion part of my contouring/highlighting blog. Originally I planned on making one big post, but it would be so fucking long that it wasn't even remotely funny, nor did it seem like a good idea even w/ page anchors because who wants to read all of that?? So instead of being one massive blog, this is going to be a four-parter - the actual contour/highlight explanation, and then three separate blogs about my favorite blushes, bronzers, and highlighters. I don't use bronzer all over my face, so none of these are overly shimmery and the shimmery bronzers I DO own are definitely not my favorites.

So this is going to be my bronzer suggestions for contouring. These are the ones I've tried. There are others that I've heard about (Tarte's "Park Avenue Princess", Too Faced's "Chocolate Soleil", etc) but I've never used them so I can't really recommend them, ya know? This list covers all price ranges and should hopefully work for a variety of skintones!

This is picture-heavy and will still be pretty long, so let's get this show on the road!

Revlon® Just Bitten Kissable™ Balm Stain REVIEW

Okay, here is another blog, like I said! I'm really trying to get into the swing of things again minus the rambling found in my last blog. Sometimes I can start talking (or, I guess, typing) too much and I'm going to try to keep this review much more concise (can you tell by the long intro??)

If you prefer the more detailed, ramble-ness, let me know in a comment, but I doubt it will be too much of a concern, haha. Well, let's just get this started!

Maybelline Color Tattoo™ 24 Hour Cream Gel Shadow Review

Okay, so this is the review that I'm sure tons of people will find totally relevant. This is a review on the Maybelline Color Tattoo™ shadows! Everybody has been going CRAZY for these things and, honestly, this is one of the few products that I feel is pretty much worth the hype. I know, right? I am the most skeptic bastard when it comes to things w/ hype and I am also picky as all hell. If you've read previous reviews of mine, you know that price, while it does play a minimal part, is not the main thing I look for in a product. I am honestly a bit more skeptical of drugstore products because they tend to be a fairly high mark-up for what the product actually is (L'Oréal, I'm looking at you!)

I first spotted and purchased these products probably about two weeks before YT exploded w/ videos and I was in awe of the colors. These have some of the most amazing colors for drugstore cream shadows. I own a ton of the Revlon cream shadow quads, and while some of them are okay, the colors are pretty toned down. This line has the perfect mix of bright and edgy and also neutral and everyday and that is completely perfect. I also really like how there are several different types of finishes. From the drugstore, that is crazy cool. But I've rambled enough, and y'all probably wanna get on w/ the review, right?

Physicians Formula Shimmer Strips Custom Eye Enhancing Kohl Kajal Eyeliner Trio in Green Eyes REVIEW (Holy bloody long title, eh?)

So, I am making it my personal goal to try and blog every day I have class. I know, I know, that seems slightly counter-intuitive, right? Shouldn't I try and blog every day I DON'T have class? Well, I want to get into the swing of regular updates and I have classes five days a week, so I will be utilizing my laptop and the internet most of those days, so it just makes sense to throw a blog in the mix, right? I mean, I can't study 24/7 so blogging will be one of those random distractions. Plus, this way I can get more blog posts out of the way and do more reviews and possibly start weekly series or something.

I digress - this blog post is going to be a review on a Physicians Formula product. Now, I want to STRESS - try and look for the peelie coupons on the product. Also, I usually only buy PF products when they're on sale because they can be pretty pricy, especially for drugstore. Also, it's a brand that, while being skin-friendly and innovative, isn't exactly FANTASTIC in terms of texture and pigmentation. My personal issue w/ PF lies in the fact that 95% of their products have shimmer. Which, considering this particular line is called 'Shimmer Strips', is, in this case, something that I'm well aware of. But even their other lines contain heavily shimmery products. I don't want a translucent setting powder that contains shimmer.

This is turning into a ridiculously long intro, so let's get on w/ it, yes?

L'Oréal Colour Riche® Balm Review & Randomness

I hate reviewing L'Oréal products because I feel like I always end up disliking them for one reason or another. Well, this review is another review in a long line of disappointment. I guess I hold L'Oréal to a stricter standard because, not only do they test on animals and should OBVIOUSLY be able to come up w/ a better product because of that fact (*eyeroll*), but they're also so overpriced, it physically hurts. But you don't want me to get started on overpriced drugstore makeup, lol.

Needless to say, I was disappointed by this product, like most other L'Oréal products I end up buying. At the end of this review, I'm including a mini review of an amazingly gorgeous product that I LOVE so that this review isn't so gloomy. That being said, I do have an upcoming L'Oréal review on a new type of eyeshadow that I really like, so maybe not everything is hopeless! :) Let's get this party started!

New Lip Products Swatch Post

This is going to be a random swatch post of all the new lip products I've purchased in the last six weeks or so. Or at least the ones I don't plan on doing individual posts on. The Revlon Lip Butters are a very popular product but I don't want to edit in these in case people don't see them and it's not worth making a new separate post, no matter how popular these are.

The Lip Butters are, for the most part, the only lip products I took actual lip swatch photos for. The rest, I didn't, since I'm not planning on reviewing them. If, of course, you would like a separate review post on anything besides the Lip Butters in this post, please leave me a comment and let me know! :) If you're interested in my review on the Revlon Lip Butters, you can click the picture above and it will link you to the review post! The nature of this post involves a lot of pictures w/ minimal dialogue, for warning.