Bite Beauty Amuse Bouche Lipsticks-A Review

Hello, Everyone!

I received three out of thirty-four of the new Amuse Bouche lipsticks by Bite Beauty from Influenster to review! Bite Beauty replaced their Luminous Creme line with the Amuse Bouche line in February. I only have one lipstick from the Luminous Creme line, so I'll be able to tell you the difference (if any) between them.

If you're not familiar with Bite Beauty, they focus only on lip products, and everything is made with food-grade ingredients. You could actually eat your lipstick, if you wanted! I don't recommend it, but to each their own. ;) Considering studies say we eat four to seven pounds of lipstick throughout our lifetime, I'd say having a lipstick made with food-grade ingredients is a good thing! The three colors I received were Beetroot (bold berry), Gazpacho (true blue-based red), and Pepper (dusty rose). I think Influenster did a great job choosing the colors for this box, because even if you don't love all of the colors, you're bound to like at least one. The Amuse Bouche line is made with "12 edible oils and triple milled pigments, providing saturated lip color with weightless coverage and a citrus flavor made from fresh pressed fruit." These do have a citrusy scent and flavor, which the Luminous line didn't have (to me), but it's not unpleasant. All three colors are extremely pigmented, so a lipliner and a light hand will be your friend. I don't think I own any other bullet lipsticks that are this pigmented. I find all three to be very moisturizing and, even though they aren't marketed as such, long-wearing.

(Top to Bottom: Pepper, Beetroot, Gazpacho)

The above swatches are two swipes of each color. Beetroot gets a lot darker with each layer.

The above is Beetroot applied with a light hand and even then, I blotted some off. 

The above is Pepper, my favorite of the three. It's a perfect neutral, and I love it. I couldn't get a decent picture of me wearing Gazpacho (it was rainy the day I wore it), but it is as described, a true blue-based red. 

The Luminous Creme lipstick I have is in the color Vouvray, which is a light pink color. I love that lipstick, but it doesn't have the opacity that the new line does. Weirdly, that's one of the things I like about it. My lips are naturally pigmented, so sometimes I like a lipstick that isn't full coverage so my natural lip color can peak through. Super opaque lipsticks can sometimes look strange on me. The Luminous Creme line was also $24 a lipstick, and the Amuse Bouche line is $26.

To sum it up, the Amuse Bouche line is creamy, moisturizing, long-wearing, and highly pigmented. If you want a quality lipstick and don't mind spending $26 on it, these are a great pick! 

Which colors are you looking forward to picking up on your next trip to Sephora?

 Thanks for stopping by and reading!

*Some links above are affiliates. 

*I received these products complimentary from Influenster for testing purposes. 

*All opinions are always my own. 

Chipped Nail Polish-A Rant

Hello, Everyone!

You probably read this title and thought "this chic has issues". It's probably not what you think.

Some months ago, I was watching a beauty YouTubers video, and she said something that greatly irked (and kind of offended) me. It bothered me so much, that I'm still harping on it. I'm not naming the YouTuber, because she's someone I really do enjoy watching, and she wasn't trying to offend anyone.  I believe it was a Q&A video, and the question was something along the lines of "What is your Pet Peeve?". Her answer was "chipped nail polish", and she went on to state that she actually judges people based on their chipped polish. As I watched/listened to the video, I looked down at my hands and saw (gasp!) my chipped nail polish. I kind of felt embarrassed. And then I got mad at myself for feeling that way. I know there were other people who were upset by that statement, because I saw the comments under the video. Let me go ahead and state that not a lot upsets me, and it's almost impossible to offend me. I'm an "I don't care what other people think about me" person. Here's why this offended me: here was this woman who has no children and a job that lets her stay at home, where she has all the time she needs to keep up her appearance, but who also gets her nails done at a salon, telling me that if we ran into each other, she would judge me based on my chipped nail polish. I have four small children, a husband, a full-time job outside of my home (where I type all day long), an hour commute (each way) every day, loads of dishes and laundry, and all of those other "fun" mom chores that can take a toll on my nails. In all of that madness, where would I find time to keep a perfect manicure? I enjoy having my nails painted; it looks nice and makes me happy. I don't particularly like to paint my nails, and I'm certainly not paying someone to do it when I'm perfectly capable. Where I'd find the hour or two it would take to visit the salon, is beyond me anyways. While I enjoy having my nails painted, I'm not going to rush for the polish remover as soon as I get a chip, or re-do my polish every day. I don't have time for that. Last Friday, I took the day off work to devote time to decluttering my house without all of the kids and my husband around to tell me a thousand times why "no, you can't get rid of that because it's my FAVORITE". I spent a solid eight hours going through every piece of clothing and every toy that my kids have, and ended up with quite a bit of chipped polish. No where in the process of getting the kids ready to leave the house, dropped off where they needed to be, glitter light switches made for my six and four year old girls, a "Free Dobby" sign made for my laundry room, eight bags of clothes and five boxes of toys donated, and all of the kids picked back up, did I stop to think "Man, I should really stop my life right now to fix my nail polish!". If I'm lucky, I can find one night a week to paint my nails, but I always have to wait until the five other people in my house are asleep before I can do that. Some nights I am just too dang tired to care.

Don't get me wrong; if I'm going out or to some kind of function, of course I'm going to make sure my nails look nice. But I'm not going to panic when I see chipped polish. Nail polish isn't a top priority in my life; I'm not 16 anymore. I wish I could meet her with my chipped nail polish and let her judge me for it. I'd be happy to explain that my hands with their chipped nail polish, just put three beautiful little girls to bed, complete with songs and prayers. These chipped nails were along for the ride when I did our laundry earlier, and loaded our dishwasher. They made their way through a three year old's hair, while we sang "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star". They furiously typed all day long at the job that provides half of the income for my household. They ran their way across my husband's back as he cooked supper. They held my children and doled out numerous hugs tonight. They waved good-bye to the same children when I left for work this morning. They tapped along on the steering wheel as I sang along with Tyler Farr in my car.

So yes, please judge me for my chipped nail polish. I'm happy to tell you what my priorities are.



Thank you for stopping by and allowing me to vent!

January Favorites!!

Hey Everyone!

I realize we're already halfway into February, but I still wanted to get my January Favorites out there!

For Christmas, my mom got me the Urban Decay Gwen Stefani eyeshadow palette, and I have worn it so much since then, I've had to force myself to use other shadows! On days where I was in a hurry, I used "Anaheim" and "Blonde" from the UD palette for transition and brow bone shades, and then applied Makeup Geek's foiled shadow in "Charmed" to my lid. 

I went back to an old faithful for eyeshadow primer in January, and picked my UD Primer Potion in "Enigma". 

The only things I used on my top lashes were Benefit's "They're Real" tinted lash primer and Marc Jacobs "Velvet Noir" mascara. Seriously good combination!! 

I didn't do any heavy contouring for the month, but did love my Nars "Laguna" bronzer for warmth and subtle definition. 

I'm a blush junkie, so it's no surprise I have so many blushes in this post. My Too Faced Love Flush Blush palette got a lot of love for the month, as did my Makeup Geek blush in "Bliss" (Bliss is 50% off right now!). 

I have dark under eye circles, that lean on the blue side, and if I don't color correct on really bad days it can look gray under my concealer. I picked up the Maybelline Instant Age Rewind concealers in "Neutralizer" and "Brightener", and have used them in various combinations lately. I really love the "Neutralizer" by itself or in a combination. 

"Stone" from Dose of Colors restocked in January (now sold out again), and I wanted to try out their formula and that color, so I went ahead and picked it up. I love it. As far as liquid lipsticks go, this one has a comfortable formula and the color is beautiful. When it wears off, it doesn't leave a dreaded ring; instead, it wears off pretty evenly. 

I really loved the E.L.F Ex-tra Lipgloss in "Brian" in lip combos and just as a light pop of color. It's a really pretty pink color, but does have some micro shimmer in it. Through the end of 2/14/16, you can get a free Matte Lip Color in "Rich Red" with any purchase using code "KISS", and on 2/15/15 only, you can get free shipping on any order with code "FREESHIP".

Last for the month, is a cologne. I got this one for Christmas, as well. It's the Abercrombie and Fitch men's cologne in "Fierce". I've stated before that I do not like women's perfumes, so this is right up my alley. I've worn it every day! And, you know, the bottle...

Thank you for stopping by to read! What have you been loving?! Let me know below!

*Some links above are affiliates. 

*All opinions are my own.  

Makeup Forever Ultra HD Invisible Cover Stick Foundation-A Review!

Hello Everyone!

Two reviews back-to-back! Are you as excited as I am?! If you read my December Favorites, you know I picked up the Makeup Forever Ultra HD Invisible Cover Stick Foundation, and (obviously) have been loving it. 

Marc Jacobs Velvet Noir Mascara-A Review!

Hello, Everyone!

If you've been reading my posts, you know that I'm a part of Influenster, and sometimes they send me products to try and review. I am NEVER paid for these reviews, though. I just get to try out new products and let you know my thoughts!

My most recent box contained a full size Marc Jacobs Velvet Noir Mascara to try out. I received this before it even hit shelves!

The full size is .32oz and retails for $26. If you haven't heard about this mascara, it was inspired by Marc Jacob's first beauty memory of his mother shaving fibers from a velvet ribbon to create her own faux lashes. That is lash dedication! The wand has a traditional, bristle brush that looks similar to the hourglass wand of the Too Faced Better than Sex mascara, but not quite as large. I actually prefer the brush in the Velvet Noir mascara.

Due to Hypothyroidism/Hashimoto's Disease, my eyelashes have thinned over the last four years, so large mascara wands tend to deposit mascara onto my eyelids during application. I experience a negligent amount, sometimes, with this wand. Tip: if you ever get mascara anywhere besides your lashes, wait until it dries before trying to remove it. Once dried, it will come right off. trying to remove it while wet will just cause a mess!

There are some crazy statistics with this mascara, such as 1800% more volume in three strokes and 300% more volume in one stroke. I don't know what kind of nifty gadget they have that calculates those claims, but I don't have one. What I do have, is my experience with this mascara for the last 22 days.

My lashes are blonde, so I always need mascara if I want my lashes to be visible. It is one thing I CANNOT skip. Velvet Noir is supposed to have  "super-concentrated black pigment" and the "Flash Volume Complex" that creates "instant, smudge-proof length and volume in three strokes or less". I agree that this is a super black mascara, which I love. The darker the better. I have experienced no flaking or smudging with this mascara, but I have NOT used it on my lower lashes; I use a specific mascara there. I love the Too Faced mascara, but because it is such a dry formula, it flakes. The "three strokes or less" I also find accurate. 1=Good, 2=Better, and 3=Best, in my opinion. My preference in my lashes is the more dramatic, the better! I don't mess with falsies, so I expect my mascara to really deliver a punch. The formula in the Marc Jacobs Velvet Noir is more on the wet spectrum, but it doesn't weigh my lashes down, or cause the curl to fall. I've used this mascara with and without primer, and I love it either way. I love this mascara so much, I used 100 points at Sephora to pick up a deluxe sample as a back up!

(My full size tube next to the deluxe sample from Sephora)

My final thoughts on this mascara are this: I adore it! The formula isn't too wet or too dry, which makes it pretty much perfect. It holds my curl, gives amazing volume, and doesn't flake or smudge. Mascara is one of the most fickle things to recommend to someone. What works for me may certainly not work for you! However, if you have the opportunity, I recommend trying it! As of right now, it is still available as a 100 point perk here. This is my absolute current favorite mascara, and I fully intend on finishing this tube and diving into my small one! I wanted to include it in my December Favorites post, but I didn't receive it until 12/22/2015, so I didn't think it was fair. I bet it shows up in my January Favorites, though! ;)

This was my favorite Influenster box, and I couldn't wait to share how much I love this mascara! 

Have you tried the Marc Jacobs Velvet Noir? Will you give it a shot? Let me know what you think!

*Some links above are affiliates.

*The above mentioned product was sent to me complimentary by Influenster, but all thoughts and opinions are my own.  

Makeup Geek Flash Sale!!

Hello, Everyone!!

I just wanted to write a quick post letting you know that Makeup Geek is having a 24 hour Flash Sale, which will end at 9am PST on 1/8/2016! Use code "1MILLIONLOVE" on ANY MUG brand purchase, and you'll get 10% off your order. It works on sale items, too! Trust me, I tried it. 😉 

 

Photo used from Makeup Geek's Instagram

They have quite a few things on sale right now, including foiled shadows, pigments, and their regular shadows. Some of these colors are going away for good, so grab them while you can!!

Thanks for stopping by and reading!

*Links above are affiliates. 

December Favorites!

Yay for my first post of the new year!!

Hello, Everyone!

I was determined to not miss doing my December favorites! I have some things I really wanted to talk to you about! Here's an overview of what I was loving:

This lipstick was also a huge favorite, but it was in my purse when I took this picture. ;)

In my Collective Favorites post, I mentioned I had been loving the Makeup Forever HD foundation in the liquid form, but wanted to try the stick formulation. Wellllll....I picked it up...and I LOVE IT. I'll do a detailed post on it in the future!

My mom gifted me the Laura Geller Baked Blush in Catalina, and I've worn it a ton lately. It is an absolutely beautiful plummy color! It's a smooth formula, and has a nice sheen to it. There's no glitter or sparkle, just a healthy glow. To apply it, my favorite brush has been the Target Up&Up Blush Brush. I love this brush so much, I want to get a couple more! It's great quality, and inexpensive at only $5.99.

When Sephora sent out their Loyalty Rewards, I used my $25 off to pick up the Laura Mercier Blush & Glow Radiant Face Trio because MakeupByTiffanyD always raves about it, and I've been curious about the Matte Radiance Baked Highlighter in 01 for a long time. This palette has the highlighter, Bronze 03, and the Baked Blush Bronze in Ritual. I love everything in this palette. The highlight is stunning, the bronzer warms the face up naturally, and there's enough pink in the blush to help it actually work like a blush. Dani from CoffeeBreakWithDani was so incredibly sweet, and sent me a few things in December; one of which was the Anastasia Beverly Hills #23 brush. I've adored this brush with the Laura Mercier highlighter. Together, they create a beautiful glow!

If you remember from my Collective's post, I mentioned a powder that was giving my Nars Light Reflecting Powder a run for its money. That powder has been the Laura Mercier Translucent Loose Setting Powder. This powder does amazing things for my under eyes. I only have the travel size, but I would certainly purchase the full size when it runs out! It never makes my (already dry) skin look or feel dry, or my under eyes look cakey. I absolutely love it.

I back to Mac'd some things last month, and decided on the lipstick in Modesty. It's a Cremesheen formula, which is my favorite. There's no glitter or sparkle, just a moisturizing formula with a hint of shine.

Last for the month, was my Lorac Pro Palette 2. I usually favor warm toned eyeshadows, but lately I've really loved cooler tones! Lorac has one of my absolute favorite eyeshadow formulas; they're smooth and creamy and easy to blend.

I'd love to hear what your favorites have been! Let me know below!

Thanks for stopping by and reading!


*Some of the links above are affiliates.
*All opinions are my own.