Unable to review & wear: NYX Glam Liner Aqua Luxe Liquid Liner

Sorry to say this, but if you were hoping I would pick up and review the Glam Liner Aqua Luxe by NYX, I won't be.

Review: The Brush Guard Variety Pack

I got brush guards! This is amazing! Wonderful!

You might have no idea what a brush guard is!

Sorry, Here's Some Art!

Sorry!

Review: SKIN79 Super+ Hot Pink BB Cream

I prefer much lighter foundation products for the spring and summer. In both, it starts warm to blazing hot. This means my combination skin goes from combination-dry to combination-oil slick on my T-zone as well as the area closest to my nose! Really, really gross. No amount of powder will quell it for long. Its like an angry sea monster: once it's been angered, it is the biggest challenge to calm it. With all that oil and the heat, my liquid foundation melts off areas quickly and it can feel like a mask. Ewwww.

Even now, in March, my face feels a bit oily. Its also been much warmer than usual at the moment.

Review: Urban Decay The Ammo Shadow Box (Original)

This was my very first makeup palette. Ever. It was also my first Urban Decay product. This is the original formula, as Urban Decay reformulated their eye shadows last year (or was it in 2011?) and has revamped the Ammo palette and gotten rid of some others. It's actually, in all honestly, one of my favorite palettes. I used it pretty frequently, as you can see from the photos haha.

Face-washing Mishap TT-TT: Why I Hate Proactiv Face Wash

I hate Proactiv. I really, really do. I did think about trying it out at one point and when I was really tired of pimples, oiliness on my T-zone, blackheads and whiteheads, and dry skin. I decided not to buy from them directly and looked at eBay. I also looked up reviews while I was searching through eBay.

The reviews were pretty much the same: not for sensitive skin, extremely drying, one of them might have said not effective and another that it made their issues worse. That left me with this idea: Proactiv dries out skin → produces more oil → more pimples → more product used = more money lost to Proactiv. A vicious circle.

Well, I don't really have sensitive skin. I know from comments on other blogs, the girls (and guys) with sensitive skin have a lot of issues with makeup and cleansing products. I don't use harsh stuff on my face (looking at you, burning Oxy pads) and use things that are recommended for combination skin such as foaming cleanser, facial scrubs and a lot of moisturizer. I hate you, dry, flaky bits of skin...

SORRY! No picture! Blogger is acting up now.

I started to use Bioré Combination Skin Balancing Cleanser last year. I LOVED the stuff. Didn't dry out my skin horribly, would wick away the excess oil on my nose and leave it more balanced feeling. It's a sort of thick, slight cloudy liquid that foams up like mad. I use it every time I wash my face, followed by witch hazel toner and then two Proactiv moisturizers. One is to clear skin and help pimples, the other is just a moisturizer with SPF 15. They work better than my last one by Clean & Clear that did nothing, had no SPF and my liquid foundation doesn't have SPF either. I stole both  mousturizers from Ze Boyfriend's medicine cabinet since they were neglected. I like them both.

Now today... I don't use makeup remover, I just wash my face and call it a day. I use eye makeup remover when I screw up my eyes during application but it doesn't belong to me. I used to use e.l.f.'s makeup removing wipes and liked them but its kind of a pain to find them at Target, especially mine where the display is usually pretty vacant. Well, I took a shower and since I don't have my Bioré face wash, I decided to use the bottle of Proactiv Renewel Cleanser. Thick, white, grainy. It also contains Benzoyl Peroxide at 2.5%.

OW.
MY FACE...
IS BURNING!!!!

I was rubbing my face like I normally do with cleanser and then my right cheek started to burn. A lot. No spots are on my cheek though. No open pimples, nothing. My current problem spots are on my forehead. I immediately washed it off but it didn't really subside for a few minutes. I've never used a Benzoyl Peroxide product on my face, nor have I used it at 2.5%. That was incredibly harsh! Very painful. Part of the whole reason I won't recommend Proactiv cleansing & toning products to people. If they're already using it, whatever. If they ask, I'll recommend something else based in their skin type and what they can tell me about their skin.

I supposed I can't use that cleanser on my face if I happen to leave my Bioré at home. So frustrating.

SPOOKEHDOOM

Dolly Dearest: A China Girl Inspir'd Look (from Oz: The Great & Powerful) FOTD

No, I haven't seen the movie. No, I don't want to see the movie.

I am not a Mila Kunis fan. There's just something I don't like about her; I guess part of it is I can't take her seriously as an actress. Not saying she isn't talented, she plays Theordora and looks pretty spectacular (berry is really her color!). Most people have done Theodora or Glinda looks, since those two are more prominent characters but why not a wearable China Girl look? She's adorable!

Quick tip: NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream as Blush

If you have these, try them as a blush! Seriously. I used Tokyo in a forthcoming post on my cheeks and it turned out quite nicely. I dotted on 4-5 dots on the apples of my cheeks and along my cheekbones and tapped my fingers over it before swirling it around and blending it up to my temples. Didn't bring it all the way up, but it left quite a nice bit of color and since it was sheered as well as matte, left a nice finish and overall look.

Poll: What would you like to see on the blog?

Since no one will leave comments (please?), would you atleast give me your opinion on what you would like to see more of? Please. Its just a few clicks.

Thank you.

What would you like to see on the blog?

Review: NYX HD Studio Photogenic "Stay Matte But Not Flat" Powder Foundation

I am running out of HD powder! My beloved MAKEUP FOREVER HD Microfinish Powder!
GAH, THE WORLD IS ENDING!

Review: NYX Gel Liner & Smudger in Samantha

Gel liner has been the latest and greatest thing to come about recently, as well as potted cream eyeshadows, such as MAC's infamous Paint Pots, Maybelline's Color Tattoos that make some nice Paint Pot dupes and Estée Lauder's recent "Paint Pot" dupes as well. NYX has joined the band with their gel liner AND smudger combo (admittedly, people have been smudging gel liner and using it as a base long before but hey, these colors are pretty nifty). Yay for crazy colors!

Quick review: NYX Glam Liner Aqua Luxe Liquid Liners

I headed to Ulta today because I need more powder but don't want to buy more MAKEUP FOREVER HD powder because: 1) The one I bought in 2011 is a .35 oz jar, 2) They now only have a .3 oz jar for $35, 3) There are cheaper alternatives.

Wait, what? .3 oz of silica powder over .35? Really, MUFE? Really?

Review: NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream in Amsterdam, Monte Carlo & Tokyo

It takes a certain person to like and wear mattes. I don't really care much for matte, because of the drying factor and my lips tend to be dry without them. I only have one matte lipstick that I like but its quite drying. Matte looks great and really reminds me of the vintage 1950's look: barely-there shades of eyeshadow, cat wing eyeliner and sexy red lips. Its the perfect minimal look! Rather than using drying matte lipsticks, I bought NYX's Soft Matte Lip Creams. These won Temptalia's Editor Choice Award for 2012, so you know these have to be great.

L to R: SMLC01 Amsterdam, SMLC03 Tokyo, SMLC10 Monte Carlo

Review to Come: SKIN79 Hot Pink Super+ BB Cream

I LOVE BB cream! I mean it! Specifically, I love Korean BB cream.

Review: Formula 10.0.6 Pores Be Pure Skin-Clarifying Clay Mask

I already reviewed the Queen Helene Mint Julep Masque (read here) previously, in hopes of clearing my pores and getting the nastiness of my nose. This particular mask has had some great reviews, it's been said to work more at clearing pores. People have also said it can leave the face red after washing it off, due to the fruits in the formula. It's pretty much a "Don't use directly before a big event! You might still be red faced!" You should be able to get away with using it the night before your event. My face didn't become red after using this, only a bit splotchy when I used a wash cloth to remove the product but immediately the redness went away.

Why is this so cool in my world?

Review: Illamasqua Nail Varnish in Raindrops

You know, I had this review half-written, waiting in the wings. It was partially written because I had written out my story with finding and obtaining the product, talking about how I said I wouldn't do nail swatches, and listing the dupes I believed were close based on swatches done by other bloggers and product photos. Now that I have my package, I'm numb. Numb with excitement. Weird feeling but onwards!

Review: NYX Extra Creamy Round Lipstick in 513 Electra

Confession. When I originally started using makeup, I seriously hated lipstick. Just hated the stuff. I only wanted pigmented glosses. I don't specifically remember what changed my mind, I think it was the nude lip trend. I went out and got Viva Glam Gaga II lipstick from MAC, and really loved it. Later something possessed me to find my perfect red lipstick. Well, my perfect reds are blue-based reds and I picked up NYX's Extra Creamy Round Lipstick in Electra.

The tip of the bullet was already worn down when I got it, but it definitely hadn't been used.