Triple S: Revlon's Colorstay Smoky Shadow Stick in 210 Flare Review + Swatches

I hope everyone is having a good weekend! Today I would like to share with you my thoughts on Revlon's Colorstay Smoky Shadow Stick in 210 Flare.

The lighter end of the pencil is a lilac type purple colour. The darker end is a plum shade of purple. Here's what the pencil tips look like.

The lighter end

The darker end

Here are a couple of swatches. For some reason my camera can't pick up the beautfiul dark purple colour. Instead it registers as brown. The lighter colour is a bit more accurate in these photos.

With sunlight

In the shade

Retail: AUD$17.95 for 1.9g

Packaging: 5 out of 5

Review: I love the texture of this product; it glides on like a dream. It is slightly creamy but at the same time powdery (so it's somewhere between the two). I also love how pigmented they are! With regular powder eyeshadows, you would need to apply a least a couple of layers before you can get the same effect. The staying power is also amazing. I wore the lilac colour to work the other day and even after 8 hours, it did not budge at all; it stayed perfectly vibrant. I gave the packaging a 5 out of 5 because I can't find any faults with it. I like how the product comes in retractable tubes (twists up and down like lipsticks) because I hate having to sharpen my shadow pencils. The only downside to this product is that it does not blend as well as powder eyeshadows. Other than that, I have absolutely happy with it!

To achieve this pretty pastel look, simply swipe the lilac colour across your mobile lid (stopping before the crease). Curl your lashes and coat on some mascara and you're done! If you want your eyes to pop even more, just add a little bit of bright eyeshadow like Urban Decay's Virgin onto your inner corners. This look is particulary lovely on brown-eyed girls.

Do you have one of these shadow sticks? If so, what colour(s) do you have? Would you like me to do more eye looks with this product? Please leave a comment below! Thank you for reading!

Triple S: Revlon Colorburst Lip Butter in Lollipop Review + Swatch

Hope everyone is having a lovely weekend! I still have a pretty big uni workload but I promise I am also working on the posts that I've been promissing you guys! I thought it'd be a good idea to post up a review of my Revlon ColorBurst Lip Butter in Lollipop in the mean time.

I know there is an abundance of Lip Butter reviews on the internet but I thought that giving my two cents worth is never harmful.

Claims: Softening, smoothing and hydrating lip product that boosts moisture levels

Retail: AUD$21.95

Packaging: 4 out of 5

Review: I think that if a lipstick and a lip balm were to get together, the lip butter would be their baby. The Revlon's lip butter is as pigmented as a lipstick but as moisturising as a lip balm. What more can you ask for?! Okay, maybe there is one thing we can ask for: a slightly cheaper price. But hey, I'm not complaining, I bought this at a sale. So I'm just going to wait for another sale before I get my hands on more of these babies (no pun intended)!

If you can recall from my rave of this product in my Emily Blunt Makeup Tutorial post, you'd remember how much I love the colour! Let's not forget that colour and description is very relative but anyway, in my eyes, Lollipop is the perfect pinky fuchsia colour! I think that this product has lived up to its hype. For a person who doesn't wear makeup everyday, I find myself slicking some of this stuff on whenever I am at uni. It makes me feel instantly prettier. It never dries my lips up like most lipsticks do, so that is definitely a big plus for me.

The only reason I gave the pakaging a 4 out of 5 is because it's relatively easy to clip the lip butter with the rim of the cap (when one does not take care when capping it). I was a bit annoyed when I did it the other day but I guess it's mainly my fault for not being careful. That aside, overall, I think this product is pretty perfect.
Here is the swatch. 

With sunlight

As you can see the product is somewhat reflective because of the shimmer it contains and of its balmy nature. However, fear not! I think that the amount of glitter flecks they put in this product is enough to give you a beautiful glossy-looking lip but not so much such that you look like a sparkling vampire!

In the shade

I know it looks sheer on my hand but it looks quite opaque on my lips. The colour is "buildable" so you can choose to give yourself a soft stained look or a fully made up pout.

Do you like Revlon's ColorBurst Lip Butters? Which colour(s) do you own? Do share!

Wicked Wednesday: Emily Blunt Inspired Makeup Tutorial

I wasn't aware of Emily Blunt (and her gorgeousness) until recently. I only noticed her after seeing the poster for the movie Five-Year Engagement. At first, I thought "Huh, interesting. Who is this actress?" I only started to get to know her (impersonally, of course) when I came across a small feature of her in an article written on Primped. A couple of weeks back, I was reading the June issue of madison (I take forever to read/finish a magazine) when I found an article on her in it.

The large photo of her (I believe, at the Tribeca Film Festival 2012) really caught my attention.The more I looked at the photo, the more I realise how amazing the makeup look she wore was! It's such a versatile look! It can go with practically any outfit, whether it's casual or formal.

Emily nailed her black eyeliner by having it nice and thick but not too flicked (or at least her makeup artist did). I also liked how the black eyeliner was balanced out with some gold shimmering eyeshadow under her eyes. I think that fuchsia is an all-rounder; you can wear it during both warmer and colder months. I'm currently obssessed with this lip colour so I'm giving Emily two thumbs-up for wearing it! Lastly, to avoid looking like a clown, Emily had her blush applied oh-so-subtly to her cheeks. Kudos to you and your makeup artist, Emily!

I love this look so much that I decided to recreate it. Besides that, I think that this look is universally flattering and I would like to show everyone that it can be easily achieved!

Step 1. I started off by covering my blemishes with concealer. You can put on foundation if you like, I just chose not to. Just remember to powder your face afterwards because for this look, Emily's skin was quite matte.

Step 2. For the eyeshadow, I used Urban Decay's Naked Palette in Half Baked. You don't have to use this particular eyeshadow. Any (lighter) gold shimmering eyeshadow will do.

Step 3. This step is optional. I applied the gold eyeshadow all over my lid and stopped before my crease.

Step 4. I lined my lower lash line with the same gold eyeshadow. Using a pencil brush would be best but since I have yet to own one, I just used the edge of my stiff eyeshadow brush (from Urban Decay).

The last picture is to show you what you'll end up with after you're done with these steps.

Step 5. Line your eyes with either black liquid or gel eyeliner. And do so thickly. Create a tiny flick at the end. Keep in mind that we are not aiming for cat eyes here. I used Bobbi Brown's matte black eyeshadow and a wet angled liner brush.

Step 6. Curl your lashes if necessary.

Step 7. Apply generous coats of mascara to your lashes. Don't forget to apply mascara to your bottom lashes as well. Emily's lashes looked very long but not particularly voluminous, you may want to choose a lengthening mascara if you want to stick as close to the original look as possible (but it really depends on your needs). I used Rimmel's Scandaleyes mascara, which is both lengthening and volumising on my lashes.

At the end of Step 7, my eyes looked like this. You may add false lashes if you wish (for more drama) but Emily kept her lashes looking quite natural.

Step 8. Moving on to the lips, I slicked on Revlon's Colorburst Lip Butter in Lollipop. This is my current favourite lipstick/balm and I will be posting up a review soon!

Step 9. I stopped at Step 8 but you may add a light blush if you wish. So ta-da! This is my finally look!

With more sunlight.

With less sunlight.

With effects.

Do you like this look? What do you think of my tutorial? I'd love some feedback, thanks!

Wicked Wednesday: July Haul

Yes, I know what you're going to say, "Ty, you are waaaaay behind on your July Haul post!" I'm really sorry but I felt that it was more important that I published my previous posts first. Anyway, let's jump straight into it. Remember from my May Haul post, I said that I would not buy anything beauty-related in June because I spent too much in May? Well, if you look through this blog, you will find that the June Haul post is missing. So yes, I lasted through that month without purchasing any beauty products. Hooray! So came July, I treated myself to three. I know, it sounds stupid that I saved in June and I ended up spending in July. But who cares? These products are relatively affordable anyway.

After watching so many American Youtubers and hearing (reading) so many Australian bloggers rave about it, I finally jumped on the Revlon Colourburst Lip Butter bandwagon. I have to say that I'm not disapponinted, in fact I am impressed! The best bit is, I bought it when Target had a buy one get one free Sale. So I got one for myself and one for you (my lovely readers). Expect a review from me soon!

The second product that I purchased is Australis 10hr Waterproof Eye Pencil. I bought it because I've been keeping an eye out for a blue coloured eye pencil to do a duo-coloured eyeliner look. And after hearing from Emily how wonderful this product is, I decided to buy it. I plan on doing a review and a tutorial with it in the near future.

Lastly, I got myself another pair of MAC lashes because 1) My #33 are wonky and out of shape from repeated use and abuse. 2) I was in a bad mood that day and need a pick-me-up and 3) I really like the look of this pair! At first, I went up to the MAC counter asking for #7, they said they've been out of stock for quite a while now. My eyes caught this pair #32 and I knew I couldn't go wrong with them. I'll post up a photo when I get around to wearing them (and when actually remember to take a photo). 

Have you tried any of these products? What do you think of it/them?