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Review – Maybelline Pulse Perfection Mascara – Waterproof

I had so much anticipation for this little baby. I couldn’t wait to try it. I picked it up in waterproof (which is black), and tried layering it on the recommendation of a lovely reader/online buddy of mine. ;) I tried layering it with another fave, Rimmel Glam Eyes. I liked it, but I wasn’t sold. It applies kind of…wet. And sticky. Which makes my lashes stick together, which is just plain awkward. Had to do a lot of combing. Next I tried layering it over Maybelline Define-a-Lash Volume. Meh, I like it over Rimmel Glam Eyes better.

Then finally I tried it by itself. Lol…normally that’s my first bet, but since I’d been told it’s a great layering mascara I got a little ahead of myself. Oddly enough I like it by itself best. I do get rather impressive length. It still goes on kinda wet…I tend to prefer dryer mascaras. I have a feeling this one might be similar to Maybelline XXL Curl Power in that it gets a little better with age…in a couple weeks this mascara will probably come into its prime (dry out slightly) and be perfect.

Overall…it’s a nice mascara, I suppose. Would I pay the $15 price tag again? Erm. No. I’d wait for BOGO or a sale or Extra Bucks or something. For that kind of money I’d rather just get MAC Plushlash. Although frankly I prefer not to spend that kind of money on something I will throw out in a few months. ;)

Note…I haven’t tried this mascara over any primers, nor have I tried it after curling my lashes. I will keep experimenting and try those scenarios though, if anyone’s curious. I just need to remember to do it….*hides* I forget. :P

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Urban Decay Fall 09 – New Products

Wow! This launch is huge. There are over 30 new additions to the Urban Decay line! I will have reviews as soon as I can, but for now I will just give you some stuff to drool over! :) The launch includes both new products and new shades of products we already love. Here are the new products being launched.

Cream to powder foundation! The foundation comes with a brush, too! Nifty! Like the Pocket Rocket glosses I reviewed recently, this foundation contains hyaluronic spheres as well. Those help maintain the skin’s moisture balance. I really hope the shade Illusion is light enough for me because this sounds like such a neat product.

Inks For Eyes are cream liners with a new high-tech polymer called Nylon 12. Why should you care? Because this ingredient decreases ‘drag’; these clever inks won’t tug on your delicate eyelids and will give a smooth finish every time. I love the packaging; look at the gorgeous peacock design! And the fact that the brush is included is a nice touch. One end is a brush and the other end is a smudger for when you want a touch of drama. There are 6 shades Inks.

Now here’s where the fun really starts. New primers! Urban Decay is perhaps most well-known for their Primer Potion for eyeshadows. Now you can get the full primer potion treatment. The first one is the brightening complexion primer. This primer can be worn under makeup or alone and will help keep skin looking fresh, awake, moisturized, and diminish fine lines.

UD’s new lip primer is a soft, fade-free, feather-free primer that won’t dry out your lips. It gives your lips a silky finish while helping to keep your lipstick on longer. Bonus, it also has SPF 15. I don’t know if you’ve ever sunburned your lips, but it’s not cute.

The other complexion primer in the collection is the Pore Perfecting primer. This is a non-greasy primer designed to diminish the look of pores and fine lines for an airbrushed look. UD says this primer is ideal for oily skin but could be used by anyone either alone or under makeup. They also assure us that the formula is non greasy! That is good news, because who wants a greasy face? Yeah, I’m looking at you Smashbox.

I’m very excited to try the UD lash primer. It contains protein to enrich your lashes including silk and wheat protein, which if I recall correctly is the same ingredient Aveeno uses to make their fabulous shampoos and conditioners. If it’s good for my hair it must be great for my lashes! What you won’t find in this primer is any parabens. ;)

I also want to mention that whoever wrote the copy for this product on the UD site should pat themselves on the back. I have never read something so creative on a cosmetics site. They describe the primer as constructing “towers of Babel…reaching for heavenly lashes”. Bravo.

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2000 Calorie Extreme v. Lash Blast

Once and for all, are these the same mascaras in different colored bottles? Is the only difference the packaging and the price?

The short answer is: no.

The long answer is…well, compare for yourself:

Max Factor 2000 Calorie Extreme Lash Plumper Ingredients:
Water, Glyceryl Stearate, Ammonium Acrylates Copolymer, Disteardimonium Hectorite, Propylene Glycol, Stearic Acid, Copernicia Cerifera Wax (Carnauba), Triethanolamine, Acrylates Copolymer, Synthetic Wax, Polyvinyl Alcohol, Lecithin, Propylene Carbonate, Polyethylene, Oleic Acid, Alcohol Denat., Benzyl Alcohol, Glycerin, Xanthan Gum, Panthenol, Phenoxyethanol, Propylparaben, Methylparaben, Ethylparaben, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Trisodium EDTA, Simethicone, Tocopheryl Acetate, Tocopherol, Iron Oxides,
May Contain: Titanium Dioxide, Ultramarines

Cover Girl LashBlast Ingredients:
Petroleum Distillates, Polyethylene, Disteardimonium Hectorite, Copernicia Cerifera Wax (Carnauba), Trihydroxystearin, Propylene Carbonate, Pentaerythrityl Hydrogenated Rosinate, Tall Oil Glycerides, Tocopheryl Acetate, Propylparaben, Phenoxyethanol, Iron Oxides,
May Contain: Titanium Dioxide, Ultramarines, Talc

Well, that explains why LashBlast was utter crap on me and why 2kCalExtreme performed so much better for me. But the packaging IS indeed pretty much the same, just different colors. For that reason I will still let this mascara keep its affectionate nickname of BlackBlast, but that’s where the similarities end.

Maybelline Mascara Giveaway

Win Maybelline XXL Extensions Mascara!

I love Maybelline’s XXL mascara line. Extensions is no exception! This is the mascara I keep in my bag at all times for lash emergencies. I love that it gives me big full lashes without making them feel “crunchy”. I also don’t have a problem with smudging or flaking, and it comes off easily with my MAC Cleanse-Off Oil.

One lucky blog reader can win this mascara! Here’s how to enter…

1. Comment on this blog with your first name, & email address.
2. If you also follow me on Twitter, put your Twitter name too. Twitter followers will be entered into the drawing twice. :) If you don’t follow me on Twitter yet, get to it! :)

Entries must be in by May 10th at 11:59 pm PST!

**ADDED: A couple people have mentioned that they don’t want to post their email addy. That’s fine! If that’s the case, just say so when you post your name, and then email me privately (or DM me if you’re on Twitter) and I’ll make a note of it.

You must be 13 or older to enter, and please keep in mind that you will need to give me your address if you win– so if you aren’t comfortable with that, don’t enter! International entries welcome. There aren’t enough contests that include y’all.

43 Comments

Maybelline to Launch Vibrating Mascara

Drugstore makeup giant Maybelline has announced it is launching a vibrating mascara this coming July. The mascara is called Pulse Perfection and will be available wherever Maybelline is sold. The retail price is $14.95 (but remember, Maybelline goes BOGO all the time..!). It will be released in 3 shades: Very Black, Blackest Black, and waterproof Very Black.

Maybelline makes some pretty big promises from Pulse Perfection, which delivers 7,000 vibrations per minute in seven syncronized motions. Maybelline promises:

– Volumizing (13x thicker, they say!)
– Lengthening (75% longer is the claim)
– Seperation/Definition
– Intense color
– Encourages curl
– Restores luster to lashes
– Clump-free

The battery is designed to last over four months with daily use.

Don’t want to wait until July to get your hands on this mascara? Maybelline is having a special preview purchase event on May 18th. Visit www.maybeline.com/Pulse to buy it before it launches. This event lasts one day only. Other retailers participating in this event are Target, Walgreens, CVS, and Walmart at their respective websites.

5 Comments

Flirt Lash-a-delic Mascara

Okay people…run, don’t walk, to the nearest Kohls and get Flirt Lash-a-delic mascara. Actually, you should probably drive. Much faster.

Flirt Lash-a-delic mascara utilizes that super cool “beauty tube” technology. To remove the mascara, just use warm water. Comes right off. But makeup remover, water, tears, etc. don’t make it budge one bit. This stuff will not smear or flake. And the effect? GORGEOUS. Huge, defined, volumized lashes. I’ve been wearing the Groovy Blue shade pretty much nonstop since I got to try this out last month. I haven’t experienced any irritation or problems. In addition to blue it comes in Boogie Brown and Mod Black. The retail price is $14, but right now it’s on sale for $11.90, so it’s the perfect time to buy it. :) I am wearing the Mod Black shade in the photos from my Kohls makeover. Remember this?

Yeah. Go. Get it. It’s awesome, and you need to try it.

Unfortunately, this mascara is limited edition so go get yours!

There are also 3 beautiful eyeshadow palettes in corresponding colors to the mascara colors. The Boogie Brown palette has become a staple in my makeup collection already! More about those later. ;)

3 Comments

Test Driving

Hey all,

Just wanted to check in and let you know some of the awesome products I’m test-driving at the moment. Are you trying anything new? Let me know what it is and how it’s going!

What I’m trying out…

– Maybelline Dream Liquid Mousse foundation
– MUFE full cover concealer
– grassroots Vitamin C Power Brightening Cream SPF 25
– grassroots Pomegranate Super Anti-Oxidant Cream
– MUFE HD primer in light blue
– Flirt! Lash-a-delic mascara – this technically doesn’t come out until next month ;)

1 Comment

Review – Rimmel Sexy Curves Mascara

Sexy Curves mascara is my first time delving into the world of Rimmel. There are just so many choices for mascara at the drugstore! But I really like this. I actually received it in a swap as an extra and didn’t think that much of it other than “oh, that’s cool”. But now that I’ve tried it…hmm!

The first time I applied it, I was not terribly impressed. It didn’t seem to do that much. My lashes are fairly long and thick naturally with natural curl. Rimmel Sexy Curves mascara is a volumizing and curling mascara. I put it on and I could see it, but it didn’t wow me.

I decided to give it another shot though and this time I took the time to work with it a bit more. I wiggled the brush around, coated both sides of my lashes, etc. If you actually push the brush against the underside of your lashes and lift them (into a curled position) as you apply, it gives remarkable lift that does hold for a long time. It’s a nice effect.

Like most volumizing mascaras, it does clump a teeny bit. I notice it more in areas where I have a bunch of lashes really close together. It’s not a huge deal though and I can demolish the clumps by just wiggling the brush a little.

I do not have any issues with the mascara as far as smudging goes. After applying mascara I blink my eyes with my lashes up against either a tissue or a finger to get the excess product off my eye. I find if I don’t do this I will end up with flakes. It doesn’t take anything away from the look of the mascara to wipe a bit off, either.

The brush. It’s curved. Hmm. I don’t really know how much that really does for my lashes really, but it looks cool, and seems to be a pretty good brush compared to other more traditional mascara brushes. The wand itself is sorta bendy, but not nearly as flexible as say Maybelline Define-a-Lash. I like the bend in the brush, but your opinion may be different of flexy mascara wands. I find it helpful when the wand has a little give to it.

Overall I’m doing well with this mascara. One thing though is if you do happen to cry, this is one of those mascaras that turns into a hot mess. Some non-waterproof mascaras still hold up sort of well (like Maybelline XXL Lash Extensions or Define-A-Lash) but this one will be all over your face. Not a mascara you’ll want to wear while watching Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants with your girlfriends.

Stuff I Love

My current list of most-loved/used products in no particular order…

Makeup

Urban Decay Primer Potion
Makeup Forever High Definition Foundation in shade 110
MaxFactor 2000 Calorie Extreme Lash Plumper in Extreme Black
Ulta Professional Lash Primer
MAC Warm Soul mineralized blush
MAC New Vegas mineralized skin finish
Chapstick Lip Butter
Avon Dew Kiss
Prestige pencil eyeliners in general (all of them are fantastic!)
Maybelline XXL Extensions mascara in whatever their blackity black black shade is
Shu Uemura hard brow pencil in Seal Brown
Anastasia of Beverly Hills brow gel (no, I did not go fork out full price for a fancy clear gel…and I wouldn’t, but I do admit this is pretty nice.)
PureLuxe Silica Powder (this stuff is a godsend to oily skin and/or large pores!)

Beauty Tools

Sonia Kashuk blending sponge (it’s magical, very similar to the BeautyBlender but blue!)
Sonia Kashuk highlighting brush (very comparable to the MAC 187, but it’s $12.99!)
EcoTools retractable kabuki brush
Stila #7 eye brush (short-handled)
Stila #9 eye brush (short-handled)
My super cheap cute brush set from Hong Kong via ebay (seller is henlisy) – quality is surprisingly nice. I love these so much.

Sale on Max Factor

Just so you know, Max Factor cosmetics are all 40% off at Longs Drugs right now. This info is useful to anyone who wanted to try 2000 Calorie Extreme Lash Plumper but balked at the price. I paid just under $7 for it at drugstore.com, but I have since found out that it can cost as much as $12 or more in drugstores. That’s ridiculous, so perhaps if you live near a Longs you can try it for 40% off. Unfortunately they haven’t gotten to adding this to their online store yet.