~Lippie of the Day~ NK Lipstick in Camel....

Hey Everyone !!!

Today I wore NK Lipstick in Camel, a spot on nude shade that was only a $1 at the local BSS. NK or Nicka K is available online on various websites.


Jamie

~Fresh Coat~ Hard Candy Jubilee, Hard Candy Party Central and Hard Candy Crush on Amethyst.....

Hey Everyone!!

Finally, I done wearing all of my Hard Candy hauled polish.  Why do I sound relived? Because glitter polish fun to wear but hell to keep up and take off. lol! This is why I LOVE  polish only bloggers, those girls have a passion to surpasses 5 min soaks of cotton, foil and cold acetone polish remover. Bravo divas!!!

 First up....Hard Candy Jubilee....

 Jubilee is a crazy mix of silver black hexagon glitter large and mini, orange long glitter suspended in a green creme jelly.

  I check some other swatches from other bloggers and found that base color was needed. I used Kleancolor Grass Green( the dark green) and Spoiled by Wet N' Wild I Only Eat Salads. 

 I Only Eat Salads is the best pick of the two to showcase Jubilee, however I Only Eat Salads stained my nails yellow( I've also had it over a year).

 Next, I combined two Hard Candy polishes for one look: Crush On Amethyst and Party Central....

Crush on Amethyst is a beautiful chrome dark lavender and Party Central is a glitter packed polish with pink, blue, black, even white glitter in a clear base.

I LOVE Crush On Amethyst. One coat is opaque. The longevity was not good though, it was next day chipping.Party Central can do two coats opaque as a glitter but it will peel with the first sight of water.

Overall, these Hard Candy polishes are innovative, fun, cheap, ready available at a Walmart near you. The wear ability is not good on them though...not at all. Every manicure with these polishes, chipped the next day even with a base coat and two coats of quick dry top coat. Even with thin coats to build up the intensity, there was chipping the next day. I guess that's what $4 will get you. But I know cheap polish that lasts ( post maybe?)!! That's where I'm frustrated!! LOL!!

Got any new Hard Candy polish favs? Let me know in the comments....

~Swatches + First Impressions~ Aqualillies for tarte Summer 2013 Collection....

Hey Everyone!!

I'm so excited to share with you some of the products from Aqualillies for tarte Summer 2013 Collection. When I first saw the photos for the collection, I gasped!! The colors are cool, summer shades... glamorous pool side like the famous Aqualillies synchronized swimmers.

I received Amazonian Clay Waterproof Liner in Splash and Glamazon Pure Performance 12- hour Lipstick in Timeless....

The packaging for this whole collection is GORGEOUS....a collector's dream!!!

Glamazon Lipstick in Timeless...

 Timeless is a bright coral pink. Its definitely leans more pink than orange.

 Amazonian Clay Waterproof Liner in Splash....

Splash is a shimmery blue green.

 I did a bright liner, bold lip look with both products. I used Splash liner on my upper and lower eyelids as a liner and black liner in the waterline to tie in the look. Timeless lipstick was used on my lips with no liner or gloss on top.

Both products are made in tarte's high quality. The lipstick is creamy and doesn't stain. The liner is smooth and didn't move all day, even when my allergies showed up and showed out! However, the color pigmentation of the liner is on the medium side, its not as bright on the lids as it is in the jar. I might try it over a black liner to see if I can get the color to pop more.

So what do you think?? Visit www.tartecosmetics.com to see the  FULL COLLECTION and  purchase this collection. The collection will also be available on Sephora.com and Sephora stores April 2013.

Disclosure: I was sent these products for review. All views are honest and I was not paid for this post.

~Swatches + Impressions~ Iman BB Cream in Clay Medium....

Hey Everyone!!

I think I've gone a little BB Cream MAD! I have about four BB Creams and I go between different ones on different days. Lately, I'm seeing more BB Creams with a dark shades and catering to women of color. I was too excited to hear that Iman Cosmetics was doing one. I think every brown girl blogger, beauty addict, product junkie I know was looking for her BB Cream!

I got the chance to try Iman BB Creme in Clay Medium.

 I chose Clay Medium based on the chart on the Iman Cosmetics website. Go to the site and check out how to select your correct shade. I have gotten very good at  eyeballing my shade and picking it off the shelf or a website without any physical swatches. If that is a talent, I have it!!

But when Clay Medium arrived, I wasn't very sure if this "talent" of eyeballing my shade worked any more.:/

 Before Iman BB Creme in Clay Medium application....

 After application of Iman BB Creme in Clay Medium....

Full face for the day!!

Face in natural light without a flash.....

Impressions and Thoughts:

-The color Clay Medium was very forgiving. The texture is very moisturizer/lotion like so the BB Creme just soaks into the skin very much like a tinted moisturizer.

-Iman BB Cream is 1.0 fl oz and retails around $19.00-$20.00. I think that is steep to be shelved at Walmart.

-The coverage is light and I didn't find it to be buildable. I tried applying it with a brush and sponge but it was still very sheer for my taste.

-If you have oily skin, you will need to either apply a primer before or set with a powder after. Or you can be a oily oil slick! lol! Most BB Creams are not catered to oily skin, hence CREAM( CREME). But if you set after or primer before you will only be a bit glowy in a couple of hours.

Final Thoughts:

I wouldn't buy this again. I like the idea of different shades catered to women of color and not one "dark" shade that looks no one you know. Bravo to Iman on that idea!! However, I fought with the coverage the most with this BB Cream. I'm a full coverage gal, even though I like products like tinted moisturizers and BB Creams. They are great for the summer when I do bring down the coverage. I would love to see how this does in the heat, so I'm going to tuck it away and bring it back out when the Carolina summer arrives. I also thought that $20 for a 1oz product in a Mass Market setting is steep. I would buy this, at the most, $12 or $13.

Have you spotted the Iman BB Creme yet? Have you tried it? Let me know in the comments!!!



Disclosure: I was sent this product for review. I was not paid to post and all opinions are honest.

~Lippie of the Day~ Black Radiance Hibiscus....

Hey everyone!!!

I finally found some of the new black radiance lipsticks which I wasn't that impressed by.:/

I did pick up Hibiscus and it's a beautiful bright pink. I think I'm good on the bright pinks for now. Lol! Goodness I have so many!

Jamie

~Lippie of the Day~ Milani Violet Volt .....

Hey everyone!!!

I purchased Milani violet volt on a whim Tuesday at Walmart and just wore it today. This color is everything!!! These pictures do it no justice!!! I don't own nothing like it. Go pick up violet volt if you are into purples for the lips!

Jamie

~Lippie of the Day~ Revlon Coral Berry...

Hey Everyone!!!

I'm back with my Lippie of the day!! Today I'm wearing Revlon Coral Berry and I read somewhere that it is a dupe for MAC Vegas Volt. I don't own Vegas Volt but if you do let me know if Coral Berry is close!


Jamie

~Fresh Coat~ Hard Candy Fireworks...

Hey Everyone!

I'm currently working through all of my new Hard Candy polish that I purchased( I only got six) before I purchase anymore. Last week I put on Fireworks, which is a hot pink, red, blue, purple glitter suspended in a fuchsia gloss. I used Milani LE polish in Sweetheart as a base.

 Fireworks has these small confetti string like glitters that do not lay flat after two coats. They make for the texture, even after a top coat, very bumpy.

 Here's a close up, if you can see, the bumpy finish. Fireworks is FIRE, absolutely gorgeous. However, I'm learning with these Hard Candy glitters is that they are not two or more coat glitters. You can get them opaque but the lasting time will be no less than a day and it will start to peel. At least that's what's been happening to me.

I'm one of these nail polish addicts who likes to see what the bottle color looks like on my nails ,so opaque glitter is what I shrive for! lol! Hard Candy is not holding up though. I'm still loving the new polish colors though.:(

Are there any tips out there to keep the glitter polish from not peeling? Let me know in the comments!!

~Come With Us To Marrakesh!!~ New mark. Cosmetics for the Spring!

Hey Everyone!

Spring is finally here! At least it is on the calender and this season is bringing even more new beauty products and makeup by bountiful. One of my favorite brands, mark. by Avon is launching a collection inspired by Marrakesh.

 Lots of spicy colors and bold pieces are in this collection! Here are a few pieces I was sent, complete with swatches and first impressions......

 (left to right)

Exotic Hues Eye Shadow Trio

Gloss Gorgeous Stay On Lip Stain in Spicy

Exotic Beauty Face Powder Mosaics 

 Exotic Beauty Face Powder Mosaics- This face powder is very finely milled with golden and coral tones. It's perfect as a highlighter. I swirled it around with a bronzer brush to get a perfect combination of colors.

 Exotic Hues Eye Shadow Trio- When I first saw this trio, I thought of fall, the gold, bronze-y orange and deep forest green. However it can be worked into a spring/summer look to pair with the season's tribal looks.

 Gloss Gorgeous Stay On Lip Stain in Spicy- This gloss is a beautiful, sheer caramel brown. It has mark's signature calming minty scent and its not sticky. I didn't find it really staining either, just a great everyday gloss to compliment the face powder and trio.

Swatches

The first three colors are the Exotic Hues Trio and last swatch in the Exotic Beauty Face Powder Mosaics.

This is a swatch of the Gloss Gorgeous in Spicy.

 Here's a look I created with all the products and the jewelry as well. Check out Dazed and Adorned Jewelry Blog for more info on the jewelry in this collection!!! Link HERE!!

So what you do you think of mark's Marrakesh inspired collection? Let me know!!

The Collection will be available by consultant and online April 2013.

Disclosure: These products were sent to me for consideration. I was not paid for this post.