[REVIEW] e.l.f. - Waterproof Eyeliner (Black)

e.l.f. has been known to produce quite a bit of hit and miss products and we all know that even within the same palette line, the color payoff/pigmentation isn't always consistent. I was in desperate need for a new liquid eyeliner, but I really didn't want to spend more than $6-$8 on it. So of course I went to my trusty e.l.f. section in Target and I wanted to see what they had. To my surprise I was able to find a waterproof liquid liner for $1 and I jumped at the chance to test out this cheaper alternative.

Breakdown:

Pigmentation: I was pleasantly surprised to see how pigmented this applied. It's a rich black and dries to a pretty matte finish. I do suggest that you store this with the tip down, that way the tip will stay saturated with product and it won't dry out.

Application: It glides on smoothly and I don't have any problems with it skipping on me. I also like how I can easily get a fine line. When I first got it, I did have to use it on the back of my hand to make sure that it would even apply any product, and it did start off a little patchy, but then it became easier to apply.

• Applicator: I wish the applicator was a lot cleaner/sharper. As you can tell from the picture there are some frayed parts at the tip and it's not cut evenly all the way around. Luckily, I was able to angle the tip so that I can get a straight/even line. 

I do have to warn you that this is very liquidy and it takes a while to dry. Even when I let it set, it can smudge and transfer. 

Wear Time: I have extremely oily lids, and I have a weird scar on both of my eyelids near my lash line, which makes using any type of eyeliner very difficult. On my lids, this usually lasts about 5 minutes without smudging. Unfortunately on the corners of my eyes, it starts to smudge bunch up at the outer corners of my eyes. On the rest of my lid, it could last about 1-2 hours without smudging. I would definitely be interested to see how this will work on individuals with single lids. 

Overall:

I think this product has potential. I really wish there was more time put into the shape of the brush and also the formulation. It's opaque and applies smoothly, but it takes a while to dry and it can also smudge when it dries. If you tried this product let me know what your experience is and how you like it down below in the comments or on Twitter (@ciaociaoreview). 

Until my next post,

Stay Beautiful <3

[REVIEW] Maybelline | Color Sensational Matte Lipstick - Ravishing Rose

Hey Beauties! I hope you guys are having a great week, and I'm finally back for a new review, exciting right? Anyhow I'm reviewing an extremely popular and highly talked about line. The Maybelline Matte lipsticks have been highly talked about and these have been flying off the shelves. When they first came out I was able to get my hands on one of them, and I'm hoping to get my hands on one or two more, I've been eyeing Daringly Nude and Lust For Blush. Anyhow let's get into the review.

Breakdown:
Texture: On the lips it feels smooth without being too heavy, however, after using it on and off, I did realize that the texture changed and became a little drier and even when I applied it on my lips, it felt like it dragged a little. I've also noticed that in the tube, the lipstick itself looks pretty dried out.

Pigmentation: I was presently surprised with the pigmentation of this because it looked relatively dry (in the tube) and I felt like it kind of dragged on my lips during application, so I wasn't expecting a really great application, but it had decent pigmentation. It was pretty opaque with one layer, but I'll talk about the application process next.

Application: Although it's relatively pigmented, I found the application a little tedious. I live in a drier region, so I guess that plays a factor to it, but I found that the more I used it, the more difficult the application was. When I first used it, I was impressed with how easy it applied and how I didn't really need to fuss with it. Now when I use it, I really need to take my time with it and work with it. I apply one layer, and since it applies a little patchy, I need to take my ring finger and blend it out and even out the color.

The color itself was a little lighter than what I was expecting from the tube. In the tube, it looks like a dusty/mauve rose color, but when I applied it, it pulled a lot more pinker than what the tube lead me to believe.

Wear: I do notice it lasting a while and the first couple of times I used it I never felt like it dried out my lips. The color itself will last, without settling into fine lines and creases in your lips for about 2-3 hours, without eating or drinking. The problem is, that if the product continues to dry out, then it'll be more likely for the color to settle into fine lines/creases because of how dry the product is. It can also easily slip on smoother surfaces into the fine lines. **KEEP IN MIND IT COULD BE DRYING OUT DUE TO THE FACT THAT I LIVE IN A DRIER CLIMATE**

Overall: 
I think this is a decent line of lipsticks. I do want to do a comparison between Lust For Blush (matte) and the regular Lust For Blush to see if there's a difference in the color payoff and color application. As far as this color is concerned, it applies decently pigmented, but it has dried out on me, which makes me not really want to use the color. It also applies a lot pinker than what I've seen in the tube, so I don't use it on it's own; instead I use it as a base underneath some of my balm stains. I do want to try out a couple more colors before I let you guys know whether to invest in this or pass on this.

Until my next post,

Stay Beautiful <3

[FIRST IMPRESSION] e.l.f. | Let The Drama Begin Makeup Book

Hey Beauties! It's ben such a long time since I posted anything, but I'm so excited to show all of you e.l.f.'s new Disney Princess collection available at Walgreens, and this time it's Sleeping Beauty and Maleficent! I am in love with the packaging and how much thought went into this beauty book! There are 12 eyeshadows, 2 lip glosses, and 1 eyeliner pencil.

WHAT IS IT?:

So in this little book you have everything you need to complete 2 very different looks; you can create an easy everyday look (Day Beauty) or a sultry smokey look (Night Villain). It also includes 2 lip glosses to tie the look together. 

As far as the eyeshadows go, there are 2 matte shades and the rest are either a shimmery or frosty finish. The color combinations work really well with each other and I think they represent both characters extremely well. 

PALETTE STRUCTURE:

Surprisingly, this palette feel sturdy and feels like it could be a real book. The outside of the palette has a slick hard cover to it, but don't go tossing it everywhere, it can still be imprinted. I also love how it's a matte finish and the artwork is beautiful. 

When you open the palette you'll see a decent size mirror, a little book mark, and when you open the mirror flap you have a little instruction manual on how to use the different colors to create a look. The print that surrounds the mirror is a great touch and it looks like e.l.f. put in a lot of thought into creating and designing this palette.

FIRST IMPRESSION:

The colors that are included in the Day Beauty section remind me of some of the colors that were included in the Snow White palette. All 6 colors swatch decently. When you apply it, I highly suggest you have some type of primer or tacky base because all the colors are shimmery except for Sunlight. 

DAY BEAUTY:

• Sunglight - Cream Beige (Matte)
• Innocence - Light gold with slight glitter (Frost/light glitter)
• Briar Rose - Light pink (Shimmery)
• Sunbeam - Light bronze (Frost)
• Forest Beauty - Taupe brown (Frost)
• Woodland - Dark brown w/ fine gold glitter (Shimmer)

When I used the Night Villain section (I also think there's a slight typo in 'Villain' is it just me? Am I dumb? haha), I noticed that the purple, EVIL FAIRY, took a lot of work to build up. I used a white eyeshadow base, and no brush was capable of packing it on, so I had to use my finger to apply it. Once I had a decent base of it on, I started to add the other colors, and I noticed that it did fade a bit, so be wary of that. 

Do you spy the typo?

NIGHT VILLAIN: 

• Sorcery - Silver (Shimmery/Glitter)
• Magic Spell - Muted gray-toned blue (Frost)
• Evil Fairy - Purple w/ slight magenta undertone (Matte)
• Hedge of Thorns - Taupe purple w/ fine gold shimmer (Shimmer/frost)
• Green Flames - Forest green with some gold glitter (Shimmer)
• Black Magic - Black with gold glitter (Shimmer) 

Overall, I love the looks I made with both sections. I think majority of the eyeshadows are decent to great quality. The only problem I had was with the EVIL FAIRY color. 

The 2 lip glosses are called TRUE LOVES KISS, which comes with the Day Beauty section, and BETRAYAL, which comes in the Night Villain section. Both are very opaque and they have a unique smell to them, some may find that scent appealing and some may like the scent. Both lip glosses left my lips feeling extremely dry and it dries to a tacky finish. 

BETRAYAL is a cross between a berry, mauve, and dusty rose and is opaque. If you really want to build up the coverage, then you can apply 2 coats, but since it's tacky it might become uncomfortably on the lips.

 TRUE LOVES KISS is a brighter red with blue undertones. It's not going to apply like a red lipstick from the tube, instead it applies as an opaque lip gloss. Again, you can build up the color by adding on a second coat, but because of how tacky it is, it may feel uncomfortable on the lips.

SHOULD YOU BUY IT?:

If you love to build your collection, love Disney, love Disney princesses, or just love the packaging, then I think you should pick it up! It goes for $9.99 from Walgreens. If you are looking for a great and affordable palette that provides you a great mix of neutral colors and sultry/smokey colors, then you can pass on this palette. In my opinion companies like Wet n Wild, NYX, Maybelline, and even e.l.f. have come out with great options for palettes and it'll provide you with a variety of finishes. I'm definitely excited about adding this to my collection because of the beautiful packaging. I'm really excited to see what comes next! Included in this particular collection is a brush set, nail set, this beauty book, and a mirror. I love the artwork and the thought/creativity that went into this palette. I do plan to do a full review, so stay tuned for that! If you have this let me know what you think about it down below in the comments or on Twitter @ciaociaoreview! 

Until my next post,

Stay Beautiful

[NEWS] New In The Beauty Isle | Drug Store

Hey Beauties! As you can tell, this isn't a usual review that I'm posting, but I did want to let you guys know about some of the new drug store beauty products that are out there right now! There's quite a few mascaras out there. Don't forget to let me know if you want a review on any of the products featured and also, let me know in the comments or on Twitter (@ciaociaoreview) what products you've tried and what products you love!

I'll be posting a separate article for each company's new products that are listed on their website!


Cover Girl:

Facelift Effect Firming Makeup w/ Olay

There's no surprise that Cover Girl is providing more skin care in their makeup, by partnering up with Olay, they have been able to provide us great skin care mixed with makeup we can use everyday. Their new foundation is supposed to provide you with the firming benefits of a night cream with a flawless finish of a foundation. It claims that you'll see better looking skin within 2 weeks. Unfortunately, there isn't a great shade range (at least available on Ulta.com), so if you're anything darker than medium, you won't be able to use it. 

The De-Puffer Eye Concealer w/ Olay

A long late night out can leave your eyes feeling puffy and extra droopy the next day. With this concealer, CG claims that it'll help de-puff your eyes while covering those dark circles. The metal tip applicator will help to disperse the product and provide a cooling effect that'll also help reduce puffiness. There's a decent shade range for this concealer, and you'll most likely be able to find one that'll match you.

Professional Start (WP/Non-WP)

With all the mascaras out there, it's difficult to tell which one is the best one. CG has a great line of mascaras (the lash blast line), and they also have a regular line of mascaras, this one is supposed to be a one-stop shop as far as your mascara needs. It's supposed to volumenize, lengthen, and define your lashes as well as being hypoallergenic and great for contact lens wearers. 

Maybelline:

Have you heard of the Manga Lash from L'Oreal? Well, here's Maybelline's version! With the Doll Mania mascara, you'll be able to get lifted and curled lashes while making sure they don't budge. The curve of the brush is something that we've seen with a lot of mascaras, like Maybelline's Cat Eyes, but this brush has thicker, more spaced out bristles than the cat eyes wand. This might be a little more difficult to disperse the product evenly. 

NYX:

Simply Red Lip Cream

We all know of the jumbo lip pencils that have been out lately and NYX, of course, would not miss out on the party. If you're like me, you're always on the hunt for a great red that you could wear any time of the year any where you are! NYX has come out with a line of jumbo red lip creams with a variety of shades, you could find your perfect red!

Simply Vamp Lip Cream

With Fall just around the corner, the darker lips are coming! With 6 vampy shades to choose from you're sure to find a shade that'll match you and give you just the right amount of vamp you're looking for. Temptress is the main standout color because it's the brighter one out of all of them, but it's still a great violet/berry color for Fall.

Proof It! WP Eyebrow Primer

Looking for a strong, on-point brow game? Well this may be exactly what you need no matter what season it is! It claims to be able to stay in place through rain or shine, and is specifically formulated for sparse brows. In order to use it, you'll want to put a layer on your brows before putting on any powder, that way you'll be able to shape them while you fill in your brows.

Rimmel:

Scandaleyes - Rockin' Curves

Like I said before, mascaras are coming out left and right! Look at the crazy shape of this wand! Apparently it's supposed to be in the shape of a broken heart, which is supposed to help get all your lashes while giving them curve and volume in one stroke. I'm not sure how great this wand will be when it comes to getting the smaller lashes, and it looks like the bristles could easily pick up too much product if the formulation is extremely watery. 

Have you tried any of these knew products out? Let me know what you think in the comments below or on Twitter (@ciaociaoreview). I'm also planning to take a look at what's new in my local Target and Walmart this weekend so be on the lookout for new first impressions and reviews!

[REVIEW] All About Gel Nails

Happy Friday Beauties! I hope you're having a great Friday and you're ready for the weekend! I'm so excited to be working on this post because I've been trying out a couple of gel nails kits that are available at the drug store right now, and I think I've reviewed 2 of these, but I wanted to compile my experiences with them and better alternatives to them all in one post! I hope you guys enjoy!!

Nutra Nail Gel Perfect Kit:

So, I'm like 90% sure I wrote some type of post, whether it was a first impression or an actual review, about this a while ago. My experience with it wasn't the greatest and made me extremely cautious about drug store gel nail kits, especially when it doesn't need a UV light. If you have short nails be extremely wary about using this product because you definitely need to seal the color on the tips of your nail, and when you do, you run into the problem of placing some of the activator on you actual skin. When that happens, you need to go in with 100% acetone based nail polish remover, and if you don't it'll be somewhat painful to separate your skin from your nail.

When it comes to application, it's a somewhat tedious process. You have to switch back and forth between the actual color and the brush cleaner, and you need to work quickly because the activator (which is the base coat) needs to be wet when you apply the color. This leads to an uneven application and even when you go in for a second coat, it's difficult to actually build an even single layer. Another reason why I don't care for this product is that if you wanted to paint your nails a different color, you'll need to go out and buy yourself a new kit, you can't just pick up a color. Why? It's because you need to use the brush cleaner that comes with it to provide a smooth application. If you don't, the color will gunk up on the brush and make application extremely difficult. If you can make this work, I'm jealous, because as much as I wanted this to work, I couldn't.


Revlon Gel Envy Nails:

This was the first gel nails kit that I tried from the drug store that was a two step process. I was extremely excited because there was such a variety of colors and it looked like an actual kit, like you couldn't use the color without the top coat and you couldn't use the top coat without the color. I picked up the color Pocket Aces, which is a beautiful vibrant coral color and the application process is extremely easy. It's just like painting your nails with any other nail polish.

I noticed with the top coat it would loose it's shine/glossy appearance after 2 days, and you'll also see little imprints from your hair or bedding (even though it's completely dry). If you read my full on review of this product, you'll know that I did a little experiment and I don't want to go too in depth with what I did, here's the gist: You don't have to use these two things together! You can use the colored polish with any other top coat and you can use the top coat with any nail polish. For me that kind of kills the whole point of coming out with this. I was expecting the nail polish to have a somewhat dull appearance and it'll be brought to life with the top coat, and if it was like that, then it would be worth paying the $7-$8 per bottle, but for me it's not really worth it.


Sally Hansen Miracle Gel:

Sally Hansen does have an actual gel nails kit that comes with the UV light, so I was very excited to see a light-less kit available. I love Sally Hansen nail polishes because they're such good quality, and I was expecting the same type of high quality product. When it came to the color application, I wasn't disappointed, I purchased the kit with the color Street Flair (a nice muted/gray-toned lavender). With a single semi-thick layer of polish, I had an opaque application and I didn't need a second layer. My issue with this comes with the top coat. The top coat applies nicely, but my issue is how it dries. With one semi-thick coat you get that glossy appearance at first, but then it kind of fades. Don't get me wrong, you still get a glossy appearance, but when you look closely you can see it's somewhat dull and a little streaky.

Like the Revlon Gel Envy, I wanted to see if the top coat and the color had to be used together or if they could be used separately, and it can. So in reality, you don't need to buy the top coat if you want to use the color and you don't need to buy the color in order to use the top coat.

Overall Impression / A Better Alternative:
So far, I'm not impressed with any of these gel nails kits; however, I really love the colors that both Revlon and Sally Hansen came out with, in my opinion the colors are very unique. From the Sally Hansen kit, I really like the color Street Flair because it's neutral (very office friendly) but it's not one of the boring taupe, brown, gray, etc.

You don't have to buy the top coats that come with the Revlon and Sally Hansen kits, unfortunately with the Nutra Nail kit you have to buy the entire kit. If you want a cheaper, more affordable option as far as top coats are concerned, then check out Sally Hansen Dries Instantly. This is a more budget friendly fast-dry top coat, and with one semi-thick layer, it dries to high gloss finish and will last just as long as the Revlon and Sally Hansen top coats. The great thing about using this top coat is the fact that you can use any nail polish you want and turn it into a gel like nail! Overall, I would've enjoyed these gel kits a lot more if the colors needed the top coats in order to work and become gel-like. I would say if you're not wanting to purchase the top coats that come with them then check out Sally Hansen Dries Instantly (it's in an actual package and not in one of the regular nail polish displays).

Have you tried out these gel kits? What do you think about them? Let me know in the comments down below or on Twitter @ciaociaoreview!

Until my next post,

Stay Beautiful! <3