Bite Beauty Cashmere Lip Cream. . . Lipstick Addiction

So it was my birthday recently and I had a little extra cash in my pocket so off course I went to Sephora. I bought a expensive lip product on a whim and I got lucky because I love it. I have never owned anything from Bite Beauty but BeautyBroad Cast on youtube loves Bite Beauty so I figured it couldn't be too bad. Bite Beauty's Cashmere Lip Creams are highly pigmented cream to powder lipsticks that come in a range of bright and bold colors. No joke these little babies are so pigmented and creamy.

These lip creams are very much like the NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream but they have better color pay off. Because these lippies are so pigmented it can be hard to get clean lines. I like to build up the color slowly instead going full monty in one swipe. Bite describes the color as a burgundy but it changes depending in different lighting. Sometimes it looks like a wine but then it looks like a dark red. I love it because purple and red are my favorite colors for lipsticks. The texture is really smooth and creamy and stays creamy for a long time. After a hour or two the lipstick dries to a powder matte finish.

The lipstick has a slight herbal scent nothing too strong but it is there. This isn't a product you have to touch up but it can be dry. I like to top it off throughout the day just to get a little moisture back onto my lips. It layers well over a lipliner but it is pigmented enough that you don't need one. I picked this up at Sephora for 28 dollars so it is quite pricey but the quality is amazing.

Brands I love NYX

Recently NYX has really stepped up its makeup game. They went from being a brand with a few holy grail products to a brand that is really new and different in a an industry that is always advancing. I think that NYX really stands out because they are reasonably priced, cruelty free and they are great quality. I honestly don't think that there is a makeup lover out their that isn't a little obsessed with the company. In 2014 they really made a name for themselves coming out with unique products that quickly became cult favorites. Now in the first few months of 2015 they are continuing to do so. 

NYX is one of  the first drugstore range brands that has products you could find in Sephora. They have realized that the everyday woman (and men) want high quality makeup artist products for a reasonable price. Many drugstore brands don't branch out into primers, setting sprays, HD powders, contouring products, and a vary of lip colors. Up until recently NYX was the only reasonably price foundation primer on the market. I would also say that NYX really started the jumbo pencil eyeshadow stick trend. 

Living in NYC I feel that I have almost everything at my fingertips but NYX is hard to get a hold of. I can't find them in my local drugstores and their are no Ulta locations in New York City. The only place that I can get my hands on them are at Rickey's which usually is under stocked. I tend to stay away from buying makeup online that I have never used before. NYX is an amazing company that really has stepped up the quality of drugstore makeup. 

I am looking forward to their brand expansion and my quest for testing out more of their products. They really understand the market; they just came out with a highlight and contouring palette for 25 dollars which I think it so smart. What makes the palette even better is that you can replace and refill all of the powders. I am also excited for their new line of High Definition blushes.

My current favorites from the Brand are their Mineral Foundation Stick, Soft Matte Lip Cream, Jump Eye Pencil, concealer and their blushes. 

What are some of your favorite NYX products comment down below. 

Estee Lauder Double Wear Gel Eyeliner Splurge or Save?

I was recently given a few gifts because of my birthday in February. I received some high-end makeup and I thought it would be interesting to compare it to its drugstore equivalent. One of the items I was given was the Estee Lauder Double Wear Gel Liner in Stay Onyx. This is your basic matte black gel liner in a screw off cap pot. 

This eyeliner retails for 25 dollars on Nordstorm.com. I looked on the Sephora website but they don't seem to sell this product. I have actually never seen Estee Lauder sold at any of my local Sephoras so I am not that familiar with the brand. I do know through the blogger grape vine that the Double Wear liner is really amazing so I had high hopes for this product. 

The liner is a super rich black color but the liners consistency is very very creamy. Estee Lauder advertising this products as a long wearing gel formula but it applies much more like a cream. Because it is so emollient it slides and slips on the eye and never really packs a punch with pigment. When an eyeliner is so creamy it actually becomes very difficult to apply. Trying to do a wing liner was nearly impossible. Even with a fine liner brush I would get a sharp point at the end of my wing. I also have to go over my lines a few times to get opaque color. I really only use gel liner to do a cat eye. This doesn't perform well on that aspect. 

Once this liner dries and sets on the lid it is super matte. A lot of gel liners and liquid liners when they dry will have shiny satin finish. What I really liked about this liner is dries totally matte. But, because this liner is so creamy you will have to wait for it to dry. I made the mistake of closing my lid and the liner smudged all over the place. 

Overall I am not a huge fan of this product. As liner it doesn't perform nearly as well as my Maybelline Eyestudio Gel Liner. However this product does work well as a base for a smokey eye. I took a small synthetic brush and I was able to create a perfect smokey eye in seconds. For 25 dollars I would expect more out a product and this just fell short. This product claims to be long wearing and it is if you let it dry completely. If you are looking for a gel liner I would go to the drug store and save some cash on the Maybelline Eyestudio in Blackest Black. 

Professional Kit: Concealer

I think that concealer might be the most important item in my kit. It is so versatile. A lot of the times when I can't find the right shade of foundation I mix in a little concealer to get the right color and boost coverage. Using concealer to color correct, highlight, and contour is really what makes a makeup look from pretty to stunning.  

If you are doing your make on yourself or other people a good concealer palette that includes corrector shades is crucial. If you are on a budget you can purchase your favorite concealers and depot them into one palette. You can also buy a pre-made palette. For my kit I use MAC's concealer palettes. I purchases two of them a little a while ago and I love them. I often find myself going into my bag to use them on myself. 

For dark circles you want to use orange/peach toned concealers to cancel out blue tones. For highlighting under the eye and cheek bones a golden or yellow toned concealer is perfect. For a contour color you want to use a color darker than your skin-tone that has a neutral undertone. A contour that is too orange will look especially unnatural. 

All of the concealers are creamy and have great coverage. They're are three palettes in total light, medium and dark. I have light and dark so I can mix to create the perfect shade for all skin tones. The bottom two colors are correct shades. The left shades are NC and the right are W and NW.  

Milani Moisture Matte Lipstick and Color Statement Lipliner

Again I have red my red lip obsession. If you think I have too many post about lipsticks I will tell you that you are incorrect. You can never have enough lipsticks in slightly different shades and finishes. When it comes to red lipsticks I live them to be blue toned so my teeth look whiter, darker burgundy reds and to have a matte finish. In general I hate glossy lipsticks I don't like they way they feel and they are too slippery. I want a lipstick that glides on smoothy with fully color in one swipe. 

Milani just released their new line of Color Statement Moisture Matte lipsticks. The range includes 7 lipsticks that contains nudes, pinks, purples and red. I purchased mine at CVS for 5.99 which mid price range for the drugstore. 

I picked up 67 Matte Confident which is a blue toned brick red. I went on the Milani website and they listed these lipstick as vegan which is really awesome. The packaging is really pretty, a classic lipstick tube and on the bottom is a the name of the lipstick and a colored square to represent to the color inside. Personally the lipstick I bought was safety sealed and the color on the tube was very accurate to the lipstick inside. The lipstick has a slight scent of butter-creme that disappears on your lips. I love the way it smells and actually wished it continued to smell on the lips. 

The pigmentation of the lipstick is not completely full like my Maybelline Matte lipstick but by no means is shear. With one swipe I can get pretty much full color but I do like to go over it to really pack a punch. Matte Confident glides on smoothly and feels like there is nothing on my lips. The lipstick when you apply it will have a balm feel but once it dries this lipstick does feel a little glue closest to the inside of my mouth. The color didn't crack but it did begin to feel a little uncomfortable but still totally wearable. I ate a meal with this lipstick on and when I was done most of the color was still there. This lipstick does layer on top of it self well, so you don't have to remove it to touch up.

While picking up Matte Confident I also purchased Milani's Color Statement Lipliner in 02 true red. I have purchased this liner before but I gave it to a friend. This is my holy grail lipliner. It applies creamy with full color and it comfortable enough to wear as a lipstick.

I really want to pick up more colors from this line. The quality is so amazing at an inexpensive price point. 

I would totally recommend picking up both of these products for a killer red lip. I have more posts coming about my favorite red lipsticks so be on the look out!

e.l.f. Poreless Face Primer

I have really gotten into primer this year. For a while I thought it was just a gimmick but it really does help your foundations go on smoother. I used to hate the slippery feel but I found a primer that makes my skin look great and not feel gross. The e.l.f Poreless Face Primer is super budget friendly and makes your makeup look great.

The primer comes out of the bottle as a milky white cream and when blended into the skin it is clear. If you are sensitive to scents then I would be careful because it strongly smells of eucalyptus but, once on the skin it goes away. I don't know if this really eliminates pores but it does make your skin a perfect canvas for concealer and foundation. 

The most important quality that I love about this primer is that it doesn't break me out. Often primers have really weird ingredients that makes me break out in red splotches. You can pick up this primer on the e.l.f website or at Target. 

Pro Kit: Foundation Part 2

One of my great loves of inexpensive makeup is ELF or Eyes Lips Face. For my kit I have two types of ELF foundation. I love them both but for different reasons. Both worth being used in my kit and for anyones personal makeup collection. I don't feel guilty purchasing ELF foundations because they are so fairly priced.

ELF Moisturizing Foundation Stick

I have depotted my sticks in stackable jars and it looks really gross so I took this image from the ELF website

Texture: This is a true cream foundation thick and creamy. The coverage is medium to full and needs to be applied with a light hand. Applied in light layers this is a natural full cover foundation but if you are not careful it is heavy and cakey. The best thing about this product is that is so long wearing. It dries matte and stays put all day.

Shade Range: Like NYX it doesn't have the best shade range. The darkest color being a dark medium. There are a total of 8 shades and not all of them are equal. Some are perfect and are very versatile while others are way too pink toned.

Price: You can get this on the ELF website for 6 dollars.

Use: This is great for special events because it is so long lasting. It doesn't contain any SPF so it is also great for photos.

How to Buy: The shade Ivory is a perfect match for my skin but some of the shades are either way to orange to look natural on any skin tone, or too pink to be natural. So be careful when buying.

ELF Flawless Finish Foundation SPF 15

Texture: This is a marketed as a liquid foundation but I find the consistency to be more gel-like. The coverage is light but what makes this foundation great is that it is so build-able. You can get a full coverage face using this product if you apply it in thin blended layers. It has a satin finish and I always set it with a powder. If you have dry skin you only need to swipe one powder under your eyes, nose, chin, and forehead. 

Shade Range: Like my other ELF foundation the shade range is very limited but they are more natural looking. All of the shades are nice if you have light to a medium skin tone. 

Price: This product is 6 dollars on the ELF website. 

Use: This product has SPF so it will give flash back in photos. This can be used for film but set it with a powder and use a primer. I like this for special events because it feels light on the face but packs good coverage. 

How To Buy: I own two shades from the line the lightest and darkest. I mix the two to get anything in between. It is pretty inexpensive so you could get more shades if you really wanted to.