Category Archives: Makeup

NYX Off Tropic Pro Liners (Review & Swatches)

NYX Off Tropic Pro Liners

I feel like the entirety of the NYX Off Tropic collection was made for me and my love of vivid, vibrant makeup colours. Not only did I love the Off Tropic palettes (see swatches of Hasta La Vista here, and of Shifting Sand here), but I’m telling you upfront that I freaking love these Off Tropic Pro Liners.

NYX Off Tropic Pro Liners
NYX Off Tropic Pro Liners

The NYX Off Tropic Pro Liners come in a massive array of rainbow shades (not a neutral to be seen, be still my heart!), although I only have three colours to show you in this post. There are nine shades in total though, and you can bet your butt I’m going to be picking up some ore!

The pencils twist up (and thankfully down) and contain 0.28 grams of product. They come pre-sharpened, but I found that I accidentally snapped off all three tops the first time I applied them to my eyes which was a bit odd. Once they were blunt, I found they no longer broke off and were rather creamy to apply. It’s kind of like the tip got dried out and just broke off on first use. Not really an issue to me though because the product underneath was glorious to use.

NYX Off Tropic Pro Liner Swatches in Pineapple Punch, Happy Hour and Pool Boy
NYX Off Tropic Pro Liner Swatches in Pineapple Punch, Happy Hour and Pool Boy

All three colours are incredibly vibrant and surprisingly opaque given how almost neon they seem. I did find that the yellow, Pineapple Punch, needed a few passes for full opacity, but I’m not surprised as yellow is, by nature, pale and tends to be sheer. However, it was opaque after a second layer so I was really impressed!

Wearing Pineapple Punch
Wearing Pineapple Punch

As you can see, Pineapple Punch is a standout yellow shade. I applied two layers on my water line to get that colour and aside from a little outer corner fading, this colour stayed put all day!

Wearing Happy Hour
Wearing Happy Hour

As did the vibrant hot pink! Basically, none of these colours moved on me throughout the day except for a tiny amount of product being removed at the outer corner of my eye (which is fairly normal for me). The colour stayed true all day, and I especially love how vibrant Happy Hour is!

Wearing Pool Boy
Wearing Pool Boy

Pool Boy was equally beautiful and vibrant!

Final Thoughts

Basically… these are all knockout shades. The NYX Off Tropic Pro Liners are so frigging good that it’s hard to describe without just saying… they truly are flawless and a true drugstore gem. They apply creamily (which is especially nice as I only wear pencil eyeliner on my lower waterline which is a hella sensitive area of the eye) and stay put all day. The colours are gorgeous and vivid, and they make me so happy! Since MAKE UP FOR EVER has discontinued all of their colourful Aqua XL Liners, this is going to be the brand I turn to when I need new, fun shades. I’m already eyeballing the bright green (Bamboo) and orange (Mimosa Orange) because I don’t have anything like that in my collection at all!

EDIT 2019/05/31: It’s been brought to my attention that the packaging on the NYX Pro Liners marks these are not eye safe (there’s an eyeball with a big X over it). I’ve reached out to NYX to find out why this is as these are definitely positioned as eyeliners. From my personal experience, I suffered no issues with these on my water line, but those with eye sensitivities may want to steer clear.

The NYX Off Tropic Pro Liners can be purchased at shoppersdrugmart.ca for $7.49 CAD each or on nyxcosmetics.com for $5 USD eachnyxcosmetics.com for $5 USD each.

The products featured in this post were sent to me for consideration. Post contains affiliate links.

Swatch Sunday: ColourPop It’s My Pleasure

ColourPop It's My Pleasure

I’m falling madly in love with ColourPop lately, and these 9 pan colour-themed palettes are really making me happy!

ColourPop It's My Pleasure
ColourPop It’s My Pleasure

The ColourPop It’s My Pleasure palette has been dubbed a “purple palette”, but honestly I think it’s a fairly even split of purples and pinks.

ColourPop It's My Pleasure
ColourPop It’s My Pleasure

ColourPop It’s My Pleasure Swatches

ColourPop - Kittenfish
ColourPop – Kittenfish
ColourPop - Do or Dough
ColourPop – Do or Dough
ColourPop - Pretty Cruel
ColourPop – Pretty Cruel
ColourPop - Bare Minimum
ColourPop – Bare Minimum
ColourPop - Earthshine
ColourPop – Earthshine
ColourPop - Chicklit
ColourPop – Chicklit
ColourPop - Mr. Sandman
ColourPop – Mr. Sandman
ColourPop - Fan Fiction
ColourPop – Fan Fiction
ColourPop - Sleeper
ColourPop – Sleeper
Post contains affiliate links.

Five Nude Lipsticks I’ve Been Wearing Lately

It was by sheer accident the other day that I realized I’d suddenly become nude lipstick obsessed. I was emptying out my backpack of the five lipsticks I had worn that week to the office, when I realized they were all very, very similar in tone!

I was so amused by my discovery that I thought I’d turn it into a blog post that some people may find quite useful. I’ve started pairing nude lipsticks a lot more with my bright eyeshadow looks and it’s been working out really, really well. Seems kind of like a “no duh” moment, right? Well, I agree, but I also like wearing bright lipsticks so it’s kind of a struggle for me to convince myself that I shouldn’t be going loud with both my lipstick and eyeshadow colours! (My dear friend Sam pointed out how much a nude lipstick made my bright eyeshadows pop and I was kind of sold from that moment on!)

So here are the five shades that have been gracing my lips lately.

Too Faced Peach Kiss Lipstick in Bridezilla
Too Faced Peach Kiss Lipstick in Bridezilla

When I want a comfortable to wear matte lipstick I often reach for a Too Faced Peach Kiss lipstick. The texture is so lovely and easy to wear and actually hydrating. Bridezilla is a shade I never thought I’d wear because it’s more towards the pink side of things and I’ve never found that I gravitate towards the colour pink. It’s a shade I often revolt against because I hate the notion of being “girly” and all the frilly stuff that everyone seems to associate with pink and girls. If I want to wear pink, I usually want it to be neon, you know?

Wearing Too Faced Bridezilla
Wearing Too Faced Bridezilla

But there is something definitely magical about Too Faced‘s Bridezilla lipstick. I’ve seen it morph from a more pink toned lipstick to a more peach shade depending on what I’m wearing on my eyes. Fundamentally it is a medium pink lip and not really a nude I suppose, but it does a hell of a job complimenting a bright eyeshadow look!

Suva Beauty Moisture Matte Liquid Lipstick in Awakening
Suva Beauty Moisture Matte Liquid Lipstick in Awakening

Suva Beauty‘s Awakening Moisture Matte Liquid Lipstick knocked me out of the park the first time I used it. Not only is the product not one of those “dry as paint” liquid lipsticks, but it also smells like vanilla cake batter!

Wearing Suva Beauty Awakening
Wearing Suva Beauty Awakening

And on my lips, Awakening is truly my most perfect nude. It’s pale, without going overboard. It’s peachy-pink, without pulling strongly one way or the other. And it literally goes with every single bright or dark eyeshadow look I’ve thrown at it.

Maybelline Matte Ink in Loyalist
Maybelline Matte Ink in Loyalist

Hilariously… the Maybelline Matte Ink in Loyalist is basically the exact same shade as Suva‘s Awakening. They don’t look like it in the tube, but wait till you see them swatched side by side at the bottom of this post! I’ve yammered on for days on end about how much I love the Maybelline Matte Inks – they are truly, in my mind, the be all, end all of liquid lipsticks because of not only their longevity, but also their comfort. They are flawless!

Wearing Maybelline Loyalist
Wearing Maybelline Loyalist

Since the shade is identical to Suva‘s Awakening, it works just as perfectly as that shade does – it truly is the perfect nude for me. And it’s funny too – because I initially thought this colour was WAY too pale for me when I first saw it in the tube. I’d discarded it for months because I thought it would give me baby pink/white lips. However, that’s not the case and it really is perfection.

Too Faced La Creme Lipstick in Topless
Too Faced La Creme Lipstick in Topless

Sadly, the Too Faced La Creme lipsticks have kind of been shoved out of the market by all of the liquid lipsticks that seem to be taking up space. But let it be known that the La Creme formula is one of my favourites that I have ever tried, and if you still own a few of those shades then you’re a lucky person. The La Cremes are a wonderful cream lipstick with a sweet lemon scent (so unique) and I love mine dearly!

Wearing Too Faced Topless
Wearing Too Faced Topless

This shot is ancient because I couldn’t find a new one to use, but anyway… Topless is more of a beige nude on me. I wear it when I want a super pale lip. The glossiness of the formula helps to bring some life to the otherwise quite pale shade.

Too Faced Melted Matte in Sugar Cookie
Too Faced Melted Matte in Sugar Cookie

Oh man, the Too Faced mini Melted Mattes from their most recent holiday launch… so. damn. good. Sugar Cookie has definitely been the shade I’ve worn the most. I don’t LOVE the Too Faced Melted Matte formula since it’s a touch drying, BUT I can’t resist the shades and the scent (vanilla cookie batter!).

Wearing Too Faced Sugar Cookie
Wearing Too Faced Sugar Cookie

And, like all of the other shades in this post, it works really beautifully with bright eyeshadow colours. This is one of my more darker nudes, but I hadn’t really thought about it until I saw them all swatched out together:

Do you see how Suva‘s Awakening and Maybelline‘s Loyalist are identical?? I love them both, so I ain’t even mad about it!

So those are my nude lipsticks picks as of late. Do you have a favourite nude lipstick? Let me know!

All of the products featured in this post were sent to me over the course of the last four years. Post contains affiliate links.

Swatch Sunday: NYX Off Tropic Shifting Sand

NYX Off Tropic Shifting Sand

NYX really knocked it out of the park with their Off Tropic collection. I loved the Hasta La Vista palette, and I feel the exact same about this Shifting Sand palette!

NYX Off Tropic Shifting Sand
NYX Off Tropic Shifting Sand

While Hasta La Vista was more of a vibrant rainbow palette, Shifting Sand takes it a bit deeper and more neutral, while still providing shocks of colour that absolutely delighted me (the oranges are to DIE for!).

NYX Off Tropic Shifting Sand
NYX Off Tropic Shifting Sand

NYX Off Tropic Shifting Sand Swatches

NYX Off Tropic Shifting Sand - Shade 1
NYX Off Tropic Shifting Sand – Shade 1
NYX Off Tropic Shifting Sand - Shade 2
NYX Off Tropic Shifting Sand – Shade 2
NYX Off Tropic Shifting Sand - Shade 3
NYX Off Tropic Shifting Sand – Shade 3
NYX Off Tropic Shifting Sand - Shade 4
NYX Off Tropic Shifting Sand – Shade 4
NYX Off Tropic Shifting Sand - Shade 5
NYX Off Tropic Shifting Sand – Shade 5
NYX Off Tropic Shifting Sand - Shade 6
NYX Off Tropic Shifting Sand – Shade 6
NYX Off Tropic Shifting Sand - Shade 7
NYX Off Tropic Shifting Sand – Shade 7
NYX Off Tropic Shifting Sand - Shade 8
NYX Off Tropic Shifting Sand – Shade 8
NYX Off Tropic Shifting Sand - Shade 9
NYX Off Tropic Shifting Sand – Shade 9
NYX Off Tropic Shifting Sand - Shade 10
NYX Off Tropic Shifting Sand – Shade 10

The NYX Off Tropic Shifting Sand palette can be purchased at ulta.com for $20 USD (it’s on sale for $14 right now!) or on nyxcosmetics.ca for $24 CAD.

The product featured in this post was sent to me for consideration. Post contains affiliate links.