Sometimes I just don’t get the labelling on makeup products. For example, these essenceMatt Matt Matt Longlasting Lipglosses. Matte + lipgloss? That’s not a thing. It CANNOT be a thing. By its nature, lipgloss is shiny, so therefore it cannot be matte. What a headscratcher.
essence matt matt matt lipgloss
Sooooo all that aside, essence says their matt matt matt lipglosses have a “creamy formula with a velvet matte finish”. Which is far more inline with what the product actually is! It’s a soft, moussey formula that has opaque coverage and smells absolutely wonderful. The smell is the first thing that hit me on these – it’s like cake batter and it is *glorious*!
essence matt matt matt lipgloss swatches – La Vie Est Bell, Beauty – Approved! and Girl Of Today
Because of the moussey texture, you’re really getting opaque coverage with these “glosses” in one swipe. Despite the weird shape of the applicator (it’s kinda like an arrowhead), you do actually get precise lines and one pull of the product is enough to cover your lips in their entirety.
Wearing La Vie Est Belle
It’s funny, I always say this, but I am never drawn to these baby pink shades, and yet I think they look quite nice on me in photos. The shade is La Vie Est Belle, and it was the only shade out of the three that needed a little finessing to get it completely opaque (which is probably due to the colour tint).
Wearing Beauty – Approved!
Beauty – Approved! is one of those every day, my lips but better colours. Full coverage and beautiful!
Wearing Girl Of Today
A little bit more up my alley, Girl Of Today is a beautiful deep rose colour.
Final Thoughts
First off, these aren’t lipglosses and they’re never going to be lipglosses, so let’s stop right there with the “matte lipgloss” shenanigans because it just ain’t a thing. That aside…
These are a moussey, cream textured lipstick formula that will eventually dry down to a satin finish. They are definitely not transferproof, as they will move around a little bit on your lips (although I had no bleed out even without a lip primer!). They are quite comfortable to wear as the mousse formula is flexible and forgiving. They also aren’t tacky, in case anyone was wondering. I think that’s covered by it not being a lipgloss, but just wanted to point it out as well. I love the cake batter smell, but you won’t taste it very much on your own lips throughout the day. As for wear time… it’s okay, but not as long as the “longlasting” in the name would lead you to believe. Since these are more moussey, you’ll find you need to re-apply every three hours or so. I lost the bulk of the colour on the inner rim of my mouth, but the outsides stayed intact.
Inspired by raw gemstones melted into liquid form, BECCA Cosmetics created the Liquid Crystal Lip Topper Glow Glosses and unleashed them on the makeup world!
BECCA Liquid Crystal Lip Topper Glow Gloss
While the term lip topper basically surfaced out of YouTube (and I really hate that term to be honest), these are really just a lip gloss. Suspended within the lip gloss formula are a kaleidoscope of pearls that really do reflect the idea of melted gemstones. Each shade has a tinted base with a more dominant colour reflect amongst the pearls.
BECCA Liquid Crystal Lip Topper Glow Gloss
The glosses come with your standard doe-foot applicator, but I do find it doesn’t actually pull enough product from the tube as I had to dip multiple times to get full opaque coverage on my lips. If, however, you are using these as a spot highlighter in the center of your lips, you’ll definitely pull enough product out in a single pull. The tubes kind of look like test tubes from science class to me (love it!) and contain a healthy 5g/0.17oz of product.
BECCA Liquid Crystal Lip Topper Glow Gloss swatched – Rose Quartz x Seashell and Topaz x Gilt
Rose Quartz x Seashell has a pale, translucent pink base with flecks of brighter, silvery pink.
Topaz x Gilt is basically MAC’s blue-brown pigment! The base is a toffee brown shade and the glitter flecks are blue, sometimes green.
These claim to have a coconut and vanilla scent… a claim that completely baffled me as I smell none of those things. To me, these are basically an unscented gloss that still retains some of that older lipstick smell. Not like the product has gone off, but more like it was never scented in the first place and still has some of that manufactured scent. It’s not intrusive for wear though!
Wearing Rose Quartz x Seashell
On the lips, Rose Quartz x Seashell comes off as a more milky pink.
Wearing Topaz x Gilt
Topaz x Gilt was easily my favourite out of the two shades I tried (there are six shades total in the collection). I love the look of the soft brown colour and the blue-green sparkle is really, really gorgeous.
In both shades, the sparkle is not really apparent from a distance (and you honestly can’t see it that much in the photos I’ve posted). I think it makes for an interesting illusion… from afar it looks like you’re wearing a regular gloss, but when you get up close you can see the facets of the coloured glitter (as you can see in my swatches) and it completely changes how you perceive the lip look!
Final Thoughts
The Liquid Crystal Lip Topper Glow Glosses are fundamentally a gloss at their core, so you won’t find their longevity to be on par with a lipstick. Which is fine by me, but I often feel people have completely unrealistic expectations for a gloss so I wanted to put that out there. Reapplication was necessary around the two hour mark as the gloss would start to wear away and you’d be left with glitter particles on your lips. Although I didn’t find the glitter to feel gritty or obvious in texture on my lips, if you really smush your lips together you’ll be able to feel it.
Over the years I’ve kind of grown out of lip gloss just because it didn’t suit my every day life very well as I need something that wouldn’t move around on my lips at work. These surprised the heck out of me as the gloss stays put and doesn’t travel around my lips! Although some people may not be into these kinds of shades for the office, for me these work really well. If you’re looking for a fun gloss with a beautiful, unusual shimmer to it, then you’ve found it! Maybe even grab one of them for the holidays to add some sparkle and shine to your look!
In 2016, as part of my yearly favourites video, I declared that Esqido had become my favourite fake lashes on the market. It’s a bold statement, and an expensive one at that since these are quite up there in the price tag department, but we’re a year later now and I can still confirm that Esqido still makes the most beautiful and comfortable lashes I’ve ever worn!
Esqido lashes
Esqido offered to send me some of their new styles and I was more than happy to accept them! Funnily enough, their lashes are so good that in the year or so I’ve had the other ones in my collection, I’ve only managed to burn through one pair and the other pair is still going strong. So when you look at the elevated price tag of these, just know that you’re getting really good quality with it. And since my last review of their lashes was in 2016, I thought it’d be fun to refresh my memory on why I love these so much.
The number one reason I like the Esqido lashes so much is that the cotton band that the lashes are attached to is incredibly flexible. Unlike your typical plastic band that has no dang flex, the Esqido band can conform to your eye shape every time without issue. Their lash styles are also beautiful (and they’ve added a lot of new ones recently!) so when you combine a beautiful fake lash with a comfortable band? You’ve got an absolute killer product!
Esqido lashes – Radiance
The EsqidoRadiance lashes ($29 USD) are labelled a 2 out of 5 stars in terms of volume on their web site which makes these more on the natural side of things. The Radiance lashes have a little bit of a V-shape flare at the base of the lashes which help make your eyes look bigger.
Esqido lashes – Unforgettable
The Unforgettable lashes ($28 USD) are very similar to the Radiance lashes, although these have a little bit more of a flared out effect on the edges. This is also a 2 out of 5 star volume. (I decided since my last post was focused on big lashes, I wanted this one to be centered around the more natural looking ones.) The Unforgettable lashes have less of a V flare compared to the previous one, but they are more concentrated on the outer corner which helps to elongate the eye.
Wearing Esqido Radiance lashes
In all honesty, the difference between the Radiance and Unforgettable lashes is not a big one (although I only have Radiance pictured here), so if you like one style more than the other, go for it, but they’ll pretty much produce the same look.
Final Thoughts
It almost goes without saying, but these are just as good as ever! The band is super comfortable and flexible making this a lash I’d actually suggest for false lash newbies. I realize that dropping about $30 USD on a pair of lashes may seem daunting for a beginner, but these are hands down the easiest to apply out of all of the lashes I’ve tried. I can also easily get 20-25 uses out of these lashes which is kind of unheard of. A lot of brands claim they’ll last that long, but they often don’t! These do actually stand the test of time.
Another thing to add – Esqido‘s web site is really, REALLY good. They have side by side comparisons of no lashes vs each lash style applied to the model and it’s incredibly informative. It’s not an overly edited look either. They stick to no mascara and layer it on top of the eye so you can see how much volume it adds. I was really impressed by their attention to detail and the clarity of the pictures on their site.
In short, Esqido lashes are expensive, yes, but they are hands down my favourite lash brand out there and are worth every single penny!
The products featured in this post were sent to me consideration.
I know the front of this palette says “Best Year Ever”, but the name of the set that this palette comes in is actually called “Pretty Little Planner”. Since there’s another Too Faced holiday set that’s actually called “Best Year Ever”, I’m going to stick with calling this the Pretty Little Planner set. Phew…. still with me?
Too Faced – Pretty Little Planner set
The Pretty Little Planner set is one of Too Faced’s more pared down holiday sets, and honestly I think it might be the best one. This set comes with the palette you see swatched in this post, as well as an agenda and a mini Better Than Sex mascara.
This item is one that Too Faced created exclusively for Ulta, so if you want it, you’ll have to grab it from them!
Too Faced – Pretty Little Planner Set Swatches
Too Faced – Good GirlToo Faced – Rise & ShineToo Faced – Why Not?Too Faced – White ChristmasToo Faced – Secret SantaToo Faced – Silent NightToo Faced – WerkshopToo Faced – Coffee FirstToo Faced – Snooze U LoseToo Faced – Good As GoldToo Faced – DollhouseToo Faced – Wrap It UpToo Faced – Break The IceToo Faced – Elfie SelfieToo Faced – Booville
The Too Faced Pretty Little Planner set can be purchased at ulta.com for $42 USD.
The product featured in this post was sent to me for consideration. Post contains affiliate links.
Too Faced *AND* glitter?? You know my interest was piqued!
Too Faced Glitter Pop! Peel-Off Eyeliners
Just this past month Too Faced launched their Glitter Pop! Peel-Off Eyeliners and I was intrigued. I play with a lot of glitter, so I’m always interested to see new ways to apply it to my face! These Glitter Pop! liners promise to peel away without leaving glitter flecks anywhere. That’s one hell of a bold claim since glitter is infamous for getting EVERYWHERE!
Too Faced Glitter Pop! Peel-Off Eyeliners
There are eight shades in the range and I have seven of them – I’m only missing the rose-gold shade (which looks more copper to be honest). They come with 6.5 grams of product, which may not sound like much, but these tubes are enormous for an eyeliner!
Too Faced Glitter Pop! Peel-Off Eyeliners
The Glitter Pop! liner is your standard brush tip applicator that you dip into the pot of glittery goodness. For the most part the glitters are suspended in a clear base, however some of them do have a coloured base which helps to amplify the colour. (Fairy Queen, I’m Half Mermaid and Hey Mr. DJ have tinted colour bases.)
Too Faced Glitter Pop! Peel-Off Eyeliners – swatches
Swatched out you can see just how much glitter is jam packed into these liners. One of my problems with glitter liners over the years has been when there’s too much base and not enough glitter particles. This usually leaves you with a fairly patchy application AND means you need to apply about twenty coats to get opaque coverage. The Too FacedGlitter Pop! liners are more of a two-coat wonder. You could get away with a single coat, but two really solidifies the colour output on your eyes. The brand suggests using three coats, which I think has to do with the peel off aspect.
Wearing Fairy Queen
The first time I tried the Glitter Pop! liner, I went in with Fairy Queen – an absolutely beautiful purple. At Too Faced‘s recommendation, I went in with three coats. I was pleased with how fast it dried and how much glitter was jampacked into the tube. It made for really easy application that wasn’t spotty. I noticed a little bit of a tugging sensation on the inner corner of my eyelid – which I can only assume is the “glue” drying and holding the liner in place – but aside from that it was comfortable to wear! I wore this one through a movie (we went to see Blade Runner 2049) and it lasted the whole time.
Wearing Lucky Bitch
I used Lucky Bitch on my next trial run – this time to work! I had heard a few people complaining that the liner pops off without warning, so I really wanted to put it to the test by wearing it for 9-10 hours. For me, there wasn’t a single issue! The glitter didn’t peel off prematurely and looked beautiful all day long. And, as promised, there is zero fall out!
Lucky Bitch – up close
Here’s a closer up shot so you can see just how beautiful the glitter particles are. They’re layered on top of each other but still manage to retain that chunky glittery aspect.
Wearing Glitter Ghost
I opted for Glitter Ghost the third time and decided to try a different placement. I really like the look of glitter on the inner corner of my eye, so that’s where it went. Sadly, this didn’t work out for me as well as it did on the upper lash line. I feel like maybe the inner corner of your eye is too flexible, because the glitter liner started to lift up on the inner corner within about thirty minutes and I had to just pull the whole thing off for my workday because it was looking too patchy. But that’s the beauty of these liners – don’t like how it looks? Peel it right off and try again! No harm, no foul.
Peeling off a Glitter Pop!
And speaking of peel off – here’s how it looks. I did three coats of I’m Half Mermaid and tried to show you just how easily this liner pulls up when you want it to. I slide the edge of my fingernail (you could also use tweezers) underneath the outside edge, lift it up, and start peeling it away. It’s so simple, and so freaking easy.
Final Thoughts
If you’re looking for a glitter liner with 100% ZERO fallout, then the Too FacedGlitter Pop! Peel-Off Eyeliners are definitely for you. The base that these are suspended in acts like a glue and gels everything together so that you needn’t worry about stray glitter particles. In my past experiences, no amount of glitter glue have ever managed to hold ALL of the glitter particles in place, so this was extremely impressive to me.
As I said in the review, it didn’t really work out for me on the inner corner of my eye. If you were going to wear it that way, I’d suggest applying the lightest layer you can with as little base as you can. I think the glue aspect of the glitter base is flexible enough for your eyelid, but not so much on the inner corner – which, for me – is a very curved-in area.
The peel off aspect of these liners is absolutely unreal. They really do come off in one solid peel which is *ever* so satisfying! You don’t need to peel them off to remove them though – you can also use an oil-based remover and they come right off as well.
In short – these are great! Beautiful colours, easy to apply and jam-packed with glitter. I love that the base of the eyeliner holds the glitter in place and it doesn’t come off on my eyes before I want it to.
The Too FacedGlitter Pop! Peel-Off Eyeliners can be purchased at sephora.ca for $24 CAD each or on sephora.com for $20 USD each. These are marked as a limited edition item, so I have no idea how long they’ll be around!
The products featured in this post were sent to me for consideration. This post contains affiliate links.
