Category Archives: Reviews

Clinique Pop Glaze Sheer Lip Colour + Primer (Review & Swatches)

March 21, 2016Makeup, Reviews, SwatchesCliniqueChelle

Clinique Pop Glaze Sheer Lip Colour + Primer

Spring 2016 seems to be alive with sheer lip colours and I have to say… I’m surprisingly enjoying it! Brand new from Clinique are the Pop Glazes (also known as the Clinique Pop Glaze Sheer Lip Colour + Primer) and the formula leaves you with a gorgeously glossy, juicy lip.

First of all.. the packaging. I love it. Clinique has done a lot to step up their packaging game in recent years (starting with their Cheek Pops) and it’s helping to shed some of that older lady aesthetic (come on, you know your grandmother used Clinique!). I love the bold silver etched with the brand name, alongside the translucent coloured based that matches the shade of the lipstick inside. I know exactly what shade of lipstick I’m reaching or every time I grab for the product and that’s something a lot more brands should be looking to do (looking at you MAC!).

Clinique describes their Pop Glaze formula as “a pretty pop of bold yet see-through colour + smoothing primer in one coat. Luxurious yet weightless formula with built-in primer glides on effortlessly, wears for up to 8 hours. Keeps lips comfortably moisturized instantly and over time.”

I struggle a bit with their eight hour claim, but I won’t let it deter me from wearing these colours. In reality, this is such a smooth and creamy formula (not dissimilar to the feeling of a chapstick really – it’s SUPER comfortable) that it’s going to wear off a heck of a lot faster than if I was wearing a matte lipstick. And you know what? That is perfectly okay by me. This is the kind of lip product I love to put on when I know I’m going to be eating food. For example, I went to a friend’s place this past weekend for their birthday and I wore Licorice Pop. There was a lot of food and I was able to eat without worrying about my lipstick smearing everywhere AND it wore off evenly and nicely. All aspects of a lip product I *highly* appreciate!

Clinique Pop Glaze Sheer Lip Colour + Primer in Melon Drop Pop, Sugar Plum Pop, Sprinkle Pop and Licorice Pop - swatches — Clinique Pop Glaze Sheer Lip Colour + Primer in Melon Drop Pop, Sugar Plum Pop, Sprinkle Pop and Licorice Pop – swatches

You can see from the swatches that while the colours are pigmented, there is a lovely veil of translucency that makes them glossy and sheer. They are scent-free which makes them all the better for everyone to appreciate.

Melon Drop Pop is less orange on my lips than I thought it would be. Perfect spring/summer colour though.

Sugar Plum Pop is a soft purple-pink. It was the most sheer out of the four I have.

On me, Sprinkle Pop packaged the most colour punch. Every time I look at it I can’t decide if it’s more purple or more pink…

My favourite of the lot is Licorice Pop. I love, love, love the purple veil of this lip colour.

Final Thoughts

The Clinique Pop Glazes are the quickest and easiest to wear lip colours that I own. The feeling is akin to a chapstick, which is something I LOVE. My lips feel hydrated and comfortable when I’m wearing them which is a massive bonus.

Because of their sheer texture, these are incredibly easy to pair with any eye makeup because you won’t get a full on bold lip – just a lovely sheer pop of colour that helps brighten up your face. I love that they have no scent because it makes them accessible to everyone (while some lip scents are great, the reality is that not everyone is going to like every single scent – it’s better to have unscented products in the long run).

In short, I love these! I’m currently in the midst of collating my “Top 10 Favourite Lipsticks” and I thought I had the line up locked and loaded… but having tried these over the past few weeks, I’m going to have to sneak one of these guys in because they are so freaking wonderful! There are a few more shades in the collection and I think I’ll be picking up Fireball Pop next!

The Clinique Pop Glazes can be purchased on clinique.ca for $22 CAD each or on ulta.com for $18 USD each. (I can’t find them on Sephora’s site yet!)

The products featured in this post were sent to me for consideration.

BECCA Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed in Pearl (Review & Swatches)

March 18, 2016Makeup, Reviews, SwatchesBECCAChelle

BECCA Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed in Pearl

Snow Queens out there can rejoice: there’s finally a highlighting shade pale enough out there for you! And it’s all wonderfully packaged into one of the best performing highlighting brands ever: BECCA!

It was so strange… for the longest time, BECCA Cosmetics had Pearl as a staple colour in their Shimmering Skin Perfector liquid and poured line up. But never in a pressed form…. until now!

As the name would suggest, Pearl is a very, very pale highlighting powder and it actually packs a significant white pigment punch. While most highlighters are chockful of shine and occasionally shimmer and glitter, there’s usually very, very little apparent pigment. (You know what I’m talking about – when you swatch a highlighter and all you get is sheen? That’s what I mean.)

So here’s a comparison between the newly pressed Pearl and Champagne Pop. While Champagne Pop definitely looks like it’s got some colour to it, when you swatch it on the skin…

BECCA Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed in Pearl and Champagne Pop - swatches — BECCA Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed in Pearl and Champagne Pop – swatches

…it’s Pearl that comes across wayyy more pigmented. Surprising, and yet somewhat impressive.

On my cheeks, Pearl adds an incredible white sheen. I may actually be slightly too dark in tone for the highlighter, but I do not freaking care – I love how this makes me look I’ve been snow-kissed. This is such a stunning highlighter for the winter months because I feel like snow angel.

Wearing Pearl - close up — Wearing Pearl – close up

Here’s a close up shot. You can see the added whiteness in the pigment really helps to brighten up the skin on my cheekbones.

Final Thoughts

I fell madly in love with BECCA‘s Shimmering Skin Perfectors when I got my hands on Champagne Pop last year and Pearl is keeping that flame burning! If you’re a very pale person who is in need of a highlighter that won’t look too dark on you, this has the potential to be your absolute holy grail item. (If you’d like to see Pearl in action, I used it in a recent makeup tutorial.) The product itself is smooth, blendable and I experience no fading throughout a 10 hour work day.

The BECCA Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed in Pearl can be purchased on sephora.ca for $46 CAD or on sephora.com for $38 USD.

The product featured in this post was sent to me for consideration.

Too Faced Melted Metallic Chocolate (Review & Swatches)

March 16, 2016Makeup, Reviews, SwatchesToo FacedChelle

Too Faced Melted Metallic Chocolate Lipsticks

Although by now you probably realize I’m a hardcore Too Faced fan, I have mentioned on several occasions that I’m really not interested in their Melted Metal lipsticks. Although I own A LOT of the regular versions (see here, here and here), there’s just something about the Metallics I’m not into (primarily their sheerness).

So when I managed to snag all three shades of the Melted Chocolate Metallics, wellllll it was like someone was telling me to just suck it up and review them/try them/something. (An ENORMOUS thank you goes to Katherine of The Green Bows for giving me two shades without a second thought, as well as to Laura of Lipstick and Laura for inviting me to a Sephora VIB Rouge Too Faced event where I managed to snag the shade I was missing in the goodie bag. I have truly amazing friends surrounding me!)

Too Faced Melted Metallic Chocolate Lipsticks in Frozen Hot Chocolate, Candy Bar and Chocolate Diamonds

The Melted Metallic Chocolate lipsticks smell identical to the regular Melted Chocolate lipsticks (full review of those can be seen here) – it’s slightly cocoa powder scented, although it’s not the same smell as the one that it’s in their Chocolate Bar palettes. It does smell artificial though (as to be expected really!).

Too Faced Melted Metallic Chocolate Lipsticks in Frozen Hot Chocolate, Candy Bar and Chocolate Diamonds - swatches — Too Faced Melted Metallic Chocolate Lipsticks in Frozen Hot Chocolate, Candy Bar and Chocolate Diamonds – swatches

Swatched out, there’s not a huge amount of difference between the shades. Frozen Hot Chocolate is slightly more red-toned, Candy Bar is slightly more yellow-toned and Chocolate Diamonds is as the name indicates – chocolate shimmer.

Here’s how they look on:

Too Faced - Metallic Frozen Hot Chocolate — Too Faced – Metallic Frozen Hot Chocolate

Too Faced - Metallic Candy Bar — Too Faced – Metallic Candy Bar

Too Faced - Metallic Chocolate Diamonds — Too Faced – Metallic Chocolate Diamonds

Final Thoughts

In general, the Chocolate Metallics offer a sheer wash of brown colour – which is something that may be helpful to those who don’t want to go straight into wearing brown lipstick. The formula is similar to the regular Melteds, although they don’t dry down matte. They will dry down a bit, but it’s not the same consistency as the originals and they do retain some of their glossy appearance even after several hours of wear.

Of the three shades, Frozen Hot Chocolate and Candy Bar were very, very similar – there’s not a huge amount of shade difference on my lips. Chocolate Diamonds on the other hand is very different – it has far more glitter particles contained within the lipstick and I even noticed a bit of… errrr… crunching inside my mouth after awhile when the particles eventually got past my lips over time. It’s not that the formula moved around on my lips, it’s just that some of the flakes came loose and inevitably ended up in my mouth. It was a bit weird, but it didn’t taste bad nor was it a deterrent for wearing that particular shade. Chocolate Diamonds also has a LOT of shine impact, so if you’re looking for a fun, sparkly lip colour, that’d be the shade for you.

My original assessment of the Too Faced Metallics is still relatively intact: it’s a nice formula for someone who likes to wear shiny lip colours, but it’s not a ME thing. (I prefer non-opaque colours with a lot less sheen.) Keep in mind that there is nothing wrong with this formula at all, that’s just a personal preference for me. If you like any of the shades, definitely have at it!

The Too Faced Melted Chocolate Metallics are available on sephora.ca for $25 CAD or on sephora.com for $21 USD.

essence Sheer & Shine Lipsticks – Full Collection (Review & Swatches)

March 14, 2016Makeup, Reviews, SwatchesessenceChelle

essence Sheer & Shine Lipsticks

essence recently revealed their Spring/Summer 2016 to Canada and I was excited to see that a lot of their regular lineup of products has changed/been added to. At the last few events I’ve been to, I’ve seen a lot of the same similar items being repromoted, so it was really nice to see something totally new.

One of those totally new products are the Sheer & Shine lipsticks. As with many releases, it’s entirely possible that these have been available in Europe long before North America got them, but since they’re new to me, I was pretty excited to try them out!

The essence Sheer & Shine lipsticks have a “super soft formula [that] feels pleasantly light on your lips and provides them with gorgeous, subtle colour with a fantastic shine in the wanna-have shades nude, brown and pink. The translucent cap is the same colour as the lipstick inside so it’s easy to reach for your favorite shade.”

These are definitely a translucent, sheer formula, but some colours will surprise you with just how much colour they deposit.

essence Sheer & Shine Lipstick Swatches

essence - 01 My First Love — essence – 01 My First Love

My First Love is a very, very pale pinky-peach.

essence - 02 Cute Nude — essence – 02 Cute Nude

Cute Nude is a soft pale peach.

BFF is a pinky-red.

essence - 06 Frosted — essence – 06 Frosted

Frosted is an incredibly pale pink.

essence - 07 Sparkling Miracle — essence – 07 Sparkling Miracle

Sparkling Miracle is a magenta pink shot through with glitter.

essence - 08 Be Happy — essence – 08 Be Happy

Be Happy is a candy apple red.

essence - 10 Glamour Queen — essence – 10 Glamour Queen

Glamour Queen is a medium pink-brown with glitter.

essence - 11 All About Cupcake — essence – 11 All About Cupcake

All About Cupcake is a pale coral. (You can see me wearing it in my St. Patrick’s Day Makeup Tutorial video.)

essence - 12 Candy Love — essence – 12 Candy Love

Candy Love is a pale to medium pink.

essence - 13 Like A Princess — essence – 13 Like A Princess

Like a Princess is totally unlike the other shades… it’s a freaking stunning hot pink with a hint of magenta and red.

Final Thoughts

When I first looked at these lipsticks, I thought there was no way in hell that they’d be translucent – I mean the bullet is so bright and vibrant! However, true to their name, the essence Sheer & Shine lipsticks impart a translucent veil of colour (for the most part).

I cannot stress enough how incredibly comfortable these are to wear. They’re like a soft balm on the lips – the kind of product you keep re-applying over and over again just because you like the way it feels. Samantha Jane said it best in her recent essence video (and I’m paraphrasing): “These are an excellent purse product where you can grab them on the go to apply”.

For the most part, they have a very sweet, candy-vanilla scent (although it’s not the same as their lipsticks which is a huge blessing for me since I’m not keen on that scent), however, there were a few shades that didn’t have that sweet scent and instead smelled a bit like plastic. It was a bit strange that the scent wasn’t consistent across the range, so if you’re super sensitive to scent, make sure you give the bullet a whiff before you purchase it.

My swatches above are showing fairly true to colour, so you can discern for yourself which shades would most appeal to you, but the shades I’m in love with are Like A Princess (which definitely packs way more colour punch than the rest of the line!), All About Cupcake and Be Happy. (Sidenote: Shades seems to vary by location and country. These are the ones I received so I would assume all of these are available in Canada.)

If you’re looking for an easy-to-wear lip product that’s comfortable, lightweight and feels quite natural – don’t look any further than the Sheer & Shines!

The essence Sheer & Shine lipsticks can be purchased on ulta.com for $2.99 USD each or at Shopper Drug Mart and Superstores in Canada.

The products featured in this review were sent to me for consideration.

Too Faced Candlelight Warm Glow (Review, Swatches + Giveaway)

March 10, 2016Makeup, Reviews, SwatchesToo FacedChelle

Too Faced Candlelight Warm Glow

I get all kinds of stupid excited for new highlighters – even moreso when a brand expands on a highlighter that they already had in their lineup and creates more colours!

Before I get into it… I mean… hello… just LOOK at that packaging! /sigh

Too Faced has had some version of a “Candelight” powder for as long as I can remember. (To see an older version of it, click here for a favourites post from 2014!) They changed up their Candlelight powder relatively recently and made it a duo that had a light beige shade and a pink shade that could be swirled together for a lovely glow. The intent, of course, is to capture how damn stunning everyone looks by candlelight – “Advanced PHOTOLITE technology refracts light to soften and diffuse the appearance of imperfections for skin that looks more youthful, lifted, and radiant.”

With their Spring 2016 launch, Too Faced came out with a warm toned shade they appropriately named “Warm Glow“. (The other powder is called Rosy Glow – I don’t own it.)

Warm Glow has a pale cream side, and a nice warm pale peach side. And of course, to sucker us even more into loving the product – it has a beautifully embossed chandelier smack dab in the center.

Too Faced Candlelight Warm Glow - swatches — Too Faced Candlelight Warm Glow – swatches

Swatched out, the shades are as you would expect from a highlighter: soft, gentle and luminescent. There are no chunky particles or glitter in this powder – it’s smooth, blendable and creates a beautiful sheen.

On my face… well… it’s stunning. I’ve applied it to the tops of my cheekbones and it *really* illuminates the area!

Wearing Warm Glow - close up — Wearing Warm Glow – close up

Even closer up. You can see my pores, but that’s not something that’s ever bothered me. (Sidenote, why do people CARE so much about hiding their pores? Everyone has them!) I love the sheen of Warm Glow and how ethereal I feel when wearing it.

Final Thoughts

Too Faced‘s Candlelight Warm Glow is a freaking must have in my collection of highlighters now as I’ve been reaching for it every other day! While the shade is not especially unique (let’s be real, all highlighters are really quite similar), what is unique is that you get two shades in the single compact, giving you three separate colour options! Personally? I’ll be swirling my brush through both shades so I can get as much impact out of this beautiful product as I can! If you’re looking for a stunning highlighter, you really cannot go wrong with Warm Glow!

Too Faced Candlelight Warm Glow can be purchased on sephora.ca for $38 CAD or on sephora.com for $30 USD.

Giveaway!

I received two of the Too Faced Warm Glow powders and the brand consented to let me give away one of them to you guys!

Giveaway Rules

This giveaway is open internationally!
This giveaway starts on March 10, 2016 and runs for one week.
Please be aware that all entries will be double checked to ensure fairness.
One winner will win the Too Faced Candlelight Warm Glow Highlighting Powder Duo.
The winner will have 48 hours to respond to my e-mail. If they fail to respond within that time frame, I will pick another prize winner. (And so on.)
“Giveaway accounts” will not be considered for this prize. (If you want to know what I mean by that, please click here.)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The product featured in this post was sent to me for consideration.