Tarte Rainforest of the Sea radiance drops liquid highlighter review, swatches & TMO

Tarte's newly released extension of the Rainforest of the Sea line is their radiance drops liquid highlighter. My review of the Rainforest of the Sea foundation is here. I've been on a no buy (aspiring, in reality is a low buy / replacement only buy) but I have lots of unused Sephora points. I saw this as a 100 point perk and wanted to try it out!

If you're here for a TMO (talk me out of it!), just skim on down to the TMO header!

The Basics

• Dropper style packaging - see the pooling right under the dropper and the residue smeared onto my hand from my fingers to behind my rings? Don't travel with this and be careful with the bottom of the dropper when you pull it out of the bottle. 
• Super super runny liquid
• Only available in one shade, a clear liquid base with gold
• Pieces of shimmer not metallic sheen or natural pearl 
• You MUST shake this aggressively, the clear base will somewhat come out of suspension with the shimmer particles 
• $30 for 1 ounce / 30 mL

Swatches

See that swatch dripping down the sides of my hand? I had about .002 seconds to take a photo before it dripped off onto my vanity...

Based on the internet and the packaging, I was expecting a pearly beige shade, but surprise, it's GOLD! In indirect light it looks almost like a cooler yellow gold, but in direct sun the gold flecks are very brassy/warm. On my cool toned skin, it looks bizarre in direct sun.

Let's compare it to a few other highlights I have.

Is it a dupe? Urban Decay sin vs Stila kitten eyeshadow

I totally get why Stila Kitten and Urbay Decay Sin are popular eyeshadow shades - both are shimmery champagne nudes that light up the eye. What I don't get is why people online treat them like dupes. I have owned both for a long time and they serve totally different purposes in my collection.

Let's take a look at some swatches and the differences will make themselves clear.

Swatches - Urban Decay summer 2016 collection // afterglow highlighters, beached bronzer, & 24/7 pencils

Today I have quick swatches to share of the Urban Decay summer 2016 collection. These just came in to my local Ulta store, so I wanted to get swatches up fast. As you can tell by the photos, I decided to swatch before purchasing so I wouldn't be impulsive. FOMO is a real thing with limited edition / seasonal collections, so do your research first to consider if the item really is what you are looking for and if it will work with your skin.

Beached bronzer

Urban Decay's beached bronzer comes in 2 shades - sun kissed and bronzed. Both are matte and feel very silky smooth. The texture in the pan reminds me of the smooth texture of Benefit Hoola, but more silky than buttery. The powders feel harder pressed than Hoola but a looser texture than the Too Faced chocolate line. Sun kissed is more pink, lighter and less pigmented than Bronzed. Bronzed is darker and more yellow and reminds me of a less pigmented and dense Hoola. Both swatches below are several swipes with my finger to show the difference in color between the two.

I love the texture and compact of both bronzers, but I'm not planning to purchase because the tones aren't going to be flattering on my fair, cool-neutral toned skin.

Afterglow highlighter

The Urban Decay afterglow highlighter is in the same packaging as their afterglow blushes and comes in 3 shades - Sin, Fireball, and Aura. Of the three, Sin is the most metallic and Fireball is the least metallic. Each shade felt soft and creamy, and the texture felt on par with other highlighters in the same price bracket.

Free makeup birthday gifts 2016 - Sephora, Ulta, Urban Decay

We all love birthday gift freebies, so as someone with an early in the year birthday I wanted to share what I got! Sephora, Ulta, and Urban Decay all have rewards programs that offer birthday perks.

Sephora birthday gift 2016

Sephora offers two choices for your free 2016 birthday gift - a skincare set from Fresh or a makeup set from Marc Jacobs. Normally I choose the Sephora makeup set over the skincare, but this year's Marc Jacobs duo didn't interest me. I prefer thin eyeliner pencils over the thicker gel pencils to get a precise, thin line or to tightline and I prefer tinted lip balm or lip gloss to full on lipstick, so I went for the other option.

I was really excited to try Fresh minis of the rose face mask and soy face cleanser - I have loved everything I have tried from Fresh in the past, especially their lip treatments. I am pleased to report both of these are quite nice and don't irritate my sensitive skin. My favorite of the two is the rose face mask - it smells like real roses! Neither product is a game changer, but I enjoy using them.

I didn't love either one of last year's NARS pencils (Rikugien was fine but nothing special and Cruella was crazy drying on me), so 2016 is a step up.

Concealer comparison swatches - NARS Radiant Creamy / Urban Decay Naked Skin / Maybelline Instant Age Rewind

Today's post is a quick swatch comparison of the three under eye concealers I have in rotation right now. I have fair, dry skin with blue-purple dark circles, so I am always looking for a concealer that will be pigmented enough to cover discoloration, brightening enough to make me look awake, and not exaggerate dry skin or fine lines.

Urban Decay Radiant Creamy Concealer in Vanilla is my favorite of the three for all purpose use. Especially now that I'm nearing the end of my tube, the drier texture can look cakey on dry skin under my eyes. I find it has the best coverage of the three, especially for post acne pigmentation or blue - purple dark circles. The shade Vanilla is a hair too deep for my face and doesn't provide any brightening under the eyes - I wish they made a shade between Vanilla and Chantilly!

Urban Decay Naked Skin Concealer in Fair Neutral is the newest concealer to my collection. I kept seeing it in 2015 favorites videos on YouTube, so I wanted to give it a try and see if it lives up to the hype. Fair Neutral is quite a bit lighter than I thought it would be, but the next shade deeper is quite a bit deeper and more yellow. Even on my fair skin, Fair Neutral can give me a reverse panda effect if I am heavy handed. I absolutely love the thin texture - it blends into my skin beautifully and brightens well. It is pigmented compared to a standard concealer like Maybelline Fit Me, but it has less coverage than NARS RCC or Laura Mercier Secret Camouflage.

Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Concealer in Fair is in between textures of the NARS and Urban Decay. It feels a little more creamy than the Urban Decay, but is much more thin than the NARS. This is a great concealer if you are worried about dry skin texture and want a little bit of coverage and brightening. It isn't as high coverage as the NARS and it isn't as brightening as the Urban Decay, but it is a good compromising formula. I'm sure a different shade would be more brightening, but this is the lightest in the range as far as I know. This is my hands down favorite drugstore concealer - I haven't found anything with as nice of a texture around the same price.

5 natural shades of pink makeup for Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day! In the spirit of the holiday, I have 5 shades of pink makeup to share. Many people are hesitant about pink makeup - no one wants to look like they have pink eye and sometimes bright pink shades can look immature and juvenile on a grown ass adult. The shades I have chosen are each pretty pinks, but are wearable shades for real life.

As a Valentine's bonus, do your makeup with pink brushes! No one will know but you, but I think it's fun. I love the Real Techniques Multi Tasking brush for blush, bronzer, and powder and the Setting Brush for an all over eyelid wash of color and highlight.

Urban Decay neutral eyeshadow singles: Sin, Half Baked, Suspect, and Freelove

Today's post is a showcase of my neutral shimmery Urban Decay eyeshadow singles. Singles aren't a great value compared to a palette, but I love the simplicity of having the the exact shade you want without the bulk of a palette or the waste of owning a bunch of shades you won't use. If you are an Ulta Platinum member, they occasionally run a 50% off Urban Decay eyshadow single sale, which is a great price if you are patient enough to wait for a sale.

These singles are .05 oz (1.5 grams) and retail for $19. Like everything on this blog, I bought all of these myself.

I decided to take a different approach with the swatches - Urban Decay shimmer eyeshadows get a bad rap for being fallout prone, loudly metallic, and generally inappropriate for work or school. Certainly some of the micro glitter shades have fallout and the brighter shades aren't corporate friendly, but the smooth shimmery metallic neutral shades are more wearable than you might think.

Seeing as you can find pigmented, opaque swatches of these shades all over the internet, I'm showing these as I wear them most - soft and subtle. For a work or school friendly eye look, I lay down a matte base that matches my skintone (Urban Decay Walk of Shame is a great option), define the crease with a matte cool toned brown (Urban Decay Naked2 rocks), sweep a sheer layer of a shimmery shade all over the lid, and gently pat a lighter shimmery shade on the inner corner. Most of the time I use my fingers for the shimmery shades out of laziness, but brushes also work well. Voila - corporate friendly AND shiny at the same time!

Matte beige eyeshadow mega comparison - Urban Decay Walk of Shame dupes

I have been looking for a dupe of my beloved Urban Decay Walk of Shame eyeshadow for a long, long time. Today I have for you a mega comparison of all of the similar eyeshadow shades in my collection. This post compares Too Faced Fresh Linen, Too Faced All I Want for Christmas (LE), Urban Decay Foxy, Urban Decay Walk of Shame, Wet N Wild Brulee, Stila Wind, Inglot 353 M, Smashbox Vanilla, and Bare Minerals Ahhh.

What I like about WOS

Walk of Shame (WOS) is my perfect all over base lid shade. WOS is a pink toned light vanilla beige that is the perfect match for my skintone. The texture is smooth and silky, forgiving on dry eyelids, and is pigmented. If you want to see more a more detailed description of the formula of WOS, check out my comparison to Wet N Wild Brulee and my review of Urban Decay Naked Basics.

My most used eyeshadow palette - Urban Decay Naked Basics

I love seeing reviews and photos of well used and loved makeup products, and today I wanted to share my most used eyeshadow palette ever - Urban Decay's original Naked Basics. The pictures show the proof of use and my most used shades, so let's get started!

On a boring note, Urban Decay Naked Basics retails for $29 for 6 full size (.05 oz) shades. I bought this myself at Ulta a long time ago on the suggestion of my husband. I had overlooked it many times in the display, but luckily it jumped out at him! (A recommendation to other makeup addicts: shopping with non addicts can lead you to see products you might not otherwise)

An open letter to Urban Decay: please release a single of Walk of Shame (WOS) eyeshadow

Dear Urban Decay intern who might hopefully find this,

I adore my Urban Decay Naked Basics palette and I have hit some serious pan on my beloved Walk of Shame eyeshadow. WOS is easily my most used shade in the palette - I use it as an all over eyelid base shade to neutralize my lids and make blending easier. WOS is the perfect beige for my skintone and the formula is absolutely dreamy.

Like many makeup addicts that have come before me, I checked your website to see if you sell WOS in a single pan and was disapointed. What really twisted the knife though was seeing that you used to sell a Walk of Shame single when you first released the 6 pan customizable palettes.

So, I'm begging you UD, please sell the WOS single again!



Let's be honest, this can benefit both of us. I can buy the eyeshadow I love and will happily pay the price - $18 for .05 oz ($360/ounce!). You can get me to pay that price, which is more per ounce than in the palette - $29 for 6 .05 oz shades ($96/ounce). Me = happy, you = killer profit margins!



So whaddaya say Urban Decay? Will you please just take my money?

xoxo - AM

Summer makeup inspiration: 5 picks to try

I love the stock summer makeup trends - natural skin, glowy, healthy finishes, and warm bronzes, peach, and pink. Lately, I have  been head over heels for this picture and used it as inspiration for a look I did at a friend's wedding. The photo is from a blog I love by Cole Townsend called New Old Stock - he curates copyright free vintage photographs. This photo is called Fringed Poppy and was taken in 1930.

My 5 picks to try for summer: 

1. Urban Decay Freelove eyeshadow single - a beautiful peachy pink shimmer that works well as a sheer wash or a more dramatic eye

2. Becca Shimmering Skin Perfector liquid in Opal - a believable golden pink glow that looks healthy and natural

3. NARS Laguna bronzer - Laguna is a cult classic staple for a reason. I love the subtle golden pearl throughout both on my eyelids and cheekbones.

4. Clinique Lash Doubling mascara - The natural bristle triangle shaped wand manages both volume and separation, while really delivering on accentuating the length of my lashes

5. Individual Flare False Lashes - I have been loving individual flare falsies lately because they add fluttery drama to my natural eye lashes without the necessity to use lots of eyeliner to cover the lash band from a traditional strip. I place 3 to 4 flares on each eye, focusing on the outer half of the lid. My favorites right now are the knot free Ardell Duralash Natural Flares in Medium Black paired with the Duo Brush On Striplash Adhesive. 

Current eye favorites

I wanted to quickly share my current favorite eye products. I have been using these items on a day to day basis and would absolutely recommend any and all of them! I feel like I get so caught up in researching, buying, trying, and reviewing new products that I can overlook old favorites.

• Clinique Lash Doubling Mascara - lengthening and a little volumizing, lasts all day
• Anastasia Beverly Hills Clear Brow Gel - holds my brows in place with no fuss
• Laura Mercier Caviar Stick Eye Color in Sandglow - pretty bronze pearl 
• Urban Decay Original Eyeshadow Primer Potion - my current favorite eye primer
• Anastasia Beverly Hills Dipbrow Pomade in Medium Brown - has started drying out, but still looks great in my brows
• Urban Decay Naked Basics Palette - an old, much loved favorite

I hope this inspires you give more love to some older favorites in your collection! 

Urban Decay Perversion Mascara - review & lash demo

I adore trying new mascaras, especially free samples that come with online orders. I got a sample of Urban Decay's new Perversion mascara from Sephora awhile back and I have used it for almost three months. Perversion mascara is an extension of Urban Decay's Perversion line that contains pencil, liquid, and gel eyeliner. Apparently Urban Decay needed a break from milking all possible dollars from their Naked line, so they picked another faux scandalous product name to milk. True to the original Perversion eyeliner pencil, this mascara only comes in one shade - advertised as a true dark black.

Perversion mascara retails for $22 for 12ml / .4oz of product. An Urban Decay Perversion mini mascara is also Ulta's free birthday gift for July, August, and September 2015, so if you have a summer birthday you are in luck!

Spotted at Ulta: new releases & first impressions

I love browsing beauty counters and stores just to see what's new. I went to Ulta a few days ago and saw quite a few new spring releases, particularly palettes. I couldn't resist taking some pictures on my phone to show you - a few of these surprised me and a few slipped right through my radar. Unedited phone quality pictures and impulsive first impressions ahead!

How to fix makeup brushes ruined by Makeup Forever Aqua Seal or waterproof mixing mediums

A common complaint I hear about Makeup Forever Aqua Seal and waterproof mixing mediums or sealants is that it ruins makeup brushes by making them hard. MUFE Aqua Seal is a clear liquid sealant that is a waterproof mixing medium. I use it to make eyeliner to tightline that lasts all day - one drop of Aqua Seal on an eyeshadow or cake eyeliner creates enough paste to do both eyes.

The downside to Aqua Seal and similar mixing mediums is that it creates a patina, both on the product you use it on and on the brush itself. You can easily isolate the problem on a product (as shown demonstrated in my Naked Basics Crave), by only using it on a little bit of the pan, but the makeup brushes pose a larger problem.

A hardened brush can be easily remedied with a little olive oil. I soak the end of a small angled brush in a 1/4 tsp of olive oil for about 5 minutes while I am washing my other brushes. After a few minutes, I massage the oil into the bristles of the brush to soften them up and dissolve the remaining Aqua Seal. Once the bristles are softened, you can wash the brush as usual. I really like diluted Dr. Bronner's lavender liquid soap because it breaks up product really well.

Once you learn how to clean makeup brushes hardened by Aqua Seal or mixing mediums, the product is pleasure to use and I highly recommend it. Let me know how you fix this issue in the comments!

September Makeup Favorites

This month, I have been loving a natural look with defined brows, bold (er) blush, and lots of mascara. I've been hanging on to summer and skipping eyeliner most days and keeping it easy with a minimal matte nude eye.

I wanted to round up what I have been reaching for most this month and share! Not every category of product is included here - I wanted to show you what I have been truly loving this month, day in & day out.

Is it a dupe? NYX Butter Lipstick in Pops vs. Urban Decay Revolution Lipstick in Rush

My most worn lipsticks are my lips but better (MLBB) shades because they even out my lips while adding natural color. I love mid tone rosy pinks with a hint of mauve- anyone else buy the same color again and again? When I added NYX's Butter Lipstick in Pops to my collection, I realized it was similar to my beloved Urban Decay Revolution lipstick in Rush.

Urban Decay Freelove Single Eyeshadow review & swatches

Urban Decay's eyeshadow single in Freelove is the perfect warm peachy coral. I get lots of wear with this in the spring and summer when I want a peachy pink pop. Urban Decay singles retail for $18 for 1.5 grams / .05 ounces of product, which comes out to $360 per ounce.

Built up, freelove looks more pink, but sheered out the shade looks more orange. Freelove has an understated shimmery finish that contains light and dimension without glittery fallout or a metallic finish. I find freelove to be surprisingly versatile because it looks so different worn sheerly than worn at full opacity. You wouldn't know it by looking at the pan, but a light wash of freelove on the lid looks fresh and natural with a satin finish. I wear matte eyeshadows about 80% of the time, but this sheers out to a satin finish that looks subdued and not too shiny. Built up, you can easily achieve a brighter more shimmery look that really pops. I adore this formula - easy to blend and a smooth texture.

Is it a dupe? Urban Decay Walk of Shame (WOS) vs. Wet N Wild Brulee

Battle of the beige! As a self professed nude matte eyeshadow junkie, when I saw an online reference to Wet N Wild's single eyeshadow in Brulee duping Urban Decay's Walk of Shame (WOS) in the Naked Basics palette, I had to investigate.

Warning: this is a long one with lots of pictures! Get some popcorn :)