NYX Baked Blush Review

Now that Spring is in the air everywhere else except in the Northeast I always look for ways to change my make up look to make it more Spring-y and less Winter-y. One way to do that is use a different blush. I usually like the darker colors for blush since I am more of a medium olive tone skin color. In the Winter, I like more of a matte finish to my blushes, I usually also go for colors that are more muted. These pair well with a nude lip or a bold dark lip. For Spring, I let it all out. I like to go lighter on my foundation so I usually go with a BB cream and then just concealer to make sure that my under eyes don't look like I haven't slept in years. I also like to add a blush that has a bit of a sheen to it. Something that isn't a highlighter but that has bit of a highlighting aspect to it. I wanted to get the +Too Faced Cosmetics Sweethearts Perfect Flush blush but it retails for about $30 and I thought that was a bit crazy for a blush. I 

Lately I've been trying a lot of different blushes and I heard that NYX was coming out with a Baked Blush. I saw this and jumped on it immediately. I love how these look on my face. When you swatch them on your finger, you immediately see that the color is sheer and has a bit of a highlighter feel to it. This is a blush that you need to really layer on so that you can see color but honestly I like that about this blush. I like that you don't have to be careful with it. I like how you really need to use your brush and apply a lot of layers. This gives you the freedom to have more of a loose hand and not worry about looking like a clown. They come in a lot of colors from pinks to bronzers and for drugstore blushes, I think these are one of the best ones out there.

They retail for about $6 each which is nothing compared to its +Sephora dupe from +Too Faced Cosmetics which is $30. I definitely recommend these more for the Spring and Summer seasons just because they look nice since they have highlighter built in already. Do you have a favorite blush? I'd love to hear about it! Definitely let me know!

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Tarte Cheek Stain Review

Blush!! OMG I started to fall in love with blush once I moved to NYC. Not sure why I didn't really use it before but I was usually always tanned when I lived in Puerto Rico so I didn't really see a need for blush. Now that I use it, I can't see a reason not to use it. You need shades for everything. It makes your face look so different. I have a go to color but mostly like to switch it up every day depending on my eye make up. During the winter months my skin becomes more dried out and I like to add moisture by using non powder blush, bronzer and foundation. I saw that Tarte redesigned their cult favorite cheek stain line. The packaging is so cute now and I love all the colors. I wanted to buy all of them but I just went ahead and got the Flush color since it was the original berry stain color. These cheek stains smell amazing. They have something like a berry smell to them. They are also made with the maracuja oil that Tarte is oh so famous for which gives you all those amazing anti-aging benefits. The reason why it smells so good is because it has the T5 Super fruit complex which is maracuja, acai berry, acerola, goji berry and pomegranate. These are all good to help with the brightening, firming, inflammatory, cell regeneration, smoothing elements. These come in amazing colors and you are definitely going to find something that works for you. 

I like to apply this sometimes under my BB cream so that it just gives my skin a "just pinched" look, this is if I am only going to use BB cream and forgo foundation that day. If I decide to wear foundation, I opt to use it after the foundation. I apply this directly onto my cheek or sometimes with a foundation brush or the beauty blender. I haven't found a way that I absolutely love yet. I do know that I love this product. Its light and natural looking. It gives you a sheer hint of color which I love in a blush. I usually set it with translucent powder and thats it. It has long wear and don't feel like I need to reapply. I wouldn't reapply my blush either way but I don't need to. These retail for $30 and you can get them in +Sephora or +ULTA Beauty  or +Amazon.com. I know $30 for blush is a lot of money but this blush will last you and this isn't a seasonal product. You can use it all year round. I think it would look better once I get a tan and just put this and forgo foundation and bb cream. I can't wait for summer! 

Hope you enjoy this and let me know your thoughts if you've tried this or if you have a favorite color!

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Smashbox The Master Class Palette 11 Review

Make up!! Yay I love reviewing make up! I had gotten this Smashbox Master Class Palette II a couple of months ago because I thought it was limited edition but I don't think it is. Or at least its still being sold in +sephora  and when I bought it, it had already been out for a while. So this palette is a mega palette. It has everything that you could need-- eyeshadows, eyeliners, blushes, bronzers, and highlighters. There are 28 eyeshadows, oh yes that is not a typo--28 eye shadows!!! There are a range from lights to dark and not only nude colors but all types of colors, blues, pinks, purples. The eye shadows are highly pigmented. They are definitely worth buying with just the eye shadows let a long the whole other part of the palette. These colors blend easily with each other. It comes with a plastic cover that groups the colors in groups of how well they blend together. You can use any colors you want together but if for some reason you aren't sure which colors would go well together, you can follow the plastic cover that easily groups them for you.

On the other side of the palette you have 4 eye liners which I don't really use because I guess I am still scared of gel/creamy eyeliners. I stick with powder and pencil liners. But these are good. I've swatched them and they have a gel consistency and swipe on easily. Below the liners are the blushes and bronzer. There are 5 blushes and 1 bronzer. The blushes are a range from the darker mauve color to lighter pink and with those colors that it comes with, you should have all the colors you need for blush for all four seasons. The bronzer is good on my skin tone for contouring. The colors are very pigmented but not clownish pigmented. They are easy to blend and the color is build-able. Now for my favorite part of the face palette portion is the highlighters. The highlighters are amazing! They are so pigmented and there is one that is a nude color and one that is more of a peachy color which I can't wait to use when I am tanned in the summer. All the colors are good for day and night. The palette is bulky so I wouldn't recommend it to put in your bag to go to work and reapply but for traveling, this is great. It retails for $59.50 and honestly for Smashbox 28 shadows alone that is an amazing price. This isn't a crappy brand, this is definitely a high end brand so $60 for 28 shadows, 4 liners, 5 blushers, 1 bronzer, and 2 highlighters is a steal! I definitely recommend this palette. You can find it in Sephora and Amazon. I just checked on Sephora.com and it does say limited edition so if you want it, I would pick it up fast but rest assured, its still available.

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Drugstore Finds Reviewed

I know you probably are all wondering why my blog is constantly about higher end products. Its not that I don't have drugstore make up. Its just I guess my newer products were higher end. So I figured I'd give you top 5 drugstore products. I guess I will start with the way I put the make up on:

1. Maybelline Baby Skin Instant Pore Eraser Primer-- this primer is amazing. It does exactly what it does. I have large pores and if you want your make up to apply smoothly, you need to have a great base and this primer is it. You only use a little bit of it and you smooth it over your skin. It makes your skin feel soft and smooth and instantly you can see your pores being blurred. The primer is clear and it does have a bit of a silicon feel to it but doesn't clog your pores. I would definitely recommend this primer for any one. It retails for $5.99 so its a great deal. 


2. Physicians Formula Youthful Wear Cosmeceutical Youth-Boosting Foundation + Brush, SPF 15-- This foundation has a great medium coverage. It has flawless coverage and is said to make your skin look 10 years younger. I guess I am not old enough to see those effects but it does make my skin look softer. It doesn't crease in the little wrinkles I do have. It evens out my skin tone and lasts a good 8 hrs. It doesn't help with my oily skin but with just a few touch ups of powder through out the day and its good to go. I like this foundation because of the coverage and the way it doesn't crease on my skin. The color selection isn't great so if you find one in your color, I would definitely recommend trying it. It also comes with a brush application which I do use but I have fallen in love with my Beauty Sponge so I use that on a daily basis since it smoothes everything on perfectly. It retails for $14.95 and for a foundation plus foundation brush that has SPF 15 its a steal.

3.Physicians Formula Powder Palette Multi-Colored Custom Blush Ultra Glam Bombshell Glow for Brunettes-- So Physicians Formula thought that brunettes and blondes needed different shades of blush and not depending on your skin tone. I was skeptical at first but after seeing reviews and pictures I was sold. I immediately went and bought it and I was very happy. It goes on in a light barbie pink which is nicer than it sounds. In the palette there are shades of bronzer and different shades of pink and highlighters. This blends very well with my medium skin tone. It retails for $11.99 and comes in a cute compact with a mirror and brush. I can't wait until I am tanned in the summer because I think this would go well with my tanned complexion. 

4. Covergirl LashBlast Clump Crusher Mascara-- I am a sucker for a great mascara. I have about a dozen of them and I have to say that I do rotate them enough to justify them. I have one for special occasions, I have different colors but one that I see myself going back to all the time is the LashBlast Clump Crusher. I have it in Very Black and Black Brown and they are great. They separate my lashes and just as the name says without clumps. I have long lashes so this does the trick. I use this one along with my voluming mascara because I feel I need a bit more volume but this mascara is definitely great. You can put as many 3 coats and you don't have to worry about your eye lashes getting all clumpy and spider-lash looking. This retails for $6.99 and for the way it makes your lashes look. Its a great buy probably better than some of those $20+ mascaras out there.


5. Yes To Inc Yes To Blueberries Cleansing Facial Towelettes-- I use these to take off my make up after a long day of work. These allow the cleanser that I use to penetrate into my skin. This are really soft and they are very moist with product. A lot of these towelettes lose moisture and these don't. They are said to have anti aging ingredients, I personally don't see anything but they do smell good so I love them. You get 25 in a pack and it retails for $5.99. Some may ask 'why don't you just use soap and water?' It just since I use a lot of make up, these help remove most of it before the soap goes on so that my skin is fully clean and hydrated when I am done washing my face!

Well these are my drugstore finds. They aren't in any particular order other than the way I would use them. I love a lot of other things from the drugstore so I would probably do more of these.

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Tarte be MATTEnificent Colored Clay Eye & Cheek Palette

Where do I start with this Tarte limited edition palette!! This called my name the second it came out. I was all over it because of the colors and at the moment I am on a Tarte kick so I was so excited when I walked into my local +sephora  and saw this palette in all its glory. I heard angels singing their glory when my eyes landed on the different shades of purple and pink, maroon and gold exterior. This is part of their Amazonian Clay so I guess it should look like a cave or something like that.

As the title explains, its a eye and cheek palette. It comes with 6 eyeshadows, 1 blush and 2 liners. It also has a double sided eye brush. So to start with the eyeshadows-- top left is a light cream color called "Sand out of the crowd(base)". This color is great as a base color or an inner corner color. Top middle color is "Peach for the stars (lid)" which is a tan light peach color. Top right color is "Two plums up (outer corner)" this color is a deep purple color, probably my favorite color out of the group. Down to the bottom half from left to right is "Pink outside the box (lid)", "Rose to the occasion (crease)", and "View form the taupe (crease)". The Pink color is the best one in my opinion hat looks amazing with the plum color. I am really into the dark and light contrast. The Rose color is a nice crease color to just give your eyes depth. The taupe color is my second go to color when I want to let the Pink one rest. Its a nice nude taupe.

These eyeshadows are all matte so there are no shimmers. I really thought this would be sort of an issue because I love a little bit of shimmer on the inner corner of my eyes but this palette is a great every day palette. The texture is buttery and creamy. They are all highly pigmented and last all day.

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The 2 colors on the bottom are "Dream in Chocolate" and "Don't Stand Black" are 2 liners which I use to tight line the upper eye lid and sometimes wing the outer corner out. The blush is called Elevated! 
O M G! This color is probably one of the best colors. This is the prettiest mute blush pink color that is like a milky mauve color. Its just too gorgeous. I would love to find this color on its own. Not sure if they have this color on its own, if they don't they should. Its gorgeous!

The brush is nice! I don't use this brush alone to achieve my look but its a nice compact staple to have in my collection. 

I hope you enjoyed this palette as much as I did. I don't think its available anymore unless at a local store. I would check either Ulta or Sephora or anywhere you can find Tarte Cosmetics. 

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Divergent Multi-Piece Collector's Kit

This limited edition makeup kit is a great value! You get 12 eyeshadow shades plus 3 transformer shades so a total of 15 eyeshadows!!! Plus 2 blushes, 1 bronzer, 1 highlighter, 4 lip glosses and 1 double sided brush! The eye shadows are amazing!  Great color pay off, pigmentation of all the shadows are amazing and all of them look completely different when they are wet! I usually wet the  transformer shade and apply it with a pencil brush to use as a liner or on the lower lash line. The colors are amazing, very different from what I've seen in the past and I have a lot of palettes. This one is definitely the mother of all palettes and its worth every penny! If you have the kit, I don't recommend buying the smaller one because some of the shades are the same but thats just my opinion. 

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Blushes are easily build-able and the highlighter is just perfect, not too glittery and not too matte. The highlighter is build-able as well. It has a golden sheen to it though which I'm used to seeing Opal but the gold is definitely pretty. 

The lip glosses are nice. The colors are gorgeous, nice and nude-tones since the eye colors are so intense its nice to go with a nice nude lip. They are not sticky but I would have to dip the wand in the bottle 2 or 3 times to get enough on the lips, at least for the lighter colors. 

All in all, I do recommend this palette to anyone, especially since its limited edition and its a great value at $59.50

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