Hello Makeup Geeks! Today I have another review for you all of a drug store product that I love. I featured these in my “Summer Tag” video as well so please feel free to take at that. I love these so much I wanted to do a full review of them for you. These are the “Revlon Lip Balm Stains”. I am usually not a fan of regular lip-stains simply because all the ones I have tried feel drying on the lips. Revlon Balm Stains are different in that they apply with a glossy look and feel, but when you wipe them away or they fade over time you are left with a beautiful soft, stained effect to the lips. These last a very long time and are very highly pigmented.

What I like about these is that it is a balm that has been infused with color that comes in a crayon form and are retractable so they need no sharpening. These retail for about $6.00 depending on where you purchase them at. Many drugstores will have sales so keep an eye out for those! I got these at Ulta who was having a sale also. I want to share with you the colors I got.

• “Rendezvous” – Soft Orange Color
• “Cherish” – Girly Pale Pink
• “Darling” – Cool Toned Pink with a Hint of Lilac
• “Lovesick” – True Bright Pink
• “Sweetheart” – Medium Warm Pink

The other shades that are in this line are:

• “Honey” – Rosy/Natural Color
• “Crush” – Deep Berry Red
• “Smitten” – Plum with a Touch of Fuchsia
• “Charm” - Light Warm Nude/Peach
• “Romantic” – Warm Red with a Touch of Orange
• “Precious” – Nude/Natural
• “Adore” – Brown Toned Red

These retail at most drugstores, Target, Ulta, Amazon and eBay for around $6.00 – $8.99 depending on where you purchase them. Be sure and look for BOGO sales.

These are like a lipgloss but not sticky in any way. They are very sheer, shiny and still have a good amount of pigmentation. Ideal for the summer, these would be perfect to toss in your beach bag and take along with you for an added pop of color. The only thing I don’t like about these is that you really do have to rub them on because they are a buildable color. So you really have layer the color by putting a little extra on. What I love is that they aren’t tacky in any way like many lipglosses and have great color payoff.

ADVANTAGES

• Highly pigmented
• Feels Smooth without being sticky
• Leaves a soft stain on the lip
• Last a long time
• Buildable color
• Great for summer
• Nice color range (12 to be exact)
• Good price
• Easy to find

DISADVATAGES

• You do have to build the color

So these are a definite 2 thumbs up from me on these amazing Lip Balm Stains! These will be great for the upcoming hot summer months. If you have tried these or if you plan on trying these, let me know what you think of them in the comments below. Stay happy and healthy!

XOXO,

Marlena

Hello my wonderful Makeup Geeks! Today I have a review for you of the NARS Satin Lip Pencils. I am not usually a huge fan of lip pencils just because they can be drying, but I really like these. The come in typical crayon fashion, are available in 13 shades and are really good. The one I am wearing now is “Yu”.

These are on the higher-end price wise which is typical for NARS as it is a high-end cosmetics company. These sell for $25.00 and contain .07 ounces of product. I do love that these are very moisturizing and even after they start to come off and have worn for a while they appear as a lip stain and not just a regular lipstick or pencil. The great thing about this is if you want to wear one of the brighter shades, but you are leery of bolder shades, you can simply apply the lip pencil and blot your lips for a more muted stained effect. These are very creamy and glide on smoothly and are very highly pigmented. I was actually very surprised at how much I liked them. The only downside was the price.

As for the packaging, I have never really like the “crayon” type lip pencils simply because I feel like a kid drawing on my face, but that’s my personal preference. The one complaint I do have about the packaging is with the lids. They are easy to remove, but unfortunately the lid doesn’t want to stay on very well. Because of this I have had the lid fall off a couple of mine and it messed up the lip color. For the price the lids should be better quality and remain on.

NARS Satin Lip Pencils

• Floralies – Light Apricot (Amazon) (Sephora) (NARS)
• Biscayne Park – Pink Guava (Amazon) (Sephora) (NARS)
• Lodhi – Vibrant Coral (Amazon) (Sephora) (NARS)
• Palais Royal – Sangria (Amazon) (Sephora) (NARS)
• Majella – Garnet (Amazon) (Sephora) (NARS)
• Luxembourg – Vivid Watermelon (Amazon) (Sephora) (NARS)
• Yu – Shocking Pink (Amazon) (Sephora) (NARS)
• Isola Bella – Peach Beige (Amazon) (Sephora) (NARS)
• Rikugien – Rose Pink (Amazon) (Sephora) (NARS)
• Het Loo – Cognac (Amazon) (Sephora) (NARS)
• Golshan – Spiced Wine (Amazon) (Sephora) (NARS)
• Hyde Park – Cardinal Red (Amazon) (Sephora) (NARS)
• Jardin de Plante – Fuchsia (NARS)

Advantages

• Non Drying
• Creamy
• Moisturizing
• Give a Nice Stained Effect
• Very Highly Pigmented

DISADVANTAGES

• Price
• Packaging

So let me know what you all think of these new lip pencils if you already have them or if you buy a few for yourself. And I hope each and everyone of you are staying happy and healthy!

XOXO,

Marlena

OK Makeup Geeks, I have a super fun video of some hot new products that I really wanted to share with you. I recently went to Sephora and got some new goodies and I wanted to show them to you and let you know what I think of them and if they are worth trying.

Cover FX Natural Finish Oil Free Foundation

I have been wearing this for over a week now and I can’t tell you how much I love this foundation. This foundation is paraben free, mineral oil free and talc free. This is great for me because my skin breaks out easily. This comes in a convenient squeeze tube and retails for $40.00 for 1 ounce of product. I wear the color G40. This will last a while though as a little goes a long way. The feeling is very silicon like and it feels amazing on the skin as it doesn’t cake up or feel heavy. This comes in a wide range of colors (24 to be exact). The water-resistant formula has Vitamins C and E which soothe inflammation and reduce redness.

Price: $40.00

Where To Buy:  Amazon, eBay, Sephora

Cover FX Cream Concealer

This concealer comes in a squeeze tube and is easy to access. Mine is the color medium/deep simply because I need something darker for under my eyes to cover the dark circles. This has the ideal silky consistency for under the eyes. It glides on smoothly and evenly and doesn’t get cakey like many under eye concealers do. You get 0.33 ounces for $27.00 which will last a while as a little goes a long way. This also does not contain gluten, mineral oil or talc. This comes in 12 shades so you are sure to find one that works for you.

Price: $27.00

Where to Buy:  Amazon, eBay, Sephora

Cover FX Blotting Powder

I really wanted to check out this brand since are really trying hard not to use bad ingredients. This is their powder in the color Light, which I got for use under my eyes to brighten up the area. It also is available in medium and deep. The formula is very smooth and silky and doesn’t feel heavy at all. I love the sleek compact as it’s convenient for putting in your purse and taking it with you for touch-ups wherever you go. You get 0.4 ounces of mineral, paraben and talc free product which is great for the skin.

Price: $24.00

Where to Buy: Amazon, Sephora

Korres Quercetin & Oak Antiageing & Antiwrinkle Concealer

This is a lot like the Cover FX concealer, this is the color tan which great for under my eyes. This has a gel like consistency and doesn’t cake up, crease or get into the fine lines under my eyes which can make you look older. This aids and protects the skin around the eye and contains the natural antioxidants, Quercetin & Oak, which aids in minimizing the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. This comes in four shades; fair, light, medium beige and medium tan.

Price: $22.00

Where to Buy:  Amazon, eBay, Sephora

Kat Von D Everlasting Blushes

These blushes are perfection! What I love about them is they are completely talc free but they are so smooth. I am very impressed by these. I love the packaging on these. They have a sleek black design with textured flowers on the front, perfect for a blush compact. I do feel like there could have been a wider range of colors but for the ones she did have they were really nice.

• Shady Business 1 – Pearlized brown with a slight gold shimmer. This will be great for light to medium skin, if you have darker skin you might be able to use this as a highlight. They also make a #2 which is better for darker skintones. This is a nice tan color that isn’t to orange and won’t make you look like an Oompa-Loompa.
• Truth – A natural flush pink shade with a matte finish. Very creamy and smooth.
• Wish – Nude peach with a subtle shimmer to it. This is ideal for light to medium skin; you dark skin girls can use this as a beautiful highlight. I got it because I am trying to incorporate more peach colors for the spring and summer.
• Essex – This is a cool rose shade that will look best or medium skin tones.

Price: $25.00

Where to Buy: Amazon, eBay, Sephora

Illamasqua Gleam Cream

This lightweight cream adds lifts and adds highlights to wherever you apply it. This has a creamy consistency that is perfect since my skin can be dry sometimes; this gives a dewy finish to the skin. It’s very smooth and non-greasy and non-glittery, which I love.

• Aurora – This has a golden under-base which won’t make me look pink at all it will just add a nice warm glow to the skin. Perfect for the summer.

Price: $26.00

Where to Buy:  Sephora

Tarte Glamazon Pure Performance 12 Hour Lipstick

These are pricey but I absolutely love these! I love the packaging with the bamboo at the bottom and the colored designed top; it’s amazing. These have amazing pigmentation and glide on smoothly for a stunning finish. These are long-lasting, creamy and don’t feel drying on the lips.

• Foxy – A true deep pink, fuchsia shade. This is great for all skintones but you darker skinned girls will look absolutely stunning in this color.
• Playful – This is a cool tones purple/rose shade that will look great on everyone.
• Whimsy – A bright medium cool pink color that will look amazing on every skin color. This is a fun, girly color to have for the summer.
• Fierce – This red has orange undertones that will look best on medium to dark skintones. I prefer cool toned reds for fair skin.
• Wild – This is a cool red that is almost a berry color. This color will look great on every skintone whether it’s light, medium or dark.

Price: $26.00

Where to Buy: Amazon, eBay, Sephora

Nars Lipstick in Scarlett Empress

This is a stunning plum shade that will be perfect for the fall months. This would be ideal on those days when you want to do minimal eye makeup and have stunning plum colored lipst to play up. This color will work for every skintone.

Price: $26.00

Where to Buy: Amazon, eBay, Sephora

Bare Escentuals in Swinger

This is a vivid magenta/purple shade with a satin finish.

Price: $21.00

Where to Buy: Amazon, Sephora

And that’s it for my Sephora haul. I hope you found something in here you are going to try and if you do leave me a comment and let me know what you think of it.

XOXO,

Marlena

OK Makeup Geeks, today I have a review for you of one of my most favorite brands out there…TARTE! You all know I love their blushes and I am really liking their lipsticks right now as well. This was sent to me but I do honest reviews regardless of that. Tarte has come out with a new collection named “Aqualillies” and it’s so cute. The one thing I am really loving about this collection is the packaging. They are really playing up to the must have colors of spring, mint and coral/peach.

All the products come in this handy makeup bag which is great for putting in your purse or at your desk at work for quick touch-ups.

Palette

I love the packaging on this and the touch of gold. This has 8 eyeshadows and a matte finish peach blush in the middle that can also be used as a eyeshadow. As always with Tarte, these are great quality like many of Tarte’s powdered products. They are very smoothly and highly pigmented. The only downside to this palette was the two tan colors look identical. So I definitely feel there could have been a little more variety to the palette by adding a shimmery peach or a dark teal color. The price on this palette is $38.00 which isn’t  bad at all for all you get. I just wish there were more variety.

Price: $38.00

Tarte’s Light’s, Camera, Flashes Mascara

I like the wand on this, it is small but it gets into the lashes and makes them look super big. This mascara is formulated without parabens, mineral oil, petrolatum, phthalates, sodium lauryl sulfate & synthetic fragrance which makes it better to use around the eyes. The packaging is great and it doesn’t smudge or flake.

Price: $19.00

Where to Buy: Amazon, eBay, Sephora

Tarte Lipstick in Timeless

I am actually wearing this color right now and it’s a very pretty deep coral color. This will look great on every skin tone from fair to dark skin. These are very highly pigmented, creamy and very smooth. They wear a long time and aren’t dry, they are actually quite moisturizing. I am very impressed with Tarte’s lipsticks. These are really good even though they are on the more expensive side, they are worth it.

Gel Liners

These gel liners are smudge proof, highly pigmented and water resistant which makes them ideal to use in the waterlines. This collection has a black one and a shimmery teal color that is stunning. The teal shade would look beautiful as a base for an eyeshadow. The eyeliners also come with a  brush that is dual ended. It has a bent liner end and a regular straight brush on the other end. (NOTE: only the black liner is available as of now as it is part of their normal line)

Price: $26.00

Where to Buy: Amazon, Sephora

Amazonian Clay Finishing Powder

This is very similar to the Makeup Forever HD Powder. The only thing I don’t like about these types of powder is the white color. It does turn transparent on the skin but if you have dark skin this can actually make you look ashen. It is very smooth and doesn’t cake up and gives a nice matte finish to the skin.

Price: $29.00

Lipglosses

OK, I could not get these to work. These come in a tube that you “click” to get the product out of the brush end. I am not a huge fan of these types of applicators as it just seems rather cheap to me. The formula on these is sticky and doesn’t hold up as well in quality and packaging compared to their other products.

GIVEAWAY RULES

THIS IS A INSTAGRAM GIVEAWAY!!!!! You must be subscribed to makeupgeektv on instagram. We will post a picture of Tarte items that will be included in the giveaway. Leave a comment letting us know what you would use the tote bag for and you are entered. The contest will remain open for two weeks and a winner will be chosen at random. Easy to enter, easy to win! GOOD LUCK!!!!!!!!!

It’s review time and today’s review is for the highly anticipated release by Too Faced of their La Creme Color Drenched Lip Creams. I recently got these lipsticks and they are amazing to say the least! These remarkable lipsticks are Too Faced answer to the popular lipbutters. Too Faced exceeded everyone’s expectations when it came to these lipsticks by combining the best of lipbutters with the rich pigmentation of their lipsticks with the added shine of a lipgloss.

These lipsticks are very smooth, creamy and very hydrating. Unlike some other lipsticks that feel dry after a while these retain their creamy texture all day. With a stunning array of shades to choose from, 16 to be exact, there is a perfect color for everyone. All of these have a very creamy, slightly glossy finish to them. The only thing I am not a huge fan of is the packaging, I really don’t care for the gold tube. Other than that I have absolutely no complaints. I do love how they have the Too Faced name embossed on the side of the container which gives a sleek and classic look.

The sixteen shades are as follows:

1. Naughty Nude

2. Naked Dolly

3. Nude Beach

4. In the Buff

5. Spice Spice Baby

6. Cinnamon Kiss

7. Honey Bear

8. Sweet Maple

9. Marshmallow Bunny

10. Razzle Dazzle Rose

11. Juicy Melons

12. Fuschia Shock

13. I Want Candy

14. Coral Fire

15. Stiletto Red

15. Fine Wine

These retail at Sephora, Ulta, Amazon, EBay, and www.toofaced.com at $21.00 USD for .11 ounce.

To compliment this collection they also came out with a series of 4 lipliners that can be used with the lipsticks. They have a nude, rose, red and pink so you can use them with any of the coordinating shades of lipstick. The one thing I like about the packaging on the liners is they have a rubber grip so they are easy to hold and maintain control over. These are retractable so there is no sharpening with these and just like the lipsticks they are creamy, smooth and very moisturizing. They have the same high pigmentation and glide on smoothly and evenly.  For me I like my lipliners to be a tad bit drier so they last longer and don’t wear off quite as easily. These sell for $17.00 USD also at Sephora, Ulta, Amazon, EBay and at www.toofaced.com

Hello Beautiful Makeup Geeks!

I had SUCH a great time at IMATS this year meeting so many of you!  Thanks to each of you who came by to say hello and give a big hug  You were such sweethearts, and I really wish I could have spent more one on one time with each of you.

I wanted to share my haul video with you showing what I picked up at the show.  There were some great new products that I can’t wait to use in some videos!

Hakuhodo and Bdellium Brushes

These brushes are amazing!  The quality of the Hakuhodo ones are incredible, but super expensive.  I wouldn’t recommend getting a ton of these, but for a splurge, they are really nice.  The bdellium ones are nice too (very soft) and are super affordable!  My favorite is the #945 which is a dupe for the MAC 109 that I use in so many videos.  The #768 is nice also- is similar to the Makeup Geek Outer V brush but a little bigger and stiffer.

Pricing for the Hakuhodo brushes is between $40-110 and the Bdellium is between $5-30.

Where to Buy:    Hakuhodo  .  eBay

Where to Buy:   Bdellium  .  Amazon .  eBay

Sugar Pill Heart Breaker Palette

This palette is so vibrant and fun!  I love these colors together, and the pigmentation is amazing.  I definitely plan on doing a look with this palette soon as it’s so pretty.  The colors are all matte except the pale aqua, which has a slight shimmer.  The compact has a mirror inside for makeup on the go.  LOVE the packaging as well.

Where to Buy:  Makeup Geek Store

Naked Cosmetics Pigments

These pigments are super finely milled and come in such beautiful colors!  I favorite collections were the  ”Naturally Nude” and the “Shock Effect”.   Although these are pigmented and easy to apply, I wish the price wasn’t so steep (is $60 for pack of 6).  The packaging is inconvenient also, but I do love the product inside.

Where to Buy:   Naked Cosmetics  

Beauty So Clean Sanitizer

This sanitizing spray is perfect for makeup artists looking to clean their eyeshadows and blushes without scraping them and wasting product.  To use this, you simply mist your makeup and let dry.  It isn’t supposed to dry them out or make them too wet to re-use.  (I haven’t tried yet, but will do a full review a bit later on it)

Where to Buy:  Beauty So Clean  .  Amazon  .  eBay

Ardell False Lashes

I’ve been using Ardell lashes for years as they are much easier to apply than other brands, are inexpensive, and look more natural because of the invisible base.  The new “double lash” ones are really fun looking as they flare out on the ends for added drama.  Can’t wait to use these babies in some dramatic looks!  ;)   The price ranges from $3.50-8.00 depending on the style you buy.

Where to Buy:   Amazon  .  Makeup Geek Store   .  eBay

Eye Kandy Glitter Kit

Everyone at IMATS was sporting these super fun and girly glitters!  You could tell who stopped by the Eye Kandy booth as their eyes were gleaming with glittery liner  I love these glitters as they come in so many colors and really are easy to apply!  Pictured here is the kit with 3 glitters, brush, and liquid sugar adhesive.  I’ll do a video soon using these as they’re lots of fun

Where to Buy:  Eye Kandy  .  eBay

Ciate Caviar Manicure Kit

This manicure kit looks so unique and fun!  It’s pretty much beaded nails that you can do at home.  I picked this up at Sephora as I wanted to try something new with my nails.  I’ll do a post later showing the final result, but so far it looks really fun!

The price for this was $25 and you can get it at Sephora, Amazon, and eBay.

Don’t forget to look for us at the IMATS 2013 in January!  I would love to meet you all and gain your support for Makeup Geek.  Without you, I wouldn’t be doing what I love, so thank you from the bottom of my heart for your support throughout the years. I really do appreciate it!

OH, and check out my post I did on my personal blog:   Simply Marlena

xoxo,
Marlena

I love all the Makeup Geek lippies! The colors are so wearable, there’s a lipstick for every look.

Here’s some swatches on lips to help you decide what colors you absolutely NEED to get

* Lavish, Innocent, and Elegant are not yet swatched, I’ll be adding them once I get them!

Illamasqua is releasing their new summer collection called Naked Strangers. I was lucky enough to get some pieces of the collection to review and swatch!

Nail Varnish Faithful:

Intense Lipgloss Stranger:

Another of my favourite products from Illamasqua are the intense lipglosses. They really are INTENSE. And this one is beyond words, I love it! It’s liquid light gold, it’s really opaque, lasting, and beautiful.

 

Powder Blusher Naked Rose:

And because it’s becoming a habit for me to always remake Illamasqua promolooks, here’s my take with the Naked Strangers look:

Secret Kisses is a company offering “35 exclusive lipstick colors”, “10 exclusive shades of lip gems” and “8 exclusive flavored lip candy glosses”.

Personally I found their website a bit annoying, since there is absolutely nothing describing the products, except the names.
I received 6 of their lipsticks, 3 lip gems and one lip candy (review of the glosses and lip candy coming later) to review :

Here’s my thoughts and swatches of the lipsticks:

SUNSHINE:

You are my sunshine, my only sunshine..

Well, unfortunately this isn’t my sunshine :/ Texture is a bit runny (but kinda dry at the same time) and it isn’t opaque enough to cover my lips.
I kinda like the color though, it’s kinda pale yellow.

• Rating:  3 out 5
• Product: 3 out of 5
• Quality: 2 out of 5
• Price:  2 out of 5
• Would I buy again? No, I don’t think so.

ROSE GOLD:

Nude pink.

This one has the best texture. It’s opaque, it’s easy to apply, the color is nice.
My only problem is that I think you can find a cheaper dupe for this color.

• Rating:  4 out 5
• Product: 4 out of 5
• Quality: 4 out of 5
• Price:  3 out of 5
• Would I buy again? Maybe

ROCKSTAR:

I love purple. I know I have mentioned it before, but I say it again. I love purple.
And I love this lipstick!

This isn’t the most opaque, but a few coats give you a nice result. Also, the texture seems to be a bit runny, but I forgive it because I love this color so much.
It’s really screaming purple <3

• Rating:  4 out 5
• Product: 4 out of 5
• Quality: 3 out of 5
• Price:  4 out of 5
• Would I buy again? Yes.

KISS IT:

Hot pink warning!
I think this is one of the easily dupable colors, at least I’ve seen many hot pink lipsticks that have this same kinda blue metallic sheer in them.
This applies easily, looks nice, BUT it stains my lips.

• Rating:  3 out 5
• Product: 3 out of 5
• Quality: 3 out of 5
• Price:  2 out of 5
• Would I buy again? No, I don’t think so.

ELECTRICITY:

Whii, blue lipstick!

Certainly not the most wearable color out in public, but I like these, they’re fun to use in crazy looks or photoshoots.
This is quite opaque, slightly metallic bright blue.  What’s interesting is that this one didn’t stain my lips unlike many other blue lipcolors I’ve tried.

I have tried some blue lipsticks and the best is still OCC’s RX, this one may get to second or third place.

• Rating:  4 out 5
• Product: 4 out of 5
• Quality: 4 out of 5
• Price:  3 out of 5
• Would I buy again? Maybe.

18 KARAT:

Looks nice in the tube, but I’m sorry to say that this was the worst of the bunch.

This is almost exactly the same stuff I had when I was a child, I had these superhyper cheap glitter lipsticks that scraped the lips, left glitter everywhere and broke easily.
This may not be as dry as the ones from my childhood, it actually has some clear lipstick (is there a such thing as clear lipstick? )  so it doesn’t feel all awful, but still.

Secret Kisses advises to rub it on a paper towel before using it the first time, but it didn’t help for me. They also advise to try it with mixed some other lipstick, but to tell you the truth, I didn’t manage to do it.  Either the glitter wiped the colored lipstick away, or the glitter didn’t show at all.

• Rating:  2 out 5
• Product: 2 out of 5
• Quality: 2 out of 5
• Price:  1 out of 5
• Would I buy again? No.

Overall opinion:

There’s quite a large range of quality within the products. There are lipsticks I would buy and tell my friends to buy, and there are lipsticks I wouldn’t recommend for anyone.  They are also a bit pricey, in my opinion.
A positive side is that they really have large range of colors.  And the tubes are nice, since you can see the color straight away.

Secret Kisses lipstick might be for you if:

• If you’re looking for bold shades
• If you’re  willing to spend some money
• If you’re willing to take risk

Price:   $14.99 

Where to Buy:
http://secretkisseslipstick.com/ 

In my quest of hydrating my parched and chapped winter lips, I found this tinted lip treatment that actually keeps my lips super soft!  I used to use my beloved Bourjois Night Lip Balm, but since they quit selling in the US (boo!), I had to find an alternate product.

Now I admit this little tube is not cheap, but it’s been the only thing keeping my lips from feeling like sandpiper every night.  They come in 5 different colors for just a slight tint on the lips.  The one I bought was “Plum” as it had the most color…

What I love:

• Very emollient formula that doesn’t feel greasy
• Slightly tinted color for those “no makeup days”
• Smells and feels amazing!

What I hate:

• The price.

I realize that $22 is WAY too much for a chapstick basically, but if you have super dry lips and want something with a little color then these lip treatments are quite nice.   I’m not sure if I would buy any more just because I hate spending that much, so I will continue my quest for something cheaper   It is an amazing product though and Fresh did a great job with their product!

• Rating:  4 out 5
• Product: 4 out of 5
• Packaging: 5 out of 5
• Quality: 5 out of 5
• Price:  1 out of 5
• Would I buy again?  If it were cheaper…

Price:   $22.50

Where to Buy:   Sephora  .  Amazon  .  eBay