Revlon Colorstay Liner Review and Swatches (Flashback!)

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No, your memory is not failing you, nor is it that funny taste that may have been in your drink.  Although, if that actually happened, you may want to look into it.  You may have seen this post before.  In an attempt to make everything easier to navigate for everyone, I am working on transferring all of the old beauty and craft posts from the recipe blog to their appropriate homes on the newer wings.  Please bear with all the boring re-caps!

<3

-WW

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This is yet another review from the big box o' awesome, which is so amazingly awesome that months later I'm only about 2/3 or so through the reviews!

This liner is a nice coffee shade of brown and really has some serious staying power.  You can pick one of these up for around 5 bucks at most drugstores or large retailers.  It tends to stay exactly where you put it and do so for a very long time.  I tend to swatch in designs when I first try a solid liner to see how well it will move when applying it.  If it skips when I draw the loops, then I know it will be a pain to apply evenly on my lid.

I forgot to take a shot with the cap off, apparently, but it is a thin, twist-up pencil, the kind I prefer.

It also has this little sharpener in the end, which I find handy as these are near impossible to sharpen in a standard one.  I know this because I was in high school when I bought my first twist-up liner like this it didn't say on the package that it had a sharpener in the end and I frustrated myself for weeks trying to sharpen it on my regular sharpener.  One day, the end popped off when I was using it, I instantly knew what it was, and then I felt pretty stupid.

Over all, I'd give this a 10/10.  It doesn't smudge, lasts all day, yet is smooth and easy to apply.  Not so easy to remove, though, lol.

<3
WW

**This item was a gift from a friend, but my opinion is still 100% my own and not influenced by the gift.  :)

Review - Physician's Formula Flatliner

Time for another awesomely positive review!  ^_^

In the Brown Liner Showdown last month, I'd left two out.  Two of the big bunch I had just stood WAY out from the rest.  So much so that I didn't feel it would even be fair to pit them up against those other ones.  Here's one of those two:

This is, hands down, the coolest and most unique eye liner I've ever used.

This is Physician's Formula Flatliner in Dark Brown.  I rarely meet a product of theirs I *don't* like.  They are my very favorite drugstore brand.  No, I'm not getting paid to say that, but I wish I was!

Just check this puppy out - it is exactly what it sounds like.  A FLAT liner.

The top swatch is the liner used to just swatch straight across.  So easy to apply and it takes almost a concerted effort to get it on crooked.  The only con I could see is that it does go on in a rather thick line and there isn't the option to get a teeny pencil-thin one for tight lining and the like.

The bottom swatch, I used just the corner of it so you could see that it does still glide on and is very easy to control, despite the odd shape.

This stuff is awesome.  It goes on well, it wears well, and the uniqueness of it just kills me.  Definitely one I'd buy again (only in black!) and recommend.

<3WookieWifey

Listening to:  "Hell to the Heavens" - Leaves' Eyes

The Brown Liner Showdown!

I received a massive, amazing makeup care package from a friend fairly recently (though, as usual, I will still be 100% honest in my opinions) and, since then, have been feverishly trying out products to review.  In this particular package, there were A LOT of brown solid liners!  I figured that instead of reviewing them one-by-one, why not take some of them that had the most similar shades and pit them up against one another to see which one has the nicest quality and is the easiest to work with.  So cue up some old Western gunslinger soundtracks and let's get on with it!

I chose these four:
Estee Lauder Automatic Eye Pencil Duo in Walnut (which actually I found the title to be misleading as it has a sharpener and smudgey-thing on the other end instead of another color)
Maybelline Unstoppable in Espresso
Estee Lauder Eye Defining Pencil in Deep Brown
Ulta in Chocolate (nothing special on this packaging, really, so I assume it is sort of their standard, and this was a twist-up).

In order to easily tell them apart since the colors are so similar and also to test the control and consistency, I just used them to label themselves on my inner forearm.

This Estee Lauder Duo walnut one was the lightest of the bunch, but I threw it in there anyway.  As you can see in the photo, it straight-up flakes off and leaves glitter-sized chunks of itself all over.  The control wasn't too bad, but no one wants to have to go back over their liner with a brush or q-tip to get rid of the gobby and/or dark parts.  I'll give this one a pass on that, though, because since it comes with the smdugey thing, it is likely that it is SUPPOSED to be as soft and move-able as it is, so I don't think this one is actually designed for a clear, concise line.  Once you factor that in, it is quite nice (and it does smudge and blend well).

The Maybelline Unstoppable in Espresso was extremely similar in quality to the Estee Lauder.  Chunks aside, had it been a blind test, I'd have assumed it was same brand, different shades.  The color, however, I wasn't too stoked with, but that's just personal preference.

This Estee Lauder Eye Defining Pencil in Deep Brown was surprisingly great.  I just sort of scrawled the name, so that's my fault, not the liners, but even with my quick scrawling, the control and the color is quite nice and the color just glided right on.  The liner was soft and manageable, yet didn't leave weird clumps, I didn't have to go over anywhere twice, and I was pretty happy with this one!

This was my least favorite of the bunch.  I was pretty surprised with the shoddy quality of this one since other Ulta products I've tried are pretty rockin'.  This, however, was extremely hard to control and was so dry that the color just didn't transfer well.  You can see how it took me a few tries to actually press hard enough for it to really transfer clearly.  Definitely not the winner.

So what's my verdict?

Oddly enough, the Estee Lauder Eye Defining Pencil was, in my opinion, the best of the bunch.  I didn't expect this as, of the four, it was the most plain-jane and the only one that wasn't a twist-up.  History has proven that I will choose a twist-up 9 times out of 10.  I'd say that Estee Lauder has nailed the art of a standard, oldschool pencil liner.  Honestly, my money was on the Ulta for being the best of the bunch and we see how *that* worked out, so I guess that just goes to show that you shouldn't necessarily rely on the brand!

<3WW

Listening to:  "Monster Party" - Kasstrick Bacteria

Benefit Babe Cake Review

Allow me to introduce you to my new favorite eyeliner.

This is the Benefit Babe Cake cake liner duo, and it is awesome.

You'll have to excuse the usage, I normally like to take photos before I delve into a product, but my camera randomly freaked out on me and decided to just lose about 200 photos I'd taken for the blog, so I had to go back and re-take them.

...Moving right along, here's a shot of the back...This stuff goes on crazy creamy and dark, though you DO have to take care to get it wet and mix it enough.  I use a small refillable perfume sprayer full of water.  I just spritz a spray on whatever side I feel like using that day, then mix it up with my brush and apply just like I would a gel liner.

You can get razor thin lines with the stuff, and the color comes out gorgeously matte and dark, but you can add a bit more water to the mix to get a more sheer, build-able effect.  While it does take a few times applying this to get used to it, I find that it is cleaner and easier to apply than gel liner and that it has a ton more staying power when dry.  Definitely recommend!

<3
WW

Make Up For Ever Aqua Eyes Review

*These were a gift from a friend, but opinions are 100% my own.

These are so much fun.  Another one of those "can they really be worth all the hype" products, and you know what?  Yeah, they kinda are.

Q-tip to keep them from rolling away.  Professionalism at its best!

 I use the shit out of these and really can't say enough great things about them.

They are drawn on in the color numbers so you can tell what's what.  You can see from how clear the letters and numbers are that these just glide on.  2L is a medium brown, 1L is a dark, dark charcoal grey, 4L is a nice purple with reddish tones, 12L is a gorgeous, vibrant blue that comes off almost turquoise, and 21L is a silvery-grey.  They don't exactly look metallic, but they just have sort of a nice, glowy sheen to them.  They are soft and go on very smoothly and blend easily and I just love them.

However, they do have a down side.  Two, actually.

The first is they are NOT smudge-proof.  You have to be very careful not to rub your eye all day or your whole look is ruined - a challenge if you have allergies.  I tend to use the blue and purple the most and I use them on the outer part of my lower lash line and if I sneeze and rub the edge of my eye without thinking about it, then half my color is gone and I have to either re-do or rub the other one so it matches.

Second downside?  The price.  I wish so badly it weren't so high because I'd just use these all the time despite the down sides, because they are so vibrant and easy to work with.  These things go for about 35 bucks a pop on amazon for a full size one or 20 bucks for a tin of 5 of the mini ones.  You be the judge of whether that is worth it.  I may, once in a blue moon, toss the little $20 kit on my wishlist since they last quite a while, but I just simply can't afford or justify 35 bucks for one stick of liner.  Even if I could, it would have to be a PERFECT liner, no smudging every time my allergies act up, because, let's face it, I could sacrifice a bit of the vibrant color for a waterproof drugstore liner that would last through the apocalypse.  You know those chicks on tv who are fighting zombies in a waste-land with wicked good eyeliner?  Yeah, they wore Revlon Colorstay on the last day before the world ended and they just can't get it off.

<3 Wookie Wifey

Review - Hard Candy Beauty to Go Hypnoteyes

Another review!  I know, you're shocked, right?  This one was a total impulse buy.  I'd been on the lookout for a good purple liner to replace mine.  Mine is Make Up For Ever and it is getting close to croaking and as much as I love it, I can't afford to replace it with another of the same brand, so when I ran across this Hard Candy set with the purple glitter liner, I had to try it.

Yep, blurry picture.  That's my fault.  You can thank blogger for the sideways part.  I edited the picture and had it right side up, but for whatever reason blogger insists I can not replace it, so oh well.  You can't win 'em all.  Either way, this was $4, I think, for the set which comes with one mascara, one eye liner, and one glitter mascara.  They are supposed to be minis, I think, but honestly only the liner looks small to me, the others look pretty standard size compared to some products I have.

When you open the box up, everything is wrapped in pretty pink tissue paper.  Maybe kind of stupid, but its the little things that get me and opening a store-bought cosmetic product to see something so frilly and gift-like is nice.  Add this to the fact that Hard Candy always has adorable packaging anyway, and I'm kind of smitten.

This is the Flat to Fab mascara and it is pretty damn awesome.  It didn't do as well on my lashes as the Buxom, but it did do a damn fine job.  I'd say this is one of the best drug store mascaras I've tried to date.  Pity my eyes hated it.  While this is a great mascara, I'd say to stay away if you have sensitive skin.  This stuff made my eyes water, itch, and sting something awful and I've never had trouble with another Hard Candy product.  Unfortunately, even the best mascara doesn't look so great once you've cried it all off.  If you don't have sensitive skin, however, this is one you should check out.

On to the lash tinsel!  This is made to go over a plan mascara, according to the directions, and god do I love this stuff.  This is the only glitter mascara I've ever had actually come out glittery, and it looks GORGEOUS when worn with Sephora Eye Glitter.  I guess the magic in this is that it is made to be worn over another mascara, therefore the glitter gets to shine to its full potential, and it does.  Serious twinkly lashes, for sure, and the glitter actually stayed put and didn't fall all over my face throughout the day and, oddly, this one didn't make my allergies go apeshit the way the other mascara did.

This is what drew me to the kit in the first place.  Take Me Out Liner.  It looked super glittery and the Make Up For Ever one I have is a metallic purple Aqua Eyes, so I was hoping for something comparable.  Did I find it?

Well, not exactly.  Kitteh is helping me review it and she isn't too impressed, either.

You can see how it comes out thin and almost sheer in some places then crumbles off in others.  I think this is due to the glitter drying it out because this stuff is just quite crumbly.  It goes on smooth, but just leaves chunks behind sometimes.  You can get them to smooth out easily with a smudge brush and still keep the line quite clear, but it is still sort of annoying and, to boot, the glitter doesn't show up.  Like, at all.  It pretty much crumbles off in the clumps and you get left with the lighter purple you see on the tops of the loops, which isn't bad, but not really what I was in for.  Basically, if I find absolutely nothing else, this will do in a pinch, but it (hopefully) won't have to be my new go-to to replace my old one.  Guess for now I'll keep trying.

Overall, I'd say the set was worth $4 just to find a good glitter mascara, though I can at least work with the purple liner.  The Flat to Fab, however, isn't going to make the cut since my skin is ridiculously sensitive, which is sad as it is such a good product.  Verdict?  Unless you have sensitive skin, go for it.

<3
Wookie Wifey

Sephora Glitter Eyeliner Review

This eyeliner is actually pretty good, and as glitter liners go, I usually don't expect much because, let's be honest - most of them suck.

This is Sephora Eye Glitter Glitter Eyeliner in Black (redundant names make me giggle).

It is quite sparkly.

As you can see, it looks nice alone, though it is a bit on the sheer side, but it is layer-friendly and it looks gorgeous over a plain black liner.  It isn't super sparkly, as you can see in the picture, just leaves a hint of sparkle.  I'm still searching for the Holy Grail SUPER glitter liner.

It has a small, classic-style brush, which I like as I've used them for so long that, to me, they are the easiest.

All in all, I'd say this is the best glitter liner I've tried.  You can snag this on amazon for about 16 bucks and I'd say that's pretty well worth it because there is a lot of product here.  I wish I'd had the forethought to take a picture of it next to my other liquid liners because it positively dwarfs them in size.  If you're looking for a good glitter liner, then from what I've tried, I'd say this is your best bet.

In other news, I just went through my makeup stash and I can't believe how much stuff I still have to review, so I think perhaps it is time to buckle down!  Fasten your seatbelts, girls, there's LOTS of reviews coming up!

<3
WW