Makeupforever review

This brand has a strong cult following of beauty buffs and professional makeup artists. Everybody respects MUFE. It's impossible not to!

HD Powder

This powder is so lightweight and translucent, it doesn't make light skintones look "ghostly" or make darker skintones appear "ashy" so everybody can win with this amazingly universal finishing powder. It is mattifies all skin textures and completes the look of an airbrushed complexion. I simply dust my face with this as a final step for 'face' makeup and it makes my skin look flawless in pictures or in person, outdoors and even in harsh lighting!

Aqua Eyes - waterproof eyelining pencil in "Bronze"

I love golden bronze-toned eye pencils. They can work for any eye color from blue to brown to green! I love the way bronze really pops the blue, draws out the green, or ignites the gold in brown eyes. Bronze, in my opinion, is the way to go with eye pencils. Black can sometimes be harsh against certain skintones, and bronze is an interesting alternative for brown eyeliner. It can be intensified for nighttime, and wearable in the daytime.


False Eyelashes in #109

I love love love false eyelashes. They frame every individual eye shape and can look completely natural or as dramatic as you want. The pair I have is #109 (Janet). The lashes are long, very thick and black. If it's "too much", you can always trim the lash a little bit or cut it in half to glue on the outer corners of your eyes to open them up a bit more. I know that sometimes mascara just isn't enough for some people. Sure, applying false eyelashes does require patience and a steady hand...but if you are willing to take the time required for a flawless application (and maybe put up with a little bit of trial and error the first few attempts), the result is so very well worth it.

Fascinating Lip Gloss in #5 (Pearly Coral Red)

Being a redhead, I love my reds and I love my corals. So when corals and reds get together, I am one very happy girl. This lipgloss is sheer, yet it is somewhat buildable. It's not as opaque as I expected or would have liked it to be, but I can't help but love it simply because the color itself is very gorgeous. If you love reds and corals, this is the perfect lipgloss combination of the two. It is, in my opinion, a face-brightening shade of lipgloss.

Click here to view a list of all MUFE stores [list is organized by country],
or
Click here to place online orders at Sephora.

-ashley

Tarte review

I love Tarte. Apparently I'm not alone, this brand has made appearances in magazines like "Seventeen", "Lucky" and "Shape" just to name a few. I actually wore a double ended Tarte lip gloss during my senior year when I took my SAT (that I actually did amazingly well on, especially for my first attempt!)

A Perfect Whirled
(natural swirl cheek stain)

One swipe of this cheek stain delivers a gorgeously healthy looking coral flushed pink, and the light shimmery seashell pink provides a great highlight to the cheek adding a youthful glow. I was blown away at just how natural this actually appeared on my cheeks after I applied to the apples. If you're on the go and want a quick pick me up, this is definitely for you! It is like 2 products in one (blush and a highlighter). Just swipe on, blend a little bit, and you instantly have the appearance of a natural looking flush with a soft pretty highlight!

Spring Greening: Re-usable straw palette

This set definitely enables you to follow one of the three R's to help out the environment (reduce, recycle, and in this case, reuse). This set comes with a small bamboo brush (GREAT for blending the eyeshadow!) I was blown away at the size of this brush, and how it blends with such ease! The six eye shadows are highly pigmented and blend seamlessly using one of your other eye makeup brushes, or the bamboo brush that comes with the set. This set also contains three lip glosses. The clear sparkly gloss can be used over many shades, and the pink and peach glosses are totally gorgeous and the shine is amazing. I could see myself re-using this cute little straw palette as a small storage space when I have used up all of the eye shadows and lip glosses! Although it will probably be awhile before I run out of the eye shadows, from what I can see, it looks like you get a fairly decent amount of product. That's always a plus, and the straw palette is small and can easily fit into a medium sized purse, and I think this would be totally ideal for travel!

Click here to find a store near you that carries this awesome brand,
or
Click here to place online orders.

-ashley

Marina Cosmetics product review

Marina Cosmetics is an awesome brand of lip products: 10 lipsticks and 10 lipglosses to choose from! The main ingredients are from the sea, and they are anti-aging to keep your lips smooth and wrinkle free. I'm reviewing a lipstick in "Aurora Frost", and a lipgloss in "SeaBerry".



Sea Perfected Lipstick in "Aurora Frost"
This lipstick is a shimmery, pearly pale pink. I would have loved this when I was 17, back when shimmery pale pinks dominated my lipstick and lipgloss collection. Even though I am more of a red lip girl these days, I can't help but still have wonderful things to say about this shade. The color is buildable, it doesn't make my lips disappear (even though it is indeed a very pale shade). It's a very pretty soft pink.

Sea Perfected Lipgloss in "Seaberry"
One of the biggest factors regarding how I feel about a lipgloss is the texture. This doesn't feel sticky or uncomfortable. The color is buildable and it's a gorgeous deep rosy mauve (when applied to my naturally very pale lips).

To place online orders, click the lipstick.


To find a retailer near you, click the lipgloss.


-ashley

Kiss My Face review

The brand "Kiss My Face" has loads of products from beauty cosmetics, haircare, skincare, even items for oral hygiene! They also have a separate line of products to help protect your skin outdoors! I tried the lip shines and lipshimmers. They consist of natural ingredients, and the pigment comes from natural minerals! They contain a minty vanilla smell. I think it's awesome that they don't use animal products (great for somebody who follows the Vegan lifestyle). They don't use unnecessary chemicals or test on animals. Awesome, awesome.


Find a store that carries "Kiss My Face" products near you, or
Place your online orders here.



-ashley

Lipstick Queen review

First let me start off with saying how excited I was to find a store that specialized in lip products. I love everything to do with lips: lipliners, lipsticks, and lipglosses. I am fascinated with lips: the color, the size, the shape, I just love them. One of the many really cool things about the Saint/Sinner lipsticks is that each lipstick has a sheer or opaque twin. How cool is it that the creator of Lipstick Queen (Poppy King) launched this line when she was only 18 years old? I think that is awesome and so inspiring! This brand makes my lips happy. [all images are clickable]

Anyway, on to to the review...

Saint Lipstick in "Saint Rose"

The "Saint" lipsticks of this brand are very sheer, but there is enough pigment to notice. These lipsticks can be appreciated by seasoned lipstick lovers like Poppy (and myself)! Or by somebody who usually doesn't wear lipstick, but still wants sheer yet beautiful color. The color I'm reviewing is "Saint Rose". It's a gorgeous deep rosy pink. My lips aren't very pigmented so it glides on as a gorgeous medium rose, that deepens to a slightly darker rose pink if paired with a neutral lipliner. It's sheer, doesn't feel greasy or slippery. I love love love this color, and can't wait to try the other shades in the "Saint" line of this brand!

Sinner Lipstick in "Natural Sinner"

The "Sinner" lipsticks of this brand are very pigmented and opaque. I love lipstick, so I love both formulas of this line (saint and sinner). The color I'm reviewing is "Natural Sinner". It is definitely MLBB (M.y L.ips B.ut B.etter) shade. My lips are often very pale, so this is perfect as a base color for lipstick or gloss or on it's own! This color brings my lips to a gorgeous naturally pigmented color, but way better! It looks sophisticated and polished. My favorite way to apply this shade is to apply it directly to the middle of my bottom lip and spread it out to the edges. I can't wait to try the rest of the shades in the "Sinner" line. I love the colors to choose from, the formula and it definitely lives up to its promise of delivering 90% of pigment.

Big Bang Illusion Gloss in "Creation", "Energy"

First, let me say how much I love the adorable "test tube" packaging. I was surprised at how much product you get! I can't wait to pull this cute little gloss out of my purse and show people. "Creation" is a gorgeous rosy pink with beautiful shimmer and shine (sixth from left side). One of my biggest complaints about lipglosses in general is that sometimes a lip gloss can feel slippery. Not these babies, these apply sheerly and I find them the color to be very buildable...which I absolutely love in a lipgloss formula because it's so much better (and time saving) to add more than wipe some off! "Energy" is a bright true red with stunning shimmer (fifth from left side). I love my red lipsticks and red lipglosses, so this was an amazing addition to my collection of red lipsticks/red lipglosses!

Shine-Hard Core Gloss in "Red Sinner"

There is no lie about this gloss being "hard core". It comes in a cute plastic pot, and you gets tons of product. Again, I was surprised at just how much you get! The gloss texture is thick, but I'm not bothered by it one bit so I highly doubt that many others would be bothered by it. It is very long lasting, and the color is a bright and captivating red. I used to have to layer a lipliner, lipstick and a lipgloss to get this exact color and a similar look. This one product gets rid of two of those steps, reducing it to just one step: apply the gloss, and you're good to go! I adore the finish of this lipgloss! The three things I look for in a lipgloss are the color, the texture, and the finish. The color is gorgeous, I don't feel like my lips are slipping, or like my lips are being weighed down by a heavy gloss, and the finish is unlike anything else I have ever tried.

You can place your online orders here,
or
You can shop by region and find a store near you that carries this fantastic line!

I think it is safe to say that I am in love with the "Lipstick Queen" brand.



-ashley

Beauty Giveaway!

BEAUTY GIVEAWAY
Enter to win a little collection of brand new beauty items. What will you win exactly? It's a surprise! You'll win makeup brushes, lipglosses, eye products and more. It will be a mixed collection from brands such as ELF, Kiss My Face, etc. The giveaway starts right now, on March 19th, and ends March 23rd at 11:59pm(or midnight - March 24th). I'll choose a winner and notify them by email, then I'll ship the prize out. Anyone can enter - USA, Canada, International.

To Enter:
Leave a comment below letting me know that you'd like to win.

Extra entries:
- Follow my blog
- Follow me on Twitter (http://www.twitter.com/lipstickncandy)
* leave a comment for each extra entry you complete.

DevaCurl review

This is revolutionary: a diffuser that attaches to any standard blow dryer, but with a hand-shaped attachment to shape your natural curls! This works best on naturally wavy or curly hair. The model of the hand shaped diffuser is specifically designed to eliminate frizz, a common problem for wavy/curly haired girls like myself. You guide the diffusing "hand" to parts of your scalp and hold for a few seconds, to lock in the shape and ensure constant air flow in more than one direction to dry it all at once. [all images are clickable]



You can also try DevaCare hair products that are without all of the harmful cleansing agents in most shampoos/conditioners that don't really help the frizz problem. They have products for curly hair, keeping color from fading, etc. It's like a one-stop haircare place. You can get an awesome styling tool and all of the products to help lock in your style!



So curly haired girls, give it a try! Think about it: what do you really have to lose but frizz?

-ashley