SHOEDAZZLE ME MARCH

This is Begonia from Shoedazzle! I sent back those black & purple heels last month and picked up these babies! I have an thing for wedge shoes, so as soon as I saw these, I had to order them!

Put a spring in your step with this vibrant faux leather wedge and its sculptural rosette.

Begonia is fresh and alluring, with a faux cork wedge to boot. She'll look at home with cuffed jeans and a peasant-style blouse, or wide-leg trousers and a softly striped top. Accessorize with gently tousled hair and a stacked metal cuff!

Color: Chambray

Heel Height: 3-1/2"

Platform: 1"

Description: Faux leather wedge with sculptural rosette

Begonia has a 3-1/2" heel and is actually very easy for me to walk in!! I can't wait to wear these for Easter!! I can see myself wearing these a lot this spring/summer.

I love the flower detail! It's so pretty and girlie!! As you can see, they have a really nice sheen to the fabric as well. LOVE!

I do like that it has a buckle so I can adjust them as the elastic will inevitably stretch out. That's my biggest woe about these shoes, but I'm afraid that's been a problem with most shoes I've found that I liked. I like these so  much, I can live with it. But one more thing I'm not crazy about...



I don't mind that the bottoms are rubber...but I don't like that it looks like around the edges that it wasn't cut evenly. There are a few pieces that kind of stick out. I cut them with scissors, but perhaps I can either use super glue to glue down or my flat iron to melt those parts so they stay together. I'm just afraid they are going to get all frayed at the bottoms.

I do love that Shoedazzle puts dusters in the cutest box for you shoes so they stay nice! I'm really glad I've found two pairs of shoes that I really like on there. Most of the shoes are just too out there for me or I have no where to wear such fancy shoes. Who else Shoedazzles?

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FTC Disclosure: I purchased these with my own money. I am not affiliated with any of the brands mentioned. I have never been paid to write a review.

ELF CUSTOM EYES

As you may have already noticed, I've picked up a ton of things from e.l.f. lately! A few things from the Studio line, but mostly from the regular $1 line. If you haven't tried e.l.f. yet, you should! Now on to the good stuff....



e.l.f. Essentials custom eyes

Luxuriously smooth and silky mineral formula provides eyes with a neutral base and an awakened brightness for a long-lasting wear. Choose your favorite colors that best compliment your unique and beautiful look.

There were really only four colors (out of the 10 they carry) that I actually liked. They are pink ice, mocha, dusk, and moondust. Here's the swatches:

As you can see, these have really nice pigmentation to them! But they are SOOO incredibly soft---and I actually don't like that too much. Why? There is SOOO much fall out with these--especially the darker the ones. That is something they can certainly improve upon.

As you can see, the second one from the right has the magnet placed slightly off, which makes a bit difficult to put in my palette, so not so bad that it doesn't fit. I suppose I can't really fault them for that though, not every one is going to come out perfect.

The e.l.f. one is just a bit bigger than the MAC ones. The e.l.f. shadows have a little eye design imprinted on them. Pretty much as soon as I touched it, it came right off---that's how soft this one is. I do like the colors and I love the price, but these in no way compare to MAC. All they really have in common is the size. But hey, it's not bad for $1.

I do wish they would improve the formula and expand the color range. Perhaps if they do that, I'll pick up more of these. Until then, I'll save my money for MAC.

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FTC Disclosure: I purchased these with my own money. I am not affiliated with any of the brands mentioned. I have never been paid to write a review.

ELF LUSCIOUS LIQUID LIPSTICKS

e.l.f. Essentials Luscious Liquid Lipstick

therapy is here. Intensive hydrating agents along with natural pigments leave lips with long-lasting color and moisture. This luscious liquid lipstick creates wearable color that flatters a multitude of skin tones and looks.

I've been eyeing these for a while. The packaging remind me of the Stila lip products---though I don't own any of those! But I love the little twist bottom that clicks to release the product! The first time you use them, you really do have to twist it about 12 times, like the packaging says to do. The tip is a slanted, felt like tip:

For some called a "luscious liquid lipstick" I was kind of expecting a little more color than these provide. They feel like a mix between a gloss and a lipstick. It's not heavy or sticky and is very smooth. There's a slight scent to these that I enjoy. Here's my swatches:

So you can see that raspberry is really the only one that adds color to my lips. The others really just look like I'm wearing a clear gloss--although I'll admit they do a hint of color.

The Stila lip products start around $20. These are $1!! You won't get too many uses out of these, but for a buck, they are pretty nice. There's 11 different colors. Now that I know how sheer they are, I'll probably try some of the darker colors next time. If you want to see all the colors, go here.

Which ones have you tried?

Check out my guest post on Sedona Lace's blog! I swatched the 28 blush palette, which is amazing by the way!

Don't forget to vote for me in the Folica "Great Hair Day" contest!!

FTC Disclosure: I purchased these with my own money. I am not affiliated with e.l.f. I have never accepted money in exchange for a review.

ELF EYE BRIGHTENING QUADS

e.l.f. Essentials Brightening Eye Color

Luxuriously smooth, corn silk formula provides eyes with a neutral base and an awakened brightness. The formula blends into skin for a long lasting, beautiful effect. The 4 color quad allows for both natural and dramatic looks. Mirror in compact included.

I have a quad, though set up differently than this, from ELF that came with their smokey eye kit and the pigmentation was really good so I thought I'd try these out. I really love the neutrals, obviously, so I picked up these two. I was disappointed that Butternut came slightly broken, but it wasn't too bad. But you can kinda see in the lightest color that some of the darkest got into it. Oh well....

Here's Butternut:

I think these are so pretty! They aren't too dark and make for a really nice day/work eye. They are pretty smooth and blend pretty well. The darkest color is pretty powdery though, so watch out for fall out with this one! I do wish there was at least one matte in these, but for a buck, it's pretty awesome!

Here is Brownstone:

Again, I like this more subtle neutrals. And also again the darkest two colors are quite powdery. But they still pack a mean punch when it comes to pigmentation. I like this one the best so far! There are lots of other quads and they are much more colorful than this, check them out here!

Which quads do you like best?

I'd really appreciate it if you'd take a minute to VOTE for me in the Folica "Great Hair Day" contest. I was #2 and now I've fallen to #9!! Contest ends 3/31/11!

FTC Disclosure: I purchased this with my own money. I am not affiliated with e.l.f. I have never accepted money in exchange for a review.

ELF SEDUCTIVE LIPSTICK

e.l.f. Essentials Lipstick

Indulge your lips with long lasting color and shine. The moisture rich formula hydrates, conditions and softens on contact for silky smooth lips. .

Instantly beautiful, healthy-looking lips designed, formulated and tested by our professional team of makeup artists.

I thought this color, Seductive, would be absolutely gorgeous! Besides beautiful color, smooth feeling, super pigmentation, cute packaging....it's only $1!!! I also love that when the cap is on, you can still see the color!

You get a good amount in this as well, 3.5 grams. I couldn't get over the pigmentation of this lipstick! Check out the swatches:

Sorry the lips are a little blurry. The color goes on very evenly, it's not a "thick" feeling lipstick though. It goes on really smooth and feels like an expensive department store lipstick. I also really like the creamy finish.  I haven't worn it all day, so I can't comment on it's staying power, but it was a bit hard to rub off all the color on my hand and lips. My inital reaction is these are great and I wish ELF would make more colors available. This was really the only one that I liked from the six available.

You can see all the colors here!

**Update---I can't believe I forgot to mention that it has a really nice scent as well! It's a bit fruity! Love it!!**

I'd really appreciate it if you'd take a minute to VOTE for me in the Folica "Great Hair Day" contest. I was #2 and now I've fallen to #7!! Contest ends 3/31/11!

FTC Disclosure: I purchased this with my own money. I am not affliated with e.l.f. I have never accepted money in exchange for a review.

LET'S GET WET & WILD, AGAIN

I popped into my CVS to see what's on sale. Not much that I wanted. But I did pick up these awesome Wet & Wild palettes. They are usually sold out at my CVS, but I was in luck tonight! Here's the goods:

The first one is the "Lust" palette. It has three matte shades and three shimmery shades. The second is the "Knock on Wood" trio. Here's a peek inside:

Gorgeous so far, right? Let's take a closer look at each one!

Lust

With Flash:

Without Flash:

These felt so smooth and almost creamy to the touch! I think they are going to blend beautifully! These matte shades are so pretty! With all the palettes I have, I don't think I have these exact colors. I can't wait to do a look with these!! The shimmery ones are amazing as well. They have just a hint of small glitter in them!

Knock on Wood

With Flash:

Without Flash:

These are also very smooth and pigmented! I don't know that I would use all three of these as directed. I'd probably mix in a lighter, natural color to mute the pinks a bit. Also excited to try this, as I love my other Wet & Wild palettes!

Please vote for me in the Folica "Great Hair Day" contest!!!!

FTC Disclosure: I purchased these with my own money. I've never been paid to write a review.



BUY ME A CAMEO

This is my first Essie polish and it was LOVE at first sight! It's called "Buy me a cameo". Two smooth coats, just a few minutes, and I am ready to go! I love the consistency of this polish. I do wish the bottle was bigger, especially since it's $8! I'm not huge into nail polishes, but I'm loving this! I put it on three days ago (I think) and it still looks like I just put it on! What's your favorite Essie polish?

I still need your votes! Please give me 5 stars in the Folica "Great Hair Day" contest! I'm down to #6!!! Thanks so much for your support!!

FTC Disclosure: I purchased this with my own money. I am never paid to write reviews!



MAYBELLINE NATURAL SMOKES

I don't have any shadows from Maybelline, or really that much else. But I saw these colors and thought they were just beautiful! I don't have colors like these in a small palette for travel, so I thought this would be great to add to my collection!

I especially like the lid color! I'm all for natural smokey looks, so I thought this palette would be perfect! Here's my swatches with primer and flash:

I used a primer to do these swatches. Honestly, I had to pack it on for you to really see the colors. You still can't see the base color, as it's the same as my skin! I'm sure on someone darker, it will make a lovely highlihgt. I wish the pigmentation was a bit better, but it's not too bad for drug store---though I think CoverGirl singles are better than these. I do really like that there is a dark matte brown for liner in this palette. You can also use it for the outer-v. There's also a guide on the back for beginners, which I always think is nice:

Here's my natural smokey look:

I think it turned out pretty nicely! Perfect to put in your purse when you're on the go! I'd def pick up another one of these from Maybelline. Do you have another Maybelline palette you love?

Don't forget to vote for me in the Folica "Great Hair Day" contest! That scandelous girl is ahead of me again! Let's show them classy girls finish first!!

FTC Disclosure: I purchased this with my own money. I was not paid to write this review, or any other.

FREE BEAUTY EVENTS ALERT!

It's that time of the month again! Time to check out one of my favorite beauty webpages, Free Beauty Events! =) You can punch in your zip code and find awesome, FREE, events near you! The give-a-way this month is awesome:

 

"This month, for example, L’Oreal will demonstrating their True Match lines at select Rite Aids around the country as well as handing out coupons and samples. This information is available for FREE on our website where spas and retailers can promote their events. Anyone who would like our site visitors to know about their beauty event can make a posting for free on our site at http://www.freebeautyevents.com/submit.

On our site you can enter your zip code to find out what makeover, gift with purchase, spa open houses and sampling events are happening near your home. Readers can also follow us on Facebook and Twitter. In addition to listing in-store makeovers, Freebeautyevents.com also features a blog on product reviews (http://www.freebeautyevents.com/beauty-blog) and a monthly contest http://www.freebeautyevents.com/contest. We also do a contest each week with a smaller prize on our blog.

 

For the month of March 2011, we will be giving away 10 prizes. Each prize will consist of L’Oreal Visible Lift Serum Absolute Advanced Age-Reversing Makeup, EverStrong Bodify Shampoo, and EverStrong Hydrate Shampoo! The Contest runs from 3/1/2011 to 3/31/2011, winners will be chosen on 4/5/2011 and notified by 4/15/2011."

One NV'ious follower has won a Free Beauty Events give-a-way! How about another?!



FREE BEAUTY EVENTS ALERT!

It's that time of the month again! Time to check out one of my favorite beauty webpages, Free Beauty Events! =)

HEAVENLY NATURALS SWATCHES

I bought these samples forever ago from Heavenly Naturals!! It's taken me forever to open them and swatch them. The colors aren't exactly neutral, my favs, so I think that's why! Posh is the only one that's neutral.

 I didn't pick these colors individually, it was some sort of sample set. I don't see it on their web page now. Here's my swatches, first with flash then without (I used primer to swatch these):

As you can see, the light plays a big role in some of these shades.

Passion is a gorgeous metallic copper.

Earth Child is a really pretty medium brown with the most interesting blue undertones. Depending on the light, you see different levels of intensity of the blue.

Virtue is a goldish green color. Definitely a metallic!

Posh is a creamy pearl color. This one is for sure my favorite! I think this will look awesome on the inner corners and a highlight with other matte shades!

Ransom is gold/bronzey green. Another metallic.

Tinsel is exactly what it says. A beautiful metallic silver that reminds me of Christmas!

The texture of these all felt pretty good---some a little more smooth than others. The pigmentation on these are insane! I haven't worn these yet, so I can't speak on staying power, though I imagine they will be pretty outstanding! I will post a look soon with these!

Please take a minute to go and vote for me in the Folica "Great Hair Day" contest! Thanks so much!

Stay NV'ious!

FTC Disclosure: This is not a sponsored review.