Neutrogena Nourishing Eyeliner - Review

The last thing included in my BzzKit for Neutrogena was an eyeliner. While I certainly didn't need another eyeliner, I was still game to give this one a try.

Neutrogena says:

Neutrogena® Nourishing Eyeliner defines and brightens eyes with luminous color. Subtle light diffusers make the whites of eyes appear whiter, while rich color nourishes skin with Olive Oil and Rainforest Shea Butter. The built-in sharpener gives precise definition and the contoured smudger softens and blends for a variety of looks.

- Infused with olive oil and rainforest shea butter to condition the delicate skin around your lashes

- Creamy automatic pencil glides on smoothly, then transforms into long-lasting finish that won't budge

-Built-in sharpener and smudger allow to create the perfect look--from precise definition to smoky effect

Packaged in a super-slim twist-up pencil, this liner is very similar in looks to most other eyeliners of this kind. The smudger is the same as any other smudger, and works like any other one you have probably used in the past. I like the inclusion of a sharpener, because often eyeliners like this get dull and then you can't get a super fine line. The upper part of the barrel is color coded to match the color of the liner, which is a nice touch. This liner has an MSRP of $7.49, however, my local stores seem to have it below $7.

Cosmic Black isn't a super harsh black, which is a good thing for people like me - a little to fair to pull of black eyeliner everyday. It has very fine shimmer in it, as well, to help reflect light. It smudges fairly easily immediately after application, and yet wears incredibly well on my lash line. For tightlining, it doesn't hold up as well (but, nothing really does for me, so take that for what it's worth.

The liner glides on with decent opacity at one stroke. The swatch above is 3 passes, as is Feline, for reference. It also removes nicely, which I appreciate.

I was intrigued by the skincare claims - specifically, how well can an eyeliner moisturize? And, how can you tell that it's moisturized such a small area effectively, if at all? I have to chalk this up to marketing. I'm sure the shea butter certainly provides a little something to this liner's feel, but honestly, who has dry enough skin to need a moisturizing eye liner?

Overall, this isn't a bad liner. On my oily lids, it lasted all day with ease, but came off when I was washing my face. I don't think I'll repurchase, only because I don't use black eyeliner all that often. When I do, I'm usually going for a more dramatic look, which would require a deeper, more pigmented black.

Please know, this product was sent to me for review by BzzAgent. The thoughts above are my own, and I was not paid to say anything complementary or otherwise.

Tarte Amazonian Clay Automatic Waterproof Gel Linerr - Review

I've said it before, and I'll say it again - I love brown eyeliners. I love dark brown, shimmery liners, because they make my green-ish eyes more green in appearance, and don't look harsh on my fair skin. One of the Tarte kits I had on auto-delivery from QVC included a liner right up my alley - an Amazonian Clay-based formula in a convenient pencil liner.

I actually received a few of these, but the only color I was interested in was Deep Bronze, since it's brown and shimmery looking. It's a touch lighter than I usually like, but it's still a member of the brown family. It wears well, and glides on fairly easily. The pigmentation could be better, however. I usually have to go over my liner at least twice to get the best color depth.

This liner doesn't smudge after it sets on my lids, which is great. It lasts best on my upper lash line, most likely due to my primer system on my lids. I don't wear a primer on my lower lash line, and I've noticed this liner tends to wear off by the end of the day.

I tried to find these, and was not really able to other than in the QVC kits. I'm certain it's available via eBay, however, should you wish to try one. It's a nice formula, pigmentation issues aside. I don't think I'll repurchase, as there are other brown liners I prefer.

Bare Escentuals Round the Clock Waterproof Eyeliner - Review

I am truly a sucker for Bare Escentuals on QVC. It's like they know I have money, and they want me to give it to them, so they bring out only stuff that I would love, like brown sparkly eyeliners. And, despite my efforts to remind myself how much brown eyeliner I have, and how infrequently I use Bare Escentuals' products, my debit card comes out and I end up buying whatever the Today's Special Value is (which reminds me - they have one coming up soon! End of March, I think).

I was drawn to this liner because it promised to rival UD's 24/7 eyeliners, which are fabulous (except the color selection is somewhat weak, in my opinion). They claim to be long wearing, waterproof, creamy, and pigmented.

The color I ended up with is called 10 PM. It's a sparkly dark brown, and looks beautiful when swatched. The pencil barrel is black, with the product information printed in a soft silver tone. The end of the pencil is color coded for the eyeliner's color, much like MAC's Powerpoint pencils. The barrel is made of the same soft-ish plastic as Powerpoints and the 24/7 liners.

The color and formula of this liner is great, sort of. When first applied, it's beautiful - a deep, rich brown with shimmer. After a regular day of wear, though, the color morphed. Badly. It became a weird, antique green on my lids. This can mean one of two things: either the liner faded, or reacted with the oil on my lids or my eyeshadow/eyeshadow base. Either way, it doesn't bode well for a long wearing liner that is supposed to last "round the clock."

I wanted to like this liner, because it's so pretty, but if it can't last all day like other brands (Maybelline, MAC, UD, etc), then what's the point? I can't recommend this liner at all, based on my experience.

Maybelline Eye Studio Lasting Drama Gel Eyeliner - Review

I love the concept of a gel liner, I just don't reach for them terribly often, because my technique is pretty terrible. I'm usually saved by using a pencil brush when I'm in hurry, because they smudge things so nicely. Anyway, I've been curious to try Maybelline's new-ish gel liners, which were recently on sale at my local Fred Meyer as a buy-one-get-one half price. I decided to try two of the limited edition colors, Forrest and Sapphire.

These liners seem to be priced around $10, which isn't all that much less than MAC Fluidlines, which come in at $15. They're packaged in glass pots, with black lids and the brand name, and product, printed in silver. They have a sticker on the bottom with the color name, batch information, and the normal company information. The glass jars and the lids do not have the same outer radius, which in some ways is annoying, but what're you going to do? Maybelline has included a brush with these, and has favorable reviews. I sort of wish the product was less expensive, and that the brush was sold separately - now I have two of the darn things, and I don't really need two (not that I needed one to begin with... brushes are about the last thing I need). 

Anyway, the two colors I have are from the Fashion Week Fall 2011 collection. Forrest is a blackened/blued green (not quite teal, but headed towards teal-country). Sapphire is a blackened blue. Both are reasonably pigmented, and shimmery. I do find that I need go over each of them at least once to get enough opacity for my taste, more if I wish to smudge them a bit. I was really hoping that Forrest would be an evergreen type color, but it's not. There's enough blue in it to make it not very wearable for me. Sapphire is gorgeous, and makes me think of MAC's Siahi from Mickey Contractor. 


The wear time on these is excellent, in fact, it's almost too good. I have trouble removing them, honestly. Either Lancome's Bi-Facil isn't strong enough, or these things are made of steel. I'm not sure which it is. They don't seem to migrate at all, or smudge on their own.


Overall, I'm very impressed. I would be willing to buy future colors, should they be unique in my collection. Other colors available include black, brown, eggplant (a purple shade), and charcoal (a gray). 

Maybelline Eye Studio Master Drama Cream Pencil - Review

I'm beginning to hate the word "dupe," as applied to a less expensive product when it may be similar to a higher end product. Hate. Such a strong word, but I've found that Youtube "Gurus" seem to love to over use the mere concept of a dupe.
But, I've found one. Sort of. Because I can't help myself, and my local Fred Meyer (which still has a full display of Golden Age trios!) seems to get new makeup collections before anyone else, I found a few new things from Maybelline I had to try, and this review is for one of them. 

 Maybelline's been very busy with their new Eye Studio line. Not only do they have a new selection of palettes (which I probably won't be getting one of), but they have a new creamy-mechanical-pencil type eyeliner, called Master Drama. Maybelline says:

Experience the new generation of liner: 

• Oil-free cream formula holds the highest concentration of pigments for more intense eye drama

• Smudge-proof and waterproof for 24 hours

• Most intense line for lasting drama

• Safe for sensitive eyes and ophthalmologist-tested

• Contact lens safe

I had to try one, after being so please with the Stila Smudgestick, and I can't bear to pay $22 for an eyeliner, no matter how good. I chose Bold Brown (# 415), since brown liner is something I use every day. At first swatch, I was impressed by how similar the color was to Lionfish. At the end of the first day, I wondered if I'd ever think of buying a Stila Smudgestick again (which, I may, but... we'll get to my eyeliner problem another day). 

Color-wise, Bold Brown is very, very, very similar to Lionfish. In person, they're almost identical. Of course, on the eye, they look dead on. There is a slightly difference, which leads me to my only real problem with this liner. Lionfish is creamy, pigmented, and lovely. Master Drama is drier, potentially less pigmented (due to the dryness), and lovely, even with the other two attributes being less than stellar. I can't tell if the Maybelline liner is less pigmented, or if the consistency makes it appear to be less pigmented. It certainly doesn't glide easily on the lid like the Stila liner, but I don't have to stab myself in the eye to get the color to show up. 

Wear time on this is excellent. Really, I could cut and paste my poetic waxings about the Smudgestick here, because I found this liner to wear just as well. Does it really last 24 hours? I don't know, but I can say it looked the same after 12 hours of wear as it did immediately after I applied it. It doesn't smudge quite as well as the Stila liner, which is probably because of the drier texture, which is a slight annoyance, but for $7 or whatever it was, I can deal with that.

Overall, I'm super impressed with this liner. I wish it was a bit creamier, but that's probably the only thing I would change. If you think Stila's Smudgesticks are amazing, or you really want to try them but can't swallow the price, I think you'll like these just as much!

Smashbox Soft Effects Powder Eyeliner - Review

I'm a girl who loves her brown liner. Really. I wear brown liner every. single. day. Being pale, black often looks way to harsh, and most the shadows I wear look better with brown liner. I like deep brown liners, because they provide better definition than lighter browns. I don't mine matte liners, but I tend to like some sparkle.

After spending years ignoring Smashbox, I finally gave the line a try about 2 years ago, and I'm fairly impressed with the products they offer. Now that they're part of Estee Lauder's cosmetics empire, I'll be curious to see what changes will be made to their formulas. Anyway, I've been lusting after their Soft Effects Powder Eyeliners since they debuted in Smashbox's Spring 2011 collection, and finally had the $22 to plunk down (and got a nice Let's do Lunch freebie). After some hemming, I decided on the shade named "Brown." Smashbox's description of this product is:

The prettiest eyes nowadays are defined by diffused, never-harsh lines of color. Our unique powder formula makes application easy by mimicking the effect of a soft-focus lens.

This liner comes in a long, cone-shaped package. The applicator is similar to that of Guerlain's Kohl Liners, except it's a sponge tip, not plastic. It's... uhh.. interesting. The sponge-tipped proboscis is stored in a super tiny jar of liner powder. The problem that comes with this product is this: it's fallout prone. I really struggled with applying this liner without getting liner on the tops of my cheeks, and it think it was because I found it sort of hard to shake off enough powder before taking this product to my lid. I did find, however, the length of the applicator made it easy-peasy to make a winged-out liner look.

That'd almost be a saving grace for the Soft Effects liner, except I also noted this product isn't extremely pigmented, nor is it long-lasting on my lids (after the fallout issues, I didn't feel wearing this on my lower lashline was an option. I tried it. Once. I learned very quick it wouldn't work for me). About half way through my day, this liner had faded substantially. By the end of my day, it was gone.

Overall, I really wanted to like this product. It just didn't work, and it extremely expensive for something that doesn't last all day.

Ingredients:

Boron Nitride, Silica, Dimethicone, Polyethylene, Pentylene Glycol, Pumice, Kaolin, Dimethiconol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Copernicia Cerifera (Carnauba) Wax, Phenoxyethanol, Dehydroacetic Acid. May Contain: Iron Oxides (CI 77491, CI 77492, CI 77499), Mica (CI 77019).

Stila Smudge Stick in Lionfish - Review

I'll admit that my eye looks are almost the same everyday. Unless I get something new, I'll typically wear the same 3 shadows 5 days week. And I used to reach for the same eyeliner each and every day.... MAC's Teddy Eye Kohl. Gah, a beautiful bronzey-brown that brought the green out of my eyes, wore all day, and I could smudge it if I wanted to. I love it. I love it so much, that I have about an inch left of the pencil. But, alas, why rebuy something I know I love, when I could spend more and find something I may just "like?" (Don't answer that!). Anyway, when stalking through my Ulta, I found one of their exclusive Stila palettes for some awards show. For $25, I was able to get a palette of 6 eyeshadows, a convertible color (in an honestly gross color), a powder highlighter, and a Smudge Stick in Lionfish. I had been very curious about Smudge Sticks, and most of the palette looked good (save the aforementioned ugly convertible color), so I picked it up.

Smudge Sticks are regularly $20. These are automatic liners, meaning you "twist" the pencil to get access to more product. According to Ulta's website:

"Smudge Sticks are what every woman has been looking for in a eye liner! There is a high content of volatile silicones and modern wax oil combinations that make this very comfortable and confident. It will be available in a mechanical pencil no sharpening needed. There is a Vitamin C and E, which will moisturize and act as an antioxidant to help against skin aging. Paraben Free, Not Animal Tested."

They come in 8 colors currently, most of which are named for fish. This liner applies very smooth and evenly, and it doesn't tug on my lid or lashline. I've tried it on my waterline and had the usual (for me) results - looked great for about an hour, then it vanished. On my lashline, however, it lasts all day! Once the liner has "set," it does not move at all, even through crying or watery eyes (I have a slight hay-fever issue). This means, however, if I decide to go for a smudgey-liner look, I have to work very, very quickly.

Lionfish is described as a "Deep bronze sheen," but, we can call it a bronzey-brown. Compared to Teddy, it's a dead-on dupe on my skin, and is also quite similar to Clinique's Creamshaper for Eyes pencil in Chocolate Luster.

I've never found water to be a good solvent for makeup, especially long-wearing makeup. I really have to use an oil-type or dual-phase remover (currently using a sample of Lancome's Bi-Facil). With this type of remover, the liner comes off with ease.

I'm extremely pleased with the Smudge Stick I have. While I don't particularly care for the price (only because I've been able to purchase Stila items so cheaply in the past), I would love to get my hands on more of these liners!

My Accomplishments!

It's the end of another year, and I have to wonder - what have I done this year? Well, I got a slightly better job (less stress, the same amount of pay, though). Adopted 2 cats (one moved out of our house as soon as he could - he's around the corner. He left his poor brother behind, though). And... um... that's about it.

Well, that's not fair to me. I've gotten close to finishing a couple of things. And, I've done a great job at sticking to my mascara no-buy. Using up all of the freebies I've accumulated feels great! Let's see what else I've finished, or almost finished, or.. at least hit pan on! These are my daily eyeshadows. I couldn't live or breathe without them. From the top left, there's Sumptuous Olive (I had to repress it, so *now* there's no pan, but I swear it's 50% or less). Then there's Shroom (top right), which I've had for a bit over a year and it's almost gone!
Finally, Wedge (bottom) - it's the perfect, soft, neutral crease color for me. Loves it.

So I haven't finished either of these, but seriously. Look at the size of them compaired to the stand MAC eye kohl cap. On the top is Clinique's Chocolate Luster Cream Shaper pencil, on the bottom is MAC's Teddy eye kohl. The Cream Shaper is okay, but Teddy is sooo much better. The perfect bronzey-brown for green eyes!

So this still has a ton of life left in it, but... hey, there's a significant amount of pan showing! It's Stila's Convertible Lip and Cheek color in Gerbera. This has been my go-to blush (obviously).

There are other products, too, like several Dazzleglasses, a bottle of MAC's brush cleaner, and a bottle of Chanel's Mat Lumiere Foundation.

What've you finished?