Givenchy Photo'Perfexion Light Fluid Foundaon SPF 10

I just tried Givenchy Photo'Perfexion Light Fluid Foundation. I am still not exactly where I stand on this foundation/tinted moisturizer. It falls somewhere in-between the two categories.

Here is the scoop, per Sephora's website:

"What it does: Perfects the complexion with incredible radiance and natural coverage. Its fresh, extra-thin, and comfortable fluid texture melts into the skin upon application."

"What it is: An ultra-light, natural-looking, SPF 10 foundation."

Here is what I noticed with this product. I is a beautiful tinted moisturizer, as far as coverage goes, that's all it did for me. I have pretty good skin, but it can be a little uneven. This evened out the skin tone, but didn't last very long on the face. And I much as I tried to make it work (used setting powders, finishing powders, all nighter spray), I just couldn't get it to last. The other major problem is the very limited color selection. It only comes in 6 colors (I fell somewhere between #6 and #7, so I just can't justify spending $47 x 2-- to mix together, for a TINTED MOISTURIZER!! If you have flawless skin, or like a no-makeup look, you will likely love this, if you can find the right shade for you!

**Purchased by me, was returned for YSL foundation.......stay tuned!

Waterproof Wonders 1: Hourglass Superficial Waterproof Bronzer

As promised, months ago, I will be doing a series of posts called "Waterproof Wonders." These are my favorite waterproof/water-resistant products, without which I could never survive summer!

For my first post, I have chosen a miraculous new discovery, Hourglass Superficial Waterproof Bronzer.

Let me start with a backstory, I have melasma on my face, which only shows up after sun exposure. So, although I get very tan in the summer, my face does not. I keep sunscreen on it at all times. This results in a very dark tan body, and a face that is much lighter. To the rescue, is the Waterproof Bronzer by Hourglass. This is a powder bronzer, that is a nice matte, warm tan. I apply it with Sephora Collection Professional Bronzer Brush #44. It takes a little practice to blend well, but is easiest with this brush. Once on, this stuff is exactly as it says, WATERPROOF!!! I put it on this weekend, and was at the pool all day, in the 98 degree weather. I reapplied sunscreen over it, swam, was splashed repeatedly by my 6 year old, and wiped my face multiple times----it was still there! It was so natural looking, and didn't come off until I cleaned my face that night. If it's not already obvious, I'm in love ;) This is my new HG bronzer!!!!! It might be pricey ($45), but so worth every cent.

**Item purchased by me.

Sephora Jumbo Liner 12HR Wear Waterproof

With summer right around the corner (although with the +90 degree weather here in the south, it already feels like summer) I find myself browsing makeup counters for more "durable" makeup. A few weeks ago, while in Sephora, I noticed the Jumbo Liner 12HR Wear Waterproof eyeshadow pencils.

The pencils come in 14 different colors, and can be used as either an eyeliner or eyeshadow. They are very blendable, and layer very well. The color is a little on the sheer side, but can be layered for more intensity (which I like). The Sephora Jumbo Liners can be compared to Urban Decay's 24/7 Glide-On Shadow Pencil. The Urban Decay pencils, however, cost twice as much, and come in 12 shades. I also prefer the Sephora liners, because they don't have glitter flakes as do some of the Urban Decay ones.

Colors L to R: 05 Beige, 04 Taupe, 08 Gold, 10 Green, 14 Violet, 03 Grey
**sorry for images, they were taken with my phone

As far as their lasting power, I have worn these through a day at the pool, 3 straight hours of Zumba (both of which involve wiping my face multiple times), and they held up!! My eyes looked as good after either activity, as they did right after application!! You really can't beat that, especially for $10. My faves are: Taupe, Beige, and Gold---all layered for a neutral smoky eye.

**All items were purchased by me.

Sephora by OPI Safari Luxe Nail Polish

I went to Sephora this weekend, browsing for new summer nail polish and happened upon the newest Sephora by OPI collection. The Safari Luxe, collection is inspired by trendy animal prints and chic summer accessories. The colors are fun, funky, and perfect for summer!

Bottles and swatches L to R: Don't Feed the Hand Models, Caught With My Khakis Down, Yes Your Lioness, I Don't Bite

Descriptions of the colors included in the Safari Luxe Mini Collection:

• Don't Feed the Hand Models---opaque, nude. This is the best nude nail color I have ever found!


• Caught With My Khakis Down--opaque, fatigue green.


• Yes Your Lioness--bright coral, with a tiny amount of shimmer. Almost a dead-ringer for the new Chanel nail color, Miami Peach, which is a Nieman's exclusive.


• I Don't Bite--metallic, light violet.

This set is a great value, I love everyone of the colors. I only wish they sold Yes Your Lioness in the full size. Sephora, please, please, release this one in full size. Its so beautiful!

Below, I have swatched one more of the colors from the Safari Luxe Collection (not included in the set), A Color That Can't Be Tamed ($9). It is a beautiful, metallic, mint green. Love!

This is one of my favorite nail polish collections that Sephora/OPI!! I have yet to find a color in this collection that I don't like.

**All polishes were purchased by me.

Sephora V.I.B Chic Week - April 14th to 21st

Sephora V.I.B members - Don't forget today starts Chic Week at Sephora!  


You get 15% off all purchases this week - online and in store.  Enter code CHICWEEK at check out to use the coupon!  You can use as many times as you want!


Coupon runs from April 14th to April 21st!

Benefit/Sephora VIB Gift with Purchase

As you all know, I profess my love for Sephora on a weekly basis. This week, they have given me one more thing to love, in the form of a GWP for VIB members (free gift with $35 purchase). It is a deluxe sample set of the B.right "ocean-inspired" brightening line by Benefit Cosmetics.

The set includes deluxe samples of: Triple Performing Facial Emulsion, It's Potent! Eye Cream, Foamingly Clean Facial Wash, all tucked into a cute "beachy-print" box. This new line has the most adorable packaging (the bottles all have little raised bumps on them, that resemble a sea urchin, and the glass reminds me of sea glass, we find at the beach). I have tried the eye cream and emulsion so far, and I really like them. The bottles alone have me longing for vacation......I have a feeling I'll be back for more!!!!


Note:  Laura tried to add this to her online purchase and it said it was sold out!  Natasha got her's in store and had no problem.  There was lots of stock available too!

GWP was purchased by me.

Nars Velvet Lip Gloss 'Club Mix' Duplicates!

A few weeks ago I posted on the Nars Velvet Lip Gloss Pencils ($24), and was sad to report there was no duplicate for my favorite shade, "Club Mix." I have been pining over that color ever since. Well, I am happy to admit that I stand corrected. I was in Sephora yesterday (I know, big surprise), and decided to play around with some of their lipsticks. Sephora Collection Lip Attitude-Star ($12), is somewhere in between a lipstick and a gloss. I tried on S12 (Plum Vertigo) and S11 (Audacious Violet). The Plum Vertigo is a dead-ringer for NARS Velvet Lip Gloss Pencil in Club Mix!!! Same consistency, same color, same shine--everything, but 1/2 the price! I'm pretty sure there was a Hallelujah chorus in the background, when I made this discovery. 

L to R: #1 - NARS Club Mix, #2 - Sephora Plum Vertigo, #3 - Sephora Audacious Violet

Both of the Sephora colors shown above are stunning (they look far different than in the tube), and will look stunning on every skin tone. On a side note, the Audacious Violet by Sephora, looks very, very similar to the now sold-out, limited edition, Estee Lauder Pure Color Lipstick in Wild Violet. I know you are running out the door to buy these, right now, so once you get back, let us know what you think!


These were purchased by me.

Beauty on the Go - Spring/Summer 2011

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, travel size beauty products. I think its the cute, tiny packaging, and the ability to take it anywhere. No matter the reason, I jumped at the chance to pick up Sephora's Limited Edition Color Flip Palette!  These are perfect for spring/summer when on the go.

The cards are very similar to the old Trish McEvoy Beauty Emergency Card. About the same size, only a little thicker, because it has 3 levels. Dimensions are 2.75 in. x 1.75 in. x 0.5 in.

The first layer contains 8 beautiful eye shadows. Colors are shimmering white, bronze, aqua, bright purple, nude, plum, peacock, and matte brown. They are all very wearable, blend easily, and look great!

The second layer contains 8 lip glosses (cherry, hot pink, nude, peach, fuchsia, bubblegum pink, bronze, and clear) I usually don't use any of the lip glosses that come in any palette, but these are very sheer, and will look great for Spring.

The third layer contains a lovely brush and bronzer. The duo is similar to NARS Orgasm/Laguna, but a little lighter. So pretty. The bronzer is very golden, which I prefer for my olive skin. They are sheer, but can be layered for more color.

This is such a bargain at $15! It is perfect for busy women on the go (throw it in your pocket, gym bag, purse), or its great for those looking to get quality makeup, while on a budget. I think this set gives you the most for your money. It's sleek, portable, and a great deal! What more could a girl ask for?

This item was happily purchased by me!

Bright Lips for Spring 2011 Swatches - Part Two

As promised, this part of our bright lips for spring, focuses on hot pinks and bold fuchsias. There are literally 100’s of hot pinks/fuchsias out this season, from drugstores to department stores, there is a one for each of you. I actually found myself loving these funky, bright colors, and am really excited to add them to my spring/summer look!

1. Wet n' Wild Lipstick in #521 Blue Rose: a fierce, fuchsia with just enough shimmer. If you are lucky enough to have a deep skin tone, this is stunning! $1
2. Ulta Extreme Wear Lip Stain #11: deep fruit punch color stain, great for medium to deep skin. Looks fantastic under a shiny gloss. $8
3. NYC Liquid Lipshine in Fashion Avenue Fuchsia—shimmering warm fuchsia gloss with loads of color. Looks great on every skin tone. I LOVE this one! $3
4. Maybelline Color Sensational Lipcolor in Fifth Avenue Fuchsia: dark, matte magenta. Looks great on medium to deep skin. Very wearable. Really liked this one! $7
5. NYC Kiss Gloss in Murray Hill Melon: bright, neon pink. Sheer enough to look good on every skin tone. $2
6. Bath and Body Works Liplicious Tasty Lip Color in Fruit Punch: sparkly, hot pink. It looks smells and taste great! Good for fair to medium skin. $7
7. Sephora Ultra Vinyl Lip Pencil in Gorgeous Peach: the name is decieving. It is a gorgeous, gold kissed strawberry. A dupe for Nars New Lover Gloss Pencil. Looks great on everyone! **Not pictured here, but worth mentioning are the Miami Pink (bright, glossy bubblegum pink—light skin tones) and Strawberry Delish (vivid strawberry/magenta pink—medium to deep skin tones). These are swatched in my post on the NARS gloss pencils** $12
8. Essence Glossy Lip Balm in Pink Dragonfruit: vibrant, hot pink, in a sparkling, sheer formula. So sexy on fair skin! $1

.These items were purchased by me

New Trend: Grey Nailpolish

The newest trend for nails is matte grey nail polish. It looks dark, trendy, and classy, all at the same time. Grey nail polish is beautiful on every complexion, and goes with everything. You can barely read a magazine or visit a beauty blog these days without seeing a feature on Dior Vernis Gris Montaigne (a beautiful, glossy, matte grey). I will admit, I rushed over to Nordstrom to pick up a $21 bottle as soon as it came out, but then my sanity kicked in. I thought I would look around for dupes. 

Well, ladies you are in luck!!! Due to my craze for grey nail polish, I have found 4 colors that are nearly spot-on with Gris Montaigne, and they are all below $10! Below are photos and swatches.

Polishes L to R: Essence Movie Star ($1), Essence Fivepocket Grey ($2), Sephora Moneymaker ($5), Sephora by OPI Break A Leg-Warmer ($9.50)

Swatches L to R: Essence Movie Star, Essence Fivepocket Grey, Dior Gris Montaigne, Sephora Moneymaker, Sephora by OPI Break A Leg-Warmer

Yes, I will admit that the packaging of the Dior polish is very chic, but I don't really plan to stare at the bottle, or to put it on display in my house, I just want to wear the color on my nails! I always use Out the Door Superfast Dry Topcoat (Sally Beauty Supply--$5), so I can get about a week without chips, with all of these colors. With a variety of prices, now everyone can add this must-have color to their collection.


All of these colors were purchased by me.

NARS Velvet Gloss Lip Pencil vs. Knockoffs

Ok, so by now, I'm sure you've all had plenty of time to "ohh" and "ahh" over the new NARS Velvet Gloss Lip Pencils. I wanted almost every color, the second they came out, but restrained myself (mainly because they are $24 each). I went into my local Sephora yesterday, on a mission: seek out any duplicates or knockoffs for these coveted Gloss Pencils.

The contenders: Sephora Collection Ultra Vinyl Lip Pencil ($12) and Clinique Chubby Stick Moisturizing Lip Colour Balm ($15). Swatches of all are shown below:

L to R: NARS Club Mix, Sephora Fancy Red, NARS Baroque, Sephora Miami Pink, Sephora Sweet Beige, NARS Happy Days, Clinique Mega Melon, Sephora Coral Glow, NARS New Lover, Sephora Gorgeous Peach, Sephora Strawberry Delish.

Verdict: Clinique Mega Melon is a dupe for NARS Happy Days, and saves you about $9. Sephora Gorgeous Peach (the actually color is nothing like the name) is the nearly the exact same color as NARS New Lover (yeah!!!), and saves you $12. I did not try NARS Frivolous, as light pink just doesn't wear well on me.

As for NARS Baroque (deep raspberry), Hopi (coral-nude), and Club Mix (sheer merlot grape), I am sad to report that I was unable to find a cheaper alternative. But if you have done so, please let us know!!

I already have Hopi, and will probably go back for Club Mix. This color really suprised me, it gave a nice vampy, yet sheer lip. I felt like a "bond girl" with this color on!

All of these items were samples, or purchased by me