May Drugstore Haul & Update

Hello lovelies! <3

I've been so bad about updating my blog. T.T I'm soooo sorry!
However, I've decided to go back to filming again. I tried filming a tutorial today, but it didn't work out. I think I'm a little rusty again from my long break from youtube.

Here's a picture of the drugstore haul from my video:

To be honest though, I had a few more products that I wanted to include in my May drugstore haul video, but I didn't want to go over the 10 minute limit that I have. (oh and this was a collective haul. I didn't purchase everything from one trip.) Most of the products are skincare products.



Products included in my drugstore haul:
Neutrogena Healthy Skin Liquid Foundation

I will be doing a more in-depth review of this foundation in another blog post or video, so stay tuned for that!

Here's the foundation when opened. As you can see, there is no pump. :( 

Maybelline Dream Matte Powder

This powder is awesome, awesome, awesome! =)

I got this powder because of the many good ratings given by other gurus on YouTube. Knowing me, I had to go out and buy one myself so that I can try it. I am very impressed with this powder. It's silky smooth and doesn't make my face appear cakey at all!

The packaging is really interesting. The mirror swivels out from the bottom and has a sponge.

The top opens up to the powder. Pretty cool, right? ^o^

Loreal Studio Secrets Professional Magic Perfecting Base

I blogged about this a few posts back. Click here to read the blog post to learn more details about this product.

Burt's Bees Herbal Blemish Stick (contains tea tree oil)

I've been really curious about tea tree oil and to fulfill my curiosity, I'm putting it to a test. At the drugstore, they were selling tea tree oil, but I decided to get this product instead since some gurus swear by this product for battling break outs and acne. The Burt's Bees Herbal Blemish Stick contains all natural ingredients and not only does it contain tea tree oil, it contains willowbark extract, which is basically salycyllic acid.

Here are the ingredients inside this blemish stick.

So, I will be putting this product to the test and see if it work for me. One thing about tea tree oil is that it doesn't work for everyone. I will keep you all posted about this product and if it's successful, I will gladly give a few away. Keep on the lookout for future updates!

Oh and another thing... this product smells unpleasant in my taste. It smells like a mixture of herbs and black licorice. I'm not the biggest fan of licorice. The product also stings when it's applied.

The applicator is the rolling type. Not too sure about how sanitary it is, but I guess it's fine if you only use it on yourself.

Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Liquid Daily Sunblock with SPF 55

This is much needed for the upcoming summer. I don't tan. I burn almost immediately because I'm so pale. I'm always on the lookout for great sunblock, but I hate applying the kind that's thick and leaves a white cast on the skin. It's so unflattering and makes me look ghostly white.

What I love about this sunscreen is that it is meant to be worn invisibly under makeup. The consistency is liquid and blends sheer into the skin.

This sunblock has become my HG product for summer. What's nice is that this can be applied all over the body as well.. not just for the face!

Thank you everyone for being so patient with me and those who are following me on twitter and my blog.

Your support is much appreciated! <3

oh and here are some random photos that I took while filming this video. ^o^
I think I was having too much fun with my new nerdy glasses!

Love,
Mindy

Swatches and Review of My Massive E.L.F. Cosmetics Haul

I'm so excited to finally share these swatches, pics, and initial review of my E.L.F. products I received yesterday!
These are my first E.L.F. makeup products and I'm very impressed so far!
The quality of the products that I bought are far superior to the price. :) Before I purchased these products, I read a bunch of reviews and chose the products that received good ratings and reviews. Most of the products I chose were lip products because E.L.F. lip products seemed to be the popular ones.
I hope I don't overwhelm you with all this information because this blog post is going to be LONG! Just warning you. ^o^

First of all, I'll review the company, store, and customer service.
The E.L.F. website was extremely accessible and easy to navigate.  I think this is really important because I get easily turned off by websites that are hard to work with and navigate. I also had a quick question so I called the customer service number and they were really helpful.  They also have an option of paying with PayPal which is a definite plus for me because I like paying with PayPal.  It's much safer and saves so much time!
There are so many coupon codes to be used for E.L.F. website purchases.  I recommend that you sign up on their list so they send you offer codes for free shipping, discounts, etc.
Shipping cost felt reasonable for me since I ordered so many products and only had to pay the flat U.S. shipping rate of $6.95.  I guess it could be a con for someone who wants to buy only a few products from E.L.F.
The shipping time was decent since they are located in New Jersey and I'm in Los Angeles.  It took a little less than a week and they were fast with giving me my tracking information.
I paid only $24 + $6.95 shipping for all the 28 products I received.  I'm super pleased with the great deal since that's like about $1 for each product. yayy!

All the items were nicely packaged in a big white box:

I was so excited to see everything I ordered inside the box. =D

I will go through each of the products that I ordered.

e.l.f. Mineral Eyeshadow

$3 each

The loose eyeshadows came in these little jars.  The bottom of the jar tells the name and you can see the color of the eyeshadow from the bottom.

Once I opened the little jar, there was a  protector over the holes where the powder comes out.

What's nice is that there are four little holes so that the shadows don't come out all at once and aren't too messy. :)

The shades I got were mostly shimmery/frosty and I got one shadow that was matte.

The colors I got were: Angelic, Caffeinated, Celebrity, Elegant, Glamorous, Golden, Natural, Sassy, Temptress (matte), Trendy, and Wild

Here comes the swatches! :) I am wearing Urban Decay Primer Potion underneath these shadows.

With Flash

Without Flash

Initial Review:

These shadows are super pigmented! I was really surprised by how little I needed to get the vibrant color.  Like any loose shadow, I recommend that you pack it on with a brush like a MAC 139 brush or a dense eye shadow brush, rather than blending the colors onto the eyelid. I love the frosty shadows the most. I love how they shimmer perfectly!

I also tried foiling the shadows (using a slightly damp brush) and the color payoff is very vibrant. I honestly can't tell the different between using a dry brush and damp brush with these eyeshadows.

One thing I noticed though was how little I got of the shadow called "wild."  The jar was only filled about halfway compared to the other full jars. I don't know how that happened but it is sort of a pity since I really like the color "wild" a lot.  Oh well.

The only matte color I bought, "temptress" isn't as pigmented as the other shades, but it may be the color itself. It's a pretty light pink color.
So, for my first impression, these shadows are excellent! I'm not really a loose pigment or eye shadow fan because they're a little too messy for me, but these E.L.F. mineral shadows have somewhat made me change my mind. :)

Now on with all the lip products!

5 Pc. Hypershine Gloss Set in Pink
$5 a set / $1 each
I was super excited to try these glosses out! These glosses are sold separately or in a pack of 5.

Colors in order from left to right: Pink 2, Pink 1, Berry Bliss, Va Va Voom, Pink 4

The lip gloss comes out when you twist the end several times. The brush is nice and soft.  If you twist too much, the gloss will get a little messy. I learned it the hard way at first. LOL.

Here are the swatches:

With Flash

Without Flash

As you can see, Pink 1, Berry Bliss, and Pink 4 are pretty much the same colors.  All the gloss colors have glitter in it.

Initial Review:

These glosses are really sticky. I personally am not too crazy about sticky glosses.  It goes away after a while though.  Also, the smell of these glosses is interesting.  They smell like syrup or brown sugar.  Something really sugary smelling like that. ^o^  

I think they will look great over lipstick. I haven't tried it yet, but I would definitely wear with lipstick.  I don't think I would wear alone.  Also, they are really glittery.  Let me emphasize glitter. LOL.  I really like how the applicator is a brush and the twisty way off getting the gloss out is fun! :) I wish there were more differences in colors between Pink 1, Berry Bliss, and Pink 4.  Oh well. I guess there are slight differences in the amount of glitter!

Luscious Liquid Lipstick in Baby Lips, Perfect Pink, Pink Lemonade '06, and Strawberry
$1 each

Colors in order from top to bottom: Pink Lemonade '06, Perfect Pink, Baby Lips, Strawberry

The reason why I got these liquid lipsticks was because of the high ratings and rave reviews.  I really get swayed by excellent reviews and raves of products. :D

These are also the twisty kinds.  Instead of a brush tip applicator, they have sponge tip applicators.  Also, what's interesting is how the sponge tip applicators have tiny holes which the product comes out of.

Here are the pics of the different colors:

Then here are the swatches on my arm.

Initial Review:
These liquid lipsticks are so minty like my Burt's Bees lip balm! They are so cool and refreshing. The pigmentation is okay.  I wouldn't go as far as calling them "lipsticks" but they have more pigmentation than the hyper-shine glosses.  They are not too sticky and I like how they feel moisturizing, even if I haven't worn them for a long time.  I could wear this alone and not have to put anything over it.  These can also be used as glosses over lipsticks.  I would say Pink Lemonade and Strawberry are the most pigmented out of the four. Strawberry is a pretty dark pink/light red color! Love it! Oh and they smell minty as well! =)

Super Glossy Lip Shine Box Set of 5 in Creamy Goodness
$5 a set / $1 each
Just like the hyper-shine glosses, these can be bought separately.

Colors in order from top to bottom: Candlelight, Goddess, Watermelon, Pink Kiss, Malt Shake

Here are the swatches on my arm:

Without Flash

With Flash

Initial Review:

I must say, these are my favorite lip products I purchased from E.L.F.  The colors are super pretty and I love the sheen that they have! They aren't too sticky either so it feels perfect on the lips. I'm surely in love with these. The colors are super pretty and I honestly don't have any complaints with these. They are packed into a tube and I guess the only thing I don't like is how it's a little hard to control how much comes out of the tube when applying on the lips, but that doesn't bother me too much.  They are also not glittery at all.  The perfect gloss! They have a sweet, fruity scent.

Contouring Blush and Bronzing Powder
$3 each

The packaging is excellent.  It comes with a mirror and feels really sturdy.  Great for on-the-go!

Here are the swatches of the blush and bronzer:

Initial Review:

At first glance, I thought this was similar to the Nars Orgasm Blush and Laguna Bronzer duo.  I don't own the Nars duo (which I'm hoping to get my hands on soon) but I actually don't think the blush is similar to Nars Orgasm in my opinion.  You may be wondering how I know this, but I've pretty much memorized the Nars Orgasm color and Orgasm is much lighter.  I would say the E.L.F. blush is close to Nars Deep Throat blush.  I'm actually going to be getting the Nars duo soon and I will do an exact comparison for you. :)

When I applied it this morning, I was overwhelmed by how pigmented the blush and bronzer was.  Without thinking, I took my blush brush and swiped it over the blush about two times and tapped off the access and then I put it on my cheeks.  The outcome was super bright cheeks. I think one swipe of the brush and you'll be fine!  As you may be able to tell in the pictures, the blush and bronzer are pretty shimmery and have gold flex.  However, the shimmer is not overwhelming at all. I love the blush a little more than the bronzer, but both are great! Just remember, you only need a little bit and you're good to go. :)

I don't know why it took me so long to buy this blush and bronzer duo.  For $3, I say..... "Get it!" ^o^

Eye Shadow Brush ($1) and Small Smudge Brush ($3)

Eye Shadow Brush

 Initial Review:

The eye shadow brush was a lot smaller than I expected. Also, it's super light. I guess at first glance and feel, it felt kind of cheap compared to my other brushes, but I guess we can't expect much from $1 brushes? Wait, but I was proved wrong.  The eye shadow brush is really soft and dense! That's what matters, right? I used this brush to apply my mineral shadows this morning and worked great! Definitely a steal for $1! Now I know why everyone has several of these brushes.

The small smudge brush head is really small.  It's tiny.  I included a comparison picture of the brush head with the eye shadow brush and the eye shadow brush is small as well.  I wouldn't use this to smudge my eye liner, but I figured out today that it's perfect for lining the lower lash line with an eye shadow and it's great for working as a brush used for anything needed for precision (eye liner, shadow, etc.).  Although the brush head is small, the brush itself is really skinny and long

So this post was sooo long.  It took me forever to make, but I feel happy that I was able to finish it for all of you. :)

Oh I forgot, E.L.F. included a free gift for me: Candy Shop Lip Gloss Tin in Coconut Crazed

I personally am not too crazy about any coconut scents, but hey... who doesn't like free stuff, right? :)

Okay. This is the end of my super long post! For real, I'm going to finish this up. xD

Overall, I'm genuinely impressed by the quality of E.L.F. products! I really recommend that you all check out their website: http://www.eyeslipsface.com.  They ship worldwide as well!

Please let me know if you have any detailed questions! I hope you found this helpful and it means so much that you read this! =D

Disclaimer: I purchased all the products mentioned in this review.  I am not affiliated with the company mentioned and I am not being paid to make this review in any way. This is my honest opinion.