Review: Essence Voluminizing Lash Powder

Essence Volumnizing Lash Powder

Whew, another Essence review! I bought this at the same time that I bought the "I Heart Crazy Volume" mascara that I reviewed in my last post. I bought it under the recommendation of my friend, or as she put it, "You buy it, and then I will read about it on your blog." Cool.

So me and her were both really intrigued by this product, because I mean, what the heck is lash powder?? Since it was only $3.50 CAD, I figured it couldn't hurt to try it out!

Ok, so here's what it is- Lash fibers. It comes with a jar of lash fibers, and a plain old mascara brush. 

It's actually very easy to use. All you do is put on a coat of mascara, and before it dries, apply a coat of lash fibers with the brush it comes with. The fibers will stick to the wet mascara. And then you seal it with another coat of mascara. 

Here's the fibers. 

WARNING: THEY GO EVERYWHERE. Up your nose, in your eyes, everywhere! I would advise closing your eye when you apply the coat of fibers. As long as you don't get them in your eyes, they're pretty easy to brush off everywhere else. Another application tip- tap the excess fibers off your brush before applying. But make sure you get an even coat on the brush.

So I guess we should get to the big question. Do they actually work, or are they just a gimmick? Well, I'm as surprised as you. It actually works!! For $3.50, you get lash fibers that really volumnize! They only claim to volumnize (which they do), but they also add some length.

bare lashes

lashes with mascara

lashes with lash fibers

I apologize for the crappy picture. It was early in the morning, and I was in a rush to get the picture taken. Looking at the two pictures, you can't really see much difference, but trust me when I say that there is definitely more volume with the fibers. 

I would definitely recommend checking these out! 

Thanks for reading!!

Melissa

Review: Essence I Heart Crazy Volume Mascara

Ok, so I am going to make a very bold statement right now- this might possibly be my new favourite mascara. After seeing emilynoel83 raving about this in one of her videos, I had to go out and buy it, seeing as I usually like most of the same mascaras she does. And that definitely goes for this one!

Essence is a brand that only recently got onto my radar. I knew it was available in the US, but I had never seen it in Canada before, until I spotted a display at my Shoppers Drug Mart (not every Shoppers Drug Mart has Essence though, which is sort of sad; only two of mine have it). 

At first I was dubious, because the prices were SO cheap, and it looked sort of juvenile. But I decided to pick up an eyeliner just out of curiosity, and I loved it! I don't have a lot from this brand, but when I was recommended this mascara, I decided "what the heck"- it's only $5.

Yes, you heard right. The mascara that is my new favourite, that is better than any other drugstore or highend mascara I have ever tried, is ONLY FIVE FREAKING DOLLARS. Sorry if I seem excited. I am.

That being said, just because this mascara works well for me, does not mean it will work for everyone! I've tried mascaras that many other people have raved about that I ended up hating. So buy with caution (but really, it will only set you back five dollars).

Ok, anyway, on to the pictures!

The brush is a long, thick rubber brush, with short bristles. When I first saw the brush, I thought it looked like it might clump easily. But it doesn't.

THE FORMULA:

This isn't an overly wet or dry formula, it's sort of the perfect balance. It's a little wetter when you first buy it, and as all mascaras do, it will dry out as the weeks go by.

This claims to give "crazy volume", and it does give volume (though I'm not sure I would admit it to a mental hospital- get it? Because it's not actually that crazy...? Ok, moving on.) But it does give nice volume, but it also gives great length! Best of both worlds! Great, now the Hannah Montana song is stuck in my head. 

So to sum up, it doesn't clump, it gives good volume and good length. Awesome! One down side- it flakes a little bit. But it's a price I'm willing to pay. It doesn't give spidery lashes either, well, unless you put on like ten coats. 

There's only one colour available, which is just plain black. It's a nice rich black, though.

Ok, so now that I've rambled on enough, here is some before and after pictures.

Before

After

So, yeah, I'm in love. I definitely recommend checking this mascara out!!

Thanks for reading!

Melissa

My Brush Collection! Part 2- Eye

Welcome to Part 2 of my brush collection!! Today I'll be going through my eye brushes, and I have a few more of them than face brushes.
So since this needs no introduction, I'll just jump right into them!!

EYE BRUSHES

Flat Eyeshadow Brushes

1) Quo Flat Shadow Brush

Quo Flat Shadow Brush

I love this eyeshadow brush. I got it quite awhile ago, but it is perfect for packing the right amount of colour onto the lid. It makes colours pop, and it is definitely a staple in my collection.

2) EcoTools Concealer Brush

EcoTools Concealer Brush

I know this is marketed as a concealer brush, but I use it as a eyeshadow brush. It doesn't work quite as well as the Quo one; it's bristles don't transfer as much eyeshadow onto the lid.

Crease Blending Brushes

3) Spa Resource Crease Blender Brush

Spa Resource Crease Blender Brush

This is the smallest crease brush I own. I really like it because it gets lots of colour in the crease and just apply a wash of colour, like some bigger crease brushes can. 

This cost me about $4 CAD at my Wal-Mart, which I thought was a great deal for the quality!

4) EcoTools Eye Shading Brush

EcoTools Eye Shading Brush

I use this brush for extreme blending, or for when I want a wash of diluted colour in the crease. It's a good brush, but I don't find myself reaching for it that often. This came in a travel set.

5) EcoTools Highlighting Brush

EcoTools Highlighting Brush

Now this is a brush I reach for often. Like the name says, I use this a lot to highlight my browbone.

I also use it sometimes for putting a bit of colour in my crease. This also came in a travel set.

Eyeliner Brushes

6) Essence Cream Liner Brush

Essence Cream Liner Brush

As the name suggests, this is meant for cream liner. However, I use it with powder eyeshadow sometimes to line my upper and lower lashline, usually with the same colour I used in the crease. This brush definitely gets a lot of use.

7) EcoTools Smudge Eyeliner Brush

EcoTools Smudge Eyeliner Brush

I use this brush alonside the previously mentioned Essence brush. On my upper lashline, after the Essence brush has applied shadow along it, I will use this to smudge the shadow into my crease to add a bit of definition. This is a recent addition to my collection, but is already getting a lot of use.

Dual Ended Brushes

8) Urban Decay Good Karma Shadow/Crease Brush

Urban Decay Good Karma Shadow/Crease Brush

This brush came with my Urban Decay Naked2 Palette, and I absolutely love it. I don't use the shadow end all that often, but I adore the crease end. I use it blend the colours already in my crease, and it will diffuse even the darkest of colours. Absolutely love it. This dual ended brush is not available on its own, but I would recommend the crease brush, which can be bought separately. 

Detail Brushes

9) EcoTools Petite Eye Shading Brush

EcoTools Petite Eye Shading Brush

I use this brush for one thing- for applying a light shadow to my inner eyelid to brighten it up. It fits perfectly on my eye shape. This also came in a travel set.

10) EcoTools Smudge Brush

EcoTools Smudge Brush

Again, this brush only has one purpose- highlighting. I use this to apply a light shimmery shade in my inner corner to brighten up my entire eye. This is a daily task for me, so needless to say, this one gets a lot of use.

So that's it for my entire brush collection!!

Thanks for reading!!

Melissa

Essence Eyeliner in Think Khaki! Review

Today's post will be of an Essence eyeliner, in Think Khaki!

Essence Long Lasting Liner in Think Khaki!

I was walking around in Sephora a while back, and I spotted a Stila eyeliner in the prettiest green colour. You have no idea how tempted I was to get it, but it was just too pricey. So I left it.

Then maybe a week later, I was browsing my local drugstore and came across the Essence display. I spotted this immediately, as it was the exact same colour/style as the Stila one!! And about a tenth of the price!

Needless to say, I bought it (well, obviously...I'm not just taking pictures of this in the store).

It has a nice slim design, easy to throw in a makeup bag for on the go or travel. 

It does have a twist up top, so you don't have to worry about sharpening this. This is useful, because you never know when you need to touch up your eyeliner, and heaven forbid that we use a dull point!

swatch

This is such a beautiful colour, a shimmering moss/forest green. It draws on pigmented and stays on quite a while (I only use it on my upper lashline, so I can not vouch for the staying power on the bottom lashline). 

My rating: 9.5/10

It's a pretty colour, amazingly priced, pigmented and stays on well! What more can you ask for?? This will definitely be a staple item for me in the fall!!!

Thanks for reading!!

Melissa

July Favorites!!!

So since it is now the beginning of August, I thought I would share some products that I was loving in the month of July. So let's get started, shall we?

Benefit's They're Real! Mascara

1. Benefit's They're Real! Mascara: I got this mascara a couple of months ago, along with two other  high end mascaras. When I first started using this, I absolutely loved it. It was my most used out of all three.

But about a month into using it, I started getting really into the other two mascaras and stopped using this one. One day, I decided to use it again, and I didn't really like the results. It made my eyelashes too clumpy. So I put it aside again, and then on my third day of vacation, I decided to try it again...and loved it!! I don't know what changed, maybe the formula dried out enough to give those results? But whatever it was, it made my eyelashes longer, fuller and could hold a curl. A definite favorite!

Sally Hansen Salon Effects Nail Stickers in Kitty Kitty

2. Sally Hansen Salon Effects Nail Stickers in Kitty Kitty: I bought these for my vacation before I left. I had used one of these packs of stickers before in "Laced Up", but never this one. I really like this one better, to be honest. It stayed on longer, and looked more realistic.

This is the look I did with them on my vacation. Sorry for the visible nail beds; these have been on for eight days. But no chipping!! :D

Urban Decay 24/7 Concealer Pencil in Cia

3. Urban Decay 24/7 Concealer Pencil in Cia: I got this for Christmas, and up until recently I hadn't really used it much. I had other concealer that I used, and it was just too thick for an undereye concealer.

swatch...sorry for the blurriness

It just kind of sat in my makeup drawer, until one day, on a whim, I pulled it out to use on a tiny blemish. It worked wonders!! I couldn't see it after one swipe!! Now it is part of my daily makeup routine.

Smashbox Metallic Cream Liner Palette

4. Smashbox Metallic Cream Liner Palette: I had been eyeing this palette in my Sephora for a long time before I finally broke down and bought it.

Top Row (from L-R): Onyx, Topaz, Emerald, Sapphire, Gold

Bottom Row (from L-R): Amethyst, Blue Topaz, Graphite, Platinum, Bronze

Being a neutral eye makeup lover, I was quite surprised that I preferred this palette over the more neutral one that Smashbox also offers. 

My most used shades are Amethyst, Sapphire and Graphite, as you can see from the dents. These are really good shades for any colorful and neutral looks, although I don't quite see the purpose of having a sparkly silver cream liner. But ah well. One out of ten going unused isn't bad at all. I paid $40 CAD for this palette (it is Smashbox, after all) but that's still $4 CAD per eyeliner, which is pretty good. Anyway, these are pigmented and stay on well. Not much more I can say!

Essence Cream Liner Brush

5. Essence Cream Liner Brush: I don't actually use this for cream eyeliner, as all my cream liners have their own little brushes. I use this to darken my lower eyeliner by running some dark eyeshadow under my lower lashes, all while staying close to the lashes, so it blends in with my eyeliner.

I also use this on my upper lashline, too, when I'm using dark eyeshadow for eyeliner. I think I paid $2 CAD approximately for this, which is pretty good for the amount I use it!!!

So that concludes my July favourites!! 

Thanks for reading!!!

Melissa