Benefit Cosmetics: Erase Paste Concealer

Hi everyone,

Today's review is of the Benefit Cosmetics Erase Paste Concealer. The full-sized product retails for $26 for 0.15 oz of product from Sephora, Ulta, and the Benefit Cosmetics website. Sephora describes this concealer as "Benefit Erase Paste is a concentrated, creamy, blendable concealer that instantly brightens and camouflages all-in-one. It has an innovative formula which makes sure signs of stress and fatigue are a thing of the past."

The concealer comes in a small box and includes a mini plastic spatula to scoop the product out and a step-by-step guide with tips and tricks for application. While it is more sanitary to use the scoop to get the product out, I found that as you use up the product it can be difficult to get the final bits out with the scoop and I ended up just using my fingers. Since this product is a thicker and very creamy consistency, you really want to use your fingers to apply this product because the warmth from your fingers helps to heat up the product and apply it smoothly and evenly to the under eye area.

This concealer comes in three different shades: No. 1 Fair, No 2. Medium, and No. 3 Deep. I purchased the shade No. 1 Fair. This concealer has a salmon/peach/pink color to it which acts as a corrector to help brighten the under eyes. While there are only three shades available, since this product is a correcting concealer, you can use it in conjunction with another concealer that perfectly matches your skin tone.

As I mentioned above, the formula of this concealer is very thick and creamy, and it is incredibly moisturizing while still providing great coverage. I struggle with extremely dry under eyes, so not only does this concealer help to correct the dark shadows and bags under my eyes (which we all definitely have), it also provides a lot of moisture and keeps my under eyes hydrated all day long.

As someone with large pores, I was very worried that the moisturizing and light reflecting qualities of this concealer, while canceling out my dark circles, would actually highlight my large pores. I'm happy to report that is definitely not the case! It's amazing how smooth this product makes my under eyes look and how much brightness it brings to my face. I was also extremely impressed with how well this product layers with other concealers, foundations, and powders without looking cakey. I have a ton of fine lines around my eyes and didn't notice this concealer creasing, which is a miracle for me! I think people with more mature skin would also really enjoy this product for that exact reason as it won't settle into wrinkles.

While a lot of pot concealers will dry out pretty quickly (within 6 months I'd say), Erase Paste lasted me for over a year without drying out. 

Final Verdict:
I absolutely love this concealer and it's definitely holy grail status for me. Not only does this product conceal it also color corrects my dark under eye circles and helps bring so much brightness to my under eyes. I really enjoy the thick, creamy formula of this concealer because it provides a ton of coverage but it's also very moisturizing at the same time. Overall, I absolutely love this concealer and I always need to have it on hand. I highly recommend you check it out if you haven't already!

What do you think of Benefit's Erase Paste Concealer? Have you tried any other Benefit concealers like Boi-ing or FakeUp? (Click here to see my review of FakeUp). Please leave a comment below, I'd love to hear from you!

Thanks for reading!
-Meg

Eyes Lips Face (ELF): Moisturizing Lipstick in Wink Pink, Party in the Buff, & Rosy-Go-Round

Hi everyone!

Thanks so much for taking the time to check out my blog, I really appreciate it! Today's post is a review of the Eyes Lips Face (ELF) Moisturizing Lipsticks in the shades Wink Pink, Party in the Buff, & Rosy-Go-Round. These lipsticks retail for $3 from ELF website and there are 16 shades in the product line, ranging from nudes all the way to a black shade and covering everything in between. ELF describes these lipsticks as "The velvety, satin texture glides on lips with vibrant color and luminous shine. Enriched with Shea and Vitamins A, C, & E to nourish and hydrate the lips. The rich, creamy formula seals in moisture for long-lasting wear and comfort."

The packaging of the lipsticks is simple and sleek. It's a solid black tube with the color of the lipstick visible on the bottom.

I really enjoyed the pigmentation and ease of applying Wink Pink and Rosy-Go-Round. I did not like Party in the Buff because it was very patchy and hard to apply an even coat to the lips, as you can see below. Of the three, Rosy-Go-Round is my favorite in terms of formula and Wink Pink is my favorite in terms of lipstick color.

As claimed, I found these lipsticks to be very moisturizing and they provided a nice sheen to the lips. In my opinion, they sort of felt more like a lip balm than a traditional lipstick. They have a lot of slip and as a result can be a little messy. I did not apply these lipsticks with a lip liner, but that might be an option to consider if you want to use one of the more bold colors but don't want to worry about it falling outside your lip line or getting messy. I also found that the color pigmentation of Rosy-Go-Round lasted much longer on my lips than the other two shades which I found I had to reapply fairly often to maintain the color.

Final Verdict

Overall, I think the quality of the lipstick formula varies greatly between shades. I really like and recommend the shades Wink Pink and Rosy-Go-Round, but Party in the Buff was definitely a miss in my opinion because it applied very patchy to the lips. For $3, these lipsticks are definitely a steal, but make sure you do your research on which shades are great and which you should pass by.

Have you tried any of the ELF Moisturizing Lipsticks? Which shades are your favorites? Please leave a comment below, I'd love to hear from you! Thanks for reading!

-Meg

NARS: Lip Gloss in Orgasm

Hi everyone, 

Today's review is of the NARS Lip Gloss in the shade Orgasm. This has long been a cult favorite shade of the NARS blush with the same name, so I was curious to try it as a lipgloss. I have a deluxe sample size of the lip gloss which I received from a Sephora purchase I made a little while ago, but the full size lip gloss retails for $26 at Sephora and the NARS website.

NARS describes this shade as "peach pink with shimmer," which I think is completely accurate. They claim that this is "a moisturizing lip gloss that supports antiaging and imparts long-wearing, sophisticated shine and stunning color for subtle, everyday glamour."

The packaging of this lip gloss is gorgeous and sleek like all NARS products. The wand handle is rubbery while the tube is clear plastic so you can see the color of the product. I also really like the wand applicator, it's designed to hug the lip and it applies the gloss nicely and evenly.

Usually the stickier the lip gloss the longer it lasts on the lips but I really like that this lip gloss formula is non-sticky and yet lasts for a relatively long time on the lips. There's no taste or smell to the product, and once applied the lip gloss stays in place and doesn't slide off the lips. If you like a very shiny lip gloss, this one definitely qualifies!

When swatched on the hand, it shows good color pigmentation, but on the lips, it's pretty much a my lips but better color but with shimmer. I generally dislike shimmer in my lip glosses and this is no different. I love the formula of this lip gloss, but I really hate the shimmer which is probably why I generally don't gravitate toward this lip product over others even though the formula is top-notch. I guess compared to some other glitter lip glosses, this is much more subtle but it's still there and there's a lot of it. 
This lip gloss also claims to be moisturizing which I didn't find to be completely true. It does claim to be enriched with Vitamin E to help lips feel supple and hydrated. It definitely doesn't dry out your lips, but I don't think it really added any moisture to my lips.

Final Verdict

Overall, I really like this lip gloss formula and I highly recommend it if you're a lip gloss lover. I am curious to try some of the non-shimmery high shine shades in this lip gloss line, like Salamanca or Chihuahua, to see if I like those better since I do like the formula of the gloss, just not the shimmer.

Have you tried any of the NARS lip glosses in either the shimmery or high shine finishes? Which shades are your favorites? Please leave a comment below, I'd love to hear from you! 

Thanks for reading!
-Meg