theNotice: a beauty blog

I took a few quick face of the day shots with Holiday’s Korres Goddess Beauty Colour Collection last month, but I had forgotten to post them in all the Christmas rush.

The set is no longer available online (though all of its component parts are!), but all the same, here are the photos. Despite the fact that it isn’t a particularly wintery look, I’m rather fond of the way these products come together — they do a great job of creating an altogether fictional glow, which I think we could all use this early in the year.

Cherry Full Color Lip Gloss in Pale Pink

Despite being such a light shade, Pale Pink sits well on the lips, if a little sheerly. The shimmer translates well into plushness, particularly on film, and the colour doesn’t settle terribly into lines (as many light pinks will do.) $22.50 and comfortable; you could do worse.

I’m not head over heels for the scent (think Maynard’s Sour Cherry Blasters), but I’m fairly certain that’s just because it gives me a massive craving for sweets.

Magic Light Face Contouring Powder Trio in Santorini

Slightly too chunky for me in real life; absolutely gorgeous in photographs. Warm without pulling orange, and easy enough to use in strips — more of the bronze to sculpt, for instance, and a blend of the pink and highlighter to lift the cheek. $36.50 CAD and beautifully packaged.

Volcanic Minerals Volumizing Mascara in Obsidian Black

A great, natural lift with a soft finish. Too much smudging for me (and the $26 CAD price tag could be better), but the lash itself is quite pretty.

I appreciated having this in the set, but perhaps wouldn’t buy it on its own — while I love a natural-looking lash, I want it to last a (ridiculous) 16 hours, because I am lazy and hate having to touch up my undereye area just because my mascara didn’t feel like sticking around.

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How was that for three products in under 400 words? I’m a little proud, but mainly just very sleepy.

Have a great Monday, folks. 

The product: Burt’s Bees Best of Burt’s Bees set (Holiday 2012)

This year’s Best of Burt’s Bees set ($24.99 CAD) contains three full-size Burt’s bestsellers, and is basically a hit of major hydration in a box. With targeted treatments for dry hands, feet, and cuticles, I like to think of it as my little “prairie saviour” box — perfect for soothing your holiday-shopping-tired feet and wind-chapped hands. 

(And by wind-chapped, I totally mean shopping-mall-chapped.)

The Lemon Butter Cuticle Cream

A Burt’s Bees classic, the Lemon Butter Cuticle Cream is waxy and unyielding, and takes a moment to apply . That said, though, it does its job well — that same waxy texture also means that it’s highly portable (in any climate), and stays on your cuticles like nobody’s business.

I haven’t tested this out long enough to give it a ringing endorsement, but from what I’ve seen of it so far, it definitely does a great job of locking in moisture without getting your fingertips or hands greasy. You don’t have to use a lot of it each time, and what you do put on withstands a respectable amount of wear & washing, to boot.

The Coconut Foot Cream

Rather unexpectedly (for someone who rarely-if-ever uses foot creams), this was my favourite of the bunch! Despite living on the prairies and having chronically dry skin, my feet don’t actually tend to get terribly dry — less so than the rest of my body, even.

The Burt’s Bees Coconut Foot Cream is strangely gelatinous, while still being petroleum-free and 99% natural. Like their Peppermint Foot Lotion, Burts’ coconut cream feels luxurious and has a bit of a minty tingle — but that’s where the comparisons end.

Where the peppermint lotion is thin, white, and sinks in quickly, this one reminds me of a thick honey butter, flavoured with a slightly-spicy coconut and a little sticky. It’s made to sink in overnight (follow up with cotton socks, of course), and delivers deep hydration while having what I’d actually describe as quite a pleasing scent!

The Almond Milk Beeswax Hand Cream

Like the coconut foot cream, Burts’ Beeswax Hand Cream has a lovely, interesting texture — in this case, the texture of a waxy butter, solid in the jar but which melts easily as it’s worked into the skin.

While rich and moisturizing in terms of formula, my complaint with this product lies in its portability and fragrance. The latter is overdone (a problem I have with a surprising number of Burt’s Bees products), and has a sharp, synthetic edge that may be headache-inducing for some. And, while the 2 ounce jar is a great sink-side or desk-drawer addition, it’s far from portable — just something to consider, with the way hand creams need re-application in climates like the prairies!

The verdict?

At $25, this set is a good deal… but only if you already love all three of the included products. With the way I (don’t) go through products, I tend to prefer sets like the Burt’s Bees Tips n Toes Kit  — that is, ones that let you try out a lot of different products, rather than those that get you stocked up with old standbys.

So, while I liked this set, I’d actually recommend that you give the other one a go, instead! (Or, hey, any one of these.) Something like the Tips ‘n Toes Kit is just $19 CAD for the same awesome formulas plus three others, but minus the commitment of full-sized containers.

Or, y’know, skip the hand care entirely and just go for the Coconut Foot Cream. I’m having a lot of fun with the texture! And, okay, the giant hit of moisture and tasty fragrance are pretty nice too, I guess.

Keep reading! »

The product: Korres Goddess Beauty Colour Collection

Lovingly boxed up at Sephora this Holiday season is the gorgeous Korres Goddess Beauty Colour Collection. While I think the name is a little awkward (is it the Goddess collection? Is it the Goddess Beauty collection?), the products themselves more than make up for it.  

The Volcanic Minerals Volumizing Mascara

Also included is a small tube of Korres’ Volcanic Minerals mascara, in Obsidian Black. I have to say, I love the packaging of this one — even though it isn’t full-sized, the design is great. Slim, easy to handle, and intricately patterned, the rich brown hue just feels very Korres (as it probably should!)

The brush is fairly standard, as is the product itself. I can get a full day’s wear out of this, if you define a full day as 6 hours, but I do have to sweep under my lower lashes with a cotton bud at least twice before hitting the 12 hour mark. It leaves my lashes feeling (and looking) full & a little heavy after just one swipe, dropping the curl a bit but going on clump-free enough to make up for it.

Korres Volcanic Minerals Volumizing Mascara ingredients

The Cherry Lip Gloss in (Pale Pink)

If you thought this looked familiar, you’re not wrong: Pale Pink is numbered as Cherry Lip Gloss #23. If you think back to last Holiday season, though, you might remember seeing a similar product on theNotice — Light Purple, incidentally also #23.

Check out swatches and photos behind the cut, but the two are the same gloss, re-imagined. The new version has less chunky shimmer and more pigment, but while it’s slightly easier to wear than Light Purple, I still find it to be a little too milky & shimmery for my liking.

Lipgloss ingredients

Korres Goddess Beauty Colour Collection swatches

The Magic Light/Face Contouring Powder Trio (in Santorini)

And, finally, the one you’ve all been waiting for!

The Santorini cheek trio is absolutely gorgeous — easily one of the most beautiful pressed powders in my collection, just based off the way it looks in the pan. The detailed top does wear off, but the shimmer goes right down, so what you see (product-wise) is what you get.

Shimmery and glowy, this trio is optimal for light skintones of any temperature. It’ll fit a much broader range, though; cool to warm skintones from fair to medium should be able to pull this off without a hitch.

The blush and bronzer are warmer and more pigmented than the highlighter, but both build up & sheer out easily. My issue with the palette, though, is that for as luminescent as it applies… it’s pretty glittery, at least for me. The glitter isn’t hugely obvious in indoor lighting, and photographs absolutely beautifully, but it is there if you go looking for it — which I can’t stand.

I can still see this on my cheeks after a good 12 hours of wear (and a nap!), but I like my shimmer a lot more subtle than most bloggers. Every other review I’ve read for this face trio has described the shades as finely-milled and glowy–and have even recommended it for use as an all-over face powder–so do my little neurosis in mind.

Cheek trio ingredients

The verdict?

This set was originally $42, which made it a good deal — but it’s been marked down to $29 USD/$39 CAD, which absolutely makes it a great one. (In Canada, the price works out to just $9.75 per product. Yep, that $36 cheek trio just got a whole bunch cheaper.)

Paraben-free and just so, so pretty, the Goddess set is a great gift for a natural beauty lover – even if that beauty lover is you. It’s not perfect in my mind (I think the cheek palette is just too glittery for that), but I think my shimmer-sensitive eye is alone on this: most other bloggers describe Santorini as a sheer product with a gorgeous “natural glow,” after all.

One last note: this set includes a mini Quercetin & Oak Antiageing Primer (10 mL), which is a great way to give Korres primers a proper try before committing to a whole tube. Check out a full review here.

Keep reading; I’m not done yet! »

At long last – I’ve finally gotten my act together! As promised, here are full-face swatches (honestly, though, what are those called?! I hardly think they can be referred to as “swatches” at this point) of Marcelle and Garnier’s BB creams.

So, without further adieu…

Bare, freshly-cleansed skin!

Marcelle BB Cream Beauty Balm in Light to Medium

For my skintone, Marcelle’s Light to Medium was a good match – darker than I am, but not by too much. I really liked the neutral tone of the product, which did a great job of cancelling out both redness and sallowness, resulting in an overall illusion of evenness and “perfect skin.” (The satin finish is great, too, which also adds to the illusion.)

I was particularly impressed with the way it tackled my undereye circles and the redness I have in my eye area – I probably wouldn’t leave the house without concealer, just on principle, but I’d feel comfortable having forgotten to conceal if I was wearing this.

Wearing Marcelle’s BB Cream (both images)

Left: bare skin / Right: wearing Marcelle’s BB Cream

The weird little box in the left corner is a colour sampling of my skintone – the left side being bare, and the right, with BB cream. For consistency, I grabbed the colours from the same spot on my cheek in both photos. (Freckle-mapping for the win!)

As you can tell from the colour swatches, Marcelle’s BB adds depth of tone to my skin, and has a clever mix of yellow/greyish pigments to neutralize redness.

Garnier BB Cream Miracle Skin Perfector in Medium/Dark

I was less impressed with Garnier’s product, but I wanted to share photos for a very specific reason – I think it would be great as a Prtty Peaushun-like product (but, y’know, for your face.) As mentioned in the review, I was sent Medium/Dark, which really isn’t a match for me. However, it turned out to be great for faking a darker skintone, with results that are still very “real skin.”

As a BB cream in and of itself, though, I was less impressed – I found it left me overly dewy, a bit sticky, and while it did a good job of adding warmth, it failed to counteract redness.

Wearing Garnier’s BB Cream

Left: bare skin / Right: wearing Garnier’s BB Cream

A breakdown (with scribbles!) »

We actually did a “Feb faves” giveaway, but that’s over and done with – so I suppose these aren’t really February’s favourites. They’re just… current favourites. (Which makes sense, because I’ve loved a few of them for quite a few months now!)

Annabelle A-21 Large Shader Brush ($8.50)

How have I not reviewed this brush yet?! I’ve had it for ages, and I always reach for it – it’s quite basic, sure, but it does its job well. Plus, the quality is more on par with $20 brushes than $8 ones (which, yes, it is).

Prada Infusion d’Iris ($105)

I’m sitting on the review until closer to Mother’s Day (because I think this would make a lovely gift), but in the meantime: just know that I love this! It’s a very classic fragrance; feminine without being girly, and perfect for spring.

Marcelle Rouge Xpression, Paris Rose ($11.95)

Paris Rose is such a romantic shade; gorgeous on lips but perfect on cheeks. (Plus, it’s ‘cone-free, so I don’t need to worry about breakouts). Photos and swatches here, and I’ve got a few lip swatches for you later this week as well.

Ellis Faas Eyeliner E501 ($38)

Another product that I absolutely cannot get enough of. It’s incredibly easy to apply and delivers a really intense, precise black line. Almost everything creases on my lids, be it liquid, cream, gel, pencil… but this wears like metal. No fading, no bleeding – I can literally go all day and night with this liner and it looks perfect until I rinse it off.

(The price kills me, but formula-wise? It’s honestly the best liquid liner I’ve ever come across, and that’s not an honour I’ll hand out lightly.)

Marcelle Essentials Moisture Lotion ($19.95

I don’t have a review ready for this one yet (I’d like to try it out for longer and make sure it doesn’t make me turn green), but it’s fab! Silicone-, paraben-, and scent-free, it sinks in quickly and leaves my skin feeling deliciously velvety. Bonus points for the reasonable price and sleek packaging (though I’d like it even more with a pump!)

Balenciaga Paris ($95)

The comments have been lost, but here is the original review. This easily ranks in my top three favourite fragrances – it’s quite versatile and never gets boring. Sexy without being cloying, fresh but not sharp… honestly, it’s exquisite. Give it a sniff for me sometime? I promise: you won’t regret it.