theNotice: a beauty blog

A few April (and April-ish) picks

– LUSH Big Solid Conditioner. Fragranced with vanilla, jasmine, and tonka bean, this solid conditioner uses sea salt to add volume to fine hair… & comes free of parabens, silicones, and packaging. $9.95 CAD/100g.

– Benefit Fake Up Hydrating Crease-Control Concealer. Like a lot of these spring picks, Fake Up offers more than just colour: silicone- and paraben-free, these sticks (which come in three shades) bring light-diffusing hydration to the table, too. $24 USD/$29 CAD.

– Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure in I Lilac You. How pretty is this 7-in-1 varnish? The reformulated Sally Hansen Complete polishes come in a terrifying 49 shades, and are made to be your base coat, strengthener, growth treatment, colour, and top coat, all in one. $8.95 CAD.

– eos Smooth Sphere Organic Lip Balm Duo. With one best-selling fan favourite (the pink Strawberry Sorbet) & one set-exclusive flavour (the elusive purple Passion Fruit), this is one set that you can’t miss… if you can find it before it sells out, that is. $5.99 USD/$7.99 CAD.

– Yves Saint Laurent Rouge Volupté Shine in Pink in Confidence. YSL’s new Rouge Volupté Shines may be sheerer than most makeup addicts would like, but I love the vibe of this paraben-free dusty pale pink. $34 USD/$39 CAD.

What’s on your radar for the spring?

I’ll be the first to admit that I’m awful at planning things in advance, as you might have noticed. (Full disclosure; I managed to schedule tomorrow’s review for this morning. It was up for a little over three hours, so if any of you are wondering where it went — well, went to go hide behind Nov. 1st for the meantime.)

So, here’s one for all of you who want a cool, wearable Halloween look that requires almost no planning. Because, let’s be honest, sometimes planning is just one of those things that should (but totally never manages to) happen.

For a full tutorial, don’t miss this post on She Said Beauty! 

Not just easy to co-ordinate, this look is pretty easy to assemble, too. Start out with a basic face; medium-coverage foundation; plenty of powder and contouring. The lip and cheek colours are up to you (I love a good reddish lip in the fall), as is the brow shape — just make sure to fill them; with a focal point away from your eyes, you’ll want to make sure they’re still adequately framed.

If you’re adding illuminator to your cheekbones, try to pick a powder product to get better wear out of the stars.

Start your eyes with a basic, matte smokey eye, then add a little bit of interest for Halloween’s sake. I went with a metallic gold, lining my upper lashline with LUSH Fantasy & taking Fyrinnae Polar Bear through the inner corners. Then, after mascara, I took Fantasy along a few of the tips of my upper lashes, too. (You can see it more in the flash photo, later in this post.)

Another option that’s just as easy is to sparkle with pointed intent — pick a loose pigment with a larger particle size of shimmer, then pat it onto the middle of your lids and/or the inner corners. Don’t blend it too well, leaving it instead to juxtapose with the matte lid shades, and choose something with coloured reflects (eg. red at an angle or with flash, but unnoticeable straight-on) for extra impact.

From there, grab some lash glue & craft store confetti to take the look from pretty to Halloween-levels-of-awesome. I kind of cheated on both, to be honest; instead of lash glue, I used an Annabelle Glitterama Liquid Eyeliner (glitter liners are my stash secret for when I’m out of proper fixatives) & picked the gold and silver stars out of a rainbow mix of loose stars.

What? It’s not poor planning; it’s totally innovation.

Keep reading! »

The product: LUSH Emotional Brilliance Liquid Eyeliner in Fantasy

The shade: Okay, I absolutely have to start out talking about the gold tones in Fantasy. I was in raptures when I saw the promo image, and while the product looks a little too warm in the bottle, it is absolutely gorgeous when applied. 

Not too yellow and not too bronze, Fantasy applies with complete opacity in just one swipe, shines like the light of a thousand suns a seriously brilliant metallic-finish nail varnish, and almost, almost makes me want to give up my much-loved Marcelle Pure Gold Lux Diamond Liquid Eyeliner entirely.

(But I have both, now, and who says you can’t love more than one gold liner? They’re not even the same finish; it’s totally worth owning both!)

LUSH Fantasy Liquid Eyeliner – swatched/applied

LUSH Fantasy Liquid Eyeliner Swatch (both gold swatches on the left)

The formula: Thicker than expected (but not quite too thick), I found Fantasy to be quite comfortable to wear — unlike some liners, it wasn’t heavy or sticky, and I couldn’t feel it on my lids after it had set.

I don’t get all-day wear out of this, but LUSH kept true to their smudge-free promise: when it does begin to wear off, it starts with bits of gold glitter, and (if you leave it on for long enough & accidentally rub your eyes not that I did or anything) it’ll wear away in little gold flakes. Not flawless, but I definitely prefer it over smudging or fading!

Just one thing to note, though; this is the sort of formula that dries into a layer, so clean up any errors you make in application before it sets. If you wait until after, you risk your eyeliner unravelling in a fashion not dissimilar from that of a hand-knitted sweater with a pull.

More lid swatches of LUSH Fantasy’s gorgeous, metallic goldness

Watch out! for: The first time I tried this liner, I wasn’t thrilled with the texture… or the wear time. Upon closer inspection, though, I noticed a thin layer of liquid sitting on top of the product — not curdling, just a bit of separation. With a few inversions, it mixed right back in, and I found the texture to be much more workable (and the wear to be much less flakey!)

It gets quite hot in my makeup room during the summer, and Fantasy was hardly the only product to separate. My Emotional Brilliance cream eyeliner and lipstick were fine, but if you pick up Fantasy or Independent, make sure to invert your products every now and then for the best results.

Seriously, how gorgeous is that gold?!

The packaging: Like a lot of you, I had my worries about this packaging — but I didn’t have any problems at all with it, to be honest.

With a fine-tipped brush applicator (call me crazy, but I prefer it over a sponge or felt tip for a formula like this one), it’s easy to get as thick or thin of a line as you need. The handle is a little awkward, as expected, but (thankfully!) more of an irritant than an impairment. It takes a bit of getting used to, but I’m sure you’ll manage ;)

LUSH Emotional Brilliance Liquid Eyeliner – applicator tip

The verdict?

I was bracing myself for Fantasy to let me down, but… surprisingly enough, it didn’t! Gorgeously opaque and with a great warm-cool balance (especially for a gold, which can be tricky), I loved this as both an eyeliner and an eyeshadow — photos of the latter behind the cut.

At $22.95 for 0.2oz (same as the other Emotional Brilliance colour products), I think LUSH’s new liners are worth checking out if you’re looking for a gorgeous colour selection with good wear time. They’re not perfect, but for shade as gorgeous as this one, I’m definitely willing to allow for a bit of wiggle room.

Additional photos, details, ingredients, & more »

The product: LUSH Emotional Brilliance Liquid Lipstick in Perspective

(I thought about grouping these reviews, but let’s be realistic: there’s no way that post would have been under the 1000 word mark. Liquid lipstick today; eyeliner and cream eyeshadow coming up soon!) 

The texture: Okay, alright, so I was ridiculously excited for the new Liquid Lipsticks — but I kind of hated the formula. It’s super-smooth in the sort of way that’s almost oily, and I know (I know, I know) some people adore formulas that feel like oil and powder, but I’m sticking resolutely to my fondness for the ones that feel more like lip balm and pigment.

To be fair, though, it’s really down to a matter of preference. I’m not a fan of products like this one, but it was certainly lightweight, non-drying, and pigmented! 

Swatched from L-R: LUSH Liquid Eyeliner in Fantasy, Liquid Lipstick in Perspective, and Cream Eyeshadow in Wise.

LUSH Emotional Brilliance swatches in direct sunlight.

The surprise: While the feel of this lipstick is too oily for me, I’m actually quite fond of the formula as a liquid blusher. Thin and easily blendable, it both layers and absorbs easily — reminiscent of the Clarins Instant Light Blush I reviewed last Spring, both in format and in price, but with a better shade range (and wider availability).

With a jojoba oil and candelilla wax base, the hydrating formula feels too oily for my lips, but works well (and wears well) on my cheeks. Enough said.

The shade: Perspective is described as a natural, dusky rose, but I wasn’t crazy about it against my skintone. (See it worn as a blusher in this Anna Karenina makeup look from last week.) Unlike many of the other shades, it has a finely-milled shimmer component, which translates a bit frostily on my dry lips — but give it a look if you have a warmer skintone & happen to be on the market for a neutral lip shade!

I’m not sure if it varies by colour, but this one never quite dried down on my lips. From reviews that I’ve read of the Emotional Brilliance line, though, I’m willing to guess there’s a bit more pigment (and a slightly drier finish) in some of the bolder shades, so do try to read reviews for the exact shade you’ll be buying!

LUSH Perspective Liquid Lipstick – on cheeks

The verdict?

I’m a bit divided on this one, to be honest. On one hand, $22.95 for 0.2oz isn’t a bad price (though nor is it a fantastic one), and I love the way LUSH has set up the Emotional Brilliance range. On the other, though, I wasn’t crazy about this lipstick — but I think a lot of that had to do with the shade.

For a hydrating, slick-finish, paraben-free liquid lipstick (or for a seamless, silicone-free liquid blusher), give this formula a try. I wasn’t wooed by Perspective, but there are some definite stunners in the range!

(I have my eye on Drive, Glamorous, Decisive, and Confident… will have to check them out in-store sometime. Photos behind the cut!)

Keep reading! »

LUSH Emotional Brilliance reviews: Wise (Cream Eyeshadow), Perspective (Liquid Lipstick), and Fantasy (Liquid Eyeliner).

That’s right; another not-quite-real post. Because I’m (still) swimming in coursework, and the time that I haven’t spent studying, I’ve spent trying to fight off an unexpected midsummer flu. (And, seriously? Who gets the flu in the summer?!)

Anyhow. Once I mange to dig myself out of this summer-term black hole, this is what you can expect to see on theNotice! 

(To be totally honest, though, you’ll probably see some of these things before term ends because I have no self-control occasionally take breaks from neuropsychology to eat, sleep, shower, and blog.)

Lise Watier Summer Sunset flash reviews: oh my god, I can’t believe I still haven’t finished covering this collection. I am the worst when it comes to “out of sight, out of mind,” I swear!!

Senna Mod Muse eyeshadows: same for these. They’re gorgeous, but I have yet to post the swatch photos sitting somewhere on my MacBook!

Japonesque Safari Chic review. No elaboration needed — how cute is that brush?

Hard Candy Glamoflauge: I love this one, so expect shade comparisons (Light vs Medium) in the near future!

Tatcha skincare overview and regimen review… once I get my act together and actually try it.

And, finally, Physician’s Mineral Wear Talc-Free Pressed Powder, because SPF is definitely “in” for the summer.