Eyes

Bi-Weekly WTF :: Vol 16 – Naked Palette Discontinued

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After eight years, Urban Decay is laying to rest the groundbreaking Naked Palette. That’s right, a favorite of mine, maybe yours, definitely thousands of others – is facing discontinuation.

Gasp.

The Naked Palette Announcement

Cheekily, Urban Decay even went as far as to make a funeral video for the iconic palette o’ neutrals.

Wende says, in essence, that it is time to move on. Naked was a huge milestone back in 2010, but it is time to retire it and move onto other things.

I’m desperately hoping they surprise and delight. One one hand, if the Aphrodisiac palette is any indication, we’ve got good things in store. On the other, Trendmood leaked a brand new Naked Cherry palette … that I can entirely do without.

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July 2018 Favorites

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July 2018 Favorites
July 2018 Favorites 1. Mountain Rose Herbs Argan Oil $27 / 2. Biore Aqua Rich Watery Essence SPF 50, $12 / 3. Clarins Glow Booster, $32 / 4. Perricone MD No Eyeshadow Eyeshadow, $35
Thanks for bearing with me for a late Favorites post! What a month. At the end of June, I became a homeowner. July was a whirlwind of work on the property which culminated in the move. August has been a mess of trying to solicit order from the chaos that is a sea of boxes. I didn’t have much time to spend on fun new beauty stuff, but because we didn’t take any time off (yes!) for this endeavor, I relied on a small cache of faithfuls to get me through. See what made the cut for my July 2018 Favorites after the jump.

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Stila Stay All Day Liner Review

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This is a legacy post that has been given a facelift. Opinions are the same, content has been edited for readability, clarity, all that jazz. Additions are noted in line. Enjoy!

Stila Stay All Day Liquid Liner

I’m not sure what it is that sparks my desire to challenge, well, everything that I challenge. But like the lipstick, if I see something that claims to Stay All Day, I can’t help but want to prove whether or not it is true. You know, for science, and love and justice, whatever.

In the same holiday set that I received the aforementioned lipstick by the same name, I received a smaller-than-normal tube of Stila Stay All Day Liner. Though more favorable than my initial reaction to the name of the lipstick, I still couldn’t believe it without seeing it. Since receiving it, I have worn it with success but I never really documented how long it lasted – and, “more or less all day,” isn’t enough for me.

The Test

Yesterday, I slapped some on my face before work around 6:15AM (contrary to my programming, I am the early bird at work. 2018 Update: SO CUTE. My makeup is done by 5:45 these days.). This is what it looked like at 6:30AM:

Stila Stay All Day Liner - 6:30AM

Well of course it looks decent, freshly applied. Also, I am an airhead and hadn’t even slapped on mascara, yet.

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Products I Stopped Using (2018)

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Over the years, as I’ve learned about my skin and honed my beauty preferences, I’ve tried many products. Some worked, some didn’t; some did at one point and then my needs/wants changed.

Face Scrubs

Ages ago, I used a certain walnut-shell-containing, apricot-scented facial exfoliant from a popular drugstore brand. I loved it! Bottom line, though, is those shell fragments can be sharp – and there are more effective ways to exfoliate. These days, my physical exfoliation comes from my Clarisonic and Silkin ReVit. Chemically, I use this AHA gel from Alpha Skin and the occasional BHA Stridex pad.

After a troublesome period with my skin, it is looking the best it has in quite a while save for some stubborn pores on my chin that, frankly, aren’t too visible anyway.

Foundation

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Lorac Pro 2 Review

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This legacy post has been given a facelift! Content was edited for clarity and ease-of-reading with 2018 updates marked in-line.

On Sunday, June 15 (2014), the Lorac PRO 2 came available for sale. Because I own (and dearly love) the Lorac Pro, I had to get a look as soon as I could. I placed an order and anxiously awaited their arrival. Because Ulta and UPS must have shipping wizards in their ranks, I received it on Wednesday. I was so excited to check out these shades and anxious to confirm that they are the same awesome formula as the Lorac Pro. You’re anxious too, so let’s tear ‘er open!

Packaging

The outer retail packaging is very similar to that of the Lorac Pro Palette (Original). Like the original, it comes with a small tube of their Behind the Scenes Primer, which you can see in the window on the right.

Lorac Pro 2 Retail Packaging - Front

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Worth it? Covergirl Clump Crusher

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Covergirl Clump CrusherCovergirl Clump Crusher, $8

A while back, I managed to hit the coupon/sale/rebate lottery and get a pair of Covergirl mascaras for free (actually, I ended up making a tiny bit after the rebate). One of the two was a tube of cult-favorite Covergirl Clump Crusher. When this mascara launched several years ago, the response was passionate and rabid all at once. Who could blame people for being excited about a (purportedly) well-performing drugstore mascara?

But I never tried it until now. Back then, I was still trying to hold onto my love of bareMinerals Flawless Definition. Then, I found that L’Oreal Telescopic Carbon Black is a reasonable facsimile and aside from trying deluxe samples here and there, I never really looked back.

Packaging

Although I like Clump Crusher overall, it isn’t free from criticisms. I find the packaging bulky and unnecessary; why is the tube such thick plastic? It reminds me of the oversized crayons they give todders who have yet to develop fine motor skills and dexterity. Aside from the ergonomics of it, it really takes up a LOT of room in a makeup bag. I’d really love this formula to come in a narrower tube.

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