Colorpop Lippie Stix & Ultra Satin Lip

After the disastrous experience with Colourpop Liquid Lipsticks (I will write about it sometime soon too) we lost our faith a little on this brand. But BOY OH BOY How we were wrong :D !!!

We took advantage of Colourpop's free shipping over $50 deal and ordered a bunch of their stuff. Firstly we were not sure what to buy but after viewing their website in detail we were confused what not to buy (especially me ;p). What I love the most about this brand is they have something for EVERYONE. From Nudes to bomb Vampy shades to quick dry to Glossy lips to Glitters to matte bright shades, everyone has something to pick from. This time we went for Lippie Stix and Ultra Satin Lip.

Lippie Stix:

Our purchase included four shades:

1. Topanga (A mid-tone dusty coral in a Satin finish)
2. I Heart this (Red based fuchsia in a matte finish.)
3. Poppin (Blue undertone dark pink in matte finish)
4. Love Life (Brownish brick red in a Matte finish.

Left to Right: Topanga, I heart this, Poppin, Love Life (Outdoor)

Indoor

My thoughts:

Topanga has satin finish, which is the smoothest buttery lippie stix I have used to date. Specially in winter it will be a treat for some one who has dry lips. It is opaque and stays for 4-5 hours easily without eating. Poppin and I heart this are rather similar shades (ThankGod one of them belong to me and other to Sana :p). Love life is the MOST BEAUTIFUL shade everrrrrrr, the pictures don't do justice to its beauty. Me and Sana are in mad love with this shade, it is just so beautiful for every day office wear, hang out with friends or a event. Its not too much, not too less. It has the right amount of bossiness and flirtatiousness. Apart from Topanga other three shades are matte, which aren't too dry. A lip balm underneath will keep you safe for 5-6 hours. Staying power is amazing, and it doesn't come off unevenly, doesn't settle in fine lines and doesn't make your lips flaky.

Ultra Satin Lip:

Our purchase include two shades:

1. Calypso (mid-tone pinky nude)
2. Lyin King (saturated raspberry)

Left to Right: Topanga, Lyin King

Outdoor

Indoor

My thoughts:

The packaging is same as of their Liquid Lipsticks with doe applicator. Let me tell you guys I am head over heels with this formula. Its not gloss, its not lipstick, it is something in between which spreads like butter on lips and feel like a dream too. I am not even exaggerating, i am SO MUCH in love with the formula, its unreal. Calypso is a perfect office wear shade, it was part of their fall edition. Lyin King is a daring bright raspberry shade with cool undertones, which is perfect for cold winter night events. The pigmentation is intense and opaque on single application. It does not bleed but it tends to transfer (you will be leaving gorgeous lipstick stains on your coffee/tea mugs :p) which is only draw back. Still I love this product.

Overall Experience:

Overall it was my most favorite haul to date. I loved everything. Colourpop is literally killing it with their economical prices and wide range of shades. 

Price and Availability:

Lippie Stix $5 each

Ultra Satin Lip $6 each 

We bought it from their website but many face book pages have it in stock. But honestly they are selling it so expensive, i will suggest you to wait for their free shipping offer and purchase directly from their site.

Do tell us your views about Colour pop products in comments below, and don't forget to take part in the ongoing giveaway on our face book.

With Love,

Maria

Artiste Palettes Featuring The Pout Painters.

Gone are the days when we had to pump our foundation on back of our hand girls...

The biggest problem for a make-up lover has always been getting the right shade, either it is lipstick or foundation. For that we all have messed up our hands, scooped out portions from different jars, a little bit of that a little bit of that, light and dark and WHAT NOT!

This might take us where we wanna be in terms of shade and consistency but at the cost of loss of product, messy hands and the biggest of all, allowing cultures of bacteria to settle and reproduce inside.

A while back, our fellow bloggers The Pout Painters introduced Artiste palettes to save us from all the hustle and TRUST me ladies it's a MUST HAVE!

No more wastage, bacteria or product everywhere.

It's not only economical but a huge advantage for all the hygiene maniacs out there.

As mentioned by them on their face book page the palettes are made up of light weight stainless steel which is rust proof. The backside is coated in a sheer polish. These are available in smaller palettes i.e oval, square and a bigger paint palette. Separate spatulas can also be ordered which are also of the same material, one side of which is kind of pointed and other side is squared.

All you gotta do is scoop the product out with the spatula and mix it or place it on palette. I mainly loved it because I will not have to pour foundation again and again from the jar and I can pump it or scoop it once and can apply on whole face in a single go, without any fear of drying product on face before blending. 

The palettes were in their respective velvet pouches which makes the keeping of palettes easy. You guys I have been LITERALLY waiting for someone to work their Brain and get this out in the open. Now when I see global You Tubers pouring their foundation on back of their hands I chuckle a little for they don't have our Pout Painter Sadaf and Fizzah :D

You can order it from their face book account The Pout Painters. The small palettes are for 600/- Rs each and bigger one is for 1000/- Rs.

With Love,
Sana

Our Gerard Cosmetics Collection

The one brand that was most difficult for us yet to photograph and work on was none other than Gerard Cosmetics. You want to know why? Because it is in GOLDEN color.We were so obsessed with its golden packaging that we wanted to lay hands on it as soon as possible. Our first purchase was few of its lipsticks from a reasonable deal they offered, and second was again from their deal on shopping above some specific amount which assured us free delivery. So now finally as I have taken the pictures, without further ado I will start my post.

About Brand:

Gerard cosmetics is a UK based brand created by its CEO Jennifer Gerard.

"Gerard Cosmetics was created with a pure passion and clear vision to offer every woman products that were the solution to everyday makeup blunders."

About the product:

Star Powders:

Whether you're going to a breakfast at Tiffany's or taking a Roman Holiday this will be the highlight for you. Inspired by one of the world's most celebrated Hollywood icons, this Star Powder will make you feel your prettiest. Audrey is a warm champagne gold that is reflective and high shine. Build it up for an intense glow or dust it lightly on your cheekbones for a subtle sheen. Pure pigment and an ultra smooth and blend able formula will make this your go-to highlight.  Click here

We bought three shades
1) Marilyn: (A subtle highlighter with pale golden hues)
2) Grace: (A opalescent, frosted white gold with a beautiful sheen)
3) Audrey: (Warm champagne gold with yellow undertones) 

Packaging:
It comes in black matte card board packaging. The highlighter comes in square shaped golden compact with a soft button click to open it. the product is secured with a plastic lid which is really impressive as I haven't seen any other brand using a extra lid to secure the product. It has a large mirror in it too which makes it ideal to keep in bag all the time, I mean who doesn't like a handy mirror? On the back of the compact the shade and ingredients of the highlighter are mentioned,

Left to Right: Marilyn, Grace, Audery

Left to Right: Marilyn, Grace, Audery

My thoughts:
The product is really soft milled powder compressed tightly in the compact, which is smooth to apply. I am however in a love-hate relationship with the highlighters. The shades Marilyn and Audrey are really subtle highlighter shades which are ideal for someone who doesn't like SO much prominent highlighter, it really blends well in the skin. Specially the shade Marilyn is a great soft substitute for The Balm Mary Luminizer. Audrey has yellowish undertones which I am confused that how I really feel about it. Shade Grace however was such a disappointment because it was powdery and had so much fall out. Also I didn't like the formula on Grace which was different than other two. I applied all of them with fan brush, but when I touched pan on Grace, it was all over the place. On applying it too it just looked out of space. So I didn't like "Grace" from my purchase, the other twos are not bad.

Lipsticks:

Lipstick shades that we will be talking about today are:

1) 1995 (The most sought after shade of Gerard, with the grudge revival matte nude shade of 90's)

2) Tequila Sunrise (A creamy fresh and peachy coral matte lipstick)

3) Sangria (A creamy beautiful berry shade which reminds us of freshness all year along)

4) Merlot (Notes of Red and Berry combined together to create this matte vampy hue)

Packaging:
On our first order they didn't have any package for lipsticks but we got our lipsticks in second order within card board packaging. The lipsticks which are shaped as bullets define class and elegance. The packaging is fancy and the lipsticks caps are not lose.

Left to Right: 1995, Tequila Sunrise, Sangria, Merlot

My thoughts: 
You guys have absolutely NO IDEA about how much I wanted to get 1995 and after I got it how many friends asked me to let them apply it as they wanted to see what all that rave was about. The shades 1995 and Merlot are matte while the other two have kinda creamy consistency. Well again I have love-hate relationship with these lipstick. The shade 1995 is a beautiful shade but not really pigmented. I have to swipe it 3-4 times to get the required shade, and the shade Merlot has inconsistent application. It gets streaky and uneven on lips after second swipe, the shade however is really gorgeous. Tequila sunrise also need 2-3 swipes to get the color on the lips but the shade is beautiful and really soft which makes it perfect for everyday use. Sangria has to be my favorite one from all of these not because of its vibrant berry shade but also the formula. It is really creamy and pigmented. It appears darker in tube lipstick but applies lighter in a really beautiful shade, on lips. The staying power of matte shades is 4-5 hrs without eating and Sangria stays for 3-4 hours but its worth it.

Final thoughts:
I don't know if I will get any more of Gerard's products, may be their SLAY Setting sprays because I have seen many You tubers using it. We got it from their website and they keep on having many reasonable deals, if you want to see it, you can check their Instagram.

I will rate it 2.75 / 5

What do you think about our picks and do you own any of Gerard Cosmetics product? Do tell us in comments below.

With Love,
Maria & Sana.

Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Dry Touch SunBlock

"Want to get rid of dark circles?" Apply Sunblock
"How to avoid wrinkles?" Apply Sunblock
"How to avoid breakouts?"Apply Sunblock
"Want glowing skin?"Never forget applying sunblock
and the list goes on...

For someone like me who had never bothered to apply sunscreen before, it was such a daunting sight to see in almost every article. My initial idea was that the white stuff on cricketer's face is sunscreen and I do not want that white cast on my face at any cost so I was like "NOPE, thanks". This summer I decided to take this risk and started my quest for a good sunscreen. From one of the local drugstore shop in my colony I came across "NEUTROGENA Ultra Sheer- Dry Touch Sunblock"

As on their website

Neutrogena® Ultra Sheer® Dry-Touch Sunscreen SPF 55 is dermatologist-tested formula that contains Helioplex® Technology. It helps prevent damaging UVA rays from penetrating deep under skin's surface. Dry-Touch technology helps leaving a clean, lightweight, non-shiny finish
erious sun protection never felt this light on your skin.
This product features Helioplex®, a breadth of stabilized sunscreen technologies that delivers superior protection from the sun. To learn more about Helioplex® Technology, .

• Broad Spectrum UVA/UVB

• Water resistant (80min)

• Non-comedogenic (won't clog pores)

• Oil-Free

• PABA-free

About product:

It comes in a cardboard box(which I have lost and it has ingredients mentioned on it), the tube is soft squeezable with flip cap. It has a cream like texture with a pleasant faint fragrance. 

Texture and color of product

After application on skin

My thoughts:

Oppose to my fears Neutrogena Dry Touch Sunblock doesn't leave white cast on the face. I have dry skin and I have been using this whole summer and it did not make my skin more dry or scaly. I was scared that it will budge my foundation or BB cream which I apply on daily basis at work, but it did not, infact I feel like it helped my BB cream to stay in place even after 7-8 hrs at work. If you ask me if I felt any drastic difference in my skin tone or if it actually did help me to avoid getting tan, then I wont be able to help you in that case as I work indoor and I am in direct sun for very few minutes. But as far as the product overall performance is concerned, I am satisfied and happy to use it. It did not break me out, it does not have white cast to it, it does not shine or become oily with time, it does not separate my BB cream/ foundation. I apply pea size product on my face and neck and it absorbs right in. You can get more information about how "Helioplex broad spectrum uva-uvb rays" work on their website. 

Pros:

•  Doesn't leave white cast.
• Locally available.
• Travel friendly.
• Does not make your skin oily or dry.

Cons:

• None yet.

Price and availability:

I purchased it from a drugstore shop near my home for 650/- Rs.

With Love,

Maria