L.A. Colors Mystic Fountation

by Guin White, GirlPaint.com

I recently had the good fortune to try a new foundation from a line I was not familiar with. The line? L.A. Colors, a division of Beauty 21, who create makeup “to target the diverse beauty needs of women of every demographic at an affordable price.” The foundation? Mystic Foundation, which claims “natural looking coverage and a creamy formula that evens out skin tone and improves skin texture.”

I have long been a fan of cream foundations. Unlike liquid foundations that tend to be tricky to apply, difficult to blend and can rub off after a few short hours of wear, cream foundations tend to solve those challenges and still give a nice, natural finish, usually with better coverage.

You will be pleased to know that my experience with L.A. Colors Mystic Foundation was a fantastic one! It has a smooth, creamy and dense consistency--I liken it to Becca's stick foundation, but with a creamier texture and less ‘drag'. However, unlike many stick or cream-style foundations, Mystic Foundation does not turn powdery and it does not get cakey, a big plus, especially if you set your makeup with a dusting of powder, which I definitely do.

Mystic Foundation offers superior blendability. I rubbed the stick across my forehead, cheeks, chin and then rubbed a little extra around my eyes and nose (the areas where I tend to need a more coverage), blended quickly with my foundation brush and I was, in essence, done. A few blemishes were still barely visible, so I grabbed my concealer brush and found that Mystic Foundation covered them quickly, completely and still looked very natural.

The coverage is medium to medium-to-full, and easily blended. I found the finished look especially natural if a foundation brush is used (I know, I know…enough with the ‘natural' already!). It totally gave my skin a smooth tone and texture; my husband even said that my face looked especially healthy and clear (wow!). Also, coverage can be built up, so in effect, Mystic Foundation may be used effectively both as foundation and as concealer.

The color and pigmentation is superior (the color I am using is called Nude—my skin tone is fair with some freckles and red spots). With nine shades available to match almost all skin tones, you are sure to find one that will give you "perfect skin", too.

Another HUGE plus: Wear is superb. Example? After one hour of rigorous tennis and marathon shopping trip, I found that Mystic Foundation still looked perfectly fresh and even.

One note for those who are fragrance conscious: Mystic Foundation contains fragrance but not so much so to be overpowering; in fact, I found the fragrance quite nice; it's soft and minimal (reminiscent of baby powder mixed with almond).

Overall, L.A. Colors Mystic Foundation is one of the best foundations I've used. And at $4, it is a complete steal!

Eyeko Fat Balm

by Vanessa Garcia, nessasarymakeup.com

I love lip balms and virtually every chapstick that can moisturize and soften my lips (and doesn't have a funky smell or taste). Especially around this time of the year, my lips take a beating and become so dry and chapped, at times to the point where the soft skin on my lips start to flake and can be so painful. Usually I opt for chapstick rather than lipstick because I am all about comfort and would rather work on getting my lips conditioned rather than having lipstick on that would further dry my lips.

I had the opportunity to try Eyeko's Minty Fat Lip Balm in “Minty”, and let me tell you how much I love this cute thing! I have always like big fat lip balms because they cover so much more lip area to ensure you get every little spot! The packaging was beyond adorable, it's about 3 inches tall, perfect to take anywhere, it's baby pink with cute designs on it, and has a cap that stays on. I can't tell you how many times my lip balms and other chapsticks get ruined because eventually their caps get loose and don't stay on the stick or the chapstick itself breaking off the stick for becoming too soft or too small, causing them to be more prone to breakage. With Eyeko's Minty Fat Balm, there's so much product- a fat stick of balm- that makes it so sturdy and worth every penny. You never feel like you may be applying too much pressure for it to break. It's also in a convenient twist-up tube.

This lip balm itself is very moisturizing, doesn't have a funky smell or taste at all, it smells and tastes like a nice vanilla mint, and I LOVE the cool tingly feeling it gives you on your lips that tells you it's doing its job! It really stays on your lips so you don't have to re-apply often and I have noticed such a tremendous difference. I have been using it for about a week now and I love how soft and supple my lips feel after using this. The color of the lip balm is a nice sheen baby pink, giving your lips a nice sheer clear pink tint.

There are two other yummy fruit flavors to tickle your fancy: Strawberry and Rapberry, each has their own unique flavor and sheer color. The price however may be a little steep for some, $13 each; which may be pricey for just a lip balm/chapstick, but they give you a lot of product that'll last awhile, and it's really unlike any other lip balm I've tried in which others have had a weird nasty wax feeling. This lip balm has a nice soft natural feeling to your lips I think you'll like!

L.A. Girl Mega Pearl Single Eyeshadow

by Vanessa Garcia, nessasarymakeup.com

One of my favorite affordable makeup brands is L.A. Girl. They have a ton of products for the face, eyes, and lips at such an affordable price. The best part? The pigmentation and quality put into each and every product. I love L.A. Girl's lip palettes because they are so creamy and pigmented and they come in a variety of colors that I immediately knew that their mega pearl single eye shadows would be just as good!

I had an opportunity to try these eye shadows and they definitely do not disappoint! They go on so smoothly and they have a nice shimmer to them, like a pearl shimmer finish, no chunky glitter- which makes it perfect for anyone to wear for any occasion (although some shades may have the appearance of glitter or more shimmer). They are also very pigmented and at only three bucks a pop! It applies so smoothly and evenly and accentuates the eyes with its vibrant colors, that you are sure to find one that suits your personality or your outfit for the day. Although most of the colors are on the bold side, there aren't too many neutral colors, but they are still awesome eye shadows to have. However, the eyeshadow doesn't stay on long so its best to use a eyeshadow primer before application to make it last longer as well as keeping the eye shadows vibrant.

There are 24 gorgeous shades that'll make it hard for you to just choose a few! I tried on two of the 24 shades: appletini and kamikaze (a green apple color and a medium blue color). I love appletini it reminds me of a sour apple color that goes great with purple or blue eye shadows; and is a nice solid version of a mineral eyeshadow I once had, so it was nice to have it in solid form to make it less messy and easier to travel with. They each come in their own individual pots with a clear, see-thru flip top lid which is very easy to open and makes it easy to identify each color. It's also flat and fairly small so it doesn't take up a lot of space and its easy to store.

Overall, I love these eye shadows from L.A. Girl, they are definitely “more bang for the buck” and gives you great color payoff at a pretty good price since.  These eye shadows are really affordable, and there's so many colors to choose from. 

NYX Round Lip Glosses

by Vanessa Garcia, nessasarymakeup.com

First of all I like NYX Products, and secondly, I love lip glosses in general. I first fell in love with NYX's Mega Lip glosses (the square-tubed ones) because they were pigmented and came in a variety of colors. So it was no surprise how excited I was when the new NYX Round lip glosses came out with it's new sleek packaging and angled doe foot wand that contour the natural shape of your lips for easy application.

I first tried NYX round lip gloss in “Doll Pink” because I loved the NYX Mega-Rich lip gloss in “Barbie Pink” so I was excited and eager to try doll pink which was just GORGEOUS on! In the tube it doesn't look like it would be a dazzling color, but once you put it on, it makes you say “WOW!”, it's the perfect pink to me, not too soft and not too bright. I also love the new packaging because it takes up less space as the NYX Mega-Rich lip glosses and the color you see in the tube is the color you get.

The smell and taste of these lip glosses are similar to that of dish washing soap; like a lemon-citrus scent- not horrible or intolerable, just a different scent from other lip glosses. I love how pigmented these lip glosses are, literally one application gives you enough color and because of the angled doe foot design, you don't experience a lot of streaking like you do with other lip glosses. They are also very soft and creamy and not at all sticky, and because of this they don't stay on too long, but make a nice overlay color over lipsticks or even by itself.

My favorites are: Doll Pink, Ballerina Pink, Whipped, and Cafe Latte.  I ended up liking “Doll Pink” a lot so I ordered more colors! And they are only $2 each so it makes it really affordable to try a few or even all of them, and pretty much the price you pay for a high-end lipstick is how much you can spend to get all the colors. The swatches online of course don't do the actual colors justice, but they are all pretty colors and for $2 a pop, you don't feel so bad if it didn't work out as oppose to paying $20+ on a high-end lipstick! I must say that these new NYX Round Lip Glosses are a great addition to the mega-rich lip glosses, definitely a lot more revamped and modern and suitable for anyone.

Starry Diary Compact

by Vanessa Garcia, nessasarymakeup.com

There are days where I like bringing a few eye shadows in my purse for touch-ups when I am on the go, after the gym, or for a dinner party after work where I don't have time to do my makeup and look fresh. Sometimes it's hard to bring certain makeup items in your purse like eye shadows because it often gets crushed or lost, and also carrying all your brushes and eye shadows can get heavy. But with the Starry Diary Eyeshadow Compact, all that hassle and worry is out the window with this one stop shop of eye shadows!

The Starry Diary Compact has a wide variety of 36 sultry and silky powder eye shadows, that you are sure to find colors that suit every outfit. It also has two double-ended sponge tipped eyeshadow applicators making this compact ideal for travel in your purse. And don't let the picture on the website fool you as it looks super large on the website, but it's actually pretty small, smaller than the size of a checkbook. The compact itself has a magnetic closure to keep the eye shadows safe and prevent any mess when traveling; and it also has a mirror inside the compact making it really easy for taking along with you and for super easy touch ups.

Some of the eye shadows however I found were a bit too sheer for my taste. I had to give a few swipes of my finger or the sponge-tipped applicator on some of the eye shadows just to get the color to show up on my eyelids, and they sort of look “washed out” at the end of the day, but this can be avoided if an eyeshadow base or a primer is used, which can perhaps also add vibrancy and more color on the eyelids. Also the pots are tiny, but a little goes a long way with the Starry Diary Compact!

Overall, I found this compact to be very cute and handy. It has a wide variety of colors for an everyday look anyone can pull off which is perfect for in the office and at school, or fun and sassy bright colors for a night out with the gals all in one convenient, easy to use compact! It's definitely nice to have around and makes a perfect gift for gals of all ages.

Princessa Lipstick

by Vanessa Garcia, nessasarymakeup.com

I am not much of a lipstick kind of a gal...mainly because most lipsticks have a weird or overpowering taste, and I have just always loved lipgloss and the subtle color it gives. To be honest, I don't have high expectations for lipsticks because I usually find myself being disappointed with them, either the color is off, or its the perfect color but it's too creamy or has a weird taste or smell, but I had the opportunity to try the Princessa lipstick in “Dazzling Pearl” and I was really impressed! When I first received it, I quickly noticed the tubing, it was very compact and cased in a sleek black tube. I liked how the bottom of the lipstick is clear so that you can easily see the color. All the princessa lipsticks are very well pigmented with just a touch of super fine shimmer/glitter, not chunky glitter to where you might look like you are from outerspace, but a nice subtle shimmer which you can sport for any look, anywhere.

I was really happy with the color I received, “Dazzling Pearl” is a the perfect nude color, a light nude brown, with a hint of sparkle. It's just absolutely gorgeous on the lips for any complexion in my opinion, and I think it's perfectly paired with a smokey eye look. If it seems to “wash you out”, you can always use a taupe or brown lip liner to give it more depth and add some lipgloss for voluptuous lipss. Also, the taste or smell of this lipsticksis very subdued and not overpowering like other lipsticks, and it has a nice pleasant scent, very tolerable compared to other lipsticks I have tried. I honestly loved this lipstick so much that I ordered all the other colors too! My other favorites are “Dazzling Ginger” and “Sparkling Coral”. My mom was here for the holidays, and I gave her a couple of the other colors I ordered since she loved how it looked and she too loves the colors.

I am just so obsessed with these lipsticks right now and all the gorgeous colors Princessa has, and mostly because of the amazing price! At $1.99 a piece it definitely beats a lot of other lipsticks including both drugstore brands and high end brand lipsticks. I have tried everything from Revlon to Nars, and this is definitely up to par and right up my alley. Now that I found a great lipstick, I am definitely sticking to it and I now can say I am “lipstick kind of a gal”!

NYX Cream Palette

by Vanessa Garcia, nessasarymakeup.com
















When its “Girls Night Out” with your friends or a weekend getaway to Vegas, I always like to add a little sparkle to my look. I am an avid fan of NYX cosmetics in general and I have a love for nifty palettes, so you can imagine when I couldn't wait to get my hands on the NYX Glitter Cream Palette!

It comes in 5 creamy, delicious shades, fully packed with glitter and sponged-tip applicators. You can use it practically anywhere your little heart desires! Eyes, lips, face, or body. I am not much of a glitter person, but I DO enjoy glitter eyeliners to make the eyes pop and look more festive. What I liked about these palettes were the gel/creamy consistency it has to it because it really allows the glitter to adhere and last a long time. I also found it easy to apply since it just glides on, however you may have to reapply several times to get an even line of glitter across your lashline. My first stroke and I had glitter in random spots, I had to continuously apply it straight across the lashline in a “dab and swipe” motion to get the effect I wanted. The only thing I didn't like (as with all glitters) is that it takes me forever to get every bit of glitter off, and because its cream the more it held on, but then again that's a good sign your look will last the whole night.

I also used it on my cheeks and body for a little sparkle for a night out on the town and I liked how it wasn't overly glittery and I could control the amount of glitter I wanted. Now with the holiday season around the corner, I think the silver and gold cream glitter would be a perfect addition to any holiday look. Another way I can think of to use this is to place a bit of it on a spoolie and apply it to the tips of your eyelashes for an eye opening sparkly look; or perhaps at the end corner of your eyelid for a glam look.

Overall, I love the choices of colors you get in just one palette, not to mention the other palettes with different colors. It's great for anytime you want a little sparkle to your look, with all the colors available, I am pretty sure you can even match it to your outfit!

OUR GIFT TO YOU.