Mary Kay at Play Lip & Cheek Sticks in Peach Pop and Razzleberry

New season = new, fun things from the Mary Kay At Play Collection. The At Play collection seems to be the younger, edgier side of Mary Kay. The Mary Kay Lip & Cheek Stick ($12 each, available May 16th) colourful duos for a "glowing blush and picture-perfect pout".

Peach Pop

Razzleberry

Mary Kay's colour game is on point. Both Peach Pop and Razzleberry are extremely pigmented and very, very flattering flushes on the cheeks and lips. The product is soft and creamy, easily workable into the skin and to sheer out on the lips. The blush/lipstick duo lasts 3 hours on the lips leaving a light stain and 5-6 hours on the cheeks. Pretty good but by no means amazing. 

The chubby stick packaging of the Mary Kay At Play Lip & Cheek Stick is great for covering large areas of the cheeks but not so great for precision application on the lips. To curb this issue, I prefer applying the stick with a brush or with fingers, which is an extra step that I'm often to lazy to take. Thus, I prefer the product on the cheeks. 

What do you think of the Mary Kay At Play Lip & Cheek Sticks? 

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The Body Shop Honey Bronze Highlighting Domes in 01, 02 & 03

The Body Shop has expanded its Honey Bronze collection. The Body Shop Honey Bronze Highlighting Domes ($16 each) in the shades 01 (bronze), 02 (champagne), 03 (pink) are the collections latest makeup additions. 

The name for these products is quite confusing. As far as I’m aware, if you’re within the range of very fair to quite tan, only one of these is a highlighter (shade 02). The other two (shade 01 and 03) would be more suitably named as both blushes or bronzer and blush. 

Names aside, the product is housed in a cute little dome. Upon opening the dome’s plastic top, you get a sweet fragrance (presumably the Ethiopian fair trade honey). I’d describe the texture as a … waxy cream. All three are not particularly smooth but feel lightweight on the face, perhaps a touch gritty due to the shimmer particles. 

The colour pink and champagne colours are soft and sheer but buildable with multiple swipes and fairly blendable with fingertips.  In terms of shade, I think the pink and champagne colours will suit most people. The bronzer appears slightly muddy on my face and I find it patchy when blending. The shimmer for all three is on the verge of being too much but it’s not over glittery and right at my level of sparkle-tolerance. 

The colour lasts 4-5 hours on my cheeks but a slight shimmer can remain for the entirety of a day. 

Overall, they aren’t particularly ground-breaking but The Body Shop Honey Bronze Highlighting Domes are easy-to-use (just swipe, blend, and go) and thus are good option if you’re looking for a shimmery highlighter, blush, or bronzer that’s travel-friendly.  Lovely new additions to The Body Shop Honey Bronze Collection! 

Have you tried the Body Shop Honey Bronze Highlighting Domes? 

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stila Aqua Glow Watercolor Blush in Water Poppy & Stay All Day Liquid Lipstick in Como // SEA, SUN, AND SPLASH Summer 2015

I'd say don't wear makeup to the beach, but the stila Summer 2015 collection makes me want to frolic in the sun with my purple lipstick on. Dubbed SEA, SUN, AND SPLASH , the collection is a ray of sunshine - 10 shades of sunshine to be exact. There are 5 shades of the new stila Aqua Glow Watercolor Blush ($34 each) and 5 of the stila Stay All Day Liquid Lipsticks ($29 each). 

stila Stay All Day Liquid Lipstick in Como

Shades available: Rosa, Como, Bella, Venezia, Amalfi

UGHHH. PURPLE...Not at all office appropriate, but surprisingly wearable/flattering on my skin. The colour is incredibly saturated, as one coat of the product yields full lip coverage. Upon application, the product feels rich and almost hydrating but dries and tightens up to a matte finish. stila says the All Day Liquid Lipstick lasts up to hours, and I would agree. Additionally, it's transfer-proof and kiss-proof, so no funky purple stains clothes (or boyfriend). 

stila Aqua Glow Watercolor Blush in Water Poppy

Shades available: Rosewater, Water Blossom, Shimmering Lotus, Water Poppy, Water Lily

A new launch from stila, the Aqua Glow Watercolor Blushes are meant to be a weightless sheer wash of colour. And so it is. The product is intimidatingly bright when you dip your brush/finger in it but after a little blending, you get a sheer wash of colour with a tough of a dewy finish. After about an hour, the glow diminishes but the colour lasts about 6 hours on my cheeks. Water Poppy is a red-orange with no shimmer. Bonus - it also has a slight wet/cooling sensation upon application. So if you get a little hot in the summer, just apply blush. 

Overall, a colourful collection that's suitable for summer and beyond. I'd be so down to pick up more of the Aqua Glow Watercolor Blushes. 

What do you think of these pieces from the stila Summer 2015 Collection? 

In Canada, the still Sea, Sun & Splash Summer Collection 2015 is available for limited time at select Shoppers Drug Mart and Murale locations and Murale.ca as of June 2015.

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The Body Shop Lip & Cheek Velvet Sticks in Universal and 40 Red

New at the Body Shop are the Body Shop Lip & Cheek Velvet Sticks ($15). These adorable little crayon products are multi-purpose for use as either a blush or lippie. There are 6 shades available - 10 nude, 20 pink, 30 bronze, 35 coral, 40 red, and universal. I got two to review, 40 Red and Universal. 

LEFT - Universal; RIGHT - 40 Red

Formulated with Community Fair Trade Marula Oil, the Body Shop Lip & Cheek Velvet Sticks are meant to be matte and a decadent velvety smooth texture. Yes sir-ee, the Lip & Cheek Velvet Sticks are smooth as velvet and also smell of a subtle floral. They feel like almost like a non-hard yet pigmented lip balm (think a drier EOS with a punch of colour). On both the cheeks and lips the product appears matte. 

40 Red is a poppy red colour, while Universal appears black in the tube but has a pH-matching feature that adapts to your skintone. On me, the Universal shade turns into a rich purple-y pink. Both colours are about 60% opacity. If you want full-coverage pigmentation, you'd have to pass over the lips a couple times. 

LEFT - 40 Red; RIGHT - Universal

On the Cheeks: Three stripes of colour on the face and then blend away with the fingertips. It's creamy yet it dries down to a soft, non-dewy powdery finish. Super easy to use on the cheeks. Furthermore, the product lasts on my face for 6-ish hours which is more than standard for my oily skin. 

On the Lips: While the chubby crayon stick packaging is not particularly helpful for a sharp lip line, it feels soft and doesn't skip or pull at the lips. As aforementioned, it feels much like a dry balm. The colour wears down after 2-3 hours and both the red and universal leave a bitten/popsicle kind of stain. 

Overall, I likey. The stick form makes the product super easy to toss in your purse for on-the-go. And more importantly, the product performs. 

Have you tried the new Body Shop Lip & Cheek Velvet Sticks? 

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Last Minute Gifts from the Body Shop

Today marks two days until Christmas, so if you still have gifts to buy, then the Body Shop is a great place to shop for everyone on your list (because everyone needs skincare, body wash, shampoo, and fragrance). 

The Body Shop Glazed Apple Body Butter ($20) 

A new scent this holiday season, the Body Shop has released a plethora of Glazed Apple products including bath sprinkles, body polish, lip balm, fragrance oil, bath jelly, hand cream, and more. I opted to review favourite product from the Body Shop - the Body Butter. The Glazed Apple Body Butter looks and feels just as amazing as others I've tried - smooth, hydrating, thick and creamy. As for the Glazed  Apple scent, I expected it to be a bit more bright and punchy (like the scent of green apple) but this Glazed Apple scent is more subdued and sugary. 

The Lip and Cheek Doll  ($15) 

The Body Shop Lip and Cheek Doll is the perfect stocking stuffer for any beauty lover. The special edition Geisha doll packaging is adorable while the product inside (the Body Shop Lip and Cheek Stain) is a bright, warm red with subtle hints of golden shimmer running through it. On both the cheeks and lips, this dual-purpose product can be worm as a natural flush or can be built up for a bolder look. 

The Body Shop Strawberry Premium Selection ($45)

Give a loved one this entire set or separate the set into smaller gifts. The Body Shop Strawberry Premium selection is pre-packaged in a gorgeous red box wrapped up with a silver bow. Inside, there's the Strawberry Body Butter, Strawberry Body Polish, Strawberry Body Mist, Strawberry Lip Butter, and a Red Mini Loofah (a total value of $59!). Personally, I'm not a fan of the Body Shop's Strawberry scent but this set will be going to a home that I know will appreciate it much, much more. Luckily, the same set also comes in Olive, Pink Grapefruit, Satsuma, Shea, Wild Argan, Moringa, Coconut, and Mango, for those of you who like a bit of selection. 

And there you have it! Three quick gifts from the Body Shop - a body butter, a makeup item, and a set. The Body Shop has on-going sales, so the prices of these items are likely less than the full retail prices shown here. Plus, if you wait until Boxing Day, you can stock up! 

Do you have all your Christmas shopping finished or are you a last-minute person? 

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The Winter Flush: #NYCBeautyPro Challenge #4

Snowfall means... Sweater Weather! Fittingly, this month's New York Color NYC Beauty Pro Challenge theme is "Ice Skating at the Rockefeller Center". As such, I've put on one of my fuzziest winter sweaters and a makeup look to match the colder weather. 

In from the cold pink cheeks and a hydrated, slightly tinted lip are made easy with a few products from New York Color. 

The New York Color Cheek Glow Powder Blush in 650 NoLiTa Pink ($2.99) is the perfect flush of natural pink with a hint of golden sparkle for a subtle glow. The blush is surprisingly pigmented, so make sure to tap off the excess before applying it to the face. On the lips, I'm wearing the New York Color Applelicious Glossy Lip Balm ($2.99) smells exactly like apple hard candies and adds the tiniest bit of gloss and a red tint to dehydrated lips. I also attempted to apply the New York Color Show Time Waterproof Volumizing Mascara in 844 Extreme Black ($3.99) onto my lashes but it didn't do much other than darken them. I'm also wearing a bit of the Kat Von D Tattoo Liner in Trooper and the CoverGirl Outlast Stay Fabulous 3-in-1 Foundation on my face. 

There's not really much too this look. A little blush, a little gloss and you're good to go. Add some mascara, liner, and a touch of foundation for a fuller-faced look. 

What's your go-to winter makeup look? 

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Benefit 3 Scoops O' Sexy Limited Edition Set

No. Prior to this post, I hadn't tried the widely raved about Benefit tints or balms. Shame on me. I'm a terrible beauty blogger. Slap me now because after trying three of each I'm kind of regretting not ever testing these on my face before. This holiday season, there's the Benefit 3 Scoops O' Sexy Limited Edition Set ($50 CAD, exclusively at Sephora) featuring Benebalm, Benetint, Posiebalm, Posietint, Lollibalm, and Lollitint. 

Packaging is in typical Benefit fashion. Adorable. Each tint and balm set is individually packaged. The Balms are full-size (regularly $22 CAD)  and the Tints are deluxe samples (full-size regularly $36 CAD) meaning that the set is valued at about $100. While at $50,  the set seems a bit pricey, $50 in savings is not half bad. 

While the products swatch quite sheerly, both the tints and balms are buildable on the lips and cheeks. I like that the colours are fairly distinct from each other, which kind of gets me wondering about the Cha-Cha tint (coral orange) not included in this set. The balms are quite hydrating but relatively thin and not overly sticky or thick. As expected, the colour of the balms doesn't last long - around 2 hours. The tints are watery, dry down quickly, and last for around 6 hours on my cheeks. I've heard complaints that the tints can be streaky but I find them easy to use if you do one cheek at a time and blend with fingertips. I prefer the tints on just the cheeks or on the lips paired with the balm over top for added moisture. 

Here's what they look like on my face... I'm wearing the tints on the cheeks and the balms on the lips: 

Benetint and Benebalm (rose) 

Posietint and Posiebalm (poppy pink)

Lollitint and Lollibalm (candy orchid) 

Overall, a very cute gift set! I'm impressed by both the Benefit tints and balms. If you're anything like me and not always willing to buy full-sizes at full prices, this set is perfect. It's actually three gift sets in one. So keep the colours you like for yourself (possibly all of them...) or split them up into multiple stocking stuffers! 

Do you like the Benefit balms and tints? 

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Josie Maran Argan Infinity Lip and Cheek Creamy Oil in Endless Guava

I know what you're thinking. Stop it, Stephanie. Enough with these Cheek/Lip products, ughhhh. So sorry, I can't deny a good matchy-matchy cheek and lip look with one product. First, it was the Besame Crimson Rouge. Then, it was the Shu Uemura Tint in Gelatos. Now...the Josie Maran Argan Infinity Lip and Cheek Creamy Oils ($21). 

The Josie Maran Argan Infinity Lip and Cheek Creamy Oils are available in six shades - Everlasting Honey (rosy nude), Limitless Pink (medium pink), Timeless Coral (vibrant warm coral), Endless Guava (vibrant poppy pink), Always Cherry (vibrant cool red), and Boundless Berry (rich cool wine). At Sephora, I spent a good half hour tied between Boundless Berry and Endless Guava but went for the one that looked more wearable and spring/summer appropriate. 

[Boundless Berry, Timeless Coral (similar to Rimmel Stay Blushed Pop of Pink), Endless Guava] 

The word "creamy oil" freaked me out a bit but I reminded myself of the beauty of products like cleansing oils and oil masks, and my fear dissipated. The Argan Infinity Lip and Cheek Creamy oil is actually modeled after another product - the Josie Maran Argan Cream Intensive Creamy Oil ($34), a all-purpose non-greasy cream that melts into an oil. The Lip and Cheek Creamy Oil shares the same packaging and the applying the cream with the warmth of your hands immediately melts the product into an oil that sinks the skin for a soft-focus luminous look.  

It's sheer yet pigmented. I'm bamboozled. Don't even get me started on the colour. The poppy shade is bright but the sheerness makes it so easy to wear. Texture-wise, it's very similar to the lightweightedness of the Rimmel Stay Blushed Cheek Tints but much more slippery, like oil, as the name suggests. Thus, the on both the cheeks and lips it sheers out very easily, only requires a pin drop of product, and looks slightly dewy when first applied. 

Over time, the product dries down slightly and loses its luminosity. Luckily, the colour still persists on the cheeks and lips! I kept a close eye on this one (for fear of blush slipping down to my chin) and it stuck around on the cheeks for 6 hours and a tad less on the lips, no slips or oil slicks. 

Overall, this is a great product for both cheeks and lips. Contrary to what you may think of when it comes to "oils", the Josie Maran Argan Infinity Lip and Cheek Creamy Oil in Endless Guava is moisturizing yet fairly long-wearing. I'd recommend trying one of the brighter colours, since it's quite sheer. Oh. And this is my first run-in with Josie Maran (other than the Argan Oil) and I think I'll be needing to try more makeup products from the brand! 

Got any Josie Maran product recommendations for me? Have you tried the Argan Infinity Lip and Cheek Creamy Oil? 

Purchased by the boyfriend. He's awesome. 

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Shu Uemura Tint in Gelato in CR04 Spiced Orange, CR01 Blood Orange & PK01 Berry Berry

The secret to soft, flushed cheeks and dewy, stained lips is all contained in one sleek, shiny tube. It's a liquid lipstick and cream blush in one. It's soft yet intense. It's creamy. It's blendable. "It" is the Shu Uemura Tint in Gelato lip and cheek stain ($28 at Holt Renfrew, Sephora, Hudson's Bay and shuuemura.ca) launched as part of the Mika Ninagawa for Shu Uemura Summer 2014 collection to join the permanent collection.

In essence, the Tint in Gelato is a multi-tasking cream product for the lips and cheeks designed for both make-up artist professionals and everyday women. The Tint in Gelato is available in 12 fresh shades - AT01 Cassis Delight, AT02 Sugar Plum, AT03 Fantasy Orange, AT04 Lemon Souffle, BG01 Puffy Chocolate, CR01 Blood Orange, CR02 Momo Sweet, CR03 Fancy Orange, CR04 Spiced Orange, PK01 Berry Berry, PK02 Milky Framboise, and PK03 Sakura Cream. Is it just me or do those names all sound astoundingly delicious? Excuse me while I go grab something sweet to eat. 

I put three colours to the test - CR04 Spiced Orange (peachy nude), CR01 Blood Orange (muted coral) and PK01 Berry Berry (blue-based bright pink). One look at the sleek, silver tube and I was already drawn in. I'm a magpie when it comes to beauty products. Shiny things excite me to no end, as does the ring applicator that's reminiscent of a spoon. The not-too-big-not-too-small tip bends back and forth for an even and precise application. 

As for the formula, there is no scent or flavour whatsoever (which I truly appreciate since that's very hard to come by!). Texture-wise it's non-sticky and very creamy and smooth. Think Rimmel Apocalips minus the tacky watermelon scent and slightly more matte. Staying power is about 5-6 hours on the cheeks and 2-3 hours for the lips (plus an additional 1-2 hours of staining with bolder colours). On the lips, the product is not transfer free nor does it claim to be, but it's something to be aware of if you're planning to throw on a white t-shirt or kiss your boyfriend/girlfriend after applying. 

What sets this product apart from others is its versatility, which stems from its blendability. One layer on the lips yields full semi-matte colour payoff, yet with a little blending you can get a much softer stained look. Furthermore, you can simply blot the product with a tissue to remove the slight glossy sheen for a full matte, full coverage lip look. As for use on the cheeks, a little goes a very long way. With my fingertips, I like to pat a tiny bit of product onto the apples of my cheeks blending backwards to just under my temples for a healthy glow. 

As a side note, you could probably take any cream lip product and attempt to use it as a blush and vice versa. But it's not that easy. Believe me, I've tried it.  More often than not, that kind of product duality is hard to find. Lipsticks are too slippery and dewy on the cheeks and blushes are too drying on the lips. Keep in mind that skin on my cheeks is "normal", if not slightly oily and my lips are naturally very dry. In some ways, this is where the Tint in Gelato falls a little short. 

As much as I wish this was the perfect product for both cheeks and lips, it isn't. I'll go as far as saying that it's flawless on the cheeks. As for the lips, the product looks to be healthy and moist on my lips but not effortlessly so. Going over the lips that have the smallest dry patch leads to rather unattractive emphasis of those patches, therefore application calls for thorough exfoliation, pre-moisturizing, and careful placement. It's also slightly drying when worn for an entire day without touchups. Don't get me wrong - the end result is worth the trouble if you're up for it...

CR04 Spiced Orange (the perfect peachy nude lip)

CR01 Blood Orange (the natural coral)

PK01 Berry Berry (the flattering pop of pink)

As a lip product, the Tint in Gelato has its downsides and there are most certainly better products yielding similar results, but it's one of the best formulations of cream blush/tint for my skin type, as it blends into the skin like a dream and has a natural, sheer finish. All in all, the lightweight, blendable formula in a pretty range of universally flattering yet vibrant colours makes the Tint in Gelato worth the stop at your nearest Shu counter this Spring/Summer.

What's your favourite multipurpose beauty product? Do you have a favourite lip/cheek tint? 

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