YSL Gloss Volupte lipgloss - #15 Grenade Pépite

Back to back to back lip products to review...? I need to get my sh*t together haha. If you knew me in real life, you would know I'm not that much of a lip product person. In my head, I told myself that if I invested in nice lip products that I would get into the habit of wearing them regularly and match them appropriately with my makeup looks. Not gonna lie, so far so good! I have been touching up my lip products and making sure I keep them in my makeup bag (speaking of, I might do a blog post on "what's in my makeup bag") :).

Anyways, lets get back on track and get with the product review haha.

YSL Gloss Volupte in #15 Grenade Pepite - described as hot pink with golden shimmer.

In the line, there are 22 shades at retailers that sell YSL products. I purchased mine at Nordstrom.

First off, look at this packaging! It's nothing like YSL has on their permanent range. Mixed metals and that clear vile where you can see the actual gloss shade. It's stunning to put it simply.

Secondly, I think this gloss leans a little coral rather than a straight up hot pink. It might look different on your lips, depends on the pigmentation and your skin tone. Either way, it's a gorgeous color especially heading into spring and summer. I can definitely see this as something I will reach for a lot in the coming months.

Next, the applicator wand is very unique! For me, it's the first time I've ever seen a wand like this. Though I have seen other beauty bloggers mention a similar wand has been used for another gloss. The brand escapes me right now haha. But you can seen in the pictures how cool it looks. It looks and is made to fit the contours and shape of your lips. Makes for easy application :) which I'm all about haha. 

Swatch: 

As you can see from the different angles, it leans a little coral and/or pink. I love that about this gloss.

The golden shimmer is noticeable but it's subtle on the lips. It doesn't bother me when I was wearing it.

Thoughts: it was a delight to wear, very comfortable, and long lasting :). It is not sticky and wore a solid 5 hours on me. I am definitely one to shop around and run errands with a drink in hand and it wore well. It did transfer, it's a gloss duh haha, but that's expected. I definitely would not mind reapplying this gloss as needed being I love the texture and feel of this gloss on my lips.

I think that the range of these glosses come in an array of shades from pinks, nudes, reds, plums, shimmery top coats (gold/iridescent and a black [crazy I know]). I wanted to get them all, not going to lie haha. The display is beautiful and worth checking them out.

I might pick up one or two more... :) But I love trying out new things so we shall see if I come back to this line or try something else from YSL :).

In my lip product escapades, I have not come across a dud in the brands I've branched out in. So whatever your preference is (gloss, lipstick, stain, etc), you can find what you are looking for in the different brands offered at several department stores and drugstores.

What are some of your favorite lip products? Have you pick one up from this line? Let me know in the comments.

I hope that I have touched on all the necessary details and that my review is to your liking. If you have any questions, I'm answer them to the best of my ability :).

Have a good night/day,
Bianca xo

Tom Ford Spring 2014 Lip Color in Paradiso

Hello hello everyone :) Hope you are all well!

This blog post will talk about my veryyy first Tom Ford lip product and OMG I can't even. It's gorgeous.

The brand and the packaging of ALL Tom Ford products scream luxury. If you have seen any of the Tom Ford products, you know that the normal packaging is a dark chocolate-y brown and gold. For the Spring 2014 collection, they brought back the 'original' packaging when Tom Ford first released his makeup line a few years ago. With that being said, this collection is LIMITED EDITION. I know some websites are sold out of certain colors: Paradiso, Sweet Spot, and Incorrigible have been the most popular of the eight lip color release.

Okay, onto the juicy deets about Paradiso. This is the one shade I picked up from the release. And believe me I want more...they are just too beautiful. *must resist* ~ kind of easy to resist since Sweet Spot is sold out in many retailers :( and the price haha ~

The color is described as a bring watermelon pink creme. Which in my opinion is a perfect shade for the spring :).

And can we just talk about that TF embossing on the lipstick? Yes? Ok. IT'S SO FANCY! I'm not going to lie, when I swatched it I used the underside of the lip stick so I wouldn't ruin the TF :P.

The packaging is far from cheap feeling and looking. There is some weight to it which, for me, is nice. It feels good in the hand and it's not too heavy either. To put it simply, it feels very luxe. And with the hefty price of $48, you would hope it would feel, look, and apply like a dream. *which is does :)*

I took two pictures of the swatch to show how it reflect the shine. It's not overly shiny, it is a creme but it's not satin nor sheer. It can be built up to full opacity. 

I have heard some people say that this whole line is really sheer and doesn't last well on the lips. I would have to disagree with that. I swatched the lipsticks at my local Tom Ford counter and my experience is that some were sheer, some were super bright (Paradiso and Fire Cracker), and some were more subtle. I think if you are looking into this line, you can probably find something that you'll like. It depends on your preference.

My one Tom Ford Lipstick on display *drools*

Review: this product is super creamy and buildable in opacity and lasts about 4-5 hours on me with no weird fading. I have zero complaints really. At the end of the day, you are buying Tom frickin' Ford and it's up to you if it's worth it. I justify my purchase as it is limited edition, the color is something I would wear, and YOLO haha (I apologize for using YOLO in my review hahaha).

Do you need it? Probably not. If it's within your means to splurge almost $50 on a Tom Ford lipstick, go for it. They are phenomenal. But it's not in your budget, don't worry about it :). It's not a "YOU NEED THIS IN YOUR LIFE" kind of product, it's just a nice present for yourself :).

According to Temptalia, Elegant Accent from MAC's Mineralize lipsticks is a dupe for this and it costs around $22 ish. So that is an option for you if you really like the color :).

I hope this was helpful. If I missed anything, please let me know in the comments below.

Did you pick up anything from the TF Spring collection? Or what is your favorite TF product? I'd love to know in the comments down below :).

Have an amazing day/night,
Bianca xo

Hourglass Cosmetics - Ambient Lighting Blush - Luminous Flush and Diffused Heat - Swatches

Hey everyone! I have something new and exciting to share with you all. If you follow beauty Instagrammers, you will know of the new Hourglass Cosmetics blushes infused with their very popular Ambient Lighting powders. These Powders were released last week; first on the Hourglass website and out of nowhere, it was being sold on Sephora to VIBs and VIB Rouges. I ordered mine on Sephora and received them today :D!

I'm so so soooo excited about this line. The powders look stunning and the packaging is just to die for (figuratively haha). I kind of want them all... but I must resist... *lies to self*. I do plan to pick up two more though but I'll be checking up swatches on Temptalia for the other two ;).

Personally, I own one single Ambient Lighting powder and the limited edition palette that came out during the holidays. I do not own many Hourglass product but that will definitely change soon! (Many things have been added to my wishlist ;)). I love what I own and I cannot wait to try more.

In this post, I'll have pictures of the box, outside packaging of the compact, and images of the powders. I love the marbleized "pattern" of the blush. Makes every one unique.

 Can Hourglass make their products any more gorgeous?! Seriously... They are so beautiful.

Luminous Flush

Diffused Heat

*drooling* - this is why I want to collect all 6...but I must resist the temptation!! haha

Here are the swatches of the two blushes:

I tried to capture the blushes in three different angles, which is why the lighting is a little off in every square. It's funny to see these photographed and having them look similar haha. The left one is Luminous Flush and the right one is Diffused Heat.

Luminous Flush - I think that the blush color is very slightly cool toned but the Luminous Light powder that is mixed in warms it up a lot. In the swatch, it's more of a pink-y shade. I think this is a great winter to spring transition blush.

Diffused Heat - literally love at first sight. This was one I knew I HAD to have in my collection. It's more vibrant than Luminous Light. And Hourglass describes it as a "vibrant poppy" so it's a fitting description. This shade will be perfect for Spring and Summer, without a doubt. I can see this one being a best seller or a shade that's sold out a lot.

First impression: they are SO smooth and build-able. The swatches on my arm are two "layers", this comes to show that they are build-able in opacity and do not skip or apply splotchy. I love them so far and the quality from swatching on my arm makes me love them even more.

So, have you or will you be picking up some of these blushes? If so, what shades?

Since these are a new range of blushes...what is your currently favorite formula and brand for blushes?

I'd love to know what you think in the comments.

I hope I covered everything. I wanted to get this posted as soon as possible so if I missed anything, definitely feel free to leave a comment or question :)

Have a good night/day,
Bianca xo

Bare Minerals Ready Eyeshadow 4.0 - The True Romantic - Spring 2014

Hey everyone, hope you are all well and happy (belated) new year! *yay*. I thought I'd share with you all a piece of the Bare Minerals Spring 2014 collection. And I must say...the packaging is GORGEOUS! And very on trend with the Rose Gold (seriously how can you not love rose gold?!).

I purchased the Ready 4.0 quad from Ulta's website. It retails for $30 USD. And it's a good value for what you get. It's so pigmented and smooth, the colors are beautiful. It was love at first sight.

Here I'll show you some pictures and swatches of the quad :)

Even the packaging is gorgeous haha

Here is the case it comes with. Soooo beautiful.

love at first sight <3

Top (L to R: Love It and Woo Is Me) - Bottom (L to R: Louder and Head Over Heels)

Here you can see the powder-iness ( this is just hand swatch, it could be different once on the lid)

Woo Is Me - powdery in the pan :\ but who cares! it's a pretty gold/pink duo chrome :D

Description of palette:
Love It - light shimmer mint-y white color. Very frosty.
Woo Is Me - "apricot pink sheen" - it's like a soft duochrome between peach-y pink and gold. It's unique in my opinion
Louder (um crazyyyy pigmented, it's insane) - it's a gold toned cooper shade, metallic finish
Head Over Heels - matte slate/taupe color

Review and Rating: (A-). The eyeshadows are incredibly pigmented and with the smooth texture of these shadows comes powderiness and a little fall out. I just received this today so I cannot say if there is fallout upon application. With simply swatching on my arm, I can tell that I'm going to love it and wear it a lot. The colors work so well together and I can see many different looks being created with this quad. I would recommend it if you don't mind the powderiness. I think if you use a nice primer or eyeshadow base, the fall out and powderiness will be minimized :).

Have you recently picked up anything from the Spring collections (drugstore or high end)? and will you be picking this quad up?

Thanks for stopping by,
Bianca xo