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Weekly Cheap Secret:

I am really impressed with Revlon’s Matte Collection. Matte cosmetics seem to come and go as fads. Many companies do not offer matte products at all. You have to expand out to MAC, Urban Decay, Make Up For Ever, and some actual theatrical brands. Don’t get me wrong, I love shimmer. But I think matte cosmetics really add some depth to shimmery looks. I don’t like a completely matte face, too airbrushed senior picture. But, I do like a deep, matte eggplant used in the crease with a shimmery gold shadow. Or silver glitzy eyes with really matte red lips. Revlon has offered a pretty decent selection of matte cosmetics for a good price. Since these are drugstore cosmetics I haven’t been able to play in all of them. Out of what I have tried, I like.

EYES: The Matte Eyeshadows are very nice and come in a range from super neutral to really bright. This a nice budget friendly alternative to Urban Decay Matte Eyeshadows. There are nine: Vintage Lace (soft off white), Peach Sorbet (pale peachy nude), Pink Innocence (pale pink), Luscious Lime (vivid lime), Venetian Blue (bright electric blue, move on over MAC Electric Eel!), Tempting Teal (deep blue-ish forest green, think Douglas Fir Tree needles, would be amazing mixed with silver or baby blue), Rich Sable (warm deep brown), Riveria Blue (deep midnight sea blue), and Aubergine (dusty, deep eggplant purple, so luxe). I can’t complain about any of the shades. The lighter shades are must have bases for light complexions. The bright colors are so fun. The deep ones will make great smoky eyes or liners. They retail for $4.99 and you get more than what is in a MAC pan. There are 5 Kohl Eyeliners: Pure White (eye opening white), Black Truffle (a deep and mysterious black), Rich Mink (deep chocolate), Midnight Blue (deep navy), and Very Violet (a vivid and electric medium purple). The eyeliners feel nice and soft. They create that “mysterious” eye. They are easy to blend. They go for under $10.

LIPS: The Matte Lipstick is hot. All I really need is a matte nude, matte red, and a matte milky pink. All are offered! There is Nude Attitude which is a really pale nude. It reminds me of MAC Fleshpot or MAC Freckletone. This shade looks amazing with dark eyes. There is Pink Pout which is a white-ish 60’s pink. This looks much like my all time favorite shade, MAC Snob, my wedding day shade. Wear with gray shadow and it is beautiful. There is a lovely every day mauve, Mauve It Over. Pink About It and Strawberry Suede are both bright summer pink. I love both reds. They are classic. There is Really Red which is a bright warm red and In The Red which is a cooler red. I love Really Red, it is almost orange. There is Cocoa Craving and Fabulous Fig both are pretty ho-hum neutrals. There is a beautiful gothic deep wine, Wine Not. I wish I knew about this one this past fall and winter. These go for under $7.

FACE: There are four matte powder blushes. There is a light pink, Rose Rapture. There is a medium hued berry, Blushing Berry. There is a sweet pale peach, Perfectly Peach. And there is the must needed neutral, Barely Buff. These are nice because sometimes you just don’t feel like having glittery cheeks. These go for under $10.

There are many fun colors and everyday colors in this collection. The prices are pretty nice. And since they are drusgstore cosmetics there are always coupons, deals such as BOGO, or on clearance.

My eye.

I have blue eyes and khaki or olive eye makeup really doesn’t make them stand out but I do love the look because it works with my complexion and dyed red hair. I love olive eyeshadows are dark skintones and ladies with brown or hazel eyes. If you have a bit of violet in your eyes it will make them pop. Plus, khakis and olives look great on redheads including the au naturale redheads that I am so jealous of. It is stunning and easy. It can be applied like a “wash” and it looks wonderful. It makes a great smoky eye without using the much too harsh black that most people reach for. Some of my favorite olive shadows include the following:

Pick Your Own Singles: Cheaper-What I am wearing in the pic above is mark I-Mark Custom Pick Eyeshadow in Vintage Khaki. It is a deep khaki infused with tons of gold shimmer. It is long wearing even without a base and it retails for $4. The case is sold separately. More Expensive-I also like Prescriptives Colorscope Eye Color in Sage. It looks alot like the mark one. It retails for $14 and the case is sold separately.Both of these look nice paired with nude shimmers or golds as a base.

Shimmer Singles: Cheaper- I like L’Oreal Eyeshadow Single in Golden Olive which is a medium olive shade that retails for under $5. One of my all time favorites is Milani Powder Eyeshadow in Golden Bronze which is a green with pearly gold and it retails for under $4. I have went through many of these, have I mentioned they look great on redheads? Even the natural kind. More Expensive–Lorac has an Eyeshadow Single in Olive which is a nice medium olive shimmer that retails for $17. Another really nice one is MAC Eyeshadow in Greensmoke which is a deep dark olive shimmer that retails for $14.50. There is also Sumptous Olive which is nice but a bit more khaki and with less “green”. Lancome Color Design Eyeshadow in Designer is an awesome super shimmery olive with silver shimmer. It retails for $16.50. For a more brown but still green shimmer, Dior 1-Colour Mono Eyeshadow in Khakis is very shimmery and nice. It retails for $25.

Matte : Cheaper– L’Oreal Wear Infinite Eye Shadow Duo in Forest is nice. It has a matte soft clover green and a matte medium olive. It retails for under $6. More Expensive– This is a bit of a matte, Lancome Color Design Eyeshadow in Dill. It is a deep olive with minimal gold shimmer. It retails for $16.50. Make Up For Ever has a matte olive in Olive Green 47 and it retails for $19. I find that there aren’t many matte shadows on the market in this shade. I must say that olives really do benefit from shimmer. It seems to add depth and keeps the eye area from looking too “dead”. I have all three mentioned above and I like them. They don’t make me look like a rotting zombie corpse.

Duo/Sets: Cheaper– L’Oreal Eye Shadow Quads in Landscape and Eva’s Violets have nice olives and other coordinating shades. These retail for under $7. Revlon 12 Hour Eyeshadow Quad in Spring Moss has a lovely khaki and three other nice greens. It retails for under $7.  More Expensive– YSL 5 Colour Harmony for Eyes in Garden of Eden has a nice olive and four other great greens for $56. DuWop Smoke in Olive Branch makes a great olive smoky eye and retails for $28. It comes with a gel liner and shimmery eyeshadow.

Eyeliner: Cheaper– Sephora Slim Eye Pencil in Olive is OK for the $5 price tag. I also like Covergirl Outlast Smoothwear All Day Eyeliner in Olive because it is so smooth. It retails for under $7. Another nice one is Avon Ultra Luxury Eye Liner in Khaki. It retails for $5 and creates a soft line.  More Expensive– MAC Powerpoint Eye Pencil in Forever Green which is an olive shimmer that retails for $14.50. It has a really smooth formula and wears for hours! One of my favorite liners ever is the one I am wearing in the pic above. It is Lancome Artliner in Starshower. As you can see, it is an olive that is so dark that it is almost black with lots of gold shimmer. It retails for $28 and looks awesome just worn alone. It is way more fun than your basic black and it is much more flattering for hazel eyes. Black can be too harsh on most skintones as well and it can be aging! I also like Dior Waterproof Crayon Eyeliner in Iridescent Khaki. It is very long wearing and retails for $26 and comes with its own sharpener.

Tokyo Milk Parfum in Ex Libris is a nice fig inspired fragrance. I find it very earthy and wearable all year. Of course this is coming from a fig perfume fan. But, this isn’t my “typical” fig fragrance that I have in my collection. This is not Diptyque’s Philosykos (one of my all time favorites) or L’Artisan Premier Figuier (one of my other favorites) . Ex Libris is much more “fresh” in a feminine way. It manages to smell of earthy and woodsy fig trees,  punches of white flowers with a dash of zesty cardamom. It smells of the milkiness of the fig leaf without being super sweet because it is grounded by the bark. It isn’t “fruity” and not a bit Fig Newton like some fig fragrances. But, the scent isn’t overly woodsy and it manages to smell quite flirty. It is a tumbling bouquet, but not in an obnoxious solo season way. This floral, magnolia, can smell pleasant and like fresh summer blossoms or like pick me up in the winter because it is grounded by the earthy fig. I would say that the strongest note is the cardamom. It is the “citrus” that my body won’t devour. Cardamom is a special plant. It is both cool and minty fresh (mojito-ish) and warm and spicy like ginger. Cardamom freshens up the fragrance without making it smell like Pledge. It makes it fresh enough for spring and summer and spicy enough for fall and winter. It is all a matter of perspective. You would think that this fragrance blend would be sweet or gourmand because it contains fig and cardamom which is commonly used in Indian and Asian desserts, but it isn’t a sweet fragrance at all. The fig is very earthy and brings back wonderful childhood memories of hot Atlanta summers. It smells like my six year old hands and bare feet climbing sunbaked fig trees. The cardamom is spicy but manages to be fresh. The florals make this scent uniquely feminine, but not disgustedly feminine. This is not Estee Lauder Pleasures. This is much more complex. It has earth, spice, skin, and florals. It is complex without being moody or showy. It is a nice all year blend. In fact, this fragrance is what I have wanted many of a Guerlain Aqua Allegoria EDTs to be. It has that kind of clean sophistication but with a longer wear. It starts out as a woodsy figgy white floral and turns into an earthy, spicy cardamom green tea like fragrance held together by the staying power of crisp, white musk.

The bottle is OK. It is simple glass bottle with an alphabet typeset sticker. It isn’t as showy or glamorous as the other Tokyo Milk Parfum stickers. But, I am a nerd so I should like it. But, I am more of an IPA nerd. Slap some IPA symbols on this baby and I’ll be in linguistic heaven. I can’t possibly complain about the price. It is $28 for 1 ounce. It wears nicely and wears for at least half of the day which is quite sometime for a fig inspired fragrance. Most fig fragrances disappear in an hour or so, I give this one 6 to 8 hours. That isn’t bad, since I have compared this to the Guerlain Aqua Allegoria EDTs which last a maximum of 1 hour on me in the summer. I recommend this fragrance for those that like fig fragrances and that are kind of sick of the “whole” fig fragrance, those that like gingery, spicy scents like Origins Ginger Essence, those that like “tea” fragrances by Bvlgari, for those that like zesty watery splashes like those by Diptyque or Guerlain, or for those that think “fresh” scents is something more sophisticated than a Davidoff Cool Water or Estee Lauder Beyond Paradise. I am a fragrance flirt and I really see myself using this one frequently throughout the year. It doesn’t feel fadish and feels very “me”. It is available at beautyhabit.com and b-glowing.com.

I’m not one to use hand creams too often. I like a few of Burt’s Bees and a few rosewater types. I did purchase this one. It appears to be a pretty basic hand cream. It has a soft “olive” fragrance that is often used in “natural” skincare items like Olivina. So, the scent isn’t offensive but it won’t compete with your other fragrances. It isn’t too greasy and in comparison to other hand creams, it actually absorbs pretty quickly. The difference: this is not a cream but a treatment. This means no more rough patches! It is like this hand cream eats it. It smooths the hands out. They feel really soft and almost like they have been “buffed”. So you are moisturized, sleek, but still really soft.  No greasy palms or scary stiff mannequin hands here. It contains amino acids and a bunch of other stuff. Unlike other creams you do not apply this throughout the day. Once in the morning and once at night is enough to have smooth hands. If you are really dry or if you have a job that is heavy on the handwashing, you will need to apply another cream or more of this throughout the day. The small bottle (not pictured) retails for $12 for 3.8 ounces. I have the large pump which is 8 ounces and it retails for $26. It lasts a long time since I only need to apply it twice daily. I know Ulta carries this line and it is available online from the company’s website. I will repurchase when I run out. And don’t get me started on how much I love the foot cream. Plus, they are a Washington based company, so I have to support them. And do you know that they do custom fragrance blending? I’m thinking something like Fresh Cut Grass and Lily of the Valley with a base note of Egyptian Musk for spring or something with the Fig Tree note.

I’m really not in love with the Dior Parisian Nude spring 2009 makeup collection. I find it a bit boring and a little too average. It is a little too Clinique for my tastes. This isn’t a horrible look. It looks great on my people and it even looks much like my toned down work look. So, that is why it is boring. This isn’t a collection and it shouldn’t be limited edition; these are too much of the everyday colors that most ladies already own.

FACE: There is a limited edition Lady Dior Compact for $75. It is a purse looking metal compact that is made to resemble the Lady Dior bag. It contains a sheer and shimmery champagne cheek highlighter and a sheer pink lip gloss. I find this product extremely boring, especially for the price.

EYES: There is a 5-Colour Iridescent Eyeshadow Compact in Parisian Lights. This compact features pretty and soft shades of white, copper, copper rose, pink, and stainless steel. It retails for $56. They have relaunched the 2-Colour Duo Eyeshadow in Nude Look which is a deep chocolate and shimmery rose. It is a pretty combo that retails for $35. My only beef is that there is more of the crease color than of the base, stupid guys, and Clinique has a duo identical to it for half the price. There is a Waterproof Crayon Eyeliner in Elegant Taupe which is a mushroomy medium brown. This shade is very pretty and I love the formula. It goes for $26 and comes with its own sharpener.

LIPS & NAILS: There are 2 Rouge Dior Lipsticks in Actress Chestnut, a warm rosey brown,  and Rita Beige, a rosey copper. These retail for $28. I’m not impressed with these shades at all and I do find the formula long wearing but a bit dry. Four Addict Ultra-Gloss Reflect Lip Glosses have been relaunched/launched: Clutch Pink (a warm pink/rose shimmer), Ribbon Beige (warm brown shimmer), Satin Pink (cool pink shimmer), and Trenchcoat Beige (pinky nude shimmer). These go for $25.50 and I must admit that I like the formula but I am not wild about these boring shades. For the nails, there is a Vernis Nail Enamel in Porcelain which is a super sheer everyday pink shimmer.

But, yep, all I have to say is that this collection is a bit tame and boring. If the colors sell out, so be it, they offer these shades all the time. You can find these shades anywhere.

Embarrassed? Why is that? I really dislike the brand Juicy Couture mainly because they make overpriced garments for hipless teenie boppers. I don’t have anything against hipless teenie boppers. It is just that I am a grown women. And as they say in the South “a grown ass woman”. This means that I need to dress so without being ashamed of my hips and all the other curves that I just so happen to own. Juicy Couture will occasionally have a few cute dresses or nice prints but I can’t stop thinking of their velour or terry track suit look with words like “juicy” on the bum. This bothers me. Nobody, even hipless teens, looks good in a hot pink terry sweatpant with old English letters on the backside. It is the most unflattering look ever. That being said, and I should add that I do own a few Juicy items, such as nice terry hoodies that I have picked up at Nordstrom Rack with a great price tag, I find Juicy clothing rather dull or even worse unflattering and trashy. So why should I be ashamed of completely loving the original EDP? Well, because it is made by Juicy Couture. Shallow, I know. But, it is a really popular fragrance by a really popular company. But, I must confess that I have loved it since it’s first day of launching, what was that 2 years ago?! Just like I try to keep my closet gothness hidden, I’ve tried to keep my love of Juicy EDP in the closet. I had a friend that worked for the launching campaign. He gave me a bazillion samples because he understood that I couldn’t possibly purchase after dogging all the rich mall rats that sported the letters on the ass look making them look at least 25 pounds heavier under the bellybutton. I would wear the fragrance. People would ask me what I was wearing and I would lie through my teeth that I was wearing something else or merely “a lady never reveals such”. Sick, but that is why I must confess. Years have passed and I am down to the last few sprays of a sample spray vial. The time has come to order it online, grow up, and admit that I like a very popular fruity floral. I must also come to terms that it is OK and that I am no less of a glamazon and adult women for liking this fragrance. I can’t really explain my love for it. I must admit that I did love the initial add campaign with the huge haired Antoinette ladies with a punky attitude and the giant sized animals. It was genius. And I do live in that type of fantasy and wear big hair. I love that at first spritz it is loud and really fruity. It is a super synthetic and sweet watermelon and apple like a Pixie Stick but thank God that it smells of a loud tuberose bouquet on me. It is super floral, super girly and unlike my other tuberose scents not “old”. It is a wonderful new take on such a hard to wear and crude floral.  It is a sweet tuberose but it isn’t very vanilla-ish, at least on me. It is a “loud” scent and the original ad campaign imagery perfectly sums it up. It is super ladylike with a bit of a young and mall rat-ish edge. My husband loves it but he has a thing for tuberose in incarnation. I have smelled many mainstream fruity florals but none are as interesting as this one. And the bottle is really cute. And it wears for hours, the entire day on me. And there are lots of cute “extras”. Has anyone tried the shampoo or conditioner? Please share. I would love to try those. Especially since I am now unashamed of loving Juicy Couture EDP. It can be purchased at fragrancenet.com. and beauty.com.

Juicy Couture Perfume for Women Eau De Parfum Spray 1.7 Oz by Juicy Couture
From: BigDiscountFragrances.com

I am so happy that I saw this before I bought it. It is such a rip! It retails for $70 which isn’t bad for 35 bright matte eyeshadows by Bobbi Brown. Bobbi Brown eyeshadows come in a great formula, pack pigment, and blend easily. I love them. When I saw this I was shocked! Each “pan” is so extremely tiny and it seems you would only get a few wears out of each color. Yes, you get a variety but you do not get much of it. This is not a palette for gals that aren’t afraid of color. This is a palette for gals that just might like to “try” color every now and then. It is 6.3″ long and 4.25″ wide. That is really tiny considering that 35 shadows are crammed into this slim and tiny compact! The shadows which range from in your face brights to some washed out pales come in a sleek (tiny) black compact with a mirror. I will not be buying this and I am so happy that I tried it before I bought it! Another makeup mistake has been avoided!

Weekly Cheap Secret:

This is one of my favorite finds. Yes, I like Bonne Bell, the maker of soda pop flavored lip gloss from the disco era. I bought this product because I was out of something more expensive (Bobbi Brown) and I didn’t have the money to spend on something that I thought wasn’t a necessity. Now this is a necessity. I love flawless complexions. To me flawless complexions resemble store mannequins or Barbie. I know many people don’t like the “plastic” look. Sometimes you’ll read reviews about how somebody hates something so much because it made them look “plasticy”, this is when I run out and pick this product up. I love “plasticy” not “plastery”. I love dewy and glimmery. And shimmery looks photograph so well. People compliment me on my complexion frequently and it because I wear this stuff.

This product sells for under $10. It contains four shimmery shades ranging from shimmery pale beige to shimmery taupe. I blend them together for a perfect beige look. It is a heavenly pressed powder that wears for hours. I apply it over my cheekbones and down my nose. It really “wakes” my skin up. I wear it on the eyes too. It is a great multi purpose product. I’ve went through so many of these. I always have it in my case and I swear by it.

Worn on my cheeks over NARS blush.

I love the new Guerlain Spring 2009 makeup collection. Yes, the “look” really resembles YSL and shu uemera, but I really like the bright green and coral products. They are fun and remind me more of summer. I am often inspired by nature. I’m looking for lipsticks the color of mushrooms and hair color the shade of weeds. The best shades are found in nature. Every trip to the forest leaves me looking for the next perfect hue to be found in clothing and makeup. Well, Olivier Échaudemaiso also agrees. Because he has created a “rich collection drawn from an eccentric, eclectic garden of Eden, a colorful kaleidoscope of nature’s prettiest, most sensual colors and organic delights. With his exotic palette he concocts colors that stir optimism, awakens purity and arouses a desire for paradise that hibernates with every woman.” I couldn’t b.s. it better myself.I love the packaging for this look. Compacts have ferns on them. Those aren’t that “exotic” here in the Pacific Northwest but they were back in Tennessee. I love ferns. They are wild and my new Northwestern life is overrun with them and I still can’t seem to get enough.

LIPS: There are three new KissKiss Glosses. I love the fragrance and the feel of this formula. It comes in three lovely and wild shades: Orange Interdite which is a vivid sheer coral, Cerise Tenation which is a sheer red, and Pomme du Désir which is a fun and sheer shimmery lime. These retail for $29.  It has the same packaging as the original but now the top is a metallic fern green. There are four KissKiss Maxi Shine Lipsticks in Candy Shine, Honey Shine, Grenade Shine, and Baby Shine. I love this formula and all of the colors are lovely. They make the lips look smooth and plump. These go for $30. There are four KissKiss Lipsticks in Flushy Beige, Forever Beige, Corail Passion, and Rose Miami. These are all nice and have a nice texture. They retail for $30.

EYES: I am wild about the limited edition Ombre Éclat Eyeshadow Quad. It comes in a lovely green metallic compact designed by Hervé Van der Straeten. It is a work of art. The shadows are stunning and shimmery in shades of lime green, coral, chocolate brown, and bubblegum pink. They each have an amazing fern leaf motif in a pearly lime green. It retails for $58 and I can’t stop thinking about it. The Ombre Éclat 1 Shade Eyeshadows have been relaunched. They are lovely and have an amazing texture. Ombre Éclat Eye Primer is available too. It is a “nude” long-lasting primer with skin nourishing ingredients. It somehow manages to control oil but provide moisture. It comes in a nice metallic “black” case. It retails for $34.

For once I have found something with packaging that I like and product that I like. I’m loving the shadow quad. I love corals and greens because they just seem to “work” for me. Plus, I just love Guerlain. It is my favorite makeup company. I am a loyal fan. I can’t help it.

Cheap Secret:

I’ve tried quite a few of these Revlon Illuminance Creme Eye Shadow kits. I really like them. That’s why I have so many. They wear nicely as a shadow base and create a lot of depth. They come in a wide range of colors and come in both mattes and shimmers. I’ve went through two of the Moonlit Jewels because they make for an awesome liner kit. These cream shadows are all super shimmery. They aren’t greasy and they usually stay in place. I need to add that I do not have an issue with oily lids or anything, so these do not travel. I do not know what they would do on oily lids. I take a thin liner brush from the art store, coat it with this cream and then line. It is so easy to use. It doesn’t “set” so you can create any kind of line you want. I really recommend this for “beginners”. You have a lot of control with this product. Moonlit Jewels comes in a medium shimmery brown that looks great for adding “light” around the eye. The other three shades make for an awesome cat eye or even used as a smoky eye if used with an angled liner brush. The other shades are a rich navy shimmer, emerald forest green shimmer, and a perfect warm brown shimmer. These also make a great base up to the lid if you want to layer with a dark color for a smoky look. And these things are great because you can pick them up at any drugstore or super market for under $8.

Smeared on my hand.