Ruby Kisses Matte Lip Lacquer Review and Swatches

One of the best things about being a beauty aficionado in NYC is the great number of beauty supplies I have available. From Ricky's to independent stores, they all offer awesome products that you might not find easily. I was browsing through one when I saw a display for Ruby Kisses Matte Lip Lacquers. Like my fellow makeup hoarders, I have been crazy about liquid matte lipsticks lately. The lipgloss-lipstick hybrid is just so convenient and I absolutely love the finish!

clockwise: Ruby Kisses Matte Lip Lacquers in "Morage, "Think Pink" and "Narcissism"

Viva Glam Miley Cyrus Review and Swatches

I'm one of those people that actually likes Miley Cyrus. Sure, she's a little over-the-top at times but I do like her style. It is fun and cheeky, like her. I loved when she got that makeover because the haircut really suits her. She's just enjoying her youth so I'm just letting her rock.

 MAC has teamed up with her to create a new shade for their Viva Glam lipsticks. The Viva Glam line is part of the MAC AIDS fund. Every cent of the proceeds goes to fund men, women and children that are affected by HIV or AIDS. I do agree with MAC picking Miley Cyrus as a spokesperson because of her target audience. It's a great way for young people be made aware of HIV and AIDS. Because honestly, it can happen to anyone.

Viva Glam Miley is described as a hot pink with blue tones. It has the an amplified finish, similar to the shade "Up the Amp". It comes in the traditional Viva Glam packaging and it has Miley Cyrus's signature both on the tube and packaging.

Soo is Viva Glam Miley Cyrus WOC friendly?

Dose of Colors Liquid Lipstick Review and Swatches

Oh Instagram! Why must you entice me with all these indie brands? And give me more reasons to spend my hard-earned pennies?

Favorite Lip Colors For Fall

Fall is among us. Pumpkin pie, booties and rich lip colors are just a few of my favorite things about this season. A deep lip color instantly adds glamour to your face and you barely need to have other makeup on. Here are just a few of my favorite lip colors for Fall, at all price ranges (one is even 99 cents!)

from top: Wet n Wild Megalast lip color "Cherry Bomb", MAC "Diva", NYC lipstick  "Mahogany", MAC "Flat Out Fabulous" (limited edition), OCC Lip Tar "Strumpet", Wet n Wild Megalast lip color "Ravin Raisin", Revlon "Berry Haute"

For more Fall lip colors, read my post on the Maybelline Fall 2013 Collection..

Sangria Inspired Lips

One of my favorite summertime activities is dining al fresco. And I love to drink sangria while eating. It is such a delicious drink. I had the most amazing guava sangria not too long ago and I was mesmerized by the color of it. It had a pink tinge to the deep red color and I was dying to find a lipstick that color. I thought it would be such a great lip color for the summertime, something different from all the brights that we are used to seeing. And the pink in it keeps it from looking to dark, I think.

Here is my lip recipe for the perfect sangria lip color:

1. As always, start with clean, moisturized lips. You don't want cracks and dryness.

2. Line your lips with a fuchsia colored lip liner. I used NYX slim lip pencil in "Fuschia". 

3. Fill in your lips with the Fuchsia lip liner.

4. Apply a rich red lip color over the lip liner. I used the appropriately named "Sangria" by Milani. I added the pink to get the guava-sangria color I was going after.

Haul Post

A haul of items I bought and some brief thoughts on a few of the items.

 NYX Mega Shine Lip Gloss "Lala", NYX Xtreme Lip Cream "Dolly Girl", NYX Matte Eyeshadow "Haywire", Brucci Nail Colors "Steph's Pink A-Go-Go" & "Absolute Andrea", Wet n Wild Megashield Lip Color "It's A Girl", NYX Stick Blush "Magnolia", CoverGirl Lipstick "Fairytale", CoverGirl Eyeshadow Quad "Tropical Fusion", Wet n Wild trio "Walking on Eggshells"

I was very pleased with all the lip products. As you can see, I was on a pink kick. "Fairytale" is a beautiful coral color and all the other lip products had good color payoff. I would recommend these for women of color as well, these colors would look great on darker skin tones.

 CoverGirl lipstick "Fairytale", NYX Mega Shime Lip Gloss "Lala", NYX Xtreme Lip Cream "Dolly Girl", Wet n Wild Megashield Lip Color "It's a Girl"

lip color swatches

The NYX stick blush had a very nice and creamy formula. It blends nicely and I really like the color a lot. It applies a little sheer but it can be built up.

NYX Stick Blush in "Magnolia"

swatch of "Magnolia"

I got one shade from the new matte shadows collection from NYX. It swatched nicely and I will be using it for crease-work mostly.

NYX matte eyeshadow "Haywire"

"Haywire" swatch

I also discovered a new brand called LiSi Cosmetics while walking through NoHo in NYC. It is a highly  affordable brand (a lot of the products are under $15.00) and in the store they have sample products for you to swatch. The store is located in 741 Broadway in Manhattan. I bought a blush and concealer. I was impressed by the color payoff with the concealer, I got the shade "Maldives" and it is VERY pigmented so a light hand would definitely be needed. The concealer, not so much. Barely any coverage. I'll go more in depth on the concealer in a separate post about LiSi Cosmetics.