NYX

This clear NYX eyebrow gel and I have a lot in common… Like, both of us enjoy long walks on the beach, drinking piña coladas and getting caught in the rain.

OK, that, and we’re both also Control Freaks. 🙂

Released a bit ago with the rest of the NYX spring collection, Control Freak works like most brow gels. Just brush the wand through your brows after you fill them in, and the clear gel is supposed to hold the hairs in place — you know, keep them under control?

Get it? Control?

It’s $6 and available now at drugstores, Ulta stores and nyxcosmetics.com.

Performance-wise, I think it’s OK. It doesn’t have the hold of my ride-or-die Anastasia Clear Brow Gel, but c’est la vie. After a few hours wearing Control Freak, the longer hairs at the tail end of my brows start moving, shifting and flappin’ in the breeze.

Not what I’m usually going for…

I guess my brows are just too much jelly for this, LOL! But if you only need light hold, it should do you just fine.

At least it’s only $6. Gotta love that.

Hey, you, buddy. Yeah, you, the person who invented these bunny stunna shades.

Thank you. 🙂

I can’t even begin to tell you much joy these things have brought me over the past few days. You couldn’t possibly understand, but then I am incredibly easily amused (it’s a lifestyle).

Like the stunna shades, these new NYX Chunky Dunk Hydrating Lippies are also packaged in plastic. They’re $6 a pop, new for spring, and come in 12 unscented, unflavored shades that are shiny, moisturizing and sheer, although adding more layers does ramp up the intensity.

Unfortunately, they only last about an hour for me…which isn’t great, but my lips are always dry, and I’ve got a thing for sheer pencil-type lipsticks, balms and glosses like these (that don’t require sharpening, as these are twist-ups. Gooooo laziness!), so right now I’ve got two of them in my purse, a reddish shade called Sex on the Beach and a brown nude named Happy Buddha.

Good for weekends and other casual lip looks.

They remind me of the Neutrogena MoistureSmooth Color Sticks, but are slightly more pigmented and slightly less moisturizing (not that they aren’t hydrating; just not as much as Neutrogena’s).

Dry-lipped gals, first off, I feel ya pain! Second, with these, you might need a little extra help from a balm.

All 12 shades are sitting pretty at Ulta stores and online at nyxcosmetics.com.

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She’s single and ready to mingle!

No, I am not referring to my personal mantra circa 2001. 🙂 I’m referring to NYX’s new monumental permanent line of Hot Singles Eye Shadows powder shadow singles.

Monumental as in 88 shades — wow! — and the pots are only $4.50 each.

Whether you’re looking for shimmers, mattes, brights or neutrals, there’s a very, very good chance you’ll find something interesting nestled among the seven dozen shades.

These hot singles are also highly pigmented, something I did not expect the first time I swatched them on my arm. The eight shades I’ve tried didn’t exactly “arm swatch” well.

Arm swatch… There I go inventing verbs.

In fact, they appeared downright patchy and sheer, and I had to build them up with 2-3 layers to reach the level of intensity in the pictures here.

Ah, but introduce them to an eye brush, and the story changes. When I use a flat eyeshadow brush and pat them on my lids, they’re surprisingly pigmented.

I should point out that some of the lighter beige and white mattes do appear slightly chalky on my skin, but for $4.50 each, I can deal.

Of the eight I’ve tried, shimmery golden pink Sex Kitten and matte beige Vixen are probably my definitely my faves. Lovely basics, the both of them.

Shimmery purple Maneater is right up there, too. Patted on the lids with black or plum liner on the lash and/or water lines, it’s mesmerizing. I can’t wait to see it on someone with green or hazel eyes (I love it on my eyes, which are brown).

Thanks to NYX, makeup lovers like us have 88 new reasons to visit the drugstore (they’re also available at Ulta and online at nyxcosmetics.com).

I get a big kick out of this palette. 🙂

It’s that name, Sex Bomb. I dunno…it just makes me laugh! I mean, I get that they were trying to channel inner seductiveness and sultriness, but of course I’m going to picture weird bombs of sexiness raining from the sky (of course).

Pouty lips, BOOM! Bedroom eyes, BAM!

Or I think of a bad roll in the hay, LOL! And then consequently sneaking out the door at an ungodly hour for that early morning walk of shame with smeared eye makeup and kitten breath.

Aw, what a disappointing sex bomb!

Oh, and then there’s the awkwardness of trying to explain the name to my mom…

Mom: “WHAT IS THIS SEX BOMB?”

Me: “Uh…well?”

Forgetting the name for a second, though, I think the colors are also cool. Very interesting, like that red on the far left. It looks rather frightening, doesn’t it? Well, it’s really not that scary at all. If you pop it on your lids very close to the lash line and do a black cat liner, I think it looks super cool.

And that black shadow on the far right does WERK! I like it smoked out along the lash lines with the taupe in the lid and the beige on the brow bone.

How very Angelina Jolie. Just add nude lips.

Anywho! It’s available now for $7.50 at NYX counters, Ulta and nyxcosmetics.com.

BOOM!