• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Makeup and Beauty Blog | Makeup Reviews, Swatches and How-To MakeupMakeup and Beauty Blog | Makeup Reviews, Swatches and How-To Makeup

A beauty blog blooming with fresh makeup reviews, swatches and beauty tips from your friendly neighborhood beauty addict

  • Home
  • About
    • About
    • Contact
    • FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)
    • Advertising & Media
  • Categories
    • Product Reviews
    • Makeup
    • Skincare & Fragrance
    • Style & Fashion
    • Hair
    • Nails
    • Tips & Tutorials
    • Just for Fun
  • Brands
  • Store

Drugstore Beauty Finds

The New $10 L’Oréal Paris Colour Caresse by Colour Riche Luminous Lipcolours Are Rich in Pigment But Light on Pocketbooks

July 2nd, 2012 by Karen 51 Comments

loreal colour caresse colour riche violet chiffon 175
Wearing the new L’Oréal Paris Colour Caresse by Colour Riche Luminous Lipcolour in Violet Chiffon

It’s been an exciting afternoon! First, I discovered what might be my new favorite drugstore lipstick (more on that in a minute); then, I improvised a pasta dish without following a recipe, and it didn’t turn out completely terrible. 🙂

loreal colour caresse colour richeIf you’ve ever partaken of my improv cooking before, you’d know that it’s a crapshoot. Sometimes it works out, but sometimes, well, let’s just say that calling it “whack to the Nth degree” would be kind.

Luckily, I had some good ingredients on hand. I made a sauce of olive oil, minced garlic, crushed red pepper, halved cherry tomatoes and clam juice from a can, threw that in with some spaghetti, and garnished it with basil and salty Pecorino Romano cheese.

I wanted to add the clams for protein but didn’t realize they were whole clams until I opened the can.

Eww! I like diced clams, but I can’t deal with chopping them up when they’re whole. They’re just so…squishy and rubbery, and there’s that dark stuff that oozes out of ’em.

I ended up leaving out the clams, but I did add the clam juice to the sauce for flavor.

The dish was probably the best improv pasta I’ve made in a while, and I should have immortalized it with a pic! — but blast if I didn’t forget to take one before I finished devouring the meal.

Finding my new favorite drugstore lipstick this afternoon helped to soften the blow. The new $9.99 L’Oréal Paris Colour Caresse by Colour Riche Luminous Lipcolours are more than just mouthfuls. They’re also all kinds of rad.

loreal colour caresse colour riche
From the left: Pink Cashmere 171, Blushing Sequin 172, Violet Chiffon 175 and Pink Vinyl 183

Loaded with pigment and moisture, these 16 creamy, modern marvels are rarities among moisturizing lippies because they don’t highlight any flakes on my perpetually parched lips. L’Oréal’s lightweight Luminous Lipcolours are pigmented enough to satisfy my almost insatiable thirst for color, even with a single swipe, and hydrating enough to keep the flakes at bay.

After trying four of the colors so far, my lips and I are happy, moisturized and utterly impressed.

The unscented, unflavored pinks, neutrals and berries in the line headline the show like silent movie matinee versions of the far more expensive Pure Colour Sensuous Rouges from Estee Lauder ($28 each) and Chanel’s Rouge Coco Shines ($32).

loreal colour caresse colour riche swatches
Swatches from the left: Pink Cashmere 171, Blushing Sequin 172, Violet Chiffon 175 and Pink Vinyl 183

loreal caresse colour riche blushing sequin 172
Wearing Blushing Sequin
[Continue reading…]

There are 51 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Drugstore Beauty Finds, Lips, Loreal, Makeup, Product Reviews Keywords: loreal

Today I Was Gud and Grumpy With a Side of Cherries: Gud From Burt’s Bees Floral Cherrynova

June 19th, 2012 by Karen 24 Comments

novato-farmers-market-cherries
Life is just a bowl of these…

Hey, friend. Typing right at‘cha from the trenches of my living room couch. I just finished a slow, arduous 5-mile run — arduous because I really wasn’t feelin’ it, but I’m glad I did it anyway — and now, in my freshly showered state, I’m basking in a post-workout high, babbling in print and breathing in the scent of Gud From Burt’s Bees Cherrynova Body Wash on my skin.

But more on that in two seconds. 🙂

I’m also half watching Avatar on TV, eating a big bowl of cherries and trying, so far unsuccessfully, to deter Tabs from scratching my Pier 1 chair.

You know the old saying, “Life is just a bowl of cherries”? Well, I’m feeling that way now thanks to Cherrynova, but earlier today? — MAN! I was grumpy, grumpy, grumpy.

grumpy tabs in the closet
Grumpy with a side of grumps!

I dunno… I’m just really stressing over what to do with the rest of my life. After five years as the executive assistant to an international plus-size kitty supermodel, I’m starting to wonder, “Where is this job taking me?”

Stir in my natural tendency to worry, add a dash of insomnia, and you’ve got yourself a woman on the brink of FREAKING OUT!

But then I took a few deep breaths, talked to El Hub on the phone, pet Tabs, checked the blog, read through some comments, and slowly calmed down enough to hop on the treadmill.

Running usually takes the edge off…

So here I am, fresh out of the shower and eating a bowl of cherries. And kinda smelling like a bowl of cherries, too, courtesy of Floral Cherrynova.

gud body wash
[Continue reading…]

There are 24 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Burt's Bees, Drugstore Beauty Finds, Product Reviews, Skin Care Keywords: burt's bees

NYX Shows Its Softer Side With the $18 Spring Fling Palette for Eyes, Cheeks and Lips

June 1st, 2012 by Karen 20 Comments

NYX spring fling palette

Wow, the first day of June already!? That leaves barely enough time for an NYX Spring Fling before summer. 🙂

The powders in NYX’s new $18 Spring Fling Palette are some of the softest I’ve ever felt from the brand.

So soft, in fact, that I think they might even be a little too soft for everyday use.

With its 12 powder shadows, two blushes and two lip glosses in a sweet, subdued mix of neutrals and pastels, the only thing missing is a pair of kid gloves to handle them.

nyx spring fling swatches
[Continue reading…]

There are 20 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Drugstore Beauty Finds, Eyes, Makeup, NYX, Palettes, Product Reviews Keywords: nyx

NYX The Crimson Amulet Collection Harbors a Bewitching Bevy of Nudes and Brights for Lips, Cheeks and Eyes

May 31st, 2012 by Karen 13 Comments

nyx crimson amulet dark shadows

If you’re not already a fan of multi-product palettes, the NYX The Crimson Amulet Collection ($25) may confirm your worst fears about pre-stocked makeup kits.

Creams placed next to powders, gah! A dizzying array of 24 eyeshadows in a mix of matte and shimmery finishes lurk within this tomb, along with a teeny liquid liner indubitably designed for elfin hands.

Recently launched to coincide with the opening of the movie, Dark Shadows (four-word summary: Johnny Depp disco vampire), the limited edition palette of products for cheeks, lips and eyes harbors a supernatural society of bewitching nudes and brights!

nyx crimson amulet dark shadows front

I like the balance of serious colors and playful party shades, as well as the overall quality of the pieces and the number of products you get for the price.

If you maintain a pro-palette position, I think that’s enough right there to sway you.

But experienced NYX adherents might have a different take, one that flits between excitement over the eerily enticing Gothic packaging (isn’t there something very Flowers in the Attic about it?), and hardcore frustration.

I know I’ve definitely seen most of these colors before, like in the Nude on Nude palette, Butt “Naked” Eyes, Bohemian Rhapsody Casting Call and Haute Model.

Wisely for NYX, the palette has a built-in fail-safe: value.

For $25, you get 36 pieces! — all of high quality.

I think the HD Studio Eye Shadow Base, cheek products and lip products rock, but I would have liked to see more pigment added to some of the eyeshadows.

Unfortunately, the tiny liner seems like a bit of a throwaway product (dude, I can barely hold it properly, and I have small hands!), but I guess that’s what greatness like LORAC Front of the Line Pro is for. 🙂

nyx crimson amulet dark shadows open

nyx crimson amulet dark shadows tutorials
[Continue reading…]

There are 13 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Collections, Drugstore Beauty Finds, Makeup, NYX, Product Reviews Keywords: nyx

In the Bronzer Olympics, the NYX Matte Bronzers Get the Gold

May 30th, 2012 by Karen 13 Comments

nyx matte bronzer
Wearing NYX Bronzer in Medium

To the uninitiated, spotting the differences between the new NYX Matte Bronzers and the many other compact bronzing powders currently on counters is like trying to tell the difference between Coke and Pepsi blindfolded without tasting either one.

In other words, it’s tough.

After all, like most of the bronzers vying for our attention this summer, these new ones from NYX promise to do the same things — deliver a natural-looking, honey-like glow for your skin.

But if MAC is trying to rule the department store market with their Pro Longwear Bronzing Powders, NYX is going after drugstore divas and budget-minded babes with their five new Matte Bronzers.

At $9 each, the prodigious 0.33-ounce pans shout “BARGAIN!” from their perches in drugstore makeup aisles. For the price of one MAC Pro Longwear Powder, you could get two of these from NYX and still have enough change left over for a drugstore ice cream cone (do you like mint chocolate chip?). 🙂

I’ve been wearing three of the five shades this week, and impressed doesn’t come close to describing how I feel. Blown away is more like it.

nyx matte bronzer

nyx matte bronzer
Clockwise from the lower left: Medium, Deep and Light

None of that “BS” Oompa-Loompa orange business here. No way. The golden russet glow these bestow upon skin is worthy of beach barbeques and pool parties.

Very long beach barbeques and pool parties.

How long?

Well, starting with that first buttery cob of sweet corn, they last past the late-night singalongs and woozy revelations (like “S’mores are so genius!” and “Whoever invented nude wedges deserves a medal!”), and all the way until you’ve said your goodbyes before packing up the cooler to head home.
[Continue reading…]

There are 13 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Drugstore Beauty Finds, Face, Makeup, NYX, Product Reviews Keywords: nyx

The NYX Illuminating Bronzers: Has NYX Invented a $9 Time Machine? Inquiring Minds Want to Know

May 30th, 2012 by Karen 50 Comments

nyx chaotic illuminating bronzer
Wearing NYX Illuminating Bronzer in Chaotic on my cheeks

Shimmery bronzing powders in almost blush-like shades of luscious peach and pink aren’t exactly uncharted territory. Chanel, for example, has been there, done that, a few times before.

But NYX weaved quite a tapestry together with their three new Illuminating Face and Body Bronzers. By combining eminently flattering shades with a pearly finish and a soft, comfy texture, and then keeping the price well below department store, they created something greater than the sum of its parts.

All it took was a few swipes of Narcissistic (a beige), Chaotic (a golden peach) and Magnetic (a peachy pink) to get me hooked on all three.

nyx illuminating bronzer compacts

The marketing material doesn’t say, but I wonder if NYX co-created them with Cher, because they are, after all, designed to “turn back time.” 🙂

How so?

By bestowing a natural radiant glow to the skin that also diffuses incoming light, helping skin appear softer and, or so I hope, younger.

Yeah…I can’t even begin to tell you how appealing that sounds now that 37 is officially less than two weeks away!

But seeing as how I can’t really stop this train I’m on, I’ve been doing my best to slow it down embrace the inevitable with positivity and panache.

Now, when people call me “ma’am,” I try to own that sh*t! — but that does not mean refusing a little makeup help along the way.

Like Fox Mulder with his aliens, I really want to believe, LOL!

What do you think? Do I look 10 years younger wearing Chaotic, my favorite of the three shades, up there at the top?

Okay, how about 5? 🙂

nyx illuminating bronzer open
The NYX Illuminating Bronzers, clockwise from the lower left: Narcissistic, Chaotic and Magnetic

nyx illuminating bronzer swatches
Swatches from the left for comparison: NYX Illuminating Bronzer in Narcissistic, Chanel Soleil Tan de Chanel Luminous Bronzing Powder in Sable Beige, NYX Illuminating Bronzer in Magnetic, NARS Blush in Luster, NYX Illuminating Bronzer in Chaotic and Chanel Soleil Tan de Chanel Luminous Bronzing Powder in Sable Rose
[Continue reading…]

There are 50 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Drugstore Beauty Finds, Face, Makeup, NYX, Product Reviews Keywords: nyx

Milani Crystal Gloss for Lips Might Be Making MAC Jealous

May 26th, 2012 by Karen 14 Comments

milani crystal gloss for lips 1
Milani Crystal Gloss in Cotton Candy on lips

At a quick glance, I might assume that this brownish pink gloss with golden pearl, creamy brownish plum and soft, shimmery neutral pink were all members of the MAC gloss family, but the $4.99 price tag is all Milani.

Yup, the Milani Crystal Glosses have a rep for being drugstore MAC gloss dupes, and I can definitely see the similarities in the three new shades Milani recently released for summer.

Take Milani’s shimmery pinkish brown Fascination. Now, is it just me, or does Fascination look like a shy, sheerer, less golden version of MAC Viva Glam V Lipglass?

And then there’s shimmery pink Cotton Candy, which reminds me of a bookish tween version of MAC’s Creamsheen in Right Image.

And if MAC Spite wasn’t so intense, I’d call it Precious, as in Milani’s Precious.

milani crystal gloss for lips in fascination, precious and cotton candy
Crystal Gloss for Lips in Fascination, Precious and Cotton Candy, $5.45 each (three new shades available at select CVS/Pharmacy stores)

milani crystal gloss and glitzy glamour gloss swatches
Glitzy Glamour Gloss in High Status and Show Stopper; Crystal Gloss in Fascination, Precious and Cotton Candy

milani crystal gloss for lips 2
Precious
[Continue reading…]

There are 14 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Drugstore Beauty Finds, Lips, Makeup, Milani, Product Reviews Keywords: milani

Milani Introduces Two New Glitzy Glamour Glosses, Fresh From the Watermelon Patch

May 25th, 2012 by Karen 10 Comments

milani show stopper
Wearing Milani Glitzy Glamour Gloss in Show Stopper on my lips

A gloss with a creamy consistency and a formula that feels as light as a feather? — where?

Right here? You’re saying both of the two new additions to the Milani Glitzy Glamour Gloss line have both, and they only cost $7 apiece?

Tell. Me. More. 🙂

Between both of these shades — High Stats (a shimmery warm pink a la MAC Nymphette) and Show Stopper (a bright rosy pink) — and my MAC Cremesheen Glasses, I may never have to pick cat fur out of my gloss ever again (#catladyproblems).

Glitzy Glamour feels almost like a liquid lipstick! So smooth and buttery…

Applying a single silky coat with the included doe-foot applicator is almost as satisfying as a Snickers bar (or kissing Tabs’ tum).

If you can, though, sniff it first, because the sticky sweet scent is the subject of intense debate (like the eternal question — vampires vs. werewolves?). Folks seem to either love it or hate it.

My basset hound-like sense of smell detects some unusual scents behind an iron curtain of watermelon hard candy, like heart-shaped diaries, Justin Bieber’s hair clippings and sparkly purple gel ink pens.

Yeah…not my favorite.

Thankfully, for sensitive sniffers, the formidable fragrance and faux watermelon flavor fade after about 10 minutes.

milani glitzy glamour gloss
High Stats on my lips

milani glitzy glamour gloss in high status and show stopper
Glitzy Glamour Gloss in High Stats (left) and Show Stopper (right), $7.49 each (both new shades; available at select CVS/Pharmacy stores
[Continue reading…]

There are 10 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Drugstore Beauty Finds, Lips, Makeup, Product Reviews Keywords: milani

  • « Go to Previous Page
  • Go to page 1
  • Interim pages omitted …
  • Go to page 31
  • Go to page 32
  • Go to page 33
  • Go to page 34
  • Go to page 35
  • Interim pages omitted …
  • Go to page 83
  • Go to Next Page »

Primary Sidebar

Welcome to Makeup and Beauty Blog

Welcome to Makeup and Beauty Blog! My name is Karen, and I’m a freelance writer obsessed with makeup.

Makeup and Beauty Blog features daily product reviews, makeup tips and beauty news — like an interactive version of a monthly print magazine, except with occasional pictures of my cat.

Recent Posts

Sundays With Tabs the Cat, Makeup and Beauty Blog Mascot, Vol. 878

Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, Vol. 894

Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, Vol. 893

Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, Vol. 892

Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, Vol. 891

/* real people should not fill this in and expect good things – do not remove this or risk form bot signups */

Social

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Featured Posts

Sundays With Tabs the Cat, Makeup and Beauty Blog Mascot, Vol. 771

Lady Unicorn

Weird Things I Like to Do

brows fill out beforehand

Before You Pluck or Wax Your Brows, You Must Do This

current bare skin status

What’s One Thing That Drastically Changed Your Skin for the Better?

Copyright © 2025 Makeup and Beauty Blog. Get in touch.