MAC Pro Longwear Concealer Review

Ever get bored of repurchasing the same product over and over again?
I do. I've been using the same concealer (Urban Decay Concealer Stick in CIA) forever, and have repurchased it probably 3 times now. There's absolutely nothing wrong with this concealer, and I love it, but every now and then, I just NEED to try something new!

I don't own a lot of MAC products, so when my concealer started running low, I decided I'd pick one up, and see how I like it. I chose the MAC Pro Longerwear Concealer in NC15.

$19 USD for .30 fl oz

MAC describes this product on the website as:

"A lightweight fluid concealer that provides medium to full coverage with a comfortable, natural matte finish. Colour-true formula lasts up to 15 hours. Helps conceal and correct the look of under-eye circles, and discolorations. Comes in a clear glass vial with a matte black pump."

Now, I don't have a MAC store within hours of me, so I can't go to the store to test things out, and rely on the online descriptions. Luckily I'm pale as a ghost, so I know that usually the lightest shade a company makes will be my shade, unless it's too dark.

I pretty much only use concealer under my eyes, and occasionally around my face if I'm having a bit of discoloration, but mostly, it just goes under my eyes. Because of this, I was a little worried about that matte finish making my under eye area looking dry and flaky. However, it doesn't accentuate my dry skin at all. I'm not used to concealer in a liquid form, so application took some getting used to. I usually dab this product on with my fingers where needed, and then blend out the edges with a fluffy brush, I've been liking the Real Techniques Setting Brush. 

The color is a pretty good match for me. Slightly yellow, BUT the really helps color-correct my purple-ish dark circles under my eyes. Also, I apply foundation BEFORE my concealer, and go back in with concealer to cover and areas that need a little extra help. It doesn't make sense to me to apply concealer before foundation, because you'll end up applying far too much, but I suppose that's all a method of personal preference. I can't speak on the 15 hour wear time claim, I usually don't wear face makeup that long for any reason!

Overall I've really been enjoying this concealer from MAC!
If you have issues with concealer creasing under the eyes, this one might be a little less likely to move around and settle into lines.
Have you tried this concealer before? Do you have a 'holy grail' concealer, or do you love trying new products too much to stick to one?

[This product was purchased by me with my own money and I'm not in any way endorsed or affiliated with MAC Cosmetics.]

Product and Company Review: Surreal Makeup

Hey everyone! Today I have a small company/product review for you. Through my Biohazardous Beauty page on Facebook, I was contacted by a company called Surreal Makeup. The owner, lovely Miss Amanda, asked if I would be interested in doing a review of their products, and of course I said yes!

I'm always looking for a chance to try new makeup. Whether it's a new product at the drugstore or Sephora, or a new Indie company online. Surreal makeup describes themselves as:

"We pride ourselves in bringing you 100% pure mineral makeup that contains no lake, dye, waxes or harsh chemicals.Surreal Makeup IS highly pigmented, hypo-allergenic, water resistant mineral makeup that wears all day yet cleans up easily with soap & water or a baby wipe. We think you owe it to yourself to find out why it is called Surreal Makeup!"

http://www.surrealmakeup.com/

And for what was introduced to me as a 'small' company, they have a massive, (and I mean MASSIVE) shade range! 

My shadows arrived in an adorable sachet!

Each shade is individually shrink wrapped. Bonus points!

The caps are printed with the company name, in this really, really cool holographic print. I kind of failed at capturing that, but I thought it looked really profession!
And it's NOT a sticker. These containers are made for this company.

I did not get to choose which colors I wanted to try (but hey, I'm not picky, and willing to work with anything!) and was sent Everglades, Feather, Smooth, Willow, and Visionary. Each jar is printed with the shadow name, www.surrealmakeup.com, and the ingredients. It does not have the size printed on it, so I am not sure if I got 5 gram or 3 gram jars. But both sizes are available on the website.

All shadows come with sifters, I just always remove sifters, because, they get in my way. xD

Left To Right: Smooth, Feather, Visionary, Everglades, Willow (Swatched over UDPP)

Each shadow as described from the website:

Smooth - A white gold highlighting shimmer with light gold sparkles

Feather - A vibrant teal shadow loaded with teal sparkles

Visionary - Visionary is a baby blue eye shadow with pink reflects throughout

Everglades - *couldn't find on website*

Willow - A dark golden green eye shadow.

For the most part, I agree with these descriptions. The pink sparkles in Visionary can be a little elusive, but I do see them there. As for Everglades, I would describe it as a medium olive green, with gold shimmer. 

Mind the mascara, I know I applied sloppily x.x

Here's a look I did using all 5 shadows.

Complete list of products used:

• Urban Decay Primer Potion Original
• Surreal Makeup Smooth
• Surreal Makeup Feather
• Surreal Makeup Visionary
• Surreal Makeup Everglades
• Surreal Makeup Willow
• Urban Decay 24/7 Waterproof Liquid Liner in Perversion
• Urban Decay 24/7 Glide on Pencil in Stash
• Urban Decay Eyeshadow in Walk of Shame
• Urban Decay Supercurl Mascara

Overall I really quite loved how these shadows looked. They're so pretty and shimmery. Looking at the website, there's everything from matte, to UV reactive, to glitter, to iridescent colors to choose from. I believe I was told there's 280+ colors to choose from!
5 gram jars cost $8.00 per shadow, and 3 gram jars cost $4.00 per shadow. I love when companies, especially ones with a larger selection give you that size option, when you want to try a bunch of colors, but don't necessarily need full size jars of each one.

Surreal makeup also sells primers, powders, lipglosses, and brushes!

I am definitely impressed by this company, that I can't believe I never knew existed! Those UV eyeshadows are calling my name! 

***Disclaimer*** Products shown were sent to me by the company for the purpose of reviewing. However, complimentary products never receive special treatment, I review them just like I'd review something I bought myself. My opinions expressed here are purely my own, and are not influenced by any outside sources, nor do I represent any company.***

Product Review: Stila Countless Color Pigments!

Hello everyone! I'm sure you've all already seen this in stores/online somewhere (because they're AWESOME), but I want to share with you the awesomeness of these products!

Stila Countless Color Pigments. $22 Each.

As soon as I saw these online, I knew they needed to be on my makeup desk IMMEDIATELY. They were sold out everywhere, Stila's website, Sephora, Ulta didn't even have them yet, but I managed to find mine on Dermstore.com. They were backordered, but I went ahead and purchased the three colors that sang to my soul the most, Light Show, Tie Dye, and Indie. (We all knows greens, blues, and purples are my weaknesses.)

When they finally arrived I was so beyond excited to play with them. I mean, come on, TIE DYE EYESHADOW PEOPLE! I know you're inner hippie 8-year old was excited too! 

((For my swatches, I swatched the lightest color alone, lightest and second lightest mixed together, second lightest color alone, second lightest color and darkest color mixed, and darkest color alone. (sense?) Also, they're all swatched over NYX jumbo pencil in Milk.))

Light Show

Light Show

Light show

I absolutely ADORE light show. This shadow (they're more of a palette in themselves, don't you think?) makes a perfect green/turquoise/deep blue eye, all by itself. I am just fascinated by these guys, seriously. The color payoff is great, and the shadows themselves are not quite matte, but not enough to be called a shimmer. More of a satin finish. This baby blends like a DREAM, which makes creating a look a million times easier. 

Tie Dye

Tie Dye

Tie Dye

If you're going to buy only one of these, it should be Tie Dye. Even if these colors weren't swirled in their enticing and groovy patterns, these colors are so unique. Again with the satin finish, they're soft and blend amazingly. I am obsessed with the looks you can make from this single shadow. Even just used individually they look amazing. I love this so much, I can't even begin to describe!

Look using only shadows from Tie Dye!!

Indie

Indie

Indie

Last but not least, Indie. I am a sucker for purples, but Indie slightly fails to deliver the same kick that Light Show and Tie Dye give you. While the shades are obviously different in the pan, when swatched, they all come out looking very, samey. It's very, very difficult to get just that light lavender on it's own unfortunately. Even the darkest shades swatch light, making them all look scarily similar. However, this shade is still creamy and delicious, I find myself mixing all the shades in this pan together on my brush and using it that way! It gives you a gorgeous, mid-toned purple to work with. And has the same blendability as the other shadows!

Overall, I think these shadows are gorgeous, brilliant, genius, and groovy. Stila isn't usually a brand I get to overly excited about, but they caught my eye, and did a fantastic job with these products. On Sephora's website, it says these are exclusive and limited edition. Not sure how true that is, and if they're only limited to Sephora, or if they're limited by Stila themselves. 

Either way, get these while you still can! 

(All products here were purchased by me)

No Glitter, No Glory!

Recently I received a little surprise in the mail...

The lovely ladies at Beautylish and Lit Cosmetics surprised me with a bright and sparkly package! As you may have noticed (if you're a member at Beautylish) they have just launched a boutique featuring Lit Cosmetics glitters! Lit is a company I have been wanting to try for AGES, I've heard nothing but amazing things about their glitter and especially their glitter base. I've never been able to afford to order from Lit, so getting this opportunity just made my entire year!

Inside was a cute little note from the ladies at Beautylish, 4ml size of their Clearly Liquid Glitter Base, a mini brush, their neat little glitter removal device, and a full size of Boogie Nights S2 glitter. Boogie Nights is a shade exclusive to the Beautylish Boutique!

Boogie Nights is described as:

"Boogie Nights (Shimmer Size #3) is a Medium cut multi-dimensional true purple glitter that flashes an iridescent array of golden yellow and pastel shades including lilac, pale pink, pale green, and pale blue sparkles. (4g - 0.14oz)"

(Description taken from Beautylish)

So of course, I had to test it out right away!

Here I applied Boogie Nights using the glitter base over a black eyeshadow. It made all of the different colors that reflect pop so much! 

Full list of products used in this look can be found on my Beautylish profile at:

http://www.beautylish.com/ToriBiohazard

Since the boutique opened up, I went ahead and purchased 3 more glitters from Beautylish.

L to R: Seeing Stars S3, Cayman S2, Gunsmoke S2

I think, especially side by side, you can really see the different in the glitter sizes. Cayman and Gunsmoke are obviously a lot finer than Seeing Stars. So the sizes you choose do make a difference! 

L to R: Boogie Nights, Seeing Stars, Gunsmoke, and Cayman (Swatched over Lit Base)

L to R: Boogie Nights, Seeing Stars, Gunsmoke, and Cayman. (Swatched over Lit Base)

In the second photo you can really see the different colors the glitters give off. Boogie Nights gives off more of greenish and orangish colors, while Seeing Stars is more multicolored. Gunsmoke is a gorgeous grey glitter, and it gives off silver and white highlights. However, it's not silver. It's darker and more of a dirty grey, which I think is crazy unique! Cayman is an amazing teal glitter. Since it's Size #2, it's finely cut, and doesn't give off that 'HEY I'M AN OBNOXIOUS COLORED GLITTER' vibe. If you fanned it out across your lid/over an eyeshadow, it could almost be passed off as a super shimmery shadow. 

All in all, I am SO IN LOVE with these glitters. I've been eyeing up all the other amazing colors at Lit Cosmetics. There are just SO many options! I want to own them all and be the glitter queen xD

Wearing Boogie Nights over black!

What about you? Are you a glitter person? Ever tried Lit Cosmetics? 

***Disclaimer*** Products shown were sent to me by the company for the purpose of reviewing. However, complimentary products never receive special treatment, I review them just like I'd review something I bought myself. My opinions expressed here are purely my own, and are not influenced by any outside sources, nor do I represent any company.***