Covergirl SmokyShadow Blast

So I had a couple extra bucks in my pocket this weekend and decided to try out a couple of new beauty products for fun. The first one I'd like to review is the Covergirl SmokyShadow Blast. I purchased "Bronze Fire" (dark brown and cream) at Rite Aid for ~$8.

Photo: www.covergirl.com

First, the set-up. Step 1, which goes over your whole lid is a rounded tip, and step 2, which goes along the lash line and in the crease is more pointed. Both sides are the consistency of typical wet eyeshadow or wet blush...fairly thin, definitely not like lipstick. It goes on smoothly, but I had to use my finger to blend it all in. I also needed regular eyeliner...the second step is not really eyeliner at all.

It looks pretty good going on, although it was a little bit light. At the end of today (4 pm) I can still see it some, but the "smoky" effect is definitely blended away. It's definitely not a substitute for a proper smoky eye with normal eyeshadow. For a weekday though, it works. It also would be a good tool to throw in your purse as a "back-up" tool for last minute plans or surprise work meetings where you need to freshen up your look. Also, it would be a good tool in a gym bag; that way if you shower and get ready at the gym you don't have to tote a ton of eyeshadow tools with you.

Overall, I give this a B- for ease of use but points off for light application and not staying on very well.

Carrie Underwood on the cover of Allure

So, girl crush #2 in my life (next to Reese Witherspoon) is Carrie Underwood solely based on the fact that her hair and her makeup (Good Lord her MAKEUP) is always flawless. FLAW-LESS.

I was excited to see her on the cover because they always tell which makeup they use. Here is the link to some pics on Allure.com Check it out! If you're looking for a good read, I would get the whole mag in stores. They have some good articles this month.

I really like how she always has this smokey eye, but it's not overpowering. It's also usually more brown than black, which looks a bit better on me as well (blond, fair, etc).

Alas, they used ALL Dior on her for the shoot. Now, it is not beyond me to spend a silly amount of money on makeup, but I am trying very hard to be much better about my budget lately. I just cannot afford Dior. But, they did list the colors so I tried to mimic. I couldn't find the lipstick, so I just started with the eyes (they are my fav anyway). They reported they used an eggshell color to highlight under her brows but didn't list the name. However, eggshell is a pretty standard color that you can find anywhere.

On her:

Dior Ultra-Smooth High Impact Eyeshadow in Bronzy night ($28 at Sephora)
Dior eyeliner in Deep Brown ($28 at Sephora)
What I bought:

Revlon Satin Luxurious Eye Shadow in Polished Bronze ($4.99 at Target or Drugstore.com)

Revlon Colorstay Eyeliner in Cocoa (bonus 2 pack at Target for $6.99 or Walgreens.com)

I'll let you know if I find a match for the lipstick and blush!

Images courtesy of Sephora.com, Walgreens.com, and Drugstore.com

Stila...

Just as a side note from my earlier post about Stila...their customer service is excellent and very friendly. There was an issue with my billing address, and they corrected it quickly and didn't give me any crap about it. Also promised to ship immediately due to the less than one day delay with the billing address thing...nice! Just thought I'd mention since nice people on the other end of a customer service line tend to be very rare these days.
:)

Oh. And my new Lucky mag is in, so I'll scan through and post anything that may be fun!

UPDATE: I emailed the no-name customer service back to say thanks for the prompt attention, and that I would post about this in my little blog. They replied that it made their day. Do something nice for others, peeps. It's a good thing. :)

I LOVE Stila. LOVE discounted Stila even more!

Thanks to my friend A!!!!

Stila Cosmetics (http://www.stilacosmetics.com) has a 40% off coupon code STILAPRO available with free shipping on all items and coupon code APPRECIATE for a free 24kt Luxe Lip Gloss with purchase of $25 or more.

I so needed this! Gotta get makeup for a friend's wedding and this is PERFECT.