Marcelle Rouge Xpression Lipsticks: Team Brights.

February 21, 2011 | 19 Responses

Marcelle Rouge Xpression Lipsticks in 804 Paris Rose, 950 Delirium, 901 Amour, 855 Cleopatra, 851 Obsession

Swatches of Marcelle Rouge Xpression Lipsticks in 804 Paris Rose, 950 Delirium, 901 Amour, 855 Cleopatra, 851 Obsession

The Marcelle Rouge Xpression Lipstick ($11.95) line is, in two words, pure genius. I own a lot of lipsticks. I even buy lipsticks close to $40 (*cough* Chanel *cough*). What I didn’t believe was possible is really true: a drugstore line could rival the quality of my most favourite high-end lipsticks. Click here for the rest of the original review.

804 Paris Rose is a light coral. It has a cream finish.
950 Delirium is a fiery orange red. It has a pearl finish.
901 Amour is a bright blue-based red. It has a cream finish.
855 Cleopatra is a muted magenta. It has a cream finish.
851 Obsession is a vampy deep wine. It has a pearl finish.

804 Paris Rose is a beautiful fresh colour that will be a crowd favourite for the warmer months. 950 Delirium has a lot more red in it than MAC Neon Orange. 901 Amour is brighter than Vasanti USA. 855 Cleopatra is an absolutely stunning (!!!) magenta that reminds me a lot of MAC Spitfire from Wonder Woman. 851 Obsession isn’t forgiving of flaky lips because of its dark tone and pearl finish. It was one of the last lipsticks I swatched, and my lips were pretty irritated and dry from swatching at that point and it shows. I personally prefer the creams in this batch as they were opaque in a single pass.

Read on to see lip and full face swatches!

Click to see more pictures!

Marcelle Rouge Xpression Lipsticks: Team Neutrals.

February 20, 2011 | 22 Responses

Marcelle Rouge Xpression Lipsticks in 853 Jezebel, 752 Couture, 900 Passion, 750 Sensation, 751 Provocative

Swatches: Marcelle Rouge Xpression Lipsticks in 853 Jezebel, 752 Couture, 900 Passion, 750 Sensation, 751 Provocative

All Rouge Xpressions are fragrance-free and taste-free. These amazingly creamy lipsticks melt on your lips on contact with absolutely zero dragging, similar to the shu uemura Rouge Unlimited lipstick. But despite their creaminess, somehow they are able to stay put on my lips where I apply them, even without lip liner. These lipsticks easily last for 5 to 6 hours on me, which is very impressive for a creamy lipstick. As the day goes on they stain the lips and fade evenly.

853 Jezebel is a mauve pink. It has a cream finish.
752 Couture is a medium rosy brown. It has a pearl finish.
900 Passion is more brown and darker than Couture. It has a pearl finish.
750 Sensation is a dark rosy brown. It is very similar to Couture, but is just a tad darker. It is supposedly a cream, but feels very much like a pearl. It contains a subtle gold pearl.
751 Provocative is a brick red. It has a cream finish.

All of these shades applied evenly with the exception of 900 Passion. Warm skin tones can easily pull off the last four. 853 Jezebel is a great my-lips-but-better shade for cool skin tones, but not on myself, unfortunately. 752 Couture, 900 Passion, and 750 Sensation are fabulous choices for a conservative office setting.

Stay tuned for part 2 if you like your lipsticks bright!

Read on to see lip and full face swatches!

Click to see more pictures!

Avoid Eye Makeupocalypse with Mary Kay Creme Eye Colors.

February 19, 2011 | 22 Responses

make•u•poc•a•lyp•tic |mākəˈpäkəliptik|
adjective
describing the complete destruction of a makeup look, usually due to a product that fails to deliver on its promises: yes, girlfriend, the amount of grease mixed in with your eye makeup has reached makeupocalyptic proportions.

Fact: my eyelids are a greasy mess without a spectacular base. I’ve tried probably the two most popular eye primers in existence — Urban Decay Primer Potion and Too Faced Shadow Insurance. They work well, but my recent experience has been… hmm, how shall I put it… a disaster. These primers don’t last me an entire workday anymore. That’s just not okay in my books!

Mary Kay Creme Eye Colors (clockwise from top left): Beach Blonde, Pale Blush, Apricot Twist, Iced Cocoa, Glacier Gray

Lately I’ve been using Mary Kay Creme Eye Colors ($16) as my eyeshadow bases. These are very sheer, coloured eyeshadow primers that boost colour and finish of eyeshadows layered on top of them. They also work as standalone eyeshadows.

Beach Blonde is a shimmery champagne.
Pale Blush is a matte pale cool pink.
Apricot Twist is a shimmery orange gold.
Iced Cocoa is a shimmery copper bronze.
Glacier Gray is a shimmery pewter.

Swatches of Beach Blonde, Pale Blush, Apricot Twist, Iced Cocoa, Glacier Gray

Do you love the uber popular MAC Paint Pots? I swear, these are just like MAC Paint Pots. They apply evenly as a cream, and dry down to a silky smooth finish of a powder. They are quite sheer, but as shown in the swatches above, they can get pretty opaque after 2 or 3 layers. In terms of value, you will get 0.26g per dollar with Mary Kay, and 0.25g per dollar with MAC. So Mary Kay provides better value, but it’s not a big difference.

My eye makeup with layered over Creme Eye Colors lasts about 8 hours, with just a little bit of creasing on the inner corners of my eyes. To put that into perspective, Urban Decay Primer Potion keeps my makeup perfect for 5 hours, and total makeupocalypse happens around hour number 6. However, if you have very oily lids, do not expect these to keep you grease-free for a 10 to 12 hour day. Again, maquillageddon. Ooh, another new word!

The Creme Colors are housed in light, tightly sealed plastic pots, which make them really easy to travel with. I’ve really been enjoying these a lot, and they’ve become a staple in my makeup bag for sure. They’re brand spankin’ new, and I just wish they’d come up with more punchy colours for the warmer months. Bright turquoise or vibrant purple, anyone?

I’m Always On the Hunt for Good Eye Primers!

Do you have a favourite eye primer? I’m currently testing out Laura Mercier and LORAC samples that I brought home from Sephora. They’re not too bad so far. I’d love to hear what’s working for you, and what was a total fail.