I feel pretty--NOT! THE COSMETICS THREAD

ok i feel kind of ridiculous saying this but i got a $5 eye cream from garnier that i actually really liked :/

been using estee lauder lately tho

I see your Garnier eye cream for $5 and raise you a travel size Lumene face cream for $3.99

The eye cream I was using for a while came free in a bag of samples a few years ago.

yeah i get a lot of mine for free from my mother in law

jana that sounds nice!

oh hai I am wearing monostat anti-chafing gel on my face!

kinda liking it!

wait can you guys explain why you are putting monistat on your face? i've missed something here...

loll

LL it isn't the yeast-infection treatment product from monistat; it is an anti-chafing product that contains silicones and is pretty much a cheap drug store version of cosmetic "primer" products. It is a really thin, clear gel (almost a straight-up liquid, really) that feels really nice on; I think it maybe makes my pores a little less noticable under my foundation.

I forget who told me about the Monistat antichafe stuff (someone here I'm pretty sure), but it's the same main ingredient as the spendier primers.

I got dried up like a mummy from not drinking enough water in Las Vegas and have been drenching my poor chapped lip with as much Blistex as humanly possible. Once it's back to normal I've got two of the Just Bitten stain colors to try (Twilight of course and some other more neutral one)

Tried Bo-ing and Erase Paste and didn't like either as much as Bobbi Brown concealer, sadly. I think I wanted some kind of miracle, like new eyes or something. Maybe I will look into brighteners on top of the Bobbi concealer.

merchandiser just threw out entire set of brushes, encased in a plastic display (same you'd see in Sephora). Grabbed it, must now figure out at home how to get at the brushes, LOL. YAY!!!

Hammer! GO!

I totally will! Downside: apparently they are glued into the display, which means the wooden handles might be a little crusty but you know what? I will put up with that for what is probably $400 worth of overpriced brushes!

wow. and think of all the fun stress relief you'll get banging the crap out of that hting ot get them out!

I broke the plexiglass! It was fun. Now I'm going to try and remove the brushes themselves with pliers. The brushes are much shorter than the regular size ones, but the bristles are still there. Yay!!

Are you Birch Boxers still getting your Birch Boxes? Do you still like them?

we've talked about them a bit here... i'm kind of on the fence right now because i haven't gotten anything i'm wild about lately... and all the premium sized samples have been things i can't use (2 bronzers and some orange eye shadow)

Yeah I remember that. I was hoping things got more awesome since you last discussed it. But maybe you haven't gotten a box since then?

I still really like it. I'd agree with T that I haven't found anything I've been totally wowed by in the last few boxes there have been several things I've really liked including a nail polish (the color isn't really me but I LOVE the formulation esp because it's 3 free), a hair masque, and a lip balm (bought the full size). I also still really like the whole process of getting the box every month and unwrapping everything and I used my points yesterday to place an order that I literally paid nothing for - not even for shipping.

Tza can I has your bronzes?? I will swap you for... something

it was so cute the other day my boyfriend was like "honey have u heard about this birch box? i think it might be good for u" and then he explained what it was

and i was like "no but that's cute of you"

They're coming out with one for dudes.

.... !!!!

http://blog.birchbox.com/post/12792505040/now-available-birchbox-man

Oh it's just a one time special box. There is a sample service for men but I can't remember the name of it right now.

nice!

just1n3, absolutely! i have been trying to figure out who i know who could use them. i'll send them your way (i think i have your address but maybe you should send it to me just in case).

I literally threw out the Laura Gellar powder one just last night otherwise I'd send that too. :/

it's ok, i have one i tried to use approximately once that i will send. will last forever. that + the bronze primer thing.

damn, birchbox man is temp out of stock. i will totally order that for dude bc he likes the anthony products.

I got a sample of this - NARS Illuminator: http://www.sephora.com/browse/product.jhtml?id=P284301&categoryId=C10476

What do I do with it??!?!?!

Dust it over your illuminati?

Blow it all over your walls for that little bit of extra ambient light for late night trips to the bathroom?

It's liquid. ;_;

Well, get out the paintbrush, then.

I'll just drink it and make illpoominati.

hahaa
just put some on your fingertips and put it on your cheekbones!

I got Benefit's "They're Real!" mascara (eyeroll at name) and it is the fucking AWESOME. the awesome thing

it's all like
:::::::::::EYELASHESS:::::::::::::

it's really hard to remove but
:::::::::WHOA:::::::::

I got a sample of the Nars stuff too and didn't really like it but I'd try it out like R suggested. I lot of people online seemed to love it. Just didn't do anything for me.

I have that Benefit mascara too! Only thing is it's quite tough to remove. Oh, you said that already!
I found it got to that slightly drying-out in the bottle stage quite quickly, although I seem to be finding this w/ many mascaras recently, maybe it's living in a warmer climate? idk.

oh man illuminator is so fantastic. i think people have trouble with them sometimes because they use the wrong color. Anyway, illuminator application pro tips:
1. if you use a base like foundation, powder, concealer etc always put the illuminator on last.
2. never put it over your whole face. some people recommend mixing it with a sheer foundation but unless they're going for a full moon face, they're wrong.
3. Here is a very crappy drawing made with childrens very worn markers showing where to apply it:
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7176/6884904215_aa23fdfd6d_z.jpg

^^also my admission in the 1st grade science fair

*hits print, goes to makeup alley*

Thanks, Sunny! I'm going to hang that up next to the bathroom mirror.

thanks for awesome illuminator directions, sunny!
i think i need some now...

How do you know what color to get? The sample I got came in "orgasm" (peachy) and "copacabana" (light pinky). I went for the latter bc rose/pink/berry colors tend to look best on me.

I used it today buy I honestly need a second opinion re whether I did it right.

I LOVE your illustration, Sunny. Love.

j3nny, make sure you're using the *lightest* touch when you apply it, too - it's really easy to over-apply and end up looking... wacky. i've got shell highlighter from mac, it's okay but a little glittery.