A Review for You: Jordana Twist and Shine Moisturizing Balm Stains Review and Swatches

i love me some balm stains!

in this day and age all the makeup companies who knows whats up is bringing out chubby crayon lip stain gloss balm stick thangs. it first started with Clinique Chubby Sticks

aren't they pretty???

but for 17 bucks a pop they gettin kinda ugly

now you walk through any store where you can find cosmetics, Ulta, Walgreens, Kmart, anywhere, and you will find little crayon like, lip stain gloss balm stick thangs with a plethora of brands to choose from.

the crayon lip stain gloss balm stick thangs trend has taken over the world by a crayon lip stain gloss balm stick thangs storm!!!

while i have no doubt the Clinique Chubby Sticks are amazing (i've never tried them cause ain't nobody got money for that) there are tons of cheaper but awesome quality options out there in the crayon lip stain gloss balm stick thangs world. oh yes, that world does exist and it is vastly immense.

My current fav crayon lip stain gloss balm stick thangs are the Jordana Twist and Shine Moisturizing Balm Stains

pic from makeupandbeautyblog.com

the Jordana website says

 • Moisturizing Balm Infused with a Light-Weight Stain

• Applies with a Glossy Finish then Transforms into the Perfect Flush of  Color

• Long-Lasting
• Retractable, No Sharpening Required

• Paraben-Free

• Made in USA

i say these things are the balm!.....see what i did there..........no.....oh..........moving on!

you can find Jordana products at Walgreens and their prices are very wallet friendly without sacrificing on quality. you can grab these balm stains for a measly $2.99. that's right, for less than a happy meal, you too can have your own crayon...lip...stain gloss.....whatever

now on to the good stuff

there are 8 shades total ranging from pinks to reds to slightly more nudey shades.

Left to right: Candied Coral, Tropical Frenzy, Honey Love, Cranberry Crush, Terra Crave, Sweet Pink, Rock n Rouge
the one i don't have is Nude Chic simply because it was much too nude for me!

Candied Coral is an orangey coral shade

Tropical Frenzy is a hot pink with slight purple undertones

Honey Love is one of my favorites! It's a  nudey mauve shade....a "my lips but better" shade for me

Cranberry Crush is a pinky purple cranberry shade

Terra Crave is light reddish brown, a light terra cotta shade if you will

Sweet Pink is exactly as it's name suggests, a sweet pink with cool undertones

Last but not least, Rock n Rouge is a orangey red that has the slightest bit of silver glitter. before you run away screaming, the glitter isn't chunky and you can barely see it on the lips

these balm stains are so worth more than their $2.99 price tag. they go on smoothly, and are very pigmented. they do have a scent which is hard to describe but it doesn't bother me and i'm very sensitive to the cheap plasticky lipstick smell. i wouldn't say they're super moisturizing but they aren't drying. they're glossy and do leave a pretty stain behind. as far as the staying power goes because it's a stain, you can count on that color being on your lips for several hours. the glossyness is pretty long lasting too. final verdict i love these and i wish they came out with more colors! you need some in your life.....just sayin

get it while it's hot!

Guilt Free Chocolate

As promised here's an easy look using the Too Faced Chocolate Bar Eye Palette:

After priming the lids and after huffing the amazing rich, chocolate scent for a few minutes.........what??? I can't be the only that does this!

 take Salted Caramel on a fluffy blending brush and blend in upper crease

No need to be super neat

On a shader brush, use the shade Creme Brulee and pack on the lid

Again it doesn't need to be neat

Take Milk Chocolate on a smaller blending brush and blend right into the crease using back and forth motions

If the lid color got a little muddied, go in with a little more Creme Brulee

 

On a small pencil brush or a crease brush, use the shade Cherry Cordial on the outer v 

Build up the color until it's as deep as you want it to be

Use the shade White Chocolate to highlight the browbone

 

Take the shade Cherry Cordial on a smudger brush and smudge on the lower lash line

then blend out with Salted Caramel

 

Using a clean blending brush, gently blend around the edges to blur any harsh lines

 

Apply eyeliner and set with a matte black eyeshadow. Then add a few coats of mascara!

 

All Done!!

 

A Review For You: Too Faced Chocolate Bar Review and Swatches

It's no secret to anyone that the Too Faced Chocolate Soleil Bronzer is AMAZING!!!

It's such a nice matte bronzer and best of all, it smells like chocolate!!

Keeping with the chocolate "theme" Too Faced released a collection at the end of 2013 that will satisfy any chocoholics craving.

The highlight of this collection is the Chocolate Bar Eye Palette

Mouthwatering I know!

The Too Faced website says:

 The Chocolate Bar experience begins as soon as you open the palette and the smell of sweet chocolate envelops you. The eye shadows are pigmented with pure, antioxidant-rich cocoa powder and includes 16 matte and shimmer shades of natural browns, delicate pinks and luscious plums. Includes our signature how-to Glamour Guide with three looks to get you started. 

Opening the palette you really do get a yummy whiff of chocolate! 

A beautiful variety of mattes, shimmers, sparklys a good all-in-one don't really need any others, palette.

The packaging is what drew me into this palette. Despite the fact it smells like chocolate, it looks like it too!!! It's a chocolate bar shaped tin with a magnetic closure. I actually really like it and may like this kind of case over the Naked 3 palette's case.....don't quote me on that.....

Left to Right: Gilded Ganache, White Chocolate, Milk Chocolate, Black Forest Truffle, Triple fudge

Salted Caramel, Marzipan, Semi-Sweet, Strawberry Bon Bon, Candied Violet, Amaretto

Hazelnut, Creme Brulee, Haute Chocolate, Cherry Cordial, Champagne Truffle

Even the names make me crave shweets!

One thing I really like about this palette is that there are two larger shades that can be used as browbone highlights! One matte and one shimmer.

Gilded Ganache: A warm dark chocolatey brown shade with flecks of gold glitter

White Chocolate: A creamy off white almost beigey (is that a word?) matte shade

Milk Chocolate: A matte lighter warm chocolate brown 

Black Forest Truffle: Dark burgundy brownish shade with silvery goldish glitter

Triple Fudge: A matte really deep dark chocolate brown

Salted Caramel: My fav shadow in this palette to use as a transition, it's a matte muted, brownish orange

Marzipan: A satiny almost metallic peach champagne

Semi-Sweet: A medium dark reddish matte brown

Strawberry Bon Bon: A cool toned pale matte medium pink

Candied Violet: A lilac purple shade with purpley pink glitter

Amaretto: A medium dark coppery brown with a satiny sheen

Hazelnut: A medium satin golden brown

Creme Brulee: One of my favorite shades in this palette it's a gorgeous satin almost metallic gold shade with warm undertones

Haute Chocolate: A medium dark satin brown

Cherry Cordial: I think this my be my least favorite shade, it's a medium dark slightly shimmery burgundy brown

Champagne Truffle: A pinky white satin shade with a slightly golden tinge

Overall I absolutely love this palette and I'm so glad i picked it up! My favorite shades are definitely the satin shades and salted caramel (it's just the perfect transition!) The matte shades are slightly choppy but nothing a little blending won't fix. My least favorite shade is Cherry Cordial which as you can tell from the swatch is really choppy and hard to blend. 

Another gripe I have is I wish the shade names were on the palette itself! There is a little clear plastic insert that lays on top of the shadows which have the names on it but since the names are so good it would be much better if they were printed underneath the shades. Other than that, this is definitely a palette that is, in my oh so humble opinion, a must have for any makeup junkie! So versatile and so yummy.....figuratively, no matter how much you are tempted, I do not advise anyone to eat this!! 

Here are a few looks I have done with the Too Faced Chocolate Bar Eye Palette......

Tutorial on this look coming soon!