REVIEW: BYS Matte Lipstick

I'm usually posting about BYS polish - and I've been doing a lot of that lately because I gorged myself on it during my vacation - but this time I've been supplied with a few lipsticks from BYS' matte lipstick range to review. 

I've always been wary of matte lipsticks cos I'm old enough to remember the hideous formulas from years past:  cakey, flakey and so horribly drying. I'm not talking about budget brands either!  I remember having to give my parched lips a 'rest & recovery' for a few days after the torture of wearing those old matte lipsticks.  I still shudder over those bad lipstick memories. Seriously.

So - you can tell I have strong opinions about matte lipstick based on scary experience.  It's also been a long time since I've bought a matte lipstick because of that.  It was with that sense of skepticism that I agreed to try these little lipsticks...

BYS Matte Lipstick

(Left to Right:  Reddy Set Go, Disco Diva)

BYS is well known as a budget beauty brand so it's not surprising the lipstick packaging is lightweight plastic.  I like the sleek look of the packaging and that I can see the shade through the clear lid, although I'm a little less keen that the lipstick doesn't retract all the way into the bullet until the lipstick is sufficiently worn down (It bugs me personally cos I don't want to mash up the lippy by clumsily closing the lid - perhaps that's more about me being clumsy?!?). 

The important bit:  After trying both of these shades (each for a full day) I found I actually liked them.  They are very richly pigmented, apply very easily with no dragging, and while Disco Diva felt a little powdery on my lips (Reddy Set Go didn't feel powdery at all), they are not drying at all.  The colour stayed fresh-looking, didn't cake or flake and definitely didn't bleed.  They lasted for hours on my lips and I didn't need a touch up until after lunch.  These little lippies don't have any weird taste or smell either so overall they've won me over. 

The hand swatches below give you a good idea of the pigmentation (check out my Instagram #lippyaday posts for FOTD pics - yikes!).

Left to Right:

Reddy Set Go, Disco Diva

There are 14 shades in the BYS Matte Lipstick range and they retail for $3.95AUD each.  Check out the Fashion Addict website to see the full range of colours (here).

Until next time!

China Glaze: Swanky Silk

Hello :)

I hope you like the changes around here - my little self made blog was long overdue for a facelift and finally I have a blog layout I love thanks to the very talented Sharnee!  The colour scheme is completely opposite to what I had before but it reflects my taste a lot more closely and most importantly it's renewed my love for posting. So let that be the segue to this first post in my 'new' blog...

Swanky Silk is the sole shade I have from China Glaze's stunning duochrome New Bohemian collection released last year. It's a shade I find myself drawn to:  rose gold with the slightest green duochrome.  I did find the formula a tad streaky but I'll forgive it because I adored the colour. As it always is with duochromes the effect is more subtle on the nail than in the bottle - Still a very pretty rose gold though and a very versatile shade.

Shade

 

Sun

That's it for now!

BYS: Clowning Around

I'm posting yet another of my vacation purchases - I've been so excited by all of my buys and can't get around to wearing my way through them quickly enough!  That's what happens when you're obsessed with bright, colourful and sparkly things like this middle-age Ms (Mrs).

BYS have nailed the perfect tangerine with this polish, strangely called Clowning  Around. It's a great summery citrus - bright without crossing over to neon.  I don't have too much else to say here in terms of the colour as it is a straightforward creme so I'll talk about the application:  very smooth, not too stinky and two coats easily provided great coverage.  Wear time was good too and it lasted through a week of typing and the usual weekly routine. 

Shade

Sun

Until next time!

Vita :)

You Beauty: Shade 017

Hello again - I'm struggling to keep up with blogging at the moment because I'm on a health and fitness kick and working out 6 days a week! I need to get the optimum routine going and then it will all come together again blogging-wise etc.  Trouble is I think I'm going to have to haul my sorry butt out of bed earlier in the morning and I'm just not a morning person.  Right - now that ramble's out of the way let's get onto the polish!

Shade 017 is for you if you like grape jelly.  Yes, it's a jelly finish and is the perfect match for grape jelly in a jar.  Of course it also has a generous sprinkling of fine glitter!  The blue and purple glitter complement the base polish perfectly and appear to swim on the nails through the translucence.  It's not terribly summery but sometimes it feels good to mix it up...

Shade

 

 Sun

Indoors

 

That's it for tonight!

Vita :)

Latest pan hits...

This post is for those of you who love the sight of a good pan hit!  I know I'm voyeuristic in that way and I have some bizarre fascination for it - I love reading these posts on other blogs.  I'm not doing any particular Project Pan, and I'm not on any bans or low-buys, or no-buys, so it was a bit of a happy coincidence that I've hit pan on so many things at once! It gives me faith that I actually do get my money's worth from at least some of my products...

Clockwise from left they are:

theBalm Sexy Mama anti-shine translucent powder - I've been using this pressed powder for several months - since September last year actually! Not surprisingly there is a huuuuuge dent in this pan!

MAC Shale - A neutral grey-purple crease shade I regularly use for my work day makeup.  It's been going for years and finally I've had the satisfaction of seeing the bottom of the pan.

MAC Phloof! - Now this one I hit pan on surprisingly, disconcertingly quickly - so quickly that I became suspicious.  Suspicious enough to do a comparison swatch instore and it just was not the same animal.  My pan was sadly crumbly in comparison to the silky smooth MAC counter product.  Yes, I bought this online from a discount site and sadly I'm now 99% sure it's a fake! Boo :(

MAC Tempting - This is from a long-gone LE collection and again has lasted me years.  Now, after a thousand crease accents, I can see a tiny bit of pan.  

Essence Cappucino, Please! - Okay, I use this silky neutral beige every, EVERY day!  Damn sure I was going to hit pan here.

So, these are the products I hope to finish some time this year and it's simply because they are the ones I reach for most - my everyday staples.

What are your everyday go-to products?

Vita :)

BYS: Pop Princess

Here is a nail polish I can tell you I absolutely, unreservedly looooooooved wearing!

Pop Princess is another polish from BYS and one of the two shades I recently chose from their Mardi Gras collection (see my vacation haul here).  This collection is all about glass flecked goodness and Pop Princess was a standout for me because of its electric pink brightness.  Pop Princess is a 1980's party girl fuschia pink jelly with blue and pink sparkly flecks.  Because of the jelly finish I needed to apply three coats to get sufficient opacity and prevent any dreaded visible nail lines.  Shades like this are very hard to photograph and capture the complexity of but I've tried my best here. 

Shade

Sun

Indoors

Enjoy your weekend!

Vita :)

Ulta3 glitter mani feat. Twinkle Toes & Over The Rainbow

The weekend's here - TGIF!!! - so here's a weekend-appropriate mani.  Wave goodbye to the working week with some glitter!!

I've layered two coats of Ulta3's silver glitter Twinkle Toes and the multicoloured Over The Rainbow as an extra glittery accent over a cream base (Lime Crime Milky Ways).  I did this a few weeks ago for a bit of  end of week zhushing for my tired manicure.  Quite a cute result, although I think I would loooove to see these toppings over black!

Shade

Sun

Indoors

What do you think?

Vita :)