Sample Rundown #2

Another day, another stack of samples finished! And I was able to get a picture of me wearing all of these products at once except for the YSL Touche Eclat and one of the mascaras. Let's get to those first, eh?

Yves Saint Laurent Touche Eclat in Shade #1, Luminous Radiance -- A cult favorite, a product so often tried and lauded that I'm surprised they ever handed out samples! The card actually had samples of 3 different shades; I cut them apart, gave the darker 2 away, and kept this lightest shade. This product is meant to be a luminizer and brightener, not a concealer, but I labeled this post as a "concealer"-containing post because...well, some gifted people with no undereye circles DO use Touche Eclat as their concealer. I tried it in the most-recommended places: along my jawline, down my nose, and right underneath my undereyes (over concealer). It was nice...but nothing to write home about. It just made my skin look a tiny bit shinier. I think you'd enjoy this product more if you're in to the whole "highlight and contour to reshape your face" deal, or if you wore heavier foundations than I do and needed to put radiance back in to your skin.

Bare Escentuals Buxom Lash mascara -- Straight off the bat, let me say that writing "Escentuals" always makes me twitch. Beyond that, this is a pretty nice product. The brush is covered in tiny rubberized bristles that comb through your lashes and prevent clumping. It's very black and provides plenty of length. There was hardly any flaking, which is as much as I can ask from a mascara (as 99% of them will, in my experience, flake at least a tad). Buxom Lash is relatively natural-looking on me. It's a very nice mascara, but I usually prefer very thickening, volumizing mascaras, and if I want something natural, there are more affordable drugstore options I prefer. Still, it's a good option for those who want a plush, lengthening formula.

Alright, now for the rest of the stuff, which is all on my face in these pictures. Expand for super-creepy-HD-macro-goodness!

Smashbox Full Exposure mascara -- Talk about a disappointment. This run-of-the-mill mascara tinted my lashes and did little else, even after applying coat after coat of the product. I've scanned a few other reviews, and some people are apparently blaming it on the brush, which is Ye Olde Fashioned Mascara Wand. I have to disagree: Prestige My Biggest Lashes and Jordana Best Lash Extreme have pretty much the same wand, and they are incredibly dramatic. No, the formula of this is just kinda...crap. Pass.

Yves Saint Laurent Top Secrets All-In-One BB Cream in Shade #1, Clear -- Here's a tricky one. I've been so on the fence with this product that I've actually posted the above pictures on Makeup Alley to crowd source opinions on how it looked, and I'm still not 100% on whether or not I'd continue using this product. The actual product is a creamy, smooth liquid with a gag-inducing scent, and it looks simultaneously Pepto-Bismal Pink and Gray when first applied. It has light coverage and looks fine on my normal and oily areas, kinda dry on my dryer areas, and a bit too dark/pink. But after 15-20 minutes and a light dusting of powder through the t-zone, it looks...pretty much fine. Not too dark or too pink, not oily on my nose, smooth and lovely on my dry skin...hum. I don't think it's quite as fantastic as MAC F&B on my skin, but let's be honest: what is? I'm not buying a full-size for now because the price is ridiculous, there's no SPF (this is a BB cream, guys, WTF), and I'm not sure how I feel about it, but maybe I'll swap for a tube and give it further tests. Any thoughts, guys? Again, I'm wearing it in the pictures above with a bit of the Suqqu powder (described below), but no concealer.

Fyrinnae Lip Lustre in Ocelot -- I knew this color was too pastel and porn-ish as soon as I put it on (the natural+flash picture is the best representation of what it looks like IRL), but I gave it a test to see how I liked the formula. These lip lustres are essentially cream lipsticks: they aren't shiny like a lipgloss or transfer-proof like a long-wear lipstick, but they're opaque on the first swipe and have decent color payoff. You can kind of feel this on your lips, which doesn't bother me in the slightest, but those of you who are in to weightless lippies may want to pass. My biggest complaint with this product is that it accentuated dryness and fine lip lines, although applying a second coat softened that up a bit. I might try this formulation in a few more colors, but for now, I'm not impressed enough to rush out and order more.

Mai Couture Highlighter Paper -- I knew this was a gimmick when I added it to my Nordies cart months ago, but I figured it'd be fun. This sample pack contains 2 pieces of highlighting paper. One side is coated in shimmer, the other side is bare/matte...I'm probably stating the obvious here, but you're meant to hold the bare side and dab the shimmer side on to your face. I was afraid this would spit glitter everywhere when I opened it, but actually, the highlighter sticks to the paper like glue. Which, um, makes it kind of awkward to get it on your face. You kind of have to rub this piece of paper all over your cheeks, and because it IS paper, it gets crumpled and things apply unevenly. The shimmer is also...well, pretty obvious shimmer. I can't see too many people having a use for this product when there are much better highlighters on the market.

Suqqu Loose Powder in Natural -- Crap. Crap crap crap crap crap, I think I love this stuff. I avoid loose powders like the plague because they're messy and hard to travel with; when I dumped this tiny sample pot o' Suqque powder a kind MUAer had given me in to an empty MAC compact, powder fluffed up on to my desk. But holy squid on a stick, this powder is gooooorgeous! It's so finely-milled, a little goes a long way, and it feels beautiful on my skin. The oil control properties aren't the best, but I tend to think of this as more of a setting-and-bettering powder. It makes my skin look flawless. Everybody, start telling me that Suqqu is an evil company that promotes baby eating so I don't feel the need to get a full size of this! >_X