June Favorites

Here are my favorites from the past month:

1. Kirkland Daily Facial Cleansing Towelettes - These are so effective at removing makeup and cleansing my skin, and they are SUPER affordable! I switch it up between these and MAC wipes, but this was a coupon item at Costco during the last coupon book period so I couldn't help but purchase them again. I LOVE them! My full review is here.

2. Origins GinZing Eye Cream - This eye cream has been a lifesaver the past month. Life has been super busy recently and this magical cream makes it look like I have been relaxing on vacation! It reduces puffiness, helps brighten the under eye area, and helps my concealer from settling in to the fine lines around my eyes. I love this little jar and will be doing a full review soon.

3. MAC Pro Longwear Concealer - So after taking care of the skin around my eyes, I have been using this concealer to conceal my dark circles. This stuff is amazing and I already said everything I love about it in my original review. 

4. MAC Technakohl Liner in Smoothblue - This is one of my summer must-haves. I love using this to line my upper lash line and then add mascara. It is such a quick and easy eye look and adds a pop of color for the summer. Even my hubby loves when I wear this "blue stuff" on my eyes. 

5. Nars Pro-Prime Smudge Proof Eyeshadow Base - I have mentioned this in the past, but this truly is one of the best eye primers out there. It prevents shadow from creasing and fading, and it is invisible on the skin so you can use it under any color shadow. This is especially great for summertime when it is hot and eyelids tend to be oilier than normal.

What products have you been loving recently'?

Get Ready For Your Photo-Op!!!! Just Skip Smashbox's Photo-Op!!

Hello friends. I am your Kajal Couture blogger. Are you tired, run-down, listless? Do you poop out at parties? Are you unpopular? The answer to all your problems might be this little bottle tube. Vitamitavegamin. Smashbox's Photo-Op Under Eye Brightener.

(If you didn't catch on to that intro, it's from the famed I Love Lucy Show.)

So maybe I haven't been getting pooped out at parties, but I definitely went through some mega life changes this year, and have made concealer my best friend. I was hoping this would be my concealer substitute. 

Wearing undereye concealer only 

 Smashbox's Photo-Op Under Eye Brightener swiped over concealer 

Wearing Smashbox's Photo-Op Under Eye Brightener over concealer 

Yes it has brightening effects, but it does not help conceal or diminish darkness. It is too light in color and too sheer. It didn't make any difference whatsoever. I tried it mixed with concealer, without concealer, under concealer, over concealer, and did not notice any improvement. I have a feeling this product may only work for those with a fair complexion who have light under eye circles.   

Kajal Couture Rating: C-

So back to my little tube of concealer. What's your HG regimen for hiding under eye circles?

Sneak Peak - New MAC Pro Longwear Foundation and Concealer Review

Hopefully this sneak peak of the new MAC Pro Longwear Foundation and Concealer will make up for my lack of posts during the last couple weeks. ;)

I was fortunate enough to get my hands on the new foundation, concealer, and lipsticks (review coming soon) before their big nationwide release tomorrow. So what's my overall opinion? All products are AMAZING!! Especially the foundation and concealer:

First off, I have to tell you about the Pro Longwear Foundation. This stuff is everything I ever wanted in a foundation and MORE!! I have nothing negative to say about this foundation except, why didn't they invent this sooner?!?!

This foundation provides medium coverage that can be sheered out for light coverage or built up for heavier coverage. It actually does a superb job of evening out the skin tone and making the complexion flawless. What I love most about this is that even with the good coverage, it makes your skin look natural. Yes...NATURAL!!! Most foundations that claim to give a natural effect still can look cakey or too matte or too shiny. This gives the most flawless look of any foundation I have tried to date, while still providing a good amount of coverage. And if that wasn't enough, it's longwearing! It is supposed to last 14 hours, which it probably does, as I didn't test out the wear time, but I have worn it a for a few days in a row, and it does last from morning till night, without fading or altering. This foundation also makes the texture of the skin look amazing....can you tell yet that I am in love with this foundation?

                                      nozzle can pump                              nozzle locked

So just to throw in another great thing about this foundation is that you don't need to purchase a separate punp for it and that it has a built in pump, so you get the perfect amount every time. What's even better, is that you can lock the pump, as pictured above. 

The consistency of this foundation is also great...not sticky, not thick, not too watery, not heavy.....just perfect! And very easy to blend!

In this swatch I tried blending out the foundation so you can see how easy it is to blend. The photo makes the foundation look a bit glossy, but that is because of the flash and the product is not glossy like that. In case you want to know, this was my shade NC30.

Kajal Couture Overall Rating: A+

Kajal Couture Overall Opinion: This is one foundation I will definitely repurchase, instead of trying the next best thing in foundation. Nuff' said. 

Now on to the Pro Longwear Concealer:

I usually only wear concealer on my under eyes for important events, not everyday, because I can never find one I like enough. Guess what? I have been wearing this everyday. =) 

This is creamy, not too thick, but provides great coverage. It doesn't crease if you set it with powder, it lasts all day, and blends easily. The first time I wore it, I was amazed...it instantly brightened my eyes and my whole look!

Like the foundation, this concealer comes with a pump. I like that because it's not messy like concealer pots, and you don't risk contamination like with doe tip applicators. It is very hygienic and easy to use. The only problem is one pump is way too much product for one application. That being said, you only need to use a teeny tiny bit in order to get good coverage, so even if you used one pump everyday, this will last you forever. However, if you are careful, you can press the pump ever so slightly just to get a half or quarter pump worth of product.

This swatch shows just how opaque this concealer is, but that it can be blended out. Again, the pic makes this look glossy because of the flash, but the product itself is not glossy. Again, if you are interested, my shade for my under eyes is NW25. 

Kajal Couture Overall Rating: A

Kajal Couture Overall Opinion: I really like this concealer due to its coverage and the fact that is lasts all day and does not crease. I wish the pump provided less product, but that is a minor thing for me and I highly recommend this if you are in the market for a concealer. 

So...will you be checking out either of these products?