My New Favorite Place

It's been a long time since I've been in school but that doesn't stop the urge I feel this time of year to buy notebooks & sharp pencils, new jeans & new leather satchel.  So when I came across the E.L.F Cosmetic Store at 741 Broadway (between 8th Street & Astor Place) I felt no shame or hesitation as I filled my goody basket with their amazing make-up and nail polish in the new fall colors. 

I've purchased  E.L.F. Cosmetics from Target and their online site but being able to browse and play with their entire collection in a clean, airy, well lite space was truly a treat. And walking away with concealer, 3 eye shadows, 3 lipsticks, 1 eyeliner, 2 lip balms, 1 blush for under $35 totally fulfilled by fall Shopping urges.

All Images © Simone Rene 2013

All Images © Simone Rene 2013

Finally..The One

One night after work last week while waiting to pay for a few goodies at Sephora I finally found the lip color I craved in a dual ended BITE lipstick. One end of the wand houses Shiraz, a natural wine color, and the other Restina, a shade that is a darker nude, both of which go easily from office to after hours. The pigment is strong, the texture creamy and at $18 for this 2 in 1 it's a real steal. Unfortunaetely the item doesn't seem to be readily available onSephora's site but keep your eyes open for this little gem while waiting to check out - mine was in the "sample" bin area.

 

The Hunt is on...

I want to wear lipstick this year. I want to have brightly colored lips. It would be nice if they lasted all day and didn't leave stains on cups or teeth or cheeks. The problem is I think wearing a pigment on my lips makes them look much thinner than they really are, even with liner!

Of course this hasn't stopped me from applying all manner of lip-lip to the inside of my hand while at department store makeup counters. Or from standing in the make-up aisles in every drug store I stop in to frantically search for "the one". I have spent hours, yes hours, at beauty supply places testing and deciding and purchasing pinks and peaches and neutral reds only to store them in the cabinet under the bathroom sink and reach for the Sephora Collection Color Reveal Lip Balm in Unique Pink I purchased out of desperation a few weeks ago.

This $12 product adjusts to your unique pH to create a customized pink shade. It keeps your lips moist and leaves your pout full and pretty.  I have gotten compliments even though the color is barely the blush I yearn for but until I find "the one" this will more than do....

 

http://www.sephora.com/color-reveal-lip-balm-P304833?skuId=1363134

Luscious Lips

I love the fall. Cooler weather means that I can but away my lip balm and simple cotton skirts and dresses and begin to wear real clothing and real makeup. I know we're a few weeks away from sweater weather but I can wait because it means I'll have time to try on all 8 shades of red lipstick in Maybelline's Colorsensational line. This season they are crisper, richer in color and creamier in feel and I know there's a deeper shade of red that's perfect for me.

available at your local drugstore

Colorsensational Lipstains

A number of posts back I mentioned loving a Carlo di Roma Lip Liner pigment pen and using it as an overall lip color. Now Maybelline has introduced a water based pigment lip pen that gives your lips a sheer wash of color. There are 10 shades available. They leave a stain the doesn't cake or weigh heavy on your lips but the color isn't long lasting, I suspect it has something to do with it being waterbased. And if you prefer a moist lip this isn't an option you should be considering.

About $6.50 each.

Available at your local drugstore.

Perfect Berries

Every fall women all over New York who wear lipstick put away their pinks, peaches and corals and reach for lipsticks and stains in deeper hues.

Personally I love berries and burgundys but often find them too rich and deep to wear comfortably, that is until I tried Almay (Yes! ALMAY!!) Ideal Lipcolor in Berry 235. It's moist with a deep enough sheer pigment that leaves lips look freshly bruised from many kisses.

This is a first for me. Remember I am never drawn to Almay makeup so if I had not run across this one in the Family Dollar Store (Not Kidding!) I would have never considered it. I found my lipstick for $1 but if you can't it's still a bargain at the full price of $5.99 -

http://www.beautyencounter.com/309976724140.html?utm_source=GoogleSEM&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=GoogleSEM&kw=almay%20ideal%20lipcolor&gclid=COHhj7Dq0pwCFeRL5QodWDEoIw

My Constant Companion

The original all purpose salve!

I carry it with me always.
I use it on my lips, cuticles and other body parts

that need to be soothed and moistured.

http://www.amazon.com/Rosebud-Perfume-Co-Smiths-Salve/dp/B0014A6D74/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=hpc&qid=1248396968&sr=8-1

Naturally Plumped...

A few days ago I stopped into the local Duane Reade Drugstore for a few things and was confronted by a mass mark-down in their cosmetic section. Many of the products were marked 50% off because the companies are preparing to introduce their spring lines and the store needs to move the autumn/winter merchandise. Most of the displays were already emptied by fellow discount seekers but I did buy Sally Hansen's Natural Beauty Moisture Plump Lip Balm for under $4.oo.

This paraben free lip balm offers sheer moist smoothing coverage and reminds me of an adult lip smacker without the grape or cherry after taste..though I do get a hint of grapefruit??? The Berry Shine goes on with ease and gives my lips a natural blush. I am not sure if my lips are plumper or not.

Side note - If you're looking for some new make-up you may want to check out the cosmetic sections of your favorite stores right now and take advantage of the discounts being offered because of the product switch out.

Sinner or Saint be healed..

At the recommendation of my friend Jennifer I sought out the Lipstick Queen's display at Bigelow's at 414 6th Avenue this Sunday in hope of finding the ultimage libstick. We have both discussed the trials of dry winter lips and our distaste for the need to constantly re-apply lipstick that just ends of caking and drying and never appears to be as glamorous as their adverts make them out to be so when she recommended that I investigate this brand of lipstick I knew it was worth the trip.

Poppy King's Lipstick Queen line is created for a lipstick addict. The colors are vibrant yet natural and the lipsticks come in 2 options, Sinner, a pigment loaded matte color that lasts and lasts without drying the lips and Saint, a sheer tint that hints at use of color. The Sinner option does go on a bit dry but the pigment stays and stays and stay. I prefer the Saint Lipsticks because they glide on and leave a sheer shine that doesn't end. Each $18.00 tube of lipstick and it's Deco inspired pack card comes in an individually sealed plastic package. If you're someone who wears lipstick on a daily basis you won't be disappointed in this investment. I ending up buying the tubes in nude for everyday use.

Interesting...

www.nytimes.com/2008/11/09/fashion/09pulse.html?

**Photo Lips wearing various lipsticks. Uploaded on Dec 7, 2005 by Flickr user SpooSpa

Giving Good Lip

One of my childhood obsessions was gum chewing. I wanted to be able to control my chewing so that the gum snapped and popped and annoyed any adult within a mile range just like the older girls did in the Brooklyn neighborhood I grew up in. After watching and asking a lot of questions I learned that every girl had her own technique but they all had 2 things in common, technique, which amounted to the need for consistency in the amount of air that you took in as you chewed and a familiarity with your choice of gum. Wrigley’s gums were best and the Doublemint flavored one is still my favorite. Its flavor lasts a long time and you can chew it for days before the pliable plastic texture erodes. I never did get my gum snapping technique down but on the occassion I chew gum I still reach for Doublement chewing gum.

When I first experienced C.O. Bigelow’s Mentha Lip Shine I was once again that 7 year old girl sitting on a bench in Brooklyn reading a book and desperately trying to pop my gum. This lip-lip combines high gloss, moisturizer and overly present content of breath refreshing mint flavor which is very much like Wrigley’s Doublemint Gum with out all the chewing. The lip shine can get a little sticky, especially if you become obsessed with it and apply every 10 minutes like I did for awhile.

C.O. Bigelow’s Mentha Lip Shine retails for $7.00 each, but are frequently on sale for two tube for $10.00. You can buy it from the C.O. Bigelow’s landmark store (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C._O._Bigelow) on 3rd Avenue or at Bath & Body Works, which is where I get mine.

http://www.bathandbodyworks.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2095294&cp=2073258.2079003.2128726&parentPage=family

Lip Service

I, like most women I know, am always looking for the perfect lip-lip, to borrow a phrase from my then 5 year old. I rarely wear real lipstick preferring to use a tinted lip moisturizer that leaves a bit of natural color and shine without being too sticky, goopy or sparkly. At one point I loved and hoarded Clinique’s Almost Lipstick in Black Honey -http://www.clinique.com/templates/products/sp_shaded.tmpl?CATEGORY_ID=CATEGORY4903&PRODUCT_ID=PROD536

I would use a Macy's credit card to purchase at least 4 at a time so that I could keep one in the desk drawer at work, one on me at all times, one in the make up drawer in my bathroom and one tucked away in my plastic box of extras. Then one day in the middle of January sometime during my early 30s I looked into the mirror and realized how Goth I looked with my sallow winter skin, make-up less face, dark hair and eyes and black honeyed lips. There is nothing wrong with looking Goth but at that point in my life that look was best kept for my evening hour activities rather than my 9 to 5. That is when my search for the perfect lip-lip began again and I have earnestly sought, purchased, tried, discarded and loved many a lip-lip all in the quest of finding the perfect one that will tint, moisturize and compliment in a natural way.

My recent obsession is Calgon’s Get Juiced Lip Shimmer in Juicy Berry. It is an emollient lip balm that leaves a hint of a colored stain and a bit of lip shine on a face otherwise unadorned by make up. Instead of a Goth feel you look as if your lips are freshly flushed from a kiss. The product is packaged in a small, thin tube that reminds me of the Burt Bee’s Lip Balm packaging, which I have also tried. Get Juiced is a bit more emollient without a glossy shine and the berry tint a little less reddish more natural in color.

Calgon’s Get Juiced Lip Shimmers are a limited edition and were available in a few scents/flavors. They were sold with other bath and beauty products with the same scents. After using the Juicy Berry all last spring and summer I was at my wit’s end to replace the near empty tube I still carried and was pleasantly surprised when I discovered it at one of the sell out stores I sometimes stop in. At $0.99 each I was able to buy one for the desk drawer at work, one on keep on me at all times, one for the make up drawer in my bathroom and two to tuck away in my plastic box of extras and when those are gone I know that there will be another quest to occupy me.

Worth the search!