Drugstore Starter Kit !

Makeup can be very scary if you don't know much about it. I'M here to save the day!  I put together a drugstore starter kit of all the products a person new to makeup would need.

Rimmel Stay Matte Powder · I love this to powder by tzone to keep me from getting oily.

L'oreal Miracle Blur Primer · This primer is an exact dupe for the Benefit Porefessional.  It blurs all your pores and helps your foundation last all day.

Milani Baked Blush in Luminoso · This blush is a universal shade.  I think that it would look amazing on all skintones.  It gives you a beautiful flush.

Wet n Wild Mega Glo · These highlighter/blushes are amazing for the price.  They are so pigmented and come in a few different shades.

Covergirl Super Thick Lash Mascara · This mascara doesn't have the prettiest of packaging but, it does the job!  My lashes look so amazing when I'm wearing this.  It gives them volume and lenghth.

L'oreal Infallible Shadow in Amber Rush ·  If you have blue eyes this is a must have!  And even if you don't have blue eyes this would look amazing.  It is such a beautiful copper-ish color.  And the texture on these is great too.  They aren't a cream shadow yet, they aren't a regular powder shadow either.

Maybelline Color Tattoo in Bad to the Bronze · Maybelline Color Tattoos are the way to go if you like a cream shadow.  Bad to the Bronze is my personal favorite but there are so many different shades to choose from.  Plus, Maybelline comes out with tons of limited edition shades every year.

Sonia Kashuk Eye on Neutrals Palette · This palette is great for people who like a neutral eye. There is a shade for everyone this palette. It is great for a beginner and it also great for traveling .

Rimmel Kohl Liner · These liners are so creamy yet have serious lasting power!  And the nude one is great for making your eyes look extra bright and awake.

Jordana Eyeliner · I love to use these to tight line or for a pop of color on my lower lash line.  They are very inexpensive and also last throughout the day.

Jesse's Girl Eyeliner ·  I am not the best at winged and this pen makes it so easy.  It is not the blackest black but it does an amazing job.

Maybelline Gel Liner · As I said before I am not the best at winged liner but, once and awhile I break out the gel liner.  This is the blackest of the black and is ultra creamy.  It goes on smooth and dries nicely.

Jordana Lipliner · Just like the eyeliners the lip liners are just as good.  They come in an array of nice neutral lip shades and are very inexpensive.  They go on the lips smoothly and last very nicely under your lipstick.  They aren't too creamy but, easy to work with.

Milani Lipliner · These liners are nice and creamy and wear well under most lipsticks.  The shade range is not very large but they do have great neutral, everyday shades.

Maybelline Colorsensationl Lipsticks · Out of all the drugstore lipsticks these are hands down my absolute favorite!  They are creamy but not too creamy.  The lasting power is amazing and they look great on the lips.  They do not cling to dry patches on the lips.  There are so many colors to choose from and each one is very pigmented.  Some of my favorites are from the Vivid's collection.

Maybelline Colorsensational Lipgloss · Again just like the lipsticks these are highly pigmented and have great lasting power.  For a lipgloss they are definitely opaque.  

Revlon Colorburst Lipgloss ·  These glosses are more on the sheer side but, come in some great shades.  Plus they aren't sticky and do not smell too funky.

Revlon Super Lustrous Lipgloss · These were just repackaged and they look so cute.  They are similar to the colorburst ones but, are a bit stickier and bit more opaque.  I would not say that they are full on opaque but, I would not say they are sheer either.  My favorite is pink pop.

Almay Color + Care Lip Balm · I was truly intrigued when these came out.  I was so fascinated with a gloss plus a balm.  They are very hydrating on lips and even after it has worn off you can still feel how well nourished your lips are.  Since this is more of a balm these are very sheer but still look gorge.  

Maybelline Baby Lips  · These smell great and leave your lips nice and hydrated.  Plus they have some great shades that double as a nice lip stain.



I did not include a concealer or foundation is this starter kit because it all depends on your skin type.  I have dry skin and my two favorite foundations are the TruBlend from Covergirl and Ponds BB Cream.  But my BFF has oily skin and she loves the Maybelline Fit Me.  So it just all depends!

Hope you enjoyed this Starter Kit.  What are your favorites from the drugstore ??

Love,
City Styles 

Maybelline Master Glaze Blushes !

Let me start off by saying cream blushes are not my favorite.  I have tried so many different ones and most fail.  I have pretty dry skin and most cream blushes stick to my dry patches and I look ridiculous (I think so anyway).  But, these Maybelline Master Glaze blushes are a bit different.  I would not call them a cream nor would I call them a gel or a glaze.  They are a mix of all three.  These blushes are highly, highly pigmented so be careful!  I do not like to apply these directly on my cheeks.  I take my Elf stippling brush and swirl it on the top of the blush and then apply to my cheeks.  This gives me the perfect flush to my cheeks.  They last for a good part of my work day and tend to only break down if I do not set my makeup.  I have seen them at all my local drugstores and range in price from $7.99- $9.99.  They have been my go to blushes as of late and I am pretty impressed.

Pink Fever - Coral Sheen 

Pink Fever - Coral Sheen


What is your favorite cream blush ??

Love,
City Styles 

Rimmel Scandal Eyes Eye Paint !

Rimmel recently released these eye shadow paints.  I have not heard many people talk about these so I of course had to pick them up and review for you guys!  I bought chestnut taupe and pomegranate.  And may I say that they are amazing !!! They last on my oily lids for at least eight hours and are pretty pigmented.  When I wear the taupe I do need another color on the lid too since it is quite light but, the pomegranate is great on its own.  I love to pop them on when I am in a rush.  They have a doe foot applicator and I like to blend them into my lid with my finger.  I think my fingers work best with the creamy texture.  I have seen them mostly in Duane Reade and Walgreens and they cost about $6.99.  I truly enjoy Rimmel products and think these are a nice edition to the line.

Have you tried these ??  What do you think ??


Love,
City Styles 

Rimmel Show Off Lacquers !

Rimmel released their Show Off lacquers awhile back but, at the time they were only available at Walgreens.  They have recently been released to the rest of the drugstores!   I love, love, love these!  They are like a liquid lipstick.  The lacquers are extra pigmented and come in amazing colors.  I of course had to get almost the whole range.  I mean at $5.99 a piece, why not.  I know, I know hoarder alert!  Anywho, these do not dry down to a matte finish and have a nice doe foot applicator.  They stay glossy and wear so nicely.  They don't become patchy but, leave a nice stain to the lips.  I love to wear these to work.  I always get complements.  If you like a bold lip I would totally suggest you pick them up!  

When you first but the lacquer the top of the tube is clear.  Once you open it fills with product.  Make sure not to buy an open one!

luna - out of this world - nova - aurora - stellar - apocaliptic - big bang 

Have you tried these lacquers yet ??

Sorry I have been MIA.  We are so short staffed at my job that I have been working 10 hr days with almost no breaks.  It has been like this for the past five weeks and it has finally caught up to me.  I am so tired and just want to relax when I get home.  Hopefully things will be back to normal soon (fingers crossed) and I will be back to posting five days a week!  

Love, 

City Styles 

Milani Lipgloss {Brillant Shine & Lip Intense}

Milani recently came out with a ton of new products .  This included the brilliant shine gloss and the lip intense liquid color.  I decided to pick up one of each!  The brilliant shine gloss reminds me a bit of the revlon color burst lip glosses.  The gloss smells ok and has nice pay off.  I got the shade sweet grapefruit, which seemed like a "Gina" shade.  It's goes on smoothly and isn't too sticky. I totally want to go back and pick up one or two more.  Now the lip intense is definitely INTENSE.  If you don't like too much color on your lips I would say opt out of buying this.  I picked up the shade fiery coral.  It is a bam in your face pinky coral.  It dries down to an opaque, matte finish.  You definitely need to exfoliate your lips before wearing this one.  Once it dries, it clings to all of the dry patches and does not look pretty.  I would say that the lip intense does not get used on a daily basis but, it is really nice for a night out.  
   

sweet grapefruit - fiery coral


Have you tried any of the new Milani products ??

 

Milani Baked Blushes {Bella Rosa & Delizio Pink}

Milani recently came out with two new baked blush shades!  I am a huge Milani baked blush fan.  Luminoso is my holy grail, favoritest blush of all time.  So, when I heard Milani came out with new shades I rushed to CVS to find them.  And I am so happy I did.  They are absolutely drop dead gorgeous.  Delizio Pink is a blue based pink and Bella Rosa is a deeper berry pink.  They are both highly, highly pigmented and have a beautiful sheen.  A little goes a long way and with the right brush (I'm loving the sigma angled brush) you will fall in love.  These blushes wear well all day and I truly can't say enough good things about them!  They retail for about $10 and can be found at CVS or Duane Reade.  

  

 Delizio Pink - Bella Rosa 

Delizio Pink - Bella Rosa 

What is your favorite Milani product ??

Love, 

City Styles 

Maybelline Dare To Go Nude {Color Tattoos}

  

Today is the first day of Budget Buy March !!  So, I wanted to show you guys something new and something I love!!  Maybelline Color Tattoos are amazing!  They come in a great range of shades and they are always coming out with great limited edition colors.  They say they 24 hour wear,  I am not sure if that is true or not.  But, what I do know is that they last my 10 hour work day and then some.  I love to wear these on their own or even as a base.  They work well with powder shadows and are extremely pigmented.  Maybelline recently released the Dare to Go Nude collection.  There are six limited edition Color Tattoos, I only picked up the three I liked the most.  I got Pure Nude, Caramel Cool, and Sleek & Spice.  They retail anywhere from $7.99-9.99.  I picked mine up at Duane Reade.    I highly recommend these to everyone.  They are one of my holy grail, drugstore staples!

Sleek & Spice is a nice taupe shade that is a bit on the warm side.  Caramel Cool is a bronzy, gold shade that is on the cooler side, hence Caramel Cool.  Pure Nude is an icy, white shade that sheers out to a beautiful highlight.  I have heard some people say it is similar to an RMS Beauty highlighter. 

What is your favorite Color Tattoo shade ??  And how do you feel about cream shadows ?? 

Love, 

City Styles 

Budget Buy {Maybelline The Buffs}

I am always on the hunt for the perfect nude.  Since I am on the fair side I never seem to find a nude that doesn't wash me out.  Well, Maybelline came out with a lipstick collection called The Buffs.  There are nine shades in all.  The concept is you can choose your shade based on your skin color.  I personally LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Maybelline's Color Sensational lipsticks.  I own more than I can count.  They are rich and creamy, and highly pigmented.  If you are new to makeup I highly suggest these.  They are a priced at $6.99 - $8.99, based on where you buy them.  I opted for 920 Nude Lust.  It is a nice brownish nude that is not to dark but isn't too light.  I kind of want to get 910 Bare All too just to see how it would look. 

I compared Nude Lust to Chanel Gracile, YSL Rouge Pur Couture 6, Armani Rouge Ecstasy 102, and Burberry Trench Kiss.  It is almost an exact dupe for Trench Kiss. 

Have you tried the Buffs ?? And what is your favorite drugstore lipstick ??

Love,
City Styles 

Budget Buy {L'oreal Extraordinaire}

I love a good budget buy !  The drugstore really has some great products.  Recently L'oreal came out with these new Extraordinaire lipsticks in a wide range of shades.  They are packaged similarly to the lip stains they came out with last year.  The texture on these is amazing.  They are a bit tacky and dry really nicely.  They last for hours, even when eating.  If you are eating something oily then they do wear off but, still leave a nice stain. They have a doe foot applicator and as of right now I only have two colors but, I would love to get more.  At 8.99 they are a bit on the pricey side for drugstore makeup but, there are always coupons and sales.  And don't forget to sign up reward cards!  They have gotten me some great deals. I totally give these lipsticks two thumbs up.  They are a modern take on a lipstick and they are so pigmented. 

Rose Symphony - Pink Tremolo 

What are your favorite drugstore products ??

Love,
City Styles 

To BB or Not to BB!

I have tried many a BB Cream.  I have tried everything from Dior to Maybelline.  I just can't help myself.  Something about seeing the word BB Cream makes me want to buy a product.  Recently Ponds came out with a Luminous Finish BB Cream and I had to jump on it.  I found mine in Duane Reade for $12.99.  That is actually a reasonable price since it is 1.5 oz.  Usually drugstore BB creams are 1oz.  

Me wearing the BB Cream - Nice meduim coverage

Adorable packaging 

Comes with a spout, which is a plus

It matches my skin very well - with flash

without flash 

It only comes in two shades, light & medium.  Which is kind of a bummer for people with darker skin tones.  I have to say I really love this BB cream.  I like it the best out of all the drugstore ones.  It gives a great coverage and smells great.  I do set mine with a finishing powder only because it gets humid here in NYC & I melt most days.  Now I have dry skin so I would to know how it wears on people with oily skin.   

All and all I give this two thumbs up.  

What are you favorite BB Creams?  I think I am going to do an updated BB Cream video on youtube channel.  Please tell me what you think.

Love, 

City Styles 

Into the Nude .... {LIPSTICK CHRONICLES}

Get your mind out of the gutter.  We are talking about lipstick here!! I have always been one for a bright lip, but I have those days where I love a good nude.  Being translucent myself I have a hard time finding a great nude.  I have tried my share of nudes from the drugstore and high end.  Today I am going to share my favorite drugstore nudes!

milani 'nude creme' - loreal 'fairest b=nude' - revlon 'soft nude' - maybelline 'bare to be bold' - wet n wild 'just peachy'

milani - loreal - revlon - maybelline - wet n wild

I have to say the Maybelline or Milani are my absolute favs.  The Milani is just so creamy and looks great with our without a lipliner.  The Maybelline is also amazing!  It is just a nice sheer wash so it is not to intense.  You can find these at any local drugstore, except for Revlon 'Soft Nude'.  Unfortunately it was discontinued.  You can find it here on Ebay.  It is going for more than retail price, but it still is not bad.  

I am going to do a series of posts about my favorite shades of lipstick from drugstore and high end.  Please let me know what your favorite nude lipstick is!  I would love to give it a try. 

Love, 

City Styles