Rimmel Gets Royal + Gorgeous Green Glam'Eyes

After my last drugstore debacle with Almay, I've been shadow-shy in the drugstore. But this green trio from Rimmel has been calling my name for a few weeks. I finally got the chance to try it out.





Thankfully, my faith in eyeshadow has been restored.




I love this Tempting trio, made up of three complimentary green colors. It wears nicely (with a primer), stays bright and doesn't fade or crease during the week day.





I created this quick look using the three shadows, a brown liner and some mascara. So pretty!




Obsessed with the Royal Wedding? Rimmel is! Be sure to follow Rimmel on Facebook for everything makeup related for the Royal Wedding, including a chance to win exciting sweepstakes from Lucky and OK! magazine.


Product was sent for review.  Rimmel does not test on animals.

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Summer Wrap Up : My Favorite Picks From This Season, Part 2

I can't believe the summer is coming to a close. In Baltimore, as I type, it is only 70 degrees! Below are my favorite products for eyes and lips from this summer.

Mascara:

This is a really tough one for me because three mascaras really impressed me this season. Rimmel's Glam Lash is amazing and Tarte's Lights, Camera, Lashes is like false lashes in a bottle. However, my favorite mascara of this summer is bareMinerals Flawless Definition Mascara. The brush coats every single lash, it never clumps and wears all day.

Eyeliner:

One of my favorite trends this season has been brightly colored eyeliner and liquid liner. Nothing makes the eyes pop more than some artfully applied liner.

Liquid Liner: Milani Infinite Liquid Liners are budget friendly, budge-proof and come in really fun colors.

Powder Liner: I love Laura Geller's Eye Rimz in Potion and Bewitching Bronze. These baked colors look amazing and come with an adorable brush that is perfect for doing a work-friendly cat eye.

Pencil Liner: I have played with color and tested waterproof brands, but the pencil I can't put down is Mally Beauty's Lash Illusion. This tiny pencil does amazing things!

Lips:

Gloss: This summer I am all about the gloss. Picking a favorite out of my current 20+ glosses in rotation seems impossible. Since I have to choose, I think my favorite is a last minute contender from LORAC, a lip plumping gloss called Lotsa Lip. This plumper works by using a natural tripeptide that has been shown to visually enhance lips by stimulating lip collagen. While I am not sure about stimulating lip collagen, I love the color (Naughty) and the way it wears. It's not thick or sticky, delivers a nice amount of color and it lasts for a respectable amount of time.

Lip Conditioning Treatment: This one is easy - hands down it's Korres Lip Butter in Jasmine. This super sheer, super light pink conditions my lips overnight and gives me a tiny kiss of color. (Now through September 15th, you can still use checkout code GOULDYLOX online and save 30%)

Check back on Friday for the rest of my summer favorites!

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The Secret Behind Curling Mascaras

Ever wonder what miracle additive makes your lashes curl when you use a curling mascara? I do. I have teeny little lashes and they need all of the help they can get. Recently, I was really pleased with how Lumene's Blueberry Curl Mascara worked and wondered what caused difference between Lumene and every other curling mascara I have tried.

My quest lead me to a secret source, on a sunny coast, who works for one of the Bigs. I can't say the name of the company, but I can tell you he works in R&D (research and development) and has been instrumental in some of the most popular selling mascaras recently. When I asked what ingredient made the mascara have curl power, the answer I got was a little surprising. Ozokerite? Filmifying polymer? Magic dust?

He said that while there are some ingredients that can enhance curl, what really creates the curl is the type of brush you use. A brush that is firm and helps coat the lash - actually forcing the lash to bend as you apply the mascara is muy importante. Another factor is how the water evaporates out of the product as it dries.

Think of hair mousse from back in the day - it dried crunchy and curly, but you had to let it air dry. The curling action happens as the water evaporates, causing the polymer or film to shrink, forcing your precious lashes to curl in response to the mascara tightening as it dries. So the key is the brush and how it interacts with air?

Not the answer I was looking for. I was hoping I could isolate some wonderful ingredient like Magic Curl Polymer 6B and only buy mascara boasting that ingredient, thus having pretty, curled lashes ever after. Sigh.


Are there any options guaranteed to work? If serious curl is what you are after, you can have your lashes permed, which my secret source says he has done (and really liked). You can have it done in a salon in the states, but in Europe, you can do it yourself at home.


In the meantime, I am currently digging Lumene Blueberry Curl, Blinc, Rimmel Glam Eyes and Max Factor Lash Perfection Volume Couture. Let me know what you think!


Copyright 2009, Gouldylox Reviews

Rimmel Lash Maxxx - 3X Multiplying Effect?

As I mentioned, I have super short eyelashes, although I am working on that as I type. (tune in to find out!). Rimmel's Lash Maxxx is even more eXtreme than Maybelline's Xtreme lip Plumping Gloss and has the extra X's to prove it! It claims to multiply your lashes to look three times...something. I am not sure if they are going for fuller or longer or thicker. Maybe curlier? They should specify with more than two lines of copy on their website.


So with wacky claims and so many X's, why did I shell out $8 to try it? Because the brush is different from other traditional brushes. I'm not saying it's revolutionary or anything, but it is very different from the popular brushes in most mascara. (It sorta looks like the brush above, but a little different.) It is more like a soft plastic comb, with bristles only on one side. So picture a teeny toothbrush with only a row of combs and that is what makes the difference. I like to apply the mascara with the flat side of the brush and then comb it through with the brush side. For me, this helps coat the sides of the individual lashes.

The upside? It seriously coats lashes, adding length and a little volume. It is really easy to coat your lower lashes perfectly, too. The downside? You really need to clean your brush or it will clump and make a huge mess the second time you use it. Also, it takes longer to apply, so if you usually put on mascara in a moving car, this isn't for you. However, if you need dramatic eyes and want to try something new, check it out. For daily use, my current favorite is still Rimmel's Glam Eyes.

It's OK. Check it out if you want to try something new.


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Recession Proof Beauty: Rimmel Stronger Nail Strengthener

I have lousy nails. I just do. My cuticles fall apart and then my nails head for the hills. I was schmiing around, looking for something like Nailtique, which I recall working well years ago. Except I only had $5, so I had a bit of a challenge. Enter Rimmel nail polishes! I thought I would skip the whole "find something to help strengthen them and go for color", when I spotted something called STRONGER with lycra. It was a light pink and under $5. Some nice woman next to me informed me that it worked like a charm and flashed me her not-so-lousy nails. Two weeks later, my nails are evening out, much less likely to peel and are looking pretty good. According to their website, this polish contains Vitamin A & E, Pro-Vitamin B-5 to condition your tips and talons. I definitely don't have talons. One step at a time, please. Now if I could only get my cuticles under control, I would be in great shape.

I really like this. I bought this. You should try this.

Recession Friendly Beauty: Rimmel Fix & Perfect Foundation Primer 001

Always on the hunt for something to make me flawless, I decided to check out Rimmel's Fix & Perfect Foundation Primer. Rimmel claims this primer evens out your complexion and extends the wear of your makeup. So good, so far, right?

However, when I tested this at home, I was shocked to see that it is ORANGE. Since I am so fair, I bought the lightest color available. Yup, that color is ORANGE. I decided to try it out, despite my concern of looking fruity. I used half on one side of my face and half on the other. The side where I used this looked noticeably darker- my face and neck no longer matched. It also did nothing for helping to minimize my enlarged pores or help the application of my foundation go on more smoothly. In checking this product out on the Rimmel website, it says the primer is available in one color- APRICOT. So I stand corrected. It's not orange. It's apricot. If you are naturally apricot, than this might be lovely for you.

I bought this. It's apricot. Keep on walking, there's nothing to see here.


Copyright 2009, Gouldylox Reviews

Recession Proof Beauty : Rimmel Glam Eyes

I have no lashes. I mean, I have them, but they are almost non-existent. Thin, straight and short, they barely show up. I am always on the prowl for some new way to make my blue peepers pop. Recently, on a trip to Targe', I could not help but stop in my tracks when I saw a new Rimmel mascara that boasted it would make your lashes 7 times more spectacular. My current lashes are far from spectacular, so how could I not try this out?

I was pleasantly surprised to find that Rimmel Glam Eyes did make my lashes look longer and thicker. I also find that when I curl them before applying the mascara, it holds the curl for the whole work day. It didn't flake off or smudge under my eye and still looked great when I went to take it off about 14 hours later. Plus it comes in Extreme Black, which means either their regular black isn't, or this black is really, really black. I am loving my longer, thicker, darker glamorous lashes! I picked this up for under $8, so how can you resist?

I love this. I bought this. You should try this.