L'Oreal Eye Makeup Remover: Trying to find an Eye Makeup Remover to Love......

I have not had the best luck in eye makeup removers. Not one can manage to remove every trace of mascara, eyeliner and shadow. I wake up in the morning with smudges worthy of the hard living Amy Winehouse. I do not live hard and generally go to bed by 10:30pm.

So what gives?

This remover did not get everything off. I still had some morning smudges along with some leftover mascara chunks in my lashes. I am far from Tammy Baker in application. I wear an eye cocktail of eye primer by Too Faced, eye shadow or MAC pigment, liner and mascara. Nothing out of the ordinary or worthy of a Vegas showgirl. No matter how clean my eye area looks, there will be traces of residue in the morning. This annoys me to no end.

Even though the L'Oreal remover left some residue it did not leave my eyes dry or feeling like sand paper. It also was refreshing like it promises on the bottle. There was no greasy residue like Almay Moisturizing remover pads. Another bonus was the price and being located at my corner drugstore.

What do you think of this remover and do you have any recommendations for other products? Let us know in the comments.

Credit: Blogdorf Goodman

Disclaimer: This product was purchased by me.

Blogdorf Goodman's Holiday Gift Ideas: Estee Lauder Solids

I was able to check out some of the holiday offerings from the Estee Lauder counter at Bergdorf Goodman. I was instantly smitten with the Russia-inspired nesting doll and catherdral square. Lauder solid perfume compacts are like tiny pieces of art with a perfume goodie inside. Prices vary from $250 to $350.
Contact Donna Muzio at Bergdorf Goodman at 212-872-2741 or 2788 for more information or if any of these pieces catch your eye.

Credits: Blogdorf Goodman

Bobbi Brown's Night Sky Long Wear Palette

Rockstar is a long-wear frosty silver cream eyeshadow. The pigment power is light but buildable. I prefer Rockstar in the metallic and diamond dust formulas. Ocean Storm is a beautiful steel blue gray. The pigment power was more substantial than Rock Star. It layered beautifully with MAC's Softwash Grey pigment. The rest of the palette was devoted to gel liners. I always love testing products after a Cavewoman blog project. She inspires me to revisit products and appreciate them in a new way. Bobbi Brown gel liners have great depth. The richness in pigment and texture are pretty amazing. The only complaint I have is lasting power. The liners smudge a bit yet complete removal requires a heavy duty cleaning solution. I had to use force to get every bit of the liner off.

Credit: Blogdorf Goodman

Disclaimer: A press sample of this product was provided by Bobbi Brown

The Line Up Project

Smashbox's Jet Set Waterproof Eye Liner
Review by MUA's Cavewoman


If you haven't ever watched any of the Smashbox Cosmetics presentations on the QVC Shopping Network, tune in sometime to see. Holly Mordini, the president of Smashbox, appears on the shows, demonstrating products, giving application tips, explaining the performance you can expect from the products, and talking about how they were all developed to be used at the famous Smashbox photo studio in Los Angeles. Holly herself is a former model, beautiful and friendly and giving me the feeling that I can totally rock any and all of the Smashbox products as easily as she applies them. She's one of the most likeable of the beauty vendors on QVC, like a girlfriend sharing great secrets with you. A very, very pretty girlfriend.

Well, my "girlfriend" was showing me the newest of the Smashbox cream-style liners, called Jet Set Waterproof. I was so intrigued, watching her apply it not only above and below the lash line of the model, but also on the inner rims with a special bent-angle brush. I felt pretty smug that I already had three of those bent-angle brushes, and her endorsement of that style had me thinking I am no longer a novice at this cream and gel liner stuff.

Since my first Smashbox liner experience (with the three cream liners in the lid of that Wicked Lovely set) was not so positive, I thought I'd try the new waterproof version. I am still looking for a great black liner, so I chose the Midnight Black. I had to wait a bit because a friend of mine was sending it from Texas. Thanks, Andrea! When it arrived, I grabbed the Sonia Kashuk bent-angle liner brush and turned on my magnifying lighted mirror to apply.

The first thing I noticed was the completely slippery texture of the liner. I had not even realized that the surface of the product was so slippery that my brush hadn't even picked up any color! So I poked a bit at the surface to 'break' into the liner itself, and started to apply. Slippery is the best word I can use to describe how this product applies. And do not make a mistake, because it dries very fast and then it's almost impossible to make a correction. I could see right away that the matte black shade was really black and very pretty, but the Kashuk brush was laying down too thick a line, and it wasn't gliding on evenly. Even the smallest little goof shows up with the Kashuk. There's no room for forgiveness. You have to get this stuff right the first time. I did the best I could in smoothing out the liner and making an even, sharp edge, and ended up not liking how much I had applied. So into the brush arsenal I went, and found this super-thin Sephora liner brush that I had not used much since I bought it on a clearance rack at the Cleveland store. I had bought this brush because I didn't have anything at all like it. Now I was glad I had it. You can see from the photo how ultra-thin the bristles are, longish, and with a great point at the tip. I dipped the Sephora brush into the liner and was glad to see how easily I made a perfect, thin line on my other eye. I swiped the Sephora brush under both eyes' lower lash line, and off I went for the day.

I couldn't have asked for a more perfect day to test if this liner were indeed waterproof. It poured rain all day. I left the house early, made a few stops and ran a few errands, and took a run to my Mom's to take her on more errand-running. Now, a dark, gray, ugly, rainy November day in Ohio may not sound perfect to you, but it did put the liner to the test. I didn't have a minute to check the liner during the day, but when I got home and all the hunting and gathering of the day was put away, I got to sit down with a soft drink and check my Smashbox.

My "girlfriend" was right. Not only did this liner not budge one single bit, it still looked as perfect (well, almost perfect due to the Kashuk brush) as when I applied it. Still a velvety matte black, no cracks, no wear, no peeling, no flaking, no gaps. And when I tried to remove it, it did not want to come off. I used two pads for each eye with the Benefit Gee That Was Quick eyemakeup remover, and still there was liner. I didn't want to rub or tug, so I took out a L'Oreal facial cleansing wipe and it helped greatly to remover the rest of the liner. I don't like using cleansing oil or oily eyemakeup removers on my eyes, I can't stand that film that gets in the eye. So the wipes will work fine to get this stuff off.

I'm rating Smashbox a happy 9 on the rating scale. I'd give it a perfect 10 if only it were not so tricky and slippery. You really need some good technique and skills to work this one. I'm getting there, thanks to a good collection of brushes. Now I can see that each one of these liners works well with a particular shape and style of brush.

Smashbox Jet Set Waterproof comes in only four colors at the moment, but it is a relatively new product in their line, and I hope to see more colors in the future. I'll be tuning in to the Smashbox shows to see what else my girlfriend wants to share with me.

Oh, I have to say Hi to my other new "girlfriend" -- a little boxer girl I met today when I was visiting a friend. Her name is Gracie. Gracie gave me some nice little puppy-licks. She got me right in the eye. The Smashbox didn't budge. That's just a little info in case you need to know that this liner is puppy-lick-proof!

Disclaimer: All products mentioned in this post were purchased by the reviewer.

Holy Sheldrake!

Chanel has released kegs of Chanel 5 in time for the holidays.
The 225ml bottle retails for $1,700, 450ml is $2,350 and 900 ml is $3,200.
In the past these perfume juggernauts were available through special order. This upcoming holiday season they can be found at the Saks store in NYC.

I triple dare anyone to take a photo of these when they are in the Saks store. We need to see these scent monsters!

The Line Up Project: Bobbi Brown
Review by MUA's Cavewoman

I admit that I haven't been much of a Bobbi Brown Cosmetics fan. I used to stop at the counters and look at the 40 neutral-toned, matte shadow offerings. It all kind of looked dull and boring to me. I get her philosophy about the natural look, but I do like a tad of shimmer and a bit of color when choosing my makeup items. Her pre-made palettes are famous and very popular, though, and I'd read many raves about her gel liners. Recently, on a trip to Bergdorf with Miss Blogdorf, I noticed huge changes at the Bobbi Brown counter. Gone were the many dull round shadow pans, replaced now with a fabulous and ingenius system of square pans of shadows and blushes, which fit into empty palettes of two, three, four or six pans. The shades are beautiful, some with shimmer, and a lovely, creamy texture, and color! So many pretty colors! When you pop your choices into the palettes, the bottom of the pan shows under the palette so you can see the names of your colors. I can't wait to go see James at our Saks Bobbi Brown counter in Cleveland and make a custom palette of my own with the new colors! I may be a Bobbi Brown believer very soon!

When I started this liner series, I ordered a Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Gel Eyeliner from the QVC website, and I chose Black Mauve Shimmer Ink because the name sounded like a color I would love. It's not black and it's not mauve, it's more of a medium brown, and the shimmer is gold, which is subtle but definitely skews this shade a bit toward warm. It was very pretty, though, but just not something I would have chosen had I gone to the counter to see before buying. Setting aside my disappointment in the color itself, I set out to try the liner in terms of performance.

I used my Sonia Kashuk bent-angle liner brush on one eye, and the Shu Uemura 5F on the other. The consistency of the BB Long-Wear is creamy and soft, unlike the drugstore gel liners which are very dense and thick. The liner applied smoothly and evenly with both brushes, and it didn't even take a minute to line both eyes. I'm really developing a good skill with these liners! The BB glides on with no skipping or clumping. I really liked the color on my eyes, too, which was a pleasant surprise. It did not look as warm on the eye as it did in the pot. It was definitely a cool-tone, and I could see the shimmer, which I loved. I didn't have any other liners that even came close to the color of this BB, so I was glad I chose it. I had a day of errand running to do, so out the door I went, wearing the Bobbi Brown, and hoping the Long-Last promise would be true. I even checked the Bobbi Brown website and saw that this product comes in so many beautiful shades! I thought that I'd ask James to help me choose a few more colors that he'd think would look good on me.


Four hours was all I got out of the Bobbi Brown liner. When I came home from my errands, I checked to see how it looked. There was some definite wear in the liner, some fading of color, and some gaps here and there on both eyes (so it couldn't have been the two different brushes, the results were the same for both eyes.) I noticed a flake or two of the liner here and there on both eyelids. I had high hopes for the Bobbi Brown formula, it does get raves on the MakeUpAlley makeup board and the product review section, but it just did not last very long on me at all. There was almost nothing remaining at the end of the day when I removed my eye makeup with the Benefit Gee That Was Quick. I couldn't believe that I had gotten such dismal results with the BB liner, so I decided to test it again, a few days later. And this time, I used a powder shadow from Bourjois over top of the liner on one eye, to see if that would make a difference. I chose the gorgeous Noir Precieux, a black-purple shade with a tad of shimmer, and applied it over top of the BB liner with a very thin old Sephora liner brush I had in my stash. I put the liner on the other eye without setting it with the shadow.

The results were much better this second time around, not just with the eye that had shadow over top of the liner, but with the liner-only eye, too. I was pleased to see that both eyes looked great after seven hours of wear. The shadow-on-top side had a bit more color, but the liner on both sides still had the defined line that I had applied earlier in the day. I don't know why I did not have such good results the first time around. I'm as perplexed as you are about this. But I'm happy that I don't have to flunk the Bobbi Brown as I did the Clinique. And I have to say that I love the way the liner looked with the Bourjois Noir Precieux over it. This really did give that purple-black shade that I was hoping for when I chose the BB Black Mauve. I'll definitely be doing this again, and I will try this powder-shadow-over-liner technique with some of the other liners, too. I'll report about that in the future. In the meantime, Bobbi Brown gets a solid 8 in performance and now I am even more eager to go see James and choose more shades. And to make that palette.

Disclaimer: All products mentioned in this were purchased by the reviewer.

The Line Up Project: MAC Liquidlast Liner

Review by MUA's Joeybunny

If there are two things I happen to be known for on MUA, they are MAC and eyeliners. I love eyeliners. Back before my love affair with eyeshadow began, I was an eyeliner fiend. In those pre-MUA days, when I could have only dreamt of eyeshadow primer, eyeliners were my best friends. They always stayed on my lids no matter how oily they were, and came in a dizzying array of colors and textures. I used to use eyeliners as eyeshadows, even! Now, despite owning multiple types of eyeshadow base (and an eyeshadow collection that would make my mother weep), eyeliner is still my makeup addiction. Currently, I own about 70. And yes, I use them all!

MAC happens to be a favorite makeup line of mine because of its relatively cheap prices (I am a college student who also needs to eat!) and its wonderful assortment of eyeliners. While I happen to be an odd goose because of my strong dislike for MAC Fluidlines (they just do NOT stay on my lids), I do like their other options. Currently, the MAC website boasts 10 different kinds of eyeliners (and this includes the limited edition ones). My favorite MAC liners happen to be the Liquidlasts.

Liquidlast liners are hardcore. I can honestly say that I have yet to try an eyeliner that has the longevity these liners have. They stay on for DAYS (with zero flaking!) if you do not use the correct makeup remover (you will definitely need something oil-based – I use Clinique Take The Day Off and about 20 Q-tips). At first, I’ll admit that I was freaked out by the idea of wearing something on my eyes that was that strong. The eye area is something you do not want to mess around with! But these liners are just so wonderful. They work incredibly well as bases for eyeshadow, and the color range is just phenomenal. Strangely enough, I am perusing the MAC website as I write this and there’s a smaller color selection of Liquidlasts than I have seen at MAC Pro or in a regular freestanding store. There are currently 13 available for order on the MAC website, but I assure you that way more colors exist, including the two I currently own (which are not featured on the MAC website also!).

I have Brassbeat and Pinkcraft, and they’re both lovely colors. Brassbeat is definitely the more wearable of the two, though. It is a gorgeous, warm, slightly shimmery brownish taupe. In fact, it may be one of the most perfect taupe eyeliners I have ever come across. Dark enough that it shows up on me (I’m MAC NC40, Latina tan skintone, so I need eyeliners with OOMPH), but not so dark that it isn’t appropriate for day usage. Pinkcraft, on the other hand, is for the more adventurous of us. It is a neutral-toned, reddish-pink color. It is loud and fun – and yes, I use it as eyeliner! It is great for a crazy pop of color on an otherwise plain eye, but I do recommend tightlining with a black liner in conjunction with Pinkcraft, if you are prone to rabbit eye when wearing reddish colors.

The price is pretty good - $16.50 for 0.084oz. Considering how pigmented this liner is, a tube will last a good long time. However, I must complain about the packaging. The attached brush stinks. Liquid liners, in my opinion, are best with either a very fine-tipped foam brush or a very fine-tipped bristle brush. However, the brush that comes attached to the Liquidlast cap is, I think, way too thick and unwieldy to use with the product. Nobody wants a huge, thick line of eyeliner that will dry in 30 seconds and then NOT come off! MAC really didn’t think this brush through at ALL. While writing this, I asked my dear friend Darthy over at Pink Sith what she thought and she agreed – using another brush with this product is definitely the way to go. She recommended the Sonia Kashuk bent eyeliner brush, and I can second that. I also like my TheBalm angled eyeliner brush, which I highly recommend if you need a good, cheap eyeliner brush (only $5!). What I do is run my eyeliner brush over the awful MAC one to pick up product. It works quite well, and like I said before, the color stays true and flake free until you manage to remove it eventually.

So then, to continue with Cavewoman’s rating system, I would have to give MAC Liquidlasts a 8 out of 10. They’re nearly perfect, but the brush stinks and they can be pretty hard to remove, and eyelid tugging is never a good thing.

Credit: Joeybunny
Disclaimer: All products mentioned in this review were purchased by the reviewer.

A Visit with the Lipstick Queen
By Angie W and Jessica M

Poppy King, the creator of the Lipstick Queen cosmetics line, appeared at Barneys New York on Madison Avenue this past weekend, and we two lipstick addicts had the opportunity to chat with her about Lipstick Queen and other lipstick-related topics. At Annie’s invitation, we’re here to tell you all about it!

Both of us admired Poppy’s stylish attire, which mixed feminine elements with unexpected details: her vintage dress of wine velvet was cinched with a tough-yet-elegant leather belt, and she combined a feminine, antique purple ring and a delicate, vintage bracelet with a chunky, oversized men's watch.

The influences that Poppy brings to Lipstick Queen are similarly romantic and eclectic. Her packaging, for example, blends artistic styles from all her favorite periods and sources. She has reinterpreted Art Nouveau floral motifs (including her namesake flower!) for the Saints and Sinners lines, Aubrey Beardsley drawings and Tarot cards for the Oxymoron glosses, black lace reminiscent of vintage stockings for the Black Tie Optional products, and the intricate religious-moral symbolism of the Middle Ages for her Medieval lipstick. All the products are unified by bold Arts and Crafts lettering; basically, this is not the stereotypical swirly, pink, pin-up ornamentation that many companies would have automatically chosen for a lipstick line.

As for the lipsticks themselves, their colors and textures are inspired by classic Hollywood glamour and European standards of chic beauty. In recommending products to us, Poppy emphasized that her own makeup preference is to wear very little eye makeup or any other makeup besides lipstick. Lip color definitely plays the starring role in her beauty aesthetic.

Angie’s “lip reading’: Poppy recommended a rich wine shade for fall. Wine Sinner and Saint Wine were tested, and Angie ultimately chose the Saint. (The Sinner was gorgeous, but it’s a stronger lip than she’s accustomed to.) Poppy's advice for trying an intense new color is to wear it around the house until it feels second nature, so that you are comfortable wearing it out. Poppy said that Saint Wine was very “Ophelia” on Angie, and since John Everett Millais’s Ophelia (see image) is one of Angie’s favorite Victorian Pre-Raphaelite paintings, she had to cave! Poppy also suggested Saint Rouge for a subtle pop of red, since Angie already owns and enjoys Saint Red and Medieval. Angie loved both new lipsticks because their texture is so moist and sheer, and both colors are wearable, neither too bright nor too dramatic for a pale brunette to wear in daytime.

Jessica’s “lip reading”: Jessica had brought along her mini-collection of brochures from the original Poppy cosmetics line (see photo), dating back to its launch at Barneys in the early 1990s. Poppy reminisced about past products and designs for a bit, and then she approved Jessica’s current love for Saint Natural lipstick and recommended a few other items. Jessica ended up joining Angie (and Annie!) in the Medieval fan club, since it’s the only sheer red lipstick she’s ever tried that’s sufficiently pigmented yet doesn’t overwhelm her round face. Then she was smitten with Oxymoron Matte Gloss in Minor Crisis, a soft, dusty rose. Poppy also dabbed Minor Crisis on Jessica’s cheeks as cream blush for a fresh-faced “Jane Austen” look (and Jessica couldn’t resist that concept, since Jennifer Ehle as Elizabeth Bennet is one of her beauty icons!).

Jessica and Angie were both eager to hear about future Lipstick Queen products, and Poppy indulged them by mentioning special talc-free blotting papers for lips, accessories including a Lipstick Queen mirror, and Big Bang Theory lip gloss, which will have subtle “fish scale” iridescence and a lip-plumping effect. A second book, on the subject of lipstick (of course!), is also in the works.

Overall, Poppy was wonderfully engaged in our conversation and seemed so pleasantly excited to speak with some of her customers. If you have the opportunity to meet her at a Lipstick Queen counter, don’t miss it!

Credit: Angie and Jessica for Blogdorf Goodman

Disclaimer: All products mentioned in this review were purchased by the reviewer.

The Line Up Project: Smashbox
By MUA's Cavewoman

I admit that I bought this little Smashbox Wicked Lovely Cream Liner And Loose Shadow set only for the absolutely gorgeous loose shimmery shadow that's contained in the bottom part of this jar. It is the most amazing, cool-toned taupey-gray color that rivals the sparkle of any Bare Escentuals glimmers. I couldn't resist this pot. I never even thought of using the cream liners that are encased under the lid. I would have bought the shimmery loose shadow even without the liners, but they came with, so I have them. And I decided I should test them for this series, because Smashbox claims to be the first company to offer cream liners. I am not sure that's true, but it isn't important here. What is important is how the liners perform. There are three liners in the cap of this little container, one is taupe, the center one is a coppery-bronze shade, and the third is a gunmetal gray. All three have some degree of shimmer, which I don't mind a bit. I chose the gunmetal color to use for this test, because I don't even like the other two, those are not colors I would ever wear.

Using the bent-angle Kashuk brush on one eye and the Shu 5F on the other, I found the Smashbox easy to apply. It absolutely glides on, it's easy to get an even line, but it seemed a bit sheer to me, so I went over it a second time with another dip in the pot. It's a medium shade that I would not ordinarily choose as a liner, but it did look very pretty and I was pleased. The shimmer seems to lighten up the color just a bit. I was done in a flash, and ran out the door to head to my Mom's for the day.

I didn't have a chance to check the liner until I got home, about five hours later. I was surprised to see that it didn't even appear to be liner, it looked more as if I had used a soft, shimmery, medium-toned gray shadow to line my eyes, the line had softened and wasn't sharp and crisp anymore, and it had faded into just mostly shimmer and not much like liner. It definitely looked lighter in color than when I first applied it. I noticed signs of wear, some cracking and some gaps, too. But it didn't flake, so there weren't any chunks stuck to my lids or cheeks. Thank goodness for that. There just wasn't much left.

What did remain was easily removed with the Benefit Gee That Was Quick eyemakeup remover.

Smashbox makes another formula in their cream liners, called Jet Set Waterproof. I am eager to try this formula, and when I do, I will report. But for now, Smashbox Cream Liner formula gets a dismal 2 in the ratings. One point for pretty, and one for ease of application. I'll hold out on giving it a 1 rating, although I can't imagine anything performing more poorly than this one did.
But we shall see. On to the next liner, tomorrow is another day!

Disclaimer: All products mentioned in this review were purchased by the reviewer.

The Line Up Project: MAC Fluidlines
Review by MUA's Cavewoman

"Just when I think I'm out, they pull me back in!"..... Al Pacino as Michael Corleone, Godfather Part III

My on-again-off-again relationship with MAC Cosmetics is on again in a big way. After years of loving all things MAC, and then having most of it sit, neglected and unused, in my cosmetics organizer, I thought I had learned my lesson. Look at the things at the counter, walk away, contemplate, read reviews, resist the buzz on the MakeUpAlley, go look again, buy cautiously, etc., etc., etc.! I've learned that I don't like MAC foundations, powders, skincare, and most of the lipsticks and shadows. I rarely like the holiday offerings, I try not to get seduced by the beautiful, shimmery pigments (so pretty, but I'm not skilled enough to use them properly,) and to test everything on my face before I buy. I still use and love most of the MAC brushes that I have, they are excellent, last forever, and perform perfectly. I like the glosses, love the dazzleglasses, and their original Amplified lipstick formula is still my favorite of all lipsticks. But I had never tried any of the Fluidline liners. Until now. A big thanks to Nicole, who raved about them, and did a custom purchase for me (she buys, I pay her) of a shade called Non-Conformist at her local Cosmetics Company Store. I can't thank her enough. Everything she said about Fluidlines is true, and the Non-Conformist is my favorite liner shade ever! I dedicate this review to Nicole!

Ask the MakeUpAlley members what the best liner is, and you'll get lots of suggestions, but over and over again you'll see Fluidlines listed, and lots of raves. I don't know why it took me so long to try one. When I received the little jar that Nicole sent to me, I was totally captivated by the shade. Non-Conformist is a discontinued shade of Fluidline that is a dark dark blue-based purple which has no shimmer or glitter particles. I was in love at first glimpse. You know how it is with MAC, but if you don't, I'll tell you. When you fall in love with something that's a Limited Edition, grab all you can. Chances are you won't see them again, unless you start scouring ebay. Sometimes that's the only way to obtain something from MAC that's long gone.

I tested Non-Conformist the day it arrived. I used the Kashuk bent-angle brush on one eye and the Shu Uemura 5F on the other. I knew right away this formula was something special. None of the other gel or cream liners applied so smoothly, so easily, and the saturation of color was amazing. Lasting power was beyond any liner I have tried so far. I couldn't wait to get my hands on more colors, so Miss Blogdorf and I set out for the nearest Lauder Outlet store.

There were not too many Fluidlines to choose from at the outlet, but I found an interesting blackish shade called Nightfish. I can't explain the name. It's not a blue-black, but sort of a warmish black, with no shimmer. The following week, on a trip to New York, we stopped in at the MAC Pro store where I bought the beautiful dark cold blue Waveline, a navy with a hint of purple, and two liner brushes, #209 and #210. See what MAC has done to me?

It was time to put my new Fluidlines to the test. I had an all-day event with my parish, a retreat for my students at our local park. I was going to be gone for most of the day, it was snowing and part of our day would be spent outside, and part inside in a lovely old pavillion. I decided to wear Nightfish, and I applied it on one eye with the #209 brush and on the other eye with the #210. As you can see from the photos, the #209 is a little thicker than the #210, but both performed with the Fluidline with ease. The #210 gives the absolute thinnest line possible, but it was easy to control the line with both of them. Off I went, at 8am, to our retreat.

When I got home, I crashed. I took a nap with The Godfather Part II on the tv and I don't think I heard a word of the dialogue. I woke up a few hours later, fixed myself a bite to eat, and came to the computer to check my mail. I didn't even think of the liner. Around 8pm, after reading someone's post on the MakeUpAlley regarding fluidlines, I remembered! I hadn't checked my Nightfish! So I grabbed the mirror.

What a shock, in a really good way! The Nightfish had remained exactly as it looked after I had applied it, now twelve hours later! No cracks, no wear, no fading, no missing chunks, no flaking, no gaps, no budging at all! I couldn't have been more surprised, and pleased. This is it. I've found The One.

It's interesting to note that many of the liners I have tested come from Lauder companies. MAC, Prescriptives, Clinique, and Jane are all under the Lauder umbrella, and yet they all perform differently. I'm happy to have been able to test them all, and I have one more to go. That's Bobbi Brown and I'll report on that next. But for now, I can't imagine anything better than Fluidlines. MAC has done it to me again. I'm happy to be back. Fluidlines gets the Perfect 10 rating.

I'd like to talk a little about the brushes. I think it would be more of a matter of skill level and personal preference, but I want to show the brushes I like the best with the gel and cream liners. I've talked about some of them in previous reviews. From the top, the Shu Uemura 5F, a synthetic brush with a flat-across-the-top edge and a thin profile, which I have no idea if it's actually for eye lining or maybe lip products, but it works well to get these liners as close to the lashes as possible. Below the Shu are the two MAC liner brushes, the #209 and the #210. Then, the silver-handle brush is from Dior, it's different from all the rest with its super-short bristles and rounded edges, a flat-style head, perfect for the most thin line in a flash, stiff enough to hold product and place it exactly where it is supposed to go, close to the lash line. I like it because of the stiffness of the bristles, even more than the Shu brush. Then you will see three bent-angle brushes, the Sephora Pro Platinum which is the most angled of the three, then the Benefit offering which is a short-handle brush perfect for travel cases, and the Sonia Kashuk at the bottom, used in many of these reviews and a solid performer, especially for the price. In terms of ratings, they all perform differently, so it would depend on the look you want to achieve, and your level of skill in application, but I highly recommend any of these for both novices and those more skilled at makeup application. The Dior and the MAC's get perfect 10 ratings, the rest get 9's. The brushes I disliked from the beginning have been banned to the brush storage case. They aren't even worth mentioning.

I can't believe that as I am writing this review, I'm hearing music from The Godfather coming from the television. I swear it's true.

Credit: Cavewoman and The Godfather
Disclaimer: All products mentioned in this review were purchased by the reviewer.

The Line Up Project: Prescriptives
Review by MUA's Cavewoman

It is no secret that I am a huge fan of the Prescriptives cosmetic line. Their skincare is thoughtful and effective, their foundations are legendary, their color products are beautiful and wearable and user-friendly without ever being theatrical or too trendy, and their holiday palettes are a bargain for the price. Not to mention their fragrance called Calyx, a wonderful discovery thanks to Tania's review in "Perfumes, The Guide." I'm wearing it now, for a little inspiration, as I write this review.

Prescriptives offers the type of liner I've been reviewing here, the little gel or cream liners in the glass jars, and there are six basic colors plus one limited edition at the present time. It's called Perfect Every Line Gel Eyeliner. I chose the black, called Licorice, and the purple, called Eggplant, for my testing. I was particularly interested to see how these would compare to the Clinique, considering they are both Lauder companies, and in a future test I'll be reporting on a Bobbi Brown liner, also a Lauder company product.

I've already used both of these Prescriptives liners, but for today's test, I chose the Licorice, to have a good comparison with yesterday's black liner from Clinique. I wanted to see how black this Prescriptives was in comparison.
The consistency of the Prescriptives is thicker than the Clinique, but it seems that if the liner product is called "gel" rather than "cream," indeed they are thicker, drier, and more dense. But loading the brushes (the Shu 5F and the Sonia Kashuk bent-angle) was just as easy as could be, and I had a perfect line on each eye within just a minute. The Prescriptives formula was by far the easiest to apply of all that I have tried so far. It dried quickly to a very matte, black-black, almost identical to the Clinique, but I do think that the Clinique is a colder-toned black if indeed there is any difference at all. I even swatched the Prescriptives and the Clinique both on the back of my hand to compare them, and they are so close that it's almost impossible to tell the difference.
Again as before, the Kashuk brush does tend to lay down a bit thicker line than the other brushes I have used. So that would definitely be a personal preference. I'm getting pretty well-skilled at applying these liners now, so I can get an equal line with both the Kashuk and any other brush I am using in the testing.

Soon after I applied the Prescriptives, I got a phone call and had to run an emergency errand. I jumped in the shower, washed my hair, and got dressed. I was surprised to see the liner still absolutely perfect on both eyes! It's definitely waterproof, even though Prescriptives does not state that it is. All they say is "non-smudging, non-smearing, non-creasing." And in these descriptions, all is true. Seven hours later, both eyes still showed the liner as perfect as when I had applied it. Removal was a breeze with a few cotton pads soaked in Benefit Gee That Was Quick eyemakeup remover.

I just have to add here that this review is for the Licorice shade only. What I am wondering is if the results would also apply to other colors in this line. I'm wondering if in each individual line, the results would vary or be different from color to color. So in the future, I'll be testing other colors in some of these lines, not all of them, but the ones with which I have had good results. I'll report on the Eggplant color in a future review, and I also will test and review some of the liners with an application of shadow over top of them, to see if that affects the wear and the appearance.

Prescriptives again does not disappoint. It's not often in the forefront of the makeup-world buzz, but this company offers solid performers that deserve some praise and recognition. I'm here to rave about the line and the liners. Prescriptives Perfect Every Line gets a 9 in the ratings. I'd give it a perfect 10 but I seem to be holding out as if I were judging some Olympic gymnastics or figure skating event, I haven't seen all the performers yet. We'll see if a perfect 10 comes along!

Disclaimer: All products mentioned in this review were purchased by the reviewer.

Blogdorf Goodman's Holiday Gift Ideas:

This black train case is currently available at your local Macys store. For just $49.50 with any $36.00 Lancôme purchase, you get full size Bi-Facil and Définicils and a boatload of samples.

This train case is also available in burgundy online(today!) and other selected department stores on November 23rd 2008.

The reason why I love this train case is the Eiffel Tower zipper closure. It is an adorable touch!

Quick NYC Review: L'Artisan Parfumeur

"It was a ten day trip on a small island named Bahia Honda. This island belongs to Jean Pigozzi, a fan of L'Artisan Parfumeur. He requested I make a perfume about the rainy season in Bahia Honda. The purpose of the journey was to catch the ambiance and atmosphere of the island under the rain; plants, trees and flowers. So, I spent ten days over there, in the rain." (Bertrand Duchaufour in Barneys catalog)

I tested this at Henri Bendels. I like how the Artisan boutique is slightly hidden and how it is generally unmanned. You are left alone and allowed to play. This scent was quite lovely on a paper swatch. Mr Duchaufour managed to capture a tropical rain quite brilliantly. This is what I imagine the rain forest to smell like.

I tested it on the skin and that was a mistake.

The watery note quickly turned to a melon/cucumber note. It was twisted and lost all of its tropical greatness. My skin is not meant for anything ozonic or watery. This opening note lasted far too long and needed to be scrubbed off.
I am not destined to smell like a rainy Bahia Hinda breeze.

It is at Barneys and Bendels and retails for $135.

The Line Up Project: Clinque
Review by MUA's Cavewoman

I posed a question not too long ago on the makeup board at MakeUpAlley. I was looking for the blackest black eyeliner, and I knew where to go to get the answer. It was BarbItalia who recommended that I run to the Clinique counter and get the Brush-On Cream Liner called True Black. She said it was the blackest, and lots of other people agreed with her. And so I ran.

I'm pretty sure that this Clinique cream liner appears very very black because it is matte. That means that it absorbs light, and reflects very little light due to the finish. As a photographer, this principle makes sense to me. When I would be photographing a still-life or doing portrait work, I always had some black velvet fabric with me. It is the one thing that reflects as little light as possible. I had high hopes for the Clinique.

The first thing I noticed is that this cream formula is very soft, and much easier to work with than some of the gel types I have already tested. Loading the brush is a breeze, and since this liner didn't come with its own brush, I chose to use the Shu Uemura brush 5F (the one I think is actually supposed to be a lip brush) and the Sonia Kashuk bent-angle liner brush. I started with the Shu. Just a teeny dip was enough to cover the brush and make swift work of lining one eye. That brush is great! It's flat but it's narrow, so it is easy to get very close to the lashes. I've found that the Kashuk brush generally gives a thicker line, but I'm getting pretty good at this cream/gel liner stuff, and I was able to get an equally thin line on the other eye with that brush. However, I did not seem to get the line as close to the lash line as I was with the Shu. But wow, did I see black! Blackest black! Serious, velvety black. I was really happy with the way this applied and how it looked. I was eager to see how long it would last.

About three hours later, I checked the liner in the mirror. The eye with which I had used the Shu brush showed more wear than the other eye. I don't know why. I had applied equal thickness to each eye. The liner was still showing very well just at the lash line and even in between the lashes, almost as if it had slid down into the lashes. Odd. The eye with which I had used the Kashuk brush still looked almost as good as it did when I first applied the liner, but it did show a little flaking on the lid.

An hour later, I checked again, and now the liner had pretty much disappeared on both eyes, flaked a bit under the eye and onto the lid, and was just only visible in the lash root areas.
Four hours isn't very long for a liner to last. I suppose I could go over it with a dark eyeshadow and try it again, but that would skew the testing a bit, and I'm not doing that with any other liners right now. I may try it in the future.

In terms of removal, well, there wasn't much to remove, and the remainder came off easily with the Benefit Gee That Was Quick eyemakeup remover and a little flat cotton pad.

The Clinique Brush-On Cream Liner in True Black was very black indeed (thanks, Barb!) but I sure do wish it had lasted longer. I'm giving it a 4 rating because it was a great black, and was easy to apply, but in terms of performance, it flunked. And performance is what I am seeking with these liner testings.
On to the next one!

Disclaimer: All products mentioned in this review were purchased by the reviewer.

Blogdorf Goodman's Drugstore Deals and Steals for November 16 through November 22nd 2008

CVS

Revlon: Buy 1, get 1 FREE on lip or nail products with CVS card
All Revlon mascara is priced at $6.49 with CVS card
L'Oreal: Buy 1, get 1 50% off on mascara with CVS card
Buy Skin Genesis Daily Moisturizer or treatment(1.7 oz) and get a FREE Skin Genesis Eye Serum(0.5 oz) or Night Complex with CVS card
All L'Oreal Collagen or Wrinkle De-Crease for $15.99 with CVS card
All L'Oreal Advanced Revitalift is priced at $11.99 with CVS card
L'Oreal Age Perfect Pro-Calcium(excludes tint) is priced at $15.99 with CVS card
Lumene: Spend $29.99 and get $10 extra CVS bucks with CVS card
24.7: Buy any 24.7 Minerals makeup or skincare and get $5 extra CVS bucks with CVS card
Milani: Buy $10 of Milani cosmetics, and get $5 extra CVS bucks with CVS card
Maybelline: Buy 1, get 1 50% off on all Maybelline face, eye or lip products with CVS card
Zeno: The mini acne cleaning device is $89.99 with CVS card
If you buy the regular size Zeno with your CVS card, you get $10 extra CVS bucks with the purchase.
Wet n'Wild: Buy 1, get 1 50% off on all cosmetics with CVS card
CoverGirl: Buy CoverGirl Exact Eyelights or Lash Blast mascara, and get a FREE CoverGirl Eye Enhancer shadow or any CoverGirl eyeliner with CVS card
Sally Hansen: Buy 1, get 1 50% off on cosmetics or La Cross beauty tools with CVS card
Bio-Oil: Save $2 on Bio-Oil with CVS card
Aquaphor: Save $1 on all products with CVS card
Olay: All Olay Definity Facial Care is priced at $24.99 with CVS card

Rite Aid

Almay and Revlon: Buy 1, Get 1 FREE on cosmetics
L'Oreal: Buy 1, get 1 50% off on Bare Naturale make up or Bare Naturale lip color
25% off on cleansers, skin genesis, and age perfect skin care
CoverGirl: Buy 1, get 1 50% off on face, lip and eye makeup
Maybelline: Buy 1, get 1 50% off on lip or nail care
Sally Hansen/La Cross: Buy 1, get 1 50% off on grooming implements

Walgreens

Revlon: Buy 1, get 1 50% off on cosmetics
Neutrogena: Buy 1, get 1 50% off on cosmetics
$5 off on Healthy Skin Rejuvenator Starter Kit
Bonne Bell: Holiday gift sets are priced at $5.99 to $8.99
Weleda: Buy 1, get 1 50% off on skin care
CoverGirl: Lash Blast is priced at $6.99
Jordana: Coupon in circular for 2 eyeliner or lip pencils for $1(limit is 4)
Cetaphil: Cleanser or lotion(16oz) is priced at $6.99

Target

CoverGirl: Exact Eyelights mascara is priced at $6.49
10% off other selected CoverGirl eye and face products
L'Oreal: Revitalift 5 oz cleanser is priced at $5.29
10% off all other skin care

NYC Trip Review: Poppy King's Medieval Lippie

I always make a point to visit a Poppy King counter while I am in NYC. She is a personal hero of mine.
She created a lipstick empire.
From the goth girl packaging to the quality lippie formula, it is all genius and fun.

The latest from the mind of Miss King is Medieval. This is a red tinted treatment inspired by the look of lips in medieval art. The women used lemon to sting their lips to look flushed and blood red. Poppy King eliminates the zing of a lemon and instead gives us just a sheer pigment with vitamin E.


The texture is soothing and surprisingly creamy. This lippie delivers a rich yet sheer shade of red. Color delivery depends on your lip pigment along with your application. Layering delivers richer more noticeable results. The bonus of this lippie is that it keeps lips hydrated and flake free. Plus it leaves no messes or trails.

It retails for $20 and is available at Barneys and Henri Bendels.
Poppy King will be reading "lips" this Saturday(November 15th 2008) at Barneys in NYC. Call and make an appointment at 212-833-2017.

If you attend please tell her that we would love for her to make a glittery gloss.
Pretty please.
Lots of glitter, sprinkles and shine.



http://www.lipstickqueen.com/


Credits: Blogdorf Goodman
Disclaimer: I purchased this lippie in NYC at Barneys.

This perfume sings to me!

NYC Trip Reviews:

Pulp by Byredo Parfums

"Pulp is an international fruit basket. I wanted to create the feeling of a completely new fruit, that people had never experienced. I focused on isolating the meat of the fruits and limited the green elements. We added the tiare for an exotic floral element". (Ben Gorham in Barneys catalog)

Well, imagine it's a film & you're the star & pretty
Soon we're coming to the part where you realise that you should give your heart

Oh give your heart to me.

Now the orchestra begins to make a sound

That goes round & round & round & round & round & round & round & round & round again

And we kiss to violins.

Well some sad people might believe in that I guess but we know better don't we?

We know all about the mess. (Pulp's Happy Endings)

During my NYC trip I stumbled across a small perfume line with plain jane packaging at Barneys. At first appearance the niche line looked fairly ho-hum. Nothing that would stop a customer in their tracks on their way to the makeup counters. The juice in the Malle-like bottles are completely worthy of a traffic jam. The official notes for Pulp are bergamot, blackcurrant, cardamom, fig, red apple, tiare, cedarwood, praline and peach flower.

My reaction to Pulp was it was an explosion of a ripe peach. It was meaty and juicy. It was worthy of a cocktail umbrella or being made into a cobbler. I wanted to drink my wrists.

The dry down simmered down to a fall apple with some Bois de Paradis blackcurrant. Needless to say, I coughed up the cash for this bottle. This was a departure for me. By all textbook accounts, I should have bought Gypsy Water. This is more moody and mysterious. The notes contain orris and incense. It is quiet with intelligence. Pulp is loud, a little untidy and utterly intoxicating.

It is all wrong for me.

They have a name for someone who smells the way Bella does to me. They call her my singer—because her blood sings for me. (Edward Cullen...the first of many Twilight quotes)

This perfume sings to me.

It retails for $195 at Barneys.

Credit: Blogdorf Goodman

Disclaimer: I purchased this perfume at Barneys.

NYC Trip

I am sorry that there is no new post to greet you this morning. Instead of sleeping or working on the blog, I finished reading Twilight.
I guess you can never take the goth girl out of me.

I will be reporting on NYC very soon.
Here are some of the trip's highlights:

Girls are wearing tights as pants....everywhere. (This is a Gossip Girl reference)
Speaking of GG...I talk about it way too much.
I am in love with Byredo's Pulp fragrance.
A hug from Tom at Bergdorf can lift your spirits dramatically.
Not all black lippies are the same.
I went to Rachel Zoe's favorite vintage clothing store and it was overwhelmingly fabulous. It was bananas. I die.
And I worship Poppy King.

CoverGirl Exact Eyelights Mascara Review

I have been caught up with the lash vibrator trend that I have been ignoring the new drugstore mascara offerings. This new CoverGirl mascara caught my eye due to the promise of eye brightening benefits. Eyelights come in a variety of shades to make your eye color "pop". I am all about trying to make my brown eyes look less....brown.
So...I grabbed the mascara for the blue eye folks.
It is called Black Sapphire. I loved the name and the blue steel shade just looked so new and fresh.

This might have been a poor choice for me. My lashes are black so the color does not show up very well. There was no eye brightening or eye popping movement. I can report that the rubber lash wand resists clumps and delivers on great separation and volume. Curl action is just fair.

Brown eyed girls can choose Black Pearl. This looks like a deep black metallic color.
Hazel eyes have a mascara shade called Black Gold while the gals with green peepers have a shade called Black Ruby. It looks like a plum metal.

It is currently available at your local drugstore counter.
If you have tried this mascara let us know what you think in the comments.
http://www.covergirl.com/sitemap.jsp

Credits: Blogdorf Goodman and CoverGirl
Disclaimer: I purchased this product at my local drugstore.

Blogdorf Goodman's Holiday Gift Ideas: Bedazzled Tweezers

The holiday gift season is upon us.
This year will be a mixture of pining over things I can not ever afford to creating a rational list of gifts for family, co-workers and friends. I plan to post any cute findings on the blog to help readers with ideas or to give my friends the heads up to what they might get in their stockings.

Gift Possibility #1:
This is a gift that will tickle any bling lover or the beauty addict who has everything.
This is a pair of tweezers from the Tweezerman. It retails for $25.

Who might get this?
My friend Melanie. She bought me a Bedazzler a few years ago. It could keep the sass going.

Credit: Tweezerman

The Line Up Project: Brushes
Review by MUA's Cavewoman

I'm taking a little break in my liner reviews to talk about brushes, and the reason for that is I am finished reviewing all of the liners that I have that came with their own brushes. All of them were from the drugstore brands. I have more liners to review, but they come from the department store cosmetic lines, and none of them have brushes included with the liner. Many of these lines have brushes that were designed to be used with the liners, and on QVC some of the Smashbox liners are available to be purchased with a brush as a set, but I haven't done that yet. If I do, I'll post that review in the same format as my previous reviews. And so, in order to test out the rest of the gel and cream liners for Blogdorf, I've been digging around in my brush cases, and I've even purchased a few so I can do some experimenting.

In the first photo: top to bottom: Sephora, Stila, Smashbox (red), BeneFit, Sonia Kashuk, Stila, MAC #22, Chanel, and Shu Uemura 5F.


In the second photo, left to right, Dior (in the navy blue sleeve), Kashuk close up, MAC #22, Chanel (there's a story to this one below),and Shu Uemura 5F.

There are so many different shapes and styles of brushes for lining the eyes, and I present a few of my little arsenal here. Some of them I have had for a long time (two Stila, the slant-tip MAC, and the two Chanel) and some I have purchased recently just to be used with these gel and cream liners (Shu Uemura, Dior, Kashuk, and BeneFit) -- as I wrote in my preview, it would take forever to try all of the liner-brush combinations.
When I found the red-handled Smashbox brush in my storage case, I remembered buying it several years ago at Sephora, because it was the latest "greatest" style of eyeliner brush, to be used with their own cream liners, but I wanted to use it to line my eyes with shadow and not with cream liner. I found it to be too wide to work with, and not the right shape for the shape of my eyes. I stored it away with the Stila flat brush that had come in a travel set of brushes. Neither of these brushes work well for me, and they're going back into storage.

There are two Chanel brushes. One has a short, stubby shape, and it actually was a lip brush. I have had it for ten years. I took it on a trip to Italy 9 years ago, and it was too long to fit in my makeup case, so I whacked a few inches off of the end with a wire cutter, sanded the rough wood with an emery board, and painted the end with a black Sharpie. Instant travel size brush! I don't recommend doing this, since now there are such great short-handle brushes at all the counters and drugstores, and when I mention it to my Chanel SA Chris, she laughs but she laughs with a little bit of a cringe! Still, this brush has served me well over the years as a liner brush with other products. The other Chanel brush is their liner brush, thin and longer, flexible but not too soft.

The two bent-handle brushes are the Sonia Kashuk which I've already been using and talking about in these reviews, and the BeneFit version which is almost identical but with a shorter handle and slightly thinner tip.

I have not used the MAC #22 brush yet, the one in the photo with the slant edge. I'll report if and when I use it with future testings.

The Shu Uemura was a find at the Lancome outlet last year. It's the 5F and I have a feeling it's another lip brush. I used it today for the first time with another one of the gel liners. Review to come!

There are two Stila brushes, one short tip and one flat tip.

The Sephora brush is a nicely balanced brush for those who prefer a long handle. The head of the brush is thin, with long bristles.

Last but not least, the latest brush I've added, in the navy blue sleeve, this is the Dior liner brush. I have high hopes for it. The head is flat, but the edges of the bristles taper a bit, as you can see, in contrast to the sharp flat shape of the Stila and the Smashbox. The Dior is smaller, and I think that the rounded edges will work much better with my eye shape. I can't wait to try it! And I will, soon!

Disclaimer: Disclaimer: All products mentioned in this review were purchased by the reviewer.

Hydrating Infusion by La Mer

I have been testing La Mer's Hydrating Infusion for close to a month. This is a treatment that pre-wets and prepares the skin for the benefits of a moisturizer. It is a serum-like texture that transforms into a watery fluid upon application. Once Hydrating Infusion is activated by the skin's pH and temperature, the ingredients are released to start hydration.

It is like a primer for your moisturizer. Instead of keeping your foundation in place, this primer preserves your moisturizer and jump starts the hydration process. The texture and science behind Hydrating Infusion is similar to Kanebo's Smoothing Water Make Up Base. Both represent a skin care trend that actually works.

I have been testing Hydrating Infusion with various serums and creams. Hydrating Infusion works well with the heavy duty creams like La Mer and Eve Lom's TLC Cream. It also works well with the feathery light creams like Chantecaille Biodynamic Lifting Oil Free Fluid. It applies wet and quickly dries to a matte finish. Moisturizers apply smoother. Skin looks hydrated longer. Flakes and dry patches are history. As someone who lives in Arctic Ohio, this skin cocktail is an answer to my prayers.

Smart skincare is pretty standard these days but this new innovation is more along the lines of an honor society or Mensa.

It retails for $95 and is available at your local La Mer counter.

Disclaimer: A press sample of this product was provided by La Mer.

Nars Tips: A Healthy, Radiant Complexion
The best tip for applying a bronzer!
It comes from James Boehmer from Nars.

Credit: Nars and Blogdorf Goodman(when the Nars team came to Cleveland!)
http://narscosmetics.com/

BG Election Day Post

Three of my favorite things: Gossip Girl, civic duty and a little inside joke for our dear friend Self Styled Siren.

This is your friendly reminder to go out and vote today. I used a Gossip Girl picture last year to encourage voting. This year no one needs any kind of encouragement but I can not resist posting a picture of Chuck Bass.

This last picture is an inside joke for Self Styled Siren. It is from Cavewoman's personal collection. This might trump the McGovern scarf.

And go listen to the Lemming Anthem from the band The Oohlas. I believe this will be my new theme song.
http://www.myspace.com/theoohlas

In only a few short days I will be in NYC with Ms Cavewoman. We plan to do serious shopping, meet up with friends and stroll through the city.

I am asking for suggestions for places to eat and things that we must see. Should we stop by the Chanel exhibit in Central Park? Where is the best street flea market to find cool vintage finds? Let us know your picks for must see destinations in NYC.

This picture is my screen saver on my work computer. I fell in love with the image after spotting it on my favorite fashion blog, Fashion is Spinach.

Credit: NYMag via Fashion is Spinach
http://www.fashionisspinach.com/