Review -- e.l.f. Matte Lip Colors in Nearly Nude, Tea Rose & Natural

I used to hate matte lip products.

It probably goes back to my teenage years in the mid-to-late '90s when matte lipstick was super trendy and so damn dry that wearing it felt like torture.

Since then, I've pretty much stayed away from matte lip products. Between the dry feel and dry look, they just weren't for me.

Still, for some reason when I was strolling through Target recently and came across the e.l.f. Matte Lip Colors in the makeup aisle, something made me stop and reconsider.

The $3 price tag probably had something to do it.

Well, that and Nearly Nude looked like just the kind of nude shade that I was in the market for.

So I decided to give it a try ... and I liked it so much that when I placed an order from the e.l.f. website a few weeks later, I picked up two more shades, Tea Rose and Natural.

Review -- The Balm Shady Lady Special Editon Palette (& Giveaway!) (CLOSED)

Anyone who reads this blog regularly is probably sick and tired of reading about how much I love The Balm.

I'm sorry, but I can't help it.

They're right up there with Tarte and Bare Escentuals when it comes to my favorite makeup brands.

That's why whenever The Balm shows up on HauteLook, I always check out the offerings even though I have 99% of the line at this point.

When they showed up on the site most recently, though, I was surprised to see a new palette in the Shady Lady line that I'd never heard of before -- in fact, it's not even available on The Balm's website.

Perhaps it's a HauteLook exclusive.

Product Alert -- Upcoming bareMinerals Glamour Now Holiday TSV from QVC

As I mentioned yesterday, QVC always has the best beauty TSVs right around the holidays.

It makes sense, of course -- they make ideal gifts for all those makeup lovers on your list... or yourself.

There's nothing wrong with treating yourself, I always say.

The upcoming bareMinerals Glamour Now TSV that will air on November 25th is definitely a treat in my book.

Product Alert -- Upcoming Tarte Bow & Go 3-in-1 Gift Collection TSV

My name is Jennifer and I'm a QVC beauty TSV addict.

Seriously, they get me every.single.time.

The values are just too good to pass up.

Particularly at the holidays.

Like last year, Tarte has an excellent holiday TSV coming up on November 18th that is perfect for gift giving.

The Bow & Go 3-in-1 Gift Collection contains 3 different gift boxes of products that you can give as a single gift to one very special person on your list or split up for three different people this holiday season.

A Few Recent Favorites

 In my last Favorites post, I explained that I was going to share my favorites whenever the mood struck.

Or whenever I had enough products to do one, really.

I've been trying out a bunch of new stuff recently, but whenever I'm experimenting with brand new products, I like to incorporate some old classics so I know that at least some of my makeup won't wind up looking like a total mess. So that's why some of my recent favorites are -- old goodies.

But there are a couple of new (to me) products thrown in for good measure.

New QVC TSV Installment -- Mally Easy on the Eyes #2

It seems like just yesterday that I received the Mally Easy on the Eyes TSV from QVC, but the second installment already showed up last week -- and I think I might actually like it better than the first kit.

The AD collection contains six items:

• Mally Citychick Celebration Shadow Palette
• Mally Perfect Prep Under Eye Brightner
• Mally Volumizing Mascara in Black
• (3) Mally Evercolor Starlight Waterproof Liners in Steele, Enchanted Violet & Sailor 

It also comes with a small pencil sharpener for the eyeliners. 

New QVC TSV AD Installment -- BE Beautifully Brilliant Holiday #4

It's really starting to feel like Christmas around here these days -- I had two AD installments of QVC beauty TSVs show up on my doorstep this past week.

And having new makeup to play always feels like a holiday to me.

The fourth (and final) installment of the bareMinerals Beautifully Brilliant TSV, Chic Mystique, is an interesting collection of shades that I'm definitely excited to experiment with.

The kit contains:

• Perfect Light Mineral Veil Finishing Powder
• Ready Eyeshadow 4.0 in The Fantasy
• Ready Liner Shadow The Night Is Young
• Spellbound Blush
• Marvelous Moxie Lipsgloss in Rule Breaker
• Contour Blush Brush
• Double-Ended Shaping Eye Brush
• Gunmetal Clutch

Product Alert -- LORAC Dazzling Dozen Limited Edition Eye Shadow Collection

 If you haven't popped into your local Ulta or browsed the website lately, you may be missing out on a serious eye shadow steal.

The LORAC Dazzling Dozen Limited Edition Eye Shadow Collection contains 12 full-size single LORAC shadows for a ridiculous $35.

My math skills are pretty rusty, but I believe that comes out to less than $3 a shadow.

Isn't that nuts?

I'm not doing a full out review on the collection simply because I haven't had time to play with all of the shadows yet and I wanted to spread the news about it before it disappeared into the limited edition beauty products graveyard.

However, the shadows that I have tried are all excellent -- nicely pigmented, smooth, blendable, and easy to apply.

Review -- Tarte Kiss and Makeup 5-Piece Amazonian Butter Lipstick Set

 When I said I was a sucker for Tarte's holiday kits, I wasn't kidding.

I'll admit that the pretty packaging is what first caught my eye about the Kiss and Makeup 5-Piece Amazonian Butter Lipstick Set, but the lipsticks aren't too shabby either.

I first tried the Amazonian Butter Lipsticks as part of a Tarte TSV from QVC a few months back. The formula is smooth, creamy and really comfortable on the lips. Because they're moisturizing, they aren't super long lasting but I don't find that they disappear all that quickly either. Like most of Tarte's lip products, they also have a cool minty taste/scent, which I really enjoy.

The lipsticks in this kit all have that same exact formula, so I really like them.

Sale Alert -- 20% Off for Urban Decay's Friends and Family Event

If you're the kind of person who likes to get a head start on holiday shopping, now is the perfect time.

Urban Decay is having their annual Friends & Family Sale where you can score 20% off everything on their website.

Forget holiday shopping even -- if you've been eying the Vice 2 Palette, the Shattered Face Case, or any of the Naked Palettes, grab 'em while you can get them at a discount.

Just use the code FFHOLIDAY13. The code is good through 11:59 PDT on October 12th. (FYI -- I think there's a limit of 5 items per order.)

Happy shopping!

Review -- Tarte Pure Delights 8-Piece LipSurgence Lip Set

These days, nearly every brand puts out special collection for the holidays that offer some pretty fabulous deals whether you're shopping for friends and family or yourself.

But in my mind, Tarte always seems to be ahead of the pack when it comes to holiday bargains. They put out a variety of holiday sets that really allow you to get the ultimate bang for your buck and are particularly ideal for anyone who's been curious about the brand but didn't want to spend $25 for a single blush or $24 for a single lip product.

I am always a sucker for Tarte's holiday kits (as you can probably tell from my most recent post and another one I'll post later this week.) and since I am a big fan of their LipSurgence Lip Tint products, picking up the Tarte Pure Delights 8-Piece LipSurgence Lip Set was kind of a no brainer.

Unlike last years' Lipsurgence kit that features 5 full size products, the Pure Delights sets feature 8 mini lip products (1.75 grams per product).  Personally, I like that change -- the larger lip pencils are difficult to get through, particularly when you've got a large lip product collection, so I'd rather go for a variety of shades with smaller pencils.

Review -- Tarte Leave Her Blushing Set of 3 Amazonian Clay Blushes and Brush

 The Tarte Amazonian Clay Blushes are my favorite blushes in the world.

I know that probably sounds rather dramatic, but of all the blushes I've tried -- and I've tried quite a few -- I can't think of any others that are as pigmented, smooth, blendable, and long-lasting as the Tarte blushes.

I probably wear them at least 3 days out of the week, which, if you consider how many different blushes I own, definitely means something.

So I am totally thrilled that Tarte has started including these fabulous blushes in their holiday sets.

Last year, they put out a set of four mini Amazonian Clay Blushes.

This year, the Leaving Her Blushing Set contains 3 mini blushes (1.5 g each) and a full size blush brush.

Review -- Urban Decay Vice Palette 2

 I've been pretty sad lately, so I've been employing a few different strategies for boosting my mood.

There have been quite a few "Charlie's Angels" marathons with my big sister -- the original series, of course. I wasn't around to watch it when it was actually on back in the day, but my sister has always been a big fan and '70s TV is so charmingly bad that it's bound to make you laugh.

I've also tried working out more and getting back into a running routine -- though shin splits and blisters have kind of put a crimp in that. 

So I finally found myself turning to a tried and true coping mechanism -- retail therapy.

I've done quite a bit of makeup shopping in the past two weeks.

I'm still sad, but at least I have pretty new makeup to play with. 

That's how the Urban Decay Vice 2 Palette found its way into my makeup drawer.

My Favorites (But Not Monthly or Weekly) and Some Other Ramblings

I've been a bad beauty blogger lately.

I keep skipping out on monthly favorites posts.

And as someone who loves to hear about other beauty junkies' favorites, I've really got no excuse.

Except that, for some reason, lately I find recapping my monthly favorites overwhelming.

Because each month there might be too many products or not enough and I wind up obsessing over it like a crazy person.