Product Alert -- Tarte Beauty in the Basics 6-Piece TSV from QVC

If you're in the market for a makeup set that covers all the basics and is less than $50, you're going to want to know all about the upcoming Tarte Beauty in the Basics 6-Piece TSV set to air on QVC on May 11th.

I wasn't really in the market for it, but I couldn't resist picking it up considering that each item in the kit is less than $9 each and there are several interesting new products I couldn't wait to try.

So I ordered it early and I thought I'd give a quick rundown in case you're trying to decide whether you want to pick it up.

The collection contains 6 items:

• Amazonian Clay Smoothing Balm
• Bamboo Smoothing Balm Brush
• Amazonian Clay Tightlining Eyeliner in Black Brown
• Colored Clay Eye Shadow Palette in Clay of Life
• Lights, Camera, Lashes 4 in 1 Mascara
• LipSurgence Lip Creme in Vintage

Tarte Beauty in the Basics TSV

The Amazonian Clay Smoothing Balm is one of the kit's new products and is apparently inspired by Tarte's Amazonian Clay Full-Coverage Foundation. Tarte describes it as a tinted smoothing balm, but I would call it a cream foundation. Its coverage is light to medium, but it has a thin consistency so it's easy to build. It's also extremely creamy so it blends in like a dream. 

It contains hyaluronic acid to help hydrate the skin but the finish is pretty matte, so I would guess that this foundation would work for all skin types except those that are extremely oily or extremely dry.

Tarte Amazonian Clay Smoothing Balm in Fair

Tarte Amazonian Clay Smoothing Balm in Fair

(Note -- the balm photographed darker than it actually appears. The Fair shade is a pretty good match for my very fair skin.)

The Bamboo Smoothing Balm Brush is designed specifically for use with the balm and features synthetic bristles that are extremely soft. It's fairly dense but there's enough give to make blending out the balm very easy. I've used the brush with a couple of other liquid foundations, and it's worked well with those too.

Bamboo Smoothing Balm Brush

The Amazonian Clay Tightlining Eyeliner is another new product in the kit. It's an extremely thin, precise liner pencil so it's easy to tight line or just fill in the gaps right along the lash line. It's also good if you just want a super thin, subtle line on your upper or lower lash line. The Black Brown shade is a perfect basic liner for everyday wear.

Amazonian Clay Tightlining Eyeliner in Black Brown

Amazonian Clay Tightlining Eyeliner in Black Brown

The Colored Clay Eye Shadow Palette in Clay of Life is the final new product in the collection. It comes in a small, square compact with a lovely purple shell design that has been on some other Tarte palettes. The Clay of Life contains four shades: Classic Cream, a satin ivory, Simple Slate, a shimmery taupe, Tantalizing Tan, a satin light tan, and Breathtaking Brown, a satin chocolate brown.

I have a lot of Tarte shadows, and something about the formula for these feels different -- they have a very smooth, creamy texture so they blend especially well. I love the color selection, though I feel like the Tantalizing Tan shade could be a tad darker -- it's a little too light to work as a transition shade.

Colored Clay Eye Shadow Palette in Clay of Life

Colored Clay Eye Shadow Palette in Clay of Life

From l. to r.: Classic Cream, Simple Slate, Tantalizing Tan, Breathtaking Brown

The Lights, Camera, Lashes Mascara is one of the few high end mascaras that I really like, It does a good job lenghtening and volumizing the lashes, so what's not to like?

Lights, Camera, Lashes Mascara

The LipSurgence Lip Creme in Vintage is a rosy pink shade with a slightly glossy finish. It has the usual minty scent and comfortable feel of the other LipSurgence products. I like it quite a bit.

LipSurgence Lip Creme in Vintage

LipSurgence Lip Creme in Vintage

The kit will be available on May 11 for $47.64 -- that's a pretty amazing deal for 6 full-size items. You can also sign up for auto-delivery and receive another collection  in August with new shades and a lash-enhancing primer for the same price. 

If you want to order early, check out the links for the one-time kit and the auto-delivery kit.

Are you interested in the Tarte Beauty in the Basics TSV? Which product interests you the most?