theBalm Nude 'Tude

I picked this up from Birchbox several months ago when I had a coupon. I'd heard good things about it, and I was wanting a replacement for my Too Faced Natural Eye, which has deteriorated in the pigmentation department over the years.

30 Days Makeup Challenge: Day 8: Blush

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30 Days Makeup Challenge: Day 7

For a summary of this series, see here!

What is your favorite eyeshadow color?
Well this is a no-brainer: TAUPE! I love how versatile and wide-ranging it is. Below are most of the taupes in my collection (all the ones that I wear or have recently acquired).

Left to right: Fyrinnae Arcane Magic Evocation, Fyrinnae Platinum, Fyrinnae Koala, L'Oreal Bronzed Taupe, Maybelline Bad to the Bronze, NYX Iced Mocha, theBalm Insane Jane

Platinum isn't really taupe at all, but let's just say I included it for comparison purposes, mk? Evocation and Koala are both the darkest and coolest, while Iced Mocha is the lightest and most gold and Bad to the Bronze the reddest. Bronzed Taupe is, in my opinion, the most versatile, flattering shade in my collection of taupes, and I love the texture, so if you don't have many taupes in your collection (and really, who ever has enough taupes?), I definitely recommend checking it out. I've got a couple of high end taupe shadows on my wish list (Le Métier de Beauté Corinthian and Chantecaille Sel), and I'm planning on picking up at least one of them when I'm in New York; I'd love to get both, but at $30 apiece, I really can't afford to!

Oh, taupe, you've ruined me for all other neutrals.

What's your favorite eyeshadow color? Do you share my fondness for taupe, or do you prefer brighter colors?

theBalm TimeBalm Concealer in Lighter than Light Review and Swatches

You may recall a previous mini-review of mine on this same product in Light. I took back the set that came in, and when theBalm's 40% off Black Friday sale rolled around, decided to pick it up in Lighter than Light and see what I thought. So far? I'm liking it quite a lot!

theBalm TimeBalm Concealer in Lighter than Light

theBalm Cabana Boy Blush Review and Swatches

This summer, I saw Cabana Boy at TJ Maxx for $10, but it was before I'd started working (=had limited funds), and I knew I wouldn't want it until fall/winter, so I decided not to get it. I have regretted that decision many times the past few weeks, but fortunately, theBalm had a 40% off sale for Black Friday, and I opted to get it then (for $12.60, but hey, much better than $21!).

Cabana Boy

theBalm You're Giving Me a Complexion Kit Review and Swatches

You know how sometimes you purchase something, and you're just so excited that you can hardly bear it, and then you use the products, and you realize with a sinking feeling that they're just not going to work for you? Yeah, that happened. Now I'm going to grouse about it on here (the real reason I started a blog!).

I posted a few days ago about the awesome theBalm sets at TJ Maxx. Before I go any further, let me tell you that this review is in no way a condemnation of theBalm or TJ Maxx. I love them both super lots, but sometimes love is not enough (I feel like that should be accompanied by a really sad guitar).

theBalm at TJ Maxx: Deals and Steals to the Max(x) (I hate myself)

I was feeling the need to check and see if TJ Maxx had gotten another shipment of theBalm products, since every time I've gone on the weekend there's been nothing, and lo and behold: oodles and oodles of theBalm holiday sets and individual products (though not the one I've been particularly lemming, namely Cabana Boy blush).  I snapped some crappy pictures for y'all (you're welcome):

A whole load of makeup kits from theBalm, ranging from eye to face to lip kits, with some combos thrown in for good measure

Shady Lady eyeshadow palettes, Vol. 1, 2, and 3, each a mere $12.99 each, $39.50 normally. If you like eyeshadow and enjoy pops of color (unlike some people who only wear neutrals, *cough*), this is an absolutely unbelievable deal. 

4 full-size lip products! I was so tempted to get this, but then I remembered I hated the sample of Stainiac that I got, and I don't really like or wear lip gloss, so that would basically be $25 down the drain. But it's a fantastic deal for those who would be able to make use of the products!

Close-up of the Green Eye Kit (as in, the kit for people with green eyes, not the kit with green eyeshadow...I was confused by this for a bit), which comes with Overshadow loose mineral shadow, 2 Shady Lady eyeshadows (I can't remember exactly which ones, sorry!), Balms Away makeup remover, and Cheater mascara

And my favorite Balmbini palette!

There were other kits and sets available too, including a bunch for skincare (I was also tempted by the Clear Skies Ahead kit for combo/acne-prone skin, but decided my skin is too unpredictable to risk the $23), several nail polish sets, and some super-cute pouches with nail, lip, and eye/cheek products (some had Betty Lou-Manizer, others had eyeshadow).

I picked up the "You're Giving Me a Complexion" set because I've been wanting a new liquid foundation/tinted moisturizer, and thought the other products sounded promising, too.  I opted for the Light option, only to discover upon opening it at home that all of the products were Medium (2 shades down from what I needed!).  Extremely annoyed, I did the 20 minute trip back to TJ's to see if they had a light kit that actually had light products, and after establishing that the moisturizer and TimeBalm were both as they were supposed to be, exchanged it for another.  Of course, upon getting home, I realized that the Liquid TimeBalm concealer was Nude, not Fair like the box had claimed, so it's a shade darker than I was promised (boo, hiss), but I'm going to continue playing around with the products to try and get them to work for me.  The TimeBalm Tinted Moisturizer in Light (which is the lightest it comes in, though it's only a small 3-shade range) is still a bit dark for me, but I'm going to try cutting it with moisturizer to see if I can't sheer it out and make it wearable.  Fingers crossed!  I'll write full reviews of everything after I've gotten the chance to wear it all more, but if you're interested in any of these products/kits, get to a TJ Maxx soon, because I don't know how long they'll last!  Just be sure to open the packages and check the contents to save yourself some misery.

theBalm and the Beautiful Palette at TJ Maxx

A few weeks ago I was browsing TJ Maxx (I needed new heels, but somehow found myself by the makeup...puzzling how that happens) and came across a few of the not-yet-released theBalm palettes.  These aren't supposed to come out until later this season, for the holidays, but there were several for sale (for around $17, I think?).  They contain the same products as are in the very LE Muppets palette (Cast Your Shadow), with different names, so if you weren't able to get your hands on that and wanted it, TJ Maxx is worth checking out!  And if you're not sure if you wanted the Muppets palette, here's Temptalia's review with swatches.  I passed on it because I knew I wouldn't get use out of most of the eyeshadows, but couldn't resist taking a picture!

On my most recent trip to TJ Maxx, they only had Shady Lady eyeshadow palettes and Overshadow loose shadows, so I didn't buy anything, though I'd been hoping they would still have Cabana Boy blush.  But alas, alack, alonder!  Hopefully it'll be restocked at some point...

What do you think of theBalm and the Beautiful/Cast Your Shadow?  Would you buy it?

theBalm Frat Boy Blush/Eyeshadow Review and Swatches

I picked this up at TJ Maxx at less than half the retail price (score!), because I'd heard good things about it from Temptalia and the Muse, and because I love the other blushes I have from theBalm (Hot Mama and Down Boy).  It's a nearly-matte peachy-pink-apricot with exquisitely smooth texture and rich pigmentation.

theBalm Frat Boy

theBalm Frat Boy

theBalm Special Edition Lip Gloss Review and Swatches

The final review for the Balmbini palette has arrived!  Took me long enough, sheesh.  The last piece of the puzzle is a lip gloss, Special Edition.  theBalm has two lines of lip gloss: a plumping gloss, Plump Your Pucker, which is $15 for 0.25 oz (though most of the shades are on All Cosmetics Wholesale right now for $7.99), and a gloss with SPF, Balm Shelter SPF 17 Tinted Gloss, $19 for 0.19 oz (also on ACW for $7.99).  There's no indication about which type Special Edition is, since it's not a color that's present in either of the lines (Special Edition is special edition, WOW).  So this is probably another review I should not do separately, but I'm a stickler for continuity, so I'm going to review it in full anyways, even though you can't buy it on its own.  I'm sorry!  I've read many reviews for their other glosses (I was thinking about ordering some from ACW, but have so far managed to convince myself it's not worth the money), and they're overwhelmingly positive, so if you're wanting to try a new gloss, it seems like theBalm is a good bet (you just can't get this particular color, though there are others that seem similar: Girly Girl, from the Balm Shelter SPF 17 line, and Water My Melon, from the Plump My Pucker line).

Special Edition gloss, on the right

theBalm Read My Lips lipstick in Wanted Review and Swatches

And we've gotten to the last section of the Balmbini palette: the lips!  First up is Wanted, a sheer red lipstick.

Read My Lips in Wanted on the left

theBalm ShadyLady Eyeshadow in Jealous Jordana Review and Swatches

The second ShadyLady eyeshadow included in the Balmbini palette is Jealous Jordana, a blackened green with slight shimmer.  Unlike Insane Jane, JJ is available for individual purchase, so if you decide you love it, you don't have to buy the whole palette!  Now the question is: would you want to?

Jealous Jordana (far right)

theBalm ShadyLady Eyeshadow in Insane Jane Review and Swatches

Taupe is a color that fascinates beauty bloggers.  A look at the taupe eyeshadows in the Temptalia Swatch Gallery gives a clue why: the scope of taupe is extremely wide.  The official definition of taupe is "grey with a tinge of brown", but there's a lot of ways to define that.  Some are more grey, others are more brown, some are warmer, some are cooler, some lean purple, some are dark, others light, some are matte, some have shimmer...it is truly a chameleon color.  I previously reviewed a purpley-taupe from a Wet N Wild trio, and I'll be talking about another today! Yay!

ShadyLady eyeshadow in Insane Jane, in the middle

theBalm Mary-Lou Manizer Review and Swatches

Being the oily-skinned creature I am, I've never really given much thought to luminizers.  Why would I want to make myself look shiny?  But as I've become more makeup-obsessed and started reading more beauty blogs, my horizons have expanded.  Luminizer (also called highlighter) is used to accentuate the places on your face that the light would naturally hit: tops of cheekbones, nose, browbone, cupid's bow.  It's still not something I would wear regularly, because my skin is more than capable of drawing attention to itself, but for special occasions (where I redo my makeup beforehand and know I won't be sweating or getting too oily!) it's a nice touch.  I've tried using Benefit's High Beam (review to come, my GOD I say that a lot), but the first powder luminizer I've used is the lovely Mary-Lou Manizer, which came in the Balmbini palette.  I'd read many good things about it before, and was very excited to give it a try!

From left to right: Mary-Lou Manizer luminizer, ShadyLady Eyeshadow in Insane Jane, ShadyLady Eyeshadow in Jealous Jordana

theBalm Down Boy Blush/Eyeshadow Review and Swatches

Down Boy by theBalm is, I am starting to think, the quintessential pink blush.

Down Boy on the left

theBalm Hot Mama Blush Review and Swatches

The first things I heard about theBalm were about their blushes, particularly Hot Mama, which was touted as being a good NARS Orgasm dupe with more product, less shimmer, and a lower price.  At $19 for 0.25 oz, it's $8 cheaper than the NARS, with 0.09 oz more product, but still well out of my comfort zone for a blush.  I was thrilled to see it included in the Balmbini, and thought it would be a fitting way to start off my series of reviews.

theBalm Hot Mama blush/eyeshadow on the right

UPDATED: theBalm Balmbini Master Post

theBalm was having a 5 hour 50% off sale last Thursday, so I took the plunge and ordered one of their palettes, which has 2 of their most popular blushes, their beloved highlighter, two eyeshadows, a lipstick, and a lipgloss.  I've long been lemming the blushes and highlighter, and Temptalia had given their eyeshadows fantastic reviews, so for $14 (and free shipping!), I was super psyched to try them out.

theBalm Balmbini Babies of theBalm Face Palette