First Look| L'oreal Le Matte and La Laque.

I finally have ventured outside of my 10 mile zone to another Target in search of these mystical lipsticks. And they are indeed mystical. I hadn't been able to find them for the past few weeks, even though it's been out for at least two months now. Such is the life of limited edition items; they get clamored over by crazy makeup enthusiasts and disappear, never to come back.

Ah, but I've finally found them. Here are some swatches and pictures for your enjoyment. You may live vicariously through me.

From left to right: 414 I Lacque You A Lot, 413 Lacque-onic, 409 Matte for Me. Below, the order is reversed.

 

Matte for me is a blue based pink, in the same family as MAC's Girl About Town/Crosswires/Impassioned.

Lacque-onic is my favorite, a true red with a shine. 

I Lacque You A Lot is an orange-red that seems similar to MAC's Lady Danger with a shine. 

None of the colors are particularly wearable for every day (work/school) unless you're the adventurous type, but they are beautiful nonetheless. They remind me of NARS' matte and satin lip pencils with a much lower price point, and dare I say they are much less drying? I'd love to pick up even more, but I received the matte shade in a swap and only found the other two at Target. Also, I believe they retail for about 8 to 10 dollars (if you can find them, try to buy a few just in case!)

All three shades are very opaque and pigmented, long wearing, and not prone to bleeding or drying. The matte shade applies like a satin and dries down to a matte and wore down to a light stain after three hours. The La Laques are a little more prone to feathering if not laid on top of a liner, but they do not slide around.

The only downside is that they smell rather outdated and "drugstore", which is a given. I really hope that these are just L'oreal's way of testing the waters before jumping in with a more extensive collection.

Have you been able to find these at your local drugstore or Target? I think most people are having good luck with Target. Let me know what you think!

Be

Review: Revlon Colorstay

Is the Revlon Colorstay foundation a hidden holy grail, lying underneath piles of rubble?

If you know anyone in the beauty blogging world, either on blogs or Youtube, you have probably heard of the drugstore Magna Carta known as Revlon Colorstay. When I first tried it out, I was NOT impressed. Why? It's thick. The color match was horrendous. Every shade suited for NC25 was too pink toned or seemed ashy on my skin, making it look like a horrible and flat mask. 

I picked up the shade Golden Beige in an earlier haul as a last attempt of saving humanity's faith in drugstore foundation, and it seemed to fail me yet again. I had thought this shade would be a great match for my summer tan (around an NC35 to NC40). Wrong!It was much too light. This is when I should've realized that it would be a perfect match to NC30. I didn't. Instead, I shoved it into my "excommunicated and ugly foundation pile", never to be seen again.

Now in the summer heat, my skin is a definite poster child of combination oily. My T-zone, and especially my nose, isn't responding well to liquid foundations that have a satin or dewy finish. Two hours after makeup application, I look like I've been snorkeling in a sea of grease. Gross. Meanwhile, my matte finish powders are too dark. Therein I thought to myself, I should invest in Makeup Forever's Mat Velvet and solve this awful problem!

Then my wallet cried, and I said, "Let me look instead to my pile of cast-off foundations to find something that controls oil."

Oh yeah, I have Revlon Colorstay. Isn't it touted as the HG affordable solution for oily skinned girls?

I gave it a try again, and it matches PERFECTLY with my NC30 skin. As the name suggests, its yellow tone matches to my face and neck with no issues.

Yes, it's thick. I use a very watery Beauty Blender and a very sparing amount of product, taking care not to spill the entire bottle out with each application. The finish in the first hour is definitely flat and doesn't pass for natural at all. By the second hour, however, my natural oil has seeped through enough to make it a beautiful natural finish with zero shine or slick. Wow! I'm guessing this is the goal of any other oil controlling foundation that is on the higher end, but since I am on a budget, this foundation is turning out to be a surprising (or not surprising) favorite of mine at the moment. I'm sure that when my tan comes through again, however, I will have to buy the next color up and risk hating this foundation again.

Verdict?

Pros:
- Oil control is magical. Blows my Studio Fix Fluid AND Powder out of the water. The only place that "glows" on my face right now is where I place my highlighter, not on my forehead or the creases of my nose.
- Cheap. And for the price, I think it probably does the same job as a higher-end product like MUFE Mat Velvet or NARS Sheer Matte.
- Needs very little product for full coverage. Goodbye, obvious zits and concealer!
- Water resistant, may I say waterproof. This baby doesn't budge with sweat and only comes off with some elbow grease and some oil based makeup remover.
- Natural finish with some aid from skin highlighters and natural oil.

Cons:
- Thick. I think it is very easy to go overboard and risk cardboard skin.
- Good God, why can't you include a simple pump? I feel like it's a life or death situation every time I pour some product on the back of my hand.
- Horrible, horrible, horrible color match for light-medium skintones with yellow undertones. I'm talkin' NC23-NC27. I've tried Sand Beige based on online recs and the color was still way too pink and ashy. As for NC30, Golden Beige is deceptively dark in the bottle, and you can't try it on in stores before purchasing. I'm not even sure what the color match for NC35 is, or if it even exists.
- Will this clog my pores? My skin is very resistant to allergic reactions from products, but I can't see this as healthy for every day use. It takes a lot of work to remove this foundation, and I wouldn't recommend to people who even occasionally sleep in makeup after a long night out.

Overall, I'm glad I saved 40 bucks from not buying a new foundation that controls oil. I wouldn't say that this foundation is amazing, but it is very excellent for the price point. My skin wouldn't like it in the winter, but for the humid summers, it stays on very well. This is a good option for those who are active, live in hot climates, and need full coverage (or are just plain lazy like me and hate multiple steps when applying skin correcting goop).

What's your take on drugstore foundation? Do you have a DS foundation that can beat out a high end one? Let me know!