tarte smolderEYES Amazonian clay waterproof liner collection Holiday 2011

tarte really hit it out of the ballpark with their holiday collections this year.  Instead of simply offering a couple of limited edition colors, they offered some seriously excellent value sets.

The smolderEYES collection features six chubby liner/shadow pencils in a long-lasting formula for $39, breaking down to $6.50 each.  That's drugstore territory for price.  The formula is smooth, creamy, and highly pigmented and while it doesn't quite make it through to 12 hours, it comes pretty close.  By the end of that time it's mostly there, just worn away in a couple of spots.  Not bad!

It even comes with a sharpener, a very nice touch.


Golden beige, moss, and smoke I apply directly either as a thick liner or as shadow.  The darker three (violet, espresso, and silver black) I apply with a liner brush for a thinner line.

silver black

silver black

smoke

smoke

espresso

espresso

violet

violet

moss

moss

golden beige

golden beige

late afternoon sun

full shade

shade with fill flash

Left to right: silver black, smoke, espresso, violet, moss, golden beige.

tarte Lip Service Limited-Edition LipSurgence Collection Holiday 2011

2011 has been a banner year for tarte holiday sets.  There's something for everyone.  This is a set of five lip colors for a bit over the price of one.

LipSurgence pencils normally retail for $24 and this set has five full size ones for $29.  Can't beat that!


tarte says "each emotive shade smoothly glides on lips for natural color that lasts all day and 
delivers a surge of moisture on a cellular level for a naturally plumped-up appearance while natural peppermint adds a refreshing burst of avor with each application."  I say they apply smoothly and taste like mint.  Wear time is average and despite their emollience I don't find them particularly hydrating.

Glitzy 

Glitzy 

Glitzy 

Perky 

Perky 

Perky 

Flashy

Flashy

Flashy

Swank 

Swank 

Swank 

Dazzled

Dazzled

Dazzled

They really are prettier in person.  I waited too late in the day for photos. :-(

Left to right: Glitzy, Perky, Flashy, Swank, Dazzled.

Ultima II eyeliner: Jade/Bronze Moire

This is another relic of the 1980's.  I used to love Ultima II products; they were one of my mainstays.  Then they disappeared off the face of the earth.  The eyeliners were pretty darn good for the time: you could even use them without holding them over a lighter first!  Imagine that!

The pencil has the liner at one end and a smudging sponge on the other. It goes on a bit stiff these days, but it was pretty smooth when it was new.  The color is a slightly golden green with a bit of shimmer.  Quite nice.

Revlon ColorBurst Lip Gloss Holiday 2011: Glitz Glam

Glitz Glam is the second colorBurst gloss from the Holiday 2011 release I'll review.  It has the same lovely formula as the other ColorBurst glosses, except it's sheer.  Applied, it reminds me a lot of Bobbi Brown's shimmer gloss in Silver Pearl - but for about $15 less.

Glitz Glam is a sheer light pink with a lot of shimmer.  I prefer to use this over a stain or lipstick rather than alone.

The formula is light and smooth, without stickiness or grit from the shimmer.  The shimmer particles stay put rather than migrating when the gloss fades.

ColorBurst glosses retail for $7.49 at all major drugstores.