Saturday, December 3, 2011

bareMinerals Bare Luxury 8-piece Collection

I posted about the Bare Minerals Today Special Value Bare Luxury Collection when it was featured, bought it and have played around with it a bit. For everyone's reference, it is still available at a slightly higher price on the QVC site.

It includes quite a few new products. Unpictured is the clutch that is included. My only big disappointment regarding this collection are the brushes. The promo picture makes it look as though at least the eyeshadow brush is a long handle but they are both fairly stubby.

The Marvelous Moxie Lip Glosses remind me of the Buxom Lips also from Bare Escentuals. So if you like those you will enjoy these. I'm not a big fan of tingly lip products but these seem a bit less sticky than the Buxom and also slightly less tingly. Both Dare Devil and Wild One are wearable colors: Dare Devil is a lot less scary than it appears in the tube and is a great berry "red" for those scared of red lips.Wild One is a milky peach color that is flattering on practically all skin tones. Both contain little if any shimmer. I can detect some shimmer in the tube with Dare Devil but it doesn't translate on the lips.

The Round the Clock Waterproof Eyeliners remind me of any of the other long wear pencils on the market. These are creamy and do not budge. I still have a blue line on my hand after vigorously rubbing the swatch and washing my hands twice since applying it! Both Noon and 10pm are fairly safe colors: Noon is a very dark cream navy color and 10pm is a dark brown. I wouldn't say these are unique in color or formulation but they are quite nice nonetheless.

The Phenomenon pressed eyeshadow duo contains a very pale lilac and a shimmery golden apricot shade. Both apply very smoothly - no fall out. I have to admit, I'm in love with these new Bare Minerals pressed shadows! A regular duo retails for $20 so the combination of these with the other parts of the kit make it a nice little deal. With this duo you are meant to wear the shades separately. You can tell one half of the kit leans on the cool side and the other on the warm. I'm not loving that idea but it's seldom that I can create a whole look with 1 eyeshadow palette normally so I'm not complaining. Pretty colors though not as pigmented as some of the other duos available. These shades are very "eye brightening" so if you prefer a more muted, office appropriate look, this kit is quite nice.

Rose Gold Radiance is one of their all over face colors, though I'd argue that this is one seems closer to their blushes and contains very little shimmer unlike some of the other radiances. Usually I shy away from things that are "rose gold" colored as they don't work too well with my skin tone; however, this one is subtle enough and is not too garish and orange. It's very finely milled and I bet it would be flattering on most skin tones.

If you also bought this kit, I'd love to hear your thoughts! These QVC's TSV are a great way to try these mid-high end lines at an affordable price.