Review: Stila Smudge Crayons

It's not exactly a secret that I love cream eye shadows. I rave about the Maybelline Color Tattoos all the time and before the Color Tattoos were released, I was seriously considering a trip to the MAC counter for some Paint Pots. However, sometimes I wish I had a good cream eye shadow in the form of a stick. Well, I think I may have found the perfect one for me!

Right now is Ulta's 21 days of beauty, so they have great deals going on every day for 3 weeks. One of the deals was buy one get one free for the Stila Smudge Crayons. On that particular day, I was at school and there was no way I'd be able to make the trip to the nearest Ulta.... however, my mom actually surprised me and picked up the shades "Rose" and "Antique" for me because she knew I like cream eye shadows and I'd mentioned these to her before. Another thing that's important to note is the hefty price tag for these : $22. The good thing is that Stila works pretty hard to convince you that the purchase is worth it. Here's what the Stila Smudge Crayons supposedly will do for you:

• It functions as a primer, eye shadow, and eye liner all in one
• The formula is creamy, yet doesn't crease
• It is long wearing and water-resistant
• The shades are bold and pigmented
• Vitamin E soothes and protects your eye area
• The pointed tip makes application easier, plus there is a sharpener included if you want to use it as an eyeliner

The only point I can't confirm or deny is the "soothing" or "protecting" aspect from the vitamin E. These sticks are creamy, they don't crease, and the colors are beautiful. You can blend the product as soon as you apply it, but once it dries, it stays that way all day. As of right now, there are 8 shades available, including Kitten. I can't really compare these to any other stick cream eye shadows because I've never tried anything like these (I'm not counting the NYX jumbo sticks because those aren't long wearing at all). I like that if you would rather not sharpen these, you don't have to (in fact, that is a big reason I have yet to try the Urban Decay 24/7 cream eye shadows... it's because I hate sharpening the eyeliners). Ulta also has a "try me" set with three shades. The downside? It is $22 and you get miniature sizes.

The only reason I am reluctant to give this a glowing review is the price. I think Stila set the price point a little too high, because $22 for 1 gram of product is ridiculous to say the least, since the Color Tattoos contain 4 grams. However, it doesn't change the fact that the product inside is amazing. I think a more appropriate price would be maybe $18, but clearly that's not up to me ;)

I also recommend swatching these in the store so you can see if you like the texture for yourself... but please don't put the one on display anywhere near your eyes. You never know where it has been, but if you put it on your hand, you can just wash it right off once you try the product for yourself.

Below are the swatches of Rose (top) and Antique (bottom). Left is the original swatch and right is after 30 seconds and some rubbing. If I would have waited another 30 seconds, then the second picture would look exactly like the first. Quite amazing, if I say so myself! 

What is your favorite longwearing cream eye shadow?

Follow-up: My Makeup Setup at College!

So I will apologize in advance for the quality of the picture. My bed is lofted and my makeup is stored at my desk, so finding proper lighting proved to be a bit of a challenge for me. I ended up buying a second unit for medicine, skin care products (backup cleanser and samples), and my perfume rollers and EcoTools kabuki brushes (since they aren't tall enough to fit in my brush holder). 

As you can see, there is still a bit of room for more products. Having the separate holder for stick or tube-based eye products helped with space. I also have my Sonia Kashuk brush cleanser (in the corner behind the black makeup bag) and the makeup bag is full of nail polish. 

I brought all of my OPI mini nail polishes that came in sets (Pirates of the Caribbean, Nicki Minaj, Spiderman, and the Germany collection).

Overall I think I organized my makeup quite well. It doesn't take up too much space (I still have room to do homework and have space for books) and I know where everything is. In comparison to other beauty bloggers, I know I don't have a ton of things, but I know I have more than enough for my needs.

How do you organize your makeup?

Shopping List #1

I tend to do an excessive amount of research on products before I buy them. I test things out in person if at all possible and I also look at swatches and reviews online. Sometimes I buy some winning products and other times I am disappointed.

• Urban Decay Naked 2 Palette: I will admit that I was never impressed by the original Naked palette. I just assumed that the colors wouldn't work with my skin tone, but when I saw the Naked 2 palette, I was impressed. It's been out for nearly a year and I still haven't bought it because I already have so many neutrals that it would probably be a bad idea to just run out and buy it. However, I still want it and hope to have it within the next few months.
• Urban Decay Smoked Palette: I was unsure of whether or not I would need this palette until I saw the swatches. It features colors I don't have in my collection and I love that it has a booklet with all the different "looks" you can do with the palette, since I'm still very safe when it comes to smokey eyes.
• Lush Ultrabland Cleanser: I really want to try this for makeup removal. I won't order it until I'm closer to finishing my other makeup removers, but it seems like it will be something gentle and effective, so I look forward to trying it.
• Juice Beauty Green Apple Blemish Clearing Peel: I've never tried a peel on my skin, so therefore I am curious as to how it might work.
• L'Oreal Youth Code Serum Corrector: Now that I've discovered that my skin loves Mario Badescu acne treatments, I want to try a serum from any brand to correct my hyperpigmentation. It will be a long time before I buy this one because I've got another serum to finish up and it will last me a long time. This also seems to be a good dupe for the Clinique Even Better Clinical Dark Spot Corrector, which is a product I've considered buying a few times, but I would have a lot of trouble forking over $50 for a product that "might" work.
• MAC Blush Palette: I've only owned a mineralize blush by MAC before and I liked it, so I figured I would just order a customized palette of blushes from the MAC website. I think I have the colors narrowed down to Pinch O Peach, Well Dressed, Pink Swoon, Fleur Power, Dame, and Breath of Plum. I showed these blushes to my mom the last time we went to a MAC counter and she is skeptical about Fleur Power for me, so I may or may not switch that one for another.
• Any "Lash Growing" Mascara: It's not that I need much lash growth, but I am interested to see how a "lash growth" formula might work now that I am familiar with a couple of serums (one seems to work, the other did nothing). I'm a big fan of dramatic lashes and I may even repurchase Maybelline Great Lash Lots of Lashes along with my next mascara purchase because it makes my lashes look long and thick. I'm leaning toward trying the Rimmel Lash Accelerator mascara since I'm already using the serum at night.

For now that is all I am saving for. I'm sure I'll buy other things here and there (and I'll do my best to review them as I do!) What is on your shopping list?