Showing posts with label FIRST IMPRESSION. Show all posts
Showing posts with label FIRST IMPRESSION. Show all posts

Monday, May 29, 2023

**ESSENCE LASH PRIMER OR L'OREAL VOLUMINOUS ** THIS OR THAT?

L'Oreal Voluminous Lash Primer vs Essence Volume Boost Lash Primer 


L'OREAL VOLUMINOUS LASH PRIMER






  • The L'Oreal Voluminous Primer has been my go-to last primer for over 10 years, retailing at approximately $10.99 (often you can find it at your local Walgreens or Ulta for buy 2, get 1 free). Although my natural lashes are long and fluttery, I have always wanted them to be a little bit bold and more luxurious. This primer has always been both reliable and more than adequate, but over the years, as with most mascaras type products, the product begins to clump within the tube and it becomes necessary to wipe the excess product from the wand onto the edge of the tube, thereby creating an additional issue. Then, the tube begins to dry out, and the wand only picks up the clumpy dried product. It is the same for most maskara-type products, and with some brands, Too Faced's Better Than Sex comes to mind, the process of clumping and drying products happens sooner and is worst than others. And the obvious result of these issues is clumping, unattractive, dried up, useless products that which is then transferred to the very lashes you are attempting to improve. What a nightmare! With that being said, most of those who use mascara-type products, are not careful when using such products. We are either in a rush, or we are just not conscientious of the proper care of the product. Taking all of that into account, this particular product, with all its issues, is excellent for the time it stays useful. When you are careful with its use, keeping the tube tightly together, and using the product as carefully as you can, the primer lasts longer. When useful, this product extends my lashes significantly and creates the perfect primer for the right mascara. 

ESSENCE LASH PRIMER


  • Now let's talk about the Essence Volume Boost Lash Primer retailing at $4.99 (often you can find it on sale at Ulta, buy 2, get 1 free, or buy 1, get 1 half off). As I said above, with any maskara type product you have to be very careful about storage, the application process, and maintaining the product's viability and usefulness. The same type of issues can and will occur as listed with the L’Oréal Voluminous with this product but there are five rather significant differences between the two products. 
1. The first difference is obviously the exposure of L’Oréal versus Essence as a brand. L’Oréal is a major world-renowned brand that has the type of recognition that every makeup brand dreams about. It is in every major beauty market throughout the world, is accessible anywhere makeup is sold, and has a long-standing reputation for innovation and excellence. Essence is owned by Cosnova Beauty, a brand from Germany. It appears as though, through my research, the company has only existed for approximately 20 years, landing in the States over a period of time. Not well known, in turn, not as highly regarded and that’s that. 

2. Quality and presentation make everlasting impacts on consumers. L’Oréal produces companies that adorn magazine covers, billboards, merchant websites, and the like. The same cannot be said of Essence because it just simply does not have the media power, consumer base, and financing to create major campaigns. 

3. The smaller consumer markets, teens, young adults, and those that follow indie brands are more likely to give a brand like Essence a try based on affordability and product market placing which appeal to these consumers like Ulta Beauty. If you are new to the world of makeup, you might tend to lean towards a smaller brand with a better price. If you are happy with the product, you’re more likely to continue to buy from the brand, especially if the alternative comes at a higher financial cost. 

4. Besides the price difference, there is the product amount in each mascara primer, with L’Oréal having .84 fl oz per tube and Essence only having .23 fl oz. Yes, you pay more for the L'Oreal but you also receive nearly 4 times the amount of the product. With that being said, Essence Volume Boost Lash Primer is cheaper in price but is reflected in the amount of product. So once you decide which, primer you prefer you actually come out virtually even in terms of the ratio of product versus price.

5. The last difference just comes down to personal preference. After using Voluminous Primer for well over 10 years, once I came upon the Essence Volume Boost, I became an instant fan. I found that there was less clumping, the application to my lashes was smoother, and elongating my lashes was just as effective with Essence as with L'Oreal. Yes, I get fewer products, but the price is comparable, and with Ulta's consistent promotions of buy1, get 1 free, the financial plus makes the decision easier. I still love my L'Oreal Voluminous Primer, but I would say that Essence is just as fantastic and more affordable. 

MY CHOICE
ESSENCE 

Saturday, June 18, 2022

★★ODEN'S EYE★★ UNPOPULAR OPINION III MAYBE A SECOND CHANCE?★★





★★Mini Review★★ 

In the last year and a half, Oden's Eye has made quite an impact on the Indie Makeup Community, propagated by trusted mini and midi YouTube beauty-related channels. I say trusted, but are they? Some of them I believe absolutely, although they may or may not be receiving PR. Some of them, I am not quite sure about. Either way, this review is about my experience and my thoughts on the eyeshadow palettes that I tried, and perhaps my reasons why I may or may not give the brand a second chance.

Hype -  Hype can be quite a dangerous thing to the consumer. Are consumers more likely to purchase a product from an unknown average run-of-the-mill person, or a well-known YouTuber or celebrity? When you think of things on a grand scheme, most consumers are more likely to purchase items based upon a well-known person because they are "trusted and recognizable," however, does the consumer ever stop to think about the motivation behind the sponsorship of these "trusted and recognizable" indviduals. The answer is simple, trusted and recognizable individuals are the very epitome of influential persons that consumers see as reliable, knowledgeable, and honest about the products they are marketing. But how true is this notion? What about the products, the overwhelming amount of products these individuals receive, so much that it is impossible to accurately and fairly review each and every single part of whatever the campaign is compromised of. Secondly, what about the commission or payments received for promoting said products? This is certainly a contingent factor on how the reviewer may rate or perceive these products.

Getting back to my initial notion about the average American consumer viewing another average American consumer provide uncensored reviews and details about a product. Now please understand that I not specifying this to just my experience with Oden's Eye, but with any product that is promoted with such enthusiasm, avidity, and eagerness. I personally would find a review to have validity when presented by someone who has little to nothing to gain by being free with their opinion and providing both constructive criticisms as well as attributes of the product.

My personal assessment: The three palettes I bought were fair to decent. I didn't care for the packaging and I didn't care for the split pans in the middle of each palette. I also find the names of each palette a bit confusing, or maybe annoying is a better word. I did not care for the textures of the shimmer/metallic shadows at all. They are either too chunky creating a hellified mess on my face or too thin requiring an absurd amount of layering and even if used as toppers it's difficult to do so because of the chunkiness of the other textured shadows. I did, however, really enjoy the color stories, not just of the palettes I chose, but also of all the other palettes on the website and that does make me want to maybe give this brand another go, but I am undecided at this time. 

The moral of this review as with any product that is over-promoted by various individuals is to take your time and read multiple reviews, some by experts, but most by average consumers. Overhype culture is real and is easy to get caught up in, so buyer beware.

Price: $65 (8/10) 
Color Story (7/10)
Inclusivity (7.5/10)
Application (7/10)
Wearability (7.5/10)
Matte to Shimmer Ratio (8/10)
Packaging (10/10)
Brand Reputation (10/10)





























Thursday, June 16, 2022

★★MBA COSMETICS★★MINI REVIEW★★


★★MBA COSMETICS★★MINI REVIEW★★

Dreamtopia Collection Duochrome Eyeshadow

I am a big fan of MBA Cosmetics in general, but I wanted to highlight this particular collection. With the creativity and evolution of duochrome, triochrome, and multichrome eyeshadows, it's always of special interest to me to examine shadows of these types from Indie brands. The explosion of independent brands over the last 2-to 4 years has cataloged variations in shadow types, textures, and pigmentation as well as a special knowledge of the application process and the composition of these types of shadows.

With that being said, I own several MBA Cosmetics premade and custom palettes which include richly pigmented matte shadows, that have virtually no fallout, as well as a type of shimmer shade referred to as "Silk" shadows but remain pigmented and apply smooth and are not chunky or flaky.

As seen from the swatches and short video below, the shadows range from a type of topper shadow to a rich pigmented striking intense color. Even as a topper, which let's be honest, I am not a huge fan of toppers in terms of utilizing them in an eyeshadow look. However, the shadows that present as toppers meld well with the more intense shadows. The shadows are unremarkable and include a simple magnetic palette with the MBA Cosmetics logo that fit all the shadow perfectly and the closure magnetic is well made.

I am not a big fan of all shimmer or all matte palettes either, because I do not like to use multiple palettes to create one eye look, however, these shadows can be used as a simple one shadow look or simple crease color, and the shadows used as a lid shade and voila, full eye look. I would definitely take a look a look at MBA Cosmetics and their full collection of makeup and body care collection on their website by clicking HERE or you can find them on Etsy by clicking HERE !!

Price: $31.50 (9/10) 
Color Story (10/10)
Inclusivity (10/10)
Application (7.5/10)
Wearability (8/10)
Packaging (8/10)
Brand Reputation (10/10)










 

Thursday, July 2, 2020

✮GURL MEETS MAKEUP✮✮BITE SIZE BITCH'N REVIEW✮✮PALETTE ROUND UP✮

Rating is out 10 out of 10, with a full point given for each of the ten sections listed above. Points per section may be issued in the following denominations: 0,.0 .25, .50, 1.0. For further clarification, the sections listed are worth a total of 1.0 point and are:

BITE SIZE REVIEW

Price

4/100 Sale Promotion

Company Profile

Afrocentric, female-owned company bravely entering the world of beauty and aesthetics. Their mission statement articulates their interests and desires in the beauty community: 

Every eyeshadow palette is carefully created to make you look and feel like the very best version of yourself. We know that when your outer and inner beauty aligns, magic happens.

We’ve put a lot of hard working to make sure the quality is amazing; the colors are super pigmented and vibrant.

When a gurl meets make up, her passion and creativity fly high; she creates art.

When a gurl meets make up, magic happens”

Purchase Experience

My purchase experience was actually quite appealing. At the height of the COVID pandemic, this brand responded to the increase of online orders with stunning customer service and incredibly fast shipping!

Packaging

The packaging of the palette is so damn cute. Dear God, just the most unique, yet realistic image of an African American female realized in the most adorably cute cartoon. From her full natural air, to her sexy curvy hips. the character is the epitome of the African American female in a fun and unique way.

Marketing

As with most Indie brands, the company relies heavily on social media marketing, however, this company does something completely unique and very, very smart. They offer a discount for anyone who posts a relevant review using their own social media platforms (like what I am doing here) and if you're interested use code BougieBrie25 for 25 % off. I don't make anything off of your purchase. Just doing you a solid/

Comparable Brands

I don’t like to really compare Indie brands against one another, especially Indie brands in which women of color and their brands as sort of pitted against each other. Truth be told none of the Afro American brands are the same  from Coloured Raine, to Juvia’s Place, to Ace Beaute, each brand has their own specific aesthetic that is unique to the mission and vision of their brand. I will say with confidence that this brand can go toe to toe with the aforementioned brand, which as an Afro American makes me happy to see so many sister succeeding in the rough terrain of the beauty market.

Pigmentation

I did an eye look with each palette and was more than pleased regarding each experience I had with each eyeshadow palette. The shadows blended magnificently and the shimmer/metallic shades were remarkable. I was very impressed. The actual color story of each eyeshadow palette was amazing and so detailed in which you could make several looks out of a palette where it may seem the colors may not necessarily go together. But if you took your time and use your vision and sense of style you could make a variety of looks subtle 

Color Payoff

The color payoff is quite remarkable and deep in pigment and I will additionally say that the shadows blend very well. Because the shadows are so rich in pigment they do take a tad bit of more blending, but all that is required is a minute knowledge of proper blending techniques or a phone or computer that can access youtube searching for a video on blending and you will be MORE than equipped.

Performance

I always have high hopes for any minority-owned business (women, Afro American, Latin American, Asian American, GLBTQ Americans etc) especially independent brands. It's difficult enough to enter into the world of cosmetics and aesthetics with the pressure of larger brands looming over you waiting for you to fail, you take that type of pressure and you add the minority factor, it's even more intimidating and the proprietors of these companies even braver.

Regarding the performance of each palette, I personally enjoyed The Fall Leaves & The Cosmos Palette the most. Not necessarily because they blended better or their shimmers were more foiled, I just enjoyed the unique combination of shades.\There is not one palette that I turned my nose up at even a little bit. Each palette had a variety of looks you could put together that would be appropriate for work, play, and an evening out.

Overall Product Presentation

I love to see indie brands hit the market with innovative and unique marketing and branding that encapsulates their personal touch while reaching their desired demographic with likable and approachable tactics. I was impressed with most everything about this brand. From their cute cartoon, who mimics the characteristics of an Afro American woman, to their user-friendly website, to their approach with followup marketing, and lastly but most importantly their products which are far above the mediocre palettes of most mainstream brands outperforming them on every level.



COSMOS EYESHADOW PALETTE



GLOOMY EYESHADOW PALETTE



FALL LEAVES EYESHADOW PALETTE





Thursday, December 12, 2019

✭✭✭GRWM & FIRST IMPRESSION✭✭✭QUEEN KM COSMETICS✭✭✭











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