Maybelline Pumped Up! Colossal Volum' Express Mascara

 I recently decided to pick up the new Maybelline Pumped Up! Colossal Volum' Express mascara that recently hit the drugstore for spring 2014 because my Maybelline The Rocket was running out. I think Maybelline has some of the best drugstore mascaras, I actually use 2 in my "mascara routine"

This is supposedly a new formula from Maybelline that has a "double shot" mascara brush that "pumps up" lashes with their new plumping collagen thats supposed to give lashes 16x the volume. According to Maybelline this new formula has a "plumping formula for the most pumped up volumizing lashes ever."

Maybelline Pumped Up! Colossal Volum' Express mascara comes with an enormous oval brush that is packed with bristles. The wand itself has this wavy design to it which isnt doing much for application but it was a neat little surprise when I opened the mascara. The brush is a little on the large side but I didn't have trouble when applying the mascara.

I have read a couple reviews on this mascara after my use to compare my thoughts with others and once thing I was surprised that no one has said yet is that the formula is incredibly similar to the Maybelline Mega Plush (which I did enjoy). The formula is a tad wet but nothing that makes your lashes clump together. One the mascara set my lashes had the same soft feel to it like the Mega Plush mascara did as well. It wasn't flakey and didn't smear throughout the day but since the mascara is somewhat wet be careful not to blink to much when applying because it can leave you with a mess on your eyelids.

This mascara is marketed as a volumizing mascara but as you can see I didn't get much volume during application... well at least not the 16X the mascara promises. I do have naturally long eyelashes but this mascara did add some length to the, or at least enhanced my length. I did like that this mascara was able to separate my lashes which helped give a slight appearance of volume to my lashes.

I do have a mascara routine (3 different mascaras) and its usually my second mascara that is interchangeable and I do believe this will be a good new addition to the routine. I have used the Mega Plush as my second mascara and really liked it and seeing as I like this mascara a bit more than the Mega Plush I knew I would like this mascara. It does wear very well on its own though, I can see myself wearing this on its own when I don't feel like wearing makeup but need to run some errands. Like I said before this mascara is incredibly similar to the Mega Plush so if you liked that one you will definitely like this one.

This is my first time using a mascara from the Colossal line, i usually stick to my Falsies line. After trying this I may have to try out other from the Colossal range. Maybelline Pumped Up! Colossal Volum' Express retails between $6-$8 depending on where you buy. Maybelline definitely has some of the best mascaras in the drugstore, if you haven't checked them out I definitely think you should! Maybelline Pumped Up! may not give you the "pumped up" lashes it promises but it does give great length.

Coachella Street Style Fashion: Weekend One

out of all of the coachella fashion i looked at from the first weekend i would have to say that the "street style" was my favorite! There was just a ton of variety between everyone that was there, though everyone stuck to the classic "festival fashion". lets get into some of my favorite looks from coachella weekend one (although it was so hard to narrow down)

One thing  i love about this first look is how simple and everyday wear it is. its nothing to complex, you could see someone walking down the street wearing this. this look is incredibly practical for coachella. the cropped halter and maxi skit with a big slit looks incredibly stylish but also keeps you cool in the 90 degree weather they had that weekend. Pairing this look with combat boots and a chunky statement necklace gave this look some edge.

Watch out guys, overalls are back! apparently overalls are making a comeback, I have never seen so many people in one place wear overalls, but like i said in my last post the 90s are back and in a big way. I love how she paired her white denim overalls with a bright bold kimono and mirrored glasses, so the focus wasn't so much on the overalls but rather her bold style.

Can we take a quick minute and admire this woman's abs? alright lets move on... normally i'm not a fan of when people walk around in bandeaus or bathing suit tops (aside from the beach of course) but she styled her geometric bathing suit top right! Wearing high waisted patterned flowy pants did this outfit right, showing just the perfect amount of skin. if she paired the same top with a pair of denim shorts this outfit would not have looked right.

Usually I'm not a fan of an all print outfit, mainly because i'm bitter because I can't pull it off, but for coachella this outfit works perfectly. the bright floral crop top-skirt combo paired with boots gives this girl an outfit that made her stand out at coachella.

It wouldn't be coachella if we didn't see one fringe outfit. A wide brimmed hat with a fringe coverup kept this girl cool while by the pool at an event. this fringe outfit isnt overdoing it, one of the more stylish ways i have seen fringe done at the festival.

one thing i have noticed is that festival fashion is making it into everyday fashion. We see this everyday in magazine and online boutiques "get the festival look". mainly these looks consist of crop tops, graphic tees, high waisted shorts and skirts, which is beginning to have a hint of 90s flair to them. I expect to see a lot of looks like this during the summer, which i know i will enjoy these effortless yet fashion-forward looks!

Coachella Celebrity Fashion: Weekend One

Bring on the crop tops, flower crowns, stylish sunglasses and bindis. The first weekend of Coachella was this past weekend so lets break down the crazy fashion that Coachella brings us. The classic coachella trends usually include crochet tops, fringe, high waisted skirts and flower crowns but this year there seemed to be a bit of the 90s in the mix this year. I saw some hip-tied flannels, overalls, and fanny packs. I had a hard time finding some of my favorites from the celebrity bunch but I had a hard time narrowing down my favorite "street style" looks!

Julianne Hough helped host the Harper's Bazaar picnic lunch and wore an adorable white lace off the shoulder top and high waisted shorts, both vintage. She paired her outfit with Chloe wedges, a flea market purse and Rebecca Minkoff by Shane Baum Crosby sunglasses. She wore a classic coachella trend, a flower crown, but hers seemed to be very small and not to over the top. which worked perfectly with her adorable pixie cut. 

Its no secret that the Jenner sisters have incredible style. Both Kendall and Kylie wore an all black "goth" look that got some attention but I wasn't much of a fan, they both looked great but I'm would have liked something different than all black. A look that stood out to me was Kendall's more simple boho look she wore. She showed off her amazing legs in a pair of denim high waisted shorts with a metal belt, crop top, long white vest, a pair of cowgirl boots and some amazing mirrored ray bans (which i'm saving up for). She kept it very boho chic and very coachella. She honestly didn't have a bad fashion day, some definitely could have changes, but they would have never landed her on a worst dressed list.

Many have named Vanessa Hudgens the "queen of coachella". She has shows up to festivals like she owns the place; and with her festival style I understand why. Vanessa definitely works the carefree, flower child outfits when she shows up to Coachella and I love everything about it. Year after year she shows up with a stunner boho look with an edge, which works for her. From her wide brimmed hat, long wavy hair to her leather booties I definitely think Vanessa has earned the title "queen of coachella" Buzzfeed actually just did a hilarious post on "A History of Vanessa Hudgens at Coachella" and the post was everything.

Shay Mitchell kept it incredibly low key during the festival so it was hard to find a good quality picture to show off her impeccable festival style this past weekend. I follow her on instagram so I was able to see her look day by day and let me say she slayed. She is so effortless but stylish at the same time. She wore a Torn by Ronny Kobo yellow "Kana” bustier & “Payton” skirt that looked adorable but my favorite look of hers that weekend was the simpler look. She wore a cream flowy ruffled crop top with Lovers + Friends jean shorts with a JustFab bag accessorized with stacked silver statement necklaces.

Sarah Hyland got into the spirit of Coachella by wearing a bright pink flower crown from american apparel on friday in Indio. Sarahs effortless lovechild outfit seemed incredibly practical for the weather at Coachella. She wore a neon bandeau from aerie under a muscle tee with denim jeans and leather booties. I loved her hair with this outfit, it gave off that coachella vibe and looked great on her.

I wasn't completely wowed by the celebs fashion this past weekend, but they all looked great. I was definitely more impressed by the street style looks that other festival goers wore. I'll be posting some of my favorites on friday so make sure to come back and check it out! 

MAC Sheertone Blush in Peaches

While one my trip to Puerto Rico I watched one of Jaclyn Hill's makeup tutorials where she used the blush peaches and I knew once I got back home I needed to pick it up immediately, and thats exactly what I did (I also picked up the eyeshadow she used). I knew right away Peaches would become one of my favorite blushes (out of 3 so it wasn't hard...) I don't buy many blushes because my cheeks are naturally pink so I usually don't try to highlight the redness in my face. But I do have my moments where I can get away with blush.

Peaches is a sheertone blush which means you are able to layer this blush to get you're desired pigmentation, works perfectly with my pigmented cheeks! but just because this blush is a sheertone blush doesn't mean its not pigmented. Sheertone blushes allow you to be as subtle or as bold as you want.

Peaches is most definitely a peach blush with subtle brown undertones. however when put next to another peach tones blush it isnt as orange as you expect it to be. Peaches has a matte finish and is very smooth do the touch and incredibly easy to blend (which is one of my favorite thing about MAC blushes) I think that this blush will look nice on any skin tone but if you're darker you will definitely need to layer it.

I can tell I'm going to love this blush for the spring/summer time. It looked especially nice when I had my tan from Puerto Rico but since that has now worn off it still looks amazing on my complexion. This blush is compared a lot to another MAC blush, Melba, which is actually the first blush I have ever owned and is my number 1 favorite. I'll most likely do a post on that blush as well and I can do a little comparison if you guys would like.

Maybelline "Dare to go Nude" Color Tattoo Spring 2014 Collection

L to R: Pure Nude, Nude Compliment, Sleek & Spice, Beige-ing Beauty

For all of those who have been following me for quite come time now know that i have a slight obsession with the maybelline color tattoos, for all of you newbies... hi i'm brittany and i have an obsession with the maybelline color tattoos. when i first read the news about the new color tattoo collection i freaked. why you ask? because it was a nude style collection. (i also am obsessed with nude colors) when i finally saw the first saw the swatches i wasn't too impressed, they felt like the same old same old and are really close in color to previous color tattoos that had been released, but nevertheless i decided to pick them up because i had some CVS coupons burning a hole in my pocket.

i picked up 4 out of 6 colors in the new spring limited edition collection. what i found surprising was that they didn't have the usual limited edition wrapper around then that they usually do, but maybelline has confirmed they are only limited edition. though these would have been a nice addition to the permanent collection, they may seen boring to some but they are great basic colors to have in a collection.

when i first swatched these color tattoos i was incredibly surprised... these felt incredibly soft, creamy, and a bit thinner than the regular formula. and i loved it. although it felt like a different formula they do have the wear of the regular color tattoos.

lets start the descriptions from lightest for darkest. for swatches of the full collection check out Musings of a Muse's post.

Pure Nude is a light pink champagne tinted beige with a golden sheen to it. it is very buildable but i think looks better when worn as a light wash over the eyes. it is incredibly similar (practically a "dupe") for barely branded. barely branded is for the "metals" collection which has a more metallic finish to it, but sheered out they are practically the same thing. if you have one i wouldn't suggest buying the other.

Beige-ing Beauty is a golden champagne/beige color with subtle gold sparkles. this color was semi-opaque which normally would be a bad thing but in this case a great thing. this color is also buildable but i wouldn't suggest it, it becomes to sparkly and looks like someone went to a rave on your eyelids. this color is especially beautiful sheered out. when purchasing this i was once again hesitant that would be a "dupe" for barely beige. but i'm here to say that its not a complete "dupe". if you take the sparkles out from beige-ing beauty than it would be, but in this case i really like the sparkles in this color so they will both be staying in my collection.

Nude Compliment is a cool-toned taupe-brown with a slight metallic finish. i think when worn opaque it gives off the more metallic finish which seems to look like a more cool-toned gray. when sheered out it seems to appear as a warmer reddish-brown color. i'm not a huge fan of the metallic look but it is still a beautiful and versatile color.

Sleek & Spice is a warm-toned reddish-brown also with a slight metallic finish. it seems incredibly similar to nude compliment but still different at the same time. Sleek & Spice does look better than Nude Compliment when completely opaque, the metallic finish isnt as in your face as the Nude Compliment.

I hope this post helps you with your hunt for these products. My personal favorites are Beige-ing Beauty and a sheer Nude Compliment. If you are a newbie to the color tattoo collections i definitely would say pick these up but if you're a hoarder like I am with these things I would say its not worth your time if you have previous nude colors from the Color Tattoo line. To be honest I think I might pass on the future collections unless I find a must need color, they seem to be running out of ideas and just using old colors and renaming them. But I would like to applaud myself because the last time I bought a color tattoo was about a year ago (excluding the pigments of course).

What are your guys thoughts about the collection? Must have or are you passing on some of these?