The Benefit of Benefits

With the economic times the way they are, retail stores have been trying to appeal to consumers with various sales. A common one that doesn't undermine a stores' ability to earn a profit is to offer free gifts...after a certain purchase, of course.

While these often sound very tempting, I always try and take a step back and make sure I both enjoy the products that are in the gift and am not buying anything I really don't need just for the sake of getting a gift.

So, for example, when I received an e-mail alert from Sephora saying "Get $113 worth of makeup -- free!" I was instantly enthralled. I clicked on the ad, and saw that with any $50 Benefit purchase at Sephora, I could get a gift worth $113, which, even for a free gift, is pretty crazy. So let's take a look inside, shall we?


The gift includes: a Luscious Lana beauty bag, a Bathina shower cap, a tube of California Kissin' lip gloss, Benefit's Bad Gal Mascara in blue, and a Rush Hour lip/cheek colour. The good thing about this bag is that things are full size. The bad thing...the only thing I'd really want in it is the Rush Hour lip/cheek colour, and even that is a little on the plummy side for me. Another unfortunate thing is that I can't really think of $50 worth of Benefit products I'm really craving right now.

While that was all kind of sad, because free gifts are usually quite fun (and I don't mean to put down Benefit at all, I'm just not really in need of blue mascara or blue lipgloss or a bathing cap or a beauty bag right now), here's an example of a gift I'd really enjoy.


This Clinique bag + goodies comes with any $21.50 Clinique purchase. This free gift appeals a little more to me because its "price" is quite a bit smaller. Though that means the gifts themselves are smaller, I usually appreciate the mini-sized goodies that come with these things because it gives me an opportunity to try new products without feeling compelled to use up a full size. Sometimes, the goodies inside a bag are not always that worth it, but these definitely look good; the offerings are: Youth Surge SPF 15 Age Decelerating Moisturizer, Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion, Lash Doubling Mascara in Black, and then, depending on whether you pick the "Rose" bag or the "Natural" bag, you get the a Blushwear Cream Stick in Rosy Blush or Glow, and a Different Lipstick in Ice Bloom or Rose Taffy.

I might actually go and grab this in the next few days! As always, because this is the economics of fashion, I'll try and be as economically savvy as possible, and try not to over-buy simply to get the gift. My suggestion? The set of 3 skin items for $24.00, because Clinique is known for its amazing skincare. This picture is of the "Oily" set, because I've got some pretty oily skin. Plus, this set comes with the Dramatically Different Moisturizing Gel, which is one of my absolute favourite Clinique products.

Play The Wild Card

One of my favourite things to do is explore slightly less known products. I don't have any resentment against products that have gained popularity (like NARS Orgasm, for example, which I love), but there's something fun about finding new products. I tend to stick with well-known brands, and within that explore shades that aren't terribly popular.

Recently, I acquired one of Benefit's Full-Finish Lipsticks, called Wild Card. It's a beautiful, toned-down red that I first spotted on Temptalia and fell in love with instantly. I never really wear bright colours, and that includes lipstick shades. So, finding this more "everyday" red was quite a momentous occasion. I actually ordered it from Amazon.com, because I had a gift card and wanted to buy enough to get free shipping. Of course, I did legitimately want the shade -- I had tried it on multiple times at Sephora and had loved it every time.

It's a pretty ordinary red, but I like that it isn't particularly clown-like and works with my tan skin. It's $18, but the lipstick is pretty pigmented, so I don't think it's too expensive. It's about two and a half drugstore lipsticks, which for me is totally worth it.

The lipstick came in this cute little box. The girl on the front is "Betty," from the "Love Your Look" collection, which had different products for different levels of drama. This lipstick came with the most dramatic female, Betty.


Here's the lipstick container, which is just a regular old container but kind of cute in my opinion, and the open lipstick. How cute is the little quote on the back of the Betty picture?



Here's a swatch of the lipstick, along with the Sonia Kashuk brush I used to apply it to my hand and lips. Sorry about the strange lighting, I just wanted to find a picture that correctly captured the colour.


Finally, here's the lip swatch. I'm just getting started with pictures of myself, so bear with me...I know the lighting is pretty awful.


Anyway, I know this colour is kind of obscure (there is not a single review of this on Makeup Alley), but I would suggest getting it! I've got this pretty black lace dress that I plan to wear to an event soon (which I'll post pictures of), and this lipstick would look absolutely lovely with it.

PosieSushi

Just to set the scene for this handy little tidbit, I have a new plan for purchasing MAC shadows. I'm going to try as much as possible to head down to my nearest MAC freestanding store, even though it's farther away, because they sell pan shadows. I'm going to try and scout out some MAC shadows that could work as blushes too, so I can put them in a four-shadow palette with three other shadows for on-the-go makeup.

One of my first candidates for a blush came from my recent visit to my local Benefit counter. The lovely lady introduced me to Posietint, a lovely pink liquid blush.


For those of you looking for a MAC equivalent to that lovely cool-but-still-ok-for-warm-tones blush, try Sushi Flower. It's a beautiful pink blush that still has an element of strength to it. I love that just like Posietint, it can be sheered out for a universally flattering blush or put on liberally to make your cheeks the center stage. Just to warn you though, the online swatch is really not that accurate.


I found the concept of Posietint, however, to be more like MAC's Cream Colour Base in Virgin Isle. I swear by this, as it is a perfect liquid-but-not-runny blush for everyday. However, in the container, Virgin Isle is an incredibly scary pink colour and Posietint is this Pepto-Bismol hot pink tone. But both of these blushes translate beautifully and subtly to a gorgeous cheek.

All About The Posie

I had the lucky opportunity to pass by a Benefit counter recently, and I got kind of a "five-minute-face" sort of thing done. I was just walking by, hoping to experiment with a couple of their new products, and a really sweet girl working there invited me to sit down. I had to leave in about twenty minutes, and I didn't want to get caught having to wiggle my way out of buying something at the last minute (since I just wanted to browse). I ended up giving in, and Deanne, the lady that invited me to sit down, turned out to be really sweet! She wasn't pushy at all about getting me to buy something, and she pleasantly chatted about life and school and whatnot while doing my makeup. Plus, it didn't hurt that she thought I was in college (I'm a senior in high school...usually mistaken for a sophomore or younger).

Anyway, she didn't use that many products on me (I wish I had asked her to use gilded!!) but the ones she used helped to create a pretty everyday face.


First, she put on That Gal primer. It wasn't that bad or anything, it was just a simple, light pink lotion-like thing. It made me "glow" a little bit, but I don't think that it's worth $28 (even though the applicator's pretty nifty.


Then, she put on Erase Paste in Dark. I was really excited to try out this concealer, since dark circles under my eyes is something I've had to deal with for ages and ages. I'm not so sure about Erase Paste for me, just because by the end of the day it settled into the lines under my eye. However, it did provide really good coverage and it blended it pretty nicely. I might purchase this from the counter and test it out for a few days, as long as I'm allowed to return it...especially since it's $26.


On my eyes, she used Eye Bright right under my eyebrows. I don't really do much in the way of brow things, whether it's filling them in, using brow gel, or highlighting underneath. But now, I think I'm definitely going to start thinking about them more. Just brushing the light-coloured pencil under my brows was enough to add a little extra pop to my face without looking like I was wearing makeup (always a plus!). I'm not a huge fan of Benefit's pen itself, because it looked a tad chalky and it's $20, but I'm going to start thinking about my eyebrows a lot more now.


Finally, she told me that I needed a bit of pop to my cheeks. In her typical adorable style, she claimed she was "all about the posie" and put a pretty liberal amount of Posietint on my cheeks. At that point, it's probably best that I didn't have enough money to purchase Posietint with me, because I probably would have. Even though it looks like a crazy hot pink in the bottle, the colour is actually pretty flattering on, even when you apply a lot. I'm pretty sure this is universally flattering, though I wouldn't actualy be able to tell you if it was. If you absolutely love love love the tone and texture of Posietint, I'd advise buying it. Even though it's $28 for a liquid blush, it's a pretty large container of liquid blush. Plus, you can dab it on your lips if they're looking a little sallow, though I would suggest using it primarily as a liquid blush. The staying power is pretty good as well, so if you're the kind of person that would just use Posietint in a flash every day, I would definitely recommend it!

Unfortunately for me, I switch products all the time. I don't even have a steady foundation or concealer that I use! So, the idea of paying a lot for a large amount of product doesn't really fit my makeup lifestyle.

Hidden Benefit

Everyone seems to love the cheeky slogans and vintage containers from Benefit, especially when it comes to products like Benetint and Erase Paste. Because Benefit doesn't have a huge array of products (they don't carry tons of eyeshadows, and are known more for specialty products), a few standouts always get a lot of attention. So, I wanted to draw your guys' attention to some lesser-known but still wonderful products that I happen to know and love (in the order, least to most, that I love them :) )

1. Rush Hour, $22


This is a lip and cheek tint that pretty much has the texture of a lipstick. I love on-the-go products, as I am often busy and don't have time to reapply my makeup. However, I find that I look so much more polished when I'm wearing even the tiniest bit of makeup, which is why I love this little stick. The plum-pink colour is nice and subdued, and it adds a little bit of life to my cheeks and lips when I need it. Nothing standout about this product, but I definitely feel like it merits a little write-up.

2. Moon Beam, $24


I'm always scratching my head in confusion whenever this highlighter comes up. Benefit's "High Beam" has always had lots of coverage and love, but I've found that "Moon Beam" is so much more subdued and wearable. I've found that High Beam has way too much glitter and glitz to be a subtle highlighter, and ends up being the star of the show itself. I much prefer Moon Beam, which can be brushed (lightly!) on cheekbones, underneath the brow, or wherever you need a little bit of highlight. Though the container is small, I find that I never really need that much to add extra glow to my cheekbones.

3. Gilded, $20


Okay, so you might be asking yourself..."Isn't this blog supposed to be about staying cheaply chic? No way am I spending $20 on some simple gold eye pencil that I could get way cheaper somewhere else!" But think again. I wouldn't put this little treasure on this blog if I didn't think it was worth the money, would I? My primary use for this pencil is, in fact, the eyes. I use it in the inner corner of my eyes if I'm doing a gold-based look, or I use it to line my bottom lash line when I'm doing a smoky look up top. I can even use it plain as a night, light, golden shadow. I use this for cheeks as well, dotting a little bit on the apples of my cheeks and blending it out to create a nice glow (don't put too much!!!). And finally, I use it on my lips. Though you can blend it with any lipstick or gloss to create a softer, shimmery shade, my favourite way to use it is with coral gloss or lipstick. It's a nice, natural-looking lip combo and it works wonders with a tan! If you're looking to try out a new Benefit product, make it Gilded!

A Creamy Benefit

I'll admit it, I'm a sucker for any sort of creamy makeup product. Cream blush, cream foundation, creamy lipcolour...and most of all, cream eyeshadow. Maybe it's because my everyday makeup usually consists of eyeliner-focused looks rather than eyeshadow-based looks, but for some reason I've always loved the idea of cream eyeshadow. Benefit's Creaseless Cream Eyeshadow definitely lives up to its name -- I can use this as a liner or a shadow, and it doesn't crease either way. It makes a pretty good base, although I like using this product more when I'm on the run and I don't have time to put on much. In Benefit's Buh-Byes section, which features discontinued products that are on sale, I spotted two shades of these shadows that everyone should own; towne car, a simple black cream shadow that isn't so harsh it can't be used on an everyday basis, and carte blanche, a shimmery gold that makes a nice brow highlighter, inner-eye highlighter, or a simple wash of light colour. They're each $13.50, reduced from $18.00, which may not be the biggest of discounts to many. However, Benefit rarely discounts items that are as popular as the creaseless cream shadows, so I would definitely snap both of these up. If you're looking for just one to add to your collection, I would pick towne car, just because it's so versatile. I've used mine for both smoky eyes, subtle day eyes, and just as a plain liner, and it never budges. However, if you've got a similar product, then go for carte blanche. With all the gold rage in the makeup world recently, it's definitely a good bet as well.

Town Car


Carte Blanche