Animal Testing.

Hey everyone.


This is something I've been wanting to write about for a very long time, but it's also something I've been trying to avoid. But I can't keep putting it off anymore. For a while now, I have heard rumors that COVERGIRL tests its products on animals. This is something I do not feel comfortable with at all. I am a huge supporter of animal rights, and I do not condone makeup companies testing their products on animals in any way. I find it disgusting, deplorable and completely inhumane. I feel so strongly about it that I am going to say, right now, that if I were to find proof that COVERGIRL tests its products on animals, I will never touch another COVERGIRL product again. Period.


With that being said, I've been conducting my own little investigation to see if I can find any truth to these rumors. I started with Google, and what I found was a lot of Yahoo! Answers-style Web sites with people saying that yes, COVERGIRL does test its products on animals. However, I also found sites that said no, they don't test on animals. Even though there were A LOT of people saying yes, I couldn't find any reputable news sources that would confirm or deny it. So I continued my search.


I went onto the Proctor & Gamble Web site (the owners of COVERGIRL) and looked through their news releases to see if I could find any that admitted to using animal testing. Still nothing. I found my answer by simply typing "animal testing" into the site's search engine. I came across this page, which says, and I quote, "Sometimes, to ensure that materials are safe and effective, we must conduct research that involves animals. The vast majority of our tests do not use animals and our ultimate goal is to completely eliminate animal testing."


Please keep in mind that P&G is not saying that COVERGIRL conducts animal testing, and I have yet to find a press release or even a quote from COVERGIRL confirming it. But the doubt is present, and I can understand why people would come to the conclusion that COVERGIRL does test its products on animals. As far as my opinion on it... I don't know what to think. The evidence is hard to ignore. But I also don't want to make inferences about a company who has not actually come out and said that they, themselves, test on animals. Until that happens, I'm going to give them the benefit of the doubt and continue using COVERGIRL products.


If you find any information that either confirms or denies that COVERGIRL conducts animal testing, please post a comment with a link to the source. That is something I would really like to see.


Until next time, makeup lovers. Peace. 

COVERGIRL follows my advice, at last

Hi again!

I'm starting to think someone from COVERGIRL's marketing department has been reading my blog. Since my excited post from a few days ago, I have seen, not one, but TWO Taylor Swift NatureLuxe Collection commercials on TV (click here to watch commercial). It seems as if someone over at COVERGIRL headquarters finally woke up and said "Hey, maybe we should start showing off our newest Cover Girl." Better late than never, I suppose.

I also hope COVERGIRL pays more attention to print media as well, and startz including more Swift NatureLuxe ads in magazines. I love Drew Barrymore and all, but I'm getting sick of seeing her in almost every COVERGIRL magazine ad. Like I always say, she had her time to shine. Now it's time to showoff your new girl to the world.

Ok, that's all for now. Hopefully COVERGIRL will continue to follow my advice. Plus, it would be really cool if someone from COVERGIRL was actually reading my blog.

Until next time, makeup lovers. Peace.

Product Review: NatureLuxe Gloss Balm

Before we get started with this product review, I have a bit of a confession to make: I am not really a fan of lipstick. At all. It never looks good on me and I always end up licking my lips 10,000 times more than I usually would and it always wears off. It also helps that I don’t take care of my lips AT ALL, and tend to chew on them when I’m nervous. I tried to keep all of this in mind while I was writing my review, so I wouldn’t blame COVERGIRL for something that might not even be their fault. So here is my review on the NatureLuxe Gloss Balm, #255 Marble.

PROS
Color- I actually really like the color I picked out. I chose Marble because it was a really light shade of pink that looked like it would complement my light skin tone. I was kind of afraid that I would look like a little girl playing dress up with my bubblegum pink lip gloss, but it actually didn’t come out that bad. The color is visible, but not completely overbearing, which I really like.

Gloss- I was also impressed with the shine this gloss had. In my experience, a lot of the time the shine will either go away after about 15 minutes or it’ll make your lips look like you smothered them in baking grease. With the NatureLuxe Gloss Balm, subtlety is key. The shine stays on your lips long after application, which is a major plus in my book.

CON
Dry lips?- One major drawback I found with this lip gloss is that it kept leaving little pellets that looked like crumbs on my lips. Now I know what you’re going to say: “That means you have to exfoliate your lips.” I’m way ahead of you. Prior to application, I exfoliated my lips with a toothbrush and put some Vaseline on them so the gloss would go on evenly. But I still had to be careful when applying because those annoying little pellets would appear, so I’d try brushing them off without taking off the color. It was quite a nuisance.

Overall, I think that this would be a great product for me if my lips weren’t so destroyed. I’m going to keep using it though, because I really like the color and it actually is a great product. I would recommend the NatureLuxe Gloss Balm to anyone, as long as they make sure to take proper care of their lips.

Until next time, makeup lovers. Peace.

Product Review: NatureLuxe Silk Foundation

Hello there, makeup lovers! I actually wrote this product review a little while ago, and totally forgot to post it on here. My bad. Okay, so without further ado, let me share with you my thoughts on COVERGIRL's newest product.

After seeing all of the amazing reviews about the NatureLuxe Silk Foundation, both on the COVERGIRL Web site and on their Twitter, I finally caved and bought my own tube. After using it for a day, I have developed a couple of pros and cons in regards to the foundation:

PROS
Coverage- The foundation really does blend into your skin like a dream. I, personally, don't think it covers up blemishes as well as the Advanced Radiance Age-Defying Liquid Makeup, but that's what concealer sticks are for. The foundation is super-lightweight, and does even out the skin tone magnificently for such a thin formula.

Smell- This may sound kind of silly, but smell is actually very important when considering different foundations. Some scents may irritate your sinuses, so you may end up sneezing and sniffling all day because of your makeup. However, this is not something you have to worry about with the NatureLuxe foundation. The makeup smells amazing, kind of like a fruity tropical scent. Very clean and soothing.

CONS
Color- This may just be a problem I have because I'm tragically pale, but I was not impressed with the shades the NatureLuxe Collection offered. I obviously had to go with the lightest shade, which ended up being #305 Alabaster. It had this strange light pink shade to it that I didn't like at all. I would love to see COVERGIRL offer my usual shade (#405 Ivory) in the NatureLuxe Collection.

Cost- I was also a little put off by the price of the NatureLuxe Foundation. I bought mine at Wal-Mart for over $10, which is pretty pricey for a foundation. I only pay around $7-8 for my TRUblend Liquid Makeup. Another thing is that the NatureLuxe bottle is not very big. So you're pretty much paying $2-3 more for less makeup than you would have gotten with the other foundation.

Overall, it's a great foundation and I can definitely understand why it has gotten so many positive reviews, but I don't think this foundation is for me. The coverage is great, but there's not much I can do if they don't offer a formula that matches my skin tone. But remember, makeup lovers, don't take my word for it. I encourage you all to go and try out the NatureLuxe Silk Foundation and see if it works out for you.

Until next time, makeup lovers. Peace.

Favorite COVERGIRL Products

Why hello there!

This is just going to be a quick post of my top three favorite COVERGIRL products and why I like them. Please feel free to comment and tell me which products are your favorites as well. Okay, let's get started!

#3) LashBlast Fusion Mascara (#805 Black Brown)
This is, by far, the best mascara I've ever used, and I've tried A LOT of mascaras. It took a very long time for me to discover LashBlast Fusion. A long time ago, this girl I used to be friends with told me to never buy mascara that both lengthens and gives volume to your lashes. She said that you should always buy two different mascaras (one for length and one for volume) and use them both on your lashes. I can't really remember why I thought that was such wonderful advice at the time, but I believed her, and that's what I did. Needless to say, it didn't work out well for me. My lashes never looked good. They were always really clumpy and looked like tarantula legs. Then one day I opened up my mom's makeup cabinet and saw her LashBlast Fusion. I hesitantly put some on my lashes, and couldn't believe it. They looked amazing! And since then, I've never looked back.

#2) CG Smoothers Concealer stick (#705 Fair)
If I were to recommend one product that every woman should never leave the house without, it would be this. Concealer sticks are the most useful, versatile little products. You can use them for covering up red spots and those dark circles under your eyes that make you look like a raccoon. I even use mine as a primer on my eyelids before I put eyeshadow on. All you do is put some concealer on your finger, rub it all over your eyelid, and ta-da! You've got a base for your eye makeup. I also like the concealer stick in particular because it offers the perfect amount of coverage without making your makeup look caked-on and weird. I'm not a fan of liquid concealer at all for this very reason. I feel like it's super-thick and does not blend well with the foundation, even if it's liquid foundation. So, take-home message: Buy a concealer stick. Keep it with you at all times.

#1) Advanced Radiance Age-Defying Liquid Makeup (#105 Ivory)
Word cannot accurately express how much I love this foundation, but I promise I will do my best. This is another product I discovered on accident, courtesy of my mother. I was home from college for the weekend, and I was getting ready to go out with my friends for the day when I realized that I had left all of my makeup at school. Frantic, I raided my mom's makeup cabinet and saw the age-defying liquid foundation. Since it was the only foundation there, I grabbed it and just started putting it on. When I was done, I just kind of stared at the mirror for a few minutes. I couldn't believe how perfect the makeup looked on my skin. Even though it is a silicone-based foundation, I was still able to apply just using my fingers without it looking streaky or thick. It covered up the red spots so well that I didn't even have to use a concealer stick. It evened out my skin tone perfectly. I was completely and utterly amazed. Now when I'm home, even if I have my own makeup with me, I always ask my mom if I can borrow her foundation. I should really invest in my own bottle.

Ok, that's all for now. Current makeup:

• TRUblend Liquid Makeup (#405 Ivory)
• CG Smoothers Concealer stick (#705 Fair)
• TRUblend Pressed Powder (#1 Translucent Fair)
• Cheekers Blush (#103 Natural Shimmer)
• Brow & Eyemakers Pencil (#500 Midnight Black)
• LashBlast Fusion Mascara (#810 Black Brown)

Until next time, makeup lovers. Peace.

Spotted: One Taylor Swift NatureLuxe Commercial

Thus my eyes deceive me?! Did I actually just see a commercial for COVERGIRL's NatureLuxe Collection featuring Taylor Swift?! Is COVERGIRL finally choosing to follow my advice and promote their newest spokeswoman? I must say, I was beginning to think this day would never come.

The commercial was everything a COVERGIRL ad should be: It was light, positive and had a lot of energy. I really don't know why COVERGIRL has been hiding Swift away all this time because she was fantastic. The thing I liked the most about it was that it wasn't like anything the company has ever done before. A lot of COVERGIRL commercials tend to be bright and flashy, but this one was very soft and ethereal, which matches both the collection and Swift's personal style.

Okay, that's all I really have to say. If you want to watch Swift's NatureLuxe commercial, please click here. If you want to know what makeup I'm currently wearing, please see my previous blog post. Until next time, makeup lovers! Peace.

COVERGIRL Celebrates 50th Anniversary... with Queen Latifah.

Ok, this is starting to get ridiculous.

I walk into Wal-Mart the other day to buy the May 2011 issue of Cosmopolitan (because Hayley Williams from Paramore was on the cover, and I LOVE Paramore), and I look at the back cover to find a full-page COVERGIRL ad for their 50th anniversary with Queen Latifah wearing a gorgeous floor-length gown with gold sequins. My first thought was, "Aww, she looks nice." Then I thought, "Wait, are you kidding me?" What better way to promote your newest Cover Girl Taylor Swift than by featuring her in your new anniversary ad? You could've incorporated the whole "New face, same great makeup" angle. Come on, COVERGIRL, you're killing me.

I flipped open the back cover to see if maybe, maybe, Swift was on the other side. Nope. I was greeted with Drew Barrymore. I did, however, noticed that the ad opened up to show two more pages. I open it up and there's Swift (along with Ellen DeGeneres) buried inside. I just don't understand why COVERGIRL is doing almost nothing to promote their new celebrity endorser, both in print and on television. They've updated their Twitter and Facebook so Swift is their main photo, which I applaud them for. They've also been retweeting fans who are tweeting about their NatureLuxe Collection, which is a great way to both promote your new product and connect with your customers. But I feel like COVERGIRL should be doing a lot more to promote their new collection. It's coming off as if they're ashamed of Swift being their newest Cover Girl or something.

A few words of advice, COVERGIRL: Stop using celebrity endorsers who you've had for years in your ads and start promoting your new line. You have a great new collection and a great new spokeswoman. USE THEM.

Alright, that is enough complaining for one day. Current makeup:

• TRUblend Liquid Makeup (#405 Ivory)
• CG Smoothers Concealer stick
• Brow & Eyemakers Pencil (Midnight Black)
• LashBlast Fusion Mascara (#810 Black Brown)

Until next time, makeup lovers. Peace.