NYX Stella Lipstick Review, Photos, Swatches and Comparisons!

NYX Stella Round Lipstick

NYX Stella Lipstick ($4) is a soft, yet vibrant watermelon pink. Although not hugely noticeable, it contains some fine silver shimmer. On the lips, you can see small flecks of glitter here and there, but it's not a shimmery shade overall.

Because of my warm skintone, I'm very partial to watermelon (or sometimes I call them flamingo) pinks - basically meaning a pink with yellow (warm) undertones.

In my experience, NYX Round Lipsticks are creamy, pigmented and are very lightweight on the lips. They have almost a slippery texture due to the creamy, yet very lightweight texture. Stella is actually a bit different than the typical Round Lipstick I'm use to. Unless I happened to fall upon a dud, it's slightly drier in texture and has a semi-matte finish. The pigmentation is light with one swipe, but buildable to opaque when layered.

It has a very striking resemblance to MAC Viva Glam Nicki. Nicki is more pigmented with one layer, but when applied sheer, they look almost the same. When built, the differences are barely detectable - Nicki is slightly darker and pinker in tone and Stella is the slightest bit warmer. Illamasqua Fable Lipstick is somewhat similar, but lighter (more pastel) in tone. Comparisons at the end of this post.

NYX Round Lipsticks are a great buy as they are cheap, perform well and come in a huge variety of shades. How "huge" do you ask? Well, as of right now there are 144 shades in the line. Yes, you read that correctly. There is a shade for everyone, and if you ever dreamt of certain shade, you'll most likely find it in the NYX Round Lipstick range.

NYX Stella Lipstick on my lips.

Lorac on Hautelook!

Lorac Cosmetics on Hautelook 10/15

If you're a member of Hautelook, make sure to check out the Beauty section, because for today only, you can purchase some Lorac cosmetics for a very discounted price! Some of the palettes would make great stocking stuffers!

If you're not familiar with Hautelook, it's a website with "flash sales". Each day at 8 AM Pacific, shop new sale events featuring brand names in women's and men's fashion and accessories, beauty, kids' apparel and toys, and home décor at up to 75% off. The good stuff sells out quickly, and items only stay in your cart for 15 minutes before they automatically get removed, where they will be available again for others to purchase. Membership is free. It's a highly addicting site!

Visit Hautelook.

Step by Step Eyebrow Filling Tutorial.

How to Fill in the Eyebrows

Everyone uses different brow filling methods - some swear soley by pencils, while others prefer brow powders. You may even prefer a cream product (such as a brown cream liner) or a brow-marker (such as Milani Brow Tint Pen). I love switching up products all of the time, so my brow routine changes often. Today, I'm going to go through one way I fill in my brows using both an eyebrow pencil and an eyebrow powder.

Don't feel the need to go run out and purchase a brow powder - Any matte brown eyeshadow similar to your hair color will do. Although we all favor and thrive for eyeshadows with lots of pigment, we don't necessarily look for the same in our brow products because we want our brows to look to look natural. So, finding an inexpensive shadow at the drugstore should be a sinch. And, if you don't own an eyebrow pencil, you can use a brown eyeliner - but don't apply it straight on as it can look too intense for your brows. Scribble on the back of your hand, and run your brush through the product for a more natural look (or you can just lightly rub your brush across the tip of the pencil).

I don't always use both products, but I like combining both because the pencil yields a very precise, clean line, whereas the brow powder gives a softer, more natural diffused line. The result is a very clean and precise brow, yet it's not as clean/chiseled as it would be if only a pencil was used.

Products I used in this tutorial-
Anastasia Highlighting Brow Kit
MAC Eyebrows (Pencil) in the shade Spiked
MAC Studio Finish Concealer
MAC 208 Angled Brow Brush
MAC 194 Concealer Brush
E.L.F. Eyelash and Brow Wand (Spoolie)
Tweezerman Brow Shaping Scissors
Revlon Tweezers
Eyebrow Razor

Here's the classic diagram of where your brows should ideally start, arch and end. Since we all have different face shapes, natural brow shapes, etc, this figure might not work for everyone. It's often referred to as the ideal brow - with the beginning of the brow lining up with the side of your nose (if you hold a pencil vertical to your nose, it should line up with the beginning of your brows). But depending on the symmetry of your nose, placement of the eyes (if they are very far apart for instance), etc, this method may not work. Instead, use your tear-ducts as a reference of where your brows should start. The arch should ideally line up with the edge of your iris. Your brow should ideally end diagonal (45 degrees) from the outer corner of your eye.

Berry Lips.

Sporting the Fall season berry lip today! I mentioned in my recent E.L.F. Studio HD Creme Blush Review that I love the way Showstopper looks on my lips, and I wore it out today, so I snapped a quick photo. I'm also wearing The Balm Betty-Lou Manizer Bronzer that I reviewed in my previous post and E.L.F. Headliner HD Blush (love!)

I can't get enough of the vampy plum lip, so I went to Target and picked up a handful of different lip products. I should be doing a post soon on them.. Berry on a Budget maybe?

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend!