Essence My Favorite Milkshake Stay with Me Lipgloss Review!

Essence My Favorite Milkshake Stay with Me Lipgloss

The Essence Stay With Me Lipglosses ($2.29 each, Ulta) are a small range of color-intense lipglosses, that leave your lips with creamy, long lasting color - and no sticky trail behind!

There are currently six (6) shades to choose from: Me & My Ice Cream, My Favorite Milkshake, Candy Bar, Kiss Kiss Kiss, Deep Rose and Hottest Pink.

I already own and have re-purchased the shade Me & My Ice Cream on a couple occasions, and when I spotted My Favorite Milkshake, it looked like a perfect natural lip color I can wear for on-the-go.

My Favorite Milkshake is a light, warm, natural pink with medium opacity. I think it's a shade that can work on just about anyone. Despite it being "warm", it's not overly warm and doesn't look yellow or orange on my lips when my skin is lighter. When I'm tan, this color still works perfectly, without washing me out like some pale pinks tend to do. It actually brightens my face up a little bit!

The consistency is a bit thick, but surprisingly moisturizing (kind of like a thick balm) and isn't sticky. The only lipgloss formula that's similar that comes to mind is MAC Cremesheen Glass, or MAC Lipglass without the stickiness. Because of it's thicker texture, the wear time is pretty good with these, but because this shade in particular is pretty light, the color sheers out after a while of wear.

My Favorite Milkshake on my lips

Essence XXXL Shine Lipgloss in Bubble Babe, Super Girl and Nude Candy.

Essence XXXL Shine Lipgloss

I've purchased Essence's XXXL Shine Lipgloss in the past, and I was pretty impressed. I can't really call it a drugstore brand, because in the USA, it's only available in ULTA, but it's one of my favorite bargain brands for lip products. (*edit - there may be other locations depending on your area. The location finder on the Essence website only shows results for those living in Germany, Switzerland and Austria. I have only seen Essence at ULTA in my area.)

Essence XXXL Shine Lipgloss is available in twelve (12) shades: 01 Pure Chic, 03 Timeless Beauty, 04 Rising Star, 05 Super Girl, 07 Big Night Out, 08 Glamour to Go, 09 Party Connection, 14 Bubble Babe, 15 True Love, 17 Fabulous Fuschia, 18 Sparkling Papaya and 19 Nude Candy.

Super Girl is a very sheer watermelon pink with bright pink shimmer.
Bubble Babe is a very sheer, cool cotton candy pink with cool pink and white shimmer.
Nude Candy is a creamy pale pink, reminiscent of Nars Turkish Delight Lipgloss. The color applies fairly opaque in comparison to the other two shades.

Super Girl and Bubble Babe work best applied over a lipstick to add a little bit of glossy shine, as alone, they don't provide much color.

One of my favorite things about the XXXL Shine Lipgloss, is the brush design. It's not your average sponge or doe-foot applicator. It's longer, and flatter than your standard doe-foot. What's nice about the shape is that the applicator picks up the perfect amount of product, and in one sweep it applies the product evenly across your lips. You'll rarely ever have to double dip.

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Essence #47 Prom Night Lipstick Review!

Essence Prom Night Lipstick

I've pretty much been on an Essence buying rampage lately. I know Essence is nothing new to ULTA, but they're constantly coming out with new products and colors. And, since they're such an affordable brand, you won't be breaking the bank, even with your hands full

Essence Lipstick is available in ten (10) fun colors: #40 Look at Me!, #41 Femme Fatale, #42 Fairytale, #43 Kiss you, #47 Prom Night, #48 Red Carpet, #49 Like a Lady, #50 Creamy Nude, #51 Fifth Avenue and #55 Coralize Me!

Since you can never have enough natural pink lipsticks, I knew that #47 Prom Night would be one of those shades you can throw on your lips daily, and it'll pretty much go with anything. And, at $2, how can you go wrong?

Prom Night is a bubble-gum pink that leans a bit on the cool (slightly purple) side and has a slight frosty finish. I'm not a fan of frost. It makes me think of the 90's when everyone was rocking white, silver and lilac frosty lipsticks (Yeah, I was 11 or 12 years old rocking it too.) This lipstick only has a subtle frost, so don't fear. For those of you that own Rimmel Pink Blush Lipstick, it's pretty similar.

Essence Prom Night Lipstick

READ MORE! (there's a picture of George & Me @ Prom.. haha!)

Essence Get Big! Lashes Volume Boost Mascara Review

 Essence Get Big! Volume Boost Volume Mascara

Essence Get Big! Volume Boost Volume Mascara is one of Essence's newest mascaras. It claims to provide "density and abundance with every application" that won't clump or feel heavy on your lashes. The large brush design is said to reach even the tiniest lashes.

I've tried a couple of Essence's mascaras in the past - Lash Mania Mascara (meh) and their Multi-Action Mascara, which I actually think is pretty good.

They are very inexpensive - I don't think any of them cost over $4. So it's not a big investment if you wanna test out a few of them, or if you're just plain pressed for cash and don't feel like spending a lot on a mascara.

One thing I'm not crazy about is that the mascaras aren't sealed - I'm not sure if it's how they are sold everywhere, but at ULTA, none of them are sealed, and I'm sure people are opening them all day long, thus drying them out. Regardless, for a couple of bucks, I'm willing to give them a try.

I was drawn to the Get Big! Lashes Mascara because of the big honkin' tube and large, fluffy brush. For whatever reason, I'm drawn to trying out mascaras with huge wands even though they are typically ridiculously inconvenient to apply.

  Essence Get Big! Volume Boost Volume Mascara (wearing three coats)

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NOTD: Essence Colour and Go in Date with the Night + Studio M Covered in Diamonds!

Two (2) Coats of Essence Colour & Go in Date with the Night & One (1) Coat of Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Top Coat

Date with the Night is a metallic pewter with extremely fine shimmers that are only visible under bright lights. It totally looks like a metallic silver-chocolate in the bottle, but I don't notice any brown tones when painted on the nails.

The Colour and Go polishes are usually a hit or miss with the formula. Some are just right, but many are on the thicker side. This polish is a bit thick, but the plus side is they are pretty opaque with one coat, so if you're running late and have nothing on your nails, you can really "colour and go". I have already used this polish twice, and I'm sure the next time I use it, I'll have to put a couple drops of nail polish thinner in the bottle. Brush strokes are noticeable with this formula, so if you have a shaky hand, it will definitely show on your nails.

Pretty color, not the best formula, but not bad for 99 cents. I get almost a weeks wear from these polishes, which for sure beat any other dollar nail polish at the drugstore. Yes, Wet n Wild and Sinful Colors, I'm talking about you.

I also picked up this funky, confetti/flake nail polish from Meijer called Covered in Diamonds. I haven't heard of Studio M polishes prior, and at $2.99 a pop, I thought I'd at least try one.

Covered in Diamonds has a clear base, and is filled with pastel confetti flakes that reflect blue, green, pink and orange. It's definitely a fun polish to have. The flakes are a little on the thick side though - so they all may not lie completely flat. For the best results, 1-2 coats of a top coat is necessary.

READ MORE FOR ADDITIONAL PHOTOS!

NOTD: Essence Colour & Go Nail Polish in Mellow Yellow!

Three (3) coats of Essence Mellow Yellow & One coat of Seche Vite Top Coat.

Three (3) coats of Essence Mellow Yellow & One coat of Seche Vite Top Coat.

Essence Colour & Go Nail Polish in Mellow Yellow is a cream formula pale yellow. It's a perfect summer statement color that will add a bright pop of color to any outfit.

I've always liked yellow nail polishes, but every time I end up purchasing yellow, I'm never satisfied with it. One thing I've learned about yellow polishes is that the more pastel they are, the better they look on my skintone. This particular polish is almost in between pastel yellow and yellow. I was hoping it would be a little more white toned, but I like it.

The formula of this polish was streak city with the first coat, but evened out by the second. With the second coat, 95% of the streaks were gone, but I opted for three coats for full opacity. 

I'll probably wear this polish only once more before summer is over, so it's not really a bad investment for 99 cents!

The lovely Lisa Eldridge sporting yellow nails in her Quick Pick-Me-Up video

Essence can be found at ULTA stores or online at ULTA.com.

ULTA Haul: Essence & Essie!

Essence Colour & Go Nail Polish - #57 Can't Cheat on Me

Essence Colour & Go Nail Polish - #50 Irreplaceable

Essence Colour & Go Nail Polish - #42 Dress for a Moment

Essence Colour & Go Nail Polish - #51 Mellow Yellow

Essie Nail Polish - #710 Van D'Go

Essence XXXL Nudes Lipgloss - #01 Pure Beauty

Essence Stay With Me Longlasting Lipgloss - #01 Me & My Ice Cream

READ MORE TO VIEW ADDITIONAL PHOTOS & SWATCHES!

NOTD: Essence Colour & Go in #27 No More Drama!

Essence Colour & Go Nail Polish

#27 No More Drama

Two (2) coats, no top coat. Top: Indoors, no flash. Bottom: Indoors, flash.

Since I posted earlier in the week a NOTD with my new Essence (Ultimate Pink) Colour & Go Nail Polish, I figured I'd do another NOTD with the other color I own. "No More Drama"

"No More Drama" is basically lilac in a bottle. The formula is less opaque than "Ultimate Pink" and is a little sheer with one coat. With two coats my nails were completely opaque (except my thumb.. I smudged it a bit). Like I mentioned before, love the short applicator and thick brush for fast and precise application.

It's a little difficult for me to "pull off" pastel colors. The darker the polish is, the better it seems to suit my skintone. I've always liked pastel purple polishes.. but they never look right on me. They are always too pastel and look almost white on my nails. This is the perfect "pastel" purple and works great with my skintone. It's a great colour for Spring! It makes me think about Easter.. (which.. holy cow.. isn't too far away!!)

You can view all shades of Colour & Go Polishes on the ULTA website here.

Essence Nude Kiss XXXL Nudes Lipgloss Review!

Essence Nude Kiss XXXL Nudes Lipgloss

Product Description: Ultimate shine for your lips! The XXXL shine lipgloss pampers your lips without leaving behind a sticky feeling. Contains vitamin e and panthenol to prevent your lips from feeling dry. Available in eleven trendy shades.

Nude Kiss is a sheer, warm pink with very fine pinkish white glitter reflects. The formula is smooth and thin - no stickiness what so ever. It also isn't a gloss that just sits on my lips.. it actually feels somewhat moisturizing. It has a faint fragrance to it - kind of plasticy? But it doesn't bother me. I love the sponge applicator. It's a somewhat large, flat brush that coats your lips with one sweep.

Can be purchased at ULTA for $1.99 each.

NOTD: Essence Colour & Go in 08 Ultimate Pink!

Essence Colour & Go Nail Polish - Ultimate Pink

I got this nail polish yesterday at ULTA.. Essence has some really cute colors and they're only 99 cents each! I was temped to buy a taupe and a grey.. but I figured I own enough of those. I'm not sure how well these polishes wear.. I only have one other Essence polish that I puchased last summer. I think they're pretty average.. but I'll update this post and let you know when my nails start chipping.

The formula is very nice.. it's not too thick or thin. The color is opaque and the color dries pretty quickly. It says "1 second per nail".. which it's not exactly 1 second.. but it's around the same as an OPI polish. I applied a second coat within a minute and my nails didn't cake up or get nicked. I also really like the brush. It's not too long and it's pretty thick (not as thick as Rimmel Lasting Finish though) so it makes applying the nail polish very quick.

This is two coats, no top coat.

Essence Cosmetics - New to ULTA!

While browsing at ULTA yesterday, I noticed a new display of a brand called Essence. The Display had a bunch of pamphlets about the brand and their products (pictured below) Essence is a German brand (low end/drugstore brand) that is available to parts of Europe (The site says its available in Germany, The Netherlands, Belgium, Ireland, Spain, Croatia, Italy, Switzerland and Austria) and its now available in the US. Pretty cool!! Everything is pretty much under $5 and by the looks of it, its very girly and aims at a younger crowd. Maybe like Wet n Wild? I only purchased one baked eyeshadow and a brow pencil to try them out and decide whether I'd want to purchase more. Click here to view all of Essence's products on the ULTA website or click here to view the official website. Oh! & they don't test on animals. :)

I wore the shadow today on my eyes. I just took a bit (dry) and used it as an all over lid color. Its a very nice gold. It slightly started to fade, but overall it works pretty well. I'd purchase other shades since they're only $2.99.

If you'd like me to take a swatch of the brow pencil, let me know. I haven't tried it out yet. They also had another new brand. I can't remember the name and I can't find any info on it. It is LA something. I thought it was LAColors but there is already a brand named that.. hmm confusing. Its a little more expensive than essence.. I would compare the prices to Milani (for example.. they had really pretty jars of eye dusts for $5.99 each) I really wanted to get a couple, but I'm going to wait till there is a sale on it. Any thoughts on the brand?