PSA: Sephora Flash Shipping

I just signed up for Amazon Prime last month because I, like many people these days, prefer to shop online. It allows me to make better use of my time. I’m not here to shill Prime to you. If you’re here (…on the internet?), reading, you know what it is, you’ve heard about it, and you know a lot of the benefits.

I had a completely different post scheduled for today (something else new, fun an intriguing), but this is too good, friends.

To my delight, I happened upon this glorious page on Sephora’s site – Sephora Flash Shipping.

Sephora Flash Shipping

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Sephora Teint Infusion Ethereal Natural Finish

Sephora Teint Infusion Ethereal Natural Finish FoundationWe went so long without comically long names, but Sephora Teint Infusion Ethereal Natural Finish Foundation makes two this month.

This is foundation I mentioned in my New and Noteworthy at Sephora post last month – the one that I was super excited to try? I wanted it, and in fact almost ordered it when I ordered my Silk’n Flash & Go Freedom – but being unsure of my coloring, I decided not to (yes, I know I can return/exchange it – but if I can also make a little effort before buying to see if its the right color, I’d like to. I don’t want stores to have to trash products because I was lazy. Don’t be that guy, that guy sucks).

During my most-recent Sephora trip I mentioned, before they used ColorIQ to, “match,” me, I mentioned that I was interested in the new Sephora Teint Infusion Ethereal Natural Finish Foundation and lamented its online-only status. One of the bubbly SA’s chimed in that they carried it.

What?! Are you sure?!

She was sure. Her friendly team-mates were sure.

Okay, they carry it. That is fantastic…and probablydefinitely meant I’d be making an unplanned (for that trip, anyway) purchase. ColorIQ matched me to 16 – Linen, which was comically inappropriate for my ghastly-for-me complexion. I had a friend with me and she was highly amused by the, “Oh, no – no no no,” face I made when I tried to blend it out. It probably matches the skin I’m in when I’m, you know, not in winter hibernation mode…but not now. I shook the tester for 12 – Ecru, and dispensed a single drop onto the back of my hand. Like all the other serum foundations out there (YSL Fusion Ink [costs 2.5x as much], Perricone No Foundation-Foundation Serum [more than 2x as much], bareMinerals BareSkin [$5 more, so-so reviews]), it has a very thin consistency. But don’t be dissuaded – one drop went so. damn. far. just on the back of my hand.

Insert whatever choir of angels audio springs to your mind by default. Yeah, I bought it. Is that a question?

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Real Techniques Sponge vs beautyblender

Real Techniques Sponge - Packaging Front

A couple weeks ago, I wrote that the Real Techniques Sponge had gone on sale at drugstore.com. I’m not sure whether or not it is still on sale there, but just like any drugstore, their sales rotate. If it isn’t on sale there, you can try other resellers of Real Techniques products.

I received the Real Techniques Sponge pretty quickly and was anxious to see how it compared to my tried-and-true classic beautyblender sponge.

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Worth it? Urban Decay Naked Skin Concealer

Urban Decay Naked Skin ConcealerUrban Decay Naked Skin Concealer

Urban Decay recently released a new concealer to flesh-out (ha) their Naked Skin line of products. Keeping with the line’s aesthetic, Urban Decay’s Naked Skin Concealer is packaged very similarly to the Naked Skin Foundation – a simple, cylindrical tube with a clear body and chrome-colored cap. It has launched in eight shades – fewer shades than I’d hoped for, because it still means women of color and the ghostly pale are kind of screwed for now.

I recently had the opportunity to try it at during a Naked Skin event at my local Sephora, and wanted to share my experience with it.

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Sephora’s ColorIQ is Drunk, Sometimes

ColorIQColorIQ by Sephora & Pantone

‘Tis winter and hence I am pale. I’m not using my Million Dollar Tan because a faux-glow in February doesn’t mean much to me. Ponds Luminous Finish BB+ is the only thing that has matched me for a while, so on a recent trip to Sephora, I had them bust out the old (okay, it isn’t old at all) ColorIQ to match me.

I really love to see technology intermixing with makeup. In fact, I’ve probably talked about how much I love the idea of ColorIQ, and how innovative it is.

I was able to have the SA assisting me bypass my cheek area because I have non-rosacea redness on my cheeks sometimes that throws off the match by thinking I have pink undertones. Instead, he matched my forehead, jawline, and chin. We did get a yellow-toned match this time, but it assigned me 3Y04. Before even seeing the matches, I knew it would be too dark.

Even though it didn’t match me to an Urban Decay shade, the SA wanted to take a shot at it and grabbed 3.0 (which I’ve tried before and will in no universe match me), and 2.0 – which is actually rated for 3Y03 – which surprisingly turned out to match. But this was luck, not ColorIQ knocking it out of the park.

In what I was looking for, Sephora’s new serum foundation (I spotted it in the new and noteworthy stuff!), it matched me to shade 16 – Linen. Based on what I read online I figured I’d be that or 12 – Ecru. I swatched Teint Infusion Ethereal Natural Finish Foundation in 16, based on my ColorIQ assignment and it was hilariously dark for me. I didn’t even put it on my face – just swatching it on the back of my hand I could tell it was too much. I tried again with 12 – Ecru, and found my match but this was my own guess.

I want to love the device, I do – but it either needs further refinement, or there’s been enough user error every single time I’ve used it to not get a one-hit-one-kill match. I still think it is worth using because it gets you in the ballpark if you’re otherwise lost, but Sephora’s ColorIQ is drunk, sometimes. I’m looking forward to future versions of the device that can give us closer approximations to what we need, but I still applaud Sephora and Pantone for trying.

Lambswool Paddle – What?

QVC is not my first stop when shopping for beauty products (often because I just forget), but they offer a lot of brands I’m interested in – Josie Maran, Philosophy, Clinique, Tarte, and a few more – so I visit every now and then because they sometimes offer impressive sales on products I like that beat the competition.

During one such curiosity-filled visit to QVC.com, I came across what looked like a bath sponge pouf on a handle:

Laura Geller Lambswool Paddle

Laura Geller Lambswool Paddle

I quickly realized that this is not a shower implement – after all, we don’t use wool scrubbers – but I still wasn’t sure what it was. I clicked through.

According to QVC this is a lambswool paddle for buffing and blending makeup to a flawless finish that is suitable for all skin types. The page continues to explain that because wool is a natural fiber, it can absorb excess product (if you were accidentally heavy-handed). Laura Geller does seem to be a Cruelty-Free brand, but vegans may want to steer clear of this because, you know, wool.

Anyway, as for use, QVC suggests that you apply your full face but before you set it with powder (if you do that) or setting spray, you should run it all over your face to blend and buff products in.

Natural fibers do tend to hang on to stuff (product, skin, oils, etc) more than synthetic, so this would be something you’d really need to keep on top of cleaning. For that matter, though, I wonder how you would approach cleaning it? It doesn’t seem like it would be the easiest thing to care for.

The Kenyan-manufactured lambswool paddle runs $17 (with like $5+ shipping) and, to my surprise, has mostly positive reviews. One reviewer complains that it is very small, the rest laud it, one going so far as to say that she is going to buy one for her daughter.

“Too much blush? Rub a bit o’ sheep on your face, honey, here you go.”

Maybe I’ve gotten complacent with my current methods (real talk: I’m not), but I can’t see myself ever dropping almost $20 on wool-on-a-stick to blend. I think it is a neat, unique idea and I’m happy if it works for other people who struggle with applying too much makeup, but it just isn’t something I’d be interested in trying or using.

I’ve seen bristled paddle brushes with a similar purpose, but never this. Have you ever seen any products utilizing wool like this? Have you ever used anything like it?