NARS PURE RADIANT TINTED MOISTURIZER

The Nars Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturizer with SPF30/PA+++ has piqued my interest. A combination of the online buzz, my addiction to tinted moisturizers, and the fact that my MAC StudioTint is running low, led me to Sephora. The plan was to purchase this product, however the $42 price tag stopped me in my tracks. I opted, instead, to get a sample.

For the past few days I've been testing it out to see if I like it enough to purchase it. Here we gooo....

1st try:
The first day I tried it and hated it. I applied it after my regular moisturizer (with SPF) and primer and set it with my MAC Mineralized Skin Finish Natural (MSFN). It was terrible. It had oxidized and made me look red/orange after about 4 hours of wear. I was a freaking grease ball after a few hours! Ummm, no ma'am.
Try again:
I decided that maybe I had done something wrong on the first day. On this day I used a very lightweight moisture serum (no moisturizer/no SPF), primer, then applied the NARS Tinted Moisturizer with my fingers. I set it with Korres Wild Rose Brightening/Flawless Finish setting powder, then pressed Neutrogena Shine Control powder onto my t-zone. It already looked much better! As a part of my experiment, I decided not to blot all day. See picture diary below

7:30 am : moisture serum and primer applied

TM applied; Note the dewy finish

8:00am : TM, concealer, powder/blush added



5:00pm: shiny as hell, but the coverage held up pretty well





Verdict:

As I stated, I decided not to blot for the entire day...unfortunaltely, I was oily by 10:30am! I tried this on multiple days with a varying combination of moisturizers and primers and had the same result. This tinted moisturizer does well when it comes to a lightweight coverage and alightweight  feel on the skin, however it was a miss for me. It left me entirely too oily too early in the day.

Have any of you ladies tried this tinited moisturizer?

Best 12 of 2012

Hi Beauties,

2012 was a year of minimal makeup (and blogging!) for me, but here are my 12 favorite products of 2012. I posted a little description below my most fav products...enjoy!

FACE
Renewal Powder brush - Love. This. Brush. Use it everyday for powder (setting powder, when I'm wearing powder foundation, etc) and it was super cheap at Rite Aid.
Tarte Pure Maracuja Oil
Clinique Moisture Surge Extended Thirst Relief - I got this as a free gift with purchase about 6 months ago and after using it almost everyday, still have a little less than 1/2 of the travel sized bottle left. This lightweight serum enhances my regular face moisturizer and allows my skin to remain more moisturized and healthy-looking throughout the day. I believe a full sized bottle costs about $40.
MAC Prep & Prime Skin Refined Zone Treatment
MAC Mineralized Skinfinish Natural
Clarisonic - not pictured

EYES
Tarte Gifted Amazonian Clay Smart mascara - I literally use this stuff everyday. It gives life to my lashes in the form of volume, separation, and bomb ass length.
MAC Quite Natural Paint Pot
Wet N Wild Vanity palette
Tarte emphasEYEs inner rim brightener

CHEEKS
NYX blush in Terra Cotta - I've included a better pic.

LIPS
Blistex Moisture Melt- actually provides moisture to the lips and doesn't just sit on top of them. It also has a pleasant taste and SPF 15 which is nice.

What were you guys rocking faithfully in 2012?

Curls Unleashed 'Take Command Curl Defining Creme'

Hi Beauties,

Here is a quick product review of a moisturizer from then Curls Unleashed line.

A few months ago I purchased the Curls Unleashed 'Take Command Curl Defining Creme' from Target for about $14.99. I was excited to try it becasue I have used and loved other products from this line.

Description on bottle:
This product is made with coconut, sweet almond and safflower oils and other ingredients. Helps shine, define and moisturize your curls without shrinkage. Great for twists, twistouts, coiling, freestyles, shingling and updo's.

• Perfect for curly and kinky textures
• Free of SD alcohol, parabens and mineral oil
• BPA free

First impressions:
I first applied the thick creme' to my 2 or 3 day old twist out for a little moisture boost. I distrubuted the Curl Defining Creme' throughout my hair, added a light oil, and slept in a bonnet. My hair did NOT feel moisturized in the morning, but instead still felt quite dry. Naturally I tried again adding a little more of the creme and light oil. The results were slightly better but still not great.

The next time I used the product was on damp hair. I applied the creme' over leave in conditioner and instead of using a light oil I used some heavy duty Jamaican Black Castor oil to seal in moisture for a twist out. The results were far better that time around. My hair felt soft and much more moisturized.

Pros:
My hair was more elongated and, after much effort, was adequately moisturized. Some people may appreciate the fact that it is a paraben free product, however this is not a deal breaker for me.
Cons:
When used alone it did not help with shine and provided little definition. It also took alot of trail and error and effort to have properly moisturized hair. Shouldn't a moisturizer just...moisturize?

Verdict:
I need to be quite heavy handed with this creme' (I feel like an asshole everytime I type creme' instead of cream) in order to get decent results. Also, for my thick, dry hair the creme' should be used in conjunction with a heavy sealant. This product costs about $15.00 in the drugstore which is a little to steep to require extra steps/products, in my opinion. The Elasta QP Olive Oil and Mango Butter retails for less than half of the price of this product and works amazingly well on my hair.

For someone with hair that is not as thick or dry this may work. Because I paid for it I will attempt to use the entire16 oz. bottle, but for future reference I will stick to what I know. I will not be repurchasing this product.