Review: Benefit All You Need Is Gloss Set

I mentioned these in my February favorites video and promised swatches....so here they are :D!  I'm still perfecting how to take swatch photos since the macro on my crappy-ass camera only works if the lighting is (I kid you not) PERFECT >_>  I have since discovered that using the bathroom counter under the skylight around 2pm results in the best pictures.  While I'm super pleased how the pictures I take there turn out, this means I can only take pictures on the weekend -_-  *sigh*

What it is: A limited-edition set of six Benefit lip glosses.

What it does: This glitzy gloss set includes three double-ended wands for a total of six shimmering shades. Glide them on with the soft cushion paddle for the ultimate luscious-lip look.

Purchased: $15.00+3.50S&H on Ebay, retailed for $28 @ Sephora

Packaging: Benefit is one of those brands that I feel like is limited by their odd (and mildly cheap) packaging.  Like cardboard?  The gloss tubes themselves look fine but Benefit's penchant for cardboard a la Bella Bamba, Dandelion Luminzer, and Hoola Powders visually cheapens the deal I think.  I'm nor crazy about how they stamp big, flashy prints (like the huge lips on this one -_-) on some packaging either.  I know Benefit is going for the whole retro vibe and on the whole they do a good job but on some of their stuff it comes off as so tacky :\

Anyway, the tubes themselves are well made with doe foot applicators. The only complaint I have is that I wish they stamped the gloss names onto the tube instead of using stickers (which are already falling off).

Scent: In the individual reviews because each tube has their own.  Overall, scent is not a problem because either it's fruity or very light :)

Texture: NOT STICKY :D No complaints, all of them are very smooth and light.  The darker, more glittery colors are actually hard to remove :P

Lasting Power: In individual reviews. Overall, Almost Famous and Back to the Fuchsia last the longest.  24k and I'm With the Band fades fast but leaves a nice shimmer behind.  Who Are You Wearing and Life On the List both have essentially no lasting power.  Definitely the most useless tube in the bunch.

Swatch on LT are three swipes, swatch on the RT is one swipe.

This is how the glosses are paired:

Almost Famous/I'm With the Band

Back to the Fuchsia/24k

Who Are You Wearing?/Life On the List

- 0.1 oz Almost Famous (copper penny)

• Burnished bronze with gold sparkles.
• A delicate, pleasant fruit candy scent.
• This stuff lasts a long time, most long lasting in the set. It stains your lips almost. The downside is that it doesn't go very well with my lip color. I think it'd look better on someone warm-toned.

- 0.1 oz I'm with the Band (golden pink shimmer)

• A peach with fuchsia undertones and gold shimmer.
• A pleasant fruit candy scent that's identical to Almost Famous' scent.
• Not long lasting at all :(

- 0.1 oz Back to the Fuchsia (sparkling fuchsia)

• A gorgeous fuchsia with purple and silver sparkles.
• Essentially scent-less.  I can smell a hint of fruit (and plastic from the packaging) if I'm literally sniffing it but it doesn't smell like anything really.
• Color fades but purple sparkles remain.  Second most long lasting gloss in this set.  It's my personal favorite ^^ it adds a nice tint of color to bare lips and is a nice topper.

- 0.1 oz 24k (sexy gold)

• A yellow gold with golden sparkles. It's a really nice gold when you put it on but it fades fast :(
• Essentially scentless.
• Color fades but gold sparkles remain. Tbh I would've liked a more "chrome/opaque" look but I understand that this is much more wearable :}  I wish the gold tint lasted longer tho.  It fades to just a gold shimmer pretty quickly.

- 0.1 oz Who Are You Wearing (passion fruit pink)

• I would describe this as a bubblegum pink.  It's creamy girly pink gloss.  Either someone in the naming department dropped the ball or the stickers were misplaced >_>
• A fruit scent that is fainter than Almost Famous/I'm With the Band.
• Not long lasting at all :P In fact this whole tube is useless because it fades fast leaving behind essentially nothing :\

- 0.1 oz Life on the A List (bubble gum pink)

• A light, creamy peach with very faint gold shimmers. 
• A fruit scent that is fainter than Almost Famous/I'm With the Band.
• Not long lasting at all - fades even faster than Who Are You Wearing?  

Overall
I really like Back to the Fuchsia and 24k, that one tube is a keeper.  Almost Famous is nice but doesn't match with my skintone.   I'm With the Band, Who Are You Wearing, and Life On the List are too sheer to be of any use.  I could have done without the third tube entirely.  Basically, this gloss set is straight up a 50-50 mixed bag.  I don't regret getting it because .1 oz is a good size for me (I never finish full-sized tubes) and I got a nice mix of colors.   It's very convenient too!   I'd recommend this cause for pete's sake they're selling for SO LOW on Ebay -_____-  I actually paid a lot more than I should have ($18.50) :P While I was looking for it that was the lowest price and now there are a bunch selling for as low as $7 -_-;;

Review: Concealer Comparison

I finally finished editing this video!  I think all the text is what made me take so long getting this up :P  And I don't know why but I forgot to sit off to the side so I didn't have a lot of room to put the text :(

I thought about posting swatches of these concealers but I decided not to because ultimately, how well a concealer works is particularly dependent on your individual skin color and tone.  Not to mention your skin condition (oily/dry/combo), what kind of foundation you use over it, what kind of scars you're trying to cover etc all come into play.  So, I thought it would be best just to write the most objective observations I can in terms of texture and blendability, which doesn't vary too much between different people.

NYX Concealer In A Jar (Green)
Purchased at: Cherry Culture ($5)

I was not impressed.  It had the notorious gray overcast and while it did neutralize redness, it just did not hide my scars and zits.  I have almost nothing good to say about this except that it was quite cheap so I don't feel too bad about throwing this away.  I tested this out on very "typical" sized zits (smooth but red, about 3-4 mm in width) and this does not cover those.  Blending the edges without fading the green color is next to impossible and causes caking if you use a powder foundation.  I have heard that some people have had good results with this but their acne must be very light.  Overall, I find that this was too difficult to work with.  I would rather spend a bit more for a better concealer and I don't recommend this, especially for makeup noobs like myself :P

L'Oreal True Match Super-Blendable Concealer
Purchased at: Walmart ($7-8)

I commented that I find this setup unhygienic but it really isn't any less unhygienic than the jar set up, so I don't know why I said that :P  I think I was thinking about mascara and how bacteria grows inside the tube if you don't remove the brush in a twisting motion...I dunno.  Anyway, although 9 shades sounds like a lot of colors to pick from, I couldn't find my match.  There are 3 warm, neutral, and cool colors each.  I personally tried Fair/Light Cool 1-2-3, Light/Med Cool 4-5 (the one in the video), and Fair/Light Neutral 1-2-3.   None of them worked for me very well for one reason or another.  I bought the Light/Med C4-5 in August, so when I was tanner, the color wasn't "that" off but as I've gotten quite pale for winter, this concealer has become a spectacularly bad color match.

The coverage is rather good I think, much better than what the NYX Concealer in A Jar resulted in.  It's also blendable, doesn't cake much, quite creamy, and decently long lasting.  However, the tendency to oxidize and the bad color match killed it for me.  I don't really recommend this unless you're on a tight budget, willing to test out a lot of colors, and don't need to wear a lot of concealer (aka you only need to cover redness around your nose and a zit or two).  Otherwise, the oxidation isn't worth the trouble.

Benefit Boi-ing Concealer (Medium 02) 
Purchased at: Sephora ($18)

I like to fancy myself as someone who favors drugstore brands over higher ends most of the time, but in this case I have to admit, I'm willing to dish out more money for the higher end.  Mara recommended I try this and I don't regret it because the texture, coverage, lightness, and blendabilty were far superior to the NYX and L'Oreal concealers. I picked this up during Sephora's annual 20% off Friends & Family sale and it was definitely the best thing I hauled.  Don't get fooled by how NYX concealer jars have .23 oz ($5) and the Boi-ing has only .1 oz ($18) because this pot is going to last you awhile.  You just need a dab of the this to pat on your face, I can honestly see this lasting at least a year for me.  The texture is silky smooth and it just sticks to your face somehow, so it doesn't fade as you put foundation over it.  Needless to say the staying power is great and it does not oxidize.  The one thing about this concealer is you need to "warm it up" with your fingers to maximize blendability; this is a common characteristic for most creamy concealers so this is not a negative.

Shade 02 Medium is little dark for me right now but it has a peachy yellow undertone so it blends passably enough without leaving an orange or ashy shadow.  Like I said in the video, Shade 01 would probably be best for me but I am so lazy I just never got around to returning the one I have *sigh*  But I really have no complaints about this.  $18 is an excellent investment for a good concealer but since everyone's skin is a little different, I highly recommend poking your head into a Sephora one day and trying it first.  This way you can be sure you aren't allergic and are pleased with the results before buying a full-sized jar.

Concealing Tips
1.) Less is more, particularly with concealers.   Even the Boi-ing will start caking if you add too much.  Just start super light and don't try to completely cover blemishes with the concealer because remember you are probably adding foundation over it.  You need to just blend out about 40-60% of the blemish's redness and your regular application of foundation/BBcream will do the rest.

2.) If a concealer/foundation looks ashy/grey/dirty, it means the color is too light.  Most people can tell when things are too dark ^_^  Asians tend to do best with peachy concealers with a hint of yellow for spot-concealing, but ultimately, you need to go by your own individual skincolor/tone.

3.) Concealing spots and concealing undereyes are two different things and may require two different concealers.  The concealers I reviewed today were for spot-concealing.  I never tested any of them on my undereyes and fyi, I do not cover my undereyes because I like to fancy myself as someone who doesn't really have too.

4.) Concealers/makeup in general should never have orange undertones, it just means it's oxidizing and has a bad formula. Also I don't think orange undertones are flattering on anybody :\

Overall
It's pretty clear that the only concealer I recommend in this video is the Benefit Boi-ing.   I probably will not be reviewing anymore concealers till I run out of the Boi-ing since I am very pleased with it.  The next concealer I'll probably try is the Kevin Beautymaker BB Mineral Concealing Cream.  In the meantime, please do leave your thoughts/experience with these concealers if you've tried any of these :)