Beauty – Page 2 – ÉbèneNoire

Favorite red lipsticks: dark skin

Published on February 24, 2018February 23, 2018 by Sameera1 Comment

As a beauty junkie that bought her first bullet of Ruby Woo at age 17, finding the perfect red lipstick is a topic I feel extremely passionate about.

I have tried so many of the red lipsticks out there that I could fill a cube with the amount of red lipsticks I own. I however scaled it all down and have curated for you guys below, the top three red lipsticks that I can’t live without

3)Mac: Ruby Woo

I bet a lot of you are surprised that this isn’t #1 but let me explain. Although I do love a dry immovable MATTE lipstick, Ruby Woo just sucks too much moisture out of my life. Hence, the #3 spot. It is I believe the #1 red in terms of sales in the U.S and for good reason! It suits so many women of different skin tones and has been touted as the universal red by Mac itself. At $17.50, it also can’t be beaten and also lasts a long time on the lips. I’ll always love this lipstick for being my first ever statement lip and for being so universally flattering.

2) Chanel La Fascinante

I’d been on the hunt for a true blue red lipstick and this one is truest blue red lipstick I’ve been able to find in the market. It also has a soft velvet finish that makes it feel comfortable all day long. I love it because it doesn’t look orange at all on my skin tone and doesn’t fill into any cracks or lip wrinkles you may have. The $37 tag is a little steep for a lipstick, but the gorgeous package kind of makes up for it

1) Sephora creamy lip stain: Always Red

My favorite red lipstick HAS to be the $14 Sephora liquid lipstick. It feels so light when you put it on, yet lasts all day without feeling dry/tight which for a liquid lipstick is miraculous. It’s not too orange and not too blue but the perfect Goldilocks red. I bought my first tube senior year of college and have repurchased 2 since then which is saying a lot, as the tube has a lot of product. I simply just love how bright the red is.

What are your ride/die red lipsticks?

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Getting back to basics

Published on February 23, 2018February 20, 2018 by SameeraLeave a comment

Over the past couple of months, I’ve neglected my skincare routine. I know, shameful. Y’all are free to drag me. It wasn’t something that happened suddenly but slowly over the winter months. I wasn’t wearing much makeup or going out much so I kept convincing my self that going to bed without washing my face was no big deal (*** insert GoT shame gif)

After really looking at my face over the weekend, and seeing the damage my laziness has done, I’m slowly trying to get myself back to a semblance of a skincare routine. Below are a few tricks I’ve used to motivate myself to go through my routine, when I’d literally rather be doing anything else. 😥

Play a Youtube video while doing your skincare routine.

I recently got a pop socket for my phone and it’s been a game changer. It helps me watch videos while doing chores and especially while washing my face. My favorite people to watch at night while going through my bedtime routine are Fleur, Estee, and Amelia. They’re so chill and inspirational in terms of skincare routines, that I have no choice but to plow on with mine

Facetime a friend who’s also into skincare

This is a little unusual but it has helped me so much! My friend and I have the same schedule and love catching up before bed. This way, we also get to see what we each use during our routine. We tend to face time on Sundays as we both have more time to chat and catch up on all things fun, like the thirst levels produced by the box office hit that is Black Panther 😛

Do it right after walking through the door

I tend to have ~~a lot of~~ more energy as soon as I get home compared to at 10 pm when it’s time to go to bed. For that reason, I immediately walk myself to the bathroom when I know I don’t have to leave my apartment for the night and take off my makeup. It makes the rest of my night feel like a Sunday.

Use multipurpose products to make the process go by faster

I’ve found I get exhausted just thinking of the 4-5 serums or the 10 steps in my routine, so I’ve tried cutting down the process. One way I did this was in using products that are muilti-functional. For e.g. my beloved toner which has 7% glycolic is already a treatment because of the high % of glycolic acid. Therefore I feel satisfied to use a basic serum afterwards and then a moisturizer instead of using two serums (one to prevent oiliness and one to target hyper-pigmentation) so my routine goes by much more quickly.

The current steps in my routine consist of the below

Makeup remover-Bioderma
Cleanser: M-61 Glycolic cleanser
Toner: The Ordinary 7% GA
Serum: The Ordinary Buffet
Moisturizer: Glossier priming moisturizer

P.S, I ditched using a separate eye cream recently and instead take my already potent night cream and take it up high.

What are some tricks you use to motivate yourself to go through your skincare routine.

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Worth the hype? Glossier’s NEW solution

Published on February 21, 2018February 20, 2018 by SameeraLeave a comment

Now I’m here for brands snatching my edges every once in a while, and a brand that I will let take my wig along with my edges, is none other than Glossier. The brand once again proved they know their customer base and its needs when they dropped a brand new product called SOLUTION, with nary a peep to the general populace.

Girls went crazy as you’d expect, and the launch in a manner very similar to their fragrance launch, has drawn a wide range of reviews (eye emoji, eye emoji, eye emoji). I took myself to their showroom once again and picked up a brand spanking $24 bottle, in the hopes of giving my own two cents.

The toner claims to transform skin in four weeks by

Gently sloughing dead cells away through chemical exfoliation, dissolving the bonds gluing problematic dead cells to the healthy skin beneath.

With daily use, expect cleared acne and blackheads, smaller pores, and reduced redness. Skin’s texture will be smoother and softer, and the fabled glow of balanced, healthy skin will be in full force.

They honestly had me at “smaller pores” and the rest of the things it does sounds mighty great. My my main excitement however was on the beautiful list of key ingredients. Y’all know how I feel about glycolic acid so guess how excited I was to see the below.

I already love my AHA + BHA mask and my 7% Glycolic acid toner from The Ordinary so I’m super excited to see what this does for my skin. Fingers crossed it DOES NOT unseat my current HG toner from The Ordinary because I’ll take $7 > $24 any day!!

Have you guys tried the solution from Glossier? Did you like it, love it, want to marry it?

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The Ordinary: top picks

Published on February 20, 2018February 20, 2018 by Sameera1 Comment

The ordinary recently opened a location in Soho and while browsing in their Uber cool space, I made a list of what to try if you’re new to the infamous brand.

1) Glycolic acid toner

This is my HG toner. I’ve been on a mission to find the best toner and I’ve found it in this toner with a 7% glycolic acid content. We all know how much I love glycolic acid so this isn’t a surprise. This toner doesn’t irritate my sensitive skin and helps gently exfoliate while helping all my other products penetrate deeper into the skin.

2) Coverage foundation

This $7 foundation that broke records for the longest waitlist in the beauty industry was indeed worth the wait. It gives me the perfect amount of coverage while not being too heavy. It comes with a pump and has beaten out all my other drugstore foundation favorites.

3) AHA + BHA peel

I was late to this peel party. The main reason I was skeptical was due to the purple content and I’ll be honest, because of the word “peel”. I’ve seen too many YouTube videos of women with recovering faces who had peels which made me run in the other direction the first time I saw this. I’ve completely changed my tune though as this peels isn’t anything to be scared of. It felt slightly tingly the first time I put it on but after I rinsed it off after the recommended 10 minutes, my skin was glowing!

4) Buffet

For all my girls out there who can’t be bothered to slather on a cocktail of serums each night, this one’s for you! The store associate claimed this serum like the name suggests is a buffet of all the best skincare ingredients. I use it in the mornings and have been loving the results.

5) 2% Retinoid

This is another HG in my skincare cupboard. As a skincare junkie, retinol has been something I’ve been dying to incorporate into my routine. It’s one of the few things that actually works on the skin but my skin always had adverse reactions to any kind of retinol I tried. That was until the beautiful people at Deciem created the retinoid which does everything a retinol does, without any of the irritation. I use it religiously and love how smooth it keeps my skin.

What are some of the products you guys love from the brand?

Byrdie Beauty Lab

Published on December 10, 2017February 20, 2018 by SameeraLeave a comment

So today was kind of a great day. Not only did I get to meet two women who I deeply admire within the beauty industry, I also got so many great luxury deluxe beauty samples!

So Byrdie.com, the online destination for all beauty trends and news, has a collaboration with Nordstrom in the form of a pop up beauty lab!

This was such an innovative idea and leave it to the fabulous gals at Byrdie to execute such a stunning pop up. You walk in to a “lab”, curated with the best of the best brands, laid out to be played with on beautiful tables. They are merchandised by hair, fragrance and makeup and you get tons of space to move around and try out brands you won’t normally find in stores.

Continue reading “Byrdie Beauty Lab” →

Top 5: Eyeliners

Published on December 3, 2017 by Sameera1 Comment

5. NYX slide on eye liner

This is a great eyeliner if you’re in between paychecks and can’t justify that $57 Tom Ford eyeliner (yikes!). It’s really smooth and easy to apply, and at $8 can’t be beat! It really reminds me of the Urban 24/7 and just feels a little bit less “glide-ey” than the cult 24/7 liner.

4. Laura Geller gel liner

I received this in an allure beauty box and I LOVED IT! It was so so so dark on me which as an ebony skinned women, was miraculous! I’d tried sooo many “super pigmented” black eyeliners before this and never found them to be as pigmented. I tried rebuying it and making it a staple and found the $20 price tag just a tad too steep at the time ( I was a broke college student y’all). I am however going back to this and can’t wait to have super pigmented kohl lined lids!

3. Urban Decay 24/7 glide on

This $20 eyeliner is one of the most popular eyeliners in the beauty community and for good reason! Like the name suggests, it lasts a really long time and glides on very smoothly. The only negative I have about this is that the other colors in the range aren’t as smudge proof. I highly recommend the black shade (perversion), as it’s highly pigmented and lasts forever on the lids.

2. Benefit Push up liner

This uber famous liner which had one of the best launch marketing strategies (in my humble opinion) is phenomenal!! I fell in love with it in my quest to master winged liner and it was the best decision ever! The tip which was created to help make creating winged liners easier is so helpful. I used to wear the best, fiercest, thickest cat eyes when I wore this every day. The only downside to this liner is the amount of product that comes out each time you twist the bottom. It’s so long lasting g and so dark and I honestly don’t know why I’m not currently using it!

1. Wet N Wild

THIS! I found this eyeliner so randomly on a comment on a random beauty post and haven’t looked back since. I wish I could remember the person who mentioned this because I’d treat her to the best overpriced brunch ever! This $3 liner is so pigmented and so easy to use, it’s honestly such a surprise that it’s not a cult favorite. It’s also TRULY waterproof and lasts until you grab that eye makeup remover and swipe it off. I love the ease of the wand which makes creating delicate cat eyes so easy. I love this so much and hope some of you try it and love it as much as I do because at $3, it’s honestly a steal!!!

What are your favorite eyeliners?

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Attn Glossier Fans: New Fragrance Launch

Published on October 24, 2017October 24, 2017 by SameeraLeave a comment

Like any beauty brand mogul, Emily Weiss, is letting everyone know that she didn’t come to play. Please meet her fresh new ‘cool girl’ fragrance that just dropped this morning; Glossier you

The $60 fragrance is being described as “the ultimate personal fragrance” and features a Creamy, sparkling, clean, warm scent that “smells like you”…intriguing

The three base notes are…

_ambrox: smooth, salty, animalistic
_musk: long-lasting, addictive

with the top notes being…

_iris root: earthy, green, woody
_pink pepper: spice, sparkling

I don’t know about you guys but the minute I get off work, I’ll be marching myself to the Glossier showroom in Soho to pick up a bottle because this is Emily’s world and we’re just living in it.

Have you guys smelled it? What product do you think the brand will drop next?

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Top 5- Fall Lipsticks

Published on October 14, 2017October 14, 2017 by SameeraLeave a comment

MAC retro matte liquid lipstick in ‘Uniformly Fabulous’

This is my favorite dark lip for this season! It applies so opaquely and stays on all day post greasy lunch and dinner! I usually have to reapply post lunch around the edges but it doesn’t leave my lips feeling tight and uncomfortable.

NYX soft matte lip cream in ‘Vancouver’

This is the perfect purple soft matte lipstick. It doesn’t last all day like the MAC retro matte lipsticks do but it feels so comfortable! It is also very flattering for a wide variety of skin tones and makes me feel like a purple unicorn each time I wear it!!

Colorpop matte liquid lipstick in ‘Lax’

As far as liquid lipsticks go, color pop were the OG. They also have one of the lowest price points and have one if the widest shade ranges out there. They’re not the most comfortable but last all day! This shade, especially makes me feel like a baWse whenever I wear it!

MAC lipstick in ‘Rebel’

This was my first dark lipstick ever and it has stood the test of 7 years of repurchasing to be in my faves! I love the berry purple shade of this lipstick and the stain it leaves behind! I’m nota fan of satin lipsticks but this one feels like a velvet matte finish and lasts longer than a typical satin lipstick.

NARS velvet matte lip pencil in ‘train bleu’

This is my favorite NARS lip product mainly because of the incredible aubergine color and the ease of application. It doesn’t last as long as I’d like but the fact that it’s a pencil which means I don’t need a lip liner before applying makes it easy to take it and reapply all day!!

Honestly, 75% of the reason why I love the fall season so much is because I get to wear all the deepest darkest lipsticks without anyone batting an eye! To be honest, I do wear ‘uniformly fabulous’ during the summer months however, I feel way more comfortable wearing these lipsticks while snuggled up in all the burnt orange knit sweaters, leather jackets, and Chelsea boots!!

What are your favorite fall lipsticks?

Top 5- September

Published on October 8, 2017 by Sameera1 Comment

September was a pretty stressful month with moving out and into a new place. These were my five favorite beauty products that I reached for during the very hectic days when everything was in boxes, and all I had was five minutes to get ready.

Bare minerals bare pro foundation
Benefit roller lash mascara
Chanel lipgloss
Glossier priming moisturizer
Chevrefeuille by Annick Goutal

What were your favorite products for the month?

The Ordinary- Review Update

Published on June 26, 2017February 20, 2018 by SameeraLeave a comment

Ir’s been over three months since I reviewed a wide selection of items from The Ordinary. I’ve since fallen out of love with some of products and more deeply in love with others. Check out below which made the cut and which you shouldn’t add to cart.

Continue reading “The Ordinary- Review Update” →