UNBOXING | Tarte "Be Your Own Tartetist" February 2015 Set

My name is Cindy and I am a Tarte addict. There, I said it. No brand is as well represented in my makeup collection, which is much larger than what one would attribute to one sane person. It all started a couple of years ago when my mom (re) gifted me a Tarte Eye Couture Day to Night Palette, which I actually reviewed for y'all waaaay back in my early blogging days. Not only can I expect the packaging to be gorgeous, the product usually never fails me either. The purple theme jives quite well with me and the mission statement is one I can stand behind. I was quite the avid environmentalist in my teens so this brand speaks to me. I even created a 30 minute PowerPoint presentation and habitat about the Amazon rainforest for my AP Environmental Science culmination project (which bored my classmates and was quite overkill, if I'm being completely honest).

Going back to what this post is supposed to be about, when I heard that Tarte was releasing another TSV with QVC, I was intrigued but the items and colors didn't exactly wow me. It wasn't until I saw a slew of Youtube tutorials that I thought, why the heck not...I can always return it if I hated it. I, of course, got it on Auto Delivery as I like keeping my options open and *spoiler alert* so glad I did! Proceed with caution as I turn on "full-on" fan girl mode to the max ;)

Starting with the Maracuja Miracle Foundcealer, which I was most interested in trying. Finding a foundation color that matches your skin tone is half the battle and what makes or breaks most foundations for me. Unfortunately, I got this in Medium, which is too dark and orange for me. I heard that this foundation runs light so I went for a shade darker, not realizing that Light-Medium was a choice. I'm usually a Light in Tarte foundations, so that should've been a no-brainer. I did wear it twice just to see how it wore and coverage was good but I don't know how much of that is attributed to the darker color and the actual coverage. Applying with my finger sheered the color out enough so that the mismatch wasn't noticeable; however, coverage was sheer to light at best. My redness and hyperpigmentation marks still showed through. I'd say this is a lightweight foundation and easy to blend. My gripe with it is that the dropper-style packaging, similar to the one from the Tarte Pure Maracuja Oil. While useful with oils, doesn't dispense enough product for my face. First of all, it didn't pick up enough product or fill all of the vial dropper. I needed two dropperfuls (which amounted to about 1 dropperful of product)  to get enough product for my face. Blending with the brush was decent but I much prefer my fingers. Since the formula is so watery, the brush left a lot of streak marks. This isn't a foundation I'd recommend to oily skinned people as the finish is dewy and has no oil control. 

The Gifted Amazonian Clay Smart Mascara was an okay mascara. The wand is a straight one that tapers at the top and has a lot of short bristles.The formula is on the drier side, which I prefer. Its strength lays in the fact that it doesn't clump my lashes, lengthened them, doesn't smudge and looks really natural. It does require some building up for slightly more volume and curl but I like it! The curl droops a bit as the day wears on but it's really easy to take off. I wore it for 7 hours with very slight smudging but that's because my eye drops ran onto the lashes >.< Otherwise, I didn't notice any smudging! It's a bit too soon to call it my HG but so far, I'm liking it.

Moving onto the LipSurgence Liquid Lip Shine in Exquisite. I'm not a fan of lip gloss for every day but when my lips are really chapped, they soothe my lips and help take off the peeling skin easier. Exquisite is a darker rose color. I'm not sure what's with the name change but it does seem to be more pigmented than the previous LipSurgence Lip Glosses I have. The vanilla scent reminds me of cookies but don't eat it! It's sticky but not uncomfortable, helps the gloss stay on your lips. Eating will require reapplication afterwards but will wear for about 3 hours before color is gone. My lips do stay soft until the end of the day, which is about 4 hours after the color wears off.

Lastly, the two brushes, both which are sooo soft and good at their intended purposes. The Double-ended Eyeshadow Brush has a fluffy pointed side and a standard paddle brush on the other. It applies shadow and blends them out amazingly. I especially love the pointed end as it fits right into my smaller crease, inner corner, and creates a soft, diffused lower lashline! I've been using this non-stop and can see myself buying more. My eyeshadow game has never been more on point. Really easy to spot clean and doesn't lose its shape. The Maracuja Miracle Foundcealer Brush wasn't all that great at blending out the foundation but it does do the job. I tried it with my MUFE HD Foundation and it performed much better--blended everything much faster than with my other brushes with no streaks. I've also used it for blush and it disperses the product so nicely. Two thumbs up from me for the brushes!

I'm just going to pause here a bit so you can admire the majesty and gloriousness that is the Be Your Own Tarteist Amazonian Clay Eye & Cheek Palette. Go on and oogle, I'll wait ;) At first, this palette didn't catch my eye. Looking through my collection, I tend to go for warmer shadows as they brighten and complement my warmer complexion. It's not like I haven't given cooler-toned shadows a go--they just make me look bruised and at best, tired. This palette however, is definitely my favorite item from this collection! The shadows are smooth and buttery, except for the two darkest mattes, which is a bit stiffer. I don't get powdery kick up with these and the matte colors are buildable, important for the darkest shades. The shimmer shades are pigmented but not glittery--I'd say they're more of a pearly finish, adding a nice sheen to the lids. I wore them without eye primer, which I rarely do. They lasted 3 hours before I noticed some creasing in my crease. I smoothed things out and applied more shadow and they lasted an additional 3 hours before I took everything off. With primer, they last all day without creasing! There's a total of 4 mattes and 2 shimmers that are just enough for subtle daytime looks.

THE SWATCH

From left to right: Eyeshadows in Pink Beyond, Taupe for the Best, Dreams Plum True, Blush in Talented, Eyeshadows in Out of this Pearl, Thistle be the Day, and Paint the Brown

Pink Beyond is a matte cool toned blush shade. These kind of colors tend to wash me out and look chalky so it's not one I foresee using much but it's a nice blending out shade for plum eyeshadows. Color in the pan is closest to Lt Pink from the LORAC Pro Palette but on my skin, it's closest to Strawberry Bon Bon from the Too Faced Chocolate Bar Palette. Taupe for the Best, arguably my most favorite shade in the palette, is a shimmery, purple-undertone taupe. I couldn't find an exact dupe but it is most similar to Pewter (LPP), just a tad more purple. Dreams Plum True is a matte, dark plum shade. This one is a bit hard in terms of texture but it applies and blends well. I couldn't find an exact dupe for this one either but Deep Plum (LLP) is a shimmer version of Dreams Plum True. Out of This Pearl is a pearly beige color. It's less white than Beige from the LORAC Pro Palette 2. I did, however, find a dupe for it from the Tarte Aqualillies Palette in the shade Barefoot. Barefoot seems to look less golden but the shimmer quality is the same. Thistle be the Day is a matte, cool-toned taupe. It's not as grey as Stone from the LORAC Mega Pro Palette. It's a good eyebrow shade for my dark brown hair. Paint the Brown is a matte, dark chocolatey brown. It's warmer than Espresso (LPP) and lighter than Chocolate Fudge (TFCBP) but it is an exact dupe of Hammock (TAP). Lastly, Talented is a corally red blush with a matte finish that isn't flat. It's not unique as Tarte has come out with two others similar to it, Crave and Bashful. 

THE LOOK

LID //Taupe for the Best

CREASE // Thistle be the Day

OUTER CORNER // Paint the Brown

INNER CORNER // Out of this Pearl

MASCARA // Gifted Smart Mascara

LIPS// Liquid Lip Shine in Exquisite

OTHER THOUGHTS 

Overall, I enjoyed this set immensely! I wasn't excited for it at first but it turned out to be a winner. The palette aren't anything super special in terms of color choices but the formula is top notch--will be travelling with this from now on! The mascara needs a little building up but the effect is just right up my alley. Lip gloss isn't anything special but the limited edition packaging makes it a great keepsake. Brushes are amazing and I hope they release them on their own soon. The bag is good quality in comparison to the ones they previously released and is quite large, a must for travelling. The foundation wasn't my thing but hopefully, a good color match will make me appreciate it that much more. I will be putting this on my StoreEnvy so if anyone really wants to give a try and the color matches you, help me take it off my hands! 

THE BOTTOM LINE

For $62.96usd, I think it's a fantastic deal! Everything is full sized and the mascara alone is $20usd. Since the TSV has passed, the price has increased to $72.50usd + $3usd shipping but if you really want to give the Foundcealer, Palette, and Lip gloss a try, they can only be found in this set for now. 

WHERE TO BUY

Tarte Miracles from the Amazon Set || Buy

Tarte Gifted Smart Mascara || Beauty.com | Sephora | Tarte | ULTA | QVC

XOXO,

MWAH ♥

Twitter // Instagram // Facebook // Bloglovin