May 16, 2013

City Color Cosmetics Review

It's review time for a few of the City Color Cosmetics selection's that I received and wore in my Budget Beauty FOTD. I'm pretty excited about this brand because they're very on trend with new product releases like BB Cream's and Shadow Pencil's and the prices are beyond reasonable. I have a soft spot for the inexpensive because it's those cheap drugstore brands that allowed me to teach myself makeup back in the day. It can be a bit mind-boggling that a product that costs only a few bucks can be just as good as a $20 one. If I've learned anything it's that expense and quality don't always equate, and who doesn't like to save money right?
And if Pat likes it..So do we!

 Keep Reading for the City Color Cosmetics Review, Swatches, & Discount Code


The BB Cream ($4.99) has excellent coverage for a U.S. BB, blurs out the pores, and leaves the skin looking fresh and natural. It does have a rather strong powdery perfume scent which turned me off. If scent isn't an issue for you this is one of the better BB cream's I've tried as of late. They offer a total of 8 shades to choose from which is almost unheard of. They cover the full skintone spectrum, not just a one shade for everybody BB cream like other brands. Light has a strong yellow base while Buff is cool-toned pink. Because BB creams have a way of adjusting to your skin tone I could actually wear both of these. This BB is ideal if you need slight evening out of your skin tone and like a natural skin finish with light-med coverage.
I was immediately drawn to the sleekly packaged Intense Blush Quad. Isn't it pretty? The cool toned pink's reminded me of NARS and Bobbi Brown blusher colors. A tiny bit powdery, but loaded with pigment. The hot pink has minimal shimmer while the other three, two bubblegum's and a mauve are matte. I can't believe the $4.99 price tag on this, the quality and colors feel much more expensive. It also comes in the shade Warm, which will be a must have come Fall.
The Gel Liner in Black($3.99) is a lot like a cake eyeliner, drier texture with a flat soft black finish similar to black eyeshadow. It includes a felt tip brush, but by the quality I don't expect to get a lot of uses out of it. The liner applies easily and there was no flaking or fading during the 4-6 hours of wear. It's an okay liner, not my favorite drugstore gel liner, but not bad either. Just expect it to be more like a cake than a gel.
The Color Play Jumbo Shadow Pencil's have a creamy consistency that glides across the lids with out any tugging or pulling. Available in 4 color sets of 5 pencils for $5.99. The "Smokey" set features a metallic Purple, Blue, Teal, and a Grey and Black. All of the colors are perfect for color and smokey eye bases. The pencil's are super creamy and gel like which lets color really grab to them. Because they are so soft make sure to wear them over a primer to prevent creasing. The bronzey and bright originals are what Pat bought, those are on my list to pick up next.
The Matte Eyeshadow Quad ($2.99) appeared vividly colorful in the pan, but it wasn't very pigmented and the shadow's applied light and chalky. It faired a little better over primer, but I'd skip it. Matte's are often troublesome, so I'm curious to try out some of the other eyeshadow palette's they offer like the Multi-Hue Eyeshadow's.

Baked Eyeshadow Pod ($1.99) Used wet or dry these baked eyeshadow's have a low shimmer finish.
Available in 18 gorgeous colors. Iris is a smokey dusky purple and Blue, a vibrant deep sapphire. The blue was more pigmented, but both apply evenly and have great wear time. I'm generally not a fan of baked eyeshadow's, but these colors in particular are excellent for a colorful smokey eye and really shine over the jumbo eyeshadow pencils.
My favorite of all was the Matte Lipstick ($1.99). I LOVE this lipstick. I wore it 3x last week. Ultra Pink is an intense cool-toned hot pink that's long wearing, has little taste, and doesn't enhance lip lines as much as most matte's. The formula feels light on and is packed with color. Staying put for hours, I didn't have to touch up my lip color for half the day. If you prefer glossier lips, the Creamy Lipstick, has an ultra moisturizing texture and creamy finish. Fuchsia is a medium violet fuchsia, and appropriately named 'Red' is a bright true red. These have a cherry scent and feel silky like a lip butter. While high on pigmentation, they're not very long lasting. Still a nice quality lipstick for the price and one I would recommend if you're considering trying out a new color but don't want to spend a lot of money on it.

That's how I feel about all of these product's overall. If you blow a few bucks and it doesn't work out, it's not a big deal, but at the same time you might just discover some high quality makeup that's also inexpensive. The blush quad and matte lipstick are worth every penny and then some :)

Just for my reader's! 
Get a 15% OFF DISCOUNT at City Color Cosmetics
PROMO CODE: 13MS1B15
Valid until 6/1/13. 1 Per Person.
Find City Color Cosmetic's at drugstore chains and citycolorbeauty.com

samples provided for review consideration