Kylie Cosmetics Lip Gloss Review, Swatches and Dupes!!

I’m always in search for the latest and greatest products and unless you live under a rock, you know all about the mania surrounding Kylie Jenner’s debut cosmetics line.  Every restock since the first Kylie Lip Kit release back in November of last year has sold out lightning-fast; her latest product release allegedly “broke Google” (and also leaked buyers’ personal information yikes!).  People are so desperate to get their hands on the makeup, they’re even buying used lip kits on EBay and Poshmark for two to three times the original price of $29.  (First of all: What?! Secondly: Ew.)  So if you have been living under a rock; now you know!
 
King Kylie's cosmetics line consists of only; you guessed it, Lip Products!
Lip kits which consist of a liner and liquid lipstick for $29
Lip Glosses $15, and her newest product Metal Matte Lipsticks $18.
 
Today, I will be talking about her glosses which were somehow easier for me to order, but if you are like the hundreds of thousands of people who can’t seem to time it right within the 10 minutes it is available before it sells out, have no fear!  I have DUPES for you!  Yes Dupes, from the drugstore!  Yippee!  Let's go! 
 
From the website: 
Like, Literally and So Cute Lip Glosses (no really, those are their names)
Get them here: KylieCosmetics.com 
“These stay- in place lustrous soft focus glosses glide on smoothly and evenly to the lips leaving behind a luminous and voluminous effect. A blend of vitamin E and highly emollient ingredients provide hydration and moisturize the lips; while natural lip enhancers provide nothing but volume. An even and saturated application is provided with simplicity, yet comfort, and delivers a long lasting brilliantly glossy end look.
Wear alone, with your favorite lip pencils or layer on top of lipsticks... Also pair with the Kylie Lip Kit for a bold, glossy look.”
 
My Honest Review, everything that is said above is 100% absolutely true!  These glosses are creamy, not sticky, they are extremely opaque almost like a mash up between a lipstick and a gloss.  The color payoff is great so if you are looking for something to give you a little shine, these are not for you.  The formula does give your pout a little more volume not not so much anyone will really notice.  The glosses smell like vanilla and have no taste.  I love the scent because it is not over powering.   I almost didn’t believe it when I wore these lip glosses, not just because it is Kylie’s product line but mostly because the prices of these glosses are amazing.  I did not expect this product to be as good as it is for the price.  I did do some research and I have read that the same company also makes colourpop cosmetics which makes sense because they are another inexpensive but fantastic brand.  

From Left to Right: Like, Literally, So Cute:


 
Unfortunately like mentioned above these glosses and any other of Kylie’s lip products are super hard to get a hold of.  Unless you follow her on Snapchat and/or her app, and look at it every 5 minutes for a restock update, you will most likely be out of luck for the next couple of months until the hype calms down.  Luckily though, I’m here for you.  I get it, you want them.  Now if you just want them because they are Kylie Cosmetics I can’t help you, but if you love the color I got you.  Here are some dupes to get you through.

From Left to Right: Kylie swatches and their Dupes (below) taken in two different light sources to really see the color. All of the dupes are available at Ulta.com and are all under $15. 
LIKE: NYX Butter Gloss in Praline mixed with NYX Xtreme Shine Lip Cream in Skin Tone 
LITERALLY: NYX Intense Butter Gloss in Peanut Brittle
SO CUTE: Lippy Butter London in Tea with the Queen

As you can see the dupes aren't EXACT if you examine them under a magnifying glass but as far as tone, consistency, and overall believability, you cannot go wrong. 

I hope you enjoyed this post and I hope if you were dying to get these glosses you can go out and make do until they are available again, because lets face it, who knows when that will be! 

Until next time, 

Amanda Bells xo

Battle of the Brows! NYX v. Milani v. Anastasia!

I am a girl on a budget, I'm not one to splurge on beauty products unless I have run out of options trying to find a good dupe.  Also, if you are like me and you switch up your hair color often I hope this post helps you because who really has the money to buy eyebrow pencils every time you change up your mane?  I don't.  Luckily I found some products so I do not have to sacrifice my brows or my wallet!

Currently, my eyebrows are slightly on the thicker and full side, and so I only need define them a bit, and fill in some unflattering sparse areas. While there are many products out there to make your brows all that they can be, pencils, pomades, markers, powders, etc, I always have my heart set on products that are easy and the absolute best for on-the-go.  I'm just that type of girl.

Let's get started,

First, the Crème de la Crème - Anastasia Brow Wiz

Anastasia is THE brow brand and for good reason, it's amazing.  Anastasia's brow wiz has taken the world by storm over the past few years and I am not going to lie, I've purchased my fair share of them. The shade I'm wearing right now is soft brown, although I could go a shade darker (hair color probs).  I love this pencil to really shape the brows and carve them out, but it's not super easy to fill in my brows. The product is a bit on the hard side.  Don’t get me wrong, I’ve filled in my brows plenty of times with this and it looks just as beautiful as any other product mentioned, but the firmer consistency of the product takes some getting used to, luckily the spoolie makes it super easy to blend out and make it look natural. If I do my brows at 9:00 a.m and set them with a clear brow gel they will look perfect when I walk in the door at 9:00 p.m, you cannot beat the brow wiz when it comes to staying power. Also, it may look like a small amount of product but if I do my brows everyday I will get about two months worth of product. Overall this is a great brow product with 9 colors and is definitely a staple if you want to splurge, but ladies just remember if your going to walk the walk you have to talk the talk.  It is (Aah-na-staah-see-aah) not (Ana-stay-zha) go out and make your fellow beauty junkies proud with your fancy pronunciation! Price for this gem, $21.00.


Next, NYX Micro Brow Pencil

I knew I needed to find a 'dupe' for the wiz. I looked online and found that people compared the NYX Micro brow pencil to the Anastasia Brow Wiz. I wear the shade Taupe. The NYX Micro Brow is very easy to use and allows me to fill my eyebrows with a natural look. The spoolie itself is great too, although a bit rougher feeling,  It still allows me to brush my brows and blend the pencil, just like the Anastasia. In my opinion, I find the Micro Brow to have a dry formula but it is softer than the brow wiz.  The NYX micro brow does not have the same lasting power as the Anastasia Brow Wiz. It is able to last about 7-8 hours on me before it starts to look like it is fading away, but with a brow gel it lasts a bit longer. Anastasia Brow Wiz is able to last on its own for 12+ hours. The lasting power isn't a huge deal for me because like I said I have pretty thick brows so if it starts to wear off a bit, it does not make or break my brow game.  Like the Anastasia this is a great product and you can't really go wrong for the price and color range. It comes in a 8 colors which is A LOT for a drugstore brow product, priced at $9.99

Last, The Milani Easybrow Eyebrow Pencil

This is a great beginner product, it is cheap, effective and glides on very smoothly.  The consistency of this product is way smoother and creamier than the brow wiz and micro brow which makes it a bit easier to work with. Some people may find it to creamy and it might be harder for people who are used to powder or a different pencil. The tip of this pencil is thicker than the first two which may or may not be a good thing for some people.  The good thing about this brow pencil is it works, and its cheap so even if you hate it you won't be breaking the bank to give it a try.  The downside to this pencil is it is a little waxy and doesn't last as long, maybe 5 hours with a brow gel before it starts to fade. Another major downside to this product is it only comes in two colors.  That can be a major problem for 50% of its users.  I'm wearing the color Natural Taupe - The cheapest of the three at $7.29.

In the below pictures I put the products to the test (yes i know my brows need to be cleaned up but I'm growing them out at the moment), I compare the three, as well as try them on for you, followed by my final thoughts. 

Final Thoughts:
Anastasia is still my favorite eyebrow pencil, however, it is so expensive to keep purchasing over and over again. I will continue to purchase it when I run out to always have in my arsenal but now that I have found cheaper alternatives, I have something I can use on days where I'm not out of the house for 12+ hours or when I'm just running around doing errands. I will definitely use the Anastasia Brow Wiz for special occasions and days where I need my eyebrows to last. The NYX Micro Brow and the Milani Easy Brow are great alternatives to the Anastasia Brow Wiz and I highly recommend them as a cheaper option. The Milani Easybrow is a great product, I would especially suggest this to someone who is just starting out. Its ease of use really does stand out amongst the three and it is due to it being a creamier and more forgiving formula. I will personally reach for the NYX Microbrew first because I am just not crazy about the creamy formula that comes with the Milani Easybrow.  All in all, three really great products, three very different price tags.  My suggestion would be to go for a middle ground and try out NYX, its cheap, and if you love it you may want to splurge on the Brow Wiz, but if you hate it try out the Easybrow, it just might be the better bet for you.  As far as color is concerned, you will just have to try them out, as you can see The Anastasia and Milani are warmer in tone and the NYX is more cool and ashy, it is all going to be preference.

Always remember, don't get discouraged, your brows will never look identical, brows are sisters not twins! I hope this post helped you and gave you some insight into the brow game.  Once you get the hang of it, it becomes second nature, and bonus you get to use #browgamestrong #browsonfleek #thembrowstho for all your selfies on Instagram.

See you next time!
Amanda Bells xo