La La La Bella Bamba Blush by Benefit! Swatches, Photos and Review

Benefit's Bella Bamba!

Sometimes I feel torn about Benefit products.  I wanted to love Dallas, but it was muddy and unflattering.  I wanted to love Dandelion, but it was pale and chalky.  I wanted to like Sugarbomb, but it was really shimmery for my tastes.  I liked Coralista, but it didn't really go with everything I owned.

Then came Bella Bamba.  We are more in tune than the best tango dancers.  This is the perfect shimmering pink blush for my skintone.  The improved packaging also makes things handier.  The rounded brush makes application easy, and the mirror makes it so much easier to apply.

Thank you Benefit for making the perfect blush for summer.   Warm eyes, neutral eyes, cool eyes... it all seems to work. 

Benefit's Bella Bamba - packaging is an improvement!

A pretty watermelon pink.

3D effect?  Not sure what that means, but I love how it looks on.

Swatched lightly with brush (left).  Heavily with sponge (right).

On the face.  I forgot I had this necklace.  :)

Benefit's Bella Bamba is $28 for and is available at Sephora.com, Ulta.com and Benefit's website.

Maybelline Fit Me Blush in Medium Nude 208 - Swatches, Photos and Review

Maybelline New York's new Fit Me Line - Blush and Foundation.

If you missed my review of Maybelline New York's Fit Me Foundation, click here.  I was really impressed by the quality of this foundation.  It gave such a beautiful skin-like finish that I thought maybe the same quality would have gone into the other products in the line.... er, no I was wrong.

The foundation was so impressive.  It reminded of what I thought Guerlain's Lingerie de Peau foundation should have been like.  Great buildable coverage.  Super light weight feel.  Smooth application and blendability.  Satin, skin-like finish.  All for $7.  Unreal.

Unfortunately, Fit Me Blush is no where in the same ball park as its foundation counter part.  The color I purchased was Medium Nude 208, a shade recommended in my foundation color range.  In the pan, it looks promising.  The shade is a shimmering nudey pink.  Reminds me a of softer, less sparkly Nars Sin.  However, on the skin, it's almost nothing.  There is almost zero color payoff.  Also the texture is such a turn off.  The powder is hard as a rock and very hard to pick up on a brush.  Fit Me Fail.

Medium Nude 208 in the pan.  Looks pretty here.
Ingredients.
Barely there swatch.  I tried to apply this heavily, but this is the best I got. :-/

Beautburg's Overall Rating: D
Try the Foundation, skip the other products in the line.  Maybelline spent a lot of time focusing on the feature product of this product family and just slapped together the rest.

Maybelline Fit Me Blush is $6 available at drugstores and mass retailers nationwide.

Blush IQ? MAC Jeanius Collection Blushes in Pink Cult and Overdyed - Swatches, Photos

MAC Jeanius blushes in Overdyed and Pink Cult.

What do you love more than a pair of tried and true jeans.  From the initial press release, I was stoked about MAC's Jeanius collection.  What's more iconic or American than denim?  With that as a source of inspiration, I was imagining amazing blues eyeshadows in different finishes.  Instead what was the result were pressed larger (more expensive) eyeshadows with oversprays and meh color payoff.... Less than riveting.

However one really nice surprise from the collection were two cool toned blushes.  Overdyed and Pink Cult are the two limited edition powder blushes with Jeanius, and they definitely fill a whole in my blush collection.  Overdyed is a bright magenta with a slight sheen, and Pink Cult is a flat muted matte dusty pink.  Both apply very nicely with good pigmentation.  Pink Cult is super smooth and not chalky at all.  I was actually surprised as to how much color showed on my skintone when it looked so light in the pan.



 
Swatched.  Pink Cult applied heavily, then with a blush brush.  Overdyed heavily and with brush.
 
Overdyed.
 
Overdyed on skin.
Pink Cult looks surprising light in the pan.
Pink Cult on skin.  
You wouldn't think it would show up so much from how it looks in the pan!

MAC Jeanius collection is available at maccosmetics.com and at MAC counters nationwide.  Pink Cult and Overdyed Powder Blushes are $19.50 for 5.6g, 0.19oz.

I've Got The Power! Pink Power Mineralized Skinfinish from MAC's Wonder Woman Collection

Pink Power!
I finally got my hands on Pink Power, the jumbo sized Mineralized Skinfinish Trio from MAC's Wonder Woman Collection.  Whooo, let me tell it was hard to track down.  Very few MAC counters in my area got shipments, and Pink Power has been sold out on maccosmetics.com almost since it launched online!

A HUGE amount of product.  
Pink Power in all forms: highlight, bronzer, blush, mixed.
 Pink Power vs. Stereo Rose
There have been talks that when blended, Pink Power was similar to Stereo Rose.  I swatched the two next to each other and they are somewhat close.  Stereo Rose is pinkier and more shimmery.  Pink Power also lends itself to being brown because of the bronzer.  But the biggest difference is that Stereo Rose is more pigmented.  I also swatched the blush portion of Pink Power for comparison. 
Blended Pink Power vs. Stereo Rose
Pink Power's blush portion vs. Stereo Rose
The display.
 Pink Power on cheeks. 

So was this Glamazon disc worth the hunt?  Yes and no.  I jumped minor hurdles to get it, but I don't know if I would fully inconvenience myself for it.  The value makes it nice trophy if you can find it.  But if you are looking for a Stereo Rose dupe, this isn't exact.  And if you can't find Pink Power in your area, fret not!  You can also easily duplicate the shimmer, bronzer and blush portions with other products (though it may cost you more if you decide to stick with all MAC).  

So what does this all mean?  I'm happy to have it, but it's not back-up worthy.  But I got the power!  Let's dance now. 


Remember this jam?

MAC Pink Power Mineralized Skinfinish is part of the Wonder Woman collection and is 20g, 0.70oz for $35 and limited edition and maybe at MAC counters nationwide. Have a great weekend everyone!

MAC Wonder Woman Powder Blush - Mighty Aphrodite and Amazon Princess - Swatches, Photos and Review

Mighty Aphrodite and Amazon Princess powder blush duos.

Pa-pa-POW!  Here are the two blushes from MAC's Wonder Woman collection.  These glamazon size blushes were among my picks from the collection.  The value of the size, and the overall pigmentation and application were standouts for me.  I still would like to pick up one of those big Mineralized Skinfish trios, but Pink Power has been sold out for some time already online and wasn't available at my local MAC's store preview party.  I hope to pick it up later this week when the collection launches in stores. 

The larger sizes of some of the products from this collection offers a chance for a better bang for your buck, if you like the colors.  Take a look at some of the math below: 

Powder blushes from the Wonder Woman collection are $24 12.3g, 0.43oz  $55.81 per oz.
- vs -
Regular powder blushes from MAC are $19.50 6g, 0.23oz $84.78 per oz.

Pretty in pink - Might Aphrodite duo.
Left to right: light portion, dark portion, mixed of Mighty Aphrodite.
Amazon Princess - a blue based pink with darker plum with gold shimmer.
Left to right: Light portion, dark portion, mixed of Amazon Princess.
Love this packaging.  Do you keep boxes when it's this fun?
My haul.  See my post on Wonder Woman Lipglass.
 
Collection will be in stores in the US February 10th, 2011.

To Review:
MAC Wonder Woman Powder Blush in Mighty Aphrodite and Amazon Princess are $24 each for 12.3g, 0.43oz and limited edition.
Pro: Big (literally) value.  Very pigmented colors.  Will last a very long time.
Con: Love it or hate it on the packaging.  Limited edition.  Bigger value calls for bigger price.
Overall Beautyburg Rating: A-

Have you done any Wonder Woman haulage?  Do you plan on getting anything?  Are you loving this or letting it go?

MAC Cham Pale Rosé Olé Special Reserve Highlight Powder - Swatches, Review and Comps!

Rosé Olé

Rosé Olé is a soft pink highlight with golden and peachy undertones from MAC's Cham Pale Collection.  The packaging is Mineralized Skinfinish, but the product is something new (to me) called Special Reserve Highlight Powder.  It has a much finer milled and velvety texture versus Mineralize Skinfinishes like Petticoat, By Candlelight, etc.  The shimmer is very, very subtle.  No overbearing frostiness or shine here.  See our comparisons below!

Rosé Olé

I am the biggest sucker for patterns pressed on products.  Those Chantecaille powders with butterflies, dolphins, tigers, etc just make me weep.  When a pretty pattern is embossed to a pressed product, it makes opening it new even more special.  Using it for the first time, and disturbing it's delicate surface, is a such special moment.  A friend confessed to me that her MAC Marine Life was now "dead to her (me)" since she blurred the surface with use.   

With all that, I am really disappointed about the overall look of this product.  I kinda don't know what to say about all this mess going on Rosé Olé.  I get what it's meant to look like.  But what it does look like is what happens when  a shattered pressed powder has been re-pressed with alcohol.  The surface gets all lumpy and fugly.  MAC, couldn't you just slap an endangered cuteoverload on here and call it day?! 

Rosé Olé

Though the texture of the impression didn't translate into the best execution, the actual texture of the product is really smooth and velvety.  Very soft and buttery (for a pressed product).  I am really liking it, and I have been using it all week.  My goal is to use it enough to wear down some of this pattern!



Swatched.  Super fine glow.  No glitter particles detected.



Click to enlarge any photo.  
From left to right: Pearl Blossom Beauty Powder, Perfect Topping MSF, Porcelain Pink MSF, Glissade MSF, By Candlelight MSF and Rosé Olé.

On the skin, I didn't think that Rosé Olé was so pigmented, but swatched you can see that it's the darkest of the shimmery, pink highlight powders from MAC that I have in my collection.  This works best as a highlight for me, NC35, and probably darker skintones.  Paler beauties could use this as a blush.

In sunlight.
From left to right: Pearl Blossom Beauty Powder, Perfect Topping MSF, Porcelain Pink MSF, Glissade MSF, By Candlelight MSF and Rosé Olé.


To Review:
MAC Cham Pale Rosé Olé Special Reserve Highlight Powder
$28, 10g 0.35 oz - Available at MAC counters.
Pro: Soft, subtle pretty glow.  Softer texture than Mineralized Skinfish.
Con: Limited edition.  Unattractive impression pattern.
Overall Beautyburg Rating: A-

Do those impressions make an impression on you?  Do you ever buy a pressed product but don't use it because you don't want to disturb the pattern?  Or is that disturbing?

What has been your favorite pink, shimmery highlight product from MAC?