FOTD 2/29/12 - Leap Year Day!

Today, I went to put the date on a piece of binder paper during class and had to stop for a minute to think about the date! My watch thinks it's March 1st. However, it's actually February 29 - we only get a leap year day every 4 years! Coincidentally, the leap year is always a presidential election year. Uncanny, right? Anyway, I got to take my new L'oreal Infallible 24 Hour eyeshadow in Perpetual Purple for a test drive today, along with the much-loved Wet N Wild Nutty. I did a very simple look, with Perpetual Purple all over the lid and Wet N Wild Nutty in the crease. These photos don't do either of them justice - I'll upload swatches of what I picked up at the drugstore really soon. I really like the Jouer lip gloss - I received it in my Birchbox when I was still subscribed, and I fell in love with it and ended up buying the mid-size version since the full size one was sold out. It's amazing, I might end up doing a review on that as well.

In the picture above, the eyeshadow appears not to go all the way down to my lashline, but it was just the light - I just didn't notice until I uploaded the picture to the computer and by then I was too lazy to take another. xP Sorry about that.

Eyes
Urban Decay Primer Potion
L'oreal Infallible 24 Hour Infallible Eyeshadow in 555 Perpetual Purple
Wet N Wild Nutty
Fairydrops Scandal Queen Mascara

Face
Rain Cosmetics Undercover Concealer in Master of Disguise
Pur Minerals 4-in-1 in Blush Medium
theBalm Mary Lou-manizer
theBalm Sexy Mama Pressed Powder

Lips
Jouer Moisturizing Lip Gloss in Birchbox Pink

I have a pen pal!

Warning: this post is completely non-beauty related!

Recently through my school, I was given the opportunity to reconnect with my pen pal in Nepal. I had my pen pal through middle school, after first writing to her in 5th grade, I believe. I thought it was really cool that I would get to know someone in another country. My pen pal is an amazing artist and a really cool person (I'm not sure she would want her name shared, so I won't post it on here). However, I wrote letters and never mailed them. Which is honestly awful, because I really liked having a pen pal. However, this year this was presented as a school project where anyone in the grade would participate, and the school would send a large package of letters from people in our grade. I jumped on this opportunity, as this would mean that if I wrote the letters, they would actually be sent. So I went home and managed to dig up a letter I had written in 2010, and I then wrote a 2 page letter to send this time. I included pictures, and I have a picture of her that she sent me a while back. I'm really hoping that she'll still want to be my pen pal after such a long silence (I feel awful). I look forward to reconnecting with her.

Now that I think about it, nobody seems to really write letters anymore. In the digital age, people send emails or texts, or use other means of electronic communication. It's rare that you receive or send a hand-written note, since hand writing things is just a lot more tedious than typing them. And besides, hand written things are easier to lose and forget about, unlike emails or texts which stay until you delete them, and even then there are probably digital copies left behind. It just seems so much more convenient to do things digitally. However, there's something about a hand-written note that's just really nice. Knowing that someone took the time and thought to write you something and being able to pin it up or do something with  it - there's just something special about it. I handwrite thank-you notes, but that's about it. This letter to my pen pal is the first hand-written letter I've written in a long time that wasn't a thank-you note. If I get one back, I'll be really excited. For me, things rarely come in the mail besides packages or a paycheck (I work grading papers in elementary school for one or two hours a week). So when/if I do get something back, it'll be nice to be able to sit down and open my letter, and read it. This was a bit of a pointless paragraph about digital mail vs. snail mail, but in the end they're both good. There's just something about a hand-written letter that a digital letter doesn't have.

I just thought I'd share with you guys since I'm really excited about reconnecting with my pen pal. Like I said, this was totally non-beauty related. But I'm still allowed to blog about non-beauty stuff sometimes, right? Anyway, happy Tuesday everyone! ^^

Looking Peachy: Review of Revlon Colorburst Lipstick in Peach

I was strolling nonchalantly by CVS one day when I saw a basket of makeup. With a 50% off sign below it. Who could turn that down? So I dug through the basket and emerged with, miraculously, only one item - the Revlon Colorburst Lipstick in Peach. I have one of these in Carnation, and the color is absolutely lovely. I decided I wouldn't mind another, especially not for the price of $2.85 or so.

I took it home and couldn't wait to take pictures of it, so I did.

The packaging is plastic, and black. It  has the criss cross pattern on it, and it seems more expensive than it is - the only thing that for me, shows it's a drugstore lipstick, is how light it is. Most high end lipsticks have some weight to them, which somehow makes them feel more luxurious. Anyway, I was swatching this on my arm, fully twisted up, and horror of horrors, it broke. I accept full responsibility >.< I totally forgot to twist it back into the tube, and behold, the broken lipstick. So I just stuck it back into the tube and twisted it down again. This just goes to show how very soft and creamy the formula is, that it broke just by swatching it with it fully twisted out.

The formula of these Colorburst lipsticks is so creamy and soft, it's an absolute dream to apply. The color is decently pigmented, and definitely buildable. What I really like about this formula is that it doesn't highlight any dryness in my lips, unlike some other lipsticks I have, such as MAC Bombshell (frost finish). To apply the MAC one, I have to be sure to exfoliate my lips first, or else it highlights any imperfections or roughness in my lips. With these Revlon lipsticks, no such precautions are neccessary - they glide on smoothly. Here's some swatches:

It's an orangey warmish peach color, not too much pink. It leans coral. The arm swatch above took two swipes, as I wanted the color to photograph well. This color instantly adds sophistication to a look, it just gives me a very put together look. Here's a picture of me wearing it:

My only complaint about this lipstick is its lasting power. It lasts 2 hours, if that. It's really quite annoying, because if I wanted to wear this all day I would have to constantly reapply. However, it does not leave an annoying lip line when it fades, which is a plus. However, I don't reapply makeup at all during the day, so anything that doesn't last all day isn't going to get a whole lot of use from me.

To sum it all up, I love the color of this lipstick, and the formula, except for the fact that it barely lasts 2 hours. I have a lipstick from this line already, and I might buy more if I see them on clearance again, but if not, I probably won't purchase any more lippies from the Colorburst line. However, this is the only peach lipstick I own, so it may get more use than I anticipate.

Have you tried anything from the Revlon Colorburst line? What did you think?

Versatile Blogger Award!

A couple days ago, I was really excited to receive my first blogger award! I was awarded the Versatile Blogger Award by Emer, from Beauty Moments! I'm really happy and excited about this.

The rules of the award are that you say 7 things about yourself, and pass on the award to 15 other bloggers.

1. I do debate on my high school debate team, and I had a tournament this weekend from the 18th to the 19th where my partner and I went 4-2 (won 4 rounds, lost 2). We made it to elimination rounds, then lost. It was still cool that we made it to elims tho. The form of debate I do is policy debate, which is super fun and I really like!

2. I really hate cinnamon toothpaste. Cinnamon is good, but for some reason I just really hate cinnamon toothpaste.

3. I apply makeup for fun. If I'm really bored, I'll just go sit in my room and do really complicated eye makeup. Makeup has never really been a chore for me, it's always been something I do for fun.

4. I have two rabbits and a dog. My rabbits are Holland Lops, and my dog is a Cockapoo (Cocker Spaniel-Poodle mix).

5. My favorite TV shows are Pretty Little Liars, Hart of Dixie, Make It Or Break It, Gossip Girl, and Switched at Birth.

6. My favorite subject in school is history - it's like a really long, complicated story. I find it super interesting, and I have a really great history teacher!

7. I'm not a very good cook. I can cook mac 'n cheese, spaghetti, and Tom Yum soup (a type of Thai soup).

Here's the 15 bloggers I will also award the blog award to. I looked at how many blogs I follow recently, and found that I follow over 90. So it was pretty hard for me to choose just 15 blogs, but here they are:
http://beautybyarielle.blogspot.com/
http://beautyandababy.com/
http://gorgeousskin.blogspot.com/
http://meetmeonthebrightside.blogspot.com/
http://www.mandyssecrets.com/
http://www.makeupjunkienikki.com/
http://foxxyb80.blogspot.com/
http://eyelineraddict.blogspot.com/
http://blushtree.blogspot.com/
http://cheriebeautyblog.blogspot.com/
http://www.everydaybeautifulxx.com/
http://inclairenessnowfair.blogspot.com/
http://www.mookieonthebench.com/
http://shops2much.blogspot.com/
http://shameless-fripperies.blogspot.com/

I hit pan on my powder!

I very rarely use a product consistently, I vary my makeup routine quite a bit. So when I hit pan on something or use it up, I get pretty excited. I hit pan on my Sexy Mama powder from theBalm today, I was super excited and just thought I'd post it.

I hate feeling like some of my makeup items don't get enough use (such as some of my eyeshadows). I have way too many eyeshadows, I'll admit. But I want to use every single one. However, the truth is that some eyeshadows do get more use than others, for some reason. It does feel really wasteful for me to have makeup that gets little to no use. I was considering trying a kind of wimpy version of Project 10 Pan where instead of using up my 10 items, I just have to hit pan on them. I just alternate my makeup routine so much , it's hard for my to consistently use something. Anyway, this concludes my thoughts on using too little of my makeup.

It's Hot In Here: Review of theBalm Hot Mama Blush

After purchasing two of theBalm's other products (Sexy Mama Powder and Mary Lou-manizer), I wanted some more of theBalm. I had seen nothing but quality from them. When MyGlam sent out a 25% off code for theBalm's website, I jumped on it. Since I still haven't found a blush I liked enough to wear on a daily basis, I decided I would try their blush Hot Mama. Hot Mama is supposed to be very similar to NARS Orgasm, which I have swatched but don't own. I also ordered a backup of Sexy Mama powder. So I waited impatiently for my package to arrive. When it got here, I quickly unpacked it. But by then, it was too dark outside to take product photos. So I waited till the next day, when the sun was luckily out (yay!).

The product packaging is very cute, with a pin-up style girl on it. It's magnetic and snaps shut. It feels very sturdy. It has a nice mirror on the inside, and there's definitely a lot of product in the pan. The only problem I have with the packaging is that if you drop it really hard, the mirror will crack - I know this from experience, when I dropped my theBalm Sexy Mama powder and the mirror cracked but didn't fall apart. It still ruined the nice mirror though, and it's not really quite so nice anymore. =/

When swatched, it is extremely similar to NARS Orgasm. It's shimmery, but not glittery. It's a peach-toned color with gold reflects. It leans a tiny bit cool, but can't really be defined as warm or cool. I think it would work on almost all skin tones. It's definitely pigmented, and it glides onto my cheeks really smoothly. The powder is quite soft, and it's easy to pick up pigment, so you have to be careful only to get one or two swipes of blush on the brush. If you set it with powder, it stays on all day, which is awesome - most blushes disappear by the end of the day on me. It acts kind of like a blush/highlighter combo, so it's a one step application. It's awesome, and makes my routine that one step faster, minus the highlighter!

Here's a picture of me wearing it (I went overboard trying to get it to show up for the camera, sorry about that - I regularly don't wear nearly this much blush):

All in all, I absolutely love this blush! This is the only blush I've ever found that I can see myself wearing on a daily basis - it has just the right amount of shimmer, not glitter, and works as a highlighter as well as a blush. I think this will definitely become a part of my daily routine, because it really adds life to my face and stays all day! This product is my HG blush (although to be honest, I haven't tried many) and I will use it until I either find a new HG or use it up!

My Glam Bag Shipped!

I decided to subscribe to MyGlam after seeing the awesome first 2 bags that went out. I'm getting my first bag this month, in February. I've heard stories of awful customer service where people actually had to contact their banks in order to get their money back, and I was a bit annoyed when they said they would start shipping bags out on February 9th and finish shipping them February 14th, yet didn't ship any out until today, February 16th. I mean, isn't the idea of a Valentine's themed Glam Bag so that you can use it on actual Valentine's Day? I guess not. But anyway, I did get my bag shipped out today, here's the email they sent me:

Hopefully MyGlam will turn out to be a great service once they get the kinks in their system worked out, I think they're just having some issues, as they have quite a lot of subscribers and have maybe bitten off more than they can chew.

Making Your Eyes Look Bigger

I'm half Asian, and half white. I almost have white eyes though, I don't have a monolid. Yet my eyelid is still smaller than that of many of my white friends. So I can't follow regular makeup tutorials, since my eyelid is too smal. However, I can't use monolid application techniques exactly because my eyelid is too big. All of this amounts to: half Asian problems.
Half Asian problems mean that there are pretty much zero makeup tutorials out there tailored for your eye shape. It means that if I wanted to learn how to do makeup, I had to watch tutorials and experiment. A lot. Which I did. And I am now decently proficient at applying makeup (hooray)!

So I made a list of things you can do to make your eyes look bigger, because I personally really like having the look of big eyes. I will add each step to my look until we have the completed look of larger eyes. You're really supposed to curl your eyelashes and apply mascara last, to prevent eyeshadow from getting on your lashes and ruining the jet-blackness of the mascara, but I was just grabbing stuff from my drawer and it just didn't happen in that order.

1. Curl your eyelashes and add mascara or apply falsies (I chose curling/mascara)

Take an eyelash curler, and curl your lashes. There are plenty of Youtube tutorials on this if you don't know how, like this one by MakeUpGeek, which is a great resource.

My eye after curling my lashes/applying mascara:

2. Put white or skin-colored eyeliner on your waterline
I used NYX Jumbo pencil in Milk for this. It makes the whites of your eyes appear larger, making your eyes therefore appear bigger. Other pencils to use would be Tarte EmphasEYES and Rimmel Exaggerate Eyeliner in White.

My eye after curling my lashes/applying mascara and putting white eyeliner on my waterline:

3. Put a light shimmery shadow all over your lid, then a lighter shimmery color in the middle. This emphasizes the high point of your eyelid, making your eyes appear bigger. I used Inglot Pearl #397 all over, and Urban Decay Bootycall in the very center. Also put a light shimmery shadow in your inner corner. This brightens your eyes and makes you appear more awake, because it brings more light into your eyes. I used Inglot Pearl #397. Other eyeshadows you could use would be MAC Naked Lunch, MAC Shroom, or the bottom shade in the Wet N Wild Walking on Eggshells palette.

My eye after curling my lashes/applying mascara, putting white eyeliner on my waterline, and applying light shimmery shadow all over my lid/inner corner and lighter shimmery shadow in the center:

4. Draw a thin line of eyeliner on the outer 1/3 of your lid and blend out. I could make up some fancy sounding reason why this makes your eyes look better, but to tell the truth, I have no idea. It just works, and that's good enough for me. My guess is it contrasts the high and low points of your eye, making it seem larger?

My eye after curling my lashes, putting white eyeliner on my waterline, applying light shimmery shadow all over my lid/inner corner and lighter shimmery shadow in the center, and putting a thin line of eyeliner on the outer 1/3 of my lid:

If you do those 4 things, your eyes will look bigger. Here's a before anything and then after everything picture:

Here's a picture I took where Eye X has all the steps done to it, whereas Eye Y does not. I think that Eye X looks at least a tiny bit bigger than Eye Y:

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this tutorial. Having bigger eyes will help you look more awake, and I generally just like the look that bigger eyes give me. Let me know what you think in the comments!

What methods do you use to achieve bigger looking eyes?

Sephora VIB Freebie

This is one of the better freebies I've seen Sephora give out, and I'm thinking I might have to go spend my $35 to pick this one up. You can only use this if you are a VIB, meaning that you spent $350 or more within one calendar year. Thought I'd let you guys know. 

Valentine's Day FOTD

Wore some pink on my eyes today, which I don't usually do since pink eyeshadow makes me look tired. I had to use blush, since I don't own any pink eyeshadows. Anyway, here's my FOTD:

Eyes
-Urban Decay Primer Potion
-Bobbi Brown Pale Pink Blush (allover lid)
-Inglot #434 (very lightly in outer V)
-Urban Decay Half Baked (inner 1/3 of lid)
-Stila Kitten (inner corner)
-Inglot Gel Eyeliner in 90 (on top lashline)
-Fairydrops Scandal Queen Mascara

Face
-Wet N Wild Pearlescent Pink Blush
-Pur Minerals 4-in-1 in Blush Medium
-theBalm Sexy Mama Pressed Powder
-Inglot Cream Concealer in 21
-Make Up Forever Concealer in 7

Lips
-MAC Bombshell

Mid-February Favorites

Just thought I'd do a mid month favorites post, since I missed the end of the month and I'm really excited about these couple items right now. From now on, I will do mid month posts when I remember, and maybe even end/beginning months posts (again, only if I remember). I was hoping to do some FOTD posts last weekend, but unfortunately I was at a debate tournament and had pretty much no time. I also have a debate tournament this weekend, so there goes more opportunities to put on makeup (I wear extremely minimal makeup at debates, just very natural/subtle looks). Anyway, I've been really loving each of these items recently.

They are: Inglot Cream Concealer in #21, Inglot Pearl Eyeshadow #397, Inglot Pearl Eyeshadow #434, Lipstick Queen Lip Stain in Medieval, Inglot Gel liner in #90, AMC Lip Pencil in #24

From top to bottom: Lipstick Queen Lipstain in Medieval, Inglot AMC Lip Pencil in #24, Inglot Gel Liner in #90

Lipstick Queen Lipstain in Medieval

It's a sheer red lipstain (it appears pink in the picture, but it is red). This stays on throughout a meal and about 6 hours. It's just really easy to put on and head out the door, and it's not a super in your face color, and it easily makes you look put together. The color is buildable, and it's just really easy and fairly natural, depending on how much you apply. I wore this during my debate tournament, because it required about three seconds to apply it - so easy, and if you accidentally get some outside your lips, you can just wipe it off, no makeup remover required.

Inglot AMC Lip Pencil in #24

Awesome natural and totally matte color, great for every day. I did a full review on it here.

Inglot Gel Liner in #90

This liner is just amazing. I know I rave about pretty much all Inglot products, but I can't help it - I just love everything they make. Only one of my favorites is non-Inglot this month. And this liner is no exception to the rest of Inglot's high quality products. It's totally waterproof, applies smoothly, and packs some serious pigment. It stays on and doesn't transfer.

From top to bottom: Inglot Cream Concealer in #21, Inglot Pearl Eyeshadow #397, Inglot Pearl Eyeshadow #434

Inglot Cream Concealer in #21

Okay, when I visited the Inglot counter looking for a concealer I had serious doubts that I was going to find one that matched my skin, since I have yellow undertones. This one has yellow-ish undertones and is lighter than my Make Up Forever Full Cover Concealer in #7, which is too dark for my cheeks (it doesn't blend out and leaves a sort of dark spot). There were other concealer choices with neutral or pink undertones, but the neutral one looked ashy on my skin and the pink undertones one simply didn't work. This one covers any blemishes I might have (I don't use it for undereye circles), and blends in perfectly with my skintone.

Inglot Pearl Eyeshadow #397

This is the perfect allover lid shade to wake your eyes up or to use as an inner corner highlight - its shimmery but not glittery, and I use it in the inner corner extremely often. It's a light pinkish white color, and it's just gorgeous. Super easy to swipe on and go.

Inglot Pearl Eyeshadow #434

This shade is actually remarkably similar to NARS Lhasa, now that I think about it. I got it after I returned Lhasa, so I can't compare them side by side. But Lhasa was a shimmery lavender grey, and #434 is also a purpleish gunmetal grey color. Here's a picture of Lhasa on the right and #434 on the bottom. 

The lighting is different in both pictures, but in all honesty the shades are at least decently similar. I'll try to take a picture of #434 in daylight next time we have any, so the comparison will be clearer. Anyway, this can be used for your average grey eyeshadow purposes (crease, outer corner, etc.), but better. It's slightly purple, so it adds a hint of intriguing color. People will stare at your eyes for hours, trying to figure out if you're wearing purple or grey eyeshadow. Well, maybe not quite that dramatic, but it is definitely a fascinating and unique color. I'm thinking I might do a post on different ways to use a grey eyeshadow. Valentine's day is coming up tomorrow, I might try to do a look with pink eyeshadow (which I normally avoid since it often makes me look tired).

What are you currently loving mid-month? Are you planning any special makeup for Valentine's day?

Inglot AMC Lip Pencil in 24

This was my first lip pencil ever. I got in in the Inglot store in New York on impulse, because I wanted to try something new. I figured I would probably never get anything from Inglot again (I did not expect my local Macy's to acquire an Inglot counter!), so I might as well grab it. I picked a shade I liked, took it home, swatched it and wore it once or twice, then promptly forgot about it. You know you're a makeup addict when you buy a new type of product you haven't tried and then forget about it after a week...Anyway, recently I was trying to decide what to take with me on a weekend trip when I happened upon this pencil again.

I pulled it out, and my first thought was "Hey, I remember this! I liked it, until I forgot about it!" So I swatched it on my arm and fell in love with it. I then put it on my lips - it's a MLBB (my lips but better) type color. It's a pink dusty rose color with a hint of mauve in it. However, it's matte as a pencil, and it's matte on the lips. Like, totally, completely matte. The only way you could get shine is if you put lipgloss over it (personally, I like layering a clear gloss over it). So if you want a matte lipstick, this one's for you. Here are some swatches:

It's pretty decently pigmented. I would only need to go over my lips once for full coverage. But the color is decently buildable, and it's just such a nice color. It's so natural, yet so put together. The only issue I have with it is that the cap falls off all the time if I travel with it, because it doesn't go on very tight - I'm afraid if I force it on, it will crack. Otherwise, I really like it! It lasts about 3-4 hours on me, and overall it's just an absolutely lovely product.

What do you think of lip pencils versus lipsticks?

Inglot Sleeks Lip Gloss in 40 Review/Swatch

This will be a really quick review. Okay, I love this lipgloss. It has a sort of lip-glossy scent to it, kind of sweet but fruity. Personally, I love it. This is honestly my favorite lipgloss of all time. It has some silver and iridescent glitter in it that does transfer onto your lips, which is lovely. It's not tacky at all. The color looks simple, but is actually quite hard to describe.

It's a medium pink with a slight mauve or purple undertone. It is mediumly pigmented, but still fairly sheer, making it the perfect gloss to throw on and go out the door - I doubt I would even need a mirror to apply this, yet it gives some really nice color to my lips. It's absolutely not sticky. Here's some swatches.

It lasts about 2-3 hours on my lips and leaves behind some glitter (it doesn't look weird, just vaguely glossy/shimmery). Overall, I absolutely love both the formulation and color of this lip gloss. I picked up another one in color 50, and will do a quick review on that soon. I really dislike how they don't name their colors like MAC does - it's so much harder to remember, and makes it feel less personal, somehow. Everyone knows "Satin Taupe", but if I was to say "Hey, have you tried Inglot Lip Sleeks Lip Gloss in 40?" I would get some weird looks. Anyway, thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed this review!

What do you think of makeup companies calling their shades by number? Which do you prefer, name or number?

Review of Rite Aid Renewal Eyeshadow Brush

I heard about this line from Nouveau Cheap, who mentioned that the brushes from the Rite Aid Renewal line were soft and very high quality for drugstore, store-brand brushes. Who could resist that promise? So when I visited Rite Aid, disappointed that the Maybelline Color Tattoo eyeshadows were out in the colors I had been lemming (Tough as Taupe and Bad to the Bronze), I marched over to the Rite Aid Renewal brushes. I already have my HG powder brush from ELF, so I knew I wasn't getting their powder brush. Lash and brow groomer I have 2 of from sets I bought, so that was out. I don't use liquid foundation, so no duofibre stippling brush for me. Smudge brush I felt I didn't need. I didn't wan't the travel kit - I'm pretty happy towing my full size brushes everywhere I go. So my other option was the eyeshadow brush. Now, I usually use my Sephora Double Ended Every Day this-name-is-too-long-to-write-out-every-time-so-it-will-from-now-on-be-called-the-Sephora-Double-Ended-Brush to place eyeshadow allover my lid. But I had never really tried a different one (the Eco Tools one I got in my set was much too large for my half-Asian half-white eyes). This one looked like the perfect size. So I grabbed it and checked out.

I took it home and immediately snatched up my camera to start taking pictures. I took some with the packaging on.

I then took the brush out of its packaging. The first thing I noticed is that one of the brush hairs was loose! It came out shortly after, with a little bit of tugging.

In terms of first impressions, that wasn't a good one. =/  But I scrubbed it on my hand a little, and no further shedding occurred. So I shrugged and moved on. The next thing I did was to wash it. It survived its washing with no shedding at all (whooo!) Here's the brush after its first washing:

I then pulled out MAC Satin Taupe and picked up some color with the brush. It does a very nice job of picking up pigment - the bristles are quite dense, and therefore decently stiff but very soft at the same time.

I then took it and placed it next to my Sephora double ended brush, my usual shader brush, for comparison. As you can see, the Sephora brush is thinner and flatter, and also less dense. The bristles on the Rite Aid Renewal Eyeshadow Brush are also much shorter.

I then used it to apply color to my eye. It wasn't really large enough to pack on the color  allover my lid, and too dense to use it to swipe the color on - it just kind of deposited all the eyeshadow in one place - the first place you touched it to. However, the next day I used it to pack color on in my outer corner, instead of using a crease brush as I usually do. Magic! It packed the color on densely, and it was just absolutely fabulous. Now, whenever I need to pack color on in the outer corner, this is my go-to brush. It was only $3.99, and it was absolutely worth it. I review brushes based on 3 things: softness (this is very important to me), function, and durability. 

Softness: 10/10, this brush is absolutely lovely in that respect!

Function: 8/10, it was meant to place color all over the lid but is too small for this use. However, it is useful for applying eyeshadow to the outer corner of the eye. Still, it would have been nice if I could have used it as intended.

Durability: 9/10, the handle is nice and solid and no wiggly ferrule, but shedding that hair when I first took it out of the packaging was a bummer. It's true what they say, first impressions are everything - it survived its' washing, but I'll be on the lookout still next time I wash it.

Total: 27/30, or 90% (A-)

I might have to pick up some more of these brushes next time I'm at Rite Aid - perhaps they will function better for their intended use than this one did.