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Becca! Eyeko! More!
[May 3, 2018: This post and title have been updated. I originally thought this story was about a Sephora purchase, but later remembered it all came from Ulta! Mea culpa!]
PSA: If you like Ulta, make sure you order online. All orders get free samples, first of all, but you can also use one of the loads of Offers they always have going —————> and ALSO google for promo codes to get additional money off. The trick is deciding which one promo code you want to use, because each one brings a different free item or set!
Make sure you de-spamify (and de-Promo, if you use Gmail) their emails because those have great same-day deals sometimes too. (And don’t forget Ebates for any Ulta or Sephora purchase, for an additional 3-6% off. PLUS when you get your Ebates rebate, you can choose an Ulta Gift Card and get the amount boosted by 12%!!! Free Ulta money!).
<——Look at this haul! It’s an 18 piece sample set; added to the 3 free samples, I got 21 things! All just for replacing my usual mascara (Eyeko Sport) and lipcolor! (Covergirl Outlast). Sadly, I just checked and this promo is no longer available.
Most of this is going to Miyako, since she and her dorm buddies can undoubtedly make better use of it all than I can (especially the perfume samples-perfume gives me a headache). In truth, I ordered it just as a fun thing to be able to send to them, although I am keeping a few great finds: an Estee Lauder primer, Perricone Cold Plasma Plus, and the First Aid Beauty Facial Radiance Pads. I’ll report back about those.
But one thing I was super excited about was a sample of NARS Powermatte Lip Pigment. I’m always excited to try a new matte long-wear lipcolor. And amazingly, the sample was in a FANTASTIC natural rose color that I’d actually wear (that never happens) called American Woman, because for whatever reason all of the colors are named after 70s/80s rock songs. —>
Anyway, it goes on beautifully, very smooth and weightless — much less dense than my other matte lipcolors — yet perfectly opaque, instant full coverage, and a gorgeous shade.
It’s a small sample, so I had to be careful about how to test it out. I wore it one day, and it stayed on nicely. Not like the wear of Beauty Bakerie Lip Whip or my current beloved Cover Girl Outlast, but also a much more wearable and less “intense” look to begin with. And it wore off in a very natural way that left a light pigment on the entire lip, rather than just a gap around the water line.
But as you know, all makeup must be tested at dance. So today, a hot 75 degree day in Eugene, I wore it to my dance class. Here it is before class, and after:
Unfortunately, I spaced out and wiped my lips right a the end of class, so this isn’t entirely a fair test (also the reason it’s more faded on my left side than my right), but basically, it didn’t maintain through class the way my heavy matte lipcolors do, but it did keep a really great light pigment across the whole lip that looked incredibly natural. I’m going to test it again tonight at my new Hip Hop class, which is even more of a sweat-fest.
So upshot: I really like NARS Powermatte Lip Pigment. It performed WAY better than Tatouage Couture Liquid Matte Lip Stain, which I think it probably a direct competitor that I tried before and didn’t find all that impressive. And NARS is $10 cheaper than Tatouage! I’m in love with the color, and I want to try it out in some more contexts. NARS makes a matching lip pencil for all Powermatte colors so that may be in the cards at some point.
But the larger point is: there are all kinds of free samples you can get from Ulta (and Sephora) if you choose your promo codes wisely. And of course if you get a membership, you collect credit to use over time for yet more free stuff. Of course this is how they hook you in. But if it’s a thing that gives you joy, well, it’s a good thing.
*My regular intro:
Welcome to #MakeupMonday, my weekly series on makeup; academic and postacademic job market and productivity posts will continue on Tuesday and Friday as usual.
Here is my weekly reminder: I will not engage with makeup-shaming here or on any Facebook or Twitter comment threads. I support your right to not wear makeup, and anyone who dislikes makeup, disapproves of makeup, or wants to argue that no academic woman should be judged on the basis of makeup (which nobody is claiming anyway), I suggest you come back for my other posts on other topics.
For previous posts, see the following:
- Yes This Post Is About Long-Wear Lipcolor
- Welcome to Makeup Monday
- Why Makeup, Why Now?
- Face Makeup, The Basics
- Face Makeup, Getting Fancy
- All About Eyes
- Brows Get Their Own Post, Because Of Course They Do
- More on Lipsticks and Introducing Shae
- Big News on the Lipcolor Front!
- Travel Tips
- Introducing Sailor-J: The Makeup Blogger U Need When Ur Exposing Sexual Harassment in the Academy
- The Makeup Tool I Can’t Do Without
- Christmas Makeup
- Skin Care as Coping Mechanism and Catalyst
- How I Got My Lashes Back
- The Full-Beat Face
- Updates From Karen
- The Most Important Makeup Product-A Guest Post
- The Best Under-eye Product
- Beyonce’s Makeup Artist, Sir John
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