Hourglass Unreal Volumizing Lip Gloss Swatches and Review

WHY AREN'T THESE ALL OVER THE INTERNET!!?? 

I guess the idea of lip glosses isn't something brand new or trending, and in all honesty, this type of product isn't something so incredibly new... but it's basically all the things you love about a lip gloss in one. 

Here's the Hourglass Unreal Volumizing Lip Gloss! Just a bit about the product: It has .2oz of product for $30, so it is considered a luxury item. Hourglass also says: 

An innovative formula infused with powerful active ingredients for rich hydration and a long-lasting look of volume. With supernatural volume and ethereal shine, lips appear fuller without the sting of traditional lip plumpers. Light-reflecting shimmer and brilliant luster give multidimensional shine that’s unreal. Unreal Volumizing High Shine Lip Gloss is available in 18 high-shine shades.

It also has: *Volulip™ and Hyaluronic Acid: Delivers rich moisture to enhance the look of lips’ natural shape for long-lasting volume. *Shea Butter and Avocado Oil: Hydrates lips.

Below are the swatches of the shades I have: 

L-R: Halo, Provoke, Solar, Canvas, Icon

Halo - clear with gold shimmer

Solar - coral with gold pearl

Provoke - mauve nude

Canvas - true rose

Icon - blue red 

Here are my thoughts: 

Packaging: The packaging is in any standard lip gloss package. It does feel weighty and luxurious with a golden cap. I love the round but flat doe foot applicator that really allows to carry a lot of gloss in one go. It almost looks like a paddle, so it's able to conform to my cupids bow as well! 

Formula: is SO SMOOTH! It's NOT sticky at all and feels thick enough to feel hydrating and luxurious, but not too thick that it feels overwhelming. It has a bit of a minty flavor to it to help "plump" your lips, but it's not overwhelming or stinging. It's incredibly comfortable on the lips! 

Moisture: This is SO moisturizing! I got a sunburn on my lips the other day and didn't have anything else but this gloss in my bag, so I used it, and it really did hydrate my lips so nicely! With shea butter, avoid oil and hyaluronic acid, there's no doubt this product hydrates ur lips nicely! 

Pigmentation: I mean - LOOK AT THEM! They give just the right amount of pigmentation for a gloss. The neutral colors are not fully opaque, but you can still SEE the colors for a while. Then you have the bold colors that are -- well, as you can see in Icon ... bold! 

Lasting ability: I would say they last as any standard lip gloss. It was about 2-3 hours before I had to reapply. 

Overall: LOVE. If you have an extra $30 lying around, I definitely recommend trying this product out. Although it's not a super new type of product, they really perfected the lip gloss formula to give you everything you've ever needed! Like.... I'm waiting for the 20% off sales so I can pick up more!!! :P 

Thank you Hourglass for sending me some of these! :)

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Drunk Elephant Reformulated LALA Retro with Ceramides!

GOSH -- guys, when I heard they were reformulating LaLa Retro, I was a bit freaked out! I (along with so many people) loveee this cult favorite product. It's a great staple moisturizer for me during the winter month when my skin needs a bit more moisture and love.

The original LaLa Retro is a whipped moisturizer that is a blend of six African oils and locks in intense moisture. It also has plantain extract (to brighten skin), sodium hyaluronate cross polymer to release long lasting hydration and antioxidant rich fermented green tea and omega acids to combat aging. Personally for me, I lived off of this moisturizer during the winter months. It kept my eczema from flaring up because the texture was lightweight but extremely hydrating.

Now insert my freak out when I heard they were reformulating it. WHY!? I asked. lol. According to Allure, Tiffany Masterson, the brand founder said:

"I believe there is always room for improvement," the brand's founder, Tiffany Masterson, tells Allure. "When it occurred to me that ceramides needed a more prominent place in my line, I decided to add them to a product that was already great instead of making a whole new product. I didn’t know I could like it [Lala Whipped Retro Cream] more, but I do."

Here is the new formulation of the LaLa Retro (with Ceramides) that I received from the Drunk Elephant Pop Up Shop!

So this product apparently is the SAME formula as the original LaLa Retro, but now has added ceramides. According to Drunk Elephant's instagram, they said the new formula has the power of plant ceramides AP, EOP and NP. (I honestly have no clue what that means lol and had to look it up) They further explained:

Derived from plant sources, ceramides are identical to the moisturizing lipids and fats that occur naturally in skin. In [the new Lala Retro], they help sooth and maintain the moisture balance of skin while protecting against water loss. 

Ok. SO.. luckily, I was able to stop by the Drunk Elephant Pop Up Shop  where they were giving out samples of the new LaLa Retro and I was able to try the product out. I tried it for a week. Of course, the last time I used lala was in the winter time, but this formulation seems very similar... maybe, just maybe I would say it's a bit creamier, but even a bit more lightweight than the original formula. Below you can see the left is the new Lala, and the right is the old Lala. I honestly, can hardly tell a difference!

For me, the original product doesn't work for me in the summer time because my skin gets HELLA oily. Last year when I was still trying to finish up Lala, I had to stop because it was too much moisture and made me have to wash my face more often because it was getting too greasy (I was scared to break out!). When I tried it out last week (for a week), although it was still more moisturizing than I need, it didn't cause me to want to wash my face off. I would still save the rest of this product for the winter time when I really need it for my dry skin days, but at least I know that it has an extra added boost to help maintain my moisture balance. Below you can see it leaves a slight sheen but melts right into your skin.

I think for me the best part is that even with the added ceramides, this product is still $60. To me that is SUCH A WIN because they are adding even more great benefits to your skin without any added costs, so THANK YOU DRUNK ELEPHANT! lol!

I noticed that the original Lala Retro is now S/O on the Drunk Elephant website, so I believe this product comes out very soon in early July... keep your eyes peeled! ;) I will update when I get confirmation of the launch date!

Will you be picking this up?! :D

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Drunk Elephant House of Drunk Pop Up Shop Experience!

Recently, Drunk Elephant opened up a Pop Up Shop in NYC -- and I wish I got this post up sooner, but life has gotten in the way, and the pop up is gone already :( However, I wanted to show you how COOL and fun it was! The pop up was in the heart of soho from June 14-23. It was a relatively small space, but inside were so many fun, instagrammable spots and of course the best part - free samples!

The pop up shop had an "acid trip" type of theme with their big smiley faces and 'psychedelic' walls. You definitely can't miss the place (I came in torrential downpour and saw the cute little flag and neon signs lol!)

Upon walking in, you immediately see the check out to the left (with fun charms) and to the right, was an amazing lit up wall that looked like a kaleidoscope. WHEN YOU TOUCHED IT, THAT SH*T MOVED! I didn't get a picture, but I had to capture this video for you to see it! :P

When you continued on, there was just a fun room where you could sit that had cool blow up furniture. And to the left, were all there products displayed. There were such sweet people on the floor to help you with all your skincare questions -- however, I literally had all of the products already...... so I really didn't need anything. :P

To the left of that, there was an interactive machine where you can type in the type of skin you would like, and they printed you a ticket so you receive some free samples. You didn't need to purchase anything to get this sample -- and you got three great sized samples! I got the night time one which I received a glycolic night serum, protein peptide cream, and the marula oil (three of my FAVORITES!).

As you continued, there was the perfect little instagram shot of a mouth. I of course made my husband pose for me, even though he was reluctant LOL

Then came the "star" of the show, because they will be launching the new LALA RETRO soon -- with CERAMIDES! -- Now... I feel hesitant because I do love the original LALA, but the lady mentioned that it'll be the same formula, but with added ceramides, which made me feel a bit better. Unfortunately, you couldn't buy it early from there (which I was hoping!!!), butttttt - they gave you a sample on your way out, which was AWESOME!

Before you pay, they also had their DE gear that you could purchase, such as a sweatshirt, a bag, and other logo-ed items that you would otherwise have to purchase online. I of course picked up another Dopp Kit because it's literally the best bag (its like a traveling cube) but cooler, neon and is the perfect size to fit ALL your travel needs -- plus it's only $18 which I find to be a HUGE steal.

When you pay, you are able to receive your sample, they threw in a new lala retro sample as well as a charm of your choice!

What a seriously fun experience! I'm just sad I wasn't able to post this sooner for you to all go if you were able to! However, if you follow me on IG, you would've seen all the good stuff on there! Not sure if they are planning any new pop ups in the future, but I'm sure if they do, they would announce it on their website!

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