BrandBacker Review: BA STAR Lip Pencil in Holiday Red

Although lip products come in all shapes and sizes, lip pencils are continuously my go-to product. They provide a wide array of colours and finishes, and their ease of application makes them perfect for on the go. That's why when I saw a BrandBacker Campaign for a BA STAR Lip Pencil I jumped at the opportunity to try it out. I have reviewed a few other BA STAR products through BrandBacker in the past, and will link them below.

BrandBacker is a promotion website that links companies and bloggers in order to review products and services. If you would like to sign up for BrandBacker you can do so by clicking here.

BA STAR is the #1 brand in performance makeup for dancers, cheerleaders, and performers.

BA STAR Stardust Mineral Eye Shadow

BA STAR Smokey Eye Shadow Palettes

BA STAR Holographic Loose Glitter



The Holiday Red lip pencil is described as a full coverage lip pencil in the perfect runway red. It claims to line and colour the lips easily in colour that stays all day. You can sharpen it easily with a duo hole pencil sharpener. For extra shine apply glitter and/or gloss over top.

I have to say that I was really impressed with this lip product. The colour is extremely pigmented, giving a classic red colour to my lips. Without gloss it dries to an almost matte finish that is not drying. I was fine wearing it alone and my lips did not feel dry at all. The colour lasts vibrantly for hours and when it does wear off, I am left with a subtle pinkish-red stain. The stain lasts for some time as well. I cant wait to pair this with some black, cat-eye liner, for a vintage/pin-up look. I can see myself wearing this a lot this Fall and Winter.

These pencils retail for $8.75 a piece, however if you order 6 or more you can get them for a reduced price of $5 a pencil. Available colours include:

• Cranberry - deep rich colour
• Passion Pink - deep full pink
• Bronze - natural shimmer
• Holiday Red - perfect stage red

Right now BA STAR is offering a 50% off code for all of my readers. Enter BBLIPS at checkout. Discount is off full retail price only. Cannot be combined with any other offers.

Disclaimer - I received this product for review purposes because I am part of the BrandBacker community. This in no way influences my thoughts or opinions on this product.

BA STAR Stardust Mineral Eye Shadow

Today I will be reviewing another product from BA STAR. Like all of the others, I received this as being part of Brand Backer. Brand Backer is a website that connects bloggers and companies. These mineral eye shadows are available in 9 different shades, that come with their signature glitter glue. Each combo costs $8.75, or if you buy 6 or more you get them at a discount price of $5.00. If you are interested in buying some of these mineral shadows for yourself, visit the website here.

Now I'm normally not a fan of loose eye shadows. They are messy, take so much time to work with, and can take quite a few layers to build up pigmentation, but this shadow is one I will be reaching for a lot.

Alone with no primer, this shadow is pretty sheer, just a wash of shimmery bronze. However, it really comes alive when you use it with the glitter glue base. I've come to realize that this glue is really more of a super primer, as it is not sticky at all. The shadow foils over the primer and becomes an opaque, gorgeous bronze. I can see myself using this by itself as a wash of colour over the lid, or in conjunction with some other shadows to create a smoky eye.

If you want to buy some of these shadows BA STAR has offered a 50% off code for all of my readers. Just enter BBDUST at the checkout. This code is valid through September 30th, 2013.

 Disclaimer: Products in this post were provided by PR in exchange for a review.

Review: BA STAR Holo Glitter

Hey ladies! Today's post will be a review of BA STAR's holographic glitter and glitter glue. I was sent these products from BA STAR in exchange for a review. I was really impressed by the last products I was sent from BA STAR, so I had high hopes for these. They did not disappoint, so check out the review below.

The glitter glue came in a lip gloss type tube with a doe foot applicator. I didn't find that it had a scent, and although it is white in the tube it goes on pretty clear. It dries fairly quickly, at least I think that it does. It is hard to tell if it is drying or not because the formula isn't very wet, it is more of a cream texture. It holds the glitter fairly well, and isn't overly sticky, so I didn't have to scrub to get it off. I was impressed with this glue and will use it with some of the other glitters I have in the future.

 The glitter is very finely milled, and a little goes a long way. As you can see above in the lid it flashes all colours of the rainbow. It isn't gritty, like other glitters I've tried, so it didn't irritate my skin. I didn't try it on my eye because I am worried about it getting in my eye, but I was impressed by what I did try. I think that it would look really nice in a top coat on my nails. I am going to be trying this soon and if it turns out well I will post it on here.

I kept the one shot out of focus and super zoomed in so that you could see how pretty all the different colours are. My swatching skills were lacking here so the swatch on my hand is kind of sparse. However, to actually get the swatch to be opaque, you would need quite a bit of glitter, more than I would wear on a daily basis. I think putting a light wash of glitter to finish off an eye look would be good for an everyday look. Maybe on New Years I will pack on the glitter and go all out. When I tried to put the glitter from the lid onto my hand with my finger, most of the glitter stayed on my finger. I don't think, with this glitter, you would need much glue, it holds on pretty well on its own.

Overall, I am impressed with this glitter. I cant wait to try it on my nails, and in a makeup look. This little pot is going to last me a really long time, so I cant see myself having to buy more anytime soon. BA STAR has other colours available on their website. The other colours look nice, but I think that the holographic is the most unique.

If you are interested in trying this glitter out, check out the link above. The glitter and glue combo retails for $8.75, however, for my readers BA STAR has offered 50% when you use the code BBGLITZ.

 

Disclaimer: I received these products from BA STAR for free in exchange for a review. I was eligible for this campaign because I am part of BrandBacker. This review was 100% honest and my own thoughts. 

Review: BA STAR Smoky Eye Shadow Palettes

Disclaimer - This product was sent to me for review purposes from BA STAR through the website BrandBacker. I am not being compensated for this post. Opinions on this product are 100% honest and my own.

BA STAR offers four different smoky glitter palettes on their website in the colours: Natural, Smoky, Pretty N Pink, and True Blue. I received the Natural palette which is the one I was hoping for. You can see the other three by clicking HERE.

This palette comes with three mineral eye shadows in the colours Bronze, Cocoa, and Nude, as well as, two gel glitters in Gold and Crystal. It also includes a dual ended brush.

The brush is pretty cheap and I will never use it. One side has a sponge applicator and the other has a little brush with plastic bristles. Overall, the quality of this brush is lacking. I don't know why companies even include these.

The glitters are nice, but not practical for everyday wear because of the gel base. But I didn't have high expectations for everyday wear. Because BA STAR creates and markets their makeup for use by cheerleaders and dance teams, these glitters need to stand up to sweat, but are not likely to be worn on the eyes. In my life I would probably only use these on Halloween.

The gold glitter needs a few layers before it is semi opaque. I didn't find that the gold was as pretty out of the pan as it is in the pan. For me, the gel base didn't completely dry and on my eyes would crease fairly quickly. I also really had to scrub to get the glitter off which irritated my skin.

The crystal glitter was super pretty swatched on my hand. This glitter flashes a rainbow of colours, in the right light, and I tried my best to capture that. This would be perfect to use if I was doing a Fairy or Mermaid Halloween look. The downside of these glitters for me is that they irritated my skin. After removing the swatches from my hand I was left with a lovely red rash for the rest of the day. I'm not saying this will happen to everyone. Obviously one of the ingredients does not mesh with my skin.

The eye shadows in this palette far exceeded my expectations! I would not hesitate to purchase all four palettes just for the eye shadows and depot them into a freestyle palette. They were super smooth, and buttery and went on like a dream. The only one I had a problem with was Nude. It was a bit chalky and had a bit of fallout. Bronze and Cocoa were both opaque with one swipe. The colour payoff was amazing! I really think Bronze would look good over Maybelline's Bad to the Bronze cream shadow. I really love the tiny gold barely there glitter in Cocoa, it really adds a nice depth to the shadow. Nude would be great over Maybelline's Barely Branded cream shadow and perfect for an everyday makeup look.

I really love these shadows already and could see myself using them daily. If you would like to try BA STAR's Smoky palettes, or any of their other products, readers of my beauty full adventure will receive 50% off by using code BBSMOKY at the checkout.