Life is Short. Buy the Makeup.

Swap For Safer: MAC Lipstick in "Blankety" It's that time again for another "Swap For Safer". Today's safer option is a dupe for the MAC Amplified Creme Lipstick in the shade "Blankety". I absolutely love this nude shade! It's the best cool toned nude shade for my skin tone, and it looks gorgeous with a smokey eye. However, MAC Lipsticks do not have the cleanest ingredients, so when I was at Sephora recently, I was determined to find a non-toxic dupe for it. Let's get started!

Urban Decay Matte Revolution Lipsticks Urban Decay has released 9 new shades for Fall, the Matte Revolution Lipsticks ! Each lipstick retails for $20 (0.09 oz) and is available in-store and online at Ulta , Sephora , and the Urban Decay Website . Matte lips are a must-have during the Fall! The formula of these lipsticks are a creamy matte that glides on easily on the skin. I will go into more details on specific shades below! Let's get in to the swatches!

Estee Lauder Double Wear Foundation DUPE The Estee Lauder Double Wear Foundation is a holy grail foundation for many girls who NEED a long-wearing and high coverage foundation. I am no exception, it is hands down my holy grail foundation. I have tried out many many many drugstore foundations, hoping to find a dupe for the Double Wear. From the Maybelline Fluid Touch, Revlon ColorStay, CoverGirl 3-in-1, to the Rimmel Stay Matte. Many have been ok, but none were comparable to the longevity, coverage, but natural look of the Estee Lauder. I have oily acne prone skin, so I need a full coverage foundation that will cover my acne and discoloration, not leave my skin looking greasy, and must last all day. While I love everything about the Estee Lauder Double Wear foundation, I hate the price. This retails for $37 (1 fl oz) at Estee Lauder Counters, Sephora , and the Estee Lauder Website . Thankfully, I have finally found an almost identical dupe, for 1/3rd of the price!

I was on the hunt for the longest time to find a brush small enough to add darker colors of eyeshadow to the socket of the corner of my eye. I wanted to define the crease just a little more. Unfortunately, due to the tiny size of my eyes, finding a brush small enough was impossible! I have heard amazing things about brushes from MAC, and particularly, the MAC 219 Pencil Brush looked small enough and pointed exactly to the shape that I hoped would fit my crease perfectly! However, the one downside to MAC brushes are that they are quite expensive. The 219 retails for $25 . I was determined to find a dupe for this brush! It took quite some time to find the right size, most small brushes were still too fat and not pointed enough on the end to be considered a dupe. But I finally found an exact dupe from Eco Tools!

While I was swatching some of the single Urban Decay eyeshadows at Ulta recently, I noticed that the shade "X" is almost identical to the new shade I picked up from Prestige! The Prestige Total Intensity Eyeshadow in "Spellbound" is a light gold with a pink duochrome finish. The color is almost identical to Urban Decay's shade in "X" , though "X" is just slightly more pigmented. Both a beautiful wash of pink and gold duochrome, perfect for everyday. Urban Decay eyeshadow singles run for $18 each, whereas the Prestige Total Intensity shadow in "Spellbound" retails for $8.49. So for less than half the price, you can get the same quality and exact same color without spending too much. Here as some swatches of each and a side by side comparison. They do look different in the comparison swatches, but I assure you, on the lids, they look the exact same. "Spellbound" Total Intensity Eyeshadow Prestige L to R...

Source: Urban Decay, Wet n Wild Cosmetics I have absolutely fallen in love with the Urban Decay Revolution lipsticks! They're intensely pigmented, creamy, and somewhat long wearing. However, the $22 price tag isn't so nice for someone on a budget. These lipsticks can be purchased at  urbandecay.com , Ulta , and Sephora . Last week I picked up the Wet n Wild MegaLast lipstick in "Smokin Hot Pink" . These lipsticks retail for ONLY $1.99 at Walmart, Walgreens, and other select mass retailers. This shade is an almost exact color dupe for the Urban Decay Revolution lipstick in "Catfight" . Both shades are a bright medium fuchsia pink that is just gorgeous! It's the perfect color if you're looking for a berry shade for Fall or Winter but don't want an intensely dark color. These lipsticks do differ in finishes. The Wet n Wild is more opaque and has a matte finish, but if you wear a lip balm underneath, it looks like a satin natur...

After receiving an Ulta gift card, I knew I had to pick up the Bare Minerals Stroke Of Light Eye Brightener. This "corrector" if you will, is available for $22 in-stores and online at Ulta , Sephora , and online at bareescentuals.com . Bare Minerals Stroke Of Light Eye Brightener I picked up the shade "Luminous 1" . There are 4 shades available , this one being the lightest and most pink. So if you have a fair to light skin tone, about a MAC NC15-25, this will be your perfect shade. Any fairer and it might be too dark under your eyes to brighten.  Bare Minerals "Luminous 1" "Luminous 1" is a pale pink liquid formula. I find liquid concealers the best for under the eye. The brightener comes in a tube with a flat doe foot applicator. The wand isn't stiff and bends at the tip. There is 0.18 oz of product, so a fairly good amount. The formula has a solid medium coverage and doesn't settle into my fine lines. Keep in mind I h...

I recently came across a dupe in my nail polish collection for OPI's "Thanks A Windmillion" polish that came out with the 2012 Holland Collection. The dupe I came across is the Rimmel 60 Seconds Nail Polish in "Sage All The Rage" . This shade can best be described as a muted mid toned sage green, as the name suggests. It leans slightly cooler in tone. This is available year round in the permanent collection and retails for $1.50 , what a steal! OPI's "Thanks A Windmillion" is a muted mid-toned sea foam green with a hint of blue in it. The color is more blue and just a little darker than "Sage All The Rage", but they are both a muted color and not overly bright. A full review for OPI "Thanks A Windmillion" can be found HERE . Here's a comparison of the two. (They look almost identical on the nail!) (Left) Rimmel London "Sage All The Rage", (Right) OPI "Thanks A Windmillion" So if you can...

I recently picked up OPI's "German-icure" from the Fall 2012 Germany Collection at Ulta on clearance for 99 cents, it rang up at 50% off its $1.97 price tag! The full name of this polish is "German-icure by OPI" but for convenience I'll just call it "German-icure". Here is a quick review and comparison of this polish for you guys! The packaging is the standard 0.50 fl oz glass bottle that OPI uses. While I did find mine on clearance at Ulta, and this collection did come out 2 years ago, it's possible to still find it at salons or other places OPI is old. "German-icure by OPI" OPI "German-icure" is a dark burgundy brown with a metallic finish . It has a very fine shimmer to the polish that gives it the metallic finish. This color is absolutely stunning in for the Fall, or year round if you love dark polishes. The finish is very shiny and reflects the light perfectly to enhance the metallic finish. "German-...

Clinique Chubby Stick Shadow Tint I recently picked up the Clinique Chubby Stick Shadow Tint for Eyes in 01 "Bountiful Beige" at my local Younkers. These sticks retail for $17 (0.1 oz) and are available at your local Clinique Counter, Sephora , and the Clinique Website . Let's get in to the swatches!

Source: maccosmetics.com, essence.com MAC recently re-released their Extra Dimension Eye Shadows in their Summer Alluring Aquatic Collection. And for those of us not near a MAC counter that need to buy online, these shadows are SOLD OUT everywhere!! And for good reason, they are stunning eye shadows in the most adorable packaging ever! These shadows retail for $19.50 a piece. While I was at Ulta this week, I noticed in the Essence display the Essence 3D Eyeshadows . They are almost identical in the pan to the MAC Extra Dimension Eye Shadows, both have the same three dimensional design. The Essence ones have cheaper packing, just a simple clear plastic container, and do have more glitter than the MAC ones. Though the glitter isn't chunky. The Essence shadows are duos, instead of the single shadow that the MAC ones are. You can use the colors separately or swirl them together. I recommend using these shadows over a primer and try applying them wet to get an even more met...