BellaSugar

Bella Bargain: 50% Off Benefit "Buh Buys"

BellaSugar — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 13:00:40 -0700

This is one deal I'd rather say"hello" to: Benefit's currently offering 24 products at 50 percent off. Included in these buh buys are several shades of glosses, shadows, and more, along with a couple products you've already reviewed (like Jiffy Tan).

The selection features favorites from face wash and foundation to eye and lip liners, so I'm seeing a great reason to stock up on a familiar product or try something new - but don't complain if you feel half-off makes you want to spend twice as much in the end.

Reader Review of the Day: Benefit Jiffy Tan

BellaSugar — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 13:00:15 -0700

I am on a serious pursuit for the perfect self-tanner. You know the drill. It has to be nonorange, nonstreaking, and nonoffensive in the odor department. Frequent contributor Macgirl is a fan of Benefit Jiffy Tan ($28), and here's the scoop:

For whatever reason, I have the palest legs in the world. My upper body is four shades darker than my legs. This gets rough when I throw on a dress to go out, as I hate pantyhose. A little bit of Jiffy Tan mixed with my favorite lotion, and my legs look OK enough to not get funny looks or comments!

Now, it's your turn to help a Bella out. What's your favorite self-tanner? Head over to our self-tanner category in the Product Reviews section and spill it.

How-To: Maggie Q's Fresh Face in Five Minutes

BellaSugar — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 14:00:37 -0700

We already know that actress Maggie Q does glamazon-gorgeous well, but it's fun to see her hit the red carpet with a more natural (yet equally beautiful) look as well. At the premiere of The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3, she looks bright-eyed and beautiful. To fake this look at home in five minutes, all you need is a five-step process. For the scoop, read more.

Minute one: Start with a clean, moisturized face. Apply a tinted moisturizer with SPF, then conceal any blemishes.
Minute two: Smile to make the apples of your cheeks more prominent, then blend a light pink cream blush from the apples toward the hairline.
Minute three: Apply a luminizer, such as Benefit High Beam, on your cheekbones, brow bone, and collarbone. This will reflect light and give you a natural-looking glow.
Minute four: Curl your eyelashes. (Here's how.) This seems like a superfluous step, but curling will give you a bright-eyed look. Follow by sweeping the top eyelashes with a coat or two of mascara.
Minute five: Use a nude-colored pencil lip liner (try Wet n' Wild #666, a cheap but versatile shade) to fill in your lips, then dab lip balm on top.

See? Easy!
Source

Six Tips For Beautiful Brows

BellaSugar — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 09:00:13 -0700

When plucking (or is it tweezing?) your eyebrows at home, do you get less-than-stellar results? Whatever your case might be, the Chicago Sun-Times has some great tips for achieving beautiful brows from Benefit Cosmetics' brow expert, Hillary Foote.

I think we've all experienced baldy brows from going overboard with the tweezers at one time or another. Find out what you need to do to avoid wimpy brows and discover six ways to create enviable arches when you read more.

Before tweezing: "Fill in your natural brow line with a brow powder or wax before you do any reshaping. Seeing a full brow will help you pluck only must-go stray hairs and prevent you from over-tweezing," says Foote. She recommends Benefit Brow Zings ($30) to get the job done.
On trends: Foote encourages sticking to what works for you, instead of following the latest trends. "Slightly thicker brows are better than too skinny, barely there brows," she advises. I agree.
Tweezer happy: If you happen to get a little too overzealous with that tweezer, just wait patiently for those brows to return. "Growing back your brow hair usually takes two to three months," Foote states.
Don't tweeze above: "Always tweeze hairs beneath the brow line, instead of along the top of the brow," Foote forwarns. "This prevents you from creating an over-manicured shape and ruining your natural arch," she adds.
Arch support: "Use brow filler to emphasize your arch, which you can measure by aligning a pencil along the side of your nose at an angle and pointing the end toward your iris. The tip of the pencil should point to your natural arch," Foote says.
Matchy-matchy?: Opt for a brow filler in a color that is one shade deeper than your darkest hair tone. "Avoid using a harsh dark pencil to draw any hard lines across the top of your brow line, which should look slightly soft and fuzzy," Foote advises. She recommends Benefit Instant Brow Pencil ($20).

Source

Reader Review of the Day: Benefit Cosmetics "Hello Flawless!" SPF 15

BellaSugar — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 10:00:01 -0700

Benefit Cosmetics "Hello Flawless!" SPF 15 ($34) is a foundation and cover-up, all-in-one. Recently, reader Lilkimbo reviewed this product and loved it, giving it the coveted five-star rating. Check out what she has to say below, and be sure to read my review, too.

I have never been a big wearer of foundation powders. I've typically gone with a liquid foundation and setting powder combo. But, this is absolutely amazing. It gives great coverage without looking cakey or piled on. (Or too matte, like some powders can.) This is definitely worth trying.

If you'd like to get your opinion out there, it's time for a visit to the Product Reviews section. We're so close to hitting 12,000 reviews. Let's make it happen!

New Product Alert: Benefit's "Hello, Flawless!"

BellaSugar — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 13:00:32 -0800

When opening the new Hello, Flawless! compact by Benefit, I got flashbacks from disasters of years past; that explains my higher-than-normal nervousness about powdery foundation. Since this product comes with both a sponge and a flat brush, I went for the sponge first and smeared some makeup on my skin: Way too powdery for my tastes, just as I'd expected. I'd yet to try the brush but, feeling far from open-minded, I set the product aside 'til the following day. The next morning I opened the two-tray, mirrored container and took out the brush to give it a whirl and, wow, was I pleased with the results.

For a sheer finish, use light quick strokes from the center of your face outward with the brush – it totally helped even out my skin tone with what a pal called a "magazine-ready finish," and it didn't look cakey. Word to the wise, it is on the messier side (as with any loose powder) so be careful to not get it on your clothing, too! Now, I'm just using a light daily dusting of this product over moisturizer. Four of the six shades are available online, and they should all be in stores within the next few weeks. I never thought I'd say this, but I love my powder makeup!

Review Products For a Chance to Win a $500 Gift Certificate From Benefit Cosmetics

BellaSugar — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 10:00:22 -0800

Since 1976, Benefit Cosmetics has offered up makeup items that are both whimsical and downright cool. With products like the iconic Benetint, Lemon Aid, and BADgal Lash Mascara, it's easy to enhance your features with their signature, innovative makeup creations. And now, our friends over at Benefit have an offer that's too good to pass up. For the next five weeks (from now until March 23), five lucky readers will have the chance to win $500 each in Benefit Cosmetics gift certificates!

To enter, all you have to do is complete a minimum of three reviews on the Product Reviews website to be eligible to win each week. The more reviews you submit, the more entries you will have. Oh, and if you're not familiar with our ever-expanding Product Reviews site, it's a wonderful resource for discovering what other readers think about more than 50,000 beauty items ranging from hair accessories to the latest fragrances to the best (and worst) mascaras. You must be a TeamSugar member to write reviews, so log in or register for a free account if you don't have one. And don't forget to invite your friends. For the complete rules, click here. So what are you waiting for? It's time to voice your beauty opinions for the chance to win big with Benefit Cosmetics.

Reader Review of the Day: Benefit California Kissin'

BellaSugar — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 11:01:43 -0800

According to one of my recent polls, the majority of you carry between two to four lip products at a time in your purse. And now here's one to add to the bag. Benefit's California Kissin' ($18) is a lip gloss with a blue undertone to make your teeth whiter. I liked it, so let's see what reader Ohbaby7 had to say about this multitasking product:

I cannot say if my smile looked any brighter, but this lip gloss gives a nice sheen and shimmer without being too sticky. It also has a nice minty scent and taste which I cannot get enough of.

Would you like to give your opinion on a beauty product, too? It's easy. Just head over to our Product Reviews website and maybe your review will be featured on this daily post!

Reader Review of the Day: Benefit Cosmetics high beam

BellaSugar — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 07:00:58 -0800

Highlighters are great, so don't just save them for special occasions; use them everyday for that wide-awake glow.

So, for today's reader review, we're looking at Benefit Cosmetics high beam ($24), a brightening complexion enhancer. Reader A Million Suns is loving this product, calling it an ethereal glow in a bottle. Here's what she had to say:

"Just a few dots of this on my brow bones, inner corners of my eyes, and cheekbones made instantly makes me look fresher and gives me that ethereal glow. Plus it lasts forever because you don't need to use much of it each time."

Want to add your own two cents? Check out our product reviews section to share your thoughts.

New Product Alert: The Overnighter

BellaSugar — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 10:00:43 -0800

Benefit keeps rolling out the quirky and cheeky ideas, and The Overnighter ($38) is no exception. The "sleepover set" contains a set of miniature primping products and a Hanky Panky thong. If you've never worn a Hanky Panky thong, get your butt in gear - they straddle the divide, as it were, between comfort and sexiness. (And one size really does fit most.)

The makeup kit is pretty sweet, too: Justine Case is a little box to toss in your purse. Inside, it has California Kissin' lip gloss, Eyecon eye cream, the legendary cheek and lip stain Benetint, and Some Kind-a Gorgeous "foundation faker." (The last comes in the lighter of the two available shades, FYI.) I plan to keep this thing in my bag in case Mr. Gosling decides to ask me on a date sometime. You know, just in case.