Cargo Plant Love Lipstick

The Plant Love Lipstick from Cargo was the first 100% natural and EcoCert lipstick when it was released several years ago.  The lipstick is by far the first of its kind, both in formulation and in the packaging.  I first bought one of these lipsticks years ago, after thinking that I really liked the color in the store.  I got it home and it wasn't quite what I had in mind so it just sat in my traincase for quite a while before I started cleaning.  I had every intention of throwing the product away but I decided to try it out one last time and I decided that I liked it much better this time around.  Of course I would start to really like it now that Sephora is no longer stocking the line in their stores...

"Plant Love's 100% Natural, EcoCert certified lipsticks are gorgeously green on all levels - Product, Packaging, and Process."  This product and the concept is so unique that I gave a presentation on it in my marketing class for an example of product differentiation.  The lipstick formula is completely natural, with the major ingredients being several types of organic oils and an organic Caranuba Wax base.  Seeing as how it has been shown in studies that women shallow about eight pounds of lipstick throughout their lives, this is a formula that I have no problem accidently licking off my lips.  The lipstick tube is made from corn oil, using less pollution and energy to produce and not making Cargo dependant on the price of oil and plastics for the product.  The box that the lipstick comes in is laced with flower seeds and can be planted and then flower will grow up.  For my product differentiation presentation, this product got me the highest grade in the class.

This lipstick has a cream finish with a slight shimmer.  It is very hydrating and soft, however I only get about one to two hours wear from it.  It is not a long-lasting lipstick and it comes off as soon as I drink or eat anything.  The stick itself is also quite soft and cracked a bit when apply straight from the tube.  I am considering cutting the stick up and putting it in a container to apply with a lip brush.  Formula-wise, this is not among my favorites that I own.  I understand that a natural product will not have the long-lasting properties that other lipsticks have since that property often comes from chemical compounds.

I bought the Lindsay shade, the pink that was made with Lindsay Lohan (pre-breakdown and rehab phase).  I first thought this shade would be very sheer and more like a gloss than a lipstick (this was when I wasn't as big a fan of pink lips) and when it was full pigmentation, I pushed it to the side.  Since I have been using pink lipsticks all of this spring and summer, I tried this one again and now the shade was perfect.  This one is more a neutral, medium pink.  It works well for cool skin but I don't find it neutral enough for warmer skin tones.  I looked for this shade on the website and it is one of the only original shades that is no longer offered from this company.  I was upset since I love the color but with the negative publicity around her at the moment, I don't know that I would want her shade in my color collection either.  However, this product is offered in quite a few more shades and the Sarah Chalke shade isn't all that different from the original Lindsay shade.

Here are the rest of the shades (and the celebrity that inspired/helped create them)...

- Angie Harmon - Faith - muted mauve
- Angie Harmon - Grace - iced strawberry sorbet
- Courtney Cox - Cece - sheer berry
- Denise Richards - Lola - sheer sparkling praline
- Denise Richards - Sam - sheer red currant
- Gamba - sheer cranberry
- Joshua Tree - shimmering cinnamon sand
- Killarney - soft terracotta pink
- Majella - natural dusky rose
- Maria Menunous - sheer vibrant poppy
- Mariska Hartigay - sheer nude caramel
- Muir Woods - sheer spiced mauve
- Nahinni - shimmering honey copper
- Robin McGraw - Ageless - tropical coral
- Sagamartha - sheer rosewood
- Sarah Chalke - shimmering petal pink
- Yakushima - sparkling candy apple pink
- Yellowstone - rich iced rose

 The first shade that I would order from this line is the Sarah Chalke shade, it is the closest to the Lindsay shade and I do remember that I was going back and forth between the two shades when I originally bought Lindsay.  With the lack of lasting power in this formula, I don't think that I would use this product in dark or bright colors.  When I wear a high maintence lip shade, I need to know that it will last the whole day.  I think the only other shades that fit the bill are Cece, Faith, Killarney, and Majella.  No one these will be pigmented enough to be noticed when they begin to wear off. 

I give this product major points for uniqueness and for showing the world that you can have products that are both organic and very pretty at the same time.  I wish that this lipstick lasted a bit longer but I know that I can't have that and the organic ingredients at the same time.

photo courtesy of Cargo

Cargo Texas Lash

Before I start my purchasing and reviewing of the newest mascaras that came out this season, I was determined to use up the Cargo Texas Lash that I found in my collection at the end of the summer. I bought this mascara right when it came out last winter and somehow managed to forget about it for about 6 months, I’m not really sure how or why that happened but somehow it did. I originally bought this mascara because I hoped that it would give me Texas sized lashes; thick, huge, and unstoppable.

I began my foray into all thing huge later than I thought that I would. It was now time for me to venture into the world of the Dallas Cowboys, ranches, Ten gallon hats, and Tammy Faye Baker.
This mascara has an innovative elastic polymer formulation that forms small tubes around the lashes creating a smudge proof barrier that is removable with warm or makeup remover and gentle pressure. It should not flake, smudge, or run. So how well does it live up to these claims?

First of all, it does provide Texas sized lashes. I think this mascara got my lashes to be thicker and lusher than any one that I have tried before (a bit more than BadGal Lash). However, this mascara (unlike BadGal Lash) did clump during application of the second coat almost every time that I used it. I think it is thicker formula than many that I have tried because I have never had so many problems with clumping and have never had to use a lash comb every time I put on mascara. I didn’t have many problems with flaking, just couple flakes here and there, which I think is just normal wear for a mascara. No problems at all with running. The removal required eye makeup remover, water and gentle pressure do nothing to get this formula off at the end of the day.

What I didn’t love; the tube is basic black and boring. To some people this might not be a huge deal but I utterly love the Diorshow tube and found this one to be dull in comparison. If I were shopping for a new mascara and had no clue what to look for, I would not pick this one because there is no way that I would be drawn to this packaging. Also, this mascara has some kind of scent, while not offensive is still stronger than any other kind that I have tried. I looked through the reviews on Makeup Alley and many reviewers commented on the scent so at least I knew that I didn’t get a bad tube.

My final thoughts - this mascara is neck in neck with BadGal Lash. Volume was amazing, clumping and scent were not. Could this mascara help me attract Tony Romo? ::ponders buying a lifetime supply::

Some lyrics from the band Little Texas sum my thoughts up better than anything I could have ever expressed:

'Cause God blessed Texas

With His own hand.

Brought down angels

From the promised land.

He gave them a place

Where they could dance.

If you wanna see heaven,

brother,Here's your chance.

'Cause I've been sent

To spread the message:

God blessed Texas.

photo courtesy of Sephora
Lyrics courtesy of www.sing365.com

Benefit Bad Gal Lash

First let me say that I am a mascara fiend, I am rarely without mascara and I have two or more in my makeup case at any given time. So I have tried quite a few and I still keep coming back to Benefit's Bad Gal Lash.

I first used this product in Fall of 2005 and used it faithfully until the Winter of 2007 when I decided to cheat and caved into the hype of Diorshow. I liked Diorshow but it was still missing "something". It wasn't living up to the hype for me which left me very disappointed. At this point, I should have gone back to Bad Gal Lash. But I didn't, I decided to continue the search for the perfect mascara.

At this time, I was also using Pout Big Lash. I was lured in by the beautiful tube and the promise of 300% your lashes' natural size. Let me just say, don't waste your time of money of this one.

I next bought Awake's Optic Force mascara. Awake is very high end makeup and skincare line from Japan and is only available in a couple of places in the United States. This mascara is very unique in that it has two ends (one base coat, the other top coat). The base coat end has a W shaped brush because it is supposed to enhance the middle of the lash for extra volume. Optic Force came very close to my love of Bad Gal Lash except that it is hell to remove. Even my Biotherm eye makeup remover had problems getting it off.

Next, I decided to try Urban Decay's Big Fatty Lash Plumper. I love everything from Urban Decay so I really thought that this could be my Holy Grail mascara. Well, big and fat is exactly what it didn't do to my lashes. After one coat, it left a natural look; after two, decent sized lashes. However, this is not what is is supposed to do. Then to top it off, the tube broke.

I ran to sephora one day after work and I got two tubes of mascara. The first is Cargo Texas Lash (supposed to make your lashes Texas sized) and yes, my beloved Bad Gal Lash.

I haven't used the Texas Lash yet but I have returned my original love of Bad Gal Lash. Its like getting back together with "the one that got away".