Yes to Carrots Frosty Loves C Holiday Set contains three of Yes to Carrots C Me Smile Lip Butters in Mint, Carrot, and Berry. There are two other flavors (not included), which are Citrus and Melon. I couldn’t actually find a retailer online which sold the holiday trio, but each of the lip butters retails for $3.69 at major drugstores/retailers (drugstore.com, Target, Walgreens, etc.). If you can snatch a few up on sale, even better!  My favorite flavors are Berry, Carrot, and Citrus–Citrus probably being my numero uno (I adore lemony-scented products).

I love these tubes of lip moisturizing delight because they’re–duh–incredibly moisturizing, but they smell delicious. I also feel like I don’t have to reapply all the time, because my lips stay soft for quite awhile. As far as natural and organic products go, I’m pleased to be able to tell you that this product is certified as USDA organic. The brand doesn’t practice animal testing, nor do they use parabens, petroleums, or phthalates.

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on10 Disney Red Apple Lip Balm SPF 15 ($9.00) is a tin pot filled with lip balm. The lip balm contains SPF15, which is always a good thing (especially since I often forget about SPF on my lips!).  I think the selling point of this product is the Snow White drawing on the tin.  It’s cute and very vintage, so it feels more sophisticated/adult.  The lip balm formula contains coconut oil, beeswax, olive oil, and cocoa butter.  It goes on clear, despite looking pink in the tin, and it lasts for an hour or two before I feel the need to reapply.  I don’t know if I’d grab more of these, though I’d definitely consider the set of them ($38 for 9, slightly smaller tins).  I think it’s a great stocking stuffer for the Disney fan in your life, though!

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Copper Diamond Shimmer Brick ($38.00) According to Bobbi Brown, there are five shades found within this shimmer brick: Candlelight, Gold, Copper, Beige, and Sand. I like the subtle glow it gave me; it’s very subtle, not too much color–more of a shimmer, highlighting effect. Some shimmer bricks give more color than others, but I’ve always liked the shimmer they’ve given, regardless of actual color (since I still consider these highlighters rather than blushes!). Copper Diamond is probably more suitable for warm-tones, just because it’s so warm itself. I still think cooler skin tones will enjoy this shimmer brick, because it won’t bronze you in a fake, orange kind of way.

Copper Diamond Glitter Lip Balm ($19.00) is a very subtle and sheer lip balm. It’s not sticky or tacky; it barely went on for me, to be honest. I saw a hint of shimmer/glitter on my lips, but the color itself was minimal. I haven’t tried the other shades, so perhaps those are more pigmented–otherwise, I’d skip these and head straight for the new, limited edition glitter lip gloss (the ones in the compact).

Glitz Metallic Eyeshadow ($20.00) is a new shade to the line’s existing metallic eyeshadows. The metallic eyeshadows have a more–you guessed it–metallic finish. I find they’re shimmery/frosty finishes, some of them do seem more metallic than others, though. Glitz itself is a soft, pale yellow-gold that goes on with a nice dose of shimmer and glitz (ha!). I think it’s a great shade for the holidays, as it’s a great all-over lid color to match with festive holiday-red lips! Oh, by the way? While they’re sold in their individual compacts, you can always pop ‘em out and put them in Bobbi Brown’s customizable palettes. Depotting without the hassle that comes alogn with MAC pots–awesome.

Ball Glitter Lip Gloss ($19.00) is actually my favorite product from the two collections. It’s a thick, semi-tacky gloss that is full of glittery bits with decent color. I picked up Ball, which gives lips some warmth and golden shimmer. It’s a great gloss over reds, especially a red like MAC’s Port Red, because of the lipstick’s subtle gold shimmer.

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If you know me, I’m not a big drugstore shopper when it comes to makeup.  I just prefer the experience at the counter, and we all know MAC is a brand near and dear to my heart.  So when you have enough makeup to paint ten faces, you just don’t feel as compelled to seek out alternatives at the drugstore, you know?  That being said, I was 100% impressed by Sally Hansen’s Natural Beauty Color Comfort Lip Colors.  These lipsticks felt ridiculously creamy, moisturizing, and they were rich and intense in pigmentation.  At $9.99 a pop, it’s not exactly a bargain, but I imagine, like other drugstore brands, it will go on sale from time to time.  Even at the full price, these lipsticks are amazing.  I will definitely be keeping these within reach!

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Giorgio Armani’s Lip Wax in Cardinal Red (#5) ($26.00) is described as a “bright, transparent red” in color.  Lip Wax is a new product designed as a compact lipstick that’s a “blush of color” once applied to lips.  It has GA’s Micro-fil technology in it to give you smoothness and act like a second-skin.  I definitely consider this product to be more like a lip stain than a lipstick, just because it feels so lightweight and gives you just a touch of color once applied to the lips.  It comes in a nifty compact case, gleaming and all, but you’ll need to make sure you have a retractable lip brush at the ready in your purse if you want to tote it around.  I think it’d be cool if they could somehow give you a super short handled lip brush inside the compact, just for on-the-go.  I also wonder if this could be used as a blush stain… hm.  Have any of you tried Giorgio Armani’s new Lip Waxes?

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Treat Beauty was founded by Marnie Massie who found herself having sensitive skin, but couldn’t find the right set of products available to her, so what did she do?  Create her own line of natural alternatives to soothe her dry skin!  Marnie wanted her products to not only be natural and cruelty-free, but delicious, and she really hit the mark.  I recently tested out these two lip products from Treat Beauty:  Kiss and Make It Butter lip scrub and Sweet butter Rose Tinted lip balm. 

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Crazy Rumors is a brand that seeks to turn lip balm into something organic AND fun, without any synthetic products or going over the top. These tasty lip balms were created by Brian Himmel and Edie Sherman, and they have launched twelve total flavors: six as part of the “Brew - Tea Balm” side, and an additional six under “Perk - Lip Latte.” All ingredients are natural, vegan-friendly, and never tested on animals. For you green folks, packaging for Crazy Rumors is 100% recyclable!  Unlike some independent or organic brands, these products are totally affordable and even surprisingly inexpensive.  $4 per lip balm OR buy a set of either Perk or Brew for only $22.  I think regular ol’ Chapstick costs around there, so I think it’s a great deal.  Plus, I think nearly everyone can use lip balm, which means perfect holiday gift!  Small and lightweight makes it easy to carry around in your pocket for less heavy makeup days, and even non-makeup lovin’ boys will enjoy the wide range of scents.

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