NYX Soft Matte Lip Creme and Suede Lip Liner in Copenhagen and Innisfree brow pencil

It was that kind of week. I had a job interview on Monday, which is always a little nerve wracking. After that, I just couldn’t get it together. I was wondering if Mercury was in retrograde! So by Friday, I definitely needed a little retail therapy, beauty blogger style.

I went to the NYX Cosmetics flagship store and the new Innisfree store in NYC’s Union Square. I have been curious about NYX’s Soft Matte Lip Creme, and this piece on the Allure web site about plum lipsticks that look good on everyone got me all excited. I’ve never worn plum lipstick before, so I wanted to try a drugstore brand to see if I liked the look.

If you’ve never tried them, NYX has great lipsticks and lip liners at a very reasonable price. Less than $10 each! My total bill was only $11.44 for the lip creme and lip liner.

I got the lip liner and lip creme in Copenhagen, a rich, cool plum. I wore them today while running errands. (Nothing says “beauty blogger off duty” like a bold berry lip paired with a yoga outfit and a baseball hat. I was road testing, people!)

I found them surprisingly comfortable. Usually I don’t like matte anything, because the formula is too drying, but this was softer and creamier than a liquid lipstick. Maybe that’s why it’s called a matte lip creme? And I’m sure the lip liner helped, but the lip creme has staying power.

And the store is cool, too. It was a little crowded, but the salesgirl was very helpful. And they offer beauty lessons, with names like ‘Brow Down’ and ‘Makeup 101’. If you are a NYX fan, check it out when you are in NYC!

Next stop was Innisfree, which is right across the street from NYX. Innisfree is an all-natural beauty brand from (where else?) South Korea. Many of the (mostly) organic ingredients are sourced from nearby Jeju Island.

The United National Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (you may have seen the acronym UNESCO) has designated Jeju Island a World Natural Heritage, World Biosphere Reserve, and Global Geopark site. It’s full of natural ingredients that are great for your skin.

I have more skincare than should be legal for one woman, so I decided on a brow pencil. Don’t get me wrong, I love my Lancome brow pencil. But I wanted to see the new Innisfree store and retail therapy was the order of the day.

I tested the brow penci, too. I like that the tip of the pencil is small, so you can fill in your brows and it looks soft and natural. Perfect for daytime. And they have a few different colors, so you’ll be sure to find your perfect match.

Innisfree Union Square is only 10 days old. The walls of the store are covered floor-to-ceiling with plants and greenery. Most of the other surfaces are polished wood. Innisfree has it all: skincare, makeup, and even home fragrances. They will definitely see my debit card again.

Speaking of debit cards, the brow pencil was only $10 plus tax. Not bad.

Tell me. What trends and colors are you dying to try this fall? Let’s talk autumn wish lists in the comments!

This year, I’m doing the Eyecandy Project 52 photography challenge. Every week, we have to take a picture inspired by a prompt, such as From Above. Some prompts are relevant to the time of year, some are more evergreen. I’ll post my more successful efforts here about once a quarter. Check out the Q1 highlights here and the best of Q2 here.

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