Tarte LipSurgence Natural Matte Lip Stain

Let's celebrate Tarte with Tarte! The company has reached a milestone: 10 years of beautiful, skin-friendly, earth-friendly, and animal-friendly products filled with Tarte's "skinvigorating" ingredients. Effective, affordable, whimsical - cosmetics with a conscience - those are terms to come to my mind when I think about founder Maureen Kelly and her groundbreaking creations.

In June, I showed you Tarte's 10-Year Anniversary blockbusters, which were only available at Sephora at the time. I purchased them and hope you did too. TEN Natural Cheek Stain ($30) and the TEN Limited Edition Collector's Palette ($44 and exclusive to Sephora) are must-haves. You can see a swatch of TEN at this BTiB link.

Today, let's take a look at Tarte's revolutionary new LipSurgence Natural Matte Lip Stain ($24). LipSurgence is the only lip stain that has ever felt creamy after I applied it...hours after I applied it! My lips have to feel moist, or I am an unhappy gal. I have converted countless friends to my lip moisturizing favorites. Dear friends, get ready to try LipSurgence! It has to be the current gold standard for lip stains.

Just like the original and best-selling Tarte natural lip stains, LipSurgence Natural Matte Lip Stain glides on smoothly for a rich matte finish that will stay all day. Each of the matte shades boasts a high pigment concentration, but unlike drying long-wear lipsticks, Tarte's LipSurgence stains are infused with high-performance, natural technology, clinically proven to increase moisture content by an astonishing 6,000% after 28 days of use. Since "matte" is in, this new matte LipSurgence has entered the market at just the right time.

Earth-engineered from a proprietary blend of plant bionutrients, LipSurgence quickly absorbs into the skin, delivering a surge of moisture. Boosting peptides stimulate the skin’s own regenerative system and assist in the formation of collagen. Tarte's proprietary blend increases the lip's water content for a plumped-up appearance. The result? Naturally full, healthy, creamy lips without any irritation or stinging.

Although I haven't used LipSurgence for 28 straight days (I switch it up too often), I can tell you that it's the only lip stain that I have ever used that felt creamy on application and stayed creamy - even through meals (how rare is that?). Some lips stains beg for an immediate topcoat of gloss, and a few newer ones even come with a clear gloss to satisfy my craving for gooey lips. Tarte's LipSurgence doesn't need the gloss to feel good. Naturally, you can use one over LipSurgence if you like the shiny look. You can be certain that your LipSurgence will still be there hours after your gloss wears off.

LipSurgence Natural Matte Lip Stain is available in six shades.

• Lucky - light pink
• Hope - warm rose
• Lively - hot pink
• Envy - mauve berry
• Fiery - true red and exclusive to Sephora
  
• Exposed - nude

On my arm photo are right, top to bottom, are Lucky, Envy, and Exposed. All are very pretty, although I think my two favorites are Envy and Exposed - just because my lips need a little color to brighten my pale face. I must try Hope next. Are you interested in wearing the matte fuchsia lip anointed by Allure as a hot trend for fall (page 182, September 2010 issue)? Lively is your shade! All six colors are delectable, so select the one(s) that you think will look best on you.

The first thing you notice about LipSurgence Natural Matte Lip Stain is the softness of the thick pencil form. I think that's a clue to its properties on the lips. It contains vitamins A and E, which are anti-inflammatory emollients that protect against free radical damage; carnauba wax to ensure a smooth application; coconut extract that has known microbial and moisturizing properties; and peppermint oil to cool and soothe inflamed or irritated skin while freshening breath. Fortunately, the stain doesn't smell or taste like peppermint on my lips. I don't really want my lips to taste like Altoids!

I'm sure you know that Tarte's wonderful cosmetics are formulated without the following ingredients we are all trying to avoid - and they are cruelty-free.

• Parabens
• Sulfates
• Synthetic Fragrances
• Synthetic Dyes
• Petrochemicals
• Phthalates

I love that about Tarte! That's why I keep buying. There's little I can resist (seriously, you should see my collection of Cheek Stains, and I need another limited-edition TEN!). Tarte is bookmarked on my computer!

When you visit the Tarte Web site, you should check out Tarte Tokens, a new loyalty program to reward you for shopping. Not only does Tarte give back to its customers, the company gives back to Mother Earth. With the purchase of every Tarte product that incorporates the t5 super fruit complex, customers help preserve the Amazon Rainforest through forest conservation, improved living conditions, and educational opportunities for communities in Brazil. Tarte's supporting the Sustainable Amazon Partnership (SAP), a public and private collaboration to promote lasting sustainable management of the Brazilian Amazon Rainforest, making contributions to SAP throughout the year. Some may think of beauty as frivolous; I think of it as an investment in our future when I shop with companies dedicated to the environment.

You can find Tarte's new LipSurgence Natural Matte Lip Stain at Tarte's own Web site (the photos are there, and stock will arrive any day) and Sephora. It has my stamp of approval - check it out. While you're there, make sure to see the original LipSurgence Natural Lip Stains. You'll love them too.

I'll continue to tell you about Tarte's terrific 10-year anniversary products in the coming days. A little bubbly, please. Let's raise our glasses in a toast to Maureen and the Tarte Team. Here's to the next 10 years!

Top photo, cruelty-free logo, and stains courtesy of Tarte
Yes, I know Tarte doesn't capitalize their name (I'm old school)

Tarte Femme Natural Eye Shadow Palette Giveaway Contest Winner

I've wondered for months why random.org seems to select numbers that are "way into" the list of entrants. Today, it surprised me and selected #2: Kammi. Congratulations, Kammi! You have been notified by e-mail that you won this fabulous, refillable Femme Natural Tarte Eye Shadow Palette.

The shades in Femme Natural are naturals for everyone - soft, pretty, and laden with Tarte's skinvigorating ingredients. Here's the list. Top row (left to right): shimmering buff, soft sand, golden peach, shimmering sage, and soft sienna. Bottom row (left to right): golden tan, soft petal pink, golden plum, shimmering cocoa, golden navy. The double-ended eyeliner is golden bronze and shimmering auburn. Kammi should have fun playing with them!

Thank you for entering and for your sweet notes in e-mail. We'll start another contest later today, so come back and enter! We've now proven that the strategy of waiting to be in the middle of the pack isn't reliable [wink].

Photo courtesy of Tarte

Tarte Femme Natural Eye Shadow Palette Giveaway Contest

Tarte Cosmetics has a superstar eye palette, Femme Natural, and I'm giving one away! I purchased it during Friends & Family because it's fabulous, and I wanted to be able to share this treasure.

You'll show the world your softer side with this subdued refillable natural eye palette. The reusable purple case is accented with a fabric flower appliqué and filled with 10 mineral-based eye shadows, a double-ended brush and a double-ended eyeliner. The magnetic base allows you to pop out the recyclable eyeshadow pans. Then you can refill them with new Tarte shadows to reuse the palette and reduce environmental waste. It also comes with directions that illustrate some of Tarte's favorite looks!

The shades in Femme Natural are naturals for everyone - soft, pretty, and laden with Tarte's skinvigorating ingredients. Here's the list. Top row (left to right): shimmering buff, soft sand, golden peach, shimmering sage, and soft sienna. Bottom row (left to right): golden tan, soft petal pink, golden plum, shimmering cocoa, golden navy. The double-ended eyeliner is golden bronze and shimmering auburn.

How can you enter to win this $44 palette (which is a $182 value)? Just leave a comment here once. After you comment, feel free to e-mail bestthingsinbeautycontests@gmail.com and identify your comment. You can never be too careful about sharing your e-mail address on a blog, so I would follow this second step if I were you (an alternative is to code your e-mail, e.g., myname at gmail dot com, in your comment).

You can "earn" a second entry by tweeting this contest. Just make sure to include "@BTiBeauty" (without the quotes) in your tweet. I will tweet the contest in a few hours, and you can simply retweet it to earn that second entry.

The deadline for entries will be Saturday, August 21, at midnight. The next morning, I will use a random number generator (random.org) to select the winner. I will e-mail the winner at that time. The winner will have 48 hours to reply to my message and provide a shipping address. After 48 hours, the prize will be forfeited, and another winner will be selected. It's hard for me to believe, but I have had two no-show winners in the last few months.

This contest is limited to residents of the U.S. and Canada. Good Luck!

To my international readers: I still don't know what to do about you gals. No matter which option I use, the price to ship a prize with any kind of tracking and insurance is really high - way more than the item's value. Some of you have suggested to me that I allow international entries, continue to ship the way I was, and let the winner take the risk. Given my recent history, that would mean that three out of four winners would never receive their prize, the prize would be damaged, or the box might arrive two months later. All of those outcomes would make me feel really bad. I just don't know what to do. Keep writing me with ideas, please. We will figure this out somehow.

Photo courtesy of Tarte