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Showing posts with label Swatches. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Swatches. Show all posts
Essentially these are just a more sophisticated version of a glitter eyeshadow. But the formula Urban Decay uses feels silky to the touch and makes these a joy to use. The glitter itself is more finely milled and the effect is sparkly, but not disco ball level. At $20 each, they're not a necessity (I waited for a sale before purchasing) but they are a nice addition to a standard eyeshadow collection.

Urban Decay Moondust Eyeshadows in Stargazer and Space Cowboy.

Although I only purchased 2 of these, I did swatch the entire collection (forgot to take pics, boo!) and they all swatch more like the color "Space Cowboy." Meaning they're more on the sheer side, but can be layered over themselves or another eyeshadow to intensify the color. "Stargazer" was the only color that looked more opaque on its own to me.

Overall, these are not a must have. They're fun, but not super practical for everyday use. Urban Decay Moondust Eyeshadows can be found at Ulta, Sephora and most department stores.
This was inspired by the lovely Sharon at sharon-871sher.blogspot.com. She posted a gorgeous pic wearing Mac Heroine lipstick. Purple lipsticks are a favorite of mine (I probably have more purples than any other color) and even though I've had Heroine since it was re-released I don't wear it nearly enough!

This time I decided to mix it up a bit my adding Mac Pure Heroine lipstick (from the Lorde collection)



Beauty Breakdown:
Mac Pure Heroine used as a liner
Mac Heroine in the center
The Tamanna palette from Anastasia Beverly Hills is a 10-shadow palette with a mix of both matte and shimmery shades (there are 3 mattes and 7 shimmers). The palette features a very nice color selection, even though some of them are easily dupeable, others are more unique. 
Included with this palette is a double-ended Anastasia Beverly Hills eyeshadow brush and  5 "Get the Look" cards with step-by-step, detailed instructions printed on the back designed to help everyone from newcomers to pro's duplicate a specific eyeshadow look. Tamanna Roashan (a L.A. based makeup artist who the palette is named after) has a very distinctive makeup style, and even though I've been doing makeup for years, I found the instructions helpful in mimicking the "Tamanna" style.   
I found the shadows in this palette to have varying degrees of pigmentation, however none of them are duds. The color "chocolate" for example isn't as pigmented as the color "Gilded" but its still a decent matte chocolate brown great for using in the crease. "Noir" the matte black color puts many other makeup companies black eyeshadows to shame *cough*Mac Carbon*cough* Not only is it intensely black in color, its also very easy to blend. 

While all the shadows are soft and semi-creamy, I did find that swatching these shadows on my arm and applying them to my eyelids were two totally different things. On my lids they really needed a base to give me true-to-pan color whereas on my arm I didn't use any base before swatching. 

Out of all the colors "China Rose" and "Custom" are my favorites. "China Rose" is a gorgeous peach-pink-gold color that looks amazing on brown skin. It's what I hoped Mac "Melon" pigment would look like on me (I swear I'm not picking on Mac, lol) Instead "Melon" loses all the peachy-ness once I apply it and looks plain gold.
"Custom" is a taupe-mauve-gray color that doesn't look ashy or too silvery on me. Its a great everyday neutral with a really nice sheen. 

The brush included with this palette is also very good. The head isn't scratchy and does a decent job of blending the shadows. The pointed end is great for small crease work and more precise application. It won't replace any of my everyday brushes, but its great to have in a pinch.

Tamanna Palette Bottom Row
Tamanna Palette Top Row
A double-ended Anastasia Beverly Hills brush is included in the Tamanna Palette. 
My Rating:
Quality = 4 Stars
Color Selection= 5 Stars
OVERALL - 4.5 stars

The Tamanna/Dress Your Face Palette from Anastasia Beverly Hills retails for $29 and can be purchased at both Sephora and Ulta!
These have amazing pigmentation, a great smooth texture and apply very evenly. They feel lightweight on my lips and "adhere" well so they're long lasting as long as I'm not eating and drinking constantly.
Too Faced Melted Berry

Too Faced Melted Fig

Too Faced Melted Fuchsia 

Too Faced Melted Violet
I knew they'd be bright, but I was still shocked at how vibrant some of them were, especially Melted Fuchsia.

The one thing I really don't like is the applicator. Its a sponge tip and tends to look gross after only one use. Plus it makes these Melted lipsticks virtually un-shareable as there's no way to clean the applicator after each use.

The dreadful sponge-tip applicator in all its messy, germ filled glory!

Secret Brightening Powder applies semi opaque 

It blends in quickly and transparently leaving no white "cast" or residue behind
I've seen this little gem raved about by bloggers, makeup artists and youtubers but I could never find the shade #2 in stores to try it out for myself. The Secret Brightening Powder comes in 2 colors, #1 is a white powder ideal for fair skinned beauties and #2 has a yellow tint ideal for darker skinned beauties.

In any case I happened upon it at my local Laura Mercier counter and finally got to see what all the hype was about.

Secret Brightening Powder lives up to the "secret" part of its name. It brightens the skin in the most natural, undetectable way. Think of it as the anti-Banana Powder (which I also have and love)

SBP is nearly impossible to cake on. I've tried multiple layers and my skin maintained a smooth cake-free appearance.

I was also worried about this looking ashy, but that hasn't been the case at all. I've used it alone and over concealer with great results both ways. Of course on bare skin it won't completely cover dark circles on its own.

Overall this powder is perfect for daytime, work appropriate makeup. It will subtly brighten under eyes and make you look refreshed and more awake without the obvious reverse raccoon eyes heavier highlighting powders tend to create.
I have to be honest, the packaging is what sold me on getting this palette. But sadly it was a disappointment when I received it in the mail. The biggest let down is the plastic case. I was expecting a beautiful real wood case, instead I received a brown plastic case with a "wood" sticker thrown on top, lol
Plastic case aside, the Rainforest After Dark palette contains 6 eyeshadows (3 matters and 3 shimmers), a blush, bronzer and highlighter. All of them contain Tarte's signature Amazonian clay as an ingredient.

Unfortunately none of the eyeshadows in this palette have names.
All of the colors are wearable with varying degrees of pigmentation. I had to swatch all of them multiple times to get a true-to-pan color.

The blush does show up on my nc45 skin, but it's just on the edge of being unflattering. The bronzer I can and do use as an all over face powder since its matte. The highlighter is very shimmery and can easily look like an ashy disco ball, but used sparingly it creates a soft champagne glow.

Overall, this palette is just ok. Nothing special, but useful if you want a full face in a single palette.
From top to bottom: Monte Carlo, Prague and Copenhagen 

These lip creams are lightweight and nicely pigmented. The large color selection and price point are also a huge plus. My only quibble is the staying power. The formula seems to sit on top of my lips and is easily messed up at the slightest touch. :(

This is a great, wearable little palette! The $34 price tag kept me from purchasing it when it was first released, but it's since been marked down to $16 on urbandecay.com and it's absolutely worth ever penny!

Vengeance is probably my favorite shadow of the bunch. Its a rich cocoa color without any red undertones, which has been surprisingly hard for me to find. If I had to choose a dud, it'd be Anger. The pigmentation doesn't seem to be as good as the other shadows. Overall though, I can see  this entire palette being used pretty much on a daily basis.



To be honest I hadn't heard of this collection until the day it was released online. Of course the items I wanted were sold out within a few hours. Thankfully the nationwide store release was still a week away and I was able to stalk my local MAC counter to get what I wanted! I came away with 4 items: Heavenly Hybrid ls, Snapdragon ls, Sassy Moss and Phlox Garden fluidlines.
The lipsticks are luster finishes which means they lean more towards the sheer side. But the good news is that both colors can be built up for more saturated look. Although they feel nice and moisturizing going on, in my experience with MAC lipsticks, the tend to dry my lips out quickly. I'd recommend using a lip balm first, then applying the lipstick. 

The fluidlines are very nicely pigmented and set quickly! However, they will stain your skin. Its been hours since I swatched them and my arm still has visible green and purple lines despite me scrubbing it until my skin was red :(
 Thanks to my wonderful big sis I finally got my hands on the Sleek Molten Metal palette. The palette contains 2 metallic cream eyeshadows in a gold and pewter color. Both are highly pigmented and reflect light beautifully. The only thing is once they're swatched you really can't tell the difference between the two shades.

So far I've only used these on the tops of my cheeks as a highlighter, and not as and eyeshadow. I do worry about these creasing on my eyes, since even most powder shadows tend to crease on my lids.
 As a highlighter, these both look gorgeous. You can keep layering them to create an even more intense glow, or just use one swipe to brighten the cheeks.
Pewter on the left and Gold on the Right.

These blend down to a gorgeous, soft highlight.
I made a quick trip to Rite Aid and picked up 4 of the new Wet n Wild eyeshadow trios, 3 of Natural Blend Lip shimmers and a NYC Bronzer duo.

The trios are hit and miss as far as quality. But at $1.99 each I'm not really complaining, lol. My least favorite is I Dream of Greenie, the greens looked stunning in the packaging, but the formula is very chalky/powdery. My fav of the bunch is Silent Treatment, which I've used in a few looks already. The taupy/mauve color in it is great for brown skin since its got great pigmentation and doesn't look ashy at all.

Wet n Wild Trio: I Dream of Greenie

Wet n Wild Trio: I Got Good Jeans
 The NYC Bronze Mist is also a hit for me. For starters the colors actually show up on brown skin and the forumula doesn't have a bunch of chunky glitter like other bronzers do. The highlighter side looks so natural and just seems to brighten up the areas I apply it to without it being obvious I have a highlighter on.

I loved this bronzer so much I went to Target and got the other 2 in the series, Bronze Gold and Terracotta Tan. I haven't taken pics of them yet, but I'll be adding those swatches soon.
Wet n Wild Trio: I'm Getting Sunburned

Wet n Wild Trio: Silent Treatment

NYC Bronzer in #718A Bronze Mist

NYC Bronze Mist