Showing posts with label Eye Shadow. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Eye Shadow. Show all posts

Quick Post of My Sephora Order

Above & Below: Cargo's Hands of Hope Eye Shadow palette and my 3 samples. This is so big, I was really surprised. The case is about 7" square. The case itself is very pretty, with a gold foil design and a little jewel in the center. It has a magnetic closure.
Below: Urban Decay's Get Baked palette is a great bargain at $18.00, and I love the shades for summer. My first Illamasqua polish, in Muse.
I just received my Sephora order and I love it! I used my $15.00 Beauty Insider discount code...I just couldn't let that go to waste! The Cargo Hands of Hope palette is huge. The shadows are at least the size of a silver dollar and the shades are all just lovely. This palette retails for $29.00, so that's not a bad deal, especially considering how big the product is. I also got Urban Decay's Get Baked palette, which is currently priced at $18.00. These are perfect shadow shades for me in the summer months, and it also came with a 24/7 pencil in Bourbon, and a mini Primer Potion in Sin. Lastly, I received my first Illamasqua, and I chose Muse. I had every intention of getting more Illamasqua polishes, but honestly, none of them really appealed to me all that much. There must be something wrong with me!

Yen from Victoria Nail Supply just sent me an eMail to let me know they just received their shipment of the Color Club Exclusive Japanese glitters I showed you here earlier this week. I don't see them on the site just yet, but they should be up in the next day or two.


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LORAC Cosmetics Haul: Part I

Above & Below: LORAC's Jet Setter kit is packaged in a travel roll with a velcro closure. This is a $170.00 value on sale for $25.00.
Below: The Jet Setter kit includes a primer, a felt-tipped eye liner, 2 lip stick shades, a bronzer, a primer/mascara, and the Jet Setter palette. The palette comes in a sparkling beaded case.
Below: This shows the shades, although they're more vivid than what I was able to capture with my camera.
Below: LORAC's Holiday Smoked Out collection comes in a satin makeup bag. This is a $90.00 value and on sale for $18.50.
Below: The Holiday Smoked Out set contains a lip polish, a cheek stamp (powder blush), a baked eye shadow trio, and a black eye pencil with small silver glitter in it.
Below: The Picture Perfect Makeup collection, a $37.00 value, is on sale for $9.95. You can insert a picture in the front of the case. I also ordered some of these for the girls in my husband's office. I think I'll put a picture of him in theirs!
Below: Inside of the case is a blush, lip gloss and 3 eye shadows.
Below: All of the items include a sheet that lists the items in the collection, as well as a full ingredient list for each one.
I had posted last weekend about a sale that LORAC Cosmetics was having on their web site, and my ordered arrived yesterday. Their quality and packaging are excellent, so when I saw the prices on their sale, I knew it was time to add some more of their products to my stash. I have one more order coming from them, because I thought it would be a good opportunity to get some Christmas gifts, and of course I couldn't resist getting a few more things for myself! As far as I can tell, the sale is still going on "while supplies last". Shipping is free over $50.00, and according to the previous prices, this order is valued at $293.00, but I paid just $53.45 for all of it. Now I feel better knowing that I justified my purchase! The shipping took 4 days, and I had eMailed them a question and they answered it promptly. I would say that their customer service is as fantastic as their products.

Researching cosmetics companies, their founders, their philosophy, and so on is always something that interests me. LORAC is the founder's name, spelled backwards...Carol. According to her bio page on their website, her father was a hairstylist and her mother was a manicurist. You can read more about her here.


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Friday Follower Freebie!

Above & Below: Today's winner will receive the complete 6 piece Wildflowers Spring 2010 pressed mineral eye shadow collection from Bella Sugar Cosmetics. These are 1.5 g. shadows and are the same size as MAC shadows.
Today's FFF features a brand new pressed mineral eye shadow collection from Bella Sugar Cosmetics, called Wildflowers! Feel free to search my labels under Bella Sugar for more information about her wonderful hand-made top quality products, and you can find additional links within those posts which will lead you to more pictures and swatches of her products. As I've mentioned before, her eye shadows are perfection for me, because although they are minerals, they're pressed so there's no mess involved. They apply evenly and are quite pigmented, which allows for a subtle look or with a little building of the product, a bolder look. I've used them wet for even more color payoff. I was playing around with mine yesterday to take some swatch photos, and I used two of the shades mixed together (a light application of Crimson Clover with a touch of Gailladria on top) for my blush, which turned out beautifully. These colors are all inspired by wildflowers and are perfect for Spring and Summer.

The Rules: You must be a follower. You must leave your eMail address below in the comments section as your entry. You must place your entry no later than midnight tomorrow, 3/20/2010. Good luck!

*Products/prizes featured were furnished by Bella Sugar Cosmetics.


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Luck O' The Irish Giveaway Today!

Above & Below: One winner will receive their choice of 3 pressed mineral eye shadow shades from Bella Sugar Cosmetics. The color descriptions can be found below in the post, and you can also click on the links below to see and read more about them. The swatches below follow the layout of the above photo if you're wondering which ones are which.
Bella Sugar Cosmetics has offered to give one of my followers their choice of 3 of her fabulous GREEN pressed mineral eye shadows! She was one of the sponsors of my Anniversary Contest last month, and you can see my previous posts and reviews about her custom products here, as well as checking out her blog and the link above to her Etsy store. She has a very keen eye for color, as you can see by the green shades that she offers. She is also big on quality and customer service, which combined, make for an exceptional product. I have been using her products for a month now, and am still very impressed with them. The texture of these shadows is so smooth and buttery, which makes their blending ability extremely easy. They're also highly pigmented and retain their color with little to no fading or creasing throughout the day. UPDATE: Their new website is now official! It can be found here.
Color Descriptions:
Emerald City~black with dark green flash
Drab~olive green
Grassy~shimmery grass green
Luck O' the Irish~primary green with golden glitter
1966~lime green
Golden Leaf~light green with golden flash
Amazemint~light minty green shimmer

Here's all you need to do: Leave your eMail below in the comments section and tell us which 3 colors appeal to you the most. You must also be wearing green to enter this giveaway (I'm kidding!). The contest will end at midnight tonight. Luck O' the Irish to you!


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Well, It Sounded Like A Good Idea!

And it may still be a good idea. I haven't given up on the concept yet, but it definitely needs a little refining. Have you ever used eye shadow as nail polish? I've mixed it with clear before, but this time I did something a little different. The main problem with this was that I didn't get the coverage entirely even, especially around my middle finger's cuticle, so it looks like it needs serious clean-up. However, the area I'm talking about is so close to the cuticle, that if I cleaned it, I'd take too large of a color section off of the nail bed instead of the cuticle. Read on beneath the picture if you're interested in my experiment!

I was using the blush in my Urban Decay Side Show palette today and there are a couple of eye shadows in there that I never use because of the glitter fallout. One of them is Crash, shown above. I have a product from Dior that is quite old called Voile De Nacre. The premise is that you paint your nails with the clear polish in the set, then apply the finely milled colored powder that comes with it, over the tacky clear polish with a brush. I was never all that impressed with that, but again, it sounded like I good idea when I bought it many years ago! I decided to try something similar with Crash, first painting my nails with a clear base coat and letting them set up just a bit. I them took an eye shadow brush that I don't use often, applied a fair amount of Crash to it, and simply painted in over the nail in one stroke. After rinsing the powder residue from my hands, I applied a coat of Out the Door fast drying top coat. In hindsight, I still think it's an interesting idea that lends itself to endless possibilities. The next time though, I'll try using a makeup wedge sponge and see if I can get a little more even coverage, particularly around the edge of the nail. It seems to me that I'd be able to press the color onto the nail that way, rather than brush it. I'll load up the sponge with color and then press and roll it from side to side, hopefully covering the entire nail.

What do you think? Have you ever done something like this? What I like about this method is that it actually wastes very little eye shadow and doesn't destroy it in the process. If I like the way it looks using this method, then I'd likely go ahead and create an actual polish with it. I just hate when I destroy a shadow in hopes of getting a decent Franken and it doesn't turn out right.


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Product Review: Bella Sugar Cosmetics

Above & Below: The Zebra eye shadow palette and the tub of shower jellies are the products I'll be reviewing from Bella Sugar Cosmetics. These are some of the prizes included in my Anniversary Contest giveaway.
Above & Below: The eye shadow palettes are hand-painted and come in several different design options. Each palette holds 4 shades and comes with an insert stating the color names.
Below: A macro shot of the colors in my palette. You've got to know that although I'm impressed with the quality and shades of all four colors, Chocolate Covered Blueberries won my heart straightaway! It's a duo chrome!
Below: The back of the palette box shows the ingredients of the shadows.
Below: In all my excitement over these products, I neglected to photograph my jellies, so I 'borrowed' this one from Patricia's site. Not only do they smell good, they look good too! They have tiny flecks of gold shimmer in them and I am holding myself back from getting mine out and just playing with them (think Jello Jigglers!).
Below: The shower jelly ingredient list is printed on the back on the container.
Below: A family portrait of the products and swatches. Click the photo to enlarge the detail. I couldn't capture the true beauty of Chocolate Covered Blueberries, but you can see how it changes from brown, to reddish brown, to a teal/aqua shade. All four of the shadows are highly pigmented and very blendable.
Last week I gave you a little preview of one of the prizes in my Anniversary Contest from a brand new independent cosmetics company, Bella Sugar Cosmetics. I have received my products from the lovely Patricia, who is the mastermind behind these products, so I can now share my thoughts on them with you. She also has a blog with additional swatches and photos that can be found here. Bella Sugar's generous contribution to my prize package includes a $25.00 gift certificate, a tub of Shower Jelly in your scent choice, a 4-pan palette in your design/color choice, and 4 hand-pressed mineral eye shadows in your color shade choice. Now for the review!

Shower Jelly in Basil Citrus: These come in a plastic container and contain between 21 and 24 jellies. Mine are heart shaped and are very jiggly! I used one whole jelly (I use those exfoliating gloves and just squished it into my palms), and I had a delightful shower experience! The scent is strong but not overpowering, and the jelly lathers up very nicely. It rinses clean, but the scent lingers ever so lightly. These left my skin silky soft and feeling very moisturized. I am certain than using just half of a jelly would be more than enough for one shower or bath.

4-Pan Shadow Palette (Zebra pattern): This is a well-built, sturdy palette that measures 3"x3". The designs are hand-painted (they are also available in a solid color), there is a mirror inside, and it has a push button type of opener/latch so it stays secure if your carry it in your bag. They are magnetic so the shadows can be interchanged. I think this is super cute!

Hand-Pressed Mineral Shadows: Oh my, where to start! These shadows are unbelievable. The texture is unlike any of my pressed shadows that I have (powder or mineral), and I probably have several dozen brands to compare them to. They seem softer, yet they are still dense like any pressed powder shadow. Because of their nature, they blend incredibly well. The four I have are all shimmery, but there isn't any fallout like what is normally associated with mineral shadows. I have issues with loose mineral shadows/pigments, so I stay away from them because of the mess I make. I also have some pressed shadows that are minerals, but they don't apply and blend the way these do. I've had mine on for over 14 hours now, and am just starting to see a very slight bit of creasing on my eyelid (I didn't use any shadow primer product). I tight lined with one of them as well, and my eyes are not irritated at all. Simply put, these are some of the best and most interesting shadows I've come across in a long time.
*Products were furnished by the manufacturer or PR firm for review.


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Wet n Wild Red Tape & Some Wet n Wild Eye Shadow Swatches

Above & Below: Wet n Wild Red Tape is a red creme which has very slight red coral tones, that are more evident in the sunlight photo shown below. I used 2 coats and had no problem with the application. This is a new shade that was recently released.
Below: Some swatches from Wet n Wild's new eye shadow trio's, which were released along with several other cosmetics items, including the nail polishes.
Above & Below: These swatches on my hand were taken in the sunlight with no flash. These are the shades in the Sweet as Candy trio. I have used this set quite a few times and have had no creasing throughout the day, and the pigmentation is excellent.
Below: The Knock on Wood trio didn't fare as well on me. The colors are not as pigmented, although the wear was very good. The cranberry shade looks lovely in the palette, but is a muddy, almost brick red color on me, while the pink shade is barely noticeable.
A couple of weeks ago I showed you some of the products I picked up from the new Wet n Wild displays that are showing up. You can see the palettes and polishes here, and if you want to take a look at some of the polishes, just search my Wet n Wild label for those. I've swatched most of the polishes, but still have a couple to go, including today's Red Tape. There are also a number of eye shadow palettes with new shades on their updated displays, so I wanted to show you some swatches of those as well.

Red Tape is a very pigmented shade of red with the slightest hint of red coral. It covered very nicely in 2 coats, and although the brush and handle are relatively small, it actually makes for a more controlled application. The formula is quite good also, reminding me of the formula in the new Colours from the CND Colour & Effect line. For $1.89, you really can't go wrong with these.

The palettes I swatched today are trio's, retailing for $2.84 (at Meijer). Each color is embossed with the area on your eye where they are intended to be applied, Browbone, Crease, and Eyelid. They also work well when applied with a wet applicator for additional color depth. Sweet as Candy is my favorite of these two because I prefer the shades (off-white, medium brown, pink) with my eye color (brown), and this palette seems to have more color pay-off. The Knock on Wood palette doesn't seem as pigmented, especially on the pink shade. The Cranberry color is pretty in the case, but when I used it, my eyes almost looked bruised! Perhaps this trio, which includes a pale pink, a medium brown, and the cranberry, would look better on someone with different coloring, but I can't seem to work it right on myself.


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Massive New Wet n Wild Display!

Above: Wet n Wild's offering of new Megalast polishes has a total of 24 shades. I picked up the seven shown above and was so happy to see creme pastels after the 30" of snow we've gotten over the past 3 days! L-R: Red Tape (c), Heat Wave (c), Tropicalia (c), Club Havana (c), Haze of Love (c), Under Your Spell (s), Blackmail (s & g).
Above: The new Wild Shine display has 18 slots and 16 shades (2 shades fill 2 slots). Some, like the Megalasts, say 'New'. I picked up L-R: Casting Call (c), Night Prowl (g), Blue Moon (s & g), Rain Check (s), Eggplant Frost (f & i), Caribbean Frost (f).

Above & Below: Blackmail is the one I zeroed in on immediately. It appears to be a charcoal shimmer with multi-color glitter.
Below: Bottle close up of Blue Moon, a deep inky Indigo shimmer with turquoise micro glitter.
Below: Night Prowl is a blackened charcoal shade with violet glitter. I swatched it on paper and was surprised to see it was charcoal rather than purple.
Below: A sampling of just some of the eye shadow palettes on the new display. Top L-R: On Cloud Nine, Knock on Wood, Sweet as Candy. Bottom L-R: Pride Orgueil, Lust Desir. I did spell those correctly! The cranberry glitter shadow in Lust Desir is very pretty in real life.
I went to Meijer this morning to get groceries and I was somehow transported to the cosmetics department. I don't remember walking over there, but these things happen! Up and down the aisles I walk, disappointed that I saw nothing new or even remotely exciting for that matter. Then I walked around the last corner and I saw the biggest new Wet n Wild display in history. It was the entire end cap with all 5 shelves filled with new goodies. The next thing I knew, products started falling into my cart at an uncontrollable rate. I'll tell you what, it was the strangest thing...but this happens to me all the time, so I just accept it. Naturally, my phone battery was dead so I couldn't get pictures, but here's what I saw and what the cardboard display hanging beneath each shelf basically said:

Top Shelf-'Variety of Vibrant Color & Effect' and these are the small round polishes in the photo above. They are priced at $1.89 each and are .30 fl. oz. There are 24 shades, 9 of which have 'NEW' on the label. I picked 7 of them and in my opinion, the ones I picked up were the nicest shades. There are lots of cremes, 2-3 white and off white cremes, a black creme, some shimmers that didn't look terribly exciting, other than the 2 I picked up. Blackmail is an amazing shade and I can't wait to try it out.

Second Shelf-this shelf was filled with eye shadows, trios, singles and the 6-color ones shown above. I didn't count them, but there were quite a few other selections in a variety of colors that I didn't pick up. The trio's are priced at $2.84, while the 6-color palettes are $4.69. I'm hoping these are as nice as their offerings of shadows over the past couple of years.

Third Shelf-I honestly didn't pay too much attention to this one, other than to note that it was all lip gloss and lip stick, and I believe the lip stick was advertised as matte.

Fourth Shelf~again, this was not the shelf I spent the most time looking at! It was all blush singles and mineral foundation, if I recall. The blush singles came in about 8-10 shades and they were quite large.

Fifth/Bottom Shelf-More nail polish, and these are the taller Wild Shine ones pictured above. The display read 'Long Lasting 5 Day Chip Resistant Polish' and there were 18 shade slots. I did notice there were 2 slots for a black creme and a red creme, so I believe there are 16 shades total. These were priced at 93 cents each and about one third of them have "New Shade" on the label.

I hope that helps you in your shopping endeavors! You'll notice that I bought 2 shades of some of the colors, so there's a hint as to this Friday's Follower Freebie!


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