Top 5 Eyeshadows

If you don't already know, eyeshadows are my weakness. I am well aware that my current eyeshadow collection will last me a lifetime but I can't keep myself from adding more - I did slow down lately! Naturally I go through phases of reaching for certain colors. These days I am absolutely in love with the following ones. Yes, these are all definitely "I will repurchase as long as X brand continues to make them" type of eyeshadows.

MAC Twinks

Twinks is my newest MAC eyeshadow and had been on my wish list for a really long time. I don't know why I waited so long to check it off my list but I'm glad I finally did. It's a deep brown with hint of red and plum. I usually use it on my crease with a neutral/nude lid. It's definitely one of those colors that would look beautiful with any eye color.

Chanel Taupe Grise

Taupe Grise was my first Chanel eyeshadow ever and what a great decision for a first Chanel eyeshadow! I would like to say it's taupe as its name suggests but it's not quite. It's more of a brownish mauve. I absolutely love using it in sultry smokey eye looks. I also find that it's versatile and can be worn in daytime looks if carefully applied.

MAC All That Glitters

One of the few MAC products I *stole* from my sister, she did say she didn't want them anymore. Unbelievably (and lucky for me!) All That Glitters was one of them. I would describe it as a shimmery peach with gold glitter. I think it pairs beautifully with MAC Twinks - I wear them together quite a bit. 

Inglot DS #467

I use 467 nearly everyday because it's just the perfect all over the lid color for me. It's not everyone's cup of tea as it is not matte in fact it is shimmery - both in pan and when applied. Like all Inglot eyeshadows, this one is buttery smooth and applies like a dream. I love how Inglot eyeshadows are so easy to pack on to achieve desired intensity. 

Stila Diamond Lil

It was too late when I found out MAC released a limited edition eye shadow named Diamond & Smokes. While hopelessly looking for its swatches, I came across comparison swatches. If it weren't for the captions, I would have never been able to tell they are two different colors. So I immediately ran to Sephora to pick up this beauty! It's a shimmery taupe-grey. Diamond Lil makes a great color for grey smokey looks, a nighttime favorite for sure!

Chanel Taupe Grise - Inglot 467 - MAC Twinks - Stila Diamond Lil - MAC All That Glitters

What eyeshadows do you reach for the most lately?

MAC Favorites / Neutral Eyeshadows

I've been wanting to write about my favorite neutral MAC eye shadows for the past week but either it was super cloudy out and would just be pointless to even try to take decent photos or when it was nice and sunny I was out enjoying the weather. Today I was finally able to get some good photos and here they are!  I would repurchase all of these gorgeous shades.

Top: Phloof!, Orb, Naked Lunch, Grain, Wedge

Middle: Era, All That Glitters, Sable, Patina, Omega

Bottom: Femme-Fi, Retro-Speck, Woodwinked, Texture, Brown Down

L-R: 

Phloof! - My go-to inner corner color of choice, it helps define and brighten eyes with a little sparkle!

Orb - Great all over or brow bone color for neutral looks.

Naked Lunch - Perfect as all over or on inner corners, this is definitely one of my go-to 'lazy day' shades

Grain - My daily lid color, goes with anything and everything

Wedge - Love it on my crease for blending soft, daytime smokey eye

L-R

Era - Go-to taupe.

All That Glitters - It's in my daily MAC quad, need I say more?

Sable - Beautiful mix of plum, gold and bronze. One of my favorite fall shades and looks great by itself!

Patina - See All That Glitters' description.

Omega - I use it for blending out crease colors in the same family.

L-R:

Femme-Fi - only one of my many favorite all over colors, great for daytime.

Retrospeck - very wearable shimmery light gold also looks great on inner corners with a darker look.

Woodwinked - Favorite coppery-gold that looks beautiful on lower lash line

Texture - an absolute must on crease when I'm doing a smokey look with Print (which is also a neutral favorite of mine but I talk about it all the time that I didn't even feel the need to include it in this post :))

Brown Down - Perfect brown for smokey brown look, love it on the crease and lower lash line.

What are your favorite neutral MAC eye shadows?

Shadow Addiction

I love when it's time to back 2 MAC! I did some major depotting last week and as a result I had too many empty containers that were causing clutter so off to MAC I went! Okay I kind of lied, I just had the sudden urge to own two more eye shadows...for free...so I depotted away!

I don't know about you guys but I have an unnecessarily long list of products I want, neatly and alphabetically organized in Notes app in my iPhone. (Addiction at its best!) In case you didn't already know, I specialize in eye shadows, so I rarely get anything but when I back 2 MAC. Several weeks ago I put an asterisk next to Mythology after seeing swatches of it online. So I thought I'd be loyal to the little * in stead of getting something that's not in my list. 

 Mythology is a peachy-copper in Lustre finish. Lustre isn't my favorite finish (because Satin is) but I adore this color and its versatility. You can wear it all over the lid or on crease, day or night. In my photo above I have compared Mythology to MAC Coppering (on right) which is what comes to most people's minds when 'copper' is mentioned. Coppering is more orange/reddish-copper, it's a true copper in my opinion.

I, however, ended up picking the next product randomly...and that is Wedge. I can't believe I already didn't own Wedge (or had it on my list for that matter) why oh why?? I had been missing out on the best blending color in the world all this time! I'm glad we're finally united!

Wedge is a matte, taupe-y/beige. I'm not crazy about matte finish either, as I've always had difficulty blending colors in this finish. For some reason Wedge seems to apply and blend much much easier than other matte shades I own. Regardless, it does a fantastic job blending many different colors. I know, Wedge looks like what I would call a "blah" color but blending is the key to flawless eye-shadow application no matter what color you're using! It's not one of those fun colors but it sure is a staple. I've been using it religiously since I purchased it last week. I can definitely see myself hitting pan on this soon, of course after Print and Grain :)

What do you usually get for back 2 MAC, a mix of things or do you stick to only one type of product like I do? 

P.S. My blog is officially a year old! I just wanted to say a HUGE thank you to all of you who read my blog and for your wonderful comments! It's such a great feeling to know there are so many people who care about what I have to say. Thank you guys so much! :)

Wet n Wild Color Icon Trios

Wet n Wild has made some great products in 2010 and looks like they will continue to in 2011 as well! I am stoked! I have stumbled upon these new trios at my local supermarket few weeks ago and was really excited to see some new colors with improved pigmentation from Wet n Wild. Unlike their 6 color palettes, all of the colors have amazing pigmentation and really velvety, soft textures. If this isn't improvement, I don't know what is!

I love all of these six trios so much I can't even pick a favorite! They are all pretty in their own ways. I love that there is pretty much every color a girl would need in these trios and colors aren't repetitious. I've been using Silent Treatment for my everyday looks a lot. I think it's great that Wet n Wild has embossed Browbone, Crease and Eyelid in each shade for guidance for those who are just starting out with make-up.There is also an illustration of where to place each shade, on the back on each container. Of course you can use whatever color you want wherever you want! My experience with these new trios has been nothing short of amazing as I get great color pay-off from crease-resistant, long-lasting, beautiful colors! These trios retail for $2.99 each and as far as I know, they should be available in all drugstores. Walgreens recently had 50% off all Wet n Wild products, so if you want to save some $ check them out!

What do you think about the new Wet n Wild trios?

"Two Faced"

I hope I don't get dirty looks for saying this but I think I love this Too Faced palette a bit more than my Naked palette. I had been insanely looking for the Naked palette and was absolutely obsessed with it once I was able to get my hands on it but then I rediscovered my Natural Eye palette! I guess that makes me TWO FACED?? I am actually pretty new to Too Faced as I have only used their Lash Injection mascara and Pink Leopard Bronzing Powder. I had always adored their cute packaging and a great selection of products at Sephora so I decided to give this palette a go and I am so impressed!

The palette comes housed in a sleeve which you see on the left. It includes a total of nine eye-shadows which are a mix of matte, shimmery and super-shimmery/glittery. There is a little pull-put drawer which holds a double-ended applicator brush which I don't think was such a necessity. However, I bet you anything there would be upset consumers if Too Faced didn't include this drawer. Hard to please everyone! I personally do not ever really use these applicators.

I love these how-to cards that are tucked under the palette's lid. I think this is a great product for someone who is just starting out with make-up so they can utilize these cards to create beautiful looks. Of course you can get creative and use the eye shadows however you like, there are no limitations in make-up!

Flash

No Flash

I believe Too Faced eye shadows are the softest eye shadows I have ever touched. They really feel like velvet! Because of their super smooth and buttery texture, they apply like a dream and blend very easily! Pigmentation is amazing with the exception of Nude Beach due to it's super chunky glittery texture. With this color there will be fall-out so it must be applied using caution. Nude Beach goes really well layered on top of matte eye shadows, in other words, you can go from day-to-night really easily with it! As I do with any eye-shadow application, I use my Urban Decay Primer Potion as my base under these eye-shadows and I have not experienced any creasing whatsoever. I have semi-oily eyelids, I guess just as much as an average person's, I'm happy to say that they last all day on my lids!

Natural Sunlight

 
DAY

Heaven - Matte/Cream
Velvet Revolver - Matte/Soft taupe (similar to MAC Omega)
Sexpresso - Matte/Dark Brown

CLASSIC
Silk Teddy - Shimmery/Pink-champagne
Push-up - Shimmery/Gold brown
Erotica - Shimmery/Plummy Taupe

FASHION
Nude Beach - Glittery/Champagne
Honey Pot -Shimmery Gold
Cocoa Puff - Shimmery/Chocolate Brown with gold flecks

I am so happy that I bought this palette! I have been so blinded by Urban Decay's Naked palette that I had totally forgot about Natural Eye. It's great that I rediscovered it and loving it more often these days! If you're interested, it retails for $35 at Sephora, Ulta & Toofaced.com.

Do you own Natural Eye? What do you think about Too Faced products?

Revlon Beyond Natural Cream to Powder Eyeshadow

Hey everyone!

Unfortunately, today I have a negative product review from a company that I usually love! Revlon makes my current HG foundation; PhotoReady, one of my favorite nude lipsticks; Soft Nude and many other products I enjoy using. Of course this doesn't mean everything they make is perfect and will exceed anyone's expectations. Regardless I bought this quad, I admit on a whim, expecting it to deliver because I've never been let down by a single Revlon product! Until now. Actually I don't know if I should blame Revlon for this disappointing product OR Target for not putting out testers. Or is it Revlon's fault again? Are companies the ones who decide whether to have testers at retailers?

I will first judge this lovely (on the out look) quad in terms of packaging. Packaging is pretty nice for a drugstore brand, it's square with a hard and clear lid. There is definitely something about this quad that stood out in the jam-packed beauty aisles of Target. The lid has 'Beyond Natural, Cream to Powder Eye Shadow' written on it. Cream to powder sounded pretty exciting to me, since I haven't used anything like this before. I usually stick to my MAC eye shadows. There are a total of 4 quads in the Beyond Natural collection. Initially I went for the plummy one as I love plums, purples, lilacs when it comes to eye shadows. Then I saw 'Peach' and anything that has peach or coral written on it must be mine! I ended up bringing both of them home. Everything cool until here.

Then I opened the Peach one to see what it was all about and started swatching. First of all, let me clarify one thing. These are not cream to powder AT ALL. I may have never used cream to powder eye shadows before, but I know what cream and powder mean! These are just typical cream eye shadows. They do not change their form or dry completely. Believe me. I was really bummed. Colors do look pretty swatched but once applied on eyelids, except for the brown one, they do not even show up.They sort of look a bit metallic-y in the pan and when swatched there is tiny bits of glitter. These quads may be ideal for a person who likes wearing make-up but doesn't want to look like they are. Or not. I wouldn't even recommend this to a person who uses minimal make-up. I wouldn't want anyone pointing fingers at me and blaming me for major creasing 5 minutes after they apply this. 

Needless to say I disappointingly returned the plum quad. So what will I do with this one? Well, I will most likely use it as an eye shadow base as that seems to work, a bit. I have tried to see the multi usage abilities of these eye shadows. I thought maybe the second color from left (in the swatches) could be used as a base on lips, but it's way too drying and therefore flaking. The lighter color looked like it may be used as highlight but no way. I'm sure someone in this world loves this quad and can make it work. For me, it was a waste of money. Then again, you don't know whether it'll work for you unless you try it! Sorry Revlon, I love and use many of your products, but this product in question needs a major make-over!

Sleek Storm Palette

Hey ladies!

Some of you asked if I could swatch the colors from this palette so I decided to dedicate today's post to the beautiful Sleek Storm palette..
Here we go!

 Storm is a great palette for pretty much anyone. If you love neutral colors but love to mix it up and do wild looks from time to time, you may want to give this a try! This palette has 12 colors in both matte and metallic finishes. It's mostly metallic though as only 3 of them are matte. These shadows are highly pigmented and are incredibly smooth. They are also easy to work with as they blend very easily.

Top row includes these colors you see above, according to my swatches I'd call them..Warm gold (comparable to Woodwinked), White/champagne with hint of gold, Soft beige/taupe, Gold, Pearly pink, Maroon..All the colors besides beige/taupe are metallic.

Bottom row colors are; reddish brown, teal, forest green, navy, muted taupe/brown, black..last two colors are matte and the rest are metallic.

I think these are the most metallic eye shadows I've ever seen in my life. I usually prefer less metallic and more matte-ish colors so it was a different experience to create looks using these at first. Also I've realized that lighting is pretty important while using these eye shadows, because they are so metallic that you may not be able to see how much you actually applied. At least this is what happened in my case, it may be due to the fact that I'm not used to using them. However, they do last forever on my eyelids and definitely do not crease which is a plus in my book!

Have a great week! <3

Wet 'n Wild Color Icon Eyeshadow Palettes

Hey girls!

Recently I was at Walgreen's because I wanted to pick up another color from Revlon's Colorburst collection (these lipsticks are seriously really good, wish there were even more colors though!) and these Wet 'n Wild palettes caught my eye. Honestly, I didn't really think anything of them at that time. For the price they are, I thought they will probably just another palette and not worth spending money on. But I was wrong! Then I came home, googled them and absolutely loved what I saw. So I went back and picked up two because they were BOGO half off which made the already low price even a better deal. The two palettes I picked up are Greed and Pride. All palettes have 3 matte colors on the left side and 3 shimmer on the right as well as 2 applicators (1 sponge + 1 brush) which I don't think I will use.

GREED 

Greed palette has more neutral colors as you can see. The shimmery colors minus the black one on bottom right aren't as pigmented as I'd have liked them to be. They do have tons of shimmer but they seem to be pretty sheer. You can see that these two colors do not show up that good on my hand. However, I really love the other colors. Especially the matte beige and peach colors look great on me! I love to use the beige one in inner corners and even as highlight.

PRIDE

Pride palette is gorgeous and I think the greens and blues are total summer colors :) I have no complaints about this palette since all the colors are very pigmented. I love the color pay off with this one!

There are 2 palettes called Vanity & Lust. I actually wanted to get Lust as well but didn't. It has pretty shades of purple which I loveeee! Check them out here

Hope everyone had a great Monday! <3