Monday, March 19, 2012

Project Pan: Camomile Gentle Eye Make-Up Remover

This is terribly boring but I wanted to document Project Pan Item #11- yet another bottle of The Body Shop's Camomile Make-Up Remover. If you wish to see my review of it, just click here!

Saturday, March 17, 2012

E.L.F. Studio Cream Eyeshadow: Eggplant, Smoke, Dawn, Pewter, Bronzed

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E.L.F. Studio Cream Eyeshadow

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Eggplant, Smoke,
Dawn, Pewter, Bronzed

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For whatever reason, I am a huge sucker for cream products. For $3 each (but really $1.50 after discount!), I did not hesitate to try these cream shadows from E.L.F.'s Studio line. I originally bought Dawn, Eggplant, and Bronzed. I then got Smoke and Pewter when they were released as new colors.

Eggplant is pretty self-explanatory. It is a brighter purple shade. Smoke is a deeper gray with strong blue tones. Dawn is my favorite, a gorgeous light taupe that is almost skin-tone on me. Pewter is a lighter gray with green undertones. Finally, Bronzed is a beautiful warm medium-to-dark brown.

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Eggplant, Smoke, Dawn, Pewter, Bronzed

These cream shadows are like Paint Pots in theory. They're quite dry but grow creamy when warmed with touch. They also dry down and set like Paint Pots do. However, they're definitely dryer and just generally feel less luxurious. They are difficult to blend into one another and will start to get splotchy if you pile on additional layers. These are problems if you are trying to create a look using a combination of these products as I tried to do in the following pictures. I had to go over them with powder shadow to hide the seam between the two colors. However, if you use these shadows alone for a wash of color across the lids or as bases for other eyeshadows, then I think that these pretty decent. They set relatively quickly and don't budge. I don't recall creasing with these.

There are always abundant E.L.F. promo codes that make these already-inexpensive products even more affordable. If you are at all curious about these eyeshadows, then I say go for it! I can't recommend them as products that would work well together but they do work nicely on their own. While they're not the best that I've tried, they are decent products that would be hard to regret purchasing.

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Dawn across lids

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Dawn across lids, Pewter on outer lids

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Dawn across lids, Pewter on outer lids, with gray powdered eyeshadow to blend (sorry, I can't remember which eyeshadow! I think it's the gray from Naked2.)

Friday, March 16, 2012

Jemma Kidd JK: Fashionista Kit

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Jemma Kidd JK Fashionista Kit

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Jemma Kidd JK Fashionista Kit

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Jemma Kidd JK Fashionista Kit

I did some online shopping on the Urban Outfitters website at the beginning of the year and found this Jemma Kidd palette going for $9.99. Who was I to resist?

The kit comes with a good array of products. It includes 9 eyeshadows, a primer, a cream lip/cheek color, a powder blush, and a bronzer. It also comes with two dual-ended mini-brushes.

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Eyeshadows: Nude, Gold, Dark Brown
Ocean, Aubergine, Jade
Charcoal, Mink, Bone

I'll go over the eyeshadows first. The top row consists of Nude (a warm tan-champagne), Gold (a pretty golden brown), and Dark Brown (aptly named). These three work very well together to make for an easy, warm neutral eye.

The next row is made up of Ocean (a bright blue), Aubergine (a brighter plummy purple), and Jade (a turquoise). These swatch rather sheer but I have yet to try them on my eyes so I can't speak to their performance.

The last row is made up of the cool neutrals. Charcoal is as named. I like that it's a true gray without blue undertones. Mink is a lovely deep taupe. Bone is a light, off-white highlight shade. I have been loving the combination of Charcoal and Mink for a cool-toned smoky neutral eye.

All the eyeshadows have some degree of shimmer or satin finish when viewed in their pans. However, I find that Dark Brown, Ocean, and Jade come across mostly matte on the skin. Charcoal and Mink have obvious silver shimmer particles.

I like these eyeshadows but I can't say that they're the best. They can get quite powdery so there is a risk of fallout. I have also found when using Mink and Charcoal that the application could be splotchy and fickle. It took some effort to blend them together properly.

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Eye & Lip Primer, Berry Lip & Cheek Flush

Now onto the cream products! Both seem to sweat and get somewhat watery on the surface but they pack a good punch. The eye/lip primer is skin tone, and I believe that it is pigmented enough to nude out one's lips. I don't prefer the look so I have not used it for this purpose. I have, however, tried it as an eye primer. Unfortunately, it was not suitable for this purpose. I found creasing by the end of the day, which is actually very rare for me.

The Berry lip/cheek cream is great. It is a muted magenta- a mix of mauve, pink, and plum. It is brighter and pinker than my lips so it doesn't look natural, per say. It could pass for it if applied sheer. The pigmentation is great so don't go overboard when using this as a blush! I find that a little goes a long way for a pretty flush. Its lasting power as a blush is about as good as any I've ever tried.

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Show Stopper Water Resistant Bronzer, Apricot Shimmer Powder Blush

And finally, we have the powder face products. The Apricot Shimmer blush has shimmer in the pan but I don't find it to be so on the skin. I suppose it has a satin finish, if anything. I have only used it once, and I liked the effect it gave. The pigmentation was not so strong that I felt a need to be worried but it did provide a nice, easy flush.

The bronzer is a nice tan brown. It does not look at all orange to me. I'm not the best reviewer on bronzers as I very rarely use them (there aren't many contours to my face). Still, I have tried this once and I thought it was fine. I feel that the pigmentation is pretty sheer but I like that quality since it means I'm less likely to end up with a brown stripe across each cheek. I think this would be great for providing subtle shadowing, which is exactly what you should want with a bronzer.

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L-R: Primer, Berry Lip & Cheek Flush, Nude, Gold, Dark Brown, Ocean, Aubergine, Jade, Charcoal, Mink, Bone, Apricot Blush, Bronzer

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L-R: Eye & Lip Primer, Berry Lip & Cheek Flush

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L-R: Nude, Gold, Dark Brown, Ocean, Aubergine, Jade

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L-R: Jade, Charcoal, Mink, Bone, Apricot Blush, Bronzer

Overall, I am very happy that I purchased this palette for the price that I did. It was a steal! I would even recommend it at its full price of $27 because you get such a great balance of products in one palette. There are good neutral eyeshadows ranging from warmer browns to cooler taupes. There are also a few pops of color. The cream products are extremely pigmented. While the eye/lip primer is a dude for priming the eyes, I believe that it would be a great product for nuding out the lips. The powder face products are nice and low-maintenance. If you can find this palette, I suggest you give it a go!

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Nude in inner corner, Gold across lids, and Dark Brown on outer corner

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L-R: Nude lip; Berry on lips