Wednesday 28 July 2010

Review; Chanel Le Vernis "Kaleidoscope"

Chanel Kaleidoscope.

Chanel 479 Kaleidoscope Nail Varnish

I absolutely love this nail polish, I didn't use a base coat or top coat and it looked absolutely fantastic and lasted really well. The appearance of this is very unusual, it is very hard to photograph the colour like it is in real life. It is a tarnished metallic olive goldy colour, though can sometimes look a bit silvery! There are some dupes out there however this is a lovely quality nail varnish, and I'm not really sure dupes would dry as quick, last as long or have the same unique tarnished look. After this polish I am definitely a Chanel convert! Unfortunately this varnish is no longer available in stores.

Chanel Kaleidoscope swatch 2

Tuesday 27 July 2010

Review; MAC Superglass (Gift Wrap & Sweet Tart)

MAC Superglass.

These are love/hate for me! Firstly I will start off with what I love.

I love the colours, they range from sheer to more pigmented, the 2 I bought are a little on the sheer side but I want the glitter to speak for itself. I love the madness of the glitter, the chunks are huge and a little holographic, however depending on the shade of superglass you buy the glitter is a different colour. The packaging is really cool and the tubes are bigger then your average lipglass/dazzleglass... however since it is about £2 dearer so it should be!

My dislikes of the superglass are the fact that the formula is very sticky and thick, but I guess it has to be to hold all the glitter. The glitter does not apply evenly across the lips it tends to clump and go patchy, and also when you remove it or it wears off naturally you have glitter left on and around the lips.

Overall I am glad I got them, they are an amazing product, but I won't be brave enough to wear this all that often with the dislikes (my main beef is the patchy glitter and left over residue!)

Sweet Tart
MAC Superglass Sweet Tart

MAC Superglass Sweet Tart

Gift Wrap
MAC Superglass Gift Wrap

MAC Gift wrap Superglass

Review; OPI Summer Flutter "Catch Me In Your Net"

OPI Catch Me In Your Net.

OPI Summer Flutter

OPI Summer Flutter Catch Me In Your Net

This is beautiful blue nail varnish with green glitter, together it makes it look like a teal, but more green when the light hits the glitter. This is a lovely colour and a really nice formula. The glitter is not too chunky like the Alice in Wonderland ones so it doesn't chip as easily, and it has a very glassy finish. It is also very pigmented, I think I used 3 coats, but you could easily just use 2. This is a gorgeous colour for summer and I love the duochrome nature of it, but whether it was worth the price tag is personal opinion, and I personally find it a little steep in price, so I always buy the mini packs for £11-15 (I got mine £12.98 from Sally's) to test the polishes before I commit to buying a full bottle! And as a warning when I took this off the colour died the skin around my nail and it was a pain in the bum to get it off, just something to consider when removing it!

OPI Summer Flutter Catch Me In Your Net swatch

OPI catch me in your net detailed pic

Review; Illamasqua Sheer Lipgloss Electrify

Illamasqua Electrify.

Illamasqua Sheer Lipgloss Electrify

This is one of my favourite baby pink glosses. It is a lovely shade, and even though this is supposed to be a sheer colour it has a lot of coverage and pigmentation. The one thing I dislike about these lipglosses is that is has no brush, just a nib with a hole in it, and because it is a squeezy tube it is hard to control the amount of product that comes out. However I guess it means you can get more product out since you don't have to depend on scooping it out of the tube with the applicator. If you squeeze it out onto a lip brush it is easier to apply, however it is a bit of a pain, especially if too much product squirts as you can't put it back into the tube!

Illamasqua Sheer Lipgloss Electrify

Review; Illamasqua Intense Lipgloss Petulant

Illamasqua Petulant.

Illamasqua intense lipgloss Petulant

I love the Illamasqua glosses! They aren't too sticky and the colours are lovely, they also have some unusual colours no other brand would dare touch! This is a shocking colour in the tube, but if you apply it sparingly it is more like a beautiful hot pink, but it is a buildable colour. I love this colour, it is so beautiful and pigmented, but in all fairness I don't see as much difference between pigmentation in the sheer glosses and the intense glosses, both are more pigmented then MAC lipglasses.

Illamasqua Intense Lipgloss Petulant

Monday 26 July 2010

Review & Overview! Laura Geller Tropics Deluxe Collection

Laura Geller Tropics Collection.

Laura Geller Tropics deluxe collection

This collection includes a lip shiner (City Lights), a lip gloss (Tropic), a lipstick (Tropic) and a blush (Blush N Brighten - Tropic Hues). I will go through each Item separately as well. The collection has a patterned pink metal packaging which is super cute and good quality... Not so good if you don't like pink, as there is no getting away from this eye-catching girly shade! The colours of the products themselves compliment each other, and I'd say they are a year round thing rather then seasonal. They aren't normally colours I would go for but I have grown fond of the shades and I guess I have broadened my make-up horizons a little.

Laura Geller tropics
Laura Geller Tropics collection open


Met Expectations: The City Lights Lip Shiner. It smells of tropical punch, absolutely delicious, and I just love the glitter. Not as huge as MAC superglass glitter, but still not all that subtle. This is something my collection has needed! It's so pleasant to wear it. Because it is neutral in colour this can go over any colour of lipstick, so it is very versatile!
Laura Geller Tropics Lip Shiner - City Lights
Laura Geller Tropics Lip Shiner - City Lights swatch

The Pleasant Surprise: The Tropic Lipstick. I never expected this to suit me, but it actually does and I like it a lot, it goes on more sheer then in the tube, but still a buildable colour. If it went on immediately dark like the gloss instead of being a light buildable colour I really don't think I would like this at all! It goes on more pinky red then brown too and thats what I like about it.
Laura Geller Tropic Lipstick
Laura Geller Tropics Lipstick swatch


Neither Rant Nor Rave: Tropic Lipgloss. This I wasn't sure about as it really is quite dark for what I am used to. It is a little more reddy then brown which is a positive, but I am still unsure whether I would grab this gloss on a regular basis as I tend to go for more pink based glosses and this is really quite a dark colour. It is a nice colour, but not a look I'd want all that often... Though that may change as I get older :]
Laura Geller Tropics Lip Gloss
Laura Geller Tropics Lip Gloss swatch

The Let Down: The Blush n Brighten Tropic Hues Blusher. I thought this would be my HG from this collection, and there is such an internet rave about it. It is gorgeous in the pan, and has really nice colours, however it is really glittery and I am not a fan of glittery blush, a subtle shimmer is OK but this is really quite glittery. And to put salt in the wound I am actually allergic to it! I swatched it on my hand, and my hand started to itch, thank-goodness I didn't put it on my face! In all fairness I have got sensitive skin and I have been allergic to MAC liquid foundation and even Estee Lauder liquid foundation before now, but never normally blushes or other face powders, I have Too Faced, Urban Decay, MAC etc and I have never had any problems! So I am unsure what to make of this. I was so disappointed :[ I do suggest that this problem may be personal to me since my skin is sensitive anyway, so it may not be a problem for the majority.
Laura Geller Blush n Brighten - Tropic Huesblush n brighten swatch

So in a nutshell, some good, some bad, and unfortunately some ugly. Overall a beautiful collection for all year round, especially those who like the darker lips and sparkly pink cheeks!

Review; Too Faced Natural Eye Kit "Day Look"

Too faced Natural Eye, Neutral Eye Shadow Collection.
too faced natural eye kit inside

Day look;
too faced natural eye kit "day" shadowsToo Faced Day Neutral eye (matte)

I am no good with mattes anyway, however I found this particularly hard to work with, mainly because of the matte finish, but also because Heaven and Velvet Revolver go on so similar in colour that it is difficult to see the difference between them when on the eye, so it looks like you are only wearing 2 colours. I tried to do the look on the card but 1) I hate putting eyeshadow up to the brow bone as it makes me look like a clown and 2) the last colour sexpresso wasn’t pigmented enough or easy enough to use to be able to line the eyes with it, I tried but it just went on too light! I like the effect it gave my eye, and I like the neutral look and how wearable this is, but the shadows were just so difficult to work with and similar in colour for me to try it again and practice with it. I think I will give up and move on, or mix up the shadows a little!

Review; MAC Trio 1 (LE)

Trio 1 (Heatherette)
MAC Heatherette trio 1 Mac Heatherette look flash

OK, I thought I would love this, and in the palette the colours look awesome, especially mood ring. However I dislike the textures even though I like frost and veluxe pearl (Hoppin’ Frost, Mood Ring Veluxe pearl, Cloudburst velvet) I found all these shadows too powdery and not pigmented enough. The pink came up as just invisible powder on my face, the mint green I had to pile on to get it to show up, and the black one was so powdery it went everywhere however the colour was very pigmented. These were so hard to work with that the look just did not come out right. I’ve given up on it, which is a massive shame.

Review; MAC Royal Tour Trio (LE)

Royal Tour trio (Dame Edna)
MAC Dame Edna Royal Tour MAC Dame Edna Look Flash

Although I don’t normally like the textures (Royal Tour satin, Dame’s Desire frost, Climate Blue velvet) they really worked on my lid, it was really easy to use, and the colours go so well together, however they are different enough to obviously stand out against each other. I much prefer these to mattes but they still have a matte effect. I like this trio more then I thought I would.

Review; MAC Forged Rose Brushed Metal-X (LE)

Forged Rose Brushed Metal-X (Metal Urge)
MAC Metal Urge Brushed Metal - X Forged rose MAC Brushed Metal X Forged Rose

I thought this would be fantastic, but it just didn’t deliver. It went patchy, creased during the day. The shade also made me look like I had been punched in the face or hadn’t slept in a few years because it is far too red based when on the lid. I wish I just bought coppering eyeshadow instead! Hate this formula and colour on the lid, it just doesn't work!

Review; MAC Sweet & Punchy Eyeshadow (LE)

Sweet & Punchy (To The Beach)
MAC To The Beach Sweet & Punchy eyeshadow MAC To The Beach Sweet & Punchy Eyeshadow

I love this! It is another veluxe pearl. It is like a mash up of lemon and lime! Can you get more tropical then that? It is a yellow-y green-y “chartreuse". I would say it goes on more yellow, but it is so unique I would advise this for any collection!

Review; MAC Firecracker Eyeshadow (LE)

Firecracker (To The Beach)
MAC To The Beach Firecracker Eyeshadow MAC To The Beach Firecracker eyeshadow swatch

Now this is one of the first eyeshadow colours I have worn where I received multiple compliments off people. It really suits blue eyes and it is such a bright, warm and unusual shade. It is like a reddish orange-y coral with my favourite veluxe pearl finish. So soft and pigmented. I would say a must have for all collections!

Review; MAC Bright Future Eyeshadow (LE)

Bright future (Style Warriors)
MAC Style Warriors Bright Future MAC Bright Future swatch

This is like Golden Lemon pigment but softer and less glittery and possibly a bit more of a deep yellow. This is a veluxe pearl finish which is soft and very pigmented, it is a very bright colour and one for the collection of anyone who likes either bright and daring shades or a lover of yellow eyeshadows.

Review; MAC Birds & Berries Eyeshadow (LE)

Birds & Berries (Liberty of London)
MAC Liberty of London birds and berries MAC Birds & Berries LoL eyeshadow

This is a very dark teal, it also has a greyness to it too. This is much darker and less vibrant on the skin then in the pan, but it is still such an unusual colour, however it is similar to “strike the pose” eyeshadow. This is a veluxe pearl so the application is soft and the colour is very pigmented.

Review; MAC Bough Grey Eyeshadow (LE)

Bough Grey (Liberty of London)
MAC Liberty of London bough grey mac liberty of london bough grey eyeshadow

This is a satin, so it is a little sheer and not as soft and shiny as the veluxe pearls and frosts, but the colour is buildable and easy to work with. This makes blue eyes really pop, and it is beautiful difficult to dupe colour. A grey everyone should have picked up!

Review; MAC Smudged Violet Eyeshadow (LE)

Smudged Violet (cult of cherry shadowy lady quad)
MAC Cult of Cherry shadowy lady quad MAC Smudged Violet eyeshadow Cult of Cherry collection

This is a frost, and like most of the frosts it is very pigmented and easy to apply. It is a lot more brown then purple but it is still a beautiful colour. They should have made this permenant.

Review; MAC Deep Truth Eyeshadow

Deep Truth
MAC Cult of Cherry shadowy lady quad MAC Deep Truth

MAC Description; Very real truthful dark blue.

This is a very deep but vibrant dark blue, it is a very beautiful rich colour, it is a frost but I find it very smooth and pigmented like a veluxe pearl. I was after this colour for a while, and when I finally got it I was not disappointed.

Review; MAC Aquadisiac Eyeshadow

Aquadisiac
MAC Aquadisiac MAC Aquadisiac eyeshadow

MAC Description; Deep sea turquoise.

This is a fantastic aqua colour, so bright and fresh. I have heard complaints about it not being smooth or pigmented, and I would prefer it if it was veluxe pearl or frost rather then luster, but I have not had a problem with the pigmentation at all. This is a really beautiful colour to own.