April 30, 2015

Smashbox x Donald Robertson: Photo Angle Pure Pigment Gel Liner in Plum


During the spring Sephora VIB sale, I picked up something new since I am a sucker for purple eyeliner. This is my first gel eyeliner since I started to seriously get into makeup, so I was excited to try something different.

Plum is a cool-toned deep purple. It definitely reads "purple" on the eye, which I think is hard to come by with deep or "blackened" shades of purple.

PIGMENTATION: Good-- in one swipe you get a relatively opaque line.

PRODUCT: Eh... I'm not sure if it's because I'm not used to gel liner or if this is a special case. This liner is very dry so it was difficult to produce a clean line on my eye (yes, my swatch line is clean, but it was on the inside of my forearm, which is a flat surface). During application to my eye, it was a bit crumbly. I could also feel it on my eye throughout the day whenever I blinked or did normal eye things, which only ever happens if my eyes are irritated (they definitely weren't that day).  The packaging boasts a claim of "36-hour wear" but the liner was a very uncomfortable wear for the 5 hours it was on my eye, so I can't imagine wearing it for an insanely long period.

PACKAGING: As for the outer packaging, I think that the Donald Robertson part is limited edition, but it's only a sleeve that goes on the outside of the regular box the liner comes in. As for the packaging of the liner itself I really like the screw top cap. My guess is that it might keep the liner from drying out. The applicator is less great. It's a flexible foam tip that dispenses the liner through a slit at the top. It was really difficult to get a thin line with this, so I ended up with a giant wonky cat-eye.  As one who has aced the crisp cat-eye, this is a travesty in my book.
Sorry for the semi-blurry picture. Hopefully you get the gist.
PRICE: $24 for .03 oz

All-in-all, I'm not a fan of the Photo Angle liner. I really want to love it since it's SUCH  a gorgeous color with great color payoff, but the formula is so, so dry.

As always, you don't have to take my word for it! The Smashbox x Donald Robertson Photo Angle Pure Pigment Gel Liner is available now (in several colors!) at Sephora.

April 9, 2015

Kat Von D Lightning Liner: Poe, Fyfe, Hex, Jett

HOLY CRAP I JUST REALIZED I NEVER POSTED THIS REVIEW! I bought Poe and Hex the second they came out last fall, received Fyfe instead of Hex TWICE (thanks to Sephora for letting me keep the first one!), then bought Jett when I saw it in the store.

L-R: OG Fyfe, Poe, Hex, Jett in daylight
Fyfe: Deep forest green with olive green shimmer. I was sent this by accident and I am really loving this color. (I think this was a manufacturing mistake, because it looks like this color is now in Juno's packaging, which matches the color of the product.)

Poe: Smokey deep metallic purple with a hit of medium purple shimmer

Hex: Metallic burgundy

Jett: Black with silver microglitter.
L-R: OG Fyfe, Poe, Hex, Jett under an incandescent bulb

PIGMENTATION: Great! 

PRODUCT: The formula is neither too thin nor too thick, and it passed all of the tests I subjected it to with flying colors. My initial swatches first underwent water torture-- I put my hand under the faucet at full blast for close to a minute. Nothing ran nor faded. The next test was an oily one-- I rubbed a tiny bit of oil on the swatches. Again, nothing budged. Then on the day I actually wore the eyeliner, it lasted from 9 am til around 1 am (with a gym session from 7:30pm to 8:15pm) without flaking or doing anything else dumb. The liners came off with my makeup remover wipes with a little extra TLC.
Thank goodness it's not TOO bad, but you can see how Hex's brush is broken in comparison to Fyfe's.
Not sure if it's the product, or packaging, but I think Poe is close to running out. I couldn't have owned it for more than four months, and I certainly don't wear it every day. Also, the brush of Hex ended up splaying a bit, possibly from so much product coming out.
This is the aftermath of swatching Hex.
PACKAGING: The Lightning Liner comes in a click-up calligraphy pen. When you first open the box, you have to push the base into the top part (where the brush/cap are). I am a weakling and could BARELY complete this task. Poe was opened first and I wasn't quite sure what what happening, so I pushed it down as much as I could and tried using it. It worked, but I might have gotten some extra product inside the part where the brush lives-- on the day I tried to wear it, I had some troubles getting the product to show up in the brush. By the time I opened Fyfe, I was a pro and successfully closed the gap prior to using. When I wore it, I had a much easier time getting the product into the brush.

When I first heard about the click pen packaging, I foresaw an eyeliner mess. Poe and Hex delivered on that mess, but I think it was due to the packaging not being secured prior to use.

PRICE: $20 for 0.04 oz

All in all, for how great the product is inside, I am willing to overlook the packaging issues. For KvD's summer line, I noticed that a few more colors of the Lightning Liner were released, and I am definitely going to pick up some in hopes that the packaging issues were fixed.

As always, you don't have to take my word for it, Kat Von D's Lightning Liners are available now from Sephora.


April 7, 2015

Look of the day 4/4/2015

Last week I cut my hair a bit shorter and it was so happy that it made me want to take selfies.  If you're interested in my vanity, feel free to follow me on Instagram @landofladythings!


FACE:
Illamasqua skinbase white mixed with KVD foundation L45
Too Faced Absolutely Flawless concealer- Vanilla
Dita Von Teese for Art Deco blush- pale peach (the number wore off :( )
Illamasqua blush- Katie
Meow Cosmetics Pampered Puss Foundation- Sleek Mau
EYES:
Melt Cosmetics Lovesick stack- Amelie, Lovesick, Fixated
Kat Von D Ludwig palette- Tequila
Kat Von D Ladybird-  Vespertine,  Renholder
Physician's Formula Eye Booster- Ultra Black
Urban Decay Perversion Mascara
Urban Decay Anti-Aging Primer Potion

BROWS:
Tarte EmphasEYES- Rich Brown
Blinc Brow Mousse- Dark Brown

LIPS:
Bite Beauty Agave Lip mask
Kat Von D Painted Love Lipstick- Ritual, Lolita

April 5, 2015

Kat Von D Shade + Light Eye Contour Palette


When the Shade + Light Eye Contour palette was announced, I immediately started drooling for it. I got mine early by nicely asking a Sephora employee about it, after seeing a few people on Instagram with it.
Top row, L-R: Laetus, Lazarus, Ludwin
Bottom row, L-R: Samael, Solas, Lucius, Saleos, Shax, Liberatus, Succubus, Sytry, Latinus

Top: Laetus
Bottom: Samael, Solas, Lucius
Laetus - Pale yellow beige
Samael - Light tan. Leans warm
Solas - Medium brown. Leans cool.
Lucius - Pale cream

Top: Laetus
Bottom: Samael, Solas, Lucius (Laetus and Lucius are nearly the same color as my skin, which is why you can't see them)

Top: Lazarus
Bottom: Saleos, Shax, Liberatus
Lazarus - Light taupe
Saleos - Medium-dark grey with a hint of brown
Shax - Black
Liberatus - Cool-leaning white

Top: Lazarus
Bottom: Saleos, Shax, Liberatus
Top: Ludwin
Bottom: Succubus, Sytry, Latinus
Ludwin - Slightly tan peach
Succubus - Reddened medium brown
Sytry - Medium-dark warm brown with a slight grey undertone
Latinus - Very pale yellow. This is the only shade with a satin finish.
Top: Ludwin
Bottom: Succubus, Sytry, Latinus

PIGMENTATION: For the most part, these shadows have excellent pigmentation.  Shax and Saleos fell slightly short of everyone else's mark. If I gave them report cards, Saleos would get a A- and Shax would get a B. Laetus and Lucius nearly match my skintone, but if you aren't a ghost, they'll definitely show up. (If you are a ghost, they will make excellent blending colors!)

PRODUCT: Laetus and Lucius felt a little chalky.  Samael and Solas felt almost like cream shadows when I touched the pan. Succubus, Sytry, and Latinus were so lovely and buttery.  I wore Laetus,
Samael, Solas, and Lucius the other day without UDPP (which I NEVER do) and I didn't have any creasing or fading for the entire time I had the shadows on (which was only about five hours). Eyeshadow ALWAYS creases on me- even when my skin was like paper from taking Accutane- so color me impressed. When I was dipping my brushes into the pans, a lot of powder was kicked up, but I didn't notice any fall out or crazy dust halo of eyeshadow on my cheeks (which sometimes happens when I'm trying to create magic with super powdery shadows.)

Check out that fancy background!

PACKAGING: The packaging is cardboard with decently sized mirror. This palette is divided into three tone sections: Neutral, Cool, and Warm and comes with an instruction guide on how to use the each section. There are two looks given for each tone section for a total of 6 looks-- perfect if you're new to makeup, or get in a rut. 

PRICE: $46

All in all, Shade + Light Eye Contour is THE perfect neutral palette. It has a great range of shades that really would work for all skin tones, there are no real duds in terms of texture, and it even comes with a guide to take the guesswork out of using it.

As always, you don't have to take my word for it. Kat Von D's Shade + Light Eye Contour palette will be fully available from Sephora soon! 

April 4, 2015

Look of the day- April 3 2015!

Today I accidentally had perfect hair so I decided to put on makeup. Because that's what you do when your hair looks good.
One of these days I'll be photogenic! My top is from Vivien of Holloway if you're curious.

Let me preface this by saying a lot of my look today was achieved with Urban Decay Naked on the Run palette.  I've listed it as "UDNotR."

FACE:
Josie Maran tinted moisturizer- fair
OCC skin conceal- Y0
Blush & highlighter- UDNotR

EYES:
UDNotR- Dive, Fix, Resist, Perversion mascara
Kat Von D Lightning Liner - Fyfe (original version)

BROWS:
Tarte EmphasEYES- Rich brown
Blinc Brow Mousse- Dark brown

LIPS:
Kat Von D liquid lipstick- Vampira (barely patted on and rubbed in really well)
Benecos lipstick- Pink Honey

April 3, 2015

Bella & Spike Azuki Bean Facial Scrub


I don't quite remember how it started , but I've been obsessed with powder exfoliants. It's been crazy hard to find an affordable one that is also cruelty-free.  Enter the Bella & Spike Skincare's Azuki Bean Facial Scrub. They describe it as "a gently exfoliating facial scrub that will leave your skin feeling smooth, moisturized, and radiant."
The powder a little lumpy, probably because I keep it in the shower and extra moisture gets in the bottle.
PRODUCT:  This is a powder that you can mix with water to create an exfoliant paste. (I sometimes mix it with my cleanser to kill two birds with one stone.) The grains are really fine so I don't feel like its scratching my sensitive skin. It smells like brown rice, which isn't amazing, but it's definitely not the worst smell in the world. The only complaint I have is that it my skin feels quite a bit dry after I use it, but its nothing I can't fix with a good moisturizer afterwards. With regular use I've noticed that my skin tone has been more even, which I didn't think would EVER happen.


PACKAGING: The scrub is housed in a frosted glass bottle with an easy-to-screw-open metal top. I keep it in the shower, so the ink on the label has began to run. It's not so bad that I can't read anything anymore, as you can see from the pictures.

PRICE: $20 for 4 oz.

Despite it not living up to its moisturizing claims, I really like the Azuki Bean Facial Scrub, and would definitely purchase it again.

As always, you don't have to take my word for it! The Azuki Bean Facial Scrub is available on Bella & Spike's Etsy page.