Holy Grail: Sephora Palette

I love Sephora for many reasons that I'm sure are similar to why you love them too. In particular, I looooove their own line. The prices are much more affordable compared to other makeup they carry and in my opinion just as useful and versatile. I recently bought a palette that contains everything I need to perfect any look, for only $12. I don't know if the exact one I purchased is available anymore but they have an even bigger one that retails for $19 and I'm sure it's just as great if not better, you can take a look here. Anyway, I just wanted to share the glory of this makeup steal, it contains four (4) face colors, sixteen (16) lip colors, and thirty-two (32) eye shadows! I already know this ones gonna be long, but you know I like being as descriptive as possible so you don't end up buying something you regret.

It comes in a really sleek black packaging, the cheek colors and lip glosses push into the package to make it measure approx. 6 inches across. It's really nice to be able to grab one product and it have absolutely everything I need for tons of looks. I always take this when I travel instead of bringing individual eye shadows and blushes. Just throw this in my purse and I'm set for day looks, night looks, colorful ideas, and a neutral face.

The Eyes

The eyeshadow portion of this palette contains thirty-two (32) one square inch shadows ranging from matte black to a light pink shimmer. Shimmers and foils take up the majority of the palette with about four (4) matte shades thrown in there. My favorites are some of the bronzes and browns and the really bright green.Just about any color combination can be created with these and don't forget about mixing shades to create custom colors. Here are some swatches on the skin to show the true pigmentation and color of the shadows. I've divided the swatches up to make them easier to see. The swatches will focus on two rows of four colors starting from the top left, moving down, then over to the right side of the palette. Sorry if that sounds confusing I just want everyone to be able to compare the swatches to the pot colors without confusion. (: But if you do end up having any questions, just ask!

Swatches

Cheeks

I really love the cheek quad that comes in this palette. There's a light pink shimmer highlight, a matte apricot peach shade, a barbie pink blush, and a golden shimmer bronzer. They're really pigmented and show up super pretty on the skin. You can add just a little for a slight color or layer it on for something more dramatic.

Swatches

Lips

There are sixteen (16) lip shades ranging from dramatic fushcia to clear. Some of the more pigmented ones I would consider a liquid lipstick, as for the sheer ones, they're really pretty over an actual lipstick or alone as a lipgloss.

Swatches

Overall, I really love this palette. So many different looks can be made from it so it really gives the opportunity to play around with your creative side. Don't be scared of the bright colors, remember no one wakes up one morning and is good at makeup. It takes practice and time. And this is a great product to get that practice. Here are a couple photos of me wearing different variations of this palette:

In this photo, I'm wearing the peach blush and pink cheek highlight.

If you'd like me to try a look created from this palette, let me know what you'd like to see and I'll do my best to try it!

Do you have a "go-to" product that offers versatility and saves space? If so, what is it?

XOX,

- Mj

New Stuff for Cool Girls: Hard Candy & Revlon

I've had my eye on these two products (not the colors I picked out specifically but just the brand) for quite some time now. Typically, before I buy something, I'm one to research as much as I can to ensure that I'll be satisfied with my purchase. This is especially true if what I'm buying is from a drugstore, where you usually can't test things and returns are a pain in everyones butt. Today, however while at Wal-Mart in the beauty section (duh) I decided to give these a go. As you can see they're in a similar color family, coral / peachy / orange. It's the start of summer and these colors are one of my favorites for this season. My other favorite is super bright teal / turquoise slapped beneath the lash line, but we'll get to that another day. Anyway, I ended up purchasing Hard Candy's Fox in a Box in Skinny Dipping and Revlons Super Lustrous Lipgloss in Coral Reef. And here's what I thought of them:

• Hard Candy Fox in a Box [ Skinny Dipping ]: "A highly pigmented multi-color powder compact that will surely bring out your inner foxy lady. Each box contains coordinated shades that blend together perfectly and a custom Hard Candy applicator brush. Sweep across chin, cheeks, forehead, and unleash the foxiness in you!"
• Revlon Super Lustrous Lipgloss [ Coral Reef ]: "Silky...Sexy...Brilliant. Glossy formula combines sheer color and intense moisture with light reflecting spheres to create amazing shine. SPF 15."

Thoughts so far
Hard Candy Fox in a Box [Skinny Dippin']. Okay, let me begin this by saying this "custom brush" sucks at life. No hard feelings hard candy (no pun intended, hehehe) but really? You call that a brush? Well, it's hardly. I don't even know what I can use it for. It's cute as a button, but no real purpose. Now, back to the makeup... this product comes in the cutest packaging I've seen in a while. And I'm a sucker for all things cute so this caught my eye the moment I saw it. However, it's a little impractical because of it's bulkiness and seems like it could be damaged easily. I definitely wouldn't feel safe keeping this in my purse, it's reserved for the vanity only. As for the actual makeup, it's cut 50 / 50 down the middle. On one side is the bronzer which is a slightly shimmery muted brown with some pink undertones. As for the other, it's a coral peach with pink and orange in there too, (I guess coral and peach both come from pink and orange mixing anyway). This side has also got a little shimmer. It says these are meant to be swirled together and applied but I prefer using them separately as a contour and blush. Or both blushes (at different times, of course), I say this because the brown is a little too pink for me, I like my contours and bronzers to be rather matte and brown / tan.
Revlon Super Lustrous Lipgloss [Coral Reef]. I'd like to note that this particular color is more opaque than sheer, but that's what I love about it. Like I said before, this is the perfect summer color. It's a perfect peachy pink that, combined with the natural pigment of my lips, makes me fall in love. The SPF makes it even more desirable for summer too! If you're into more opaque colors all I did to achieve this was put a little bit of M.A.C. lipstick in Myth on before I applied the gloss. The nude, muted tones of the Myth make the coral and pink really pop, it's lovely. When I see this lipgloss, it makes me want to pair it with perfectly bronzed skin and some gold eye shadow...perfection.

Swatches

In order from left to right:
M.A.C. Sheertone Shimmer [Springsheen]
A seperate review for this can be found here. I swatched this because it the review I did for it, I didn't provide the viewers with a swatch so here it is. It's a pinky peach with gold shimmer, really beautiful and sheer if you only apply one layer. But it's also quite buildable and can give you a nice pop of color if that's what you're looking for.
Fox in a Box [Skinny Dippin']
The colored side: A very orange peach with shimmer. Definitely one of my go-to shades for summer. Gives a beautiful peachy flush.
The bronzer side: I really hate calling this a bronzer because it has such pink undertones. As you can see in the photo it almost creates a purpley / pinky / peachy. I just feel eh about this color, but we'll see what time brings...
*NOTE: All 3 of the swatches were used with M.A.C. Cream Colour Base [Pearl] before applying because it allows the true colors to show.

Outside, No Flash

Outside, Flash
In order from left to right:
M.A.C. Lipstick [Myth]
This is a muted nude color that is good to use when you want a normally sheer lipgloss (such as Coral Reef) to appear more opaque and bright. I used this as color reference and to show the difference of the color with and without a base.
Revlon Super Lustrous Lipgloss [Coral Reef]
The thing I'm most in love with about this product is the formula. It's very similar, but better in my opinion, to Avon's Glazewear. Which is one of my favorite lines of glosses. So smooth and it feels really hydrating. It does wipe off easily so reapplication would be needed after eating / drinking. The packaging is very sleek and seems quite high end for a drugstore product. The color is very true to it's name, coral. Just pure coral. Though, I've done some research and as you know people have different pigmentation in their lips, this can change the color of the gloss. I really love this product and I'll definitely be buying a backup Coral Reef and see if there are any other colors that tickle my fancy.

If you've found any "New Stuff for Cool Girls", share it with us! (:

XOX,
- Mj