Aqualillies for Tarte Amazonian Clay Waterproof Eye And Cheek Palette

"Make a splash with this palette inspired by America’s most glamorous synchronized swimming group! Aqualillies reinvent the classic art of water ballet and mesmerize audiences with their modern strength and vintage beauty. "

Tarte recently released a new collection for Spring/Summer entitled Aqualillies containing several different water/splash proof products.  I decided to picked up the limited edition Amazonian Clay Waterproof Eye and Cheek palette. The Amazonian clay-infused palette contains six new eye shadows, a bronzer, a highlighter, and a limited-edition blush all tucked inside a classically elegant, mirrored compact. It's powered by skin-balancing Amazonian clay and skin-softening mineral pigments to create a splash proof look. 

L to R: Champagne, Park Ave Princess, Captivating

First let's talk about the face and cheeks products in this adorable palette.  Amazonian Clay Shimmering Powder in Champagne is a shimmering pressed powder infused with Amazonian clay that adds a customizable, luminous glow to cheeks, brow bones and décolletage. This powder is super soft and buttery and adds a light angelic glow to the skin. Amazonian Clay Mineral Powder Bronzer in Park Ave Princess (which is one of tarte's top selling products) is a long wearing mineral-based bronzing powder infused with Amazonian clay for a healthy, natural looking glow.  This bronzer is a light yellow gold bronzer with subtle sheen that applies like a dream.   Amazonian Clay 12-Hour Blush in Captivating is limited edition to this palette. It's a matte warm peach that adds a perfect pop of color to the cheeks. All three powders are highly pigmented and last all day on the skin. 

L to R: Hammock, Bikini, Barefoot, Parasol, Sun Deck, Poolside

Now on to the eyeshadows.  This palette contains six limited edition shades exclusive to the Aqualillies palette; five of which are neutral shades and one pop of color shade.  Hammock is a matte chocolate brown that can be used as a shadow or a liner. Bikini is a golden peach satin duo chrome, Barefoot is a golden nude shimmer, Parasol is a rosy champagne shimmer, Sun Deck is a matte light brown and Poolside is a bright shimmery turquoise.  All of the shadows are soft to the touch and apply/blend perfectly on the lid. The shadows work really great together to great all sorts of looks.  Below is the look card that was included with the palette, both are really stunning. Overall I love this palette and will probably be reaching for it the majority of the summer because all the products I need are there! It will be great  to take on those summer vacation as well!

EDWARD BESS Prismette Eyeshadow Quad Cosmic Bliss

Edward Bess has recently introduced three new eyeshadow quad palettes to his cosmetics range; Over the Moon, Cosmic Bliss, and Sun and Stars ($68). The shadows are housed in glossy black mirrored palettes that come with a mini applicator (a sponge end and a brush end).  Out of all the palettes, I decided to go with Cosmic Bliss because it seemed like a neutral lover’s dream.

Cosmic Bliss contains four beautiful warm neutrals: a cream matte shade, a khaki taupe with soft shimmer, a darker taupe brown shimmer, and a dark chocolate shimmer with a touch of red. The colors go and blend together beautifully, I especially love the two middle shades. Each shadow has gorgeous pigmentation and is very smooth and buttery to the touch.

This palette is extremely versatile and could easily be used on a daily basis. You could definitely create a soft, natural eye or deep, smoky one.  I highly recommend this palette if you are looking for a beautiful luxe, neutral palette.  Edward Bess is available at Sephora.com (where I purchased mine) or Bergdorf’s, Neiman’s, or EdwardBess.com.

Urban Decay NAKED Basics Palette

Urban Decay recently released their NAKED Basics Eyeshadow Palette ($27) containing six full sized shadow in the following shades: Venus, Foxy, Walk of Shame, Naked 2, Faint and Crave.  All of the shades are matte with the exception of Venus, which is described as a demi-matte.  Two shades are already available individually, Foxy (also in the Naked 2 palette) and Walk of Shame and the four others are exclusive to this palette. They have excellent color payoff and a buttery texture, allowing for smooth, easy application. Here is the run down of the colors:

• Venus is a soft, shimmery off-white. It’s described as a demi-matte but it’s has more shimmer to it. A great brow or tear duct color.

• Foxy is a light yellow beige with a true matte finish. A little yellower than my skin tone so it almost blends in. Very similar to MAC Chamomile (LE).

• Walk of Shame is a light pinky nude with a matte finish. This shade is a little pinker than my skin tone but pretty much blends perfectly, you can barely see it in the swatches. A tad darker than MAC Vanilla and lighter than Brule.

• Naked 2 is a deeper rosy taupe with a matte finish.

• Faint is a medium warm brown and a matte finish. A bit darker and cooler than MAC Wedge.

• Crave is a deep blacken brown and a matte finish.

All of the shades in this palette are wearable and complemented each other perfectly. I wanted this palette because I thought it would be nice to have these basics in my everyday makeup kit that are lacking from the original Naked & Naked 2 Palettes.  You could use them to do a simple neutral eye, fill in & highlight the brows. The packaging is lightweight and easy to tuck away in any makeup or handbag. Overall this is a great new addition to my collection. See you next time….

Sleek MakeUP i-Divine Au Natural Palette

I am kind of behind on getting the Au Natural palette from Sleek MakeUp. It was released last year as part of the Nude Collection and I having been going back and forth for months on whether or not to purchase it. I love the Sleek Storm palette, so I finally decided to bit the bullet and order Au Natural. It sells for $10.50 on the Sleek MakeUp website. This palette is a mixture of warm and cool tones shades each with very buttery texture. It offers excellent pigmentation in a variety of matte and shimmer shades.

Top row left to right:
Nougat – matte light beige
Nubuck - matte dove grey
Cappuccino - matte tan beige
Honeycomb - matte yellow beige
Toast - matte peachy orange shade
Taupe –shimmery champagne taupe

Bottom Row left to right:
Conker – shimmery red bronze
Moss – dirty moss brown shimmer
Bark - matte cool toned dark taupe brown
Mineral Earth – cool chocolate brown shimmer
Regal – matte deep plum brown
Noir – matte black

You are able to great a variety of looks with this palette, from everyday to evening. I would say my favorite shades are Nubuck, Cappuccino, Taupe, Moss and Mineral Earth. I have created most of my looks with those colors for the past couple of days and love the way they look when applied. Overall a great palette for neutral shadow lovers out there!

L’Oreal 24 Hour Infallible Eyeshadow in Bronzed Taupe

 L'Oreal promises that their new Infallible Eyeshadows will “last from day until dawn—a full 24 hours. This revolutionary formula fuses the ease of a powder with the velvety caress of a cream to create a unique hybrid that glides on effortlessly. And with its unique technology, your eyes are enhanced with pure, magnified pigment.” When I first saw these shadows they reminded me of the Armani Eyes to Kill Intense shadows minus the multiple colors mixed in. They are almost a pressed pigment that allows ultra smooth application and extreme pigmentation. The texture is extremely soft to the touch, almost silky.

Bronzed Taupe is a warm metallic taupe that in the pan looks much warmer than when applied. It’s such a beautiful color!! I love just wearing it on its own, so no other colors spoil its beauty. I found that this formula wears great, especially when paired with a primer and base. I wore it one day for about 10 hours with no fading or creasing. After experimenting a bit, I found it much easier to apply this product with my finger, rather than a brush.

The Infallible Eye Shadows retail for $7.95 on the L’Oreal website but pricing varies from store to store. I purchased mine at Target for $6.99 and had a $1.00 off coupon I printed from Target’s website. I also saw that they are currently on sale at Ulta for $3.99, so I might go scoop up a few more colors!

Chanel Ombre Contraste Duo in Sable-Emouvant

Chanel released a new Ombre Contraste Eyeshadow Duo ($42) with their Summer 2012 collection, Sable-Emouvant. The Contraste Duos are a pairing of complementary shades with two different textures, a light creamy powder and a dark shade with intense micronized shimmer.

Sable-Emouvant is neutral lovers dream containing a soft shimmery beige and a micro-shimmer brown with red undertones. It’s a classic combo that is easily blendable, buttery soft and nicely pigmented. It's one of those duos that goes with just about any lip color and can be worn day or night. For day, apply the lighter color on the lid, and then apply darker color in the crease. For night, apply the dark shade to the lid and smoke out a little beyond the crease, then apply the light shade on the brow bone and inner corner of the eye for illumination. I see myself wearing this duo all year round.

Edward Bess Ultra Luminous Eyeshadow in Escape

I already own a few of Edward Bess eyeshadows, Intimate, Dusk and Mystery.  They make for wonderful neutral eye combos for day or nighttime.  I decided to add a new EB shadow to my collection, Escape ($30). 

With summer upon us, I am all about the bronze and gold shades, whether just shimmery or metallic, I love them all.  Escape is just the color I have been wanting, scratch that, needing.  Escape is a beautiful warm copper with a touch of bronze.  Just like the other EB shadows, Escape is wonderfully pigmented and buttery soft.  All though this shade is not super shimmery or metallic, it has a subtle sheen that is classic and elegant.  When applied it gives the lids a warm glow.  I like to wear it alone with bronzy eyeliner for day and for night I like to add a little Mystery, which is a deep brown, in the crease for smokiness and depth. 

Becca Lost Weekend Eyeshadow Palette

BECCA released the Lost Weekend Palette in their Fall 2011 collection, along with several other products. This limited edition three eye color palette washes eyes in neutral, dusty and earthy shades. The colors in the palette are Moleskin soft matte stone beige with a hint of mauve), Chino (a matte, chocolate brown) and Moiré (a shimmery mushroom brown with touch of pink). These gorgeous natural, earthy tones will match most skin tones easily.

All three shadows are velvety soft and well pigmented. They are extremely easy to blend and apply very smoothly. I really like this palette; it’s a great neutral palette for everyday. I have been wearing it consistently since I got it, using the Baroque eye tint as a base. That really helps the shadow last all day. Overall, another product that I am loving from BECCA cosmetics!

Left to Right: Moleskin, Chino, Moiré

Becca Eye Tint in Baroque

I have heard a lot of good things about the Austrailian cosmetic brand Becca on various other blogs and youtube videos.  After looking over their products on their website, beccacosmetics.com, I decided to try out several items.  The first I am going to review is one of their Eye Tints in the color Baroque. 

Becca describes their Eye Tints as "An ingenious eye crème with a unique formulation that glides on as a crème and sets to a powder. This long-lasting, water-resistant, crease-resistant tint is easy to apply, offering adjustable levels of sheer to high pigment colour. Can be layered under powder eye colours and loose pigments for added intensity. Can be applied with fingers or a brush. Streak-free."

Baroque is described as a Mushroom Beige and that is what you get.  It leaves lids with a very sheer wash of color (unless you layer on more) which is great when you want a natural look. This product makes for an excellent eyeshadow base and seems to make powder shadow last much longer. Baroque being a light color would probably suit light to medium skin tones rather than darker.  The actual formula is pretty weightless and easy to apply. The creamy formula feels soft and smooth and blends easily. Don't know if I would replace my paint pots with this product, but it is a nice new addition to my collection. 

Lancôme Color Design Palette in Taupe Craze

Lancôme recently released ten new Color Design eyeshadow palettes ($48). These palettes claim to brighten eyes and have an eight-hour formula to last and not crease. Each palette includes five shades labeled so you know where to apply each shade. The palettes include an All-over Base, Lid, Crease, Highlighter and Liner shades. I really love all of the palettes but I decided to try just one out at first.

Taupe Craze is a cool taupey neutral palette that includes a mix of satin and shimmer finishes. All the shadows are super smooth and buttery and blend perfectly. They all have excellent pigmentation as well. Here is a breakdown of the shades in the palette:

The All-over base color is a light peachy beige with a satin finish. The lid shade is a cool medium taupe shimmer. The crease shade is a dark taupe brown with satin finish. The highlighter is a light shimmery taupe. The liner shade is a deep taupe brown with silver shimmer. The liner can be used wet or dry, but I found works best wet.

L to R: All Over, Lid, Crease, Highlighter, Liner

The palette also comes with an Artistry Tips booklet. In it they show you how to do a day look and a night look. They also recommend addition eye products to use with the looks. Overall, love the palette. The color payoff is great and I can wear these colors all year long. I think Bronze Amour and Coral Crush are on my list to get as well.



Rouge Bunny Rouge Long Lasting Eyeshadows

Rouge Bunny Rouge is a whimsical Russian beauty brand that has been buzzing around the beauty blog world for the past year or so. I have read so many amazing reviews of their products I finally broke down and purchased some of their products. First off, RBR is only sold on zuneta.com, which is a British based beauty web store. That means that the products sold there are in British pounds, so when converted to US dollars the products can be a little pricey. But I found that they are totally worth it!

The first product I will be talking about is RBR’s Long lasting eyeshadows. I picked up two of the most talked about shades, Abyssinian Catbird and Bejewelled Skylark. Both shadows are highly pigmented, super smooth and really long lasting. Also both colors are extremely unique; I don’t have or have seen any colors like them. Both shades are on the warm/deep side but translate beautifully on the eyes.

Abyssinian Catbird

Abyssinian Catbird is a very warm deep gold metallic. It’s an absolutely stunning color! I have never seen anything like it. This is the perfect color for a warm bronzy summer smoky eye. I can’t wait to be tan so I can really rock this color.

Bejewelled Skylark

Bejewelled Skylark is a rich coppery brown with shimmer. Also very highly pigmented, don’t need to pick much up on your brush. This will also be a great color for the summer. I have been using as a liner currently and love the way it looks.

L to R: Abyssinian Catbird, Bejewelled Skylark

Overall I am super excited about my first Rouge Bunny Rouge eyeshadow purchase and see myself purchasing some of the lighter shimmery colors in the future. You can check out the whole RBR line at http://www.rougebunnyrouge.com/ and purchase here at Zuneta.

Fresh Beauty Studio Cosmetics: Glamazon Eyeshadow Palette

I have been watching Nikol Johnson’s YouTube channel for some time now (Check it out here). She does awesome tutorials and reviews about different products. Nikol, a former model, is the owner of Fresh Beauty Studio in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, which is a beauty boutique that offers beauty services such as makeup applications, brow/lash treatments, facials, waxing and bridal services. Recently Nikol launched her own cosmetic line called Fresh Beauty Studio and has been using her cosmetics in her tutorials. The line consists of tons of different products including lipglosses, eyeshadow palettes, cheek palettes, etc. Once she placed her line on her website, I ordered a few products she used in her videos. The first product I am going to review is an eyeshadow palette in Glamazon.

All of the Fresh Beauty Studio eyeshadow palettes contain 5 shadows in different formulas (matte, satin, shimmer, etc.).  Each eyeshadow is very pigmented and smooth to the touch.  They don't have individual names but here are descriptions of each color:
Cream with a Satin Finish (similar to Brule by MAC)
Peachy Gold Shimmer
Copper Shimmer
Medium Beige Shimmer
Warm Chocolate Brown with a Satin Finish

Overall, this palette is a winner in my book. Each shadow is long lasting and the color payoff is great.  Each palette sells for $39 and I will definitely be purchasing more in the future.  Go check out Nikol's line at www.freshbeautystudio.com.

Clinique Spring 2011 Milly Pretty in Prints Palette

 The Pretty in Prints palette from the Clinique 2011 Spring collection is simply perfect for Spring. The colors are soft, simple and feminine, perfect for the girly girl. This is the palette Clinique designed and collaborated with Milly designer Michelle Smith. The mirrored palette contains a Colour Surge Eyeshadow Quad in Printed Pinks and a Blushing Blush in Precious Posey. The palette also comes with 2 brushes, one for eyes and one for blush. The palette also comes with a small drawstring pouch in a signature Milly pattern and a look instruction card. I have been a fan of Milly for a few years now and love the prints that Michelle designs. Her clothes are very chic and classy and that is exactly how I feel about this palette. Now onto the colors…

Colour Surge Eyeshadow Quad in Printed Pinks contains an ivory shade, a shimmering bronze, a soft shimmering medium pink and a matte chocolate brown. I love chocolate shades mixed with pinks, its very girly and feminine looking. Precious Posey Blushing blush is a beautiful color for spring! It’s a gorgeous melon pink shade with golden shimmer and complements the eye shadow quad and Milly Pink lipgloss perfectly. Overall a great pink (I mean pick) for spring! Go check it out soon because it is limited edition.

Colour Surge Eyeshadow Quad swatches

Precious Peony blush swatch

Cute Milly drawstring bag!

Face Chart included with palette

Estee Lauder Pure Color Five Color Eyeshadow Palette in Wild Violet

Wild Violet is the Five Color eyeshadow palette ($42) that was recently release for Spring 2011 from Estee Lauder. It is a beautiful neutral palette of shadows with a pop of color in the center.  This is the other product that I picked up from this collection and it is really beautiful.  The shades are extremely wearable/practical and easy to use.  They are creamy and all are very well pigmented with the exception of the lightest shade.

The palette contain five beautiful shades, a shimmery ivory, a medium brown shimmer, bright copper shimmer, mink brown shimmer and a pop of deep purple in the middle. All the colors work together perfectly or on there own and many different looks (day/night) can be achieved with this one palette. This is a definite must have for the spring!

Belle Il Fiore Bella in Bloom Eyeshadow Palettes

Looking for a great stocking stuffer for your mom, sister or friend?? Well these cute eye palettes from Belle Il Fiore are just the thing you need! I heard about these palettes through Fresh Beauty Studios YouTube channel. The owner of Fresh beauty Studio, Nikol, sells these in her shop and on her blog.  She also did several look video’s using these palettes, so I decided to check them out. There are three palettes available but I only picked up two: Lola & Annabelle.  Each of these palettes contains 8 beautiful pigmented shadows. The Lola palette contains warm colors and the Annabelle palette is a little cooler. At $13.50 a piece, these palettes are a great value.  Here is a breakdown of each palette….

Lola Palette

Trellis – a matte reddish brown
Mistletoe – emerald green shimmer
Veronica – bronzy brown shimmer
Marigold – a pale gold shimmer with subtle sparkle
Sunflower – medium beige shimmer
Orchid – pinky deep beige shimmer
Poppy – light beige shimmer
Petal – light pink shimmer

Annabelle Palette

Periwinkle – bright purple shimmer

Lavender - light pastel purple shimmer

Hyacinth – deep burgundy shimmer

Lilac – matte medium purple

Lily – light beige shimmer

Daffodil – pink shimmer

Autumn – true bronze shimmer

Bliss - gray green shimmer with subtle sparkle

Lola Palette Swatches:

L to R: Trellis, Mistletoe, Veronica, Marigold, Sunflower, Orchid, Poppy, Petal

Annabelle Palette Swatches:

L to R: Periwinkle, Lavender, Hyacinth, Lilac, Lily, Daffodil, Autumn, Bliss

You can purchase these palettes and other Bella products at http://www.bellabeauty.net/.