November 26, 2012

Femme Fatale Cosmetics Eyeshadow swatches and review

November 26, 2012/ Jeanne

When I moved to Australia I was eager to find local makeup brands since many foreign brands are more expensive here. I came across Femme Fatale Cosmetics and was drawn in by the amazing colours and swatches on the website. In addition to eyeshadows, there are blushes, illuminators and nail polishes.

1. Archangel - a soft pinkish ivory with a subtle violet duochrome. Great for highlighting.

2. Divinity - a light pink with a bit of a gold shift.

3. Elitist - a yellow gold with shimmer.

4. Exorcism - violet with a blue green duochrome.

5. Flare - a strong, orange-y red with a gold duochrome. I like to mix this with a clear lip balm to create a red tinted lip balm.

6. Frozen Flame - a light orange with a strong light blue duochrome.

7. Heroic - a light copper with gold shimmer. Great for an easy, neutral all-over shade.

8. Incantation - a reddish burgundy with pink shimmer.

9. Inscribe - a warm chocolately brown with a soft, pale green duochrome.

10. Misdirection - a forest green with light green shimmer.

11. Moonglow - a light silvery blue with yellowy gold and pink shimmer.

12. Moonstone - a sheer icy white with a light blue duochrome. Looks amazing over a dark base.

13. Mysticism - a reddish purple with a light blue duochrome.

14. Shadow Dance - a cool toned grey with pink and blue shimmer.

15. Smokebomb - very complex! It starts out dark brown but shifts to green, purple, and gold.

16. Spirit Bond - a strong indigo purple with a greenish gold duochrome.

17. Sunfire - a peachy pink with a gorgeous gold shimmer. Looks amazing on the eyes or the lips, my absolute favourite.

18. Unholy - a dark base that looks like a purple-y brown with a strong green duochrome.

My personal favourites are Archangel, Heroic, Smokebomb, Sunfire, and Unholy.

Overall, I really enjoy all of these eyshadows. They are all swatched dry and without any base or primer and I had no problems with application. If you like highly pigmented, complex colours I'd definitely recommend checking out Femme Fatale Cosmetics' website.

When I wear these on my eyes I do use an eyeshadow primer. Sometimes I also use a homemade mixing medium (two parts water to one part glycerin) and apply it wet for a foiled look. I also have a primer meant for loose powder eyeshadows that doesn't change the look, but helps them to adhere to the eyelids better. When I apply these, I get some product on my brush, tap off the excess and pat it onto my eyelids so there's no messy fallout.

Recently when I've traveled with makeup at least one of my pressed powder products has been broken/shattered; so, I like to bring the sample bags when I travel because an already loose eyeshadow can't be broken down any further!. The sample bags are also great for travel -- this allows me to bring lots of colours that I'm not likely to wear on an everyday basis, but won't take up a lot of space/weight.

Femme Fatale Cosmetics' eyeshadows are available in three sizes; a sample zip-lock bag which contains 1/8 of a teaspoon ($1.10AUD), a mini jar which contains 3g of product and an optional sifter ($3.00AUD without a sifter, $3.10AUD with a sifter) and a full sized jar which contains 5g of product and no sifter ($5.75AUD). There are also discounted sets available. Each eyeshadow is individually labeled and informs the user as to whether or not it is eye safe, lip safe, and vegan. The full sized 5g jars contain a lot of product, so I would recommend those for multi use colours (like peachy, coral-y oranges and pinks that can be used on the eyes, lips and face) or colours you would likely use everyday.

If anyone wants to try out Femme Fatale Cosmetics but is intimidated by the bold colours, I created an easy, neutral look using Heroic on the lids, Archangel as a browbone and inner corner highlight, Smokebomb (used with an eyeliner sealant) as an eyeliner, Forever Lovely Rose (discontinued, it was a limited edition item) on the cheeks and Flare mixed with a clear lip balm on the lips.

Femme Fatale Cosmetics is an Australian owned company that does not test on animals. Orders which contain samples only ship free, worldwide :)

November 25, 2012

Makeup reorg 2.0

November 25, 2012/ Nicole McIntyre

Earlier this year I invested in handy little plastic drawers to aid with the organisation of my makeup. But like a kid begging to tear off its training wheels, I attempted to do the same in my own way last weekend. I jammed all of this...

Into this...

I purchased this plastic organiser from my local Officeworks for less than $15.00. It's still much cheaper than this Kardashian solution.

Let's see how long this lasts ;)

How do you stay organised or attempt to manage chaos?

November 25, 2012

Eyes to mesmerise: Burberry's Complete Eye Palette in Dark Spice No. 5

November 25, 2012/ Nicole McIntyre

Silky soft, buttery, seductive - Burberry's Dark Spice makes everything nice and it's especially easy on the eyes. On the wallet, not so much -- but that's besides the point ;)

The Complete Eye Palette Collection is comprised of six palettes and I went with the palette that made me the most uncomfortable (in a good way). Typically I reach for purples or sandy neutrals, but the juxtaposition of marigold and matte charcoal black had me at hello; the golden brown and chocolatey burnt sienna shades aren't so bad either.

So, what makes this Complete Eye Palette so special? It comes with three bite-size brushes nestled in a black velvet pouch imprinted with the iconic Burberry plaid pattern. Truth be told, the small brushes weren't the selling point -- the opportunity to try new colours with an impeccable formula is what works for me.

The colours are laid within the pan in such a way which proposes its intended use and potential.

Matte Charcoal Black - the smallest of the four, but a little goes a long way. Use it to line and create added depth at the outer corners of your eyes.

Marigold - the second smallest. This canary can carry a tune; it works well on its own and also as a great base for the chocolatey burnt sienna hue. I used this colour to highlight the inner corners of my eyes too.

Golden Brown with a microscopic specks of gold - the smoke starter; lay this colour down third and then blend the black shade in last for a smoky look.

Chocolatey Burnt Sienna - it's a foxy chameleon; blend over Marigold in order to bring out its orange undertones. Or, go for a dark brown look by taking Marigold out of the equation.

For the look above I used MAC's Shroom as an all over colour; Trench will also do if you have that in your compilation of colours.

Want to shave off a little time in the morning? I skipped lining my upper lash line thanks to the intensity of Dark Spice.

Oh and word to the wise before departing the counter with your wares. Check the contents of the box to make sure it's what you wanted; the exterior label read Dark Spice, but the compact inside was Mocha. It's nothing the ol' switcheroo can't fix.

The Bagful breakdown:

Total amount for Burberry's Complete Eye Palette in Dark Spice no. 5:

$85.00 AUS / $59.00 USD

Value for money spent (performance and quality):

10 out of 10 bags — Love this palette <3

Likelihood to purchase:

Mocha no. 2 and Pale Nude no. 3 are nipping at my heels!

November 22, 2012

Essie's Licorice under Shine of the Times - weekly nail review

November 22, 2012/ Nicole McIntyre

Sparkly/shimmery top coats are transformative. If you ever decide to give them a miss, stop yourself and look again. Do you have a plethora of colours and formulas and are just plain bored of grabbing for the same colours? Instead of buying several on trend colours each season, purchase a sparkly top coat or two.

It's a budget-friendly solution that can take you from feeling meh to great!

Just when I thought I was getting tired of Essie's Shine of the Times, I gave it another go last week and had Mira paint it over Licorice. Let's just say we created quite the nail combination.