Review / Swatches ACID Sleek Palette

It's hard to find bright colored eye shadows here in the states.  I want bright, neon colored, eye-popping, intensely pigmented shadows.  Well, I found them but they don't sell it here in the states.  I knew about Sleek for awhile now, and I always wanted to try the products.  The only problem is that you can only get it in Europe, there is no store or online store that actually sells them.  Thank goodness 

www.sleekmakeup.com

does ship to the US for $13.50. You may also find some sellers on Ebay that will ship internationally.

Sleek Makeup

offers some amazing palettes ranging from neutrals to brights and of course smokey.  What's great about these palettes is that they are mineral based.  It's hard to find eye shadow palettes that are pressed mineral shadows.  I really love the design that is pressed on the shadows, it's like a square/diamond pattern. 

The palettes that I purchased are ACID, CIRCUS, and MONACO.  I did not purchase these from their website but on ebay instead because I wanted Circus and Monaco which were limited edition.  This post will focus on the ACID Palette! Circus and Monaco review will be posted at a later time.

ACID

This palette contains both matte and shimmer shadows.  The color range in this palette gives you a a light, neon and a few darker shades. 

Swatches - NYX Milk Jumbo Eye Pencil as a base

My thoughts:

- wow so pigmented!!!

-when used with a white base the colors just pop

-the two blue shades and silver grey are shimmery the rest are matte

-i love the neon shades - yellow, orange, pink and green

-this is a must have if you like bright colors

-the only downside to this palette is that you cannot order it from sleekmakeup.com because of USA FDA regulations they cannot send it.  This is the only palette from their line which they cannot ship over seas hence the reason why I purchased it on ebay.

I can't wait to use this palette for a MOTD!!!

MOTD: Smashbox Dark Room Photo Op Eye Shadow Trio

Last year Smashbox launched their new eye shadow trios called Photo Op.  These eye shadows are a new formula with new colors added and some favorites from their past trio eye shadows.  In the beginning there were 11 trio shades to select from now there are 16 with 4 from the original collection. The colors range from neutral nude, soft subtle colors to the favorite celebrity inspired smokey eye. 

 I love how each pot has 3 coordinated shades that all work together, no more guessing work!  You get a highlighter, crease and base/lid shade all in one compact.  The colors also work great on their own and you can pair them with existing colors that you already have in your makeup collection. The shadows go on velvety smooth and the pigment is very strong.  To make the shadows last longer I would suggest using an eye shadow primer of your choice. 

For this MOTD I used Dark Room  - Opal (opalescent pale pink), Granite (shimmery silver grey), Blackout (matte jet black).  The swatches on the top row are with a primer (Smashbox Photo Finish Eye Primer).  I even tried rubbing the shadows with the primer and they did not move! This is a great collection of shadows for a classic smokey eye and the colors are so versatile that they will work with any skin tone.

Products used:

Smashbox Dark Room

Opal - Highlight and Lid Color (for the lid use wet)

Granite - Crease (use a fluffy blending brush and really buff this color all over the crease and little bit above.  Blend in a circular motion back and forth.

Blackout - Detailed crease (this is best applied with a detailer definer brush or a slanted eye liner brush does the trick also.  Really emphasize this area by "carving" out the crease, do not blend.

Lip: Smashbox Pixel Lip Enhancing Lip Gloss.  This is one of my favorite nude lip glosses. 

I will be doing more looks with the Smashbox Photo Op Trios, since I have the whole palette that I received for Christmas.  The Photo Op Mega Palette is exclusive to QVC and it contains 16 of the trios plus 2 limited edition 4 eye shadow palette,  cream eye liners, blushes/highlighters and lip glosses.  Your whole complete set, you really don't need anything else.  You can still find it at QVC. Click the link

Photo Op 78 Shade Mega Palette

I am so behind in my blogging, there's so much I want to share with all of you! Hopefully I can get in the routine to post every day!!! :)

Nails: Sally Hansen Jewel Overcoat

My other obsession is glitter nail polish, actually anything that is glittery is an obsession of mine. lol. It seems like all the major nail polish brands out there are coming out with their own type of huge chuck hexagon glitter top coats.  I love it! I was first hooked when OPI by Sephora first launched the gold one ( Only Gold For Me) for the holiday season.  As a makeup artist I always want to make sure my nails are always presentable, and this polish sure grabbed a lot of attention.  I then added the silver top coat (Flurry Up) to my ever so growing nail polish collection.  But I wanted more, and more of this type of top coat.  I searched high and low and bought a few from OPI, China Glaze and Essie, but you know I just wanted more and more.  I think of makeup and nail polish like shoes - you just don't have 1 pair but various different styles and colors to accommodate your outfit this is the same with your nails and makeup.. Oh lets not forget your hair as well.

I was strolling around my local Walgreens for my weekly drugstore haul and low and behold!! WOW! Sally Hansen Diamond Strength Jewel Overcoat in pretty colors. MUST GET ALL, so I did. lol.

You cannot beat the price, buy 1 ($4.99) get 2nd for 50% off.

The collection is very bridal inspired. There are 4 jewel overcoats and then 4 regular nail polishes. Here are the jeweled colors:

 501 - Ring-a-Ding

*favorite, pretty with orange or light pink polish*

 503 - Muti-Faceted

*favorite, love the black, blue and silver glitters* 

505 - Let's Dance!

*pretty, it's like glitter rain on your nails*

507- White Veil   

 *was dissapointed in this one which the white sparkles showed up more looks more like white sand which chunks of larger gold hexagon glitter*

 I have very short nails, so I decided to do the swatches on a fake nail that I painted with white nail polish. Excuse my mess up on the Ring-a-ding nail and the Multi-Faceted.. :/ I was in the process of gluing down the fake nail then I pressed too hard on the tip of the nail glue that it broke and the nails were still wet. Perhaps I should stick to being a makeup artist.   Oh well, so sorry!

I hope you enjoy my nail polish swatches I'll be doing more of these in the future!!!

Ciracle Enzyme Powder Wash Review

What's the secret to having a perfect complexion? People instantly say foundation is the key. Actually, in my own opinion, its all about the skincare and how you treat your skin without any makeup on. I am not a skincare savvy person as I am with makeup but I feel that skincare can be as important as the makeup you are wearing.

I've always wanted to try Korean Skincare and from my recent travel to the Philippines I saw skincare from Korea all over the place.  Recently, I was given a chance to choose a product to review from

WishTrend.com  

  a company that delivers trendy beauty, fashion and entertainment from Korea to all over the world.  The website is easy to navigate and very eye catching. The beauty section is packed with products for both men and women for different skin types and concerns.  It was very hard to choose just 1 product for me to review but after much consideration and reading descriptions of the products (which by the way are very detailed) I decided to try the

Circacle Enzyme Powder Wash

.($19.99 USD)   It's not a liquid, gel, cream or whatever else kind of cleanser you have come in contact with but this one is actual loose powder.

This is the description from the website  

Pure and Natural Enzyme Powder Cleanser

Gently wash away makeup and impurities with an instantly enzyme powder wash that softens skin while leaving it looking healthy and revitalized and feeling clean and refreshed.

If you visit the product on their website it gives you step by step instructions on how to use the product along with a nice image of the product.  When I am on the market to find a new cleanser I am always looking for one that will remove left over makeup.  Since the Ciracle Enzyme Powder states that it will remove makeup residue I wanted to see if it actually worked.  My skin is also very sensitive to harsh chemicals (my skin will dry out very easily) and I will start to break out because of certain ingredients. I really like how the website listed the ingredients for this product, knowing that it is cornstarch base I knew that it would be sensitive for my skin.  Also the label on the front of the bottle says the cleanser has Willow Bark and Papaya Extract as  ingredients which help soothe the skin when it gets irritated. 

Once I received the product I was so excited to use it! I just finished doing a MOTD (makeup of the day) for the next day that it was the perfect time to test my new cleanser. I did take off my makeup with a makeup wipe to remove a few layers of makeup.  Make sure your hands are dry before pouring some of the Ciracle Enzyme Powder in your hands or else it will create a cream-liquid consistency.  When I started cleansing my face I could feel the grains of  powder exfoliating my skin.  The powder has a slight flour smell to it but nothing too overpowering, it actually smells like something natural or organic.  Once you rub the cleanser on your face it starts to bunch up and bind together like the picture.  I cleansed my whole face which didn't take much powder and rinsed off with warm water.  Very easy and it was actually fun.  Did it take all my left over makeup? YES!!! I could see all the makeup residue that my makeup remover wipe did not take off all over my hands and staining the powder.  I am very impressed with this cleanser! I wish it was a little bit bigger or the company provided 2 different sizes because this bottle (60g) would at most last me only 1-2 months especially when I wash my face twice a day.  My boyfriend even tried it and he really likes it because it was very sensitive for his skin and his skin felt very clean.

I also wanted to mention that the back label of the Ciracle Enzyme Powder is in Korean but if you email the lovely people from wishtrend.com the will be happy to translate for you. 

I hope you guys enjoyed my review of this amazing powder cleanser.  It is definitely added to my everyday skincare routine.

Thank you Dusan from WishCompany for letting me to review this product! 

Review / MOTD: Naked2 Palette - Cool Toned Shadows

 I received my Urban Decay Naked2 Palette in the mail today, I am very impressed on the fast turnaround! I ordered my palette last Thursday, the day it was first launched.  I was the one of the fortunate people who were able to snag one of the 5000 palettes that were available at urbandecay.com.  Being a makeup artist I have tons of makeup, did I need more neutral/brown/nude shades? No! But I just had to get my hands on one of the most successful palettes out there.  It took me forever to get the original Naked, but I saw how convenient it was especially for on location work and when I travel.  I literally didn't need to bring anything else with me.

On to Naked2.... I have to say these colors are different, I feel they are more cooler toned  than the original which is more golds/and bronzes.  I really like the colors, but I wish there were more matte shades added to this collection.  The only 2 colors that are matte are Tease (taupe grey) and Foxy (yellowish beige).  A nice blending crease color would be best for this palette.  The rest of the shades have the signature Urban Decay frost/shimmer, which is what draws me to the brand.  My favorite colors are: Verve, Pistol, and Suspect. 

 With this being said I had to focus on these colors for my Makeup Of The Day.

Eye shadow - suspect, pistol, verve and busted. Gold Eyeliner is UD Eldorado (gift with purchase) Lips UD gloss in Naked