Urban Decay Gwen Stefani Blush Palette

Today's review is going to be on the Urban Decay Gwen Stefani Blush Palette. The Urban Decay Gwen Stefani Blush Palette retails for $45 and includes six brand new Urban Decay Blush shades. The blush palette is currently available online at UrbanDecayCosmetics.com, and will be sold in stores at Sephora and Ulta in the near future. Each blush pan contains about 0.1 ounces which is a little less than half the amount of product in the Urban Decay Afterglow blushes (0.23 ounces), and half the amount of product in the Becca blushes (0.2 ounces). Do the math, and you're getting close to three full sized blushes in this palette which is a really great value.

The packaging is identical to the Urban Decay Gwen Stefani Eyeshadow Palette, except this palette is all white, and the eyeshadow palette is black. They are the exact same size, same magnetic closure, and the same oversized mirror. The packaging is sturdy and perfect for traveling.

There are six blush shades in The Urban Decay Gwen Stefani Blush Palette, with three satin-matte finishes (Cherry, Lo-Fi, and OC) and three shimmer shades (Easy, Angel, and Hush). The three satin-matte blushes aren't completely matte, and have a slight sheen to them rather than a shimmer. They remind me a lot of the Becca blushes because they give a soft glow to the cheeks without any glitter or shimmer. The three shimmer shades do not have any chunky glitter what so ever, and instead are glowy and shimmery similar to a highlighter. All six blushes are very soft and silky smooth. The shimmer blush shades do have a little texture to them, and aren't as silky as the satin matte shades, but are still very soft. All six blushes are a bit powdery, and you can really see that after you dip your brush in them. I know that can be a big drawback for some, but that sort of thing doesn't bother me at all. The blushes are a sheer to medium coverage, and are buildable which I really like. I would much rather have a blush that I can build up in intesity and color, that way I have more options when it comes to how pigmented I want to go. Out of all six blushes, Easy applies the heaviest and needs the lightest hand. You only need a very small amount to get a nice wash of color with that one. 

The first shade in the Urban Decay Gwen Stefani Blush palette is Cherry. Cherry is a cool toned, bubblegum barbie pink. Second is Easy, which is a shimmery fuscia pink. The third blush is Angel which is more of a highlight, or a blush topper, rather than a blush. It is a mix between a peachy gold highlight and a champagne shade. The fourth shade, and first in the second row, is Lo-Fi which is the bronze shade in the palette. Some people may want to use this as a bronzer, but I really like these sort of shades as a blush so I'm really happy that it is in here. The fifth shade is Hush and it is a light peachy pink with gold shimmer. The sixth and final shade in the palette is OC and it is a true peach with just a hint of golden sheen. It's definitely the most unique blush in the palette, and one of my favorites. 

One thing that I have really enjoyed doing is mixing different shades together. So far my favorite pairing is to apply Lo-Fi on my cheeks, pop OC right on the apples, and then pop Angel right on my cheekbones as a highlight. I think that any of the blushes can be mixed together to create custom shades and the possibilities are endless. Out of all six blushes in the Gwen Stefani Blush Palette, Angel, Lo-Fi, Hush, and OC are my favorites. Cherry and Easy are beautiful colors, but they aren't shades that I typically wear. I do see myself getting use out of them every now and then by mixing them with other shades in the palette instead of wearing them on their own.

The Urban Decay Gwen Stefani Blush Palette is a really great value. The palette has a ton of product, and a great variety of blush shades that are suitable for many different skin tones. Like the Gwen Stefani Eyeshadow Palette, the blush palette is high quality from the packaging to the formula. This palette is perfect if you are a beginner in makeup, if you don't have many blushes, or if you are a makeup lover like myself and like to collect really great products. 

If you are interested in seeing this palette in action, I have a video review on my YouTube Channel where I demo this palette. Just click HERE to watch it and be sure to subscribe while you're there! I hope you enjoyed this review, and be sure to let me know if you purchased the palette or if you are going to!

xoxo,

Casey

KathleenLights “Where The Light Is” Eyeshadow Review|ColourPop Cosmetics

Hey ya’ll!! I recently made my first ColourPop purchase and decided to try out the “Where The Light Is” quad that KathleenLights helped to create. I’ve seen tons of YouTuber’s talk about ColourPop for a while now, but never personally tried anything. When I saw a few reviews and swatches of the “Where The Light Is” set, I decided that it was time I bite the bullet and try them out.

Top Shades: Glow & Cornelius - Bottom Shades: Blaze & KathleenLights

I have been loving cream eyeshadows lately, and these ColourPop shadows are right up my alley. They are very affordable ($5.00 each) and are comparable to the Loreal Infallible Cream Shadows. They are a cream to powder formula and are very pigmented. They are really soft and smooth, with a bit of a bounce to them, similar to the Bouncy Blushes from Maybelline.

Left to Right: Glow, Cornelius, Blaze, KathleenLights

The set retails for $20.00 and comes complete with four shades, two matte and two shimmer. The first matte shade is called Glow and is a creamy white shade, great as an all over lid color or brow bone highlight. Next is Cornelius which is a soft brown that is a perfect crease shade; it’s not too warm and it’s not too cool. The first shimmer shade is called Blaze and it’s my favorite shade in the quad. It’s a toasted bronze with lots of glitter and shimmer. Lastly is KathleenLights, which is a shimmery golden bronze. It’s an exact dupe for the shade “Unleashed” from the Lorac Unzipped Gold Palette, which happens to be my favorite shade in the palette. If you like the shade KathleenLights then you would really enjoy the Lorac Unzipped Gold Palette.

All four shades wear extremely well with zero fading or creasing. I wore them on top of the Urban Decay Primer Potion for a good 12 hours and they held up perfectly. If you are a fan of cream eyeshadows, and have not tried any of the ColourPop shadows, I really recommend them. Shipping is fast, they are affordable, and the quality and pigmentation are awesome. Next up on my list to try are the ColourPop Lippe Stix!


xoxo,
Casey

Review: Kat Von D Shade & Light Eye Palette

Hey ya’ll!!

Today’s post is an exciting one on the brand new Kat Von D Shade & Light Eye Palette! I have been really enjoying the Shade & Light Contour Palette, so of course when I saw that Kat Von D was coming out with a Shade & Light eyeshadow palette I knew I had to have it.

The palette retails for $46 at Sephora and on Sephora.com (the same price at the contour palette). Another similarity to the Shade & Light Contour Palette is the packaging. They are pretty much identical except for the foiled accents. On the eyeshadow palette, the foil is gold, and it is silver on the contour palette. You also get an outline of the palette on the back of the packaging with the names of all the shadows.

The top three shades in the palette: Laetus, Lazarus, & Ludwin, are the same size as the highlighting powders in the Shade & Light contour palette (.08 ounces). The other nine shadows in the palette are .04 ounces each and are vary comparable in size to the shadows in the Urban Decay Naked Palettes (.05 ounces each). All of the shadows in this palette are matte, there are no shimmery shades in this palette. There are two shades however, Lucius & Latinus, appear to have a little bit of a satin finish.
There are three different sections to the palette: neutral’s, cool tones, and warm tones. That’s what makes this palette so amazing, ANYONE can use this palette no matter what your skin tone is, because there’s shades in here for everyone. The different sections in the palette are perfect for beginners, because it helps take a lot of the guess work, and confusion, out of trying to decided which shadows go together. But of course, there are no rules when it comes to makeup. All of the shades can be used interchangeably, and can be mixed and matched to create your own perfect, individual, look.

All of the shadows are super soft, buttery, blendable, and pigmented. I have been trying out every shade, and coming up with different combinations, and they all perform beautifully. The combinations you can create using this palette are endless. You can create natural eye looks, soft smokey eyes, and really intense smokey eyes.

This is a very high quality palette with amazing shades. The only “downfall”, or negative, I have noticed is that the shadows are very powdery and there’s a lot of fall-out. It’s particularly noticeable when you go to apply them with a brush. Fall-out isn’t a deal breaker for me personally, but I do know that there are people out there who aren’t a big fan of shadows that do that. A tip to dealing with fall-out from powder products is after you have picked up the product with your brush, tap it off lightly, and then apply it. When you tap your brush, all the excess product will fall off, which then decreases the amount of fall-out onto your face.

I hope you all enjoyed this review and found it informative and helpful! I definitely recommend this palette to anyone and everyone. I would have to say that this is a MUST-HAVE palette. If you are looking for an eyeshadow palette with all matte eyeshadows, check out this little beauty. It’s absolutely stunning and the amount of looks that can be created with it are endless. I really enjoy the Kat Von D line. Everything that I have tried from the brand has been wonderful. Be sure to check out my video below to see the Shade & Light Eyeshade Palette in action! :)

xoxo,
Casey

Maybelline Color Tattoo’s vs. Loreal Infallible Cream Shadow’s

Hey ya’ll!! I’m really excited for today’s post because it’s one that I’ve been wanting to do for a while now. I have been really into cream shadows lately and have been playing with these beauties the past couple of months so that I could give you my 100% thoughts, opinions, and experience with them.

The Maybelline Color Tattoo’s and the Loreal Infallible Cream Shadow’s are two of my favorite products from the drugstore. There are things that I like, and don’t like, about each line which is what we are going to get into today.

The Maybelline Color Tattoo’s are a true cream formula. They are best applied with your finger, and dry down to a powder finish. They come in a glass pot similar to the Anastasia Dip Brow Pomade’s, or a potted gel liner. You get .14 ounces (4 grams) of product in each pot and they retail for $6.99. You can find them at any drugstore, and most often there are coupons available for Ulta and CVS, so you typically won’t have to pay full price for them.

The shades I have, from left to right, are: Bad To The Bronze, Tough As Taupe, Bold Gold, Vintage Plum, and Creamy Beige. The first three are from the original Color Tattoo line and the last two are from the Leather Collection. I do find there is a difference in formula between the original’s and the Leather’s. The original formula is a bit dryer, where the Leather’s are much more creamy and easy to work with. Bad To The Bronze and Tough as Taupe are great everyday shades and have great pigmentation. My favorite Color Tattoo, and a new holy grail item for me, by far is Creamy Beige. It is super creamy and pigmented, and is the perfect lid color. It is beautiful on it’s own, with a little definition in the crease, and with a smokey eye. My least favorite shades are Bold Gold and Vintage Plum. Vintage Plum was the biggest disappointment because it is very patchy, and the color separates and cannot be built up. Bold Gold isn’t what I hoped it would be. Instead of being a bronzed gold like I was hoping, it comes off more like a Deli Mustard color, which I’m not fond of.

The Loreal Infallible Shadow’s are much different from the Color Tattoo’s. The Color Tattoo’s are a true cream formula, where as the Loreal Infallible’s are more of a Hybrid between a cream and a powder. You can apply them with your finger or with a brush. I prefer applying them with my fingers because I think you get a much better color payoff, and effect that way. The shadow’s are packaged in a pot form similar to the Color Tattoo’s, but are flatter and in a plastic container versus a glass container. What I like about this packaging is that they come with a plastic stopper that sits under the lid, on top of the product. This really helps to keep the shape of the shadows, and helps to keep them from drying out. You get .12 ounces (3.5 grams) of product and they retail for $7.99. You do get a little less product for $1.00 more with the Infallible's. Again, you can find these at any drugstore, and there are coupons available.

The shades I have, from left to right, are: Amber Rush, Iced Latte, Bronzed Taupe, Bottomless Java, Golden Emerald, and Gilded Envy. As you can see they are all high-shimmer, and super pigmented. There are no matte shadows available in the collection. My favorite shadows from this line are Amber Rush and Bronzed Taupe. Amber Rush is a true dupe for MAC’s “Tan” Pigment. It’s a beautiful rose gold shade that is perfect for Spring and Summer, and will be stunning with a bronzed summer glow. Bronzed Taupe is another beautiful Spring and Summer color. It’s one of those shades that can be worn on it’s own and look exceptional. I already know that both of these shades are going to be go-to, easy color's to pop on my lids this Summer. Bottomless Java and Golden Emerald are both beautiful shades that have small specks of glitter in them. The great thing about the formula of these is that there is zero fall out, so you aren’t going to end up with glitter all over your face after you’ve applied them. My least favorites are Iced Latte and Gilded Envy. They are both a lot dryer in texture, and crumbly, than the other four. It’s really a bummer about Iced Latte because the color is very pretty. It’s a great brow bone and inner corner highlight color, and would be really pretty to apply in the center of your lids for an extra pop. I just wish it was creamy and smooth like the other’s. Gilded Envy just isn’t the right color for me. It’s not a bad shade by any means, it’s just not a great shade on me. I actually purchased it by mistake. I meant to grab Golden Emerald, but saw the green in the package and bought it thinking there was only one green in the collection.

If I had to pick one line over the other, the Color Tattoo’s or the Loreal Infallible Shadow’s, I would have to go with the Infallible’s. It kills me to have to choose because the Color Tattoo in Creamy Beige is one of my new, holy grail products and is my favorite shadow out of all of these combined. But when you get down to performance, formula, pigmentation, and application for the shadows as a whole, the Loreal Infallible Shadow’s win in my opinion.

I hope you enjoyed today’s post and found it helpful! I would love to know which one you prefer out of the Color Tattoo’s and the Infallible’s, and which shades are your favorites. Like I said, I’ve been really into cream shadows lately, so if you have a favorite brand other than the two I mentioned, I would love your recommendations in the comments down below whether they be high-end or drugstore!

xoxo,
Casey

LORAC Unzipped Gold Palette|Review, Demo, & Swatches

Hey ya’ll!! Today I’m going to share my thoughts and opinions on the LORAC Unzipped Gold Palette. I have also done an accompanying video with a demo if you’re interested in seeing this palette in action. To find out more about this palette, and to see pictures and swatches, just keep reading!

The LORAC Unzipped Pro retails for $42 and comes with ten shadows. You get 5 high-shimmer/metallic shadows, four true matte shades, and the last shade is more of a satin finish. I found mine at Ulta, but I believe Kohl’s also carried LORAC. The packaging is a sturdy cardboard, and is nice and slim making it perfect for storing and traveling because it doesn’t take up much space. You also get a decent sized mirror inside the palette.

When this palette was released I knew I had to have it. This is my kind of palette, and my kind of shades. I love shimmery gold shadows, and matter brown shades. They are very pigmented and are easy to blend. I have noticed from swatching these that they perform beautifully with a primer, and not so much without one. Wearing an eyeshadow primer will extend the wear time of your eyeshadow, and specifically with these, really helps with the performance and enhances the pigmentation of these shadows. I’ve been using this palette a ton over the past week, and have had zero issues when applying them, but when I try to swatch them on my hands they aren’t as pigmented and can look a bit patchy. I applied the LORAC Behind The Scenes Eye Primer to the back of my hand and swatched them again, and it made a HUGE difference.

LORAC, in my opinion, makes some of the best eyeshadows on the market. If you like gold, shimmery, and bronzed shadows, I think you would really enjoy this palette. If you prefer more rose toned, pinks, and plum shades, the original Unzipped palette would be perfect for you. This is not a "must-have" palette, but if you are looking for something fun for Spring and Summer, or are looking to add to your collection, I would recommend the Unzipped Gold. The shades a high-shimmer, and the gold tones are going to be the perfect pair for a bronzed glow this summer!

xoxo,
Casey