Slowly but surely, clothing brands are entering the make-up market & you'll see most people are oh-so-skeptical about the fashion houses beauty products.
I admit I've turned my cheek once or twice when I pass by Claire's, Ardene's, Forever 21, and even H&M's cosmetic racks but sometimes... I can't resist. I need my make up fix!
Back in December, I tried my very first H&M Eyeshadow palette. While I didn't fall in love with the palette, I also didn't hate it. It isn't that the palette was a complete dud because it wasn't, the colors just aren't very me. I was pleasantly surprised by the pigmentation (I assumed the eye shadows would apply sheer) but cursed with fall out.
In January, I couldn't help but test my luck again and grabbed yet another "not a very me" palette.
Eye shadows by H&M in Gives Me That Special Glow.
I used the included sponge tip applicator for the swatches but I'm still impressed by the pigmentation these H&M eyeshadow palettes carry. Using a brush causes a bit of powder fluff and again, quite a bit of fall but that isn't what I'm least fond of. Of course, I'm least fond of the price tag; $6.95CAD but I'm just like that. I never like paying over $5 for nearly drugstore-like eyeshadow palettes! I can't help but expect more and no thanks to the powder fluff, fall out, there's still the factor of crumbling. Yes, the eye shadows are also a bit crumbling when I apply too much pressure to the pans. Though that's mostly when I use sponge tip applicators!
Each palette includes 4 eye shadows and at $6.95CAD per palette, it comes out to $1.73CAD per shadow before taxes. Not bad actually!
Bottom line:
I can recommend these eyeshadow palette under two conditions:
1) Use a $5 off coupon (just cause it's a superb deal that way!).
2) Try a palette with colors that you know you'll use. I won't be using the blue in My Summer Romance or Gives Me That Special Glow - waste of $1.73 each, I know!
I surely hope this review helps your decisions in trying H&M Eye shadows!
Happy Shoppin',
Never in my life have I had so much mail delivered to me!
The worst type of mail is the type that doesn't have YOUR name on it. What comes in second is ad mail and bills or ad mail and bills WITH your name on it.
The best type of mail is the type that has your name on it but it isn't ad/junk mail or bills. In second is COUPONS!
Now I've been expecting three more pieces of mail since the beginning of January and finally, two have arrived. They also happen to be make-up pieces, again ;)
Mail with my name on it, contains make-up, arrived safely.... BEST MAIL EVER!
Take a look:
Best. Mail. Ever.
I didn't have any luck finding the Wet n Wild Pixie Holiday palettes in stores so I resorted to buying one on Ebay. It cost a dollar more than the retail price but atleast I have ONE of the Pixie palettes now! I still want Night Elf, Sugar Plum Fairy and Golden Goddess (in that order!) but I don't need them. (I'll keep lying to myself until something more exciting comes along...)The Cargo Tinted Moisturizer (with SPF 20) in Nude 02 is from the BeautyBloggers.org Holiday Charity Auction. I'm glad I participated in this charity event and I hope Karla hosts the charity again. It would make for a lovely annual charity event from beauty junkies!
The thought of my money going to a good cause and getting to indulge in make-up, it's an awesome feeling!
I haven't swatched or used the Wet n Wild palette and I probably won't get to that for a long time. I tried the Cargo TM the day I received it and it's a little too dark for me right now. It also leans a bit orange so I'm not sure if this will do for the summer. I love the formula though! It's creamy yet light weight and gives medium coverage. Or the darkness could be fooling me... What ever the case, I love the past two weeks. Nothing brightens my day better than mail and make-up, combined!
How about you? When was the last time you received something in the mail?
I introduced the, "Hoarders" cosmetic series awhile back. Since then, I've been procrastinating. I didn't know where or when to start but I ultimately chose nail polish to start off this crazy series. (I'm regretting that now...) I should have started off with lip products as that collection is... smaller in physical size (not quantity).
I reorganized my nail polish last night & took advantage of the little sun Vancouver had today to take some photos. Here is the collection in it's cozy shoe box:
Albeit, it isn't the prettiest or neatest way of doing things - it's fine for now. I'm just glad I'm not a nail polish junkie that requires the iconic IKEA Helmer.
{My dad would freak out.. he'd have an absolute fit and I'd never live to hear the end of it. I have no space in my room anyhow ;__;}
I've separated the polishes by brand, split in rows and sorted by color (sort of). A lot of it is still mixed up as not enough brands could fill one row.
My collection ranges from Revlon, Color Club, Wet n Wild, NYC, Sally Hansen, Orly, China Glaze, Sinful Colors, Essie, L'Oreal, Nicole by OPI, Rimmel, Sula, Joe Fresh, Maybelline, Winmax (Daiso brand), Claire's, Seche, and random Asian nail polishes that were gifted.
*Numbers in brackets indicate number of polishes by each brand*
Revlon (14) dominates the collection, NYC (12) coming in second, Sally Hansen in third (10), and Color Club (7) coming in fourth. All of the other brands - I have atleast 1 to 5 of.
I'm actually too afraid to count the total of polishes I have but I should be disposing half of this collection as it is waaaay too old to be using. Nail polish thinner can't even salvage some of the polishes.
I have more nail polishes than my mom has ever had. I'm 19 and she's almost 50. You would think my mom took advantage of all that time but she only cares for pinks and purples. Whereas I, am a fan of all colors (besides vomit green and banana yellow).
I started experimenting with crème and pastel shades last year and I'm oh-so-inlove with mint greens, lavender purples and pink pastelles. A majority of the Revlon polishes are crèmes and pastelles... Confession: I own three mint green crèmes and three lavender crèmes... It's shameful but it was the trend of Spring 2010! I'm positive this was when I started collecting (madly) again. Before then, I hadn't touched most of my polishes.
Honestly though, I rock red nails 90% of the time. I'm convinced cherry reds make my hands appear smaller than they already are. But man, that pop of color... I need it to brighten my day! And hey, even the boyfriend likes the red nails ;)
I should have made a list of colors by each brand but my collection is quite meager and I'm sure full reviews could be found via Google. I also accept questions & requests through comments so don't fret if I missed something!
If it helps, I have some individual shots of certain brands :)
You can see most of the polishes have separated (a little to a lot). This is what happens when you don't rotate your nail polishes enough... And shaking them is a bad idea too but how else do you reverse the separation???
Anyhow, not alot of peeps love Revlon but I can't get enough of their scented nail polishes! I'm surprised the scented ones are better formulated than the regular line. The Top Speed line is by far the best though. They're quick drying, opaque & easy to use!
However, I'm not a fan of Sally Hansen's Hard as Nails Xtreme Wear line. Too bad I have quite a few.. They're atleast two years old & I no longer like the colors I chose but I think a nail polish thinner can fix their current state. I'll try to use them if I ever get into nail art or... Konad! (*___*)
The last four polishes are from Japan. I bought those over 4 years ago! I hardly touched them - too sheer but I can't seem to let them go...
My top recommendations are: Revlon (for scented polishes, quick drying polishes, and opaque polishes), China Glaze (for quality and price) and Color Club (for price and ease of use). I also like NYC and Wet n Wild polishes but NYC has very little colors I like and Wet n Wild handles feel small and awkward. Oh, I almost forgot Sinful Colors & Orly - I only own two of each so far but they are very good! I'd like to try more but it's obvious I don't need more... UNLESS it's a duochrome or holographic polish!
I feel this post was a tad long... but luckily, I have nothing else to add!
Hope you enjoyed,
How long has it been since I've done a real review? Awhile, right??, Especially amidst all the P10P's and other ramblings, reviews have been hard to come by :/ Hopefully, this review brings joy and other lovely feelings in you!
Today, I'll be reviewing the Shiseido Tsubaki Golden Repair (or also known as Damage Care) Range. The range consists of a shampoo, a conditioner, and a treatment conditioner. The whole range contains Tsubaki amino, what ever that is...(?) This range caters to dry, brittle, and severely damaged hair - whether from heating tools or coloring.
Missing in Photo: Shiseido Tsubaki Golden Repair Treatment Conditioner.
Excuse my photo recycling but I'm too lazy to take a new one of the 3 Shiseido products.
The treatment conditioner (not shown) is packaged just like the Kao Essential Nuance Airy Treatment.
So I've owned the Golden Repair range for well over a year so I know exactly how it works for me. When I started using the Golden Repair range, I had extremely color-damaged hair and I never went a day without heat drying my hair. You can only imagine how dry & frizzy my hair was. Oh, and the amount of split ends was atrocious.
Straight to the point - this line of hair products saved my wacko @ss hair. Nothing will ever treat split ends but you can prevent them. After I got a trim, I continuously treated my hair with the treatment conditioner once a week and regularly conditioned every other day. This method prevented split ends and heat damaging completely! The shampoo itself was moisturizing but during the winter when I had crappy hair, I couldn't use it alone. Although, if I was too lazy to condition, I'd use the shampoo with added jojoba oil concoction to beat the frizz & dryness for a day.
Last summer, I opted for less rich hair products like the Kao Essential Nuance Airy range.
Nowadays, I don't need the added jojoba oil in the shampoo or two times use of treatment conditioner (weekly) because I'm nearly back to my virgin state (au naturale hair)! I only use the treatment conditioner every other week and the regular conditioner every three days. My new routine helps creates the healthiest, shiniest, luscious hair I could ever wish for.
Truthfully - I don't need too much moisture or conditioning anymore or bad things happen. I happen to suffer dandruff year round but even this rich moisturizing range of hair products does nothing for it. Ironically, the conditioner causes excessive oil reproduction so my hair gets stringy, greasy - quick! I need to use very little or my fringe gets flat, fast. See what I mean about bad things??
Almost forgot about the scent... it's perfume-y, kind of reminds me of Pantene but more luxurious. Definitely not a cheap perfume or old school - grandmotherly.
Bottom line:
I recommend the Shiseido Tsubaki Golden Repair range to those with damaged or severely damaged hair. The treatment conditioner is great for when hair is unmanageable and uncontrollable beyond reason.. It makes that wild, unruly hair behave and stay behaved! The shampoo is much too rich for summer use; more of a winter shampoo rather than all year round. The conditioner goes for the same. The treatment conditioner? All-year round product! It's a holy grail, savior for all hair types!
Lastly, the Ingredients & Instructions:
Sorry, I couldn't help with the pun-intended title. AHAHAHA there I go again with the puns!
Okay, okay enough goofing around... If you haven't already guessed, today's post revolves around a dupe! I'm usually not one to fuss about dupes but since winning Tracy's (of Beauty Reflection) Christmas contest, I thought it would only be right to find a suitable dupe for the prize I won - which many many beauty junkies are still going crazy over. Maybe this includes you.
So what did I win? Answer: the highly coveted, lemming-worthy, yet unfortunately LIMITED EDITION - MAC Mineralize Skinfish in Stereo Rose!I read a few dupe alerts & comparisons for the MAC MSF in Stereo Rose but none ever convinced me & there's a good reason why. Stereo Rose is special and no matter how hard you try to convince yourself you've found a twin, there's nothing like Stereo Rose. Nothing. But me being me, I couldn't resist the temptations of trying just this one time.
It all happened when I took a day trip across the border last Sunday & stumbled into Rite Aid. I came across an unofficial Stereo Rose dupe by Wet n Wild and at $3.99, it wouldn't hurt to try. The drugstore, wallet-friendly dupe is supposedly Wet n Wild's Ultimate Minerals Bronzer in 167 Amber Glow. This is unavailable in Canada as far as I know (I've scoured Wal-Mart, Superstore, and Zellers but no luck on my side).
Without further adieu, photos in 3... 2.. 1!
Left-to-Right:
MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in Stereo Rose, Wet n Wild Ultimate Minerals Bronzer in 167 Amber Glow.
What a shame, right? Right from the get-go, I knew Amber Glow wasn't going to fare well against Stereo Rose. Stereo Rose is less brown & overall brighter. When swatched, Stereo Rose comes off as a bright orange but when blended on the cheeks, it's more of a soft orange-coral. Amber Rose on the other hand is a brown-orange with no hint of coral or peachy-ness to it.
If I blend both products, they are more suited as fraternal twins than identical. The shimmer Stereo Rose is more prominent but both Stereo Rose & Amber Glow impart a sweet glow with a hint of warmth to create that sun-kissed, summer-girl complexion! It can be overdone so watch those heavy hands. I'm warning you! Neither are bad in formula or pigmentation; excellently milled & pigmented in fact!
Cost wise, Wet n Wild wins at $3.99USD for 5 grams versus MAC at $28USD for 10 grams. Even when you buy two pots of Wet n Wild's Amber Glow, it still costs less than half of a fraction of a MAC MSF! However, Amber Glow isn't a perfect dupe so why bother? :(
It's quite obvious but to finish this comparison off I'll remind you again that we've got a "No Dupe".
Can I still recommend Wet n Wild Ultimate Bronzer in 167 Amber Glow? Nope.
Why? The shimmers. I'm more of a matte girl but when I'm lookin' for that glow within, I stick to highlighters & loose powders with very little shimmer to do the job. A bronzer or blush with shimmers already in it tend to accentuate my acne or problematic skin. Most people aren't born with the best skin so it's best to avoid overly shimmery products such as Amber Glow.
Hope this comparison was useful. Thanks for reading!
Editted on 2/2/11: Another website that lists brands that DO test on animals and brands that DO NOT - http://www.beautypedia.com/AnimalTesting.aspx.
Looks like Maybelline, L'Oreal, and Rimmel do not test on animals! I guess I'll continue buying from those brands then or maybe not. I need to stop shopping .___.
The new year has rung in & we've all made new resolutions! Oh, but maybe you're like me and have yet to or even want to write a new list of resolutions for 2011! I've never really made or followed resolutions but this year is different! I'm going to try my best to follow my beauty related products (&
personal health) resolutions!
Basically, I have three things I want to change when it comes to cosmetics.
1) I need to blog more about my beauty-related escapades.
2) I need to buy less beauty-related products because I've accumulated SO MUCH for one face... You'll see that in my Hoarders series.
3) Inspired by Yuki of Chez Yuki, I've decided to quit buying from brands that continue to test on animals. For a list of brands that do test on animals, click this link. Don't forget to do your own searches as many brands do still test on animals but are not listed on any official website.
Number 3 is a big one. I contemplated whether or not I could pull through with it but it's been 21 days since I've started my "practice run". Now I think it's safe to say, I can uphold this resolution. Although, it feels more like a promise! As of January 1, 2011, I vow never to purchase products that do not state they are: "cruelty-free" and "not tested on animals". I'm sure I'll be seeing less of Cover Girl, Colgate, Johnson & Johnson (Aveeno, Clean & Clear, Listerine, & Neutrogena), L'Oréal (Garnier, Lancôme, Maybelline, Vichy), Max Factor, Olay, Oral-B, Rimmel and, Pantene in my household.
On the other hand, I have to admit that I am okay with animal testing when it comes to pharmaceuticals. I discussed a bit about animal testing with Rae of The Notice before on her post about animal testing but since moving to her own domain, the comments were unable to transfer. Please do take a look here as I agree with what Rae said. However, when it comes to cosmetics - there are better ways of finding out what is dangerous and what is not. Animals should not have to suffer because of our vanity.
Most of the brands I bolded are brands I've used for many years & never thought twice about. I still have a lot of back-up Colgate toothbrushes & Pantene shampoos but once I'm finished using them, I will not be repurchasing. The same goes for every other brand. Although I have a lot of favorites from brands like Neutrogena, Maybelline, Clean & Clear (just to name a few), I can live without them. Until the animal testing stops, I can live without these brands!
Although some brands, the few that don't test on animals are likely to be pricier than brands that do test on animals, it's worth every penny & life. I hope you all think twice about the brands your purchasing from. This might even help save a lot of money as I wouldn't be trying new products that these brands try to push so hard. Not only am I going to be a kind shopper, I'll be a smart-super-saving shopper aswell! Another bright side: I'll be focusing more on brands like Wet n Wild, Physicians Formula, Annabelle, Almay, Revlon - just to name a few. I'm quite excited about that! Before I take off, a few questions for my readers :)
Question(s) of the Day:
What do you think about animal-testing? Do you think twice about brands that do test on animals or ignore it?
Top Question: Will you make a stand and discontinue the use of products from brands that contine to test on animals?
Everyone ♥s EcoTools - including me! It's no wonder because the brand is awesome. The ideas behind their products is greenious (green+genious)! And how about EcoTool brushes? I loooove me some EcoTools make-up brushes but... I also hate them.
However, before I go into a pit of rage & fury, let me share some great facts about EcoTools & their brushes!
Did you know EcoTools provides natural, recycled (sustainable) and, cruelty-free products? The EcoTool brushes are made up like this: bamboo (highly sustainable) handles, recycled aluminum (earth-friendly) ferrules, and synthetic (cruelty-free) taklon bristles.
If you've ever tried an EcoTools brush, you'll know how soft it is and how light the whole brush feels in the palm of your hands. Yet when gripped, the brush is sturdy! If you use EcoTools brushes, you'll notice they hardly shed - I haven't noticed any shedding and I have multiple EcoTools brushes! Unfortunately, the EcoTools 1214 (Recycled Aluminum Retractable Kabuki) is known for being a bacteria playground and grows it's own mold when not washed and dried properly. I personally haven't experience this since I don't own that particular brush. Though, an issue I've faced with the EcoTools brushes is total to almost breakage.
Today, my beloved Finishing brush (from the Alicia Silverstone for EcoTools brush sets) broke on me. ?SH!#LT$)^DFHDFRIOU%^PA*!&%S This isn't fixable with super glue either!
Take a look:
The whole brush head came out of the ferrule! How does that happen?? I use it every day but I wash it every other day. I use face wash to cleanse my brushes but I never let the soap or water go down the ferrule. Meaning: I wash my brushes upside down, just like I hang them upside down to dry. I rinse my brush for more than 3 minutes & pat them dry with towels before air drying them. Is that wrong?? Am I doing it wrong?? Maybe I deserved this...
And just a week before, the blush brush from the same Alicia Silverstone brush set broke on me but atleast it's fixable.
Here it is:
This isn't uncommon and it is fixable but... UGHHHHH!
Even my EcoTools inspired Powder brush broke on me. Twice.
Maybe I'm the only one. Maybe I wash my brushes too often. What ever the case... I am MAD. I love my EcoTools Finishing brush and I was just getting the hang of using stippling style brushes! Luckily, I have a back-up but if that breaks too.. I'm going to invest in MAC or Sigma brush. (FYI - The EcoTools Finishing brush is only available in Alicia Silverstone brush sets.)Aside from all the breakage, the results of using EcoTools brushes are amazing. They're soft-never-scratchy, eco-friendly, animal-friendly, budget-friendly and THEY WORK. Do they last? *deep breath* You need to own a lot of brushes - high-end, medium, to low-end brushes to really know what is a quality make-up brush.
So there we have it friends! My love-hate relationship with EcoTools. I'll be back again with my very first Nail of the Day (NOTD). 'Til next time!
♥,
Ashley
I've got mail and it's not bills or spam mail, lucky me! It took two weeks but in the past two days, I've received two of my most prized packages. Before yesterday, I had a parcel arrive in late November from my boyfriend aswell! I'm still expecting two more packages in which one should've arrived yesterday but maybe it's just late. I hate imagining lost packages... In the mean time, I'll satisfy my cravings with what I have which is... a lot!
Yesterday, I received the second of two very special parcels from the S.O. & of course I have the magnificant parcel from November. When combined, the two parcels are ah-mazing! The S.O. also surprised me with a small package containing one McDonalds x Sanrio 50th Anniversary watch!! The S.O. bought me the KEROPPI (my favorite Sanrio character!) watch which arrived a day before the second parcel. The day the Keroppi watch arrived, I also received something equally special from Tracy of Beauty Reflections! Tracy held a Christmas Contest back in December which conviently, I won!! The prize is the highly coveted, limited edition.... MAC Mineralize Skin Finish in Stereo Rose! I could not believe my luck when she emailed me... I still can't believe it but the MSF is in my hands so I musn't be dreaming! I want to thank Tracy so much for hosting the contest! I need to host one of my own sometime aswell. Maybe when I reach 50 followers?? Anyhow, here are the photos!
Keroppi watch & Christmas card from the S.O :)
MAC Mineralize Skin Finish in Stereo Rose from Tracy :)
The whole loot!
Benefit Some Beauty To Love & Too Faced Echanted Glamourland Palette - gifts from the boyfriend. I got those in November.
Korres Brightening & Anti-Aging Rose Collection, Domo Sticker Box, Domo Photo Frame, Domo Media Holder, and Keroppi watch - Christmas gifts from the boyfriend.
Swatches.
(From Left-to-Right: Too Faced Glamour Gloss Volumizing Lip Gloss in Pillow Talk (soft pink-nude with red and gold sparkles), Korres Lip Butter in Wild Rose (rose-red), Too Faced Shadow Insurance (translucent), MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in Stereo Rose, Benefit Coralista Blush (peach-pink with gold shimmers, Benefit Eye Bright (pale pink, almost cool).)
Also included in the Christmas gift is..... *drum roll*
Rock and Republic Contrived Pressed Blush in X-Rated and Immoral.
These were gifts from myself but I had my boyfriend ship them to me when he shipped the Christmas gifts. I have yet to use them, hence, no swatches! I swear Immoral looks less frightening in person. My camera didn't pick up the colors perfectly but I also used indoor lighting.. I'm not the world's best photographer but I'm working towards a new camera!
Now you see why I'm the happiest and luckiest girl in the world. I'm having surprisingly good luck with blog contests and giveways, got a great boyfriend and, loads of beauty products to play with!
See you soon,
Ashley!
I'm going to make this quick & short since I don't have many photos of my sightings but, here I go:
I've been to three different Winners in the past week & have found....
A) Limited Edition ELF 11-piece Studio Brush Set (glittery one) for $24.99 (versus $20.11/$30 on ELF website)
B) A knock-off or replica of Too Faced Smoky Eye Palettes for $7.99. 
C) Alicia Silverstone for EcoTools 6-piece Brush Set for $16.99. Different from the ones I purchased at London Drugs. It comes housed in a 2 or 3 compartment cosmetic pouch.
Follow me on Twitter if you like to be updated on great/weird finds. I go out quite often & tweet photos of said great/weird finds. It's easier than doing separate "Spotted" posts as sometimes I only find one or two things at a time. That's it for now, thanks for reading!
Ashley
Disclosure
Make-Up Kismet is a personal blog written and edited by myself. This blog was created to share my experiences with whom ever reads it.
All reviews posted are written by me and are my honest opinions. All products reviewed are purchased by me for personal and/or review purposes unless stated otherwise. Each person is different, as are our experiences. With that said, I cannot be held responsible for any unsatisfying reaction to a product I review or recommend.
Photos on this blog are either from Google, other Bloggers or, my own. I try to depict all products as accurately as possible. I may edit photos for this purpose.
