Too Faced Glamour to Go- Dream Edition Swatches

I'm alive! Really. Just extraordinarily busy.
But I figured I'd pop in to share some quick swatches, because this fun little platte is on sale right now in the Too Faced vintage sale.
The Glamour To Go- Dream Edition is on sale for $15 here.

Photos taken under daylight bulb.

I was initially disappointed when I swatched these without primer. The pigmentation is definitely lacking without the help of a primer.

But then I used some Too Faced Shadow Insurance and... magic!

The first two shades were more or less invisible without primer, but with TFSI they're actually quite pretty.

And though the purple isn't as smooth as I'd like it to be, it's certainly pretty.

Ooooo, glowy purple.

And one last group shot just for fun.

Annndd, back to homework!

Zero to Perversion in One Swipe: Urban Decay Zero and Perversion comparison swatches

As you might recall, I was quite excited that Urban Decay released their 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil in Perversion for spring 2012. I already had Zero and while I liked the smooth, long-wearing formula, it just wasn't the deep black I was looking for. Enter Perversion, stage left.
It was love at first swipe, but Perversion was tied to another. Or rather, many others. Perversion was first released in the 15th Anniversary 24/7 Eyeliner Set, which comprised 15 eyeliners and sharpener for $92. I know that people love these eyeliners, but spending $92 at once on eyeliners? Not for me. So, I waved Perversion away. Fast forward about a year, and Perversion and I meet once again. This time, Perversion's crowd of cohorts that kept me away last time have shrunken significantly, as has Perversion. A lively group of five travel sized liners (one of which being Perversion) were released in the form of the Electric 24/7 Travel Set of 5 ($32). Perversion flirted with me once more, and I thought about it. At the end of the day, I decided all those extra friends that would come along with Perversion weren't what I was looking for.
A few months later, I learned through facebook that Perversion would be on the prowl soon, in full size and independent! Finally!
A word of warning: Perversion commits. Perversion is clingy and a challenge to get off your face at the end of the day.

On to the pictures, all under a daylight bulb.

Perversion (top) and Zero. I really like the black cap and tip on Perversion.

Perversion (top) and Zero

Swatch time!
Left to right: Perversion, Zero (swatched heavily), Perversion, Zero (one swipe)

I find that Perversion gives me the intensity I crave in one quick swipe.

Comparing blacks makes me think of the scene in Legally Blonde where Elle asks Warner what kind of shoes she's wearing and his response is, "Uhhhh...black ones?"

I'm glad to have Perversion joining my arsenal, and it can be found at urbandecay.com for $18. I definitely suggest keeping it in mind next time you're looking for a black eyeliner.

What do you think?

Too Faced Smokey Eye Shadow Collection swatches

My go-to palette these days has been the Too Faced Smokey Eye Shadow Collection palette. I haven't had the time or energy to put a lot of thought into my makeup, so it's been great to just grab this palette instead of staring at my collection of indie shadows in the morning. 5 months from now, I'll be able to let out a huge sigh of relief as I will be finished with my thesis (Only 5 months?!?! I have so much to do!!!) and will have my bachelor's degree finished. But right now, mindless makeup is the name of the game.

For $36, you receive nine shadows housed in a travel-friendly palette.

The shadows are categorized into three looks: Day, Classic, and Night. I like that they're set up this way because it makes it easier for me to mindlessly create a pretty look. Obviously, you can also mix and match shades from the three categories.

I'm quite impressed by the formula of these shadows- they're smooth and pigmented even without the use of primer. Though I always use primer on my eyes when I wear these, I've swatched them dry, without primer to show you what I'm talking about. The matte shades (particularly Smolder) aren't quite as smooth, but that's matte for you.

No primer, natural light:

Impressed yet? I have more swatches for you either way...

Left to right: (Day colors) Firefly, Cloves, Up in Smoke  (still no primer, in natural light)

I wear these shades A LOT these days.

Left to right: (Classic colors) White Lie, Nice Ash, Smokin Hot

Left to right: (Fashion colors) In a Flash, Smoking Jacket, Smolder

All together now!

I'm definitely glad I have this palette at my side- what do you think?

Benefit Eye Gotta! The Annie Collection review and swatches

I bought the Eye Gotta! The Annie Collection by Benefit from Sephora some time ago with my Beauty Insider gift card. I had seen swatches of it, and was lusting after the cream shadows in the set. Since I only had one mini cream shadow in my stash at that point, I decided to indulge. Right now it's on sale at Sephora here for $24, but you can get another %20 off until January 3 if you use the code EXTRA at checkout online.

All photos in natural light

The packaging isn't particularly sturdy, and mine is starting to get a bit beaten up from bouncing around in my makeup bag. But if it gets damaged, I think it would be easy to just relocate the pressed shadows into a freestyle magnetic palette. I always like it when my makeup products have a mirror built in, since it's helpful for travel.

The set comes with two cream eyeshadows and what Benefit calls a "3 in 1 eyeshadow", which is three shades pressed into one pan. So you're getting five different shades overall with this set.  The cream shadows are minis, they're 0.11 oz versus Benefit's full size cream shadows which are 0.16 oz. Benefit calls the cream shadows "Creaseless Cream Shadows". I find that these will crease a bit by the end of the day if you don't use a primer. Even so, they hold up pretty well without a primer. The two shades in this set are Flash and Foiled.

Swatch Time! No primer.
Foiled is on the left, first swatched sheerly (one swipe, then blended) then more opaquely (about three swipes).
Flash is on the right, same drill.

I am crazy about these. They're so creamy and lovely and I love the shades. I like that they can just provide a wash of shimmer or can be built up. I think they're very versatile. Once again, I suggest using a primer. I like that they can be used alone or as a base for other shadows.

Aaannnnddd the pressed shadows now. Without a primer, the pigmentation is pretty weak.

With primer, it's definitely better, though the plummy shade requires some work to get it to show up. I wasn't entirely wowed by the formula on these.

The shadows behave better over the cream shadows from the set, it gives them some more oomph. (Flash on the top, Foiled on the bottom)

Overall, I like this set. The pressed shadows didn't wow me, but I really purchased it for the cream shadows. I'm definitely a fan of the cream shadows.

What do you think?

Hi-Fi swatches, part 1

What seems like ages ago, I placed my first order with Hi-Fi Cosmetics. I haven't used them enough yet to give a full review, but I do have some swatches for you! The Hi-Fi shop is on Artfire (http://www.artfire.com/ext/shop/studio/hificosmetics), eyeshadows are $6 for a 5 gram jar.

First, for the jars:

Slime and Snails

Lost and Lonely

Between the Stars

Pale Jewel

All swatches done over Too Faced Shadow Insurance, in natural light unless otherwise noted.

Left: Slime and Snails, Right: Lost and Lonely

 Soo much glitter in these two shades!  It's hard to avoid fallout.

Lost and Lonely, Between the Stars

Slime and Snails, Lost and Lonely

Between the Stars, Pale Jewel

Lost and Lonely, Between the Stars, Pale Jewel

Slime and Snails, Lost and Lonely, Between the Stars, Pale Jewel (with flash)

Slime and Snails, Lost and Lonely, Between the Stars

Slime and Snails, Lost and Lonely, Between the Stars, Pale Jewel

Slime and Snails, Lost and Lonely, Between the Stars, Pale Jewel (with flash)

Slime and Snails, Lost and Lonely, Between the Stars, Pale Jewel (with flash)

Overall, I do like these shades. I'm not sure how much use I'll get out of Slime and Snails because glitter ends up EVERYWHERE. I think Lost and Lonely would make a great liner. I was expecting Pale Jewel to be more...pale, but I do really like the orangey shift.