Almay Shadow Squad in Fairy Tale: Review and Swatches

So, as part of Almay's rebranding, they've released these little quads of eyeshadow called "Shadow Squads," packaged in a sleek transparent little square, with many different colors out there. Each quad (because I am not going to keep typing Squad) contains colors in the same family, but with different finishes.

I purchased at CVS the shade Fairy Tale quad, because 1.) I am a fairy tale nerd, and 2.) these appeared to be iridescent versions of the primary colors, in the same vein of the Kat Von D Alchemist Palette. I paid $6.99, for  3.5 g of product.

Let's get into some pictures:

 Order of swatches: Green, Blue, Red, and Yellow

 All the colors mixed together.

As for my assessment, the only positive thing I can say is that the powder is very soft, and when I initially placed my finger in, I was hopeful based on the texture of the product. However, there is barely any color pay-off. Each shade is vaguely the color as shown in the pan, but each is filled with glitter of the same color. I will say that the glitters are small and could be very flattering, but they are so sparse and the iridescent base so sheer that there is hardly any impact on the eye.

The eyeshadow even failed the Pixie Epoxy and wet brush tests, as normal quality shadows are able to be enhanced by either medium.

I also tried to swirl a face brush in the pan to make a highlighter, but again, no impact. The swatch I provided looks pigmented, but when blended out, it disappears. All that remains is the glitter.

This line is so weird, and I am quite disappointed. It is almost as if Almay is desperate to gain some footing in the market, but they have seemed to underestimate or misunderstand what customers are looking for. I expected pigment. My last Almay purchase was a couple of months ago, when I bought a liquid eyeliner because I was in a pinch. That stuff washed off so easily, and had no staying power. So how updated is this company, really?

I regret this purchase and wish I didn't fall for the gimmick.

Recent Makeup Fails (3) and Faves (2)

Lately I have prided myself on avoiding dud makeup products. A lot less impulse buying, more research, etc., has really prevented the need to destash.

However, I have encountered some duds lately, and I wanted to talk about them.

First, a dual-ended felt-tip eyeliner from Beaute Wise, which I bought from Amazon for $12. It is a K-beauty product, and for the first couple applications, it was okay. I picked it up today after not using it for a few weeks and the tip on both ends was hardly dispensing product! I then swatched it on my hand to be sure, and I had to run the tip over and over to build anything up, and still the liner was patchy and thin. Worse, it is very easy to remove. So completely not worth the money.

Next, we have one brush from a Real Techniques trio from Metals Collection. This was highly discounted, and I believe I got it for $8.00, but I'm not sure. While the eye brush is fine, and the face powder brush is my favorite, the gold concealer brush is a total dud for me. Concealer brushes are supposed to work with small spaces and curves on your face, and the jagged edges of the bristles on this brush are nearly painful. The design of the brush is elegant and eye-catching, but the brush head on the concealer one (102) was a mis-step.

Finally, one of my major makeup regrets is the Colourpop Supernova Shadow in Firecracker. It cost $7.00. It is not worth it because it does not work. It does not build up, it applies patchy and powdery, and I really hate it. I don't know why I bought this. I really should have read the reviews.

Let's move onto the positives.

I have been using Coty Airspun in Translucent Extra Coverage and am surprised that there's an actual powder I can use with foundation that I actually enjoy. I don't mind the smell, and I find that my face is kept pretty dry throughout the day. Total win.

The next product I am happy to have is the Sonia Kashuk eye makeup remover. I was in need of something like this after I ran out of my Simple one, which cost $8.00. Because Sonia Kashuk is leaving Target, all of her products were discounted, so I snagged her makeup remover for $4.00. It's got a lot more product than the Simple one, and works better, too.

Thanks for reading!

My Worst Ipsy Products of ALL TIME

The following is a list of products that I have received from Ipsy over the past three years that were horrible. I will follow up with a list of the best ones, as well.

1. Anything Trestique. What is up with this? Seriously, whyyyyy? I received a dark brown eyeshadow crayon once that tugged on the eye and was impossible to blend. On the outer corner it was patchy and sticky. And I don't do smoky smudgy looks, so this was of no use to me. I also received a lip product from them, but either it was the wrong color or something because I did not use it. The quality of the eyeshadow pencil, however, was memorably awful.

2.  Rodial Eyeliner. My eyes are not extremely sensitive, but they do bug out a bit and get watery easily. This eyeliner ran, but also irritated my eyes pretty badly.

3. -417 Handcream. The product itself was okay, non-greasy lotion that absorbed quickly. The fragrance, however, was unbearable.

4. Margaret Dobbs nail buffer. What a mis-step. I am not impressed by your tiny crystals, Margaret. It was not even a nail file. It did make my bare nails shiny, but I paint them anyway.

5. Trust Fund Beauty, That Glo Tho. I know this one might be well-loved by some. For me, however, this one was a dud. I found that the consistency was greasy, the shade was a tad too orange, and it contained chunky glitter.

6. Crown Brush trio. Dinky little thing with no pigmentation. Even if there was, I'd imagine that it would be quite difficult to use.