My Own Purple Palette

Aka,  the purpliest purple palette that ever purpled.

And it was because of Colourpop's newest release, at the alluring price of $12.

When I saw this palette released, I was ready to buy it. But I waited a day, and paused. Even though the colors and their names are so completely right up my alley (Chick Lit, Fanfiction, and Sleeper especially), I couldn't shake the feeling that I had these colors already, and that purchasing the palette would add nothing to my collection.

So, I endeavored to make my own purple palette, inspired by My Pleasure. It's a bit expanded, and made up of singles and depotted shadows (some of which got a little banged up 😢) .

Instead of going over every single color, I will list the top ones that I think truly capture the spirit of the CP Palette.

1.) Looxi, Charmed. This is the shadow right underneath the white one. Colourpop has been doing a bit with duochromes lately, especially with blue reflects. I have a feeling that Do or Dough from the CP palette is an exact dupe of this Looxi shadow, which can also be worn as a highlighter. I also included another blue shifter shade, Glass Bull.

2.) Nabla, Calypso. This is literally at the center of my palette because it is my perfect purple shimmer shadow. Looking at the two darker shimmers in the Colourpop Palette, Bare Minimum and Chicklit, one looks too red and one looks too blue. Calypso for me is just right.

3.) No Filter, a "blue based dusty rose," from Give Me Glow. This is the largest pan in my palette. Though I think the CP palette could have benefitted from actual mid-tones of purple, rosy saturated mattes can be found, which is what I hope No Filter is replicating. I did expand upon matte options by just including more in my palette.

So, again, even though I really like what CP did, I just don't have the heart to buy it, because I know I have this palette. But, I do know CP is coming out with a series of "monochromatic" palettes, so I am exciting to see what they will do.

If you want to know what the other shadows are, please let me know! I'll also be doing some looks with this palette in the coming week, so stay tuned!

Thanks for reading.

What's In My Eyeshadow Z-Palettes?

Currently I have three z-palettes in my collection of different sizes. For a while I used my Coastal Scents 12-pan palette as my "weekly" palette, with the other two with no other specific purpose. I decided to change things up a bit, for my own ease of use. 

Let me show you what I ended up with!

My large z-palette ended up being my favorite, visually. It contains my neutral shimmer singles, as well as non-neutral mattes. 

From left to right (top to bottom), we have:

Stila Kitten, CR Crown, ABH Soft Gold, CP 20-Something

BH Cosmetics shimmers (x3), CR Your Majesty, CR Your Highness

ABH Amber, ABH Topaz

Looxi Pumpkin Spice Life, CR Ladyship, DoC Blueberry Swirl, CP Howlin'

Vanessa's Vanity Tangy Dijon, Mac Chrome Yellow, BH Cosmetics Neon Yellow Green, Looxi Green Apple, CP Team Captain

CS Tangelo Tint, CR Empress, CP Lay Low, CP Making Moves, CS Baked Clay

CS Oatmeal Tan, CR Royal Prerogative, CR Duchess, ABH Fudge, DoC Hot Fudge

Next, we have the Coastal Scents palette, which I decided to put my more "special" shadows, which are duochromes. From top to bottom and left to right, we have:

CP Prowlin', Looxi Charmed, Fyrinnae Serendipity

Ardency Inn Rose Gold, CP Glass Bull, Looxi Bohemian

Fyrinnae Rapunzel Had Extensions, Looxi Bouhee, CP Chauffeur

Looxi Dollface, Looxi Tesla, Looxi Mirage

Last is my palette of "essential" neutral/crease/transition shades, aka "my boring palette." These are shades that I would pair with the ones in my other palettes.  A good chunk of this palette is comprised of the mattes from the Zodiac palette from BH Cosmetics. The mattes are excellent, but I was not a fan of the packaging- it really was cumbersome to use, especially in the morning.

So, anyway, let's go ahead with me doing my best to break down the shades in this palette:

The large gray pan is Nabla Wild Child, a great way to shadow the eyes. As I mentioned before, the longer, thinner rectangular pans are the BH mattes. The pink square pan is an Inglot matte. 

Then, we have CS Pumpkin Pie, CR Princess, DoC Cone

CP Hear Me Out, Looxi Durty, CR Heir

Wet 'n Wild Brulee, DoC Berries 'n Cream, and CR Angel Face

Thoughts:

I do like the choices I have given myself here, and that I feel like there is greater thought to the placement of all the pressed single shadows (63) I have. 

How does this compare to your own organization style? Let me know!

Thanks for reading!

Z-Palette Update

Hey everyone! It's been a while since I talked about my z-palette collection. As of now, I am alternating between two palettes- a 12 pan Livancy Palette, and an XL Z-palette. I really enjoy the Livancy palette and hope to purchase at least one more as a way to store and use the rest of my singles.

I've decluttered two eyeshadows, which were quite hard for me:
1.) Dose of Colours Mint Chip (from the Eyes Cream palette)
2.) Coastal Scents 18 K Gold (a gold that was getting no use from me).

The mint one is of such good quality that I technically did not declutter it, but rather set it aside.

Anyway, this is what the XL z-palette looks like now:

Notable additions include most of the mattes from the BH Cosmetics Zodiac palette. I do like the shimmers and wanted to declutter them as well, but the pans are so flimsy I'd end up tearing them.

Also, we have Stila Kitten, which was very easy to de-pot. I figure I will use it up more if it complements a palette.

Moving on to my other palette:

This is the left side, with the mattes.

Notable additions include the second shadow in the second row, Looxi Durty, as well as the first two shadows in the third row- Green Apple and Pumpkin Spice Life.

My precious shimmers!!

 Okay for the above picture, the middle shade in the left column is a depotted Rose Gold from Ardency Inn. I was shocked at how easy it was to de-pot. The shadow next to it is also new- Looxi Dollface!

So that's it! I really like my collection. If you see any shade in particular you want more info about, please let me know!

Eyeliner Collection and Declutter

For someone who hates applying eyeliner, I have so much of it.

Party the reason for this is subscription boxes, but also because for the longest time, I have been someone on the hunt for the perfect, HG product. However, that does not exist.

What I have learned, however, is that for my eyeshape and preferences, an eyeliner has to be three things:

1. black
2. waterproof
3. brush tip

Felt tip, as popular as it is, skips on my eyelids. And because my eyes are prone to watering, I need something that can last the day. 

I am not going to provide swatches only because I don't want to waste product. 

So, I'll go through what I have, talk about each one, and decide what I am going to do with them. 

Let's start!

1. Physician's Formula Eye Booster in Ultra Black and Black. Waterproof, long-lasting, and brushtip. The regular black shade is a little too brown-toned, but Ultra Black is perfect. This is basically the closest I have to an HG. I am so obsessed about these, which are too expensive in my opinion (@ $8-11), that when I am running low, I buy back-ups and use them simultaneously, which makes absolutely no sense. So now I have three that I am using up, having no idea which of them has the most product. 

2. LA Splash Ark-I-Tekt Eyeliner, Waterproof. $14. I have a review up on my blog about this. It is not as waterproof as the Physician's Formula one, but slightly easier to apply (smoother). However, the brush bristles have continually bent out of shape for me, making me have to snip some off. And I can't store it upside down or else the product will flood the tip. I know I am making this eyeliner sound like a nightmare, but it's not that bad. I will use it up, but not repurchase. 

3. Lioele Brush-Pen Eyeliner, $2.99. I found this today at TJ Maxx and bought it on the name alone. I am so paranoid that the world will stop making brush-tip eyeliners so I have this impulse to hoard them. Anyway, I have not used this for any prolonged amount of time, but I did apply it to me eyes today and I like what I see so far. It is smaller than the other eyeliners in my collection. 

4. Speaking of small eyeliners, I also have the NYX "That's The Point, Hella Fine Eyeliner." I found this at Target for about $9.00. It is felt tip, but the tip is super small, which I like. I use this to create small wings. 

5. Clio Calligraphy Liner in Kill Black. Another K-Beauty TJ Maxx purchase. I will be decluttering this one, for as cool as the shape of the felt-tip is, this stuff rubs off too easily. 

6. I will also be decluttering, unfortunately, the Wet 'n Wild holiday/Halloween 2018 eyeliner in Later Witches, a coppery brown metallic with some microglitter. I don't want to declutter it because of the name, but the formula is so chunky and hard to apply. Later, witches. 

7. I am going to hold on to Physician's Formula Matte Lacquer Gel Cream Eyeliner in Ultra Black, the ill-fated dupe to the ill-fated Benefit Push-Up Liner. I love this formula so much, even though the applicator is so unwieldy. I plan to use more of it, especially for smudgier looks. 

8. Another non-brush eyeliner I will be holding on to is the PIXI Endless Silky Eye Pen, in a trial size. This glides onto my eye really well and stays put. 

9. I will be getting rid of one NYX Jumbo eye pencil, in Cottage Cheese. I bought it for the name but I don't use it. 

10. I will also be getting rid of the Jordana Color Envy "Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner" in Antique Gold. Waterproof it is not. 

11. The NYX Wonder P encil used to be really useful for me, but I stopped using it for some reason. I used to use it a lot last year to correct eyeshadow and liner mistakes. I am going to keep it around, just in case. 

12. Speaking of NYX, who seems to be highly represented in this list, I also have the Faux Blacks liner in Black Olive. I like the concept of this line, and I like the color and formula. I have not been using it  really but I plan to. 

13. I will be decluttering the elf Stardust Glitter Eyeliner in Pink Opal. I bought it because the name reminded me of the MAC pigments, but this is the opposite, in terms of pigment. It's a very weak eyeliner. 

14. I will be decluttering a Ciate Star Stamp/Eyeliner that I got from an Ipsy bag. I never use this, nor will I. Felt tips just don't agree with me, thought the formula is fine.

15. Speaking of stamps, I will be keeping the Vogue Effects Eyeliner Wing Stamp. This is a very convenient product. The actual formula is fine- it's not the deepest black ever, but it does not run. 

So, final count!

This is what I am keeping:

12 products

And  I am giving away:

6 products

Not bad!

Thanks so much for reading! 

Designing My Own Pumpkin Spice Palette

Hello! Today I have a rather fun post. After watching an anti-haul video from one of my favorite Youtubers, Smokey Glow, I decided to design my own Pumpkin Spice Palette, using colors already in my collection. In her anti-haul, she talked about how disappointed she was in the Too Faced version, after accurately prediction they would roll one out for the holidays.

After listening to her describe the types of colors she would include, and using my own preferences as well, this is what I came up with!

The palette is from Livancy Palettes, who can be found on Etsy. This was a new purchase for me and I'm quite liking it!

Fleece-Lined Pillow Fort Shiro	Crown Coloured Raine	Let Me Explain Colourpop	Heir Coloured Raine	Lay Low Colourpop	Tangy Dijon Vanessa’s Vanity
Tangelo Tint Coastal Scents	Empress Coloured Raine	Royal Prerogative Coloured Raine	Team Captain Colourpop	18K Gold Coastal Scents	Chauffeur Colourpop
Rapunzel Had Extensions Fyrinnae	Your Majesty Coloured Raine	Bohemian Looxi	20-Something Colourpop	Boujee Looxi	Mirage Looxi

Now I know there are a lot of neutral shimmers in this palette. But that's just how I roll. And while these shimmers could easily be written off as "neutral," each of them contain something special about them- either a high-shine factor, or duochromatic quality, that make them integral to the palette. 

Looking at the palette, in terms of how the colors are balanced it reminds me a little of the Norvina palette. But I think I need to switch out the pale coral matte, Lay Low, and replace it with another warm brown. Maybe. Overall, the goal is to use warm orange and browns, and maybe a hint of green.

By the way, I am not a Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Person (tm) by any means. But I do very much enjoy Wawa's Pumpkin Spice coffee. I highly recommend it. 

Anyway, I'll try to use this palette this week and report back with my thoughts!

And if you have not yet seen my review, I do have another fall/harvest-themed palette from Colourpop that I personally feel has some excellent shades, The Good Sport Palette:

Thanks for reading!

What's In my Small Z-Palette?

Greetings! I've been a little MIA since work started up again, but I do have some makeup related things to share in some upcoming posts. One post in particular is dedicated to a rather concerning trend I am seeing with recent releases- packaging fails. Such fun! Today's post, however, is another look into my small z-palette.

The z-palette is a Coastal Scents 12-pan palette, and usually I fill it with the single shades curated from my larger z-palette. I find that I rotate through the shades quite consistently.

This is the palette as of today:

I really like how the columns ended up being quite monochromatic.

Shiro: Fleeced Lined Pillow Fort	Dose of Colours: Berries 'n Cream	Colourpop: Lay Low	Colourpop: Howlin'
Coloured Raine: Angel Face	Coastal Scents: Oatmeal Tan	Colourpop: Making Moves	Dose of Colours: Blueberry Swirl
Looxi: Bohemian	Looxi: Boujee	Looxi: Mirage	Looxi: Charmed

The first row is primarily matte/satin. I want to make more progress on Berries 'n Cream, the slightly pink-toned cream. I find I have been using pink more often, so this shade would work well. I also want to get more use out of Lay Low. It reminds me of a lighter, more tightly pressed Love from Norvina, and the two do work well together. And I have been using Howlin' lately, so I decided to put it in this palette just to make it easier to reach for. 

In the second row, Angel Face has a significant dip to it, but I have not used it for a couple of months while it was in the larger z-palette. But I have been in the mood to use it, so I thought it would make sense to place it in here. I also wanted a semi-neutral brown in the palette, and I know I have not been using Oatmeal Tan, though this is a repurchase after inadvertently giving it away the first time.  Making Moves is such a bright and pigmented color, but easy to blend, and I am curious to see how it will behave with Lay Low, which is why they are placed next to each other in the palette. 

The final matte in this row is Blueberry Swirl, such a smart shadow from Dose of Colors. It is the perfect transition between pink/purple and brown. It works well with both warm and cool tones. It's pigmentation is not too intense so I feel I can control the depth of this color with ease.

The final row is of my relatively new Looxi shadows. I have one more, Tesla, in the larger z-palette. I use Mirage the most, which is ironic to me because that is the shade I had the worst first impressions of. What I like about it is that, like w/ Blueberry Swirl mentioned above, it plays with warm and cool. It also has dimensions of different colors, which makes this an easy to use stand alone color.

Bohemian looks like a standard rose gold copper shade a la Amber Rush, but actually has a spark of silver, as well as small purple glitters. It is very striking and I want to use more of it this month. I also want, nay need, to use Boujee, a shadow that appears gold, but actually has a rainbow like shift. It is magical and I hereby resolve to use more of it. Last is Charmed, a duochrome, that I am still figuring out how to use in a way that is flattering. 

So that's it! Do you have any of these colors? Let me know in the comments below!!

Eyeshadow Palette Collection Post

Hi everyone! I was inspired to do a palette collection post. I am not going to count my two z-palettes, but rather complete, pre-made palettes.  With each palette I'll talk about how much I use it and give my thoughts on each.

The first section of palettes I am going to talk about are all from BH Cosmetics.

The Carli Bybel Deluxe Palette (top)

I have had this for one year. I have hit pan on the cream shade, and reorganized some shades from this palette by depotting two of the highlighters to put in my highlighter z-palete. Overall, this is a really easy to use palette with some excellent lid shades. It has subtle color to what could be considered neutral shades, which is what I prefer.

Where the palette falls short is just the sheer amount of highlighter/repeat shades. If she could have just stuck to an eyeshadow palette and maybe a separate highlighter palette, that would have been a lot less overwhelming and I'd want to use the palette even more.

I use this palette especially for a matte burgundy shade when I need something for the outer corner of my eye, because it is so soft and does not skip on my skin.

The Zodiac Palette (right):

My own palette is a bit of a mess because the center highlighter cracked and got everywhere. Other than that, though, I love this palette for glittery and high-shine lid shades. The mattes are of excellent quality, but I find they blend (especially the dark brown ones) little too easily, so less is more when it comes to those shades. It's a great palette, especially for the fall and winter.

Take Me Back to Brazil Palette (bottom):

This is such a fun palette but the shimmers are useless. They have no pigmentation. The reason this palette is worth anything is the mattes, which have pigment, but should be built up. In this way, for me at least, this palette is very useful for infusing colors into a look. I stick to the yellows, purples, pinks, and reds, though, and far away from the blues.


The next set of palettes are some of my smaller ones:

The Tarteist Pro to Go palette (left):

I got this from ebay after obsessing after it for months. Why? Ugh. I don't know. It feels so long ago. It is a nice little palette, with a nice selection of shimmers and mattes. It just feels like a thoughtful palette. The mattes are very smooth and soft.

The Wet 'n Wild Not a Basic Peach Palette (top):

This was part of WnW's brand update and reformulation. I really enjoy the this palette, especially the transitional mattes. However, the quality is a bit inconsistent, as I did discard two shades that were not working for me.

The Too Faced Peanut Butter and Jelly Palette (bottom):

I got this from TJ Maxx on discount, but I don't regret it. This is an adorable palette, and really easy to make orangey brown looks with it. I really like the quality of the eyeshadow, except I think Bananas is very sheer.

Physician's Formula Classic Nudes (left):
This was part of their anniversary collection, and my review of this palette was very positive. It is a handy palette to have around.

Wet 'n Wild, Walking on Eggshells (center):

I purchased this solely to have the original formula in my possession. The quality is lovely. Unfortunately, I do have many overlaps with the color in this palette, but I do occasionally use it when I am in the mood for an easy look.

Wet 'n Wild 6-pan Palette in Greed (right):
I don't use this palette as much any more, but the salmon matte is my everything and I can't let it go because of that.

Finally, we have my larger, higher-end palettes:

ABH, Modern Renaissance.

I'll be honest. I am still using it after two years, and have panned six shades. I still really enjoy the quality of this palette.

Coloured Raine, Queen of Hearts palette.

This is a gorgeous palette, and the quality is commendable. The mattes are super blend-able, except for Ladyship. She's a (royal) pain. For me, the shimmers are a little intense for the day to day, which is why I don't use this palette as much as I'd like. If their mini-palettes would have been of better quality, I think I would have been better off using that. Still, I really enjoy using this palette.

ABH, Norvina.

 I have been using this for a couple of days now, and I am very pleased. This palette has a lot of what I have been looking for color-wise. I do think there are too many shimmers, and that the palette would benefit from one or two more mattes. Still, I really enjoy this palette and look forward to continue using it. I find it to be very inspiring.

I have decluttered a couple of palettes in the past that I definitely talked about on the blog. These include The Balm Meet Matt(e) Nude, The Balm Nude 'Tude, Urban Decay Pulp Fiction (this one pained me), Cargo Venice Enchantment, and Kat Von D Chrystalis and Innerstellar. With that in mind, I really like the collection I ended up with today.