ONLINE ONLY Beauty Steal! Cargo Shanghai Nights Palette

Ulta is having their annual 21 Days of Beauty Steals massive sale, where every day there are various items that are on sale. You can check out the whole calendar on their website. The one that really caught my eye was the brand new Cargo Shanghai Nights Eyeshadow Palette, which I believe will only be released on the day of the sale, Tuesday 9/23/2014.

The deal on this palette is insane! It's literally going to be half off, it normally would retail for $39, but is on sale for $20, you won't be getting a better deal than that! Today only, you can also get the Stila In the Moment, In the Know and In the Light palette for that same deal during the beauty sale.

I couldn't find any more photos of the palette online but I did find this graphic which shows the colors:

I'm a huge fan of the color selection, there's a good variety of colorpop (Lychee, Ginger, Hu, Skyline, Street Style and Bar Rouge) along with a wide variety of cool-toned and warm-toned neutrals (Wai Tai, Bund, Jin Mao, Neon, Jade, Night Life)! You can create so many looks with this mixture of shadows. I'm definitely going to try to pick this up online during the sale!

If you want to know what similar Cargo palettes look like, last year they released the "Let's Meet in Paris" palette, which was a very similar format - this was sold for the 2013 holiday season and was very limited in quantity:

Cargo Palette: Let's Meet in Paris, courtesy of www.makeupgeek.com

They also released a palette called "Vintage Escape" which is in the same format in the fall of 2013:

Cargo Palette: Vintage Escape, photo courtesy of www.15minutebeauty.com

New Release & Sneak Peek: Too Faced La Belle Carousel & Everything Nice (A Few of my Favorite Things 2)

Too Faced - La Belle Carousel set from Macys.com

This set is absolutely breathtaking from the promos, and since I know how fast Too Faced's holiday sets sell out, I decided to order a set! It retails for $49, but you can find Macys.com coupons that might apply to it.

Too Faced - La Belle Carousel set from Macys.com 

I love the packaging, it really looks high-end and Too Faced always does an amazing job specifically with their holiday sets - their products really get me into the holiday spirit! I'm squealing with joy as I'm writing this post!

Rumoured contents of Too Faced - La Belle Carousel found on Dermstore.com

3 Eyeshadow Mini Palettes (4 colors each - 12 shades total):
For the Macys.com set: 1 confirmed palette will consist of Frost (metallic bright silver), Tin Soldier (gunmetal gray shimmer), Christmas Tree (forest green shimmer) and Santa's Boots (shimmery black)
Unsure of 2 palettes - it appears there are 2 variants of this set - maybe sold in different stores? We'll find out soon!

2 Blush & Bronzer Mini Palettes (2 colors each, 4 shades total):
For the Macys.com set: Who's Your Poppy Blush and Chocolate Soleil Bronzer
Unsure of shades in 2nd palette

Deluxe "Better Than Sex Mascara" comes with the set

Sneak Peek Courtesy of trendynailsrd on Instagram - not sure if this is the set released on Macys.com, it appears to differ from the set on Dermstore.com where I got the previous preview.

I ordered the set from Macys.com so as soon as I get my hands on it, I'll take photos and inform you of the colors! Update to come soon, happy holiday shopping!


PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT: Sneak Peek: Too Faced Everything Nice Palette (A Few Of My Favorite Things 2)!!!! Just to get you excited!

Found this on: The Sunday Girl blog - check out the post for a first impression

Eyes of the Day: Maya Mia Palette - Tropical Smokey Look

Maya Mia Palette Tropical Smokey Look

I'm so inspired by the Anastasia Beverly Hills Maya Mia Palette that I find myself going back to it day after day trying to create new and exciting looks that make me step out of my routine comfort zone. This pop of Aqua is my homage to the Pacific Ocean in Santa Monica from my recent trip and a beautiful sunset overlooking the pier. You can check out my review of the Maya Mia Palette if you're contemplating a purchase!

Maya Mia Palette Tropical Smokey Look - Ambient Light

I really love how easily the colors can be blended together but how well they can also be placed to show the difference between them rather than getting all muddy like some eyeshadows can. If you'd like to purchase the palette, you can do so on Anastasia Beverly Hills website, Ulta, Sephora or Macy's.

Maya Mia Palette Tropical Smokey Look - Direct Sunlight

If you'd like to re-create this look, I have included a guide to help! I started with the crease color (Sienna) and then packed on the Deep Brown onto the outer 2/3rd's of my lid. I made sure to finish off the look with the pop of Aqua in the inner corner (but I purposely left this area blank when I applied the other colors and used a white eyeshadow base for maximum saturation). I blended out the top of the crease with Caramel and the outer edges of the eyes with Fresh Peach.

If you have this palette, I hope it keeps you in a summery mood all year long and that it inspires you to be passionate about your eyeshadow transformations often!

Ipsy August 2014 Glam Bag Unboxing

This is the August Ipsy Glambag I received - I wasn't particularly impressed with anything but all of the items were definitely usable. I received a Urban Decay Perversion Mascara, Klorane Dry Shampoo, Lord & Berry Eye Pencil, Jersey Shore Mongongo Lip Conditioner, and Coastal Scents Forever Blush Sample Duo. 

I like that this month they switched up the shape of the bag, as this one is definitely more spacious and great as a pencil case compared to the usual flat rectangular bags. It's constructed of a fairly stiff plastic material, however, so I could see this breaking after some extended usage.

The Coastal Scents Forever Blush Samples are extremely small but the pigmentation really packs a huge punch. A little of this blush probably goes a very long way and it seems like a worthwhile purchase from Coastal Scents.Value: $1.99

I am a huge fan of Dry Shampoo so this one from Klorane really hits the spot with me since I often cannot carry my full-sized ones in a travel bag (since they are too big for the TSA). This one is the perfect size for traveling.Value: $6.49

I was a little bummed I didn't receive the purple eyeliner from Urban Decay but this new Perversion  Mascara is worth a try. I like the natural brush fibers and the sleek packaging.Value: $5.50

This is a very tiny Lord & Berry Silk Kajal Kohl Eye Pencil in Black - This is great for throwing into a small purse when you're on the go and you may need to touch up your waterline. However, I've tried it out and the lasting power isn't great, it's fairly easy to smudge out and rub off.Value: $7.83

I love this Jersey Shore Sun Mongongo Anti-aging Lip Conditioner. I can never get enough lip balm and this is the only full sized item in my bag this month. Value: $5.50

Total Value of Ipsy Bag: $27.31 - this is actually on the lower end of the value of bags I have ever received from Ipsy in the past year and a half.

Wet 'n Wild Fall 2014 ColorIcon Eyeshadow Palette Collection

The new Wet 'n Wild Coloricon eyeshadow palettes have arrived for the Fall 2014 collection, I was able to find these at Walgreens in the LA area this week. I picked up 3 of the 4 palettes released (Melrose at Night, Smoke and Melrose, Angels in Aubergine), I was not drawn to High Waisted Jeans because I'm not a big fan of blue eyeshadow, I don't find that it's the most flattering on my amber/brown eyes and fair skin tone.

Originally, I was skeptical about the performance of these quints because I have heard rather poor reviews of the permanent collection of quint eyeshadow palettes from Wet 'n Wild's new formulation, but I am so happy to announce that these shadows seem to be the old formulation!!! I hope you get a chance to pick these up if you're a fan of the old, phased-out, color icon shadow palettes. All of the shades are buttery smooth, ultra-pigmented, and have little fall-out.

These quints also feature a variety of glitter, metallic, mostly matte and satin eyeshadows, with Melrose at Night and Smoke and Melrose featuring many dupes of the Urban Decay Naked 3 palette.

Melrose at Night is a perfect daytime look palette if you're looking for a no muss, no fuss, palette. It's great for work or night time, you can always add more of the definer shade in the outer-V of your eye for increased dramatic effect. The Crease shade is my least favorite because it was probably the least pigmented shade out of all of the palettes, but still a better-than-average shadow.

The Smoke and Melrose palette is my absolute favorite, the Browbone shade is as perfect crease transition shade for me and I absolutely adore it (it is a dupe for Nooner from the Urban Decay Naked 3 palette). Smoke and Melrose is a darker, more warm-leaning palette than Melrose at Night, with the crease shade being much more metallic than the rest.

Angels in Aubergine features a wonderfully pigmented Base color, a nice pop of color in the browbone shade and a great way to create a few variations of the smokey eye palette with aubergine (maroon-purple) undertones. This was my least favorite of the palettes, only because I am less of a fan of smokey eye looks than other variations - that isn't to say you couldn't create a rather usual look with just the Browbone, Base and Definer shades. The crease color seems to have the most chunky glitter of all the shades in this range.

New Release: Anastasia Beverly Hills Maya Mia Palette (Limited Edition)

This week, a brand new palette was released from Anastasia Beverly Hills, and it is a collaboration between them and the Tanzanian makeup artist Maya Mia (maya_mia_y on Instagram), this is right on the heels of their Amrezy Palette Release last month. I notice familiar names between their latest palettes so let me delve right into my review of this palette.

The outer packaging and the cover of the palette itself are identical on top, the color choice is vibrant and frankly my favorite to date from Anastasia. I feel like their packaging has gotten more attractive and complex as their palettes have progressed over time.

The palette itself comes with the same dual-ended brush that was seen in the Amrezy palette and it is a very handy, usable brush (one side is a shadow packing brush and the other is a fine crease brush).

The back of the outer packaging includes a small preview, short explanation of the style of the palette, and details ingredients used.

Repeat colors from the Amrezy palette: Glisten, Vanilla and Caramel. 

Repeat colors from the Lavish palette: Sienna.

Unique colors: Nude, Deep Brown, Warm Taupe, Aqua, Fresh Peach, Gold Bar.

Out of the unique colors, the ones which performed best were Deep Brown, Warm Taupe, Gold Bar and Fresh Peach. I found that Aqua had to be packed on in multiple layers to get decent pigmentation, otherwise it just seems like a sheer wash of light blue. I really liked the impact of Deep Brown, it's a great shade to cut your crease with and darken your outer corner. I like that although there are repeats of colors in this palette range, the pops of color are unique, since those are probably the colors used least.

This palette included something extra special: 5 free look cards which detail how to achieve each look on the back - this is a great inclusion to inspire your daily makeup, especially if you want to do something extra special.

I used the first look card, it consisted of 4 shades: Vanilla, Warm Taupe, Sienna and Deep Brown. I chose to go with a less dramatic black winged liner, and this is the look I achieved:

Overall, I really thoroughly enjoyed this palette and I was able to pick it up from the Anastasia Beverly Hills flagship salon and store in Beverly Hills, close to Rodeo Dr. - which made it an even better experience for me! I also picked up a Contour Kit and am excited to review that for you soon (I have used it every day since purchasing it!)

Sleek Arabian Nights Palette

The packaging on the Sleek Arabian Nights Palette is absolutely breathtaking, it gives you a smokey, mysterious vibe, which is exactly what this Limited Edition palette is all about. It features 12 shades so you can create a versatile Arabic eye, whether it be vibrant, smokey or neutral.

The packaging of the palette itself is a sleek, thin, black plastic design with the name of the palette printed for clarity. This palette is ideal for travel, with each color being about the size of a nickel. 

There is an overlay which has all of the shade names printed on top, this isn't my favorite feature but a majority of palettes are made this way - I much prefer having the names printed on the actual packaging. However, seeing as this palette retails for about $12, this is definitely not a big deal if it keeps the retail price low. 

The variety of colors is what really drew me to purchase this particular palette as my first Sleek palette. I really like that there are shades of beige, yellow, taupe, green, teal, blue, bronze, brown, gray, plum and black - wow what a selection! One thing to note, however, is that almost all of the colors have micro-glitter, glitter, or a metallic sheen with the exception of Stallion which appears to be mostly matte.

I'm really impressed with the pigmentation of the Sleek eyeshadows - they have really great color payoff. They're easy to blend and really do pack a punch when you use them on your eyes. However, I have noticed that it's easiest to get the color I want by packing it on with my finger than with a brush, especially on my lid. I also think they're chalkier than the shadows I'm typically used to (but I am comparing them to much more expensive, high end makeup). Simbad's Seas is a shadow that is so pigmented and beautifully unique, as a mix between blue and purple, that it's worth the entire purchase of this palette just to get it.

I am a huge fan of the brown-leaning shades, I think they're hits in this palette (see Genie, Stallion, Aladdin's Lamp). The one with the least color payoff is Valley of Diamonds but it is such a beautiful blush pink with gold glitter that I would work with this shade just to use it - I personally adore this color and it can soften an otherwise fairly severe color palette. 

I only have 1 other smokey eye palette and this really fills a need I had in my makeup collection, so I'm very happy with this purchase. I really am very surprised with the great quality of these shadows (specifically for the price point) and I recommend that everyone purchase at least 1 palette from Sleek to try out (they have a huge selection of options). I got my palette from Amazon, since it's not readily available in the US, but the delivery only took a couple of days!