Urban Decay Vice LTD Palette: In Depth Review & Swatches

I picked up the Vice LTD palette from Urban Decay awhile back but I didn't think I would keep it until I saw the fabulous reviews from other bloggers. So I decided to take the plunge and review it for you guys even though there was some insane controversy over the release of this product. 

Urban Decay says this is an extremely limited palette and I do not own any of the previous VICE palettes so this one looked like it would be my favorite curation of colors (the neon packaging helped, too).

The Urban Decay Vice LTD palette retails for $58 at ULTA only and contains 20 shades of eyeshadows, of which 9 are exclusively in this palette. 11 other shadows can be found in other palettes, so I'm listing them all below for you:

Crystal (Book of Shadows IV), Junkshow (15th Anniversary Palette), Backdoor (Smoked Palette), Deeper (15th Anniversary Palette), Nameless (Shattered Palette), Vaporize (Anarchy palette - reformulated) and Perversion (Book of Shadows II), Freakshow (Fun Palette), Blitz (VICE Palette), Last Sin (VICE 3 Palette), Anonymous (VICE Palette)

I'm lucky that I don't have that many duplicates, I only have the Book of Shadows and I didn't bother buying UD smaller palettes or the other VICE's, but if you have been collecting, you're definitely going to have repeats.

Inside some typical psychadelic cardboard packaging you will find this hard-plastic neon-green case with a push-button. This palette is great because you press the button gently and the top raises up on its own, which means you don't have to pry at it with your fingernails to get it open or worry about magnets not sticking closed during travel.

I love the bejeweled "UD" decal on the front, it adds some glitzy feeling to the otherwise Nickelodeon slime green color selection (I'm not even knocking it, I love it!).

Upon opening the palette, an over-sized mirror greets you, which is upright and ready for makeup application (perfect for on-the-go if you don't mind lugging this rather large and bulky palette around).

There's a nice variety of candy-colored shades in here, ranging from hot fuchsia, muted neutrals, to pops of glittery and metallic orange, yellow, golds, and some gem-toned shades such as sapphire and emerald.

If you're a fan of mattes, this palette is not for you. Urban Decay does a lot of things right, but mattes are rarely among those - there are only 4 matte shades: Backdoor (cool dark brown), Perversion (soft black), Anonymous (peachy cream) and Laced (soft pink-nude taupe).

The mattes, especially the darker shades, are rather patchy and more difficult to blend than the satins, metallics, shimmers and glitters. If you love glitz and pops of color in your eye looks, you will love the VICE LTD palette.

There is also an exclusive double-ended brush in this palette but it's smaller than others I have received in my Naked 2 and Naked 3 palettes. There's an all-over shadow brush (right side) and a crease brush (left side). 

The bristles are a tad stiff on the all-over shadow brush but it has a nice density. The blending brush seems to have a rather small point so I don't think it would be too useful for creating a blown-out effect, but rather applying more concentrated color to the crease.

I didn't find myself reaching for this brush because it was a little bit small for the purposes I would use it for.

As you can see from my swatches above (if you want to see the photos larger, click to enlarge), there is good news and there is bad news.

The poorest performing shades were definitely Backdoor (patchy and dry), Perversion (just not black enough, patchy - has to be layered a lot), Junkshow (powdery, needs building up for full opacity), and Laced (dry, hard to get any color payoff from this one).

The good news is great, out of the entire palette I was only disappointed by 4 shades. Roadstripe is sheer but has a beautiful duo-chrome pink to blue shift, so it makes a wonderful highlight. Crystal and Provocateur are to die for light blue and mauve shades with plenty of shimmer that will make any eye look pop. Deeper, Heat and Vaporize are buttery smooth to-die-for shades that will enhance any look. 

Goddess and Floss were okay, but that might be just because I'm not a huge fan of chunky glitter fallout - I suspect these are great over a black base and Floss is definitely superior to Goddess in consistency and shadow quality. Although Disco is also a glitter it seems to have the particles embedded in the formula better, making it easier to blend out. 

Any shade I didn't particularly mention performs as I expect from the Urban Decay brand (since reformulation of their eyeshadows) - can blend easily, has a smooth consistency and good color payoff.

For my look, I used the following colors and created a look exclusively from the Urban Decay VICE LTD palette:

• Crystal - all over the eyelid
• Anonymous - brow-bone highlight shade, underneath eyebrow
• Laced - as a transition shade in the crease
• Deeper - to define the crease
• Blitz - inner under-eye corner
• Hoodoo - outer under-eye

Verdict

This palette is worth your time if you're an avid Urban Decay collector or you don't own too many palettes from them (to avoid repeat shades). I do appreciate that all of the shadows are their new pigment-infused formulation so you're getting tons of color payoff with most shades. 

If you like fun shades and like to experiment with color, this palette is definitely for you (specifically if you didn't purchase an Electric Palette). 

For the bold, adventurous and wild at heart, I give it two thumbs up and a very respectable score of 9/10.

Physicians Formula Shimmer Strips Gel Cream Shadow - Extreme Shimmer (Nude Eyes)

Physicians Formula has released their new line-up and it consists of some brand new goodies. I'm excited to show you these gel shimmer pots which have flashy new packaging and a different consistency. I'm so happy to see glitter and shimmer come back with a bang for Spring 2015. These are a little pricey, retailing for $14.99 at my local CVS, but you are getting 3 pots which makes them roughly $5.00 each.

The outer packaging is a rose gold shade with a glittery cap, which couldn't possibly appeal to me more than it does. At first glance the shade on the left and the one in the middle looked awfully similar, but under studio lighting I could tell that the nude shade in the middle was more pinkish and beige, with the leftmost one clearly being more of a highlighting shade.

The shades have names on the exterior product packaging but it is not printed anywhere on the gel shadow pots. The consistency of these Extreme Shimmer gels is almost like a cross between a gel and mousse but they don't "sink in" when you dip your finger in but they do seem to have some bounce.

For full opacity, I ran my fingers through the gel shadow pots and swirled them around about 3 times to get the most full coverage swatches. These are packed with shimmer (just as the packaging states) but it is in the way of a mostly metallic base and chunks of glitter throughout the product. The worst color payoff came from the lightest shade "Champagne" which was more predominantly glittery and the base shade didn't show through as well as the others.

I wouldn't suggest this product for those with oily eyelids as it is a gel product which makes them stay rather creamy and it can cause creasing and slippage. You can use a thicker eyeshadow primer to help increase the staying power and minimize the creasing of these.

My favorite way to use these Extreme Shimmer Gel Cream Shadows is by using regular powder eye shadows as my transition and crease shades and then accenting my eyelids with a pop of glitter by using 1 or 2 of the Extreme Shimmer Gel Cream Shadows.

IPSY January 2015 Unboxing & Review

 

A new year, a new IPSY bag! We bring in January with a bang this year by getting what appears to be like all full sized products! Let's hope that this trend continues throughout 2015.

The contents of my IPSY January 2015 Bag:

• Elizabeth Mott - "All Over Shadow" Brush - Retail Value: $9.99 (Full size)
• Pacifica - Natural Mineral Coconut Eye Shadow - Retail Value: $3.50 (Full size eyeshadow but only sold as part of palette, which usually come as 4 for $14)
• Malin + Goetz - Mojito Lip Balm - Retail Value: $12.00 (Full Size)
• BellaPierre Cosmetics - Shimmer Powder in "Whesek" - Retail Value: $14.99 (Full Size)
• Probelle - Nail Lacquer in "Into The Blue" - Retail Value: $6.00 (Full Size)

Not much I can say about the bag this month except that I am not impressed. This bag isn't cute, one side is navy blue and the other side is white with a coral-orange zipper. It also features a crosshatch texture that I can best explain the texture of by telling you to rub your hands on some dried glue which came from a hot glue gun.

The first, and frankly my favorite item in this month's bag is the Elizabeth Mott "All Over Shadow" Brush. This baby retails for just $9.99 and I am super impressed with the good quality of the bristles and how densely packed they are. I haven't received anything from this brand that I didn't didn't like... IPSY please keep it coming.

I have tried some Pacifica shadows in the past and I was not impressed, so my expectations for this one were very low. Let me begin by saying that the Pacifica eye shadows are only sold as palettes or sets so you get the absolute cheapest packaging imaginable in makeup subscriptions (it literally falls apart). I was actually very impressed with the pigmentation, creaminess and coverage of the shade "Treasure" of their Natural Mineral Coconut Eye Shadow. If this was part of a set, the approximate retail value would be $3.50 and I think it's well worth that.

Malin + Goetz Mojito Lip Balm is one I frequently see making the rounds among beauty subscription services. This is a luxurious lip balm that easily absorbs into the lips, is not sticky whatsoever (which makes it much more tolerable than most lip balms) and has a pleasant citrus-fruity cocktail scent. I'm happy to have finally received this product to test it out and my verdict is that it's worth every penny of the $12 price tag.

Surprisingly, I was sent 2 eye products this month, and since those are my favorite of all beauty product, you'll hear no complaints from me! BellaPierre Cosmetics Shimmer Powder in "Whesek" was sent - this is a dark gray base with lighter gray shimmer. The packaging of this product seems to have changed recently to a translucent cap and there's a sifter included (this is always very important to me when I receive pigments). The price for these was fairly steep at $14.99, but mineral powders are a very pure form of color so I'm sure you would get great color payoff - I didn't swatch it because I don't think the color is for me, so I might just pass this on.

I receive so many nail polishes that I never feel the need to purchase more, this month it was Probelle "Into The Blue" Nail Lacquer. This is a beautiful, mid-tone blue shade which has almost a slight gray-undertone. This polish is DBP, Toluene and Formaldehyde free (or 3 free) so it's better for your nails than just the average polish. The retail price is $6 which is a steal for the quantity and quality, I achieved full opacity is one thick coat or two thin coats and the formula is not watery in the least so it is easy to work with.

The total value of my bag this month is $46.48 and all the products were full sized! 

I am a very happy girl with IPSY this month. You can sign up for your very own subscription for $10/month. You can choose a recurring subscription and cancel at any time before the beginning of the next month.

ELF Cheeky Glow Contour Set (Holiday 2014) Review

I've been dying to try the Holiday 2014 ELF Cheeky Glow Contour Palette but was unable to find them in stock anywhere but at a local beauty supply retailer and they just happened to have BOGO on all holiday items, BONUS (so of course I just picked up 2 of these just in case I needed a backup, haha). It was such an amazing deal, for $5 you get this large-ish contour palette consisting of a highligher, blush and bronzer - and if that wasn't enough they even throw in an angled blush brush!

So of course, now I have it here for you for review.... for science!

ELF Cheeky Glow Contour Palette and Brush for Holiday 2014

The quantity of each product seems to be comparable to the full-sized blush singles from ELF, so it's quite a decent size. The packaging is sleek and simple and quite frankly, I love the clear window that lets me see the products inside (I have enough dark or opaque compacts to open as it is so it's nice to see the color of the powders clearly).

The bristles of the brush hair are a little too rough for my taste and they seem somewhat scratchy on the delicate skin of the face. I don't know about you guys but my skin is like paper so I can get red and irritated very quickly! I really would have bought this product without the brush, but I guess if you don't have that many brushes, this is a nice add-on bonus.

Close-up of ELF Cheeky Glow Contour Palette for Holiday 2014

Here's a close-up of the products, you can see that the bronzer is a matte, fairly light-toned shade (I don't think this would work well for darker skinned ladies, and I'm even skeptical about it working on medium gals). The blush is a shimmery peach - I know the finish is not everyone's cup of tea but I like it when my face looks like a happy disco ball! The highlighter is a pinkish hued satin finish with finely milled shimmer particles. 

Swatches of ELF Cheeky Glow Contour Palette for Holiday 2014

My photo above of the swatches came out very true to color and I think it's safe to assume that if you were to swatch these on your fingers, you would see the same results. Unfortunately, ELF did not come out with variations of this Contour Palette, which would have been very nice - so I really don't think this particular iteration is suitable for much more than fair to olive skin tones. 

I also want to point out that if you do not like your bronzer to lean orange even slightly, this set won't be for you. I happen to be very fair skinned (MAC NC15) and this trio just happened to work well but even for me the bronzer was a tad orange, especially paired with the tangerine-peach blush.

ELF Cheeky Glow Contour Palette for Holiday 2014 Applied to Face

The highlighter was noticeable but not too bright or overbearing so this is something I could see myself wearing on a regular basis but I might pair it up with another bronzer. As I mentioned before, I like the blush, it is almost a dupe for NARS Orgasm.

Don't mind my watery eyes in the photo, I was experiencing some allergies but still wanted to take a snapshot to show you what the product looked like on.

I hope ELF continues to make these more than just on a Limited Edition basis because the quality was definitely there but the shade selection could be expanded. I would love to see a taupe-leaning bronzer and a pink/red-based blush for a more natural flush.

Have you tried out this palette? What do you think?

Panty By Post - Panty Subscription Review

Panty By Post is a panty subscription service from Vancouver, BC and I was kindly sent a sample for review (but I'm not an affiliate or anything so this opinion is honest). There are 3 subscription services offered, one is the Everyday Basics ($15/panty), another is their Signature Line ($22/panty), and they have a Premium Luxe ($35/panty) option. You can choose either 3, 6 or 12 month subscriptions of each of the tiers. The difference between the subscriptions is that they offer a wide variety of different styles. Sizes range from XS to 5X so there's something for everybody!

Everyday Basics features comfy, easy breezy, everyday elegant styles

Signature Line features playful & sexy bottoms which are unique, colorful and stylish

Premium Luxe features high end fabrics, ultra feminine cuts & one-of-a-kind looks

The best feature of this subscription service is the fact that you can choose to receive briefs only, thongs only, or a mixture of both. I always felt that other, less expensive, panty subscriptions would sent out a lot of thongs and it's so refreshing to have a choice especially because of the higher price point of this service.

The panty package comes in a discreet, girly beautiful paper envelope and each panty is wrapped in tissue paper. It also comes with a card which describes the style, brand and color of your panty. 

I was very impressed with the quality of the fabric and panty. I received a Medium Indigo-colored panty by the brand Blush. This pair of panties reminds me of some expensive panties I own from Calvin Klein which I have loved for years. Although these are not meant to be seamless, the lace detail is so fine and sewn so flush against the main fabric of the panties that it really does not show through any of my tight leggings.

The back of the panty was ruched! What an awesome little detail that adds so much to the design and feel of the panties. This "basic" pair of panties feels anything but basic, it feels feminine, whimsical and absolutely delightful because of the wonderful trim detail, color choices and ruching.

The fabric is stretchy and has a lot of give for extremely high comfort, and you can see up close in this detail shot that the stitching is properly done and there are no loose threads (I get so frustrated when I buy a pair of panties from stores and then realize they elastics are already loose and shredding off before having worn them!).

This panty subscription has definitely won my heart and if you're looking for a great present for Valentine's Day for a loved one or "just because" you want to treat yourself, please look into this quality, high-end panty subscription.

I kind of wish I tried the Signature Line just because the photos online look so beautiful as well and I love me some whimsy but the Everyday Basics line was the most practical to review.

If you're looking to try a higher-end panty subscription, go to Panty By Post and enter the code IMNEW15 which gives you $15 off a subscription of your choice.

Review: Kat Von D Innerstellar Palette - Limited Editition Sephora Exclusive

Sorry for what feels like a lifetime since I have last posted but I had many other issues to deal with and now I'm back baby! I hope you all had a happy holiday season and are looking forward to all good things in the New Year.

I was able to get my hands on the retro-futuristic Innerstellar palette (which I posted about before in this preview - Sephora's swatches of it really convinced me to pick it up!) and I'm reporting back with an in-depth review.

Should you get this palette or should you skip it? Read below to find out!

First of all, the packaging is absolute amaze-balls. It's psychedelic and reminiscent of the name it shares a homonym with "Interstellar" - it's kind of what space would look like if it was illustrated by a graphic artist in the 1960's and I'm all about that sort of thing. On the back you can see a detailed photo depicting the finishes of the shades (ie. the shimmer shades have little glittery-looking chunks in the graphic).

The external packaging and the outside of the palette itself look identical so I won't bother you with more photos of it. The inside reveals a cool-toned palette with some definite neutrals and even warm-ish shades thrown in. Right off the bat I'm impressed by the mahogany browns and lilac purple shades (my absolute favs for amber/brown eyes).

I've heard some complaints about this palette because although the size appears similar to the Monarch and Chrysalis permanent-collection palettes, this one is 0.6 oz of product compared to the 0.73oz of the older palettes. The price of the palette has remained the same. I still think that for the amount of color and the large size of the palette, the Innerstellar palette is a good deal for the retail price of $46.

 Swatches were broken up into quads since I believe that each highlight shade (the large ones at the top) were meant to be coordinated with the 3 vertically-placed shades underneath. The looks seem to range in intensity going from left to right, with the brightest and most metallic shades being at the right of the spectrum. With that being said, each "quad" coordinated look contains some mattes and some shimmer shades.

Gravitron is a white-based pink with a hint of lilac shimmer
Night Crawler is a cool toned taupe satin shade
Dios is a medium gray satin shade with silver shimmer
Lunacy is a dark mid-tone purple with slightly poor color payoff than most other in this palette

Vast is a frosty warm taupe brown
Astrological is a bright lilac with golden shimmer - has some powdery kick-up after swatching
Darkstar is a cool-toned dark purple shade with phenomenal pigmentation - a little goes a very long way
Orion is a satin warm medium to dark brown

Lycan is a matte yellow-toned white shade

3AM is a bright metallic warm taupe with a satin finish

Moonshine is a metallic bright silver shade - this shade was fairly powdery

Killing Moon is a matte black that seems to be the driest and has good pigmentation but skips on the skin, so it requires some extra blending

Overall, this palette performed very well, I only had slight issues with the shades Lunacy and Killing Moon, otherwise I was happy with the performance of all of them on my fair skin.

I think this palette fits a very important niche, it's not quite as "out there" in shade-selection as the Chrysalis palette but it does incorporate a lot of nice cool toned colors that are very wearable from day to night.

The texture of the shadows is buttery and smooth with the exception of Killing Moon which felt somewhat dry and skipped on the skin when swatching and applying. The application and blendability of these shades makes them ideal for beginners and the overall arrangement of the colors makes it easy to create looks.

I highly recommend this palette and I hope we see even more palettes that are a nice mixture between cool and warm such as this in the future!

Stay tuned, I'll be posting looks using this palette in the days to come.

Too Faced La Creme Lipstick

Too Faced La Creme Color Drenched Lip Cream in Taffy (Outer Packaging)

Today I bring you a review and photos of the new (to me) Too Faced La Creme Color Drenched Lip Cream in the color Taffy (Retail price: $22, sold at Sephora, ULTA, and other Too Faced retailers). This present was actually given to me by a friend for my birthday last week and he chose the color, personally I think he did a great job! 

These color drenched lip creams are filled with lip-conditioning hydrators such as lotus flower which help to keep your lips moisturized (especially during the cooler months) while giving a plump appearance. 

Too Faced La Creme Lipstick Packaging

First let's talk about the packaging, everything about it from the heavy metallic feel to the embossed writing absolutely screams luxury product. On the cap, there is a monogrammed "TF" to add to the dramatic upscale flare of the packaging.

Too Faced La Creme Lipstick in "Taffy"

Taffy is described by Too Faced as a "pink marshmallow nude" and I think they're spot on, except that the color does not correlate with their "melted marshmallow" color in the Melted Liquified Long Wear Lipstick line (that one is a more blue-based and pale, similar to a Barbie pink) - that's where the "nude" comes in which differentiates the two shades.

This color is perfect for someone who is unwilling to take many lipstick risks or a daytime appropriate look (office, school, etc). I adore this color as it's really easy to put on in the morning and then go about a daily routine without worrying about using a lip liner or cleaning up with concealer after application around the lip line.

Even though this lipstick is considered a creme, it isn't sheer the way that might suggest. There is a good amount of buildable pigment in the formula and super moisture which almost feels glossy on the lips and has the staying power of 4+ hours (obviously not through eating or drinking as this isn't a staining product). The lipstick smells like a faint vanilla cupcake, it's extremely pleasant and easy to wear, it's not an overpowering or unpleasant scent.

Overall, I think the Too Faced La Creme Color Drenched Lip Cream is another great product from the Too Faced line and I can say that they are quickly becoming my favorite brand in the market for consistent pigmentation across products, great packaging and unique concepts, I also appreciate their efforts to use more "natural" and "good for you" ingredients in their products.

For the holidays, you can find the La Creme Lipsticks in a gift set,
Too Faced Under The Mistletoe La Creme Limited Edition Lipstick Trio and Glitter Bag: Shimmering Marshmallow Bunny, Shimmering Spice Spice Baby & Shimmering Naked Dolly which retails for cheaper than purchasing all 3 of the colors at $22 each.