My Favorite Top Six Eye Shadow Palettes!

 I just love eyeshadow palettes!  I really don't own (expect for two) single eyeshadow pots.  I normally like them to come in a palette as they are easier to travel with, carry and don't take up to much space or need massive depoting.

When I normally buy eyeshadow I look for three things; texture, colors and blendability.  The company who makes it doesn't really matter to me as long as it fulfills my top three requirements.  I have bought eyeshadow before for reputable companies who either had horrible selection in colors, bad texture (crumbled, creased and flaked easily) and did not blend well at all!  So here are my top six picks in eyeshadow palettes!!

NYX Love in Paris "A La Mode" Eyeshadow Palette - $10.00 USA

    

When I first saw this palette being used by a youtuber I knew I had to have it if I ever wanted to create a brown or black smokey eye effect.  I love this palette (literally) for its smokey eye colors.  It even come with a highlighter for the eyebrows!  These colors blend in so smoothly and are nicely pigmented.  It has little fall out or creaseability and for $10.00 is quite impressive and worth the money!

Urban Decay Naked 3 - $62.00 CDN

People rave about the Naked palettes and for good reason.  All the colors are highly pigmented, smooth and creamy to apply and have great wearability.  I love love the Naked 3 palette.  The colors are very rose tone in color and are great to use for all seasons and day/evening time hours.  They have a good mix of shimmer and matte colors.  I'll be honest, I love some shimmer in shadows so that it stands out a bit.  While I would prefer that my eyes not look like disco balls, nonetheless a little sparkle is always cute to wear in a sophisticate grown up type manner!

Too Faced Eyes Soft & Sexy Eye Shadow Collection - $45.00 CDN

When I first saw this palette I fell in love.  The colors on this palette are just phenomenal.  This palette literally looks like a piece of artwork for me and truly makes my eyes look like a master piece after applying.  The colors are beautiful with lovely hues of purples and very light pinks.  I wore this palette for a month straight before I decided to give it a rest before I ended up hitting pan on all shadows!  I would highly recommend this palette as you can wear it any time throughout the day due to it versatility. 

Chantiecalle Coral Reefs Palette - $79.00 USA

I saw this palette one day while searching youtube and was in awe of its beauty.  I really wanted to buy it till I saw the price tag! Eh...yea no.  However I did find it online on amazon.com for $40 bucks.  I was so excited to receive it at home!  I love the fact that it has two eyeshadows, a blush and a liner all in one.  It really is a big compact.  However you can use all of them as eyeshadow if you like.  It has a beautiful gold painted reef on the front of each shadow.  Sadly, once you start using the palette the gold reefs does rub off.  Nonetheless these colors are just beautiful and literally feel like butter (I kid you not) when you are using your brush to pick up the color and apply them over your eyes!

E.L.F. Studio Baked California Eyeshadow Palette - $10.00 USA 

This was the first palette I ever bought!  I was so taken by the colors and for the price I knew it was right.  While this palette does have a lot of fall out when you are trying to pick up the color, however once applied to your eyes, it looks beautiful and really gives your lids a lovely glow and look to the them.  I especially love the mica color (the dark silver on the lower left hand side) and how great it looks when applied with any of the brown colors!  Worth the buy from E.L.F.

Smashbox Photo Op Eyeshadow Limited Trio - $29.00 CDN

I recently went to the Toronto Premium Outlets in Brampton, ON and came upon a makeup store that was selling this eyeshadow in a kit.  I got a full size mascara with an eyeliner plus this trio eyeshadow for $29 dollars! Sold!!  I have to say I love these shadows.  I have been using them non-stop.  They literally leave such a soft glow on a face especially when using them during the day.  The three colors just work so well and look so beautiful when applied.  Even though its only three colors to play with, but so worth the buy.  I don't know if Smashbox is still selling them, however you can buy this at the outlet mall in Brampton!

Well there you have it, my top six palettes that I reach for often!

Keep Smiling!

Dayana

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Review of The Week! E.L.F. Studio HD Blush

E.L.F. Studio HD Blush- $3.00 US

Since I have been contouring and highlighting (C & H) lately, I decided to try creme blush to see how it differs for regular powder blush.  In case you didn't know, with C & H you can do all powders, all creme's or a mixture of both.  However there are rules on how to apply when mixing two different textures for C & H.  Nonetheless, I won't go over that here but I would recommend you youtube so you can see what I am talking about and you don't make a mess of your face.

I love E.L.F. products.  While all their products are not the greatest (which is typical of just about any makeup brand) nonetheless many of them are and the best part is that they are affordable.  However in order to buy E.L.F. in Canada you need to find a physical store or an online one that actually sells it. While E.L.F. does ship to Canada for a flat rate of almost $16.00 US dollar, it can seem a bit high.  But if you factor in just how inexpensive their products are, their shipping charge seems marginal. So I decided to go for it and ordered a haul of stuff. I will probably do a blog on that soon.

Part of my haul were these E.L.F. Studio HD Blushes.  Since I had never tried creme blush before I only ordered one and at 3 bucks a pop, I figured I couldn't go wrong.  I mean water at the movie theater cost more and that is only good for one go.  So I place my order online from their E.L.F. website and the package arrived to my house in a little under two weeks. I was so excited to try their creme blush that I was looking for an excuse to use it.  When I couldn't find one, I decided to go for the 'make myself up' look for lounging around the house. I bought this in the color 'Headliner'.  Its a pretty pink color with a slightly (very slightly) darkish tint to it.  However once you apply it, it looks like a natural pink.  Comparable to natural rosey cheeks!

I noticed a few things about this blush that I really liked right away.  First, it is very creamy.  It comes out smooth and glides across your face with easy.  I would first apply my Lorac bronzer to the hallows of my cheeks and then this creme blush to my cheek bone for my C & H, and then blend it in with my E.L.F. stippled brush. I applied this creme blush across my cheek bone, downwards, in a patting motion with my finger.  It didn't look streaky, cakey or like a stain.  It was easy to clean off your face in case you applied to much.  It looked natural and pretty.  Another thing I noticed about this blush is that it is true to color.  What you see in the bottle is what comes out of the bottle.  

You can apply it with your fingers or a makeup brush and it cleans off easily from both (fingers and brush). Nonetheless if you decide to apply it with a makeup brush, you need one that is able to work with creme products to blend it in your face.  You can always try to blend it in with your fingers, however that really doesn't give you a natural look and makes the process much harder.    

Though this product was really nice, there were a few things about this creme blush I didn't like.  First, it comes in a tiny bottle. I expected the bottle to be much bigger, however it was not. While I know it is only 3 dollars, but still if you use this every day, it might last you a month maybe two because of the small portion and excessive amount that comes out which brings me to my next point. If you fully push this pump down, so much comes out that if you were to apply it all, you would probably end up looking like a clown.  On my first go, so much came out that more then half was cleaned up with a baby wipe off my fingers.  When I went to apply it again for the second time on a totally different day, I realized that I could pump it half way or a quarter of the way.  So I did just that and the right amount of product came out on my finger tips.  However if you are heavy hand, then this product might not be right for you. 

I would recommend this creme blush for anyone starting out or for those who like creme blush in general.  However be warned, it is a very small bottle and if you don't control the pumping aspect, you will end up with more blush on your finger tips and face that you might just give Krusty the Clown a run for his money.  But if you are good at controlling your pumping action, then this product might just be right for you!

Keep smiling!

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Favorite Product of The Week! E.L.F. Stipple Brush

E.L.F. Stipple Brush- $3.00 US

I have never heard of a stippled brush until I saw it on Youtube!  I then realized that E.L.F. was selling one for three dollars and had some awesome reviews.  So I decided that I had to try it.

I currently own a beauty blender, kabuki brush and foundation brush for applying my foundation.  I have to admit, I mostly use my beauty blender due the the amazing coverage and flawless appearance it gives me.  However I wanted to try a stipple brush to see just how it worked.  It took about two weeks to arrive at my home from the E.L.F. store in NYC.  But as soon as it came, I went right to using it.  

At first glance, the brush has a good shape which allows you to hold it fairly easily.  The bristles are nice, soft and fairly long.  I decided I wanted to try it for blending in my contouring and highlighting (C& H) makeup.  I was first concerned because while the brush has some great qualities, I expected the head of the brush to have more bristles in it.  It looks more fuller in pictures then it did in person.  However when I started mixing and blending my C & H makeup, I noticed how nicely it did the job.  Everything blended in together greatly.  There were no lines left behind or streaks.  It worked well all over my face and left me with just the finish I wanted. 

The brush was very easy to clean.  I simply used baby shampoo with lukewarm water and wash it clean in the sink the night before.  I laid it down on a towel to dry and by the next morning it was ready to go again.  I expected some shedding, however I didn't notice any.  

I would recommend this brush for applying your foundation and for C & H. 

Keep Smiling!

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