Olive Green and the Power of Compliments

Years ago when I was an undergraduate at university, I walked into an afternoon tutorial on an average Wednesday rugged up in a big scarf and with my bag heaving with a new stack of library books. The lady running the tutorial at the time is a local author and she stopped speaking to compliment my makeup and ask me where I was heading after class! The quickest and most simple compliment (I was heading home to read after class!) stuck with me for all these years, and subsequently every time I wear olive green or khaki eyeshadow I'm reminded of that moment and it makes me smile. It also reminds me that if you think a nice thought while out and about, it's often worth saying something to the person, it could make their day! I often throw quick (genuine!) compliments if I see someone wearing something lovely and some may think me strange, but I'm happy to take the risk so that they have a chance at that lovely feeling that I had years ago. Here are some of my favourite olive toned shades that I love to wear (not including the MAC shade I was actually wearing for that tutorial, Mink & Sable!)

-MAC Cosmetics 'Grand Entrance' from the Intriguing Scarlet Warm Eyes Palette (MAC Passions of Red collection, 2008)

-Chanel Illusion D'Ombre '84 Epatant'

-Prestige Total Intensity shadow 'Bewitched'

-Inglot Eyeshadow Pearl '419'

-Lancôme Ombre Hypnose 'Erika F'

-Colourpop Super Shock Shadow 'Hammered'

-Rimmel Exaggerate Eye Crayon 'Urban Camouflage'

Swatches! MAC, Chanel, Prestige, Inglot, Rimmel, Colourpop, Lancome

Have you ever given someone you don't know well a compliment? Or have you been given one yourself?
Are you a fan of green shades like the ones I've shared today?
-Emma 

Dior Fairy Golds Eyeshadow Palette // Grand Bal Collection

Each time the holiday season rolls around, the luxe makeup brands whip up some pretty limited edition goodies that never fail to tempt me. I tend to hold back and spend all of my extra cash on all the kidlets in my life at this time of the year, but when I locked eyes with the new Dior Grand Bal collection, I knew it was made for me. The two quints were the most exciting aspect of the new CD stash in my eyes. I spent quite a while swatching and considering whether my love for the darker palette (Night Golds) would prevail, or my love for the lighter palette (Fairy Golds) would win my heart. Ultimately they were too similar to both come home to chez Emma, so Fairy Golds flew into my makeup drawers and has been getting a lot of love ever since.

 

 

I’ve found that the mix of shades in this palette can make the perfect transition from daytime look into a festive night look, but the shades are something I will definitely be wearing all year round. From the top left, the first shade is a pinky tinged champagne beige that reminds me of Urban Decay Sin, but is lighter. The shade is soft and buttery, and I’ve been wearing it all over the lid with a darker crease colour quite a bit lately. The second shade along is the glitterbomb of the palette, and is almost like a stack of gold leaf pressed down into a shadow. Applies better than I expected it to, and is a paler gold when compared to something like the gold within the Clarins Odyssey palette. The shade is closer to L’Oreal Infallible 027 Goldmine but less buttery, and more sparkly in an almost overlay sort of effect.

 

The darkest shade in the palette is a a deep chocolately brown with red undertones, brilliant pigmentation and one I will use often. I hardly have any red toned dark brown shades in my collection to compare with this, and I am really impressed with how a light touch can produce such a deep colour. The next shade along in the bottom left hand corner is what I call the taupe of the palette! A mauvey neutral shade, it reminds me of Urban Decay’s Sidecar, but when I swatched them side by side I saw that they are very different. Dior's is much lighter and Sidecar is much more brown in comparison. This shade is my favourite in the palette by far, and was the deciding factor in my palette choice.

 

 

The last and centre shade is a pink tinged white which is very glittery and somewhat chunky in the pan, but applies well and is pretty as an inner corner highlight for dramatic looks. I do wish they had’ve put a matte highlight shade in this palette, which was also noted by Christine of Temptalia, but I suppose you can't fit everything into a quint.

 

The shades are much more vibrant and pigmented in reality, they just blend so well into the skin!

 

Direct sunlight.

 

Indoor swatch, window lighting.

 

 

I find Fairy Golds to be very wearable and lovely quality, and seeing as it is my first Dior eyeshadow purchase I am very pleased with it. I’ve been calling it my ‘festive season palette’, as I can throw the shades on before a long shift at work and they last without creasing longer than any shadow I’ve used before.

Fairy Golds retails for $59 USD and $99 AUD and in Australia is available from Myer and David Jones.

Have you deemed some makeup your 'festive makeup'? Do you tend to wear similar looks now that it is the festive season, or are you one of those lucky ones who gets holidays at this this time of the year?

 

Jaunty- MAC Hey Sailor! collection

As soon as I saw the press release for MAC Hey Sailor! collection, the pretty packaging suckered me right in. I loved the promo image and I think the stripes are fun but also something pretty to sit in my makeup collection.

I was a good beauty blogger and only chose one thing from the collection, and didn't hesitate when making my choice.

Jaunty is a warm light-medium beige shade with a gorgeous frosty sheen to it, which makes it appear as a warm champagne to my eye.

As soon as I swatched Jaunty I knew that it would fill a void in my collection for another perfect 'all over the lid' eyes, and would sit with Urban Decay Sin as that kind of colour very well.

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I love the navy blue casing of the shadows in this collection, and have decided that I won't be depotting this one, despite it being harder to tote around that way.

The sheen on this is so lovely, and I found the colour payoff to be good, but not as buttery as Urban Decay shadows.

I love wearing this as a wash all over the lid, and either leaving it like that or popping a bit of Urban Decay Darkhorse into the crease. It works well with most other neutral shades, and I think a pop of bright along the lower lashline would work perfectly with Jaunty as well. I was so pleased to get this shadow 10% off at Myer with their recent sale!

Have you tried anything from the Hey Sailor! collection?

What are your favourite 'all over the lid' eyeshadows?

 

Le Musee de Chi Chi

Having spotted Chi Chi cosmetics around the blogosphere lately, I thought I might showcase a few palettes I purchased from them a while ago.

I adore the museum inspired designs, I think it's a really creative idea.

This natural eye palette contains 4 shades of very wearable colours in a flower-embossed pin wheel design, and comes housed in a box which makes it appear an antique.

Really appreciate little touches like embossing, especially on cheaper priced items like this.

You will notice that I only swatched three shades from the palette. That is because I am a dingus.  The neutral shades are all nice and soft and something I would definitely recommend for those who are just beginning their makeup collections. They seem easy to work with and look great paired together or as a simple wash of colour.

The palettes are encased in clear domed plastic containers which are a tiny bit bulky for my ridiculous stash, but this would probably not be an issue for those with a regular sized collection.

I think that having a few bright palettes in your arsenal is never a bad thing. I tend to create really bright looks quite a bit, but those who don't can still make use of these shadows as bright liners!

Love the floral design, and the mix of 7 colours within the palette.

Nice bright pops of colour, the swatches below are a little more indicative of the actual colour payoff.

The orange is so gorgeously pigmented, I love it. The purple (lower, next to pink petal) is woeful and I had to practically push my finger into the shade to get this swatch. One crap shade in a palette this price is no drama to me though, I am still a very happy chappy.

I found a range of these palettes for $5 AUD each at Target,and have seen them at quite a few stores recently so your chances of finding them are good if you're an interested Aussie.
I would recommend these to people who are looking to expand their eyeshadow collection on a budget, as they also have a smoky eye palette in a moon design palette, among others.

Have you tried any of these palettes?
What do you think of the design? And the price?
What Chi Chi products do you think I should try next?

Shiro Cosmetics- Master Sword

This beauty blogging business has opened my eyes to the world of indie cosmetics. I am the kind of person to always buy from the local businesses, as my Dad always taught me to help out those who need a boost. Rather than always shelling out bucks to bigger businesses like Starbucks or MAC, I like to get my kick from small coffee shops on corner stores or online only cosmetic companies. Shiro Cosmetics is an easy company to give my money to!

This image courtesy of Shiro Cosmetics, was not taken by me

I bought a stack of samples from Shiro a while ago and never got around to showing you the haul. One of my favourite shades from the bunch was Master Sword, and I wore it a while ago and took some shots.

Master Sword is described by Shiro as a

'Super-glittery pale taupe - a blend of silver and gold, with bright silver sparks. Lip-safe!'

This is quite a cool-toned taupe, and I thought I would show you it in comparison to the more golden S.S. Anne which is my very favourite from Shiro (so far)

I just threw a wash of Master Sword over the lid and did a rushed mascara application. I recommend applying Shiro eye shadows over primers/bases as I feel they need something to grip to in order to last without creasing. This doesn't faze me at all as I use a base every day, it's my auto pilot mode. 

A shimmery, satin sort of finish for this shadow. I love shades that can be worn by themselves but still look really nice, and this really does. It looks even nicer in real life than in these images.

Master Sword adds a nice subtle light to the eye, and topped with mascara is easy as pie.

I really liked the sample shadows I purchased from Shiro, they are only $1.00 and full size retails for $5.00. I chose a whole stack of samples and my shipping only came to $1.75! You can buy Master Sword (from the Legends Collection) here, and see what else Shiro has to offer here.

Have you purchased from Shiro Cosmetics before?

What indie makeup companies do you recommend I try next?

Love Talk

I've been wearing green eyeshadows quite a bit lately, and Essence's Love Talk is one of my more recent aquisitions. I love the ultra metallic muted green shade, and think it would look wonderful smoked up. It reminds me of the Chanel Illusion D'Ombre in Epatant, but when I place them beside one another they are quite different.

I adore the designs of Essence products, as I've stated in many of my other brand raves I can't believe the little touches they include despite being at a low price point. This shadow is silky to the touch and quite easily blendable.

It comes in a clear plastic domed contained which doesn't sit too high (so will still fit in thin bags without taking up too much room) and has a sturdy and secure closure. I've thrown this about a ton and it's in great condition still, which is a testament to Essence's packaging as well as their product.

Metallic goodness in a single swatch.

Dopey half eye really shows off the colour, ha

Next time I wouldn't use this mascara, would have tamed my brows, and would choose a lighter colour to blend out Love Talk. But seriously, how pretty is it! This is just over MAC's Painterly paint pot and blended out with another colour- primarily it's just a sweep of Love Talk, though.

I've included a picture of Love Talk next to NYX Algae and MAC Mink&Sable to give a little bit of context.

Essence Mono Eyeshadows retails for a tiny $3.25AUD and are available Australia wide at Target stores. For more information, click here

What green shadow should I add to my collection next?
And what should I pair Love Talk with next time I wear it?