Smashbox - In Bloom Eyeshadow Palette

What a lovely, lovely palette. I know, I should have reviewed this months ago, and I'm not sure whether you can still get this palette, but if you can, definitely consider buying it. It has a great mix of neutrals and fun colours, and it's perfect for those of us (like myself) who like neutral shadows, but also like something a little different, without that "different" having to mean "bright blue"!

The beautiful box it came in.

The palette itself is very simple and stylish, completely black.

The ten shades and the eyeshadow brush which came with the palette - yes, the brush can actually be used. All of the shadows are very nice, some are matte, others are shimmery. You get a nice highlight, nice brown shades, and a great crease colour - my favourites include Iris Blue (the blue-grey shadow in the lower rack, second from the left) and Warm Taupe (upper rack, the second from the right). Iris Blue is the perfect colour for deepening your crease and outer corners, while Warm Taupe is this gorgeous mossy-green-goldish shade. So pretty.

The brush, which is dense and flat enough for layering on lid colours, but also fluffy enough for crease colours and blending.

Swatches, same order as in the palette itself. As you can see, the lighter ones are on the top, and the darker, more pigmented ones are on the bottom. The palette is actually organized in a duo-sort of way - the duos go in a vertical way. That being said, I also think that they play beautifully together diagonally... or just any way you like.

Same swatches, but here you can see the shimmer better (enlarge the picture). The left row is the upper rack in the palette, the right one is the lower one.

Again, sorry for posting this so late! I hope you can still get this though, it was released with Smashbox's spring collection.

Love,

Miss Diorista

Benefit - Big Beautiful Eyes

Big Beautiful Eyes is a palette by Benefit Cosmetics, which contains the following products:

• Boi-ing concealer in nr.2
• A very light pink, shimmery eyeshadow
• A shimmery, light brown eyeshadow
• A matte, dark brown eyeshadow
• A concealer brush
• A double-ended brush with one end for shadow, the other for liner

Below you can see the three shadows. I use the lightest shade all over my lid, the middle one in my crease, and the darkest one I use wet as a liner, or dry as an extra emphasis for my crease. That way, you can take this palette from day to night, by adjusting the amount of liner and crease drama, so to speak.

Note, though, that even if you use the darkest colour wet, it won't be very dramatic as a liner.

The shadows are all very smooth and almost feel buttery - I haven't experienced any fallout with the shimmery shades, but just a tiny bit (next to none) from the matte one. The colours in the picture are very true to life.

Swatches, L-R: On top is Boi-ing concealer in nr.2. On the bottom are the shadows, lightest, middle, darkest. As you can see, the lightest colour is very light, and the middle colour has a bit of a pink undertone to it, which I don't really like. It is subtle, though.

You can also see that the concealer is way too dark for me, which means that it is as good as useless for me. I do sometimes use it as a base under the shadows, but since it is not meant to be an e/s primer, it doesn't prevent creasing.

The brushes are better quality than I had expected, but they are still not great.

• The shadow brush ("contour") is very strangely cut, it is completely flat on top. I use it for placing the lightest colour on the lid, as well as sweeping the middle colour in my crease.
• The eyeliner brush ("liner") feels cheap to me, and it isn't completely straight, which it is supposed to be. It can be used, though.
• The concealer brush ("concealer") feels way to stiff... but then again, I am not a fan of these traditional concealer brushes. I don't use this one, since it is also too stiff for placing shadow on the lid.

So to sum things up, then this is a nice little palette with good-quality eyeshadows and usable brushes, if you like natural looks, and definitely good for travelling. However, if you are fair (like me) or dark, you won't be able to use the concealer, which is a big downside, since you will pay for more than you will use.

And does it make my eyes look bigger? Well, I think so, yes :)

Product (65%) - 8/10 (love the shadows, but I can't use the concealer)

Value (10%) - 8/10

Would I repurchase? (15%) - 8/10

Packaging (10%) - 9/10 (very cute, feels sturdy and it is made from paper, which makes it lighter and better for travelling)

Overall - 8/10

 

Love, Miss Diorista

Bobbi Brown - Denim and Rose Palette

I'm kind of late with this, aren't I? Well, I do have an excuse. I just got it about a week ago (it does have its benefits living here, because LE makeup doesn't sell out really quickly!) and I wanted to give it a bit of a try before reviewing it. So sorry for how late this is coming, but please enjoy!

This is what the palette looks like on the inside. You have one blush, four eyeshadows, two lipsticks and two lipglosses. It has a mirror of nice quality.

Here you can see the palette when it is closed. It is a really neat design, the denim is real and the zipper is pretty nice, too. Also, this is small enough to be taken on a trip, or to throw in your purse. Bonus: It won't open when it's not supposed to open, because of the zipper!

Now on to swatches and product reviews!

First up is the dark eyeshadow, which looks blue in the pan, but comes out black with blue glitter. Hum. Kind of disappointing. However, I do like it for some reason. Really pigmented, though slightly patchy sometimes.

Next to the dark one is the pink, granite, glittery one. It is really beautiful, though there is quite a bit of fallouts to it. Can be layered over other colours for some 'bling'!

Yep, that strange swatch there is the grey one. It gave me a really hard time when I was swatching, and is really, really patchy. However, it is a true grey and is good for some basic shading. Not very pigmented, as you can probably see.

I tried to swatch the lightest e/s, and it is there. It just doesn't show up on my very fair skin... so just know that it is a very light colour. I can use it for highlights, though, and for matting out my eyelids when not using any e/s.

Finally, you should be able to see the blush below the e/s swatches. Sorry how faint the swatch is, no matter how much I piled on there, it wouldn't show up any better than this! But that put aside, the blush is my favourite from this palette. It is a matte blush, but still gives me such a beautiful... glow. Really. And I'm not even a real fan of matte blushes! I would definetely buy this one if it was to be released as a single.

On those two pictures, you see the lip products. They are all very nice, stay on for a decent amount of time, and are rather pigmented.

First, you should see the icy gloss on the bottom. It can be worn alone, though I prefer it over lipstick.

Above that is the lighter lipstick, which feels more like tinted lipbalm to me. Not a very pigmented lippie, but the colour is pretty and a bit shimmery.

See that pink lipgloss? I love it. Just have to say it. I love it. It is a perfect pink, not too bright, but still adds a bit of pop to things!

The top swatch is my favourite lip product from the palette, though. It is a lipstick (the darker one from the palette) and it is just so beautiful. Really the perfect fall colour.

O, and yes. The glosses are slightly sticky. Nothing which bothers me, though.

Another picture, to kind of show you the colours a bit better.

So, what do I think overall? Well, if you like the colours, then this is a pretty good travel palette. Despite being patchy and having fallouts, the eyeshadows are rather good, and you can do beautiful day and night looks with them. The blush is gorgeous, and the lip products have something for everyone, I think. So if you can still find this one anywhere, I would recommend that you go get it!

Yours,

Miss Diorista.