Shaaanxo x ColourPop - review and swatches

About a month or so a go, I placed an order with ColourPop. I was extremely interested in trying out their eyeshadows, but now I want to place an order to try out their blushes and highlighters (I've been on a real highlight kick lately). I ordered two quads - the Shaaanxo and Kathleenlights quad. Each quad was $20US, and shipping was $18.91US - with the exchange rate, the two quads plus shipping cost $78.13AUD. Shipping took about a week and half to get to me, which is pretty average for shipping from America to Australia. 

The quad comes with four cream eyeshadows - XO, Selfie, Rebel and Deluxe. Each shadow contains 2.1 grams.

(L to R: XO, Selfie, Deluxe, Rebel)

XO is described at a light champagne with a pearlised finish. Selfie is a mid-tone peach brown with a matte finish. Deluxe is a warm red bronze with a pearled finish, and Rebel is mid-tone khaki green with a matte finish.

The pearlised eyeshadows are absolutely gorgeous. XO is a gorgeous all over lid colour for everyday, and I find these shadows last a good 6-8 hours with minimal fading. The only issue I have with these shadows is because they are best applied with fingers, it can be hard to apply these shadows (especially Selfie) as crease colours. I like applying a crease with powder eyeshadow before applying these shadows to the lid. The inclusion of Rebel, a khaki green, really breaks up this quad and makes it quite unique, and is a good shade for the winter months, whereas I find Selfie are great shadows for the spring and summer months.

The texture of these shadows is not quite like a conventional cream shadow, but more of a mouse texture. You can use these shadows alone or as a base. I don't find I need to apply a base (eyeshadow primer or Paint Pot), and these last great on the lid. Deluxe is a great base, much like the Maybelline Colour Tattoo in Bad to the Bronze.

I would suggest anyone who is an eyeshadow fan to check these out. Normal single shadows retail for $5US, so they are a bargain. The only problem at the moment is the current exchange rate, but I do see myself purchasing more of these shadows.

Thanks for reading,
X

Sigma Spa Brush Cleaning Mat - does this thing really work?

A few years ago, Sigma released the spa glove. I was never really interested in it as I thought it was kind of gimmicky. However, a beautiful friend of mine purchased this product for me a couple of months ago, and I have been testing it out since.

Sigma describes the Sigma Spa Brush Cleaning Mat as "an innovative device, featuring 7 exclusive textures to wash both eye and face brushes. The mat includes suction cups on the backside for secure placement on flat surfaces. Uniquely designed to fit most sinks". The mat promises time-saving results.

There are seven sections to the mat. The left 3 sides are for eye brushes, and the right 3 sides are for face brushes. Each side has a Wash (face or eyes), Refine Plus (face or eyes) and Rinse (face or eyes). There is also a Refine texture in the middle bottom of the mat, that can be used for both face and eye brushes. The general idea is to scrub in the wash section, rinse, then the refine section, rinse, refine plus, and rinse again.  

The mat has suction caps which means it sticks to the sink and doesn't move. This is a very handy feature.

My thoughts?
This mat is absolutely wonderful to use on brushes where you use liquid/cream products that dry and stick to the bristles of the brush. With just a bit of cleanser (I use baby shampoo) and a five second scrub on the area for the brush, brushes are very much so deep cleaned. For brushes I use with powder, the time it takes to wash the brushes isn't all too different from the method I used before, but I really recommend this for the fact that it is so quick at deep cleansing brushes that you would use for liquid or cream.

This mat retails for $32US, and I think it is completely worth the price. I would definitely recommend this for anyone who dreads washing their brushes.

Thanks for reading,
x

Too Faced Soul Mates Blushing Bronzer in Ross & Rachel - review and swatches

I've really been on a Too Faced kick lately. I don't know what it is, but I need to own every Too Faced product! (I will have a review of the original Chocolate Bar Palette soon, I promise!).  Too Faced explains this product as follows:

Bronzer and Blush: the power couple of beauty. A duo made in heaven to add warmth, contour and a pop of colour for the radiant look of true love. Soul Mates Blushing Bronzer combines a shimmering, sun-kissed bronze and a brightening pop of blush that can be used separately or blended together for a healthy, beautiful flush.

The Soul Mates Blushing Bronzer comes in two shades - Carrie & Big, which is a light to medium bronzer with pop of coral blush, and Ross & Rachel, a medium to deep bronzer with pop of pink blush.

(L to R: bronzer, blush, mix of the two)

As you can see from the swatches above, blending the two shades together doesn't change the colour all too much at all. This is a gorgeous bronzer, but unfortunately in Australia we are entering into winter and this probably won't get much use until later in the year. The shimmer in the bronzer is absolutely gorgeous. 

You can of course use the blush by itself, but the only downside is the size of the blush portion. It is relatively hard to get a blush brush just to swirl around in the blush section, but I do look at this duo as more of a bronzer than a blush and bronzer duo. 

Part of me did by this because of the name of the product (huge Friends fan, right here), but it is a gorgeous product and gorgeous packaging (hello - it's in a heart shaped compact!). I can see this bronzer being a staple in the spring & summer months!

Thanks for reading,
x