Monday 31 December 2012

Review: Models Prefer Eyeshadow in Bronzed Belle Duo


I got this eyeshadow as a freebie when i purchased the Primer from Models Prefer so i really had no idea what i was getting into with this; was it going to be a terrible chalk fest or a reasonable eyeshadow?

Overall after having used this a few times the pigmentation is really quite awesome, especially if you use your finger for application, the colors work quite well together as it;s basically a highlighting shade paired with a darker shade for contouring and both colors are quite pretty and fairly neutral.


I would say this eyeshadow is decent and  as i said the pigmentation is impressible, when applied dry it does have a few transferability issues but applied wet or with a good eye primer i don't have the same issues. For $12.99 you can probably do better but you can certainly do worse.

What do you think of  the Models Prefer stuff?

P.S. Have a Happy New Year!


Sunday 30 December 2012

Review: NARS Deep Throat


So I'm not sure why i never reviewed this after i initially got it, especially since it has been my everyday blush since August. I think i just felt like it was so overdone, but now that i think about it another opinion is probably never a bad think if your trying to decide if this is for you or not. Or maybe you don't visit a lot of beauty blog and this is your first intro to lovely NARS blushes (hoora!).



Firstly, as i have said before i got this for my birthday because i was initially quite intimidated by the shimmer bomb that Orgasm was. Deep Throat is very similar in color to Orgasm but i think it leans a little more to peach then pink and has more shimmer then actually shine/glitter. Once again the color is probably dupe-able but not the quality, the blush is very finely milled and just glides onto your cheeks. It's a warm but ery wearable shade, as evident that i have worn if almost everyday since August.


It applies in a very lovely fashion, no rubbing and no patches, it's just very soft almost approaching a creamy consistency and lasts for hours. Can't go wrong with this one.

Friday 28 December 2012

Review: FoA Mineral Therapy Illuminator (Angel Fire)


So previously we looked at NARS well known Orgasm blush, and since it's expensive i previously spent some time looking for alternatives and this is probably the best i found and even now that i own the NARS version i will continue to use this one as well since as i quite like the texture and the color pay off is very nice.

This is the Face of Australia Mineral Therapy Illuminator in the shade Angel Fire, there is also a regular white Illuminator, a slightly more orange variation and a bronzer as well in the range. I'm not always great with Illuminators on their own so i primarily bought this to use as a blush and it works very well lasting about 5-6 hours longer if you put a little powder on top.



I have to say this is a very impressive product, if just for the size and color; 50ml of product for $14.95. Being an illuminator or blush that amount will last you for years, possible your grandchildren will be inheriting this product. The color pay off is wonderful, you can blend it away as much as you like for a subtle look or a bit less so for a very amped up golden peach glow.



Suprised i havent seen this before to be honest, just sort of randomly came across it at Priceline, though i do not recall seeing them earlier so i don't know if they are brand new (i suspect not) or just making a come back but very much worth a look if your looking for something interesting to add to your make up pile :)


Wednesday 26 December 2012

Monday 17 December 2012

Review: Essence Grumpy Prince Charming


So with Christmas (read: Christmas Shoppers) everywhere it's been difficult to get my hands on all the polishes i wanted from the Snow White Essence collection, in the end i have ended up getting all but one that i want (02 The Huntsmen, the shiny gold topper).

I'm not too surprised to see that one gone all over the place as it's so very Christmas-sy. But so is this combination that i wanted; this is Essence Snow White 03 Prince Charming over 02 Grumpy.

02 Grumpy has a nice texture leaning slightly toward the thin side, it required the standard two coats; the first was a little watery and dull but the second really made the color pop. It's a really beautiful blue, almost reminds me of Revlon Royal just without the jelly finish.

03 Prince Charming is a gorgeous top coats; holographic glitters with small blue hexagonal glitter suspended in a clear base. Really Gorgeous i hope everyone can get their hands on it. I had no trouble applying this and it didn't require a lot of effort to get the blue hexagons out of the bottle. 2 Coats of this too.

What's are your favorite holiday nailpolishes?



Wednesday 12 December 2012

Review: Manic Panic in Hot Pink


As school is now over, I'm not sure how much longer it will be viable for me to stay as a pink headed girl but i figured id do a little review of the product i started using after Crazy Colors run out (that's what the salon gave me). I picked up this one as it didn't seem very complicated and seemed quite popular in the UK for hair coloring in crazy shades. Plus the color was a perfect match for what was on my head.



The product is quite watery and not very tacky so you do have to be careful with it, or else your entire bathroom will end up with hot pink stains. Trust me.

It's not very difficult to use however if you can be careful, use gloves, cover nearby surfaces and use a hair paint brush to apply to the product. As the pink is only on the front of my hair i used 4 foils to cover it up once it was slathered in the product; then heated it for maybe 10 minutes under a regular hairdryer to intensify the color then leave for an hour or more if it's not bothering you. The product is vegan so it's doesn't really smell like hair dye and doesn't seem to cause me any irritation.

The only issue i have is about three days after doing this my scalps gets very dry and i need to use a anti-dandruff shampoo to fix the issue.



Before (on foils)


After

The product lasts (brightly) for about two washes but then becomes more of a pastel shade and every time you wash it it will cause a flood of pink in your shower. This is on fact one reason I'm considering getting rid of the pink, much as i love it, half my life is stained pink now; my towels, my nails, my pillowcases and my shower walls. It's a lot to deal with for maybe a week of bright pink hair.

The product works but it's very temporary, its easy but it causes massive staining. (This is also a very easy and messy way to make a gradient nail polish effect, happened to me several times when i couldn't find my gloves when applying this).

Do you have any hair dye nightmares?






Monday 10 December 2012

Review: Models Prefer Mattifying Primer


I recently started running low on my first primer i ever got; the Burjois Flower Silicone Primer so i decided to go looking for something similar but maybe with a tad more usability; the Burjois primer is in a tub and you have to dig it out with your fingers; not great. I loved the use of silicon in the primer however; it gave the most wonderful silky smooth feeling and meant that my foundation could just glide on.

The reason i choose to test out the Models Prefer brand primer is for several reasons; the brand has been showing up more and more as i read through various blogs so i was interested.  I also liked the idea of a mattifying primer as i hate to look shiny, just very unappealing to me. Thirdly, Models Prefer was at the time doing a gift if you spend i think over $20 or $25 so a nice way to try out the brand. (I picked up this and a eyebrow pencil to get a free eyeshadow duo)


The primer is a clear gel consistency and goes on incredibly smooth, one pump is usually enough to suffice as it spreads out a lot when you massage it in. It does a pretty decent job in terms of mattifying your complexion but i found that i could use a touch up maybe 6 hours in but for me that's not a huge problem.

I found this quite impressive for the price, it obviously decreased shine, helped reduce pore appearance and make my make up go on super easy and clearly made it last longer. I was happily surprised. The only down side i guess is that the bottle is a little small but price wise i think it probably makes sense. Also, i love the fact it's silicone based but i know this is a problem for some people so be aware of that.

I think for the coming heat of the summer or those going to the beach for the holidays this would be a great primer to help keep the shine down, it makes your makeup stay on surprisingly well and doesn't have a waxy effect I've noticed in some other primers. Perhaps not the greatest primer in the world but by far not the worst, and for only $12.95 (Priceline) it's certainly worth a try if your looking for something like this.

What's your favorite primer?


Saturday 8 December 2012

Essence Color Arts Edition Preview + Mini Review


Well i admit I'm a little late with this one, it's been out about two weeks now but it just didn't get me that excited, so i decided to try some out anyway and here is my preview of this unique collections and some thoughts about how it actually functions.


The color/colour arts edition is a sort of "make your own" edition; it relies on these released pigments (word is there will likely be more coming out in the core collection, not sure if it will be in Australia) . You can use the pigments on their own or mix them however you please with one of the three bases the collection provides;


These are the Nail Base; for mixing up your own nail polish, a lip base for making your own lipstick/gloss, and a eyebase (the most useful of these i have found) for eyeshadows. Here's a little video essence released about how they think their color pigments can me used;


mini-REVIEW

I'm not really the best at using pigments; they tale a lot of extra work and make much more of a mess and honestly most of the time i can't really be bothered. Still, for science, i picked up the two most neutral pigments i could find so i was more likely to use them; smell the Carmel and Strawberry smoothie, and each of the three bases.


I have since getting these tried each of them with the provided bases and....well sadly besides the eye base acting as a wicked primer in terms of longevity there wasn't much there to boast about.

Nail Polish Base; this isn't a suspension base so you can't mix right in the bottle and make your own polish. Instead you have to mix it in a separate container and basically only make enough for one go as i have no idea how you would go about storing it.  

This is crazy messy, and the nail polish base dries very quickly so you almost have to do one nail at a time meaning you don't get the same color every time so each nail looks like a different shade of whatever color you were going for (assuming you mix them, which is kinda the point). In addition to this, no matter how long i spent mixing the nail polish still came out in different consistency; super thin or super clumpy. 

Nail polish is already a bother waiting for it to dry and not stain anything. Adding these extra steps just makes it not worth bothering with in my opinion. I didn't take photos because it was just too much of a disaster.

Lip Base; this is somewhat better, it's still a bit of work but the pigment seems to dissolve better and the end effects is more like a lipstick tattoo then a gloss. It's not sitting on top of your lip, it's closer to a stain in the regard that is actually colors the skin underneath it. It is very sticky though, however the base itself smells very fruity and sweet but you don't notice it much once it's mixed up. I think id prefer a lipstick or regular gloss.

Smell the Carmel and Strawberry Smoothie mixed together with the lip base.


Eyeshadow Base; This i actually like, it's a great primer; it keeps your eyeshadow on for ages and does a decent job of blending th pigments but i would use this more just as a primer rather then a blending base. It's clear and has a slightly tacky feel to it but it grips onto eyeshadow like no ones business.

Overall not the greatest edition, more like a play set to play around with. Way too much trouble to bother with for anyones regular make up routine but might prove fun for dress up or parties and the like.

Have you tried these? What's you opinion? Too much work or worth the extra effort?


Friday 7 December 2012

Essence Snow White Trend Edition Preview


Coming out this week is  the new Essence "Snow White" collection, based it appears on the Disney version of the classic rather then the two movies that came out this year (Mirror Mirror and Snow White and the Huntsmen) but it's certainly "on trend".

This is primarily a nail polish edition and the only non nail polish things seem to be the nail stickers and nail file. So let's take a better look at the colors;


Snow White is the tall red with the other seven polishes named after dwarves; it's a super cute idea and so very simple yet creative, i love it. I feel like i have most of these colors however Grumpy, Bashful, Sleepy and Sneezy  do catch my interest somewhat so I'll take a look when i find them in store and decide then.

Available in 01 Evil Queen, 02 The Huntsmen and 03 Prince Charming these special top coats are a mix of holo, hex and round glitters and look like they could work very nicely. I'd like to try Prince Charming over Grumpy.

Second last is the the nail file, looks pretty enough for a plain cardboard file but it makes a cute addition to any collection so i guess it might be fun but i don't think i really need this, i much perfer crystal nail files. Currently my OPI file is the best I've ever used.

These certainly won';t be for everyone, there's a very specific group that can walk around with dwarf stickers on their nails; those still at school or without long term work. But heck, they look kinda fun and the butterflies are a draw fr me, though I'm not sure what the green things are, grass? Not sure i want to wear tufts of grass on my nails.

A nice collection but probably no must haves here, still some of the colors seem unique and the collection looks super cute. What part of this collection do you like?

Saturday 1 December 2012

Christmas Wish List



So it's December today :) Which for a lot of people means Christmas. So i thought id start of the celebration early by thinking about some of the things i wouldn't mind seeing under the tree this year. It's always nice to think about what you might like, even if just end up buying it yourself in the boxing day sales!


So here is the list i came up with, in no particular order;  1. Soft Kitty Jumper of Big Bang Theory Fame from Think Geek, 2. NARS Orgasm Blush, 3. Real Techniques Starter Kit Brushes, 4. OPI Skyfall Nail polishes (specifically Skyfall, Live and Let Die, Goldeneye, On Her Majesty's
 Secret Service,The Spy Who Loved Me,and  Die Another Day) 5. Lufthansa Graphic Design (i like graphic design and planes) 6. Marc Jacobs Dot perfume annnnnd 7. Fox Plushie from Etsy.


How cute is that fox right? What's your most lusted for item this year?


Friday 30 November 2012

Review: Shellac Nails

So i had a few events going on this past week and next week (graduation and early Christmas parties)  and my nails had been looking fairly ragged lately; for whatever reason my nails don't like to bend when they have nail polish on them so they tend to snap underneath the polish.  I really did not want to deal with it, so when mum suggested we go get our nails done i figured why not. I'd really never had an proper manicure done or anything else like that so it seemed like a fun thin to try, and maybe give me a break from my nails for a bit.

So i ended up getting a manicure and shellac nails; Shellac is for the most part a acrylic gel polish that is painted straight onto the nail and dries hard like a fake nail under UV lamps. Proper Shellac nails can only be done at a Salon as CMD only licenses the products to Salon and not for individual sale.

It was quite a fun experience; it took about 30-45 minutes (including the manicure) and consisted of two oats of polish, top coat and cuticle oil at the end. Between each set you put your hand under the UV lamps for about 5-8 minutes. There wasn't a huge color choice (about 30 colors) but i went with a shimmery blue called Midnight Swim.

Midnight Swim


As you can see the finish is very shiny, and the texture feels like gel nails but can feel a little wavy on some of my nails, not sure if this is the skill of the nail tech or simply a side effect of the product. It's pretty damn durable and is supposed to last two weeks without issues and i know some people even stretch it out to a month or so before regrowth shows up to ruin it too badly.

I don't think i would do this every month but it's quite good if you need a break from your nails or are having a hectic schedule. The best part is definitely the fact that the moment you leave the salon your nails are rock hard and you don't have to have any worries about smudges or touching anything.

To remove it you either go back to the salon or use acetone based remover like you would on glitter nails; acetone soaked cotton balls wrapped in foil and leave for 5 -10 minutes.

Overall I'm pretty happy but i think i like changing nail polishes too much to stick with a single color for two weeks unless i have a lot of other stuff on my mind. Have you tried it? What did you think?


Thursday 29 November 2012

Revlon Lip Balms Stains finally arrive in Australia


Finally, these have finally made their way down to our shores. (Previous review here) so to celebrate this i thought i would do a second review on a few more colors i picked up, also Priceline is currently doing a 2 for 1 deal on all Revlon products so hopefully this might help some people out who might be sitting on the fence about the price (17.95 each).

So in addition to the fairly neutral Honey and the two dark pinks i picked up earlier i decided to get something in the more red range as I've been interested in trying to wear more red lip "stuff". In this vein i initially picked up Romantic (with my priceline munny voucher yay) and really really liked how wearable it was as a red shade, just slightly on the orange spectrum it really just shows up as a true red when the color wears and is replaced by the stain.

Since i saw that there was the 2 for 1 deal i was very tempted by the other red shade "Adore" but wasn't too sure what other one to pick up. However the lovley swatches over at "sleep and water" convinced me that Precious was the obvious choice, and i am not sorry.

Romantic | Adore | Precious

I'm totally in love with Precious so I've neglected Adore a little bit, but its basically a deeper more purple tinted red. These ones also don't seem to be as drying as i initially found Honey to be, i think in the end it was my lips bad condition that was causing the issue not the balm itself. So these are really winning me over now, they are so easy to use and carry around. I keep Honey in my pencil case at school :)

So if you haven't tried these yet, now is a great time to find out.

BTW on a more personal note i graduated today so there should be more regular posts from this week on :)




Tuesday 20 November 2012

Purple Shiny Mani


Hello just a quickie today; this is the mani I've been sporting all week and it's only now just starting to fall apart. This is NFU 51 over A England Avalon and i must say it's quite a gorgeous combination.

More specifically this is 2 coats of Avalon (first coat is a little thin) and 2 coats of NFU, one would probably have been fine too but i was going for something a little more bang. I never really thought i would get my hands on any of the NFU stuff till i saw Crush cosmetics ships them now and i was sold. Out of the entire range i think this is the most beloved and i think it's clear why.

I've tried it over Revlon Royal and it's also pretty awesome, kind of like a super ramped up version of mystic fire, just with flakes rather then glitter but same sort of color pay off. 

I'm also very pleased with Avalon, in  fact the entire A-England range i got has treated me very well, not sure if I'm as interested in their new stuff though, it's all very very dark, but their re-release of holy grail might just be the clincher.

In other news i'm almost done with my school stuff, so regular posts should be back soon :)

Friday 16 November 2012

My Makeup Storage

I always enjoy seeing how other people deal with storing/handling their makeup stash, therefore since i have recently reached what i feel might be the zenith of what one of my drawers can hold it seemed like a good time to share.

My makeup used to fit into my side of the bathroom cabinet but shortly before i started blogging my collection was...overflowing into my boyfriends side of things, so after doing a bit of research i picked up a clear plastic set of drawers from Officeworks, i believe it cost around $20 and also came in white.



So the first drawer contains my eyeshadows and blushes. The ones visible here are;

Maybeline Eye Tattoos (5) | Essence Cream Eyeshadows (2) | Essence Powder Eyeshadows (4) |
Essence Cream Blushes (2) | Burjois Blushes (2) | Essence Powder Blushes (1) | NARS blush (1) | BD Blush (1) | Revlon Eyeshadow Set (1) | Prestige Eyeshadow Set (2) | Chi Chi Eyeshadow Pigments (1)

There is also a Australis red eyeshadows set underneath the Revlon. 


Second drawer is for all things lipsticks, lipgloss, lipliner, eyeliners, mascaras and those sorts of things. The lipsticks that live here are ones that are currently out of my main rotation or are too dark or too something for everyday wear. Here is what we can see;

Korres concealer pen (1) | Face of Australia lip crayons (2) | Revlon just Bitten Kissable Lip Balms (3) | NYX Lip Creams (2) | Essence Lip Creams (2) | Essence Lip Gloss (2) | Essence Lipstick (1) |Revlon Lipstick (1) | Sportsgirl Lipstick (1) | Wet n Wild Lipstick (1) | Revlon Lipbutters (2) | Avon Lipstick (1) | Revlon Mascara (1) | Essence Mascrara (1) | Burjois Mascara (1) | Essence Eyeshadow Primer (1)| Maybeline Mascara (1) | Essence Eyeliners (2) | Essence Lipliner (3) |Lipsmacker Gloss (2)


Drawer 3 is th one that I'm looking to change up, my house and bathroom is quite tiny so I've been trying to think up a better way to store these. For now however my brushes and random nick-nacks live here.

Here we have

Real Techniques Blush Brush (1) | Eco Tools Brushes (6) | Chi Chi Brushes (2) | Random Unknown Brushes (4) | Burjois Puff (1) Essence Eyebrow kit (1) | Essence Gel Eyeliner (1) | Korres Eyeshadow (1) | Essence eyebrow brush (1) | Ecotools Brush Travel bag (1)


Lastly we have th Foundation and Powder drawer that also takes whatever is too weird a size for the other drawers.

Lush Emotional Brilliance Collection (8) | Chi Chi Translucent Powder (1) | Essence Concealer (1) | Burjois concealer (1) | Physician's Formula Face Powder (3) | Chi Chi Kabuki Brush (1) | Foundation Sponge (1) | Revlon Powder (1) | Garnier BB Cream (2) | Covergirl Blush (1) |Burjois Flower Foundation (1) | Watsons BB Cream (1) | Essence Eyeshadow Set (1) | Essence Eyeshadow pigments (2) | Burjois Primer (1) | BD Primer (1)


Annnnnnd..... last but not least is my main lipstick stand and my lip balms next to the case. The one i currently use the most; Lancome Rose Defile, Revlon Soft Rose, Lipstick Queen Medieval, NYX Saturn and Tea rose, Mac Creme de la Femme, Rimmel 21, and two random Revlon colors in caramel and plum.

The lip balms sitting there are Haus if Gloi Spun Sugar and Korres Quince and Wild Rose.

So that's most of my stuff, there are other bits and pieces that float around the house, lip balms especially and a few other favorites in my purse/makeup bag. S

o if you see anything you wanna know more about drop a comment, or if you have another cool storage post/video i would love to see it!



Wednesday 14 November 2012

Review: Essence A Piece of Forever


This little pretty is A Piece of Forever from the new Breaking Dawn 2 trend edition from Essence (reviewed here). From all the polishes in the collection this is probably the one i was both most excited about and most concerned about; metallic nail polishes that aren't glitter or foil are well known to be....finicky. They commonly have a very thin formula and leave brush/streak marks.


As you can see i didn't have much to worry about. The formula was pretty damn good for a metallic finishes, a little thin but not exceedingly so; the photo above is 3 coats but 2 would probably have been enough. 

The streak marks are probably the least visible of any metallic I've ever tried. It's a very soft color that's quite reflective, it catches even small bits of light and looks quite glow-y. I think this is a gorgeous color and i think it's so soft you could even get away with it at work. 



Monday 12 November 2012

Review: Watsons BB Collagen Cream


Today, something a little different. This is Watson's Collagen BB Cream which Mum picked up for me when she was over in Singapore earlier this year and it;s taken me a while to figure out my opinion on this product. But with the advent of warmer days an opinion has solidified and is ready for your consumption. 

I don't know a huge amount about the back story of this product so here is what i do know; It seems to retail for around $20 AUD and you can find it pretty easy on ebay but i have not been able to find local retailers for it. 


and.... here is an English description i found for it:

"Watson both natural collagen multi-effect BB cream skin care, isolation, Cover the three functions. Small deep-sea fish collagen molecules containing activity, instant supplement for skin collagen, helps to increase skin elasticity and compaction. Tie in with the natural plant oil such as jojoba oil moisturizing ingredients, not Pan-oily makeup skin after long time. Effective protection of the skin at the same time render bright stereo nude natural makeup effects. \”Natural color\” for colour white to colour moderate crowd. After the skin clean and basic nursing, smear BB cream, on cheeks, forehead, nose, Chin back on both sides, down the skin texture from inside to outside lay open to the entire face and neck (recommends don\’t ring once), and then gently flapping, making BB cream and skin more fitting.

Measuring effectiveness: cream-like texture while absorbed slowly, to stain level of Cover is not very satisfactory, but on the pores of the shelter is still pretty good, waterproof and oil is also very good, and better improve skin color and skin, so that the skin becomes even rich luster, natural, skin becomes smooth and delicate. Instant water capacity was also praised."  source


It goes on a bit tough which is why i am only now doing the review for it, it has now that ts warmed up a little become much much easier to use. It's medium/light coverage with a dewy finish as you can see above. I have quite fallen in love with it, it has a faint smell that i find quite pleasant; a sort of sweet mix of sun screen and baby powder. 

It's quite a different creature to the Garnier BB creams i usually use and this i like a little better now that's its warmer as it sits quite lightly and i don't really notice it. A little setting powder and it stays on all though my school day. Even without setting powder it has pretty good staying powder and keep that nice luminous look to it.

If this was a little easier to purchase i would totally do so, however i think i ill try some other ones to see if there is a perfect bb cream out there. If not this is a good one, if you can get it.



Saturday 10 November 2012

Essence Eyeshadows Overview

Continuing with my love of Essence i thought i might show off some of their eyeshadow, some from their core line and some from trend editions to give you an idea what they are like.


I have in the last few month's acquired quite a few of these; so here's a little run down of what is included; 

1. "Ready for Boarding" Eyeshadow Palette in 01 beauty on tour
2. "50's Girls Reloaded"  Eyeshadow  Duo in 03 come on board captain
3. "Ballerina Collection" 02 Eyeshadow soufflé in 02 pas des copper
4. Core Collection Eyeshadow in "Shimmer" (red)
5. Core Collection Eyeshadow in "Cappuccino, please" (beige)  
6.  Core Collection Eyeshadow in " Mystic Purple" (silver/purple holo)

1.  This one has gotten a bit of hat for not being pigmented enough but with a good base i find it works very well, because they are pastel colors they do have a bit of fall out but not so much that it all disappears. Great for spring and summer, you can get some really nice effects with these and i have found them to stay on most of the day (8 hrs) without fading too much.


2. The 50s collection had some nice eyeshadow duo's, sadly i only found one as it was a very limited release here,  the gold is a very creamy and buttery sort of shadow which goes on very silky while the blue has a bit more fallout but the color more then makes up for it. These are nowhere near as chalky or pale as the previous collections and are much more pigmented (one swatch above) but i find they stay on a bit less (maybe 6 hrs rather then 8) and don't fade quite as cleanly, these ones leave more obvious bold spots.


1. Shimmer | 2. Cappuccino, please! | 3. Mystic Purple | 4. Pas Des Copper


Essence Pas Des Copper compared to the Maybelline Eye Tattoos. 

3. Pas Des Copper i have talked about endlessly before, it's the only creme eyeshadow from 
Essence I've so far come across and it's a dream in everyday; long lasting, non creasing, smooth and easy application; it doesn't catch on skin or melt off in heat. It everything you want or will ever need in an eyeshadow including amazing color pay off. Sadly it was a trend edition, can only hope for more in the same formula.

4/5/6. The Core line is pretty damn solid for the price tag; you'll find some gems and some duds but mostly you'll find good quality for a most reasonable price.

Shimmer as you can see i have used a lot, it recently made for some great makeup for a Halloween costume and stayed on all night through some hefty company and heat. It's not hugely pigmented but for a red on your eyes ou probably don't want it to be. It will build nicely however if that's the look your going for, Slightly on the chalky side however.

Cappuccino, please! is a wonderful, soft and nicely pigmented honey beige that i have seen others compare as a dupe for MAC's very popular "Shroom".  I don't own Shrrom so i can't judge that but its a point to keep in mind; great for neutral looks, base color or eyebrow highlight. Great everyday eyeshadow, can't recommend it more.  (The pan in the picture is new as i had to replace my old one)

Mystic Purple, my very first eyeshadow from Essence; i was lured by the holo claims and also the crazy color on this thing. It's not really holo but it is a duochrome. As you can see in the pan it looks like a silvery-lavender but on the swatch it shines through with a lovely iridescent lilac. Not greatly pigmented but very easy to apply and a lovely color, just be sure to use a eyeshadow base for this one.

So if you haven't yet i strongly suggest giving these a try, at the very least try Cappuccino! For $3 you can't really go wrong! Also if your lucky enough to have it go give you  Pas Des Copper eyeshadow a little hug :)