All posts filed under: First Impressions

Psst, Your Hoarder is Showing: Stuff I Got from Geek Chic Cosmetics

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Oops. Someone went a little overboard. I bought a total of 28 eyeshadows from Geek Chic Cosmetics. They’re an indie company that appeals to the geek in me. Much like Shiro Cosmetics (which I love, as you already know), Geek Chic makes collections based on geekery like Harry Potter and Doctor Who. A number of indies actually base their collections of of movies and shows, but Geek Chic’s selection is pretty extensive. So this is what happened, heh. I ordered 27 samples, and they came in clamshells like this. A lot of people hate this packaging and I can see why. It’s tricky to open (I just do it carefully, securing the ‘base’ half firmly on the table and opening the top half carefully) and also tricky to use since the lid tends to close on itself. When you close, you leave behind a puff of product. It’s alright, though. I can live with it. For swatches, I’ve divided everything by collection and in parts. I hope this makes things easier to find on the …

Recent Acquisitions: Rouge Bunny Rouge

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Oh look, a haul this early in the year. Typical. I bought a couple of Rouge Bunny Rouge eyeshadows because a couple of places, namely Luxola and the RBR site itself, had them on sale. I ended up buying one of the primers also (???) and a few items not on sale. Agh. Let’s begin? I only have one other RBR shadow (Solstice Halcyon), which I wasn’t super crazy about, but I knew that Belly, Sunny, Teri, and Shari all love the formula, so this purchase was pretty much a long time in the making.

Swatchfest: bareMinerals Degress of Dazzling

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Hey everyone! Here’s a quick swatch post for one of the few holiday items I ended up buying this year (I’ve been good, I swear!). I’ve gone crazy overboard last year, so I am taking my makeup purchases very seriously this year. This wasn’t supposed to be a purchase, since I am trying to cut down on eyeshadows and a 20-pc. set is not a step in the right direction, but I asked Sarie to look out for it for me in CA, since the set was on sale from $79 to $49 online and in actual bareMinerals stores (not counters). Luckily, she was able to find a set on one of her last few days out there. Similar to last year’s set, A Vision in Velvet (review), this set contains 20 eyecolors, but Degrees of Dazzling is such a way better deal, in my opinion, since the 20 colors come in 4 different finishes, whereas last year’s colors were divided into just two: mattes (or velvets) and satins. The swatches will be divided according …

Swatches: Sigma Créme de Couture Palette

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Hey guys, just a quick swatch post of one of my Christmas gifts to my sister—the Sigma Crème de Couture Palette. I had such a strong urge to buy this for myself, but let’s face it. I’m not going to get a lot of mileage out of this one. It’s a beautiful collection of pastel-y matte eyeshadows heavily inspired by French macarons. There are sixteen shades in all—each corresponding to a macaron flavor. The packaging is quite nice; a slim cardboard box reminiscent of macaron and pastry boxes. Here are the shades from the first two rows: L-R, swatched on bare skin: Redberry Rose, Apricot Flower, Passion Fruit, Cherry Blossom, Meyer Lemon, Ginger Pumpkin, Café Au Lait, Blueberry Cream Here are the shades from the last two rows: L-R, swatched on bare skin: Violet Whip, Lavender Honey, Cassis, Elderberry, Crème de Menthe, Blue Chocolat, Almond Pear, Citron Pistachio Overall, it’s an alright palette, the biggest pro being that they have the weirdest colors ever that are still somewhat dainty, and they’re all matte. They’re not …

First Encounters with Inglot

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Another spoil from Black Friday. I only got it now because I live in a faraway land South East Asia. Anyway, I purchased 2 Inglot Palettes and some innards from the actual Inglot site. I was on a ban when I stepped into the Inglot store that just opened here in the Philippines, but I figured I could take advantage of a 20% off sale once I was “allowed” to purchase makeup, so I did. Here’s the damage… OK, so I got two palettes: one 5-shadow palette, and one blush + 3-shadow palette. I don’t know what they’re actually called, I think just EB and [5] Square, as indicated by their boxes. The packaging is awesome and sleek. Very minimalist, though I think I’d have preferred the logo to not be patterned over the ENTIRE cover. The cover is frosted plastic that’s pretty heavy-duty, and it attaches to the actual matte black case with four strong magnets on each corner. I predict that this will be a long-ish entry, so I’ll cut it here.

Swatchfest: My First Oslo Cosmetics Order

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I think you guys no by now how easily swayed I am if something is named in the best way. I get suckered in and then I find myself in another point of no return. In any case, I saw an eyeshadow by Oslo Cosmetics named “Carinae,” which was an area of Ancient Rome. It was close enough to my name, so of course, I had to go look… and then I found an ultra bright orange blush named “Carina.” And then I died and bought makeup. There’s really something about mineral makeup. I just can’t help myself. Everything’s so pretty. Oslo Cosmetics pigments and eyeshadows are lumpy-looking because the formulation is a bit different from regular loose eye shadows. The creator, Joyce K., mixes in some binders that allow the shadows to adhere well to your skin (which explains also the lack of sifters. I’d like to see you try and sift these powders). You COULD use a primer, but these are pretty awesome at staying put already. Extensive FAQ here. My initial order …

Quickie: Ellana Minerals Makeup Brush Cleaner*

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Here’s a quick post on what is easily becoming one of my favorite makeup “tools,” the Ellana Minerals Makeup Brush Cleaner.* I got this from the generous people at Ellana Minerals, during their brand re-launch. A little backstory: I’ve used up my last spot cleaner, but haven’t been on the prowl for a replacement, so I’ve been deep cleaning my brushes every once in a while. I noticed some of my brushes—particularly the MAC 217—were feeling dry and some of the hair would break off. I assumed it was the alcohol in the other brush cleaner, so I stopped using it, but then it would be such a hassle to deep clean all the brushes every time they got dirty. So this is kind of a godsend for me. The first thing I noticed was that there was no “cooling effect” that alcohol-based spot cleaners have. I checked out the ingredients, and lo—there was no alcohol… But what did they use to clean the brushes and disinfect them? Here are the ingredients of this product: …