The collaboration palette between Angelica Nyqvist and Oden’s Eye is the newest addition to the Legendary Diversa Collection. Just like the previous release, all orders from this collection come in a box with the palette artwork printed on the inside. The free scarf idea was tweaked for this launch in the form of a reversible ribbon/Twilly, while supplies lasted.
This palette is currently sold out, but the restock is happening tomorrow: March 22nd 1:00 PM EST. I don’t know if the Hela box and/or Hela Twilly will be available again. Also, according to Angie, this may be the only restock.
The outer sleeve that’s around the palette has a different color scheme than the actual cover. For that reason, I plan on keeping the sleeve too.
The eye shadows are the same Oden’s Eye quality I’m used to and enjoy. The mattes are very pigmented. Some are a little on the thin side, making them easier to blend and build up if needed. My issue with thinner matte formulas can be that they either dust away the longer I blend them, aren’t opaque and leave patches, or they practically disappear in areas where a wetter shimmer formula touches it. This wasn’t an issue for any shadow except the shade Underworld, which was fixed by just adding a bit more of the shadow back on top of the spot.
A lot of eyeshadow formulas either work better if applied in order working from lightest to darkest or darkest to lightest. With the Hela palette, it doesn’t matter which way I’ve used it. The lighter shades are pigmented enough that I can use them to blend out the edges of darker shadows, but not so pigmented as to ruin the depth I try to create. The darker shadows are also not so dark as to overpower the look.
I expected Soot to be my most used shade and go-to shadow for deepening up the outer corner, but on my eyes the purple tone is very strong. The purple goes well with quite a few shades in the palette, but from my viewpoint, not as much as it would if it was a bit more of a neutral color. My partial solution for this is that I can use Decay on top to counteract the purple tone, but then it turns the whole thing into a dark grey.
Hellfire and River are two topper-type of shadows in this palette. They both have bases, but those bases really don’t show through on their own and need to be applied on top of other shades to get the effect I’m looking for. For example, the gorgeous peachy look to Hellfire in the pan just looks like the palest pink, almost white eye shadow on me. So, I just use it now as an inner corner highlight shade. I also don’t get the purple tone out of River, as seen in the photo above in the pink/purple look where the only effect it had when patted on top of Hellfire and Soot was to darken them slightly and add some extra sparkle.
I don’t have the best luck with yellows, so I was shocked at how well these built up and lasted on my skin, especially Rebirth because using pastels on dark skin can often be unflattering. Rebirth isn’t the kind of shade I’d wear on its own, but it’s very complimentary to the other yellows and greens in this palette, so I’m surprised to say I like it! My two most frequently used mattes are Wolf as a transition shade and Ouroboros as a deepening shade for the yellow/greens/browns and as a colorful pop when used with the shadows in the bottom rows of the palette. Decay is intriguing because the first time I used it was on top of Wolf and that made the taupe/cool brown tone turn more of a dark grey color, which is not the kind of shade I like to wear. However, I noticed it should be deep enough to create depth for some lighter looks, so I decided to try it again. When Decay was applied on top of Underworld, that helped to bring more of the brown out of that shade. In Angelica’s launch video, she says she wanted a colorful palette that still had some neutral leaning options. I haven’t liked any of my attempts to get a neutral look out of this palette, so I always turn them into a more colorful look to salvage it. Perhaps this wouldn’t be the case for someone of a different complexion than me. This is not a complaint, as usually I have the reverse issue where partly neutral colorful shades (like reddish brown, grayish purple, etc) just look solidly neutral on me. So, it’s kind of refreshing, but also unfortunate that I’m going through a neutral loving phase at the moment. How ironic! The best neutral look I’ve been able to create, and I think is just an okay look, is below. The first two pictures are with this palette alone, but the third is what I’d want from neutrals and I was able to create by combining Hela with the Norn’s palette.
Of all the yellows and greens, the only one that didn’t stand out for me was Fluorescence. Other than being an eyeshadow highlighting shade, I never have a purpose for this kind of color, but to each their own.
Golden Bridge is one of my favorite kinds of golden green shimmers. I actually tried not to use it too much in these eye looks because it’s such a go-to color for me. It’s the same with pairing Venom and Ouroboros together that is so instinctual for me. Because Venom is such a bright shade, I really wanted to use it on the center of the lower lash line, but it’s a bit thick and chunky for that spot and I had a difficult time smoothing it out. Perhaps I’ll need to apply it wet.
Moss is another really great shade. It’s a grungy green in the pan, but it’s a bit vibrant on my eyes, which I don’t mind. The way it looks is the tone I’m often drawn to as a transition color in my green eye looks.
Double-Sided is like an orange-pink-green shifting shade, but the orange shift is strongest on my lids. It’s everything I wanted out of the shade Hellfire, but with the fun twist of being a multichrome. I discovered that if I mixed Goddess, Rebirth, and Wolf together, I could create a peachy-orange shade, which brings out more of the peach in Double-Sided when I apply that shadow on top of it. I add a bit of Hela too, just to soften up Goddess, but technically the color can be achieved without it.
Complete is another fascinating shadow. In the photo above, I had to include a picture with flash on to show the black tones accurately when paired with Ouroboros. For some reason, those two together throw my camera off and make Complete look very teal. As seen in other eye looks with Complete, it still veers a bit blue, but is still very much a dark gunmetal-esque black. Oden’s Eye impressed me with the shade Colourful Black in the Norn’s Palette, and once again, they’ve impressed me with this one too. I keep wanting to use that shade in every eye look I do with this palette!
I have my own preferences when it comes to color stories, so is this the perfect one for me? No. Do I still enjoy this palette? Yes. Does it inspire me? Very much so! Angelica’s palettes push me outside of my comfort zone to think of new color pairings and combinations. I went from being an eyeshadow fanatic for most of my life to actually being a little less interested in palettes over the past twelve months. So, whenever one can give me the drive to want to be creative and play with eyeshadows, that is worth every penny.
A comparison between Angie’s Oden’s Eye collab and her Kaleidos Club Nebula collab, for those wondering if they are different enough to purchase both (which the answer is yes)!
The Oden’s Eye palettes are part of my Shop My Stash for this month, so I’ve been enjoying combining shades from the Hela palette with each of the other Legendary Diversa palettes because they go so well together! I’m really happy to have made this purchase.
*UPDATE: Last minute eye looks! In the discussion with Nikki below, I realized my tendency to keep only using the top half or lower half of the palette, so here are two quick additional looks I created combining the two!
I believe that’s everything I wanted to discuss! I hope this has been helpful, especially for those considering purchasing the palette during tomorrow’s restock! Thank you for reading!
I’m still playing catch up on things I purchased in 2021 and wish to post about, but today is an update on all my beauty purchases from January 2022. I’d like to show how well (or not) I’ve been sticking to my Beauty Resolutions for the year.
Beautylish Presents the Year of the Tiger Lunar New Year Powder Brush
Full Length: *170mm / 6.69 in
Hair Length: 47.6mm / 1.87 in
Hair Width: *40mm / 1.57 in
Bristle Type: Blue Squirrel
In my Beauty Resolutions post, I mentioned that I should only purchase Lunar New Year items that had personal significance to me (ex: Year of the Dragon). This brush depicts the most adorable chubby kitty with tiger stripes, which does make it significant to me in my interpretation of this design (it’s an inside joke). In addition, for half of my life the Tiger was my favorite animal. This is why I succumbed to the temptation and finally bought one of Beautylish’s collaborative Lunar New Year brushes. They did not announce which brush-maker created this year’s brush, but in the past is was Chikuhodo. Even if another Fude company created this brush, I’m still happy that it has the Chikuhodo aesthetic with the large round shiny handle similar to the Z-series. As long as the brush is high quality, which it is, it doesn’t matter to me which Japanese company created it. This brush is still hand bundled with an exquisitely detailed lacquered handle using the maki-e process.
This brush is unbelievably silky soft and of course perfect for those who want a very sheer application of powder. I can use this for highlighter (when applied just on the very tips), blush (when I use sweeping motions across the cheek), and bronzer, but in my eyes this is a dedicated all over face powder brush. Although it picks up a small amount of product, when that product is very pigmented it takes more effort than I like to buff it out because it’s not dense enough for that. If I use a squirrel hair brush for blush, I prefer one that’s thicker and more round like the Z-1. Anything looser packed than that, I consider to be more ideal for setting/finishing powders. Honestly, this is more of a collector item for me and not one I intend to use a lot. When I do use it, it’s heaven though. It’s so soft and light that I barely feel any pressure on my skin. This is a beautiful powder brush, but if you already own one with grey/blue/ash squirrel hair, you’re not missing out by not having it. For those who don’t and would like a light/medium density powder brush, this might be a good place to start since comparable brushes to this would be a little more expensive. I still recommend this for collectors, but for someone looking for a more functional or versatile brush, I would direct them to Chikuhodo’s Z series and FO series.
At launch, Beautylish also restocked the previous Lunar New Year brushes as well: Pig, Rat, and Ox. As cute as those designs are, those three have nearly identical brush heads which is already practically the same as the Tiger brush, so I didn’t feel any pressure to add those to my cart. Since I already have three close enough brushes as the Tiger, Koi/Carp, and the Z-1 (the Z-9 is a better dupe but I don’t own it), I don’t feel a need to get a backup brush. However, trying to steer clear of a Rabbit next year will be difficult, and I suspect trying to ignore the Dragon will be impossible.
Sonia G Builder Pro Eye Shadow Brush
Full Length: 152mm / 5.98 in
Hair Length: 12mm / 0.47 in
Hair Width: *9mm / 0.35 in
Bristle Type: Dyed Saikoho Goat Hair
The Builder Pro and Builder Three are both brushes that lay product down well but can also be used for blending. I’ve discovered that the Builder Three leans better on the blending aspect because of the flatter top, so I prefer that one for crease work. The Builder Pro leans better on the lay down and building aspect because it’s perfect for applying shadows to the section of my eye between the eyelid and inner corner. I always struggled with that spot, but this brush gets in there easily. It’s also more precise for application to the outer V. I’ve actually been able to do entire eye looks using this brush alone. I’m very happy I decided to finally buy this! The tapered tip that makes the Builder Pro so great for applying shadows also prevents it from blending large areas as quickly as the Builder Three, so I will probably use that one more often when I’m in a rush. However, for when I have more time and want to create a detailed and more skillfully done eyeshadow look, I will definitely grab the Builder Pro instead. They perform differently enough that I feel justified having them both in my collection.
Before we move onto the next topic, I have to acknowledge that I bought a backup of the Builder Three at the same time that I ordered the Builder Pro, which is a breech of my beauty resolutions. Then Sonia G/Beautylish restocked many brushes I wanted, including the Cheek Pro which would have been yet another backup purchase, but I was able to stop myself.
Lethal Cosmetics Charity Eyeshadow in Meekha
This is one of four limited edition charity eyeshadows released from Lethal Cosmetics. I mentioned liking tigers earlier in this post, but I am dog person and I have a soft spot for pitbulls. It was very lucky that the only eyeshadow that caught my attention happened to be the one named after the sweet rescue pitbull named Meekha. In addition to the animal charities being supported by the purchase, Lethal also committed to planting a tree for each January order. My sister had a pitbull named Radja, so that’s the name I chose for the planted tree in her memory.
This is the second indie brand that I’m aware of who has created limited edition shadows for charity, and I am here for it! For some reason, when larger brands do it, it feels like it’s just for press. Somehow, this kind of thing coming from a smaller brand seems more heartfelt. In any case, I like to see this.
The combination of the colors in the Meekha pan turn into an icy lavender shade on me. I’m not sure how often I will use this shadow, but I was able to create a look that I liked. It even makes for a nice bright inner corner highlight shade for other eyeshadow looks! The eyeshadow texture and performance feels just like other shimmers from the brand. The formula is a bit thick, but they smooth out nicely on the lids and fallout is about what one would expect from a shimmer shadow (present but not too bad especially if applied wet or on top of a glitter primer).
And as a follow-up to the charity aspect, post-January purchases will continue to go to charity. It’s just the tree part that is over now.
Lethal Cosmetics Highlighter in Fusion
I wanted this highlighter shade for a long time, but it was initially exclusive to the Equilux face palette, which I did not get because the blush and bronzer in the trio were too deep for my skin tone. Since it’s now available as an individual item, and I wasn’t completely satisfied with the highlighter selection I brought with me on my trip to Germany, I figured this was the best time to get it (especially with the lower shipping cost). I am supposed to be on a highlighter No-Buy, but this purchase was allowed as it falls under the category of something I would have bought last year if it was available to me, and in this case, available as a single product.
Unlike Gamma and Gravity, my two other Lethal Cosmetics highlighters, I find Fusion to be quite subtle. Fusion is close to my skin tone, and that could add to how subtle it is, but even the texture feels a bit different than the other two, and not just because of the lack of ridges. Fusion was difficult to show in swatches, even when built up. It feels a bit hard pressed*, and when the highlighter was delivered, it was messy around the pan edges as well as within the packaging. My brushes are able to grab product easily (despite the fact that it looks a bit hard-panned** now too) but perhaps the hard pressing is preventing more of the actual shimmer particles from being picked up. That would be ironic considering if I have an issue with a highlighter it’s usually that my brush is picking up too much of the shimmer.
*NOTE**: I have a few wonderful friends and family members who read my blog sometimes and may not be aware of some of the terms I’ve used. For anyone who needs clarification, the press of a product refers to the force in which a product is physically pressed into the pan (usually with a pressing machine). Makeup that is “Hard Pressed” has powder so compacted together that it becomes difficult to get the product out of the pan and onto the brush. “Hardpan” is when a powder product gets a hard or filmy top layer that also prevents someone from being able to pick up product onto a brush, but it is usually due to oils from the skin getting into the powder and creating that tough layer. Certain formulas of powder products are more prone to hardpanning than others.
Fusion has an orange tinge to it. Although the shine level is a bit low, when it hits the light, the golden-orange sheen is apparent at that point. It’s not what I was going for but mixing it with some of Gamma puts the look back in my comfort zone. I will likely declutter Gravity and Fusion at some point, but testing out these shades reminded how much I enjoyed wearing Gamma, and I will have to remember to use it more often. Anyone interested in seeing those shades on me can check out my previous Lethal Cosmetics post here.
Chanel JOUES CONTRASTE Powder Blush in 320 Rouge Profond
I considered buying a Chanel blush for a long time, although I always expected it to be from one of their limited edition collections. My interest in buying one re-sparked when Ulta started carrying Chanel Beauty products in January (although the brand will probably be excluded from all coupons including prestige). I also really wanted the Blush Lumiere Brun Roussi shade from the Spring 2022 collection, but I wasn’t willing to spend Hermes prices for it. So, when I was browsing the Duty Free section at the Frankfurt Airport, I had an impulsive moment to buy shade 320 Rouge Profond, a shade that is not available at Ulta and is part of their older blush formulation. Chanel changed to the new formula in March 2021, and according to reviews I’ve seen, the new formula is less smooth, less sheen-like, and less pigmented, so I decided to go ahead and get this one in the old formula while it was still available.
The Houkodou Nagi Powder N-F1 Brush fits perfectly around the dome of this blush and applies it perfectly as well. The blush swatch needed to be built up on my arm, but color goes onto the cheek nicely. The perfume scent is very noticeable. The color and performance reminds me of the MAC Mineralize Blush in the Flirting With Danger shade. In fact, as much as I like this blush, it didn’t “Wow” me more than the MAC blush and that one is significantly less expensive. My curiosity is satisfied knowing Chanel’s permanent blushes aren’t superior to products I already have, but there’s still that troublesome part of me wondering if Chanel’s even pricier blushes are better. Either way, at twice the price, I doubt it would be two times better, so it’s best I leave that topic alone.
That’s everything I bought in the month of January! I did not include products I ordered in December that arrived in January. Those items will show up in future posts.
Thank you for joining me today! I hope this has been helpful!
-Lili ❤
*UPDATE: For those on the email list, I apologize for the accidental early release of this post. I’ve been consistently posting at the same time for a reason, but I’m not sure how or when the scheduled time for this one was changed and it completely escaped my notice. Considering we just entered Daylight Savings time in the US, this could be especially early for some people. I plan to resume our regular schedule of Mondays at 11:30 am EST.
MAC Cosmetics is probably the most reviewed brand on my blog. They frequently release eye catching collections that manage to make me want even their repromoted shades, just to get the limited edition packaging. They often have sales, which plays on my deep love of getting a good deal. Their staple products are top notch and they’ve held onto their generally good reputation for decades. Unfortunately, MAC has made some questionable production decisions in the last few years to the point where I seriously considered taking a break from them. Today’s post is not about that, and is instead about sharing the newest additions to my MAC collection.
MAC Lunar Luck Eyeshadow x 9: Made My Fortune
This palette was a gift from one of my best friends, and for that reason I will cherish it. It’s one of those things I wanted for the packaging, but not the makeup inside, since I tend to not be the biggest fan of MAC’s eyeshadows. I can at least say the quality of this one is the best I’ve tried from them. The shimmers have pigmented bases, but are a bit tame in sparkle reflectivity, even when used wet. I appreciate that they were easy to apply smoothly to the lids and inner corner. The mattes were also more pigmented than I expected from MAC, and slightly easier to blend than the ones I’ve used in the past. Creating the two looks shown below was enjoyable enough that I may continue to use this palette from time to time, but not enough to make me want to purchase anymore MAC shadows. There isn’t a whole lot of versatility among the two light mattes that hardly show on me (Shell We Celebrate and Sunkissed Orange) and two shades that look nearly identical when used next to each other (Propitious Poppy and Plum What May). The shimmers (excluding Supreme Harmony) don’t look that far off from each other in the pan, but I was pleased to see they are distinctly different on the eyes. Wish Me Luck!, 15 Minutes of Flame, and Born to Rule (as a highlight shade only) are my favorite eyeshadows in the palette. I’ve really been into the brown shimmer eyelid look lately. I still feel $32 is a bit pricey for the quality, so for anyone wanting this palette, I hope you’ll be able to get it on sale!
MAC Glow Play Blush in No Shame!
I’m a big fan of MAC’s Glow Play blush formula, so I wasn’t satisfied with having just one from their collection. I got this for 50% off on Black Friday. These blushes tend to look more vibrant and pigmented than they actually look on the skin, which can be tricky in trying to figure out which shades would work for me. No Shame! takes a lot of building up to get it to show on my cheeks, but the end result is pretty. It has that familiar putty-like texture that sets to a natural finish, just like the others.
At the time that I’m writing this, I cannot find this shade on the website any longer. I think it’s safe to assume it has been discontinued, and I believe the reason is because of the release of HD Cherry Tree.
MAC Wild Cherry Collection Glow PlayBlush in HD Cherry Tree
HD Cherry Tree is like a deeper, slightly more berry version of No Shame!. Quite a few people managed to get their hands on this blush before the US launch, so I purchased mine from one of them (and for less than the retail price)! I was unlucky that as soon as I flipped it over to let the plastic protector naturally fall out, the entire blush popped out with it. However, since it’s a bouncy blush, I was able to squish it back in the compact. Good as new!
I’ve only purchased the Glow Play shades that I think would show up on me, and it’s a bit unfortunate that they look quite similar to each other.
My hope is for MAC to expand the range even further to fill in some gaps, like a medium-deep reddish brown, a terracotta, and a deep pink-mauve. Then again, I’m trying to buy fewer MAC products, so maybe it’s good that they don’t have those shade options!
The Wild Cherry collection is limited edition, but I wonder if MAC intends to make HD Cherry Tree a permanent shade in the future, but without the special packaging. There are two other Glow Play blushes in the Wild Cherry line, but I don’t plan on buying them. Between the Wild Cherry packaging and last year’s Black Cherry packaging, I prefer the look of this new one.
MAC x Lisa Blush in Melba
There isn’t much to say about this blush since I already reviewed it before, but I wanted it for the limited edition packaging since purple is my favorite color. I know Lisa is from the band BLACKPINK, but I don’t listen to their music, so the collab aspect didn’t entice nor deter me. Melba only works for me when I’m at my lightest (typically winter), so I gave my original blush to my sister. This color is still so difficult to get it to show on camera*, but it is visible in person. After wanting to repurchase it for so many months, I decided to go ahead and do it when it was 40% off on Veteran’s Day. Around that time or soon after, I saw the sneak peeks of the MAC x L collection, but I had no idea they would repromote yet another product and that it would be Melba! It worked out in the end since I gifted my new and unused standard packaging version of Melba to the friend who gave me the Lunar New Year Tiger palette.
*Another photo showing Melba is in the Illuminate Face Palette section demonstrating how GoldieLush looks on the cheeks.
I’d like to add that my last purchases directly from MAC’s website was last November and December and both of them were listed as delivered according to the tracking history on my account page (I didn’t get shipping confirmation for either one), but they never arrived. I had to contact customer service for reshipment. Prior to that, my eyeshadow palette from the Tempting Fate collection was lost in the mail (after already being delayed for a week before getting shipped). I would typically view the carriers as responsible for undelivered mail, but the lack of shipping confirmation in two of those instances makes me wonder if the fulfillment center nearest to me is having issues and if it’s fixed by now.
MAC Pro Face Palette: Illuminate
I was eligible for a free birthday gift in November, which was supposed to be an eyeshadow quad. Only three out of four shades were in stock, and it wouldn’t let me add them to my cart without choosing a non-existent fourth available shade. I asked customer service what I should do in this instance, since you can only redeem the gift with a purchase and I only had a few days left before the offer expired. The solution was to send me this palette, which I jumped on since I don’t really like MAC eyeshadows anyway.
This palette consists of cream highlighters that have an almost waxy texture. It reminds me of both edge gel and the Danessa Myricks Dew Wet Balms. I didn’t have high hopes because products in that consistency tend to remove my foundation underneath it, and this one did too, but it’s easy to apply a little concealer back on top without interfering with the shine level. Unlike the Dew Balm, this gave a perfectly smooth wet sheen without looking greasy. It doesn’t dry completely, but it’s not dewy enough for my hair to cling to it either. I was very happy with the results! It also makes a great base to intensify powder highlighters that are applied on top of it, although I don’t usually go for the super highlighted look. Powder highlighters are my preference, so I don’t know how often I’ll actually use this, but it certainly made a nice birthday gift!
Please ignore the slightly lingering indent on my skin from wearing a mask. I took 3 of the 4 photos on the same day, which is why GoldieLush doesn’t have that mark.
They look nearly identical in photos, but the slight pink tinge in Starry Opal, the light silvery tone of Malted Milk, the traditional medium gold in GoldieLush, and the orange tint to Peach Plush are identifiable in person.
MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in Dark Tan
I wanted to try this powder for so long, but trying to figure out which shade I should choose out of Dark, Dark Tan, Dark Golden, Dark Deep, and Dark Deepest (which didn’t look all that deep in all the photos and videos I scoured the internet to find) was quite frustrating. It’s helpful when brands list their products by order of either lightest to darkest or darkest to lightest, but these didn’t seem to follow that order all the way, which added to my confusion. The biggest difference between multiples of them seem to be the undertone, but MAC doesn’t have any descriptions of these shades. It would be great if the brand created a chart pairing MAC foundation shades with the suggested powder matches.
This powder tends to look lighter on camera, so it took ages for me to get an accurate photo. I can understand now why the same shade looks so different in the photos and videos I’ve seen others take too.
Based on the broken up powder photos from MAC’s website, I thought Dark Tan and Dark Deep were my two best options, but I questioned whether Dark Deep was slightly too dark and possibly a bit orange. Since powders can sometimes deepen on my skin when I wear a dewy foundation, I decided to ultimately get Dark Tan. Dark Tan is admittedly a tad light, but it still works for me. The bigger issue I have is that it looks a little dry on my skin because I grew unaccustomed to having such a matte look to my face, plus it being a bit light. I have only used this a few times, so I will continue to experiment some more using different brushes. It’s possible I applied too much or that it looks better with other complexion products. Because I was so iffy about whether I’d like this powder or be able to select the right shade, I decided to wait as long as it took for this product to finally be on sale for higher than 30%. It took years, but I was thrilled when MAC added this to the 50% off deal for Black Friday. So, that made satisfying my curiosity less of a financial hit!
This is everything new I’ve added to my collection from MAC so far. I do intend to get the Magnificent Moon Extra Dimension x 4 highlighter quad palette when it gets released. Of course, I shouldn’t because I’m on a highlighter no-buy, but this falls in line with one of the exceptions listed in my Beauty Resolutions post. I love moons. It’s one of the central aspects of my one and only tattoo, so that kind of imagery is significant for me. Other than that, I’m going to continue trying to slow down on the frequency of my MAC purchases so I can enjoy what I already have!
I typically post once a week (Mondays) and if I ever have a bonus post it usually goes up on Thursday, however, posting on 2/22/22 at 2:22 EST was too poetic to skip.
This quick review is an update to my Devinah Cosmetics Collection. They have released plenty of new formulas of eyeshadows, but I held off on buying all the ones I wanted since I know Clionadh is expanding their Stained Glass Collection. I want to see what Clionadh releases first before snapping up some of the recent duochromes and multichromes that have launched from other indie brands.
The first of the three newest Devinah Shadows I bought is called Fairy Fire. It’s listed as a pressed pigment, but I’m not sure if it belongs to any particular collection of theirs. It looks yellow in the pan but on my eyes it’s this intense glowing green, or at certain angles it’s more of a blue or pink. There is nothing subtle about a shade like this! On camera, the pink and blue are easier to see. The intense green could only be captured when out of the direct light and partly dark.
The next two, Zombi and Seance, are from the Laveau Collection. There are four shadows in total in that collection, but Zombi and Seance looked the most duochromatic of the bunch. I am a little disappointed in Zombi because the base color is so dark that the deep aqua/green it’s supposed to have barely shows through and the cool deep purple just looks black on my eyes when used alone. I’m happier with Seance, although the blue and purple are prettier and pop more in person than in my photos.
One more thing to note is that I stopped using Glitter primer as often and lately I can’t be bothered to spray my brush before applying shimmers, but with these shadows you definitely want to use something to help them stick. There is so much fallout! Devinah has some shadows that are on the flakier and chunkier side, like the Xploders and Sugar Drops, that are obvious that they need something to keep them in place. I find these three new shadows (more specifically Zombi and Seance) to be much smoother than those, which led me to believe they didn’t need the extra help. I was wrong! Fallout gets worse throughout the day and with these particular colors it is extremely obvious that it’s not supposed to be all under the eyes and all over the cheeks. I looked crazy the two times I wore them and I will not use them again in the future without some kind of aid to keep the fallout to a minimum. I’ll leave the glitter under eyes look to Ed Sheeran.
Well, that’s it for the review! Short and sweet! Thank you for reading.
I purchased the Nars Climax Palette near the end of 2021 and this is what I will be reviewing. I didn’t want “Climax Palette” in my title, although what better day is there than Valentine’s Day to discuss such a cheekily named product!
This has a great selection of mattes: a brightening, transition, colorful, and deepening up shade. Since I love bright colorful greens, I wish Up In Smoke was a bit brighter and less muted, but I can appreciate that the olive hue in that eyeshadow pairs well with the olive shimmer called Hooked. It’s similar to the way that Public Eye is the matte counterpart to Next Level.
Open Wide adds brightness to my eye area and it is pigmented enough to even partially cover darker shadows. Private Show is a little light as a transition shade for me, but it still works.
I was always under the impression that Nars eyeshadows were lacking in pigmentation, but that is at least not the case with the ones in this palette. They blend and build easily over MAC Paint Pot. Passion Play, Next Level, and Night Rhythm are all more shimmery than I anticipated! Even though they aren’t vibrant shades, the sparkle level is the intensity that I like in my lid shades. Envious is my preferred shade for the inner corner though. The inner corner is the spot where I most easily get shimmer particles in my eye. Envious isn’t to the same sparkle level as the others, especially when I wet my brush. The smoother the formula, the less likely I am of accidentally getting some in my eye while trying to apply it evenly. Envious gives me a nice amount of shine while also being easier to get on the inner corner.
I don’t even have much to say about this palette except that I’m glad I decided to buy it before it sold out, since it’s Limited Edition (it did get restocked recently on the Nars website). If all Nars eyeshadows are this quality, I would want to purchase more in the future as long as the selection of shades match my preferences. I’ve been waiting for years to pick the right one for me, so it might be quite a while longer until I’m interested enough in the color story to buy the next one.
I admittedly have an excessive makeup collection for a single person. Though it may not seem like it considering all the newly released makeup I purchased in 2021, I actually made a bigger effort to talk myself out of getting makeup in categories I already had favorites of and didn’t need. Each product reviewed today were things I thought I successfully anti-hauled, but all it took was a sale for me to change my mind!
These purchases were all made in 2021, so my beauty resolutions for 2022 are still intact and going strong! If anything, this post is an example of why I had to come up with a better plan for this year.
Anastasia Beverly Hills Cream Bronzer in Hazelnut
This purchase I attribute to Angelica Nyqvist’s many videos talking about how fantastic this product is, including her end of 2021 favorites. I wish I could say I had the same experience, but I just find it to be okay at best. This cream is easy to blend out, to the point that I have to build it back up, but if I overblend while building it up, it starts to look patchy because it’s setting in spots at different times. On the opposite side of the issue, I try not to apply too much at once because the shade is a bit deep for me. The shade jump between Hazelnut and the next lighter shade, Caramel, is huge. Hazelnut was my only color option. So, perhaps if I had a better match that didn’t put me at risk of overblending, I might like it better. As it stands, I prefer the Danessa Myricks, Kaja, and Sol Body/Colourpop cream bronzer formulas above the one from ABH because those three all blend quickly and easily into a skin-like finish. They’re also just as deep, or in some cases deeper, than the ABH without the blending and building troubles.
I’ve used this about ten times, so it’s possible I could find another brush that works better with this bronzer other than the Sonia G Mini Base and Scott Barnes #65 Flawless Face Brush, but between using a sponge, brush, or finger, the end result looks similar for all of them. I’m cutting my losses and rather than figure out how to make this one work better, I can just use my no-fuss cream bronzers that I like instead.
Pat Mcgrath Labs Skin Fetish: Sublime Skin Highlighter in Lunar Nude
I couldn’t resist the gold packaging with that embossing, but I’m at least glad I waited for a sale. I told myself over and over that Lunar Nude would look too light for my skin tone, so I shouldn’t get it. I was half right. The shimmery reflective particles are light gold, but the base color is a copper color. It even looks copper or gold depending on the lighting of the room and the angle. The base tone helps it look a little more wearable on me, but it’s still lighter than I’d prefer in a highlighter.
I can see the shimmer particles on my face, which is also not my preference, but I also realized that certain brushes of mine pick up more of the sparkle than others. On the website, there was a note to pair this with the highlighting balm duo. When I used the balm and then applied Lunar Nude on top, it definitely helped to make the product melt into the skin and look super smooth and achieve that “wet look” that I enjoy. However, it really cranks up the intensity level and the fact that the highlighter is too light for me becomes way more obvious. Since I figured out how to use it to my preferences, I like the formula but not the actual shade. Ultimately though, I don’t think this is worth buying at full price except for collectors and luxury product lovers. For anyone looking for the best highlighter on the market for the best price, this isn’t it. Much better and more affordable options are out there. It’s “pretty good” at best. I personally prefer Pat Mcgrath’s Divine Rose highlighter. That one is listed as a “futuristic gel-powder formula” in the “Skin Fetish: Ultra Glow” line whereas Lunar Nude is a “luxe gel-powder formula” in the “Skin Fetish: Sublime Skin” line. It’s possible they are the same formula, but Lunar Nude leaves more sparkle on the skin, which is the biggest difference other than the color.
Pat Mcgrath LabsHighlighter Comparisons
Different lighting to reveal the color shift of the trio.
Of course, since making this purchase, Pat Mcgrath has released similar highlighters to Lunar Nude’s formula in the Bridgerton collection. I don’t believe either of those new colors would look nice on me. If PML releases a shade variation I like in this same formula with the same special packaging and same or similar embossing, I would most likely sell Lunar Nude and buy that one. As it stands, this one isn’t getting much use in my collection but I still don’t want to part with it without a superior replacement.
Smashbox Loves Becca Under Eye Brightener in Dark
Although Becca Cosmetics is no more, a few best selling products were resurrected through Smashbox. This decision is presumed to be made by their parent company Estee Lauder.
There were originally just two shades: light-medium (now called Fair/Light) and medium-deep. The Smashbox x Becca version has two more in the mix: Medium and Dark. It’s my understanding though, based on a YouTube video by All Beauty by Sarah, that the original medium-deep color is actually close in depth to the current Medium shade with the main difference being that the original had a stronger pink tone to it. The third darkest shade now is called Medium/Dark and is much darker than the original medium-deep. The final shade, and the one I picked up, is Dark. Based on the description and the shade in the pot, I expected Dark to be too dark for me. Technically, as this is supposed to brighten my under-eyes, I should have gotten Medium/Dark. However, I prefer for my under eyes to match the rest of my face rather than being brighter, so Dark works perfectly for that. It’s the best matching color-corrector type of product I have ever used because it has a slight orange tone to hide my dark circles, but there’s also enough brown to make it look natural. I try to avoid showing my skin discoloration as much as possible, but in this instance I felt it was necessary to show a demonstration photo below.
Cream products almost always move in my under-eye area, but what makes this one a little different is the very sticky texture. This product has gripping power similar to the Milk Hydro Grip Eye Primer, but stronger than that one. This makes it ideal for applying a concealer on top, even though based on the color match, I don’t find that to even be necessary. However, it will not set on its own, so I either have to apply a concealer that sets down like the Tarte Shape Tape or apply a setting powder to my under eyes (or both). If I apply the Smashbox x Becca corrector by itself, it will settle badly into creases. So, I need at least something on top to keep it from creasing and to continue looking smooth.
So, I have an answer to using this product to hide my dark circles and keep it looking as smooth as possible considering I have heavy lines under my eyes. This product would be perfect if it wasn’t for the transfer issue. No matter what products I apply on top of the corrector, it will lift off my under eyes if I accidentally touch it or if I try to wipe away shimmer eyeshadow fallout. So, despite being the perfect color match for me, this isn’t a holy grail product. I use it on days when I’m not planning to go anywhere and am just putting on makeup for Instagram and Blog photos. I am at least glad I’m still getting use out of it. This would work wonders for people who don’t touch their face or rub their eyes as much as I do, so I still recommend it, but I would be wary about potential issues. Also, I would use a dedicated brush specifically with this product because it’s a bit of a pain to use with my favorite concealer brushes the way it coats the hairs in its sticky texture.
Flower Beauty Jungle Lights Palette
The release of Flower Beauty’s Desert Lights palette didn’t take away the major hype surrounding the original Jungle Lights palette. That’s what ultimately caused me to finally want to try it out. I’ve also always been curious how it stacked up to the MAC Tempting Fate palette a lot of people were comparing it to.
In the photo above, in the “Flash Off” set of swatches, I put a yellow divider line to help show the differences between the Flower Beauty swatches on the left half and the MAC swatches on the right half. In the “Flash On” set of swatches, I did not put a divider in order to keep it from impeding on seeing how similar the two sets look next to each other in every shade except Amazon (which had no equivalent) and Jaguar.
The Flower Beauty Jungle Lights formula is as creamy as everyone says, except Paradise and Jaguar have less slip and feel a tad more gritty. I also like the sparkle and shine level of these shimmers, which clearly surpass that of the MAC Feast Your Eyes Palette from the Tempting Fate Collection.
They’re as nice as people say, and I appreciate the fact that they last fairly well on my eyes as long as I pack on enough color with my finger (which is the recommended application method) and am content with the colors fading a bit to a duller color by the end of the day.
I think it’s worth looking into, especially at the price point. $17.99 is great already, but between a sale and coupon codes at Ulta, I got this one for $8.68. I still would have thought it was worth it at full price.
One of the most fascinating aspects of this palette was when I came across a reddit post showing 47 different shade combinations that could be made using this palette depending on which shade was on the bottom layer and which one was on top. Of course, the differences aren’t as obvious on my skin tone, but there were enough combinations to leave me thoroughly impressed. I took photos of some of the most obvious color changes with comparisons to the individual shades on their own to make it easier to see the differences.
And then the photo below shows all the individual shades plus my favorite five new shade combinations.
Unfortunately, some of these shade mixtures don’t show as well on my eyes as they did in arm swatches. However, it’s still fun to play around with the combinations. It makes for a more versatile palette.
I wish there were some mattes included, but I could perhaps continue to get use out of this if I remember to pull it out in conjunction with some of my all or nearly all matte palettes.
Sigma Beauty Berry Glow Cheek Duo
I really thought this duo looked nice on my skin in person, but in photos, the blush looks very ashy. The fact that it’s cool toned does look a little off to my own eyes though. I’m torn.
I bought the duo for about 40% off during a Black Friday sale and thought it was an extra great price considering it came with a brush as well. The brush will be reviewed in an upcoming synthetic bristle brush post. Considering the ashy look of the blush on camera, I’m not sure if I’ll continue to use it. I guess as long as it still looks nice in person, and I could potentially mix it with a warmer blush, I still somewhat like it. However, considering I also had mixed feelings about the Cor-de-Rosa blush palette, I think this will be the last blush purchase I get from them. I do like the highlighter, as it’s quite smooth with a small shimmer particle size and it doesn’t look stark even though it’s such a pale highlighting shade. It comes off a little more champagne-gold in person even though it looks almost platinum on camera. I’m almost tempted to investigate Sigma’s Glowkissed Highlight Palette from last year, but I have a full highlighter palette already from Danessa Myricks that I just bought during Black Friday too. I certainly don’t need another.
Those who are fans of the Sigma blush and highlighter formula already will likely enjoy the quality of this duo as well. I will continue to give it a few more tries to solidify my own feelings on it, but it’s just “nice” in terms of quality in my opinion. It doesn’t quite reach the “great” territory.
That’s everything! Out of the five items, I wish I could have successfully anti-hauled the ABH Cream Bronzer, Sigma Duo, and this particular shade of PML highlighter, but I really expected to love them and wouldn’t have known otherwise without having bought them first to try out. I will certainly try harder to stick to my anti-hauls in the future. Thank you for reading!
This is the second of only three items I purchased in the last Sephora VIB sale, the Natasha Denona Glam Face Palette being the first. I always thought the Love Palette was beautiful because reddish purple is my favorite color. This color story is a pink, red, and purple lover’s dream! However, the colors that are most pleasing to my eye are not the colors I actually wear the most on my eyes. I talked myself out of getting it for a long time, but at the reduced price of $27, I could not hold back any longer.
I knew Commitment was a cream to powder formula, but I was pleasantly surprised to see Dream was as well! Dream is one of the less common purples in my collection, so I am extremely happy to have it, although it’s a bit sheer and takes a bit of time to get it to look opaque on the eyes. Both are smooth, blend beautifully, and work perfectly well with the traditional matte and shimmer eyeshadows in the palette. I’m being a little picky, but these cream to powders are both purple. I wish Natasha added one more shadow in that formula in a red or pink shade. Then I would be especially excited because I enjoy this formula on its own and also as a base.
I very much enjoy the shimmers. Lifetime and Transparent look quite similar, although Lifetime in my palette looks much lighter than I’ve seen in some other people’s palettes. After being restocked several times, this limited edition product is finally being discontinued, so perhaps mine looks different because it’s newer and the shade from my batch was tweaked? That’s my best guess anyway. Lifetime feels like a traditional shimmer, whereas Transparent has a little more slip to it. This causes it to go on smoother, but lately I’ve found that more slip doesn’t mean better performing for my lined/creased/semi-oily lids. So between the two, I prefer Lifetime and in terms of shade, I’d have been over the moon about Transparent if it had a little more peach or pink to it, like a strong gold-pink duochrome.
Passion and Blind are nice and opaque. Pure Love is a gorgeous pink-purple duochrome. Giving is another pretty peachy-pink duochrome shade, but it doesn’t make much impact unless I apply it with a damp brush.
The mattes are fantastic and pigmented, but Heart, Heartbeat, and Soul end up looking very similar on the eyes. They are a lot darker than I expected and are better suited on me as deepening up shades. I can’t believe I’m saying this because I’m almost always wishing for more dark shades in palettes, but I really wanted Soul and Heartbeat to be more mid-toned so I could use them as crease shades without making the overall eye looks end up being so dark, and so red. I hoped for a more Terracotta tone to Heartbeat and a bit more pink/coral in a medium tone for Soul.
Even the shade Intense is slightly darker than I expected, but it’s my favorite matte shade in the palette! And because this palette doesn’t have a lot of light options, I can actually appreciate the addition of First and Valentine. First took me by surprise when I discovered it was so pigmented, it could even cover up the darker shades, but it doesn’t stick very well on top of other shadows, so it has a tendency to blend away unless I start with that shade initially. I almost made a joke about having to use First first. Hehe. Valentine is a little more sheer than the rest of the mattes. It would be perfect for me if it was a little less cool-toned, but that’s me being picky again.
Even though I’m not sure how much use I will get out of the Love Palette, I always have the option to mix and match this with my Metropolis and Bronze palettes that share the same pan size. A few shades in here don’t perform as well, but those who like Natasha Denona’s eyeshadow formula will most likely enjoy this palette like I did.
Today I’ll be reviewing the full trio of Deep palettes in the collection, as well as the single eyeshadow called Dear Reader. I will also swatch the best comparisons I have between the shades Temptalia chose to the other 103 Sydney Grace shadows I own, previously swatched here. I purchased this collection on launch day, so this is definitely not a first impression review.
Each palette consists of multiple types of finishes and textures: mattes, metallics, shimmers, duochromes, creamy shades, stiffer packed colors, grittier shadows, etc. Regardless of these differences, they are all highly pigmented shadows. Sydney Grace products always give great color payoff, but I find that these are even more intensely pigmented. Good eyeshadows will have staying power on the lid, but these looked practically the same from the start of the day to the end of the day. There’s no fading or dulling down of the shine.
There is a bit of a tradeoff though regarding the boost in pigment. The mattes give me saturated color right away, but it can look patchy initially if I don’t give a little extra blending time. It isn’t significantly more time, but it was enough to make me notice, particularly with the deeper shades like Interstellar, Sublime Reverie, Midnight Courage, and Umbra. Those blue-green mattes especially give me more kickup in the pan despite my efforts to be gentle and pick up a small amount at a time. With the shimmers, one may want to do the eyes first before the face because I get fallout during the application process, though there isn’t too much extra fallout throughout the day (at least not unless I happen to rub my eyes more than usual).
Quintessence Palette
Quintessence has my favorite color story of the three and it’s the one I knew I absolutely had to get. Ironically, I had the most difficult time creating looks I liked that weren’t monochromatic, so I sought inspiration from Temptalia’s website. For swatches, eye looks, details of the shades, etc. there is no better resource than Christine herself, so I will link the blog here and recommend giving it a look if you need additional help and information.
The last two looks were the ones I attempted to recreate (but tweak the tiniest bit) from Temptalia.
A color guide to the swatches is that yellow font = Temptalia collection, orange = the Chase Your Dreams palette, blue = individually sold eyeshadow, and green = the Tiny Marvels palette.
This palette had a few similarities (pictured above), but Temptalia mentioned that the shade called The Greatest Gift is the one she specifically wanted to keep as is, but make it more intense and shimmery.
I initially wrote off the comparison of The Greatest Gift and The Mielke Way when I was seeking dupes because the silvery shimmer in The Mielke Way gives it a completely different look. I’m not the biggest fan of icy shades, so I prefer having just the gold shimmer with the raspberry base over the added metallic sparkle. This highlights an important aspect though, which is that there are other shades from Sydney Grace’s line that I decided not to post as similarities because the intensity of the shimmer in the Temptalia collection gave it a different effect. Or if the shadows shared the same base color, the shimmer additions were different enough justify having both in my collection. I also estimate I probably have less than half of the Sydney Grace singles (at least before many were discontinued) so there may be other shades that are close. However, I don’t think many have the exact undertone or as much sparkle. I believe Temptalia owns the full collection of Sydney Grace eyeshadows, so she probably made sure that hers were different enough as well.
On the Horizon Palette
The outer packaging for this palette was too beautiful to skip. I knew instantly (and I did end up doing it) that I was going to transfer all of the Quintessence shades into this packaging so I’d have my favorite color story in my favorite palette artwork. Between the three palettes, the On The Horizon color story was the one I didn’t like and felt like I could skip. So, imagine my surprise when I ended up loving every look I’ve created with this! It opened my eyes to new color combo possibilities.
These colors are a little more subdued, but Temptalia described the intention for these to be almost like neutrals with a twist. And because I mentioned these are not the kind of shades I typically go for, it makes sense that I was unable to find similarities in my collection. I did compare it to the Dear Reader shade that was part of the collection but sold as a single because her followers seemed to love it in the sneak peek of it, but Lunar Illumination was already chosen in its place as a better compliment to the other shades in the palette.
I actually put Dear Reader with the OTH shades and moved Lunar Illumination into my custom palette with the rest of my Sydney Grace collection. I prefer it too!
Radiant Reflection Palette
Radiant Reflection reminds me so much of the Coloured Raine Cheers to the Beauty Palette because both of them possessed shades I tend to like, but the tones weren’t as appealing as I imagined once I saw them in person. I love greens, but not quite like those in Radiant Reflection. I like golds and blue-purples, but not quite like the ones in this either. Then the other shades in the palette were similar to others shadows I already have many times over in my eyeshadow collection, and not just among Sydney Grace shades. So, I ended up selling this palette. I knew I wouldn’t reach for it again because that’s exactly what happened to my Cheers to the Beauty palette which I depotted and sold most of the shades from it. I don’t regret buying Radiant Reflection because I needed to be certain I didn’t want it, as odd as that sounds. The Our Starry Night shade was so unique, Dearest Constant deep version is my type of orange eyeshadow, and Forget-Her-Not had me curious to see it in person. Once that happened, I could put the curiosity to rest.
Final Thoughts
I do feel like this trio of palettes all have similar sort of shades, but I still couldn’t talk myself into getting Quintessence only. I fell into the trap of wanting to possess all my favorite shades from the Temptalia collection and envisioning how I could mix and match the palettes with my other Sydney Grace singles. Funny enough, I only swapped three shades: Mango Tea for Sirius Starlight (placeholder and not a solidified decision), Dear Reader for Lunar Illumination, and Adore Me for Infinite Echoes (Deep). That last swap actually makes the palette more similar to the light version of On the Horizon!
Speaking of the light version, I find it amusing that my gripe with most eyeshadow palettes is when they have a disproportionate amount of light shades and mid-tone neutrals. When I used these palettes exclusively, which is how I prefer to do the testing process, I found myself actually wishing for a light matte to blend out edges and a medium brown. Temptalia intentionally left out brow bone and transition shades because it’s unlikely that anyone purchasing her palettes would not already have plenty of those types of shadows in their collection. So, in a normal situation this wouldn’t really be a problem except for those who like to have every palette being a complete palette.
As much as I think I don’t want palettes that are very similar in color story, I found myself not wanting to make any major changes to them, or even wanting to switch these around. I’m very satisfied with Quintessence and On The Horizon. The minor inconveniences for using the palettes, such as fallout and spending a little more time on my eye makeup, are fine with me because I know I will be able to make very impactful looks with phenomenal longevity. $40 per palette is a fair price, but the fact that I was able to use a promo code on top of the bundle discount made this all very reasonably priced. These palettes were even eligible for Sydney Grace’s sale/discount offerings during their annual Christmas in July sale. While I don’t recommend getting all of them purely for the sake of having a complete collection, I think they’re great quality and do recommend picking the one(s) that really speak to you.
Thank you for reading! I hope it has been helpful!
-Lili ❤
*Disclosure: When it comes to collabs or creations from influencers or other public figures, I always disclose any affiliations I may or may not have with them. In this situation, I have no personal or public ties to Temptalia, but I am a frequent peruser of her blog. I consider her an invaluable resource within the beauty community as her dupes and comparisons feature on her blog has impacted a lot of my purchasing decisions as well as her reviews, which mostly tend to align with my own opinions. I respect her as a blogger, but I don’t know much about her specifically.
Building off the hype of their large Zodiac Palettes, BH Cosmetics released website exclusive individual mini zodiac palettes during each month of the year. In 2021, they decided to do that again through birthstone palettes. One unfortunate thing to note is that each palette contains a pressed glitter, which I will not be swatching on my arm or wearing on my eyes.
Sometimes, US customers who purchased the palettes at launch were able to get free shipping as an incentive to pay full price rather than waiting for one of their frequent sales. Ordinarily, shipping is free with purchases at or above $40. For the low price of only $9 USD per palette, having six usable shades was still worth getting in my favorite color stories, plus my own birth month.
BH Cosmetics Emerald Palette
Emerald and Peridot are the two green-centric palettes out of twelve, but I chose this one because these particular tones are more my speed. The shades Emerald and Artsy AF look quite similar on my eyes, but the main differences are that Emerald is a satin-like shimmer that is a slightly brighter green in tone, while Artsy AF has a medium-dark green base with gold and silver shimmer. Restless didn’t swatch very well, but that shadow and Stubborn both blend easily and are opaque on the eyes. They both deepen up slightly, but Restless remains olive whereas Stubborn comes off a little more brown than the red-brown shade appears in the pan. I learned the hard way that Total Package was far too sparkly to look nice as a brow highlighting shade for my tastes, but it makes an excellent inner corner and pinpoint brightening shade. Lastly, Hard Working is a stunning warm brown shimmer shadow. Overall, the quality in this palette is great and I am so impressed by the cohesive color story. I don’t have to worry about clashing shades when I put any combination of them together.
This is a fantastic alternative to the Nars Climax Palette. Emerald has less shades and is warmer in tone whereas Climax is more neutral and a little more subdued. Another alternative is the Oden’s Eye Urd Palette which has shimmers that are even more intensely sparkly than Emerald, as well as a light green matte instead of a closely similar green shimmer. For this reason, I think Urd is an even better planned color story. The listed prices are quite different though at Emerald’s $9, Urd’s $20, and Climax’s $49. The two pricier palettes are a bit more refined in mill and texture, but I had no issues with Emerald whatsoever and it was a pleasure to use, so I’d even be willing to pay $15 for this one.
BH Cosmetics Sapphire Palette
It might have been silly of me to want more purples out of a Sapphire palette, but I saw images of this product online that led me to believe Sympathetic had more of a purple tone to it and that Sapphire was a true purple-blue duochrome rather than a blue satin-shimmer shadow with a blue and purple base. I also expected Confidence to lean a little more green than it does. I went from expecting to love this color selection the most to rating it my least favorite of the three I bought. In hindsight, I should have gone with the Amethyst palette.
These mattes are on the thin side and can look patchy in swatches, but they can be built up to full opacity. In a way, I’m glad to have this formula in these particular shades because sometimes brands going for more pigmented shadows overdo it on the ultramarines and oxides (pure pigments) which are much harder to blend if the ratio is off in the formula. Of the mattes, Organized AF didn’t apply as well on top of the others, so my eye looks weren’t as smoky as I wanted.
Cool is even prettier in person than my swatches and eye looks demonstrate. Although I’m not the biggest fan of silver eyeshadows, Sporty was necessary with this color story. I prefer it over other alternatives they could have chosen such as a baby blue shimmer. After adding some fantastic blues to my collection like the Kaleidos Club Nebula and Oden’s Eye Hummingbird Palettes, Sapphire falls short. It’s still not that bad for the price though, but knowing myself, I doubt I would reach for this again if I felt like doing a blue look.
BH Cosmetics Citrine Palette
I bought this palette purely because November is my birthday month. I’m rarely impressed by bright yellow mattes because they either blend into my skin or find some other way to disappear from my eyes, but I quite like this one! Because Unique is on the thinner side, it can look patchy though and even if I build up the shadow, it still isn’t perfect. Generous and Inquisitive are the tones and depths I was hoping to get out of Transition and Crease from the Natasha Denona Glam Face Palette in Dark. If Inquisitive was the tiniest bit darker, it would be perfect, but it still gives me a decent amount of depth to the outer corner. The two brown mattes are opaque and blend well without much effort.
Determined is a peachy gold that is a bit lighter than I like for a lid shade, but it doesn’t look too bad on the inner corner. Citrine is the shimmer-satin version of Unique. Both Citrine and Dynamic aren’t the prettiest or most exciting shadows, but all the shades (except perhaps Determined) look nice when paired together.
Overall, this palette ranks second of the three because it got me re-inspired to give yellow mattes a chance, as well as yellow eye looks altogether.
That’s all I can think to include in this post. The BH Cosmetics formula has proven yet again to be not just great for the price, but great quality overall.
That’s all for today! If you celebrate Christmas or other holidays during this time, I hope you had a great one! Thank you for reading! See you in the next year!
In under a month it will be two years since Marlena Stell rebranded Makeup Geek and two years since I started purchasing their products. I have some experience with the original shimmer eyeshadow formula, thanks to a sale they were having of their older products, but I cannot compare the original mattes to the ones now. For some reason, I use these shadows once and then go 3-4 months before I use them again. The cycle of use and disuse continued until September 2021 when I committed to thoroughly testing them once and for all.
About half of the square pan eyeshadows were purchased within a few months of the rebrand. The remainder were purchased during new launches like the Soft Focus Colors Collection and Fall Scenes Collection. The face products were purchased at different points in 2021, but I consider them fairly new, especially the bronzer since the shade I purchased was just released in September.
Makeup Geek Individual Shadows (old and new)
All swatches above Caitlyn Rose are from the older collection. The shades with an asterisk in front means it came from the All That Glitters Palette, which I depotted. The “Blue My Mind” color is stated as the name on the palette, but the actual name printed on the bottom of the pan (which I saw when depotting) is “Surf’s You Right.” I don’t know if this was a simple name change at the last minute or if it’s an example of quality control issues Makeup Geek may have had in the past.
I haven’t worn all the older shadows, but I’m very impressed with the ones from the All That Glitters Palette. The exceptions are Venom and Hype which are satin shades and they don’t feel as nice as they did when I first bought them, so I think it’s actually time to toss them. Same goes for Plot Twist and Caitlyn Rose which are beautiful but crumbly now.
I have to also mention the pigment in Blue My Mind is insane! The formula feels wet like a cream to powder shadow, but I have no idea if it’s supposed to be like that. It’s so opaque, sparkly, and intense, but the texture makes me a little concerned as to whether it’s time to throw that out as well. I purchased all the older circle pan shadows in March 2020, so it’s not unrealistic for them to be going bad by now.
I don’t have many of Makeup Geek’s current foils, but I actually prefer the sparkle and shine level of the original foils over the new ones. I even like the older formula better because I have creasing issues with Mystical and especially Medieval. Medieval isn’t as smooth as Mystical either. Illuminaughty, Grandstand, and Epic don’t crease as much. I really like those shades. The foils are described on the website as being a cream and powder hybrid. Perhaps the cream element is what gives it the tendency to crease. While I’ve always had some deep lines around my eyes which is natural to crease a little, Mystical and Medieval move so much to the point of leaving blank spots. It’s quite disappointing since they were the two shades in the rebrand I was most excited to buy. One issue all the new foils have though is that the shimmer dulls after a few hours. This isn’t completely unusual for me, but when they aren’t super sparkly to begin with, they basically look like satins by the end of the day.
Regarding the mattes, the only eye base I’ve tried that works well with them is the MAC Paint Pot. In the photo below, the top half shows where the mattes patch off the lid after being worn for less than an hour. The bottom half shows how the shadows looks after the same length of time when redone over MAC Paint Pot. It’s not perfect, but it’s much better. I don’t remember which shades I used here because the eye photos were taken at least six months ago.
Most of the mattes don’t have pigmentation issues. A few that I own are a thinner more powdery formula than others (like Chickadee and Peach For the Stars), which do fade me on quickly. Even those that fade will still leave a hint of color all day if I use the Paint Pot as a base. I learned though that the absolute best results are just like the face powders and look better if the eye has been set with a powder layer first. These are definitely not creamy mattes, so my eyes can look extra dry and ashy with some of these lighter shades. I think the dryness is what I initially couldn’t pinpoint as to why I was underwhelmed by MUG shadows.
These are some of the looks I’ve done prior to reviewing. I don’t remember which ones I used. I had a few additional shadows that didn’t make this review because I didn’t like them or they were too similar to other shades I purchased. I sold Daydreamer, Wine and Dine, Creme Brulee, Current Obsession, and Latte as Usual.
The best of the Makeup Geek mattes blend nicely and easily and show up opaque the way I like. The downside is that whatever shade it looks initially will turn into a darker variant of brown after a few hours. Had Me At Yellow turns into a mustard yellow-brown. Back To The Fuchsia turns purple-brown. Curfew turns dark brown almost black. I don’t mind these changes as much considering the brown-blends still look pretty and they mostly last all day.
Courageous, Unleashed, and Invincible are part of the Power Pigments formula which are supposed to be the most saturated and most pigmented mattes Makeup Geek have. They give more opaque results right away compared to the other mattes, they are more vibrantly colored, and they have a drier rougher texture. The last one is to be expected when using actual pigments over micas and dyes. The Power Pigments used to be more expensive than the regular mattes at $7.99, but were lowered to $5.50. I think this was a good decision because I don’t believe they are that much more special than the regular mattes considering most of them can be built up to the same level of opacity.
Contour in Scandal (discontinued)
Makeup Geek does not currently have contour products available for purchase, but I got it during a sale shortly after the rebrand. This is a great contour color for me, however, this product doesn’t blend very well. Wherever the powder first touches my skin is where it will stay. Every time I use it, I have to apply a finishing powder to blend out the edges or foundation to sharpen where it got too spread out from me trying to blend it. It still looks heavy even when applied with my softest most loosely packed brushes. This product was probably created at the height of contouring when it was popular to be ultra pigmented, sharp, and intense. If Makeup Geek brings the contours back, I hope there’s a formula change to produce a more natural or airbrushed look. I can make it work, but I likely won’t use it again. The sale price was under $2, so I can’t complain too much.
Bronzer in Chestnut
The color in the pan looks great for me. Unfortunately, this shade looks almost identical to the contour when I actually apply it to my skin. It has a golden sheen with fine gold specks throughout, which gives it the appearance of warmth, but the actual base color is deeper and neutral toned at best. When I apply this, most of the gold is brushed off the skin and what I’m left with creates a shadow and very little warmth. The swatch photo in the blush section shows how similar Chestnut and Scandal look when blended.
The bronzer blends easier than the contour, but the only way it looks nice is if I’ve set my face with a layer of powder first before I blend the bronzer on top. Powdering first gives a softer nicely blended look that I want. However, since 2020, I pretty much stopped using setting powders except under my eyes. If I use a powder at all, it’s a finishing powder which is the last step in my makeup routine. Because it’s not my usual style to set my foundation before I apply the rest of my face products, I don’t see myself reaching for this over the other bronzers I own. However, if I was willing to switch up my style, I know I could get a really beautiful end result. I did end up purchasing the shade Burnished during Black Friday, which is much more cool toned of a shade and just barely deep enough to show on my bare face. I have not yet had the chance to try Burnished over foundation.
Blush in Chivalry
Chivalry is a pretty terracotta brown shade. It performs better than the bronzer on unpowdered skin, but I’m still not completely impressed with the finished look unless it has that powder layer underneath it. Then it looks quite beautiful and almost airbrushed. This technique reduces the amount of pigment I get on the cheeks at once, but it also prevents me from getting darker patches where my brush first touches my skin. In the photo below, the left set of swatches were done with my finger and the right set were blended with a brush to demonstrate the blend without powder (though the sticking issue would have been more prominent if the swatches were applied on top of foundation).
Because powdering isn’t an absolute necessity with the blush and I can still get it to look nice if I take my time blending and use fluffy airy brushes, I could see myself continuing to use this beyond testing purposes. It has good staying power and can be applied lightly for a subtle flush (if powdered first), medium intensity on unset foundation, or built up to a fairly deep shade.
I purchased Covet during the Black Friday sale and I like it even more than Chivalry because medium pinks tend to be my favorite.
Also, unlike the bronzer and contour, the blush leaves a bit of kickup in the pan.
Highlighter in Midnight Sun (discontinued)
This highlighter color is discontinued, but I very happy I could get it because I think it’s a flattering shade on me. It’s quite funny that I like it so much considering this is listed as being best suited for fair skin tones. It does look pale in swatches, but as the cheek photo shows, a highlighter for someone lighter than me should look way more bright and stark. Then again, this isn’t a blinding type of formula. A shade actually geared toward my skin tone would probably not stand out on my cheekbone as much as this color does, which is just the right amount for my taste. Of all the face products, I like the highlighter formula the most.
Full Spectrum Eye Liner Pencil in Plumeria
This is another last minute Black Friday addition to this post. It did not arrive early enough before my trip for me to thoroughly test it. I watched how Marlena used this pencil and was drawn not only to the color, but the fact that it could be smudged out as a shadow color or base and is supposed to be almost water resistant. That element worked well on my arm. After giving it some time to dry, it couldn’t be moved by rubbing it with my finger. Even after wetting it, it didn’t smudge, smear, or run. However, for some reason this pencil did not last on my eyes for even an hour. I do have oily lids, so perhaps this is the reason. I tried it one time on bare eyelids with no primer or other eyeshadows. I put it all over the lid, blended out on my eye like a cream shadow. In an hour, about a third was gone. When I checked a few hours later, there wasn’t any of it left. Since it worked on my arm, I’m guessing this is a “me” problem and anyone who does not have oily eyelids will be able to use this pencil. In the future, after testing it thoroughly, I will update this post if I found a way to keep it on my eyes.
Customizable Compacts
I couldn’t end this review without discussing some of the things I noticed about the compacts offered by Makeup Geek. Whether you get the clear or gunmetal lid of the mini palettes, they both have a magnet of standard thickness and rounded edges. The square pan face powder singles fit perfectly inside them. On the other hand, the “Travel Vault Palette” with the gunmetal lid that anyone who makes a custom 9-pan palette will get, has the kind of magnet I get from the craft store in thin sheets with the peel off sticker on the back. As can be seen in the photo above, mine was not cut properly to the size of my palette. It arrived with the edges lifted up and when I press to stick them back down, they still don’t lay perfectly flat and are curved. When I watched reviews during the rebrand, I saw plenty of other people had warped magnetic bottoms like mine. The actual palette packaging is well constructed, sturdy, and beautiful. The mirror in the lid is a nice quality and a great size. However, I believe Makeup Geek cut corners (literally and figuratively) with the magnets. At one point I had four of these palettes and three out of four were not cut, laid, and stuck properly. When you have expensive eyeshadows, the last thing you want is to have to worry about the whole sheet lifting off and your shadows breaking. I have two of the travel palettes left and I took the better glued one on a trip with me and had no issues. However, I cannot say what would happen if someone keeps their shadows in there at all times.
The main reason I don’t keep my Makeup Geek pans in there is because of all the wasted space. I can understand the older circle pans not fitting better into the palettes considering their shape, but I expected the rebranded new shadows in their mostly square shape should be made to fit the palettes. They still only fit 9 shadows. I understand wanting enough space to be able to easily take the shadows in and out, but it doesn’t look good in my eyes. It looks like I took another brand’s shadows and tried to put them in Makeup Geek’s palette because they’re so ill-fitting. It bothers me when a pre-made palette is larger than it needs to be, but having dividers between the shades indicates it was intended to be that way. Custom palettes without those dividers look untidy on the part of the one who made the palette. Me.
In addition to the eyeshadows not fitting well, there is only room for one face product; if you put one face product, you can only add a maximum of 5 eyeshadows that are still widely spread out. One of the things I love about making custom palettes is having things line up and looking orderly. If it can’t be orderly, I enjoy at least filling up as much space as possible, so it’s a pet peeve of mine that they are this way. The only brand’s shadows that fit nicely in the Makeup Geek palettes are the mini circle shadow pans from Colourpop such as the pans from the Blue Moon, Lilac You A Lot, Star Wars The Mandalorian The Child palette, etc.
There is one other palette type for sale called the Mega Vault Palette. It’s the Matrix Shadow Palette that holds 28 shadows, and those at least fit nicely on all sides with a reasonable amount of extra space. When comparing the 9 pan palettes (whether old version or travel vault version) to the Mega Vault, it’s clear to see a palette of that size should have been made to hold 16, not 9. Marlena has expressed her struggles keeping her brand afloat, so I can see the desire to reuse packaging or try to drum up buzz by announcing a rebrand. I just wish the shadows-to-palette aspect was better planned out for the 9 pan palettes. Then again, perhaps this is why the custom palettes are so deeply discounted. In case anyone is wondering, I kept my Makeup Geek shadows in a custom magnetic Juvia’s Place palette, which I don’t believe is available for sale anymore. I kept them there until I bought the Mega Vault.
Whenever I review a brand from an Influencer, I disclose whether there are any personal feelings involved. I started following Marlena on YouTube shortly before her rebrand and although I only watch a quarter of her videos, I do like her as a person and I’ve improved my eyeshadow skills because of her live demonstration videos. At the same time, I was also very unhappy with the situation between her and Tina (The Fancy Face) which played out after I already made my initial purchase from the brand. Because of that incident, I did not want to review the products on my blog. However, this was two years ago and my opinion of Marlena returned to a neutral state. I wish her and her brand success. Even though the products aren’t a perfect match for my skin type or my application style, I’m still interested in seeing what else they create in the future and am likely to continue purchasing from them.
That’s all for today! I’mgrateful you’ve taken the time to read my review and I hope the information was useful.
-Lili ❤
*UPDATE: MARCH 4th, 2022 It is quite sad to see that Makeup Geek Cosmetics is officially closing in April. Even though I didn’t love a lot of the products, I wanted to see the brand grow and improve. I wish Marlena the best with her next endeavor as she is the type of person who doesn’t give up on pursuing her passions (as even stated by her in her brand closing video). In the event that someone new has come to my blog in search of recommendations on what to purchase before the items are gone forever, I easily recommend the highlighters and the Mega Vault empty magnetic palettes. Perhaps even the blushes, but that’s all. I know the brand is best known for their eyeshadows, but I personally think they’re just okay. Since my review, MUG has released a primer, mascara, and brushes but I haven’t tried those, so I cannot say anything about their quality.
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