Tarte Rainforest After Dark Palette - Review + Swatches!

The Tarte Rainforest After Dark Palette was a limited edition release, for the Tarte Fall 2014 Collection. It is an all in one, eye and cheek palette. It was brought back in 2015 because of popular request, but is still a limited edition product. It started off to retail for $38, at Sephora, Ulta and the Tarte website. Where it is available online and in-store. Now the price however has been pushed up to $40. And is still available at all three places. I bought mine at Ulta, for $38 and used $6 off when you've spent $200 at Ulta. Making my palette for $32.

The palette comes with a plastic sheet inside, naming the shades in the palette. There are six eyeshadows (0.035 oz each), one highlighter and one bronzer (0.14 oz each) and one blush (0.21 oz).

The eye shadows are:

• Bare to explore
• Make a mauve
• Plum away with me
• Up to no gold
• Tan-gled up in you
• Down Turn a-brown

The blush, highlight and contour are respectively: 

• Unleashed
• Champagne
• Park Ave Princess 

The pigmentation on the palette is beautiful, aside from the blush which swatched rather poorly.The eye shadows blend beautifully as well as the cheek powders. The palette does come with a rather large mirror which makes it even better for travel, and touch ups. The feel of the palette is sturdy and is compact, which also makes it great for travel. 

The swatches are taken in indoor lighting, with one swipe of each product, I did not want to build up the product so that the pigmentation can be seen properly. From the swatches above you can see that the blush has quite weak pigmentation and is slightly patchy, the rest however is beautiful.

All in all, I really like this product, especially for on the go. It has a great variety of eye shadows for quite a few looks and has you covered for cheeks powders as well. The Park Ave Princess bronzer is one of my favorites, because its a very neutral contour powder that can work as a bronzer as well as a contour powder. I think this palette gives you a bang for the buck, and if you live in the United States and are purchasing online, you can sign up for Ebates and get cashback when ordering for free!

Hope this review was helpful! What are your thoughts about this palette? :)

ELF Studio HD Blush in Headliner Review & Swatch!

I know this is a a late review, but I've recently fallen in love again with cream blushes. I personally prefer powder blushes because of the convenience of applying them, but my love for that radiant creamy look is back I guess.
The ELF Studio HD blushes hold 0.034 Fl Oz and come with a pump. They're popularly referred to a dupe for the MUFE HD blushes ($26), where as these blushes are $3.

These blushes come in five shades. I have the blush in Headliner, which is a pinkish mauve. At first when you dispense some product from the pump it may seem separated (the oil and the cream blush), but the problem can be easily resolved by shaking the blush well.. And voila! A beautiful cream blush comes out of the pump. 

I think Headliner is an absolutely beautiful color to wear on an everyday basis. It does contain really small silver glitter specks here and there, but overall it gives a very radiant finish. On the face the glitter can't be seen. And oh, the blush is intensely pigmented, so a little goes a long way. At first when I pumped out product I thought a lot would be wasted (that's the only complain most people have with this), but I figured if you control the pump you can actually get how much product you want.

The wear time of the blush is also great, it's very long lasting. I love the natural sheen it gives. It doesn't really have any fragrance, so it won't bother smell sensitive people. I apply it with the elf stippling blush and blend it out with a buffing brush. 

Overall, I really love this blush. I'm so happy to have tried it again. I love the color, the finish and the staying power is great too. It's a total bargain, and at $3 I don't think you can really go wrong. On top of that, using Ebates you get 4.5% cash back. And if you're lucky you can find the stuido line on 50% off too! 

The Balm Hot Mama Review + Swatch!

So, when I started going crazy about makeup and makeup tips I came across The Balm. Which was popularly known for producing very pigmented products and their cute retro packaging. Seeing the reviews and swatches (and of course, the hype) I would go crazy and definitely wanted to own it. So, well... I guess I couldn't hold for long and ordered Hot Mama from Amazon. I got it for $13.79 (which is actually $21 on the website). And I don't think The Balm products are readily available at many stores, it's kind of hard to fine them. They can be bought on the website, or on amazon. Though sometimes Hautelook, which is a premier members-only site featuring private, limited-time sale events of the world's premium fashion and lifestyle brands, has The Balm products available too.

Anyway.. Coming to the review. I absolutely LOVE this blush. I can't rave about it enough. I use it everyday since I got it. Even though Hot Mama kind of has a prominent sheen to it, I think it's wearable during the day too if you use a light hand. This is how it looks: 

The packaging is really cute. It comes in a paper cardboard type packaging and has a strong magnetic lid. It holds 7.06 grams, 0.25 oz. Which is quite a lot of product. People say its a dupe for the NARS Orgasm (the universally flattering blush). Hot mama is a very beautiful pinky peach colored blush with a golden sheen. It doesn't really have any big chunks of sparkle in it, which I love. And which all together makes it a lot more wearable. It's lasting power is good too, and it lasts me around 5-6 hours without primer. it doesn't really have any scent. It's texture is very soft and buttery, just tapping it with the brush gets you enough product for one cheek for a natural look. 

I wanted to include a swatch on the hand, but for some reason the camera wasn't doing justice to the color of the blush. So I didn't include that.. Regardless, all the pictures were taken indoor without flash. I hope they're clear and give a good idea of blush. Please leave a comment and let me know what you guys think about it too. Also, you feel free to ask questions. :)

Bourjois Blush 35 Lune D'or Review + Swatch!

I wasn't very into blushes as a makeup starter, cause I thought they made me look like a clown. But with time I've developed this special love for them. Especially cause of the healthy glow they give to the skin. I recently got the Bourjois Blush in 35 Lune D'or. Which is a light pinkish golden blush. At first sight I thought it would be similar to The Balm's Hot Mama blush. It is kind of similar to it thought.

It comes in a small plastic round compact, with a brush and a mirror.

Opened:

The blush has a very light sweet powerdy type of fragrance. Which isn't strong at all. The texture isn't very soft. You don't get much product at one time. You might have to layer it up a little for it to show, especially if you have darker skin. The lasting power isn't very great, because it has a lot of shimmer which kind of fades with time. The shimmer in this product is more visible than in The Balm's Hot mama, which has more of a golden sheen. This blush is a more night time blush, for me at least. 'Cause I don't like very obvious products on a daily basis. Though I do love this blush's sheen, it totally brightens up the whole face.

Here are the swatches: 

 

Overall, I really do like this product. But it's not something I'd use on a daily basis. So, no it won't decrease the number of times I reach out for my beloved Hot Mama blush. Unless I'm going out somewhere at night. To read my full review on The Balm's blush Hot Mama click here. For any questions, comments or suggestion. Please feel free to leave a comment.

The Body Shop Color Crush Lipstick ~ Review + Swatch!

Today I'll be reviewing The Body Shop's Color Crush lipstick in Coral Blush (110), available at The Body Shop. It's a beautiful bright summer color. And it's one of my favorite lipsticks, though I'm not sure which lipsticks are exactly the one's I love the most. I always wear lipstick depending on my mood, the weather, how I feel and etc. The lipstick's name is quite on spot, cause the color isn't exactly coral. It's like this extremely beautiful mix of pink and coral, hence the name; coral blush. It really brightens your face if you look tired and at the same time isn't too bold. The packaging in nice and decent, like a standard lipstick. But it has a colored cap. Which I like and makes this lipstick easy to identify among my other lipstick. This is how it looks:

The lipstick has a sweet fruity fragrance, not too overpowering and doesn't bother me at all. I actually like it. The color is I think a type which can suit a lot of skin tones. Since when I was at The Body Shop the assistant there said to me that this color was one of the shade that got sold the most. This is how the lipstick looks:

The lipstick is long lasting, at least for me. I wore it to University at around 8 am and by 4 pm, my lipstick still looked fine. Just a little faded at the inner sides of the lip, cause of eating and drinking. The finish is really beautiful, it's not completely matte but its not shiny at all. It's like perfect, not too creamy either, and it feels light on the lips.

I bought this from The Body Shop on a sale, for I think about Rs. 1000. I lost the receipt so I'm not exactly sure about the price. But it was something around that. Cause it retails for Rs. 1400 normally but it was on 30% discount.

Here is the swatch:

Overall, I really like this lipstick. It's a color that I can pop on whenever I feel I need to brighten up my face. And it lasts very long.

Hope the review was helpful! Please leave any comments for questions or suggestions. :)

Mini Milani Haul.. Baked Blush, eye pencils and primer!

Today I'm doing a min Milani Haul. Which I received in my mail yesterday. I got the famously known dupe for the Nars Orgasm; baked blush in luminoso, a limited edition of the shadow eyez in Sand Dunes (11), Brow & Eye highlighter pencil in Vanilla Natural Taupe (03) and lastly the Milani Eye shadow Primer.

First I'll be reviewing the eye shadow; shadow eyez in Sand Dunes (11). Which is one of the limited edition eye shadows in the shadow eyez line. I absolutely fell in love with this color when I swatched it. It's beautifully shimmer and applies so effortlessly, so creamy, but dries and does not crease at all. No product comes off when touched either, just maybe a piece or two of the shimmer particles. It's more of a night out eye shadow to me, but I think I might be able to pull it off during the day too. It has no fragrance and can be sharpened with any jumbo sharpener. It is very long lasting, I don't think it'll last 12 hours though. But it will last at least 5-6 hours, without creasing. Here is the swatch:

In the picture the shadow isn't as shimmery and bright as it actually looks on the eyes but it really is a highlighting color. Slightly champagned color, gives a metallic finish. I got this for Rs. 875 I think on www.beautyarena.pk. It is available in most drugstores for about$#6-8 depending on where you buy it from.

Next is the Brow and Eye highlighters. They come in three shades. This was the only pencil with two matte shades, the other two pencils had one matte and one shimmery shade. But since I was picking the shadow eyez in a shimmery shade, I decided to pick this is a double matte shade; Vanilla & Natural Taupe (03). Since I mostly like natural matte makeup, without shimmers. I think both sides of the pencil are very creamy. But unlike the shadow eyez they don't dry matte and do transfer a little when touched. But you can use a primer to increase their lasting power and set your makeup with a setting spray. What I absolutely love about the pencil is that light colored side of the pencil completely matches my skin tone. So I could use this as a concealer too, especially if you're on the go and want to travel light. Also, the brown part of the pencil can be used as a natural eye colored eye liner. Here is the swatch:

I got this for Rs. 975 I think. I'm not sure. Same website. It's available in most drugstores for about $7-8, again depending on where you buy it from.

Milani eye shadow primer, is availble only in one shade; nude. I got this cause the ELF eye shadow primer which several people say is just like the UD primer potion didn't work for me. It made my eye shadow crease. So I thought I could give this primer a shot, since there were good reviews about it on MUA. It has a very soft feel and dries to matte. It's different as compared to the ELF eyelid primer. I think it's better. I haven't tested it enough yet to exactly tell how long it makes me eye shadow last since I just got it yesterday. It holds 0.3 Fl oz, for Rs. 750. It's available for about $6-7. Here is the swatch:

Lastly is the Milani baked blush in Luminoso (05). Which most people say is the exact dupe of the Nars Orgasm, just that it doesn't have big pieces of golden glitter like the Orgasm. But I am not too sure about that. Since several reviews say The Balm's Hot Mama blush (I blush that I absolutely love) is a dupe of Orgasm too, just that it's a little more peachy than it. Where as I think Luminoso is more peachy than Hot Mama. But regardless of that I think Luminoso is a beautiful everyday wear blush. Since it's not too sparkly and just gives a healthy look. It is slightly powdery but I think that's cause its a baked blush. It retails for Rs. 960 at the same website, for 3.5 g/0.12 oz. Available around $6-7 at most drugstores. Comes with a small brush which I think is great for travelling and a small mirror. Here is the swatch: 

For my full review on The Balm's Hot Mama, click here. Hope you all liked the reviews. For any questions or suggestions please comment. :) Have a great day!

Maybelline Dream Bouncy Blush (Peach Satin, 20) Review + Swatch!

This isn't a new product I know, but it's a product I've been wanting to review. I bought this from CVS for I think $8-9 in the shade Peach Satin (20). I got it because of all the excellent reviews I read about it, and how so many people raved about this blush. But to be very honest, I was quite disappointed when I got it. It is a nice cream blush but it wasn't at all what I expected. The thing that I disliked the most about it how it's a dirt magnet, not at all hygienic. I haven't even used the blush much but yet it's full of bits and other things on the surface. It would have been a lot better if it was in a tube like packaging. But every time you have to dip in your finger, no matter how clean it is, stuff settles in it.

It holds 5.6g/.19Oz. The color Peach Satin is beautiful, and it adds a nice flush to the cheeks. But I don't like it's consistency too much. It's like an in between a mousse and cream blush. And it literally is bouncy, lol. Because if you push one side of the blush down the other side comes upward. The blush has a very light cinnamon sort of fragrance. It's not very long lasting, it lasts about 3-4 hours for me.

The color is a light peach with warm undertones, and the blush has a slight glow. It doesn't dry to matte. It also has very light pieces of glitter which don't show up on the face.

Overall, I don't like the blush very much. Mostly because of the packaging. And also because of it's weird consistency. The color is fine, but not too great for me. And I don't like it's lasting power very much either. A lot of you may love this blush, but I guess I wasn't luck enough. Maybe it doesn't last too long on me cause of my combination skin.

Hope the review helped! Please comment for any suggestions or question. Let me know what you think about this blush. Maybe your perspective will make me like it and I'll use it! :D