Swatches: Shiseido Majolica Majorca Eyeshadow

Today I've decided to swatch my Majolica Majorca (MJMJ) single eyeshadow, some of which I am ashamed to say are brand new! (Well, they were, now they're brand new minus one swatch ;-)

From top to bottom they are:
GR185
BR784
12 (DC'ed)
GD822
SV821
BL724
BK922
YE232

Out of all of these, only YE232 disappoints me. It's very pigmented on my hand, but I layer and layer it on my lids and all I get is this faint chalky yellow dust. It might be because it's a different formula within the line (matte with coarse sparkles) while the others are all finely shimmery.

Swatches:

Review: Kanebo Lavshuca Eye Color

Range: 12 colors, from bright pink, to wine, to blue, to silver, to gold, to beige and brown. A very nice variety.

Naming: As usual, Japanese brand naming is boring...abbreviated words with numbers usually meaning the order of which it came in. For example, PK-1, PK-2. PK is pink, 1 and 2 being which color was created first. BL is Blue, WN Wine, GD gold, BG Beige, BN Brown, SV silver, and so on.

Packaging: This comes in an easy to depot white case with a clear lid. The lid is also embellished with pinky silver decorations. Very fancy, and by the way, if you like to keep a few MAC eye singles with you, these fit MAC :]

Depotting: Like most other Japanese brands, Lavshuca things are easy to depot. However, it's kind of hard to find the hole. Where it says Kanebo at the top of the sticker on the back, the hole is 'ne'. Just poke a pen or toothpick in there and lift out.

Lasting Ability/Creasing: I experienced no creasing over UDPP and it lasted the whole day with no touchups.

Texture: There is an imprinted L Lavshuca symbol which does NOT fade over a few uses. The texture is soft and very pigmented. I love it!

Price: This can be bought for 14USD at ichibankao.com, but I believe I got mine for far less...maybe 6$? I'm not too sure.

The colors I have are PK-3, light shimmery pink, and WN-1, a plummy wine.

Review: Jill Stuart Brilliance Eyes Glazed Garnet 06

Here is the review I promised you!

Colors: ALL of Jill Stuart's eye makeup is shimmery! This quad happens to include a light baby pink, a slightly plummy taupe, a dark silvery green and a beautiful dark plum-black (perfect for smokey eyes!). I love this quad for fall!



Packaging: It comes in a pink box and in the mirrorlike finish packaging adorned with a fake jewel. The back is essentially clear with a sticker stating Jill Stuart, 06 glazed garnet, and a few lines in Japanese. It comes with a double ended black sponge applicator.

Lasting Ability: This stuff lasts all day, over my trusty UDPP however! It's like shu uemura shadows in that they just don't come off!

Texture: It's soft and silky, but doesn't fly everywhere. Your brush can easily pick it up. By the way, like all Jill Stuart stuff, this is scented with Rose, so if you're sniff sensitive I would advise you to steer clear!

Pigmentation: The swatches above were taken with two light taps--that's how good these are! Don't overdose on the darker shades--you'll regret it!

Retails 1450 NTD in Taiwan, about 45.50 USD and 4,864.20 Japanese Yen. However, this retails for 61USD on ichibankao.com.

Teaser: Jill Stuart Brilliance Eyes 06 Glazed Garnet

Expect a review on this lovely palette soon! What I *can* tell you now though is that its smokey eyed fall goodness! Retails 1450 NTD in Taiwan, about 45.50 USD and 4,864.20 Japanese Yen. However, this retails for 61USD on ichibankao.com. Is it worth the splurge? Well let's see about that....

Haul: Recently Acquired Eye Makeup!

Depicted are:

Laura Mercier Eye Color in Rose (recieved in swap..going back up it is! Not my color!) To be DC'ED!

Laura Mercier Black Ebony Eye Liner (recieved in swap--love!)

Besame Alluring Eye Shadow in Plum Dandy--also recieved in swap, beautiful!! Especially when paired with MAC Magnetic Fields.

What recent items have you been loving lately?

Obsession: Burgundy and Wine Eyeshadow!

Products included in swatches:
Lancome Five Star (2nd pic)
Kanebo Lavshuca WN1 Eyeshadow
Shu Uemura Old Formula ME 885
MAC Pigment Heritage Rouge (overrich)
Old Wet N' Wild Limited Edition Trio Starry Night, last color

Burgundy shadow is definetly a fall trend this year! Love the color, so dark and rich. What are your favorite burgundy shadows?

Obsession: Shiseido Majolica Majorca Shadow Customize!

Welcome to another round of 'Obsession'! This time, it's also eyeshadow; Majolica Majorca shadows. The name refers to the fact that there are palettes (a small, fits 4, and big, fits 6) that can hold the shadows once depotted. Unfortunately, these are DC'ed!

These babies are beautifully pigmented and soft, and come in an array of colors! Complete with beautiful packaging, this really is one brand worth lusting over. Yum!! Available at adambeauty.com under the label Shiseido for Hong Kong 43$, which is about 5.50 USD.

Haul: MAC and Sephora!

I got:
Guerlain Loose Kohl Noir 1 (35$ with tax, at Sephora)
MAC Lightly Ripe (14.50)
MAC Mauvement (19.50)
and a sample of Heritage Rouge pigment


Top is MAC Party Mate (Naughty Nauticals May collection)
Bottom is MAC Lightly Ripe, (August Cult of Cherry collection)


Hope that helps someone!

Review: MAC Pigments

As most of us know, MAC has a popular product called Pigments. They are essentially loose powders that you can use anywhere, depending on the color. Like the name, they are extremely pigmented. These retail for 19.50 at MAC stores everywhere. However, MAC counters do not carry pigments unless they are a release.

What MAC says about pigments:
"Shadow: Pigment
Pigment is a highly concentrated loose colour powder that contains ingredients to help it adhere to the skin. Pigment comes in an excellent range of colours. Use to create a subtle wash of colour or an intense effect. Pigment does not streak or cake, is easy to blend and long-lasting. Please note: Pigments are sold by weight not volume. Containers can appear to be less than full due to settling of the product.
7.5g / 0.26 oz
US$19.50 "
(--taken from the maccosmetics.com site)

Texture: These range from chunky(best for pressing in my experience) and very finely miled. The new Overrich ones, released August 21st 2008 are exceptionally creamy.

Finishes: These come in shimmery or matte finishes. The shimmery ones tend to have a better texture.

Colors: These come in an array of colors, not even mentioning Pro (or usually for makeup artists) colors and the limited edition ones!

Note: While you look at the jar and say, 'I spent 20 bucks for this tiny thing?!' you actually use such a tiny bit, your grandkids will probably be able to use them. OK, well maybe that's an exaggeration, but they're so pigmented there's no need to use a lot.

Pressing Pigments: Loads of people avoid pigments because they are loose, and therefore messy. However, you can buy empty pans (26mm from starsmakeuphaven.com), add rubbing alcohol and 'press' the colors into pans of pressed eyeshadow. Here is a good tutorial:
http://specktra.net/f280/guide-pigment-pressing-pic-heavy-63815/

Fallout: Of course, loose piggies will have fallout (even some pressed shadows do!) If you hate the extra steps in cleaning, I'd steer away.

Colors I own:

Steel Blue: A lovely dark blue (almost greenish) with gold shimmer. Amazing! A PRO color. Finely milled.

Your Ladyship: Light cream with gold and pink pearl. LE with 2007 November's Antiquitease. Slightly chunky.

Mauvement: Released July 2007 in Rushmetal and re-released August 21st 2008 with Overrich, this is a cool taupe (leaning brown) with gold shimmer. Awesome texture.

Gold Stroke: A rich chocolatey brown. With some red in it however. Great texture! LE with November 2007's Antiquitease.

Mutiny: Clear sky blue with silver shimmer. MAC had huge quality issues with this one however. Very finely milled. LE with the MAY 2008 Naughty Nautical's collection.

Lovely Lily: Lilac with red pearl, absolutely beautiful! Great texture as well. LE with the MAY 2008 Naughty Nautical's collection.

Sweet Sienna: LE with November 2007's Antiquitease. A dirty taupe with pink and gold pearl, absolutely beautiful. Slightly chunky, like the other piggies of that release.

Softwash Grey: LE Asia exclusive with the 2007 Lightful collection. Blued gray with blue duochrome, beautiful! Has a nice texture as well.

Apricot Pink: Peached pink, but oh so pretty!! It was LE with the March Sweetie Cakes collection in 2006. Texture is like Steel Blue's.

Helium: LE with the Summer 2007 Baloonacy collection and repromoted with 2007 Holiday Originals collection, it has an odd texture imo. Its fine, but has little balls (finely milled balls :X) of pigment. Color is beautiful though, a pale pink that flashes pink and purple.

Golden Lemon: How I love this bright, clean yellow! It's such a sunny, tropical color. One of my favs! The texture is a little chunky, due to the shimmer.

Golden Olive: Just like the name. Another one of my faves, so pretty! Texture is like Golden Lemon's, a little chunky.

Dark Soul: Now this is an odd piggy. I noticed that out of all the pigments I own, this is the only one that doesn't 'stick' to the wall of the jar. Hmm. A dark black with silver sparkles, may stain your eyelid. Great for girls who love smokey eyes.

Heritage Rouge: ZOMG. A burnt red brown, it's one of the shades going PRO in the August 21st 2008 collection (all except Mauvement and Mega Rich). Controversy has arisen due to the fact that all except Mauvement and Mega Rich are only 4.3 grams instead of 7.5. I love this color, and great for fall too!

Shimmertime: A soft pink, with slight peach undertones and silver shine. Texture is finely milled. LE from She Shines in June 2006.

Obsession: Blue Eyeshadow!

Well, since I'm currently sorting my stash, I found several blue eyeshadows and decided to start another little series entitled 'Obsession'! Here they are:


Includes:
LE 2008 Lavshuca Summer Gradually Palette in Aqua Beach
Majolica Majorca Majolook in BL763
Majolica Majorca single eyeshadow in BL724
MAC Pigments in Mutiny(LE, May 2008 Naughty Mauticals) and Steel Blue (PRO)
MAC for A-mei Bold Eyes e/s trio (includes Venus, Freshwater and Carbon)
KATE Gradical Compact in BU4

Hope you liked this 'Obsession' and look forward to more!

Review: Shu Uemura Powder Eye Shadows

(Pictured shade is ME Blue 650)
Shu Uemura eyeshadows were recently reformulated into the 'new' version. In the old version, only the ME(metallic formula) shadows were good. However, now, in my opinion, they're all good.

What shu says about their shadows:
"Empowered Eyes: Intense Colors. Various Effects. Single eye shadows with light-capturing powders in 4 different lasting effects.

- Micro-fine powders: 2 different shapes adhere firmly to skin for an even, long-lasting finish
- Silicone-coated powder: results in truest color pay-off and a non-fading finish
- Light capturing powders: absorb and reflect light for a multi-dimensional finish
- Apply sheer or layer for intensity. May be used as eye liner with dampened eye liner brush

4 powders in 4 finishes: Matte (M), Pearl (P), Iridescent (IR) and Metallic (ME)." (taken from the Shuuemura-usa site).

First, the shu uemura way of naming. Only Limited Edition items are properly named. Normally you will see a name such as 'P Green 450'. The first letter, P, is for the formula. They have already explained this above what the first letter means. The 'Green' would be the color; this is usually left out in discussion. The numbers at the back are sorted by colors.
So, 100 = Pinks & Rose
200 = Oranges
300 = Yellows, Gold & Bronze
400 = Yellow-Green, Olive & Green
500 = Green & Turquoise
600 = Blue
700 = Purple
800 = Beige & Brown
900 = 'Rainbow'(the whites that flash iridescently), White, Gray, Silver, Charcoal & Black.
Basically, within the 100, the higher the number the darker the color is. So 'M Blue 600' is one of the lightest blues while 'ME Blue 650' is quite darker.
Sometimes you will see a letter, such as 'IR900Y'. The Y will usually not stand for anything, but when shu has several 'IR900's, Y stands for yellow, the undertone. Other IR900s include G(green), P (pink) and V (violet).

So, in all, the naming of IR Rainbow 900Y:
IR--Iridescent formula
Rainbow: It flashes more than one color
900Y: The lightest color within the 900 family, and Y for the yellow undertone.


Formula Differences: Matte is no shimmer, like many of you know. Pearl has no shimmer as well; it's more of a gleam. Iridescent is the shiniest and has lots of shimmer (may also flash different colors) and Metallic is the next most shimmery (same color flash).

Packaging/depotting: Many people complain that shu's packaging is ugly. In my opinion, they're simple and sleek, very futureistic. They are built for depotting into seperate palettes that shu sells. To depot, poke a toothpick or pen through a hole on the upper left hand side, next to where it says the shadow name. The following picture illustrates that.

And...one of the reasons shu should have magnets on the back of their shadows/in their palettes. Ewww glue...


Texture of these are all AMAZING. Remember MAC Starflash and the buzz it caused? THEY RIPPED OFF SHU! Texture is soo similar, buttery and soo pigmented. A definite thumbs up!

Colors: Shu rivals MAC in the sheer amount of colors. If you're looking for neutrals, brights or anything in between, shu has it. The colors I have personally are:

ME Beige 800: Super pale champagne pink. Pretty icy and I would think for cooler skin.

ME Purple 700: Slightly cool candy grape. Very pretty purple. Purple ladies, this one's for you!


ME 885: This is the only shadow I have from the old formula, given to me by an awesome MUA'er. A rich bordeuax wine shade, perfect for Fall 2008 trends.


IR Brown 850: Lots of people ask me what's the difference between this and ME brown 850 (best dupe of the long DC'ed cult item ME945). This is definetly more silvery as a silvery gunmetal brown (it's also a great substitute for MAC starflash shadow Smoke & Diamonds). Recommended for taupe lovers.

ME Brown 850: The best dupe for the old formula ME945, it's warmer than it's sister IR Brown 850 but still a taupe. Also recommended for taupe lovers.


IR White 900Y: This is a white shade that flashes gold and golden green strongly. Great shade to pair with greens.


P Green 450: A mid-tone grass green. It's perfect for green lovers, especially paired with IR900Y.

IR Pristine Green: Limited Edition for Spring 2008 in the Rebirth collection, this is more 'matte' despite it's Iridescent label. The design on it quickly fades. A nice pop of lime green for bright fans.

ME Green 450: Don't get this confused with P Green 450! This is an olive green, quite different from P450. There seems to be more brown in it than other olives (such as MAC Sumptuous Olive or Mink & Sable).


ME Blue 650: A beautiful metallic navy blue, I highly recommend this one. It's a deep shade, no doubt, but very 'bright'.


Pictures:




These retail 20USD a pop at shu uemura boutiques or counters near you (go to shuuemura-usa.com's store locator) or online at shuuemura-usa.com. Completely worth the price because a little goes a long way.

Lots of thanks to CarolineSwing of Makeupalley for informing me on Shu's numbering :]

Review: Clinique Eye Shadow Duo in 309 Champagne Kisses

This was given to me by a dear friend when she returned from Taiwan. I think this was an Asia Exclusive since it isn't on the Clinique site (where it retails for 17.50). The duo includes a pretty neutral to warm light pink and a metallic beige-brown (which in my opinion is absolutely beautiful).




The pink looks cooler than it is here however.

I was skeptical for this duo since the only other Clinique eyeshadow I have is Lucky Penny, which was great, but I dislike pinks. However...

This was a disappointment. The pink color, while pigmented, was chalky on me and made me look horrible. Perhaps the color is too pale; but I didn't have high hopes for it, because, as I already stated, I never use pinks on my eyes. This also was about 2/3 of the duo.

The brown shade, a pretty metallic beige-brown with pink undertones is BEAUTIFUL! I really like it, but...it's not the most pigmented. If this was a single, however, I still would keep it. But it's only about 1/3 of the compact...

Packaging on the clinique eye shadow is always in a mirrored lid with the Clinique logo, see through bottom and eyeshadow in little mock-color squares. Comes with a sponge and a plastic cover. I hate how the mirror attracts so much fingerprints though.

These color disappeared on me immediately without a base, but lasts pretty well with Urban Decay Primer Potion. Overall, up for swap this goes, because the pink shade is just not flattering and the amount of beige is not enough to save it.

Mini Haul: Jill Stuart and Clinique freebie!

My friend recently came back from Taiwan and CP'ed for me a Jill Stuart lip luster in 08 Sugar Rose, and gave me a Clinique eye shadow duo in 309 Champagne Kisses since she doesn't wear makeup. Having said that..here are some pics!! Expect reviews soon!

Clinique Duo:



Jill Stuart:





The Clinique duo retails for 17.50$ and the Jill Stuart Lip Luster for 26USD$(800NTD) (rounded up). You can find Clinique at Sephora, any department store and online at Clinique.com and Jill Stuart at Ichibankao.com.