Pretty Fly Super Shock Shadow Kit by ColourPop

Disclaimer: I purchased these.

I indulged in some of ColourPop's spring Super Shock shadows with the Pretty Fly kit ($25), and I've got to say they really knocked it out of the park when it comes to the packaging on these. So pretty!

I'm actually keeping the shadows in the box, I like it so much.  Fortunately, I really like the shadows in this collection as well.  Let's take a closer look.

First up is Force Behavior (light pinky beige with silver, gold and pink glitter) and Goodbye Butterfly (peachy pink with a gold sheen satin finish).  Goodbye Butterfly can also work as a blush, although it's not my favorite formula for that purpose.

Force Behavior

Goodbye Butterfly

Next is Three's a Cloud (ultra metallic rich amber gold) and Flux with You (light gold with silver glitter).

Three's a Cloud

Flux with You

Last up is Soul-cialize (pinky lavender with pink and sliver glitter) and Up in the Air (dirty plum satin).

Soul-cialize

Up in the Air

I've been using these for about two weeks now and I'm back on the super shock shadow formula bandwagon. I know some people are over this formula, but it works well for me. I don't mind using my fingers to apply shadow and I do find that a dense brush works well in applying these as well. I also recently watched a YouTube video that showed how you can revive these when they get too dry by mixing them with a silicone-based primer like the Smashbox Photo Finish primer (it's at 23:40 of this video by Sarah Hubler of the Beauty Hub, although there are other demos/techniques on YouTube). 

Hope your Spring is going well - I'm counting down to my upcoming vacation/staycation in May.

My Must Haves Palette by Essence

Disclaimer: I purchased these.

Hey, long time no see! I'm still playing with lots of makeup and skincare and today wanted to share my impressions of the Essence My Must Haves singles, which retail for a whopping $1.99 each at Ulta.  I picked up a bronzer, two blushes, and an eye shadow to go into the 4-pan palette ($3.49). I've been playing with these for over a month now, let's see if they are any good!

First of all, the palette arrived without any packaging and was scratched on top :-(  Not good, Ulta, especially considering the claims against you about reselling products that have been returned. Fortunately, each single comes securely packaged in it's own container and was in good condition, so no complaints there.  They are not magnetized but do fit nicely into the palette, which is a rather flimsy plastic.

The bronzer shade also works as an eyeshadow, and I've been using it as a crease shade as well.  It's best suited for fair complexions and I've reached for it quite a lot in the last month.  There are 3 blushes on Ulta's site and I purchased Rosy Glow and Coral Dream. 

Rosy Glow is the more pigmented of the two, but I like them both and find that they can be built up in color without getting cakey.  The single eye shadow I chose is Brownie Licious, which is a dark brown matte that applies smoothly and can also be built up in color. 

None of these are groundbreaking, but I do like them and would take them with me when traveling for a nice one and done natural look. I hate taking expensive makeup with me when traveling, as I've been known to lose items, plus things get broken. At this price point I wouldn't be heart broken and I do like them!

Swatcharama! My ColourPop Super Shock Shadow Collection

While my ColourPop shadow collection was maybe 6 shadows tops for the longest time, I did acquire a few more during some recent sales. I've been enjoying using them and thought I'd swatch my somewhat modest collection. I've arranged the colors by finish, and we'll start with the mattes.

I'm a matte shadow fan, and all of these are smooth and easy to apply with either my finger or a cream shadow brush (I use a Sephora brush made for cream shadows). Love the color gradient of these - clearly I enjoy warm toned neutrals.

I also really like the satin finish ColourPop shadows, which are also quite easy to work with.  Smash is my most used ColourPop shadow, and I should hit pan on it soon.

The pearlized shadows have more shimmer, but are smoother than than the metallic shadows. I have no idea why I did not remove the tops for the pearlized and metallic shadows. I must have been distracted by the beauty of the day:-)

I have no idea why I have this many metallic and glitter ColourPop shadows, as I don't really reach for them that often. They are definitely pretty and I do like using them on the center of my lids for a bit of 'oomph'.

Last are two ultra-metallic shadows, which I actually like a lot as their finish is more smooth than the glitters.

I know the Super Shock shadows have a tendency to dry out over time, and I did throw out Girl Crush recently as it had ceased to yield any color no matter how hard I rubbed it. I purchased it almost 2 years ago with Smash and some other shadows, and those are still working fine. Looking back at my original pictures of Girl Crush however, it did not look that impressive to begin with, so maybe it was a weaker color/shadow to begin with. Here are some recent looks I've done using these shadows.

Cheeky & Peekaboo

Jinxie

Jinxie & Smash

Just Fur Fun

La La

Wattles

Wattles & Blaze

Jinxie + Kathleen Lights

Honestly, having these particularly colors has reined in my temptation to buy the Renaissance palette by Anastasia Beverly Hill, as good as it may be.

Magic Powder Smoky Stick in Indigo Smoke by Estee Lauder

Disclaimer: I purchased this.

The Magic Powder Smoky Stick ($22) by Estee Lauder is supposed to make doing a smoky eye easy, but I was just interested in seeing what a powder formula in a chubby pencil is like.  I rarely do a smoky eye as my eyes are small and narrow, which isn't the best eye shape for that type of effect, IMO. Or maybe I'm just doing it wrong, who knows?  I did give it a valiant effort in light of this review, but more on that below.

However, I regularly use pencils to line my upper and lower lids, and this seemed like a good candidate for that. I chose Indigo Smoke from the 8 available colors, which has a soft navy powder base with lighter blue shimmer sparkles in the mix.

Indigo Smoke lays down a sheer wash of color that can be built up somewhat, but keep that whole "smoke" concept in mind, as opaque color really isn't the goal. I found the pencil easy to use but my biggest concern was having it transfer from my lash line onto my lid, something that can happen on my hooded eyes if the color does not lock into place.

I'm happy to report I didn't have issues with transfer, so yay for Indigo Smoke!  I did feel like I needed a more opaque liner closest to my lash line for definition, and used Lorac's Front of the Line Pro liquid eyeliner in Navy for that. I'm liking how this turned out.

Now on to my smoky eye effort.  Considering I had two meetings in a somewhat conservative environment the day I was testing this, consider this a daytime smoky eye.  I smoked out the blue with several taupe shadows, as on it's own I was just getting to much of a "blue eyeshadow" look/vibe.

It came out okay, but I still think my eye shape is just not conducive to a smoky eye. That's okay, as it takes longer to create than I want to invest on a work day, anyhow :-)  Of note when I used the pencil after a month of it laying around - the powder pigment had hardened and it was difficult to lay down color, perhaps due to oils from my eye when I last used it.  Sharpening the pencil solved that problem and I'm hoping that won't be the case each time I use it.

Items used for this FOTD (links are to full reviews):

• stila One Step Bronze as a primer
• Smashbox Photo Op Under Eye Brightener
• bareMinerals Complexion Rescue Tinted Hydrating Gel Cream 05 mixed with a dab of Becca's Ever-Matte Shine Proof Foundation in Buff
• Estee Lauder Bronze Goddess Powder Bronzer in Medium
• Estee Lauder Lover's Blush
• bareMinerals Barely Nude 5-in-1 BB Cream Eyeshadow
• Estee Lauder Indigo Smoke Magic Powder Smoky Stick
• Estee Lauder Tempting Mocha and Korres Grey Brown Base shadows
• Lorac Front of the Line Pro Liquid Eyeliner in Navy
• Inika Blonde Bombshell eyebrow pencil
• Smashbox X-rated mascara
• Model Co. Illusion lip pencil topped with NYX Tres Leches Intense Butter Gloss
• Le Metier de Beaute Peau Vierge Correcteur and Peau Vierge Anti-Aging Pressed Powder