Flock Party by Wet n Wild

Disclaimer: I purchased this.

Flock Party is the second of the eyeshadow quads from the Flights of Fancy summer collection by Wet n Wild (overview post here) that I have to show you. Very pretty colors, but probably the most disappointing of the 3 quads in terms of performance.  There is some good in here, however, and I still managed to get some pretty eye looks out of it.

The strong point for all of the quads for me are the transition shades, as I found them easy to work with, smooth, and nice colors for my fair complexion.  The transition color in Flock Party is a nice peachy beige and is just dark enough to darken my crease for a natural looking bit of definition.  The weakest link in this palette is the large eyelid plummy shade, as it just did not want to build up color for me. Even using my finger did not yield opaque coverage with several passes, and even using a liquid with it (Mac's Fix Plus), I still had to work harder than should be necessary.  The brass colored crease and brow bone shades are much easier to work with.

All that being said, I can't say I was disappointed in the eye looks I got from this quad, although it took a bit of work.  The lovely gold glimmer on the center of the lid below is from J.Cat Beauty's Pris Metal Eye Mousse in Electra.  Those things are phenomenal.

Here I'm wearing the quad without any other shadows, although I did use Mac's Fix Plus with the plummy shadow to build up the color.  It's a bit patchy, but it works.

 For $2.99, I've really got minimal complaints here.

Flights of Fancy Summer Limited Edition Collection Box by Wet n Wild

Disclaimer: I purchased this.

I've got to say that Wet n Wilds' limited edition Flights of Fancy summer collection box is the release I've been most excited about thus far this season. The price is uber reasonable as your are getting almost $55 worth of products for $34.99, there are a variety of different products, and the colors are working for me.  I also like that Wet n Wild is giving back, as

"By purchasing this collection, a portion of the proceeds will be donated to the Los Angeles Audubon Society, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to protect birds and their habitats. These funds will benefit a habitat restoration project for the Allen’s Hummingbird, an endangered California native." 

The design details are so nice, from the bird of paradise on the side of the box itself to the hummingbirds stamped on the baked blushes, to the print on the gloss caps. Just really nice touches.

I've been wearing these items for the past week, and initial impressions are positive. The three eyeshadow quads have their high and low points, but for the most part have delivered some really pretty looks.  Today I'll showcase Stop Ruffling My Feathers ($2.99).

I know that Wet n Wild recently released all new shadows, and these are the first ones I've tried with the new formula. The colors in Stop Ruffling My Feathers appeal to me the most out of the three quads, and I thought they all worked well together.  You get one matte and 3 shimmery shadows, and I thought the matte and two smaller shimmer shadows were stronger than the larger pink with gold shift shimmer. That one was more stiff/dry, and even using it wet did not amp up the color enough to redeem itself. I wouldn't call that color a complete loss, but it is the weakest link.

The shimmery copper color has the most pigment and was easy to work with, and I found all of the matte shades in the quads worked really well for me as transition colors. Swatches below are over primer, and I think you can see that the pink is the weakest of the four out of this palette. 

I had no issues with creasing or fading, and I found that incorporating a cream base shadow amped up the look I was able to achieve.  I wore bareMineral's 5-in-1 BB Cream Eyeshadow in Taupe as a base in the look below.  The eyeliner is Urban Decay's Lucky, which I hear they have brought back from the vault where products go to die.  It's a great copper penny color.

In this look I'm not wearing a base, just the shadows over primer, and I thought it turned out pretty as well.

I've got lots more to say about these items, but will save it for future posts. I hope those in the US have a safe and happy Memorial Day weekend. A tropical system is threatening lots of rain here in Mobile, but I'll still enjoy my time off :-)

Aeris Holiday Palette by Natasha Denona

Disclaimer: I purchased this.

I've been curious about Natasha Denona eyeshadows for quite a while, but the exorbitant prices for her palettes has kept me from trying them.  Until now, when the 2017 holiday 5-shadow palettes went on sale at Sephora ($34) last week.

I picked up the warm-toned with a pop of turquoise Aeris, and fortunately it arrived to me intact and pristine.  I say that, as there were lots of comments on Sephora's site that indicated many people received shattered shadows, so apparently these are a bit on the fragile side.  It no doubt does not help that Sepora's idea of packing is to put crumpled paper on top of the box contents....

So many people have raved about the quality of Natasha Denonna shadows, and I've got to say that the matte Burnt Terracotta may be the most pigmented yet easy to work with matte shadow I've tried to date.  Ice Blue is another standout with it's shimmery yet color packed goodness, and Nude gives a high-impact shine that is quite lovely.  Both Red Bronze and Peach Bronze feel more dry and crumbly to the touch, and are what I would consider to be lid toppers over other colors.  They are more sheer and take multiple passes with a finger to build up, but do yield very nice eye looks.

The shelf life of this palette is 12 months, and I have seen reviews that indicate Natasha Denona's shadow formula does go bad and not perform as well once they hit a certain age, which again makes me not want to invest in the larger palettes.  However, the colors and finishes in Aeris, combined with the sale price, makes me happy to have this in my collection.  Surprisingly, I was unable to dupe any of the colors, with the closest contender being Tajin from the limited edition Urban Decay Kaleidoscope palette.  Tajin is a great shadow as well, but Burnt Terracotta is definitely smoother and more pigmented in comparison.

Below I'm wearing Nude and Ice Blue, with Urban Decay's 24/7 eyeliner in Flipside (discontinued) in the water line.  I wore bareMineral's 5-in-1 cream shadow in Candlelit Peach as the base.

In this look I'm wearing Red Bronze, Burnt Terracotta, and Peach Bronze with the yellow shadow Mischief from Colourpop's Yes Please palette (review here).  The eyeliner is Urban Decay's Anatomy from the limited edition Jean-Michel Basquiat collection.  Yes Please is supposed to be a dupe for Natasha Denona's Sunset palette, so there is that...and in another post I'll be showing a compilation of Colourpop shadows from multiple palettes.

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.

Melissa Michelle Palette by Ulta Beauty

Disclaimer: I purchased this.

Today I have an inexpensive palette to show you that I've quite fallen in love with - the Melissa Michelle xoxo palette from Ulta Beauty ($20). Melissa Michelle is a YouTube Beauty vlogger, although I was not familiar with her prior to seeing some reviews for her palette. What drew me in were the colors, which just scream "fall" to me.  

The palette is a sturdy cardboard and you do get a nice sized mirror, which came in handy when I took the palette with me to New Orleans recently for a short work trip. I can get multiple looks from this palette and think the shade selection is fantastic for those who love warm/neutral colors.  My coloring is nothing like Melissa Michelle's but there is not a single color in the palette that does not work for me.

You get four shimmer eyeshadows and five matte shades, and all of them perform really well. The mattes are smooth and easy to blend, and the range of shades make this a complete palette for me - hence why I took it with me to New Orleans.

The first eyeshadow Teresita is a chunkier metallic shimmer, but I had no problems with shimmer migration when I used my finger to pat it on my lids. The rust colored Bing Bing has fantastic pigmentation, and I'm loving the clay colored Rosemary and the soft tan Tobo as a crease shades. All swatches are over primer, as that is how I wear them :-)

From top to bottom: Teresita, Kades, Alana, Lola

Bing Bing, Harley, Weezy, Rosemary, Tobo

The highlighter Hollerrr has three different sections and each of them can work as eyeshadows as well.  The sections are large enough that you could just use a single shade as a highlighter with a smaller brush, although I'm sure most will swirl the colors together. The blush swatched a bit patchy on my arm but it looks great on my face, and is a lovely everyday kind of color that works well with a variety of looks. I really like it!

I was assuming I would not like the formula of the matte liquid lipstick Scandy, as it has a tack to it and does not completely dry down. I was wrong, as I love the color and find it comfortable to wear, and my lips did not feel dry the next day.

Scandy

I have no idea how long Ulta will be carrying this palette, but if the colors speak to you I think it's well worth checking out. The quality is there (4.6 rating on Ulta's site) and the price is uber reasonable for everything you are getting. Plus, Ulta always has sales or GWP's that further sweeten the deal.

Teresita over Alana with Rosemary and Tobo in the crease

Wearing Mahal blush and Scandy matte liquid lipstick

I stayed at a really cool boutique hotel in New Orleans called the Q&C HotelBar New Orleans, Autograph Collection®.  Weird name, but I loved the look and feel of the place and thought my room was lovely.

My room was smaller than I'm used to with chain hotels and reminded me size wise of a hotel I stayed in in Paris, plus it was pet friendly! Or at least I saw a couple leaving with their dogs, so I assume it was. Having cement floors probably contributes to pet friendliness.

The check-in area is small, just two stations, and there is a bar and small eating area right there, hence the HotelBar name, I guess. Anyhow, I'd stay there again so thought I would give it a mini-review as well.  I'm always curious to see what toiletries are carried  by different hotels, and Moulton Brown was the choice here :-)