Monday 23 March 2015

Red Black Smokey eyes

Hello!
This is going to be my first ever make-up tutorial of any kind.This is the break-down of the eye make-up idea in red and black shadow that I shared in my previous post as a part of the review for the BIC palette.I hope this is helpful.
Products used for the whole look:



Face:
Maybelline dream liquid mousse foundation-creamy natural(light 5)
Maybelline cheeky glow blush-creamy cinnamon
Contoured using the earth toned eye-shadows of the palette
BIC stippling Brush
BIC tapered Brush
BIC angled Brush

Eyes:
BIC 120 eye shadow palette #3
Maybelline Colossal kajal
Eye primer
Maybelline hyper curl Mascara(Waterproof)
BIC blending brush
Sponge applicators
Urban decay Naked 2 in-the-palette brush
 Lakme eyebrow pencil


Lips:
Street wear ultra moist lipstick-Crisp Caramel

The following collage consists of the breakdown of the eye-makeup.While the original was photographed in daylight,the break-down was recreated under artificial white light hence there is a difference in the color.The look is too dramatic for daytime wear and would look best if sported on any occasion that is appropriate such as marraige functions or bight-out parties.
Break-down:
Row 1:
Image 1-4a:

  • First,prepare the eyes applying and blending the eye-primer all over the lids.Also line the upper lash-line with black kohl.I used Maybelline Colossal kajal.Lining the eyes this way instantly helps in faking the actual volume of your eyelash.So much so,depending on the look created you can skip mascara.
  • using sponge applicators apply the red shadow over your eyelids.Sponge applicators picks up most pigments an hence we can get the most pigmented application.
  • using the peach and brownish peach(the shades are marked with black circles) blend out the harsh edges of the red shadow.For this I used the BIC Blending brush and the flat-end of the UD brush.
  • Now apply the red shadow in the outer 2/3rd of lower eyelashes.
Image 4b-6:

  • Now,cut a small piece of cello-tape and apply it on the outer corner of your eyes such that it is like an extension of the lower lash-line crossing over the upper line.
  • using the black shadow(marked with red circles in palette2),blend into the red shadow at the outer 1/3rd of the upper eyelid and wing it out according to your preference.I like to keep it within the arch of my brow.
  • This is how it will look when you close your eyes.
  • remove the previous tape and apply a thinner piece of tape such that you can achieve the line on your lower lash-line.
Image 7-10:

  • using the black shadow blend out with the red on the lower eyelid and also make an inverted winged out structure smaller than the upper wing.
  • using a deep chocolate shadow,blend in between the junctures of black and red shadow to create a smoother transition. Also using a lighter shade of brown or ocher create the transition to your brow-bones.Using the blending brush,blend any harsh lines as far as you can.
  • using a peach or ocher-based pearl finish eye-shadow highlight the highest point of your brow-bone.Also using a neon-yellow(or any contrasting shade that will work as a highlighting colour)blend in the inner-v of your eyes.
  • Finish off with 2-coats of mascara on upper and lower lashes.Fill in the brows if necessary.
The entire look:
The foundation used was pink-based though it matched well but not the best match(while it matched my cheeks and nose perfectly,it looks too white for my forehead and jaws).So anyone with similar complexion(yellow under-tones) can go for the shade light 4 which is yellow under-toned.It was the one I wanted to buy but it was out of stock.As you can see,I have contoured my cheeks and forehead with a brownish-ocher shadow so my face don't look flat.Since the eyes are quite dramatic I have kept the lips nuetral.


Friday 20 March 2015

Buyincoins Haul and my Experience

Hello!
Today I am going to review my latest splurge-a 120 eye-shadow palette that I bought from the online shopping website www.buyincoins.com.Beside reviewing the palette I will also be sharing my shopping experience with them.This was my second transaction with the site.
It is a Chinese site catering nearly all over the world without any shipping charges and the prices are unexpectedly low.They offer a free tracking code for orders over $30.Below that there is usually a choice of "free shipping","express shipping" and "shipping with tracking code".I say usually because the available options vary depending on the product you choose to buy.While I was able to opt for free shipping for my first transaction,the second time I had to pay a nominal amount of $0.34 for tracking code. I really don't mind that and the tracking code was actually a relief.The product arrived exactly 30days after they confirmed that my parcel have been sent to the post office.Yes!it takes that long at times to arrive!My first package had arrived within 15days and I have even seen packages arriving as early as 7-8days for a friend.The packaging consisted of the palette sandwiched between two thick sheets of thermocol and lots of bubble wrapping.Going through numerous other reviews I was very sure that eye-shadow palettes never arrive intact and I was preparing myself for at least a couple of broken shadows but when I opened the parcel,I was at awe that not a single shadow has broken.So it can be concluded that packaging is good enough.The best part is their customer service.I have never communicated with them over the phone as they were always very prompt about replying to my mails and messages through my account at the site within 24hours.They accept payment through paypal,master card and visa card of any bank but I felt paypal is the best.You can also avail discounts.There is referrer's discount for your first transaction.all you have to do is enter a referrer's id while creating your account and you will get 5% discount on your first transaction.Other than that they have coupon codes.Just message them querying about availble coupons at the moment and they will sent you the code.There are dozens of codes published around the blogosphere but most don't work so directly contact them for discount coupons instead of picking up random codes from the web.

Now,let come to the palette.Matte eyeshadows are my favorite part of eye makeup but sadly quality shadows at affordable price is asking way too much in India.Though I love nuetrals but it's always helpful to have other hues at hand and hence I thought of giving this beauty a shot after repeated (sparkly)disappointments with Palettes available in India.If you browse through the site you will find at least 10-12 variations of 120 palettes ranging from nudes,metallics,and combination of different finishes.I got 120 Makeup full color Eyeshadow palette #3 though #5 is reviewed all over the web and ahrdly any information availble about this one as this seemed most feasible for me.That is,it consists of such shades that I am likely to use extensively.
Description:The box is of matte black plastic without any mirror and click locks.Inside there are two palettes decked one above another each consisting of 60 shadows.The palettes are quite fragile and I am sure won't survive the smallest of the fall.The upper compartment consists mostly of warm and radiant colours while the lower one is dedicated to darker,cooler and more subdued hues.


The upper compartment


The lower compartment
Price-Rs.873(this includes the tracking fee)
The palette consists of 32 mattes,12 glittery,and rest satin and pearl finish.I find most shades apart from the sparklings and neons,and blues wearable.
Texture: Except for 3-4 sahdows in the whole palette the rest feels like butter on skin.I have never experience such soft texture from an eyeashadow before.Though soft most adhere well to the eyelid without any fall-outs and without primer though few are too powdery and hence challenging to work with.
Pigmentation:Very vibrant.Even the lightest mattes show up well on my lids when paired with a primer.Without primer the mid-tones to darker one work well enough but lightest of the lot get washed out.
Staying power- So far I have wore these shadows for 14hours at a stretch with primer.At the end of the day only the shadows at the outer-corner of my eyes had settled in creases and in one deep crease on my eyelid a little.But the color was intact-no fading.Do I need to say more?I have oily eyelids and the weather in Kolkata in the month of March at the moment is not that make-up friendly.
Swatch Gallery:
looks created using the palette.

The first look is created using the peach shadow(5th shadow 2nd column palette-1),brown(6th,2nd column,palette-1)as transition colors,matte red(6th shadow,10th column,palette-1) all-over the lidand lower eyelid,matte black(6th shadow,column 9,palette-2) outer half of the eyes and matte chocolate brown(5th shadow,7th column,palette-2)as blending color between red and black.Neon yellow(4th sahdow,8th column,palette-1)as highlighter in inner corners.Satin cream(2nd shadow,1st column,palette-1)as brow-bone highlighter.
The second one is created using the greys and mauve-greys of palette-2(column 3,4,5,lower 3*3 matrix)and hint or purple from palette-1,highlighter is the 1st shadow in palette-2.

close-ups of palette 2

close-ups of palette2

close-up of palette 1

close-up of palette 1
 The Swatches are given column-wise starting from left-to-right of each palette.Two columns are covered in each picture.The numbering is done as 1-6 from top to bottom of the left column followed by 7-12 from top to bottom of the column following it immediately and so on.The swatches are single swipe of the colours and I have left notes as captions where necessary.
The gold sparkles,4th from left are too powdery and has a lot of fall-out but very pigmented and soft.
The gold,3rd from right is very chalky as you can see-one of the worst shadow of the palette.
The last two colours are really recommended.They look great on indian skin-tone for no-make-up look.





The cyan (37)is satin finish but chalky-do not easily show up on eyelids but a very pretty colour had it shown up.


Consists of highlighters.My personal favorites here are 4 and 8.Compliments well with any look.

13-17 are average in pigmentation and harder than the rest of the colours.


Best 2 coloumns of the palette in terms of pigmentation and texture.And of course.I am biased to neutrals!



Overall,If you want to experiment and learn without getting stripped off your cash-these palettes are the best option.For me,this baby has put off any little fascination that I ever had for high-end brands.It has everything any high-end eyeshadow can offer for fraction of it's price.
Pros:
  • Good pigmentation
  • soft texture
  • excellent staying power
  • has enough hues for experimentation
  • affiordable
Cons:
  • No in-the-box mirror
  • available only through online sites.
  • fragile box hence not travel-friendly
  • no mention of ingredient list anywhere

Sunday 8 March 2015

Meis Matte Eyeshadow Palette

Hello and welcome to yet another post.Sorry I have been away for quite a long time again but now I am back with a review on an eye shadow palette I stumbled upon while looking for something entirely different.Such things happen with me all the time.I decide on shopping for something and end up buying something entirely different.Anyway this one is from a brand called Meis cosmetics and I have seen other palettes of this brand in many cosmetic shops of Kolkata and also at the International Trade Fair-Lifestyle pavilion at the Thailand counter.I suppose they mainly originate from China.I had been desperate for a good set of matte browns in various hues.While the best bet with a brand name would have been Inglot,I literally cringed with horror thinking of the hole it would burn in my already-light pocket!Rs.400 for one shadow is not my cup of tea yet.I searched online and came across the Coloressence one as well but I was not really very sure of the shade.I had almost given up on the idea of finding myself a palette that contained browns and only neutrals in matte when I saw this one at a really small cosmetic shop of Hatibagan opposite Star theatre.
I have a love-hate relationship with this palette,Of all the 12 colours only 3 are usable.I don't really mind that because this three are the only colours I will ever use.
My take:
The palette looks sleek an classy but is quite brittle.There is no mirror and once I dropped it the white in the top row shattered.
Pigmentation is mediocre however with a primer it appears a bit more vibrant.Staying power is average-upto 4-5hours with a primer underneath.
The shadow settles in creases particularly a the corner of my eyes after aximum of 4 hours of wear-time.
Price-Rs.200-350.There is no printed price amount on the box and the price varies from store-to-store.
Availability is another issue.Though shimmer or satin eyeshadow palettes from the same brand is widely available,the matte palettes are hard to come by.So far I have spotted them at two places.One is mentioned above and the other is a make-shift counter at the Diamond Plaza Mall that stocks only cosmetics from thailand or China.However it is a no-bargain store and they quote twice the actual price.
Swatches:

A look created with the browns from this palette:

I have used primer underneath and also Lakme eyconic kajal in brown to line my upper lashes.
Overall,this palette is ok if you are on really tight budget and only just learning to use eyeshadows.Matte shadows are really hard to come by in palettes in India that to within a reasonable budget.This is by-far the first palette that I came across which had 12 all-matte shades in one palette.However I won't recommend this to anyone with sensitive skin/eyes since there is no mention of expiry date anywhere and not a reliable ingredients list.