The full list of links to my various Huda Beauty reviews can be found HERE, but today I am also including mini reviews of the three palettes I purchased during the brand’s Pre-Black Friday sale for 2023. I’ll be sharing my initial impressions of the new additions to my collection. I would normally never include them so soon in a ranking post, but because my experience was so distinct, I don’t think my opinion on these will change with time.
Because the brand is having such deep discounts on the website, up to 80% off, I decided to post this early instead of my usual Mondays for anyone wanting to see additional opinions before making a purchase. For this reason, there will not be a post on Monday November 27th, but I hope to have another up the following Monday. There’s no guarantee as life is so chaotic right now (but in a good way)!
DISCLOSURE: Other than the Gemstone Obsessions palette that was gifted by Sephora and not Huda Beauty (and not even for PR reasons), I purchased everything else with my own money and I’m not an affiliate of the brand.
MY CURRENT HUDA BEAUTY PALETTE RANKING
Wild Obsessions Jaguar
Nude Obsessions Rich
Lovefest Obsessions
Naughty
Empowered
Nude Obsessions Medium
Brown Obsessions Toffee
Precious Stones Obsessions Amethyst
Brown Obsessions Caramel
Gemstone Obsessions
I wasn’t sure if I should include the Glowish quad since it’s technically from a separate Huda brand, but if I were to throw Moss into the rankings it would place at number 6 and everything else would be shifted down on the list. It doesn’t have impactful shimmers, but the performance is great. Because there are only four shades, I can only get two looks that I really like, whereas I can make at least a few more good ones with Naughty and Empowered despite all their flaws. So, if Moss was expanded into a 9-pan along the lines of the Nars Climax palette, there could have been potential for it to rank 4th place instead.
Jaguar reigns supreme because it’s the one I keep thinking about the most after reviewing it. It’s the one with a concise yet complete color story, and has great quality mattes and shimmers. Jaguar is specifically one I would love to get more use out of, but I’m constantly testing other palettes, so I can’t. However, I plan to change that in 2024. The Rich palette has the same great quality and a variety of depths to be able to make complete looks as well without needing to reach for other palettes. It’s like a mini of the Naughty palette without the unnecessary extras. Lovefest is like the other three, but shades 2 and 6 are too similar on me and although shade 3 is very eye-catching in the pan, it’s lower impact on the eyes than I want. So, it gets third place for being slightly more limited than the other two.
An eyeshadow looking more fun than it is useful is the theme of the two full size palettes I own from the brand. Naughty has exceptional mattes and beautiful shimmers, but some of the experimental textured shadows don’t quite work for me (like Slippery and Hard) and some of the matte and shimmer shades are a little too close to each other. This palette could have been edited down. For the same reason, Empowered is a bit lower because although the mattes are all fantastic, the right side has so many that look the same on my eyes because of my skin tone. We have more of those “innovative” formulas of shadows that work better than in the Naughty palette, but I didn’t necessarily want them in practical use. I go back and forth as to which of these two rank higher because I think Empowered is more successful with the formula and texture variety, but with the exception of the deep smokey look I can create from Empowered (that I can also get out of Jaguar), I think my eye looks with the Naughty palette turn out prettier. I ultimately decided for this list to choose the end result over performance.
The Medium palette earns the next spot because there isn’t enough depth for me to be satisfied. I’d need to grab another palette to deepen the outer corner of my eye looks, as is my preference. I know it’s called a Medium palette and is filled with mainly medium toned shades, but the Rich palette had the full gamut of options, so this one could have had at least one deep one as well. I’ll save the rest of my thoughts in the review.
I loved the look of the Brown Obsessions Collection, but I didn’t hear the best reviews for them after they launched. Because they were priced at such a good deal, I was willing to risk getting them in the hopes that people were wrong and they’d be just like the other Obsessions palettes, but they’re not. I’ll write more about the issues with Toffee in the review section, but it places here because of one specifically problematic shade and the drop in quality from the rest. Amethyst sneaks in between the two I own because it has a beautiful color story and I loved it at the time, but the newer Obsessions palettes have even better quality mattes and my deepest shade is patchy. Plus, I’m not into those tones of mattes. I loved satins a lot more in the time period that I first had Amethyst, but they’re just not as interesting to me now. It’s the three shimmers in the center column that make this palette still a good one even though I’ve had it for five years. Caramel is brand new (at least in when I purchased it though I’ve no idea if I have a newer batch or old stock), but I have even more problems with it than Toffee so despite it being one of the most beautiful color stories Huda has created in my eyes, it pains me to have to put it so low. And ranking at the very bottom is Gemstone which I received for free from Sephora ages ago as a thank you gift for being part of their beauty community forum before they changed the website and archived a lot of those past posts. There’s a reason I never bought this palette myself because even though the colors are pretty on an individual level, it makes no sense put together except as a purely supplemental palette intended to be used with other palettes to make cohesive looks. The shimmers in here are more impactful than the satins and metallics in Amethyst, but those center shimmers in Amethyst still so greatly surpass the Gemstone ones that I had to put this at the very bottom. The lack of mattes solidified this decision.
If my ranking of Jaguar is any indication, I would say it’s probably safe to assume the quality of the palettes in the Wild Obsessions Collection is excellent, though I can’t confirm it personally as I just have one of the three. I kept saying I wanted to get the other two, but the color stories just aren’t perfect for me, especially with the too-similar-of-tones problem. So, even though I recommend them most, one would have to ask themselves how useful will these tones and colors and formulas actually be? The same goes for the Nude Obsessions line, though I only have two of the three. They’re great, but did I really need them? This becomes even more poignant when it comes to the larger palettes with their various textures, formulas, and finishes. How much someone loves it is less of a quality issue and depends entirely on their personal preferences. For instance, the cream liner shades in Empowered work fine and could be a base for the duochromes, but it’s not so good if I need something that’s fully transfer-proof or something that’s easier to glide onto the lids to line them. So the pros for one person could be a con for someone else.
Huda’s newest palette, Pretty Grunge, looks gorgeous. However, I know it’s not perfect for me either which is why I’m going to pass on it and try to be more conscious about the future additions to my collection that I make from this brand.
Huda Beauty Nude Obsessions Eyeshadow Palette in Medium
I took the palette photo at night, and for some reason the shadows look darker in the pan than they should, so the photo just above the swatches is a more accurate representation.
Medium is a mix of light and medium toned eyeshadows. Shade 6 is the darkest in the palette, but it isn’t dark enough to give me the depth level in the outer corner that I prefer, so that automatically makes this a supplemental palette for me.
Shade 1 is close to my skin tone so it doesn’t show up very well, but the tiniest bit darker Shade 3 is the one I’d need to reach for as the transition shadow. 4 and 8 are the same depth with Shade 4 being slightly warmer and peachier pink whereas Shade 8 is a cooler pink. The matte quality is nice, but my options are limited.
The shimmers are pretty and thankfully don’t give me any issues with longevity. Because Shades 2, 5, and 7 are in the same color family though, I’m not getting wildly different looks. So, the combination of similar mattes with shimmers that are close enough, it really cements the fact that there isn’t enough variety for me as a standalone palette. The quality of this palette is good, but is in the middle of the ranking list specifically for these reasons.
Huda Beauty Brown Obsessions Eyeshadow Palette in Toffee
I think gold shades and warm tone neutrals are pretty, so I couldn’t resist this palette any longer. Shades 1, 3, and 9 are similar matte quality to the other Obsessions palettes, but not quite the same level, and I’m not sure why that’s the case. They’re a little more dusty in texture, but they blend well enough not to bother me. I just notice the slight difference. The pigmentation level is the same for all except Shade 5 which had to be built up in multiple layers to last on my eyes. This is still a better performing yellow than some in my collection that are usually made too thin and dust away, or are mixed with too much white base, so I’m not unhappy with it. The only matte that gives me considerable trouble is Shade 7, which is patchy. I had to tap on quite a bit of product to get it to cover the bald spot and by the end of the night I still ended up with it looking strangely. Because I still have Shade 3 as a deepening option, I can forgive Shade 7 being a bit of a dud. I also give props for having distinctly different matte colors.
From just swatching the shimmers, I correctly guessed which ones were going to give me the issue where it moves out of my crease line. Shades 6 and 8 resemble the standard Huda metallic-shimmers to the naked eye, but they’re more emollient feeling than the others. To be fair, they didn’t move or crease as much as I expected, but there was still a little movement. The amount I had at the end of the night was tolerable to me. However, some palettes don’t have any shimmers that crease on me, nor patchy mattes, so that’s why this is so low on the ranking list.
Shade 4 has a fun pattern and feels like a stiffer version of a Super Shock shadow, but the more it’s rubbed, the harder it gets compacted into the pan. I can already tell this shade is going to be tough to pick up on a brush or even my fingers in the future. Shade 2 is dry feeling and has visually interesting patches of larger particle silvery/white sparkles called a “pearl flake texture” that adds more drama and shine to eye looks. It doesn’t swatch the best, but looks super pretty on the eyes.
Toffee is pretty and workable, but I don’t really recommend it. Perhaps the current sale price of $9.60 makes a different, but perhaps not.
Huda Beauty Brown Obsessions Eyeshadow Palette in Caramel
This actually came in a “Caramel Brown Obsessions Kit” which had the palette, four mini liquid lipsticks, and a bag for $13.50. I’m just going to focus on the palette in this review.
This color story is absolutely stunning! It’s such a shame that the quality of this one is the worst of any other Huda palettes I own. It’s still not the worst palette I’ve ever used, but it doesn’t live up to the expectations I have for the brand’s eyeshadows. It was already difficult to pick up Shade 1 from the very first time I used it and swatched it, so that doesn’t bode well for future usage. Shades 2 and 6 are the metallics, but Shade 6 is way wetter feeling than the rest and it’s so difficult to build up. It looks pigmented at first, but when I try to smooth it out to create the shape I want in the outer corner, it fades significantly to the point where there’s hardly enough color left. So, I had to keep building it up. Shade 5 looks flakier than the metallics, and looks like it should be a standard shimmer, but it’s as creamy as Shade 1 and hard pressed as well, though I’m able to get decent payoff for now and it’s just a matter of time. Shade 7 has that fascinating pearl flake texture, but for some reason is wetter than that same formula shadow from the Toffee palette. Of course, all this emollience leads to moving issues on my eyes. In the demonstration photo below, I showed what it looks like 7 hours later, but it was noticeably looking that bad already when I looked in the mirror 5 hours in. It didn’t get significantly worse and I’ve still had worse performances from other eyeshadows before, but this one really disappointed me.
Part of the issue is that the mattes, which can help keep the area dry despite my semi-oily lids/crease, is that these particular mattes in the Caramel palette are all thin and don’t build all that well. It took me quite a few extra swipes to get a decent swatch of the colors in the swatch photos. I would normally do no more than 2 swipes for swatches, but considering this is one of the few palettes with mattes that don’t all look the same on me, I wanted to make sure those colors could be seen properly. At least, how the colors should have looked on me if they were able to build up since they’re thinner with less pigment.
I should note that I used the same primer with all three of these palettes, but the only one that has zero longevity issues for me is the Nude Medium palette, which supports what I heard about the Brown Obsessions collection being unequal in quality to my favorites from the brand.
I love this color story so much that I considered even bringing it to Germany with me despite the performance. However, I thought about my Natasha Denona Bronze palette and Metropolis. Between those two, I could very easily recreate this look. So, I’m leaving it behind.
That’s everything for today! I hope this has been helpful and I wish you a Happy Thanksgiving (if you celebrate it), Black Friday, and Cyber Monday!
DISCLOSURE: I purchased the items discussed in this post on May 2o, 2023 with my own money. I’m not affiliated with the brand. However, to save 10% on the items, I used Tina’s affiliate code FANCYFACE, which will give her commission, but any influencer’s code will work on most items on the website. Just passing along that information. The actual links in this specific post are regular non-affiliated ones.
Oden’s eye released the Jord’s Divine Collection consisting of two palettes, Jewels & Gem plus Stone & Rock, in addition to various pieces of jewelry. I liked the color selections of the palettes, but they looked too similar to shadows I already have (just not put together in one single palette), so I decided to hold off on buying those. As for jewelry, I don’t tend to wear it often, but these were so cute that I decided to go ahead and buy the ones calling to me the most.
The left side of photos above and below is called Jewel Story: Ear Cuff And Studs With Chain. That pair comes with the knot bound heart and attached chain cuff for one ear. The other ear gets that knot bound heart alone as a stud. The right side of photos above and below is called Jewel Story: Pink Heart Stud Earrings on their website. It comes with two identical heart earrings.
Those are the specifications listed on the website for the ones I chose to purchase. My biggest worry was that these might eventually turn or change color based purely on my past experience wearing earrings not made from precious metals, but nothing has happened to them thus far. They don’t turn my skin green and I have indeed sweat in them several times. I don’t keep them in anything special like anti-tarnish tabs. I just store them in the original plastic ziplock within the pink pouches.
They feel quite durable and are a bit on the large side and a bit heavier than I normally wear, but they’re still comfortable to wear. The chains on the cuff get twisted around each other while I wear it and the cuff part falls down while wearing it sometimes, but it doesn’t happen enough to bother me. Both sets have what I believe are called bullet clutch ear nuts, which I was so glad to see was without the plastic pads that are annoying to remove. In order to keep them in securely, I do feel the need to push the backing pretty close/tight, but not to a level of discomfort.
I’m quite pleased with the quality and would consider purchasing new styles in the future. It’s just that I’m more of a jewelry admirer than wearer, so I try not to buy pieces too often. I still wanted to review these for those who were curious if a makeup brand could release something good. Hopefully this helped!
M001 Lola
I believe it was earlier this year when the brand released single eyeshadows to absolutely horrible reviews. None of the influencers discussed the quality and just showcased how they looked. However, it was through social media and even the blogging sphere where I heard complaints about fading/disappearing, insane creasing, etc. There were inconsistencies as well as to which shades were the troublesome ones. I believe the consensus was that these had too much oil in them. If I’m remembering correctly, I believe Odens Eye made them unavailable for about a month or so before they were “back” and I hoped perhaps they’d change the formula. However, they did not publicly address any of this. For a while, that really bothered me considering how much I value transparency between brands and their customers.
Since I wanted to hit the free shipping minimum, I bought Lola along with the single eyeshadow container so I could test it for myself.
The first time I tried it, I said to myself, “Wow…this is terrible.” It’s a beautiful multichrome, but it gave me the worst creasing I’ve ever experienced from an eyeshadow. After a few hours, half of it was literally gone from my lids. It only stayed near my lash line. I decided to try it once more, but as a topper with some mattes underneath to try and keep that spot a little more dry. That helped it, but it wasn’t the prettiest to look at.
When I finally decided to start working on this post, I realized I misplaced the pictures I took showing how bad they looked afterwards, so I had to photograph them again. This was about three months later, shown below. Granted, I still had mattes in the crease, but it actually stayed on my lids and looked just like the photo all day! I guess it needed all that time to dry out, or perhaps having a thick matte is still the way to go.
Because of those initial first experiences with the shadow, I’m still wary about using it. I’m also still wary about recommending them, but I wanted to at least share my experience. Considering the prices of the single eyeshadows and multichromes, I personally think buying full palettes from Odens Eye is the way to go anyway.
For those curious, I do think for Black Friday* I’ll end up buying the Stone & Rock palette and the reformulated Norn’s palette. My orders from the brand take a minimum of three weeks to arrive, and I’ll be in Germany by then so I’ll need to have it shipped there. Oden’s Eye brought back the Christmas Palettes from last year, along with releasing two new ones this year. Even though the holiday ones rank highest among my Oden’s Eye Collection, I won’t be buying the new ones even on sale. A few of the colors are pretty, but the reviews I’ve seen from trusted sources were not good. So, I’ll be passing on them this time.
*I haven’t seen Oden’s Eye release the info yet**, but according to Angie, her palette collab might be 30% off and the other items on the website should be 40-50% off. I’m not sure if that stacks onto already discounted products or if that 40-50% also applies to jewelry and other accessories. Influencer codes supposedly stack, but not on collab items. For instance, Angelica’s ANGESCHKA code or Tina’s FANCYFACE should give an extra 10% off using those affiliated codes. According to Angie, the sale starts November 23rd, but I’m not sure in what region and what time. It should be ongoing until the 28th.
**UPDATE: Christmas Holiday items are excluded from the Black Friday sale. The sale will begin 10:00 am US Eastern Time. Influencer collab products are 30% off (codes don’t apply). All accessories, like jewelry, will be 50% off and influencer codes will stack an extra percent off. Everything else should be starting at 50% off that the influencer code can stack onto for additional discounts as well.
This is one of the two Halloween themed palettes Angie launched with Odens Eye, making it her second time collaborating with the brand overall. There are very specific shades that appealed to me in the Trick or Treat palette, so I decided to go ahead and grab it since the chances of it being restocked are low. There was quite a bit of drama associated with this launch on social media. Particularly on Instagram, I saw a disturbing number of borderline xenophobic comments regarding the brand and Angelica with people expressing displeasure that non-Americans were doing a Halloween themed launch, as if it’s an American invented holiday with no Celtic (and therefore European) origins. I’m paraphrasing in a nice way. Some people took it quite far. There was even one semi-large beauty account who tagged Angelica twice in a vile mean-spirited post. Reddit made me aware that this same person has said horrible things about other groups of people, so I’m no longer surprised. In any case, Angelica took the high road in not addressing the negativity, instead sharing her joy of her first Halloween experiences on her YouTube page, and everyone moved on. For that reason, I won’t dwell on the incident, but it was actually a pretty gross reminder of how small minded people can be and the aspects I despise about social media. I’m not sure if this impacted sales at all, but I believe this is the first time an Angie collab hasn’t sold out within the first month and with indie brand timetables being what they are, it’s safe to assume there won’t be a restock. So, for anyone wanting items from the collection, I recommend getting it sooner rather than later. Oden’s Eye is likely to have a Black Friday sale, and maybe even a Christmas one, but there’s no guarantee the palettes and lip products will still be available by then or even after that.
I’m happy to say the Trick or Treat palette is so much prettier in person than I could see from photos and videos. This is the good Oden’s Eye formula I’ve come to know and love. The shadows are pigmented, but blendable. The shimmers are high impact. The only issues I had were with two shades. Wicked is a much thinner and more powdery matte than the others. It doesn’t show up on me at all. I’ve tried several times to build it up in my inner corner the way Angelica likes to have a matte inner corner brightening shade, but it disappears after a few pats on my eyes. I can at least still use it as a shade to blend the edges of eyeshadows or tone down the brightness of colors, but it only makes a small difference.
The other issue is that Witches Brew isn’t as even in color and smoothness on the eye. It’s like a slight separation between the base and the shimmer. I can get patches where the vibrant blue-green peeks through when I apply it, and there’s no shimmer in those spots, whereas all the shimmer has gathered onto other parts. So, it takes some smoothing back and forth to get the area covered evenly. It’s such a vibrant glowing shade and one of the ones I was the most excited to have, but it’s a little less enjoyable in the application process.
I have no issues with longevity or creasing. Regarding my skin tone and how the shades look on me, there are only two important enough to mention. One is that Cemetery looked like a red that was bordering on purple. I expected it to be nearly an ultra-deep mauve, but it’s more of a burgundy color on me. Magic Potion looks like it should be a silvery-light blue but none of that blue translates on my skin. It’s basically just silver, which might end up being better since I don’t know how much I’d have enjoyed that kind of blue on me anyway.
If you have a big Oden’s Eye collection, you might feel some of these shades are similar to what is in other palettes. I thought some of my yellows looked like others, but in swatching them on myself I realized there were no dupes. The reds are also just different enough. I thought Crypt Keeper would be similar to Luxury from the Urd palette, but luxury is lighter. The only one actually close was Deadly compared to Eternal from Solmane II. I don’t have every palette though, so perhaps there are a few more that are close, but I was satisfied that this palette is different enough to be worth having in my collection. In fact, one of the selling points for me was that it reminded me of the Merry Christmas palette and that those two pair well together.
And of course it can also be paired with the original Hela palette.
I’m on a lip product low-buy, so I wasn’t interested in that part of the collection and can’t vouch for the quality of those, but I think those who are interested in the eyeshadow palettes will be happy with them.
I wasn’t planning to review Singe Beauty, Angelica’s brand that she unveiled this year, because after my initial impression I didn’t think I’d end up using them enough to review. I really wasn’t a fan at first, and honestly being a natural hair Fude lover plays into that. However, I’m still going to share my thoughts here today because these brushes do have their benefits.
Singe Beauty
Angelica has said that her brushes are, “specifically made out of synthetic fibers to emulate the way a natural bristle will pick up and distribute product,” but in various videos including this one and others that came after, she describes them as “super soft” and that they feel like natural hair, not just perform like them. I have to say this is a major discrepancy between what I expected when ordering versus what I got in reality. I was expecting them to feel like the highest grade of goat, but I can see someone thinking it could pass for sokoho goat at best. They’re closest to sable, which some people love because of their strength and resilience. However, I’d prefer to spend a little longer blending if it means I can use a softer less firm brush. The manufacturer nailed the natural hair performance part of it, but there is absolutely no mistaking that these are synthetic and they feel synthetic. This isn’t a point against the brushes; I just think saying they’re comparable can lead to others having higher expectations and then being disappointed. I only use synthetic brushes for specific limited tasks, so I would not have been interested in picking up this set if not for the natural hair comparison.
E01
The E01 is the brush I was most excited to have because the shape reminded me of the Sonia G Builder Pro which is one of my holy grail eye brushes. This is my favorite brush of the bunch for applying shimmers to the lid. When I was having a hard time getting the shade I mentioned in the palette section (Witches Brew) to apply smoothly, this was the brush I switched to that helped make things much easier. I know that Angie says it’s great for packing shadow on the inner corners, and while it can do that, I still prefer to use my smaller brushes for that purpose. Plus, this brush is a little pokey and doesn’t feel as comfortable in my corners and creases. So, I end up using this brush mainly for shimmer lid shades, and it’s great for that. Plus, as a lid packing brush, how soft it is barely matters. What matters is how well it picks up and lays down the product, which this works well for, making it quite useful for my collection. It being synthetic also has the advantage of being great with liquid and cream shadows.
E02
The E02 is a brush I didn’t intend on using since I prefer smaller crease and blending brushes, but when I was working with some stubborn matte eyeshadows and found that the E05 was taking too long to blend out the edges because of its smaller surface area, the E02 came in handy. I was able to finish the blending job quicker and decided that this brush is actually perfect for me to blend shadows in my crease, but without any product on it. It’s still too large (even though it has a slight taper) for me to precisely apply shadows with in my crease, but I will continue to reserve it for the times that I have a stubborn or just extra pigmented eyeshadow that needs something firmer to blend with and that’s big enough to make it quick. Admittedly, the majority of the shadows I regularly use in my collection are high quality and don’t require me to have a brush like this on hand. But, since I do still test palettes and there’s always the chance I could wind up with a dud, having this within reach is useful.
E03
The E03 is the only brush still in the plastic because I know I will never use it. It’s essentially a larger version of the E02, which is a larger version of the E05. Because of my partly hooded eyes and need for more precision, I always use tiny crease brushes. The E03 is simply too big for my preference and if the time occurs when I do want a brush of this size, I have several in my collection already that are good blending brushes and also immensely softer feeling while I use them.
E04
The E04 is a packing brush with a taper that I find is great for applying shadows to the lid without getting too much of the lid shadow into the crease area, because I can pick up product on one of those tapered edge sides. It’s also nice for intentionally tucking color into the crease if product is applied just on the tip and those tapered sides have no product on there, keeping the width of the application area on the smaller side. I’m actually surprised that for a brush of this thickness, I’m still able to use it to apply eyeshadows under my eyes. I usually designate that task to my tiny brushes, but I haven’t needed to switch brushes to do that when I’m using this one. Of all the brushes in the set, this is my second favorite after the E01.
E05
The E05 is one of the brushes I was the most excited by because of its shape, yet was still concerned that it might not be able to measure up to my Sonia G Mini Booster. Honestly, this did end up being the case, but the Mini Booster alone is also the same price as half of this set costs.
The E05 is useful for its size, the ability to pack on a lot of color to a small region, and for detail work. However, the combination of how tall the fibers are with the tightness of how it’s packed in the center makes it partly bend/flop when pressure is applied that is then halted from bending any further because the fibers align to an even level at that point. It’s like the way it’s made generates extra friction, leading to the brush feeling like it’s not applying as smoothly as it could. Working the bristles around enough will complete the task and not lead to any patchy results, but the two battling forces makes the application process feel less comfortable than I think it could have been if the head was shorter with a flat top instead of rounded. Angelica chose these brushes to be shaped, bundled, and cut to the exact specifications she wanted, so my desire for a slightly tweaked shape is a matter of my own personal preference.
None of these brushes feel loose. They feel secure within the ferrules, unlike some of my inexpensive synthetic brushes like ELF and Real Techniques. I’ve only washed these a few times so far, but I haven’t had any shedding issues or problems with them losing their shape.
While I’ve found use for 4 out of 5 of these and enjoy the E01 and E04 in particular, I can’t easily recommend everyone just run out and buy them. These brushes are ideal for those who love very pigmented, intense, and opaque eyeshadows. Also, those who have a lot of troublesome eyeshadows could benefit from these. Since I review a wide range of products like high quality natural hair brushes to inexpensive Real Techniques ones, and soft refined luxury eyeshadows to intense pigmented indie brands’ eyeshadows, those of you who read my blog have varied and diverse interests. So, these particular brushes aren’t something I can recommend across the board to everyone. It’s a bit niche in my opinion, which makes sense considering Angelica says there isn’t a brush brand out there that has made what she considers her perfect eye set. So, it makes sense that it’s not going to be perfect for the masses if this specific collection is tailored to her.
I was able to get this set for 20% off during the brand’s Memorial Day sale, so considering the price and the usefulness of the set, I don’t regret it. If face brushes come next, I think I’ll be skipping them. However, I look forward to seeing what other type of products come out from Singe Beauty. If it’s makeup, and especially eyeshadows, I’m all in!
The photo above shows my current collection of Hourglass Ambient finishing powders, blushes, bronzers, and highlighters. Some products have been depotted and rearranged, so they’re not all in their original states (the Universe Unlocked and Tiger palettes).
My palette from Hourglass has the website exclusive Owl design on the cover, but I chose the powders inside that were assigned by default to the Leopard palette. It’s called “Color Palette 2” on the official website. As I mentioned in my review of this year’s Snake palette (not to be confused with the leopard component I chose for it), it was so difficult to skip out on the beautiful owl and when I found a 20% off code, I ended up choosing this. Well, the Palette 2 option was the only one in stock at the time, so I technically had no choice. The reason the default Leopard palette insides were still in stock is because it’s the palette with only 1 new shade and a bunch of re-released ones. It’s a great thing that I only had one of the 6 powders currently in my collection, but that’s also because most of the shades don’t work for me as intended. However, I’ve happily discovered that this is a great mixing/companion palette and for that reason I decided to review it as well. In addition, I’ve added even more comparison swatches than I did in my post from a few weeks ago!
Dim Light (finishing powder) – This is a permanent shade that I surprisingly never owned among the long list of too-light-for-me Ambient powders from Hourglass that I get stuck with from the edit palettes. Of course, no one is surprised to hear I can’t use this as a finishing powder on my skin tone.
Some of the deeper finishing powders from the brand have visible shimmer, making them something I wouldn’t want to put under my eyes. I couldn’t see any shimmer particles in Dim Light though, so I have used it as a brightening powder under my eyes. My concealer was a little darker than the rest of my face when I was taking the face pictures above, so this is when I put Dim Light over it and I think it helped brighten it. So, this powder isn’t a complete miss for me.
Celestial Strobe Light (strobe powder/highlighter) – This strobe powder was introduced last year in the Butterfly palette. Because of the level of warmth and transparency in this color, I could actually almost pull this off! I was tempted to depot it from the Butterfly palette before I sold it, so I’m actually not bothered to own it again. When I use Lustrous Bronze Light as a highlighter and add a tiny bit of this on top to amp it up, it’s a pretty combination that works! It’s still unavoidably pearly-looking (nearly frosty), but not to the level of being unflattering.
Mood Exposure (blush) – This is a permanent blush that I never owned. I always wondered if I’d be able to pull it off if I bought one that contained enough of the plummy vein coloring. I’ve learned that at the best of times it shows on my cheeks as a subtle nude color, but doesn’t always resemble a blush. Sometimes too much of the sheen shows on my cheeks and then it looks like a face powder instead of blush. However, adding a little of Ethereal Flush on top is a gorgeous combination. So, I’m actually happy to have this one as a mixer blush! Mystic Flush from the Snake palette is quite vibrant, so having this to mix with that one as well is quite nice. This isn’t a color I’d have ever bought on its own or as a single (assuming I couldn’t use it), but having it come with this palette turned into a happy and useful surprise.
Iridescent Rose (strobe blush) – This is blush first appeared in last year’s Tiger palette. I still have it in my collection, so this is the true repeat for me to have in my Leopard/Owl palette. It’s still a nice blush topper that I prefer over the other deep strobe highlighter/blush powders Hourglass has released in Tiger and Snake, but I don’t want to keep both. So, it’s very likely I will end up selling it in a custom depotted palette at some point this year. I don’t think I ever reviewed the Sculpture Edit Quad, but that one contains Mood Flush which I might replace it with instead.
Ethereal Flush (blush) – This blush is perfect to wear on its own. It reminds me of Coral Flush from the Universe Unlocked palette, but even more flattering on my skin tone. It’s also the only new product within the Leopard palette. Granted, “new” is relative considering it’s yet another pink toned blush, even though Hourglass describes it as a “soft peach.” It’s not hugely different from the others they’ve released.
Lustrous Bronze Light (bronzer) – This bronzer was released in last year’s Elephant palette. I can use it as a low-shine highlighter. The tone would have made a good finishing powder for me if it didn’t have the occasional visible shimmer particle and if the sheen was weaker. I’m fine with using it as a very subtle highlighter though.
So even though Snake and my custom version of Tiger are better suited for me, I’m really happy to have Leopard/Owl to compliment those. And sure enough, by the time I started working on this post weeks ago until the time I’ve decided to publish this, I ended up removing Iridescent Rose and replacing it with Mood Flush. Mood Flush is basically a deeper version of Mood Exposure and I love the subtle color on my cheeks, but I never thought to reach for that one because it was in a quad with 3 nearly unusable products. Now that I’ve put it in the Owl palette, I think I’ll get a lot more use out of it finally. And, now that my duplicate blush is in that Sculpture Quad instead, I may eventually sell it.
As you can see, Mood Flush got a bit banged up in the process. The Sculpture Quad being a plastic component and with stronger glue made it tricky to depot without melting it too badly. I could have depotted the blush perfectly if I increased the heat and didn’t care about trying to salvage the packaging. What I love about the current Hourglass tin components is that depotting the powders is so much easier without ruining the packaging (not even the sticker on the bottom) or the product itself.
Brushes, makeup that was returned, products decluttered or given away, and a MAC highlighter are not pictured.
Welcome back to this series! I reviewed everything in separate posts from last year’s August purchases, so it made sense to skip that. As I began to work on September’s I realized I reviewed most things as well, except the unreviewed items were tied to pending posts I was currently working on. Since I at least purchased additional shades I knew I could show here, I decided to proceed with showing the September items, in addition to October’s!
Benefit Cosmetics Wanderful World Blush in Starlaa (and later PomPom and Shellie) – This specific shade was delayed for four months after the release of all of Benefit’s other blushes. However, I waited until I got my hands on it to do my brand blush review, which can be found HERE. In addition to those four (five technically if you count Terra Spark) from last year, this year I purchased PomPom and Shellie out of curiosity as to how light I could go with the blush colors. Well, I learned that Shellie is my limit. That one doesn’t work, but Pom Pom is nice and subtle.
Another photo of Shellie
I like applying Starlaa and then adding PomPom to the apples of my cheeks. As a solo color, Terra is still my favorite of them all, but I continue to be pleased with this line and overall collection of blushes.
Guerlain Quad -I reviewed this along with many other luxury palettes HERE. Since that review, I’ve used it occasionally, but not enough to justify purchasing any additional ones. Honestly, I would still consider it at a reduced price if every shade in that compact was perfect for me. Chances of that happening are low. I thought for sure I would buy the upcoming Holiday quad, but that one doesn’t contain the baked shades, so I’m skipping it.
Artist Couture Love Sprung 3 and Quickie Palette – I reviewed both of these HERE. The Quickie palette has only been used once or twice since reviewing it. On the other hand, the Love Sprung 3 palette was such a good match for me that I finally had the nerve to declutter Love Sprung 2. The pink/purple blush is pretty, but I never reached for it. The highlighter in version 3 is better for my skin tone than version 2, and the deep peach blush in Love Sprung 2 is basically duped in 3. This shade was also similar to CoverFX Warm Honey, but slightly deeper and shows up on me better, so I was able to let the CoverFX go too considering it’s so old in my collection now.
Clionadh Haul – Stained Glass Shade Expansion (Queen’s Banquet, Quest, Oriel, Reign, Auric) and the previously released single shadow (Chalice) can be found shown HERE. However, I’m still planning to make several more Clionadh posts surrounding the expansion, doing additional comparisons, and showing the shades in full eye looks. It’s just such a daunting task!
Beautylish Haul – Wayne Goss The Radiance Boosting Face Palette (Deep Copper) + Brush 13 Bundle. I actually decluttered this because it got strange bumps on it after only two uses, which I’ve seen happen to other products after at least a year of use, so never this quickly. Beautylish handled it well when I emailed and said they think it’s due to oils on the skin effecting the surface of the powder? But they refunded me. The review for Brush 13 is coming in Fude 6.
CDJapan Haul – Koyudo BP019 Blush Brush (supposed to be outlet but not listed that way), [Outlet] Koyudo Powder Brush Black Handle, [Outlet] Koyudo Blush Brush Black Flat Handle, and MS-4 Mai Sakura Eyeshadow Brush. These brushes are also coming to Fude 6 and 7.
Ulta 21 Days of Beauty Haul – Benefit Cosmetics Precisely, My Brow Pencil Waterproof Eyebrow Definer in Shade 5, NARS Afterglow Lip Balms in Laguna and Torrid, Estee Lauder Futurist Hydra Rescue Moisturizing Foundation SPF 45 in 5W2, Too Faced Hangover Pillow Balm Ultra-Hydrating Lip Treatment in Watermelon and Mango (way more added in 2o23), and the Rituel de Fille Thorn Oil Priming Facial Elixir.
The Benefit brow product is a repurchase that I’ve discussed in various reviews, but isn’t exciting enough to showcase. The Estee Lauder foundation is in a new shade, but the formula has been reviewed HERE.
The Thorn oil was in a skincare post HERE. As for the lip products, those are tied to pending upcoming lip product posts. However, since I’m unsure which of these will come first, I’ll go ahead and review them here, along with the additional lip products I bought the following month as well: Too Faced Pillow Balm Pop Rich & Creamy Mini Lip Trio, Nars Afterglow Lip Shine Gloss in Deep Realm, and Nars Satin Lip Pencil in Rikugien.
The first thing I notice when putting on the Too Faced Hangover Pillow Balm is that it gives a minty-cool sensation on the lips. This contains menthol, so I’m not sure if it was added solely for cooling effect or if the brand wanted plumping action from it as well. What Too Faced touts as the lip plumping ingredient is sodium hyaluronate. Despite having more than one ingredient of this type, I don’t see any difference in the size of my lips beyond the trick of the eye that glossy products can provide. I bought the two full size lippies without even knowing they were supposed to do anything beyond conditioning the lips, so I’m fine with that. The only issue is that ingredients like menthol, cinnamon, and capsaicin irritate the skin, which can aggravate my lip issues. As far as I can tell, menthol and the flavoring and coloring agents are the only ones I spotted from the list that can dry out my lips. These are counterbalanced by the other ingredients in here that my lips love such as petrolatum and shea butter. Sunflower seed oil is another one, but instead Too Faced put “Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seedcake” which is apparently, “residue from the expression of oil,” so I’m not sure how that stacks up to the oil. Mineral oil also tends to be great, but the brand uses hydrogenated polyisobutene, a synthetic mineral oil alternative instead, which can be effective for me if paired with the right other ingredients. This also contains mango seed oil, which is a slightly above average lip conditioner for me too. What this boils down to is the fact that I love the feeling of this product on my lips. It feels moisturizing, and though my lips don’t change in size, I can see where the lines of my lips get plumped up and smoothed out from the added hydration. A protective barrier is formed on the surface to lock that hydration in place and keep it there longer, but that means having to deal with everything sticking to my lips. Too thick of an application can also lead to the dreaded “white ring” around the mouth. Also, this isn’t the kind of lip product I can ignore when eating because of its thick texture, so I purposely try to wipe it off and then reapply once I’ve finished the meal.
Regarding the colors, Watermelon gives me the tiniest pink tinge to my lips, but it’s not my favorite tone. I don’t see any shimmer in Watermelon, but Mango has micro gold shimmer. Mango and Cocoa Kiss are way too light and give a unflattering milky look to my lips, so I definitely don’t wear them in public and mostly just enjoy them for their scents. Watermelon smells like a delicious Watermelon Jolly Rancher candy, whereas Mango smells so faintly that I’m not sure I would have been able to figure it out based on the smell alone. It’s vaguely fruity with a tinge of mango. Cocoa Kiss does smell like slightly artificial hot chocolate. I still enjoy that smell though.
Vanilla Kiss looks beautiful for those who don’t mind obviously shimmery lips. It doesn’t smell like vanilla to me, just a slight sugary scent. Strawberry Kiss, which smells like strawberry bubble-gum or those old school strawberry candies in the strawberry print wrapper, is the most opaque and deepest color of the ones I own. I forgot that the milky aspect of the other shades, and only being able to wear it privately or as an overnight treatment, is why I stopped using them for quite a while. However, now that I remember how good they are, I will want to continue using them. The brand released a new mini trio for the holidays this year and I suspect that even though I don’t need it, I will be unable to resist if it goes on sale. There’s a holiday wine shade that looks like a gorgeous version of Strawberry Kiss without the shimmer.
*BONUS PHOTOS: I ended up getting a discount and buying this year’s Too Faced Warm & Spicy: Pillow Balm Lip Balm Trio Set. I plan to gift the original one away, but I have swatches of the other two.
Holiday Wine smells like a cherry and strawberry forward sangria and Spiced Cider does have that spiced cinnamon scent! Also, even though Spiced Cider looks like a different color in the tube, on the lips and in swatches it looks no different than Vanilla, which is to say that it just looks like a beautiful shimmery colorless gloss.
With the Nars Afterglow Lip Balms, they feel nice and moisturizing on the lips, but I don’t get as much hydration from them as some of my other top favorite lip products. There are emollient ingredients in there, but not the ones that my lips in particular benefit from the most. They’re just okay, like hydrogenated polyisobutene and squalane, which aren’t enough to counter the effects of the dryness I get from the coloring agents. So, I wear these balms for the subtle tinge of color to my lips that’s pretty and flattering colors for me, at least in these two shades. They feel comfortable to wear, but by the end of the day with reapplications, I know my lips will somehow end up slightly dryer than at the start. So, these aren’t something I use daily. I might use them for a few days back to back, but then I’ll have to switch to a truly nourishing lip product instead.
The lip gloss is pretty, but the color doesn’t show as well on me. I chose this shade because it looked like a wearable warm color, but mostly because it was in the clearance section on the Nars website. It’s a bit funny to me that the lip gloss contains more of the ingredients my lips like. It has the hydrogenated polyisobutene, but also shea butter replaces the squalane, and sunflower seed oil is present, though nearly at the bottom of the list. As a thick glossy product, it seals in the moisture better than the balms, but the end result in terms of moisture is the same. When the layer wears down, my lips look drier than when I first put it on. As a gloss though, without any additional expectations for it, it looks nice.
The Satin Lip pencil was reviewed in this declutter post HERE, and in that post I voiced my concern over my favorite shade being different and it appearing to be discontinued. However, I was surprised to see it eventually return to the website last year (still in the last chance section). I bought it and was happy that it was the same original formula I fell for the first time. Regarding it being discontinued or not, all I can say is that another year later, it’s still in the last chance section! Nars recently launched the Powermatte High-Intensity Lip Pencil, so I wonder if they finally will let the Satin Lip Pencils go or if they plan to reformulate and/or redesign the line.
Luxury/High-End Purchases from October ’22: Bobbi Brown Luxe Eye & Face Palette in Copper Glow and Bobbi Brown Jadestone Palette, Dior Backstage Khaki Neutrals and Dior Écrin Couture Iconic Eye Makeup Palette, as well as the Pat Mcgrath Labs Celestial Nirvana Eye Shadow Palette in Bronze Bliss
I reviewed all five of those HERE. The only one I regret buying is the Bobbi Brown Face Palette just because I bought a face trio earlier this year (not to be confused with the new holiday trio that contains 2 of the 3 same shades) that I get more use out of, plus it contains the same highlighter that is in that palette. As for the others, I am still always testing new eyeshadows, so I don’t have the time to use them as much as I want.
Pat Mcgrath Spur of the Moment Purchases: Skin Fetish: Divine Glow Highlighter in Venus Nectar, Pat Mcgrath Labs X Bridgerton Skin Fetish Sublime Highlighter in Incandescent Gold, and Pat Mcgrath Labs Skin Fetish Sublime Perfection Concealer in Shade MD23.
I showcased both highlighters HERE, though I didn’t show Venus Nectar on my face, so I’m including that at least in this post. As for the concealer, I reviewed the formula of shades MD22 and MD24 HERE, but I don’t think I updated with a swatch of MD23 once I got it. Essentially, I finally got my hands on that sold out shade and it was the perfect depth level, but the tone was still too olive and looked strange compared to the tone of my foundations, so I essentially gave up on using the PML concealers anymore. I don’t have MD22 or MD24 to compare next to it anymore, but I have a photo of MD23 compared to other concealers when I had intended (but changed my mind) to do an Ami Cole concealer post.
Fenty Beauty Double Cheek’d Up: Freestyle Cream Blush Duo – I reviewed it HERE and honestly haven’t picked it up a single time since reviewing. When the cream blush line was expanded this year, I picked up two new shades, but realized that even though I enjoy them for their colors, I prefer a product that sets to a fully dry touch. So, I don’t plan on reviewing anymore blushes from Fenty in the future, unless they release powder versions.
LYS Beauty Higher Standard 3-Piece Cream Blush Set – I reviewed it HERE and have only used it a few times after the review. It isn’t a matter of me losing interest. It’s still in my top 2 among traditional cream formulas. I’m just preferring to use powder blushes a lot more these days. I still very much recommend LYS blushes.
Hourglass Ambient Soft Glow Foundation in 13.5 and 14
I was initially saving this review for a foundation ranking/declutter post I started working on at the beginning of the year, but never finished. I purchased Shade 13.5 which was slightly too light, but I could pull it off as long as I used bronzer with it. I bought Shade 14 at the end of November, and that was closer to my skintone, but slightly too dark. I can get a good match by mixing the two, but I have to be careful because the color darkens once it’s dry. So, I can’t just mix to my correct shade while wet. I have to mix to get my correct dry-down color.
This foundation is thick, though not heavy. It doesn’t drip at all when squirted out of the pump. I get high-medium coverage from the foundation. When they say “soft glow” they really do mean that the glow level is low. It’s a natural finish foundation, but on my dry skin, it looks horrible for most of the day unless I either prep my skin well (with at least facial oil) or wait until my natural oils come through, which doesn’t end up happening until the late afternoon, if at all. Even when I use Rituel de Fille Thorn Oil, I don’t like how my skin looks until an hour or so later. Then, I find the finish to be quite beautiful. I like this foundation enough that I’ve been keeping it in rotation since buying it, but not quite enough that I’d repurchase it once I use it up, even if Hourglass was to make shade 13.75 or something. I have foundations I like equally (albeit a different finish) that are still expensive, but a better deal.
It sets completely and doesn’t transfer, so I don’t set it with setting powder or spray. I still use a finishing powder with it at times and in specific areas.
Hourglass Foundation Shade 13.5 with Gucci Bronzer Shade 5 (Taken with Camera)
Hourglass Foundation Shades 13.5 and 14 mixed (Taken with Cell Phone)
I posted on the home page that, unfortunately, my main camera broke and I had to switch to using my cell phone for blog photos. That has come with its own benefits and challenges. My main camera had higher megapixels, but I’ve been using additional light sources and trying to improve my light quality to compensate for my cell phone, so it’s debatable which one is better when I had different struggles with both. Anyway, I just wanted to explain why the two look so different, besides the foundation color. I still have a ton of photos taken with my former main camera, but not enough to complete the posts without needing to add additional pictures with my cell phone.
Oden’s Eye Merry Christmas and Christmas Eve Holiday Palettes – I reviewed these HERE but did not include any solo eye looks. I figured today would be a good time to share some. As I mentioned in my post, I always reach for these as companion palettes. Out of the eleven Oden’s Eye palettes I own, I would say the Merry Christmas one is my 2nd favorite. The Christmas Eve palette would be 4th place. I hope the brand decides to re-release them for those who missed out.
Smashbox Cali Contour Palette in Medium/Dark
It took the full year for me to make up my mind about this palette because there was always something I didn’t like about it when I tried to use more than one product at a time. Then it would take me a few weeks to a few months to want to try it again.
It’s very easy to overdo it with the contour (as seen below) and because it’s so pigmented, I can make it look blended, but it doesn’t sheer out enough. So, it’s best to start slowly and try and build up the color that way. Cinnamon Matte isn’t dark enough to bronze me (though I’m still not sure what purpose it’s actually supposed to serve), but I use it to tone down Warm Contour within reason.
Cocoa Rojo is a beautiful color, but for some reason I don’t like the finish of it on my skin. There’s subtle shimmer in this and I’m in my glowy cheek era, so I should like this. I’m just not sure it’s this type of shimmer that I like in a cheek product where it shows particles and the glow doesn’t come from a sheen.
These highlighters are subtle, which is also right up my alley. However, the shimmer isn’t as refined as I like. For some reason they just don’t excite me.
On paper, I should love this face palette, but I don’t. I like it enough to want to keep it, but I know I’m not going to reach for it when there are so many blushes, bronzers, and highlighters I use that actually cause an excited flutter within me when I put them on. Since I don’t have a ton of contour products, that’s the one thing from here that still has some appeal and I’m considering depotting it from the palette. However, I do have contour products that are working just fine for me, so I might not bother.
Revolution Shrek Gingy Highlighter and GOT Iron Throne Sponge Set
I bought the highlighter purely for nostalgia. I love Gingy! The Shrek series (really just 1 and 2) was my favorite series after the Mummy Series (again 1 and 2) for a very long time! I think Rush Hour 1 and 2 (okay apparently I only like the first two of trilogies) surpassed the Shrek series by now, but I still love those movies and Gingy is still my favorite. However, for review purposes I have worn it a handful of times. When I’m using my winter foundations, the highlighter is too deep of a bronze for me. In the photo above where I’m not quite at my typical summer shade but a little darker than I have been in a while, it seems to work well enough when used sparingly. In complete direct light, my camera can pick up the texture to the shimmer particles, but looks smoother at most other angles in the light. In fact, it’s smoother than I expected from a Revolution Beauty product. I’m a bit impressed! I don’t intend to use it anymore though since I want to keep it for nostalgia purposes, but it’s good enough that I could. Also, this used to have a strong gingerbread scent, but that faded in the year that I’ve had this.
How cool is this sponge and holder set! Plus, it was so inexpensive at $6 considering Beautyblender’s sponge stands/holders/cases are in the $10 range not including the sponge. The brand had a sale and I ended up buying another set to give to my friend at the even lower price of $4! As a Game of Thrones mega fan, I had to have this for the stand alone. It’s not only a functional holder, but also a nice spot to set the sponge to air dry after being cleaned. The sponge was just like any other inexpensive sponge I’ve tried. It blended my foundation in just as well while feeling a little firmer than the original Beautyblender, but not as firm as the Rephr sponge or Danessa Myricks ones. The Revolution Beauty sponge was also firmer than the Real Techniques Miracle Complexion sponge. It would be nice if it was a little softer when wet, but it still works great, especially for the cost. There are two big drawbacks for me, which is that if the sponge sits out for even as little as a few hours, I can’t wash it fully clean with any of my soaps. There will still be foundation stains after multiple re-washings. The other downside is that for whatever reason this sponge takes exceptionally long to dry. It had me concerned about the increased risk of something growing inside considering how long it stays wet for. So, after a few uses I decided not to bother with it. I’m happy enough with the stand. I know there have been quite the issues financially with this brand and their sub-brands and co-brands, but I hope they’re able to continue making gems. I haven’t had the best luck with everything of theirs I’ve tried, but they’ve got their occasional hits.
CDJapan Chikuhodo ZE-3 Blush Brush – This review is coming to Fude 6.
Sonia G Smooth Buffer Brush – This review is coming to Fude 7.
Viseart Petit Pro Palette London Étoile – I reviewed this HERE along with several other Viseart palettes. I created some pretty looks with it, but once the “new” feeling wore off, I didn’t use it again. I love olive shadows, but I have so many other olives that have more sparkle and wow-factor to them, which is why I always remembered to use those and forgot about the one from this palette.
Lunar Beauty 2022 Advent Calendar, Love Me Strawberry Lip Oil, and Dreamy Lip Gloss – I’m going to come right out and say I’ve chosen to not review these products at this time. I have always felt conflicted about whether to review Lunar Beauty or not because I’m always going back and forth about how I feel about the brand’s owner Manny Gutierrez (Manny MUA). The personality he portrays in his videos isn’t the style I enjoy watching in reviews, but it’s his past constant involvement in drama with other problematic influencers that bothered me. I do own the first Moonspell palette (purchased discounted from a third party and never used as it’s just for packaging), a Moon Prism highlighter I bought purely for packaging (also purchased from a third party and never used) and originally planned to compare it to the controversial dupe highlighter from Makeup Revolution, the first Moon Prism blush palette that I purchased when Lunar Beauty products were sold at Sephora, and the Large Powder Brush from his website (even gifted two of them). Manny had stayed away from the drama for a few years and his Fool Coverage podcast with Laura Lee started to change my opinion of him. That’s why I purchased the Advent Calendar and lip products last year and decided that I felt comfortable enough to finally put full energy into the Lunar Beauty post I’d been working on here and there for literally years. Then, as I started with the product photos and testing in 2023, I kept hearing about more and more problematic influencers that he was starting to show his public support for again and that bad taste in my mouth returned. Unlike certain people whose products I refuse to buy or speak about on my blog any longer (JS, JC, JH, etc.), I don’t know if I’m going to give a hard ban to Lunar Beauty products in terms of never speaking about them again. I at least finished reviewing the last Jaclyn Cosmetics products I owned before stating I was done with the brand. With Lunar Beauty, if I’m wearing those products in a post, I might mention it’s what I’m using, but I don’t see myself ever working on that brand review post again, and I personally will no longer purchase anymore products from them. The last thing I bought was a year ago anyway.
Beauty Bay Dark Fantasy Palette
I showcased this in a Swatchfest post, but hadn’t actually reviewed it at the time. These colors are stunning and right up my alley. I have loved the looks I’ve created with it. Regarding the quality, this doesn’t give me that many issues when I’m using a primer. Eye primers are a staple product for most beauty lovers, but I do personally know people in my life who are makeup dabblers and don’t always use primer. So, it’s for their sake that I feel the need to express that I had such a hard time using this palette without a primer. The lighter mattes are fine, but the darker ones are so pigmented with good adherence that they just don’t want to budge unless there’s a primer underneath. I can’t stress enough that primer is important! Also, I highly recommend working from lightest to darkest when building up layers.
With primer, these mattes still weren’t as easy to blend as the majority of the eyeshadow palettes I use (also at double the cost or more), but with the staple Japanese eyeshadow brushes I’ve used hundreds of times, it was still better than I expected. It’s nice to see Beauty Bay eyeshadow quality has a positive reputation for a reason. Not necessarily as being the greatest on the market, but certainly great for the price (along the lines of BH Cosmetics, Colourpop, and ELF). It didn’t take that much longer blending as to prevent me from wanting to use this palette again. The first time was rough, but every time after was easy enough. I like how much color payoff I get from those mattes. For instance, shades like Plasma are usually treated like a pastel shade and are too thin or too white based and don’t look that great on my eyes, but this one was great! Hoax is a color that really doesn’t show on my eyes due to my skin tone and Algorithm is a slightly more golden tone version of my skin so it barely shows either, but I still like to use it as a starting shade in the crease. Atmosphere is the one that’s too thin and doesn’t show well enough on me and the other shades are too strong in pigment and overpowers it when I try to use it to blend the edges of the shadows, but it still semi works for that purpose. I just have to spend a little extra time on it. Beauty ends up looking way more purple on my eyes instead of burgundy or maroon, but it’s at least still a pretty color.
I have zero issues with the shimmers. I sometimes get a little fallout, but dampening the brush helps. The shimmers aren’t as refined as some of my more expensive eyeshadows either, but I like their sparkle level and they look pretty regardless. I want intensity and opacity from my shimmers, and that’s what these give me. I didn’t have any patchy or creasing issues either, so overall I do like this palette! I’m glad I was able to give the Beauty Bay eyeshadows a try. Because it’s not the easiest to get my hands on, I don’t know how many more I’ll get in the future. Plus, I’m usually not drawn to their color stories. However, if another one attracts my attention, I might get it.
MAC Indulgent Glow Rosé Limited-Edition face kit in Sparkling Wine – I reviewed this HERE and in comparison to other MAC highlighters I got around the same time. It’s super pretty, but I ran into that issue where I am so reluctant to actually use my makeup with cute embossing on it. I have no regrets buying it though.
Charlotte Tilbury Hypnotising Pop Shot eyeshadow in Cosmic Rocks – I reviewed it HERE along with the shade Sunlit Diamond that they sent me on accident with a different order. Just as I expected, these have become cute decor. I haven’t reached for them more than once or twice after completing the review. I just don’t use single eyeshadows if they’re in individual compacts. I only reach for the ones in my larger custom magnetic palettes.
Hourglass Unlocked Butterfly Palette – I got this from FeelUnique/Sephora UK for $46 purely to get the two blushes in that palette. I depotted two shades from my other Hourglass palettes that were unusable on my skintone, adhered them to the Butterfly palette’s now missing blush spots, and sold it as a custom palette on Mercari. Minus the fees, I made $32 back, so this was probably the best deal I got that year. I did not get so lucky on the deals this year, but that’s a story for another time. I talked about the process of depotting and showed the photos of the palette HERE.
Bioderma Sensibio H2O – This was just a repurchase. I decided to look through my purchase history and essentially since November 2015 I’ve bought 8 of the 500ml bottles, 2 of the 250ml bottles, and 2 travel size 100ml bottles. In the beginning, I was able to get heavy discounts on multi-packs, but the prices have jumped up quite a lot. So, I try to get them individually whenever I see them on sale, even if I need to accumulate backups since they will always be used up. In fact, I’m halfway through my last bottle and will need to find a new place to order it from when I go back to Germany so I won’t need to bring a big bottle over with me. This is one of those products that as long as they keep making it and don’t change the formula, I’ll be buying it for life.
Fenty Beauty Sun Stalk’R Face + Eye Bronzer & Highlighter Palette – I reviewed this HERE and though it’s still in my collection, I am considering decluttering it. I just have a ton of bronzers by now that I prefer and don’t need to resort to mixing to get the tones I like.
One/size Cheek Clapper in Phat @$$ – I reviewed it HERE. As it often happens, because my blush collection is so large, I don’t have the chance to use this as often as I would like to. It’s still one of my favorites, along with the other shade from the line called Freaky Peach. I still easily recommend this trio, even at full price.
Sephora Collection VIB Sale Items: Soft Matte Perfection Blush Duo in 01 Sweet Pea, Best Skin Ever Liquid Foundation in 44 Y, Best Skin Ever Full Coverage Multi-Use Concealer in 35N and 44Y
The blush duo in three shades (two additional I bought later on) are reviewed HERE. As for the foundation and concealers, the shade matches are why I decided not to review them. I wasn’t blown away by the finishes and just didn’t feel inspired to keep using any of them.
Sephora’s Best Skin Ever line was really hyped up, but it was just fine. I didn’t like how the concealers wore throughout the day. The finish of the foundation was fine and the color match wasn’t too terribly dark if used lightly, but all of these smelled so heavily of chemicals after owning them for a year. For the record though, I didn’t open the concealers until around three months prior to posting this and they smelled just as bad as the foundation, like spray paint or nail polish. So, even without air exposure, the shelf life isn’t great on these. I threw them out before I could take a picture including them in the big October month photo.
Rare Beauty Positive Light Liquid Luminizer Highlight in Flaunt – I reviewed this already as a sample HERE, but I bought the full size a year ago during the VIB sale. I also have swatches and comparisons to the powder version of this shade HERE.
Kayali Eden Juicy Apple – I don’t normally review my perfume purchases, but I did so in a big Kayali post HERE. I have admittedly barely used this perfume because I’m always using Yum Pistachio or Lovefest instead, but at least I just got this in a small size so it’s not quite as wasteful. Plus, I got it on sale. As nice as it is, I decided to give it to my sister because of how deep my obsession for the other scents run. This was my first Kayali purchase, but since it’s only a year old, I haven’t attached any sentimental value to it.
HUDA BEAUTY GloWish Cheeky Vegan Soft Glow Powder Blush in Sassy Saffron – I showed swatches of it HERE in comparison to the previous shades I bought. However, I don’t have any face pictures with it on because it just doesn’t show up on my cheeks. For that reason, I haven’t used this particular shade. The formula and finish wasn’t special enough either for me to prioritize it. I still like how Berry Juicy looks, and I wore it perhaps two more times in the past year.
Tom Ford Highlighter Duo in Tanlight – I reviewed it HERE. I still use it quite often and it’s one of my favorite highlighters in my collection. In fact, it’s such a great shade match for me that I don’t feel the necessity to purchase anymore highlighters from the brand unless they have another shade that’s similar to the mixture of the two colors in some form of special packaging. While I still have mixed feelings about the price and I’m not sure if I would universally recommend it to everyone, it was worth it personally to me.
Oh dear Lord, we’ve finally reached the end!
This was a monster of a post, even though so many of the products had already been reviewed elsewhere! We’re so close to completing the series but November and December 2022 had even more purchases than October! And considering what I know is coming for the rest of this year in my personal life, I think we’ll have to complete this series sometime next year!
I’m getting into a really exciting chapter of my personal life, which I will be sharing with everyone in December or January. Thank you to those who are choosing to be along for the ride!
I purchased the Duo 003 Bundle to save some money since I knew with certainty I wouldn’t be able to stick with just one quint. Eventually, I would buy at least one more. I nearly always enjoy my PML purchases, so as soon as I fall in love with the parts of collections I buy, I’m always tempted to get more. However, I’m upholding some restraint with this collection. Buying two quints was the correct decision for me, but this might be all I get this year.
Bijoux Brilliance Eyeshadow Palette in Bronze Ecstasy and Lunar Nightshade
The quality of these are just what I would expect from the brand. The satins are stunning, the shimmers are beautiful, these are pigmented yet easy to blend, and among the shimmers there are various textures. The shades in the middle of both palettes are the wettest to the touch. As for Enchanted Bronze and Noir Nebula, they both have this very strange texture that smooths onto the lids nicely, and the base color is opaque, but the sparkles within those two are larger in particle size and not all that tightly grouped together. It nearly gives a scattered effect on the eye. Those two are also easier to get sparkle fallout, so I apply them precisely and carefully as the last step of the eye looks. I also tend to wet my brush since it makes me feel like they stick better that way, though it might not be necessary. My technique with those less easy shimmers is to apply them with my finger first, dampen a brush to pack on another layer to get the amount of sparkles I want, and then add one more final layer with my finger.
Merlot Mystique is a gorgeous plum-brown that reminds me of the darkest shade in Tom Ford’s Honeymoon quad. When I apply that to my crease, it loses some of the purple tone, so I basically blend those edges to my satisfaction and then add a little more of that shade on top to get the true color to show. The same goes for Midnight Iris that can just look like a deep purple, but adding a little back on at the end will show the vibrancy of that particular color.
I don’t get any creasing using these with the Gerard Cosmetics Clean Canvas or MAC Paint Pot, but I have gotten a tiny bit with the Coloured Raine eyeshadow base. The longevity is good since I don’t see them fading or dimming in their shine on the eyes.
I feel satisfied that the two quints I added to my collection are different enough from the rest to have been worth it, but I don’t think I’d have been excited enough over the other two color stories in the Bijoux Brilliance Collection. They’re pretty, but wouldn’t stand out as unique. Plus, I haven’t gotten as much use out of these as I’d like to, so adding four at one time would have been overwhelming.
After someone pointed out the similarities of the color stories between Lunar Nightshade and Kaleidos’ Futurism III Astro Pink, it feels less unique than I thought. However, I don’t regret getting it. And even though I don’t see myself coming up with a variety of different looks using Bronze Ecstasy, I’m very pleased with those staple looks I do end up creating. That one is actually my favorite of the two!
The brand’s 5-pan palettes seem to be an easy way to add more varieties of colors to their offerings, so I look forward to seeing more of these in the future. This is especially the case because as much as I love PML mattes, I love the matte/satin-matte hybrid formula that has thus far been exclusive to the quints.
HOLIDAY COLLECTION DISCUSSION
The most tempting products for me were the two MTHRSHP Bijoux Brilliance face palettes consisting of two blushes and 9 eyeshadows in each. These are great for people who haven’t purchased much from the brand, especially prior releases, which is why it would ultimately be a bad buy for me. Starstruck Splendour has both blushes that are too light for me (plus one is a repeat anyway). Jeweled Temptation has a new shade that’s too light, plus the famous Paradise Venus which I owned as a single before gifting it to my sister, but got it again in the Divine Blush + Glow Cheek Palette from last year, and it’s the darker shade within the Paradise Glow duo blush that I still own. My excuse for keeping the duo is for travel, but by right, I should find a new home for it. Even if I chose to do that, I’d still end up with two Paradise Venus pans left if I bought Jeweled Temptation. I was watching a discussion video when someone mentioned Jeweled Tempation’s color story looks like the MTHRSHP Mega Celestial Divinity Palette and I couldn’t unsee it. They’re not exact dupes, but it’s too similar for me to justify getting it even at a discounted price considering the blush situation.
That same person also mentioned that Starstruck Splendour looks like Celestial Odyssey, which I did not purchase during the holiday season it was released. However, I own the six pan palette Velvet Liason (I left it in Germany), which comparing those promo pic colors to the Velvet Liason promo pic shades, the vibes are similar there too. So, I am ultimately skipping both products, even when they go on sale.
Next most interesting for me were the quints, but I bought the two that appealed to me most. I was actually set on also buying Bordeaux Bliss until I thought about all the pink and purple toned shades I have, and the fact that the nearly-cream-to-powder mattes were the stars of the show for me in the quints initially and Bordeaux Bliss only has shimmers. Sunset Romance is also pretty, but too pink and too neutral to avoid feeling repetitive for me.
The Divine Blush + Bronze + Glow Trio in Supernova Siren was nearly as tempting, specifically for the highlighter. I usually stick to golds, dark champagnes, and light bronzes, but a warm peachy-pink highlighter with golden shimmer can sometimes peak my interest. However, I already own the Burnished Honey bronzer (along with two other bronzer shades). I’d be willing to sell my individual one in order to not have two in my collection, but Burnished Honey isn’t even my favorite of the bronzer shades. I might have done that if it was Bronze Divinity instead. In photos, the new Midnight Orchid blush looks too vibrant of a fuchsia shade for my taste. It looks within the same color family of Lovestruck, plus deeper, and I specifically have avoided buying Lovestruck because it’s not the type of blush color I enjoy seeing on myself. So, unless this is one of those times when the website photos don’t accurately show how the shade will look in person, that makes two cons against getting the trio. While it’s true that I sometimes will buy a whole face palette just for one shade, a highlighter is rarely special enough to be worth that. And as intrigued as I am by Solar Fantasy, it’s in the Divine Glow formula whereas I prefer the brand’s Skin Fetish: Ultra Glow formula. A non-sparkly non-glittery baked gelee is my absolute favorite from the brand, and unfortunately that has only been for the Divine Rose one. They’ve yet to release that kind in another shade and I’d prefer to wait however long it takes because that one still trumps the rest of the highlighters I own from Pat Mcgrath, even though the Divine Glow formula is still nice. It’s just not as special on the market. So, this is ultimately the one product I’m still waiting to see photos and videos posted online to decide if the blush is more my style and if the highlighter is still something I want. If yes to both, I’d only get it on a deep discount considering the risks of me liking it are slimmer than the potential disappointment. It may very well be that these two quints I reviewed end up being the only Pat Mcgrath Holiday items I buy.
I nearly forgot that new shades of the colorful mascaras are part of this collection too! I commend the brand for taking a risk on those, since I don’t think there’s a big market for that kind of makeup product, but it’s an easy pass for me.
Also, I know it’s not just me thinking this collection and several past releases are all in the Bridgerton aesthetic. I can’t help but think that the collaboration didn’t sell as well as anticipated (which is backed up by the appearance of so many Bridgerton items at TJMaxx) and a lot of packaging and components intended to be extensions of the Bridgerton line have been passed off onto customers with different names pretending to be uniquely different collections. I like the bows and jewels patterns and designs, so I enjoy having these while the brand doesn’t have to take a loss by just excluding the Bridgerton label from the products. The only downside for me is the not-so-bold color stories, so I’m looking forward to when we’ll be able to move onto some fresh concepts and ideas.
Anyway, that’s everything for this week! Thank you for reading!
*DISCLOSURE:Other than the free sample that came with my order, the Charlotte Tilbury product reviewed in this post was purchased by me with my own money. Non-highlighted links in bold blue font (Example) are standard non-affiliate links. Links marked in bold black font with a light blue background (Example) are affiliate links. Affiliate links allow me to get a commission if purchases are made directly using my link. There is currently only one affiliate link in this post and it’s for a brush.
Charlotte Tilbury released some nice gift sets and new items for the holidays this year, but I was only interested in this one. I also received a sample of the Magic Water Cream with my order, so I’ll discuss that at the end of this post.
This mini duo comes in two different shade variations. The Tan to Deep version that I purchased has a blush listed as a Rich Terracotta and a highlighter as a Golden Sunset. Because of the “Glide” part of the name, I wondered if the highlighter has the same formula as the Glow Glide Face Architect highlighters. Comparing the shimmer level and how it shines when light hits it, it certainly does look the same on the skin. To the touch, it feels the tiniest bit wet, whereas both of my full-size Glow Glides feel even more wet/gel-like. However, since they have the same ingredients listed on the website in the exact same order and they look the same on the skin, it’s safe to assume it’s the same formula.
That brings me to the interesting similarity I discovered between the highlighter in this duo and the Sunset Glow shade. Technically, Charlotte Tilbury only lists these as “blusher” and “highlighter” without formal names. There is one image on the website that lists “Rich Terracotta Blush” and “Golden Sunset Highlighter,” but those could be descriptions of the colors and not actual shade names. I have stared long and hard at the two of these side by side and watched the way they shine in the light at various angles. My final verdict is that there is the most minute of differences in the new highlighter having the tiniest bit more apparent of a copper base which is offset by the tiniest bit more of a golden reflect from slightly more of the shimmer, making them basically the same shade.
The description of the new highlighter in the product details as a golden sunset powder may as well be an admission of being Sunset Glow, since that shade is also described by the brand as a warm golden copper. In looking closely at the other duo for Light to Medium skin tones, the highlighter in that duo is described as a pearlescent pinkpowder and looks a lot like Pillow Talk Glow, which the brand says is a “neutral-pearly pink.” If they’re not those exact shades, they’re at most the tiniest bit tweaked. So, if you own the Pillow Talk or Sunset Glow shade of Hollywood Glow Glide Face Architect Highlighter, you might want to reconsider whether it’s worth the price to buy one of these. At least with the Tan to Deep version, there’s the benefit of Sunset Glow being (in the US) a Charlotte Tilbury website exclusive, so this is one way someone who prefers to shop at Sephora can get their hands on this shade. Plus, I don’t believe the brand ever had a blush in this color. However, Pillow Talk in any form can be found everywhere, and I’m not confident that the pink blush within the Light to Medium duo is unique to the brand either. It reminds me of a blush in last year’s Pillow Talk Beautifying Face Palette in the version for fair to medium complexions, just based on online photos.
This photo was taken in a hotel bathroom while on a trip. It was at the end of the day and although the makeup looked visible in person, I needed to refresh them both by adding a small amount more of the highlighter in particular so that it would show on camera in the limited lighting. I also did not blend the highlighter so it would be even more obvious in photos. I’m pleased with the longevity of both.
I try to test products out for longer, but considering my experience with the brand’s other blushes and highlighters, half of my usual trial days were enough to solidify my thoughts. The blush is extremely pigmented for such a thin powder! It picks up easily on a brush and looks intimidating when it first touches the cheeks, but the formula is finely milled and blends easily over dry or set skin. With this kind of base, I prefer to use a light-applying airy brush like the Sonia G Soft Cheek. Using that brush over a dewy base takes a lot more effort to blend, but I can still get it to smooth out and look even and not patchy. Using the Sonia G Cheek Pro adds even more product at once, but the combination of how dense it is packed and the hair type makes it more suited for buffing, so this works perfectly for applying the blush even on a dewy base. I had heard that this blush is prone to sticking if the face hasn’t been set, and I could see that a little bit for myself, but it wasn’t a problem when using high quality brushes like my Sonia G ones. So, perhaps that should be taken into consideration.
The highlighter being the Glow Glide formula I’m used to, I use my favorite Bisyodo CH-HC highlighter brush, other candle-flame shaped brushes, or fan brushes to start off light and be able to build up the intensity. Even though the shimmer content and particle size appears to be the same, the reflect intensity of the Glow Glides are stronger than Charlotte Tilbury’s Pillow Talk Multi Glow formula as seen in my swatch earlier in this post. It’s also unsurprisingly more intense than the shimmer ring within the Cheek Chic blushes, so that’s something to consider for those who like the most subtle and least texture-emphasizing of the brand’s highlighters. Both the Glow Glides and Pillow Talk Multi Glow are holy grail highlighters for me.
Regarding color comparisons outside of the brand, I felt confident that even among my orange/terracotta blushes this one would be pretty unique. However, I discovered some that are similar enough, such as the Melt Blushes from the Monarca palette or Armani’s Neo Nude Color Melting Balm (though that’s a cream formula instead of powder). And then the Beauty Bakerie Brownie Bar contains a blush and highlighter, plus contour, for $18 that looks quite similar, though I think the Charlotte Tilbury highlighter has more refined shimmer and an even smoother blush. Melt’s Conmigo blush is practically identical and is closer to the Charlotte Tilbury quality, but the powder itself isn’t as lightweight. The refinement or mill of Charlotte Tilbury’s blush is like the brand’s own matte powder bronzer and matte face powder, which makes sense. So, those who find them to be top tier powders will be pleased with the quality of this one, though this has more pigment.
Even though dupes can be found, $29 for this duo is a great price coming from the brand. Considering the brand’s individual blushes are typically in the $40 range and highlighters in the $45 range, getting both in a more realistic amount of product and for less money is great! This would have been even more worth it to me if I didn’t already own the Sunset Glow highlighter. However, I still don’t regret it. My Melt blush in Conmigo is starting to get hardpan and is a bit older of a product, so I have been debating whether or not to declutter it. I feel good about having what is essentially an even better replacement.
Charlotte Tilbury Magic Water Cream (sample)
I always felt that the Charlotte Tilbury Magic Cream felt luxurious, but was too thick for my liking. I’ve had a deluxe size sample of it before and compared to the Bobbi Brown Vitamin Enriched Face base, I liked the Bobbi Brown slightly more. In fact, I got rid of my original Magic Cream deluxe sample in favor of using the Bobbi Brown one.
I can say that I absolutely like this Magic Water Cream version way more than the original and Bobbi Brown’s product. It’s apparently a gel-cream hybrid, which explains why it’s still thicker than the gel moisturizers I’m familiar with, but it doesn’t take much effort for it to fully sink into the skin. Despite what its starting consistency looks like, it thins out when rubbed and doesn’t feel heavy on the skin. The two times I tried it, it kept my skin adequately hydrated all day. There are some longer term claims on the website that I can’t verify such as the “100-hour hydration” or “skin texture appears smoother after 4 weeks,” but I enjoyed using it. If I received it as a gift, I’d be happy. However, I’m not even sure if I’d be willing to pay half price for it considering how much I love other gel and water based moisturizers, such as the Round Lab Birch Juice Moisturizing Cream, Saturday Skin Waterfall Glacier Water Cream, Innisfree Dewy Glow Jelly Cream (but this Jeju Cherry Blossom one has strong fragrance), and even the Laneige Water Bank Blue Hyaluronic Gel Moisturizer is pretty good, though I’d rate that one below the Magic Water Cream. So, considering all the nice alternatives, I just don’t see myself purchasing it from Charlotte Tilbury, but it’s nice to know that it’s at least a good product. I should also note that the Magic Water Cream is supposed to be for normal to oily skin types, whereas I have dry skin, so I’m not the intended target for this product. Considering that, it’s even more impressive that I like it as much as I do.
That concludes everything for today! Thank you for reading!
DISCLOSURE: All products in this post were purchased by me with my own money. All links in this review are regular non-affiliated links.
Rituel de Fille Thorn Oil Priming Facial Elixir and Thorn Milk Hydrating Skin Mist
I bought the Thorn Oil for half price via Ulta just one year ago, but the Thorn Milk Mist I bought in May 2023.
On the bottle, the brand suggests using 5 to 10 drops of Thorn Oil on the face. Even though I have dry skin, it takes way too long for my skin to absorb even five drops, and makeup doesn’t settle properly on top. So, I’ve found that 2-3 drops is actually perfect for me. The oil is more of a yellow-orange color and the red coloring gathers after a while on the bottom or sides, so it has to be shaken thoroughly before each use. The glass jar has round balls in there (like the agitator mixing beads in some nail polish bottles) to help with that. When mixed properly, it doesn’t make the face noticeably red, however, there is a faint tinge I’ve seen via camera photos. It’s basically no more intense than certain sunscreens that can leave the tiniest blue or purple tinge that’s only visible on certain areas of my skin. So, I’d still consider it clear or clearish.
I have loved using this product, and considering how long it takes me to go through even travel sizes of primers, using nearly half of this bottle (at a rate of 2-3 drops per use) is impressive for me. The downside is that I couldn’t finish it before it started to change in smell. It’s listed as being good for 12 months and when it comes to Rituel de Fille products and their preservation system, definitely don’t expect things to last longer than it says. In fact, I’m surprised I got the full year out of this one. The smell changed from a beautiful slightly rosy herbaceous smell to smelling vaguely like fish oil by the end. In addition to makeup priming purposes, I would sometimes even use this as a facial oil in my skincare routine on days I needed extra hydration.
As a priming product with this much oil, I’ve noticed a few of my products can’t stand up to the formula. For instance, my KVD Good Apple Concealer breaks down super fast if I accidentally get some of the Thorn Oil in my eye area or top of the cheekbones where I have to carry down some of the concealer onto. I forgot which foundation of mine also broke down a little faster with this as a primer. And I’ve had some foundations that were a bit more transfer-prone with this underneath. However, this product helped save the Hourglass Ambient Glow Foundation for me and I don’t have issues using this at the same time as my Givenchy Prisme-Libre concealer. So, I’d say there’s a learning curve to figuring out which products go well with this. Theoretically, it would be easier to assume silicone and oil based will work fine. Water-based products could potentially have issues.
If I used the Thorn Milk Mist as often as the oil and didn’t have another skin mist I was trying to use up first, I imagine I’d have gone through this product in two months. In a month and a half using it not very frequently, I used up nearly half of the bottle. It may be the case that I over spray because I’m trying to chase the results I get from the oil, but it’s meant to be a lightweight product that imparts less moisture. After dousing my face as a prep step before applying makeup, I always feel unsatisfied with the moisture level and end up adding the oil on top afterwards. Using it in conjunction with the oil doesn’t feel like it makes much of a difference from using the oil on its own. Misting my face as the last step is supposed to give subtle dewiness, but any shine lingers for just a moment. It’s like my skin sucks it up too quickly. For those who find the Thorn Oil to be too intense for their makeup, perhaps the mist would be a better option. However, for my skin type, the Thorn Oil is the only one I’d repurchase. I got both of these discounted, and as much as I’ve grown to enjoy Thorn Oil, it isn’t so great that I’d get it at full retail price. I like the glass bottle, the dropper dispenser, plus the color and smell adding to the pampering experience, but $45 is probably my limit.
Lisa Eldridge Skin Enhancing Treatment Cleanser and Luxuriously Gentle Cleansing & Exfoliating Cloths
To make it easier to follow the steps I use with the cleanser and cloths, I put them in bold black font. The surrounding information in regular font is still very important, including issues I ran into, but I wanted to make it easier for someone to be able to return to my blog and skim through for instructions if needed.
For the first two weeks, I used these products as instructed by Lisa Eldridge in her demonstration video. This includes using it to remove eye makeup as well, but I didn’t like having that area moisturized on top of my lids continuing to be oily. So, my normal routine begins with me using either my Skinfood Rice Cleansing Tissue with Bioderma or my Makeup Eraser Cloth with Bioderma to remove my eye makeup, plus the concealer under my eyes. Then, I apply the blueberry size of product into my palm and rub my palms vigorously until I can feel it get warm from the friction. The consistency of the cleanser is like a slightly less sticky version of sap. It’s thick and not easy to spread evenly across the face unless it’s worked into the hands and thinned out prior to applying it to the skin. It has a lovely smell that reminds me of oatmeal or cereal when I put it on. That might be the case because the sap smells close to honey and I used to pour honey on my oatmeal (which was what I had for breakfast for most of my youth along with cereal), so I might be associating the sap smell with that experience. I could swear it has a slightly grain-like scent to it though. Also, I’ve seen some tiny blueberries and huge ones, so I wasn’t sure which amount to go with in the beginning. Through trial and error, I found that a small to medium size blueberry amount works for me. Using too little isn’t as effective, but when using too much the worst that can happen is just wasting product. So, it’s better to use slightly more than using less. It only took a few times before I naturally started squeezing out the right amount.
Then, I spread the hand-warmed cleanser all over my face, avoiding the space between my eyelids up to the brow bones. Because my under eye area is dry instead of oily, I make sure to apply the cleanser there too, but more lightly than I would if I needed to actually remove makeup from that spot. As a treatment product, Lisa suggests leaving this on for at least two minutes. What I like to do is leave it on for at least two minutes for regular cleansing purposes. So, I put it on, wash my hands, and then do other things before I come back to the sink to remove it. I usually skip putting it on my lips. If I feel like they need some extra help, I prefer to apply the treatment to lips after my face has already been cleansed. Then I leave it on for a while before I remove it with a wet cloth. It doesn’t need to be done separately, but my way makes it easier to keep the cleanser’s time on my face shorter than the time on my lips.
When the cleanser gets wet and rubbed, a milky film is produced. It easily rolls down the face taking droplets of makeup with it, so it was hard to take a picture of it and I didn’t want to leave my bathroom with the pigment dripping to get to a spot with better light. Sorry about that!
What I like to do after the two minutes are up is to wet one quarter of the cloth on both sides. These cloths are even bigger than the full-size Makeup Eraser, so I’ve found that I can get at least 4 uses out of a single cloth if I wipe my face with just one of the corners each time.
Then, I squeeze the excess water out of the cloth and into my hand so that I can use the dripping liquid on my fingers to wet my face, getting that initial milky film layer going as I rub it all over. The cleanser breaks down the makeup, but because it’s so thick, I feel like the makeup doesn’t remove as well unless I wet my face and it lifts to the surface like pouring water into a glass of oil and watching the oil rise to the top to be separate from the water. That’s the best analogy I could think up to try and describe the makeup mixing with the water and separating from the rest of the sap layer.
I make sure to keep my head hovered over the bowl of the sink so I don’t get pigment filled droplets everywhere, including down my own clothes. I take the muslin side of the cloth and wipe around my jaw first to catch the rolling droplets. Then I continue swiping the cloth all over my face, but avoiding the eye area. At this point, the layer of cleanser should be gone and only shiny residue showing at most. I flip to the fluffier side of the cloth and clean my eye area, as well as passing the cloth over the rest of my face until it feels clean of everything. I add extra water to the cloth and rub it over my face again if necessary.
Something I noticed when using these cloths is that I was getting at least 3 eyelashes on it every time. It’s not unusual for me to lose an eyelash or two while removing my eye makeup, but I was seeing it happen on non-makeup days too. The inner lashes of my eyes where I apply more pressure to clean the crevices between my eyes and nose were getting sparse. Eventually, upon closer inspection, I realized my lashes were getting stuck in the ultra tiny thread holes of the muslin side specifically. This is why I no longer use the muslin side in my eye and brow area. I still think it’s necessary to use it on the other parts of my face because it’s great at exfoliating, which also means it’s strong enough to lift off the sappy cleanser layer. When I tried switching to using this cleanser with the Makeup Eraser, I felt like there was too much residue left behind. The appeal of the cleanser is that it’s supposed to keep the skin moisturized, so I don’t need every trace of it to be gone, but what the Makeup Eraser left behind was just too much. And I do believe using a cloth with this cleanser is necessary. Trying to wash it off with nothing but water left my skin feeling very uncomfortable, like it was dirty. Using the fluffy side for the eye area has worked out better, and my inner lashes are almost back to full regrowth. I started testing out the cleanser in the middle of May 2023, and I didn’t pay attention to the lash issue for a very long time. So, it took ages for my already slow growing hair to come back. Plus, I sometimes forget to avoid the eyes with the muslin side and end up losing extra lashes again. This was user error on my part for not noticing it sooner, so I don’t hold it against the cloths. In fact, they’re so useful that I ordered a second pack. I only buy Makeup Erasers for 30-50% off, particularly as a half off Beauty Steal from Ulta. But that’s $10 for one versus Lisa’s at $12 for a pack of two and each of those two being larger than the Makeup Eraser. So, it’s a great deal. I will give the Makeup Eraser credit for feeling softer on the skin than even the fluffy side of the LE cloths. I use the LE cleanser most days of the week since buying it, but on the days that I’m using a different cleanser, I prefer to use the Makeup Eraser with it, unless it’s a thick cleanser or oil based one. Then, I use the LE cloth with it. So, there’s still place for both in my collection, though the Makeup Eraser is mostly delegated to being my cloth for wiping my makeup brushes between uses or my fingers between doing swatches.
After my face is washed, I like to do one final splash of water all over my face before patting it dry with a regular face towel.
I’ve always taken on the philosophy that I would not spend over $20 on a cleanser. When I used the one from rephr, it was discounted. So, this cleanser from Lisa Eldridge has been the one exception. It’s significantly more expensive, and I love using it, but I still don’t know if I will repurchase it or not. I have so many other cleansers (that are admittedly less enjoyable to use) that get the job done, but my dry skin loves the bonus moisturizing benefits. This is the type of product that takes care of my skin without changing it. I want my skin to be moisturized, but I don’t want it to turn combo-oily either, like some dry-skin products do. My skin feels more balanced since using the cleanser and I enjoy the luxuriousness of it and how it feels like I’m pampering myself even when I use it solely as a cleanser and not a treatment. This product made me finally enjoy having a skincare routine. Plus, it has been so great not needing to double-cleanse. For those reasons, it might be worth it for me to get it again once I run out. Lisa’s video has all the details on the benefits and the special ingredients. Some people might not think it’s worth the price, or some might think it’s amazing, but still too expensive to spend their money on. I think it’s an amazing cleanser that lives up to the claims when used properly, and I easily recommend it, but I also have to decide if I’m going to buy it again when the time comes.
There are supposed to be 200 applications worth of product per tube. The photo above was taken on September 19th, so roughly four months after I started using it. The amount I have left is about what I’d expect. Since I’m still occasionally using other cleansers to try not to waste them (and I’m still testing some out while contemplating whether or not I want to do a big cleanser comparison post in the future), I estimate that I’ll run out by March 2024.
Tatcha Forest Awakening Cedar & Hinoki Body Milk and Body Oil
I bought the travel size oil in April 2023, but the full-size body lotion was purchased a year ago. I like the light cedar-green scent to the products. It’s not my usual preference in scented products, but it isn’t that strong and it doesn’t clash with any perfume I decide to put on afterwards.
The Body Milk absorbs into the skin fairly fast, which is great because the thing I hate most about lotion since I was a kid was my skin feeling greasy and/or my hands having a filmy feeling that took a ton of soap and multiple washes to remove. I hated the feeling of pants sticking to my legs because of the moisture left from lotion that took ages to absorb. So, I love that I don’t have that problem with this one. It’s not all that long lasting in keeping moisture locked in (most of the day but not all day), but I still use it sometimes. As for my elbows, which are the driest parts of my body that almost nothing keeps it from looking ashy for longer than a few hours, this lotion doesn’t do much for that area.
The Body Oil I purchased after rave reviews from Tara Lynn who said the combination of the body oil with lotion was where the magic happens. I like that even though it’s an oil, it also absorbs quickly into my skin, but pairing them only increases the moisturizing benefits to my skin by a small amount. Considering the full retail price of both products, I don’t feel like it was worth getting them both for the end result. Tara Lynn mentioned that the oil combined with lotion from other brands is how she loves the oil, so perhaps that could make the difference to someone. As it stands, I don’t feel like either one was worth me buying and if anyone is super curious to try it, the brand started offering travel size minis individually and in sets a few months after the products launched.
Based on my experience with these specific high end skincare products, I don’t think they’re generally worth the price for me. I have to admit that when they’re good, they’re very good. More times than not, though, I tend to get the same efficacy or better at lower prices.
Thank you for reading! This is my 200th post on this blog! It feels a bit more special to have it be a topic that I don’t write about as often. For those diligently reading all this time, I thank you and I hope that you’ll continue to find my posts useful. Those that are new, I hope you’ll considering clicking follow or bookmarking this page to come visit again soon!
My palette from Hourglass has the Leopard design on the cover, but I chose the powders inside that were assigned by default to the Snake palette. It’s called “Color Palette 3” on the official website. Even though the chances were high that I could have gotten a better deal than 10% off if I purchased the palette elsewhere, I desperately wanted the Leopard packaging and could only get this customized version if I bought it directly from the brand. It was certainly a tough call between the Leopard or the website exclusive Owl packaging!
I’ve been reviewing these holiday palettes from Hourglass for a while now. My review of last year’s palette can be found HERE and the year prior to that can be found HERE.
I also have the two blushes from last year’s Butterfly palette that are currently in my Tiger palette. I did quite the makeup transplanting project, as detailed HERE.
Radiant Light (finishing powder) – This is a permanent shade of powder from the brand, and I have it several times over in my collection. To summarize, it’s a light golden-beige that doesn’t lighten my foundation, but I also don’t notice any difference at all when I wear this besides mattifying the skin and depositing the occasional visible shimmer particles. I prefer to use other finishing powders that accomplish something I need like blurring, smoothing, or adding a healthy glow. This option could have been worse. They could have chosen some of their much lighter finishing powders instead. At the same time, it could also have been better. One of my usual criticisms of Hourglass is their inability to commit to creating a face palette fully geared towards deep skin tones. Last year’s Elephant palette was clearly intended for those medium to tan, yet they still made Tiger spread a wider range of medium, tan, and dark at the expense of some of those shades not showing up on someone that much darker than me. Eternal Light is a darker option that has yet to be released in a travel size or edit palette form. However, since Radiant Light is technically the only repromoted shade in the Snake palette and I own both of the brand’s darker finishing powders in the Volume III trio form, I’m not going to hold it against them. They love their repeats and we’ve come to expect it. In addition, I think this palette is intended for tan to medium-deep complexions. From that perspective, having Radiant Light instead of Eternal Light makes more sense. I’ll elaborate more in the section with my final thoughts.
Solar Bronze (bronzer) – Even though I can use Transcendent Light as a bronzer, I have been long awaiting Hourglass making a true bronzer that will work for those with dark skin. I somewhat got my wish, but there isn’t much of a depth difference between that finishing powder and this bronzer. The main difference is the tone. Solar Bronze looks cool-toned in the palette next to such warm shades, but it’s definitely warmer in swatches and on my face. It’s subtle on my skin tone, but it can be built up a little. I am honestly thrilled with this shade. It’s such a good balance of being warm, without leaning too orange or red. As much as I love it, I know there are others darker than me who are disappointed that Transcendent Light wasn’t deep enough for them last year and this year’s bronzer option won’t work either. Although Hourglass dropped the ball in that regard, I have to acknowledge that they made three new bronzer shades this year with one in each palette. Their bronzers tend to be very warm, so I’ve heard some people are pleased that the bronzer in the Jellyfish palette is closer to neutral for those with light skin tones. That’s something that has been missing from the brand, so they focused on filling a void, but on the different end of the spectrum. And considering they didn’t put a bronzer in Butterfly last year, I give them credit for improving on that front.
Coral Haze (blush) – This blush is less pigmented than Mystic Flush, but I’m not sure if that just happens to be because my blush tile has barely any of the darker swirl of color in it. Since it’s buildable, I can still get visible color on my cheeks (though it doesn’t show as well in my photo as it does in person). It’s cool toned, so it’s not my favorite kind of blush color, however, I do like it more than I expected. Whenever I start off with this color, I end up just throwing Mystic Flush and even sometimes Sun Beam on top. I like the combination of the blushes together on my cheeks.
It’s similar to Soft Flush from the Butterfly palette, but slightly lighter and cooler. However, on my cheeks, it would be hard to spot the difference.
Sun Beam (blush) – In my review last year I wrote, “How fun would it be if Hourglass used their miscelare technique to mix two medium or darker colorful shades in a series of blushes instead of pale beige bases with a single color?” Looks like I got my wish again! Coral Haze is technically an example of that, along with Sun Beam no matter how close the swirled colors are in depth and tone. I love this color a lot more than Burnished Glow, which was too orange for my style to use alone. The texture of Sun Beam reminds me of the Copper Flash Strobe highlighter, even though this one is supposed to be a blush. It’s less reflective and more to my liking than Copper Flash Strobe, but it looks super metallic in my photos. I struggled to capture a photo that was bright enough to show the blush tone of Sun Beam and was unable to avoid the light directed at the cheeks from looking as reflective as a highlighter. This blush looks so much tamer and softer when I apply it to my bare skin, but for some reason, on my face with foundation, it looks more textured than usual. This happened on top of the Hourglass Ambient Glow Foundation (I’m wearing in today’s photos) and the Rose Inc Luminous Serum Foundation. Neither of these foundations are wet to the touch, and powdering doesn’t change things anyway. Based on the names, one could suspect the luminous foundations could be impacting the look of Sun Beam, but the foundations are more of a natural finish rather than glowy or dewy. With Sun Beam being closer to the strobe formula rather than the shimmer formula, I think it’s just a matter of it not being as flattering on texture and it looks better when used sparingly.
One more thing of note is that Hourglass lists Sun Beam and Coral Haze as normal Ambient Lighting Blushes, but for some reason Mystic Flush is listed as an Ambient Strobe Lighting Blush on their website. I’m guessing this was listed incorrectly and that Sun Beam is the actual strobe blush.
Mystic Flush (blush) – I love this color! It’s a warm pink, though not as warm as Sunset Glow from the Butterfly palette, and slightly more vibrant. It gives the exact type of pop I like from a blush, without being too loud of a color. I certainly can’t tell Sunset Glow apart from Mystic Flush if they’re applied normally on my face, but Mystic Flush is a bit more pigmented while being just as easy to blend. These two Snake blushes are so similar to the Butterfly palette blushes that I think it would feel to some people like having repeated shades. Of the four though, this is my favorite by a small margin. From Hourglass as a whole, At Night is my top favorite blush from the brand. There is still currently no mini or edit version of At Night, so I’m a bit surprised they chose to put two similar depth of pink blush shades in one palette instead. However, I will always give credit when the brand attempts to make something new rather than resorting to repeats. Considering I couldn’t decide which of the two Butterfly palette blushes I like more, I can understand others potentially having the same dilemma deciding between the Snake palette blushes regardless of how similar they are.
Infinite Strobe Light (strobe powder) – This is the darkest highlighter we’ve had in an Ambient Edit palette, but not by much. The true difference between them are their tones with Infinite Strobe Light being a golden color, Solar Strobe being yellow-gold, and Divine Strobe being a champagne shade. That makes Infinite Strobe Light the best highlighter color out of the edit palettes for me thus far, so they get some credit for the improvement. I am still waiting for the brand to make my perfect color though. There’s a big jump between Infinite Strobe Light and the deepest option available from the brand’s permanent highlighters, Prismatic Strobe Light. I don’t think it would be unreasonable to ask for a middle ground color, but until that day comes, I’ll be making use of Infinite Strobe Light.
I consider the highlighter to have medium-high impact. It’s not ultra reflective, but I don’t like highlighters to have stronger intensity than this one, so I’m happy with it and I can always tone it down with the right brush and if I apply the strobe powder first before the blush.
Overall Thoughts
The Snake palette is probably as perfect of a single face palette as I will ever get from Hourglass. I got the warm bronzer I wanted, a usable finishing powder, two flattering and visible blushes, a more flattering version for me of last year’s copper blush/highlighter, and a darker highlighter than last year’s. I think they did a fantastic job making this palette suit me. Essentially, the issues I had with the Tiger palette that kept me from being able to actually love that one were addressed and applied to the Snake palette. It’s quite funny that my depotting efforts to improve upon the Tiger palette made it look similar to what Snake has by default.
This year’s palettes are a lot more clearly defined between Jellyfish being best for fair to light-medium skin tones, Leopard being intended for those in the medium range, and Snake being best suited for tan to medium-dark. I applaud this distinction, but that also means those with skin darker than mine have been left out again. They get my praise for finally making a great palette for me, but it shouldn’t stop at just me. Hourglass made the highest amount of new shades this year, but they chose to do it so close to what is already available and not as much effort went into filling the much larger voids in the range. For example, the highlighters and their gigantic jump from Infinite Strobe Light to Prismatic Strobe Light. The difference between Radiant Light finishing powder and Eternal Light is also enormous.
What does the brand focus on instead? Five of the six blushes in my comparison swatches look so similar that suddenly it’s clear why none of the new colors from the past three years have made it into the brand’s permanent collections. They can get away with nearly identical shades in an Ambient Edit palette, but I doubt even the most die-hard Hourglass fans would buy and keep all of those blushes if they were sold individually.
If the brand wants to stick to pink and coral tones (with the occasional orange) because that’s their aesthetic, so be it. If they aren’t set on those, I would love to see some dark brown leaning blushes too. Something along the lines of Chanel’s Brun Roussi Lumiere or MAC’s Coppertone or even Format. A terracotta like MAC’s Burnt Pepper would also be beautiful.
I really think Hourglass did better in a lot of areas, but my advice to the brand is to fill in the huge gaps of what’s missing in the range, not the minuscule gaps. Even if the palette would be too dark for me, I would love to see an Ambient edit palette for actual deep/rich skin tones. Tiger and Snake aren’t dark enough to fit into that category, so it would have to be several shades darker than those.
Of course, finding a way to make the palettes truly customizable to the point of choosing each individual shade would be the ultimate dream, but it will be great if they at least keep the new tradition of being able to select which pre-set colors go into which packaging. My recommendation for Hourglass, if they want me to be forced to get one no matter what, would be to put an adorable panda on next year’s palette. Also, considering the rabbit/bunny is symbolic of the brand, it would make complete sense to have a rabbit cover, like the Riverine rabbit or some other endangered bunny or hare that would tie-in with the brand’s collaboration with the Nonhuman Rights Project.
Anyway, I eagerly await what next year will bring for Hourglass. I’d love to see other beautiful designs beyond the animal theme, but if they make a Panda, I am so done for! They’ll have my money again.
That’s all for today! Thank you for reading!
-Lili ❤
Edit: Currently there’s code UNLOCKEDVIP20 for 20% off the Hourglass website including these palettes. Credit to TheBeautySteal on Instagram.
A few additional items discussed in this post are not pictured here.
Between Huda Beauty’s main brand and the side brands of Kayali and GloWish (I’m not fully sold on Wishful yet), I’m becoming more of a fan these past two years than ever before! Today, I will be discussing the remaining unreviewed products I own.
GloWish Micro Mini Natural Eyeshadow Palette in Moss
The Glowish quad is nice! It’s more pigmented than I expected, which is to say it’s the same Huda quality I’m used to. Unlike the 9-pans that are normally made in China, this quad was made in Italy like the bigger Huda palettes. So, that was interesting to see. A lot of people say the quality between the 9-pan and full size ones are different, but now that I have the Empowered and Naughty palettes to compare, I really don’t see a difference from the Obsessions palettes I own. Then again, I’ve only purchased the ones rated high in reviews.
The shimmer in the Glowish quad didn’t have the impact I usually prefer, but since it’s part of the Glowish line, I assume it’s not meant to be super attention-grabbing. That’s the only complaint I have. I don’t get creasing, I don’t have longevity issues, and the kickup isn’t that bad. I like this, but if I’m being perfectly honest with myself, Moss gives similar vibes to the Natasha Denona Mini Gold palette, but ND’s has way more interesting shimmers. To those that like muted earthy yet pigmented colors and like satins instead of shimmers, I recommend getting the GloWish quad. However, those that like a lot more sparkle with a quality that’s at least as good, plus even quicker to blend, I recommend spending the extra $6 to get the Natasha Denona Mini Gold, which has an fifth eyeshadow too.
Huda Beauty 1 Coat WOW! Extra Volumizing and Lifting Mascara
An example of this mascara being worn is in the section with Glowish quad eye looks and the first two eye looks for the Naughty palette. For those curious, I’m using the COL-LAB mascara (in the pink writing not purple) in the last two eye looks showing the Naughty palette.
My version of one mascara coat is to pull the applicator out of the tube and apply the mascara to my lashes in repeated swipes until I’m satisfied with the length and volume, and without dipping back into the tube a second time. I start with the side of the wand that forms an hourglass shape, as that feels like I can get closer to the root of my lashes that way. I keep building up that single layer before turning the wand to the side that looks fully curved without an inward dip from brush base to brush tip. That side of it helps to comb out the lashes so they don’t look clumpy and/or remove visible clumps gathered on the tips. I prefer to stick to the single coat. Waiting for the mascara to dry and then applying a second layer only adds slightly more volume, but no additional length. I’m satisfied with the volume I get from one coat, so I don’t get extra value trying to build my lashes beyond the first coat.
I don’t get any smudging throughout the day, but I do get some flaking. The amount is acceptable to me, so I don’t count it as much of a negative. However, I have mascaras that give me the same results with less effort and don’t flake at all such as the MAC Megastack, COL-LAB mascara, and Essence Volume Stylist 18hr Lash Extension Mascara. So, this isn’t something I plan to repurchase. Also, this takes normal effort to remove with my Bioderma Micellar Water.
I should also note that I’ve used this mascara at least five times in a little under two weeks and the mascara consistency has gotten thicker. I have a much easier time getting volume, but the amount of clumps I have to remove from the tips of my lashes before it has time to dry is another annoying attribute that guarantees I won’t repurchase it.
Huda Beauty Empowered Eyeshadow Palette
As I said in my Swatchfest #6 post that included this palette, but not a full review, Manifest It is that strange gel formula that Huda included in the Naughty palette, but the pigment is in cream form instead of the circular balls. I took a cosmetic spatula and recombined the clear hard waxy gel and pigment together to get an even coating of color. Unlike Slippery, I find that there’s enough pigment in my mixture to actually use Manifest It as a visible opaque eyeshadow and not just as a primer base. It looks fine on my eyes if I keep it away from any folds and lines, but if I put it in the inner corner or some of it strays from the lid and into the crease, it can look a bit textured and take some extra smoothing over with a flat brush or my finger, in addition to creasing and moving, leaving me with a bald patch in those spots. It looks passable for a few hours, but by mid-day the combination of eye movement and spots on my lids that product oil majorly exacerbate the creasing. So, I try to keep this shadow for use in areas of low movement and away from areas that show signs of “maturity.”
After two hours wearing Manifest It on the inner half of the eye compared to the worst of it by the end of the day.
The standard powder mattes are all great. It’s the typical Huda Beauty type of mattes that are pigmented and easy to blend. My issue is just that these shades are too similar on my eyes, so I’m a bit limited in the variations of looks I can come up with. Big Dreams and Rebel end up looking the same. That’s also the case with Power and Best-Self. Get It is darker and brighter than those two, but if I use it in the same eye look it will overpower them and just look as though I applied Get It by itself. The three mattes that stand out the most are Winner, Confident, and Legacy. In the case of Winner, it has equal depth to Big Dream and Rebel, but the aspect that sets it apart from them is how cool toned it is.
We have two gel hybrid eyeliners that can be used as eyeliner, eyeshadow, and/or as an eye base. They aren’t waterproof or transfer-proof, since I can rub the spot where they are applied and get a faded imprint on my finger, but they at least don’t smear. They’re easy to pick up on a brush, but not as easy to get off the brush and smoothly onto the eyelids, especially with other shadows already built up on the lids. I don’t have much patience when it comes to passing over the lash line repeatedly, so it’s actually easier for me to use Confident as a liner instead of Worthy. Because Purpose is a richer color that takes less effort to build up, I don’t mind as much using that one as eyeliner. I like applying it to my eyes with my finger for a smokey look and to increase the intensity of a typical multichrome used on top of it. It does fade on me as the day goes on, as it’s not that rich of a black color, but it’s still visible enough for me to be satisfied with it being included in the palette.
Courageous is described as being “multichromatic” and has a slight shift that can be seen in the pan, but not as evident on my eyes. It also has its own black base, so using it with Purpose isn’t necessary. Even though it’s not very shifty, it’s still a pretty eyeshadow and great for smokey looks. It has a little too much slip to it, which is prone to creasing on my eyes, so I try to keep it out of lines and folds as well.
As for the golds, they’re both beautiful, reflective, and shimmery, but Limitless is extra flaky. So I prefer to use Charisma out of sheer ease of use, though they both have a scattered effect if not applied wet.
Visionary is similar to Provocative from the Naughty palette, but I prefer this color, tone, and fact that it feels smoother on the lids. I’ve had the Naughty palette a little longer, so perhaps I feel a slight difference because Visionary is newer. The mixture of swirled colors turns out to be very similar to how Do It looks, which is yet another reason I feel these shadows are repetitive. Besides the slight tone difference (bright copper versus brown-copper), Do It is shinier with visible shimmer whereas Visionary is smoother, so they have textural differences and one gets to choose which shimmer intensity one wants.
Bold Moves is an interesting mottled shadow combining “white gold and true gold metallic speckles.” Considering this is a mostly warm leaning neutral palette, but with some cool toned options, this kind of shimmer is a good bridge between them. It’s creamy and adheres to the lid nicely, but I apply it damp if I want to avoid a mess when applying it to the inner corners.
I bought this for $46 on Black Friday, so I’m glad I didn’t pay full price. It’s just a little too repetitive in color story and the shimmers are a little too creamy for my eyes, so I don’t think I’ll be using it very much. The quality is good, but there are so many factors that will determine whether these shades will work for someone or not.
Huda Beauty Naughty Nude Eyeshadow Palette
The last photo above has the swatch of Untamed because I accidentally skipped over it when I was doing swatches in order. I also re-swatched Passion and Hard because those shades needed to be mixed/rubbed together more thoroughly to show a solid color. It would have looked unflattering on the eyes to have random lighter and darker lines or patches on the eye if I just applied it like a duochrome.
I have to address the fact that Passion in this palette is like Astral Amethyst Moon in the Pat Mcgrath Huetopian Dream palette. It’s the surprise blue pop in a neutral palette. However, at least Passion is blue shimmer with a burgundy base, and that burgundy color works well with all the other pink and red-leaning shadows in this palette.
I had the Empowered palette first and dealt with Slippery the same way as Manifest It and the weird gel pigment bubble shadow in the Essence Coffee to Glow Palette; I used a cosmetic spatula to mix half of it together fully. It doesn’t turn into anything pigmented enough for me to wear on its own, but it does make a pretty good eyeshadow base for helping the shimmers stick to the eye.
Hard has a creamier feel to it than a standard matte, but it’s definitely still a powder that sets on the lid to a dry finish. The color it turns into basically just looks like my eyelid color. So, I haven’t found a use for it.
While I appreciate a pigmented and blendable product, the shade Untamed was so difficult to work with. It goes on the lid intensely immediately, even when I use a small amount. If I try to blend the edges, it fades to a dirty dark color that doesn’t show the burgundy tone anymore. It looks too harsh and unblended if I don’t at least try to smooth out the edge. Applying a lighter eyeshadow color on the edge tones it down far too much. Blending it out also wipes too much of it away. So, it’s extremely finicky trying to get the color to show true to how it looks in the pan, not be overblended (which takes 3-5 seconds to overblend) and lose color or look patchy, but also not look like a solid block of color. If I finally get it to look nice, adding a shade to my lid and it slightly traveling higher into the crease forces me to have to play the game all over again to try and fix it and avoid it looking patchy and messy. The time it usually takes me to finish an eye look is the amount of time I have to spend on just Untamed alone to make it look good. Thankfully, after dealing with Slippery and properly swirling together Passion, Hard, Flower Power, and Provocative, the only shadow left in this palette that gives me trouble is Untamed. Regarding the marble/swirl shades, the shimmers seemed the tiniest bit creamier than Hard which made them a little easier to mix evenly.
The five other shimmers are easy to apply, but Shameless, Flower Power, and Tantric are a bit flaky (though not to the extreme of the golds in the Empowered Palette) and I prefer to dampen my brush to apply them. I will get shimmer fallout if I don’t use something like a glitter primer or the Slippery shadow underneath to keep it in place. Dampening my brush works for getting it to adhere, but not for a full day. Another nice thing about these shimmers is that I don’t have to deal with creasing when I use them. As for the seven other mattes, they’re quite pigmented and blend nicely. It’s not as quick to use as Pat Mcgrath or Natasha Denona mattes, but these are still quite good.
*I accidentally wrote Slipper instead of Slippery. Also, I intended to use Irresistible on its own in the inner corner, but as I continued to dip my brush into the pan to build up the shade in the inner corner, I got confused and started dipping into Shameless as well. So, it’s a combination of the two.
When this first launched, I was instantly drawn to the palette (admittedly the swirl patterns were a big part in that). What stopped me from getting it was my concern with it having too many similar looking shades. On my skin tone, this proved to be true. My second and fourth eye looks above used entirely different shadows, yet they look quite similar. Hard doesn’t show as a color on me. Hypnotic barely shows. Rough shows slightly more. Slippery may as well be a primer. Please Me, Provocative, and Irresistible look similar even in swatches, let alone on my eyes. I was surprised to see the opposite being true for the dark shades Untamed (mahogany red-brown), Naughty (warm neutral leaning brown), and Spicy (dark cool brown) that remain distinctly different as long as they aren’t used in one eye look. In a way, having paid $34 for this palette via Sephora makes up for it.
The other benefit to Naughty Nude is that there are various textures and finishes to experiment with, something I always admired about Huda palettes. However, because these shadows are organized in a way that isn’t as easy to distinguish between these similar colors, it takes extra time to plan out a look. This makes sense for a super colorful palette, but it’s a bit strange when I consider one of the benefits of a neutral palette is normally its easy of use.
This is a nice quality palette, but I’m glad I didn’t pay full price for it. For my preferences, I honestly wish I played with the Nude Obsessions Rich palette below so that I could have realized it’s like a condensed version of Naughty Nude, or at least similar enough. I had that one a whole month before purchasing Naughty Nude, but hadn’t used it beforehand.
Huda Beauty Nude Obsessions Eyeshadow Palette in Rich
This is the oldest (in terms of release date) of the palettes I’m discussing today, but it’s my favorite of the bunch. The majority of the 9 colors are distinctly different from each other. The quality is just as good as the full size palettes, though perhaps slightly less pigmented. I don’t mind this though because there’s more control of the intensity of the eye look this way. Also, I think most of the shadows in the Rich palette are more shimmery and reflective, something I also like, and in shade tones I like even more than what’s offered in the Naughty palette.
Huda Beauty Lovefest Obsessions Eyeshadow Palette
This was an unexpected addition to the post. Sephora had this and many other Obsessions palettes for half off during their Labor Day sale. It’s always the same song; several of the colors appealed to me, but I didn’t want to get it for full price because the orange shades looked too similar and I figured the two lightest mattes could look identical on my eyes. Plus, by now I certainly had all the warm toned shades (especially oranges, pinks, and browns) I could possibly want from the brand. However, I couldn’t resist that price.
I was correct that I can’t tell Shades 2 and 6 apart when I use them in the same eye look. Thankfully Shades 4 and 9 are different enough. The mattes perform just like my other Obsessions palettes. Shade 3 is a low impact shimmer that is smooth to the touch and basically looks like a satin on the eyes. Shade 5 is a pretty duochrome that brings the sparkle and drama that I want. Shade 7 is a medium pink that works to brighten the inner corner of my eyes, but also makes for a pretty lid shade. I’ve had this for the shortest amount of time out of all of these reviewed today, but so far so good!
Just as I was finishing this post, I remembered there are in fact a few extra items from the brand(s) I haven’t reviewed. From Wishful I have the Honey Whip Peptide Moisturizer that I’m waiting to open once I finish up one of my current moisturizers, a mini of the Thirst Trap Juice HA3 Peptide Serum that I used a few times and didn’t notice it doing anything, and a ton of samples of the Eye Lift & Contour 1% Bakuchiol & Peptide Serum which I still haven’t tried. There’s the GloWish Luminous Pressed Powder I stopped using and didn’t finish testing. I also have a deluxe sample of the Easy Bake Loose Baking & Setting Powder, but it’s in a color that’s too light for me. I could try to use it despite that, but I feel that it would throw off my ability to see the results properly. So, I don’t see myself reviewing any of those anytime soon. However, there are two things I intentionally skipped reviewing that I decided I will include.
FauxFilter Luminous Matte Concealers in Crumble 7.1N and Butterscotch 7.5G and FauxFilter Color Corrector in Mango.
The reason I wasn’t intending to post about the concealers is because base products don’t excite me to review. It’s only when I find concealers comparable to my holy grail ones that I want to share my results with everyone. In addition, this is a bit of a regret purchase. I knew Crumble wasn’t full coverage enough to adequately conceal my extreme dark under eye circles and that it made my under eyes look about as dry as Tarte Shape Tape, but I purchased an additional shade anyway. I was more intent on trying to solve the mystery of how to make it work instead of asking myself if this was going to add something of value to my collection. Considering I can get more coverage from a single shade of the original Tarte Shape Tape (Deep) over buying Crumble and Butterscotch to mix with from Huda, it should have been obvious what I needed to do, but I somehow convinced myself finding the perfect color combination would make the Huda concealer magically suit me better.
Using the under-painting method, like with my Givenchy concealers, I’m able to get the coverage level I want, but at the expense of having a shade match that is darker than my cheek area. So, I don’t wear this combination on light makeup days that I plan to skip foundation. I typically match my foundation to my forehead which is darker than the lighter parts of my face, but lighter than my areas of hyperpigmentation. I either get this middle-ground depth that’s a combination of the various colors on my face, a slightly darker shade for summer, or a color that matches the lighter parts of my face that typically works after winter. So, I can use the combination of Crumble and Butterscotch with my middle-ground and summer foundations. The reason I took a break from using these concealers though is the fact that I can get similar coverage level to my combination of Givenchy concealers, with it looking and feeling less dry. The Huda concealers at least have the benefit of being long lasting, provided I pair it with the right powder and ensure that more is applied in the beginning if it starts fading within the first five minutes and any creases get smoothed out a second time before more powder is added. That process of keeping an eye on it in the beginning and making adjustments early on can get me a good ten hours of wear. If I don’t pay enough attention to my skin absorbing some of that product or not smoothing out those creases, it goes downhill quickly where I might only get six to seven hours where it’s significantly faded and looks awful. So, because of the dryness and mindfulness required, it’s taking a backseat until I finish up the ones from Givenchy.
As for the Huda Corrector, it made sense that if the concealers looked dry, the corrector should have the same finish, yet I bought it anyway. I was too intrigued by the Mango shade to skip it. Every brand of color corrector I’ve seen has a pink that’s too light for me to use and/or an orange that’s very deep and practically as dark as my under-painting shade. They’re also either so opaque that they don’t blend in with the rest of my skin or they’re so sheer that they don’t hide enough. This is the first corrector I’ve ever seen that’s deep peach/deep pink-orange with decent coverage and in liquid form. I’ve seen some cream ones that come close, but creams crease too much under my eyes. So, I’m able to use Crumble if I have this corrector under it. I even use Mango sometimes by itself and in other areas with discoloration. Of course, I still have the dry issue and needing to babysit it in the beginning, but because it camouflages well enough to my satisfaction, I continue to use this from time to time unlike the concealers.
Now, I consider us caught up on my Huda and sub-brands collection! If anyone wants a review of one of those specific items I mentioned that I own but don’t plan to post about, just let me know (via comments, email, or Instagram) and I’ll reconsider it.
That’s everything for today! Thank you for reading!
Lili's Beauty Blog 