Product Spotlight: NYX 10 Color Eyeshadow in Haute Couture

I love neutrals and grays. Perhaps it's because these colors are so easy to pull off. These are so easy to blend, mix and match. One can never go wrong with browns, beiges and taupes. A reason why Urban Decay's NAKED palette sells like hotcakes when it was launched. So you could just imagine what my traincase contains - lots of neutral palettes for eyes, cheeks and lips. Lately I realized that my stash contains almost the same colors, only with different brands. Redundancy, that is. 

But out of all my browns, beiges, nudes and grays, I found this one! NYX 10 Color Eyeshadow Palette in Haute Model. I remember that when I was about to order this from Digital Traincase, I was actually eyeing the Nude on Nude palette (a dupe of the nude superstar NAKED), and the other neutral palette from NYX. But, as if a blessing in disguise, all of those were out of stock back then. So I settled for this colorful palette.

It has silvers that are perfect for smokey look, as well as brights for some out of the box eye makeup experiment. I actually like the aqua blue on the bottom right paired with either the light silver above it or the dark metallic blue at the bottom left. The bronze and maroon are also nice for some nightouts.

Texture-wise, NYX eyeshadows tend to be a bit chalky, but color payoff is better than drugstore brands like Maybelline or Revlon. I also believe that NYX palettes are cost effective than the individual ones. I mean, you won't need a whole tub of say a blue eyeshadow to consume before its expired right? 

Product Spotlight: Colour Collection Mineral Eyeshadow Quad

Despite my love and lust for makeup artistry, I must admit i only mastered two eye makeup looks: Neutral and Smokey. So each time I see a palette that has shades perfect for such looks, I always see to it to grab one. (With the exception of Urban Decay's Naked Palette, as I still have to save big time for this holy grail neutral eye palette.) 

One of the neutral palettes that I love most is Tupperware Brands' Colour Collection Mineral Eyeshadow Quad in Luminous Gems. 

This palette has four beautiful neutral shades (please refer to the photo below):

1) It's a nice highlighter that's not glittery, just shimmery. I am so thankful I found this because my G-Lish Eyeshadow in Caffeine Rush (which includes my favorite highlighter) is already hitting the bottom of the pan. This shade is perfect for highlighting the brow bone and the corners of the eyes. Just a reminder, please groom your brows before putting on highlighter on your brow bone so as not to highlight the "unwanted".

2) It's a nice beige eyeshadow that can either work as your base or just be worn alone.

3) A darker reddish beige shadow that's perfect for contouring. If you have dark undereyes, conceal dark spots first, as this may amplify dark circles. I love using this at the outer corner  (outer V).

4) This is the darkest shade in this palette and can be used for added drama. It can also be used to make an illusion of prominent eyelids, perfect for Asian eyes.

I love this palette because it is very handy and it is not chalky. The shimmers are so fine so the shades are perfectly wearable even on broad daylight.

Thumbs up for Colour Collection once again!

Product Spotlight: Ever Bilena Advanced 5 Shades Eyeshadow in Blue Happiness

 This post is long overdue. I got Ever Bilena Eyeshadow in Blue Happiness about 2 months ago and was able to use it 3 to 4 times since then. Here's my review:

The color combination in this palette is simply amazing. I've been looking for good blue eyeshadows and what I found out there is either too dark or too "green" for me. But Ever Bilena's combination of blues, aqua and green seems the perfect one I am looking for. The darkest shade is a good color to contour or to line the eyes. It gives a posh look, especially when paired with blue contacts.

I use the 2 aqua colors as base. When I am in the mood for spring colors, I combine it with the green (top right).

The white one is a nice highlighter.

Here are the swatches with flash:

Without flash but under daylight:

The texture is powder to cream but it crumbles. So I make sure i tap excess powder so as not to have "blue" undereyes. I also use soft natural hair brush for this. Suesh Ultra Luxe set includes uber soft eye brushes (made of sable and squirrel hair). I also use Ellana Shine Free Matte Eye Primer to avoid creasing.

Color payoff is great but staying power is so-so. I checked out my e/s mid day and it lacks luster already. NYX is still the most photogenic affordable e/s for me.

Price is not an issue at Php 120. 

C

NARS Blush in Silvana

I’ve been watching the series “Lipstick Jungle” and I love the makeup of Victory Ford there. She’s always wearing a blush on the peach/ tan/ apricot side. And so I am guessing that one of those blushes she uses is NARS Silvana. And finally, I got one for myself. It is also my first time to meet Lara of NARS Shang Tower who was very famous in Girltalk for being a very nice and accommodating MA.
Of course, the very next day I immediately used it in the office. I paired it with one of my MAC technakohls (Smoothblue) and NARS Dolce Vita Lipstick and Dior Lipgloss. See my look below: Face:
Olay Total Effects A Touch of Foundation
ELF Mineral Foundation in Light
MAC Studio Finish Concealer in NW30 for my undereyes

Eyes:
MAC Technakohl in Smoothblue
Cheeks:
NARS Silvana

Lips:
NARS Dolce Vita Lipstick
Dior Lipgloss
(It doesn't have the shade written on the tube, I got it as a gift from my boss =P )

Evaluation??? I so love love love NARS Silvana, More than my NARS Orgasm. It just gives me the perfect sunkissed look. It has the glow but less the shimmer, which is why I like it more than Sertao or Luster. So Victory Fordish! Plus I can pair it with neutral e/s or even smoky or bold eye makeup. Very versatile for me. I can even use it for contouring my cheeks then top with NARS orgasm for a pinkish glow.


Plus, there’s a freebie from Lara! She gave me NARS e/s in Indian Song which is a very nice neutral e/s. Hmmm, I noticed that I am beginning to like everything ‘Indian’ in NARS. Indian Summer, Indian Song, Indian Red... And I am beginning to like NARS over MAC. I do not know but I am being dragged to NARS everytime I attempt to go to MAC. Addiction, are you there???