Archeo Palette

A sequel to their Paleo Palette (my thoughts and swatches here,) the Archeo Palette is Clionadh’s latest fabulous eyeshadow palette. It is no secret that I am a huge fan of their shadow formula, so it should come as no surprise that I immediately fell in love with the Archeo palette.

the two cracked shades were kindly replaced by Clionadh

The Archeo Palette contains 12 shades, divided evenly between mattes and shimmers. As with its predecessor, Archeo is hand-painted, and simply gorgeous. Formula-wise, this baby does not disappoint. Clionadh always astounds me with the depth and creaminess of their mattes. The metallic and shimmers are equally rich and comfortable to work with.

The shadows are organized into four “quads.” I’m not creative with shade descriptions, so I’m going to steal them right from the Clionadh website:

“Ritual Quad”
MONOLITH: A warm, nude tea rose matte shadow.

DEAD SEA: A dusky, royal blue matte shadow.

GLYPH: A duochrome shadow with a medium purple base and a strong blue shift.

SUNDIAL: A metallic, burnished gold shadow with lots of dimension and reflectivity.

 

“Excavation Quad”
EROSION: A rich, sandstone orange matte shadow.

NOMAD: A silky, buttercup yellow matte shadow.
NEO: A metallic aqua shadow.

SULFUR: A shimmery, lemon yellow shadow with subtle glitter.

 

“Topography Quad”
FRAGMENT: A peachy-pink nude matte shadow.

LICHEN: A a muted, grey-green matte shadow.

TERRAIN: A super unique, grungy, lime green shadow.

ARTIFACT: A metallic red-bronze shadow. It has a super opaque and silky finish, and contains a little bit of sparkle.

Swatches

Ready for the swatches? Of course you are.

As you can see, the colors are diverse and beautiful. Glyph and Terrain are quite unique to my collection, while shades like Fragment and Monolith are subtle but versatile.

The Archeo Palette is currently out-of-stock while the two-person Clionadh team works to fulfill their pre-orders. I believe that once those are complete, there is a chance that Archeo will restock. Follow Clionadh on Instgram to stay updated on the situation.

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Pixi Beauty Liquid Fairy Lights

I am always so thrilled and humbled to receive PR packages from Pixi Beauty. The most recent delivery included the gorgeous Liquid Fairy Lights glimmer eyeshadows. I wanted to share some swatches with you as well as my initial thoughts.

There are five Pixi Beauty Liquid Fairy Lights to choose from (if you are not tempted to get them all!) They each have a fair amount of shimmer, though some end up more glittery looking while others have more of a subtle glimmer. The Liquid Fairy Lights come in a slim, transparent tube with a doe-foot applicator.

I prefer to apply these directly to the lid and then pat out lightly with a finger. This method produced minimal glitter fallout, though to be safe I would apply these before your complexion makeup. These last through a long day with little creasing.

As you can see, Crystalline has a fairly translucent base. The other shades do have a pigmented base over which there is glitter of at least one color. For dimension, you might try applying a lighter shade like Sun Ray on the inner lid, and a deeper shade like Bare Brilliance on the outer portion.

So, if you need some sparkle in your life, I highly recommend checking out the Pixi Beauty Liquid Fairly Lights. They are certainly a more affordable option than a recent release from MAC, while being of similar quality.

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Aether Beauty Rose Quartz Crystal Gemstone Palette

I don’t remember what article led me to stumble upon Aether Beauty, but I’m happy it did. Aether Beauty, a small but growing company, developed the most gorgeous eyeshadow palette, and yes we are going to talk about it right now. Aether Beauty’s Rose Quartz Crystal Gemstone Palette is vegan and cruelty-free. It is also has zero-waste packaging. More on that later.

–LINKS IN THIS POST MAY BE AFFILIATE LINKS–

The Rose Quartz Palette contains twelve eye shadows. Within these twelve shades, you have mattes, shimmers, metallics and even duo-chromes. The product is formulated with recognizable ingredients like coconut oil, shea butter, and rose hip oil which contribute to the quality of the shadows as well provide benefits for the skin.

Now, here’s the really cool part. With the removal of the shadow pans and the elastic, the palette is fully recyclable. I guess it never occurred to me that my other eyeshadow palettes weren’t recyclable thanks to their mirrors and magnets. Live and learn, right?

The Swatches

Beauty connoisseurs will be most interested in the shades themselves. Don’t worry- I’ve got you covered!

As you can see, the shadows have a softer vibe to them. They are pigmented but in a buildable, blendable way. The Aether Beauty Rose Quartz Palette is one of the few I own where I feel like any combination of shades contained within would result in success. It’s just that good. I especially love the shades Aphrodite and Crystalline for a smokey but not overly dramatic look.

The shadows are soft but not excessively dusty. I have experienced some fallout with Reawakening because it does have glitters, but this is by no means a dealbreaker. The matte shades are especially impressive in that they blend easily and without being “muddied.”

Let’s recap, shall we? We have Aether Beauty- small, conscientious, soon-to-be very popular brand. They have the Rose Quartz Crystal Gemstone Palette – twelve wearable shades made with 70% naturally-derived ingredients. The vegan shades are housed in a fully recyclable palette. You can repeat all of these facts in your head if you need a reason to buy more eye shadow. You’re welcome.

By the way, if you need even more incentive to take a peak, Aether Beauty frequently has amazing sales and deals. Be sure to check out their website , which is both beautiful and incredibly informative.

SHOP MORE AETHER BEAUTY:

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Hello beautiful people of the internet! Please forgive my long absence. I wish I could say I was doing something fun- but I was just lazy!
I want to get back-on-track with one of my most recent and most favorite discoveries. Today we are taking a look at the PÜR Visionary Palette.

I stumbled upon the PÜR Visionary Palette (literally stumbled, by the way…. I had perhaps first had a margarita..) on a casual trip through the aisles of Ulta. The purples and the pink among the neutral shades of this twelve pan palette called to me on an emotional level. And at $32, it seemed like a pretty decent buy. (Pssst- I also found it for slightly less at Kohls.)

I am not incredibly familiar with the PÜR brand, but I can say after playing with the PÜR Visionary Palette that I will definitely be checking out more from this line in the future. In the meantime, let’s talk about the palette. As I mentioned, we have twelve shades ranging from deep purple to pinky neutrals. It’s a warm-tone leaning palette, though not overly so. It also occurred to me as I played with the palette that the included shades are absolutely perfect for green and hazel eyes; the purples and rose gold tones will really bring out the colors in the iris.

Upon swatching, I found the mattes to be soft but incredibly pigmented. And the shimmers – they pack a lot of sparkle in a little product! Can we also talk about the shade names? “Role Model” “Icon” “CEO” I just think it’s incredibly refreshing to have product names that are positive rather than provocative.

Have I convinced you yet? If so, the PÜR Visionary Palette is available online and in-store at Ulta and Kohl’s. It is not on the PÜR website; I believe it sold out there. Lastly, if there are any other PÜR products you’d like me to try and review, please let me know in the comments!

More from PÜR

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By Terry Game Lighter

Fun’tasia

Hello, everyone, and happy weekend! I happened upon an adorable palette as I strolled through Saks Fifth Avenue (did you believe me? I don’t stroll though Saks. It’s just the connection between Starbucks and the parking lot!) and I fell in love with it. We are talking about the By Terry Game Lighter Palette no. 1 Fun’tasia.

The By Terry Game Lighter Palette Fun’tasia comes in an adorable holographic compact. It contains ten eye shadows, or five shadow pairs. For every color in the palette (yellow, blue, pink, purple, green) there is a metallic shade surrounded by a matte shade. This adds an edginess to what could have otherwise been a typical pastel palette.

For both the metallic and matte shades, the shadows in the By Terry Game Lighter Palette are on the sheerer side. They require a bit of building up to reach their full pigmentation potential. Though there are no standard neutral shades (for that, you’ll want the Game Lighter Palette no. 2 Pixie Nude), this can be used on its own if you enjoy an all pastel or simple monochromatic look.

My favorite shades in the palette are the metallic yellow and the greens. Overall, these are the perfect shades for the upcoming Spring season (it’s going to get here eventually, right?)

Aside from the sheer formula of the By Terry Game Lighter Palette, the pan size might underwhelm. I will admit that it is a bit tricky to pick up the matte shades without accidentally hitting the metallic center. Definitely plan on using a small brush.

As $45, this may be a miss for some. However, this is also a relatively low price-point for this particular brand, and would definitely make a nice gift for a loved one.

Shop By Terry

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Hello everyone! I feel like it’s been ages since I’ve shared fabulous products with you! So sorry about that. But I want to make it up for you today with the newest addition to the Lime Crime shadow range. We are talking about the Lime Crime Venus XL Pressed Powder Eyeshadow Palette. As usual, I’ll do a little bit of background and then I’ll throw some swatches at you.

First, let’s talk about the Venus palette line. These are some of my favorite palettes of all time. You can see swatches of Venus 2 here. In general, I love the Venus palettes because they are incredibly pigmented and have edgy colors. The Venus XL seems to expand upon the original Venus theme, as opposed to Venus 2 which has some cooler tones.

While the two Venus palettes have eight pans, the Venus XL contains 18 unique shades in four finishes. The palette is cardboard with a beautiful design and a big mirror.

Ready for swatches? Of course you are.

As you can see, the shadows in the Lime Crime Venus XL are pigmented. I happen to think Lime Crime’s mattes often swatch better than their shimmers, and this palette is no exception.

While this palette can be used for a variety of looks, most will leave warm and possible grungy. Here is one of the first eyes I did upon receiving the palette:

So, I hope this overview helps you decide if you need the Lime Crime Venus XL! PS- I saw on Instagram that they may also be released a Venus 3 soon, so keep an eye out for that! The Venus XL is currently available where Lime Crime is sold, including their website and Ulta.

Shop more Lime Crime favorites:

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LORAC Mega PRO 4

Hello, all! This will be another short and sweet post, because it’s all about the swatches. Today we focus on the LORAC Mega PRO 4 eyeshadow palette, the fourth (duh) installment in a series of giant LORAC palettes. As with the previous three LORAC Mega PRO palettes, the Mega PRO 4 contains 32 shades. Half of the shadows are matte, while half are a shimmer formula. This year’s palette has a light pink packaging.

For those who are unfamiliar with the Mega PRO tradition, these palettes are awesome (in my opinion, of course). And, while they were originally Limited Edition, it seems that they are frequently being re-released. I applaud LORAC for that decision.

Swatches

As you can see below, the shadows in the LORAC Mega Pro 4 are pigmented and smooth to apply. This palette leans cooler than the Mega Pros 1 and 3, for sure. It leans more pastel than the Mega Pro 2. As always, these are swatched with a flat eyeshadow brush. This was over lightly primed skin. My skin tone is MAC NC15, for reference.

Thoughts

I will always be a Mega PRO fan. However, I find that out of all four palettes, I am least inspired by this newest addition. I have also read that the shades do not flatter deeper skin tones. However, it is a beautiful palette and worth purchasing if you are a collector like me, or genuinely are drawn to the shade selection. The LORAC Mega PRO 4 is available at ULTA and on the LORAC website!

Shop LORAC:

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Lila Palette

Let me start off by saying I don’t have much to say, in that the photos included in this post should speak for themselves! Natasha Denona’s newest arrival, the Lila Palette, is a fifteen-pan array of eye shadow goodness. Centered around jewel-toned purples, it is sure to become the favorite of many.

I’ve had a lot of success with Natasha Denona shadows in the past so as you can imagine, I had high expectations for this newest beauty. The fifteen shades come in four finishes: matte, duo-chrome, metallic and chroma crystal. I’m going to included shade descriptions, below, which I’ve stolen directly from Beautylish:

• Per Se 135 CM: Smoky lilac with a Creamy Matte finish
• Viola 136 M: Magenta violet with a Metallic finish
• Amara 137 CM: Rusty berry with a Creamy Matte finish
• Cyclone 138 DC: Pink copper with a Duo-Chrome finish
• Nude Vino 139 CM: Tan mauve with a Creamy Matte finish
• Layla 140 M: Deep brown mauve with a Metallic finish
• Amethyst 141 M: Cool purple with a Metallic finish
• Magnetic 142 M: Bright fuchsia with a Metallic finish
• Magnolia 143 K: Peach champagne with a Chroma Crystal finish
• Nude Mauve 144 CM: Dusty mauve with a Creamy Matte finish
• Juneau 145 S: Sheer icy lavender with a Metallic finish
• Livid 146 DC: Silver amethyst with a Duo-Chrome finish
• Purpure 147 M: Berry burgundy with a Metallic finish
• Dragon Bite 148 DC: Green red with a Duo-Chrome finish
• Helio 149 M: Soft rose with a Metallic finish

Swatches

I had a lot of fun swatching this palette. As always, swatches were completed with a flat synthetic eyeshadow brush. No primer was used for these swatches.

At $129, this is not what one might call “affordable” or even “a good deal.” However, this is a quality palette that feels sturdy and will last a while. So be sure to take a peak if you’re in a “treat yo’self” mood!

Shop Natasha Denona:

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Drawn In. Decked Out.

Hello, class! So I’m not going to do that thing where I save my thoughts about a product until the end of the post. So here they are: The Smashbox Drawn In. Decked Out. Shadow + Highlighting Palette Set is one of the best holiday sets I’ve ever seen. Intrigued yet?

First, let’s talk about the set itself. Drawn In. Decked Out. contains two full size Cover Shot eye shadow palettes and one travel size Spotlight Palette in pearl. This is a great deal and here’s why. The Cover Shot palettes are normally $29 a piece. This set contains two of them plus the mini highlighting trio for $39. Hello, savings.

The two Cover Shot palettes featured in this set are Ablaze and Sultry. Ablaze, a collection of warm shades, is from the permanent line, while the more neutral Sultry is limited edition. The Spotlight palette has three pearl-toned highlighters of varying intensities.

Another cool thing about this set is that each palette has a unique cover design by artist Ana Strumpf.

Cute, right?!

Swatches

Ready for swatches? Of course you are.

As you can see (hopefully) the Cover Shot palettes are pigmented and fun. I really love Sultry for everyday use. I was most impressed by the highlighters. They look so plain in the pan but once on the skin they give the most beautiful glow!

So, whether you are looking for a gift for yourself or your bestie, this set is a great option! The Drawn In. Decked Out. set is currently available at Sephora!

Need some Sephora sale recommendations? GO HERE!

Shop more Smashbox:

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Hello, class, and please accept my apologies for this long delay in updating! However, we are officially in summer mode so now I can catch up on showing you all the things I have to show you. The first, and possibly most important thing I have to show you is the ColourPop Yes, Please! Pressed Powder Shadow Palette.

First, let’s talk about ColourPop’s pressed powder shadow formula. This is a somewhat newer product in the short history of ColourPop, and it is fabulous. The normal shadow pans are $5 each, but swatch like high-end formulas. The pans in the Yes, Please! palette are smaller than the single shadows, but you are still getting twelve shades for $16.

The shades in the ColourPop Yes, Please! palette, as stated on ColourPop’s site, are:

Full-Zip: matte warm ivory
Big Cocktails: matte orange
Champs: matte pale peachy nude
Bling: metallic rust
Louie: metallic duochrome red with a gold flip
Butter Cake: metallic pale yellow gold
Spoiled: matte brick red
Gno: matte burnt orange
Mischief: matte warm yellow
Note to Self: matte warm caramel
Chauffeur: metallic duochrome bright orange with a gold flip
French Kiss: matte deep red brown

Basically, this is you everyday super warm-toned palette. It is very similar to a very expensive palette that I do not own to swatch for you. Yes, I’m talking about the Natasha Denona Sunset palette. Just google it.

The Swatches

Here, let me just show you the swatches already. First, in direct sunlight:

Now, in the shade:

Mind you, these were flat brush swatches, and I did not touch the brush to the pan more than once for each swatch. So yeah, pigmentation in there. The top shade is obviously tough to see on my particular skin tone. Mattes and metallics alike perform well.

I have used the ColourPop Yes, Please! Palette on the eyes and is works for a wide array of looks, from neutral to fire-inspired. However, this palette does come with a few negatives. For one, it’s white. It will get dirty. Sorry. And even worse – it’s currently out of stock. However, ColourPop did say they’d restock soon, so keep your eyes peeled!

In the meantime, check out some other ColourPop posts!

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