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Category: Eye Liner

Tuesday, June 1st, 2010

Une Natural Beauty Cosmetics Review

Now that I’ve had some time to play with the products I chose to bring home with me from the Une Natural Beauty blogger unveiling, I thought I’d share my thoughts on some of the pieces and a little FOTD with them.

Une Natural Beauty is a new brand with “natural formulas for a natural result, for a natural style”. It boats impressive eco-credentials and with prices ranging from £4.99 – £13.99, it’s accessible to all. This is all well and good, but how do the products perform?

I chose 2 eyeshadows, a creme blush, a lipstick, 2 eye pencils, a brush and a concealer.

I didn’t like the shade selections for the base products, so I left those alone.

Let’s start with the Une Multipurpose Brush. It’s goat hair, and a little scratchy. It’s densely packed and the most perfect shape for sweeping blush onto the apple of the cheeks and outwards. It just fits my cheeks brilliantly and totally stops me from applying too low or too high. I’ve also experienced only one or two shed hairs. Priced at £7.99, I’m pleased with it. I’d love it to be a little softer, but hey, it’s less than a tenner.

Glimmer Eyes Shadow G02 is a neutral cream shadow with shimmer. It feels greasy and although the shimmer is indeed beautiful, it invariably ends up in the socket line less than an hour after applying. I’ve tried with UDPP underneath and setting with eye shadow ontop. I’ve decided that the best way to work with this is to pat a tiny amount near the tear duct for a subtle sparkle and resign yourself to a bit of creasing. I’m cool with that, but I just can’t work with this as an allover lid shade.

Sdumato Eyes Shadow S23 is a matte aubergine. It’s quite… powdery and kicks up a lot of dust when picking up the product with a brush. It’s not the best matte I’ve worked with in terms of pigmentation but it’s buildable and the texture is pretty soft. Lasting power over a slick of eye primer is fair.

Overall, I think the eye shadows that I’ve tried here are overpriced at £8.99 each. That’s a lot for a high-street mono eyeshadow, at least £2 too much in this case. Though you do get a fairly generous 1.8g of product, they just haven’t blown me away.

Une Natural Beauty’s Breezy Cheeks blush in B02 (£8.99) on the other hand, has. It’s a beautiful mid-toned pink (leaning towards mauve) cream blush to powder formula. Applies like a dream with my fingertips and blends beautifully, leaving a subtle colour that is pink without being too flushed. It doesn’t have the most amazing staying power, but I can get through most of the day without needing to reapply. I’d absolutely repurchase this product.

A quick note about the packaging…

Slidey mobile phone of 3 years ago-esque. I reckon it’s a brave choice… love it or hate it, it does what it’s designed to do which is be easily recyclable. It’s a little chunky, but not particularly cumbersome. I’m a fan. It has that slidey satisfaction thing too… yano when you close a drawer? And the last couple of cms glide to a satisfying stop? This does that. By the way, I’ve left the peel-off stickers on… underneath, the surface is mirrored… generously so!

All the eye pencils from the range are reasonably priced at £4.99 each.

The Sfumato Eyes Pencil in S23 is a color match to the Sfumato Eye Shadow I mentioned earlier. An earthy aubergine shade. One thing that I adore about the Une Natural Beauty range is the colour selection. I’m all for creating a collection based solely on natural and muted colours, and I think that this has been done exceptionally well here.

However, some of the formulas, just don’t work for me. I understand that a lot of the products are sheer in support of the natural beauty ethos, and I commend that. Infact, I’m often a fan of more sheer products (especially in darker shades) as I can be heavy handed and prefer the option to build colour rather than desperately try to remove it once overdone!

Unfortunately, I’m finding the Sfumato Eyes Pencil is just too hard and sheer. It drags across my lashline and doesn’t deposit enough colour to make the uncomfortable application worthwhile.

The Glimmer Eyes Pencil in G13 is sadly even harder. Such a shame as it contains the most beautiful and fine-particled glitter… I adore how it looks. Infact, once on… it’s more comfortable than my NARS glitter eye pencils, but what a total drag it is to apply. Pun intended.

The Skin Glow Pencil in G01 is slightly more expensive at £6.99 and is the most perfect colour match concealer for pale cool-toned ladies I’ve seen on the high street. It’s creamy and soft and applies really nicely. I’ve been using this around my nose and in the corner of my eyes to highlight and lift areas where I’m naturally more shadowed. It’s a great pencil that fills a void in my collection.

My only wish is that it were chunky. I’ve only used it twice and already it needs sharpening. I’m literally gonna go through one of these every few weeks if I use it daily. Bigger please! More product for the same amount of money, thank you!

Finally the lipstick, Une Lip-Toned Colour in L02. Love it. It’s a beautiful nude… a proper nude, not one of your concealer-lip nudes. It’s creamy and glossy without being too sheer. No hint of frost, just proper ‘my lips but better’ goodness. A makeup bag staple done well. Priced at £7.99, it’s what I’d expect to pay. Another definite repurchase!

Finally (are you still with me?!), my Une Natural Beauty FOTD.

Eyes

~ Une Natural Beauty Sfumato Eyes Shadow in S23
~ Une Natural Beauty Glimmer Eyes Shadow in G02
~ Une Natural Beauty Sfumato Eyes Pencil in S23
~ Avon Super Shock Mascara in Black

Face

Une Natural Beauty Breezy Cheeks Blush in B02

Lips

Une Natural Beauty Lip-Tined Lip Colour in L02

Une Natural Beauty is a huge brand launch and I’ve only delved into a tiny percentage of the 25 new products and 148 shades. It’s a varied review with a couple of stand outs and a couple of disappointments with one or two “OMG this could be awesome if only they…” thrown in.

Une Natural Beauty is available in the UK online and in selected stores at Boots. It should be rolling out into Superdrug from September 2010 and launching in Irealand sometime in August.

Let me know if you’ve tried anything from the range yet!

Posted in Blusher, Concealers, Cosmetics, Eye Liner, Eye Shadow, High Street Brands, Lip Colour, Reviews, Tools, Une Natural Beauty | 20 Comments »

Sunday, May 30th, 2010

Stargazer Liquid Eyeliners

Stargazer are a budget brand that I’ve had some real success with in the past… infact, one of the first things I ever reviewed was a Stargazer cake eyeliner that I still enjoy using to this day.

I received a couple of their liquid eye liners to have a play with and initially… I was mega OVERLY excited.

Look! I thought they were gonna be huge chunky felt tip type liquid eye liners. The idea really appealed to me in theory (in reality of course, great big sharpie-type liquid eyeliners would ensure I made even more of a mess than I usually do).

Anyway… this is how they look:

The ‘nib’ is a flexible nylony bristle type affair. It holds together well and doesn’t splay or flop about during application.

It produces a substantially pigmented black line that’s thin enough to tightly line the lashline. The above photo shows the line after I’d built it up to get the kinda thickness that I usually like.

I received two shades, black and blue. Both are true to description… the black is pure with no charcoal ashiness. The above swatch shows one swipe from each shade. Impressive huh? My only negative is that drying time was a little slower than I’m used to thanks to a wetter formula. I’d estimate that it took around a minute before I felt comfortable enough to let my (hooded eyelid) droop back over my lashline. However, once set… this stuff isn’t budging or transferring ’til makeup removal time. It doesn’t flake and it doesn’t fade. Phenomenal.

If you’re looking for a purse-friendly “does what it says on the tin” liquid eyeliner… I’d wholeheartedly recommend these from the Stargazer range. They do a host of shades and I’m gonna check out the violet and red (though I could probably use an intervention… I’m not gonna use a freakin’ red eyeliner am I?).

You can buy Stargazer’s Liquid Eyeliners online or from New Look at the ridiculously good price of £3 each.

Posted in Bargains, Eye Liner, High Street Brands, Reviews, Stargazer | 10 Comments »

Monday, May 24th, 2010

Make Up Store Haul & FOTD

So you’ve probably all heard by now about the new Make Up Store which has recently opened on Carnaby Street in London. Make Up Store are a swedish brand, though interestingly the products that I bought state that they are made in Canada. They also operate out of Westfield in west London and last time I was in the city, I couldn’t resist trying a few products out!

Nice, sleek packaging!

Orion (£15.00) is a cream highlighter with a punch of colour. It actually reminds me a little of what NARS Orgasm Illuminator could have been if they’d upped the amp on the pigmentation. Perhaps a touch more peach though…

It’s shimmery, but not too glittery. As I was browsing through the High Tech Lighters instore, I noticed that many contained enough glitter to render them unsuitable for daytime wear which was a big shame ‘cos some of the shades were magnificent! I struggled to work out how best to apply it at first and in a fit of WHATEVER I just grabbed a synthetic Kabuki, tapped it on the surface of the cream and buffed into my cheeks. I’m pleased with the effect! I think it would be especially lovely ontop of bronzer.

I also picked up an eye pencil. I’ve been looking for a dark navy with a touch of shimmer… and Deep Blue Sea (£8.50) fits the bill nicely!

It’s nice and dark with a heavy black base, so doesn’t scream “coloured eyeliner”… but there’s more than enough colour there to add a bit of interest to a smoky eye!

Texture is creamy but surprisingly long-lasting. I didn’t need to warm the pencil up before using (one of my pet hates) so this gets a thumbs up from me!

I also picked up a nice peach blusher that looked true to colour without being too coral hued.

Passion (£14.00) is a fairly neutral peach that my cool toned skin can just about get away with. It’s far more pigmented than I imagined it would be so I do have to apply with a light hand.

It’s shimmery but perfectly suitable for daywear.

I’m pleased with the pieces I bought and the staff in the store were helpful without being overbearing. I’ll definitely be popping back next time I’m in town.

Here’s a quick FOTD showing Make Up Store’s Passion blush on the cheeks… I’m not sure why I look quite so crazy-eyed!

Scary lady!

Have you tried any Make Up Store goodies yet?

Posted in Blusher, Eye Liner, Hauls, High Street Brands, Highlighters, Make Up Store | 15 Comments »

Tuesday, April 27th, 2010

MUA Makeup Academy Superdrug Range – Review

So the new MUA £1 range has been out in stores for almost a week and I’ve been playing with a couple of items that I was sent. It’s quite hard to review such bargainous products… it’s difficult to decide whether I cut them a break on the quality front because afterall.. they’re a £1 each… or do I just review them based on whether or not I’d use them again? I vote in favour of the second option… hard luck MUA.

I’ll start with some of the face products…

The MUA bronzer (I have shade 1) is a sparkle fest, and as a result… quite gritty in texture. It’s definitely more bronze toned than golden and if shade 1 is the lightest I can’t see it suiting pale tones too well. I have tried it lightly brushed across my cheeks, but the glitter fall out has left me cold and I won’t be reaching for this again.

A staple for any cosmetic line up is a pressed powder. I have shade 4, which on my skintone… actually makes a fairly decent matte contour shade. It’s quite silky to the touch in an old-fashioned Cornsilk kinda way. It’s also highly scented… powdery, like an old pharmacy. When I brush over the surface…. a lot of the product is kicked up and sits ontop of the pan which means you need to give your brush a bit of a shake before lifting it to your face to avoid fall out. It blends quite smoothly though, I’ll certainly be putting this aside for another play next time I can be bothered to contour.

Ahhhh blusher… such a great product for a quick skin pick-me-up. The best way to describe this is… draw a line between the bronzer and the pressed powder… the blusher lies halfway. It has the sparkle and the silkiness. Unfortunately this stuff really flakes when you brush at the surface… I had more product sitting ontop of the pan than ever I did on the brush. It also suffers a bit when blending, it has a tendency to blend away to nothing if you’re not careful. The 4 available shades are really rather pretty though.

It’s worth noting that none of the face products contain mirrors in the packaging, I’m sure for obvious cost cutting reasons. No applicators are included either, which I totally welcome with the eye shadows, but you’d be hard pressd (no pun intended) to achieve much with a pressed powder on the go without a little puff or mirror.

Talking of eyeshadows…

I was sent two of the pearl eyeshadow shades. One a duochrome purple/blue and the other a pink/lavender shade. You get a generous 2g of product for your money and these two shades look particularly stunning in the pan.

They’re soft, smooth and well pigmented. The packaging is cute (prefer these to the face products packaging) and in my opinion a must have if you’re thinking of checking out the range. I’ve already used the darker shade a few times this week and it’s lovely blended along the lower lashline for a pop of colour. Thankfully, these don’t appear to be fragranced either.

See that duochrome effect in Shade 9? Lovely! I will say that I find these shadows don’t pick up too well with a natural haired brush… so I’ve been using my Aurifere or E.L.F synthetic concealer brushes to apply!

The lipstick packaging remind me a little of the NYX Round Lipsticks with it’s transparent bases… unfortunately, that’s kinda where the similarities end. These feel greasier and just not as comfortable on the lips. Shade 1 is a stonking confident creme shade but it wears very unevenly so a lip liner as a base is a must. Shade 5 is promising in the tube, but delivers very little on the lips. It’s frosty, but also contains glitter particles… I guess it might work quite nicely as a layering product to take a nude lip from daytime to night time. Other than that, these are a pass for me.

Ok, what next…

Eyeliner… a beautiful, vibrant blue, almost metallic in appearance. The applicator is too stiff and scratchy with very little flexibility. This means that as you’re drawing the line, the product is only really applying at the edges of the applicator… multiple passes are necessary to achieve full opacity.

Once dry, a gentle swipe of my finger lifts great flakes of product from my skin and if that weren’t bad enough… underneath the line? I’m left with stained skin. This is a poor product and such a shame because that colour is so pretty and summery. Let me know if you make this work for you but I’m sure there are much better alternatives on the high street for not much more money.

After those damning comments, I’ll finish with my favourite…

The Eye Dust. I have Shade 5, which I’ve artfully typo-ed. First things first, these aren’t going to last longer than 46 seconds on your eyelids without a base of some sort, and you better make it a good one.

But look, how beautiful is this shade?

Combine this with a slick of UDPP or a coloured cream shadow base and you’re gonna get great payoff and a beautifully shimmering neutral shade. Packaging is irritating, but I’m not gonna let that overshadow what is a lovely eye dust for the money.

Overall, the new MUA range is a bit of a mixed bag… pretty much what I expected it to be. My tip though? Go and check out the eyeshadows and eye dusts, I’m delighted with them!

Posted in Bargains, Blusher, Eye Liner, Eye Shadow, High Street Brands, Lip Colour, MUA, Powders, Reviews | 21 Comments »

Sunday, April 18th, 2010

Sleek MakeUP Kajal Eyeliner

Ringing up the till at £3.99, one of Sleek MakeUP‘s latest product releases is the Kajal. A deeply pigmented eyeliner made with smudgy smoky looks in mind.

Based on the traditional Southern Asian kohl… Sleek MakeUP’s kajal is a much waxier, crayony affair. It’s an eyeliner that never needs sharpening and is ready to go with a quick twist of the tube. Compared to PURE’s now discontinued version, I find Sleek MakeUP’s version a little waxier… not quite so soft to apply but perhaps a touch more waterproof as a result.

I was sent the version in matte Black (Nocturnal). The Kajal is also available in purple (Odyssey).

As already mentioned, the eyeliner twists up to reveal it’s full length. It tapers to a smooth point, which is great for applying along the waterline and depending on how you angle the eyeliner during application… you can achieve different effects and amounts of ‘smokiness’.

The swatch on the left shows the Kajal applied directly from the tube, whilst on the right… I’ve smudged the line. It smudges readily and thus I would only recommend this eyeliner for when precision is not important. I don’t have particularly watery eyes and found that the Kajal remained happily on my waterline for many hours.

If you’re wanting something soft, easy to apply and richly pigmented for a ‘rock chick’ look (I hate that expression)… then beat your way down to your local Superdrug and pick one of these babies up!

Posted in Bargains, Eye Liner, High Street Brands, Reviews, Sleek | 23 Comments »

Friday, April 2nd, 2010

Paris Berlin Eyeliner Pen

I picked this Paris Berlin Eyeliner Pen up sometime late last year when I made an online Kryolan order. I can’t remember where I bought it from, but I paid less than £5 for it.

I like to have a “felt tip” type eyeliner pen available to me as I find them my favourite to work with when I’m attempting a more structured look. By structured, I mean one that usually involves a flick, lots of mascara and a bright lip!

The packaging is plain, simple and functional and the pen is solidly constructed with a standard, easy to hold barrel. The tip is beautifully precise without being too sharp. I love the way the fibres of the tip flex under pressure which avoids dragging or scratching over the eyelid. However, they hold together with no splaying… keeping the line straight and true.

I think the formula could do with being just a touch darker, it’s so close to being a true oily black… but close isn’t quite good enough.

Pigmentation is pretty solid, I usually go over twice to build up colour to an optimum level. I haven’t found a problem with this liner smudging at all – it fades quite evenly over time.

Overall, it’s a great liner for less than a fiver and better than any of the high-street branded versions that I’ve tried. It’s a pro product which you should be able to find online with a quick google search. I’ve had this about 6 months now and it’s showing no signs of drying out.

Do you have a favourite liquid liner pen?

Posted in Bargains, Eye Liner, Paris Berlin, Reviews | 11 Comments »