Review: Ten Three Labs

Today I'll be sharing my thoughts on a relatively new company, Ten Three Labs. Spoiler: I love everything I got and I don't have anything negative to say about this company. Everything from the packaging to the products is spot-on. The time-of-turnaround was incredible--I placed my order October 19th around 8pm and received it October 24th at 10am, only five days later! That's insanely fast.

 Everything came inside this pretty paper sack, and all the products were in this cute drawstring bag. My order slip had a nice note from the owner Cara, and I also received Pearl as my free sample.

Here's everything I got! A full sized Hatshepsut, a Peppermint Punch salve stick, and a sample of Artificial Angels perfume. Cara also included a free sifter for the full sized eyeshadow. Isn't that awesome?!

I really like that my eyeshadow came shrink-wrapped! It's always nice to know your products were safe on their journey to you. The lip balm was also shrink-wrapped, which is a nice touch. I think the top label is simple but classy, and fits in with the brand aesthetic perfectly.

Whoa! Look at all that product! It's packed to the brim--I think I'm going to save the sifter for another shadow, because I don't think there's room in this one! Being the incredibly impatient person that I am, I immediately swatched the shadows, dabbed on some Artificial Angels, and slathered on the lip balm. My thoughts on the perfume and salve stick after the swatches...

 Hatshepsut: Described as an antique gold with gold sparkles, and I think that's pretty accurate. I LOVE this color and am so giddy that I grabbed a full size. It definitely has an antique tarnished-gold feeling, and the gold shimmer is beautiful. I also think it's freakin' bad-ass that this shadow is named after the first female pharaoh. I bet Hatshepsut would rock this color with some thick black wings (Warning: I have no idea what kind of makeup Egyptians wore.)

Next up is my free sample, Pearl!

 Pearl: Described as a deep muddy brown with gold sparkles, which is very accurate. This shadow has a lovely soft satin finish. I wonder if Cara included this because it will pair perfectly with Hatshepsut? ;) It's a nice rich brown that will look great in the outer corner and crease.

Both shades applied smoothly and were nicely pigmented. I really like the formula, and I would love to try more of Ten Three Lab's eyeshadow in the future.

Peppermint Salve Stick: This lip balm is the bomb. I've tried so many lip balms that seem to slide off my lips and do nothing to keep them soft once the balm wears off. The texture of the salve stick is just perfect, not too slippery and but not too thick. It's the Goldilocks of lip balms. It goes on creamy and soft, and the peppermint smells really yummy. My lips were cracked and chapped before I started wearing this today, but they feel noticeably softer and more hydrated even after the balm has worn off. I'll be ordering several more so I can hoard them this winter and take them with me everywhere. Basically, if you have lips, you will like this lip balm. A+ five stars, go buy this now.

Artificial Angels Perfume Oil: I suck at describing perfumes, but I'm gonna try my best for y'all. It starts off with a burst of sweet, yummy cherry that made me say "Mmmmmmm..." out loud. The cherry begins to fade after about an hour but there's a lingering fruity yumminess. A sweet, soft, creamy smell comes out after the cherry and lasts for several hours. I've had it on for about 4 hours now, and it's faded but I can still definitely still smell it on my arm. This perfume is super girly, happy, and comforting. I feel like I'm snuggling my nose into a fruity baby unicorn (what, you don't know what that smells like?!) I think this may be my favorite indie perfume I have ever tried. This is the scent I've been searching for but haven't found until now. I should mention that I really like the packaging and it was a cinch to apply--I can see myself blowing through this sample. I love, love, love this. Okay, I'll stop gushing now.

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As you can probably tell, my experience with Ten Three labs was awesome. I'll definitely be ordering again to grab more salve sticks and a full size of Artificial Angels. I'm also eying a sample of Fair Season and her smudge sticks. I highly recommend you give this shop a try, I doubt you will be disappointed.

Femme Fatale Cosmetics Swatches

A few things have happened since I last updated this blog a year ago--the main thing being my complete obsession with indie makeup. Thankfully, it still fits perfectly with the fabulously cheap theme! I hope to bring you guys some more swatches and reviews in the near future (when I'm not freaking out about school.)

When Femme Fatale announced they would no longer be selling samples, I went a little crazy and bought a ton. I've been sitting on these for about a month now, and I finally got around to swatching. After placing my order, I received an email from the owner letting me know that they were waiting on a shipment of ingredients for Secret Shiny, and would I like to choose a replacement sample, or wait for the ingredients to come in? I happily replied that I would wait, since it was one of the shades I was looking forward to the most. Sophie generously gave me a bunch of extra samples to make up for the wait. A+ for customer service!

I really love most of the shades, but there were a few disappointments in the bunch. I'll go into more detail later. Everything is swatched over Darling Girl's Primped and Primed eye primer. Enough rambling, show me the duochrome!

Royal Tarts: Reddish mauve with gold sheen. Put a gold sheen on any shadow and I'll probably like it. The duochrome is subtle but it's definitely there. I can see myself getting a full size of this, it's so soft and girly.

 Divinity: Soft lilac with a pinky-golden sheen. This one is a stunner. I will be needing this in a full size. It's just DIVINE (hur hur hurrr!)

 

 Wildvine: Pretty light brown with a pale green shift.This color is beautiful, but I was expecting a stronger shift based on the website photo. I'm not sure if I need a full size just yet.

 Secret Shiny: Cool light purple with a bright yellow duochrome. Unnnfffff. Goddamn, I love this one. I want to bathe in this. This is easily the most unique eyeshadow I own.

 

Faerie Fire: Pinky-purple with light green shimmer. This color wasn't as awesome as I'd hoped it would be. It seems to have a matte base, and when you try to blend the shimmer overlay kind of disappears. It's still a very pretty shadow, just not my favorite. I won't be getting a full size.

 Candied Apple: Medium reddish brown with pale green sheen. This is probably one of Femme Fatale's most popular shades, and I can definitely see why. It's just beautiful! Look at that duochrome. I'll be grabbing a full size next time I order.

 

 Space Cow: Grayish-purple with a pink sheen. This one reminds me of Notoriously Morbid Forgotten Dreams, but I like Forgotten Dreams a lot more. This is a nice shadow that applied well, it just didn't wow me.

 Star's Sorrow: Vivid purple with blue sparkles.This was probably the most disappointing shade in the bunch. The formula is similar to Faerie Fire with the matte base, and I had the same problem with application. I tried to add extra layers on top but it kept getting patchy and weird.

 Frostfire: Navy blue with prominently red shimmer, but also rainbow sparkles. This is lovely and perfectly named. I might grab a full size, even though I don't use a lot of blue eyeshadow.

Jinx: Blurple with pinkish-red shimmer. Sorry this picture turned out so crappy :( This one did not want to be photographed, but there is a noticeable reddish duochrome in person. This shadow is more purple and shimmery than Frostfire, which is more of a straight-up sparklebomb. I like this color but I don't need a full size.

 Nightlash: Deep magenta with orange-gold sparkle. This is another favorite and it's so gorgeous in person! I definitely want a full size.

 Dispersion: Rich red-brown with blue duochrome and sparkles! This shadow is breathtaking. It's like Candied Apple's sexy older sister. Another full size contender.

 Phew! There you have it. There were a few misses, but for the most part I really enjoyed my order. I hope you enjoyed these swatches! Keep an eye out for part two, because there are still more samples I couldn't fit in this post. Thanks for looking!

FOTD and Review: Soft Purple Using Wet 'n' Wild Lust Palette

In case you were not aware, I am pretty much obsessed with Wet 'n Wild's eyeshadows. They are smooth, pigmented, buttery and overall a dream to use! My favorite palettes are the 8-pan Comfort Zone Palette, and trios in Silent Treatment, Walking on Eggshells, and I'm Getting Sunburned.

I want to preface this by saying that I'm sorry for gushing about a discontinued palette, I really am. But I love it so much I have to review it! When I saw the discontinued Lust Palette on the r/makeupexchange subreddit on reddit.com, I jumped on that sucker like a crazy cat lady on some blue eyeshadow. I was so excited when it arrived, and the quality is completely on par with the rest of their shadows! The colors in the palette are gorgeous. I am a huge sucker for purple eyeshadows in general, but I love all these shades.

Here's the palette closed...

...and open.

The first row includes a matte very pale pink, matte warm purple with reddish tones, and a matte deep eggplant with a brown hue. These mattes are all very pigmented and easy to blend.

The second row features a matte light cream with pieces of glitter. I don't understand this combination, and I'd much prefer a plain matte eyeshadow. But, it's still lovely on the inner corner of the eyes and very pigmented.

The next shade is a metallic shimmery gunmetal grey with a slight greenish/teal duochrome. It's absolutely gorgeous. The last color is a dark brown shimmer with pink glitter. I feel like this particular shade is one Wet 'n' Wild includes in many of their trios and 8-pan palettes. There's a similar dark brown with glitter in I'm Getting Sunburned and Comfort Zone.

Swatched in the same order mentioned---light pink, purple, eggplant, cream, gunmetal, and deep brown. Swatches are with no primer, just the eyeshadows on my bare skin. I build up the two lightest shades a little because they are both very close to my skin tone!

Close up because LOOK AT THAT GORGEOUS COLOR! Swoon.

Here's the eye look I created using the  purples in this palette. I'm also wearing my MAC Impeccable brow pencil in Dirty Blonde, Maybelline master precise ink pen in Black, and Almay one coat triple effect mascara in Black. I also added the light matte cream with glitter on the inner corner for a highlight. I highlighted my brow with my Maybelline cover stick in white before applying eyeshadow.

Final Thoughts: This is another great little palette from Wet 'n' Wild. I heard on Nouveau Cheap that some of Wet 'n' Wild's discontinued palettes have been popping up again in certain drugstores like Rite Aid. I hope they pop up in my area!

Review: Maybelline Master Precise Ink Pen Eyeliner in Black

Hey guys. I haven't blogged in quite some time because of my very busy school and work life, but I'm going to try to fit it into my schedule more regularly. Anyways, onto the review. Spoiler alert: I love this eyeliner.

Maybelline makes a few claims about this liner (found on the back of the cardboard packaging):

1. Ultra thin O.4mm brush tip
2. Continuous flow for smooth, even lines
3. Ink pigment technology gives super saturated color
4. Safe for sensitive eyes

I was blown away by how this product actually lived up to all the claims it made. I've been pretty disappointed lately with my search for the perfect drugstore liner (I'm looking at you, Jordana Easyliner and Milani Eye Tech Extreme).

I have no clue if the tip is really 0.4mm--but I found it to be super thin, allowing me to create a thin line on the inner corner of my eye easily, and a nice precise wing.

This liner glides on smoothly and has a very nice continuous flow of product. The color is a deep inky black that dries to a satin finish--not shiny by any means but not totally matte either. This eyeliner is not waterproof, but it's very smudge resistant and lasted all day for me (My makeup has been on for about 8 hours today and we're still goin' strong, baby). Here's how it looks on my eyeballs:

 I can't comment on how long this liner with last--I've only had it for a week, but it's friggin' awesome and I'm really pleased that I purchased this liner. Nice one, Maybelline. I'd highly recommend you give it a shot if you love felt tip/pen style liquid liners!

Review: Wet 'n' Wild Megalast Lipsticks

The shades I own are Mauve Outta Here, Smokin' Hot Pink, and Stoplight Red. These lipsticks are matte and long wearing. They are very pigmented and beautiful colors, although slightly drying. I'd suggest wearing lip balm as a base for these!

Packaging: Probably my least favorite thing about this product. The lipsticks don't retract fully into the tube, so you have to be careful with the cap. I've nicked all of these lipsticks on the cap taking it off for the first time, causing the lipstick to smudge and smear on the edges of the lid.

Wear time: These shades really seem to cling to my lips and not let go, which I love. Mauve Outta Here is the least long-lasting of the three, but I still get a good 4 hours with this. The last two (Smokin' Hot Pink and Stoplight Red) have fantastic staying power, 6 or more hours with minimal fading. They seem to have a staining effect on the lips, and the matte formula does not budge (but they aren't uncomfortable or way too drying). Love it!

Pigmentation: Can you tell I love pigmented products? The swatches below are one swipe of lipstick. These babies are bold, vivid, and gorgeous! Exactly as they appear in the tube.

Mauve Outta Here, Smokin' Hot Pink, Stoplight Red

Here are some swatches of these on my lips. I love them all but I definitely wear Mauve Outta Here the most, it's bold but more wearable than the other two in my opinion. It also looks great blotted for a lighter shade.

Finally, I wanted to share a close up of my eye makeup, also using Wet 'n' Wild. I used the 'eyelid' shade from the Walking on Eggshells trio all over my lid with Milani Shadoweyes in Champagne Toast as a base. I also used the Wet 'n' Wild Nude Awakening 8-pan palette: the right column 'crease' in my crease, 'definer' in the outer corner, and 'browbone' above my crease. Hope you like it! :)

FOTD: Arabic Inspired Eyes

I had some free time today so I decided to paint my face some bright colors for once. I used almost all Urban Decay shadows and drugstore for everything else. Hope you like it!

Eyes:

• Maybelline Color Tattoo in Too Cool all over lid, inner corner, lightly on browbone
• Urban Decay shadow in Money, Haight, Psychedelic Sister, Rockstar, and Perversion
• Physicians Formula Eye Booster in Ultra Black
• Milani Liquifeye liner in Black
• Jordana Best Lash Extreme Volumizing Mascara
• E.l.f. eyebrow kit in Ash
• Wet 'n' Wild Brow Pencil in Taupe

Face:

• Wet 'n' Wild Coverall Foundation in Fair (also built up as concealer)
• NYC Translucent Loose Powder
• NYC Sunny Bronzer
• Rimmel Lasting Finish blush in Berry
• Revlon Balm Stain in Honey
• Revlon Super Lustrous lipgloss in Foiled

Review: Milani Color Statement Lipsticks in Nude Creme, Naturally Chic, and Flamingo Pose

Let me begin by saying I adore these lipsticks! The three I have are all the Creme formula. I've found they are very smooth without feeling like they could feather or slide right off your lips. The formula is exactly what I look for in a lipstick--good wear time, comfortable, not drying, and super pigmented! What you see is what you get with these lipsticks, and I LOVE that.

Packaging: The gold tubes are cute and feel sturdy. I like that the bottom of the tube corresponds with the shade of the lipstick inside exactly.

Wear Time: All three last me a good 3-4 hours, including a meal. Every time I eat/drink wearing these I'm impressed with how nicely they stay put and don't smudge. I don't normally have an issue with lipsticks feathering, but these definitely don't on me. FYI, Flamingo Pose leaves a surprisingly bright stain on my lips after the lipstick is gone. I personally love when my lipsticks leave a stain, so I don't mind this at all.

Pigmentation: Full on vivid color, just like you see in the tube.

Nude Creme, Naturally Chic, Flamingo Pose

Nude Creme

Naturally Chic

Flamingo Pose

Final Thoughts: Would I recommend these? Absolutely! I love these to death and I plan on buying more shades (Fruit Punch and Sweet Nectar, I'm lookin' at you). Nude Creme is the only nude lipstick I've ever liked on me. Naturally Chic is perfectly named in my opinion, and is a great lipstick for work or when you don't know what lip to pair with a certain eye look. Flamingo Pose is gorgeous for spring and summer, or whenever the hell you want to wear it. Thanks for reading!