Amrezy Palette by Anastasia Beverly Hills - Swatches and First Impression Review

I don't know how they kept this a secret haha. This came out of nowhere and I'm so excited it's in my hands!!

In case you didn't know, this palette was made in collaboration with Amrezy on Instagram. She is a makeup artist and insanely popular on IG (over a 1 million followers). Also, she is insanely gorgeous and so so talented.

I purchased this palette at my local Ulta on July 15th (two days before Ulta officially would have it in stores - BOOYAH). 

This retails for an amazing $29. I'm still in shock over the price haha. So affordable for the quality of the eyeshadows you get.

So let's take a gander over to the packaging. 

The outside is gorgeous. I adore the cheetah print on the packaging plus the metallic golden background. It gives it a very exotic appeal. 

It is cardboard, not exactly the nicest but it does its job in holding in the eyeshadows. I do wish the packaging was nicer or more sturdier. I think that most consumers are getting use to the nice metal, tin, or whatever non-cardboard material palettes are made in these days. I honestly would pay an extra buck or two so I have piece of mind that if I travel or accidentally drop my palette that my eyeshadows will be okay. It cheapens it a little bit but it's not a deal breaker.

Now, the inside *ahhhh*.

You can see that is a very warm toned neutral palette with 2 brights in the bunch. This palette to me screams: exotic, sexy, goddess-like, and beautiful.

Without a doubt, this would be THE palette to reach for as we transition from Summer to Fall. But it's versatile enough that it can be used year round.

I believe that Amrezy took her most used shades and eyeshadows that many people can pull off and make it into one convenient palette. If you follow her in IG, you will see that she gravitates towards neutrals, especially warm toned, when she posts her looks.

Onto the review and first impressions of it.

In swatching the top row, I was blown away at the quality. Very smooth and incredibly pigmented. The bottom row, it was a little "meh" for me. I think you can see what I'm talking about in the swatches.

The bottom row, except for Vanilla, are all mattes. If you are a eyeshadow junkie like me or know a lot about makeup, we know that matte formula eyeshadows can be a little tricky. These are no exception. In finger swatching, Deep Plum and LBD were patchy and had to be layered a little more heavily than the other swatches (still didn't look too great :\).

But once you apply them to the lid, blending helps blur out the patchiness and they blend quite nicely.  That is a plus for sure.

The first time around, Caramel and Deep Plum were patchy upon application to my lids. I had to spend a lot of time blending; more than what I use to in comparison to other eyeshadows I own. Like I mentioned above, the shimmery shades were a breeze to work it and blend in seamlessly.

The second go around, it was MUCH better. I used a different fluffy blending brush to apply the shadows and it worked out perfectly. It was very easy to work with the blend to create a look. I used Iridescent Purple and Emerald in the second look and the colors were beautiful! They aren't obnoxiously bright, they were sultry but wearbale. Combined great with the Caramel and Deep Plum. :)

Check my IG if you are interested in how my looks came out :)

I hope you all found this helpful!

Have you purchased the palette? Are you going for something else and passing on this?

Let me know in the comments!

Talk to you all soon,
Bianca

TooFaced Chocolate Bar Palette - Swatches and Review

Well... I gave into the hype.

I held off from buying this palette for a few months but I had store credit to Sephora and thought I would give it a whirl. 

I won't lie to you... I didn't know what to expect with the quality of TooFaced shadows. I have heard good things but I have never ever own any TooFaced palettes. I don't know why haha but I think I preferred the Urban Decay Naked palettes over the TooFaced ones. 

I'm glad I waited though. This is a great palette to get introduced to TooFaced Cosmetics eyeshadows.

Just like everyone else, the packaging box and the palette itself is stickin' cute! TooFaced sure knows how to do cute packaging.

I was lucky to pick up the Chocolate Bar palette with the slimmer packaging. I think TooFaced heard about everyone's complaints about the thickness of the palette's casing. I never saw it so I can't say from experience how significant the reduction in thinness is but I'm glad I waited haha.

When I first saw the palette, I thought that the arrangement of the shadows was odd. I would assume that the larger highlight shades would be on top and the little pans of shadows would be under it. But that is me being nit-picky haha.

When I see this palette, the right side is warmer and the left side is slightly cooler. Just a smidge. I never noticed it during the months of blogs and videos I saw featuring the palette haha.

I wish the names were engraved into the palette like all the other palettes from TooFaced. I truly hate the flimsy little sheet with the names on it. But it is what it is, can' change it.

You can see how cute the names of each of the shadows are though. I definitely win points for creative and cute names for the eyeshadows.

I swatched the eyeshadows by row on my arm without any primer.

 Row 1

 Row 2

Row 3

Thoughts on eyeshadow quality:
- The matte shades are a little powdery and slightly less pigmented. You have to layer the heck out of the shadows to get this to show up but on the bright side, they layer nicely and evenly.
- The shimmery shades are WHOA. They are amazingly pigmented and so incredibly smooth. They can be powdery if you pick up product with a brush but if you tap off the excess, there is no fall out :).
- The microglitter shades are my favorites I think. The little glittery specks don't disappear when you apply them and they are really smooth as well. It adds that extra pop to your look without it being overboard or in your face glittery.

Overall, I think this is a great palette, especially for starters. This palette has some great mattes, shimmers, neutral every day shades. Or a nice palette to compliment other neutral eyeshadow palettes. {Because a makeup addict can never have too many neutral palettes;)}

Hope you enjoyed the review,
Bianca :)

Tom Ford Cognac Sable - Swatches and Review

Oh Cognac Sable... why art thou so beautiful...?

This is one of my favorite quads that I own from Tom Ford. It is one of those that is so versatile. I know you are thinking "You say every time that the TF quads are so versatile" but it's so true!! :)

I absolutely adore the warm tones in this quad. There isn't a matte shade (which is a bummer) but the shades work well together. When you create a look with this quad, it doesn't look like there is too much shimmer or metallic-ness to the look.

The mixture of these shades together really help form, practically, the perfect quad for the summer and leading into fall. It has those warm browns, that bronze "adult" glitter, and a golden beige highlight.

With this quad, it is one of those that you can easily transition from a soft day time look to a sultry bronzey brown smokey eye. Which is what a lot of people look for, in my opinion.

I love how buildable these shadows are. I'm not going to lie, when I first swatched this quad... I thought I got a dud. There was not a whole lot of pigment when I swiped it on my finger and I felt this buyer's remorse instantly haha. But I reminded myself that it is important to see how the eyeshadows perform on the lids and with brushes.

And thankfully, it worked out amazingly once I created a look with it. I post all my makeup of the days on my Instagram, you should probably head on over there and follow if you'd like ;).

This is one of my favorite quads to work with and I get so many compliments when I wear this out. Even my friends and sales associates at my local Tom Ford counter love how I create looks with the quads.

I purchased this at Nordstrom for $78 and I absolutely love it. If you can, see if you can check it out in person. You will fall in love with it!

Thanks for stopping by as always,
Bianca

Tom Ford Silvered Topaz - Swatch and Review

I have embarrassingly collected most of the Tom Ford quads and I still want them all haha. It's a bad thing to want to achieve but I adore his eyeshadows. And believe me, any new TF product that comes out with eyeshadow trios, quads, or palettes...you can bet I will do my best to get my hands on it.

But for now, let's talk about Silvered Topaz. Ain't she a beaute?

obvi haha

This palette is compromised of one signature TF glitter shade, two shimmer-y satin eyeshadows, and one matte.

That glitter shade goes very well on its own on layered on top of any of the 3 shadows. I would say it's neutral because it goes well with that silvered taupe shade on the top right and with that warm plum-y golden-ish taupe without any clashing or looking weird.

These shadows are very pigmented and so smooth like all of the TF quads I have tried and own. They are a dream to apply and blend out.

I can make so many different looks with this quad. And that is what I LOVE about the TF quad line. Every quad has endless possibilities from subtle washes or color for an easy look and can be built up to create some kick ass smokey eyes (which are my personal favorite kinds of looks).

 

This right here is one heck of a beautiful quad. Especially if you love taupe shades. 

I think if you wanted a little more variety in taupes, I think the Les Fumes palette from Guerlain would compliment this TF quad nicely. Not necessary but if you like a little more options than just these 4, I think that would be a good one to take a look at.

Okay, *focus self* haha back to TF. I recommend this quad like the others that I have posted on my blog. I know that the price tag is scary at $78 but the beauty about these quads aside from the AMAZING quality is that these quads are so versatile. You won't be stuck doing the same old look every day. What's not to love about Tom Ford...? ;)

If you are curious, I have done reviews and swatches of: Cognac Sable, Titanium Smoke, Cocoa Mirage, Sahara Haze, and Orchid Haze. ~Check out the rest of my blog for more~

Alright, I hope you enjoyed this review on the Silvered Topaz quad from the amazing Tom Ford. If you have any questions, feel free to let me know. 

Hope you are all well,

Bianca

Tom Ford Unabashed Eye and Cheek Palette for Summer 2014

Well isn't this a thing of beauty?

This is the new and highly coveted Tom Ford Eye and Cheek palette in Unabashed. This is the first palette Mr. Ford has come out with in terms to combining both eye and cheek products. And I am hoping for more palettes like these! 

As you can see, the Ivory and Gold packaging is still going on, resembling the original Private Blend lipstick packaging from back in the day. So fans of Tom Ford are loving it right now because it is so sleek and simple.

*ahhhh* It's so beautiful!

So it comes with three eyeshadows and two cheek products.

Eyeshadows - top to bottom: the classic TF glitter is the top shade and it looks like a champagne coloring with a touch of taupe. The only way I can describe the undertone of that glitter shade is taupe...I can't put my finger on it. It's really gorgeous! Next, it's a classic and true gray taupe matte shadow. MonsiieurAlex mentioned that it's the closest dupe to Chanel's Notorious contour/blush powder from a few years back. So if you are a pro at contour and missed out on Notorious, this would be a cool multi-purpose shade. And finally...the star of the palette...the bright cobalt blue. It is also a matte shadow. When you swatch and apply it, it turns into a bright teal color. So if you want true to pan opacity, you would have to pack it on.

 *drooling*

Here, I took pictures from three different angles and different lighting to get every angle position to show these shadows as best as possible.

The texture of these shadows are AMAZING and so soft like all TF shadows I've come across. I have yet to make a look with these...when I do I will post on my Instagram :)

If you have any questions, feel free to ask me! I'll do my best to answer it as best as possible.

I purchased mine at my local TF counter in Nordstrom. As of right now, Neimans and Saks are doing in store purchases online...They have put that on their website. *it might change*. Demand for this palette is insane. With all the hype around it thanks to social media...A LOT of people pre-ordered it! I know I did :}. Nordstrom doesn't even have this palette online but the rest of the collection is available.

It retails for a heartbreaking $95 haha. I justified it because it was a birthday present to myself :P. *reason enough riiight?!* ;)

Anyways, hope you enjoyed this! Any questions, feel free to ask.

Have a great day/night,
Bianca

TOM FORD Cocoa Mirage - Swatches and Review

*drools*

Oh Tom Ford... you have my heart. It's the way you package your line of beauty products and the fact that you do not have to do a thing and your products will sell out.

You have this way about you and the way you put your style into your products that appeal to everyone. It makes your products worth a look and completely worth the investment.

Here, I present to you... Cocoa Mirage. Arguably, the most popular Eye Color Quad from Tom Ford. 

 Packaging: Sleek, sturdy, and beautiful. The classic mahogany and gold.

*dead* Just look at it! ahhh :}

It comes with three matte shades and one satin/shimmer shade.

The beauty about this quad is that it's so versatile. You can create the most natural of looks to some sultry bronze smokey eyes.

I think if you were to get just one quad from the range, I would recommend this one. I think it's the most universally flattering and it's a quad that can help you create a huge range of looks.

I realize that the $78 price tag is shocking to most but it's something that will get a lot of use and the quality of the shadows are unmatched. I have yet to find something in my collection that matches the quality, smoothness, blend-ability, and pigmentation of these 4 shades. This is coming from a girl that owns Naked 1, 2, and Basics, TheBalm palettes, and Inglot shadows.

It has become harder to get your hands on. There has been a lot of buzz around this specific quad. So if you are interested, get a hold or pre-order on this at any counter that sells it, TomFord.com (now available to purchase his beauty line and much more!!), Nordstrom/Bergdorf Goodman/Neiman Marcus/Saks, and free standing Tom Ford stores.

*yep, still drooling*

Haha, if you have any questions, feel free to leave them down in the comments. Until the next time, take care!

Bianca :)

TOM FORD Sahara Haze

Hey everyone, here again with another Tom Ford post. I seriously cannot get enough of this line. I'm eyeshadow OBSESSED. His quads are blowing my mind. I haven't been reaching for anything else really. I'm in love and I think these are definitely something to splurge on if you can. 

This is how I am justifying purchasing these quads.

**Imagine the cost of an Urban Decay shadow (1.5 g for $18) or Burberry single eyeshadows (2.5 g for $30). If you get 4 of those, you will be paying way more than the cost of one of the Tom Ford quads.

Each Tom Ford quad has 10 g of product (2.5 g per pan) for $78...so that breaks down to... $19.50 per shadow. 

You are just paying more right off the bat instead of little by little. 

I hope my little math lesson made you smile and to make it seem like I'm not that crazy ;).

So without further ado, here is Sahara Haze (which I'm not 100% sure but I heard a rumor this might be discontinued!!).

Hope you enjoyed! I absolutely love the quality and pigmentation of these shadows. They are just a dream to work with. I haven't been much of a green eyeshadow girl lately but this quad turned things around for me. This quad creates gorgeous dark green smokey eyes to subtle green eye makeup looks :)

Check this out in person if you would like at Neimans, Nordstrom, and anywhere that sells TF.

Talk to you all soon,

Bianca 

What I Wore This Week #1 (2/10-2/14)

Happy friday/weekend! ~yasss!~

I'm excited to share with you my first "What I Wore This Week" post. Where I share with you what makeup I wore during the week :). Since this is my first, I welcome any and all constructive criticism on how to improve these posts. My goal with posting my weekly makeup stash is to vary my makeup products so I don't get stuck in a rut or just use one thing for weeks.

First group of products I'm going to share with you are LIPS: 

 I've been using two regularly over the past week, left: YSL Rouge Volupte in #9 Caress Pink (muted raspberry pink) and original Dior Lip Glow. They are the kind of lip products that require no mirror to apply and since I'm SUPER forgetful when it comes to reapplying my lip products so these two have been my go to (and not just for this past week). I love these two! :)

Next: EYES

I have my stand by's when it comes to eyeliners and liquid liners. I rarely steer away from what I use unless I run out of it and buy something else.

 Top to Bottom: Maybelline Full n Soft Waterproof mascara, Kat Von D Tattoo Liner, Kat Von D Autograph pencil in Puro Amor, Urban Decay 24/7 Slide On eyeliner in Crave, and Maybelline Define a Brow in Medium Brown.

 Eyeshadow: Tom Ford Orchid Haze *drools*. It's a stunning palette to work with. I think it can be a great every day palette for a variety of people :).

Finally: FACE

For foundation, I have been using and loving the sample of Tom Ford Traceless Foundation in #7 Tawny. It's the most perfect match I have found in my time of trying out foundation from drugstore to high end. But just my luck, my perfect match is the most expensive one I've ever tried haha :(. I'll definitely keep trying to snag samples though if I can :p.

Blush: Tom Ford Ravish. ALL TIME favorite blush that I own. I've been using it like 90% of the time since I purchased it. It's gorgeous!!

Concealer: NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer in Custard ~Review of this concealer on my blog!~

Setting Powder: Guerlain Meteorites (old formulation) in Teinte Dore #3. I'm in loooove with this setting powder. It really makes my skin look glowing but not sparkly or icky. It's subtle but noticeable. It livens up my complexion and without it...my foundations and concealers don't look the same by the end of the day. I have yet to try the new formulation so I can't give my thoughts on that...yet... ;).

What did you wear this week? Let me know in the comments :)

Hope you all are doing well. Talk to you all soon,
Bianca xo

Marc Jacobs Starlet Eyeshadow Palette - swatch and review

Hey there everyone,

I'm here to talk about the only and probably only thing I'll own from the Marc Jacobs line at Sephora. I got this back in November/early December when I got my VIB gift card and to be honest...I have only used that less than a hand full of times. 

There is nothing wrong with the palette, don't get me wrong, but it's not a palette I reach for as often as other palettes in my collection. 

 As you can see the box and packaging of Marc Jacobs products are black, sleek, and compact. Seems like all of his makeup products are not bulky whatsoever. So this is a positive note for MJ products.

 Here is the Starlet palette all opened up. You can see that there is an array of colors to choose from and they are beautiful. My only issue with this palette is...there are no mattes shades. At all.

They are all shimmery, bordering on metallic. Which is a good and a bad thing. I have to reach for another palette or shadow to use in the crease unless I'm going for a one shadow look (which isn't often haha). I'm all about having that definition in the crease with a matte shadow.

 The variety of shades are very much appreciated and they are all cool toned. On my warm skin tone, they really stand out and can sometimes clash if I only use this palette for my eye look.

Here are the swatches. You can see that they are all very pigmented and stand out against my arm. They apply and blend like a dream.

Final thoughts: this is a nice palette but it's not a stand alone, everything you need, palette. The shadows are beautiful and pigmented. I just hate that I do not reach for this palette as often as I should. It just gets overlooked. In my opinion, I think you can get a different palette for the retail price ($59 USD). But if you want to add shimmery/metallic shades to your collection, this could be a great addition. Just depends on what you are looking for. If you want a "go to" status palette from MJ, check out the MJ Lolita palette. I do not own it but I have heard many beauty bloggers rave about it :). 

What are your thoughts about this palette if you own it? What are your favorite items from Marc Jacobs? I'd love to know your thoughts down below.

Have a good day/night,

Bianca xo