Well, hello there! Happy new year to ye!
Since this was the first Christmas I've not been able to spend time with family, a lot of my time lately has been mostly comprised of studying, working, playing violin, visiting art districts and different landmarks, forever finding a professional music instructor, watching entirely too much of Supernatural on Netflix and history documentaries whilst dealing with the flu (twice), and upon getting better, proceeding to eat absolutely too much of Chicago's Pompei Italian (ok, I've only been there twice, but it seems like I've been there more, simply because their portion sizes are massive) check it out next time you're in Chicago! It's an incredible Italian food restaurant based in downtown, and I live not far from it, so...eh, 'tis the season for tons of carbs, deliciousness and empty calories, I guess! They are quite wonderful empty calories, nonetheless 😉).
Alright, long time, no blog! However, I thought that these last couple of purchases I made from Colourpop's site were substantial enough to be consolidated into a blog post! I know so many of us go entirely too click-happy once we get an email about yet another sale on Colourpop's site...or is it just me? Ah, well, (scratches head)...alrighty then! And there were many things I wanted to try, and both orders I made were during a couple of huge sales they were having. I'm now at the point where I think I've had my Colourpop fill...for now. 😁 Seriously, it's one of the only brands I've been purchasing for color products for a hot minute, as well, I simply enjoy their quality that much!
Some of what the sales included: 30% off certain Super Shock Shadow kits and singles, a new holiday collection of exquisite, deep rich Liquid Matte Lipsticks, more sales on lip products, half off of pressed eyeshadow palettes, single pressed shadows for $2.80...must I go on about my evident lack of self control for this brand?
My first order/hurrah contained all of what you see above. I was able to snag the You Had Me at Hello and All I See Is Magic eyeshadow palettes on sale. The holiday collection matte liquid lippies were something I did pay full price for (I ended up loving all three of them, upon first impressions! I got them in Snowfleek, Cloudscape, and Fragile Things), and pressed shadow singles were on sale for $2.80 a pop.
As you may tell, some of the pressed shadows I bought remained in their packaging until I could find a place for them (my MAC empty pro palettes hadn't gotten to me just yet when I took these pics). Just to note, those 4 other shades were Snake Eyes, Take it Slow, So Jaded, and a backup of Play by Play.
Super Shock Shadow Kits in 'Dusk 'Till Dawn' & 'Phase Me Out'
Dusk 'Till Dawn Supershock Set - Swatches L-R: Half Light (my personal favorite), Goodish (my least favorite), Slay Bells, Babykins, New Magic, Stargirl
Look...the shine! The bling! Best part? These swatches were done without primer or base! This Dusk 'Till Dawn set definitely became a fast favorite of mine! I've already put to extremely good use the sheer iridescent white with the blue flip, New Magic, as an eyeshadow sparkle-topper for at least three looks I've done. It is nothing short of mesmerizing on the lids. Goodish is a rather faint lavender, and, like New Magic, is meant to be an eyeshadow topper - however, with this shade, I was disappointed that there was little to no base color, the lavender is very faint (faint is a couple notches below what I would call sheer) and the base is a bit of a satin/almost matte finish at that, so it just doesn't give a very strong look when layered over more pigmented shadows, and the glitter is very fine and yields a nice texture, but it's an odd mixture of gold, peach, aqua, and purple sparkle, and it just falls flat, due to the base color not being strong enough in finish or in opacity, and sadly, all that shows up is this odd smattering of multi-colored glitter over a matte faint purple base, and it honestly cheapens my eye look a bit, whenever I use it. Just doesn't give the impact I'm accustomed to seeing with these SSS.
Other than that one Goodish shade being a bit of a flop, all the other shades in this set are absolutely divine, and are dense and saturated enough to be worn on their own! I never experience creasing with any of my SSS, and they last on my eyes all day without fading! There was only one dud in this set, and for that, I'm a happy camper!
Phase Me Out Supershock Set - Swatches L-R: Itty Bitty, Going Rogue, One by One, Flipper
I bought these 2 Supershock sets when I placed my second order. I believe they were both on sale (my recall tells me that I may have paid full price for the Phase Me Out quad, though, but I am 100% certain that the Dusk 'Till Dawn set was on sale for $21 when I bought it).
Ultra Matte & Ultra Satin Lips
Along with the Supershocks, I also ordered most of the liquid lipsticks during my second Colourpop Holiday Hurrah! Let me say, that since these were all on sale, it was of utmost difficulty for me to restrain myself! So far, I'm happy with every single shade I picked up, and have worn each one at least once. Here are the shades I picked up, listed in order as to how they are pictured above, left to right:
Calypso (Ultra Satin from Up & Away Bundle)
Love Bug (Ultra Matte from Up & Away Bundle)
Mama (Ultra Matte from Up & Away Bundle)
Mess Around (Ultra Satin)
Littlestitious (Ultra Satin)
Little Weapon from Alexis Ren Collection (Ultra Matte)
Bare Necessities from Alexis Ren Collection (Ultra Satin)
Oh, no, honey, this haul is not yet complete! You know I had to pick up a backup of my 💗, the Ultra Matte Lip in Fresh Cut, as my current vial of this shade is about half-way gone, as it is well-loved. 💞 (Cue in mini-review): Fresh Cut was close to being the only lip color I wore for a couple months straight when I first moved to Chicago - the perfect medium pink that stands out on my complexion, and it packs a bit more of a punch, because it's a wee-bit brighter than most mauve pinks we see because it's not really that purple, nor is it neutral, nor is it a cool-toned 'powder pink.' It doesn't lean too blue-based either. So, what is this shade, exactly? Actually, I don't have a pink that's quite like this. It definitely leans towards more of a mid-toned rosy pink on me with just a slight mauve undertone to keep it cool, but it also has a nice tinge of berry in it, and shockingly, I see a hint of warmth in this shade as well! Though I can detect no coral or orange tones in it! It's very strange, and dare I say, a result of sorcery at Colourpop headquarters? 😆 And it's not what I would call an understated color on my skintone, but it's just bright enough to stand out, and the hue is perfect enough to be my perfect everyday color! It's definitely got something special in the shade that makes it a unique shade to my collection. Not a pink shade (or mauve shade, though I wouldn't call it a mauve) that I'm used to seeing! I'm not usually a fan of most mauve shades, either, so you know this one is bringing something different to my life! It brightens up and warms up my complexion (which, again, I've never experienced with a cool-toned color lol) even when I'm not wearing much makeup at all, and I can make the color more natural on my lips when I'm just rocking a bare SPF face, only apply a bit of Fresh Cut Ultra Matte, and throw on some balm over it to give it a nice satin finish, and just.....ugh....beautiful. If they will release a Supershock or pressed powder blush in this exact color, I would be up on that shit sooo quickly lol. I love this that much, and will never be without it! 😁
More swatches to come, and I will be doing reviews as I get a chance to try out these products more! I'm wearing Snake Eyes eyeshadow in the picture below, though you can't see much of the lid space it's occupying. It's quite possibly my favorite of all the pressed shadows I picked up, so you'll definitely be seeing it in another makeup look in the future! Take care, lovelies! Peace & Blessings
