I know that I've mentioned that Birchbox has a great points system.  You get 10 points for a review and 50 for a referral.  I rack up points in reviews.  I haven't had any referrals and yet I can build up some points.  Your points expire in 365 days.  Because of that I was able to use 400 of my points to purchase the Ciaté Olivia Palermo Smokey Suedes Eye Palette which sells for $39.00.  I also browsed their bonus shop and picked up a little something that I'll show at the end.

Ciaté is an English brand.  They are most known for their nail polishes.  The palette was made in Italy.

Ciaté

The box was black with an eel skin texture and lettering in gold.  It has Olivia's signature.  I had no idea who Olivia Palermo was and had to look her up.


The back of the box is the only place that lists the color names.  Once you throw that away, you will no longer know what the colors are.  I like to know the color names, so this would be a down side.  If you could care less, this shouldn't bother you.



The package is slim and many people were surprised by the small size.  Like the box it has gold lettering and a black eel skin like body.

I know I was trying to give ColourPop a bit of a break.  I seem to have an addiction.  But they did something naughty.  They introduced Lumière 2.  I don't know if you remember, but Lumière (OG) was one of the first ColourPop lippies I tried and it fed into this addiction.  It was also the first collaboration that Kathleen Lights had ever done.  It has also been my most popular post. Warning, there will be many pics, so brace yourself, my pretties.

ColourPop

Lumière 2

Left to Right: L2 and OG

Left side to Right: Lumière 2 and Lumière

Hello again, my friends.  Ipsy finally arrived and you know what that means!



This month the theme for Ipsy was Pretty in Ipsy Pink.  Ipsy is a $10.00 per month subscription service.  You get points for referring friends.  However, the points system isn't that great.  Most things require 1000 points and if it's less than that they're usually sold out.  However, last month they had several items that were 250 points, maybe they're trying to fix that problem.  I received one of those with my subscription bag, so I'll show that at the end.  I still don't like posting my reviews to Facebook though.

Loved the bag this month.  It was adorable with an envelope pattern on front and hot pink back.

Smashbox

The first item in my bag was the new Smashbox Photo Finish Primer Oil, the full size is $42.00.  It doesn't have much of a scent.  I have only tried it on the back of my hand, it feels very moisturizing, probably perfect for aging or dry skin.  When it dries it has the most minimal tackiness.  I could see this being good for winter or for a dewy look as well (especially with high lighting to make for a nicely "strobed" look).  It makes my skin very soft.  It looks like you only need about two drops and you gently pat into the skin.  It doesn't take long to absorb.  It has good oils like jojoba and argan.  I'm a little leary of the lavender oil which can be irritating to sensitive skin.  I'm looking forward to trying this.

Margaret Dabbs

I'm not a fan of glass files.  They generally have a harsh grain and aren't that great.  When I saw this coming in my bag I was like, "eh."  Well, me of little faith.  This Margaret Dabbs London Crystal Nail File is wonderful!  It's normally $15.00 and has a finer grain than most and would be perfect for my purse.  Margaret Dabbs may have a bit of a foot fetish, being a podiatrist and creating her own line of beautiful to use foot products and has me wanting a pedicure from one of her people!  Looks like I'm going to London!  Oh wait, I can't afford that :(

TrèStique has some of the cutest packaging.  When I saw that I was getting this TrèStique in Bora Bora Coral I wanted to strap on my sad face.  Another moment of the cool toned girl getting the shaft.  However, one swatch left me intrigued.  Yes, this is a coral and leans slightly warm, but it has enough pink that it might be the perfect color to add some spring to my cheeks.  I think I may have to give this a go.  The full size appears to come with a little blending brush and is $24.00.  My arm swatches can blend this to nothing, but hopefully it will do more on the face.  Plus, being fair and having blushes going clownish on me in 0 to 3 seconds, I might be able to work with this.

Perfect Formula

Holy fudge sticks.  This next item is the Perfect Formula Pink Gel Coat and it is $30.00 for the .6 oz full size.  Yes, you read that right.  Thirty.  Trente.  Trenta.  Tríocha.  Deg ar hugain.  Tretti.  Um, anyways.  Its pink hues are supposed to nullify yellow in your nails and whiten the white part.  Perfect for the person who wants to strengthen their nails but prefers a naked nail look.  Mais, c'est trop cher, even if I did like it.  $30.00.  For a clear nail polish.  That had better polish my nails for me and make them as hard to chip as sapphires (Note that I didn't say diamond.  Diamonds are actually easy to chip having perfect cleavage on four parts of an octahedral plane. - former jeweler /off)

Elizabeth and James

I love this fragrance.  Elizabeth and James Nirvana Black is a lovely mix of vanilla, sandalwood, and violets.  I have two roller-balls and a sample spray of this already.  I'm not sad at all to receive it again.  It is $60.00 for the 1 oz size of this.  Oddly enough my cats hide when I wear the white version of this so, I don't wear it.  However, if you don't like cats, you may want to try that as a form of feline repellent.

I was very surprised by this box.  I had thought that Birchbox had it when I did the sneak peak but Bora Bora and the nail file were winners.  With the addition of  the perfume of Ipsy being great and not even being able to try the Birchbox one, I think the winner is clear.  Birchbox: 6 Ipsy: 5.  Way to go Ipsy.

Novex

Having loved the Novex deep conditioner, when I saw this leave in for 250 points, I decided that I wanted it.  It was a good size bottle, far larger than I expected.  I also ordered the La Neige face but that didn't arrive.  Ipsy was wonderful when I messaged about that over sight and they are mailing that out to me.

* I buy my own boxes.  No one pays for my Ipsy, but me.

About the same time Amy Macedo convinced me that I needed Urban Decay Tonic, she also talked me into L'Oréal Infallible Golden Sage Eyeshadow - 333.  It was this Wearable Olive Green Smokey Eye look.  Now how pretty is that?  I know, I mentioned this look in my Makeup Geek Fantasy Review, but it really should be mentioned again.

The problem was that Amy got her color in Permanent Kaki.  I could not find that color for the life of me.  I searched high, I searched low, I followed something about green eggs, it was intense.  But then there was someone that mentioned that the color Permanent Kaki is the color Golden Sage in the US (Amy is from Canada, so that might have been the situation).  I'm not sure if that's for sure the case, but is seems real enough.  I was able to find it on Drugstore.com and hey, I got to use Ebates (referral link), so that made me happy.  It was $7.95 for .12 oz of product.

L'Oréal

The base product is housed in a clear plastic.  You can see the pretty color there.  The top is grey and unscrews to reveal a grey tamper that is not to be thrown away.  Because this eyeshadow is a pressed pigment, the tamper helps keep it pressed.



This color has been around for years, since like 2011 or 2012.  It has good pigmentation and has a buttery texture.


The color is a lovely metallic mossy green with hints of gold.  It applies easily, I like patting it in with a brush.  I always use a primer and it shows up very well on the lid as well.  It lasts all day long.  It may have issues with blending, but I've pretty much just worn it like the video that Amy made, so that hasn't been an issue.

I didn't notice much fading or creasing and they lasted about 10ish hours.  I have never tried to wear them longer, so I can't say if it is truly 24 hours, but it did have good staying power.  They might seem a little high for a drug store price, but they do have more in them than a regular eyeshadow.

I know that people tell you not to put blue with blue eyes or green with green eyes, but this color does seem to bring out the green in my eyes, so I'm in.  I'm thinking about trying other colors, but I have been buying a few palettes lately, so I may need to pace that thought with that of the reality of my bank account.

* I paid for this myself after much hunting for it.

Of the Makeup Geek Duochromes that I purchased, this one is one of my favorites.  It's the Makeup Geek Duochrome in Blacklight.

Makeup Geek

The Makeup Geek duochromes come in two forms, pan and pot.  The pan forms fit nicely in a Zpalette.  The 1.8 gram pan comes in a rose gold sleeve and is only $6.00.


They are made in the USA and they are Cruelty Free.

Blacklight

Blacklight is a brightened lilac with a subtle blue shift.  There are some pink hues in there.


It has decent pigmentation, can look a little sheer.  It is powdery and can sink into lines.  This definitely benefits from a primer or a base.  It looks nice wet.  It is slightly dry, but overall it's good for the price.  It is very similar to Urban Decay Tonic.  I loved it in this look by Manny MUA.

* I purchased this on my own.  No one raved about this for me to try the blacklight special.

Once upon a time, I was watching an Amy Macedo Purple & Blue Duochrome makeup look.  I fell in love.  I went to Sephora to try to order it, but it was Sold Out.  I was finally able to order it, like six months later.


Urban Decay Tonic Eyeshadow is a whopping $19.00 for a single .05 oz.  It isn't tested on animals.


The packaging is nice.  The UD on top is raised.  It's a silver colored plastic and is light weight.


The color is a lovely lilac purple with a blue shift.


The pigmentation on this is quite good.  It is finely milled and rather creamy.  It isn't powdery and I didn't notice much fall out.  It blends well and is wonderful wet and dry.  You can even more payout with a base like NYX Milk.

Left to Right: Urban Decay Tonic and Makeup Geek Blacklight

The color is very similar to Makeup Geek's Blacklight.  I wouldn't call it an exact dupe, but they are very similar.

Left to Right Tonic and Blacklight

Blacklight isn't quite as dark or pigmented.  It is slightly more pink than Tonic.  Blacklight is only $6.00.  The formula of the Urban Decay is slightly better.  It is very long lasting and pigmented, but if $19.00 just hurts too much, or if you just can't get a hold of it because it seems to always be sold out, I would go for Blacklight as your next best bet.

Overall, I really do love this shade.  It's practically perfect.  Except for the price.  Paying $19.00 for one eyeshadow is not Broke Woman friendly.

* I purchased this at Sephora and I used Ebates, this is my referral link.

Anastasia