Kat Von D Shade and Light Eye Shadow Palette Review

It was with much hesitation that I purchased this palette.  Due to the fact my experience with the contour palette was not the best. Read that review HERE. But I watched a video that Stephanie Lange (vlogger) did and from that moment I knew I had to have it.

I don't even want to say the H word.......hooded eyelids.......I have them and one day, I will overcome them.  But until them I shall work with shade and light to fight the good fight on not accentuating that dreaded hood.

So I broke down and bought the palette......because matte shades are what you should wear with hooded lids.

And so far, I am very pleased with it.  I recreated the Stephanie Lange look, of course, and have worn it every day since I got it!!

The nice thing about this palette is that it is aimed at all skin tones.  Kat Von D wanted everyone to be able to enjoy it.  I say that like I know her......"You know, when Kat and I were hanging out the other day discussing her plans for her new palette"........

The left side is the neutral side, the middle is cool and the right is the warm side.  Though I lean towards warmer tones, the look I am in love with comes from the cool portion of the palette,

You can see how I extend and round off the corners to define the shape of my eye and pull the focus outward rather than upward (towards the hood).

I blew up these pictures so you all could see the placement.  I always put my crease above the hood so that when you are looking at me straight on, the shadow is visible.

Courtesy of vampyvarnish.com

The palette comes with look cards which will be very  helpful if you are trying out new ways to enhance or play with your eyes.

Courtesy of glamourzen.com

For my look I started out with Lazarus directly above my hood, creating my own crease.  That is also my transition shade.  Then I placed Saleos there as well and blended them both out and extended. Liberatus was used next on my mobile lid and inner corner only.  Then I took Solas (from the warm side) and placed at the outer corner of my eye and rounded it up into the other shadows.  Blend, Blend, Blend.

Overall, I am very pleased so far.  There are absolutely so many looks that can be created with this palette,  The price is steep, but not when you think about how much product you get.  The packaging is kind of bulky but all of her palettes are great for travel, I have found, because of that.  And the shadows are great quality.  They blend smoothly and stay on all day.

Click HERE to read the exact color descriptions from Temptalia!

Do you have this palette??  What do you think so far??

Let us know in the comments below!!

Have a great day!! xo

Upcoming 2015 Beauty Releases

Happy Friday Ya'll!!  Today I really just want to do show and tell.  I've come across some amazing products that some of will be releasing as soon as the end of this month!!  And believe me when I say I want all of them!!

First up is Benefit's They're Real Push Up Liner!!  As soon as this product came out I prayed that they would be releasing more colors than black.  And they heard my cries at night because not only is the liner coming out in 4 new shades but so is the mascara.

Another one of my favorite brands, Kat Von D.  These colors are gorgeous and if you have used them then you know how they don't budge from your lips.

Urban Decay is coming out with a 4th Naked palette, a Naked Smokey Palette.  

Lorac!!  Two new eye shadow palettes!!  One is all MATTE!!  Beautiful!!  And their own contour palette.

Mac's matte lipstick line.  This one is currently available on their site.

Glam Glow has done it again........Flash Mud......this is a brightening treatment mask.

Givenchy eye shadow palette....look at this packaging.  Who cares what is in it? :)

So now you can see why I am over here drooling away and maybe some things that will be on my birthday wish list (yes my birthday is in October and so what lol).

Which product are you most excited about??  Let us know in the comments below!!  And thank you to +TrendMood for always keeping us current xoxo

Have a great day!! xoxo

Kat Von D Shade and Light Contour Palette Review

Happy Monday Loves!!! I have a great week of reviews coming for you.  I want to start out with a palette that I really had high hopes for.  I have admired Kat Von D since Miami Ink.  Her artistry and talent is unsurpassed. So I love her makeup line.  Bold and vibrant and on the edge.

Love the art work

I was super excited about the Shade and Light palette as I am a fan of contouring but I do love cream palettes.  You all know how the Anastasia Beverly Hills palette turned out for me though. Read HERE if you don't!

This palette comes with three highlight and three contour shades and retails for $46.00 US.  There is a contour brush that is sold separately (the box is coffin shaped which is really neat) and that retails for $36.00 US.

Contour shades are larger than highlight shades

Courtesy of MissGrumpleBottom.com

Unfortunately for me, this palette also pulled through orange on me and the highlight shades really did not show up at all.  I have a very frustrating skin tone!!  For reference, I am NC20 in Mac, warm yellow undertones, sometimes neutral.  Levitation and Shadowplay are the only warm colors in the palette and the only ones I have really been able to use.  If I am going to spend $46 on a product, I want to be able to use the whole product, aside from the box it comes with.

The colors are listed above as they reflect in the pan.  Lucid is a cool pinkish nude, Lyric is a neutral yellow beige and Levitation is a warm soft peach.  Sombre is a cool toned taupe, Shadowplay is a warm soft brown and Subconscious is a cool deep brown.  Even on the white background above you can see orange coming through, IMO.

I have tried mixing both contour colors with ShadowPlay to create a more shadowy effect and it just muddles the colors and looks terribly ashy and dirty on my skin.  The highlights are merely setting powders and don't really offer any significant "light".

I will be returning this to the store and picking up Too Faced's new Contour Palette.  Like I said, I really had high hopes for this product but I can't see just making do with it.  So far Smashbox is still numero uno in my box in terms of versatility with only two shades yet they are true to color.

Have you gotten this palette?  Are you in love with it?  What is your skin tone?

Let me know in the comments below!!

Have a great day!! xo

December 2014 Product Favs

Don't even get me started on how I can't believe the holidays are over and 2015 is almost here. I mean, we are in the FUTURE people!!  At least in high school, I thought this day was so far away.

Usually I show ya'll my favorite products from my monthly beauty boxes, for the most part.  Well this month I want to share gifts and purchases over the last month.  Now, these are all what the beauty world considers high end and not drugstore but I am showing you these products because they are worth it.  These are quality products that have fabulous payoffs.

First up is Urban Decay's Vice 3.  This has been around awhile but it is brand spanking new to me and I am in love.

Look at these colors.

courtesy of chloeash.com

I will be doing a post with different looks from this palette and I also have my eyes on Vice 2 for next month.  The pigments on these shadows are incredible and since I am a shimmer girl, there are only a few matte transition colors in here so it is perfect.

Keeping with Urban Decay, their eye shadow primer potion is by far the strongest eye primer I have found to date.  It keeps my shadow on all day without creasing.  In fact, if I make a mistake while getting ready for work, it is a pain in the butt to fix :) I actually have received samples of all four of their formulas to try so I look forward to that!

Next up is the NARSissist cheek palette.  This is actually no longer on the market so I am glad I snagged it when I did.  The colors all work so well together on my winter skin but they are too light for when I have a tan unless I use a very heavy hand.

This is all I need to contour and highlight my face.  The highlighter (devotee) is a perfect shade for all skin tones.  The blush (orgasm) is a cult favorite.  It is a peachy shade and I love corals more than reds or pinks.  And the bronzer (laguna) is not a dirty brown but similar to Too Faced's chocolate soleil bronzer (which was also one of my favorites a few months back).

courtesy of makeupandbeautyblog.com

Next is the Real Techniques buffing brush from the Core Collection Set.

Now I love this entire set of brushes, I actually use the domed one for my NARS bronzer, but the stipple one makes my Estee Lauder Double Wear foundation go on with an airbrushed finish and they are so easy to clean and I have never had a problem with shedding. They are actually on sale at Target right now so grab them while you can!

And last but not least is Kat Von D's foiled love lipstick in F.T.W.

This color is so pretty and my only complaint is the smell.  It is kind of chemical like.  It is no longer available at Sephora (insert sad face here) but the link I included will take you to Amazon.

And there ya have it!  My December 2014 product favs.

Do you use any of these? Are you just as in love as I am?  What were your product favs this month?

Let me know in the comments below!!

Have a great day!! xo

Kat Von D Lock It Foundation Review

I just recently was introduced into the world of full coverage makeup.  There are so many foundation options out there right now.  Tinted moisturizer, beauty balm (BB), correcting cream (CC), daily defense cream (DD), mineral foundation, medium to full coverage foundation.......I am sure there are more that I did not think of, too.  In the summer I love to be tan and not wear makeup unless my fight club under eye bags are visible still and in that case I will put concealer on.  But in the winter, when discoloration and uneven skin tones and blemishes are more easily spotted, we reach for a fuller coverage makeup.

I asked numerous people which the best one to use was.  I got a 50/50 response to Kat Von D and Estee Lauder.  Estee Lauder review will be coming up soon!!

First impression, I love the packaging.  It is girlie but gothic and I love that style!

I also love that the bottle comes in a pump and that you can see the amount of product left in it.

 The compact has a mirror and also an applicator sponge underneath so it fits perfectly and isn't always being rubbed on the product.

I got color matched (Light 48) in store at Sephora and I highly recommend doing that since there are so many color shade options.  I bought the powder foundation online and got the same color which ended up being darker in powder so that will be going back.

I also got a sample of the concealer (Light 18) since that also received such rave reviews.  It is not as thick as the foundation and I love it and it is the exact color of my face.  It is actually perfect for touch ups or to cover blemishes especially if I don't need a full face of makeup that day.  It is $25 for the concealer and a little goes a long way.

Okay so on to the Kat Von D Lock It Foundation review.

You can use with either a beauty blender or a buffing/stippling brush.  I prefer a beauty blender as I thought the brush gave me "makeup mask face".

Now this stuff is thick, thick, thick and it dries quick, quick, quick!!  Work in small sections of your face.  Don't do half a face at a time, lesson learned from trying it myself.  I pump some on the back of my hand and dab the beauty blender and then quickly dab on my face.  This is actually used to cover tattoos in the workplace so you can imagine the coverage!

As you can see from my hand alone, the coverage is full and you only need a little.  So for the price, $34, I think that is very fair.  This bottle should last me a very long time. You probably need half a pump to a full pump to cover your whole face.

Here is a close up and you can see it really makes for a flawless face.

Here is at the end of the day and while my concealer has worn off a bit, my makeup still looks great!

Full face from a distance.

Another day, same results.

So pros, this will cover anything you want it to.  The price is super affordable considering how little of it you need.  Large shade selection for all types of undertones.  Although it is full coverage, it doesn't feel like you are wearing anything.

Now for the cons.....the only big one I have is I am still trying to figure out the correct moisturizer/primer combo to wear under this makeup.  It does NOT like argon oil and will pretty much melt off as the day goes on.  It does not like water based primers as this is a silicone based foundation.  So it's like mixing oil and vinegar.  Now Kat Von D used to make a primer that was formulated perfectly to go under this and she no longer does.....why Kat?? WHY?!?!  But again, using my beauty blender during the day to kind of touch up any patchy spots works wonders.

So anyone reading this review I would love your thoughts on how to get it to stay on all day.

It also claims to be transfer resistant....well, I have been able to disprove that theory.  Again, maybe it is because of what I have going on underneath it.

If you have dry skin, this is NOT for you as it will make any dry patches on your skin stick out like broccoli in your teeth.

This will also make your entire face one color and take away any and all highlights and natural shadows so you will need to use bronzer and blush.  Read my review on contouring HERE for some tips.

Now, the Kat Von D Lock It Powder is really not the right color for me but I liked the powder itself. You just use the included sponge and pat it on your face (no buffing like Bare Minerals) and it covers anything and everything. You could even use this as your touch up powder throughout the day but that is how I figured out it was too dark for me :)

Overall, I have become a lover of Kat Von D based on both the foundation and the concealer.  She has an incredible selection of lipsticks and everyone loves her eyeliners too.  ALSO, coming in 2015 she is releasing a contour palette and a cosmetics website!! So stay tuned for that gem as I will surely be announcing the details when it is here!

Again, please let me know in the comments, any and all thoughts and what your favorite KVD products are!

Happy Friday and have a great day!! xo