NYC New York Color IndividualEyes Compact

I was lucky enough to receive this product in my Beauty Blogger VoxBox to try out for free and write a review on. It comes with a little double ended sponge applicator, eye primer, illuminator, and 4 shades of eye shadow ranging from white to black, all shimmery.

illuminator

I really actually love this illuminator. It blends out so well and matches my skintone perfectly. It adds a nice highlight but doesn't make you look like a disco ball which is really nice! Plus it's sooo creamy.

primer

The primer is okay, nothing super extravagant. I'm always going to be biased by Urban Decay's Primer Potion but this primer is okay for the price you pay. It's kind of cakey to me, finishes a little too 'dry' to me and doesn't really lock in the color as well as it could.

shadows

 For a cheaper compact of shadows the payout is decent. These swatches were without primer so they might show differently with some primer underneath but I just wanted to show the initial payout from silver, silver-grey, dark grey, black. Surprisingly the dark grey is darker than the black, which is actually two layers while the dark grey is only one. The silver is nice, very shimmery but not overly glittery. I definitely approve of the silver.

All in all, it's a decent compact/palette for the price you pay ($4.99) but I'll always be biased and lean more towards higher end brands for the color payout you get. It's a lovely starter compact for someone just getting involved in the makeup world.

*I got this product for free in my Beauty Blogger VoxBox. These images are my own.

E-Bay Fakes: MAC Hello Kitty Brush Set

This ‘MAC’ Hello Kitty Brush Set was the second set of items I got in my Ebay order out of 3 items. The second fraudulent set of brushes. After I noticed the EcoTools brush set was a fake I decided to do some research on the MAC Hello Kitty Brush set they have produced. The first thing I found out was that they made a set of THREE (3) brushes not 6 like mine, also they came in a Hello Kitty head holder, not a case. (It’s still hella cute though, real or not.)

After examining the brushes further I noticed the handles were very plastic-y feeling. I sadly don’t have any real MAC brushes I could compare to but I’m pretty sure MAC brushes are made of wood, not plastic, and the real one’s aren’t as shiny as these are. Also, the logo wouldn’t scratch off with my finger nail as I read real logos do. (Since it’s just paint on wood.)

Secondly, I looked up an image of a MAC brush and compared the necks. The crimping of the fake brushes’ necks are no where near as deep and bulbous looking as the real ones are.

The bristles feel super soft so since I did pay money for these I will be using them, but I have to admit, the counterfeiters are really stepping up their game. To someone who doesn’t know how to do research and doesn’t know a thing about makeup brushes, they’d think they were the real deal.

Be careful out there shoppers! Pay attention to all the tiny details and good luck.

Brush Storage

With so many ways to store your makeup brushes how does a girl (or guy!) ever choose?! It took me forever to figure out how to a nice, organized way to keep my brushes out of piles on my counter.

A while ago I had ordered these wax beads that smell like vanilla and rose with tiny sea shells in them. They had just been used for decoration in a bottle but after I found this nifty little jar I knew the beads were the perfect filler! After wrapping a pink ribbon with a diamond-like pendant around the jars neck I knew I had created a perfect little brush holder. 

Not only does it keep my counter free of brush clutter but the handles now smell fabulous.

How do you organize your brushes? Plastic organizers? Drawers? Jars? Share with us! We love to hear from you guys :)