Review: Kat Von D "Mi Vida Loca" Palette - The Reds

As stated in my swatch review of the "Mi Vida Loca" palette by Kat Von D, I did actually use the shadows in the palette and played around with it a bit. I tested these eyeshadows out personally to see if they hold up when actually wearing them. 

***If you'd like to see a more detailed review and swatches of the palette, then please check out the swatch review. This post only contains certain shades and information about the application and wear of the featured shadows. 

Info: The Mi Vida Loca palette is by Kat Von D and is exclusively at Sephora stores and on their website. It costs $59 US and is said to be valued at $210. It includes 24 shades that are brand new and is limited edition for the holidays. It currently is still in stock on the website, but Sephora is on their first restock on the palette. No telling if they will get anymore after this. Call your local Sephora to find out if they are still in stock there.

[wearing: Swoon, Destroyer, Rewind, Live, Noble]

First, I tested out the red shades. Not sure why.......maybe it's the emergence of fall. Anyway, a quick rundown:

• Live - inner eye corner
• Swoon - all over lid
• Destroyer - outer corner of lid and into the outer corner of the crease
• Rewind - crease color
• Noble - space between brows and crease, and blended into the crease

Application

I applied primer on my lids first before applying any of these shadows. I did not experience fallout on my face from any of these shadows, but I made sure to tap off my brush before applying. Destroyer and Swoon were the biggest culprits with fallout, but just make sure to tap off the brush before applying to the eyelid and I don't feel there will be any problems. The pigmentation is there, because tapping of the access did not take away from the pigment or color being applied.

Live was very easy to apply. Went on smooth and I felt it looked great from the first swipe of the brush. Just in in swatch review, it is a nice shadow.

Swoon was nicely pigmented. It did take a few times of going back into the color with the brush to get opaque coverage, but it was not as bad as when I swatched it. I did not experience patchiness. It definitely applied much better than expected.

Destroyer was exactly how the swatch review stated; it was patchy when applying and took a bit of work to get even coverage and look nice. Even after I was done applying it, I still felt like there was a spot that was not that well covered, but I could only tell if I looked at my lid really closely.

Rewind was another surprising color. It applied nicely and I did not experience the patchiness I felt I had with the swatch review. It was much more pigmented and smoother and it definitely deepened the over look on my phone. It actually helped even out Destroyer a bit.

Noble is a neutral shade and blends into my skin tone. It is really not noticeable that I'm wearing it when I put it on, which is why I use it just to even out my overall eye look. It really helped blend the colors together and smooth out any sharp or ridged lines. I had no issues with it, but I did not use it as an overall color or to make it solid.

Performance

After the shadows set, Destroyer did not look bad at all. I wore these shadows for approximately 7 hours. For the most part, they held up well. After about 5 hours, I noticed that Live was a little faded and not as bright as it once was. At the end of the 7 hours I felt the shadows still looked nice, but Destroyer was disappearing. The eye look didn't look too bad, since it was blended into the other shadows though. I do have really oily skin, so the fading is also due impart to having the oil fade the make-up.

Final Verdict

All the shadows were nice to work with and looked great, except Destroyer. If you have a shade that is similar to Destroyer and performs better, I would see no reason to ever use this shadow. Destroyer is nice for someone who doesn't mind putting in some work and who may not use this color often. Overall, I'm very happy with the application, performance, and wear of these shadows. 

Stay tuned for the next set of colors! Any questions or comment, leave them below! I would love to see if any of you out there have created any looks with these shadows, so leave your link below!

Other Make-Up Used

• Too Faced "Shadow Insurance" - eye primer
• It Cosmetics "No. 50 Serum Anti-Aging Collagen Veil Primer" - face primer
• It Cosmetics "Celebration Foundation" - foundation
• Julep "Fluid Eye Glider" - upper eyeliner 
• Tarte "Lights, Camera, Lashes Closeup Lash Liner" - bottom eyeliner
• Tarte "Lights, Camera, Flashes Statement Mascara" - mascara
• Tarte "Tarlette Palette" - brows
• MAC "Forbidden Sunrise" - lipstick

Swatches: Kat Von D "Mi Vida Loca" Palette - Holiday 2015

[Kat Von D - Mi Vida Loca Palette]

I recently was gifted the Kat Von D "Mi Vida Loca" palette! I have been waiting, wanting, and hoping to get this palette since the previews released this summer! I suppose I should be thankful for an early release and that I didn't have to wait for it any longer, but it still feels a bit early to consider this a holiday palette. -With that being said, let's take a look at this palette! I haven't actually tested out the shadows by wearing them, so all my reviews of the colors are simply from the swatches.

For an overall review and to skip the fine detail, scroll all the way to the bottom of this post!

Info: Mi Vida Loca is only available at Sephora, as Kat Von D beauty is exclusive to Sephora and limited edition. It is $59 US and is said to be valued at $210. As of right now the palette is still available on the site and in stores. However, the website did sell out of it's initial stock and has since been restocked. No telling if they'll receive anymore once it sells out again. Many stores still have them, but stores often do not get restocked on limited edition items.

The palette came in a sturdy plastic cover. It was not anything fancy, so need to show this; it was clear and plastic........ The palette slides out of the cover like a record and reveals a wheel of colors. Aside from this palette being released way before the holidays, it doesn't give a very holiday feel and perhaps that's just another reason why it might as well have an early release. The palette is entitled, "Mi Vida Loca", which is Spanish for "My Crazy Life" and the colors remind me of the MAC counter with all the bright colors and hues -not that it's a bad thing though. It all around screams the colorful vibrations of the Hispanic culture in Kat Von D's edgy style. Like I said before, the palette slides out like a vinyl record and it's almost as big as one! The palette itself is quite large and this will a problem for those who want to travel with it. Not only is it not travel friendly, but I have read other reviews in which people say it is extremely hard to depot these shadows and it takes a lot of effort to do so. The packaging is still beautiful and eye catching though and deserves an A+ for that. It's been a while since I have bought or just simply saw a palette that had packaging this artistic. It probably helps that Kat Von D is an artist.

[the back of the Mi Vida Loca palette]

Even the back of the palette follows the theme and is beautiful! It's obvious that Kat Von D really put a lot of thought into every detail of this palette!

The palette was released on October-3 and I immediately wanted to buy it. However, I have never owned a Kat Von D eyeshadow or eye palette in my life and I decided to wait for more reviews. My personal feelings would be that Kat Von D's cosmetic line has a group of followers and they're die hard for the products, but sometimes fanaticism can be blinding. The reviews I read were mostly favorable, but I saw a lot of complaints about the colors not being as vibrant as they appear on the palette and the performance not living up to the hype. Of course, there was also the unfriendly travel complaint too. However, as I said at the beginning of all of this, I was gifted this palette! So, now all that is left is for me to share my views and opinions!

Moving onto the swatches! Keep in mind: All swatches are without a primer! Although I do always use a primer on my eyes with my eyeshadow, I wanted to see how well these shadows did on their own after reading the complaints. Also, remember that I have not tested these on my eyelids yet! That will come later. All swatches are in natural light. I have medium skin color and it's a bit tan from the California sun.

[Left to Right: Synth, Dark Wave, Echo, Muse, Anthem, Live]

• Synth - It's a bright turquoise matte blue. It's swatched 2x's on my arm. I experienced a lot of fallout with Synth, but it is pigmented and that's a big plus! When I originally saw the palette my eye went straight to this color and I'm glad to see that it's pigmentation seems to hold up to the vibrancy on the palette.
• Dark Wave - This is a dark jean blue satin. It's swatched 3x's on my arm. It does not have the best pigmentation, but it is buildable. I imagine this would best be used in conjunction with other colors, particularly darker colors that could help deepen its depth. I did have a little fallout with this one too.
• Echo - This shadow is barely visible on my arm, but it is there! Because of the natural light it is hard see the sparkle too, but there's plenty of it. This is swatched 3x's and it is a dark purple with pink and blue glitter in it. The glitter is quite chunky for a shadow. It is very sheer, as it barely shows up on my arm, but I experienced no fallout and that's a plus for a glittery shadow! I feel this shadow would best be used as an glittery topper to an eye look or just to add some deep sparkle. It's obviously not a shadow to be used on it's own.
• Muse - This is a matte muted lilac and swatched 2x's. There was very little fallout with it and it is sheer. I feel this color would best be used as a highlight color or to brighten other colors.
• Anthem - This is an orchid purple and it's swatched x3's. It's chalky and there was a lot of fallout. It's also quite sheer. This is definitely a disappointing shadow from my testing experience. My advice would be to use it as a base color for other shadows or for a sheer wash of color.
• Live - This is a shimmery reddish pastel pink. I swatched it 2x's. There was very little fallout. I was quite pleased with this shadow and it applied nicely. 

[Left to Right: Hyperballad, Lemmy, Misfit, Vinyl, Legend, Fran]

• Hyperballad - This is a darkened teal matte. It's swatched 2x's on my arm. I found this shade to be very pigmented and only a tiny bit of fallout. I feel like this will perform very well on the eyes.
• Lemmy - This shade really surprised me. On the palette is appears to be a shimmery green that leans towards the mossy side, but once swatched it is more of a olive green with blue undertones and a lot of shimmer! It's not sparkly, but there is a lot of shimmer to it. I only had to swatch it 2x's and I had no fallout. It is very pigmented. It feels very nice and was easy to swatch with a smooth performance.
• Misfit - A grassy green that's matte and swatched 2x's on my arm. It is actually quite pigmented and very buildable. I had only a little fallout. This shade really shut down the complaints that I saw about the colors being chalky and unusable, because Misfit is a matte that is a bit stiff, but the color and performance are there!
• Vinyl - A neon green satin. I swatched it 3x's. It's sheer, but I had no fallout and it is buildable. I feel this shade would do well over other shadows that could help empower it or as a highlight color.
• Legend - A buttery yellow shimmer. I swatched it 2x's. It's sheer, but buildable. I hardly noticed the fallout. I don't personally feel this is a disappointing color though. It would work great as a highlight color or over other colors to brighten them up and/or add shimmer.
• Fran - This is an orange-ish yellow that reminds me of pollen. I swatched it 3x's here. There was fallout with this shadow and at first it was very patchy. It is buildable and does smooth itself out. With a primer or something to help it adhere, I feel this color could be successful.

[Left to Right: Black Metal, Swoon, Destroyer, Rewind, Harpsichord, Analogue]

• Black Metal - What you see is what you get with this shade; it is a matte black. I swatched it 3x's. There's fallout and this shadow is chalky. It is a bit sheer, but was buildable. I feel this shadow would be great for a smokey eye, rather than an all over the lid shade. I feel it would take a bit to get this shadow opaque over the entire lid.
• Swoon - A reddish pink satin color. Swatched 3x's on my arm . It's a buildable color, but a little patchy and a little chalky. Not the best performing shade in the palette. I would definitely recommend using this with other shadows and primer.
• Destroyer -  A red satin. I had to swatch this 4x's! There was fallout and it was a bit chalky. It's sheer, but buildable. This is another shade that I feel is meant to be used in conjunction with other shadows. It would help out other shadows and be a good overlay, but I can't see using this alone.
• Rewind - This is a reddish burgundy shimmer. Swatched 3x's here. There was fallout and it was patchy, but it is buildable and smooths itself out. 
• Harpsichord - This is an orange copper shimmer. I only had to swatch it 2x's and there was no fallout! It is very smooth and silky! I can't wait to work more with this color!
• Analogue - This is an orange satin with pink undertones. The pigmentation in this shadow is good and I only swatched it 2x's. However, there was a lot of fallout and it was a little chalky.

[Left to Right: Skulls, Lyric, Moulder, Strutter, Noble, Vox]

The last 6 swatches are the neutrals from the inner part of the palette. Neutrals are always the trickiest shades, because they usually appear vastly different on each skin tone. A reminder- my skin is a medium tone and is tanned from the sun.

• Skulls - This is a pinkish cream color with a shimmery finish. I swatched it 3x's. The shimmer is very noticeable and it's a buildable color. I had no fallout with this shade. I feel this will perform well on the eyes and work great as a highlight color.
• Lyric - A peach cream color with a shimmery finish. I swatched this 2x's. There was very little fallout, but it's a bit sheer. I feel this color was meant to be made sheer though. It will blend will with light to medium skin tones, so it'll work well to brighten up the eye area.
• Moulder - This is a light tan matte shade that looks a lot lighter on my tan skin than it will for those who have fairer skin. I swatched this 3x's. It's a bit powdery, but only had a tiny bit of fallout. It is a little chalky too, but not unworkable.
• Strutter - This is a light cafe brown satin. It almost blends into my natural skin, or the untanned part of my skin. So for me, this will be a good blending color. I swatched it x2's. There was fallout and it's chalky, but still usable.
• Noble - A light peach colored brown with a satin finish. This is another shade that blends pretty well into my natural skin tone. There is not too much difference between this shade and Strutter, so it almost seems redundant in the the palette. I swatched it 3x's. There was fallout and it's a little chalky, but it's a buildable color.
• Vox - A deep brown shade with a matte finish. I had to swatch this 4x's, as it was a sheer color for a shade that looks pigmented on the palette. It is buildable, but there was fallout. This shade performed similar to Black Metal and will probably work great for a smokey eye, but would take a lot of work to get a solid brown lid; both look very pigmented at first sight, but perform more sheer.

Final Verdict

This is a nice palette. It's not the most solid performing palette out there, but it's far from the worst. There's a nice mix of brights, neutrals, and dark shades. It is also a good mix of mattes, satins, and shimmers. I feel this palette would be great for those who want to use unique colors once in a while, but do not want to pay for them individually since that would be expensive and of course there would be the neutrals that one could use all the time. There is fallout with most colors and a little more then I would like. The shadows are not stiff, but some of them are chalky. The shimmer shadows seem to be the best performing shades and while there are a few disappointments, the pigmented colors do seem to live up to their hype with the exception of the neutral dark colors. The palette is not travel friendly and the shadows will be a challenge to depot, but it is beautiful and the details of the packaging are definitely eye catching! If you're a Kat Von D beauty fan or a make-up collector, this is a must! If you're not a fan of bright colors or shimmers, save your money, because you can purchase neutral palettes or lighter colors without having to spend $59 on a palette full of other colors you'll never touch. I would not recommend this palette to a beginner or someone who does not have a lot of experience with different types of eyeshadow formulas. Remember that not every eyeshadow made in the world is meant to be an opaque solid color and that's why I feel people need to give these shadows in this palette a break. However, there are a few shadows in this palette that will require work and the knowledge on how to get them to perform well. 

Personal eye looks coming soon! Let me know if you bought this palette and what your thoughts! Or tell me what you think from the review if you're not bought it! I would also love to read others reviews, so please leave your link below!

Sephora Beauty Shake-Up

[photo credit: Sephora promotional email]

Subscribers to the Sephora email list will receive an email that looks like this starting today! It is the Beauty Shake-Up. You simply click the link where it says "play now" and shake your phone for a prize! Beauty Insiders can win: 10% off, deluxe samples, extra points, or 3x's the points on a purchase of $25 or more. The great part is that this is a daily prize and you can play every day from now until October-22, 2015. The prizes do not expire until October-31, 2015.

[photo credit: Sephora promotional email]

Today my reward as a deluxe sample of Josie Maran's facial cleanser. Of course, in order to redeem the code they sent me I have to spend $25. Sephora does send an email after you "shake" with a reminder of your reward and the reward code, so there is no need to write down the code or anything since it will be emailed.

***You do not have to play on your phone! The game can be played on any laptop or PC. All you have to do is click the link and instead of "shaking" your device it will just have click a link. You also do not have to be a Beauty Insider to play; all you have to do is provide an email. However, in order to redeem the prize you must be a Beauty Insider! Being a Beauty Insider is free!

Let me know if you play and what you get in the Beauty Shake-Up! Remember to play daily!

ColourPop Haul

Today I bring you my first ever ColourPop haul! ColourPop Cosmetics have been around for about a year and half. This past May was their one year anniversary, so they're still a fairly new company. They are an indie brand (independent), because they are not made by or owned by a large corporation. They're based out of Los Angeles, California and formed by two girls. The company has quite a cult following and many people love them, because they're so affordable. Their eyeshadows, lippie pencils, and lippie stix are only $5 each, while their new liquid lipsticks are only $6; prices that are hard to find outside of cheap drugstore brands. While their pricing is in line with a lot of other indie cosmetic companies, their rise to popularity is more of a higher-end brand.

I personally have always been curious of their line, but never had a reason to go purchase it until recently. All of the colors I am about to review run along the same color scheme, because they were choosen for a future cosplay that I'm working on. I was having a difficult time finding colors of eyeshadow that would work with my cosplay and it just so happened that ColourPop had a close enough selection. - Before purchasing ColourPop, I did some research. Again, mostly favorable reviews and a lot of fans of this company. I did read some complaints though. Some people said that for the price of their cosmetics you're not really getting that much product, so basically "you get what you pay for". There was also complaint of shadows drying up and some not liking the formula. -I'll cover all that later on.

My items arrived well padded and secured! They were well protected and to top it off the company hand writes a letter with your name on it! How cool and unique is that?!?! (Sorry, I scratched off my name there, but I don't feel like having my personal name out there like that.) Shipping is a low rate of $5, but spend $30 or more and they offer free shipping.

I'll start the review with the Lippie Stix and Lippie Pencil that I purchased:

I purchased the Lippie Stix in the color "Raw". 

ColourPop describes Raw as follows: Raw is always better and this clean aqua blue shade with a satin finish is no different. SATIN FINISH Full coverage, long wearing lipstick glides on smoothly with a hydrating feel & has a modern satin finish.

If you're unfamiliar with a "satin finish" in terms of lipstick, it usually means a demi-matte finish; so, it's not quite matte, but it's not going to be glossy or shiny either. It's that step right before "matte".

I purchased the Lippie Pencil in the the matching color "Raw". The description of the color is the exact same as it's partner and promises that same "clean aqua blue".

Here are swatches of the lipstick and the pencil side by side in natural light. The larger swatch is the Lippie Stix and the thinner swatch is the pencil. I'm not sure how it will look on your screen, but on the website the color looked more on the blue-ish/turquoise side on the website. However, when I received it, it was definitely more "aqua" and green-ish. I do not see as much blue here as I was hoping for, but in all fairness the site did state it was aqua-colored.

As for performance, I was slightly disappointed in the Raw lipstick. It is not as easy to work with as I thought it would be. It performs much more like a matte lipstick, because any dry patches on the lips will be highlighted and make the lipstick look rather messy. Also, dry lips in general make it quite hard to apply and have an opaque finish. So, obviously I suggest a good lip scrub before applying this and moisturize those lips! Winter is quickly coming and I can't see this lipstick being my friend during the cold season since my skin is always much dryer in the winter.

The Raw pencil performed great! It was easy to apply and very opaque! It's a smooth application with no tugging and matches the lipstick perfectly. I'm normally not a fan of filling in the entire lip area with the pencil, but I feel it does help in this case since the Raw lippie stix can be hard to make smooth if lips are not in the right condition. Another good option to help is a lip primer.

Next up are the Super Shock Shadows. Yes, a couple of these look smudged and that's because I couldn't resist trying them out as soon as I opened up the package! I promise they all arrived in perfect condition initially. I also have to add that not all of these colors are available to purchase. I had no idea that shortly after I bought these that they were going to do a final sale and then discontinue them. It kind of makes sense, because some of these colors were released for their spring collection this year and so they are probably just getting rid of them to make way for the winter and holiday collections, but I know it also can be disappointing to read a review and then not be able to purchase them. I apologize, but know that much of this review is to also inform the audience about the brand itself and the overall performance of the products.

The Super Shock Shadows are unique. They are a wet powder shadow. It's not the typical dry powder or compressed pigment. The feel is similar to the Maybelline Bouncy Blushes and I would best describe it as a cream-to-powder finish. With that being said, it does take a few seconds for these to set and if you're not use to a product that is not dry it may take a little bit of getting use to and figuring out how to apply these.

First up, I'll start with the blue shades. Left to Right: "Beauty Call" and "Taco". As of right now, Beauty Call is no longer available for order anymore.

Beauty Call is described as a "true powder blue with a matte finish". I would agree with Colourpop's description. Beauty Call was surprisingly thick and a little harder to apply then Taco. The issue with Beauty Call is that the formula is a bit thicker and takes longer to dry. Since it is a pastel shade, it takes a little bit of layering to get opaque for that true blue hue and so layering and dry time can take a bit. It's not an impossible shade to wear, but it does take some working with it to understand how to get it like the swatch appears.

Taco is described as a "mid-tone aqua in a matte finish". I can't agree with that description. I do not see much aqua in Taco at all. To me this would be considered a dark turquoise at best and is more of a muted blue. The "matte" part is correct. Taco applies nicely and has beautiful coverage. The formula is lighter than Beauty Call and so it dries faster and applies smoother. It's a very nice and easy product to work with.

In the picture above, I'm wearing the Raw lipstick and pencil. If you look closely towards the inside of my mouth you can see the dry patches and where the lipstick starts to separate. As the weather changes, my skin and body react pretty negatively, it's actually worse than in the winter. Changing of seasons is always rough for me. Anyway, the lipstick was not that well of a performer in the long run. I had about 2-4 hours with it before having to do touch-ups each time.

On my eyes, I have Beauty Call on the inside of the eyes and Taco on the outside. Both are applied over a primer and I always use primer! Both wore well for me. I had them on for about 7 hours. 

Rounding out the haul is the greens! Left to Right: Flux, Snap Dragon, Ibiza. Again, the two shadows on the left are only smeared because I had to swatch and feel these babies right away! They arrived in perfect condition.

Flux is described as a "light mint green with a matte finish" and I would say this is more of a hint of green then it is really a mint, or at least that is how it looks when applied. It is indeed matte. Flux will appear differently, depending on your skin tone. For me, it's almost white on my tan skin, but when I use it with other green shadows the green that Flux is shows up well. My only issue with Flux is the same issue I had with Beauty Call; it is a thicker formula than the rest and thus takes longer to dry and that only makes it harder to get the opacity of the color that most will desire.

Snap Dragon is described as "mid-tone sea foam green with a matte finish" and I would say that is a pretty accurate description. Snap Dragon performed much like Taco did, as it was easy to apply and set much faster than Flux did.

Ibiza is described as "bright turquoise with a silver and gold duo chrome finish". Ibiza is more of a bright teal in my opinion, but it definitely has silver and gold reflects that give it a shimmery finish. It is not easy to see the reflects and shimmer in my image, but it's there. This is not a matte shadow and ColourPop lists Ibiza as a "pearlized finish", which it is. I enjoyed Ibizia a lot. It is a pearlized finish, so to make it opaque it takes a few layers, but it's any easy shadow to work with and the color will look great on any skin tone. 

In the picture above I have Flux on the inner part of my eye; Snap Dragon on the outer part of the eye; and Ibiza is on the lower lash line.

Final Verdict

ColourPop as a brand definitely won me over! Everything from the well secured packaging to the hand written note! It all really showed that they care about their products and they care about their customers! I really like the eyeshadows and I enjoy the formula. My only issues were with Beauty Call and Flux, which were the 2 lighter shades. They're not the easiest to work with and I would probably use a base under them next time. I would most likely not repurchase those either, however they're both part of the Spring 2015 collection and Beauty Call is already permanently sold out and Flux is being phased out. All the other shadows are great! The Lippie Pencil is a solid will win also, but the Lippie Stix in "Raw" is not the easiest formula to work with unless the lips are primed and ready.

The only other topics I'll address is from the beginning of this post. As far as the complaints people launched about the shadows drying out and not receiving enough product, I'd have to say that is just people trying hard to find something to complain about. As you can see, in the picture above with Flux and Snap Dragon, I have technically hit pan on both. The issue here is that the shadows are creamy and they're moist, so they move and slide around a lot, so it's easy to look like the product is used more than it really is. It is true that you do not receive as much product as the jars may appear to hold and that is one thing that was a little surprising to me, but honestly for only $5 a jar you're still getting quite a bit of product. There's also the fact that most of us beauty consumers out there do not use up any one shadow in a week. The majority of us will still have that same shadow a year from now, so again it's not much to complain about at the price. The performance of these shadows is well over $5. As for the "drying" aspect, the ColourPop website does warn you to close the lids tight between uses, even if you're just switching between colors. I have had these shadows for a couple of weeks now and have not experienced any drying of the shadows, they still feel the same as when I opened them. So, I don't personally feel like these "issues" are a problem.

Feel free to share your ColourPop experiences and favorite products from there in the comments below! Any questions or other comments can be left below as well!

Review: Essencell Brush Set - Pink

I bet you thought I dropped off the face of the beauty blogging world again, didn't you? Well, that's not entirely true. I started a new blog. It's a toy/collectors blog. I'm a huge collector and decided it would be a good idea to share my collections and adventures in collecting! However, getting that blog started, while juggling life, took a minute and I had to neglect this blog. Now I'm back! If you are into collecting or just curious then feel free to check out my new blog- The Glittery Toy Box. No pressure though, really.

Quick *Me* update: So, aside from making a new blog, I also accepted a new position at work and that has kept me busy as well. I went on vacation for a couple of weeks out of state to see my family on the other side of the country and I've also been traveling through California the past couple of months, so I've been busy and living it up this summer! I'll work harder on getting more entries up on this blog, but since it's normally pretty quiet around here, I don't think it's too much to worry about......

[Photo Credit: Essencell Amazon Store image]

Today, I'm reviewing the Essencell brush set in Pink. This brand has been around for a few years, but this is the first time I've ever bought anything from this company and I just heard about a few months ago.

FYI- I'll just say this right now before I go any further: Some of these brushes are made with real animal hair. If you're against natural hair brushes/products than these are not for you. 

[Feel free to scroll down to the bottom for a summary if you're short on time or don't want to read the fine details.]

[Photo Credit: Facebook Ad]

I was scrolling through Facebook when I saw this ad for a brush set that was only $7 with a coupon code. Obviously, as a make-up enthusiast, this caught my eye and peaked my interest.

[Photo Credit: Essencell Coupon Page]

When I clicked the ad it took me to a site not connected to Facebook. Now, at this point I was a little skeptical. The web page the ad took me to looked a little sketchy and a 12 piece brush set, plus case, and 2 sponges for only $7 seemed a little too good to be true. My thoughts were either this was a scam or these brushes were awful. When I clicked "get my coupon deal" it only asked for my email. It did not ask for anything else, which was a bit of relief. Almost immediately my email inbox had a code from the company and directions on how to go to their Amazon.com store and redeem the code. -That seemed easy enough, but I still felt like there had to be strings attached. Only $7??? I thought maybe there would be some add on fees or something else - or the brushes were just really bad, that still was in my mind too. Before checking out their Amazon store, I looked on their Facebook company page which had not been updated since 2014 and that did not help my negative feelings at all. Never the less, I still went to Amazon and saw their products. They only had brush sets and they came in multiple colors- Black, Coffee (bronze colored), Purple, and Pink. The deal only worked for the pink set though, so I had no choice in color, which is fine with me. I like pink and for $7 I won't be picky. The final test came when I went to the checkout on Amazon. I entered the code on the billing section and indeed the price dropped down to $7.  

It took less than a week for the brushes to arrive. The brushes come in a pleather roll-up case. The case is thin, but I have traveled with it and it seems to do fine.

When you open the case you will see that case comes with an extensive inside flap to protect the brushes. As you can see, the case is a baby pink, but the actual brush handles are a raspberry pink.

Above are the brushes. Some of them come with guards. The inside is a typical brush roll and the brushes are displayed well. The website states the names for the brushes, from left to right:

• Blush Brush
• Mascara Brush
• Fan Brush
• Smudger Sponge
• Angled Eyebrow Brush
• Lip Brush
• Smudger Brush
• Eyeliner Brush
• L-Eyeshadow Brush (large)
• S-Eyeshadow Brush (small)
• Foundation Brush
• Powder Brush

Left to Right: Smudger Sponge, Mascara Brush, Eyeliner Brush

I'm going start the in-depth part of this review with 3 brushes that I consider pointless. In my opinion, you really are getting 9 brushes and not 12. 

• Smudger Sponge [material - sponge]: What Essencell calls a "Smudger Sponge" is really just your typical sponge applicator that you can buy at any drug store or even off of Amazon for pretty cheap. It's not necessary to include this in a brush set, especially one that a company considers "professional". These sorts of brushes will wear down fast and you'll end up tossing it. The quality of this sponge is no better than something one would get included in a Maybelline eyeshadow bought at a drug store.
• Mascara Brush [material - plastic]: Again, Essencell has done a good job at trying to make a brush seem better by renaming it, but any make-up user will know this is just a Spoolie and while it can be used for mascara, it is more typically used to brush out your eyebrows and distributing color to the brows. Again, it's not necessary or essential to include this brush in a "professional" brush set and these types of brushes are very easy to obtain.
• Eyeliner Brush [material - pony hair]: Unfortunately, this brush does not work well for eyeliner, especially for a gel liner. If you're using a powder liner or shadow for liner then you'll have a little bit better luck, but I do not find myself reaching for this brush at all. I'm also not a huge fan of natural hair brushes for liner.

Left to Right: Angled Eyebrow Brush & Lip Brush

• Angled Eyebrow Brush [material - pony hair]: The eyebrow brush is just okay. It can be used for multiple purposes, although most brushes can be. I don't find myself using this brush a lot and I do not use it for my eyebrow brush, as I have 2 others and that I prefer. When I do use this brush it is usually for smudging or applying eyeshadow at an angle.
• Lip Brush [material - pony hair]: I have not used this brush on my lips. It's a bit think for my liking and for a substance like lipstick, I would prefer synthetic brushes most of the time. I have used it for touching up small areas of eyeshadow and in the inner corner of the eye, and it works fine.

Left to Right: Smudger Brush, S-Eyeshadow Brush, L-Eyeshadow Brush

These are the 3 eyehshadow brushes that come with the brush set. All are solid performers. All of these brushes are very soft and best used with powder shadows.

• Smudger Brush [material - pony hair]: This is a nice brush. Depending on the eye look you're going for, you may or may not use this as a smudger. I find this to be a good smudger brush, but it is a bit on the thin side and so if you're going for a heavier or slightly wider area, you'll want to go with a different brush. It's great for the crease or defining/highlighting the brow area.
• S-Eyeshadow Brush [material - pony hair]: This is the smaller eyeshadow brush and is a good, natural hair brush. It does what it should do.
• L-Eyeshadow Brush [material - pony hair]: This is the large eyeshadow brush and again it is a solid performer. No issues. 

Left to Right: Powder Brush, Blush Brush, Foundation Brush, Fan Brush

I'm going to finish with the 4 face brushes. These are very nice brushes that all work quite well.

• Powder Brush [material - goat hair]: This brush applies powder nicely and I have no issues with it. It also works nicely as a clean brush to smooth out contour and other facial cosmetic applications, as it's not super soft; I personally don't find it scratchy though.
• Blush Brush [material - goat hair]: Works well for blush. It's a bit stiff, which is good if you have stiff product or a harder product to work with. If you're in a pinch, I have found this brush can work for loose foundation.
• Foundation Brush [material - synthetic]: The best brush in the whole set! Performs and works really well. Applies cream and liquid foundations great!
• Fan Brush [material - synthetic]: This is a typical fan brush. Not much to say other than it does what it is suppose to.

Here's a look at the two sponges included with the brush set. On the left is a pink sponge that is a bit stiffer than it's counterpart and would be best compared to a Beauty Blender, although it is not quite like it. The pink sponge does not expand in water. After washing it once, I noticed that some of the pink color ran out with the make-up. It also became a bit less stiff and coarse after washing it, so I would recommend washing it before using it. 

The purple sponge on the right is a much softer material than the pink one. It's more of a foam feel. It is not meant to be wet in use. When wet it does expand, but it also becomes malleable and useless.

To me, these sponges are quite average and similar to anything you can get in a drug store like from the brand Soho.

Final Verdict 
For $7, this brush set way out performs it's price! However, the brush set is normally $35.69. Is it worth $35+? Not in my opinion. Again, I feel like you really only get 9 brushes. Even with the consideration that they throw in 2 sponges, those sponges are not superb quality and you can buy those in a drug store for a decent price. I enjoy the these brushes and they are natural hair, but they are not exceptional to me. For the most part these are just okay. If you can catch these brushes on sale or if you could get the $7 deal if it comes up again, I would definitely go for it, but in my opinion what you're really paying for is the natural hair and pony hair is not the best for cosmetic brushes. I feel these are worth $25 at the most as a set. For a set that performs average to slightly below average, I would look at other sets that are around the same price or less. It is even worth it in some cases to pay a little more for a very nice upgrade.

FYI: These are currently on sale at Amazon for $28.97 with Amazon Prime shipping if you have a Prime account. Also, if you go to Essencell.net and sign up for their mailing list you will get a $10 discount code in your email that expires 30 days after they have sent it. They constantly have sales on their Amazon page, so just keeping checking often if you'd like to try these out.

Let me know if you own these or if you do buy them. I'd love to hear what you think about them.