Product Spotlight - Urban Decay Naked Smoky Palette Review

I am very excited for today's post on the long anticipated addition to the Urban Decay Naked collection. I have an obsession with all things Urban Decay, especially their eyeshadow, so naturally the Naked palettes are a staple in my makeup collection. I've had this palette for a few days now, and wanted to have some time to play around with it before writing about it. 

First thing is first, how gorgeous is the packaging?! The monotone smoky theme is right up my alley, and totally fits my aesthetic. I also love how the corners aren't rounded, although it drives me crazy how they don't all have the same packaging, but it's still so good looking! This is one sexy palette, that's all I can say!

There is a wide variety of colour in this palette - of both cool and warm tones. 

1. High - a shimmery champagne

2. Dirtysweet - a bronze colour (similar to the half-baked family)

3. Radar - a taupe with iridescent glitter

4. Armor - a silvery taupe with glitter

5. Slanted - a light metallic grey

6. Dagger - a shimmery charcoal 

7. Black Market - a black with a hint of sparkle

8. Smolder - a sparkly plum

9. Password - a matte taupe

10. Whiskey - a matte chocolate brown

11. Combust - a pink taupe

12. Thirteen - a light beige 

A cool thing about this palette is the colours are arranged most to least shimmery, as opposed to in order of colour. Some of my favourite shades are: smolder, high, dirtysweet,radar, whiskey and combust. The texture of the shadows feels less silky than previous palettes, or UD eyeshadow in general, and definitely need a primer. I also love how the shimmery colours aren't but chunks of glitter, but a nice smooth glitter. The wear of the shadows is phenomenal. I've made it through an 8+ hour shift in some of the more neutral shades, as well as a good 14 hours out and about and at the bar, aka a high success rate. Fallout is minimal, which is obviously amazing. I didn't have much of any from the top, but on my lower lash line I noticed a bit, but nothing too dramatic. Overall, it lives up to the Urban. Decay eyeshadow name. I would definitely recommend this one mainly for the sake of colour variety. I can confidently say there is something for everyone in this palette.

Will you be picking up the Naked Smoky palette? What is your favourite UD Naked palette? Leave me a comment down below, send me an email (glalamorous@gmail.com) or a tweet (@LBechkos17) and let me know!

xLB

Sephora Favourites Glitz & Glam Party Sampler

For Christmas my grandmother got me this awesome set from Sephora, which I absolutely adore! It retails for 45$ from Sephora and includes 9 shimmery products. All of them in full size or close to it.

Unfortunately I didn't manage to get a picture before tearing off the packaging and throwing it out (whoops) but I did get a picture of everything in the fabulous bag it was included in; isn't it gorgeous?!

First up was bareMinerals Marvelous Moxie Lipgloss in Trail Blaze (0.15 oz)

From the Sephora website.. "This high-shine, hydrating lip gloss contains a nourishing blend of shea, avocado, and murumuru butters. Achieve fuller-looking, pillowy lips and lasting color with this gentle formula."  This is a full size product and retails for 23$ from the Sephora website. I've yet to try this as I never really use gloss, but  I quite lip the tip of it. It's a nude gloss with flecks of gold for a bit of shimmer.

Next is the Stila Smudge Stick Waterproof Eye Liner in Starfish (0.01 oz)

I'm not an eye liner junkie in the slightest; I actually use powder for my eyeliner because eye liner just doesn't do it for me. If you're intrigued by this, I'll get back to it on a future post. Anyway! To me, it just goes on like your average eye liner but I love the texture of it and I quite like how it's got flecks of gold in it for a bit of added shimmer, it really makes my hazel eyes pop! It's a full size product as well which is awesome. It retails on the Sephora website for 26$.

A swatch of the eye liner..

And here we have the Laura Mercier Baked Eye Color - Wet/Dry in Black Karat (0.018 oz)

I think this is such a pretty eye shadow, however I'm not sure it's one I'll be getting much use out of it as the only eyeshadows I wear are nudes. It's a charcoal-y based eyeshadow with bits of gold glitter in it. There is quite a lot of glitter in this, and I'd say the ratio of glitter to shadow is in glitters favour. It retails for 27$ on the Sephora website for 0.06, which is three times the size of the included sample. I don't go through eye shadows as a whole, so this still was quite a generous sample that will take me awhile to get through. On another note, I like the packaging on this one more than the full size.

As you can tell by the swatch, it's not overly pigmented but you really get a nice burst of shimmer

Next is the Josie Maran GOGO Instant Natural Volume Argan Mascara in Black (0.11 oz)

To be completely honest, this mascara just didn't do anything for me. personally I quite like my lashes to be very noticeable. This to me just didn't achieve the dramatic look I like. However, if you like a subtle lash I think this would be perfect for you. It's a bristle brush so it grabs all of the lashes, I just wish it had more length/volume. This mascara retails for 26$ on the Sephora website for the full size, which is 0.34 oz. Something I found interesting about this; they've teamed up with City of Hope (a cancer institution) where the Get One Give One campaign was created (get it.. GOGO mascara!) so basically you buy one, they give one to a cancer patient. Limited to a certain unit, afterwards it's 1$ from each mascara. Cool, right? All the more reason to buy :)

And here we have Stila All Shimmer Duo in Kitten (0.09 oz)
This is another generous size, it's half of the retailed size which is 0.18 oz and retails on the Sephora website for 29$. I was quite pleased with these shadows, they're extremely pigmented and I love the shimmer in them. The one on the left works well for a highlighter type shadow.

Some swatches of the shimmer duo; very very pigmented. (The swatch on the left is the shadow on the right, and the swatch on the right is the shadow on the left.. sorry, I didn't think about my finger positioning before swiping, oops!)

Here I have the bareMinerals eye colour in Good Fortune (0.02 oz)

I think this is such a gorgeous colour, reminds me of terracotta, or a sunset. I think I'll get more use out of this as a summer colour as opposed to this season, because to me it seems kind of like a bronzing colour, if that makes sense.. It retails for 16$ on the Sephora website, and this is the full size product.

Sephora by OPI Nail Polish in 'Looks like Rain Dear' (0.125)
This is an opaque gold with a mix of chunky and micro iridescent glitter pieces. I've actually been eyeing this colour for awhile, so I'm glad I never purchased it and that it was included! I don't have a swatch since I only tried it on paper, but the gold is quite opaque, considering it's a glitter polish, and I really like the glitter mix. I'd recommend more than one coat or layering it over another. The full sized 0.5 oz retails for 12$ on the Sephora website, just like their other polishes.

Lorac 3D Liquid Lustre Gold (0.17 oz)

If you like added shimmer, I'd definitely recommend this. The colour is gorgeous and it's something that I feel would look great on all skin tones. It's very pigmented, yet very subtle if that makes sense.. I'm really looking forward to using this on my eyes for New Years Eve :) This is another full size product which retails for 21$ on the Sephora website.

This is the product applied with one drop straight onto my hand.

Annnnd here it is all rubbed in.

This is what my finger looked like after rubbing it in which I thought was really pretty, so I had to include it.

And finally Nars Body Glow (1 oz)

I haven't used this product yet because honestly I don't really know how.. the bottle I received was not mixed in the slightest, I tried mixing it with a toothpick and didn't have much luck, so I don't think I'll get much use out of it. I think it's such a pretty colour though, and it smells so good so I'm hoping I'll get to try it, because the reviews seem quite good as well. This is still a large bottle, yet it's only a fourth of the full size, which is 4 oz and retails for 80$ on the Sephora website.

However, it didn't seem to withstand much travelling.. oops! I read if you place it in warm water it'll liquify a bit, so I'll definitely have to try that.

Overall, I definitely feel like you get the value in this.. I'd value the products as following:

• 23$ - bareMinerals Marvellous Moxie lipgloss (0.15 oz)
• 26$ - Stila Smudge Stick Eye Liner (0.01 oz)
• 9$ - Laura Mercier Baked Eye Color - Wet/Dry in Black Karat (0.018 oz)
• 9$ - Josie Maran GOGO Instant Natural Volume Argan Mascara in Black (0.11 oz)
• 15$ - Stila All Shimmer Duo in Kitten (0.09 oz)
• 16$ - bareMinerals eye colour in Good Fortune (0.02 oz)
• 3$ - Sephora by OPI Nail Polish in 'Looks like Rain Dear' (0.125)
• 21$ - Lorac 3D Liquid Lustre Gold (0.17 oz)
• 20$ - Nars Body Glow (1 oz)
• 142$ TOTAL

DEFINITELY got the product face value and SO much more, which is why I love stuff like this. You get to try a bunch of products and be exposed to new brands for super cheap! 

An added bit of a bonus, I got these glimmersticks from AVON from another grandmother. They're so cute and mini, I'm in love with them :) perfect for travel! xx

xLB

The Ultimate Series of Hair Appliances

Hello, hello! Hope you've all had the loveliest of holidays!
Today I am writing to you about my new favourite line of appliances. As you may or may not know, I might have long, luscious hair, however it doesn't like doing what it's told one bit! So barely any hair appliances so much as leave a dent on my hair. I've tried absolutely everything, from CHI to whatever I could pick up.
That being said, I've recently found a line of miracle appliances, the best part? They all retail for on average of 25$ a pop at stores like Target! The brand? *drumroll please* Remington!

Two years ago on a whim I picked up the Wet 2 Straight Flat Iron, which retails for 18.69$ from the Remington website.

Basically with this you have the option to straighten your hair from either wet or straight. I'm absolutely horrid at blowdrying my hair, but my hair only stays styled once I do it from it being wet, so this was absolutely perfect! A lot of the reactions I've gotten from explaining how it works and using it from wet are all along the lines of 'well wouldn't that do crazy damage to your hair?' my answer, 'have you seen mine?' I've been using this for years now, and by no means and I'm trying to brag, but I have some of the healthiest hair, especially considering the length of it, and I seldom do treatments, etc. That being said, I do not think it does much damage at all. None noticeable, on myself at least. This product has been a lifesaver and has cut my straight hair routine in half! I'd DEFINITELY recommend it!

For Christmas, what my sister asked for was a curling wand. Me being me, I hopped on the Target website (because I wanted to keep it budget friendly, but still something that was going to last) and saw the Remington brand there as well, so I figured I'd give it a go. The Remington T-Studio Pearl Ceramic Curling Wand retails on the Remington website for 24.99$.

My sister was more than pleased with this, and after seeing it's results and how long it lasted I figured I'd give it a go. So my sister kindly allowed me to bring it back to Toronto with me for a few days so I could test it out. With my hair, 98% of curling products don't do anything, I don't know what it is. But they will always curl nicely, then 10 minutes later my hair is left in droopy waves, so I'd given up completely on curling irons/wands. However, I was completely shocked that even after a walk in the frigid cold to work, and entire shift at work AND sleeping on it, the curls were STILL intact. I'm so impressed with this wand, it's not even funny. It heats up to 410, however I normally keep it around the 350 point, and I only leave it on for about 10 seconds per piece and VOILA beautiful curls! I've had so much luck with this one that I'm definitely going to head over to Target in the coming weeks and pick one up for myself! A cool little tidbit on this one; the pink ceramic barrel is made out of crushed pearls, which I think definitely adds to the allure and final result. So cool! 

Anyway, if you're ever searching for a straightener or curling wand these would be my suggestion, as well as anything else from the range. I feel as though a lot of hair brands are only good in one sector, whether it is straighteners or curlers, however this is great in both! I'd recommend these over many luxury brands any day!

Try them out and let me know your results :~)

xLB

Review: Cake - Sugar Cookie Decadent Body Lotion

First of all, let me just start off by saying just how DELICIOUS this stuff smells at first whiff! MM so good! Okay, onward! :):)

Cake Sugar Cookie Decadent Body Lotion (22$ CAD)

I was given a lovely sample of this body lotion and decided to give it a whirl! Now I think it's quite difficult to review a lotion.. it either moisturizers or it doesn't when it comes to your body. Well, this one definitely does! I felt as though a little went a long way and the texture of the lotion wasn't too think so it applied rather easily. 

Hours later and my legs still feel silky smooth and smell delicious! Definitely a brand and lotion worth trying.

This lotion is a whipped lotion, which I think adds to light texture of it. Made with ingredients like coconut oil, mango butter, macadamia nut oil and aloe vera it's a great moisturizer for winter skin. Also, the scent isn't overwhelming which I quite like. I could still smell it if I wanted to, but it didn't give me a headache.

Anyway, lovely moisturizer, and everything from this brand smells lovely so I'd suggest giving it a go. This is definitely going to be my holiday moisturizer as it smells quite like Christmas baking! MMM

xLB

Review: Kate Somerville EradiKate

The product I'm going to review in this post has received plenty of mixed reviews, from my research. So basically I bought this product on a limb. Sephora has the most incredible return policy ever, so I figured (since they were sold out of my beloved Origins, waaa) I would give it a go! Normally I wouldn't be one to spend 27$ on a product I've never gotten to test, but like I said, Sephora has their incredible return policy so I figured I would try it out!

Kate Somerville - EradiKate (27$ CAD)

First thing to be known about this product is that despite what it may look like you are NOT to shake it. Basically the product is separated into two (noticeable) parts. The top part is just a clear liquid, and the bottom part is a pink liquid, the good stuff. The top part is only there to keep the bottom part (the sulphur treatment) solidified. So whatever you do, do not shake this! It's meant to look that way.

To use this product, first I wash my face like normal, apply toner then apply moisturizer. Then what you do is grab a clean cotton swab and dip it straight into the product, all the way down so it touches the pink. Then you lightly dab at any blemishes you have. Since the sulphur treatment is no longer with the water it will dry up once in contact with your skin, thus drying out the blemish. This is recommended as a PM treatment seeing as you are to have pink dots on your face for hours on end. So, apply the treatment, go to sleep, wake up and voila! ..well, not quite.

On the blemishes I tried the product on, they seemed to be gone completely after three applications. No scaring, nothing. I was told you would notice results after one use. I however, did not. This kind of turned me off of the product, but I decided to continue since I had nothing to lose. I'm glad I did! After two more applications (two more nights) the blemishes were gone completely with no marks behind. It was like magic!

That being said, I think you need to have patience in order to use this product. But if you have the money to spend, or a great return policy, I'd definitely give it a shot. It doesn't work for everyone, but if it works, it really works.

xLB

Sephora - beauty insider - smashbox best sellers review

Hi beauty bunnies!

To be completely honest with you, prior to this I'd never thought twice about smashbox products. I never had any inkling to try them, they were just kind of.. There. However, after this little sampling I'm now hooked.

First up: full exposure mascara
I am VERY picky on mascaras, so I was quite surprised that I enjoyed this as much as I did. The bristles on the brush are farther apart than I'd normally like, which instantly set me off. However, once I applied my lashes were beautiful. Very clump free, very neat, just how I like em! Only downside, I found it didn't keep the curl (as in after curling my lashes) as much as a lot of my other mascaras. Other than that, great appearance.

Next: lip enhancing gloss in illume
Love everything about this gloss! The colour is absolutely gorgeous, it's like a peachy nude with the right bit of shimmer to it. Also wasn't very sticky, and ha great lasting power. Gorgeous.

Next: photo finish foundation primer
I feel like primer is something hard to review.. So I wouldn't take this one too seriously haha. Anyway. I wasn't overly impressed with this one. Not sure if it was due to other factors, but after using this I noticed my skin broke out quite a bit.. I'm hoping it was due to other forces so I'm going to try it out down the line and I'll keep you posted!

Next: camera ready bb cream
This stuff is like crack haha I'm absolutely loving it! It's got great coverage considering its a cream. I'm very insecure about my skin, so I still wore foundation nevertheless, but if you only have minor spots you'd be good with just this!

And finally: bronze lights (in suntan matte)
This bronzer is absolutely gorgeous! It's really peach, which I'm keen on, and it's not overpowering which I love! I'm not a fan of bronzer because I'm always scared I've put too much on, so I mainly use this on my cheeks. But on the times I've tried it as a bronzer instead of a blusher it's been lovely! I love how matte it is, makes it a bit more mute which is great for us girls who don't want to look like Oompa Loompas or girls from the shore :)

Overall, this set is FANTASTIC and really opened my eyes about the smashbox brand. If you've got a chance, get to Sephora and grab this while its available to redeem for. I'm hooked and will definitely repurchase some of these!

xLB