Aikosmetics Rose Gold Brush Set

Complete Brush Set Review!

About a month ago, thanks to a Instagram competition, I was contacted by 

Claudejyne the founder of the luxurious beauty brand - Aikosmetics 

I had won a complete set of their beautiful Rose Gold Makeup Brushes!

I was so grateful & beyond excited to try these!

♥

The full set has 6 synthetic Face & 5 natural-hair Eye brushes
All with pale pink handles & rose gold ferrules, 
"..these brushes ensure you can achieve the best makeup application possible"

www.aikosmetics.com

Only a week after contacting me, this pretty pink box arrived

 to my house in NZ, all the way from UK!

I've spent some time using each of the brushes, cleaning & using them again to test the quality..

They are super soft, feel lovely on the skin & look beautiful

I have one problem & that's with the white bristle brushes in this set..

All four shed every time I use them!

Face Brushes

Lasting Perfection Powder Brush - Fluffy Finishing Powder Brush. Dense & perfect for applying setting powder & mattifying specific areas without caking up or moving other products on the face 

Radiant Complexion Buffer -  Round Top Buffer is great for applying foundation to achieve a naturally flawless coverage. I like to use it for buffing/blending out cream products; contour or blush

Angled Blush Brush - For soft blush/bronzer application, this brush picks up the perfect amount of pigmented powder! Also works really well for contouring & softly blending that cheekbone shape! Sadly it sheds the hairs every time I use it or wash it..but that doesn't affect the finish 

Flawless Finish Flat Top - Achieve a flawless finish with this foundation brush. The short dense bristles build up the liquid to a full flawless coverage without wasting & soaking up all the product!

Skin Luminosity Highlight - Perfect size & shape to blend highlight product to the cheekbones to create radiant glowing skin! This brush sheds also..

Eye Brushes

Imperfection Concealer Brush - Blend concealer onto smaller areas of the face to hide imperfections. Can also be used for defined contouring. I prefer to use it like an angled eyeshadow brush though!

Colour Precision Flat Brush - Apply eyeshadow base & shimmer all over the lid. I personally think it's to dense to pack on colour, it's better when used wet with shimmers

Beautiful Eyes Blending Brush - A fluffy eyeshadow brush that blends out harsh lines for a flawless eye look & good for applying transition shades. This is my fave! but it sheds while blending :/

Eye Contour Brush - This tapered eyeshadow brush blends eyeshadow into the crease seamlessly!

Smokey Eyes Pointed Brush - A pointed dome eyeshadow brush used for precise colour application. Apply a darker eyeshadow to the outer V for a smokey finish.

Perfect Brows Angled Brush - Used to create perfect brows or apply liner flawlessly. I love using this for my brows with a pomade, it's quite thin but easily makes fine hair-like strokes in brows.

I really love these brushes! 

They're beautiful pink & rose gold, soft & each one do what they're described to do!

The only downfall is the white bristle brushes shedding..

They are £59.99 (approx $140 nzd)

They ship worldwide! - prices will vary for country & weight of item,

Once shipped, they arrive super quickly in a pretty pink box!

You can purchase each brush individually on their website also ;)

LucyLoves! xx

ChiChi Cosmetics Brow Pomade Review

Possible Dupe for ABH Dipbrow?? 

Recently ChiChi Cosmetics added a new product to their line,

ChiChi Brow Pomade

"Waterproof, smudge free creamy formula that's an all-in-one brow product,

Smoothly glides onto skin & hair to sculpt, colour & shape natural defined brows"

Available in 6 hair shades - Blonde, Taupe, Soft Brown, Medium Brown, 

Dark Brown & Black Brown. All neutral toned to perfectly match real hair.

These are available in NZ from Farmers for $20.99 nzd

or Australia from Target, Priceline or online for $14.99 aud

♥

Could this product be a great affordable dupe for Anastasia Beverly Hills Dipbrow?

I've got application & colour (Taupe) comparisons below!

www.chichicosmetics.com

Just like the ABH Dipbrow, the Chichi packaging is a solid glass pot with 

a black twist on lid & brand logo on top.

They appear the same size, but ABH contains 4g of product, the ChiChi only has 2g.

I've had my Dipbrow for just over a year now & still have a fair amount left, 

it has dried out slightly compared to the consistency when I first used it.

I found the ChiChi pomade to be very creamy which makes it easy 

to apply & a little goes a long way!

Application Tips: 

Because this is a cream product, it's easy to pick up more then you need with your brush, 

swipe most of the product from your brush on the inside of the lid & then apply to brows, 

reapplying as you need to get the desired effect

this also helps to avoid the thick, blocky brow look, less is more!

I find it easiest to use a angled liner brush with stiff bristles for control 

& a spoolie on the other end to brush them into shape & soften the product where it needs it.

Before & After - ChiChi Brow Pomade

It's super long lasting & it is waterproof! It needs a good scrubbing to remove!

Once dry, it's smudge free & doesn't move! Very much like ABH Dipbrow

I chose the colour TAUPE - a light, ashy "mousey brown" shade & matches my brows perfectly!

There's no warmth in it, it's cool toned & very natural looking.

L - ABH Taupe. R - ChiChi Taupe

Next to each other, they're basically identical 

I'm very happy with the colour & how close it is to my Dipbrow Taupe.

I decided to try one side with ABH Dipbrow & the other with ChiChi pomade

I used the same technique & angled brush for both..

I did achieve a better finish with ABH but I guess that's what you're paying for,

I don't know if it's because my Dipbrow has dried out slightly..?

I'm still super happy with the finish I get with the ChiChi pomade as a cheaper alternative!

Before & After - Anastasia Beverly Hills Dipbrow 

Before & After - ChiChi Cosmetics Pomade



LucyLoves! xx

NARS One Shocking Moment Cheek Palette Review

Swatches & Palette Review

NARS Cosmetics have collaborated with Artistic Photographer,
Steven Klein for their Fantascene Holiday collection this year!
The Collection includes a couple of Cheek palettes, Lip sets, a Brush set & new 
Limited Edition Eyeshadows, Lipsticks & Nail colours all packaged beautifully, 
adorned with Stevens creative yet unusual work 

♥
Because of the colours & amazing value, I decided to pick up the
 One Shocking Moment Cheek Palette
$69us Exclusive at Sephora ($165 Value!)

www.sephora.com/NARS

Let me talk about the reason I got this palette & why I think everyone else needs one!

I haven't tried many NARS products before, just their Foundations,

& I've always been interested in trying the cult fave Laguna Bronzer!

The bronzer alone is $39us for 0.28oz 

This palette contains 0.29oz of Laguna bronzer!

That's approx $40.39 worth of Bronzer

Each NARS individual Blush costs $30 for 0.16oz

This palette contains four 0.12oz Blushes, two of which are limited edition & exclusive to this palette

That's about $22.50 each, making it $90 worth of Blush

And the Paloma Contour duo is originally $42 for 0.28oz

This palette contains 0.12oz of each contour shade

Approx $18 each, so $36 total contour value 

Overall this palette is worth $166us*

♥

This palette is the perfect way to try out new colours & more NARS products 

without breaking the bank! It would also make an amazing gift!

Plus the value makes this palette a must have for any beauty lover!

The only downfall is it's not designed to suit everyone, mainly fair to medium skin tones. 

Paloma Highlight - A matte flesh pink beige highlight shade
Paloma Contour - A deep neutral toned contour shade
Laguna Bronzer - A warm toned luminous bronzer
Robotic - A cool toned pink with a natural sheen finish
Blasphemy - A cool toned rosy mauve with micro shimmers
Luster - A tanned apricot with golden shimmer
Dolce Vita - A dusty plum rose with golden shimmer




The blushes are all great quality & nicely pigmented. I personally don't like blushes with strong pigmentation, I find it easier to build up the product to your desired intensity then to try soften it by buffing it out. The Paloma Contour gives a very nice natural shadow, it looks slightly red toned in the pan but blends in beautifully & the Paloma Highlight makes a nice undereye setting powder, brightens but not too highlighting. And the Laguna Bronzer is a really nice bronzer to warm up the skin & give it a natural glow, I've seen people use it for contour also & it's actually not too shimmery for that & works quite well. But as I mentioned above, the shades are not useful for deep skin tones & only really show up on Fair to Medium skin. But realistically it's impossible to please everyone with one palette.

NARS also have the Despair Cheek Palette with four 0.12oz Blushes & a mini ITA Brush available for $65us, but for $5 more you get the Contour & Bronzer shades too!!
This is an aaaamazing value! Get your hands on one quickly!
Exclusive at Sephora








The front design on the palette

LucyLoves! xx

Too Faced Melted Kisses & Sweet Cheeks

Review & Swatches!

I have yet another Holiday giftset from Too Faced to show you guys!
This is the Melted Kisses & Sweet Cheeks set!
Three mini Melted Lipsticks with Three mini Love Flush Blushes to match
This set is perfect for Christmas, divide into three for your friends
or keep them for yourself & try some great Too Faced products in different shades!
♥

Price $36 USD (Value $60)
Available at Sephora, Toofaced.com & ULTA
Swatches & more pics below!

www.Toofaced.com

I couldn't help myself when I saw the cute mini Blushes in this set, I had to have them!

I'm starting to try out different blushes & different shades, the purple duo caught my eye..

I have never tried purple colours on my skintone before & wouldn't purchase a full size for the chance it won't suit me, so that is why this set is great!

The mini Melted lipsticks are always a good value & the mini Blushes are small but have enough to play with for a few months, and you won't feel guilty about wasting product if it's not your shade!

On the other hand, this set is designed as Three Gifts in One!

Each colour duo are packaged in their own box with "To/From" labels on the back, 

making them perfect stocking stuffers for your friends!

♥

They are also the perfect size for travelling or to throw in your handbag for touch ups

Each Melted Lipstick mini is 0.16oz (5ml) almost half the amount of the full size

Each Love Flush Blush mini has 0.07oz (2.0g) a bit larger than your average eyeshadow

You're paying about $6 for each product in this set!

Melted Nude - Peachy Brown Nude

Love Hangover Blush - Warm Peachy Pink with a sheen finish

Melted Peony - Soft Dusty Pink 

Justify My Love Blush - Cool toned Pink with Gold shimmer

Melted Fig - Muted Rosy Violet

Your Love Is King Blush - Plumy Rose with a sheen finish

The quality of these minis are just as good as the full sized products, nicely pigmented, the blushes blend beautifully & the lipsticks are sweet smelling & creamy like the original!

I highly recommend this holiday set from Too Faced! Good value, good quality, makes

three separate gifts or keep for yourself to try new shades,

Plus, they're just so cute!!

$36 USD at Sephora, ULTA & Toofaced.com

Reviews on the other 2015 holiday sets from Too Faced:

Le Grand Palais - Click Here

Le Grand Chateau - Click Here

LucyLoves! xx

Kat Von D - Mi Vida Loca Studded Lipstick Set

Review & Swatches!

I've got another great Holiday gift set to review for you guys, this time from Kat Von D!
The Mi Vida Loca Remix Studded Kiss Lipstick set
7 Mini Lipsticks & One full size Limited Edition Lipstick in white studded packaging
$42 USD exclusive at Sephora
I love getting the different lip sets each year to try out new colours & formulas, 
and Kat Von D always has the best variety of shades

♥
Swatches below!

www.sephora.com/katvond

"As the winner of 2014 Sephora Innovation Award, Kat Von D's Studded Lipstick keeps the lips feeling soft & supple with an antioxidant complex of moisturising ingredients such as Vitamin E. Each lipstick is infused with a Crème Brulee scent for a subtle, sweet experience inspired by her love of sweet. Kat Von D designed the covetable glossy black casing after her signature studded cuff. The lipstick is adorned with the "KVD" monogram" - Sephora.

Studded Kiss Lipsticks are 100% vegan & not tested on Animals 

♥
So this sets comes with 7 deluxe mini Studded Kiss Lipsticks (0.04oz)
a good range of colours in the signature black studded case
And 1 full size Limited Edition Studded Kiss Lipstick (0.10oz)
a classic red with a twist, in a beautiful white studded case exclusive to this set.

Gold Blooded LE - A warm Matte Red with Golden sparkle

Wolvesmouth - A Metallic cool toned Purple Berry 

Sexer - A fluorescent Pink with a Frosted Matte finish

Noble - A Matte Peachy Pink Nude (Cult favourite)

NaYeon - A cool Black frost with Gunmetal shimmer

Bachelorete - A Matte Reddish Fuchsia (Cult favourite)

Halo - A Frosted Matte Neon Medium Orange

Coven - A Matte Light-Medium cool toned Lavender

I really like the range in this set - neutral, vibrant & crazy colours to try.
The formulas are nice & smell delicious! But a couple of the colours apply a bit patchy, such as wolvesmouth & coven. Coven is such a beautiful Lilac Purple but needs building up for opacity & an even application. NaYeon is a very interesting shade with the gunmetal glitter through it. It feels quite chunky & gritty on the lips & the glitter makes it hard to get a nice application.

I think this is great value for money, it's a cool gift idea, you can split the colours up amongst your  friends & keep the colours you like to throw in your handbag!
$42 USD exclusive at Sephora 


LucyLoves! xx