Tarte Rainforest of the Sea Foundation & Concealer

My favourite kind of blog to write is a foundation review, and today we're looking at two of Tarte Cosmetics products, part of their Rainforest of the Sea range, water-based Foundation & Concealer! Both contain 20% water to hydrate dry skin as they mask redness, dark spots & uneven skin tone. Water based products don't work well with silicone (primers, beauty oils etc) so try to use these with other water based products. With concentrated levels of pigments, these products offer a lightweight medium to full coverage that should last up to 12 hours. Plus packed with Tarte's antioxidant Rainforest of the Sea complex & non-chemical SPF 15 sunscreen, the hypoallergenic formula helps to brighten, restore & protect skin!

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Rainforest of the Sea Foundation 1oz - $39.00USD
Luxurious frosted glass bottle with a voilet to gold ombre pump lid & a dropper applicator. I'm not a big fan of the dropper applicator after trying Stila's Aqua Glow foundation, it's just annoying & can get very messy.
Tarte recommends 1-2 drops for Light coverage 
Or 3-4 drops for Medium to Full buildable coverage

Pump Lid

Drop Applicator

♥ Before & After

I got the shade Fair Neutral, the lightest shade available for fair skin with yellow & pink undertones. As always, I tried this foundation one side with a Beauty Blender & the other with a flat top kabuki to see the difference in coverage & longevity.

Beauty Blender:

Medium coverage, natural radiant finish, smoothed over imperfections & pores. It blends like a dream with a beauty blender & I actually noticed better coverage & buildability possibly because the dampness of the sponge works so well with the water base in the foundation & doesn't soak most of it up. 

Flat Top Brush

Medium coverage also with a natural radiant finish. This foundation blends out so smoothly it just glides over imperfections! The lightweight hydrating formula looks like skin & retains radiance even after setting with a powder. Using a brush gave pretty similar results to using a sponge for me, only it's a little faster to blend over the face.





I personally love LOVE the finish if this foundation! The water base hydrates the skin giving it radiance, settling to a demi-matte finish giving it that natural appearance. It blends out easily using a brush or sponge & has the same results. It glides over imperfections leaving the face looking flawless & smooth. I like the fact it can be worn light but it's easily buildable to a full coverage. It doesn't patch up or cling to dry patches (unless using the wrong primer/skincare) & lasts well throughout the day without fading off. My only negative is the drop applicator as it's very messy & inefficient.

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Rainforest of the Sea Aquacealer Concealer 0.34oz - $26.00USD
Similar luxe packaging to the foundation but has a large doe foot wand applicator making it super easy to apply in desired areas - under eyes, forehead, chin etc to mask redness, dark spots & acne or to brighten under the eyes. This concealer is HUGE you get a massive 0.34oz of product, but it smells horrible & strongly of chemicals but that doesn't last once blended out.

 Doe Foot Applicator

♥ Before & After

I got the shade Fair for fair skin with pink undertones, the lightest shade available. I also applied this concealer one side with a Beauty Blender & the other with a flat top kabuki to see the difference.. Pictures show before foundation, with foundation & then with concealer.

Beauty Blender:

Medium coverage, natural finish but a little creasy because of the water formula, the damp sponge doesn't soak up much of the excess. It was easy to blend with a beauty sponge but I noticed only a little dark-circle coverage & brightening, nothing outstanding. 

Flat Top Brush

Medium to Full coverage, natural finish, it can be a little dry under the eyes because it's quite a thin consistency & kind of settles into fine lines if not set quickly with a powder. Remember! If you already have fine lines or naturally creasing eyes, there is nothing to avoid a concealer creasing on top of it.. It blended easily with the brush & gave better coverage with a smoother, brighter appearance. 

I like this concealer, it blends in well with the foundation, it smooths & brightens but I wouldn't recommend it for people with dark-circle concerns or to cover imperfections flawlessly.. It's thin so it doesn't go cakey but its slightly dry so not the best to build up on itself. The smell is something I really don't like and I feel could have been avoided, but thankfully it doesn't hang around after blending. I love that you get so much product in the bottle & I quite like the big doe foot for quick easy application.

How I apply my concealer before blending

Overall, I love the foundation and have been rocking it everyday, even on nights out, and I like the concealer but I don't think it's anything amazing, just the fact you get a huge 0.34oz for the price.

Foundation - 4.5/5
Concealer - 3/5

What foundation or concealer would you like me to test & review next!? Leave a comment here or on my Instagram - Lucymaria_x

LucyLoves! xx

Violet Voss Haul! Swatches & Review

Holy Grail & Drenched Metal!

If you follow me on Instagram, you would know already how much I love these palettes! But I wanted to get a little more in-depth with the products I got from Violet Voss & tell you guys exactly what I think of them. I saw pictures of the palettes floating around Instagram, then Laura Lee on YouTube collaborated to create her own stunning palette, & the shadows looked insanely pigmented & easy to work with. Unfortunately I missed out on her palette but noticed they still had both the Holy Grail & Drenched Metal palettes available & I couldn't help myself, I had to get both! I ended up ordering one of their liquid lipsticks to try out as well. 

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Sadly, Violet Voss does not ship to NZ, only USA & Canada. So I had to use a forwarding address, one of my favourites is NZ Post YouShop. It took about a week to arrive to the YouShop warehouse then another week to arrive to NZ after paying for the shipping.
As for the products, oh em geee! haha they are seriously beautiful. Each palette has 20 colours, Matte, Metals, Satins, Big Size pans (1.8g) all Cruelty Free & housed in a super thin, matte black palette for $42 USD each. The liquid lipsticks are available in 15 shades (I got "Wasted"), long-lasting liquid to full matte finish & smooth to apply for $12 USD each
www.ShopVioletVoss.com

♥HOLY GRAIL♥

Crystal - Satin Pearl White, perfect to highlight the brow bone

Ploof - Satin Pale Rose Gold, another good highlight especially for the inner corner
Thanks A Latte - Matte Cream Beige, I use this as a base shadow before applying other colours
Transition - Matte Warm Caramel Brown, as it's name suggests it's the perfect transition shade!
Hashtag - Matte Terracotta Orange, this is quite vibrant & perfect for any season on the lid/crease
Awesome Sauce - Metal Copper Bronze, holy sh*t this is beautiful, so smooth & pigmented!
Bestie - Matte Neutral Brown, another great transition shade but is slightly cooler toned
Toffee - Metal Golden Bronze, similar to Awesome Sauce, smooth & pigmented
Chill - Satin Antique Gold, nicely pigmented & perfect for a softer golden eye that's not so intense
How U Dion - Metal Bronze Copper, has more copper/red tones compared to Awesome Sauce but is just as smooth & pigmented as the other metals.
Bat My Eyes - Metal Deep Bronze, has a deeper brown base with tons of bronze shimmer
Cool Beans - Metal Gold, this smooth pigmented gold also has some deeper bronze shimmers
R U Kitten Me - Matte Midtone Caramel Brown, so smooth & a little deeper than Bestie/Transition
So Jelly - Satin Iridecent Pink, almost duochrome with a highlighting gold effect
On Fleek - Metal Copper Red, another smooth, pigmented metal shade with a deeper copper base
Brownie Points - Matte Deep Earthy Brown, so smooth & blends like butter
Teddy Bear - Matte Deep Cool Brown, almost an eggplant brown & blends like a dream as well
Glamping - Satin Burgundy, I tried this reddish brown using a wet brush & had trouble applying
Cranberry Splash - Metal Cranberry Red, such a stunning colour, so smooth & pigmented
Wine N Dine - Matte Cranberry Pink Red, a little drier/patchier than the other mattes, but that's to be expected with a matte red. It's still very pigmented.

I feel like I said every shade is beautiful, smooth & pigmented but they're honestly some of the best shadows I've ever used! And the metals are just so eye-catching, one little touch of my finger gave full pigment. I wasn't a big fan of using "Glamping" with a wet brush, it didn't make the shade more pigmented in any way & actually made the shadow clump up in the pan so it doesn't swatch or apply the same now. I think because they're already so buttery & pigmented that they don't actually need to be intensified, they already give the effect of wet foiled shadows without added fix+. This is the ultimate warm eyeshadow palette, you can use these shades in Summer, Fall, Winter & Spring & can create so many beautiful warm looks with the golds, bronzes & cranberries!

♥DRENCHED METAL♥

Poppin - Metal Pale Champagne Gold

Kisses - Satin Pale Rose Gold 

Confession - Satin Iridecent Pink (like "So Jelly")

Crushed It - Metal Bronzey Gold 

Secret - Matte Neutral Brown (Transition Shade)

I'm So Fancy - Metal Intense Blue Green

Mermaid Vixen - Metal Smokey Blue Green 

Grunge - Metal Golden Taupe 

Minx - Metal Tarnished Gold 

Squad Goals - Metal Coppery Gold 

Frisky - Metal Deep Blue

Dark Desires - Metal Deep Violet

Slaycation - Metal Duochrome Green Brown 

Come Thru - Satin Pale Gold Yellow

Livin - Metal True Copper 

Shade - Metal Cool Toned Taupe

Bliss - Metal Golden Olive Green

Huntress - Metal Deep Burgundy Bronze

Forbidden - Metal Copper Burgundy

Midnight Tryst - Satin Matte Grey Black

There's not much I can say about this palette because it's all metal shadows, bar one matte transition shade "Secret", the swatches speak for themselves. I can't keep saying "They're so amazing, they're so amazing" over & over, you can see how consistently smooth & pigmented each shade is. I've got enough gold/bronze shadows to last me years now, I'd like to see a matte palette from Violet Voss that would work well with the Drenched Metal shades, or a cooler version of the Holy Grail - silvers, purples, blues etc. These shadows are pretty long-lasting aswell, I always forget to use a primer but these shadows still last on my eyes, which is great because alot of metallic shadows tend to lose the glitter throughout the day, in turn losing alot of the pigment.. I highly reccomend these palettes if you're looking for anything similar, they're both quite handy to have, the Holy Grail is perfect for everyday warm looks, glamourous & simple looks & perfect for all seasons! And the Drenched Metal palette is perfect for all the pigmented metallic shades like "I'm So Fancy" & "Dark Desires", grab this palette, a couple of mattes & you could create magic on your eyes! 

♥WASTED LIQUID LIP♥

Liquid to Matte Lipstick in the shade "Wasted" is  described as a Warm Chestnut Nude Rose. The formula is quite thin compared to other liquid lipsticks I've tried, it's very pigmented but because it's thin it's also very easy to build up for more opacity. It's super long-lasting & a little difficult to get off.. (Try to avoid licking lips & greasy foods for a longer lasting colour) And doesn't have any scent. They have 15 different colours available & are $12 USD each 

(Swatches Top-Bottom; "Wasted" Matte Lip, Holy Grail "Ploof", "Toffee" & "Cranberry Splash", Drenched Metal "Bliss", "I'm So Fancy" & "Dark Desires"

LucyLoves! xx

ChiChi Cosmetics Highlight & Contour palette

Palette Review & Swatches

If you're a beginner with makeup or on a budget, this could be the contour palette for you! I was so excited when I saw this was coming out, ChiChi Cosmetics is one of my favourite affordable brands & to hear that they were bringing out their own highlight & contour kit!? I had to get one to try out & compare with my others. The price is amazing for 8 different contour/highlighting shades & the quality is not so bad either! This palette is available at Farmers for $30 NZD or online from ChiChi's website for $25 AUD

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"The Golden Rule of successful highlighting & contouring is to use as little product as possible so the end result is believably natural, to blend it in well & add more colour gradually. Highlight the areas of the face you want to look bigger & emphasise - Contour & shade the areas of your face you want to look smaller & have less emphasis"

This is on the back of the palette & it's so true when it comes to the art of contouring! A little goes a long way with contour powders & it's best to start with the tiniest dab on your brush as it's much easier to blend out & add more if desired.. Especially with this palette as I found it was a little harder to blend then say KvD or ABH where it seems no matter how much you use or if you mess up, they blend like smooth butter! This palette is a little drier so it can get patchy easier, that's why you really have to work with a light amount of product & have patience blending. The shimmer highlight though?! Um wow it's so glowy & super buttery, blends like a dream on the high points. 

The shades are numbered 1 to 8 & the under the palette cover there are helpful tips on how to use each one & where to use them on your face

♥SWATCHES♥

1. Is a stunning champagne shimmer highlight that doesn't have too much colour but a lot of reflection so it looks quite natural & blends in seamlessly
2. This a fair matte setting powder, I like to use this under my eyes to set my concealer but can also be used as a matte cheekbone highlight or base eyeshadow 
3. Is a matte banana setting powder, unfortunately a little too dark for my under eyes (might be good in summer though) so sometimes I mix it with 2 or 4 & apply on my forehead, chin & around my nose & sometimes under my contour to clean up the shape for sharp definition
4. Is a large matte setting powder, its almost translucent so not much coverage, I use this all over my face to set foundation, I love how big it is in the palette because I do use so much of it.
5. Is a very neutral contour shade, it's on the warmer side when you compare it with shade 6, I like to use it as a face bronzer instead of contour because it's the perfect size for my big bronzer brush & I personally prefer a neutral tone as appose to a warm/orangey bronze.
6. Is, in my opinion, the perfect contour shade for light-medium skin tones! It's a cool taupe that looks like natural contour when blended, but needs to be built up slowly or it can look muddy.
7. One of the two warmer bronze shades, this one is slightly darker for a golden tanned look, it almost has a red/brown base & is matte, no shimmer. I almost wish it had a little sheen for that "sunkissed glow" effect
8. Is another warm bronzer, this one is lighter than shade 7 & has an orangey/brown base. This one does have a slight sheen to it, I haven't used this one yet but I imagine in summer it could look really nice with a golden tan

Overall this is a really nice, affordable contour & highlighting palette that has good pigmentation & a good variety of shades. Don't expect the quality of KvD or ABH because they can go patchy or cakey if you're not careful, but they are a great alternative fore someone on a budget looking for a quality contour kit! ChiChi never fails to make amazing affordable products, make sure you check them out! 

Using shades 1, 2, 4 & 6

LucyLoves! xx

Jeffree Star Cosmetics Skin Frost Review

Peach Goddess & Ice Cold

Well, I'm not gonna lie.. I completely forgot to review these bad boys!

I purchased these two JSC Skin Frost highlighters a couple of months ago, around the time I was doing A LOT of online shopping for new makeup products, and when I got these I tried them out, swatched them, fell in love at first sight & then poof! Gone in the depths of my makeup organiser..

Well I was playing around with makeup the other day & the look just called for that Peach Goddess glow so I pulled that out again & realised I haven't really talked to you guys about them!

♥

At the time, Jeffree released 4 Skin Frosts - Ice Cold, Peach Goddess, King Tut & Mint Condition Four unique shades for different skin tones & personalities ;)
But keep an eye out for Jeffree, he's working on some bomb sh*t & will soon add more shades to the Skin Frost collection including a Lavender, deeper Gold & I heard a rumour of a Black one for Halloween?! I can't wait to see how that goes down & what looks people come up with!

www.Jeffreestarcosmetics.com

There's a few reasons why I adore Jeffrees products - he knows quality & tests his products a million times over before selling them to us, everything is cruelty free & vegan, he knows what it's like when you can't afford something so made his highlighters massive & totally worth every cent, his killer style & flare for presentation because like every makeup junkie - he loves good packaging! And there's more but lets talk about these babies & how they'll have you glowing for the gaaawwds hunnay!

Packaging -  as I mentioned above, JS has his own unique style & these barbie pink compacts scream Jeffree Star, they're a thick solid plastic & have a good high-quality mirror inside. Not only that but these are fricken HUGE! A generous amount of 15g/0.53oz for $29 USD, about 5g more than a MAC skinfinsish & more affordable being $4 cheaper! These are also super pigmented so you only need a light hand (depending on how you like your glow) & one of these compacts will last you YEARS! But because there's so much product, these also work great as eyeshadow & all over body shimmer for the summer. Try using them wet for a super intense glow! Remember these are completely Vegan, Cruelty Free, Talc, Paraben & Gluten Free

♥SWATCHES♥

PEACH GODDESS
A stunning bellini shade that has a Peachy/Pink base with an intense champagne shimmer! It looks a lot deeper in the pan, but once on the face it's so reflective that it just bounces off light creating a delicious peach champagne glow! It works fantastic as a Blush topper

ICE COLD
An intense pure white, it's actually hard to describe this shade because it's not just white, it has pearly shimmer, very very pale champagne but also cool silver tones. This is a perfect highlight for fair skinned beauties or on the highest points of your cheekbones on top of a less intense highlight, this adds the right amount for that eye-blinding glow!

I have just a couple of little things I wanted to mention.. Ice Cold is SO intense & so pale in colour that it can almost be too much.. I love a good glow as much as the next beauty babe but this one can make your skin look more textured than it is & sometimes there's the odd chunk of glitter sitting on my cheek... But Peach Goddess is the perfect texture & effect, not glittery just a smooth shimmer, but is a little too dark for some.. I'd Love to see Jeffree come out with a pale golden shade, like a mix of Ice Cold & King Tut? I know it's probably a little too plain for him but I would die for a champagne gold in one of his massive compacts & I'd probably use it on my eyes everyday as well so please Jeffree! Hear my calls for more pale girl glows! Haha



P.S. Please no comments about your opinion on Jeffree Star as a person, I LOVE makeup & his makeup just happens to be bomb! I don't care about the drama, I just want to continue loving & trying products brands create & talking about them to you guys! Spread Positivity & Love for Makeup!

LucyLoves! xx