Maybelline Color Tattoo eyeshadows

It was during an in and out visit at Hondos Center, a few days ago, and on my way to the cashier I realized that I had a few more minutes to spare. So I decided to take a look at the Maybelline products and I was pleasantly surprised because I spotted the new Color Tattoo cream eyeshadows! There were a few, hidden behind some other stuff, not a very clever promotional setting!

After watching videos with raves about these eyeshadows, seeing them in store resulted in a spontaneous reaction, I literally snatched them up! The very kind Maybelline assistant was apologetic because there were no testers at the time and not all the colors available as yet but I assured her that I had no problem with it.

The cost is €8,45 per eyeshadow but she gave me two coupons, €4 each, so all four of them cost me about €26, I think that €6,50 per eyeshadow is a great deal!

Here they are!

Colors as swatched, from left to right:

35 - On and on Bronze (shimmery)
40 - Permanent Taupe (matte)
55 - Immortal Charcoal (shimmery)
45 - Infinite White (shimmery)

In case you have seen them on youtube or online, you'll notice that the names of the shades sold here are different, although it is the same product.

Do they worth the rave?
In one word: Yes!

Very good color payoff, what you see is what you get. It can also be used light handed, for a more sheer result.

Used over a primer ( I'm currently using the Too Faced Shadow Insurance) they don't budge, smudge, crease or fade even after maaaaany hours. I actually had them on for 16 hours the last few of them spent dancing in a club, and when I returned home they were in place. I was so impressed that I tried to take a photo but I had a hard time focusing (I wonder why, LOL!).

It is easy to blend them out with a brush (before they set).

The consistency is smooth and even, with the white color being the only one that does not apply as evenly as the rest. It is not patchy by any means, just not as even as the rest I have.

I really like the color range, I find the shades I got very easy to use. As a matter of fact, the taupe one is already a staple to me as an everyday crease color and the white one has became my go to highlight for the inner corner.
I would also like a couple of the rest, preferably the green and the pinkish/burgundy/purple one.

They excel worn alone but as well as a base for powder eyeshadows: as soon as I apply them on the lid I tap on top a powder eyeshadow and once it dries it locks the powder in place in a way I have not experienced with any primer or base.

They can also be used as eyeliners.

They come in glass jars, like the Mac paint pots, and that makes the product seem more expensive and more substantial.

At €8,45 each, I find them affordable, especially in comparison to the popular Mac paint pots.

That's it for now, I hope you're all well and thriving!

Belated Mac haul post

You already know how much I enjoyed the christmas collections by Mac.
Here you can see my relevant posts
Part 1
Part 2

There where also a couple of items that I wanted but, due to a weird Mac policy, where not available in Greece.

These items where the Snowglobe beauty powder and the Let's Skate paintpot and as soon as I saw that they wouldn't be available here, I ordered them from allcosmeticswholesale . The price with shipping was very close to the actual cost of the relevant products that where sold here in store.

Snowglobe is a gorgeous, finely milled shimmery powder that can be used as a highlight or as an all over powder for a night out because it is very sheer and delicate and gives the skin a very pretty glow without looking like I just moved in from fairyland ( LOL!)

Let's Skate paintpot was a purchase against reason for me since I'm not a paintpot collector because of the product's short term life. There 's no way I will finish such a product in 6 months, so I always use one paintpot at a time (currently Painterly). But when I saw swatches of Let's Skate I knew I had to have it, it's unlike any paintpot I have seen so far! It's light pink with gold shimmer/glitter, and the funny part is that I hadn't even opened the pot until last night that I decided to use it! I almost screamed from joy, because it really is soooo pretty, it gives such a beautiful glow and light to the lids, I also used a bit on the browbone, in one word, gorgeous! I also noticed that when used under an eyeshadow it retains the sparkle but in a more subtle way, so it will be perfect for everyday use on the lids.

Last item that I purchased was something that I had seen in store but at that point decided not to buy and after a few days, when I realized it was sold out, I was hit by a "why didn't I buy this?" remorse ( LOL!).
When I bought the Cool face kit I had seen the Frost face kit as well, I spent quite some time debating if I should purchase this kit as well or not (I liked the palette very much) and reason prevailed (it rarely happens!) so I only got the Cool kit.
After a few days the Frost kit was sold out, so I thought to check eBay although I never purchase Mac stuff on eBay, it's too much a risk to me. And guess what? I found that there was a girl that was auctioning the Frost palette alone! I checked her feedback, it was 100%, she had sold various things and all her buyers said that the item they had purchased was as described. I carefully read the description for the palette and she was saying that the palette was 100% authentic and she hadn't even swatched it, she had purchased the kit but didn't want the palette. So I took the plunge and bid for it, and I actually got it, at a very reasonable price ( I think it cost me $37 with priority shipping). It goes without saying that until I received it I was really anxious about the condition of the item, but then I thought that I would disinfect it anyway, so, no harm done even if she had swatched it.
Imagine my surprise when I saw that it was untouched, in perfect condition! That doesn't mean that I will take this risk again on ebay for a Mac product, but, this particular risk was a total success!

So, here is a photo of my last christmas haul

And here is a pitiful swatch attempt, I would suggest google if you want to see accurate swatches of any of the mentioned products (LOL!).
At the bottom you can (not) see the Snowglobe beauty powder, then the four eye shadows and the blush and on the left you can (not) see the Let's Skate paint pot.

Hope you're all well and thriving!

The body shop Chocomania!

It's been quite a while since I entered a Body Shop store (I dont't know why, LOL!) and the launch of the limited edition Chocomania collection was the call of the Siren, because it is a fact that I' m a sucker for everything related to chocolate, so I couldn't resist the temptation to smell like a chocolate from neck to toes!

So, I got the following:

Chocomania body butter €15
Chocomania Shower cream €7
Chocomania lip butter €6

With no further ado, the punch line: Does it actually smell like chocolate?
Well, no. To be more precise, it's somewhat like it, but not dead on the spot, there's something artificial, in a prominent way.

Does it smell good?
It smells good enough to eat, nevertheless. I will happily use it, it's just not as chocolatey as I would like.

The body butter is very dense and it will last forever because it takes a really small portion to cover the entire body. When I tried it in the store the smell took a few minutes to come through, at first it was too intense and bitter. When I used it at home, after shower, the bitterness evaporated instantly (it makes sense because after the shower the body is warm) and what it leaves behind is a kind of sweet, edible (LOL) and a bit chocolatey aura.

The shower cream is thick and luxurious and smells yummie as well.
As for the lip butter, although I rarely prefer them in a pot I made an exception for this one. The flavor here is more subtle and discreet.

Of course all the above products excell in moisturizing the skin, lips etc.

While I was there I purchased the Papaya shower gel as well because it is discontinued and it was on sale, only €1! It smells quite citrusy and refreshing, it will be perfect in the summer.

Last thing I got is a Vanilla body mist (€10 for 100ml) because I run out of it. It is something that I always have in a drawer and I use when I want to tone down a too edgy perfume. Just a bit of dear old vanilla makes everything more mellow.

While I was there I was also tempted to get a shimmery cubes set, there was a teal/green that was screaming my name, I swatched it (now I get why Evi aka Cbsg5861 is raving about them!) but I managed to resist it, (at least for now).

That's all about it, I hope you're all well and thriving!