Category Archives: Swatches

Too Faced Sweet Peach Glow & Papa Don’t Peach (Review & Swatches)

Too Faced Sweet Peach

Too Faced Sweet Peach – the (original) eyeshadow palette launch that broke the hopes and dreams of many people out there because the demand was just too damn high for the supply they had. I was (and still am) obsessed with that eyeshadow palette – it was one of my favourite launches of 2016!

Too Faced Sweet Peach Glow + Papa Don't Peach
Too Faced Sweet Peach Glow + Papa Don’t Peach

So when they decided to relaunch the eyeshadow palette as a permanent product, Too Faced also decided to expand the collection with a full range of peach lip oils (review of those coming soon), a blush/bronze/highlight palette (Sweet Peach Glow) and having a dig through their product archives to re-release the Papa Don’t Peach blush.

I was excited for the launch, but I almost wondered if it would be peach overkill. I mean, that’s a LOT of peach! But as I’ve been mentioning more and more lately – I’ve grown to almost REQUIRE scent in my products as it really elevates my mood while I’m doing my makeup. So I’ve come to the conclusion that I am 100% full steam ahead with these scented launches!

Too Faced Sweet Peach Glow palette
Too Faced Sweet Peach Glow palette

The item that had the most appealed to me when I saw the initial sneak peeks was the Sweet Peach Glow palette. It has the same metal tin packaging as the Sweet Peach eyeshadow palette – it snaps shut with a magnetic lid, has a decently sized mirror and is covered in a beautiful light to dark peach gradient.

Too Faced Sweet Peach Glow palette
Too Faced Sweet Peach Glow palette

Inside you’ve got a light beige-veering-peach highlighter, a bright peach blush and a pale, slightly warm, bronzer.

Too Faced Sweet Peach Glow palette
Too Faced Sweet Peach Glow palette

The palette does skew towards more fair-toned folk, although I think that impression is given off mostly by the bronzer which is quite pale. The peachy blush and the highlighter are definitely strong enough for medium-toned skin.

Too Faced Sweet Peach Glow palette - swatches
Too Faced Sweet Peach Glow palette – swatches

In swatches, you can see that the pigmentation is surprisingly strong (especially the bronzer – I was not expecting that!). I had read an awful lot of reviews that felt like the pigmentation of this palette was just not there, so I was really surprised when I tried it out myself because I’ve got a totally different viewpoint. The pigmentation is definitely there, but since these are more firmly packed gelee-type formula products, you need to use a stiffer brush to pick up the product.

Wearing Too Faced Sweet Peach Glow palette
Wearing Too Faced Sweet Peach Glow palette

On the face? I’m in love. I love the shade of the blush (but like… it’s coral, did you expect me to hate it?!), the bronzer is surprisingly not orange (hooray!) and the highlighter, although a bit more subtle than some of the “BAM! IN YOUR FACE!” ones that are currently on the market, is gorgeous!

Wearing Too Faced Sweet Peach Glow palette
Wearing Too Faced Sweet Peach Glow palette

The highlighter definitely provides a much softer glow and there is a very faint peachy tinge to it. LOVE!

Too Faced Papa Don't Peach blush
Too Faced Papa Don’t Peach blush

The other powder product Sweet Peach launch item was a re-release of their Papa Don’t Peach blush. (I never owned the singular blush packaging, but I did have it in a palette, so there’s a swatch comparison below.) In sticking with the Sweet Peach theme, it also has its own tin packaging with a mirror (I’m growing more and more in love with blushes that come with a mirror – it’s just so handy).

Too Faced Papa Don't Peach blush
Too Faced Papa Don’t Peach blush

The Papa Don’t Peach blush features a whopping 9 grams of product – which is easily three times more than your average blush!

Too Faced Papa Don't Peach blush
Too Faced Papa Don’t Peach blush

And, of course, it’s infused with peach fragrance AND has an embossed logo (just like the Glow palette) – I mean… if that’s not love at first sight, then I don’t know what is!

Too Faced Papa Don't Peach blush
Too Faced Papa Don’t Peach blush

I pulled out my Too Faced Everything Nice (2014 holiday) palette which has the only other copy of Too Faced‘s Papa Don’t Peach blush that I own. The shades are, of course, remarkably similar, but you will notice a slight difference in the swatch:

Too Faced Papa Don't Peach blush swatches - comparison with old version
Too Faced Papa Don’t Peach blush swatches – comparison with old version

Both versions of Papa Don’t Peach are incredibly luminescent – this is the kind of blush you don’t really need a highlighter with because it will definitely light up your face! The older version of Papa Don’t Peach is a touch deeper in tone, maybe a hint more pink. With the new version, I see more peach and a slight bit more of a sheen. All of that being said, I really doubt you’re going to notice a discernible difference on your cheeks between the two shades!

Wearing Too Faced Papa Don’t Peach blush

I avoided applying highlighter when I used this blush just so I could see more of the product at work. In comparison to the Sweet Peach Glow blush, the Papa Don’t Peach blush is definitely less bright and deeper in tone. I did notice a lot of luminescence added to my cheeks in real life with this blush, but I’m not seeing that translated on camera.

Wearing Too Faced Papa Don't Peach blush
Wearing Too Faced Papa Don’t Peach blush

Papa Don’t Peach is stunning – it’s an easy to apply shade that will match a wide variety of eye looks which makes this not only beautiful, but a workhorse product as well!

Final Thoughts

Both products have that luscious, juicy fake peach scent – so if you’re not a fan of scented products, I think you may struggle with these. However, for those of us who love our powder products to have a tasty scent… these are glorious!

Overall, I was extremely impressed with both the standalone Papa Don’t Peach blush, as well as the Sweet Peach Glow palette. I had seen a lot of not so favourable reviews for the Glow palette, so I was a little bit nervous to try it out. However, at first application, I loved them! I like the tone of all of the shades, and I like that the blushes can pack a pigmented punch. If, however, you’re of a far deeper skin tone, I think you’ll struggle with the Glow palette because it seems quite obvious that it caters to us paler folk. I would love to see Too Faced put out a deep version of this palette! For me though: these are absolutely stunning products and I am happy to welcome them in my Sweet Peach collection alongside the eyeshadow palette I bought early last year! <3

If you’re looking for the Too Faced Sweet Peach collection, you can snag it at Sephora (Canada/USA) or at Ulta (USA).

The products featured in this post were sent to me for review. This post may contain affiliate links.

NARS Spring 2017 (Review & Swatches)

NARS Spring 2017
NARS Spring 2017

NARS‘ spring 2017 collection has hit stores and I’m getting a very “cool waters, bronzey tones and coral flare” to the whole collection. It’s a nice change from the “flowers for spring” theme that people just will NOT LET DIE – so I’m really happy to see NARS try something a little bit different. This collection feels like a pre-cursor to summer!

NARS Spring 2017
NARS Spring 2017

I don’t have the full collection (you can see that whole roundup on NARS‘ site here), but I’ve got a couple of their Velvet Shadow Sticks and a gorgous new blush.

NARS Spring 2017
NARS Spring 2017
NARS Spring 2017 - Velvet Shadow Sticks in Siros and Grand-Large, Blush in Bumpy Ride - swatches
NARS Spring 2017 – Velvet Shadow Sticks in Siros and Grand-Large, Blush in Bumpy Ride – swatches

The two Velvet Shadow Sticks are in the shades Siros (bronzey-amber) and Grand-Large (shimmery sky blue). The Bumpy Ride blush is a *stunning* pink-coral with a faint hint of shimmer. It doesn’t look like glitter on the cheeks, but there is some definite added luminosity coming from the blush.

Wearing Velvet Shadow Sticks in Siros and Grand-Large
Wearing Velvet Shadow Sticks in Siros and Grand-Large

In terms of colour, the Velvet Shadow Sticks are beautiful. The bronzey-amber Siros shade is absolutely stunning on the lid and blends out very nicely with a fluffy brush. Great for quick and easy application!

Major, MAJOR creasing! My left eye (your right on the screen) has primer, the other eye does not.
Major, MAJOR creasing! My left eye (your right on the screen) has primer, the other eye does not.

However… it doesn’t last. The Velvet Shadow Sticks are an absolute disaster on my eyelids. When I initially wore this out to a movie one evening I couldn’t believe how badly my eyes looked afterwards – they were creased and tacky-feeling. Just all around gross. I reapplied the shadow sticks over the weekend so you could see what happens to them within a scant few minutes of application. My left eye (your right side in the picture) has eyeshadow primer on it… and as you can see, it didn’t make any damn difference. I don’t even know how anyone could successfully wear these without causing creasing. Ugh.

Wearing Bumpy Ride blush
Wearing Bumpy Ride blush

Moving on to something I did love: the blush. Bumpy Ride is absolutely stunning. It’s pigmented and easy to apply. This shade is everything I *love* in a blush – it’s a coral-pink which is pretty much perfection in my book! As with all NARS blushes I’ve tried, the powder is absolutely flawless.

Final Thoughts

The Velvet Touch Shadow Sticks are… (sorry NARS) garbage. Do not buy them. (And if you’re someone who loves these shadow sticks, please, PLEASE tell me how you wear them!)

That Bumpy Ride blush though? Holy smokes man… that is absolutely 100% worth your money. It’s a gorgeous shade, packs plenty of pigment punch and is easy to apply and blend out. As it turns out, Bumpy Ride is being introduced with this collection but it’s also now a permanent shade! Huzzah!

The products in this post were sent to me for consideration. Post may contain affiliate links.

Swatch Sunday: Annabelle Eye + Brow

Annabelle Eye & Brow Palette

I recently did a try on/first impressions video on some of the new Spring 2017 Annabelle products (video here) and was amazed at the quality of the Eye & Brow palette!

Annabelle Eye & Brow Palette
Annabelle Eye & Brow Palette

Since I didn’t use all of the shades in that video, I thought I’d go ahead and swatch them all for those who were curious in seeing the entire shade range of the palette. Enjoy!

Annabelle Eye & Brow Palette
Annabelle Eye & Brow Palette

Annabelle Eye & Brow Palette Swatches

Annabelle Eye & Brow Palette - Shade 1
Annabelle Eye & Brow Palette – Shade 1
Annabelle Eye & Brow Palette - Shade 2
Annabelle Eye & Brow Palette – Shade 2
Annabelle Eye & Brow Palette - Shade 3
Annabelle Eye & Brow Palette – Shade 3
Annabelle Eye & Brow Palette - Shade 4
Annabelle Eye & Brow Palette – Shade 4
Annabelle Eye & Brow Palette - Shade 5
Annabelle Eye & Brow Palette – Shade 5
Annabelle Eye & Brow Palette - Shade 6
Annabelle Eye & Brow Palette – Shade 6
Annabelle Eye & Brow Palette - Shade 7
Annabelle Eye & Brow Palette – Shade 7
Annabelle Eye & Brow Palette - Shade 8
Annabelle Eye & Brow Palette – Shade 8
Annabelle Eye & Brow Palette - Shade 9
Annabelle Eye & Brow Palette – Shade 9
Annabelle Eye & Brow Palette - Shade 10
Annabelle Eye & Brow Palette – Shade 10
The product featured in this post was sent to me for consideration.

Clinique x Crayola Chubby Sticks (Review & Swatches)

Clinique x Crayola Chubby Sticks

When I saw the spoiler images of the Clinique and Crayola Chubby Sticks appearing online a few weeks (maybe a month?) ago, I was more than a little in enamoured. Clinique‘s Chubby Sticks have been around for ages, but there is really no better brand to pair with than Crayola for these products! I mean, they already look like crayons!

Clinique x Crayola Chubby Sticks
Clinique x Crayola Chubby Sticks

Not unexpectedly, but just so you’re aware, this Clinique and Crayola team up is a limited edition collection. The collection features eight shades that  veer very much towards the pink and red side of things. While there are some lesser tinted shades, you won’t find a true nude in the bunch (when I say that, I mean something more brown/caramel in tone).

Clinique x Crayola Chubby Sticks
Clinique x Crayola Chubby Sticks

Although I’ve been aware of Clinique‘s Chubby Stick pencils for years, I’ve never actually tried them before now. These particular Chubby Sticks are branded as a “Moisturizing Lip Colour Balm” and they really do feel that way. They’re loaded with mango and shea butters and the end result is that you get a sheer wash of colour on the lips in a texture that feels akin to any other lip balm on the market. If you’re comfortable wearing lip balm, then these will feel no different to you!

Clinique x Crayola Chubby Stick swatches - Mauvelous, Wild Strawberry and Pink Sherbert
Clinique x Crayola Chubby Stick swatches – Mauvelous, Wild Strawberry and Pink Sherbert

As you can see from the three shades swatched above (Mauvelous, Wild Strawberry and Pink Sherbet), the tones are very much in the pink/red family. The colours are fairly sheer (the swatches were layered quite a bit) but the texture is quite balmy.

Clinique x Crayola Chubby Stick Moisturizing Lip Colour Balm Swatches

Wearing Clinique Crayola Chubby Stick in Mauvelous
Wearing Clinique Crayola Chubby Stick in Mauvelous

I don’t see quite as much mauve in this shade as I would expect for a shade named Mauvelous in the title, but it is absolutely stunning regardless!

Wearing Clinique Crayola Chubby Stick in Wild Strawberry
Wearing Clinique Crayola Chubby Stick in Wild Strawberry

My favourite of the three shades – Wild Strawberry! Gives that perfect “cherry popsicle” lip look!

Wearing Clinique Crayola Chubby Stick in Pink Sherbert
Wearing Clinique Crayola Chubby Stick in Pink Sherbert

I’m not a soft pink person, but I know a lot of people are going to love Pink Sherbet because it’s an easy to wear shade that will match a ton of eye looks!

Final Thoughts

Ummm I don’t know where I’ve been, but I’m happy to report that I am sitting comfy on the Clinique Chubby Stick bandwagon now. I love that these feel like lip balm – that’s an ENORMOUS selling point for me because it makes them super easy to apply. The bullets are also quite sturdy which means you’re not going to be slopping the lip colour all over the place while you’re applying it either.

The Clinique x Crayola colours are pretty basic in the grand scheme of things, but that’s not a downer. (And I really do like the added touch of the crayon look!) It means that they’ve got some great shades that are lot of people are going to enjoy wearing on the daily. Longevity is also fairly impressive, especially given the texture of these products. I get about two hours of wear before I feel like I need to refresh my lip colour. It does fade nicely, so you needn’t worry about that either! And, to top it all off, these are scent and taste free!

The Clinique x Crayola Chubby Sticks are limited edition and you can snap them up at sephora.ca for $21 CAD each or on sephora.com for $17 USD each. If you’re interested in trying out all of the shades, they even have a mini set of all eight colours!

The products featured in this post were sent to me for review. Post may contain affiliate links.

Swatch Sunday: Mary Kay Pure Dimensions Eye Palettes

Mary Kay Pure Dimensions Eye Palettes

Brands may already be talking about spring products, but since it’s still firmly winter in my book, I’m swatching up the winter release palettes by Mary Kay. The Pure Dimensions Eye Palettes are silky smooth and are absolutely stunning to look at (although you’ll need some mattes to get a completely comprehensive look since these are all shimmery!).

Mary Kay Pure Dimensions Eye Palettes
Mary Kay Pure Dimensions Eye Palettes

Mary Kay Pure Dimensions Eye Palette Swatches

Mary Kay - Paris Starlight
Mary Kay – Paris Starlight
Mary Kay - Paris Starlight - Swatches
Mary Kay – Paris Starlight – swatches
Mary Kay - Moroccan Dunes
Mary Kay – Moroccan Dunes
Mary Kay - Moroccan Dunes - swatches
Mary Kay – Moroccan Dunes – swatches
Mary Kay - Maui Gardens
Mary Kay – Maui Gardens
Mary Kay - Maui Gardens - swatches
Mary Kay – Maui Gardens – swatches
The products featured in this post were sent to me for consideration.