Review: Kat Von D Saint & Sinner Eyeshadow Palette (+ swatches for Urban Decay Heavy Metals Eyeshadow Palette)

Welcome back! 😄

As I was checking through my Sephora app for new releases (like usual, window shopping is real  hehe), I noticed that the Kat Von D Saint & Sinner eyeshadow palette is now back on stock! I was actually sad that I won't be able to review this because no one can get it anymore. So this news is great because when Kat Von D says limited edition, once it's out, it is out forever.  

This is my first ever first ever high end palette here in Canada. I have contemplated for so long before I picked it up because (1) it is so expensive & (2) I'm not sure I can get a lot of use out of it. I was actually encouraged to get it by the Youtubers that I respect the opinions of when it comes to quality of products. Jen of JenLuvsReviews, Liv of Livloveshermakeup & Jkissa all raved about the good quality of these eyeshadows & the ingredients so it really made me want to but it more. I convinced myself that with the 20% off from the VIB sale, it would be worth it LOL 😂 

Vegan

Made in Canada  -  Net Wt. 24 x 1g (0.04 oz)

I really liked the packaging. It is not practical but is really gorgeous. It is said that Kat Von D designed this herself. It is shaped like a cathedral and the shade arrangements reflects the colors of stained glasses in churches. The palette is divided into 2- the SAINT side which is the more natural, everyday colors & the SINNER which consists of more vibrant and fun colors. This has a mixture of mattes, shimmers and toppers. 

Look how vibrant the swatches are! These are all finger swatches without any eyeshadow primer. To be honest, I am really attracted to the Sinner side more because I just love colors so much! 

 WHAT I LOVE ABOUT THIS PALETTE:

- Cruelty free & Vegan. This means this product don't have any carmine (pigments from bugs) in it which is very rare in the cosmetic industry. If I can get a product without killing any kind of creature then that's the best way to go.

- Very pigmented & consistent. I have tried a lot of eyeshadows that swatches beautifully but doesn't translate to your eyelids, and I am glad to say Kat Von D shadows not only applies smoothly on the lid with or without primer but it also stays vibrant throughout the day too.

- Buildable & blendable. I know others prefer to have a very strong pigment at one go but I prefer it to be buildable because it is easier to blend. I can just get some product little by little and then blend. This way, I don't make mistakes easily and I can achieve the look & intensity I want depending on what I like at that moment. 

- I really enjoyed the color selection. I can create a complete look with just this palette. I have shades for crease, highlight, lid, accent & even colors to deepen the look. I won't need other supplemental palettes or eyeshadows because everything I need is here.

- Packaging is sturdy. I can travel with this palette & not worry that the eyeshadows will get crashed. I also love that it has magnetic closure that doesn't open up very easily.

- I am happy that I could create lots of looks from this ranging from no-makeup makeup look to edgy & colorful. I really am surprised that I get inspired whenever I open this even though I am not an artist 

WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE:

- The price. It is so expensive! $83 CAD plus 13% tax, all in all almost a hundred bucks for a palette of 24 shadows. I don't think I can buy this without the discount. 

- Even though I love the packaging, it is so hard to store since it is big. Maybe once I get a vanity table I can look for ways to display it haha

- It says in the packaging that this will expire in 9 months after opening. Although I don't follow the expiry date, I am worried that this will go bad faster than my other eyeshadows.

- Limited edition. I hate limited edition products because once I used it up or something happened to this, how will I replace it?

- Other people might get a hard time creating looks from this palette because of the arrangement of the shadows. I didn't mind it but others can get overwhelmed easily & get stuck on ideas because the shadows are scattered & was not layed out in a way that guides users in creating a look.

RECOMMENDED?

Definitely! You should buy this if you love a very versatile eyeshadow palette & you love playing with colors. These are very pigmented & blends easily so it is perfect for regular makeup lovers like me. I will definitely buy more Kat Von D eyeshadow palettes in the future if there will be new releases since I really love the quality, though I wish her products are not so expensive haha that's really a draw back most of the time.

  

By the way, sorry if I don't have any pictures using this palette. I was planning to do so but my eyelids were still super dry & flaky until now from the extreme weather conditions here in Winnipeg (-40 degrees!). I am not wearing any makeup for the last 2 weeks now because my skin from head to toe are so dry. I promise to post makeup looks soon once I get better skin condition. Crossing my fingers my new moisturizer will help.

  

BONUS:

I got the Urban Decay Heavy Metals eyeshadow palette last Christmas when it went on sale for just $35 from $72 CAD. I was actually aiming to get it when it first came out but I can't get over the price especially since I just bought the $82 KVD palette. Lucky for me, they went on sale and was able to grabbed it before it went out of stock. Although I have seen it on Shoppers Drug Mart website a week ago so I'm not sure if they still have some on stock. 

I have actually not used this yet on my eyes, but based on first impression with the finger swatches, this will look bomb! I bought this because I love very shimmery eyeshadow looks but I hate the need to use glitter glue, so this is perfect. Also, it has all the shades I will need to create a look & it will go nicely with my other eyeshadow palette that lacks glittery colors. 

Bulk Made in USA, Assembled in Dominican Republic 

Net Wt. 20 x 0.8g (0.03 oz)

What are your favorite eyeshadow palette? Please share them on the comment section below. 😄  


Thank you for dropping by! 

Mineral Eyeshadows (swatches)

It's a rainy day again and I'm not feeling that good (maybe due to the frequent changing of weather, I'm getting the flu..I hope I'm wrong)..I wanted to up my spirit a little bit and I thought, "why not play with your makeup?" and so I planned to make a look. So I opened my traincase and brought out all my eyeshadows to get some inspiration. But sadly, I got none..yeah, not a single inspiration on what look I should do..I got sad coz it has been quite a while already since I made a pretty eye makeup and I really wanted to make one for you guys..anyways, while I was returning my stuff inside the traincase, I got an idea. Why not take a picture of the swatches of my remaining mineral eyeshadows? I have been neglecting these babies since I got my Coastal Scents 88 palette and I forgot how beautiful they are. So here's a shot of my mineral eyeshadows/multi-purpose minerals..I'm not an avid mineral makeup user anymore because I'm not that happy with my stash of mineral foundation already (I still can't find my perfect match in all my criteria) but I'm still in-love with mineral blushes and eyeshadows because they are so pigmented and lasts long on my oily lids. Plus, they are very affordable and has a huge variety of colors to choose from! I'll show you what I'm talking about. Check out how vibrant these loose pigments are ^_^

Very pretty right? and these are only samples because I know I won't be able to finish them up.

What I like about mineral e/s:
- can be bought in sample sizes (1/8 tsp or 1g depending on the brand) at very affordable prices ($1 or Php100)
- very pigmented even if applied dry and without a base (and more vibrant if applied foiled/wet)
- you only need to use a very minute amount of product everytime
- comes in a huge variety of finish and colors
- there are so many brands to choose from!
- long lasting on my oily lids

What I don't like about it:
- some pigments are just glitter bombs (so be careful on buying)
- my favorite brands are not available locally
- since it is in loose form, they tend to produce fallouts especially when applied dry

Will I continue buying mineral shadows? YES! Since they don't expire, I can continue to collect them and use them anytime. And for the price of 1 MAC or MUFE loose pigment, I can already have more than 20 shades of mineral eyeshadows to choose from :)

Here are my swatches of them. I applied them dry using my fingers. The upper half has base (MAC painterly paintpot) underneath while the lower part has no base whatsoever. See how pigmented they are? ^_^


They have the same quality of vibrancy (in terms of the color) as with the ones on the pots..Isn't it obvious how much I love them? Why did I ever forgot to use them? toink! :)

My Top 5 Favorite Brands for MMU e/s are:
1. Taylormade
2. Bare Escentuals
3. Monave
4. Lumiere
5. Dreamworld


What about you? Do you love/use mineral eyeshadows too? What are your favorite brands? Share them by posting on the comment box below..I would be happy to hear yours out too :)
Thanks for dropping by.. Till next time ^_^

MAC vs Artdeco

My friend Brenda asked me to do some swatches of my Artdeco eyeshadows because she's been reading good reviews on them..I told her that I only have 1 Artdeco eyeshadow since most of my shadows are mineral pigments..she told me it is okay, she just wants to see the pigmentation of the shadows..so I said okay :)

Here's a comparison swatch, both with and without base (I used my MAC painterly paintpot), between MAC and Artdeco eyeshadows..Relaxing is the only MAC shadow I have with color..my other MAC e/s is Unorthodox which is a light yellow shade so I can't use it for swatching hehe.

See how pigmented both brands are? the shade and intensity of the swatches on my hand versus the shade in pot is almost identical..they last long too even with or without base underneath..I could really conclude, for me anyway, that both MAC and Artdeco eyeshadows are good buys.

MAC pressed eyeshadow in "Relaxing"
- Although I don't have other shades of MAC e/s to compare the quality with, here's my review for this particular shade of MAC e/s.
Packaging: 5/5 -- i like the sturdiness of the case and that you could see the shade immediately on the cover..very handy too.
Price: 3/5 -- a little pricey especially for a student like me..it is almost P900 here in the Philippines per piece..so this is a turn off for me even if the quality is superb
Availability: 4/5 -- we can only get it from few Rustan's Essences and Marrionaud shops.
Quality of the product: 4/5 -- this shade is hard to show on my lids but I like the staying power once I've made it show

Artdeco pressed eyeshadow #20
- this is also my only Artdeco eyeshadow so like in my MAC review, there is no point of comparison.
Packaging: 4/5 -- it's hard to memorize the shades since they come in numbers instead of names like in MAC but over all I love the size and packaging..it only occupies a small space and you can easily see the shade and shade name on top...you can also easily customize the palette with any shadow you want..it has a built-in magnet at the back so easy to attach in the palette..and lastly, the small size is perfect since you will surely use up the shadow before it expires.
Price: 5/5 -- for less than P300, you could get one shadow already that's very pigmented..very budget friendly for students.
Availability: 4/5 -- you can only get these from chosen SM department stores.
Quality: 5/5 -- it is very pigmented and you only need to dip your eyeshadow brush once to make the color show on your lips...it lasts a lot longer than my MAC too.
*
OVER-ALL Verdict: I love MAC but it is much practical for me to purchase ARTDECO eyeshadows instead..I get the same quality for a fraction of the cost..so for those looking for a chaper alternative for MAC shadows, I suggest you try Artdeco and you won't regret it :)