Happy Valentines Day

Every year Glossybox always take advantage of the major holidays and do a special box, which comes in alternative packaging, and this year they have outdone themselves... packaging wise.  

The box is candy pink and glossy with a drawing of a bow on the front with the Glossybox logo in the centre.   What is extra nice about this is that the ribbon isnt just on the lid and thats where the effort ends, no the ribbon is also drawn across the base of the box and ends at the back with a drawn on Glossybox sticker holding it in place.  Ten out of ten for effort there Glossybox, its such a pretty box and i cant wait to put it up on my shelf where it can be seen and admired (yes i admit it im a crazy box and tin lady).

Inside, frosted pink paper and rose pink shredded paper just add to the lovely overall prettiness of the box.  And then on to what I got.....

I get 2 boxes as I am lucky enough that my husband also gets me a box a month.  Both profiles are completed differently so that the boxes vary in what I get.

BOX 1

 Looks promising...... right? 

First the item that just about everyone seems to have received.  I have had some Dr Rennauds before in a flashbox and they are lovely, my only objection here is the smell.  I think not only are strawberries more valentines day than raspberrries I think that they are a more loved smell than raspberries.  That said this is a lovely cream, its almost like a white gel but dissolves right into the skin and does have a fresh raspberry yoghurt smell.  This is 30ml and at full size of 50ml it retails at £25.  This size is therefore worth £15, which is not bad.  

 The next item is from Anatomicals, and this definitely screams valentines to me, why? Its gorgeous rose scent of course.  It smells lovely and its not a fake rose smell, its that lovely fresh cut garden rose smell.  Its lovely on the skin and isnt overpowering.  This is not a full size but its huge nonetheless.

Next, those dreaded mini makeup samples.  Though some think they are messy to use as you cant get your brush in, just tip upside down and allowing some product to settle in the lid and they are much less messy.  This one is in suede, and its from Micabella cosmetics - a mineral blush.  Its a nice enough coral/brown colour and blends out beautifully.  Not bad, and ive been lucky enough to avoid these before this box... sadly I would like to avoid them for the future to lol.  Its not that they arent nice, i just like my blusher pressed not loose.

Next item is a lipstick from Helen E cosmetics, this retails at £8, not sure of its quality as i didnt swatch it, this is heading right into a giveaway.  I dont like these shades and as you know I am a MAC lipstick fiend so I dont use other lippys very much at all.  No offensive smell though, and the packaging is nice enough with a see through lid which is always great if they are standing in a drawer so you can see the colour and dont spend forever searching for the colour you want.

The last item is from MODEL CO, and is full sized.  This is an eyeshadow duo in Bronze Goddess and the shades are Maldives and Jamaica.  I wasnt too sure at first, but then i swatched the colours and they are lovely.  I have worn them and they are soft and blend easy, the lighter champagne colour is very similar to the MAC pressed pigment in light touch - its a touch peachier but just as sparkly. 

The added treat in the box is a red heart lollipop, yum this is gorgeous, I would love to know who the supplier is as I definitely would love more.

Overall, I like this box, I will give the blusher a go, and the lipstick is a nice addition to my giveaway.  The eyeshadow duo is lovely and the shower gel but the raspberry cream will take some getting used to, its an odd smell for me.  Im happy with this box.

BOX 2

This box again had the raspberry soft cream in it, as well as another blusher and lipstick, this time though in different colours.

This lipstick is not for me either, this is natural which is a browny peach colour, and another addition to my upcoming giveaway.  

The blusher is in terracotta, this I do like, its a lovely coral colour and I am pretty pleased that this I can wear and will give a try.  

The next item is a liquid highlighter called BEAT THE BLUES, from the brand MEMEME, and its in Oyster Gold.  This brand is big on duping Benefit, and this is pretty nice, its not a yellow gold which is great as I hate gold highlighters on me - gold is not my colour.  I think I can work with this and will give it a try.  

The last item in the box is a body spray, this is a very cheap item even at its full size, but it does retail in Boots and Sainsburys so at least if you like it you can get hold of it easy enough.  I love love love the smell of this spray and have worn it, it smells nice on the skin and clothes and did last quite a while.  Alec loved it and noticed it rightaway, asking what perfume do you have on? Thats a huge thumbs up.  I would buy this again and cant wait to see what other smells there are in the range.

Overall I loved the 2nd box to.  Love the spray and the blusher is a pretty colour, the lipstick completes one of the giveaway prizes and i will enjoy trying the highlighter out, and pass it on if i dont like it.  And that cream, lol, i better start liking it now i have two of them.

OVERALL

I think there is too much makeup in these boxes.  Im not a fan of makeup in boxes, im pretty set in the brands I like for things such as eyeshadows, lipsticks etc and I think its a gamble getting a colour the recipient of the box will like.  I love skincare in my boxes, I love trying new things.  These boxes brought me a footspray i love, hair oil which i hadnt used before and now cant be without, and various body lotions and moisturisers I just love.  This box therefore was a little disappointing for me in that respect.  I feel there was a lack of balance, maybe one less makeup item and a nail item instead would have been better.

Somehow all the hype around these special boxes just never quite delivers.  As always its a nice box but its not amazing.  I guess we just hype it too much and then its kinda disappointing when we do get it, I never expect too much so I'm never too disappointed.  This box is nice, but its not amazing.  Maybe next month will be better, I always feel the standard boxes are so much better anyway and for me I am a huge Glossybox fan.  Theres always something to rescue the box.

Happy Valentines Day everyone xx

Rimmel SCANDALEYES Shadow Stick Review

 

Just recently Rimmel brought out a new addition to their Scandaleye range in the shape of eyeshadow pencils.  I found this very exciting as I am very into cream and pencil shadows right now.  I find they are easy to use, blendable and also make great bases for shadow products to add intensity and lastability.

In the UK Rimmel have only released five of the shades, and have decided not to release the white, green and blue ones over here.  Im not sure why, I think they would be very popular, and at this very affordable price point I'm sure would sell well.  

Currently they are £3.49 at Superdrug (free postage online till Feb 14th) and £5.99 and in a 3 for 2 offer at Boots.

So, after testing them and swatching them, here are the pros and cons, as well as a review of all the colours and a star rating on each. 

First what does Rimmel promise, this is what Boots have on their page:

High Impact Colour Shadow Stick. High impact cream shadow stick that applies in a flash. Precision tip applicator and ultra-soft formula glides on smoothly and won’t tug or pull lids for a subtle or intense look. High-shine and luminous finish

They also claim to be 24 hour waterpoof!  This is printed on the pencil itself.

Before I start with the pros and cons, here are some pictures of the colours and swatches:

BAD BRONZE

BULLETPROOF BEIGE

TEMPTING TURQUOISE

PARANOID PURPLE

BLACKMAIL

First off, love the choices for names, they have a hard mysterious edge that appeals to me and my love of crime, as in crime programmes and books that is.  

So first lets rate them:

BAD BRONZE - ***                      A medium chocolate brown

BULLETPROOF BEIGE - **        A champagne gold

TEMPTING TURQUOISE - ****  A vibrant turquoise

PARANOID PURPLE - ***           A blackened purple

BLACKMAIL - *****                      A true black

So as you can see, some colours faired better than others.

Lets get the negatives out of the way first:

THE LIDS - They are cheap and not suited to the product.  When you first get yours they may even be very hard to get off, beware though because in your struggle you could take the tip of your pencil off, yes they are that soft!  I would have preferred an opaque lid, that was more solid and less cheap looking and feeling, they would have looked classier to, and be less potentially damaging to the product, perhaps thats more to do with the fit of the lid.

THE PENCIL - They wipe away with a tissue, no makeup remover just a plain, ordinary tissue.  If you leave them this might not be quite as easy, but.... left on the back of my hand BULLETPROOF BEIGE in particular just evaporated.  Within a few hours there was barely a trace there, and after washing my hands they were gone completely and i didnt even rub at them or apply soap so 24hour waterproof RIMMEL, I dont think so.  So if you are an eye rubber you may want to give these a miss.

Another thing is how soft they are, we all want a soft pencil so it doesnt drag our skin and feels nice to apply, these are TOO soft, too much pressure and pop goes the end of your pencil.  I would hate to see what a hot climate would do to these!

THE COLOURS - Why is the UK not good enough to get the whole range, annoying!!  Also the colours themselves are not all strong, bulletproof beige is a champagne goldy colour not beige and bad bronze is more bad brown, and well paranoid purple, yes it must be paranoid because it cant decide if it wants to be black or purple, so it switches between the two. 

But enough of all that negativity, lets get to the positives, because there are positives.

THE PRICE - These are very affordable shadow pencils, that aim to mimic urban decay shadow pencils and NYX, they may not be as good, but they are a good high street alternative, if you just want a quick fix.

THE COLOURS - The black and turquoise stand out from the others by a mile, they last longer on the skin, are very vibrant and true colours.

THE PENCILS - They are pigmented, creamy and not at all streaky on application.  They glide over the skin and could work equally well as dramatic eyeliner or as a shadow, they also blend nicely for a smoky eye.  And with primer and a setting spray their lastability could be extended.  Also they make a great base for other eye products, such as powder shadows.  They are also very glossy and do contain small glitter pigments that reflect light beautifully.

THE PACKAGING AND NAMES - I touched on this before, the names are genius i love them, and the packaging, with exception of the lid is nice and simple.  Its not gaudy, or too much its just simple and the coloured end means you can put them upside down in a pot and get the colour you want at speed.

TO SUM IT ALL UP....

Before I conclude I will tell you that I dont like RIMMEL as a brand at all, the packaging and products do nothing for me, I have a black nail varnish and a black lipgloss by them, and that is it.  But now I can add 5 pencils to that because as much as they have issues, I feel like I can work with them, and at that price point I wouldnt expect them to wow me the way the Urban Decay shadow pencils do.  You get what you pay for with cosmetics in my opinion, this is something I have learned over the past few years.  But you don't always have to go for that higher brand to get a great look, its not like a named handbag or those designer shoes, nobody sees the labels on what you put on your face after all.  You have to find what works for you.   

I love the versatility of a pencil shadow, its creamy, soft and makes application easier, I can be more creative with how and where I apply the colour and these will be a fun addition to my collection.

Scandalous I know, but Rimmel as much as this product has its flaws, I like it anyway... but you have not converted me, just release those other colours and stop teasing!!

Live, Love, Laugh

And remember, the name of this blog is UNAPOLOGETIC, I'm going to be honest with you always, you might not agree but its good to hear every side of the story xx 

Glinda..... in pictures

TORNADO                MAGIC

AURA                                 OZ

ILLUSION                     SOUTH

Swatches left to right (not including mini swatch of eyeliner)
TORNADO, MAGIC and OZ

Swatches - left to right  - SOUTH, ILLUSION and AURA

ROCKSTAR 24/7 EYELINER AVAILABLE IN PERMANENT LINE

GLINDA LIP PENCIL (ALSO KNOWN AS NAKED IN THE PERMANENT LINE

I love this palette and for me this is the better of the two, its not as pastel as you would think, the colours are actually quite strong and just stunning on.  This stands out as more unique to me.  Check out my video for swatches, mini review, and how it looks in an eye look I created, you can see it at my channel at the link below on youtube or just watch below via the video link.

http://www.youtube.com/spaceysno1girl

Theodora.... in pictures

Cant wait to try out this look

Add caption

From right to left BROKEN, BEWARE, SPELL X 2, WEST, BEWITCH and JEALOUS X 2

BROKEN          BEWARE

      WEST               BEWITCH

JEALOUS               SPELL

Broken on whole lid, Beware in the crease and West on outer corner and outer edge of crease.  Black from Spell on upper lash line and gold from Spell on lower lash line inner eye.  Jealous olive green on outer lower lash line and lighter green on inner eyelid for about 1/3rd of eye

Watch out for Glinda tomorrow xx