Instructions Not Included: Eye Shadow

Monday, May 5, 2014

Big Love, Big Lots

Hi Guys, thanks for coming back.

So I have learned something very, very important. Not all Big Lots are created equal. I have been to many Big Lots in many locations and all of the beauty departments are not the same. Some are big, some are small and some are just right. My home town location is a gold mine of drugstore brands, sometimes even current product lines.

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Example 1: Maybelline Eyestudio Duo #10 Lawless Lavender $2.00

(These are the baked single pan shadows with 2 colors. I seen the very same one in Kmart today for $6.99)

Example 2: Revlon Colorstay Brow Enhancer Light Brown (brow tinted wax) Champagne (highlighter) $2.80

(This is a dual ended retractable pencil)

Example 3: Revlon Colorburst Lip Butter #20 Brown Sugar $2.00

Example 4: Maybelline Colorwhisper #250 Nude Shimmer $1.50

Example 5: Epielle BB Cream Light Beige $2.80

As far as I know #5 is a new product made by Epielle. I have bought the makeup remover wipes made by Epielle at Big Lots and I have always been very happy with them. I have read one other beauty blogger who reported on this product, however I have just done a swatch on the back of my hand and I would agree with the blogger thus far, WOW. I used my It Cosmetics Heavenly Luxe Flat Top Buffing Foundation Brush to just buff it into the back of my hand, for a BB cream it did everything it should and more, including leaving a nice illumination to my skin. (I used this under my makeup and I really disliked it. I can’t put my finger on why, especially when I liked it so much previously. It might do fine if you use it on its own. I will try it again and give a better review in the next couple of weeks.)

I had mentioned before that I would be moving so we have been knee deep in boxes since last week. Last night we finally unloaded the last box into a storage unit until we find a house to rent. We are so unorganized and I have a ton of things to get straightened out so I can post to the blog properly. I am so sorry I didn’t include pictures in this post. I will upload them tomorrow, I hope. I am trying to make sure all of my pictures look good and have a consistent look to them throughout the blog. You can probably tell, if you keep up with my blog, that there has been an improvement to them in the last few posts.

During all of the packing and moving I continued to plan and come up with ideas for my program Makeup for a 2nd Chance. I believe you will be seeing a name change very soon. A close friend and I have been brainstorming names and we have it down to just a few. I am thinking of having a poll to decide what the final name will be. We both believe that the one we have now is just not the right one. In the business of a non-profit you want to really get your message across in as few words as possible and that starts in the name. Of course I would love to hear any suggestions you have in the comment section below. My next post will be a favorite’s video for April, sorry it’s going to be so late.

Please keep us in your prayers.

Much Love and God Bless,

KelleyJo

Twitter @kelleyjo3334

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Sunday, April 27, 2014

Sally Girl Eye Shadows, first impressions

Hi guys, thanks for coming back.

So yesterday I posted a picture of the $0.98 Sally Girl eye shadows that you can pick up at Sally Beauty Supply. I have seen these every time I was in a Sally's but hadn't heard anyone review or speak about them until recently. EmilyNoel83 had done a 4 or more tag and she had a nice number of these little guys. What she said was pretty positive about them so I picked 4 of them up yesterday. I was going to wear one or two today but I just couldn't get enough pigmentation out of them for the look I wanted.

I took my NYX HD Eye Shadow Base and used it to test these little fellows out. I wanted to give them every chance in the world. These would be perfect for my program because of the price and availability. So here is what I found out.

The first one I tried was actually one she had mentioned, Beige.

Remember I laid down the NYX primer on my arm and did the swatch with my finger. I thought because they really have a buttery feel to them that they would be very pigmented but as you can see or can't see, it really left no color at all.

The next one is called Eggplant.

Eggplant did a bit better. The swatch is just one pass and I was able to build the color a little bit. In the swatch I wanted to do each one the same number of times so they could be fairly compared to each other and as a whole.

Auburn is next in our group.

Auburn also did better than Beige and it really preformed better than Eggplant. I think this would be a great fall color or a wash on the lid. The shimmer on this color really stands out well, you could build this color and after a few layers it could probably stand on it's own.

Up next we have Cinnamon.

Cinnamon like Beige is kinda barely there. It might work as a transforming color like the Transforming Perl in the It palette. It could be used as a brow highlight or inner corner pop of shimmer. It does have a warm tone to it and would be useful maybe to warm up other shadows.

First impression is not great. If I needed one color for one event and didn't think I would wear it again I might buy one of these shadows. The texture of the shadow is very nice and I really hate the lack of pigmentation. I'm not real sure of the staying power of these because as I said I did not wear them out today. Let me also say that I absolutely love EmilyNoel83 and I am sure she knows her stuff. This is just a first impression so I have not worn these shadows. With the right primer and know how they might be beautiful. The price makes it a no lose situation so try them yourself, it's just a $1.00.

Sally's was also having 50% off all of their clearance cosmetics and I also picked up a blush by Femme Couture in the color Cupids Arrow. Needless to say I know very well what is meant by "settling into fine lines and wrinkles". I just popped this blush onto my checks to get an idea of how bright the color would be. I looked into my lighted makeup mirror and instantly wanted a face lift. This shadow made my cheeks look like lizard skin. Ouch!! I didn't bother with pictures or swatches. I also picked up one of the Wet n Wild Color Icon shadow collections Walking on Eggshells. Couldn't have been happier and I spent less on it than I did on the 4 Sally Girl shadows. I got one less shadow but I will wear all of those compared to the 4 from Sally's. Just an observation.

I would like to send a thank you to We Heart This, EnvyDerm, Chic Peek as well as a few others, they now all follow me on Twitter and I am very humbled and honored.

Continue to watch for updates about the program for women who have been incarcerated Makeup for a 2nd Chance. This is taking off and I can't wait to help my first group of women. I now have a page on LinkedIn and I am making connections everyday. Thank you so much for your continued support.