MUA Neutral Palettes - Swatches & Reviews

Hey Everyone!

I have to admit, no matter how adventurous I'm feeling- I'm a true neutral eye shadow gal at heart and 9 times out of 10 I'll be wearing one of these three MUA palettes. At only £4 a pop they're well worth a try. 

 

First up is Heaven and Earth- my first MUA palette! I've had a lot of use out of this- I used it everyday for the first few months after I bought it. It consists of 12 shimmery neutrals- creams, muted golds and browns. You can create anything from a bit of subtle depth to a full on, sultry, smokey eye. Its weird to say this about powder shadows but they're actually almost creamy in texture because they're so highly pigmented and soft so they blend very easily and there isn't a whole lot of fall out. I regret that I don't actually use this palette as much as I should- it will be perfect in the coming weeks with bronzed cheeks and a tan. The only disappointing thing about this is that the packaging broke- though this could just be down to how often its been used.

 

This is my favourite palette of the three! Undressed is made up of a mixture of mattes and shimmers, each very well pigmented, though the mattes aren't just as pigmented as the shimmers. Undressed is slightly more colourful than the Heaven and Earth palette, but the shades are so wearable and never get boring. The dusky pinks, golds, khaki, deep blue and taupes seem like a random selection, but they compliment each other amazingly. Never would I have thought of creating a smokey eye of rose blending into muted blue, but by golly it looks fab! Again a slight disappointment with the packaging though- the applicator fell apart just a few days after I got it. But the price and quality make this a HG item in my book. 

The Undress Me Too is a cooler version of Heaven and Earth- with more grey tones than gold. The packaging has changed to white which I think looks cleaner for longer, and is more sturdy. I can't say a whole lot about this as I haven't given it as much of a test run as the others- but from what I can tell it is another A* product. You can see from the swatches how highly pigmented the shades are.

Do you have any of these palettes? Which is your favourite?

Shopping My Stash | Clinique Finds

Hey Everyone!

Since I have been on a very tight budget lately, I have been unable to purchase new products as often as I usually do and I have to admit I miss having new things to try. I have therefore been inspired by a few videos I saw on YouTube with the theme of "Shopping Your Stash". Simply put, this means searching through your neglected products to find treasures that are amazing but have been forgotten. I was pretty impressed with the idea and thought I would give it a go with my most neglected make up collection: my Clinique tin.

Most of my Clinique products are samples, my mums cast off's or bonus time gifts. Although I absolutely love getting freebies, I have found that since I did not purchase these myself, I've never felt the need to really get the use out of them, even if they are fantastic products which I would otherwise use to death (or till they run out). So a few nights ago, whilst shopping my stash, I found these gems.

So as you can see, quite a few amazing products have been hiding in my drawer! I have been using the Liquid Facial Soap every night since my simple face wash ran out and although its for combination oily to oily skin and I would describe mine as combination dry, it has worked perfectly and I have noticed somewhat of an improvement. The first few days I used it with my Soap & Glory sponge, but I noticed this was quite drying, so now I'm just using my hands and it works a treat. I'm not saying its a miracle treatment but its all I'm looking for in a face wash.

As for the Rinse Off Foaming Cleanser, I'm not entirely sure how to use it. I'm pretty sure its a makeup remover- but it says avoid contact with eyes. So perhaps you've just to use it to remove foundation and blusher etc and find an alternative method for eye make up? If you can share any knowledge on this let me know in the comments.

Finally, both mini palettes I found I am particularly excited about. I couldn't believe these had been forgotten for so long! The browns and neutrals are exactly the colours I wear and I think the pinky peach shadow would make a lovely highlighter. Also, I think the blush will give a lovely rosy glow for cooler days. (I wasn't sure whether the correct word is blush or blusher, I googled it, said it over and over and I've reached the conclusion that is doesn't matter- though I found that saying it over and over in your head means it doesn't seem like a word any more!)

So there we have it- my stash has successfully been shopped! I absolutely love this concept as it feels like getting new products without spending any money. 

Have you shopped your stash lately? Found any forgotten treasures?