Best in Beauty 2015: Eyes

Hello everyone! Welcome back!

Today, I'm going to be talking about my favourite eye makeup of 2015. A lot of the products being mentioned would have separate reviews that I shall link to at the end of the blog post.

Eyebrows:

NYX Tinted Brow Mascara

Revlon Brow Fantasy

• NYX Tinted Brow Mascara - BrunetteThis product has become a staple for me since I first purchased it. My only problem is that my local NYX retailers never seem to have it stock. This tinted brow mascara has become my everyday, go-to eyebrow product, for natural fuller looking brows.
  
  
  
  
  
• Revlon Brow Fantasy - Dark Brown  
  For slightly more defined brows, this two in one pencil and brow gel is what I turn to. It is easy to use, and the pencil has the right mix of stiffness and pigmentation to help you avoid going overboard on the brows. 

Primers:

• Smashbox 24HR Photo Finish Eyeshadow Primer
• Milani Eyeshadow Primer 
• Urban Decay Primer Potion 
  

 

My trio of Eye Primer Faves - Smashbox 24 Photo Finish, Milani Eye Primer and UDPP

I know you're probably sick of seeing these three (3) eyeshadow primers constantly, however as a Caribbean girl, with oily eyelids, believe me when I say these primers work. They don't cause my shadows to slip or slide (both cream and powder), and I get very minimal to no creasing with them. The Smashbox 24 Hour Eyeshadow Primer, is thicker in consistency, and lasts the longest of the three, however, because of its limited availability in Trinidad, I tend to save using it for special occasions. The Urban Decay Primer Potion and Milani Eyeshadow Primer, are very similar, I shall leave my review for those at the end.

Palette:

•  MAC Cosmetics Warm Neutral Palette
  

  

  MAC Warm Neutrals Palette

  Was there any need for me to mention this?! It's a palette fulled with beauty warm neutral colours a.k.a. my eyeshadow heaven. I've already done  full review with swatches, so I won't linger on this. 

Single Eyeshadows:
 

Most Loved Eyeshadows of 2015

•  Prestige Single Eyeshadow in Golden Retriever 
• Avon Single Eyeshadow in Champagne 
• ColourPop Cosmetics Super Shock Eyeshadow in Hammered 
• L'Oreal Infallible Eyeshadow in Golden Sage
  
  Both the Avon and Prestige Shadows have been featured previously. Check links at the end of the post. In 2015, I developed a love for green eyeshadows . They not only complement my eye colour, but they work great with my skin tone also. I've had the L'Oreal Infallible in Golden Sage for quite some time, but was too scared to casually wear green eyeshadow, but once I reminded myself that people's opinion on my makeup don't matter, I popped it on and fell in love.

L'Oreal Infallible in Golden Sage

Golden Sage, led to my decision to purchase ColourPop Hammered, because I wanted a smokier olive green eyeshadow for the longest time but again was to afraid to buy it and never use it. ColourPop eyeshadows are amazing! The texture is creamy, and is extremely pigmented. I'm definitely wanting to get my hands on some more.

ColourPop Super Shock Shadow - Hammered

 Mascara:

In 2015, two (2) mascaras stood out from all the rest I've tried, although I still love the L'Oreal Butterfly Effect, Jordana Best Lash Extreme and Maybelline Pumped Up Colossal Mascaras, were my definite favourites. Honourary mention to Maybelline The Rocket Mascara, which I also enjoyed this year.

Favourite Mascaras 2015.

Eyeliner:
L'Oreal 24HR Lacquer Liner in Espresso and Blackest Black ( I haven't tried anything new that beats this)

 This is only part 1 of my 2015 Best in Beauty, next week will be Face products of 2015.
Thank you so much for visiting my blog today, I hope you enjoyed.
As always stay happy, healthy, and positive and I shall talk to you all soon.
Bye (^_^)/

Links to Reviews featuring products in this post:

1. NYX Tinted Brow Mascara - http://jsmindpalace.blogspot.com/2015/10/product-review-nyx-tinted-brow-mascara.html
2. Milani Primer - http://jsmindpalace.blogspot.com/2015/07/milani-eyeshadow-primer-is-it-dupe-for.html
3. MAC Warm Neutrals - http://jsmindpalace.blogspot.com/2015/09/mac-cosmetics-warm-neutral-palette.html
4. Prestige Eyeshadow -  http://jsmindpalace.blogspot.com/2015/06/my-favourite-single-eyeshadows-part-1.html
5. Avon Single Eyeshadow -  http://jsmindpalace.blogspot.com/2014/08/product-rave-avon-single-eyeshadow.html
6. Jordana Best Lash Extreme -  http://jsmindpalace.blogspot.com/2015/08/july-makeup-favourites.html
7. Maybelline Pumped Up Colossal - http://jsmindpalace.blogspot.com/2015/11/first-impression-review-maybelline-pump.html

M.A.C Cosmetics Warm Neutral Palette Thoughts and Swatches

Hello everyone! Welcome back! Today, I'm doing a short post about the M.A.C Warm Neutral Palette, along with some swatches. I bought this palette last Tuesday at my local M.A.C store, and to be honest, I've been wanting this palette since it released last year, but I only just recently caved and decided to splurge. These are the first eye products I have ever bought from M.A.C because M.A.C is quite pricey here in Trinidad; this palette costs TT$840 = US$85 (on the M.A.C Cosmetic website).

Quick Look - M.A.C Warm Neutral Palette

Packaging: 
Hard plastic casing, with a see-through plastic lid. It's very sleek, and lightweight. I do wish that instead of a see-through lid, there was a mirror, that would make it perfect for travel.
There is a label on the back that contains the name of each shadow and its finish.

The Shadows
This palette contains all warm neutral tones, with various finishes from Frost to Matte.
I will break down the palette according to rows, and having the corresponding name and finish of the shadows.

Closer look at the shadows in the M.A.C Warm Neutral Palette.

First Row 

Top row of Warm Neutral Palette

 From left to right

• Hey (Veluxe Pearl)
• Warm Breeze (Satin)
• GingerSnap (Frost)
• Dark Brew (Velvet)
• Dance in the Dark (Matte)  

Swatches

Swatches of the First Row in the M.A.C Warm Neutral Palette

All of the colours in this row with the exception of Dance in the Dark, swatched and applied smoothly with good pigmentation. Dance in the Dark is extremely patchy, and powdery, it is quite a pain to work with.

Second Row
 

Second Row - M.A.C Warm Neutral Palette

From left to right

• Brulé (Satin)
• Vanilla Extract (Frost) 
• Honey Lust (Luster)
• Amber Lights (Frost)
• Saddle (Matte) 

Swatches 

Swatches from 2nd Row

 All the shadows in this row applied and swatched beautifully. Saddle unlike its fellow Matte brother Dance in the Dark, applied like butter, it did not skip, it just glided on in one swipe.

Third Row

Third Row - MAC Warm Neutral Palette

 From left to right

•  Lemon Tart (Veluxe Pearl)
• Creative Copper (Luster)
• Butterfudge (Satin)
• Divine Decadence (Velvet)
• Unwind (Veluxe Pearl)

Swatches 
 

Final Row Swatches

All the colours in this row, swatched and applied just as beautifully as the previos one. Lemon Tart and Unwind are definitely going to be shades I play around with. The swatches don't do either of those shades much justice, with Lemon Tart being a gorgeous light yellow gold pearl, and Unwind is the definition of smokey/dirty olive.

Final Thoughts
Despite the high price point, I'm quite impressed by the quality of the eye shadows in this palette. Like I mentioned earlier, this is my first time trying M.A.C eyeshadows, so for a newbie, this give quite a good first impression. With only one shade I can truly call a flop (Dance in the Dark), 14 out of 15 are good quality, very pigmented and soft, without them being crumbly. This is a permanent item in M.A.C's collection, so if you are interested, I recommend going to your local M.A.C store, and giving this guy a swatch. Although I do love this palette, because of the high price point, I can't say run and buy it, unless you want to splurge and spoil yourself like I did. 

Thank you all so much for coming by today, I hope you enjoyed today's post. Before I say goodbye, I just wanted to announce that today, I have finally launched a Facebook page for J's Mind Palace! I decided to finally get over my fear of opening a Facebook page, dedicated strictly to my blog. I will leave a link to the end of this post. Thank you all for all the support for the past year, and I can't wait to post more content here.

Remember to have a safe and fun weekend, stay happy, healthy and positive and I shall see you all next Friday!
Bye-bye (^_^)/

FB: https://www.facebook.com/jsmindpalace