neutral eyeshadows on the make-up blogette

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About Me

My name is Sophia, and I am in my early 30s. I am from Singapore and I am the sole writer of this blog.

About this Blog

I started this blog in 2006, I like to use a wide range of brands though I seem to have a growing preference for higher-end brands in recent years. I also like to share interesting things I have come across about makeup and beauty.

Currently The Makeup Blogette receives 39,000 unique views monthly or 2,238,932 views and counting.

My Makeup Style

I like classic looks (neutral tones on eyes, anything goes for lips & cheeks), though occasionally I try out dramatic/ statement looks. I believe that a flawless base is the key to achieving great makeup looks. I also believe that if you don't have great skin to start with, fake it with a good foundation routine, and even greater skincare. I am currently loving Clarins & Lancome skincare products, and Vichy NormaDerm for tackling with breakouts.

What Cameras do I use?

Most of the pictures you see in post 2010 entries are taken with my Canon G-11. Previously I was using Canon Ixus 80. I do post some pictures which are taken with my iphone4 which I will state in that particular entry. I have stopped watermarking my pictures as of 2011, because I think watermarks are ugly in general, and does not prevent people from stealing my pictures if they wish to. I just take it as a compliment that my pictures are even worth stealing in the first place. I might look into getting a Canon EOS next year, not just for blogging purposes, but I also like photography in general.

My Favourite Makeup Brand(s)

It is hard to name just one, but I like NARS, Chanel, Illamasqua and the ocasional Guerlain, Dior & Urban Decay item. I own quite a stash of MAC items, but recently I have stopped catching up with their collections, and I much prefer to splurge on a few really outstanding items.

Where to find me

Twitter (link button above!) Email (stated above!) Instagram (makeup_blogette)

I have no official Facebook fan page, and currently have no intention to start one at all. The Makeup Blogette remains my personal hobby and property, so as such, I don't believe in having a Facebook fanpage for it.

Final Disclaimer

I bought/ paid for all of the products mentioned in this blog. I am not affliated to any company. If certain products are sent to me for review purposes, I will say so and express my honest opinions about them. In any case, I will only review and showcase the products which I have personally tried and tested, and enjoy using. I do not get paid to review anything.

No ads, no paid links etc please. I am in charge of all content and pictures here.

I am not a makeup artist, nor do I have any professional training in makeup.

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Bare Minerals Eyeshadow Duo 'The Epiphany' [Photos, Swatches & LOTD]

I made a quick purchase at feelunique.com (uk site, free intl shipping, no minimum order necessary, what are you waiting for??) ---- so, yes, made a purchase for this Bare Minerals Eyeshadow duo in The Epiphany (rated A+ at Temptalia) --- and yes, it is another neutral brown eyeshadow pairing.

Anyway, I have watched enough YT videos to know that many girls are raving about the Bare Minerals eyeshadow palettes. I didn't want to plunge and get a quad, so a duo would be nice to start off with. The whole order and delivery process took about a week, very impressive for free intl shipping (and hint hint to ASOS another free intl shipping UK site which is so notoriously unpredictable).

The packaging itself is like NARS - matte, black, rubbery.

It is also tiny - both shadows weigh a total of 3g? Well, does it matter?

Like my friend said, it is not like I am going to hit pan on it anytime. Hehe.

It is made in the USA.

Just by looking at these, you know you are in for some buttery soft pigmented eyeshadows.

And I am not far off.

The colors are intense, smooth, and easy to blend with a fluffy brush.

I tried them out,

the shimmery shade on my lids,

and the darker matte shade on my crease.

Just a quick hasty LOTD with whatever was already on my face for the day (this is makeup after 7 hours).

Ettusais bb cream + Maquillage white essence liquid foundation, set with Chanel loose powder

Chanel Bronze Rose

Chanel Glossimer 287 Aurora

Cosmos lashes, #43 (no liner)

I did not use an eyeshadow primer.

I would be keen to check out more of these eyeshadows. The quality is pretty amazing.

Hope this is helpful, and thank you for reading. :)

Posted on June 04, 2012 at 6:34AM | Permalink | 4 Comments

Filed in: eyeshadow, haul, Swatches, bare minerals, LOTD, neutral eyeshadows, the epiphany | Tagged with: eyeshadow, haul, bare minerals, swatches, LOTD, neutral eyeshadows, the epiphany

June 04, 2012

Bare Minerals Eyeshadow Duo 'The Epiphany' [Photos, Swatches & LOTD]

The packaging itself is like NARS - matte, black, rubbery.

It is also tiny - both shadows weigh a total of 3g? Well, does it matter?

Like my friend said, it is not like I am going to hit pan on it anytime. Hehe.

It is made in the USA.

Just by looking at these, you know you are in for some buttery soft pigmented eyeshadows.

And I am not far off.

The colors are intense, smooth, and easy to blend with a fluffy brush.

I tried them out,

the shimmery shade on my lids,

and the darker matte shade on my crease.

Just a quick hasty LOTD with whatever was already on my face for the day (this is makeup after 7 hours).

Ettusais bb cream + Maquillage white essence liquid foundation, set with Chanel loose powder

Chanel Bronze Rose

Chanel Glossimer 287 Aurora

Cosmos lashes, #43 (no liner)

I did not use an eyeshadow primer.

I would be keen to check out more of these eyeshadows. The quality is pretty amazing.

Hope this is helpful, and thank you for reading. :)

Posted on June 04, 2012 at 6:34AM | Permalink | 4 Comments

February 25, 2012

NARS Lhasa Eyeshadow [Photos & Swatches]

Hi!

I purchased NARS Lhasa eyeshadow from their SS2012 collection... I might or might not be getting Gaiety...but stocks were not in at the point at which my friend helped purchase this for me. It is a pretty taupe color which is really perhaps nothing new in my collection, online swatches do show this quite nicely.... so anyway... I decided to get it for myself.

As you can see, Lhasa is much cooler-toned than my other NARS neutrals,

and it seems much creamier in texture compared to most of them.

and a quick slap of Lhasa all over my lids

That's all, and thanks for looking!

Posted on February 25, 2012 at 2:13AM | Permalink | 3 Comments

Filed in: NARS, haul, neutral eyeshadows, makeup and beauty, nars Lhasa eyeshadow | Tagged with: nars, haul, neutral eyeshadows, Makeup and Beauty, nars Lhasa eyeshadow

February 25, 2012

NARS Lhasa Eyeshadow [Photos & Swatches]

Hi!

As you can see, Lhasa is much cooler-toned than my other NARS neutrals,

and it seems much creamier in texture compared to most of them.

and a quick slap of Lhasa all over my lids

That's all, and thanks for looking!

Posted on February 25, 2012 at 2:13AM | Permalink | 3 Comments

January 08, 2012

Urban Decay NAKED2 Eyeshadow Palette [Photos, Swatches & Comparions]

Hi hi!

Following the huge success of the first NAKED palette (that got everyone saying "I got NAKED today" , and also spun off feverish online stalking of wherever the NAKED palette was spotted in stock - at least that's what happened in the US during the peak of the NAKED craze), Urban Decay quickly and very smartly came up with the NAKED sequel, the NAKED2. Which I purchase, because, well, I was at Sephora yesterday, when the launch was happening. Hehehe. There was less stalking on my part as compared to then the first one came out (I remember Kas and myself calling and making reservations at several sephoras in order to ensure our own palettes).

Well, if I remember correctly, the previous few popular palettes (15th anniversary and BOS 4) didn't sell out in like in 5 seconds, and so I thought I could well afford to be very zen, and just go and pick up 2 palettes if they are available. When I was at Sephora Ion, there was a crowd, but stocks of the palette was plenty. While people were still deliberating whether they should get the NAKED or NAKED2, I had taken my two NAKED2 to the cashier and made my payment.

This retails for S$80 each, and comes with a full sized dual-ended brush (very synthetic and oddly stiff) and a lipgloss (who really cares about the gloss?) and the 12 full-sized shadows are housed in a sleek sturdy metal case.

I shan't go into how different both palettes are, some people say one is more warm-toned (NAKED) while the NAKED2 has more cool-toned shades. I personally think both palettes are very very similar, and do you need both? Of course not. Do I want both? Hell, yes, why not? I generally like Urban Decay eyeshadows, and if I am buying any more eyeshadows (which I know I shouldn't) I think the more interesting Urban Decay palettes are the way to go.

Why I like both the NAKED palettes, and need to own both of them?

There are a couple of nice pale skintone shades which I often use as a base and also browbone highlight.

There are enough matte shades for contour and blending.

There is a great variety of all sorts of metallic browns that I can use all over the lids for smokey eyes, wearable eyes etc etc

There is also a couple of cool gunmetal shades if you want variety in terms of the color family.

Great for travelling? yes, but I don't normally bring this palette along with me. Too bulky.

I am a hardcore neutral palette fanatic.

Photos & Swatches:

the palest shades of both NAKED palettes blend right into my skintone, so they aren't showing up at all, both in pictures and in real life

which is not to say these pale shades aren't pigmented

they might show up better on someone with darker skintones than me

the inevitable comparisons while we are at it

Same old, same old, yet different.

Hope this helps, and thanks for looking!

Posted on January 08, 2012 at 2:45AM | Permalink | 7 Comments

Filed in: Urban Decay, haul, Swatches, neutral eyeshadows, comparisons, naked palette, naked2 palette | Tagged with: Urban Decay, haul, swatches, neutral eyeshadows, comparisons, Naked palette, naked2 palette

January 08, 2012

Urban Decay NAKED2 Eyeshadow Palette [Photos, Swatches & Comparions]

Hi hi!

Why I like both the NAKED palettes, and need to own both of them?

There are a couple of nice pale skintone shades which I often use as a base and also browbone highlight.

There are enough matte shades for contour and blending.

There is a great variety of all sorts of metallic browns that I can use all over the lids for smokey eyes, wearable eyes etc etc

There is also a couple of cool gunmetal shades if you want variety in terms of the color family.

Great for travelling? yes, but I don't normally bring this palette along with me. Too bulky.

I am a hardcore neutral palette fanatic.

Photos & Swatches:

the palest shades of both NAKED palettes blend right into my skintone, so they aren't showing up at all, both in pictures and in real life

which is not to say these pale shades aren't pigmented

they might show up better on someone with darker skintones than me

the inevitable comparisons while we are at it

Same old, same old, yet different.

Hope this helps, and thanks for looking!

Posted on January 08, 2012 at 2:45AM | Permalink | 7 Comments

November 23, 2011

LOTD: Three Classic Looks with Three INGLOT Rainbow Eyeshadows

The title says it all!!

I want to try out my latest INGLOT rainbow eyeshadows, and decided that I could create three all time favourite classic makeup looks with this tiny palette, consisting of colors I picked for myself. A nude eyeshadow, a brown eyeshadow, and a black eyeshadow.

Do note that all three looks were done very quickly and simply. There is no other intricate application of eyeshadows, not much other products used. Basically I used the nude shade 116R as a base for all three eyelooks. The middle shade in each pan is used as a blending color on the crease. I use the darkest shades in 117R and 120R as lids colors in the respective eyelooks.

The eyeshadows are all matte, very finely milled and have intense color payoff.

[Foundation routine in all three looks -- Missha Cho Bo Yang BB cream, Guerlain Lingerie de Peau Foundation, Chanel Loose Powder]

Here is a look at the palette, and the swatches:

LOOK ONE - Nude Eyes, Winged Liner, Red Lips

I used a big fluffy brush to dust 116R all over my eyelids, and I used the darkest shade in this pan nearest to my lids to create some kind of subtle contour. This is quite a pin-up inspired look, and I didn't do much on the eyes, except for the eyeliner as a statement. But the highlight of this look is the ultra glam red lipcolor. I didn't even apply blusher in this look.

Eyeshadow 116R

Liner Bobbi Brown Cream Liner Black Caviar

Chanel Rouge Allure Lacque Dragon

LOOK TWO - Neutral Eyes, Colored Liner, Peachy Lips

This is a great everyday work look, just slap on the brown eyeshadows, and like Gwen commented in the previous entry, you can even use this eyeshadow to fill in your brows. I was impressed to find the brown shades all so smooth and pigmented. Despite the powdery matte-ness, the eyeshadow applies smoothly and with minimal fall out. It was extremely pigmented. I paired this neutral look with a colored liner --- not that you can see much of in the pictures... since the eyeshadow is so neutral and matte, I went for a metallic olive shade to line my eyes. Adding some color without interfering with the matte finish of the eyeshadow. The CDP lipstick is great because it gives color and is also something which I can easily re-apply without looking into a mirror.

Eyeshadow 117R

Liners Urban Decay Stash & Smog

Cle de Peau Extra Rich Lipstick T9

LOOK THREE - Smokey Black Eyes, Rimmed Liner, Nude Lips

Lastly, the third look I have done is a basic smokey eye...with nude lips. I also rimmed my eyes with Smolder eye kohl, blinked my eyes really hard so smudge the liners. Then I used a Q-tip soaked in Bioderma to swipe my lower lids to clean up any extra messy smudges. This is the quickest way to create a quicky and easy smokey eye.

Eyeshadow 120R

MAC Smolder Eye Kohl

Cle de Peau Extra Silky Lipstick 121

Will you be picking up any of the INGLOT rainbow eyeshadows?

Thanks for looking!

Posted on November 23, 2011 at 5:21AM | Permalink | 11 Comments

Filed in: LOTD, eyeshadows, makeup and beauty, inglot | Tagged with: swatches, LOTD, neutral eyeshadows, Inglot, rainbow eyeshadows, 116R, 117R, 120R

November 21, 2011

Haul: INGLOT Rainbow Eyeshadows 116R, 117R, 120R [Photos & Swatches]

My sis came back from Melborne from a weekend trip to attend her friend's wedding. This is quite an unexpected purchase, because I didn't prepare any list for her to get anything from me. But in the end, I decided on 3 neutral shades from Inglot's new rainbow eyeshadows.

The rainbow eyeshadows are the same size as their regular eyeshadows, but each pan contains a gradient of 3 shades. All the colors in this range are matte finishes, if I remember correctly. Leesha from xsparkage has excellent swatches of all the rainbow eyeshadows. (link here)

Unlike the regular eyeshadows, the rainbow eyeshadows come in a little box...at this point, I am not sure how much each costs..cos my sister paid for the items first, and she hasn't updated me. I also got a 3 pan palette to fit these new eyeshadows. I was tempted to get a five pan palette to match the size of my other palettes, but I wasn't able to pick more shades that I wanted. Most of the neutral shades in this range are way too similar for me to buy another -- and I am not about to venture into the bright colored ones which I would not get much use of.

What is impressive is that even the darker shades and the black part in 120R is very smooth (way better than MAC Carbon, IMO) and I think if you have the chance, do check out the rainbow range of eyeshadows.

Because they are all very slight gradient of the same shade, it's not as though you can create one whole look with each pan. You can probably use the middle shade as a blending shade, the nude pan 116R is a close match to my own eyelid color, and it's that type of color which I would just slap all over my lids to avoid any oily creases, and also as a neutral highlight color.

I immediately swatched these eyeshadows when I saw them last night. They are all super smooth, they don't look chalky, and are pretty pigmented.

More photos below:

These are the three shades I bought:

from L to R - 116R, 117R, 120R

My little stash of INGLOT palettes - gotten from all over the world!

my first 10 pan is from Melborne too, two of the 5 pans are from Las Vegas and the other is from KL, while my latest one is also from Melborne. :)

Overall, I think the items really worth getting from INGLOT are their endless array of eyeshadows, their eyeliners, lip products and depending on where you buy them, their nail polishes are really worth getting too.

Hope this has been helpful, and thank you for looking. :)

Posted on November 21, 2011 at 5:45PM | Permalink | 4 Comments

Filed in: eyeshadows, makeup and beauty, inglot | Tagged with: swatches, neutral eyeshadows, Inglot, rainbow eyeshadows, 116R, 117R, 120R

September 18, 2010

Haul: Urban Decay NAKED Palette (Swatches, Comparisons & LOTD)

Hi hi, at long last, the Urban Decay NAKED Palette is released in Singapore. I am sure you have seen this a million times on many other blogs and video reviews, and this definitely needs no further introduction. I got three of the palettes, because both my neutrals loving sister and gf also want one each! This is also on my Fall Makeup Wishlist, which I posted earlier, which you can check out HERE.

A few close ups of the colors:

Some girly math: this palette with 12 full sized eyeshadows, a mini primer potion, a dual ended liner, retails for S$73, which is still cheaper than a Chanel quad ($83), or a Dior 5 color palette ($90+).... you get the idea. Each of the eyeshadow is 1.3g which is only slightly less than a 1.5g regular MAC eyeshadow.

Before I swatched the colors, a few of my MAC eyeshadows immediately came to my mind as dupes, but I am quite happy to note that most of the browns aren't really considered dupes after I swatched and compared them, as you can see in the pictures below:

As for the medium to dark browns, there aren't too many MAC browns in my current stash which are considered similar, as you can see below:

And lastly, let's slap on some colors for fun, shall we?

Colors I used: Virgin as a base/ highlight, Half Baked on inner lids, Smog on middle lids, and Hustle on outer corners, and both ends of the eyeliner were used to line the eyes. On the lips, I am wearing MAC Pro Longwear Lipcreme in Overtime.

Lastly, totally unrelated, but I took most of the product pictures while I was having breakfast this morning:

And a random grasshopper suntanning among the leafy bushes, amazing bright green!! Woots!

So, have you got NAKED yet??

That's all, and thanks for looking.

Posted on September 18, 2010 at 12:13AM | Permalink | 11 Comments

Filed in: haul, LOTD, neutral eyeshadows, mac eyeshadows, makeup and beauty, urban decay naked palette | Tagged with: haul, LOTD, neutral eyeshadows, mac eyeshadows, Makeup and Beauty, urban decay naked palette

September 18, 2010

Haul: Urban Decay NAKED Palette (Swatches, Comparisons & LOTD)

A few close ups of the colors:

As for the medium to dark browns, there aren't too many MAC browns in my current stash which are considered similar, as you can see below:

And lastly, let's slap on some colors for fun, shall we?

Lastly, totally unrelated, but I took most of the product pictures while I was having breakfast this morning:

And a random grasshopper suntanning among the leafy bushes, amazing bright green!! Woots!

So, have you got NAKED yet??

That's all, and thanks for looking.

Posted on September 18, 2010 at 12:13AM | Permalink | 11 Comments

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Archives

Bare Minerals Eyeshadow Duo 'The Epiphany' [Photos, Swatches & LOTD]

Bare Minerals Eyeshadow Duo 'The Epiphany' [Photos, Swatches & LOTD]

NARS Lhasa Eyeshadow [Photos & Swatches]

NARS Lhasa Eyeshadow [Photos & Swatches]

Urban Decay NAKED2 Eyeshadow Palette [Photos, Swatches & Comparions]

Urban Decay NAKED2 Eyeshadow Palette [Photos, Swatches & Comparions]

LOTD: Three Classic Looks with Three INGLOT Rainbow Eyeshadows

Haul: INGLOT Rainbow Eyeshadows 116R, 117R, 120R [Photos & Swatches]

Haul: Urban Decay NAKED Palette (Swatches, Comparisons & LOTD)

Haul: Urban Decay NAKED Palette (Swatches, Comparisons & LOTD)

Search

About Me

e-mail

BLOGLOVIN

Follow @makeup_blogette on Instagram

Twitter Me!

Latest Headlines

Tags

2214 followers

Hot Links: Basic Makeup!

Reviews: Foundations

Latest Comments

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FAQ & DISCLAIMER

Archive

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