Carly Bybel Palette Review

This palette was so incredibly hyped up that I really waited until the excitement was over before I even thought about giving it a try. This palette was an addition to my personal collection and I wanted to try it for so long. I just had to wait out the initial release in order to do it. A lot of people were reviewing this palette and gave it high marks. I’m not so much a sucker for everyone’s opinion. I only trust a few select people. I kept on doing my research for months after this palette was released and to my surprise it was still getting very high marks, even after two months. I was surprised. I didn’t hear any type of scandal or controversy surrounding this palette. Even those who purchased and were not sent it in PR gave it great reviews. 

Finally, I pulled the trigger and purchased during Ulta’s 21 days of beauty event. It wasn’t on the sale list but it was right in store at the checkout counter and I took that as a sign that this was worth me having.

Carly Bybel Palette

This palette has a row of satin and semi-matte eyeshadows, a row of shimmery eyeshadows, and a row of highlights. The texture of the powders are amazing. They are buttery and soft. They blend easily and don’t have a lot of fallout. This has been a great neutral palette for me. I sometimes want an all matte eye but, I think that makes me look a little heavy around the eyes. This palette has given me a versatile look. These are all neutral colors that work for everyday looks.

I am in my 30’s. Glittery eyeshadows are not and never have been my thing. I don’t want to look like a teenager playing with makeup. I have grown up quite a bit and my makeup style has to reflect that. This palette gives me what I need to create a modern, age friendly look on an everyday basis. I am constantly reaching for this palette. The highlights are a beautiful and dare I say creamy texture and aren’t to heavy for my deep caramel skin. Most highlighters tend to look ashy on African-American skin tones, especially deep skin tones. These apply great and wear great to all complexions. I love the way these feel. They are so smooth I have used them as eyeshadows too.

The construction and design of this palette is very clean. White cardboard with a big mirror and magnetic closure. This palette is great for travel. The slogan on the inside is a great one to live by. “Aspire to Inspire” That is a great quote.

This is the first time that I have ever purchased a YouTuber and brand collaborated product. I  must say that I am not disappointed. This palette lived up to the hype and guess what?  YouTube made me buy it.

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Too Faced Le Grand Chateau collection update and review- 7 months later.

I actually got this palette in November of last year so it has been a little over seven months for me. This was a part of the Too Faced holiday collection of 2015. I was so in love with the design and the concept that I just couldn’t pass it up. I got it from HSN.com and I enjoyed every minute of it. I did gift one of the palettes inside to my sister and she enjoys it still till this day.  I can’t say enough about this little collection.The packaging was so cute and I kept the little house it came in until about a month ago. I’m usually not a sucker  for packaging but this was soooo cute. I must say, as usual, the quality of the shadows and blushes is what we, who love Too Faced, have come to love and expect. I was exceedingly happy with the product. The pigmentation was awesome and the wear is incredible.

Photo: http://www.makeupalley.com

The two palettes out of this collection that I kept for myself are the teal and black palette. They are what I reach for on an everyday basis. Alongside my Too Faced Chocolate Bar eye shadow palette these are staples in my makeup wardrobe for every day. 

The teal green palette has all the brown neutral colors needed for an every day look and even some shimer. There’s a shimmery black in there but it doesn’t come off glittery on the eye. It really transforms. The blush, Mademoiselle, is a favorite of mine. Even on my deep caramel skin it still brings a slight bit of color and internal glow to my cheeks. Like I said, this pallette is like a great pair of jeans. It goes with everything all the time you can’t go wrong.         

Now let’s talk about the black palette. I’ve saved the best for last. I love purple but, I have never been courageous enough to wear it in an eyeshadow. I am so glad I got this holiday set because it gave me a purple that I could wear and coordinating colors to go with it. The shade, Provence, is so beautiful on the lid. It’s a lavender with a kick and  a little shimmer. It has a smooth satin finish. It looks so perfect on the eyes. The shade Le Marais is also a surprise. its looks like a white satin but has a duo chrome purple undertone to it. It really transforms when applied to the skin. The shade Parfait, makes a beautiful pink toned highlight. Not just on the eyes, but on the cheekbones as well. There’s also a matte black and  a matte taupe for blending and crease work.  The blush is absolutely stunning. 

Now let’s talk about Better Than Sex mascara. I loved what it did for my lashes and the deluxe sample size was more than a sample. It lasted me for three months. I loved that mascara and it didn’t give me raccoon eyes. Which a lot of mascaras do. I’ve had no bad experience with this one at all. I love the volume and definition it gives. It still doesn’t beat my L’Oreal voluminous, but it came a close second. 

I look forward to this year’s holiday palettes and sets from every brand. I can’t wait to see what they all try to tempt and tantalize us with this year. I’m definitely saving my pennies for that one thing that catches my eye. Hope you guys are waiting and watching with me because holiday 2016 is going to be phenomenal. 

Too Faced Semi Sweet Chocolate bar review.

Too Faced Semi-Sweet Chocolate Bar

  

I was a little skeptical of ordering this palette considering I already had the original Chocolate bar. I was wondering what the difference might be between the two and if it was even worth it to have both. The original Chocolate bar palette is very warm and neutral whereas the Semi-Sweet Chocolate Bar is very cool toned and neutral. They both give very beautiful looks and the colors are superb but I was still on the fence. So I dove in and got it and I must say it is worth every penny.

I love this palette for several reasons. First, it’s way more compact than the original Chocolate bar which I bought before the palette was redesigned. The colors are much more rich and warmer in spite of the fact that a lot of people say the colors are cooler. They read much warmer on my skin tone which I like. The shadows aren’t powdery. This Chocolate Bar smells even more like Cocoa than the first.

Now let me clarify that this palette is cool toned. My skin tone is NC50 in MAC so these shadows are warm on me because of my skin tone not because the color is warm. As you can tell from the pictures, these shadows are cooler in tone than the original chocolate bar but I personally don’t find this palette to be a totally cool toned palette. I reach for this one every day no matter what eye look I’m doing.

Each color is unique and the names match perfectly. I couldn’t have thought of better names for these shadows. After you use each one you will understand why the name is so fitting. Here are a few of my favorites.

A perfect satin brown taupe.- most of the glitter does not transfer on the eyes.

A rose gold shimmer- Great for highlighting the inner corner.

Warm matte light brown- Great transition and blending shade.

shimmery satin blackened plum- great alternative to black

Golden vanilla shimmer highlight. Can also be used as a facial highlight.

Frosted sheer bronze with gold reflect- warms up any shadow you put it on top of .

Matte cream

Matte black

Pink frosted sheer shimmer- Transforms the look of a shadow when applied on top.

I’ve enjoyed this palette to the fullest. I have created very dramatic to everyday looks with this palette. I expect no less from Too Faced cosmetics. They bring us great quality when there is a focused theme. They make sure the palette is totally in line with the theme all the way down to the packaging. They excite our senses in every way. The look of the Chocolate bar draws us in cause we all love chocolate but maybe can’t indulge in it as much as we would like but we can have this bar sitting on our vanity to remind us of our love. The smell when you open the palette immediately makes you nostalgic and you go to a happy place because the scent reminds you of a long lost love, cocoa. Not only are the shadows infused with cocoa powder, research shows that the scent of cocoa is connected with increased memory and brain power.

Too Faced has brought us some great product and I can’t wait to see what they’ll do next. 

Fall Blue Smokey eye ft. Too Faced Chocolate Bar palette

Too Faced Chocolate Bar Palette Review

 I was very excited to get my hands on this palette. This palette has been hyped up so much on YouTube and other social media that I had to get it. After doing my research first and making my mind up, I went to Ulta and picked it up. Needless to say, this was my best investment ever in an eye shadow palette. I have used it every single day. Whether it’s a bold smoky eye or a soft, neutral eye, this palette does it all. The Chocolate bar has given other palettes a run for their money. For what you get here you don’t need anything else.
Nothing has changed from my initial YouTube review. These shadows are creamy and Pigmented and I love the almost endless combinations. These shadows blend easily, last all day with or without a primer and on top of it all they smell like chocolate and have a beautiful package. I don’t have any complaints.