Kate Jewelry Mode Eyes GN-1

even though i'm a big fan of kate's eyeshadows, i never really thought of getting this one, until i saw it going for 50% one day. for about SGD10, it's worth the plunge. the colours left were limited, i swatched as much as i could on the back of my hand and this palette seems to give me that sparkly brownish champagne colour that i was looking for.

or so i thought. as it turns out, the lighting in the store was slightly different.

the naming of this palette seems somewhat misleading, perhaps we've all been to condition to link GN to green, but in this case, i THINK it stands for grey neutral. but that's just a guess, because this is clearly not a green palette.

i remember seeing the marketing material for this series before, they claim to have formulated it with special pearl and shimmer, but i don't know if it's actually that useful when it comes to describing the finish of the eyeshadow at all.

one thing you need to know, this palette can make your eyes sparkle like diamonds in the night sky (under the right lighting).


as usual, it comes with a simple instruction on how to use this palette, and as always, i didn't follow their instructions. hahaha! but still, it's a good addition for people who have no clue how to use eyeshadows, at least they have somewhere to start now!


the palette consist of three shades, two high shimmer and low pigmentation colours, and a darker liner shade which is glittery but much more pigmented than the rest. a dual sided sponge tip application (one chubby and one skinny) is included in the package. how thoughtful.

the shades were actually "named" on the palette casing, from left to right, they are the medium color, brilliant color, and dark color.


swatched on bare skin, L to R:

medium color is a shimmery gun metal gray with a metallic finish under normal lighting (it looks crazy sparkly under focused light). i know it looks more taupe-ish on the pan, but once it's on my skin it just looks gray.

brilliant color is a shimmery greyish champagne with a metallic finish. it may look more yellow in the pan, but once it goes onto my skin it appears as a faint grey. this also look super sparkly under focused light, like a night sky.

dark color is a satin dark grey, it's not matte, but not overly metallic or pearly too. it contains some silver sparkles but not as overwhelming as the other 2 shades.


as seen in different angles.

the metallic sheen is only highly reflective when light hits it at certain angles. as you can see from the last image, the colours are most apparent when it's not busy reflecting light like a mirror, it's a gun metal grey trio that can be used to create deep looks very easily. the sparkly shimmer also took over the metallic reflection in the last photo, partly due to the ray of focused light beaming on it from the camera flash. in fact, they have a totally different finish when seen under spot light, be sure to watch the video taken under focused light at the bottom, they gave off the most beautiful sparkle i ever seen.

i honestly do not suggest using it like the suggested instructions, because the reflective nature of the brilliant colour may make your eyes look very puffy if you happen to have puffy lids.

IMHO

as usual, the powders are soft and easily picked up with either my finger and brush. although they aren't as buttery soft as the highlight and liner shade from the colorcious diamond palette (btw, these are the predecessor, hence the semblance).

picking these up with a fluffy eyeshadow brush may cause some fall outs. whenever possible, i use my finger. they feel really buttery when i do use the latter, it seems to be the japanese formulation that gave them this buttery-powder texture.

kate's eyeshadow tend to be on the sheer (except for the dark color) and shimmery side as it's more wearable on asian eyes, this is no exception. as you've already seen from the different angles above, these will look quite sheer on your eyes until light hits it at a certain angle and bounce right off to create the metallic look.

i think they've done a pretty good job making such wearable eyeshadow palettes. while swatching the other shades, i find them very similar to the colorcious diamond. if you already own the colorcious diamond, it's almost pointless to get one of these. as a kate fan, i've seen how they recycle colour schemes to release almost similar eyeshadows but in different packaging over the years. for example, the dual blend eyes in BK-2 i own is almost similar, except for the finish (the latter has a frosted light colour shade)

these are going to be phased out as they were released in 2012. each series seem to have an average lifespan of 2 years. i can't even see them on the official website anymore. don't feel too bad if you really like it, because it's really similar to colorcious diamond in BK-1, what's more, you get an additional 2 shades with that palette.

IN A NUTSHELL
1. combination of sheer, very shimmery, and dark shades
2. powder is soft and picks up easily
3. you can give this a miss if you already own a grey palette
4. very similar to the colorcious diamond eyeshadows

MAKEUP LOOKS


medium colour is worn as a base here, with a dap of brilliant colour on my inner corner, and the dark colour on the outer corner and outer third of lower lash line (just a wash of darker colours though).


brilliant color worn as a base, medium colour on the outer half, and dark colour on the outer corner to darken things and outer third of lower lash line..

video taken under focused light, and video taken under natural light. click on the links to watch them on my instagram!

i purchased this eyeshadow palette for malaysian ringgit 26 (which is about 10SGD).

Heroine Smooth Liquid Liner VS Kate Super Sharp Liner

a while ago i purchased the kate super sharp liner in BK-1 while it was on sale, i've also done a separate swatch and review on it. i've been a long time user of the heroine make smooth liquid liner. i can't remember what made me want to buy it several years back, but i've since been in love with it as it has worked so well for me, i actually repurchased it because for that price point, this liquid liner is just perfect.



TIP SIZE:
kate: 0.03mm
HM: 0.1mm

honestly, it looks like the heroine make is finer in the photo. both eyeliner tips are made of thin fibres instead of felt tip. the heroine make tip is a little more flexible and soft than the kate's.


can you make a guess which heart is drawn by which pen?

the left is drawn by kate, the ink seems a little lighter in shade because it was brand new when i did this swatch and the ink isn't flowing as nicely yet, but the apparent difference in the thickness of the line is telling of the tip.




FINISH:
heroine make has a slight sheen to it after it's dried down. it actually feel like a thin layer of polymer on top of my skin.
kate dries down to a matte finish, and it sure dries quickly!
this swatch was taken after i used the kate eyeliner for a few more times, so the ink is definitely flowing a lot better, but you can tell it's still on the dryer side.

COLOUR INTENSITY:
both produce an intense black colour.


pardon me for the weird position of the eyeliners.

the first 2 lines and the last 2 lines are kate's, while the one in the middle belong to heroine make. why this odd placement? because after two swipes of kate, i went on to swatching the heroine make only to realize this isn't fair because kate's ink wasn't flowing as smoothly yet. so i swiped another two lines with kate to show that its ink is actually pretty dark too. #thingsthatcangowrongwhenswatching



OIL PROOF TEST:
both comes off pretty easily when rubbed in vaseline, but the kate eyeliners stained my skin.

WEAR TIME:
i'm recalling this from memory, but both eyeliners lasted me the entire day. they stay beautifully on my lids, they don't melt off after exposure to my sweat or oils.

however, they weren't as reliable on my inner corners. it's fine if i don't touch it there, but if i do, it's likely they'll get rubbed off by a tissue after soaking in tears for the entire day.

EASE OF REMOVAL:
heroine make is definitely easier when it comes to being removed by my eye makeup remover. it can be removed by warm water too, but i don't usually do that. it'll come off in a sheet if you do decide to use water.

PRICE:
heroine make: SGD18.90
kate: SGD17.90

i actually bought the heroine make eyeliner in HK, it's only HKD78 over there.

CONCLUSION:
being the kate fan girl i am, i'm actually not too impressed by this eyeliner. even though both of them fare similar in terms of colour intensity and wear time, i'm not too fond of the fact that it stains my eyelids. i'm also used to the more flexible and bendy tip that heroine make offers, i don't think i'll repurchase another kate eyeliner in the future.

if you don't already know, i'm on a "beauty hiatus" due to my little skin problem.
well, it isn't that little since i had to put a pause on work, but then again, i've seen worse.
i guess it's time to add another aspect of beauty into my blog now - inner beauty - since i'm running low on beauty reviews and swatches :P

i remember there used to be a time when japanese fashion was the "in" thing,
scouring japanese magazine was my favourite past time (it still is actually!),
and i realize how many japanese girls are trying so hard to get wider double eye lids so as to achieve the gyaru look.

i look at my eyes and think to myself:
"hmmm, i have a nice pair of eyes!" as i pack on that eyeshadow.

lately, korean fashion has had a heavy influence on both the fashion and cosmetic scene,
a look at the latest korean pop groups and dramas will change the way i view "beauty" from a few years ago - about 99% of the korean actresses/singers/idols have a much narrower double lid, and they made natural makeup look famous!

now, my eyes aren't anything like theirs,
there were times when i thought to myself "i wish i had their eyes" because they are able to carry off light make up so well!
if i were to do that kind of light makeup, i'll look like i need more sleep.

and here is when i catch myself once more before i fall into the never ending spiral of envy.

firstly, the exposure to the societal's definition of beauty definitely shapes my definition as well.
secondly, when what i have do not align with that definition, there exist a gap where envy grows.


envy can be a bitch sometimes, because envy can feed discontentment,
and discontentment eventually leads to unhappiness.

that sort of defeats the whole purpose of dolling myself up to feel good!

how did i change the way i think?
i learnt that when i'm envious of someone else's features,
someone else is also envious of my features as well.
well, i just so happened to have loving girlfriends who never fails to let me know how much they appreciate me, they frame my perceived flaws in a such a way that they appear to be an object of desire to them.
surely, if someone likes some of my characteristics, then there is surely some value in them that i fail to see!
and my girlfriends help me realize those values and got me out of the envious cycle.

now, i make it a point to voice out my appreciation for other's,
it's necessary to let them know, because just like me, they may not discover their own value and worth,
and it's up to us to help them see!

we always appear to have more value in others eyes than our own.

the above example is only one out of the dozen of things that i own which doesn't align with certain definitions that i have come to adopt.
of course, being conscious of the biases allowed me to made necessary adjustments so that the gap between ideals and reality will shrink, and hopefully they will overlap in time to come when i manage to shift my ideals towards reality. :)

start loving yourself more today!
always remember that while you're envious of others, others are also envious of you (even though you may not know it)
don't let the envy blind you from your own unique qualities.

xoxo,
karman

Maybelline ColorShow Crayon Kohl 02 Light Peacock Green and 05 Snow White

august was the month i bought so many new eyeliners. i picked these up when watsons was having a one for one sale for these babies. it's a good chance for me to pick up a while eyeliner for future looks that i'll be doing!

i just realize i can't find any information from its official websites. i did some snooping around e-retailers online and found some of the "claims" these eyeliners have.

creamy, budge proof, long wear, ultra bright colours. we'll see.


the cap is indicative of the shade and finish of the product.


02 light peacock green and 05 snow white.


each pen contains 0.3g of product, it's about 3.2cm long.


it contains the following ingredient. this is for the peacock green in specific.
yup, it's made in china.


swatch over powder foundation. one swipe for the white, multiple swipes for the green.

05 snow white is a matte white.
02 light peacock green changes colour at different angles. from the front it look like a metallic greenish-turquoise-ish colour. this shade tend to go on light, so a few swipes is required.

both are creamy and glides on the back of my hand easily.

light peacock green takes on a bluish hue when viewed at an angle. see below!


when viewed at different angles, peacock green actually looks more bluish. BEAUTIFUL!


vaseline test:

they were pretty budge proof on clean skin, and i'd say they performed pretty well in vaseline too, but they're not as resistant as the makeon and solone eyeliner for sure.

IMHO:

i can only attest for their creaminess for they are really pretty damn creamy. so creamy that if i went a few more layers on my eyes, it starts to deposit stuff unevenly. after it sets the uneven pieces turn hard. if it drops into your eyes unfortunately, it's gonna irritate a little.

i've tried both of them on my lids and on my water line. i actually bought the white for lining my lower water line specifically, but the staying power there isn't very optimal. however, it stayed pretty well on my eyelids.

to elaborate on how snow white felt on my lower lid, it wasn't pleasant. the lead is pretty soft, the products deposited isn't even. it will dry up into hard little bits that eventually goes into my eyes and irritate the hell out of me. :( needless to say, with all that extra tear being generated from that irritation, the waterline is washed clean within half an hour.

i was very impressed by how budge proof they were when i tried them out in watson's. the green is a really pretty shade, i don't see this colour often! it'll make a good "point colour" for some fun :D

sadly, even though the white is really pigmented, it doesn't stay that well on my waterline, once again. what's new? still haven't found that eyeliner that stays on well enough for more than a few hours. can't have it all!

i bought this for $7.90 (for 2) when watson's was having a one-for-one sale.

Solone Vivid Fantasy Smoody Pencil 04 Grape Cakeroll (Swatch and Review)

this was on my radar for quite some time. solone is a taiwanese brand and they're most well known for their eyeliner pencils that sets in 30s. i believe i first saw it on the yahoo auction website many years ago. they've grown much bigger over the years, and this time round they collaborated with an illustrator to create this alice in wonderland series :)


such a cute illustration!


i got it in shade 04, grape cakeroll, it's a purple colour.


ingredients list if you're interested.
it contains 0.5g of product.


a little translation for those who can't read chinese:

what's special about this product:
1. eyeliner + eyeshadow capabilities, can be used as an eyeliner and blended out into an eyeshadow.
2. twist up mechanism ridding you the need of a pencil sharpener.
3. a sharpener is embedded at the end of the pencil to allow for a more precise application.
4. mousse finish that blends easily. colours are vibrant, waterproof and oil resistant, and a long lasting budge proof experience.


it even comes with instructions on how to use the product.
this is for using it as an eyeshadow.

step 1: use a light colour eyeliner pencil on the eyelid and blend it out as a base colour.
step 2: applying a dark colour eyeliner pencil along the lash line and blend upwards to create a gentle gradient.
step 3: use a bright coloured eyeliner pencil to emphasize the inner corner and the lower lid area.


for use as an eyeliner:

step 1: lift up your eyelid with your finger gently, fill in the lash line for the outer half.
step 2: starting from the start of your eyelids, draw the eyeliner and connect to the second half of the line.
step 3: extend the eyeliner according to your eye shape by 1-3mm, lift it up slightly.
step 4: line the outer third of the lower lash line and connect to the upper eyeliner.


the black little part is actually the eyeliner pencil lead sharpener. it only shaves off the product and not the surrounding plastic (unlike a traditional pencil sharpener).


04 grape cakeroll.


it contains about 4cm of product, which is pretty generous in my opinion. the diameter of the lead is definitely much wider than most other brands out there.


swatched on hand over powder foundation:

grape cakeroll is more of a violet-like-purple. i'd say it leans towards the bluish side of purple under normal lighting. it contains some shimmer as shown in the bottom photo.

it does glide over my skin very easily, the mousse formula does allow it to be blended out pretty easily, but some skill is definitely required if you want to get an even colour out of this darker shade.


vaseline test:

it's definitely more resistant than my maybelline gel eyeliners. those melt into vaseline within a few seconds of rubbing, but these thing stayed on my hands until i wiped it with a tissue paper. i guess it takes some friction to get them off the skin.

in case you're thinking that it's really hard to remove, it is difficult only if you use the wrong thing. i tried it with an eye makeup remover (i used my bifesta eye makeup remover) and it came off really effortlessly after soaking the pad in for a few seconds.

IMHO:

do the eyeliner pencil live up to its claims?

vibrant colour - YES. as with most eyeliners.

budge proof - YES. the first time i tried these in sasa, i tried rubbing my hands to get rid of them. i only got myself some red skin after that. eyeliners still intact. :(

water and oil resistant - yet to test them out for the entire day yet, but the vaseline test speaks volume for its oil resistance.

easy to blend - quite easy i would say, but to get an even application is a little hard. it would required some skills definitely. perhaps loading up on the product instead of a sheer layer will allow more products to be blended out smoothly. i think it blends out a little easier than the makeon season 1 eyeliners (especially the darker shades). currently, i think the clio gelpresso eyeliners still top my list of super blendable eyeliners.

i think the addition of a lead sharpener is a really nice bonus to the twist up mechanism. a lazy bum like me really appreciate this invention.

i bought this for SGD$10 from sasa when it was going on sale. the usual price is $14.90. although it's a little more expensive over here in singapore, but i think it's really worth the buck considering the amount of product you get.

maybelline masterliner cost $9.90 for 0.3g. you do the math.

Kate Super Sharp S Spider Line II (BK-1) (Swatch and Review)

part of my august haul. wait, this was actually from july, but i didn't have time to open it till now. this is my first eyeliner from kate even though i own so many of their eyeshadows. i don't really gravitate towards liquid eyeliner because i need my eyeliner to be rather thick (due to my wider eyelid folds), and these super fine and sharp eyeliners doesn't seem to many any sense to me. but ever since i tried the heroine make super smooth liquid liner, i decided i can still use them because of the convenience. yea, i just need to force the liner to be a thicker eyeliner for me to do its job for me. :P



i never measure how fine the tip is, it claims to be 0.03mm. hmm.. apparently it's finer than the 0.1mm tip of the heroine make's eyeliner? i'll do a comparison post next time.


ingredients list.


i decided to just reference the official website to give you all an idea of what this eyeliner claims to be.

The brush pen eyeliner for producing super fine lines is now even more advanced: it produces stronger blacks, has higher fade resistance, and applies more smoothly to the skin.

and that 0.03mm thing as well. 


this seems to be a limited edition, the packaging is printed with silver spider web! errrr, not my favourite thing in the world since i hate spiders, but it's alright. BK-1 is the blackest black they offer.


taken from the official website.
there are 3 colours available. i never thought of getting BK, which is a watered down version of BK-1. what's the point of having a grey eyeliner!?


the supposedly 0.03mm tip.
the pen is made of a dozen of fine fibres, it's like a brush! it is easy to control as the fibres aren't overly soft. i think they are slighter stiffer than the heroine make eyeliner.


this was the virgin swipe of the eyeliner, that's why the colour is so light. it's worth noting that the eyeliner seem to go on a little "patchy" on bb cream. perhaps the oils in the bb cream don't make a good base for it, so girls, powder up before using this eyeliner.


after the virgin swipe, the ink was flowing a little more freely and appears much more blacker subsequently as i used it throughout the month. (ignore the center part where i added mosaic)
again, notice how the eyeliner seep into the lines on the right hand side (a oily bb cream as a base), while the one on the left appeared sharp and crisp (over powder foundation).

the ink dries really quickly into a matte finish that is budge proof to a certain extent. a few hard rub will result in a sheer layer of black of your skin, but thankfully the eyeliner doesn't flake off.


after removing with vaseline, some stains are visible.


slight staining on my eyelids after removing with an eye makeup remover.

it is easily removed by an eye makeup remover, but it seem to stain the skin. :( i wouldn't mind a lip or cheek stain, but an eye stain is alarming because i'm worried that i'll end up as something permanent.

IMHO:

the eyeliner wasn't as sharp as it claims to be, at least that's what i observed when i put it side by side with the heroine make eyeliner.

the application is pretty smooth, although tip tends to be on the dryer side. perhaps that's why it dries so quickly. no more eyeliners transferring to your eyelid folds when you open your eyes in between eyeliner application!

i've worn this out a few times to test it out, the staying power on my eyelids is great, no signs of fading or budging in the sweltering heat and humidity. however, when used in my inner corners, i notice it will smudge and dissolve and transfer to my lower lids. :( THAT'S BAD NEWS!

after using it a few more times, the ink gets progressively blacker. now it's just jet black like the heroine make eyeliner. :) but i don't know if i'm really liking that staining effect :/ it's not my eye makeup remover's problem. something's up with the formulation.

given a choice, i'd choose heroine make over this, as much as i adore the brand, i think they can change the formula a little to reduce staining.

i purchased this for SGD12.90 when it was on sale.

August 2014 Haul

it's november, i just got around to organize the photos and stuff i've bought in august. i accumulate quite a few items because august was FILLED WITH SALES. damn it! my wallet really took a pretty huge blow, but thankfully, sales don't happen too often.


as you can see i got quite a few eyeliners.


from left to right:
KATE super sharp liner (BK-1) | SOLONE vivid fantasy smoody pencil (purple) | MAYBELLINE color show color kohl (snow white and peacock green)

i've been eyeing the solone eyeliner for a while, once it went on sale at sasa (from SGD14.90 to SGD10), i picked it up. the maybelline colorshow eyeliners were having a 1 for 1 promotion, i paid SGD7.90 for both! they were so budge proof when i tested them out, so i picked out these 2 colours out of all they offered as i thought it's a good chance to try something different. the kate super sharp liner was on sale too, SGD12.90 as opposed to the usual SGD17.90. i wanted to compare this to my heroine make liquid liner.


from left to right:
MAYBELLINE the magnum volum' express waterproof mascara | KATE jewelry mode eyes (GN-1)

i purchased these two items during my day trip to johor bahru, malaysia. the kate eyeshadow was going for 50% off! picked it up for 26 ringgit, and the mascara was a purchase with purchase at only 25 ringgit. SUCH A STEAL.


from left to right:
DAISO false lash (W202) | L'OREAL lucent magique foundation (N2 pure porcelain)

the pair of false lashes look pretty natural, i am suddenly draw to those with a longer side after seeing a lot of american style makeup, so i picked it up. it's SGD2. the lashes do reflect some light though, so it's not the most natural option in the market, but since i'm just keen on trying out to see if this style will work for me, it is quite worth the while. as for the foundation, do i really need another foundation since i've already have 2!? i don't, but i eyed this for so long, i really want to try it out for its "lit from within" effect. i picked it up without thinking twice when it was going for SGD21.90 instead of the original price of SGD32. i regret after that because a few weeks down the road, they were going for 1 for 1. :( but it's okay. i really like this foundation. it's worth it! ;)

swatches and reviews will be up soon!

xoxo
karman