SleekMakeup! Sunset Palette First Impressions + Swatches

Let me tell you guys about the UK drugstore makeup brand Sleek. Ultra pigmented and super affordable, this makeup line was designed as a drugstore brand for the WOC. The shadows are mineral based and they are ultra pigmented! They're priced at about $11.99 on the Sleek website however, I bought mine off of Amazon for $9.90!

Back of packaging

Not thinking, I threw away the box to the palette however but trust me when I say it's really cute The shadows come in a small matte black case which is also hard and perfect for travel. It includes 12 uber pigmented shadows, a large mirror, and a double sided sponge tip applicator.

Closed packaging

What drew me to this palette was definitely the super bright orange and the blue. The whole palette reminds me of being in some warm state, next to a blue body of water with a frosty adult beverage (mmm..). And I truly love it!

Shadows!

I've worn a couple of these shadows, but I've only had it for a day which is not nearly enough time to really give a true and honest review. They look beautiful on the eyes and they lasted all day with my Nyx Shadow base. 

Swatches of the Sunset Palette by SleekMakeup

So far I can say I'm thoroughly impressed. I'm gonna give it a bit more go before I give a final verdict but for now, I'd definitely reccommend giving it a try. The only issue I have is that you have to wait for shipping from the UK but for the money you save, totally worth it. 

Thanks for reading,

B.

Get you some deals honey!

Being a drugstore diva (makes me feel better than calling myself cheap), I love to find a good deal and I've found a very handy resource. G, the writer for NouveauCheap is a God send! Not only is she a fellow drugstore beauty blogger, she takes the time to find all the deals in the drugstore and compiles a list every Sunday/Monday.

Other than looking through her site (which I totally recommend), there are tons of ways to get makeup at less than MSRP. Here's my recommendations

1. Shop the ads! 9/10 a drugstore product will go on sale for 25% off, BOGO1/2, or clearance. Never pay full price!
2. Look for coupons! Shops like Ulta, Walgreens, Target, and CVS all have coupons available and there's also the option of using manufacturers coupons. (Ulta ALWAYS has a $3.50 off $10 coupon on their site)
3. Loyalty programs! CVS ExtraCare Card is a great example. There's even situations where you get ExtraBucks for buying items! Always look for that
4. Online? Sometimes, buying straight from the manufacturer online has it's benefits. For one, there may be special offers available online. There's also eBay and Amazon which are great for buying lots of random items at dirt cheap prices.
5. China... That's right. I said China. If you're looking to buy from companies like Sedona Lace, BH Cosmetics, and Coastal Scents, they all use the same product with branded packaging. Buy from top rated sellers on  eBay, save yourself some money girl.
6. Walmart! Walmart usually has some of the lowest prices around and you can use the manufacturers coupons maximizing the savings.
7. Clearance... 'nuff said

That's all the tips I've got for you dolls. Hopefully they've been of some help

Thanks for reading,
B.

Let's get started! Physicians Formula Shimmer Strips Review

I'd heard a lot about the Physicians Formula Shimmer Strips a few months ago and on a whim in Ulta, I decided to try them. Specifically the Physicians Formula Shimmer Strips in Natural Nude and Warm Nude. They retail for $11.99 a piece but luckily for me, I caught them on sale BOGO1/2; Still not worth the money, at least in my opinion. But you can be the judge.

Natural Nudes

Warm Nudes

The packaging on these is adorable but... it isn't very helpful when trying to use the product. For one, the magnet is really loose and besides that, there's nothing to separate the product and they are actually all in one pan which doesn't seem like that big of a deal until you're trying to get the one color and you get a blend of 3. Ugh. I was willing to let that slide to get a range of beautiful naturals  and nudes that I could wear everyday. Didn't happen. Instead what I go was a range of colors that look almost exactly alike when applied to my chocolate skin. Then I thought to myself, well maybe it's just my real chocolate self who'll have that problem. I was... WRONG. I recruited my best friend in to try some swatches on more of a caramel, yellow complexion and we came to the same conclusion. All the the colors look the same. There are some swatches below for the natural nudes palette

My arm (deep brown) inside Natural Nudes

Caramel complexion swatches Natural Nudes

The first four shades look exactly the same, not to mention they were all super shimmery. But that's my fault for not actually reading the packaging. With the warm nudes, We came across the same issue except this time, a few of the colors just didn't show up so we decided to try some natural lighting

Warm nudes on deep skin

Warm nudes on caramel skin

Sigh, I had such high hopes for these palettes.
Their performance on the eye was just as disappointing IMHO. Application was okay however they would only stay on the eye for about 2 hours before they melted off of my eyes and settled on my cheeks. And don't even get me started on fallout. UGH.

Overall I would not reccommend these palettes to anyone! They're poorly pigmented for any WOC, they don't last very long, and they come poorly packaged. Don't waste your money. Instead, try out some of these SleekMakeup palettes which I'll be reviewing next week!

Thanks for stopping by!
B.

I'm REALLY doing this?!

Welcome!

As a woman of color, I was sick of never having any swatches, recommendations, reviews etc for reviews and products on my skin color..Especially when it comes to drugstore options, we're lacking hun. So I did it, I'm jumping in head first and I'm gonna go for it! You know, I thought about this for a while and thought "why not?"... If no one sees this, it's cool. But if this can help one woman, than I'd be content. So thanks for reading! I'll come up with a schedule soon!

Thanks for coming,

B.