Hi guys!

Apologies for the lack of posts, I've been on holiday the last 2 weeks to South Africa; which was amazing as it was their Summer so the weather was beautiful. I'll post some pictures as soon as I've transferred to my laptop, but in the meantime you can check my instagram: frootibeauty.

I've been meaning to review a couple new Urban Decay products so I thought I'd start with the Smoked 24/7 eye pencils and the Ocho Loco set that came out this Fall.

Ocho Loco 24/7 eye pencil set

I bought the Ocho Loco set last month as I was excited seeing them in store, particularly the new colours Psychedelic Sister (a real purple shimmer as opposed to violet purples), LSD (midnight blue shimmer) and Junkie (teal shimmer).

The set consists of 8 full size eye pencils, some available to buy singularly and others only in this set or other LE sets.
The sets are usually great value for money and this one is no exception; I bought the set from Debenhams for £36 in their 10% cosmetics sale (usual price £40), which meant that each pencil only costs £5 if you buy it at the full price of £40, which means you're saving £8 per pencil as they're sold at £13 each.
All in all this set is worth £111 (including the Grindhouse sharpener) but you only pay £40 so you save £71 (or more if you buy it in the sale like I did!).

FrootiFactor: I have to say I love this set a lot re: value for money and amazing colours so I give it a 5:

The set can apparently only be bought online at Debenhams and House of Fraser, but sometimes they are available in certain stores so it's best to check your local store if you can't find it online.

Smoked 24/7 eye pencil set

The smoked pencil set consists of 6 trial sized pencils and is particularly exciting for those who love smokey eyes, as you have 3 matte pencils (Zero, Demolition & Mainline) and 3 with slight shimmer (Uzi, Smog & Empire).

Mainline (gorgeous peacock teal) and Empire (eggplant purple) are two new shades I haven't seen before and are definitely my favourites; Uzi was in the 15 year anniversary pencil set (read about the set here) and Smog is another colour that was brought back by demand.

The set is sold at £26 a pop which equates to around £4.33 per pencil; still not bad value for money particularly if you're a fan of their pencils as much as I am.

FrootiFactor: I have to say I love all Urban Decay 24/7 eye pencils so I'd give a biased FrootiFactor of 4.5 for this one as my only qualm is the sizes of limited edition pencils!

The set is available at selected Debenhams and House of Fraser stores as well as online and in these online retailers: HQ hair, Look Fantastic, and Beauty Bay.

Have you tried Urban Decay's 24/7 eye pencils before? Will you be buying any of these sets?

 

Diego Dalla Palma review

I've had my eye on this brand for a while now, particularly after their recent Snow White & The Huntsman palette (we all know I love palettes!), so after receiving a lovely package containing a couple of DDP beauty products, I couldn't wait to get testing.

For those of you who don't know, Diego Dalla Palma (DDP) is an Italian makeup artist who created his own line of makeup and is akin to MAC in Italy. The cosmetic line boasts over 250 products starting from £10 here in the UK. You can find their UK versions of facebook and twitter too for updates and competitions.

The products I received were all eye products so I shall get down to a makeup look very soon with them!

Colour Eye Shadows

DDP eyeshadows come in two variants - eye shadow and colour eye shadow. The colour eye shadows are more full and vibrant in colour with a silky texture. I was sent shades 54 (light purple), 55 (dark purple) and 60 (black w/shimmer).

Packaging: I quite like the packaging of the eyeshadows; the white square with simple DDP logo on the front in black and a thin black border in the middle where the case opens. It reminds me of little biscuits or reverse smores. Each individual eyeshadow comes with a sponge applicator, handy for travelling.
Colour & Pigmentation: They each have fairly good colour payoff, but needs to be used/swiped a couple times to get full colour. 55 is comparable to UD Psychedelic Sister e/s and 60 most comparable to UD Creep (Naked palette). I found 55 & 60 to be more pigmented than 54.
Texture: They're not as soft as UD shadows, but not chalky or too powdery either.
Scent: n/a
Price: At £14 each, DDP single eyeshadows are more expensive than MAC and UD single eyeshadows, so I'd expect them to be a bit more softer and pigmented!

FrootiFactor: Despite its price, these shadows are quite cute and fairly pigmented so I'd give them a FrootiFactor of 4.5:

Eye Pencil

DDP eye pencils also come in two formats - waterproof eye pencil and just a normal eye pencil. The packaging of the waterproof eye pencil reminded me strongly of UD's 24/7 eye liners by looking at a picture, but I received the normal eye pencil in black (01). There are 12 shades altogether in this eye pencil and only black in the waterproof version.

Packaging: First impressions was that the outer box was unusually long! The pencil also corresponded to this length which was still pretty long especially when held up to the eye in front of a mirror! 
Colour & Pigmentation: Black; pigmentation-wise it's fairly good and dark but needs to be swiped back and forth a bit.
Texture: Fairly hard, even after warming up on the hand the product felt like it was tugging on the skin.
Longevity: Unfortunately not waterproof as I was left with panda eyes half an hour later of trying the product!
Scent: No scent apart from the usual wooden pencil smell
Price: At £13 each they're an average high-end brand price, however I wouldn't pay this much for a non-waterproof liner!

FrootiFactor: I can't say I'm a fan of this pencil as I'm more of a waterproof/long lasting makeup kind of girl; It would however be better for a smoky look as this pencil smudges easily and has great pigmentation.
I personally don't use products that smudge or that I have to touch up so I'd have to give this pencil a 1.5:

Very Violet Mascara

I received a purple mascara (95) which tied in nicely with the whole purple theme which is very me! 

Packaging: Nice simple clear tube aside from lid which is black. Mascara wand is natural bristles which I prefer in a mascara.
Colour & Pigmentation: Very pigmented mascara with reddish purple tone.
Texture: Feels slightly sticky/heavy when worn.
Longevity: Not waterproof/long lasting.
Scent: n/a
Price: At £16 it's fairly pricey for a coloured mascara that may not be worn everyday and isn't longlasting! 

FrootiFactor: Again as this mascara isn't wearable everyday or longlasting, I'd give it a 1.5:

Overall the products I liked the most was the eyeshadows; the eye pencil and mascara were good products but not for me as I prefer waterproof/long lasting products on a day to day basis as well as for occasions. I do have my eye on the pop art lippies though, they look so cute and are in pretty colours as well as the Snow White palette.
DDP products are available at larger Tesco stores or online. 

Have you tried Diego Dalla Palma products? Which have you tried and what do you think of them?

NYX second haul, swatches & FOTD

[picture heavy post!]

So after my last NYX haul I was interested in trying other NYX stuff; namely the Jumbo Eye Pencils (esp in Milk & Yogurt) and the Matte Lip Creams as well as more round lipsticks. 

So on to the first of three; Jumbo Eye Pencils

I got one in Yogurt and x2 Milk coz I see myself using this more than any other colour, especially as white helps bring out the colour of any eyeshadow I'd put on top of it! 
Yogurt is a tan-beige shimmer that I've seen other MUAs on Youtube use as a base so I thought I'd try it out. On first impressions I don't think it appealed to me much.. My UDPP in Sin looks and feels tons better, but I'll defo give it a go in a makeup look soon to give a proper review. 

Milk however, at first glance (and use) impressed me coz it was a very pigmented white and blended pretty smoothly on the eye. The day I got it, I wore it by itself (no base) on the inner corner and spread out to the middle of the eyelid with a bit of grey (UD Gunmetal e/s) on the outer eyelid. By the end of the day it was still pretty much there, with just a little bit of creasing.

I love how it's a great highlighter and definitely see myself using this a lot more frequently!

The next in my haul are the NYX Matte Lip Creams (MLC). I got them in 2 shades; Addis Ababa (bright fuschia) and San Paulo (a rose-peach colour).
The MLCs are named after cities all over the world, Addis Ababa being a city in Ethiopia and San Paulo - Brazil. They're unusual cos unlike matte lipsticks they don't feel dry/tugging when going on the lips, more like butter, but unlike gloss it doesn't leave a shine (or stickiness!)
On opening the tube, the smell of caramel/toffee comes wafting out, which I personally love (for those who know me, I'm a sucker for sweet smelling products!)
I absolutely love the weirdness in texture.. it's not too drying either, so lips feel comfortably moist compared to wearing a lipstick and the colour payoff is pretty decent! I wouldn't however recommend putting a gloss on top as I tried to put one of my Sleek Pout polishes on top of Addis Ababa and ended up with it smearing everywhere and then with no trace of Addis Ababa! =(

Left: San Paulo, right: Addis Ababa:

swatches with flash:

swatches without flash:

I wore Addis Ababa the day I got this delivery along with the aforementioned Milk Jumbo Stick on the eyes and here's how it looked:

The bright pink attracted me, but unfortunately out of the two colours it does highlight dry skin much more! So unfortunately I'm gonna have to scrub my lips raw before I use this regularly.
I do hower love San Paulo 10x more, it's a gorgeous colour that I feel suits my complexion almost perfectly! It doesn't stand out too much but doesn't look nude, I love it!
San Paulo:

I'm seriously loving this colour and will be carrying it around with me from now on.

As for the NYX round lipsticks I bought, I chose the colours NYX, Femme & Louisiana.

Swatches: 

NYX (left) is a shimmery golden bronze-orange colour, I bought it to give a 3D effect to matte or sheen lipsticks, especially red bridal lips. I'm happy with this colour as it's just what I wanted!

Femme (middle) is another coral colour I wanted, after my disappointment with frosty "Margarita" (click here). 

It's an actual coral-orange colour with a very slight shimmer and compared to the other two corals I own (Sleek Coral Reef and MAC VV Toxic Tale), it's definitely more orange toned than pink.

Here's how it looks on the lips:

Louisiana is a nice bubblegum pink colour that looks lovely and girly, with purple tones. It almost borders on the pastel side of pink but is slightly brighter, so it doesn't look too terrible on my pigmented lips. 

Compared to the other recent pink lipstick purchase (Sleek Candy Cane) it does however look more pink than Candy Cane which looks coral next to it!

And on the lips:

I also got a nice little freebie from this order on eBay from joyscosmetics for spending over a certain amount - an NYX Tinted Lip Spa (TLS) in Orange Passion. 

 See-through lid:

I actually really liked this, it does give a slight coral-y tint to the lips but not overpoweringly so. I use it usually at night if I'm honest with you, because of its moisturising properties and vitamin E, but I'd definitely carry this around with me for topup moisture as it feels great on the lips and looks nice and natural too. It has a slight minty tingle when applied to the lips too, which is nice and no stickiness. My only qualm with the product is that it's too soft; so when twisting down (or up) after use, it bends to the side, causing damage to the length of product.

Swatched:

 and on the lips:

All in all I'm happy with my order this time, especially the San Paulo Matte Lip Cream.. 
Do you own any NYX products? Which other products would you recommend?

<3

FINALLY... finally....

No I'm not talking about the Rock's return to wrestling (you'll only get that if your partner annoyingly watches it!); I'm talking about my UD 15 year anniversary set finally arriving on Saturday.

Before I show you pictures of it, I'd just like to rant about the crappy service I got for this particular order.
I ordered the set on 1st February, waiting eagerly for it to arrive every day. But after a week of it not arriving (but baking trays that I had ordered AFTER it arriving), I phoned to ask about the whereabouts of it. I was told that it should arrive by Friday 11th, but that if it hadn't arrived by Wednesday 16th, I should call. 
First of all I thought it should defo not take up until 16th, but I waited patiently, only for it to not arrive on the 16th. 
On phoning this second time, I was told that it will be investigated and someone will call within three days, which meant Monday 21st at the latest. I expressed how desperately I had been waiting for this order and how terrible it is to have to wait this long. They apologised and said the fastest way it can be dealt with is within 3 days, but the sets were in stock, so I could order another one (which I did, just in case).
Luckily I received a voicemail the next day (Thursday 17th), saying that the order was "lost in transit" and that I would be refunded. I was heavily disappointed with the way it was dealt with, as all my friends and blog followers should know, I am a huge UD fan but to have my order cancelled like that and not even sent out another one, I was really disappointed. I've written a complaint email to them, to which they only responded with a "sincere apology", but in all honesty I don't think that's enough. I'm not usually one to complain, but when I had been waiting for over 17 days for an order I was excited about, it's really not on. Especially when orders taking over 10 days should be dealt with as soon as possible.

Anyway, my second order came fast (well it had better!!), it came on Saturday so I finally managed to get my hands on it.
And I have to say I'm in love with it, just like I knew I'd be.
15 pencils and a sharpener stamped with UD15, with 6 exclusive shades:
Stray Dog (taupe), Corrupt (chocolate brown with very tiny gold flecks), Midnight Cowboy (beige/champagne), Asphyxia (two toned pink-blue), Uzi (gunmetal grey) & Perversion (blacker than Zero black!)

Here's a pic of the UD15 stamped pencil compared to a normal 24/7 pencil:

I have a few of the others in minis from the Super Stash mini set (Binge, Rockstar, Ransom, Binge, Corrupt & Stash), so I have almost half of this anniversary set, but they are miniatures and I am a collector, so it's all justified. Plus my husband got this set for me as a gift =)

Here's some pics of my set, although for even better pictures, check Temptalia's page here.

 

And my swatches:

Left to right; top row: Midnight Cowboy, Baked, Stash, Mildew
second row: Stray Dog, Corrupt, Bourbon, Rockstar
third row: Electric, Binge, Ransom, Asphyxia
bottom row: Perversion, Zero, Uzi

The two blacks side by side- left Zero, right Perversion

The 6 new shades (with Zero for black comparison) 
Left to right; top row: Uzi, Stray Dog, Corrupt,
middle: Midnight Cowboy & Asphyxia,
bottom: Zero & Perversion

My thoughts:
Personally, as a huge UD fan, I love all their products, including this one. I do however find that a few of their newer shades (Asphyxia, Binge, Ransom from this set), don't have the same pigmentation as the other shades, and tend to come out lighter. My swatches above are swirled a couple times for these shades in particular, to get the full colour effect, but Asphyxia was so soft in colour that it smushed on the pencil nib mid-swatch!
I do however LOVE Perversion and have shown anyone I can the difference between Zero & Perversion. It's darkness is so mesmerising I absolutely love it and can see myself using it in makeup looks that have shimmery eyeshadows as Zero doesn't usually cut it on its own.
All in all, I'm pleased I got this collectors anniversary set (as I don't see non collectors/Urban Decay fans parting too quickly with £60 for this set really!) and I shall try encorporating it in FOTDs/makeup looks for you to see =)


<3