Hi my lovelies!
So this week's Sunday Swatches post (as the title suggests) is about my top 3 mascaras. I find that mascaras are a very personal thing; therefore it's only right I explain the type of lashes I have and what I also look for in a mascara!
My lashes I'd say they're of medium health, medium length, medium curl and medium volume all round! I've worked on clients who have very short and long length lashes, very curly and very straight, and very thick and some with barely any lashes (usually due to over use of lashes/extensions). So all in all I feel like my lashes are OK, but obviously mascara helps boost them a hell of a lot more.
What I look for I tend to look for more volumising mascaras so that it gives a false lash effect; if a mascara gives volume AND extra length however, it most likely will become a firm favourite for me.
My favourite mascaras have obviously changed over the years, but currently these stand as my top three and I'll explain further in the rest of the post!

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?

Urban Decay Spring Products - swatches & review

[picture heavy post!]

After my last FOTD I had a lot of people asking me which colour I used on my lips (the nude-pink) which I had sneakily used for the look as I love it so much!

I thought I'd use that as an opportunity to blog about the upcoming Spring UD products that they so kindly sent me along with the Naked2 which is also being released in stores at the same time - 6th February 2012.

First up:

Super Saturated High Gloss Lip Colors (or SSLC as I call it!)

 

The colour I used on my lips for the last smokey look was Lovechild a pale pink (no glitter). I love these two new shades that UD have added to their range of SSLCs, the others were definitely for the more daring, the only less daring colour being F-Bomb (bright red) (see swatches here). Lovechild & Apocalypse however are much more wearable, both without glitter and Apocalypse being a deep berry colour.
The new colours will remain at £14 each along with the other shades available in the SSLC range.

Primer Potion Duo Set

I spotted these about two weeks ago in Debenhams Oxford Street and was glad that my two favourite (and most used) PPs were in a set together. As you may know, I use UDPP (original) for almost every makeup look.. and Sin I use on my lazy days when I can't be bothered to wear eyeshadow but want to look like I am. Both are amazing shades that suit a lot of (if not all) skin tones and as you must know by now, they really do work at making your eyeshadow pop and last, crease-free.

The SA said it was £22 which means that if you use both like me, then buying this set would save you £7 rather than buying them individually for £14.50 each.


24/7 Concealer Pencils

This new launch excited me a lot.. I'm a fan of the current concealer pencils as they give great coverage and apply lovely and smooth. My normal shade is NSA (the darkest shade) however when I came back from holiday last year I had to make do with my MAC NC30-35 as NSA was way too light for me. Thankfully, Urban Decay have finally extended their concealer shades to match their darker foundation shades. I always wondered why their concealers were always light whilst their foundations were great for ethnic/yellow/red toned skin!
The packaging has also been updated (no more light purple, but instead a gorgeous deep purple!)
The new shades include (in shade order): ATF (golden beige), DOD (warm tan), KGB (golden caramel) & MI6 (deepest cocoa). 
The swatches of all the concealers sent to me are here; CIA (the lightest shade) was not sent, but it's a very pale ivory shade, almost white looking!

These concealers will still be £12 which is great as they are handy to carry around for touch ups and as a MUA I like that it's hygienic (no fingers dipped in pots.. can be sharpened!)


24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencils

Urban Decay have again listened to their fans for this one; fans didn't like the packaging of the primers so they changed it. Then after releasing Perversion eyeliner in their 15 year anniversary set last year, fans everywhere (including me!) asked Urban Decay to release it by itself.. and they have, along with two other shades!
For those of you who don't know, the 24/7 eye pencils are one of UD's best sellers; long lasting, waterproof and smudge-proof smooth eye colours make it one of the best selling eyeliners and it actually works!
Swatches:

Perversion is a pure matte black (blacker than Zero) and seriously lasts long (longer than the others in my opinion!). My pencil up until now from the anniversary set has been used for special occasions/looks only, but now I can freely use it!
Demolition is another matte pencil - dark brown, darker than Bourbon for those wondering!
Woodstock is a bright fuschia pink shimmery pencil, but I don't see it suiting me as a topliner.. I will however try it with my pink glitter liner (Catfight) but I'm not usually a fan of pink on the eyes, so I don't see it selling that well! 
I think UD could release a 24/7 eye pencil in a similar colour to their eyeshadow pencil Delinquent (a pure deep purple) which is a favourite of mine rather than the purples available in the liner range. 
All pencils are priced at £13 and will continue to be when these new shades are released in less than 2 weeks.


Pocket Rocket Lip Glosses

These are UD's lipglosses that fit nicely in pockets without any bumps and pheromones in the ink. I've never been too keen on them myself coz the "creme brulee" scent and their somewhat sticky consistency.. and like their honey scented products you either love it or hate it and unfortunately I'm not a fan.
The colours however are amazing, so I tend to ignore the smell if I'm using them!
Two new shades have been added to the collection (£13 each); Rashad (light dusty rose) and Dustin (nude with sparkle and shimmer).
Swatches:

Lush Lash Mascara

Another mascara has been added to Urban Decay's mascara boutique, the Lush Lash mascara. Like the Lush Lash system, this mascara is supposed to enhance lashes by nourishing, thickening and lengthening lashes rather than damage them like normal mascaras. This mascara is also somewhat waterproof even though it's not labelled so.
The Lush Lash system was quite amazing as it did lengthen my lashes (and help grow my brows!) but as for thickening, it only did it after about 5 weeks of continuous use. 
I found the Lush Lash mascara to be lengthening, but not so much thickening.

The brush looked amazing so I was expecting great things but unfortunately I wasn't too impressed.. I would like to see if the mascara does work on improving the condition of my lashes as everyday mascaras I use make my lashes feel weaker, but as it doesn't give me the thickening effect I want, I'll just stick to using the Lush Lash system.
The packaging is lovely though, purple so of course I'd love it! 
The mascara is £15 like all the other mascaras available by Urban Decay.


So there you have it! All of these will be available by February 6th (less than two weeks!) so those of you who were loving that Lovechild SSLC, now you know when it's available!

My personal favourites were the SSLCs and the release of Perversion liner as a permanent pencil.

Urban Decay products are available to buy from Debenhams and House of Fraser stores or online at beautybay.com, hqhair.com and lookfantastic.com. 

Which of these from the Spring collection has excited you most? Will you be buying anything?


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Urban Decay Cannonball Mascara

The new waterproof mascara from Urban Decay is here, rumoured to be replacing the waterproof Big Fatty mascara.

 

It has a similar brush to the Big Fatty mascara but not as "fat":

I find that like the UD Lash Primer, this mascara has visible fibres in it that thicken the lashes, giving it volume:

Here's my lashes without anything on:

And then with Cannonball mascara:

Either the Lush Lash System I've been using is working or this mascara made my lashes super long but the mascara made them look scarily long and spidery! So I brushed it out with a clean mascara wand et voila:

Much more better! I personally don't like clumpy lashes so always tend to brush my lashes out. The mascara smells quite chemical-ly, but glides on smoothly, if not a bit dry. But I prefer dry mascaras to wet ones to avoid clumpiness again. The good thing about this is the waterproof quality as to date I haven't owned one and I have noticed less smudging towards the end of the day.
Priced at £15 (like the other mascaras), it's not cheap but may be something you're looking for if you need a waterproof mascara! Officially released by 15th June again, keep your eyes peeled for this! 


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