NP Set Eye Primer

NP Set Eye Primer : $19 AUD 
Available: Target

I had heard some good things about Napoleon Perdis and so I decided to give his: Set Eye Primer a shot. 

It advertises, "NP Set Eye Primer maximizes the lustre and longevity of your eye shadow by applying our eye base first. Ideal for those days when you require staying power."

I found that while the eyelid feels silky smooth it doesn't provide a creamy base for the eye shadow to stick to, the eye shadow just slid right off, It definitely did not last all day as advertised.
I felt that my eye-makeup was more vibrant without the primer, the eye shadows just didn't seem to stick to the primer and any that did creased within the hour. 

It did make my eyelid feel silky soft. 

Would I buy again: NO! 

Quality: 1  out of 5 

Overall Opinion: For the price and the quality I would not recommend this product at all. It does not deliver anything of what it advertises. 

Alternative: If you are looking for a good primer Urban Decay's Primer Potion is definitely the way to go. I know it's more expensive (more so because its hard to get in Australia) but it is worth it for the quality and finish. 

MUG - Makeup Geek Palette

MAKEUP GEEK 

Makeup Geek was founded in 2008 by CEO/ Makeup artist Marlena Stell. 

In the begging the Makeup Geek name was a  label she went by for her makeup tutorials on YouTube. Since then she has brought out her very own makeup range: Eyeshadows, lipsticks(TBA) and Blushes (TBA) 

Marlena and her team at Makeup Geek continue to create and inspire new looks on a regular basis. 

They have a large fan base on: Facebook, Twitter and  their very own forums

So far she has 50 eyeshadows in her range:  $5.99 USD each  + Shipping

*Makeup Geek ship worldwide 

 Makeup Geek's 8-Eyeshadow Starter Kit

Today's review: Makeup Geek's (MUG) 8-Eyeshadow Starter Kit

$45.00 USD  +Shipping 

The starter kit consists of 8 eye-shadows: 5 Matte and 3 Shimmer

*Note this kit  consists of colour pans only - Z palettes or other compacts are sold separately. The pans are the same sized as MAC so they will fit into a MAC compact.

Makeup Geek describes the colours:

• Cocoa Bear –  Matte golden brown
• Mocha – Matte Warm medium brown
• Glamorous – Bronzy, shimmery gold
• Purely Naked – Soft shimmery nude 
• Shimma Shimma – Shimmery highlight
• Purple Rain – Deep but subtle matte purple
• Unexpected – Light and subtle pink matte purple blend
• Corrupt – Intense matte black with small bit of sparkle

I was mildly surprised that Marlena chose this colour range for her first palette set. Usually a palette would be made up so similar that they are only a few shades apart with one or two darker colours. 
I love what Marlena has done with her colour choice; The purples go really well with the browns and Shimmer Shimmer is a fantastic highlighting shade.


Makeup Geeks Shadows are:

• The highest quality.
• Highly pigmented
• Talc and paraben free. 
• Cruelty free  - Not tested on animals

The price for the starter range: $45.00 USD  +Shipping 

The price is very reasonable for the quality, considering others of the same quality or less sell for more then twice the cost. 

These are the first products I have brought by MUG and I believe they are exactly as described: 

• Highly pigmented and of the highest quality. 
• These eyeshadows do not crease and will last all day
• The colours go on smoothly and blend without difficulty together or with other brands

For an example these eyeshadows click here!

The Service from Makeup Geek was 100% positive

I received Confirmation of my order straight away by email and then confirmation of posting the very next day (different time zones) 

All up, the process from payment to delivery was approx a week to 10 days. (To Australia)

They were packed so well not even a fall from Heaven would damage them. 

The only downside I found, Corrupt had a fair bit of fallout, lots more then the others. Being so potent in colour this can be a little bit of a pain to get rid of. I recommend to tap all excess shadow off the brush, minimal product is required when using this colour. Otherwise apply eye-shadow first and then the rest of the make up or have a tissue under the eye when applying. This is truly the blackest eye-shadow I have ever seen and even with the fallout I would definitely recommend this. 

If this is the quality to go by I will definitely be buying more from MUG's Eyeshadow range. 

Z PALETTE 

To store your MUG pans consider investing in a Z Palette. I brought a Z Palette for these shadows to go into, they fit with plenty of room for more. The magnetic power is strong making sure none of my pans move about in travel. 

Small Z Palette - $13.99 USD

Standard Z palette - $18.99 USD

There is also a Z Palette Pro Option but for $27.99  but I find the standard size to be more then adequate for a colour range. 

Urban Decay - Naked

Recently I purchased Urban Decay's Naked palette from Beauty Bay. It is the first time I purchased anything from this site and I have to say the service was great, no issues at all. 

For all you fellow Aussies (Australians) I'm sorry to say that Urban Decay does not ship to Australia :o( and to buy off Ebay and most web-stores is double the cost.
Beauty Bay is a UK based online retailer, they ship world wide and the costs of the products are very reasonable, almost as if you brought it direct. I happened to purchase the palette when they had a free world wide shipping promotion. Bargain!

The palette itself (at the time of purchase with the exchange rate) was $48.00, I also picked up a Urban Decay, 24/7 Eyeliner - Zero for $19.00  - I had heard some good things about this eyeliner and was eager to find out for myself.  I am quite satisfied with this product. 

Urban Decay's Naked Palette: $50.00 USD (price from Urban Decay's site)

Available - Ships to Australia: Beauty Bay, Ebay

Available USA: Urban Decay, Amazon

Here is my take on the palette:

What I Got:  The palette came with 12 Neutral colour; 3 Matte and 9 Shimmer, an eye shadow brush and a travel sized eye primer pot. 

First of all I love the colours, it is suitable for all skin tones and they are all exceptionally different in colour from each other. The quality and pigmentation of these eye shadows is amazing, They blended well together and with other eye shadows. Using the primer pot these shadows will last all day. The other thing I adore about this palette is they do not crease. 

The eye shadow brush that came with the palette is pretty good quality itself, magnetized with the palette so it won't fall out as soon as you open it. 

The only down-side I found with this palette and I say this reluctantly, because the palette is worth it as is, but I would have liked to see some more matte finish colours. 

Would I buy again?: YES!

Quality: 5 out of 5

Overall Rating: 4 1/2 out of 5

Overall Opinion: I love it! This is an amazing palette for work or play.