Innocent + Twisted Alchemy - Subscription November '13

Hey guys! Today I have my first subscription parcel from Innocent + Twisted Alchemy to share with you. I was so excited when Linda launched her subscription service, I've known it was coming for a while and I'm so happy its finally here :) The subscription is available in two options:

Samples: 

- 3 deluxe sized samples that are exclusive ONLY to the subscriptions.
- 20% off coupon code
- BONUS! Surprise items

Full Sizes:

- 3 full sized products that are exclusive ONLY to the subscriptions. 

- 25% off coupon code

- BONUS! Surprise items

I've gone with the sample option for now, but I'm hoping to upgrade to the full size after Christmas :) Here is what I received in the first package:

Look at her gorgeous drawings!! That is amazing presentation. She has included a sheet that lists all the ingredients of the shadows, a note about this months box, and websites for all of the other companies she has provided samples of. Those clamshells... so cute... look at the little faces... *dies*

The Innocent + Twisted Alchemy Shades:

Chastity Hymn: "a warm taupe that has green and gold shimmer and blue sparkles"

Broken Silence: "Smoky Purple that has a golden sheen and purple and green sparkles"

Purity Harvest: "Neutral orange that has a golden sheen and green and blue shimmers"

Look at them! I don't even think I can pick a fave! I do have a soft spot for Purity Harvest though, I wore it today and its so pretttty - I love getting surprise shades, because I get things I wouldn't normally pick for myself and they end up as favorites :) Linda has stated that she made a bit extra of these three shades, and will be releasing the remainder to her shop, so if you get in quickly you might be able to snap some up! I almost feel sad that they're not permanent shades... but I do feel special to have them so I'll get over it :P

The Bonus:

The bonus items I received were sanple bags from 5 other indie makeup companies. I just want to say... I think its so awesome in so many ways that Linda did this for us. First of all, the fact that she is using her own subscription service to promote other indie companies just shows how much she cares about the indie community in general. Also, I'm loving the chance to try a bunch of different companies in surprise shades! This must have a lot of time to organise, and I really appreciate it. 

My Pretty Zombie:
My Pretty Zombie is already one of my fave indie brands, my top shade of course being Violet Bites which was named after my daughter (read the story here). I received a sample of blush in the shade 'MDMA' - I hear about this blush all the time, its got a bit of a following in the indie world :)
MDMA: "rosy pink with a gold afterglow"

Notoriously Morbid:
Ok, if you read my blog regularly then you know I'm already a huge fan of this company. Again, I have had a sample of this shade before and swatched it already so I'm going to re-use that swatch here. Notoriously Morbid is a fantastic company with a superb formula, great color range, fast TAT, and all around excellent customer service. I am just about at the point of owning every color they produce, I love them that much.
Belle's Bounty: "A dark metallic gold with gold sparkles."

Kiss My Sass:

Another brand I really like - Linda has good taste! I also currently subscribe to Kiss My Sass's monthly subscription also, and I find that her products to be consistently of a high quality and she comes up with some gorgeous shades!

Aurora: " lilac with an intense turquoise shimmer that shifts to blue & violet in different lighting"

Oslo Cosmetics:
I was excited when I saw this - it is a brand I've been wanting to try for a while, and since I haven't reviewed them before I took a few extra pics.
Orphicus: "Dark, shimmery deep forest green."

The description is spot on and the color is rich and pigmented. The only issue I had is with application. Oslo shadows are semi-loose - their base contains oil, which is why they have a different kind of texture and tend to clump into little balls or flakes. I found that I really had to press my brush into the flakes to pick up product, and then kind of squish them onto my skin to break them up and apply them evenly. The only other semi loose shadows I have are Fyrinnae, which I find are slightly softer and easier to pick up and distribute on the skin. However, this review is only based on this shade - I haven't tried any others so this is just my initial impressions. I'm still interested in giving a few more a go, especially given the end result.

Black Rose Minerals:
My previous two posts were on this company so you've probably figured out I'm quite a fan, I love the formula and they have an enormous range of colors. I was excited to see this particular shade, as its been on my wishlist for a while!
Fearless: " rich lavender that shimmers away with aqua sparkles"

Phew! If you've made it this far, here is your reward: Linda has told me that she'll be running a Tragic Tuesday sale this year (she doesn't do Black Friday sales because she works a lot over that weekend). The sale will be 40% off for one day beginning Dec 3rd @ 1am and ending Dec 4th @ 1am PST. I have begun compiling my list... lol, I'm grateful for a bit of notice so I can save!

I am so excited about this subscription! I can't wait to see what next month brings :) If you would like to subscribe, click here. Innocent + Twisted Alchemy store can be found here, and you can follow on Facebook for news and specials here.

Thanks for reading! :) xx

Kiss My Sass Cosmetics - Swatches & Review

Hey guys! I'm reviewing another indie cosmetics brand today - Kiss My Sass Cosmetics. A few weeks ago they had a coupon code for free shipping worldwide which is amazing for us international girls, shipping for me often costs as much as, or more than the products themselves. I placed an order for three full size eyeshadows and two sample size eyeshadows. About two weeks later I received my package in the mail - pretty fast turnaround!

The eyeshadows came well packaged and the jars were sealed with shrink bands, and also had sealed sifters inside - so no leakage! I also received two samples of lip products - one lipstick and one lip tint.

You're going to have to forgive me - I'm still learning how to take pics of duochromes *shakes fist at camera* but hopefully these give you an idea of the colors!

Aurora: " lilac with an intense turquoise shimmer that shifts to blue & violet in different lighting"

Such a pretty color combo, I'd been eyeing this one up for a while so its nice to finally have it :)

The Garden: "mint green with a violet sheen"

This eyeshadow.... this was the one that I really wanted a good pic of because it is AMAZING. It has to be in my top 5 eyeshadows - the violet duochrome on it is stunning. My camera didn't cooperate particularly well so take a look at the pic, triple the awesome and you might be getting close to an idea of how pretty this is!

Radio: "burnt orange/cinnamon with a small amount of copper shimmer"

I admit I threw this one in simply because it was half price due to being the color of the month but I ended up liking it a lot more than I thought I would!

Fireside Glow: "gray with a copper sheen & copper sparkles"

The sparkles in this shade make it special, the copper against the gray is fantastic.

Stay: "a dark gray with a heavy blue sheen (makes it look like a steel blue) and a few golden sparkles"

I'm a little bit mad at myself for not buying a full size of this one - something I'm going to have to remedy soon! 

Alicia is a gorgeous bright barbie pink satin! I love the idea of it but I'm not sure how well I personally can pull it off, I'll give it a go though! Its a lovely creamy texture, and I didn't find it drying at all.

Bonfire is more up my alley color wise, and I adore the texture of the lip tint - I find it really moisturising and would love to pick up a few of these for everyday wear. I love the fact that you can customise the flavors on the lip products - and there are so many to choose from! She also lets you combo up two choices, so I look forward to having a bit of fun thinking up some crazy combinations >:)

I'm really happy to have found this company, the website is professional and easy to navigate, they have a great range of products and I think the service is wonderful. I'm definitely interested in trying some more lip products as well as more eyeshadows - Kiss my Sass has just released a new halloween collection and I have my eye on a few shades, so I can see myself placing another order soon. :) I loved this order so much that I immediately signed up to the subscription service ($12 per month for US, $16 for international). I love surprises, and I don't feel like I'm going to be disappointed with this company :)

Thanks for viewing my post :) xx

Madd Style Cosmetics - Subscription Box (August '13)

Recently Mo from Madd Style Cosmetics announced that she would be releasing a monthly subscription service. I've loved all the Madd Style Cosmetics products I've received so I thought I'd join in on the fun! This is my parcel for August:

Love the confetti!!! I received two full size eyeshadows in 'Bluegrass' and 'Smoke Bomb', two deluxe samples in 'Cruisin' for a Bruisin' and 'Ever After' and a small perfume oil 'Blue Lagoon'. Also included was a coupon for $5 off my next order, which I plan on using for the Pumpkin King Grab Bag!

Bluegrass: This is a grassy green and has a slight blue sheen - really hard to photograph!

Smoke Bomb: a semi-sheer cream color from the 'Apocalypse Survival Kit'

Ever After: 'a light purple color with satin finish'

Cruisin' for a Bruisin': 'a pressure-sensitive brown with a shifting purple duo-chrome'

I'm really happy with the bag, as you can see the deluxe samples are very generous - I tipped them into jars for ease of use and I estimate they're at least 1/4 teaspoon. 

My faves from the bag were actually the two samples. Ever After is a delicate and pretty purple, and Cruisin' for a Bruisin' really surprised me - I was quite 'meh' about it in the bag, but as soon as I started swatching I was blown away by those purple/blue sparkles and the dimension they added to the shadow.

Bluegrass is definitely an interesting green, I'm generally a fan of anything with a contrasting sheen so I can see myself getting some use out of this one. Smoke Bomb will make a great highlight shade, and its fun getting something thats no longer available.

The perfume oil did leak a little, but not too badly. To be honest its not really my kind of smell, but thats just my taste - my husband loved it! I don't think it will be hard to find it a new home :)

I think the subscription is a great chance to get colors you wouldn't normally pick for yourself, as well as something thats exclusive. Who doesn't love a surprise?? I'm looking forward to seeing what is in next months box!

You can visit Madd Style Cosmetics on Facebook here, buy awesome products here, and subscribe to her monthly boxes here. The cost is $12 if you're within the United States, or $16 internationally. I live in New Zealand and transit time was only about 1.5 weeks.

Thanks for viewing my post! :) xx