Lavshuca Melting Eyes Eyeshadow Palette in BR-01 Review

I'm slowly making my way through my Hong Kong beauty stash and am happy to be able to share another review with you ^^

Today's review, as the title already mentions, is on the Lavshuca palette I picked up.

Like most girls, a palette of neutrals is vitally important for everyday looks and I am no different.

I have several palettes where the main colour scheme is, boringly put, brown. But then again who would have thought that the colour none of us liked as children would become a much loved favourite as we grow up.

Ok onto the review!

STATS

A simple palette containing four shades perfect to creating a pretty everyday eye make up, also perfect for use with gyaru make up. The palette contains a cream, honey-brown, taupe and chocolate brown shade, all of which are shimmery.

Under natural lighting

Under flash

PACKAGING

I absolutely adore the packaging of this palette. The metallic cover, font and decoration at the corners helps the palette to look subtly princessy without being too over the top. I also love how the prism effect on the lid make the shadows look like jewels. However I do find the packaging to feel a little less sturdy than I would like it to be.

While the lid is clear, the bottom part of the palette is of a deep burgundy colour, adding slightly to the regal feel. The shadows are packed closely together with little extra room between and around the shadows, and there is a small compartment enough for one applicator. The product itself comes with a small double ended applicator; both ends are sponges and are differently sized for ease of application.

RATING: 4/5

QUALITY

These shadows are amazingly soft and buttery but hardly have any fallout. They apply like a dream with fingers, sponge tips or brushes and blend well. Pigmentation is also very good, as you can see on the finger swatches, but do need a little layering into order to achieve the full intensity.

I love how the four shades have got me covered on every level, the lightest shades can be used as a highlight or base whereas the darker shades can be used to shade, contour and line my eyes. I know every other palette with a gradation of shades can do the same thing, but the shimmer particles in this palette add a hint of pretty glimmer to my lids without being too  harsh or difficult to blend.

RATING: 5/5

Swatches! (Under flash)

PRICING
I picked up this palette for 98 HKD, which is roughly around £8. Most drugstore palettes in England cost around the same price but I would say this palette is more worth the price.
RATING: 5/5

LONGEVITY
These shadows last well on my lower lids without a primer, but as usual I require a primer for my upper lids.
RATING: 4/5


I would definitely repurchase this palette if I ever manage to use it all up, I really enjoy its buttery soft texture and softly enhancing properties. It's a definite recommendation from me, but if you want to try something different to brown shades, pick up 0R-1 instead. It comes with a soft shimmery orange shade that looks amazing for brightening the eye.

Jia
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Parado Eyeshadow Palette in PK-01 Review

Today's review is on an eyeshadow palette I picked up in Hong Kong.

I'd never heard of Parado before and decided to give it a go because 1) it was on offer for $58 down from $140 and 2) it came with a free blusher (which ended up in my sister's stash).

STATS
A Japanese brand produces an eyeshadow palette containing a pale cream shade with pink undertones, a light peach-pink shade, a hot pink fuchsia shade and a dark grey-purple.

Under flash

Under daylight

 PACKAGING

It comes in a sturdy feeling plastic case, with a cute polka dot design on the lid with a heart revealing a peek of the shadows inside. The palette is sort of large in my opinion, considering it only contains four shadows and one applicator. The applicator is double ended, one side a white sponge, the other a soft brush. I can't comment on how well the applicator works but I think they would do a decent job. The little compartment for the applicator seems a little wide though for just one applicator.

RATING: 4/5

QUALITY

The quality of these shadows is actually quite good. I find them soft, buttery and blendable, although the darkest shade can be a little chalky. My favourite shades are the two lightest ones, they contain a lovely amount of shimmer and are great for highlighting your eyes. The hot pink shade also has a great texture but unfortunately I don't think I'll have many uses for it, hot pink just isn't one of my go-to shades XD I have found the shadows to actually be covered with a layer of shimmer that disappears once you've swatched them, revealing that the shadows have more of a satin finish but still have a nice amount of shimmer. Pigmentation of these shadows is light but buildable, something I prefer as I easier to control the intensity of the shadows.
RATING: 4/5

Swtaches under flash

LONGEVITY

Without a primer, these shadows manage to last all day with a little fading on my lower lids.

I have to use a primer when I use shadow on my upper lids though otherwise my overlapping eyelids will never allow any eyeshadow to last beyond an hour. With a primer, the shadows can also last all day with only a little fading on my upper lids.

RATING: 3.5/5

PRICING

For $58, the palette is an absolute bargain! I don't think I would have purchased it for the full price though considering the brand was unknown to me.

RATING: 5/5 (at bargain price)

Overall, I would definitely recommend this palette to anyone who wishes to add a pink-based palette to their collection. I'm very glad I bought this as I very rarely wore pink eye make up before I bought this, but now I find pink a very sweet shade to wear.

Thank you for dropping by!
Jia
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Imju Fiberwig Mascara Review

An extremely popular mascara across Asia, it is finally my turn to do a review on this mascara's performance. With its abundance of fibres and glossy black formula, does it really live up to its claim of 'painting on false eyelashes'? Well why don't we look at the evidence.

First off, some images of the mascara, the brush applicator and formula.

Shiny red tube and a silver cap with a holographic effect. I'm generally not too bothered about packaging unless it's super ugly or extremely pretty, this mascara happens to have packaging that doesn't bother me.

The brush is slightly curved to make it easier to 'spoon' the mascara onto your lashes while giving it lift. The slightly pointy tip also makes it easier to apply the fibres onto the tips of your lashes vertically.

The formula contains lots and lots of fibres to help lengthen your lashes and it's glossy texture forms the film that helps to adhere the fibres to your lashes and create a 'tube-like' covering around your lashes.

 

The verdict? Well from me, it's receiving a bank of mixed feelings. While the Fiberwig mascara does not live up to its amazing claims of creating a false lash effect, the results I achieved with this mascara were satisfactory. The mascara really does lengthen your lashes, and does provide a small amount of extra volume. Let's look at some pictures.

Just my bare eye so your can see how short my lashes are and can compare length differences :) 

One layer of Fiberwig. Slightly darkened lashes and some definition. What I like most is that my curl is still intact.

Two layers of Fiberwig. The difference is actually pretty impressive, huh? My lashes definitely stand out more and have 'grown' by the looks of things! 

Noticed the clumpy lashes near the end of my eye? Yes, me too. Like any mascara, the Fiberwig can get clumpy when multiple layers are applied. I didn't bother combing through my lashes though, hence the clumpiness.

Side by side comparison of bare eye and eye with three layers of Fiberwig. Lashes are noticeable (although slightly askew, that's just how they grow ^^") and they actually point upwards! ^^

Aaaaaand just a view of my lashes from above. The mascara's lengthening properties are actually rather impressive, it lengthens to an appropriate length without making lashes look spidery or making them feel crunchy while thickening the lash hairs to give the illusion of volume.

One other good thing about the Fiberwig though is that it really is super easy to remove. I just run some warm water over my face in the shower, rub gently with my fingers and the mascara can literally be pulled off in tubes. The tubes can look a little like fly or spider legs though...just thought I'd warn you...but it's actually really fun to pull them off :D And no, your lashes won't come off with the tubes when you pull at them (unless you're really tugging at it..which is kinda uncalled for...)

Now you're probably wondering why I said I have mixed feelings for this mascara. My lashes are very finicky and only a few mascaras with allow my lashes to hold its curl. When I first tried the Imju Fiberwig, it dropped my curl almost immediately when I applied it due to its rather wet formula. However when I decided to give it a go at a later date, the formula could actually hold my curl! Although it doesn't hold it as beautifully as some other mascaras, I am still very happy that it no longer causes my lashes to droop. I guess after being opened for a while the formula dried out a little, hence making it better at holding a curl. This sorta annoys me though, I don't want to have to wait a month or two for my mascara to dry out before it can perform properly TT 

Also, although the photos show this mascara to be quite promising, I very rarely wear the Fiberwig mascara on its own. I have achieved better results when combining it with another mascara hence will always opt for the better looking result. However I would say the Fiberwig is good for daytime looks when you want to add a some length and definition to your lashes without being too dramatic.

Overall, give the Fiberwig a go if you're looking for a mascara that produces more natural looks and is super easy to remove, but if your lashes droop easily like mine, remember that the mascara may only start working satisfactorily once it's been opened for a little while.

If you're still interested in trying this mascara though, here are a couple of application tips. First, use the tip of the brush vertically to apply the mascara to the tips of your lashes. This will help attach fibres to the tips of your lashes and essentially 'extend' them. Then use the curved side horizontally to sweep the mascara from the base to tips of your lashes to help 'lock' the fibres onto your lashes while also creating a thicker, more volumised effect. You may also want to consider using a lash comb if you apply many layers to help stop lashes from clumping. I also use the same technique for my bottom lashes.

Hope this review was helpful!

And again I apologise for my excessive rambling and huge chunks of text ^^"
I will look for ways of breaking up the text a little to make it less visually daunting.
EDIT: do the little gifs make any difference? Although those grey boxes are really bugging me TT

Jia

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