In the Spotlight // Primers

Primer is one of those temperamental products that works for some people and doesn't for others. With my oily skin, primer is something I swear by and depend on to keep my makeup on all day! I've found some solid primers that work well for my skin, but I'm still on the hunt for the perfect mattifying primer that will control oil all day (the dream!). I thought I would run through my primer collection and give you guys reviews on them - some I love and some (or one) I don't... As I mentioned - I've got a very oily t-zone and pretty normal cheeks so keep that in mind when reading!

The Ordinary's Extraordinary Primer & Foundation

Today I'm coming at you with a good ol' foundation review, and throwing my thoughts on a primer in for good measure too! I'm reviewing The Ordinary Coverage Foundation and High-Adherence Silicone Primer. The Ordinary's foundations (Coverage and Serum) were subject to a lot of hype not too long ago. Do you remember that long-ass waitlist? I think that in and of itself created a lot of hype, but was probably due to the fact that they couldn't keep up with the demand! Both of their foundation offerings have been touted as incredible bases for such a low cost! Since the initial rave reviews, I've been seeing some mixed and negative ones - particularly of the Coverage Foundation so here I am to give you guys my own take!

New In // Rimmel London

One of my favourite drugstore brands, Rimmel, has been on FIYAH lately with their new releases! The past couple of months has seen the launch of a new lipstick line, lip liner shades, cream shadow sticks, a tinted primer and a contour kit! I've been lucky enough to have been sent some of the new goodies and have been testing them out quite a bit! Keep reading to hear my thoughts...

Game. Set. Match.

It's been a while since I've reviewed a foundation round these parts...In fact my last was of the Bourjois Happy Light foundation which was over a year ago. Say whuuut?! It's not like I haven't gotten new foundations since then but I'm a fickle chick and more often than not, I never get the right shade so I end up mixing it with another foundation therefore altering the formula. Oops. I was however sent Rimmel's latest base launches, their reformulated Match Perfection Foundation* and their Fix & Protect Makeup Primer*. I've actually been meaning to try Match Perfection for yonkles since a bunch of people rave about it, but I've never gotten around to it as I have a crap load of bases (though, I don't use a lot of them so only like 3?). I've also been on a bit of a primer kick lately so I was super keen to try these two products!

In the Spotlight // Crop's Cosmetics

Crop Natural Skincare* is a relatively new brand that came out with a small range of skincare a little while ago, and just recently launched their makeup line! Crop is a natural brand with no nasties like parabens, mineral oil, petrochemicals, etc. It's suitable for sensitive skin and doesn't test on animals! The whole ethos behind the brand is very admirable and you can read more about it on their website! I was very generously sent almost the whole range of makeup (thank you so much Crop!) and have been testing them out for the past few weeks. Before I get into the reviews, I do want to mention the packaging! It's lovely and minimal and looks quite classy - I'm into it. Oh and, unfortunately I couldn't really test the liquid foundation or brow pencil as they are the wrong shades for me! I will try and keep this post concise and I've split the products up into recommendations, 'eh' products and ones that I wouldn't recommend, so keep reading for my thoughts!

In the Spotlight // Napoleon Perdis

A type of post that I love reading, but have never done myself, is a "brand spotlight" post, where I showcase all of the products I have from one particular brand. Looking at my collection, I actually don't have a lot of products from many brands, brand loyal I am not! I do, however, have a few products from Australian brand, Napoleon Perdis, many of which I haven't properly reviewed on the blog. Now is their time to shine!

Feeling Professional

Hi guys! Today I'll be reviewing a product that I featured in my last Monthly Favourites. It is the Lorac Pro Palette. I won this in a giveaway from Sarah at More Than Adored, and I am so thankful to her, as I don't think I would have had the opportunity to try it otherwise! This palette has been so hyped up and has been really popular in the beauty community since its release. Keep reading for my thoughts!

The palette comes with a sample size of the Lorac Behind the Scenes Eye Primer. The only other eye primer I've tried is the Essence I <3 Stage Eye base (discontinued :( ) so I don't have a lot of experience with eye primers. This one has an interesting consistency. After a while, I'm not sure if heat is a factor here, but it started to separate. When I squeezed the tube an oily liquid came out and not the actual primer. This was a bit concerning, but I shook up the tube and the primer came out. It is sort of a slippery, lightweight cream texture that doesn't add any coverage. I think it works quite well, better than the Essence, but after a whole day there is a little creasing of the eyeshadow.

The packaging consists of a thin, cardboard palette with magnetised closure. It has a matte black rubberised finish which does tend to get dirty easily. It comes with a good sized mirror and I think it would be great for travelling as it is very light, thin and practical. There is a QR code on the back which says 'scan for tutorials'. I haven't been able to scan it (my scanner doesn't seem to be working/it's taking a very LONG time to do so) but I like the inclusion of it!

So as I am sure you all probably already know, the palette comes with sixteen eyeshadows, the top row is completely matte and the bottom are shimmery. They are mostly neutral shades, with a few deeper colours thrown in which I think would be great for colourful smokey eyes. It contains a really good mix of light, mid and deep tones too. All in all, the perfect combination of neutral and wearable shades, which could create any look. 

The formula on pretty much all of the shadows is really AMAZING, and consistently across all of the shades. A couple of them are a little sheerer than others, but are still very pigmented. These matte eyeshadows are probably the best I've ever tried. I really like the matte eyeshadows I've tried from The Balm, but if I had one complaint about those, they are a little bit powdery. The Lorac ones are creamy, soft, pigmented, not at all chalky and super blendable. The shimmery shades are absolutely stellar. There are a few different finishes, some more pearly, frosty and others straight out metallic. The pigmentation on most of these is CRAZY, seriously though, but they are so buttery soft, and just are a dream to work with. They wear really well with primer too, no fading at all. I think it's more to do with the primer in the wear department though.

On to the swatches!

THE MATTES: White, Cream, Taupe, Lt. Pink, Mauve, Sable, Espresso, Black

In my opinion, White actually comes out as a shimmery shade.I think it has a super fine, pearlescent shimmer, but overall appears matte. It's a really great basic, quite true white shade.

Cream is more of a beige-toned off white. Great for highlighting the brow bone.

Taupe is one of my favourite eyeshadows in the palette. Its a nice mid toned, medium brown which makes for a great crease shade. I think this could also make a good brow colour for blondes or brunettes.

Light Pink is a light, slightly blue-toned pink. This has more of a satin finish and isn't as pigmented as the other shades. It's still really nice though, and typically in my experience, light matte shades tend to look a bit chalky (especially on my skin tone) but this one isn't at all!

Mauve is a really interesting shade! It is sort of a taupe-y mauve shade which would be great for a cooler crease or lid shade. For some reason I think of MAC Quarry a little bit. It appears slightly darker when applied.

Sable is a slightly deeper than medium, warm-toned brown. Again, a nice crease shade (though all of these would be great for the lid in a deeper look) to warm up the eye look and create definition.

Espresso is your classic dark brown shade. Really great and basic for deepening the crease or outer corner of the eye.

I love the inclusion of Black and I have been most frequently using it smudgily against the lash line. It's also nice for smoking things out.

THE SHIMMERS: Nude, Champagne, Gold, Lt. Bronze, Pewter, Garnet, Deep Purple, Slate

Nude is a frosty, light champagne shade - great for highlighting the inner corner of the eye!

Champagne is slightly darker than Nude with more of a pinky tone. This shadow is a little gritty with individual bits of shimmer, but still has good pigmentation.

Gold is, in my opinion, the shadow with the best formula in the palette. An absolute standout! It is an extremely metallic coppery toned gold. The pigmentation of this is absolutely outstanding, and it is so smooth.

Light Bronze is another fave. It is sort of a mix of bronze/peach/gold/beige/champagne but is so lovely as a lid shade.

Pewter is a shimmery taupe shade, a great shade for the lid, outer corner, or crease! Love this one!

Garnet is another beauty - a rusty, maroon garnet shade. Not quite burgundy but in my opinion, a wearable red.

Deep Purple is a very dark purple bordering on black. It applies quite a bit darker than it looks in the pan. The shimmer isn't as obvious in this one.

Slate is a metallic gunmetal blue-grey shade. 

The Lorac Pro Palette is fast becoming one of my favourite, must-have eyeshadow palettes. The variety of shades and finishes in here is amazing, and it can literally create any type of look. The diversity definitely, in my opinion, makes it a more useful asset than any of the Naked palettes (which I don't own, but I do own the Chi Chi Dupe). If you can get your hands on it, I definitely recommend it!

Have you tried the Lorac Pro Palette?