Zoeva En Taupe Palette

I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a sucker for the Zoeva palettes, but every time a new one is released I know that I'll eventually buy it. And the latest addition to the family is the En Taupe palette which is built up of ten shades based around the autumnal browns and taupes, leaving us with a very versatile palette.
Like all of there other palettes, each shadow has a lot of product and I honestly think that these palettes can't be beaten especially when it comes to the price point. It also has a mixture of shimmers and mattes, and so I find that I can create natural day time looks with this as well as more dramatic night time looks because this palette has some beautiful glittery and shimmery shades in it! I do find that because this is a more taupe based palette, I don't use it as often as I would like purely because I'm not used to seeing some of the colour with my complexion. 

On the top row of the palette there is a shade perfect for highlighting which is called Stitch by Stitch, and this is just an off white matte shade and I always prefer to have a matte highlight as I'm someone who will go for shimmery shades on the lid and this always helps to balance it all out. There is also two amazing crease shades on the top row, the first being Hour by Hour which is has a peach tone to it and I love this because it reminds me of Makeup Geek's Peach Smoothie  shadow which I use as a transition shade for so many different looks and so whenever I use this palette, that is always my transitional colour. There is also the shade Gallery which is a lot more brown toned and so I find that this works well in the crease and it's a brown that will go with all the other shades in this palette! One of my favourite shades from this palette has to be Old Master and up until recently I was someone who would stay away from glittery eyeshadows but since trying some out, I feel like they look really flattering for special occasions and this is a shade that has a lot of purple to it and then it has fine gold shimmer running through it, and so it looks beautiful with any purple or taupe based looks. 

Then we have the bottom row, which holds more of the shimmery shades, and I think that the shade Outline is my favourite from all the shimmers because it is a lot more brown based and I just tend to find that browns suit more a lot better due to having blue eyes but all the shimmery shades in this palette are so buttery and soft as well as being so easy to work with and the bonus is that there is minimal fallout! But the best shade on this row, I would have to say is the only matte shade called Exquisite which is a straight up taupe purple shade which looks amazing in the crease and outer corner of the eye when using this palette to do an eye look, although I do have to admit that this shade is a lot harder to work with and I feel like you really have to build up colour especially if you're someone who doesn't use a primer for their eyeshadow.

Overall, I would have to say that this a lovely palette and for taupe lovers it is a must have but I do tend to find myself reaching for other Zoeva palettes over this one, plus the pigmentation is a few of these shadows could have been better. However I definitely do have my eye on the new palettes from the spectrum collection that recently launched!
Have any of you tried this palette, if so what are your thoughts? Are there any other Zoeva palettes that you would recommend?

More From Gerard Cosmetics

Back in January, I posted about my first Gerard Cosmetics order, and since then, I did decide to order some more! Plus, there are loads of new colours so it gave me a good enough reason to spend some money and so I thought I'd share what shades I picked up with you all!

There was recently a coupon code that Gerard Cosmetics were sharing on their instagram to get $45 off your order (this may or may not still be valid) and so I thought I'd take advantage of that and pick up the bundle of five lipsticks! I ended up getting free shipping to the UK and it ended up costing me around £35 for everything and I didn't get hit with custom charges, so I was very pleased with that!

Just recently I've been wanting to branch out with lipstick colours, as I'm someone who will wear a red or purple but feel uncomfortable wearing a pink which is a little crazy and so I decided to order some out of my comfort zone shades which included a few pinks, a nude shade as well as a grey toned pink which I fell in love with on the website!

Kimchi Doll: this is a shade created by Sophia Chang and is described as the perfect baby doll pink and peach cross which I really do agree with! I do think that this is a shade which some people could find to be too light and on me I must admit it's more of a peach shade but still beautiful! This is a shade that would be great for everyday wear just because it isn't over the top and it will go with almost any makeup look and so if you're into peachy pink nudes then this one is definitely one for you!

Buttercup: hands down, my new favourite my lips but better shade! I'm not usually a lover of lipsticks that aren't matte but I love this, because it's one that you can really build the colour up on and I find that I can use this on an everyday basis and if applied in a sheer layer, it wouldn't even look like I had lipstick on! So for all of you out there, who want something that isn't highly visible on the lips, but also need a pop of colour, this is the one!

swatches top to bottom: Kimchi Doll, Buttercup, Berry Smoothie, Rodeo Drive and Underground

Berry Smoothie: if I had to pick one of these as something that I would usually go to, it would most probably be this one. And true to it's name, the colour is really like a berry smoothie! It's a pink that isn't too light and a shade that I can really see myself liking, I'm sure that this is a lipstick that will come up a lot in different makeup looks!

Rodeo Drive: this is a true rosy pink shade which I think anyone would find easy to wear because it's one that you really can't go wrong with! And one that looks beautiful with a muted pink eye look but could work with almost any makeup look! A starter shade for those who are beginning to wear makeup or just lipstick in general and are unsure of what shades to look into!

Underground: I was so excited about this shade, as I had been lusting after some kind of grey toned lipstick, and once I saw this grey toned pink, I knew that I needed to have it! I must admit that when swatched, this lipstick shade is very deceiving as it has almost a brown undertone to it, and on the lips, it really does have that cool greyness to it! This really is a daring shade and one that's probably out of a lot of comfort zones but I think it's a very pretty shade at the same time!

All of the Gerard Cosmetics lipsticks are so creamy in texture even if they do have a slightly matte finish to them, and I think this is what makes them so comfortable to wear! I do find that they need touching up every now and then but for most of the shades, reapplication is so simple because of the wearable shades that you can't go wrong with! I really would recommend these lipsticks especially as they don't cost too much and shipping isn't expensive considering this is an American company.

Have any of you tried anything from Gerard Cosmetics, or want to try anything from this brand?

Makeup Geek Loving

I recently placed my first order on Makeup Geek and honestly, I'm surprised I didn't do it sooner, because I have been lusting after many of the eye shadows on there for the longest time! And since the release of the newest foiled eye shadows, I feel like I need to place another order!

I must admit that I did a bit of research on the shipping processes of the company before I made my first order, and decided that the best option would be to place a small order so that I would be less likely to get hit with custom charges (because who wants that, right?) So I ended up ordering four shadows and with the delivery charges, it really wasn't that expensive and I will probably continue to order eye shadows from them in small batches like this!

The four eye shadows I ordered consisted of three regular shadows and one foiled eye shadow and now I'm wishing I had ordered a Z Palette but I will be ordering one soon, as at the moment, the shadows are all just sat in their packaging! Anyway, I did have an idea of what shades I wanted as I must admit I am one of those people who will repeatedly go onto a website without ordering anything and just make a list of what I want!

The first one I knew I would end up getting was of course, the loved by most Peach Smoothie shade and I honestly don't think there is another transition shade that can compare to this one, it will blend out pretty much anything! It is as you would expect from the name, a peachy shade that I will probably always go to for a crease/transition shade as it is one that blends out seamlessly but can also be used all over the lid as a setting for any primer because the colour is so close to many pale skin tones.

As well as a transition shade, I also wanted to pick up a matte brown shade for the crease but let's be serious, can you ever have enough matte browns in one collection? The answer is no! And so I decided to add Frappe to my basket, as it's a brown that doesn't lean too cool, and also isn't too dark for everyday wear, but if all the eyeshadows hold this much pigmentation, I will sure be picking up a load more brown shades (the obsession is real!)

Just recently, I have been wanting to branch out of the neutrals zone, and this is something that I really struggle with, as having blue eyes, I find that colours such as browns and golds compliment my eyes well. However, after watching a few YouTube tutorials that included the shade Bitten I decided that I would buy it, and I have actually used this a few times, and I love it! I must admit, a light hand is needed, as this shadow really doesn't hold back on pigment! I love it!

The final shade that I bought, was a foiled shadow and just when you think that the pigment can't get any better, you swatch this and oh my, it does get better! The formula of this shadows really is something else! I decided on the shade Showtime which is another brown shade with warm undertones, and the finish of this is something to be admired! I have yet to use this, but I can imagine it would lovely all over the lid, and then blended out in the crease!

Do any of you have some shade suggestions as to what I should pick up next? What have you tried yourself, if anything?