NARS Dual-Intensity Eyeshadow Palette

When the news broke that NARS were releasing a limited edition eyeshadow palette packed with their Dual-Intensity Eyeshadows, I knew I wanted it even before I saw it. See, I've been toying about purchasing a couple of shades from the Dual-Intensity lineup but I begrudged paying £21 for one shade so I knew a palette was the perfect solution and even more so when I discovered that the two shades I wanted to buy were actually in the palette. The NARS Dual-Intensity Eyeshadow Palette contains eight Dual-Intensity Eyeshadows; seven of which are from the permanent shade range and one is an exclusive shade to this palette.

Each of the eyeshadows in the palette weigh 1g each, and the individual shadows are 1.5g each so this palette contains 8g product making it worth £112 which is amazing considering the palette is only £45. It has been an absolute nightmare trying to purchase this palette, and I've not seen anyone that's purchased it online have a drama-free transaction as there have been stock issues across the UK. I managed to snap mine up from the Urban Retreat website which took over a week to arrive, but I'm very happy to finally have my hands on it. 

The packaging is so nice and sleek with the shadows encased within black plastic, with a mirrored lid but the mirror has clear plastic over the top so luckily it isn't a fingerprint magnet. Inside the palette, there is a mirror within the lid and the shadows are laid out in two rows of four pans with a travel size wet/dry eyeshadow brush included too. I really like that NARS have chosen to emboss the same pattern that is on their individual shadows, on the shadows inside the palette. The shades within the palette are; Europa, Himalia, Ursa Major, Subra, Andromeda, Lysithea, Giove and Sycorax, with Ursa Major being the palette exclusive.

The brush included within this palette is the NARS Wet/Dry Brush #49 which retails for £24 with a travel sized handle, and is the first NARS brush I've ever tried. The brush has long synthetic bristles which are really soft and quite dense, and can be used to apply the Dual-Intensity shadows both wet or dry. This brush alone is amazing, at applying and blending shadow and I've found it to be the best brush for the Dual-Intensity shadows so the value of the palette is actually £136 with the brush's value included.

Europa: a pale, peachy pink with a metallic finish.

Himalia: a golden bronze with a shimmery finish.

Ursa Major: a rich, chocolate brown with a satin finish.

Subra: a deep brown matte, containing deep burgundy pearl.

Andromeda: a super pale beige cream with a shimmery finish.

Lysithea: a grey taupe with a touch of olive and silver with a metallic finish.

Giove: a deep, intense navy blue with a subtle sheen.

Sycorax: a very intense black luminous matte.

All of these swatches were done dry, and I can't believe how pigmented they all are as I was worried that they'd be quite insipid unless they were used wet but the pigmentation is incredible and the colours are all absolutely stunning. My favourites would have to be Europa, Subra and Giove but there isn't one shade that I don't like, and I really couldn't be happier with this beautiful palette, and I totally recommend snapping it up if you want it as it's limited edition, and you really don't want to miss out...

Caudalie Pamplemousse Rose Lip Conditioner & Hand Cream Winter Duo

During the Winter, the icy cold weather plays havoc with our skin; especially our hands and lips and Caudalie have both bases covered with their Pamplemousse Rose Lip Conditioner & Hand Cream Winter Duo £8*. In the cute, foil pack there is a 30ml tube of Caudalie Pamplemousse Rose Hand and Nail Cream (worth £4.80) and a 4.5g Caudalie Lip Conditioner (worth £5.50).

The Caudalie Pamplemousse Rose Hand & Nail Cream is said to offer moisturisation, softness and youth with its anti-oxidant formula, which is made from orange pulp for silky-smooth and protected hands. The pink grapefruit scent is really lovely and unique.. I love grapefruit scents and wish there were more products that were grapefruit scented. The delicate scent lingers on my hands for around an hour after application, so it's not something I'd apply if I was planning on eating within an hour or so. The formula is really lightweight which absorbs quickly, without leaving my hands feeling sticky or greasy. I like to use this handcream during the day, as it gives my hands instant moisture without any residue but it's not particularly intensive, so I prefer to use a richer handcream before bed but during the warmer months, I'm sure that this handcream would suffice.

The Caudalie Lip Conditioner is one of my favourite lipbalms, and one I always like to carry in my handbag. It is 99.5% natural, and is described as a nourishing, anti-aging lip balm which repairs damaged lips. It has a delicious vanilla scent, but I did expect it to have the same scent as the handcream seeing as it's called the "Pamplemousse Rose Lip Conditioner & Hand Cream Winter Duo". It's a really creamy lipbalm, but it's completely invisible so you could apply it under or over lipsticks or lip tints. It really is nourishing like it claims, and I love how soft and smooth it leaves my lips with each application.

NEW Makeup Revolution I ♡ Makeup I ♡ Obsession Eyeshadow Palettes

I am very lucky as I was given an exclusive peek at the brand new Makeup Revolution I ♡ Makeup I ♡ Obsession Eyeshadow Palettes before anyone else, which was very exciting and I've been dying to tell you all about them. Makeup Revolution's  I ♡ Makeup have released a new range of eyeshadow palettes called the I ♡ Obsession Palettes which consists of five limited edition palettes. Each of the five I ♡ Obsession palettes contain ten eyeshadows, and retail for £3.99 each.

Each of the palettes are packaged within slim, plastic palettes with a clear lid so you easily see the shades inside each palette which I really like. The palettes are lightweight, and I'm a big fan of the larger pan sizes of these palettes compared to the slim bar pans of the Redemption palettes. When I saw these palettes for the first time, I had a sneaky feeling that they were in fact dupes.. and sure enough, after some swatch searching online, four of the five palettes are seriously incredible Stila Eyes Are The Window Palette dupes... and one is an equally amazing Urban Decay Naked 3 Palette dupe - exciting or what?!

I ♡ Makeup I ♡ Obsession Palette - West End Girls*

The first palette is West End Girls, which is definitely a dupe for the Stila Eyes Are The Window Spirit Palette and it's such a stunner and the quality is incredible. 

1: a shimmery butter yellow

2: a shimmery red toned brown

3: a purple toned burgundy satin

4: a midnight blue satin with purple and navy micro glitter

5: a matte khaki gray with gold micro glitter

6: a shimmery dark emerald green

7: a matte pale cream

8: a matte pale pink with pink shimmer particles

9: a satin pale brown cream

10: a shimmery white gold duochrome

I ♡ Makeup I ♡ Obsession Palette - Born to Die*

Born to Die is an all neutral palette and a dupe for Stila Eyes Are The Window - Soul Palette, and I imagine this being their most popular palette due to the super wearable hues and being nearly an all matte palette.

1: a shimmery white with a slightly chunky consistency.
2: a matte warm toned medium brown.
3: a matte taupey brown.
4: a satin taupe.
5: a satin taupe grey.
6: a matte dark charcoal grey with silver shimmer particles.
7: a matte pale cream.
8: a matte milk chocolate brown.
9: a matte dark chocolate brown
10: a matte dark grey.

I ♡ Makeup I ♡ Obsession Palette - Paris*

This is possibly my favourite palette as the shades are quite unique and this palette is a dupe for the Stila Eyes Are The Window Mind Palette. 

1: a slightly warm gold with a metallic finish.

2: a matte dark chocolate brown with gold glitter.

3: a medium pink with gold shimmer - similar to that or NARS Orgasm, so potentially you could use this shade as a blush if you wanted to.

4: a purple taupe satin.
5: a duochrome purple/blue/silver with a shimmery finish.
6: a shimmery dark navy, with navy glitter particles.
7: a very pale brown matte.
8: a shimmery yellow toned pale cream.
9: a shimmery (slightly gritty) champagne gold.
10: a satin pale pink.

I ♡ Makeup I ♡ Obsession Palette - Wild Is The Wind*

This palette is definitely for those who love colour, although if like me, you're not a massive colour fan.. I think this palette is ideal as it has a great mix of colour and wearable shades. This palette is a dupe for the Stila Eyes Are The Window Body Palette. 

1: a matte turquoise blue.
2: a matte dark teal.
3: a shimmery royal blue with blue sparkle.
4: a deep matte burgundy with burgundy glitter particles but they don't translate onto the lid.
5: a dark matte purple.
6: a teal-silver shimmer that looks a little like denim with silver sparkle.
7: a shimmery icy white.
8: a pale pink toned champagne with a metallic finish.
9: a satin pale lilac.
10: a matte purple with purple glitter.

I ♡ Makeup I ♡ Obsession Palette - Pure Cult*

This palette is actually the only palette that isn't a dupe of one of the Stila palettes, it is however a dupe for the Urban Decay Naked 3 Palette. I swatched the shades next to all the shades in my Naked 3 Palette, and 9 of the 10 shades inside Pure Cult are identical to 9 of the shades from the Urban Decay Naked 3 Palette in terms of shade, finish and formula which is very exciting. The Naked 3 Palette is £38 and Pure Cult is a tiny £3.99... Pure Cult is the best Naked 3 dupe I've come across by far.

1: a matte very pale pink.

2: a shimmery pale pink.

3: a matte rosy brown.

4: a metallic rose gold.

5: a warm toned shimmery copper with a pink undertone.

6: a pink toned brown matte. 

7: a shimmery bronzy brown.

8: a shimmery medium brown.

9: a deep chocolate brown matte containing burgundy glitter particles.

10: a pale milk chocolate brown matte.

So there we have the five amazing new  I ♡ Makeup I ♡ Obsession Eyeshadow Palettes.. there isn't one disappointing palette within the whole collection, and like always - all swatches are done without a primer, and they're all so intensely pigmented which is mind blowing considering they're just £3.99 each. I cannot recommend this new range of Makeup Revolution palettes enough.. they're absolutely stunning, and doing my makeup in the mornings has become five times harder trying to decide which palette to use...