NYX Avant Pop! Art Throb Shadow Palette Swatches and Review

Back in 2015, I won a NYX makeup set from People magazine StyleWatch Giveaway. I'd like to take the chance to thank them again for all these NYX goodies which I posted on instagram.

Got a pleasant surprise the day before Christmas- winning the sweepstakes from @peoplemag 🎁🎄#youmademyday #thanksamillion #christmassurprise #whatsbetterthanwinning #nyxcosmetics #christmasgift

A post shared by Vanilla (@vanilladreamcream) on Dec 25, 2015 at 4:09am PST

When I opened up the box, all my attention went to the NYX Avant Pop eyeshadow palettes.

According to the NYX website: Avant Pop Collection allows you to express yourself with a pop of striking color. Each Avant Pop Eyeshadow Palette contains ten carefully selected shade with various finishes.

Laura Geller Simply Lovely Set Review

Laura Geller's Simply Lovely set is a 4 piece collection for the eyes, cheeks and lips.
It contains a Baked Gelato Swirl Blush in Rosewater, a Baked Gelato Vivid Swirl Eyeshadow in Caramel, a Love Me Dew Lip Crayon in Mango Sorbet and a double ended sponge and blush brush.

I found the set at my local marshall on clearance for $21.

I Spy A Shimmer Cube Dupe?

Lancome's My Parisian Shimmer Cube looks incredibly similar to Body Shop's Shimmer Cubes

Was browsing through pinterest when a pin caught my eye. Lancome has released their Spring 2015 Collection "From Lancome With Love" and I felt that their My Parisian Shimmer Cube looked incredibly similar to The Body Shop's Shimmer Cubes.

Target Her Holiday 2015 Beauty Box Unboxing and Review

Unboxing and Review of Target's For Her Holiday 2015 Beauty Box

I was very satisfied with my first beauty box from Target which was back in Fall 2014. I loved basically every item in that box.

This time around, they had two different boxes, one for women and one for men. What made me want to purchase this box was for the Maybelline Push Up Drama Mascara and the Laneige Water Bank Moisture Cream. And when it went live, I quickly added it to my cart and checked out as fast as I could.

Estee Lauder Color Edit Holiday 2015 Blockbuster

Estee Lauder Color Edit: Holiday 2015 Blockbuster

While watching TV, my mom notices an Estee Lauder commercial and asks me about the deal. I missed the commercial but I knew it would show again so when the commercials started rolling, I paid close attention. The first thing I notice is Kendall Jenner strutting around. My mother has no idea who she is and what she want interested in was the Color Edit Holiday Blockbuster set that was being advertised for $59.50. She asked me if it really did cost $60 because there were a plethora of items in that commercial. We decided to test out the set the next day at the counters of Macy's.

When we were at Macy's, we saw that the posters say that the set is with the purchase of any perfume. I was disappointed because I don't use much perfume but when I asked the sales associate she told us that it is with any purchase. Long story short, my mother ending up buying this set for $59.50 after picking up the hydrating toner that she normally uses.

If you do the calculations, it was a really good deal. Just one of the lipsticks itself cost $30. So this entire set was like the cost of 2 lipsticks. I was also pretty amazed at the gold firework design on the palettes.

There are 12 items in this set and if you divide it by the number of items, it's like $5 per item which is cheaper than drugstore prices.

I follow lots of beauty blogs and always look out for sales and deals. I hear about UD, Clinique, Mac, Guerlain and many other brands from bloggers but rarely does anyone mention Estee Lauder. I wonder if it's because Estee Lauder has less PR or if the brand is less geared toward the younger generation so beauty bloggers care less about it.

Anyway let's check out what's inside the  Estee Lauder 2015 Color Edit Holiday Blockbuster set:

The whole set is all packaged  and wrapped up in a red textured cardboard slip covering. Inside is a bright red patent travel case. I don't know who would travel with such a bulky case filled with makeup but I love cases like this to store my makeup. I have a black lancome one and every single time I take it out, my makeup feels so luxurious.

Get It Beauty eyeshadow palette blind test 2014 edition

There is a korean beauty show, Get It Beauty, that I haven't been able to get my hands on and FINALLY its second season is subbed in English!!!

It's second season is hosted by a beautiful actress and a favorite of mine… Yoo In Na!!! <3 p="">

A popular segment of the show is their blind testing, where they blind test beauty products and reveals their ranking of their top chosen beauty product. I just wanted to compile a list of their ranking for those that don't get to watch the episode.

In their second episode, Get It Beauty had their 2014 edition blind testing for eyeshadow palettes.

Their blind testing consists of 10 beauty experts that anaylzed the product according to their field of expertise. They revealed the top 5 palettes that were voted by critics and online experts. On the show they only revealed the first letter of the brand and didn't tell us the full name. For example, for Chanel they would say C brand. I wrote in the name of the brand with the best of my ability based on what the packaging looks like. The brands stated in the post may not be the correct one, therefore I also included pictures in case you think the brand I guessed is different than the actual brand. Their ratings factors in opinions of beauty professionals, online critics, and audience (which the show calls Better Girls). The first section shows the ratings from beauty professions and second section shows ratings from online critics and the audience. Now without further ado, to the ratings…

These are the top 5 palettes for Get It Beauty's 2014 eyeshadow palette blind testing:

In first place: Nars ( $120 for 15 g)

The ratings from the 10 beauty experts are as follows:

It's chosen as 4th place by doctors (aka dermatologist)

3rd place by beauty editors

1st place by makeup artist

pros: variety of textures and colors

cons: lacks transportability

online critics and experts rates it as follows:

Online:3.5 stars

experts: 4 stars

better girls (audience): 3.5 stars

the host commented that it has something that everyone wants to try since it has 15 eyeshadows

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Second Place : Estee Lauder ($60 for 7.5g)

2nd by doctors

1st by beauty editors

2nd by makeup artist

pros: unique and trendy color

cons:might be hard for beginners

Online: 5 stars

experts: 1 stars

better girls (audience): 3.5 stars

Host comments: the spring collection from this brand has beige and pink color for bases, perfect for spring

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Third Place: MAC ($60 for 2 grams)

1st by doctors

5th by  beauty editors

4th by makeup artist

pros: shimmer is pretty and elegant

cons: the monotonous texture was disappointing

Online: 4.5 stars

experts: 3.5 stars

better girls (audience): 3.5 stars

Host comments: its nude colors are perfect for spring. It uses lots of minerals so it goes on smoothly without flaking

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Fourth Place: Bobbi Brown ($70 for 8.5g)

3rd by doctors

1st by beauty editor

5th by makeup artist

pros:variety of textures and usefulness

cons: colors can be dull

online 4 stars

experts 4 starts

better girls 3 stars

Host comments: colors make it great for daily use

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Fifth Place: Chanel (2g for $80)

5th by doctors

4th by beauty editors

3rd by makeup artist

pros: trendy colors

cons: doesn't apply well

online: 4 stars

experts: 3.5 stars

better girls (audience): 2.5 stars

Host comments: the more you apply the more saturated it becomes. It goes on smoothly but clumps if you apply more.  It does not flake a lot.

If you want to watch the show, here's the link to Dramacool

Thanks for reading :)

VanillaDreamCream

Please comment if you would like me to post more of the blind testing results from Get It Beauty. Also do you guys like the way I arranged the rankings. Is it too picture heavy? Any feedback iid appreciated.