Etsy Find - Pollen Cosmetics

More and more, I find myself drawn to neutrals - browns, creams, taupes, soft champagnes, and so on. A particular color from Pollen Cosmetics on Etsy caught my eye, and I decided to try out a sample set.

 I selected the 10 sample set, and Lindsey, the owner, threw in a freebie. She has a fairly good color range, including several neutrals, and some brights. Currently, she only offers eyeshadows. Samples are $1.25 singly, or 6 for $5, or 10 for $8.50. Full sized eyeshadows are $5.50 for a 5 gram jar. You can buy a set of 3 jars for $15, or a set of 5 full size jars for $23, as well.

Sample sizes are 1/8 teaspoon in a small baggie (hate baggies! I know they're cheap and keep costs low, though). Each one is labelled with the name of the shadow, and a complete ingredient list. Each Etsy listing has a complete ingredient listing, as well as a swatch (some seem better than others), and color description.

Swatches! Discoteque is a very bright gold shimmer with medium pigmentation. Violet Me Go is a shimmery light purple with medium pigmentation. Book Collector is an orange-brown shimmery color with good payoff. Off White Wedding is a fairly pigmented white shimmer. Dazzle Darling is a gold-olive wtih good pigmentation. Saddle up is a deeper brown that appears lighter due to the shimmer, and has medium pigmentation.

 Future Sunrize is my skin-tone but better - in the baggie it's a gorgeous peach shimmer. Lily Jane is a super sheer purple. True to Form is a blue green shimmer, that almost has medium pigmentation (it's very similar to MAC's Blue-Green pigment). Rare Find is a purple taupe (love!!) with decent payoff. Ordinary Moments is a medium brown with gold shimmer, and medium pigmenation.

Shipping time frames for Pollen are stated at 5 -7 business days, whcih is sort of a long time. I've been watching to see if that changes, and it doesn't appear to. So, be prepared to wait a while.

None of these shades are super pigmented, but applying them wet helps (this is fairly standard for any loose or mineral eyeshadow, so it's just the nature of the beast). You must own Rare Find, Ordinary Moments, and Future Sunrise, though. MUST. They are perfection, and I plan on purchasing full sizes soon. I would recommend taking a peek at Lindsey's shop!

Etsy Find: Muse Minerals

I have an addiction to eyeshadows. Etsy is one of my sparklecrack dealers - I can peruse all sorts of shimmery, glittery, and soft shadows in my pajamas, and shop from several new lines at once. Muse Minerals caught my eye (I tend to like newer sellers, with no real reason), because many of the shades offered included jojoba oil as an ingredient. I've learned that mineral/loose shadows must have a wax or oil of some sort in them, otherwise, they fade to nothing on my lids. Also included is Cap-5, an eye safe preservative. Muse was the first brand I've encountered on Etsy that uses a preservative, however, I've noted more and more lines are including one. This is a sampling of the large number of shades I have from Muse.

 Alyssa, the proprietress of Muse, offers 5 gram jars or sample baggies of her eyeshadows, however, I've been successful in requesting 3 gram jars. A full size eyeshadow jar retails for $4.95, a 3 gram jar costs $3.95, and a sample pack is $5 for 5 samples in baggies. I appreciate the size options, because I'll never finish a 5 gram jar. Above are 6 of the 3 gram jars I have, in colors I love.

 Each jar has a sticker on the bottom that includes the brand name, color name, and a complete ingredient list. All of these things are also appreciated.

J'Adore is a slightly reddened brown. Halo is one of the best highlights ever - a soft whisper of gold-laced white. Faun Over Me is a great neutral taupe. Smarty Pants is a shade deeper taupe, although Faun Over Me and Smarty Pants are very close. Orchid is a blue-based purple. Bright Eyes is a sparkly brown. SO far, Muse does not offer any matte shades.

What Alyssa seems to do best is neutrals - she has tons! Faun Over Me and Smarty Pants are my favorites of these, however, she has many different taupes to choose from. The only issue I have is that some shades are sheer. For some, like Halo, that makes sense - it's a highlight, after all. But others, notably the shade Pumpkin (which is not swatched), is also sheer. That's fine if you wish to use it as a highlight, however, as a lid shade, it's not going to work. Alyssa does not note which shades are sheer and which are more pigmented. She is very easy to talk to, however, and responds to inquires quickly. And while I don't have a picture of it, she packages things for shipping in such a cute way! Placing a small order is worth it just to see what she's going to come up with next in terms of shipping - cute paper bags, stickers, notes and candy!

Each listing includes a description of the shade the listing is for, and a full ingredient listing. Note to Etsy sellers: I will not purchase your wears if you don't include this! Kudos to you sellers that do!

Overall, I really like Muse Minerals, and I cannot recommend Alyssa's shop enough! Just be ware that some shades are more sheer than others, and you can always ask Alyssa if you're not sure.

Etsy Find: Brazen Cosmetics Tree Hugger Trio - Review

I will fully admit to loving a good deal. I mean, who doesn't? So, when Brazen Cosmetics was a deal on Heartsy, I snapped up a voucher and ran to Brazen's shop. I love green and neutral eyeshadows (and pretty much every eyeshadow I've laid my eyes on), and really liked the look of this collection, so I picked it up. 

This set is comprised of 3 shadows, Terra Nova (a shimmery gold highlight), World Peace (a shimmery olive/tree-green) and Tree Hugger (a "Dusty coffee brown shimmers with hims [sic] of olive green and gold," but in real life, it's a shimmery deep brown with maybe a hint of green. Maybe.).

I've used Brazen's shadows before, and my experience with this trio sums up all of my other experiences: when they're good, they're sooooo good. When they're "meh," they're.. well... meh. Terra Nova and World Peace are beautiful. I love them, and can see myself wearing them daily. They're creamy, blend beautifully, and are a pleasure to work with. Tree Hugger was the meh part of the trio. Most mineral brands I've used can't seem to nail the deep tones very well. It applies a little patchy, chalky, and almost sheerly in my crease. Interestingly, Tree Hugger swatches well. Maybe I should use my finger to apply it?

Brazen shadows are packaged in 5 gram jars, and come with sifters (which I obviously removed). The bottom of each jar has the company name, color name, and ingredients (I love it when brands do this!). The jars are packed full, and are usually range in price from $4.99 -$5.49 single, or collections can be bought for a small discount.

Currently, only Tree Hugger is still available. This is a limited edition set, but I thought sharing swatches. While I like Brazen Cosmetics, I always spend way more than I should. My order totals are usually close to $30. I also think that Sandi, the owner, takes a page from MAC's controversial book of limited editions - small quantities, with lots of hype. Brazen makes solid shadows (and the perfumes are pretty damn good, too), but you have to be on it to get them, sometimes. If you have any interest at all in their limited edition shades, you essentially have to stalk their Facebook page (for whatever reason, I'm not a big Facebook person), and hope you have the money the moment a listing goes live. This annoys me a bit.

Would I recommend Brazen? Yes, absolutely. Do I like recommend Brazen? Eh, yes and no. Maybe I'm bitter about missing out on other limited edition items, so take that into consideration. At the end of the day, though, the shadows are overall awesome, with hits (and misses), like any other line. 

Etsy Find - Lost in Makeupland, part 3 - Alice's Chains

This is the third part of a 4 part series for this seller. I'm not sure why I broke this up the way that I have, but it made sense when I started... so I'll just continue on.

Today we'll look at half of Belén's newest collection, Alice's Chains, inspired by... Alice in Chains, which happens to be one my husband's favorite bands (when he's not listening to "elf metal"... yeah). Anyway, I only have half of this collection, because I felt most of the colors were too similar to what I have elsewhere, or were not colors that I would wear. While they're all beautiful, I can't justify buying something because it's pretty (I know it's a great reason and all, and that's what keeps the cosmetic industry going sometimes, but I just can't!). 

Now you can see how Belén packages samples! Like most sellers who have very reasonable priced samples, she sends them in small baggies. 

Rain When I Die is a brown/umber color, with a bit of red to it. Would? is a soft orange, with a touch of peachy-gold. Them Bones is a light yellow-gold, which reminds me of MAC's Nylon eyeshadow, only less frosty. All of these shades have shimmer to them, but I like the contrast between this type of shadow and the Rock my Look collection. The other colors in this collection are Love, Hate, Love, which is a bright green, much brighter than Weed from the core collection. Man in the Box is a hot magenta (I've never really thought of what I would consider a color representation of a man in a box... hmmm....).  Dirt is a yellow-red.

The texture of these, like all of Belén's eyeshadows is so dreamy. They're soft, blendable, and fairly pigmented. Rain When I Die is the only one I have any real issue with, but that's sort of par for the course when dealing with dark-ish colors.

I cannot rave enough about Lost in Makeupland's eyeshadows. Belén's color choices and inspiration really make her line unique. As previously noted, she's very easy to talk to, and she really cares about her customers. Look to part 4, where I discuss (most of) her highlighters!

Etsy Find - Lost in Makeupland, part 2 - Rock my Look

This is part 2 in a 4 part series for this seller. Today, I'm discussing the collection that originally drew me to her shop and made me spend a pile of money - Rock my Look.


I love eyeshadows that are "blackened *something*." It's inexplicable. I don't wear black eyeshadow because it's very harsh on my skintone, and hard for me to wear without looking overly goth. Having a color to add to the  darkness, however, seems to make things softer, not as harsh and thus easier for me to wear. When I started browsing Etsy in late November/early December of last year (2010), I was drawn to the soon-to-be-released Rock my Look collection from Belén's range. I ordered a sample set, to challenge myself to branch out a little. It didn't work as planned, since I was supposed to finish a sample before ordering a full size (laughable, really).

The collection of six shadows is available as a sample set, or as a full size set, or individually. The sample set is $4.50 (would be $6.00 individually), the full size set is $25.00, and individual full sizes are $5.99. Libertine and Queen are sample sizes that I decanted into 5 gram jars for ease of use, and the others are full sizes. You can see that samples are generously sized, and you can get several uses out of them.

The collection, if you don't recognize some of the names, is inspired by rock bands. I'm a fan of Queen, and Aerosmith, which made this collection especially meaningful. I also like it when sellers like Belén include a piece of their life in their work, because anyone can look at a generic flower and be like "ah, yes, this rose is pink and white!" and release a "collection" of pink, white and brown shadows (since flowers grow in soil, which is usually some shade of brown). 

These shades really come alive when swatched. Seven Nation Army, to me, is a straight-up silver with a grey base. Very, very pretty. Dream On is, without a doubt, my favorite shade of the bunch. It's a true duo-chrome, ranging from bronzey brown to a flashy gold.  Queen is a red-based purple. Yeah Yeah Yeah is a blackened green, another one I really like. Volta is a blue-purple. Libertine is a greyed-silver. All have an element of deepness to them, the flash sort of washed that out, but it made their nuances so much more vibrant. 


I love these shades as liners. When applied wet, they are amazing. I love that they're not glittery - the shimmer is very fine, which is unique. So many sellers think shimmery must mean uber glittery, which I dislike. These are very soft, and generally well pigmented (Queen is a little less so than the others, as is Volta). They wear wonderfully over my normal bases (UDPP + something else, like a paint pot, Sin 24/7 Shadow Pencil, etc). I don't wear some shades, like Libertine or Yeah Yeah Yeah very often, and I should wear Dream On more than I do (that, however, can be said of most of my collection). 


I've heard Belén is plotting a release of a collection called Rock My Look 2, or something like that. I'm hoping that'll happen. I'm (not so) patiently waiting for new colors from Lost in Makeupland as it is, and the thought of a new family of deep colors like these makes me very, very excited.

Etsy Find- Lost in Makeupland, part 1

This is part one of a 4 part series for this seller. I have several of her shadows (and I'm not-so-patiently waiting for her new releases), and highlighters. Today we're going to cover the shades I have from her permanent or standard collection.


Lost in Makeupland is run by the very sweet Belén, who is very involved with her line. She does not repackage, and it shows - her colors are unique, varied in texture and tone, and of course, very pretty. I've ordered from her several times, and each time has been a treat. She has shops on Etsy and Artfire, and ships from Algeciras, Spain.


Full size eyeshadows are packaged in 5 gram jars, samples are in plastic baggies. I've transferred my samples, for the most part, into 5 gram jars for ease of use.  You can request that Belén not include a sifter, and just pack the jar full of product. The amount of product in a sample size isn't given, however, it's generous. At this time, a full size shadow is $5.99, a sample is $1.00. You can also purchase sample packs, which range in price depending upon how many samples you wish to purchase. Shipping starts at $2.75 to ship state-side, which is rivals U.S. seller's shipping policies. You will need some patience, however, as it can take a while for packages coming from Spain to arrive (the longest I've waited was over a month, but it was Christmas time. The shortest I've waited was less than 2 weeks). 


Her core collection includes approximately 17 eyeshadows, two of which are highlighting shades (one of which will be reviewed with the highlighters I have from LiM).  A good portion of these are vegan. We'll look at 7 of these shades today.

From the core range, I have Ink Bubbles, a "bright" and "fuschia" pink, which is surprisingly wearable on me (this is a sample that I transferred to a jar, so you can see how much is there). Guns and Roses comes in two versions, vegan and not vegan. The vegan version is grey with pink sparkle, the non vegan has red sparkle. Purrrple is a rich purple, with a touch of grey. Oh My... It's Black! is... black (seriously, what'd you expect?), and applies fairly matte. Weed is a super bright, happy green (sort of with the name was different, though. Drug references in makeup are a pet peeve). Expensive is a beautifully metallic gold, especially applied wet. Bioshock is a deep, lush blackened green/teal.

The swatches above are applied dry to bare skin (no primer). You can see that some colors apply a touch sheerly, like Purrrple, but all of these really come alive when wetted with a bit of MAC's Mixing Medium. They all blend beautifully, and last a while on my lids (over UDPP and a color base, applied wet). As noted in my previous Linnaeus Cosmetics review, the best way I've found to make mineral or loose eyeshadows stay on my lids is to apply them wet, then lightly dust my lids with the same color, to "set" the shadow. I love Bioshock as a liner. Purrrple looks great against my green eyes, as does Expensive. If you made me pick a favorite of this group, I really couldn't - they're all so lovely.

Overall, I love this line. I love the feel of it, and Belén's enthusiasm for this line, and her eye for color.  I also like that she draws inspiration from more than one place. She's not all about music (I have a review and swatches of the Rock my Look collection), but from other areas. She's planning a collection based on people's pets, for example. She is also a great deal of fun to talk to, as well.

Etsy Find- Linnaeus Cosmetics again!

I haven't bought anything from Etsy in a while. That's probably a good thing, because the last purchase I made of 6 eyeshadows was mildly disappointing (and 3 of the sellers I most enjoy are in the process of moving their shops to Artfire, or hosting their own webstore). When I was pawing through my collection of loose eyeshadows, I realized I still hadn't finished swatching and posting my meager collection of Linnaeus Cosmetics shadows.

Marin, honestly, is probably the most-fun (this is totally why funnest should be a word) seller to converse with via email. She's in the middle of launching her own site, and is having a "clearance sale" of sorts in her Etsy shop (20% off with the code "TATAETSY"), which is valid until her shop is cleaned out (hurry!). This review will be of 3 more of her shadows (you can see my first review of one of her other collections here). This time around, I'll discuss three more shadows, two of which are part of the same collection, Kalahari (part of the Gemsbok collection), Twiggy and Those Gams! (both part of the Maned Wolf collection). Like most loose shadows, these are packaged in clear 5 gram jars. I still really like that Marin takes the time to stamp her company's name on the lids. I feel it sets her shadows apart from others who don't do this.

The bottoms of the jars have the name of the shadow and a complete ingredients list. Nice!

Twiggy is a light orange-peach shade, with a lighter shimmer (Marin says it's white in her description, so I'll take her word for it). Those Gams! is a blackened-base with coppery shimmer (which doesn't really appear for me no matter what I do, but that's often the case for me and this type of color). Kalahari is an awesome my-lid-but-better shade, a champagne-beige with shimmer.

I love that these aren't glittery, but shimmery. Glitter falls and can be an annoyance. Shimmer tends to stay where I put it. Like the wallaby collection previous reviewed, I have no issue with these not creasing or fading on me. These blend easily, and are easy to use (unlike some loose shadows). If you have trouble getting loose shadows to stay, here's a tip: apply them wet using a mixing medium (I use MAC's. Fix+ may also work, but I've never tried it), and let that dry. Once dry, take a fluffy eyeshadow brush, like a 224 from MAC, and very lightly dust the same shadow over it. It's like setting your liquid foundation with powder. Even for the most persnickety shadows (I've been trying to work that word into a sentence all week!) will last beautifully, in my experience.

If you are interested in these shadows, please visit Marin's blog, where she posts updates and information. Her shop on Etsy is getting pretty small, and her site launches very, very soon!

Noella Beauty Works - Giveaway!

Who doesn't like free stuff? I don't know of anyone - so... visit Jackie's blog to find out how YOU can win 7 full sized jars of her eyeshadows!

If you do win, check out my overview of the shades I have - swatches always help enable you :)

Etsy Find- Linnaeus Cosmetics

I'll admit it - I love haul videos on Youtube. I love seeing what other people buy (what people will spend their money on is fascinating, although anymore, the people I watch seem to get most things for free). Anyway, when watching one of Pinkiecharm's haul videos, she mentioned she received some shadows from an Etsy shop called Linnaeus Cosmetics. Having taken my share of biology classes, I had an idea of who Linnaeus was, and was definitely intrigued.

I have made 2 purchases from Marin's shop. Full size shadows are packaged in our good friend the 5 gram jar, with sifters. Marin includes the ingredients for each shade on the bottom of the jar, which is pretty nifty. Full size jars are $5.00 (reasonable), however, entire collections, like this one, are $12.00 (which is a great price!). Shipping is currently $2.50 for your first item, then $0.10 for each additional item - which is, frankly, awesome. I can't begin to discuss how many Etsy shop owners make huge profits on shipping due to their pricing and shipping structures. Each purchase I've made was packed carefully, and Marin was quick to update me on the status of my order each time.

I wanted to review this particular collection, the Brush Tailed Wallaby collection, because it's absolutely my favorite set. It features 3 colors: Sprightly, Cliff Line, and Zippy. If you're unsure of what to purchase, and love neutrals, you must buy this collection!

Sprightly is a warm mid-toned brown with tonal shimmer. Cliff Line is a neutral-toward-cool shimmery taupe (super shimmery). Zippy is a warm brown with a copper shimmery. Above swatches are on dry, bare skin. They have decent pigment, and seem to last all day on me (which can't be said of other Etsy lines). I would love to see all 3 of these colors done in a matte finish (hint, hint).

The names and colors were inspired by the brush tailed wallaby, a species indigenous to Australia. What I love about Linnaeus Cosmetics is how complete the branding is. Marin's attention to detail is fantastic. Although this collection is inspired by a cute, fuzzy animal (seriously cute!), Marin has other collections based on less cuddly animals, like lizards, birds, and frogs (although the frog is cute, too!). Marin includes a short description of the animal, description and ingredients for each shadow (and how that name fits the animal). Her shipping packaging is also detail laden:

Non-bleached cotton canvas bags, with animals stamped on them? Cute! Non-bleached paper tag with application tips and tied with raffia? Cute! Even the out bubble mailer (which I've already reused, so I can't show you) has an animal stamped on it. Her invoices are also printed on non-bleached paper, which demonstrates how committed she is to her brand identity.

Since I've already purchased twice, it's apparent I like the company, and Marin's product. Her customer service is top notch (she's so friendly in convo's!), the products are fantastic, and the attention to detail, I think, is great. I would highly recommend checking out her shop!

Etsy Find- Noella Beauty Works, an Overview Review

So, I'm a realist. I know I have an addiction to the shiney, the sparkly, and the pretty. Makeup can fall into all of these categories. Etsy happens to be one of my newest obsessions, and a great place to find excellent quality and variety for a little bit of cash. One of my first purchases was from Noella Beauty Works, which was reviewed here. I was so smitten, that I ordered several more colors, and have now, finally, swatched my collection for you!

Overall, I really love the colors I've picked up. There are some misses. Glisten needs to be packed on to get a rich, deepened green. Amazonite is a green-teal. Buttercup is a soft yellow with a bit of gold. Sugared Plum is a nice, straight up purple, but it lacks a bit of pigmentation. Velvet is, as you can see, my skin tone with a hint of shimmer; pigment wise- it's so-so. Dark Crystal is a great, deep, blue. Teal totally reminds me of MAC's Teal pigment. Pink Smoke (mislabeled on the picture) is a dirty pinky-neutral (and very nice in my green eyes!). Periwinkle is a blue-lavendar. Honey Taupe is a warmed up version of Milk Chocolate, both are "My lids but better" neutrals.

Wild Grape and Heather are also much weaker than I would've liked. I love Smokey Plum, though. It's a beautiful maroon (similar to MAC's Maroon pigment, but not identical). Golden Neutral, as previously noted, is a golden highlight shade. Dark Chocolate is gorgeous, but again, lacking a good color density for my taste.Sencha is the only green I have from this line, and it's a nice olivey-gold-green. Sleepy Blue is sheer, and probably my least favorite for that reason. Nutmeg is a bit more orange than I would like, an orangey-neutral. Silver Lily is an even-toned silver, not warm, not cool.

Since my first review, Jacki has raised her prices to $4.99 a jar. She's also changing her packaging, from solid black lids to those lids that have black "rims" with "windows" (sorry, I'm lacking word power today) on top, so you can see the shadow color. Her shipping prices have also risen a bit, as well.

I hope you found this helpful! If you would like to see comparison swatches of something, let me know!

Etsy Rant... ugh.

I hate it when I have a little cash to burn, and can't find anything to buy. Hate it! I've spent countless hours stalking Etsy, wanting to buy something pretty and sparkly, only to find the sellers I've haven't tried are doing all of the things that annoy me. So, to get it out of my system, I'll list them for you.

1) Charge WAY TOO MUCH for shipping. Seriously, $5.20 to ship a 10 gram jar of eyeshadow? What, you don't have a scale to weigh a bubble mailer (the CD sized ones, by the way, are usually about 1 oz, with label and tape) so you could get someone like ME to buy your colors? Sorry, I'll move on to the next seller, maybe...

2) Charge WAY TOO MUCH for their product. Time is valuable, and your time is just as valuable as mine is. I'd never ask that a seller price something so low they're losing money, but I would ask that they consider what the market will bear. If you want to sell a 5 gram jar of pigment, mica, and whatever for $10, knock yourself out. I don't know if you'll be extremely busy filling orders, though, when I can go to Shiro Cosmetics, Noella Beauty Works or any number of other sellers that price their products more competitively.

3) Not including a COLOR DESCRIPTION. I realize this one may be subjective, but honestly, how hard is it to say "warm brown," or "pale blue?" You don't have to get too artsy on me, just give me an indication of what the color is supposed to look like, so I know my monitor isn't fully of crap. Especially warm/cool leanings on colors because I need to know if I should even bother.

4) Not including swatches. This one I can kind of forgive, if the seller isn't also violating the others. Swatches are hard sometimes, and I don't always like eye swatches unless I can clearly see the color I'm supposed to buy. I saw a listing for a color that the person showed in the jar, then did a look with 2 other colors from the same color family. How, exactly, does that help me? 3 similar colored shades on an eyelid doesn't let me know what I'm buying. So, I'm NOT buying, and the seller is losing out!

5) Not offering samples. I'm a realist. I *know* I will never, ever, EVER run out of makeup. Unless I live to be 1,000 years old, but I'll have bigger problems if I live to be that old. I'd rather sample a color (especially if you're going to charge $8.00 for what others offer at half that price, on top of your bloated shipping costs), see if I like your product (the color, texture, presentation, etc), *then* buy the full size. Why? Simple logistics. I may love it in the picture, may simply like it on me, and if I lost only a dollar in the process, no big deal.

6) Rather than including # 3 and 4, including a diatribe about how GOOD "mineral makeup" is for you. Seriously? You can't be bothered to create a listing that adequately describes your colors, but you're going to tell me that my MAC eyeshadows will make my eyelids rot off? Yeah, I'll move on, thanks.

Whew. That feels a little better. I'm still bitter, but oh well. What annoys you about Etsy (or mineral makeup) sellers?

Etsy Find: Holy House Dispensary - Review

Once again, we're venturing into my collection of loose eyeshadows from Etsy. This time, the company is a bit more local to me - Holy House Dispensary operates out of Idaho (home of many things, but most wellknown for their potatoes. They offer 15 eyeshadows and three tinted lip balms (which I haven't tried). The finishes range from matte to shimmery (I haven't seen a really glittery shade yet), and from sheer to very pigmented.

I have 5 colors, Thief, Call Me, Nude, and Smoke. Cassie, the owner, included a generous sample of Baby in my first order, as well. Full size jars are of the 3 oz size, and are full to the top - no sifters (yay!). Each jar has a sticker on the top with the Holy House Dispensary logo on it, and the shade names are written in permanent marker on the bottom. They retail for $4.99, and Cassie asks for $1.00 for shipping. She doesn't charge any additional shipping charges. At this time, she offers a discount of 10% when using the coupon code "holyhouse" on all orders, as well.

Thief is a bright, yet not over the top, shimmery green, with medium pigmentation. Call Me is a deep red-based purple with a sheen, and very pigmented. Nude is a sheer, sparkly nude (aptly named, don't you think?). Smoke is a matte smokey-purple, which really reminds me of MAC's Poison Pen from their Matte^2 line, with medium pigmentation. Baby is a soft, glimmery peach shade, with medium pigmentation.

I'm very happy with how well these blend. They are the perfect combination of easy to blend, yet pigmented. I'm not worried about blending these colors off my lid (which can happen with mineral pigments), but I can blend them into my crease without much effort. They hold up fairly well on my lids, with minimal creasing. My favorites are Smoke and Nude, the original two colors I ordered. The others are nice, but I love Smoke, and Nude is a great wash of sheer color. I don't know if I would recommend Nude to someone who wants a lot of color, or would plan on using it to even their lid color out, though. There's not a lot of pigment there.

I hope Cassie plans on adding the color name to her labels, or making labels to indicate the colors, as I'm concerned over time the names may wear off the bottoms of the jars (not that I've had that issue yet).

Overall, Holy House Dispensary offers a great product at an excellent price!

Etsy Find: Noella Beauty Works

One of my weaknesses is eyeshadow, as you'll probably find out. I love eyeshadow. Shadows probably total 90% of my stash. Recently, I've found myself trolling Etsy, to find the next big mineral makeup brand (or, to satisfy my needs for sparkly eyeshadows, which is far more likely). Over the last few weeks, I've taken the plunge, and ordered from several different sellers, both well-established, and the newer shops. Today we'll talk about another one of the latter.

One thing that will almost always encourage me to purchase is a sample or a listing or option to buy multiple items at some discount. Even small discounts will work on me (I guess I'm easy, lol). So when I found the "Blue Eyed Beauty" set from Noella Beauty Works, I immediately picture the prettiest blue eyeshadow look that I had to buy it. Never mind the fact that I have green/hazel eyes, or that I have more blue eyeshadow anyone could ever need (except Mimi from the Drew Carey Show).

So, I purchased the set at $11.49 + a reasonable $1.99 for shipping. My purchase was shipped quickly (within 2 days, if I recall correctly), and beautifully packaged. Jackie, the owner, included a lovely sample of Tidal along with the three colors included in the trio: Dark Crystal, Sleepy Blue, and Golden Neutral.

Full size shadows come in the standard 5 gram clear bottom/black top jars, with a sealed sifter (I remove sifters, to make the shadows easier to access in my opinion). The bottom of each jar has a paper label with the shop name, color name, and volume.

Dark Crystal is a shimmery deep blue (so pretty!), Sleepy Blue is a cool-toned grey blue with a sheen, and Golden Neutral is easily my favorite color, a soft highlight with a gold shimmer. Of the three, Dark Crystal is the most pigmented. Sleepy Blue and Golden Neutral are sheerer. I like that Golden Neutral is sheer, since it's a highlight color (and gorgeous), but Sleepy Blue was a bit of a disappointment. I applied it dry, over MAC's Bare Study paint put with a MAC 272 brush, patting the color on, and needed to apply 2 - 3 "layers" of color until I was satisfied. Also, Sleepy Blue seemed to be the only color that faded and creased a touch on me. I have very oily lids and tend to use both Urban Decay Primer Potion and a paint pot or other color base. For most shadows, this is enough of a foundation, but I guess for Sleepy Blue it wasn't enough.

All three colors blend perfectly. I used Dark Crystal as a liner and in the crease, Sleepy Blue on my lid and Golden Neutral on my brow bone and blended toward the inner portion of my lid. Sleepy Blue, perhaps due the amount of shadow I applied, blended maybe a touch too well. It almost seemed to be blended away when I was doing my final blending with my MAC 224. I also used MAC's Fly-by-Blue pearlglide to finish the look.

Her individual shadows are $3.99 (which is a lot better than those who are asking for $6.95+ for the same amount!), and as previously mentioned, her shipping charges are extremely reasonable. She has introduced foundations, blushes and a finishing powder. Her announcements on her Etsy shop mentions she's going to introduce lip balms and matte shadows (yay!) soon, as well.

I've already begun eyeing some other colors in her shop - and I'm dying get my grubby hands on the set for green eyes. I'd highly recommend checking out her products - especially Golden Neutral.

Etsy Find: Moonrise Studio

One of my weaknesses is eyeshadow, as you'll probably find out. I love eyeshadow. Shadows probably total 90% of my stash. Recently, I've found myself trolling Etsy, to find the next big mineral makeup brand (or, to satisfy my needs for sparkly eyeshadows, which is far more likely). Over the last few weeks, I've taken the plunge, and ordered from several different sellers, both well-established, and the newer shops. Today we'll talk about one of the latter.

Moonrise Studio, run by a great girl named Kim, offers several shades from the bold to the neutral. I selected two colors, # 15 Neverwhere, and #12, Snow, Glass, and Apples. Kim sent along a free sample of #01, Charlotte.

The full sized shadows are $4.00 each for 1 gram of color packed in a 5 gram jar with sifter, and shipping is a reasonable $1.75 for the first shadow, plus $0.50 for each additional selection. The jars have a matte black lid, and the color name, as you can see, is handwritten on the bottom of the jar. I hope paper labels in are in the works, because I know in time the handwriting will wear off and I'll be left wondering where I got these shadows from. The same I received was in a flip-top plastic jar. My order arrived quickly in a bubble mailer.

#15 Neverwhere is a warm taupe. Kim describes it as "warm, dirty, pink-grey with pink and gold reflect," which I would completely agree with. It's a great lid shade, if you like warm taupes. #12 Snow, Glass, Apples is described as "soft off-white that rubs down to a golden-ivory with red shimmer," and while I don't see the red at all, I love this as a brow-highlight. In some respects, this is like MAC's Shroom eyeshadow with a little more pigment. Loves it! #01 Charlotte, a free sample, is described as "dusty mauve with flashy copper and gold highlights" by Kim, a very pretty burgundy that reminds me a bit of MAC's Heritage Rouge pigment, only a touch more purple.

Overall, I firmly believe you MUST purchase Neverwhere. You will thank me. Snow, Glass, and Apples is lovely, as well, as is Charlotte. I would absolutely recommend Kim's eyeshadows!