Product Review: Kat Von D True Romance Palette- Ludwig

Admittedly, I will not  be posting as many photos with this post as I normally do with product reviews. I've had this palette a long time. It's (barely) survived two flights across the world, and TSA playing catch with my cosmetics bag, which most of my makeup didn't survive. :( So I will be using stock photos, except with the swatches.

This was the first Kat Von D cosmetic purchase I ever made. Actually, it was part of my first Sephora purchase too for that matter. I fell in love with the colors, and decided I needed it in my life. I bought it on my way to Australia, and on the flight, before I even got to do anything with it, Lucifer, the black shade broke! OH NO. I managed to get it out of the palette without it completely destroying any of the other shadows, but I didn't get to use that color until much later, when I got another palette with it in it. The rest of the colors in the palette definitely made it into my daily rotation really quickly though.

Lucifer- a matte black- It's not bad for a matte black, but it's not the most remarkable matte black I've ever used.
Orbi- A darker green with a gold shimmer- I use this color at least 2-3 times a week because of how much I like it. The pigmentation is great, and it's very buildable.
Dimebag- A brighter, lighter green with a gold shimmer- This color is really fun. Admittedly, it's not as pigmented as I'd like, but it is still wearable, although it goes better with a highly pigmented primer.
Tequila- a soft yellow with a slight shimmer- This color makes an excellent highlight color. It has a subtle shimmer to it, so you won't look too shiny with it.
Clay- a soft yellowy tan with a slight shimmer- I like this color. It is a fun highlight, but it would also be a decent candidate for a subtle almost no makeup-type look
Downtown- a pale, shimmery champagne color- Another really pretty color. This shows up similar to Urban Decay's Sin, but with a slight bit more pigmentation
Baroque- A darker, shimmery brown- From a non-utility standpoint, this is my favorite color in the palette. Leather is more useful for me, but this one is prettier.
Leather- A matte chocolate brown- This is the most useful color in the palette for me. It's the color I use for my brows, and it is a good shadow color as well.

Overall, this palette is pretty fabulous. There are a couple colors that are a bit less standout than others, but it's a favorite of mine because it has a great multitude of looks that can be done with it.

Swatches (primer on top, no primer on bottom):

Left to right- Lucifer, Orbi, Dimebag, Tequila

Left to right- Clay, Downtown, Baroque, Leather

Product Review: Kat Von D True Romance Palette- True Love

I got this palette as part of the Look in a Box from Sephora. I was curious about the other products, but mostly I just wanted this palette. So much so, actually that I spent days Weeks lusting after it. Finally, on my birthday, I decided to buy it. (Happy Birthday to me!) Here's what I think about it.

It's no secret that I shamelessly love pretty much everything from the Kat Von D makeup line, and this is no exception. In fact, I think this one might actually be my favorite so far. The colors in this palette are so fabulous, and I have found dozens of ways to wear them that I love.

Here's the rundown of the colors:
Peanut- Soft, shimmery gold- the shadow itself is very soft, and a bit crumbly actually, but it's really, really pretty!
Benji- A very bold gold with a hint of copper- This is a cream shadow with a lot of pigmentation. The only downside is that it did dry out pretty quickly, which did make it a bit harder to work with, but even when it's a bit drier, it does still work, it's just a bit trickier.
Rebekah- Medium chocolate brown, with gold glitter- Really pretty, with a lot of pigmentation. The glitter is pretty fine in it, but it doesn't have tons of glitter fallout, which is awesome!
Lucifer- a matte black- As far as matte blacks go, this one isn't the best matte black on the face of the planet, but it really isn't bad. Nothing too remarkable though, just a matte black.
Cholita- a reddish burgundy- This is definitely my favorite color in this palette... Actually, for that matter, I think this is my favorite in all the Kat Von D Palettes. It's so pretty! The pigmentation is nice, and it's very buildable, which makes it even nicer.
Skiba- A medium purple with gold glitter- It's not super bright, but the gold glitter adds a certain level of boldness to it, which makes it really pretty
Babe- A bold, bright, light purple with a subtle blue duochrome- I really like this one as well. It reminds me a bit of Flash by Urban Decay, but a bit prettier.
Missy- A bright shimmery white, with a subtle purple duochrome- This color is really pretty. I use it mostly for highlighting under my brows.


Swatches:

Top row- with primer, bottom row- no primer. (Left to right- Peanut, Benji, Rebekah, Lucifer. Second set- Left to Right- Cholita, Skiba, Babe, Missy)

Product Review: Kat Von D True Romance Palette- Truth

I got this palette in the Kat Von D sale at Sephora as well, although I bought this one online. I'd been looking at it on the website, and I just couldn't get over how pretty it looked. I'm a total sucker for purples and greens, so I was pretty excited about it..... that is until I got it in the mail.

                                                        (Left to right- Sugar Skull, Long Distance, Snake Eyes, Finland, Prayer, Galeano, Rehab, Sister)


The colors are so light! there are 7 powder shadows, and one cream shadow, like most of the other True Romance Palettes. The problem is most of the colors are so light in this palette that they don't even show up on me!

Sugar Skull- White with a green duochrome- makes a nice highlight color
Long Distance- Chartreuse shimmer with a gold duochrome-  has decent pigmentation
Snake Eyes- Medium green shimmer- Not a ton of pigmentation, but it is pretty.
Finland- Shimmery aqua cream shadow- The most pigmented on the green side.
Prayer- Matte dark wine- The most wearable shadow in the entire palette. It has the most pigmentation.
Galeano- Lavender shimmer- Super pretty, but barely pigmented at all. I was really bummed, because I was pretty excited about this color.
Rehab- Light brown shimmer- Pretty, but doesn't have a ton of pigmentation.
Sister- Matte pink-ish peach- Like most of this palette, it's pretty, but it barely shows up on my skintone.

Swatches: (top- no primer. bottom, KVD high voltage eye primer in Skin)

                                                        (Left to right- Sugar Skull, Long Distance, Snake Eyes, Finland)

                                                       (Left to right- Prayer, Galeano, Rehab, Sister)

Overall impressions- I was really disappointed in this palette, because it looked so pretty on the website, but when it came time to go on my eyes, it was so light that you could barely tell I was wearing eyeshadow. Most of the colors look good as highlight colors, but I found it tricky to craft a single wearable look out of the entire palette. If you like pastels, this palette might work well for you, but I found it to be a bit too bland for my tastes (or the pricetag)

Product Review: Kat Von D True Romance Palette- Angeles

I got this palette during the Kat Von D sale a couple weeks ago at Sephora. I'd bought a few other KVD palettes, and I liked them, and the colors on this looked really pretty so I figured for $24, it was worth a shot.

                                           (Left to right- Venus, Leather. Specimen, Rehab, Peggy, Bukowski, Bellbottom, Morphine) 

It comes with 8 shadows- 7 powder, and one cream. One half is warm tones and the other half is cool.
Venus- Shimmery coppery brown with hints of orange. Very pretty and pigmented
Leather- Matte chocolate brown- I use this color to do my brows in.
Specimen- shimmery light brown- not crazy pigmented, but pretty
Rehab- a shimmery peach- pretty, but rather similar to my skintone, just shimmery
Peggy- light teal with a gold duochrome- nice pigmentation, and a really pretty shade
Bukowski- medium teal with a blue duochrome- a bold color with a lot of pigmentation.
Bellbottom- Medium blue with a darker blue duochrome
Morphine- White cream shadow with a blue and green duochrome- makes an excellent base and highlight color

Swatches: (first row is without primer, second one is with the Kat Von D High Voltage Eye Primer in Skin)

                                                        (Left to right- Venus, Leather, Specimen, Rehab)

                                                        (Left to right- Peggy, Bukowski, Bellbottom, Morphine)

Overall thoughts: This palette has some pretty colors, but most of them aren't ones that I'd wear every day. That being said, there are enough different looks you can get out of this particular palette that it is worth the price. With a lot of the Kat Von D Palettes, each half doesn't really mix together very well, but most of these colors look very good together.

Product Review: Kat Von D High Voltage Eye Primer

I bought one of the Kat Von D "Get the look" kits from Sephora on my epic birthday trip that Kaye Eh and I went on. I'd been coveting it for awhile, because I really wanted the palette, and I was curious about these primers. Finally, I broke down and bought it as a birthday gift. The kit came with both the "skin" and "smoky" colors (there is also a shimmery beige called "stellar" which I don't have).
Here's my thoughts on them in general:

The formulas on both are kind of thick, and it makes it a bit hard to work with. The wand also pulls out a lot of product. If you put it on with the wand, and don't blend it, it will take forever to dry, or you will end up with smudges or creases, so you definitely want to blend it with a brush or a sponge, or even your finger.

                                                       look at all the product that comes out!






Skin:
This is the one I would use most often. It is a bit of a strong color, so one downside is that with light  shadow colors, you have to be a bit heavy-handed to cover it up- at least on me, because I'm pale, and it's definitely more yellow-toned than my skin is.  The upside is, it brings out the subtleties and duochromes in a lot of the lighter shadow colors. It has a lot of coverage, so it definitely makes your shadows look very bold, which is nice. 

Smoky:
I like the idea of this primer, but in practice, it has a couple downsides. First is, you can't use it all over your eye, unless you want to look like you have a black eye. So because of that, when I use it, I have to also use another primer color for the highlight area under my brows. That is slightly inconvenient. The other problem is that it's a lot more noticeable when you make mistakes. You have to take care to make sure you have the same shape of it on both eyes, or you'll end up with Very different eyes. What I do like about it is that it brings a whole new layer of depth to colors. Lighter colors instantly turn sultry, and dark colors just get richer and have more depth. 

Swatches:

  (top- skin, Middle- no primer, bottom- smoky... Left to right KVD in Rehab, KVD in Bellbottom, KVD in Babe, KVD  in Cholita, Smashbox eye brightening quad orange color)

Overall:
While these primers aren't the best primers I've ever used, I do think they're pretty good quality products. They're good it you wear a lot of bold colors. If you do a lot of neutrals and more demure looks, you could probably skip these for a different brand, but the formulas on these are long-lasting, and are overall pretty good, but just a bit harder to work with than some other primers on the market.  

Product Review: Tokidoki Sodashop Palette

I've been drooling over this palette since the first time I saw it at Sephora, and I've been doing an excellent job of restraining myself (for once). Well, I was at Sephora the other day, and it was $10, and I couldn't resist it any longer. It was a total steal. 12 shadows, an eyeliner, a super adorable nail file and a magnet set (Which I already covered my refrigerator with) in a collectable tin. Sold.

Initial thoughts: I really try not to get suckered by cute packaging, but sometimes it's really hard, and this was no exception. That being said, I positively love all the other tokidoki products I have, (Robbery palette, various shadows and glosses, makeup bags, plus the iPhone case and a couple charms) so I feel like it's not just me being all "ZOMG! It's cute!"

On to the shadows:
Skull donut is a light, shimmery gold-ish color, that I would definitely use for a highlight color.
Patatino is a light mustardy color with a soft gold shimmer. Pretty, but probably not one I'll use a ton as it will make my skin look washed out.
Riposino is a glittery and shimmery light brown. Very pretty for a jazzed up neutral look.
Ciccio is a shimmery coppery brown.
Mummetto is a matte medium brown. Perfect for a liner or for brows.
Mozzarella is a darker brown with lots of shimmer and glitter
Tulipano is a matte bright mauve. Very pretty
Nancy Rocks is a bold, shimmery bright purple. Kind of like Urban Decay's Flash, but prettier.
Romeo is another Urban Decay dupe, as it is a bold, shimmery burgundy like UD's Last Call. (I like the formula and pigmentation better on Romeo though!)
Ciotolina is a shimmery green.
Arrosto is a shimmery dark grey that is almost black. Very versatile.
Furbina is a very dark purple with light purple glitter in it. It's a very familiar color, but I can't think of what brand makes it, but it's definitely a dupe of something.

The tokidoki formulas are really nice. The shadow is dry and not crumbly, but it isn't so dry that it's hard to get even color and pigmentation. They have a nice color payoff, and they stay looking nice, although you definitely want a primer to get their full pigmentation.

(with primer)

(without primer)



Liner- Perfetto Eyeliner in SANDy
I like tokidoki's liners, and this one is no exception. The color is nice, and so is the formula. It stays put, and it has a decent tip. not too thin, and not too thick, so it allows you a variety of thicknesses. This is definitely one of the better felt-tip liquid liner pens I've tried.

If you can find this palette for the same price, I'd definitely say grab it while you can, but honestly, it's worth the $30 that Sephora has it listed for on its webstore as well.

Product Review: Kat Von D Painted Love Lip Glosses

                                                         Left to right: Hellbent, Lolita, Underage Red, Homegirl

I got these in the epic Sephora haul I did on Thursday, and I'd never tried any of the Kat Von D lip glosses, but I love the eye products, so I figured I'd give them a shot. Especially for $3.50 each.
 The packaging is very nice. The only thing about it I don't like is the matte tube- it made it hard to judge what the product would be like without swatching it. Also, the matte coating comes off the cap. After having it in my pocket for just a couple hours, it began peeling off Lolita already. Not a big deal or anything though. The formula is pretty nice though. They're not sticky at all and they go on pretty well, while being super pigmented. Almost like a liquid lipstick instead of a gloss. Admittedly, I'm more of a fan of lighter colored lip products, so these aren't colors I would immediately choose for myself for daily wear, but I do think I will wear most of them more than once. They have a bit longer of a wear time than most glosses, and stay on for about 2-3 hours without needing to be reapplied.
Hellbent: 

Sephora's website describes this as a "rosy blood red." I like this one, and I think out of the four, this is the one I would wear the most often. It looks good right as you put it on, but I like it better blended out with a clear gloss over it as well.

Lolita:

 
This one is more of a dusty rose, but it is so pigmented that I'm not a huge fan of it. It's not a bad color, but I think it's a bit darker than I usually like my rose-colored glosses.

Underage Red

This one is a very cherry shade of red. It is also the sheerest of the 4. I think it's pretty wearable as-is.



Homegirl

 This is a very dark plum color. On someone as pale as I am. it is very unwearable right out of the tube, unless you're going for a really gothy-type look. But blended with a nice, silvery gloss, it is actually really pretty!

Here's some hand-swatches too.

                                          L to R: Hellbent, Lolita, Underage Red, Homegirl

This week's haul- Epic Sephora sales and the Target clearance rack

Here's what I got:
1.Tokidoki makeup bag ($4. That's madness!) It would be a perfect size for holding my brushes for a trip or something, and it's super adorable, so how could I go wrong?
2. Kat Von D Palette- Angeles- ($24) I'm a big fan of Kat Von D palettes, and this one is no exception, more on this when I review it though.
3.Sonia Kashuk brushes- Multipurpose blush/powder ($5.48) and Eye shadow ($3.98)- These were obviously a part of my target haul. I really like the limited edition Sonia Kashuk brushes. They're pretty sturdy, and don't shed a lot, but they add a punch of color and style to my brush kit without a major hit to my wallet, and they work pretty well too!
4. Sally Hansen Insta-Dry Nail Color- Snappy Sprinkles ($3.48)- I have a severe lack of glittery nail polish in my life, so I'm working on changing that.
5. Kat Von D Painted Love Lip Gloss- Hellbent, Lolita, Underage Red and Homegirl ($3.50 each- Madness! these lip glosses retailed originally for $18 each!!)- I'd never tried any of the Kat Von D lip glosses, but in general, I like most of the products I've tried, so I figured at that price, it was worth it.
6. Sephora brush on eye primer($2.75)- Admittedly, I've only tried a couple Sephora products, but when one of the super awesome employees there recommended it to me, I decided to give it a shot.
7. Tokidoki Sodashop Palette ($10). No, this isn't a typo, it was only $10 for 12 shadows, an eyeliner and a nail file, all in a collector's tin, complete with an entire set of possibly the cutest magnets on the face of the earth. I honestly felt like I'd stolen this, it was that cheap!

Here's a shot of the palettes open.