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top irish beauty blogThere’s been a lot of talk about the new Urban Decay BackTalk Palette. Yes I was trying to be clever using the name there and what of it? 🙂

top irish beauty blog

I’ve had my eye on it since it’s release. As you probably know I am a huge Urban Decay fan just in general. I always keep informed about their new releases. And Jesus there’s a lot of them to keep up with. I may look at the brand through rose coloured glasses, but I always feel like they put their own spin on new trends. The products are generally really good quality too, so they keep me interested.

I’ve been really liking the Huda Beauty Mauve Obsessions Palette of late, so the Urban Decay BackTalk Palette is right up my mauve loving street.

Just in case you didn’t know the BackTalk Palette is completely inspired by Urban Decay’s best selling Vice lipstick BackTalk, which as you can see is a mauve lip lovers delight.top irish beauty bloggerurban decay vice lipstick backtalk

I recently went to a Masterclass in the Urban Decay Flagship store here in Dublin for the palette. They kindly gave me it to bring home and the lipstick too. I am obsessed with the lippie, it’s right up my street. Mauve, matte but not drying, opaque in colour and really comfortable. I can understand why it’s a best seller. We’re here to talk about the new release though 🙂

Urban Decay BackTalk Palette

The Urban Decay BackTalk Palette contains two components separated by a magnetic, removable mirror within the middle of it.Urban Decay BackTalk Palette

On one side we have blush and highlights, all within the mauve monochromatic theme.

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From left to right:

Cheap Shot, Double Take, Low Key, Party Foul.

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Then if we flip over to the other side of the mirror, there is eight eyeshadow shades. Ranging from a pinky nude, to a dark coppered brown shade. Containing mattes and shimmers.urban decay BackTalk Palette Ireland

From left to right:

3 Sheets, Bare, Curve, Backtalk, Shade, Attitude, WTF, 180.

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If I am being completely honest. Overall, this palette just doesn’t perform for me. There are some shades that I do like. The Party Foul highlighter is nice and I like Backtalk, Shade and WTF particularly. There’s no consistency to the formulas though. The lighter shimmer shadows Bare and Curve take a lot of work. I find the magnetic mirror really good in theory, as you can take it out to do your makeup or whatever. But if you leave it in it’s just a bit cumbersome when you are switching between sides. It moves around! If I hadn’t been kindly gifted this palette, I totally would have gone out myself and bought it. Would I have been disappointed with my purchase? I think I would have been yes 🙁irish beauty blog

I’ll definitely do a look over on my YouTube channel with the palette so you can see it in real action on the visage. For now, I’ll just leave you with my messy swatches.

The Urban Decay BackTalk Palette will be available from House Of Fraser and Debenhams in store and online from the 14th of June here in Ireland. The RRP is €43.00.

Does it float your mauve loving boat?

xxx

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beauty blog irelandI managed to get my little grubby hands on the new Urban Decay Naked Petite Heat Palette before it’s official release date here in Ireland. I guess this beauty blogging malarkey has it pros 🙂

Urban Decay Naked Petite Heat Palette

So what is the Urban Decay Naked Petite Heat Palette I hear you ask? This is the follow on from the very popular Naked Heat Palette. Urban Decay have done this a couple of times before where they bring out a similar mini version of one of their extremely popular Naked Palettes. There’s the Naked Basics and the Naked 2 Basics. They have very similar hues, but generally the shadows are mostly new shades.urban decay ireland

This is the same for the Naked Petite Heat. The six shades included are all new but the brand say they are inspired by the original Heat. The size makes it easier to throw into a handbag or bring travelling, but the pans are full sized within.irish beauty blogger

There are five matte shades and one ‘demi matte’. From left to right we have:beauty blogger ireland

INHALE, the demi matte highlighting shade. VIBRATE, a matte light peachy brown. HOT SPELL, a light medium orange toned matte brown. WILD THING, a rusty orange matte. HEIST, a medium warm brown. STRIKE, is a deep warm toned plum brown.top irish beauty blogtop irish beauty blogger

All the shades are rich in pigment, soft and blend-able. There is fallout, but that’s usually the case for Urban Decay as the shadows are generally soft and not tightly packed in the pan. I adore the original Naked Heat Palette so for me as a makeup junkie, this little palette is a nice addition to makeup collection. I honestly would have bought it anyways, as I do tend to collect UD Palettes.urban decay naked petite heat palette

It’s extremely warm in tone,  (as is the original Heat). But obviously with the original, you have the choice to go with shimmers or mattes. The looks you can create with this just on it’s own are limited, so that’s something to be aware of too. I used it in conjunction with a green shimmer shadow for St Paddy’s Day which you can see below.

There was a limited number of them for sale in the Urban Decay store here in Dublin. Once they’re gone, it means you won’t get your hands on it here, until it’s official release at the end of April. They do have a UK website though and the palette is available through that for £26 here. Will you be picking one up?

Update** It’s now available from Feel Unique to us online here 🙂

xxx

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Too Faced Chocolate Gold PaletteI asked on Instagram stories, would you want to see swatched of the new Too Faced Chocolate Gold Palette. It was pretty much an unanimous yes, so here we are.

Too Faced Chocolate Gold Palette

I know people like quick fixes these days and would probably prefer to see these on social media. But I am still a blogger through and through, and sure it means there’s a permanent reference and it looks a bit better in website form. Thanks for taking the extra click 🙂top irish beauty blog

The Too Faced Chocolate Gold Palette is the next collection of eyeshadows in their chocolate bar family.

The minute you open it, the waft of cocoa greets you. These palettes look like chocolate and they literally smell like it too. The palette itself is really sturdy and comes with a large mirror in the lid.irish beauty blogger

There is sixteen shades within. Four mattes including a larger panned light skin colour shade, a cool toned brown, a slightly warmer brown and a black.Too faced cosmetics ireland

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Rollin’in Dough, So Boujee, Cocoa Truffle, Decadent.

The other twelve are all foiled with Chocolate Gold of course, being the star of the show.

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Moneybags, Chocolate Gold, Rich Girl, Love & Cocoa, Old Money, New Money, Famous, Classy & Sassy

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Holla For A Dolla, Gold Dipped, Livin’ Lavish, Drippin’ Diamonds.

I totes tried to fit them all in one pic….it didn’t work, soz! The second picture does give you a closer look at the finish though, so I’m not too mad it didn’t work out.

You get different variants of metallic gold within this palette, which I very much like. I’m not always a full on yellow gold kinda gal. I do enjoy a more taupe or bronzed gold across the lid day to day. There’s generally very wearable colours in it and then there’s definitely a couple more ‘out there’ shades. I’m talking about you ‘Money Bags and ‘New Money’. Too Faced, in my humble opinion do metallic shadows really well. This palette definitely reflects that. The mattes for me are grand. You can build them up, but they are harder to work with. I will be for sure playing around more with this palette more on social media, so if you want to see the colours in action on the eyes, make sure you’re following me 🙂

You can find the Too Faced Chocolate Gold Palette now in store or online from Debenhams. It retails for €47. Do you own any of the Chocolate Bar Palettes?

xxx

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Top beauty blog irelandDo you know what I like to do when I’m broke? Put potential beauty items in my basket online. It somehow makes be feel like I’m beauty shopping. Do I sound deranged? Probably, but it makes me feel like I’m kind of, sort of shopping Pander to me people 🙂

 

If money was no object right at this moment in time and I was beauty shopping online, these products would be in my baskets all across the internet. And I could actually put in payment details to proceed with order!!

Two things from Anastasia Beverly Hills are currently in my Cult Beauty basket. The first is the Soft Glam Palette. (£43 from Cult Beauty).

irish beauty blogTo think I actually call myself a beauty addict and I’ve never owned an eyeshadow palette from Anastasia. It’s embarrassing really. This one just speaks to me. I feel like it has everything you would want. Transition colours, lid crease and liner colours. It’s pretty simple, but I think that’s what gets me with it. I think it’s going to be a great palette for makeup lovers but also artists too. It would make the perfect wedding day palette.

The other thing is probably on everyone’s beauty shopping lust list at the moment. The Amrezy Highlighter, again from Anastasia. (£29 from Cult Beauty).

anastiasia beverly hills

They’ve either just marketed this impeccably or it’s the shiniest highlighter out there at the moment. Every time I see the promo videos or pictures, drool comes out of the side of my mouth.

Ok, there’s another two eyeshadow palettes on my list currently. I have a weakness for them if you didn’t know already.

First up is the Urban Decay Naked Petite Heat. (Will be available in limited supply from the UD flag shop in Grafton street. Available everywhere else from the end of April. RRP is €32).

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This is the Urban Decay Naked Heat Palette‘s little sister. Do I need it? No? Do I already own the original full sized one? Yes. There’s something about UD palettes that has me hooked though. I have a bajillion of them and still can’t get enough. This would make for a great travel companion. There, that’s my justification 🙂

My other palette want is, surprise surprise the Huda Beauty Desert Dusk. (€65 from Cult Beauty).

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Anyone who has this palette just says you need it in your life. And if EVERYONE says it, sure it must be true. After trialling the brand with the Mauve Obsessions and the Smokey Obsessions, I seriously need to try more.

There’s another highlighter on my lust list, but hear me out. This is the limited edition Estée Lauder Golden Goddess Illuminating Powder.

irish beauty bloggerestee lauder bronze goddess

They release this every year as part of their Summer Golden Goddess Collection. Every year I want it and every time I decide to bite the bullet and get it…..it’s sold out! The packaging alone has me wanting this and I see so many YouTubers using it and the want grows. I can’t find it to shop for from here currently though, I will keep hunting!

I had a voucher and nearly bought the Nars Natural Radiant Longwear Foundation (€42 from Feel Unique).

nars foundation

I couldn’t get a sample though, so that put me off. I’ve seen so much hype about this foundation online though, so it’s made it back onto my want list. It’s meant to be long wearing with full coverage but still have a radiance to it. When I have cash money to blow, this is going to checkout!

The Ordinary Glycolic acid 7% Toning Solution is not exactly a financial stretch. (€8.70 from Cult Beauty).

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The reason this is still in my basket is because it’s an enigma, it is never in stock. This is like the Pixi Glow Tonic I love so much. I have a really old blogpost on it here. The Pixi one is 5% Glycolic, this one is 7% and nearly half the price. My oily, giant pored skin needs to try this.

Last on my beauty shopping lust list is the newest member of the Victor & Rolf Flowerbomb family (€71 for 30ml from Debenhams).

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This is Flowerbomb Nectar. Now I’ve yet to sniff this, but I adore Flowerbomb. I know it can be a bit heady and overpowering for some. I love how deep but still sweet it is though. I always have a bottle in my collection. This release intrigues me immensely though. You have the flowery bergamot goodness from traditional Flowerbomb but with a Orange Flower and Osmanthus twist. They had me at nectar to be fair 🙂

And there you have my beauty shopping musings. What’s in your online shopping basket?

xxx

 

 

NYX Wanderlust Dublin City SetNyx have added four new colours to their City Set range. Toronto, New York, Santiago. And my city namesake, the NYX Wanderlust Dublin City Set.

These sets contain four eyeshadows, an illuminator and a blush. The colours are all supposed to compliment the city named Soft Matte Lip Cream within.

NYX Wanderlust Dublin City Set

The NYX Wanderlust Dublin City Set contains very wearable shades throughout. There’s a lime green in there for good Irish measure though too.nyx cosmetics

Each eyeshadow is 1.9 grams, the highlight and blush are 3.5 grams and then the Dublin Soft Matte Lip Cream is standard size at 8mls.

Nyx dublin city set

The packaging is fairly bulky on the City Sets. It’s a magnetized cardboard palette with a generous mirror within.

All the shadows are powder and have a shimmery finish to them. Here they are swatched in the sequence they appear in the palette. All of shades are soft and pigmented.

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The highlighter and blush are also both shimmery powders. The highlight is a really pale gold shade with an iridescent shimmer. The blush is a pale peach with gold sparkles.

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The Dublin Soft Matte Lip Cream is definitely my favourite part of the NYX Wanderlust Dublin City Set. It’s a pinky mauve shade, which is right up my lipstick alley.

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I am a big fan of the Soft Matte Lip Creams in general from NYX so having one named after the city I’m from feels (cringe worthily) cool to me 🙂

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nyx soft matte lip cream dublin
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In my opinion, all the shades in the palette are nice, but I would definitely have to add in other colours if I was doing a full on look using it. I think the colour scheme is very much suited to paler skin. Even for me, the blush might be a little too pale. I generally wear blush to warm up my complexion. The palette size is a little bit cumbersome in my humble opinion aswell, for the amount of products you get in it. I think it would be a nice gift though, just probably not something I would go out and buy for myself.

You can find the NYX Wanderlust Dublin City Set now in Boots in store or online, from Debenhams here. Or, I found it on Look Fantastic here for what I believe is the cheapest price from a reputable retailer.
Have you tried it yet?
xxx
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Huda Beauty ireland

This is my first venture into the Huda Beauty makeup world. When I saw the Obsessions Palettes being released, I thought it was a good time to pop my cherry as the price point is so good. There are four colour ways to choose from, Smoky, Electric, Warm Browns. And the one I chose, the Huda Beauty Mauve Obsessions.

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I toyed with the Warm Browns one, but I thought I would try something a little bit different and went with the mauve shades. The quantity is different for all four palettes, but they all come with a mixture of mattes and shimmers.

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The Huda Beauty Mauve Obsessions Palette comes with three foiled shades and six matte shades totally nine colours altogether. The majority of the shades lean more on the warm side, but there is a couple of cooler tones in there too, which for me is great. I like to have options. It’s a dinky little palette. The outside of it is made of cardboard and then the actually palette inlay is plastic. It also has a decent sized mirror considering how small it is. And to be fair, the pan size is pretty decent too also.Huda Beauty Obsessions Palette

Obviously, the palettes have just been released, so I’m not here to give you an in depth review. I  just wanted to get swatches and pictures up as soon as possible so if you’ve been curious, you have a point of reference. For the mauve offering at least 🙂

Huda Beauty Mauve Obsessions Palette

Here are all the shades swatched with fingers from left to right in threes:

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My first impressions of the Huda Beauty Mauve Obsessions Palette is pretty bloody good. The matte shades are nicely pigmented and creamy. And the foiled shades are almost wet to the touch. They apply best with your finger or a damp brush, as most foiled shadows do. They remind me of the Makeup Geek foiled eyeshadows which is high praise. You can see some of them swatched here. They pack a really pretty punch. I am very happy to own it. It’s not something I often get to say with owning as much makeup as I do. I don’t think I have anything like it in my collection. Now I need more Huda Beauty products in my life 🙂 You can find the Obsessions Palettes in store and online from Brown Thomas now. I got mine from Cult Beauty here.

Huda Beauty Mauve Obsessions Palette

Did you give in and get any or all of them? What do you think? Keep an eye on my social media, I will definitely be creating some looks with it in the coming weeks.
xxx