Westfields Haul

1. Microshadows by The Make Up Store


The Make Up Store is a store I have never visited before. I believe the only one in the UK is at Westfields, Shepherds Bush. The sales lady told me that they'll be opening another store on Carnaby Street soon, which I think is a brilliant idea, since the atmosphere and vibe of the store will fit in perfectly with the boutique-y vibe at Carnaby Street.

There were so many products to choose from, but what really caught my eye were their eyeshadows. There were so many colours to pick from... literally 100 or so! I naturally went swatch-crazy, until the back of my hands could no longer fit any more swatches on them hehe. All of the eyeshadows were so buttery and smooth in texture, and the pigmentation was amazing! I have no idea why there aren't more stores around London.

The packaging looks very sleek and unique to me, with the see-through 'M's, through which you can see your eyeshadow shades. 

The size of the microshadows is also very impressive, at 3.5g each! They cost around £11.

Micro Shadow, the colour you see in the palette, is the shade you get when you apply it. The eye shadows are highly pigmented, gives rich colour and a long lasting result.

Blend it with Mixing Liquid for a waterproof make up or to use your favourite colour as an eyeliner. Micro Shadow is perfect to use as blush as well.

(Description taken directly from The Make Up Store's website: www.makeupstore.se)

Monty

Monty is a mid-toned pewter grey, with very finely milled micro-shimmer. I suppose that's why they're called microshadows. This colour is comparable to MAC's smoke and diamonds (limited edition shade), except this one is shimmery rather than glittery.

Xocoatl

I have no idea how to pronounce this, or what it is for that matter, but the colour is beautiful! It's a warm brown shot through with very finely milled gold shimmer. Xocoatl is the more complex of the two shades, as it contains two colours blended into one, as opposed one.

I must say I am very impressed with these eyeshadows from The Make Up Store! I can't wait until they open on Carnaby Street. I can tell already that I'm going to be a regular customer :P

Rituals Lip Glosses

I then popped into Rituals, which I'd also never seen anywhere else, and picked up two lip glosses, in Satin Rose and Gold Flower. The swatch on the left is Satin Rose, and the one of the right is Gold Flower.

In the tube, Satin Rose looks much more pigmented than when swatched on my hand. In the tube, it's a light pink with pink and gold shimmer. Swatched on my hand it's more of a clear colour with very subtle pink and gold shimmer.

Gold Flower comes out much more true to colour, as a coppery bronzey warm pink. It's a truly beautiful colour.

The consistency of the Rituals lip glosses is very thick and smooth. Apparently they have bits of Ruby in them, which, according to Chinese tradition, helps to boost energy and passion (go figure). The lip glosses cost around £11 each. And at 6ml, the price isn't too bad!

17 Lipstick in 'New Black'

Normally, I would never go for such an in-your-face colour like this. The only reason I bought this lipstick is because I'm going to a friend's birthday party next weekend, and the theme is Tim Burton so I'm going to go as the white queen! 

The consistency of this 17 lipstick is very smooth, and the pigmentation is surprisingly impressive! It came out exactly as I had hoped - a deep plum colour with a slight sheen. Worn on the lips it is very comfortable and not drying at all. 17 calls this a 'lasting fix' lipstick, so it should be relatively long-lasting too!

Prestigue Skinloving Minerals Sunbaked Mineral Bronzing Powder in 'Rich Bronze'

(whew that's a mouthful!) 

I picked this up because I'd heard lots of good things about it on the Blogosphere. The shade I got is 'Rich Bronze', a taupey light brown with veins of shimmery bronze. When swatched, it's a very metallic, shimmery (not glittery!) gold-bronze, very nice. I haven't tried this on my face yet, but I have high expectations for this.

And that's my haul for today! I also got a blush brush from Rituals, which I will blog about tomorrow, hopefully :)