Sephora Black Friday Deals!

In previous years I want to say the black friday deals were $12 here and $10 in the USA. I could be wrong, but I feel fairly certain of that. This year, they are still $10 in the USA but they are $13 here. To be fair, our dollar is much weaker than it was in the last few years so I can't complain about that. And here are all the sets. There are a LOT of them this year!

So the big question is, what are you guys getting?

Smashbox Double Exposure Palette Review and Swatches

I love my full exposure palette. Its a go to for me. So I was REALLY happy when they announced the double exposure palette. But I have refrained from reviewing it for the last 4 months. Because there is nothing WRONG with it. But there is nothing GREAT about it. I guess maybe that is whats wrong with it. Its simply fine. And after loving the first one so much it was extremely disappointing to have this palette not be as wonderful.

As you can see, the packaging is similar. The big improvement on the second one is in the shadow names. As in, THEY HAVE NAMES! As I am sure many of you can attest to, numbers or lack of names is beyond frustrating. Almost as much so as when the company names shadows but puts the names on a plastic sleeve unattached to the packaging (I'm looking at you Tarte!!). In this case the names are on the bottom of the box which is not my favourite place for the names to be (seriously, how hard is it to put the names beside the freaking shadows?) but beggars can't be choosers.

Now on to the shadows. Sigh.... I am not going to go in to a big rant about the claim of 28 shadows. Of how absurd it is and how they really don't TRANSFORM in to other colours at all. They dont. Period. When you wet a shadow it gets more intense. ANY SHADOW. Or at least the majority of them. That being said, when you wet a shadow and it dries they tend to get a hard crust over the top where the moisture was. These do not do that. Which is great. They dry down to the way they were before you got them wet in the first place. Which is great.

The top 7 dry. From left to right: Silver, Mauve, Peony, Blanc, Quartz, Flushed and Veiled.

And here they are with the dry on top and the wet on the bottom. As you can see, a bit more opaque, a bit more pigmented, but nothing really DIFFERENT.

Bottom seven dry - From left to right: Midnight, Temper, Haze, Noir, Copper, Fig and Espresso

And here they are with the dry on top and the wet on the bottom. Again, more pigmented (except for the shade Temper that just was a mess) but again, no transformations.

These are certainly not the worst shadows I have ever used. They are also not at all the best shadows. They are not as pigmented as I would prefer, the wear is ok, but not great, and well, they are ok. Just ok. Which for a follow up to the Full Exposure palette is ridiculous.

Smashbox L.A. Lights Blendable Lip & Cheek Color for Summer 2015

This combines the new trend of chubby blush sticks with a flat sponge to buff the product on the other end. It looks interesting and I will be interested to try this, but can we just say ITS MARCH! What the heck is summer collections doing on sale now when its not officially SPRING yet? But it is up on the sephora website. If you see this, let me know what you think of it!

The Battle Of The Contour Kits. What Do You Do?

So right now, the battle of the contour kits is going on and its getting brutal. Everyone and their mother has come out with a kit and each one promises easy step by step instructions and fabulous results. The biggest problem though is that the set that is perfect for one person is not going to be for another. Its like trying to choose the best blush out there. Just because a ton of people love it, doesn't mean its the best one for your skin. So hear I sit. Paralyzed in the decision. Which one do I get? I honestly DONT know. I did just get this one as its cream and matte:

But which POWDER one do I get to try? I think the smashbox one will be too dark for me. And there is a too faced one, but since that includes BRONZERS (which are NOT contour powders at all) I have left that off the list all together. I freaking love everything Marc Jacobs has put out so far, so maybe that one? But the Kat Von D and Anastasia ones are also getting rave reviews!! HELP!! I will get one, POSSIBLY two but that is all. So please leave all your comments and feedback here with your recommendations and why. And keep in mind I am glow in the dark white!