Now We Resume This Blog, After That Long-A** Break

     Hi everyone! My blog has been terribly neglected this past year; I've just had so much going on, personally, that writing has been one of the farthest things from my mind. My husband and I separated last year, and I've been treading the waters of single-parenthood, trying to stay afloat. It hasn't been easy, but I think I'm getting the hang of it.
     Breakups are never easy, but I hope that in the case of my children's father and I, we can make this as easy as possible for our 2 girls. There is no drama, no hurt feelings, and no ill-will toward one another. We've been growing apart for some time now, and just realized that if we want to be happy, we should make the decision while the kids are young.
     Alright, now that I've delved deep enough into my personal life, let's get into the reason I started this blog; MAKEUP! I've been acquiring quite a bit of it these last several months, and though I have been using it, I thought I should put my buying on hold for a bit and try to use what I have more. (And when I say 'hold', I mean a soft hold. I'll probably still dip into the wallet when something really good comes along.)
     After making a few hasty purchases simply because they were new and exclusive, I made the decision to think before I buy. For example, the new Huda Beauty lip contour pencils; I bought the Shade "Bombshell", simply because of all of the hype around the launch. And for $25.50, I should've had better intentions. When I got it in the mail a couple days later, I immediately regretted my choice. It was a lip liner. I'm not sure what I was expecting, but for $25, it wasn't supposed to be "just" a lip liner. Coupled with the fact that the shade was identical to MAC's "In Control" liner that I already had (and paid $6 less for) and the formula wasn't anything new or innovative, I put it back in it's packaging, grabbed the receipt, and back to Sephora it went. 
     Point being; I have a lot of makeup. A LOT. More than some people, less than others, but for me, it's a lot. And I do love it. But I think in order to really appreciate it, I need to use what I have and make educated decisions when buying any more. So in this new chapter of my life, that will be my mission, to use and document my beloved beauty items, and share it with those who appreciate it: the beauty community.
     I hope to be better at writing - and taking time out, now that I have more of it - for the passion I have for beauty products, :) 

Late to the Party feat. itsjudytime Palette

So I finally pulled the trigger on BH Cosmetics. Which isn't supposed to sound so homicidal; I haven't ordered from them before because I'm hesitant to buy makeup online before testing it in person, so I thought I'd take a stab (hey-oh!) at one of their palettes. I was watching an itsjudytime video and she was announcing her palette was going on sale-- the lowest price ever of $8.95 each or two for $14.95, I believe. I never gave it much of a thought before, but the whole "low price, now or never, limited edition" thing had my heart doing flip flops. So after reading all of the reviews and watching tutorials, and deciding that this needed to be in my life, I grabbed one (the deal for 2 was good, but I wasn't going to risk paying for 2 of something I didn't like, and I don't know any makeup lovers. I'm the ONLY one) feeling like the sale price justified the $8 shipping. I HATE when American companies charge so much for shipping. I have yet to order from ColourPop because I REFUSE to swallow that $15 shipping fee. C'mon ColourPop!... Anyways, back to the palette: it arrived a few days ago, and I ripped into it immediately and was very impressed on first look. 

Eee, so cute!!

Ugh, come on with the gorgeous colours

I dipped my dirty little digits into the shadows and found the matte shades to be creamy and pigmented with, surprisingly, little to no fallout. And the mattes were what turned me onto this palette. I was surprised that this little gem could do what the Naked Basics 2 couldn't; make neutral matte shades without stirring up a bunch of shadow. 

The shimmer shades are a different story. Not as pigmented, and the shimmery-er (yep, just made that up. I stick by my decision) shades had chunky glitter that kind of gets whisked away the more you swatch. 

TOP ROW, sorry for the crappy lighting. Although my skin IS translucent and absorbs colour more than shows it

The top row is my jam. The first (cream), second (ochre) , fourth (pink-toned brown) and fifth (espresso) shades are the mattes, and they are buttery, soft, blendable and pigmented. The third shade is a shimmery gold/champagne colour that shows up better in a swatch than on the eye, and the sixth shade is a dark brownish gold with gold shimmer. The shimmer kind of separates from the colour, so it's more of a fine glitter, which is what happens with the rest of the more shimmery shades.

Bottom row: I hate to say it, but MEH.

 The bottom row is probably going to be the less used end of this palette. The only matte is the fifth one, a light indigo, that's a little chalky. The first and second shades are shimmers, a rose-gold and a bronze colour. These go on light, but can be built;more with the fingers than a brush. The third shade is the big let-down; it looks like a beautiful burgundy in the pan, but swatched is a weak black with red glitter that leaves at the first swipe of a brush. The fourth, a satin lilac is also too light, and the last shade is this amazing navy shimmer in the pan, but isn't pigmented enough. Big womp-womp for the burgundy and navy. I had high hopes for those guys.

So all in all, not a total bust. I essentially wanted this for the matte neutrals, and they are the best ones. They work wonderfully together and blend like a dream. The darker colours just don't work very well. Although if you really pack them on, maybe use some Fix+ they'll behave. I still love this palette for what it is. And considering it's sold out on the website (and the price is back up to $20) I'm glad I purchased it. 

I think I might order some more from BH Cosmetics. The Dark Rose, Wild Child, and Forever Nude palettes look really pretty. 

NEXT WEEK: Julep's Sweep Photogenic Palette. Be prepared for the obsession that is Julep.

***Nik's Bits***

-Christmas is in full swing in my house. Which means I've put a whole box of candy canes on the tree, and only three remain. Thanks kids.

-My husband and I made the dumb decision to go Black Friday shopping (sorry, I made the decision. He drove.) We got to Target at 10 am with smiles and hot coffee and left with NOTHING I had hoped to buy. We still got some good deals, but the craziness that was running through that store was not worth it. Cyber Monday next year.

-My skin is acting horrible. I'm getting dry flaky patches on my chin and cheeks, around my nose. Time for a new winter moisturizer. And tons of Lypsyl. Best lip balm EVAR.