Back to the Earth Swatches *Pic Spam*

The one thing I love most is being able to look pretty without wasting hundreds of dollars on mediocre products.

Besides drugstore products, another good option would be to try out handmade makeup from Etsy. Not only are the products safer, but they're also a lot cheaper!

So long story short, I did a MUA swap with the owner of an Etsy shop called Back to the Earth (linked for those interested) All of their makeup is vegan, natural and organic.

I got the 5pc deal, where it only costs $12 for 5 eyeshadows of your choice (I got them free though, since it was a swap) and I have to say, I was really impressed with the pigmentation!

Here's what I got:


Illuminated
This is probably my favorite of the bunch. It's a bit hard to tell, but this is a sort of cream colored shadow in disguise. When you shine it in the light, it turns into a really amazing sheer gold.


Diamonds and Shamrocks
This was a bit darker than I expected (I was hoping for something like pastel green),
but still a really pretty shade nevertheless. Honestly, I can never say anything bad about glittery eyeshadow, they're just so pretty!


Northern Lights
Another one of my favorites, this is a really beautiful and intense shade of purple. The sparkles are really amazing, it really does look like the stars!


Starry Night
I was really disappointed that it was more black than purple, but if you forget about that, the black in itself is really amazing! When applied wet, it's a really intense purple/black with hints of purple glitter. Have you ever seen the ocean get all sparkly when it hits the sun? Sort of like that.


Water Elemental
Although it's a really intense color, this is probably my least favorite out of the five. I just didn't see the wow factor from it. It's just my POV though...

Anyways, here are the swatches I promised you:





Overall, I give this shop an A+ :)

Question: What's your favorite etsy makeup shop? If you've never bought from one, are you planning on doing so?

Look What I Got!

Here's me with the two cd's (hehe, I'm in pj's!)
You might not know this, but I actually have a love for Visual Kei, which is a style of Japanese music. I love it so much that pretty much 95% of the songs in my mp3 are specifically visual kei. I don't know what it is, but the music, fashion style, and just the connection between the audience and the bands, everything about vkei just draws me in. Yep, I've got a ton of posters for various bands on my wall!

That's why when I won these two Alice Nine CD's from Kawaii Kawaii Sugoi Blog, I was happy beyond words. Although I don't really listen to that band much anymore(became mainstream), I still stay faithful to them because Alice Nine was the first that really got me hooked to Visual Kei. You could say that it changed my whole perspective on life.


That was just a little something I wanted to share to you guys, since I feel really lonely being the only one in my school interested in vkei. Just trying to spread the love. :)

Anyways, here's what else I got:



Got these in 3 Separate swaps:
-Kose Esprique Precious Liquid Eyecolor Stylish in BL900 (omg, gorgeous! I have to show you sometime!)
-NARS Orgasm Illuminator Sample (first NARS product!)

-benefit BADgal lash Mini Mascara
-Lancome Le Secret Sample Eye Powder (holy crap, best color EVER!!! Scroll down for swatch)

-MAC Pink Opal Sample
-MAC Quick Frost Sample
-MAC Pink Pigment Sample (IDK the name)
I love MAC, but I can never afford it! Luckily, pigment samples are a lot cheaper and you get to experiment with more colors. :)



Also, I stopped by Chinatown last week and discovered a tiny store that sold phone straps for insanely cheap. I got 4 for $5, what a steal! If you didn't know already, I have an obsession with kawaii phone straps and my collection is always expanding!


As promised, here's Lancome Le Secret (layered over stila smudge pot violet):


and what is looks like in light:


AMAZING RIGHT? It's sort of like a mermaid kind of color, you get what I mean?
Wow, I think I might even buy the full product in the future!

I haven't experimented this with other colors yet, but I'm looking forward to it. xD

Have a great weekend everybody! It's difficult to blog when I also have 3 tests next week, homework, and fencing practice 3 times a week, but I'm trying!

Grace~

Super Tiny Makeup Swap

Just a super quick and tiny post about another recent swap I had. Not too exciting, but worth a mention, since I got my first Hard Candy Eyeshadow! The packaging is totally gorgeous and the formula is pretty good for such a cheap price!



From Left to Right:
Hard Candy Eyeshadow in Rock n Roll
(the rest are just awesome freebies I got)
2 Packs of Diet Snapple Singles
Mandy's Butterscotch flavored Hard Candy (yum!)
Biore Skin Boosting Night Serum
sassy mark. perfume sample

And here's a close up of this beauty:



Also 2 things I have to say to you (skip 1 if you don't care about my mini rant)

1. So I was checking out the blogs I followed, and I realized that one blogger (won't mention name) disqualified me in her giveaway for leaving an invalid link. WTF? I double checked afterwards and it worked perfectly fine! Sigh. I know it's just a giveaway, but I feel really hurt for being falsely accused! Has this ever happened to you before?

2. I just started school on Monday and now that I'm officially in high school, I will be even busier than ever. That means I won't be able to blog as much as before. :(

That's it for today!

My First MUA Swap!

Yes, I'm super late on this, but still exciting! Last week (what's wrong with you Grace??) I received my first swap from the lovely Di!

Makeup Alley is so fun, I don't know why I never started earlier! Although most items are used, I think it's a great way to try out products without having to spend money! What I love best is that you can find makeup brands from all around the world, without having to even go out to the store (in my case, some amazing Japanese Brands!). As a poor high school student, I think MUA and swapping in general is a win-win!

Lol, and moving on...

In order of the picture, I got:
-Urban Decay Primer Potion (the bottom is cracked, but luckily I had some cute washi tape around)
-Bare Escentuals Sangria Lipgloss
-Pert Shampoo Sample
-Tazo Black Tea Sample

Although it's a really tiny swap, I love what I got! Now that I'm hooked, you'll probably see more of these swap posts in the future. ;)

Thanks for reading!
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