Cuckoo for KIKO | KIKO Milano High Pigment Shadows

This will be one of my first non pregnancy and parenting related post in what feels like a long, long time and it's no coincidence. It has taken me quite a while to get back into anything of a beauty routine after my first trimester knocked me for six and therefore a while to discover any new or exciting products that I felt I could rave about, scream from the rooftops and of course offer pride of place among some of my firm favourites. 

KIKO Milano are a brand that are relatively new to Aberdeen. They arrived in my favourite shopping complex, Union Square, a little bit before Christmas and I have found myself only able to go in quite recently so I could swatch and shop to my hearts desire. Given their relatively low price point I wasn't expecting too much from KIKO, at only around £4.80 for a 'high pigment' wet and dry eyeshadow I wasn't expecting fireworks, so after a couple of swatches and a rake in their bargain section I came away with 3 of their high pigment shadows one in a matte purple shade one in a subtle metallic pink /purple hue and finally a shimmery beige colour - perfect for an inner corner highlight. What I got however wasn't simply fireworks but an entire bonfire display in terms of quality, pigment and longevity!

I haven't yet been brave enough to use these 'wet' however I have dowsed my brush in some fix plus to apply them at times and I have been thoroughly impressed. They aren't kidding when they say 'high pigment' and I do get quite a bit of kickback - particularly on the matte shade I went for. A little really does go a long way and you've got to be careful to only dip your brush in else you'll be pink, purple and beige all over, and of course ruin your base if you're prone to doing your base first.

If you haven't already I would highly recommend popping int your local KIKO store to have a swatch of these shadows, I would definitely go as far as today they're better than any MAC shadows I have tried previously - even better than my much loved neutrals palette.. swatches don't lie! Since falling in love with these about a month or so ago I've bought a few more in some similar 'Spring' pink shades and I'll undoubtedly go back for even more shortly. All I wish is that they did some large palettes so I could decant the shadows into and they fit nicely instead of me fiddling about with about 10 different pots, maybe they do and I'm just being blind but KIKO if you're listening I need an empty palette for your pigments!

Have you ever tried anything by KIKO Milano? As you all know I also fell in love with their SPF Primer too which you can read my thoughts on here, otherwise I'd love to know what other gems you have found in KIKO. Be sure to leave your comments, thoughts and suggestions below, come share them with me on Twitter or if you'd just like to see more reviews, life musings and me in general you can find me on Bloglovin and Instagram.

Until next time,

H.Elizabeth x

Wand Wars | Too Faced Better than Sex Mascara VS. Urban Decay Perversion Mascara

Though I am a false lash fanatic and have been now for many, many years I am still partial to 'false lash' effect mascaras and love trying new brushes, formulas and brands. So it was no surprise that when I found myself with two highly coveted samples from two of the beauty worlds heavy weight brands one thing sprang to mind instantly. Wand wars! (what else?)

After quite an extensive haul from Sephora in Barcelona last year I found myself being gifted with a plethora of products including the Too Faced Better than Sex Mascara original (RRP £19.00). Admittedly this was something on my list to try out 'one day' anyway however being a Benefit Roller Lash girl through and through I decided not to purchase the full size Better than Sex Mascara - but was of course chuffed to have a sample to give a whirl before committing fully. 

The big pull for this mascara seems to not only be the formula itself, but their unique brush applicator, which has an 'hourglass' shape inspired by Hollywood Bombshells of the golden era. The carbon black mascara with its collagen rich formula promises full, defined lashes that take your lashes to all new lengths. Too Faced say that you can achieve three different looks depending on how many coats you decide to give your lashes - I decided to try all three and I felt for me 2 light coatings was quite enough - lest you risk getting into spider lash territory. I love the way the formula and brush feels on my lashes and the feel of the brush - unlike the Roller Lash which, if you catch your skin or eye is VERY sore, my only peeve would be how flaky it can be if you accidentally use too much and it'll go all over your face, otherwise, I give this mascara two very enthusiastic thumbs up!

Again I then found myself at Christmas buying a special edition box from Urban Decay which included a whole host of new and old product samples, lip gloss, eyeshadow, blushers and of course a sample of their Perversion Mascara (RRP £19.00). This product wasn't something I'd heard terribly much about, however when I opened it up for the first time quite recently, I kind of fell in love with the brush. Full of soft bristles and with a great tube that handily removed much of the product before application, for that alone I was pretty impressed.

With this mascara Urban Decay promise, bigger, blacker, badder lashes through their ultra creamy formula and to deliver great length and volume, and the big, big pull? It 'glides' on in one stroke! I found that the formula was quite 'wet' in comparison to the Too Faced one and took a while to dry - so if you're prone to blinking right after applying mascara then maybe this one isn't for you - unless of course you enjoy the clean up...and panda eyes! I wouldn't say you need as much of this mascara to achieve a similar look to what you get using the Better than Sex formula and due to the creamy, wet feeling formula it doesn't go clumpy in the same way. 

Would I purchase a full size of either? Yes I would, however which one I would recommend definitely depends on the type of person you are - if you like a quite make up routine then Better than Sex is for you - if like me, you don't mind spending a little more time on your routine, and can afford to be a bit more careful then I'd definitely go for Perversion. (Though I may buy Better than Sex JUST for the tube because come on it's beautiful!

Sorry if with a title like wand wars you were expecting a wizarding story of epic proportions but you guys know that's not how I roll! Have you ever tried the mascaras above? If so I'd love to hear what you thought of them - or maybe theres something out there even better than them, let me know in the comments below, come sneak the links to me on Twitter, or if you'd like to see me play with make up a bit more you can find me on Instagram and more of my words on Bloglovin.

Until next time,

H.Elizabeth x