The Jaclyn Hill Palette: First Impressions

July 16, 2017 / thecorkedreader89 / 7 Comments

Hi guys! Today we will be looking at the the Jaclyn Hill Palette by Morphe. This palette has been in the works for quite some time now and after so many teases and sneak peaks, I’m so excited to have it in my hands now. Jaclyn Hill had been working on this palette with Morphe to get it to her liking for a couple of years. I’ve had this palette for a couple weeks now but between being out of town and have several makeup free days, I’m only starting to test it out now. So today I have some swatches and first impressions for you. I will start posting the makeup looks that I have been putting together very soon!

The Jaclyn Hill Palette leans mostly warm but it does have some cool shades as well as some pops of colour. I think for the most part it is pretty well-rounded and has everything you need to do several completed makeup looks. Each shadow I’ve used so far performs excellently. I have found though that some of the more metallic shades do apply better with your fingers compared to using a brush. Continue reading →

Urban Decay Naked Heat: First Impressions

June 21, 2017 / thecorkedreader89 / 10 Comments

Hi guys! From the moment I laid eyes on this beauty, I knew she had to be mine. If you don’t already know by now, I am obsessed with Urban Decay. Their Naked Palettes are amongst my favourites and when I saw they were releasing a warm toned one, I immediately had to find out the earliest I could get my hands on it. Warm tones are definitely my favourites to wear on my eyes. My eye shadow palette collection probably leans more warm than anything else. So, the night of the pre-sale on the Urban Decay website, I had the website loaded 15 minutes in advance and waited patiently. Aside from some minor issues with the website, my order went through and the waiting continued. Four days later and this beauty was finally in my hands. So, let’s take a closer look at the palette that stopped my heart!

The Urban Decay Naked Heat Palette contains seven matte shades and five shades with shimmer. Ranging from lighter more neutral shades and some deeper warm shades, this palette has everything you need to create several complete eye looks. It also contains a double-ended brush to assist you in creating your ideal eye look. I rarely use the brush that comes with palettes but the Urban Decay ones are actually quite great to work with. I just always stick with my go-to eye makeup brushes when I’m creating a look. Continue reading →

Anastasia Beverly Hills x Nicole Guerriero Glow Kit

March 22, 2017 / thecorkedreader89 / 10 Comments

Hi guys! Today I’ve got my first impressions of the beautiful Anastasia x Nicole Guerriero Glow Kit for you! Given that I love Anastasia Beverly Hills, the YouTuber Nicole Guerriero and highlighters, this purchase just seemed to tick off all the boxes. As well, these highlight shades seemed really quite unique to my collection as they are quite warm in tone. While I have seen some backlash on collaborations with YouTubers and so on, I personally think they are a great thing. Who wouldn’t want to collaborate with one of their favourite brands? I can only imagine it must be such a huge honour and career milestone for these people who started off with a camera and an internet connection. So, with that said, if it is a YouTuber I watch and a product that I think I would enjoy, I am more than happy to support it.

Continue reading →

Violet Voss x Laura Lee Eye Shadow Palette

June 24, 2016June 23, 2016 / thecorkedreader89 / 18 Comments

Hi guys! Oh my goodness you need this palette! I’m just going to cut straight to the chase, it’s amazing. Okay, now that I have that out of the way… I started seeing YouTuber Laura Lee’s collaboration with Violet Voss pop up all over the Snapchat of basically every beauty YouTuber that I follow. I had heard of her, but I hadn’t really watched any of her videos. I couldn’t believe how amazing this palette looked! The swatches looked super pigmented, and buttery smooth so I was instantly intrigued. I started watching her channel and was hooked! After watching her video where she talks about the palette in more detail, I knew I had to mark the pre-sale date on my calendar because I knew these babies would fly off the shelf. Boy, am I glad I did because I am in love!

The palette itself is mostly warm toned, but she did add a few cool toned shades as well to balance it out. There is a nice mix of mattes, shimmers and metallic shades so you have everything you need for a complete look. The palette is nice and compact so between that and the ability to do several different complete eye shadow looks with it, it would be great for travel. If you haven’t already seen it, you need to see her video on this where she talks about each shadow and why she picked each name. You can find that video here! A lot of the names are inspired by Alabama which is where she is from. I’m not sure if this was just for the pre-sale but the palette also came with a photo signed by Laura Lee herself which was a nice touch! Continue reading →

Becca x Jaclyn Hill Champagne Collection Eye Palette

May 31, 2016June 7, 2016 / thecorkedreader89 / 4 Comments

Hi guys! I normally don’t post until Wednesday but I was too excited and had to share this right away. Last week when the Becca x Jaclyn Hill Champagne Collection Eye Palette launched I jumped onto the Sephora website and grabbed one. The Face Palette was so amazing that I just couldn’t pass this up. So today will be another “first impressions” style post so I’ll have a look with this palette coming shortly as well. As I type this I have just received it in the mail so I haven’t had a chance to play with it yet but I just had to get some swatches up for you guys!

This palette is so stunning and looks like a great addition to my makeup collection. I’ve never used Becca eye shadows but I’ve heard great things! The colours are in the warm/neutral family and include two shimmers and three mattes. Basically, you have everything you need for a beautiful eye look. Continue reading →

Becca x Jaclyn Hill Champagne Collection Face Palette

May 20, 2016 / thecorkedreader89 / 17 Comments

Hi guys! On Tuesday Jaclyn Hill released a very limited amount the Champagne Collection Face Palette which is part of her upcoming collaboration with Becca Cosmetics. The full collection (as well as more Face Palettes) will be available when it launches on Sephora online on May 26th and then in-stores on June 16th (Sephora exclusive). I managed to snag one during the advance release so I thought I would share some swatches to help you decide if you need this or not!

This palette features both highlighters and blushes (in both the new luminous formula and the mineral formula). The packaging is absolutely stunning, just as the products inside are as well. Continue reading →

First Impressions: Garnier SkinActive Micellar Cleansing Water

February 3, 2016February 2, 2016 / thecorkedreader89 / 14 Comments

Hi guys! I’m finally jumping on the micellar cleansing water bandwagon. I’m pretty late to the party but I finally decided to try out the one that Garnier put out (and it was on sale!). I chose the formula that claims to remove waterproof mascara so that I could really put it to the test. I’ve enjoyed all the Garnier skincare products that I’ve used so I was excited to give this one a try!

This Micellar water is alcohol-free. It cleanses your skin without needing to rub or rinse by lifting away dirt, oil and makeup with its micelles. It’s a watery liquid that feels a bit slippery but does not contain oil and it does not have a scent. Continue reading →