Weekend Looks: Costal Scents, Kiko, Jouer

As I mentioned in yesterday's post, this will be my last "weekend looks" post for a while as I am having surgery next week and will be in recovery for several weeks. Good news is that I will have more time to write anti-haul posts as well as other requested posts, so that will be fun. As far as looks I did this weekend, I don't really know why I gravitated toward what I did. I figured I would want to wear super colorful looks before being out of commission for a while, but my looks kind of bridged neutral and not.

Here are the looks I did this weekend:

Look 1: Costal Scents Lakeshore and Fine Wine

Lakeshore on the lid, Fine Wine blended into the crease, and Makeup Geek Bitten lightly padded onto the outer corner. NYX Vivid Brights liquid eyeliner in Vivid Violet. 

Look 2: Kiko Water Eyeshadow in #213 Dark Slate Green and Jouer Skinny Dip 

Pixie Epoxy as a base all over the lid. Kiko Dark Slate Green on the inner and outer lid and Jouer Bikini on the center of the lid. Zoeva Substitute for Love and Costal Scents Oktoberfest blended into the crease. 

Look 1: Costal Scents Lakeshore and Fine Wine

Status: Really enjoy

I think something I've come to learn about myself is that I really like blues paired with berries. Costal Scents Fine Wine is a shadow that I have really come to love, but this was the first time I ever wore Lakeshore, and I think it's a really pretty color. I paired it with one of my NYX Vivid Brights liquid eyeliners because why not. I wasn't sure how I was going to like this motley crew of colors put together, but I thought it was actually quite interesting. Also, as a fun side note, I was in Sephora last night buying a replacement skin care item (Drunk Elephant C-Firma) and the cashier went out of her way to compliment my eyeshadow. I thought that was really nice of her, but also quite funny since I was not wearing a single thing on my eyes that one can purchase in Sephora. 

Look 2: Kiko Water Eyeshadow in #213 Dark Slate Green and Jouer Skinny Dip 
Status: Love

I have to say, I really love how this look turned out. I knew I wanted to use the Skinny Dip palette again (although I am having complicated feelings about it), but I also wanted to use this Kiko shadow that I've had for a while but have only ever used on the lower lash line. So, I created this. And I really like it! I used Fyrinnae Pixie Epoxy as a base because the Kiko shadow is a "water" eyeshadow, meaning it can be worn either wet or dry. I'm not a huge fan of using shadows wet as I think it kind of ruins the shadow in the pan afterward, and I've never been the biggest fan of MAC Fix+, but I absolutely adore Pixie Epoxy and imagine it does the same thing as applying a shadow wet, only with less mess. And, man, both the Kiko shadow and the Jouer shadow look incredible under it. I debated using my Viseart Dark Matte palette for the crease work to really smoke out the green, but I decided (as usual) to have a warm brown crease. And I love this look. The Kiko shadow is gorgeous, like two others I have. But I will say that not all Kiko wet shadows are created equal. I love the three that I have, but I have also decluttered two because they were so lackluster. And lastly, the Skinny Dip palette. So, obviously, the shine in the center of my lid is gorgeous, but I used Bikini today and Skinny Dip last week and I can't really tell a difference between them. I also feel like Star Light and Magic Hour might have a similar effect once applied onto the eyes (I think they will both look silver), but I haven't tried either of them yet, so I am still reserving judgement. I will say, however, that I am disappointed Bikini and Skinny Dip are so similar. Both are gorgeous, but I don't need duplicate shadows in the same palette.

This Week's Looks: Makeup Geek, Fyrinnae, Kat Von D, Ardency Inn, and Jouer

You all may remember a couple months ago that I shared I would be having a couple of surgeries and would be a little quiet on the blog front, especially in the "this week's looks" posts. I had the first surgery two months ago and have been in recovery, and I am having the second next week. So this will be my last weekly looks post for a while. I'll post a weekend looks post tomorrow, and that will also be the last for a while. What's nice is that since I'll be off work for some of the recovery time, I'll have more time to write anti-haul posts, which I know are the posts my readers most enjoy. 

In terms of makeup this week, I just wore what I wanted and had some fun because I knew this would be my last week wearing makeup for a while. As always, my weekly looks are more toned down than my weekend looks because of work, but I still feel these looks were a little fun for work. 

Here are five looks I did this week. 

Look 1: Makeup Geek Blacklight

Blacklight on the lid, Colourpop Silver Lining and 143 blended into the crease, and Colourpop Say I Do blended above Silver lining and 143. 

Look 2: Kat Von D Pastel Goth

Clementine on the lid, Meow blended into the crease, Dope padded onto the outer corner, and Skull on the brow bone. 

Look 3: Fyrinnae Serendipity

Serendipity on the lid (over Pixie Epoxy) and Costal Scents Fine Wine blended into the crease. 

Look 4: Ardency Inn Hell 

Hell on the lid and Bobbi Brown Camel blended into the crease.

Look 5: Jouer Skinny Dip and Melt Rust Stack 

Jouer Tan Lines on the inner and outer lid and Skinny Dip on the middle of the lid, Melt Rubbish and Antique blended into the crease, and Melt Classic on the brow bone. 

Makeup Geek Blacklight

Status: Favorite 

I've written about this shadow before, so I will keep this brief. I really love this shadow. It's a blue/purple duochrome (so of course it doesn't show up well in photos) that has the appearance of being a neutral shadow but also colorful and interesting. I paired it with some of my favorite berry/pink shadows, and I think the look came out really pretty. I recently bought some quad palettes because I originally started my makeup collection with quads, and I wanted to see how I felt about having some premade looks. Since this is one of my favorite looks, it made sense to me to create it as a quad (however, the quad pictured has ABH Buon Fresco instead of Colourpop Silver Lining). 

Kat Von D Pastel Goth

Status: Keep, enjoy

Although I have addressed this a few times, inevitably someone will ask why I own this palette since I wrote an anti-haul post on it. I bought this palette as a symbol of solidarity when Kat Von D wrote "No mi presidente" on her Instagram and the post was filled with hate and people saying they would never again purchase from her. This was her newest product out at the time, so I bought it to show support to her as well as all women who were taking a stand. 

Since owning it, I have enjoyed using it, and I use it on a semi-regular basis. But, I still stand behind what I said in that anti-haul post, which is why I have not removed it despite now owning the palette. I have only used it as a companion palette before this look, and I have to say that I really liked how this turned out. But I do wish the shadows were more pigmented. In the photos, the pigment looks really good, but that was after building the shadows up quite a bit. On the lower lash line especially it is nearly impossible to get any of these shadows to show up. But I don't dislike this palette, it is unique to my collection in a lot of ways, and I use it often. So this ended up being a good purchase for me. But I also strongly feel that I had skipped out on this, like I originally intended, I would not be missing out. 

Fyrinnae Serendipity

Status: Favorite

This is also a shadow that I've written about before, so I will keep this short. I LOVE this shadow; it is one of my all-time favorites. When I was first exploring indie shadows, one of my readers said that Serendipity was one of her favorite shadows and that I had to give it a try. I have to say that the swatches I've seen online of this shadow don't do it justice, in my opinion. In swatches, Serendipity looks like a rusty bronze. But on me at least, it's like a dusty golden mauve. It is so pretty. I highly recommend this shade to everyone because it's a neutral shadow but unlike anything else that I have. (It does require Pixie Epoxy, however.)

Ardency Inn Hell 

Status: Keep, for now

This was the first time I wore this shadow, and while I thought it was really pretty, I think it could be a pass for a lot of people. I was sure that I had other colors just like this in my collection, but when I swatched all the ones I thought were duplicate, none of them had the depth of this shadow, especially with the shine that it gives. The closest I have is ABH Brownie, but Hell is much deeper. The only thing is that I don't usually wear colors this deep on the lid. This would be much more of an outer corner color for me, but I already have several deep brown shimmers that could fill that purpose. So, I don't know. This is a gorgeous shadow, but I just don't know how much use I will get out of it. 

Jouer Skinny Dip

Status: Keep

This was my first Jouer purchase, and I have to say that I am unbelievably pleased. I bought this palette in part because I wanted to see how it compared to my Natasha Denona shadows that came from the #9 5-pan palette. The shadows are indeed pretty similar, but the Jouer ones, I think, are prettier and pack a better punch. Plus, the Jouer palette has six shadows for $40, and Natasha Denona has five shadows for $48. The colors were so shiny that it was actually hard to take a photo of them, but I thought the look was just so pretty. I can't wait to wear them again. I paired this look with the Melt Rust Stack, which is one of my all-time favorite palettes of sorts. This is my ideal neutral matte palette, even more than the Kat Von D Shade and Light Eye (which has been decluttered from my collection) and the Viseart Neutral Matte (still in my collection). I reach for the Rust Stack above everything else. I've only used Skinny Dip one time, and I'm planning on using again tomorrow. I don't have established thoughts on it since I've only used it once, but I've been very impressed so far. 

What I'm Not Buying: Jouer Essential Matte and Shimmer Eyeshadow Palette

Jouer Cosmetics has released the Essential Matte and Shimmer Eyeshadow Palette, which has 12 "essential" shadows. 

And I won't be buying. 

To be honest, I have not heard of Jouer Cosmetics outside of YouTube, and there has never been a product from this brand that has been so hyped, so raved about, or so unique as to pique my interest. And this same goes with this bland, basic, overdone palette. 

The Essential Matte and Shimmer palette is $40 and contains 0.59 ounces of product. This is a pretty standard pice for a mid-range palette of this size, however, as I've mentioned before, part of that charge is for the convenience of looking at a product and being able to test it in-store. There are a few retailers that sell Jouer, but they are smaller boutiques or salons and are not as readily accessible as Sephora, Ulta, or department stores. 

The palette contains five shimmer and seven matte shadows. Jouer individual shadows are $22 each, which is why many people are praising the price of the Essential Matte and Shimmer palette, but the singles are also 0.077 ounces a piece. Each shadow in the Essential Matte and Shimmer palette is 0.049 ounces. 

Looking at the shadows as pigments without presentation or packaging shows that the palette is nothing special:

These are the most basic of basic champagnes and browns with a random orange thrown in. 

This palette looks like it was absolutely made with fair skin tones only in mind, and it doesn't seem as though it would be a diverse palette for really any skin tone. 

Looking at the promotional swatch photos, I was not impressed.

I always appreciate when a brand releases promotional swatch photos with several different skin tones represented, but these photos also show the limitations of the light color scheme. 

Frankly I'm surprised there has been much of any buzz about this palette, but then the buzz I have seen has largely been created by people who were sent PR packages. And that doesn't surprise me. But this palette is not only boring, it is so overdone. Jouer is several years too late on releasing a palette like this. 

That is not to say that some people won't like this color scheme. I'm sure plenty of people would like a palette that gives them several very natural looks with a few deeper shades if they want to be a little more daring and bold. But there are many other options at this point that are easily accessible that I can't see the people who want this kind of palette and don't already own several alternatives buying it from Jouer's site. 

This palette looks like Stila Eyes Are the Window to the Mind:

Stila In the Know:

Lorac Nude Necessities:

And the Urban Decay Naked Ultimate Basics:

The swatches I have seen of the Essential Matte and Shimmer palette from reviewers (not the Jouer promo pictures) have not been the best. The swatches either looked like several layers of product had been applied to the skin to make it look even or they looked powdery and patchy. This palette is just too expensive for average shadow quality and low accessibility. 

Honestly, this was an incredibly easy pass for me. There is just truly nothing here that interests me even a little. I could certainly see this palette appealing to those who are new to makeup and don't have very basic shadows, but as I said, there are so many alternatives to this palette within the same price range that I don't see why this palette would be very desirable. 

From my personal collection, I much prefer the Ciate London Pretty Palette for solid neutrals with a twist of something interesting:

Overall, I don't think the Essential Matte and Shimmer palette is worth its price tag, and I don't think the palette value is as high as people are claiming. For me, this palette would be a wasteful purchase that I would hardly every use. I would have much preferred if Jouer came out with an innovative collection of colors or at least a palette that follows the current trends of rosy, berry, and red shades. The Essential Matte and Shimmer palette might contain shades that are "essential" to certain skin tones, but they are so "essential" that most people already own them. I certainly don't need another natural palette with nothing all that interesting going on, and I won't be buying.