My cat loving on her new toy from my exchange partner
I absolutely LOVE gift exchanges! Thanks to Reddit, several times a year I get paired up with a stranger, stalk them relentlessly online, and pick out things I think they will love. Lucky for me, I get this in return! I already received some beautiful Shiro products, which I am using all the time, and also received some incredible Darling Girl and Sixteen92 products… as well as a box of AMAZING Canadian surprises!
Let’s take a look-see!
I just can’t say no to trying out a new indie company, so when Blanche Neige announced they were opening about a week ago and had fantasy/fairy tale themed collections, how could a girl say no? A girl could not! Blanche Neige means ‘Snow White’ in French, and their first eyeshadow collection is Little Mermaid themed. It consists of twelve beautiful shadows in a lovely variety of colors, and they also have some great lipsticks. I may or may not have placed an order that same day, and may or may not have received it two days ago!
We may or may not find out… aw hell, just look at these beautiful shades!
A strange thing about being five years post-college– something like a French minor, which seemed like so much work at the time, is SO easy to forget. Like, poof, je me souviens de rien! Or close to rien anyway. That doesn’t stymie my love of French culture and history though. I went to Paris for my honeymoon (where I bought my first red lipstick ever! La Roche-Posay Orange Laser) and gorged myself on all of the history there. The Concierge was around the corner from the flat we were staying in, which was a royal palace used as a prison during the Revolution. We walked the Place de la Concorde, where the guillotine was erected during the Revolution and the streets ran with blood. One evening we drunkenly wandered by La Place de la Bastille and bought an absurd amount of candy from a street vendor… the same place where the Storming of la Bastille, another prison, basically started up the French Revolution. Though several years ago, I love reflecting on the sites of the French Revolution that I have visited, and pining for all of the cheese and wine I had. Oh Paris!
How are a bunch of random memories about French Revolution historical landmarks relevant to makeup, you ask? Well, it’s all thanks to Andi, owner of Baroque Cosmetics, which opened up this past June. Her very first line was Viva La Revolution, a set of eight shadows celebrating the French Revolution (which means, of course, I can wear my great Paris memories right on my face). She also has not one but TWO Miyazaki inspired collections: A Heart’s a Heavy Burden (Howl’s Moving Castle) and Always With Me (Spirited Away). In addition to her shadows, she also has a line of blushes inspired by Art Nouveau artists (including a yellow one for Klimpt!!). Andi was an INCREDIBLE sweetheart and recently gifted me with a beautiful pressed quad of four of her amazing shadows, including three from the Viva La Revolution collection and one from the A Heart’s a Heavy Burden collection. She didn’t ask me to do this review (so I hope it’s ok!) but I am really impressed with the shadows and want share swatches of these colors, because guys. GUYS. They are GORGEOUS.
Come in, child, come in…
First, I feel like I need to apologize for the title… but really the 90’s will always worm its way back into your heart SOMEHOW. So I think it’s best to accept it now and go with it. Tomorrow I have a murder mystery dinner party to go to! I am playing ‘Cleptopatra’, Queen of the Nile, embodiment of the mystery and extravagance of Egypt. I needed to practice my look, so naturally it’s time to take a spin at some kind of an Egyptian-y sort of eye, and to channel all of the inner Elizabeth Taylor I have!
Let’s do this thang!
Today was a fabulous mail day… because my Notoriously Morbid Vanishing Cabinet arrived! Once upon a time I was subscribed to Birchbox and then I tried Ipsy, but ultimately both of those boxes really disappointed me. When the Vanishing Cabinet subscription because available, I launched myself at it with the power of a thousand fiery booster rockets and haven’t regretted a single month of it (that shows how flat Birchbox and Ipsy fell for me, when I measure them largely by their disappointments despite really trying to like htem). Notoriously Morbid’s Vanishing Cabinets are always so creative and also really appeal to the nerd in me (last month was Tim Curry, this month is The Walking Dead… what’s not to fall in love with?)
Let’s take a look at some swatches!
The Maquillage Magpie 