More Aromaleigh Haul and My New HG Eyeliner Brush

My full size Gothic Lolita eyeshadows from Aromaleigh finally arrived, and I can't wait to play with them. First, they looked so pretty in the jars that I didn't want to open them. But of course, I did, especially since I wanted to do some swatches of them.


The Watermelon Pure Hue was a freebie after using the coupon code for a free Pure Hue jar. I am super stoked about this haul, I am so glad I finally got full sizes of my favorite Gothic Lolitas, especially the gorgeous Strawberry Despair and Satin Laces.


These were swatched dry without a base. Imagine how much more vivid these would look (as if these weren't pigmented enough) if a base was used.





I likewise got a couple of mini jars of the illuminating perle powders, and I also bought a couple of samples just to see how these fare. They are actually more shimmery versions of my MAC mineralize skinfinish. They look pretty, but a tad too shiny if used with a heavy hand. The best brush to apply this with is a stippling brush (like MAC's 187 or the duo-fibre brush available at many mineral makeup sites). I love the shimmery soft colors, though; this is absolutely perfect for summer.


Aura would be a tad dark for a highlighter but is beautiful when used as a blush.





Here are swatches of a couple of my MAC mineralize skinfinishes, New Vegas and Light Flush. Note how much shinier the perle powders from Aromaleigh are. Illusion is an almost spot-on dupe for New Vegas, though.



Finally, here is my best find for this week. I can NOT believe I just tried this bent eyeliner brush from Sonia Kashuk last weekend. I have a TON of Sonia Kashuk brushes (7 of the blender/crease brushes, maybe 15 of the shader brushes, a couple of the concealer and angled eyeliner brushes), but I never thought of getting this bent eyeliner brush until a few days ago. This is honestly the best eyeliner brush I've ever tried. It is so easy to apply gel liners with this, and I always get a nice line when I use this. It is just a godsend. I now have four of these (the other one was not in the picture) and I am very happy with them. These have made my eyelining job so much easier and more pleasureable. The head is just the right size; it doesn't draw a very thick line, and you can build the intensity of your lines with the brush. The hairs are neither flimsy nor too stiff. One word: perfect.




Sonia Kashuk haul from Target




This I believe is one of the newer releases from Sonia Kashuk. It has a tiny head that deposits a controlled amount of pigment on the lid or lashline. This is similar to MAC's 219 although it has a more pointed head. I believe this is more similar to Essence of Beauty's eyeshadow contour brush, although this is stiffer. This would be perfect for those lower lashline application of color, as well as blending/smudging shadows and pigments to create those smokey, sultry eye looks.