Models Own Supernatural Palette, Ten Pan Eyeshadow Palette - Cruelty Free Makeup

Just after Christmas I was in the Buchanan Galleries killing some time when I stumbled upon (quite literally, I'm not exactly a graceful human being) the Models Own stand.  You know the ones shaped like a spilling bottle of nail polish?  Well they had a huge sale on, and as I've only ever tried their nail polish, I thought I'd take advantage of it. I picked up a set of brushes, a set of liners and this palette.

So I'm going to talk about this like I didn't get it on special offer as it currently isn't reduced so that's what will apply to if you're considering buying this palette now, Currently on the Models Own website this palette retails for £14.99 and you get 7 grams of product across ten pans of eyeshadow (0.7 grams per pan, or £2.14 per gram of eyeshadow ), which isn't a huge amount of product. To give a comparison the Sleek Eyeshadow Palettes, which I feel are the closest comparable products quality wise, on average contain 14.4g of product across 12 pans and retail for £8.99 (1.1 grams per pan, or £0.62 per gram of eyeshadow). So not what I would really call value for money.

So the palette is made of white plastic, with the palettes name either stuck or painted on the front. The holographic lettering is actually really pretty, however the rest of the palette just feels cheap and kind of nasty. This might be personal thing, I just don't like makeup that comes in white packaging. It gets dirty easily and the rounded out corners make my think of kiddie makeup. It kind of fits with Models Own aesthetic though, with their rainbow glitter nail polish and neon lip tars.  

Top row: Paranormal, Mystery, Celestial, Spiritual and Mythical

So inside the palette the pans look really small, if they were pushed up another pan at least could have been fitted in each row. Oh, and it also came with a brush (which I though I had binned but it turns out it was just in the dirty brush jar when I photographed this). 

Bottom Row: Mystic, Eternal, Phantom, Curse and Phenomenon

So you get three matte shades, mythical, mystic and phantom, and they're all pretty disappointing to be honest. They're finely milled, but there's not much colour pay off and they apply patchy.  

Finger and brush swatches of  Paranormal, Celestial and Eternal

The other seven are metallic and finger swatch amazingly, however if you use sweeping motions with a brush (as seen above) they lose that beautiful metallic sheen and high colour content. For best results I recommend using a good quality sticky primer (cough*Too Faced Glitter Insurance*cough) and either use your finger or a flat brush to pat them on. 

Overall thoughts, this palettes a little disappointing. The mattes aren't great and you don't get a lot of product in the metallic shades however they are pretty. 

Would I recommend it?  

Probably not. For just over half the price, you could have Sleek palette with more shades, more product and more variety. 

I'm probably going to play Pan the Palette with this later on in the year, as I only used each metallic shade a couple of times and I can already see dips forming in them. 

xoxo Scruffy

Other eyeshadow reviews

Technic Colour Max Palettes

Sleek Onto the Horizon Palette

Urban Decay Naked Ultimate Basics Palette

Natural Collection Single Pan Eyeshadows

Boots Ingredients Sheet Mask in Charcoal and Willow Bark Review - Cruelty Free Skincare

It seems like everyone and their sister is obsessed with sheet masks right now, and yeah, I was curious. However, I did some research and realised that finding one I could use might not be as easy as I thought. A lot of the ones I found online were made in Asia, and it was hard to work out if they were cruelty free or not. Also some of the ingredients sounded a little daunting, I actually came across one that claimed the active ingredient was placenta. Eeeps, no thanks.

So when I was in Boots today, trying desperately not to buy lipstick (I had seven in my basket at one point, but I put five back. I'm so proud of myself), and I came across Boots new own brand ones, I was delighted as I could finally give them a go. I picked up three, a nourishing one, a revitalising one and this cleansing one. 

So the mask has charcoal and willow bark in it and the back of the pack claims it will leave my skin "feeling cleansed, purified and revitalised in just 15 minutes". Its a good claim, and as much as I'd never say no to my skin feeling more of any one of those things, I drastically need all three right now. My face, especially my forehead is a hot mess with a mix of stress and hormone induced face demons and I have a family function on Saturday I want to look semi-nice for. Here's hoping this helps and doesn't infuriate the little monsters.

So first impressions... ewwwww.

Its so slimy feeling, and I'm supposed to put this on my face and leave it there for 15 minutes. Yuck.

Once I got over the thought of applying an item that felt a lot like it was covered in slug goo to me face, I realised that it is also ridiculously hard to apply. The forehead part is huge, the eyes are a weird shape, the area for the cupids bow is way, way to big and there's a lot of spare round the cheeks and chin. 

Within about 30 seconds of applying it my skin started tingling intensely, far more than I expected and so much I actually found it uncomfortable. I probably should have taken it off but I'm never one to back away from a challenge so I sat through it. It disappeared pretty quickly too, making way for a kind of cool menthol tingle type feeling I actually found really pleasant. I might have left it on my face for a little bit longer than I should have cause I was enjoying it.

Gravity was not this masks friends for two reasons. It pulled on the mask and made it slide down for and cover my eyes and mouth, not fun. It also made all the (excessive) amount of gel in it slide down and pool in the mask folds around my mouth and neck. I spent a lot of time smooshing the gel back up and smearing back across the forehead. Maybe if I'd laid back and shut my eyes it wouldn't have been so annoying but oh well. 

Peeling off the mask was fun. I like peeling things off my skin, it hadn't stuck so my face the way a peel off mask would but there was still some traction there. The whoosh sensation was fun, probably caused by my skin becoming exposed again after spending 20 minutes heating the sheet up.

I rubbed in the excess gel from the mask like you're supposed to and let that settle in. 

Did my skin feel cleansed, purified and revitalised? Not really, it felt clean and soft but that was about it. I was a little disappointed but I hadn't expected much so I packed myself off to bed.

The next morning I noticed a difference though. I had a couple of painful spots forming on my forehead the night before and these seemed to have calmed down a lot. They'd gone from swollen red patches to just little lumps, the way a spot feels when its almost done healing. They also weren't sore to touch and the skin didn't feel tight any more which was amazing. The rest of my skin felt slightly improved and still felt clean from the night before, which never happens. I was so impressed.

So, to cut a long story short...

Did the mask feel gross?

Yes.

Was it annoying to use?

A bit.

Did it do what it said it would?

Yes, but not immediately.

Do the results out way the ickiness?

Yes.

Buy it again?

Definitely.

Boots new sheet masks are available here and are currently on offer at £2 (usual price £2.50 so you're getting 20% off). I'm going to go back and stock up on these, I'll test one again next week and if I get the same results this mask will problem become something I use every time my skin decides to freak out. 

Are you a sheet mask lover? 

XOXO Scruffy 

Enquiry? Message me ascruffyduck@gmail.com

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Review and Lips Swatches: Sleek Matte Me Ultra Smooth Matte Lip Cream - Cruelty Free

When I thought about writing this post I was like, "Sleek, there's a brand I don't own a lot of stuff by". Then I thought about it and realised I own enough that I could probably give a fairly decent assessment of the brand (these lipsticks, a Primer, 2 Eyeshadow Palettes, a Cheek and Eye Palette and the Solstice Highlighter palette that's super famous).

Top to Bottom: Petal, Shabby Chic and Velvet Slipper

I'm always a little hesitant when it comes to square tubes, as if the caps don't line back up right it just bugs me. These have been designed to only do one complete turn so if you put the Sleek logo to the front and then put it on it ends up right where it should be. Its so satisfying.

Other than that, the packaging is very nice. I feel like the Primark ones might have based their packaging on these (full review of the Primark Liquid Lipsticks here). Its really sturdy and unlike the Primark ones the plastic is thick and heavy enough to stop it feeling cheap.

Top to Bottom: Petal, Shabby Chic and Velvet Slipper.

So I own three of these. Petal and Shabby Chic which I have had for a very long time, and Velvet Slipper, which I got more recently. In the top picture of the tubes Petal and Shabby Chic look very similar however once you have them out and swatch them you can how different they are. Petal is a very pale pinky colour and Shabby Chic is more of a grey-tone mauve colour.

Lip Swatches

Petal

Petal is a gorgeous soft pink. This ones doe-foot applicator is different to the others. Its longer and skinnier which makes the colour harder to apply. Also as this formula is the lightest and the thinnest out of the three it needs two coats. The doe-foot being weird makes it harder to apply and it can look a  little streaky. Once its on it lasts a really long time though so its worth the extra effort.

Shabby-Chic

If I had to compile a list of my five all time favourite lipsticks, Shabby-Chic would feature in there somewhere. This one has a regular doe-foot and probably the best formula out of all three. It only needs one coat and the grey-mauve colour is surprisingly wearable. If I had to recommend any of these shades it would be this one.

Velvet Slippers   

So Velvet Slipper looks like a soft reddy-purple in the tube but once I put it on and built it up, so it wasn't patchy, it turns out super dark. As you can see from the arm swatch, one coat leaves it super patchy.  Once its built up it does feel a little thick and chunky, but no worse than one coat of some LA Splash shades I own. 

I decided to wear test this shade as it as the most noticeable, so any changes or rubbing would be more apparent than the others.

Look at my shiny, shiny nose...

So here's an update photo four hours, two cups of tea, some biscuits and a plate of pasta later. As you can see there is some wear and tear around the inside of my lips, but considering I ate a whole plate of pasta and cheese sauce, I'm really impressed. That level of sauce and oil would strip a Kat Von D or an LA Splash clean off my face. These are under half the price of both those brands so for it to have broken down this little is amazing.

So, to summarise, I think these lipstick are really good value and although the formula and applicator vary from colour to colour they all still perform really well. If I had to recommend one it would be Shabby Chic which I think is the best overall. I'd be interested to try more of them, however I have so many matte lipsticks, I'd probably just try them a couple of times then they're sit at the back of my lipstick drawer.

xoxo Scruffy 

Review: Primark PS... Love to Glow Face Mask - Cruelty Free Skincare

If you've read any of my other posts, and I mean any, you'll know I love a beauty bargain. Back in mid July I finally tried some of the PS... range from Primark, with mixed results (lip liner, yes. Eyeshadow, total failure). However with the vast majority of the products being under £5 (right within my budget) I decided to give some more ago before I made my mind up completely.

A while ago I found myself on Sauchiehall street, an area of Glasgow I don't usually get a chance to visit, with some time to kill. So I had a wee gander at some of the shops that are out that way, especially Tiger (love me some Tiger), and ended up in Primark. My first thought was heck, this one is far cleaner and tidier than my local one. The make-up and beauty area in this one is up the escalator, so I guess people are less likely to run in, rip stuff, make a mess, and leave. I got to actually look at things without the fear of getting covered in something broken and icky.

One of the first things that caught my eye was this mask. It is the PS... Love to Glow face mask with Argan Oil and Vitamin E. And costs £3 for 50ml (1.69 US Fl. Oz.). Pretty cheap for the amount you get. Also up until then I wasn't even aware Primark made skincare, I thought it was just make-up and a limited amount of hair care. So I had to try it, for science.

Packaging wise, the box is ok. Its a box, it describes the contents, its not ugly. Job done. Now for the jar. Its glass, not plastic, which is a very nice touch, however the cheap lid lets it down. Also grey product, with a grey label and grey text, not a smart move. For £3, its pretty much what you would expect though.

First impressions, grey, mudlooking, pot of goop. Its really, really perfumed which is a bit offputting, but not so offputting I wouldn't rub it all over my skin and leave it there for ten minutes. Texture wise its thick and a bit grainy but not gloopy or super wet. Better than a foil package mask but not as nice as some of the "mud type" masks you get in tubes.

Proof I actually rubbed this stuff all over my face. I actually had to do it three times to get this post finished.

Ever pull a face and then think, oh god why? Yeah, thats me right now. Why did I do that? Yikes.

The first thing you notice when applying the mask, after the smell, is the cooling feeling. As it doesn't claim to be firming or tightening, so I think whatever is doing this has been added only to make your skin feel cooler and tighter as you sit with it on your face.








So this mask claims to be Exfoliating, Smoothing, Brightening and Moisturising. I'm just going to break it down one by one and let you know what I thought.

Exfoliating: I wouldn't say I found it exfoliating. I wash my face with super soft microfibre clothes so that might have had something to do with it. It is grainy so if you wet your hands and rubbed at it once its dry, it probably would exfoliate pretty well.

Smoothing: Yeah ok, my skin did seem a bit smoother. If that was its only function I would be disappointed though.

Brightening: Anything that rubs off dead skin should in theory brighten, right? I've never really thought of my skin as being dull so I don't know if it really needs brightened up. My skin does feel nicer once I've scrubbed it off though. So win, I guess.

Moisturising: My skin isn't super dry at the moment and, in all honesty, I've been missing moisturiser some evenings. Does it moisturiser? Probably. Did I notice? Nope. Mehh...

Overall this facemask is mehh. My skin feels nicer-ish when I've used it but nothing major. I had to use the mask three times to get this review finished so I feel like I got a fairly good idea of everything thing mask has to offer . It doesn't offer much.

4 out of 10. Try it if you're curious about the PS...Love rang as its not terrible, but if you're looking for amazing results, you wont get them here. Probably wouldn't recommend.

xoxo Scruffy