That Was The Week That Was

I was struggling for post inspiration today and in the course of checking up on my regular splogger, I went back to have a look at my posts from this time last year. It was interesting as I remember many of the posts well and was surprised that a whole year had passed since I wrote them. I thought it would be fun to revisit the items and see whether my feelings have changed towards any of them.

Some of the items I wrote about in that first week of June 2011 include Giorgio Armani's Eyes to Kill in Pulp Fiction, the Kate eyeshadow palette, NARS Dogon eyeshadow duo, Le Metier de Beaute blusher in Echo and BECCA Shimmering Skin Perfector in Pearl. To my shame, none of these items get enough use and languish in my makeup collection, with the exception of Echo which I no longer own.

Although I don't use them often, I'd consider both the Georgio Armani E2K and NARS Dogon as cherished items in my collection. Pulp Fiction is really pretty but it's also quite sparkly so I tend to overlook it for everyday wear. I put it on today and it was really nice to be reminded that this pot does not belong in the bottom of a drawer for 'best'.

NARS Dogon is one of the items I took on holiday with me at Easter and I wore it a lot. It'd probably say this is one of favourite NARS purchases and I prefer it to Rajasthan, which I have often pondered selling.

I wrote about the BECCA Shimmering Skin Perfector as part of a post comparing several of my liquid/cream highlighters. I keep meaning to make the comparison between Pearl and the Rouge Bunny Rouge highlighter in Sea of Clouds. I tend to reach for Sea of Tranquility when I use my little RBR samples as I feel its pinky tone is softer and more flattering. However, BECCA Pearl does give a lovely lift to the face if applied as a thin layer underneath my foundation or tinted moisturiser. Like many things, I forget to use it as I'm usually in a rush and it's an easy step to skip.

I haven't used the Kate eyeshadow palette for months but it was lovely to see it again. I want to have a go at using the brow powders in this palette for a bit of a change from old faithful Seal Brown. 

Le Metier de Beaute's Echo was an item I lusted after for a really long time and it's often touted as a must have. The colour wasn't really for me though. It's quite similar in my mind to NARS Orgasm and as I mentioned in a recent post, if I'm in the mood for this sort of colour, I reach for the blusher in my Chantecaille Sea Turtles palette. Echo has been re-homed as I thought it was silly to hang on to when someone else could enjoy it.

Do you ever look back on your purchases and feel bad for neglecting things? Do you find you get as much enjoyment out of items you've owned for a long time or does nothing quite beat the thrill of new a shiny for you?

Taupes Revisited: Kjaer Weis Wisdom

I moaned at the size and I was far too tight to buy the pot, but Kjaer Weis Wisdom eyeshadow is a much loved taupe in my collection. If you've never been drawn to taupe this probably won't get you all that excited but I find Wisdom wins in the Taupe Trifecta: perfect finish, texture and colour.

It is the exact shade of deep mushroom that I have been trying to replicate since I acquired my first taupe eyeshadow from my Mum aged 14. She's probably still wondering where it went! It's a fraction darker than the majority of my other satin finish taupes (I don't include Satin Taupe here as I would actually say that has a frost finish rather than satin) and so it makes a darker, more moody shadow on my lids. I use this all over the lid but I think it would also work well for adding subtle definition to the crease if you paired with a light eyeshadow.

There's a tiny hint of iridescent shimmer which is only visible in out of focus images. It's this shimmer which prevents it looking flat on the skin. Pigmentation is good and application is very smooth: it almost seems to melt into my skin. I find it lasts well with no creasing but I always use a primer as my lids are prone to oiliness.

The Kjaer Weis line is an organic range and I think this is one of those occasion where that fact is purely incidental. This is an excellent high end eyeshadow that just so happens to be organic. Being organic does however go some way to explaining the high price tag. The refillable packaging system is part of the explanation too.

Image from the Kjaer Weis website

Kjaer Weis is no longer available from SpaceNK but thanks to Lipglossiping's post, I discovered that you can order from www.slowfashionhouse.com if you're in Europe. The eyeshadows cost 38€ and the refills cost 18€ (roughly £31 and £15 respectively) but I'm not sure on shipping charges as they are calculated per weight. For those of you in the States, you can find details of where to buy here.