Review: LaCoquette Cosmetics

About a month ago I was wandering around Etsy looking for new mineral companies and found LaCoquette Cosmetics.  The store only had a few products, but the color charts looked pretty nice.  She was running a limited Grand Opening special on samples.  I received the samples pretty quickly along with a list of each eye shadow and the ingredients.

Mundane Details:
Shadows are in 5gr containers for $3.50 each.  Sifters are optional. Samples 3/$1.00, 15/$5.00, 30/$10.00
Shipping seems to start at $1.75 for US and $2.50 everywhere else.
She has lip gloss at $4.50 for an 11ml squeeze tube.

I found the majority of the shadows to be very well pigmented and easily applied.  Calypso, Freudian Slit and Lorelei need to have a primer in order to see the beautiful shades. All can be worn by foiling with water, using primer or epoxy. Overall I was very pleased with the shadows, and found several that I will be ordering.

Final Tally: 23.5 out of 25
Customer Service/Communication:  5
Excellent communication.  I received the samples very quickly.  She followed up about 3 weeks after to ask me how I liked her products.  She thanked me for the purchase, offered a discount and invited me to leave feedback. (That's huge for new stores.)  I sent her a few questions, she was very friendly and timely in her responses.
Packaging: 4
Her containers do not have the ingredients listed, but will in the near future.  She does send you a list and also indicates in her store the ingredients and which shadows are not vegan.
Product: 4.5
Long lasting pigmented shadows.  Pass the bare skin test. I tested 32 shades and felt that 3 really needed primer or better.
Pricing: 5
Product pricing is great, a super price for starting out and trying the product. Shipping price is about average. Presentation: 5
I'm going to leave presentation at a five for this reason, she's brand new and I received a ton of samples - not a true order in pots.  I'm hoping that we will find a personal message with the orders, a free sample etc.  I know I received a personal message with the samples.

Would I buy again:  Yes, I was delighted at how nice the colors were.

The teeny tiny fine print:  All opinions are my own, no matter how ridiculous.  I did not beg , borrow or steal the products that I reviewed.  I purchased them with my own lunch money.  Honest and semi-coherent reviews are the way to make a distinction between great companies and those who repackage mica, stir in a little base, slap an organic tag on their products  and call themselves artisans.  Honesty is my policy, even if I hurt a few feelings along the way.

She has added at least three new shadows since I received my samples.  She was kind enough to send me a nice photo of the new shades - and I'll be receiving the samples in order to swatch.

On to the swatching:

                                               

                               

                                 

                                 

 Colors that are released but not on the color chart:

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Review: Face It Cosmetics

In June Heartsy, offered a deal for Face It Cosmetics, the deal was $12.00 for $40.00 worth of product for VIP. I had seen them briefly before and my first impression was that of a new company with little experience.

Mundane Details:
I received a padded mailer with the samples and jars placed inside.  No invoice, business card or personal note.
I dove in, ordered 3 five gr jars /with sifters $17.00 regularly 6.50 each.
I ended up ordering  12 samples, baggies with what I am guessing is 1/8 tsp of product. for $1.50 each
Shipping within the US: $1.75 for first item, .75 each addl.  International $5.00 for first item, $1.50 each additional.
It appears that she is starting to have people rep her items for a commission.  Although this is not a new idea, it would be much more exciting if the products were good.

I swatched the full size jars first.  Disappointed is an understatement.  None of the three resembled the advertised swatches.  Sparrow was clearly the worst, Mayan Gold the best of the three.

 I went about swatching the remaining samples.  I had a difficult time with almost every shade.  With the exception of Fig and Woods - adherence to bare skin was a lesson in futility.  Primer swatches didn't fair much better.  I kept getting a lot of a grayish/bone white with some colors occasionally mixing in. The one swatch that I liked both as a bare skin item and with primer is Silk.

I've convoed her to see about getting  a full size of the Silk.  I think I can make use of the Mayan Gold, but French Pale Gold and Sparrow will be relegated to the giveaway pile if she doesn't want them back.

Final Tally:  2Customer Service/Communication:  4
She was quick with the order process conversing, haven't received any response to my request for reparation.

Packaging: 4
Ingredients are listed on all containers, easy to read/  Interestingly, the label is on top of the lid, as opposed to the bottom.  I thought this was annoying.
Product: 1
Barely pigmented shadows which appear to be mixed with base and that's about it.  Had absolutely no staying power on bare skin. Primer and Epoxy should be optional, not a requirement.. Many of the colors bore no resemblance to the colors listed on her Etsy website.
Pricing: 2
Product is priced well above most indie mineral companies offering a 5g container. 25% higher than almost everyone. Shipping is also much higher than most. Base + .75 per eyeshadow is excessive. 

Presentation: 2

Bubble wrap envelope, loose shadows and samples in a about a 5x7 mailer. No business card, invoice, personal note.

Would I buy again:  Absolutely not.

The teeny tiny fine print:  All opinions are my own, no matter how ridiculous.  I did not beg , borrow or steal the products that I reviewed.  I purchased them with my own lunch money.  Honest and semi-coherent reviews are the way to make a distinction between great companies and those who repackage mica, stir in a little base, slap an organic tag on their products  and call themselves artisans.  Honesty is my policy, even if I hurt a few feelings along the way.

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Review: Concrete Minerals

Concrete Minerals is an indie makeup company from Riverside, California.  The owner Emily, is one of my very favorite individuals. CM is one of the first mineral companies I ordered from - and my relationship with them is still going strong.  They have both an Etsy presence (winding down) as well as, a recently launched website.  Side note:  The Etsy site is going to go away by the end of August, you can get a slight price break on existing shadows.  The newest release shadows are not available via Etsy.

Mundane Details:
Eyes shadows are $7.00 for more than 1.5gr of product in a 10g jar with sifter.
Shipping is a very reasonable flat rate of $2.99 on all US orders.  International starts at $4.00.
Electric Eye Primer is $11.00 for .35 ounces in a metal container.

All shadows are very pigmented, creamy and adhere to bare skin.  She has one of the best presentations upon delivery.  Wrapped in a fuchsia tissue paper are your shadows in a small bag, a great instruction card, coupon with a discount code for future purchases, sometimes a deluxe sample and a hand written note on your invoice.

I use the eye primer, daily.  It's by far my favorite.  I've tested several primers including TFSI, UDPP and Bare Minerals eye primer. It has a great consistency, is satiny on your lids, works very well with oily lids (raises hand) and keeps your shadow for hours and hours.  It's a bargain at $11.00 and seems to last for a very long time.

The shades in CM's collection are varied and complex.  From a light pink like Prude all the way to a very dark, black based Sabotage - there are shades to satisfy from office appropriate to vibrant, colorful shades to suit even the most bold among us. No one gets slighted here.

Final Tally: 5

Customer Service/Communication:  5
Packaging: 5
Ingredients are listed on all containers, easy to read.
Product: 5
Long lasting pigmented shadows.  Pass the bare skin test.
Pricing: 5
Product pricing is great considering what you receive, shipping price is above average.
Presentation: 5Themed presentation, helpful instruction card, personal message.

One wishful thought:  The black based shadows need to be marked as such.  The technique for application is different to achieve the desired look.  If you don't adhere to certain application techniques you can blend them down to the black base.  (Not pretty - and not uncommon with all black based mineral shadows.)



Would I buy again:  Yes, I have at least a dozen shades and am looking to add more.


The teeny tiny fine print:  All opinions are my own, no matter how ridiculous.  I did not beg , borrow or steal the products that I reviewed.  I purchased them with my own lunch money.  Honest and semi-coherent reviews are the way to make a distinction between great companies and those repackage mica and call themselves artisans.  Honesty is my policy, even if I hurt a few feelings along the way.





Now stand back for the massive swatch lists.  I swatched colors on bare skin and foiled with water alone.  You can see that the rich pigmentation is evident.

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