Tick:Tock Cosmetics - More Swatches

More swatches from Black Friday purchases.  Tick:Tock Cosmetics.  The first and second are swatched over primer.  The third is swatched with water.  I like the look of the water swatches, but it's super time consuming.  Still trying to find a happy medium.

Sundial: a rich creamy yellow with gold sparkle and gold glitter  (Light Goldenrod)

NEW Big Ben: A bold blue with a beautiful red shift and sparkle! (Sapphire Blue) (I'm not sure if my sample is the before or after.  It needed more base, I think.)

Midsummer Night: a deep burgandy/purple with loads of red glitter and a light dusting of holographic glitter.

Leap Year: a light pastel yellow with gold and green glitter.  (Lemon Chiffon)

Oh-Nine-Hundred: an army green with green and gold shimmer and green glitter. (Pea Green)

Metronome: a pure shimmery white with loads of holographic glitter.

Sexy Time: a black based blue, full of shimmer and holographic glitter.

Expiration Date: A funky, fun color, it's greyish green with some red shimmer and sparkle. (Army Green)

Clepsydra: Greek for "Water Clock", this shade is a dark greenish blue with a whole bunch of purple shimmer and sparkle.
Frozen in Time: An icy blue with lots of blue shimmer and sparkle.  (Really pretty)
Cuckoo: a medium teal with light blue and purple shimmer.
Hourglass: orange with gold shimmer and orange glitter.

To be honest, I didn't find near as much glitter as the descriptions indicate.  I found a lot of "shimmer" but not enough glitter that I would say they were "full of glitter".  Some indicate more than one color of glitter and I really couldn't find that as evident either.

After having been spoiled with Grandfather Clock and Salvador Dali, I am just that, spoiled.  Never fear, I have MORE Tick:Tock to swatch.

The teeny tiny fine print: All opinions are my own. 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 who hand-formulate their products and those who take mica - repackage it, slap an organic/all natural 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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Dawn Eyes Cosmetics Giveaway! - Closed!

We are coming up on the consumer holiday known as Valentine's Day.  Whether you are madly in love, tolerating your SO, heartbroken, or in happy solitude - these pretties will suit you just fine.

Up for grabs is a deluxe set of  DEC Valentine's Collection samples and three handpicked full size shadows.  

You can see the swatches for the DEC Valentine's Collection here.

The three full size shadows are Frankincense & Myrrh, Peacock Teal II and Treasure Chest.  I selected the colors, I really love each one - and have my own full sizes.

Swatched over Tick:Tock's Infinity Eye Shadow Base in Milky Way.

Swatches below were applied over Ophelia's Apothecary Eyeshadow Primer.

And now onto the giveaway!  

This giveaway is open to participants in the US and internationally, unless prohibited by law. 

The approximate value of the prizes is $28.00 US.

The giveaway is open from January 22, 2012 - February 13, 2012 at 11:59pm EDT.

Prizes for this giveaway were purchased by me.  Dawn graciously upgraded the deluxe samples to jars at no charge.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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More Dawn Eyes Goodness!

Part of my Black Friday haul included Dawn Eyes Cosmetics.  Her stuff is hard to resist.  I tried to pick colors that are out of my normal realm.  Based on Dawn's information, many of these are best sellers.

• Faerie Dance - A lush medium beige pearl dancing with borealis sparkle. Takes on a distinct golden undertone over primer.
• Silver Sparkle Mauve - Satiny light mauve pink, liberally scattered with silver stars. (FABULOUS)
• Tropical Seas - A very pale translucent blue almost obscured by pink, gold, blue, and purple sparks. (Very unusual.)
• Flame Dance - This deep metallic red/orange absolutely drips with golden sparkle, very bold! (This is a good shade if you like to make a statement.)

•  Jeweled Pewter - A dark pewter gleaming with a subtle rainbow of sparks. (Less sparkle than I would have liked, but the color is absolutely spot on for pewter.)
• Glittering Aquamarine - A deep aquamarine graced by borealis sparkle. (Nice middle of the road shade.)
• Shock Value - A beautiful hot pink saturated in silver sparkle, sure to live up to its name! (For some reason I expected this to be bright like a neon., very much a raspberry color to me.)
• Metallic Golden Copper - A gorgeous, bright copper metal drenched in golden glitter. (This is a neat shade, metallic but depending on the angle it can look coppery or gold.)

• Provoked - A bright sassy purple glistening with pink, blue, and copper sparks.  (This has a lot of sparkle despite the swatch.  This along with King's Robe were similar.  Not exactly the same, but close enough that you could own one or the other.  To a purple aficionado the differences may be more pronounced.  This shade needs a bit more base as well.
• Champagne Soireé - Coppery pale champagne with subtle shimmers of pink and violet. (I had pictured this as a champagne peignoir.  Sheer, wispy and sparkly. Not as sheer as I would have liked.) 
• Blurple - This awesome shade looks like a metallic blue head-on, but stuns with a deep magenta heart and a profusion of purple sparks. A must have for lovers of both blue and purple!  (This is one of those shades that makes you stop and think if you have ever seen anything quite like it.  Purple fans do not miss this.)
• Twinkling Teal - A medium teal sparkling with green sparks and lit up with gold sparks. (Somehow I seem to have teal and aquamarine quite similar in color.  You could easily get the teal or the aquamarine and consider it done.)

• Merry Go Round - Is it gold, is it blue? With Merry Go Round it's up to you! Can even be seen as a green, this golden blue sparkles with gold and blue shimmer! (This shade is really unusual.  The description is right on.)
• Olive Sands - Medium olive satin with hints of blue, green, and gold shimmer. (Eh, wants to be Olive Orchard, but just can't get its green on.)
• King's Robe - A beautiful royal purple showered with borealis sparkle, fit for Kings and Queens alike!
• Naughty Girl - What happens on vacation stays on vacation! This black-based deep plum satin has coppery undertones and a hint of purple, and is lit with bright sparks of pink and purple, perfect for a naughty night out!** (Part of a retiring LE collection.  I don't care for black based shadows, having said that - I think this color is quite common in various companies repertoire.  This can retire without much concern.) 

You've seen all of these before, Silver Sparkle Mauve in this review.  I was testing if I liked swatching over eye shadow base, wet or a regular primer.  I'm still up in the air.  I draw your attention to Treasure Chest which is such a great color.  You want to own this one.

My picks, Silver Sparkle Mauve, Tropical Seas, Blurple and Merry Go-round.

**Discontinued 1/6/12

Do you own any DEC shadows?

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Tick:Tock Cosmetics Giveaway! Closed!

Black Friday brought many sales, including a great deal from Tick:Tock Cosmetics.  Among the offers, I bought a few, one was a mega stocking stuffer which included three full size shadows, 6 samples and 1 Infinity Eye Shadow Base in Milky Way. The other, a full set of samples of their main line with an IES base.  After talking with Tiffany she agreed to six deluxe samples (these are at least 1/4 tsp (double the normal size) which is about 1/2 the size of a normal 5gr jar.) and sent a full size of the eye shadow base as well!

I have to tell you, that I was really pleased with the shadows.  I received full sizes in High Noon, Salvador Dali and Grandfather clock.  All three home runs for me.  As I usually do, I asked the owner for suggestions - and Tiffany did not disappoint.  In addition, she sent three samples of her choice for the giveaway.  Again - all really nice, pigmented shadows with a lot of sparkle.  Some of the colors are more spectacular than they are described by Tick:Tock.  Grandfather Clock has more glitter than just gold - there's some copper or red or something in it.  The one thing in their favor is that they have close-ups of their shadows in jars, that show how gorgeous these shades can be.

• High Noon: a light brown with a hint of shimmer. 
• Salvador Dali: a deep purple with purple and red shimmer and purple glitter.
• Grandfather Clock: a rich chocolatey brown with loads of gold shimmer and gold glitter

• Stop...Zombie Time! is a yellowish green with blue and aqua shimmer.
• Time Warp... Again: A true black, loaded with every color of shimmer imaginable.
• Time Square: a dark silver with loads of shimmer and sparkle.

This is my first experience with eye shadow bases from indie companies.  I really like this product.  everything above was swatched over Milky Way.  At $4.00 for a 5gr jar, they are a good deal.

And now for the giveaway!  Thank you to Tick:Tock Cosmetics for their generosity.

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 who hand-formulate their products and those who take mica - repackage it, slap an organic/all natural tag on their products and call themselves a mineral make-up company. Honesty is my policy, even if I hurt a few feelings along the way.

The products for this giveaway were provided by Tick:Tock cosmetics.  All swatches from my own personal inventory. 

FYI:  I am left handed.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Current Indie Sales

• Tick:Tock Cosmetics - One year birthday sale.  25% off almost everything in the store.  Order $15.00 or more and receive a free full size of "First Birthday".  No code needed. Ends 4/22

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Persephone Minerals Swatches!

Persephone Minerals participated in the Black Friday bonanza.  I couldn't resist purchasing some samples to try.  In addition to the Christmas LE colors, I also ordered several other samples.  As anyone who purchases from Persephone will tell you, her stuff is just amazing.  It's always pleasing when swatching isn't hard work.  The colors glide on, the glitter is well placed - and the essence of the shade is easily captured.

Infinity is a deep sexy silver-grey that shifts to violet, complete with blue-violet sparkle.
Mars Crystal Power -Inspired by the pink & gold crystal power wands and the transformation sequence of Sailor Mars. This is one hell of a duochrome shift from bright red to gold, chock full of pink and gold sparkle! It looks like a pinkish color in the jar, but do not let that fool you! 
Super Sailor Moon -Inspired by both the transformation sequence & the costume itself. This is sort of white with a touch of yellow to it, topped of with red, blue and yellow crystalina glitters ;)
Eternal Sailor Moon- When dry this will shift a slight bit towards white, but when foiled like this it stays more of a paler gold. It is perfected by the touch of yellow and pink crystalina glitters. 

Moon Cosmic Power - A coppery/pink/gold shift filled with teeny sparkles of aqua & pink! Inspired by....okay I think I'm sounding redundant, no? The name says it all!

Moon Crystal Power- A shift from pink to gold, leaning more on the pink side when foiled. I'm sure you already guessed the inspiration for this :) This also has a little dose of red & white crystalina glitters. 

Buttercream Bliss - This is a buttery, creamy decadance topped with gold sparkle. 

Withering Roses is a light dusty rose pink with a bit of an almost coppery-coral glow to it. Can make a great blush or highlight as well :D

Rained is a deeper, lovely earthy brown with almost a purple tinge to it. It is super sparkly! The sparkles in this one are tricky ;) Depending on the angle, they can appear either pink or blue-violet.

Magick Brownie -A super shimmery shift from chocolate brown to herbal green to almost a grey color. A very complex color.

Prosirpine- the Roman name for Persephone.  This is really the surprise of the group, the shift from teal to purple is amazing depending on the light.  

My full size purchases will definitely include Prosirpine, Buttercream Bliss, Moon Crystal Power and Eternal Sailor Moon.  Really all of the shades are complex and really different.

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Persephone Minerals - Christmas LE Swatches!

I received a nice envelope full of sparkly goodness from Persephone Minerals.  I have swatched some of the Holiday Collection shadows. You can find the entire collection here. First two pictures are swatched over Wet n Wild Idol Eyes Pixie130 (pale champagne).

Gingerbread House- A golden-gingery shade loaded with gumdrop sparkles of gold, blue & pink.  (This really looks like gingerbread.  An uncommon color. This has a medium amount of glitter.)

Corrupt Cupid- A festive burst of red, green, gold, silver & white sparkle. Perfect on it's own or layered over other shades. (Almost has a wintery white feel to it.  Very sparkly.)

Dirty Dancer- A deep shimmering sage green with green & silver-grey sparkle. (This is what a blue spruce Christmas tree looks like.  Very sparkly.)

Buttermint- A pale, glowing yellow highlight glistening with sparkles of bright yellow & duotone sparkles or red-yellow. (This has a nice shift, but I wouldn't describe it as glistening.  It's not matte, nor frost - a bit inbetween.)

Bad Blitzen- A lovely yellow-green with a yellow-gold shift & gold, silver & green shimmer.

These are all swatched over Fyrinnae's Pixie Epoxy.  

As you can see, they all really show their character once epoxy has entered the scene.  I highly recommend PE (or a similar glitter glue) for all of these shadows, it really showcases the beauty.

Do you own any Persephone shadows?  What do you like the best?

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Dawn Eyes Cosmetics - Swatches! LE Christmas 2011

Wanted to get these Christmas themed shades out for everyone to see.   These beauties can be found here.

Candy Cane - Bright true red shimmering with loads of silver and red sparks. Delicious!!
Sugarplum Dreams - Deep beautiful burgundy dancing with red and green sparkle. An excellent crease or lip color! Just dab a little over lip gloss for a very sugarplum look!
Frankincense & Myrrh - A deep and textured brown, glittering with gold, red, purple, blue, and copper sparkle. This shade will make you love brown, even if you don't!
Rum Eggnog - Buttery and soft, sweet and smooth, this goldish pale orange tinted with hints of beige and golden sparkle, and sprinkled with brilliant dark copper sparks will make you thirsty indeed! Watch for the kick!!

The immediate winner is Frankincense and Myrrh, followed by Sugarplum Dreams. Lots more in her holiday collection to try out.

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Moi Minerals - Swatches!

I won the most amazing color, Obsessed from Moi Minerals.  I decided to buy five samples, and was given a complimentary sample as well.  The first are swatches over Pixie Epoxy.  These are three very beautiful liner type shadows.  All black based, swatching over the epoxy enables you to see the difference between the three shades.  Poison Ivy and Galaxy really stand out for me.

These were swatched with water.  Admittedly, I had a difficult time with Cactus and Spring.  I'm not sure if it was operator error, or the composition of the shadows.  Cactus really is unique - it looks like gold but when swatched it looks very much like a very pale cactus (celery).  The green shift is apparent, a real chameleon.  Mercy doesn't even come close to showing it's beauty with water swatches, further below is a sample over epoxy.

Zombie Bride definitely has a greenish shift in it.  I didn't find Groom to be as interesting, but they are definitely complimentary.  Obsessed is just fabulous on several levels.  It is that gorgeous magenta color that I loved so much as a kid.  Like Mercy, it needs to be used with epoxy to show the true character.

Moi's description of Mercy: "Its a deep Purple with Blue Lights When Applied and then color shifts to a Rose/Copper.. But once applied Foiled (WET)is where the Magic Begins...This Color turns into a ''Metallic Copper'' with hints of Blue shimmer a slight Purple undertone, The picture doesn't show the blue well but its there and its amazing!!!"  That's very accurate - and even more so with epoxy.

Her description for Obsessed isn't readily available right this minute, but I'll secure the description.  I can only describe it as a color that I am so glad that I own in a full size.  It's very beautiful.

Do you own any Moi Minerals?

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Dawn Eyes Cosmetics - Swatches

I satisfied my craving for DEC by ordering some samples and a full size of Peacock Teal II. These shadows did not disappoint.  You can see the swatch of Peacock Teal II here.

Pine Plus - The same classic green as Pine but bursting with green sparkle.

SMR - My version of AL Angels Suzanne Marie Rose, a metallic golden beige bedecked with green and pink sparks and a healthy dose of holographic glitter! Suzanne Marie Rose is my Mother.

Close to Coral - This hard to classify shade has a light brownish base but is loaded with so much pink sparkle that it turns out…close to coral.

Purple Velvet - This dark purple-black absolutely blazes with purple, violet, and blue sparkle! Photography simply can't do it justice. 

Playoff White - A pearly white with pink and gold sparks!

Late Fall - A medium dark brown with a touch of russet, glimmering with green, blue, and especially violet sparks.

Treasure Chest - Very pale mauvy beige loaded with pink and copper sparkle.

Pain in the Pink - Pretty light pink dancing with golden sparkle and a hint of pink shimmer.

Peach Bubbly - A pale pearly peach twinkling with silver sparks.

Verdant Dark Brown - A deep brown with a slight burgundy undertone and gleaming with blue, green, and golden sparks.

Orange Sherbet - A bright flashy orange loaded with gold sparkle.

Purple Velvet is pretty neat.  I took a blurred shot so you could see the sparkles in it.  This reminds me of an Elvis black velvet painting!

I really like all of the shades. My absolute favorite is Treasure Chest. I also like Close to Coral, SMR and Playoff White.  I'm always looking for shades that are perfect for an Ohio State fan and this one fits the bill. 

Do you own any DEC shadows?  Which are your favorites?

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