Review and Swatches: Anna Andre Paris Makeup Kit 01

Let me introduce you to my latest must-have-makeup-love: the handy makeup kit from Anna Andre Paris. I got to know about Anna Andre brand through a review in IMBB and decided to try out the products based on the review.

I got this from Beauteboutique.com [check the link] for INR 325. To be honest, it was a blind guess cos they had mentioned 2 sets- 01 and 02, and I couldnt basically find any shade information to select which one is better. This is one feature of the website which I hope they will rectify soon.

It comes in a nice black cover and the items and clearly mentioned [in case you mistake eye shadow for a lip gloss.. :) :)] and the ingredient lists are added at the back of the cover, which I concede is a real nice thing.

I do wonder why a french brand has english labels and details, I mean look at Bourjois, everything is french there! :) And Anna Andre seems more of a russian name so I wonder what a mix this brand is. However I like this so no more enquiries!

The kit is again designed the same way as the cover, matte plastic black casing and a nice flower label.

I am super impressed by the quality of the mirror, seriously even costlier brands go cheap in selecting a nice mirror but this one scores in that.

In the Left End set [pic above], the top 2 colors are lip cremes, I will call them Pink Glitter and Creamy Pinky Brown[my fav] based on color and texture. The bottom item is a shimmer rose eye shadow which I absolutely love.

In the pic above, in the Middle vertical set, the 2 top items are lip cremes again, both matte creams in shades Nude [topmost] followed by Chocolate brown. The last item is again a pretty bronze eye shadow.

The kit is completed by the standard goes-well-with-all-skin-shades type sheer pink blush [on the top most of the right end set] and a beige color face powder.

The brushes that came with them are mostly useless except for emergency use.

Swatches: Top set [L to R]- Face powder, Blush, Pinky Brown, Pink Glitter; Bottom set [L to R]- bronze shadow, rose shadow, chocolate brown lip color and nude lip cream

The face powder is so-so, I dont use it except for any emergency. The sheer pink blusher is good for day wear and wears pretty but lasts only for around 1-2hrs. The eyeshadows stay even without primer for around 1-2hrs.

I absolutely adore the shimmer rose eyeshadow, it is perfect for day wear and office wear, brightens up my eyes very nicely without going OTT. The bronze color, is again a so-so, I use it for night outs.

My absolute love are the lip creams except for the pink glitter one. The pinky brown shade is a very beautiful pink shade which suits most lip shades. The pink glitter one is good for night wear and parties, the chocolate brown is a good day/office wear shade and so is the nude color, its a real good nude color.

All in all, the kit is a handy makeup kit for day/office/party wear, it has a wonderful combination of colors. These are my regular combos:

Office: Shimmer rose eyeshadow+ Sheer blush [1 layer] + Nude lip cream

Night out: Shimmer rose+ Sheer blush [3 layers] + Pinky brown

Would I buy again? Of course I would.. :) I am waiting to see what is Kit 02...

Swatches: E.L.F Complete the look makeup palette eye shadows

I got this beautiful kit from US through Neha, sweet girl I met through IMBB. This is one of my best purchases from abroad and I love the shades here. It has blushers, lip glosses and eyeshadows and I am only swatching the eyeshadows here.

Check ELF website here : http://www.eyeslipsface.com/studio/sets-and-palettes/palettes/complete_the_look_palette

Some of the eyeshadows are really beautiful espl the blues and greens, the blacks not so much and I love the range of light and nude shades for daily wear..

The eyeshadows below are swatched without any primers and they kinda crease easily without primers, but when worn with a decent layer of primers [or even eye creams :)] it lasts for around 3-4 hours, which is good enough!

The blushes are the best part of this palette while the glosses are the ones you can totally avoid!

Thats a swatch fest for another post  :)

You can buy this in India from Jabong [though at a hefty price!] link

Review and Swatches: Auravedic Pure Brightening Sun Block Lotion with SPF 30

I get sunburnt very easily and I am very very cautious about applying the sunscreen and since I stay in Tamil Nadu, I usually use a high SPF above 40. However when Auravedic send me this one, I was interested in trying this out cos of tempting words like Brightening and Whitening [a hang-up for us indians! :)] and the interesting ingredients [Tamarind, Amla and Mulberry] listed.

The back label [didnt come out clear, so removed, excuse the mobile pics, my camera is on fr repairs:( ] stated some nice things like "Against animal testing", a fully list of ingredients [no parabens] and usage instructions.

The packaging is plain plastic bottle but some how it conveys a simple 'hand-made' looking design which doesnt come off very cheap looking. However I wish they had a sleek bottle nozzle to avoid the lotion from over flowing into hand. A squeeze design would have been good.

The lotion is not very thick, spreads easily and evenly and absorbs pretty easily even in TN's humid & hot climate. I use this as a make-up base cream as I find it not too oily like other sunscreens [e.g. Neutrogena!!!] and this doesnt break me out also. It would be an exaggeration to say this gives a matte look, it doesnt! It gives more of a hydrated or moisturised look [check the pic of my wrist below]

I will conclude summarizing my experience:

I dont consider this as a replacement for my stronger sunscreens, I would always recommend an SPF 40+ if you are going out for shopping etc espl in our tropical climate. However this is a nice daily wear office-wear kinda cream which you can use as a normal face cream before your makeup.

I wouldnt say it whitens or brightens [what exactly is meant here anyways!] but this gives a subtle glow to face and my skin didnt tan even when I went out on a sunny day, so as a sun protection cream this works good.

The best part for me is the herbal fragrance, it is awesome, it lifts my mood for the day when I prep for office and that is one main reason why I use this daily to office :)

Overall? I like it, this is not a sunscreen-replacement if you are going on a summer vacation to Goa but a good-to-have cream for daily use. 



You can buy this online from:

Violet bag : INR 200 

Shopo.in: INR 200

Goodlife.com: INR 200

Purplle.com: INR 180

greengood.com: INR 200

naturelle.in: INR 200

medplusbeauty.com: INR 200

This was sent to me by Company but this has not affected by review.



Review and swatches: Faces Canada Satin Matte lipstick in shade Royal Purple

FACES Canada is a nice brand for mid-range color cosmetics and I love most of their products except for their Go Chic lippies in which I think they got the formula wrong!

Their Satin Matte lipstick range priced at 299 INR but usually available online for around 250INR for 4.2gms.

I  like their sleek black packaging though one might say it is a bit boring, but it is handy, it is black and its fine! :)

The color is a deep wine purple shade that looks universally good for all kinda lips and suits mine really fine. This is a color for all occasions, the majestic purple shade can easily be layered down for a casual day out, deep layering for office wear and deep layering + sheer gloss for an ethnic touch.

The color applies beautifully, the lipstick glides on lips and spreads evenly. In a single swipe it gives enough layer and is soft on lips.

There is no strong scent [unlike Go Chic which smells of cheap plastic, yuk!] and no skin effect, no irritation. If I have a concern it is that it has parabens but I think it is a given with most lippies in the market.

Overall this lipstick is one of my favs and this shade will be a must have one in my kitty unless I find a more flattering shade in the wine-purple range.

Buy this online from Healthkart and use the coupon devividya6D88AV at checkout to get 100 Rs off ! :)

Review and Swatches: Bourjois So Delicate lip cream in shade Rouse Veloute

I had got another So Delicate Lip cream from Bourjois which was lying unused in my stash and I thought I would review it so people wont probably end up buying it accidentally!

Regarding the item and the product quality I have nothing much to add to my review on another shade here:

http://makeup-n-beauty-n-me.blogspot.in/2012/03/review-and-swatches-bourjois-so.html

I dont think I have anything to say here: the shade swatch says it all. It is a muddy brown shade and I have no clue how this color may suit anyone!



It is a dull brown lipstick that makes any lips look dead! Thats the end of this review!

Review and Swatches: Avon Simply Pretty Color Bliss lipstick in shade Mango Mania

Avon Colorbliss lipsticks are one of the cheap priced decent quality lipsticks around and the only problem I can find with this is, its very difficult to decide on the color from the brochure as this is not available in store for testing out.

The price is INR 169 but there is always some offer or the other and blogworld has made it easy to find the type of color you want.

I find the packaging very cheap and totally not attractive! Wish Avon had made it either a bright girly pink if they wanted to go for pink or else stuck with the standard black. This dull purplish color makes it look very cheap!

The bullet color looks a bit like a herbal tooth paste I have and I am not that crazy about the shade here.

I am not exactly sure if this color will flatter any other skin tones than the fair ones. This is a dull reddish brownish shade and if layered deeply can be a decent color for an office wear IMHO.

I have seen bloggers sometimes rave about this color, but I dont like it very much, this is a personal opinion but I think this is not a shade for wheatish skinned or dark skinned beauties.

It very much looks like my herbal tooth paste and doesnt flatter my pigmented lips at all. This color,would probably look good only on non-pigmented lips.

The color spreads sheer but can be built on. I find that I cannot wear it alone, I usually pair it with a coral or peach shade lip gloss for giving a peachy effect.

So I guess this is one shade from Avon Colorbliss lipsticks I wont be buying again :)

Review and Swatches:E.L.F Studio cream eyeliners in shades Purple and Teal tease

E.L.F Studio cream eyeliners in shades Purple and Teal tease

After reading some nice reviews about ELF products in IMBB, I was dying to try it so when I got a chance to order some products of this brand through a very sweet person I met through IMBB  from US, I jumped on it.  After waiting for a month or so, I got this and I must say it was so totally worth the wait and thanks a lot to my dear friend for sending this.

The product has already been reviewed in 2 shades in IMBB

·         Shade midnight by Nids: http://makeupandbeauty.com/elf-cream-eyeliner-midnight-review-swatches/

·         Shade coffee by Nupur: http://makeupandbeauty.com/e-l-f-studio-cream-eyeliner-coffee/

ELF website http://www.eyeslipsface.com/studio/eyes/eyeliner/cream_eyeliner .

These cream liners have got some rave reviews and I must say I agree with most of em: they are super pigmented, brush is nice, the liner applies quite beautifully on lids and lasts for a decent duration of 3-4 hours.

The shade purple is my favorite and I wear it very often as it’s an everyday shade. It is a dark plum-ish color that reminds me of egg plant. It has very slight shimmers in it and can be used for a good winged eye look. The only problem I have is that it’s a bit hard in consistency than the teal color and so I usually use a damp eye liner brush.  In my opinion, this color will look amazing on brown eyes or very fair lids or if worn with light-eye shadow-makeup. 

The shade Teal tease was an impulse addition as I honestly didn’t think I can really carry this shade off. This is a bright teal blue shade which IMHO is a good try for beach wear or summer wear. But I read somewhere that its very difficult for non-models and non-film-stars to carry off these shades without looking like a clown and sadly I have to agree that this probably is not the best shade for a darker skin tone like mine as it looks very OTT. I must however say that formula wise I love this better than purple as this is creamier. It has some shimmer in it which very fine and as a color I love this.

To Love?

·         Nice shades

·         Cheap for the price [3$ = approx 150 per piece]

·         Decent staying power of 2-3 hour

·         Sets easily, doesn’t smudge much

·         No animal testing

·         No irritation or any other issues with the product

·         Love the glass packaging

·         Decent quantity for the product

Not so Love?

·         ELF, when are you coming to India?????

·         The brush is not that great, so preferably don’t use this for precision lining

I am eyeing the olive color, but I don’t know when I will be able to get my hands on this.

Review and Swatches: Lotus Herbals Pure Colors lipstick in shade Orchid Kiss

Lotus herbals is one cosmetic brand in our Indian market that I absolutely respect for 2 reasons:
1. Range and quality of products: They have a wide variety of cosmetic products and shades and quality if also awesome for most products and prices are always affordable.
2. They dont test on animals! :)

I have 3-4 shades of their lipsticks and lip glosses and I like all of them except for this shade that I am about to review.

Lotus Pure Colors lipstick retails for around 240+ INR and the quality and the pigmentation of the lipstick is very good for the price. The packaging is sturdy and attractive and the variety of colors they offer are quite decent.

The shade Orchid Kiss is the only shade of the set that I really dont care for. Again, I have nothing against the quality of the product per se, I dislike the shade and the texture of this particular one, so please treat this as a very personal review from here.

This shade, Orchid Kiss, is kind of misleading from its name:- One imagines a purple or the normal orchid-pink colored beauty but this is a frosted brownish-magenta-ish-pinkish-shade which IMHO is not a flattering color for most skin shades.

The shimmer in this lipstick is kinda evident and I am not a fan of shimmer. The shimmer becomes less obvious on heavier application.

The one good thing with this lipstick is its highly buildable and the color looks better - a more pinkish shade, with thicker application.. Check the swatches below, the left one is with a single swipe and the one on Right is after 3-4 swipes.

On the whole, this is not a shade I would ever recommend to anyone, there are better and more flattering shades in the same range, but if you are looking for a frosted pink shade specifically this might be something you want.

As a range, I love Lotus Pure Color lipsticks and next on my list is their Pink Blush shade :)

Review and Swatches: Chambor Eye Shadow Trio in shade Bronze 16

I am not really a pro with eyeshadows but things change! Recently I was at a function where I met a friend who had transformed from Ugly Betty in high school to a highly fashionable executive[aint these ugly-duckling-to-pretty-swan very interesting] and she was telling me how she is thankful to the entire makeup industry for helping non-natural-artificial beauties like her. In fact, listening to her made me appreciate what the Beauty industry is doing- helping women like her and me who are not that naturally endowed with beauty to look good and gain confidence...

Anyways she gave me some quick tips on looking good for office everyday and told me to highlight eyes as the easiest way to look awake, bright and chic. So now I am trying out with various shades.

I got this one from Saravana Stores and I liked the set of colors. What Chambor says about the product:

Makeup is the Quickest and the Easiest way to play with your looks & what’s better than playing around with the eye shadows to get the most glorious looking eyes.

Let your eyes do the talking this season, with Chambor's set of 3 ultra smooth eye shadow colours. True to its name, the 'Trio Eye shadow' comes in 3 shades that beautifully play off each other to enhance your eyes.

Each shade set has been created keeping in mind a specific color combination which lets you experiment with various looks.

The casing is a totally unattractive black plastic one with the Chambor logo over it and no information on details like expiry date, ingredients etc! And about Chambor's claim of being heard of in Paris, Geneva and NY, I sincerely doubt and consider it as an outdated marketing trick.

I wish a brand like Chambor which is definitely at the higher end of the product price range, would really look into the packaging part. Attractive packaging is now a buzz word, look at the latest hit brands like Tarte or Sleek or Benefit.

The eyeshadows are however beautifully designed with the pretty Chambor rose logo, a nice mirror to pout at and a pretty useless brush applicator that is strictly emergency use only. The colors are very subdued and perfect for a day or office wear. From Left, the colors are a muted bronze shade, whitish silver shade and a delicate rosey-brown shade.

Shade 1: Bronzey Brown: Okay, the name is my own idea, Chambor has given no id for any of the pretty shades, this is a shimmery brown bronze shade that is a beautiful lid color. It can be applied alone for a day wear or party wear. My favorite of the lot.

Shade 2 Silver Streak: This is a brow highlighter in my opinion and can be used in the eye corners to give a bright eye effect but since the shimmer is a bit obvious, must be applied with a light hand for office wear.

Shade 3 Sandy pink:  I havent figured on how to properly use this shade without looking like I have an eye problem,this shade is too light for lid color and is mildly good as a brow color. I rather use it as a shimmer blusher and forehead highlighter.

Overall? For the price [INR 475] I guess this is a nice deal, giving 3 nice shades to try on. I would definitely like to try some other shades of the same range especially a black-smokey looking one..