Since it's basically the beginning of the year, I'll keep these short.

Fyrinnae's Pixie Epoxy

I love this product. It makes eyeshadow a lot more vibrant and last for a lot longer. I can't see it running out any time soon, you get a really decent amount of product for the price. Great product.

Urban Decay 24/7 Eyeliner in "Zero"

I ration my use of this, because it's so soft it's easy to use too much, but it really does stay on until you want to take it off. It's seriously black and doesn't tug or anything along the lash line.

Seche Restore

A life saver for those grim, seized up polishes. Seriously pricey though. I was lucky to get it for a Christmas present, but you don't need to use a lot of product so again this should last me a long, long time. I use a couple of drops at most for the average bottle.

eBay Nail Art Brushes

This was one of the best finds so far! A cheap set of nail art brushes that don't fall apart the moment you take them out of the packet and that do the job properly. What more could you ask for?

Sadly, not everything that I bought this year was up to standard...

Urban Decay Loose Pigments in Asphyxia and Graffiti

I'm not as butthurt over these as I would be if I'd bought them at full price, but the applicator that the packaging forces you to use is just so irritating I don't feel like using these that often - which is a shame as the actual eyeshadows are gorgeous and buttery soft! I think Urban Decay is discontinuing these anyway now.

Consider if: You'd use these more to highlight the inner corners than all over the lid.

Chit Chat (Poundland) Concealer Stick in "Dark"

Dark my ass. Please. It's barely a shade darker than their medium and light concealers. It doesn't cover up spots or scars at all, creases like a mofo and is just all around disgusting. It looks beige/brown in the tube but turns an atrocious shade of yellow on the skin.

Consider if: Don't. Unless you want a very, very cheap concealer to do a mediocre job on your under eye circles. It creases as well.

Elizabeth Arden Lengthening Mascara

I don't know the exact name of this mascara as the packaging has worn off...not something that I expect from a high end mascara. It's the formula of the mascara that I hate. It's insanely wet and gets everywhere, including your freshly applied eyeshadow which you then have to reapply or take a cotton bud too. It sucks for the lower lashes as well, and the wand isn't really to my taste but that's quite a personal thing. After a month or so, the formula manages the impossible and stays wet but clumpy? So you have mascara that's wet and gets everywhere and the amount that has managed to stay on your lashes is clumpy. Gross.

Consider if: you're buying it as a present for someone that you don't like very much.

Elizabeth Arden Eye-Fix Primer

I find this product only holds shadow for about eight hours or so, which, while not horrible, isn't anywhere near say Urban Decay Primer Potion's performance and they're around the same price...also, eyeshadow begins fading around the four hour mark.

Consider if: you don't have access to anything better.

This post had a picture before I decided it was unnecessary.

Anyway, shall we start? In no particular order...

Boots Natural Collection Body Spray - Vanilla

This was two pounds for 250ml of product, if I recall correctly. I originally bought it for the spray bottle (I was planning to empty the perfume out and refill it with one of my concoctions, lol) but liked the smell and am still using it as a perfume. While it doesn't stay on for a long time, it's pretty cheap so you don't have to be conservative over how often you spray it. It does the job that I want it to, so I've put it in this post.

Sleek iDivine MakeUp Palettes - Acid & Circus

While we all know about their fail customer service, their product quality is generally very good. The matte black included with the Acid palette is to date the only eyeshadow I have hit pan on (and have nearly finished using) without it shattering into a thousand tiny pieces. It's not the most pigmented of Sleek blacks (I've found that the black in the Circus palette is insanely pigmented) but that fact is almost a plus as it gives a softer look to my eyebrows. Sleek have some of the best drugstore shimmer eyeshadows that I've ever bought. I find their mattes are lacking (except the black ones) though.

Palmer's Cocoa Butter Formula Moisturizing Lip Balm

This is dead cheap (I know for a fact it is way less than £2 at Superdrugs) and really does keep my lips soft and makes them look slightly matte as opposed to very greasy/glossy as many cheap lip balms can do. I wear this either by itself, or a thin layer underneath a lip pencil/lipstick. I've recently started wearing those, lol. Another plus for this product is that it contains sunscreen. No idea what rating, but I'm happy to have it in there. My only complaint would be that it can sting a little if the lips are badly chapped. Still, I bought a second to use on parts of my body with dry skin as it contains a lot of Vitamin E, and it works really well in my opinion. I can't see this one running out any time soon, but when it does I will repurchase (already have, see above :P)

Urban Decay The Black Palette

I credit the beauty blogosphere for a) allowing me to even know of this product's existence and b) enabling me to know exactly where I stood when I purchased it. Thanks to some extremely detailed and honest reviews (including one from the Pink Sith over how to dupe it using Fyrinnae which I found really interesting and did consider attempting) I was pretty aware that I'd need the Pixie Epoxy to make it pop, which I've now ordered and am waiting for, and any other shortcomings (not a lot with this product). I love all the shades in this and am pleased to own the Zero liner and the Eden primer. It's my special occasion palette!


The MUA Make Up Line at Superdrugs

This will most likely turn up again when I do the nail polish specific year end round up, but I really love the feel of the shadows, lip glosses and the pigments from this line - it's all good quality for a pound and you get quite a lot of product for the price. The eyeshadow pans break if you so much as look at them the wrong way, but repressing them is quite a simple job (though annoying) and I enjoy pressing things so I'm not that bothered over a one pound product. I'm really excited to try out their clear mascara for my eyebrows. This was my favourite makeup launch of the year.

Bella Sugar Four Colour Eyeshadow Palette

I won a giveaway on Bella Sugar's blog a while ago, and I was really pleased to recieve the palette, being my first giveaway prize! The design on the outside is simple but so cute, and I've taken it out many a time in my bag and nothing has been broken. It's incredibly pigmented and they just look so vibrant on the lid. I remember being in science and wearing Ariel (a dark, forest/mossy green) and my science teacher saying, "Your eyeshadow is highly illegal*, but gorgeous."
Anyway I was pretty pleased by that. Hopefully in the New Year I'll be able to order. Assuming I get Christmas money. *hint hint, relatives*

* against our school rules, not necessarily against the law of the land, lol.

Have you tried any of the products from these brands? Jan, if you're reading, how did you find the MUA polishes?

The colours. Wow. The real reason why I purchased this palette. Though you only get six shades (which pales in comparison to the Naked Palette, which has like twelve or something ridiculous like that for only £7 more) I'd actually wear every single shade in this palette which is why I bought it. I don't actually think I've seen a palette where I'd wear every shade before, from /any/ company. Usually they all include some light or white shade that I wouldn't wear or a glitter bomb or some colour that's just plain nasty. But like I said, this palette is hot. Plus I've been hearing rave reviews about the liner, which is very soft, and the primer potion, though I'd rather it came in the Original or Sin than this kinda grim matte one but whatever.
It fits a mirror into it's sleekness. DO YOU SEE IT?
Zoomed out slightly. I love all these shades, but Cobra looks like one of the more unique ones.
It's very black, which I approve of. I have a few "Eye/Lip liners" which I use currently as eyeliners that are more of a dirty grey shade than black. I've learnt to run a mile when I see something masquerading as a eye/lip liner as it usually fails at both. One particular one basically melted off my face once the clock went quarter past three. Not a good look, let me tell ya.
You see my Frankenstein nails creeping in the foreground?
This swatch looks so unpigmented but it's seriously black in person. My camera skills are poor.
These are the dry swatches. From right:
Black Dog, (matte black) Barracuda, (black based silver) Jet, (practically Asphyxia in loose pigment form but darker, but it's a sort of black based purple) Sabbath (black based blue), Cobra, (think tarnished gold coins or something, very nice black based gold) and Libertine (black based green).
Pigmentation is excellent but I'd expect nothing less for £23.50. Plus train fare -.- /forever bitter about the fact that I couldn't purchase this in my local Boots and had to go all the way up to the huge city.

A lovely family picture of them all together for your time.
Lipglossiping's post is what made me want to purchase this initially (I've been lemming it basically since the summer) and she applies it over Pixie Epoxy and wow. Just wow. It's stunning. Unfortunately, I don't actually own any Pixie Epoxy so when I eventually get round to ordering from Fyrinnae I'll pick some up and see how the shadows look applied over it. EDIT - totally do now, and I love it.
Isn't it clever! The primer potion sort of sits there, chillin', until you decide to use it. I've heard god awful things about cutting these up and scooping primer out and all sorts of madness so I'm sticking with my usual primer until that runs out. And then I'll buy ELF's one and use that. This is going to be reserved for special occasions.
I couldn't resist temptation though, so I tried it out just once. It kept the shadows (not the ones in this palette, it was a cream eyeshadow and then a matte black) without any form of creasing for most of the day. It creased in the end but didn't really fade as such so yeah, great sucess. I approve of this product.
Don't approve of the colour though I mean ew. Looks nasty on me, especially as it leaves tidemarks. If your skin colour matches this then I guess you could have it double up as a concealer, which would be quite handy (and expensive).

Told you I'd get round to one of these eventually ;)

 Really loving Boots No7 voucher thing that they had going on, snagged myself three of these as I got a voucher with my (very expensive) purchase...I'm saving the best for last...
From memory I believe the middle one, which looks black in the photo but that's only because my photography skills (or lack thereof) are seriously appalling, is called Totally Teal. And it is a very unique teal colour which is why I picked it up :P It's almost like a creme finish, but not? I assumed it would be metallic, but it's not quite. Very confusing. I wouldn't have bought this for full price but at £1.75, it was just about right.
The black one is called Glamourous Black or something equally as unimaginative and I can't be bothered to go find the bottles and scour them for the names so when I'm actually reviewing these I'll name them then lol.
 My Palmer's Body Cream ran out, and they seem to have altered the formula as it doesn't smell half as good as it used to, so I didn't repurchase and bought this instead. It's huge and overly runny lol, but I don't hate it. It's far better for the body than for the face in my opinion. Doesn't smell of anything really...*mourns cocoa butter formula back when it used to smell great*
 Lol it's deoderant. It works. Overly Lynx-esque design though, maybe Sure want to work on that or something.

Last but best. I don't care how disrespectful that sounds to the other products, I've been wanting - no, craving - this for an age. Since the summer at least. I AM A FANGIRL FOR THIS PALETTE. And I usually only say that about my favourite K-pop girl groups/boy bands but I feel the term can be applied here. I was totally an Urban Decay virgin, pure, untouched. Except for those loose pigments. *shifty eyes*
I'll do a proper, in depth (sort of. By now, I'm sure all of my followers - so many! Happy dance - are aware of how easily I get sidetracked. Oh look, something shiny! Must investigate!) later on, but if this palette were a man, I'd totally tap that. Plus now my mum has got one and everything. It's so cool!

Fangirling over, what have your best purchases of November/October been?

So I was browsing through my stash when I realised...
I already owned Graffiti, in the form of Grassy by Bella Sugar Cosmetics.

I decided to swatch Asphyxia, as well, to see if I could find a dupe in my (not very large) collection.
Asphyxia on the /right/ and Sprinkles on the left. They're nowhere near the same.

 (left to right) Sprinkles, Asphyxia and Unnamed (also from the Bella Sugar Palette).

Nope. I don't think I have anything quite like it. I'm quite stunned by just how similar Grassy and Graffiti are, though.

Hey guys! I heard about this offer through the MartianDelights blog.

http://www.beautyoutletdirect.co.uk/gbu0-prodshow/urban-decay-reader-offer.html

I think this is UK readers only, though. The code is RUD4.

So I ordered mine a couple of days ago, and they came today! (seriously fast postage, nice!)

They have this built in applicator thing. I don't know how I feel about this, really. The way the product is designed doesn't allow me to use my own brushes all that easily. However, the built in brush makes it look oh so sleek and it's quite good, soft and even to use. And the design doesn't allow the pigment to spill (even though my sister accidentally opened it upside down! I almost screamed but thank goodness nothing spilt.)
You're not getting a brush down there. Also, I don't know how many grams there are in this but there doesn't seem to be all that much pigment, really.
I find that if you screw the lid on and lightly shake the tube up and down, you soon have enough pigment to coat the brushes again.
Swatches. Asphyxia on the left, Graffiti on the right.
All in all, I'm pretty pleased with these. There's no need to foil as there is with cheaper pigments (2True, I'm looking at you) and it's gorgeously creamy and easy to use. With the coupon code, you need only pay postage so you're getting an £11.95 value for £2.95.