Shiro Seven Kingdoms collection review

Shiro overload!  So a few months ago...actually probably less than 2 months ago, I ordered 4 of the Seven Kingdoms shadows from Shiro.  Once they arrived and I had a play around I pretty much ordered the rest of the collection immediately.  I'm a big A Song of Ice and Fire/Game of Thrones fan so these shadows are cool as each colour is inspired by one of the characters.  While you can get smaller size jars of the shades, full-size was the only conceivable option for me as the full-size feature drawings by Robert Hendrickson of the show's characters.

 I'm so obsessed with these shadows at the moment that I don't really want to use anything else right now and couldn't concentrate on other posts until this one was done.  The collection features mainly neutrals that wouldn't be out of place in the ASoIaF/GoT world but that doesn't mean they are boring.  Quite a few of them are duochromes and, as I've mentioned before, duochromes get me really excited!  

Shiro's shadows are loose ones, so if you aren't used to using them there can be a bit of a learning curve, especially when it comes bringing out the sparkle in them.  As well as doing a '5 Looks with the Seven Kingdoms collection' post soon, I also plan on writing a guide on using loose shadows so hopefully that will help anyone new to the world of loose shadows.

Read on for swatches of all 15 shades in the Seven Kingdoms collection!

Lit Glitter

Lit Glitters

 It's no secret, I'm a makeup magpie; I love anything shimmery and glittery.  I have quite a good collection of glitters and some of my favourite are from Lit Cosmetics.  They are a Canadian company with a massive choice of glitters...wait for it...over 200 glitters!  Not only do they have a huge selection of different colours but you can also get them in different sizes.  There are four sizes to choose from.  Size #1 is the smallest size of glitter, it would give a really dense concentration of the glitter colour but would only sparkle a little bit.  #4 is the large cut and would give the most glittery effect from a distance but you might feel the pieces on you more.  It really depends what effect you are going for.  I tend to favour a chunkier glitter as I want all of the sparkle!  Lit's glitters also come in different 'textures'; Solids are just one colour, Shimmers are transparent with a rainbow holographic reflect and Holographics are solid colour that reflects all primary colours.

Read on to see the Lit glitters that I have.

Shiro "Cheekbones" contouring powders

Shiro Cheekbones contouring powders

 Told you to expect more Shiro Cosmetics!  It's also yet another post related to contouring but it is a big thing right now and I'm enjoying it, so neh.  This contouring set is rather novel, as well as amazing; they are inspired by Benedict Cumberbatch's cheekbones, which are rather desirable after all!  The containers feature a picture by Amy Zen of Cumberbatch in his Sherlock role, and the names of each powder are references to the programme too.  I'm a huge Sherlock fun so this excited me no end, but also the collection actually caters to all skin tones and contains some of the most cool-toned (grey!!!) contouring products I've ever seen!  Remember, natural shadows = cool toned.

30 Day Blogging Challenge PLUS the highlights

You may have noticed I've been updating my blog a lot more frequently than normal the past 30 days.  This is due to me signing up for Sarah Arrow's 30 Day Blogging Challenge over on Sark e-Media.  I was googling some blog-related tips, can't remember exactly what, and a note popped up asking if I wanted to sign up for the challenge.  I thought it sounded interesting so entered my details and didn't really thing anything of it... until 6am the following morning when I had an email spurring me on for Day 1.

Sephora Cream Lip Stain in Polished Purple

Sephora Cream Lip Stain in Polished Purple

Yes, I'm talking about another dark purple lip product.  No, I'm not sorry.  Purple lip products are my favourite and I love adding a colour unlike any other I have.  This is that.  Sephora Cream Lip Stain in Polished Purple is a really unique item in my collection.  

The Cream Lip Stains dry down to a matte.  Unlike similar products, it is a cream rather than a liquid so a bit easier to apply and doesn't run into the lines around your lips.

Melt Love Sick Stack w/ 2 simple looks

Melt cosmetics Love Sick stack

If you live on Instagram like I do, you will have seen Melt, they're everywhere.  Two friends and make up fanatics, Dana Bomar and Lora Arellano, set up Melt to make the products they wished they had.  First they released their lipsticks; super matte and super bold.  Then came these game-changers, their eye shadow stacks.  At the moment they only have two; this Love Sick stack and the Dark Matter stack, a more neutral set.  Four massive pans of eye shadows (honestly they're more blush-sized!) that stack together magnetically.  There's nothing quite like these on the market and I'm dreading the deluge of cheap copies that we'll probably see soon.

Melt cosmetics Love Sick stack: Promiscuous, Lovesick, Amelie, Fixated

Max Factor Creme Puff Blush

Max Factor Creme Puff blush in 15 Seductive Pink

 Recently Max Factor released a new line of blushes, the Creme Puff blushes.  These marbled blushes are available in 6 colours.  I've only bought one, 15 Seductive Pink.  It's a deep mauvey rose with some lighter pink swirled into it.  While it looks super shimmery in the pan, on skin it looks luminous.  No glittery cheeks here!

I like to apply this blush with my MAC 187 brush.  Because the duo-fibre bristles on this brush aren't very dense it means the hairs don't pick up too much product.  My brush is quite old and has completely lost its shape but that also helps.  It's quite a deep colour so a diffused application is best; these two products work so well together.  The Real Techniques Stippling Brush is a bit smaller but may do the job nicely as well. 

Read on for a close up and how it looks on.