Shiv's Catrice & Essence Picks Nov/Dec '13.

I have been accumulating Catrice & Essence goodies over the past while (as usual) and have gathered my picks from the past couple of months for this post.

Watch the video for a better look at the products and to hear my opinion on the bits!

My favourite items from the current permanent Catrice line are possibly the Liquid Metal eyeshadows €4.49 (from Penneys)
These are extremely soft powder shadows with an unique cream like texture and a high metallic finish.
There are 9 shades in the range currently, 4 of which I have, and each share the same high colour pay-off. There is a good mixture or brights and neutrals to suit every taste. These also work very well by themselves without the need for a primer or base

From L-R; 080 Mauves like Jagger, 020 Gold n' Roses, 040 Under Treasure, 070 Gold Leaf Me.

I also have a few of the regular line shadows from Catrice, the 'Absolute Eye' Shadows which are of an equally impressive quality considering their low price tag (€3-€4 ish I think!) 

These range in finish from matte to satin to shimmer and boast a very large shade selection for a pharmacy brand.

My friend ruth also recently gifted me one of the Essence 'Metal Glam' Eyeshadows, which has a high metallic finish not that dissimilar to the Catrice Liquid Metals but with a slightly lower price tag at around the €3 mark.

(Essence is the sister brand to Catrice)

From L-R; 710 'Lilac Del Ray',  080 'Go, Charlie Brown!' (Both Catrice Absolute Eye Colours) & Essence Metal Glam Shadow 02' Coffee to Glow'

Swatches of the shadows
Top; Flash, Bottom; Natural Light
 from L-R....080 Mauves like Jagger, 020 Gold n' Roses, 040 Under Treasure, 070 Gold Leaf Me. (Catrice Liquid Metals)
710 'Lilac Del Ray',  080 'Go, Charlie Brown!' (Both Catrice Absolute Eye Colours)
 Essence Metal Glam Shadow 02' Coffee to Glow'

I also picked up a couple of the Essence Eyeliner pens. They have a huge selection of various eyeliners, pencils, liquid, pens and kajal, about 15 different types. 

I chose the Superfine Long-lasting eyeliner pen €3.09 and the Stays No Matter What Waterproof eyeliner pen €3.49.

I am in love with the super-fine nib of the 'Superfine' pen which is great for drawing the thinest of lines on the skin, and the Water-proof pen really is budge proof once set on the skin. Both definitely do what they say they do! BUT there is one negative, which is that they both stain the skin. It takes a good few takes to cleanse the stain off, the staining seems to last up to a couple of days on my eyes which could definitely be a problem for some people. 

Swatches of the eyeliners, the bottom picture shows the staining!

I replenished a few of my faithful favourites which are used both in my kit as well as my personal makeup collection.....

Clockwise from left;

Mattifying Oil Control Papers; Blotting papers with a really handy dispenser.

Catrice Pencil Sharpener; My third one, a 2 size pencil sharpener with lid.

Catrice Lash/Brow Designer Gel; A clear gel with an innovative dual sided brush.

Catrice EyeBrow Filler Gel; A medium brown gel for grooming brows.

Catrice EyeBrow Stylist; EyeBrow Pencil with a spoolie on the end, comes in 3 or 4 shades. 

My final pick is this Catrice 'Ultimate Colour' Lipstick in 280 'Star Rust', a red based shade with subtle gold sparkles throughout. It has a sheer to medium coverage with a shine finish and is the perfect colour for anyone who is afraid of brighter reds but would like to ease themselves into wearing a shade in the red family. Comes off on the lips like a pink/red neutral shade. 

I forgot about the Pure Shine Colour Lip Balm I also showed in the video called 'Don't Think just Pink' 030. A lovely moisturising creamy lip crayon in a delicate pink shade.  There are 8 in total in the shade range.

What are your Catrice and Essence picks?? My wish-list can always be bulked up :)

Chat soon,

Shiv.

xx