*REVIEW* Sleek Vintage Romance Palette

Hi!

 

It's no secret that I adore the Sleek eyeshadow palettes...I actually have 7 of them and I have no intention of stopping there! :)

 

 

I love the packaging that these palettes come in - they're very sturdy and (as their brand name would suggest) sleek. They also stack very easily and take up minimal space.

 

These costs £7.99 and I was recently thrilled (possibly a little more thrilled than is rational) that there is now Sleek in Boots stores as well as Superdrug! :D:D:D

 

 

There are 12 shades in this palette: 6 metallic shades, 2 shimmer, 3 sparkle shades and 1 matte.

 

I have to say straight away that I love the mix of shadows in this palette in terms of shades. I love these deep, sultry shadows that can create a smokey look but because of the pinks/purples they still look glamorous and have some colour.

 

The texture of the metallic is (as usual with Sleek) great; they're buttery, smooth and pigmented. A few other shades are a little dry and need perhaps a touch more work to get them looking true to pan but there isn't a dud shade in here. I can honestly say there is no shade here that doesn't work well for me.

 

I'll break up the shades into groups of four as it makes them a little easier to photograph and swatch!

 

 

 

These are the first four shades.

 

From top:

 

Pretty In Paris:

 Metallic, frosty pale silver colour.

This has good pigmentation and whilst it is too much for me to use as a brow highlight it works really well on the inner corner.

 

Meet in Madrid:

Metallic yellow/orange gold.

 I'm SUCH a sucker for gold colours. Again, great pigmentation. This reminds me of UD's Half Baked apart from it has more orange undertones. I love using golds and this has been used quite a few times already.

 

A Vow In Venice:

Shimmery deep plum colour. I'd say this is a shimmer as opposed to metallic because it isn't as intense, yet it is still pretty and works well for a plum smoky eye. The pigmentation isn't perhaps as amazing as the first two but is still very good.

 

Marry In Monte Carlo:

Dark, frosted burgundy/dark fuscia. This (along with the other frosted shades) has pretty stunning pigmentation. This looks so pretty packed on the lid!

 

Here are the second group of 4!

 

 

 

From top:

 

Court in Cannes:

Medium metallic brown/taupe.

I love these types of shades as theyre great for a traditional simple neutral look. This again has great pigmentation and looks so pretty on the middle of the lid.

 

 

Lust In LA:

This is more cool toned that Court In Cannes but with the same metallic/frosty finish and same great pigmentation. I sometimes can see very subtle hints of olive in this shade but that could be my imagination playing tricks on me.

 

 

Honeymoon In Hollywood:

This is a rich berry shade with some silver sparkle. I was impressed because despite the slightly drier finish I found that the pigmentation was great.

 

Bliss In Barcelona:

Frosty, metallic medium purple. This seems to show up with almost a blueish reflex sometimes and reminds me of UD's Psychedelic Sister and also a little bit of Blue Bus but this has a far less obvious blue base. In the pan this looks a lot more purple than in the swatch above.

 

Here are the last 4 shades!

 

 

 

I took the photos for these swatches sideways as it seemed to work a little better this way.

 

From top/right

 

Romance In Rome:

This does remind me of the last shade but although this looks dark in the pan this is a lot more blue. It looks like a dark purple but this does have a similar blue reflex to the previous shade but it is more prominent.

 

Propose In Prague:

This is the only matte shade in this palette and it is an uncommon shade. It's a warm, orange toned mid brown shade and is quite interesting. I think this shade is useful for blending purposes even if I don't use it on it's own that much. The pigmentation is decent but it can be a little on the chalky side.

 

Forever In Florence:

This is a deep plum/burgundy which has some sparkle in it. The texture is again a little dry but the pigmentation is good. This looks quite a bit brighter and lighter than it is in the pan.

 

Love In London:

This is one of my favourites: it is a matte black but with a lovely sparkle to it. The pigmentation is really good and this is such a useful shade for adding into the crease to darken.

 

 

So there are all the shades! I have to say that I'm really happy with this palette and I'm sure I'll use this palette a lot. You can create quite a variety of looks ranging from golden/taupe looks to deep plums. Something that is interesting is that quite a few of the colours look quite different when swatched compared to how they look in the pan, but all the colours are beautiful.

 

As mentioned earlier, there isn't a bad shade in this palette!

 

Have you tried this palette yet?

Thanks so much for reading!

Libby x

Sleek Series: 5 Looks With The Sleek Acid Palette

Hi!

 

I was looking through my Sleek palettes the other day and decided that I needed to remember to get more use out of them!

I thought I'd do a little series of posts where I do 5 different looks with each of the palettes.

I shuffled them and the first one I picked up was coincidentally the newest addition to my Sleek eye shadow palettes, the Acid palette. This is such a fun palette to experiment with!

 

 

 

 

Here are the 3 looks!

 

 

Look 1:

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is probably my favourite...I love the mix of bright colours and the black to add smokiness in the outer corner.

 

Colours used:

 

Matte Black (crease)

Neon Pink (Middle third)

Neon yellow (Inner third)

Shimmery Lighter Blue (inner half of bottom lashline)

Matte White (highlight)

Shimmer Darker Blue  (outer half of bottom Lashline)

 

I then finished with black eyeliner and mascara.

 

Look 2:

 

 

 

 

 

I decided to go for more blues/greens in this look.

 

Colours used:

 

Neon Green (inner third)

Shimmery Silver (outer third)

Shimmery dark blue (crease)

Matte White (highlight)

 

Again, black liner and mascara were then added!

 

Look 3:

 

 

 

 

 

This was quite a bright look that isn't too wearble but fun to try out :)

 

Colours Used:

 

Neon Orange (Inner third)

Shimmery Blue (Crease)

Neon Green (waterline over NYX eyeshadow base)

Matte Black (lower lashline)

 

I then added mascara.

 

Look 4:

 

 

 

 

 

This look is very...pink. :)

 

Colours Used:

 

Neon Pink (inner half)

Deeper Pink (outer half)

Black (crease)

Matte White (highlight)

+ Black liner.

 

This is really bright which is so easy to do when you have a palette that is as bold and bright as this is! :)

 

Look 5:

 

 

 

 

 This look to me just screams "acid". This bright green actually looks really cool and I actually really like this look!

 

Colours Used:

 

Neon Green (Inner half)

Moss Green (Outer half)

Black (Crease)

Neon Yellow (Inner corner near tearduct)

White (highlight)

Neon Green (used over NYX eyeshadow base on the waterline)

Shimmery blue (smudged on bottom + top lashines)

 

Bonus:

 

I decided to include this as a "bonus" as its very close to the first look...however I substituted the black for the matte dark pink and discovered that you can actually make it look surprisingly different...this is pretty much the same as the first look but even brighter.

 

 

 

 

Colours used:

 

Matte Dark Pink (crease)

Neon Pink (middle third)

Neon Orange (blending middle third and inner third)

Neon Yellow (Inner third)

Shimmery Light Blue (bottom lashline)

Matte Black (Top lashline)

 

 

So there you go!

These types of posts do take a little while to put together but they're very fun to do and it means that I can get the most out of the shadows that I have..

Eventaully I will get one of these posts done for each of the 6 palettes that I have from Sleek so keep a look out if you're interested! :)

 

Thanks so much for reading!
Libby x

 

*REVIEW* Sleek Creme To Powder Oil Free Foundation

Hi!

 

I have a review today that is quite overdue seeing as I bought this product ages ago!

This is the Sleek Crème To Powder foundation, which is oil free and has SPF 15!

 

 

 

 

The shade I have is White Rose 702 which to be honest is a little dark for me...which shows how pale I must be because on the website it's practically white. There are I think 2 shades that are lighter than this one and so I think on further reflection I should be shade Oyster or Linen.

 

Although this would be just too dark in the winter however I can get away with this in the summer months, it's not quite the right shade but isn't hugely noticeable.

I am pretty impressed with Sleek's shade range though because it seems to have some really great shades for darker skin tones so if you're looking for a foundation that is good for dark skin tones you may want to investigate this!

 

 

 

 

I really like the packaging of this; it looks nice and feels sturdy too.

This also comes with a sponge on the bottom compartment that does actually feel pretty good quality.

 

 

You get 9g of this product which is pretty good and it only costs £7 which isn't bad for a foundation.

 

First of all I feel I should mention that this product isn't the easiest to apply...

First I tried using the sponge but the foundation is pretty thick and also quite a dry formula to start with.

I also used various brushes before realising that the only way to get this foundation to apply nicely is to warm it up a bit before you put it on.

 

The best way to apply it (in my opinion):

 

To do this, I take 2 *clean* fingers and move them around in the pan to warm up the foundation. Then I dab it onto my face.

I'd recommend taking this one part of the face at a time (eg, forehead, then left side of face, then right etc) because otherwise you don't have time to blend it before it dries and you can be left with spots of foundation.

After dabbing the foundation on my face I've found it best to use my Real Techniques Stippling Brush to buff this into the skin.

This way because the foundation is warm and the brush buffs products in really well, the product blends in like a second skin.

 

This does take a little extra time than a normal foundation because first you have to warm it up, dab it on then blend it in with a brush but it does work well. I've tried buffing it in with various brushes and I honestly would recommend something like the Real Techniques stippling brush simply because it has dense bristles so it works the product into the skin.

 

Formula?

 

Once it's on, this foundation looks pretty great. It doesn't look cakey but be warned it can look a little oily so I would recommend setting this with powder. The coverage is very good, I'd say medium to full depending on how much you build it up.

 

Throughout the day I do tend to get oily on my t-zone wearing this but this happens generally with my foundations anyway. This does wear pretty well though and around 8 hours later I still have pretty good coverage. You could also use this product as a concealer if you wanted because it does have such good coverage!

 

Overall?

 

So generally...

Bad points:

Bad shade match for me (not necessarily Sleek's fault...although on the website the swatches do look a little misleading)

A little dry so you have to warm it up first

Too thick to apply with the sponge

Despite the name "crème to powder" you still generally have to set it with powder.

 

Good points:

Very good coverage, can be medium or full

Could be used as a concealer

Long lasting formula

Once warmed up and buffed correctly into the skin it looks pretty flawless

Forumula means that this looks pretty natural and not cakey

Good shade range generally

Not expensive.

 

 

So I do like this foundation and I feel I've been neglecting it recently...but I've worn it today and I think I'll be using it a lot more!

 

Thanks so much for reading! Have you tried any of Sleek's foundations?

Libby x

 

*REVIEW* Sleek Storm Palette (+ Swatches!)

Hi!

 

It's no secret that I'm a massive fan of Sleek eyeshadow palettes...I really love them and I now have 5 and plan on getting more!

 

If you're interested I've already done reviews and swatches of the Ultra Matts V1 palette, and the Au Naturel palette.

 

I got the Storm palette quite a while ago and decided it was about time I did a review of it!

 

 

I love the "Sleek" packaging of these palettes! These cost £6.99 each from Superdrug and online and you get 12 eye shadows.

I also love the fact that you get a great mirror in this palette and even a semi-usable eye shadow brush!

 

This palette is kind of a smokey palette and generally has quite a few dark neutral colours mixed in with some smokey shades.

 

 

For some reason only some of the Sleek shades seem to have names and I think it's only the newer palettes that have the plastic insert that has names of the shadows on it. This palette has been in the permanent line so these shades don't appear to have names.

 

Here are swatches of the first 6 shadows!

 

 

For sake of ease in describing these colours I'll just call them Shade 1, 2 etc!

 

Shade 1:

Metallic mid golden brown shade...reminds me of toast. (?)

This shade is really well pigmented and blends well too as do most of the metallic in Sleek palettes.

 

Shade 2:

One of my favourites. This shows up a little more golden in real life than in the swatch above but it is a light, creamy golden metallic shade again with plenty of shimmer and pigmentation.

 

Shade 3:

Matte mid brown. Not one of my most used shades as I don't wear a lot of mattes unless they are an obnoxiously bright colour. This shadow is harder in texture than the others so far and is perhaps slightly harder to get full pigmentation.

 

Shade 4:

Metallic golden brown  colour with a hint of taupe and quite cool tones. Again, very pigmented like all the metallics here.

 

Shade 5:

Pearly, dusty rose gold metallic shade. This actually looks really good for creating a rich pink & burgundy smokey eye.

 

Shade 6:

Deep, metallic, burgundy/wine red colour. Works great blended in with the previous colour (the rose gold) and makes any eye look appear very rich and sultry. Again, very pigmented. I just love the texture of these metallic shades.

 

 

Here are the next 6 shades!

 

Shade 7: 

Deep metallic bronze shade. Almost similar to Shade 6 but with a lot more bronze instead of wine red. Beautiful colour for creating a bronze smokey eye with the lighter golden shades in the palette.

 

Shade 8:

Blue toned silver colour that reminds me of Urban Decay's Gunmetal shade. Again, metallic and creates a very smokey eye.

 

Shade 9:

Deep, metallic forest green colour, similar to UD's Loaded. Unfortunately my shadow was partially broken but I've still got enough of the shadow left luckily!

 

Shade 10:

 Very dark metallic navy blue colour with hints of lighter blue shimmer in it. Works really well with Shade 8 to create a blue toned smokey eye. One of my favourite shades here as it's not often you get such a dark blue shimmery colour.

 

Shade 11:

 Matte dark brown, still cool toned but darker than Shade 3. Like the other mattes in this palette it is slightly harder in texture and harder to blend.

 

Shade 12:

Matte plain black. Harder in texture etc and not a shadow I tend to use a lot despite the fact that Sleek usually puts this matte black in their palettes. As much as I like this black I feel it is slightly hard and so I tend to reach for slightly softer black shadows!

 

 

Wow that took a while to write out!
Generally this palette has seen good use from me and I love the well pigmented, long lasting shades. I feel you can create a lot of smokey eyes with this palette, a bronze one, a pink/burgundy one, a blue one...the possibilities are quite endless!

This palette is something I reach for very often so I think that it's well worth picking up if you can, especially for the price!

 

Have you tried any Sleek palettes yet?

Thanks for reading!

Libby x

*REVIEW* Sleek Ultra Matts V1 Palette (+ swatches!)

Hi!

 

I have  another review for Sleek today...I have quite a few of their I-Divine eyeshadow palettes (5 in fact) and this is my latest addition. I showed this in my latest haul post which you can see HERE.

 

I love the packaging of these palettes they look so Sleek. I guess that's the point. :)

 I like the fact that it comes with a great mirror and an eye shadow brush that is actually semi-usable!

 

I was originally looking for the Acid palette but couldn't find it in my Superdrug so I got this one instead...there are two Ultra Matts and this is Version 1. Version 2 has some darker, smokier colours I think.

 

These cost about £6.99 each.

 

Also apologies for the sideways photos. Hopefully it doesn't detract too much from the super bright colours...for some reason when I transfer photos over to my computer sometimes they get flipped somehow!

 

Here's a run down of the colours!

 

 

 

These are the first 6 colours...

I'm not going to say matte each time because all of these colours are matte!

 

Chill: Light, sky blue

Pout: Bright hot pink (I'd say a Barbie pink!)

Sugarlite: One of my favourites...a bright medium purple

Dragon Fly: Dark forest green

Pucker: Similar to Pout...slightly cooler toned?

Bamm!:  Bright, obnoxious yellow

 

 

And here are the final 6 colours...

 

Cricket: Slightly lighter green than Dragonfly

Bolt: Bright electric blue

Strike: One of my favourites...apologies for the smudge on the left side of the swatch I didn't clean my brush that well..anyway this is a bright medium orange

Floss: Baby, pastel pink

Crete: Pale, concrete grey

Pow!: Pure white (sorry you can't see this swatch too well because it blends in with my skin tone!)

 

 

I find that all of these shadows are...decently pigmented.

My favourite shades are Sugarlite, Bamm!, Bolt, Strike and Pow!.

All of these are pretty well pigmented.

However there are some which let the palette down slightly..

 

Cricket, Chill, Floss And Crete were slightly harder to build up the colour on and they just weren't as pigmented.

 

Colours?

 

Also one downside of this palette is that they haven't thought through the colour selection too well...let me explain.

Pout and Pucker are VERY similar. In fact at a glance, in the palette looking now it seems as though they are the same colour.

Also, Dragon Fly and Cricket are also a little too similar for my liking.

There is difference in these shades, but it isn't hugely noticeable. I feel that Sleek could've taken out one of the bright pinks and one of the bright greens and replaced them with something else...maybe a bright red would make it more interesting, or just a lighter green or really deep burgundy.

I just feel that they didn't do too great on the colour selection here. They have a good highlight in Pow! (as long as you are fair skinned like me) but there also isn't a really dark colour that you could use for a liner or to darken a look.

 

In saying that it is fun to use this palette because there are so many bright shades...I think Strike and Sugarlite are what drew me into getting this palette.

 

Pigmentation?

 

I think that in terms of the shadows they are good, but not fantastic. Some of them feel a little chalky and just don't quite have the amazing pigmentation that we've come to expect from Sleek. But then I know that it is harder to formulate matte colours and Sleek's shimmers and metallic have always been their highlights.

 

I swatched the shades above just using a primer and after using these shadows I now know that they work best over a sticky base, something like the NYX shadow bases would work well, or the Jumbo Eye Pencils. They just work better with something to cling to.

 

 I created a look using this palette after getting it so I thought I'd show you!

 

 

 

I used Sugarlite, Bamm!, Strike, Bolt and Pow! to create this look.

 

 

Overall?

 

So generally while I do like this palette I don't feel like it's an essential item to have in a collection.

I like the bright colours and although it's not a wearable palette it is fun to create different bright looks when I'm feeling creative!

However some of the colours are lacking slightly in the blendability and pigmentation department and I feel the colour selection isn't great.

 

This is a fun palette to have and I'm sure I'll be using it especially for fun, colourful looks but I don't feel that you'd need to rush out to get this.

I still ADORE Sleek shadows though because they are great for the price, it's just that matte colours aren't their speciality.  

I'm still looking for the Sleek Acid palette....wish me luck!

 

Thanks so much for reading!

Have you tried any of the Sleek Palettes?

Libby x