Tag: mothership palette

If I Could Only Keep One – What’s the One Beauty Product From Each Category I’d Choose?

Featuredby liftbakeloveLeave a Comment on If I Could Only Keep One – What’s the One Beauty Product From Each Category I’d Choose?

I was inspired by this video from Kackie Reviews Beauty where she went through the one product she would choose if she could only choose one per category. This was way harder than I expected it to be! As expected, I really struggled choosing just one blush and just one lip product (so I cheated and did liner, lipstick, and lip gloss). I’m planning on doing this once a quarter because I wrote a draft of similar theme months ago, and the products I would choose totally changed, and I think that would be a fun way to explore my “top shelf” items every few months.

Auric Glow Lust in Selenite – This product is my favorite for making my skin look amazing no matter what’s going on with it. Even if my skin is dull and dehydrated and not looking its best, Glow Lust will make it look glowy, smooth, and moisturized. Every time I wear it, I instantly feel more confident, especially for video meetings because Glow Lust reflects so beautifully and distracts from anything else going on. Of all of my glowy, liquid products, this is definitely my favorite of the bunch. I use it as a primer, mixed in with foundation, and as a highlighter, and it works amazingly well for all of those purposes. For this, I would choose Selenite because I can use it as a foundation as well as a primer right now, but in the middle of winter, I could probably get away with Morganite.

Auric Glow Lust in Morganite and Selenite

Ulta Under Eye Brightener – I have super dark undereye and can’t get away without a corrector, and I’m so happy to have discovered this one. It’s about $10 and a very effective dupe of my beloved Becca Under Eye Brightening Corrector. Just like the Becca one, this corrector works so well for correcting my super dark circles and helps hydrate my super dry under eyes for whatever concealer goes on top without any heaviness. It blends like a dream and the color is perfect for me. And it’s in stick form which is so much easier to use than the pot!

Ilia True Skin Serum Concealer in Arrowroot – I have been loving this concealer ever since I got it. It has a very hydrating feel and finish without being too glossy or dewy. It’s light to medium coverage which matches with the coverage level I prefer for my foundations.  Despite being so hydrating, it’s long-wearing and non-creasing throughout the day. It’s also incredibly blendable and easy to work with. I can use it under my eyes, for spot concealing, or all over as a light coverage foundation, and it works great. I’m so glad I have this one!

Ilia True Skin Serum Concealer in Arrowroot

Kosas Cloud Set Baked Setting & Smoothing Powder – This powder is really so amazing, and I know I posted about it super recently because I love it so much. I have it in the shade Airy, but because of how sheer it is, I’m sure Breezy or Feathery could have worked for me as well. It has a tiny bit of luminosity to it so it sets without mattifying too much, and it’s the perfect hybrid between a finishing and setting powder. I love using this for all over my face and to set all my cream products without getting rid of any of their dewiness.

Salt New York Sculpt + Bronze Crème Tint Pro in Light/Medium and Kjaer Weis Blush in Blossoming

Salt New York Sculpt + Bronze Crème Tint Pro in Light/Medium – I’ve been mentioning the Salt New York crème tint pro bronzer a ton lately, and it’s because it’s really become a staple in my everyday makeup routine. It blends out incredibly easily and seamlessly, feels like nothing on the skin, and looks so natural on me. It’s my favorite formula for when I need a “I’m running late and need something easy” look, which is every day right now. It blends out so quickly with a brush, sponge, or fingers and never looks patchy which is great when I’m behind on washing my brushes. This honestly might end up being the first cream color cosmetic product I hit pan on ever, and I wouldn’t be surprised.

Kjaer Weis Blush in Blossoming – This formula has the perfect balance between blendable and long-wearing. It’s so easy to work with, create impact, and stays all day. The first time I used one of these, I was shocked to find that it was still on my cheeks after wearing makeup for over 15 hours. I love that I can just buy a refill without the extra packaging and put it in my Salt New York empty palette, and that it’s still around $30 even for a luxury product. I’ve been loving the shade Blossoming, and I think it could be my one and only blush super easily with how flattering it is for me. It’s a beautiful rosy, warm pink that is a great match with the pink and brown looks I tend to gravitate towards.

Beauty Pie Triple Beauty Luminizing Wand – This blends so easily and quickly and creates a sophisticated glow without glitter. It’s a perfect wash of light-catching pigment and is also blurring. It looks great as a finishing touch to any look I’ve used it in, and I love that it looks great on the cheeks, brow bone, inner corner, or anywhere else I want it to go. I can apply it straight from the wand or use my fingers or a brush and it works great. It only comes in one shade but I think this shade would work for a lot of people because it’s so sheer. Compared to $38 for the Charlotte Tilbury version of this, it’s incredible that this only costs $9.18. I honestly would’ve thought this was a luxury product down to the packaging, and I can’t believe it’s less than $10.

Beauty Pie Triple Beauty Luminizing Wand

Pat McGrath Bronze Seduction Mothership Palette – Of all my palettes, I think I’d be able to get the most out of this, and it’ll give me everything I want (except a neutral glitter topper). It’s a color story that seems perfectly made for me with the bronzes, browns, pinks and purples that go really well with brown eyes. There also aren’t any super colorful shades which makes this a great everyday palette where I can actually use almost every single shade. It has 10 shades of varying finishes including mattes, shimmers, and glitters. I didn’t have any issues with any of the shades – they were all richly pigmented, blendable, had great lasting power, and had little fall-out.

Bronze Seduction  swatches

Benefit Precisely, My Brow Pencil – Because of a sparse area I have in one of my brows, I never skip this step, so I had to include both this and a brow gel. I love this pencil because it goes on so quickly and naturally and the size makes it perfect to fill areas in fast but not overdo it. And unlike other pencils, it stays all day, so I don’t end up with a hole in my brow by the end of the day.

Rose Inc Brow Renew in Clear – I’ve been reaching for it over my other brow products and loving the result. I have giant, thick brows that look overdone super quickly, and I honestly didn’t realize how much a clear brow gel could make them look put together and “done” without overwhelming my face. It doesn’t feel crunchy or sticky but has great staying power like the rest of these products. Because of my big brows, the applicator is also perfect for me vs the usual tiny brow applicators. It makes applying this so fast and easy to get my brows into shape. Even though this is clear, it’s definitely the brow gel I would choose if I could only choose one.

Thrive Causemetics Liquid Lash Extensions Mascara in Brynn – This continues to be the best mascara I’ve ever used and would obviously be the one I’d choose if I could only choose one. It makes my lashes look amazing, doesn’t smudge, and actually holds a curl. The best part is that it washes off so easily and quickly. I have no idea how many of these I’ve been through (I always get the travel size sets during the holidays), and I can’t even think of another mascara I would pick.

Make Up For Ever Artist Color Pencil in Wherever Walnut – I actually have so many different lip liners, and it’s one of the categories I struggled with much more than I expected. At least right now, I would choose this one if I could really only have one. The Bite liners were a close second, but given that they are discontinued and no longer available, my choice for this year is this Make Up For Ever pencil. The formula is creamy without being slippery and helps define my lips without drying them out. I particularly like this color because it adds depth to my lighter colors and helps retain the shape for darker colors. It’s super neutral and so it doesn’t conflict with almost any look I want to do.

Lisa Eldridge Velvet Matte Lipstick in Velvet Muse– This formula is the most comfortable matte lipstick I’ve tried – they’re not drying at all, have the staying power I expect from a matte lipstick, and looks velvety smooth on the lips. They’re highly pigmented and blurring and cover the lips in one swipe. I love the shade Velvet Muse, which is described as a smoky rosewood. It’s got the perfect amount of brown and pink for me, and I find that it’s one of the shades of lipstick I have that goes with almost every look I want to do.

Fitglow Lip Serum in Gospel – Gospel is described as a warm berry, and it’s super in my comfort zone. It’s so easy to slap on with any of my usual makeup looks and is the perfect amount of pigmented for me. Aside from how well the color fits with most of the looks I like to do, FitGlow is always a go-to for me when I’m not sure what I want to wear because of the nourishing, thick, hydrating, long-lasting formula. It’s definitely my favorite lip gloss formula, and even if it wasn’t this shade, I’d pick something in this formula if I could only keep one.

If you could only choose one of each product, what would you choose? Let me know if there’s anything else you’d like to see here on LiftBakeLove, and thanks for reading! As always, some links may be affiliate links that support the blog, but all reviews/opinions are completely my own and unsponsored.

Pat McGrath Bronze Seduction Mothership Eyeshadow Palette Review

Featuredby liftbakelove1 Comment on Pat McGrath Bronze Seduction Mothership Eyeshadow Palette Review

As part of my no-buy year, I’m trying to really get to know and love my collection, and part of that is doing more in-depth reviews of products I already have. This helps me spend more time playing with them and learning about why I like (or don’t like) certain products. For this series, I’m planning on doing a full review on each one of my palettes, starting with the ones I have from Pat McGrath. For transparency, I was able to get Bronze Seduction for $85 on sale last year, so while I know it costs $125 regularly, some of my opinions are influenced by having purchased it half off. And, of course, thank you so much for being here, and it would mean so much to me if you subscribe here or on Instagram @liftbakelove for new posts.

Bronze Seduction shades are swatched and listed below from left to right top row and then left to right bottom row. For transparency, I took this after I swatched these and swirling with my fingers smoothed the shades and took away any signs of usage.

This was my third Pat McGrath palette, but the one that I’ve wanted for the longest. It’s the color story that seems perfectly made for me with the bronzes, browns, pinks and purples that go really well with brown eyes. There also aren’t any super colorful shades which makes this a great everyday palette where I can actually use almost every single shade. It has 10 shades of varying finishes including mattes, shimmers, and glitters. I didn’t have any issues with any of the shades – they were all richly pigmented, blendable, had great lasting power, and had little fall-out.

Bronze Seduction  shades are listed below in order from left to right on my arm

Skinshow Divine Glow – This is one of my favorite inner corner and browbone highlight shades I own. It’s a soft golden beige with a pearl finish that just finishes off any look with a bit of brightness. The shimmer is very fine so it’s easy to use with any other eyeshadow finish without it feeling like it’s “too much.” It’s very similar to Skinshow Moon Glow in Midnight Sun and Skinshow Nude in Divine Rose, but Divine Glow is the most neutral vs the more gold or pink versions of this shade in the other palettes.

Entrapment – This is a medium-dark warm toned matte brown. Because of the warmth, it goes really well with the golds and pinks in this palette, and I appreciate that it doesn’t overlap with most of the browns I have in my collection that are natural or cool. I love using this as a softer shadow liner or to darken the inner corner just a bit. It’s incredibly smooth, pigmented, and blendable so it works really well for this because it doesn’t blend away to nothing.

Bronze Blaze – This is a light-medium golden bronzey shimmer shade. Technically, it’s a metallic shadow but I find that the shimmer isn’t very strong. I love using this as a one and done shade all over the lid or paired with the darker mattes in the outer corner. Even though I love this shade, it’s definitely not at all unique, and I wouldn’t recommend getting this palette just for this bronzey/gold shade.

Rose Gold 005– This is my favorite shade in the palette and definitely my most used. It’s a beautiful pinky bronze metallic shade that creates a really impactful look by itself. I love how shiny it is and how it’s a “sophisticated pink”. It has flecks of gold and pink in it that I find make it pair really well with my brown eyes. If you want to up the impact, you can use this shadow wet and it has a super pretty shiny, sparkly finish that I am honestly obsessed with. I would never recommend getting a palette this expensive for one shade, but now that I have it, I’m very happy with this palette just for this one.

VR Fire Opal – This is a shimmery duo-chrome shade that shifts green and teal. It’s a super cool shade but I rarely use it on its own. I love using it on top of super warm shades to add some coolness, brightness, and shimmer. This shade is incredibly shiny and also works really well wet. If a look I make accidentally leans too dark, I will add a light layer of this all over the lid or just in the center to bring some lightness to the look.

Xtreme Aubergine – This is a very deep matte purple that leans slightly warm. It’s a beautiful shade for the outer corner or as eyeliner. I love how easy to blends out without losing its depth. This is much darker than the darkest matte in most of my other palettes, so I find that I pull this out if I ever want something super smoky (which is rare, but does happen). I also find that this shade stays richer than any other purple shadow I own, which really impressed me.

Guilty Pleasure – This is a warm light-medium metallic taupe, and it’s one of my favorite shades in the palette. It works so well as a one and done shade all over the lid for something super easy and not too dark (or too light) for me. It’s super smooth for a metallic shade, and I love how easy it is to get on my eyes and blend with a brush or fingers. It also pairs really well with the rest of the shades in the palette.

Disobedient – This is a deep matte brown that leans slightly warm. It’s a beautiful shade for the outer corner or as eyeliner. I love how easy to blends out without losing its depth. That said, it’s definitely not a super unique shade of brown, and while I’m glad it’s in this palette to add to looks, it’s not incredibly exciting vs some of the other shades.

Blitz Flame – This is a dark warm toned red metallic shade that is super sparkly and rich. Even though it’s very red in the pan, I find that it shows up more deep pink on me (it looks almost the same as Ruse Dusk from the Divine Rose palette despite how red it looks like it’ll be). I love using this as a base for sparkly toppers or as a way to dark the outer corner with a non-matte shade. It pairs really well for a gradient look with Rose Gold 005 or Bronze Blaze.

Astral Luna Gold – I’m glad I didn’t end up with a third Astral Solstice, which is the Astral shade in Divine Rose and Midnight Sun – the other two PMG palettes I own. That said, this shade is not for me. It shifts gold, blue, and purple, and I never use it. Like Astral Solstice, it’s beautifully sparkly and glittery and much smoother than I would have expected. It makes any base shade so incredibly bright, wet-looking, and shiny. So if you’re into a blue/purple/gold sparkle situation, you might love this!

What other palettes would you like to see an in-depth review of? Let me know in the comments below! Let me know if there’s anything else you’d like to see here on LiftBakeLove, and thanks for reading! As always, some links may be affiliate links that support the blog, but all reviews/opinions are completely my own and unsponsored.

PAT MCGRATH Divine Rose MOTHERSHIP EYESHADOW PALETTE REVIEW

Featuredby liftbakelove1 Comment on PAT MCGRATH Divine Rose MOTHERSHIP EYESHADOW PALETTE REVIEW

As part of my no-buy year, I’m trying to really get to know and love my collection, and part of that is doing more in-depth reviews of products I already have. This helps me spend more time playing with them and learning about why I like (or don’t like) certain products. For this series, I’m planning on doing a full review on each one of my palettes, starting with the ones I have from Pat McGrath. For transparency, I was able to get Divine Rose for $85 on sale last year, so while I know it costs $125 regularly, some of my opinions are influenced by having purchased it half off. And, of course, thank you so much for being here, and it would mean so much to me if you subscribe here or on Instagram @liftbakelove for new posts.

Divine Rose shades are swatched and listed below from left to right top row and then left to right bottom row. For transparency, I took this after I swatched these and swirling with my fingers smoothed the shades and took away any signs of usage.

This was my first Pat McGrath palette and the one that made me fall in love with her eyeshadow formulas. That said, it’s definitely my least used compared to Midnight Sun and Bronze Seduction (review coming soon). I find that it doesn’t have as many rosy shades as I was expecting but they do still work really well with brown eyes. There also aren’t any super colorful shades which makes this a great everyday palette where I can actually use every single shade. It has 10 shades of varying finishes including mattes, shimmers, and glitters. I didn’t have any issues with any of the shades – they were all richly pigmented, blendable, had great lasting power, and had little fall-out.

Divine Rose shades are listed below in order from left to right on my arm

Skinshow Nude – This is one of my favorite inner corner and browbone highlight shades I own. It’s a soft golden beige with a pearl finish that just finishes off any look with a bit of brightness. The shimmer is very fine so it’s easy to use with any other eyeshadow finish without it feeling like it’s “too much.” It’s very similar to Skinshow Moon Glow in Midnight Sun except Skinshow Nude is more golden whereas Skinshow Moon Glow is more pink.

Velouria – This is a beautiful medium-dark mauve shade. I love using this in my crease no matter what kind of look I’m doing because it just works so well with my olive skin and brown eyes. It’s incredibly smooth, pigmented, and blendable so it works really well as a crease shade.

Sable Bronze – This is a light brown bronzey shimmer shade. Technically, it’s a metallic shadow but I find that the shimmer isn’t very strong. I love using this as a one and done shade all over the lid or paired with the darker mattes in the outer corner. Even though I love this shade, it’s definitely not at all unique, and I wouldn’t recommend getting this palette just for the bronzey shades like this one.

Refined Gold 002 – This is a warm gold metallic shade that is quite bright. I love using this in the middle of my eyelid to brighten up a look or add something really shiny, which this is. By itself, I find that it’s a bit too true gold for me, but it does pair really well with the rest of the shades in the palette.

Iridescent Pink 003 – This is a shimmery duo-chrome shade that shifts beige and pink. It’s a super cool shade but I rarely use it on its own. I love using it on top of bronzey shades to add some pink brightness and shimmer. If a look I make accidentally leans too dark, I will add this all over the lid to bright some lightness to the look.

Xtreme Mahogany – This is a deep matte brown that leans warm. It’s a beautiful shade for the outer corner or as eyeliner. I love how easy to blends out without losing its depth. This is much warmer than the darkest matte in the Midnight Sun Palette, so I find that I pull this out if I end up with a warmer look from either palette. I also find that this shade stays richer than other dark browns I own, which makes it more unique than I expected it would be.

Love Lace – This is a warm medium-dark metallic taupe, and it’s one of my favorite shades in the palette. It works so well as a one and done shade all over the lid for something more dramatic than Sable Bronze. It’s super smooth for a metallic shade, and I love how easy it is to get on my eyes and blend with a brush or fingers.

Rose Dusk – This is a rosy plum shimmer shade that has a beautiful sheen. It’s also of my favorite shades in the palette, and my go-to if I want an actual rosy look. I think this might be my most used shade in the palette because I love deep pinky eye looks that don’t pull red. It also pairs really well with the mattes in the palette for a more complex look.

VR Rose Venus – This is the other shimmery duo-chrome shade in the palette, and it’s much darker. It has a strong pink base and an even stronger gold shift. I think this shade is beautiful, but I haven’t yet had an occasion to really get a ton of use of it. I can’t wait to play with it more!

Astral Solstice – This might be one of my favorite shadows of all time and is hands down my favorite eyeshadow topper in my collection. This shade is a warm beige that is incredibly sparkly and shiny and is sheer enough to go over lots of base shades. Whenever an eye look is feeling lackluster, I can throw this shade on top, and it immediately feels incredibly special. I’m glad I love this shade as much as I do because I actually own it in two palettes now (this one and Midnight Sun) so keep in mind that this is one that been repeated across Mothership palettes.

What other palettes would you like to see an in-depth review of? Let me know in the comments below! Let me know if there’s anything else you’d like to see here on LiftBakeLove, and thanks for reading! As always, some links may be affiliate links that support the blog, but all reviews/opinions are completely my own and unsponsored.

Pat McGrath Midnight Sun Mothership Eyeshadow Palette Review

Featuredby liftbakelove3 Comments on Pat McGrath Midnight Sun Mothership Eyeshadow Palette Review

As part of my no-buy year, I’m trying to really get to know and love my collection, and part of that is doing more in-depth reviews of products I already have. This helps me spend more time playing with them and learning about why I like (or don’t like) certain products. For this series, I’m planning on doing a full review on each one of my palettes, starting with the ones I have from Pat McGrath. For transparency, I was able to get Midnight Sun for $65 on sale last year, so while I know it costs $125 regularly, some of my opinions are influenced by having purchased it half off. And, of course, thank you so much for being here, and it would mean so much to me if you subscribe here or on Instagram @liftbakelove for new posts.

Even though this is one of the least talked about Pat McGrath palettes, it’s the one I was most excited about. It has 10 shades of varying finishes including mattes, shimmers, and glitters. The color story feels tailor-made for olive skin and brown eyes, and even most the more colorful shades are still ones that I can use.

Midnight Sun shades are swatched and listed below from left to right top row and then left to right bottom row. For transparency, I took this after I swatched these and swirling with my fingers smoothed the shades and took away any signs of usage.
Midnight Sun shades are listed below in order from left to right on my arm

Skinshow Moon Glow – This is one of my favorite inner corner and browbone highlight shades I own. It’s a pale beige with a pearl finish that just finishes off any look with a bit of brightness. The shimmer is very fine so it’s easy to use with any other eyeshadow finish without it feeling like it’s “too much.”

Bronze Eclipse – I love using this as a one and done shadow. It’s a rich bronze with warm undertones and a beautiful metallic finish. It goes on so smooth and easily and blends out like a dream. It’s just so quick to throw this one with a brush to get a beautiful eye look, but I can also mix in some of the lighter and darker shades in the palette for something more dimensional.

Vermillion Venom – This is a warm, deep burgundy red shade in the matte finish. This is the only shade in the palette I haven’t gotten any use of yet. It feels really smooth as I swatch it, so I’m sure it’s a lovely matte formula just like the rest of the mattes in this palette.

Blood Moon 005 – Surprisingly, this is my most used shade in the palette. It’s a beautiful warm-toned, bright sparkly copper metallic glitter. I prefer applying this with a wet brush for maximum impact but it works with a dry brush or finger too (though this might lead to a tiny bit of fallout). It really makes my brown eyes pop and works great as a one shadow look or combined with other shadows.

Jubilee – This is a warm pale gold with a sparkly metallic finish. It’s a bit too light and too yellow for me to use for a gold eyeshadow look by itself, but I find it helps add a brightness to a darker brown look or even something more neutral (like Mac Groundwork) as a topper shade.

Xtreme Dusk – This is a deep cool almost black matte that is a fantastic shade for deepening a look in the outer corner. It’s also great as eyeliner, especially because it’s not as stark as black but still darker than a dark brown. It is richly pigmented , silky, and super blendable without becoming sheer.

Taboo – This is one of the best crease shades I’ve found for my skin tone. It’s a more yellow toned brown that works really well with olive skin. Like the other mattes, it’s incredibly smooth, pigmented, and blendable. I was honestly surprised how much I appreciated this shade.

Wicked Envy – This is a medium-dark olive green that has a slight shimmer to it. Like the other metallic shades in this palette, this is incredibly smooth, pigmented, and easy to use. I love using this as an eyeliner shade because it’s quite a bold color and works really well with an eyeliner brush.

Blitz Violet Orchid – This shade is a cool-toned metallic purple that has flecks of blue in it. While this shade is beautiful, I’ve only used it once so I can’t say much about it. It goes on incredibly smooth and shiny and looks really cool, but I just don’t use purple very often.

Astral Solstice – This might be one of my favorite shadows of all time and is hands down my favorite eyeshadow topper in my collection. This shade is a warm beige that is incredibly sparkly and shiny and is sheer enough to go over lots of base shades. Whenever an eye look is feeling lackluster, I can throw this shade on top, and it immediately feels incredibly special. I’m glad I love this shade as much as I do because I actually own it in two palettes now (this one and Divine Rose) so keep in mind that this is one that been repeated across Mothership palettes.

What other palettes would you like to see an in-depth review of? Let me know in the comments below! Let me know if there’s anything else you’d like to see here on LiftBakeLove, and thanks for reading! As always, some links may be affiliate links that support the blog, but all reviews/opinions are completely my own and unsponsored.