Quick Review: Kat Von D Black Metal Love Autograph Pencil
Kat Von D Black Metal Love Autograph Pencil ($18.00 for 0.04 oz.) is a medium-dark black base with silver micro-glitter. It also looks like there are flecks of teal in it when the light hits just right. Sephora describes it as a “matte black with silver micro-glitter.” If you were hoping for a deep dark black–from descriptions only–it sounds like Puro Amor may be the one to consider. It also has a sharpener in the cap and a smudging sponge on the other end.
It’s a very smooth, creamy formula that’s easy to smudge, but takes a few extra seconds to dry down–great for smudging purposes, and if you close your eyes tightly for a few seconds, you can even get some tight-lining done. Since it has glitter in the formula, I kept it away from my water line but wore it on my lower lash line and had good results. I had some fading after four or five hours, but it looked about 80% there after eight.
Welcome to Swatch-all-idays! To start 2011 off on the right foot (or post, as it may be!), Temptalia is going through a backlog of products we have photographed, swatched, and often tested but in a slightly different manner. Quick reviews may be partially incomplete, such as a blush may only be swatched on the arm rather than shown on the face. It is our hope that what we are able to provide is still helpful!
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Product: 25/30
Value: 8/10
Ease of Use: 4/5
Packaging: 4/5
RECOMMENDATION: The creaminess of the formula made it incredibly easy to work with, but I wish it lasted a bit better.
Kat Von D Love & Fury (Adora) Eyeshadow Palette ($34.00 for 0.40 oz.) is a new and limited edition eyeshadow palette for the holidays that includes eight eyeshadows. There are five powder eyeshadows and three cream eyeshadows.
Albino is a sheer, shimmering silver-toned white.
Holy Bible is a bright blue-toned white with a metallic sheen.
Slayer is a bright metallic silver. This is a cream shadow, and it was a little on the drier side.
Glock is a darkened gray with a silver sheen.
Crucifix is a deep, dark black. It’s very creamy and smooth–it works well as an eyeliner in particular. This is a cream shadow.
Bloodletting is a burgundy red with purple flecks of shimmer. It is a little drier, like Slayer, but less so. This is a cream shadow.
Ace of Spades is a muted, gray-purple with soft violet flecksof shimmer. Just a touch sheer.
Oddfellow is a light gray-black with blue glitter flecks. This one was sheer and a little chalky for me.
The color scheme is very dark, foreboding, and it generally fits with the vibe I get from Kat Von D’s makeup line and the aesthetics of the range. If you love smokier looks, this is a palette with your name on it! It has four variations of silver/gray and then four dark, smoky shades.
I think the palette is decent, but I had a few issues with pigmentation on three of the powder eyeshadows (Albino, Ace of Spades, and Oddfellow). Oddfellow was the least pigmented and even looked it when swatched. It pops more when layered over the black base of Crucifix, but it’s hard to use on its own. Slayer is drier and the shimmer in the cream base makes it difficult to blend out evenly. Ace of Spades was a touch sheer while Abino was rather sheer. It’s more like a shade you’d dust over another shade because of the sheerness.
I like the concept more than the execution, just because for $38, there really shouldn’t be any sheer shades in it. I do, however, like that these are–essentially–the equivalent to eight full-sized eyeshadows, so you are getting plenty of bang for your buck. There are included brushes with the palette, but I don’t find them useful.
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Product: 24/30
Value: 9/10
Ease of Use: 4/5
Packaging: 4/5
RECOMMENDATION: I would probably pass unless you really love all of the shades in this palette and don’t mind using darker bases to amp up some of the sheerer shades.
Kat Von D Adora Painted Love Lipstick ($18.00 for 0.11 oz.) is new-for-fall, and it looks like it’s already sold out online. I just received this from Sephora as part of their holiday offerings, so I was quite surprised to find it missing in action online! It looks like this may be a shade you’ll have to pick up from your local Sephora–if they still have it. It is a stunning shade of bright metallic red. It is an absolutely stunning shade of holiday red; it’s got a metallic-chrome shine that makes the color glow under light.
The shade itself is rich and opaque, needing just one layer for full color coverage. On me, it seems barely blue-based, but generally, I think this would be a very flattering shade on both cooler and warmer skin tones. When I wore it, I got five hours of wear, and it didn’t dry out my lips. Since it has some matte in its finish, it can accentuate dryness if you have cracked or peeling lips.
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Product: 28/30
Value: 8/10
Ease of Use: 4/5
Packaging: 4/5
RECOMMENDATION: If you’re a fan of fun holiday reds like me, this is one worth calling your local Sephora about!
Kat’s Tattoo Chronicles Lipstick set is the perfect kit for pulling off a rockin’ lip color for any occasion. These rich, long-lasting miniature lipsticks include two new colors to form a wide range of shades—from the perfect bold red to a stunning understated neutral pink. 6 x 0.042 oz Lipsticks in Rosary, Underage Red, Cathedral, Hellbent, Lolita, Celebutard
Tattoo Chronicles Palette – Volume 1 ($55.00)
Kat’s secret weapons for pulling off a long-lasting, rockin’ look come together in a beauty stash that includes false lashes, eyeshadows, and primers. Plus, a secret compartment reveals a hidden double-ended rollerball fragrance that embodies Kat’s two sides: saint and sinner. 1 pair False Eyelashes, 12 x 0.02 oz Eyeshadows in Tijuana, Taxidermy, Hollywood, Peanut, Redemption, Solitude, Heartkiller, Baudelaire, Monastary, Poe Blue, Nite Owl, Lemmy, 3 x 0.01 oz High Voltage Primers in Skin, Stellar, Smoky, 2 x 0.17 oz Double-Ended Saint/Sinner Rollerball
Kat Von D True Romance Eyeshadow Palette: Memento Mori
Kat Von D Memento Mori Eyeshadow Palette ($34.00 for 8 x 0.05 oz. eyeshadows) has been on my radar for awhile, but I’ve only now been able to really try it out! It contains eight eyeshadows, each pretty much the equivalent of a full-size eyeshadow (MAC eyeshadows are 0.05 oz., for reference), so it’s a great affordable palette. It’s also a rather colorful selection, so it’s very fun to play around with and apropos for summer.
True is a violet-blue cream shadow that goes on glossy but seems to dry down to a nearly matte finish. I found the surface of mine a bit dry, but once I got deeper, it was fine. I thought it was an eyeliner at first, actually!
Solitude is an iridescent lilac purple with a soft sheen. It’s the least shimmery shade of the bunch.
Meditation is a light bronze with a little copper in it. It has a frosty finish.
Agatha Pink is a pale peach with a shimmery/frosty finish.
Sugar Skull is a shimmery white-gold.
Peggy is a true teal base with flecks of white-gold sheen/shimmer. Almost strikes me as a duochrome. It’s so pretty, but I found that this shade seemed to fade a little when worn.
Hard Luck is a deep forest green mixed with gray.
Tijuana is a darkened black-brown base with flecks of gold and copper glitter-shimmer. This shade at ridiculous fall out, even when used sparingly. It’s a beautiful shade, but clean-up seems to be a must. Use less rather than more, too, and tap brush against your wrist to avoid excess fall out.
I thought the box the palette comes in was beautiful, and I was a bit let down by the cheap, white plastic palette inside. It just looked and felt like something I’d buy for $10 at the drugstore–not something that’s $34 and from Sephora. The included dual-ended brushes are actually bristled brushes, but they’re rather flimsy. They just kind of flop and make it a pain to really pack on color–plus they’re so tiny, I don’t have the patience to use ‘em myself!
All of the shades have a very smooth texture, and they go on evenly and are richly pigmented. I do find that they’re a little on the powdery side, and may even work best with sponge applicators–at least with some of the shades (like Peggy and Tijuana). Tijuana was the troublemaker of the group, which frustrated me as it was also the prettiest (to me), so I really wanted it to be as beautiful on as it was swatched!
Overall, though, I think these are solid eyeshadows worth taking a look at if a particular palette color scheme grabs you. It took some getting used to using these before I was able to minimize the fall out with these. They also blend very easily, which is nice, but it means use softer strokes and feather rather than sweep for most of the work! I have heard that the Beethoven palette is one of her best palettes, so I might check that out next.
If you want to know more about how products are evaluated, read out Rating System FAQ!
Product: 25/30
Value: 9/10
Ease of Use: 4/5
Packaging: 3/5
RECOMMENDATION: I like the palette overall, and I’m impressed at the level of pigmentation of the shadows. I think it’s a great option for a palette of colorful eyeshadows, especially if you’re on a budget.
