I recently tried a few products from Thevi Cosmetics, which is a line founded by Thevaki Thambirajah. Thevi created the brand because she “could never find cosmetics in shades that suited her coloring.” She wanted colors that were “rich and vibrant without being harsh,” so Thevi Cosmetics was born as an answer to the frustrations she faced (and countless other women face).

“I know that there are many, many women like me. Women to whom ‘natural’ means ‘colorful.’ After all, what is more natural than a flower, a butterfly, a sunset? In our homes, in our dress, even in our foods and in our makeup, we are women who feel comfortable with color. In fact, we crave it. And while our skins come in a wide range of tones and shades, we all look best with a more intense makeup. Red lips. Strongly defined eyes. Visible cheek color. And of course, fresh, smooth complexions.”

How do they fare?

I tried Hemisphere triple split shadow ($22.00) as well as Brandy Wine high impact lipstick ($22.00). I like the trio compact’s size and functionality, because you get three coordinating shades situated in such a way that you can use them separately with ease. Also, unlike some palettes and compacts, these shadows don’t produce too much excess when you swipe them with your brush, so you won’t get multi-colored dusk all over the shadows. The shadows have decent pigmentation, but they aren’t garish, but I generally wouldn’t expect these colors to be as such. The colors are almost golden olive in color, but they’re more antique gold than super green. The highlighter has some warmth to it–a little golden tone–which makes it ideal for matching with the other two shades.

The Brandy Wine high impact lipstick is smooth, rich in color, and fades well as it wears off (as lipsticks tend to do).The color is a great berry color with some pink-fuchsia tones in it. It’s a great color to wear for this fall, especially if you want to go for a deeper, wine-stained pout, but not one that is insanely vampy and dark.

When it comes to the packaging, one interesting part about it is that it is scratch resistant. I didn’t realize this until I was doing some reading on the company’s background, but that’s pretty cool. While the packaging is definitely sleek (think gunmetal, but shine/glossiness), it does hold fingerprints. I’d rather have matte packaging that doesn’t show fingerprints personally, but to each their own. The packaging doesn’t feel cheap, though it is lightweight, and it looks streamlined (“elegant”).

Here are swatches…