Holiday Makeup: Subtle Glam?

Sonia Kashuk Starry Eyes Eye Palette ($14.99) is a mix of six eyeshadows–three glittery, three matte–for the holiday season.

My favorite part about this palette is the outside casing — it’s this shimmery, sequin-y black case that sparkles in the light. It’s really stunning, and it’s probably one of the best holiday-themed packaging jobs I’ve seen in awhile. Unfortunately, the inside of the palette, which is more important, just fell a little flat for me.

While I liked Sonia Kashuk’s Showstopper Eyeshadow Quad, which had the same shimmery shadow texture, these colors just seem drab–muted. They’re so muted and subtle and yet have so much shimmer, it seems contradictory. The texture is smooth, and they look wet when applied and have surprisingly little fall out (though there is some). For me, the colors don’t jump out at me, so I’m just not excited over it.

Included in the palette are three glittery shades: a muted warm-toned medium-dark brown, a glitzy warmed up champagne gold, and a muted mauvey-brown, along with three matte shades: a cool-toned chocolate brown, a dusty white, and a plummy mauve.  The matte shades didn’t feel chalky or dusty, though they were a little sheerer than I’d like–overall, they felt smooth to the touch.

I did like how the shimmery shades were coordinated with the matte shades – almost like reflections of each other. I think I liked the actual shades of the matte colors more than the shimmery ones, though!

Bottom Line: This just isn’t the palette for me, but it’s still a quality palette. The shadows were smooth, had decent color pay off, and they’re shades that can definitely be worn by many. Though they’re muted and subtle (and inexplicably, it just didn’t work for me in this palette–because I know I can appreciate a subtle color palette!), they would make for some more nuanced, less in-your-face holiday looks for sure.

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• Product: 26/30
• Value: 9/10
• Ease of Use: 4/5
• Packaging: 5/5

Recommendation: If you enjoy more subtle, muted shades, you might like this!

Availability: Target

See swatches…

Affordable Makeup Brushes:  Sonia Kashuk’s Twist of Fate Brush Set

Sonia Kashuk Twist of Fate Brush Set ($19.99) is a limited edition holiday brush set with six brushes housed inside a gorgeous, shimmering black clutch.

The six brushes you get are: blush brush, foundation brush, blending brush, small eyeshadow brush, smudge brush, and lash/brow groomer brush. The only brush I felt was kind of a throwaway was the lash/brow groomer – it’s just not a great brush, and it certainly couldn’t comb my lashes worth a darn, so I wasn’t pleased with it. The other five brushes, however, are much better and certainly more useful.

Sonia Kashuk is an extremely reliable, trustworthy brand, particularly for beauty tools. Whenever someone asks me about a budget-friendly brush brand, Sonia Kashuk is my go-to for a reommendation. These brushes are soft, fluffy, and useable. They’re not as good as my MAC brushes overall (I would say MAC brushes are softer, particularly for face brushes), but they’re around 75% there. Close, but not the same – but much more affordable.

In comparison, I would say the blush brush is similar to MAC’s 129 (a little bigger and not as rounded), the foundation brush is closest to MAC’s 190 (but a little smaller and thicker), and the other brushes don’t have as close matches. If pressed, I’d say the small eyeshadow brush is similar to MAC’s 239, while the blending brush is similar to MAC’s 222. Finally, Sonia Kashuk’s smudge brush is closest to MAC’s 231.

Even though the brushes are totally great for the price (and pretty good, period), my favorite part about the set is the CLUTCH. I usually hate the bags, clutches, etc. that come with brush sets and never use them again (they just sit around collecting dust, because I feel guilty tossing them), but this one is really fun and perfect for the holidays. It’s big enough to actually be used as a clutch and looks elegant and festive. I’d probably pay $19.99 just for the clutch!

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• Product: 28/30
• Value: 9/10
• Ease of Use: 4/5
• Packaging: 5/5

Recommendation:  For affordable brushes, Sonia Kashuk always has you covered!

Availability: Target

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Holiday Glitz: Sonia Kashuk Showstoppers Eyeshadow Quad

Sonia Kashuk Showstoppers Eyeshadow Quad ($10.99) is the glitz-in-a-pan that’s so perfect and fitting for the holiday season I couldn’t resist saving this review until now. There are certain items that impress you at first swatch, and this was definitely one of those items for me.

It includes a glittery warmed-up frosty white, muted reddish-brown with golden bronze glitter, glitzy soft pale antique gold, and smoky charcoal gray-black with silver glitter. These applied and looked almost wet–I will say they looked much better in person than in photos. There’s just something about the shimmer that I couldn’t capture, despite taking dozens of photos! I will say that the only real drawback to these is they have a tendency to get all over your cheeks if you use a regular eyeshadow brush with them. I do recommend using a sponge-tip applicator or else use these applied wet to minimize the fall out.

The texture of the eyeshadows was surprisingly soft and almost creamy, despite the obvious glittery bits, and the pigmentation was decent overall. I found the gold shade was the least opaque, followed by the white shade, while the brown and gray shades were both opaque. The price is just right, and you can often catch Sonia Kashuk on sale at your local Target–though I’ve heard this isn’t as easy to find locally as it is online.

Bottom Line: This is just one of those really fun, totally glitzy and glittery pieces that you may not pull out and wear everyday, but it sure is glamorous to have all that bling sparkling on your eyes.  It’s really, really stunning when you swatch–not quite as lovely on the lids (but still nice!), but ultimately not the most practical item I’ll own.

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• Product: 25/30
• Value: 9/10
• Ease of Use: 4/5
• Packaging: 4/5

Recommendation: For lots and lots of shimmering glitter on your eyes, Sonia Kashuk is an affordable way to get glitzy this holiday season.

Availability: Target

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Sonia Kashuk Dramatically Defining Long Wear Gel Eye Liner in Indigo and Cocoa

Sonia Kashuk Dramatically Defining Long Wear Gel Eye Liner ($8.99) is SK’s answer for longwearing, smudge-proof, budge-proof gel liner. It’s available in three shades: Cocoa (deep brown), Ebony (deep black), and Indigo (deep blue). I haven’t seen Ebony yet, but I did get a chance to play with Cocoa and Indigo.

Indigo is a rich, vibrant dark navy blue (I wouldn’t describe it as Indigo, personally) with slight shimmer but not a lot of shininess. It applies evenly and opaquely with an angled eyeliner brush (I like MAC’s 208). Cocoa is a dark, slightly warm-toned chocolate brown. It has a very creamy texture, and it has a slightly wet look to it, though it does dry down and has an overall matte finish. I’d say that Cocoa is comparable to MAC’s Rich Ground fluidline, but it has a more matte appearance and probably a touch warmer, too.

Both of these gel liners wear incredibly well throughout the day with no budging, smudging, or fading. They stay in place and last all day long on the lower and upper lash lines. They’re also thick and creamy and pack plenty of color, so you can easily create defined eyes with a flick of the wrist. The quality of these is most definitely comparable to Bobbi Brown’s Gel Liner and MAC’s Fluidlines. The packaging isn’t as nice (just feels a little cheap) as either of the high-end brands mentioned, but ultimately, it’s the product that counts.

Bottom Line: If you’re on a tight budget, or if you’ve merely wanted to try your hand at gel liners, Sonia Kashuk provides a solid option. The only real drawback to the line is that it is an extremely limited shade range and may be difficult to find, as it’s only available at some Targets and not currently available for purchase online.

• Product: 27/30
• Value: 9/10
• Ease of Use: 4/5
• Packaging: 3/5

Recommendation: For those who’ve eyed MAC’s Fluidlines or Bobbi Brown’s Gel Liners, Sonia Kashuk’s DDLGELs are awesome, affordable options.

Availability: Target (Local)

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Sonia Kashuk Dramatically Defining Long Wear Gel Eye Liner in Indigo and Cocoa

Dynamic Duo

Sonia Kashuk Eyeshadow Duos ($7.99) are a great, budget-friendly way to satisfy your eyeshadow fix. Today, I thought we’d take a look at two duos:

Dynamic Duo is a mix of pale, seafoam green and a dirty brown with silver-gray frost.  Dynamic Duo works really well with the cooler weather these days, as it’s just dark enough to work with autumn tones, but it’s not so vampy that it’s too dark, either. Dynamic Duo is a very wearable duo, and I didn’t find either shade to be chalky or hard to use. Both shades were pigmented and had a frost finish.

Double Whammy is a vibrant, medium blue with a soft sheen and a bright pop of springy green with yellow undertones.  Double Whammy is one of my favorite Sonia Kashuk duos, because it is extremely pigmented, but it is also vibrant. Sometimes it can be difficult to find this kind of brightness in the drugstore, but Sonia Kashuk gives us a good answer for bright blues and greens. The blue reminds me of MAC’s Freshwater, while the green is kind of a mix of MAC’s Swimming and Juxt.

• Product: 25/30
• Value: 9/10
• Ease of Use: 4/5
• Packaging: 3/5

Availability: Target

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Double Whammy

Dynamic Duo, Double Whammy

Sonia Kashuk Eyeshadow Duos in Diamond Life, Take Cover, and Nudenick ($6.99 for 0.12 oz.) are affordable, well-pigmented neutral-colored eyeshadow duos. I like Sonia Kashuk eyeshadows because they’re fairly reliable — most of the duos have good color pigmentation levels and easy to blend. I found all three of these eyeshadow duos to hold true to that expectation. I’d say the only one I had trouble with was Nudenick, but it’s more of an issue that one color is the same color as my natural skin tone… so yeah. On someone paler or over a base, you’d see it more. (But it would be good for a very natural, barely there eye.)

• Diamond Life is is a duo of a matte, cool-toned brown with gray and a frosty, shimmery champagne shade.
• Take Cover is a duo of a lightly shimmery peach with pale gold shimmer and a richer, golden-toned bronze.
• Nudenick is a duo of a glittery, cool-toned champagne and a matte, warm-toned light peachy brown.

• Product: 8/10
• Value: 9/10
• Ease of Use: 8/10
• Packaging: 7/10

Recommendation: If you’re on a budget, Sonia Kashuk eyeshadows are always worth checking out!

Availability:  Target

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Sonia Kashuk Eyeshadow Duo: Secret Admirer

Sonia Kashuk Secret Admirer Eyeshadow Duo ($6.99) is a stunning duo of shimmery violet-lilac and a softer, matte pale lilac. Both shades run cool, but with the right pairing of warmer or more neutral shades, can easily be worn by most. I’ve always found Sonia Kashuk to be a brand that is reliable and affordable, and this eyeshadow duo lives up to that expectation. Both shades are well pigmented and don’t require lots of layering to get color pay off. Big thumbs up for eyeshadow on a budget!

• Product: 8/10
• Value: 9/10
• Ease of Use: 8/10
• Packaging: 8/10

Recommendation: If you’re on a budget but are jonesing for some eyeshadow, Sonia Kashuk has you covered!

Availability: Target

See swatches…

Sonia Kashuk’s Blending Sponge ($9.99) is a multitasker’s dream come true. It’s designed for application, blending, and smudging–so it can pretty much do it all in a pinch. I LOVE this for the face. I find it works really well to blend and apply liquid foundation all over the face, but it also works well to spot-blend concealer. It’s incredibly soft and not at all rough or tugging, which is why it does a good job for even the delicate eye area. As far as foundation goes, you wet the sponge, squeeze any excess water out, dab your foundation on it, and then apply to your face.

What are the downsides?

If you remember the buzz over the BeautyBlender, then you can rest assured that this is a worthy competitor, and a better bang for your buck (half the price!). It is somewhat larger, and it is obviously a different shape. I don’t find either to be a hinderance in application or usage. I think the only area where people may run into problems is cleaning it. I found that rinsing it with water first, and then adding a bit of baby shampoo helped me. The other thing is, if you’re in a hurry, this might not be the best way to go about daily application. You don’t want to let it sit dirty or keep re-using it without washing, which adds some time to the routine. With the great application you get, it is definitely worth it when you have the time or a really special occasion to go to–when you want to look your very best. If you’re anything like me, the flawless skin is priority number one towards looking your very best.

Find this and other Sonia Kashuk products at www.target.com.