Pixi Wakeup kit - review and swatches

Mixed feelings about this if I am being honest. It was a purchase made in desperation, which we all know is never a good idea but the eye shadows were what I was really after so I wasnt too bothered about the glosses and the highlighter blush and bronzer.



On the whole I quite like the eye shadows. I think perhaps the palette is aimed at a younger user - in spite of its creator being nearer my age than 17! All of the shadows are shimmer or glitter not a single matt to be had and I think that really lets this collection down.
Taken outdoors, no flash. First impressions are good; a nice range of colours most of them neutral so pretty much what I was looking for, as a born again eye shadow wearer I am still taking baby steps! I knew immediately that the top 2 rows would be relatively untroubled by me, cant wear pink on my eyes without looking like a rabbit with myximatosis (is that spelt right?). The bottom two rows seemed to be much more what I was looking for.

Top row swatched:

Not exactly fab are they? Much shimmer and dry and clumpy, first impressions were right these ones wont see much in the way of active duty.


Row 2 very similar, not fab colour pay-off and again clumpy and in that first one the glitter/shimmer is chunky in a dry base. Gad am crap at this sort of stuff, hopefully the photos are speaking for me!


Rows 1 and 2 in the palette for comparison.


This is row 3. The very last one, that in this photo looks very dry is one of my 4 faves. It is a bitch for fall out, first time I used it I had a cheek full of dark brown shimmer, stunning look! Have found it best to pat this on with my finger and then blend with a brush so as not to skite it all round my face. Apart from the first one this row of shadows is a wildly different texture to the first 2 rows, all of them are much smoother, although the fifth retains a bit of the clumpy dryness which is a shame.


Row 4 and home to the other 3 faves, which are the first, fourth and fifth. The first is a warm gold shimmer with a nice smooth texture, hallelujah!, fourth is a taupe shimmer again really smooth and the one that I am going to use up first and fifth is a darker taupe with the least shimmer of all. The 2nd and 3rd shadows are also very smooth shimmers in nice shades but more for use as highlighters than colour and there is only so much high shine pale shimmer a girl can use. Especially when that "girl" is 44 with eyelids like an alligator.

Rows 3 and 4 in palette for comparison:


And my fave 4 together clockwise starting with lightest is 1st on row 4, then taupe from 4th row, darker taupe from 4th and finally the darkest is 5th from row 3. Nice but not exactly £27 worth of fabulousness are they?!


So thats the eye shadows. Now for the lip glosses.


Row 1


Row 2

In a word? Pants. Just shocking, sticky and the only ones that do anything are all glittery and orange looking. Vile.

Now for the highlighter, bronzer and blusher.


Highlighter and bronzer


Highlighter and blush


These are clearly not my colours at all and I am very anti applying coloured powder to my face - blush is always cream for me. That said I think these could be wearable on a younger face especially the hightlighters. although they are a bit sparkly for a grown up. All four powders have a lovely silky feel although the bronzer doesn't blend so that could be scary on!

To be completely honest I am not impressed. Pixi is the creation of a make up artist and as such I would have expected a much better palette, the eye shadows are 50% unuseable and because there are no mattes the only option is to create shimmer eyes so not much range really. The shadows that play nice are lovely and that just makes it harder to understand why the others are so clumpy and dry. The glosses are egregiously bad and a real let down if you had bought this palette hoping to use them. Blusher, bronzer and highlighter sort of had to be there to make this a "wake up" palette and whilst I wont use them I think on a younger face they might actually be the stars of the show. So the quest for my hg palette continues. But only until I get my hands on the UD Naked palette and then that quest can happily come to an end. Am going to start saving so I can purchase the minute it appears. Or, if I am truly lucky I might win it from the advent giveaway that Lipglossing was running in the run up to Christmas!!

Kicking myself

Right proper hard. What a fool. Decided that in spite of the power cut - thanks YEDL for fixing it by 10.30am, the snow - more? Really, bloody hell enough already with the snow. And Steves blatant complete and utter lack of enthusiasm "root canal? why I dont mind if I do" "Christmas shopping? What, you need me to come too? Really? Are you sure? OK but don't expect me to enjoy it" I decided that we needed to make a trip to the Trafford Centre as I couldn't be arsed trogging round Leeds in the pouring rain/snow/sleet and I hate being outside freezing my arse off, walking into a shop and going into full on meno sweat down and back outside again and so on, at least in the Trafford Centre you know if you are wearing more than a bikini you are going to be sweating cobs from the off. And thats before you are in John Lewis's and realise that right at that moment they might be selling the very last Bobbi Brown Modern Classic eye and lip palette in Selfridges and you need to RUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUN!

And run I did, I so wanted that palette but it was not to be. I am such a fool, I didn't realise that it was limited edition and that basically any make up branded "limited edition" sells out in seconds. Damn. So I decided to get myself a nice Bobbi Brown cream lip colour in Heather Buff and a lip pencil in Cocoa - wasnt til I got home that I realised we are talking pencil that needs sharpener not propelling, bum.

Anyway, (dinner burning as I type...) I got a Pixi Wakeup palette too!

Edit: Had a more detailed look at this before handing it over to Em for wrapping. The eye colours look nice but are all shimmers, would have liked a couple of matts in there too to balance things out. Not sure how much of the lip gloss will get used, hopefully if they are sheer then a fair amount, if too thick or opaque some of them might be more "colour" than I am looking for. And I might donate the blusher and highlighter section to Em, depending on application. I just think with older dry skin adding any kind of powder, apart from a hint to set make up, isn't the best idea my MAC blush cream gives a juicy glossy look rather than a dry dusty one, but we'll see I might be surprised!

So this post is really to say watch this space, Pixi palette and bobbi brown reviews due in the New Year!

Palette love.

Urban Decay Naked - no way santa is turning up with this baby is he?! Cant find it anywhere online. So have been having a re-think. Am thinking Too faced Naked palette.


Liking the Stila naked one a lot more but not convinced will be able to find that in either Leeds or Trafford Centre (if you know otherwise please please let me know in comments). Can't actually find that on the Stila site either although saw it on other bloggers sites, odd.


Buuuuuut, am also going to drag S along to the Bobbi Brown counter just to have a leetle peek at the Modern Classic palette.How incredible is that, 10 lush shadows, 4 fab glosses? Mind you for £60 S is going to have to be feeling the love too or it wont be happening! I reckon keep the shopping down to a dull roar, MAC counter for Em's bits, one other shop for her secret pressie (shhh. she reads this blog. And makes rude comments!) so he's not traumatised. Spot of lunch and then Wham! straight to the Bobbi Brown counter with promises of this being the absolutely last thing we have to buy.......unless of course its too expensive, in which case theres always Boots, Harvey Nicks, Debenhams .......! If that doesn't seal the deal nothing will. Watch this space! Can't believe that at the start of this year I never wore eye shadow and a palette would have been the last thing I would want, what have you bloggers done to me!