Product Review: Senna 3-in-1 Eye Color

Name: 3-in-1 Eye Color
Brand: Senna
Size: 0.07oz/2g
Price: $22.00

From Senna’s website:
Three velvety soft harmonizing eye colors in one travel friendly compact makes it easy to make eyes look polished for daytime and dramatic for night. The three made for layering and easy to blend colors include one highlighter color, one soft lid color and one darker shading and lining color.

What I liked:
- sheer wash of color
- soft texture
- easy to blend
- long-lasting if used with a primer

What I didn’t like:
- the ingredients
- the price

Senna 3-in-1 eyeshadows are available in 2 versions: Aspen, a mix of pink and purple shades and Bahama, the one that I got, which contains a soft vanilla beige, a soft pinkish brown and a chocolate plum.

All the shades are beautiful, slightly shimmery and compliment each other very well. And because they are so safe and wearable, they are perfect to be worn during the day and at work.

Just like the single eyeshadows, the shades in the trio aren’t very pigmented and I have to layer the colors 3 or 4 times for them to show properly. People who prefer their eyeshadows to be on the sheer side will love the trio, but personally I prefer something more pigmented.

The shadows are very soft to the touch and very easy to blend. I’d recommend using them with a primer to get the best color payoff as well as making them staying put on your lids all day without creasing. I tried them without a base as well and, just like most shadows, they disappear after 4 or 5 hours on me.

One of the preservatives used in this trio is called Imidazolidinyl Urea and works by releasing formaldehyde. Although the quantity of this ingredient is really small and considered safe by the FDA, I prefer to use product that are free of this substance.

Summary:
Overall, Senna 3-in-1 eye color contains 3 shimmery, sheer and wearable shades that are easy to blend and last long if used with a primer. However, it is pricey and contains a formaldehyde-releasing preservative.

Rating: 3/5

Disclosure: this item was sent by PR for consideration. The review is based on my own personal and honest experience with the product. For more information, please see my disclaimer.

A Year Ago on Beautiful With Brains, the November Edition

Hello everyone,

if you’re new to the site and are curious to know what we were talking about this time last year, here are a few places to get you started:

Interview with Nikki from Askmewhats. Last November, I had the pleasure and honour to interview the very sweet and talented Nikki from Ask Me Whats. If you missed it, read it now and don’t forget to visit her blog afterwards!

Are you getting your beauty sleep? Getting enough sleep is essential to keep our skin healthy and not to look washed out. Click on the link to find out why sleep is so important and what you should do to sleep better.

Product Review: Pantene Pro-V Clarifying Shampoo. Are you looking for a cheap but effective clarifying shampoo that will remove all dirt, gunk and product build-up from your hair? If so, Pantene Pro-V Clarifying Shampoo is for you. Just be careful not to use it too often or it will dry your hair!

DIY Beauty: 5 Homemade Honey Recipes. Honey has been used in skincare for centuries for its moisturizing, antioxidants and anti-bacterial properties. Click on the link to read five homemade beauty recipes you can do with this ingredient at home.

Everything you need to know about at-home chemical peels: Sara Musfeldt, the editor of SkinFitnessFacts.com, wrote an interesting post about chemical peels. Find out what they are and how you can perform them at home to improve your skin without breaking the bank.

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How to Shop for Perfume

Perfume is a very personal thing. It needs to suit one’s style and personality but with so many types of fragrance on the market to choose from, shopping for a perfume can be an overwhelming experience!

Sometimes we may be tempted to buy a perfume because the price is low, the bottle pretty or because we simply love how it smells on a friend or colleague, but by doing so we may end up buying a fragrance that doesn’t smell nice on us at all.

But choosing the right fragrance doesn’t need to be so hard and by following these simple tips you’ll be able to find a scent you won’t regret purchasing:

Test it on your skin
It is very important to test perfumes on your skin and not on a card or on clothes. That’s because perfume reacts with everyone’s body chemistry and therefore smells slightly different on each person. A perfume may smells divine on a card but if you don’t try it on your skin you can end up buying a fragrance that smells awful on you. In addition, spraying perfume on your skin is the only way to find out if a certain fragrance will irritate your skin or cause an allergic reaction.

Don’t decide straight away
When you first spray a fragrance on your skin, it will smell strongly of alcohol. Give the fragrance at least 10 minutes to settle down and react with your body chemistry before deciding if you like it or not. It is also best to try it on for a whole day before making a purchase. That way you’ll have time to smell all of its notes, know how the scent changes throughout the day and find out how long it lasts on you.

Don’t wear perfume when shopping
If you are going shopping for a perfume, make sure you don’t wear any fragrances or even scented creams on your body. This way, your nose won’t be overwhelmed with too many smells and will be able to detect what a fragrance really smells like before you buy it.

Don’t test too many fragrances at a time
For the same reason mentioned above, you should never try more than two or three fragrances at a time. If you try a lot of fragrances at a shop, you won’t be able to distinguish them properly and may end up buying a fragrance that you don’t like at all. If you want to try more than a couple of fragrances, ask for samples so that you can test each one properly at home.

Have you got any more perfume shopping tips? Let me know in the comments

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Wanted! Barry M Get The Look Gift Kits

Barry M has just released two new Get The Look sets (£9.95 each) that would make a great treat for yourself or a fantastic Christmas present for any makeup junkie or novice.

The Pink Set contains 2 LE Dazzle Dusts shades in Berry Pink and Candyfloss, a Fine Glitter Dust in Violet Star and an eyeshadow brush to apply them with. This is my fave set as I love anything pink! And I’ve always wanted to try Barry M brushes to see if they are just as good as the rest of their makeup range and this would be a great opportunity to do it.

The Green Set contains 2 LE Dazzle Dusts shades in Storm Cloud and Apple Green and a Gold Glitter Liquid Eyeliner. Even though green is my fave eyeshadow color, I don’t find this set very appealing because I’m not a fan of glitter liners so I wouldn’t use it much. Still for the price, the set is terrific value for money, esp if you’re gonna use all the products.

In addition, each set contains instructions to recreate the beautiful looks you see on the front of the box. Or you can just forget about those and create your own.

What do you think of these sets?

QOTW: What was the last beauty product you purchased?

What’s the last beauty product you purchased?

Beautiful With Brains says: my last purchase was from Pan-Asia Beauty. I got Barry M Blusher in Strawberry, Barry M Nail Paint in Pink Flamingo and Barry M Lip Paint in Coral.