Hi everyone! I got to play around with the whole collection yesterday. I'll try and keep it short and sweet, if I can
First off, this is the nicest summer collection in years - the packaging is very stylish (and pretty durable - we tried to scratch it up to see if it would, but it resists them quite well and doesn't chip or show fingerprints.) and all the products work really well with each other - seriously mix 'n match.
First off, the blushes. I'm not sure what to make of
Ripe For Love. It's a color we've seen over and over, but there's one small difference - it's the summeriest version in a while. It's got strong pigmentation and a ruddy undertone to make you look very sun-kissed. Honestly, though, Blazing Haute EDB is very similar, with a nicer sheen on the skin - it's just that you have to build BH up layer by layer, while RFL you have to blend down, since it's so pigmented. This might be a deciding factor for some people.
I don't get Temptalia's comparison colors, it's waaaaaay warmer and peachier than Marine Life and Stereo Rose is much redder by far.
I think BH looks a tiny bit better on the skin, more translucency maybe. It's also a touch redder, while RFL has a little more yellow and brown in it, but just a touch. I'd like to justify getting RFL, but it's a little hard to do, especially with the blushes from All About Orange right around the corner, which are more unique looking. I might still get it, because when I look over the peach blushes in my collection, I've got spring ones that are lighter and paler (like Immortal Flower and the peach one from Wonder Woman) and I've got some that are more fallsy, that are more subdued, so I'm still considering it, but BH really should be enough for me.
Meanwhile,
Hot Nights felt like more of a "but of course" no-brainer to me. It's gorgeous and so blendable (T is on crack again), with a very subtle sheen. For my skin tone, it's a color that works with or without a bit of a tan or some bronzer. I thought Supernova MB would satisfy all my bright pink blush needs, but Hot Night trumps it. It's gorgeous and just the right amount of brightness so that it could be used all year round, rather than being too bright and summer-only, or too much white or cool undertone. I thought I was going to skip both blushes, but I've already got Hot Nights on hold and am still thinking about RFL.
Bare My Soul quad is one of those color combos that just isn't suitable for me, but the quality is very high in each color and it's a good combo - nothing very unique, though, not even When In Rio. Meanwhile, I really like the
Temperature Rising quad for the same reasons I love love loved the All Woman quad - colors that give a cool effect for people who normally can't wear cool tones around the eyes. Temperature Rising is particularly gorgeous for the brow bone on me, I'd wanted Performance Art before but never liked the sets it came with, and Swelter is amazing for the crease or anywhere. I applied the quad over the new pencils and didn't need to do anything at all to make the colors come out loud and clear. I wasn't going to get either quad, but I put TR on hold and think I will be getting a ton of use out of it.
I'll post about everything else in another post. Yep, this is going to be an expensive one!
