Venomous Cosmetics are one of the new kids on the indie company block. Their products are bold, bright and all inspired by creatures you really wouldn't want a close encounter with! I was contacted to see if I would like a few products to review and was surprised when a box crammed full of make-up slid through my door.
[[ Venomous Cosmetics sample baggies, pressed samples, pressed eyeshadows, lip 'poisons' and loose eyeshadows ]]
Everything was incredibly well wrapped! I think nothing short of a nuclear blast could have damaged any of the products with the amount of bubble wrap, baggies and tape that was involved.
[[ Venomous Cosmetics loose eyeshadow ]]
The loose eyeshadows come in jar with sifters and black lids. I like the idea of having the ingredients stuck to the inside of the lid, but I think that in time the eyeshadow will gather around the sides and make it look grubby. I also like how the sifter stickers have the Venomous Cosmetics name stuck over them - nice touch! The loose eyeshadows are similar in texture and feel to that of Fyrinnae - perhaps a touch finer. They are smooth, blendable, well pigmented and a pleasure to work with. There are little warning symbols on the site which tell you which shades are not lip safe, handy if you like mixing loose eyeshadows with gloss. The site says that these cost $7.50 since the graphics haven't been changed yet - they actually cost $6.50.
[[ Yaby eyeshadow pans vs. Venomous Cosmetics sample pans ]]
Venomous Cosmetics also offer pressed eyeshadows, which is fairly unique for indie companies and it's great to have the choice between loose and pressed. Sample pressed eyeshadow are available, which are the exact same size as Yaby pans (a bit smaller than a 5 pence piece). $2 for a 15mm pan. Loose eyeshadow samples in baggies cost $1 for 1/8 teaspoon.
[[ Venomous Cosmetics full size pressed eyeshadows ]]
Full size pressed eyeshadows are fractionally smaller than MAC eyeshadows, but not so much that they wouldn't fit a MAC palette. Overall, I was very impressed with the pressed eyeshadows - they didn't crumble into oblivion and have survived my custom palette very well! I'd say that they have a similar texture or 'hardness' to Urban Decay eyeshadows. The only slight problem I have with these are that sometimes you end up with little chunks of pressed eyeshadow on your lid that you have to crush with your brush to blend in. $6.50 for a 26mm pan.
[[ Stiletto Snake, Purple People Eater, Monster under Your Bed, Centipede, Lochness Monster, Man O' War, Alien ]]
I was impressed with every colour I swatched - which is a real rarity! They all have a hint of other colours, duochrome, shimmer or generally interesting textures. None of the colours are repackaged, but some look like they would have close TKB cousins.
[[ Sea Urchin, Tazelwurm, Phoenix, Ogopogo, Yellowjacket, Eyelash Viper ]]
'Sea Urchin' and 'Tazelwurm' are so similar I doubt there is much point in selling both shades. The only difference to my eyes is that 'Sea Urchin' is a touch more purple. The same can be said for 'Yellowjacket' and 'Eyelash Viper' - I struggled to see any difference in the shades. Maybe 'Eyelash Viper' is a tiny bit more orange?
These swatches are all eyeshadows which will be released with the next collection, 'Well Travelled'. I'm guessing by the names that this collection is inspired by fabulous places and the landmarks and activities they are known for. I'll point out that 'Sydney Harbour at Night' is far more blue than 'NYC Nightlife', they simply didn't fancy photographing that way! The 'Well Travelled Collection' will be available from the 1st of March.
[[ Venomous Cosmetics 'Lip Poisons' ]]
[[ Venomous Cosmetics 'Hallucinate' and 'Corrupt' lip poisons ]]
Lip Poisons are glosses that come in standard gloss tubes with a doe foot applicator. I have to say that I really like the frosted labels for these, so much more professional looking than paper labels. The labels contain the shade name, product name and a list of ingredients. They glide on effortlessly, leaving behind a smooth, non-sticky, even slick of colour. I find these extremely comfortable to wear since they are utterly non-drying (perhaps that's down to the Jojoba oil, Vitamin E and Almond oil.) Lip poisons will set you back either $5 for a 5.9ml tube OR $3.50 for a 3.7ml tube.
Overall, I am very impressed with everything that I received from Venomous Cosmetics. The eyeshadows (pressed and loose) were soft, blendable, well pigmented, interesting shades. The lip poisons were definitely the nicest lip products I have tried from an indie company so far! The FAQ states that there is a flat rate for shipping international orders of $13.95, though I have since been informed that there is an economical shipping option of $4. Venomous Cosmetics are well worth a look!
Have you tried Venomous Cosmetics yet? What do you think to the creepy crawly theme?
All products received for review purposes.
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