Shiro Cosmetics - Kawaiishadows Collection

So, this past month I placed my first Shiro Cosmetics order. What can I say, they had a Black Friday/Cyber Monday say going on; I had run out of excuses to pass them up.

My order was comprised of a million swatches;

The Complete Science Collection
The Complete Legends Collection
The Complete Super Effective Collection
The Complete Death Note Collection

The only full sized products I purchased was the Kawaiishadows.

Since my order turned out to be around eighty dollars, even with the discount, I chose the free shipping option. I received a confirmation email almost immediately afterward.

I placed my order on Novermber 28th and received it December 13th.
Total turn around time = 15 days

Kawaiishadows is comprised of five pastel shades in Yatta (yellow), Banzai (green), Desu (blue), Lolita (purple), and Kawaii (pink). The shadows plus the 2 pieces of Japanese candy that come with them are packed up in a cute little box with pink and blue ribbon. It really does strike me as something that makes a really good present.

The color payoff was good, even on my darker skin. I was especially impressed with Banzai. It shows up looking a little more on the cyan side here, but in real life it's more of a mint green. Lolita was probably my second favorite, with just the shade of pastel purple that I really like. I actually have a few pastel purple's that I want to post comparisons of it next to, since they are all actually quite similar. Kawaii is probably the one the least noticeable or flattering with my skin tone, but who knows, I'd love to find a way to use it.

Lolita, Desu, Yatta, Banzai and Kawaii (all swatched wet)

I did a really simple test on one eye to see if I'd really wear pastel shades like this. I'm not normally the type to wear a lot of pastels. I tend to think it doesn't look as good on my medium toned skin as it does on darker skin or really pale people.. but I was surprised once I was wearing it how much I really enjoyed the effect. I felt like a little sherbet princess!

Yatta (inner corner), Banzai, Desu and Lolita (outer corner) Sugarpill's Hysteric (faded) on my eyebrows

Overall I'm really pleased with these shadows. To think I was considering swatching them and giving them to someone who wears more pastels than me! *cough*Tempest*cough*

As soon as I have time I'll make an insanely huge swatch post with all the samples in my order. But I'm pretty sure they'll be equally impressive

♥ le petit alice

Alice in the Forest

This was  Halloween costume from last year. Unfortunately this year I don't have much planned for Halloween, but last year went really well.

I'm wearing the Heavy Red 'Tragic Alice' costume from 2010.

I put a petticoat underneath it and topped it off with my Kaya velvet bow. To this day I think these photos may be the best I've ever looked on camera.

Credit to the incredibly badass Joshua Patton for the Photography.

♥ le petit kiwii

Sassy Minerals - Swatch Post

I swatched these shadows from Sassy Minerals quite some time ago but never made a dedicated blog post for it. It's a mixture of eyeshadows and eyeliners.

Sassy Minerals's sample sizes sell for $1.00 online. All were swatched wet on bare skin.

Fairy Wings, Always a Bridesmaid, Shockwave, Fatal Beauty, Tattletale

Wanton Disregard, Bittersweet Irony, Distracted, Ruby Slippers, Prissy Princess 

One of my complaints is that Wanton Disregard and Distracted are virtually indistinguishable from each other as far as I can tell.. Wanton Disregard is supposed to be more rose-y and Distracted is supposed to be a muted salmon. But I'll be damned if they don't look the same to me once swatched. They DO look different in the pot though.

Solar Flare, Panache, Pixie Sprinkles, Fake It, Rebellious

Rave, Carry On

No Rules, Psych

Sexy Nerd, Bling, Flash of Brilliance, Gasoline Rainbow

A shot of Flash of Brilliance in the pot to show the sparkles off a bit more.

And a shot of Gasoline Rainbow in the pot.

They came in this little mesh bag, all labeled in individually sealed pots.

Fantasy Figurative Art by Marca

A few weekends back I attended the Palo Alto Festival of the Arts. There were quite a few talented artists that caught my eye, but when I saw the booth for Fantasy Figurative Art by MARCA I knew I'd be leaving with at least one purchase.

The booth was divided into two distinct styles; the right side being the more floral and colorful side, and the left side being distinctly more monochrome and gothy. Naturally I was magnetically attracted to the left side.

Her website states that orders come with name cards and back-stories, however the ones I bought did not, probably because they were not online orders.

Anyway, they're adorable and exactly my style. If you're looking some little friends to grace your shelf or dresser you can find MARCA's work for sale on etsy.

 

 

She wrapped up the dolls in this popcorn bag which added a touch of carnival-themed whimsey, which I loved.

And here's a random photo of me enjoying a knish which I bought at the festival. It was delicious.

♥ le petit kiwii

American Cupcake

Recently my best friend, Lizard, pointed me toward American Cupcake through an article posted on Urban Daddy about the newest item on their menu; Red Velvet Fried Chicken. Red Velvet is one of my favorite cakes and interesting food combinations like this intrigue me to no end, so of course I had to try it.

Myles and I drove up to Sausalito in the afternoon to spend some time walking around the town.

Outfit Breakdown:

• Tights: Henry Holland for Pretty Polly Super Suspender
• Boots: Forever21
• Skirt: Forever21
• Shirt: Target
• Puffy Heart Necklace: Tilly's

American Cupcake is an adorable on the inside. The interior is almost completely white, but is bathed in a soft pastel glow from the lights on the ceiling which change color regularly.

American Cupcake has a cute selection of cocktails like the Drunken Ballerina (sparking wine and sprinkles with a little toy ballerina floating around in the glass), the Hot Guy (fresh lime, hot sauce, lone star and salt) and the Spiked Milkshake of the day. I asked our waitress for a recommendation and decided upon the Incorrigible; raspberry puree, rosewater, mint and sparkling wine.

the Incorrigible

And it comes with a cute little raspberry star gummi!

I had come for the Red Velvet Fried Chicken but in addition to that Myles and I also ordered the waffle fries, pulled pork sliders and a PBA (peanut butter with apple slices).

The waffle fries come with vinegar, lemon aioli and regular ketchup. They were pretty delicious, though they had no seasoning on their own.

Light color changes

The peanut butter sandwiches come with dainty little espresso cups of milk!

I don't actually have any photos of the Red Velvet Fried Chicken that make it look appetizing in the slightest. But I can tell you that it was lovely and moist on the inside. The red velvet cake breading on the outside has a very subtle flavor, making it just slightly sweet. The cream cheese mashed potatoes were delicious, and the cream cheese flavor was also quite subtle.

 

 

Dinner was delicious and by the end I was a little tipsy.. but I did manage to end the night with their Cotton Candy Cupcake which was as adorable as it was delicious. No fancy flavors or anything, but definitely tasty.

♥ le petit kiwii

A Fish Called Inky

This past January forsook the snowy climate of Upstate New York and fled to the more temperate shores of Northern California to live with my wonderful boyfriend/fiancé, Myles. I can't describe in words how surreal it is for someone who has lived on the East Coast for the past five years or so to step outside in mid-February to gorgeous 78 degree weather and throw flip flops on. I actually thought it was hot today. I'm turning into a big West Coast softy already.

 

 outside the NY apartment

 

During my cross country move I lost something very dear to me; my lucky bamboo plant. It was a gift from my dad and was often the only other living thing in my apartment bedroom besides me. I decided it wouldn't travel well, so I got rid of it

 outside the california apartment

In my desire to have a living thing in the room (to fill the bamboo shaped hole in my heart) I suggested to Myles that we get a betta fish, which I'd been wanting to do for a while. So today, in addition to acquiring bubble tea and sushi, we visited Seascapes Fish & Pets downtown. Their betta selection was smaller than what you would probably see in a chain like PetSmart, but there were a few really lovely specimens to choose from.

I always thought if I got a betta I'd get one that was bright colored; red or possibly blue.. but when I saw this gorgeous black betta I had to have him.

 Inky with my lego Helvetica "a" behind him

I have dubbed him Inkwell Quill, or Inky... a name which only came about after I decided to start calling him Inky while obsessing over him in the store. He does look quite like someone dropped a spot of ink in a glass of water. He also has a lovely subtle blue-ish sheen on parts of him which I love. 

At any rate, he's a really elegant little guy and it's nice to have a pet again for the first time in many years.


♥ le petit kiwii