Indie companies

Hello my lovelies. Well, the holidays are in full swing. I’ve got all the decorations except the tree put up. Christmas presents are bought and wrapped. The last present, for my wonderful boyfriend, is being delivered on the 23rd. I don’t have to cook this year as we are going to NC to spend the holidays with my boyfriend’s father and brother. I will be picking my daughter up on the 26th to spend a week here with us. So now let’s talk Makeup.

There have been so many new releases happening lately that I would need a millionaire boyfriend with a black American Express to afford it all. There are sales and discounts everywhere. I did take advantage of a couple of the indie brand sales though. Y’all know how I feel about indie companies.

Here are a few, but by no means a complete list, of my favorite indie companies.

COASTAL SCENTS Here. They have some of the best brushes. You can purchase sets as well as individual brushes. You can purchase synthetic and natural brushes and all of there products are cruelty free with the packaging being 100% recyclable.  There formulations are paraben, gluten, oxybenzone, TEA/DEA/MEA and propylene glycol free.  Coastal Scents provides a full range of products from eyeshadows and mascara to concealers and lipsticks.  They are very affordable with top notch customer service.   Check out their holiday sales. You can find them on Instagram too.

MAEDER MAKEUP LABS  Here. Caroline Maeder (May-der) is an amazing lady.  She’s a medical assistant, phlebotomist, CNA and mom of 3. When she had an allergic reaction to a talc based powder she decided to venture into the world of cosmetics to formulate a brand of cosmetics that were vegan and cruelty free. All of her products are handmade too. The medical theme of her products stems from her back ground. Eyeshadow shades like Ooze, a bright yellow, DNA, a deep red (and the only product that is not vegan because of the Carmine), Decay, a beautiful gold. Skin Grafts, her highlighters are fantastic. There are liquid lips like Hematology which is my fave and Liquid Lithiums which are liquid illuminators.  During this season, Caroline is offering 25 days of Christmas deals so click on the link and check out her shop.

QUEEN LUX COSMETICS  Here. If you are a glitter freak then this is the shop for you. You can find pressed glitters, loose glitters, makeup brushes, lipsticks, liquid illuminators and eyeshadow palettes. I have one of their liquid lips and the Princess Palette. Their products are cruelty free and vegan approved. The cool thing about Queen Lux is that no matter your complexion, you can find something that works for you. Their prices are very competitive also. Queen Lux also has a blog that you can get to through the link I provided.

SYDNEY GRACE Here. This company was formerly known as Feather River Body. Their products are cruelty free, paraben free, silicone free and made in the USA. Products include cream highlighters, loose highlighters, shadows, loose pigments and glitters, blushes and lip creams. You can purchase singles and palettes. I love the shadows that I’ve purchased. They are so pigmented I barely had to touch the pans and they blended fantastically. I can’t wait to enlarge my collection.


These are just a few of my favorite indie companies. I will do a part two when I’ve tried out more companies. If there are any indie companies that you like, please leave me a comment below or DM me on IG @emilythubbron. I would love to hear of more indie companies. All 4 of these companies can be found on IG too.

Starting in the new year, I’m going to start a series using one new product per week. So for 2018 I will review 52 new products. Make sure to stay tuned. Oh my bank account is not going to be happy 🤪. Also the first week of January I will be doing my favorite products for 2017. I was shocked by some of them for sure.

Thanks for stopping by. Enjoy your weekend.
Emily

Coastal Scents

Hello my lovelies. Hope y’all are having a fantastic weekend. It’s been chilly and windy here today. Did some shopping for Thanksgiving today too. Still have a few things to pick up but I’m sure I will forget something. I always do. But, let’s talk makeup!!!

I am a huge supporter of small businesses. My love of it started, I think, because my dad and uncle both had there own trucking companies. I was dad’s bookkeeper and I began to realize how much behind the scenes stuff there is to owning your own company. When you see what we call here in the south, a mom and pop store, most people think, “How nice. They bake cookies all day and sell them.” Or candles, or jewelry or whatever the case may be. They don’t realize the time, energy, dedication, blood, sweat and tears that goes into getting a business up and running. Not to mention the lack of sleep, family time and vacations. The budgeting. Skipped meals. The piles of red tape with the IRS. Knowing and keeping up to date on tax laws and proceedures. It takes a lot more than most people realize.

With an indie makeup company, you have the added stress of deciding whether or not to become cruelty free or vegan then researching where to source these types of ingredients. Then it’s the worry over formulation. Ingredients that will be safe for all skin types, etc. There are many aspects to owning your own brand. It’s hard work. And honestly, word of mouth is the best advertisement for an indie company. No matter what the product.

Today I’m going to review an indie company that I recently ordered from. Coastalscents. They are located in Delaware. They are cruelty free with over 800 products. The company was started in 2005. The have very fast shipping times and also do international shipping. And the prices???  Holy moley. Very affordable.

For my first order I took advantage of a sale going on at the time. I purchased the Style Eyes Collection which includes 3-8 shadow Palettes in a heavy duty cardboard case. The cost? $4.95. Then I ordered some brushes which were 50% off. I purchased my first pencil brush, my first small detail brush and a couple blending, a crease brush and two angled brushes. With shipping my order came to right around $22. Not bad at all.

Let’s talk Shadows. Each palette is designed for a specific look. Social Eyes is lots of shimmers and pretty Smokey colors. Formal Eyes is your neutrals and Glamour Eyes is bold and dark. You can use them separately or combine them to create your own unique look.  Each palette has a small mirror and a magnetic closure. As for the colors themselves, you can see how nicely they swatch. Most of them are very creamy and buttery. There are a couple of the more glittery shades that feel more coarse, but I think that’s par for the course. I wore these Shadows for two days and there was no creasing or flaking. There is a bit of fallout but that’s not a huge deal for me. I just take my fluffy brush and whisk it away. I had no sensitivity to these Shadows at all and with Auto Immune issues that’s saying a lot. 

The brushes are fabulous. I always wash my brushes before using them to remove any dust or particles that may be left over from production and these did well. The bristles are very soft on the crease and blending brushes. The pencil brush is a bit dense but I like that when applying shadow to the outer and inner corner of my lids. The detail brush is just perfect. Great shape and just the right density. The angled brushes worked great for lining my lower lash line  

So, final thoughts....I’m sold. I will definitely be ordering from Coastalscents again. Most likely after Christmas when my wallet isn’t crying as hard. You can’t beat the price point and fast shipping. And the most important for me?  They are an indie brand and in my mind I’m helping someone put food on their table and a roof over their head. 

Thanks for joining me today. I hope you enjoyed this review. If you know of any indie brands that you love and think they have awesome products, please let me know in the comments below. Enjoy the rest of your weekend.