Makeup Monday: Complex Alchemy
As women, we can never have enough lipstick in our beauty arsenal. Yet, no matter how many we accumulate (which for me – is a lot), we are constantly searching for that perfect shade. Whether it be that shade of red that puts the fear of God in a man’s heart or the almost – yet not quite – black shade that makes you channel your inner Sanderson sister, we are on a constant hunt in the beauty jungle.
When a brand pops up on our radar, we cannot wait to try for ourselves. After we spend hours mulling over their site and looking up lipstick swatch reviews, we daydream about that one fine day when a package arrives at our doorstep. And if you’re smart, it will be postmarked from Alchemy Cosmetics.
Alchemy debuted in 2013 after creators Barbara Alcazar and Christina Hiatt met at a salon after being hired within a week of each other. Bonding over cut and color, they soon realized their new-found friendship had a common aesthetic – a love for lipstick.
Their brain child was born.
The debut line, Matte Originals, is a choice array of highly pigmented mattes that never fall flat or make your lips feel like they trekked across the Sahara desert. That’s because the soft textured lipsticks are chock-full of Vitamin E. Don’t let that fool you, each tube is long lasting and feels as good as it looks.
If you check out the website, Barbara and Christina have playfully named this group after street names and popular landmarks in their city of Bushwick, Brooklyn. I would buy ‘Myrtle Avenue Mermaid‘ off the name alone; however, it’s also the most beautiful periwinkle I’ve ever seen.
Don’t even get us started on their newest line, Luminescence glosses. They too feature fun names but they aren’t marked by streets or landmarks. Instead, these clear to bright glosses are named after passionate business owners at some of the best hangouts in Brooklyn. They’re very versatile in that they can be applied sheer or layered for a more pigmented color payoff. And who doesn’t love a versatile gloss that isn’t sticky?
Your eyes do not deceive you. These may be moisturizing but you’ll never play the ol’ hair stuck in gloss game as long as you have these on.
Mega bonus points because not only are these paraben free, they are also never tested on animals. Just willing people.
A brand based on remaining true to yourself that doesn’t test on animals gets an approved ‘A’ from us.
