I’ve been keeping my eye on Archetype, and from what I hear is that orders are arriving within a week of being placed. Indeed, Jess’s order was placed and shipped within days as well, although it arrived with the DC# never having been scanned, which of course caused her to freak out that the hype was just hype. I was concerned that although she’d gotten shipping notice they hadn’t actually mailed anything.
Imagine my surprise when she came over with a nice sized order! Again it was well packed and contained several (five if I’m not mistaken) samples.
She ordered :
Fuchsia’s for Simon
Plastic Pink
Glass Coffin
Weeping Willow
Ash Flower
Soap Bubble
Integra’s Dog II
Artemisia
From top to bottom, left to right : Artemesia, Fuchsia’s For Simon, Plastic Pink, Glass Coffin, Weeping Willow, Soap Bubbles, Integra’s Dog II, and Ash Flower
I don’t know if it was because it wasn’t MY order and not the colors I would have picked, but for some reason I thought to look at the swatches on the site and compare them to the actual product. I’m sure it’s not surprising that many of them were very misrepresented.
Artemesia shows as an intense purple/pink and it’s actually a medium deep purple.
Soap Bubble shows green and it’s actually silvery and quite chunky.
Itengra’s Dog II shows as a nice bright red and it’s actually quite coppery.
Ash Flower shows as a soft wispy purple it’s actually a dingy grey.
I’m actually considering taking the product I have now and adding my own base in hopes to make them more wearable. As is they are fine, but as so many people note, they also tend to be glitter bombs. While using PE makes them perform well, I’d rather be able to have them be easier to work with. The colors themselves are really interesting. They are multifaceted, but obviously just straight mica and glitter blends. IMO this makes them more an ingredient then a product.
While orders are being shipped, emails are still not being answered. I hear ones regarding current orders are, in fact, quickly replied to when it comes to a matter of payment, however inquires about past and missing orders are ignored. No apology for the past problems or still unfulfilled orders has been made.
After much consideration as well as a few further orders and inquires I would say that I still do NOT recommend Archetype and would suggest if you order you do so knowing full well the problems of the past.
It’s not often that I buy something on Etsy and find myself disappointed. Sometimes I’m surprised when colors are off (I have a really good eye) but it’s usually a case of photography and creative photoshopping. I really thought I’d trained myself how to spot that sort of thing when looking at listings.
I can’t tell you how let down I was when I received my order from Funky Hair Clips.
I ordered an Anne Boleyn portrait hair clip. I always try to carefully observe the way things look, do I think it’s just glued together? Is it flimsy? Has the image been shopped? Looking at this one, as well as what appeared to be great feedback I felt confident in spending the 8$ on the clip. It seemed sort of expensive to me, which I admit, tricked me into thinking it was a quality item.
Shipping took a while, it took about two weeks to receive and it was mailed in a plain mailer, no invoice or anything else.
Looking at the photo in the listing it looks like a mini enameled portrait set into a metal button. Reading through all her listings they are exactly the same, so I assumed they were all cut and paste.
What I got was a shoddy hair clip that fell apart just after I took these photos and wore it.
What it is is a wood button painted silver, no. It’s not even silver it’s grey. It’s not even painted well. I saw in the listing it said each piece would be different.
Every clip is custom made at your order so what you receive may vary slightly from the sample shown – depending on the availability of findings and gaming pieces.
Typically on Etsy that means that something is HANDMADE, when an item is handmade there are variances from piece to piece, since it’s made by an individual not a machine. I didn’t take it to mean the piece would ACTUALLY be different. The portrait size on the barrette I received is much smaller then the one pictured.
What they’ve done is take this small painted button and wrap a silver twist tie through the button holes. Then they wraped it through the barrette to secure it, gluing a shoddily printed picture of Ann Boleyn over the ties and shellacking the whole thing over. The image of Ann is printed on thin paper and done so poorly it’s blurry. There is a lump under the image where the twist ties are and the shellac was done so sloppily it’s collected at the ends of the portrait and looks like dried school glue.
The barrette itself is so cheep it barely opens and closes and the second time I bent it closed it caused the button to rip off.
Although I am incredibly disappointed with this piece and feel it was literally junk, I don’t know if I should leave feedback about it. I’ve gone back to look at the feedback now, and it seems like in general people are alright with their items, so I worry it’s my impossibly high standards.
However, in no way shape or form do I recommend this seller to anyone.
ETA :
Apparently not only does this seller not leave feedback for it’s buyers, it prefers NO feedback to bad feedback.
If you have no thing nice to say, it’s probably because your product is junk…
ETA :
So often times a seller will get a negative feedback and come back with OMGYOUSHOULDHAVETOLDMEFIRSTIDHAVEFIXEDTHEPROBLEM. So I sent a small convo explaining I was unhappy and planning on leaving negative feedback. I’m going to wait for a reply (if I get one) before I post it.
After posting my initial review of Concrete Minerals (I keep wanting to call it Cement) the owner was concerned that the colors I’d reviewed were off, and she suggested she would send some full sizes of the colors I seemed to like the most. She seemed interested in getting opinions, both good and bad and I think she’s serious about taking them to heart and learning and growing her company. I admire that.
In the meantime, someone posted a look using Prude, so I debated with myself and lost, placing a second Concrete Minerals order for a Buy One Get One Free special (become a friend on Facebook and then make a note in the special listing), I bought Prude and got Daydream free.
Prude :
Pale shimmery pink.
Daydream :
Shimmery baby blue.
I also asked fora a sample of Strobelight :
Chrome silvery-blue.
Just after I placed the order the owner contacted me to let me know she’s actually just mailed two full sized jars of Mad Hatter and Detox. She also sent a small sample jar of her Electric Eye Primer. Each package was well wrapped, including an invoice as well as a personal note. As a new company I’m really pleased they are so concerned with customer service and not letting that aspect of the company fall behind while they create and develop new colors and products.
Sadly, I have to report that I wore my sample of Strobelight once before it disappeared. Mysteriously. Right after Jess was over. Although I hear it’s been happily living in her case and it’s being worn often. Just not by me, who really wanted it.
I was really impressed with her Primer, sadly it has beeswax (companies like Urban Decay are using synthetic versions in their primers, Two Faced doesn’t use it at all), or I could see myself buying this in a full size. I’m pretty sure it’s silicone based and it smoothed on amazingly and did a great job of making the colors stay and stay vibrant.
From top to bottom, left to right : Detox, Mad Hatter, Daydream, and Prude
I’m pretty much sold on Detox. I love this soft minty color. Taking a second look at it with a good primer on my eye, it is opaque when worn, and it’s really sort of stunning. Same with Daydream. I’ve been on a blue shadow kick for a while. It looked amazing with Strobelight, which I AM going to have to order again. Prude is a really sweet and soft color. While I’m not sure it’s the most unique color, the formula and the amount you get for 5.99$ makes it a great deal. I’ll admit, even though I am not a fan of Alice, Mad Hatter is a great color, I can see myself wearing this purple color often.
Would I purchase from Concrete Minerals again? Yes, I already did to work on this follow up, and I have a few colors in my cart again.
- I can see a lot of potential from this company, the owner pays attention to reviews and follows up. Great customer service makes ALL the difference.
- I’ve really liked the colors I’ve gotten. Although not very complex, they are well formulated and blended.
When I first saw this inspiration imagine I focused quickly on the shear ruffle-like quality of the tentacles. They were beautiful, soft, and feminine. I envisioned a look built around the elegance of those ruffles.
The pumps, Anda by Romantic Soles, are the perfect starting point. The strap swirls around as a soft ruffle, mimicking shapes in the tank. I paired them with simple opaque black tights so as to not draw attention away from the ruffles.
Seeing this fascinator, from Which Goose on Etsy, I knew I had to have it. The ribbons and embellishments perched on the top form soft loops, like the many arms of some dark octopus.
Following the sheer ruffled theme and completing the lady like look, I chose these fingerless gloves. I went with a more literal interpretation for the necklace, ordering this die cut acrylic Octopus from Untamed Menagerie.
Switching from the elegance of black I went with a soft, almost icy, blue for the eye. I used the inspiration of the blues in the tank, picking Aromaleigh Pure Eyes in Bluebell – a sheer light blue frost, Aromaleigh En Pointe in Serenade – a plush deep blue, and Aromaleigh Pure Eyes in Lillith an almost metallic blue lustre. I’d recommend a heavy, dramatic black liner, however, I’d skip a pointed wing. The look here is smooth and round, instead opt for wispy lashes. I chose a golden sheen instead of a blush for the check, Aromaleigh Illuminating Perle Powder in Allure, a soft champagne, to pay homage to the golden hue of the octopus in the tank. For the lip I’d recommend keeping it sheer, perhaps something with a soft and creamy, skip anything frosty or icy so the focus stays on the blue of the eye.
From left to right : Bluebell, Serenade, Lillith, and Allure
For a bit of whimsy on the nail, use Nfu-Oh in 054. It looks almost green in the bottle, but applied it a sheer blue with random flakes of icy blues.
After I posted the Eden Primer review, I’ve gotten lots of inquires about which eye primer I prefer and which I think works best. I figured that I’d sit and try some swatches out and see. It really depends on what I reach for in the morning as to what I usually use. I typically reserve the Paint Pot, however, for simple one shade looks, or when I want a naked eye, since IMO I don’t like to blend on it.
From top to bottom, left to right : Urban Decay Eden Primer, TFSI, UDPP, MAC Paint Pot in Painterly
I swatched Sugarpill Chromalust in Starling over all four primers.
- Looking at my hand I can tell you right now that the Paint Pot swatch is less vibrant, and it was difficult to swatch smoothly, the Paint Pot is a little thick and sticky for vibrant shadows. In fact the shadows looks dusty.
- The original UDPP and the TFSI both look about the same to me.
- I’m quite surprised that the Eden swatch came out the best. It’s the most vibrant and opaque.
Next I swatched something lighter, with a different finish. This is Pink Negligee an Eye Plush from Aromaleigh.
From top to bottom, left to right : Urban Decay Eden Primer, TFSI, UDPP, MAC Paint Pot in Painterly
- Again, the Paint Pot swatch is sort of subpar. The color isn’t as clear or ‘pink’.
- The TFSI swatch is very soft and delicate, showing off the plush finish and the light pink shade fairly well.
- The UDPP swatch is a little dull.
- The Eden, once again, shows off this shadow really well!
I applied each primer lightly and as evenly as possible in it’s square. I then applied the shadow with my finger, rubbing it in a small circle. I tried each time to be as consistent as possible. I have to admit I’m sort of surprises by looking at all four of them side by side that Eden seems to perform the best. As I suspected, the Paint Pot didn’t seem to perform as well as the others. It’s a great base for simple, unblended, and neutral shades. The UDPP and TFSI seemed to work the same, IMO, the TFSI did seem to make the shadows a little clearer and brighter, but it wasn’t all that much noticeable in the vivid shade. I would say the preference one over the other would be a personal.
