Little Sparrow Cosmetics

http://www.etsy.com/shop/LittleSparrowCo

LOVE this shop! Little Sparrow's Lip Jelly lip and cheek tints are one of my favorite discoveries of 2013. Unlike most lip/cheek combo products, these feel fantastic on both lips and cheeks. Plus the owner is a total sweetheart. I can't wait to see what she comes out with next!

I posted swatches here: http://www.indieknow.net/2013/11/swatch-post-little-sparrow-cosmetics.html
I posted a company overview here: http://www.indieknow.net/2013/12/company-overview-little-sparrow.html

In my swatch post I mention that Guava Smoothie has an odd formula and it's the only product I wouldn't recommend, but I've already spoken with the owner about it and she says she's aware of the issue and working on a better formula.

Little Sparrow is amazing. The Lip Jellies are one of my favourite products, ever: beautiful colours and so moisturizing. I strongly recommend them.

Also, Jessica is super nice and accommodating and extremely generous. I purchased something during her Valentine's sale, and she sent me a message with some coupon codes for the shop because she hadn't been able to give free samples in many orders because of the rush on products.

I ordered 2 lip jellies, a lipstick and a blush during her Valentine's sale and I'm very glad I did. The shipping was extremely fast. My order got to me before the "ship by" date on etsy! The lipstick(Silver Medal) is crazy opaque. The lip jellies feel great on and look fantastic. They can be sheered out or built up to an intense level of color. The blush(lavender) looks amazing and is strangely wearable! The packaging for the blush is beyond cool. It has a sifter lid that can be closed, so you don't have to worry if the lid unscrews itself. I was a bit bummed at the lack of sample, but I understood that I DID order during an extremely busy time, plus she threw in a coupon code that she didn't have to! I can't wait to place another order

Just got my Little Sparrow order in! I ordered the whole Constants and Variables line. Super fast turnover (ordered the 21st (friday), shipped on the 24th (monday)) and she even upgraded the sample size I ordered of Columbian Sky to a mini size for free! The colors are beautiful and the descriptions on the website are very accurate. Will definitely order again. I want to try those lip jellies!

So I ordered from Little Sparrow during the sale over President's Day weekend and yesterday, I tried to use Gold Medal for the first time but it wouldn't twist up!

I contacted Jessica about it asking for advice and she responded promptly. She said she'll send me another one and to try microwaving it in the mean time, because the color might have just gotten stuck due to temperature.
I followed her advice and microwaved it (LPT: When microwaving lip stick/lip balm, let it sit in the microwave after it's done for a couple of minutes so you don't accidentally spill it everywhere and make a big mess like I did...) and it works!

I let her know of the success of her tip and she still said she'll send me a replacement because I shouldn't have to microwave it in the first place.
Her customer service is amazing. I already knew what a sweetheart she is from her posts on Reddit and I love her products but this really cinches it for me. It makes me a loyal customer. This is the first time I had trouble with an indie product itself (not the actual customer service side of it, looking at you Lumikki) and it was handled amazingly and quickly!

This is why I support indie. There may be a few bad eggs in the bunch but the ones that are good, are freaking gold.

The shipping on these is pretty good. Everything I've tried (mostly lip jellies) is really good quality. The lip jellies are moisturizing and give a nice, even color.

I like the packaging, the designs are cute.

Customer service - Jessica (/u/razzberrypi on reddit!) is super quick to respond to any queries and is really helpful. She's also frequently on the subreddit and doesn't just self-promote (in fact I've rarely seen self-promotion except when she's releasing a new collection) which is really nice. I've also found her receptive to feedback and product suggestions.

Turn-around-time - I placed an order on a Saturday past business hours, it shipped the following Tuesday, and was received on Saturday (a week from placing the order). I definitely consider them one of the faster indies.

Products - I've only tried the lip jellies which I really like. I think the term "jelly" is a bit misleading since in the tube it definitely isn't too jelly looking, probably more cream-jelly "crelly" territory. They're more of a tint although they do apply looking a bit wet and jelly-like but they dry down quickly enough.

The lip jellies can also be used as cream blushes which is actually my favorite use for them. Since they're sheer (a bit more pigmented than the Silk Naturals ones if you've tried those) it's really easy to apply. I dab them on straight to my cheek and blend with my fingers.

tl;dr - I highly recommend purchasing from Little Sparrow.

Little Sparrow has closed down, but will soon be available through DreamWorld Hermetica. It's unclear whether Jessica will still have a hand in making products or if she just gave all her recipes to DreamWorld owner Ellie, but either way, I'm grateful we'll still have access to them. Jessica, I wish you the very best <3