Sunday, October 12, 2014

Black to Rose-Gold Cat Eye

Once upon a time, I was trying to figure out how to do my eye makeup for my upcoming wedding. I thought I had decided on a black to rose-gold cat eye. Until I tried it.


Friday, August 15, 2014

Cat Eye + Hooded Eyes = :D

Hooded eyes are beautiful, but they present a serious challenge when trying to achieve any standard eyeshadow look. I have one partially hooded eye and one completely hooded eye, so I have to constantly adjust looks that I see out in the world to my eyeballs. It's not easy, but it is certainly fun.

Tuesday, August 12, 2014

Blue+

I woke up today in a mood that can only be described in either a complex arrangement of Emojis, or simply, "...?"


Like the great hero of our time, Wayne Goss said, "Make up is meditation for those who love it." So I asked myself: Why not turn this "...?" into an opportunity to mess around with colors I might not have touched before? The result was a blue halo eye.

Monday, July 14, 2014

All About Reds

If you spend some time in the cosmetics community, you will hear this drumbeat of "Everyone has a red."

It's true. Everyone does have a red!

But for lipstick fanatics, we don't have just one red. We have several. I went through my collection and compiled my favorite reds of all time.

Thursday, June 26, 2014

10 Minute Essentials: Drug Store vs. Mid-End Products

I am about as much of a fan of drug store products as I am of catching extra sleep in the morning--and wow that is saying a heck of a lot. My typical 10 minute essentials are a combination--nay, a fusion--of drug store and mid-end products that I just can't live without. I tried today, however, to see if I could stick to just drug store products for one 10 minute look and do the same for mid-end products. The result surprised me, which I'm a bit excited to share with you lovely folks.

Tuesday, June 24, 2014

Product Review: Lorac Couture Shine Liquid Lipstick in Glam





I can't be the only one who doesn't quite know where she fits in with this whole "nude lip" or "my lips but better" (MLBB) upswing that's been happening in the cosmetics community. My lips are naturally very pigmented which makes being able to pull off nude lips almost impossible--but I refuse to give up! The only product that has ever come close to a MLBB for me is this Lorac Couture Shine Liquid Lipstick in Glam. I find it kind of funny (funny-haha and funny-strange) that my natural lip color, when only slightly amplified, is called "Glam."


Pros:
  • The formula is quite thick and creamy which makes for an easy, smooth application. 
  • The color--for me--is quite subtle, so if you have pigmented lips and are just looking for a little extra OOMPH for the office or a job interview, I would say this is a great option.
  • The smell! It smells like burnt vanilla beans--almost like MAC lipsticks but not as sugary. This is more burnt sugar than fresh vanilla. 
  • The price. It's only $10 on Lorac's website.
Cons:
  • Goopiness. While the overall formula is nice, it does feel a bit goopy on the lips after it has been spread evenly post-application. Blotting and then dusting with translucent powder might help the goopiness factor. 
  • Doesn't have the longest wear time.
 Conclusion:
  • This is a great MLBB option for someone who wants to have a subtle splash of color on the lips and doesn't mind having to touch up every few hours.
This product has become a staple in my makeup bag and I reach for it often if I'm experimenting with different lip colors and I find that the one I have on just isn't working for me. It works with so many looks (smokey eyes, subtle eyes, bold eyes) and can easily be worn with just mascara and blush if you're having a day where you just want to look slightly polished but not go through the trouble of putting on 10 different products.

Monday, June 23, 2014

Product Review: NYX Mega Shine Lip Gloss in Dolly Pink




Lip products are my absolute favorite cosmetic item; overflowing drawers on my dressing table can attest to this fact. Lip glosses, though, have just never been my jam. Since I was a kid, I found lip glosses to be sticky and irritating and a constant hair trap. Not cute. But I've been trying to branch out a bit and see if there are any lip glosses out there that give a nice shine without turning your lips into a tar pit.

Pros:
  • The color. If you've ever wanted a Barbie pink that won't be too shockingly bright on pale skin, you'll be into this for sure. It's incredibly bright but perfect for a day where you want to look put together without trying too hard. Think: sunglasses and lip gloss while running errands.
  • The formula itself is fantastic; it doesn't cling to lip flakes. 
  • Super smooth application--no pulling or tugging at the lips.
  • The price! It's only $4.99.
Cons:
  • The smell. Wow. It reminds me of the bubblegum flavored liquid antibiotics that you get prescribed when you're a kid. It's very sweet but also smells extremely clinical. Thankfully, when the gloss dries down, the smell disappears. If you're sensitive to smells, you might want to hold your breath while applying this.
Conclusion:
  • The pros here definitely out way the cons. I can handle the momentary nostalgia of pneumonia-tic youth for this intense color payoff.

I'm not one to stay 100% within seasonal trends (anytime is a good time for a bold lip, I always say), but summer generally tends to be when folks wear brighter colors the most. Dolly Pink is a solid item to have in your collection for those days that you want to be bold, but not too overboard or overdone. Stay tuned for more lip gloss reviews as I sort through my collection!


Sunday, June 22, 2014

Dupes: MAC's Dangerous & Maybelline's Vibrant Mandarin

On the left side of my lips (top and bottom): Maybelline's Vibrant Mandarin
On the right side of my lips (top and bottom): MAC's Dangerous


Here we have the ultimate smackdown of summertime lip products: MAC's Dangerous ($16) and Maybelline's Vibrant Mandarin ($7.50). Orange and orange-y reds are beautiful for summer and fall and one of my go-to lipstick colors that work for many outfits and occasions. Bright orange is, obviously, on the bolder side but if you're used to nudes and neutrals, orange is one of the easiest ways to transition to bold lipsticks because it compliments so many skin tones. MAC's Dangerous was the first MAC lipsticks I ever purchased and it has been a solid favorite for months--but the formula can be difficult to work with if your lips aren't prepped properly. And, let's be honest, who is going to sit there and exfoliate their lips at 6:30am instead of hitting the snooze button a few more times. (Spoiler alert: Not this girl.)

So, enter Maybelline's Vibrant Mandarin. The color, as you can see in the picture, is almost identical to Dangerous. The finish, however, is the major kicker here. Dangerous is matte which makes it long wearing and transfer resistant. Vibrant Mandarin, on the other hand, is a bit glossier but without the shimmery sparkle frost that some drugstore lipsticks tend to have.

Creamier, glossier lipsticks tend to transfer a bit more, so Vibrant Mandarin won't be the best choice if you're looking for something that you don't have to touch up every 3-4 hours. But if you're after a lipstick with a soft texture that isn't drying (or moisturizing either), then this is a good option at a fraction of the cost of Dangerous.


Product Review: Lancôme's Teint Idole + Becca's Shimmering Skin Perfector in Opal


Most vampire-pale skinned cosmetics aficionados know that finding a match for your skintone is nigh impossible: most foundations are either too dark, too warm or too cool.  I was color matched to N100 which means that my undertone leans neither yellow or pink but smack in the middle of the lightest color that Lancôme makes. On it’s own, Tient Idole blends beautifully into skin with medium-to-full coverage. It also leaves a matte finish--perfect for someone with combination-to-oily skin who’s looking for a kind of a “my skin but better” effect; or someone with dry skin who needs a liquid foundation that doesn’t cling to and accentuate dry patches. It’s also stellar for maturing skin since it doesn’t settle into pores or fine lines but instead glides over imperfections to slightly blur them. My skin swings wildly between combination to dry depending on the season, so finding a foundation that can accommodate my skin’s ever changing drama was a breakthrough: no other foundation that I’ve tried--from drug store to department store--has been able to achieve the results I got from Teint Idole.


Packaging + Swatches
Top swatch: Unblended
Bottom swatch: Slightly blended

As an everyday foundation, you can’t really get much better than this. I originally thought that because it was a department store product, I would have to shell out upwards of $60 (think Yves Saint Laurent’s Touche Éclait or Giorgio Armani’s Luminous Silk). But I was wrong. Happily wrong. Coming in at only $45.50, Teint Idole is one of the most reasonably priced department store foundations out there for the wear time, shade range and finish.

Then, we have Becca’s Shimmering Skin Perfector. I’m not gonna lie--I was a bit skeptical of luminizers on pale skin: I’m already so pale that I practically glow anyway by accident. But I received this product in the shade Opal as a sample (regular price is $41 from Sephora and Becca's website) and figured I might as well put my skepticism to the test.

When I first measured out a pea-size of the the Skin Perfector, I wasn’t sure that it was going to mix well into my foundation. It’s a medium-toned peach liquid with gold flecks and a slightly runny consistency. That alone did not bode well for mixing. The directions for wearing luminizers, though, are all different: some suggest to wear them alone as a base, or to strategically place it and wear it as a highlighter, or mix it in with foundation. I opted for the latter since I thought that it would give me the most subtle results despite my reservations about its ability to completely mix together.

I was completely blown away.

The peach luminizer absorbed into the foundation when I mixed them together and it left a beautiful glow on my skin that Tient Idole just didn’t give on its own. Even in artificial light, I could tell a difference between the typical matte results I usually get from Teint Idole and the amplified version that I achieved from adding the Skin Perfector. 

In direct sunlight, the results are even better. Luminizers contain light-reflecting particles that bounce light off the skin which creates the illusion of a healthy glow. Basically: it’s science that looks like wizardry.
Indoor Experiment Exhibit A: Me and my mother at graduation
Results: Glowy skin in indoor lighting without looking like an oil slick.

I have a feeling I’ll be wearing these two together for a long time.