Note- This feature touches on a lot of issues for me and may include what you consider TMI, whether physical or emotional. Harassing comments will be deleted.
Another week without a real post. The same family member who was in the hospital last month is back in again. Since Wednesday things have been pretty hectic around here. Wednesday was a serious challenge for me while he was being admitted. At one point I drove home with 5 donuts and I didn't eat ANY of them! One of the things I love about a Weight Watchers-style program is that I can have a donut if I really want one and still balance it out. I was tempted by them, but I knew it wasn't the taste of a donut I wanted, but the comfort. I'm trying not to eat like that anymore. I treated myself that night by buying a watermelon and just going nuts on that instead.
Saturday, June 29, 2013
Friday, June 28, 2013
DIY: Pressing Loose Eyeshadows
I love eyeshadow. It's so sparkly and happy. I have tons and tons of Bare Minerals loose eyeshadow...but I hardly ever wear them. I've never been fond of loose eyeshadow. It's messy and the color payoff is often less-than-awesome. So when I found this tutorial on Pinterest, I was over the moon with joy. Finally, a way to turn my pretty-but-basically-useless loose shadows into something I can actually use! Plus, I can get a palette to store these in and save myself some room!
I pretty much followed the tutorial, but here is my rundown. For science and all.
Step 1.
Assemble your supplies!
Loose shadow (from my Ipsy bag)
Penny for pressing
Two pipettes
Clean, empty pan
toothpick for stirring
(Not pictured: paper towels, alcohol, and glycerin)
Step 2:
Pour/shake a fair amount of the shadow into a bowl. Don't be dumb and do it on a plate like I did. Add a (very) few drops of glycerin* and stir. You kinda want it clumpy.
 |
| see, clumpy. This would have been way easier in a bowl. |
Step 3:
Add alcohol and stir until you have a paste. Without a bowl, this is the most fun part! You don't have to be as exact with this step, as the alcohol will evaporate. The more alcohol you use, the longer the drying time will be. But you want to use enough that you saturate all of the clumpy powder. Then spoon/scoop it into your pan. You might have to add another drop or two of alcohol to help it spread.
 |
| now we wait. 24-48 hours. Yeah. Totally gonna happen. No way will I be poking at it an hour later. Nope. |
Step 4:
Cover with a bit of paper towel and press. And press. And press. Bascially, this step is exactly the same as fixing a broken eyeshadow. Keep pressing with a clean, dry bit of paper towel until there is very little alcohol coming out. (it's worth mentioning that a square pan and a round penny don't make the best fellows when it comes to pressing. But it was all I had. I made some purple lip balm out of an eyeshadow a while back, so I had an empty pan...and we know I don't throw things away.)
Finished Product:
I'm super happy with how this turned out. It was a 30 minute project, max. It isn't the prettiest thing I've ever done, but it's perfectly serviceable. I definitely want to do this with all my loose shadows. I might even mix a few and create custom colors. The possibilities are nearly endless!
Swatches! The most important part!
I did notice that the color changed a bit after pressing. The shadow has a decidedly more peach tone to it. I'm actually happy about that, as frosty pink doesn't really work for me these days. These swatches were done while it was still a bit damp, so the color might be different tomorrow.
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| in my lightbox. L: pressed R: loose |
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| Sunshine! L: pressed R: loose |
Thursday, June 27, 2013
When in Doubt, Add Glitter
Presenting the World's Fastest Manicure. Ok, not really. But it was pretty quick for me: start-to-finish it was less than 45 minutes of work, including dry times. Whenever I'm in a time crunch, I always turn to the polishes with the best formula...and glitter. Glitter makes everything better, no matter how much I hate removing it later.
Fingerpaints brand has always been good to me. I've never had a bad bottle. This is three coats, but if I had slowed down a bit, I probably could have done two and been fine. I added two coats of glitter to my ring and middle fingers, because I can't abide solid nail colors anymore. I do love this glitter. It's almost perfectly smooth under a normal topcoat which makes me ridiculously happy. Plus, this stuff is like wearing a tiny disco ball on my nails. Who doesn't love that?
Colors Used:
Fingerpaints Tiffany Imposter
Essie Set in Stones
Wednesday, June 26, 2013
L.A. Girl 3D Silver and Black Illusion
This was that big post that would have been up on Friday. I got absurdly sick on Thursday night while I was writing it and I only just started feeling ok again on Monday night. Hooray for stomach flu. Three of the four of us got it. It even made my partner a little sick, which is rare. Nothing tastes as good as the first normal thing you eat after a weekend like I had, and the pulled chicken sandwich I had for dinner was heavenly. This post got pushed back again because of what I found yesterday. I recovered just in time, it seems. So happy to be back swatching again. I went FOUR days with naked nails. Horrible!
I posted my picks from the L.A. Girl 3D Effect collection back in....holy crap that was March! I kept getting drawn back to the dwindling displays at Rite Aid stores and I wound up buying 3D Silver and Black Illusion too, despite having likely dupes. I'm such a sucker for scattered holos! My ancient camera doesn't do the best job with them though. Some of these are far from my best photos. Sorry!
Black Illusion has a black jelly base with large holo particles.
I love twists on classic black. Sure, you can layer a holographic top coat over black, but it just isn't the same. Two outstandingly smooth, easy coats of Black Illusion have a depth that layering just can't match. I did a comparison of top coat over black vs black scattered holo in my review of Zoya Storm.
It's not the boldest thing ever in natural light indoors, but the soft rainbow effect is still pretty. I said it before, but if you're somewhere sunny, these would be amazing! I'll just have to wiggle my fingers under my little LED lamp. And wiggle I shall!
I knew this was going to be a dupe for Zoya Storm, but I bought it anyway. I'm a sucker. Total sucker. I don't even mind. The really funny part is that Black Illusion and Storm are such strong dupes that I'm not really sure who's who in my comparison! Curse you again, stomach flu.
I didn't make a note and it's been almost a week since I took this photo, so I'm just completely stumped. One nail has Storm and the rest are Black Illusion. I wanna say that Storm's on my middle, but it might be the ring. I really think Storm is the middle because the particles are very slightly smaller.
3D Silver is large holo particles in a clear base.
It's really more of a topcoat than a stand-alone polish, so I wore it over Wet N Wild Silvivor. This is one coat of 3D Silver over three coats of Silvivor. The effect isn't the boldest, having almost a pastel look, especially in natural light indoors.
I'm not sure I'd wear it over a silver base again. There's so much more you can do with a scattered holo top coat. It is pretty though, and very summery in a way.
I did do one nail of it on its own. Far too sheer for my taste.
Bottom Line: Your chances of finding these in a Rite Aid are getting slim, but it's worth a look. Some Rite Aid stores around here have what's left of this collection on clearance, but it varies store to store. I own five of the eight shades and I'd recommend them all. The formulas are especially great.
....but wait...there's more! I own so many scattered holo or holo glitter top coats that I decided to compare eight of them over black to show the differences. Some of them are available at pretty much any drugstore, others are long gone, but I figured it was worth contrasting a bunch. I have a few more, I think, but eight is plenty for now. First up are the less dense glitters, followed by denser glitters and scattered holos. The end result of very fine holo glitters is similar to scattered holos, but not *quite* the same. The biggest difference is that glitters have uniform shapes and sizes as opposed to the irregular shapes and sizes of holo particles. Glitters don't dry as smoothly though. Both comparisons are one coat of each polish.
I never like to give bad reviews, but I'm really dissatisfied with Orly Shine On Crazy Diamond. It's so watery and sparse. It also has a stronger smell than any other Orly I own. Makes me wonder if I got a bad bottle or something. Wet n Wild Kaleidoscope is the only one of these eight with varying sizes of glitter. It's worth the 99c it costs. FingerPaints Sparkle And Snowflake is dense yet goes on smooth and is one of my favorites of this type...but it was LE last xmas and your chances of finding it are getting slim. Nicole by OPI Wink Of Twink layered way better than I thought it would.
Piggy Polish Glitter-azzi was my favorite holo topper, and I still really like it. It was an Ulta clearance bin find last summer. It has the same xmas lights twinkle as Sparkle And Snowflake, but larger and not as dense. L.A. Girl 3D Silver is great for layering! Wow! The holo particles are very large and bold. It also applies very smoothly and evenly. OPI DS Corronation has much smaller particles, so the flash isn't as strong. I think it looks better over lighter bases because it covers so densely. Nicole by OPI Make A Comet-ment is my favorite holo glitter. This is just one coat and it's so intense and sparkly! It's from a few years ago, but I found it at Five Below a few months back.
These four are all so great in their own ways that I think they deserve to be seen at another angle. The rainbows are much more obvious this way.
Bottom Line: 3D Silver can absolutely hold its own among my collection. It's that perfect balance, dense enough to only need one coat, but not so dense that it obscures the base color. It has a major advantage over the glitters because its flatter particles don't need as much top coat to smooth out. I'm very impressed!
Two bottom lines in one post? I couldn't think of another way to do it! I have another comparison post coming up soon and it's just as sparkly. See you then!
I posted my picks from the L.A. Girl 3D Effect collection back in....holy crap that was March! I kept getting drawn back to the dwindling displays at Rite Aid stores and I wound up buying 3D Silver and Black Illusion too, despite having likely dupes. I'm such a sucker for scattered holos! My ancient camera doesn't do the best job with them though. Some of these are far from my best photos. Sorry!
Black Illusion has a black jelly base with large holo particles.
 |
| LED light |
I love twists on classic black. Sure, you can layer a holographic top coat over black, but it just isn't the same. Two outstandingly smooth, easy coats of Black Illusion have a depth that layering just can't match. I did a comparison of top coat over black vs black scattered holo in my review of Zoya Storm.
 |
| natural light |
It's not the boldest thing ever in natural light indoors, but the soft rainbow effect is still pretty. I said it before, but if you're somewhere sunny, these would be amazing! I'll just have to wiggle my fingers under my little LED lamp. And wiggle I shall!
 |
| LED light - *wiggle wiggle wiggle* (See? I do have thumbs!) |
I knew this was going to be a dupe for Zoya Storm, but I bought it anyway. I'm a sucker. Total sucker. I don't even mind. The really funny part is that Black Illusion and Storm are such strong dupes that I'm not really sure who's who in my comparison! Curse you again, stomach flu.
 |
| LED light |
I didn't make a note and it's been almost a week since I took this photo, so I'm just completely stumped. One nail has Storm and the rest are Black Illusion. I wanna say that Storm's on my middle, but it might be the ring. I really think Storm is the middle because the particles are very slightly smaller.
3D Silver is large holo particles in a clear base.
 |
| over Wet n Wild Silvivor - LED lighting |
It's really more of a topcoat than a stand-alone polish, so I wore it over Wet N Wild Silvivor. This is one coat of 3D Silver over three coats of Silvivor. The effect isn't the boldest, having almost a pastel look, especially in natural light indoors.
 |
| over Wet n Wild Silvivor - natural light indoors |
I'm not sure I'd wear it over a silver base again. There's so much more you can do with a scattered holo top coat. It is pretty though, and very summery in a way.
 |
| over Wet n Wild Silvivor - direct sunlight |
I did do one nail of it on its own. Far too sheer for my taste.
 |
| LED lighting |
Bottom Line: Your chances of finding these in a Rite Aid are getting slim, but it's worth a look. Some Rite Aid stores around here have what's left of this collection on clearance, but it varies store to store. I own five of the eight shades and I'd recommend them all. The formulas are especially great.
....but wait...there's more! I own so many scattered holo or holo glitter top coats that I decided to compare eight of them over black to show the differences. Some of them are available at pretty much any drugstore, others are long gone, but I figured it was worth contrasting a bunch. I have a few more, I think, but eight is plenty for now. First up are the less dense glitters, followed by denser glitters and scattered holos. The end result of very fine holo glitters is similar to scattered holos, but not *quite* the same. The biggest difference is that glitters have uniform shapes and sizes as opposed to the irregular shapes and sizes of holo particles. Glitters don't dry as smoothly though. Both comparisons are one coat of each polish.
 |
| I-Orly Shine On Crazy Diamond * M-Wet n Wild Kaleidoscope R-FingerPaints Sparkle And Snowflake * P-Nicole By OPI Wink Of Twink |
I never like to give bad reviews, but I'm really dissatisfied with Orly Shine On Crazy Diamond. It's so watery and sparse. It also has a stronger smell than any other Orly I own. Makes me wonder if I got a bad bottle or something. Wet n Wild Kaleidoscope is the only one of these eight with varying sizes of glitter. It's worth the 99c it costs. FingerPaints Sparkle And Snowflake is dense yet goes on smooth and is one of my favorites of this type...but it was LE last xmas and your chances of finding it are getting slim. Nicole by OPI Wink Of Twink layered way better than I thought it would.
 |
| I-Piggy Polish Glitter-azzi * M-L.A. Girl 3D Silver R-OPI DS Coronation * P-Nicole by OPI Make A Comet-ment |
Piggy Polish Glitter-azzi was my favorite holo topper, and I still really like it. It was an Ulta clearance bin find last summer. It has the same xmas lights twinkle as Sparkle And Snowflake, but larger and not as dense. L.A. Girl 3D Silver is great for layering! Wow! The holo particles are very large and bold. It also applies very smoothly and evenly. OPI DS Corronation has much smaller particles, so the flash isn't as strong. I think it looks better over lighter bases because it covers so densely. Nicole by OPI Make A Comet-ment is my favorite holo glitter. This is just one coat and it's so intense and sparkly! It's from a few years ago, but I found it at Five Below a few months back.
These four are all so great in their own ways that I think they deserve to be seen at another angle. The rainbows are much more obvious this way.
 |
| I-Piggy Polish Glitter-azzi * M-L.A. Girl 3D Silver R-OPI DS Coronation * P-Nicole by OPI Make A Comet-ment |
Bottom Line: 3D Silver can absolutely hold its own among my collection. It's that perfect balance, dense enough to only need one coat, but not so dense that it obscures the base color. It has a major advantage over the glitters because its flatter particles don't need as much top coat to smooth out. I'm very impressed!
Two bottom lines in one post? I couldn't think of another way to do it! I have another comparison post coming up soon and it's just as sparkly. See you then!
New Haircut!
I'm pretty sure I have hair ADD. I can't seem to keep a style or color for very long these days. For years, I never did anything differently...but then I started losing my hair. Now I want to try everything while I can, even though my hair is beginning to grow back in.
I think this will be pretty easy to style most days, though variation might be hard to come by. I picked up some Sumotech by Bumble and Bumble for texture and hold. It is light enought for my thin hair, but still gives structure and life. Hopefully the wee tub will last me a while, since that stuff runs almost $30.
I may let the front grow longer, and keep the sides and back short. Or I might go all the way pixie next time. And of course, the color will not stay for longer than a few weeks. I'm kinda liking the more subtle blue. I used a Paul Mitchell Inkworks semi-permanent color in Blue. I'm not sure how well it'll hold onto my hair, compared to the Ion color I used previously. We'll see. It's only hair ;)
This is how I looked when I got home...
thanks to a misty and breezy summer day:
Brushed back
All wonky
Back to normal
I think this will be pretty easy to style most days, though variation might be hard to come by. I picked up some Sumotech by Bumble and Bumble for texture and hold. It is light enought for my thin hair, but still gives structure and life. Hopefully the wee tub will last me a while, since that stuff runs almost $30.
I may let the front grow longer, and keep the sides and back short. Or I might go all the way pixie next time. And of course, the color will not stay for longer than a few weeks. I'm kinda liking the more subtle blue. I used a Paul Mitchell Inkworks semi-permanent color in Blue. I'm not sure how well it'll hold onto my hair, compared to the Ion color I used previously. We'll see. It's only hair ;)
Tuesday, June 25, 2013
NEW Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Beach Brights
This never happens. At Rite Aid this morning I found a display so new that the only thing I could find about it online was the press release. I bought three of the TEN new shades and in what for me is record speed, I have swatches for you already.
Since I couldn't find images of the display, here's the one I took.
The shade names L-R are Razz-Berry, Lemon Zest, Blueberry Blast, Pink-Grape Fruit, Berry Juicy, Ice Pop, Kiwi Bikini, Peach Beach, Pinch Of Punch, and Perfect Pear-ing. Finish-wise there's a little something for everyone, a mix of creams and shimmers, plus two sheer toppers. Anyone who knows me can guess which three I got.
Ice Pop is a clear topper with a mix of small gold and iridescent glitter backed up by tiny silvery microfleck shimmer.
Sally Hansen has made so many toppers with slight twists and variations. I will buy pretty much all of them. Ice Pop is like a clear-based sister of Teal-y Cool. It has the same iridescent glitter, but also has gold glitter and the shimmer is icy instead of gold. The clear base also makes it more versatile for layering. I'm completely smitten, but then I love layering options. This is one coat of Ice Pop over Jungle Gem from the Complete Salon Manicure core line. I also mattified it because I'm me.
Pink-Grape Fruit has a lilac-tinted base filled with dense gold-to-fuchsia fleck shimmer.
There are strong resemblances here too, not just within the Sally Hansen family. Pink-Grape Fruit (yes, really) reminds me of Orly High On Hope with the base color drained most of the way out. The base isn't a jelly, it's only tinted. It's also like an amplified version of Aisle Be There from the Diamond Strength core line. This is two coats over Resurrection, one of the LE Designer Collection shades (which will get a review on here soon). One coat is a bit subtle for my tastes.
The impressive thing here? Both photos of this combo are without any top coat. So shiny! I mattified this too, of course.
It really pops amazingly in the right light. I love this combo so much!
See what I mean about it being like High On Hope? I'm getting the layerer's impulse to put this over everything. Love it so much! One more...
Kiwi Bikini is a blue-green cream.
Not even kinda. Miles from the actual color. I knew this was gonna happen. I swatched a very similar shade, Maybelline Urban Utopia (another "coming soon") last week and had all of the same issues. My camera just fails utterly. I think there's something about the pigment that's weird. Both bleed green a bit when you apply top coat and both totally bewilder my camera. This photo makes it look teal. It's not. It's considerably greener and brighter than any photo I could manage. This next photo is closer, but still not right. Makes me look a weird(er) color too.
Now on the the other problem. These photos are one thick coat, because that's how it was applying. It bubbled. Badly. It's probably fixable with thinner or very cautious application, but I didn't try either. It's a very cool shade, but between the application and photographic issues I was cursing its name a little.
Bottom Line: I'll give my vote to most layering polishes, but Ice Pop and Pink-Grape Fruit are so smooth, even, and shine like crazy even before top coat. If you're a layering freak like me, I think you need them! Kiwi Bikini is a great color (but not the one you see here...*sigh*), but it's thick and I had trouble with bubbling. If you like any of these shades, grab them when you see them because there are only two of each per display.
Friday's BIG post was going to be yesterday...and then it was going to be today. It WILL be tomorrow (probably) and it will have lots of holo rainbows.
Since I couldn't find images of the display, here's the one I took.
The shade names L-R are Razz-Berry, Lemon Zest, Blueberry Blast, Pink-Grape Fruit, Berry Juicy, Ice Pop, Kiwi Bikini, Peach Beach, Pinch Of Punch, and Perfect Pear-ing. Finish-wise there's a little something for everyone, a mix of creams and shimmers, plus two sheer toppers. Anyone who knows me can guess which three I got.
Ice Pop is a clear topper with a mix of small gold and iridescent glitter backed up by tiny silvery microfleck shimmer.
 |
| over Jungle Gem |
Sally Hansen has made so many toppers with slight twists and variations. I will buy pretty much all of them. Ice Pop is like a clear-based sister of Teal-y Cool. It has the same iridescent glitter, but also has gold glitter and the shimmer is icy instead of gold. The clear base also makes it more versatile for layering. I'm completely smitten, but then I love layering options. This is one coat of Ice Pop over Jungle Gem from the Complete Salon Manicure core line. I also mattified it because I'm me.
 |
| over Jungle Gem, mattified |
Pink-Grape Fruit has a lilac-tinted base filled with dense gold-to-fuchsia fleck shimmer.
 |
| over Resurrection |
There are strong resemblances here too, not just within the Sally Hansen family. Pink-Grape Fruit (yes, really) reminds me of Orly High On Hope with the base color drained most of the way out. The base isn't a jelly, it's only tinted. It's also like an amplified version of Aisle Be There from the Diamond Strength core line. This is two coats over Resurrection, one of the LE Designer Collection shades (which will get a review on here soon). One coat is a bit subtle for my tastes.
 |
| over Resurrection |
The impressive thing here? Both photos of this combo are without any top coat. So shiny! I mattified this too, of course.
 |
| over Resurrection, mattified |
It really pops amazingly in the right light. I love this combo so much!
 |
| over Resurrection, mattified |
See what I mean about it being like High On Hope? I'm getting the layerer's impulse to put this over everything. Love it so much! One more...
 |
| over Resurrection, mattified |
Kiwi Bikini is a blue-green cream.
 |
| COMPLETELY color-inaccurate |
Not even kinda. Miles from the actual color. I knew this was gonna happen. I swatched a very similar shade, Maybelline Urban Utopia (another "coming soon") last week and had all of the same issues. My camera just fails utterly. I think there's something about the pigment that's weird. Both bleed green a bit when you apply top coat and both totally bewilder my camera. This photo makes it look teal. It's not. It's considerably greener and brighter than any photo I could manage. This next photo is closer, but still not right. Makes me look a weird(er) color too.
 |
| color-inaccurate, but close-ish |
Now on the the other problem. These photos are one thick coat, because that's how it was applying. It bubbled. Badly. It's probably fixable with thinner or very cautious application, but I didn't try either. It's a very cool shade, but between the application and photographic issues I was cursing its name a little.
Bottom Line: I'll give my vote to most layering polishes, but Ice Pop and Pink-Grape Fruit are so smooth, even, and shine like crazy even before top coat. If you're a layering freak like me, I think you need them! Kiwi Bikini is a great color (but not the one you see here...*sigh*), but it's thick and I had trouble with bubbling. If you like any of these shades, grab them when you see them because there are only two of each per display.
Friday's BIG post was going to be yesterday...and then it was going to be today. It WILL be tomorrow (probably) and it will have lots of holo rainbows.
Look of the Day: Ariel Envy
The Disney palettes from Sephora are all the rage right now. Ariel is the newest (and last) princess to get her own palette. The steep $55 price tag is a little out of my range. So I decided to make my own look with what I had at home. It's my first try at all-over color, and I'm pretty pleased with how it turned out.
Products Used:
Eyes:
Too Faced Shadow Insurance
NYX Perpetual Shadow trio (I used the green.)
The Wet'n'Wild Octopus palette ( I used the darker turquoise)
Bare Minerals Flawless Definition Volumizing mascara
Bare Minerals brow powder in Brunette
Covergirl Liquidline Blast eyeliner in Blackfire
Face:
Smashbox Photo Finish Primer in Green
Bare Minerals Original foundation in Fair
Bare Minerals concealer in Bisque
Bare Minerals duo blush+warmth thing (I've had it forever)
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| it looks so subtle. I felt like I was wearing a ton! |
 |
| Obligatory four-eyed picture |
 |
| pretty proud of my eyes here |
Things I have learned thus far:
Tightlining your eyes is annoying. And it tickles. But it makes a difference in looks like this. Without at least lining the bottom waterline, the whole look felt unfinished.
I can fill my eyebrows in heavier than I think I should. It still looks acceptable. I need to learn to not be afraid of makeup.
My eyelashes do not curl. No matter what. I can accept that.
I do not see my face as it is in reality. I felt like I was wearing a ton of makeup. I looked in the mirror at home and thought "ohgod, am I really gonna go out like this?" But in the light of day, and behind my glasses, it really wasn't overdone. And I got compliments on it. I should ignore myself.
It's ok to wear color under the lower lashes. It's about the only thing I see once I have the glasses on.
Monday, June 24, 2013
Ipsy Bag: June!
I'm still loving Ipsy, though this month was less-than-awesome for me personally. (And a HUGE thanks to whichever of you used my referral link and scored me the neat bracelet. I consider it my official internet birthday present, and I love it!)
Contents:
Starlooks Lip Pencil in Tickle Me Pink
NYX Mosaic Powder in Dare
J.Cat Sparkling Cream Palette
Cailyn Cosmetics Line Fix Gel Eyeliner with built-in brush in Iron
J.Cat Beauty Eyelashes and glue
(and my lovely bracelet from Baublebar!)
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| everything all together. It looked kinda awesome! |
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| L to R: eyeliner, lip liner, and blush |
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| glitter palette. NOT FOR EYES! |
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| The lip liner + a little rosebud salve. I actually like it. |
 |
| The liner disassembled. |
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| god, I love the look of an untouched pot |
My thoughts:
The cream glitter palette: holy cow. If I were 12, this might be awesome. My 6 year old thought it was cool. If this isn't meant for eyes, where am I going to realisticly wear body glitter this dark? I may try it through my brow, if I ever get around to doing something crazier.
The eyeliner: I was actually intrigued by this product when I learned it was coming. I've been trying to try out different types of liner lately, and the all-in-oneness of this appealed to me. BUT the liner isn't very opaque, and the brush is so scratchy as to be unusable. I might still give it a go, with another liner brush. I do like dark gray eyeliner.
The Lip liner: I was hoping to get the more nude color, but I got the pink. I'm not sorry. I think it'll be great under loads of lipsticks, and I even like it by itself. It retails for $12, so this is definitely a welcome addition to my bag.
The Blush: meh. Its a little orangey for me, I think. My face is so red, I'm not overly fond of blush anyway. But I do like the idea of the mosaic, and I definitely love NYX. I bet this would be really pretty with a sun-kissed kind of look.
I actually haven't had reason to try the lashes, but one of these days I will. I've never worn false lashes before, so I can't really give an opinion. But in the interests of climbing out of my comfort zone when it comes to makeup, I'll have to make the husband take me out so I can get dolled up.
Saturday, June 22, 2013
Slimdown Saturday - Progress and Setbacks
...this is blank. Not sure what happened. I wrote it at work last night and tried to publish it from a mobile app which seems to have eaten it. I'll rewrite it at work tonight. The basics are that I lost 7.5lbs this week for a total of 20 since March 29th. I have a stomach flu or something. I'm going back to bed.
Friday, June 21, 2013
Practice Makes Perfect
My eldest spawn is a ballerina. She has a BIG recital this weekend, and I figured I should probably practice the makeup. It's a little more involved this year than in previous years. Before, all I had to do was put a little brown eyeshadow through her brows, pink lipstick, and a touch of blush...this year there was "serious makeup" to be done. I received this video for instruction. (It's not the best quality. Bascially it's a gold eye with a dark v and an exaggerated cat eye.)
I think I need to use a different black, as Creep is quite soft and blends into a gray pretty easily. I'm sure I have one somewhere, possibly in the Octopus Palette. I didn't use a primer this time, as this was just practice, but I will definitely next time. Maybe NYX white eyeshadow base? I really want the gold to POP on her, and it seems pretty muted. I also didn't use the tape method, as I don't like the idea of sticking tape to her face. I saw this video a while back, and it works just as well.
 |
| can we take a moment to appreciate how even the liner is? |
Products Used:
Virgin, Smog, Half Baked, and Creep From the Urban Decay Naked Palette
Random Calvin Klein liner pen
Benefit Watts Up!
Sally Hansen Natural Beauty Cream Blush in Beaming
Buxom lip gloss in Laura
TheBalm Staniac lip stain
I think I need to use a different black, as Creep is quite soft and blends into a gray pretty easily. I'm sure I have one somewhere, possibly in the Octopus Palette. I didn't use a primer this time, as this was just practice, but I will definitely next time. Maybe NYX white eyeshadow base? I really want the gold to POP on her, and it seems pretty muted. I also didn't use the tape method, as I don't like the idea of sticking tape to her face. I saw this video a while back, and it works just as well.
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| She's pretty happy about wearing makeup. |
Thursday, June 20, 2013
Maybelline Clearly Spotted and Drops Of Jade
Maybelline's new Polka Dots collection first appeared in the UK (though theirs is a bit different) a few months ago. It's not officially out in the US until July, but a tip from cyndiinphilly on Makeupalley's Nail Board sent me running to Wegmans (Northeast regional supermarket) to get my hands on it early. The display was almost empty, down to just one of most shades, but I bought the two I was there for. I have a very strong hunch that these new shades will be added to Maybelline's Color Show core line. The display doesn't say they're limited edition and neither do the labels! Here's hoping!
Clearly Spotted has three sizes of black and white hexagonal glitter and tiny round black and white glitter in a clear base.
Just a few weeks ago I was geeking out over finally getting my first black and white glitter. Now I've got options! I love options! Clearly Spotted and Claire's Splatter Paint are different enough to justify owning both. They both take a bit of dabbing and placing to apply, but that's to be expected. Clearly Spotted is denser, doesn't have bar glitter, and has a smaller range of hexagon sizes than Splatter Paint. I love both equally and I really hope my hunch is right! This needs to be core!
I also mattified it because...it's almost obligatory. I love it even more like this!
Drops Of Jade has two sizes of white and three sizes of black hexagonal glitter in a milky jade jelly base.
The glitter mix in Drops Of Jade isn't the same as Clearly Spotted. Weird, no? Drops Of Jade doesn't apply very smoothly at first, but the glitter is tamed after multiple coats. This is three and you can still see my nail line at some angles. The base couldn't have been more opaque and still shown the glitter as well. The sandwich effect is worth the sheerness.
I mattified Drops Of Jade too and the result is like a mint chocolate chip sorbet. So summery! Can you tell I haven't had lunch yet?
I tried layering it too, but I don't love the results. For some reason the smoothness I got with three coats on their own just didn't materialize over a cream base. The result is lumpy and the bad kind of chaotic. Oh well.
Bottom Line: Both Clearly Spotted and Drops Of Jade are great! How awesome will it be if they're permanent shades? As far as the other three shades go, I passed on them for a variety of reasons. For starters, Drops Of Jade is much more opaque than the other jellies. Beyond that, Dotty didn't seem like it would flatter my coloring, Pretty In Polka is pink ('nuff said), and Blue Marks The Spot is incredibly watery and doesn't look like it would ever be opaque. If you like a sheerer look and the colors they come it, I'd say you should check them out too.
Tomorrow's post is MASSIVE. I actually rushed today's post ahead because I realized how giant tomorrow's is. HUGE, I tell you....GINORMOUS! Brace yourselves for a crap ton of photos!
Clearly Spotted has three sizes of black and white hexagonal glitter and tiny round black and white glitter in a clear base.
 |
| over Sinful Colors Anchors Away |
Just a few weeks ago I was geeking out over finally getting my first black and white glitter. Now I've got options! I love options! Clearly Spotted and Claire's Splatter Paint are different enough to justify owning both. They both take a bit of dabbing and placing to apply, but that's to be expected. Clearly Spotted is denser, doesn't have bar glitter, and has a smaller range of hexagon sizes than Splatter Paint. I love both equally and I really hope my hunch is right! This needs to be core!
 |
| over Sinful Colors Anchors Away |
I also mattified it because...it's almost obligatory. I love it even more like this!
 |
| over Sinful Colors Anchors Away |
Drops Of Jade has two sizes of white and three sizes of black hexagonal glitter in a milky jade jelly base.
The glitter mix in Drops Of Jade isn't the same as Clearly Spotted. Weird, no? Drops Of Jade doesn't apply very smoothly at first, but the glitter is tamed after multiple coats. This is three and you can still see my nail line at some angles. The base couldn't have been more opaque and still shown the glitter as well. The sandwich effect is worth the sheerness.
I mattified Drops Of Jade too and the result is like a mint chocolate chip sorbet. So summery! Can you tell I haven't had lunch yet?
I tried layering it too, but I don't love the results. For some reason the smoothness I got with three coats on their own just didn't materialize over a cream base. The result is lumpy and the bad kind of chaotic. Oh well.
 |
| over Urban Utopia |
Bottom Line: Both Clearly Spotted and Drops Of Jade are great! How awesome will it be if they're permanent shades? As far as the other three shades go, I passed on them for a variety of reasons. For starters, Drops Of Jade is much more opaque than the other jellies. Beyond that, Dotty didn't seem like it would flatter my coloring, Pretty In Polka is pink ('nuff said), and Blue Marks The Spot is incredibly watery and doesn't look like it would ever be opaque. If you like a sheerer look and the colors they come it, I'd say you should check them out too.
Tomorrow's post is MASSIVE. I actually rushed today's post ahead because I realized how giant tomorrow's is. HUGE, I tell you....GINORMOUS! Brace yourselves for a crap ton of photos!