Tag: Holy Grail Products

(1) Serious Skin Care Glycolic Cleanser

(2) Eucerin Everyday Protection Face Lotion, SPF 30


(3) Clinique All About Eyes Rich


(4) Neutrogena Oil Free Eye Makeup Remover


(5) Cover Girl Lash Exact


(6) ELF Studio Eyebrow Kit


(7) ELF Studio Powder Brush


(8) Bare Escentuals Bare Minerals Foundation


(9) Bare Escentuals Natural Light


(10) Bare Escentuals Glimmer in Queen Phyllis


(11) Bare Escentuals Blending Brush


(12) Supersmile Tooth Paste and Whitening Activator


(13) Sonicare Tooth Brush


(15) C.O. Bigelow Mentha Lip Shine


(16) Tweezerman Petite Tweezer Set

On- Trend Runway Vampy Red Lips

*Disclaimer- lips are darker in person! The camera flash has altered the color a bit. Also- application was pretty sloppy! I simply applied this over my existing makeup with no prep. You'll get a more seamless result with proper preparation. See what I have to say about recreating the whole look, and if requested I'll do this properly!)

Out of boredom, I decided to put on these deep red lips late last night! I was inspired by this Smashbox Video I saw a few months ago. I wanted to recreate the lips using less expensive products. Actually, I think it would be cool to do a whole face inspired by this look with cheaper products!

I used the following NYX products:
Burgundy lip liner around my mouth, and a little filled into the lips.
Dark Brown Lip liner outside of the Burgundy liner (because I lined outside my lips! ooohh!)
Black Label Lipstick in Black Cherry
Lip Gloss with Megashine in Orchid.

NYX Cost:
NYX Slim Lip Pencil in Burgindy and Dark Brown, $6 ($3 each)
NYX Black Label Lipstick in Black Cherry, $7
NYX Lip Gloss with Mega Shine in Orchid, $5
Total Lip Cost: $18 (and you can subtract $3 if you are staying inside the lip line and using only one liner!)

Smashbox Cost:
Smashbox Lip Pencil in Dark, $16
Smashbox Photo Finish Lipstick in Marvelous, $22
Smashbox Lip Enhancing Gloss in Sultry, $18
Total Lip Cost: $56

Bonus! I also used Black Cherry as a cheek stain, just as the Smashbox MA, Lori Laylor, used Marvelous as a cream blusher.

Let me know if you like this- maybe I will do the entire face!

Tarte Treasure Chest Eye #3

I applied silver snowflake over my lids.
I applied a light layer of medium gray into the crease, and intensified it slightly by blending in a bit of charcoal.
Lining the eyes with a mixture of NYX purple liner and ELF mineral liner in midnight created a cobalt color, and set with evening twilight, I have a nice blue shimmery line.


I lined my bottom lashes with medium gray and then deepened the intensity of the line by adding a bit of night sea as close to the lash line as possible.




On my cheeks I am wearing ELF Studio Blush in Mellow Mauve (should have just used the mauve color in the palette- but for some reason I picked up the ELF blush!). My lips are glossed up with the TTC gloss that is in the top row, fourth over.

Tarte Treasure Chest Eye #2

*For e/s color names, click HERE*

UDPP was my primer of choice.
I applied ballet slipper as a shadow base. Vibrant purple was applied to the crease and outer "v" and blended inward.
Glistening grape was applied to the crease and outer "v" and blended inward and outward.
I then applied a bit of berry tarte strategically to deepen the outer "v" just a bit.
A bit of silver snowflake and pink fizz were applied to the center of my lid for sparkle.
The eyes were lined with ELF Studio Brown eye pencil and cranberry pops was applied over the top.



The lower lash line is lined with berry tarte and softened with caramelized sugar.


On my cheeks I am wearing ballet slipper with a bit of the pink hilight over.
On my lips I am wearing the brown shimmery gloss in the fourth row, the third one in.

I know I look like emotionless in the picture below but I had a hard time getting good pictures today- so this was the best one showing the full face of makeup!


This eye look could have been much more bold by using color bases or by foiling the shadows. 95% of my makeup is still packed up so I just made due with what was in my travel kit. I will definitely do some that are more intense once I am settled in my new place and have access to all of my cosmetic resources...! For now I am still sitting on the bathroom floor, looking into the sliding closet door mirrors to do my makeup ;)

Have a lovely Sunday!!

Tarte Treasure Chest Eye #1

*Note about color names- the eye shadows are not named. I named them myself. You can see the colors that correspond with the colors by clicking HERE.*

I started out by applying fair skin hilight from lid to brow.
Then I applied medium gray on my lid up to my crease.
I lined my upper lash line with ELF Studio black eyeliner, and smudged it. I set the smudged line with evening twilight. I blended it out with night sea and followed the blending with martini garnish.
Then I applied gold dust from the middle of my lid to just above my crease.
I applied a little silver snowflake in the middle of my lid for some sparkle.
I lined my lower lash line with ELF Studio eye liner in brown.
I added peppermint cocoa on top to set the line. I blended the peppermint cocoa with spun caramel.
I then applied a little silver snowflake to the inner corners of my eyes. Mascara= Benefit Bad Gal Lash.

Over my foundation, on my face I am wearing the Park Ave. Princess Bronzer and the Pink Hilighter. I am not sure how I feel about the bronzer yet...! I am wearing the pink blush (First one of the four). The lip gloss I am wearing is the lightest color in the fourth row of the lip glosses. It lightens my lips ever so slightly.
With the exception of my eye brows, foundation and concealer, these are the brushes I used to apply everything from the Tarte Treasure Chest:

Hope you liked this! More looks to come ;)

Tarte Treasure Chest- Get It Now!

I had been eyeing several Tarte eye shadow palettes, but when I saw this on Sephora's website I HAD to order it!

The packing is so- so, but I have to say that the silver stitched jewel top of the box looks a lot nicer in person. I may depot these in the future to preserve their integrity.


While the packaging is a bit cheap, the products inside are lovely!



*The Eye Shadows are full size and contain 1.75 grams of product*

Top Row- Shimmer Eye Shadows:


*Please excuse the arm hair! It is blond and not very noticeable in daily life- but a close up photo makes it VERY visible!*

All of these colors swatched beautifully with minimal effort. They are a bit soft and creamy. A few colors required a bit of building, but none were bad.


Second Row- Matte Eye Shadows:


The matte colors overall required a bit more effort to build (minimal effort!) and the only color that had poor color payoff was the white.


Third Row- Lip Glosses:


They are all sheer, moisturizing glosses. Unless you're wanting either a barely- there glossy look or sheer berry or red lips, I would recommend using these over lipstick. Some have a bit of shimmer, some are cream colors.


Bottom Row- Bronzer, Hilight, Blushes:


Obviously these are swatched more intensely to represent the color. All of these had wonderful payoff. I would probably apply the blush with a light hand, both due to the high pigmentation and level of shimmer.


I will do an in-depth review after I've had a chance to wear these for a day. I am sooo excited and can't wait to experiment with the eye colors. I am wishing I had the prior holiday palettes!

So far my only con for this palette is that the Eye Shadows, Blushes and Lip Glosses are unnamed. I am thinking of naming them myself!!! Let me know if you have name suggestions ;)

Picture Info:
All pictures taken with daylight through the skylight in my bathroom.

Swatch Info:
Eye Shadows, Bronzer, Hilight, and Blushes swatched over NYX Concealer in a Jar in Fair. Applied using the ELF eye shadow blush.
Lip Glosses swatched over clean, dry skin. Applied using a lip brush.

From the Sephora Website:

"This set contains:

- 16 All New, Full-Sized Shimmering Tarte Eyeshadows
- 16 All New, Full-Sized Matte Tarte Eyeshadows
- 16 All New Tarte Lipglosses
- Best-Selling Mineral Powder Bronzer In Park Ave Princess
- All New Soft Pink Luminizer
- 4 New Powder Blushes

What it is formulated WITHOUT:
- Parabens
- Petro-chemicals
- Phthalates
- Sulfates
- GMOs
- Triclosans

What else you need to know:
This limited edition, Sephora exclusive bejeweled kit with mirror is an annual best-seller—and this year it's 30% bigger for the same great price! The products are dermatologist tested and free of preservatives, gluten, talc, glycols, MEA/DEA/TEA, and formaldehyde donors."

Maybelline Color Sensational Lipstick

I LOVE THESE!

I have seen these new lipsticks mentioned a few times on blogs and in a few youtube videos, and I snatched up two colors at Walgreen's today (They were having a BOGO sale). I purchased "Born With It" and "Pink Please". BWI is definitely my favorite.


Born With It: A pretty, neutral light pink color with very subtle silver shimmer. I can feel the shimmer texture a bit on my lips but it is not bad.

Pink Please: A light Pinky/ Peach cream color.

As far as the formulation is concerned, I really like these! They are shiny and creamy, without being too thin and slippery. I find that I dislike the finish of most lipsticks and tend to apply gloss over the top- but these are both opaque in color and a bit glossy at the same time, so I like this lipstick worn alone. On top of that, they stay in place- no lip liner is required! My only complaint would be the taste. They have a slight vanilla/ floral (non- sweet) waxy taste, that kind of reminds me of a generic bar soap. Not too bad though.


My opinion on the packaging is that it is very cheap and is liable to break if thrown carelessly into a handbag. The plastic base of the tube has a silver coating that is bound to chip off, and the cap is made of a translucent red plastic that I envision cracking and/or shattering easily.

48 shades are available. Make sure you look at the lipstick bullet because the color swatches on displays and stickers are always horribly misleading!

All in all, definitely worth it and highly recommended!

10 Random Facts Tag

I was tagged by Sparkling.Pink.Gorilla (go check out her blog!) to do the "10 Random Facts" Tag.

*A'hem* Here Goes:

1. I get really nervous seeing men shave their faces in movies. I start to feel queasy, concerned they will cut themselves. Recently I asked my BF if I could try shaving part of his face and I was so nervous I couldn't do more than a few swipes of the razor! I watched him finish and felt really uncomfortable the entire time- I guess I can't handle seeing men shave in real life, either! Funny thing is, I am not bothered by Gillette commercials. Perhaps it is difficult to take those buff, metro sexual topless dudes seriously.

2. I am double jointed in my thumbs. I had no idea about this until 3 years ago. I was sitting in class and my friend Ivo pointed out to me that my thumbs were bent backwards. I thought everyone could do that- apparently not!


3. My first youtube video was an 8- minute film I did for a film class project. It was called "Beauty Isn't Everything" and it was about this young rich couple wasting money on worthless art (essentially blank canvases). It was very very corny but a good experience- I learned the basics of movie making.

4. I really can't understand why the youtube beauty community seems to be centered around MAC products. I do think MAC makes many good products, but I think the brand is way over- hyped. Especially in the tools category. So far, I have not found a MAC brush I prefer to use over less expensive versions from other vendors.

5. My favorite shoe is the "Mary Jane" style. I have purchased several pairs of TUK/ Tredair shoes and I like them in both flats and heels. My first expensive pair, however, were Doc. Martens in 10th grade. They were wing-tip double straps in the color "peanut". I loved them so! The pair you see below I have had for about 5 years:


6. I lovvvveee to cook and for a time the only television I watched was the food network. I even contemplated submitting an audition tape for their "Next Food Network Star" show but the timing overlapped with my last term in school/ graduation. I also feel I am not experienced enough, so for now it is a hobby- possibly something I may explore more on youtube :)


7. I used to have reoccurring nightmares about my teeth. In some dreams they would shatter, in others they would fall out. After awakening, I would be so happy all my teeth were still in place!

8. I am not that big on online social networking. I made my myspace page in 2003 when I was 19, and before that I had livejournal. I think that having a very busy life prevents me from getting sucked in! Although I worked and went to school, I had a bit more time then. Now--- not so much!

9. I like to grow herbs. I used to have a blog on CasaSugar before they created the "OnSugar" Network, and a few of my posts were ongoing photos of the life and demise of some of my herbs.


10. I used to think I hated cats- but no more! My boyfriend's cat, Grace Jones, has really grown on me. I did not grow up with pets; thus, I didn't understand how much value they can add to one's life. I am happy to have grown in this area of my life. I find myself appreciating more the cuteness of all kinds of animals I see out in the world :)



I tag:
Simply Suzy
Blue Bell

Coastal Scents Gel Eyeliner v. Wet'n'Wild Cream Eyeliner

Shown: Coastal Scents Gel Liner in True Black and Wet'n'Wild Mega Eyes Cream Eyeliner in Black.


Both are very dense, black liners, but the reason I love the Wet'n'Wild cream eyeliner is: long wearability. By the end of the day, the Coastal Scents gel eyeliner has rubbed off onto other parts of my eye, creating a rainbow below my brow bone (even when set with shadow). The formulation of the gel liner is too emollient to wear for a long day, whereas the cream liner dries and barely budges:
Only downside? You MUST use a waterproof eye makeup to remove the Wet'n'Wild cream liner. It will not come off otherwise! I also wish there were more colors available :(

Also! I used the cream liner in my waterline and it is THE BEST waterline liner I have used thus far. It covers all of my pink skin with opaque blackness once it dries and lasts a really long time. The packaging does not specify whether or not it is safe for the waterline, so try this at your own risk. Some would argue that NO eye makeup is safe for the waterline, however!