Monday, August 29, 2011

Dupe this Look: VMA Metallics

Jenni Farley, Demi Lovato
Sparkle! Sparkle! Sparkle! was the trend of the night at last night MTV VMAs. The black carpet was bombarded with glitz and glitter everywhere from Britney's black sequined romper to the on trend metallic makeup, as seen on Demi Lovato and Jenni "JWOWW" Farley. I decided to do a take on this heavy metal makeup look that was omnipresent at last night's VMAs. With a lot of help from my Makeup Forever Rock Forever palette, I created this look starting with the 07 white in the inner corner of my eyes and 82 silver on my lids. I patted some silver pigment from my MAC Surf Baby Surf the Ocean pigments on top for an extra punch of silver. I used the glittery 307 black from my Rock Forever palette and extended my Blacktrack fluidline eyeliner past my eye on both bottom and top lashlines while filling in the space with the white 07. To finish the eye look I used Ardell lashes in 79 on the top and cut one false lash strip into two for my bottom lashes. I kept the rest of the look clean and nude with MAC's Darkly My Dear blush and Buoy-o-Bouy lipstick. What was your favorite look at the VMAs? Leave your thoughts in the comments.


Sunday, August 21, 2011

Weekend Haul: NYX Lipsticks from Joy's Cosmetics

Joy's Cosmetics eBay Store
Though it may be hard to believe, I am a NYX lipstick virgin. I have always heard raves about the round lipsticks and have always been curious about the quality of these lipsticks. When I stumbled across Joy's Cosmetics from seller Joy017, I needed to finally try these. This amazing eBay store has awesome deals on buying NYX products in bulk at a discounted price. I was immediately struck by the round lipstick deal Joy's Cosmetics had which included 6 NYX Round lipsticks for just $10.89. That's just around $1.81 for each lipstick! I decided to try out 6 of the most loved shades including Paris, Tea Rose, Indian Pink, Thalia, Strawberry Milk and Fig (all staying within pink and neutral shades; next time I'll pick out reds and oranges!). The creaminess of these lipsticks are just heavenly. All incredibly moisturizing boasting incredible color as well. I finally understand why people love NYX lipsticks so much! The range of colors offered by NYX that's being offered by a price this low really excites me to experiment with vibrant and bold shades. Pictured below are swatches of the six shades I picked out from Joy's Cosmetic's eBay store. If you are interested in amazing deals like this, check out Joy's ebay store by clicking Here.

Swatches LoR: Indian Pink, Paris, Strawberry Milk, Fig, Thalia, Tea Rose

Friday, August 12, 2011

Buzzworthy: Urban Decay 15th Anniversary Palette

Happy 15th Birthday, Urban Decay! I finally got my hands on the coveted new Urban Decay 15th Anniverary palette which consists of an array of neutrals, smokey colors and bold brights. Urban Decay has always been, in my opinion, the stand out brand when it comes to eyeshadows. Their now classic Naked Palette has earned its place in makeup history as one of the most loved palettes of all time. My only gripe with Urban Decay palettes is their tendency to repeat shades in palettes (Half Baked is reoccurring in a few of my UD palettes). Problem solved in the new anniversary palette! Urban Decay debuts 15 brand new shades which include Midnight Rodeo, Tainted, Deeper, Midnight 15, Junkshow, MIA, Vanilla, Omen, Ace, Flow, Evidence, Blackout, Chase, Deep End and Half Truth. These colors not only hold up to the superior quality of Urban Decay shadows, but they are particularly beautiful as well. Many of these colors have so much depth they look like duochromes. The palette will set you back a good $55, but all these full sized brand new eyeshadows are totally worth the cash. Omen and Half Truth seemed to be the star players of the bunch, while Tainted and Blackout were less than impressive (but nothing too disappointing). Bottom Line? The palette as a whole is not to be missed by makeup lovers everywhere. Pictured below is my face of the day using Evidence on the lid, Deep End in the inner corners and Half Truth in the crease. I lined my lower lashes with Omen and finished off with MAC's Blacktrack fluidline and a coat of Maybelline's Falsies Black Drama. Did you pick up the 15 Anniversary palette from Urban Decay? Leave your thoughts int he comments. 


Tuesday, August 09, 2011

Buzzworthy: Nars Funny Face Lipstick

Not too long ago I picked up Nars lipstick in Funny Face to add to my growing collection of bright pink lipsticks. This one, however, is a deep berry fuchsia and is a little richer and deeper than its blue-based bright pink sister, Schiap. Schiap is quite the bright pink and in comparison, Funny Face is darker and much more deep. Loaded with berry undertones, this lipstick is serious drama. This is a great transition lipstick that will take you nicely from summer brights to deeper fall colors. I like that is works for both warm and cool tones, and how serious it looks in comparison to all my other pinks. For example, MACs Impassioned, Makeup Forever's #37 and the aforementioned Schiap would all be great lipsticks to wear to a club, but Funny Face would be a sophisticated shade appropriate for a wedding or black tie event. This fuchsia-raspberry hybrid lipstick is also a great alternative to wearing the classic red lip. You get the richness of the red lip while still daring to be different. Bottom line? A great choice for all you  ladies looking for a little drama and sophistication while still being fun!   


Wednesday, August 03, 2011

Weekend Haul: Vegas Edition

I love Las Vegas. The best part about the drive up to Vegas from Southern California is the CCO. I can always find something to buy at a CCO! Though there have been times when I've heavy duty hauled at a CCO, this was just a mini haul and I only came back with a few things. I could not turn down the $13 MAC Melon pigment that I was lucky enough to find at the Stateline CCO. I love this pigment, as it is the most gorgeous peach with hints of gold undertones. You hardly need any of the product on  your  brush for it to really stand out and the color looks different in any lighting. I also picked up MAC's Frankly Fresh lipglass from the Liberty of London collection. This was a great buy for me and this nude pink looks stunning on top of my other favorite product from that line, Peachstock lipstick. This lipglass feels less sticky than most MAC lipglasses, but I would not recommend this for gals with pigmented lips, as it is quite natural and sheer. Lastly, during my Vegas trip, I was finally able to check out Inglot Cosmetics. There is a freestanding store in the forum shops at Caesar's Palace where i picked up two 5 palette eyeshadows and one lipstick (Matte 418). The pigmentation of these products are amazing for the price. Each shadow was just $5 and the lipstick was a steal at $10. For $5, you get 2.7 grams of product versus MAC's $11.50 1.5 grams. You can't really beat this quality for that price. I am just in love with these shadows and can't wait to do a look with them! Picture below are swatches of my Inglot palettes and CCO goodies. 

Tuesday, August 02, 2011

Nail of the Day: Sally Hansen Salon Effects in Check it Out

I would not consider myself a nail guru, though I do love a great manicure (what girl doesn't?). What I love even more is a manicure that is convenient, cheap and chic. Enter: Sally Hansen Salon Effects Nail Polish strips. These no-fuss printed nail polish strips are made of actual nail polish and look incredibly cool on the nail. An amateur like myself can pull off application of these nails with and come out with professional looking nails! I picked up the houndstooth print, even though there were about 5 o 6 I wanted to try! At $10 a box, you get 16 strips, a nail file and cuticle stick, and instructions on how to apply the strips. Application was fairly easy, although I did have a little help from my sister when applying the strips to my right hand. The strips are also very large and I ended up being able to use half of the strip for each nail, which left me with a few spare strips. The polish comes off with regular nail polish removers. I love these little manicures! I absolutely have to try the glitter effects they have as well as the lace one! Bottom line? An easy manicure that's trendy and adorable, I can't wait to try out more patterns! Below is my Check it Out Nail of the Day. Have you tried these Sally Hansen Salon Effects Nail Strips? Leave your thoughts in the comments.