Benefit

Benefit Bad Gal Blue Mascara

8:25 AM

Benefit Cosmetics might be one of the more underrated cosmetics companies out there.  I received their Bad Gal Blue Mascara, for my birthday, and when it says "blue", they mean blue!  This was the first Benefit makeup I've used, outside of their lipglosses, which are great as well.

I love the tube on this - the bright silver handle is thick and heavy, so it's easy to use and apply - you know how sometimes flimsy tubes make it difficult to use and manipulate around the lashes?  Not this one!


The brush on this is very dense and full of bristles.  As you can see in the picture below, it picks up tons of mascara, and the bristles are very flexible, so it applies it to all of your lashes without being clumpy.  The color, again, is a beautiful royal blue!  There is also plum and brown as well.
 

Just to give you an idea of what it looks like on, I have done a before (with NO makeup...sorry, it might be a bit scary!), and then with two coats of Bad Gal Blue.  


I was so impressed with the formulation of this mascara.  Not only does it add thickness, but as you can see below, the length is unreal.  I love how the color goes all the way through the lashes - some colored mascaras you only see on the tips of your lashes, where mascara upon mascara has created the length.  Not with this - you get color and depth all the way through.  Bad Gal Blue is a great way to give a little kick to your look, or help brighten the color of your eyes!


Fyrinnae

Fyrinnae Halloween 2009 Haul and Swatches!

8:00 AM

I received my order from Fyrinnae the other day, which was a majority of the Halloween 2009 collection. I was so anxious to get these, because I could tell from the pictures on Fyrinnae's website that they were going to be unique colors, even more so than normal, and perfect for the upcoming fall and winter seasons. My entire order is below, including two samples (up top) that I got in this order as well.




Samhain Spirits is a very unique color. In the pot it looks more gold than it actually plays out on the skin (for me at least). Once applied, it has more of a mauve or light wine color with hints of gold and nude shimmer running through.



Nevermore is a nearly-matte purple...and when I say purple, I mean candy-store-bubble-gum-drop-purple. It's almost electric, and to be honest, the camera couldn't quite capture the color in the pot. There is the slightest hint of shimmer, which almost disappears when applied. This is a really cool color, and I'm not one for mattes.



Druid Werewolf is a very deep peachy-nude shimmer with pale copper shimmer. Depending on your skin tone it is going to be either light or dark on you. For me, this is dark. Probably not dark enough for a crease shade, but definitely darker than a highlight. I really like this color! Although it is shimmery, it isn't glittery or chunky. This is definitely a color that can add a little *umph* to any one's "everyday" or "natural" look without going over the top.



Dressed to Kill is definitely my favorite shade in the bunch. I a pushover for greens, and mostly olive greens, so this was right up my alley. Think MAC's "Golden Olive" pigment on steroids. This starts as a beautiful golden olive shade, but has green, gold, and even hints of turquoise shimmer running through it. This is such a complex shade, and is stunning. Perfect as an eyeshadow or as liner!



Pumpkinfire is a matte black with copper sparkles. A great color to create a warmer toned smokey eye, this also makes an amazing eyeliner, adding just a that kick with the sparkles to make it so much different than your typical black.



Avenging Salem is a matte black with very deep wine/plum colored glitter.  This one appears to have more shimmer than Pumpkinfire (above), but they are about the same in my opinion.  This one does make a great liner, too, and works with more of your blues and purples.  Another gorgeous color I look forward to trying out!


Otherworld is a very different shade, and I am so glad I decided to order this.  It isn't turquoise, it isn't quite.  I truly is a ghostly color, a pale ice white with shimmer that makes it a very pale turquoise shade.  The shimmer in this has hints of golden, green, and silver.  It is so shimmery that it actually "blinds" the camera with it's sparkles (see the swatches below).  I can't wait to try this one out either!


Sleepy Hollow is a such a great turquoise color.  It is a very deep turquoise, with tons of golden shimmer.  This is another complex one.  The glitter running through is iridescent, but dark enough that it doesn't wash out the blue in this one. This will definitely be fun to play with.


Shinigami is a true deep royal purple.  Although it's not quite as bright as Nevermore, this has the shimmer and glitter to make up for it.  This will make a gorgeous liner, but a gorgeous eyeshadow as well.  The shimmer in this is turquoise and purple.  


Medievil Haunting is a very close second to my favorite eyeshadow in the bunch.  The best way to describe this would be as crushed pyrite or Fools Gold.  It truly is the most beautiful, cool, gold with so much frost, it looks like molten pyrite when applied, particularly over the epoxy.  There is golden shimmer, but bursts of silver glitter throughout as well.  This one is a stunner for sure!

All the swatches of these are below.  I put a layer of Pixie Epoxy on the top portion, and nothing on the bottom.  I used one of my Jane cosmetics brushes (medium density) to brush the shadows down from the epoxy to none, to give you an idea of how they look either way.  Also, this is with the flash to try and give you a better idea of the shimmer for these.

These are beautiful!!  




Bare Escentuals

Bare Skin Eau de Parfum - NEW! From Leslie Blodgett

8:00 AM

As many of you Sephora Beauty Insiders know, Leslie Blodgett has started a collection known as the Perfume Diaries, and the first in this limited edition set is called Bare Skin. Being that I love everything that Leslie has brought to us from Bare Escentuals, I am anxious to test out this fragrance as well.


From what I have read, this fragrance was developed by Leslie in an effort to embody a trip she had to Mexico. “Bare Skin…” she explains, “is the way you feel when the sun is beating down on you during the day, but then you go out at night and you’re still sizzling from the warmth of the day which mingles with night air and music.”
From the Sephora website:

Bare Skin Eau de Parfum Spray
Imagine you're on a tropical beach. The warm rays are beating down on you. There is nothing on the agenda for days, save for sunbathing, sipping umbrella drinks and sleeping in. Leslie Blodgett has captured the ultimate vacation through fragrance with this intoxicating blend of creamy sensuality, dreamy florals and sexy musks. Glowing, gorgeous sun-kissed skin that just begs to be touched is at the heart of this limited-edition scent, created exclusively for Sephora.

Notes:
Top: No clock in sight and no reason to wake up (Black Pepper, Freesia, Anise).
Middle: Hot, hot hopping to the towel on sand (Iris, Vanilla Orchid, Plumeria, Patchouli).
Bottom: Finally, time to mingle, baring amber shoulders still warm from the day (Sandalwood, Labdanum, Musk).

Not only is there the perfume, but there is also Body Cream (above) and Solid Perfume (below).

Have any of you tried or smelled this fragrance? I haven't yet, but hope to soon!

This is available on Sephora's website, www.sephora.com.

Halloween

What are you going as for Halloween?

8:24 AM

So, my husband and I are going as the Lone Ranger and Silver for Halloween.


The only thing is, I'm wearing ALL silver - not going as a horse :)


What are your ideas for makeup, etc., for this costume? I found some false lashes like those pictured above, only in silver. I still have to find a silver dress, so that is my biggest focus right now. I'd love to hear what your thoughts are - eyeshadows, nail polishes, lashes, hair, etc! Thanks lovelies!

I'm still here...

2:03 PM

I'm sorry I haven't updated posts - work has been extremely hectic, and I've been out of town most of the week, without my personal computer.  I'm going to be playing catch up today so we can get back to posting tomorrow!  

Bare Escentuals

FOTD: MAC Idol Eyes, Skinfinish "Blonde"

9:19 AM

As you can see, silvers, blacks and grays have become a go-to for my makeup recently. I don't know if it's the newly discovered ease of blending with the colors I've picked, or what, but I do really like the look these can create.

After my recent purchases at the CCO, I wanted to try out the new MAC Idol Eyes eyeshadow I purchased. The color is very unique, as you can see from the swatch in my earlier post - it manages to take on a variety of colors from golds, lavenders and silvers, depending upon what it is next to. It is a very shimmery color, so this was right up my alley.


Below is the full do:

Face:
Bare Escentuals Foundation "Fair"
Everyday Minerals Intensive Multi-Tasking
Bare Escentuals Tinted Feather Light Mineral Veil
MAC Mineralize Skinfinish "Blonde"

Eyes:
Urban Decay Primer Potion
Fyrinnae Pixie Epoxy
MAC eyeshadow "Idol Eyes" - inner corner of lid
MAC eyeshadow "Black Tied" from Royal Assets palette - outer corner, crease
MAC pigment "Vanilla" - highlight
Victoria's Secret Gel Eyeliner "Black Satin"
Rimmel Volume Mousse Mascara "Black"


Well, we are off to start another week, and this one is going to whiz by, I can already tell by looking at my calendar! Hope you all have a great Monday!!

Mac

MAC CCO Haul: Mink & Sable, Idol Eyes, Blonde Skinfinish

8:00 AM

Last weekend I had to drive about 3 hours north for my work's annual industry trade show, which was in Michigan City, IN. Although I had to spend the weekend up there, the only thing redeeming about the entire weekend was the fact that I was about 30 seconds from the Lighthouse Place Premium Outlets, which is jam-packed full of great stores, including a Cosmetics Company Outlet. I knew that regardless of what my weekend had planned, it was necessary that I stopped over to at least peek in and see what they had, and I'm glad I did!

After getting lost while walking through the outlets (I did stumble across a Bare Escentuals Outlet, but that's another post!), I finally came to the CCO. They had quite a lot of things to chose from, but I did see two products I had been looking for: MAC's "Blonde" Mineralize Skinfinish from the Blonde, Brunette, Redhead collection, and MAC's Mink and Sabel from the Starflash collection. I also picked up MAC's Idol Eyes as an added bonus!


Idol Eyes is a really pretty color. I don't have much in silver, so I was excited to pick this up. The thing is, this shadow isn't exactly silver...it's more of a silver-meets-lavender-meets-gold-meets-taupe. It really takes on the characteristic of whatever else you pair with it, so it is quite intriguing!

Mink and Sable is one of the "must haves" in my eyes. I love greens and olives, but this one takes on a lot more. It has the ability to pull browns and golds out, as well. This was re-introduced during the Starflash Collection earlier this year, and I just didn't get around to buying it. Every time I saw someone post this in a FOTD, I would kick myself for not getting it. This is a deep olive green with golden shimmer. It's not over-the-top sparkly, but it definitely has some frost to it.

The Blonde Skinifinish from the Blonde, Brunette and Redhead collection is probably going to be my everyday blush during the winter. My skin is so pale, and it is so hard for me to find a blush that I can wear, that doesn't make me look like a clown. This one definitely hits the mark! Not only are there four shades to chose from, but blended together it's a gorgeous warm-pale pink.

Take a look below at the swatches. I think you get a pretty good idea as to the complexity of the Idol Eyes eyeshadow - from top to bottom you can see it change from a typical silver-gray to a more lavender shade. Also, I swatched the individual stripes in the Mineralize Skinfish "Blonde", as well as blended the four together for all possibilities. Really, not a bad trip up north, if I say so myself! :)


Bare Escentuals

FOTD: Bare Escentuals Black Diamonds

10:31 AM

After receiving the Bare Escentuals "Black Diamond" Collection for my birthday, I've finally had the opportunity to play around with the colors. They are such beautiful grays, which I've been draw to recently. Chic Diamond and Midnight Diamond work effortlessly together to create a dark look, and they aren't overly shimmery, which I know can be a concern to some people.

To do the look below:

MAC Paint Pot "Painterly" - base
Bare Escentuals "Chic Diamond" - inner corners & blended into inner crease
Bare Escentuals "Midnight Diamond" - outer corner & wet along upper lashline
Bare Escentuals "Heavenly Diamond" - highlight
Lashblast Mascara


I really like the Bare Escentuals Natural lipglosses, and this color is no exception. Its a very pretty color, adding just a hint to the lips, without being overbearing. It is a great accompaniment to the dark eyeshadows in this set.

I also took a picture of the whole look. The blush and the lipgloss are very similar, so they are great together. This blush has very limited shimmer, so I added the Bare Radiance over the top just to give my skin a little life since it's been pretty "blah" recently.


What is your new, favorite, product of late?
Mind is this lipgloss and the MAC "Blonde" Mineralize Skinfinish I bought at the Cosmetic Company Outlet last weekend.

Contests

Perricone MD's Face Firming Activator: WINNER ANNOUNCED!

10:55 AM

CONGRATULATIONS TO ASHLEY!


You have won the Advanced Face Firming Activator from Perricone MD! You should have received an email confirming this!
Thank you all for your entries, and making this a great first give-away!
Winning entry was chosen at random, using contestmachine.com.

Bare Escentuals "Black Diamonds" Kit

8:01 AM

I love birthdays, and I definitely loaded up this year! My mom gave me the last set in the Bare Escentuals Diamonds collection, which is Black Diamonds. The colors in this set are leaning more to the true-smokey eye look, with charcoal, black and taupe for the eye colors, and very neutral colors for the cheeks and lips.





The Black Diamonds set also comes with three brushes. As I've mentioned in the past, I love the BE brushes. The quality is great, and when you get them in a collection such as this, they are practically "free"! The three brushes in this set were the Soft Focus Liner Brush, the Tapered Blush Brush and the Contour Shadow Brush.
I was in need of a new liner brush, and I love the softness of this one. As opposed to needing a stiff bristle to pick up gel eyeliner, this allows you to use your eyeshadows dry and create a beautiful, soft line along the upper or lower lash line. This is a great way to blend the liner into the deep and dark colors in a smokey-eye without the work of having to smudge gel eyeliners.
The Tapered Blush Brush is a great brush to add a luminizer or high light along your cheeks and face. It's very soft, not very dense, and picks up just enough to give a healthy glow, without having to worry about using a heavy hand.
Everyone should have a Contour Shadow Brush of some make or model. The Bare Escentuals brush is extremely soft and allows you to build your color to the desired depth without much effort.
The Radiance in this kit is "Bare Radiance", which is not exclusive to this set. A very basic color, this is a beautiful flesh-tone with pink/peach shimmer.

Decadent Diamond Blush is a pale, but bright coral with a hint of shimmer. I love this color with the eyeshadows below because it isn't overwhelming, and doesn't make your face look made up or over-the-top. Instead, it adds just the right warmth to the cheeks. If you are looking for an added *umph* to the color, sweep the Bare Radiance over the top and your set!

The darkest shade in this collection is called Midnight Diamond. It is about as dark charcoal can get without being black, and has a hint of graphite shimmer in it. Although this is meant to be a liner, it works very well as a crease color, our contour to create the smokey look. It's not a true matte, but the because it isn't overly sparkly, it works very well with blending into other shades.

Chic Diamond is described as a lilac color, but I think a better description is a very beautiful, warm taupe with gold and lilac shimmer. This is the frostiest color in the set, and depending on your skin tone, I think this could be used as a lid color or a crease color. I think this might be a lighter shade of Bare Escentuals Drama - I'll have to do a comparison!
The lightest shade, Heavenly Diamond, is a pale iced-ivory. This reminds me very much of MAC's Vanilla Pigment, and has the same family of color weaving through it, without the rich pigmentation of the MAC shade.

I absolutely adore the new Natural Lip Glosses that Bare Escentuals have come out with, and this is no exception. The color in the Black Diamonds set is called Biscotti. To me, it matches my lip tone perfectly with a bit more pigmentation. It is a very pretty peachy pink with pink and gold shimmer running through. It's pigmented and lasts very well, and again, works effortlessly with the darker eyeshadows of this collection.


The swatches are below. As you can see, this is a very neutral kit - the blush, radiance and lip gloss look as though they are all one-in-the-same, and as a result, are perfectly coordinated together. I'll put together a FOTD for you to see...soon!


Hard Candy

Hard Candy Nail Polish "Mr. Wrong"

7:53 AM

As all of you know, Hard Candy is back, and now available at Walmart! With such an extensive display section (see Nouveau Cheap's pictures here!), it was hard to decide what to pick up last weekend when I was there, but I immediately was drawn to the now-infamous nail polish in Mr. Wrong.

A beautifully unique color, Mr. Wrong is the mix of a black base, bright silver-purple micro glitter, and gold micro glitter. The thing I find very interesting about this shade is that of all the reviews I've seen and read online, not one person's swatch looks the same. Mr. Wrong takes on a different personality with every person, which is probably why this little guy is Mr. Wrong!



Mr. Wrong pulls out mostly purple shades on me. I love this polish because I can't quite bring myself to rock the black nail polish, as much as I really like some of the black and shimmer shades out on the market right now. Much like the Stila Smudgepot in "Little Black Dress" is a great option for those who want a dark eyeliner without the harshness of black, Mr. Wrong is a great way to wear a dark and edgy color without going to the extreme of black. And, at around $5 a pop, these are a great little bargain for the quality!

Stila

Barbie Birthday Part 2 - Barbie Loves Stila Smudge Pot "Little Black Dress"

9:13 AM

Part 2 of my Barbie Birthday - the Stila Smudge Pot in "Little Black Dress".



Sephora says that this is a black base with pink sparkles. To me, it looks like a very deep egg plant purple with purple shimmer. I suppose it could be all the pink and black mixed together, but regardless, this is a beautiful color.

The swatch is below. If you are hesitant to use black eyeliner, but want something darker than brown, this would be a great alternative. It isn't as harsh as black, but still gives you the depth of color that black does along the lashline, and the little bit of shimmer is just an added plus. Like all Stila Smudge Pots, this goes on very smooth, and can be "smudged" into a base or used with a liner brush for a smooth crisp line. Once this is set, it doesn't budge!

I saw on Sephora's website that there are a set of four Smudge Pots for the Holidays, including the new Kitten Smudge Pot. This might be on my wishlist for Christmas! Stila is quickly becoming one of my favorite brands in my collection. I love the quality and lasting power of Stila, and they keep coming out with such cute sets!
What is your favorite Stila product?

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