FOTD and Blush Business

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This should have been posted yesterday but I was too busy being lazy. Don’t you hate that? I worked on my resume, read, did housework, caught up with my bestie Shan, watched youtube videos, watched tv, chilled with my Sun and daughter…but was too lazy to post a blog, lol. I am wretched, I know. At any rate…

My Sephora blushes arrived yesterday and though initially I was excited about them…now not so much.

 I’m probably jumping the gun here because I haven’t actually put them on my face, I’ve only swatched them. But the swatches….ermm, not impressed. They don’t seem to have a lot of color saturation and I’m afraid the matte pink blush might leave me looking ashy. Here are the swatches…

I'm pretty sure I kept mixing up Abricot Plaisir and Bronze Sensation.

 Again, perhaps I am just jumping the gun here. I’ll test them out on my face later and see what I can see. Does anyone else use Sephora blushes? If so, what shades?  What’s been your experience with them? On to the next…

I did another FOTD with my Stila Color Wheel Eye Shadow Palette that I got from Apothica. This time I opted for what I thought would be a somewhat deeper earthier look. No dice. The look turned out okay, but it wasn’t nearly as deep on me as it looked on the model in the Stila Artistry Lookbook that came with the palette. Here are the pics of the shadows I used and the Artistry Lookbook example…

Now here’s my rendition…

Peach Stila shadow from upper lash line to brow bone, Burnt Sienna Stila shadow in crease and outer v, Brick Red Stila shadow on upper lash line, Brick Red Stila shadow pressed into center of lid, Mabelline Full&Soft mascara in Very Black on lashes, Sephora Flashy liner in Flashy Ultra Brown smudged on waterline & lower lash line, NYX blush in Copper on cheeks and Mabelline ColorSensational Lipstick in Crazy for Coffee topped off with ELF Minty Lipgloss in San Diego on lips.

I didn’t hate this look, I actually liked it. I just wish it had been a little deeper. The colors in this palette, though pretty and good quality, are pale. On my brown skin they look kind of washed out. I still like the shadows though. I'll probably have to start using a base of some sort. My clean up under and around the eyes wasn't so great either...I'll have to do better with that next time. All in all, not bad.

Does anyone else have this palette or any other Stila shadows? Do the colors seem too pale to you? Let a sistah know pretty please :-)

Later doll faces!

XOXO

My first Stila look and my weekend retrospective :-)

Sooo, I didn't do a Stila look over the weekend. Actually, I didn't wear any makeup whatsoever over the weekend. I didn't do my nails, I didn't get fancy and I didn't leave the house. Sound fun? I agree. What I did do was continue to recuperate from this nasty little upper respiratory infection I've had for almost 3 weeks now. Though I'm feeling a lot better, I'm still not 100%. I'm hoping that by the end of this week I'll be back to my old self :-)
I also did a lot of reading, planning and talking to my Sun (I hope something sank in). I also spent too much time worrying about my BFF. He spent  lot of time with me while I was sick doing a little care-taking so I was fearful that he would contract my virus. On Saturday (I think) he told me he felt the beginnings of something (cringe) and that really worried me. That's how it all started for me. I'm hoping and praying that he won't get bogged down the way I was...this virus is no joke. On to the next...




Despite not using my new Stila palette all weekend, I did glance at it lovingly a few times, lol. Because I was all hyped up about my Apothica purchases coming so quickly I did a little shopping so the Stila and the Sheseido would have some new company, lol. Here's what I bought...

More Sephora...

Though I wanted to try out Orgasm by Nars, I just wasn't ready to pay $26 for one blush. Instead, I got this Sephora blush in Bronze Sensation (a shimmery rosey bronze), Abricot Plaisir (a shimmering natural apricot) and Peche Tendre (a matte warm light pink). The names are soooo extra though, I mean really. How am I supposed to pronounce them, lol. Anyway, I'm thinking that I can probably use these blushes to recreate Nars Orgasm. If not, I still have 3 pretty blushes as opposed to 1. I hope the colors look good on me.

Next I bought this Sigma F15 Duo Fibre Face Brush. Since I bought those pretty new blushes I knew I would need a decent blush brush. I actually meant to get the F50 but I'm hoping this brush will be just as good. I already have the Sigma eye brush kit and a small contour brush and am quite pleased with their quality. These brushes were mos def a worthwhile investment.




Last but no least, I bought a lot of stuff from ELF. I won't post pictures because it would take too long so I'll just list what I bought....


7 Luscious Liquid Lipsticks (I love these!) in Pink Lemonade '06, Bark, Maple Sugar, Caramel Candy, Brownie Points, Cherry Tart and Ruby Slipper


Eyelash curler, brow comb/brush and 2 eyelash/brow wands


The blush/bronzer duo that's supposed to be a dupe of Nars Laguna/Orgasm

A blush/highlighter called Gotta Glow


The 100 eyeshadow palette


The ELF Studio Treat&Tame in Dark


2 Mineral Lipsticks in Bare Brown and Prime Plum


And an ELF Essentials Lipstick called Fantasy


I probably don't need all the ELF stuff but I wanted it...so I got it, lol. There's just something so addictive about makeup and makeup tools...it's like...you can never have enough, lol. What say you? At any rate, I can't wait until all my goodies show up so I can play :-)


And now for my FOTD featuring my first Stila look...

1-24-11 FOTD = Stila Pale Pink shadow from upper lash line to browbone, Stila Dusty Rose shadow blended from upper lash line to crease, Stila Aubergine on upper lash line, L'Oreal Voluminous Million Lashes Mascara in Black on lashes, Sephora Flashy Liner in Flashy Ultra Brown smudge on waterline & lower lash line, Milani Blush in Sunset Beach on cheeks and Mabelline ColorSensational Lipstain in Bit of Brown topped with ELF Luscious Liquid Lipstick in Maple Sugar on lips.

That blush application looks really bad to me but oh well...still learning. During the process of creating this look I wasn't sure I could pull it off and I wasn't quite sure I liked it. It's one of the looks from the booklet that came with the palette. All of the models in the booklet are white so I wasn't quite sure how the look I chose (let alone any of the others) would translate on my brown skin. In the end, I thought it was okay. The shadows give great color payoff and were pretty easy to work with. I noticed that the darkest color I used (Aubergine) was very powdery. I guess that's just the case with some shadows whether they're high end or not. All in all, I did okay and the look grew on me as the day went on. 

Here's the look and shadows I used...

You can clearly see which colors I used: Pale Pink, Dusty Rose and Aubergine. I don't really agree with all the names though...they don't always fit the colors.

As an experiment I used Too Faced Shadow Insurance on my right eye and the ELF Mineral Primer on my left eye. I wanted to see if there was really a difference between how well these two primers worked. TFSI is $18 at Sephora ($17.80 at Apothica) and the ELF Mineral Primer is $3 on the ELF website. Here is a picture of the look at around 10 AM...

I'm pointing to the TFSI eye. See how bright and clownish that blush looks? It's actually a combo of Desert Rose by NYX and Sunset Beach by Milani.

And here it is at around 11 PM...

Side by side close up comparison...

So thought there's some color fade, neither eye has obvious creasing. The ELF eye shows a little more wear and the beginnings of some creasing, but not enough to be glaringly obvious. 


Things I like about the ELF Mineral Primer:


It's thicker, blends out easily, works just as well as more expensive primers, long lasting, no drastic creasing even after 12 hours of wear, no smell and not as greasy as some primers I've tried. 


Things I dislike about the ELF Mineral Primer:


The container is cumbersome and will present a problem when trying to get all the product out. Shadow color fades as time goes by.


Things I like about TFSI:


Prevents creasing, comes in different shades and packaging will allow for removal and use of all product.


Things I dislike about TFSI:


The price, greasy feeling, product separates in tube and comes out messy, takes a while to blend out, the smell and color fades.




The $3 primer wins in my book. That's all folks!

On the mend...

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I just looooove cats don't you, lol? So yesterday I finally went to the doctor, hooray for me! I've been sick with a terrible upper respiratory infection for two weeks and it has been the most miserable two weeks of my life since 2000. I was sick like this back in 2000 for three weeks. I had just switched jobs and my insurance hadn't kicked in so I had to suffer through. Since I stuck it out back then, I thought I could do it now too, but I didn't seem to be getting better. I tried several home remedies, nearly drowned myself in teas and chicken noodle soup and even tried sleeping my way through the sickness; all to no avail. I had to see a doctor....and so I did. The kindly doctor told me I could have avoided all this had I been using a humidifier as soon as winter started. She said that dry air aggravates the mucous membranes thus causing the risk of infection to increase. So for all you out there in winter wonderland and dry air, get a humidifier STAT! Along with her stern motherly advice, the good doctor also prescribed a course of antibiotics and a very strong prescription strength cold syrup. I took the syrup last night before bed and was out like a light. Though I'm supposed to take it three times a day, I probably won't. I don't much care for drugs and the way they make me feel. At any rate, I'm hoping the antibiotics will kick in soon so I can get back to my old self.

Mr. Sandman by Milani

Other than that, I've been practicing applying makeup (i.e. eye makeup/blush, I no longer wear foundation) and resting my sickly body. I'm nowhere near close to making my January goals (sad face) due to my illness, but I'm going to do my best to knock out as many as I can. In the meantime, here is a pic of the second Milani polish of the month...



I'm not a fan of this color but I have to say, I love Milani nail polish. The formulas are almost always smooth, they're usually opaque in two coats, the brushes are perfect to me and they have some really beautiful colors. One thing I do dislike about Milani polish is the fact that they take FOREVER to dry. Even with the miraculously fast drying Poshe base and top coat, this polish took forever. Mr. Sandman actually smudged and dimpled because I didn't wait long enough for it to dry before I went to bed. C'est la vie.




And just for your viewing pleasure (and some constructive criticism) here are some makeup looks I created...

Products unknown. Shades of gray smokey eye.

Milani Eyeshadow in Flare on the lid, ELF shimmering dark brown shadow in the crease/outer corner, Mabelline shimmery beige shadow on browbone, Sephora Lash Plumper Mascara in Black on lashes, Sephora Flashy Liner in Deep Black smudged on waterline, NYX blush in Copper on cheeks, Mabelline ColorSensational Lipstain in Bit of Brown topped by ELF Luscious Liquid Lipstick in Maple Sugar on lips

Sephora's Flashy Violet liner on the waterline with a smudging of black shadow underneath. NYX Jumbo pencil in Iced Mocha on the lid blended with 2 ELF shadows on the inner corner, outer v and crease. Sephora's Aspen Summit on the browbone. NYX Vixen on the lips and Mabelline's Lash Discovery in Very Black on the lashes.

Another really sick day. Sephora Flashy Liner in Flashy Violet on the upper & lower lashlines, Sephora Flashy Liner in Black on waterline, Mabelline Full&Soft Mascara in Very Black on lashes, Sephora Aspen Summit on Brownbone and Milani Mineral Blush in Sunset Beach lightly dusted on cheeks, clear gloss on lips.

I really don't like this look and I was feeling especially sick the day I did it. NYX blue on lid, NYX gold in crease, NYX cream on browbone, Mabelline sapphire liner & Mabelline Crazy 4 Coffee on lips.

Lancome 4Passion on lid, Lancome Pink Veil on browbone, Mabelline Black Smoke in crease/outer corner, Mabelline Unstoppable Liner in Onyx on upper lashline/ smudged on waterline, Mabelline Crazy for Coffee on lips, L'Oreal Voluminous Million Lashes Mascara and NYX Desert Rose on cheeks.

Dark shimmery orange NYX shadow on lid, brownish wine NYX shadow in crease/on outer corner, light shimmery orange NYX shadow on browbone, dark brown matte ELF shadow on upper lashline, Sephora Flashy Liner in Flashy Ultra Brown smudged on waterline/lower lashline, Maybelline Full&Soft Mascara in Very Black on lashes, NYX Copper blush on cheeks and Mabelline ColorSensational Lipstain in Bit of Brown topped with ELF Luscious Liquid Lipstick in Maple Sugar on lips.

Products unknown. Shimmery neutral eye with winged liner.

Products unknown. Shimmery neutral smokey eye.

Products unknown. Pink and purple smokey eye.

Those are the looks I did when I wasn't too sick to apply makeup, otherwise I was bare faced and in bed. So what do you think? Any tips or pointers? 

That's all for now folks. Adieu!