EOTD - Bright Blue Eyelashes!

Here is another look I did with the MAC Zoom Lash colored mascaras! This look uses the blue mascara, Blue Charge. 

First, I prepped my lids with Urban Decay Primer Potion in Original. Then I blended NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil in Horseradish, a minty green, all over my lid. I set this on the outer half of my lid with Mojo Spa loose eyeshadow in Garden Party, a shimmery minty green. In the crease I blended Urban Decay Haight, a bluish teal. I darkened the outer corner with the Balm The Mother-in-Law, a dusty navy blue. 

On my lower waterline, I used NYX Retractable Eye Liner in Gray and smudged it with the Balm The Mistress, a gunmetal gray. I also smoked out my top lash line a bit with The Mistress. 

Again I prepped my lashes by using a coat of the Step 1 white primer side of my Maybelline XXL Pro Extensions mascara. I finished with two coats of MAC Zoom Lash mascara in Blue Charge. 

EOTD - Pink and Grey

I sure have been posting a lot of eye looks lately! I have been challenging myself to use shadows I haven't used in a while (or ever!) before buying any new ones. So far I'm resisting the temptation...I'm sure when I get paid next week it'll all be for naught, though. The new Sugarpill palette is calling my name...

To start this look, I used Urban Decay Primer Potion as I always do. On the inner third of the lid, I blended Urban Decay Free Love, a light shimmery pinky coral. Then, I packed MAC Free to Be, a matte pinky coral, all over the bottom of of the lid. This shadow is a little hard to work with so you really just have to keep packing it on to get it to be really opaque and bright. It's gorge though so I give it a free pass. In the outer half of the lid, I blended NYX Greyish Brown, which is a matte dark grey with a bit of bluish-looking shimmer (totally don't get why it's called Greyish Brown. there's no brown in it whatsoever). I blended NYX Dune, a dark grey shimmer with a bit of golden shimmer in it, into the crease.

On the bottom lashline, I used NYX Eye/Eyebrow Pencil in Grey and smudged it with a bit of Greyish Brown. I highlighted the browbone and inner corner with...I can't remember. I think it was either UD Bootycall or Mary Kay Moonstone. To line the upper lashline, I used Urban Decay 24/7 Liquid Eyeliner in Perversion. Finally, I coated my lashes with Rimmel Lash Accelerator Mascara in Extreme Black.

I love the combination of pink and grey! What do you think of this color combo?

EOTD - Beachy Golden Eyes

I saw a look like this on, I believe, a promotional image for Too Faced's new summer palette. It's a shimmery golden lid with a light turquoise bottom liner. I love how summery this color combination is! It makes me think of sitting on the beach watching the ocean.


As always, I started by prepping my lids with Urban Decay Primer Potion. I blended Urban Decay Baked, a shimmery gold, all over my lids. Then I (carefully!) patted a Mojo Spa loose eyeshadow in Havana, an insanely sparkly dark brown, into the crease. I darkened the outer corner with MAC Embark, a dark matte brown. I lined my upper lashline with Urban Decay 24/7 Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner in Demolition, a dark brown.

On the bottom, I lined my waterline with NYX Slide-On Eye Pencil in Tropical Green, a dark metallic aqua green. I set this and smudged it ith Urban Decay Flipside, a bright shimmery turquoise. It showed up much brighter and bluer in real life; for some reason it doesn't pop as much in photos. I highlighted the browbone and inner corner with Urban Decay Bootycall as usual. Finally, I coated my lashes with Rimmel Lash Accelerator Mascara in Extreme Black.




I absolutely love this eye look and basically want to wear it all summer long. It goes great with bronzed skin ;)

EOTD - My interpretation of Mac's "Call Me Bubbles" quad

A couple months ago when Mac's "Call Me Bubbles" quad came out, I was dying to have it but by the time I had the money to spare, it was sold out. :( So I became determined to replicate it with other shadows. The quad consisted of a matte pinky coral, a shimmery light orange, a beige highlighter, and a metallic copper. Since then, I've acquired shadows that I think are as close as I'm going to get to Call Me Bubbles, and I'm pretty happy with it! Here's the look I did.

I started by prepping my lids with Urban Decay Primer Potion. I used Mac's Free to Be, a pretty close dupe of the matte pinky coral shade in their Call Me Bubbles quad, on the inner half of the lid. This color is gorgeous, but it's pretty dry and takes some time to get the opacity right. On the outer half of the lid, I used Mac's Rule, a matte light orange that's really soft and buttery. It's pretty close in color to the orange shade in the quad, but matte instead of shimmery. In the future I think I could mix it with Urban Decay's Half Baked to get that gold shimmer in it.

In the crease, I used NYX's Copper, with some NYX Rust to darken the outer crease. Both of these shadows are gorgeous in color, but a little sheer and powdery. I could probably use it damp next time to make it a little easier to work with. I lined my lower lash line with  NYX's Slide On Eyeliner in Golden Bronze, and smudged it with NYX Copper. On the upper lash line, I used Urban Decay 24/7 Liquid Eyeliner in Demolition, a dark brown. I finished by sweeping my lashes with Rimmel Lash Accelerator Mascara in Extreme Black.

Overall, I'm pretty excited about my interpretation of this Mac quad, although now that I see the colors on my actual face, I don't think I love pink and orange together on my skintone. I love pink and I love orange, but together on my eye, they make me look like I've been crying! Hah. Oh well. At least I tried!

EOTD - Fairy Eyes

My best friend loves this shop in Wicker Park called Mojo Spa. They sell all sorts of delicious-smelling body products and adorable soaps shaped like cupcakes. They also do nails, makeup, and I think even massages and waxing. I've gone in a few times with her but never bought anything before. We went there last Friday evening so she could pick up some lotion, and the owner (who was awesome and hilarious) coaxed us to get our makeup done, which they were doing free that evening. He also mixed us up couple cocktails!

While my friend was getting her makeup done, I sipped my vodka cranberry and scoped out Mojo Spa's makeup range, which I hadn't even known they sold. The loose eyeshadows stole my attention and I spent about 20 minutes agonizing over which colors I wanted the makeup artist to use on me! They had at least 30 loose eyeshadows in a wide range of colors, most of them extremely sparkly and gorgeous. I knew I wanted to buy a couple, and when the awesome and hilarious owner told me they were buy 2, get 1 free ($10 apiece) that sealed the deal for me.

One of the loose shadows I walked away with is a GORGEOUS sparkly mint green shade called Garden Party. The next day I couldn't wait to try out a look with it.

To start, I prepped my lid with Urban Decay Primer Potion Original. I then smudged NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil in Horse Raddish, a light mint green that matched Garden Party pretty closely, all over the bottom half of the lid. I had never used a loose eyeshadow before, so I was nervous about spilling it or getting green powder all over my face. I used a flat eyeshadow brush, dipped it in the powder, tapped off the extra, and patted the shadow into the area where I had smudged Horse Raddish. Some of the extra did sprinkle off, but I tilted my head downward while I was doing it so it landed on my mirror, not my face. I patted Garden Party all over the bottom half of the lid.


Then, I lined my lower waterline with Wet n' Wild Color Icon eyeliner in Dark Brown. I set it with Mac eyeshadow in Embark, a matte dark brown. I also lined the top lash line with Embark. I smudged a bit more Garden Party on the lower lash line. To finish, I swept my eyelashes with Rimmel Lash Accelerator Mascara in black.

blurred to show the sparkle

I absolutely loved Mojo Spa's loose eyeshadow and I want to go back and get more! It was so pigmented and sparkly, and Garden Party made me feel like a fairy! Also, anyone that lives in Chicago should definitely check out Mojo Spa on Milwaukee Ave. It was a fun, girly place with some really adorable products, and an awesome and hilarious owner.

EOTD - Bright Orange with NYX!

Did you know that orange is my favorite color? It's just so sunny and bright and happy, and it looks good on me as a blondie with a warm skin tone. I've been on the hunt for the perfect orange eyeshadow, and I think I've finally found it!! 

I actually own a NYX single shadow called Hot Orange, which is a good matte bright orange, but it has bits of gold flaky glitter in it and the fallout in it drives me crazy. I have been eyeing the NYX Shangri-La palette for a while because of the amazing orange shadow in the center. I finally caved and bought it this weekend. Here's the look I did using all three shadows in the palette:

First, I primed my lid with Urban Decay Primer Potion in Original. Then, I patted the yellow shade from the trio all over the inner two-thirds of my lid. I patted the peachy shade on the outer third. Then, I blended the amazing orange shade into the crease and outer V. I lined my upper and lower lashline with Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil in Bourbon, a warm brown with gold sparkle. I set the liner with the brown-with-gold-sparkle shade from the Sonia Kashuk Bronzed Beauty eyeshadow quad, and smudged the brown shadow a bit onto the lower lashline. Finally, I swept my lashes with Clinique High Impact mascara in Black. 

 

I rank the quality of the shadows in the Shangri-La palette from best to worst: orange, yellow, peach. The orange is amazingly pigmented, applies smoothly and blends well. The yellow shade had pretty good pigmentation, although it could be better, and it was a bit gritty. Still, one of the best yellow shadows I've tried. The peach came out much frostier than I expected, and looked more like a light peachy-silver shade than the bright peach color of the pan. But these NYX palettes are so affordable that if you're looking for a great orange eyeshadow, buy this palette just for that one shade!

FOTD - Spring Nighttime Going-out Look

I love wearing bright lip colors in the spring and summer. In fact, I hardly own a nude lipstick - they are all bright pink or orange! I was going out this Saturday night to see my boyfriend's band play, so I wanted a smokey going-out eye, but I also wanted to wear my new favorite hot pink lipstick - Cover Girl Color Sensational lipstick in Fuchsia Fever. I love how it accentuates tanned skin, and its a great pink for day or night. I sometimes struggle with pairing a bright lip and smokey eye, and I think I successfully did it here! Here's what I did:

First I applied my new foundation, Clinique Perfectly Real Makeup in 22 (P), my new shade for my tanned skin. I then contoured a bit with NYX Matte Bronzing Powder in Medium, and added e.l.f. Healthy Glow Bronzing Powder in Sun Kissed, a shimmery golden bronzer, to the cheeks and cheekbone. I filled in my brows with the Smashbox Brow Tech kit in Blonde.

On the eyes, I smudged Maybelline Color Tattoo cream shadow in Tough as Taupe, a brownish gray, with my finger all over the lid. To set this, I patted Urban Decay Tease (which I find is the perfect shadow to set Tough as Taupe with because it's almost exactly the same color) all over the lid and lower lash line. I accentuated the outer V with NYX Nude Matte Eyeshadow in Confession, a medium-dark matte gray. For the crease and outer lower lash line, I used Ulta eyeshadow in Mesmerize, a cheaper version of Urban Decay Lounge or Mac Club. It's a reddish brown base with a teal duochrome flash. I used it wet because it wasn't showing up dark or duochrome-y enough dry. I lined my upper lashline with Urban Decay Blackout. I coated my lashes with Clinique High Impact Mascara in Black.

I moisturized my lips with a bit of Burt's Bees balm before applying Maybelline lip liner in Clear. I then applied my Cover Girl Color Sensational lipstick in Fuchsia Fever. This lipstick looks just as amazing for a day look with nothing but a bronzed face and a swipe of mascara!

Ready to go out tonight!

EOTD - Complementary Colors

I was watching this Wendy's Lookbook video yesterday, and was inspired to try some complementary colors in my outfit and makeup today. I wore khaki green cargo skinnies with a pastel pink sweater today, thinking it's still pretty wintery and not too spring-like. I was thinking of doing an all green eye look, but I was bored of that idea because I do the gold/green combo quite often. I decided to translate the color scheme of my outfit onto my eyes.

I started by prepping my lids with Urban Decay Primer Potion in Greed, which adds a touch of gold shimmer to the lids. I patted Urban Decay Free Love eyeshadow, a coral-pink shimmer, onto the inner half of my lid. I then blended Urban Decay Chronic eyeshadow, a matte bright grass green, into the crease. (This is why I used Greed to prime my lid - I did not want a totally matte crease color so Greed brought some depth to the shadow.)  I then blended Urban Decay Mildew, a darker olive-y green shimmer, into the outer V and on the lower lashline.

I lined my upper lashline with Urban Decay Blackout, and highlighted my browbone and inner corner with Urban Decay Virgin. To finish the eye, I coated my lashes with CoverGirl LashBlast mascara in Black.



For the rest of the face, I went with my new go-to contour of NYX Matte Bronzing powder in Medium, highlight of Benefit Girl Meets Pearl in Golden Pink, and NYX Creme Blend Blush in Glow. On the lips, I went with NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream in Antwerp, reviewed here.

Channeling my inner Taylor Swift

What do you think of my colorblocking look? Is this something you would try on your eyes?

FOTD: Elementary, My Dear Watson

On my trip to Ulta today, I saw NYX was having a buy-one-get-one half off sale. I immediately grabbed their matte bronzer in Medium because I was looking for a nice big pan of bronzer with NO shimmer in it for contouring. The second thing I grabbed was their cream blush in Orange. I'm a big fan of this product in Glow, and I love coral and orange blushes on me, so this was a no brainer.

When I got home, I wanted to put a face together using the cream blush. So I was going through my eyeshadows, thinking about combinations that would go with an orange blush. I landed on my Bare Minerals Ready Eyeshadow Quad in the Elements. I've done a look with this quad before, but I didn't use the blue shade in that look. I think this eyeshadow quad is wonderful, and quite "elementary" to apply!

I started off the same way I always do - I prepped my eyelid with Urban Decay Primer Potion in Original. I swept Earth, a matte greenish grey, onto the eyelid, then blended Fire, a matte rusty orange, into the crease. I blended Air, a champagne beige shimmer, into the browbone and inner corner. I lined my waterline with NYX Slide On Waterproof Eyeliner in Tropical Green, then used a flat liner brush to line my lower lashline with Water, a tealish blue shimmer. (Sidenote: I also tightlined my upper lashline with black eyeliner, but I don't think I'll do that ever again because it kept rubbing off on my contacts all day long and irritating my eyes! Any tips on how to tightline for contact wearers?) Lastly, I swept my eyelashes with Lancome Definicils Mascara in Black.

 To finish the face, I contoured my cheeks with NYX Matte Bronzer in Medium and highlighted my cheekbones with Benefit Girl Meets Pearl in Golden Pink. (I also got this at Ulta today - a mini sample size to see if I liked it - and I do!) I blended NYX Cream Blush in Orange into the apples of my cheeks using my fingertips. On my lips, to go with the orange theme, I applied Revlon ColorBurst Lip Butter in Tutti Frutti.




What do you think of this look? I definitely think it's more of a summer look, but honestly, who cares what season it is when you look this good? ;)

I think I'll take photos of myself in my car every day! This lighting makes me look awesome!

FOTD - Golds and Greens

I put this look on in an effort to motivate me to get out of the house and get a few errands done today. We have yet to see if that will actually happen.

For the eyes, I used two shadows from theBalm The Balm and the Beautiful palette, which contains the exact same shades from the Muppets palette from the same brand, just in different packaging and with different names. I started by blending theBalm The Supermodel, a shimmery warm gold (a dupe for Urban Decay Baked) all over the lid and on the middle of the lower lashline. I then blended the Balm The Step Brother, a medium olivey green shimmer, into the crease and bringing it down along the outer third of the lower lashline I lined the waterline and upper lashline with Stila Smudgestick Waterproof Eye Liner in Moray, an olive green with gold sparkle. I highlighted the browbone and inner corner with the matte white shade from the Sonia Kashuk Eye on Neutral palette. To finish, I swept my lashes with Lancome Definicils mascara in Black. (I have a sample tube of this mascara. I didn't like it at first, but now I really like the separation it gives!)

To finish the face, I used NYX Cream Blush in Glow, a medium rosy pink shade, on the apples of my cheeks. I've been looking to add to my cream blush collection, because powder blushes look too dry on my skin in the winter. This is a great addition, and for such a reasonable price I will definitely purchase more colors. I applied Revlon ColorBurst Lip Butter in Sweet Tart on my lips.

OK, so I look hot, now let's see if I can actually motivate myself to get out of the house today and get stuff done!

Sick Day, Just Lipstick

I've spent the past two days (and will likely spend the next two days) home with a very sick 9 year old girl. Today I didn't even leave the house! I spent the day reading and playing go fish, so I didn't put any makeup on or get out of my pajamas. I wanted to get a quick post up though to keep the momentum going.



I've been curious about this NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream for a while, and grabbed one the other day on my Ulta run. I picked up the shade Antwerp, which is a bright, warm-toned, almost bubblegum pink. Application is easy because of the soft spongy applicator, like a lipgloss applicator. I LOVE the way it smells - like vanilla frosting! It needs a moment to set, but once it dries down, it becomes matte. I had about 4 hours of wear before it wore off when I ate lunch.

Overall, I really like this lip cream, and since it's pretty cheap I will definitely pick up some more colors! What do you think about a matte lip? Would you wear a bright pink lip like this?