Month: February 2016

  • 2 Comments
  • by

Vampy Lips

Nothing screams “bad ass” like a vampy lip!  In order to achieve this look, there are a number of important steps you will want to take.  So join me in deconstructing this look.

  1. Exfoliate, exfoliate, exfoliate!  Your lips are the main focus and should receive all the love and attention.  Fresh sugar lip polish ($24) is my go-to exfoliator treatment, but you could use a handy clean toothbrush to gently scrub any flakey skin.
  2. If you have some peach fuzz on your upper lip, you’re going to want to remove it.  Since vampy lips accentuate that area of your face, you want a very clean canvas.  The Sally Hansen Creme Hair Remover Duo Kit ($5.99) has been a favorite of mine for years.  I’v never experienced any discoloration or skin irritation with this particular product.  However, if it is your first time using a kit like this one, make sure to test on a small area of your face first.
  3. Keep your face makeup light and even.  Use your favorite foundation followed by concealer (like the NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer) on any areas that are red.  I make sure to apply concealer around my nose and lips, again to negate any redness or uneven tone.
  4. Lip liner is required.  Lining your lips will guarantee that your lipstick will not bleed or featherout onto the fine lines around your lips.  Once again, you can use concealer around the lips for a truly streamlined look.
  5. Pick your favorite shade and apply.  Choose a color you feel most comfortable with and rock it with confidence!  For this particular look, I used MAC lip pencil ($16.50) in Vino and Anastasia Beverly Hills Lustrous Lip Gloss ($40 for set of eight lip glosses) in the shade Black Cherry.

 

  • 1 Comment
  • by

  • Ipsy Bag

    Ipsy Bag

  • Trust Fund Beauty nail polish in the color “I’m Kind of a Big Deal"

    Trust Fund Beauty nail polish in the color “I’m Kind of a Big Deal"

Included products in this months Ipsy bag:

  1. It Cosmetics Bye Bye Under Eye Full Coverage Anti-aging Waterproof Concealer 
  2. Trust Fund Beauty nail polish in the color “I’m Kind of a Big Deal”
  3. Model Co Lip Laquer in shade Morocco
  4. Naked Cosmetics mica pigment in Sierra Nevada
  5. Theorie Argan Oil Ultimate Reform Hair Serum

First Impressions:

It Cosmetics Bye Bye Under Eye Full Coverage Anti-aging Waterproof Concealer:  I’m an absolute fan of this brand of concealer and was very excited to see it in this month’s Ipsy bag. Now, I can boast about having four of these gems in my concealer collection. Hey, a girl can never have enough concealer. 🙂

Trust Fund Beauty nail polish in the color “I’m Kind of a Big Deal”:  In regards to the color, its described as a “dusty rose”, but a second coat gives it a brighter pink tone. Considering spring is around the corner, I definitely see myself rocking this shade in the very near future. The biggest bonus to this line of nail polish (as per the Trust Fund Beauty website) is its “5 free” and vegan; meaning no formaldehyde, camphor, dibutyl phthalate, toluene or formaldehyde resin. Bye, bye, toxic chemicals!!! Please read my related post on the benefits of “3 Free” nail polish.

Model Co Lip Laquer in shade Morocco: I would describe the Morocco  shade as a sheer nude with a brown undertone and the texture is no different than your everyday lipgloss. Overall, this product did not “wow” me, but I won’t say no to an additional nude lippie in my makeup bag.

Naked Cosmetics mica pigment in Sierra Nevada:  My eyes immediately gravitated to this product because the color is gorgeous in person. While the color is right up my alley, the application is certainly not for novices.  The pigment is grounded so finely that you have to handle it with much care.  After attempting to apply it dry onto my eyelids, it quickly became clear that a mixing medium was required for better results. I like using any of the MAC mixing mediums (MAC Mixing Medium Eyeliner $14, MAC Mixing Medium Matte $22, or MAC Mixing Medium Shine $22) because they are very easy to use.  Just dab some of the mixing medium onto your hand or small paint tray, mix in the pigment with an eyeshadow brush and then place on eyelids.  Overall, the Naked Cosmetics mica pigment is great, if you know how to apply it.

Theorie Argan Oil Ultimate Reform Hair Serum: I was more than happy to use this serum to see what results I would have given the dry texture of my hair.   During my hair washing routine, I decided to incorporate of few drops of the Theorie Argan Oil to the conditioner and rinse out as normal.  I really enjoyed the scent and the overall shine it gave my hair without leaving it greasy.

Final Verdict: Merge

Kiss Kiss

Makeup Deconstructed Rating System:

1 Kiss = Purge: Only one of the products in the bag is worth keeping.

2 Kisses = Merge: Two to four products make this bag worth merging into your makeup collection.

3 Kisses = Splurge: All five products are amazing and worth splurging on!

 

  • 2 Comments
  • by

1 2