FOTD: Yellow & Blue

Hey all, just playing around with my new UD stuff as well as some old stuff.  Here's today's face!

I realized, for as long as I've had my Coastal Scents Original 88 palette, I've never actually touched the bright yellow that's included in it.  So I thought I'd pair it with UD's Minx:

Drat my stupid bathroom lighting!  It looks so much more vibrant in person.  Wish you guys could see it! :(

So it's Coastal Scents yellow and  UD Minx on the eyes with black eyeliner and my fav Maybelline Full N Soft Waterproof mascara.  I have ELF Studio Blush in Tickled Pink on my cheeks and UD's Pocket Rocket gloss in Dustin on my lips.  Lol, "Dustin on my lips..." sounds so wrong! (my new lip glosses crack my hubby up!)

Last day of my summer vacay!  School starts tomorrow...waaaaaaaaaaah!  Oh well, brings me THAT much closer to getting my degree. :)  Happy Tuesday!

Hugs,
Cat

Subtle Shimmery Smoke

Hello hello!  TGIF everyone!  Too bad I'm about to head off to work, PLUS I'm getting over a cold.  Blargh...  I'm also going out to a super fancy-schmancy dinner...the kind where they serve an 8-course chef's tasting menu with wine pairings.  Sounds good, right?  Not if you've lost most of your sense of taste, which is oftentimes what happens when you have a cold.  Nooooooooooooo!  But, that aside, just thought I'd share my look of the day with you all.  I did a subtle, shimmery smokey eye which I'll  intensify with more black shadow and false lashes tonight when I go out:

Achieving this look is a piece of cake.  First, I applied a shimmery grey cream shadow all over my top and bottom lids.  Here, I used Buxom's Stay-There Eyeshadow in Pug.  Then I darkened my outer corners with Sephora Collection Eyeshadow in Starry Sky No. 7.  Next, I drew a winged line along my top lash line with black gel eyeliner and then finished with some mascara.  Done, done, and done!

To complete the overall look, I applied some ELF Studio Blush in Twinkle Pink to my cheeks and finished with a barely-there lip using ELF Studio Glossy Gloss in Pink Candy:

Thanks for reading and for listening to my rant, haha!  Hope you all enjoy a fabulous weekend! :D

Hugs,
Cat

Minty Pink Tutorial

Hey, remember my Minty Pink look from last week?  I finally got around to editing photos for the tutorial, so, here you go!  I'm going to try something a little different this time, I've compiled all the tutorial photos into a step-by-step collage.  Let me know what you think...if you find this method more useful or if you prefer the way I've done this before.

Step 1

• Starting with primed eyelids, I apply a soft, matte mint shade to my entire top and bottom eyelid.

Step 2

• Next, I apply black pencil liner to the outer corners of my upper and lower lash lines

Step 3

• Using a deep, espresso shade, I layer over the pencil eyeliner, being sure to thoroughly smudge and smoke the shadow along my outer corners.

Step 4

• With a medium brown shade, I blend out the area I just smoked to soften the edges.

Step 5

• I draw a modest winged line along my upper lash line with black gel eyeliner.

Step 6

• Curl lashes, apply mascara, and I'm done!

*note* These colors are fairly common and you can use them from any brand.  I chose mine from Coastal Scents 88 Original Palette (now on sale for $9.48!) because I prefer my shadows to be on the matte side. :)

For lips, I applied ELF Mineral Lipstick in Runway Pink and then glossed over it with ELF Luscious Liquid Lipstick in Perfect Pink.

I finished off by brushing ELF Studio Blush in Pink Passion to my cheeks:

Overall look?  Minty fresh! :D

Hope you all enjoyed the tutorial and I look forward to your feedback!  Enjoy your Thursday!  (I'll be stuck in class until 10pm tonight, however...boohoo!)

Hugs,
Cat

Summer Foundation

It's been getting warmer these days and, over the years, I've realized that I have to modify my makeup with the change in seasons.  Now that we're on the cusp of summer, I don't have to worry so much about the dry areas of my complexion, regarding my combination skin.  Oil control, however, is now my top priority and I *think* I've managed to put together an effective foundation regimen to combat the grease!

My favorite BB Cream of the moment is Always Nuddy BB 24 (gotta love the name!) by Elisha Coy.  I found that the Missha Perfect Cover was a little to heavy for the summer.  Always Nuddy is super, super lightweight with medium coverage and absorbs very quickly with no greasy feel whatsoever.  It's almost fragrance free, except for the barest trace of citrus scent.  A little goes a long way and the formula dries to a near-matte finish so you can pretty much wear it alone without any finishing powder.  I finish it with ELF Mineral Booster in Tinted, however, for extra oil control and because Always Nuddy is just a tad too fair for my complexion, so the tinted finishing powder gives me the golden glow that I need to look natural.  This combo is completely weightless on my face and I barely have to touch up my t-zone during the course of the day.

My only gripe is that neither product comes with sun protection, so make sure you prep with an SPF moisturizer prior to application.  You can purchase a 15ml tube of Always Nuddy from eBay for about $5-$6, shipping included.  So far, this little tube has lasted me nearly a month and it's still more than half full!  ELF Mineral Booster is available at ELF for $5, keep an eye out for free shipping and sales which go on all the time!

Happy Tuesday and have a good night! :D

Hugs,
Cat

Purple Print-cess

Yesterday I attended a big dinner party with lots of close friends and family to celebrate my mom and dad's 37th wedding anniversary.  Oh, they've had their ups and downs, as I'm sure most couples do, but the bottom line is that they've worked hard to build a rock-solid marriage and have been determined to stick together...no matter what.  They're inseparable companions: working together, eating together, sleeping together.  Lol, I love my husband, I do, but I think that if we had to spend every waking moment together, we'd probably drive each other crazy!  All joking aside, however, I truly admire my parents' resilience as a couple and can only strive to build such a strong, lasting bond with my husband.

I'll take any excuse to dress up, but I think this occassion was an excellent reason to do so, don't you think?  I wore a flared, clip-dot cotton voile dress printed with purple florals and accented with delicate crochet lace as well as pintuck and pleat detailing.  It was a gift from my mother and sister, who saw it on a shopping trip at Kohl's and immediately thought of me.  Wasn't that sweet of them?  They know my taste so well!  I paired it with some white leather eyelet platform mules by Guess and jewelry by Lovelina, of course. :)

Lavender tips and toes: Revlon Scented Polish in Gumdrop

 

Love Gives You Wings Necklace

I kept my makeup soft and simple, a lavender smokey eye with pastel-pink cheeks and lips. 

Eyes:

• Coastal Scents Original 88 Palette

Cheeks:

• ELF Studio Blush in Pink Passion

Lips:

• ELF Studio Lipstick in Runway Pink
• ELF Essential Luscious Liquid Lipstick in Perfect Pink

Thanks for hanging out and reading!  Hope you're all having a lovely Sunday! :D

Hugs,
Cat

Minty Pink

Just playing around with some of my favorite colors in response to the cheerful, almost-summer weather: mint and pink.  Can't really explain it...I just really love this color combo. :)

Eyes:

• Coastal Scents Original 88 Palette

Cheeks:

• ELF Studio Blush in Pink Passion 

Lips:

• ELF Studio Lipstick in Runway Pink
• ELF Essential Luscious Liquid Lipstick in Perfect Pink

Hope you're all enjoying your Wednesday so far!

Hugs,
Cat

Easy Glam Purple Smoke

So I realized I never did the "Part 2" segment to the April MyGlam review!  Whoops!  Therefore I'm going to make up for it by giving you guys another tutorial on how to do a simple smokey purple look using the UD 24/7 eyeliner pencil that I received via MyGlam as well as including the false lashes that came in my goodie bag this month.

Usually, when the word smoke comes to mind, one envisions a sultry, dark diva-esque look.  In this instance, however, I wanted to create a light, wearable smoke that's transitional from summer-y daytime to dramatic evening.  This is me before heading out to work yesterday:

Cheeks: ELF Studio Blush in Pink Passion  Lips: ELF Luscious Liquid Lipstick in Perfect Pink

Want the look?  It's easy. :)  As usual, we start with primed eyelids:

Next, using my MyGlam fluffy eyeshadow brush, I'm going to choose a light, lavender shade of shadow to apply all over my top eyelid.  For convenience sake, I chose to go with my Coastal Scents Original 88 palette for all my shadow colors in this tutorial.

Then, using the UD 24/7 pencil eyeliner in Ransom, which I received in my April MyGlam bag, I'm going to trace the outer corners of my upper and lower lash lines:

Now, using a deep purple shade, I'm going to smudge and blend the pencil eyeliner to smoke out the outer corners of my eyes.  I found that the petite shadow brush included in this month's MyGlam bag was perfect for the job!

In order to soften my lower lash line, I'm going to apply some more of that pale lavender shade along the bottom edge of my lower eyelid:

Then I'm going to add a little matte ivory right under my brow arch as a highlight:

With black gel eyeliner, I'm going to draw a modest wing along my upper lash line:

To finish, I'm going to curl my lashes and apply mascara:

So here, I'm pretty much finished with my soft, smokey daytime look:

If you're going out for the evening, the quickest way to amp up this look is to add a pair of false eyelashes.  Here is the pair I received from MyGlam, appropriately themed for a "Girl's Night Out":

Bam!  Instant glam!  Talk about doll-eyes...  These lashes are pretty cool in that the band is very soft, flexible, and comfortable, unlike some others that can be hard and rigid.  They're easy to trim to the correct size and are very lightweight to wear.  They're definitely a lot of fun and aren't for the faint-of-heart.  Don't like double-takes?  Then these aren't the lashes for you!  Lol!

Alrighty then, friends!  Hope you're all having a lovely Saturday evening and that you enjoyed this little lesson and review.  Until next time!

Hugs,
Cat

My Foundation Application Routine

Hey all!  It's been forever since I've uploaded a video tutorial, but since I have a little time this week, I've been working on a few how-tos.  Today I'm going to share a super-quick vid on how I go about my everyday foundation routine.  This is one of the most essential steps towards makeup application, in my opinion.  If you've got a good foundation, everything else falls nicely into place. :)

From bare-faced to foundation to full hair and makeup!

Off topic, but I kind of surprised myself with how different I look bare compared with full makeup and hair.  What a transformation, right?  I feel a little more confident once I've "put on my face", however I'm grateful that my husband prefers how I look without it.  Lol!

Anyways, here's the video!  Hope some of you find it helpful. :D

Products used:

1. ELF Essential Foundation Brush

2. CG Smoothers Tinted Moisturizer

3. Sheer Cover Concealer Duo

4. ELF Studio Kabuki Brush

5. MAC Studio Fix

Demure Valentine Look with ELF

Uh oh!  It appears I've been absent for awhile.  Sorry about the disappearance, I can't really seem to recall what I've been doing between my last post and now.  Alien abduction?  Hehe.  Anyways, since V Day is coming up soon, I just thought I'd throw out a tutorial.  YAWN!  I know, how original is that, right?  I'm sure every makeup blogger has generated at least a couple of these in the last week.  I don't know if I really have anything unique to add to the pot, but I can at least tell you that what I'm about to show you is pretty easy.  This is what I came up with:

I know I've been splurging on high-end makeup brands like Urban Decay as well as pricier drugstore brands like Maybelline.  My ELF palette has been neglected, so I've decided to give it a little more attention today. (though I DO use my elf brushes, blush, and gloss on a daily basis)  I'll show you how I used soft pinks to create a natural, romantic look.

Starting with my eyes, I'm going to use three colors from my ELF Endless Eyes palette:

I chose soft, shimmery tones of pink, latte, and chocolate.

I begin by priming my eyelids:

Next, I apply the shimmery pink to the inner half of my eyelid:

Then I apply the shimmery chocolate to the lower outer corner of my upper eyelid:

The shimmery latte shade goes above the chocolate color on the upper corner of my upper eyelid:

To soften the edges, I blend the colors toward the brow bone with a brush:

Using a brown eyeliner pencil, I line my lower lash line:

Then I layer the shimmery chocolate shadow over the brown eyeliner:

I apply black cream eyeliner to my top and bottom lash lines:

And I curl lashes and apply mascara to finish:

To complete my entire look, I brush ELF Studio Blush in Fuchsia Fusion to my cheeks:

And apply ELF Essential Liquid Lipstick in Perfect Pink to my lips:

And there you have it!  Fresh and pretty Valentine's Day makeup without looking like you tried too hard.  It's a relatively wearable look anywhere, heck, I just went to work like this and got a ton of compliments on the eye shadow. :D

Hope some of you found this helpful and have fun experimenting with your Valentine's Day looks, even if you don't really care for Valentine's Day.  Honestly, any holiday, real or made-up, is a good excuse to try something different and new!

Hugs,
Cat

Contemporary Cleopatra

Cleopatra, in my opinion, was one of history's most intriguing people.  She was ambitious, intelligent, and, though not described as an incomparable beauty, worked her womanly wiles in such a way that snared the hearts of some the world's most legendary leaders.  She was the last pharaoh of Ancient Egypt.  Thousands of years later, she would continue to be an inspiration.  Today's tutorial is dedicated to her.  I'm not really sure how she did her makeup then, there's only speculation and media representation, but I'm going to do my best to capture her essence in a modern, wearable way.  This is what I came up with:

Of course, there have been countless interpretations through the ages:

I definitely wanted the gilded look, but I was going for something a little more subtle, in fact, I ended up going to work like this and received many compliments.

So, to start, I'm going to apply Urban Decay's Primer Potion in Greed to my upper and lower lids:

Next, I'm going to apply Urban Decay Eyeshadow in Chase (from my 15 Anniversary Palette) to my upper and lower lids:

Then, using black gel/cream eyeliner (I'm using the Wet N Wild brand), I'm going to create a leonine eye shape by winging my upper lash liner and extending my inner corner liner:

With Sephora's Glitter Eyeliner in Gold, I'm going to accent my top lash line:

For extra shimmer, I'm going to highlight my brow arch with Josie Maran Argan Illuminizor:

Then I'm going to curl my eyelashes and apply mascara (Maybelline Full N Soft Waterproof in Black):

To finish, I'm going to add some glittery eyelashes (from Daiso):

For a complete look, I applied ELF Studio Bronzer in Golden to my cheeks and applied Stila Lip Glaze in Vanilla to my lips:

Not bad!  I think I nailed Cleopatra without looking too costume-y, although it would have been cool if I had one of those ornate braided wigs with the gold accents!

Anyways, hope y'all enjoyed the tutorial and have a great Saturday! :D

Hugs,

Cat