Sneak peak at Bad Bitch Mineral Shadows

Hey all!  Sorry I've been MIA for a bit.  My most difficult midterm is due this week so I've been busy.  Once I'm through with Thursday, however, everything should be gravy.  In the meantime, I hope this sneak peak will tide you over until I have a minute to do a thorough review.

Belacqua

Nana

Whoa!  I never realized how asymmetrical my eyebrows were.  Yikes!  I'm looking pretty goofy right now with two intensely different colored looks.  My husband was just laughing at me a few minutes ago.  

Gotta snooze now, have a great night!

Hugs,
Cat

Lovelina: Antique Rose Filigree Headband

I made the prettiest thing today!  I'm always excited about creating new pieces, but I'm super-excited because this is my first non-jewelry item.

This headband has a very delicate, flexible double-band.  It's finished in antique bronze for a very vintage feel and the filigree design is so intricate and beautiful.  The rose is daintily sculpted in a romantic, peachy-blush shade.

Wouldn't this look great with my new French-country dress?

Antique Rose Filigree Headband

Style: Liz Lisa

OH EM GEE!  I just discovered the cutest clothing collection ever!  The brand is called Liz Lisa and you can view their English site here: Liz Lisa  The style is very French-country shabby chic.  There's a dreamy, Stepford-like quality to the design, but with a touch of sexy because most of their dresses are mini-length.  I want to fill my closet with everything they have!  I think it's a Japanese-based company so I don't think the line is available here in the U.S., but I managed to find an online retailer that stocks some of their pieces.  I couldn't help myself.  I HAD to buy a dress, even though I really, really can't afford it right now.  Here's the insanely adorable dress I purchased:

It's sad.  I literally squealed when I saw it.  I got it off of a super-cute online boutique called Minky Shop.  You can check it out here: Minky Shop  The fabric is a gorgeous, vintage rose chiffon print.  The sleeves are semi-sheer and blousy with ribbon ties at the elbows.  It features a ruched bust with corsetting detail and a double-layered skirt hemmed with creamy lace.  Isn't it to die for?  Cost was about $70 including international shipping and it also comes in a lovely blue shade as well.  I can't wait to get it!  I think it's coming in from China, so I won't see it for a few weeks, but hopefully the weather will be nice once it arrives.

I've always loved the doll-like Lolita look, but for the most part, it's always so over-the-top.  It's great to get attention for being stylish, but it's another thing to be a spectacle.  I feel like this dress is "normal" enough to wear on any given breezy, sunny day, yet unique enough so that I stand out among all the other sundress wearers.  Wouldn't it look fine finished with ankle socks, mary janes, and a big, floppy straw hat?  Would it be too much if I wore wristlet gloves and carried a picnic basket as well?  Lol...maybe.

Bad Bitch Cosmetics

Once becoming a seller on Etsy, I naturally became a buyer on Etsy as well.  My "Odile" necklace was recently featured in a Black Swan themed collection. (click here to view)  While browsing said collection, I came across a really cool cosmetic line called Bad Bitch.  They sell AMAZING mineral pigments and I can't wait to purchase some to try.  I love the fun and edgy attitude of the owners as well as the creative names for the colors (ex. Nana, Tifa, Miwako, B Kiddo, etc...soooooo satisfying for the manga/gamer/pop culture loving geek in me)

Here are some colors I intend on purchasing:

Nana:

intense black w/ red glitter

Belacqua:

blue-green with teal shimmer

and I'm torn between getting Peaches:

which is a warm, shimmery peach hue I consider a "safe" color that I can use often. Or B Kiddo:

a bold, olive-lime shade with golden shimmer which I consider a "wild" color that I will probably only use once.

Wouldn't these make for some great product reviews and tutorials?  I'm so addicted to color!  This is definitely something very exciting to look forward to.  Let me know your thoughts. :)

Hugs,
Cat

Product Review plus Mini Tutorial: Bday Party Look

So this tutorial and review is a long time coming.  I did this look more than two weeks ago for my best friend's birthday party, but haven't gotten around to even thinking about posting it until today.  Sorry!  The weather has been poopy and I've had midterms so the posts are coming slowly.  Will try to pick up the pace!

So, this is mostly a review for the new E.L.F. customized shadow quad I made for myself, as well as the pen eyeliner that featured in a previous blog.  (see My $15 E.L.F. Spree!)  It's also a mini tutorial with shortened steps because I'm assuming everyone is familiar with basic application at this point in time.

Here's the palette:

Here's the pen:

Using these colors, I decided to go for a natural, springtime look that would be both appropriate for day and evening.  Starting with a primed eyelid, I applied the Pink Ice shade as a base and the Ivory shade as a brow highlighter.

Notice I'm wearing a thin line of black liner.  It's not supposed to be there, so pretend you don't see it.

Next, I shade the outer corner of my eye with the Moondust shade:

After that, I'm going to step outside of the shadow quad and choose a dark, espresso brown shade to deepen the color in the outer corner.

Once I've completed that step, I'm going to use black pencil liner to fully line the top eyelid and halfway line the bottom lid from outer corner to center.

Next, I'm going to take a smudge brush and layer black shadow right over the black liner, smudging and blending along the way to create a smokey look.  I'm also going to add a stroke of silver pencil liner to the bottom inner corner.

From the shadow quad, I'm going to use the ivory highlight shade to layer over the silver liner.

Using my E.L.F eyeliner pen, I'm going to draw a moderate, tapered winged line across my top lid.

I curl my lashes and add mascara and I'm done.

The result is a neutral, natural look that easily transitions from work to play.  I really love the convenience and control of the pen eyeliner.  It's very long lasting, but easily comes off with L'Oreal's Clean Artiste Waterproof makeup remover.  My only qualms are that the felt tip isn't the softest and it tends to dry out FAST.  I have to re-wet the tip with water a few times when using it, which some might find rather inconvenient.  This is my general experience with pen liners.  I've spent anywhere from $1 (E.L.F.) to $27 for pen liners and the delivery and performance are more or less the same.  So if it's something you want to try, it's a safe and cheap bet with E.L.F.  At only $1 per piece, you can't lose.

Pearls and Cleavage

Yay!  New jewelry up.  Hehe.  Not as dirty as the title implies, huh?

Classic Teardrop Pearl Earrings

Cleaver Necklace

Lovelina Jewelry

Product Review: L'Oreal Clean Artiste

Hi friends!  Sorry I've been absent.  I've been busy with things and have felt horribly guilty because I'm usually so good about updating my posts.  And, to slow things down even more so, I went snowboarding over the weekend, had a bad fall, and have been feeling like a 100-year-old woman for the last 2 days, which hasn't helped.  I've got some tutorials waiting in the wings, but won't have time to post them till tomorrow.  In the meantime, I hope a good product review will do.

I really love to spend lots of time on my eye makeup.  I want it to look good and I want it to last for at least 12 hours.  Usually, it does.  The problem is removing it.  With all the time I put into making it smudgeproof, the downside is that it's also removal-proof.  For the longest time, I would use cold cream.  Cold cream is effective and gentle, but it's messy and, more often than not, it gets in my eyes which makes for blurry vision for a few minutes which is really annoying.  So, about a year ago, I discovered Clean Artiste, by L'Oreal.  It's a gentle, yet powerful eye makeup remover that's especially good to use on long-wearing and waterproof makeup.

The formula dissolves makeup on contact and finishes with a clean, non-greasy feel.  Of course I still wash my face with cleanser afterwards in order to remove all traces of dirt and oil.  I purchased a bottle from Target for about $6 and it's lasted for months.  Lancome also makes a comparable product, I think it's called Bi-Facil.  Works great, but will cost you 5x more.  Meh, I'd rather save money.

Anywho, Clean Artiste is definitely one of my must-have items for my bathroom cabinet.  For best results, I recommend using it with CVS brand premium cotton rounds.

They're inexpensive and have a cloth-like weave so that they're nice and soft on the eyelid without leaving cotton fibers on your lashes.

Beauty: Wet N Wild Blues Continued

I decided to test another look using the Wet N Wild Coloricon palette I reviewed yesterday.  I wanted to try some of the other shades as well.  I did a very simple, layered look using a trio of blues:

I used the pale aqua as a highlight, the bright teal as a base, and the midnight-blue for a dark smoke, smudged over black eyeliner.  I finished with mascara and pen eyeliner.

I also got a chance to test out the lip gloss I got from E.L.F. as well.

E.L.F's mineral lip gloss, in Sorority Girl, is a very pretty, pinky-nude shade with a hint of gold shimmer.  The formula is lightweight and non-sticky.  I like it!

So, bottom line, this is a really good shadow palette, especially for the value.  The colors go on very bold and are long-lasting.  Can't wait to try more looks.  Sorry I was so brief today, I'm a little pressed for time.  This style is pretty straightforward, but, if you would like a tutorial on this, let me know and I'll get one up this week.

Hugs,
Cat

Beauty: Midnight Wings

So this is sort of a product review and mini tutorial all rolled into one.  You'll notice that my tutorials have been a little more brief.  I figure since I've already gone over the basics in detail, latter tutorials should be easy for everyone to follow along since you've already got the basic application techniques down.  If not, just go over my earlier tutorials for a run down as they're very descriptive.

I was at Walgreens when I spotted this new Wet n Wild palette:

It's from their new Coloricon shadow collection.  This one is called "Blue Had Me At Hello".  You can probably tell by now that blues are my favorite among brightly-colored shadows.  As soon as I saw the pop of teal and blue, I had to have it.  At $5 for an 8-shadow palette, what could it hurt?  The Coloricon is supposed to be Wet n Wild's high-pigment response to all the high-end designer brand shadows.

So for this palette, you have 2 complimentary shadow quads organized on the left and right columns.  They're labeled brow bone, eyelid, crease, and definer for your convenience.  Pardon the crappy photo.  I had taken a better one days earlier, but may have accidentally deleted it as I can no longer find it.  I just took this one 5 minutes ago.  Since the lighting is so horrible, I'll describe the colors: on the left side from the top down, you have shimmery white,  shimmery silver, black with dark blue shimmer, and matte black.  On the right, you have pale aqua shimmer, bright teal shimmer, midnight-blue shimmer, and black with silver glitter.

I tested all the colors and they are very pigmented.  More so than my e.l.f. 100 color palette.  My only gripe is that the shadow is very soft, so there tends to be quite a bit of falloff when I'm applying it.  I've been protecting my face with a sheet of tissue under my eye while I apply it so that the color doesn't stain my cheeks.  Other than this inconvenience, however, the colors are very bold and long-lasting.

Here is my first test using one of my favorite colors from the set, the midnight-blue:

I just did a slight variation of the Quorra shadow style.  As usual, I start with a primed eyelid:

Next, I applied a neutral taupe shade as my base, and a lighter shade as a highlight.  I just chose these colors from my e.l.f. palette.  It's your choice, really.  This is just your base so it doesn't have to stand out too much.  The defining shade is what's important.

Then, using a black pencil liner, I traced my top and bottom lid line, drawing an exaggerated wing that extends and tapers from the outer bottom corner.

Using a smudge brush, I picked up the midnight-blue shadow from the Wet n Wild palette and layered it over the eyeliner, making sure to smudge and blend evenly, carefully defining the wing.

I to finish, I curled my lashes and applied mascara.

I love how deep the blue is.  It's so close to being black, but then there's that midnight-blue shimmer.  I think it adds a little more dimension and mystery than just your average basic black.  It's a good alternative to go for when you want something that stands out a little more.

This is also one of my favorite looks.  It's the lazy girl's dramatic eye.  It only takes 10 minutes or less, but carries a lot of impact.  I generally default to this style when I'm going on an impromptu night out and I only have minutes to prepare.  Good stuff.

My $15 E.L.F. spree!

E.L.F. had a sale over Presidents Day weekend and I decided to "splurge" on a number of items.  Here is what I got for just $15, free shipping, no sales tax:

A blush brush, lip gloss, a custom compact with 4 colors of my choice, a felt-tip eyeliner pen, and pigment shadow.  Not bad, huh?

clockwise from top left: ivory, pink ice, moondust, and sage

I made my own essential neutrals palette compact.  The compact comes "naked" with magnetic slots.  They have a number of shadow singles that you purchase individually with magnets on the bottoms of the pan to adhere to the compact.  All components (compact included) were $1 each.

I wanted to try their highly rated pigment shadow, so I chose one in Mystic Moss, which was $3.  Their gloss also got good reviews so I picked one up in Sorority Girl for $3 as well.  Will post product reviews for all of these items once I get a minute.

The blush brush is fairly high-quality and very soft, though on the small side.  I'm mostly excited about the pen eyeliner, however. I chose the color Midnight, which is a super-deep blue.  Nearly black with a hint of navy.  I did a skin test and already, it shows a lot of promise.  It glides on easily and darkly.  The good news: it doesn't budge.  The bad news: it doesn't budge.  I was able to remove it with some difficulty using soap and water.  It's almost like a sharpie.  They should call it tattoo, not eyeliner.  I could easily see this being a staple for some wild nights.

Can't wait to do some tutorials and reviews!

Hugs,

Cat

Product Review: Full N' Soft Waterproof Mascara

Being born with puny lashes, I've always turned to mascara to give me a little extra volume and length.  I've tried many, many mascaras ranging in price from $2 to $25, but I always come back to one mascara again and again.   That's Maybelline's Full N' Soft Waterproof mascara, which I get at my local drugstore for just under $10.

First of all, the formula is lightweight and super-smooth.  It glides on like silk, evenly coating each lash with no clumps in sight.  And, because I have stick-straight lashes, I always need to curl them prior to applying mascara.  Full N' Soft Waterproof really holds a curl while giving my lashes that extra bit of volume and length.  It dries fairly quickly, so there's less instances of smudging from blinking.  I really like the brush too.  It's thick enough to hold a fair amount of product, but the bristles aren't too dense so that they separate and coat lashes efficiently without clumping.

My only warning is that, because it dries so quickly, some caking might occur if you try to build on too many layers.  Honestly, I find that one layer of mascara is plenty.  Who wants spider eyes anyway?

I'd definitely say that Full N' Soft Waterproof is worth trying.  It's reasonably priced enough so that you don't have much to lose.  Just make sure you get the waterproof version and not the regular.  The regular Full N' Soft, in my opinion, is heavier, greasier, and since it doesn't dry as quickly, messier. (think raccoon eyes at the end of the day)