Archive for August 2010

Review: Avene Diacneal Skincare Lotion (For Blemishes)

Tuesday, August 31, 2010

stock image from aveneusa.com Is there such thing as a miracle product for acne? Yes, I'd say so- I've finally found mine. Acne has been troubling me for the majority of my life, ever since I was nine years old. There's been times when I had the whole pizza-face thing going on (that's how bad scarring and cystic acne was for me in my early teens) and times when I only had a handful of zits, but they were always there. I've tried practically every line of acne care products found in American drugstores- over the counter benzoyl peroxide and salicylic acid products just haven't really proved effective for me. Behold, Avene Diacneal.What it is: a treatment lotion containing 6% Glycolic Acid and 0.1% Retinal for acne or wrinkles. It comes out of the tube as a pearly yellow cream...

Orly Cosmic FX- Space Cadet is MINE!

Monday, August 30, 2010

3x Space Cadet, outdoors, direct sun, no flash When I first saw the promo pictures for this polish, I died a little inside, of pure happiness. It looked so incredibly cool- a foily duochromey polish and now that I finally have it in person, I'm ecstatic. I do have one problem though- I've never ever encountered anything quite like this, I don't know if I have the vocabulary to describe it. What does it look like to me? A greenish jelly base with metallic magenta/olive foil-like shimmer. At different angles and different distances from the light, it looks more green-yellow or more blue green. How is this possible?According to Orly: "The new Cosmic FX collection from ORLY features six new shades made with exclusive Mineral FX raw material technology, which delivers multi-dimensional lacquers...

NOTD: (From a few days ago) Color Club Fashion Addict

Sunday, August 29, 2010

I completely forgot about post thing earlier, whoops! Color Club makes great holos ( I think they only have five or so, *sobs) that are really pigmented with medium sized holo bits that are quite uniform. They're holo, yes- but a classy holo. I wish cameras could capture how glorious this one looks in person. It's such a nice lavender (and I'm not a pastel person, at all) and the formula is so nice and opaque! So, what do you think of yet another one of my beloved holographi...

FOTD: Before and After (Recreation of 'Ulzzang' look)

Friday, August 27, 2010

This is a rather well known ulzzang whose makeover video can be found on YouTube with dramatic before/aftershots. I was browsing through the internet one day when I stumbled upon the term 'ulzzang'. Herm? What's this? I had no idea what it meant (it actually sounded like it'd be something violent to me) so a few google searches revealed that it's a type of trend in Asia, a category of girls (and guys) who may look pretty average at best but with the help of cosmetics and Photoshop are able to look super adorable and doll like. "Best face" is what UrbanDictionary tells me it means in Korean. I -had- to try this out. However, a key part of this look requires circle lenses (the special contacts that give them their glassy doll eyes) which I don't have. Also, I don't know how to use Photoshop...

Bronze Polish Franken + KOTD

Thursday, August 26, 2010

Remember how I mentioned yesterday that I was going to use The Body Shops' mineral shadow to franken polish? Well I did it. I used Essence's clear polish (Ulta, $.99) and funneled in about 1/2 teaspoon of Radiant Graphite. It did settle a bit overnight, I really have to get some stainless steel balls. Not too bad, eh? But wait! It gets better! Yeah! That's right! Wet'n'Wild Black Creme with Konad plate M57. I like this a lot better than my previous leopard print Konad. I wore this to my interview at Empire Beauty School, a look-see around the facilities. So, what do you thi...

Some Swatches+Reviews of The Body Shop Products

Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Kinda old stuff that I bought at the beginning of the summer, when TBS was having their 3 for $10 sale. First, some of their Nature's Minerals Eye Colors. Basically, loose mineral shadows. These shadows did not impress me at all, other than the pretty colors. Really, they embodied every negative quality that people sometimes associate with mineral makeup; streaky, hard to blend, doesn't stick to skin. Even with Fyrinnae's Pixie Epoxy underneath, they looked really chalky and chunky. They were really a disappointment and I think that I'm going to try to franken nail polishes with these so that they don't go to waste. Bare skin, left side swatches, over Pixie Epoxy on the right Also, I picked up a few blushes that came in the stamping kind of package where the blush is in the cap, like this: stock...

NOTD: L.A. Girl Rock Star - Head Banging

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Nice polish today, an shimmery green in a jelly base. It's the exact color of a deep emerald, really quite nice. Nothing really remarkable to say about this one. Not too flashy, not too ugly. Not too runny, not too goopy. Just right. *shrugs* Have any polishes like that, that don't really solicit a response from you? Product shown was purchased by me, for my own use...

Rock & Republic Cougar Gloss (and FOTD!)

Monday, August 23, 2010

I freaking love red lips. Really. Now that I've got that out of the way, let me tell you about this amazing gloss from Rock & Republic. I bought it from BeautyStory when it was on sale for about 50% off, and boy am I happy that I did! Under lightbox, it was raining out, so no natural light swatches. It's such a nice gloss, not sticky at all. It's deeply pigmented, such a bright beautiful color. In the pictures with it on my skin and on my face, my skin really warms it up so that it looks more tomato-y scarlet but I swear it's a true, pure red. The funny thing is that the packaging looks really luxe, but upon closer inspection the black material on the cap of the gloss is just a sticker. I do like test tube-esque shape and the small logo on the end of the cap though, it's small details...

China Glaze Fall Vintage Vixen Collection: Midnight Mission

Sunday, August 22, 2010

Here's another polish that I've gotten from China Glaze's fall collection. It's an inky navy with silver microglitter. I absolutely love the way that this polish looks against my skin, the contrast of the dark color is really flattering. The formula is nice and opaque, a 2 coater. This polish really reminds me of this: Doesn't it look like the night sky, only condensed? Though not a very complex color, it's very dreamy and it's my favorite from this collection, thus far. What do you think of this color? Product shown was purchased by me, for my own u...

FOTD and NOTD: China Glaze He's Going in Circles

Friday, August 20, 2010

First, a super sparkly set of holo nails. China Glaze's He's Going in Circles was one of my first holo polishes. It has those chunkier holo bits, and is kind of sheer- I had to build up 4 coats to get this opaque, even color. Awesome, no? Edit: I think this color is looking silvery on a lot of people's monitors. Yes, it is kinda- but it also has a green-blue tinge to it. Cat (StrawberryMochi) was nice enough to send me some Japanese magazines, which made me absolutely over the moon happy. I have no idea what the text says, but the pictures are great! So today's FOTD was kind inspired by some of the pages in ViVi's August edition. Not much eyeshadow, but a lot of lash definition by means of upper and lower false lashes and extra liner. Also less noticeable blush, more emphasis...

Surprise Present: NARS Douceurs De Paris (Pleasures of Paris) Palette

Thursday, August 19, 2010

Mr. MakeupWithdrawal surprised me with a present for no apparent reason- the NARS palette that I had craved greatly! I actually didn't think that it was available anymore, but the 9951 Pleasures of Paris Palette is still on the Saks Fifth Ave site (as some sort of exclusive I guess). His only stipulation is that I'm not allowed to gush about it to him. Anyways, I was super happy to get because I felt like all the shades were very versatile and very well coordinated. I could pick any 3 shades and create a look out of them, the possibilities are endless! Left to right: Nepal, Violetta, Demon Lover, Fez, Abyssinia and Cordura. Nepal is a soft pinky-peachy tan. Violetta is matte light violet with enough grey and brown in it that it's very neutral.Demon Lover is a dark, greyed...

FOTD: Clara Bow (Kinda) and Ornate KOTD

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

I tried to thin out my brows and make them straight and unnaturally uniform like Clara's but that didn't work out too well. I also ended up adding a dab of blush, because without it- I looked rather sickly! Can't do the sultry expression, either. I do love vampy lips though! Face: MUFE HD, Monistat Gel, e.l.f. HD powder Brows: NYX Brow Powder in Taupe/Ash Lips: NYX Hebe and Rimmel Hype Eyes: UDPP, La Femme Taupe shadow and LORAC Beige. Urban Decay 24/7 Zero liner, MAC Chromagraphic, falsies And here's my KOTD! That's Finger Paints' Contrast in Crimson (3x) and China Glaze GR8 stamped with Konad plate #M63. I really love the holographic swirling. Plush the red is so pretty, very rich with a hint of shimm...

China Glaze Fall Vintage Vixen Collection: Ingrid

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

2x Ingrid, outdoors, no flash Certain polishes trigger polar opposite feelings in me, and I'm not sure why. Usually it's murky colors with some sort of subtle glimmer like say for instance, Chanel Paradoxal. I can't figure out if I really love or hate these colors, or both at the same time. China Glaze Ingrid is also on this list. I can't decide it's the most sophisticated, understated color I've ever seen or if it looks like the shade of gilded poop. Really, doesn't it look kind of gross and mysterious at the same time? When I try to think about how this color ties into the Fall Vintage Vixen collection, I mentally envision a statuesque woman with her hair in a wavy updo with a soft mink coat wrapped around her. It's taupey goodness (I highly object to it being called 'greige' seeing how...

Review: Cargo Ceylon Eyeshadow

Monday, August 16, 2010

I'm emotionally turbulent about this shadow, I really am. Look at it. Doesn't it look nice? Doesn't it look like it's waving "Mimi, come uuuuuuse me! I'm gonna be the most perfect plum shade ever."The first 4 times I used this shadow, blech- was the payoff terrible! It looked dingy and not very shimmery, it couldn't be more disagreeable of a color more like a dried up raisin color than a friendly plum. Indoors, under lightbox. Then, some miracle happened (not really, I think I broke through the top of the cake, where it was harder and less pigmented) and wow, was the color great! It was this smokey, sparkly plum, softer texture and way better pigmentation- better in every way. My heart leapt for joy but fell back to the ground very quickly. You see, there was still one thing keeping this...

Last Night's FOTD + NOTD: It's Electric (and Minty)

Sunday, August 15, 2010

I played with vivid blue winged liner yesterday and I must say that I liked it a lot. I kept the rest of the face really simple, toned down pink on the lips and cheeks. Facd: MUFE HD, L'oreal Magic Perfecting Base, R&R Spank blush Eyes: UDPP, Dior Sweet Street quint, LORAC Luxe, Urban Decay 24/7 Gunmetal liner, Urban Decay Skyscraper mascara and for that amazing blue- Fyrinnae 1.22 Gigawatts + La Femme sealer. Lips: Revlon SL gloss in Pink Pursuit Brows: NYX Brow Powder in Taupe/Ash This Konad isn't exactly original, I saw the white fishnet on mint creme a while back while browsing through pictures on Google, but forgot who it is so I can't credit the combo :/ Anyways, the mint is Funky Fingers Southhampton Seafoam and the white is Wet'n'Wild French White Creme + Konad plate #M57. Still...

China Glaze Fall Vintage Vixen Collection: Emerald Fitzgerald

Saturday, August 14, 2010

1x Seche Clear, 3x Emerald Fitzgerald and 1x Seche Vite I actually got this a few weeks ago, but have been too busy with other polishes to take some good pictures. This is a new polish from China Glaze's Fall collection, focused on the 40s era style. This polish (with such an awesome name), along with Ingrid caught my eye (alas, it was out of stock when I ordered ) and I finally get to show you what it looks like! It's a very beautiful dark green with enough shimmer to catch my eye, and I really like the way it looks against my NC25ish skin. Anyways, normally all China Glaze polishes seem to be of the same consistency for me, but this one straight out of the bottle was a little thick. And since it's a brand new polish that was manufactured quite recently, I'm guessing it wasn't due to prolonged...

Quick FOTD

Friday, August 13, 2010

On Friday nights, Mr. MakeupWithdrawal and I like to go out to a diner and chat while we consume milkshakes and crab cake burgers and the like. It's my favorite part of the week, 'cause nothing beats relaxing and eating diner cheesecake! Here's a few quick snapshot on my way out the door. Uhm, this look is neither polished nor inspired, I was just in a hurry, hah! Face: L'oreal Magic Perfecting Base, MUFE HD, R&R Call Me blush, e.l.f. HD powder, NARS Concealer Ginger/Custard Eyes: UDPP, La Femme Cake Mascara in black, Fyrinnae Polar Bear, NARS Earth Angel, MAC Blacktrack Fluidline, Avon Supershock Gel liner in Khaki ShimmerBrows: NYX Brow Powder in Taupe/AshLips: Urban Decay Midnight Cowboy lipstick Thanks for looking! What was your FOTD today? Or recent...

Review: Seche Clear Base

Thursday, August 12, 2010

stock image from Seche.com Again, no point in showing you my dinky halfway used bottle, when there's a nice clean stock picture I can use! My love for Seche Vite knows no bounds, so naturally when I realized the importance of a base coat, I looked to other Seche products to provide me with the awesomeness I associate with the top coat.Alas, Seche Clear fell far behind its golden sibling. How do you describe something that doesn't perform up to your standards but isn't horrendous either? The only way I can think of is with a sound. Meh. Seche Clear doesn't really prevent staining... nope, the yellowing caused by China Glaze Entourage certainly taught me that (a medium creme green polish with tiny bit of shimmer) even though I had used a couple coats of the Clear underneath. Seche...

NOTD: Funky Fingers 220 Volts + Konad

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

So, I saw this amazing blue at 5Below the other day, and I had to have it (I ended up getting 10 polishes, gah!). I had never heard of Funky Fingers before, but I looked it up on my phone, and turns out that the same company that makes Color Club makes Funky Fingers. In the bottle, it looked kinda like a jelly. However, once I started to apply it- I found it really odd. It went on kind of runny and sheer, and dried to a semi-matte. I actually had to use 4 coats because it didn't level at all, but the color if not the finish was beautiful. It turned out to be a nice cerulean blue! Edit: I've since learned that these are called neons, d'oh. However, the finish really really irked me. So I decided to Konad over it and use Seche Vite to gloss it up. Here's what it looks like with the Konading: I...

Urban Decay Naked Palette Giveaway CLOSED

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

This contest is now closed!&nb...

FOTD+NOTD: Strawberry Lips and Holo Nails

Monday, August 9, 2010

I had a lot of strawberry-coral products on today, I can't help it- it's my favorite summer color! And look, I actually had time to take pictures before the sun went down! Here's a few pictures. Face: Monistat Anti Chafe Gel, Missha B.B Boomer, MUFE HD, NARS Concealer in Ginger/Custard, MAC Marine Life, e.l.f. HD powder Eyes: UDPP, Laura Mercier Fresco shadow, MAC Mauvement pigment, Fyrinnae Pixie Epoxy, MAC Blacktrack Fluidline, Urban Decay Skyscraper mascara Lips: MAC VG Cyndi lipstick, Revlon Coral Reef gloss Brows: NYX Brow Powder in Brown And of course, strawberry holo nails as well. 1x Sparitual Base/Top coat, 3x China Glaze TMI This is China Glaze's TMI from the OMG collection. It's probably the most subtle holo I own and I'm kinda 'meh' about it for that reason. I mean, for me-...