Swatchfreak makeup collab: Dreamy Mermaid and Sultry Siren

 Yay! I'm so excited to bring you this much-anticipated collaboration post! (You can check out Tamara's post here!)

The story: A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away I was contacted by the extremely gorgeous, sweet, and talented Tamara of Swatchfreak to do a makeup collab; we tossed around some ideas and her idea of Siren/Mermaid was agreed on. I chose Siren and Tamara chose Mermaid, and we each made a design for the other. Since I'm bad at drawing, I enlisted my sister BeckyPennArt to help me! I told her exactly what I wanted and she made it appear like magic. :D

The Designs:

Mermaid design; concept by me, digital artwork by BeckyPennArt. We made a version with notes like the one below but it's kind of distracting so I posted the cleaner one, hehe.

Tamara's Siren design; she used real makeup and drew it by hand, how cool!

 After we sent each other our concept sketches, we agreed that creative license could be taken and we got busy planning and then sharing our looks. Check them out and please click for most detail!

The Dreamy Mermaid:

Tamara's Dreamy Mermaid, even more beautiful than I envisioned!♥

Mermaid eye close-up! I adore the colors and crushed-up seashell, Tamara's genius idea! The purple brow is also the exact color I imagined, it couldn't be more perfect.

Used products:

• Fyrinnae – Nevermore – on brow (applied with water)
• Sundara Cosmetics - Turmeric - in tearduct and outer under lash line area (from a company that don’t exist anymore )
• Darling Girl Cosmetics – Purple Haze* – Soft Focus Blush + Fyrinnae – Nevermore + Fyrinnae - Marshmallow Puffs - all three used to go from yellow area on lid to pink, to purple
• Fyrinnae – We’re All Mad Here – inner under lash line area
• Fyrinnae – Futuristic Glamrock – in crease
• Tick:Tock Cosmetics – Frozen in Time – for HL
• I’m not pretty sure what false lashes I used, but I think they are from Misslyn

 The Sultry Siren:

My Siren, complete with damp hair ;P

Siren eye close-up!

 Products:

 Since I did this look last September I don't remember exactly what-all products I used, but what I do remember is that I made the eye shape with Urban Decay Zero pencil and filled in the outer corner, crease, and under my eye. I went over the black with Lucky eyeshadow by Darling Girl Cosmetics, one of my fave eyeshadows. It's similar to Sugarpill's Lumi and looks amaaazing over a black base! I also used some black eyeshadow around the very edges to preserve the black like in the sketch. On my lid I used the popular Wet N' Wild eyeshadow color that is in several of their palettes; it's a warm brown with teal iridescence. I packed that heavily on my lid and blended it a little with the teal. Then I used a gold, I think it was Autumn by BFTE Cosmetics, on my inner lid, blended with the gold and coming down to a point at my tear duct. Under my lower lashline I used BFTE Patriot, a matte navy blue at the outer corner, and then more Lucky in the middle. I used Lucky again as my highlight shade from browbone to tear duct, and also patted some over the WnW brown to intensify the iridescence. Lashes are Ardell #139.

On my brow I used NYX and Sephora pencils in light and dark brown for the over-all shape, then combed through my brow hairs with some Darling Girl Glitter Glue and heavily applied the WnW brown-blue shade.

On my skin I think I just used Revlon Colorstay and mark. Powder Buff foundations, with some bronzer as a contour. I used Lucky again to highlight my cheekbone for an ethereal glow♥

My lips didn't quite turn out the way I wanted but I used NYX slim lip pencil in Black Berry, and OCC Lip Tar in RX (the blue one). Tamara had mentioned some gold at the cupid's bow so I used BFTE Autumn for that.

It was super hot and humid in my room and I started to feel sick so I didn't get to do both eyes, but I tried to hide it with my hair. :D

This was so much fun to do and I'm super grateful to Tamara for inviting me to participate! I also want to thank her for letting me use her cute little collage pics because I was too lazy to make my own. :)

Please go check out her blog, she does awesome makeup and take beautiful photos too!

http://swatchfreak.wordpress.com/

Thanks so much for reading!♥

 *Some or all images were lightly edited using Aperture and/or Photoshop; for details, please read the photo editing disclosure widget at the bottom of my right-side bar.

Smokey Brown (Mountains for Earth Day)

Happy Earth week ladies! Today is a smokey brown tutorial inspired by the mountains. I have such a beautiful view of the Rockies out our back window and love love LOVE to look at them. It makes me think of all those vacations, camping, snowboarding or skiing looking out at the mountains. I feel super grateful to be able to see them everyday now =). Love this look too!

Don't you love my model poses? LOL My hubby loved the look and wanted a new picture of me. He was so funny and wanted me to take a pic in the car. He turned on my fav music (blasted it is more like it) and turned on the air full blast (man is it hard to keep your eyes open with it blowing) and was like,"Honey, it's like a real photo shoot!" LOL!!! Here was the winner chosen to come up on his phone when I call

Happy Earth Week Rainbow Eye

Here is day two for Earth week. Today is a rainbow. I like how it starts but LOVE how it ends. Have you ever done that? You know, where you start something makeup related that you think will be great....and it just turn out the way you wanted? I didn't want to film it all again so I just added a short video at the end of how I changed a few things. Enjoy....or just cut to the end LOL ; D. Tell me I'm not alone in this?

Teal & Caramel Random Tutorial

After opening up my Ipsy bag for the month of March I had this urge to use the colors in there from Yabby Cosmetics. They so PERfectly matched my outfit and so I decided to do a very last second tutorial. Somehow it turned into "deep thinking" and reflections...hope you don't mind ; ). I have just been thinking a lot about life lately, friends, family and creative outlets. This is definitely an outlet for me and I am super appreciative of you guys for watching, commenting and learning with me. I feel like I am branching out in all areas of my life and was wondering how you guys would feel about me posting about them from time to time. I throw parties for people, I would love to share what I do and the ideas I've come up with. I'm on this whole weight loss kick and would love to share recipes. I adORE decorating (love me some Pinterest) and am actually in the process of doing two homes in the area and would love to share crafty crafty things along with decor. What do you guys think? Let me know in the comments and if we want to keep to strictly makeup I can create other blogs no problem and keep this one free of those things =). Thanks for all of your feedback!  Love you guys!!!

Sexy Eyes

image from Pinterest

Hi there makeup lovers!!!!! I am excited to be back and doing such a dramatic, fun, smokey eyes for you today. The BEST part of this whole thing is that MOST everything comes from the drugstore!!! Not everything though, and for the items that aren't I made sure to use VERY inexpensive products that are just a click away on Amazon =). I wanted to kick off this warmer weather with a sultry sharp eye and have been so taken away with this pic that I want to lighten my hair for the first time in 12 years!!! What do you think? Should I take the plunge???

Purple Wing makeup look

I did a makeup look yesterday that was inspired by a photo I found on Pinterest. (If you're on Pinterest, you can follow me here!)

Please click for better viewing!

I couldn't see the model's lower eye since it was closed, so I did my own interpretation:

Close-up of the eye, without the extra editing.

Products:

Eyes:

-Lime Crime Eyeshadow Helper

-Belleme Waterproof Pencil Eye Liner in Funky Violet

BFTE Cosmetics eyeshadows in:

-Dark Prince (deep blackened purple over purple pencil)

-Wacky (dark orange on outer crease)

-Crush (light orange on inner crease)

-Soleil (pale yellow on lid)

-Yellow Brick Road (brighter yellow on very center of lid)

-Butt Naked (pale cream shimmer as highlight)

-BFTE Cosmetics Mix & Fix

-MAC Blacktrack Fluidline (tightline)

-Cover Girl Lash Perfection mascara

-DUO Dark lash glue

-Andrea Modlash #33 lashes

-Urban Decay Naked Basics palette (on brow)

Face:

-Reviva Labs primer

-Revlon Colorstay foundation in Buff/Ivory mixed

-mark Bronze Pro (contour)

Darling Girl Cosmetics blushes in:

-Penelope

-Orange You Glad To See Me

-Cherry Bomb

-BFTE Butt Naked (highlight)

Lips:

NYX Slim Lip Pencils in:

-Tangerine, Purple Rain, Dolly Pink

-BFTE Butt Naked

-e.l.f. lipgloss in Fairy

I wasn't really setting out to copy this look exactly but I did end up making it pretty similar. I edited my photo to be close to the original, the desaturation for example, but I'm no model of course, lol. 

I learned something from creating this look; I desperately want a deep eggplant purple gel liner! Although I really liked the result I got with the products I used; the Belleme pencil alone is gorgeous and slightly shimmery, but I wanted a very dark purple for the liner so I used a little Mix & Fix with Dark Prince to darken it up. I used tape to create the clean line on the dramatic wing.

I hope you enjoy this look, I certainly enjoyed creating it. :) I may do this more often in future, since I have a whole board on Pinterest full of inspirational makeup looks.
I just published this and realized it's my 200th post! Thanks to those who read my blog and Like/Comment on my Facebook page, it means so much to me.  ♥

Thanks for reading!

*Some or all images were lightly edited using Aperture and/or Photoshop; for details, please read the photo editing disclosure widget at the bottom of my right-side bar.

EOTD: Midnight Bubbly (BFTE Cosmetics)

 Hello, I'm back with another eye look for you! I wanted to recreate a recent look by Crystal, (aka Suzie Homemaker), the owner of BFTE Cosmetics; she posted this absolutely gorgeous look a few days ago using mostly BFTE and some Sugarpill. I used some of the same colors she did, plus a few others, to create this look Makeup Fancy style ;)

Add caption

Products:

-Lime Crime Candy Eyed Waterproof Eyeshadow Helper

BFTE Cosmetics eyeshadows in:

-Bubbly (golden peach champagne on lid)

-Poodle Pandemonium (magenta with copper sparkles on outer lid and crease)

-Midnight Kisses (deep bluish purple on outer V and crease)

-Way Up High (matte white w/ gold sheen on browbone)

-BFTE's Mix & Fix (mixing medium)

-MAC Blacktrack Fluidline

-Cover Girl Lash Perfection mascara

-Ardell Demi Wispy lashes

-Urban Decay Naked Basics palette on brow

-Boots No7 Radiant Glow concealer

-Hard Candy Glamoflauge in Light

-BFTE mineral foundation in Light Beige

I applied most of these shadows dry but I did use some Mix & Fix to dampen my brush for parts of the crease and outer corner area. I wanted to preserve the sparkles, especially in Poodle Pandemonium, which are so beautiful! I also made sure to blend a lot around the edges to give a very soft, dreamy effect.

It's definitely a bit lighter/brighter than Crystal's version, I think because I went lighter on the purple and heavier on the pink. To me it looks tropical; I picture being on a private yacht in the Caribbean, having a cool champagne on a warm night. (Hence the name, Midnight Bubbly hehe!)

Overall I really like how it turned out; thanks to Crystal for introducing me to this stunning combination, I just love it!♥

 Thanks for reading!

*Some or all images were lightly edited using Aperture and/or Photoshop; for details, please read the photo editing disclosure widget at the bottom of my right-side bar.

Flawless Kim Kardashian Makeup

Saw this picture and was SO captivated by it. Love her or hate her, she knows how to wear her makeup! Her makeup artist has sent girls all over reeling trying to make their cheekbones as pronounced, their eyes as dreamy, their lashes as long and thick and lips as pouty as possible! Sure, they airbrushed the JuNk out of this photo but still.....beautiful!!!!! In this video I teach how to achieve this gorgeous look with two different lips. One with the orangy red she sports and the other with a very glossy nude lip. One thing I was most impressed with as I went through doing my eyelashes was that I thought my demi whispies might not be good enough to match hers. I ended up doing a good coat of mascara on them and they TOTALLY proved worthy!!!!! SO fun to find that something you already had, something you thought was only good for one thing, surprises you =). I don't feel the need to go out and get different lashes when doing Kim looks. Tell me what you think and which lip is your favorite!

Snow White Makeup Tutorial

The beautiful princess Snow White is known far and wide for her kindess, charm her beautiful snow white skin and ebony black hair. I was asked to dress up as this iconic Disney princess for a little girl's birthday party last week. I thought I might share how I got ready. I am scheduled to do this again next week and think I might have to reference my own video =). Hope that you enjoy it!

Day 3: "Synergy" glitter eye look

I did this look last night for Day 3 of the 30 Day Challenge my friends and I are doing; you can check it out my other days here!

 Day 3: a picture of you with glitter

I wanted to use some of my new Darling Girl Cosmetics eyeshadows and I love how they look! I'm calling this look "Synergy" because it totally reminds me of the character from Jem, one of my favorite cartoons as a little girl. The glitter totally looks like the glowing buttons on the Synergy computer machine thing! That's what I was thinking of while creating this look. ;)

You can see the iridescent colors on the outer edges best in this no-flash shot; they were more visible in person but of course the camera doesn't pick up colors like this, huhu :c

Products:

-BFTE Cosmetics Eye and Lip Primer

Darling Girl Cosmetics eyeshadows in:

-Prophecy (copper-tan-gold shade)

-Kaboom! (blackened reddish plum with sparkle)

-The End... (blackened purple with shimmer)

-Rapture (light lilac with reddish sheen)

-Lucky (white/teal duochrome with sparkle)

-Provoke (warm taupe with red sheen; I used this on my browbone)
-Sephora white pencil (on waterline)

-Mardi Gras (patina green with copper shimmer)

-Mystique (pale aqua frost with pink sheen)

-Glitter Glue (on lower lashline and outer corner)

-NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil in Milk (tearduct only)

-Cover Girl Lash Perfection mascara

-Ardell Demi Wispies w/ DUO Dark lash adhesive

-MAC Blacktrack Fluidline (upper lashline only)

-Loreal Lineur Intense Carbon Black Felt Tip Liquid Liner

NYX Candy Glitter Liners in:

-Aqua, Purple, and El Dorado (mixed over the eyeliner)

-Urban Decay Naked Basics palette (on brow)

These shots show a bit of context and how the makeup looked on my face. I have to say, even though the pictures turned out okay, this looked so much cooler in person!

It's been so long since I've done a makeup look like this... it feels good to be back in the saddle. ;) I'm so in love with Provoke, it's an amazing color and I know I'll be using it a ton! You can see swatches of Provoke and some of these colors here. Swatches of the rest here and here.

I hope you enjoyed it and I look forward to bringing you more looks for this challenge.

Thanks for reading!♥

  *Some or all images were lightly edited using Aperture and/or Photoshop; for details, please read the photo editing disclosure widget at the bottom of my right-side bar.

Make Those Blue Eyes POP!!!

This is probably one of my most requested tutorials. Not this one specifically, but in general. A lot of girls want to know what colors will make their blue eyes stand out. I've always dreamed of having super dark hair and beautiful blue eyes. It's just a combo that I find stunning! Alas, I'm a brown eyed girl ;) but still love it! I have done a tutorial for the summer time and here is one for the winter. It is the same general idea but a few different colors.

P.S. Be looking soon on the blog for a giveaway from Shabby Apple!!!!! Here is the outfit I wore in the video =):

Kev's Rainbow Eye

Here is video #2 for me and Kevin. I know it took forEVER for us to get it uploaded but my computer would NOT process it for the life of me. The first video is where he had to take all my product and do my makeup blindly. Then we had readers send in a bunch of photos for Kevin to try next time. The one that he chose was a rainbow eye sent in by Stacey. 

Here he is using the picture and trying to match it. At the end there is a Q&A where he asks how to fix common mistakes. I think he did a great job! =) What do you think???

False Lash Routine {updated}

image from Pinterest

I have one other lash tutorial but you know how things change over time =). This one is solely dedicated to the application of false lashes instead of a mini tutorial withIN another tutorial. It takes practice to master lashes but NOT much!!! You would be surprised how easily it will come to you as you do it often. It now takes me less time to put on my lashes than to perfect a few coats of mascara. 

I also love to use different kinds depending on my mood. You'd laugh if you say the different pairs I have in my bathroom. Do I feel "saucy"? Then I would wear something like these:

I like the separation effect where certain points are longer and thicker. More often than not I opt for romantic and whispy for dates with my hunny like these:

What is YOUR style of lashes??? Where do you get yours if you wear them? Also, this is a terrible picture because photography is not a strong skill of mine but here is the outfit I wore in the video.

Dress: Forever 21
Bow: Forever 21 (almost 3 years ago)
Navy blue cardigan: Forever 21
Navy blue leggings: Forever 21 (are you sensing a pattern LOL?)
Boots: Target.com
Teal knee length socks: Target

Favorites: My top 3 false lashes

I don't normally do favorites posts but I thought it would be fun to post my top 3 favorite pairs of false lashes for you guys :) These are lashes I've used in several looks and have either repurchased or plan to repurchase. Keep reading for the details!

photo from shop.beautybar.com.ph via google

 First up are the Andrea modlash lashes in 33 Black. This was my very first pair of lashes and I found them very easy to use as a lash noob. They're extremely dense, full, and dark, perfect for a super dramatic look. The band is black with no light plastic showing through which is great for blending right into black eyeliner on your lid. They're inexpensive, around $3-$5 from practically any drugstore or beauty supply store. I can probably get around 15 looks out of one pair before I want to replace them.

Here are some past looks I've done using these lashes:

As you can see, I've used them a lot. This is one of the pairs I have repurchased before and plan to buy again when my current pair is worn out. :)

Photo from cincottachemist.com.au via google

Now we have the Ardell Demi Wispies in Black: Ardell has these lashes listed under Best Sellers on their website, and they have quickly worked their way up to my #1 favorite pair of falsies for versatility and ease of use. I can use these in any type of look, from dramatic to natural, and they always look beautiful. (You can see a brief video of me wearing/discussing them here.) Since they're so easy to use, my sister Abby also loves them!

Abby has used them in several looks:

As have I:

When I want to wear lashes out to an event, this is the pair I reach for. I don't have trouble wearing them all day long. :)

photo from baronepharmacy.com.au via google

Last but not least are the Ardell 139 Black lashes. This is yet another readily available pair of falsies which can be found in most any drugstore or beauty supply store for around $3-$5. What I like about these lashes is that they give a bit of a fantasy effect to your look. They're dense and black at the band and fan out into spiky lashes which are longest in the middle. They're not the most comfortable to wear all day, especially if your eyes have a very round shape, as the band on these is fairly straight and not very flexible, but for fun looks I think they're a great pair to have in your collection. I plan to buy a few more pairs to have around since these are also a favorite of both my sisters :)

Some looks:

So there you have it, my most-used false lashes. I hope you enjoyed this post and that it was helpful to you. I plan to keep these 3 styles around and continue using them in makeup looks :)
As a bonus pic, here are my sister and me in NYC after IMATS this past Spring; she's wearing the 139 Black lashes and I'm wearing my beloved Demi Wispies:

Thanks for reading!

*All products were purchased myself. All opinions are my own.