Thursday, 16 July 2009

It's been rainy! FOTD + Daily Staple 07/16/09

It's the rainy season here again! Technically here in the Philippines, we have two seasons. Wet and Dry. Obviously wet is the rainy season. When it's the rainy season you can practically expect for it to be raining everyday! That's why I never leave the house without my trusty umbrella. :) It's such a hassle to get caught in rain after all, but then I digress.

Today I decided to procrastinate and take a moment to relax, and what better way to do it than....you guessed it!! Playing with makeup! :D I felt like making a gloomy look because it's so rainy and all and a lot of people are stuck at home. Man, I've grown quite rusty with the eye makeup! I guess that's what happens when you take a break for more than a month without practicing at all (at school the most I usually wear is foundation, mascara, lipstick/balm/gloss and when I'm feeling daring, blush). I came up with a simple wearable look.



look at me pulling a stupid face. LOL




And of course, I have a tutorial. :) Well, more like a step-by-step since I don't remember going into detail... x.x



What I used:
FACE Celeteque moisturizer as base, PAC two-way powder foundation applied with a wet sponge, Ellana Minerals finishing powder in espresso con panna
CHEEKS Ever Bilena powder blush in Raisin
LIPS Revlon Matte lipstick in Mauve It Over
EYES Art Deco eyeshadow base, coastal scents 88 palette, Victoria's Secret beauty rush luminous shadow in after midnight, Dollface gel eyeliner in black, Maybelline volum express cat eyes mascara waterproof in black

Let's get started! :) First prime your eyelids with a good eyeshadow primer or base (this step is optional).

Colors used: Click to enlarge

1) highlighter
2) all over lid
3&4) blended out over crease and outer v, brought inwards

Here are the next few steps:



Pat color 2 all over lid and pack on color
Using a blending brush or crease brush, bring color 3 inwards, emphasizing the outer V and the crease
Go over the same area with color 4 (black), blend out
Highlight under eyebrow and in the inner corner of eyes with color 1
With a thin/small angled brush, apply color 3 on lower lashline (apply white eyeliner on waterline-optional)
apply eyeliner and mascara


That's pretty much it. :) Of course after that I just put my lipstick on. I used Revlon Matte lipstick in Mauve It Over -- it's the 2nd lipstick I've ever bought for myself and it is currently my favorite. This item has definitely become a daily staple for me, I can't even think about leaving the house without this on (sometimes though I do substitute for other lipsticks...don't want to look the same everyday after all!). Personally I think that mauve it over is a good nude pink.






So here's a mini review on it:
Pros:
  • Affordable, considering the quality (475 php for 4.2g)
  • Nice, sleek and matte packaging
  • Pigmented, Good color payoff
  • Smooth-textired, easy to apply over lips unlike some other matte lipsticks
  • Really matte
  • Long-wearing
  • Good range of shades to choose from (matte collection)
  • NON-DRYING

    Cons:
  • Can sometimes make your lips look very dry
  • Cannot be applied (or at least, shouldn't be) over chapped lips

    Tips:
  • Apply a light coat of lipbalm before applying the lipstick to make it glide better if you feel like you are having a hard time with it
  • Make sure your lips are moisturized/not chapped prior to application (to make sure I put lip balm on every night and in the morning while I am doing my routine)
  • Wear gloss over it if your lips look dry (although this defeats the purpose of it being matte)

    Now that that's done, here are a few more photos of my finished look. :)



  • That's it for today, everyone! Hope you have a good Thursday/Friday!!

    Wednesday, 15 July 2009

    Being a responsible blogger

    I haven't forgotten about my blog, or blogging! And I'm happy about that. I made a commitment and I'm sticking with it. xD To show just how much I love this blog, I made a new layout for it. Yay! Bye old layout, hellooo pretty new layout. ^_^

    I'm still working out the kinks but it's mostly up, and I'm happy.

    New post tomorrow! How do you like my spiffy new layout? :D

    ETA: The common consensus seemed to be that my font size was small, so I made it bigger. How's that?

    Sunday, 12 July 2009

    Beauty News: Shu Uemura Opens New Location in Toronto!

    If you haven’t already heard, Shu Uemura opened its third counter in Canada at the Holt Renfrew on Bloor St. and Makeup Junkie was there to get the inside scoop!

    Let us introduce you to Mr. Shu Uemura, one of the greatest makeup artists of our time, and his philosophy behind the Shu Uemura brand. “Beautiful makeup starts with beautiful skin.” With the company's philosophy of ‘nature, science and art', this theme is evident throughout the line. We have known Shu Uemura for the eyelash curler (which we swear by – this product should be a staple in any woman’s makeup case), but we were unfamiliar with some of the other products Shu Uemura had to offer.

    The Holt Renfrew staff were most enthusiastic about the Cleansing Oil (shown above), another star product the brand is known for. Just apply on a dry face and it will gently rub off any makeup. Our Makeup Junkie staff have tried it for several days now and have fallen in love with the Cleansing Oil. More products to be excited about is a new skin care line launching this Fall called Red Juvenus. The line consists of 5 rejuvenating skin care products which will help correct the first signs of ageing (pictured below). After trying some of the products, our writers found that it immediately made their skin feel more supple and re-vitalized.

    A favourite among us Makeup Junkies was their Tokyo Lash Bar. We loved the displays of the brand's fake lashes, ranging from natural to fantasy to theatrical.

    Makeup Junkie also had a chance to speak with Taca Ozawa, the new principle makeup artist in Canada. He was very helpful and informative showing us different products from the UV Under Base SPF 10 (mousse-like tinted primer good underneath foundation, minimizes pores and gives skin a healthy glow) to the blush (with good pigmentation that only a little is required) to the eyeshadows and lipsticks (a wide range of colours and long-lasting pigment). He even demonstrated on one of our writers, Donna, the "Shu Uemura way" of applying blush.

    All you need to do is take one side of your blush brush and dip it into your blush. Next, starting at the top of the cheek bone, stroke your brush forward only once in one fluid motion. Then sweep up to the temple using the clean side of the brush. And then 3 small strokes downward and forward to blend.

    Our writers left with a new found love of the Shu Uemura brand. It was through Mr. Shu Uemura's passion of wanting to be the "most advanced makeup artist in the world", that the line has inspired so many makeup lovers and makeup artists around the world. Discover and experience the new counter until July 12th, and you will receive a complimentary application of Shu Uemura's bestselling luxe brown eyelashes with a minimum purchase of $45. Spaces are limited so be sure to book an appointment!

    www.shuuemura.com
    www.holtrenfrew.com

    by Donna De Leon and Mae Atiga
    Photos courtesy of Donna De Leon

    Woo!

    Sigh. I am REALLY starting to feel awful for not being able to post so much. Blame it on school and busy schedules. I'm just sneaking this post in, right now! I'm so sorry I can hardly read people's blogs anymore. My gosh, I didn't think I'd be this busy. I pride myself in rarely getting stressed due to workload, but holy wow, this year is going to shape up to be very busy. So if things do not work out I may have to take a hiatus... but I will always miss everyone on here!


    I just wanna share a fab find with everybody!


    Last week, I was with my parents at TriNoma, a mall nearby. They were shopping for clothes so I went off to the health/beauty area at the department store. I was about to leave when I spotted something:



    I was really fortunate to see this brush hanging there on the display shelf because...

    If you can't see what it says, it says P39.75. That's about... 80 US cents. Not even a dollar. This is what it looks like:


    It's small, but just perfect. It's a great crease brush. Well, I use it for cut creases now.
    It's really hard to find cheap brushes, especially crease brushes! Because normally cheap brushes would be normally just shaders and such.
    Nicely packed, soft to the touch, picks up perfect amount of eyeshadow.

    No shedding or bleeding, even after being washed.
    You can find it at TriNoma Landmark Department Store, 1st floor. Near the Sally Hansen kiosk.
    Try it out, you'll love it like I did. :)
    Have a good weekend, girls! Now I'm off to go back to doing homework. :(

    Saturday, 11 July 2009

    MAC Studio Sculpt Review...Yes I'm Alive

    So if any of you know me by now you know that I am not one for the more "natural" look. I reeeeeeaaaaaally like full coverage. I was told that the Studio Sculpt from MAC should really be me next purchase sooooo after a few jobs and was excited to add this to my collection. Not only did the girl at the counter swear that I was to get NW 30....I am NW 15 normally....but she applied it with the #190 brush which is infamous for streaking and she said that I would only need a pea sized amount...as she frantically tried to spread it all over my face. I decided to go with the NW 20 because of the season and said I would better see the results I was wanting applying it myself. I am still VeRy on the fence about this. Is the coverage is full...YES!!!! Do you only have to use a pea sized amount....kind of (if you use it with moisturizer). Would I recommend it...I would reeeeaaally like to wait until winter to see if I like it better then because ObViOuSlY it is summer and I sweat it all of anyway and then the consistancy is wierd. I like my foundation to be a bit more liquid than mud but it still gives great coverage. Any one else tried it???

    Saturday, 27 June 2009

    Contest Winners

    I really feel sooooo bad for taking so long to post this. But I talked with Gia and promised to post it last Saturday at 6, only I got sick and had to be quarantined for a couple of days…and I guess I never got around to talking to Gia again cause I hardly saw her around and she didn’t reply to my texts. So I just got to talk to Gia now and she said that I should go ahead because she's really busy...

    So, after almost a whole month of waiting, here are the contest entrants.

    Crissy http://makeuppackrat.blogspot.com/



    Janie http://hellobrokecollegestudent.blogspot.com/

    What she used (no picture was included):
    Amuse foundation
    Cover Girl invisible concealer NYX
    NYX oncealer
    L'oreal true match
    NYX liquid eye liner
    Maybelline define a line
    Amuse glamour eye shadow palette
    Costal scent 28 neutral eyeshadow
    Amuse sweetheart eyeshadow
    Max Factor lash perfection mascara
    L'oreal Lash out mascara
    Styli-Style lip stain
    NYX tinted lip spa












    And finally…
    It was hard for Gia and I to decide the winner—of course, after all the entries were amazing. Everyone put their own spin on the theme and all looked pretty authentic Beijing Opera makeup… We would give everyone prizes but since we can’t afford it we had to choose just one. So the winner is…

    Sarah

    For being so creative and thinking out of the box for her inspiration. Congratulations, Sarah! I’ll e-mail you about getting prizes right after I post this.


    Wednesday, 24 June 2009

    Face From The Inspirational Photos


    Here are some pictures of Codi doing "Face Number 2". I think it's funny that she told me she was going to use false lashes but then decided against it......CAN YOU PEOPLE SEE THIS GIRL'S LASHES?????? Doesn't need them now or ever =). Love you Code and I LOVE the lipstick you used. Share what colors and products used in the comment section. Ladies, I am waiting for more!!!! I would LOVE to see what you come up with. It might even just be something totally different but one of the pictures inspired you to do it =). Let's see it!!!!!