Monthly Archives: March 2016

Soft spring look with Urban Decay Vice 4 

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Well, spring has sprung in the Southern US.  Which means my allergies are going crazy!  I got some Flonase, but boy am I suffering!  Meanwhile, I hope my Covergirl Clump Crusher “water resistant” version really is water resistant.  I guess we’ll find out!  ANYHOO.  I just felt like doing some softer spring makeup today with a shimmery eye and a matte face/nude lip.  I think most folks think Urban Decay Vice 4 looks have to be crazy – not so!  You can definitely create soft looks with this palette.  (Product breakdown below!)

  
(Gosh, why so serious, Rachel?)

  
BREAKDOWN:

Face: MAC Prep and Prime Skin Base (interesting sample, not sure this is a necessary step?), NYX HD Concealer in green around nose, Revlon Colorstay 110 Ivory mixed with L’oreal Magic Lumi Primer and NYX white foundation mixer, NYX HD Concealer in yellow under NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer in Chantilly, Inglot HD Powder to set face, Tarte Amazonian Clay Blush in Celebrated, no contour or highlight today.  Honestly, I don’t think I got my foundation mix quite right, which sucks because it’s usually awesome!

EYES:  Bobbi Brown Cream Eyeshadow in Bone as a base, MAC Vanilla eyeshadow to highlight, Urban Decay Vice 4 shadows Discreet (crease), Robbery (lid/crease), Deadbeat (outer V/lower lashline), Physicians Formula Lash Booster liquid liner black, Covergirl Clump Crusher water resistant mascara black, Milani Brow Shaping Clear Wax pencil, NYX Micro Brow Pencil Black 

LIPS: L’oreal Lipstick in Nude Lust, Smashbox Lip Enhancing Gloss in Radiant 

Spring look of the day with MAC and Tarte 

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Yesterday, we had my sister and brother in law over for dinner and I got dressed in a casual spring outfit with this great floral skirt that she had actually given me!  I did a little coordinated makeup with a corally pink lipstick.  

  
I did eventually put on some great ballet flats, heh!

Closer look!  
Base is the usual stuff, eyes feature some matte neutral shadows by Inglot, MAC Aquadisiac shadow on the lid and lower lashline, Tarte Amazonian Clay Blush in Fearless, and MAC Amplified Creme Lipstick in Chatterbox.

I got the great sterling and bloodstone pendant from EBay.

What have you been wearing this spring? 

DIY Hair? Sure, bring a friend!

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It’s relatively well known that I tend to have hair that is crazy, fun, weird, brightly colored, fake, or whatever else. What a lot of people don’t know is that I do my own hair. Dye, cuts, extensions, shaving, all of it. Don’t get me wrong, I love it when I can get to a stylist and let them go nuts with it, but I’ll be honest: I’m lazy.  

 My hair is a hot mess here. Pay attention, I’m about to talk about the gentleman on the right.
Well, I have been getting tired of my one-length, growing out, shapeless hair mass. So I enlisted the help of my BFF Kurt, (pictured above laking a very serious face for some reason ¯\(°_o)/¯)  and said “shave some of it off.”

…actually, hold up. Let me tell you about Kurt for a second because his hair is way better than mine.

 These are but a few of the incarnations of Kurt.

Kurt is a mythical creature with great hair and weird jokes. When I was 19 and had just discovered Information Society, my main goal in life became “Have hair as cool as Kurt’s.” Fast forward a bunch of years, anyway, and as a weird and wonderful twist of fate he’s my BFF and I trust him to use his completely nonexistent hairstyling training to make my hair look weird as hell. 

   
 

I had him shave off the sides and leave d everything long, well, long. It worked. Now I have a mane of long hair and the lame hair on the sides that was all kinds of different lengths is gone. 

 (Unplugged headphones were because I had not yet plugged them in, not as some sort of choad fashion accessory)



Thanks Kurt! ❤️

Do you cut your own hair? Would you let a non-hairstylist friend do it for you?

Makeup of the day – Daytime smoky eye with MAC 

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So, from time to time, I find myself pining for the Urban Decay Smokey palette.  I always talk myself out of it, because I HAVE THOSE COLORS (repeat to self 500 times).  I’m a sucker for packaging and I have the other 3 Naked palettes and will probably keep pining, though…even with my psychology degree, I’m a marketer’s dream come true!  Regardless, here’s a smoky look today I put together with some MAC shadows – enjoy!

  
  
  
Eye look was done with Bobbi Brown Cream Eyeshadow in Bone as a base, then I used MAC Copperplate eyeshadow as a transition shade in the crease and MAC Howzat shadow (LE, but substitute any deep frosty grey you like) in the crease below the transition shade and all over the lid.  I used MAC Electra eyeshadow to highlight the center of the lid. I blended Blanc Type on the brow bone as a highlight and used Howzat below the eye with a pencil brush.  I then used MAC Nehru on a 266 angled eyeliner brush for a soft smoky eyeliner…no liquid liner today!

You can take this look even smokier with black or grey liner on the waterline, but spring allergies dictate that I’m not doing this today – LOL! 

Blush is NYX Ombre Blush in Mauve Me and Lipstick is Kat Von D Studded Kiss Lipstick in Lovecraft.

What are you wearing today? 

Sonia Kashuk Knockout Beauty Collection nail polish – Roll With The Punches 

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So…sweet and true, sometimes my hubby brings me nail polishes as a token of his affection and because he understands my love of color and all things beauty.  (You can all roll your eyes and go “oh, gross!” now.  LOL, I know.). This week, he brought me a bottle from the Sonia Kashuk “Knockout Beauty Collection” because the artwork looked “badass” and “look at this freaking color.”  Well, I have to agree! 

  
Look at that freaking color! No retouching here (honestly, I never retouch swatch photos).  This color’s BRIGHT, y’all.  And it’s completely overcast today!  

This lovely polish is available at Target now for $5.00. 

I’m wearing this with Barielle protein treatment and I did 3 coats of the Sonia Kashuk laquer to get the most saturated color, but I could have gotten by with 2.  I topped it off with Poshè top coat for a super glossy 3-free manicure.  

What’s on your nails? 

Get up, dress up, and show up 

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So, I have been sick all week!  However, the NC primary was Tuesday.  I felt like I had to do my duty and vote no matter what, so I spritzed some Alterna dry shampoo and put on some slap!  Here’s my “I have to go adult” face:

  
But hey, Urban Decay Naked 2 eyeshadows, amirite?  

We’ll be back at the blogging momentarily! 

NYX Wonder Pencil First Impression

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I’ve been trying a lot of NYX lately now that it’s available in CVS and Target.  I have quite a few reviews in store!

The NYX Wonder Pencil may just be my new best friend!  For years, I have used the MAC Chromagraphic Pencil in NC15/NW20, but it’s always been just a bit too dark for me.  Other skin tone liners have either been the wrong shade or irritated my eyes, plus I wanted something that would work for other makeup multitasking purposes.  Leave it to NYX to make another professional type product available at the drugstore!

  
My MAC pencil is a bit used up.  You do get more with the $16.50 MAC pencil, but the NYX product is only $4.50.

Shade comparison of MAC NC15/NW20 and NYX Wonder Pencil in Light (this comes in 3 shades):

  
I used the NYX pencil today for cleaning up and highlighting around the brow, reverse lip lining (really great since I have freckles around my lip line), and concealing a few dark spots on my face along with lining my waterline.  CAVEAT:  If you use this on your face and the waterline, sharpen that sucker to a clean point for fresh product before going near your eyeballs!  Also, clean your sharpeners from time to time with alcohol.  Ok, enough lecturing. 😉 

  
I am super pleased with this multitasking pencil!  Have you tried it?

Makeup of the Day – Spring Brights

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Ok, let’s face it.  Here in the mountains, it’s definitely still winter at the beginning of March.  But it’s in the 70s today and everyone is outside going spring crazy.  (Unfortunately, we’ll get at LEAST one more snow when nobody expects it!) I simply could not resist getting out some bright makeup since it’s so sunny out. 

  
The stars of my look today are Sephora Countour waterproof eyeliner in Summer Cruise, MAC Pink Swoon blush, and MAC Girl About Town Amplified Creme Lipstick.

What are you wearing today? 

NYX Ombre Blush Review – Mauve Me

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When I fist saw the NYX Ombre Blushes, I got pretty excited!  My first thought was that these may be an affordable version of an earlier limited edition MAC offering. 

From the NYX website:

“Treat your cheeks to a radiant flush of color with our Ombré Blush, a new gradient blush inspired by the ombré trend. This must-have formula features two silky colors blended into one perfectly coordinated shade combo. (It’s like they were meant for each other.)”

My excitement turned to doubt when I saw the INTENSE color selection.  I have incredibly fair skin and realized that most of the shades were going to be “too rich for my blood.”  One shade stood out as a possibility that might work for me, though, and that was “Mauve Me.”  I thought, “Well, at $10 for an enormous blush, let’s give it a shot,” and ordered it from Ulta.  I’m SO glad I did, because this particular shade of mauve is my jam!  Check it out:

  
I love that ombre fade!  There’s a nice mirror inside, as well. 

  
The compact is nice and sleek.  

Here’s how it looks on my skin (around a MAC NW10, for reference):

  
(Worn with MAC “Syrup” lipstick.)

  
(Worn with Kat Von D “Lovecraft” lipstick.)

I have been using my MAC 116 blush brush and sweeping from the light color into the deep color in the pan, then applying the blush in a swirling motion on my cheeks.  The color is a lovely satin (very lightly shimmery, NOT frosty yet not matte), a healthy glowy type finish that I tend to get from MAC Mineralize blushes.  Not bad!  I’m not wearing any highlighter in this photo.  

NYX Ombre Blushes come in 8 shades and retail for $10.00 USD.  Have you tried them?