All posts by Chelle

Empties – August through October

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Time to rifle through my garbage! Makeup items first, all the boring stuff after that.

Julep – Paris
Julep – Paris

I loved this polish like nobody’s business. Kalyn had sent me a package of Julep polishes after I had won them on her blog and I dove nose-deep into this disco glitter one. Julep‘sParis is a 3D glitter polish that seems to hint gold more than silver. I wore this sucker out on my toes for several months and eventually finished up the entire bottle.

Repurchase? Unlikely only because it’s a mail order thing and I prefer to pick up my stuff in stores.

MAC Kohl Power pencil in Feline
MAC Kohl Power pencil in Feline

I bought MAC‘s Feline eye pencil because it was hyped up several years back on YouTube. It was supposed to be the blackest pencil available and would stay on my waterline. Well… it’s black. But it’s also incredibly smudgy and would never really stay put if I used it as a solid line. This was great for smudging out and creating smokey looks, but it usually had to be set with a powder to keep it from transferring. Wouldn’t stick on my waterline either. And unfortunately, the closer I got to the bottom of the pencil, the more it just kept breaking off. :/

Repurchase? Nah.

Revlon Just Bitten Lipstain + Balm in Twilight
Revlon Just Bitten Lipstain + Balm in Twilight

I love the Revlon lipstains + balms something fierce. They may be drying, but they feel “normal” on the lips. I don’t have to be worried about my lip product transferring to clothing, food, glasses, etc., and that’s a huge relief to me. This product was in myProducts to Use Up in 2014 post and I’ve only just now reached the point where it’s dry enough that it’s not worth wearing anymore.

Repurchase: Yes, but a different colour.

CoverGirl Clump Crusher mascara
CoverGirl Clump Crusher mascara

CoverGirl‘s Clump Crusher mascara is a long standing favourite of mine: It separates my lashes well, the brush is fun and easy to use and the product doesn’t clump up. So with that being said, I don’t know what the hell was wrong with this tube but it sucked. It was too dry and didn’t work as well as the previous tubse I had purchase. This may have something to do with the fact that I picked it up at a discounted price at Winners one day, so it’s possible I just got a really old tube. (Ew)

Repurchase: Yes, definitely, but I’ll be picking it up at a drugstore next time!

Sephora – Tempting eyelashes
Sephora – Tempting eyelashes

I was gifted this pair of Tempting lashes from Sephora‘s collection by a friend who didn’t think she’d wear them. I didn’t get as much use out of these as I expected given the price tag associated with these suckers. I think maybe 3-4 uses? The band tended to straighten out more than I would like, which gave me a lot of grief when I would apply them. The effect was pretty, but not quite as voluminous as I tend to like my false lashes.

Purchase? Nope.

Tweezerman eyelash curlers
Tweezerman eyelash curlers

Soooo I didn’t realize that eyelash curlers aren’t supposed to hurt. I just assumed that since they look like torture devices, they’re actually supposed to feel like them too. Since this was my first ever pair of eyelash curlers, I really didn’t know any better. I left them at home by accident when I went on vacation and “had to” buy a new pair from a different brand at Sephora. The difference was unbelievable and I’ve since learned that theTweezerman eye lash curlers SUCK for my eye shape! I am so happy to discover that something can fit my eyeball shape better!

Repurchase? A world of no.

Benefit sample size of Big Easy
Benefit sample size of Big Easy

Benefit‘s Big Easy foundation (BB cream?) has certainly seen some hype, so I was interested in trying the sample packet I got from Sephora. However… First of all, there isn’t enough in one of those little swatchy things to actually do your whole face. Secondly, my skin was too dark for their third and fourth darkest shades and yet the 5th darkest said was way too dark. I mixed all three together and even then had barely enough to cover my face. The colour was still off. I’m kind of meh on the skin colours and the product didn’t wow me either.

Purchase? Not worth it in my book.

Pixi Flawless & Poreless primer
Pixi Flawless & Poreless primer

Another freebie from a friend! Pixi‘s Flawless and Poreless primer was… okay? I guess? I didn’t notice it actually doing anything under my foundation, but I felt compelled to use it anyway.

Purchase? No, I don’t see the point in it really.

Neutrogena Makeup Removing Wipes
Neutrogena Makeup Removing Wipes

You’ve seen these before, so I’ll be brief. Neutrogena Makeup Removing wipes are god-like. The Hydrating ones are better.

Repurchase? Yep!

Aveeno Positively Radiant Daily Moisturizer
Aveeno Positively Radiant Daily Moisturizer

Aveeno‘s Positively Radiant Daily Moisturizer is a staple in my skin care routine. Love this.

Repurchase? Forever and a day.

derma e Microdermabrasion Scrub and Fortune Cookie Soap Walnut Facial Scrub in Swankified
derma e Microdermabrasion Scrub and Fortune Cookie Soap Walnut Facial Scrub in Swankified

derma e Microdermabrasion Scrub: Small sample from my Ipsy bag. It was fine. Smelled a little too much of fake lemon.

Purchase? Unlikely.

Fortune Cookie Soap Walnut Facial Scrub in Swankified: I hated this by the end of the bottle. It worked fine on my face, but the scent was gag-inducing to me.

Purchase? NO!

The Body Shop Shea Butter Body Butter
The Body Shop Shea Butter Body Butter

I don’t know if this actually smells like what Shea Butter smells like, but I couldn’t care less, this stuff is delicious. The Body Shop‘s Shea Butter scent is almost masculine and rather cologne-like. And I seriously love it. This is a wonderful scent and a fantastic product.

Repurchase? Definitely.

Marrakesh Endz and Briogeo Don’t Despair, Repair
Marrakesh Endz and Briogeo Don’t Despair, Repair

Two samples from Ipsy.

Marrakesh Endz: I quite liked this actually. It smelled faintly of cinnamon and was thick and creamy. The ends of my hair seem fine, but I also recently had a hair cut, so who the heck knows if it actually works.

Repurchase? Possibly, if I saw it at a discount store.

Briogeo Don’t Despair, Repair Deep Conditioning Mask: This stuff SUCKED. I used it as the instructions said and it didn’t leave my hair feeling nice at all. If anything, my hair was sticky and close to uncomb-able after using it. What a piece of crap.

Repurchase? NO!

St. Ives Oatmeal & Shea Butter Hydrating Body Wash
St. Ives Oatmeal & Shea Butter Hydrating Body Wash

St. Ives Oatmeal & Shea Butter Hydrating Body Wash was left at my place by a guest who had come and stayed for a while. I finished it up because why would I let it go to waste? It was okay. The scent wasn’t amazing to me, but it was a perfectly serviceable body wash.

Purchase? Unlikely.

Halloween Makeup Test Run: Gamora

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As I mentioned in my previous Halloween post of the year, I, along with several of my friends, are going out as the Guardians of the Galaxy. I’m one of the lucky ones out of the group and managed to buy my outfit on Ebay. The big issue with my outfit was going to be turning my skin colour green. I’ve never worked with full body makeup or anything of that ilk, so this was going to be super interesting for me!

Gamora Test Run
Gamora Test Run

So this was my first time trying out this kind of makeup. I picked up MAC‘s Landscape Green Chromacake a few weeks back after doing a little bit of research. It’s a water-based cake makeup that applies quite easily to the skin (as I quickly discovered). I did find I needed several layers (roughly three in the last photo on the bottom right) to get a somewhat even texture. I’ll probably do an extra layer on the night of Halloween just to make sure it’s extra smooth.

Highlighting and Contouring
Highlighting and Contouring

The Chromacake pigment does feel a bit tight on the skin. It doesn’t feel as emollient as foundation does. In the hour that I wore the pigment, it didn’t crack on me, but it never really felt completely comfortable. (As a side note, foundation itself never really feels “comfortable” on me either, so ymmv.)

Since the green on its own would be too flat, I had to add in some shading. I used MACPrint eyeshadow to carve out a bit of my cheekbones. I found that blending was somewhat difficult: If I blended out too much, I ended up removing some of the green Chromacake. I also used Print to fill in my eyebrows. For highlighting, I used MAC‘s Whisper of Gilt Extra Dimension Skinfinish on the tops of my cheekbones and down my nose.

My lips turned out to be a bit of a disaster. Gamora has darker green lips but I didn’t have anything that would really work. I tried using a dark lip colour mixed with gloss but I don’t like how it came out, so I’m going to have to try something else.

Those silver lines were created with eyeshadow and didn’t turn out so hot either. Argh!

Eye Makeup
Eye Makeup

Lastly were the eyes. The promo shot seems to show Gamora having a dark purple outer corner of her eyes. I deepened it up with some black, but like the contouring, I had a heck of a time blending on top of the Chromacake. I also had a heck of a lot of fallout from the shadow – something to be aware of the next time I try this! I’ll definitely throw on a pair of huge false lashes for this when I wear it out on Halloween – that should help cover up some of the terrible blending!

With wig
With wig

So in the end, it was a decent first try. I primarily wanted to get a feel for the Chromacake and what I would have to do with it on Halloween. It seems very easy to apply to the skin, although blending is still my major problem. If you have any suggestions for me – either a great silver liquid liner, or a way to blend out the shadows better on top of the green paint, I’d love to hear them!

Frankenstein’s Monster
Frankenstein’s Monster

And no, this stuff was not fun to take off!

What’s On My Face – Volume 25

Mixed bag this week! Some colourful looks and some that are quite neutral.

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The colours you can get out of Inglot shadows is just unbelievable!

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  1. Inglot Matte 360 on the inner third.
  2. Inglot Matte 383 on the middle of the lid.
  3. Inglot Matte 325 on the outer third.
  4. Makeup Geek Creme Brulee through the crease.

Tarte gel liner in Black to create the wing. Sephora Full Action Extreme Effect mascara in Purple is on my lashes.

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A rare moment using the Urban Decay Naked 3 palette. I knew I wanted to wear that particular lip colour, so it was just about finding an eye look that would match the lips. I’m not sure it matches really, but I think it works.

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Eyes
(all Urban Decay Naked 3)

  1. Liar on the inner two-thirds of the lid.
  2. Blackheart on the outer third of the lid.
  3. Nooner through the top of the crease.
  4. Strange on the brow bone.

Urban Decay Perversion mascara is on my lashes and MAC Feline Kohl Power pencil was used to rim the outer half of the lower lash line then blended out.

Rest of the Face

  • Foundation: Boots No7 Stay Perfection in Deeply Ivory
  • Bronzer: NYC Fire Island Tan
  • Blush: MAC Gingerly
  • Highlighter: MAC Soft & Gentle
  • Lips: Too Faced Melted Berry

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This was something new for me. I like trying things, but sometimes you realize some colours just don’t work together. In this situation, I’m not pleased with the grey shade that was created by blending between the pale orange and the darker blue. And I finally got bold enough to wear that bright orange lipstick I picked up form Milani in March but never wore!

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Eyes
(all Makeup Geek)

  1. Glass Slipper on the inner half of the lid.
  2. Shark Bait on the outer half of the lid.
  3. Mandarin through the crease.
  4. Vanilla Bean on the brow bone.

Gabriella Salvete liquid eyeliner in Black to create the wing and Urban Decay Perversionmascara on my lashes.

Rest of the Face

  • Bronzer: Hard Candy Hula Hula
  • Blush: essence Pinky Flow
  • Highlighter: MAC Soft & Gentle
  • Lips: Milani Sweet Nectar

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Just a quick one using a palette I love.

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Eyes
(using the Too Faced A Few of my Favorite Things palette)

  1. Party Time on the inner half of the lid.
  2. Evergreen on the outer half of the lid.
  3. Chocolate Milk through the crease.
  4. Cream Colored Ponies on the brow bone.

Urban Decay Perversion mascara is on my lashes.

Rest of the Face

  • Bronzer: Too Faced Sun Bunny
  • Blush: Too Faced Raindrops on Roses

Fitness Friday – LCC – Internationaler Babenbergerlauf 10K

Another race while on vacation! This time in Vienna, Austria. This was the original race I intended to run while on vacation in Europe in September. It was the only one I could find close to Prague that was a reasonable enough driving distance away. Originally, I hadn’t signed up for the half marathon, so this was to be my only race while on vacation.

I didn’t know much about this race other than that it had an exceptionally long name I didn’t understand (Babenbergerlauf), it was a 10k race and it was in Vienna, roughly a 4 hour drive from Prague. A friend from Germany (an ex, actually) had offered to drive to Prague, pick me up, and then drive us both to Vienna where we could do the race together. Always up for a fun adventure and a challenge, I definitely wanted to do this. It was my last weekend in Europe before I flew home to Toronto so I really wanted to squeak this last race in.

 

Starting zone for the Babenbergerlauf
Starting zone for the Babenbergerlauf

The Babenbergerlauf 10K is a varying distance run (there’s a 5k, 15k and half marathon track that sets off at the same as the 10k we were doing) that has very, VERY few people in it. The 10K we did actually only had 40 people in it! Definitely the smallest race I’ve ever done and had some of the fittest people I’ve ever seen running this thing. Seriously, I think I was the heaviest one there.

The race takes place on a paved path through one of central Vienna’s parks. It’s right beside the Ernst-Happel Stadium, a huge soccer venue.

Nilo at the start zone
Nilo at the start zone

I had been kind of hoping that the path would be through a shady area of the park, but a lot of the run turned out to be in the incredibly bright sun. The forecast had also under-predicted the temperature at 14 degrees and instead it turned out to be an almost blazing 22 degree day.

Bib number
Bib number

So the deal with this race is that I had stipulated to Nilo was that, given all things equal, a man should be 10% faster than a female. A (somewhat healthy) competition got started then between us, but it quickly deteriorated into him saying “well I hope I just beat you”.

😐

(I’ll also point that he’s an entire foot taller than me, too.)

Anyway, I didn’t know how well I was going to do. This was a race done at the very tail end of my vacation. I had already run a half marathon the week before and I had been eating and drinking like it was going out of style (because really, what ELSE do you do on vacation?!). Realistically, I knew I couldn’t beat my previous fastest 10k time (55:14), but I had small fledgling hope that I’d find some burst of inspiration during the race and bust out at a 50 minute 10k (baaaaaaaaahahahah yeah no).

Found this on the event’s Google+ page, I’m famous!
Found this on the event’s Google+ page, I’m famous!

So we set off and it was fine. I’ll be honest, I don’t remember a whole lot of the run. It kind of comes to me in waves, my thought process being:

  • <1k: Okay, Imma beat him. Imma beat him! *goes fast*
  • 2-4k: Why am I doing this? This is stupid, you’ve been on vacation for a week or more, what are you trying to prove? *goes slower*
  • 4k: God it’s hot out here, where the hell are the water stations?
  • 4.2k: Oh man, that sun is REALLY shining down on me.
  • 4.4k: WHERE. ARE. THE. WATER. STATIONS.
  • 4.8k: EESH there’s the water station, why the heck wasn’t there one sooner??? *grabs two glasses and gulps them down*
  • Perpetual thought throughout the entire race: Why are there so many chestnuts on the ground? This isn’t safe! I’m going to roll my ankle!
  • 5-6k: Halfway there, this thing is almost done really.
  • 6-9k: WHYYYYYYYYYY AM I DOING THISSSSSSSSSS? (seriously, this whole chunk is a blur)
  • 10k: I’m done! THAT WAS AWESOME! Let’s go again!
Finish line!
Finish line!

In the end, Nilo beat me which I entirely expected. I finished in 56:24 which is the same finish time I had for that entirely downhill 10k in Toronto in April so I’m pretty pleased about that. Nilo finished in 54:07 which is a solid two minutes faster than me… but still wasn’t 10% quicker! (So really, I think I won this challenge!)

Babenbergerlauf 10K
Babenbergerlauf 10K

Race Results

  • Finish Time: 56:24
  • Pace: 5:38 per kilometer
  • Overall placement: 29/39
  • Age group placement (Women 30-39 years): 3/5
  • Gender placement (F): 8/13

Challenge Week: Makeup Geek Vegas Lights

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Good grief do I ever love this palette! I’ve gone on ad nauseum about my love for Makeup Geek eyeshadows, so I won’t bore you with the details other than to say that this brand is unbelievable quality for an incredibly low price point.

The week I used this palette I managed to get six looks out of it. Take a look:

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This was the most logical of choices for me in this palette. When I see colours, I naturally see a gradient, so I thought I’d make a gradient my first choice of looks.

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Eyes

  1. Casino on the inner corner.
  2. Sin City on the middle of the lid and one the lower lash line.
  3. Roulette on the outer corner and on the outer corner of the lower lash line.
  4. Desert Sands to blend out the crease.
  5. Mirage on the browbone.
  6. Bada Bing to line the upper lash line and to deepen up the outer corner.

CoverGirl Clump Crusher mascara is on my lashes.

Rest of the Face

  • Bronzer: Hard Candy Hula Hula
  • Blush: essence Autumn Peach
  • Highlighter: MAC Whisper of Gilt
  • Lips: MAC Hibiscus

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I stole this one completely from one of Marlena’s own tutorials. I would never think to use the colours this way so I always find it helpful to see other people’s instructions!

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Eyes

  1. Sin City on the inner corner of the lid.
  2. Mirage of the middle of the lid and to highlight the browbone.
  3. Roulette on the outer corner.
  4. Bada Bing in the outer V.
  5. Desert Sands through the crease.

MAC Dipdown fluidline to create the wing and CoverGirl Clump Crusher mascara is on my lashes.

Rest of the Face

  • Bronzer: e.l.f. Surf’s Up
  • Blush: Tarte Blissful
  • Highlighter: MAC Whisper of Gilt
  • Lips: Too Faced Bon Bon with Revlon Sunset Peach gloss on top

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Mmmm not as pleased with this one. Overall the look is nice, it’s just not as striking as I had thought it would be.

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Eyes

  1. Roulette all over the lid.
  2. Bada Bing in the outer corner and through the crease, also on the outer corner of the lower lash line.
  3. Desert Sands blended through the top of the crease.
  4. Mirage on the browbone.

Kat Von D tattoo liner in Trooper to create the wing with Urban Decay‘s Perversionmascara on my lashes.

Rest of the Face

  • Foundation: Boots No7 Instant Radiance in Cool Vanilla
  • Bronzer: e.l.f. Surf’s Up
  • Blush: Sleek Guipre and Chantilly mixed together
  • Highlighter: Too Faced Candelight
  • Lips: Revlon Sunset Peach gloss

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Red eyeliner is a look I reach for often enough, so while this look is not necessarily focused on the Vegas Lights palette, it’s a good way of showing that this palette is versatile enough to incorporate into many different looks.

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Eyes

  1. Mirage all over the lid and on the browbone.
  2. Bada Bing in the outer corner.
  3. Desert Sands through the crease.

Inglot gel liner in 79 to create the wing with CoverGirl Clump Crusher mascara on my lashes

Rest of the Face

  • Bronzer: NYC Fire Island Tan
  • Blush: essence Life’s a Cherry
  • Highlighter: MAC Soft & Gentle
  • Lips: Revlon Lip Butters in Red Velvet with Creamsicle on top

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This started out as a concept, and while I like the idea (lower lash line liner pulls up to outer edge of the upper lid) I think I chose the wrong colours for each location.

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Eyes

  1. Casino on the outer corner and on inner corner of the lower lash line.
  2. Sin City on the inner half of the lid.
  3. Bada Bing on the outer half of the lid.
  4. Roulette used as liner on the outer corner of the lower lash line and then brought up to the outer lid and frames Bada Bing (barely blended in).
  5. Mirage on the brow bone.

MAC Feline Kohl Poer pencil to tightline and on the lower water line. Urban Decay Perversion mascara is on my lashes.

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I think people tend to call this a “spotlight” look. Same colour on the inner and outer corner, lighter shade on the middle of the lid. Whatever it’s called, I like the result!

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Eyes

  1. Roulette on the inner and outer thirds of the eye.
  2. Sin City on the inner third of the lid.
  3. Desert Sands through the crease.
  4. Mirage on the browbone.

Urban Decay Peversion mascara is on my lashes.

Rest of the Face

  • Bronzer: Hard Candy Hula Hula
  • Blush: Sleek Crochet
  • Highlighter: Too Faced Candlelight
  • Lips: Boots No7 Sweet Copper