Tag Archives: Anastasia

Travel Makeup Bag: Christmas 2014

Makeup, Miscellaneous, Vacation, , , , , , , , , , ,

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It’s that time of the year again! I’m packing up shop and heading to Ottawa for the holidays this year. As I’m writing this, Toronto is awash in rain, rain and more rain. I’ve had enough of it – gimme some snow!

I’m hoping Ottawa is inundated with snow and I can get out to the mountains (which are larger than Toronto’s Blue Mountain mole hill) and snowboard. Lately it feels like I’m the only person who likes snow in this city. When you grow up in Ottawa, you kind of just learned to live with it I suppose. Since I now live and work in Toronto, I feel like everyone here hates the snow. It’s pretty clear the city hates it too because it sure as hell has no idea what to do when it snows. Snow tires? Hah no. Ploughing? Hah no. Wear appropriate clothing? Haaaaaahaha… No.

So anyway. I’m going to Ottawa. And here’s the makeup I’m bringing.

Makeup Geek Eyeshadows
Makeup Geek Eyeshadows

This year I gave up on on trying to figure out which pre-packaged palette to bring and instead opted for the Makeup Geek Z-palette I’ve put together over the last year or so. I usually (very sadly) default to neutrals on vacation just because it’s easy, but there’s a chance I’ll be meeting up with Kalyn and goddamn I am not showing up to meet that woman wearing neutrals. As everyone else has said… these shadows are phenomenal.

Tarte – Off The Cuff
Tarte – Off The Cuff

Easy one here! Last year’s holiday palette from Tarte has four blushes and a bronzer and it’s in super slim packaging. This has become my “go to” for taking with me to travel since it’s such a no brainer.

Boots No7 Instant Radiance in Cool Vanilla and Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum in 51 Light Vanilla
Boots No7 Instant Radiance in Cool Vanilla and Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum in 51 Light Vanilla

Neither of these colours match my skin tone right now, but I think they will if I mix them together. Boots No7 Instant Radiance Foundation in Cool Vanilla is slightly too dark and the Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum Foundation in 51 Light Vanilla is too pale. I’m sure they’ll work out together somehow, I’ll just have to tweak the ratio a bit.

This is if I even wear foundation though. I hate the stuff really – it makes my skin itch and feel uncomfortable, but it looks soooo much better in pictures when I use it. I also like to put it on if I know I’m going to be out for a very brief period… that way I get to come home and wipe it all off. Stupid gunk.

Too Faced Melted Berry and Wet n Wild 910D/Red Velvet
Too Faced Melted Berry and Wet n Wild 910D/Red Velvet

Too Faced Melted lipsticks are forever in my heart, so I’m not going anywhere without one of them. Melted Berry has been ma jam lately, so that’s in the mix. And since it is Christmas after all, I’ve decided to sashay away from MAC‘s Russian Red for a while and use Wet n Wild‘s 910D/Red Velvet. It’s bright and more luminous, and I suddenly feel the need to be slightly electrifying with my lip colour.

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False lashes are mandatory celebratory wear for me so I’m bringing along my current favourites: Femme Fatale lashes in Catwalk.

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And lumped together are my potted products. I’m going risky and bringing only my Manhattan Eyeshadow Base. I say risky because I usually bring two primers to MAKE SURE nothing freaking moves on my eyelids, but this one seems to have been holding steady lately so Imma give it a shot. Tarte‘s gel liner is my current black liner staple (and I’m somewhat close to finishing it). And lastly, is Anastasia‘s Dipbrow Pomade in Blonde cuz without it I only have half-brows and that’s not a good look on anyone.

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Last up are some randoms. I keep meaning to use Elizabeth Mott Tints & Sass because it’s a great “I’ve been outdoors in the cold” shade and it’ll double as a lipstain. I’ve also got a mini size of Benefit‘s concealer I want to try out(not that I ever wear concealer…) and Watts Up because that highlight is amazing. For mascara, I’ve got Benefit‘sThey’re Real and some Duo lash adhesive for my falsies.

I’m also a dumbass because I forgot to include some vitals that aren’t pictured. They are:

  1. MAC Prep + Prime for lips
  2. Kat Von D Tattoo Liner in Trooper
  3. And whatever lipbalm I grab on my way out the door.

C’est tout! What are you guys up to for the holiday season?

Travel Makeup Bag – Heading off to Prague & Vienna

Makeup, Miscellaneous, Vacation, , , , , , , , , , , , ,

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Tomorrow I’m heading off on a week and a half vacation with a very good friend of mine. Several months ago we decided to go on vacation together and we picked Prague as our destination of choice. We’ll be in Prague for about seven days, but I’ve also extended my trip by a few extra days so that I can visit Vienna with an old friend of mine that lives in Germany.

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I’m changing things up this time a little bit and bringing a (mostly) all-in-one face palette. When I was looking through my choices of palettes to bring, almost everything was either all neutrals or all brights. I didn’t want to travel with an all neutral palette yet again (I get too bored) but bringing an all brights palette isn’t the best of ideas either.

Too Faced – A few of my Favorite Things
Too Faced – A few of my Favorite Things

So when I was perusing my palettes I realized that my best option was going to be Too Faced‘s A few of my Favorite Things palette (from their holiday 2013 collection). There’s enough mix of colours in this palette to satisfy me on holidays and it’s got two blushes and two bronzers as well. Most of my powder bases are completely covered with this!

The only downside is the palette is freaking huge which makes it slightly inconvenient. Thankfully it actually came with a large makeup bag so I’ll be using that for this trip as well. I have to say that I’m incredibly nervous about damaging this on vacation. The palette was limited edition and I’ll be heartbroken if I bust this or lose it while on vacation.

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And of course I’m bringing my eye primers – NARS‘ Smudgeproof Eyeshadow Base and Urban Decay‘s Primer Potion in Original.

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And one pair of falsies for certain special occasions while on vacation (we’re planning to go to the Opera and get all fancy!). These are Sephora‘s Tempting lashes with some Duo eyelash glue.

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I’m also bringing along Anastasia‘s Brow Wiz in Ash Blonde/Taupe because it’ll be quick and easy to apply (versus my Dipbrow pomade).

Kat Von D‘s Tattoo Liner in Trooper is also coming along for the ride because of its easy application. I’m a winged eyeliner freak, and while I prefer gel, this is far less fussy while travelling. I love that it has a brush tip and not the regular foam/felt tip applicator that most automatic liquid pens have.

My mascara of choice is the Urban Decay Perversion sample that I received in my August 2014 Ipsy bag. This stuff is absolutely wonderful. Really black, wet formula and does wonders for my eyelashes.

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I’m not even sure I’ll wear these, but they’re good to have just in case. For foundation I have my beloved Boots No7 Instant Radiance in Cool Vanilla. It’s the darkest foundation I own but it’s still a touch too light for me right now. Nothing a little bronzer can’t fix though!

For any blemishes when I want to look flawless, I’m also bringing along essence‘s Match 2 Cover! concealer. Having two shades in this package is incredibly handy for custom mixing a shade to my current skin shade.

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In an attempt to possibly counterbalance my precious eyeshadow palette, I’m bringing some of my absolute cheapest lip products: Two Wet n Wild lipsticks (910D and 903C) and a NYX Butter Gloss in Tiramisu.201409_travelmakeupbag_macbrick_macprepprime

Just some essentials for my lips:

MAC Prep + Prime for lips to keep my lipsticks from bleeding outside my lipline and to increase lipstick longevity. (This product is absolutely holy grail status.)

MAC Brick lipliner for the red Wet n Wild lipstick. While the lipstick doesn’t necessarily need the liner since it’s pigmented enough, it’s just nice to have something to help clean up the edges of a red lipstick.

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And lastly, a Nivea lip balm in Milk & Honey for when I inevitably end up with chapped lips (thanks airplane air) and a bite-size Benefit Watt’s Up! cream highlighter.

I’m actually quite proud of this makeup bag. I think it’s the right choice for a “longer” (~12 days) European vacation without being overly excessive in the product department. I think the Too Faced palette really made it a lot easier since it alleviated the need to bring a bronzer and some blush options.

By the way, if you’ve been to either Prague or Vienna, I’d love to hear any of your recommendations for places to visit!

What I Bought This Month – August 2014 Haul

Hauls,

This month is slightly infuriating from a hauling perspective. I’ve actually got some makeup incoming (as in I’ve already paid for it) but it either hasn’t arrived yet (hello Makeup Geek Vegas Lights palette!), or I have to wait till I meet up with my good friend from the USA who is hoarding my goodies for me (which will be very, very soon!).

So, for now, the Canadian-bought cosmetics.

Anastasia Brow Wiz in Ash Blonde/Taupe ($27 CAD)
Anastasia Brow Wiz in Ash Blonde/Taupe ($27 CAD)

While I’m really liking my Anastasia Dipbrow Pomade in Blonde (despite the colour being slightly pea-soupy on me), I “needed” something that would be quicker to apply for my upcoming trip. (Whatever excuse it takes eh? ;)) By virtue of this being a pencil, it’s already automatically easier to apply since it doesn’t require a brush, or the messiness that comes with cream products like the Dipbrow. I’m not entirely sold on this product for daily use though. The formula is INCREDIBLY hard which can make application a bit rough on the brows. I also can’t believe how much more expensive this is than the dipbrow (27 versus 23) and yet you will definitely run through the Brow Wiz months, if not years, quicker than you could ever run through the pomade.

Too Faced Shadow Insurance ($24 CAD)
Too Faced Shadow Insurance ($24 CAD)

In the last year I’ve developed a really unfortunate problem with eyeshadow primers. No longer will a single primer work on me, I have to use two of them (Urban Decay and NARS‘ is what I currently use). This is obviously annoying, so I’m still searching for one that will work on its own. Unfortunately, Too Faced Shadow Insurance didn’t work for me. I used it for a week straight and it seemed fine for a normal work day (roughly ten hours), but when I tried wearing it for 16+ hours it just couldn’t perform. I had one eye that creased and the other didn’t. Frustrating. I’ll be taking it back in the next week or so since it just didn’t work well enough for me.

Unfortunately, that’s it for this post, but I did have an Illamasqua haul in the middle of the month that you may find interesting as well!

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What’s On My Face – Volume 19

Makeup, Tutorials, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Time for round 19 of makeup gunk I’ve splashed on my face!

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I wore this one during Toronto’s Pride Week and really liked how this came out. You can really never go wrong with Makeup Geek‘s Utopia, such a beautiful blackened gold that seems to work with every colour imaginable.

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Eyes

  1. Inglot‘s Shine 132 (silver) all over the lid. Then apply Too Faced‘s Glitter Glue on top of the silver and tap on Makeup Geek‘s Utopia pigment on top. Utopia is also applied on the inner half of the lower lash line.
  2. Makeup Geek Creme Brulee through the top of the crease.
  3. Inglot‘s Matte 338 (turquoise) in outer corner and through the crease and blend it in to Utopia. 338 is also applied on the outer half of the lower lash line.
  4. Urban Decay‘s Blackout in the very corner to darker up the turquoise.

MAC Shroom to highlight the browbone, Tarte‘s gel liner in Black to create the wing with Urban Decay‘s Black Velvet pencil liner on my inner rim. Make Up For Ever Smoky Lash Extravagant on both sets of lashes with a pair of J. Cat false lashes in EL13 glued on. Instead of my usual MAC Omega on my brows, I’ve switched to Anastasia‘s Dipbrow Pomade inBlonde.

Rest of the Face

  • Foundation: Revlon Colorstay (Dry/Normal) in 220 Natural Beige
  • Bronze: NYC Fire Island Tan
  • Highlighter: MAC Whisper of Gilt with MAC Silver Dusk on top
  • Blush: Illamasqua Hussy
  • Lipstick: (not pictured) Too Faced Coral Fire

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Quick and easy, no-fuss look for a weekend brunch.

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Eyes

  1. Maybelline Bad to Bronze all over the lid.
  2. Sleek Bark on the outer half of the lid.

MAC Shroom to highlight the brow bone and Sephora‘s Full Action Extreme Effect mascara in Purple on my lashes. Anastasia‘s Dipbrow Pomade in Blonde through my brows.

Rest of the Face

  • Bronzer: (also used as a blush) NYC Fire Island Tan

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One of Nikki Tutorials’ recent recreations was a look that was inspired by Cheryl Cole. I took Nikki’s tutorial and tried to replicate it as much as possible which was, thankfully, relatively easy given that I had almost all of the exact same products she used. So here’s my take on her tutorial!

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Eyes

  1. MAC Coppering all over the lid as a base layer. Then apply Too Faced Glitter Glue on top of Coppering, and tap on Makeup Geek‘s Vegas Lights pigment.
  2. Combine Makeup Geek Cocoa Bear, Too Faced Semi-Sweet and Too Faced Cherry Cordial and blend that in the outer corner and through the crease. I also ran this combination all along the lower lash line.
  3. Makeup Geek Creme Brulee through the top of the crease.

MAC Shroom on my brow bone, Tarte‘s gel liner in Black to create the wing and Urban Decay‘s Black Velvet liner on my inner lower rim. Make Up For Ever Smoky Lash Extravagant on my lashes with Ardell 102 Demi false lashes. Anastasia Dipbrow Pomade in Blonde through my brows.

Rest of the Face

  • Foundation: Revlon Colorstay (Dry/Normal) in 220 Natural Beige
  • Bronzer: NYC Fire Island Tan
  • Blush: Tarte Dollface
  • Highlighter: Hard Candy Tiki
  • Lips: Starlooks Naked lip liner with NYX Butter Gloss in Maple Blondie on top

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This look came about as I was doing my “Four or More: Eyes Edition” post and remembered just how much I love the sheen/duochromeness of the Color Tattoo in Waves of White.

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Eyes

  1. Maybelline Color Tattoo in Waves of White all over the lid.
  2. From Sleek‘s Acid palette, use the darker blue shade in the outer corner and through the crease.

Makeup Geek Creme Brulee blended through the top of my crease with MAC Shroom on the browbone. Make Up For Ever‘s Smoky Lash Extravagant on my lashes.

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Judging by what foundation I used, I think this look is from a month or more ago. I was going through a pink crease phase and this was one of the looks I came up with.

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Eyes

  1. MAC Shroom all over the lid.
  2. MAC Copperplate on the outer half of the lid.
  3. Makeup Geek Simply Marlena through the crease.

MAC Shroom to highlight my brow bone. Tarte‘s gel liner in Black to create the wing and L’Oreal Voluminous Carbon Black mascara on my lashes.

Rest of the Face

  • Foundation: CoverGirl CC Cream in 110 Classic Ivory mixed with Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum in 51 Light Vanilla
  • Bronzer: Joe Fresh Sand Bronzer
  • Blush: Joe Fresh Apricot cream blush with Be A Bombshell‘s Beach Please powder blush on top
  • Highlighter: Too Faced Candlelight
  • Lips: Inglot Lipgloss in AMC 544

June 2014 Favourites

Favourites, Miscellaneous, , , ,

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I don’t even remember what spring is anymore. Every year in Toronto it feels like we go from serious sub-zero temperatures and then all of a sudden it’s freaking scorching outside! As a nod to the ever increasing temperatures and my ever increasing desire to wear less makeup as I stay up later and wake up later (and have less and less time to get ready for work every morning), I ended up leaning more heavily towards lip products this month since my eye makeup was looking pretty bare a lot of the time.

Nivea Lip Butter in Caramel Cream Kiss
Nivea Lip Butter in Caramel Cream Kiss

First up is Nivea‘s Lip Butter in Caramel Cream Kiss. This has become my nightly lip balm. I’ve put a rather large dent in this from using it every night before I go to bed. It’s thick enough that it’ll last all night and I’ll often wake up the next morning with a thin layer still on my lips. It doesn’t smell quite like caramel to me, but it’s still buttery, sugary goodness!

Maybelline – Vivid Rose
Maybelline – Vivid Rose

If I had to define happiness in a shade of lipstick, Maybelline‘s Vivid Rose would be it. I bought this last summer and fell in love with it immediately. This is a bright, hot, deep neon pink that smells like creamy frosting and lasts a surprisingly long time on the lips given how rich it is. Seriously, this stuff stays surprisingly creamy on the lips for many hours after it’s been applied. If you pick up one thing from Maybelline‘s Vivids line, let Vivid Rose be the one!

MAC – Hibiscus
MAC – Hibiscus

This sad pot of lipstick is MAC‘s Hibiscus lipstick. Unfortunately, the bullet broke a long while ago and the only way to salvage the lipstick was to depot the whole thing into a small sample jar I had from MAC. This lipstick was from the Surf Baby collection in 2011 and because it’s de-tubed, I keep forgetting about it! It’s a cremesheen, which I don’t have the best of experiences with, but there’s no denying that colour! A bright, shiny coral, this one is loads of fun to wear. Unfortunately, MAC hasn’t re-released it in the past few years since its initial release, but if you ever spot this at a CCO or on a blog sale, definitely snatch it up!

Boots No7 Instant Radiance Foundation in Cool Vanilla
Boots No7 Instant Radiance Foundation in Cool Vanilla

Boots No7‘s Instant Radiance foundation in Cool Vanilla was too dark for me throughout the winter months, so I’ve only been able to recently bust it out and start using it again. And I, as per usual, had forgotten just how much I love this stuff. It blends in beautifully and it really does give a radiance to the skin that I never really expect from foundation, even when it’s called Instant Radiance! Love the pump too. I picked this up last year when I was in England, but I think Boots No7 brand is now sold at Target in Canada.

Anastasia Dipbrow Pomade in Blonde
Anastasia Dipbrow Pomade in Blonde

I’d just like to take this moment to give myself a massive pat on the back for finally figuring out how to use this properly! When I finally ran out of my MAC Omega shadow, and had this waiting in the wings, I knew I had to buckle down and figure out how to use this product. Sweeping powder through your eyebrows is one thing, trying to actually put some kind of gel product there can be maddening! This has become my go-to brow look now. It’s a lot more in your face than I’m used to, and I’m not entirely sure the colour is quite pale enough for me, but I like the end result so I’ll keep going with this until they come out with a lighter shade than Blonde.

And just like that, there goes June! Tell me what you were loving this month