Tag Archives: NYX

Travel Makeup Bag – Heading off to Prague & Vienna

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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’s On My Face – Volume 23

Let’s dive right in!

I was inspired by this insanity of a dress that I recently picked up:

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To create the following look:

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And I think it came out amazingly well!

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Eyes

  1. Illamasqua Alluvium all over the lid.
  2. Laura Mercier Violet Ink in the outer corner and used to line the lower lashline.
  3. MAC Handwritten in the very outer corner to darken the edge up.
  4. Makeup Geek Simply Marlena at the top of the crease.
  5. MAC Shroom on the inner tearduct and to highlight the brow.

Urban Decay Perversion mascara is on my lashes.

Rest of the Face

  • Foundation: Illamasqua Skin Base in 6.5
  • Bronzer: Hard Candy Hula Hula
  • Blush: Wet n Wild Heather Silk
  • Highlighter: Hard Candy Tiki
  • Lips: NYX Butter Gloss in Strawberry Parfait

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Overly simple for my books, but quite striking in its simplicity.

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Eyes

  1. Makeup Geek Bleached Blonde all over the lid.
  2. Makeup Geek Preppy on the outer half.
  3. Makeup Geek Vanilla Bean to highlight the brow.

For the winged liner I used Tarte‘s black gel liner and used Urban Decay‘s Perversion mascara on my lashes.

Rest of the Face

  • Foundation: Boots No7 Instant Radiance foundation in Cool Vanilla
  • Bronzer: NYC Fire Island Tan
  • Blush: Wet n Wild Mellow Wine
  • Highlighter: MAC Whisper of Gilt
  • Lips: Wet n Wild 910D with MAC Strawberry Malt lipglass on top

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I was struggling with essence‘s All About Candies eyeshadow palette until I started using a solid thick white based underneath the shadows. Use that and you should be good to go!

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Eyes

  1. Cover the entire lid with NYX‘s Jumbo Eyeshadow Pencil in Milk and smooth it out with your finger. Then layer the pale green shade in essence‘s All About Candies palette on top.
  2. MAC Club in the outer corner and through the crease and on the lower lash line.
  3. MAC Blanc Type to highlight the brow.

Urban Decay Perversion mascara is on my lashes.

Rest of the Face

  • Foundation: Boots No7 Instant Radiance foundation in Cool Vanilla
  • Bronzer: NYC Fire Island Tan
  • Concealer: essence Match2Cover (darker shade) underneath my eyes
  • Blush: Hourglass Diffused Heat
  • Highlighter: MAC Soft & Gentle

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Sunset-themed eyes, a favourite of mine throughout August.

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Eyes

I first applied NYX‘s Jumbo Eyeshadow Pencil in Milk all over the lid, then:

  1. Inglot Matte 370 on the inner half of the lid.
  2. Inglot Matte 383 on the outer half of the lid.
  3. Makeup Geek Creme Brulee to blend out the crease.
  4. MAC Shroom to highlight the brow.

Tarte‘s black gel liner was used to create the wing and Urban Decay Perversion mascara is on my lashes.

Rest of the Face

  • Foundation: Boots No7 Instant Radiance in Cool Vanilla
  • Bronzer: Hard Candy Hula Hula
  • Blush: essence Autumn Peach
  • Highlighter: MAC Whisper of Gilt
  • Lips: Too Faced Coral Fire

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Another sun-based look!

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Eyes

Using essence‘s All About Sunrise palette:

  1. Pale orange shade on the inner corner.
  2. Medium brown on the center of the lid.
  3. Darker brown on the outer corner.
  4. Champagne shade to highlight the brow.
  5. Gold shade all over the lower lash line.

MAC‘s Dipdown fluidline was used to create the winged liner, essence‘s black gel pencil liner to tightline and line the inner water line. essence‘s Get Big! Lashes mascara is on my lashes.

Rest of the Face

  • Foundation: Boots No7 Instant Radiance in Cool Vanilla
  • Bronzer: NYC Fire Island Tan
  • Blush: essence Autumn Peach
  • Highlighter: Champagne shade from the essence All About Sunrise palette
  • Lips: essence On The Catwalk!

What’s On My Face – Volume 22

Another set of makeup roundups!

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Something nude-ish for all your neutral lovers out there!

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Eyes

  1. MAC Ricepaper as the inner corner highlight and to highlight the brow.
  2. MAC Amber Lights all over the lid.
  3. MAC Handwritten on the outer third.

CoverGirl Clump Crusher mascara is on my lashes.

Rest of the Face

  • Bronzer: Hard Candy – Hula Hula
  • Blush: MAC – Warm Soul

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The nude lips soooo do not work with this one!

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Eyes

  1. Makeup Geek Mango Tango all over the lid.
  2. Makeup Geek Bitten on the outer half of the lid.
  3. Makeup Geek Creme Brulee through the top of the crease.
  4. MAC Shroom to highlight the brow.

Tarte Black gel liner to create the wing and CoverGirl‘s Clump Crusher mascara is on my lashes.

Rest of the Face

  • Bronzer: NYC – Fire Island Tan
  • Blush: Tarte – Charisma
  • Highlighter: MAC – Whisper of Gilt
  • Lips: essence – Nude Love

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A fun dark one! As I’ve said before, I usually stay away from dark lid colours but when I do try it out I generally quite like the results!

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Eyes

  1. Urban Decay Darkside all over the lid.
  2. Urban Decay Blackheart on the outer third of the lid.
  3. Urban Decay Nooner to blend out the crease.
  4. Urban Decay Strange on the browbone.
  5. Urban Decay Dust to highlight the inner corner.

Rest of the Face

  • Bronzer: NYC – Fire Island Tan
  • Blush: Wet n Wild – Pearlescent Pink
  • Highlighter: MAC – Soft & Gentle
  • Lips: Maybelline – Maple Kiss

 

 

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This one doesn’t come across as well in photos as I had hoped. Isn’t it strange how that can happen? I really love orangey-reds on my lids and this was one of the first few looks I ever did that really pushed me into using more and more fiery colours.

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Eyes

  1. MAC Gleam all over the lid.
  2. MAC Coppering on the outer half of the lid and heavily through the crease.
  3. MAC Handwritten in the very outer corner.
  4. MAC Blanc Type to highlight the brow.

CoverGirl Clump Crusher mascara is on my lashes.

Rest of the Face

  • Bronzer: NYC – Fire Island Tan
  • Blush: Tarte – Charisma
  • Lips: NYX Butter Gloss – Cherry Cheesecake

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I had been lamenting how much I seem to fail at makeup looks that involve gold, primarily because I tend to combine them with brown. Kalyn showed me that gold just seems to work way better with black, so I decided to give it a shot the next time I incorporated some gold shadow.

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Eyes

  1. Maybelline Color Tattoo in Bold Gold all over the lid with Sleek‘s gold shadow from the Sunset palette layered on top.
  2. I used a strip of tape on my outer lid to create the super sharp edge, then swept on Urban Decay‘s Blackout.
  3. Makeup Geek Creme Brulee lightly through the crease to blend out the black.
  4. MAC Blanc Type to highlight the brow.

I tightlined my upper waterline with the Lord & Berry Black eye pencil and applied Urban Decay‘s Perversion mascara on my lashes.

Rest of the Face

  • Foundation: Boots No7 Instant Radiance in Cool Vanilla
  • Bronzer: Revlon Photoready in Bronzed & Chic
  • Blush: Hourglass – Diffused Heat
  • Highlighter: MAC – Whisper of Gilt
  • Lips: Revlon Sunset Peach gloss

 

What’s On My Face – Volume 19

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 Utopia338 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 BearToo 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

Ipsy – June 2014 Glam Bag

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This month’s bag had its ups and downs for me. Let’s dig in and see what I got sent in my bag this month.

Laneige – BB Cushion SPF in three foundation shades
Laneige – BB Cushion SPF in three foundation shades

This was a really interesting product. I’ve never heard of anything like Laneige‘s BB Cushion. The package itself comes with three shades of foundation (LightMedium and Dark) as well as a sponge pad (that I only realized was a puff after I had applied this stuff to my face with one of my brushes). The product is essentially a bb foundation with SPF pre-soaked into a sponge. I wasn’t really sure how to use it, so I ended up stabbing my brush into the sponge to pick up the product. This worked, but it also pushed a lot of the product to the bottom of the little sample. (Which isn’t a problem, I just pulled the sponge out and swiped at the bottom to get more product.) I got two uses out of this sample (I used the Light shade, which was a hair or two too pale for me right now but it wasn’t super obvious). I used it, and it was pleasant to apply, but I don’t really feel like it did a whole heck of a lot. It seems to have evened out my freckles a bit, but the coverage isn’t spectacular so I’d honestly just prefer no foundation to wearing something so light. Worth noting though… this stuff smells really, really good!

Left – no foundation. Right – Laneige BB Cushion in Light
Left – no foundation. Right – Laneige BB Cushion in Light
Marc Anthony Dream Waves Beach Spray
Marc Anthony Dream Waves Beach Spray

So this is basically a salt spray for your hair to encourage beachy waves/curls to stay in your hair. My hair has a bit of body to it if it’s left to air dry, so I had hoped this would hold some of the waves in place. Marc Anthony‘s Dream Waves Beach Spray smells like coconuts, so basically it smells like every other beach-y hair product out there. It sort of worked to make my hair piece-y (see below), but despite my hand scrunching while my hair dried, it really never held in full on waves. In fact, the ends of my hair look especially ratty and when my hair had dried, the ends felt completely crunchy  and stiff. Not a huge fan of that. It might be fine to actually use on the beach after getting out of the water (or at the pool), but for someone who had just gotten out of the shower, this was a very quick way to make my hair feel dirty again. So I wasn’t overly pleased about that!

Left – Damp hair with the spray in. Right – air dried hair with the spray in.
Left – Damp hair with the spray in. Right – air dried hair with the spray in.
Nicka K Shimmer Eyeliner in Green
Nicka K Shimmer Eyeliner in Green

This product is amazing! Nicka K is a brand I’m completely unfamiliar with, but this liquid eyeliner was simply stunning. I received their shimmer eyeliner in Green and this was budge proof and waterproof. Even moreso than the MUFE Aqualiner I have. I couldn’t believe how much I had to rub at this to even remove any kind of colour off my hand. It also held up all throughout a workday. Highly, HIGHLY recommend this liner.

Be a Bombshell – Last Out mascara
Be a Bombshell – Last Out mascara

I have nothing good to say about this one so I’ll just be specific with my negativity. Be A Bombshell’s mascara is garbage. I hate the brush – it makes it hard to deposit product onto my lashes. My brush was bent oddly which didn’t help either. It clumped up awkwardly on my lashes, particularly in the outer corners making it look patchy. And the products actually smells really, really bad. This is going straight in the garbage.

NYX Butter Gloss – Apple Strudel
NYX Butter Gloss – Apple Strudel

NYX‘s butter glosses are my absolute favourite glosses, so I love that they sent these out in the bags. They’re creamy, non-tacky, and come in some absolutely wonderful colours. Unfortunately, I already own this particular shade (Apple Strudel) so I’ve really got no use for this one. So for that reason I’m giving this one away! It’s completely unused and unopened (the shots above were done using my own one) and I will mail it to you anywhere in the world if you win. Contest open till June 30th @ 8:00 a.m..

Ipsy June 2014 Breakdown (all prices in USD)
  • Laneige BB Cushion SPF 50 (full size is $34 for 0.5 oz, it was really hard to judge the size of this product, but I got two uses out of the one small packet and there are two additional shades, so I’m going to go with $5 overall value since I have no real idea as to how long a full size of this product would last)
  • Marc Anthony Dream Waves Beach Spray (1.52 oz @ $3.18, full size is $8.79 for 4.2 oz)
  • Nicka K Shimmer Eyeliner in Green ($4.99, full size)
  • Be A Bombshell Lash Out mascara in Intense Black ($15, full size)
  • NYX Butter Gloss in Apple Strudel ($5, full size)

BAG TOTAL = $33.17

My Thoughts

This bag was kind of a bust for me. The BB Cushion product was interesting, but in the end kind of useless. The Beach Spray really didn’t do much other than make my hair kind of crunchy, although I’ve only tried it once and will definitely try using it in different ways. The mascara is just flat out awful and going straight into the garbage (I can’t even begin to believe that it’s worth the $15 full price they charge on their site). The NYX butter gloss is excellent, but of course I already own it. The real winner out of this group is the shimmery green eyeliner. For such an inexpensive product I cannot believe how well this one works.