This coming Friday I’ll be heading up to Ottawa for the capital city’s Race Weekend. Last year, after hearing about my first race experience during Toronto’s Pride Week (the Pride and Remembrance Run, which I’ll be doing again this year), my dad decided he wanted us to run a race together and he picked the 5K during this event. Despite having grown up in Ottawa, I had never, ever heard of this event!
Anyway, the point of this is… I’m only in Ottawa for less than 48 hours, so I don’t really need a whole lot of makeup. Regardless, I’m bringing some, so here’s what I decided to pack.
Urban Decay Anti-Aging Primer Potion and Benefit They’re Real mascara
The necessary basics – mascara and primer. I’m a little bit nervous to only be bringing one eye primer, but since I’m stuffing everything into a smaller bag than normal, I’m only bringing this trial size of Urban Decay‘s Anti-Aging Primer Potion (which is something I’ve also never tried). Also along for the ride is a trial size of Benefit‘s They’re Real mascara.
Murad Oil-Control Mattifier and yaby foundation in Buff
I have no idea if I’ll even want to wear foundation on the weekend at any point, but I’m bringing a small tube of yaby‘s foundation in Buff and a MuradOil-Control Mattifierprimarily just to use it up.
Bobbi Brown blush in Apricot and NYX Love In Rio trio in Segredos de Giselle
My only blush for the weekend is Bobbi Brown‘s Apricot – it’s beyond gorgeous. And since I’m bringing a fairly neutral eye palette, NYX‘s trio in Segredos de Giselle, I’ll need that brightness from the blush to liven up my face.
Physicians Formula Shimmer Strip in Sunset Strip and Hard Candy bronzer in Hula Hula
Looking at these side-by-side and I’m wondering why the heck I’m bringing both of them… Regardless, they’re both in the bag! Physicians Formula‘s Shimmer Strip in Sunset Strip needs some love, so in it goes. Hard Candy‘s Hula Hula bronzer is a fantastic shimmery bronzer that I’m going to use to fake like I’ve got some semblance of a tan. 😉
Nivea – A Kiss of Berry Swirl, Revlon Snow Peach and Urban Decay gloss in Naked
And once again I’m bringing far more lip products than I’ll ever actually use. The Nivea lip balm is a necessity, but the others are completely superfluous. RevlonSnow Peach is there in case I feel the need to wear a bright colour and the Urban Decay mini gloss inNaked is there if I’m feeling lazy as hell.
All jammed in
And since this month’s Ipsy bag was so darn cute and tiny, I put all my products in there. Now… fingers crossed that we have wonderful weather for the race on Saturday!
More recent makeup looks! A few neutrals mixed in with the bright ones.
I got this idea from Jaclyn Hill (her tutorial). She used some beautiful Makeup Geek shadows and while I had most of them, I had to improvise the lid colour. Her looks came out a lot more pink, whereas mine leans more towards red. I know red shadow isn’t something anyone really gravitates towards, but red and orange are my favourite colours to play with on the eyes – probably because they’re rather unconventional.
Eyes
Makeup GeekPeach Smoothie at the top of crease.
Makeup GeekRazzleberry heavily in the outer corner and through the crease (don’t blend above Peach Smoothie). Lightly line the lower outer corner of your bottom lashline as well.
Taking the SleekSunset palette, mix together the third shade from the left (top row) with the first shade on the right (bottom row) and apply the mixed shadows to your entire lid, blending it into Razzleberry.
MACShroom to highlight the brow, MACBlacktrack fluidline for the winged liner and L’OrealVoluminous Carbon Black on my lashes.
Rest of the Face
Foundation: none
Blush: TarteCharisma
Bronzer: Physicians Formula Happy Booster in Light/Medium
Lips: MACShy Girl
This the look I do when I need to be a bit more dressed up, but have no idea what to wear on my face. There isn’t an outfit in the world that this eyeshadow won’t match!
Eyes
(all Urban Decay) Virgin all over the lid.
Buck in the outer corner and through the crease.
Smog in the very outer corner.
Virgin to highlight the brow, MACBlacktrack fluidline for the winged liner and Too FacedBetter Than Sex mascara on my lashes.
Rest of the Face
Foundation: Yaby in Buff
Brows: Urban DecayNaked (only mentioning this since I usually use MAC Omega)
Concealer: Collection Lasting Perfection in Shade 2 Light
Bronzer: TartePark Avenue Princess
Blush: TarteDarling
Highlighter: Hard CandyTiki
Lips: MACBrick lipliner with MACRussian Red on top
I don’t usually do a cut crease because I honestly don’ really know what I’m doing. This ended up a bit more smoothed out through the crease than it should be, but I really love the colour combination for this one.
Eyes
I first applied NYX‘s Jumbo Eyeshadow Pencil in Milk all over the lid and smoothed it out. Then:
Applied a mixture of a very yellow-gold from a Sephora palette I own (sorry, no name!) to the inner half of the lid.
InglotAMC Shine #15 on the outer half of the lid.
InglotMatte #325 at the very outer edge then pulled as sharply as you can through the crease.
Makeup GeekCreme Brulee to blend out the very upper edge of the purple shadow.
Too FacedCream Colored Ponies to highlight the brow, Make Up For Ever Aqualiner in 13 Black for the wing and L’OrealVoluminous Carbon Black 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
Blush: SleekCrochet
Highlighter: MACWhisper of Gilt
Lips: NYXCherry Cheesecake
This was out of my comfort zone because it required toning down my eye makeup so that I could make the purple mascara pop more.
Eyes
MACBlanc Type all over the lid.
Makeup GeekPeach Smoothie on the outer half of the lid.
Makeup GeekCreme Brulee lightly through the crease.
Blanc Type to highlight the brow and Sephora Full Action Extreme Effect Mascara in Purple 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: Physicians Formula Bronze Booster in Light/Medium
Blush: MACGingerly
Highlighter: MACWhisper of Gilt
Lips: Nothing
I used a gold base for this one because the previous time I’d done this look, I didn’t feel like the purple-gold (African Violet) had enough punch to it. I much prefer this with the base because it gives the shade a lot more of the gold dimension that’s already there but slightly hidden.
Eyes
First I applied Maybelline‘s Color Tattoo in Bold Gold all over the lid. Then:
(all Laura Mercier) African Violet all over the lid.
Kir Royal in the outer corner.
Plum Smoke through the crease.
Vanilla Nuts to highlight the brow and L’OrealVoluminous Carbon Black 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
Blush: I’m not positive, but it might be TarteExposed
Bronzer: Physicians Formula Bronze Booster in Light/Medium
Highlighter: MACWhisper of Gilt
Lips: Nothing
Thanks for reading. I hope something inspired you. 🙂
Tomorrow morning I’m off on a much needed vacation to visit some friends in the US. I’ll be headed to Baltimore for six days first and then back up to New York City for five.
Nemo’s reaction to being left alone again…
In Baltimore I’ll be visiting a close friend that I’m eager to spend more time with. We’ve signed up for the Charm City Shamrock 5k run on Sunday and I’m excited to look as ridiculous as possible with the green hair extensions I’ve picked up and as much glitter as I can find. There’s a chance I’ll get to visit Washington D.C., but that isn’t set in stone yet.
In New York City I’ll be visiting my old university roommate (and it’s frightening to think that we lived together ten years ago…) and seeing another old friend from my teen years. For shits and giggles, I also signed up for a 10k run on Roosevelt island while I’m there. Until recently, I used to visit New York City every year so I’m anxious to go back!
And not to mention… I am *seriously* excited to pick up all the makeup I can get my hands on for the far cheaper prices that they have in the US!
So let’s take a peak into what I’m bringing on vacation this time.
Once again, the bag I’m taking with me is from MAC‘s Liberty of London collection (2010). I love this bag, and until it frays and falls apart, I’ll be using it!
Palettes – Laura Mercier Artist (2013), customized MAC quad and Tarte Off The Cuff
I’m bringing along Laura Mercier‘s Artist palette (2013) instead of my usual Urban DecayNaked. I’m doing this primarily because my Naked palette gets enough travel mileage and I think the Artist palette has a bit more selection for looks since there’s far more matte shades.
Tarte‘s Off The Cuff palette is an easy one – four blushes and a bronzer without the need for bringing multiple bulky compacts.
The green MAC quad is for St. Patrick’s Day. I’ll definitely want to go all out with green everything so I plopped in a few shades (Juxt, Bio Green, Golden Olive pigment andClub) so I can be as festive as possible!
Lip Products
I kept the lip products fairly simple since re-applying lipstick on vacation is mostly just frustrating to me. One lipstick (Revlon‘s Fire and Ice) and MAC‘s Prep + Prime for lip to prevent feathering should I decide to actually wear the lipstick. The NYX Butter Gloss in Vanilla Cream Pie is for when I want something easy to wear. And finally, I picked up a Nivea lip balm in Milk & Honey specifically for this trip because I didn’t actually own another stick lip balm and I didn’t want to carry around a potted product as they don’t sit easily in my pockets. Lip balms are an absolute must for me when I travel.
MAC Prep + Prime for Lip, Nivea Milk and Honey, Revlon Fire and Ice, NYX Vanilla Cream Pie
It doesn’t look like many lip products really… but I know I won’t wear much else even if I were to bring a few more.
NARS Pro Prime Eye Primer and Urban Decay Primer Potion in Original
Double primers you ask? Yep. I swore by Urban Decay Primer Potion for years, but it recently started creasing on me (much to my horror). I tried the NARS one and it *also* creased on me. If I double up and use them both on my lids then the creasing stops, so… double primers from now on.
Benefit Watts Up and some craft gems
I haven’t used it much, but I packed Benefit‘s Watts Up highlighter simply because it’s a sample size product and fits easily in my bag. The sheen of this highlighter is quite similar to MAC‘s Soft and Gentle.
The craft gems are for the St. Patrick’s Day Shamrock 5k race a friend and I are doing in Baltimore. Although the gems aren’t green, they’re what I had available, and I’ll definitely be plastering my face in them for the run!
yaby foundation in Buff, MAC Blacktrack fluidline, duo lash adhesive and Too Faced Better Than Sex mascara
More tiny products! The yaby foundation in Buff is a good shade for me right now and the tube is tiny so that was an easy one to pop in. I don’t expect to be wearing much foundation, but it’s nice to have in case I decide I want to wear some. Too Faced‘s Better Than Sex mascara is a deluxe sample size and I’m hoping to finish this one up on the trip. I’m slightly worried because it’s not waterproof and the weather forecast looks positively schizophrenic for the next few weeks. :s
The Duo lash adhesive is for the gems (and by looking at that package, it definitely needs replacing). And lastly, my beloved MACBlacktrackfluidline. My liquid liners just weren’t working out the way I wanted them to and even though it’s slightly more work (have to bring an extra brush and all), the end result is far better.
That’s everything I’ve stowed away in my makeup bag for my trip! Blog posts will continue while I’m gone as I have them sitting in queue ready to go live on the usual schedule (Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays). Take care everyone. 🙂
I’m taking an extended vacation over the Family Day long weekend here in Ontario, so I’ll be heading back up to my parents house in Ottawa right after work on Wednesday (same date as this blog post if you’re reading it then). After having been ridiculously sick over Christmas vacation and not getting to hit any of the hills with my snowboard, I’ve been itching to get back up there. Toronto really doesn’t have any decent hills in the area (don’t even get me started on Blue Mountain… it’s not a mountain, it’s a sad, sad slope) so I really do need to get up to Ottawa and into Quebec to see some proper runs.
ANYWAY. All that to say I’m heading to Ottawa for about 5 days and thought I’d show you what makeup I’m bringing with me this time.
Urban Decay Naked & Tarte Off The Cuff palettes
First up are the palettes. Usually I pack my Naked palette and pop in a few loose blushes, but this time I decided to take advantage of the fact that the Tarte palette actually comes with four blushes and a bronzer. The Naked is a must have, but the Tarte palette is kind of a no-brainer.
Urban Decay Naked & Tarte Off The Cuff palettes
Also, sad to say, but I’ve barely used the Tarte palette since I bought it in late last year, so I really want to get some proper use out of it. Not to mention the amount of space it saves.
Physicians Formula Shimmer Strip, Yaby foundation, Collection Concealer
For face products, I’m bringing the Physicians Formula Shimmer Strip in Sunset Strip (also because it’s underused), the Yaby foundation in Buff because it’s a great match for my skin and it comes in an incredibly small tube. Last up is the Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer in Shade 2 Light which I don’t really find to be a necessity on a daily basis, but I may want to use it so I threw it in there anyway.
Nivea Lip Butter, Laura Mercier Lip Glacé, MAC lipsticks
My Nivea lip butter in Vanilla & Macadamia tastes delicious (and reminds me of Ireland, since that’s where I bought it) and will be needed for hitting the slopes even though the packaging is kind of inconvenient. The mini Laura Mercier Lip Glace in Rose is in there in case I want to use a gloss (plus it also smells amazing). The two MAC lipsticks are Russian Red and Darkside, although I stupidly forgot to show you the actual colours. Whoops. I doubt I’ll even need this many lip products for a five day vacation, but the variety is nice for those “just in case” moments.
NARS Pro Prime, MAC Prep + Prime, MUFE Aqua Liner, MAC Lip Liner
And these are my necessities: NARS eyeshadow primer, MACPrep + Prime for lips, Make Up For Ever Aqua Liner in 13 Black and a MAC lip pencil in Brick for if I decide to wear Russian Red.
Illamasqua shadow, Too Faced mascara
Last up are Illamasqua‘s Imagineeyeshadow because I’ve never used it and I figured I needed to bring some kind of coloured shadow since the Naked palette is so very neutral. Too Faced‘s Better Than Sex mascara is also coming along for the ride since it’s in a tiny tube and easy to transport. Since I won’t be wearing any makeup while actually on the slopes, I don’t need a waterproof formula at all.
And all of it fits!
All of that fits into this relatively small makeup bag. For once I had a lot of small deluxe sample sized products which made it a lot easier to get everything crammed in there.
Travel Makeup Bag
The makeup bag itself was part of the Liberty of LondonMAC collection from 2010. I’ve used this bag religiously to travel with over the years and love how it’s held up. I also love the colours and the pattern itself. If you’re wondering where my brushes are, I’ll probably end up chucking them in a Ziploc bag and stuff them between soft things somewhere between my clothing.
That’s it for this travel makeup bag. I’m extremely excited to get back out there snowboarding since it’s been far too many years!
New year, new looks! And I’ve got plenty of new goodies to play with that I’ve accumulated over the holiday season!
I love this one so much. Everyone has gone insane over rose-gold everything and I think I’m starting to see why. This was a makeup combination that just made me feel like I looked especially pretty. I’m also having a love affair with Makeup Geek’s Bitten and I’m more than happy to use it constantly on my eyes!
Eyes:
L’Oreal Amber Rush all over the lid.
Makeup Geek Bitten in the outer corner and crease.
Makeup GeekCreme Brulee at the top of the crease to blend the two lid shades together.
MACBrule was used to highlight my brow. I used Make Up For Ever Aqua Liner in 13 Black to create the wing and applied L’Oreal VoluminousCarbon Black mascara to my top lashes. For brows, I used MACOmega.
Rest of the Face
Foundation: Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum foundation in 51 Light Vanilla
Bronzer:Physicians Formula Bronzer Booster in Light/Medium
Blush: Cargo Mendocino
Highlighter: DiorAmber Diamond
Lips: MACDark Side
Good grief do I ever love this one too! I can’t claim ownership though, I relied on Shaanxo’s video for inspiration. Anything with neon (not to mention neon AND green) and I’m a total sucker for it.
Eyes: I first applied NYX‘s Jumbo Eyeshadow Pencil in Milk all over the lid and blended it out with my finger. I also brought it down below the inner tearduct as well.
Using the white from Sleek‘s Acid palette, I applied that all over the inner third of the eyelid, bringing it down around my inner tearduct.
With the same Sleek palette, I used the neon green shade and patted that on the center of my lid. (This took a lot of layers in order to get it to be so vibrant!)
Using MAC‘s Greensmoke, I placed it in the outer corner of my lid and tried to blend it as best as I could with the neon shade (wasn’t that easy and I don’t think I was overly successful).
I then used MAC‘s Cork through the crease.
Brule was used to highlight the brow and MACOmega was used on my brows. I used Make Up For Ever‘s Aqua Liner in 13 Black to do my winged liner and applied L’OrealVoluminous Carbon Black mascara to my upper and lower lashes. For the lower lash line, I used a bit of Greensmoke on the outer corner, then lined my inner waterline with NYX‘s Milk(which actually had decent longevity!).
Rest of the Face
Foundation:Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum in shade 51 Light Vanilla
Bronzer:Physicians Formula Bronze Booster in Light/Medium
Blush:Joe Fresh cream blush in Apricot
Highlighter:Hard CandyTiki
Lips:NYX‘s Butter Gloss in Vanilla Cream Pie
This look came about as I was trying to use products that I had bought, but hadn’t used yet. The primary inspiration came from MUA‘s Shade 9 which is one of the most beautiful duochromes I’ve ever owned. Unfortunately, I’m not keen on how the blue turned out, as it applied rather chalkily.
Eyes: I used Urban Decay‘s Eden primer this time as opposed to my usual Original one. In retrospect, that was a stupid idea considering I was using a very shimmery shadow and Eden is a very flat, very matte primer.
MUAShade 9 Pearl on the inner half of the lid.
Makeup GeekNeptune on the outer half of the lid.
Makeup GeekCreme Brulee in the crease.
MACBrule was used to highlight my brow with MACOmega through my brows. L’Oreal Voluminous Carbon Black on my upper lashes with MAC‘s Blacktrackfluidline to create the winged liner.
Rest of the Face
Foundation: MUA BB Cream in Light
Bronzer: Physicians Formula Bronze Booster in Light/Medium
Blush: TarteExposed
Highlighter/Powder: HourglassAmbient Lightning Powder in Ethereal
Lips: Revlon Lip Butter in Creme Brulee
Heh, I’m not even sure what to say about this one. *I* think it’s rather bland, but looks like this tend to be when I get the most compliments. I wanted to use the Naked 3 palette and dip into a few products on to my “To Use Up” list. I don’t find the end result very inspirational, so when I use the Naked 3 again, I’ll definitely try out different combinations.
Eyes: Urban Decay Primer Potion in Eden all over the lid. All shadows are from the Urban DecayNaked 3 palette:
Burnout on the inner two-thirds of the lid.
Factory on the outer third of the lid.
Limit through the crease
I used Strange as a brow highlight and applied Blackheart as a very thin line along my upper lash line with a faint flick at the outer edge. L’Oreal Voluminous Carbon Black mascara on my upper and lower lashes.
Rest of the Face
Foundation: Yaby Foundation in Buff
Bronzer: Physicians Formula Bronze Booster in Light/Medium
Blush: Tarte – Dollface and Dazzledmixed together
Highlighter: Hard CandyTiki
Lips: Revlon Lip Butter in Red Velvet with Creamsicle layered on top.
I had to laugh at this one… I didn’t intend for this to come out nearly as dark as it did, or nearly as ridiculously bright on the lips… for a weekend brunch. While I was also wearing workout clothes. Hah. Ah well.
Eyes:Maybelline‘s Color Tattoo in Bad to the Bronze was applied all over the lid, keeping it below the crease. On top of that I layered:
Inglot152 Shine over the entire eyelid.
Laura MercierBamboo on the outer corner of the lid.
Laura MercierEspresso was used to blend out the crease and pull the shadows out at the corner of my eye into a slight V shape.
MACBrule to highlight the brow with MAC Omega through the brows. Bamboo and Espressowere mixed together to line the lower lashline. L’Oreal VoluminousCarbon Black mascara were applied to upper and lower lashes.
Rest of the Face
Foundation: CoverGirl CC Cream in 110 Classic Ivory
