Just Another Manic Monday

I've collected a ton of makeup since last year and today I feel like sharing one of my biggest collections from Urban Decay.  I have always loved this brand since high school, but never really used the products (religiously) until last year.  My sister used to buy Urban Decay products back in the day and was one of those girls who wore a ton of makeup, but made it look effortless and natural.  Now, she's a simple girl who just throws on eyeliner, mascara and lip balm and calls it a day.

I thought my Urban Decay collection would look a bit out of control, but I guess it looks reasonable with the amount I've purchased in the past year.  I love my UD palettes especially my Naked palette.  I used to own Naked 2, but found myself gravitating more to the original.  I ended up giving it to my sister for her birthday last October in mint condition.  You can say I am obsessed with their eye shadows more than anything else.  (Ahem- I also am obsessed with their primer potion and setting spray.  I think I'm working on my 3rd tube and bottle right now.)  I believe the quality of the eye shadows are long lasting, vibrant and creative.  As long as you apply an eyelid primer, your eye makeup lasts forever!

I definitely want to venture into other products from this brand.  I'm currently loving their lip gloss that's a plumper, but want to try their jumbo lip pencils.  I remember during one of my trips to Ulta I wanted to splurge on their eyeshadow pencils because they're so creamy and long lasting (duh, it says 24/7 on the pencil!).  But I quickly found dupes of the pencils I wanted on the other side of Ulta and a las did not purchase these beauties.  I've read reviews and watched a ton of videos of people raving about different Urban Decay products that I can't wait to get my hands on.

Which ones are your favorites?  Definitely leave a comment on what I should try!  Note: I'm on the fence about purchasing Naked Basics palette.  Should I or shouldn't I?

Just Another Manic Monday

Hi everyone and happy first Monday of December!  I know that my blog (and YouTube channel) has been very quiet throughout November, but I was out of the country for 2.5 weeks.  Before leaving for vacation, Hurricane Sandy put me under the radar with no power for almost a week.  Despite that, I'm excited to share with you the beauty goodies that I found while away.  I talk about my trip in my latest video which I'll link below.

While in Hong Kong...
- I was eager to purchase (unique) beauty products while in Hong Kong for 3 days.  I wanted beauty products that were of brands not sold in the US plus branded towards Asian skin tones.  Somehow nothing really caught my attention except for the "eyelash bar" at the local drugstore called Sasa.  This bar contained a wide array of false eyelashes plus different lash glues, contraptions to apply the lashes and containers to store them whenever on the go.  The natural looking lashes were a good bargain ($10 for 2 packets of lashes that are a total of 11 sets).  Not bad right?

While in the Philippines...

- The Face Shop: I was happy to pop into this store towards the end of the trip once everyone was tired of shopping.  This cosmetics store is quite popular and carries cosmetics brands that come from Korea, Japan, China, etc.  Despite not being able to read the directions and ingredients in Asian characters, it's not hard to figure out what you like/dislike and what catches your eyes.  I purchased a BB cream from Lovely Me:ex which I have yet to wear.  This was the only BB cream that when tested on the back of my hand, it didn't turn my hand completely white.  Once my tan from my trip begins to fade, I'll definitely give this a try.  Next item I got was a waterproof "everyday" mascara from Face it.  I purchased this because I was intrigued by the "peanut" shape brush.  I already tested this and it's definitely not my favorite because it clumps.  I started getting into cheek/lip stains and luckily I stumbled upon this lip tint (Lovely Me:ex) that leaves my lips cherry stained.  There's no need to re-apply and it doesn't leave your lips feeling dry.  One thing that caught my eye was this waterproof gel eyeliner (Lovely Me:ex).  The color I got was black with gold shimmer.  The color pay-off is more intense than another eye kohl pencil I have that's the same color (Jouer Long-Wearing Eye Definer in noir).  It's waterproof and smudgeproof (which these claims are true!).  Lastly I couldn't leave the store without a new lipstick.  I'm unsure of the brand, but it's a dusty pink/ mauve color that makes your lips look next-to-nothing all natural.

- BYS: While walking around Mall of Asia (which is ginormous!) with some of my extended family members, there were a few beauty kiosks right next to a runway hair event that occurred later that evening.  I took a stroll through the stands and wanted to get my hands on something.  I came across this brand which is actually Australian and was introduced to the Philippines a couple of months ago.  I wasn't able to test these eyeshadow palettes, but told myself to purchase it before I regret it.  The smaller palette is 8 matte shades that are perfect for smokey eyes.  The bigger palette is a wide range of 36 shimmery shades.  This palette caught my attention first because the colors all look jewel-toned.

Yves Rocher: The name of this brand instantly caught my attention in which I did not hesitate to look around at all the beauty items from skin and hair care, cosmetics, fragrances and bath.  Nothing really interested me except for the different shades of lipsticks.  This particular lipstick is moisturizing, creamy, satiny and non-sticky.  The shade I have is called rose cannelle and it's absolutely stunning!

So this is pretty much my beauty hall while on vacation.  I'll definitely feature these products throughout the month for holiday looks.

Thanks for reading through this!

BareMinerals Fall Eyes Makeup Tutorial

Fall is my favorite season with the cool air blowing on your face, the smell of pumpkin and apple at every fragrance store and makeup brands selling unique products in time for Halloween and every holiday afterwards.  I created this beauty look with fall related colors that are all in 1 eyeshadow quad.  I've had this quad for a while and was waiting for the right time to finally use it.  Check out my video on how to re-create my look.  Products used are listed below.

PRODUCTS USED:
- Rimmel London Hide the Blemish Concealer (natural beige 004)
- Rimmel London Wake Me Up Foundation (201 classic beige)
- Tarte emphasEYES Brow Pencil
- Tarte 12-hr Smoothing Eye Primer
- BareMinerals READY Eyeshadow 4.0 (The Rare Find)
- Josie Maran Long-Lasting Eye Liner (black raven)
- Maybelline Eye Studio Lasting Drama Gel Liner (blackest black)
- Maybelline Volum' Express One-by-One Mascara
- Maybelline Lash Discovery Mini-Brush Mascara
- MAC Blush (blunt)
- L'Oreal Colour Riche Lip Balm (219 plush plum)

Elegant Blue Eyes Makeup Tutorial

It's been a while since I've done a makeup tutorial, but I had a great time filming this most recent one.  Today's look is all about the color blue.  I always thought I couldn't pull off the color blue because in the end, it would turn out looking purple.  But, after months of practice and learning how to use certain makeup brushes, this is my first time debuting a blue eyeshadow look.  Check out my video on how to work this look.  Products used can be found below.

PRODUCTS USED:
- Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Eraser Dark Circles Concealer (medium)
- MAC Pro Longwear SPF10 Foundation (NC40)
- MAC Studio Fix Powder (NC40)
- Tarte 12-hr Smoothing Eye Primer
- Maybelline Eyestudio (Saphire Stylist)
- Urban Decay Smoked Palette (blackout, kinky, freestyle)
- Josie Maran Long-Lasting Eye Liner (black raven)
- Maybelline Line Stiletto
- Armani Eyes to Kill Mascara
- NARS Bronzer (casino)
- MAC Blush (Pinch Me)
- MAC Cremestick Liner (Sublime Culture)
- Korres Mango Butter Lipstick (Natural Pink 13)

Makeup Review: Sonia Kashuk Instructional Eye Shadow Palette

I bought this eye palette at a recent haul and am happy to share my opinion with you.

Makeup Series | "Free Mini Kits" | Smashbox

Happy October!

I was inspired by a YouTube video I watched a while ago to review my current makeup pile.  I realized that most of the makeup items that I don't use (ever) are the little samples and kits that I haven't touched since being transferred from the store bag of purchase to my makeup storage containers.  This got me thinking to create a series for this entire month where I feature all my makeup items that are rejected.  You can't forget the little ones, meaning the samples that you get when spending a certain amount of dollars online or in store.  Also, I tend to purchase kits for just wanting to try 1 item.  The rest of the kit is just a bonus.  Now, it's time for these items to rise out of the darkness of my makeup pile and be used.

Just Another Manic Monday

Hey friends!  With a great response to my "Manic Monday" a few weeks ago, I decided to continue using Mondays as my day to highlight new makeup items.  I did a spontaneous shopping spree at my local drugstore and spent most of my time at the Maybelline section.  I wanted to try the Color Plush eyeshadow quads that are horizontal.  I own a few of the Expertwear eyeshadow quads and I don't like the quality.  The ones that I have contain gold glitter and turned out to be too glittery.  The pay off isn't worth the aggravation of continuous application.  So I finally decided to pick up a few of the Color Plush quads (thank goodness for the "buy 1, get 1 50% off" deal).

Maybelline Eye Studio Color Plush Silk Eyeshadow in Irresistibly Ivy (90) is very rich in pigmentation and is great to wear as we start to transition into fall.  The colors are soft on application and can be worn together or alone.  Once I started applying the colors onto my eyes, the shades reminded me of the feathers of a peacock.

With flash

No flash

L-R: Light, shimmered champagne beige; orange-copper with gold shimmer;
mixture of sea green and teal with gold shimmer; and deep red-copper.

Using a flat eye shadow brush, I brushed the copper color over my eyelid twice so that the color is really compacted on.  Using the flip side of the same brush, I applied the red-copper color on the outer half of my lid.  With a crease brush, I applied the teal on the outer part of my crease then blended inwards.  For this part, you can apply more color on the crease depending on how much you want the color to stand out.  Finally, I applied the champagne color under my brows and on the inner corners of my eyes.  Overall, I was quite impressed with the teal because if you apply it on top of the red, it turns to a darker green.  I suggest using an eyelid primer since the colors are soft and silky.

Have you used this specific color or others?  Let me know!

HAUL: Makeup & Other Beauty Products

It's been a while since I've blogged.  My (lame) excuse is that I've just been completely lazy & have been uninspired with some of my cooking last week.  But, I've accumulated a lot of items in the past few weeks that I wanted to share with all of my viewers.  I tried doing a YouTube video last Friday while my husband was out of town and my daughter was in school.  I did roughly 5 takes & realized I'm not meant to be in front of the camera.  Just doing a small introduction to the video was painful to watch.  I'll try a different approach some time soon where I'll just do a voice over.

Anyway, the following products that I'll share below are from Ulta(1), HauteLook.com(2) and Sephora.com(3).

If you are a happy consumer of any of these products, please share your experience with it.

(1) From L to R: John Frieda Root Awakening Nourishing Moisture Shampoo & Conditioner for Dry Hair, Benefit Cosmetics B. Right It's Potent Eye Cream, 2 Benefit Cosmetics freebies, OPI nail polish in DS Glow & Melon of Troy, Tarte Maracuja Divine Shine Lipgloss in Tipsy.

*I purchased the eye cream just so I can get the sample of the Cha Cha Tint which I'm pretty psyched to try.  With the Tarte lipgloss, I was suppose to get a Deluxe Sample of Maracuja Oil which I assume the store ran out of.  Instead they gave me another Benefit sample which is the skincare So Radiant.  I heard great things about the maracuja oil so I guess I'll have to purchase it next time I step into Ulta.

(2) From L to R: NYX Eye Glamifying Set, NYX Blush Set in Pretty Natural, NYX Haute Jersey- Leopard Couture Set

*I purchased these items on Hautelook.com because it was one of their special deals.  If you itemize these products, you definitely are saving 40% or more when purchasing them on this website.  With the eye set, it came with the Provocateur Boudoir Mascara, Collection Noir Liquid Black Liner, Collection Noir Skinny Black Liner & Slide On, Glide On, Stay On & Definitely A Turn On Water Proof, Extreme Shine Eye Liner in Black Sparkle.  Annoying that the name of this product is long but that's what's on the pencil.  With the blush set, the 3 blushes are Mocha, Angel & Mauve.  My last item of the bunch is this leopard makeup palette that screams Jersey girl (which I am- well I'm from Jersey but definitely not a "Jersey Shore" Jersey girl if you get my drift.)

When you open the book, there are 24 eyeshadows on your left with 4 eye applicators & a mirror on your right. 

When you flip the mirror, you get another mirror but on the left side.  On the opposite side are 2 lip glosses, 4 bronzers & 2 blushes.  This palette will come to use whenever I want to head down to Bar A or DJais.

(3) From L to R: The New Black Runway- Color Barometer 8-Piece Nail Polish Set, Sephora Collection Marbling & Dotting Nail Tool, Josie Maran Made with Love Kit, Korres Goddess Lip Collection

*The nail tool was on sale online and lately I've been purchasing nail polishes as if I was a kid in a candy store.  A new tool deserves new polishes to go with.  I had a sample of Josie Maran 100% Pure Argan Oil & wanted to try other products of her line.  Korres is a Johnson & Johnson product which my sister works for.  She has a couple Korres makeup products & is happy with them.  I hope I can be happy with these.