Subdued Smoky Eye

I love a smoky eye but it may be a bit too much for daytime.  My compromise is a subdued smoky and the look is achieved with matte colors. Always remember that less is more! The key to making a smoky eye work for daytime is all in how you apply it and blend, blend, blend!!! In regards to the look of the lip, I used to be opposed to anything but a nude lip with a smoky eye, however if the "smoky" is applied with subtlety, this look can be stunning! 

Products Used:

Mac Paint-Bare Canvas

Mac yogurt eyeshadow

Mac carbon eyeshadow

Makeup Forever aqua cream liner in matte black

Mac TechnaKohl Liner in graphblack

Fairy Drops Mascara-(One of my faves!!!)

Mac Dollymix Powder Blush

Lips:

Mac Dervish Liner

Mac Pink Poodle Lipstick
Mac Star Nova Lipglass 

Step 1 Apply a primer (I HEART Urban Decay's Primer Potion)

Step 2 Apply an eyeshadow base, I like to use Mac Paint in Bare Canvas.  It's fabulously neutral and helps to neutralize the lid color to give you a "Bare Canvas!"

Step 3 Sweep yogurt on the inner corners about halfway to the center of the lid then apply it on the brow bone

Step 4  Apply carbon on the outer part of the eye in a "v" shape. Blend toward the center but stop about halfway to the center. Blend again!

Step 5 Apply kohl pencil to the lower water line and apply the Makeup Forever gel liner to the top lash line, wing out slightly.   Apply mascara and voila!

Make-Up Brushes Are Like Kitchen Knives...

I'm passionate about decent make-up brushes. A good-quality brush will make cheap eye shadow go on like silk and allow drug store blush to pass for Dior.  Make-up brushes are like kitchen knives: while they're often expensive, you'll keep coming back to your favorite few.

Immediately throw away those small brushes that come with make-up (they are always useless) and instead shop for separate make-up tools from a brand that specializes in them. Be prepared to invest - cheap brushes are rarely properly weighted, giving you less control; and the bristles are often flat-edged rather than domed, making blending IMPOSSIBLE.

I'm never without foundation, blush, eye shadow, liner and slanted brow brushes.  I use synthetic bristles for anything waxy or liquid (concealer & highlighter) and natural bristles for powdery products (eye shadow & blush).  It may look and sound like a whole lot of brushes but like anything else, you have to use the right tool for the job.

Brush hygiene is also important. I clean my brushes every few days if not daily with the M.A.C Brush Cleaner.  I poured the liquid into a travel size spray bottle I bought at Target and at the end of each makeup application, I spritz the tip of the brush and wipe it off on a paper towel.  For a more thorough cleaning, I use a gentle shampoo (do not condition – you'll over-soften the bristles, losing precision), then reshape before lying flat on a clean towel to dry.  Do this every 4-6 weeks and it will keep your brushes looking new and performing flawlessly.

Here are my top 5 Favorite Makeup Brushes that EVERY girl should NOT be without...

M.A.C 224 Tapered Blending Brush, $30

  #1  M.A.C  224 Tapered Blending Brush, $30 

I LOOOOOOVVVEE this brush!    It blends the crease line absolutely perfectly while gently  shaping the eye.  I NEVER use this brush to deposit color, only to blend. 

              M.A.C  134 Large Powder Brush, $52

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

#2  M.A.C  134 Large Powder Brush, $52

With its extra large, wide dense paddle, the chiseled head provides control when highlighting the cheekbones.  The newest brush in my collection, contouring has never been more easy.

      

       #3  Sephora Collection Pro Gel Eyeliner Brush, $16

Perfect for gel or cream eyeliners, I use this brush to apply eyeliner in smooth, continuous lines. The handle is comfortable to hold and easy to control. The cat eye has never been easier to achieve.

*For a consistently flawless gel liner application, replace your pot about every 6months or when it starts to go on cakey. 

 

      #4  Sephora Collection Classic Rounded Crease Brush #13, $17

This is my FAVORITE brush!!!  The tapered top fits perfectly in the contours of your crease line and the slightly elongated shape creates well-blended results. The brush even allows you to fill in your creases with your eyes open. Brilliant!

 

    #5  MAKE UP FOREVER HD Brush 30N, $38

Its nylon bristles will not leave marks or residue but will leave your complexion with a flawless finish.

Make up application should be fun and not a dreaded task.  Have fun with it, always remember to blend and rock that gorgeous face!

Bisous et calin (Hugs & kisses)

-N

 

Stick Straight

How come we always want what we can't have? If we have brown eyes, we want blue eyes, if we have curly hair, we want straight hair.  The days of permed hair are far into my past as I stare at a picture remembering the transformation from straight to curly hair...my head hurt, my eyes were were on fire from the perm solution, and I looked like I stuck my finger in an electrical socket.  All that a girl endures for beauty.  The days of wanting curly hair are long gone as I can only wish for a head of silky smooth strands.  I am a constant guinea pig to all hair products alike. 

Eureka! Tried and true, I have found one that I absolutely love!  Organix Ever Straight Brazilian Keratin Flat Iron Spray. Some flat iron sprays leave your hair feeling stiff and starch like.  The Keratin in this product strengthens and softens your locks while providing your hair with brilliant lustre and polished shine!    Made of avocado oil and cocoa butter you are taken to an island paradise with one single spray.  My hair is fabulously soft and I never have to deal with fly aways.  For a Salon Keratin Smoothing Treatment you could be paying in upwards of a couple hundred dollars, but for an everyday treatment this line of products provides the look and feel of salon treatments all for less than $10!  A surefire way to transform those dry locks in the winter and sun soaked strands in the summer.  Brilliant!

Bisous et calin! (Hugs and kisses)
-N

Boo Boo Bling, Wonder Mascara and How to get a Plum Smoky Eye

Boo Boo Bling
I love a sky high pair of stilettos but I hate the fear of falling.  The embarrassment and the recovery time that the season's short shorts just can't give up! Thanks to Boo Boo Bling we can rock those ouchies like the newest Louis Vuitton!

How is it that when we trip and fall that we manage to gouge the exact same knee in the exact same spot as the last time it happened...  That gouge turns into a scar and we are forever marked as clumsy according to our marked knees.  Oh, how I miss the days where I could get away with Barbie bandaids.  Something fun with some personality.  Sometimes I would even put a bandaid on the wound that wasn't even there just to rock the Barbie Bandaid.  I just wanted a fancy bandaid... I was born a glamour puss, what can I say. Once you hit that age where only a flesh colored bandaid will do, bandaids become boring and falling is no longer fun. It's dreaded... Why can't bandaids be like foundation? Why can't we go to Sephora and they can color match it to our skin tone. Bam! Second skin until we heal...Well unfortunately that pretty much will never happen because there isn't a market large enough to care about it except well maybe ME!

Thanks to Cynthia Rowley's bandaid's with sequins, and rhinestone decorative bling by Sephora boring Boo Boo's are a thing of the past!!! 

Boo Boo Bling $1 Sephora (Originally $4)



Urban Decay Super Curl Curling Mascara $20 Sephora.com


Mascara of the Moment
I have done Mascara reviews in past posts, however if I try something new and absolutely love it, I will most definitely shout it from the rooftops...Well here it is!

Urban Decay Super Curl Curling Mascara is AMAZING!  I have NEVER tried a Mascara that actually curled sans eyelash curler!  What I love most is that when I put on false lashes, my natural lashes curl right along with the falsies.  They follow the curl and stay put.  I promise I didn't put on falsies today and here's a pic of my lashes midday.  I hate my natural lashes and this mascara gives me hope. :)

For $20 this mascara really works...let me know all who end up buying this little tube of magic!

How To: Plum Smoky Eye

Products Needed:
Mac Eyeshadow in Quartz, Shale & Shadowy Lady
Makeup Forever Aqua Eye Liner in Mat Black
(2) Mac 224 Tapered Blending Brush (One to deposit color and the other to blend)
219 Mac Pencil Brush

Step 1
Apply Quartz from lash line to brow bone
Step 2
Apply Shadowy Lady in a sideways "V" on the outer corners of the eye and blend toward the center.  Blend, blend, blend
Step 3
Apply Shale from the middle of your eye to the inner corners
Step 4
 Apply Aqua Eyes Eye Liner and blend with the 219 into and upwards into the "V" to create the all over smoky eye

Wear with a nude lipstick such as Mac Fleshpot, Peachstock or  Honeylove and finish with a little gloss and you are ready to go!

Mmwah!