Monday, October 25, 2010

Tutorial: How I fill in my Eyebrows using MAC Espresso Eyeshadow.

In this tutorial, I'll be showing you how I fill in my brows using an eyeshadow. My favorite eyeshadows to use are matte eyeshadows from MAC. My every-day medium brown shade is MAC Espresso, when my hair is a bit lighter, I use MAC Cork and when my hair is deep-dark, I use MAC Brun.

Products used in this tutorial:

**The little white circles in the photos are shown as guides.

STEP 1:

This may not be a necessary step for those with sparse or fine brows, but very necessary for those with coarse and/or unruly, bushy brows. Use your spoolie and brush your eyebrows upward.

STEP 2:

Now take your scissors, and line them across the topmost, thickest part of the brow. Trim any hairs that are too long.


Already looking better!

STEP 3:

Using your tweezers, pluck any re-growth.

STEP 4:

I always like starting on the underside of my brow and working up. Starting at the beginning of the under-side of the brow, follow your natural brow shape all the way across. The underside can be the harshest line, because it's usually the cleanest/most precise part of your brows if you got them waxed, threaded, etc. The top of the brow is usually more natural. *Make sure to apply light pressure, and don't apply too much product towards the ending (tail) of the brow.

STEP 5:

If your brows are sparse (mine aren't sparse, but I colored them in for the sake of the tutorial) and need to be darkened overall, lightly fill the inside (think of the top and bottom of your brows as borders, and you need to color in between the lines) of your brow with whatever residue is on your brush from Step 4. Again, don't apply too much pressure. Small, light brush strokes work the best. Additional product shouldn't be necessary as you don't want your brows to look harsh or "painted" on.

STEP 6:

Lastly, trace the uppermost part of your brow making sure not to apply too much product towards the beginning or end. To avoid looking unnatural, you can start towards the middle or arch of your brow.

STEP 7:

Comb your lashes with a spoolie to soften any harshness and blend the shadow in better with your brows.

Did you make your brows appear thicker than you wanted to?
Simply take your concealer and a small concealer brush (a Q-tip or clean sponge eyeshadow applicator would work if you don't own proper brushes) and trace the borders of your brow. The concealer acts as an eraser, and will thin out the shape of your brows if you made them too large.

Add a highlight to your brow bone
Adding a shimmery highlight to your brow bone will emphasis the arch in your brow, making your brows appear clean, well-groomed and making your eyes look fresh and more awake. *Adding a bit near your tear ducts wouldn't hurt either!

I hope you found this tutorial helpful!

In addition, here are some swatches of some brow products I own. I couldn't for the life of me find my MAC Brow Crayon in the shade Spiked.


The only pencil I really don't like out of the bunch swatched is the NYC pencil. It is very creamy and goes on clumpy. I prefer a drier textured pencil for my brows. All of the others I like and use depending on the shade of my hair. My favorites remain MAC Espresso & Cork, Maybelline Define a Brow & MAC Eyebrow Crayon.

Thursday, October 21, 2010

FOTD: Smokey Brown (something quick & easy)

Hey Guys!

I thought I'd post a quick FOTD. I was watching one of pixiwoo's recent videos and I liked the way Sam had her eye makeup.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ovYfow38UUs

It looked like she may of only used a couple shades of brown with a little bit of a messy application. So, when I was doing my makeup on my way out the door last night, I grabbed a couple of my brown eye shadows and a fluffy smudge brush and tried it myself. I really liked the outcome. I couldn't get any good pictures because I was having lighting issues.. it looked a lot better in person. :( I thought I'd share anyway..







Face:
Palladio Stick Concealer in the shade #Yellow
Maybelline Dream Matte Mousse in the shade #Dark 2 to contour my cheekbones
Make Up Forever HD #127 Foundation mixed with a dab of Nars Sheer Glow Foundation in #Stromboli
Rimmel Lasting Finish Transparent Powder to set my foundation and under eyes
MAC Improvise Mineralized Blush

Eyes:
NARS Galapagos eyeshadow smudged all over my lid and under my bottom lash line
MAC Cork Eyeshadow smudged over the previous application of eye shadow
Covergirl Volume Exact Mascara
Cargo Reverse Lip Liner in the shade #Medium on my waterline to brighten it up

Lips:
Wet n Wild Lipstick in shade #901B Think Pink
MAC 2N Lipglass

Sunday, October 17, 2010

Review: Maybelline Dream Mousse Concealer!

Product Description:
  • Air-whipped mousse texture feels lightweight on skin and builds opacity for settle-free coverage
  • Completely covers dark circles, imperfections and redness
  • Blends and smoothes away imperfections instantly
  • Oil-Free, fragrance-free, non-comedogenic, dermatologist tested, safe for sensitive skin.
 My Review:  This is the first "mousse" product I've ever tried and didn't really know what to expect. The consistency is very light and airy and has a silicone-like feel to it. It's super soft and blends with no effort needed. I've tried applying this with my fingers or with a concealer brush and I didn't like either application method. The only way I like applying this is with my Sigma 224 or MAC 224 brush. I just dab the brush in and swirl it around my under eyes and build it to the desired coverage. This has a light - buildable to medium coverage. It's definitely not full - or full enough for what I prefer. I like using this on blemishes.. it covers them pretty well. I like to use my fingers for that and pat some product on it. Definitely can build it to a pretty heavy medium coverage on blemishes and it covers redness very good. The only thing I don't really like about this is the matte finish it gives. I've never used a matte concealer.. and this just makes my under eyes look dull. I don't think this is something I would repurchase once I run out.

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Nars Sheer Glow update! (My winter shade)

I had a gift card to Sephora so I decided to pick up my favorite foundation. I haven't had a bottle in months because $42 for me is a lot to shovel out for a daily use foundation. Now that I'm not using as much self tanner as I was, I've been using a lot of foundations that are in the NC30-NC35 range rather than NC40. Previously I was using the shade Barcelona in Sheer Glow.. which was the absolute perfect NC40 match. It matched my skintone even better than MAC NC40 did. But this time, I picked one shade lighter.. and that is Stromboli. This shade is the dead on perfect match for me right now. I can't believe how perfect the color match NARS Sheer Glow offers for my skin tone.

I did a few comparisons for you guys.. Since I'm on vacation, I didn't have all of my foundations with me. Just MAC Studio Fix Fluid and Make Up Forever HD. I'm sure Estee Lauder Double Wear in the shade Tawny may come close to these as well.


MAC and MUFE look almost exactly the same. Nars is the slightest more yellow.. and looks the best on me of the three. (I actually think I did a typo.. it may be mufe #125.. the label has rubbed off!)

This picture is taken indoors with flash.

I took a picture yesterday morning after I applied my Nars.. matches my neck perfectly. :)

Cheryl just reviewed Sheer Glow in this shade.. check out her review here!