FOTD with Bright Lipstick!

I thought I'd so something a little different with my makeup.. I never really wear any colors outside of my "comfort zone".. but after seeing Tanya Burr's makeup in her recent "Products I regret not buying" video.. I had to give some color a try.

Isn't her makeup gorgeous here? (click to view full size)



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



Because she went bold with the lips, she decided to keep it pretty natural on the eyes.

Since I wanted to wear a bold color on my lips.... I went with a very soft wash of color on my lids. I used a sheer taupe and a white eyeshadow all over my lid and lined my upper lid only.. and only applied mascara to my upper lashes.

I did something a little different with my bangs. Instead of flat ironing them, I blow dried them and swept them outward.. not sure If I liked the result.. It kind of looked like a comb over.. LOL Oh well.

FACE:

Clarins Instant Smooth Perfecting Touch Primer

MAC Pro Longwear Concealer #NW25

Bobbi Brown Eye Brightener # Light (Discontinued, pot)

Nars Sheer Glow Foundation #Stromboli

MAC Smooth Harmony Beauty Powder (LE, to contour)

MAC Petticoat Mineralize Skinfinish

Stila Rose Gold Illuminating Finishing Powder (Highlight my cheekbones & bridge of my nose)

Alima Pure Satin Matte Foundation #W-3 (Mineral powder to set my concealer, brighten area & add extra coverage)

EYES:

Napoleon Perdis Smoke Signals Palette (light taupe shade all over lid and in the crease & white shade on top- stopping at my crease to brighten my lid)

MAC Smolder Eyeliner Pencil

Covergirl Professional Super Thick Mascara

Covergirl Lash Blast Mascara (for added volume)

BROWS:

E.L.F Brow Kit #Medium

LIPS:

Rimmel 1,000 Kisses Stay On Lip Liner #Indian Pink (Lined, filled in my lips and blotted)

NYX Louisiana Round Lip Stick

MAC Clear Lip Glass

MAC Your Ladyship Pigment (A tiny bit smoothed in the center of my lips to add a highlight)

Cargo Reverse Lip Liner #Medium (To define the shape of my lips)

Review: N.Y.C Blushable Creme Sticks in the shades Urban Spice & South St. Seashell! + Photos & Swatch!

Product Description: "This lightweight formula blends effortlessly to provide sheer, all-over color as well as subtle, shimmering accents, contours and dynamic highlights to your cheeks."

Benefits: Sheer crè blusher dries down to a silky powder finish, Soft and creamy formula blends easily with fingertips to desired intensity and coverage, Convenient twist up stick for quick application & Non-drying, oil-free.

Application Tips: *Twist blush up and apply to the apples of your cheeks and glide across your cheekbone, blend with fingertips or sponge in a soft circular motion for a sheer flush of color. To build a deeper flush repeat this step again.

*For a contouring effect use darker shade such as South Street Seashell right below cheek bone and blend outward toward hairline, then use a highlighting shade like Plaza Pink to apply onto the apples of your cheeks and blend outward.

 (Source: newyorkcolor.com)

  N.Y.C. Blushable Creme Sticks are available in 6 different shades. Plaza Pink - 644, Big Apple Blush - 645, Urban Spice - 646, South Street Seashell - 647, Mauvin' Uptown - 648 & Berry New Yorker - 649. Click here to be redirected to the product page on N.Y.C's website.

(Shade swatches from newyorkcolor.com)

Review: I was intersted in trying these blushes just recently when I saw them being raved about by a fellow beauty blogger. Once I checked out the reviews and saw how positive they were (Rated 4.5/5 with a 88% Repurchase rate).. I knew I had to give them a try. Soon after, I saw all of N.Y.C Cosmetics on clearance at my local ULTA (I went to another ULTA a couple of days ago and their N.Y.C was not on clearance) and the creme blushsticks were priced at half off ($1.99, typically $3.99). Once I got in my car and went over my receipt.. I right away regretted purchasing these. I guess I just doubted the quality because of the reasonable price. I'm very happy to say now that I'm not at all regretting purchasing these. I was very happy when i first swatched the colors.. that the consistency is very soft, and satiny smooth. They are not at all thick, dry or greasy. The formula is very lightweight, non-sticky and easy to blend. I was a little worried at first that If I apply my foundation and then run this over my cheeks straight from the tube that it will mess up and cake my foundation.. but It doesn't at all. It's very nice that these are oil free.. these haven't seemed to bother my skin at all. The blushes have pretty good color payoff and add a really nice, natural sheen to the cheeks. For the past couple of days, I've been using Urban Spice as a contour and up my temples/around my hairline and it adds such a light, natural glow to my face. I think these are perfect for those of you that are interested in trying creme blushes and don't want to dish out a lot of money for a high end brand. The colors are very pretty & natural and are super easy to blend. Also, these can be sheered out and used as a base for your powder blush. A very versatile product.

Available at: Wal-mart, Target, Rite-Aid, CVS Pharmacy, Meijer, ULTA, Superdrug & More. Click here to view the retailers. These typically sell from around $3-$5 each.

Have you tried N.Y.C Blushable Creme Sticks or anything similar? Recommendations? Comment below and tell us your thoughts!

Napoleon Perdis Smoke Signals 12 Color Eye Shadow Palette (For Target Holiday 2010)

I grabbed this palette off of the Clearance rack at Target a few days ago. It was originally $10.. and was one of the holiday stocking stuffers that Target has to offer every year in the cosmetics dept. It was priced down to only $2.48! They also had a few Pixi palettes left for the same price.. but I ended up putting it back because I figured I wouldn't use it much. Last year I purchased the Napoleon holiday palette at Target and really liked it. The quality of the shadows are awesome!

Did anyone else pick up this palette? If you're at Target be sure to check out the Clearance racks.. you might find some goodies!! :)

NOTD: Essence Colour & Go in 08 Ultimate Pink!

Essence Colour & Go Nail Polish - Ultimate Pink

I got this nail polish yesterday at ULTA.. Essence has some really cute colors and they're only 99 cents each! I was temped to buy a taupe and a grey.. but I figured I own enough of those. I'm not sure how well these polishes wear.. I only have one other Essence polish that I puchased last summer. I think they're pretty average.. but I'll update this post and let you know when my nails start chipping.

The formula is very nice.. it's not too thick or thin. The color is opaque and the color dries pretty quickly. It says "1 second per nail".. which it's not exactly 1 second.. but it's around the same as an OPI polish. I applied a second coat within a minute and my nails didn't cake up or get nicked. I also really like the brush. It's not too long and it's pretty thick (not as thick as Rimmel Lasting Finish though) so it makes applying the nail polish very quick.

This is two coats, no top coat.