A Fresh Start

I've been writing in here more and more it will now become a habit because I have moved over to blogspot "permanently". I used to write mostly in my Live Journal only and I feel I've grown out of Live Journal. I still love the blogs I read on LJ and the people I met but I feel like I am more of a fashion/lifestyle blogger and that I belong on Blogspot now.

So, as a fresh start I feel like I should maybe break down what has been going on in my life right now. My fiance and I celebrated 3.5 years on Wednesday the 11th! My loving and adorable companion took me to Volt, some of you may remember Bryan Voltaggio from Top Chef on Bravo. That's his restaurant! It was very good, we went there for a late lunch. The goat cheese ravioli was absolutely delicious. I had a very enjoyable day despite it being a blistering 98 degrees in Maryland. I really wish I could escape this August heat! Then of course last night we had yet another epic thunderstorm that took down trees and power lines everywhere. Traffic was terrible no matter where you went so it was a frustrating day to say the least.

My make-up for our date at Volt

Finally, we can get to the beauty part of this blog! I have been searching for and yearning for the Urban Decay Naked pallet since we were told it would be launched over a month ago. I do work in a beauty store so I find these things out rather early. I wanted this pallet so badly because I am a nudes kind of girl. I love nude lips but my favorite is doing creams/browns for the eyeshadow. I don't really know why but pinks/purples/creams/browns are my go-to colors. I just think they compliment my eyes and skin nicely. So this pallet, let me tell you! It was a pain to track down. I had to buy it full price (curses, Urban Decay!) because my store did not get any more than our original shipment in stock. I bit the proverbial bullet and bought it, all $44.00 of it. I don't normally love pallets because they're bulky and take up a lot of room but this one is really to die for. It has the right mix of mattes with shimmers and the creams/browns/greys in it are killer. If you already have a lot of the Urban Decay eye shadows you can probably pass this one up because there are probably going to be a lot of repeats. But it also came with a tiny Urban Decay primer potion which we all love (although I have... six eyelid primers now? yes, I believe six...). Thank you Urban Decay, but next time, please plan better for how well your featured items are going to do! Not everyone that wants one will get one and that's kind of sad.

I also bought myself a really bright blue eye shadow from MAC, Atlantic Blue. I wanted something matte but super pigmented. I don't really have any blues. I got Carbon, which you know, is their staple matte black shadow. I finally got my original non-greasy/non-waxy eyebrow crayon in Lingering, MSF in "Light", Media lipstick (a dark purpley-red), and I am going to try out Opulash. I've heard some pretty good things about Opulash and it can't be any worse than the $20 I wasted on Texas Lash by Cargo. I expected great things but the mascara stinks, it's hard to get off and makes my eyelashes super spidery looking.

I hope to get some time to experiment and play with some new looks, especially my look for fall using Media as a lip color. I'm not that brave with lip colors so, this will be a new adventure!

Music & Make-Up

I am going to review a couple of products when I have tested them out thoroughly enough. Right now, here is my music and make-up playlist. In other words, this is what I'm listening to while I do my make-up!

1. D4L "Shake That Laffy Taffy"

2. Florence and the Machine "Howl"

3. Florence and the Machine "Cosmic Love"

4. Florence and the Machine "Heavy In Your Arms"

5. Justin Bieber "Somebody to Love" Remix

6. Justin Bieber "Baby" Remix

7. Maroon 5 "Misery"

8. Mike Posner "Cooler Than Me"

9. Nelly "I am Number One"

10. New Boyz featuring Iyaz "Break My Bank"

11. Petey Pablo "Show Me The Money"

12. Rich Boy "Throw Some D's On It"

13. Rick Ross "Blowin Money Fast"

14. T.I. "I'm Back"

15. Taio Cruz "Dynamite"

16. Trey Songz featuring Nicki Minaj "Bottoms Up"

I obviously like HipHop/Rap a lot. What do you listen to while you're doing you're make-up? Or do you not listen to music? I find it's easier to relax and concentrate on what I'm doing if it's not completely silent. I've been experimenting with different looks with all the eyeshadows I own. I really don't have any super bright colors so that is something I need to keep in mind the next time I'm going to look for new stuff. One or two super bright, pigmented colors would really help! I tend to gravitate towards more natural/neutral colors.

 

That's it from me for now. Until next time...

Here we are again

It's been quite a while since I last updated. I haven't had the time and also didn't have a computer to update from! I now have my own laptop, my photo editing software and some time to do a little update! I left my camera at my friend's house who is currently on vacation out of the state, but I do have some terribly blurry and pixelated web cam photos for you all.

Firstly, I have been working at Ulta for about 2 months now. I love my job and it has a few great perks. One of them is getting gratis (free stuff) all the time. So far I've collected about 10 products and two shirts. Of the new things I have acquired I'd actually like to start using it so I can write a review about it for all of you to see.

 I was given Too Faced's Long Stemmed Lashes as a part of my gratis and it happens to also be an Ulta exclusive. It is a lash-growing serum that is said to approve the over-all appearance of lashes, plus adding length and thickness in 8 weeks of continual use. It has a clear serum for night time and a medicated black eyeliner for day. It is also very gentle and will not cause any irritation or discoloration of the skin or iris. Because it is so safe, I'm more than happy to try it out. It is normally $38 and only sold at Ulta stores. I think we can all agree that longer, thicker, fuller lashes are always a good thing.


I also have fallen in love with everything Philosophy sells (as if I wasn't already a big enough fan). Their fragrances and skin care are excellent. I got myself one of their shower gels/bubble baths and plan to add a few more of their products to my collection. Their fragrance "Unconditional Love" is out of this world, I literally wear it every day. So, if you're looking for a few fragrance or something to try - I point everyone in the direction of Philosophy. Their most popular scent, Amazing Grace, smells so clean and fresh that it suits
 everyone. I dare you to try it and tell me you don't love it!

There is nothing in this world that smells too much of coconut for me. And the best thing about the shower gels is that they are just aromatherapy and the smell does not linger on your skin. I wouldn't mind smelling like coconut frosting, but with a scent like their "margarita" it may be a good thing that you don't go to the office stinking of an alcoholic drink. ;)






I'm off to freshen up, eat some dinner and then meet my boyfriend after he gets off of work at a pub for some drinks with friends. Keep cool, east coasters - it's been a scorching summer!

Julia

My friend asked me to do her make-up and I happily obliged since I need people to do make-up on for my portfolio. I'm letting all my subjects tell me what they want done since it's more of a challenge and that is the way it usually is when you're doing someone's make-up. Very rarely will someone tell you to do "whatever you want". So, she asked for a more natural look with purple on her eyes because she likes when her green eyes pop. This was the result, we were both very pleased with it. I added eyelash clusters on each eye, about 8 per eye and it really made a big difference in making her lashes look fuller.

I forgot to take a "before" picture, so I'm bummed about that but we definitely will remember next time. I also would like to emphasize I do not Photoshop these pictures. The first picture is with no flash, the second is the eye make-up detail and the third is with flash.

Lessons and Lipliner

So, exactly what do you look for in a make-up artist? What do you look to achieve when doing your make-up for the day? Are you looking to be someone else or to just improve upon you? Since taking a make-up artistry class and almost being finished with it, I can say that some people view make-up as a way to be someone else. On the other hand, some people just see make-up as a great way to highlight the good and cover up the bad.

I have always seen make-up as a way to make you look like you, but better. And that's how I think most people should view it. There is nothing so bad about you or your face that you should feel you have to distract people by using intensely bright neon colors or look like you've drawn around your eyes with a sharpie. I like doing dramatic looks once in a while but it's not my thing and I don't really feel that's what most people want. I want someone who knows how to make me look better but still look like me! So, to any aspiring make-up artists out there, get to know your tools and your clients so you know how to address their wants and needs. Not everyone wants a M.A.C. make-over.

That being said, I've learned from the many boyfriends and male friends I have had that most men appreciate girls who look good but don't look fake. I don't think many men like to look at women and just see make-up. Men want to see you. Because at the end of the day you'll have to wash that make-up off and you shouldn't feel like you need to hide behind it. I always get a little scared when girls say "I never go around my boyfriend without make-up on". He'll catch you with it off one day and trust me, he won't run away and hide from you. It took me a long time to realize that. Women are far too hard on themselves. Really.

This is a "love yourself for you who are" entry, but also a "make-up is fun and you're allowed to have fun with it" entry as well.

Make Me Over

I haven't had that much to blog about because it's been so incredibly beautiful outside here in Maryland. So, I've been outside for the majority of the day for a couple of days now. I love taking pictures of my makeup and these were the last ones I took. I hate the powders because they get everywhere, as you can see from the picture below. I'm also going to school for make-up artistry and it has been going very well so far. :)

Beauty favorites

It's a snowy day here in Maryland (again) and I thought I would highlight my favorites of each type of beauty product. People ask me this a lot (what is your favorite mascara, etc) and I guess this would be a good place to highlight my faves for everyone. Keep in mind, I am a fair-skinned woman so a lot of my favorites are catered around my skin tone.

Favorite Foundation: I say it all the time and I'll say it again, my favorite foundation is definitely Lorac's Break-through Performance Foundation.

Favorite Concealer: MAC's studio finish concealer

Favorite Powder: MAC's mineralize skin finish Natural in "Light"

Favorite Blush: Nars "Orgasm" powder blush

Favorite Mascara: Dior Show or MAC's zoom lash

Favorite Eyeshadows: MAC, Nars, Urban Decay, Smashbox

Favorite Eyeliner (cream): MAC fluidline in "blacktrack"

Favorite Eyebrow Pencil: MAC's eyebrow crayon in "lingering"

Favorite False Eyelashes: Ardell, MAC, Make-Up Forever

Favorite Lipstick: MAC's "myth", Estee Lauder, Chanel, Guerlain

Favorite Lipgloss: MAC's lipglasses and gelees, Smashbox

Favorite Primers: Urban Decay Primer potion (eyes), Laura Mercier Oil-Free Primer (face)

Anything I forgot? What are your favorites?

Buy any of the products I've listed at these sites: Sephora, MAC Cosmetics, Nordstrom