The postman arrived with my lovely black box of MAC, and inside were many gems that I’ve been anticipating for a week. Two of those items were better than expected, the MAC Viva Glam lipstick collection, featuring my idol, Cyndi Lauper and that other chick, Lady Gaga.
Mac Viva Glam Cyndi and Gaga
Both sheer, both sexy as hell.

MAC Viva Glam Swatches
I know that red is all the rage this spring, but this isn’t the red that you think it is. The MAC Viva Glam Cyndi is very wearable and would probably go well with most skintones. You could kick this red outta the ballpark with a rich red lipliner, which I will experiment with during the week.

MAC Viva Glam Cyndi
This pic was taken right after work..didn’t have time to touch up my face, but you get the picture.

The next shade, MAC Viva Glam Gaga, is going to be a pretty hard color to pull off, given it’s intense blue/pink hue. My makeup for the day did not go with this lip at all! Even my red tank top would need to be changed to pull this lip off. (See below)

MAC Viva Glam Gaga
Ewww no! I’ll have to change my entire outfit and eye look to go with this one.

This lipstick might not look on darker skintones, it’s very bubble gum pink! This is something you would probably need to try on in the store in order to see if it fit you.

MAC Viva Glam Lady Gaga

Overall, I am very pleased with the texture, the feel and the look of these Viva Glam lipsticks. I give them 5 stars each!!! Well done, MAC!

Mac Haul
Other purchases I made were : MAC Pro Palette for Blush, the 222 brush for the crease (I lost mine!), Impeccable Brow Pencil in Dirty Blonde and the Penultimate Brow Marker. We will see how these work out, I already broke a blush trying to de-pot it from the compact because I was impatient and didn’t want to wait to find the wire clippers. Do an internet search for videos and blogs about how to de-pot your MAC products! Make sure you have all of the tools before you start de-potting because I totally wasted a blush! I ended up dropping some alcohol back into the blush compact and pressing the blush back down into the pan, but it looks really crappy.

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I’ve mentioned this several times, but I did go to Sephora and plop down over $100 bucks to try out some of the newest and best-selling items. Needless to say, $100 doesn’t take you very far when you are at Sephora, at least for me.

Let’s start with the hyped up products first:

Tarina Tarantino Makeup Line by Sephora

Tarina Tarantino by Sephora

Okay, this is a firm NO for me, a huge Tarina fan. I am completely disappointed by the quality of this line. It seems like the developers spent more time on the packaging than the stuff that’s inside. I tried everything, hoping to find one little gem to put in my basket (trust me, I got my tax return, money wasn’t an issue on this day) and I couldn’t find ONE thing that I liked. The blush looked very blotchy on my skin, the lip color on the model (above) wasn’t anywhere to be found, all of the lipsticks were very sheer. The eyeliner too waxy and wasn’t rich like the Urban Decay 24/7 eyeliner. The eyeshadow was very blah, nothing really popped out, so I popped myself over to the Makeup Forever eyeshadow stand and continued to be impressed by the texture and price. I forced myself to find one thing to take home, so it was the Sparklicity Shimmer Dust ($19) and I am still trying to like it! Pictures of the product on my skin are shown towards the bottom of this post. Sorry, Tarina, I will buy your jewelry, but your makeup line.. epic fail! Good marketing though, great advertising photos, but where is that lip color?

Laura Mercier Smooth Focus Pressed Setting Powder – Shine Control ($32 – Only @Sephora)

Laura Mercier Smooth Focus Pressed Setting Powder
The title of this product sounds impressive. It says to me that you are going to have a smooth complexion, flawless and all of your oils will vanish. Well, for someone like me, who gets oily around noon and seemingly oilier every hour beyond that, this powder didn’t do much for me. I need to use it about 4 times per day, and if going out at night, make that about 6 times per day. The powder itself is a greenish / bluish color, to cut the redness in the skin and even out blotchyness. The application pad it comes with is a double-sided velvet flocked pad with a sponge texture on the opposite side. When I use this applicator, too much product gets concentrated in one area, so I am now using my Chanel Kabuki brush with it and it’s working much better. This product is very similar to the Makeup Forever HD Microfinish Powder , but in pressed form. I don’t stay matte for very long and I can see the product on my face in certain lighting.  I won’t purchase this again, as I think I need something with color to help keep the coverage of my foundation fresh.  3 out of 5 stars – Pros: nice quality, good packaging. Cons: I need something with color, look of powder is sometimes too noticable.

Laura Mercier Secret Finish Mattifying Gel ($27 @ Sephora)

Laura Mercier Secret Finish Mattifying Gel
This wasn’t available in Sephora stores when I went to purchase, but I was given a hefty sample and it was enough to come up with my verdict. I simply cannot put a gel substance OVER my foundation. I just can’t! I tried to do this very delicately and it really did disturb my foundation. I did noticed that my pores looked smaller since the product fills them in, but I didn’t stay matte at all for very long. I tried this under my foundation and I didn’t notice a difference except for the possibility that my foundation went on just a tad faster. I will continue to try this and use it in different ways, I’ll update this review if I find that I fall in love with it somehow. 3 out of 5 stars – Pros : No fragrance, no parabens, nice quality. Cons: Disturbs my foundation when used over the top, doesn’t keep me “matte”.

Make Up For Ever HD Microfinish Cream Blush ($25 @ Sephora for .33 oz) – Was not availabe on my trip. I will check again soon!

Givenchy Le Prisme Blush Powder Blush – I saw it, but totally forgot to test it out. Sorry! Will check again soon!

Kim Kardashian fragrance (starting at $16) – Wow.. did I call it or what? I knew this fragrance was going to be a rip off of something, and it’s exactly Marc Jacobs. Did Kim think I wasn’t going to find out? Geez. Well anyway, it’s Gardenia and it’s totally Marc Jacobs. LOL!

Make Up For Ever Mat Velvet + Matifying Foundation ($34 Only @Sephora)

Makeup Forever Mat Velvet
Yay! I love this stuff. It’s like the old Revlon Colorstay formula from the 90s. Not AS good as the Revlon one, but really close. Full coverage.. I’d say it’s medium – full coverage. The color choice range is amazing and I found the right shade within 5 seconds of looking.  4 out of 5 stars : Close to perfection. Pros: Great coverage and color choices. Nice product quality. Cons: I feel like this will only last me a month.

Krista Dior
Yup, this is me on a morning before work. I am wearing the following:

FACE

Benefit Shangri la Sheers I lotused you looking

  • Tarina Tarantino Sparklicity Pure – I am not sure why I bought this. You don’t really see much:

Tarina Tarantino

It looks nice when piled up on your hand, doesn’t it? When it’s on your face, not so much. I think I will try applying it with a foundation brush and dampen it with water next time.

EYES

LIPS

NYX Spoiled Lipstick

Whew.. that’s about it, kids! I am still awaiting the arrival of my MAC Viva Glam lipsticks.. so stay tuned and I’ll be showing those off soon!

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Today is Valentine’s Day and I am getting ready to go out to din-din with my special man. I received a shipment from Revlon to try their new products: Revlon Fantasy Length Lashes and Revlon Color Allure glue-on nails. I am also going to review and post a video on how I use the L’Oreal Telescopic Explosion mascara (globe brush style).

Thank you, Revlon!

Revlon Fantasy Lengths Lashes

The point of these products is to make life a bit easier and to reduce expensive salon costs. The lashes are very natural-looking and easy to apply, the nails are not long and perfect for just wearing for a night on the town or to a special event. Why waste hours and money getting your nails done in a salon?? Well, there are definitely pros and cons to the Revlon Color Allure nails (runs about $10 per box) as I had trouble not getting the glue on top of the nails or on my skin. I accidentally glued my fingers together at one point and had to use nail polish remover to get them apart (as my fiance laughed and thought it was so damned funny!).  The nail kit includes very strong nail glue, it’s just like crazy glue! You get a rather large 3g bottle of glue, enough to use to repair a broken lamp? There are enough nails to do them twice. Below are photos that I took right after I applied them. You can see the glue boo-boos that I made!

I pretty much have ugly hands to begin with, but I honestly think these glue-on nails are better than I expected.. and made my hands feel pretty today! I used to get the gel glitter tip nails and I would spend about $50 to $70 for a full set and $20-$25 for fills every two weeks, needing a full set put on every month, it seemed. A box of these nails are about $10, and probably last about a week. I’ll carry the glue with me just in case! I can’t wait to try the glitter tipped nails from the set Revlon gave me. Update: The nails lasted about a week and a half and basically fell off on their own. That is pretty nice considering if you have gel nails that you might have to have a nail tech remove them for you and it’s painful! I like to let my nails breathe for a while before putting fake nails back on.

Revlon Fantasy Lengths Faux Lashes : Flirty


Revlon Fantasy Lengths Maximum Wear Glue-on Eyelashes – Flirty – Drugstore.com (Currently on sale $3.84)

I have worn false eyelashes for years and I’ve tried high-end and low-end cheapies from the Halloween stores. There are some excellent cheapies out there, you just have to hunt.  These Revlon lashes are definitely everyday wear lashes that are not too long or too flashy.

I carefully peeled away the lash strip off the plastic base (still ended up tearing a few lashes off the end) these lashes seem really delicate, so be careful when taking them off of the package! I applied my eye makeup first:

Brows: Hodgepodge MAC pencil

Eyes: Urban Decay Primer Potion, bottom lid: Urban Decay Polyester Bride eyeshadow, crease: Milani Coffee Shop Runway Single Eyeshadow, brow highlight: Benefit High Brow pencil.

Liner: Estee Lauder Artist’s Eye Pencil in Softsmudge Black.

Mascara: L’Oreal Telescopic Explosion mascara ($7.99 @ Target)

Here is a VERY short video of me putting this mascara on. My camera ran out of space during the application!


This is the finished product! This mascara is pretty nice, a little strange to apply, but I am liking it so far. It doesn’t really add the dramatic thickness to my lashes that I like, but I am adding lashes, so I figure that this is enough!

So, now that my lashes are prepped and ready to go, it is time to bust out the eyelash glue and pop these babies on!

I dabbed a little bit of lash glue on the back of my hand and dipped the lashes right in it. The glue is white, but dries clear, so do not worry about it looking white on your eyes.

Here is another video, this time I am showing how I press down and separate the lashes with the end of a rat-tail comb.(Yes, that’s HOLE playing in the background heheh!)



After I finished up my eyes, I applied Sebastian brand “So Shy” blush which is a matte baby pink and a discontinued Tony & Tina lipstick which is a matte pink/red.

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This is a little too late, I had been doing makeup tutorials during my vacation off from work and never got around to posting them before New Year’s Eve. I am sad. I can’t even meet my own freaking deadlines! I didn’t do anything last night except for eat fancy Chinese cuisine with my fiancee and my mom.  I came back home and watched some Netflix streamed movies with my new PS3.. which I am totally obsessed with right now. I don’t even own any Playstation games yet!

First, I’d like to apologize for the picture quality! I normally take the photos and color correct all of the yellow tones of my bathroom ambiance out and cool it down, but my regular computer hasn’t been hooked up in months and I am using a tiny laptop loaner from work, which doesn’t have all the goodies on it that my desktop has.  Anyway, that was just a warning that the photos may be too bright, too yellow and not  accurate.

White Glitter Eye

MAC Glitter Reflects Pearl
I wanted to do something really frosty, like fairy ice queen, without resorting to blue eyeshadow. You can’t actually see how sparkly the white glitter is in this photo, it was rather vivid, like tiny diamonds on my eye.

How I did it:

Brows: I filled in my brows with the MAC Hodgepodge pencil, which is a taupe-brown lip pencil, but it works great with my new blonde haircolor. To comb my extremely sparse brow hairs into place, I used the Revlon clear brow gel.

Eyes: I primed my entire eyelid with the YSL Touche Nacree Pearly Touch pen.  I put a little dot of eyelash glue (Ardell) on the back of my hand, then sprinkled a little bit of the MAC Pro Glitter Reflects Pearl into it and mixed quickly with a small, flat concealer brush from Mark Cosmetics (synthetic hair brush works best) and applied the glitter to the bottom lid area. I added some of the loose glitter right on top of it to make sure there was plenty of coverage. Don’t be afraid to add a little more, but do it in very thin applications at a time. I took a hair dryer and on a cool setting, I dried the eyelash glue/glitter mixture. Your eyelids might seem to feel tight and a bit hard. Just keep blinking until it feels a little less stiff. I also feel that it helps to raise your eyebrows up and down to stretch the lids a little.

With the 219 MAC Pencil brush, I added a matte taupe-medium brown eyeshadow to the crease of my lid. This eyeshadow was from my Coastal Scents 88 eyeshadow palette. Since my brow bone was already highlighted with the YSL frosty pen, I moved into the eyeliner. I used my favorite MAC Chromaline gel eyeliner in Black Black.  I applied the gel liner to the lower waterline of my eyes and smudged it with the MAC 219 pencil brush, and had dipped it into a darker brown shadow from my palette to give it a smoky look. I finished off the eyes with the black Lancome Fatale mascara (triple comb wand).

MAC Reflects Pearl Glitter Look

Cheeks : You really can’t even see from the photo, but I used the Sephora brand Blush me Trio in Brun 12 (shown below) as a contour color, highlighter and a bronzer. I finished off the cheeks with Benefit Coralista Blush.
Sephora Blush Me Trio Brun 12

Lips: Simple. Just a gloss. I used Lancome Juicy Tubes in Miracle.

Foundation Used:  Maybelline SuperStay Foundation in Sand Beige, and  Maybelline Dream Matte Powder in Light 4-5.

Pink / Violet Quick Look

When your friend says she’s on her way over and you have like 15 minutes to do your makeup…it’s either time to panic or get out your quick kit. There is no physical “kit” put together, but it’s a way of saying.. no fancy blending or contouring, just high impact color in minutes. You basically need to say good-bye to any sort of hair-do.. just put it in a pony tail or bun with a cute headband, or put on a cute hat.

MAC Star Violet and Passionate Eyeshadow

Eyes: (Brows are exactly the same as the tutorial above) I primed my entire eyelid with the YSL Touche Nacree Pearly Touch pen, I also created a small dot in the inner corners of my eyes and blended with a light touch with my ring finger. I applied the crease color MAC Pro Passionate Matte eyeshadow color first, using the 218 MAC pencil brush, then blending quickly with the MAC 224 Tapered Blending brush.  I then applied the MAC Star Violet Veluxe Pearl eyeshadow on the bottom lid, then blending it up into the crease, very lightly, just to mute the crease color just a bit.

I used my favorite MAC Chromaline gel eyeliner in Black Black. I applied the gel liner to the lower waterline of my eyes and smudged it with the MAC 219 pencil brush, and had dipped it into a darker brown shadow from my palette to give it a smoky look. I finished off the eys with Maybelline XXL Volume mascara with the Maybelline Lash Stylist mascara V-comb wand.

MAC Star Violet with MAC Passionate eyeshadow

Cheeks: I threw on some quick blush, the MAC Mineralize Blush in Gentle (Raspberry with gold flecks).

Lips: MAC Lip Varnish in Pink Patina. The Lip Varnishes are lightweight, not sticky and sheer. You can’t find them anymore, but I have seen them on ebay.com.

MAC Lip Varnish Pink Patina

Sephora Inspiration Look

As my friend an I were passing Sephora, we noticed a cool picture of a tri-color eyeshadow look in the window, and I luckily found a picture of it online. Sephora.com says that the colors used are Sephora brand eyeshadows, but since I didn’t have those at home, I used similar colors.
Sephora Three Color Look

Eyes: I used the Benefit Cosmetics Lemon-Aid eyelid primer all over the entire lid. I then applied the Too Faced Silver Shadow to most of my eyelid, except for right under my brows. You can experiment around with different silver shadows, the one I used isn’t a shadow you can buy alone, it normally comes in various Too Faced kits. I feel like the one that I used wasn’t pigmented enough to get that high-intensity shine. If I do this look again, I will try a loose mineral shadow or pigment.

Sephora Eyeshadow Look

To test the pigment of my blue and purple shadow, I made a light application of each color: MAC Aquadisiac eyeshadow in the inner corner and up into the inner crease with the MAC 218 pencil brush.

MAC Aquadisiac Eyeshadow

The outer corner color could have been better, but I was pressed for time, so I used the Too Faced purple shadow from the same set that the silver eyeshadow came from, again, using the MAC 218 Pencil Brush.

Too Faced Eyeshadow

MAC Chromaline Gel Eyeliner

The eyeliner.. of course.. MAC Chromaline Gel Eyeliner in Black Black.

MAC Chromaline Gel Eyeliner

I continued to apply the eyeliner to the bottom waterline of my eyes. I cleaned off my MAC 218 pencil brush and used the MAC Aquadisiac and Too Faced Purple on the bottom under the lashline.

Sephora Eyeshadow Inpiration

I applied one coat of Mark Cosmetics Make it Big Plumping Mascara.The Sephora model was wearing false lashes, but I really didn’t feel like putting them on just to go out to a quick dinner downtown.

Tri-Color Eyeshadow Look

I touched up the purple shadow just a bit to try to deepen the color, but it wasn’t dark enough. This look came out less dramatic than I intended, but it seems like a nice introductory tutorial for someone new to using more than one or two colors of eyeshadow.

MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Porcelain Pink

Face: I applied a sheer wash of MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in Porcelain Pink to forehead, cheeks, bridge of nose and chin.

Sephora Inspiration Look

Lips: MAC Lip Varnish in Pink Patina.

It’s been a busy week, so although I sped things up a bit with these tutorials and tried to combine them, I hope you will be able to try these at home with no troubles. Just leave a comment if you have questions! Happy New Year, everyone! Happy New Decade!

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Happy Christmas – Happy Holidays!

Hey everyone,

Just wanted to let you know I am taking a little vacation, so I won’t be posting for maybe a week or so. If anything super exciting comes up, or if I get the itch to do some type of tutorial (New Year’s Eve makeup!?) I will def. post something up for ya!

Christmas shopping is almost done, still have a little bit more to do.. I wonder if I am going to get some of those cool Sephora gifts that I asked for?? My fiance saw my list and was like, “OH GOD.. more makeup???” I didn’t really ask for makeup! I asked for girly tools like the Clairisonic MIA skin brush and a gigantic makeup train case. We will see what happens. I got him everything HE wanted, so why can’t I get the same in return? EH??? We will see.

Krista Dior is blonde!

Merry Christmas.. yes, I am blonde with a bit of strawberry blonde going on. No more black left in my hair!

Makeup Shown: Maybelline Super Stay Foundation, MAC Hodgepodge pencil on brows, MAC White Glitter on eyes applied with eyelash glue, MAC Chromaline in Black Black eyeliner on inner rims, Lancome Miracle Juicy Tube Lipgloss (faded from pink to white over time), Lancome Fatale Mascara, Bare Minerals Blush.

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On November 9th, I celebrated my 33rd birthday! I received awesome gifts and even bought myself a gift for my aging skin. hahah!

Strivectin Holiday Gift Set

I remember when Strivectin came out in Macy’s stores where I was working at the time, and everyone was obsessed with StriVectin. The product was originally made and sold as a stretch mark cream, but some ladies that received samples of the product thought it was for their face and they saw awesome results. So now, StriVectin is being sold as both a stretch mark cream and face cream.

I purchased the StriVectin Holiday Gift set at Beauty.com for $99. I thought that was a pretty good bargain since I just wanted to try the products and not commit the the expensive full size bottles. Here’s what you get in the kit:

- StriVectin Neck Cream – StriVectin Neck Cream is the first and only StriVectin formula specifically developed for the sensitive neck area (including the decolletage). StriVectin Neck Cream dramatically reduces the appearance of “turkey neck”. . .lifting, shaping and refining as it produces a smoother, younger-looking contour.

- StriVectin-SD Intensive Concentrate for Existing Stretch Marks – Clinically Proven to Dramatically Reduce the Appearance of Existing Stretch Marks (prominent because of their length, depth, texture, and discoloration). Alters the Appearance of Tone and Texture. Significant, Corroborated Results Seen by 93% of Subjects Tested.

- StriVectin-SD Eye Cream – Helps reduce the appearance of fine lines, wrinkles, and dark circles around the eye. Includes additional soothing agents for the delicate skin around the eye. Same active formula as the original StriVectin-SD? without aromatic oils.

Nothing says Happy Birthday, you 33 year old like a bottle of wrinkle cream! Actually, I am loving everything so far. It seems like I am having minor breakouts, but not sure if it’s from this product. My skintone seems to be clearing up, as in, less red blotches and freckles, in just two days of using this product. The eye cream feels tingly, but the package says that is normal. I do feel like the puffiness is reduced after a few minutes. The neck cream is very moisturizing and although I have no issues with my neck (yet) I am going to continue to use this for preventative purposes!

If anyone has used StriVectin and either loved or hated it, leave a comment about your experiences!

Now on to the good stuff…

MAC Gold Glitter, MAC Sketch, MAC Star Violet


Brows

MAC Showstopper Matte shadow (Discontinued, but similar to Espresso) Used Brandon brand eye brow angled shaper brush. I applied Benefit High Brow under brow highlighter pencil BEFORE putting my brows on. It helps the brow powder go on smoother. See my brow tutorial : CLICK HERE


Eyes

I first applied Urban Decay Primer Potion in Nude (UDPP) to entire lid, except where the Benefit High Brow pencil was applied. I used my Mark. brand small, synthetic, rounded concealer brush to apply the MAC Chromaline Black Black Gel to the inner and outer sections of my eyes, only on the bottom lid area, leaving about a half inch blank space in the middle where the copper pigment eye shadow will go next.

I used what people sometimes call the “foiling” technique when applying loose pigment eye shadow. I washed off the above mentioned concealer brush and left it damp. I took a little bit of an old Benefit Cosmetics copper pigment, which looks exactly like the MAC Copper pigment, and applied that to the blank space I left on the bottom lid of my eyes. I used a patting motion to blend in the black edges from the black MAC liner gel. Very lightly! We are going to cover this area with gold glitter, so it doesn’t matter too much if it’s blended in perfectly.

My favorite part is putting the glitter on! (For more detailed info and pics, see my Glitter tutorial!) I used the MAC Gold Glitter, which is a Pro MAC product and can only be purchased at a MAC Pro store location (or ebay.com). Sometimes MAC comes out with limited edition glitter sets that include the gold glitter. You could even find glitter at a craft store, but make sure it’s not huge chunks! The MAC glitter I use is pretty fine. I use eyelash glue to apply the glitter to my lids. It works the best for me and doesn’t fall off while I am out dancing, partying, etc. I use the Ardell lash glue, which comes out of the tube white and dries clear. I made a small dot of glue on the back of my hand, then put a small amount of glitter next to it and mix them up. Using my clean synthetic concealer brush again, I apply the glue/glitter mixture over the top of the copper pigment. I did not put too much on, I wanted the copper pigment to show through just a little bit. I used a hair dryer on a low setting to dry the glitter and glue.

Next, it was time to start doing my crease shading and lining the eyes. I used MAC Sketch eyeshadow in the upper crease, using my NARS Angled Eye Shader brush to blend the crease. I dipped the brush into MAC Star Violet Eye shadow (brown/plum shimmer) and swept the color ever so slightly across that crease just to give it a touch of the shimmer from the shadow. I lined my eyes using the MAC Chromaline Black Black gel liner on top and bottom, then used the MAC 219 pencil brush to fill in the MAC Star Violet eye shadow under the lower lash line.

The mascara used was Lancome Fatale comb wand mascara in black.

MAC Gold Glitter with Sketch eyeshadow
MAC Showstopper on brows with MAC Star Violet on eyes
MAC smokey glitter eye with hot pink lipsPegasus pendant by Betsey Johnson.


Face and cheeks

For foundation, I used two different brands and formulas. I first filled in my pores and covered blotchy areas with Boots No7 Intelligent Balance Mousse Foundation, in Almond, which is a very thick mousse foundation that leaves your skin a bit dry when used alone. I applied a small amount all over of Maybelline Superstay 24Hr Makeup in Sand Beige. The only powder I used was a very light dusting of MAC Belightful Pressed Powder, which is a heavy shimmer powder, so I concentrated most of it on my cheek area. I applied MAC Pink Swoon blush. (Bright pink, doesn’t look like the picture on the MAC Pro site.)


Lips

This is sort of my signature lip look since I made it up and people keep emailing me about it! hahah! RAD! I used YSL Rouge Pur Lipstick #22 Pink Celebration (Cotton candy pink), over the top of MAC Pinkie Pro lip liner. On top, a coat of MAC Lip Varnish in Polish Me Pink. (Discontinued, neon pink sheer lip gloss)

MAC Gold Glitter & Neon Lip Look


Hair

I used a huge barrel curling iron (1.5 or 2 inch, I don’t know!) to curl my entire huge head of hair. It took about 20 minutes total. People ask me how I swoop my bangs and it’s SO easy I could die. Instead of curling my bangs under with the curling iron, I curl them up towards the back of my head. First, I spray a very light mist of hairspray that has a light hold. I part my bangs to the side, combing them through to make sure all knots and kinks are out. Holding my bangs straight out in front of me, I curl the bangs up towards the back of my head and hold for about 5 seconds. I let the curl cool off before combing it out. Once it’s cooled off, I start combing downwards and hand-styling them with a little hairspray sprayed on my fingers. I spray everything with a mist and then go!

I had an excellent birthday week, starting off with a great dinner at the Rainforest Cafe in San Francisco. I got some awesome gifts.. check it out!

My fiance gave me an iPod Classic, which holds 40,000 songs. Amazing! Why doesn’t everyone have this??

My mom got me the most comfortable pair of red Cole Haan shoes. They are patent leather red Mary Jane type athletic shoes. I think they are the most comfortable shoes I’ve ever put on my feet.

Coach GRAMERCY EMBOSSED ACCORDIAN ZIP-AROUND WALLET

This is the Coach Gramercy embossed accordian zip-around wallet, given to me by my lovely close friend who obviously has great gift-giving taste.

Too Faced World DominationToo Faced World Domination Beauty Collection

Now this is what I call a deluxe makeup gift! My awesome friend knows exactly the way to my heart.. makeup and cuteness! This adorable box set by Too Faced cosmetics, “World Domination”, is too freaking amazing. There are eye shadows on top with powder liners and brow filelrs, lip palette on the bottom and bronzer and blushes that pop out on the side of the box. Not to mention.. it’s a music box! Needless to say, it was one of the best birthday’s ever.

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Dita Von Teese

I am doing this for a friend who requested a pin-up girl look for Halloween, I know she likes Dita Von Teese, so I chose that look for her (I might do another one if I have time this weekend) since it’s really simple to do and you can get dramatic results pretty easily.

Maybelline Superstay 24Hr Makeup in Sand Beige

I decided to try my new foundation, Maybelline Superstay 24Hr Makeup in Sand Beige. This color is pretty pale considering the name “Sand Beige” ($9.99). I really love the consistency of this foundation and it goes on beautifully. I am basically comparing this to Revlon Colorstay, which is probably what this product is trying to compete with. I will say that this foundation is good, but it is not great. I still haven’t given it enough of a chance to see if it will break me out or if it “outlasts” Colorstay. I am pleased with the color match because it is not too yellow like the other foundations I have been using.

Maybelline Superstay Foundation

Super EMO in that pic?? Anyway, yeah, as you can see I am tired and wishing I could sleep, my eyes look like crap… but the coverage of that foundation ROCKS. If you want to go for that super pale Dita complexion, you might need the lightest foundation in this line, perhaps Porcelain Ivory and adding a white powder or cornstarch powder.

Bare Escentuals Natural Light Powder

I wanted to add a nice glow to my skin, so I chose Bare Escentuals Natural Light Highlighting Duo. You can use any type of shimmer powder product that goes with your skin tone. Don’t use too much or you will end up looking oily and greasy! Just a bit on the cheek bones, forehead, bridge of nose and chin.

The next part, which was the trickiest part for me, was matching the eyebrow shape:

Dita Von Teese Makeup Tutorial

Her brows are definitely filled in, as you can see in the pic that I posted of her. Her brows seem to float on top of her natural brow so she can get that high arch. What I did was the same technique as I normally do on my brows (click here for that tutorial) but I added a little bit of a rounded dip in the front bottom part of my brow and a pointier triangle arch. I also stopped the tail end of my brow in alignment with the end of the corner of my eye.  I will admit, I used a few spit-soaked q-tips to refine and shape my brow as my hands were not in the surgical precision kind of mood. The arch is somewhat hard to match on both sides, but with some practice, you will be able to master these. I suggest that you practice your brows ahead of time so you aren’t struggling on Halloween to get these right.

If you have thick brows or brows that you would rather cover up first, (do not attempt to shave off your brows!)  there is an amazing tutorial on YouTube featuring a glue stick, concealer and painting on your brows. Click here for a tutorial on how to conceal your brows so you can draw them back on however you wish!

Revlon Eyebrow Clear Gel

I used a bit of Revlon eyebrow gel in clear to comb and set my brows. I brushed them upwards and then to the sides to keep the hairs in place. It also helps keep your brow powder or paint on. I also suggest if you are going out to a party or dancing, to use some makeup sealant, I use Irene Gari Lipstick Sealer to waterproof my makeup. (Click this link to go to the Irene Gari product page, there is also an eyebrow gel available! Reasonable prices!) You may also try Benefit Cosmetics She-Laq if you don’t mind spending $30. The product lasts years, but there are still cheaper makeup sealers out there.

MAC Brule Matte Eyeshadow
MAC Brule Satin Eyeshadow

Next, I applied MAC Brule satin finish eyeshadow over the top of an eyeshadow primer, like Urban Decay Primer Potion. The eyeshadow should be lighter than your skintone and a matte (no shimmer) finish. It gives you a really clean and sophisticated look when paired with the heavy black liner that will go on next!

Below my brow bone, I used Benefit Cosmetics High Brow highlighter pencil, you can also use any matte white or off-white highlighting shadow which is lighter than the shadow you used on your bottom lid. I also used the High Brow pencil to brighten my under eye area by dotting on a few spots of the product and blending it in with a very thin eye cream. (I used Benefit Cosmetics Ooh La Lift eye brightening and tightening product)

MAC Chromaline in Black Black

Next you want to get out the big guns.. the eyeliner. I prefer to use either a gel / cream or liquid liner for this look. I do not use pencil on my upper lid because I just can’t get it precise enough. For this tutorial, I used the new MAC Chromaline gel liner in Black Black. You want this liner to be matte and not shimmery. It can be shiny if you wish, but I prefer the matte look for this pin-up girl style. I also saw that Wet ‘N Wild has a new creme liner and I haven’t tried it yet, but if you are on a budget, I’d say give it a try. I used the Benefit Cosmetics Bent eyeliner brush. The hairs on this brush are stiff enough to pick up and apply enough product.

MAC Chromaline Black Black

I started from the inner corner of my eye, applying pressure paint the gel liner across my lid, as close to my lash line as possible. I stopped once I got to the end of my eye. If the line isn’t thick enough, don’t worry, you can build up the line, but if you think it’s too much, you may have to use a makeup remover cloth to remove it all. Oops! Start small and build your way up to the line thickness you desire.

MAC Chromaline Black Black

Next you are going to apply your winged tip to the end of your line. This takes MUCH practice if you have never attempted to do this before. I started off with a small wing and built it up to a thicker wing.

MAC Chromaline Black Black

MAC Chromaline in Black Black with Maybelline Lash Stylist Mascara

I decided to speed the tutorial up a bit since my camera was running out of battery power, and I have NO idea where the plug is to charge it. Oops. So anyway, I kept building up my eyeliner, since if you notice, Dita’s eyeliner looks like it covers her entire eye. It probably is not, but it is a very thick line. I applied a thick and full coat of mascara, which was the Maybelline Lash Stylist mascara comb(discontinued) mixed with Maybelline XXL Volume and Length mascara, which is a very black mascara, which is what you want. I really do recommend fake lashes for this look, but I was running out of time. I highly recommend these lashes: Ardell Accent Lashes #305.

Ardell Accent Lashes 305

These are corner lashes that give you a gorgeous winged out look. I loooove these lashes so much and will not use anything else. I also love the MAC Hello Kitty lashes, but those were a limited edition product and more expensive than the Ardell version. I also applied my fake beauty mark to the side of my eye, directly in line with the tip of my eyebrow.

MAC Cosmetics Chromaline Black BlackMAC Cosmetics Chromaline Black Black Gel LinerMAC Chromaline Black Black and Maybelline XXL Volume Mascara

To polish off my eye look, I applied Benefit Cosmetics Mr. Frosty shimmering white eye pencil to the waterline (bottom inner rim) of my eye as well as under my lash line. You can use any type of white eyeliner for this look, I also recommend the Paladio’s white pencil which you can find at CVS pharmacy and Long’s Drugs. Click here for more info. I also applied a very thin and precise coat of mascara to my bottom lashes.

MAC Frankly Scarlette BlushMAC Frankly Scarlette Matte Blush

Next, I used a bit of MAC Frankly Scarlette matte blush, which is a vivid red rose, more on the pink side. I used a very light application since this blush is heavily pigmented.

Benefit Cosmetics Gypsy Liner and Elizabeth Arden Red 01 Lip Liner

The lips are the second hardest part of this tutorial. It took me a while to get the liner just right. I am not used to wearing lip liner, so it was a bit tricky at first. I used two different shades of lipliner because I wanted the darker outline. I used Benefit Cosmetics Gypsy lip liner as the darker outline color (which for some idiotic reason is discontinued) which is a darker brick red / brown shade, and Elizabeth Arden Red 01 lip pencil as the brighter inner shading color.

Benefit Cosmetics Gypsy and Elizabeth Arden Red 01
Benefit Cosmetics Gypsy lip liner and Elizabeth Arden Red 01Benefit Gypsy Lip Liner and Elizabeth Arden Red 01 and MAC Russian Red Tinted Lip Glass

For the finishing touches, I applied the infamous MAC Russian Red Tinted Lipglass.

I did not bother doing my hair since I spent all day dying and toning it (with an amazing hair dye that I will review soon) so here is just the finished face for you:

Dita Von Teese Makeup TutorialDita Von Teese Makeup TutorialDita Von Teese Makeup Tutorial

Did I miss anything?? I am exhausted. Two tutorials in one day!?!? Ughh. My camera is dead, I am dead. I can’t do another tutorial until I find that damned power cord. =( Love you guys, hope you enjoyed this. Happy Halloween!

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I feel like I am going to die. This week has been exhausting and I am so glad I can finally sleep a little bit tomorrow. I won’t go into much detail, but I’ve been wearing my goWear fit device on my arm (as seen on the Biggest Loser) and burning calories like crazy. If I see that I haven’t burned enough calories for the day, I start jogging in place, or dancing in the living room, needless to say I lost three pounds in a week. I am even closer to my Megan Fox dream body goal. LOL..I’m nuts! Anyway.. on to the makeup…

So, I tried a couple new products this week, spent some money, you know how it goes.

MAC Chromaline Makeup

I tried the following products:

MAC Full Coverage Foundation in NW20: WOW.. thick and creamy. It was a perfect match for my skintone, but it was a really heavy makeup that never really dried fully on my skin. It does have a matte look, but it tends to get a little greasy. I see this as being good for photographs and events where you aren’t dancing or sweating.. maybe even stage makeup with a good setting powder. I did use powder, but I think I need to use something like plain Cornstarch to set this makeup with. I will continue to try this and update with another review.

MAC Pro Pan Blackberry and Star Violet Eyeshadow

Eyeshadow Pro Palette Refills
: Blackberry(pictured on bottom) and Star Violet. Awesome colors. I haven’t tried Blackberry yet, but Star Violet ROCKS. The last time I tried to purchase it, it was out of stock, so I am glad I got it this time.

Here is a quick tutorial on my eyebrows (again). I get a lot of people asking me how I do my brows without a stencil and so here it is in more detail:

I think of my brows as a series of connecting straight or slightly curved lines. In the picture above, I made my starting point line on the bottom of my brow first. I use a slanted eyebrow brush (made by Brandon) and a matte powder shadow from MAC (shades vary from time to time, depending on my hair color).

I start the second part of the lines on the top as shown, connecting it with the bottom line at the highest point of my natural brow line.

I fill in that middle area lightly, using upward strokes with my slanted brow brush.

The next and last line is the end of the brow. I press down with my slanted brush to start the line going in the direction I want, then in short quick strokes, work my way down. If you go too far, you can use a q-tip to clean up or shorten the length of your brow. If you see long brow hairs that you want to trim, I normally comb the hairs downwards then cut them.

My arched eyebrow

Finished product ! I no longer need the help of stencils or pencils.. just two products and I am done.

NEXT.. the Chromaline tutorial!

Chromaline Process Magenta

This lovely product is a gel liner and is available in really bright and lovely colors! From the MAC Process Colour collection, I bought Process Magenta and Black Black Chromaline gel products. I used a thin and flat eyeshadow brush to apply the Chromaline and it seemed to work well and wash off the brush very well. The product itself is very easy to apply and blend. It takes a little while to dry, but once it does, it’s waterproof. Creamy and smooth, this is great stuff for applying under eyeshadows as an eyeliner or to use alone.

MAC Chromaline Process Magenta
MAC Chromaline Process Magenta and Black Black

Here is Process Magenta with Black Black.

MAC Process Colour Collection

Here is Process Magenta with my new MAC Star Violet shadow blended over the crease with Benefit Cosmetics High Brow pencil on the brow bone.

I didn’t have time to apply mascara, but hopefully you get the idea.

Paint Stick Process Magenta and Maybelline ColorSensational Lipcolor, Make Me Pink

I finally got that lipstick I saw in the Christy Turlington Maybelline ad! It’s called: Maybelline ColorSensational Lipcolor, Make Me Pink The swatch of it is on the top. I tried it on my lips and although it did smell like Playdough, I loved the color. It’s a cute baby Barbie pink! Also, it’s pretty moisturizing. Below that swatch is the MAC Process Magenta Paint Stick. I haven’t tried this on my face just yet, but I plan on using it as a blush and lip color. (Subscribe to this blog to see what I end up doing with the Paint Stick! Click on “Subscribe” button on the upper left column)

UP NEXT.. Dita Von Teese pin-up girl makeup tutorial… for a friend who has a Halloween request!

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It’s been a tough month for me so far, I haven’t had time to do anything fun! So, here is what’s in the works for the next few weeks:

I am going to scour the web for new product launches: Fall and Winter looks for 2009. NARS, MAC, you name it, I am going to find out what’s new.

Tutorials! Halloween is coming, I know, but I am not going to slap on a pound of green zombie makeup.. I promised my friend that I’d do a pin-up girl look, so I plan on doing at least that. I am thinking about doing three different styles, one with another Megan Fox look (at the Jennifer’s Body premiere), one with a sultry red lipstick look, and a dark sort of vampy pin-up style. AND please, don’t be Lady GaGa for Halloween. That’s just lame. (Sorry, I had to.)

I am also going to do reviews for the following products:

Clairol Nice N Easy Perfect 10 Permanent Hair color: Dark Brown 004:
Clairol Nice 'n Easy Perfect 10 Permanent Haircolor, Dark Brown 004

Maybelline ColorSensational Lip color : Make Me Pink (I finally got it!!)
Maybelline ColorSensational Lipcolor, Make Me Pink

Maybelline Superstay 24 Hour Makeup : Sand Beige – I tried a sample of it on my hand and LOVED it. I ordered and I am now waiting!
Maybelline Superstay 24Hr Makeup, Sand Beige

Stay tuned!!!

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While I am still pooing my pants about the previous blog’s Gucci sunglasses.. I decided to post a little bit about what I am using and loving right now that are NOT designer or fancy brands.

Turquoise Blue Eye Shadow

Turquoise Blue Eyeshadow

I really, really do regret not writing down what I used here because I have the slightest idea.. ugh. I can remember a few things!

Let’s start off with my new cleanser. I was using the Dr. Perricone Anti-Aging face wash that was costing me $40 per month. I was pretty sick of spending that much on just a gel cleanser, so I found this little gem that is actually working much better that Dr. What’s His Face:

Basis Cleaner Clean Face Wash

This is a 6 oz. product called Basis Cleaner Clean Face Wash. With ingredients such as gentle botanicals, such as mint, lemongrass, and chamomile, you can’t go wrong at $5.49!!! I haven’t turned back to anything else since using this cleanser. It smells great, feels really refreshing, and takes off ALL of my makeup without a trace left behind. This is an oil-free and soap free cleanser. I absolutely love it.

I was also becoming a little broke thanks to the slew of $40 foundations I purchased at Sephora, with none of them being that impressive. I heard something on TV about Sharon Osbourne using Boots brand products, and I did see the line of products featured at Target, so I had to give it a try! I only purchased the 1 oz. jar of Boots No7 Intelligent Balance Mousse Foundation in Almond for $13.99.

Boots No7 Intelligent Balance Mousse Foundation Almond

The foundation comes with a clear scooper stick type thing and I use it to apply the makeup. This is going to sound weird but I use the “spatula” to fill in my pores like you would if you were filling a hole in the wall. I am not even sure if you are supposed to do that, but it’s working for me! This foundation is the best thing I’ve found since the old Revlon Colorstay foundation (original formula). I am so happy with it that I pray it will not be discontinued. The foundation doubles as a mattifier, pore reducer and long-wear foundation. As you can see in the pictures, it does a pretty good job at covering imperfections such as freckles and an uneven skintone. The almond color was a bit dark for me, so I lightened it up with my Diorskin Nude Natural Glow Fresh Powder Makeup SPF 10 in Ivory.

I started working on my eyes next:

I drew a fat line of Benefit Cosmetics High Brow under my eyebrow and blended it to create that bright highlight. I then filled in my brows with whatever MAC matte brown eye shadow I had around and of course sealed them with my Irene Gari sealer, which seals more than just lipstick. I put on a nice coat of Urban Decay Primer Potion , put on my medical tape (see method here) and started patting the matte blue shadow on with a flat, natural hair eyeshadow brush. The eyeshadow color was from my Coastal Scents 88 color eyeshadow palette. (They are on sale right now for $18.95!) The color I used is in the second to last row from the bottom, 5th one over, right above that cobalt blue color.

For the crease, I carefully brushed on with a MAC pencil brush , a black matte shadow from MAC.. I really can’t remember which one at this point, but it was most likely “Carbon”. I then took my MAC tapered blending brush, and blended on some MAC Sketch (a dark burgundy brown) eyeshadow to blend the black in better.

I then used my favorite liner, Maybelline Line Works Ultra Ultra-Liner Liquid, which dries shiny. I used one coat of Maybelline Lash Stylist and my NEW favorite outer corner lashes, Ardell Accent Lashes, Black #305. These lashes are AMAZING for the price of $3.49. WOW. I love these and have worn them over 5 times without ruining them.

Ardell Accent Lashes 305

On my lower lash line, I used Urban Decay 24/7 gel pencil liner in Electric. I smudged a bit of the MAC matte black shadow and Sketch together right underneath my lash line using that MAC pencil brush I mentioned earlier. I threw on one coat of Maybelline Lash Stylist.

For the cheeks, I think I used a Bare Escentuals mineral blush, but I can’t be too certain of which shade it was. I have really, really old blush that I still use from there and it’s most likely discontinued. I did use my compact Sugar Bronzer, which I have also had for quite a while. I only see the loose powder version of it on Sephora and have never tried it.

I hate to say this again.. I have NO clue as to what lipstick and gloss I am wearing. Not a clue. Although it does look like MAC’s limited edition lipstick Naturally Eccentric ( from years ago ) , which was a white nude color. I may have dug that one up and used it with a clear gloss.

So now that you know what new products I’ve been loving.. I have a NEW shipment coming this week. I normally try things for about a month before posting a review because I want to give the product a chance to suck or to be awesome. Here is what is coming in the mail:

  • Barbie Loves StilaSmudge Pot, Black : I am running out of my Bobbi Brown cream liner, so I decided to give these a shot. PLUS.. it’s Barbie!
  • Barbie Loves Stila Smudgepot

  • Revlon Colorstay MineralFoundation, 030 Light : I want to compare this to my DiorSkin Nude powder
    Revlon Colorstay MineralFoundation
  • Maybelline ColorSensationalLipcolor, Pink Wink 105 & Maybelline ColorSensationalLipcolor, Madison Mauve 465 : I saw an ad for these new lipsticks in a magazine, they looked really good on Christy Turlington!
  • CoverGirl LashBlast LengthMascara, Very Black : There’s been such a huge buzz about this new mascara, they were even taking pre-orders for it. I just HAVE to see what the hell is going on with this.
  • Revlon ColorStay Mineral MousseMakeup, Light Medium : This is something new! I saw an ad for this with Halle Berry and it looked seriously cool.
    Revlon ColorStay mineral Mousse
    Keep this blog bookmarked to hear what I have to say about those products!!!!

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