This is Halloween! Sally the Rag Doll

I love Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas. This year I couldn't decide who to be for Halloween so I tried several looks. This one turned out a little bluer than Sally was in the movie but I loved it anyway. Here is the look. Hope you enjoy!

Halloween Looks

I have much to post since I have been buying and doing a lot with my makeup in the last month but before I do all of that I am posting my Halloween looks for 2009!

Here is the first! I am a Circus Ringmaster!






I used for this look:

FACE
Make Up For Ever Face Primer
NYX foundation in Pale and Ivory
Translucent Powder from NYC
Silica Powder from Coastal Scents

EYES
Red and Black from Make Up For Ever Flash Palette for color base
Red Shadow from 120 Pro Palette to set red base
Oil Slick Black Shadow from Urban Decay
MAC Black Track Fluid line
Some no name False Lashes from Ebay
Milk eye pencil from NYX
Black Mascara from Rimmel

LIPS
Red Lipstick from NYX

Top Hat from Spirit
Wig from Ebay

More looks to come!

I got my Goth Card back!

This is a post that I wrote two months ago but forgot to publish. Sorry for the delay.






Style Black is Here! This is the first MAC Collection all year that I had such a long list of must haves. There were hits and misses but overall I was happy and very nostalgic when trying these products. It took me back to 1987 when I was in 10th grade. Bauhaus, The Cure, Siouxie and the Banshees & Love and Rockets were on my walkman (ha! cassettes) and almost everything in my closet was black.

I thought I had outgrown that part of my teen-age past but as I walked into MAC I felt like I had been reissued my Goth card.

HIT!
Mineralized Eyeshadows in Young Punk and Blue Flame $19.50 each. I swatched and shopped. The colors of both are spectacular and totally are a match to the PearlGlide eyeliners in Rave and Fly-By-Blu. If you loved the liners then you have to have the shadows.

MISS!
Mineralized Eyeshadows in Cinderfella and Gilt By Association.
I was dissapointed in both of these shadows. I went into the store thinking I wanted to buy them but they did not swatch well on me. Also, they were just, "meh" when I looked at them. Nothing really was that special about either color.

I wore Young Punk on Friday and I got compliments on it. I used black track fluid line underneath and I foiled the shadow on with Fix +. It stayed on from 6am to 11pm. I was pretty happy about it. I did not have to retouch at all, all day. I also used the Rave Pearlglide eyeliner and it is a perfect match for the shadow.

I wore the Blue Flame on Saturday and I used a Kryolan blue color as the base. I still had to foil it on my lower lid and then buffed it on dry in my crease to create a smokey eye. I also used the Fly-by-Blu Pearlglide eyeliner to both tightline and do my waterline. It is also a perfect match for the shadow. I added false lashes for drama and I have to say - my eyes looked HOT!

One thing I don't like is you have to be careful to find the right blush to wear when using these shadows. Anything to overpowering and you can look like a clown real fast. I love using really bright blushes so I am having to tone things down. Same thing with my lips. I tried to wear Young Punk with a Black Lip on Friday and I looked too harsh. I looked better with a lighter lip.

Overall I like both shadows I bought. I would highly recommend buying the two Pearlglide eyeliners to match both shadows from this summer's earlier collection. They are both still available on MAC's website.

I went back on Friday (after picking up my 1st style black purchases on Thursday) and my store only had 3 of the Black Knight Creme Sheen Lipsticks left so I felt I had to buy one. I guess they sold really fast or maybe they did not get too many in.

Also, I love the Black Ash Mask! I have the defoliator too and it is ok but I love the mask!

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I got Nailed and I am LOVING it!

I used to be very into having my nails done. It was like therapy for me to go weekly to have my polish changed and fills done. I never experimented with color because I thought the classic french manicure was so pretty and girly that I just stayed satisfied wearing the same airbrushed nails week in and week out. Then when pink and white acrylic came along I only had to wear clear polish on my nails and they looked like they had a fresh french manicure. Pretty boring, right?

Well, even before the recession really hit American's hard I eliminated my weekly nail routine out of the budget because I was working from home. No one was getting to see my nails but my son and my cat so it seemed like I should save that money. Well I have found a reason to start doing my nails again.

I won a contest from the June Issue of Allure magazine. When my prize came in the mail I did not recognize the brand at first so I did a little internet research and read up on Deborah Lippmann and her nail polishes. Her line is carried in Nordstroms, Nieman Marcus, on Beauty.com and also her own web site store. Her polishes are normally $16 each and she has a celebrity clinetele list that boasts the likes of Mariah Carey, Cher, Renee Zellweger, and Sarah Jessica Parker. Now, I am not sure about you, but those ladies are some of the most beautiful women I can even think to name. What I also find interesting is that they have very different styles and fashion sensibilities. What that immediately told me was that Deborah has created products that appeal to a diverse cross section of women from a varying age range.

I was intrigued. I opened the package to examine my prize. The Lippmann Collection Celebrate honors the 10th Anniversary of Deborah's line and let me tell you it delivers. To start, the packaging is a very nice box that has a message from Deborah printed just inside when you remove the lid that reads "With your enduring support over the last ten years, Lippmann Collection has grown to become a voice in fashion, setting the trends. To thank you for a decade of loyalty, I created this trio - Celebrate. - Deborah"

When you slide out the insert that is nestling your trio of polishes, notice the detail that the jacket has been given. It was printed with the same spot varnish treatment that is on the box lid and it gives the illusion of confetti being thrown at a party. Nicely done. Bravo on the packaging!

The first color that I tried of the three is called Ruby Red Slippers. The description on the box reads "Dorothy's shimmering ruby (glitter)." Actually, the glitter in this polish is so much better than Dorothy's shoes. The reason why is the Ruby Slippers looked like they had been sprinkled with craft glitter. Everyone knows that square shapped glitter that I am talking about, right? What this polish has that Dorothy's shoes didn't is a variation in glitter size and shape that adds depth and dimension to the polish. When I swiped the polish on the first time I thought that it was a little less glittery that I expected. I swiped the brush across for a second coat and everything changed. Instantly you can see the effect of why it was important to have the varying sizes of glitter. I painted my whole hand and waited. I couldn't decide if I should finish the other one with the same color or open a second bottle!

The other two shades that are in the trio are Superstar - show stopping copper flecked fudge (glitter) and Funky Chunky - sequined sheer black (glitter). Like I mentioned $16 per bottle is the normal charge for the Lippmann Collection but this special trio is priced on the web site for $35. Even at $35 this was an incredible prize for me to win. I am really so happy and so thankful to Deborah I am going to hand write and send her a personal thank you note because I am just thrilled! This is not something that I would have normally gone out and purchased for myself. Now, not only and I thrilled with using it I am going to work on converting everyone I know over to these polishes.

FYI - I noticed that this trio is currently sold out on lippmanncollection.com but it is available at Nordstrom's for the same price. Must have been because of all the press it is getting!

Victoria Secret Haul - Who knew they did more than panties?

Maybe I live on another planet. I had no idea that Victoria Secret sold makeup. I don't buy their bras, I never shop online with them, I don't get their catalog and the one store that I do go in at Christmas time to buy lotions as stocking stuffers doesn't carry makeup. I was reading another blog and saw that Victoria Secret had a makeup line out right now that is inspired by Christian Siriano's fall collection. If you are not sure who he is, Christian was the winner of Project Runway Season 4. Two of the products got me to do some googling and after a few phone calls I found a store that had the makeup line here in my town. I went shopping on Saturday and was really surprised at what I found.

Victoria Secret has a really awesome line of shadows simply titled "VS." Two of the shadows from their VS line that I fell in love with are 24 kt. and Fierce. I guess others love those two as well because they were sold out of both. Instead I consoled myself with buying VS Taboo($10), which is a sparkly purple color. It has an iridescence that is irresistible and a glitter that reminds me of Urban Decay's Midnight Cowboy. To go with this silky soft new shadow I picked up a darker color purple of the Beauty Rush line of wet/dry shadows in "Plum Crazy"($6).
After picking out 4 more of the Beauty Rush wet/dry shadows (come on, they were on sale buy 5 for $20) I remembered why I had gone to the store in the first place. I swatched the Christian Siriano products. While I did not buy any of the shadows (the color payoff was better in the normal line) I did pick up the Kajal Eye Liner. Victoria Secret's web site really describes it best: "Sumptuous, creamy, pigment-rich kohl liner, inspired by an ancient Egyptian beauty ritual, glides on for the ultimate smudged, smoky effect." They did not lie. It is by far the smoothest liner I have every purchased and the point is amazing. It is limited edition so get yours while they last, at $12 each they are sure to sell out.

Make Up For Ever vs. Kryolan

I have been lusting after the Make Up For Ever Flash Color Palette for a long time now. I have not been able to justify purchasing one for $95 from Sephora but it is on my Christmas list to Santa this year. So I am waiting on what I think may be a pretty good substitute. Kryolan's theatrical makeup palette in FP1. I bought mine on ebay from an authorized reseller for $28 plus shipping and handling.Lets compare the colors in both. Make Up For Ever:
Gold 004 (metallic gold), Coral 002 (vibrant coral), Turquoise 000 (light turquoise), Fuchsia 005 (bright fuchsia pink), Yellow 013 (vibrant yellow), Brown 023 (dark brown), Silver 003 (metallic silver), White 010 (pure white), Red 017 (bright red), Bright Blue 014 (bright royal blue), Leaf Green 008 (bright green), and Black 011 (pure black).

Kryolan:
White - 070, Orange - 288, Yellow - 509, Hot Pink - R21, Blue - Blau 10, Iris - R27, Teal - TK2, Green - Gr42, Orange/Red - 079, Red - 081, Black - 071, Gold -metallic gold.

The main difference I see is that with the Kryolan I don't get a silver or brown. Although I can mix the colors to make brown, so I am only really out the silver and I get to save a bunch of money.

My Kryolan palette is on it's way so as soon as it is here and I get to try it I will follow up with more details. I am not taking the Make Up For Ever off my Christmas List just yet. :-)

YouTube Contest Entries

One of my favorite things to do on Sunday is to play with makeup. And what better to do then come up with new looks and enter them in YouTube contests. This month I have entered a few and here are some pics of the looks that I have come up with. Enjoy!

Bloom is Bloomin Gorgeous!

I bought my first Bloom eye shadow this week. I was looking for a metallic green shadow and after browsing Smashbox, Urban Decay, Too Faced and Cargo I was just about ready to leave the store. Then I found this soft, silky smooth, shimmery green shadow that got me excited. It was Bloom's shadow in "Moss." I had not tried any of Bloom's products before and I think it is because they are hidden in the back row at Ulta. You hear that Bloom - you need to work on your product placement. We can't buy you if we can't find you!

I hurried home and took a handful of bases and swatched this fabulous new green to see what it could do once you gave it something to hang on to. I am happy to report the color just got better and better!

I did notice that not all of the Bloom shadows have this same silky smooth soft feel to them when I was in the store swatching them but they are worth checking out.

The price was $16 retail at Ulta which is much cheaper than the Bloom web site which offers the same shadow for $24.

LA Colors $1.50!!! Steal of the Week.

I picked up a few new L.A. Colors shadows this weekend in a surprising place. I was in my local Dollar General to buy cleaning supplies when I walked down the cosmetics aisle and these beautiful 5 color eyeshadow palettes caught my eye. At $1.50 each I had to stop. What I love about these three palettes is that they are all metallic. I love metallic sheen in eyeshadows. I know a lot of makeup artists love matte shadows but I am all about the shimmer and sheen.

When I swatched these they had amazing color payoff. I am still testing them out so I will have to give a more detailed review later but so far for $1.50 I really think these shadows are the buy of the week for me.

One thing though, be sure to use a base to keep these colors on all day. I did notice that although the colors are awesome the shadow on it's own doesn't have staying power. These would be great shadows for those who are just trying out using more color.

I purchased:

1. Tease (Picture at top of post)
2. Wine and Rose
3. Unforgettable