Author: Carina

Quickie: Eye of Horus Natural Mascara*

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A few months ago, I was sent the Eye of Horus Natural Mascara by Glamour Box, via Paoie. It was my first chance to try the brand and I was pretty excited as I had read many good things about it online. Product Description: “If you’re after perfect natural mascara that won’t run, smudge or clump, Eye of Horus natural mascara is exactly what you are looking for. Formulated in the style of the ancient Egyptians, Eye of Horus mascara uses natural, non-irritating ingredients. Ideal for sensitive eyes and Eye of Horus Mascara strengthens and lengthens for ultimate Goddess lashes. Being formulated with nourishing waxes, removal is easy with a cloth warmed with water as the heat melts the waxes, cleaning lashes, making it gentle on the eyes.” What sets Eye of Horus apart from the usual makeup brands is its philosophy. Their products are based on traditional Egyptian beauty secrets, and they are all-natural, and cruelty-free. In fact, they advertise that their mascara can be removed using only warm water, because it’s basically made …

Shiro Cosmetics Pre-Ban Haulage & Semi-Reviews

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I was telling fairytalesandcoffee about the unfortunate way my shopping seems to creep up on me. Not long after I banned myself from buying any more makeup, it started raining makeup because all of the other items I ordered prior to shunning (new) makeup purchases from my life started arriving. This haul from Shiro Cosmetics, which I luuuuv. Anyway, this is what I ended up getting. Read what I got during my first order here. They come in three sizes, full-sized pots, mini pots, and sample baggies. The full-sized ones come with stickers at the top. I bought 4 (I forgot to photograph 1), they’re lined up on the first column: It’s Gonna Be MAY! (LOL), Nestyr, and TARDIS (!). The mini pot I got is a pink shadow called Wildflowers, and it was from the Hunger Games Collection. The four little clam pots are lip products called Intertubes, L-R: Why Not Zoidberg?, Nyan Cat, Team Buffy, and Sad Keanu. I got four sample baggies, too. It’s Gonna Be MAY! and Nestyr look a lot …

Blush Crush: Get the Perfect Pink with Tom Ford’s Cheek Color in Wicked

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Oh, Tom Ford. Le sigh. I was suckered into purchasing a lipstick and a blush at some point in the last few months, and I honestly do not know what possessed me to give in. JK, it was the pretties. It’s not that Tom Ford makes bad cosmetics… Because they are good products. It’s that they are freaking expensive. And I don’t know if they are good enough to warrant the price. But anyway. I caved and this is what happened with the blush. I got the Tom Ford Cheek Color in a shade called Wicked, because it looked vaguely purple to me. It turned out to be veeery pink. On the left is a heavy swatch, on the right is something more diffused. And here it is on my cheeks! I applied it a little on the apples, with most of the concentration on the outer parts of my cheeks. I know that that placement is debatable, but I find that it is more flattering to my face shape. Anyway, the pigmentation is alright. …

Nosy Beauty Vol. 1: Isabel

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Funny story, I’d been working on this new series where I kind of poke around other people’s makeup bags for a while now, when I see this post by Romila Marie of Run Barbie Run, where she posts about her sister’s makeup bag. Take a look at her sister’s picks! For my own edition/version, which I am calling Nosy Beauty, I asked my sister, Isabel, to indulge me and she did! Here’s the stuff I’ve dug up. Isabel is about a year and a half younger than I am and we’ve shared a room ever since I could remember. She also likes drawing and art, but she took up European Studies with a minor in German Studies and Marketing at University. She blogs over here. Isabel, or Beng, grew up with bad breakouts and really severe asthma, which caused her undereye area to get really dark. She actually wore makeup regularly earlier than I did, but really focused on perfecting her base. She uses the shu uemura Nobara Cream Cover Stick and the shu uemura …

MAC Starter Kit (Colors & Tools) by Laura

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If you’ve been reading my blog for a while now, you’ll know that I hauled a major haul from MAC a few months ago, with the help of my friend from Canada-land, Laura. One of the reasons why it took me this long to accumulate MAC items is because I would get so overwhelmed at the counters. Another reason is because the MAC salespeople are tres unfriendly. Heh, just kidding. Kind of. Anyway! Kind, beautiful Laura suggested some colors for me to try. I asked her if it would be okay to post her suggestions on here and she said it was OK. I’ll mark the stuff I ended up getting with an asterisk (*). Double asterisks (**) means my sister got them. 🙂 Here we go! Eyeshadow: “You seem to really like neutral colours, so I would highly recommend you check out: Satin Taupe*, Twinks, Shale, Cork*, Blackberry, and Woodwinked for some deeper neutrals. For lighter neutrals I recommend checking out Bamboo, Yogurt, Malt*, and Blanc Type. Blanc Type is especially creamy (it’s a …

Quickie: Wing It with the MAC 266

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When I asked Laura for help picking out MAC items, she remarked that since I seemed to be having trouble applying liner (I was), I should take a look at the MAC 266 brush, a very small, stiff angled brush. She recommended that I use a dark eyeshadow (e.g. MAC Carbon) and push the color into my lashline. I’m a little better at eyeshadow now, but this remains an astonishing little tool that I’m glad I ended up getting. I used it to apply my KATE Gel Liner for my NARS Paramaribo review. I cleaned the brush right away, since I hate it when gel liner sits on brush bristles. I’m sure the brushes hate it, too. The line is awesome, and I get a lot of control with it. I’ve sworn by the Marionnaud N°37, which is basically the same thing, only with a little spoolie on the other end. They’re the same brush, in theory, because they are both stiff, angled brushes for the eyes. I use the N°37 all the time for …

Softly Sometimes & the Holy Grail: My HG Products

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Liz of Project Vanity posted her Holy Grail products yesterday and I thought I’d do the same! If you didn’t already know, Holy Grail or HG products are essentially a person’s “Best of the Best.” You may loooooove eleventy billion products, but you probably have a favorite favorite, if you know what I mean. Here are my own! I’ll follow her format and add a couple of my own. 🙂 For reference, I think I am a warmer neutral, around light-medium. I’ve never been shade matched at anywhere, but I’ve inputted (weird word) my foundation shades on Findation, and here are supposedly my shades all across the board. It says that I am an NC37, an NW30, and an NC40. So you can imagine my confusion. I am not very oily, but I do oil up occasionally, and I do have a lot of dry flakes. So I don’t know what skin type that is. Very helpful, aren’t I? Also, I live in a very humid area. Anyway, let’s get started!