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EOTD: Gradient Eyeliner

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EOTD - Gradient Eyeliner

An eye experiment—gradient eyeliner! Or ombre, if you prefer that term. It’s super easy, which will probably make this the shortest post ever on this blog.

EOTD - Gradient Eyeliner - Eye

I started in the inner corner with a dark green shade (Urban Decay Mars) and stopped a third of the way in. Then, I used a bright ocean blue shade (Urban Decay Deep End) on the middle third of the lower lash line. Finally, I connect the line to a beautiful blue-violet shade (Urban Decay Ultraviolet), filling in the last third of the lash line. And that’s that!

Eye makeup: Le Métier de Beauté Dualistic Eye Pencil in Tamarack as base, bareMinerals READY 2.0 in The Scenic Route, Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-On Pencil in Perversion, Benefit They’re Real! mascara

EOTD - Gradient Eyeliner - Face

Rest of the face makeup: BECCA Resurfacing Primer, Burberry Sheer Luminous Fluid Foundation in Trench No. 4, NYX Eyeliner in Taupe, MAC Extra Dimension Blush in Fiery Impact, NYX Round Lipstick in Peony.

I hope this post was helpful! Have you tried gradient eyeliner before? 🙂

Catch Revlon Beauty S.O.S. on ETC’s Etcetera

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If you’ve ever needed a beauty life line, Revlon Beauty S.O.S. may be the answer you need.

For four weeks, ETC’s Etcetera will be airing short segments on beauty dilemmas, solved by none other than makeup artist and expert Eman de Leon. Get your beauty problems sorted out with the help of Revlon Beauty S.O.S. (which stands for Stand Out Style)!

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The first episode of Revlon Beauty S.O.S. aired last November 10. The beauty dilemma? Eye makeup for chinitas, or Asian eye shapes. Asian eyes are a little bit tricky to do, since a lot of the information on how-tos and tutorials don’t really apply to smaller, Asian eye shapes.

Revlon Beauty SOS - Nov 10 - Face

For enhancement and definition, Eman utilized the trusty smoky eye. 🙂

Fun fact, Eman also did the makeup of Etcetera’s host, Patti Grandidge.

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Check out Etcetera this Sunday at 8:30 PM for the next beauty dilemma on Eman’s list: makeup tips for Girls with Glasses!

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If you can’t wait for the next episode, check out Eman’s work on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Disclaimer: PR post.

FOTD: Sachi’s Mermaid Party

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Here’s a look I wore to my goddaughter’s first birthday party, which was held last Saturday. It was themed “Under the Sea.”

Sachi

Sachi Elise was in full-on mermaid costume, so I thought I’d follow suit even just a little. I injected a little bit of Ariel in my makeup, though I decided not to go with a red lip… just because it was a children’s party.

FOTD - Mermaidy

Instead of a red, I put on my default “Disney princess” lip, which is MAC’s Betty Bright. The full effect of this lip is displayed in the last photo below. It is probably one of the only bright lipsticks that I love.

For the eyes, I tried to capture Ariel’s mermaid… ensemble. I used the Laura Mercier Artist’s Palette for Eyes from 2012, which I have said to be my favorite palette of all time. Sadly, LM has ceased to be cruelty-free, so I opted out of the Artist’s Palette for 2013. If you can still get it, try it out since the one I have is perfect.

FOTD - Mermaidy - Eyes

All over the lid, I have a beautiful purple-gold color called African Violet, which is part of their permanent range. 🙂 It’s similar to MAC’s Trax, but this leans more purple whereas African Violet leans more gold. I deepened the look with a blackened navy, Deep Night, on the outer corners. I used a warm neutral shimmery shade, Sunlit, on the inner corners and a light neutral matte mauve, Plum Smoke, for the blending out around the crease.

For Ariel’s tail, I used a dark green eyeliner (Urban Decay’s Mars) and softened it with Plum Smoke on the lash line. I curled my lashes and applied Benefit’s They’re Real! Mascara on top and bottom lashes. I poked myself, too!

FOTD - Mermaidy 2

Here is Betty Bright in all its glory. 😀 I used a light blush, shu uemura soft mauve 225, and a subtle highlight, MAC MSF in Lightscapade.

Thanks for reading & I hope you liked this look.

Drugstore Finds: Maybelline Clear Smooth BB: 8-in-1 Cream*

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Remember the Maybelline Search for the Top 8 BB Models? Maybelline kindly sent me three products from their Clear Smooth BB range, and I’ve tested them out for you. I’ll go through all of them quickly, hopefully demonstrating natural-looking “perfect skin.”

FA_Maybelline BB Cream_Embedded

What is Maybelline Clear Smooth BB? Known for its 8 healthy benefits, the 8-in-1 BB Cream brightens, evens, smooths, refines, clears, conceals, moisturizes and protects to give you perfectly flawless skin in an instant. Top it off with its affordable price, flexible shades, and varying formats, and it’s no wonder top models from New York all the way to Asia choose Maybelline Clear Smooth BB!”

Too good to be true? Let’s find out!

Maybelline BB Stick

The first item I got to try is the BB Stick, which is the format suited for oily skin. The shade is in 01 Fresh, which is the lighter of the two available in all the products in the line. Since I have a tan, it looks scarily too light for me, but once blended out, it actually looks decent.

Maybelline BB Stick - Application Face

I apply the product directly on my face and use the RealTechniques Expert Face Brush to blend it all out. It claims to give a shine-free powder finish and to stay on for 12 hours. That wasn’t really my experience with this product, but it is generally a nice base. I don’t know if I would use it if I had oily skin, since its mattifying powers don’t seem to be supercharged.

Then, there are 2 cream types available, too: the BB Cream and the BB White. Both are meant for Normal/Dry skin, though BB White is just a formulation with higher SPF content—almost twice as much as BB Cream’s.

Maybelline BB Creams

The PR literature said that coverage is similar to foundation, but doesn’t cake—it should conceal imperfections, brighten skin complexion, and offer sun protection and moisturization sans oiliness.

I’ve used the BB Cream here, without setting it with powder. Like its claims, it provides decent coverage and it is not nearly as oily as some liquid foundations that I’ve tried. In direct, artificial light, it may look a bit greasy, but it is quite beautiful in something like fluorescent light, or just indirect artificial light in general.

Maybelline BB Cream - Face

I did notice that it clung to one dry area on my face, upon closer inspection, but other than that, it is quite nice. The shade selection is limited to two—01 Fresh and 02 Natural—but both shades blend naturally with my skin tone. I have a tan now, so this is actually way too light for me, but Fresh blended in nicely. Shade correction can be done by a bronzer or something.

Lastly, I have the BB White. I initially thought it was a whitening BB Cream, but it’s just a variation of the BB Cream with higher SPF—SPF 50 PA+++. Awesome!

Maybelline BB White - Blob

The shade range is also limited to two, though this time, I got to try the darker shade, 02 Natural, which honestly seems to fit me better.

Maybelline BB White

This was applied with my fingers, blended with the RT Expert Face brush, then set with bareMinerals Mineral Veil. I also dusted my face with Météorites, my forgotten favorite of yore. There is still a dewiness in the finish of the BB Cream, which I appreciate.

I do find that while it doesn’t look greasy, it feels a bit oily sometimes. All three do not seem to set or sink into the skin and while it’s not a heavy feeling exactly, you do feel like you are wearing some type of base makeup on your face.

Overall, my general opinion of this line is good and positive, so any of these BB formulations are mostly recommended, unless you are extremely picky. I think they are not high coverage, but they do a fair job of evening out the skintone. I think that for big/major blemishes, a concealer should be enlisted. That said, the products in the line do fairly well for BB formulas.

All in all, it’s a great budget option for everyday wear. If I were to pick a favorite, I’d pick the last one, just because it has the highest SPF and the creams are more suited to my skin type.

Any favorite drugstore BB Creams? I know they’re unpopular in general, but I wonder if there are any that you feel are worth checking out. Let me know. 🙂

* PR Samples. Maybelline is not cruelty-free.

Favorite Fall Lipsticks: Berries & Reds

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Here are some of my favorite fall lipsticks. Whenever I think of autumn & the holidays, my mind reverts to the vampy and the berry shades that I have. These are a bit on the pricier side, but if you don’t want to spring for a darker lip that you don’t know you can wear everyday, I’m sure you can get ideas and search for dupes if you find one that tickles your fancy. 🙂

Fall Lipsticks
L-R: MAC Plumful, NARS Vendanges, Chanel Rouge Coco Shine in Antigone, Snoe Beauty Plum Crazy, shu uemura x Karl Lagerfeld Luxe Burgundy (LE), Guerlain Rouge G L’Extrait M69 Orgueil, Addiction by Ayako Lady of the Lake, Le Métier de Beauté Hydra-Crème in Signature, Chanel Rouge Allure in Envoutante

Here they are on the lips, for a better idea of how they wear:

Fall Lipsticks
Ol’ Reliables are Orgueil, Vendanges, Lady of the Lake, Signature, and Envoutante. Plumful is also pretty reliable, though I find that I have to be in a certain mood to wear it. Luxe Burgundy pulls too red on me sometimes, as does Antigone though in daylight, it is a beautiful rosy pink. Plum Crazy is in between, though I do like it quite a bit.

I pretty much wore Vendanges exclusively last fall because a) my makeup inventory was waaaaaay smaller than it is now, and b) we were on a holiday so I didn’t really bring much makeup. I had MAC Jubilee and Chanel Rouge Coco in Perlé, so when I was too tired to do anything else to my face, of course I reached for the the boldest lip I had. It currently holds the title of “most used lipstick by Carina.”

Anyway, that’s that! Do you have any favorite lipsticks to wear in the fall? 🙂

Unboxing: Le Métier de Beauté Beauty Vault VIP November 2013

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LMdB November 2013 Box

Hey everyone! Here’s a quick post on the Le Métier de Beauté Beauty Vault VIP November 2013 box, which arrived here a few days ago. The LMdB Beauty Vault VIP is a one-year subscription box that opened last July. Sign-ups for the next round will open back up next year. As always, it comes elegantly packaged along with a sweet, handwritten note.

The first item was the Dualistic Eye Pencil in Tamarack, which I had been wanting to get for the longest time. It retails for $36.

Product Description: “Whether it’s a defined line or a subtle smudged sultry effect, this velvety-soft formula delivers rich pigmented color and allows easy application for versatile, sophisticated looks.”

LMdB November 2013 Box - Tamarack and MAC Teddy

Anyway, when I swatched, I was smitten but I also thought it looked a lot like a MAC eye kohl called Teddy, swatched on the right. This photo is a bit of a disservice to both colors, because they are beautiful and have a warm bronzey sheen to them. Teddy is a little bit deeper, but otherwise they are pretty identical. MAC eye kohls retail for $16.

LMdB November 2013 Box - Curler

Next up is their Eyelash Curler, shown on the left next to my HG lash curler, shu uemura. LMdB’s is valued at $18. I didn’t think I would like this but lo and behold—this curled the lashes on my right eye like it had never been curled before. The pad on the LMdB curler is much softer than shu uemura’s, which has often been noted as its weakness. For me, though, the pad is probably what makes it a better fit.

LMdB November 2013 Box - Peau Vierge Lash Growth

Lastly, we have the Peau Vierge Lash Growth, which is a serum for better lashes. UM. YES PLEASE. Priced at $95, I would never have gotten this for myself. I would have chosen to get a Kaleidoscope instead. However, now that I have it, I’m excited!

I’ll post results in about a week or two.

LMdB November 2013 Box - Note

And, to cap it all off, here is the note that came with this month’s box. I am hoping to get one from one of the CEOs or founders in the next boxes. It’s only the fourth month and I’ve gotten over $500 worth of products. Sweet deal, in my opinion!

Le Métier de Beauté is cruelty-free.

Thanks to Sarie for being my LMdB sub box sponsor. Haha.

Open Season: Mascaras in Rotation

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Hello, everyone. I hope you’re doing well.

While the typhoon, Haiyan/Yolanda, has been on its way out of the Philippines, it has left devastation in its wake. If you feel like you want to help out affected families and regions, click here for the post I made earlier. I’ll be making it a sticky post for about a week or so, for easy access. Buttons for donations to various organizations are on my sidebar as well.

Eula, Shari, Eliza, Julia, and Liz also have posts on how to help. Bea has a nice post on the iffiness of blogging during these times, which is helpful to read before passing judgment on others.

I hope you don’t think it callous of me to be posting during this tragedy. Most of these posts are pre-planned/pre-written, so I am not writing them on the spot. I have been doing all I can, as of now, to help out.

Anyway, thank you for reading this little announcement. Every little bit helps, and we need all the help we can get.

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I’ve always been someone who has two, maybe three, mascaras open at a time. And then I stopped being that person. Yikes. In any case, these mascaras are presented in the (wrong) order in which they have been opened. The LMdB mascara should have been placed before The Rocket. Nevertheless, I’ll give my brief thoughts on each.

Mascaras

L-R: Majolica Majorca Lash King, Eye of Horus Natural Mascara, Maybelline The HyperCurl, FairyDrops Volume Burst, Maybelline The Rocket, Le Métier de Beauté Anamorphic Lash, Benefit They’re Real!

Majolica Majorca Lash King — One of my earliest mascara exploits (my mama gave it to me since it was on a buy 1 get 1 deal), Lash King is a fiber-wig mascara, which means that it has a ton of little fibers (or hair) in the formula that is meant to lengthen your lashes. It is one of my favorites since it gives great definition and length without separating the lashes too much, which I find happens more often with another Majolica Majorca mascara, Lash Expander.

MajoMajo - Lash King

Eye of Horus Natural Mascara* — I quite like this one, even with its weird hourglass brush, though I have to note that I do not like how it looks on curled lashes. Or, more accurately, I prefer it on uncurled lashes. It definitely lives up to its name—use this for a more natural, “just defined” look!

Eye of Horus

Maybelline The HyperCurl* — AHHH. Love at first swipe. This is an excellent mascara for holding a curl, and I use it a lot for layering with other mascaras, although it does really well on its own, too.

FairyDrops Volume Burst mascara (film type) — I was super excited for this mascara and waited months before I opened it (as per my 2-3 tubes rule), but was let down. It does its job, but there is a fine line between AWESOME VOLUMINOUS LASHES! and GOOPY SPIDER LEGS with this one. I do like it a lot—especially at the removal stage—I just have to get the hang of it.

FairyDrops - Volume Burst

Le Métier de Beauté Anamorphic Lash Mascara — I got this sample from a GWP that Sarie managed to get for me. This is a great, natural mascara similar to Eye of Horus, though I love this a bit more. This is perfect for a no makeup makeup look because it gives your lashes natural definition that makes it look like you’re wearing nothing on your lashes, but still giving it that extra oomph.

LMdB - ALM

Maybelline The Rocket* — I got this in a subscription box and it was calling my name… so I opened it. And it was, again, love at first swipe. This gave my lashes beautiful volume and held its curl—a problem it has with heavier mascaras like Fairy Drops.

The Rocket

Benefit They’re Real! — Again, I got it as a Sephora GWP. I’ve been meaning to try this a lot and initially, it didn’t impress me as I was still swooning over The Rocket at the time. When I reached for this when I came back home from vacation, though… that’s another story. This is a beautiful mascara, and I can see why it gets the hype that it does.

Benefit They're Real

My recent exploits have yielded mostly favorable results. I don’t think there’s a particular dud in this bunch, although I do have to say that I don’t really have great expectations when it comes to mascara because my lashes are short + don’t stay curled. Still, these mascaras delivered in different ways, so I’m pretty happy about all of them.

Taking into account animal testing status and effectivity, I would re/purchase Fairy Drops and Le Métier de Beauté. I’m still looking to fill in the gap of both Maybelline mascaras… I love them, but they are not cruelty-free, so I am trying not to repurchase them. I have two pending mascaras, so let’s see what I find. For now, I’m off to finish these off!

Because, because, because, because, because…

* PR Sample

For more information on how to help Haiyan/Yolanda victims from outside the Philippines, a post by Huffington post.