All posts tagged: graymelin

Toss or Keep No. 1: Foundations and Bases

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Taking a leaf out of Rae’s sensible tree, I decided to do a “Toss or Keep” as well, rounding up all of my tinted bases to see which ones I could probably do without. Also, to remind myself that I don’t need another foundation, for crying out loud! I have tinted moisturizers and foundations, BB Creams, etc. but I didn’t include my illuminating tinted primers, such as the BECCA Shimmering Skin Perfecter and the Le Métier de Beauté Peau Vierge Anti-Aging Tinted Complexe, since I would never wear those alone. Even with dry skin, I find them to be too glowy if not paired with a base with more coverage—because of this infernal heat! My current base count is: 11. Which, all things considered… I don’t think is that bad. Of course, if you compare this number to the typical beauty v/blogger, it really isn’t too crazy, but I don’t know any sane person who would compare their stash to that of beauty v/bloggers. So… I still need to work on dis. It’s still a …

A Case for Bases

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I may have a problem! Look at all this crap. (Just kidding, cuddles face bases.) See, I never thought I would be the kind of “makeup enthusiast” who had a thing for bases. I was always always distracted by color cosmetics, so this is kind of a weird personal revelation. This is all a restrained effort at acquiring bases, mind you. I regularly clear out my stash, and I’ve also salivated over a number of other bases I’ve chosen to pretend to not exist. All to be mentioned at the end of this post. Ahem. So what is the case for bases? There isn’t really any case for it, other than the fact that I am a fickle person and I like having options. For the record, I like having “natural looking” skin. By this, I mean, I don’t mind if a pimple peeks through or if my eye bags aren’t 100% erased by foundation and concealer (… that’s a whole other story), so most of my foundations are medium coverage, at most. I just …

(Another) No Makeup Makeup Look: Bright Eyes

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“No makeup” makeup has a strong presence in the beauty world, and the opinion on this is split into two factions: the people who appreciate and love it and the people who don’t see the point. Over the last few months, I’ve gotten several anonymous comments about how my makeup is being “wasted” and is useless because you can’t detect it on my face. (That’s a whole other story.) I’m personally a fan of the no makeup makeup look. There’s nothing wrong with enhancing your features and going for subtlety. Understated is good. Plus, there are actually people who can’t wear wild makeup looks to work. I am not one of those people, but I still dig these looks. Also, I don’t really feel comfortable with the thought of someone actually being able to see foundation, etc. on my face. Why on earth would you want that? I would not wish that upon the most annoying of the people I am annoyed at. I don’t really have evil foes.

Traveling: What I Brought Along vs. What I Should Have Brought Instead

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I have always been an overpacker. As a child, I would tote incredibly heavy bags filled with shit I didn’t need. I used to carry a DSLR, a laptop, and all my books and notebooks to school as a college freshman. Over time, I’ve learned to take only the essentials with me (usually), and on my last trip to Japan, which happened about two weeks ago, I thought I did a great job of streamlining everything—at least, when it came to my makeup bits. I didn’t want to deal with a proper base, so aside from my moisturizer, I brought along the NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer (review), which I’ve been setting with the Le Métier de Beauté Eye Brightening and Setting Powder (review). I’ve also got a small bottle of the Hourglass Veil Mineral Primer (review) and the Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powder Palette (review) for the rest of my face. For eyes, I’ve got my MAC Paint Pot in Groundwork, the NARS NARSissist Eyeshadow Palette (review), and the Le Métier de Beauté Anamorphic Lash Mascara …

FOTD: Layered Mascara & a Neutral Lip

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Here’s a recent FOTD~ using a bunch of new-ish and old products! My sister said these photos made me look unapproachable; I on the other hand thought that I looked nice, lol. It’s a pretty simple smoky eye. My default has been to use the Le Métier de Beauté Kaleidoscope Eye Kit in Gravité, for a dark and subtle smoky eye for the daytime. I just layered each tier over the Le Métier de Beauté Dualistic Eye Pencil in Tamarack, lined my upper lash line, and loaded up on the mascara. I also used Le Métier de Beauté True Colour Eye Shadow in Naked on the brow bone for some highlight and a soft transition. Speaking of mascara, here’s my arsenal: Maybelline The Hypercurl Mascara* topped with Fairy Drops Volume Burst on curled upper lashes, and the Le Métier de Beauté Anamorphic Lash Mascara in Noir on the bottom lashes. I usually just use the last one on a daily basis since it looks natural but also adds ample definition. I used Tom Ford Cheek …

Graymelin Vintage Seven Tattoo Eyebrow in Dark Brown*

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One of the two makeup items I got in November’s bntgirls box is the Graymelin Seven Tattoo Eyebrow in Dark Brown. It’s essentially an eyebrow marker with a super fine, flexible tip—almost like the tip of a brush pen. I have a similar product from K-Palette, which is also marketed as a waterproof eyebrow pen. I love the brush on this. It goes down into a really fine point because I can draw on hairs well. The pen in general is not very flimsy, so you have pretty okay control over your eyebrows and what you want the shape to be. The tip kind of flops a bit, if you’re not careful or paying attention. It’s a great tool if you have very sparse eyebrows, since the ink is quite pigmented. Compared with my K-Palette eyebrow pen, this one by Graymelin is darker and less warm. I think it’s a better match for my natural hair color. The tint of the K-Palette pen is so light that you can kind of just haphazardly draw the …