Beauty Squared Round-Up for March 8, 2015

Happy Daylights Savings Time day! If you celebrate, that is. ;)

Here's what we have in in our round-up this week.

• Using lipliner as eyeliner? Why not, right? Actually, you shouldn't and here's why.
  
• Waterlining to make your eyes look bigger.
  
• It's official, caffeine is the latest super ingredient for skincare.
  
• Here's how to give yourself a blow out in 7 minutes.
  
• Beauty hacks for the gym.
  
• Here's how to achieve Emma Stone's gorgeous Oscar makeup look (attention: coral lips!).
  
• Brown-eyed gals: here are some looks to make your eyes pop.
  
• You know how your mascara can look dry at the end of the day? Urban Decay has a really interesting new product they claim that can revitalize your mascara.
  
• Skincare while you sleep? Overnight masks.
  
• Check out this hairdo that can camouflage greasy roots. Retro!
  
• Fixes for a smudged manicure (like bedsheet imprints).
  
• Liquid Palisade is like painter's tape for manicures. No more polish all over your cuticles!
  
• Check out this innovative lip tint from Cailyn Cosmetics that you apply, let dry and then peel off.
  
• Respect your eyebrows and give them some love and attention.
  
• A recipe for DIY sun spot reducer. 

Beauty Squared Round-Up for July 12, 2014

Hello lovelies!

We took a week off from our weekly round-up and we're so sorry. But here we are with lots of beauty-related goodies to share with you.

• The last round-up featured a review of Kevyn Aucoin's Sensual Skin Enhancer by Pixiwoo. Here is a guide for using it, showing how light or how heavily it can be applied.
  
• Two lists of the best black eyeliners: one from Phyrra and one from Beauty411.
  
• Afraid of bright lipstick but tempted by it? Here's how you can overcome that fear.
  
• And more Kevyn Aucoin for you - here's a breakdown of his different lip looks (Cupid's Bow, The Smear, Bonnie Parker, etc) and how to achieve them.
  
• Makeup stains on clothing. We all get them and we all hate them. Now we can get rid of them!
  
• Skincare can be tricky with your serums and moisturizers and antioxidants and oils and sunscreens. Here's how to apply all of them, properly, in layers so your skin looks and feels the best it can.
  
• Have you heard that Urban Decay is releasing a Pulp Fiction-themed makeup collection in celebration of the 20th anniversary of the movie? YES, it's happening. MUA Kandee Johnson has done a wicked Mia Wallace look using the collection. Check it out here!

Beauty Squared Round-Up - March 9, 2014

Hello lovelies! It's time again for our weekly round-up. 

• Dry hair? Here's a two ingredient, DIY hair mask for your parched locks.
• Accio Lacquer's Mishka talks about her nail polish line and fanicures - manicures inspired by some favourite TV series and characters.
• A quick trick to get rid of post-manicure stained nails.
• How to choose eyeshadow shades for your eye colour.
• A review of Urban Decay's crazy colourful Electric Palette.
• Looking forward to spring, here are 26 of the best spring beauty products to snap up now.
• And here are 20 more!
• The Muse reviews the new Olay Regenerist Luminous Dark Circle Correcting Hydraswirl.
• A tutorial for a naturally flattering everyday makeup look for everyone that can be transitioned (with a bit of bold lip colour) to an evening look.
• Nicole Kidman is playing Princess Grace Kelly of Monaco on the big screen. Check out her bang-on retro, feminine look here.
• Speaking of actresses...well, if you saw last week's Oscars broadcast, you may have seen 81-year-old Kim Novak onstage. Sadly, the online mockery she received, as did Matthew McConaughey's mother and Liza Minelli, was just an example of how cruelly we and view aging women, particularly those who appear onscreen. 

Urban Decay Shattered Face Case Review, Swatches and Photos

I have a love-hate relationship with Urban Decay...I love their products and formulations, but strongly dislike their packaging. Though I know distinctive packaging is a crucial part of branding, and Urban Decay's packaging is some of the most unique on the market, their packaging is almost always too bulky, gaudy ad cumbersome for my tastes. Even their custom build palettes seem too big and wasteful (in terms of materials and space) to me.

I was then, very pleasantly surprised when I received their Shattered Face Case, which I purchased during their Friends and Family 20% sale a few weeks back. Shattered has a very well designed case which fits all of the below in a neat 5" x 2.5" x 1" case:

- 5 new eye shadows in Shakedown, Remix, Nameless, Minor Sin and Bleach
- a full sized Super Saturated High Gloss Lip Color in Lovechild
- a mini 24/7 Glide on Eye Pencil in Zero
- two new blushes in Overexposed and Temper
- a highlighter in Glint
- two mirrors, one on each tier

Photos in natural light on NC 40 skin.

Shakedown, Remix, Nameless, Minor Sin and Bleach

Shakedown is a gun metal grey shimmer with a brown base, which translates to a dark, fairly neutral taupe. It has a shimmer but it's understated, which makes it look like a very luminous satin finish. The texture is a bit on the powdery side, but the pigmentation is good.

Remix is a medium dark purple shimmer, which neither leans red or blue. Like Shakedown, the finish is shimmery but not frosty. Again, the texture is on the powdery side but the pigmentation is good.

Nameless is a medium, warm toned grey-brown taupe. Like Shakedown and Remix it has a fine shimmer. Fantastic pigmentation on this shade and a creamy texture.

Minor Sin is a satin finish light pinky beige. Again, good pigmentation and a creamier texture.

Bleach is a light yellow beige matte finish, with excellent pigmentation and creamy texture. By far the least powdery shadow in the palette. It's a powder version of MAC's Soft Ochre Paint Pot.

Overexposed, Temper, Glint, Lovechild and Zero

Overexposed is a dusty rose blush, with good pigmentation and a finely milled, blendable texture. A great warm neutral blush which will look good on any skin tone.

Temper is a cool baby pink blush, again with good pigmentation and a finely milled, blendable texture. A great "pop" colour for the cheeks and universally good on all skin tones.

Glint is a warm, champagne beige highlighter with a strong frost/metallic finish. Because of it's heavy frost, I would recommend using it lightly with a duo fibre or fan brush for more natural results.

Lovechild is a cool, mid tone pink glossy lipstick. Good opaque pigmentation with a naturally glossy finish. This could double as a lovely cream blush too.

Zero is a dense neutral black eye liner with excellent staying power and a creamy texture which sets after a few seconds.

General Thoughts

I have to say I am very impressed with this palette - not only are the colours wearable and versatile, the actual physical design and dimensions of the kit has my approval. This palette could fit in most clutches! The shadows have a good tonal range and have enough neutral shades to truly make this wearable day or night. The inclusion of Remix also means you can do a more colourful look if you wish. Similarly, the inclusion of both a warm and cool toned blush also gives this palette a lot of flexibility.

This palette has enough product in it that you could build numerous different looks out of it, which makes it perfect for travel. I also appreciate that you can switch out the High Gloss Lip Color and the 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil for other shades in your stash.

Shattered Face Case is exclusively available on Urban Decay's website and retails for $44.00 USD. Urban Decay online also offers shipping to Canada.

Grade: A

J

Goldeneye: Two Gold Eye Look Ideas and FOTDs

I've been really into wearing gold on my eyes lately. Typically, I prefer silver and copper as colours over gold, in jewellery, clothing and in general, but ever since falling in love with the Make Up For Ever Eye Pencil #20, a sort of antiquey gold. I wear it as a very simple liner on days when I want to go natural. It enhances the eye in a very subtle way, adding a lightness and sheen. Sometimes I line my eye, top and bottom, and sometimes just to the top.  

I really liked the effect this soft antiquey gold shade had on my skin and my eyes, so thought I'd show you a few ways I've come up with to wear gold on my eyes. 

The first look is one I love to wear with a red lip. With a red (or any bold shade) lip colour, you want to keep the rest of your makeup simple. I'm the queen of keeping my makeup simple, so here is a very simple look using OCC's Loose Colour Concentrate in Flawed (my review of it is here). It's a similar shade to the MUFE pencil, an antiquey gold-bronze. 

How's using only two eye colours for keeping it simple? Yup, I've got MAC's Wedge eyeshadow on my eyelid and smudged a bit heavier through my crease with Flawed pressed on top of my lid, as well as beneath my eye. The Wedge helps to give a bit of definition to the look. Since my eye look would be so simple, I used quite a bit of Flawed so the colour would really pop without looking too dramatic. I warmth of the shade flatters my eye colour as well. I applied MAC eye Kohl in Powersurge (another shimmery gold-bronze shade) on my waterline for more subtle definition. Tip: Powersurge Eye Kohl is fantastic for the waterline. It defines without closing in the eye like a black will.

*All products used in this and the following look were photographed together and the photo can be found at the end of this post. 

I applied Sephora's Advanced Lash Booster mascara to my top lashes and Clinique's Bottom Lash Mascara to my lower lashes. 

I wanted to keep my brows soft, so I used Wedge to fill them in and fill them out slightly, finishing them with Anastasia's clear brow gel. 

Oh, my base is Hourglass Immaculate Liquid Powder Foundation in Vanilla (see my review here), and a combination of OCC Skin Conceal in Y1 and MAC Select Cover-Up in NW20 under my eyes and on any red areas. I set the concealer with Ben Nye Neutral Set powder. 

On my cheeks is MAC The Perfect Cheek from the Marilyn collection - brushed beneath my cheekbones to contour. I wanted definition to keep my skin as clean as possible, and to allow the lips to take center stage. I did want to perk up my skin though (the Immaculate foundation is problematic on me - see my review) so I brushed MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Powder in Soft and Gentle to my cheekbones. It gives a subtle sheen and glow to the skin. 

On my lips is OCC Lip Tar in Vintage (see my review here), blotted down considerably so it's a bright red, not the deeper wine tone it can be. 

I really like the sophistication of this look. The gold makes it a little more playful, as does my fascinator which I don't wear enough.

The second golden eye look I wanted to show a less glam, retro look. This one is more colourful and playful but still simple and wearable. Again, I photographed the products I used for both these looks and that photo can be found at the very bottom of this post.

For this look, I started with the look above and added to it, but I did brush away most of the Flawed I was wearing on my eyes first as well as remove Vintage from my lips.

On my eyes, I layered MAC Solar Bits in Scatterrays. Solar Bits are "pearlized pigment clusters" which can be challenging to wear. Jill has said about MAC's crushed metallic pigments (see a review here) that they're not terribly usable, but they're SO PRETTY. It's true for Solar Bits as well. But I endeavour to not waste product by not using it and I wanted a very wearable gold shade for this look, Scatterrays is a "soft metallic peach with gold shimmer" so it's got pink and peach tones to it as well as the gold.

With a bit of MAC Mixing Medium on my brush, I dipped it into the Scatterrays and then patted it over my eyelid, focusing on just the lid area and sweeping it up into the crease. 

Then I used Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil in Rockstar - a dark purple - to line my eyes. On top, I smudged some MAC Mineralize Eyeshadow in My Dark Magic (see a post featuring it here) to deepen the effect. 

Using some Duo eyelash glue, I applied Benefit's Big Spender eyelashes. These lashes are super-cool but very stiff. I really needed to work them to get them to soften enough to fit the curve of my eyelids. They are thick lashes, but not crazy-long and they're angled out, so they give less of a doe-eyed look and more of a coy look.

After the glue had set on these, I smudged a bit more of My Dark Magic along my upper lash line. 

On my cheeks, I added some MAC Mineralize Blush in Warmth of Coral - a blend of coral and peach tones, and some more Soft and Gentle on top for a warm glow.

On my lips, I applied MAC Partial to Pink Cremesheen Gloss - golden pink creamy gloss. Since Vintage had stained my lips a little, the gloss looks a bit orange-y but works really well with the overall look. 

I really liked both of these looks and was kind of amazed at how different one is from the other.

Sophisticated Gold Eyes with Red Lips: bottom, clockwise starting at the top right: MAC Eyeshadow in Wedge, OCC Loose Colour Concentrate in Flawed, Sephora Advanced Lash Booster Mascara, Clinique Bottom Lash Mascara, MAC Eye Kohl in Powersurge, Shu Uemura Eyelash Curler, OCC Lip Tar in Vintage, MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in Soft and Gentle and MAC Blush in The Perfect Cheek.

Purple-Gold Eye Look - top row, clockwise starting at the top right: Benefit Big Spender lashes, Duo Lash Glue, MAC Cremesheen Gloss in Partial to Pink, Urban Decay 24/7 Eye Pencil in Ransom.

How do you like to wear gold on your eyes?

C.

LUSTING: Urban Decay Roller Girl Palette

Ooooh, I don't think I'll be able to resist this Urban Decay palette. Check out the swatches Temptalia's done - hot pink lip gloss, gorgeous shimmery neutrals and one of UD's killer eye pencils. Yeah, this is going to be mine. I have no idea how I'll wear the hot pink Woodstock but that's ok. Everything else is right up my alley.

Urban Decay Roller Girl Eyeshadow Palette:

Eyeshadows: Woodstock, Verve, Suspect and Darkhorse

Eye Pencil: Whiskey

Lipgloss: Crush

Temptalia's done some great looks with this palette too. Click here and here.

LUSTING!

C.

LUSTING: Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencils 15 Year Anniversary Collection

I loooooooooove Urban Decay eye pencils and they've come out with a 15 year anniversary collection. 15 gorgeous, shimmery eye pencils and a wide range of wearable to wild colours.


Includes: Stray Dog (shimmering taupe brown), Corrupt (dark metallic brown with silver glitter), Bourbon (medium brown with sparkle), Midnight Cowboy (beige sparkle), Baked (bronze), Stash (mossy gold-green), Mildew (deep mossy green), Perversion (blackest carbon black), Electric (bright blue), Binge (deep metallic blue), Ransom (bright purple), Asphyxia (pinky iridescent purple), Rockstar (deep reddish purple), Zero (black), Uzi (sparkling gunmetal gray)

Looking at these swatches by Karla Sugar, I'm tempted to rush out to Sephora right now! Look at those shimmery lovely swatches! How can you not want to wear them on your eyes? And they go on like a dream (I have Ransom, used here) and add all kinds of oomph to any look.

The price is right too, these are full-size eye pencils, and they come with a sharpener. For this 15 Year Anniversary set, the cost is $92. For each pencil on its own, the cost is $17. You don't need a calculator to tell you this set is a deal.

WANT!

C.

EOTD: Urban Decay Book of Shadows Vol 2

This year for the holidays Urban Decay revisted their incredibly popular Book of Shadows with all new colours (save for one) and the addition of two 24/7 Glide On Eye Pencils.  At $58.00 CA/48.00 US for 16 eye shadows, 2 eyeliners and a mini bottle of Primer Potion, it's a fantastic deal.

I created the following look using this palette, it was darker and more intense in real life - please excuse the slight shift in lighting in the photos, that day I was having trouble with my camera!

Products used (all Urban Decay products listed in palette):

MAC Select Cover Concealer NW 20/NW30

MAC Eye Shadow in Espresso & Cork (for brows)

MAC Brow Set in Show Off

Urban Decay Primer Potion

Urban Decay 24/7 Glide on Eye Pencil in Zero

Urban Decay Book of Shadows Vol II

      - Mushroom (metallic taupe)

      - Gunmetal (metallic gunmetal)

      - Home Grown (bright grassy metallic green)

      - Sellout (pale pinky beige frost)

Maybelline Great Lash Waterproof Mascara in Very Black

Begin by concealing the undereye area and set with loose powder. Using your ring finger, gently tap to blend Primer Potion all over the eye lid.  Tapping the product on keeps you from tugging at your skin while also helping to keep your concealer in place.

Apply eye liner to your tightline, making sure to wedge liner in between your lashes.  Then draw a thicker line above your lashes and using your ring finger, pencil brush or q-tip, smudge the eyeliner up and out. 

Using a flat oval brush (MAC 242) apply Mushroom all over the lid and up into the crease.  Make sure the shadow covers the liner you just applied. Also apply Mushroom to the lower lash line, about 3/4 of the way in.

Using the same brush, Apply Gunmetal to the outer 1/3 of your eyelid, blending it into the crease and winging it down along your lower lash line, 1/3 of the way in.

Using a fluffy blending brush (MAC 224) apply Home Grown on top of Gunmetal using wind shield wiping motions. Also wing some of the green onto your lower lash line.  Repeat this step 2 times to gradually build the green colour.

       

Apply Sell Out using a small flat oval brush to the inside 1/3 of your upper eyelid as well as around your tear duct. Using the fluffy blending brush, blend out your whole eye.

As a final step re-line your upper lash line. Curl your eyelashes and coat liberally with mascara.

General Comments

What I like about this look is it uses colour in a subtle and sophisticated way.  By layering bright colours over neutrals, you can wear almost any colour out there, regardless of how garish it looks in the pot.  The photographs don't fully capture how this look beautifully shifts from gunmetal to green as you turn your head. 

J