Review & Swatches: Etude House Play 101 Pencils in #18, #28, #44, and #45

This review has been a long time coming, but I'm finally going to write about the Etude House Play 101 Pencils in #28, #44, #45, and #18 (Going from top to bottom)! The very top pencil is #21 and my review for that is here. #18 is the only matte shade and the other are glitters. The price varies, but I got mine on ebay for around $6-7.

Review & Swatches: MAC Cosmetics Sized To Go Pigment in Rose

MAC Cosmetics Sized To Go Pigment in Rose contains 2.5 grams / 0.09 US ounces and retails for $10. The full sized pigment contains 4.5 grams / 0.15 US ounces of product for $21. Rose is a beautifully frosty rose shade with copper sparkle. MAC pigments contain ingredients that help adhere to the skin so that you can create a subtle wash of color or even an intense look. 

Tag: The Jolly Blogger Award!

Hi! It's been a while since I've posted up a post. I had that finals rush and then was working non-stop. I'm finally back home and now I have time to answer some questions that Jenny from itsmeeejennyy!

1. Do you open your gifts on Christmas Eve or on Christmas Day?

I actually open gifts whenever. Kind of cheeky, right? hahaha I've never been a super Christmas person because I feel guilty getting gifts. For the past couple of years, I've had some Christmas party with friends with gift exchanges and we would just open gifts on the day of the party. 

2. Favorite Christmas Song?

I really like Last Christmas by Wham! Not the most festive Christmas song, but I always find myself singing along to it. I also like almost every version of I'll Be Home For Christmas.

3. Favorite Christmas / Holiday Movie?

One of my favorite movies ever is Home Alone and now that I've mentioned it, I really want to watch it again. 

4. Favorite Christmas Decoration?

I really love Christmas lights. I used to going on car rides to look at Christmas lights and decorations when I was younger, but not that many people do it anymore. A lot of my friends in college hang up lights though and they always make me so happy.

5. Favorite Christmas Food?

It's not specifically for Christmas, but I love eating Hot Pot / Shabu Shabu / all the other versions of it during the colder months. They always warm me up and it's so delicious!! There's a place in Southern California called Boiling Point that I love to go to.

Taken from syorithefoodie.com

6. Favorite Holiday / Winter drink?

I love drinking hot chocolate during winter and my favorite variation of it is salted caramel hot chocolate. I got some K-Cups from a target brand and it can be a bit too sweet, but it is amazing.

7. Snow or no snow?

I like the idea of snow, but I've only experienced it two or three times. I don't live in an area where it snows and so I feel like I'm just romanticizing how lovely snow is.

8. Do you send out cards or no cards?

My family has never Christmas cards and so no cards! Maybe when I'm older though.

9. Do you secretly still believe in Santa Claus?

Nah, I never believed anyway. When my parents and relatives gave me gifts, I want to recognize their efforts and work that went into them. 

10. Your favorite winter clothing item?

I love oversized sweaters and fleece lined leggings! Oh man, fleece lined leggings are the best thing ever. They're thicker and don't... reveal as much? If you get what I'm saying. I got some sweater designed ones from Target and I want to buy them in every color available. 

11. One beauty product that you cannot be without this winter?

I wore so many dark lipsticks just in this past week. I bought Lime Crime's Velvetine in Black Velvet and I've been mixing them into other liquid lipsticks. I'm in loooove with dark lipsticks in general though. 

I'm going to cheat and also say a nice moisturizers for the dry weather! My favorite is Lush's Celestial Moisturizer. 

12. Best Christmas Memory?

I remember when I was younger, I really wanted a fake radio thing that was Barbie themed but my parents said I couldn't have it. On Christmas Eve, I was rocking a wrapped present on my lap and then suddenly this loud music started playing. I was so scared that I dropped it and ran. I then realized it was the radio that I wanted and was so happy! My parents were pretty annoyed that I figured out what the present was, but were glad that I was so happy about it. 

It's not the best memory I can think of, but it's one that makes me laugh a lot. We had a tree that year as well and it was decorated by my sister and me so it looked ridiculous, but it was still so beautiful in my eyes. The holidays always make me so happy and I'm glad to be back in my hometown to experience that happiness again. 

Well, I'm done with being cheesy!

For the people I'm tagging - 

Sharlynn from The Black Mentos Beauty Box - She is incredibly sweet and always has the best FOTD posts

Jacklyn from Jacklynv - I went to high school with her and she just started her blog recently. Her stuff is really great so far and so if you start following her, tell her I sad Hi! You won't regret it!

Stacy from Newfound Beauty Blog - She's one of the first people I started talking to and like the other two people I blogged, she's also super sweet and amazing. 

Review & Swatches: Urban Decay Full Frontal Lipstick Stash

Urban Decay Full Frontal Lipstick Stash contains 6 mini-sized lipsticks and 1 full sized lip liner in Ozone. The lipstick colors are Ladyflower, Crush, Illicit, Gash, Liar, and F-bomb. The first three lipstick shades are exclusive to this set and Gash is normally an Urbandecay.com exclusive. The whole lip set is $39, but the full sized lipsticks normally go for around $22 and the lip liner is $20. 

Congrats Lynn Marie - the Winner of One Hot Bamba!

Thank you all for being interested in my first giveaway and Lynn Marie is the winner!

Just for future references, what other products would you all be interested in for giveaways? I might not do them that often, but I always keep giveaways in my mind during purchases.

Just an FYI, the end of my school quarter is this upcoming week. I have some posts queued up, but I may be a bit slow on comment replies.

Good luck to other students and hope everyone's holiday season is going well!

Review & Swatches: Urban Decay Naked 2 Basics Palette

Urban Decay Naked 2 Basics is a cool toned 6 pan palette with 5 matte and 1 satin eyeshadows. It was made to complement the second Naked palette (which I don't have), but it can be used just by itself. Each shade contains 0.05 ounces and the palette retails for $29. 

Review & Swatches: Lush Cosmetics Cream Eyeshadow in Focus

Lush Cosmetics Cream Eyeshadow in Focus is a iridescent blue-grey eyeshadow and there's a bluey green shift to it. It is infused with rose petals and Cupuaçu butter that helps blend out the product. The formula works as an eyeliner or shadow depending on the applicator and retails for $18.95.

October & November 2014 Favorites!

I didn't have enough favorites for an October Favorites post and so I combined it with November and now I have a lot to talk about! I'm slowly starting to shift to more "Autumn / Fall" colors. 

One of the products I put aside during my yellow-y blonde days was the Urban Decay Naked 3 Palette. I felt like the pink looked slightly off on me because I hadn't toned my hair to be more neutral / cool toned but now I can finally use the palette that I love so much. I tend to just use any mixture of one of the lighter and one of the darker shades depending on how dramatic I want to be. 

L to R:

Benefit Cosmetics Porefessional + High Beam has been my base/primer of choice lately. I'm not actually in love with Porefessional, but it does help smooth out my face a bit. I mix it with High Beam because the cooler air has made my face more dull. Mixed together, these products add a glow while help keep my foundation on longer. 

NYX Cosmetics Butter Lipstick in Licorice (review here) is a dark purple with slightly red/plum tones. I wear this when I want to go for a more dramatic look. Actually, I wear it whenever because it's a beautiful color.

Maybelline Color Sensational Creamy Matte Lipstick in Touch of Spice (review here) is a more mauvey plummy neutral shade and I wear this when I'm not wearing Licorice. It is not drying like how some other matte lipsticks can be but it still lasts a super long time.

Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz in Soft Brown + Benefit Cosmetics Gimme Brow in Light/Medium is what I've been using on my brows nonstop since I've gotten them. I totally understand the hype and they make my brows look so nice and defined without being crazy dramatic. 

Benefit Cosmetics Blush in Rockateur has the same kind of mauve-y but rosy undertone that I've been loving so much recently. It's what I wanted Tarte's Exposed to be, but this has more of a sheen. I found out that I like blushes with more of a sheen because they're more blendable to me. Matte blushes make my face more flat even if I add highlighter. 

NARS Bronzer in Laguna + Blush in Deep Throat + Blush in Goulue are some other blushes I use a lot. I even hit pan on Laguna, which has not happened for any of my colored face products. When I'm not wearing Rockateur, I put on Deep Throat because it's the prettiest pinky blush that fits anything. Goulue is more for my slightly darker makeup days and Laguna is used to contour a lot. I also just add a bit on my cheek bones and forehead to create a bronzy glow that I lost from summer. 

& that's all for these two months! There was definitely a Benefit vibe going on, but I didn't even notice until I wrote up this post. I've just been in love with Benefit lately as well because their packaging is pretty adorable (except for the snakeskin on Rockateur).

What are your recent favorites?

Review & Swatches: Benefit Cosmetics Cheeky Sweet Spot Blush Palette + GIVEAWAY IS OVER!

Benefit Cosmetics Cheeky Sweet Spot Blush Palette contains 6 powder products and one cream highlight, Watt's Up (1.6 grams). There are 5 blushes which are Dandelion (4.0 grams), Bella Bamba (5.0 grams), Sugarbomb (6.0 grams), Coralista (5.0 grams), and Rockateur (5.0 grams). The only matte product is the bronzer, Hoola (5.0 grams), which is a cult favorite from the brand. The sizes of the blushes and bronzer vary, but you do get a good amount of each. The whole palette retails for $36 and is limited edition. 

Review & Swatches: NYX Butter Lipstick in Licorice

NYX Cosmetics Butter Lipstick in Licorice is one of my recent lipstick additions and it's a dark plum that is more purple and has hints of red. NYX claims that the texture melts into the lips while giving high pigmentation. I wanted to go darker, but straight up purples are too scary for me right now. It contains 0.16 ounces / 4.5 grams the retail price is around $5 - $6. 

Makeup Look: Bare to Minimal to Full Face of Makeup! Fall Edition

Fall / Autumn has come and it's one of my favorites because now I'm allowed to wear all the dark lipsticks I love! I tend to not wear a lot of dark eye makeup, but now that's even more acceptable. I have a second job that involves makeup right now and so full faces are encouraged and that makes me so happy. In this post, I'll be talking about one of my favorite fall looks to do as well as the progression to get it. 

As you can also see, my hair is now a very funky (and messed up) silvery bluey slightly browny color. The silver I got is very blue based and I didn't bleach / tone the bottom parts of my hair enough and so it turned a slightly greeny brown color. I'm going to pretend it's on purpose and say it was an ombre though! I'll be writing up a blog post about my hair in a few weeks after I'm done tweaking my hair color. 

This is my completely bare face. I've been putting a lot of effort and money into my skincare routine and I'm quite happy with how my skin is now. I still have a lot of acne marks, but the break outs have lessened so much. It's gotten to the point where I don't mind going out with any makeup, but I do love makeup so I like to add a bit more to my look. 

This is my no-makeup makeup look as well as my "I need to go somewhere and gotta get ready fast" look. I go for brows, lashes, skin, and if my lips are looking a bit weird, then a tinted lip balm. 

The products - 

Maybelline Fit Me! Shine-Free Stick Foundation in Natural Beige is super quick to apply even with my fingers and you can read all about it here! I'm almost done with it and I need to get another one as backup for my lazy days. It controls my oily good enough so that I don't need to powder either. 

Maybelline Volum' Express The Rocket Waterproof Mascara in Very Black has been raved about on my blog ever since I've gotten it. It adds volume and length as well as holding my curl. Curled lashes are a must for me since my lashes are straight. They also make me look more awake.

Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz in Soft Brown + Benefit Cosmetics Gimme Brow in Light/Medium is my current favorite brow products. I totally get the hype for these products. Brow Wiz does really define my brows and so they're a lot more in your face than what I've been doing lately, but I kind of like it. The Gimme Brow gel is lighter than my natural hair color and so it helps to lighten my brows without bleaching them too much. 

Korres Lip Butter in Wild Rose is something I originally did not like (and that's why I'm not going to link with my review) but I definitely changed my mind on it. It isn't as moisturizing as my other lip balms since I love thick lip balms, but it's the perfect amount of color and moisture for my normal days. The color also brightens up my face without being a bright in your face red.

Instead of redoing my "base" products, I just added on to what I already had on. The previous look is great as a starter look to just tweak for a more dramatic look.

The products - 

MAC Cosmetics Pro Longwear Concealer in NC35 is a thick liquid concealer and a tiny bit does so much. I barely use half a pump to cover my acne marks and my under eye darkness. It dries to a matte finish and so it's a bit dry for my under eye area, but great for my face.

Givenchy Ombre Couture Cream Eyeshadow in #3 Rose Dentelle (review here) was my eye base of choice since it pairs up so nicely with the Naked 3 Palette. It's a cream, but dries to a powder finish. It doesn't crease and stays on all day for me. 

Urban Decay Naked 3 Palette is a rosey nude palette and you can read about it here! The colors I used are Burnout, Factory, and Burnout. I only used the tiniest bit of Burnout on the outer corner and mixed it with Factory for the outer half of my lower lashline. 

Marc Jacobs Beauty Highliner Eye Gel Crayon in Blacquer (review here) was used to tightline my upper lashline. It helped add an illusion of volume at the base of my lashes. 

Urban Decay Subversion Lash Primer is my newest lash primer and you can read about it here! It helps boost up my lashes and it's an extra step that I love to take.

NYX Butter Lipstick in Licorice is a dark purple that has a tiny bit of red warmth in it. It has a slight sheen when first applied and it stays that way on me for hours. It's one of my darkest lip colors and it's quickly gone to one of my favorites. 

What are your favorite fall / autumn makeup products?

Review & Swatches: Josie Maran Coconut Watercolor Eyeshadow in Rio De Rose Gold

Unblended / Blended out

Josie Maran Coconut Watercolor Eyeshadow in Rio De Rose Gold is a shimmering pink gold color that has been infused with coconut water for "more hydrated, healthier looking lids." It contains 0.16 ounces of product and retails for $18.00.

Review & Swatches: Urban Decay Subversion Lash Primer

Urban Decay Subversion Lash Primer is a white base / primer that helps boost the volume and length of your lashes. It has a whipped formula so it feels light on your lashes. There is also vitamin E and other conditioning ingredients in the primer to help with the health of your lashes. It contains 8.5 mL / 0.28 fl. oz. of product and retails for $20.

Ulta Haul ! ft. Makeup and Skincare

I mentioned that I bought two things from Sephora recently. Well, I just got some things from Ulta over the weekend too! I got some things I wanted and needed, but I also got some things for my sister for her early birthday and Christmas present that I do not have pictured. 

For some reason, I didn't think of taking pictures of the products out of their boxes. I will be reviewing these products anyway and will include actual product pictures in those posts! For this post, I will just touch on all of the products since I have tried them since I got them. 

For makeup - 

Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz in Soft Brown - is a light neutral brown and the pencil is so incredibly thin. There is also a small and spoolie included to help blend out the pencil.

NYX Butter Lipstick in Licorice is a dark purple lipstick. It goes on with a bit of a sheen, but then goes to a more matte finish. My sister mentioned wanting a purple lipstick and so I got two of this shade. I love it so far and it is perfect for fall.

NYX Lipliner Pencil in Mauve is exactly that - a mauve lip pencil. I heard this was a dupe for the famous Kylie Jenner signature lip color from MAC called Whirl. I've been getting into more nude-y / my lips but better colors and so I decided to try this out.

Urban Decay Subversion Lash Primer is a lash primer that was released at the same time as their Perversion mascara. I have reviewed that mascara here and I did say that Perversion wasn't worth it to me since it didn't hold my curl. I don't mind spending more for primers because I find that they help so much. Since Perversion gave me so much volume, I figured Subversion would help too. I only tried it out once and so I don't have a verdict yet.

Benefit Cosmetics Gimme Brow in Light / Medium is a brow gel with fibers to help the brows look more full. Since I lightened my hair, I also wanted to lighten my brows to make them match a tiny bit more. The gel does make my hairs look lighter and also more taupe-y - which is exactly what I wanted. 

Eucerin Gentle Hydrating Cleanser is my standard cleanser, but I don't use it everyday. I have an oil cleanser that I already talk about all the time, but the Eucerin cleanser also doubles as a brush cleaner for me. It gets rid of all the foundation in my sponges too.

Mario Badescu Glycolic Acid Toner is a chemical exfoliation product that will help with wrinkles and even acne marks. I sometimes use a glycolic acid peel, but I get lazy. With a lower percentage toner, it's a lot easier to apply everyday to help me get into a routine. 

Which product do you want me to talk about first?

I do have some other review posts lined up, but getting some feedback will help me prioritize what products need to be focused on first. I really appreciate any comments so please tell me what you think below!

EOTD - November 13, 2014 // Treasured Jewels

I haven't used some of the shades from my Wet 'n' Wild Comfort Zone Palette in awhile and so I decided to use the definer shade. It's a green and reddy brown duochrome, but it also has so many dupes if you don't have this shade. I also bought a bunch of teal / blue / green shadows lately and thought this Inglot shadow would be great with the Definer shade. 

Products used - 

• Urban Decay Primer Potion
• Wet 'n' Wild Comfort Zone Palette - Definer shade
• Inglot Freedom System AMC Eye Shadow Shine Square in #32
• LASplash Cosmetics Splashproof Sealer
• Maybelline Volum' Express The Rocket Waterproof Mascara in Very Black
• Urban Decay Naked 2 Basics Palette - Frisk in the brows and Skimp as a brow highlight
• Maybelline Fit Me! Shine-Free Stick Foundation in #220 Natural Beige
• MAC Cosmetics Pro Longwear Concealer in NC35
• Benefit Cosmetics Hoola Bronzing Powder

The Inglot shadow sometimes has fallout even throughout the day and so I paired it up with the LASplash base to make the shade more metallic and long lasting. 

For the right picture, I also threw on Givenchy Le Rouge Lipstick in Brun Createur because my lips looked a big dead. My face makeup was really boring and so I didn't want this to be labeled as a FOTD post, but I did list everything I used on my face. 

Would you wear this eye look?

FOTD - November 12, 2014 // Eyes on Marc (Jacobs)

I just got my Sephora VIB sale order this morning and I had to put it on my face right away! I only got two things, but you know that Sephora will hurt the wallet no matter how many products you get. I was planning on just eyeliner and curled lashes this morning, but since my order came, I decided to add more. 

For some reason, the coloring of the photos look different after being uploaded onto Blogger. The color of the makeup does look similar to real life, but the lighting is worse and I look more yellow. 

I got Marc Jacobs Beauty The Sky-Liner Set and that was the thing I really wanted to get from the sale. I'm wearing O(vert) in the inner half of the lids, Midnight in Paris in the outer half, and Sunset on the lower lashline. Midnight in Paris is absolutely beautiful and I'm so sad that it's limited edition. 

The other product I got was Bite Deluxe Matte Creme Lip Crayon in Aubergine. It's more warm than I thought it would be. I was hoping it would be more purple, but I still love it!

Other products

• It Cosmetics Your Skin But Better CC Cream with SPF 50+ in Medium (review here)
• MAC Cosmetics Pro Longwear Concealer in NC35 - another new product!
• Maybelline Volum' Express The Rocket Waterproof Mascara in Very Black 
• Maybelline Brow Drama Sculpting Brow Mascara in Deep Brown (review here)
• Benefit Hoola Bronzing Powder 

Here's an OOTD too! I don't wear shoes in my apartment, but I was also wearing red flats from Target. Cardigan and shirt is from Forever 21 and the leggings are from Asos. 

My glasses are from Marc Jacobs and so my eyes are totally decked out in Marc Jacobs and that made me happy.

How are you? 

I've been so busy and distracted that I haven't had a lot of time to catch up with the blogging world. 

haodoyoungo x lover.ly Makeup Inspiration #1 // The Chloe Dress

I was recently going through the Lover.ly website and was inspired by some of their dresses! If you didn't know (like me), Lover.ly is like a one stop shop for those interested in weddings. They have galleries of dresses for the bride that you can view here as well as bridesmaids dresses and wedding themes. There's also information for pricing and who you can call for wedding help. It feels like a Pinterest for weddings for me!

The Chloe Dress from The Temperley London immediately popped out to me when I was viewing their gallery and I fell in love. 

You can read more information about the dress here. I usually think of long trained and strapless dresses for wedding dresses and so I was a bit surprised that I was so drawn to it. The draping is so beautiful and I love the details to it. I could see myself wearing this on wedding day and it makes me so excited!

I didn't choose any crazy products to be paired up with this dress and it might even seem a bit boring, but I don't want something that's going to overwhelm the look of the dress. Because the dress made me so excited for my own day, the products and the look are stuff are based on my own more glam-ed up look.

A neutral eye would be really nice to give the eyes definition, but a winged liner is going to make the eyes stand out. I prefer pen style eyeliners right now because they make the most precise lines for me. For the liner, I have three suggestions for three different price ranges. 

The one in the above picture is the Marc Jacobs Beauty Magic Marc'er Precision Pen Waterproof Eyeliner in Blacquer ($30).  I personally don't have this liner, but my roommate does. I see her struggle to take it off every night because it is so waterproof. She's also not as obsessed with beauty with me, but she said it was really easy to use this liner. This eyeliner will stay strong throughout the wedding tears and still look beautiful.

The Stila Stay All Day Waterproof Liquid Eye Liner in Black ($20) is a mid-range liner that I always highly recommend. It's one of my personal favorites and I have repurchased it many times. The L'oreal Infallible The Super Slim Liquid Eyeliner (~$9) is more budget friendly and is also great. My sister uses this and she has very oily lids. It stays on all day and she can make the lines as thin or thick as she wants. 

For the cheeks, a rosy neutral blush like Benefit Cosmetic's Blush in Rockateur ($28) would be perfect. It's a great color that has a slight glow that looks very natural and beautiful both in pictures and real life. It's not shimmery and so it won't look too shiny or oily throughout the day. 

The lipstick has got to be a brick red to complete the modern classic look I'm thinking of. One of my favorite reds that anyone could wear is MAC Cosmetics Viva Glam I ($16). It has a slight blue base too which makes the teeth look more white. The matte finish keeps the lipstick more long lasting compared to other finishes to make it through the wedding. A more affordable dupe that is just as great is NYX Cosmetics Round Case Lipstick in Snow White (~$4). It has a satin finish that feels more creamy, but I found that it was just as long lasting as a matte lipstick. 

I hope you enjoyed this post and feel free to leave comments down below to tell me what you thought of it!

*I did not receive any compensation or sponsorship for this post. Everything I wrote are my own words and opinions. 

Another Hiatus - kind of!

I didn't post anything this week and I won't have the chance to post anything for awhile. I'm going to say 3-4 weeks this time, but I'm not sure. I only have one post on queue right now, but I'm going to pre-write and queue more posts during my hiatus. It sounds weird, but I want to make sure my pictures and reviews are to my standards before I post them. I'd rather take my time than to just post them to make my own posting schedule right now.

As for why I'm going on another hiatus, I have two jobs now and I'm also juggling a research position and classes. I mentioned before, but most of my classes/on campus job end around 5pm and so there's no good light source for me to take swatch pictures in. I also use my Ottlight, but I like natural sunlight better. 

I'm sorry for not saying anything earlier and I hope you understand!

I'm going to post some things here and there, but not as frequent or regular as before.

I'll be back before you know it!

Review & Swatches: Inglot Freedom System Eye Shadow Pearl Square in #407

Inglot Freedom System Eye Shadow Pearl Square in #407 is a more complex color that it looks in the pan. It a warm orangey peach shade with a gold sheen and Inglot describes the finish as pearlescent. It contains 2.7 grams / 0.10 ounces of product and retails for $7.

Review & Swatches: Maybelline Color Sensational Creamy Matte Lip Color in Touch of Spice

Maybelline Color Sensational Creamy Matte Lip Color in Touch of Spice is a neutral mauve lipstick with a tiny bit of plum. Matte lipsticks have a reputation of being dry, but Maybelline claims that this line of matte lipsticks will slip onto the lips with its creamy formula. It contains .15 oz. / 4.2 grams of product and the price can retails between $5-$8. 

Makeup Lust List #3

I have a short post and wishlist for today! Holiday Sets are being released and they're all so lovely. I've had my eye on two particular sets, but I'm still deciding if I actually really do want them. Some sales are coming up soon and so I have a bit more time to look into them.

Benefit Cheeky Sweet Spot Box O' Blushes - This blush palette contains 6 of their box powders and even though I already own two (Hoola and Rockateur), I want this so much. I know I'm too dark for Dandelion, but I heard that the the other three should still show up on me. Watt's Up is included with this set and I also have two deluxe samples of that. The packaging is so cute and convenient, but I'm trying to see if it's worth repurchasing products that I'm not even close to finishing. 

Marc Jacobs Beauty The Sky-Liner Seven Piece Petite Highliner Collection - I also have two out of seven of the liners, but I go through eye liners faster than blushes. I tend to buy Urban Decay eye liner sets, but I'd much rather buy this Marc Jacobs set because I love their eye liners more. 

NARS Smudge Proof Eyeshadow Base - Eyeshadows have been creasing on me lately and I don't understand! I haven't changed anything but even my trusted products that never crease are creasing on me. I've heard that the NARS base is great for oily lids, but it does have an expensive price tag. I'm going to wait a bit longer and experiment with what I have, but this is definitely going on my lust list to remind myself to look into this even more. 

What's on your makeup lust list?

Review & Swatches: Marc Jacobs Beauty Highliner Gel Eye Crayon in (Luna)Tic

Marc Jacobs Highliner Gel Eye Crayon in (Luna)Tic is a metallic pale lavender and I do see that, but there's also silver glitter like in Brown(Out). It is waterproof and the claims include having a smooth application and being long wearing. It contains 0.5 grams and retails for $25. 

Hao Are You? #8 // Exciting and Scary Times

Please excuse the apple in the middle picture. I was wearing a top that showed my stomach and for some reason, I feel embarrassed about it now. I also love apples and thought might as well use an apple sticker to cover that area. 

What have you been up to?

School just started back up and I'm a lot busier than I thought I would be. I got a job at a makeup store (eep!) and I'm so excited about it. Weekends were supposed to be my break, but I couldn't help but apply because I love makeup. 

I'm trying to figure out how my blogging will work from here on out because most of my days (and sunlight) is spent at work or school. I prefer natural lighting for my pictures and so I'm having trouble finding time to take swatch pictures. 

If you didn't notice, I'm also lightening my hair. I can't decide if I want to go blonde or lavender / silver. Right now, it's really brassy and orange though. It's starting to grow on me and reminds me of Hayley Williams and so I'm not sure what I want to do. I do look slightly ridiculous because my roots are more yellow then the rest of my hair. 

What are you looking forward to?

I'm super nervous about working at a new place, but I'm so excited too. It's obviously something that I'm interested in, but retail is so much different from what I'm doing now. The socks on the third picture are the socks I wore to my first day and they're from one of my best friends. They make me laugh and so I wore them to have a little bit of an inside joke to keep me more calm throughout the day. 

My boyfriend also transferred to a UC and now we're 1.5 hours apart instead of 6 hours. We get to see each other a lot more and it makes me so happy. He's been my best friend for 16ish years and my boyfriend for a little over 3 years and so it's great to be able to see each other more than once every 2-3 months now.

How have you been?

Products I've Repurchased #2

I picked up some basics again and these products have a permanent part in my collection now. 

Makeup Forever HD Foundation in #127 Dark Sand (review here) is my go - to foundation for both the pictures that'll go on my blog and in real life. It doesn't cover everything, but covers enough. It also stays looking beautiful all day. 

Mally Evercolor Poreless Face Defender (revew here) was recently on sale at Ulta and I took the opportunity to snatch one up. I've bought this 3 times already and it sets my makeup so nice without making it look cakey or unnatural. 

NYX Stay Matte But Not Flat Powder Foundation in #2 Nude (review here) helps me set my foundation but doesn't make my face look powdery. I also like using it by itself when I'm in a rush. It doesn't keep my face matte, but keeps a natural sheen. It's not dewey and it's not matte, but somewhere in between. 

L'oreal Shocking Extensions Waterproof Mascara in Blackest Black has plastic bristles that define and lengthen my lashes so much. The wand is flattened and the bristles are mostly on edges. It doesn't give me that much volume though.

Maybelline Volum' Express the Rocket Waterproof Mascara in Very Black (review here) is what I use when I want more volume. The bristles are short and so they never poke my eyes or go onto my lids. 

What are some of your recent repurchases? 

Review & Swatches: Revlon Colorstay Skinny Liquid Liner in Electric Blue

Revlon Colorstay Skinny Liquid Liner in Electric Blue is a bright blue liner that has a 0.1mm felt tip applicator. Its claims include staying on all day with bold color from just one swipe. It contains 0.08 fluid ounces / 2.5 mL of product.

Review & Swatches: Maybelline Brow Drama Sculpting Brow Mascara in Deep Brown

Maybelline Brow Drama Sculpting Brow Mascara in Deep Brown is a tinted gel mousse for the brows and it has a "ball brush." It's supposed to give a even, natural, comfortable hold without clumping or flaking. 

Review & Swatches: Life's Entropy Eyeshadow / Pigment in Happy Annibearsary, Oh Deer, Dismember, and Moonlight Shadow

Makeup Look: Captain America Inspired Eye Look

Taken before I added black mascara on the bottom lashes 

I was trying out Etude House Play 101 Pencil in #21 on my eyes and then I started to add stuff on top until I created this look. The title says "Captain America" inspired, but I started to see a Captain America- ish vibe after I finished it. 

It's totally not everyday, but it was interesting incorporating red eyeshadow into my look. Red eyeshadow could make eyes look really tired, but the thick black wing creates a barrier between the eye and shadow. 

Products used - 

• Etude House Play 101 Pencil in #21(review here)
• Inglot Freedom System AMC Blush in #58 (review here)
• Applied on top of the red base and blended out 
• Urban Decay Eyeshadow in Broken (Theodora palette)
• Applied on the brow bone and to help blend out the blush more
• Stila Stay All Day Waterproof Liquid Eye Liner in Black (review here)
• Geek Chic Cosmetics Eye Shadow in Don't Blink (review here)
• Applied on the outer half of the lower lash line
• L'oreal Telescopic Shocking Extensions Waterproof Mascara in Blackest Black 
• As a base for the next product and reapplied again on top of the lower lashes
• Life's Entropy Eyeshadow / Pigment in Moonlight Shadow
• Applied wet using a slanted doe foot applicator on the lashes and also dry on the inner corner and inner half of the lower lash line
• Anastasia Beverly Hills Dipbrow Pomade in Dark Brown

One Brand Focus and Look ft. Maybelline!

I recently bought more Maybelline products and I realized that I had enough to do a full makeup look. Some products I love and some I'm very "eh" about. I don't have a powder or blush from Maybelline though. I don't like powdering anymore and I rarely wear blush. 

Maybelline is usually my go-to brand for mascaras, but I've started to really love their foundations. The two I've tried makes my skin look so nice and they're also very easy to use in a rush in the mornings. 

The look I have above is a very no-makeup makeup look. I have a wash of color on my lids and color was also added into my face with a plummy mauve lipstick. 

I'm going to talk about the products I used for the look above, but I'm also going to touch on some other products I have tried from Maybelline.

Baby Skin Instant Pore Eraser is a primer that is supposed to help lessen the appearance of pores. I find that you have to be very careful in using this sometimes because having too much can make the face feel slippery. It helps foundation slide on, but the slip can stay and then make the foundation slide off. 

Dream Smooth Mousse Foundation in #240 Natural Beige (review here) gives me such a nice finish on my skin. I like a more natural / satin finish. My skin is more on the dry side and so I like the added moisture from this foundation too. 

Volum' Express The Rocket Waterproof Mascara in Very Black (review here) gives me defined lashes but also volume. It lasts all day and keeps my curl. I've repurchased this mascara multiple times and I also have a backup too. It's one of my favorite mascaras to use and it's a great "base" for other mascaras that don't hold my curl. 

Color Tattoo in Bad to the Bronze is a product I don't love from Maybelline. After the first month or so, I saw the product pulling from the edges and drying up. It's a very shimmery taupey bronze color and makes everything on top super shimmery too. I'm still going to use it since it is a quick color to put all over the lids, but I much prefer other cream eye shadows. 

Color Sensational Matte Lipstick in #660 Touch of Spice is a recent addition to my collection and I'm still testing it out. It is completely matte and so creamy. I had another lipstick from Maybelline that you can read about here and I hated it. The color was so patchy and made my lips so dry. Touch of Spice is a plummy mauve color that works great as a MLBB for me. 

Brow Drama Sculpting Brow Mascara in Dark Brown is the other recent addition and I quite like it. It adds hold and a natural tint to my brows. I've been using other brow products that give me darker and defined brows, but I wanted to take a step back. This is exactly what i wanted right now. It doesn't seem to do much in the pictures above, but there is a difference because my brows look so naturally groomed after using it. 

Keep reading to see other Maybelline products I've tried !

Manicure Monday: Ciaté Paint Pot in Members Only

I recently realized that Sephora has a 3 for $18 deal for Ciaté's Mini Paint Pots and one of the shades I got was Members Only. Sephora describes it as a nude, but I would say that it's a sheer light pink with gold shimmer. The shimmer and base color kind of mix together and make a nude peach color depending on how you look at your nails. 

I had to use three coats and the there was still some sheerness to it. Normally I would hate that, but since it's a light and neutral color, I actually quite love it. I can imagine myself wearing this for weddings, work, and just every day. I've been searching for a light pinky color for awhile and this is exactly what I want. 

I started seeing chipping around the 5th day, which is standard for me. Like always, I use CND Stickey Base Coat and Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Top Coat.

What are you wearing on your nails this week?