I've only been trying this one for about four days, but I have to tap out early because I can't stand it anymore.
This lip gloss is part of the possibly now-defunct Carmindy for Sally Hansen line, which is a shame because a lot of the other products from this range were great.
This gloss, however, is something of a nightmare. The shame of it is that it looks really nice. As you can see from the photo below, it has a sheer, warm berry color that gives the lips a hydrated look without having that "porn star" gloss effect.
I've been wanting to do this for a while because my makeup collection is beyond out of control. What really clinched it was that today I was wandering around a drug store and felt frustrated because I literally couldn't think of a single makeup product that I didn't have, which meant I couldn't really justify buying something new.
Put simply, something is probably wrong when you're disappointed that you have everything you need.
So what I propose (for myself, but you're free to follow along) is the following:
A freeze on makeup purchasing from now until November 28th of 2013.
There are probably about a hundred videos for each of these iconic '50s and '60s beauties all over YouTube, but Lisa Eldridge's tutorials are objectively head and shoulders above the rest.
Not only does Eldridge dig into the annals of time to find the exact products that Marilyn used, for instance, but her intimate knowledge of how the makeup artists for both women achieved the exact look -- which includes subtle shading, pencil work and highlighting -- makes these videos feel more like documentaries than simple makeup tutorials.
I know I featured an Eldridge video last week, but these were too good not to share.
I'm a big proponent of embracing curls and waves. Years with a flat-iron or blow dryer is just going to leave you with very thin, brittle hair when you're older. If you get comfortable with your hair's natural texture now, you can find a method for keeping it in great, shiny shape without having to sacrifice its health down the line.
First, a great resource for all things wavy/curly is www.naturallycurly.com -- particularly the CurlTalk section where people trade tips and reviews. From years of browsing their forums and testing out my own theories, I've come up with 5 of the most effective pieces of advice that I've put into practice and gotten a great result from.
According to Canoe, Chanel's newest line (created by the legendary Peter Philips) will be a capsule collection inspired by the palace of Versailles. Says Canoe:
Packaged in the classic Chanel compact box, the concealer is
designed to transfer the pomp and splendor of life in the royal
household into modern life, and is embossed in relief with an
architectural detail from the famous Château. Pink lipstick,
eyeshadow and blusher complete the collection.
When I first heard this, I was at least hoping that it would be taking its cues from the beauties who lived inside the palace -- namely the infamous Marie Antoinette who, according to her portraiture, loved an enormous amount of rouge and blue eyeshadow -- but instead it just seems like it's affecting the packaging, while the cosmetics inside are essentially whatever Philips wants them to be.
I'm sure it'll look pretty, but it seems as though more thought could've gone into this. Why not some let them eat cake pink gloss, poor circulation blue eyeshadow, a highlighting powder inspired by the sparkling tears of the poor or free-flowing neck wound red lipstick?
The collection is due out on December 1st of this year. Decapitation is optional.
Lisa Eldridge is a renowned makeup artist currently repping for Chanel, which means she's responsible for making Keira Knightley look beautiful for big premieres and events. Elridge's work, as you've seen on Knightley for the past few years, is gorgeous (picture below).
Thankfully, she often posts videos of how she achieved particular looks, including the one below. But what I really love is her red lip guide. First, because she starts by saying she doesn't much believe in the "rules" when it comes to red lips, and also because she shares my belief that red lips look best "out of context" -- ie. with a sweater and jeans rather than a full-on gown.
Those obsessed with the teeny-bopper makeup gurus should really be watching the fantastic Elridge instead. Why take tips from a kid who's worked a make-up counter when you can listen to a seasoned and talented artist?
We're already at Week 2, which means I need new goo to review.
Given that my products span just about every beauty category, I'm kind of pulling things at random that I can be sure I'll use daily so that I can fairly and accurate review them all. So, in light of that, I've made myself a complete "face" for this week and I'll see how I like it by next Monday.
About a week ago, I began the harrowing project of documenting and reviewing my massive collection of goo to decide what stays and what goes. Without further ado, here are the results of the first batch:
On a recent Pixiwoo Madness video, MakeupWithJane commented that she'd seen Samantha Chapman's Real Techniques line at a Victoria London Drugs, but despite scouring Vancouver for the brushes last week, I couldn't find them anywhere.
Looks like they were just a bit late coming to the mainland. This morning, at the Granville location, I found all three sets -- face, eyes and travel -- in a display in the cosmetics section. Sadly, the individual brushes are not yet available, but I noticed that there seemed to be a clearance on the Eco Tools brushes, so they may be making room for Chapman's line instead.
I'd be much happier seeing Real Techniques get a full section than London Looks -- given that Sam's brushes are half the price and much better quality.
In any event, I can't wait to try out my new brushes and follow the tutorials with a bit more precision and accuracy.
If you type "burgundy lips" into Google images, you'll find lip colors ranging anywhere from deep red to light mauve. It's the hot new lip color for Fall, but no one seems to be able to agree on what burgundy is. My impression has always been that burgundy is a deep red/purple wine color, but the lips above prove that even that doesn't narrow it down much.
Ditto the Oxblood phenomenon with nail lacquer.
You'll find a lot of articles advising you how to avoid looking overpowered by a deep burgundy, or washed out by a matte burgundy, or too splotchy from a hot pink burgundy -- further confusing matters. In a recent article in Vancouver's Metro, YouTube makeup artist Tanya Burr recommended MAC's Rebel as a great burgundy for deep skin tones. For reference, this is Rebel on Christine from Temptalia:
For most skin care companies, "problem-free" skin doesn't exist. Above is Clinique's Skin Type abacus where women can determine whether their skin better resembles a grease slick or a a set of flaky fish scales or -- if you're really lucky -- a combination of the two.
I remember poring over this in-store questionnaire at 14, wondering how my face failed to fit into any of these categories. Instead of feeling proud that I wasn't dry, oily or some combination of the two, I worried that there must be something wrong with me for not having skin that could be cured by any number of the multi-colored bottles at the cosmetics counter. Because surely all skin needed curing. So, because I was very pale, I convinced myself that I had sensitive skin -- surely there was a grey cloud in that silver lining if I could just find it. I used any number of hypo-allergenic, gentle, alcohol-free products that likely did nothing for me (though, to be fair, didn't hurt, either).
Late Fall is my favorite time of
year – sweaters, hot drinks, wellington boots and, of course, massive beauty
bundles. The bundles that come out for Christmas
are a makeup junkie’s dream since you can safely buy discounted skincare
regimes or makeup palettes in early November with the minimum amount of guilt
required (especially for people who, like me, don’t properly start shopping
until December).
Since I
started the makeup trunk overhaul, I’ve been trying to avoid buying new
products, but right before I started the blog I got Marcelle’s Hydra-C Radiance
collection so I'll give it an early review one week into the daily use of all four products.
The whole kit was $39.95 altogether (and came with a
somewhat cheap-looking sequin clutch that will, at least, make a nice makeup
bag), but if purchased separately you’d be looking at $73.90, so it's a pretty big savings.
I got mine from the London Drugs on Granville, but I’ve been them for
sale at the Shoppers Drug Mart as well.
Those looking for helpful tips on how to get a great smokey eye like Candice Swanepoel or rosy cheeks like Miranda Kerr will be disappointed by the recent press release from VS makeup artist, Tom Pecheux. The Daily Glow offers the following summary:
Pixiwoo is, hands down, the best source for online cosmetics tutorials. Professional makeup artists and sisters Samantha and Nicola Chapman show off their skills with everything from basic day makeup routines to avant-garde, high-fashion work.
Their Bond Girl series has been particularly great and Samantha's Solitaire (from 1973's Live and Let Die, played by Medicine Woman Jane Seymour) highlights her talents both for copying and beautifully updating vintage makeup styles.
Though this video is a couple of weeks old, it stands out as the best thing the sisters have done recently, and is my favorite video of the week.
In a recent video, Jenna
Marbles discussed a little-talked about but terrible female condition
known as "goo hoarding" -- the conscious collecting and storing of
endless half-empty shampoo, conditioner and/or body wash bottles that
litter your bathroom and fistfulls of lip, eye, hair and skin products
that inhabit your bag, bedside table and various drawers.
We
goo-hoard, according to Jenna, because we're always lured away from our
current product in hopes that the next one will be better; that there's
something about this particular brown eyeshadow that's unlike every
other brown eyeshadow you own.
But where the shame cycle really
begins is when you promise yourself that you won't buy another lip
gloss/lip stick/whatever until you've finished what you have, and yet
you can't drag yourself away from a makeup section without finding yet
another new product.
I found Jenna's confession uncomfortably
familiar, so my plan -- over the next few weeks and months -- is to
document my goo-hoarding and make hard decisions on what needs to see
the garbage, what deserves a second chance, and what gets Holy Grail
status among my make-up, hair and body products.
What I plan to do is spend a week using five items consistently. At the end of that week, I can decide what stays and what goes.
This week, those five items are:
