Long time no post. So I figured I’d post some fall inspired makeup looks. If you’re interested in product lists, click here to read after the jump!

What's in my Travel Makeup Bag?

I finally managed to get some time off to visit my family back home in Texas, so I figured I could do a quick post on the makeup I took with me. The lip and cheek products are some of my faves for the summertime, so hopefully they will be interesting if you are looking for any new summer products :)

The makeup bag I took with me was my neon pink Ted Baker bag. I LOVE the color. I also unfortunately love every other color that this bag comes in…and it was a serious dilemma picking this one out since the neon yellow and mint were serious contenders as well. The material of this bag allows for easy clean up with a makeup wipe or paper towel and it’s quite roomy.



During the summertime I like to use a light weight foundation and supplement with fuller coverage concealers for any blemishes. I really like that the Laura Mercier concealers are thick and peach/orange toned since they last through just about anything. I recently re-discovered my MUFE HD powder and am kicking myself for ever having put it in the back of my drawer.



Ah the cheek products. You’ll notice that I really like peach/orange/bronze products for the cheeks and lips in the summer! I like to layer a cream blush with a powder blush for added staying power and the MAC MSF in Cheeky Bronze is basically my new holy grail summer item. I highly recommend checking it out if you have a medium/tan complexion for use as a blush topper or highlighter. If you have fair skin, I bet it would be a fantastic bronze goddess all over bronzer :)







For the lips I brought a few bold options and a more neutral one. Again, I love peach/orange so Maybelline Vibrant Mandarin and MAC Ravishing were a no brainer. For an alternative bright I packed MAC Girl About Town and to tone down any of the colors I added my MAC Cremesheen Glass in Kiss Don’t Tell (sadly LE but one of my ultimate fav lip glosses). I added the MUFE Aqua Lip Liners because I find they last really well through meals, and a trip home always means lots of eating.





I packed pretty basic for my eyes and eyebrows. The Smashbox eye primer is my new holy grail primer (previously NARS, but this one is just as good and cheaper) and a must have for the summertime.



Last but not least, I included two palettes by LORAC. I love how compact the packaging is and am pretty much obsessed with all the colors inside. The texture of the powders are so buttery smooth and pigmented, and there’s plenty of neutrals along with a few pops of color. I pretty much planned to keep my eyelids neutral and play up the color on my cheeks and lips.





That wraps up what I packed for my trip!

Modern Pewter

Please excuse the bangs, I didn't realize they were in the way until I went to upload the pictures.

Eyeshadow Base: Maybelline Color Tattoo Nude Compliment 90

Lid: MAC Modern Pewter Extra Dimension eyeshadow

Crease: Jane Clay

Outer V: Jane Willow

Winged Liner: Bobbi Brown Black Mauve Shimmer Ink

Waterline: MAC Graphblack Technakohl liner

Mascara: Too Faced Lash Injection (not really in love with this, but am going to keep testing it out)

New Drugstore Makeup 2014: Eyes!

The drugstore is chock full of brand new items, which is super exciting! I find it easy to get a bit bored with the drugstore every now and then, so the beginning of the year is one of my favorite times to check out all of the new or reformulated products that all the drugstore brands bring out. In particular with regards to the eye products, I was drawn to the Wet n Wild, Maybelline and Loreal releases.

I guess we'll start off with my favorite finds, which come from Wet n Wild. This is probably my go-to brand for pigmented eyeshadows at the drugstore and for 2014 there are a number of new 5 pan eyeshadow palettes and single shadows that have been launched and will be part of the permanent line. I picked up one of the 5 pan palettes, and 2 of the single eyeshadows whose colors have been in the line but I think the formula has been reformulated (they were part of the "new" display). The two single shadows I picked up were in Brule and Nutty and o.m.g. the texture on these is incredibly buttery. The pigmentation is ridiculous and I've particularly fallen in love with Nutty which is a beautiful shimmery taupe-y brown. These retail for 99 cents, but I was able to pick them up for 69 cents a piece on sale.

 

 The camera doesn't even do Nutty justice, it is so beautiful in person.

I also grabbed the new 5 pan neutral palette called "The Naked Truth". I don't think the pigmentation and texture are quite as impressive as the singles, but they still pack a good punch and the configuration of finishes and colors is really lovely for everyday. These retail for $3.59 but there was an instant $1 off coupon on the palette so I got it for $2.59!

 

 

The definer and base color are matte, the browbone and eyelid are satin/shimmer and the crease color is a shimmer with gold flecks.

Alongside the new Wet n Wild products, I was able to locate a giant display with Maybelline products. A number of the single shadows and quads, which tout a reformulated more pigmented formula caught my eye. Keeping with the theme, I picked up a lot of neutral every day wear colors.

For the singles, Maybelline had 3 shadows that were in the taupe family, and I picked up the two that were a bit darker.

 

 

I don't actually have any experience with Maybelline singles, but I think they are reasonably pigmented and smooth. They are also very easy to build up and I can definitely see myself using Tastefully Taupe for a one eyeshadow casual look. These retail for $4.59 at my local CVS and they have a deal going where you get $5 for every $15 you spend.

The Maybelline quads however, I was really impressed with! There's a mixture of textures and the color combinations are well thought out. I think they are more pigmented than the singles. I've already worn these a few days in a row and I highly recommend checking them out. The quads retail for $8.59 at my local CVS.

 

 

 

I am really loving the Stylish Smokes quad and have no idea why it never caught my eye before. I think when I had previously tried the eyeshadow formula from Maybelline I wasn't impressed so I never thought to take a look at the color combinations.

Lastly, I noticed a new eyeliner display from Loreal. The eyeliner that caught my eye is the Silkissime liner in "Highlighter" which retails for $10.49. It's a lovely rose gold liner that is creamy and soft, perfect for brightening both the inner rim of the eye as well as the inner corner. I have a feeling that this is probably very similar to the rose gold liner that the Em Cosmetics line carries since Loreal is the parent brand. Not sure on the wear time and performance, but the color appears to be identical. 

That's all I've picked up for now for new eye products, but I'll be uploading another post soon with some lip products and face products that also caught my attention :)

Tanaya: 22nd Birthday Look

I just wanted to share another look I was able to do for a friend on her 22nd birthday. Although her birthday was in the summer time, I still think it would be a fantastic holiday look to rock with a black or red dress :) Tanaya is one of my best friends and has a phenomenal tan skin tone and amazing cheekbones. Hope you all enjoy!

Review: Maybelline Color Elixir

I was browsing the makeup section in Bed Bath and Beyond earlier this week (really quite extensive and always seems to have the newest products with plenty in stock) and came across the Maybelline Color Elixir lip glosses. The display had 20 colors in it, and I ended up getting two of them both of which I really liked for the fall. At Bed Bath and Beyond they retail for $6.49 a piece, and contain 0.15 oz of product. They come in small glass vials, and have the shape of a lipstick if you turn them upside down.

Maybelline claims that they "deliver the color of a lipstick, the care of a balm and the glass shine of a gloss". I think I would agree with the last two statements, but they aren't quite as opaque as a lipstick. For a lip gloss though, they are definitely on the pigmented side and aren't your sheer color. I have a dark spot on my lip which is almost nearly concealed by these glosses, so I would call them semi-opaque. I selected number 50, Caviar Couture and number 70, Intoxicating Spice. Caviar Couture is a deep berry plum shot through with some fine sparkle, but doesn't feel gritty at all going on. Intoxicating spice is a lovely browny-red and is a cream. The applicator for the glosses is a doe-foot with a very pointy tip which I love for precision application. They slide on very smoothly and feel comfortable to wear on the lips. I don't find them particularly sticky and they last 2-3 hours on the lips so long as you aren't doing any heavy eating and drinking. I'm not sure if they truly have the care of a balm, but my lips never feel dried out when wearing these and I don't feel the need to reach for my lip balm in between applications every few hours.

Overall, I am quite pleased with these glosses and love the variety of colors that were available in the display. Perhaps in the spring time I will pick up a few of the brighter colors to add to my collection :)

Photos of Products and Swatches Below!

Makeup of the day, I’m really loving coral cheeks and lips with fresh natural skin.