Category Archives: Makeup

May 2013 Empties

This month I gave away more things than I used up, so the “empties” don’t look like much.

Nuance Full Effect Ultra-Volumizing mascara – It started to dry out and flake, so I decided to retire it. It was just okay. I probably won’t buy it again.

Urban Decay Primer Potion in Eden (mini) – It started to get watery and oily, which I don’t think it’s supposed to do. When I’ve used it in the past, shadows would still crease. So. Goodbye!

Lancome eye cream that went with this “eye veil” – I finally used it up. I had depotted it into a screw top jar.

Bath & Body Works candle in Market Peach (mini) – This scent was really nice. It didn’t smell artificial at all; in fact, my mouth would water when I smelled this because it really did smell like a fresh peach! As you can see, I’ve repurposed it into a toothpick holder. I have a post planned for that, but it’s nothing groundbreaking. You freeze it, remove the leftover wax, wash it, then pop the toothpicks in. Genius, I know.

The Body Shop shower gel in Strawberry – About a year or so ago, I bought a set of 5 mini body washes, and this is the second to the last one left. I like to keep the bottles and remove the labels so I can refill them when I go traveling.

Not pictured:

The Body Shop Nature’s Minerals kabuki brush – I bought a lot of new brushes lately, and I decided that I didn’t need two of these after all. I gave this to my sister.

NYX single eyeshadow in Hunter Green
Too Faced Galaxy eyeshadow in Deep Space
Urban Decay eyeshadow in Uzi
Rimmel Play Fast nail polish in Camouflage – I gave these to my sister’s friend, Lena.

Burt’s Bees Mango & Orange Energizing Body Bar – I originally bought this to wash my makeup brushes. However, it leaves a slight residue on the bristles when they’re dry, so I started using Dr. Bronner’s castile soap with a bit of olive oil and I’ve found that it works much better. I used up the body bar in the shower.

May’s count:
Full size: 7
Travel size: 3
Sample size: 1

Year-to-date:
Full size: 49
Travel size: 21
Sample size: 15

Also, I’ve actually used quite a number of tiny samples from The Body Shop, but that’s because… I just started a part-time job there! Most of these samples were one-time uses, so I didn’t bother to count them. On that same note, I’ve bought more makeup. They require that I wear a full face of makeup by The Body Shop, and while I have a lot of products, I didn’t necessarily have enough products from The Body Shop to be able to do a full face. So those were “necessary” purchases.

If you’re keeping track of your monthly empties, how’s your progress?

2013 Makeup Gifts

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This is a follow-up to the 2013 Makeup Pickups post. I guess you could call these my “cheating” pickups.” My birthday was in February, so in order to get around my ban, I asked for makeup for presents. Because, duh.

I didn’t get too many new things, right? >.>

Krystal got me Tarte’s Amazonian Clay Blush in Tipsy, which I’ve been wanting since forever. I’m really really glad I asked for it too, even if it was cheating. I love this blush and I’ve used it quite a bit since I got it.

Jackie got me all the Urban Decay stuff. Both urbandecay.com and allcosmeticswholesale.com were having pretty sweet sales on the UD stuff, and she was already going to pick up a few things for herself, so I asked for a few for me. Jumped through that loophole like nobody’s business!

She got me the cream shadow in Suburbia, the eyeshadow in Woodstock, and the Stardust eyeshadows in Moon Spoon and Diamond Dog. Unlike Tipsy, I can’t say I’ve used these much. I haven’t even touched Woodstock, other than swatching it. Still, I like them all because they’re still “new” to me, and I’m determined to use them eventually!

Swatches to come!

This concludes all my makeup pickups this year. I’ve also gotten a fair number of brushes as well, but I’m not counting them because they don’t expire the way makeup products do. I’ll do a few posts on my new brushes too. Found some new loves!

What have you picked up recently? Loving it? Regretting it?

Swatches: theBalm Mary-Lou Manizer and Overshadows (Work is Overrated and No Money, No Honey)

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Heyyy, so remember how I was supposed to go through all that I’ve bought in 2013 and post swatches of them? Well, here’s the last of them, from Hautelook’s theBalm sale ages ago.

theBalm’s Mary-Lou Manizer. This is a nice highlight powder that I didn’t actually end up counting as a “purchase I need to cancel out” because I don’t have any other highlighters… or so I thought. I forgot about Too Faced’s Snow Bunny, which is labeled as a “winter bronzer” but works nicely as a highlighter as well. Whatever, it doesn’t hurt to have two.

Anyway, in the above swatches, the left is one swipe and the right is blended out. This is pretty pigmented and frosty, so a light touch is needed. It’s also really powdery. I swirled too vigorously with my brush one day and it kicked up way too much powder.

I’ve been using it for the past few months whenever I do my makeup, and I like the effect. In my opinion, highlighters aren’t a “must-have” (especially since I live in Hawaii and therefore have a tendency to get shiny halfway through the day) but when I do use them, the difference is noticeable, yet subtle.

theBalm’s Overshadows in Work is Overrated and No Money, No Honey. The two loose shadows that I bought on impulse. I think I’ve used them maybe once each since I got them in February. Haha.

Incidentally, theBalm was on Hautelook again recently, and I was tempted to buy the other two Overshadows just so I could “complete the collection.” I refrained this time, though! I really don’t need another eyeshadow, loose or pressed, for the rest of my life.

In other news, I’m trying out a new format for my product swatches. I’m using PicFrame and adding a bit of text. Still fudging with it as I go along. What do you guys think? Any tips or suggestions?

OMG, Hautelook. Stop it, you saucy minx.

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One of the down sides of going off the grid for a few days is that I haven’t been keeping up with sales! Apparently there are some major deals going around that I’ve been blissfully unaware of!

I checked Hautelook this morning on my phone, and I literally sat up in bed in excitement when I saw what was on sale:

B. Makowsky handbags. I have one, and so does my sister. They’re beautifully designed bags with lots of pockets! However, mine is really heavy and big, so I’ve stopped using it. There are a few that pique my interest, like the Studded Leather Satchel and the Triple Zip Small Leather Satchel. In black, plskthx.

Tarte. I love Tarte! I love their brand ethics (natural ingredients and cruelty-free), and they have really great products. My favorite lately has been their Amazonian Clay bronzer in Park Avenue Princess, but unfortunately the travel size set that was on sale is now sold out.

I have an inkling that Hautelook is having all these awesome sales because they’re offering free shipping until May 8th. So, in theory, you could order something today, and if you see something you want tomorrow, you could order it as well, without feeling annoyed about paying for shipping twice. You sneaky devil, you!

However, I’m pretty strapped for cash. Right now I’m surviving through the kindness of my boyfriend who doesn’t like to see me starve or sleep on the streets, so he buys me food and lets me share his bed for free. :P So, thank you Albert, and no shopping for me!

My personal invite link to Hautelook.

Stila is on Hautelook again!

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Just got this email from Hautelook and Stila’s on sale until Wednesday, 8AM Pacific time!

As always, I’m sorely tempted, this time by the Long Wear Liquid Lip Color in Fiery, which I mentioned before that I’ve wanted for awhile. It’s only $8! Damn you, Hautelook!

Also, Hautelook is offering free shipping on orders over $100 from now until May 8th. International orders and all items over 5 lbs. are excluded. I wonder if Hawaii is included in the free shipping…?

My personal invite link here. (If you join and purchase, I get a $10 credit. However, you can sign up through Facebook or your email too.)

Lastly, I’ve come down with a tiny cold. :( Yesterday was tricky. It was nice and sunny, so I went out without my coat, but then it got cloudy and cold-ish again. I stayed in all day today, in hopes that some rest is all I need to feel better, and I can go out and do things for the rest of the time I’m here. Albert’s coming home soon, and we’re making soup for dinner. He’s feeling a bit under the weather as well. Sniffle sniffle.

Six Beauty Products I Can’t Live Without

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Post inspired by Sam. Read my previous post on six beauty tools I can’t live without here.

Now time for the cosmetics!

1. Urban Decay 24/7 eyeliner in Corrupt: I love this color. I love it more than Zero. It’s a dark brown, so it looks more natural than black. I use it when I want to more subtle look.

2. Mascara: This is just mascara in general. I’m currently using Nuance by Salma Hayek’s Full Effect Ultra-Volumizing. It’s just okay. I love mascara, but I have yet to find one that’s in my price range (i.e. drugstore!) and cruelty-free. I bought Physician’s Formula Organic Wear Lash Boosting mascara a couple days ago, so we’ll see how that goes.

3. Burt’s Bees lip balm: In general I prefer tinted lip balm (which this one isn’t). I do love Burt’s Bees, though. I used to have one of their tinted lip balms in Rose, and I used it all up! I actually like Fresh’s tinted lip balms more, because the formula feels so luxurious, but I can’t bring myself to spend over $20 for a lip balm. Burt’s Bees is a nice, cheaper alternative.

4. Burt’s Bees Lemon Butter Cuticle Cream: I use this religiously. My cuticles are constantly dry, so I’m always trying to keep them moisturized and happy. I recently bought butter LONDON’s Cuticle Eliminator, so I hope that will help too with my cuticle problem! But in the meantime, pan porn!: burts bees cuticle cream pan Look at that pan! Look at all that love!

5. Benefit Sugarbomb: I love this blush. It’s the perfect everyday blush. It’s a sheer peachy pink that’s almost impossible to overdo and/or goof up. When I’m short on time and need something to make me look alive, I reach for this. I also love that it smells good, and the fill weight is GIGANTIC. It’s 12g! (A MAC blush is 6g, and NARS is 4.8g.) I doubt I’m ever going to see pan on this, even though I use it a lot.

6. Brow gel: Again, this is the product in general that I can’t live without, not this specific brand. This is Sonia Kashuk’s, by the way. My brows are pretty dark, so when I don’t have time to fill them in, I run some gel through it to keep the hairs in place so they don’t get all janky. I apologize for this disgusting looking tube. It picks up the pigment after I’ve filled my brows in with powder, so that’s why it looks dodgy. It’s supposed to be clear.

Swatches: Wet n Wild Color Icon Trio in Silent Treatment

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I don’t know why this palette is askew. The rest of my product photos are generally straight up and down. Mystery!

Also, while going through my photos, I found that I had already taken photos of this when I first got it, before I opened it. But I took them in Chicago, where the background was the white carpet, and the lighting was different.

The open lid picture was also askew, look:

Color temperature-wise, they won’t match my swatches AT ALL. I don’t even know why I took two sets of pictures.

I have no idea what I’m doing.

March 2013 Empties

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Yay, another month of empties! I feel myself getting lighter!

I mentioned before that this was a very productive month in terms of using things up and giving them away. Here’s visual proof!

Burt’s Bees Coconut Foot Creme – This was really thick and a bit greasy. I put on socks after applying and let it absorb. I usually did this before going to bed. It took me a long time to finish this up, and my mom helped too. I’m not sure yet if I’ll repurchase; I’ve been using Shea Terra Organics shea butter for my feet now because it’s too greasy for my hands.

Boots Botanics Conditioning Clay Mask – I’m really bad at remembering to do masks. Therefore, this dried up before I got to finish it. I used up about half. It’s okay, but I like The Body Shop Seaweed Clay Mask better. Right now I have a travel sized Origins clay mask that I have yet to break into, so onwards with the downsizing before buying new things!

Plus White Tartar Control Pre-Whitening Rinse – Well, this is supposed to be used in conjunction with the Plus White 5 Minute Speed Whitening Gel, but you know how you always run out of shampoo before conditioner or vice versa? Yeah, that happened. I actually haven’t used the gel since I finished the “pre-whitening rinse” but I’m pretty sure you don’t really need to use this first. But what the hell do I know?

Sephora by OPI in Dear Diary – I mentioned in my nail polish inventory post that I hate this polish and now I get to throw it away. Be gone!

NYX Long Lip Pencil in Prune – I don’t like it. It’s really waxy and it’s hard to apply. It was only 99 cents, so I don’t feel like I’ve wasted money on it. I’m sure there are better options out there.

Tarte emphasEYES Inner Rim Eye Pencil – This was really dry and hard and I was too scared to try it on my inner rim out of fear that it would hurt like a bitch. It came in the Sephora 500-point perk Tarte set, so at least I didn’t buy it and find out later that it sucks.

Boots Expert Sensitive Hydrating Eye Cream (Dior jar) – This came in a squeeze tube, and when I couldn’t squeeze anymore of it out, I cut it open and put the rest in this sample jar. It was okay.

Kat Von D cream eyeshadows in Brass Knuckles and Slayer – These were the cream shadows that came in the Gypsy and Metal Orchestra palette, respectively. They dried out really fast, so I depotted and revived them, but I still didn’t use them. They’ve dried out again and I don’t care to revive them again because I know I won’t use it.

Sonia Kashuk blotting papers – Not much to say about these. I don’t know if I’ve ever tried BAD blotting papers, so.

Not pictured full sized products that I gave away:
Sephora by OPI in Blue Grotto – I gave this to Elizabeth because while the color is nice, I doubt I’ll ever reach for it again.

Sonia Kashuk Twist and Shout Kabuki brush – Also gave this to Elizabeth because I have too many brushes and she mentioned she needed a powder brush.

Revlon Colorstay eyeliner in Navy? – Gave this to my mom.

Hourglass Veil Fluid Makeup Oil Free SPF 15 – What a name. I got 3 samples of foundation from Sephora, and this is the first one I used up. I really like it, and I’ll probably buy it once I run through my Tarte Amazonian Clay foundation sample. I wrote a post on it here.

Origins Drink Up Intensive overnight mask – This is the second travel sized bottle I’ve finished up. I really like it, but I have made the decision to only buy from cruelty-free companies, and unfortunately Origins isn’t one of them anymore.

Origins A Perfect World SPF 25 moisturizer – Same thoughts as above.

Benefit Fake Up Concealer in Medium – Okay, so Benefit isn’t cruelty-free certified either, but this came in the mail as part of a Macy’s promotion and I just wanted to try it. It’s pretty good, actually.

Narcisco Rodriguez For Her perfume sample – It was okay. I got a compliment once while wearing it, but I don’t think I’ll buy it.

Guess Seductive I’m Yours – Another one that’s just okay. I like perfume samples because I get to switch up my scent all the time without making a commitment. Ha.

L’Oreal Mythic Oil – This is a hair oil. Albert picked this up in a Tube station or something? I don’t remember. He gave it to me and it sat in my bathroom for months before I decided to use it up and get rid of it. It’s really slick on the hands, unlike dry oil or argan oil. It was okay, but I like using pure argan oil by Shea Terra Organics in my hair instead.

Urban Decay 24/7 eyeliner in Lust – I didn’t actually use this up. One day, I clumsily knocked over all of my travel sized liners, and the tip broke off. I sharpened it, and the tip broke off again. Then, I couldn’t sharpen it anymore because it got too small. Woe is me!

Make Up For Ever HD primer – I liked this primer better than Smashbox’s Photo Finish Primer and the Urban Decay one I’m currently using. It’s not as thick and silicone-y feeling. It came in gift set.

Victoria’s Secret Love Spell hand sanitizer – I’ve been trying to use this up since FOREVER.

Not pictured travel/mini sizes:
Origins VitaZing SPF 15 tinted moisturizer – Gave this to my sister because I had an extra one.

Kat Von D mini lipstick in Cathedral – Gave it to my mom because she likes nude colors.

March’s count:
Full size: 13
Travel size: 7
Sample: 5

Year-to-date:
Full size: 28
Travel size: 15
Sample: 12

Slooowly gettin’ there!

Swatches: Shiro Cosmetics – I Survived the Apocalypse (And All I Got Was This Awesome Eyeshadow)

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This is the last of my haul from Shiro Cosmetics. Every month, Caitlin of Shiro Cosmetics takes suggestions for the next Color of the Month on her Facebook page. January’s Color of the Month was called I Survived the Apocalypse (And All I Got Was This Awesome Eyeshadow). The name makes me laugh, and the color described was really pretty, so I ordered one.

Unlike the mini sizes, full sized ones come with a sticker. This one is a nod to the Mayan prophecy of the end-of-the world.

According to the website, the color is described as “Rosy champagne with lots of gold and silver sparks, very celebratory!”

I think you can still order previous Color of the Month eyeshadows, so here’s the link.

The color doesn’t look as “rosy champagne” on me as they do on the website. I try my best to get these as color accurate as possible, to my own eye and what I can see on my computer monitor. I use Google Chrome, so if you use a different browser, that will affect how my pictures appear. Also, lighting and skin tones will change how a color appears from person to person.

Close-up. I need to figure out a better lighting set up.

Blurry close-up, for sparkles!

I’ve used this color a few times, and I really like it. It’s a neutral, everyday color, but the sparkles make it extra special. :)

Again, check out the product description, swatches, and order one here.

Swatches: Shiro Cosmetics – There and Back Again: A Hobbit Collection (Farewell, Wherever You Fare; When the Thrush Knocks; King Under the Mountain; Lingered in Twilight; Attercop, Attercop; Riddles in the Dark)

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And the award for the longest blog title ever (with an excessive use of semi-colons) goes to…

My friend Krystal and I (and sometimes my sister Jackie) like to combine cosmetics orders to save on shipping. Back in January, we made an order from Shiro Cosmetics because the Hobbit Collection launched!

I ended up only getting one from the collection (Riddles in the Dark), but Jackie got a good number of them, so I swatched them for you. :)

shiro cosmetics hobbit swatches From L to R: Farewell, Wherever You Fare; When the Thrush Knocks; King Under the Mountain; Lingered in Twilight; Attercop, Attercop; Riddles in the Dark

By the way, I’m using semi-colons because a couple of these shadows have commas in their names and I’m an anal-retentive crazy grammar person (even though I’m fully aware my writing itself isn’t stellar). In case you were wondering.

I really hope Jackie lets me filch some of King Under the Mountain and Lingered in Twilight. They’re SO PWETTY!! (But I’m totally okay with baby-talk and using too many parentheses. I’m not a writer, okay? I’m a tortured artist!*)

*not true

Here’s a blurry pic so you can see some sparkles. I love sparkles. (But not Twilight sparkles. KILL IT WITH FIRE!)

And, some link love: Krystal has finally started a beauty blog on Tumblr, where she showcases the many stunning makeup looks she’s done over the past few years. Please check it out; her artistry continues to inspire and amaze me every time she does something new!

Also: check out my sister Jackie’s blog and bug her to start blogging again because she hasn’t posted since January 1st, wtf. Unlike me, she is actually a writer, so if my drivel drives (see what I did there?) you insane, then go read some of her stories. She has mostly fanfiction posted so far, but she has original stories, too.

Lastly, because I’m still getting the hang of taking good swatch pictures, better ones can be found over at Shiro Cosmetics!

See anything you like? Are you a fan of The Hobbit? (The only correct answer is yes, obviously.)

P.S. If I seem a little stranger than usual in this post, it’s because I’m writing this at 2 in the morning, I’m le tired, and I’m starting to have a headache. Cue craziness.

barely organized chaos

because life is funner that way.