Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Diary of the Makeup Obsessed blog giveaway

The lovely Jamie from the beauty blog Diary of the Makeup Obsessed with having a giveaway on her blog! She's giving away a MAC Sexpot Smoky Mini Pigment/Glitter set. Follow her blog, check out all of the goodies on her site, and enter to win! :)

Enter here: http://eyebrowjunkie.blogspot.com/2009/12/its-giveaway-time.html

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Make Up For Ever 25th Anniversary holiday kit

How cute is this mini Aqua Eyes collection?

It comes with five shades that are very very very wearable. I love the fact that each of these colors can be worn on a daily basis as a part of your day-to-night beauty routine! What I love best about this set is the staying power. After I swatched each shade on my hand, it took several times washing my hands to remove any traces of color (considering it's waterproof, haha), this stuff is going to stay exactly where you put it!

- 0L Black: How can you go wrong with black eyeliner? Especially when it has the MUFE signature smooth creamy texture? Make a clean line, or smoke it out, either way, this has you covered as long as you smudge before it has time to fully adhere to your skin!

- 21L Dark Grey: This is a new shade! It's a gorgeous smokey charcoal grey. This is a PERFECT alternative to the traditional black smokey eye liner. This would also make a terrific base for a smokey eye if you want your makeup to last for several hours with no worries about touch ups. This stuff does not budge once its applied and has time to adhere to the skin so be sure to smudge quickly!

- 12L Blue w/ green highlights: This color is not your typical run of the mill blue, you actually can see the green in it! It showed up as a shimmery blue turquoise on me when I first swatched it. The color reminds me of dc'd M.A.C eyeshadow in "Parrot" in Aqua Eyes eyeliner form! I think this would look fabulous with any eye color!)

- 4L Shimmering plum: Oh my goodness, attention: Brown eyed girls, THIS will probably be quickly become your favorite purple eyeliner EVER. This pulls out the golden hues in my brown eyes. I can imagine that this would look awesome with green, hazel, or blue eyes as well...but purples and greens tend to be my favorites when it comes to eye colors because they really make my brown eyes pop! I lightly dotted this between my lower lashes and it gave me a very subtle but funky effect. You could see the purple and it was totally appropriate for the day-time but can also be stepped up a notch for the later hours!

- 23L Champagne: Perfect pale shimmery highlight color. Due to the pencil form, it's easier to highlight the inner corners of your eyes than with a brush -in my opinion/experience. Another way I also like to give the illusion of a full eight hour sleep, is to trace underneath the arch of my brow and quickly blend so there's no harsh shimmery line. I'm not sure why, but I just look more awake when I do that.. I love to achieve an 'ethereal' look by lightly tracing my lower lash line with this, and highlighting my cupid's bow. I know technically it's an eyeliner, but I get many uses out of this pencil/color!

The holiday is just around the corner, so if you're looking for a last minute gift for a beauty junkie, this is definitely worth your consideration!

Check out this mini set on Sephora!

Saturday, December 12, 2009

Armour Beauty review

Before I even started writing this review right now, I was flipping through People magazine (December 14th issue) and saw that Armour Beauty was featured! Apparently I'm not the first one to fall in love with Armours lip glosses!


[click on the pretty glosses to see the available shades!)
There are two formulas: opaque or shimmer so there's at least one or two (or three, or four shades...) for everyone!
*
Pictured left is "Cat Club" in an opaque finish. First, all I can say is WHOA this is an awesome pink! I'm obsessed with pink lipsticks and lipglosses, so anything pink is going to make me one happy girl! I think the color is strikingly similar to M.A.C's best-selling lipglass "Pink Poodle". Only with a better (in my opinion) formula! Anyway, this color is HOT. It totally made me feel like a rock-star...

Pictured right in "Dreaming" in a shimmer finish. I usually wear light shimmery colors during the day, but this gloss could be a pretty huge part in a "day to night" look. It's sized conveniently to fit in your purse if you feel like packing a pretty shimmery light plummy bronze-y color any time, anywhere. Results can always change though, based on your skintone and natural pigmentation of your lips. I thought that maybe this would be similar to M.A.C's lipglass in "Soft N Slow" but the two are somewhat similar, but I think, once again, I might actually like this better...

For the love of cosmetics, this gets my "kiss of approval". Most definitely, yes. I love this. If you love lip gloss or if you want to try something new, look no further.

Thanks Armour, for letting me try out your product and to share my opinion with the rest of the beauty blogging community. :) I think it's so cool that the lip glosses are each named after a rock song, clubs and icons! Thanks Theo, you're awesome!!

-Ashley

Wednesday, December 9, 2009

Color Club/Art Club review

Where have you been all my life, Color Club/Art Club?!

The holidays are coming up and I am going to be featuring some awesome brands and products to give to any fellow beauty junkie!

Rave #1: Color Club Lip Glosses (from L to R: Red Dress, Pink Power, Juicy Jolt, Party Girl)

-Red Dress: Ohhh my, goodness. If any lip product could give the appearance of Dorothy's ruby slippers, THIS is the one! It looks best over a red lipstick, or a red lipliner if you're not a fan of lipstick. However, I am a HUGE fan of lip stick so I have every intention of wearing this to holiday parties. As soon as I swiped it on my lips, I felt so much more festive and cheery, that says a lot coming from somebody who has been somewhat of a Scrooge this year! I think this gloss cured my "Bah humbug!" blues...
-Pink Power: This is an electrifying bright pink. Perfect for me, it goes with any bright pink lipstick. My lipstick arsenal contains mostly reds, corals, and bright pinks so this adds a perfect touch to the days I feel like rocking a super bright pink. I noticed this stuff is quite pigmented yet the color is still very build-able if you're nervous about rocking such a hot color.
-Juicy Jolt: What an awesome fruity color! The color reminds me of fresh melons/cantaloupes! This shade, like Pink Power, is quite pigmented yet build able if you don't want a bright orange mouth. You can blot it down as a stain if the light stained effect is more your forte. Or you can wear it in all it's bright glory (like I prefer too!)
-Party Girl: This is beyond gorgeous. It's definitely not a one dimensional color, it shows hues of dark berry, red, and a deep rosy pink. When I wore it in the natural sun, it looked like a gorgeous deep berry red with tints of pink. However, when I checked it in my bathroom mirror, it looked more of a red pink. I love colors that change with lighting, it's like getting to wear a few different looks all at once! This color is just so dang pretty, you can apply it opaquely or blot it down for a gorgeous stain.

*However, with all of Color Club glosses, I recommend wearing them in their full glory...the colors are too gorgeous to not show them off!*

The verdict: You NEED to check out Color Club lip glosses! The colors I featured are pretty bold, but that's my preference. This review only represents four glosses out of many shades that are so worth checking out! I love the formula as well! Why don't you see for yourself which shades catch your eye?

Rave #2: Art Club Nail Color

The mini-holiday kit is PERFECT for the holidays! This kit comes with three very festive and sparkly colors: green, red and silver! Also, a clear topper to seal in the color. The green and red are somewhat see-through but you can layer coats to make the color more opaque or you can use a color base in red or green and then top it with the glitter to really a pack a colorful punch! However, I have been wearing these beautiful colors for 3 days now and I haven't had a problem with chipping...and I didn't even use the top clear coat! However, it's always recommended because everybody is different and what works for some, may not work for others.

The awesome thing about Art Club is the various collections you can choose from, there is one kit that includes metallic shades (gold, bronze, and silver!) with funky crystals and jewels to add to top off your design or if you're really crafty, you could use the little jewels in makeup application. For example, I was trying out a "Teardrops On My Guitar" inspired look, and I glued the mini stars from the "Pretty Shiny Things" on my face with false eyelash adhesive.

Note:However, if you're going to take that route, always be careful and keep eye safety in mind during application!

Check out all the awesome nail colors for yourself, the possibilities for creating your own designs are endless!


A VERY special thanks to Color Club/Art Club for being the awesome brand you are and for letting me feature you on my blog for my readers and for reviewing these products!

Sunday, December 6, 2009

Just a quick update!

I just got home to our new place after 4 days at a hotel while our floors were getting re-done, and I came home to some great stuff that I will be featuring on here very soon! I have some catching up to do!

Expect a HUGEEEEE rave about Color Club/Art Club probably tomorrow or so!

I hope you all had an amazing weekend!

-Ash

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Graftobian review (part 2!)

Graftobian has been around for decades serving artists who specialize in all areas of makeup artistry (beauty makeup, stage/theatrical makeup, movies/television to name a few!). In my opinion, Graftobian should be every makeup artist's go-to store for all makeup-related needs! However, you don't have to be a professional to enjoy Graftobian's many different products. Everything you need (for professional and just-for-fun use) can be found at Graftobian. Here is my first post on Graftobian for reference: Graftobian review- part one!I think it's awesome that Graftobian products are made *in* America, so this is truly an American-made company! Here is a list of some amazing Graftobian products. Just click the
links to find out more information about each product listed!

Lipstick
I have "Hot Pink", and recently purchased from a costume shop around Halloween "Red" and "Red Glitter". All I have to say is the color is opaque and beautiful. It can definitely be sheered down if applied with a lip brush. However, if you're like me and you love opaque lip colors, this is perfect for you. No dryness observed, no bothersome taste/smell. You don't even have to purchase a full stick of color, you
can also choose a cup (lipstick in dish form). You can also purchase palettes of cool and warm shades, speciality shades, and even a lip gloss palette! There is a "Super Lip Palette" available, this palette comes with 18 shades that can be mixed to create your own custom shades. In fact, a few of the shades have been inspired by M.A.C shades! The colors are saturated and beautiful and have very impressive staying power!

Setting Spray
I can't wait to rave about this one, it is the perfect setting to creme/liquid makeup! I held the bottle about 9 inches from my face and closed my eyes and sprayed once. Let it dry for about 30 seconds, sprayed once again, and that was all I needed to keep my makeup fresh! You can spray a few more layers if you would like to (after allowing adequate time to dry, of course) to create an extra strong "barrier" to withstand from humidity and any other possible factor that might get in the way of keeping your makeup perfect for hours! I find that it works best applied like so: first use a regular makeup base, apply your creme/liquid makeup, hold the bottle quite a few inches from your face, close your eyes, spray, let dry, spray another layer, let dry, and that should hold your makeup for hours and hours and hours! I keep this in my makeup bag at all times but in my experience, I have never had to use it more than the initial application because it has never let me down. I highly recommend this!

Luster Cremes/Powder
This stuff is super gorgeous. There are 24 possible shades to choose from. The colors are so beautiful and the creme leaves a slight sheen that is absolutely gorgeous on your lids. After intial application, you can top the creme with the coordinated luster powder and it intensifies the color in the most perfect and flattering way you could possibly think of. You can choose from neutral browns and bronzes, or if you're more daring, you could try bright blues and yellows and pinks and purples! It has very impressive staying power without an eyeshadow primer, but for extra long staying power or if your eyeshadow typically creases after a short time of wear, I would strongly recommend using your regular eyeshadow primer.

Pressed Powder - Blush
Wow, this stuff is PIGMENTED! There are 16 possible shades, I truly believe there is a shade for any and every skin tone! I used my E.L.F Powder Brush (similar to MAC #187) and swirled the brush on top of the blush like I normally would, and even one swirl picked up way too much product so a little bit goes a long way. That is one of the best things about Grafotbian products; only a bit goes a long way. That means tons of saved product, and that's always a plus in these tough economic times! I tried "Sunset Peach" and it brought my very fair neutral complexion to life! I don't think any other blush has ever made my skin look so fresh and radiant using such a small amount of product!

Hi-Def Glamour Creme foundation
I love the fact that Graftobian lists other brands equivalent to make it easier to find your perfect shade! This foundation looks gorgeous in pictures! I have a thyroid condition so I usually have to use a separate concealer on my cheeks to conceal redness associated with a thyroid condition, but words cannot describe how cool (and time-saving) it was for me to actually skip the extra concealer step. This covers wonderfully, and I love the buildable coverage! I highly recommend this creme foundation for anybody who needs light to heavy coverage, I think it's very very buildable!

Hi-Def Glamour Creme Super Palettes
These palettes are wonderful. These are staples for ANY aspiring/established makeup artist, and even for the girl who might need a custom foundation shade! I mixed my "neutral" and "warm" palette in the lightest shade available for a flawlessly perfect match. My sister used my "Warm" palette that held up for hours while she was at a No Doubt concert, and my mom has been regularly using my "Warm" palette as a foundation and using another shade as a concealer. Also, there is a pro-pack available! For $259.56, you can get one each of the available four HD creme palettes! This special deal also comes with a corrector palette! If you are an aspiring/established makeup artist or even somebody who would like to have every foundation shade available from Graftobian's Hi-Def creme foundation line, I highly suggest this special offer!

Cake Eyeliner
Although there are two shades to choose from (brown and black), the number of uses is quite impressive! I imagine that the cake eyeliner would also be a wonderful eye brow filler for brunettes or if used with a light hand (in the brown shade), medium to dark blondes! I like to apply this cake eyeliner wet with an angled brush, allow it time to dry, and then go over the line with a dry angled brush. It keeps the eyeliner in place and you can smudge it a bit with any eye brush with a spongey smudge tip for a natural or slightly smokey look that is always attractive: any place, any time. Also, you can use it to deepen the crease of a smokey brown or grey/black eye. See? I told you it had many uses! :)

Glitter Glam Liquid Sparkle
These are so much fun!!! For some reason, these remind me of the glam rock era and the old once famous club setting of Studio 54 in NYC circa the 1980's. I applied "Blue Blast" over one of my brightest pink lipsticks and added a clear gloss on top and I could not stop staring at my lips! The blue sparkle was beyond mesmerizing. Try it out for yourself, you probably won't be able to stop staring at yourself! I had an idea for a way to wear this, but I have yet to try it out... You could use (or make) your own stencil of a small design (a heart, for example), and then brush the liquid sparkle over the stencil. Hold it there for about 2 minutes, and lift the stencil and make your own awesome glitter temporary "tattoo". I think that sounds pretty cool and I can't wait to try it, maybe it's just the girl in me who loves everything and anything sparkly!

So to sum this entry up, Graftobian is wonderful and highly recommended to ANYBODY who has an interest or career in makeup. It's affordable, and the quality of the products is top-notch!

Check out the online catalog of products to purchase, or find the nearest retailer!

-Ashley

Tuesday, December 1, 2009

Special holiday offer from Armour Beauty!




Right now, Armour Beauty is offering a "2 for 1" deal on their lip gloss! That's right, TWO lip glosses for the price of one ($19)! I will be posting a review of their lip glosses very soon! You can choose from opaque or shimmer shades/finishes and the colors are gorgeous and the names are really cute!

All you have to do to get this amazing deal is to type in: HOLIDAY09 at check out!

Check out the collection at ArmourBeauty.com