Bronze Smokiness

Hello. So this is not my favorite way to do a bronze smoky eye, but I was getting compliments on it all day long, so I took some quick pics.

To challenge myself, I used mainly loose eyeshadows which are more difficult to apply than pressed shadows.

Forgot an inner corner highlight, silly me

Closeup on zee eyeballz

Shimmery lips

This is basically a cut-crease smokey eye where the deep colour is taken all the way into the inner crease. I rarely do that with crease colours because it makes my eyes look more sunken in than they already are. If your eyelids are flatter, then this would be a fantastic way to do a dramatic smokey eye that is not just super heavy on the outside of the eye.

Products used

Face:
-Lancome Teinte Miracle Foundation in Bisque 7
-Bobbi Brown Tinted Eye Brightener in Bisque (inner part of the under-eye area)
-Cover FX Total Coverage Cream Foundation in #M40 (under eyes)
-Laura Mercier Matte Translucent Pressed Powder
-Tarte Amazonian Clay Bronzer in Park Avenue Princess (as a contour: just under cheekbones, at the temples, hairline, and jawline)
-Nars Orgasm Blush

Eyes:
-Urban Decay Primer Potion
-MAC Tan Pigment (peachy shimmery champagne colour applied wet to the main eyelid area)
-MAC Roasted Chestnut Crushed Metallic Pigment (deep shimmery bronze etched along the crease and lower lashline)
-Urban Decay Buck and Naked (soft matte brown to blend out the crease and lower lashline)
-Inglot eyeshadow #351 (matte cream colour swept along the browbone)
-MAC Carbon Eyeshadow (matte black along the upper lashline)
-Makeup Forever Aqua Eyes Eyeliner Pencil 0L (black liner in upper and lower waterline)
-L'Oreal Volumizing Carbon Black Mascara

Lips:
-Nars Lip Gloss in Orgasm

Hope you like!

Please send any requests to lizziehanley94@yahoo.ca

My MAC Pigments

Pretty much every makeup company I can think of sells some kind of concentrated loose eyeshadow. They can be used on the eyes, cheeks and lips depending on how you work them. Pigments are very versatile. I have a few... Some Sugarpill, Inglot, Laura Mercier, Bare Escentuals, Annabelle, and of course, MAC!

These are the MAC pigments I own, excluding the stack of 4 I got from the Dazzlesphere collection.
One of them is not a pigment, but a glitter. Some of them are in the older, larger packaging. The new jars are unfortunately smaller and are sold for the same price even though they contain much less product.

This is what MAC has to say about this product:

Pigment is a highly concentrated loose colour powder that contains ingredients to help it adhere to the skin. Create a subtle wash of colour or an intense effect. Does not streak or cake. Easy to blend and long-lasting.
PigmenPit
I have Copper Sparkle, Tan, Fuchsia, Reflects Blackened Red, and Steel Blue. All swatches are done without a base, but the "wet" swatches are used with eye drops.

Copper Sparkle, Tan

Copper Sparkle

Tan

Copper Sparkle, shimmery copper tone more orange than a penny

Tan, a shimmery medium champagne colour

Copper Sparkle swatched dry on the left, wet on the right

Tan swatched dry on the left, wet on the right

Fuchsia, Reflects Blackened Red, Steel Blue

Fuchsia

Reflects Blackened Red

Steel Blue

Jars are misleading... Look at all the extra space on the sides!

Fuchsia, a bright shimmery pink (cloudy picture, I know)

Fuchsia swatched dry on the left, wet on the right

Reflects Blackened Red, a deep wine glitter

Reflects Blackened Red swatched dry on left, wet on right

Steel Blue, an intense mermaid teal with gold shimmer

Steel Blue swatched dry on left, wet on right

I just love these. It takes a bit of practice to work with them but once you figure out the best way to make them work for you, you will cry of joy like I do every time I put on my makeup.

These retail for 24$ at www.maccosmetics.com and at MAC stores and counters.

Please send any requests to lizziehanley94@yahoo.ca

Sultry Valentine's Look

This is the last look I am posting for Valentine's Day. Again, the inspiration for the colour scheme is blatantly obvious. Perhaps I will post an anti-Valentine's Day look...

I had massive amounts of trouble getting decent lighting for these, and the focus of the camera was non-existent. So forgive the horror of my face that you are about to see... with a pink smokey eye! :)

Blurry :(

 I am experimenting with foundations at the moment... I have come to the conclusion that I hate foundation pretty much altogether, aside from the first hour I wear it. Seeking a solution.

Kissy Face!

 Closeups...

Looking down

HellOO.

Products Used:

Face:
-Makeup Forever HD Foundation # 110
-Lancome Teinte Miracle in Bisque 7
-Makeup Forever Mat Velvet+ Foundation #35 (all 3 mixed together)
-Bobbi Brown Tinted Eye Brightener in Bisque (under eyes) 
-Cover FX Full Cover Cream Foundation in M40 (under eyes)
-Laura Mercier Matte Translucent Shine Control Powder
-Tarte Amazonian Clay Blush in Dollface
-MAC eyeshadow in Charcoal Brown (brows)


Eyes:
-Urban Decay Primer Potion
-MAC Dazzlesphere Crushed Metallic Pigments in Berry Ornament...

• Rose Light used wet all over the eyelid
• Spicy Smoke used wet on the outer half of the eyelid
• Roasted Chestnut in the deep crease of the eye and lower lashline

-Inglot Eyeshadow #48 (dusty rose colour to blend out the brown MAC pigment)
-Revlon Colorstay Black Eyeliner (upper lashline, with the brown colour over it)
-L'Oreal Voluminous Carbon Black Mascara

Lips:
-NOTHING! I FORGOT!

Sidenote: Overall, I'd say this particular blog post is a failure. I could not get decent pictures all by myself, and i didn't even remember to put anything on my lips.
Happy Valentine's Day, Liz. Take your Iron pills.

Anyhow, I posted it because I liked how the makeup turned out.
Ok bye now!

Please send any requests to lizziehanley94@yahoo.ca

MAC Satin Taupe Eyeshadow Review and Swatches

I was on a mission.
...and then I got sidetracked by this awesome colour.

After years of seeing it used in makeup tutorials, I finally decided to purchase satin taupe eyeshadow from MAC.

MAC satin taupe eyeshadow

I expected a taupe-grey colour similar to Urban Decay's mushroom, and while they look different in the pan, they apply similarly. Satin taupe has more of a mauve kind of undertone to it, and its finish is satin-shimmer. Mushroom is darker, more grey, and much more shimmery, so it looks lighter when applied.

Here it is!

Colour payoff is really nice, but I generally don't reach for my MAC shadows as much as some of my other favourites. That may change now.

Swatch with flash

Swatch without flash

The only thing I had trouble with was that this colour faded a bit by the end of the day. I sometimes have this problem with certain MAC shadows. And yes I used primer!

Overall, this colour is very pretty and would suit practically any skin tone, depending on how you use it.
I got the refill pan at MAC for 13.50$.

MAC Dazzlesphere! Berry Ornament Review

I love shimmer. Everyone who knows me and knows I love makeup recognizes this fundamental need I have. It can sometimes turn into a problem because makeup, like everything else in life, costs money.

And I am cheap.

Sometimes, to torture myself, I wander into MAC or Sephora or Inglot and play with the gorgeous colours I find in there. I'd been dreaming about these fantastically pretty pigments for a while, waiting for a makeup artist friend of mine to come to MAC with me so I could get a discount. Sadly it never happened, so I took it upon myself to purchase them on a whim.
The whole "limited edition" thing really did give me a sense of urgency and I felt like I would be losing something if I left them there.

I hate how the cosmetic industry has that hold on me.

Awesomely shiny spherical packaging

Hello, Dazzlesphere Berry Ornament!!!                           

Here is what MAC has to say about this product:

DAZZLESHPERE! BERRY ORNAMENT X 4: Adding spice to our couture-future ornament: two shades of Roasted Chestnut and Spicy Smoke. Add Pearl and Rose Light to this mini-set of four stackable Crush Metals and see how brilliant your looks can be. Gift yourself! Limited edition.

To start off, these are extremely well pigmented. The shimmer itself is more prominent than the undertone of each colour itself, but applied wet, these look almost like glitter and the colour becomes more vibrant.

Urban Decay’s primer potion is my go-to primer, but I knew that these would need something more binding to stick to because they are very loose and sparkles just flew everywhere. I tried using my NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil inStrawberry Milk on top of UDPP to get the product to stick, but it caked up when I brushed it on because my skin would fold ever so slightly, and this created gaps in the application. It looked better when I packed it on, but foiling the pigment worked best for a smoother texture on my lids.

 I love the colours in this pigment stack! They are warm-toned berry shades, hence the name, and I find them versatile.

Pearl on top, Rose Light on the bottom

blah blah blah 6 grams

Pearl

Rose Light

Spicy Smoke on top, Roasted Chestnut on the bottom

yadda yadda crushed metallic pigment

Spicy Smoke is redder and not as dark in real life

Roasted Chestnut is more bronze in real life

 Here are some swatches:

Pearl, Rose Light swatched dry

Spicy Smoke, Roasted Chestnut swatched dry

 

Crooked lid

The packaging does not feel very sturdy. Like my Lise Watier pigment in Folie Blanche, the clear plastic feels brittle, like it might crack easily. Folie Blanche certainly did. Also, it is not exactly easy to screw the lid back on without pigment spilling out. I had to unscrew and re-screw it on very gently and precisely to it didn’t have a gap for potential spillage. Folie Blanche also has this problem.
I’m also not sure how I feel about the top jar acting as a lid for the bottom jar. Being extremely clumsy, I tend to drop lids as I unscrew them because I often do my makeup in a hurry. It is obviously not good for the “lid” to fall if it contains 6 grams of product I paid around 40$ for.

I know it seems like I have a lot more complaints than compliments about this product, but I must remember to focus on qualities that are more important to me. In a loose eyeshadow, I mainly look for great pigmentation and a decent amount of product for my money. I bought these for 38$ and some change, plus tax. Divided by 4 pigments, they cost me less than 10$ each, which is more than I can say for my Sugarpill Chromalusts, which retail for 12$ each for only 4grams of shadow.
Plus shipping.

So overall, I do really like these. It just takes a teensy bit of experimenting to make them work, and I’m sure it would be different for everybody. Wetting my brush happened to work best for me when using it. Plus, the shimmer is sooooo pretty!!!!! They also sell a blue-themed stack, a purple one, and various lip products in spheres.

I like you

These retail for 32.50 on MAC’s website and in MAC stores, but I paid around 38.50 plus tax because I live in Canada.
Please send all requests to lizziehanley94@yahoo.ca

Inventory

Hello there.
So as it's Christmas break, I plan on posting here a lot for the next 6 weeks or so. Being as enthusiastic about my new blog as I am, I want to set up so that things run smoothly in future posts.

For the next couple of weeks, I will be posting pictures of products I have, including swatches, with their names. When I refer to a product in my makeup looks, I will link it to that product post so you guys can see it. It should help you find similar products you have at home if you chose to take inspiration from my makeup. :)

I will separate each post by brand and eyes/face/lips to make them easier to search for. This will probably also help me organize my stuff way better.

My lovely sister with the awesome photography talent will be taking pictures for pretty much everything on this blog. All credit for photos will go to her. <3 Sammy!

Please send any requests to lizziehanley94@yahoo.ca