Wonders of Beauty: July 2012

What's New (Part 1): La Femme, Cover Girl, Ben Nye, Clairol, DUO, MAC, Miss Adoro and Smashbox Products..♥

I've got quite a few new items to show you so I've split it into two parts as I don't want to bore you.

I'm really excited that the package I've been waiting for from America has finally arrived so I'll show you these items first.

Ben Nye Banana Luxury Powder

I've heard people rave about how good this Ben Nye powder is so I decided to purchase the Banana one for my under-eye area. Now I'm thinking maybe I should have gone for a slightly darker shade but I guess I'll see how this one goes. I purchased this from http://www.makeupmania.com/ for $10.

Clairol Shimmer Lights Shampoo

I bought this shampoo because I was planning on bleaching the knots of a lace closure and I didn't want the lace to be orange but I've managed to get a lace closure which comes with the knots bleached already. I've got a silk closure on right now so I don't need to do any bleaching. At the moment my hair is light brown with some blonde so I may use it for my next wash. I ordered it off http://www.sallybeauty.com/ for $8.49.

DUO Dark Lash Glue

Whilst browsing http://www.makeupmania.com I realised that my eyelash glue has nearly finished. This is the best glue I've tried so I decided to repurchase. This was $6.25.

Smashbox Lash DNA Mascara

My aunt in America added this mascara sample to the package. I've never heard of the actual mascara so I'm excited to try it out.

Cover Girl Queen Collection Bronzer - Ebony

I wanted a bronzer specifically designed for WOC so I decided to purchase this one as many black youtubers have said that this is their favourite bronzer. My aunt helped order this from the US Amazon. 2 for $8.45.

La Femme Customised Blush Palette

After months of wanting to try these blushes, I finally decided to purchase my own palette. They've become quite difficult to source in the UK and the full range is not available. I jumped at the opportunity to order 12 different shades and customise my own palette from http://www.makeupmania.com for $35. When my palette initially arrived in the UK I was a bit disappointed with their lack of attention to detail as my palette was in the wrong order and didn't match the labels. I had to swap them around myself.

The blushes I got are: Red, Sienna, Redwood, Russet, Grape, Magenta, Coral, Dusty Rose, Terracotta, Peach, Mauve and Indian Rose. I didn't realise that I picked colours that were really similar. They are really pigmented but I will swatch them in another post.

MAC Blunt Blush

Well what's a package without a MAC order? I had to get MAC Blunt as it isn't available in the UK. A lot of people use it as a contouring powder so I'd like to see how well it works as that. Bought for $20.

Miss Adoro Eyelashes

Remember my IMATS haul post? I had purchased Miss Adoro lashes there and I fell so much in love that I wanted different styles. I have used my #15 pair countless times. I really prefer human hair eyelashes to synthetic ones. Synthethic ones can look really thick and fake which I do not like at all. In total, I have 20 new pairs of these eyelashes. My aunt kindly bought them for me from a US eBay seller. I believe they were $2.10 each.

I'm so happy with my goodies from the US. What do you think? I will try to have part 2 up within the next couple of days.

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Back 2 MAC - 19:17

What's New (Part 1): La Femme, Cover Girl, Ben Nye, DUO, MAC, etc

What's New (Part 1): La Femme, Cover Girl, Ben Nye, Clairol, DUO, MAC, Miss Adoro and Smashbox Products.. ♥ I've got quite a few ne...

Prevent Your Under-eye Concealer From Creasing..♥

I'm 110% sure that there are loads of you out there who are desperate to find a way to prevent your under-eye concealer from creasing. I used to have this problem and I know others do too as I hear it all the time! The key to preventing your concealer from creasing is having a good setting powder and your application technique.

Sometimes concealer can appear to do more harm than good. Instead of brightening or concealing dark circles, they can really emphasize any fine lines under your eyes by settling into them. I cannot express how much I used to hate this because the more apparent your wrinkles/fine lines are, the older you look. I already look much older than my age so I'm really not trying to add any more years to my face!

Over the past 2 years where I have been more into contouring and highlighting have I really noticed this problem but I've finally found a solution that works for me. At times I thought I'd solved the problem and learnt all the tricks but hours later, I'd be back to square one. I've never liked the idea of setting my under-eye area with a brush and powder so I never do it. I don't believe using a brush will set anything as the setting powder needs to be pushed in to lock and set the concealer. I've finally mastered how to prevent creasing for the whole duration (or at least the majority) of your makeup wear. All you need is a setting powder that you trust and a makeup sponge!

After prepping and applying concealer to your under-eye area, grab your sponge and your setting powder. Of recent, I've been using Black Opal Invisible Oil Blocking Powder (which I wrote a review on in my previous post) and usually MAC wedge sponges but pictured below are makeup sponges from Superdrug.

Dip the edge of the rectangle based side into your setting powder and dust off any excess (to avoid excess product causing it to cake and crease).

Look up and set your under-eye concealer by pushing the setting powder on the sponge into this area dabbing firmly. Repeat steps 2 and 3 until you feel you have used a sufficient amount of product and your concealer is set properly.

That's it! You can now go ahead and continue with whatever application you have left to do. This technique works well with both cream and liquid concealers but do not go overboard with the powder as you may just defeat the purpose!

Hope that helps. Let me know how it goes if you do decide to try this.

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Concealer - 20:46

Preventing Your Under-eye Concealer From Creasing

Prevent Your Under-eye Concealer From Creasing.. ♥ I'm 110% sure that there are loads of you out there who are desperate to find a way ...

Review: Black Opal Invisible Oil Blocking Loose Powder..♥

"You can't go wrong with a lightweight, colorless, loose powder designed to perfectly blend with your skin tone (with or without foundation). This hypoallergenic formula is designed with unique oil blotters to help control shine and offers a matte finish without leaving a powdery residue or drying skin out. For oily skin. Matte finish."

For those who read my what's new post last month, I know you've been waiting for me to review this product. I just wanted to try it out a couple more times before I gave you my final thoughts.

I never use invisible/transparent powders for anything other than setting my under-eye concealer and where I've applied concealer to my forehead to create a highlight. I've never taken interest in setting my foundation with such powders as I just don't like the idea of it (for now). I use these powders solely on areas that have concealer.

Like I said in a previous post, I prefer this to my Laura Mercier Invisible Setting Powder and due to the price difference between these products, I don't think I'll be purchasing that again though there are qualities in the Laura Mercier product which I do like such as its very professional finish for example.

My Thoughts

From the first day of using this powder, I noticed a difference in my makeup. My forehead can get shiny when I have makeup on especially as I use concealer to highlight that area but the day I wore this, it didn't shine one bit! The whole time I wore this powder, I remained shine free. Not even for just 3-6 hours but the whole duration.

I also use this to set my under-eye concealer. I have fine lines under my eyes so if I do not set my concealer properly or use a good product to set, I find it settles into those lines and just accentuates them which I hate. Who really wants to look 20 years older? Like with all setting powders, you have to be careful when using them to set your under-eye concealer. The tools you set them with and how much product you use can make a big difference! Excessive use of this product under your eyes will make your under-eye area look dry and dehydrated and will just worsen what you were trying to fix but if you use a decent amount, this product can work wonders and help prevent or minimise concealer settling into fine lines if you have any. The powder is not white like most "invisible/transparent" powders, so it's definitely a good one to use for women of colour who use concealers for highlighting and want to set.

I have tried this product with and without primer as a base just to make sure it is the powder doing wonders and it has worked just as well both ways. One thing I will say is I've never worn this during a really hot day (as we don't get much of those in England) so I'm not 100% sure of how it deals with heat and sweat.

To apply this powder, I use a sponge or those flat sponge applicators (the one that comes with the MAC Blotting powder and MAC Careblend powder not sure what they're called) as I find that this works best for me and really helps you push the powder in so it sets your face products.

Packaging and Size

I've only just found out today that this product comes in a pressed powder form so I might try that next. The loose powder form is very messy. I really dislike any powder in this form if I'm honest.

You get 28g of product!

Price and Availability

For those that live in the UK, I am only aware of it being sold by PAK Cosmetics £6.99 (link) and on Amazon £6.77 (link).

Please bear in mind that I don't consider myself to have oily skin. My t-zone only becomes oily/shiny when I have makeup on therefore I cannot tell you how well it works for those with really oily skin but it's worth a try!

Will you be trying this powder?

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Black Opal - 20:39

Review: Black Opal Invisible Oil Blocking Loose Powder

Review: Black Opal Invisible Oil Blocking Loose Powder.. ♥ "You can't go wrong with a lightweight, colorless, loose powder design...

As I've just recently come back from a hot country, I thought I'd let you know which products I found myself reaching for. I walked around bare faced for the majority of my trip as I really couldn't deal with the heat. To be honest, wearing makeup in that country is quite pointless. On the rare occasion, say, going out for dinner for example or heading into the main town, I did feel the need to make some sort of effort. Though I did pack more products, I didn't use them. However, the products below are what I found myself picking out on those days.

Illamasqua Powdered Metal - Erzule

This product was actually my mums but basically I've stolen it and it's mine now =D

It's a beautiful bronze with shimmer that can be used on the face or body. On my way to Morocco, I used it as a cheek highlight but since I wasn't wearing makeup whilst I was there, I used it as a body shimmer instead. It gives your skin a beautiful sunkissed glow. Perfect for those days when you're wearing strapless tops! I believe it comes in about 3 shades. Erzule is the darkest out of the range but definitely check them out!

MAC Mineralize Loose Powder - Dark Deep

Though I think I made the mistake of buying the wrong shade of this powder, it is of great use now that I'm darker. On the days where I was getting bored of showing Morocco my bare face, I decided to use this powder. Please believe that it has an amazing coverage and for those of you who don't like liquid foundation, this is a great powder to use. It stayed on through the sweltering heat and even when I thought I had sweat it all off, when I looked in the mirror, it was still there!

I very rarely used the MAC Select Cover-Up, I probably only used it like once but I thought I would mention it anyway. Whilst I'm in England, I don't normally use concealer on my face since my foundation usually does what it's supposed to but since I was foundation free this holiday, this was used just to cover any marks. The other products pictured above are just your regular liquid eyeliner, mascara and eyebrow pencil.

As for lip products, aside my chapstick which I forgot to photograph, these are the only products I reached out for. In fact, I used the NYX Megashine lipgloss everyday. I think it's my favourite shade out of all the ones I own (click HERE to see my NYX Megashine lipgloss Collection). Occasionally, I would wear the YSL Rouge Volupte lipstick (click HERE for a swatch) underneath the NYX gloss as both shades complement each other.

I decided to wear my new MAC Vegas Volt lipstick (click HERE for a swatch) on my birthday :)

What do you think of my holiday picks? Does anyone else own the Illamasqua Powdered Metal or has tried the MAC Mineralize Loose Powder?

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Holiday - 11:16

Makeup Holiday Picks: Morocco

As I've just recently come back from a hot country, I thought I'd let you know which products I found myself reaching for. I walked...

Lipstick - 20:12

What's New: MAC Vegas Volt Lipstick

What's New: MAC Vegas Volt Lipstick.. ♥ I'm back from Morocco! Very hot country but I really enjoyed spending my birthday there :)...

Nails - 14:23

Checking Out My Holiday Nails - Misa Green with Envy

Hey beauts! I'm currently in Morocco so I'm having to blog from my phone. I've never done this before so fingers cros...

Blush for Darker Skin..♥

Hey beauts!
I wanted to do a post to help out my darker skin ladies out there who are unsure about blush. In this post, by darker skin, I'm referring to women who are about my shade or darker (for reference I use MAC NC50).

Why are a lot of darker women so scared of colour? There's really nothing to be afraid of when it comes to wearing blush. Do not let people fool you into thinking you can only pull off plum or berry shades or that you cannot wear blush at all! There are so many other colours that you can wear but obviously there's no need to take it too far and opt for the lightest pink available. It's all to do with the intensity of the shade chosen and you just have to be wise with your selection so you don't make the mistake of looking ashy.

It's almost as if we have been trained to gravitate towards berry shades. Unless that is your preference, you are not limited to it. My first ever blush from MAC was Loverush (pictured below) but sooner or later, I realised that I wanted to explore and that I too could wear beautiful coral shades and other shades too!

To me, applying blush is a vital step during your makeup routine. In my opinion, it brightens, creates a youthful glow and also adds warmth to the skin giving that "natural glow from within" look. I very rarely leave home without wearing it. It just adds radiance to my skin and makes me look full of life which is the purpose of blush anyway.

I'm aware that we don't blush naturally, but being darker skin, it is important that we make the right choice of colour. Rich, deep and warm shades are more complementary to our skin tone. Colours such as orange, brick red and coral look beautiful against our skin for a "natural" warm glow.

Below is a selection of blush shades that you may possibly consider. You are in no way limited to these shades but I just wanted to give an example of the different shades that can be worn.

L-H: MAC Devil, MAC Sweet As Cocoa, MAC Loverush, NARS Gina, MAC Love Joy, MAC Ambering Rose, NARS Gilda, MAC Raizin, MAC Format, NARS Taj Mahal

If you prefer, rich plum, berry and deep pink shades can also be worn and for added intensity. These shades particularly look nice against very deep skin tones.

I on't think these shades are available to buy anymore

The blush you wear is entirely up to you but I hope I've helped someone out there who may be scared to wear blush or helped push someone into trying new colours.

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Blush - 02:02

Blush for Darker Skin

Blush for Darker Skin.. ♥ Hey beauts! I wanted to do a post to help out my darker skin ladies out there who are unsure about blush. In th...

Pages

What's New (Part 1): La Femme, Cover Girl, Ben Nye, DUO, MAC, etc

Preventing Your Under-eye Concealer From Creasing

Review: Black Opal Invisible Oil Blocking Loose Powder

Makeup Holiday Picks: Morocco

What's New: MAC Vegas Volt Lipstick

Checking Out My Holiday Nails - Misa Green with Envy

Blush for Darker Skin

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