e.l.f. Haul

e.l.f. High Definition Powder, mineral eyeshadows in Trendy and Sweet, Studio Eyeshadow "C" Brush and the Studio Small Smudge Brush

I finally broke down and ordered a few things from e.l.f..  I was hoping that Target would expand their e.l.f. selection but no such luck.  At least, I was able to save 50% on my order with a coupon code to offset the shipping costs; e.l.f. seems to have some sort of coupon deal going on all of the time.  Anyway, on to my reviews!

First, I have the e.l.f. High Definition Powder.  This is a great setting powder, comparable to CoverFX and Make Up Forever setting powders.  At $6 this is a steal; I totally recommend grabbing this over the high-end brands!

I also decided to try a couple of the mineral eyeshadows.  While I am not a huge fan of messy mineral eyeshadows, the color swatches I saw online made me want to try them out.  I adore the shade Sweet; it is a super shimmery pink, which is great for the summer.  The other shade I purchased is Trendy; I was not as thrilled with this shade.  This shadow looks paler when applied and had a lot of glittery fallout.  For $3 apiece, I think these shadows are worth a shot, especially if you like mineral eyeshadows.

e.l.f. Mineral Eyeshadow in Trendy (right) and Sweet

I purchased a couple more brushes from e.l.f.'s Studio line, the Studio Eyeshadow "C" Brush and the Studio Small Smudge Brush.  I tried using the "C" Brush to apply the mineral eyeshadows and was not very impressed; I will have to experiment a bit more with this one.  And, I have not tried the smudge brush.  Overall, I think e.l.f. makes pretty good brushes for a very low price.  My all-time favorite eyeshadow brush is their $1 Essential Eyeshadow Brush!

e.l.f. is a great brand for all you bargain lovers out there and for makeup newbies, too!

Unii and Z Palette Reviews

Top: Unii Palette; Bottom: Z Palette

 After much deliberation, I finally decided to attempt depotting all of my single eye shadows in an effort to save space in my makeup drawers.  This decision led me to order Unii palettes and a Z Palette to store the depotted shadows in.  Both of these palettes are great, though I think I am a bit partial to the Unii palettes due to their durability, design, and over all cuteness.  So far, I am pretty happy with my new palettes and how my depotting experience went; I only had one casualty!  Though I did manage to slightly dent most my shadows in the process; I feel like I will get more use out of my single eye shadows now that I have grouped them together into palettes.  It definitely makes it easier to find the shadows I want to use!

Unii Palette filled with depotted NYX, MAC, and e.l.f. eye shadows

Unii Palette Features:

• Has a large mirror, which is good for travel or doing your makeup on-the-go
• Has thumb grip to prevent placing fingers in makeup
• Made of durable, hard plastic with a sturdy closure
• Comes apart for easy cleaning
• Comes with magnet strips
• Available in several colors
• Inner Dimensions: 2.8"D x 5.4"L x 0.4"Thick

Z Palette filled with depotted Cover Girl, NYX, and L'Oreal eye shadows

Z Palette Features:

• Large surface area for depotted pans
• Clear window for viewing makeup
• Easy to open magnetic closure
• Comes in designer prints
• Light weight design

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Pros of Depotting:

• Save space
• Organize eye shadows by color or coordinating groups for easy use
• Can create personalized palettes for traveling or on-the-go use

Cons of Depotting:

• May crack or dent eye shadows
• May be necessary to destroy original packaging to remove eye shadow
• Takes time and patience to depot eye shadows

Before you think about depotting your precious eye shadows, be sure to do some research.  I watched a number of videos on how to depot eye shadows, as well as how to fix eye shadows that have been cracked while depotting.  I've included links below to the most helpful videos.

EnKore Makeup Depotting
Depotting NYX Single Eye Shadows
EnKore Makeup Mending Cracked Shadows 
Kandee's How to Fix Broken Eye Shadows 

Happy depotting everyone!

Wedding Day Makeup

 

I thought that since preparing for my wedding day was the impetus to my makeup obsession, I should give you all some ideas and tips for wedding day/special occasion makeup.

Product ideas and tips:

• Face primers:  Face primer is essential to a great wedding day makeup look.  Primer will help make your makeup last all day, and allow for better blending when applying your foundation.  Some great primers are Avon Magix Face Perfector, Hard Candy Sheer Envy Primer, Palladio Herbal Foundation Primer, and Too Faced Primed & Poreless Skin Smoothing Face Primer.
• Foundation:  Make Up Forever HD Invisible Coverage Foundation (HD foundations are great because you will be having a lot of pictures taken of you), Rimmel Lasting Finish Foundation (this is a great long-lasting foundation that will stay put, though the shade selection is limited).  If you have trouble finding the right foundation shade to match your complexion, go someplace like Sephora or a beauty counter to have a professional choose the right shade for you.
• Bronzer:  It's nice to have a healthy glow on your wedding day without tanning, so a good bronzer can do wonders.  I would recommend NYC Sunny bronzer because it is a matte bronzer rather than a shimmery bronzer.  Just a light dusting across the forehead, along the contours of the cheeks and down the nose is all you need.
• Blush: Choose a classic rosy color and apply it just a bit heavier than normal so it shows up well in those wedding pics.  For some good blush choices check out my Favorite Blushes blog entry.
• Highlighter:  Highlighter will reflect light from darker areas of the face and draw attention to areas you wish to "highlight".  I recommend Benefit Cosmetics' Highbeam luminizer or Physicians Formula Happy Booster Face Powder in Translucent.  Sweep a little highlighter across the tops of your cheek bones for a radiant look.  You can also dab a little at the inner corner of your eyes to add a little shimmer and make your eyes pop!
• Eye primer:  Using an eye primer underneath your eye shadow will help keep it in place all day long, as well as improve the depth of the color of your eyeshadow.  I use Too Faced Shadow Insurance as my go-to eye primer.  However, you could grab a drugstore primer or try Palladio's Herbal Eyeshadow Primer which is available at Sally Beauty Supply stores or from the Palladio website.
• Eyeshadow:  Use neutral colors that are timeless...you don't want to look back at your wedding pics one day and think "Oh my God, what was I thinking wearing blue eyeshadow!".  Find colors that compliment your eye color and are good for everyday looks.  I used an eyeshadow trio that I had been using everyday for years on my wedding day, the Physicians Formula eyeshadow trio in Baked Oatmeal.  I really love this trio because is it neutral but has a lot of shimmer to make your eyes really standout.  Another shade I would particularly recommend is Stila's Kitten; this is the perfect shimmery, nude-pink shade for anyone.  Just put that all over your lid, add a mid-tone brown shade to your crease and you have a simple, beautiful eye look.
• Eyeliner:  Eyeliners are so subjective; everyone has their favorite type.  So, I would say use what you are most comfortable with in terms of staying power and the type of look you are trying to achieve.  Personally, I like the look of liquid eyeliner for an occasion like this.  I used the Revlon Colorstay Liquid Eye Pen in blackened brown for my wedding day look.
• Mascara:  Waterproof mascara is a must for this day; even if you aren't a crier, you just never know.  I wore false lashes to give eyes a little extra wow; so, it didn't matter too much what mascara I used other than that it was waterproof.  I would really recommend false lashes for a special occasion like this.  Once they are on, you get used to them pretty quickly.  If you are totally opposed to false lashes, I would highly recommend using L'Oreal Voluminous Carbon Black mascara because gives great volume and length to lashes. 
• Setting powder:  As a final step, lightly dust your face with setting powder using a big, fluffy brush.  Cover FX Translucent Setting Powder is great; and e.l.f.'s Translucent Matifying Powder is essential to keep on hand to blot out any shine on your face.
• Lips:  Again, this is something you want to look timeless.  I chose to keep it simple and wore a long-wearing lip gloss for a natural look.  Also, I didn't want to be constantly reapplying lipstick all night.  Bare Escentuals makes a great long-wearing lip gloss.  You may even want to try a lip stain for lasting lip color, and top it with some gloss.  I strongly recommend experimenting with a few different lip products before the big day.
• Extras:  Be sure to keep some blotting papers, tissue, Q-tips, and your lip products on hand through out the day for little touch-ups.

If you have decided to do your own wedding day makeup, experiment, experiment, experiment...I can't stress that enough.  Find out what works best for you and practice applying your makeup.  I found online makeup tutorials to be extremely helpful in honing my makeup application skills.  For really great makeup tutorials check out the Beauty Broadcast.  Emily does a fantastic job illustrating how to apply makeup.

Please leave a comment if you have any questions.

My Must Have Brushes

Brushes left to right: Sonia Kashuk powder brush, Sonia Kashuk blusher brush, Sephora blending brush #29, ELF eye shadow brush, Coastal Scents pink angle taklon liner brush, Essence of Beauty crease brush duo, Essence of Beauty kabuki brush (top right)

These are the brushes that I use everyday without fail.  Everyone should have these brushes, or similar brushes, in their collection.

Brushes and uses:

• Sonia Kashuk powder brush - great for applying setting powder
• Sonia Kashuk blusher brush - perfect size brush for applying powder blush
• Sephora blending brush - semi-soft blending brush for blending eye shadows
• e.l.f. eye shadow brush - best brush ever for applying eye shadow (only costs $1)
• Coastal Scents pink angle taklon liner brush - small, fine-tipped, angled brush for applying eye liner
• Essence of Beauty large crease brush - great for defining and contouring eye crease
• Essence of Beauty small crease brush - great for highlighting inner corner of eye or adding depth to outer corner of eye
• Essence of Beauty kabuki brush - perfect brush for applying powder foundation

All of these brushes are affordable, ranging in price from $1 to $18.  The Sonia Kashuk and e.l.f. brushes are available at Target.  Essence of Beauty brushes can be found at your local CVS.  The Sephora blending brush is available in Sephora stores or online.  And, last but not least, the Coastal Scents liner brush can be purchased online only from Coastal Scents.