The Air Is Crisp…
29 Saturday Sep 2012
Posted Inspirations
in29 Saturday Sep 2012
Posted Inspirations
in26 Wednesday Sep 2012
Posted Shopping
inI usually stick with neutral earthy tones when it comes to eye shadow but am definitely not afraid to add a pop of color. Recently I have been really into using neutral shades on my lids and brow bone and then adding a soft line of color under the eye. I prefer shades of blue or purple since they tend to really bring out my blue/green eyes. I happened to run across an image of the Clarins “Enchanted Summer” Color Quartet & Liner Palette while poking around online and instantly fell in love!
I looked in Macy’s as well as Nordstrom and wasn’t able to find the palette so I ended up ordering it online from Nordstrom. There are numerous different looks you can achieve with the colors available so I’m very excited to use it this fall!
Images © cosmetic journey…in the city 2011-2012
20 Thursday Sep 2012
Tags
Foundation, Maybelline Dream Fresh BB Cream, Maybelline Dream Matte Mousse Foundation, Neutrogena, Neutrogena Shine Control Makeup, Neutrogena Shine Control Makeup Nude 40, Oily Skin
Back during the summer I was on the hunt for some good foundations that would not end up looking slimy and oily by the end of the day. Since my skin is oily and we all sweat more during the hot summer days I wanted something lightweight that still provided good coverage. I ended up falling in love with the Maybelline Dream Fresh BB cream as well as the Maybelline Dream Matte Mousse foundation. I preferred to use these during the day while outside and running errands.
I do like to have a basic medium coverage foundation to wear while I spend more time indoors during the week. I still get a bit oily even while indoors all day so when I saw the Neutrogena Shine Control Makeup I was immediatley interested! Before I bought it, I read some reviews and heard more negatives than positives which was a bit disappointing. People said that the “rice protein complex” which this foundation contains, felt grainy against the skin almost like applying sand. Others said that the coverage was way too sheer and you have to pile it on to achieve a good amount of coverage.
Even after seeing these negative reviews I still wanted to try it for myself. One of my biggest driving forces to buy this product was it’s relation to the Neutrogena Healthy Skin foundation which people tend to love and compare to Nars Sheer Glow. So, without further ado, I will share with you my thoughts…
First off, I really like the clean and classic look of the packaging. The shade range is rather small but I was able to match myself pretty much perfectly to “Nude 40”. For reference I’m an NC25 in MAC. The foundation itself smells a bit like paint, but it’s not very strong so I don’t even notice it when applying. Now one thing that is a bit of a problem is the thickness. You can hold the bottle upside down without the cap and nothing will come out. It’s that thick. I’m wondering what will happen when there is only about 1/4 left at the bottom of the bottle. I’m thinking I will just have to store it upside down and then smack it against my hand to get the rest out of the bottle. That will be interesting. As for the graininess factor, I don’t really notice it that much. It’s not a deal breaker for me. The makeup does blend well and is quite light in coverage. I’ve tried to build it up a bit but it ends up looking cakey so I wouldn’t say it’s a buildable foundation. I love the fact that it has SPF 20 which is a definite plus in my book. I have noticed that my nose looks a little oily throughout the day so the shine control factor may be a bit weak. All in all I think this is an average drugstore foundation which I personally don’t think is worth the $13.99 price tag. I would probably slap a $6.00 price tag on it and call it a day.
So in short, I will not be buying this foundation again once it’s gone, that is if I can manage to extract it all out of the bottle since its so thick. The onlys thing I like about it is the fact that it has SPF 20, nice packaging and does help somewhat with the shine. Other than those things it’s just average. I say that if you are an oily person like me and it’s summer or you live in a humid place, give it a shot. If you are a normal to dry skinned person, it’s winter or you live in a dry climate, skip it!
Have you tried this foundation?
15 Saturday Sep 2012
Posted Shopping
inTags
Eyebrows, Lipstick, Maybelline, Maybelline Color Sensational Lipstick Tenacious Taupe, Maybelline Color Sensational Liptick, NYX, NYX Eyebrow Cake Powder, Tenacious Taupe Lipstick
Lately I’ve blogged about my lack of eyebrows and how I fill them in on a daily basis. I just so happened to watch a YouTube video where the NYX Eyebrow Cake Powder was used. I have never been aware of this product but had to check it out the next time I went into Ulta. These eyebrow kits come in 6 shades! I got the darkest one “ECP01 Black/Gray”. As I’ve mentioned before, any shadow or eyebrow kit tends to run too warm/brown on me and I’ve been on the lookout for a cool toned or black powder which I have found in this kit!
My next unexpected venture was to numerous Ulta stores and a couple of Targets to try to find the new Maybelline fall collection. I was on the hunt for the Color Sensational lipstick in the color “Tenacious Taupe”. As you probably know, I am in love with taupe when it comes to makeup, clothes, handbags ect…
I had no luck finding the new collection until I decided to go into Walgreens…
This shade of lipstick will be perfect for this upcoming season!
Images © cosmetic journey…in the city 2011-2012
11 Tuesday Sep 2012
Posted I Have My Eyes On, Inspirations
inTags
One of my favorite places to window shop is Crate & Barrel. Most of the time when I’m strolling through the store, coffee in hand on a nice lazy weekend, I will be making mental notes of what kinds of items I will need in my own kitchen once I move into my new place. I love the high quality merchandise they sell and the fact that you know that you will have whatever you buy for years to come…
The prices may be a bit steep on various items, but for the quality that you are getting I think it’s well worth it!
06 Thursday Sep 2012
I would love to travel back in time and hunt down my 15 year old self and say “Take it easy with those tweezers. If you don’t, someday your eyebrows will not grow back”. Unfortunately, I’m not able to do that and am stuck with over plucked thin brows that look like crap. Now, I’m very happy to have SOME eyebrows left, just not what I used to have and obviously took for granted before. Eyebrows frame your face and can actually make you look younger if they are on the fuller side. I believe that you can get away with less eye makeup if you have nicely groomed brows. With that being said, please take a look at the sad progression of the untimely death of my eyebrow follicles…
Box 1- Age 12, having never touched a pair of tweezers.
Box 2- The look I maintained for almost 9 years.
Box 3- What I’m left with now.
Box 4- My attempt to recreate what I once had.
In short, if you are an eyebrow plucker, please, for the love of all that is good, take it easy! After 9 years of fierce plucking I killed my eyebrow follicles and the hair will never grow back again. Really. It will not grow back. I would save time in the morning if I didn’t have to draw these suckers on every day. I would also look better right out of bed if I had nice full eyebrows. This is my only regret in life so far.
Think before you pluck.