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January 31, 2012

25 of 365 - Lazy Makeup

Ok, so not just the makeup was lazy, but my entire day. I need some sort of excitement, or something to look forward to at the end of the week because this is just annoying! The some of the progress that I did make on putting together the photos for the Naked 2 post, I closed the program before I could save it. Oh yeah. I'm that great today.

So on days that I just don't feel like doing my makeup, but feel like I should through on more than just mascara, I just go for Urban Decay's eyeshadow in YDK and easy liner. It's a bit of a shimmery neutral bronze (and apparently has glitter in it - barely ever noticed this!)

No good photos today. Even my camera was in a blah mood!

January 30, 2012

24 of 365 - Busted: Greedy Suspect

The Naked 2 post is coming this week, don't worry. I thought this would be a nice lil' sneak peek. All colours used (2) are from the Urban Decay Naked 2 Palette.




- Urban Decay Potion Primer in Greed (gold based)
- Suspect
- Busted

January 29, 2012

24 of 365 - Kat Von D part 2 - Everlasting Liquid Love Lipstick

When I purchased Kat Von D's Mi Vida Loca palette, I also purchased 2 of her new Everlasting Liquid Love Lipstick.


Per the Sephora.com website:
"What it is:
A richly pigmented, long-lasting lip color that loves to make a statement.

What it does:
This long-wear lipstick from Kat Von D stains your luscious lips with striking color, from flashy brights to smoldering neutrals. The liquid formula goes on wet for smooth, precise application and then dries to a matte, velvety finish. Once applied, there's no need to worry about smudging or migrating.

Size: 0.18 oz"


I chose Berlin and Outlaw. I'm a sucker for true reds. Both colours are true to description.

Berlin is described as a "warm rose". It looks a little pink in the tube, but it leans a rose/red - gorgeous colour.

Outlaw is described as "brick red". It's a blue based red which works so much better for me than orange based reds.


It comes in a thin tube with Kat Von D's signature roses on the black cap. The applicator is a doe foot, which is probably the best thing for this formula.


The first thing I notice when I apply the colour to my lips is how pigmented it is and that due to it's texture, you need to be very precise - which I lack the skill in this section.

The next thing I notice is that it dries very quickly (about 1 minute tops which is another reason for needing to be precise). I found it quite drying on my lips. It's not too bad if you apply a bit of lip balm underneath. Of course, winter never helps my lips which are horribly chapped all year long. Like it says, it dries to a matte, velvety finish.

I applied a bit of lip balm over the colour (as I didn't have clear gloss). Once that was on, it felt and looked much better.



The colour transfered on drinking glasses almost each time, however it almost kinf of stains the lips so you probably won't notice it.

Since I work in an environment where I'm constantly on the phone (call center) and I'm always talking, I figured a good test would be to wear it to work. I applied it before heading out and it finally started to wear off about 4-5 hours later. It wore off in that annoying way where you still have colour on the outline of your lips but not so much in the center. I didn't bring it with me so I wiped it off. I used a lip scrub to help remove it as it takes more than just water and paper towel (I was at work!)

So while the staying power is definitely there, I think a lip pencil is beneficial for these (may help with precision).

The only problem I've really had with these (other than the drying and need to be more precise) is that when I put the applicator back into the tube, the liquid colour seems to want to pop out. Have to go very slowly and almost push the wand to the side to make sure it doesn't spill out and make a huge mess. This was only the one colour and only lasted 3-5 times. After that it was fine.

January 27, 2012

23 of 365 - Trying on the Naked 2

I was lucky enough to step foot into my local Sephora store on the first day they got Urban Decay's Naked 2 palette. I'll have an entire post dedicated to the palette so for today, you simply get a look that I created using a few of the colours.


All shadows are from the Urban Decay Naked 2 palette
- UDPP
- Tease
- Verve
- Busted
- Booty Call
- Tarte SmolderEYES Amazonian Clay Waterproof Liner in Expresso
- Make Up For Ever Smoky Eye Mascara in Black



January 25, 2012

22 of 365 - Intergalactic

While it's not bright, it's not exactly the neutral I had planned when I grabbed my Urban Decay Naked palette. Looking at it, I decided I wanted to use the gray shade, Gunmetal. Then decided purple would look good. As I was putting everything together, The Beastie Boys popped into my head.
blurry to show the glittery-goodness


- UDPP
- Kat Von D Mi Vida Loca palette - Drama for yo momma
- UD Naked palette: Gunmetal and Creep
- Smashbox waterproof jet set liner in midnight black
- Make Up For Ever Glitter #13 (it's holographic - but can't find the one on sephora.com)
- Lit Cosmetics Clearly liquid glitter base
- Tarte Lights, Camera, Lashes! Mascara

January 24, 2012

21 of 365 - Fluffy Bunny

Doesn't take many posts to realize that I'm not great with coming up with names for my posts/looks. For some reason, I was thinking of bunnies. I guess it has to do with the pink?

I wanted to try the colors in my new Kat Von D Mi Vida Loca palette, but wasn't sure if I wanted to dive right into the bright colours.



- UDPP
- Swan Song
- Drama for yo momma (along lashline)
- No regrets (crease)
- Kat Von D Autograph pencil liner in Wonderchild
- Make Up For Ever Smoky Lash Mascara - black

January 23, 2012

20 of 365 - Kat Von D Haul & Swatches (part 1)

I was super stocked when my local Sephora call me to let me know that Kat Von D's new palette had arrived at their store. I've been waiting for a few weeks now. Naturally, I went in and picked it up... along with two of her new Everlasting Love Liquid Lipstick.



This palette, "Mi Vida Loca" was inspired by Kat Von D's back tattoo (said to be one of her favorites). It's supposed to be reminiscent of 80's neon colours. While the colours are bright, I wouldn't call them neon by any means.

The colours are as follows (taken from Sephora.com, but the colour description matches the proper name - doesn't online)

- Swan Song (iridescent pearl)
- Marya  (pearl soft pink)
- No Regrets(hot pink purple sparkle)
- Drama For Yo Momma (iridescent purple)
- Mad Max (matte sky blue)
- Dublin (shimmery kelly green)
- Sparklehorse (shimmery gold)
- Altruism (shimmery vanilla)
- Eyeliner in Wonderchild (electric blue) 

Swan Song surprised me the most. It's kind of a duochrome. It may look white, but it actually has a red/violet satin sheen to it. Very nice. Meanwhile Marya is almost a very very baby pink (almost whitish) when swatched. I think Altruism disappointed me the most. It's colour and texture is very similar to Peanut in the True Love palette (just more gold than beige). Don't get me wrong, I like it, it's just not quite as smooth as the others. 

2 things I love about this palette: 1 - NO cream shadows (thank you!) 2- instead of the cheap throw away brushes, you get an eye liner. This liner is quite nice. I believe it's waterproof and I can say just rubbing at it with light and then medium force, it's got some staying power to it. 

As always, I love her formula; it's smooth in texture, glides on easily and blends well. This thing cost $41 and is well worth it when you break it down (8 shadows and a mini eye liner)

 Here are some more photos & swatches for you. Swatched over Urban Decay Portion Primer and NYX Jumbo Pencil in Milk.  You'll notice there's a line between the two where the colour's slightly faded, almost like someone took an eraser to it - that's actually bare skin so you can see what UDPP & Milk do to the colours.

Typical packaging - love the colours!
Bottom to top: Swan Song, Marya, No Regrets, Drama for yo momma, Mad Max, Dublin, Sparklehorse and Altriusm
L to R: Swan Song, Marya, No Regrets, Drama for yo momma, Mad Max, Dublin, Sparklehorse and Altriusm
 Mad Max, Dublin, Sparklehorse and Altriusm
 Mad Max, Dublin, Sparklehorse and Altriusm
Swan Song, Marya, No Regrets, Drama for yo momma
Swan Song, Marya, No Regrets, Drama for yo momma
Kat Von D Autograph Pencil - Wonderchild

Any colours from this palette your looking forward to seeing more of? 

 Part 2 will cover the Everlasting Love Liquid Lipsticks.  


January 22, 2012

19 of 365 - Testing out the Lanmei

It was a relatively easy day, so I decided to keep the makeup relatively easy as well. I wanted to use one of the Lanmei colours that were given to me as they're fairly light but enough to add some colour.






You can see from the two pictures how lighting plays differently on the colours.



- UDPP
- NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil in Milk
- Lanmei 044 (blue)
- Lanmei 031 (purple)
- Make Up For Ever Liner in 6K
- Tarte Lash, Camera, Lashes! Mascara

January 21, 2012

18 of 365 - Haul from colleague (pic heavy)

Recently, one of my colleagues brought me some eyeshadows that she no longer used. I was more than happy to give them a new home. So when she told me she was going to bring some in for me, I was excited to get 2 or 3 shadows. I wasn't expecting 12!

Here's what I got:
2 shadows by Elf, 2 shadows by Aide (bright series), 5 Lanmei and 3 Leishi (which I think is the same as Lanmei, just glitters)


Naturally I was curious about Aide and Lanmei/Leishi so I did what anyone would have - used to all mighty powers of Google. What I got wasn't a whole lot. Nothing actually for Aide. Lanmei/Leishi I found one blog that swatched them but other than that, I only discovered that you can purchase them form e-bay. Which my colleague told me she bought the Lanmei/Leishi and Aide from e-bay, so it wasn't much of a discovery there.





Let's start with the Elf shadows, Mysterious and Temptress.

Both colours are matte and very soft. Mysterious actually has a bit of silver glitter to it. Just enough to say it's there.











Aide Bright Series didn't have names. I think it's A34 (coppery brown) and 35 (gunmetal black). They're shimmery and seem to apply well. Once again, no information has been found online about these guys. Based on the writing underneath, I'm guessing they're from an Asian company of some sorts.



Here's all 4 they are swatched on bare skin, Urban Decay Potion Primer, NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil in Milk and Black Bean:




Last up are Leishi and Lanmei. Leishi are the glitters and they are 29 (blue), 53 (red with an almost clear/green sheen) and 67 (yellow with same clear/green sheen). They are big glitters. Looking at a comparison chart online, I'd say it's between 0.015 - 0.04 particle size. I applied them using Lit Cosmetics Clearly Liquid Glitter Base.






Once again, Lanmei doesn't have names, however they are also numbered:  031 (purple), 058 (orangey gold), 016 (green), 044 (blue) and 011 (pink). All but the orangey gold are pastels. They apply easily and you can build them up for colour, but not too much.






While you can't see much of a difference on bare skin vs the primer for Lanmei, I dragged my finger across to show you how the primer adds staying power to them.



I'm looking forward to playing with them all. I'm looking forward to trying Elf as I've read many reviews about their cosmetics. They're neutral matte shades which will be nice for those days where I feel like crap and just need to not look too much like a zombie. Lanmei will be fun to add a bit of highlight. I can see some of them working nicely for the inner corner.

Have you tried any of these brands?