FOTD

The Daily Face #16: Coppery Summer Eyes and a Chanel Foundation Gush

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So I had to talk write about my birthday splurge, the chic black-bottled beauty that is the newly released and absolutely divine Chanel Perfection Lumiere Velvet Smooth-Effect Makeup – every girl needs a Chanel foundation, am I right? – and as pleased with the product as I am, I am aware of how premature a standalone post would be so here I am bringing you another slightly-overdue edition of the products currently gracing my face with some thoughts on them thrown in. Believe it or not, I’ve actually switched up my makeup some in the last little bit but just to warn you I picked up a thing or five on my quick little jet into Walmart so these products haven’t necessarily all been gracing my face in days passed.

 

T’is another gorgeous sunny day, so I prepped my mug with the non-irritating and hydrating Avene High Protection Cream SPF 50 and then went in with the thin semi-matte finish foundation (the Chanel Perfection Lumiere Velvet Smooth-Effect Makeup in 10). It’s a marvel to me how this foundation offers medium coverage while feeling so lightweight and remaining undetectable on the skin. It also does the unthinkable, suiting my skin with plenty dry-patches and actually having luminosity without even edging on dewy in finish. Colour me impressed, thus far. It surprised me by doing a good job covering up some purging-induced blemishes around my chin and I didn’t even reach for a brush to cover those bad boys up further. At the reccomendation of the lovely lady who sold me the foundation, I went for a light dusting of powder through the t-zone, opting for the MAC Studio Careblend Pressed Powder in Light after dabbing some of the Rimmel Wake Me Up Concealer in Very Fairunderneath my eyes to deal with some of that dark-circle situation.

Recently I picked up the darker and less-terracotta coloured Sonia Kashuk Undetectable Creme Bronzer in Rich Bronze and I’ve been constantly using it to bronze and contour the cheekbone area — unlike the lighter shade, this one can actually create some sort of natural shadow without looking grey in the slightest, FYI. The other two cheek products were recent additions but both have impressed me: the rosy pink-toned Maybelline Master Hi-Light Blush in Pink Rose and the Revlon Highlighting Palette in Peach Glow.I was also feeling a setting spray so I misted my face with the dewy Nyx offering.

I began the eyes with a base (as always), opting for the warm matte MAC Prolongwear Paint Pot in Layin’ Low.The eyes were where I’ve switched things up in a notable way since the last post of this variety — going outside my comfort zone on my lids. I wanted to go for a copper theme but a wearable one at that so I toned down the gorgeous MAC Coppering with All That Glitters all over the lid (but not enough) and then I added the much less coppery L’Oreal Infallible Eyeshadow in Tender Caramel on the inner portion of the lid to brighten things further. I went for a little bit of MAC Coquette in the crease for some depth after I had already filled in my brows with the same powder and I finished the eyeshadow situation with MAC Club in the outer corner. There’s something about rimmed eyes that suit these more coppery tones so I lined the inner rims with Annabelle Smoothliner in Black. For mascara, I went for a nice coat or two on both sets of lashes of the Revlon Bold Lacquer Mascara as it’s easy to use, building volume without difficulty or clumpiness but actually removes like a non-waterproof mascara should.

On the lips went MAC Sweet & Sour Lipstick which has remained an everyday effortless lip staple. The subdued corally shade seems to go with everything without fail and could only be improved by having a more forgiving formula on my sensitive lips that I very badly need to exfoliate but fear doing so in case of retaliation.

P.S. After putting this on, I decided to go down to my dock in the heat and not only did the makeup hold up, it felt weightless on my skin. More than that, I couldn’t even tell I was wearing foundation. It’s completely premature to say so but I think I’m in love. And if you are wondering why my face in these pictures might look a little less perfect or if they look a little different, I got a digital SLR camera for my birthday and the quality of my photos will be improving as I learn to master the object.

Have you tried any of these products? Thoughts on the face?

Maggie, x.

 

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The Daily Face #15: Warm-Weather Makeup

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Contrary to the general pattern as of late, today was a gorgeous warm sunny day – but not so warm that makeup would be a no-go, of course. I’ve gotten into a bit of a different daily routine – but not too different, you know me… – with slightly different daily staples and I thought I would share the warm-weather centric makeup.

When it’s been warm and sunny, I’ve been reaching for the authentic Skin 79 Snail Nutrition BB Cream, as it offers good coverage with some added radiance and great sun protection – without using chemical sunscreens that make my skin burn and all that jazz. My skin has been pretty good so I went straight onto under-eye brightening with the magical Bobbi Brown Corrector in Light to Medium Bisque. Because sunscreen-heavy products tend to produce somewhat of a sheen, I made sure to dust the MAC Studio Careblend Pressed Powder through my t-zone.

Despite rambling on about more traditional bronzers frequently in posts as of late, the slightly warm-toned MAC Harmonyhas reigned supreme for adding for adding colour and shape and in the last week or two, I’ve been reaching for the L’Oreal True Match Blush in N3-4 Innocent Flushthat I previously dismissed as lacking longevity and any sort of novelty; while it’s not going to knock out MAC Stereo Rose etc. as my favourite coral blush with that golden sheen, I had misjudged this one as it does have good longevity, pigmentation and texture. As of late, I’ve also consistently been going for highlighter, namely the long-since unavailable MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in Semi-Precious Pearl. Because I tend to find that the BB Cream can sit on my skin slightly unevenly, I misted my face with the Nyx Dewy Finish Makeup Setting Spray – I’m undecided on my final verdict on this setting spray, if you were wondering.

I’m now convinced that the L’Oreal Superliner Brow Artist in Blonde is certainly worth of praise – it seems a little dark for it’s name as it works for my medium-brown hair but the ashy-toned pencil-wax duo, paired with the mini-brush creates easy but naturally-defined brows. I suspect you’ll hear more on this on a later post… Because shadows need a base or primer of some sort, I grabbed for the ever-popular Maybelline Color Tattoo in Bad To The Bronze but the real star of the show is the Dior Grege Quint that I picked up a few weeks ago (and featured it in a haul-type post) and have hardly put down since. I’ve ignored this quint in the past despite knowing the great quality of these shadows as the offerings looked neutral and boring but that could hardly be farther from the truth – the shades are surprisingly versatile for daily use with their variety of finishes. The sheeny grey shade was patted onto the outer-half of the lid, the ivory was applied to the inner corner region to lighten it up and the dark matte chocolate brown was blended into the outer corner and further used as liner. Since finding the L’Oreal brow pencil, my MAC 266 has been freed-up and I’ve fallen in love with using the brush with shadow as slightly-smoky liner. For mascara I’ve been consistently reaching for the Revlon Bold Lacquer Mascarathat I recently picked up as it provides easy adequate volume a la Benefit BadGal Lash and is not an absolute bitch to remove.

I’ve been feeling a coral lip lately, especially with the grey-toned shadow and because my lips are kind of in rough shape at the moment, I went for the hydrating and forgiving MAC Lipstick in Dreaming Dahliathat of course is no longer available for it was part of the MAC A Fantasy of Flowers Collection.

Thoughts on this ‘look’? What have you been reaching for lately?

Maggie, x.

The Daily Face #14: The Usual + Unseasonal Lip Favourite

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While putting together these posts, I’ve noticed an unwavering pattern of mine — forgetting to picture one or two of the crucial products — but it’s no time to change habits now. Of course, the first item to grace my face is absent here, the satisfyingly ashy L’Oreal Superliner Brow Artist in Blonde ($11-12 CDN) was applied through the brows, brushed out with the decent little spoolie and set with the gel at the other end of the pencil; I picked this up yesterday when I was strolling around the aisles of the drugstore and was reminded of my mission to find a brow product that isn’t ridiculously red and horrible on a budget and I think I’ve succeeded. However, I think this is quite a dark shade for blondes but I could be wrong.

Accepting the slight possibility that the weather outside could potentially warm up to warrant some sort of sun protection, I pulled out the lightweight and luminous spf-45-laden Skin79 BB Cream (appx $36 CDN) and blended it in with my fingers. Because there are obvious remnants of that breakout from a few weeks back across my cheeks, temples and chin, I had to go for the big guns er the Make Up For Ever 5 Concealer Cream Palette in 1 ($45 CDN) and obviously I counteracted my hereditary dark circles easily with the Bobbi Brown Corrector in Light to Medium Bisque ($30 CDN).

I decided to go onto my eyes before finishing the whole face detail situation, beginning by priming with the MAC Prolongwear Paint Pot in Layin’ Low ($25 CDN), before going in with Buzz, Liar, Limit, Factory and Blackheart from the Urban Decay Naked 3 Palette ($62 CDN); Buzz and Liar were combined on the brush to go for less of a light lid shade, Limit was blended into the crease lazily as one does, Factory was applied somewhat liberally through the outer corners of the eyes and Blackheart was applied in a more precise manner along the outer-v and lower lashline. And because I’m someone who just kind of needs liner, I went for a thin flick of the much-adored L’Oreal Lineur Intense.The mascara in use was a new one, the Revlon Bold Lacquer By Grow Luscious Mascara,which was a pleasantly dry formula that reminded me instantly of Benefit Bad Gal – this is not a bad thing – and I’ll be pleased with this one if it removes a little bit easier than the L’Oreal Voluminous Million Lashes Excess…

Now that it’s actually getting sunny and such outside, I’ve been getting into the warm bronzers — this one is the creamy Sonia Kashuk Undetectable Creme Bronzer in Warm Tan ($10-11 CDN) — and I perhaps got a little too bronzer happy along the hairline, I must admit. I just haven’t been able to put down the seemingly-dull-but-divine Hourglass Ambient Lighting Blush in Ethereal Glow ($41 CDN)and I believe that in light of this, it has earned its place in this blush-hoarders hall of fame. And I was feeling some highlighter on the cheekbones, so I went for the long-since-unavailable MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in Semi-Precious Pearl.

This isn’t a truly new lip colour for me as I’ve worn the shade loads before but as I actually seem to have lost this shade and legitimately missed it, I picked up another Revlon Lacquer Balm in Enticing ($9-10 CDN).I know the deeper neutral red isn’t the most appropriate shade for this time of year but I’ve been really enjoying this kind of bold-ish lip on myself and the formula is stunningly comfortable – what more could you want?

Have you tried any of these products?

Maggie, x.

 

 

The Daily Face #13: The No-Fuss Sheer-but-Bold Lip

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I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised that today is one of those muggy and gross standard Spring days considering the gorgeously warm days that we have had as of late but I wasn’t put off by the weather and went for this kind of spring-summer/warm-weather transitional makeup look with not much colour and intensity going on the face or eyes and a kind of but not really sheer healthy pop of colour on the lips. When I set out to put my makeup on early this morning, I was determined not to write this post but rather put up a round-up of some recent acquisitions of mine but after using them in combination with some older standard loves, I couldn’t resist putting up a daily face post first. So, I’m warning you that there will be a lengthier post on a number of the products used here in the next little while. In other words, many of these products will be elaborated on in upcoming posts this week, if you’re curious about them.

FACE: Rimmel Stay Matte Liquid Mousse Foundation in 103 True Ivory ($7-9 CDN), MUFE 5 Camoflage Cream Palette in 1 ($45  CDN), Bobbi Brown Corrector in Light to Medium Bisque ($30 CDN), MAC Harmony Powder Blush ($25 CDN), Hourglass Ambient Lighting Blush in Ethereal Glow ($41 CDN)
EYES: Maybelline Color Tattoo in Barely Branded ($9 CDN), Dior 5 Coleurs Quint in Grege ($61 CDN), L’Oreal Lineur Intense in Carbon Black ($9-10 CDN), L’Oreal Voluminous Million Lashes Excess Mascara ($10-11 CDN), MAC Coquette eyeshadow ($12/18 CDN)
LIPS: Fresh Sugar Lip Treatment in Cherry ($26 CDN)

There are two products used – not including brushes because I’m lazy – that I do not appear to have photographed but only one I did so purposefully. Because I keep my daily brow shade of choice, MAC Coquette out of the photograph and I completely forgot to photograph my eyeshadow base, the Maybelline Color Tattoo in Barely Branded but I assure you it was used, nevertheless.

The foundation is definitely a new one for me and not one that I expected picking up but after receiving a sample of the Rimmel foundation in a close-enough shade, I found that I quite liked the formula despite it’s mattifying claims and fulfilled the desire I had in the last little while to try a heavier-coverage foundation that’s not quite so glowy. All I can say is that the shade range sucks for darker skins and it runs differently than the Wake Me Up in terms of undertones; I’m wearing shade 4/6 despite my paleness if that’s an indicator… And it’s not that matte and drying as I expected but for me that’s a good thing, however I was tempted to go for a spray of the oft-neglected Nyx Dewy Finish Makeup Setting Spray. But it has impressed me considerably. I whipped out the concealer palette for just one last reminder of last week’s chin-jawline breakout situation and went for the hyped but rightfully-so Bobbi Brown Corrector underneath my eyes. For adding shape and colour, I went with a new stand-by and an older one — the new Hourglass Ethereal Glow and good ol’ MAC Harmony to add some subtle-but-effective shape and rosy glow to the face in the most undetectable way.

The eyes were first primed as they always are but then I filled in my brows standardly – I’m not sure why I do my brows before the rest of my makeup but somehow it’s become part of the routine as such. Other than the base, I made use of all of the shades of my recently-acquired and fabulous Dior Grege Quint on the eyes: the pigmented ivory shimmery shade went on the inner corners to brighten, the lighter taupe sheeny shade went on the lids, the warm brown satin-matte shade went into the crease as the perfect transition colour, the sheeny grey was buffed out into the crease from the outer corners and the deep chocolate brown satin shade was applied into the outer corners and lightly underneath the lashline. I’ve been pleasantly surprised by the versatility of these shadows and you know by their amazing formula that never causes fallout and lasts for ages; Grege might look boring – and I may have previously passed it as such – but it’s one of those high-quality staples, I reckon, that contains both matte/satin and shimmery shades that fit into the neutral family. The mascara and liquid liner were both from L’Oreal, an old favourite and a new favourite, and I’m sure many of you can guess which is which. P.S. If you haven’t been successful, it will be clearer when my monthly favourites post comes up in the near future. Obviously there was a subtle kitten flick involved but it works for me and I’ve learned how to do it with minimal effort so it’s a win-win situation.

Although it’s almost a toss up between the lip and the gorgeous shadows, I have to say that the lip was the main part of this otherwise subdued neutral makeup look. I went for the hardly-sheer Fresh Cherry Lip Treatment to add that hint of colour to the lips that doesn’t look overdone in the least.

What are your thoughts on this “daily face”? What have you been reaching for as of late?

Maggie, x.

 

P.S. The blotchiness on my neck/chest in parts may or may not be due to the unfortunate interplay between eczema patches and a self-tanner attempt – there will be more on this pronto. And the title is sort of an oxymoron but I hope you’ll know what I mean…

The Daily Face #12

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For some odd reason that I can’t actually articulate in any semblance of coherence, I feel compelled to state that despite the title of this post this isn’t actually today’s face – although it may make an appearance in a later post as it has that sort of warm-weather theme going on ’cause for once it’s actually really beautiful outside… This was actually the fairly quick but full-faced makeup I wore on Sunday during my essay writing and coffee-drinking marathon that was sort of laid back for me but was flattering, if I can say so myself.

Over the last few months, I’ve been gradually falling in love with the Diorskin Nude Skin-Glowing Makeup for daily use and obviously it was no day for experimentation. It’s a foundation that has some luminosity to it, offering medium coverage that also does not emphasize imperfections in the slightest so it has my vote. The Rimmel Wake Me Up Concealer was dabbed underneath the eyes, as per usual, and I also had some redness going on around the chin area so I put some there as well. Having stress-reactive skin, I had some eczema-induced irritation bumpy things on my forehead and I spot-concealed with the trusty Make Up For Ever Concealer Palette, just using the standard shade that matches the skin, nothing fancy.

It shouldn’t be surprising that the (not shown above) product of choice for the brows was the ashy MAC Coquette Eyeshadow considering the number of times I’ve declared my love for it. I prepped the eyelids with the gorgeous taupe-y Maybelline Color Tattoo in Nude Compliment that I’m kind of sort of obsessed with at the moment. I’m still really enjoying the rosy warm tones of the Naked 3 Palette,  so I went for the peachy-champagne Burnout for the general lid area, the matte pinky-tan Limit to add some depth to the crease and all that jazz and packed the deep grey Darkside in the outer corner. Although I went for a fine but winged line of L’Oreal Lineur Intense, I also smudged some of the Annabelle Smoothliner in Brownie into my lower lashes. I didn’t skimp on mascara on the top or bottom lashes, using the L’Oreal Voluminous Million Lashes Excess.

The interesting and actually somewhat low-key feature of the whole face was that I used only one product for the lips and cheeks both. I suppose I kind of forgot about the gorgeous warm rusty-rose Bobbi Brown Pot Rouge in Rose that I was using much more frequently last year and I’ve been digging it out again with pleasure. Forgoing the whole highlighter and bronzer shebang, I blended a few dots onto my cheeks and it gave that naturally rosy look that just works. On the lips, it works just as well, especially when a lip brushed is used and it looks like your lips are just naturally rosy.

Can anyone follow my general train of thought here? I’ll try to simplify: despite wearing a full-face of makeup, I liked the ease and simplicity of just going for products that gave a flattering effect that didn’t scream “makeup” without having to sacrifice on the overall efficacy of the routine.

What have you been reaching for lately?

Maggie, x.

The Daily Face #11

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I noticed that for once, I didn’t give one of these posts a subtitle after the colon, in case you were driving yourself insane with philosophical questions of intention; I just couldn’t give this an exciting name, as it doesn’t differ from the norm too much — you can hardly call wearing a shade that isn’t champagne over the lids and going for a new blush that in fact is not coral deviating. I’m coming down with a cold, fatigue and crankiness in all — more on this in an upcoming post, I’ll bet — and can’t really be bothered to think about what I’m doing or spend excessive amounts of time doing it so it’s simply a brightening but simple kind of affair. And it has an exciting and hyped new blush purchase to be discussed…….
FACE: Rimmel Wake Me Up Foundation in 100 Ivory, MUFE 5 Concealer Cream Palette in 1, MAC Powder Blush in Harmony, Hourglass Ambient Lighting Blush in Ethereal Glow, MAC Eyeshadow in Coquette (not pictured and in the brows as alwaaaays)
EYES: NYX HD Eyeshadow Base, MAC Prolongwear Paint Pot in Layin’ Low, L’Oreal Colour Riche Eye Shadow in Sultry Seductress, Lancome Le Crayon Khol in Black Ebony, L’Oreal Lineur Intense in Carbon Black, L’Oreal Voluminous Million Lashes Excess Mascara
LIPS: MAC Lipstick in Patisserie

With the unfortunate cold coming on, my face has been a bit irritated with those unsightly eczema-bumps on my forehead and on the sides of my cheeks, so I went for the failsafe Rimmel Wake Me Up Foundation, which provides medium coverage with minimal product and just seems to work. With the whole said bumps situation, I did the whole spot concealing thing with the handy MUFE Concealer Palette and thanks to the creamy texture, was able to double up the same product (in the lighter shade) underneath the eyes.

So, yesterday was the first day of the Sephora sale and despite not being initially convinced that the Hourglass Ambient Lighting Blushes were overrated, I had a peek at the testers and was compelled to give on ago on account of their smooth texture and the 15% discount on the steep $41 dollar pricetag. Instead of going for my usual coral that I tend to love universally, I went for the cooler-toned pink, Ethereal Glow, and trying it for the first time, I’m impressed. It’s not as cool toned as say Well Dressed, but it is on the cooler end of things and has good payoff despite its light shade. Obviously I will have to report back.

Having heavy-lidded eyes that have a lot more creases than the average eye, I suffer from creasing on my lids despite not being oily and lately I’ve been pleased with today’s duo, the Nyx primer and the MAC Layin’ Low Paint-Pot. After trying out the L’Oreal Sultry Seductress Quad yesterday and being instantly impressed with the variety and quality of the shades, I picked it up again without thinking. Rather than going for the pearly shade across the lids, I kept it in the inner corner and wore the Satin-Taupe-esque shimmery taupe shade across the lids and blended upwards a bit and it was nice – slightly darker than my usual without being dramatic. The dark purply shade was too stunning to resist and I put it in the outer corner as one does.

I’ve been in a lashy mood of sorts lately, constantly going for the budget-friendly L’Oreal Lineur Intense for the kitten flick and going for the dramatic mascara from the same brand – I’ve been enjoying this mascara as it’s dried up slightly (like I typically do) and I’ve gotten loads of compliments about my eyelashes when I’ve used it lately so it must be doing its job. I’ve been going for the no-fuss Lancome Le Crayon Khol for lashline definition, but I was feeling like something even more lash-focused so I lined my inner rims as well.

With the whole coming down with a cold situation, my lips aren’t looking their best and I did what I always do what this happens – went for the my-lips-but-better shade MAC Patisserie.

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What makeup have you been reaching for as of late?

Maggie, x.

The Daily Face #10: A Little Less Typical But Really More Of The Same

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I apologize for the interruption in my regular posting schedule (erm that my posts have been lacking in frequency) but things have been crazy in the last few days and I’ve hardly mustered the energy to remove my makeup and wash my face when I’ve gotten home so posts weren’t really a possibility. I haven’t done one of these posts in a while so I thought I would share what I’m wearing, not that it’s groundbreakingly different or anything – but I did incorporate some cooler tones and I went for a darker shade on the lid that I’m used to.

FACE: Make Up For Ever Mat Velvet + in 40, Rimmel Wake Me Up Concealer in 125 Very Fair, Sonia Kashuk Undetectable Creme Bronzer in Warm Tan, Revlon Photoready Skin Lights in Pink Light, Tarte Amazonian Clay Blush in Natural Beauty,  MAC Coquette eyeshadow (brows) EYES: MAC Prolongwear Paint Pot in Layin’ Low, Urban Decay Naked 3 Palette (Strange, Nooner, Mugshot and Darkside), Annabelle Smoothliner in Brownie, L’Oreal Voluminous Million Lashes Excess Mascara in Black LIPS: Maybelline ‘The Buffs’ Lipstick in Nude Lust

Lately I’ve tended to do my eye makeup before my face makeup because as much as I like the oh-so-popular palette in question, fallout seems to be inevitable. I’m loving my recently-acquired MAC Layin’ Low Paintpot because it primes in an instant and leaves a flattering warm brown tinge to the lids that can help to make other shades look a little more wearable – not that today’s shades need it though. The look is a little smokier on the lid than I typically go for but it was nice to break the habit – I put the silvery-taupe Mugshot over the lid. The much-loved pigmented Nooner was blended through the crease, the bizarrely ordinary Strange (misnomer) to highlight and brighten the inner corner and the unique grey Darkside to do what I always do, add definition in the outer corner of my large round eyes. I thought the whole smoky thing called for some smudgy liner so I went for Annabelle Brownie which is a fantastic deep chocolate liner that’s a steal and did the usual swipe or two and I shoved some of the impressive L’Oreal Voluminous Million Lashes Excess on both sets of my lashes. I was too lazy to grab the palette it was in to photograph it, but obviously I filled in the brows with an angle brush and the magical (not exactly kidding) MAC Coquette. 

On the face, I’ve been feeling a more matte and fuller coverage theme, not because my skin is not acting its best (because it actually is behaving), but I’ve been feeling the more done-up (but not heavy-looking) skin. I grabbed my Make Up For Ever Mat Velvet + which I have almost used up and if you’re curious this was my first Sephora purchase ever and this was my absolute favourite when I had more combination skin a few years back. I bought the shade in the summer when I have more colour and for some odd reason when I get darker, my yellow undertones become more apparent so I have to be quite careful with blending in this one not because it’s a bit dark, but rather it can look weirdly yellow in patches unless I blend it. Because I started off on this tangent, I figure I might as well continue with my thoughts on the foundation. It’s a velvety semi-matte finish that hardly highlights dry patches at all (impressive) and provides medium-buildable coverage that I have in fact been out in the rain for an hour in with my foundation still intact. I shouldn’t know this but this foundation lasts for about twenty hours without powder on me even when my skins a little on the oilier side (normal skin for you) and if applied in small amounts with some effort, it can look skinlike rather than mask-like. I felt like going for some cream bronzer to add some shape and added some glow back into my skin with the luminous Revlon Pink Light liquid highlighter on my cheekbones. Although the formula isn’t my favourite (but I will admit that its longevity is legendary), I’ve been loving the matte watermelon-pink Tarte Natural Beauty on my cheeks for that flushed look. For how scary it looks in the pan, it looks surprisingly natural on the cheeks…

Out of the Maybelline The Buffs collection, I had first had indifferent feelings towards Nude Lust, favouring the peachier-undertone of the paler nude but lately I’ve been enjoying this darker nude with beigier undertones. However, note that if you have ghastly looking lips like mine, applying too much can make you look dead and as much as I love the formula, they do highlight dry patches (I have them aplenty – questionable grammatical usage there for an english student…….) in case you were wondering. So before I write myself in to a coma and cause anyone reading this to die of boredom, I’ll stop going on and on. I’ve been enjoying this slightly smoky look lately with a nude lip – it seems appropriate for the weird season right now where it’s most definitely not spring but sometimes it actually can reach zero degrees on a good day.

What have you been wearing lately? Am I the only person it’s by no means spring for yet?

Maggie, x.

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The Daily Face #9: I’m not buying into that idea that it’s spring now but I’ll pretend for the sake of coral and to escape the winter blues

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I needed some cheering up and a change of scenery from staring blankly at the screen of my laptop and rather bland books and articles and naturally this resulted in a full-face of makeup that I was rather impressed with and featured probably my favourite way to wear my current obsession the Naked 3.

FACE: REN Evercalm Global Protection Day Cream, Laura Mercier Silk Creme Foundation in Rose Ivory, Rimmel Wake Me Up Concealer in 125 Very Fair, MAC Stereo Rose Mineralize Skinfinish, Sonia Kashuk Undetectable Creme Bronzer in Warm Tan EYES: Urban Decay Naked 3 Palette (Buzz, Nooner, Blackheart, Darkside and Trick), Urban Decay 24/7 Eyeliner in Perversion, L’Oreal Lineur Intense in Carbon Black, L’Oreal Voluminous Million Lashes Excess Mascara in Black, MAC Eyeshadow in Coquette (…brows….) LIPS: L’Oreal Colour Caresse in Sunset Angora

In the last ten days or so my skin has been extra dehydrated and irritated and on the days I’ve worn makeup at least, this has posed a few problems with my makeup application — there have been a few days when I stuck to my typical standbys and had ended up wishing I didn’t have anything on my face at all because it looked better before. I was feeling like a little more coverage so I went for the Laura Mercier Silk Creme which luckily is a fantastic match for my skin at the moment and was extra careful with the amount used and buffed it into the skin with my Real Techniques Buffing Brush that I adore for this kind of thing but always forget to mention. I’m quite pleased, however I hate how careful I have to be with this foundation. And I purposely applied the foundation right over moisturizer, allowing it to work as a primer of sorts to smooth it out all over my dehydrated skin.

Now that everyone seems to be saying that spring is just around the corner and all that jazz, I figured it would actually be justifiable to break out the coral shades that I adore and obviously I went for the limited-edition cult product that is available now by the way, MAC Stereo Rose which I have been faithful to for the last few weeks as my go to guy/gal.

The eyes were my usual but I’ve realized that I haven’t actually done a post showing this ‘eye look’ which might just be my favourite from the palette and likely one of my favourites of all time. The coppery rose-gold Trick is a favourite of mine worn all over the lid and I know I don’t even need to discuss my love of the matte crease and transition shades in the palette. Wearing Darkside in the outer corner with a little bit of Blackheart closer to the lashline might make my favourite slightly smoky eye ever and that is a large statement coming from a smoky eye lover like myself. I strangely felt like tightlining so I went for Urban Decay Perversion along with my usual, the loved L’Oreal Lineur Intense for a subtle kitten flick. No comment on the brows, other that I’m still loving the ashy shade from MAC aaaaand oddly enough I’ve been really going for the L’Oreal Mascara and it hasn’t even begun to dry up — I think this one will be a keeper.

I’m not exactly sure how it happened, as I’ve been pretty diligent with the lip balm application but my lips went from being slightly chapped to quite chapped and decided to crack for good measure and they are starting to heal but I’m only starting to wear any kind of lip colour on them and I’ve been pretty careful with what. I was thinking as it’s nearing the end of February, coral might be appropriate and let me tell you, my poor lips and my working brain (as well) are loving L’Oreal Sunset Angora; the comfortable and actually moisturizing formula does not irritate the lips further and provides the perfect pinky coral hue. You know how I feel about coral.

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What have you been reaching for on a daily basis? If you have this palette, how do you like to wear it? I hope your Saturday is a little bit more exciting than mine…

Maggie, x.

The Daily Face #8: Everyday Smoky Featuring Urban Decay Naked 3

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There’s something about the effortless-looking and not overdone smoky eye that grabs me in every time. And every time I see Amelia Liana sporting one, I’m in awe. Annnnnd I figured I’d give my take with the Urban Decay Naked 3. Andddddd it’s all about the warm tones everywhere else that I adore, so nothing ground-breaking here.

face: Bourjois 10 Hour Sleep Effect in 73 & Rimmel Wake Me Up in Ivory (mixed), MUFE 5 Concealer Cream Palette in 1 (just the second lightest shade for pinpoint concealing),Rimmel Match Perfection Concealer/Highlighter in Ivory, Sonia Kashuk Undetectable Creme Bronzer in Warm Tan, Benefit Rockateur Boxed Powder, Revlon Photoready Skin Lights in Pink Glow

eyes: MAC Coquette (brows), Rimmel Exaggerate Undercover Shadow Primer, Urban Decay Naked 3 Palette (Strange, Buzz, Limit, Nooner, Factory, Blackheart), Annabelle Smoothliner in Brownie, L’Oreal Voluminous Million Lashes Excess Mascara

lips: Rimmel Kate Moss Lasting Finish Lipstick in 08

It was no surprise to me that today was one of those mornings when you’re desperate to add some vitality to your face for me as that whole sleeping thing hasn’t really been going as planned and I wanted to wear the Bourjois foundation but there was no way I could get away with it on its own so I mixed a little bit of Rimmel in. Some shape was added to my cheekbones – read: much needed – with the cream bronzer and my latest addition, the Revlon highlighter. Speaking of the highlighter, I was rather impressed as it translated to dewiness on the skin rather than shimmer sitting on top with the subtle pink hue. I’ll have to keep you posted on this but my first impression is that I like it. I don’t even need to explain my blush choice, do I?……. I love the rosy Rockateur.

I was at Walmart the other day and when I spotted the Rimmel primer that I had heard good things about at a good price, I couldn’t resist – I’ve been on the lookout to find a better one than the Nyx one that I don’t love. This one doesn’t feel quite as silicone-y but I’ll have to give my thoughts soon after some contemplation. The very same trip resulted in picking up the Annabelle Brownie Smoothliner and I must say that I’m instantly impressed by its pigmentation and creaminess that I’m wearing smudged onto the lashlines and inside the waterline. For the shadow here, it’s a pretty standard for me but one I do adore: Limit blended out into the crease, Nooner applied more precisely right in the crease, Buzz packed onto the lid with my fingers, the taupe-y Factory blended into the outer corner and underneath the lower lashline, Blackheart packed on with the included brush, blended into the outer-v and Strange to bring it all together and highlight – this sounds much more complicated than it is, by the way. Oh, and, I was dangerously low on mascara and I picked up the L’Oreal Voluminous Million Lashes Excess and I’m impressed with the volume and separation without clumping. For the lips, I’ve been really enjoying the rosy-mauve shade, Rimmel Kate Moss Lasting Finish in 08, with it’s creamy formula and brightening yet understated colour.

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Hi, my name is Maggie and I have uncontrollable hair

What makeup have you been wearing?

Maggie, x.

P.S. I’m choosing to ignore the significance of the date today

The Daily Face #7: A More Minimal Approach

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I’m going to make my understatement of the year in the following sentence so be forewarned. I’m not the kind of girl who rocks the minimal makeup look. It’s not that I feel the need to wear makeup in public constantly – I’m fine going out without makeup and I do enjoy it on a regular basis – but I don’t see the point of the whole natural minimalistic makeup as I feel like slapping on mascara and foundation to be missing the whole value of makeup. I have the kind of face (especially my large eyes) that really benefits from more definition than that, however I love the look sported on the runway and whatnot of makeup with a slight pop of colour on the lips that looks like skin everywhere else without losing the benefit of makeup. Can anyone follow my logic here?

It’s actually frightening to think of how many occasions that I’ve attempted to write a post of this variety but failed in some drastic way. Inspired by the makeup goddess we call Lisa Eldrige (she embodies the not overly-made up makeup), this happened.

While it’s improved drastically in the last day or two, I’m going through quite a breakout on my face and one that’s quite difficult to cover on account of texture and general skin irritation at that and had to think about what foundation wouldn’t highlight all of that loveliness and I went with my recently purchased Revlon Nearly Naked for its luminous but seamlessly blending texture that provides a true medium coverage. I’m very pleased to report that it didn’t highlight the warzone currently occurring on my forehead while still covering the uneven tone. But first I did apply some Laura Mercier Radiance Primer, I might add. Inspired by Lisa even further, I used my Real Techniques Detailer Brush to do some pinpoint concealing with the second-lightest shade Make Up For Ever 5 Camouflage Cream Palette – the colour was spot-on enough that I could actually see the benefit of the technique. Hmmmm. Oh, and the lightest shade was blended underneath the eyes to highlight and cover the bags.

I’m not always a powder kind of girl but I do find the MAC Studio Careblend Pressed Powder to help cover and blur texture imperfections and that’s sort of essential on a day like today. With my square face and all, I rely on doing some sort of contouring regardless of how casual I want to look and I used the contour/blush hybrid, MAC Tenderling, that looks like skin while adding some shape.

I wore the hyped Rimmel By Kate Moss Lasting Finish Lipstick in 107 on the lips, applied with a brush for a more natural, precise and effortless sort of effect. Note: this is a lipstick that I find difficult to wear as I don’t know what to pair with it – truly minimal makeup makes my lips look overly pronounced and too much going on makes the lipstick stand out in an unflattering manner on me due to its pink tones. The formula is one of my favourites, wearing for a long time without drying the lips and wearing evenly. There’s something I love about a bold lip with minimal looking makeup and the whole effortless but polished and awake look that it brings. I must take note of how I applied it today because I’m feeling it.

Of course, I wore my Urban Decay Naked 3 Palette today and continued with my consecutive wearing streak but these flattering warm shades are ideal on me for an effortless yet defined makeup look. Having weirdly creasing-prone lids, I put the Maybelline Colour Tattoo in Barely Branded on my lids underneath the shadows.

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First I put Burnout, the peachy golden shade on the lid and then I blended the mauvy-taupe Limit into the crease and the slightly darker Nooner lower down in the crease. Then I added some of the plummy-toned Factory into the outer corner and used the matte Strange to highlight. This sounds like a lot, I know, but it was quick to do and reads as simple definition on the lid. Although I actually really dislike the Rimmel Scandaleyes Eyeliner in Brown that everyone seems to be in love with, I find it overly waxy and unpigmented, I used this on both the upper and lower lashlines to add some definition to the lashlines without reading as liner. I really don’t understand the hype on this one. On the mascara end of things, I doubt you really even need to ask…. Same with the brows. I’m one of those people blessed with unruly yet sparse shapeless brows and filling them in is essential and obviously I used the ashy MAC Coquette eyeshadow and an angle brush from the same brand.

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Do you frequently sport minimalistic makeup? What do you reach for when you go for minimal makeup?

Maggie, x.