So, NYX has a new collection on their website called Wicked Lippies. I heard about it months ago, but I guess they finally released it for Fall. As I was farting around at Ulta today, I went to look for them, but they're not in stores yet. The beauty supply still had the Macaron collection, which is great if you like pastels. (especially if you were disappointed by KVD's Coven, since Macaron has a much better dupe for $6.)

I'm also providing a link to this blog post, so you can see swatches in a non-professional setting.  I need both purples, both blues, and the green.

I've bought myself a bottle of that micellar water stuff and it's fantastic! Removes makeup efficiently without water, it doesn't feel greasy and doesn't burn my eyes like other makeup removers do! Yay! Also, less outbreaks and less discoloration.

Only thing I mind is that you need quite a lot of it to rub off a full face of makeup, so it's being used up rather quickly, but the bottle is huge and the water from the brand I use (Garnier) is quite affordable. Makes me wonder what the high-end ones in Vogue do if the basic variant is so efficient.

It's like the cloud fairies come and douse your face in morning dew and birdsong

Cleaning out my MASSUF makeup collection.  Throwing out things that are, according to MAH MAKEUP SPREADSHEET YEAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH are expired or that I just really fucking don't like or use.  Drumming up a list of what I want to repurchase. 


so organization, such clean

The "expiration" has to do with both bacteria build up and drying out of the product.  This involves factors including the product itself and its moisture content, where the product is applied (eyes and lips = you want to be more cautious of any bacteria), how it is stored (do try to avoid storing makeup in your humid bathroom), whether application involves direct contact between your skin or fingers and the product (pumps on liquid products are niccccccccce) and so on.  I have acne so I tend to be a little more cautious than most.

I throw out my powder foundations and finishing powders after a year. Same for blushes and bronzers and highlighters if I have used them heavily, otherwise they can hold for up to two years as far as bacteria goes, though they may turn chalky.  A liquid foundation I will keep between 6 months and a year, depending on whether or not the bottle has a pump applicator or squeeze tube to minimize direct contact with my skin.  Mascaras I never keep for more than three months, because they are the most prone to bacteria growth (the product repeatedly comes into contact with your eyes; is moist) and tend to dry out anyway.  Lip products and cream cheek products are 6 months.  Nail polishes I keep until I have too many nail polishes.

So I've traditionally gone to MAC to get my liquid concealer for under my eyes, because I have dark circles to begin with, and then work 12 hour shifts, which improves nothing. But to be honest, I'm done with MAC, their customer 'service' has just become unbearable, and I'm just not going to shop somewhere that increases my blood pressure on arrival. But I did love the concealer. Any recommendations? It's hard to color match me, so it'd have to have a good range of colors, and it needs staying power--I wear it for like 13 hours at a time, often including at least one moderate breakout of sweat, and typically zero time to retouch/give a fuck.

Also, since my hair's been cut on an angle, I have a NOT RUKA lock of hair that tends to fall in my face and look super adorable the more messy my hair gets. However, since my forehead is made of nothing but grease, it tends to start looking gross pretty quickly. Should I be looking at carrying a small dry shampoo, or would it work better to put something on my forehead to dry it out?

The two best recommendations I have as far as coverage and staying power are the NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer (which is what I currently use) and Benefit Erase Paste.  NARS texture and application is more in line with MAC's as it is liquid and applies with a doe foot applicator, and has a wider shade selection.  Even better coverage, but with trickier application due to its thickness is the Benefit Erase Paste.  It comes in a pot (you'll want to use the included tool to take product from it as most fingers can't fit in) and a little goes an insanely long way.  I recommend applying either product by lightly patting them into the skin, don't use a brush or sponge to swipe or blend.  The NARS will crease if you over apply, so layer it, and it only really creases immediately after application.  Touch up once or twice with your finger on the way to work and you won't have any problems.

As with any other concealer, they will last longer if you set them with a powder. I use Make Up Forever's Microfinish Translucent Setting Powder.  I apply it with a fluffy as fuck brush.  If you want added staying power after that and especially oil and sweat control, Urban Decay's 24 hour DeSlick is the best shit ever.  I use it for workouts, it's damn good.  There's also primers that help control for oil, but I have found that the ones that hydrate really well (like Stila's One Step Correct), when paired with an equally good moisturizer does an even better job controlling oil.  Bonus is that the Stila primer is one of the few products I have found that actually does the color correcting it claims, so it's great for people like me with a lot of redness and adding additional coverage for dark circles.

For your bang problem, a dry shampoo such as batiste will only work once.  Otherwise the product will build up and turn your hair ashy and powdery and strongly scented.  Instead take oil blotting sheets (thin enough to keep in your pocket) and keep your translucent setting powder on hand to apply afterwords.  In a pinch, you can dust a bit of it onto your hair.

Greasy girls have to stick together.

EDIT: If you are comfortable, I can text you pictures showing how the NARS works (My Erase Paste was old and did not survive the Purge) on my eyes.  I'm pretty self conscious about my skin so I'm not up to posting the pics publicly. 

Last edited by OnlyInThisLight (05-03-2015 03:46:39 PM)

Got a Kevyn Aucoin eyeshadow quintet off Hautelook for 16 bucks that in true Hautelook fashion took so long to be delivered to me that I forgot I ordered it.  When initially swatched on the hand the colors look pale and sheer, but damn if this eyeshadow isn't meant to be applied to the eyes and not my hairy arms, as it transforms on my lids.  It's so effortlessly ethereal looking and easy to blend, and strong enough in the color and the light it reflects to cover up my rather translucent, veiny eyelids quite well.  And there is a rose gold shade that applies peachy by itself, but turns a rich, antique gold when laid over the included olive shimmer shade.  unf. 

I think there is a common misconception late that the higher the pigmentation and more opaque the color, the better the product.

My favorite product of theirs is Ro's Argan. It's like a cream you put on and wash off in the shower, and leaves my skin all happy and silky. I also love Whiplash (I think?), it's a black body scrub bar, it's gorgeous sexy but to be honest it makes such an unholy mess you'll want to shower outside or something if you use it. For massage bars, I've always liked Therapy and the white and chocolate heart one I can't remember the name of. It smells like yum.

For lotion I've always been a huge fan of Fair Trade Foot Lotion, which I've put everywhere including my face at times. Facial cleanser, well you can't beat Angels on Bare Skin. I only stopped using it because at this point, I make my own face products.

Someone else might do better suggesting things for your acne-prone skin, since I don't have that problem, but I've used like half their product line.

Thank you for the recommendations Gio and OITL!

Another thing to note about LUSH, if you buy online you get a 1-3 cute, random samples.  I've gotten little blocks of soap, bath melts, massage bars and solid deodorant that were pretty much too adorable to use.  And if anything comes broken (as happens often with bath bombs) a quick call and they replace it.  I've had this happen multiple times with multiple bath bombs in a package (once up to three) and never once was a I questioned for it.  Just a nice, unhesitant apology from the CS rep and then they shipped the replacements with no extra shipping fee.  It's fantastic, because I always kind of feel like a douchenozzle mentioning broken product (because it doesn't change anything about the bath bomb's use other than the appearance and the "pattern" it makes while fizzing.  I love the way Twilight makes your water slowly go from bright pink to a clear, gorgeous dark purple with starlight shimmer, so it bums me out when they come broken and everything comes out at once). 

Also, posting today because I noticed Walgreens has new Disney Princess themed cosmetics and look books for sale.  They don't appear to be ELF, but Walgreen's itself?  I saw Pocahontas, Ariel and Mulan.  Each Princess gets a lookbook, nail polish set, and then a unique item (Pocohontas= Bronzer and brush set; Ariel= Eyeshadow Quads; Mulan= Opaque Lip Glosses). The lookbooks themselves are interesting because the watercoor art on them looks gorgeous and the products inside are pretty typical, but big.  Ariel and Mulan even have an actual tube of lipstick inside.  Wonder if they are any good.

Also wondering if we will ever get a Mulan theme set of her male look.  Some brow cream, wax, powder and a spoolie brush, a translucent setting powder (all that marching works up a sweat), a matte ashy contour shade to chisel out a jaw and a nude, matte lip color.  Everything designed to be longwearing and budge-proof because NO ONE MUST KNOW.

Also was a little surprised how expensive Drugstore cosmetics have gotten.  It has been awhile since I have purchased any make-up due to CRUSHING POVERTY but damn.  I have a hard time figuring out a 10 dollar drugstore lip liner.

Last edited by OnlyInThisLight (07-07-2015 06:31:48 PM)

Oh, the Color Icon palletes or whatever they are calling them? Grapevine says their recent Color Icon palletes have been really powdery and awful, and many think they straight up changed the formula since the Comfort Zone 8 pan and the Trios.  I know I never cared for, say, the quality of the Petal Pusher pallete or any of their new 8 or 5 pan pallets with the bright colors and there's a reason Comfort Zone is almost always picked clean off the shelves .

Although it was tempting to pick up some of the special new Venice Beach Limited Edition 8 pan palletesthat had deep, bright colors and a mix of mattes and shimmers.  The only thing was, of the three palletes released as part of this little set, there are multiple overlapping shades.  WTF WnW.  I guess the idea was if you wanted cools you went for one, warms another, and both you could get the third pallete, which had some from either.  Still. I'd rather just have 24 unique shades, yah?

Last edited by OnlyInThisLight (07-07-2015 07:58:55 PM)

MissMocha wrote:

Have you seen Kat Von D's Mi Vida Loca palette for the holidays? They literally JUST posted pics, and it's a really mix of neutrals and pops. I hope the quality is better than last year's holiday palette though. Closer to her permanent ones would be nice.

I dunno, they look like mostly primary shades (in that I have a set of soft pastels with these exact colors I use on clay), which I can get from Wnw, and a lot of unused space in the larger palette*... then again, it looks like a fucking vinyl record hell yes.  I WANNA SEE WHATS IN THE LITTLE CASE THE PART OF ME THAT KNOWS MY LADYBIRD IS THE SHIT DEMANDS IT. F5F5F5F5


*My vanity is running out of space, and that's after I've been making dedicated efforts to clear it out and have put a halt on all cosmetic purchases.  :c

Makeuptalk also has a really good, organized way for trading or selling your makeup, complete with user trade ratings, though it might not move as fast as a reddit thread.  As as an example, here is my currently blank trade thread*.  If I have something, I can edit it in and then bump it.  If you click on my reviews, you can see feedback people I have traded with have left me, etc.  It's all very convenient.

*Granted, it's pretty old and I haven't used it in forever, so the rules and regs for Swap and Buying threads have changed a little; namely, I need to list whether or not I would be willing to ship internationally, and I would need to start making a point of keeping old product information listed and labeled for the purposes of review (at the time, once something was sold or traded, I just deleted the listing).

ALSO, I'd love to hear your thoughts on Poetica; it's so pretty looking and appears as though it would be a great compliment to Lady Bird, allowing you to glam up a LB day look for night.

Last edited by OnlyInThisLight (07-08-2015 03:11:35 PM)

YamPuff wrote:

I generally stick to The Body Shop.

All their make-up have some kind of skin care element; all the lip glosses and sticks have some shea butter or other moisturizer and so on. My eyes, again, are fairly sensitive and prone to getting infected; I love their mascara, eye-liners and metallic eye definers.

I have a question; I have these shimmer eye cube powder thingies. I feel like the last few times I used them they irritated my eyes. But I'm not sure if it's just my eyes being bitches or that the cubes have outlived their time (I hardly ever use them, so they're like new). Can I like, scrape the tops off them or something?

It could be shimmer from the eyeshadow falling out over the day into your eye, or your eyeliner and mascara.  All these things have abrasive qualities, so also be sure you are being gentle on your eyes when you apply; don't tug the skin around your eyes when applying liner or pull the lids around, don't overblend or use too much pressure when applying your eyeshadow, especially if you are using your fingers or a stiff brush. You'd be surprised how gentle you have to be when it comes to the skin on your face (I cleanse and do my skincare routine with no washcloths and am as quick and with as little prolonged scrubbing contact as possible, and it has done wonders for my redness).

Shit, I wonder if that's true for Canada? I'm pretty sure we already own their entire line anyway.