My Favorite Elf Products of 2013

ELF (Eyes, Lips, Face) Has come along way in the past few years and they are truly picking up their game.

With many dupes of high name brands you really cant go wrong for the price.

Many Elf items are priced between $1 to $6.

Not all of their products will wow you, but any makeup junkie will have some Elf staples in their stashes.

Elf makes just about any beauty product you could imagine From Brushes to shampoos to wash your favorite tools and is readily available and any Walmart or target as well as online at eyeslipsface.com

On a recent trip to Walmart I picked up a few goodies.

Elf Matte Lip Colors

These pencil lipsticks are amazing! Application is always smooth and the creamy formula makes them great for anyone who appreciates a great lip color. These lip colors can compete with higher end lipsticks all day long. The color range is in itself very real from nude through a vibrant cranberry.

These are perfect and well shaped to create a ombre lip or worn on their own.

Nearly Nude

Praline

Rich Red

Natural

Coral

As you can see these lipsticks are perfectly shaped for application.

They are twist up and you get a lot of product.

From left to right Nearly Nude, Praline, Rich Red, Natural & Coral.

The only color I was a bit disappointed in was (rich red) as you can see its more of a deep berry pink then a red, but I don't mind with a good liner it can still be rocked as a red.

These retail for $3.00

e.l.f. Essential Cover Everything Concealer in corrective yellow.

This is a creamy concealer that will help to hide any redness, however it isn't a full coverage.

I use this product as a highlighter under eyes, down my nose and on my cheek bones 

before I set my face with powder.

This Retails for $2.00

As you can see it is quite thick but blends easily leaving a nice highlight behind.

Elf Small Stipple Brush

This brush has received raves reviews from expert to amateur brush lovers.

I have been after this brush for a while now and I understand what all hype is about.

This brush is perfect for concealing, highlighting and contouring.

It is soft and just plain lovely.

This brush retails for $3.00

e.l.f. Studio Brush Shampoo

Eyeslipsface.com says:

An anti-bacterial brush cleanser for thorough cleaning in-between makeup applications. Disinfects brushes to provide a fresh and clean application every time. Washes away traces of dirt, makeup, oil and debris from your brush while conditioning the hair to provide a clean and soft application for every use.

I have been using this to clean my brushes for a while now and I love it!

Its disinfects them, cleans them and conditions them leaving them like new once dried.

I hate washing my brushes, but this makes it easier :)

This retails for $3.00

I do love these elf products and will continue to repurchase again.

Elf has come a long way and I hope they continue to rise and wow us with affordable beauty products.

Whats your favorite Elf product?

Thanks for reading and have a great day!

4 reasons to use a High Definition Powder

HD powders come in a universal shade that works with any skin tone.

Not only do they make the skin look radiant on film it also sets your foundation  and matifies

your skin without changing its natural contours.

This powder can be worn over and foundation or alone.

It is a silicone based formula the blurs pores for a flawless look.

This powder is finely milled therefore is is naked to the naked eye and film.

This product is meant to be used lightly in a simple dusting motion.

If not you will have a filmy residue and it will show up in photos especially with a flash.

As you can see in the photo above applied heavily with flash photography

it shows up giving off a white film on the skin.

Applied lightly and blended well it gives the skin a lovely radiance as promised.

I have been using HD powders for a few years now and I honestly don't think I can go back.

HD Powder Points

1. It's universal for all skin tones

2. Very light feeling formula not caking at all.

3. Blurs and softens the look of pores

4. A little goes a long way

The only down side to this product is that the packaging does not contain

the power very well. It can and will go everywhere if opened carefully.

There are two HD powders that I use often.

Elf HD Powder

$6.00

Make Up For Ever HD Powder

$36.00

The price range on these two powders is extremely different

But I will tel you the MUFE powder is more finely milled.

I use the Elf HD Powder for daily use and the MUFE HD Powder for more special occasions.

Have you tried a HD Powder?

Thanks for reading and have a great day!

SmashBox Pro The Master Class Palette II

The phone rings. I answer knowing its my youngest sister who lives in Manhattan. She tells me she wanted some new makeup and stops by Sephora, which is right around the corner from her. Did I tell you I hate my sister? 

She is also the most anti makeup person I know, her beauty stash consists of a bronzer, concealer, eye liner, mascara and a Sephora brush set that came out like 6 years ago. Her lipstick is that Nivea shimmer lip balm thingy and thats it, Period. She keeps all these items in a MAC makeup bag I gave her like 4 years ago, so you get the picture. 

"I didn't know what to get in there, so I got this SmashBox kit thing, is that any good"?

First I asked God why he gives people things they themselves will never understand or appreciate LOL!

Then I ask "What does it say"? She tell me its The SmashBox Pro Master Class Palette and I quote "It comes with all these things and I don't know what to do with them". 

I tell her not to return it that she holds pure gold in her hands and that I will be there in a few day to show her how to use all those things that seem to be confusing her. 

She calls me the next day and tells me that she went back to Sephora and picked up a extra palette for me!!

Did I tell you I love my sister?

So here we are, I present to you 

The SmashBox Pro Master Class Palette II

The Casing is a sturdy dull silver patent leather type finish. 

Finger prints are a problem and don't really go away even if wiped down.

The Palette Boasts a whopping 28 colors of eye shadows.

4 cream liners, 3 blushes, 3 bronzers and 2 highlights and a get the look card (not Pictured)

The color payoff is amazing, there are wonderful transition colors both dark and light.

There are beautiful sparkly colors perfect for a evening out, with the holidays right around the corner I know this will be my go to palette. Some of the and I mean just about 4 of the 28 don't show up on my skin tone, but these colors are perfect for blending out. I love that the shimmers are not overdone and the mattes are deep and rich. You can literally use this palette a million times and never have the same look twice.

The Blushes are very smooth and go on sheer for a nice wash of color, they compliment your skin rather then over it with a dusty powder, which is something I love in a good blush. The two highlighters are amazing they are truly everything a highlighter should be and will work great with any skin tone.

Blushes

Highlighters

                  

The 4 cream liners are great for bases and liners as well. The colors are Black, Navy, Purple and Gold. The black isn't as dark as I would like but as a base it's perfect. These are very pigmented however they will come off quickly if not set, So I only use them as a base and not a liner. 

A little goes a long way with them and I liked that they applied smooth and easy.

These are some of the looks I have created using this amazing palette.

Special Thanks to my sister for purchasing this wonderful Palette for me :)

This Palette Retails for $59.00 ($275 value) at SEPHORA.COM

Have you tried this Palette yet?

Thanks for reading and have a great day!

My Contour and Highlighting Technique

Hello! Well This is going to be a bit different, Lately I have been on this mission in finding new ways to use old products or use products in a way that the makers of said products did not intend. Why, do you ask? Because I'm a Squid and this is what I do :) Today I am going to be sharing products that I use in the exact opposite way they were intended to be used.


COVER FX: Total Cover Cream Foundation
Sephora.com says:
What it is:
An antioxidant-rich, two-in-one foundation and concealer offering broad spectrum SPF 30 protection with medium to full, buildable coverage.
What it does:
This foundation provides an all-day radiant finish that nourishes and protects with anti aging benefits. The buildable formula can provide medium to full coverage and offers SPF 30, full UV protection, and all-day wear. This clinically tested product does not contain gluten, mineral oil, or talc.

But that's not what I do with it! I use this guys as a highlighter when I am contouring and highlighting my lovely mug. It goes on nicely and I don't have to use much. It is way lighter then my natural skin tone but blended out it make for a nice concealer/highlighter follow with a face powder of your choice and you are good to go!


BENEFIT COSMETICS: Hello Flawless!' SPF 15

Sephora.com says:
What it is:
A custom powder cover-up with a natural finish that builds from sheer to full coverage.

What it does:
Benefit "Hello Flawless!" SPF 15 is a blendable powder foundation with SPF 15 that goes on beautifully sheer and layers easily for customized coverage. Find your perfect shade and sweep it on with the accompanying brush for a sheer, natural finish; or apply with the sponge for full coverage or spot cover-up.


Now this shade "Nutmeg" is absolutely to dark for me. But! As a contour shade he is perfect. He blends amazingly well. He is a high coverage product so a little goes a long way and he comes is a wide variety to match any skin tones.

I find that using these two products together is just heavenly. I have provided a Video below as a demonstration on how well they work together.

I am using the Airbrush collection brushes from Sephora

I purchased all products myself :)
Please Comment, Like and Subscribe!

Thanks for reading and have a great day!

Maybelline FitMe Foundation Stick Review

Hello friends! Today I will be reviewing the Maybelline FitMe Foundation Stick.

I have heard a lot of things about this foundation and none of it had been bad, so I wanted to see for myself what all the hype is about. 

The packaging:  I really like the packaging, it looks like a giant lipstick. It has a clear lid so you can see the product. I like the fact that you can totally recess the product into the tube, so there are no worries about taking a gash at the foundation itself. It is perfect for taking it anywhere you don't need a brush or sponge your fingers will do fine. All in all its a cute fat tube and if you are like me and love the noises beauty products make when opening or closing them, then you will love this! It has the cutest clicking sound hehe :)

Now on to the good stuff!

This Foundation boasts: Maybelline.com says: Our first gel stick foundation with an anti-shine core

Fresh gel foundation blends to a natural matte finish

Lightweight powders in the anti-shine core instantly dissolve excess oil.

The Product: I love it! It goes on so smooth, It reminds me of those coco butter sticks my Grandmother used to apply to us kids when we were younger. It just glides on so soft, so smooth and the blending! I cant say enough about it, it's like it just melts into your skin becoming apart or you. no heaviness, no caked on feeling, just you.

The Coverage: I did apply this in two coats, the first coat was great and covered up my redness, but I usually wear a full coverage foundation and this went on so smoothly I just couldn't stop at just one, even though one would have been fine, I wanted to see what this lil guy could do, so I went in. Wow, I got a full coverage from this product in two light layers. I applied 3 swipes to my cheeks 1 across the forehead and one my chin. I did this twice and it was perfect!

The Finish: On application of this product there is a hint and I mean a hint of a sheer shine, once you blend it out it goes into a soft sheer matte.

The Conclusion: Buy it, Try it, Love it. This is a great product and does as it claims.

Have you tired this foundation yet? Let me know!

Thanks for reading and have a great day :)

Not just a pretty face!

I don't want this blog to be just about a pretty face. I want this blog to be about smart intelligent women who know whats up and how to back it up with the knowledge of with what they are doing. its not enough for me to know what to apply. I want to know how to apply it to my face.

So I am going to start with color. Color can be scary or fun depending on where you want to go. It can be used as an all over shade or just as a liner the choice is yours, but, what colors to choose is just as important.

I am going to explain to you color theory. Color theory isn't just for decorating or painting a canvas.

This is a color wheel.
The color wheel or color circle is the basic tool for combining colors. The first circular color diagram was designed by Sir Isaac Newton in 1666. A color wheel is used to show us what colors compliment each other as well as what colors blend well with each other. We will be using him a lot in this post so say hi to Mr.Wheel :)

As you see to your right and above Mr.Wheel has Red on top and Green on the bottom. What does that mean? It means Red and Green Oppose each other Offering the highest amount of contrast. Now I am not saying if you are wearing Red, add some Green. No, what I am saying is that they contrast each other in the highest way. Look at the Blue in this image, now look over to that yellow on the opposite side. They oppose each other in the color scheme offering the highest contrast. 

Now, if your still reading, we will move on :)

This Image shows us three colors at the bottom of Mr.Wheel.

This is called Analogous color scheme. Analogous color schemes use colors that are next to each other on the color wheel. They usually match well and Blend wonderfully together. This is what most eye shadow trios use to take the guess work out and make it easier on us.This is best for beginners as it is hard to mess up. But, what if I bought the BH cosmetics 88 color palette? Oh, No!

Still here? Good :)

Now, here we have what they call a Triadic color scheme.

A triadic color scheme uses colors that are evenly spaced around the color wheel. Using the form of a even spaced triangle over Mr.Wheel will allow you to see which three colors will work best together providing you choose your main color first. This is what most eye shadow trios use to take the guess work out and make it easier on us.With this method you will never know where you will end up in any eye look. Just make sure to let one color dominate and use the two as accent colors.

Mr.Wheel Can be divided by his warm and cool side

Warm = Open 

Cool = Closed

Thats the best way I can explain it. All of the colors will look great against a white base. But using other colors, this should help give you a better idea of where your going with your look.

If you are still confused? I apologize! I found this nifty little tool online. So you can have your own Color wheel any time! It is originally used for website design, but it uses color theory!  And I love it you can check that out here. colorschemedesigner

Well, I hope this has helped. I am not an expert but this is a theory I use when applying eye shadow.

Let me know what you think and if I went to far out there let me know hehe:)

Thanks for reading and have a great day!

Images source colortiger.com

We didn't mean that! Using products not as intended.

Hello! Well This is going to be a bit different, Lately I have been on this mission in finding new ways to use old products or use products in a way that the makers of said products did not intend. Why, do you ask? Because I'm a Squid and this is what I do :) Today I am going to be sharing products that I use in different way then they were intended to be used.


COVER FX: Total Cover Cream Foundation

Sephora.com says:
What it is:
An antioxidant-rich, two-in-one foundation and concealer offering broad spectrum SPF 30 protection with medium to full, buildable coverage.

What it does:
This foundation provides an all-day radiant finish that nourishes and protects with antiaging benefits. The buildable formula can provide medium to full coverage and offers SPF 30, full UV protection, and all-day wear. This clinically tested product does not contain gluten, mineral oil, or talc.

But that's not what I do with it! I use this guys as a highlighter when I am contouring and highlighting my lovely mug. It goes on nicely and I don't have to use much. It is way lighter then my natural skin tone but blended out it make for a nice concealer/highlighter follow with a face powder of your choice and you are good to go!

BENEFIT COSMETICS: Hello Flawless!' SPF 15

Sephora.com says:

What it is:

A custom powder cover-up with a natural finish that builds from sheer to full coverage.

What it does:

Benefit "Hello Flawless!" SPF 15 is a blendable powder foundation with SPF 15 that goes on beautifully sheer and layers easily for customized coverage. Find your perfect shade and sweep it on with the accompanying brush for a sheer, natural finish; or apply with the sponge for full coverage or spot cover-up.

Now this shade "Nutmeg" is absolutely to dark for me. But! As a contour shade he is perfect. He blends amazingly well. He is a high coverage product so a little goes a long way and he comes is a wide variety to match any skin tone.

I find that using these two products together is just heavenly. I have provided a Video below as a demonstration on how well they work together.

So what products do you use that aren't intended for their use?
If you would like to see more posts like this let me know :)
Thanks for listening and have a great day!

Great coverage Foundation and BB cream

Hi!, I wanted to share my favorite foundation and BB cream with you guys.

I was a bad girl when I was younger and did not keep up with my acne so now I have scars :/

I have gone through many products in search of the perfect coverage for my skin problems, large pores and scaring. These are the two that I have found that Fill my needs.

TarteCosmetics.com

For every day I use The Tarte bb cream I do use it in a darker shade because I exfoliate everyday so my face is brighter then the rest of me. The color I use is tan. I honestly love the feel and coverage I get from this product and it is build-able. My bottle is the old packaging from Sephora.  It retails for 34.00. I know that for a bb cream that is expensive and it was a impulse buy, but it was worth every penny. I am sad as I am running out and in search of a replacement not at the same price though.

Sephora.com

When I want to get all dolled up especially in my Youtube videos I do wear my MakeupForever Mat Velvet + Matifying Foundation. I love this product with every ounce of my soul! It covers all my scars and doesn't leave me looking like a cake face, a little goes a long way with this product. Im either honey beige or golden beige depending on the time of year. This product retails for 36.00. I will be repurchasing this product, this is like my 4th bottle already and I love it. I do highly recommend either of these products if you are looking for a good coverage long lasting product, just be prepared to shell out the bucks.





Have you tried either of these products? And if so, how was your experience with them?
I am in the market for a replacement on the bb cream so if you know any good one please let me know!

Thanks for listening :)

How to blend eye shadow

Blending colors together can be difficult at times leaving you with a muddy, muted look, but there is a technique that you can use to practice blending your colors.








What you will need to practice this technique:

Black eye shadow
White eye shadow
A large shader brush
A pencil brush
A tapered blending brush

If you can blend black and white together you can blend any colors together.
Leaving you with  a nice gradient of color movement.

I have demonstrated this technique in the video below so you can see how its done. Happy blending!

Let me know what you guys think?