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I promised that “Makeup on Mondays” would be an occasional feature; sometimes I’ll post every week, sometimes I’ll go awhile before I find something worth posting about. And sometimes, the feature won’t be about makeup at all, but rather some other health or beauty-related product. This beautiful Memorial Day, I’m tackling an odd subject. A subject upon which I’ve been ambivalent for some time. That’s right, I’m bringing up dry shampoo.
After a run of good luck with the Anastasia brow powder and setting gel, I started craving something different. My Anastasia powders were getting gooey and hard to use and the color was a little too warm for me, so I gave Bulletproof Brows by Too Faced a try.
Continue reading “Makeup on Monday: Too Faced Bulletproof Brows”
I’m seriously not one of those people who has five bazillion blushes in my Mary Poppins Makeup Bag. I use a grand total of two on a regular basis, one of which is a very common staple product (NARS blush in Orgasm) and one of which most people probably use for contouring (BeneFit’s Dallas powder).
The NARS Orgasm is an obvious choice because it’s a pretty, neutral peachy-pink that looks good on everyone. It’s natural and delicate.
Dallas, like many of the BeneFit pressed powders, defies categorization. It’s too rosy to be a proper bronzer, it’s a little dark to be a crowd-favorite blush, and it’s got too much color to be your average foundation-setting pressed powder.
Continue reading “Makeup on Monday: Blush by NARS and BeneFit”
If makeup products were a baseball team, your face primer, foundation, and setting powder would be your battery. Okay, maybe I’m belaboring the metaphor, but the stuff you put on your skin really is the foundation (har har) for your makeup look.
There are tons of great products out there, but I’ve settled on the following team: Photo Finish Foundation Primer by Smashbox, Vitalumiere Aqua Foundation by Chanel, and Invisible Pressed Setting Powder by Laura Mercier.
Given last week’s Stila Stay All Day Liquid Lipstick review, you’re going to think I’m some sort of Stila nut. I’m not, but I might be if my third (next) major Stila buy comes out a major winner!
Today I’m addressing liquid eyeliner, the bane of pretty much everyone’s existence and yet such a staple in every midcentury-loving gal’s makeup kit. You’ve all seen The Liquid Eyeliner Meme and lived it to some extent, yes?
There are literally a ton of products to help you create a version of the look: real liquid liner that you put on with a slim brush, gel liners in a pot that you apply with an angled brush, and my personal favorite, the felt-tipped liquid liner pen. Since I like to do the flicky wing style liner from the late fifties and early sixties, I need a product that flows easily without dripping or bleeding off. I’ve also got to have a sharp applicator tip to help me create the clean wing points and a wide enough “brush” surface to make a strong line across the full width of the lid. I’ve tried a ton of liquid liner products and the only one that consistently delivers a uniform line with sharp definition is Stila’s Stay All Day Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner in Black.
Yes, you must use a good eyelid primer for it to work precisely right, but that’s true of any eye makeup product. It also takes some time to get the “hang” of liquid liner. That said, I find the “felt-tip pen” style applicators are the easiest to approach. The pen tip on the Stila liner is the right size, shape, and substance to provide the line I like with the resistance and steady product delivery my spazzy hands need. Additionally, the color goes on opaque and evenly. Once dry, it doesn’t flake or smudge off. When it’s time to remove it, my Neutrogena makeup remover sheets + a little extra makeup remover work fine.
This one’s not cheap. It’s $20 per tube, but the results are worth it. The Stila liquid liner also comes in a ton of colors, so if you’re the type who likes to try pink, blue, green, and brown eyeliners, Stila has options for you. Like the lipstick from last week, you can find it at places like Sephora and Ulta.
Not very original, but a feature that gets the point across. When it comes to makeup, there are certain products I rely on. While I’m in no way a professional, I feel like I should share the stuff that thrills me so others can benefit from my happy – and sometimes not-so-happy – experiences.
My current favorite is Stila’s Stay All Day Liquid Lipstick, a vibrant, heavily pigmented opaque lipstick that applies like a gloss. It’s got an almost gel-like consistency when it goes on, yet it dries quickly. Once dry, there’s very little transference and NO feathering, which is something your traditional oil/wax lipsticks do when they hit warm lip.
The colors are beautiful, especially for the vintage red lipstick fiends out there. Their flagship color is a true red shade called “Beso.” It’s similar to Besame Red and MAC’s Ruby Woo, but without the runny consistency of the Besame lipsticks or the drying effect of the MAC matte lipsticks.
I got mine in a limited edition Stila set presented by Sephora. The set is no longer available, but the single tubes are available at places like Sephora and Ulta for around $22 each.