Drugstore Drama: Cool Blues & Frosty Pink Lips

I did a mini drugstore haul and feel like it’s the best money I’ve spent on make-up in a while! I ventured to try a drugstore mineral make-up product, my first mineral make-up tryout. Maybelline foundations such as Dream Matte Mousse and Age Rewind Foundation had always satisfied me in the past. So, I picked up Maybelline Mineral Powder Liquid Foundation. Luckily my skintone is just simply dark so Maybelline Dark 3 is usually always a match for me.

Tip for picking out a drugstore foundation that matches your skintone: First, go to the shades that match the depth of your skintone: light, medium, or dark. Next, if you have pinkish/red undertones (check the inside of your wrist), pick the hue that is most red. If you have yellow/gold undertones, pick the hue that is most yellow.

For this eye look I picked up L’Oreal HIP Eyeshadow Duo in Showy and Wet ‘N Wild Liquid Eyeliner in Black. I also applied Covergirl Lash Blast Mascara in Very Black. To prep my eyes for drugstore make-up, I did use Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion. As the base shadow I used Lancome Color Design Eyeshadow in Optic (a pearl bone shade, what is on the browbone and inner corner). I believe using the Primer Potion and Optic shadow as base lent a hand to the excellent color payoff in this look. I used the light blue shade in the Showy duo across my lid then applied the dark blue shade in the crease, building intensity. I’m brushing up on my skillz so hopefully I will get better as I do more dramatic looks!

On my lips is Almay’s Whipped Gloss in #30, a cool, frosty pink. I’ve been touting this gloss since high school and remember fondly wearing it my first day of senior year. I thought I was the shizz with my “Black Barbie gloss”!

You can read my review of Maybelline Mineral Powder liquid make-up here, but as you can see it covered quite nicely!

CoverGirl Lash Blast Mascara - Best of Drugstore!

I have to admit that I eat up everything some of my favorite beauty bloggers review. TheMakeupGirl would be no exception, so I was eager to run out and try Covergirl Lash Blast Mascara after reading the enthusiastic review written by Josi. I have been burned time and time again when trying drugstore mascaras only to be disappointed (the “Pink and Green” being the worst)! Yet, I ventured out to pick up CoverGirl Lash Blast.

The packaging drew me in first. I knew exactly what I was looking for when I scoped the featured mascaras on-shelf at Walgreens. The bright orange tube was unmistakable after reading TheMakeupGirl’s review. Also, the wand is made of orange rubber bristles. It looks so sweet! After sticking it in the tube you’ll never see the bright orange rubbers again, but the wand is still super-cool.

CoverGirl Lash Blast Mascara’s rubber wand may have something to do with the lash effect that it delivers. Instant long, lush eyelashes with just a couple coats (and I have teeny lashes)! If you want longer lashes on a budget, this is it.

You can buy it here.

Kerry Washington Makeup Musings

Get cat-eye glam by donning actress Kerry Washington’s pretty peach look:

1. Apply a creamy foundation such as MAC Studio Stick Foundation. Dampen a makeup sponge, draw a few small streaks on your face, and blend well with the sponge. This technique will give you Kerry Washington’s dewy complexion.
2. Using a felt-tipped liquid eyeliner such as Lancôme Artliner in Noir, line your top lid thickly and extend the line for a cat eye effect. Felt-tipped liquid eyeliners are perfect for fun precision application! Use a black pencil eyeliner to lightly trace your lower lash line.
3. Ardell Fashion Lashes come in several different styles to suit your occasion. Pick one that matches the eyelash look you’d like to achieve. If you’re stuck on how to apply false eyelashes, read this Specktra guide.
4. Revlon Cream Blush in Just Peachy is perfect for this apricot peachy glow! Apply with your fingers or a sponge and it dries to a sheer powdery finish.
5. Apply Revlon Colorstay Lipcolor in Sheer Coral for sheer lip color that does not budge.

You can get flat hair like Kerry Washington by using one of Misikko’s flat irons.

C.O. Bigelow Lemon Sugar Body Scrub

So, C.O. Bigelow’s Mentha Lip Shine isn’t the only gem from their apothecary! Bigelow Lemon Sugar Body Scrub is my new favorite. It is delicious and has the perfect blend of smell, texture… and scrub-iness!

Bigelow’s Lemon Sugar Body Scrub is a natural white & brown sugar scrub with lemon extract, which makes it perfect for dry skin and smells amazing. I use it before shaving all over my body for a closer shave and for skin that readily absorbs my baby oil and body lotions. The wake-me-up citrus smell is perfect for morning showers. Use it before bed for soft and smooth skin before hitting the sheets.

It’s safe to call me a body scrub connoisseur. I have a wide collection of them and I know a good body scrub when I try one. C.O. Bigelow Lemon Sugar Body Scrub is perfection and has earned a prime place in my shower!

Beauty Bytes 6/25

Alison of the Advice Sisters Guide to Life, Success & Happiness Blog has discovered Skin Glow Salt Scrub by Tanzotic and a beautiful side to the ugly but amazing, emu!

The Muse reviews Vincent Longo’s new Liquid Eye Shadow from the Vincent Longo Beautiful Dream Summer Collection!!

Toya of The Life of A Ladybug continues her “Bronzers for Brown Girls” series with a review of the fabulous NARS Blush/Bronzer Duo in Sin/Casino!

Daily Dose of Coffee reviews L’Oreal’s Sublime Bronze Spray Bronzer. Another spray bronzer that doesn’t make a huge mess.

The girls over at Beauty in Real Life, give you the secret to applying eyeliner like a pro.

Monique at Beauty Girl Musings shares another reason why she is falling in love with Redpoint Cosmetics.

Talking Makeup’s Top 10 Celebrity Beauty Secrets!

Vanessa from Nessasary Makeup hits the Pasadena Makeup Convention and shows some seriously awesome photos from the event!

What Is This About Vibrating Mascara?

Apparently, leading makeup line Estee Lauder has been the first to introduce the revolutionary “new” technology of… vibrating mascara. I say “new” in quotes because vibrators are not new, and mascara is nothing new, but vibrating mascara?

Estee Lauder TurboLash All Effects Motion Mascara boasts lash “length, curl, and separation” from its battery-operated, motion-happy bristle brush that vibrates at 125 micropulses a second. Interesting. Can’t knock it because I haven’t tried it yet but it is certainly an interesting marketing angle!

Look out for Lancôme’s polymer brush version of vibrating mascara in the fall, called Ôscillation. Read more about Lauder’s and Lancome’s new vibrating mascara on Sparkle*Shelf and WWD.

Hayden Panettiere Makeup Musings

When I’m not going all out with metallic eyeliners and long false lashes for a glam night out, my next favorite makeup look is “naturally pretty” with bronzed cheeks, shiny lips, and lightly smoked eyes. Hayden Panettiere’s make-up look here is the fair-skinned version of my “naturally pretty” night-out makeup, perfect for dinner and drinks.

Get Neutrogena cover girl and singer/actress Hayden Panettiere’s pretty summer night make-up look:

1. Start out with a fresh, clean face. Blend your favorite tinted moisturizer with a bit of Revlon Skinlights Face Illuminator Lotion and apply to your face, blending down to your neck. This will give you that glowing, bronzed complexion.

2. Apply a burnt orange blush to the apples of your cheeks, blending back toward your ears. If you’re digging mineral makeup right now, try Cover Girl TruBlend Minerals Blush in Shimmering Sands (use your own blush brush rather than the one that comes in the package for easier application).

3. Sweep a shimmery bone-colored eyeshadow on your browbone and a rich brown shade in the crease such as found in Clinique Colour Surge Eyeshadow Duo in Butter Pecan. Line your bottom line with more of the taupe brown.

4. Layer on tons of volumizing mascara. My favorite right now is Rilastil Volumizing Mascara in Black. It gives my lashes so much depth!

5. Finish off with a moisturizing lip gloss like Neutrogena MoistureShine Lip Gloss in Dizzy. Yum.

Next week: Kerry Washington