pretty amazing strength | Beauty Beginner

Tarte True Blood palette – Silver and Green

July 26, 2011 2 Comments

This is my second attempt at using the Tarte True Blood palette. I really, really like this palette. I am so used to using loose shadows from Bare Escentuals that I get nervous when I use pressed shadows. But these are really easy to use, apply nice and smoothly, and have great staying power. The colors are all very wearable. If you like neutrals and dark colors, this palette is for you. Plus, for $52, you get 17 shadows, a primer, a liner, and a mascara. I can also tell you that the mascara is really nice – better than some that I’ve used, and fairly comparable to Flawless Definition Volumizing mascara from BE – it is great for lengthening and defining, but not the best at volume. I have not yet tried all the shades in this kit, nor have I tried the liner (I’ve heard some whispers about the liner being really irritating to the eyes, but as I haven’t used it, I can’t confirm that yet).

The silver color that I used today as a lid color, the true death, was very pigmented and smooth. I found that I did not need to layer this color to get a nice heavy pigment. The green color that I used, moss, is so pretty in the pot, but actually has a lot of black in it so that when applied, it doesn’t come across as green as it looks in the pot. I’ll have to try this one wet and see how it fairs.

I plan on using this palette a lot in the next few weeks – I had a suggestion from a reader to do at least four looks, using the quadrants in the four corners (for instance, one look would be using the light, dawn, charmer, and werewolf, and other look would be using dusk, waitress, nocturnal, stake. You get the picture. I thought it was a cute way to make my way through the palette, so stay tuned for that mini-series.

Tarte True Blood palette colors

Colors used today: Bayoo, Moss, Legend,The True Death

Pretty Amazing Strengh

On the eyes:

Original Prime Time eyelid primer, applied with clean fingertip
The True Death patted onto eyelid from lashes to crease, and a little bit under lower lashes, using Quick Shadow and Crease brush
Moss buffed into crease using Quick Shadow and Crease brush
Bayoo swept above Moss up to eyebrow, using Ecotools shadow brush
Legend applied along outer 1/2 of upper and lower lash lines using a pencil brush
Buxom Black Jasper liner on lower water line
tarte mascara (2 coats)

On the lips:

Pretty Amazing Strength (blotted twice for a stained look)

On the face:

Retro liner shadow filling in brows
Original Prime Time
Benefit Erase Paste in Medium
Original foundation in Fairly Medium
MAC mineralize blush in Feeling Flush
Original mineral veil

Filed under Bare Escentuals, Buxom, Kits Tagged with mac mineralize feeling flush, pretty amazing strength, retro liner shadow, tarte true blood palette

Vintage pinup girl

July 1, 2011 3 Comments

Taking a suggestion from a reader (and please do send in any requests!), I made my very first attempt at a pin-up girl look today. I’ve never thought of myself as the type that could pull that vixen-inspired look off, but I totally did! Thanks to Ashley’s pin-up girl request, I got to feel super sexy all day long. Unfortunately, I had a lot of stuff to get done around the house today, but kept getting distracted by mirrors! What other suggestions or requests do you have for a look?

I think there are four important parts to this vintage look:

super perfect skin with a really matte finish
bright red lips
smokin’ hot winged eyeliner
dark, perfectly shaped eyebrows

To achieve this look, I made sure my skin was really well concealed, using Benefit’s erase paste (that stuff is magic, I swear), then doing my regular foundation routine, and finishing it off with tons of finishing powder – Bare Escentuals mineral veil, to be exact. Next, I took a dark brown shadow to fill in and shape my brows. Generally, I tend to just fill them in and set them with a gel, but today I changed the shape a bit – accentuating the arch and elongating the end.

For the eyes, the trick is to use an eyeshadow that is a shade or two lighter than your skin tone. I’m actually not sure what category Spellbound falls in (matte, glimmer, or glimpse), but if I were to do this look again (which I totally will), I would choose a shadow with more of a matte finish. In the crease, use a matte medium brown, and line with a gel liner in black. I already have long lashes, so I don’t own any false lashes. If I did, though, I would have put them on for this look – at least on the outer half of the eye.

Clockwise from left: Night Owl, Buxom Leatherette Lashliner, Spellbound, Retro

Ecotools eyeshadow brush, full-edged liner, pencil brush, eyeliner brush

On the eyes:

Original Prime Time Eyelid Primer
Spellbound applied generously all over lid from lashes to brow, using Ecotools eyeshadow brush
Night Owl blended into crease, using Ecotools brush
Night Owl lightly applied under lower lashes with pencil brush
Spellbound lightly applied under inner lower lashes with pencil brush
Retro blended very lightly into outer corner, using Ecotools brush
Buxom Leatherette lashliner applied along top lashes using full-edged liner brush, winged out at sides, then cleaned up and pointed with the eyeliner brush
Big Tease mascara

On the lips:

Concentrating on making a full, round shape to the lips, apply lipliner in Natural all around lips and then blended in
Pretty Amazing lipcolor in Strength

On the face:

Original Prime Time
Benefit Erase Paste to conceal uneven skin tone and undereye circles
Original foundation in Fairly Medium, mixed with Bisque to lighten it
Lots of mineral veil for a soft, matte look
Miracle blush applied only to apples of cheeks
Beauty mark applied using eyeliner brush and Buxom Suede lashliner

Filed under Bare Escentuals Tagged with benefit erase paste, big tease mascara, buxom leatherette, Miracle blush, natural lipliner, night owl, pretty amazing strength, retro liner, spellbound

Holly held the High Style Rose Quartz with Strength

June 6, 2011 3 Comments

Simple eyes, dramatic lips. That’s how I rolled today. Neutral colors can be fun to play around with on the eyes, and light colors accenting the browbone and inner eye open up and brighten the eyes. A dramatic red lip can be worn any time of day if you just wear it with confidence!

Clockwise, from top: High Style, Rose Quartz, Spellbound

Full Tapered Shadow, Quick Color & Crease, Eyeliner

Pretty Amazing Strength, Buxom Holly

On the eyes:

BE Original Prime Time Eyelid Primer
High Style swept all over the lid, from lashes to above crease (using Full Tapered Shadow brush)
Spellbound buffed onto browbone and inner V (using Shadow end of Quick Shadow & Crease brush)
Rose Quartz buffed into crease (using Crease end of Quick Shadow & Crease brush)
Buxom Lashliner in Leatherette along upper lashes and smudged under lower lashes
Flawless Definition Volumizing mascara (1 coat)
Buxom mascara (1 coat)

On the lips:

Pretty Amazing lipcolor in Strength
Buxom lipgloss in Holly

On the face:

BE Prime Time Original Primer
Original foundation in Fairly Medium
Miracle blush
Original Mineral Veil

What’s your favorite dramatic lip color?

Filed under Bare Escentuals, Buxom Tagged with Bare Escentuals, Bare Minerals, buxom holly, buxom leatherette, high style, Miracle blush, pretty amazing strength, rose quartz

My Heart was Spellbound by the Drama of the Miracle

May 24, 2011 1 Comment

Nice and simple today. Neutral colors, easy application techniques. If you’re a regular reader of this blog, you know that I LOVE my Pretty Amazing lippie in Strength. It’s a beautiful true red color with color that lasts and lasts and lasts. Sometimes I choose to wear it alone, and often I like to blot the color down and top it with a gloss or a Buxom. I like doing it this way because of the lasting power of the Strength without having to reapply.

The colors used today: