Express Daylight Savings Makeover

Posted in Face Painting by maggerific

Remember that whole time change thing? If you’re like me you went to bed too late on Saturday night (1:59 suddenly turned into 3:00 am) and then overslept on Sunday. I happened to glance at my watch at 2:30 pm on Sunday (still feeling every bit 1pm at the time) while lazily watching the classic 10 Things I Hate About You. I panicked, realizing I had to be at my hostessing gig at 3 pm. It took me a whopping ten minutes to find an outfit to wear. Note to self: organize closet better. I had five minutes to straighten my ends, dry shampoo, and tease my roots to hide my hat hair. That left less than ten minutes to make my face presentable.

BEFORE: looking every bit as washed out as you’d expect of an east-coaster at the end of winter

THE TOOLS:

Nars tinted moisturizer

Nars blush in Orgasm

Nars eye trio in Arabian Nights + Paula Dorf angel liner brush

I started out with my Nars tinted moisturizer. It evened out my skintone incredibly well and gave me a little bit of color. To think this is usually a hare to light on me and offers so much coverage in the winter makes me a bit depressed. I always try to make sure it’s good and dry before I put on any blush or I will get highly pigmented cheeks. My go-to blush is Nars Orgasm. It always adds the right flushed color with a nice little shimmer to perk things up a bit. Next I added water to an angled liner brush and used the shimmery black shade in my Arabian Nights eye trio by Nars (do you see a theme of my favorite makeup brand?) and lined the top and bottom of my lashline. Since I didn’t have time to do anything fancy I connected the two lines at the outside corner of my eye for added dramatic impact and OOMPH. With just a few simple products I already felt like I could’ve run out the door. With two minutes left I had enough time to add some shadow.

This look is from only three products!

Using Urban Decay’s Naked palette I swiped the light pink Sin across my lids. I then brushed Sidecar onto my crease. Eyes done. For my lips I used Laqa & Co’s Lil’ Lip crayon in Ring of Fire and Laura Mercier’s lip glace in Rose. I purchased the lip glace last year as part of the shop for a cause line, which benefits the Laura Mercier Ovarian Cancer Fund. Please check out this year’s products as it goes to a charity near and dear to my heart.

a slice of the Urban Decay Naked palette

Laqa & Co Lil’ Lip in Ring of Fire + Laura Mercier Lip Glace in Rose

Lip gloss applied, it was time to race (while driving carefully, of course) to the restaurant! Luckily for me I live less than five minutes away. The lights were in my favor and I arrived on time. Then, to my horror, I realized I forgot mascara!! Luckily, I still had a tube of Eyeko Black Magic hiding in my pocketbook. Did you know you can use the reflection off a black screensaver in a pinch? I think it came out pretty nicely!

made it to work!

While I normally love to spend lots of time playing with my different makeup looks this one was nice and easy and it worked within my time constraints. What’s your makeup-to-go routine? Do you stick with your comfort brands when you’re in a rush?

Until next time!

25Feb2015

Desert island beauty pick

Posted in Face Painting by maggerific

I’m going to be really bummed when this makeup washes off… …oh yeah and I’m stranded here

Somebody asked me today what one beauty product I’d pick if I was marooned on a desert island.

The smart answer would be sunscreen.

The fun answer would be lipstick or mascara.

The silly answer would be shimmer.

Honestly, my pick would be chapstick/lipbalm. There is nothing more frustrating skincare wise than having chapped lips. When they crack it takes forever to heal. And only with lots of vaseline, aquaphor, neosporin, or constant reapplication of Burt’s Bees. I’d like to think I’ll be marooned with other people (Lost style – minus the crazy others and smoke monster), and yes it would be nice to look great for them, but I think after a while nobody would be worrying about lipstick anyways. Do we even have access to mirrors?

Sunscreen would be a good choice to prevent burns and skin cancer, but I have alternate thoughts on that. While I would burn initially, after a while my skin would get used to the sun and darken, much like natives of any island. Humans spent many years (albeit under a less destroyed ozone layer…) in the sun without protection. Our bodies find ways to protect us. I could get skin cancer, but really what is my life expectancy on a deserted island anyways?

My skin would at least be pretty smooth since sand is a natural exfoliant. I’m going to assume there are coconuts on this island, which would create many great meal ideas and of course… coconut oil! I would make my own natural moisturizers and so on. In this castaway universe I suddenly develop scientific skills. Maybe it’s my time hanging with the Professor.

So, readers, what are your deserted island beauty products?

Listed below are my favorite lip balms in no particular order:

the popular one

Burt’s Bees – I probably own more of these than I can count. I try to keep one in every pocketbook and jacket. It’s smooth, it tingles a little, and makes my lips nice and soft. Whenever I see the $10 four packs I grab a box. The lip shimmers not only have the same great feeling and rich lip color, but work as a great blush on the run (in my go-to color rhubarb).

the classic

Chapstick brand – an oldie, but a goodie. Chapstick still has the old faithful formulas I’ve been using since childhood (my favorites cherry and mint), but they’re constantly coming out with great new products. My newest favorite is the hydration lock double-sided day and night balm. The daytime side has SPF 10 in it. The nighttime side also makes for a fantastic lipstick primer. These are usually what I take skiing with me. Fun fact: there’s probably an old ski jacket buried deep in my dad’s basement with one of these sticks hidden in a pocket.

the retro throwback

Vaseline lip therapy in rosy balm – while I’m not a fan of the goopy finger I get from using this, I love love love the way this feels on my lips. It heals my winter chapped lips in an instant and gives me a nice natural gloss. I could wear this on it’s own and still feel like I’ve got pretty lips. Sometimes I’ll layer it on top of lipstick for a slight glossy look. It’s priced the same as Chapstick and Burt’s Bees ($2 range) and comes in an adorable little .25 oz tub (can you call something that tiny a tub?). It also reminds me of the giant vats of vaseline we used to have slathered over our lips as children.

the splurge

Fresh sugar tinted lip treatment – I love all the colors. Like the Burt’s Bees color balms, these come in great hues that can also be used for a little cheek color in a pinch. The Sugar treatment feels really moisturizing for such a rich color product (builds up from semi-sheer to bright) and also protects with SPF 15. They last for an incredibly long amount of time, and feel great. The only negative is the steep price ($22.50 vs. $5 Burt’s Bees lip shimmer). When I accidentally put my brand new Sugar petal treatment in the washing machine I was pretty devastated. Your best bet is to get these in gift sets. You’ll get multiple colors at a more reasonable price. And if you’re feeling generous you can even give them as gifts!

Supergoop! mint fusion lip balm – this comes in a squeezable tube, which separates it from the rest of the gang in design. I spent most of the summer taking this to camp with me. It soothes my lips post campfire and keeps them protected while I spend time in the sun. This has an SPF 30 and a tingly cooling feeling that also freshens your breath. At $8.50 I wouldn’t call it cheap, but I think it’s fairly priced enough that I will regularly stock buy it.

Question: am I allowed to take ALL of these lip balms on the deserted island with me? Because I’m not sure I’m ready to make that big of a decision.

Undecidely,

26Jan2015

Review: When Travelmate Sheet Mask

Posted in Face Painting by maggerific

I had recently reviewed the Dr. Jart+ pore minimalist mask reaching a disappointed conclusion. Imagine my nerves/excitement/dread when the When Travelmate Sheet Mask showed up in my January Birchbox. I had to try it the first night.

from birchbox.com

This mask was MUCH messier to open and apply than the last mask. It also had the funny flip open nose. Unlike the open and go Dr. Jart+ mask this one had two sheets to take off. Next time I plan on using my bathroom counter rather than my initial mistake of opening the thing standing in the middle of my bedroom. I maybe shouldn’t have picked such a bitter cold night to do the mask, because at first the serum was FREEZING! And it was thick. Once I warmed up it felt nice. It didn’t tingle, but it felt really clean, like my favorite Nars night cream (the recently discontinued aqua gel hydrator). If I looked like I had on a wooden mask with the Dr. Jart+ one, this was even more disconcerting.

my alien looking face definitely startled me!

Voldemort

ODO

Hatchettfish

I could see my face but it was covered in goo. All my features were distorted and I looked like an alien. At one point I passed myself in the mirror and jumped. OOPS! This mask stayed on for thirty minutes, and honestly I could have kept it on longer quite comfortably. It didn’t irritate my eyes and it clung to my face almost perfectly (still a few tricky spots along my jaw line, maybe I’m oddly shaped). My only real complaint is that it didn’t get the sides of my nose, a big problem area for me. Another plus is that the sheet mask does not need to be washed off when finished. My face felt incredibly fresh once I took the mask off. It reminded me of that post-facial glow.

I loved this mask so much that (the next day!) I already logged onto Birchbox and bought an entire box of these masks. At $28 for four masks the price is a little steep. I won’t lie, I used some Birchbox points to bring the price down. Regardless, I think the masks are fantastic and will make a nice weekly treat for myself. I may even buy the sampler pack down the road to try out some of When’s other products.

5Jan2015

Review: Dr. Jart+ Pore Minimalist Mask

Posted in Face Painting, Uncategorized by maggerific

Dr. Jart+ pore minimalist mask

I received the Dr. Jart+ Pore Minimalist in my November Birchbox. I hadn’t done any research into this product, so this is more or less a blind review. After a whirlwind month of late nights at work, social events, and just plain winter fatigue I hadn’t gotten a chance to treat myself to a mask. My face needed this. Badly. Winter dries me out big time and due to a recent hormone flux I had a small teenage style breakout across my forehead. I was not taking proper care of my skin. Did you know that when your skin is dried out it can become even oilier? True fact.

One of my New Years resolutions was to take better care of my skin. I’ve rushed out of the house without moisturizer a few times. Fallen asleep without taking off my makeup. All the beauty sins I tell all my friends to avoid. Last night I got home and kind of stamped my foot (quietly, I have neighbors downstairs!) and said it’s time to give your face some loving.

Let’s start with the packaging. It appears there is no front or back. The foil pouch has lots of serum in it that the mask must soak in. It was folded up into a little square and was a little messy coming out. Even the nose piece is folded up, and folds out over your nose. It didn’t cover the tip of my nose, though, which I thought kind of needed some extra love as well. I kind of expected the mask to suck onto my face and stick there. While it (mostly) stayed in place, it didn’t cling on. The sides and the chin didn’t stay on at all. I kept pushing it down or holding it in place.

I look like I’m wearing a carved wooden mask.

The mask didn’t have a particularly fragrant smell, but it still kind of irritated my eyes. Not to the point of allergy, but it wasn’t pleasant either. Maybe I should’ve put little cucumbers on and pretended to be in a spa. I was actually too busy watching Brooklyn Nine-Nine. I took turns laughing at the show and laughing at my reflection in the mirror. I actually looked funnier than when I put on any of my cream face masks. It reminded me of a Jacques Nestlé painting I sit across from at work.

inverse colors of my mask

After 15-20 minutes I removed the mask. I like that you do not have to rinse off your face once finished. Silly as that sounds, it can be a deterrent for doing a nighttime mask. That would mean washing my face again. Meanwhile, I had plenty of time to make silly faces in the mirror before removing the mask. I expected more of a glowing face when the mask was removed. Overall, I was pretty disappointed. I would be open to trying this again if I received another sample, but I would not actively seek this out as a purchase. In the meantime, I can happily say I remembered to moisturize before I left the house this morning!

maggerific

come for the polka dots stay for the magnificence

Category Archives: Face Painting

Express Daylight Savings Makeover

Desert island beauty pick

Review: When Travelmate Sheet Mask

Review: Dr. Jart+ Pore Minimalist Mask