Wednesday, February 17, 2016

Red Lip Swatches

Lately I've been obsessed with Dita Von Teese's style! Perhaps it's because my tastes vary wildly from day to day and I could never settle on one look, so it's admirable to see someone have such a set style.  And it amazes me how it can be so classic yet "alternative" at the same time!

Of course part of this obsession is reawakening my need to wear red lipstick more often!  I've gone ahead and swatched my entire red collection.


From top to bottom:

Besame cosmetics "Red Velvet".  Honestly, this is the ultimate lipstick.  SO smooth and pigmented, and the color is absolutely perfect on my skin (IMO).  Unfortunately, it's $22, which for my budget is almost unthinkable.  I've been hoarding on to my little matchbook samples for months, but I can see myself giving in and buying a tube for a special occasion.

Life's Entropy "PKA".  This lipstick is made in a similar formula to OCC liptars.  Not a huge fan of liquid lipsticks as my lips are quite dehydrated as is, but since this color is so similar to Red Velvet (just a tad less saturated) I'll gladly sacrifice some comfort for PKA! $8 for a tube.

Milani lip liner in "True Red".  A bright, blue based red.  Love this smooth lip liner!

Wet n Wild's "Stoplight Red".  A pinky-red.  I love WnW's megalast lipsticks, for $3 the quality is incredible.  They do tug a slight bit on application, but they're not dehydrating, even on my super dry lips.

NYC's "Retro Red".  The brightest red I own! A true red that leans towards the warm side.  This was only $1!  Glides on easily, but doesn't have the staying power that Besame's had.


Thursday, December 10, 2015

Green EOTD!

Yesterday I assisted my cousin with event makeup for a group of Playmates and models.  Not my usual crowd, but it was so much fun!  It was my first time doing anything "professional" with makeup, even if I was just an assist.  I'd definitely want to do something similar again.

Anyways, today I thought I'd just post my own EOTD.  A green look to follow up from the swatches from my last post!

Crease color: Blackbird's Dog Days
Outer corner: Ten Three's The Buttler
On lid: Brija's Brave
Inner corner: AFK's Wonderflonium
Brow bone: Silk Natural's Bone


Hope you liked!

Tuesday, December 1, 2015

Swatches of all my green eyeshadows!

I might be taking this blog in a more cosmetic-focused direction!


I've been on a green eyeshadow kick lately, so I figured I'd share swatches of my little collection.  These swatches show the eyeshadow over Pixie Epoxy on the left half, and bare skin on the right half.



From top to bottom:

Brija Cosmetics "Brave", a blue toned emerald.  Just bought this gorgeous shadow! I was surprised at how blue it is. 
 
Shiro Cosmetics's Diggy Diggy Hole, brown-green duochrome.  I get compliments on this one all the time!

Brija Cosmetics "Zelena", grass-green and copper.  The least shimmery of the bunch, I think this one looks best over Pixie Epoxy because it really brings out the copper bits.

Femme Fatale's The Dreamer, olive and lime duochrome. This one is really sheer without a tacky base!  I normally use this color to layer on top of others.

Dawn Eye Cosmetic's "Gold Gilded Blue".  Technically a blue but green enough to count, right?  This color is so beautiful, but I find it's really hard to wear as a look. 

AFK Cosmetic's "Wonderflonium".  This is a frosty pastel green, but for some reason it shows up very blue in my photo.  Maybe it's from the flash back? 

Top to Bottom: Brija's Brave, Shiro's Diggy Diggy Hole, Brija's Zelena

Brija's Zelena, Femme Fatale's The Dreamer, Dawn Eyes' Gold Gilded Blue
Femme Fatale's The Dreamer, Dawn Eyes Gold Gilded Blue, AFK's Wonderflonium



Friday, March 20, 2015

My first 2015 update!

My boyfriend had to move back up north for financial reasons, so we've been having to do a long distance relationship.   It's just a weird transitional period for the both of us.  He's finished school and the only industry jobs he's been able to come across have been small freelance gigs... not enough $$ for both rent and student loans.  Meanwhile, I'm still stuck down here in school for my final semester.  Here's hoping we can both find some sort of stability together by the end of 2015!

In other news, it's been unbearably hot in my neck of the woods.  Normally I work out at the gym, but with this heat I've been speed swimming at the pool instead.  I grew up competitively swimming since the age of 6 to the end of high school.  It's the only sport I've ever felt competent at, but it's been so long since I stopped that I felt extremely stiff and sluggish at the pool this week.  Definitely going to try and get back into the groove of things by working swimming back into my weekly schedule.

Enough with the health talk, check out that amazing shaved ice! 

Also, I've developed a huge interest in lingerie these past few months.  I have no idea where this obsession came from, but it's been a fun distraction from heavy schoolwork.  Lingerie is just one of those things that is purely 100% for you.  No one else's satisfaction get's taken into account but your own (and maybe your partner? idk, only sometimes).  It's so self-indulgent and just a tad bit unnecessary... just like all the other frivolous things that appeal to me in life!  

A beautiful Claudette Dessous I sadly had to return due to sizing. But look at those juicy colors!

Sunday, June 8, 2014

Room "tour"!

I love seeing photo tours of peoples rooms, so since I'm moving out of my current place in just a couple of months, I figured now's the time to show you where I've been sleeping for the past few years.

It's a college students room, so it's just second hand furniture with a tiny decor budget, but I don't think it's too bad when you take those things into consideration!


The bed!  Origami cranes on one wall, art on the other.  As you can see, it's barely brushing my desk- not a whole lot of wiggle room!
My beat-up desk.  I have string lights coming down from across my entire wall, the last picture couldn't capture them in the frame.

It's a pretty small room and I only get half of it since I have a roommate, but rent in these parts isn't cheap so you do what you can :)  There's really not a whole lot of spaces within it to take pictures of and officially call this a real tour, but y'all get it!

What I especially like about my room is the lighting.  The rooms I've rented at in previous apartment complexes and the rooms I've lived in at my parents place both have really poor natural light during the day.  Not only that but I've also never really had strong enough lighting in my previous rooms at night either due to lack of ceiling lights.  However, this place actually has a proper ceiling light plus my string lights so I can get plenty of brightness and no eye-strain once the sun goes down!

Monday, April 14, 2014

Haus of Gloi Review!

Dusting off my little blog again!

I've been really into small independent makeup and perfume companies lately!  I love supporting small businesses and indie shops normally use milder and fewer ingredients in their products, which for me is another plus.

Unfortunately because most of these shops are internet-based, there's a lot of trial and error that goes into finding the right products.

One very well known indie perfume company is Haus of Gloi. I ordered a couple of sample perfume oils as well as a full size of their body emulsion.  Onto the review!

Perfume Oils:

Litchi Milk Tea, "Tart lychee fruit and black tea met with a splash of coconut milk".

In the bottle: Purely lychee. Sweet, but not tart.
On skin: Still sweet but with flashes of tartness.  Still smells like straight up lychee, I'm having a hard time smelling the black tea or the coconut milk, too bad because I love coconut!
Personal Opinions: I like that this is definitely a scent I haven't smelled before among mainstream perfumes, however I wouldn't repurchase.  On my skin, this is just a lychee scent rather than a lychee milk tea scent. A bit too one-note and too sweet. Normally a crowd pleaser though, people love this scent and praise it to high heavens.

Imp, "Passionfruit, sun cured apricots, pink grapefruit juice and innocent mimosa blossoms".

In the bottle: Much more of a tart fruity scent than litchi.  Very pungent, fruity, and sweet.
On skin: I'm smelling a lot of apricot here.  Passion fruit is prominent as well but secondary to the apricot.  Can't smell the grapefruit, which was what attracted me to Imp in the first place!  Mimosa blossoms are very very subtle.  The more time it takes to sit the more it softens into something I like better, but it's still a very pungent scent and never loses it's energy.
Personal opinions: I like this one a little better than Litchi, especially after it tones down a bit after drying.  But I still wouldn't repurchase this one.  It's just too sweet for my liking.  My boyfriend said it reminded him of a Febreeze scent and I'd have to agree- very fragrant, but not very sophisticated.

Who Needs Love, "chocolaty orbs, coated in crystallized coffee – filled with a pomegranate and raspberry filling."  This scent was a freebie thrown in with the order!

In the bottle: Strongly chocolate, then turns to a fruitier note which must be the berries, but I'm not picking up too much of the coffee. Extremely sweet, nay, cloyingly sweet.
On skin: Chocolate smells a bit more bitter, maybe that's the coffee's doing!  After the chocolate starts to fade the scent becomes more and more soapy… like a fruit scented soap.
Personal opinions: As y'all can tell by now, I don't like sweet scents so I never ever buy dessert scented things.  This is a scent that never would have caught my eye had it not been a freebie.  My classmate described it as a scent that might be fun for a short while before you get sick of it.  I think that's accurate.

Body Emulsion:


Aether, "absolute nothingness". AKA unscented!

Personal opinions:  I totally love this body lotion! Moisturizes well and dries quick, maybe not thick enough for winter, but I live in a warm weather climate so it's perfect for me!  And I love that HoG offers an unscented lotion option, I hate when my body products compete with the scents of my perfumes.  I am most definitely planning on repurchasing once I run out.

Overall experience:

Although disappointed with the scents of the perfumes I ordered, that was just a matter of personal taste and not due to poor quality. The service provided by Haus of Gloi was great, and I love how they throw in an extra free sample with your orders! Would I shop here again?  Yes, though more so for the body lotions/soaps/scrups rather than for the perfumes!


Monday, August 5, 2013

LA adventures

This summer has been so busy for me! Work and school has left me with little free-time so I've been a little pooped! I'm so glad one of my classes is ending this week... as much as I love art history I need some down time to go unwind on the beach.

One of my other classes is all the way in LA and since I normally don't get scheduled to work afterwards, I've decided to make the most of that and check out new parts of the city after class.  It's normally the highlight of my week now!  I've discovered many affordable new thrift stores and boutiques, lots of cute cafes, and explored art galleries and museums- one of my favorite things to do.

This was from my favorite wing in the Norton Simon Museum- I absolutely love 18th century art!

A small segment of the giant Arcadia Botanical Gardens.  Gorgeous place for a walk, this little pic doesn't do it justice!
One of the many cafes I've tried out has been the Trails cafe.  I knew I had to see it after reading about it on The Selby, one of my favorite design websites!  Their famed eggs in a basket was all sold out, but their avocado sandwich was pretty great... and their pie!  So worth the price, it's a heaping slice of it! I regret not taking any pictures of my own there, so I encourage you to check out their Selby photo article instead!