October 2012 Favorites

Hi everyone!

Another month gone by!  Here are my October favorites.  I know this video is a bit late.  I'm sorry if I sound a little lack-luster.  I think most of my footage came from my 3rd or 4th take because of all the city noise in the background and the bipolar lighting.  It also took a little while before I could find the time to edit the video.  I actually had it filmed and loaded onto my computer since the last week of October.

Anyway, there are quite a few Giorgio Armani beauty products on this past month's favorites because I've been testing a bunch of products from the brand over the last few months.  I must say, I've been very impressed, and that's why they make an appearance in this video.  I also have a few non-GA beauty favorites that I talk about in the latter half of the video.

Here are the products mentioned:

Giorgio Armani Maestro Foundation in 4.5
Giorgio Armani Eyes to Kill Mascara (regular original version)
Shiseido Nourishing Mascara Base
Giorgio Armani Eyes to Kill Waterproof Eyeshadows in 27 and 28
Giorgio Armani Waterproof Silk Eye Pencils in 1 and 2
Chanel Notorious Sculpting Veil for Eyes and Cheeks
MAC blush in Fleet Fast
Revlon Colorburst lip glosses (Bellini shown in video)
MAC Select Moisture Concealer in NC20

I hope you all had a great month of October!  Here's to a happy and healthy November!

XoxO
Tina

Tutorial: Everyday Smokey Eye with Urban Decay Naked 2

Wow, so I haven't filmed a tutorial in a long time.  Looking back at my old tutorial videos, I've improved a lot with my makeup application techniques.  I think I've also found a style of editing that I really like now and a better spot to film.  Lighting is really everything!  This video is definitely more polished, and I hope you all like it.  I also just want to say, thank goodness for voiceover or else tutorials would be completely impossible.  I should have saved a blooper clip for the end.  In the background you can hear my son shoving his toys around, babbling, and making all sorts of noises.  

Anyway...

This tutorial will show you how to do an easy everyday smokey eye using the Urban Decay Naked 2 Palette.  If you want a night look, simply intensify the color to make it darker.  This is one of my favorite looks using this palette, and YDK is one of my all time favorite eyeshadows.

Here are the products I used:

Urban Decay NAKED Skin Foundation in 4.0

Maybelline Dream Lumi Illuminating Concealer in Nude

MAKEUP FOREVER Full Cover Concealer in 7

Stila Brow Powder in Dark (discontinued)

Urban Decay NAKED 2 Palette - YDK, Busted, Bootycall

Bobbi Brown eyeshadow in Bone

Urban Decay 24/7 Liner in Zero

Urban Decay Super Curling Mascara

Chanel Notorious Sculpting Veil for Eyes and Cheeks

MAC blush in Fleet Fast (limited edition - Hey Sailor! collection from Summer 2012)

Urban Decay Lip Junkie Lipgloss in Naked

I hope you enjoy the tutorial!  Please leave any comments and/or suggestions in the comment box in the video.

Oh!  I also want to give special thanks to my husband for the music in this video.  He wrote it and played it on the spot.  I know it's not the best of quality, but I think we will try to improve it because I like how it turned out, and it also makes the video more special.   

<3x Tina

Tom Ford Smoke Red Lipstick

Hey everyone! Long time, no post, I know. Life got busy and left barely enough time to get through the usual daily stuff so my blog and YouTube channel took a backseat for a little while. I'm hoping to get back into things and get posting regularly.
To bring us back, I have Tom Ford's Smoke Red lipstick. This is the "old" formula housed in the white lacquer packaging before Mr.Ford launched his full makeup line. I also own Blush Nude and Pink Dusk from the original line.
The original line of lipsticks was originally limited edition. They became even more limited as they were phased out to be reformulated and repackaged into Tom Ford's current line of cosmetics. I found this beauty, and quite a few of the others, at my local Cosmetics Company Outlet (CCO).
Because this isn't widely available anymore, I just took a quick shot of the product and me wearing it. The original
lipstick formula is creamy, well-pigmented, fairly moisturizing, and lasts about 4 hours on me. It's a very comfortable lipstick to wear. I've been obsessed with reds and vampy lipsticks lately, and I have fallen in love with this color. It's a slightly blue-based red with the slightest bit of micro shimmer so that, on the lips, it looks mostly matte but has a slight bit of sheen and dimension to it.
The original retail price for Mr.Fords's lipstick was $45. The CCO's price for this was $33.75. If your local CCO carries these lipsticks, I recommend grabbing one. At $33.75, it's a much more reasonable and expectable price for a high-end lipstick and worth it for the formula.

MAC Hey Sailor! Swatches and Photos

Hey everyone! The new MAC Hey Sailor! Summer collection is now up on their website. I wanted post some rough photos and swatches for you. I've been super busy lately and haven't been able to do a proper post for this collection, but at least you will have a few photos. I also apologize for the messy post. I'm actually doing this from my phone. Enjoy!
Lipsticks - Red Racer (left) and Sail La Vie (right)

Blushes - Launch Away! (left in swatches) and Fleet Fast (right in swatches)

Swatched heavily

Blended out
Suntints SPF 20 Liquid Lip Balm - Au Rosé (left) and Abalone (right)

Eyeshadow - Jaunty

The Kate Collection for Rimmel London Lipstick #12

Over the last couple of months, I've been exploring the drug store for new makeup.  I've been reading some good things about drug store products lately and wanted to check out a few products for myself.  Generally I have very bad luck at the drug store, which is why I haven't purchased a lot of drug store makeup.  I'd rather spend more on something that I know works and performs well than waste a few bucks on something I know I won't use and will end up in the trash.  Besides, a lot of drug store beauty products are not very cheap anymore!

What's nice about drug stores is that if you check their weekly fliers, almost every week they have a sale on at least one or two brands of makeup.  I ran into one of these sales at my local Rite Aid one day.  The sale was for Rimmel, and I have never tried any Rimmel products before so I decided to pick up a couple of my favorite makeup items, lipstick and eyeshadow, by the brand.

The lipstick I chose was the lipstick #12 from the Kate Collection.  The Kate Collection is a compilation of 7 lipsticks created by Kate Moss in Rimmel's Lasting Finish formula.  The range of shades in the collection is great.  You have three every day neutral colors, three brighter colors, and a very bold purple shade.  I decided to go with #12, one of the brighter shades.  #12 is a vibrant coral-red and fits very much into the bright lipstick trend.  Though it is bright, I find it very wearable because it doesn't lean too orange and is not neon bright.  The lipstick has a slightly satin, almost matte finish.

  

The formula is supposed to be long lasting, which I do find is true.  I found that it lasted between 4-6 hours depending on how much eating, drinking, talking you're doing.  The only thing I didn't like too much about the formula is that it can be slightly drying.  And I really do mean slightly.  It is definitely not moisturizing, but it is not uncomfortable to wear.  This is probably one of the better long wear drugstore lipsticks I have tried, and it doesn't have a nasty taste or smell to it like most drug store lipsticks I have tried.  I also am a fan of the packaging.  It's a sleek matte black with Kate's signature on the cap.  It's pretty sturdy and not at all flimsy.

Overall, I do recommend this lipstick and I would pick up a couple of the neutral shades to try.  If you're looking for that bright, coral red lipstick to wear this season, this definitely fits the bill.  You can find Rimmel at any of your local drugstores.  It retails for $5.49 at Rite Aid, but the price may vary between drug stores.  

Yves Saint Laurent ROUGE PUR COUTURE Vernis À Lèvres Glossy Stain in 15 Rose Vinyl, 11 Rouge Gouache, and 20 Rouge Enamel

When I was in New York City for my birthday, I ran into a most amazing lip product while perusing the aisles of Sephora in Times Square.  YSL has just released a revolutionary new lip product.  The Vernis À Lèvres Glossy Stains are liquid lip stains that go on like a liquid lipstick and leave a lovely glossy finish.  They are truly two-in-one products.  With one layer, they leave the stain.  With a second layer, the color is intensified and a gorgeous glossy finish is added.  These pack quite the punch, but not in a gaudy or unsophisticated way.  Just don't expect a light stain or sheer color.  The color is only sheerer when the gloss fades.

The applicator of this product is slightly unique.  At first glance, it reminded me of the applicator for the Lancome Color Fever glosses with the tear drop shape.  However, that is where the similarity ends.  Though the Glossy Stains have a tear shaped sponge, the tip is much sharper meaning much more precise application.  The sponge is rather flat and thin, allowing the perfect deposition of product onto your lips.  

Below are swatches of 15 Rose Vinyl, 11 Rouge Gouache, and 20 Rouge Enamel (a Sephora exclusive shade).  The swatch on the left is one swipe, and the swatch on the left is two swipes.  You can really see the gloss and sheen these give in the second picture below.

The texture of these Glossy Stains is just so lovely.  When I first pulled the applicator out of the tube, I was expecting something thick and goopy.  Was I so wrong.  The product is very lightweight on the lips and just glides right on.  As with the nature of lip stains, the product dries down rather quickly, so you will need to be a little quick with application.  With one layer on the lips, you hardly notice anything on your lips at all.  With a second layer, you feel a slight tackiness so you are aware the product is there, but the wear is still lightweight.  Unlike many lip stains, the Glossy Stains are not drying at all.  In fact, they are quite moisturizing.

#11 Rouge Gouache on the lips

First layer

Second layer

Full face

Stain left behind after wiping product off with a tissue

The lasting power of the Glossy Stains is phenomenal because of the stain they leave behind.  The darker colors will pull through meals.  Although, keep a mirror handy for reapplication anyway because the product tends to fade unevenly.  These are great for people like me who don't have time to reapply lip products throughout the day.  I can trust that this looks good even if I'm unable to touch up during the day, especially if there is minimal eating and drinking.  I also want to mention that the Glossy Stains have the usual YSL mango scent/flavor but it's not nearly as strong as it is in the lipsticks.  You can smell it on the applicator, and it's there when you apply but fades rather quickly.

 I highly, highly recommend the YSL Glossy Stains.  The color range is pretty extensive, so you will probably be able to find a color that suits you.  They are $32 and are available at Sephora stores, Sephora.com, and YSL counters everywhere.  I recently spotted them at Nordstrom, where I actually picked up one more.  I will feature that shade in a separate blog post.

Fresh Sugar Passion Tinted Lip Treatment SPF 15

The Fresh tinted lip treatments are lip treatments that leave a beautiful tint of color in its wake.  Or you have the choice of clear if you prefer your lip treatments to be colorless.  There are currently four different tints in the line plus the clear treatment.  I tried all of them at Sephora before settling on Passion.  They all have the same lemony-citrus taste and glide on buttery smooth.  The texture is so silky and light, you hardly feel like there is anything on your lips.  The product is housed in metal packaging that screws open and closed, so there's no way this is busting open in your bag.  Simply twist up and apply.

Passion may look like a scary bright crimson in the tube, but it actually goes on to give you a just bitten flush of red on the lips.  It's tinted enough that you may not want to apply without a mirror.  Passion brings a nice healthy bit of color to your face without being too obvious.  I found this color to be the most flattering on me.  The Rose treatment was pretty too, but was close to clear on my lips.

Below are a couple swatches.  The swatch on the left is heavier with two swipes.  The right swatch is just one pass of the product.

 

Are the Fresh lip treatments worth the $22.50 for just a balm?  Many lip products claim to be moisturizing or nourishing on the lips, especially lately with the whole tinted lip balm trend.  But in my experience, the Fresh lip treatments are the only true balm product that actually improves the condition of your lips while adding some color.  The SPF is also a bonus.  When my lips feel parched or abused by other less nourishing lip products, a day of wearing this products restores my lips to normal.  I'm sure if I used the clear overnight my lips would be as soft and plushy as the pillow I rested my head on.  So for me, I would absolutely purchase this again, and I would recommend this to anyone.