FOTD: A Sparkly Coral Pink Look

I built this look around Hello Waffle’s Fey, a color that’s right on the border between peach and pink gold. I love it, but I’ve got it in a mini instead of a sample baggie and so sometimes I forget I own it when I’m leafing through my eyeshadows. But I’m glad I found it, because it’s just so pretty.

I love pinky peachy coral looks. Besides Fey everything else is pretty monochromatic.

Eyes:

• Hello Waffle Fey
• Notoriously Morbid Shoes to Kill For
• Stila Stay All Day Liquid Liner in Intense Black
• Sephora Collection Black Lace Eyeliner
• Benefit Stay Don’t Stray in Light/Medium
• Sephora Collection Outrageous Curl Mascara

Face:

• MAC Mineralize Moisture Foundation in NC20
• Benefit Boi-ing in 1
• Laura Mercier Secret Concealer in 1
• Blackbird Magic Trick Super Powder in Translucent
• Shiro Gelato Beach

Lips:

• Shiro It’s Called Love

I primed my lids, then patted Fey, a golden peach with a hint of pink, all over my lids. I placed Shoes to Kill For, a hot pink, in the outer corner and blended it in until it was diffused. I put some under my lower lashes as well. I lined my upper lashes with black liquid liner and winged it out. I lightly lined my lower water line with pencil liner also. I did my usual face stuff and placed Gelato Beach, a bright coral pink blush, on my cheeks using a contour blush and blended it out with a clean blush brush. I finished off with It’s Called Love, a bright coral pink tinted balm.

As, I said before, I’m super happy with this look. Fey is just a gorgeous color and I really want to do better about remembering it. Do you have any colors you love but forget about?

FOTD: Yellow Blush

In my order from Baroque, Andi included her yellow blush, Klimt Eastwood, as my free sample. Yellow blush is one of those things that I probably wouldn’t have bought on my own, but since I have it I wanted to try it out. And you know what? It’s not bad.

I think it winds up looking like more of an apricot than a yellow once it’s on my face, so I paired it with some similar apricot eyeshadows.

Eyes:

• Aromaleigh Amelie
• Hello Waffle Summertime
• Urban Decay Primer Potion
• Stila Stay All Day Liquid Liner in Intense Black
• Buxom Lash Mascara

Face:

• MAC Face and Body in N1
• Laura Mercier Secret Concealer in 1
• MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in Light
• Baroque Klimt Eastwood

Lips:

• Life’s Entropy Recursion
• NYX Wonder Pencil in Light

I started by priming my lids and then applied Amelie, a light shimmery peach to the mobile lid. I used an angled brush to place Summertime, a darker yellowish peach, in the outer portion of the crease and blended in down and in. I applied winged black liner on my upper lashline and black pencil liner on my lower lashline. I put a little more Summertime below my lower lashes as well. Then I curled them and applied mascara to both my upper and lower lashes. I did my foundation, concealer and powder like usual. I tapped some Klimt Eastwood, a yellow blush, out onto a piece of mirror and used my contour brush to pick some up, since it’s smaller and more precise than my blush brush. I applied it to my cheeks and blended it out with a clean blush brush. Then I lined around the outside of my lips with a skintoned pencil and blended it out with my finger. I used a lip brush to apply Recursion, a bright orangey red lip theory, to finish the look.

I was pleasantly surprised at how peachy Klimt Eastwood turned when applied. Even though it’s definitely a goldenrod yellow powder, the natural color of my cheeks shows through a little and makes it look more like a light orange. I like it. I could see myself using it again. If I wanted to make this look monochromatic, I’d swap out the Lip Theory for Shiro’s apricot Come Out, Come Out balm, which I think would match the blush perfectly.

Have you ever tried any unusual blush colors?

FOTD: Easter Pastel Halo Eye

 Happy Easter! I decided to do a springy pastel look to celebrate. (Easter’s not my favorite holiday, it’s not spring here and my husband and I failed to plan ahead enough to buy groceries for our usual Easter dinner, so this is pretty much the only bone I’m throwing to Easter this year.) I did a pastel pink and green version of my newfound halo eye technique. It turned out much more subtle than I expected, but it’s pretty and fitting for the holiday.

Pardon the weird pinkness of my skin. I just got back from a week on the beach, where I got a bit too much sun. Worth it, though!

Eyes:

• Hello Waffle Debussy
• Shiro Wildflowers
• Hello Waffle Golden Stairs
• Shiro Cake
• NYX Milk
• Kat Von D Tattoo Liner
• Buxom Lash Mascara

Face:

• MAC Face and Body in N1
• Laura Mercier Secret Concealer in 1
• MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in Light
• Benefit Posietint

Lips:

• Tarte Pink Peony

I started by covering my mobile lids with NYX Milk pencil and blending it in with my finger so there weren’t any harsh edges. Then I patted Cake!, a sparkly white, into the inner and outer corners. It wasn’t very noticeable, so I patted Wildflowers, a light pink, over the top. I placed Debussy, a light green, into the hole in the middle of each lid. Then I picked up some Golden Stairs, a light peachy gold, with a blending brush and used it to blend out the transition between the pink and the green. I also used Golden Stairs to blend out the crease. I used some more Cake above the gold, up to my eyebrow. I lined my eyes with black liquid liner with a little flick and applied mascara. I did my face like usual, with a bit of extra foundation on my nose in an attempt to minimize my sunburn. I used a pink cheek stain, which I blended in with my finger, and a soft pink lipstick.

Do you ever do holiday-themed make up? How do you celebrate Easter? In my family growing up we always went bowling and ate Indian food to go with our Easter baskets and egg hunt. It’s one of our weirder traditions, but I loved it.

 

FOTD: A Tight Dress and Shoes to Kill For Challenge

For the next IMAM challenge pairing, I got Hello Waffle’s A Tight Dress and Notoriously Morbid’s Shoes to Kill For. Since one’s a bright red and the other’s a dark purple, I decided to have another go at a red and purple halo eye.

My new halo eye technique is definitely working better than my old one.

Unfortunately when I put my glasses on, they hide the red pretty much entirely. Until I blink. Then BAM!

Eyes:

• Notoriously Morbid Shoes to Kill For
• Hello Waffle A Tight Dress
• Shiro Shinigami
• Stila Bliss
• Stila Bare
• Urban Decay Primer Potion
• Sephora Collection Black Lace Eyeliner
• Make Up Forever Smoky Extravagant Mascara

Face:

• MAC Face and Body in N1
• Laura Mercier Secret Concealer in 1
• MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in Light
• Tarte Natural Beauty

Lips:

• Urban Decay Naked lipstick

I recently discovered a new halo eye technique, which I really like. I started by applying a transition color (I used a dusty rose-brown) in the crease on my primed lids. Then I patted Shinigami, a sparkly purple, onto the inner and outer thirds of my eye. I used a pencil brush and applied A Tight Dress, a dark purple, to further darken the outer and inner corners. I also put some on the outer and inner thirds of my lower lashline as well. Next I put some Shinigami into the gap in the middle of the lower lashline. Then I carefully patted Shoes to Kill For, a bright sparkly red, into the middle of each eyelid. I dab a tiny bit over the purple in the center of the lower lashline as well. Then I blended. I tried to make a smooth transitions between the two purples but keep the red from getting muddied. In the spirit of full disclosure, I blended the shadow up way too high and needed to clean up the edges with some lotion and a q-tip. So I went back over my crease with the same transition color I’d used before. I also applied a matte skintone shade below my browbone. I lined my eyes with black pencil liner, curled my lashes and applied mascara. I did my face like always, used a little bit of red blush and finished it off with a nude lipstick.

All in all, I’m really happy with this look. This is what I was going for last time I tried to do a red and purple halo eye. I think using a super bright, almost pink toned red with a darker purple helped, because there was such a strong difference between the red and the purple.

FOTD: Golden Purple Monochromatic Look

This is a quick little face of the day I took pictures of a a while back but never got around to posting. I was in the mood for something purpley, and Hello Waffle does excellent purples. Both of the shadows I used are from the seasonal Persinette collection.

Really, nothing fancy here. But I like sharing looks, so if you’ve got these colors or something similar, you’ve got another idea on how to use them.

Eyes:

• Hello Waffle Silk
• Hello Waffle Golden Stairs
• Urban Decay Primer Potion in Anti-Aging
• Stila Stay All Day Liquid Liner in Dark Brown
• Maybelline Great Lash Mascara

Face:

• MAC Face and Body in N1
• Laura Mercier Secret Concealer in 1
• MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in Light
• Shiro Potion

Lips:

• Marc Jacobs Kissability Lip Lacquer

I applied Silk, a medium purple with golden shimmer, to my primed lids. I blended out the edges with Golden Stairs, a light gold. Next I applied dark brown liquid liner with a tiny wing and some mascara. I did my face and put on a berry blush and a purple-mauve lipgloss with some shimmer.

I like that this look is relatively subtle, even though I used similar colors for my eyes, lips and cheeks. It’s monochromatic, but not too in your face about it.

FOTD: African Pygmy Kingfisher

The next predatory animal my husband choose for my animal series is the African Pygmy Kingfisher. It’s so tiny and cute and adorable it’s hard to believe it’s a predator. It’s also super colorful, so this look was a lot of fun.

I was definitely surprised at how wearable this wound up, given the colors of the bird.

 I probably wouldn’t have chosen orange, purple and blue together without the inspiration, but I like it! I definitely see myself doing more bird-inspired looks in the future.

Eyes:

• Shiro Team Rocket
• Hello Waffle Mad
• Hello Waffle Golden Stairs
• Urban Decay 24/7 Liner in Ultraviolet
• NYX Milk
• Benefit They’re Real Mascara

Face:

• MAC Face and Body in N1
• Laura Mercier Secret Concealer in 1
• MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in Light
• Shiro 1-Up (I think. I forgot to write it down.)

Lips:

• Shiro Come Out, Come Out

I started by covering my entire eye area with NYX Milk pencil and blending it out with my finger. Then I applied Mad, a light yellowy orange, to my mobile lid. I used a tiny brush to carefully apply a thin layer of Team Rocket, a bright pink-toned purple, to the outer part of my crease. I blended carefully. Then I highlighted my inner corner with Golden Stairs, a peachy gold shade. I lined my upper lashes heavily with Ultraviolet pencil liner, a super bright shimmery blue. I lined my lower waterline as well, stopping before my tear duct. I curled my lashes and applied mascara. I did my face like usual, with a peachy blush and a light orange tinted balm.

I was honestly surprised at how well this turned out. The lid colors were lighter than I expect them to be, but that actually helped balance out the super bright liner. Plus now I know a type of super cute bird I’d never heard of before! Have you ever done bird-inspired make up? What’s your favorite bird?

Spotlight on Notoriously Morbid’s Jupiter Rain

Today I’m doing something a little different. Instead of reviewing a whole collection, I’m reviewing an individual color in a bit more depth. I’ll start with some swatches in different lighting and over a variety of bases, and then I’ll share three ways I wear the color.

The color is from Notoriously Morbid and it’s called Jupiter Rain. Notoriously Morbid donates all proceeds from the color to RAINN (the Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network). As you can see from the running tally she keeps on her website, 5 dollars from each shadow gets donated, which is great considering the purchase price is 5.50. As Carrie says on her website:

For years I have always dreamed about being able to actively donate to RAINN (Rape, Abuse, Incest National Network). Now after years of dreaming, I am able to do so. Introducing Jupiter Rain found only at Notoriously Morbid.

All net proceeds from the color will be donated to RAINN monthly and a running tally will be on the color’s web page to let you know how much was donated that month and year.

I always like to support businesses that give to charities and turquoise/teal is my favorite color, so Jupiter Rain was a no brainer for me. It was the first full size eye shadow I bought!

My usual swatch. Primer on the left and Pixie Epoxy on the right in indoor natural light on top, and a close up over Pixie Epoxy in direct sunlight on the bottom.

Jupiter Rain: “A teal with gold sparkles.” Totally accurate description. Sparkly blue-green teal. While most of the sparkles appear gold, I do get a few pink one in there as well. As you’ll see below, this color pulls more green in warm light and more blue in cool light. It performs well over all the bases I tried and gets respectable coverage on bare skin. Over Pixie Epoxy it’s a bit darker and over NYX Milk the sparkles are less prominent.

Indoor light. As you can see, Jupiter Rain pulls more blue indoors and has more of a sheen than visible glitter.

Sunlight. Outside, it becomes more green and the sparkles pop out.

All in all the quality is fantastic. It shows up well over all three bases, and even look pretty over bare skin, if you’re looking for something sheerer and less in-your-face teal.

Now on to the looks!

Look 1: Jupiter Rain mixed with Darling Girl’s Superstar Serum as a colorful winged liner

This really couldn’t be simpler. I cover my entire lid area with a matte skin-toned eyeshadow and then mix together Superstar Serum and Jupiter Rain and apply it as a winged liner with a pointy brush. Colorful and simple. I love it. This is my favorite way to wear this color.

Look 2: Peacock Smoky Eye with Jupiter Rain, Hello Waffle’s Ethereal Voice and Shiro’s Doge

For this, I start by priming my entire eye area. I applied Jupiter Rain to the inner part of my lid and Hello Waffle’s Ethereal Voice, a dark purple with a little gold sparkle, to the outer corner. I blended Ethereal Voice along my crease. I used a clean blending brush to blend the two colors together. I lined my eyes with black eyeliner and smudged it out with a brush. Then I added a bit more Jupiter rain along my upper and lower lashlines. Then I applied Shiro’s Doge, a pinky-tan highlight underneath my brow, blending down into the purple, and in the inner corner. I finished with lots of mascara. Usually smoky eyes aren’t my thing, but I really like the way the colors make this one more interesting.

Look 3: Mermaid-inspired gold and teal eyeshadow with Jupiter Rain and Shiro’s Perfect World

For this, I primed my eyelid and applied Shiro’s Perfect World, a light gold, to the inner half of my eyelid. Then I applied Jupiter Rain to the outer corner and all the way around through the crease. I blended the two together where they met. The teal was a bit dark for me, so I blended out the edges and ran my blending brush over the top of the teal to lighten it. Then I applied Jupiter Rain to the outer half of my lower lashline and Perfect World to the inner half. I finished with winged black liner and mascara. Very colorful, but like usual with teals it’s not too crazy when my glasses are on.

Do you own Jupiter Rain? How do you wear it? If you’re looking for something to pick up tomorrow, when Free Day Fridays return (and Slay Me Wave 4 releases!) I definitely recommend this.

ETA: More Jupiter Rain! Brown with a Pop of Teal and Sparkly Teal Smoky Eye.

FOTD: Hello Waffle Purple Gradient Liner

Hello Waffle makes amazing purples with gold shimmer. I took three of them from the Persinette Collection (which is only available during the summer, except for the best sellers, which are year round), mixed them together with Darling Girl’s Superstar Serum and made a gradient liner.

 It turned out so pretty! I didn’t want to take away from the liner, so I didn’t wear any other eyeshadow, and I kept the rest of my face simple.

I’m not 100% sure I used the correct proportion of superstar serum and eyeshadow, because the color wasn’t quite as strong as I would have liked, and I definitely got it all over my eyelashes, but all in all, I’d say it was a success. Eyes:

• Hello Waffle Silk
• Hello Waffle Ethereal Voice
• Hello Waffle Cravings
• Darling Girl Superstar Serum
• Benefit They’re Real mascara

Face:

• Smashbox BB Cream in Light
• Shiro 1-Up blush

Lips

• Shiro Come Out, Come Out tinted balm

I started by tapping out three tiny piles of eyeshadow onto the mirror I use for mixing, and placing a drop of Superstar Serum next to them. I mixed Silk, the lightest color, into the serum first, and painted along the inner third of my lashline using a pointed eyeliner brush. I repeated this with Ethereal Voice for the middle third, and Cravings for the outer third, which I also flared out into a wing. I then mixed a bit of Silk and Ethereal voice and blended the transition between the two, and did the same for Ethereal Voice and Cravings. The goal is to make a seamless line, with no obvious transitions. Then I applied BB cream, mascara, blush and tinted lip balm and called it a day.

I’d seen the gradient liner idea several places on the internet, but this was my first time trying it myself. I think it’s really pretty, and I want to try it again with colors that are more different from each other.