My Beauty Wish for the Holidays

Oh the holidays, a time of joy, a time of giving, and a time of treating oneself to fabulous holiday sets at Sephora and Ulta!! With single pots of eye shadow running me $14.50 a pop (hello MAC!) or $18 a pan (ouch Stila!), who can resist the fabulous deals on eye shadow kits out around this time? I have two faves, and both are AH-MAZING because not only do they include a ton of shades, but they have a little tutorials too for beauty queens in the making. Now which one should you get? Well, that’s completely up to you and where your loyalty lies with brands...but I went ahead with Smashbox.

Smashbox's Eye Wish Set

Smashbox’s Eye Wish palette is making me wish I met this eye shadow brand before I met MAC. Their vibrant colors go on smoothly thanks to Vitamin E, and this $45 palette includes Smashbox’s famous Photo Finish Lid Primer—an amazing sample (and almost as good as Urban Decay’s Eye Shadow Primer Potion…check back later for reviews!) and their incredibly volumizing lash DNA Mascara (still, Maybelline is great and less pricey). With 12 incredible shades, 4 cream liners, AND 8 tutorials on how to apply them for the bombshell in the making, this is a deal I could not resist. Ok fine…I really didn’t know about the tutorial until about five minutes ago…but I plan on using them!

Stila's Color Wheel

Do I regret my purchase after I saw Stila’s $38 beauty deal, the Color Wheel Eye Shadow Palette? I’m not so sure now. Stila’s individual eye shadows retails at a whopping $18 a pan, this 37-color wheel is an outstanding deal and a big competitor. Smashbox includes primer and mascara, but no brushes. The color wheel includes a 16-page tutorial, two double-ended eye shadow brushes, and 37 vibrant shades. I sound like I’m in regret heaven (or hell?)…but I’m pretty pleased with my Smashbox Eye Wish palette. Maybe if I make it on Santa’s Nice List this year he’ll get me the Stila set for Christmas? *HINT HINT TO MY FIANCE*

There is no denying that both brands offer solid colors and are both incredible sets to share or purchase for oneself. I personally find them to be a better deal than MAC’s Holiday “A Tartan Tale” collection which has just 6 shades and retails at $36 at Nordstrom. Not worth the money at all! Their holiday brush set is $49.50 and sells out QUICK!, however, since their brushes retail at about $18 each, I think these are totally worth the price. I’ve had mine for over two years and have had no complaints.

MAC's A Tartan Tale Collection

For all the beauty geeks out there who are suffering still from this recession, the holidays are the BEST time to get amazing deals on palettes and sets like this, so I highly recommend you stock up now.

Next post: me trying to use the tutorials that Smashbox includes!

Lost-Lasting, Lucious Liners

I can be quite lazy with my makeup, and that is especially true when it comes to my eyeliner. I can’t be counted on to have a sharpener on hand no matter how many I buy, and I never, ever seem to be able to locate mine, so for that reason, I stick to liquid eyeliner. First, because I am so angry about this product, I will talk about the one I absolutely loathe with a passion. I hate this $16.50 eyeliner so much that I returned it within a week. It looked so cool, but this eyeliner stirs up nothing but negative feelings. Mostly because I feel bad for the poor girls who think this type of liquid liner will convert them to the liquid side of liners…but it really does nothing but disappoint.

I’m talking about you, MAC Penultimate eyeliner ($16.50). Here you come on the scene, a nifty pen type liner with a felt tip that reminded me of the felt pens my teachers used to grade my homework in elementary school. You seemed so easy to apply, and sure, compared to the gel pot liners, you were. You didn’t require extra effort or thought, it was a quick swish and there you were lining my eyes. Sometimes it was two swipes. But by lunchtime, this sneaky product faded to gray. Having to reapply did not go well with my laziness. It made me hate you, MAC Penultimate eyeliner. I needed a liner that lasted the entire day! Not an awful product that lasted just half a day.

• Cons: Didn’t last all day, not as dark as I’d like, required two applications to be dark
• Pro: Easy to apply, fast-drying

So of course, I took the advice of my cousin who showed me her fantastic L’Oreal Paris Telescopic Precise Liquid Eyeliner that lasts all day! The pointed brush wasn’t too soft or too long like some liners, and the texture of the liner was great. It didn’t smear or smudge which was so important to me. The best part—it did last me all day. I only had to reapply if I was going out at night, which I didn’t mind. The "brush" is actually quite stiff, similar to the MAC Penultimate, but it may take a while to get used. The price can’t be beat! It is just about $8 at your local drugstore, less than half the price of MAC’s Penultimate liner.

• Cons: it can go on thick and it doesn't dry fast, so if you aren't careful and blink right away, you'll end up with liner on the top of your lids. It's happened to me before.. not pretty.
  
• Pro: long-lasting, thick texture, rich, easy to apply, the black is super bold, matte finish
  

Another liner I love is the Sephora brand liquid liner. It is only $10, and while it is a bit more “watery” than the L’Oreal Paris liner and has a thin, long brush, I still did enjoy this product greatly. I am more loyal to the L’Oreal, but the Sephora brand is great too.

• Cons: Not water-proof like it claims to be, doesn't last all day (you might need a touch-up)
  
• Pro: good color, goes on super thin thanks to the brush
  

Stay tuned for my NEXT POST: Pencil Eyeliners

The Bottom Line

Like most Middle-Eastern/South Asian women, I have a love affair with eyeliner. I am constantly on the quest for good eyeliner, and I refuse to leave my house without it. Coco Chanel may have famously advised women never to leave home without lipstick, and while I admire and respect her, eyeliner is the product I will never leave my home without.

And because of my love affair with this product, I am constantly on the lookout for eyeliner that lasts me all day. I used to play with my mother’s Kohl eyeliner (kajol) from Pakistan when I was younger, and while this lasted long, it smudged easily and was too messy to apply. I could never master it like the women overseas have. Apparently, Japan loves eyeliner too, and I’ve noticed a trend in the Japanese style eyeliners that come in cute little pots that are applied with a brush.

MAC has a line of eyeliners that are very popular, not only because their products are famously used for film productions, but because they typical sell long-lasting products that are rather affordable. MAC’s Fluidline liquid gel pot is probably the most popular of the dip-and-line type products, and it does take a while to get used to applying. It runs for $15 for the pot, and an additional $17.50 for their eyeliner brushes (the 209 or 210 work fine with this product). I prefer to use a thin, angled brush when I use the gel pots only because I prefer a winged look. What is great about this eyeliner is it really does stay on all day and once you get the hang of applying it, it’s a flawless look.

I found a less pricey alternative when sister-in-law came to visit. She had the L’Oreal Paris HiP Studio Secrets gel pot liner (at this point, I didn’t know that L’Oreal sold one!) and then I saw it at Target for $12…and it included a brush! This product is certainly a more economical version of the MAC one. I personally haven’t tried it, so I can recommend Sumita Beauty’s Gel Pot liner in black, which runs for $11 (no brush included). These products are available at Ziba Beauty stores in California or online. It doesn't seem like the black is in stock online now. However, this product is a bit watery and doesn't go on as dark as the MAC Fluidline.

Here is a photo of my with the Sumita Beauty Eyeliner. (the mascara is Benefit's BADGal Lash while the eyeshadow is by MAC Cosmetics and was hastily applied for the purpose of this photo.)


It looks effortless, but applying the eyeliner using a brush definitely took a lot of practice!!

So, in my opinion, the only downside to using these eyeliner pots with a brush is that for one—they tend to go on rather thick if you aren’t careful, and two, you need to practice in order for it to go on well. I have been in a hurry and ended up with badly lined eyes, or mismatching eyes.

But a benefit of the gel pots--the liner lasts ALL DAY! I don't have to reapply and it is just so much easier than some other pencil or liquid liners.

In my next post, I’ll talk about other types of eyeliners for those who wish to stick to pencil or liquid liners. I’ve tried all three kinds now!

*imaged via MAC Cosmetics and Google Images, while the two last ones are my own.

Cakey make-up is out, flawless effort is in!

Caked on, overly noticeable makeup on anyone’s face is not at all attractive. I prefer soft foundation doing what it is supposed to be doing—evening skin tone and concealing blemishes, while looking effortless. I cannot stand girls who have caked on foundation, and what bugs me more is women who have a one colored face and a different colored neck….ladies, find someone to assist you in the search for foundation!!I’ve tried MAC foundations and found them to be a bit heavy. While MAC offers many different shades and one is sure to find an ideal match, oftentimes MAC leaves women looking overdone. What’s worse is I’ve noticed in some photos that you can see how much foundation I have on! Flawless, effortless beauty is what we should strive for on a day to day basis.

I tried Dior Skin AirFlash Spray Foundation last year, and this product is just amazing. The AirFlash delivered a great even skin tone while providing me with a healthy glow. I only ever used this product while getting my makeup done for events and always wanted to purchase it. It comes in a little spray can, and you can either spray this directly onto your face (don’t recommend it) or onto a disposable makeup sponge and apply to your face. It’s nice and moisturizing too, leaves my skin feeling soft and healthy. This product comes with quite a steep price tag--$60 for a 2.3 oz can. Another set back--it only comes in 5 shades which can be quite limiting. Their darkest shade would not even accommodate dark chocolate African American skin tones, which I think is just shameful on Dior’s part!

A good friend of mine introduced me to Laura Mercier’s Tinted Moisturizer just last year, and this product is absolutely fabulous and a good alternative to Dior. It’s just $18 less than the Dior Skin AirFlash Spray Foundation (for those who are arithmetically challenged--$42), but the Laura Mercier product boasts twice as many shades and even has an oil free alternative. The Laura Mercier tinted moisturizer is equally as fantastic and I definitely recommend this product as a suitable alternative to the Dior Skin AirFlash Spray Foundation. I know the $42 price tag is a bit steep, so I assure you I will try and find another less pricey foundation. While I was on a budget, I used the MAC Studio Tech foundation, which was just $29. Oh but I forgot to add--the Laura Mercier has SPF20!!!! Awesome skin and UV protection! I have never tried a drug store brand foundation though I fully intend on it just for the sake of this blog and for my readers. I am quite intrigued by the Maybelline True Match makeup line because they claim to give you an effortless look. I’ll make myself the test dummy and show you all how it compares to the Laura Merciers and Diors of the makeup world!

*photos courtesy Sephora.com

Lip Gloss is Poppin'

Oh Givenchy, how I love my Givenchy Pop Gloss in Impertinent Nude. It goes on so smoothly and the colors Givenchy offers are beautiful. The cube tube is too cute, and the gloss glides on my lips perfectly.

I've been using my Givenchy Pop Gloss since my freshman year of college...but now at $25.50 a pop, I had to find a good alternative! I used to use MAC Lipgloss before I discovered the glory of Givenchy, so I took a trip to the MAC make up counter to find a suitable alternative.

I forgot how inexpensive MAC was compared to Givenchy lipgloss!! It is only $14 for a tube of lip gloss and the applicator is a lot better because it's not a brush and it helps prevent gloss coming out in big goops like Givenchy.



The new color I use is Lust (accurately described as a "soft, muted pink" on their website), and it's really pretty and smooth. I saved $10, and MAC has a ton more shades than Givenchy...and they have fun names like "Enchantress" and "Nymphette" for their glosses. SO cute and fun!

Verdict: Downgrade OK!

*note, the pictures on this post are not photos of the colors I've described.
*photo credit, MACCosmetics and Sephora.com