EOTD: MAC's Smoky Eye

This look is MAC's Smoky Eye, featured in one of the video tutorials on the American MAC website (why these aren't on the Canadian site is a mystery). Smoky eyes are sexy, simple, sophisticated and very easy way to look sexy. You can use pretty much any colour palette for a smoky eye - greens, purples, greys, grey/black, bronzes, oranges, browns - and you can do a dramatic, complicated smoky eye or a very simple one. This one, by MAC MUA Luc, is very simple and basic, using four eyeshadow colours, one eyeliner and mascara. It is important to note, as this video is very short, that a successful smoky eye requires lots of blending.

Here's the link to the video: http://www.maccosmetics.com/makeup_artistry/video_smoky_eye.tmpl There is also a downloadable PDF of the step by step instructions and more information about the products he uses to create this look.

The products Luc used:
Mineralize Skin Finish Natural
Teddy Eye Kohl
Satin Taupe Eyeshadow
Smut Eyeshadow
Woodwinked Eyeshadow
Black Mascara

Here are the products I used to recreate my own MAC Smoky Eye:

MAC Vanilla Eyeshadow (in lieu of Mineralized Skinfinish Natural in Light)
MAC Teddy Eye Kohl
MAC Satin Taupe (do you think I need a new one?)
Kat von D chocolate brown eyeshadow (from the Romance palette) and JoeFresh eyeshadow in Midnight (in lieu of Smut)
MAC Shroom (in lieu of Woodwinked)
JoeFresh Black Mascara

 

*Note: I used a bit of MAC Strada blush and Smashbox Hybrid 2 in 1 Colour & Shine Gloss.

You can use any soft-coloured gloss or lipstick but you want the emphasis to be on your eyes for this look. This is a look you can intensify if you'd like a more dramatic look. Just remember that the key is to blend, blend, blend and then blend some more.

I highly recommend the MAC video tutorials and don't worry if you don't have the exact products used. Often you can substitute products and tools for what they use. I however, will be picking up MAC Smut tomorrow!

Try this out and less us know if you love it as much as we do!

C.

Picks and Skips - MAC's Holiday Offerings Part Three - Miracles Happen Viva Glam

MAC's Miracles Happen Viva Glam lip palette is a PICK for the simple fact that 100% of its sales go to the MAC AIDS Fund.

The palette contains two of MAC's easy-to-wear Viva Glam lipsticks - Viva Glam V, a pearly purpley-pink and Viva Glam VI, a warm russet-plum with pearl - and one Viva Glam lipgloss - Viva Glam V, a warm pinky-orange with pearl.All of these colours are highly wearable - most skin tones and colouring can look good in these colours.

So this is a no-brainer for me. If you have someone who loves MAC, loves make-up or if you want these gorgeous, easy-to-wear shades for yourself, PICK this up. It goes for $27 CDN ($22.50 US) and every cent of it's purchase price goes to the MAC AIDS Fund. This isn't one of those "10% of the total profits go towards " or "25 cents of every dollar goes towards helping ". The MAC AIDS Fund, which you should read more about here, is one of the beauty industry's best-known and longest-standing causes and even though Estee Lauder has taken over the company, every cent of the purchase price of Viva Glam products goes towards the MAC AIDS Fund.

PICK! PICK! PICK!

C.

MAC: Magic, Mirth and Mischief!

I finally got around to examining MAC's holiday collection - Magic, Mirth and Mischief!  As in years before, MAC has heavily stocked their holiday collection with Mineralize Eyeshadows.

I have a very lukewarm realtionship with Mineralize Eyeshadows - I do buy a small number of these every year, but generally I skip the majority of them because I find the pigments in them too weak.  Plus, there is always the issue of the large amount of fallout they produce, the overly chunky glitter and the general difficulty in applying them evenly.

That being said, I did pick up a few things from the holiday offerings.  All holiday colours are limited edition:

Left to right: (top row) Midnight Madness Mineralize Eye Shadow, Conjure Up and Superdupernatural Mineralize Blush

     

Left column (top to bottom): Total Wow Lipstick (glaze), Surprize Me Lipstick (lustre)

Right column (top to bottom): She-Zam Dazzleglass, Ever So Rich Cremesheen Glass

Left to right: Midnight Madness Mineralize Eye Shadow, Conjure Up and

Superdupernatural Mineralize Blush

Midnight Madness Eye Shadow ($23.50 CA) is an interesting combination of a slightly plummy, gunmetal taupe with tiny silver sparkles with a cresent of chunky yellow gold glitter shadow.  The main gunmetal taupe colour is very smokey and is a unique colour for MAC.  The good news is the gunmetal taupe is actually quite pigmented and applies well for the mineral formula. The gold side of the shadow is very chunky and not very wearable as a shadow in the conventional sense.  I think it could function fairly well as a glitter accent on top of a sticky base such as a cream shadow.

The standout products for me in the whole collection are the two new LE Mineralize Blushes ($25.00 CA).  Unlike their eye shadow siblings, Mineralize Blushes are very high in pigment and apply like a dream (why the two formulas are so different is beyond me).  Conjure Up is a fanastic deep berry pink blush with that could be worn lightly for a shy flush or heavier for some serious drama.  Superdupernatural is a nice peach laced with pink shimmer.  I think that both colours could work for both warm and cool toned skins - on a very pale, cool toned skin, Superdupernatural could work as a bronzer.

 

Left to right: Surprize Me Lustre Lipstick, Total Wow Glaze Lipstick, She-Zam Dazzleglass, Ever So Rich Cremesheen Glass

Surprize Me lipstick ($16.50 CA) is a sheer peach with decent colour payoff.  Total Wow is the lipstick version of Conjure Up blush, and the two look great together - it is a deep berry pink with very good pigment (surprizing for a glaze formula!).  She-Zam Dazzleglass ($21.50 CA) is a silver and pink micro-glitter laced gloss which would look great layered over any colour lipstick - a must have for people who like Dazzleglasses (and possibly even for those who don't!).  Ever So Rich Cremesheen Glass ($21.50 CA) is a pale, milky lilac gloss which is very sheer, but does give lips a hint of paleness. As well it has a great gel based formula which is completely non-sticky.

Overall, I think this holiday collection is medicore.  There are some great products (notably the Mineralize Blushes) and some nice, easy, everyday colours (lipsticks), but in my opinion it lacks the drama and sizzle I usually associate with holiday shades - there's no killer red lipstick or emphasis on smokey shadows.

J

LUSTING: Bobbi Brown Limited Edition Chrome Palette

Really, just look at it. Bobbi Brown's Limited Edition Chrome Palette - ten eyeshadows and four lip glosses in gorgeous shades of silvery shimmer and rosy sheen. My Gunmetal and Roses FOTD? This is your palette.

Bobbi Brown is a world-renowned make-up artist whose product quality is impeccable, so you know that you're going to wear these shades over and over again. It's not a question of loving this palette, it's a question of what are you waiting for?

Also, I have to love a palette that splits the creams from the powders. I loathe palettes where a lipstick is next to an eyeshadow and the lipstick, of course, ends up getting all gritty. Stop it, beauty companies, stop it now!

It isn't cheap ($75 US) but it is gorgeous and you do get ten shadows and four glosses as well as Bobbi Brown's impeccable quality of product. Yup, I'm lusting.

LUST LUST LUST

C.

Picks and Skips: MAC's Holiday Offerings Part Two - Mineralize Kits

MAC has two Mineralize Kits out for Holiday 2009. Both kits retail at $71.50 CDN ($59.50 US) and each includes a Mineralize eyeshadow duo, a Mineralize Skinfinish (highlighter), a Mineralize blush and a mini buffing brush.

Fun In the Sun Mineralize Kit - Shimpagne Mineralize Skinfinish (soft beige-gold shimmer), Nuance Mineralize Blush (peach-gold), Play on Plums Mineralize Eye Shadow Duo (bronze, burgundy, peach, gold, pink), and the 181SE Mini Buffer. Shimpagne is a covetable shade that was released as Limited Edition (LE) so if you need a reason to pick up this kit, I've just given you one. Just check out Karla Sugar's swatch of it here. It's a beautiful champagne shimmer highlighter that anyone can use. Play on Plums is also a gorgeous eyeshadow particularly for the burgundy and the way the warmer tones compliment it.

Like all the kits, these colours would work on any skin tone but Fun In the Sun, as it sounds, has warmer shades and will work to give your skin a sun-kissed glow. Both Nuance and Shimpagne are LE's (Play on Plums is permanent) so I give this kit a PICK.

Pinkzapoppin! Mineralize Kit - Light Flush Mineralize Skinfinish (soft pink-bronze-peach shimmer), Dainty Mineralize Blush (gold pink moderate shimmer), Love Connection Mineralize Eye Shadow Duo (beige, gold, pink, rose, hint of blue) and the 181SE Mini Buffer. Like Shimpagne in the Fun In the Sun kit, Light Flush Mineralize Skinfinish is also a LE shade that beauty junkies lust over. The kit is worth buying for Light Flush alone. Because this kit is slightly cooler than Fun In the Sun, it's more for fairer skin tones or if you want a more subtle glow effect from these products. Both Dainty and Love Collection (eyeshadow) are permanent colours, so the only reason to buy this kit is if it's a gift for someone, or if you must own Light Flush. SKIP

Karla Sugar has swatches of both kits here if you want a better idea.

Happy Shopping and stay tuned for the remainder of our Picks and Skips for MAC's Holiday Collection!

For MAC's Holiday 2009 Lip, Eye and Face Kits Picks and Skips, click here.

C.

Picks and Skips: MAC's Holiday Offerings Part One - Lip, Eye and Face Kits

MAC seems to have more and more available every Christmas! Currently they've got a colour collection - Magic, Mirth and Mischief! - out and they have a tonne of gifty-type kits and sets as well as their annual Kids Helping Kids holiday cards and gift tags available.

To help you decide whether your local MAC counter or store is worth a stop on your shopping list, I've gone ahead and offered my take on what you should definitely get and what you should skip. Whether you're shopping for gifts or for yourself, here's what you should know!

Lip Kits ($27 CDN/$22.50 US)

L to R. Barely Visible, Floating Lightly, Heavenly Dish

Heavenly Dish Neutral Lip Kit - Two peachy neutral-toned lipsticks - Floating Lightly and Heavenly Dish and a pale peachy lipgloss called Barely Visible. Great peachy-toned neutral colours that can be worn by most skin-tones. Buy it for Floating Lightly and Barely Visible! PICK

L to R. Sweet Smile, Laugh A Lot, Tickled

Possessed By Pink Lip Kit - Two lovely neutral pink lipsticks - Tickled and Laugh A Lot and a wear with anything lipgloss - Sweet Smile. Laugh A Lot is a gorgeous shade that would work on most complexions, as is Tickled, though it is deeper and would look better on medium skin tones. All are very wearable and would work on most complexions. Buy it for Laugh A Lot. SKIP

Eye Kits ($44.50 CDN/$36 US)

Top L to R. Oh My Darling, Dare Ya!, Sorcery

Bottom L to R. Gold Tease, Prankster, Devilishly Dark

6 Devil May Dare Warm Eye Shadows - This is a collection of warm-toned, fashion-forward colours with the rich pigmentation and shimmer. Six shades that would work together very very well, or each on their own or with other colours including the gorgeously rich Sorcery, Prankster and Gold Tease. PICK

Top L to R. Cool Incantation, Blue Enchantment, Deep Secret

Bottom L to R. Shhh, Don't Tell, Rose Potion, Violet Vow

6 Mystic Cool Eye Shadows - A collection of cool-toned shadows ranging from a brilliant shimmery turquoise to a violet-toned coll brown. I didn't think I'd like this palette as much as I do. Obviously, the two bluey shades leap right out at you and scream for your attention but the four other shades are neutral enough to make this palette a collection of wearable colours - together or alone. PICK

 Top L to R. Fire In Her Eyes, Wide-Eyed Wonder, Black Magique

Bottom L to R. Spell No. 9, Deception, Smoke & Mirrors

6 Smoke and Mirrors Eye Shadows - A collection of warm browns ranging from the covetable Smoke & Mirrors (chocolate brown) and Wide-Eyed Wonder (smokey taupe) to the wear anytime, anywhere, with anything warm neutrals Spell No. 9 and Deception. This is one of the strongest eye palettes available from MAC this season. PICK

Top L to R. White Rabbit, Hold My Gaze, Edge of Dark

Bottom L to R. Magnetized, Hypnotizing, Altered State

6 Sorceress Eye Shadows -  Six eyeshadows ranging from a blue-purple to a cool-olive tone. Buy it if you like deeper tones in slightly dramatic colours. These are good, safe colours in greens, greys and purples. Buy it for Edge of Dark and Altered State. SKIP

Face Kits ($44.50 CDN/$38 US)

L to R. Pretty Baby, Sunsparked, Peachykeen

Hocus Pocus Colourful Face Kit - A set of three cooler-toned pink powders for the face. Peachykeen is a peach-pink blush Pretty Baby is a soft pink powder that can be used all over your face, as a blush or a highlighter and it's found in the slide-out trays below the shimmery warm apricot-beige highlighter Sunsparked Pearl Beauty Powder and the coral-apricot Peachykeen Sheertone Shimmer Blush. This is the best of the two face kits if you've got fair skin, although both are soft and sheer enough most skin tones can wear both. PICK

L to R. Golden Bronze, Buffed & Polished, Sunbasque

Fab-racadabra Bronze Face Kit - The Fab-racadabra kit contains warmer tonesto give anyone's skin tone an easy glow. In the bottom tray is Golden Bronzing Powder, a soft gold shimmery highlighter and above it are the gorgeous shimmery bronze-gold of the Buffed & Polished Iridescent Powder and the very pretty coral-gold Sunbasque Sheertone Shimmer Blush. PICK

No swatches from us unfortunately, but there are (as always) some excellent ones from two of our favourite beauty bloggers Temptalia and Karla Sugar.

Happy Shopping!

C.

EOTD: Dior Smoky Crystal

Today's EOTD is a soft semi smokey eye using Dior's 5 Couleurs Iridescent eye shadow palette 089 Smoky Crystal, which is part of their fabulous holiday collection.

Products used:

MAC Select Cover Concealer NW 20

MAC Greasepaint Stick in Black (if you missed out on this, substitute a black waterproof eyeliner as a base)

Dior 5 Couleurs Iridescent palette in 089 Smoky Crystal

MAC Brow Shader in Walnut

Maybelline Great Lash Waterproof mascara in Very Black

 

Begin by applying concealer and setting with loose powder. Apply MAC's Greasepaint Stick to the eyelid up to the crease. Blend the edges well using your fingertip or a q-tip. Using a flat brush, apply shade #1 in the Dior palette to the outermost 1/3 of your eyelid, blend up to the crease. Apply shade #2 to the centre of your lid using the same brush, up to the crease, making sure to butt the colour right up to shade #1. Using a pencil brush, smudge shade #2 along your lower lash line to the center of your eye.

Using a pencil brush apply shade #3 to the inside 1/3 of the eyelid, working it half way onto shade #2 as well as lining the bottom lid from the inside corner to the center of the eye. Next using a fluffy crease brush, work shade #3 in the crease, blending both upwards towards the browbone and downwards into the darker shadows.  Use this brush to also blend out the whole eye using a windshield wiper motion.

Line upper lash line with MAC Graphblack Technakohl liner, curl lashes and apply mascara.  Voila! J

 

Review: Olay Quench Advanced Relief Body Lotion and Olay Quench Therapy Hand

This is our first review of products sent to us by a company, as such we will be using our new 5 point scale to rate and review these products.  To read a full description of the scale, please visit this post: http://beautysquared.blogspot.com/2009/11/beauty-squared-review-scale.html 

We each used the new Olay Quench Advanced Relief Body Lotion ($10.99 CDN/350mL) and Therapy Hand Cream ($8.99 CDN/129g) for seven days to test it out.

J's skin

I live in the prairies, probably one of the driest climates around. Winters are cold and harsh on the skin, especially any skin that is exposed to the outside air. I'm also an artist, so I wash my hands about a billion times a day (2 billion now that we're all afraid of contracting H1N1). And if that wasn't enough punishment, I'm also a climber, so I also have to contend with drying chalk and calluses on the palms on my hands. In the winter my hands get so dry my fingertips will often crack. Simply put, the skin on my hands & body is dry, dry, dry.

Olay Quench Advanced Relief Body Lotion (Fragrance Free)

Value = 3 (medicore)

 Suggested retail price for the lotion is $10.99 - probably more than what I would be willing to fork out on a drugstore brand lotion. However, it is an effective product, so I would say the value is good.

Scent = 4 (good)

The lotion we sampled was unscented. I consider this a plus as it won't interfere with any perfume you choose to wear.

Effectiveness = 4 (good)

Very effective. This is a thick, rich lotion that is not greasy at all. Usually I tend to choose greasier lotions because my skin is so dry - this however moisturizes very well with absolutely no residue. The only thing you are left with is silky skin!

Olay Quench Therapy Hand Cream

Value = 3 (mediocre)

At $8.99 this is a tad more expensive than my usual drugstore standby hand cream, Sally Hansen's 18 Hour Hand Cream. I would say the value for this product is fair.

Scent = 4 (good)

This hand cream has a clean, slightly masculine scent in my opinion. I really like it - it's a nice change from really floral, fruity or sweet scented creams.

Effectiveness = 3 (medicore)

I think this cream is best suited for people with moderately dry hands, not severely dry hands like mine. Although it is developed for "extremely dry, itchy skin" I didn't find it gave me lasting protection. However, I think this would work well for someone who's lifestyle wasn't quite as demanding on their poor paws.

C's skin

My skin is pretty normal overall but sensitive to certain products. I exfoliate often to keep it healthy. I get bumps and blemishes due to dryness or over-sensitivity. My legs get dry in the fall and winter and I often experience itchiness on my arms, though they don't get as dry as my legs. I live in a moderately humid climate with moderate seasons. I don't tend to moisturize often in the summer but try to do so daily in the colder months. With the H1N1 scare, I'm using lots of hand sanitizer and washing my hands much more frequently.

Olay Quench Advanced Relief Body Lotion (Fragrance Free)

Value = 4 (good)

$10.99 is not too bad a price to pay for a drugstore brand that works and drugstores often have sales.

Scent = 3 (mediocre)

This lotion is fragrance-free, though you can purchase it in scented versions. Of course, no beauty product is completely without scent, so don't assume you will smell nothing of this product, but it does not have any added perfume so it will not affect any scents you like to wear, be it a body lotion, hair product or perfume.

Effectiveness = 4 (good)

I much prefer lotions made with natural ingredients, so this, like other lotions that aren't predominantly shea or cocoa butter (etc) made my skin feel less moisturized than I like. Though this isn't to say my skin wasn't moisturized however. It felt silky, smooth and didn't itch, so clearly this works, it just isn't my preference. On a side note, I experienced some breakout and itchiness on my upper body, namely my upper arms and chest. This is an area that I find I am a bit more sensitive and perhaps there's something in Quench that my skin doesn't agree with.

Olay Quench Therapy Hand Cream

Value = 3 (mediocre)

I don't need an intensive cream for my hands, and for drugstore brands I like Neutrogena Norwegian Formula Hand Cream but this is a pretty good cream for the price. The size is pretty good as well.

Scent = 4 (good)

It's not heavily fragranced at all, but there is a subtle, non-girly, generic scent. It's not offensive or distracting.

Effectiveness = 4 (good)

This is a pretty effective hand cream for moderately dry hands. It gives a similar silky feel to the skin and best of all, absorbs quickly so it's ideal for having at the office. Like the body lotion, it gives my skin a smooth, silky feeling and takes away the tight, itchy feeling I get after I wash my hands. I would recommend this.


For more information about the Olay Quench line of lotions, click here.


Please note that the following product up for review was sent to us by a PR firm. All the opinions expressed in this review have been made independently and are not in any way affiliated with the company supplying the products or the PR firm we are in touch with.

FREELANCE MAKE UP ARTIST

Jasa Make up :
Prewedd, Wedding, Party, Keluarga, Fashion Show,etc.
Terbuka kerjasama untuk :
Bridal, Fotografer, Film maker, dll.

Contact
Hub : ayumi
Hp : 081357444899
Email : ayumi_makeupartis@yahoo.co.id

Beauty Squared Review Scale

Going forward, we here at Beauty Squared will be using the following scale to rate and review products.  The scale is from 1 - 5 and the explanation of the ratings is below. We define "objectives" as what the product is designed to do, or accomplish based on the product description or "promise", or description based on common assumption (ie: a lip balm is supposed to moisturize your lips).


1: Worst - does not deliver on any objectives/no or negligible performance.

2: Poor - very marginally fulfills some objectives/very marginally performs as to expectations.

3: Mediocre - halfway delivers on objectives/halfway performs as to expectations.

4: Good - delivers on the majority of objectives/performs to expectations.

5: Excellent - 100% delivers on objectives or exceeds expected performance!

C&J

LUSTING: B Never Too Busy To Be Beautiful Eyeshadows

Photo courtesy of Jill (jilly71 on Flickr)

What are these delightful little things? Bonbons? Petit Fours?

No, these lovely little containers hold eyeshadows and they're part of the make-up collection associated with Lush Fresh Handmade Cosmetics. Called B Never Too Busy To Be Beautiful (yes, that's a mouthful), this fragrance and cosmetics line is available in the UK, Japan and Austria and began six years ago on London's Carnaby Street. However, the stores are now closing at the end of 2009 and the company will be absorbed by Lush, so ALL their products are now Limited Edition. If you like what you see (and I do) snap them up!

My picks are

B Boy

0B1

 Burnish

Broadway

Belize

If you own any B Never products or go ahead and buy them before they're all gone, let us know what you got and what you think of them!

C.