Bargain Makeup: L. A. Colors @ The Dollar Tree

These palettes can be found at your local dollar store if you're lucky. Of course I'm a neutral color lover but they also had a purple 6-color palette and a bright colored 6-color palette which I did not pick up but the purple one was pretty. I think there was also a brighter pink palette. I bought the 12-color palettes a couple months or so ago and I don't see them there anymore. =(

PROS
Cheap ($1)
Lots of colors
Well-pigmented
Nice shimmer and satin finishes

CONS
Hard to find
Slightly powdery
12-color palettes have a strong hotel bar soap odor

SWATCHES & PICS

Nice neutrals

Pretty cream beige highlight, awesome orange and pink raspberry color. However, the yellow is not very pigmented. I had to build that color up to get it to pop. Maybe a black base would help.

Pretty blues with a stark white, awesome teal and the grays have a blue undertone

Browns with oranges and orange undertones
Browns and pinks with pink and plum undertones
6-color palettes in natural light (NYX Jumbo Eyeshadow Pencil in Cottage Cheese used as a base under all swatches)
6-color palettes with flash
12-color palettes in natural light
12-color palettes with flash
OVERALL GRADE: 4 out of 5 stars (6-color palettes)
3.5 out of 5 stars (12-color palettes)

Back from the CCO

Can you believe that I went to the CCO today for the first time to scope out some MAC products and was severely DISAPPOINTED and I DIDN'T BUY ONE ITEM. LoL. They had quite a few pigments but I was not impressed. They only had one cool eyeshadow palette and I don't even know what collection it was from but it might have been from the Novel Twist collection. I just glanced over that one. The other stuff were kind of blah but they had lots of lipsticks and lipglasses but was not interested in those either. I was actually more interested in the Clinique quads because I do like Clinique shadows but I left the store with nothing and headed to Ulta instead...

MAC Cremesheen Lipstick: Modesty

I picked up ONE lippie today in Modesty and I must say the texture of the Cremesheens are really moist, smooth, and creamy. It offers a little better coverage than a lustre and it has a nice low gloss to it. They still smell like vanilla so it's yummy. Modesty is a nice neutral pink color. I was looking at Creme d'nude and in real life it looks like a light pale pink instead of a beigey-pink so I decided to pass on it. I hope they come out with more colors soon. These run for $14 at your local MAC counter.



I'm glad to say that so far all the MA's at my local MAC have been really nice and helpful and I appreciate that so much. Sometimes you get intimidated by them or sometimes you get a snobby one but at my counter everyone is so lovely! I can't say the same for a Clinque counter that I went to. But that's another story!

Modesty (Cremesheen)

Looks different on my lips huh? Lipsticks look different on everybody and on different parts of your skin too! This is in natural light and probably not the best swatch.
CREMESHEEN LIPSTICK GRADE: 5 out of 5 stars

Here's some of my other MAC lipsticks for comparison. I really should have bought 2 or 3 more "Naked to the Core's" because it's my favorite nude lipstick ever. I'm trying to find a good dupe. If you know of one, please let me know. =)



And while I'm on the subject of MAC, let me just throw in some pics of the beautiful Rubenesque paint pot. It's $17.50 and it's the most beautiful color. It's a great base that's not too sticky or creamy so it shouldn't crease on you even if your not wearing a primer, like my favorite Too Faced Shadow Insurance. It has a peachy pinkish base with a golden sheen. So pretty. It kind of reminds me of Expensive Pink eyeshadow in a way.

Remember, I said it kind of reminds me of Expensive Pink e/s =)

Click here for a better swatch of Expensive Pink.

Nuts for NYX!

I picked up more NYX eyeshadows at Long's Drug today. I already had all the other trios they have available so I just got the neutral color one in Aloha, Mink Brown and Deep Bronze. It basically just gradiates from a light pinkish-brown to a medium brown. Great for everyday looks or that quick "gotta go now" look. I love neutrals anyway. Sahara I've heard was a dupe for MAC Shroom but I'm not sure about that one. Then Flamingo is such a gorgeous plumy-pink with a gold sheen. The singles were $3.99 and the trio was $5.99. I had an in-store coupon for 50 cents off each item so I saved a little. Every little bit helps to buy more stuff! =)

FLAMINGO has to be my all time favorite NYX eyeshadow even though I love many of them, if I had to pick just one this would be it!With flash again but just a different pic

New Drugstore Makeup Brand: CQ

I was walking through a Walmart in a different city and stopped real quick because I've never seen a CQ display before at my regular Walmart. "Ooh, new makeup brand!" They have nail polishes; eyeshadow singles, duos, trios & quads; duo ended eyeliners/eyeshadow sticks; lipsticks & other items. This brand is fairly inexpensive and their prices range from in between Wet n Wild and Revlon/L'Oreal brands. So that's a thumbs up!

Of course, I had to try the eyeshadows and I was looking for a taupe color just like the one named "Taupe". I picked that one up along with another single called "Champagne" and both were under $2. I went home and tried them and liked them so much that I went back the next day and picked up the "Mystic" trio which was under $4.

Clockwise from top left: Champagne, Taupe, Mystic trio

With Flash

Without Flash

Note: I used a Physician's Formula Color Eyes Cream Shadow Stick in Champagne as a base.

Color Descriptions:

~Champagne: a creamy beige highlight
~Taupe: it is what it is...taupe; a greyish brown
~Mystic trio: white highlight/base color; a bronze with golden-orange undertones; a forest/ivy green

What I like about these eyeshadows

~They're inexpensive
~Well-pigmented
~Shimmery without being frosty
~Good color selection
~Available in singles, duos, trios and quads
~They apply easily and blend well

What I don't like about these eyeshadows

~The packaging is an awkward shape; not good for stacking
~They're a little powdery but less powdery than e.l.f. quads, if you're familiar with those
~Hard to find (all the quads at the store were gone as well as most of the trios)

I have a quick note about the Mystic trio. There were two left at the store and the white and green colors were the same in both, however, in one the middle color was a bronze color while the other one was an orangey color that was similar to Milani Flare or MAC Coppering. I opted for the one with the bronze color because I already have Milani Flare and thought this would be more wearable. I don't know why they were different.

I've heard some people have seen CQ at Walgreen's. I have no idea what CQ stands for but they have a website currently under construction. www.cqcosmetics.com

My grade for CQ eyeshadows: 4 out of 5 stars

Review: Tarte Lights, Camera, Lashes! 3-in-1 Mascara

I received a deluxe sized sample of this mascara because I earned at least 100 beauty points from Sephora. It comes with 3 ml or 0.10 fl oz. of product. For some reason my bottle says 3-in-1 while the one on Sephora.com is a 4-in-1 mascara (lengthening, curling, volumizing, & conditioning). I don't know why it's different but it's the same name. This is the non-waterproof version while the waterproof one is named "Lights, Camera, Splashes! (yes, it has an exclamation mark at the end; kind of corny names really LOL). They both go for $18.

The brush reminds me of those Koosh (??) balls that Rosie O'Donnell used to throw to her audiences. The bristles stick out from the brush instead of being spirally wound around the wand. It's very similar to the brush in the Maybelline Colossal mascara.



I'm a loyal user of Max Factor 2000 Calorie Waterproof mascara and as far as lengthening, I think the Tarte comes pretty close. The Tarte, however, clumps a little and it is not as smooth and gel-like as the Max Factor, which never ever clumps no matter how long I use it. As far as thickening, it's ok. I think the Tarte is more of a lengthening mascara than a volumizing one. It doesn't flake and I really like the brush because it grabs all sides of your lashes. But for $18 I think I'll stick with my favorite Max Factor 2000 Calorie waterproof since mascara needs tossing after three months anyway.

Here's some before and after pics. Please IGNORE the bloodshot eyes! LOL =)

Before (without mascara & curled)

After (with Tarte mascara, 1 coat)

Max Factor 2000 Calorie Waterproof (Again, ignore the bloodshot eyes. I think this thickens better than the Tarte)

So what do you think? I usually only apply one coat of mascara because two tends to get too clumpy and it takes more time. One coat and I'm good to go. BTW, the camera was facing at an upward angle so my lower eyelashes look non-existant. And the Tarte & MF comparison....looks the same you say? The MF thickened better and the formula is smoother.

I'll give this 3.5 out of 5 stars but I won't buy a tube of it.

Gameday: Sunday the 21st

It's the two minute warning and the Steelers are down by 9 points . Looks like they won't be winning today. Bummer =(

Dr. Brandt Microdermabrasion

Tonight after washing my face, I tried my sample of the Dr. Brandt Microdermabrasion scrub which I received as a sample with my Sephora order. OMG! First of all, a full size 1.7 oz jar of this costs $75 so I am lucky to have a sample.

This is a white creamy substance with a granular texture which feels exactly like baking soda. You're supposed to wet your face with warm water and massage for 1-2 minutes. It had a tingling and cool sensation; actually it kind of burned a little at first. It's the same kind of sensation you get when you use a mask like Queen Helene Mint Julep Mask. It was more of a menthol kind of burn as opposed to a hot kind of burn. The cool sensation lasted for a few minutes after washing and the sample pack is good for 3-4 uses.

When I started to rinse this off I immediately felt the results! I could feel that my skin was so soft, smooth, slippery and supple. And when I finally patted my face dry my skin literally felt like a baby's bottom. It's something I've never felt before on my face! If you've ever tried a scrub with papain, which is the enzyme in papayas, it makes your skin feel that soft and supple. I used to use a scrub by Origins called "Never A Dull Moment" that contained papain but the ground apricot and mango seeds in it were so scratchy. However, it gave the same smooth feeling as the Dr. Brandt scrub but with the Dr. Brandt Microdermabrasion it feels two or three or four times better. I can see why this product is popular despite the hefty price. I'm not the type to spend $75 on one skin care item but I would probably get this in the future. I'll add it to my wishlist!

This is recommended to be used once or twice a week, allowing a three day break between usages. Check sephora.com for a list of the product's ingredients.

My grade for this scrub is 4.5 stars out of 5.

YouTube Deletes Innocent People's Videos!

So I finally had free time today to log into my YouTube account to answer questions and watch my subscriptions. I happened to scroll through my videos list from the drop-down menu option and saw some extra text at the bottom of the last video that I uploaded, which was titled "Tarte Eye Couture Day-to-Night Palette." There was a strange link there also and then I saw that it was some kind of copyright infringement warning. Oh snap!

It was because of the music that I used in my video, which so many people use in their videos but their videos don't get deleted and I'm not even a partner. What really ticks me off is that if YouTube is going to have a rule about not being able to use copyrighted music in your vids, then they should be CONSISTENT with their enforcement of it! Otherwise, their rule becomes fallacious, it becomes a joke. Why nitpick at this person here or this little person there and let the others go then? I'm not saying I want everybody else's videos to be deleted. I'm saying YouTube is a joke when it comes to their rules. Why don't they erase all the hater videos with racist and hating remarks instead? Why don't they erase all the smut? Why don't they erase the stolen videos that people steal from others? Why don't they focus their time on things that actually matter?!

So they gave me some options to solve the problem:
1. Mute the audio track of the video: WTF?! If I do that, then you can't hear me talking! Am I supposed to type in subtitles?
2. Audio swap the video track with YouTube approved music: I don't think there's a way to replace certain parts of your video with that option so that's useless. Great USELESS option!
3. Delete your video
4. I can't remember what else they had....

So I'm like, hmm, well I guess I have to just delete it but it turned out (which I didn't know at the time) that they had already removed the video but the link for it was still up. So why are they asking me to choose to delete my vid when they had already did that? Gosh, there are some real geniuses at YouTube.

According to their copyright tips, even if you give credit to the song and artist, it is still an infringement on copyrighted music. So now that they've "found me out" I guess I can't add anymore music to my videos which will be a big let down for me and my subscribers that enjoy it. I really felt that it added to the video and I really liked to cue my pictures and effects to whatever track was playing. Those little nuances add to the entertainment of the video. But sadly, I won't be using anymore music, not unless I get back to practicing the piano and use some of the that. LoL. I hope that won't be too lame!

I understand that I don't own the right to the music but I'm not making copies and selling it to people. And almost everyone puts, or actually sings, some kind of copyrighted music in their videos but they don't get deleted. It doesn't make sense!

But anyways, if any of my lovely subscribers are reading this, I want to say thank you for supporting me and that I really appreciate you guys. Without you, I would have never continued to make helpful videos, which are all for you! =) I was really mad earlier but now I feel better and all the wonderful comments have cheered me up. THANK YOU SO MUCH guys. I LOVE YOU ALL! And I'll probably continue to make videos but it just won't be the same for me =(*
Check out my blog though because I'll be updating it more often.

Pressed Everyday Minerals Concealer/Brow Palette

Here's all my Everyday Minerals concealers and my eye kabuki (which I need to order again). Spring is my favorite concealer! It covers undereye circles, redness, dark marks, blemishes, you name it!! The eye kabuki should be renamed "Concealer Kabuki."


Pressed my minerals using only 90% Isopropyl Alcohol (rubbing alcohol). Don't get your vodka out for this! You'll also need a sterilized quarter wrapped inside a regular T-shirt for that catchy pattern and it soaks up the excess alcohol when you start pressing. An eyedropper is handy when adding alcohol to the mix in a 5g sample jar. Three-quarters of a sample jar should be suitable for pressing in a 26mm pan. A couple of bent up bobby pins for stirring and spreading is also needed as well as a massive amount of paper towels because the activity is super messy folks!
You'll need empty eyeshadow pans and a palette to put them in (e.l.f. Elements compact for $1 is what I used). And did you know I'm a germ freak so I scrubbed that quarter as good as I could with soap and water and let it soak in the alcohol. I would have flamed it also after the alcohol because I remember we used to sterilize our loops like that in Microbiology. But that's another story.

These matte minerals hold up much better than the shimmery eyeshadows that I pressed before. Here's a link to my video.

I forgot to take a picture of Multi-tasking in the jar.

Here are the swatches: