Beauty Trash #3

Ooops I got behind on posts, I took these pics in December. My Sephora Beauty Trash bag was totally overflowing-

So a lot of usual characters that I wont spend too much time on, but I did go through so makeup and random things too.  So this is about 5 months worth of trash, I have my usual face/skincare stuff, hair dye stuff, makeup stuff, and randoms.

So if we start with the usual characters I used up 6 makeup removing wipes. My usual Neutrogena that are my favorite 2 of those, 3 different types of Up & Up formulas they're fine for removing makeup swatches or when I use my fingers to application or back of my hand as a palette, and then some Simple Miscellar wipes. I love the Simple Miscellar water, also pictured here, so much I thought maybe the wipes would be good too. They were fine and kept me from running out of my bottle version as fast, but probably wont purchase again unless there's a sale. I'm constantly trying new makeup wipes so nothing new there and I'll probably repurchase a variation of these again.  The Simple Miscellar Water I'm on my last back up right now, so I'll probably repurchase again soon.

I have two empty packages of Up & Up cotton rounds, one in exfoliating and one regular and they're both fine. I don't like the exfoliating one as much I feel like it falls apart too easily, but it's great for nail polish removal. I've already repurchased both of these.  Then I have my holy grail moisturizer that Cetaphil cream love I have 3 back ups right now.  Then the odd man out in this group is my Deodorant- I use Secret Outlast and it's scent is just the fresh clean one- nothing special I've been using it for years. The only thing I don't like about it is if I'm not careful I get white deodorant marks on my clothes- I wear too many dark colors.

I dyed my hair A LOT these last 5 months. Still trying to get it back to its normal color from the bleach blonde Tyler episode of 2014. I only saved one of the hair dye tubes because the others were messy and gross, but I love this brand One 'n Only Argan Oil Hair Color it's very reasonably priced at Sally's and I've bought it at least 6 times since after I went blonde. It's very gentle and that's probably why I had to dye my hair so much because it did wash out very easily the first 4 applications. I've used the 20 and 10 Developers and hopefully I wont need to again but I think 10 is the way to go for me. I was using the 5 level at first and it would not take, it washed out so much that my hair kept ending up red, so I slowly moved up to 4 and then this last time did a 3 and it's finally stuck. I did expect it to wash out a little more but I'm fine with it and don't think I'll have to dye it again.  I also went through many packets of hair color remover wipes for my face because I'm a mess when I dye my hair. I used the Colortrak Wipe Off Color only a buck and they did the trick, they're not as wet as some but they worked fine.

For makeup I feel like I went trough small things but two I'm very proud of.  I finished a bronzer. NYC Bronzer in Sunny and after almost 2 years- I think it was about 20 months I made my way through that thing. I'm kinda sad it's gone because I feel like it's a great contour shade for me, but it has freed me up to try more. Also it's super cheap if I do feel the need to purchase it again. Then I also went through a Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Dark Circle Eraser in medium. It took me three tries to get my shade right but I miss this guy. I didn't use it every day because it was too drying but on the weekends I used it for a quick fix. I have other concealers I'm working through right now so I don't need it but I'll probably repurchase eventually.

Then I have three mascaras- 2 I love and 1 I hate. Maybelline's Lash Sensational  people said this was a drugstore dupe for Benefit's Roller Lash...they LIED. I hated this stuff it was too wet and never curled my lashes, I waited to it to dry and still hated it. Not for me. Urban Decay Perversion however is for me I loved it. This is the Mascara to use if you want the false lash look without the false lashes, I had this guy for over a year- tempting fate- because it would never dry out! Eventually it did and the big bushy bristles started sticking together but this guy it totally worth the $22 price. Then a sample size of Benefit's They're Real- love this mascara have already repurchased and will continue to do so. The sample size is the perfect size for me, I find it just as easy to use as the full size. This is one of my holy grail mascaras and I love it.

Then the last product is a huge dud. It's a Wet 'n Wild Coverall Concealer stick that smells like crayons and is so greasy and dry at the same time. I bought this for covering tattoos and it failed at that job. I probably had this thing for two years and I just finally gave up trying to use it, I hated it and have found much better ways to cover up tattoos that does not include this fail of a concealer.

For the last group I have some random things. My beloved hair clip! I have super super thick hair and usually go through hair clips like they're going out of style, but this monster is rubberized and I have 3 others at home because I was terrified it would break. Well luckily this guy is a work horse and I got a good year out of it before it broke. This is the Scunci No-Slip Grip Hair Claw usually about $6-8 depending where you buy it. Great clip for big hair and I cannot be without it.

Then I have a Norwegian Hand Cream I heard on YouTube was great for super dry hands. This did nothing for me. I can't complain too much it was under $5 but this was greasy and then disappeared without adding moisture to my hands, I was so disappointed. I'm still searching for the perfect hand cream.

And finally I have a sample of Lancome's Bi-Facil eye makeup remover.  I miss this stuff. Full size is priced over $20 and I just can't justify it, but anytime I get a sample of this I use it. This removes eye makeup so wonderfully and completely with no tugging or anything. I love it. If you just talk to the people in the Lancome section at Ulta they almost always offer you a free sample of something I recommend taking them up on it and getting the Bi-Facil. It's amazing.

So that's my trash! I miss a lot of these products. I'll try not to wait so long next time.

Fall Party Makeup!

Ooops. I guess it's been a little bit since I blogged. I've had a very busy September. I've been busy with work stuff and after work stuff, so there hasn't been a lot of time for makeup creativity.  Until this weekend. I'd gotten in a rut of easy fall makeup and decided that I needed to spice it up. Luckily I had a Theatre Karaoke Party to go to and decided I'd go all out.  What do I mean?

I mean I wore I all the makeup.  This bag is filled with all the stuff I applied to my face. There was quite a bit. I hadn't worn this much makeup in a while and it kinda showed. It was indoors and kinda darkish party so luckily unless I was in full sunlight it didn't look like as much makeup as it actually was...at least that's what I'm telling myself.

So starting with my base. Primer. I primed. I had put my usual day cream on earlier in the day. But about 10 minutes before applying my makeup I used my IT Cosmetics Feel the Moment Primer Serum. This needs to soak in a moment. I also applied my CeraVe Eye Repair Cream- I'd recently heard it played well under concealer so gave it a whirl. It's my usual nighttime eye cream. After the those had sunk in a bit I added my Maybelline Master Prime in Blur + Smooth where my pores are the worst- around my nose and tops of my cheeks and my Milani Eyeshadow Primer to my eyelids and a little below where my concealer goes.


Once all that set in I moved on to my next face products. Bring in the IT Cosmetics team. I love IT Cosmetics. I combine both the CC Cream regular and Illumination in Medium to make a delightfully glowy full coverage effect. I also use two Bye Bye Under Eyes in Neutral Medium and Tan. I apply the CC Cream with my fingers one pump of the regular and half a pump of the Illumination. I use about a pinpoint size of each Bye Bye Under Eye and mix them together on the back of my hand. Then I apply a thin layer to each under eye and blend out with a fluffy concealer brush. I love the look of this combo. It's incredibly full coverage and very long wearing. The CC Cream doesn't need any setting powder by the time I get to my face products it's set fine, but the Bye Bye Under Eye definitely needs to be set. It will remain very tacky and I'd worry it would move around if I didn't set it. My favorite way to set it is with my NARS Translucent Crystal Powder.

Normally I would move onto my eyes next, but this Saturday I did it reverse and did my face powders next.

I used my usual and ALMOST gone NYC Sunny Bronzer to contour and bronze up my face. Then I used the gorgeous highlighter from the IT Cosmetics Live, Laugh, Love Vitality Face Disc. This highlighter is not joking around. It is in your face and shiny and gorgeous. Then I finished it off with my Tarte Blush in Savored from last year's Tarte Holiday set from QVC. Combined these face products are gorgeous. I chose the IT Cosmetics highlighter because it's more champagne based and less gold than my usual. This is not a highlighter you'd choose for a natural day or if you were wanting to be subtle. I will also use up my Sunny bronzer this year if it kills me. I'm so tired of that thing and have so many other bronzers I want to use. Now that it's fall I've started to pull out my deeper blushes and this is one of my faves.

For my eyes I knew I wanted to do something special. Something fun and sparkly. I also wanted to use my Too Faced Chocolate Bar palette that I've been neglecting. I started with White Chocolate all over my lids for a smooth base. This helps the shadows blend together too. I then took Salted Caramel in my crease to just warm things up and give a transition. On my lids I used Strawberry Bon Bon. Then I took the star of this look Black Forest Truffle in my outer V and kept adding and blending and adding and blending. I got rid of some of the lightness of the Strawberry Bon Bon so I added on top some Champagne Truffle in the inner part of the lid to brighten things back up. Not satisfied with the depth of the outer V I added a smidgen of Dark Chocolate and then more Black Forest Truffle. It ended up being a super pretty eye look but not as party worthy as I'd been hoping so I reached for my ELF Long Lasting Lustrous Eyeshadow in Gala to add some sparkle, just to the outer edge.

To finish off the eyes I used my NYX Dark Brown Gel Eyeliner along the top lash line and Dark Chocolate on the lower lash line. I then let the gel liner set and filled in my brows with my NYX Micro Brow Pencil in Taupe. For mascara I doubled up with my Covergirl Super Sizer and Benefit's They're Real both in black. Not pictured is my NARS Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in Walkyrie.  To finish off the whole fancy pants think I was going for I used my Armani Si from Scentbird as Perfume.

Here is how the look came out in various stages in the evening. It was fun, but at the end of the night a pain to get off. I broke out the cold cream because it was just a lot of makeup.

      

*None of the links above are affiliate links, just where you can buy this fabulous stuff!

tarte Tartelette Matte Palette Redux

So this is going to be a combination post. I've been promising to re-review my Tartelette Palette since my first review that I changed my mind on. And also this morning/last night I got a request for a step by step Matte Eye look.  So two birds one awesome eye palette. So I am not an expert at all when it comes to makeup, but I do watch a lot of Beauty Gurus on YouTube and read a lot of makeup blogs so I feel like somewhere out there I have back up for what I'm about to say and do.

I know Matte Eyeshadows are something a lot of people are afraid of because you have to be really careful, blend a lot and they just aren't as forgiving as shimmer shadows.  I think that's why at first I didn't like my Tartelette palette, I didn't know the trick yet.  So I added them to my eyes and wherever I put them they STAYED! Like they did not want to blend and the just wanted to chill in my crease all patchy and sad like.  So I scoured the internet to figure out what I was doing wrong and it wasn't till about 2-3 weeks after I had the palette that Tati shared this eye shadow changing tip on her channel. POWDER. After you primer your eyes, powder your eyes this makes all the difference. I swear! So I'll share in the photo's below how I do this, but I don't just powder my eyes once, I do it twice. And I can tell when I do a crappy job of it cause I get patchy shadow as a side-effect.  On to the step by step process.  (also this could be a little long because I captured the whole process) If you're just here for the eyes skip to Step 10.

Dangit I forgot to capture my BB Creams...sigh

Here's the majority of the products I used today I'll list them all with their shades along the way.  The most important step though is the base. You have to have a good even foundation to start with or the rest of the face falls apart, or melts off.

1.) Start with a naked face. I've added Josie Maran's Argan Oil Light all over my face with my usual ELF under eye Primer.  I also have on some chapstick.

2.) After this I add my allover face primer. I'm still using my Maybelline Master Prime Blur and still enjoying it.

3.) Then I start working on my base. Before I apply any BB creams I add my Lemon Aid primer from Benefit on any discolorations. I use this to neutralize my eyelid shadows and on any blemishes (which right now I seem to have a few)

4.) I also use this time to add my first of many layers of undereye concealer. I'm currently using Benefit's Erase Paste as my salmon based color corrector for under my eyes.



Here you can see my eyelids are a little lighter and my under eyes look a little yellowish but less blue.

5.) Now I add my BB cream. I'm using a mix of my Olay Fresh Effects BB cream and my Smashbox BB Cream.

6.) More concealing. I'm using a sample of Lancome's Effacernes Waterproof Undereye Concealer. Not sure how I feel about it yet. I like the texture but I still think we can do better...I think I have my color correcting down but it's the concealing now that's the problem...sigh

7.) More primer. Now I prime my eyes. I'm still using Wet N Wild's Fergie Take on the Day primer but it's almost out, so on standby I have Milani's eye primer.

8.) Powder! I do not powder my whole face, my skin is too dry for that nonsense but I do powder my eyes and undereye area and anywhere else that has concealer. It's called setting your concealer and it's important. I use Palladio Rice Powder for this, it's light and translucent.

So now we get to the good stuff, now we get to the eyes.

9.) First step to my eyes is to fill in my eyebrows I know I know sometimes I go to far and have very dark eyebrows and sometimes I do just enough and you can't see where I'm missing hair- today is somewhere between. I've been using and loving the NYX micro-pencil it's fabulous I use the shade Taupe.

For the next few steps you'll need a neutral palette I'm going to name the shades in the Tarte Tartelette palette but I'll also describe them and have a shot of the palette later highlighted with the colors I used.

10.) Take Free Spirit or your favorite light cream color all over your lid. I mean all over from eyebrow to lash line. This is the second layer of powder I spoke about earlier this doesn't need to be a thick layer but it needs to be there, your entire eyelid should be the same shade now and smooth when you run the brush over it, no skipping across the eye. I use a fluffy shader brush from Real Techniques called The Base Shadow Brush.

11.) Next I take Caregiver a pale but pigmented baby pink and cover just the moving part of my lid till the crease. I don't carry it into the crease here but cover the who eyelid again till the crease.  I use an ELF Essential Eye Shadow Brush but any short and flat brush will do.

There is now a pretty good amount of powder on my lids. It's not thick, you can't see it but if you run a brush across your lids it would feel very smooth- that's what you want.

12.) Now we attack the crease. I go in with my two medium colors and blend them together with a fluffy short brush by Real Techniques called the Shader Brush. I take this into Force of Nature and Wanderer  and tap off the extra and just start blending it into my crease. From inner corner to outer corner with windshield wiper motions. I go over this as much as I want.  This color covers the crease and goes about it and below it just the slightest. When you open your eyes you should see just a little bit of the crease color above your crease. This will be hard if you have fully hooded eyelids, mine are partially hooded so it works but the more real estate above your crease the easier this will be for you.

Here's how it'll look with eyes open and closed with just the first three eye steps.







13.) Okay here's the test to see if you have enough powder on your lids. Take a medium to dark brown color I used Dreamer on a fluffy domed crease brush I used my ELF Essential Eye Crease Brush. I dip just the top domed part of the brush in the color- start slow- and tap it off. Then I dot this on the outer corner of my eye. Do one eye at a time here, you can ever it out later. And I make a small triangle of shadow here.  (please see very unattractive picture here my lighting was hating me)

14.) Then Blend, blend, blend. Use the same brush, don't add anymore product and blend again into the crease, try not to go above the crease this time, but use the same windshield motions back and forth till it's completely blended out.

15.) Almost done with the eyes- next clean it up. Keep blending till you're happy and see an pretty gradient from one color to the next. No harsh lines, you want it to look smooth and effortless. I always go back into my pale pink and my cream color to re-highlight my browbone and brighten up my inner corner of the lid.

16.) Eyeliner time! I like to use NYX's Dark Brown Gel Liner, it's dark and smooth and goes on like a dream. I apply this with any liner brush right now I'm using my Sephora Liner Brush from high school so I have no idea if they still make it but it works beautifully. I do the very thinnest line I can do, just to darken up the base of my lashes, I don't use a very thick line.

17.) Lower eyeliner- I don't usually use eyeliner on my lower lash line I just take the darkest color eye shadow I used and an angled brush to pop it down there. Today I used Dreamer again and a no-name angled brush.






17.) The final eye step is to add mascara! I'm in love with my Benefit Roller Lash. It's like my Benefit They're Real but curlier. It's fantastic. However before I could finish using it- disaster struck!!!

Oh the tears. 

18.) After I cleaned up my mess. I continued on with the rest of my face. Which pretty much is always the same. Bronzer from my NYX Sunny, Blush from whatever is closest- today was my new Milani Tea Rose this stuff is strong! Then I finish with my ELF highlight in Moonlight Pearls.

And done! Geesh it always seems like such a long process when I write it out! But it really doesn't take me more than 15 minutes. 

Here's a close up of the Tartelette Palette and the colors I used. 

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PS So sorry I've been neglecting my beauty blog! I've been working on an excessive movie project on my main blog . It'll be done by the 30th for my birthday. But this is the most action my other blog has gotten in a while, so it's good for it. Once that project is over I also promise to continue my Makeup Madness series with my liners. 

My February Face!

Here are the products I was using and abusing in February.  I didn't want to necessarily do a Favorites post because I think sometimes we use products that aren't our favorites because they're what we have, so since I using most of this stuff for a month. I now have an opinion on them.  I'm going to take us through my whole face routine.

Skincare:
I am terrible about washing my face every night, I'm lazy and I don't like to get my whole face wet.  So I use face wipes.  I know, I know they don't do enough.  I'll take off my makeup with the wipes as soon as I know I'm not leaving my house again for the night.  This month I tried out a new brand for me the Neutrogena Makeup Remover Towelettes. I had been a loyal fan of my Up and Up green packaged exfoliating wipes for years but these were on sale so I snatched them up.  I really like these, I feel like they don't dry out my skin as much and I don't have to put moisturizer on immediately after I use them.  I've already repurchased my second bag. But I do follow up the makeup wipes now with another newish product my Simple Micellar Water that I wrote about a while ago here. I just use this on a cotton pad and it gets off all the other makeup that was left behind from the wipe.  I usually use just one cotton pad on both side, but if I have lots of eye makeup on then I'll use two. I love this stuff I've already bought a backup. I'm probably about a 3rd of the way through my first bottle.

Right now I'm finishing up a tub of Neutrogena Deep Moisture Night Cream I've been working on this stuff for about a year probably. I use so very little of it and I was really bad for a while and didn't use it every night.  A little bit goes a long way and it is super deep moisture.  I have already purchased a different night cream to try after this is gone, but if it's a dud I will totally go back to the Deep Moisture. It has a nice old lady powdery smell, is super thick and lasts a really long time. What's not to love.

In the morning before I put on my makeup I've been using Olay Age Defying Classic Daily Renewal Cream. I love Oil of Olay, but this day cream does not impress me.  I switched from the Beauty Fluid which I'd be an avid user of for years because I wanted something a little more targeted to those fine lines I seem peeking under my eyes, but it's not cutting it.  I'm not shy when I use this so I'm going through it quickly. But I will not be repurchasing it. I bought a big tub or Pond's Dry Skin Cream and have been cheating on my Olay with it. It does a much better job, the tub is twice the size and half the price.  We'll see how it fairs in March.

Face Base:
I've started calling all my allover face stuff Face Base lately because it makes me giggle. These are all the prep/foundation layers I've been using.  After my moisturizer I've been using the Maybelline Master Prime just in the center of my face. I'm not sure it's actually doing anything. Like all primers I never see my pores shrunk or blurred. So whatever. It was on sale, it's not as drying as some primers but you can't convince me it does anything. Probably wont repurchase.  Next I tackle under my eyes.  I use the ELF Undereye Primer I'm on my second tube of this stuff.  I also don't know if it's working but I notice when I forget to use it. It's great at hydrating my under eyes and I feel like it makes me look more awake than if I just go in straight with concealer.  The last priming I do is for my eyes.  I use the Wet n Wild Fergie Take on the Day.  It's cheap and it works. It definitely helps my eye shadow stay on all day without creasing.  I love it. The only other primer I've tried for my eyes is from ELF and it didn't work so Fergie wins!

Now that everything is "primed" lets add some color! This month I was trying out the Benefit Lemon Aid that I heard was good for color correcting your lids and under your eyes.  So I agree it color corrects my eye lids great.  I love that it works as a great eye primer in addition to my actual eye primer. But for a concealer under the eye I just don't think it was the bees knees as I was sold it would be.  It's pretty dry and my under eyes don't need that torture forever. Probably wont repurchase, but I'll use it. After this I would use my It Cosmetics Bye Bye Undereye and pat it all over my under eye gently with my ring finger.  This stuff is awesome.  Talk about moisturizing and full coverage this stuff is great.  I've been using it for about 6 months, however in the last month it hasn't been covering up those dark circles as much as I'd like.  So I'm in search of something better.  Or something else to add with this to make it as good as I remember it.  It's expensive but lasts a long time and a little goes a long way.

I'm a pretty loyal BB Cream and CC Cream user and it's really a toss up to which one I used more this month. But I'll give it to my It Cosmetics CC Cream because it's the only foundation I took home on both my SA trips.  I love this stuff, it color corrects like no one's business. It has a little bit of moisturizer in it.  And it has stuff that's good for your skin in it- like Snail Secretion... I'll probably repurchase this as some point.  I use about a pump and a half to get all over my face. I apply it with my fingers and it gives a pretty velvety finish. Love it.

I was lucky in February not to have any major breakouts that needed concealing.  Go face! So the last step is just setting my under eye concealer with a little Rice Powder from Palladio.

It's all about the eyes:
While all my concealers and eye primers are sitting I like to do my brows.  This month I started using a product I've had for a bit but am only just now really using.  Maybelline Define a Brow is an automatic brow pencil with a little comb on the end. I love this stuff too!  This is great for when I'm looking for a really natural brow sort of look. It's quick and I don't really need to set it with anything. I've purchased a product like it so I don't need this, but it's perfectly decent and I wouldn't be against repurchasing.

For eye shadows I have really been loving my Tartelette Palette.  I haven't completely changed my mind about it but I have definitely figured out some tricks for using it.  I'm going to do an updated post about it soon.  So the trick with these shadows is having a good powdery base. I use the light nude tone allover the lid and really go to town with it.  As long as there's something between my primer and the shadows I'm trying to blend then it works fine.  I mostly stuck to the top row this month but I did try the middle row for Valentine's and it was lovely.  These are great shadows and I can't imagine I'll need to repurchase this but if I need to I will. I really am enjoying it.

For liner I've been using my NYX Gel Liner in Dark Brown. Love this stuff it's great. I use it pretty much daily.  It's dark, it's brown and it stays on like no bodies business but comes off at the end of the day. I will totally repurchase it.  Then I wasn't curling my lashes most of the month because the mascara I use curls them for me.  Benefit They're Real! I loooove this mascara.  Yes it's a bitch to get off my lashes but it makes them so so so long.  It really makes my lashes gorgeous.  I have a hard time going through mascara it usually dries out first so I already bought a back up of this and will probably start using it in the next few weeks.

Where are my cheeks?
So the last step of my face is to give it back some color.  I used my NYC Sunny Bronzer daily.  This is what I use everyday to carve out my cheek and make it look like I have cheekbones. I use it around my hair line and under my jaw.  Love this stuff it works great.  I've already mentioned in my Bronzer Maddness post that I wont repurchase this right away because I have other bronzer to use, but I will probably finish using this one up in March because I've hit major major pan on it.

For highlighter I use my ELF Baked Highlighter in Moonlight Pearls. This stuff is beautiful.  And I will never be rid of it! It lasts forever. So I may not need to repurchase it.  Also I want to see other highlighters in the future so I may not right away with this either. I use it on my non-existent cheekbones, bridge of my nose and inner eye corner.  Hardest to screw up makeup step for sure.

The for blush I jumped around at the end, but I'd say for most of the month my Nars Orgasm was the blush I used.  This is just a great blush that goes with everything and always looks good. It stays all day really brings life back into my face. I'm just not sure if I'll repurchase, it's super expensive. Mine came in a kit so I may look for dupes. I also have loads of blushes I love see my Blush Maddness.

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So that's what I did to my face in February.  Geesh it's a lot to write out.  You may notice that lips were missing, because I wasn't really wearing a lot of lipstick in February. I tried some new chap sticks but nothing special.  I'm kinda addicted to Selfies so here are a few of the looks that happened in February. (Also I figuring out my eye brows...don't judge)

Makeup Madness Part 2! Bronzer and Highlighters

It's time for part two! Part One was on Blush and now we're onto Bronzers and Highlighters.  I didn't really think I had this many, but there were a few in my collection that I had totally forgotten about. So what I'm sharing are things that can be used to highlight, bronze and contour.  I really only started highlighting and contouring last year but I've been bronzing since High School.  Bronzer was very big when I was in high school to make you look tanned without actually tanning...that was all I knew about it back then.  So lets take a look at what I have.

Again sorry for the poor pictures...

We have some repeat offenders from last Makeup Madness my Tarte Palette and Duo from the Too Faced le Belle Carousel.  So lets start with bronzers and go from oldest to newest again too.

1. Cargo Bronzer in Medium- My first bronzer ever! It amazingly still has pigment and doesn't smell! This bronzer I used the heck out of and while you can see I've hit pan (it's in the upper left corner in the bottom right picture)  There is a ton of product left in this thing.  It started with 8.9 Grams.  I remember using this thing all over my neck, decolletage and arms. It's very orange in the pan but comes off really pretty and somewhat sparkly.  This was about $30 15 years ago so I have no idea if they still carry it or what, but I got it at Sephora when one first opened in San Antonio.  I'm gonna hold on to this one and see if I can't put it to use this summer when I bronze up.
2. bare Minerals warmth.  This is from my very first bare Minerals kit I got a 10ish years ago and there is just a little less than half left.  I remember using this as instructed, but it never really looked right. It's very warm brown...not really what I'm looking for. I thing it served it's purpose in my life during my mineral makeup phase, but I can't imagine every reaching for this thing again. I know too much about makeup now.  I'm going to toss it and not give any more thought to the subject. Although I do know it's still out there and you can buy more at Ulta...I shall not.
3. Wet n Wild Ticket to Brazil Bronzer- This was my first YouTube recommended purchase. I saw StilaKiss33 (my first youtuber) talk about it being perfect to give an allover warmth to your face and this was right after I went blonde and felt super washed out so I snatched this up.  At $3.99 and you can usually find Wet n Wild half off, I bought it and was so pleasantly surprised by the wonder it did.  There is so much product in this thing too I never thought I'd hit pan but this thing is great. It's a beautiful bronzey orange that matches my tanned skin perfectly, but with a light hand adds just enough color to make me not look dead.  I use this also like I used to use my Cargo bronzer, on my neck and decolletage area.  It's perfect and so affordable.  I will repurchase this and I'm keeping it. 
4. NYC in Sunny- another YouTube purchase recommended by EmilyNoel from Beauty Broadcast. This is a matte bronzer in a medium light brown that is perfect for contouring.  It's amazing the variety of skintones this color works on.  I use this thing almost everyday to contour and carve out my non-existent cheekbones.  I've hit some serious pan on this one and am hopping to kill this compact by early spring so I can buy a new bronzer.  Another ridiculously cheap bronzer at $2.99 I've recommended it to everyone and will repurchase it. I do want to try some other bronzers out there but this is a really great standby.
5. Tarte Rainforest After Dark Palette, bronzer in Park Ave Princess-  This is Tarte's Standard matte Bronzer and it's beautiful.  I feel like it's the grown up version of NYC's Sunny. I've made a pretty good dent in it but have used it sparingly because it's in my limited edition palette. I really use it mostly when I take that palette traveling because it's easier than hauling other bronzers around.  I can't repurchase this set, but I imagine I'll pick up another set with it in it in the future.  Or Tarte sells it in it's own kit with a blush and highlighter.
6. Too Faced Le Belle Carousel, chocolate soleil bronzer.  One of the mini palette's in my Christmas purchase! I had been wanting to try this bronzer forever.  Another standard matte bronzer, this is Too Faced's probably most popular bronzer because again it is universally flattering.  It is also the bronzer I've used the least of. I have been trying to use up my Sunny before I dip into this one so I'll probably get to this one later in the spring.  We'll see if I want to purchase it later, again I can't get it in this kit or format but if I like it Too Faced is always adding it to things.

Bronzer wish list- I really want to try Benefit's Hoola bronzer and maybe the Tarte Park Avenue Princess palette that has bronzer, blush and highlighter...we'll see. 

So up next Highlighters. I only have one highlighter from before I went blonde and I totally forgot I had it and I don't think it was sold to me as a highlighter but that's what it is. So let's look!

1. Glo Mineral Makeup- gloShimmer Brick in luster. Glo mineral makeup is one of my favorites from years ago when I got monthly facials, I love this brand to death and totally forgot I had this.  It's a quad of shimmery neutral colors that I probably used as eyeshadows.  One color the bronzey one has hit pan and there are serious dips in the pink and champagne colors as well.  This makeup brand wasn't cheap so I'd bet I paid about $30-45 for this.  There's a lot of product in it.  All the colors still give pigment and it doesn't smell so I may keep it around to see if I can incorporate it into my routine.
2. ELF Shimmering Facial Whip in Lilac Petal. I bought this thinking it'd be a good eyelid base color. I love pale pinks on my eye, but it ended up being too shimmery.  I didn't realize I could use it as a highlighter till much later.  I've used it a couple of times as a blush topper and it's beautiful.  You have to use a really light hand because it is shiny, but for $1 what's not to like.  I'll keep it around till it starts smelling bad.
3. Wet n Wild Reserve Your Cabana- this is the same format as my Ticket to Brazil, but I got it because a YouTuber said it was a good under eye concealer setting powder.  It doesn't have much shimmer as it's sister, but it does have a little.  When I'm tan I can't set my concealer with it but when it's the winter and I'm paler I totally can.  It's a nice highlighter the rest of the year though.  I don't use very much of it and have a bunch of other setting powders so I can't imagine going through this thing in the next year so I doubt I'll repurchase it. There's nothing wrong with it but I don't need it. But I'll keep it around till then.
4. ELF Baked Highlighter in Moonlight Pearls- this is my favorite highlighter, my go to everyday highlighter.  It's the perfect subtle shimmer for my cheeks and inner corner of my eyes. I love it.  It's a light champagney color but doesn't transfer much pigment. It lasts all day and a little bit goes a long way.  This one was $3, I use it every day and it looks like I've only had it for a week.  I don't really need anything else from a highlighter so if I ever get through this one I'll definitely repurchase it.
5. ELF Blush in Gotta Glow. I unfortunately bought this in the same haul as the baked highlighter so this one didn't get any love. I bought it because I heard it was a dupe for one of the NARS highlighters, but I just wasn't impressed. I've used it a couple of times but it has too much pigment and just kinda can brush off.  I think this was one of the $2 elf blushes, but I will not repurchase. I may keep it around and see if I can use it for something but this one I'm very blah on.
6. Tarte Rainforest After Dark Palette, highlighter in Champagne.  Another gorgeous Tarte product.  This is a very simple and light highlighter. Great for everyday.  It has a really weird texture in the pan but one the skin it goes on evenly and gives you a very lit from within kinda look.  I don't think Tarte does highlights as well as they do blush or bronzer or eyeshadows, but I wouldn't turn down a future kit because it had this highlight in it.  When I don't use my ELF Baked Highlighter this is usually the one I go for instead.  And it's great for traveling because it's a complete kit.  
7. Clinique Glow Blush. This I got from my sister when I was home for Christmas. I thought it'd be good for a blush topper it's a creamy stick blush with lots of shimmer.  But unfortunately it's gone bad and smells like cheap lipstick. I bet it was pretty once upon a time, but unfortunately it's past it's prime. 
8. Temptu Highlighter in Pink Pearl (not pictured). I got a tiny sample of this liquid highlighter in an Ipsy bag in the fall and it is gorgeous. I never use it but should because it's separating but I think I can shake it up and it'll work again.  It's the perfect lit from within glow and you just apply it with your fingers and it's gorgeous.  It's supposed to go with an airbrush makeup kit so I wouldn't purchase it on it's own and also it's not the easiest to work with but it's super pretty, I'm going to keep it till I use it up or it goes bad. 

So I only got rid of two items this time around, In the next few I should be able to get rid of a lot more. I know I have some super old liners and lip products so those should be productive.  But slowly we'll get through this.  Next up will be liners, eye and lip! 

Makeup Madness! Part 1: Blush.

So I'm going to start a new blog series here to get through my makeup collection. Now I know my makeup collection isn't as ridiculous as some of my favorite YouTube Beauty Gurus but for someone who only has one face and only plays with makeup for fun, it's kinda out of control.  Partially because I'm a hoarder and partially because of the last year.  So here's a picture I added to Instagram tonight to show my collection and over the next few weeks I'll take us through all these things...

New blog series coming about my ridiculous makeup collection. I do not need this much makeup. #makeupmadness #makeupmonday #makeupcollection

A photo posted by Tyler Archer (@tyleralyse) on Feb 2, 2015 at 5:58pm PST

 So blush...first we need to talk about my face. I am fairly fair...but I have a lot of pigment in my face- make sense? Great. Now I am not pale, but I am fair- however in makeup I am usually Beige or Medium if those colors are lighter and more yellow/red in pigment instead of pink/bronzey undertones.  Now here's where it's complicated and I confuse the makeup artists at Sephora and Ulta.  I have yellow undertones and red cheeks and nose.  So I can do cool tones or warm tones...which is so annoying! So that explains why my blush game has suffered for years and I've spent years looking like a clown because I don't even have to put on blush and I can look like I'm wearing too much of it.

So here's the collection...

Well they're pink...yes.  And those pictures suck...well yes too. There are maybe three blushes in these pictures that I've had since before I went blonde (almost a year ago).  And those blushes are either terracotta, rose or hot pink.  Now the blushes I've bought in the last year range in pale pink, hot orange pink, mauve, tea rose, terracotta, neutral pink, peony and what the hell were you thinking pink.  I'll go through them one by one with my thoughts- let's go oldest to newest...

1. NYC New York Color Cheek Glow Powder Blush in Riverside Rose 651- this blush shows up with no pigment on me. I can swatch it on my arm and you can't even see it.  This is a lighter clay rose color and I don't know when or why I bought this. I also don't know why I've kept it, it's clearly the wrong color, I never use it and the logo is still completely visible in the product. Goodbye blush.
2. Ben Nye Dry Cheek Rouge Victorian Rose DR-61- oh my goodness why do I still have this. This is a dark deep rose color and I've had this since high school.  This was a part of my Ben Nye makeup kit I bought for my musical theatre program in high school.  At some point my sister stole it from me because she liked the color and in the last year or so I stole it back from her...I never used it after I stole it back- it was just the principle of the thing.  This blush is so old I can't even swatch it- I rub my finger in it and nothing comes off.  Luckily it doesn't smell, but it's a sad sad blush so it's going to be friends with the NYC blush and my trashcan. One thing I can remember about this blush though is it stays on like a trooper, this stuff wont budge till you tell it to.
3. Very Sexy Mosaic Blush in In Lust by Victoria's Secret.  I've been wanting to do a post on all my Victoria's Secret makeup because I have a lot. There was a time in my life during college and post college where I bought all my makeup from Victoria's Secret. Who could refuse a line called "Very Sexy".  I loved their makeup and this blush is no different.  But it is HOT, like hot hot pink.  I've hit major pan on it but it's still going strong. In the last few years I've mostly used it for theatre and Halloween, but I love this stuff.  A few of the colors in it make great eye shadows too.  There's some shimmer and some matte and all together it's fabulous.  It also stayed on my cheeks all day which I didn't know yet, but would become a problem with future blushes. I'm keeping this...forever- or till it runs out...
4. bareMinerals blush in Poppy. This blush is beautiful! I light rosey pink I wore the hell out of this blush in my early post-college days. There's barely any of this stuff left.  My first boss got me hooked on bareMinerals for a little while.  I used all their products but their blush is the only one I've made this much of a dent in. I think this color is a perfect light flushed color and looks great on many skin tones.  Now like all bareMinerals products about half way through the day I noticed they were gone, very little pigment remained on my cheeks.  I wouldn't repurchase it because the loose powder format is annoying but I'll definitely keep it till it's gone too and if they have a pressed version I'd be open to getting it some day.
5. Lancome Blush Subtil Powder Blush in Cedar Rose- a very neutral almost mauvey rose color. I bought this blush my first Thanksgiving in College Station, so 2ish + years ago.  I bought this because my Glo Mineral Makeup Terra Cotta duo blush had run out- I had gone through 3 of those things inbetween my bareMinerals Days and my Lancome days.  I was sooooo upset. So I went to Ulta and told the lady I was looking for a new blush and of course she took me to the high end section and I just went with it.  She put this on my cheeks and it looked amazing. So natural and pretty I spent the $30 for it and was a super happy camper for the next year and 2 months.  Now this blush was beautiful but once I went blonde it just didn't work with my coloring anymore.  I've hit serious pan on this product too, because you can not overuse this product if you try, but keep it around because I may go back to it eventually- also it smells really nice like all Lancome products.  As far as staying power went it didn't stay all day, but got me through a good 5ish hours- this was before I learned about primer.
6. Wet n Wild Color Icon Blusher in Mellow Wine.  Bring on the pink! This blush is pink. Not hot pink, not cool pink, just pink.  I bought this blush shortly after becoming blonde when I realized I needed some more color in my cheeks. Now my blonde was not a nice subtle dark blonde, but a bleached blonde platinum blonde thing- so to say I was washed out would be an understatement.  This cheap like $2 blush did the trick. It was bright, made me look awake, and sometimes like a clown.  It's really easy to put too much of this stuff on. I frequently looked perfect in my bathroom mirror, got into my car to look in the mirror and realized I had clown face.  Now this stuff still didn't have great staying power, so luckily if I did make it to work clown faced normally by lunch or early afternoon I'd look normal or like I didn't have any blush on at all.  I've since moved on from this blush but will keep it around for shows, Halloween and the likes.  This is basically the drugstore equivalent of my favorite Victoria's Secret Blush.
7. NYX Blush Dusty Rose- A few months after going blonde, I started trying to dye my hair a little more natural of a color, I ended up with a strawberryish orangey blonde color and needed another new blush.  Something less loud than my Wet nWild.  So I went with a a pretty dusty rosey pink closer to my Lancome color but still with a little more pigment.  My cheeks soaked up this blush like I'd never worn blush before.  This stuff would not stay on. I could put on piles of it and my face just kept it all for itself. So this was a short lived blush relationship. Still before I'd discovered primer so I'll keep it around to see if I ever reach for it and use a primer.  It's only $5-6 I probably wouldn't repurchase it because I eventually learned a blush secret, but I'm not going to toss it out just yet either.
8. elf Pressed Mineral Blush in Jet Setter- this is a gorgeous mauvey pink. I love this color and it was only $3.  I just wish it translated on my cheeks stronger! It's very natural looking and had about average for me staying power.  I didn't use it very frequently at all but will give it another try someday. It's such a pretty color and very natural looking, I just had too many new blushes come in right after it and steal it's thunder.
9. Tarte Rainforest After Dark Palette- blush in Unleashed- this is a beautiful pale pale pink. Oh my gosh this is gorgeous.  This was my first experience with Tarte and with high end blushes since Lancome. And I'm afraid I can't go back! This blush makes your cheeks look like the perfect pink flush. I have red undertones on my cheeks and it never pulls red, but always stays a beautiful light pink. I wish this blush was in the permanent line because I would use it for always but alas it's limited and so I use it sparingly.  Also this blush lasts all day...all day long. I was amazed and swore it was because it was a high end product.  Love. 
10. Coastal Scents Forever Blush sample duo in weird purple pink and nude.  This was a sample I got in my first Ipsy bag in August.  I didn't care for them.  One the sample was too small to try and two the colors were just wrong. I can't speak to really anything on the quality of these blushes but they're going to go make friends with Ben Nye and NYC- sorry.
11. Tarte Amazonian Clay 12-hour Blush in savored.  Another limited edition blush from Tarte darn it!  This blush came in my QVC Today's Special Sweet Indulgences Holiday collection. It came with two blushes the other one wasn't right for me so I passed it on to my sister, but this one is dark mauvey pink with light shimmer. And it's gorgeous.  This was a perfect fall shade and I love it. I feel like the 12-hour is super true because like my other Tarte blush, that I didn't stop using till I got this one, it lasted all day.  I love it! I really started to believe that the high end blushes were bringing something special to the table- or maybe it was just Tarte. All my favorite YouTubers talk about Tarte blushes strongly and I can see why. 
12. Too Faced Blush in Who's Your Poppy? This blush was a part of the Le Belle Carousel holiday set I bought to divide up between friends. This was the section I kept it also has a Chocolate Bronzer in it too, but the blush is gorgeous and very similar to the blush I'm going to talk about next.  It's a shimmery orangey pink with very high shine on the cheeks.  It's lasting power is great if you use a primer under it.  In late fall I discovered using primer on just my cheeks. I'd never liked primer's before because they dried out my face but I learned you could use primer on just your cheeks to make you blush stick around longer- good to know.  I haven't used this blush very much at all, because it's in a duo with a bronzer I'm not letting myself use until I finish up another one. So it's sticking around and will have its time.
13. Nars blush in Orgasm.  If there was every a more hyped up, cult favorite blush of the beauty blogosphere then I don't know what it is.  This blush is talked about by everyone in that it's a color that looks good on everyone.  I got this blush in a holiday set from Sephora and probably never would have just bought it flat out on it's own. However I was thrilled to have it in the set and bought the set in part because this was a full sized product in it.  This blush is an orangey pink with gold shimmer.  The Who's Your Poppy looks very similar but comes off shinier than this one.  Orgasm is a beautiful color and I do imagine it looks good on most people. Whenever I do a really neutral eye look I just throw this on and it adds something special.  This blush has great lasting power and it amazing.  At $30 I'm not sure if I'd buy this blush again though. I wont right away when it's gone since I have a pretty convincing dupe in my Too Faced blush but if I see it for a great deal in a kit again I'd definitely jump on that opportunity.  If you've been eyeing this blush and thinking you want to buy it I recommend it- it's great.
14. Stila Convertible Color in Camellia.  This was a hand me down from my sister- she couldn't make it work for he.  I was a little nervous and apprehensive about my first cream blush product. The color is a very neutral nude with more orange than pink in it.  I thought it'd be good for no-makeup makeup days.  I apply this with my elf small stipple brush and it goes on smooth.  When I first started to use it though my cheeks broke out just a little bit.  I think it's a very thick and heavy formula.  Also since it's a cream it stays kinda dewey and I found I needed to set it with another blush or a translucent powder.  I usually just wear this on the weekends, it doesn't last all day at all and it doesn't pack a high enough color punch for me, but I like having it in my collection and will continue to use it.  I don't think I'd purchase this again but maybe another color in the Convertible Color line.

And that's my blush!  If I had to pick two blushes out of the bunch it'd be my Tarte Unleashed and Nars Orgasm.  Two very different colors but between the two you could get both day and night covered. I really enjoy the higher end blushes.  I use some of my drugstore blushes on the weekends but am really too big a fan of my others now.  

I apply my blush with the Real Techniques Blush Brush.  Don't be intimidated by the size of this brush, it's large but it's perfect. I feel like it prevents me from getting too bag clown face because it helps diffuse the color so much.  

Like a lot of things in my makeup collection right now, I don't need anymore blush.  I do not have a simply blush palette yet and that is on my list for eventually, but right now I have plenty of blushes I enjoy and don't feel like I'm missing anything in my range of pinks.  

Next up bronzers and highlighters...a much smaller collection for me. 

Tarte Tartelette Matte Eye Palette

So I've broken my New Year's makeup resolution.  Didn't take long. Two weekends ago I went on an unscheduled shopping spree/retail therapy trip and when I got home did the usual YouTube Vlog Watching. I also started following a lot of my favorites on Instagram where they usually post if there are any really great sales or deals out there.  Usually QVC and HauteLook have the best.  So this particular Saturday I believe it was @jenluvsreviews that posted QVC was having a special on the Tartelette palette! One of the main palette's I was trying to avoid purchasing till I worked through some products... This palette is usually $44 but QVC had it on sale for $36 plus a dual ended brush...so I justified it...with shipping it ended up being $45 but I still got the brush so that's fine.

It arrived in the mail last Friday so I didn't get to play with it till Saturday.

Beautiful neutrally brown and pinky rose colors. I love it.  Now Matte shadows are tricky for me. I feel like as we get older we're supposed to wear less shimmery colors and more Mattes, but I'm only 29 for goodness sakes (for 61 more days at least) and so I should enjoy my shimmer while I can! Buuuttt...there's just something really appealing about Matte colors for me right now. In my Too Faced Chocolate Palette I've been reaching for a lot more of the Matte shades and then as soon as I heard about this palette I just really was drawn to it.  So let's Matte!

Now this isn't a full review because I've only worn this thing for four days so these are really just first impressions. Saturday I used it a nude Color Tattoo and it was really just there to transition color and high light and worked great. The colors felt smooth and light.  I found no trouble blending them out and they didn't drag at all on my eyes. No primer except the color tat.  Sunday I work just these in "free spirit" all over the lid and "force of nature" on the moving part of my lid up to the crease.  I didn't do eyeliner or mascara and just went pretty natural. Again it felt fine on the lids without primer.

Then Monday... this happened.

Free spirit, caregiver, force of nature, dreamer and multi-tasker @tartecosmetics #tartlette #makeupmonday #matte

A photo posted by Tyler Archer (@tyleralyse) on Jan 26, 2015 at 5:14am PST

I decided to go all matte on everything.  I used my usual Wet 'n Wild Fergie Eye Primer.  I let it set for a second then added free spirit on the brow bone and  caregiver on the moving part of my eyelid up to my crease.  Again fine.  Then I took force of nature in my crease. I felt a little dragging.  I added dreamer to just under my crease and it took a lot of blending to smooth it out.  Then last was multi-tasker as eyeliner, but it felt a little grippy so I couldn't get a smooth line.  Interesting...at the end of the day my makeup was still on, it looked just as good as it had when I first applied it.  I was worried it would look patchy in some areas and I definitely don't think it'll go down in history as one of my best eye shadow looks, but that's okay we'll try again.

So today I tried again. I used about half the eye shadow primer than I normally do and stuck to just the top row of colors. Free spirit all over, force of nature in the crease, dreamer in the outer v and I left multi-tasker alone. I feel muddy. I just don't feel like I was able to get a smooth blend.  But it looks exactly like it did 5 hours ago when I applied it so the staying power seems excellent.  I just maybe need to find the right primer.

So I'm a little disappointed in this palette. I think it's a great neutral palette and tomorrow I'm going to play with it in conjunction with another palette and see if they play well together.  I'll also research online if there's a certain type of primer I should use them with. Or maybe my brushes are the problem. I am about a week past when I'd normally clean then, but I was busy binge watching The Fall this weekend.  So well see.  I'll give an update in a few weeks after I've played with it more to see what I think.  So for now it's not terrible it's just not perfect...

What's on my face in the pic?
Primer- Benefit Porefessional
Face-I have IT Cosmetics CC Cream in Medium
Eyebrows- NYX Eyebrow Powder in Blonde
Shadow Primer- Wet 'n Wild Fergie Take on the Day
Bronzer- NYC Sunny
Blush- Tarte Unleashed (from the Rainforest after dark palette)
Highlighter- Tarte Champagne (Rainforest after dark)
Mascara- Benefit They're Real (sample size- not sure how I feel about it...)
Brushes used- all real techniques and the dual ended brush the palette came with