A Tutorial: Holiday Simple & Glam

They say to stick to what you know, whether that be in working, trying new foods, making new foods or, in our case, makeup. So that's exactly what I did, in efforts to create my perfect holiday 'look' I stuck to what I know, simple eyes and a bold lip. It's a clean and simple look; gently highlighting the eyes, sculpting the cheeks, and defining the lips. With just the right mix of simplicity and glam, this is my ultimate makeup routine for this holiday season.

Before you start off, be sure you're working with a clean slate! Exfoliating your skin and treating yourself to a face mask will brighten and smoothen your skin, not only making your makeup glide on, but giving your face a healthy, natural glow. And don't forget to moisturize!

1. Conceal & Prime

Products used: Bobbi Brown Corrector in Porcelain Peach (reveiw here,) MAC Pressed Blot Powder in Medium, Rimmel Wake Me Up Concealer, Urban Decay Primer Potion in Original 

Start off with evening your skin tone. Using salmon toned concealers under the eyes will brighten them and ban those dark circles; don't forget to  set them with a powder to keep them in place. On oily eyelids, eyeshadow can have a hard time staying uncreased and flawless, using an eyeshadow primer will make sure they stay around all day.

2. Highlight the Eyes

Products used: MAC Eyeshadow in Jest, MAC Holiday Collection brush in 239 SE

Begin with applying a light, shimmery eyeshadow across your eyelids and the inner corner. An iridescent shadow will attract the light to your eyes, brightening and awakening them.

3. Deepen & Define

Products used: MAC Eyeshadow in Haux, MAC Holiday Brush in 217SE

To add more definition to your eyes, take a fluffy brush and run it along the crease of your eye focusing on the outer corners. Using a matte or satin finish shadow, gently blend the colour into your crease bone- this will create 'natural' definition and depth to your eyes. 

4. Sculpt and Frame

Products used: Chanel Sculpting Brow Pencil in Blond, Brow shaper, Maybelline Great Lash Clear Mascara

They say brows can make or break a look; done the right way, sculpted brows can frame your face and add just the right amount of definition. To achieve bold brows, fill in the sparse areas to achieve the desired shape, brush through them, then set them in place with some gel. Not only do bold, youthful eyebrows frame you're face- but they are right on trend this season!

5. Outline
Products used: Maybelline Eyestudio Gel Liner in Brown (review here), Joe Fresh Angled Eyeliner Brush

To further define your eyes and make them, 'pop,' a simple line of eyeliner across your upper lid will thicken your eyelash line while keeping the eyes simple and clean. 

6. Amp Up Your Lashes
Products used: Tweezerman Eyelash Curler, Ardel 116 Lashes, L'Oreal Voluminous False Fiber Lashes Mascara

Eyelashes are my favourite part; nothing can complete a makeup look like long, full, voluminous lashes. Start off by applying eyelash glue to the lashes before curling them, then curl. After waiting a few seconds the glue should be tacky and ready to apply. Balance out the upper and lower lash line by applying some mascara to the lower eyelashes to create the perfect tension within your eyes.

7. A Little Flush 

Products used: Jane Iredale Blush in Tawny, Joe Fresh Blush Brush

Because the eyes are quite neutral- it's important to add some colour back into your face. A matte, mauve blush colour will add colour to your cheeks; yet will be very natural. Gently buff the colour to the apples of your cheeks and lightly dust it along your cheek bones. 

8. Lips for Last

Products used: Blitstex Lip Medex, Annabel Lip Liner in Natural Rose, MAC's Creamsheen Glass in Colour Saturation

No look is complete without the final touch; the lips. Since it's the holidays, I find deep berry colours to be very suitibale for the time of the year. To ensure that the colour lasts all throughout the holiday parties and dinners, start off with a natural lip liner to create a foundation for the colour to stay upon. But don't forget to moisturize before! A thick lip balm will help plump your lips, creating a smooth, moisturized surface to apply the other products on.

And with that, the look is complete! In eight easy steps you have a simple, yet glamourous holiday makeup look that will be suitable for all occasions this season. With fresh skin, illuminated eyes, bold brows, naturally sculpted cheeks and berry lips- this is my favourite, go to look this December.

With Christmas quickly approaching us; I hope you are all getting into the christmas spirit! I myself have been enjoying Songza's 'All I Want for Christmas is Pop!" playlist, as well as the classic holiday movies; Miracle on 34th Street, Christmas with the Kranks, Home Alone to name a few! What have you been loving?

Merry Christmas!

- Madi

How to: Brighten & Awaken Eyes in 6 Steps

With long summer nights, and the school season quickly approaching, getting a full 8 hours of sleep kind of gets thrown onto the back burner and we're left with tired, dull, eyes. We all want those bright and awake eyes- but don't want to compromise the precious hours left of summer to sleep. Instead of bargaining one for the other- why not enjoy both! With these few tips, you'll be able enjoy the rest of your summer to the fullest with bright and energetic eyes to see it all. Let's go!



1. Prevention

Say no to salty foods while you're out, the more sodium, the more water retention- the bigger your under eye bags. Instead of getting a large of those irresistible Mcdonalds fries- opt for a small and a smoothie instead. Also, drink up! Drinking lots of water will show visible results to the puffiness under the eyes. Little ways to cut back on your sodium intake and by increasing your water intake may mean less of those salty fries, but also smaller and less noticeable eye puffiness!







2.  Lets get Peachy

Peachy tones opposed to regular concealers are much more brightening, and help to mask discolouration. A concealer that is a few shades lighter than your natural skin tone with a salmony undertone will instantly awaken and hide any darkness under the eyes, leaving them refreshed and awake.

Bobbi Brown Corrector in Porcelain Peach (review here)

3. Add a Sprinkle of Sparkle

Adding a light, cream, eyeshadow with a pencil brush into your inner corner, dragging it into the inner half of your bottom and upper lid will draw the light to your eyes and illuminate them. Adding a little sparkle to the tear duct draws the attention to the least-puffy part of your eye and work to open up the rest of your eye.

Joe Fresh  Pencil Brush

Maybelline Eyestudio Quad in Give me Gold

4. Less is More

Eyeliner can help define the eyes, however smothering your eyes in black eyeliner will definitely make them defined, but not very awake nor bright. Minimize the eyeliner to only the outer half of your upper lid. This will provide a little definition, but not drown your eyes in a sea of black.

Maybelling Eyestudio Gel Liner in Brown (review here)

Joe Fresh Angled Eyeliner Brush

5. Nude Tude

Instead of putting your regular eyeliner on your waterline, try putting a nude eyeliner on it. Opt nude for white because white can be very harsh and make your eyes appear yellow, but nude will make your eyes pop and look natural. If you don't feel like spending the extra $$ on a nude eyeliner, take any stick concealer and an eyeliner brush and gently dab it on your waterline.

Rimmel Hide the Blemish Concealer  (review here)

Mac Brush 212 (Holiday Edition)

6. Curls Away

If you have pin straight, downcast lashes- and eyelash curler is your best friend! It will transform your eyelashes from covering your eye, to curling them up towards your brow- exposing more eye. It will lift and opening your eyes instantly. With a few pumps of an eyelash curler your eyes will go from droopy and small, to bright and big- just the key for working towards brighter eyes.

Tweezerman Eyelash Curler

One coat of L'Oreal Carbon Black Mascara

During this time of year, sleep is a little hard to come by- hopefully these few simple tips will be able to help you achieve bright and awake eyes! It all starts with prevention then goes on to concealing, highlighting, defining and curling. With these tricks you'll be able to enjoy the last moments of your summer without worrying about sparing just a few hours of sleep.  Enjoy!

- Madi

A Review: Bobbi Brown Bronzing Powder & Swatches

That sun-kissed look is always in, especially during the summer. However having a naturally tan face from those UV rays has it's drawbacks- premature wrinkles, hyper-pigmentation, dark spots, sunburns, and a higher chance of skin cancer.  The obvious solution? Bronzer! With just a quick dust around your face, you'll go from pasty pale to a bronzed goddess in no time. Here to help us in acheiving that is the Bobbi Brown Bronzing Powder. 

This product claims to be a, "soft matte, silky-smooth bronzer that instantly gives the skin the look of a natural tan." To acheive that it comes with .28oz or 8g of bronzer coming in 6 shades, but ringing in at $38 US. (Yikes!!) 

First off let's take a moment to admire the packaging. Shiny, black, and sleek. It's very sturdy and easy to clean. It has a very nice closure that makes it very easy to open and close the packaging and the clasp ensures that it won't open unbenounced. The best part? A big and full mirror makes it the perfect on-the-go product. 

Clasp

The colour that I was recommended was 1 Golden Light. It is indeed a matte shade (perfect for contouring) and has yellow tones opposed to red. It is extremely natural on the skin, it as no shimmer or sparkle so it will look beautiful all over the face or just to contour your cheeks and nose. I love this shade, it works in the summer, and isn't too harsh in the winter. For a pale girl like myself, this is definitely my go-to product to gently warm up my face.

The consistency is very smooth, not chalky or excessively powdery. It's one of those miracle products that has a light pigmentation (perfect for a natural bronzed look), but can be built up to a strong colour without looking like a cake fell on your face. The bronzer can grab to dry-er patches of skin, so be sure to moisturize before applying!

I rarely choose to contour my face, I have yet to attempt to master that technique. However, when applying I choose a big, fluffy brush. I find this works the better than a big, dense brush because it lightly dispenses the product evenly over the skin (don't forget your neck!). Another thing that I often use this bronzer for is as a crease colour. I take a fluffy crease brush and run the colour through the crease, it adds more definition to your eyes and looks extremely natural.

Before

After 

After

Before

Another thing that I often use this bronzer for is as a crease colour. I take a fluffy crease brush and run the colour through the crease, it adds more definition to your eyes and looks extremely natural. This bronzer is also long wearing on both the eyes and the face!

Before ( Eyes: Maybelline Colour Tattoo in Barely Branded )

Pro's:

- Light pigmentation (it's a good thing!)
- Easy to build up
- A+ for packaging
- Natural colour
- Used  for contouring and bronzing
- Not powdery, no fall out
- Smooth and easy to apply
- Can be used as eyeshadow



Con's:

- Very expensive
- Can grab to dry skin

After (Mascara: L'Oreal Voluminous Carbon Black, Lips: Revlon Lip Butter in Peach Parfait)

Having a bronzed glow is always nice sometimes, unfortunately to do it the safe way does require more $$$ than the sun does- but investing in healthy skin is something you'll never regret! Admitidly I doubt that I'll repurchase this bronzer (even though I highly recommend it!) solely due to the price, it's a little more than I'm willing to spend. As much as I'd love to repurchase, for next time I'll be searching the drugstores for my next 'tan in a pan.'

-Madi

A Review: Bobbi Brown Corrector + Creamy Concealer Duo

We all strive for those bright, well rested, flawless under eye area- and who can blame us? We can't all sleep as well as Sleeping Beauty, and summer nights call for late bonfires that no one can resist- the solution? Concealer. And not just any concealer- a brightening one that screams that you've been asleep a hundred years.

I purchased the Bobbi Brown Corrector and Creamy Concealer Duo in hopes of achieving just that. The corrector claims in tandem with the concealer to, "brighten dark circles with just the right coverage" and to, "blend easy to instantly cover and brighten dark circles." The corrector comes with .05 oz/1.4g of product, and the concealer .05oz/1.4g with the powder having .06oz/1.7g.

The consistency of these products are extremely creamy and extremely thick. A little dab of product holds a lot of pigmentation and covers circles very well. However, these are very easy to layer too much and we all know what that means, creasing. I don't particularly find the powder necessary, I rarely use it and prefer the more natural look the concealer has without the powder. 

Creamy Concealer Duo in Ivory ($35 US)

Correcter in Porcelain Peach ($23) 

I like to apply these products first with a touch of the corrector focusing it into my inner corner and blending the rest out to the middle and outer half of my eye. The corrector is 'correcting' because of the peachy shade that cancels out any darkness.  Then I take a bit of the concealer and put it over the corrector avoiding the inner quarter of my under eyelid. Most days I opt out the powder as I find it creates access creasing, but in the summer- a little setting powder can't hurt. 

Before

Corrector only in Porcelain Peach

Both with Creamy Concealer in Ivory, Right eye with Concealer + Powder

 All in all, I love both products, but I don't think both are absolutely necessary. The stand out product for me is definitely the corrector, in fact this is my second one! The concealer I could make do without, many drug store concealers layer very well with the corrector and personally I don't think the corrector needs it (also a great way to save $$!)

Mascara: Physicians Formula Organics

Pro's:
- Works very well to brighten under eyes
- Pigmentation is more than average
- Thick and creamy consistency that blends well
- Corrector has a peachy tones


Con's:
- Expensive
- Creases occasionally
- Packaging gets dirty

These products definitely help you achieve a brighter and better rested under eyes. Of course they aren't going to give you more hours of rest- but they can help mimick that. The peachy-ness of the corrector works wonderfully to neutralize darkness and the concealer aids in more coverage. I will continue to re-purchase the corrector- but I'll have to leave the concealer for next time. 

Hopefully we'll all be getting some more rest this summer, maybe not quite as much as Sleeping Beauty- but a little more. 

-Madi