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    Swag

    Please check out this post on Jolie Nadine — way to say it, girl!! From now on for simplicity’s sake, any products that I review that have been sent to me (which is not that many) will be marked off with an asterisk in the post title :)

    That’s all. Keep having [hopefully good] Mondays!

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    Dark (but colourful!) lips

    I tried my hand at a photo I saw in a Kevyn Aucoin book a couple months ago — but you know me! The photos have been sitting around on my computer until now. So why pick “now” to post them?? Easy! These photos go along with the Style Black collection pretty darn well. Hope you like the look! I had a ton of fun doing them.

    The lips: purple in the middle, then blue and black.

    We started with this (MAC Blacktrack, GOSH Pretty Petrol, and Smashbox Smashing Mystic)Then added two glosses: a blue one (clear gloss mixed with Senna Blue Note) and a purple one (clear gloss mixed with MUFE 92 and Senna Destiny).

    Figured it might be more fitting to show a little more tooth :P Alors, my bottom row! Yes, I have them. You probably haven’t seen them before, though.

    Full face (I didn’t do anything special for the rest. It’s just what I happened to have on that day… concealer, blush, and that’s probably it.)
    The inspiration
    My hand!
    Talk about stains — some of this stuck for like, two days!

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    Is it wrong that I want to stock up on drapery rods?

    It took quite a hunt to find. I’m not quite sure why, but I’m crazy for this simple-but-pretty drapery rod… plus, the bronze is just the right hue — it’s stunning against my drapes! I know you can’t really tell in this vaguely-crappy photo from my old room, but take my word for it. It’s honestly perfect.

    On sale for $20 on Umbra.ca.

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    Weekend Roundup — 03/10/09



    The Beauty Chick reviews Chella Enzyme Exfoliating Crema Mask.

    A La Mer “addict,” Best Things in Beauty tried out the new The Hydrating Facial.

    Beauty Junkies Unite highlights some of the best beauty products for Breast Cancer Awareness.

    Brown Suga has details on a new mascara that eliminates mascara waste.

    Denim Debutante has the latest on one of the newest sample sale sites: Row Nine.

    Fabulous Over Forty interviews famous makeup artist Sandy Linter and she offers wonderful advice.

    Ferohhhsh Beauty 411: Tackling Tired Eyes.

    A Few Goody Gumdrops has the perfect Fall find.

    The Gloss Menagerie is thinking of trying a CVS beauty knockoff.

    Gouldylox Reviews round up of the best in cosmetics whose sales benefit Breast Cancer Awareness month.

    Hot Beauty Health shows you her love for fashion and technology with Microsoft’s stylish phone themes.

    The Informed Makeup Maven shares here Best Complexion Beauty Buys for 2009.

    Krasey Beauty reviews and swatches all of the amazing fall MAC collections.

    Marina from Makeup4all tells you everything you wanted to know about London Fashion Week.

    The Makeup Snob wants you to check out the neutral side of Style Black!

    theNotice celebrated its 2nd blogiversary, and you’re all invited to do an audio tag!

    Prime Beauty is loving L’oreal Colour Riche Anti-Aging Serum Lipstick.

    Sicka Than Average’s Fall Fragrance Extravaganza!

    Go Ahead, Honey: Take a Chance. Break out of a basic wardrobe with tips from The Style and Beauty Doctor.

    Visit our website for more information about The HLMN or how to become an affiliate.

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    A bit more Fyrinnae

    Many thanks to Laura for the swatches!! I’ve done my best to brighten ’em up and such, so let’s get started! From here on in, all the text is simply copy+pasted from her email, so I hold no rights to any of it ^^

    2 shots of the Fair primer: swatched and blended. It doesn’t dry quickly or turn to powder, and even when it is absorbed it feels a bit like suntan lotion or some nongreasy finish. I accidentally used too much when I swatched it, it gushes out. So far it slows creasing with creams and intensifies some powder shadows, but it’s really best with pigments since the finish is slightly tacky.

    Baby Beluga (pale grey, medium shimmer)
    Hyponotize (blush; coral, low shimmer)
    Otherworld (pale ocean blue, v shimmery/glittery; free sample)

    Tamarin (Endangered collection; subtle pale orange, barely any shimmer)
    Fool’s Gold (pure shining gold; very shimmery)
    Montalivet (shimmery warm tan/bronze; free sample)

    oops!- Coastal Scents sample Rose Sparks
    Glass Coffin (pale greyish subtly warm purple, low shimmer)
    Bubble Tea (lush v shimmery grape purple)
    Valhalla (pale smoky cool lavender, some shimmer; free sample [unintentionally i put all the freebies in first!])

    One Knight In Belfast (slightly warmer deep mossy green, also a nice liner)
    Naughty Elves (Holiday collection 08; very dark bluish pine colour, low shimmer; free sample)
    Aztec Gold (shimmery antique gold colour, slightly green and slightly rust as well as metallic; very unique esp as liner)

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    Sick day — can’t really sit. Or walk. Or carry stuff.

    Direct quote from my post on mac_cos… I’d like to hear what your thoughts are on this!

    I feel like I’m kinda losing momentum on MAC — there have just been too many collections recently, you know? I still love it like mad, but I don’t try to keep up with it the way I used to… haven’t checked out a new collection since before summer! They’re all gorgeous, but the rate that they’re churning out new stuff is a little disheartening. I’ve been feeling more of a pull to the regular and PRO lines than the new stuff. Any of you MAC addicts feel the same?

    And from the comments, I realized that…

    …it just keeps getting pricier — which honestly just pisses me off. Not to mention, the products get a LOT smaller as the prices go up. $21.50 for a 0.06oz Dazzleglass, compared to $16.50 for a 0.17oz Lipglass?! Uh, not happening. That’s a difference of $261/oz if you think about it!

    …The only spending room I’ve left myself for MAC is on sales [in mac_cosmetics]. My shadows will be going into a palette anyways, so I’d much rather spend $7 on a lightly used depot than $17.50 on a new potted one!

    Thoughts??

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    Fyrinnae follow-up… aka homemade CCBs!

    The photos are all pretty self-explanitory. Please see this post for swatches of the colours used dry! These are great for people with chronic pain, beginners, or people on the go. Lips and cheeks all in a small 3g jar — talk about easy :) They’re very high pigment compared to most products, so these leave nice stains throughout the day, without all the gross, greasy, ickiness that Vaseline usually causes.

    Melty — hee, wasn’t it cute to begin with?? (While it was still… melty?)
    [Gives a nice non-pigmented sheen to the lips. We didn’t intend it for the cheeks!]

    Mesmerise (glow blush)
    [Sheered out, it gives the most gorgeous berry glow. A little thicker on the lips and you get a pretty just-bitten stain!]

    Enrapture (glow blush)
    [Blends to a nice, clear, pop of pink. Also makes a very pretty gloss!]

    Kabuki — I just *had* to post the blending photo. I don’t know why, but there’s just something about it…
    [A brown-toned red for the lips… and the cheeks to contour, if used very sheerly! The finish on the lips is a bit frosty for my tastes, but my sister likes it, and that’s all that really matters.]


    Swatches

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    Fyrinnae haul

    I’m getting my sister into makeup (bigtime!) — here are some photos of her Fyrinnae haul! We picked up a couple pigments to turn into multi-use balms with a touch of Vaseline, as pretty much everything “normal” irritates her skin. Photos of those tomorrow!

    Koala was the sample colour, and it’s a gorgeous lavender-taupe that looks insanely different as a wash of colour on different skintones. I have zero complaints for the whole order… wrapped up carefully, all gorgeous, and all very pigmented! I <3>

    The cute new domed sample jars!

    The whole haul
    (b) -> glow blush. The others are both eye/lip/cheek-safe eye pigments.

    Swatches, both labelled and unlabelled, as you guys seem to prefer that! I
    t’s not much harder for me, so I’m all too eager to comply.

    Also: we turned Mesmerise, Melty, Enrapture and Kabuki into cream blushes/lip glosses. Check out photos and swatches here!

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