Brit Wit?

Let me just start by saying, I absolutely love this blush. I love the color, I love the dewiness of it. It's gorgeous.

Have you ever put blush on and notice that, holy jesus, it really looks like I have makeup on. This happens to me all the time. My skin tone is quite pale but for some reason, I do not blush naturally. So putting on a pink blush looks frankly unnatural on me. This is where Brit Wit comes in - it give me a "me" glow. Not too pink, not too brown, just the color I'd blush if I would naturally do so. It's almost how I look if I spend the day in the sun (without burning).

This isn't even a color I would normally reach for. But for some reason, I though, eh, why not try a plummy blush. Boy was I surprised. 

This is the new Cremeblend version of the color. I can't comment on the old formula as I have never owned it. I love this one a lot though - I have an oily/combo skin and it stays quite well. Albeit, if you truly have oily skin and you do not enjoy the dewy look, this is probably not for you.

Here it is swatched on my hand:

And here it is swatched and blended.

This is truly a remarkable color. I highly recommend this if you'd like a natural, buildable flush to your face. I even add some to my nose sometimes!

Packing and leaving with half my makeup collection...

So I'm heading home to my parents for a few days and I thought I'd take a picture of the stuff I thought of bringing. It's way way too much, but eh, the more is better in this case I believe!

Here is Billie approving of my choices:

 And the choices are the following:

- Various brushes, including MAC 217, as I couldn't live without it.
- One by One by Maybelline mascara. I don't LOVE it but I'm using it.
- Two foundations for a choice of coverage which consists of Almay TLC (light coverage) and Estee Lauder Double Wear Light (light coverage) and Estee Lauder Double Wear (sample - heavy). Obviously, I don't need all this. Oh and my Lancome concealer.
- Two paint pots: my trusty Painterly and my new Blackground for evening wear.
- Two bronzers: Chanel Soleil de Tan and NARS Laguna. Em, yeah, do not need both.
- MAC Lipsticks in Blankety and Brave, Cremesheen in Partial to Pink, NARS Mat Velvet lipstick in Calliope (to show my mom, she loves pencil lipsticks) and my Blistex lip treatment.
- My trusty Lise Watier waterproof black eyeliner and MAC in Coffee.
- MAC eyeshadows in smaller palette including Woodwinked, Shroom, Satin Taupe and Handwritten. And Two Faced Shadow Insurance.
- MAC Desirous Blush and Cremeblush in Brit Wit.

Ugh, this is bad. I do not need to bring this much. And as I write this, I realize I need to add a foundation brush. But at the same time, I know I'll have everything. (Plus, my mom may or may not have a nice selection of makeup that I can use at will).

This excess of products is going in my awesome Samsonite makeup bag I found at Winners. I couldn't be much sturdier. The inside can wipe clean if need be and it has a great zipper that opens the bag really wide. Plus, it's got little pocket for the brushes - see?

This bag absolutely awesome. I'm glad I bought it. I'm not one for buying cutesy things so I'm glad it's pretty generic. I can definitely see myself using this for years. Best part is that I could have added a lot more in here.

Billie photo of the day:

I took her outside for some adventure time and she didn't love it. But I think she didn't love it because she hates the harness.  Oh well.

MAC Cream Color Bases - Aye or Nay?

So far, I've gotten my hands on two MAC cream color bases. And it's an AYE so far for me. But some people might not like them and here's why: they are INCREDIBLY pigmented and EXTREMELY hard to blend. So be warned, they do not have the same consistency as a MAC cream blush. You will find your cheeks getting red trying to blend these in properly and then wonder which is the color and which is your red skin. Not the best technique. But what might be considered a downfall for some are exactly what others are looking for.

The CCB in the front is Virgin Isle and the out of focus one in the back is Bougainville. Virgin Isle is a pink-coral color and Bougainville is a plummy fuchsia. Both are gorgeous on lips and on cheek

Swatch of Bougainville and Virgin Isle.

Swatch of Bougainville and Virgin Isle blended in.

As you can see by the last swatch, even blended (vigorously might I add), these colors are quite potent. However, the huge advantage to these is that they are incredibly versatile. Both these colors look great on the apples of the cheeks as well as on the lips. I hear Virgin Ilse is actually quite close to MAC's Vegas Volt lipstick. Unfortunately, I don't own it to compare. These are quite drying on the lips so I suggest a good lip balm or gloss on top.

Also, to add, these are very long wearing, especially on the cheeks. These swatches were removed with Bioderma and were still stained on my hand for the rest of the day. That says something because I wash my hands 40 million times a day.

Joe Fresh - Coral

So I went Joe Fresh hunting again (whaaat? their polishes are 3 for $10!!!) and found this beauty. The name says it all - it's a pure coral. At first, on my nails, I thought it was way too pink. But it's really coral... it's weird how the polish walks the line between bubblegum pink and orange. I love the color.

After asking the boyfriend what color HE though it was, he replied that it was too bright for him to decide. Oh, the sense of humor he's got. He's also a tad colorblind so he wouldn't have been much help anyway.

I agree though, it is quite bright. I think I'd enjoy this polish on my toes more. Regardless, it's a beautiful color for spring that I will definitely be sporting.

I'm thinking this isn't un-dupeable and that Essie probably has some shades around that color  - I don't have any in my modest collection to compare it with.

Winter is still here though. Snow, hail, rain, freezing rain has been latching on for the last couple of days. I cannot wait for the days of spring, heading outside with just a thin sweater on, walking on the city's trails, whipping out the bike(cycle).

Storage and space

I thought I'd do a quick post on how I store my makeup. It's quite simple really - I bought some storage dividers - some from Winners (the wooden ones for the lipsticks - they were in the cutlery section), some clear and burgandy ones from Dollarama, and some, you can't really see, dark grey and clear from Winners as well. It's in a dresser drawer that I kept for storing beauty products and supplies.

The products are divided by "family". My lips balms are with the lip balm, lipstick with lipstick and foundation with foundation. So on and so forth. I really like it this way because it makes things easier to find in the morning.

I have my brushes stitting on my dresser in a pencil sorter which I didn't take a picture of.

As you can see, I do not have such a slew of products. I do love my MAC lipsticks though. Most of the products you see here are there because they are accessible to me. It's a shame because the drawer would be full of Tom Ford and YSL lipsticks would they be accessible. But only if I got a pay raise. Ha!

Depotting on Sunday Morn...

... With coffee and a few palettes.

Meanwhile...

 

I am extremely grateful that she stayed out of the way for once. No sniffing burnt plastic this time!

Joe Fresh Gunmetal

Long time no post! A quick nail polish post before I head out for the night!

I had to take if off almost as soon as I put it on because I smudged a nail. Are you like that as well? If I mess up one nail, I feel like I have to take off the whole thing and start again another day. So I'm nail polish free at the moment. My nails have felt the need for a breather I think.

Extreme Haul!

I've been going a little overboard with beauty products lately with the excuse that I have a blog readership (HA!) to uphold. Pathetic, I know... But in my defense, half of this is from a blog sale and well... one shadow is for my sister's birthday.

Cetaphil Oily Skin Cleanser - picked this up at Wal-Mart. Best cleanser ever. I use this at night and Spectro-Jel in the mornings.

Almay TLC 16 hour Foundation - Read excellent reviews on Makeupalley for this foundation and... so far so good! Not as good as my Double Wear Light but a good cheaper alternative.

MAC Pro Pan eyeshadows in Shroom, Star Violet, Mythology (for the sistah), Brown Script and Antiqued. I wanted to try more orange toned browns. We'll see how this goes.

MAC Creme Cup lipstick - WAY pinker than I thought it would be. Not sure I love it yet.

MAC Cremesheen in Partial to Pink - love love love the formula of the Cremesheens.

Cargo Blu-Ray bronzer - Really gorgeous and finely milled

NARS Matte Velvet Lip Pencil  in Calliope

Scattered MAC brushes from the Colorforms Collection - I'm in love with the 219 so far.

And got a freebie green NYX eyeshadow from a blog sale purchase! Thank Kelli!


I will most likely be posting swatches of the eyeshadows as well as the lipsticks. I'll be giving Creme Cup another few days of testing. I find it so pink on me! My lips are really not pigmented which is probably why. But we'll see! I have more items on the way as well which I'm really excited about - I'll be posting about those as well.


Billie photo of the day:

She was playing with the MAC wrapping paper.

Pure Color Gloss Sticks

I find the name very fitting for this product. Estee Lauder Pure Color Gloss Sticks. It's really what it is, a gloss stick.

These are quite bright. So bright in fact that the way I apply them is by dabbing them on and then blending with my finger. Sometimes I'll apply a gloss over it or a lip treatment. They are really pigmented, the formula isn't drying and they smell heavenly.

I have the following shades:

I find myself wearing Honey Pink the most as it matches any kind of makeup. It's a neutral brownie pink. It seems more brown in the tube than it actually applies on the lips. Summer Melon is quite in keeping with the current spring trend of coral/orange lips. I find it is the one that suits me less and might look better on someone with a more yellow skintone. Pink Sorbet is a very cute a bright shade.

I highly recommend these. They are also less expensive than the regular Estee Lauder lipsticks (the most expensive ones are $32 CND and the Gloss Sticks are $21 CND). I know these are the lipsticks I will keep going back to in my collection.

From left to right: Honey Pink, Pink Sorbet, Summer Melon. Honey Pink looks a lot less brown on my lips than it does in the swatch. You can sort of tell from the swatch that they are a bit tacky. I find that if you don't use a light hand with these, they will look a bit chunky and uneven - hence why I suggested dabbing them on and blending them in. A lip pencil would also do the trick.

The only downside to these is that the shade range is limited. These are the only colors that I consider neutral enough to wear (and as you can tell, they aren't really "neutral"). I really wish Estee Lauder would come up with different shades that are more wearable. However, if you're looking for a glossy dark lip, they've got a beautiful selection in the Gloss Sticks.

Nail Accident

I may, or may not, have kind of maybe ripped parts of the nail on my thumb. So no thumb pictures for a while. It hurts like a mofo too.

I have some major haulage coming in the mail. My tax return treated me kindly this year. I cannot wait for some of these items! I'll be posting pictures and reviews of course. The slew of products includes lots of MAC, some Nars and other miscellaneous.

Even if I said I'd be taking off Sand Tropez off my nails as soon as I could, it's still there. It's called laziness people. I gotz it.

Essie's Sand Tropez

As you can see, this polish makes my hands look like lobster claws. For shame! I don't like wearing light polish because I find it makes my cuticles look worse. This is a nice polish though - it's a beige/grey. It's basically the look of chocolate milk with regular milk in (anybody else do that? I found chocolate milk too concentrated so I mixed it with milk when I was young). It's unique but not universally flattering.

The formula was actually quite liquidy. The polish kept concentrating to the side of the nail and was really difficult to fix.  I think the brush is mostly the problem - it's quite small and hard to control.

I'm going to be removing this polish presto (well, as soon as I'm done work) and put something else on. It's not my thing. BUT, at the same time, if I were a nude nail lover, this would probably be on my top 10 list. It's still pretty unique.

8 Most Worn Things

I found this on Sandra's blog and though about listing these as well.

1. Lipstick - My most worn lipstick is probably my Estee Lauder Crystal Rose lipstick. I've had it forever. I don't wear it as much anymore because I feel like mauve-ish lipsticks aren't as flattering on me as other pink toned lipsticks. But my most worn lately has been MAC's Shy Girl. I do love Estee Lauder lipsticks and will be reviewing more of them in the future. How have the Gloss Sticks not been reviewed around the beauty blogs?! They are amazing!

2. Earrings - I got these leaf earrings at a shop downtown a few years back. I love them because I feel like they are making a statement but not too much. I usually wear them when I have my hair up (hello second day hair). I'm not a huge earring person anyway, but I love my rings. I have plenty of those.

3. Shirt - Err... Well I'm not sure what my most worn shirt it. Maybe this gray American Apparel one. It's so worn it started pilling and fading. So yeah, I don't have this fabulous stylish shirt I wear all the time. If I did, I'd wear it only occasionally in order to "save" it for special events. Lame, I know.

4. Nail Polish - I love my Essie Limited Addiction. It's always the polish I go back to when I need a classic, up-kept nail look. Might actually finish the bottle on this one.

5. Shoes - I have this pair of sandals I bought at a thrift store in town that I absolutely love. I've worn them to death. So much so, that I had to have them reinforced. And they are still falling apart. Hopefully they'll last me another summer. They are in fact so worn that I won't post a picture. Twould just be embarrassing.

6. Hair product - I just got this new hair product a few weeks ago but I've probably used it more than any other products I have. It's amazing for thick curly hair. It manages my wave without leaving my hair crunchy like mousse does. I hate that feeling. Plus, and that's a big plus, it doesn't leave my hair feeling gross and greasy by the second day. I will definitely repurchase this once I'm out of it.

7. Perfume - I'm not a huge perfume wearer. My boyfriend is allergic and I find I'm pretty sensitive as well. However, I've always love the White Musk perfume from The Body Shop. This is my second bottle - and that is saying something.

8. Handbag - I saw this GAP saddle bag one day on Ebay, bid really really low on it and won it. Wasn't a fan of it until I really worn it in - it was really bright beige at first which I didn't love but the color has darkened a bit since I got it from wear. I get compliments on it often by strangers. My favorite bag ever! I've seen a few others on Ebay - might get myself a backup. I won't post a picture of this because well... same reason as my shoes.

I was trying to take pictures of the snow outside as well as the products. After a couple weeks of sun and grass we got a huge snowstorm yesterday. Figures.