How I Wear: bareMinerals "The Truth"

So....leave it to me to start a new series to give myself structure, and then not actually do anything for 2 weeks. Awesome. Well, I do have good reason for not posting sooner, but whatever. I'm here now! 

The first product I'm featuring in this new series is bareMinerals The Truth. I feel like this brand is often overlooked and not given the attention it deserves. Don't get me wrong, there are some amazing die hard fans out there, but generally speaking, whenever I search online for reviews or videos, there aren't always a ton to choose from. 

The Truth is a lovely neutral quad. I find it extremely easy to wear and is one of those that can be used lightly or smoked up a bit for a night out (whatever that is....it's been a while). 

bareMinerals describes these shades as:

• Serendipitous: delicate peach
• Magnetism: brushed taupe
• Fate: light mocha glaze
• Apropos: twinkling espresso

bareMinerals The Truth: (clockwise) Serendipitous, Magnetism, Fate and Apropos

bareMinerals The Truth: Serendipitous, Magnetism, Fate and Apropos

For an easy go-to look, I like to pat Serendipitous all over the lid and use as a highlight. I place Magnetism through the socket, outer corner and the middle of the lower lash line. Using Fate, I deepen the outer corner and blend along the outer third of the lower lash line. I line my upper lash line with Apropos.

Eye of the Day featuring bareMinerals The Truth READY 4.0 Quad

 

I only got one decent (referring to quality) picture on my "real" camera - and it's this goofy one right here. I tried for several days to wear the quad and remember (or have time) to take pictures. And that would be the reason that all of them are from my iPhone instead. Although the photo quality is not the best, I think you get the idea. Future posts will have better photos, but if I catch a good one on the iPhone, I'm not above using it.

In this last photo, I have on a cream color base from MAC (Take Root), and I've used Serendipitous along the inner third of the lid, Magnetistm on the outer two thirds and blended softly through the crease to meet the highlight (Serendipitous). Then I used a tapered blending brush (E45 from Sigma) and put Fate tightly in the crease and onto the outer corner. Next I used a brown eyeliner smudged into the lash line and topped with Apropros. Lower lash line: Apropos on the outer third, Fate in the middle, Magnetism on the inner third and Serendipitous on the inner corner. Good thing the photo really shows you how I used it. Oh Becca....how helpful am I? Also, this photo was taken about 8 hours after applying it - some of it has rubbed off. I'm one of those that touches my eyes a lot throughout the day.

The READY 4.0 quads from bareMinerals retail for $30 and you can find them in a bareMinerals boutique, Ulta or Sephora, as well as online at bareescentuals.com, ulta.com, sephora.com, qvc.com, or wherever else bareMinerals is sold.

If you have this quad, what is your favorite way to wear it?

Hope you all (yes, all 2 of you), have a wonderful weekend! I'll be doing a bit of judging at a cheer competition. Woohoo!

Becca

How I Wear....New Series Explained

I've been toying around with creating a series for this blog for a while. I need to give myself some structure and a sort of schedule to keep the blogging going. I know I'm doing this mostly for myself, but I'm ok with that. Even if only a few people see this, I hope it is helpful.

If you've ever been a stay at home mom, you know how it can get: adult conversations are few and far between, you narrate everything you're doing (Momma has to go potty, Momma's making lunch, Momma needs to do laundry, etc.), you're lucky if you get a shower that day, and you start talking to yourself. A lot. Doing this blog makes me feel like I'm serving a purpose, and instead of talking just to myself, now I get to talk to you.

Maybe it's not that big of a deal for some of you moms...but having twins and then another little guy within such a short time, well, I don't get out much. It's pretty comical to watch me go anywhere, let alone the 30 minutes it takes just to get in the car and leave the house. It started with three kids under 16 months (take a moment to let that sink in, and no, it wasn't on purpose)...now the twins are 3 and the little guy will be 2 in June. I need this...and if you ever switch places with me for 72 hours (any less than that and you won't get the full experience), you'd understand. I thought I knew what it would take to stay home and raise kids - ha. No idea. Not even close. I realize my situation isn't the norm, but still, it isn't an easy thing to do. Ok, enough....

Now, back on topic, the thought process behind this series is to not only show swatches of whatever product is being featured, but to also show it applied. I know there are other well known beauty bloggers who do this (and I love them for it), but I found that I wanted to see even more. If you're like me, you like to read several different reviews and watch a few YouTube videos before purchasing, or even just to gain inspiration for products you already own. I think it was more that I had a hard time finding reviews and pictures of the product applied for certain products (bareMinerals, tarte, Inglot etc.) and so I thought I'd do my own little review, swatches and eye or face of the day pics.

Right now the focus will be on eyeshadow, but I'd love to eventually branch out to other eye, face and lip products. My goal is to feature at least one product per week, but we'll see how it works out - taking and editing photos with little ones around can be quite challenging.

Hopefully this will be helpful, but maybe it'll just be me posing and modeling for myself. Either way, it will make me feel productive and I will have actually used some of the makeup in my collection. All good things, if you ask me.

I'm aware that the looks I come up with won't be groundbreaking - the purpose is really just to show you what they look like on, not necessarily a new way of application. Maybe I'll get adventurous, but I doubt it. My combos will probably be predictable and average - but they may still be helpful. 

I'm starting with the 4.0 quads and 2.0 duos from the READY line of bareMinerals - these are probably the hardest ones for me to find any reviews on. If you have any requests (bareMinerals or not), let me know...if I have the product, I will definitely feature it. Thank you for taking the time to stop by and read my blog!

Momma has to make lunch,

Becca

How To: Depotting MAC Eyeshadows

It took me forever to finally decide that life would still go on if I depotted my precious MAC shadows and put them into one palette. And then, it took me forever to decide what palette they needed to go into. Super important decisions - I'm sure you agree.

Anyway, I watched, what felt like, a million videos on YouTube and read tons of different blogs on this topic. I think I found the easiest, and quickest, way to depot my MAC eye shadows. 

What you'll need:

Towel, Flat Iron, Wax Paper, Something to pop the shadow out, Rubbing Alcohol, cotton balls/pads, magnets, an empty palette.

Pop out the pan of eye shadow from the outer plastic casing. Hang onto this both for the Back to MAC, and so you can remove the label and put it on the back of the eyeshadow pan.

Place your shadow on top of a piece of wax paper sitting on the plate of a hot flat iron.
After about 30 seconds to a minute, remove the shadow and carefully slide a thin tool on the side to pop the pan of shadow out of the inner plastic casing. Careful - the metal pan will be HOT! I usually pop it out onto a towel. If the pan does not budge, place it back on the flat iron. Trying to remove the pan before the glue has softened may result in a cracked shadow. The time will vary, depending on how hot your flat iron gets.

While the metal pan is cooling a little, place the outer casing on the wax paper for about 20-30 seconds. Use the same thin tool to lift the sticker off the back of the casing and place it on the non-adhesive side of your magnet.

Now that the metal pan has cooled enough to handle, use a paper towel, cotton pad or ball soaked in alcohol to rub any adhesive left on the back off. I found this to be the most annoying part of the whole process, but it made for a clean and smooth surface to apply the magnet (that already has the label with the shadow name and finish on it).

Put it into a palette of your choosing :)

MAC shadows L-R, Row 1: Samoa Silk, Soft Brown, Texture, Row 2: Amber Lights, Swiss Chocolate, Antiqued, Saddle, Row 3: Rule, Red Brick, Brown Script.

Let me know if you have any questions. I'd love to know if you have found an even simpler way to do this. I must also add - since I have depotted my shadows, they have received much more use.

Disclaimer: If you decide to depot your shadows, you do it at your own risk. Please use caution - I will not be responsible for any ruined product or physical injury you may sustain.

Now, get to work!
Becca

bareMinerals: My Latest Obsession

Please tell me you've tried the READY line of bareMinerals? Ok, so I haven't tried the foundation, blush or bronzer from the line...yet. I'm still obsessing over their eyeshadows. So many pretty colors!

Now, to be fair, I was a fan of the original formulation of bareMinerals. I love so many of the shades. But I haven't used them in a while because, like many others will tell you, the loose pigments can be such a mess and take longer to apply. 

Shades in pot clockwise: Bare Skin, Black Ruby and Desire. Shown on hand L-R: Desire, Bare Skin and Black Ruby.

I highly recommend picking up a duo...or quad....or palette...or some of each. This formula is so buttery smooth and pigmented, and they blend beautifully. I honestly love all of the shadows I own from this line. As far as application, I think it's important to mention--you do not need to sweep your brush around in the shadows. You only need to tap into the color, and then pat or lightly sweep the shadow onto your lid, depending on what look you're going for. If you want a wash of color, use a fluffier brush. For more color payoff, use a stiffer, more dense brush.

Some shades are more sheer, but can be built up to the vibrancy you see in the pan. This is something I appreciate about this brand - scary shades become wearable for us "shy-of-bold-color" folk, but will equally satisfy those of us who crave "look-at-me" lids.

When I put my finger in the pan to swatch, it almost tricks my mind. They feel so creamy to the touch, but they are definitely a powder. As I mentioned above, you don't need to swirl the brush around in the pan - if you do, you will absolutley see product being dislodged. This is not to say that the formula is powdery or has fall out, it just speaks to how finely milled and pigmented it is.

I will admit, the first duo I purchased (The Epiphany), I sometimes struggled with a little bit of skipping with the darker, matte shade. I have since remedied any issue I had (my primer was a little too tacky and was grabbing the shadow). Now, I like to apply a transition color first, whether another bM shade or not, when I'm using the darker shade to blend into the crease. Problem solved, and since it's a step I already do anyway, I don't mind doing it first, and now actually prefer doing my makeup that way.

So here it is...a peek at my bareMinerals READY eyeshadow collection.

Listed from L-R, T-B: The Finer Things 8.0, Shine On Palette, The Star Treatment 8.0, The Cliff Hanger 2.0, The Scenic Route 2.0, The Escape 2.0, The Happy Place 4.0, The Possibilities 4.0, The Enlightenment 2.0, The Epiphany 2.0, The Horizon Line (liner shadow), The Nick of Time 2.0, The Showstopper 2.0, The Vision 2.0, The 15 Minutes 2.0, The Promise 2.0, The Truth 4.0 and The Rare Find 4.0.

If you're interested in a particular duo or quad, let me know in the comment section below. I'm starting a new "How I Wear" series for this blog where I will be featuring a different product for each post, along with swatches and photos showing the product in action.

I realize my blog is not seen by many, but I figure I might as well help out anyone who happens to stumble upon one of my posts. If you're reading this, thanks so much for stopping by!

Resolving to put more into my blog in 2013,

Becca

January Empties

Here are a few empties from January, along with some thoughts about each product. Yes, I'm a little late, but since I'm the one in charge, I forgive myself. If you have any recommendations or have tried any of these products, I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments below.

January Empties!

tarte maracuja C-brighter eye treatment

I received this as a bonus with the tarte TSV from July on QVC (what has your makeup done for you lately?). I was just about out of the eye cream I had been using, so I thought I'd give it a try. Honestly, I'm not sure I really saw any difference. I think it applied well, and I'd say my eye area felt moisturized, but I don't think I'd fork over the money to purchase this. Have you tried it?

Organix Renewing Moroccan argan oil shampoo and conditioner

I've watched a few different videos on youtube where these were mentioned and decided to try it out. This may work for some of you, but I didn't really like it. But, true to form, instead of throwing it out, I had to finish it up. My hair has changed a lot (like A LOT) since having kids. It's just not as nice as it used to be. I need more moisture, but not so much that my scalp gets oily. Whatever, the hunt continues.

Makeup Forever Smoky Lash Extra Black Mascara

This came in a little set from an order I made with Sephora - I think it was a 500-point perk. I didn't think I was going to love it, but I did. That being said, I won't be purchasing this for full price. There are too many other mascaras I have that I love that are less expensive. This mascara gave volume and was super black. I really loved it the more I used it. You know how mascaras dry up a bit and it just gets better? I feel like this was one of those. I had to be careful when adding additional coats though - if I waited too long, it seemed to clump up.

John Frieda Frizz-Ease Daily Nourishment Leave-in Conditioning Spray
I've already mentioned that my hair has changed, and I needed something to spray in my hair after washing to help me comb through the tangles. I liked this well enough, and I suppose I would consider purchasing again, but I think I'll try something else first. I thought it had a nice scent.

Bath & Body Works Triple Moisture Body Cream in Pink Chiffon
I've really been enjoying this body cream lately. I wouldn't say it's the best body cream I've ever used, but it definitely does its job. Plus, I find that this scent (along with Carried Away) offers a nice layering piece with my current favorite fragrance (Philosophy Love Sweet Love). It's a lovely thick cream that applies nicely and sinks in fast enough, but still leaves your skin feeling moisturized. Bath & Body Works just had their semi-annual sale and I picked up 3 more (Carried Away, Pink Chiffon and Vanilla Bean Noel)!

tarte gifted Amazonian clay smart mascara

Um...I love this. I want to buy it. But I just can't let myself spend that much on mascara. So, I will continue to purchase kits that include this amazing mascara. I loved lights, camera, lashes and I loved this more. I didn't think that could be possible! It has a drier formula that I find to be easier to use for my lashes. The brush is nice and stiff, helping to separate my lashes and evenly coat them, while providing some serious volume. Beautiful. Seriously. Try it.

If I had to describe the wand, I'd say it felt like boar bristles. I have no idea if that's true!

wen cleansing conditioner in sweet almond mint
I want to love this. I keep trying to love this. I think I'm getting better at applying it but I still find that other shampoos and conditioners can give me a similar result. If you haven't used it before, you're probably thinking I'm lame and wondering why I have to practice application of a product to cleanse my hair. I know, I wonder that too. I received this in a 6 piece set of small 6 oz size bottles. I think I got 1 1/2 uses out of each bottle, and I have about 1/4 left in 2 bottles. I also read that the more you use, the better it works. I just can't justify that financially. Even if I only cleanse my hair every other day, it's too much. Maybe if I cut my hair? I have to say, once I started doing the cleanse process twice (using half the pumps the first time, and the other half the second time), I did have better results. I suppose if I used this for a longer period of time, I would love it.

Rave: the product is super creamy and thick, and it feels wonderful in the hair, and when rinsing it out. You're supposed to rub your scalp for 1-2 minutes, comb through your hair, and then leave on for 5-10 minutes. (Don't quote me on that, this is from memory). I think the product must have menthol in it, when you rinse with cool water, it definitely produces a cold feeling that lasts.

Rant: let me further explain...depending on the size of the bottle you have, the number of recommended pumps will change. For the small 6 oz size and the length of my hair, it was recommended to use 48 pumps. The bottle holds 60 pumps. Here's a little math for you....a 32 oz bottle on QVC sells for $49.50, not including tax or shipping costs, and holds 192 pumps. For this size bottle and my long, thick hair, I would need 16-24 pumps (I'm thinking 24). That would give me 8-12 uses per bottle. If I cleanse my hair every other day, that would be less than a one month supply. I can't do it. I can't spend that much. Can you? If you have been using this product, I'd love to hear your results.

And now, mom duty calls. Have a great day!
Becca

Urban Decay Smoked Palette

I don't often sport a dark smokey eye. In fact, up until the last couple of years, I mainly just wore shades of brown, with the odd purple-y color throw in there. I was all about natural looking makeup, buying and wearing mostly makeup that made it look like I wasn't wearing a lot of makeup (unfortunately for my face, it most often looked like I wasn't wearing any makeup at all).

Fast forward to now - I still don't wear a lot of dark eyeliner or shadow, but I love playing with it and am more willing to try it out for a special event. Let's face it - this stay at home momma of three kids under 3 doesn't find a lot of opportunity for a super smokey eye. But, I still had to have this palette. I think it is perfect for those seeking a palette for gorgeous smokey eye looks - and I think it's even perfect for those who don't.

As always, Urban Decay has produced a high quality palette with super buttery, pigmented and very blend-able shades. Barlust is probably my favorite, followed by Mushroom....but I love the Loaded (green) and Rockstar (purple) shades as well. For those of us not creating a smokey eye look...the dark brown and black are great for adding depth in the crease, outer corner and for lining...the lighter shades serve as good blending colors and highlights, but if you want something light and shimmery, you'll have to look elsewhere in your collection...and the colorful shades would be a fun way to add a pop of color along the upper and/or lower lash line. There you have it. I justified your purchase of this palette for you. You're welcome. Obviously if you like dark eyeshadow looks and wearing smokey eyes, you don't need my justification. This palette is for you!

Since the palette has been out a while, you probably already know the details. Here they are anyway: 

The smoked palette features black zip around packaging housing 10 shades and includes a full size 24/7 Glide on Liner in Perversion - a super rich, matte black. It also has a great booklet showing different smokey eye looks to try. And don't forget - they even include a travel size of the Eyeshadow Primer Potion.

All photos are swatched in the same order as the palette, on bare skin: Kinky, Freestyle, Mushroom, Backdoor, Blackout, Barlust, Rockstar, Evidence, Loaded, Asphalt. In the second and third photo, I have also swatched Perversion down the middle of the two rows.

Swatches from the Urban Decay Smoked Palette - outside in full sun.

Swatches from the Urban Decay Smoked Palette - outside, shade.

Swatches from the Urban Decay Smoked Palette - inside, natural light.

Is it worth $49? I'd say so. You can create a range of different looks, from neutral, daytime friendly to over the top, nighttime sexy. 

Do you own this palette? What is your favorite way to wear these shades?

Don't forget to turn your clocks back tonight!
Becca

MAC Fluidline: Rich Ground

After posting about one of my favorite fluidlines yesterday, I decided that, since Rich Ground is also being promoted with the Styleseeker collection, I might as well do a separate post for it. I find this shade to be very wearable, even though it is on the metallic side.

Online, MAC describes this as a "Reddened coco with frost." I would call Rich Ground more of a coppery-bronze shade. I have worn it alone and also as a thicker line, adding a thinner, liquid black liner on top, closest to the lash line. It is nice to be able to use this instead of the normal brown or black liner, and still be in the neutral realm.

Rich Ground is a permanent shade in the fluidline range.

This, like my other fuidlines, applies very easily. It is smooth in texture and opaque without having to build up the color. Of the bronze liners in my collection, the only one I had that came somewhat close was Tanzania from Sue Devitt. I would say it is similar in tone, but a little darker and not as frosty.

What is your favorite shade of fluidline? Do you think they are worth the $15 price tag?

According to my three munchkins, it's time for a snack - Becca