FOTD and MAC Pigment in Fuschia

I went to the mall after work and there were TONS of kids trick or treating dressed up in their cute little costumes! Their parents were also dressed too, and I saw about 7 Snow Whites! Gosh I seriously can't wait to have kids and dress them up and take them to get some candy...they were just so frikkin' cute!

I exchanged my brush set for MAC Pigment in Fuschia, 3 eyeshadows refills, and palettes. It was indeed a sad goodbye with the brush sets, but I take comfort in knowing MAC is coming out with more stuff soon so I'll just spend my money on those! BTW, Nordstrom's is the only store that is exclusively selling the MAC Keepsake bag which includes a pigment, lipglass, softsparkle eye pencil, and a shimmertone blush (no colors listed).



The Haul:


MAC Pigment in Fuschia:


Pink Pigment Comparisons:


FOTD: This is just a clean look I did this morning, for the sake of halloween I popped in some blue contacts...



FACE:
- Philosophy Primer
- Madminerals foundation in light medium
- Silk Naturals Foundation

EYES:
- MAC Paint Pot in Painterly
- Charlotte Russe Mineral Eyeshadows
- Milani Earthly Delights Quad
- Ardell Eyelashes
- Diorshow Mascara

CHEEKS:
- MAC Blush in Coygirl
- MAC MSF in Gold Spill as highlight

Lips:
- MAC Lipstick in Snob
- Sephora Pencil #206
- MAC 3D Lipglass in Lightswitch

Brushes and Uses

I've had a lot of emails about brushes and what brushes do what, so I broke it down a bit for you ladies, I didn't include ALL my brushes but just the main ones.

THE FACE BRUSHES:

From left to right: Essence of Beauty Baby Blender Brush, MAC 180 Small Buffer Brush, Lumiere Cosmetics Flat Top Buffer Brush, EM Duo Fiber Brush (equivalent to MAC #187 brush), Coastal Scents Large Flat Top Brush, Fan Brush

Let's start with the face brushes. I personally spend more on face brushes because those are the ones that go on my face, and since I have sensitive skin, I don't mind spending more on a good brush that doesn't irritate my skin. Like I mentioned in my previous posts, I am currently in love with the MAC Buffer Brush (#180), it really does the job and allows me to build my desired coverage for my mineral foundations. The Lumiere Brush I use to get into hard to reach spots, or to simply wipe off any eyeshadows that falls on my nose or cheeks, the fan brush is good for that purpose as well. I like the Essence of Beauty brushes, they are really soft for a great price and they have not failed me yet (available at CVS Pharmacies).


Their baby blender brush is good for blending larger areas, even the entire eyelid. I like to use it to also get into hard to reach places like the sides of the nose, or to highlight. The MAC #187 Duo Fiber Brush (or any similar duo fiber brush) is PERFECT for picking up the right amount of powder, I personally use it for my MAC MSF's (mineralized skin finishes), it picks up just enough powder for me to highlight my forehead, cheeks, and nose without making me look overdone. I love it!


Rule of Thumb: When using your moisturizer and primer, let each one dry before applying your foundation to avoid blotchy areas or patches.



The kabuki brush is a lot more dense and usually has a large wide head. It picks up a lot of powder in one sitting and hence gives you fuller coverage right off the bat, rather than allowing you to build your desired coverage.

THE CHEEK BRUSHES:

From left to right: Essentials Blush Brush, Essence of Beauty Angled Contour Brush, Essence of Beauty Angled Blusher, Essentials retractable powder brush, Small Angled Contour Brush



I use the Essence of Beauty Angled Contour Brush (second from the left) to apply blush to my cheeks sometimes, but mostly to contour my face such as under the chin and and jawline. MAC #136 brush also does the trick. The one next to it, the Contour Brush w/the white bristles I also use for my cheeks. The retractable brush is for my purse, and the small angled contour brush(nose shading brush I call it) I use to shade and sculpt the sides of my nose using MAC Blush in Strada (most people use Emote, but I am fairly light). [see pic below]



THE EYE/EYESHADOW BRUSHES:

From left to right: Double-Ended Fluff Brush (Flat paddle/Slanted Fluff), Eyelid Shading Brush (Coastal Scents), MAC Brush #239, Sonia Kushuk Concealer Brush, Essence of Beauty Travel Brushes (the last 3).


The double-ended fluff brush is awesome because well--it's double ended! I use the flat round tip paddle brush to apply a neutral or highlight eyeshadows on my entire lid, and the slanted tip for the Outer-V.


I love MAC Brush #239 because it's great for applying pigments foiled (wet). Hard to clean though, but nonetheless, great brush.


The ANGLED BRUSHES are great for the Outer V as well, or applying eyeshadow from the inner to the outer corner of your eye. They also give a lot of depth to your eye.


The CREASE BRUSHES are great for applying a wide range of color on your crease line or outer corner, the tiny Essence of Beauty crease brush is great for contouring the eye.

THE BLENDING BRUSHES:

Sonia Kusuk Blending Brush and Sephora's Rounded Crease Brush

These brushes similar to the MAC #217 brush, are the tools I use to blend colors together so there are no harsh lines whatsoever. I cannot live without these brushes!

CONCEALER BRUSHES:


I use Studio Tools Concealer Brush, it's made out of taklon so it's great for applying liquid and cream concealers. I also spray a bit of the Aquafina Facial Hydrator Spray (Alyssa it's in the facial moisturizers aisle along with the acne products) on the bristles to dampen it a bit so it's not too stiff, and then apply my concealer or even along with my MAC Paint Pots to apply them as my base.



EYELINER BRUSH:
The flat top eyeliner brush (aka push brush) is great for applying gel eyeliners such as the Indelible Gel Eyeliners, or MAC Fluidlines. Gently dab across your upper lashlineall the way across (hence the push). I use Essence of Beauty travel eyeliner brush because it too is also double-ended, with a tiny eyeliner brush on the other end which allows me to wing my eyeliner.

THE SMUDGIES:


Top: Studio Tools Smudge Brush and Essence of Beauty Sponge Smudge Brush
Bottom: Sponge-tip applicator brush

The smudgies! Isn't it just a cute name??? They are great for just that- smudging! I use it to smudge the upper lash line when going for a smokey look, or smudge the lower lash line for an ultra sexy sultry look and to give your peepers more definition and to open up the eye.

The sponge-tip applicator brush is great for touching up on concealer as well as foundation in case there are spots you need to touch up.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Just wanna wish you gals (and guys?) a HAPPY HALLOWEEN! I went to Universal's Halloween Horror Nights last sunday which SUCKED this year because we only went in ONE maze because everyone and their mama was there...I wasted my money since we weren't even able to go on anything else after that one maze. We waited in line for OVER 2 hours my feet were starting to hurt. My BF got me a Dodger Dog though, so I was happy haha. But last year was a lot of fun! I am going to try Knott's next year.

I made some boxes for my co-workers that's filled with candy...


I am super sleepy now, and I still have not packed for NY because im lazy. And I know I won't do it tomorrow because Gossip Girls is gonna be on, LOL. I plan on bringing my pro camera to New York and work on my first passion--photography. I am dying to take some shots of the big apple and capture it for what it is, all the bright lights and people. It should be fun and interesting. I really want to start getting back into photography, I am slowly getting the itch again, I just don't have the time to really focus on it. I want to start shooting people soon.

Kiki La Rue (my new nickname for you)! Hehe, let me know how you like the aquafina facial hydrator spray! I love mine, I spritz a bit on my face and body for a refresher, and spray it on my face before I use my toner.

Candy- Thanks for writing! I know what you mean about the 266SE brush, but mine in particular was just way TOO STIFF to even use to apply eyeshadow or to even fill in your eyebrows. I DID try using it which is why I came to the conclusion that it was just too stiff for me. It wouldn't even bend enough and was too rough on the eyes to even try and apply eyeshadow with it. Also, I already have a similar angled brush to shade in my brows which moves, so there was just no need for me to hold onto it. :( I love most of the MAC brushes in general, mostly their face brushes. For eyeshadow brushes I don't really care because it's the blending brushes that do the trick, so I can use a cheap drugstore eyeshadow brush and work with it.

I had some emails from gals who also bought the brush sets too and it was a bit "cheap" and rough for them too, I guess it just varies from person to person. Also, I did my review based on the BASIC brush set as that is the only one I got. The other 2 sets may work wonders, but mine didn't. I for one love super soft brushes, so I am not picky about the brand, just as long as it doesn't shed, not prickly or scratchy on my face, and does the job.

Which prompted me to make my next post about various brushes and uses. So stay tuned!

Question of the day: Ladies, what are your holy grail brushes?

AVON Haul

NY COUNTDOWN: 4 days! Specktra members vote if you like for the tutorial contest! (Poll on the left hand side when you log in).

I love getting packages! I received my AVON stuff yesterday, I bought a travel fold up mirror which is great for NY (as I don't need to worry about my mirror breaking that I use at home); I also bought AVON eye pencils which are huge eyeshadow pencils, a decent dupe of MAC Shadesticks, I love the "Sea Blue" a lot! Gorgeous color! And I bought their mascara which btw reminds me of the Fiberwig mascara from Japan in which I did a post about it having "fibers" that attach to your eyelashes giving the illusion of falsies or plain longer lashes. When I pulled the wand out of the tube, I noticed tiny hair-like fibers, which seems gross at first as if it has been used (haha) but they are actually pretty neat.

Oh! And for Gabriela, I never used to like AVON when I was younger, due to the mere fact I associated it with old ladies, lol I don't know why, but just a few months ago I checked out the site and found some cool things for under $10 and ordered some things and was actually very pleased with it. AVON to me is hit or miss, there are some things that are bleh, and some things that are neat to have. Most of their lip colors aren't my cup of tea, but I DO like some of their lipglosses and eye stuff. You can also return it to AVON if you are not happy with your purchase and they have GREAT customer service.

AVON Eye Pencils and their bendable mascara:


SWATCHES!


The blue pencil on my eye (and for the girl that asked, yes those are NOT contacts but rather my real eye color lol):


My foldable mirror:




My MAC 180 brush I have been raving about, see how I gently hold my holy grail of a brush????!! :)


I also got my MAC MSF in "Gold Spill", very pretty! I didn't really like the gold gritty look of "New Vegas" too much, so I settled for something a bit more subtle and softer...






See the pile of junk i've been collecting? I need some support system of people to tell me to stop buying stuff I don't need....lol

AVON Lip Palette!

For you lipgloss loving ladies, and you gals who don't want to shell out too much money on the MAC lipgloss collections, then this palette might be for you!

It's only $3.99! Here at: AVON.COM

Product Review: MAC Basic Brush Set

Overall: 2 out of 5
Packaging: 5 out of 5
Price: 2 out of 5

Ok, ok, before I am put onto the stake, let me plea my case. I had high hopes for the brush sets, and high hopes as in this-is-my-first-MAC-brush-set-it's-gonna-be-the-bomb brush set. But unfortunately, I was actually very disappointed with it. Despite the adorable tweed clutch that encases the brushes, I was shocked how cheaply made these brushes were! It was A LOT lighter than I thought (the handle and overall feel), the 129 brush (the big powder brush) was scratchy on my face, and seriously it felt like the bristles of cheap brushes you would buy at Kmart. No joke. It's also made in China (not that everything made in China is cheap), but comparative to the full sized brushes which are made in Japan.

Like my sis Stephie mentioned in her video comparison of the brush sets and the full-sized brushes, the way they are made is completely different to the full-sized ones, and I could not agree more. I own several full-sized MAC brushes along with other brushes (Sonia Kushuk, EoB, Sephora), and even the Target brushes I got were a lot better to me than the brush sets.

Now keep in mind that I am only speaking for the BASIC brush set that I bought, the eye and face sets may be different, and I know to each his own, but me PERSONALLY, I did not enjoy these brushes as much as I wish I could have. The angled brush (# 266) was hard! It was so rough on my eye I felt I was applying my eyeshadow with sandpaper! So for price, I think if you are willing to already pay $48, might as well get a GOOD brush.

So along with reader Alma, I too will perhaps sadly return my brush set and save my money and use it for the Stylistics brush set that is coming out next month, and see if that fares better. (I really hope it does!), the clutch on that is gorgeous as well, a sleek black clutch veiled with black and white pearls.

Product Review: MAC 180 Buffer Brush!

Overall: 5 out of 5 stars!
Packaging: 4 out of 5
Price: 3 out of 5 stars

Like I have been saying in my previous posts, I have been really eye-ing this brush EVERYTIME I go into the MAC store. The sole reason I didn't buy it earlier was the price ($42 for those without a discount), AND because purchasing this would make it my 6th (or 7th) buffer brush. The difference? This is probably the LAST buffer brush I will ever need because it does the job; has the softest, and I mean SOFTEST bristles in town! I could swear they are soft like feathers! The handle is built so that you can stand up your brush if need be, it has a fairly good sized flat top head perfect for buffering my mineral foundation. I would buy so many brushes from mineral companies only to toss them out because they were made out of animal hair which eventually would smell as well as shed! The only brushes I really truly liked were from Lumiere Cosmetics, however they too did not have any decent sized flat tops...

The packaging is pretty flimsy, comes in a thin plastic tube with a cover, but who really cares since you'll just be too excited and take it out anyway haha...

But I am loving my MAC 180 brush! I love it so much I want to hold it when I sleep (ok, maybe not) but darn close to it! I used it this morning and gosh I just wanted to keep using it because it was so soft! It gave such good coverage and I love how the bristles were of a cream color so that I can see exactly how much foundation I am picking up. (I know some of you hate some of the MAC brushes with the white bristles because they get dirty, or there are some of you that do not want to use it period for that reason!) But this brush is worth every penny, it will last you a long time, and hence I consider to be a good investment, especially since it's a face brush.

I have to say, overall, this is my favorite brush! ;)

FOTD- Using MAC Holiday Cool Eyes Palette

Here is the FOTD I did yesterday using the COOL EYES Palette. I took a full face pic and then accidently deleted it, and by the time I took it all off and was getting ready to bed, so if I do it again i'll be sure to post one up! :( Sorry ladies...

Doing the FOTD made me realize how just LOOKING at it made me really want the cool eye palette when I pre-ordered it, but actually USING the colors, it's NOT my favorite palette. I guess I say this because I wouldn't really use the colors in this palette for everyday use (i.e. work), "trophy pink" is tad bit too bright for my taste, and "modern heir" is similar to either Stars N' Rockets or Creme De Violet. Also, I have makeupforever eyeshadow in a pink AND purple, hence I can re-create this look just using those 2, and let's not leave out the Violet pigment which can also add to it.

Don't get me wrong, the colors in this palette are drop dead gorgeous right when you open it, even when you swatch them; but it's a bit TOO colorful in the sense that I won't use it as much, as I see myself only carrying the smokey eyes palette in my purse. I might just go back and get the warm eyes palette too!

FOTD- Using MAC Holiday Smokey Eyes Palette

*Special thanks* to sugababy77 who wrote me such a sweet email! She said to just keep doing videos and to not worry about making mistakes, etc because we are all here to learn makeup and no one is perfect, she made a really good point. I am STILL hesitant about videos, but at least I am comfortable making a fool out of myself haha. Thanks again! I will try and get over my "video fear"...lol

Sorry gals I was in a hurry last night in doing my makeup, it was my best friends birthday dinner so I came home from a long day at work and did it super fast. It's actually pretty similar to the Smoke Signals Quads, except in ONE palette, in case any of you are wondering. It seriously has remnants of "gentle fumes" and "smoking eyes".

I will also do a FOTD on the cool eyes palette (for you ladies who asked).

My eyes are always red, no I don't smoke out haha, my eyes hate this weather right now in Cali, and with the air quality from the fires (I am near Malibu), it's making my allergies act up!

What I used:

FACE:
- Philosophy Primer "On a Clear Day"
- Madminerals foundation in Light Medium (a tad bit light on me)
- Bronzer (unknown brand)
- Cheeks: MAC Blush in "Dame", Everyday Minerals in "Waffle Cone", MAC Tectonic as highlight

EYES:
- MAC Paint Pot in "Painterly"
- Antiquitease Mineralized Eyeshadow in "Silversmith"
- Royal Assets Palette in Smokey Eyes
- Indelible Gel Eyeliner in "Black Out"
- Dior Show Mascara

Lips:
- A beautiful pink color from the LA Girl Palette













I love the LA Girl Lip Palette!


And I am really loving Everyday Minerals blushes! Waffle cone is my favorite!

I had to do a googly face :)