Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Maybelline's Fit Me Foundation Review

I have since the early 90's when I started needing the occassional use of foundation to find just the right one, or at least one that I think works pretty great.  I did find what I thought was the gold of foundation once in a sample in vogue made by lancome (I think) and it was the first time I was introduced to a product that used light to help make it so good, it felt like mouse, so light on the skin you didn't even know it was there.  (note to self, use the internet to now find that foundation again) fast forward 20 years later and this product may no longer dance nicely with my 30 something skin, but in the mean time I have found one that I think is pretty good.

I recently purchased at Walmart a bottle of Maybelline's new Fit me foundation number 210 and I bought it just after I had had my baby and we were about to do a family photo shoot.  The pregnancy had left me face and neck with alot of undesired spots that I needed to cover up. Can I just say this stuff covers, really really well.  Its pretty smooth yet not as light as some whipped up foundations, it does have the consistency of most liquid foundations yet still feels a little lighter but not like cream, it blends into the skin really well either with a brush or your fingers, (I prefer finger application) there is no cakiness in any time lapse after application and I don't feel like I have a mask on.  Now......it doesn't feel as invisible as mineral foundation does, I can feel I have something on my skin but only when actually touch my face, to have it actually on my skin and move my face I don't notice its there.

Click picture to take you to Maybelline.ca
I also liked that it was really easy to pick my shade, their selection process is really easy to use and quick.  Once I picked my foundation it then tells me what powder and blush I should use.  I also like the powder.  Its well pressed in the compact and when you do put your brush to it, it doesn't come off overloaded.  I have found it works great to set foundation and concealer on the eyelid if I choose not to use a primer.  It sets very nice.

As I mentioned earlier, the product is not totally undetected so I wouldn't use it in an  environment where its going to be overly warm and I may perspire,  and that's just my personal preference to not feel like there is anything on my skin when in those environments, that's when I will stick to my mineral products, but for a night out on the town, when my make up application overall is going to be a little heavier anyway, this product is perfect to give you that wonderful clean canvas that make up loves to sit on top of.  For the price, its well worth it.

Sunday, September 18, 2011

Nina Dobrev Emmys Makeup



This look is really easy to do because its what I like to call a natural beauty enhancer, its not over done, but just emphasizes what is already beautiful on the face.  The colors are warm, and the palette is very often used by makeup artists for people wearing red.

What you will need:

eyes - a matte rust shadow - like MACs Rule
eyes - a matte dark brown shadow - like MACs Espresso
eyes - a matte black shadow - like MACs Carbon
eyes - a cream type liner  - like MACs Fluidline in Blactrack, anyone can do a cat eye with this
eyes - black pencil liner and white pencil liner
eyes - Black Mascara
eyes - Fake lashes (optional)
brows - a shadow that matches your brow colour
face - Bronzer to be used on temples, cheeks and for the shoulders, collar bone and cleavage
face - pressed powder for highlighting
face - Blush in a peachy coral color - like MACs Stunner or Peaches in powder form
lips - liner and tinted gloss - like MACs Boldy Bare pencil and Lusture Lip in Lishious

What to do:

Prepare the face with moisturizer, foundation and concealer (make sure you apply concealer and powder to the eye lid too if you are not using a primer, this will help the shadow last longer and prevent creasing and helps with blending) but if you can use primer, go for it. Also prepare the eyebrows by filling them in since this look does have a bold eyebrow.

1. Apply Rule to the entire lid from lash line to brow
2. Apply Espresso to the lid and into the crease
3. Apply Espresso again to the outter corner of the lid and bring it into about 1/4 of the lid, blend well and follow the shape of the outer eye socket to create a bit of a cat eye, achieve this with blending as opposed to creating a harsh line, you want to create smoke and smoke is created by diffusion of colour.
4. Take the carbon and with little product place it again on the outside corner of the lid, about 1/3 of the lid and blend out and up to darken the smoke, its important to add the black gradually since piling it on will be to harsh, remember diffusion.
5. Take your product like the fluid line and with a small angled lining brush line the upper lash line to the thickness you want keeping in mind how much of your lid is visible. Nina has it pretty thick, I wouldn't do this with the liner but then build up on it with more carbon afterwards so its not so harsh.
6. with an angled brush go over the fluid line with the carbon and create a slight flick for the cat eye.
7. Rim the top water line with black pencil eyeliner, and the bottom with white
8. Using a small eyeshadow brush, rim the lower lash line withe the carbon very close to the lash line and diffusing down.
9. If using fake lashes apply now and then apply mascara to top and bottom lashes

Apply bronzer to the temples and beneath the cheekbone and anywhere else that you need to create shade (jawline)

Apply the blush to the apples of the cheek and up toward the temple hairline
Apply a higlighter such as your pressed poweder in a  C formation on the top of the cheekbone and over the brow.

Line the lips softly using a lip brush to blend the line inward, and then apply the lip colour with a brush.

I have added a link to a video on youtube (not mine) that has a similar look which just so happens to be inspired by Nina, the application is pretty much the same, its just the colours are different, but its the placement that matters. The Makeup Chair

Get Nina's outfit look for much less

Now go paint the town red ;)