Unzip the LORAC Palette for this Look of the Day

I kinda like the title of this post.  Slightly witty, I think.  The LORAC Unzipped Eyeshadow Palette is really really nice.  The shadows are lovely to work with, and there is a nice mix of mattes and shimmers/metallics.

Another Vice 3 Look of the Day and a Matt Groening Reference

Hey peeps!  Wuzzon?  It's been a while, huh?  Anyhow, I thought I'd share a face of the day with you that I did a few weeks ago (that's how far behind I am).

Favorites of March 2015

It's (kind of) the beginning of a new month.  You know what that means.  Favorites time.

Michigan State Basketball Final Four Look of the Day (featuring Emma)

MSU is playing in the Final Four (the semi-final game in the NCAA basketball tournament) this evening, so I absolutely had to use some green and white eyeshadows today.  I went rather dramatic with this look.

Another Face of the Day with the Vice 3

I still can't keep my hands off the Urban Decay Vice 3 Palette.

Chicago Travel Makeup Bag

I just got back from a trip to Chicago with my family (minus my husband because he had to work (sad face)), and I thought I'd show you what I took in my makeup bag.  If I showed you my skincare, this post would take forever to read.  Besides, I like looking at travel makeup bags more than travel skincare stuff.

Happy Halloween (Fashion and FotD)

It's finally Halloween!  Time to binge on candy and horror movies!

I didn't do any unusual costume or makeup this year, but I went with a bit of a spiderweb theme for my clothes and jewelry for the day.

I just did some (what I think are) awesome smokey eyes for my makeup.

I used:
     from the Urban Decay Naked Palette--Naked (matte tan) in the crease
                                                                   Creep (sparkling dark gray) in the outer and inner corners
                                                                   Virgin (shimmery shell) under the brows
     from the Too Faced Pretty Rebel Palette -- Miss Sparkles (sparkling black) in the outer v
     Fyrinnae loose pigment in Velvet Vampire (sparkly rust red) in the center of the lid
   

I followed the same pattern as the upper lid on the lower lashline.

from left: Naked, Creep, Virgin, Velvet Vampire, Miss Sparkles

Velvet Vampire, Miss Sparkles (swatched dry 'cause that's how it used 'em)

  LORAC Front of the Line PRO Liquid Eyeliner in black along the upper lashes
  Urban Decay 24/7 Eyeliner in Perversion on the waterlines
  Mally Voluminizing Mascara in Black

Cheeks: BFTE Babycakes Blush

Lips: MAKE UP FOR EVER Rouge Artist Natural in N9

from left: BFTE Babycakes Blush, MUFE Rouge Artist Natural in N9

This photo makes it look like I put my blush on weird and unevenly, but it's just the lighting.  I swear.

I found some cool nail stickers (the kind that are nail polish in sticker form, so they are long-lasting).

I kinda wish I had attempted some "spiderweb" eyeliner.

Did you dress up for Halloween?

P.S. The weather here was miserable for trick or treating (37°F and rainy).  Many of the kids that visited my house were wearing mittens.

Opening Opera Night in Detroit

The 2014-2015 opera season in Detroit has started!  Saturday was opening night, and the Richard Strauss opera Elektra is the first opera of the season.

Elektra is the story of a woman who is determined to kill her mother (Klytemnestra) and her mother's lover (Aegisth) for murdering her father (Agamemnon).  She enlists the help of her brother (Orest), but her sister (Chrysothemis) just wants a normal life with a husband and children.  Elektra's family tree looks something like this (she and her siblings are all the way at the bottom):

The scrim was painted to look like the family tree scrawled on a chalkboard.

The opera is quite interesting in that it is presented in one act with no intermission.  Elektra is on stage through the entirety of the opera.  It requires a soprano with great stamina and vocal range.  Christine Goerke was fabulous as Elektra.  Seriously sublime.

Elektra is a nicely "heavy" opera in the sense that it is both a tragedy and the music is kind of bombastic and grand.  I always describe this kind of music as the kind that "makes you feel like your stomach is being pulled out through your nose."  I felt slightly wrung out after the opera.  Love it!

Elektra's dress is all bloody!

The opera house was showcasing some of the costumes from this season, including Elektra, Madame Butterfly, and The Merry Widow.

I'm looking forward to The Merry Widow for the costumes alone.

Now, because this is a beauty blog, here are some photos of the makeup I wore on my face:

I'm not sure what happened with the lips in this picture.

On the eyes: Darling Girl loose pigment in Jeweled Taupe on the moving lid
                     from the LORAC PRO Palette
                               -- mix of Mauve and Sable in the crease
                               -- Nude in the inner corner by the tear duct
                               -- Cream under the brow
                     Physicians Formula 2-in-1 Lash Boosting Eyeliner liquid liner in Ultra Black
                     Tarina Tarantino Hyperliner eyeliner in Tommy Jet on the lower lashline
                     L'Oreal Voluminous Butterfly Mascara

Blurry to show the sparkle!

from left: DGC Jeweled Taupe (swatch over Fyrinnae Pixe Epoxy because that's how I wore it), LORAC PRO Palette Mauve, Sable, Nude, Cream

Look at that sparkle!

P.S. Pardon the super shiny forehead -- I remebered to apply my Mally Poreless Face Defender AFTER I took the pics, and I didn't have time to retake the photos.  I don't retouch my photos either (unless I'm attempting to make the colors more true to life).

Cheeks: NYX Powder Blush in Taupe to contour under the cheekbones
              Hourglass Ambient Lighting Blush in Luminous Flush

Lips: YSL Rouge Volupte Lipstick in Opera Rose (of course)

from left: NYX Taupe blush, Hourglass Luminous Flush blush, YSL Opera Rose lipstick

I'm sorry I didn't get a chance to take any photos of my husband and my parents.  Boooooo.  Next time for sure!

Elektra got rave reviews, and rightly so.  It was amazing.