Pink and Purple for My Husband

My husband requested an eye look using pink and purple shades.  I was happy to do one.  Plus, I got to wear some fun pink earrings that kind of matched the shadows.

Affordable Face of the Day

I recently did a face of the day post using nothing but high end/expensive stuff, so I thought I'd do one using nothing but stuff available at the drugstore.

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).

Time for a "Merry" Opera

Ohhh long time no blog.  Well, it's only been about a week and a half, but it seems like a long time to me.  I'm also behind on reading and commenting on my favorite blogs.  Geez.

Anyhow, my parents, husband, and I went to see The Merry Widow by Franz Léhar at the Detroit Opera House about a week ago, and I thought I'd show you some photos of the evening.

Happy Easter Pastels FotD

To my readers who celebrate, happy Easter!  To those who don't, happy Sunday where everyone else is obsessed with pastel colors, chocolate bunnies, and eggs.  I don't really celebrate Easter anymore (we did do Easter-y stuff in my house when I was a kid) except maybe eat a Cadbury Creme Egg.  I did use a bunch of pastel shades for my makeup, and it seems kind of Easter-y.

Surprise the Dragon Look of the Day

It's a day that ends in "y", so I thought it would be appropriate to use the Urban Decay Vice 3 palette on my eyes.  This time I used some neutrals on the upper lid, and the bright green shade "Dragon" on the lower lashline.  I thought the green pop of color on the lower lashline was sort of a surprise, which is how I came up with the name of the post.

Perfect Pairing: Purple and Peach Look of the Day

Nice alliteration in the post title, eh?

I've been doing a "shop my stash" type of thingy lately (y'know, where you go through your collection and find something you haven't worn in a while and make it a point to use it).  One of the things I put in my "use this product" basket is Milani's Baked Blush in Luminoso.  Nikki from Nikki Tutorials has been raving about and using this blush a lot in her videos lately, and it made me want to pull it out, which then gave me the idea to "shop my stash."

Madame Butterfly in Detroit

I love how this look turned out.

So, what time is it?

Opera time!

Mulberry Nails and Look of the Day

There are times when I like being all match-y match-y with my makeup.  But instead of doing the traditional match-y match-y thing with my lips and nails, I decided to try to match my nails to my eyeshadow.

Butter London's Queen Vic is a wonderful berry shade that seems like a rather fall friendly color to me, and it's the shade I wanted to wear on my eyes, too.

Butter London Nain Lacquer in Queen Vic (sunlight)

So, the shadow I used doesn't match the nail color perfectly, but I liked the result nonetheless.

I used: from the Sephora Color Anthology Palette
                    --- berry purple on the moving lid
                    --- warm shimmery brown in the crease
                    --- light matte peach above the crease to blend out the brown
                    --- matte cream under the brow and inner corner

       
          Urban Decay 24/7 Glide on Eye Pencil in 1999
          Physicians Formula Eye Booster liquid eyeliner in Ultra Black
          Maybelline Full 'N Soft Mascara

from left: Sephora shadows, Urban Decay 1999 24/7 liner

Cheeks: Milani Baked Powder Blush in Berry Amore

Lips: NARS Lipstick in Dolce Vita

from left: Milani Berry Amore Baked Blush, NARS Dolce Vita lipstick

And then, later in the day, I decided to put on a berry lipgloss (MAKE UP FOR EVER lipgloss that was discontinued ages ago) just for the heck of it.

I think I look paler in this photo because I'm shiny and reflective (I didn't remember to reapply powder before I took it.)

The Sephora Color Anthology Palette was available around the holidays last year, but I snagged it on sale in the spring.  I noticed that Ulta has a palette on their website (by Beauty Gems) that looks exactly like it.  I suspect it is actually the same palette but without the Sephora nameplate on the front.

Earworm of the day: Lady Gaga's "Applause" -- it's on my workout playlist, and today it just stuck afterward.

Warm Browns With a Touch of Orange EotD with MUFE, Milani and Marc Jacobs

Yum.  Warm fall colors.

I used: from the MAKE UP FOR EVER Artist Palette
                  -- Celestial Earth (sparkly/shimmery warm brown) all over the moving lid
                  -- Pinky Beige (light shimmery shell) in the inner corner by the tear duct
           Mialni Bella Eyes Gel Powder Eyeshadow in Bella Mandarin in the crease
           Marc Jacobs Highliner Gel Eye Crayon in Brown(Out) along the upper and lower lashes
           Urban Decay Perversion Mascara

from left: Marc Jacobs eyeliner in Brown(Out), MUFE Celestial Earth eyeshadow, Milani Bella Mandarin eyeshadow, MUFE Pinky Beige eyeshadow

Marc Jacobs eyeliner in Brown(Out) -- Gah!  So gorgeous!

Have a wonderful autumn day!

P.S.  Did you notice the alliteration in the post title?

Look of the Day Gemstone Series: Garnet

The gemstone that inspired today's look is January's birthstone, garnet.

Garnets can be found in all colors of the rainbow.  According to the American Gem Society, the stone was named for its resemblance to a pomegranate seed (pomegranate's scientific name is Punica granatum --- so, it makes sense: granatum --> garnet).  There are six different species of garnet that differ from one another in chemical composition, but share similar physical characteristics and crystal forms.

According to Wikipedia, garnets have been in use as gemstones and abrasives since the Bronze Age (c. 3000 - 600 BC).  Crushed garnets are sometimes used to create "garnet paper", a kind of sandpaper which is primarily used for woodworking.

source: American Gem Society

Almandine garnets are most commonly used as gemstones, and they are the red color I imagine when I think of a garnet.

source gemselect.com

From the LORAC PRO Palette, I used the shadow called "Garnet" as it is the deep red color of an almandine garnet, and because it's named garnet.  ;)

I used Garnet on the outer 1/2 of the lid, crease, and lower lashline.

I used Nude on the inner 1/2 of the lid, under the brow, and in the inner corner.

I used Milani Shadow Eyez in Almond Cream on the lid as a base.

I added some of the L'Oreal Infallible eyeshadow in Glistening Garnet for a little extra color in the crease.  Yes, I also used it because it is named Glistening Garnet.

I also used L'Oreal Voluminous Butterfly mascara, Sonia Kashuk gel eyeliner in Ebony on the upper lashline, and Tarina Tarantino Hyperliner eyeliner in Tommy Jet on the lower waterline.

I kept my cheeks and lips neutral choosing Tarte Amazonian Clay Blush in Exposed, Milani Color Statement Lipliner in Nude, and Elizabeth Arden Ceramide Plump Perfect Lipstick in Perfect Blossom (discontinued).

Swatches:

from left: Milani Shadow Eyez in Almond Cream, LORAC shadow in Nude, LORAC shadow in Garnet, L'Oreal Infallible eyeshadow in Glistening Garnet

from left: Tarte blush in Exposed, Milani lipliner in Nude, Elizabeth Arden lipstick in Perfect Blossom

I think this is actually quite a wearable look.  The "Garnet" shade from the LORAC PRO Palette has enough brown in it to make it seem more neutral than it looks in the pan.  It may be my favorite color in the PRO Palette.

Thanks for checking out my garnet inspired look today!

Opal

Diamond

Citrine/Imperial Topaz

Emerald

Tanzanite

Ruby
Amethyst