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.

MAKE UP FOR EVER Artist Palette Look 3

So, are you tired of seeing this palette in action yet?  I am still using almost every day.  I used the purple shades in the MAKE UP FOR EVER Artist Palette.  Sort of surprising I didn't use them first, huh?  I loooooove the sparkly purple called "Blueberry".

I used: from the MAKE UP FOR EVER Artist Palette
               --- Blueberry (sparkly purple) al over the lid
               --- Black Purple (deep blackened plum) in the crease, outer v, and lower lashline
               --- Milk Tea (matte tan) above the crease
               --- Pinky Beige (shimmery pink shell) in the inner corner
           Elizabeth Arden Beautiful Color Eyeshadow in Bone under the brow
           Tarina Tarantino Hyperliner eyeliner in Tommy Jet (black) on the waterlines
           L'Oreal Voluminous Butterfly Mascara

from left: MUFE Milk Tea, Pinky Beige, Blueberry, Black Purple, Elizabeth Arden Bone

Cheeks: NYX Blush in Taupe under the cheekbones to contour

              Too Faced Sweethearts Perfect Flush Blush in Peach Beach

Lips: Revlon Colorburst Lacquer Balm in Demure

from left: Too Faced Peach Beach blush, NYX Taupe blush, Revlon Lacquer Balm in Demure

Blurry to show some of the sparkle!

This is probably my favorite look so far.  I love purple shadows and sparkly shadows, so sparkly purple shadows make me go crazy with happiness.  I'm not sure how the name "Blueberry" was chosen for the sparkly purple shade, but it is cute.  I think they should have gone with "Purple Sparkly Goodness That Ingrid Will Love" for the name.

I've been a little erratic on the posting and reading my favorite blogs front, and I'm sorry about that. I'm hoping to get back to something a little more regular soon.  Thanks for sticking with me!!

MAKE UP FOR EVER Artist Palette Peacock Blue Eyes of the Day

I used the MAKE UP FOR EVER Artist Palette (surprise, surprise!) for today's eyes of the day.  The Peacock Blue shade in this palette is my favorite color in the palette, and is kind of what made me "need" the palette, rather than just want it really really bad.

I used: from the MAKE UP FOR EVER Artist Palette
                --- Peacock Blue all over the moving lid
                --- Milk Tea in the crease
                --- Pinky Beige un the inner corner by the tear duct

  Tarina Tarantino Hyperliner eyeliner in Tommy Jet on the lower waterline
  L'Oreal Voluminous Butterfly Mascara

This was really simple to create, but because Peacock Blue packs such a colorful punch, it looks rather dramatic.

Peacock Blue is a rockin' color, isn't it?

MAKE UP FOR EVER Artist Palette Look 2

Another look with the MAKE UP FOR EVER Artist Palette today.  This time I used the rich coppery gold and shimmery brown.

With flash:

Daylight bulb:

Natural light:

From the Artist Palette:
   Copper Red (metallic coppery gold) (ME-728) all over the moving lid
   Celestial Earth (shimmery dark brown) (D-652) in the crease and outer corner
   Black Purple (shimmery deep plum) (ME-930) on the lower lashline

from left: Copper Red, Celestial Earth, Black Purple

Tarina Tarantino Hyperliner eyeliner in Tommy Jet on the lower waterline
L'Oreal Voluminous Butterfly Mascara

Cheeks: Benefit Dallas Boxed Blush

Lips: Elizabeth Arden Ceramide Ultra Lipstick in Ginger

from left: Benefit Dallas, Elizabeth Arden Ginger lipstick

Lots of pics of this one.  I guess I liked it!

Have a fantastic day!

MAKE UP FOR EVER Artist Palette Look 1

I am really crazy about the MAKE UP FOR EVER Artist Palette I bought recently.  I have kind of been using it to the exclusion of all of my other eyeshadows since I got it.  I've decided to do a series of posts using it simply because I'm enjoying it so much.  I hope you don't get sick of seeing it... Here is the first look.

From the Artist palette:
   Milk Tea (matte light tan) (M-536) in the crease
   Olive Green (shimmery taupe) (I-550) on the moving lid
   Pinky Beige (shimmery light pinkish shell) (I-524) in the inner corner
   Peacock Blue (metallic peacock blue) (ME-230) on the lower lashline
   Black Purple (deep shimmery plum) (ME-930) on the upper lashline

from left: Milk Tea, Pinky Beige, Olive Green, Peacock Blue, Black Purple

Tarina Tarantino Hyperliner eyeliner in Tommy Jet on the lower waterline
Urban Decay Perversion Mascara

Cheeks: MAC Refined Golden Bronzer
              Too Faced Sweethearts Perfect Flush Blush in Peach Beach

Lips: Dior Addict Lipgloss in Bed of Roses

from left: Too Faced Peach Beach blush, MAC Refined Golden bronzer, Dior Bed of Roses lipgloss

Different lighting:

"Olive Gray" (the shimmery taupe, to my eye) is such a pretty color and really easy to wear.  Obviously, I could have left it simple with just that on the lid, but I thought the pop of color (I kind of hate that expression, but it's fitting) of "Peacock Blue" on the lower lashline provided a little bit of drama and visual interest.  I'll be the first to admit that I like smokey and dramatic eye makeup.

Stay tuned for another look using this palette tomorrow!

Thanks for reading and have a beautiful day!!