Used It! August 2012

In August, I used up 8 full size products, an eyeshadow sample, and a pile of other random samples.

Aspirin* - used this primarily for face masks. Aspirin does make the skin nice and soft, but it's messy! Be prepared to shed white flakes on whatever you're reading while it sets.

Fyrinnae Calavera Cupcakes free sample. Beautiful shade, especially over a sticky base, but I like Chrome better for a silver.

Giovanni Direct Leave-In.* This used to be a HG product for me - when my hair was bra-strap length, it worked really well as both a conditioner and a styling product. I can't get it to work as well for waist-to-hip length hair. If you have mid-length (between armpit length and mid back) wavy or curly hair, you should give this a try.

Kenra Clarifying Shampoo.* This is really good for getting gunk off your hair, but I'm not sure it's better than cheaper products. I don't have the bottle because I transferred it into a smaller container when it was half gone.

Kiss My Face SPF 40*

Nuance Salma Hayek skin firming body creme.* I bought this because I really liked a sample packet. Liked enough to buy three of them. I did not notice any "firming" effects, nor did I expect to. It's a lotion, and an expensive one (for drugstore) at that. I'll break out the others when it's colder out, but by then, I'll be so sick of it I won't want to repurchase. Also - I HATE applying body lotion and being all sticky afterward.

Red lip franken.* I'm counting this as gone because I can't find the tube. I had a quarter inch left. It was a franken, so I can't make it again.

VO5 Blackberry Sage Tea conditioner*
VO5 Kiwi Lime Squeeze conditioner.* Both of these together ran me 1.26 plus tax. When I use these conditioners, I use a lot of them and go through them quite quickly. They work for me, provided I follow up with a leave-in, but I don't enjoy using them. I bought them because I didn't want to "waste" my "good" conditioner while I was using up a bunch of shampoo packets last month.

I also used up this pile of samples.
-Comfort Zone sample packets - I got these back in March when I got my facial. I used them to try to give myself a mini facial at home. I think the facial was successful in large part due to the skill of the esthetician, and she could have done amazing things with any product out there.
-Josie Maran Argan Bronzing Oil - not bad, but extremely messy to apply. Worked best with a drop mixed into foundation.
-Nars Sheer Glow and Sheer Matte foundation (Siberia) - slightly too light, also should have paid attention to the "sheer" part - too much so for me.
-Too Faced BB Cream (vanilla glow) - still too dark!
-Too Faced Close-Up foundation (vanilla creme, warm vanilla) - too dark, very yellow.

I was going for surly teenager...

Did I nail it?

Eyes are heavily foiled Fyrinnae Calavera Cupcakes on the lid, the orange shade from the Sephora Pantone quad in the crease, and the purple shade from the same palette in the outer V. I used Tarte Lights Camera Lashes mascara and some very light UD Perversion liner to finish it off.

Lips are Korres Purple Red lip liner topped with Evil Shades Zombie lipgloss.

Close up on the eye:

Used it!

-Fyrinnae Nijiro mini. Yes, I will buy this again, in full size. It's a really great warm ivory with rainbow sparkles. Can't complain!

-Aromaleigh Calendula (red with green duochrome). Can't buy again - did recently swap for UD Lounge, though, which is similar but more opaque. Love the color.

-Stila Kitten shadow sample card. I can see why everyone loves this shade so much. That said, I think it's a bit overpriced for what it is, especially since you get so much more of a very similar color in theBalm's MaryLou Manizer.

-UD Midnight Cowboy/Flipside sample card. First experience with Urban Decay's glitter problem. Yikes! I didn't have enough of Flipside to tell if I liked the opacity or not, but I did like the color. It wasn't special enough to get full size, at least not at full price.

-Too Faced Primed and Poreless sample. This stuff isn't bad - it seems to help more than other primers I've tried. I probably won't buy a full size, though, because I wasn't wowed by it. It has been helping my frankenfoundation look good (I mixed three products I didn't like much on their own, and it's turned out to be a relatively decent face base).


ES project pan - 8 gone - 4/8
Lip project pan - 5 gone - 1/5

127 items gone
45 full size items gone

Another FOTD - green and peach

This one is a couple months old.

I know the eye and lip stuff I used.

Eyes:
1. Lumene primer
2. Fyrinnae Nijiro in tear duct and to highlight
3. SN Superfly on lid
4. Aromaleigh greenbrier on outer V
5. UD Mildew to line
6. Lumene sensitive eyes mascara, blue.

Lips:
Hi-Fi Cosmetics Gin and Sin lip gloss.

Cheeks:
I'm pretty sure this is adorned with Grace's Radiant blush layered over SN's cream Devoted, but I could be wrong.

Basic advice on buying good product on the Internet

I wrote this on a forum I'm on after being surprised by the number of people recommending products by known repackagers (or people who just mix mica with a base). The member had also recommended EDM and Aromaleigh. The former I won't buy from, and the latter nobody can anymore. :(

Anyway, I thought it was a helpful summation of everything I know about how to buy good makeup over the Internet.

"I don't shop at Everyday Minerals anymore, and haven't in over a year. This is why.

Aromaleigh is also closed now, she started the process over the summer. I'm still pretty bummed about that.

Other companies I've personally found trustworthy and high-quality:
1. Fyrinnae - hands down your best choice for bright eyeshadow
2. adorned with Grace minerals (excellent foundations for warm toned fair-to-medium ladies, wonderful blushes)
3. Silk Naturals - excellent everything, also has lip stuff and skin care.
4. Hi-Fi cosmetics (etsy) - good stuff!
5. Darling Girl cosmetics (ecrater) - she's new to the game, but her stuff is really, really good.
6. Meow (though you want to wait for their free shipping specials - normally they gouge you on that)
7. Sassy Minerals (I forgot this one in the post, but I have stuff I'd like to get from them.)

Some new ones I've heard positive things about from bloggers I trust but haven't tried yet because I have bills to pay instead: Brazen Cosmetics, Shiro Cosmetics, Scaredy Cat cosmetics, Sobe botanicals

This is an old post by Phyrra, but it's a helpful guide to seeing if the company you want to buy from is a good bet.

You ALWAYS want to google a new-to-you company plus the word "repackage" because otherwise you might end up paying top dollar for unblended mica, which will fall off if you don't have a base and means that the "creator" hasn't been doing anything more "creative" than transferring powder from baggies into jars and "creating" the idea that she made them herself. If you want unblended mica, you can get entire tablespoons direct from the supplier, TKB trading. The TABLESPOON of product in their smallest size only costs $1.50, so you could get 14 colors and just meet the order minimum.

Also, some companies have been remarkably unscrupulous in selling unsafe product, harming people, and somehow getting away with it. This post by Ana of Lipsticks and Lightsabers horrifies me in more ways than one."

More things I've used up!

1. Cozy Moments shampoo bar sample. Not for me. I have two shampoo bars from other companies I'll be getting to later, after I finish my sample packets. I hope they work better. And I used an acidic rinse, too!

2. Aveeno moisturizing conditioner sample packet. Way more coney than I usually go for (I leave the silicones for leave-ins and avoid them during my showers).

3. Fyrinnae Arcane Magic Greenman's Magic sample. Pretty nice - I have so many golds and stuff that I should probably not repurchase. Lovely color anyway.

Used up some more eye samples!

In the past few days, I've gone through a bunch of eye samples. And some other stuff. :)

1. Fyrinnae Griffonrider (Sample jar) Medium-light gold with blue shimmer. Not bad, but for gold, I prefer Polar Bear.

2. Silk Naturals Nekkid (Sample baggie decant) Flesh toned, good wash color. I think I liked Sassy Minerals Pixie Dust, which was similar in color but slightly more interesting, better.

3. NYX Jade (Sample decant of loose powder). Bright green, best used as an eyeliner. I have a pencil the same color, though. (Also, I cheated on this one and used some of it in a frankenpolish).

4. Fyrinnae Fluff (10g jar). Translucent powder. Good stuff, but since learning silica works well for me, in the future I'll probably make my own.

5. Carol's Daughter Hair Milk (sample packet). DO NOT LIKE. The lemongrass smell isn't great. At all. It kind of made me want Thai food immediately. Also, I looked up the ingredients later - it has beeswax in it (in a hair product? Who knew?). That explains why my neck's been itchy lately. I also didn't like how it makes me need to wash my hair sooner. When will I learn that my hair does not like product?




I finally got around to swatching some new stuff (including the HiFi review packet). Will post pics in a few days. Reviews to follow.

Reviews and hauls to come!

I've been going a little crazy with shopping lately, probably in reaction to the drought while I was unemployed. I got some new Urban Decay stuff, made a small Aromaleigh order with the sale they just had, a small Fyrinnae order because I was out of velvet gel primer, a Silk Naturals order (mostly for skincare and lip stuff), and today I took advantage of the adorned with Grace blog special to get some stuff I'd been wanting.

I'll probably take photos soon, then wait and do a review a week with them.

What would you like to know about what I ordered?

Mini-haulettes!

Recently, I made two of the world's tiniest makeup orders ever. Like, seriously tiny.

I wanted to double check my foundation shade at adorned with Grace, pick up some clearance eyeshadow, and try out their new Merciful color corrector in Apricot.



Franchesca threw in samples of Merciful corrector in yellow and pink, too! The eyeshadow, Enthralling, was a free sample in my last order. I didn't have much in the way of yellow, so I snapped up five sample baggies for 1.63 - when decanted into a 3g jar, you end up with slightly more than a Fyrinnae sample.



I also wanted to find out what all the fuss about Sassy Minerals, a new player to the game, was about. So I ordered Warm Fair foundation and a sample of Gasoline Rainbow eyeshadow. They threw in samples of Warm Light foundation and Apparition eyeshadow. Good thing, too, because Warm Light is a much better match for me, and Apparition is pretty nice. Haul pictured below with two Fyrinnae colors that looked similar.


As you can see, Gasoline Rainbow and Fyrinnae Immortality are pretty similar - GR has more brightly colored shimmer, and I think I like it better. Apparition, on the other hand, is a very different beast from Fyrinnae Equality. Apparition looks lavender in some light, is more metallic than sparkly, and doesn't have Equality's rainbow shimmer. They are both really nice colors, though I have to quit with the gray shades, because they're not the best on me (but I love them anyway!).

EOTD - over the rainbow

I was inspired by two videos to do this look, the tutorial below I saw on YouTube, and the eyeliner videos Blix posted to her blog (http://themoonmaiden-blix.blogspot.com/2010/02/winged-eyeliner-tutorials.html):


Here it is: you can see that I went a little heavier on the green and blue and less heavy on the red than the original.




Products used:
Fyrinnae Shadow Primer all over lid and under lashline
Fyrinnae Pixie Epoxy all over lid and under lashline
TKB Trading Pops Micas (I've mixed mine with a bit of Fyrinnae Oil Control Powder for better adhesion)
-tangerine on inner third
-lemon drop on middle third
-green apple on outer third
-blueberry on outer V and under outer lower lashline
-grape in outer corner (just a little) and on middle lower lashline
-raspberry on inner lower lashline
-strawberry on inner crease
Silk Naturals Sonic to highlight
Physician's Formula Shimmer Strips for Blue Eyes liner - the black one
Gabriel Color Mascara in Black Brown - upper lashes only

Normally, I use two or three colors, not eight! But it was fun!

EOTD - matte bright blues

Recently, I wanted to recreate the look in my userpic - a matte blue look that I have a lot of fun with.




Products used:
Fyrinnae shadow primer
EDM Carpool on inner part of lid
Fyrinnae Looking Glass on middle and outer part of lid
Pure Luxe China Blue in crease
Pure Luxe Glory to line
SN Sonic to highlight
Gabriel Color mascara in black brown

What do you think? Tightlining might have made a big difference, but I wear contacts and my eyes are really sensitive, so I usually stay away from that.

EOTD - Silk Naturals neutral look

Here's a look I did a bit ago with Silk Naturals stuff. I wanted something neutral with a little bit of drama.




Products used:
Fyrinnae shadow primer
Silk Naturals Sonic to highlight and on inner third of lid.
Silk Naturals (GWP) Bubbly on outer two thirds of lid.
Silk Naturals (GWP) 9:59 in crease.
EDM Samba Lessons to line.
Gabriel Color mascara in black brown.

EOTD - bright green!

Here's a look I did with bright greens!




Products used:
Too Faced Shadow Insurance (still working on that free sample!)
Fyrinnae Pixie Epoxy in outer part of lid
Silk Naturals Sonic as highlight
Silk Naturals Lime on inner lid
Fyrinnae We're All Mad Here on outer lid
Aromaleigh Gothic Lolita collection Divine Intervention mixed with Silk Naturals Mixing Medium on lower lashline and in outer crease.
Gabriel Color mascara in Black Brown.

This looked way better in daylight than it did in my bathroom - I really need to take better pics.

I'm still undecided on the mixing medium - it seems great for a sheer application, but I haven't been able to figure out how to make a brightly foiled color with it yet.

Some thoughts on finishing powders

Someone over at Chanty's mineral makeup forum posted a question about finishing powders, which got me thinking about the ones I've tried. Here's my thoughts on them:


1. EDM's (discontinued) Silk Powder - I loved this. It was the first EDM product I ever used a full size of up, and I got it at the same time as the Natural Reflections, in my first non-sample EDM order.

2. TKB Trading Micronized Silk Powder - got this because I loved EDM's and couldn't get it anymore. The tablespoon sample baggie and a 25g jar to put it in cost me less than an EDM sample. I reach for this most of the time now, and when I run out, it's only $1.50 for a new baggie (though the company has a $20 order minimum, but I always want at least that much stuff from them).

3. EDM's Natural Reflections (light) - I haven't noticed any good oil control benefits or that it sets my makeup particularly well, but I do use it for added sun protection. I'm down from a full size jar to a 10g size jar. It was one of the first EDM products I bought in a full size.

4. Fyrinnae Fluff. I have a 10g jar, which is fine as I don't use it often, but it has a blurred soft-focus effect. I can toss it and a baby buki in my bag if I need to touch up later. I've also used it without makeup to reduce shine and blur imperfections.

5. EDM's Start-to-Finish Kaolin. I disliked this enough to give it away mostly full. I don't think my face likes kaolin.

6. Fyrinnae Oil Control mineral powder. I bought this in a full size and wish I hadn't. Again, my face doesn't like kaolin. I should have known. I am using it as a base for DIY eyeshadow projects.

7. Physician's Formula MineralWear pressed powder. I used this for years, but it irritated my skin. Maybe I should have tried it with better brushes, but I think it might have been the product.

In the distant past, I also tried the Corn Silk powder in the blue compact (grainy and itchy making!), and Bonne Bell used to make pressed powder that I used in my teens. At one point, I tried Cover Girl's loose powder and it was also ok, if nothing special.

I am expecting to get one of Physician's Formula new precious gems pressed powders (no scary ingredients!) sometime soon, and I am also waiting on a sample of SN's Date Bait.

I currently own the TKB Trading silk powder, EDM Natural Reflections Light, Fyrinnae Fluff, and Fyrinnae Oil Control Mineral powder.

EOTD - New Year's Eve eyes

Just for fun, I took pictures of the eye look I did for New Year's Eve. I'm pretty proud of it as it's one of the fanciest looks I've done and it worked pretty nicely. Maybe it was too much for the small party with friends I went to, but both the eyes and the party were a lot of fun.

Eye open:


Eye closed:


Products used:
Too Faced Shadow Insurance on entire lid (free sample from Sephora, woot!)
Fyrinnae Pixie Epoxy on lower lashline, lid, and just above the crease.
Meow ScandalEyes Traci L. on inner third of lid.
Fyrinnae Equality on outer two thirds of lid.
Fyrinnae Immortality as upper liner and above the outer crease.
Silk Naturals Sonic to highlight (I am almost out of this sample baggie!)
Meow VandalEyes Breaking and Entering to line lower lashline (I like this color but want to buy a green liquid liner instead of purchasing a full size - it migrated later in the day)
Gabriel Color Mascara in Black Brown.

I liked this because it was dramatic without being overpowering for my fair skin and it brought out my blue eyes.

What did you do for New Year's?

Makeup craft: pressing your own eyeshadow!

I've been interested in pressing my own makeup since the summer, but didn't try it until early November, when I made the first palette. I made the second palette a month later.

One of the things that put me off originally was the high cost - a 15-well palette with tins is about 8 bucks at Coastal Scents, and I wanted to press more than that.

So, I decided to improvise. I bought two 12-shadow palettes at the dollar store, scooped out the product, cleaned them with rubbing alcohol and cotton swabs, and had palettes for cheap! Since I was pressing directly into the palette, they didn't turn out as pretty as they might have had I had the pans out of the palette.

I used Fyrinnae's Powder Modifier and rubbing alcohol for this project. Each tin holds half a 5g jar worth of product - I mixed directly in the jar with a toothpick, or the little plastic scoops from TKB trading. Each jar took about 8 drops of Powder Modifier and 10+ of alcohol. I find it easier to make a soupy mess the consistency of Oobleck than to press crumbles. I pour the eyeshadow Oobleck into the tin, smooth out, come back a couple hours later, press with a piece of cardboard cut to the size of the tin and wrapped in plastic wrap, then press with a cotton pad to absorb some of the extra alcohol and leave the pattern. No pics of the process, my hands were all dirty! You might want to wear gloves.

Note: this works well for shimmer and pearl shadows, not so hot for mattes.
Also note: I pressed some micas from TKB trading into a sample jar (green and blue jar in one of the pics from my collection post), and got a crumbly semi-solid mess. Pressing a Pure Luxe shadow gave me similar results. Pressing a bit and seeing how it acts is a good way to find out if your product is a finished shadow or straight mica.

Here's the palette as purchased from the store - I would never wear this stuff, it was too stinky! (I hate synthetic fragrance in my makeup)


Here's the first palette I did - names of colors written on plastic cover sheet.


Here are the swatches, over ELF mineral primer:


Here's the second palette: Top row - EDM Samba Lessons, mix of TKB trading Libra Blues mica and EDM Aussie, lighter mix of the same, mix of EDM Flannel PJs and TKB trading Libra Blues. Middle row: EDM Volcano Blossom, darker mix of Volcano Blossom and Aussie, lighter mix of Volcano Blossom and Aussie, mix of Aussie and EDM Champagne. Bottom row: Mix of Volcano Blossom and Libra Blues, Mix of Pure Luxe Chocolate Grapes and Chocolate Blueberries (note crumbliness), mix of Flannel PJs, EDM Walkee Talkee, and EDM Movie Night, mix of Walkee Talkee and Movie Night.


Swatches! (over ELF mineral primer, as always)


And for size comparison purposes, a pic of one of the palettes next to a 25 g jar from EDM.

A couple quick things:

I have a cold and don't feel much up to anything besides the Internet, but I had a couple quick things to share:

1. Yesterday, I used my Fyrinnae eye primer on one lid and my E.L.F. mineral primer on the other lid under EM's 11:59 shadow. At the end of the day, there were fewer sparkles on the Fyrinnae side, but the E.L.F. side had had some shadow migration. I think I vote for sparkle loss over loss of evenness. At least the Fyrinnae lid looked consistent, and I can use their Pixie Epoxy to cement the sparkles on.

2. I also ordered some tiny hauls from Aromaleigh and adorned with Grace Minerals. From Aromaleigh, I'm getting three Opulent Lustre samples, two Rocks! sonic samples, two Gothic Lolita eye samples, and a sample of their lightest warm shade in each foundation formula. From adorned with Grace, I'm getting foundation samples in Love 3.0 and Faith 3.0, samples of Beautiful and Wonderful blushes, and a full-size clearance set of three eyeshadows - all blues mixed with browns and silvers. Total damage? $18.29. awG offers free shipping domestically on everything, and Aromaleigh offers free shipping on samples-only orders, plus the ability to pick three free eye color samples per order.