Trying a New Look

I never know how to dress at the end of August, early September.  The weather is cooler in the morning when I leave the house for work at 6am and somewhat cool when I leave to go home at 4:30pm but still warm during the day.  I'm so confused!  The same goes for my makeup.  I get so excited for Fall colors and sweaters but I'm not ready for the beautiful Summer weather to be gone.  Today, I thought I'd give my makeup a "goodbye Summer, hello Fall" look.  First, here is a before picture....CRINGE...

And all made up

The flash was really bright on the camera so you can't really see how saturated the color actually is but here is a list of the products i used.  First I applied the green Smashbox Photo Finish because I love the texture of this stuff and it helps to reduce the redness in my skin.  For foundation, I have a mixture of Makeup Forever HD in 120 & 123.  I contoured with Revlon PhotoReady foundation in 009 Rich Ginger.  I used this under my cheekbones, under my jawline, around my hairline and down both sides of my nose.  To highlight and conceal, I used MAC Prep+Prime in Light Boost.  This was used down the center of my nose and fanned out onto the lower middle part of my forehead and fanned under my eyes.  MAC Studio Mist Blush in Misty Pink was then applied only to the apples of my cheeks with a foundation brush and bronzer under my cheekbones (over the Revlon used to contour).  This was then all blended together with the Sephora Buffing brush.  On my eyes, I first used a very light layer of MAC Prep+Prime Eye in Light all over my eyelid up to my brow bone.  Then it was onto my eyeshadow.  I wanted to color to be very saturated so I first used MAC Paints in Bare Canvas on my eyelid only.  Stila Eye shadow in Barefoot Contessa was applied over that on my eyelid to just above my crease.  I contemplated using a dark grey for the outer crease area but since emerald green is the color of the year, I decided on Stila eye shadow in Jade - used just at the outer corner swept halfway across my crease.  For eyeliner, I used MAC Eye Kohl in Smolder.  I used this on the inner part of my upper and lower lash lines.  I curled my eyelashes and used a couple coats of Maybelline The Falsies mascara in Blackest Black.  I filled my eyebrows in with Revlon Brow Fantasy in Brunette.  I only use the pencil part of this - the gel is too dark for my taste, so I set my brows with Ardell Brow Sculpting Gel which is clear.  Since my eyes were more geared towards Fall colors, I decided to keep my lips summery with a peachy color, MAC in See Sheer topped with a Paula Dorf Lipsicle gloss.  I have no idea what the gloss name is but I a pink-ish brown.

Hope you like it, let me know what you think!

My Mascara Review

I know at this day and age, us ladies are supposed to be happy and comfortable in our own skin, but Come On! Who is actually 100% happy with themselves all the time? I can't think of anyone. One thing I'm not totally happy with are my eyelashes. They are thin, not too long and straight...and I cannot for the life of me get them to curl. Suffice it to say, I'm always on the lookout for a new mascara. I feel like I've tried them all. My two absolute favorites are Volum' Express The Falsies Flared in Blackest Black by Maybelline (I was NOT born with it) and False Lashes in Extreme Black by MAC . On a side note, these are MY reviews. What does or doesn't work for me may be completely different than you. Right now, I'm using False Lashes by MAC. It seems to be the mascara I always go back to when I've tried something that doesn't work. The pigmentation is beyond great and is a true black...some mascaras have a grayish tint to their black mascaras. The wand has a tapered brush so you don't hit your eyelid as you go close to your nose and it's packaged in a really cool tube. I know you shouldn't judge a book by it's cover, but I do love the way this one looks.

Again, these are my thoughts and what works and doesn't work for me. I tried Eyeko London Mascara Wardrobe - based on all their rave reviews. I was underwhelmed. It almost seemed like it was too heavy for my lashes and weighed them down more than normal. I also tried Origins GinZing Brightening Mascara ...again, underwhelmed. This one I had the biggest issue with. Not only did it weigh my lashes down, but it didn't look like I was wearing mascara after the first layer was on. Maybe I'm spoiled because I'm used to MAC and Maybelline needing only one layer but Origins just didn't do it for me. I could very well be in the minority on this because this is another one that got great reviews, but I just wasn't crazy about it.

What are some of your favorites? I'd love to hear from you all!