Bohemian Queen Using Only Drugstore Products!

A few weeks back, my friend Alana (who did a guest blogger post about a year ago) requested I do a look inspired by the lovely Stevie Nicks. It's so funny to me when I do looks like this, because I feel like other people look absolutely lovely with this kind of makeup, but it's not something I normally gravitate towards! However, I think the soft and smokey style of Stevie Nicks is timeless, and can easily be worn during the day, or smoked up even more for a fun night look! For this tutorial, I chose to stick with only drugstore products, aside from my brows, so everything I used is super affordable and easy to get a hold of!

My look was inspired by this video, but I also screencapped a couple shots for reference!

Oh the 80s...How I could never pull of that hair.

To start out this look, I used my Rimmel Scandaleyes Shadow Stick in "Bulletproof Beige" as a base all over my lid, stopping at the crease, and using my fingers to blend the product out. Then, I took my Wet n Wild Color Icon Eyeshadow Collection in "Comfort Zone" and used the left browbone shade all over my lid, covering up the "Bulletproof Beige" pencil. Then, I took the left eyelid color and patted this on the outer third of my lid, as well as taking it through the crease to warm up the eyes a bit more. Then, I took the left crease shade, and buffed that into the outer V, to really help smoke out the look a bit more. To help define the crease a little more, I used the Milani Eyeshadow in "Bella Caffe" and really blended this through the crease on top of that bronzey pink shade. For my brow bone highlight, I decided to stay matte, since all of the lid shades are generally shimmery, and i used the Milani Eyeshadow in "Bella White," as well as using that in my inner corner for a pop of white.

For the smokey liner, I used the left definer shade on an angled brush and smudged that along the outer parts of the upper and lower lash line, stopping about halfway in. Then, I took a small pencil brush and smudged out that definer shade, to really help smoke the look out. If you wanted to wear this on a night out, I would definitely recommend using this shade in the outer corner to help deepen it up, but for the sake of this tutorial, I only used it as a smudgy liner. On my waterline, I used my Rimmel Scandaleyes Kohl Kajal in "Nude," and then finished off the eyes with a few soft layers of the Maybelline The Mega Plush Mascara.

Since I didn't want to contour for this look, I used a concealer to highlight the high points of my face -- almost like a backwards contour. The concealer I used was the Maybelline Fit Me Concealer, and I used this under my eyes, on the high points of my cheekbones, down the bridge of my nose, and on my cupid's bow. For blush, I used the Milani Baked Blush in "Luminoso," and, in a very 80s fashion, used this almost like a contour, and placed it in the hollows of my cheeks, blending upward. It helps to add just a subtle warmth to the cheeks without becoming overpowering!

For my lips, I used my Maybelline Color Senstational Lip Liner in "Rose," lining my lips and filling them in. To imitate Stevie's naturally pouty lower lip, I very slightly over lined my lower lip, drawing just outside of my natural lip line. To add a gentle shine, I used my Burt's Bees Lip Shine in "Blush."

I hope you enjoyed this look! I'm sure it's definitely a bit different than what you normally see on my blog, but I think it's definitely fun to try to branch out and play a bit more with makeup!

- D.

Swatch Fest + First Impressions!

So if any of you follow me on Tumblr, you'll know I've been sick in bed for about a week now. I picked up some horrific cold or flu or something and it just won't go away. And it has led me to online shopping, which is dangerous for a shopaholic like me. What's even more dangerous is telling me that it'll be good for me to get out of the house when I have a $4 off $20 coupon PLUS $5 in ExtraCare bucks at CVS.

...oops? So, as requested, here's a haul of what I bought (not all of it, because like I said, online shopping is dangerous), as well as swatches and my first impressions. All of these swatches were done with no primer underneath.

So these first products were labeled as new products. They were also on the display for new items. And I had never heard of it or seen it anywhere, so I figured, hey, it must be new! Nope. Apparently, these eyeshadow palettes from Wet n Wild that I picked up are actually from the Fall/Winter 2013 collection. These were released with the "In The Spotlight" collection, and because they were limited edition, I can't link you to any where that you can find them. Let's start with the major disappointment called "Lights, Camera, Attraction."

Looks gorgeous, right? I was hoping that cobalt blue would make this palette worth the $4.99, but sadly, it was a total flop. There's just not much to say about these. The only shadows with any real pigmentation were the mattes, but they're extremely chalky. Honestly, not only was this palette horrible unpigmented, it just came off extremely...80s glam. I was hoping for a smokier, richer kind of look.

No wonder I never heard about these palettes...I even tried it with primer, and with my NYX Jumbo Pencil in "Milk", and no luck at all. But then I moved on to "No Neutral Ground."

I bought this palette with hopes that it would definitely play up my brown/hazel/amber/"I don't actually know what color my eyes are" eyes. The lower right hand matte color is actually a deep forest blue-green and isn't showing up true to color, but the rest are.

THIS is more of what I was expecting. The mattes are still a little bit chalky, but they don't just brush away like the others. Still not quite the quality I'd expect from Wet n Wild, but hey, for $4.99, I'll take it. The purple shade almost reminds me of a less-pigmented version of "Candied Violet" from the Chocolate Bar palette.

Now I have found the new love of my life: the Milani Baked Blushes. I picked up two different colors, one in "Luminoso," and the other in "Bella Rosa." "Luminoso" is an absolutely gorgeous shimmery coral color. The best part about it is that it isn't glittery at all. It's very smooth and blends nicely. And "Bella Rosa," while a bit out of my comfort zone, is going to be fantastic for the summer. I recently read that the matte baked blushes, "Bella Rosa" and "Delizioso Pink," are new releases. If that's the case, Milani has seriously hit a home run with the matte baked blushes, because after swatching "Bella Rosa," I'm dying to go get the other!

Moving on to Maybelline, I picked up a Maybelline Eye Studio Color Tattoo Metal in "Inked in Pink," which I had been hoping to pick up for a while now. Every time I went in to purchase it, though, it was sold out! Go figure. I love pale pink champagne colors as an all over wash of color, and I feel like this cream shadow is going to be getting a lot of use.

(Although for the life of me I couldn't get a good swatch photo of it...)

I also debated on whether or not to re-purchase my beloved Maybelline Volum' Express The Mega Plush Mascara. It has been needing to be replaced for a while now, and I wasn't sure if I should just re-purchase it, or try something new. Well, I ended up deciding to try something new. I finally gave in and purchased Maybelline Volum' Express The Rocket Mascara. I've been resisting this mascara for quite some time now, although I'm not sure why, and I finally just decided to follow the hype! I haven't had the chance to try it yet, but who knows, maybe I'll be a convert.

These are two new products from Rimmel that I've been pretty excited about. I was on a mad hunt for the the Rimmel BB Cream Matte in "Light." Already, I can tell you one major downfall with this product -- there are only two shades: "Light" and "Medium." From what I've read, the UK also has "Very Light," but I mean, can we get some color range here? But any kind of BB cream or tinted moisturizer that claims to be matte has me curious. I also recently picked up the Rimmel Stay Blushed! Liquid Cheek Tint in "Peach Flush," and really ended up liking it. So I decided to pick up another one in "Pop of Pink." 

Clearly that swatch is unblended, but I think this will look absolutely gorgeous under the "Bella Rosa" blush I mentioned above, and will also look amazing alone. These cream blushes are great for a subtle, natural looking blush! 

The last few things I picked up aren't all that exciting, but I thought I'd tell you about them anyways. I've been in need of a new Jack Black Intense Therapy Lip Balm and I finally found the "Shea Butter & Vitamin E" variety! This one always seems to be sold out when I'm looking at them, and this was the last one left. This stuff is my holy grail, my stuck-on-a-deserted-island product. Because, if they find me dead on a deserted island, at least they'll find me with hydrated lips. I also picked up the Rimmel Eyebrow Pencil in "Hazel," which is a great affordable alternative to the more expensive brow pencils, as well as a basic but essential NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil in "Milk."

I promise I'll be back to my regular blogging as soon as I'm feeling 100% again. I feel like I've been totally slacking in terms of content in the past month or so. I have quite a few things planned, though, so keep an eye out for new posts coming soon!

- d.