Monochromatic Monday Series: Grey/Brown FOTD

When I was rifling through my weird lipstick stash (comprised of many jars and tubes of unconventional and unique lipstick colors), I felt inspired to try to do a new series (the operative word being try) where I will create a makeup look around a single color for eyes, lips, and nails. I want to use this to encourage the comfort level of people who own weird colors like this but may be reluctant to show them off. I have a lot of Limnit Lipsticks in weird colors so I'll be using a lot of them in this series and I'll also be including lip colors from other brands (including OCC Lip Tars). I'll be posting on Monday's but not every Monday (to avoid being monotonous!)

The first in the series is around the Limnit Lipsticks Lipstick in Goodness Graycious, which is a mixture of a clay brown with a deep grey. The eyeshadow paired with it is the Bare Escentuals 5 in 1 BB Cream in Divine Wine that despite the name, isn't a wine color. It's more of a pottery clay grey/brown that also pairs well with the nail polish which is China Glaze Channelesque. 

Grey/brown lipstick might not be for everyone, but it's just as unconventional as purple lipstick and that's been on trend lately.

Thanks for reading! I hope I'll be on track to continue this series!

5 Popular Makeup Products that Didn't Work Out (for Me)

I Purchased This Affiliate Links

I talk a lot about products that I enjoy on the blog but I think it's worth mentioning products that didn't work out for me. It's also worth talking about hyped up or popular products that just didn't agree with me for one reason or another. 

The first is the Anastasia Dipbrow. My fellow bloggers Alyson and Krissy have heard me lamenting about this product for days while I was at The Makeup Show LA. Sadly while it seems to agree with most people, its formula doesn't agree with me. It's difficult to use in my opinion because you have to pick up the tiniest amount. It melted and was easily wiped away on me after only a few hours. Not cool.

The next is the Make Up For Ever Aqua Liner in #11. While I adored the variety of colors available in the line, I didn't like removing the liner. It kept breaking off in shards as I removed it and overall was a painful experience.

The next is the Smashbox Photo Finish Foundation Primer - Light. I had hopes for this because it mentions being perfect for oily acne prone skin (which is what I have) but despite being primarily water based, it's also got silicone so it doesn't fare well with my water based or silicone based foundations. The primer didn't end up helping with oiliness or longevity. 

The next is the Tarte Lipsurgence pencils. I've tried a few but it smells like minty pencil bark to me (because it's got a very woody/herbal quality to the mint) so it was very unwearable to me, despite the colors and finishes available.

Lastly is  the Wet n Wild Mega Last Liquid Lip Color. This is a liquid to matte lip color that I had such high hopes for because it had been the only drugstore liquid to matte product at the time. Sadly the product didn't work out for me because it kept flaking from my lips so I'd get red flakes on my teeth as I wore it. 

How about you? Share any products you've used that didn't work out in the comments! 

Question of the Week #8: What's Your Favorite Mascara?

This week's Question of the Week is all about mascara. What's your favorite (or current favorite) mascara? I had mentioned my current favorite in my June Favorites post (but it bears repeating) and it's the Maybelline Falsies Waterproof Mascara. The mascara is fabulous for me when it comes to lengthening and adding volume and thankfully without the clumps.

What's your favorite or current favorite mascara? Be sure to answer in the comments!

ipsy Glam Bag july 2014 Overview and Swatches

I Purchased This Referral Link

I was really pleased with last month's Glam Bag but it seems like the pendulum is swinging back towards the dark side because I feel lukewarm about this month's bag. This month's theme is "Sensationally Sunkissed" and emphasizes products that you can use while in the sun and by the pool side. This month's bag is pink with a scalloped edge but I can't help but think that it looks like a ravioli. In this month's bag I received two full size and three mini items.

Inside my bag: Bare Escentuals 5 in 1 BB Advanced Performance Cream Eyeshadow (mini), Clear Clinic Laboratories Vanished Clear Spot Treatment (mini), Elizabeth Mott Tints & Sass in Cherry (full size), Hang Ten Dark Tanning Oil (mini), and Nailtini Nail Polish in Mango Rita (full size).

This month, the algorithm for ipsyMatch must have ignored my quiz because I got tanning and acne products in my bag. I'm not into tanning products with such a low SPF and I don't prefer getting such small samples of acne products, especially one in such an unhygienic packaging and with so much alcohol (the first ingredient is actually rubbing alcohol and it smells like rubbing alcohol)

I was hoping to get a full size of the Bare Escentuals Cream Eyeshadow but got a mini in the shade Divine Wine. In the tube, it looks like a deep grey plum and it initially applies like that on the skin. I noticed that as it dried, this shimmer was peeking through and when I rubbed my skin, this beautiful green highlight came out. I don't know if that's supposed to happen but it added a lot of depth to what I thought was a boring eyeshadow.

I didn't bother using the Clear Clinic Spot Treatment because I have no interest in dabbing rubbing alcohol on my skin to clear up my acne or the Hang Ten Dark Tanning Oil because SPF 8 is a joke. The Elizabeth Mott Tints & Sass is similar to the Benefit Benetint but has better packaging since it's in a spill-proof bottle with a doe foot applicator. 

Here's a FOTD using the Tints & Sass and Bare Escentuals Cream Eyeshadow.

I also wanted to show the Nailtini Nail Polish. I wasn't fond of the Nailtini nail polish. I thought that the long wand combined with a thinner polish meant that no matter how much I wiped off the brush tip, the polish would just flow down from the top of the wand.

July's ipsy Glam Bag Value: 

Bare Escentuals 5 in 1 BB Advanced Performance Cream Eyeshadow (Mini): 1 mL/.03 oz valued at $6.00
Clear Clinic Laboratories Vanished Clear Spot Treatment (Mini): 2 mL valued at $9.33
Elizabeth Mott Tints & Sass in Cherry (Full Size): 10 grams/ .35 oz valued at $22.99
Hang Ten Tanning Oil (Mini): 1 oz valued at $1.50

Nailtini Nail Polish (Full Size): .5 oz valued at $13.00

Total Bag Value: $52.82

Last month's Bag Value: $37.72.

Compared to last month's bag, this was a much better value (since the Elizabeth Mott Tints & is worth so much) but I felt that the products inside this bag ignored my preferences and included the tanning and acne products I didn't want. I'm still going to subscribe for next month's bag but I hope there are better picks inside.

If you'd like to subscribe to the ipsy Glam Bag, feel free to use my referral link which gives me points to redeem in products on the website. Otherwise, feel free to use a nonreferral link!