Monday, September 27, 2010

review: maybelline eyestudio quad in copper chic


these maybelline quads have been all over blogs and youtube, so it won't surprise me if you own/want these. i only own one in copper chic. i would say it is the most neutral quad out of the color range since it has only brown/bronze tones, no bright colors.



everytime i use this quad (i do the same look/technique) i get a compliment by strangers, my friends, my family...etc. its pretty funny since the look is super simple! all i do is mix two of the colors together and apply all over the lid. thats it. i sometimes add little extra steps when i have time.


the colors are a shimmering off white highlight color, an all over lid pinky copper, a bronze crease/under the bottom lashes color, and a deepen teak brown for outer v definition.

the two colors i mix for the all over lid color (pictured) is the deep teak color and the all over pinky copper color. if i have time ill smudge the bronze right under my bottom lashline and add the highlight to my inner corners. add several coats of mascara and some eyeliner and...

voila! simple easy neutral look.

this quad retails for about 6-9 USD. you can get this at any drugstore. i would repurchase this again since the colors arent chalky or overy shimmery (beside the highlight color, it is a bit frosty but easily remedied by blending out). there is no fallout and the colors do not crease on me if i use a primer.

the texture of the shadows is actually really smooth and easy to blend. perhaps a little too easy to blend since sometimes i find when i do my normal blending out the color disappears a bit and i have to add more product. overall i am satisfied with the product and i am willing to go out and try other shades (perhaps green with envy next? :))

do any of you own these quads?

Thursday, September 23, 2010

my chosen makeup lately....

eep, i am behind on updating. sigh. ill be posting swatches/pictures of things ive acquired lately. but for now, i thought id post about a select few products i have been using everyday. i call these products my lazy/tired/fast products. i either use a couple/some/all of these products when i wake up too late for work or class or when i just feel too tired to rummage through all the other products i have. its fast, it still looks put together, and it looks very natural. i dont have a picture at the moment of me wearing a look with these products but eventually i will :)


starting from topmost left going clockwise: mac ccb in hush, mac pp in groundwork, nars exhibit a blush, mac MSF natural in med-dark, mac smoulder eye kohl, maybelline full n soft mascara in black.

as you can see, everything but two products (ccb hush and full n soft mascara) are all new things i have gotten and havent talked about yet...

here is a swatch of mac's pp in groundwork. the color reminds me a lot of natural clay. it is a very neutral midtoned brown-gray. it is magnificent, since if i am in a hurry, i just smudge this on my lids and add a bit of mascara and presto, i look fresh and not sloppy.

i will post about my new products soon...however i will blatantly admit that nars exhibit a blush is the bomb diggity. seriously, for those people who are always in a rush or want the most minimalistic makeup look there is, you need this blush in your life. explanation will come soon in future post :)

food series: garlic chicken lettuce wraps



another pleasure of mine...food! i absolutely love food, i would say equally to beauty products. i really enjoy cooking, but unfortunately i dont always have time to whip something up every night. however, this recipe is something that i make frequently and is definitely a favorite of mine. it is relatively fast to make and very simple to put together. not to mention it is healthy!

what you will need (serves roughly 3 people)

for the meat:
three chicken breasts
four cloves of garlic
any cooking oil on hand
salt
black pepper
garlic powder
onion powder

for fillers:

1/2 a lb of thin rice vermicelli noodles (i actually used angel hair pasta because i didnt have any of the rice noodles on hand!)
one large tomato
two romaine lettuce hearts
small cucumber
one bunch of cilantro

for sauce:

one clove of garlic
sugar
lime
salt
fish sauce
chili peppers (optional)

step 1:
boil your pasta according to the box directions.

when cooked to desired texture, strain and rinse completely with cold water

step 2:
take all five of your garlic cloves and mince. set aside.

step 3:

take your lettuce, cucumber, tomato, and cilantro. rinse all of your vegetables.

for your lettuce, cut the base off and separate each leaf. it looks like a lot of lettuce, but trust me, you will use it all!

dice your tomato, cut a 1/3 of your cucumber in thin halved slices, and leave your cilantro as is.

step 4:
rinse your chicken breast with water and pat dry. cut each breast into long sectional pieces.

cut chicken slices again into bite size pieces. set aside.

step 5:
drizzle a small amount of any oil on hand into your pan. set heat on stove to med-high. when oil is hot enough, add most of your garlic (4/5th of it). stir around until fragrant.

step 6:
add your chicken! add your salt, black pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder. the last two spices are optional but i find it adds a nice flavor to the chicken when added. i dont measure the spices, i usually just add by eye (i usually never measure.) i would venture a guess that i add less than a teaspoon of salt and even less so for everything else.

keep stirring your chicken until it is the desired color you like. i prefer my chicken to be at the point shown here; it tastes sooo much better with the browned bits. take off stove and set aside.

step 7:
sauce time! take your remaining garlic in a small bowl that will hold your sauce. add less than a tsp of salt.

now is the tricky part. here i am using caramelized sugar (basically sugar in liquid form) that was already pre-made for me. you dont have to use caramelized sugar, regular sugar can be substituted (although the caramelized sugar DOES make it much tastier). i added three tbs.

next add equal parts of fish sauce as you did the sugar. if you dont know what fish sauce is, this is what the bottle looks like (there are many brands, this is just the one i used.) you can find these in any asian food markets, but sometimes they will be at your local store in the asian section, just check!

next take half a lime and squeeze into your sauce bowl. i like to add the pulp as well, but do what you prefer.

once you add the lime, stir up your sauce! you can stop at this point or you can continue on to add a bit of a kick...

by adding whole chili peppers! again, this is OPTIONAL. if you do not like spicy food, skip this and leave your sauce as is. here i used five whole peppers, but add more or less to your liking.

chop finely. handle carefully and avoid touching the pepper as much as possible, the oils will burn your hands/eyes if you make contact with it!

add your pepper, and your final product should look more or less like shown.

step 8:
assemble! you can really eat this however you like. you can either make a salad of it by breaking up your lettuce into smaller pieces, tossing the rest of the fillers on top and drizzling the sauce on it like dressing (my sister prefers this less messy way.) or you can assemble large "taco" like pieces, using the whole lettuce leaf as the "taco shell" (as my guy friends prefer.)

or you can do what i prefer, the bite sized wrap option (pictured). to do this, break a leaf of lettuce into a smaller size (or just use one of the smaller innermost leaves), add cilantro, tomato, and cucumber, then place the noodle and chicken on top so everything stays put from the weight of the pasta/chicken. i then drizzle sauce on each little wrap i make as i eat.

you can always skip the sauce recipe i made and use whatever other light sauce you like (vinaigrette, or even nothing since the chicken has so much flavor!) the possibilities are endless. enjoy!

Friday, September 10, 2010

nars coupon code...

right now until 9/18, if you use the code 099CP0410 at the nars official website you can get 18% off your purchase. if you have been lusting after any nars products i suggest you take advantage of the deal since nars usually doesnt shell them out! have fun shopping/browsing/resisting buying too much!

FOTD & nail swatch: a sinfully naked eye & van d'go

here's a look i did yesterday with my UD naked palette. nothing special, it looks like every neutral look ive ever done although i am quite partial to the shadow 'sin'. i love the amount of frost it has (not too much), the ease of the pinky nude color (can use for highlight or all over lid color), and the texture (smooth as a baby's bottom, i kid you not).

awkward posing at its finest :)



face:
mac MSF in med-dark
bonnebell glimmer bronzer all over
bobbi brown pot rouge in calypso coral (i recently got this, ill post swatches soon)
milani luminous blush
mac CCB in hush

eyes:
painterly pp
UD sin all over, sidecar in crease, smog in outer fourth of lid and under bottom lashes, creep smudged in top and lower lashes
stila kajal liner on waterline/tightline
milani liqu-feyed liner
rimmel volume flash mascara

lips:
revlon matte lipstick in nude attitude
revlon super lustrous gloss in life's a peach

nails

here is essie's van d'go. it is a pale pink with a hint of peach. i actually prefer revlons' peach petal over this color since peach petal has a more cream pink finish than van d'go. but this polish wore well and i didnt have any color changes when i applied a top coat.

TGIF everyone!

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

ohmigosh

fiorentini + baker eternity boots
[img courtesy of footnotesonline.com]

[img courtesy of justjared.com]
on halle berry

*swoon. this is the ultimate lust since i will not be able to afford these anytime soon. retails for about $550 bucks. a girl can dream right? sigh.

Saturday, September 4, 2010

i was browsing the internet...

online shopping may be the end of me....

urban outfitters accessories
[imgs courtesy of urbanoutfitters.com]
how stinkin cute is the little rose necklace and key bracelet?

asos accessories
[img courtesy of asos.com]
ive been looking for a new satchel, i think my choice will be this beautiful stone colored one. how cool are the x&o studs!?

miss sixty boots
[img courtesy of zappos.com]
i've come to terms that i have a massive boot obsession. i need to have these. they are so gorgeous.

eventually these will be mine. for now...i will look at them longingly...

Friday, September 3, 2010

FOTD - flashin eyes



today i decided to do a little something different with my eyes. i used a mixture of brown shadows and extended it a bit further past the eye for a little dramatic effect while also adding a bit of bright purple to bring out the brown in my eyes.



nothing too crazy. i wasnt careful with the black eyeliner in this look, i kinda just slapped it on the waterline/tightline and roughly added it as close to the lashline as possible.



products used on eyes:

mac PP in groundwork just on outer v
UD smog all over the lid, a bit past the brow bone.
nars galapagos in crease
UD flash on bottom lashline
UD 24/7 liner in zero
rimmel volume flash mascara

face:
mac MSF natural in med dark
R&R blush in x-rated
mac CCB in hush

lips:
NYC tinted lip balm in sugar coated.

enjoy your labor day wkd everyone!

Wednesday, September 1, 2010

koolaburra boots single fringe short boot

i recently bought something i have always had my eyes on and have drooled over for months. they are the koolaburra kettle black short single fringe boots:




if you dont like uggs, then you probably wont like these boots. i absolutely adore them! i love fringe, and i love boots. koolaburra is a pretty popular brand. if you havent heard of it, check out their website, they have great products. even though they are pricey, at least you can stare and admire :)


here they are on me


here they are on vanessa hudgens (although she has the double fringe short boot, i have the single fringe)[img courtesy of justjared.com]

sigh. i love these. i cant wait for the cooler weather of fall so i can wear these to pieces.