[new.pretties.since.winter.part.1]

Hard Candy Take Me Out Liner in "Vice"

Wal-Mart; $4.99

I also got this eyeliner in "Notorious" which is  a bright and brillaint fuchsia pink color with pink sparkles; and "Money" which is a really nice mossy green color with silvery green sparkles and "Wild Child" which is a sparkly version of Chop Suey (the matte eyeliner) and is similar to "Vice" but not as bright.

Hard Candy Eye Def Liquid Glitter Eyeshadow in "Lagoon"

Wal-Mart; $5.49

Hard Candy Eye Def Liquid Glitter Eyeshadow in "Algae"

Wal-Mart; $5.49

Sadly, the first Hard Candy product that disappointed me. It goes on thick, which is nice because it spreads fairly well and the color is nice and brilliant. One one hand, it dries fairly quickly, but the downside is it cracks, it flakes, and if you touch it at all it rubs off really easily. All you need to do to get it off is wipe your eye with tissue. I suppose that one is up to you- I'd rather have to wash my face or use makeup remover to get something off rather than have it gradually flake off into my eyes.

Hard Candy Meteor-Eyes Baked Eyeshadow in "Space Cadet"

Wal-Mart; $5.49

This picture is a little more blue than the real thing. However, it goes on fabulously with "Money" liner.

NYC Smooth Skin Pressed Face Powder in "Warm Beige (704A)"

Wal-Mart; $3.49

NYC Smooth Skin Loose Face Powder in "Translucent (741A)"

Wal-Mart; $3.49

Rimmel London Stay Matte + Skinpure Complex Clarifying Matte Foundation in "Warm 102)"

Shoppers Drug Mart; $2.99

Rimmel London Recover Anti-Fatigue Concealer

Shoppers Drug Mart; $2.99

Maybelline Great Lash Mascara in "Blackest Black"

Pharmasave; $4.99

I love how black the mascara itself is, but I hate the brush. I HATE the brush. The bristles are thick and hard, and spiralled, the brush is also curved, so you get thick application and it doesn't spread very nicely. I'm thinking about stealing an old brush, washing it and swapping it out with this one. So far, my favorite mascara to date is still Rimmel (all of their mascara types), with L'Oreal Voluminous Mascara running a close second. I am intrigued to try that new Cover Girl Falsies mascara, too.

Lise Watier Lip Kiss Crayon in "Rose Intense"

London Drugs; $18.99

The color pictured is not Rose Intense, which is a bright neon pink with a shimmer. I really splurged on this one. I very rarely spend more than a few dollars on makeup items.

Quo Electric Eyes Pencil in "Spark"

Shoppers Drug Mart; $7.99

Spark is the near-white pencil pictured above. It does on sheer, with an opalescent sheen.

NYC City Duet Eyeshadow in "Upper Zest Side"

Wal-Mart; $2.49

I also want to get it in "Bowling Green". The yellow isn't quite as brilliant as I would like, but the orange is intense on skin.

Fruits & Passion Plant Wax Base Lip Balm in "Monoï"

Fruits & Passion; (GIFT)

Clean & Clear Advantage Mark Treatment

Liquidation World; $0.99

Micabella Mica Mineral Makeup in "Wild Rose (SP3)"

Micabella; $5 (reg $20, group purchase discount)

This color is actually a little bit more pink, but it goes on almost white with a pink opalescent sheen. It's a beautiful color. Most people use it as blush, but I love it for the eyes.

Micabella Mica Mineral Makeup in "Storm (SP4)"

Micabella; $5 (reg. $20, group purchase discount)

Micabella Mica Mineral Makeup in "Carnival (SP9)"

Micabella; $5 (reg. $20, group purchase discount)

All Micabella shadows are shimmery. This one is actually really sparkly. After a few hours of wear the sparkliness fades into a nice sheen, but it goes on very brilliantly.

Micabella Clear Lip Balm

Micabella; $5 (reg. $10, group purchase discount)

About Micabella:

There are mixed reviews about Micabella online because of the price, the way the sales clerks are, and the amazing discounts they somehow manage to give you when you buy in bigger volumes. At face value, for one or two items, Micabella is a total ripoff. Buying makeup from them is sort-of a game. The best thing to do is to go in with a group of people and buy together, splitting the bill evenly. Usually the person paying the tax gets the extra item (there is usually one extra item-- a group of three people buys 10 eyeshadows for $80, they all get three each, but the person paying the tax gets four)... etc.

Their products though are actually really nice. But I am a penny pincher. I will generally not buy makeup over $5.00 or so. So every few months my sisters, mom, girlfriends and I go in to Micabella and buy together. The more you buy the bigger the discount they'll give you. Also, on occasion they will throw in extra items. It's not a bad way to get really nice makeup for a deal.

The way Micabella mineral makeup works is that it can be used for eyes, lips, blush... it can be used both wet and dry. It is the pigment, so you shake a little bit into the lid (and I mean a little bit- a little goes a long, long way) and apply on a bare eyelid for a nice shimmer, or on primer for a more bold shimmer. You can also mix it on a damp brush for a brilliant hardline, or sweep it onto lips with a dry brush and cover with clear lip gloss. I have mica lipgloss but any clear gloss works just as well. I really want to get the primer down the road. Right now I use my Rimmel concealer. The Mica eyeshadow stays on really well, it doesn't crease much and even after sleeping in it, it still looks pretty fabulous.

{winter.trends}

Hey everyone! As you may know, I am a big fan of window shopping. It keeps your eyes current, you get a good idea of what the trends are (but not the ones that are like wildfire and will get old, boring and cliche too soon) and where the good deals are. Today at the mall, they were putting out all the new clothes for the winter season and putting last season's clothes into clearance. I love clearance shopping- even if you are a season behind, a lot of the time last season yielded some unpopular styles that will likely be in fashion next year- finding classic pieces that are always popular are a surefire way to get great deals for next year. Also, I like to decide for myself what I like and what I don't- some trends last for years in slow growing popularity.

Anyhow- I was in Winners, and found some fabulous loot!

Steve Madden Wool Military Jacket

Winners; $79.99



I've been loving the military jacket trend for quite some time now. I think it may have been the use of military button style coats (a la Sgt Pepper) used by Coldplay and Britney Spears in recent years; though I like them less embellished than that. And I have had a growing love of pea coats since last winter, but ones that fell about mid-thigh, just above the knee and were fitted at the waist. My first had a cinching belt there, but I disliked the bisecting aspect of the belt and often didn't use it. Military pea coats look more tailored and sleek.

Statement eyes. Eyes are always my favorite thing to highlight, and I prefer the look of a nude lip most of the time- it has the allure of the morning after. However, one of the great things about a light lid and eyeliner is that it looks really great with a nude lip, or with a statement color. I'm still sort-of trapped in my matte pink phase (I'm using a great purple-pink shade from Shiseido- a huge splurge on my part, though NYC sells a similar shade for a tenth of the price). Deep to dark reds are very popular this fall, though I would reserve them for evening use- they're a little much for daytime wear.

Maybelline Eye Studio 24hr Liquid Eyeliner
Walmart; $9.99

Now, not to seem biased, but sleek hair has been in for quite some time, and while I am a huge fan of that trend (it eliminates so much of the work and somehow always looks fabulous) my fondness is waning. This is the one time I actually like sleek hair. On longer hair, lately it feels too artificial, and really is more time consuming. At the moment, I have shoulder length curly hair, though I usually keep my hair about chin length- because it is so much work. However, I am really loving curly hair right now! Here are my top picks for fall:

A la Phantom of the Opera, I have always loved Emmy Rossum's sculpted curls, especially when they were not pulled into a 'do of any kind. Sculpted, but left free and wild to roam where they may. The sculpted curls look sophisticated, while leaving them to free movement lets them look more natural and sexy.

Drew Barrymore's short do, with ringlets is exactly the kind of hair I love. Though the hair itself is sort-of big, it reminds me of the kind of style you'd see on Mad Men- cute but sexy- and I love it.

For wavy hair, I really like the tousled rocker look. I've never been a fan of bangs, but I'm really starting to fall in love with them, used right. I think it started with my Bettie Paige obsession- but the more textured and choppy the look, with more layers, the better. When you wake up in the morning, throw in a little styling mousse, and nobody will be the wiser.

The french braid! This look is almost always reserved for summer, especially with hair that is left down. But I love it in updos for fall, especially when they are used in new and interesting ways, that still look natural.

Until next time!