Halloween Nails Using China Glaze VIII and Bundle Monster Image Plate

I got these Bundle Monster plates off Amazon for only $21-something for 21 plates. I bought Bundle Monster plates last year, but these new ones are different from the ones I previously purchased. I think BM heeded a lot of people's suggestions to make the images wider, because their full-nail designs were too narrow to cover the entire nail bed. Now I think they widened their images just a tiny bit. I picked a weird skull image as my Halloween image:

Weekend Beauty Reads from The Beauty Blog Network 10.30.11

Phyrra reveals the latest multi-tasking wonder, the Korres Quercetin & Oak Antiaging Eye Primer.

Painted Ladies has an exclusive Dia de los Muertos face chart designed by Make Up For Ever!

Beauty and Fashion Tech has MAC Holiday 2011 Swatches from the sultry palette in the Ice Parade Collection.

Girl Gloss has MAC Ice Parade Swatches of the cool winter face kit from the MAC Holiday Collection.

Cindy from Hello Dollface attended the Glamour Magazine Reel Moments luncheon and was inspired by the short films!

Stylebell teaches you how to style your hair for a zombie costume!

The Shades Of U shares swatches and review of the Bare Escentuals Holiday 2011: Bare Minerals Box of Gems 20-Piece Eye and Lip Color Collection.

Bare Escentuals Holiday 2011: Box of Gems 20-Piece Color Collection Swatches and Review

Here is one of a slew of beautiful gift boxes from Bare Escentuals' Holiday 2011 collections. This Box of Gems is one of my favorites. It is actually a jewelry box that you can use after you take out the makeup pieces from this kit. It comes in 10 eye colors and 10 luscious lip glosses for that really festive look for the holidays.

Here's a look at the eye colors:

Nail Stamp Art: Finger Paints Nail Polish in Purple Pinstripe and XL Image Plate B

Remember these XL plates I purchased at Magnonails.de earlier this year?









I used one of those full nail designs from XL plate B. These are like machine cog wheels, so cute! I used one of my favorite nail polish brands, Finger Paints, a Sally Beauty exclusive. I used Purple Pinstripe which is a purple cream that is very pretty. I used Konad special polish in Pastel Violet. I missed a spot on my ring finger, but I think it still looks nice. The good thing about using an image polish in the same color family as your base polish is that the design turns out a lot more subtle, so you can actually wear it to conservative venues like the workplace without attracting too much attention.

I'll be using more of these full-nail images from my XL plates for you to see how pretty the designs are. Stay tuned!

China Glaze Winter 2011: Let It Snow Swatches and Review Part II

Here are the last six swatches from the China Glaze Let It Snow Collection:


Holly-Day







Holly-Day is a nice evergreen or hunter green cream. Perfect for those who don't want much shimmer in their manicures. I like it but I think I may already have dupes of this shade in my stash.


Poinsettia







Poinsettia is gorgeous! It's my favorite out of all the polishes from this collection. I never knew I would fall hard for a ruby red creme. This shade looks exactly like a poinsettia's color, and on the nails it just looks fantastic. Very festive indeed.


Ring in the Red



Ring in the Red is a pretty sparkly red. It is a glittery red that is opaque enough to be worn by itself. I like it but not as much as I love Poinsettia.


Winter Berry



China Glaze described Winter Berry as "creamy cranberry perfect for sipping hot cocoa by the fire". This kind of color really does make me imagine perfectly manicured tips painted with Winter Berry curled around a steaming mug of hot chocolate!


Velvet Bow



Velvet Bow is a rich wine red creme. It's okay but not a favorite, I guess maybe because I have a number of these kinds of shades.


Glittering Garland





Glittering Garland is my next favorite after Poinsettia. It is such a beautiful glittery evergreen. So festive and beautiful.

Formula of these is okay. A little on the thick side, but I was able to control the flow. Most (except the layering glitters) are opaque in two coats. As I said, my faves are Poinsettia and Glittering Garland. The layering glitters like Snow Globe and Twinkle Lights would look great over cream polishes.

Which are your favorites?

China Glaze Winter 2011: Let It Snow Swatches and Review Part I

Here are some swatches of the China Glaze Winter 2011 or the Let It Snow collection. It features twelve shades with an mixture of glitters, foils and other finishes. Here are the first six:


Champagne Bubbles

Introducing Estee Lauder Pure Color Cyber Eyes Collection

ESTÉE LAUDER INTRODUCES
PURE COLOR CYBER EYES
BY TOM PECHEUX, ESTÉE LAUDER CREATIVE MAKEUP DIRECTOR

A lot of drama on the eyes creates sensuality, a sexiness. Smokey eyes are sexy and playful and I wanted to give women different ways to wear the look, anytime.”
Tom Pecheux, Creative Makeup Director, Estée Lauder

Estée Lauder and Creative Makeup Director, Tom Pecheux, introduce a new dynamic trend in color makeup that boldly paints the eyes in graphic pigments… introducing new Pure Color Cyber Eyes. This powerfully modern collection, features eyeshadows in richly pigmented shades with a futuristic, hypermetallic finish, eye pencils that dazzle and define eyes in strikingly chic hues and mascaras that create a lush display of vibrant color. In this animated trio, the eyes take center stage in shades of electric blue and teal, stimulating copper and silver and fiery purple and green with accents of blackened black and brown creating the opportunity to play with color for endless eye looks.

Urban Decay The Revolution High-Performance Lash Curler Review

Gareth Pugh For MAC

GARETH PUGH FOR M∙A∙C
Challenging the conventions of fashion with his signature style that blurs the traditional gender divide…M·A·C is proud to partner with London-based designer Gareth Pugh. Infusing his trademark esoteric experimentation into Beauty Powders, Metal-X Cream Shadows, Technakohl Liner, Pigments, Lipsticks, Lipglass, Studio Fix Boldblack Lash, Powder Blushes, Nail Lacquers, Buffer Brush and a Makeup Bag, he delivers an assortment of futuristic yet primal shades in custom geometric packaging.

Gareth Pugh for M∙A∙C Available November 23, 2011 through December 23, 2011.

letter TO EDITORS
When creating my makeup collection with M·A·C
I wanted it to be unexpected – creating something truly
beautiful, very sophisticated, and incredibly chic but of
course – with an underlying edge of darkness and attitude.
With a collection that goes from strong, deep and mysterious
to light, fragile, and ethereal, I think we’ve created a truly
versatile collection that hopefully you’ll be inspired by and
want to wear.
Enjoy!

To think Gareth Pugh is to think beautifully distorted, sculptural, otherworldly proportions…avant-garde mash ups of materials (from PVC and Perspex, latex to leather, mink to metal, Gareth reworks them all into breathtakingly original clothes)…an extreme attitude….

In short, no one could accuse Gareth of being conventional. Or predictable.

Since the same can be said of M·A·C – never shy of pushing a few boundaries – it makes sense that we’ve teamed with London’s most notoriously cutting edge designer to create a limited edition line-up of makeup and accessories. Of course, they’re every bit as unexpectedly sophisticated and big on twisted-chic as you might imagine. Thought a beauty line by Gareth would be all black and white? Think again!

Cue heavyweight geometric packaging encasing some seriously chic standouts: a duo-chromatic nail polish that flashes from emerald to amethyst. A compact Beauty Powder that turns all skin-tones a sophisticated matte. Lipglasses that go from super-subtle (worn alone) to
statement-making when layered over Lipstick. Lashes that redefine the shape of what a fake lash could, or should, be…
“They’re about contradiction and the struggle between lightness and darkness,” says Gareth of how he creates his inspired collections. So too his debut approach to makeup.

Every piece is unique, experimental, precious and intriguing (just like Gareth’s designs)…and ready to be played to your lighter (more ethereally natural) or darker (sinisterly sophisticated) side.

Created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR.

LIPSTICK
Fervent—Glossy blackened berry (satin)
Restrict—Creamy greyed nude (cremesheen)

LIPGLASS
Vacant—Sheer light lavender grey with violet pearl
Outrage—Sheer berry with blue pearl

BEAUTY POWDER
Elude—Translucent neutral beige

METAL-X CREAM SHADOW
Obscura—Frosty gunmetal grey
Ardent—Frosty blackened burgundy

PIGMENT
Guise—Frosty grey
Deceit—Blacked plum with pink pearl

MASCARA
Studio Fix Boldblack Lash—Blackest Black

TECHNAKOHL LINER
Greyprint—Rich pewter grey with frost
Graphblack—Rich graphic black

LASH
Flight Lash—Dense, geometric triangle-shaped lash

NAIL LACQUER
Inert—Creamy mid-tone greyed nude (créme)
Ascension—Grey with blue violet reflective pearl (frost)
Hyper—deep blue with violet pearl (frost)

POWDER BLUSH
Strada—Mid-tone nude

SQUARE HANDLED BUFFER BRUSH
A full, dome-shaped brush of extra soft goat hair.
Specially created to flawlessly blend powder onto the
skin for an immaculate polished finish. Excellent for
all M·A·C powders and pigments.

GARETH PUGH FOR M·A·C MAKEUP BAG
Square shaped black bag with signature Gareth
geometic print appliqués in black patent; full zipper
around perimeter of bag

How I Dry My Makeup Brushes: Simple Drying Techniques

A couple of years ago, I featured the simple concept my husband concocted for drying my brushes:

My Nail Polish Collection as of October 2011

Hey everyone! I posted my nail polish collection last February, and just a few months later, I had to add a third Helmer to my collection.  I have three of these off-white Helmers that can store hundreds of polishes. I got them at Ikea for around $43 each. Hubby assembled them for me.



I removed the Helmers from our bedroom and moved them to the new office/studio in the house. This is the room where I'll be making my videos and taking pictures of products and swatches. This is also the place where I will be storing all my makeup, and as you can see, my polishes. My husband made provisions for additional Helmers in the future by stacking them on top of the existing Helmers, not necessarily for additional polishes, but as storage solutions for other stuff I own.

I have hundreds of polishes, but I haven't counted exactly how many. I am thinking I may have already reached the 1,000 mark. I am planning to give some away because I know I won't be able to use them all. I am into nail art as well, so I am glad I have a stash that can support this interest of mine. I bought around 80% of the nail polishes in my collection. The rest were sent as press samples.

Also, unlike makeup, nail polishes last forever. They don't harbor bacteria because of the toxicity of the chemicals- bacteria will die in there instantly. If the polish gets goopy, just add a little bit of nail polish THINNER to your polishes, roll the bottle between your palms and they're good to go. (Note: Do NOT add nail polish remover to your polishes! You will ruin them.)




Labeled each drawer individually using our label maker machine.

Introducing Freak: Illamasqua's First Fragrance

The biggest launch in Illamasqua's history, our Debut fragance Freak today launches across www.illamasqua.com, across our Selfridges counters and Flagship store in the UK and an immediate roll out across Australia, Sephora, Croatia and Dubai in the coming weeks!

To be the first to Freak visit Illamasqua online.

This exotic and unconventional scent is not alone...to accompany the launch of Freak, Illamasqua has created a capsule collection of three Limited Edition products, whose shades reflect the rare blooms that make up this concoction of dangerously exotic unconventional flowers.

Embracing the mysterious histories of their namesakes are hardwearing Nail Varnish in Hemlock (pale opal green iridescent), the nocturnal heart of Pure Pigment in Queen of the Night (blackened plum), and a sensual Sheer Lipgloss in Datura (neutral mauve).

The capsule collection is also included in a Limited Edition Gift set, comprising Freak, Nail Varnish in Hemlock, Pure Pigment in Queen of the Night and the exclusive Sheer Lipgloss in Datura. The gift set is available for £80, offering a saving of £21 and makes the perfect Christmas gift - or little indulgent treat for a make-up lover!

Freak Film:



Check out Freak Behind the Scenes.

Miss Piggy for MAC

Nail Look: Illamasqua Theater of the Nameless Nail Varnish in Taint

Here is one of the nail varnishes from Illamasqua's current Theater of the Nameless collection. Taint is a deep, rich stone brown. It is on the cool side of the spectrum. What is unique about this varnish is the finish. Theater of the Nameless has a line of nail varnishes that have the unique rubber finish. The cap of the product itself has a rubberized feel to it, similar to that of Orly's caps, but the black caps remind me of NARS' rubber casings. The finish is somewhat in between cream and matte- not too shiny like the creams, but not too matte either. It has a subtle shine that is similar to that of- you guessed it- rubber. If you like this kind of finish, Illamasqua Theater of the Nameless nail varnishes are the perfect products to try this out.

What do you think of the rubber finish? I think I like it better than mattes, but I like creams better, just because I like a really shiny finish to my nails. Of course, you can always add a high-shine top coat to make the rubber finish really shine. That's what I do with this nail varnish, and I am loving the deep, dark chocolate shade.

Note: Media sample was provided by a representative of the company for consideration. All opinions are completely mine.