Eye Shadow -MAC - Sketch eye shadow
michkal 9/9/2010 12:17:00 AM
This is a great color. I love neutral eyeshadows, and while this looks quite purple in the pan, it still works as a neutral. I can wear this during the day lightly in the outer crease with a brown in the crease, and it looks neutral with some oomph. I saw the MA wearing it over texture in the crease and it looked like the nicest shade of brown that accentuated her dark brown eyes. I had to ask her what is was and had to buy it. It's a great way to spread out from the basics without getting color that is too much a for work/professional setting. It blends pretty well with a fluffy crease brush.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Eye Shadow -Chanel - Quadra Eye Shadow - 18 Kaska Beige
michkal 8/20/2010 1:23:00 AM
Beautiful eyeshadow palette. Neutral colors, but not boring. The browns have a hint of purple that makes them interesting. The pigment and texture are better than my other chanel quads - dunes and mystic eyes. Dunes is a bit chalky (still pretty) and less pigmented. Mystic eyes is a bit too sparkly for me for everyday and seems harder to blend. I wear this for a clean, polished look for work, and I love it.
4 out of 4 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Blush -Trish McEvoy - Blush in Pink Peony
michkal 6/16/2010 6:26:00 AM
Scary pink in the pan, natural flush once on. Lasts all day. Blends really well. I wear a bit of this on top of the new matte dual bronzer. I have easy going as well, which is kind of "blah". She might also have changed the formula since I last shopped Trish a few years ago, because it seems smoother, more pigmented than I remember. Fits into the refillable pages for the planner.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Bronzers -Trish McEvoy - Dual Matte Bronzer Medium
michkal 6/16/2010 6:19:00 AM
The newest bronzer from TM. It is a two toned, pretty, natural bronzer. No shimmer, which I love. It is soft in color, easy to blend. Doesn't look powdery on the skin. I have a lot of bronzers, but this has been my favorite recently because it is so easy to sweep on and go. Doesn't require blending after application like my other favorite, NARS laguna (which also has shimmer). For reference, I'm an NC25-30 in MAC foundations. This might be too light for very dark skin tones.
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Palettes -Trish McEvoy - Petite Planner
michkal 6/16/2010 5:52:00 AM
I have had the older flat/shiny planner in the biggest size, which was great for makeup organization. It is too large to grab and slip in your purse. I recently bought the black quilted in the petite size, and I love it. It hold small pages, and two is enough to hold all of my daily makeup. It has enough room for brushes, mascara, lipstick, eyelash curler, etc. It has a separate compartment for these items, as well as a removable travel case for items while still remaining small enough to grab and go. I love Trish makeup, so this works for me. I suppose you could put any pan of makeup into the magnetic pages, they just wouldn't fit well if they are round. In addition, she redid the pages since my last planner. they used to be clear and broke easily. They are now black, sturdier, and have a mirror. This is expensive, but once you are set you just by refills on the makeup which isn't that pricey. Love it.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Liquid -Bobbi Brown - Natural Finish- Long Lasting Foundation SPF 15 [DISCONTINUED]
michkal 3/15/2010 1:21:00 AM
I love Bobbi Brown makeup, but I never liked her foundations. The oil-free foundation has now been discontinued and this is the replacement. It is much improved. Where the old version was sheer, didn't wear evenly and settled into lines/creases, this foundation is very natural looking but still offers good coverage. It wears smoothly and is definitely longer lasting than the older version, although it doesn't last long enough for a full work day. The colors are excellent. As others have mentioned, I wear one shade darker than I do in other formulas. This is the best foundation BB offers, but still not better than mac select liquid foundation. I have returned this and obviously would not purchase again.
3 out of 3 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Fragrances -Serge Lutens - L'Eau
michkal 3/6/2010 11:56:00 PM
I love clean, light fragrances, but find it difficult to find ones that aren't too soapy, sharp, etc. I liked this a lot at first, but changed my mind pretty quickly. I would describe it as citrusy-clean, not the soapy/laundry type of fragrance. While clean, it wasn't soft and pretty. It lingered on too long, and I got sick of it throughout the day. The description of an "anti-perfume" is accurate. I can see why some might find this boring, or feel it has been done before, but if you like this type of scent, it is worth a try. This is an edp and the bottle is large, so the price is not out of line.
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Eye Shadow -MAC - Paint Pot - Groundwork
michkal 1/12/2010 1:44:00 AM
these paint pots are great eyeshadow bases. Eyeshadow stays on all day, but this doesn't dry out my eyelid like udpp and trish mcevoy's bases do. I was using rubenesque, but felt it was too shimmery for every day. The mua used this on me and I love it. I'm an nc25, so this is darker than my skintone. This makes it look nice under light shadows. I use all that glitters over it, and it's very pretty. No creasing over an 11 hour work day with no touch ups. My only tiny complaint is that the jar is big, so it tends to dry out before I can finish the product.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Pressed Powders -MAC - Mineralize Skinfinish Natural - Medium Dark
michkal 1/11/2010 10:11:00 PM
I bought this to use as a bronzer and contour color on my nc25 skin. It is too orange to use for either. It is not a natural tan color for me, and it is too warm as a subtl contour color. It applies easily and smoothly, which has earned it a three lipstick rating based on formula and not function. I will stick to using medium as a regular setting powder.
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Lipstick -Hourglass - Adorn Hydrating Lipstick in Fresco
michkal 11/21/2009 7:50:00 PM
This is the perfect color for a polished daytime look. It is a rose pink with a bit of brown. The texture is smooth and moisturizing and there is no scent at all. I am very impressed. Since buying this, I wear it most days. It's great for pretty, natural, light makeup days. It might not look all that exciting or unique in the tube, but the color and texture are excellent once you try it on. I wear it with the liner from this line in secret. For reference I am an nc25.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Lipstick -Hourglass - Adorn Lipstick in Poetry
michkal 11/21/2009 7:44:00 PM
This brand was recommended to my by the MA at Barney's. I bought two lipsticks and I think they are my favorites of all of the ones I own. This color is a nude that doesn't wash me out. The texture is so creamy that it looks smooth even on my dry lips. I use it with liner; I think it would be too pale on its own. Even if you don't like this shade, I highly recommend checking out these lipsticks for the texture alone.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Eye Shadow -NARS - Bali
michkal 11/20/2009 9:46:00 PM
I haven't been a fan in the past of NARS shadows, but after shopping around a bit I bought several of them recently and am very pleased. Bali is a matte dark neutral/cool brown which looks great in the crease. I wear very neutral makeup and was looking for something polished but conservative for work. I wound up with all about eve all over, cairo on the lid (also great) and bali in the crease. I also wet a brush and use bali as a liner. The shadow looks great on skin. Other brands can look chalky, or too thick/unnatural (MAC is like this on me). For such a dark color, it blends so well and really enhances my dark brown eyes. I am glad I have revisited this brand. The shadows are so much better than I remember that I am wondering if there has been a change in formula since I tried them last. Only negative is the packaging which gets dingy looking quickly and feels cheap when opening/closing. But, who cares when it looks so pretty on?
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Blush -NARS - Amour
michkal 11/20/2009 4:11:00 AM
This blush, and NARS blush in general, is great. It goes on smoothly and is easy to apply. Best of all, it lasts all day. I can't find another blush brand that wears as well as this throughout the day, and I've tried many others. This shade has no shimmer, which is important for me for daytime. It is a peachy pink shade that is kind of bright, but looks great on. Not too much color and not too nude. For reference, I'm a MAC NC25.
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Lipstick -Giorgio Armani - Lip Wax #2
michkal 4/27/2009 8:38:00 AM
I'm usually a lip gloss person, but when the MA put this on me, I had to buy it. He paired it with lip liner in 2 with lip shimmer in 16 over it. This shade almost matches my natural lip color, but enhances it. The texture is a bit sticky, kind of between a sheer lipstick and a lip stain. It lasts for a long time on the lips. It is not drying. This is a nice change from gloss because this has a matte finish. I just can't get used to using a lip color in a pot and have not reached for it often.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Liquid -Giorgio Armani - Lasting Silk UV Foundation SPF20
michkal 4/27/2009 8:27:00 AM
On me, this is one of those foundations that makes my skin look worse than without it. The SA gave me 6.5, which I found to be on the orange side. It has a greasy look and feel. It makes the imperfections, such as small bumps, stand out even more. It settled into my pores which made them look much more noticeable. One plus is the sunscreen, but I wear that under foundation anyway. I wound up exchanging this for BB skin, which I feel is much better. The colors at BB are better for me, the finish is b etter, and I blot a lot less. I don't recommend lasting silk, especially for the price.
3 out of 5 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No