Crème -MAC - Studio Tech
naztazia 4/14/2002 12:34:00 PM
It's as they say, "cream to powder"... it's moist in the compact, but does dry to a very natural powder finish. I've been using the MAC #190 foundation brush to apply it. It spreads very evenly over the skin, and if you apply it w/the brush in small sections of the face at a time and blend, it looks incredibly natural (and it dries to the powder finish somewhat quickly). Despite the fact that I'm breakout-prone, I haven't experienced any breakouts (and as some others mentioned yesterday, I actually think it helped clear up one or two zits). It feels lightweight - not nearly as "heavy" as MAC Sheer coverage or Full coverage foundation. It's not as cakey/drying as StudioFix powder foundation. As compared to MAC Satin foundation, the STech gives a better coverage and creates a more flawless complexion. I have very combo skin (very dry cheeks/chin, very oily T-zone) and it's been working great on both. I have been dusting it with T.LeClerc loose powder in Banane, not because I "have to" - but simply because I set all my foundations with T.LeClerc regardless if they need it or not :-) I must say though that although this is an incredibly beautiful medium-coverage foundation that creates a beautiful milky-smooth complexion (as most cream foundations do), I think for the hot/humid summer I'm gonna be reaching for MAC Face & Body more often than the StudioTech, only because the F&B is even more lightweight and doesn't slide/perspire off the face.
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Lip Liners -MAC - Plum Lip Pencil
naztazia 7/26/2001 12:55:00 AM
Plum lipliner is a beautiful medium muted greyish purple (plum) color that works great with berry, purple, plum or lavender lipglosses and lipsticks. I especially like the plum liner applied lightly and blended in with Nico lipgloss, (Nico has a sheer lavender sparkly shine). Plum is quite a pretty liner!
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Lip Liners -MAC - Lipliner in Spice
naztazia 7/26/2001 12:41:00 AM
I love using MAC lipliner in Spice to go with all my warmer-toned lipsticks. Surprisingly, it does not turn or look orange on me (I'm a MAC-NC15). Spice is a warmer medium fleshy-brown-toned lipliner that's not too dark nor too light. Spice especially looks great with Sheena liplacquer as well as MAC "O" lipstick. If you find Spice too orangey - go for Stripdown, which is "similar" to Spice, in that it is a medium fleshy-brown color, except that Stripdown is *very* neutral, with little or no hint of a warm-based undertone.
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Lip Gloss -MAC - Lipglass review and descriptions
naztazia 7/23/2001 12:49:00 PM
Nico: it's toted as a "Glitter Lipglass" -- a very pretty sheer lavender/lt.purple that has tiny sparkles of glitter. I'm a PPP (NC15) and I love lining my lips first with MAC lipliner in Plum, then applying Nico all over the lips (then especially blending the lipliner into the Nico lipglass with a lipbrush to remove the "harsh" liner edges) for a very pretty, very pouty, muted (and gentle) purple mouth that's not too dark even for someone as pale as moi.
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Makeup Brushes -Origins - Eyeshadow Placement Brush
naztazia 7/23/2001 12:44:00 PM
I like this brush because, like all Origins' brushes -- it's 100% synthetic hairs, yet feels *sooo* incredibly soft, and this brush works great for a multitude of products. The eyeshadow placement brush is designed for use with powder shadows from lids to brow, but because it is made from synthetic material, I've also used it to apply MAC (eye) Paints, other cream-based eyeshadows, as well as concealer. Very soft, it sort of reminds me of MAC's #252 brush (#252 is double the size of the infamous #242 brush, which is the "recommended" brush for cream-shadows). Anyway, very nice product at $17.50.
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Makeup Brushes -Origins - Powder Eyeliner Brush
naztazia 7/23/2001 12:38:00 PM
All of the Origins brushes are incredibly fantastic! This particular one, the powder eyeliner brush, is extremely interesting feeling -- it's very soft, thin, and angled just right for applying powder shadow as eyeliner or even using a liquid/cream/cake eyeliner. It's "interesting-feeling" because the hairs are 100% synthetic -- not a trace of an animal hair in this brush -- yet it feels as soft, if not softer, than a regular animal-hair brush! Slightly pricey at $15, but quite nice!
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Makeup Brushes -Sonia Kashuk - Blusher Brush
naztazia 7/19/2001 7:30:00 PM
I have a big 5 thumbs-up for all of Sonia Kashuk's brushes, because they are so incredibly soft and incredibly cheap (woops... "inexpensive") :-) For $9.99, this blush brush is beautifully shaped for a soft distribution of blush or for blending blush. It's just the right size for applying a soft amount of blush to the apples of the cheeks. I have found that on the lighter blush colors, the brush picks up a softer amount than typically blush brushes, so you have to apply a few layers (but this is really a good thing, since the blush looks more natural, and not like a racer-car stripe!) Big thumbs up. BTW, if you are like me and don't have a Target store nearby, fear not! Their online ordering is fantastic (and fast!) - click here for the Target website Enjoy!
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Makeup Brushes -Sonia Kashuk - Travel Brush Set
naztazia 7/18/2001 5:31:00 PM
I am still completely amazed that for $12.99, I'm getting brushes that I believe are easily worth well over $70! The travel brush set consists of: small and medium eye shadow brushes, an eyebrow brush/lash comb combo, and a mini blush brush. The hairs are incredibly soft and long lasting with these brushes. The handle sizes are great too -- shorter and compact for travelling. If you are on the go, or even if you are new to makeup brushes, I'd highly recommend picking up this set at Target or their online store at: Target's website. This set is well worth the price!
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Makeup Brushes -Sonia Kashuk - Powder Brush
naztazia 7/18/2001 5:23:00 PM
I have many powder blushes -- most of which are expensive, made from natural hairs and hence - very soft. But ohmigoodness... the Sonia Kashuk powder brush is incredibly soft and is incredibly inexpensive! The natural sable hairs in this brush pick up my T.LeClerc powder just perfectly and distribute the powder quite evenly on my face. I can't get over that for $9.99, I'm getting one of the best-quality powder brushes I have ever felt and have ever owned! If you are newer to using makeup brushes for application -- I would recommend heading towards your nearest Target or order online at Target's website - and check it out - you won't regret it! :-)
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Misc Beauty Tools -Tweezerman - tweezers
naztazia 7/11/2001 12:55:00 PM
Tweezers are the *last* beauty item in the world I would have ever thought twice about (a tweezer is just a tweezer, right?) -- and I certainly wouldn't have forked over $17 for "just a set of tweezers." Oh but little did I know ! Tweezerman tweezers are one of the most perfect beauty implement on this planet. I have the Tweezerman slant tweezers in the navy blue color and love and worship them every time I do the dreaded eyebrow thing. These tweezers are so incredibly sharp, so incredibly precise - that even my finest, thinnest, blondest eyebrow hair gets yanked away without any problem. These tweezers are worth every penny !!!
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Eye Shadow -MAC - Canton Candy Paint
naztazia 7/8/2001 1:40:00 AM
Canton Candy is probably my favorite MAC paint. It's a very pretty medium neutral pinky color that goes great w/my blue-grey eyes. I love using Canton Candy from lash to crease, then apply Stilife from the brow to crease and blend the Canton Candy and Stilife at the crease. If you have blue-grey eyes, use the above, then line your eyes w/a grey or black liner -- and woo-wee! guaranteed you will be getting lots o' compliments!
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Blush -MAC - Honour
naztazia 7/8/2001 1:32:00 AM
Honour is a beautiful beige with gold shimmer. I'm an NC15 and it shows up perfectly on my skin. I oftentimes use it alone, or use it as just the cheekbone highlighter, with something like Harmony (warm medium brown) right below the cheekbones. While I would not give up my honour (hehehehe!) -- I can say that if you have the Melon pigment, you can get a very similar effect as the honour blush if you apply the Melon pigment on top of a beige blush, because they both have the gold shimmer effect to it. Overall, a very pretty blush!
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Liquid -MAC - Face and Body Foundation
naztazia 7/8/2001 1:25:00 AM
MAC f&b is one of my favorite summertime foundations. It is very sheer and lightweight, yet provides just the right amount of coverage (if you don't have anything too serious that needs hidden!) MAC gives you an incredibly large-sized bottle of this stuff -- because it is intended to be used all over the body. I apply the f&b with a foundation brush for a more medium coverage. If I'm wearing a tank top, I oftentimes will wear the f&b under my arms to give a smooth and flawless look to an otherwise unslightly part of the body ;-) (as you know, even if you shave or wax there precisely, sometimes the underarm skin still show up as darker!) BTW, I've also found this foundation to be perfect if I know I'm going to spend time in the rain - it's waterproof and does not slide around on humid days or if it's misting in the air. Being somewhat of a tomboy, I oftentimes have bruises on my pale legs... the f&b does help to cover them. Overall, I'm really enjoying the f&b this time of year (it's hot hot hot right now!)
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Skincare - Body -Desert Essence - Vital Moisture Body Lotion w/Tea Tree & Lavender
naztazia 7/8/2001 1:16:00 AM
This lotion makes my skin so incredibly soft. It contains very natural ingredients (according to the package, no animal ingredients, no alcohol, artificial color or synthetic perfumes). There's some really good stuff in here like tea tree oil, aloe vera, avocado oil, jojoba oil, comfrey, sage, rosemary, etc. I almost consider it theeee most perfect product. It's only downfall is the smell... *yick* -- sort of smells to me like freshly cut grass and shrubbery - or like a walk in the woods with really smelly trees/leaves/grasses/etc. The smell goes away after a bit, and most people don't think it smells bad on you -- it's just that initial aroma which drives me nuts. But the product's benfits are SOO very much worth it that I can easily tolerate the aroma :-)
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Palettes -Japonesque - Makeup Palette (PM-430)
naztazia 6/21/2001 7:11:00 PM
If you looking for just the cutest little palette organizer to throw in your purse -- this is the little puppy! I have 2 of these little palettes, and they are very, very tiny - 2" x 2" x .33". This particular palette has a tortoise shell design on the inside and outside, is made of plastic, contains a little mirror inside, a little covered brush and has 5 wells to store cream-based products to take along with you. I usually put a bit of concealer in one well, a bit of MAC "O" in another, a tiny dot of MAC clear lipglass in another, and a little bit of MAC quartz cream color base in another. This thing gets me through the day should my makeup start to disappear. You can see it for yourself on Japonesque's website: http://www.japonesque.com/pm430.html
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