Two Face Charts and a Photo Shoot (Picture Heavy)

Hey Everyone, 


I hope you are having a good start to your week. Last night I had my fourth makeup artistry class. We learned makeup for photography and then did a real photo shoot (as opposed to the fake ones?!). We were each able to bring in a model, and could chose any look we wanted. 


Of course, I chose my sister Krista (she is the resident FunnyFace Beauty model), and decided to give her a 1940's look. The night started out well. I was on my game, and can honestly say, I did the best winged liner I had ever done (it was so straight and pretty!). Then it was time for false lashes. BIG MISTAKE! I chose a very dramatic, heavy pair of lashes that winged out at the side. As soon as I put them on I knew I wasn't happy with them, but rather than take them off, I decided to try and work with them. ANOTHER BIG MISTAKE! They totally took away from my pretty winged liner and I was forced to make the eyes more dramatic, making the wings bigger and longer. Of course, my second attempt at winged liner didn't go as well as my first, and I spent the next half hour trying to make them look perfect again (they never quite got there). 


In the end, I was pretty happy with the overall look (except for those darn lashes!), especially once I saw the way it looked on camera. I don't have any of the professional images yet, but I took a few pictures with my phone. 


Of course, up close it looks like Krista has WAY too much makeup on (we kept saying she looked like a cross between a drag queen and a clown), but as anyone who has ever shot a makeup look knows, under the bright lights (or even natural light), you lose a lot of colour and therefore need to be over dramatic when creating your look. Here are a few shots I took:

While we're on the subject of makeup class, I also wanted to share a couple more face charts. I feel like I am starting to get the hang of them, and, in my opinion, think the looks keep getting better. 


The first look (the blue one), is fairly good. I like the deep blue eyes and think it looks nice paired with a neutral lip. The only problems I notice are that: 1) the eyes aren't completely even, and 2) I went outside of the lip line with my lip colour. 

EYES

Lid: Sugarpill 'After Party'

Crease: L'Oreal HIP 'Borrowing Blue'

Inner Eyelid: Urban Decay 'Alice'

Eyeliner: Annabelle 'Lapis'

FACE

Cheeks: MAC 'Prim and Proper'

Contour: MAC 'Sculpt' Powder

LIPS

Lipliner: L'Oreal 'All About Pink'

Lipstick: Revlon 'Pink Truffle' Lip Butter

The second look is definitely my favourite so far. I was inspired by a colour blocking makeup post I wrote for Killer Kurves (check it out here) and love that both the eyes and the lips are bold and bright. I think this would be a great spring or summer look and can't wait to recreate it on a real face.

EYES

Lid: Sleek Acid Palette-Lime Green

Crease: Sleek Acid Palette-Khaki and MAC 'Rated R'

Outer V: MAC 'Humid'

Eyeliner: Annabelle 'Oh My Goth'

FACE

Cheeks: Barry M 'Rose' blusher and Korres 'Sunglow' bronzer

Contour: Bourjois 'Delice de Poudre'

LIPS: 

Lipliner: MAC 'Pinkie'

Lipstick: MAC Candy Yum-Yum and Sleek Acid Palette 'Hot Pink'

I love all of the feedback I have been getting on my face charts and makeup looks. Constructive criticism is very helpful, so please keep it coming! 


Would you sport any of the looks above? If you could choose to create any look for a photo shoot what would you choose? 


xx
Alicia

Monday Q&A #14

Hey Everyone, 

One of my favourite bloggers, Karen of Makeup and Beauty Blog, does a weekly poll on her blog encouraging readers to take part. Every Monday, I will be posting my answers to her questions on my blog, and hope that you will join me by making your own post, or leaving your answers to the following questions in the comment section below.

1) Mood: Cautiously optimistic. Things seem to be heading in a good direction lately. Between writing for my blog, writing for Killer Kurves, working towards doing some freelance makeup, and some other jobs that might be on the horizon, I feel like I'm moving on from just being the girl with fibro. I used to dread being asked "what do you do?" at parties, events, etc. because I always felt the need to explain my entire story ("I got fibro, I dropped out of university, I moved back in with my parents"). Now when people ask I have exciting things to tell them. Unfortunately fibromyalgia will always be a part of my life, but now I feel like it's something I have and not who I am. 


2) Flashback time! We're going all the way back to the winter of 2002. Do you remember where you were and what you were doing 10 years ago?: Wow, it's crazy that 2002 was 10 years ago! My life is so much different now then it was back then. Back in 2002 I had just started college (I later went to University). I was in the fashion merchandising program at my local college and really liking it (I later dropped out of the program). I was also working part-time at a plus size clothing store, and was a pretty good sales girl. I didn't have fibro, heck, I hadn't even hurt my back at that point. I had a lot of new friends from school and loved being a 'social butterfly'. It was definitely a good time in my life. 


3) Are you naturally athletic?: Everyone who knows me personally just burst into laughter. I am as from athletic as possible. I have always hated gym class, I am completely petrified of any type of ball being thrown at me, and I hate hate hate sweating. Workouts are torture and I don't understand how anyone likes working out. Crazy!


4) Three makeup- or beauty-related things you have been loving lately?: 1) Revlon Lip Butters- I love how moisturizing they are. 2) Physician's Formula Eye Booster Eyeliner- I have become a liquid liner junky! 3) Wella Self Heating Mask -This not only feels amazing on, it makes my hair so soft and shiny. 


5) Three other things you have been loving lately?: 1) Taylor Swift- I have always liked her but I am pretty much obsessed with her music lately. It is all I listen to (actually I am listening to it as I type this). 2) Doing face charts- I think they are so much fun and it's great being able to practice my makeup skills 3) Teen TV Shows- I spend a lot of time on my computer and love having a show playing in the background. I have been watching every season of every teen show from ABC family and The CW (Switched at Birth, The Secret Circle, Jane by Design, etc). 


6) Are you more of an introvert or an extrovert?: I can be a little shy at times, but for the most part I am an extrovert. I love running the show!


7) Something you feel to old to wear?: I can't really think of anything I feel too old to wear. There are definitely things I feel too fat to wear. One of my biggest pet peeves is when people who are bigger wear super tight, slutty clothes. You have to know how to dress for your body. I know what it's like to want to wear 'trendy clothes' but they don't always work for every body type. 


8) Do you blog? Why or why not?: Nope, I never blog! :p


9) What's the least amount of sleep you can fully function on?: Probably the least amount of sleep would be 4 hours. I can still function but feel absolutely drained. I would much rather get 6-8 hours of sleep if possible. 


10) Weekly Goals: I bought a light tent from Amazon recently, and I need to figure out how to use it properly. I took some pictures yesterday but the lighting was a little too soft and yellow for my taste. I am also driving in to Toronto on Wednesday to go to a press event with my lovely editor from Killer Kurves, Karen. So I hope to make it there in one piece (pray for no snow!). 

If you decide to answer the questions, leave your responses or the link to your responses in the comment section below. 

Hope you all have a great week. 

xx
Alicia

Beauty Quote of the Week #56

"By plucking her petals, you do not gather the beauty of the flower"

-Rabindranath Tagor

Product Review: Buxom 'Big and Healthy' Lipsticks

Hey Everyone,


Happy Friday! I hope you are all having a great day. I went and got my car cleaned inside and out today, so hopefully there will be no more mice hanging out in my glove compartment. Today I wanted to post a review on one of my favourite new lip products. I am a huge fan of Buxom Cosmetics, and have yet to find a product from the company that I don’t like. The Buxom ‘Big and Healthy’ lipsticks are no exception. These three-in-one lip pencils not only look amazing, they feel amazing on the lips. Here is my review:  

WHAT: 

Buxom’s ‘Big and Healthy’ lipsticks are super moisturizing, and tingly feeling, lip pencils that perform three jobs: line and define the lips (like a lip liner), fill in the lips (like a lipstick), and plump the lips. All ‘Big and Healthy’ lipsticks are paraben, sulphate and phthalate free and smell lightly of sweet vanilla. To help soften and keep the lips moisturized, each lipstick is infused with Vitamins A, C and E. 

I currently own four Big and Healty lipsticks in the following colours: 

Monte Carlo: 

A hot cherry pink lipstick with a metallic finish

                            San Francisco:

A brown-toned plum lipstick with a light sheen

                             Las Vegas: 

A nude brown-toned pink lipstick with a matte finish

New Orleans: 

A peachy nude lipstick with a matte finish. (**this mini lipstick was part of a limited edition set I bought at Sephora). 

PRICE: 

$18 USD/$23 CND

PACKAGING:

Each lipstick contains 0.03 oz of product (comparatively MAC lipsticks contain 0.1 oz of product). Buxom’s ‘Big and Healthy’ lipsticks come in a sleek silver tube with a lid that snaps on and off. At the bottom of each tube is a cap (the same colour as the lipstick it contains), which can be pulled off to reveal a built-in pencil sharpener. I personally really like the packaging, but have found that it attracts fingerprints very easily. 

PROS: 

1) I Love The Plumping Effect: I am a sucker when it comes to lip plumping products. I love the way they give the lips that cool, minty tingle and of course, the fact that they make the lips look a little fuller. Unlike some of the other plumpers out on the market, that can give the lips a burning sensation, the menthol in the ‘Big and Healthy’ lipsticks soothes rather than irritates the lips

2) Even the mattes are moisturizing: As I have mentioned over and over again, I have super dry, and somewhat painful. lips. Therefore, I am always looking for products that will moisturize. Unfortunately, this means I can’t wear the majority of my lipstick collection (especially the mattes) as they seem to dry out my lips. Luckily, the ‘Big and Healthy’ lipsticks are different. Infused with Vitamins A, C and E, ALL of these lipsticks keep the lips soft and moisturized.

3) They are easy to apply: I’m sure you’ve all had those times where you want to apply your lipstick, but there isn’t a mirror around.  You are afraid that when applying it, you won’t be able to ‘stay inside’ the lip line. Well, no fear, Buxom lipsticks are here. With a sharp pencil tip, it is easy to control where this lipstick goes on, making it great for those times when there is no mirror in sight (pun intended).

4) They are nicely pigmented: What you see in the tube is exactly what you get on the lips. Because these lipsticks are somewhat thick (not too thick, don’t worry), and go on very opaquely, they give the lips a full dose of colour. Even on my darkly pigmented lips, the nudes show up as they appear when swatched on the back of the hand.

5) Even on my lips, they last a long time: I am the worst judge of how long lip products last as I find the majority of them come off of my lips within minutes of application. The Buxom ‘Big and Healthy’ lipsticks are different. I am able to apply these lipstics in the morning, eat and drink breakfast, and still have them on by lunch time.

CONS:

1) You don’t get a lot of bang for your buck: I was actually really surprised to see how little product the Buxom tubes contain. These lipsticks are more expensive than MAC lipsticks (which aren’t cheap), yet contain a lot less product. I’m stingy with my money and wish the Buxom ‘Big and Healthy’ lipsticks had a better value.

OVERALL:

I really like these lipsticks. Not only do I find them super moisturizing, they feel great on my dry, chapped lips. The packaging is very nice, and I love how easy they are to apply. I love that the Big and Healthy lipsticks act as a lip liner, lipstick and lip plumper. There are a variety of great colours, and, despite the price, I would definitely like to get more in the future. 

RATING:

9/10 Funny Faces

Have you tried the Big and Healthy lipsticks? Have you tried anything else from the Buxom line? Let me know in the comment section below. 
Xx
Alicia

January Giveaway Winner + Story Time: There's a Mouse In My Car

Hey Everyone, 


Before I announce the winner of my January giveaway, I thought I would share a quick, somewhat frightening story. Yesterday on my way to work (I do some part time nannying), I decided to go into the glove compartment of my car and pull out a chocolate bar I kept in there for those 'I need something sugary before I pass out' moments. As I pulled out the chocolate bar, I noticed that the top half of it was missing. Not thinking much about it, I almost put the bar in my mouth, before deciding "maybe I should look for the top half". When I went searching for the top piece, not only did I find that it was missing, I noticed that the granola bar I also kept in there was gone, AND there was mouse poop everywhere!!! 


To know me is to know that I am PETRIFIED of mice. I can't look at pictures of them, and the few times I have seen a real live one (or heard there was a live one around), I have started bawling. One time, while a friend and I were staying at my cottage, we saw a mouse and quickly packed up and drove home in the middle of a huge storm at 1am. I immediately started to panic, when I saw the mess in the glove compartment, and if it weren't for the fact that I was already running late, I would have gotten out of the car and made someone in my family come pick me up. Instead, I spent the rest of the drive convinced the mouse was sitting on my shoulder, crawling through my hair, squished under my bum, etc. 


I'm not the neatest person when it comes to my car, and often leave Starbucks cups, granola bar wrappers and other junk laying around. Well, I have learned my lesson, and won't be leaving my car a mess anymore (actually, I wouldn't be surprised if my dad planted the mouse in my car to teach me this lesson). I am taking my car in tomorrow to be professional cleaned out, and if the mouse comes back, I will for sure be getting a new car! After all, if a mouse decided to pop up mid drive, one of us wouldn't live to tell the story, and, unfortunately, it would probably be me. 


On to the giveaway winner. After tallying the entries and using random.org to randomly choose a winner, the winner of my January giveaway is....

Congratulations Sarah! I will be contacting you shortly for your mailing information. 

Are you afraid of mice? What is your biggest fear? Be sure to share your stories in the comment section below. 


xx
Alicia

FCOTD: Face Chart of the Day #2

Hey Everyone, 

After receiving such great feedback on the face chart I posted yesterday, I decided to show you the second face chart I worked on last night. This time I wanted to make the look a lot more dramatic, and tried to use similar colours on the eyes, cheeks and lips. I am still struggling when it comes to making both eyes look identical, but I do feel like I am slowly getting better. Unfortunately, the lips got quite smudged when I tried to erase the lipstick that went outside of the lip line. I've had so much fun playing around with these face charts, and will definitely be posting a 'tutorial' on how to do them soon. Here is my latest look: 

EYES

Lid: MAC 'Stars n' Rockets'

Crease: MAC 'Stomp' and 'Vibrant Grape'

Outer V: MAC 'Shadowy Lady'

Eyeliner: Marcelle 'Mulberry'

FACE

Blush: Illasmasqua 'Sin'

Contour: NYC 'Sunny' Matte Bronzer

LIPS

Lipliner: NYX 'Purple Rain'

Lipstick: MAC 'Violetta'

Would you wear this look? Any particular look you would like to see in a future FCOTD post? Be sure to let me know in the comment section below. 

xx

Alicia

FCOTD: Face Chart of the Day

Hey Everyone, 


Hope you are all having a fabulous day. I've spent a lot of my day trying to find a good but inexpensive hotel in New York City for the upcoming IMATS show in April. My old roommate and I are heading to the city for 5 days to celebrate my 30th Birthday and of course, attend The International Makeup Artistry Trade Show. I'm super excited and can't wait to go on the Sex and the City tour, eat lots of cupcakes at Crumbs Bakery, check out Central Park, go to a Broadway show and, of course, shop 'til I drop. 


In other news, I attended my third makeup artistry class last night where we learned how to do face charts. It was my first time applying makeup to paper and, let me tell you, I wasn't very good at it. Not only did the eyes on my chart look super flat (rather than 3D), the contouring and blush looked pretty muddy and the lips were just so-so (picture below). 

Rather than lose confidence in myself (something I easily do), I decided to make it my mission to practice (and nail) face charts until I can do them in my sleep. Thanks to Janet, my amazing instructor (check out her website here), I was able to take home a bunch of blank charts, and while I'm still no expert, I wanted to share today's Face Chart of the Day look with you.

Lid: Urban Decay 'Bootycall'

Crease: Urban Decay 'Suspect' and 'Snake Bite' 

Outer V: Urban Decay 'Pistol'

Under Eye: Urban Decay 'Snake Bite'

Eye Liner: Marcelle 'Metal Green' 

 Blush: MAC 'Gentle' Mineralized Blush

Contour: Bourjois 'Delice de Poudre'

Lip Liner: NYX 'Ever'

Lipstick: Revlon 'Soft Rose' Colour Burst Lipstick

There's still a lot of room for improvement, but I think I did pretty good for my second try. Let me know if you would like to see more 'Face Chart of the Day' posts, or would like to see a post on how to do face charts. 


Have a great day!


xx
Alicia

Monday Q&A #13

Hey Everyone, 

One of my favourite bloggers, Karen of Makeup and Beauty Blog, does a weekly poll on her blog encouraging readers to take part. Every Monday, I will be posting my answers to her questions on my blog, and hope that you will join me by making your own post, or leaving your answers to the following questions in the comment section below.


1) Mood: Feeling Good. I had my third makeup class tonight. We brought in models (I brought my friend Kerri) and worked on smoky eyes, false lashes and eyebrows. The night started a little rough when I tried to do my first face chart (not easy!!), but got better when I was able to work on a live model (rather than paper). I loved Kerri's final look. The smoky purple eye I did made her green eyes POP, and she looked awesome. The lashes were difficult to work with as usual but I managed to get them on (one was falling off when I took her picture). I'm feeling more confidant in my makeup abilities and hope to start freelancing when I am done the course. Here are a couple of pictures from tonight (note, we only worked on the eyes tonight). 

2) How do you feel about bright neon clothing?: I love it! I wouldn't wear it head to toe, but paired with black (ie. black pants and a neon pink top), it looks amazing. I fell in love with a bright, neon pink, circle scarf at American Apparel the other day, but I couldn't justify the $51 CND price tag. 


3) Your favourite lip balm?: That's a hard one. With my lips being so painfully chapped this winter, I pretty much only wear lip balm. My current top four would be: Korres' 'Lip Butter', Fresh Beauty's 'Sugar Lip Treatment', Revlon's 'Lip Butter' and L'Oreal's 'Le Balm'. 


4) Note to self...: Find your drivers license! It's been missing for a couple of weeks now...oops!


5) Have you tried zip-lining?: Nope, but I really want to. I'm not a fan of heights, but I think it looks like a lot of fun, and I would like to challenge myself to do it. I would need to lose some weight first though, because I think I would be too heavy at the moment. The only 'scary' thing I have done is go parasailing a few years ago while on vacation. To be honest, I found it kind of boring once in the air. The landing, on the other hand, was extremely frightening. 


6) When was the last time you rode a bicycle?: This summer I rode my bike a few times around Bayfield (the town where my cottage is). As long as we are on a flat surface, or going down hill, I'm good. Uphill is another story. 


7) Which of your friends lives the farthest away from you?: My friend Katelyn is currently working and living in the Congo, so she is definitely the furthest away. She was home over Christmas for a month, but somehow we only managed to get together twice.


8) What would you do with a six-month, all expenses-paid break from work or school?: Ummm...I've kind of been on that break for the last few years. If that break didn't include having fibromyalgia, I would definitely spend the time travelling. There are so many places I want to go! 


9) Something that makes you feel peaceful: This is bad, but a gravol high? I'm not a gravol addict or anything, but I love that really sleepy, floating on clouds feeling you get from taking it. Not a care in the world!


10) Weekly Goals: My light tent arrived today, so I definitely want to figure out how to use it and start taking some pictures! It's going to be nice taking photos indoors rather than sitting outside in the cold for an hour snapping shots. 


If you decide to answer the questions, leave your responses or the link to your responses in the comment section below. 

Hope you all have a great week. 

xx
Alicia

DOTD (Dupe Of The Day): MAC 'Right Image' vs. LA Splash 'In Love'

Hey Everyone, 


One of my all time favourite products from MAC are their Cremesheen Glasses. Not only do these MAC glosses come in an array of gorgeous colours, they are super creamy, very moisturizing and not at all sticky. However, at $18.50 USD each, they are quite expensive. Luckily, thanks to LA Splash's 'In Love' lip gloss, I have found a great dupe for my favourite Cremesheen, MAC's 'Right Image', a pretty bubblegum pink gloss. Here is my comparison of the two: 

Price: 

MAC $18.50 USD vs LA Splash $6.99 USD

Weight: 

MAC 0.09 fl oz. vs LA Splash 0.3fl oz.

**(Although the MAC gloss appears to be a lot larger in size, the LA Splash gloss has over 3x the amount of product the MAC gloss has) ***

Packaging: 

Both glosses come in a see through plastic tube, however, the MAC Cremesheen packaging is much 'prettier', with it's rounded black cap and sleek black writing etched directly onto the tube itself. On the other hand, the LA Splash gloss comes with a long silver cap and a lot of chunky white writing with information about the ingredients, how to access the LA Splash website and more. Both glosses come with a doe foot applicator, however the LA Splash applicator is quite long making it somewhat more difficult to use (at least until you get used to it).

Scent: 

I love products that not only look good, but smell good, as well. Luckily, both of these glosses smell great. However, if I had to choose between the two glosses based on scent alone, I would have to go with the MAC gloss which smells lightly of vanilla. The LA splash gloss, on the other hand, has a strong minty scent which is nice, but could be somewhat sickening to those who don't like their products scented. 

Application: 

Like the majority of MAC's Cremesheen glasses, 'Right Image' goes on rather sheer, but can be built up for a more colourful lip look. The MAC gloss gives the lips a nice medium sheen and feels extremely moisturizing on the lips. I am not a fan of super sticky glosses so I love that the MAC gloss is super creamy and not at all sticky. As I mentioned above, I prefer the doe foot applicator on the MAC gloss because I find it easier when applying gloss to the lips when there is no mirror to look in. While the LA Splash gloss is also very creamy, it has a slightly sticky feel on the lips and is less moisturizing. Unlike the MAC's 'Right Image', LA Splash's 'In Love' has a very high sheen which I personally prefer. This gloss is also more pigmented, and one layer of the gloss gives the lips a full dose of colour. Unfortunately, I find it harder to apply the LA Splash gloss because of the longer doe foot applicator and need to have a mirror in front of me so that I don't end up with gloss all over my face. 

Appearance:

I will admit that when in the tube, these glosses look slightly different, however once applied to the lips, the two blue-based, bubble gum pink glosses look almost identical. The biggest difference between the two glosses is the fact that MAC's 'Right Image' is laced with super fine green, gold, and pink glitter whereas 'In Love' has not a glitter in sight. On the lips (and when swatched on the back of the hand), neither gloss appears to have any glitter. 

Dupe Percentage: 

If the comparison were based on colour alone, I would give these two glosses a dupe percentage of 95%. However, based on the different applicators, the overall opacity of the two glosses, and the fact that the LA Splash gloss is quite sticky, I would say these glosses are 90% similar. 

My Choice:

Oh man, do I really have to choose? I really love both glosses. The MAC gloss is more creamy and moisturizing, whereas the LA Splash gloss is more pigmented and has a higher sheen. I have a feeling I would probably choose the MAC's 'Right Image' because I am absolutely in love with the Cremesheen formula, however my recommendation for others would be to grab the LA Splash gloss as it is much cheaper and looks identical to the MAC gloss when applied to the lips. 

Have you tried either of these lip glosses? Based on the photos and review, which would you ultimately choose?

xx

Alicia