The Nature of Beauty: December 2010

Monday, December 27, 2010

Day 30: Cranberry Latte

Disclaimer: All content is my own opinion only and should in no way be construed as a paid endorsement or representation of any companies named. I receive no compensation whatsoever from any makeup or other companies named/linked to in my posts for my looks or reviews. I just like to have fun with all the pretty pretty colors...

Day 30--Saturday, December 18, 2010

The last day of the Orglamix 30 Days/30 Ways Challenge, oh my...

For the end of the Challenge I thought I'd come full circle and go back to the beginning of my makeup-wearing days and revisiting a look I first tried under the mentorship of a Mary Kay consultant who showed me that you could wear a red shade on the eyes if done properly ;) She created the look with a maroon shade of red and two other shades: a taupe and an off-white sort of champagne beige. I wore that look for every "special occasion" that whole year lol!

Now I'm a little older, a bit wiser (hopefully), and more mindful of what I put on my face. But the colors looked great together and I received Orglamix Cranberry (on sale as the Color of the Week last week) just in time to revamp my "first makeup look ever"

In the old look, the Mary Kay consultant taught me to use the maroon/brick red shade on the outer corners of my eyes, with the off-white shade all over the lid and the taupe shade in the crease. This look is a bit "inside out," making use of the reddish shade on the lid for a holiday-tasty pop of color.

I began the look with my favorite foundation combo (Orglamix Mineral Foundation in Bocote mixed with Orglamix Self-Adjusting Foundation in Whole Grain), followed by a pinch of pixie dust (aka Orglamix HD Microfinish Powder in Hush Hush), then prepped my eyelids with Orglamix Magnetism prep/prime. The rest of the application went on as follows:

1) Blend Orglamix Cafe au Lait over entire lid from brow to lash line

2) Pat Orglamix Cranberry onto the lid and blend slightly into crease (over the Cafe au Lait this became a lovely soft shimmery rose shade)

3) Blend Orglamix Cappuccino into crease and outer "v" of eye, then drag down across lower lid

4) Foil Cranberry and line upper lash line

5) Line lower water lines with pale pink mineral eyeshadow pencil

6) Blend matte brown shadow into brows and apply black mascara to upper + lower lashes

7) Blend Orglamix mineral blush in Allspice onto cheeks

8) Mix more Cranberry with gold microglitter gloss and apply to lips

I have to say as this challenge concludes that I have received the most benefit from the inspiration to play a little and get more creative with the makeup I wear, whether for every day, for special occasions, or for performances. I want to thank Cheri and her team at Orglamix for coming up with the Challenge and for keeping us all supplied with so many beautiful shades to choose from, as well as all my fellow Orglamix fansisters for their inspiring creativity and their unfailing and generous encouragement and support for all of us who participated in the challenge. The ideas, tips, tricks and skills I picked up during this process truly were a reward worthy of the effort!

Day 29: Wintersong

Disclaimer: All content is my own opinion only and should in no way be construed as a paid endorsement or representation of any companies named. I receive no compensation whatsoever from any makeup or other companies named/linked to in my posts for my looks or reviews. I just like to have fun with all the pretty pretty colors...

Day 29--Friday, December 17, 2010

Day 29 and almost the end of the Challenge; myself and many of my fellow Orglamix fansisters are beginning to feel the withdrawal coming: that slight sadness mixed with a bit of excitement that arrives at the end of a project that you have been working on for weeks (well a little more than a month now, actually).

To cheer myself up and make sure I had something with a little shimmer and flash for the end of the Challenge, I decided on a silvery-blue look (the sort of thing many of my fansisters have done but I had not yet tried), named after one of my fav holiday albums: Wintersong!

(holy crap this looked so much better with my big browns than I expected, hooray!!)

On my face is my new fav foundation combo: Orglamix Mineral Foundation in Bocote mixed with Orglamix Self-Adjusting Mineral Foundation in Whole Grain (it's hard to see in the pics--my camera's not that great--but I think it makes me look like I'm wearing a mineral glow even though I'm not), followed as always with a sheer sweep of Orglamix HD Microfinish Powder in Hush Hush for a lovely and flawless look! After applying Orglamix Magnetism prep/prime to my eyelids, I continued the application as follows:

1) Pat a metallic silver mineral eyeshadow onto lids

2) Mix a teal blue mineral eyeshadow with Orglamix Obsidian and blend into crease and outer "v" of the eyes, dragging this combo shade onto the outer part of the lower lid

3) Blend Orglamix Sesame onto brow bone and into upper edge of teal/Obsidian to "fog out"

4) Apply Orglamix Naughty dry as liner on upper lash line for a more smoky look

5) Line lower water lines with black gel eyeliner

6) Blend matte brown shadow into brows and apply black mascara to lashes

7) Brush Orglamix Mineral Glow in Tourmaline over cheeks

8) Apply a sparkly plum-colored gloss to lips

(a couple of close ups to show off the shimmer & sparkle ;p)

I think this has to be one of my favorite looks that I've done for the Challenge--something festive and fun that is just perfect for a holiday party (and which I might wear on New Year's Eve, who knows lol).

Day 28: Honeymoon Hottie

Disclaimer: All content is my own opinion only and should in no way be construed as a paid endorsement or representation of any companies named. I receive no compensation whatsoever from any makeup or other companies named/linked to in my posts for my looks or reviews. I just like to have fun with all the pretty pretty colors...

Day 28--Thursday, December 16, 2010

When I married the darling hubby (OMG, seven years ago!!), I made up a special scent to wear to the wedding and on our honeymoon (in a secluded little B&B on the Mendocino coast--amazing!!) out of nothing but essential oils, since I'm sensitive to synthetic fragrances. The blend made use of essential oils such as Sandalwood, Patchouli, Jasmine, and Cardamom, and smelled INCREDIBLE!! I called the stuff "Honeymoon Hottie" because my man could not keep his nose off my neck the whole week lol...

Spicy as the scent is, the look ended up being softer than I envisioned but very pretty nonetheless--what do you think?

(I swear this could have been my Pinup 2.0 look, yeah?)

This look features the Orglamix shades that correspond to the ingredients I used to create the Honeymoon Hottie scent (still one of my favs) and begins as always with clean and moisturized skin. Over this, I blended Orglamix Mineral Foundation in Bocote with Orglamix Self-Adjusting Mineral Foundation in Whole Grain, followed by a sheer application of Orglamix HD Microfinish Powder in Hush Hush. On the eyelids, I applied Orglamix Magnetism prep/prime and continued the application as follows:

1) Pat Orglamix Honeymoon Sweet onto lid and follow by blending Orglamix Jasmine on top of it

2) Mix Orglamix Patchouli and Orglamix Sandalwood and blend into crease and outer "v" of eye, drawing out into a slight wing

3) Blend more Jasmine onto the brow bone and down into upper edge of Sandalwood/Patchouli to soften; dab more Jasmine onto inner corners of eyes

4) Line upper lash line with black gel eyeliner and pat Orglamix Naughty over this to smoke it out a little (LOVE this!!)

5) Line lower water lines with black gel eyeliner

6) Blend matte brown shadow into brows and apply black mascara to lashes

7) Sweep Orglamix mineral blush in Ginger over cheeks

8) Mix Orglamix Cardamom with gold microglitter gloss and apply to lips

Very subtle, very lovely neutral look; I really like how this turned out despite my expectations having leaned toward a more dramatic look. Sometimes the accidents really are happy ones ;)

Day 27: Lady Lilliput

(seriously this turned out a lot better than I was expecting lol)

Beginning as usual with clean and moisturized skin I applied Orglamix Mineral Foundation in Bocote mixed with Orglamix Self-Adjusting Mineral Foundation in Whole Grain and followed with a sweep of Orglamix HD Microfinish Powder in Hush Hush. I then applied Orglamix Magnetism on the lids for a base and continued the application as follows:

1) Pat Orglamix Mint onto lid and blend into crease (I went somewhat heavy on the application of this color to make it more shiny/shimmery and less smoky)

2) Blend Orglamix Bordeaux into outer "v" and crease of eyes, draw it out into a "wing" shape at outer lid and drag across lower lid

3) Mix Orglamix Freesia with Orglamix Grape Hyacinth and blend onto brow bone and down into upper edge of Bordeaux to soften and "fog out"

4) Dab a bit more Freesia by itself on inner corners of eye and inner portion of lower lid

5) Line upper lash line and lower water line with black gel eyeliner

6) Blend matte brown shadow into brows and apply black mascara to lashes

7) Mix Orglamix Gingko with red sparkle gloss and apply to lips

I love how the Freesia mixed with Grape Hyacinth made a beautiful, smoky pale lavender color; perfect for softening what might have been a very dark look.

Day 26: Pretty Penny

This look has only two shades on the whole lid and debuts my newly received Orglamix Mineral Foundation in Bocote, which looked a little dark for my getting-paler-for-the-Winter self, so I mixed it with Orglamix Self-Adjusting Mineral Foundation in Whole Grain. I followed this with a sheer sweep of Orglamix HD Microfinish Powder in Hush Hush and Orglamix Magnetism prep/prime on the lids. And off we go!

1) Apply Orglamix Creamliner in Penny to lid and blend upward into crease

2) Blend Orglamix Chamomile onto brow bone and down into the upper border of Penny, then dab a bit more Chamomile into the inner corners of the eyes

3) Foil matte brown shadow and line upper lash line; blend more of this shadow into brows to shape + define

4) Apply black mascara to lashes

5) Mix Orglamix Goji with peach shimmer gloss and apply to lips

(no I most certainly did NOT give the judge this expression, but it's fun for the camera lol)

Since going to court makes me nervous (even when it has nothing to do with me personally), I decided to forego applying blush as it would just make me look too flushed (as in, maybe tipsy or otherwise under the influence)--yikes!!

Day 25: Violette at Dusk

Disclaimer: All content is my own opinion only and should in no way be construed as a paid endorsement or representation of any companies named. I receive no compensation whatsoever from any makeup or other companies named/linked to in my posts for my looks or reviews. I just like to have fun with all the pretty pretty colors...

Day 25--Monday, December 13, 2010

Well today was a super hectic day at work and I was already feeling tired from working half my weekend (one-day weekends kind of make me grumpy but on the other hand I'm blessed to have good full-time work, a decent salary, and a great supervisor and coworkers so can't complain much lol), so today's look came in the evening--hence the "twilight" (not "Twilight") theme. Also, I hadn't done much in the way of purple looks, though it's one of my favorite colors and my brown eyes look good in violet shades.

Here is Violette at Dusk:

This look makes use of a technique that is becoming something of a signature of mine (because I think it looks good on me): blending a light-medium shade of the hues I'm using on the lid onto the brow bone and slightly into the upper portion of the crease to "fog out" or soften the edges of the shades used to contour the eye.

Today's "fog out" shade is Orglamix Skyline, which I also made use of in Morning Glory (Day 8, used as a darker or contour shade) and Cleopatra (Day 13, used as a primary shade on the lid):

(can you believe this is what I used as a "highlight" shade today?? I'm still amazed at how versatile Cheri's eyeshadows are, so many of them can be used to color, contour, or highlight!!)

Having done this look after work, I of course washed my face and moisturized the skin, then came back and applied Orglamix Self-Adjusting Mineral Foundation in Whole Grain and Orglamix HD Microfinish Powder in Hush Hush to the face, followed by an application of Orglamix Magnetism prep/prime on the eyelids. The application of this look continued as follows:

1) Foil Orglamix Violette and apply to lid; let dry and apply a second coat, foiled.

2) Blend Orglamix Bordeaux into crease and outer "v" of the eye.

3) Blend Orglamix Skyline onto brow bone and into upper edge of the Bordeaux to soften this boundary

4) Line upper lash line and lower water line with Orglamix Creamliner in Venomous

5) Line outer 2/3 of lower lash line with more Violette, applied dry

6) Pat Orglamix Mineral Twinkle Effects in Purple over entire lid and dab more of it into inner corners of the eyes and across inner 1/3 of lower lash line

7) Blend matte brown shadow into brows to shape/define and apply black mascara to lashes

8) Mix a little bit each of Orglamix Bordeaux, Orglamix Patchouli, and Orglamix Mineral Twinkle Effects in Purple with red sparkle gloss and apply to lips

I'm finding that my application skills have improved over the course of this Challenge, and this look is a testament to that. Of the blue/violet looks I've done so far I'd have to say this one is a favorite for certain and I would definitely wear it again!

Day 24: Neapolitan

Makes me just want to run down to the local scoop shop for some Chocolate-Vanilla-Strawberry goodness...

On clean, moisturized skin I applied Orglamix Self-Adjusting Mineral Foundation in Whole Grain followed by a sheer application of Orglamix HD Microfinish Powder in Hush Hush; then I primed my eyelids by applying Orglamix Magnetism prep/prime. The application continued as follows:

1) Blend Orglamix The F Word onto brow bone and down into crease

2) Pat Orglamix Passionfruit onto lid and follow by blending Orglamix Strawberry over the Passionfruit

3) Blend Orglamix Mocha into crease and outer "v" of the eyes, dragging this shade down and across lower lid

4) Dab a bit of Orglamix Nice into inner corners of eyes to highlight

5) Apply black gel eyeliner to lower water lines, blend matte brown shadow into brows, and apply black mascara to lashes

6) Blend Orglamix blush in Ginger over cheeks

7) Mix Orglamix Cherry Blossom and a bit of Orglamix Cardamom with pink shimmer gloss and apply to lips

Seriously, I love this look--soft, pretty, perfect for Sunday or any day! This could definitely be an every day look for me, it's mostly neutral with just a soft pop of pink to liven it up and a little extra shimmer from the Nice shade.

Of course, you could easily switch this over to a night time look by adding black liner to the upper lash line, applying a more intense pink to the lid, and wearing a darker shade on the lips (Orglamix Saffron, for example, or Goji).

Day 23: Naughty & Nice

Disclaimer: All content is my own opinion only and should in no way be construed as a paid endorsement or representation of any companies named. I receive no compensation whatsoever from any makeup or other companies named/linked to in my posts for my looks or reviews. I just like to have fun with all the pretty pretty colors...

Day 23--Saturday, December 11, 2010

Today is the Holiday Gift Shoppe run each year by our agency for the families we serve--folks that are raising their relatives' children for a variety of reasons. It's a pretty busy and hectic day, but also a fun and festive one (good thing, since we're putting in a full day's work on a Saturday, usually the weekend for us). So today's look needed to meet several criteria: be quick & easy, long-wearing and no-fuss, and of course beautiful!! Here it is:

This look takes advantage of two limited edition shades by Orglamix: Naughty and Nice (apropos, considering the theme of my workday today lol), creating a simple yet sultry, almost pinup-style look (minus the red lipstick, which I thought might be a bit much for the day--hey, there's little kids at my office :p).

Also debuting with this look is mineral foundation by Orglamix: the Self-Adjusting Mineral Foundation in Whole Grain, with Orglamix HD Microfinish Powder in Hush Hush to "set" the foundation. I could not believe how well this matched my skin tone--this seriously made me look like I was wearing nothing at all and did not "pale out" my face the way a too-light shade would have done. Amazing stuff and definitely recommended for light to tan skin tones (I've heard from other ladies with darker skin that it does not work so well on them).

The application continued as follows:

1) Apply Orglamix Magnetism prep/primer to eyelids and blend evenly

2) Pat Orglamix Nice from brow to lash line, adding extra to the lid, inner corners of the eye, and lower lash line for shimmer/sparkle

3) Foil Orglamix Naughty and apply as liner to upper lash line and wing out at outer corners, wait to dry and apply a second coat of Naughty over the first--makes for an extra smoky, extra sparkly look

4) Line the lower water lines with black gel eyeliner

5) Blend matte brown eyeshadow into brows and apply black mascara to lashes

6) Blend Orglamix blush in Ginger onto the cheeks

7) Mix more Nice and a little bit of Orglamix Bordeaux with pale pink shimmer gloss, add wine red gloss over the top if desired for a deeper shade on the lips (I ended up doing this for today's look)

(these two pics really show off the "winged up" eyeliner in Naughty, ooh la la!)

That really is one shade from brow to lash line and in the inner corners, amazing how the play of light over the Nice makes it look like more than one color was applied!

Day 22: Black Gold

And here is Black Gold (also dubbed "The Bronze Queen" by one of my fellow Orglamix fansisters, thanks mNg!!)

(tell me this doesn't make my eyes look a bit darker lol)

Wow!! I got so many compliments on this look, I decided I'd definitely have to wear it again sometime during the holidays. I began with clean and moisturized skin and then applied mineral foundation, Orglamix HD Microfinish Powder in Hush Hush, and primed the eyelids with Orglamix Magnetism. Everything else is the same as yesterday (Honey from brow to lash line, metallic gold mineral eyeshadow on lid, Ambre in crease/outer "v" and lower lid, matte brown shadow in brows & black mascara on lashes, Orglamix Allspice blush, and Honey/Cardamom/gold glitter gloss on lips), EXCEPT I added the following:

1) Blend Orglamix Black Magic over Ambre in crease/outer "v" of eyes and pat a little extra on top of that for SPARKLE!!

2) Foil more Black Magic and use to line upper lash line and wing out

3) Line lower water lines with black gel eyeliner

Pretty incredible, this has to be one of my favorite looks that I've done so far for this Challenge! I'd say this would definitely be an evening/party look for me, but it's not too extreme so you could wear it during the day--if you dare ;)

Day 21: Gold Dust Woman

(Gold shimmer and sparkle from brows to lips, oh my!!)

Since this was an end-of-day look, I pulled my hair back (messily, I know) and washed my face, then moisturized. Once that was absorbed, I applied mineral foundation and Orglamix HD Microfinish powder in Hush Hush and continued the application as follows:

1) Apply Orglamix Magnetism primer to eyelids and blend evenly

2) Pat Orglamix Honey from brow to lashes and blend blend blend

3) Pat metallic gold eyeshadow onto lid (I packed it on pretty heavily)

4) Blend Orglamix Ambre into crease & outer "v" of the eye and drag down across lower lash line

5) Foil Orglamix Cardamom and line upper lash line

6) Dab a bit more Honey onto inner corners of the eyes and across inner part of lower lash line

7) Use a pale pink mineral eyeshadow pencil to line lower water lines

8) Blend matte brown shadow into brows to shape/define and apply black mascara to lashes

9) Apply Orglamix mineral blush in Allspice to cheeks and blend

10) Mix more Honey and a touch of Orglamix Cardamom with glittery gold gloss and apply to lips

Et voila! Shimmery gold goodness ;)

Monday, December 13, 2010

Day 20: Moroccan Mint Tea

(a round of Moroccan mint tea at Marrakech--icy cold, refreshing, and not too sweet; delicious!!)

Thankfully, my coworkers and superiors seemed to agree, and once again Orglamix earned me many compliments on my appearance.

(oooh, sultry ;) also, it's hard to see in this photo but the eyeshadows somehow picked up a bit of green in the pearls I was wearing--how cool is that??)

Once again, Orglamix Corrector in Menthe was my friend, as holiday gatherings with the coworkers can be a bit anxiety-provoking (and therefore breakout-causing). Mineral foundation and Orglamix HD Microfinish Powder in Hush Hush created the base for this look, along with Orglamix Magnetism prep/prime on the lids.

I applied this look as per below:

1) Pat Orglamix Cilantro on lid and blend

2) Pat Orglamix Sandalwood into outer "v" of lid and blend upward and inward into crease; take up a bit more of this shade and sweep across lower lid

3) Pat Orglamix Olive onto brow bone and blend out and down into upper edge of Sandalwood to soften this margin

4) Foil Orglamix Cardamom and use to line upper lash line, pulling out & up into slight wing at outer corner of eyes

5) Blend matte brown shadow into brows to shape and define and apply black mascara to lashes

6) Sweep Orglamix Mineral Glow in Rose Quartz across cheek bones

7) Mix more of the Rose Quartz with a little Orglamix Hot Chocolate and clear gloss with gold microglitter and apply to lips

(it still amazes me that pics taken in my car seem to come out the best, especially for showing the colors)

This is a great daytime look and perfect for luncheons or other workday functions. It certainly seemed to go over well with the higher-ups, which is a plus--definitely don't want to offend anyone at the office holiday party, right??

Day 19: Kashmiri

Pretty & soft shawl with light blues, rose pinks, pale violet, and ivory shades.

I purchased this shawl online through Heritage Trading's ebay store, very lovely things and they are perfect in moderate weather--not too heavy for a spring day but warm enough to ward off a mild chill.

This look was definitely a challenge to pull together, as my unused Orglamix shades constituted a bit of a hodgepodge of colors that I wasn't sure would coordinate. What do you think?

The look began with clean, moisturized skin and foundation/Orglamix HD Microfinish Powder in Hush Hush to set the stage. This time, I made use of Orglamix Corrector in Menthe to hide a few blemishes I had thanks to a recent breakout--great stuff! Eyelids were then prepared with Orglamix Magnetism prep/primer--a great product that really helps mineral eye shadows adhere to the lid and prevent "migration" into the creases of the eyelid.

The application continued as follows:

1) Pat Orglamix Cashmere from brow bone to lash line and blend (this one becomes a creamy ivory shade when blended--very nice!)

2) Mix Orglamix Strawberry with Patchouli and pat on lid, blending upward into crease; these two shades together became a shimmery, sparkly mauve color that was hard to capture on camera

3) Pat Orglamix Brimstone into outer "v" of the eye and blend up and inward into crease; blend well to soften. Take up a bit more Brimstone and drag across lower lash line

4) Foil Strawberry and use to line upper lash line, inner corner of eyes, and inner portion of the lower lid

5) Blend matte brown shadow into brows to shape + define and apply black mascara to lashes

6) Sweep Orglamix Mineral Glow in Tourmaline across cheekbones, etc.

7) Mix Orglamix Strawberry & Gingko with pink shimmer gloss and apply to lips

I wore this look all day and it hardly budged at all--I only needed to reapply the lip color a few times throughout the workday! The Strawberry shade foiled as eyeliner added shimmer and sparkle to an otherwise smoky and subtle look and gave it just a bit of mischief, nothing too outrageous ;)

One of the things I have come to love most about Orglamix cosmetics is their versatility--they can be used on eyes, lips, cheeks, and even nails (although I have not yet tried this option)! This makes it a little bit easier to coordinate shades that might otherwise clash by placing them in different areas of the face; likewise the loose powder format makes mixing shades to create new ones simple and quick (rather than having to apply layer after layer after layer and worry about contaminating shades with darker/lighter colors).

Sunday, December 12, 2010

Day 18: Orange Chocolate Cocoa

Here is a pic of the absolutely HEAVENLY handmade marshmallows by Softly Sweetly; this is the chocolate orange variety

Here's the look for Day 18:

Face was of course prepared by cleansing and moisturizing first, then applying mineral foundation and Orglamix HD Microfinish Powder in Hush Hush for a flawless look. Eyelids were then prepped by applying an even layer of Orglamix Magnetism prep/prime to provide something for the eye shadows to "grab" on to.

On to the application:

1) Pat Orglamix Espresso on inner 2/3 of lid and blend, blend, blend (this is a pretty intense shade)

2) Pat Orglamix Mocha on outer 1/3 of lid and blend upward & inward into crease, then drag more Mocha down across lower lash line

3) Pat Orglamix Chocolate Frosting across brow bone and blend down into upper edge of Mocha

4) Foil metallic orange eyeshadow and line upper lash line; pat more of this shade dry into inner corner of eye and drag across inner 1/3 of lower lash line

5) Blend matte brown shadow into brows to shape/define and apply black mascara to lashes

6) Mix Orglamix Hot Chocolate with clear gloss that has gold microglitter in it & apply to lips

Mmmm...delicious!! This is a beautiful neutral look that wears well in the day and the evening (you can always dress it up for the night by using a darker lip color and lining upper and lower lash lines in black); it's a bit subtle for clubbing but perfect for dinner, theater, etc.

Day 17: Betsuin

My nephew plays for the Sacramento Buddhist Church AKA Betsuin

Their team colors are red, black, and white, so here's the look:

This is how it looks in the sun...well, how it looks in the sun as seen through my iPhone 3G camera o.0

I began as usual with clean and moisturized skin and brushed on a sheer layer of mineral foundation, followed by a light application of Orglamix HD Microfinish Powder in Hush Hush--magic for hiding all the little imperfections and making the face camera-ready ;) After that, I primed the eyelids using Orglamix Magnetism prep/primer and continued the application as follows:

1) Vanilla Birthday Cake patted on from brow bone to lash line

2) Pat Saffron on lid and drag across lower lash line

3) Pat Black Magic in crease, blend out, and pat a little extra over this for added SPARKLE!!

4) Touch of Passionfruit on inner corner of eyes and drag across inner 1/3 of lower lid

5) black gel eyeliner on upper lash line, winged out, and on lower water lines

6) Blend matte brown eyeshadow into brows to shape & define and apply black mascara to lashes

7) Sweep Mineral Glow in Tourmaline over cheekbones, nose, forehead, and chin

8) Mix Saffron & Passionfruit with sheer pink gloss and apply to lips

I love love LOVE this look and got so many compliments on it, even though the sports league is usually a pretty low-key and conservative crowd when it comes to physical appearance. Not sure I'd wear this for everyday but it's definitely perfect for a night on the town or a holiday get-together!

Unfortunately, my nephew's team didn't do as well--poor kids got slaughtered by a team composed of boys that seemed twice their size on the court--auwe!! Guess the growth spurt came early for some of them...

Tuesday, December 7, 2010

Day 16: Open Sesame

Dropping in at my Dad and Stepdad's house for a neighborhood holiday party they were hosting, then
Ducking out of said party for a few hours to help with the pick up of donated toys for the families I work with for distribution at our annual Holiday Toy Shop (assisted by my dearest hubby--so gracious!)
And returning to the party in time for my Dad to break out the good wine and dessert!

Inspired by the sparkliness of holiday decorations (my Dad is retired and has MUCHO time on his hands, so his decor this year has extra sparkle) and the generosity of our community, I decided to glam it up for tonight's look: Open Sesame!

This look uses Orglamix Aegean again as the centerpiece, taking advantage this time of the option of mixing colors afforded by loose mineral eyeshadows, with a result that I have found difficult to achieve by layering different shades of pressed eyeshadow one over another.

(this close-up shows how mixing shades can create an entirely different look without seeming "caked on")

Beginning as usual with clean, moisturized skin and adding a sheer layer of mineral foundation and a thin veil of Orglamix HD Microfinish Powder in Hush Hush, I applied Orglamix Magnetism prep/primer to the eyelids and continued as follows:

1) Pat Orglamix Moonstone onto entire lid from brow to lash line and blend out

2) Mix Orglamix Aegean with Moonstone and pat onto lid, blending up into crease

3) Pat Orglamix Sesame into outer "v" of eye and crease and blend

4) Take a bit more Moonstone and blend into upper edge of Sesame to create a shimmery silver gradient; pat a little bit more into inner corners of eyes to highlight

5) Blend matte brown shadow into brows to shape/define, line upper lash line and lower water line with black eyeliner, and apply black mascara to lashes

6) Sweep Orglamix Mineral Glow in Tourmaline over cheekbones, etc. to highlight

7) Apply shimmery mauve gloss to lips

I got many compliments on this look both at the party and from my supervisor (to whom I had to explain the extra glamorous eyes)--and that was before folks started getting tipsy, thank you very much!! I would say that this is a fun look for the holidays--might be especially nice for a New Year's party or something like that.

Day 15: Marrakech

(the inspiration for today's look)

Such a jam-packed itinerary calls for a beautiful look that can go from day to evening without a hiccup and I had just a few shades in mind. Knowing where I was going to end up this evening I decided to name today's look for the restaurant where the First Friday girls and I were meeting--Marrakech!

(side note, I think it's incredibly funny that many of my best pics are taken with my itty bitty iPhone 3G camera while sitting in my car in my driveway lmbo!!)

This bit of gorgeous takes advantage of the technique of foiling mineral eyeshadow to intensify the color; it also makes use of one of Orglamix's mineral glow shades for something other than adding a bit of extra color to the cheeks--a little bit of innovation, hooray!

As this was applied in the morning, it was easy to begin with a clean, moisturized face. Mineral foundation was brushed on, followed by Orglamix HD Microfinish Powder in Hush Hush to set the face and Orglamix Magnetism prep/prime on the eyelids. From here the application proceeded as follows:

1) Foil Orglamix Silk and paint over lid

2) Pat Orglamix Sandalwood onto outer "v" and into crease and blend into the edges of Silk to contour

3) Pat Orglamix Mineral Glow in Rose Quartz onto brow bone and blend down into upper edge of Sandalwood to soften this boundary and create a small gradient

4) Foil Orglamix Saffron and apply as liner to upper lash line and to inner corner of eye to highlight; mix a little more Saffron with black eyeliner and apply to lower water line

5) Blend matte brown shadow into brows to shape/define and apply black mascara to lashes

6) Sweep Orglamix Mineral Glow in Rose Quartz over cheekbones, center of forehead, nose, and chin

7) Mix Orglamix Silk and a little bit of Saffron with shimmery pink lip gloss and apply to lips!

I think this is great for day or evening as it is (and in fact this is how I wore the look), however if you like you can drama it up for an evening of dancing by using black liner on the upper lash line, adding an extra coat or two of mascara (or false eyelashes), and using Saffron rather than Silk as the primary color on the lips.

Foiling is a fascinating technique and it's incredible how different a shadow can look when foiled; for example Silk in the look above is foiled, bringing out the pink tones in it, whereas in the look below (Day 12, just a few days ago) it was applied dry to the inner half of the eye and is much more neutral/golden and subtle:

But then, that's all part of the fun of playing with colors on the face and different ways of applying it--and the whole point of this challenge is to get creative, isn't it?

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