Vice City

Well not really Miami, FL (the place where Grand Theft Auto: Vice City was based), but I got a new eyeshadow palette!

Urban Decay's The Vice Palette - It's probably one of the most loved and reviewed palette I've seen so far. And for good reasons...The names starred with the asterisks are my favorite color.

Love, love, love the feel of the palette!

Great mixture of colors for every occasion; and a surpringly pretty nice double brush.

L to R: Desperation*, Muse, Jagged, Blitz, Penny Lane

L to R: Junkie, Chaos*, Occupy, Unhinged, Black Market

L to R: Provocateur, Rapture, Vice*, Noise*, Armor*

L to R: Nevermind, Echo Beach*, Anonymous, Freebird, Laced

 

For my makeup of the week, I wanted to do something simple that is universal for any occasion - classic smokey eyes and red lips.

 

 

Here are the products I used:

 

Foundation: Clinique Perfectly Real Makeup in Shade 18 (G)

Powder: MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in Medium Dark

Blush: MAC Powder Blush in Melba (Matte)

Mascara: FAIRYDROPS Scandal Queen in Deep Glossy Black

Eyebrows: Urban Decay The Vice Palette

                  Desperation - used to fill in my brows

Eyeshadow Base: Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion

Eyeshadows: Urban Decay The Vice Palette

                      Anonymous - all over the lid

                      Freebird - inner corners

                      Echo Beach - middle of the lid

                      Desperation - outer corners

Eyeliner: MAC Fluidline in Blacktrack - upper lid

                Make Up For Ever Aqua Eyes Waterproof Eyeliner Pencil in 0L - upper water line

                & lower liner

                Sephora Nano Eye Pencil in Pure White (03) - lower water line

Lip Liner: MAC Lip Pencil in Boldly Bare

Lipstick: Lime Crime Vegan Lipstick in Glamour (101)

 



The mage-nagerie lives on.

Lips for the Limelight

Lips have become a recent obsession of mine. I rarely wore lipsticks in my earlier years, but as I age, I have come to realize that it is the easiest way to add color to the face. Lipsticks are easily interchangeable and takes less than two minutes to take on and off.

Most of the lipsticks colors I wear are considered subtle, easy for the everyday work look. However, during my last makeup shopping trip, I found a very unique and stunning color for those who dare.

My two purchases are:

Urban Decay Lip Primer Potion
Make Up For Ever Rogue Artist Intense in Number 15

 

One of things I appreciate most about Urban Decay is their attention to detail on their packaging; which makes buying the product a little easier, don't you think? This product promises to provide long-lasting color for your lipstick and to prevent feathering.

 

This lipstick base is ok at best. It is very hard to put on and tugs at your lips. I also noticed that it has a bad drying effect; making your lips look like they are chapped! I gave this product a shot because Urban Decay had a huge success with its Eyeshadow Primer Potion. The only real use I can see for this product is if you wanted to wear red lipstick without wearing a lip liner.

 

 

On the contrary to Urban Decay, Make Up For Ever truly focuses on being a very professional line of makeup. I highly recommend trying them if you have not; they have an arsenal of very cool and unique colors.

 

It took me several attempts with my camera to try to capture the true intensity of this color; and this shot nailed it. It goes on as a mixture of fuschia and purple with flecks of blue . This color is not for the faint of heart. When wearing this color, I would recommend keeping the rest of your makeup very mute. Try it with a black smokey eye or just black eyeliner with mascara to really let your lips be the main attraction.

 

The mage-nagerie lives on.

Potent Polish

It's that time of year again - where halls are decked, stockings are hung, and the electricity bills goes way up. Get into the spirit of the holidays with this highly-pigmented, formaldehyde-free nail polish! This iridescent forrest green is perfect for any upcoming celebrations.

Butter London dubbed thee British Racing Green. (On a side note, the originally British brand, Mini, had made its popular Cooper model in a similar color to this polish.) Pip pip cheerio!

This product can be found at www.butterlondon.com or locally at your nearest Ulta Beauty store at $14.00 per bottle.

Depending on daily activities, this polish can stay on nails for at least a week, and won't chip or peel. And because the formula is highly-pigmented, the polish can be messy to take off and could take a second cleaning for nails to be completely free of residue.

The mage-nagerie lives on.

Circa Circle Lens

The ever so popular circle lens. The power to change your eye size and color without fear! And of course, my collection of circle lens is starting to pile up again. Here are my two latest additions:

Dueba DM-23 Dolce Grey
Dueba DM-23 Dolce Brown

I ordered these from Eye Candy Lens, a company based in Hong Kong. You can visit their site here http://www.eyecandys.com. Expect the colorful and cute packaging (and also 2-4 weeks for delivery!!). Each lense is contained in its individual vial and should be sealed as seen below. These were about $27.00 per pair. Also, you get a free circle lens case per pair that you order. If you do not wear prescription lens, make sure to select the 0.00 Power for both the right (R) and left (L) eye.

 

Below are photos to help see what they would look like on you if you have dark brown eyes like me.

 

Dueba DM-23 Dolce Grey - These lens can look blue-ish up close, but are barely noticeable from a distance. If you want an enlargement effect, these will do the trick without looking fake.

(without Flash)

(with Flash)

 

Dueba DM-23 Dolce Brown - These lens are more effective if you want a nice, subtle color change . These do just what I want, which is to make my eyes a light brown/hazel color.

(without Flash)

(with Flash)

 

My warnings for new circle lens wearers is that these do not provide much oxygen flow to your corneas. Eyes can dry out very easily; make sure you bring contact lens safe eyedrops if wearing these for more than 8 hours straight. Also, I would not recommend sleeping in these.

 

The mage-nagerie lives on.