Icy Blue NYE Makeup Tutorial

There's something magical about this time of year. Whether it is how captivating it is to see the ball drop or how cold and crisp it begins to get in the beginning of Winter, there is so much inspiration to be found. As I don't often go outside my neutral comfort zone on this blog, I figured now is as good a time as ever to introduce some. New Year's Eve is all about being around friends and loved ones and celebrating the past and present all at once. With that in mind, I decided to create this really glamorous party look. If you think this is dramatic, trust me, it's dramatic for me too! I used cool tones in ways I've never used them before and so many all at once!  Let's just say I was channeling my inner Ice Queen. Hope you all have a safe and wonderful new year! Let's make the most of 2016 ♥


Tutorial

♥ Click To Enlarge ♥

1♥ As always, I start off with a primed lid using the Lorac Behind The Scenes Eye Primer. Then, I move on to eyeshadow. For this look, I can't use any of my traditional transition shades, so I opted to sticking with blue shadows. With a big fluffy blending brush, I swept Makeup Geek Neptune Eyeshadow (bright blue) through my crease and brow bone. I found this shade to be particularly patchy and hard to build up. However, for the purposes of being a transition shade, its sheerness actually worked to my advantage.

2♥ I wanted the blue to be more vibrant as it got closer to the crease, so I used a smaller blending brush to apply Coastal Scents Hot Pot in CM09 (navy blue). I only took this shade halfway through my crease as I really like how this method defines the eyes when they're open. Also, I went back and forth between the bright and navy blues, making sure I had the blend perfect.

3♥ To deepen the crease ever so slightly and add in a slightly different tone, I took a little bit of Coastal Scents Hot Pot in Edgy Eggplant (dark purple) on a pencil brush and added that to the very outer corner of the crease. I wanted it to be subtle so I made sure to blend it out with the blending brush from the last step.

4♥ Now to clean up the lid for the sparkly lid colors to come and create a sharp cut crease. I used Inglot Gel Liner in # 70 (periwinkle) on an angled eyeliner brush to create a crisp line between the crease and the lid. Then, I blended out the remaining liner onto the lid to be used as a base.

5♥ For the all over lid color, I mixed two different icy shades. While they're both very light, icy blues, they can come off as white on a blank lid hence why I applied them over a blue base. Using a dampened flat synthetic brush, I applied a mixture of Nyx Prismatic Shadow in Frostbite (pale icy blue) and Make Up For Ever Artist Shadow in D-200 (white with light blue reflects) all over where I placed the base.

♥ Click To Enlarge ♥

6♥ Next, apply glitter for the extra festive effect. You'll want to go with a light blue glitter or a glitter that has a light blue reflect. Before applying it, I applied some of the LA Splash Splash Proof Sealer Base to a synthetic flat brush instead of directly on my lid because I didn't want the glitter to be too heavily concentrated. Then, I dipped the brush into Nyx Glitter To Go in Snow and distributed it all over the lid with patting motions.

7♥ Apply eyeliner. I created a pretty thick winged eyeliner, flicking it more out to the side instead of upwards so as to elongate my eye shape. To do this I used the Milani Eye Tech Extreme Liquid Eye Liner in Blackest Black. When this was done, I felt that I wanted a little more definition to the outer crease, so I careful blended Make Up Forever Artist Shadow in S-102 (black) onto the outer third of the crease using a pencil brush. If there are any harsh lines, go back in with the blending brush that you used with the navy blue eyeshadow to sort that out.

8♥ Balance out the look by applying shadow to the lower lash line. First, I applied Inglot Gel Liner in # 77 (black) to the waterline and lower lash line using an angled eyeliner brush. I then used a pencil brush and black eyeshadow to smudge it out and blended out all of that with the navy blue shade and an angled shader brush.

9♥ Apply finishing touches. To help bring shine to the brow bone and blend out the transition shade more, I applied Mac Nylon Eyeshadow (metallic yellowy cream) to my brow bone with a fluffy synthetic brush. I also wanted to add some lightness to the inner portion of my lower lash line so I applied Nyx Liquid Crystal Liner in Crystal Hip. And, in addition to that, I tried out a new pair of House of Lashes in the style Pixie Luxe, which are light and wispy, perfect for a look that already has enough drama.

Face Deets

♥ Foundation - L'Oreal Infallible Pro Matte Foundation mixed with Cover FX Custom Cover Drops

♥ Concealer - LA Girl Pro Conceal Concealer

♥ Brows - Nyx Micro Brow Pencil in Taupe

♥ Bronzer - Urban Decay Naked Skin Ultra Definition Pressed Finishing Powder in Naked Dark

♥ Blush - Tarte Amazonian Clay Blush in Dollface

♥ Highlight - Sephora Radiant Luminizing Drops in Ultralight topped with Becca Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed in Opal

♥ Lips - RK by Kiss Matte Lipstick in Bare Nude topped with Maybelline Color Elixir Gloss in Nude Illusion

XO♥

Winter Wonderland: Candy Cane Eyeliner Tutorial

When I was a kid, candy canes were the emblematic sign that the holidays had arrived. You received them taped to your Christmas cards, hung them on trees as ornaments, even stuck them in your gingerbread houses. They were the quintessential symbol of "Winter Wonderland". And now that it's starting to get a bit colder here in NYC, it's only appropriate that I honor the tradition in some way or another. This is by no means a look that everybody would rock, but I think it would be a cool thing to wear when you're letting your hair down for the office holiday party.


Tutorial

♥ Click To Enlarge ♥

1♥ Even with such a dramatic eyeliner look as this, I like to create at least some definition to the rest of the eye with eyeshadow, so I've still prepped my lid with my trusty eye primer, the Lorac Behind the Scenes Eye Primer.

2♥ As I plan on using some darker shadows to define my eyes in a bit, I wanted to lay down a transition shade first. Side note: All of the eyeshadows that I'm using in this look (with the exception of one), are coming from the Lorac Pro Palette. With a medium size blending brush, I swept Taupe (medium brown) between my brow bone and crease, taking it from the outer corner all the way to where my eye meets my nose.

3♥ To give my eye that more rounded appearance, I'm going to start creating that faux cut crease look that I've been wearing lately. To do so, I took Sable (dark warm brown) on a smaller blending brush and focused that on the outer half of my crease, rounding it at my outer corner.

4♥ In order to deepen the crease and emphasize the round shape even more, I took Espresso (deep dark brown) on a pencil brush and  really carved out the desired shape. This does create somewhat of a harsh line, so I went back in with the smaller blending brush (with no additional product) and blurred out just the very edges of where Espresso meets Sable.

♥ Click To Enlarge ♥

5♥ You probably have already figured that I couldn't stop there...and you were definitely right. Using that same pencil brush, I added just the tiniest bit of Black to the outer crease. It may seem like a bit much, but I think that added definition in the outer corner really brings the look together in the end.

6♥ To clean up the faux cut crease, I used an old favorite of mine, Mac Pro Longwear Paint Pot in Soft Ochre. I switched between using a flat synthetic brush and an angled eyeliner brush when doing this because I found that the angled eyeliner really allowed me to make the shape more precise.

7♥ Soft Ochre is a very yellow-based paint pot, so to neutralize that I little bit, I patted Lt. Pink over it with the same synthetic flat brush from the last step.

8♥ Create your winged eyeliner--this will serve as your guideline for the candy cane stripes. While this step is completely based on preference, I would recommend making the wing relatively thick as I did, so that you have enough room to play with once we get to the candy cane detailing. To create my wing, I used the Milani Eye Tech Extreme Liquid Eye Liner in Blackest Black.

♥ Click To Enlarge ♥

9♥ Now on to the detailing. I started off by doing white stripes first because I felt that it would give me a bit more control in case the colors mixed. Using the NYX White Liquid Liner I created the stripes, slightly curving the ends so that it's not a harsh straight line and also leaving space for the red stripes. If you're worried about the white getting onto the rest of your eye makeup, you don't have to have it cover all of the black eyeliner underneath as the look gets outlined in black later anyway.

10♥ Add in the red. I've heard that using liquid lipsticks is great for this sort of thing, but, of course, do this at your own risk as they weren't created to be used on the eyes. Also, just remember to sanitize your product; you don't want nasty germs getting into such a sensitive area. For the red stripes I used the Jeffree Star Velour Liquid Lipstick in Hoe Hoe Hoe. I dispensed a small amount of the product onto the back of my hand and worked from there with a tiny detail brush to fill in the remaining black spots.

11♥ The red just wasn't intense enough for me, so I decided to add some glitter on top of it. With the same small detail brush, I applied a thin layer of the LA Splash Splash Proof Sealer Base over the red only. I then patted Mac Red Glitter over the top of it for a brighter, more metallic shine.

12♥ Once the stripes have completely dried, outline them with the black liquid liner. This defines them and makes it pop more.

13♥ Lastly, just add your finishing touches. I smoked out my lower lash line using the Inglot Gel Liner in # 77 and Black and Sable eyeshadows from the Lorac Pro Palette. I also highlighted my brow bone with Mac Nylon Eyeshadow and added House of Lashes "Smokey Muse" lashes to top off the look.

Face Deets

♥ Foundation - Cover FX Illuminating Primer mixed with the Custom Cover Drops

♥ Concealer - LA Girl Pro Conceal

♥ Brows - NYX Micro Brow Pencil in Taupe

♥ Bronzer - Urban Decay Naked Skin Ultra Definition Pressed Finishing Powder in Naked Dark

♥ Blush - Tarte Amazonian Clay Blush in Exposed

♥ Highlight - Nars Illuminator in Copacabana and Kat Von D Metal Crush Eyeshadow in Thunderstruck

♥ Lips - Sephora Cream Lip Stain in Always Red

XO♥

Beauty On A Budget: Drugstore Holiday Makeup Tutorial

After spending all your money getting gifts for family and friends, a trip to Sephora might not be in your immediate future. That being said, sacrificing your annual right as a beauty addict to go full-on glam during the holidays is not an option I will allow you to take. Though you might have to dig a little deeper to find gems in the drugstore, they are there. For instance, my search this past week has led me to find some new favorites in the NYX Nude Matte Shadows and the Covergirl TruNaked Palettes. For being so budget-friendly, they certainly pack a punch and I'd definitely recommend them even if money isn't an issue. Also, before I get on to the tutorial, I wanted to stress how important it is to utilize all of your options--use your products for more than one thing, look out for sales and cash back, get creative. There are no limits unless you create them ♥


Tutorial

♥ Click To Enlarge ♥

1♥ I primed my eyelids with the ELF Shadow Lock Eyelid Primer, which reminds me somewhat of my favorite Lorac Behind the Scenes Eye Primer, except it has a slightly drier texture and it blanks out the color of your lids a bit more.

2♥ When you're on a budget, my best bit of advice is to multi-task your products! There are so many ways to use one piece of makeup, so break the "rules" a little. As my transition, I'm using the lightest contour shade from the NYX Highlight & Contour Pro Palette and sweeping that through my crease up to my brow bone using a medium sized blending brush.

3♥ Again from that same palette, I'm taking the darkest contour shade on a smaller blending brush and concentrating that directly in my crease. I make sure not to take this color too far in--I go about halfway into my crease with this shade.

4♥ To futher define my crease, I take the NYX Nude Matte Shadow in Skinny Dip (medium plum) on an angled shader brush and trace over the area that I just defined in the last step. Once again, I don't take this shade in any farther than halfway through the crease. If the definition creates any harsh lines, feel free to take the smaller blending brush and gently blur out the edges.

5♥ Now it's time to clean up and polish the look a bit. Taking Shell (light beige) from the Covergirl TruNaked Nudes Palette, I swept that over my lid with a large flat eyeshadow brush. Doing this creates a blank slate on your lid. If you want, you can blur out the edges with a blending brush, but I wanted to keep the edges crisp so as to give the effect of a cut crease.

♥ Click To Enlarge ♥

6♥ I liked the faux cut crease effect so much that I wanted to intensify it just a teensy bit more. Taking an angled eyeliner brush, I took Sable (deep dark brown) from the same Covergirl Palette and defined that same area some more. Be sure to blend out the edges with the small blending brush again.

7♥ Create your winged eyeliner. For looks like this, I like to create a thicker more pronounced eyeliner so that when I add the glitter, you can still see the liner peeking out. Lately, I've been trying out the Milani Eye Tech Extreme Liquid Eye Liner in Blackest Black and I've really been liking it. I would go so far as to say that it might eventually replace my Stila Stay All Day Waterproof Liquid Eye Liner because of its affordability.

8♥ Now for the part that takes this look up a notch--glitter, of course. Directly above where I created the winged eyeliner, I drew a line following the same direction and curvature using the NYX Liquid Crystal Liner in Crystal Gold. If the glitter goes over your winged eyeliner, you can always use your black liquid liner to go over it again and correct the shape.

9♥ As always, every look is about balance, so I smoked out my lower lash line. I didn't have a black kohl or gel eyeliner from the drugstore, so feel free to use whichever one you like. I, then, smudged out the eyeliner with a pencil brush and the Sable eyeshadow. Afterwards, I took Skinny Dip on the angled shader brush and blended out the dark shadow to make it more seamless.

10♥ Last up are the finishing touches--the lashes I used were from Elite Eye Lashes in style # 18 Black.

Face Deets

♥ Foundation - L'Oreal Infallible Pro Matte

♥ Concealer - LA Girl Pro Conceal

♥ Brows - NYX Micro Brow Pencil in Taupe

♥ Bronzer - ELF Contour Palette

♥ Blush - NYX Baked Blush in Ignite

♥ Highlight - Wet n Wild Hollywood Boulevard

♥ Lips - Milani Color Statement Lipstick in Matte Naked

XO♥

Holiday Glitter Eyeliner Tutorial

Before I get into the insanely festive Christmas tutorials that I have planned, I thought I would ease into it with something simple and very sparkly. This look is for the girl who wants to do something special, but isn't necessarily feeling all of the typical Christmas-y makeup. Or this could be for you if you procrastinated a little too long before getting ready for that office holiday party. Regardless of why you plan on using it, the touch of glitter sure does add some pizzazz to your typical everyday eyeliner. It dresses up your eyes just enough without making you look like you did entirely too much. But if you really feel like kicking it up a notch, use red or green glitter instead--you'll definitely be channeling the Christmas spirit!


Tutorial

♥ Click To Enlarge ♥

1♥ If you want to wear the eyeliner on it's own, you can skip on to the next section. Today, I felt like pairing it with some eyeshadow. As usual, I started off with a bare, primed eyelid. I had used the Lorac Behind The Scenes Eye Primer. Then, I moved on to laying down my transition shade. With a very large fluffy brush, I swiped Honey Butter (very light peachy tan) from the Too Faced Natural Matte Palette through my brow bone and crease area from my outer corner all the way to my inner corner.

2♥ Using a slightly smaller blending brush, I defined my outer corner and outer third of my crease with Chocolate Cookie (warm medium brown) from the same TF Palette while still blending it upwards into Honey Butter.

3♥ To define and deepen that outer corner even more, I placed Burgundy from the Lorac Pro Matte Palette directly into the crease using a pencil brush. Once the desired pigmentation was achieved, I used the same blending brush from the last step to make sure there were no harsh lines between the shades.

4♥ I wanted a relatively clean, bare lid so that the eyeliner that I put on later would "pop" against it, so I cleaned up the area with a flat synthetic brush and Mac Paint Pot in Soft Ochre. To set that, I applied a mixture of Bare and Linen from the Lorac Pro Matte Palette using the same flat synthetic brush.

♥ Click To Enlarge ♥

5♥ Now on to the really fun stuff! To start, you'll need to create your typical winged eyeliner. Create it as thin or thick and as long or short as you want it--whatever style you are comfortable with. I did my wing pretty thin today surprisingly. And as always I used my trusty Stila Stay All Day Waterproof Liquid Eye Liner in Black.

6♥ Here's how I applied the glitter: Since you definitely don't want black glitter migrating all over your face throughout the day, I suggest you use an adhesive of some sort for it to stick to. I applied a very thin layer of the LA Splash Sealer Base directly on top of my dried eyeliner using a small detailer brush. Using that same brush, I applied small amounts at a time of the Coastal Scents Glitter in Black Out on top of the adhesive. I worked with small amounts of glitter each time because that allowed me to minimize fall out and also to control the opacity of the sparkliness if that makes sense.

7♥ If you find that the black glitter still reads a little too "flat" like I did, you can take another glitter or even a glitter liner in a brighter shade and add accents throughout your winged eyeliner. I used the NYX Liquid Crystal Liner in Crystal Hip and dotted it throughout, which gave my winged eyeliner a cool blue, purple, and green tinge that made the black glitter stand out more.

8♥ Then, just do your finishing touches like brows and lashes. I used the House of Lashes in Boudoir and I also added Honey Butter, Chocolate Cookie, and Burgundy to the lower lash line just for the sake of it not looking too bare.

Face Deets

♥ Foundation - EX1 Invisiwear Liquid Foundation

♥ Concealer - LA Girl Pro Conceal Concealers

♥ Highlight - Sephora Radiant Luminizing Drops in Ultralight topped with Becca Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed in Opal

♥ Bronzer -  Urban Decay Naked Skin Ultra Definition Pressed Finishing Powder in Naked Dark

♥ Blush - Tarte Beaming Blush from the Bling It On Amazonian Clay Blush Palette

♥ Lips - Maybelline Color Sensational Matte Lipstick in Nude Embrace topped with Maybelline Color Elixir Lip Gloss in Nude Illusion

XO♥

FIVE Steps To The Perfect Bold Cat Eye (Tutorial)

Tackling the iconic cat eye style of eyeliner is no easy feat. For a style that creates the perfect almond shape, it is certainly not simple to replicate. There are a few obstacles that I personally need to overcome in order to make this look work for me: 1♥ I have to make sure the liner doesn't bleed into my fine lines; 2♥ I have to find an eyeliner that can withstand my watery eyes; and 3♥ I have to make the eyeliner look as even on both sides as I possibly can. If you find any of these concerns to match your own, then perfect! This tutorial is just the one for you! Usually I would go in with my trusty Inglot Gel Liner in #77, but today I decided to switch things up a bit and try out the Tarte Tarteist Clay Paint Liner--probably not the smartest idea when endeavoring on a makeup look I've never done before, but hey, clearly I like to live on the wild side.

Tutorial

♥ CLICK TO ENLARGE ♥

Note: If you've seen any of my other tutorials, you know I typically do my face makeup after my entire eye look is completed. However, if you're doing a detailed eyeliner, I would highly recommend doing your foundation and concealer as soon as you finish your eyeshadow. Once you commit to the eyeliner on the lower lash line, it will be hard to do your concealer in the under eye area without disturbing it.


1♥ Normally when I do my winged eyeliner, I create the bottom of my wing by flicking outwards from the outer edge of my eye. For the cat eye style of liner, however, I started my flick on the lower lash line, extending it upwards towards the tip of my brow. The lower you go on the under eye area will determine how thick your cat eye will be on the lower lash line.

2♥ Create your winged eyeliner the way you normally would. Because I used glitter on my lid, I decided to use my Stila Stay All Day Waterproof Liquid Eye Liner in Black as it will still create a smooth solid line over the glitter instead of skipping. I would suggest using a liquid eyeliner over glitter or shimmer eyeshadows as they tend to perform a lot better than cream or gel eyeliners and produce a more opaque line in those conditions.

3♥ In the first step, you created your guideline for your lower lash line. Switching back to the Tarte liner, I filled in my waterline and lower lash line, making sure the line was thickest at the outer corner and tapered to a thinner line at the inner corner. Try to make this line as clean and crisp as you can, but don't worry, small imperfections can be corrected towards the end.

4♥ Now for the step that makes the look! To create the inner flick, I like to use a fine tipped brush like the one provided with the Tarteist Clay Paint Liner because you can get a very precise application by just using the tip of the brush. Most people create the flick by extending it downwards from the upper lash line, but I have found that the trick to always getting the cat eye right is by extending it from the lower lash line. This allows you so much more control over the shape. To create the flick, you dip the eyeliner down starting at your tear duct. From there you can connect it to the eyeliner on your upper lash line. Start off with a small flick so you can adjust how dramatic you want it to be.

5♥ If you're lucky, it turned out perfect, but if you're like me, it might need a little sprucing up. So what I did was take the concealer I normally use underneath my eyes and a flat eyeliner brush and cleaned up the edges of my lower lash line, blending it downwards so as not to be too obvious. Also, I did some last minute touch ups by adding falsies and highlighting my brow bone. And that's it! You've perfected the cat eye. Go you!


XO♥