FOTD: Sober May Day

Hi everyone!

May Day (and the eve) is kind of a big thing here in Finland. It's called both the working people's celebration AND students' celebration which means that practically everyone in Finland likes to take part in the festivities. Kids like to paint their faces and students proudly dress up in their overalls and everyone who has matriculated from either a polytechnic school or high school are wearing their student hats (the more tattered, the better). Usually May Day's Eve starts the binge drinking that continues until the next day when most people gather outside for a picnic. Of course, I couldn't take part in the celebrations because I'm still on the mend but my boyfriend got me a Hello Kitty balloon to keep me company as he went out to party with his friends. I burst out laughing when I was reading Nea's blog because I got the exact same balloon as her daughter :D

But I did paint my face today and since I mentioned that Hi-Fi Cosmetics hasn't gotten enough love from me, I did a pink look with Veronica's lovely pigments. I also used the new lipgloss. I have to say that I love the formula. My lips are chapped and the flake like all the time but because the gloss has moisturizing ingredients in it, my lips felt smooth and silky.

All of the products used here were bought by me except for Live Large which I got as a free sample from Veronica (and which I will need in full size).

FOTD: Sober May Day

Face:

Sassy Minerals foundation in Warm Fair
MAC blush ombre in Azalea Blossom

Eyes:

Too Faced Shadow Insurance (as a primer)
Fyrinnae Pixie Epoxy (on top of TFSI)
Hi-Fi Cosmetics eyeshadow in My Valentine (all over lid)
Hi-Fi Cosmetics eyeshadow in Celebrated Victim (from crease up to below brows)
Hi-Fi Cosmetics eyeshadow in Live Large (outer corners and crease)
Lumene Eye Graphic eyeliner pencil in Coal Black (upper lashline)
Hi-Fi Cosmetics eyeshadow in Things That Cannot Speak (upper lashline over black liner, lower lashline)
Lumene Blueberry Curl waterproof mascara in Rich Black

Lips:

Hi-Fi Cosmetics lipgloss in Sober

If you think that this looks bright, you're wrong! The look was so much brighter in person. My boyfriend said that I looked like a bright pink May Day balloon! :) Live Large is like pink electricity, you cannot not notice it.

I tilted my head to show off how shiny My Valentine is. In the jar it looks like it has green shimmer to it but on lids it translates to extreme shininess that the surface of the colour looks almost like liquid.

I love Azalea Blossom. When I saw pics of it on Temptalia I knew I had to get it. I can post swatch photos if you're interested but it's a blush that has two shades in it, pink and lavender, that can be used together by sweeping a blush brush accross the whole palette or you might use just one of the shades. I used both shades and it's a lovely fresh cool pink with a hint of lavender in it. Some have said that it looks chalky but I didn't notice any chalkiness although I'm not sure if it's because I'm so pale. Because I've seen swatch photos of it on darker skintones and it does seem to be a bit severe-looking. Maybe it's the matte formula. But I love it, it gives a nice pink flush to my cheeks.

I wanted to show you a close-up of the lipgloss on my lips. The shade is called Sober and it's almost a milky sort of a pink shade. It's not opaque so it won't look snowbunny at all. It has a bit of shimmer. The shine is gorgeous, you don't even need to smother your lips with it.

The lipglosses I have (Sober, Gin&Sin, Ribbons and Bows) are all on the sheer side but all of them give a nice shine and shimmer to lips. I especially love Gin&Sin that on lips look like I had a bit of gold in them. These glosses also work perfectly on top of a lipstick. In fact, I used Gin&Sin with MAC's Ever Hip (a pinky peach shade) to give the shade a little shiny kick.

What do you think of this look? Have you tried Hi-Fi?

FOTD: Heartless

Hi there!

I sorta promised not to do any Alice-themed looks with any Alice-themed products but I also promised to share my hauls one way or another. I got the coveted (or loathed) Alice in Wonderland Book of Shadows a few days ago. I'm not going to post photos of the palette because the interwebz is full of them and yes, it's gorgeous. I don't have any Urban Decay eyeshadows so for me the palette was a new thing but as you know, all the colours are just regular UD colours with Wonderland names. Yesterday I also got MAC's Viva Glam Cyndi lipstick (and I opened the door wearing shorty short shorts and had to watch how the mailman rallied himself up to say "Have a good day". I couldn't even close the door myself because I was holding my mail on one hand and the cruthches in the other. I hope I made his day.) and this morning I wondered how I could use them both to fill in the requirement of sharing my hauls.

Smurf's Up: Blue-ish swatches

As Phyrra and Nea requested on Twitter, I'm doing blue swatches today as well (aren't I nice, two swatch posts in one day, read the other one too so I'll feel special). The problem of course was.. I don't wear blues. Blue clothes make me look dead and same goes with most blueish eyeshadows. Blue is just not my colour. It does nothing (good) for me. Le sigh. But dark blue jeans make my butt look awesome :P

Onwards!



(L to R) Fringe, Misfortune, Bali Mynah, Anemone




(L to R) Jinx, Cheshire Cat Grin, Starstruck






(L to R) Sleepy Hollow, Hypercool, Japan

Fringe (Mixology): Silvery icy blue. Do I detect a hint of pink? This isn't a matte shade, it has a stainy sheen but no actual shimmer. This is the one I like to use because it pairs up perfectly with dark, plummy purples.
Misfortune (Meow Cosmetics, Friday the 13th collection): You could say this is green but I'm saying that this has some serious blueness in it. It also has a coppery flash. Looks lovely with greens so one of my faves.
Bali Mynah (Fyrinnae): Shiny turquoise. I've never used this one but I think I will this summer.
Anemone (Fyrinnae): Sky blue that flashes green and gold. I think I need to pair this up with a purple...
Jinx (Sassy Minerals): Heather grey with aqua shimmer. The shimmer is so strong that it passes for a blue. This is another favourite because it looks ohmogodsoamazing with silvers.
Cheshire Cat Grin (Fyrinnae): This is Delft blue with aqua sparks. I have to admit, I bought a sample of this just because of the name. I can use it as a liner but otherwise it's WAY too cold for me. Would look awesome on brown-eyed girls.
Starstruck (Sassy Minerals): To me, this is navy blue with multicoloured sparkle but the official description says "smoky midnight blue with intense blue and silver sparkle". Looks good with purples.
Sleepy Hollow (Fyrinnae, discontinued?): Teal with amazing sparkle. Looks greenish in some angles. I need to come up with a way to use this because it's just so amazing. The photo washes this one out, much more intense and sparklier in real life. Props for the name.
Hypercool (Fyrinnae): Brilliant turquoise on a black base. I think I can use this as a liner. I'd like to try this out for a smoky eye because this is just such an edgy beaufiful shade.
Japan (Fyrinnae): Deep shimmery teal, leaning towards green. Black base. Looks oily, in a good way. A liner colour for me but a great smoky eye base for those who dare.

As I already mentioned, my favourites are Fringe, Misfortune, Anemone, Jinx and Starstruck.

Fringe, Misfortune, Anemone, Jinx, Hypercool and Japan (in a way) are duochromes. For someone who wants sparkle, Cheshire Cat Grin and Starstruck are good choices (as well as Sleepy Hollow but that seems to have disappeared from Fyrinnae site).

Do you feel the lust for blues? Anything here you like?

FOTD: Slay the Princess, Save the Dragon

First of all, this look is dedicated to Ana from Lipsticks and Lightsabers. I've been drooling over her dramatic eye looks and was sure I should never attempt anything similar but then I eavesdropped her and Robyn (from Purely Cosmetics) talking about creating smoky looks and I decided to give it a go. So basically what I did was I went over her tutorials, making mental notes on how she blends and smudges and then I decided to follow her footsteps.

So Ana, if you're reading this, consider this a fangirl tribute to you. Maybe next time I'll be able to do it a bit better...

FOTD: Slay the Princess, Save the Dragon

Face:

Purely Cosmetics Skin Smoothing foundation (one layer plus as a concealer on blemishes)
Aromaleigh You're a Doll! finishing powder in Parfait
Fyrinnae Glow Blush in Captivate
Sassy Minerals blush in Plus One (over Captivate)
Meow Cosmetics LE Lost Rainforest glow powder in Chameleon (on cheekbones as a highlighter)

Eyes:

Too Faced Shadow Insurance
Fyrinnae Pixie Epoxy (over TFSS and on lower lashline)
Fyrinnae eyeshadow in We're All Mad Down Here (2/3 of inner lid)
Fyrinnae eyeshadow in Dragonskin (outer lid, lower lashline)
Fyrinnae eyeshadow in Jade Ghost (over We're All Mad Down Here, up to the brows)
Fyrinnae eyeshadow in Dokkálfar (crease and outer vee, outer corner of lower lashline)
MAC Fluidline in Blacktrack (upper lashline)
Lumene Blueberry Curl waterproof mascara in Rich Black

Lips:

Illamasqua Sheer Lipgloss in Soul
Fyrinnae Lip Lustre in Flavor of the Day (dabbed over Soul)






This look required A LOT of blending. But when I first put on the shadows over Pixie Epoxy, I just patted them on (like you always should when using Fyrinnae shadows). Also, if you see a smudge on the corner of your eye when you are putting darker shadows on, don't try to rub it of with your finger without washing your hands first. I had many Dragonskin coloured streaks all over my face.

The things you don't see in these pics (unfortunately) is how Jade Ghost totally makes We're All Mad Down Here morph when the light hits it. WAMDH itself is a bright lime sort of colour with lots of sparkle but when I put Jade Ghost over it, the colour changed to almost metallic lime green that has turquoise type of glisten.








Again, here WAMDH looks moss green but it isn't. I'm just a crappy photographer.





And the new hair. I have had inverted bob for some years now and I decided to cut it one-lenght. Sorry. But I wanted a blunt fringe because I feel that it shows off my eyes a bit better.

Oh yes, the brows. Something needs to be done...

How do you like this look? And the hair?

Have a nice weekend everyone and thanks for stopping by! :)

FOTD: Waiting for the butterflies

Hi there!

It's a very sunny day in Helsinki although the thermometer says that it's -14 centigrade outside (and about 40 centimetres of snow!). I got a haul from Aromaleigh. Their Les Papillons collection was on sale and I decided to buy 4 full sized products without sampling (yes, again). I chose Glowing Luna, Zephyr's Breeze, Butterfly Kisses and Fragile Charms based on several swatches around the blogosphere. The result? Only Zephyr's Breeze didn't raise any squeals from me. It's a pretty colour and I will no doubt use it but.. well, the others were just so much more amazing!

So no butterflies flying around for now but I wanted to do a more colourful look so that the spring might arrive a bit earlier. Glowing Luna is pale spring green with copper and pink sparkles (this is a very lovely colour, be sure to get this one if it becomes permanent!), Butterfly Kisses is "the sweetest cool silvery frosted pink with lavender tones, golden highlights and brilliant sparks of aqua" (this looks so shiny on lids, a true mirror-like effect) and Fragile Charms is "a muted mauved purple with fuschia and burgundy undertones, slight blue highlight, silvery metallic smoothness and brilliant diamond glints" (I don't think I have a purple like this which is really something).

FOTD: Waiting for the butterflies

Face:

Meow Equilibrium primer
Purely Cosmetics Skin Smoothing foundation (1 layer and on blemishes)
Meow Lost Rainforest LE glow powder in Queen Alexandria (as a highlighter below brows and on cheeks)
Sassy Minerals blush in Hopeless Romantic

Eyes:

Too Faced Shadow Insurance
Aromaleigh Les Papillons eyeshadow in Glowing Luna (inner 1/3 of the upper and lower lids)
Aromaleigh Les Papillons eyeshadow in Butterfly Kisses (2/3 of the lids)
Aromaleigh Les Papillons eyeshadow in Fragile Charms (outer vee and crease)
MAC Fluidline in Blacktrack (upper lashline)
Lumene Blueberry Curl waterproof mascara in Rich Black

Lips:

Lumene Natural Code Smile Booster lipgloss in Sheer Nougat





I love the shimmer in Glowing Luna! I think it brightens up my eyes a lot. I like the shimmer in these colours. It's there but it's not gritty or overpowering. These are true spring colours and I love that they are. I'm aching for soft colours that are still interesting.





I wish the photo would show how shiny Butterfly Kisses is but not a chance. It's the kind of colour that looks almost liquid on your lids. It applies smoothly so the effect looks glidinf. I can't explain it but that's what it is. Fragile Charms looks a bit washed out in this pic but I can guarantee you that it's quite strong a colour. It's on the edgy side but very buildable. I used it quite moderately because Glowing Luna and Butterfly Kisses are such sweet colours that I didn't want them to disappear in the background.






Sorry, this was the best full face pic there was. I really like Sheer Nougat. Despite the name it's not brownish at all. It gives a very sheer wash of colour on lips. It's also a bit shimmery but more lipglass than dazzleglass shimmery. Great for office looks.

Of course I had to use Queen Alexandria as a highlighter because of the butterfly theme. It looks very yellow on the jar but it gives just a subtle shimmer on the skin.

Oh I wish I could take better photos because these colours are so much more vibrant in irl than in photos. Hope you still like the look :)

FOTD: Make It Work (+ a mini review on Sassy Minerals)

Guys, it's Caturday already!

Yesterday I received a huge sample haul from Sassy Minerals. I had seen Lisa Kate's and Nea's looks and swatches and so I had to make an order.

So, I wanted to do a look with Sassy. Yesterday I watched the Project Runway finale (I had hoped that Carol Hannah would win) and I got my inspiration from Tim Gunn.

Do I hear you say "Whaaaaaat?"?

Well, let me explain. I adore Tim Gunn. He seems so sweet and I love his catchphrases. Sassy has an eyeshadow called Make It Work and I have to admit that I ordered a sample of that simply because I loved the name. But I love the colour, too. It's a "rosy brown with aqua sparkle". The sparkle is nice and not too disco. Because of the theme I paired it with Fashionista which is a "rich copper with silver sparkle". An amazing colour that I believe will soon be lemminged all over the blogosphere, just wait and see. For highlighting I used Witty Banter (I think it suits the theme perfectly), a golden tan colour with gold sparkle.

Although Tim Gunn will probable never see or hear from this look, I hope that he would be happy with what I came up with. At least it's not too costume-y :)

FOTD: Make It Work

Face:

Purely Cosmetics Skin Smoothing foundation in custom blend
Purely Cosmetics Diamond Perfect Finish finishing powder
Sassy Minerals blush in Plus One

Eyes:

Too Faced Shadow Insurance (as a primer on upper lids)
Sassy Minerals Eye Candy in Make It Work (all over upper lid)
Sassy Minerals Eye Candy in Fashionista (outer vee and crease)
Sassy Minerals Eye Candy in Witty Banter (as a highlighter below brow)
MAC Fluidline in Blacktrack (upper lashline)
Lumene Blueberry Curl waterproof mascara in Rich Black

Lips:

Aromaleigh Nourishing Color Creme in Cakewalk





I hate that I couldn't get a decent photo showing the sparkle of this colours. They are really shimmery in a nice way. It's that time of year again when we have a minimum amount of daylight in Finland. As a matter of fact, the sun doesn't come up at all in the north in the winter. Summers are a completely opposite, the sun doesn't seem to set at all (and it doesn't in Lapland, the northernmost part of Finland).





The colours blend really well and I love the chocolatey look of this combination. Although these are the most shimmery colours that Sassy offers, they are still perfect for days at the office.





The blush I'm wearing, Plus One, was the free blush I received from Sassy. I'm in love with it. It's very delicate peach/pink/beige blush with a hint of golden shimmer.

I hate the pic. I'd love to post perfect photos everytime I do a look but it seems impossible. I still blame the lack of natural light.

For the review part. Sassy's website is very easy to navigate, all the products are in alphabetical order in their respective categories. The shipping was incredibly fast: I placed my order on Friday 13th and I received it exactly 7 days later. That's really fast for international orders. I also got a shipping notice when my order was dispathed (I like when companies do this because then I know that my order is on it's way home to mama).

The colous are beautiful. Sassy may not go crazy with its colours like Fyrinnae but it provides gorgeous and well-pigmented shades that blend well and are multifaceted. The shimmers seem to be a big hit but I also ordered from the less shimmery line and wasn't disappointed. There are photos of the products as well as written colour descriptions which is extremely helpful. I wanted to post you some swatches but I have to leave that until later because the colours wouldn't look as exciting as they are because of the lack of light (Fashioned in Finland and Sparkle Is My Crack have beautiful swatches of some of the shades).

Eyeshadow samples are $0.75 and full sizes are $4.25. There is enough product in the sample jars for several applications. You get free samples with every order you make.

I'm very happy with what I got from Sassy. I just sent them an e-mail asking if they create their own colours and I will post the answer as soon as I get it.

Some must-have shades: Lyrical (emerald green with bright aqua sparkle), Cocktail Party (purple with blue shimmer), Fashionista, Hang Out (taupe with subtle mauve tones), Fierce (smoky grey with red and blue sparkle).

Have you ordered from Sassy? What did you think about their products? How do you like the look?

****UPDATE****

I contacted Team Sassy and they said that they create their own colours. They were supernice and gave me additional information which makes me very happy to recommend them to my lovely readers.