FOTD: Parcel Tongue

Hi everyone!

I got a new camera this week so I took some FOTD photos with it. Unfortunately when I was scaling the images down a bit, I managed to change something in my full face photo and then I had to change the warmth of the photo so it may look a bit off.

I also got what appears to be my last Aromaleigh order. I got some full sized products from Wonderstruck and Spells collections. I'm a huge Harry Potter fan (I prefer the books but Alan Rickman makes an excellent Severus Snape) so Spells was my cup of tea. I ordered Obliviate, Wingardium Leviosa, Serpensortia, Tarantallegra and Priori Incantate. Serpensortia and Priori Incantate really stood out for me: Serpensortia is a lovely olive green that leans to gold and has a lovely shimmer to it and Priori Incantate is this greenish golden brown shimmerbomb. If I could, I'd still order Silencio, Protego, Alohomora and Expecto Patronum.


Here's the look I created with Serpensortia and Priori Incantate:

Parcel Tongue

Face:
Aromaleigh Glissade foundation in 1CL
MAC blush in Oh So Fair
Aromaleigh Ultra Resolution Finishing Powder in Clear

Eyes:
Too Faced Shadow Insurance primer
Aromaleigh eyeshadow in Serpensortia (all over upper lid)
Aromaleigh eyeshadow in Priori Incantate (crease and outer vee)
Fyrinnae eyeshadow in Shinkirou (as a highlighter below brow)
Coastal Scents gel liner in 24kk (I think.. used as a liner)
MAC Fluidline in Blacktrack (upper lashline)

Lips:
Aromaleigh lipbalm in Just the Balm, Ma'am
Evil Shades Deviant lipstick in Primrose Path

Here I wonked up the settings. This looks a lot bluer than it should. The plus side is that no one can see my acne!

These pictures I managed not to eff up. As you can see, Serpensortia is hella glowy. I love it.

Argh, I wish Priori Incantate would show up more but I messed up, apparently. It's sparkly and glowy and I know a few people who'd want/need this shade...

If you follow me on Twitter (I've changed my profile private again because I've had enough of the spammers there), you probably know that I had an office Christmas party on Friday. The night didn't go so smoothly for me. I spent 1,5 hours doing my hair and makeup and started feeling sick after just an hour after the party had started. FYI I wasn't drunk, I just got a terrible headache, felt dizzy and my stomach started to turn. I suspect that my sensitive tummy didn't like the combo of 2 antibiotic tablets and alcohol. So I went home (by bus after standing in -10 centigrade weather for 10 minutes) and started throwing up. Then I went to sleep for 2-3 hours and woke up feeling relatively fine. Boyfriend was such a sweetie and went to a nearby gas station to get me some ic cream when he heard I had missed desserts.

Here's a pic of me dolled up on Friday:

As you can see, I'm suffering from acne at the moment (that's why I'm on antibiotics, my glands had swollen up due to an infection caused by the acne) and I think I might be a little tipsy...

So, how do you like the looks?

A short summery NOTD and EOTD post

Hi everyone! Usually I don't post makeup looks on Sundays because of my promise to my boyfriend to keep one day without any makeup in a week. However, because I've been ill most of this week and have 3 days without makeup, I'm posting you an EOTD and a NOTD. I would've liked to post a full-face photo but I'm still all sick-looking, pasty and gross.

It's not quite that summery in Finland. It's mostly been rainy and windy for the last couple of days but I'm not giving up on summer yet. So I wanted to do a bright look to make the sun come out. Come on, you can't hide from me forever. I even bought sunscreen.

Too Faced Shadow Insurance (as a primer)
Morgana Minerals eyeshadow in Joust (inner 2/3 of the lid and inner lower lashline)
Morgana Minerals eyeshadow in Coraline (outer vee and crease and outer part of lower lashline)
Morgana Minerals eyeshadow in Alchemy (to darken the outer corner and crease)
Morgana Minerals eyeshadow in Chivalry (wetlined on upper lashline)
Lumene Blueberry Curl waterproof mascara in Rich Black

I like how this turned out, the colour are really lovely and vibrant. The colour pay-off is amazing, to be honest.


Also, I did my nails during this week. I used Essie's Lilacism (a lovely lavender creme) and then I used a nail art sticker to cover up a bit I effed up while my nails were drying. The top coat is Seche Vite which is great for people like me who don't have 1h+ to wait until the polish is completely dry.

Lilacism has to be my favourite nailpolish at the moment. I initially ordered a mini bottle but I had to get a full size right after I had first worn it.

So how was your weekend? What do you think about the makeup and the nails?

Aromaleigh Victoria's Revenge swatches and a look

Miss K from Aromaleigh sent me samples of her new collection, Victoria's Revenge, for me to swatch and review. First off, my camera freaked out by the complexity and the sparkle of these colours and is now on medication and demanding an all expenses paid holiday to Bora Bora. I tried to tell him that he's just a camera and he has no right to demand such things and how could he even handle himself on a holiday but you know cameras. Demanding little buggers.

The collection is inspired by Victoriana, steampunk and gothloli themes so the shades are all very deep, complex and edgy. As said, these are very hard to photograph or even describe accurately because so many of these colours change according to lighting or application. Colour descriptions aren't available because there's a contest going on. Bloggers, such as I, who received samples for review and customers who have ordered samples can participate to write shade descriptions. More about the contest can be found here. I've swatched all the eyeshadows on top of TFSI + Pixie Epoxy. I'd strongly recommend using a sticky base with most of these because there's so much sparkle in them.

(L to R) Infernal Chaos, Cyanide Sorrow, Oleander Vapor, Airy Ethos

(L to R) Brazen & Bitter, Perpetual Motion, Magick & Metal, Bleeding Poppy

(L to R) Scratched Scruples, Frigid Gloom, Obscura, Mayhem's Trilogy

(L to R) Private Lunacy, Freakshow, Tarnished Strychnine, Splintered

(L to R) Skeleton Key, Gaslight Tears, Mania's Locus, Mourning's Whimsy

(L to R) Apocalypse Pansy, Phantasm, Ruthless Indulgence, Poison Utopia, Nightshade


I also did a look with Oleander Vapor, Private Lunacy, Tarnished Strychnine and Splintered yesterday.

Sweet Poison

Face:

Aromaleigh Glissade foundation in ICL
Aromaleigh Pure Mineral Rouge blush in Rosette
Aromaleigh Ultra Resolution Finishing Powder in Clear

Eyes:

TFSI (as a primer)
Aromaleigh Victoria's Revenge eyeshadow in Oleander Vapor (inner 3/4 of the lid)
Aromaleigh Victoria's Revenge eyeshadow in Tarnished Strychnine (outer vee and crease)
Aromaleigh Victoria's Revenge eyeshadow in Private Lunacy (to blend in Oleander Vapor and Tarnished Strychnine)
Aromaleigh Victoria's Revenge eyeshadow in Splintered (to darken the crease)
Aromaleigh Carolina Summer eyeshadow in Oyster (below brow to highlight)
MAC Fluidline in Blacktrack
Lumene Blueberry Curl waterproof mascara in Rich Black

Lips:

Aromaleigh Botanical lipstick in Rosebud

I somehow like to combine pinks with greens and even though this is not my best attempt to pull it off, it looked really cool irl.

Here you can see that although Oleander Vapor looks bright-ish sweet pink in the swatch photos, it has that murky undertone that makes it very dramatic.

No, I haven't gotten a perm or curled my hair. This is what happens when I crunch my hair dry when I blowdry it. I wanted to look a bit more girly than usual and is this collection is so decadent and luxurious, I figured that wavy hair would only be appropriate.

I love Aromaleigh's Glissade foundation. It makes my skin look so glowy and even. BTW, what do you think about the colour of the foundation on me?

Victoria's Revenge is a really different than other collections that come out during the spring/summer season. Usually you get bronze, turquoise, peach, lime green and pink so Victoria's Revenge is really standing out. There are so many colours that have a contrasting shimmer to them (like Mania's Locus and Frigid Gloom) and black-based glitter explosions (Nightshade, Ruthless Indulgence, Poison Utopia) that it'll make any person who craves darker shades really happy.

My favourites from this collection are Infernal Chaos, Cyanide Sorrow, Perpetual Motion, Frigid Gloom, Private Lunacy, Tarnished Strychnine, Skeleton Key, Mania's Locus and Phantasm.


What do you think about this collection? BTW, if you want any swatch photos re-taken, let me know in the comments!


And now for something completely different. This is my knee today:

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: The Grin of a Certain Cat

Yeah, I know I promised. But the thing is that I really want to see the movie and I can't because of the current situation. I have to wait at least two weeks still. Plus I really love the idea of Stephen Fry voicing Cheshire Cat.

I also have downloaded a theme to my trusty Firefox which is Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland. And on the right upper corner of my browser screen is the grinning face of th Cheshire Cat. So I couldn't help myself, really. I took silver and turquoise as the colours (the cat is silver-grey tabby with turquoise eyes) and went a bit mad.

FOTD: Mad For Pink

I've done this very same look (with different products) the first time about five, six years ago when I was in Sydney, Australia. I had bought an eyeshadow palette that had a pink shade and a sparkly lime shade. I wanted to use it by applying the pink on my upper lid and the lime on my lower lid. I thought I was being different. One day my Japanese room mate came to me with a women's magazine that had a Shu Uemura ad on it. The woman in the ad was wearing the exact same look. Back then I was a little more sensitive and was offended by my room mate's guess that I had copied the look, and refused to do it again (yeah, I'm a really delightful person LOL).

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.

FOTD: Spring Purrr

Thanks for all my readers for their love and support during my recovery. I wanted to do a complete makeup look today because although swatches are nice and all, this blog is about wearing makeup, too. I've spent the last two hours doing my hair and this makeup. Because standing up without cruthches for longer periods of time is hard, I did a very simple and neutral look with Silk Naturals I swatched here.

Nymphette

I did this look some weeks ago but the upcoming surgery has wreaked havoc on my brain so that I completely forgot to blog about this! Sorry.

I bought some samples from Evil Shades and I have to say that I'm very happy with the products AND the customer service. If you're an international customer, you have to e-mail about your order to get an exact price on your order. But that's not a hassle and Andrea is very quick to respond. Also, she makes her own shadows which gives her a big plus as well as some virtual chocolate chip cookies.

Mysteria (a soft lavender shade) and Nymphette (electric blue) are both shadows that are prismatic, almost holographic. So I decided to keep it very simple and work with these two shades.

Nymphette

Face:

Purely Cosmetics Skin Smoothing foundation
Evil Shades blush in Pin Up

Eyes:

Too Faced Shadow Insurance
Fyrinnae Pixie Epoxy
Evil Shades eyeshadow in Mysteria (all over eyelid, lower lashline)
Evil Shades eyeshadow in Nymphette (over Blacktrack)
MAC Fluidline in Blacktrack (upper lashline)
Lumene black kohl (lower lashline, smudged)
Lumene Blueberry Curl waterproof mascara in Rich Black

Lips:

MAC lipglass in Prrrrr





Nymphette is such a vibrant colour that it looks bright blue even on black. This is a really good sign. Some colours just loose their thing with black. I also used Nymphette on the outer corners of my eyes in an attempt to create the famous and fabulous 'cat eye look'. You'll be the judge.




I did mention that the colours are close to holographic? This photo shows some of the amazing glitz the shadows have. Mysteria just twinkles like crazy. Of course, the effect is more visible when used over Pixie Epoxy (of course).





Pin Up blush surprised me the most. It looks a bit dull in the sample baggie but on the skin it just glows. Don't let my grumpy expression fool you, I'm verry happy with it.

I'm sure I will buy from Evil Shades again. I love the blushes, other favourite was Burlesque which is a peachy sort of shade. Great for pale girls, I tell you.


BTW, I'm not commenting your comments on the giveaway post because I want to make the drawing more easy for me. I deleted one comment from SilhoutteScreams (don't worry, dear, you're in) because I want to keep it in a system I call "one comment, one entry". I suck at maths so this is my way of coping with my numeric disability. Thanks for everyone for your kind thoughts, they are very much appreciated!

The surgery is on Friday and I'm posting you a little something tomorrow. Nothing huge, though. I don't know when I'll be able to post something after that because I don't know how many nights I have to spend at the hospital and how it takes me to feel better. You'll be in my thoughts, though :)

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: Hot Pink Mess

Hi everyone!

I'm sticking with the plan to do more colourful looks since there have been so many nautral/everyday looks in this blog in the last few months. Pink is the colour of today. I just decided so.

For this look I mostly used Fyrinnae products. Chaotic Evil is a hot pink with silver sparkle. I need to try this with Pixie Epoxy. Darling Misfit is a magenta pink with aqua highlights and if you don't have this pink you should get at least a sample of it! I love the aqua in it. It's a gorgeous colour. Kitten in Heels is a bright fuchsia with violet and blue shimmer. I haven't used this much and now I'm wondering why. Sakura is one of my favourite highlighter colours when I'm doing purple or pink looks. It's lavender-based white.

FOTD: Hot Pink Mess

Face:

Purely Cosmetics Skin Smoothing foundation (as a foundation and as a concealer)
Aromaleigh You're a Doll! finishing powder in Parfait
Fyrinnae blush in Enrapture
Fyrinnae blush in Bewitching (over Enrapture)

Eyes:

Too Faced Shadow Insurance
Fyrinnae eyeshadow in Chaotic Evil (2/3 of inner upper lid)
Fyrinnae eyeshadow in Darling Misfit (1/2 of outer lid, overlapping Chaotic Evil)
Fyrinnae eyeshadow in Kitten in Heels (crease)
Fyrinnae eyeshadow in Sakura (below brow as a highlighter)
MAC Fluidline in Blacktrack
Fyrinnae eyeshadow in Wicked (over Blacktrack)
Lumene Blueberry Curl waterproof mascara in Rich Black

Lips:

Fyrinnae lip lustre in Shangri-La






Oh, this is why I love pinks. At their best, they are vibrant and exciting. And forget about the crap that redheads can't wear pink eyeshadow! I've seen Rimmel ads with Lily Cole rocking screamingly fuchsia eyeshadow. In this pic you can also see the cool effect of Wicked over black liner. It looks like the feathers of a magpie, glistening with petrol-like sheen. It makes the liner look more exciting than just plain black.
I'm a bit disappointed that I couldn't capture the aqua shimmer of Darling Misfit on camera. It's still too little sunlight, I'm afraid.





Yes, the hair. I was supposed to go to fix it on friday but unfortunately my hairdresser had woken up and realized that her roof was leaking. But I'm getting this mess sorted out tomorrow.

I love the two blushed together. Actually, what happened was that Enrapture looked too warm by itself and I picked much cooler Bewitched to tone it down.

I love Shangri-La. It's such a refreshing pink-purple.

What do you think? Like pinks?

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: It's those damn Paladins again

Happy 2010 all!

I wasn't able to take photos of my NYE look because our guest arrived literally 5 minutes after I had finished doing my makeup. Plus I had food in the oven.

So is there a better way to start the blog year of 2010 than doing a look with Fyrinnae? Well, I got a haul from them on NYE and there were a couple of beauties that made my heart squeal so I decided then and there that I'd start my blogging year with them.

Damn Paladins is a taupe with light blue highlights. Honestly, I considered leaving this one out. I think I chucked it out of the cart at least five times before giving up and ordering it anyway. SO glad I did. The blue highlight is subtle but very interesting. It's like seeing small blue flowers in a dry field or something. Griffonrider is a metallic gold with turquoise shimmer. I ordered a full size of this one without sampling (because that's how I roll) and I'm not a bit sorry. Now you must be wondering why a person with a slight aversion to blue makeup would order a full size jar of gold with turquoise shimmer but would debate over ordering a sample of taupe with light blue highlights? I don't know. Anyhow, I wanted to keep on playing with the light blue highlight and I decided to use Baby Beluga which is like a soft, satiny silver with light blue shimmer. It's a very milky shade and one of my favourites.

FOTD: It's those damn Paladins again

Face:

Meow Cosmetics Pampered Puss foundation in Inquisitive Himalayan (foundation and wet as a concealer over blemishes)
Aromaleigh You're a Doll! finishing powder in Parfait (over foundation)
Fyrinnae Glow Blush in Captivate (on sheeks)

Eyes:

Fyrinnae eyeshadow in Damn Paladins (2/3 of upper lid)
Fyrinnae eyeshadow in Griffonrider (outer vee and crease, lower lashline)
Fyrinnae eyeshadow in Baby Beluga (inner corners, over eyeliner)
MAC Fluidline in Blactrack (upper lashline)
Lumene Blueberry Curl waterproof mascara in Rich Black

Lips:

Fyrinnae Lip Lustre in Flavor of the Day





Uh-oh. I didn't get a decent picture with my eye open. So let's try another one with my eye closed.





This picture shows a bit of the blue highlight in Damn Paladins. You see how Baby Beluga just melts into it? I really like the blue in all of these shadows. It's not too much but it looks amazing when the light catches it. And yes, the blue doesn't show up all the time. That's the beauty of it. I love these kinds of shades and there could be more. With different highlights.





A bit sleepy here? I had to close my eyes a bit to show of the shades. I love the overall look. I was a bit intimidated by the blush. It's very strong and I only took a tiny grain of it. The result is an apple-like colour. Fyrinnae describes the colour as "Ruddy deep peach-tone with a golden shimmer throughout. The shimmer is very noticable, but not gaudy or "disco-ball" in appearance.". Yes, there is shimmer. But it's very sophisticated. This doesn't look peachy on me in any way but I think it's because my lack of pigmentation. I get apples on my apples.

BTW, it's about -20 centigrade outside. It's effing freezing! I took these photos on our balcony because natural light is the only way to go and I almost got hypothermic. Yeah, wearing a sleeveless top and pajama pants is a great combination for subzero temperatures.

I know I haven't done really colourful looks in a while so I promise that the next look will be a bit more wild.

But how do you like this one? What do you think about the blush?

Aromaleigh Hi-Fi Retro Matte review and FOTD

The lovely Miss K from Aromaleigh sent me samples of her brand-spanking new collection to swatch and try out. Unfortunately it's dark outside and I can't take decent swatch photos :( Right now it's about the darkest time of year in Finland. In fact, I can almost make a bet that if you came here now, you would think that Finland is the most depressing place on earth. A little snow would help with the lighting problem but in Helsinki there's no snow. It snowed a little yesterday but it was gone almost instantly.

Okay, back to business. To compensate for the lack of swatch photos, I did a look with my new treats. Most bloggers have already done something with this collection and I noticed that most of them have used greens, blues, pinks and purples. I love using orange andd pink together so I decided that I should cover some of the oranges on my blog!

Heels on Fire: Intense mauved pink. Strawberry milkshake sweet shoppe heaven
Cat's Pajamas: matte coral with warm orange tones. It's not orange, it's not red. It's simply the cat's pajamas
Supermurgatroid: Intense coral orange - far out!

The colour descriptions on Aromaleigh's site crack me up. Not only are the colours lovely and cheerful but I like that the same attitude is reflected in the shade descriptions.

FOTD: This is the Cat's Pajamas!

Face:

Purely Cosmetics Skin Smoothing foundation in Custom Blend
Purely Cosmetics Silk and Pearl primer (as a top coat)
Cory Cosmetics Illuminator in Riot (as a blusher)

Eyes:

Too Faced Shadow Insurance
Aromaleigh Hi-Fi Retro Matte eyeshadow in Heels on Fire (inner 1/3 of the lid)
Aromaleigh Hi-Fi Retro Matte eyeshadow in Cat's Pajamas (middle of the lid)
Aromaleigh Hi-Fi Retro Matte eyeshadow in Supermurgatroid (outer vee and crease)
Aromaleigh L'Orchidée eyeshadow in Orinoco (as a highlighter below brow)
MAC Fluidline in Blacktrack
Lumene Blueberry Curl waterproof mascara in Rich Black

Lips:

Fyrinnae Lip Lustre in Lollipop-pop









I know that most people are afraid of matte eyeshadows because they're afraid that they're chalky or that they are hard to apply. Well, Hi-Fi colours are not chalky, far from it! Actually, they look chalkier in the sample bags and when I first tried out Fake Out (which looked greyish blue in the bag), I went 'holy cow!!!' because the colour was really intense. For application I suggest that you use a good primer and make sure you apply it very evenly. These colours blend really well so you don't have to worry about that. But go lightly at first because these babies are very VERY pigmented!


What you have to be careful about with mattes is that you don't "rub" the colour to much. It may become blotchy. Aromaleigh mattes are very smooth so you don't have to be too heavyhanded with the blending.

I think these three colours look utterly delicious! I used a shimmery eyeshadow as a highlighter because it makes the mattes pop even more. Try it, I swear it works! Orinoco was a perfect choice for this look because it's a pink-toned peach/coral shade.




Me and my messy hair!

I also suggest using a shimmery blush with matte eyeshadows. Too much matte will make you look a bit washed out, no matter how vibrant the colours are.

I'm bummed out for the photo quality. I tried taking photos indoors with flash but it's so dark that I looked like the ghost of a ghost. Seriously.

I love this collection. When I have the money, I will buy some full sizes. I think only colour this collection is missing is a matte fire engine red.

If you're not sure about using mattes, try them with shimmery colours. Use a matte shadow all over lid and then shimmery colour on your outer vee and crease. The result is stunning.

My opinion of this collection: I think these are the best mattes -ever. These are smooth and non-chalky and very unintimidating to use. The colours are yummy and I suggest getting as many samples as you can because I wouldnever in a million years thought that Supermurgatroid would be my colour. As it is stated on Aromaleigh website, two of the colours, In Orbit and Cranked, contain a little lustre. The shimmer is more visible on the baggie than it is on the skin. So these are both mattes, too.
The matte trend has been going on for ages on nails but I think matte makeup is so much hotter! These candy colours will bright up your day, no matter how much sunlight you're actually getting. In all, this is a wonderful collection to have this time of year!

My list of must-haves: Kookie, Got Dibs, Cat's Pajamas, Heels on Fire, In the Mix, Supermurgatroid, In Orbit, Radioactive.

So, what are your thoughts about the look? Have you tried out Hi-Fi Retro Mattes? What are your faves?

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.

FOTD: Twinkling lilac with soft peach

Today I wanted to base my FOTD on MAC's Dazzleglass in Jingle Jangle. When I saw the colour yesterday, I went "OMG OMG OMG" in my head. Then I read the shade name and my heart sank. Jingle Jangle. I almost retched. Now don't get me wrong, I love winter and yuletide (I love the word). But I hate the gross commercialism around it. I love the smell of freshly baked gingerbreads and I love to decorate my christmas tree. But I hate how everything that appears around this time of year has to be so.. hokey. Finally I gave up because the colour is delicious.

Jingle Jangle is described as "sheer yellow peach" in Temptalia but to me it's warm peachy pink. I can't see no yellow whatsoever. Maybe they've mixed it up with another Dazzleglass from the collection that was actually yellowish.. Hmm.

Anyhoot, in MAC promo pics for the collection, the model is wearing Jingle Jangle on her lips matched with soft lilac eyes. I didn't want to copy that directly because I had my mind set on something peachy. I decided to jazz up the peach with lilac to pay homage to MAC (for making me buy a lip gloss with a hokey name).

I decided to use Fyrinnae's eyeshadows for this look. I chose Orangutan (a soft satiny peach), Twinkle Twinkle Little Bat (sparkling lilac) and Shinigami (deep purple with shimmer). I also used Sakura (an off-white with lilac shimmer) to highlight.

FOTD Twinkling Lilac with soft peach

Face

Purely Cosmetics Skin Smoothing foundation in custom blend
Meow Lost Rainforest glow powder in Chameleon (on cheekbones, bridge of the nose and chin)
Purely Cosmetics Diamond Finish finishing powder
Illamasqua cream blusher in Rude
Meow Lost Rainforest blush in Heliconia (over Rude)


Eyes

Too Faced Shadow Insurance (as a primer)
Fyrinnae eyeshadow in Orangutan (inner 2/3 of upper lids)
Fyrinnae eyeshadow in Twinkle Twinkle Little Bat (outer vee and crease)
Fyrinnae eyeshadow in Sakura (as a highlighter below brow)
Fyrinnae eyeshadow in Shinigami (wetlined on upper and lower lashline)
Lumene Blueberry Curl waterproof mascara (on upper lashes)

Lips

MAC Dazzleglass in Jingle Jangle







I had problems with blending Orangutan. It stuck on primer and I spend a good amount of time making it look softer. I think it might be the shimmer in it that makes it a bit harder to blend than for example Fyrinnae's Tamarin which is a similar shade but more matte. Usually mattes are harder to belnd but with these two it's the other way around.






I love Twinkle Twinkle Little Bat. It looks much darker in the jar which is why I hesitated a moment but on my skin it's a lot softer. It also has some sparkle in it so it's not a bland kind of soft colour. I actually didn't have to blend it that much to Orangutan, the colours worked perfectly together.

I was going to line my eyes with black pencil or Fluidline. But then for some unknown reason I grabbed Shinigami which I haven't used before. I was afraid it would be too harsh but it turns a lovely plummy purple when used wet.





And here's the end result. I love these colours together. I'm a bit sad that the camera doesn't capture the incredible shimmer in Dazzleglasses (I've had this problem everytime when I try to photograph them). But it really is very sparkly and beautiful.

When I first took photos of this look, I was wearing only Rude on my cheeks. Somehow it looked off and I went over it with a hint of Heliconia which seemed to brighten up the overall look. Maybe it was the sparkle on my lips, dunno.

Also, second day hair. I freshened it up with a spritz of Spoil Me but I left it looking a bit messy because of my makeup. I don't want to be look too made up on Sundays. Okay, sometimes I do but this is a laid back Sunday.

I think I need to find a brow pencil...

How do you like this look? Do you ever base your makeup purchases on the shade name? Do you like Dazzleglasses?

New Hair, look and hauls: it's a 3 in 1 post!

Hi there!

Today, November 14th, is the International Diabetes Day. I've had type 1 diabetes for a couple of years so my contribution for today was to wear blueish makeup (a cerulean blue ring is the symbol for diabetes).

I was supposed to wear Fyrinnae's Baby Beluga (a soft pale grey with blue shimmer) with Mirrors (a shiny antique silver) but the look turned out bland. It just looked black and white on me. Rather than go wash my face, I took Fyrinnae's Blue Footed Booby (teehee) and used that for a wash of colour.

Blue for a Purpose

Face:

Meow Cosmetics Equilibrium primer (as a primer)
Purely Cosmetics Skin Smoothing foundation in custom blend
Meow Lost Rainforest glow powder in Chameleon (as a highlighter on cheekbones, bridge of the nose and chin)
Purely Cosmetics Diamond Finish powder (as a finishing powder)
Fyrinnae blush in Bewitching

Eyes:

Too Faced Shadow Insurance (as a primer on upper lids)
Fyrinnae eyeshadow in Baby Beluga (all over upper lids)
Fyrinnae eyeshadow in Blue Footed Booby (middle of the eyelids)
Fyrinnae eyeshadow in Mirrors (outer vee and crease)
Fyrinnae eyeshadow in Underworld (as a highlighter below brow)
Fyrinnae eyshadow in Shinkirou (over Underworld)
MAC Technakhol in Graphblack (upper and lower lashline)
Lumene Blueberry Curl waterproof mascara in Rich Black

Lips:

MAC Slimshine lipstick in Long Stem Rose





Sorry for not getting pictures but there's just no light anymore. I tried taking pics with a flash but it didn't work because we're using energy saving bulbs that are not as bright as regular bulbs. As you may notice, I've lined my eyes almost all the way around. This is because after getting my hair cut, I noticed that I have almond shaped eyes. I had never noticed that before but the hairdresser cut my fringe a little wider to show of my eyes. What I did with the lower lashline was that I draw the line from outer corner to the middle of the lower lid. Then I took a sponge applicator and smudged the line inwards.
I wish the blue shimmer of Baby Beluga was more visible but on me it just isn't. Oh, the joys of being unnaturally pale!





Okay, here's the overall look. I'm very pleased with my hair (which explains the wide grin). It's not a drastic change as such but my eyes are much more noticeable now with the blunt and wider fringe. The back is shorter and as you can see, I have bits of longer hair I can play with in the front. I went to a different hairdresser and a salon than before which was a completely new experience for me. I've gotten my hair cut in the same place since I had hair in my head to get cut. But I wanted someone who hadn't seen me before to do something new.

I still need to work on styling the new 'do...





Which brings me to my haul from yesterday. My hairdresser recommended me to get a can of Tigi's Queen for the Day volumizing spray. I also wanted to get Spoil Me which is used to defrizz the hair. My hair is extremely fly-away, especially in winter. For some freak chance of luck I found them as a set "Buy Queen for the Day, get Spoil Me for free!" called "Royal pain". Score!





Today I went shopping with my best friend (and a follower of my blog, the lightweightthinker) and I strayed to MAC counter. They were celebrating the launch of Magic, Mirth and Mischief! holiday collection. I snatched Jingle Jangle dazzleglass (the top lipgloss in the pic) and Lucky Number nailpolish from the collection as well as Funtabulous dazzleglass. I also visited Lush and got BB Seaweed fresh face mask and Bohemian soap (not pictured).

I wanted to swatch the dazzleglasses for you guys but it's way too dark. Jingle Jangle is a soft warm pink with loads of shimmer (I see blue, pink and maybe peach) and Lucky Number is a metallic pink nail polish. I think it will look foiled on nails.

How do you like my hair? Have you been shopping any Magic, Mirth and Mischief! products?

EOTD: Aromaleigh L'Orchidée Jewel, Orinoco, Unicorn and Shadow Witch

Hi there!

It's Father's Day in Finland so I opted for a softer look because we're going to my boyfriend's parents for a Sunday dinner.

I would have posted a full FOTD but my hair seems to have overgrown and I can't find my face under it. Don't worry guys, I'm going to a FANCY hairsalon next Friday so there may be some pics of my new hair next Saturday. So watch this space!

I decided to revisit Aromaleigh's L'Orchidée collection which just might be my favourite of all Aromaleigh's LE collections.

Jewel is a purple with golden shimmer. This makes it a bit warmer which is why I decided to use it with Orinoco which is a warm coral/pinkish peach. For highlighting I used Unicorn which looks pale yellow in the jar but on my skin it's a yellowish off-white. Shadow Witch is a truly unique colour. As most of you have noticed, I'm not big with blues. Shadow Witch is a navy blue with silvery metallic sheen/shimmer to it. It makes a great liner when used wet and it's also beautiful as an eyeshadow.

Here's what I used:

Too Faced Shadow Insurance (as a primer)
Aromaleigh L'Orchidée LE eyeshadow in Orinoco (2/3 of inner lid)
Aromaleigh L'Orchidee LE eyeshadow in Jewel (outer vee, crease)
Aromaleigh L'Orchidée LE eyeshadow in Unicorn (as a highlighter below brow)
Lumene Eye Graphics eye pencil in Coal Black (as a liner)
Aromaleigh L'Orchidée LE eyeshadow in Shadow Witch (wetlined on top of the black liner)







I love Orinoco. It looks so velvety on my lids and it has a beautiful sheen to it. It looks more shimmery in the jar but on my skin it just glows. Usually I don't wear peach shades with purples but the golden shimmer in Jewel makes this combination work. Also, Orinoco has pink in it so it's easy to combine it with a warmer purple.






This pic captures the shine effect of Shadow Witch when it's applied on top of a black liner. It's subtle but it makes the look more interesting. What initially happened is that as I used a pencil, I couldn't fill the gap between my lashes and my lids so it looked a bit unfinished. I'm so used to getting it done as I usually use gel liners or I use minerals for wetlining that I didn't even consider that I might not get my eyes lined properly. So I grabbed Shadow Witch and went over the pencil line with it. I suggest you try it, it makes the eyes a bit brighter (which I need today because I had a few drinks last night).

For my cheeks I'm using Illamasqua's Cream Blusher in Rude and I'm wearing Illamasqua's Intense Lip Gloss in Mistress on my lips. Sorry I couldn't get a face picture. I just look a bit like Chewbacca at the moment.

I'm trying to post some looks but the light is becoming an issue. I've tried to post looks a couple of times but there hasn't been enough light to take decent photos. Right now it's almost 2pm but it looks like 7pm. And I don't like taking pics indoors because I hate how the light is too warm. It just warps the colours.

Any ideas for my new 'do? And how do you like this look?