An Easy & Sexy New Year's Eve Makeup Look!

Hi Everyone!

Happy New Year's Eve!  I thought I'd post this to give you all some inspiration for an easy, sexy New Year's Eve makeup look.  So, here's the completed look!

How to get this look:

Step 1:  Brighten under eyes with a concealer.  Dab a bit under your eyes, to the lash line, and blend with your finger.  (I used the Benefit Erase Paste.)

Step 2:  Apply your favorite foundation with a Beauty Blender, making sure to blend down into your neck.  (I used Makeup Forever HD.)

Step 3:  Apply additional concealer under eyes as needed, or to any blemishes.  Blend with Beauty Blender.  (I used the Cle de Peau Concealer in Ochre.)

Step 4:  Using a fluffy brush, apply a setting powder all over your face to set the foundation and concealer.  (I used Rimmel Stay Matte in Translucent.)

Step 5:  Apply bronzer lightly to your temples and around your jaw line using a fluffy brush.  (I used Nars Laguna)

Step 6:  Apply a peachy pink blush to the apples of your cheeks.  (I used Nars Orgasm, but the Elf blush in Tickled Pink will work just as well.)

Step 7:  Fill in your eyebrows, using feathery light strokes, and blend with a spooly brush.  (I used the Anastasia Brow Wiz.)

Step 8:  Apply eyeshadow primer using your finger.  (I used Urban Decay Primer Potion in Original)

Step  9:  Apply a silver cream-based shadow all over your lid and up to the crease, leaving about 1/4 of your innermost lid bare.  (I used L'Oreal 24 hour Infallible Eye Shadow in Primped & Precious.)

Step 10:  Apply a deep taupe/mauve shadow exactly over the silver cream shadow you just applied.  (I used the Urban Decay eyeshadow in Darkside, which is found in the Naked 3 Palette.)

Step 11:  Apply a metallic taupe shimmer shadow on the inner 1/4 of your eye, which should be naked.  Overlap your last shadow and blend it in.  (I used the UD N3 shade Mugshot.)

Step 12:  Using a medium pinky-brown matte shadow, blend out any harsh lines of your existing shadows into the upper crease of your eye.  (I used the UD N3 shade Nooner.)

Step 13:  Using a pale neutral pink satin shadow, highlight under your brows and in the innermost corner of the eye.  (I used the UD N3 shade Strange.)

Step 14:  Use the Darkside side on a small flat brush, and apply lightly to your lower lash line. 

Step 15:  Apply a black liquid liner as close to your lash line as possible, and wing out the ends slightly.  (I used the L'Oreal Lineur Intense in Carbon Black.)

Step 16:  Tightline your lashes and waterline.  (I used the Marc Jacobs eyeliner in Black.)

Step 17:  Apply mascara generously.  (I used the Lancome Hypnose Mascara.)

Step 18:  Apply a pale pink lipstick.  (I used the YSL Volupte Sheer Candy Lipstick in #12 Tasty Raspberry.)

Step 19:  Spritz face with makeup setting spray.  (I used Urban Decay All Nigher Spray.)

Step 20:  Marvel at your beauty.

Hope you all have a lovely New Year's Eve!

Xoxo,

Cathy

My Favorites of 2013!

Hi Everyone!

I hope you all enjoyed the holidays.  Jeremy and I had a great time in Boston for Christmas!  It was a really relaxing, low-key holiday...the best kind.

I can't believe this year is ending, and I truthfully can't say I'm sad to see it go.  2013 was rough.  On to a bigger and better year!

That being said, I did want to discuss some of my favorite/most used products of 2013.  I'll go by category, and let you know what I've been loving.  With all that extra Christmas money most of us have, you never know, this may even turn into a shopping list for some of you.

Foundation:
High End:  Makeup Forever HD
Drug Store:  L'Oreal True Match Lumi
Drug Store Honorable Mention:  Revlon ColorStay Whipped.  I prefer the L'Oreal because the packaging is less clunky, has a pump, and the coverage is just slightly better.

Blush:
Elf Blush in Tickled Pink.  It's $3 and I like it just as much as Nars Orgasm, which is nearly ten times the price.
Honorable Mention:  Bobbi Brown Blush in Nectar.

Concealer - Undereye
Benefit Erase Paste

Concealer - All over
Cle de Peau Concealer
Honorable Mention:  Mac Studio Fix Concealer.  For serious blemishes, I usually use the Mac, but the Mac concealer is a bit thick/heavy for undereye areas, where you can use Cle de Peau for undereyes.    

Powder:
Rimmel Stay Matte.  The one I use is translucent. 

Bronzer:
Tarte Bronzer in Park Ave. Princes

Eyeshadow Primer:
Urban Decay Primer Potion in Original

Eyeshadow - Drugstore
Tie between:
Wet n Wild 8 pan palette in Comfort Zone
Wet n Wild eyeshadow trio in Walking on Eggshells

Eyeshadow - High End
Urban Decay Naked Palette
Honorable Mention:  Urban Decay Naked Basics Palette.  LOVE this palette.  It's getting OM simply because there are fewer shadows to love than the UDNP.
Note:  I was REALLY tempted to put the Urban Decay Naked 3 Palette, but I've only been using it for a month or so, so I thought it wasn't an accurate representation of the year of 2013.

Eyeliner:
L'Oreal Lineur Intense in Carbon Black
Note:  I've been using lots of other liners for tightlining, waterline...but I haven't been loving any lately.  I'm in the market for a new liner.  Recommendations anyone?

Mascara - High End:
YSL Babydoll Lashes
Honorable Mention:  Giorgio Armani Eyes to Kill Mascara

Mascara - DrugStore:
L'Oreal Voluminous Full Definition Mascara

Lip Balm:
Tie Between:
Nivea A Kiss of... (My favorites are A Kiss of Smoothness and A Kiss of Olive Oil & Lemon)
EOS Lip Balm Stick in Vanilla Bean
Honorable Mention:  EOS Lip Sphere in Sweet Mint

Tinted Lip Balm:
L'Oreal Color Riche Balm (My favorite color is probably the Rose Elixr)

Lipstick:
High End:  Nars Lipstick in Dolce Vita
DrugStore:  Revlon Lip Butter  (My favorites are Berry Smoothie and Raspberry Pie)

Lip Gloss:
Nars Lip Gloss in Chihuahua

Brown Pencil:
 Anastasia Brow Wiz

Beauty Tool:
Beauty Blender

Body Wash: 
Olay Ultra Moisture Body Wash

Hand Cream: 
Soap & Glory Hand Food

Nail Polish:
Essie Mademoiselle

Perfume:
Marc Jacobs Dot/Daisy/Honey (Three Way Tie)
Honorable Mention:  Disney by Sephora Ariel Kiss the Girl Perfume



So tell me...what have you been loving in 2013?

Xoxo,

Cathy