http://schemas.google.com/blogger/2008/kind#post – Page 15

Skin Food for my nails

I’ve been seeing a bunch of bloggers mentioning Skin Food Nail Polish, and of course, you know me, the crazy eBayer, I had to get my shopper’s delight satisfied. These babies flew over to me all the way from Asia (and of course they probably cost a pretty penny more than you Asian beauties get it for!). I chose some great ones, so keep reading and let me know what y’all think!

Of course, I am not sure what the colors were for any of these, but there were two bottles looking like medicine droppers and the other looks like a normal polish bottle. I got a bright color (of course) and a neutral tone holographic-y shade (which is quite appropriate for work as well!).

I’m not sure what the names are for any of these honestly. But you can tell I am lovin’ them! I used the China Glaze Magic Matte top coat to check out how this baby looked as a matte and I was not disappointed. The polish is pretty thick and requires very little work to apply and look fab.

The bottles look like mini medicine droppers.

The cream color is a slight holo and reminds me of one of the colors that many nail polish blogs are posting from the Nubar Prism Collection. I feel like this holo is most definitely work friendly and looks nice and neat on anyone’s nails.

After the bright and the holo, the metallic cream didn’t pique my interest from the trio that I ordered. That’s okay though, I will be venturing over to eBay for some other goodies and will report back ASAP.

What do you guys think about Skin Food? Ever tried it?

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Chanukah Giveaway Day 7

Prior to the credit card bill arriving in my mailbox that ill-fated day, I used to be a bad girl collecting shoes and makeup like it was a stamp or rock collection to some. I’ve slowed down on my spending for sure, but I still have a basketfull of plenty a pair of eyelashes. So now y’all get some Revlon lashes for you! Seven winners will win the following three pairs.

Check out the MOJ Facebook page and tell me what you indulge in the most! Seven winners will win one of each pair of lashes from Revlon!

Remember only Facebook followers will be able to win!

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Packing makeup with the Z Palette

I’ve previously mentioned the ease of combining your favorite makeup with the Z Palette, but I really put it to good use when I started packing for my trip.

Check out all the goodies I packed away into my Z Palette. I posted my review of the palette here. I managed to fit NARS (middle row left ), Inglot (bottom row left), Makeup Forever (top row), Stila (half pan middle row right), Estee Lauder (tiny rectangles, middle row), Tarte (squares on bottom row right), and Yaby (tiny circles) into it. That would’ve taken me six separate palettes from each brand if I didn’t have my Z Palette with me. I wrapped it in bubble wrap, and when I come back I will let you know if we traveled safe together or not!

What’s your makeup on the go secret?
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Chanukah Giveaway Day 4

Day Four and as this post is scheduled to post, I am hopefully relaxing on a beach far far away from the frigid weather I escaped for a bit under two weeks.

Four entrants will get a Tarte Lifted Natral Eye Primer. Again, an all natural product for ya to use as a base for all your fabulous holiday and future looks.

Even though my family is Jewish, growing up (more my family than me) in the Soviet Union, we have kept up with the tradition of keeping a Christmas tree in the house. But in Russian, it’s called a New Year’s tree and frankly, holds no religious affiliation. Our tree has various colors and the house is decorated with a Menorah and plenty a polar bear and snowman. Check out the MOJ Facebook page and let me know what kind of holiday traditions y’all are keeping in your family, and you might win!
Remember only Facebook fans will be able to win!

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Peep Those Booties!

Do you ever think that some trends out there are only for the fashionistas and famous folk? Don’t get me wrong, I am almost always watering at the mouth for the latest, most expensive, and obnoxious fashions (in a good way), but I just have to admit sometimes that some items look best on my magazine pages and not on me.

My most recent vent victim? Peep toe booties. They are the most impractical concept in my mind. Why? Because the weather that I live in will either fry my toes while the rest of my foot is covered (like a slow cooker), or will freeze them as the rest of my body remains bundled up like the Michelin man. No, this trend I can admire from afar. On the girlies with no worries of below zero temperatures or those who only have to walk a handful of steps from car to door and vice versa.

And you Ladies and Gents of the Jury? What’s your verdict?

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With the ELF’s help…

Not long ago I found out that Santa isn’t the only one with an elf in his life. Already familiar with E.L.F cosmetics and their efforts to keep up with the demands of a beauty on a budget, I was unsure of how great they were with face products. Matching powder or shadow to your desires? Pretty easy, even if a bit tedious. Finding a good concealer? Now we talking tomfoolery.

I often have to find something that matches my skin tone but also does a great job at making the dark spots lighter. I want to do this without having ghostly circles around my eyes. So how could three buckaroos keep me satisfied?
The corrective concealer comes with four cream concealer shades, for reducing redness, dark circles, etc. Pocketbook friendly, this is a bit bigger than a credit card and probably as wide as a cellphone. Part of the studio line, it comes in new snazzy all black packaging.

From the site:

“Conceals under-eye darkness, blemishes and other skin imperfections with customized coverage. Brightens under-eye circles and neutralizes redness. Convenient size for on-the-go travel.

Directions:
Use the nude and beige shades to conceal problematic areas. Use the green shade to neutralize redness like that of acne and the lilac shade to brighten yellow tones.“

The studio packaging looks a lot like NARS.

Left swatch with flash, right without. Click on images to see larger image(s).

The lighting in this photo isn’t as great as the following after pictures, but it shows the point. The only area I used the corrective concealer was around the eyes. This is my problem area and I normally don’t use concealer/foundation anywhere else. You can see that I have darker pigmentation on the lids, below the eyes, and on the sides of the nose (from wearing glasses and lack of sleep).

Tada! If you’re not amazed with how great this works. That’s okay. I am. It’s pretty smooth with application and doesn’t take too much product to get the job done.

The negatives? This corrective palette does not work for all skin tones. I used the darkest shade on the right as a spot concealer for a FOTD for a friend (photos to come) and it worked, but the rest made her skin look ashy. Also, the concealer palette comes with a brush but you most definitely do not need it. Application with the brush will make you think the product is streaky and poor in quality, when in fact it’s not.

Use your fingers to determine the correct amount of product and pressure when applying.

The verdict? If it matches your skin this is the only one you need (and it costs less than a $5 footlong!).

Have you tried the E.L.F corrective concealer? Anything from their studio line? Let me hear it!

Disclaimer: This palette was purchased by the author. All reviews on MOJ remain unbiased and unpaid. For more info, feel free to contact the author.

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Red, Bright, and Winter Blues

Ever since I was little, colder weather meant stern-er clothing. Break out the bleak and the dark. Maybe it was a daylight savings time phenomenon, but the all black uniform applied more often when the sun was less social.

Me? Give me a reason to wear (or purchase and let it sit in my closet for years before I notice it) a neon lime sweater and I’m all ears. If you don’t have the acquired taste for neons and brights when the weather sends your knees a-knockin’, take cues from favorite mags for December and January on wearing colors not as loud, but with just as much voice.

Granted, the magazine shoots are done months in advance, but you can’t help loving the pop of brightness in each photo. This makes me concede to blondes having fun, well – at least in these photos. Take that military jacket in red instead of black when you shop, and try on a sunny yellow tunic for a snowy day.

Have you injected a bit of color into your winter wardrobe? Plan to? Let me know!

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Footlocker Friends and Family!

Everyone needs some sportswear or sneakers in their life. I know my feet need some of that cushion after a rough week (or day) of running around in heels. Check out Footlocker‘s Family and Friends sale going on this weekend to catch up with some deals!

Use code FF9CV236 to get your goodies, and don’t forget to get something with good ankle support!

If you plan to use this coupon in person, click on the image to see it full size (or right click and press ‘view image‘) and print!

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NOTD – the cheap nail

The return of the nail! My adventures with nail polish and new ones (almost) every day continues. Check out the photos of all the cheapie polishes (none of these cost more than $3).

LA Girl Matte in what Forever 21 calls Magenta – as you can see, nothing beats a matte like the China Glaze Matte Magic top coat left two fingers with top coat, right two fingers

LA Girl from Forever 21, this is such a gorj color, and probably should have a crazy name, but of course, 21 calls it Blue.

I love how it looks as a matte.
I finally got my hands on some KleanColor nail polish in colors that I liked. Blue Satin has a party inside of it! Confetti and glitter, but in a very not too loud way. 🙂 forgot the name of this color peeps, but if you ask, I shall find! left is no flashI tried to do a finger with Blue Satin over the purple, but it wasn’t spectacular This is Pearl Jungle, a green I honestly don’t think I have come across before (left no flash, right w/flash)
Tried it with a matte top coat, but this is the first color that I can safely say would do without any matte-ifying effects.

How ya like ’em?

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First Ever Tutorial!

The Simon Duncan fashion show had me excited to try out my first ever tutorial for you guys. I have to give a huge round of applause for the ladies and gents that do this on a regular basis because it is a painstaking process – do you know how many pictures and editing goes into it?!

The look was a pretty natural face & a smokey, black eye with gold sparkle in it and very light bronze contour with a neutral lip. The first thing I thought of when I saw this look was my Stila 24k smudge pot. I dug around for some more Stila goodies and created a one brand look.

I’m already a fan of Stila as you may know, their shadows & gel liners are ultra longlasting and apply like silk. Plus – who hasn’t had a clickable lipgloss from them? I used them up like candy! Click after the jump to see the good stuff.

To achieve this look, you can use the products mentioned below, and pair them with your shade of foundation/concealer, and eye primer (I usually put some concealer on my lids to prime the eyes if I don’t have primer handy).

Stila Eyeshadow duos in: Punaluu (buy at Amazon) and Salome (sold out on Stila & Sephora – google away!)
Stila 24kt Smudge pot- golden noir (buy at Stila)
Stila Pomegranate Crush lip and cheek stain (buy at Amazon)
Stila Convertible mascara in black (check out my review here). (buy at Amazon).

Before you start reading the tutorial, there is homework: prep and prime on your own. Everyone has different habits and products, so feel free to use your own. Whatever makes your skin the most comfortable and matches the best is optimal!

1. With a wet brush, dip into the black shade of Punaluu and make a mark for what shape you want in the corner of your eye. I like to do this so that both eyes are even. Plus this doesn’t pull on your skin like using tape would.
2. Wet your brush a bit more and use more of the same shade from Punaluu to create a thick line.
3. Blend the line and your marker in the corner of your eye. I like to do this to create a soft background for the look. This helps you create a gradient look without trying too hard at all!
4. Using a liner brush, dip into some of your smudge pot and go over the area you lined in step 2. Do not extend too high as you will have to blend this out (think about how much of your eye you want to cover for this look & apply accordingly).

5. Add a second or third layer of the smudge pot. Since it is a gel, it might start to get really thin when you begin the blending process.
6. Blend until there is no more harsh line, or until you reach the effect you are looking for. This is where you need to see if you want the black to extend higher along your lid or not.
7. Use the darker bronze color from Salome where the smudge pot starts to fade out. This creates a warm bronze-y glow.

8. Use the lighter shade from Salome to apply (very lightly – this is just for a light shimmer) from your the center of your eyelid to the brow.
9. Blend the colors. I added a bit more of the shades from Salome both in the middle and at the top (you can spot some more shimmer on my lid in this step, can’t ya?).
10. Apply mascara to lower and upper lids. (Not pictured: Apply Pomegranate Lip and Cheek stain lightly on lips and either cover with clear gloss or leave as is).