muddy plums

     Today my college had a snow day AND since it was President's Day, my government- employed boyfriend had the day off, which was good news because it meant we got to spend some time together before I had to go to work. And what did we do? We bathed the ferret! And he was also souper sweet and fixed me chicken noodle soup and a grilled cheese for lunch.
     I was in a hurry to leave my house and Matt likes the au naturel look on me as far as make up, so I decided to keep it fresh and light, with a pop of plummy purple at my eyes to make my blues really stand out.

 

Either the lighting in the living room is crazier than I thought or my bangs cast one wicked shadow- that one eye looks like it has a bruise under it! Totally not existent IRL, though! 

     For blush I used just a dab of Too Faced's Pinch my Petals (my favorite!) and on my lips I had a swipe of Clinique's gloss in Tenderheart. For my eyeshadow I pulled out the handy dandy Naked palette and used Buck in the crease and Naked on the main lid. I then went over Buck with Jezebel from Concrete Minerals. To highlight the inner corners and under my arches I used Tiki, a brozer/ highlighter from Hard Candy. And violola! Look complete! 

one of my very favorite activites

     It's a proven fact: women love to shop, and I am no exception. It is also a proven and fairly unfortunate fact that most men hate shopping with women. Luckily for me, the Good Lord let there be flea markets! The cool thing about flea markets is that there is usually something for everyone, and looking at things is more of an adventure than just browsing through a store. On Saturdays when I don't go into work until later, sometimes I will tag along with my fella and his family to this huge flea market there is in Bristol, TN. Because my fella and his bro and me (when I have the time) are all gamers, we spend most of our time checking out the vendors selling games and consoles, and we like to check out the movies and books, too. And of course there are all sorts of random treasures set out on display. The last time we went before today I found an old comic book from the 50's called "The Son of Black Beauty." The guy's price was $15, and he had another copy, so he let me have both for the $15. That was definitely one of my favorite buys. The majority of my purchases are game- related, with most of those being of the Pokemon vein (for those of you who love Pokemon like I do, you gotta check out Shiro Cosmetics!) And today I found two very neat items- a big "Pokedex" book for the Pokemon Diamond game ($5) and Pokemon Pinball for Gameboy Color ($10.) I wasn't really looking to buy anything today, but since I'm in the middle of playing Diamond I figured the book would come in handy, and I couldn't pass up Pokemon Pinball. If you put a triple A battery in the cartridge the Gameboy shakes with the game because it has a rumble pak built in, and I couldn't pass up something that neat! I've been playing it some this evening, and it's definitely worth the $10. 

 

Goodies! 

     So, are any of y'all gamers or Pokeholics? How about flea market pickers? If so, what's your favorite loot? 

I may be coming back.... :)

     The other day I was at school, writing something or the other, and I couldn't help but think: "Man, my writing skills are getting rusty!" It's hard to believe that I haven't did anything on this blog in a whole eight months... I have missed blogging, but with college, work, homework/ studying, and my personal life, I have just had trouble getting the time and motivation to write and to edit pictures. After some personal wallowing about poor me doesn't get to blog because of yada yada blah blah, I finally did something productive and came up with a solution: write shorter posts! That way I can do more with less time and effort. Instead of doing haul- style reviews, from now on I'm only going to review an item or so at a time. Also, I think I'm going to stop rating things on a "stars" scale, and even though I like doing a "breakdown" style review, writing reviews in a more article- type style would probably be a better tool to improve my writing. So be warned, there will be changes, just not sure how drastic they will be yet. I do hope to do more posts on looks and there will probably be more that are just about life in general and not even related to beauty/ make up. This can include but probably won't be limited to: animals, books, movies, music, the adventures me and my fella go on, and more! I'm pretty excited and I hope I can keep at it this go- round :)    

 And for now, I'll just leave y'all with this picture of the two things that make me smile the most- my Matthew and our baby ferret, Loki! 

I hope y'all like seeing this little guy, because he will probably weasel his way (har har har, pun intended!) onto the blog pretty often!

Meow Cosmetics: the cat's pajamas? (Part II)

     Hello, all! This is the second installment of my Meow Cosmetics reviews. They're taking a little longer than I planned... yeah, summer classes... joy. Plus, I've been going through a lot in my personal life... again, joy. But, blogging is still fun and I'm glad I get to do it. It's something I really enjoy doing for my "me time." After I finish my Meow posts I'll be doing a post on a blog award MnG gave me (I didn't forget, I swear!) I'm going to go ahead and start talking about the good stuff, now ;) 

From left to right: Illuminate, Flash, Spark, Glisten. 

Swatches are in the same order as the above. Top is without flash, bottom is with flash.

Firefly Blush

What they say:Ever so slightly moist and creamy to the touch, they glide over skin and leave a dewy glow of shimmery sunkissed color on your cheeks!

The stats:  A 20 gram jar costs $16.25 and a 10 gram jar is $9.25; sample baggies are $1. I can't really find any other info on these....

Pros: The colors are all really beautiful and stay in that "sun kissed" color category. They have quite a bit of shimmer in them and are great for accentuating the cheek bones. 

Cons: While I bet these look great on girls who can stay matte, they have too much glitter for my oily skin. 

Stars: 4/5

Would I buy again?: Unfortunately, no. 

Incatuation, Kiss and Tell, Wanton, Kitty Love, Tryst.

Swatches are in the same order as the above. Top is without flash, bottom is with flash.

Lush Blush

What they say: Saturated in vivid wet hues, moist and creamy to the touch, with an opaline sheen of glowing lustrous color.  One light sweep at the cheekbone is all you'll need to complete your look.  They are completely unlike any other blush we have ever offered.  Lush Blush provides a glowing flush of color to the cheeks with no sparkle to distract from their rich healthy glow, just an effortless dewy wash of pure color.

The stats: A 20 gram jar is $16.25, a 10 gram jar is $9.25; sample baggies are $1. The ingredients are Mica, Iron Oxides, and they "may contain" Titanium Dioxide & Carmine. 

Pros: These do offer a nice glow without being over the top. These are super- pigmented, so you only need a touch of powder. The sifter top really comes in handy on these when it comes to controlling the amount of product I get on my brush. 

Cons: Because the pigmentation is so strong and the loose powder format can be a little challenging, these might not be the best for first- time blush users. 

Stars: 4.5/5

Would I buy again?: Maybe. 

Saucy, Lust, Fetish, Racy, Dirty Talk, Risque, Exposure, Centerfold, Exhibitionist. 

Swatches are in the same order as the above. Top is without flash, bottom is with flash.

Taboo Blush

What they say: Luminous, lightweight, airy and ever so slightly kissed with unexpected iridescent glow! The Taboo blush palette is a bit  like peering  *through* a rainbow arching across the sky.  Neither sparkly nor matte, these soft and creamy colors will Formulated to be as light as the air itself and lightly kissed with mystical glowing radiance, these are taboos that everyone should have! 

The stats:  A 20 gram jar costs $15.25 and a 10 gram jar is $8.25; sample baggies are $1. The ingredients are Mica, Titanium Dioxide, Tin Oxide, Tin Dioxide, & Iron Oxides.

Pros: All of the colors I have are just lovely. They are pigmented but not so much as to make them difficult to apply. The "iridescent glow" is extremely flattering to the cheeks without being too much or looking icky on oily skin. 

Cons: Ummm? I can't really think of any with these :) 

Stars: 5/5

Would I buy again?: Yes! I love these. 


     So, I hope this little review and the swatches were helpful :) 

Meow Cosmetics: the cat's pajamas? (Part I)

     Since sometime in the seventh grade, I've waged a war with acne and oily skin. That is primarily the reason why I never looked at putting my make up on as a fun or confidence boosting experience during my high school years- it was just something I did to hide my face. I never took the time to think about what would work the best with my skin, I just wanted it to be hidden, so I turned to thick, opaque foundations and magical zit- shrinking concealer sticks (yeah, they didn't work.) Sometime last winter I started experiencing make up as a way to express myself and to enhance my features instead of just trying to use it as a mask. After doing a little bit of research, I thought that a loose- powder mineral foundation might be a good option for my oily skin during the summer. While I was confident that a mineral foundation wouldn't irritate my skin, I was somewhat skeptical about the level of coverage. After cruising other blogs and googling reviews on various companies, the foundation I chose to try is from Meow Cosmetics and I also purchased their powder concealer. Of course, I purchased the samples first so I could get matched up well, which led to some blush samples, which led to two full sized blushes, and I received free eyeshadow samples with an order, so I wound up buying a  bunch of eyeshadow samples... we all know how the story goes ;) So there will be three posts on Meow Cosmetics from me, hence this being Part I. While the other posts will be swatch heavy, I'm not going to swatch the concealer and foundation because it's hard to do, but the website has wonderful swatches for these. 

Purrrfect Cover Concealer

What they say: Purr-fect cover Mineral Concealer is our heaviest coverage product.  It's capable of covering most any imperfection, offering nearly opaque coverage.

The stats: The ingredients are Mica, Titanium Dioxide, Zinc Oxide, and Iron Oxides. The cost for a full- sized 20 gram jar (4 gram net weight) is $15.95 and sample baggies are $1. Meow also offers and under eye concealer at a different price and size and color- correcting concealers. My shade is "Frisky Sphynx." 

Pros: This really does offer nice, natural- looking coverage. I guess it's because it is a powder, but the blemish/ scar/ whatever you're trying to hide just fades into the rest of your face. I use this under my eyes too, and it makes all the darkness just go away and the entire under eye area looks brighter, making me look more awake ;) Also, the website says that this contains anti- inflammatory ingredients, so I'm hoping that means it makes the swelly spots on my face go down. I don't think it heals blemishes, but it doesn't make them worse and I feel like my skin can breathe under this, which helps the healing process.

Cons: If I'm not careful with this around my eyes, it can make them a bit teary. I don't think it's so much the formulation that does it, it's just that it's where the powder is... well... dry. And dry + eyeball = uncomfortable. 

Stars: 5/5

Would I buy again?: Yes.

Flawless Feline Mineral Foundation

What they say: Flawless Feline provides complete coverage with no stiff, chalky feeling.  It's wonderful slip , easy melt, and glorious texture will make you feel as though you have nothing on. Plus, you'll never find any irritants here.  No bismuth, no fillers, only the absolute highest end most luxurious ingredients available to the industry today.   Flawless Feline is  the apex of pure, natural, matte purrr-fection that you've come to expect from Meow Cosmetics.  And of course, it's sold in our huge, luxurious, 3 oz jar!

The stats: The ingredients are Mica, Zinc Oxide, Titanium Dioxide, Boron Nitride, and Iron Oxides. It comes in a 85 gram jar (22-30 gram net weight) for $26.95, a "munchkin" jar, which is   $14.95 for a 25 gram jar (6-8 gram net weight) and sample baggies are $1.  There are two other mineral foundation formulas from Meow and both are just a smidge cheaper, although they are lighter coverage. Like the concealer, this is in "Frisky Sphynx."

 Pros: I like that there are 72 shades with 3 different formulas (yay for choices!) This might seem a bit on the pricey side, but considering how little you actually need to use per use and how long it will last, it's worth it (to me, at least.) This doesn't irritate my skin at all- my skin feels like it can breathe. It barely feels like I"m even wearing makeup. One of the coolest things about this is the oil- control aspect. Eventually I do get some oilies, but it takes so much longer than with a regular liquid foundation. 

Cons: Because it is a powder, this can be very drying if worn without a good moisturizer. I also suggest using a primer because a lot of powders have trouble sticking to bare, clean skin. My favorite primer to use with this is Fyrinnae's Velvet Gel Silica Primer, although I've used others with success. If you use too much powder it will looks cakey. This might also make you look pale in flash photography because of the titanium dioxide. 

Stars: 4.5/5 I know this is a powder, but I wish it was just a tad less drying.

Would I buy again?: Yes.

This is what the containers look like open. I'm normally not a fan of sifters, but these keep you from getting too much powder on your brush. 

These are the brushes I use to apply my Meow powders. They are all from EcoTools. The small brush I use for the concealer, the fat one is sold as a brozer brush but buffs in foundation beautifully, and the duofiber one is good for just going over everything and making sure that all of the powder is blended in properly.

The left picture shows me with concealer on the rightt side of my face (the left side in the pic) and nothing on the left side (right side of the pic.) The right pic is after all of the concealer and foundation has been applied. 

     I believe I've found my perfect Summertime foundation in Meow's Purrr-fect Puss and the concealer is wonderful, too. The website is easy to navigate and I like how you can sample pretty much everything before you buy a full- size. They have a mailing list and a Facebook page and they often have sales or free shipping offers (which makes my inner cheap-o happy!) Although these two products may not be the best for people with very dry skin, I highly recommend them for anyone with regular to oily skin looking for a lightweight foundation. 

I feel so MIA

     Well, hello, lovelies! I've felt so absent the last couple of weeks, hopefully that's going to change. I have two posts coming up on Meow Cosmetics. I thought about it, and there is way  too much content for just one post. I may even wind up deviding it into three when all is said and done, just because there will be a jizzillion swatches. I also have planned a post on organization, featuring the fabulous palettes from Zpalette and Unii, in addition to storage units by Sterilite (from Wally World, of course.) And, *drumroll please*.... I'm going to have a giveaway! I'm going to wait until I have 25 followers to have it, and I'm not exactly sure what all is going into it yet and I want some help deciding! At least one item is going to be from Hard Candy and will be something I've reviewed in the past, so I'll leave links here here and here so y'all can browse through the products. Just vote for your choice in the comments :)
     Speaking of comments, I'm still having problems with Blogger letting me leave comments. If it pops up in a seperate window, I can comment, but if the comment box is on the page, no luck, at all. It is driving me up the wall, and I feel so rude, not replying to the comments left on here. But, I still want to say thanks for them because they mean the world to me.
       I'm hoping that I get to share more baby cow pictures soon- my sister's cow Bobbie Joe is showing signs of getting ready to calve, so I'm excited- keep you're eyes peeled! I'm thinking about starting to do monthly favorite posts, so if I decide that it's a good idea one of those will be up in the next few days for the month of May. I hope everyone has a great week!

holidays= sales

     I hope that everyone has a lovely Memorial Day. It's not a holiday that gets a ton of attention, but to me it's still very important. Regardless of political background, I think that it's important to honor those who've served in the armed forces to keep us safe and sound. As is the case on most other holidays, there are a ton of sales and specials going on, so I thought I would share the ones I know about! 

- MDS20 will get you 20% off on everything from Cherry Culture.
- At Meow Cosmetics you can save 20% with the code chillax or get free shipping with the code kittymail or both when you spend $75 (just use the code chillax and select the free shipping option.)
- At Sephora you can snag some extra freebies. The code PORESTRIPS will get you a sample of Boscia Pore Purifying Strips and RENERGIE is good for a sample of Lancome Renergie Eye Multiple Action (with any $25 Beauty Insider purchase only.)
- You can get $1 shipping with any $25 order from Bath and Body Works' website with the code MEMORIALDAY1. They are also having buy 3 get 3 free on their signature collection items.
- Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics is offering 20% off. You must log in with the username "guest" and the password 0530 before adding items to your cart, though! 
- With any $34 skin care or foundation purchase you get a super cool free gift when you order from Estee Lauder.
- This last one isn't exactly beauty-oriented (more like booby-oriented, haha! *please excuse the lame pun*.) Victoria's Secret is offering free shipping on $50+ with the code SHIP50.

     Most of these end at midnight on Memorial Day of the Tuesday after, with the exception of the VS one, which ends Thursday, and I have no clue about the Estee Lauder one. Hope these were helpful ;)   

     Oh, and speaking of helpful? I'm having some trouble with Blogger. See, it's not letting me leave comments under my GFC account, even after redirecting me to the login page (where I log in yet again and keep getting redirected to each time I *try to* submit my comment.) Does anyone know how I may be able to fix this little glitch?