June 29, 2011

Hey beauties! I haven't had time to do much makeup this week so far. I've had early site visits pretty much everyday and it's been so friggin hot and humid that overall I'm just not that inspired to even wear eyeshadows. I still do my nails though! I don't think anyone has ever seen me without nail polish on, lol! Last night, I layered some OPI Silver Shatter over Essie Lapis of Luxury. I was initially very turned off by the whole crackle/shatter trend but I do like the silver shatter. I find it much more "chic" than black or any other colours:

And for my super easy makeup, I just wore MAC Pro Longwear (in NW25 - which matches me again now that I'm tanner), Nars Irresistiblement bronzer and Deep Throat blush on my face, Lancome Hypnose mascara and then BAM lips with Chanel Coromandel Rouge Allure Laque:

Hope you enjoyed this random post. Will try to get more inspiring looks in soon :)

Posted In Essie, FOTD, NOTD, OPI | 5 comments | edit

June 28, 2011

Hey lovelies! I thought of doing a series of my favourite summer products now that the hot weather is on full swing. I will try to do at least one product per week and see how many we will get to by end of summer. And what other product to start with but a bronzer:

I purchased Nars Irresistiblement this spring and cannot stop using it. I literally have been ignoring all my other bronzers since. Irresistiblement is described on Nars website as "golden Terracotta" but to me it doesn't look golden at all. I would personally call it peachy caramel which is a shade that works great with my cooler complexion (MAC NW25). It also has a matte texture that I now prefer and is very buildable depending on what brush you use and how much of it you pick up. I would say this bronzer works divine on fair to light/light medium skintones with cooler undertones. Here's a closer look:

On NW25 skintone

I love that Irresistiblement is not brown so it looks super natural and healthy on vs making you look tanned. I have been looking for a peachy bronzer forever and this product has become my HG. It looks a bit orange in the pan but don't worry, it translate to the most unique shade of peachy bronze on the skin. I encourage all bronze phobes to give this bronzer a shout! I love it in combination with peachy, coral and golden blushes, it gives that amazing summer glow. It looks divine with Nars Deep Throat, Gilda and MAC Instant Chic and Cantaloupe as a few examples.

Here I'm wearing it with MAC Instant Chic blush on top:

Hope you guys find this review helpful. What is your favourite bronzer?

Posted In Favourites, Nars | 6 comments | edit

June 27, 2011

Hey beauties! Today's a crazy busy day for me at work as we just have moved into the new location and everyone is running around trying to unpack. It doesn't help that summer is generally a busy time in my department anyway and all this move and packing/unpacking isn't helping. Oh well, this is a short week so I shall survive.

I did a glimmering gold smokey look for a big family party this past Saturday. I got a lot of compliments from the ladies on it too, quite few wanted me to do their makeup, lol! I hadn't work my MAC Reflects Antique Gold pigment in a bit and I love the affect of it layered over rusty gold base base like MUFE Metal pigment #3.

Hope you guys enjoy this look. Happy Monday :)

Face

Nars Pore Refining Primer

MUFE HD Foundation - 118 (Flesh)

Ben Nye powder

Sculpt

Prim n Proper blush

Eyes

Painterly p/p - base

Dirty GPS - base for lid and lower lashline

Nars Star Sailor duo - gold side on inner lid

MUFE Gold Metal p/m #3 - lid

Wedge e/s - above crease

Espresso e/s - crease and outer lid

NYX Black e/s - outer v

Blanc Type e/s - highlight

Lancome Black Art Liner - to line

Lancome Hypnose mascara

Lips

MUFE 2C l/l

MUFE Rouge Artist Intense l/s #29

Outfit of the night is this green shift dress I got from Le Chateau probably 6 years ago. As you know I love form fitting shift dresses and this one also fits no matter how much weigh I put on/ or lose. The strappy heels are from Nine West:

And bonus picture of the night, me and my forever young looking parents <3

Posted In FOTD, OOTD | 3 comments | edit

June 24, 2011

Happy Friday my lovelies! My office is moving to a new location today so around here is absolute chaos. We've been packing for months now and finally it's over. We're also all off at noon today so a bunch of us are going for lunch as soon as the movers come in. Also, hubby won tickets for Cirque de Soleil showing tonight and the two of us and two friends are going to see it later this afternoon. We have a great box seating too which makes it even better.

This is a look I did in a rush yesterday. It took about 5 minutes to put the whole thing together. It's nothing special and you can see how my hair is still wet (I was rushing to breakfast meeting with my boss). But I thought I post it anyway. Hope you guys like this and have an amazing weekend.

Face

Nars Pore Refining Primer

Nars Sheer Glow Foundation - Santa Fe

Ben Nye powder

Stark Naked blush

Eyes

Painterly p/p - base

UD Toasted e/s - inner lid

UD Baked e/s - lid

UD Hustle e/s - outer lid and crease

UD Naked e/s - above crease

UD Virgin e/s - highlight

Dark Diversion f/l - to line

UD Baked 24/7 liner - lower lashline

Chanel Rouge Noir Inimitable mascara

Lips

Trimmed in Pink l/l

Chanel Emoi gloss

Oh, Ottawa's anual Rib Festival or as we call it RibFest is on right now (June 22-June 26). As the name suggest, this is a street event of rib and chicken cook-off. Every year a panel of judges selects the best tasting ribs and us people sample as many as we desire for a great price. I went in with a bunch of coworkers yesterday and we had an amazing time. I got a combo of ribs, pulled pork and chicken plus beans and salad:

And here's a phone pic of me and some slightly intoxicated coworkers enjoying our fatty meals, haha:

Posted In FOTD | 3 comments | edit

June 23, 2011

Hey beauties! I'm was NOT having a good day yesterday. One of those days when I want to kill off every single man on Earth, lol! I had to walk out of a meeting with a senior client due to his being inappropriate....looooong story! Anyway, then I got back to the office all frustrated, checked my emails and found out I'm double booked yet again for tomorrow. I'm getting quite tired of this whole being understaffed business. I called my boss and he got an ear full but he'll get some more tomorrow (I'm having breakfast with him).

All that aside, I did like my makeup today. I find that I don't do a lot of full on bright looks anymore so it's nice to bust out some colour once in a while. Hope you guys like the look. Oh, and my bangs are growing out again, debating whether I should cut them again or let it grow out for the summer. What do you guys think?

Face

Nars Pore Refining Primer

Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua - Beige Tendre (B20)

Ben Nye Primer

Bite of an Apple blush

Eyes

Rubenesque p/p - base

Inglot AMC 60 - inner lid

MUFE #18 e/s - mid lid

MUFE #99 e/s - outer id

MUFE #75 e/s - crease and above

Creme de Miel e/s - tear duct

Solar White e/s - highlight

MUFE #92 e/s - lower lashline

BB Chocolate Shimmer g/l - to line

Diorshow mascara

Lips

Temperature Rising l/l

Exxxhibitionist kissable lip colour

Natural Light shots:

Posted In FOTD | 4 comments | edit

June 22, 2011

Hey beauties! I did yet another burgundy look, I just am in love with this shade and of course with my all time fave MAC pigment, Smoke Signal. I really gotta do a top 10 or top 5 fave pigments post. But I know already Smoke Signal is #1, it's definitely my most used shade.

In other news, I fell off the exercising wagon last week and I'm not happy about. I need to restart on my 30-Day Shred stuff ASAP. I made it to Level 3 but then got lazy. I need some motivation. How do you guys stay motivated to exercise? I eat really healthy and don't easily get tempted with fatty food but I do occasionally get lazy with the workout :/

Face

Nars Pore Refining Primer

Laura Mercier Silk Creme Foundation - Ivory Beige

MUFE Full Cover - #6

Ben Nye powder

Sculpt

Pink Cult blush

Eyes

Painterly p/m - base

Vanilla p/m - lid

Smoke Signal p/m - crease

MUFE #39 e/s - above crease

Blanc Type e/s - highlight

Lancome Black Art Liner - to line

Lancome Hypnose mascara

Lips

Inglot red l/l

MUFE Rouge Artist Intense in Moulin Rouge

Posted In FOTD | 5 comments | edit

June 21, 2011

Hey lovelies! I have another summer dinner recipe for you today. I make this salad in larger quantities and also take with us to the beach on the weekends. Reading on the beach and relaxing is one of my all time favourite summer activities and nothing makes it better like good light meals to munch on.

Here's my Chicken Potato Salad Recipe:

Cook 1 1/2 lbs of red potatoes in boing salted water for 10 mins. Transfer to a colander and then add 1/2lb of green beans to the same water. Cook for a couple of minutes, then drain. In a large bowl, mix 1/4 cup of olive oil, 2 tbsp of chopped capers, 4 tbsp of chopped parsley, peel and juice from one lemon and add the potatoes and beans to the bowl. Mix all together and season with salt and pepper.

In a shallow bowl, beat an egg. In another shallow bowl 1/4 of flour with salt and pepper. Dip two 6-oz pieces of skinless chicken first in flour mix, then in egg mixture then in flour again and fry in a hot skillet for 8 mins. Transfer to a cutting board and cut in diagonal strips. Add 1/4 cup of chicken broth to the hot skillet scraping up the brown chicken bits. Remove from heat and add a tbsp of chopped capers and some lemon juice.

Serve the salad with the chicken strips and the lemon broth sauce drizzled on top. Enjoy!

Posted In Recipe of the day | 2 comments | edit

June 20, 2011

Hello my lovelies! This is one of my favourite looks that I do when I want to look put-together and it always earns me a lot of compliments (from men and women) as it makes my eyes pop. Now, having hazel-amber shade eyes, the best colours for me to make them more golden/green are warm purples and mauves or any red base dark colour. However, the technique I'm using here will work on any eye colour and will make them stand out. It's more about lining and less about particular shades.

You want to use a peachy shade on your lids, define your crease very lightly and focus all the attention to the liner. Use a light skintoned eyeliner to trace your lower lashline (in my case I used Stila Topaz k/l). Then line your eyes (upper and lower lashline) with your favourite black liquid liner. Then use a black kohl pencil to tight line your eyes fully. Finally add mascara and voila!

Hope you guys liked the mini tutorial and this look. Here's what I used:

Face

Nars Pore Refining Primer

Laura Mercier Silk Creme Foundation - Ivory Beige

MUFE FUll Cover - #6

Ben Nye powder

Sculpt

Nars Madly blush

Eyes

Painterly p/p - base

Chanel Regards Perlees quint - peach shade on lid

UD Naked e/s - crease

Blanc Type e/s - highlight

Stila Topaz k/l - lower lashline

Lancome Blacck Art Liner - to line

Lise Watier Noir Intense e/l - waterline

Cargo 3 in 1 mascara

Lips

VGVI SE l/s - the perfect mauvy pink that I just re-discovered in my sea of lipsticks!

Oh and I wore this breezy scarf dress to a stroll and dinner downtown with hubby on Sunday. I picked it up in a random store last year in Baltimore but it's so comfortable and perfect for summer. I wish I could get away without wearing a bra but I cannot unfortunately. The dress would have looked much better without my bra showing from the back. The leather sandals are from Gap:

Posted In FOTD, OOTD | 6 comments | edit

Posted In Tag | 0 comments | edit

June 18, 2011

Hey lovelies! It's been so hot around here that I don't even feel like doing my makeup. So I've been sticking to neutral eyes and bold lips most of the time. I felt like doing smokey brown eyes on Friday though and achieved the look I wanted with my beloved Urban Decay Naked Palette. I'm sure I've done looks similar to this before but it just works. I love using MAC Dirty GPS as base for looks like this. Makes the whole look more put together.

What are your plans this weekend? I spent most of Friday evening with a close friend (dinner, shopping, drink). Also hubby and I are doing some home reno (building a bedroom in our basement) so we're working mostly. Hope you all enjoy your weekend.

Face

Nars Pore Refining Primer

Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua - Beige Tendre (B20)

MUFE Full Cover - #6

Ben Nye powder

Sculpt

Prim n Proper blush

Eyes

Painterly p/p - base

Dirty GPS - base for outer lid

UD Sin e/s - inner lid

UD Darkhorse e/s - lid

UD Buck e/s - crease

UD Naked e/s - above crease

UD Virgin e/s - highlight

Lise Watier Smokey Black e/k - to line

Lancome Hypnose mascara

Lips

Blankety l/s

Glamour for All l/g

When it's hot out, I style my hair away from my neck and face. I'm a huge fan of braided styles especially when the temperature rises. I did a half back side french braid. By half french braid I mean you only add hair from one side (the bottom in this case) instead of both sides. If you know how to french braid you'll understand what I mean. I started from right above my left ear and ended right above my neck. I used a couple of bobby pins to hold it in place and added a tiny bit of hair spray. This style looks best on wavy hair so use a curling iron or flat iron to add waves if yours is straight (I have naturally wavy hair). I have a LOT of hair and this style still held all day! I always have better luck when I come up with styles last minute, lol!

Hope you like the hair of the day too :)

Posted In FOTD, Hair | 2 comments | edit

June 16, 2011

Hey lovelies! This past weekend I purchased a sexy one piece swimsuite from American Apparel. They had a promo in store which allowed you to pick a nail polish with purchases of over $50.

I picked up a nail polish called Mannequin. I kinda was hesitant about it but OMG I love this shade on. I have a lot of flesh toned nudes but this one is by FAR the most flattering on my skintone. It's a light nude with obvious pink undertones which are much kinder on me than the peachy or beige undertones most nude polishes have. The formula was amazing. I did two layers and each layered applied super easily. I've also had this one for 3 days and no chipping yet (I don't use top coats).

Here's a swatch for you guys:

What is your favourite nude nail polish?

Posted In American Apparel, NOTD, Nude | 8 comments | edit

June 15, 2011

Hey lovelies! I've had one of those days when I wanted to rip someone's head off, lol! It was just super busy at work, I had many scheduling conflicts, was stuck outside for 2 hours in a 35Deg day and didn't even get to eat lunch! I just spent 20 mins on the phone with my boss venting and now feel a bit better. I love my boss, lol! He's always good to talk to at times like this, takes the stress away after a rough day.

I did this green and gold look yesterday. I'm starting to warm up to greens it seems. I also wanted to wear a gold eyeliner for the longest time so I thought why not pair it with green eyeshadows. I used MAC's Gold pigment (metal) and their gel mixing medium to create the eyeliner.

Hope you guys like this look :)

Face

Nars Pore Refining Primer

Laura Mercier Silk Cream Foundation - Beige Ivory

Ben Nye powder

Nars Irrésistiblement Bronzer

Chez Chez Lame powder

Eyes

Painterly p/p - base for upper lid

MUFE #22 (emerald green) aqua cream - base for outer lid and crease

Inglot AMC #59 e/s - inner lid

Kelly Green p/m - lid

Goldmine e/s - crease

Velvet Moss e/s - outer lid

Blanc Type e/s - highlight

Gosh Velvet Green e/l - lower lashline

Gosh Golden Cadillac e/l - lower lashline

Gold p/m with mm - to line

Diorshow mascara

Lips

Honeylove l/s

Nars Moonfleet l/g

And here's another outfit of the day for you. I'm on fire with those, lol! Shift navy dress is from Mexx (from 2 years ago), necklace is by Aldo and the nude pumps are Steve Madden's. I adore this shift dress, I pretty much live in this style of dress (they work great on my curves) but this particular one is my fave ever!

Posted In FOTD, OOTD | 4 comments | edit

June 14, 2011

Hey my lovelies! This is a look from this past Sunday. We spent pretty much all day with our closest couple friends. Went for an amazing brunch at a vegan cafe, then my friend and I went shopping while our hubbies golfed. Then finally we went back to their place for movie, BBQ and chattery. Nothing like good times with good friends.

Anyway, a soft rose/bronze look is one of my favourite ways to wear my makeup when it's warm out. I like that it's not boring neutral yet it glows coz of the bronzey hues. I love MAC Bronzilla l/s layered with Chanel Pleasing glossimer for a sparkly yet elegant bronze lip. MAC X-Rocks makes an amazing rosey bronze blush. You will see the same bronze/rose theme on the eyes too!

Hope you guys like this look :)

Face

Nars Pore Refining Primer

Laura Mercier Silk Cream Foundation - Beige Ivory (testing this)

Ben Nye powder

X-Rocks blush - I love this in the summer, it's my rosy bronzer!

Eyes

Painterly p/p - base for upper lid

Shiseido Hydro Powder e/s H4 - base for lid

Jest e/s - inner lid

Rose p/m - lid

MUFE #39 - outer lid

Coppering e/s - crease

Blanc Type e/s - highlight

MUFE #11 l/l - to line - looooove the MUFE new liquid liners!!

Chanel Rouge Noir Mascara

Lips

Bronzilla l/s

Chanel Pleasing glossimer

For outfit of the day, I was wearing this light white cotton dress I found at Winners with wide belt bought from Aldo a few years ago. My husband is a big fan of summer dresses and so he was loving this look. Oh, the sandals are from Steve Madden, they are the most comfortable sandals I've ever owned. I've been wearing the hell outta them!

Posted In Aldo, FOTD, OOTD | 4 comments | edit

June 13, 2011

Happy Monday my lovelies! I have for you one of this past weekend FOTD's. I went to a lunch date with hubby and then attended WestFest (an outdoor music/art festival) and had a blast. I wanted to wear smokey eyes but I also wanted to keep it low key so I reached for my beloved Nars Dogon duo. I cannot rave enough about this eyeshadow duo. No matter how I wear it, I always look put together with minimal effort.

How was you guys weekend? And is anyone already looking forward to the next one? Lol!

Face

Nars Pore Refining Primer

Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua - Beige Tendre (B20)

MUFE Full Cover - #6

Ben Nye Concealer

Nars Laguna Bronzer

Eyes

Delft p/p - base for lid

Painterly p/p - base for upper lid

Aqua e/s - inner lid

Nars Dogon duo - dar shade on lid, light shade in crease

Blanc Type e/s - highlight

Lise Watier Black Teal e/s - to line

Lancome Definicils Pro mascara

Lips

Trimmed in Pink l/l

Chanel Emoi RA Laque Extrait

and one in Natural light:

And outfit of the day is a maxi print dress from Charlotte Russ and leather flat sandals from Gap. This was so comfortable and easy, breezy. I love maxi dresses in the summer:

Posted In FOTD, OOTD | 5 comments | edit

June 12, 2011

Hey lovelies! I did this full on purple look that is similar to a smokey purple look I did a while back. I wore this one to work though so it's not quite as intense. How's everyone's weekend so far? Mine was very relaxing, I spent a lot of time chilling with hubs ad I had really missed him when he was gone these last 10 days.

Hope you guys like this look. And hope you're not suffering from Sunday evening blues like I am.

Face

Nars Pore Refining Primer

Nars Sheer Glow Foundation - Santa Fe

MUFE Full Cover Concealer - #6

Ben Nye Primer

Chanel Plum Attraction JC

Azalea Blossom b/o

Eyes

Painterly p /p - base for upper lid

Inglot Purple g/l - base for outer lid

UD Morphine e/s pencil - base for inner lid

Stars n Rockets e/s - inner lid

Purple from Stila Doll'd Up palette - lid

Graphology e/s - outer lid

Prussian e/s - crease

Blanc Type e/s - highlight

Chanel Cassis e/l - to line

Diorshow mascara

Lips

Up the Amp l/s

Posted In FOTD | 4 comments | edit

June 10, 2011

Hey beauties! I'm so happy it's Friday finally. I mean I always love fridays but especially since hubby's coming back from a week-long conference. I've had a tough week and it's nice to see him and vent my heart out, lol!

I played with my nails last night and decided to layer some Essie Mesmarize over my one day old Zoya Lola mani. It came out as this funky half moon which I kinda dig. I think I will do this more often with other colours. Check it out:

I also did a super simple FOTD as again we were attacked by a heat wave and I wanted to stay simple and glowy. This is the second time this week I do this look (or something similar):

Face

MUFE F&B - #32

Ben Nye powder

Nars Irresistablment bronzer

Azalea Blossom b/o

Eyes

Painterly p/p - base

UD Half Baked e/s - lid

UD Smog e/s - outer lid

UD Buck e/s - crease

UD Naked e/s - above crease

UD Virgin e/s - highlight

MUFE Aqua Cream #20 - to line

Lancome Definicil Pro mascara

Lips

Chanel Antigone RC Shine

Posted In Essie, FOTD, NOTD, Zoya | 6 comments | edit