September 19, 2013

Hi guys! I'm currently fighting some kind of virus and feeling absolutely miserable. It's tough being sick and having a baby but I find episodes like this really have built my character as a person.

This look is from a few days ago. As you can see I have chopped my hair quite a bit. The ends were getting pretty dry and I was due for a trim. I'm still loving the dark shade and the fact that this neon blouse is making me look quite a bit tanner than I currently am. I did an olive toned eye paired with shimmery coral lips to compliment the blouse (and the olive pencil skirt I was wearing).

For Face: I used a thin layer of Nars Tinted Moisturizer (Alaska) and set with Ben Nye's Translucent Powder. I contoured my cheeks using Chanel Notorious powder and added Nars Deep Throat blush to the apple of my cheeks.

For Eyes: I used MAC Painterly p/p as a base and contoured the eyes crease with MAC Velvet Moss e/s (DC). I then added a moist layer of OCC Lafayette pigment all over the lids. I highlighted the middle section of the lid with MAC Amber Lights e/s and the browbone with MAC Blanc Type. I lined the lower lashline with Lise Watier Black Gold e/l (DC) and added two coats of Lancome Hypnose Drama mascara.

For lips: I first lined them with MAC Temperature Rising l/l and then dabbed Chanel Teheran RC on top.





I'm trying to ease into the swing of the FOTD's so hope you guys liked this simple look. I have some fall lipstick reviews coming up for next week :)

June 17, 2013

As promised in the last post, I'm doing another series of Lipstick Stash. If you wanted to check out the previous set of lipsticks, here they are:

MAC Pink Nouveau, MAC Pomposity + Magnetique,  Chanel Coromandel + Nars Babe, YSL Nude Beige RV,  MUFE #15 Rouge Artist + MAC Up the Amp, MAC Red Pepper, Nars Montego Bay, Chanel Teheran RC, MAC Exxxhibinionst klc,  MAC Saint Germaine + Chanel Blossoms glossimer, Nars Train Bleu mvp, Inglot #89 + MAC Going Casual c/g,  MAC Stange Hybrid + Chanel Aragonite glossimer, Chanel Precious RA, Chanel Imperiale RAL, MAC Cream Cup, MAC Show Orchid, MAC Please Me,  Marcelle Paris Rose,

I wear red lips all year long. I tend to gravitate towards deeper and matter lips when the temperature drops and shinier and pinker reds during the summer. I've been sporting this combo for the past few weeks on repetition:



I achieve this juicy pink toned red using two of my all time favourite products: Chanel Cambon Rouge Coco and Emoi Rouge Allure Extrait de Gloss.





Cambon is a creamy red with strong pink tones. I know I have raved about it before so no need to repeat myself. Emois is a raspberry gloss with a creamy and non-sticky texture. It really helps bring out the pink tones in Cambon even more:



Oh, my highlights are growing on me now. I actually like them better when my hair is au natural (as in air dried and wavy):



How do you wear red lips in the summer?

May 24, 2013

Hi guys! Based on the feedback I got here and on Instagram, I'm in the process of drafting a post on my weight loss/get fit post baby. That post should be up early next week. In the meanwhile, here's a look from last week I almost forgot to post.

I have this old Inglot shadow in the twist up pan that I haven't used in years!!! I think it's called double sparkle 428 and is a dark indigo with purple undertones. I decided to incorporate it into a smokey blue eyes and also add the gold side of my shattered Nars Star Sailor. I resisted the temptation to do nude peach lips and went for shiny coral lips.

Here's a pic:



And what I used:

For lips: I applied Chanel Teheran Rouge Coco and topped it with a bit of Chanel Venus Glossimer (I think this is DC).

Pic with the eyes closed:

Hope you all have a great weekend!

May 8, 2013

I really appreciate the Back2MAC program. Since I don't buy as much makeup these days, I actually finish some products and get to pick up a few items at my local MAC store. None of the two items I opted for are new, but they've both been on my wishlist for quite sometimes:

Patina Eyeshadow (frost)

Boy, this one is a difficult colour for me to describe! It's a neutral light brown but has some gold cast to it. It works great as part of a neutral everyday look but can also be mixed with brights. I find the texture to be a bit stiff (it's a frost finish after all) but it is workable.





I don't seem to have a dupe for it either:


Left to right: UD Smog, MAC Tan Pigment, MAC Patina

The swatch looks weak on my arm but it's actually much better on the eye. I tried it over gold (MAC Cashflow paint pot) and silver/taupe (MUFE #2 aqua cream pot) bases. I'm loving the dimensions the taupe base adds to Patina:



Pro's:
- goes with everything
- multi dimensional base
- I don't have a dupe for it

Cons:
- texture is a bit stiff


Pink Plaid Lipstick (matte)

I've been on a quest to add to my neutral lipstick collection and Pink Plaid seems to fit the bill just right. I'm a fan of my lips but better shades with pink undertones (over peachy ones) as my lips are quite pink naturally. Pink Plaid is opaque in one coat and can be a bit drying due to its matte texture. It's not as bad as some of MAC's worst offenders.



It reminds me much of my other two beloved neutral lipsticks, Nars Sex Machine and Catfight. But it's not a full on dupe.



Here are the comparison swatches. I don't know why I added MUFE #29, that one is certainly too brown:


Left to right: MUFE #29, Nars Catfight, Nars Sex Machine, MAC Pink Plaid

Pro's:
- great my lips but better shade
- pigmented
- I always love MAC's vanilla scent

Cons:
- slightly dry

Overall, I'm pretty happy with both my picks. I incorporated them into a look yesterday. I added Nars Cordura duo to the mix for the eyes and layered Pink Plaid with Chanel Argonite glossimer to give it some shine. I'm also wearing MAC Ladyblush cremeblend blush to warm up the cheeks but continue on the minimalistic face:

Hope you found this post helpful. Do you own any of these two products? What are some of your favourite neutral eye/lip products?

April 28, 2013

Happy Sunday guys! It's rare for hubby and I to have a date night now as munchkin is asleep by 7 pm. So my of dates are daytime activities. Last week we had my sister babysit though and we went out for dinner, just the two of us.

I took the opportunity to glam it up of course. This look was created on the fly though. At first I wanted to do a brown smokey eyes hence the brown base. Then I decided to do some teal to go with my nails, Chanel Azure (see post here). Finally I settled on a lined cat eyes with teal as the main colour. I quite liked how it turned out :)



Here's what I used:

For lips: I lined and blended my lips with MUFE 2C Aqua Lip Liner (nude rose), applied MAC Honeylove lipstick on top and finished with a bit of Nars Stolen Kisses lip gloss.

I did a sock bun to go with the glam look. I usually wear my hair down or half up when it's still chilly out so this was new for me. I also wore my beloved leather top dress by DKNY. I adore this dress as it fits like a glove and it's so comfortable. It's so me, fitted, black and curve hugging:

Hope you guys enjoyed this look. 

April 26, 2013

Blogging is going great this week; 4th post in a row :D This look is from last weekend though. I had just got my hair dyed a lighter shade of warm brown and have also cut it to shoulder length. If you've followed me for a while you probably noticed that my hair is usually dyed a dark shade of brown or mahogany. I'm much more comfortable with darker hair but I was also bored so I welcomed this change. How do you guys like the new hair?

I did a super colourful 'POW' in your face look to go with my new hair. Nowadays my makeup is usually quite simple but I like to switch it off once a week or so. I wanted to wear MAC Ablaze lipstick which for some reason looks more coraly pink on me than true coral, damn it! All corals do this to me!!!






Here's what I used:

For lips: I lined and blended my lips with MAC Temperature Rising lipliner (LE- coral) and then applied MAC Ablaze lipstick (LE- coral) to the lips.

And here's some pictures with flash.

Hope you enjoyed this bright look. How bright would you go with your makeup?

April 22, 2013

Hi guys! This is a long overdue look using my latest obsession, Sephora Blueberry Muffin eyeshadow. I'm quite impressed with the pigmentation of this matte darkened plum shade. It's ideal for a smokey purple look which is my favourite kind of smokey eye. I think I will get my paws on more of the new Sephora eyeshadows. I'm specially on the hunt for more matte and dark shades like this one.

Here's the look:



And what I used:

For lips: I applied YSL No.1 (Nude Beige) to my lips straight from the tube.

And a picture with eyes closed:

Do you guys own any of the new Sephora eyeshadows? Which shades would you recommend to me?

April 15, 2013

Hi guys! As a mom to a 7 months old, my makeup routine has become very simplified. I still have some makeup on most of the time but rarely ever do I get to spend the time and blend colourful shades on my eyes.

On this welcome occasion, Sofia took her nap at the perfect time for me to do my makeup :D So I took the opportunity to create a happy and colouful look. I forgot to take product pictures but here's the rundown:

For lips: I applied MAC Silly lipstick (LE - cool medium pink) straight from the tube. I find this shade a tad dry but still love it!

And some photos in natural light:

A few with flash:

Hope you all have a great Monday!

April 5, 2013

hey guys! Sorry blogging has been so infrequent. Just when I think I've adjusted to life with baby there's another curveball :D

It may be spring or even summer when all you live, but here in Ottawa we still have snow on the ground and temperatures hovering around 0Deg C.  Since it's still cold, I went for a soft smokey look with bold lips featuring one of my fave dark lipsticks of all time, MAC Love Peck kissable lip colour (LE). If you missed on this one, MUFE #48 Rouge Artist Intense is very similar. They both have that blood red tint that I enjoy so much going on.

Here's a swatch of Love Peck on my currently pale arm:





And a picture of the look:



Here's what I used:

For lips: I lined and blended my lips withMUFE #12 Aqua Liner and then applied MAC Love Peck Kissable lip colour to the lips.

One more pic:

Hope you guys have a great weekend. Is it still cold where you live too?

March 24, 2013

Happy Sunday guys! Spring is already here but there are piles of snow outside so I'm not ready to bust out my spring wardrobe (and makeup) yet. It just doesn't make sense in our current weather condition.

At "in between" times like this, I always go back to tried and true makeup items. Nars makes awesome eyeshadow duos and I would like to own them all one day. For now, I've been going back to my Dogon duo. Dogon includes a dark navy side and a duochrome gray/silver/green side. The duochrome side is what sold me. It's like MAC Club but much softer and I'd say more sophisticated.



I also used Nars Never Say Never matte velvet pencil in this look. I sing praise of these pencils all the time so I won't repeat myself. Never Say Never is a beautiful pinky purple that brings a little bit of spring into any makeup look and is universally flattering.


Swatches on my bare NW20 arm

I used these two items for the first day of spring visit to my parents. Another way to wear Dogon is the smokey version with dark shade on the lid blended up and duochrome shade in the crease. I just thought this version was more daytime appropriate:





Hope you guys enjoyed this post. What are some makeup items you have on rotation right now?

March 17, 2013

Hi guys! My parents throw a huge Persian New Year party each year around this time and as it is always with Persians, more is more. There were about 70 people at their house enjoying good music, awesome food and great conversation. We ended up leaving earlier than everyone else because of the bebe (who wanted nothing but sleep, lol) but we still had a great time.

Here's a picture of my little family from earlier that night:



As you all know my glam go-to look is red lips. I decided to use my beloved Chanel Coromandel Rouge Allure Laque (sadly DC'd) for this look and pair it with soft eyes. I have many red lipsticks but seem to always go back to either this one or Dragon RAL. Here's a list of what I used:

What are some of your most glamorous lipsticks?

March 13, 2013

Hi ladies and gents! You may recall I made an excited post about Sephora's Princess Series - Jasmine a few weeks ago. Well, the Storybook Palette was released online while we were on vacation in the Caribbean and I just ordered it online then. I received it last week and only now got a few moments to blog about it...sigh, life with an active baby :D

Here's a super simple look I did with the palette:

Have you guys purchased this palette? What are some of your favourite makeup palettes?