How To Do Your Makeup When You're Half Asleep!

Recently I got a job that requires me to wake up at 6AM. By the time I get completely ready, there's usually not more than 5 minutes left for makeup. This might be enough for some people, but I am so slow in the morning that it can take me about twice the time to do something! Here, I have pretty much everything I've been doing to make myself look like I actually had a good night sleep.



EYES: 
I have really veiny, reddish eyelids, so I use a bit of  MAC's Painterly Paint Pot to cover that up. I'm a contact wearer, so if I didn't get enough sleep, my contacts can sting pretty badly. I usually wait till I'm about to leave to put them on, but in the meantime, I like to apply some lubricant eye drops to prevent the stinging. I really don't have time to actually apply eyeshadow, so I just add some liner to my inner rims and some mascara, and I try to curl my lashes when I can.  I always, always, always apply a little bit of clear mascara to my brows, and that instantly makes me look put together.


FACE:
Where I live, it can get pretty cold in the morning, causing my skin to get red and sometimes dry. I like to use a sunscreen because it's more emollient than my normal Clinique Dramatically Different Gel. I usually apply a quick layer of liquid foundation, and skip powder. Then, I apply a generous amount of my choice of blush, which for this winter has been either Nars Sin or Inglot #55. I never skip blush, because I think it takes me from ghost to normal. :)


LIPS:
For lips, I'm usually the type to only wear lip balm, but recently I've been keeping one of the new Revlon Lip Butters (shade Berry Smoothie) in my coat pocket. I usually smack this on once I'm already out the door.


Thanks for reading!

Tag: If I Had To Start Over

So there is this tag that has been going around YouTube that asks you to name the ten items you would purchase first if all of your makeup disappeared. I don't make YouTube videos, but I thought it would be fun to share this anyway.

The first item on my list is a cheap clear mascara. I use a clear mascara every single day to keep my crazy eyebrows in place, and I think it makes all the difference in the world. I don't bother buying expensive tubes of "brow gels" because a $2 clear mascara from a drugstore works just fine!

The second item is actually a dark grey eyeshadow, which I use sometimes to fill in the gaps of my brows. My hair and eyebrows are black, and I find that dark grey looks more natural than a brown shadow. I apply it using an angled eyeliner brush for a natural finish. The one I currently have is Kiko Eye Shadow in 175, but when I run out I'll have to get something different unless I go to Italy to get it :)

My next item is the Milani Liquif'eye Eyeliner Pencil in Black, and so far this has been the darkest, creamiest liner I've found that doesn't move around in my inner rims/lower lash line.

I would have to buy a mascara, and although I don't use one every day, I like to have one for when I'm doing night looks or if I feel like wearing one. I've tried many before, but so far I really love the Clinique High Impact, L'Oreal Voluminous, and Rimmel The Max Volume Flash mascaras.

Rimmel The Max Volume Flash Mascara

For foundation, I'd like something that I could use as a powder and that's portable. Right now I'm using the Mark. Powder Buff Foundation in Buff, and I really like it. I haven't found my holy grail foundation yet, but I'm working on it!

I think my favorite makeup item is blush, so I actually picked two from my current collection. If my makeup actually did disappear, I'm not 100% sure if I would repurchase these specific ones, simply because I love blush and I want to try every single one out there, but for now MAC's Dame and Benefit's Dallas would definitely have me covered. 

Benefit Dallas & MAC blush in Dame

For eyeshadow I had to pick a palette, and of course I went with my new boo, the Urban Decay Naked2 Palette. This palette is amazing, and I can create so many different looks! If you want to know more, you can read my review here. 

I have oily skin, and thus I have oily eyelids. Without primer, my eyeshadow would crease badly, and then just disappear somewhere, and that's not a very good look. I haven't tried many primers, because the one that I tried first was amazing, and that was the Urban Decay Primer Potion. I currently have the original, but I'm really interested in trying the Eden one. 

Lastly, I had to pick a lip product, so I decided to go with Clinique's Superbalm Lip Treatment in Currant. This is a balm/lip gloss that leaves some color and is super moisturizing, and I've actually repurchased it twice. Most of the time I wear lip balm, but this one can act as a lip gloss as well.

That was all, thank you for reading!

Benefit Dallas: Review & Photos

I love pink blush, the lighter the better. I love how it gives me a flush of color that looks extremely natural on my light skin. However, if I had to pick one blush to use for the rest of my life, it would probably be Benefit Dallas.

Benefit Dallas

Dallas is one of Benefit's boxed powders, and my favorite one. When you look at this blush in person, I'll admit it looks pretty scary on the box. The shade is like a combination of brown and pink, and it gives the most beautiful color on the cheeks. It makes you look like you just came from a day in the sun - tanned, but with a hint of red to mimic the skin's actual color. It is extremely realistic, and it makes my skin glow like I just came from the islands, even though I haven't seen the sun in ages :(. You can dust this very lightly all over your face, then add a bit more on the apples of your cheeks for an extra glow. 

This product retails for $28, but the amount you get in the box is about 4x the amount of a standard blush, so it works out to be very affordable. Next time you pass by a Benefit counter or a Sephora, don't forget to swatch this!

Quick Tip: Cleaning Makeup Brushes

Whether you only own one eyeshadow brush, or you're creating a look that involves multiple shades, it is a good idea to clean your brushes between colors. This allows for the colors to show up true to their shade instead of blending with what was already on the brush. Take a folded paper towel and a spray bottle with the highest concentration of alcohol you can find (i.e. 99%, the higher the concentration, the faster it dries). Then spray the bristles of your brush a few times and sweep them back and forth on your paper towel to remove all the excess pigments. Your brushes should be dry and ready for use in about two minutes.