First Impression / Review Nyx HD Concealer/ Nyx #NoFilter Baked Finishing Powder

Hey Cupcakes!

Sorry for my Hiatus over the Holidays but things got a little Hectic and time slipping away from me. I do hope you will forgive me. Here we are at the start of 2018 and I have been using some of my new products for nearly a month now and feel like I can do some factual first impressions and reviews of said products!

Today I will be giving you my honest opinion on a few products from Nyx. Nyx is a fabulous affordable makeup brand that offers literally anything you would be looking for at super great prices. I'm a huge fan already. While my first order from Nyx consisted of more than two items, in this post I will just be reviewing the Nyx HD Concealer, and the Nyx #Nofilter Finishing Powder.

 So I was running out of my regular Drugstore Concealer, and Finishing Powder and wanted to try something new. There were a few other items that I had been wanting to test out from Nyx so I figured I would also try out a Concealer and Finishing Powder from them while I was at it. While the Nyx website offered many options in both the concealer and finishing powder categories I went with the best reviewed products which were the Nyx HD Liquid Concealer (I purchased shade Fair for highlighting) and the Nyx #NoFilter Finishing Powder (I purchased shade Alabaster). I normally use a cream concealer but have been wanting to try a liquid concealer and at Nyx prices the timing seemed perfect.

Alright let's get into the Concealer first. I love this product. I have officially finished my first tube. While yes it did go quickly as the tube isn't exactly large at 3g but at a price of $8.00 CAD you can't really go wrong. This product made me really regretful that it has taken me this long to try liquid concealers. I used the HD Concealer for highlighting under my eyes, my forehead, chin, and to help conceal any redness and I have zero negative words for this product. It didn't dry down too fast, it blended out effortlessly (even when I just concealed my under eyes with no foundation for a quick trip to town) It blends so naturally into your skin and doesn't settle into your lines or smudge around your face- I just can't say enough good things about it especially at it's price point. As I said I chose shade fair as I wanted to use it for a Highlighting shade but there are 23 shades to choose from and while that range definitely could be flushed out more for ladies with different tones there is quite a good range already including some color correcting shades (green, purple, yellow). If you are looking for a concealer I high recommend you give this little guy a try.

On to the #NoFilter Finishing Powder. This is a pretty generous product weighing in at 9 grams for $13.00 CAD. I have been using this product for almost a month and it barely looks like I've used it so I think it will go a long way. This is a very economical product and I love how it helps take away any shine when you know you are going to be in photos. I was satisfied with this finishing powder but not wowed. I prefer to use it when I am also going to be using a setting spray to help everything sink in smoothly as when you use it on it's own sometimes it can be a bit drying. All in all for it's price I'm not complaining it does it's job and looks great on film but in real life if you are having a dry skin day you might want to go sparingly with this powder. I purchased shade alabaster and it was a good match for my skin. If you have more oily skin this would probably be better for you and would not seem drying at all. I would recommend this also for the summer time when things are a little warmer and more dewy.

Well there you have it guys I hope you enjoyed this review and that it is helpful to you if you are in the market for a new Concealer or Finishing Powder. Thanks for joining me again today Cupcakes and I can't wait to get back on track after the Holidays. 2018 here we come! See you next time Cupcakes!!

Xx Jenn

First Impression / Review L'oreal Paris Voluminous Lash Paradise Mascara ( Better than Sex Dupe?!?)

Hey Cupcakes!

Back at you with another first impression / review for you lovely Cupcakes!

So you might not know me like this yet, but I'm a sucker for a good Mascara. I love to try new Mascaras, sometimes this leads to new favorites and sometimes this leads to discovering complete Mascara duds, but alas today we are here to talk about the New Voluminous Lash Paradise Mascara from L'oreal. This Mascara is widely known on the internet as the dupe for, and in the opinion of some the improved version of Toofaced Cosmetics Better Than Sex Mascara. I am a LONG time fan of the Better Than Sex Mascara so when I heard that this was supposed to be a dupe or better at half the price, I made it my business to give it a go as soon as possible.

I purchased this little beauty for $13.99 CAD at the Walmart in the next town since my small Ass town didn't have it stocked in the Grocery stores Cosmetics department and I could not be bothered to wait to receive it through the mail so to Walmart I went. The mascara that this is supposed to be a dupe of retails for $30.00 CAD at Sephora for price differential reference.

I have been using this mascara since a few weeks before Christmas now and I think that I have been using it on the daily long enough to officially say that I also believe it to be a dupe or even a better than version of the Toofaced Better than Sex Mascara. The thing that makes this mascara so awesome is the shape of it's brush. The brush is in a subtle hourglass shape tapering in at the middle and out on both ends. This brush shape grabs your lashes as they are naturally shaped and fans them out as you move down the lash. At first when I took the wand out of the mascara  there was a bit much product on the applicator but a few quick swipes against the tube head (which is perfectly ok Wayne Goss even says so) fixed that problem. You want to clear off that extra product so that your eyelashes get coated with product but not soaked in product. If there is too much on the wand your lashes will clump all up and not be nice and fanned out. No body wants spider lashes, not even Witches. Once the Mascara wasn't brand new anymore and there was a little more room in the tube this extra product problem wasn't really a problem anymore.

I just love how long, beautiful, and fanned out my lashes look when I use this Mascara. I even caught my mom staring at me and when I asked her what she was like...are those fake lashes? They were not haha it was just 2 coats of this Mascara! I also didn't experience any flaking onto my under eye throughout the day which is a definite plus because who wants little black makeup dots on their face? No one that's who. This mascara is also formulated to be Waterproof so hey that's perfect for the Canadian Winter! It's not a pain in the ass to get off though. I remove it with Vaselline or another oil cleanser relatively easily each night with relative ease.

What can I say you guys I think this ones a definite winner. I suggest the next time you pick up a Mascara at the drug store you give this baby a go I definitely think it's worth it and is super budget friendly with a gorgeous result. I might add that 2 separate people asked if my lashes were real or fake while wearing this Mascara on my natural lashes.

Thanks for stopping by again today Cupcakes! I hope you enjoyed this review and that it helps you when purchasing your next Mascara! If you like what I do please don't forget to like and share. Comment and let me know your favorite mascara or what you think of this mascara if you have tried it! Don't forget to check out my Facebook page and follow me there to :) I'll catch you next time Cupcakes!

Xx Jenn

Simple One Palette Navy and Gold Holiday Look

Good Morning Cupcakes!! Hope you've all been well. I'm bringing you another Holiday Look today, but unlike the others where I just flew by the seat of my pants creating whatever I thought was fun, I decided that I wanted to challenge myself to create a glam Holiday look using only one Eye Shadow Palette. It's really not that hard for most people, but when you have as many Eye Shadow Palettes as me sometimes you can be spoiled for choice so I decided I would challenge myself to pick one and stick with it for this look. Well Let's get into it :)

Face : I first primed my face with Maybelline Baby Skin Instant Pore Eraser. I then used a damp Beauty Blender to apply Maybelline FIT me! Matte and Poreless Foundation in Ivory. I used Nyx HD concealer and a damp beauty blender to highlight and conceal any imperfections or redness. Finally I set my face with Nyx #Nofilter Finishing Powder in Alabaster, and L'oreal Infallible Makeup Extending Setting Spray.

Cheeks: For my cheeks I used the shade paaarty from Tarte. This blush was part of a lippie / blush duo that VIB Rouge members with a December Birthday received this year. This shade is exclusive to the Rouge Birthday program so if you have Rouge to and a December Birthday I highly recommend you pick up this gift. I've been loving it.

Highlight: I did some base highlighting with the Nyx HD Concealer in Fair but I also added just a bit of my Kylie Cosmetics Kylighter in Cotton Candy Cream to my cheekbones and temples and blended it out so it didnt' leave a harsh highlight line.

Brows: For my brows I used an angled brow brush and the Nyx Tame and Frame Brow Pomade in Espresso. I just used the product with a light hand to fill in any sparse patches in the brow, working through with the angled brush. I did use a spoolie when I was finished just to run through them one final time and make them look as natural as possible and help tamp down any hairs that want to have their own eye brow party.

Eyes: After priming with Urban Decays Eye Primer Potion in Sin I wanted to use one palette only with this look so I gravitated instantly toward the Urban Decay Cosmetics Jean Michel Basquiat Gold Griot Palette. This palette has a good range of shades that I knew I could create a total look with no problem. I first ran Enigma all over the lid and brow bone area. I then blended Levitation and Not For Sale into the crease and alone the lower lash line. I then applied Pseudonym to my outer v and inner corner blending them into the crease but making sure they stay pigmented and dark on the outer v and inner corner. i also smudged this color along the lower lash line for a nice navy smoky look. I then dipped into the lighter shimmery brown shade Influence and applied this to my lid blending into Pseudonym slightly to marry them together nicely.

Eye Liner: For my standard black wing I used my tried and true Kat Von D Tattoo Liner in Trooper. I never deviate from this product. I have tried MANY an eye liner and nothing I've tried beats this baby in my price bracket ($25 and under yes don't shame me I will spend that much on an eyeliner if it's going to do what I want it to) I then used Urban Decay Cosmetics Heavy Metal Glitter Liner in Midnight Cowboy to line the top of the black wing and add a little Festive pop! I know I do this step a lot in my looks but it's a really easy way for people of all makeup skill levels to add a little extra drama to any look.

Lips: Surprise Surprise I'm using a Jeffree Star Velour Liquid Lipstick. You may have noticed by now that he makes my favorite liquid lips seeing as I think I've used them in the majority of my looks :) This time I used one of my favorite shades Androgeny. I just love this color what do you guys think?

Well that's all for today Cupcakes! Super simple and easy for anyone to recreate! I hope you enjoyed this post and today's look and I hope you will join me for my next Holiday look on Sunday! I have so much fun creating these I hope you have just as much fun seeing them, and can take some inspiration from them! As always guys thanks for stopping by and I hope to see you again next time!! Don't forget to leave a comment and tell me what you think and follow me on social media. Have a great Weekend guys!

Xx Jenn

Subtle Green and Red Christmas Holiday Makeup Look with Neutral Lips

 Hey Cupcakes!! Good afternoon! This post is a little later in the day than normal going up but I hope you won't mind as I had some obligations this morning.

I have another Holiday look for you today guys! I wanted to do something that both used the traditional Holiday color palette (greens, reds, golds) but that was really wearable and flattering. Not to sound like an a**hole but I personally think I succeeded! I love this look and know I will be recreating it again in the future. Ah I just love it..so without further ado let's pop right into how I got this warm pretty Holiday look!

So like always pictured above are all the products I used to get the Holiday look you saw in the first picture of this post. As you can see it's not an over amount of products as this look is super simple to create you guys! I highly recommend that you try creating a look similar to this for a Holiday event of your own!

As we know the first step toward a great makeup application is???? That's right, making sure our skin is clean, exfoliated, and moisturized before we even think of applying makeup to it! If you guys are interested in the future I can go over my favorite Skincare products so you can get an idea of what key products might be good to have in your arsenal.

Next I primed with Maybelline Baby Skin Instant Pore Eraser, and with a damp beauty blender I applied Maybelline FIT me! Matte and Poreless Foundation in shade Ivory. Remember to take a few extra moments blending out your foundation to make sure it's nice and uniform and that it is blended well into your hair and neck lines so you don't get that foundation mask we all hate! I then used Nyx HD Concealer in Fair for my under eye, forehead and nose highlighting and anywhere that I have any redness or imperfections. Once applied I use the smaller end of my damp beauty blender to blend well into the foundation already on the skin. I then finished off the base face makeup with Nyx #Nofilter finishing power in Alabaster.
For my cheeks I used TooFaced Cosmetics 12 Hour Amazonian Clay Blush in Paaarty (part of my Sephora VIB Rouge Birthday Gift :) ) and for my Highlighter I used Kylie Cosmetics Kylighter in Cotton Candy Cream. Once I applied my blush and highlighter and blended well to diffuse into the skin I set with L'oreal Infallible Makeup Extending Setting Spray.

For my brows, I'm lucky to have been patient enough over the last year or two of growing them out that they no longer need to be filled very much. If you want to know anything about my eye brow journey let me know. I didn't do anything terribly different to grow them out but I do have a few simple tips I followed that you could try if your eye brows are a concern for you. For my brows in this look I took my Nyx Micro Brow Pencil in Brunette and lightly filled in some hair like strokes wherever I have sparse patches or gaps in the brow. Remember to also use the spoolie end of your brow pencil, no matter how light of strokes you've used it will always look more natural if you take a little time to spoolie the color through and feather it a bit.

After I primed my lids with the Urban Decay Eye Primer in Sin I began my eye look with The Kylie Cosmetics Burgundy Palette. I first took a fluffy blending brush and dipped into the lightest shade of the palette which is called Naked. I swept this color all in the crease and over my lid. This is a color very close to my own natural skin tone and will help with blending the rest of the look together and setting down a good base for the other colors. I then dipped into the red shade in the middle of the palette called Burgundy and blended it into my entire crease and into my outer V.

 After I blended this shade out nicely into Naked I switched gears to the Kat Von D Beauty Serpentina Palette for the shade Bloodmilk which is also a matte red but with a bit of a deeper tone than burgundy. I took a little bit of this shade and blended it into my outer crease marrying it into Burgundy to add a little more depth to the outer eye. Next in this palette I took a small smudger brush and picked up a little of the shade Scarab (emerald green) and ran it along the outer half of my lower lash line smoking it out a little as I went.
For my lids I used my favorite shade from this palette which is actually the loose pigment called Prophet. I just LOVE this color. It's an antique mustard toned gold it's just the most beautiful color I can't get enough of it. Anyway I patted this color over my lid with a flat packer brush and blended it nicely into the red shades in my crease.

Just one more step for the shadow guys. I wanted to add something vibrant to the lower lash line and I wanted it to be a green so my favorite bright green at the moment is Exu from the Urban Decay Cosmetics Jean Michel Basquiat Palette. I picked up some of this color on a small brush and ran it all the way across the lower lash line blending it with scarab which was already there. That shade finished the eye look in regards to shadow, now all we have to do is line!
For this look I used two different liners. Primarily I used Kat Von D Beauty Tattoo liner in Trooper to create the black wing. I then used Urban Decay Cosmetics Heavy Metal Glitter Liner in Midnight Cowboy to line the top of the black wing for a pop of Holiday Sparkle.

Lastly but definitely not least I applied Jeffree Star Velour Liquid Lipstick in shade Gemini to my lips. I don't care what anyone says, you can fight me if you want but I swear by Jeffree's liquid lips. I'm a snacky girl and they are the only ones that stay on through the course of the day. I love many brands of liquid lips but I always find myself reaching for his lippies over any other companies just because I know they are comfortable on the lips, and I know they are going to stay where I put them. I just thought the shade Gemini was the perfect accent to the eye look. What do you guys think? Do you like this look? Would you wear this look for the Holidays? I would love if you left me a comment and let me know what you think!

Well that's it for this look today guys! I hope you have been enjoying these Holiday looks as much as I have been enjoying creating them! I really hope that this blog gives you some inspiration and teaches you a few things that you might have been curious about. That's what this is all about! Sharing my love of makeup, and my skills with you and trying to inspire you and make you smile! I really appreciate all of you who check out these posts, it means the world to me truly you have no idea! Thanks for stopping in again today Cupcakes. I'll catch you next time and I hope your December is Super Sweet :) <3


Xx Jenn

Perfect Glittery Sugar Plum Fairy Inspried Holiday Makeup

Good Morning Cupcakes! I don't know what you woke up to today but I woke up to flurries and frost! Brrr!! It's ok though because it's beautiful outside so I'll let the coldness slide :P Anyway Today I have another fun Holiday look for you guys! This one comes out of the realm of traditional Holiday colors, but draws inspiration directly from one of the greatest Christmas Classics The Nutcracker! I love the Nutcracker, and as a child (haha who am I kidding even as an adult) I loved the ideal of all the pretty fairies in the Nutcracker Universe especially the Sugar Plum Fairy. This look is inspired by none other than the Sugar Plum Fairy herself! So keep reading and I'll go over how I created this non traditional, yet super fun and festive makeup!

Pictured above are all of the items used to create this look. Again I have used multiple Eye Shadow Palettes together to achieve this look but you could easily have just used the one Urban Spectrum Palette and get a super similar look. I just added some shades from the other palettes because I had them on hand and I wanted to add extra depth.

Like always I started by priming my clean, moisturized skin with Maybelline Baby Skin Instant Pore Eraser. Apply this or whatever primer you choose to use to any areas where you have pores or fine lines that you would like to smooth out a little before your foundation goes on.

Next I went in with my Maybelline FIT Me! Matte and Poreless Foundation in Ivory and a damp beauty blender, making sure to blend the foundation well around all of the fine areas of the face and into the hairline and down the neck to avoid any uneven spots and any visible demarcation. Next to cover any imperfections and do some mild highlighting in my under eye area I went in with my Nyx HD concealer in Fair and blended out with the small end of my damp beauty blender. I applied the concealer in triangles under my eyes, along the sides of my nose where I get redness and on any blemishes. Finally I finished the base face makeup by setting my concealed areas with the Nyx #Nofilter Finishing Powder in Alabaster and setting with the L'oreal Infallible Makeup Extending Setting Spray.

For my blush and Highlight I wanted to stay with the shimmery and pink vibe to match the rest of the Sugar Plum Fairy look, so I reached for my Kylie Cosmetics Kylighter in Cotton Candy Cream, and my Kylie Cosmetics Blush in Barely Legal.

having finished my base face I then moved into framing the eye by filling in my eyebrows lightly using the Nyx Micro Brow Pencil in Brunette. Since this is a nice, light, glimmery look I wanted to avoid my brows being too strong and pulling the look from coming off too harsh in any one area. Now we can move on to the colorful parts!

The first Palette I began with after priming my lids with Urban Decay Cosmetics Eye Primer Potion in Eden is the Urban Decay Cosmetics Jean-Michel Basquiat Tenant Palette. I used the shades Studio and 1960 respectively in my crease, outer v and smoked out into my lower lash line. This will serve as my base to keep blending other colors into for this look. These shades are nice and smooth and matte so the other shadows will blend nicely into them as we go. I used the mid sized fluffy blending brush that came with this palette to apply and blend out these shades.

Next I picked up the Kat Von D Beauty Pastel Goth Palette. I used another fluffy blending brush to blend a mixture of the shades Meow and Dope into the crease. I didn't run this under the lash line as I wanted to keep the lower lash line mostly pink and focus the majority of the purple color to the crease of the eye helping to create a deeper contour of the eye shape. Once these colors were blended in nicely I moved on to the Urban Decay Cosmetics Full Spectrum Palette.

The first shade I dipped into in this palette was a mixture of Sketch and Delirious. I dipped into each pan lightly a few times with the same brush mixing them together on the brush and blending at the same time into the crease and outer V. These shades worked with the purple shade from the Kat Von D Pastel Goth Palette to give some nice depth and dimension to the eye shape while not coming off too dark for the rest of the eye look. I then took a clean fluffy blending brush and dipped lightly into the deepest pink shade Alchemy and ran this color along my entire lower lash line. I also applied this shade to the outer most portion of my eye lid and blended it into the darker purples in my outer V.

Since I wanted the inner half of the Eye Lid to be a shimmery pastel pink I first laid just a dot of concealer on the eyelid and blended out with my finger. Just making a nice light base on the inner half of the eyelid for that pastel pink glitter to show up well on. Once the concealer had completely dried down I picked up a flat shadow brush and dipped into the lightest pink shade in the Urban Decay Cosmetics Full Spectrum Palette which is called Paranoia. I patted this color all over the inner half of the lid and blended up into the crease lightly to avoid any harsh lines.

The final Eye Palette that I used was the Kat Von D Beauty Alchemist Holographic Palette. I used the shade Pink Opal in this palette as my inner corner highlight and I also applied a little of this shade over where I had placed the shade Paranoia just a moment ago to add a little extra lightness and brightness to the lid.

For Eyeliner I used one of the Nyx Vivid Brights liquid liners in a pink shade called Vivid Fire. I ran this all along the upper lash line and into a mid sized wing. I then used the Urban Decay Cosmetics Heavy Metal Glitter Liner in shade Distorition along the entirety of the top of the wing I just created with the Pink Nyx liner. I then just had to finish off my eyes by applying 2 coats of L'oreal Parish Lash Paradise Mascara in Blackest Black.

The last step that I did was to apply my Lipstick. For this look I wanted to keep it in the Pink tone family so I reached for A Kat Von D Beauty Everlasting Liquid Lipstick in the shade Lovecraft. I had applied TooFaced Cosmetics Lip Injection Extreme Gloss to my lips before I began my makeup so that my lips were nice and conditioned, and also slightly pumped for when I applied my lip color.

Well that's all Cupcakes! Every step that I underwent to create this look has been laid out for you. I hope that it inspires you to create a pretty sugary Holiday look of your own! I would love it if you would share your looks with me if you re create this look yourself! I hope you have enjoyed this post, and liked this Fun yet Non Traditional Holiday look. I am absolutely in love with it and I can tell right now I won't want to take this off at the end of the day!

I hope you all enjoyed this post and thank you very much for joining me again today for another Holiday look! I love having creating and sharing these looks with you! Don't forget to like, share, and comment if you enjoy what I do and Follow me on social media to stay in the loop! Links to my Social Media are in the side bar if you should want to follow me.
I hope you all have a wonderful day, and I hope that your Decembers are all going fantastically! I'll see you again in my next post with another banging Holiday look! Thanks again for reading Cupcakes!

Xx Jenn

Vibrant Blue Eyes & Nude Lips. Perfect for the Holidays!!

Good Morning Cupcakes! Thanks for joining me again for another Holiday Look. This is the fourth look that I have done so far in my Holiday Extravaganza series. Like with some of the other colors I have been experimenting with throughout the creation of these Holiday looks, blue is not a color I use very often for Eye Shadow. My eyes shift between blue and green and therefore don't pop as much with blue tones but I was surprised how well this came out. I'll discuss how I warmed it up a little and made it work for my skin tone below! So without further ado Cupcakes, let's get creating. Keep reading for how to re create this blue Holiday look! <3

 As I normally do, I have pictured above all of the products used for this look. Yes I did use four Eyeshadow palettes, but only because I don't own a palette that caters to mostly blue and cool tones so I had to cherry pick the ones I did have out of several other palettes I do own. I also threw in a few warm neutrals from the Urban Decay Cosmetics Naked Heat Palette to add a little warmth before I put down all that blue, we'll discuss that later no worries.

Of course for my face products I used the same products I have been using as I am doing first impressions on them and will post about those impressions when the bottles become empties. The products I used are Maybelline Baby Skin Instant Pore Filler (wherever on my face has pores or texture) , Maybelline FIT Me Matte and Poreless Foundation in Ivory, Nyx HD Concealer in Fair (Under eyes, anywhere with redness or imperfections), and Nyx #Nofilter Finishing Powder (to set everywhere I applied concealer). I then used L'oreal makeup Extending spray (setting spray) to set my base face makeup.

Since I knew the Eyes were going to be the main pop and focus of this look I wanted to keep the Brows / cheek color / highlight more in the realm of natural rather than a heavy makeup look as I just don't personally like so much going on at once (bold brows, bold highlight, bold eye) It's for some people, just not for me. For my blush this time I reached for a super pale pink flush of color in the form of my Arbonne Ballet blush. This blush if very buildable and perfect for pale skin tones to add a nice natural rosey hue to the cheeks without looking too made up on us ghostly white chicks. I then used my Kylie Cosmetics Kylighter in Cotton Candy Cream. While this highlighter is rather pigmented, the formula is very fine, with no glitter chunks and blends into the skin in a very natural glowing way.

For Brows I used the Nyx Tame & Frame Brow Pomade in Espresso, again since I wanted this to fall into the not over done category while still being very colorful I chose not to first outline with pencil and then fill, but just to feather and set with a little pomade and a small flat angled brush.

Now Cupcakes for the main event, how did I create that eye look. Let's find out! :)

Firstly (after priming with the TooFaced Cosmetics Shadow Insurance Eye Primer) I was concerned about the blues being entirely too cool toned all by themselves to look right on me because of my eye color (matches doesn't clash to make them stand out) so I had a little idea to help with that. I started with a blending base, transition shade, and a shade run under my eyes from the super warm Urban Decay Cosmetics Naked Heat Palette. First I ran the shade Ounce over my whole eye lid and brow bone, and then swept some of both chaser, and he devil into my crease and under eye. Now yes most of these colors will be getting covered and used to blend but just having that little bit of warmth there to blend out into really improved the tone of things against my eyes and skin tone.

Next I went in with the Urban Decay Cosmetics John Michael Basquiat Tenant Palette. The first shade I went for in this palette is that Deep Royal Blue shade Untitled. I ran this color through the crease and outer V, blending up into those warm shades in the crease and brow bone ever so slightly. You don't want dark blue all the way up to the Brow Bone, but you do want some depth and contour to that area so blend well but with a small brush to avoid too much push around and unintentionally creating a smokier Eye than you wanted happening. I also ran a little bit of this shade on a small blender or smudger brush on the outer half of the lower lash line and smoked it out nicely. Next I dipped into the vibrant Turquoise / Teal shade called Boom and patted this all over the inner and middle portions of the lid and blended the shade Untitled into this color to marry them together nicely with no harsh lines.

I then decided I wanted to add a little glimmer to the the Turquoise color Boom. I then went into the Urban Decay Cosmetics Afterdark palette for the equally vibrant, but incredibly shimmery shade Fringe. I used my finger (you can also use a small flat brush but your finger works to pack on the shimmer quickly where you really want it. I popped this shade all over where I have placed Boom on the lid. This added a little pop of shine but I wasn't done there.

I also added a bit of Blue Sapphire from the Kat Von D Beauty Alchemist Holographic Palette to my inner corners and blending up into the other light blue colors on the lid and blending into the inner lower lash line ever so slightly. I then topped the whole shadow look with a light dusting of EM Beauty by Michelle Phan Holo Glitter Eye Topper in shade Fairy Glimmer. I then finished the whole Eye look off with a small controlled wing created with Kat Von D beauty Tattoo Liner in Trooper (black) and L'oreal Lash Paradise Mascara (2 coats).

For my lips I had been prepping them while doing the rest of the look with TooFaced Cosmetics Lip Injection Extreme Gloss. After I was done with the rest of my look i applied my favorite nude Lip Color in the form of Jeffree Stars Celebrity Skin to pull everything together. Again since I created such a bold eye look, I wanted that to be the main focal point so I figured a nice neutral lipstick would be best to achieve that look and I love it!!

Well there you have it Cupcakes!! Another super festive, perfect for the Holidays look! What do you guys think? Do you love or hate this one? Let me know below in the comments! Thanks for coming and checking out another look Cupcakes! I really appreciate your taking the time to hang out with me for a while and learn about these looks! I hope you all enjoyed this tutorial and keep coming back to check in on the rest of the Holiday Extravaganza looks I will be creating right up until New Years Eve! If there are any looks you would love to see created let me know in the comments and don't forget to like share and follow me to stay in the loop! Thanks for stopping by again Cupcakes. Much love and I'll catch you in the next post!

XxJenn

Glittery AF Perfect Holiday Silver Smoky Eye & Deep Plum Lips

Morning Cupcakes!! Hope you are all wonderful today! So Here I am again as promised with another Holiday look for all of your Christmas/ Holiday party / goings on needs. Like with the Green Look of the other day this one took me out of my comfort zone a little to, but in the end I'm super glad it did! I don't usually wear darker purple toned lippies but this whole look was based around this Lip Color (I really wanted to push myself since I rarely use this tone of Lip Stick). Ok Cupcakes, without further ado let's jump right into talking about this look a brief over view of how this look was achieved.

As per the norm above is a photo of off the products used to create this Glittery Smoky Holiday Look (except the Maybelline Baby Skin Instant Pore Filler as I honestly forgot to grab it for the photo..).

Firstly I began by cleansing, exfoliating, and moisturizing my skin. A good canvas and makeup application begins with Skincare and making sure your skin is healthy and hydrated and free of dead skin cell build up. Once that is out of the way of course we begin with priming! For me I use what I have on hand at the moment which is the Maybelline Baby Skin Instant Pore Eraser on any areas where I have texture (under eye, nose, sometimes forehead areas for me personally).

For Foundation Today I'm trying something new. I recently picked up a new Foundation in the Form of Maybelline FIT me! Matte and Poreless Foundation in shade Ivory. I will be doing a brief first impressions article on both this Foundation, as well as the New Nyx Cosmetics products I have been using for a few weeks soon so you know if maybe you would like it or not. I personally really enjoy this foundation myself and I will soon let you know exactly why :) I applied the Foundation all over the face, blending into the neck and hairline with a damp Beauty Blender. Even though this was a pretty good shade match for no testers in the store, and it being my first time using this Foundation you still need to focus on blending your Foundation out well. Creating a nice perfected skin base is one of the most important steps for everything else falling into place, so don't be afraid to spend a few extra seconds blending.

For Concealer and Finishing Powder I of course went with two other products I am testing out as first impressions - Nyx Hd Concealer in Fair (Under eyes, covering any redness or imperfections and blending out with the small side of your Beauty Blender. Make sure your edges are blended well!. I then used a large dense fluffy Makeup brush to tamp the Nyx #Nofilter Finishing Powder into any concealed areas, or areas that get oily looking over the course of the day (for me sides of the nose, under eyes, forehead, nose bridge), don't go too ham with the powder as you just want to set the liquid makeup and not make things look caked up.
Since I knew my Eye, and Lip looks were going to be the main bold focal point of this look I went very light on the Blush/ Contour/ Highlight. While there are no rules to Makeup, and you should do what makes you feel fierce, you should also work on developing an eye for balancing the soft and the bold in your looks for an optimal beauty look. I lightly went in with TooFaced Cosmetics Bronzer in Gingerbread, Kylie Cosmetics Blush in Barely Legal, and a Kylie Cosmetics Kylighter in Cotton Candy Cream.

Again since I wanted the boldness and the focal point to be the Eyes and Lips I didn't want to create too drastic of a brow. I wanted a nice feathered frame for the eyes without going full Instagram brows as that would have made the look unbalanced in my opinion so I just went in with the Nyx Micro Brow Pencil in Brunette to outline and fill in any sparse spaces in the brows. I used the spoolie brush generously to create the most natural filled brow that I could.

Moving into the Eye Look, I bet you Cupcakes know the first step by now right? That's right I picked up my Urban Decay Cosmetics Eye Primer Potion in Eden to create a nice light, even, tacky base for our shadow look. I also add some TooFaced Lip Injection Extreme Gloss to my lips at this point so they prep and plump up a bit and are ready for a Lip Color.

I used a variety of shades from 2 palettes and three individual shadow/ shadow topper shades for this look. First off I swept Ounce from the Urban Decay Cosmetics Naked Heat Palette all over the lid and up toward the brow bone. This shade is super close to my skin tone and is acting as that all over shade that helps with your blending later. Next I went into the crease with Chaser from the same palette just to start creating that depth in the crease that we like. I then took a shimmery black shadow from MAC called Black Tied. I used a small smudger brush to smudge a small amount of this shade on the lower lash line (just a third of the way in toward the inner corner of the lower lash line) and alone the outer three quarters of the upper lash line winging out past the natural top lash line creating that feline eye look without winged liner. I myself use the tape trick for looks like this, which I can show you later if you aren't familiar with that technique! For this palette the last thing I did was to take a bit of the dark plumy toned shade Ashes and blended it into my outer V and crease just to add some of that plum tone that will be featured on the lips in the Eye look for more color cohesion. I also used a bit of this color to smoke out the outer half of the lower lash line.
Changing palettes, I then dipped into the Urban Decay Cosmetics Full Spectrum Palette. I used the shade Delirious (a mid toned matte purple in the plum range) to add a bit more depth and blend out the darker colors a bit in the crease and outer V. This added a little warmth to an otherwise cool toned look which is important for it to be wearable on me and anyone else with a warm skin tone.
Cutting a bit of my crease was necessary in this look to really get those Silver colors to pop so I went in with a micro eye brush and my Nyx HD concealer to cut the inner half of my crease. Once the concealer dried down I first went in to the shade Bump which is a pure matte white and patted this shade all over the area that we just concealed. I then layered the shade Iced on top for the first bit of glitter to the look. I then whipped out my Urban Decay Moondust shade in Cosmic and an EM (Michelle Phan) Beauty Holo Glitter Eye topper in Fairy Glitter. I finished off the Eye look with Urban Decay Heavy Metal Glitter Liner in Glam Rock as a glittery silver winged liner and went just over the top lash line with Kat Von D Beauty Tattoo Liner in Trooper. I also added a little of Urban Decays 24/7 Glide on Eye Pencil in Yeyo on my bottom water line to brighten and open up the Eye. I then applied 2 coats of L'oreal Lash Paradise Mascara (I will also be doing a first impressions on this product soon!).

Now my last step was my Lip Color and although I love the color, and tones of this Lip Stick I can not recommend the product. I didn't know if I would love this shade on me so this Lip Color is just a $5.00 product from Ardene which is actually rather patchy and hard to work with and does not dry down even after hours which for me is not ideal. I would suggest picking up a better quality Liquid Lip product in this shade for sure. My favorite brands for Lip Products are Jeffree Star Cosmetics, Kat Von D Beauty, Tarte Cosmetics, and Anastasia Beverly Hills. They all make quality, long lasting Lip Products and have very inclusive color ranges which definitely include shades similar to this cheaper one.

All in all guys even though it's out of my comfort zone again I love this look! It's glittery AF and sultry with some poppin Berry colored lips. I am so glad I tried this look, and a new color for my lips. What do you think Cupcakes? Do you like Lip Products in this shade? What do you think of the look? Don't forget to like and leave a comment if you enjoy this look, and always feel free to follow me on my Social Media pages! Thanks for dropping in Today Cupcakes I hope to see you again next time!! Happy Holidays!!

XxJenn