My Travel Makeup Case (Video)

I filmed a new YouTube video showing what I'm taking with me on my mini-vacation this weekend. I'm going to New York (Rome/Verona area) for the NLL All-Star Lacrosse game. I'm a huge fan of lacrosse for those of you who don't know! :) I will be out of town until Monday, so chances are that I will not update until Tuesday.

^You can click it to go to my channel to view it in a bigger format and in HD.

Products mentioned in video (not in the same order):
Cath Kidston makeup bag
brush roll - she also has a blog :)
CoverGirl Natureluxe foundation in Flax
Clinique Dramatically Different moisturizer
L'Oreal Studio Secrets Magic Perfecting Base
EcoTools travel kabuki brush
Smashbox Photo Finish Lid Primer
Make Up For Ever Full Cover concealer in 1
Model Mirror
MAC MSF Natural Light
NARS Orgasm/Laguna duo - Thanks again, Linh!
Clinique Airbrush Concealer
MAC quad with Brule, Soft Brown, Era, and Handwritten
Benefit High Beam
Smashbox Bionic mascara in Jet Black
Nivea lip balm
MAC Marquis D' lipstick
Barry M Glossy Tube in 4
Urban Decay 24/7 eyeliners in Binge, Rockstar, and Stash
Sephora by OPI nail polishes in Sue vs. Shue and Celibacy Club
Travalo perfume atomizer (review coming)

Brushes:
Sigma SS150
Sigma SS187
Sigma SS168
Sigma SS190
Sephora Professional Foundation
Quo definer shadow
Sigma SS266
MAC 217
MAC 224
Sigma SS224
MAC 219
Sigma SS194

And that's it! The Barry M and Cath Kidston bag will be featured again in a future post when I show my care package from my friend in London, so consider that a sneak peek! And a few of the other products will be reviewed in the future. Hope you all have a lovely weekend. :)

Chanel Chance Eau Tendre

I purchased this last weekend at The Bay. Being Chanel, I wasn't sure that I would be able to use a coupon towards it but I was able to! I used a gift certificate that I had and a coupon to save $10 that I found on this Canadian coupon blog. Justine tries her best to keep it updated, so check it out for some deals! :) I managed to get this perfume for $20 out of my own wallet. Not bad! And it is my first ever Chanel purchase!

You're going to notice a trend with the perfumes I choose. I tend to go for the fruity or floral smelling ones. I don't really gravitate towards warm scents. So if you like warmer scents or don't care for floral ones, this might not be the perfume for you. Chance Eau Tendre has notes of grapefruit, quince, jasmine, and white musk to name a few. The lasting power is fantastic- this stayed on my skin (and clothes!) all day.

^double Cs on the top


I never really cared for the other Chanel perfumes, but this one stands out as being different for me. It has a younger vibe and it is not overbearing in scent. I believe that if any perfume that I own is going to top Marc Jacob's Daisy as my favorite that it just might be this one. The bottle is classic, the scent is crisp, and lasting power is divine. Chanel Chance Eau Tendre gets two thumbs up!

MAC Viva Glam Gaga II and Kissable Lipcolours

I ordered the Viva Glam Gaga II lipstick and lipglass the night they went live online. I also decided to purchase two more Kissable Lipcolours, because they are fabulous. I can't think of a negative thing to say about them! So here are my swatches.



This shade is a lot lighter than it looked online. I'm very happy about that. I can see this suiting just about every skintone! It is a great nude, even for those who don't think they'd like a nude lip. It's worth a try!

The lipstick is an amplified finish. It is very opaque and goes on with full color in just one coat. No need to layer this on! The gloss makes a nice addition and does not change the color.

I grabbed Enchantee and Flaunting It. I already own Woo Me (which is swatched here).

So there you have it! I'm extremely pleased with these lip products. :)

American Eagle Haul

I got a text from AE yesterday on my cell phone (you can sign up for mobile updates on their website) giving me a code for 20% off and free shipping. I hopped at that chance, because I had two $25 gift certificates burning a hole in my pocket. With those and the discount, I spent a whole $1.88 of my own money. Not bad!

*two diamond empire tanks in blue hill and light neon pink on clearance (link)
*button-back tank in forest (link)

They have some pretty cute things on there right now. The 20% and free shipping lasts until Monday and the code is located on the front page of their website. Hope you have a great weekend!

Requests and Recommendations?

I'm not saying that I'm going to up and change everything, but I do listen to input and try to please others while still pleasing myself in the process... :)


Feel free to use this post to:
A) tell me something you'd like to see more of
B) tell me something you'd like to see less of
C) is the layout just right, confusing, too busy, etc.
D) requests
E) anything!

Love you all! ♥

Vera Wang Preppy Princess Perfume

I picked up Vera Wang's Preppy Princess last weekend. I don't consider myself to be an excellent reviewer of scents, but I'll certainly try to give my take on it.

I picked up the smallest bottle size, which is 1 oz. It is also offered in 1.7 oz. and 3.4 oz. Vera always seems to make adorable packaging and bottles and this is no exception. This is covered in a girly plaid print over a pink heart-shaped bottle.

The scent is warmer than the original Princess perfume. On me, it goes on more fruity but wears down to more of a woody smell. Sephora says the fragrance notes are: tangerine, red apple, crushed berries, honeysuckle, jasmine, sensual woods, and coconut water. I definitely smell the apple, berries, jasmine, and woods. Lasting power is okay, but not great.

I'd say this is a nice perfume to wear during the day, but probably not a must-have unless you like to collect the Princess bottles.

On a personal note, I'm not sure how much I'll get around to updating this week. My husband and I have been very sick for the past few days. Luckily, he's starting to feel better. I'm hopefully on the road to recovery. Anyway, just a head's up that I may not update as much as I normally would. Sorry!

Listography

This is just a short little post to tell you about one of my favorite websites. It's brilliant if you're a listmaker like myself. Listography has been a part of my routine since early 2008 and it's a fun way to not only organize but to pass time. It has a fun feature that randomizes topics, if you can't think of what you'd like to make a list of!

So if you have an account, let's add each other. :) You can find mine here. I'm sorry for this short little text-only entry, but I'm very sick right now. My thoughtful husband likes to share, so he shared his germs with me. How sweet of him! ;P I'm not sure that I'll get to update on Monday given how I feel and that it will be Valentine's Day. I hope you all have a fabulous weekend!

Hello Kitty for Sephora Haul

This line really let me down in terms of quality. I think the real standout of the collection is the fragrance. I love Hello Kitty and I especially love the cute packaging, but the quality of the items is not worth the hefty price tag.

The bottles are adorable. I purchased Bubble Gum (left) and Frosted Cupcake (right). Bubble Gum is an opaque pink, but the formula is very streaky. Not only that, but the very same day that I painted my nails they had already started to chip hours after. The glitter polish is slightly better, but very sheer. It looks better layered over other polishes.

I also bought the solid perfume necklace. I'm not a fan of the chain because it feels flimsy. I think I am going to cut the chain off and put the charm on one of my higher quality chains. The charm feels durable and the clasp to the perfume is magnetic.







The perfume has notes of freesia and musk, which I definitely smell. I don't know how many of you picked up Victoria Secret Pink's Bold and Playful while it was available around Christmas, but this smells nearly identical to that scent. I do think the fragrance is one that is easy to find dupes for, but the real reason to buy this would have to be to wear it as a necklace.

How To: Depot MAC's New Quads

This is hopefully going to help show you how to depot MAC's newer pre-packaged quad design.

The new quads look like this:

What you will need is:
a towel to protect your hand (not needed, but recommended)
a long-handled lighter
a sharp knife
magnets and labels for your palette

First step is to cut out the plastic casing from the back. I sometimes have troubles with this part and get my husband to do it. If the plastic is being difficult, use the lighter just under it to get it warmed up. Your knife should be able to slide in and start popping it out. Hold on to the plastic part, if you need to know the name of the shadows for the labels later.




Step two involves the lighter. Open up the quad and hold it by the plastic lid, so that your hand is far from the heat. Taking the lighter, hold it under one of the eyeshadow pans where the yellow part of the flame is close enough to the plastic to heat it. You don't want the flame to actually touch it. I recommend doing this near an open window, so if it does touch the plastic the fumes will go outside.

It should only take a few seconds to get the plastic bubbling. Check with the top of your knife to see if you can get the shadow to pop out. If not, hold the flame a little longer. The knife should easily go right through. Below, you can see how the melted plastic looks with the hole from the knife.



Before and after:


And finally, step three. The easiest step! You simply put a magnet and label on your newly depotted shadows and pop 'em in a palette.


I generally prefer depotting with a hair straightener, but these quads just won't allow that method. This is the only way that I know of to depot these. If you have an easier way, I'm all ears! Though this method does only take minutes once you get the hang of it. I've done three so far and it does get easier!

If I was unclear about a step or you have further questions, ask away! Again, I do hope this was helpful. :) One more thing...these are not a part of "Back to MAC", as far as I know.

Too Faced Natural Eye Palette Swatches

This product is the rage among quite a few YouTube gurus right now. No, that's not the only reason I purchased it. :) You know I'm a sucker for neutral eye colors and this one has some lovely shades that I don't believe I have dupes for. And there are three matte shades to add to the versatility!



It comes with three cards featuring tutorials in the top section that has three different looks to try for the Day, Classic, and Fashion. The bottom part pulls out to have a sponge/brush duo, but honestly I haven't even unwrapped it to try.



^Heaven (a great higlight), Velvet Revolver, Sexpresso. Those are the three matte shades.

^Silk Teddy, Push-Up, Erotica.

^Nude Beach, Honey Pot, Cocoa Puff. I don't really care for Nude Beach as I just find it too chunky with a lot of fallout. Cocoa Puff is my favorite color in the palette. It has gorgeous gold shimmer in it.

I am impressed with the quality and pigmentation. I'll definitely be adding the other Too Faced palettes (Romantic Eye, Naked Eye, etc.) to my wishlist!

Also, I created a community on LiveJournal for Sephora. The MAC one is huge, but I never noticed there being one for Sephora. So if you're interested and have an LJ, feel free to join! It's Sephora Makeup. :) I'm just getting it started, but I've been trying to add content. I just need some members to get it up and going. Though even if you aren't on LJ, you can still bookmark it because all posts will be public!

Urban Decay 24/7 15 Year Anniversary Collection

I ordered this a few weeks ago and finally got it. Customs can take awhile on bigger packages, but the wait was worth it. This is a set of 15 eyeliners, some permanent shades and some limited edition.



The set also comes with the Grind House sharpener.

^Stray Dog, Corrupt, Bourbon, Midnight Cowboy, and Baked. Stray Dog and Midnight Cowboy are limited edition for this set.

^Stash, Mildew, Perversion, Electric, and Binge. Perversion is limited edition. It differs a bit from Zero, which is also black. A comparison swatch is below.

^Ransom, Asphyxia, Rockstar, Zero, and Uzi. Asphyxia and Uzi are limited edition.

Perversion is a darker black and comes across more matte. Zero has a bit more sheen to it.

The problem with this set? I'm falling in love with the limited edition shades! I hope that they think about making Perversion and Midnight Cowboy permanent shades. Midnight Cowboy is a nice shade to widen and brighten your eyes. This box is a great deal and is still available at Sephora! Hope you have a great weekend! :)

MAC Collective Haul

I say that it is collective because these are things that I have purchased here and there and somehow just didn't get around to posting about them. So here they are with swatches!

Kissable Lipcolor in Woo Me is part of the Peacocky Collection. I wasn't originally going to get one of these, but I've heard they are fabulous. And they are! Woo Me swatch is the one on the very right of the picture. I also purchased my first Plushglass and I chose Ample Pink.

I caved. After falling in love with Prance, I had to get another Mega Metal eyeshadow or two from the Peacocky Collection. I grabbed Centre Stage and Unflappable.

Valentine's Day has made me crave pinks and purples, so I grabbed Swish. Prussian is in the goodbye section online, so if you've been wanting this color you should get it while you can.

^Swish, Prussian, Centre Stage, Unflappable

Ladyblush and Posey blushcremes. These are also in the goodbye section, but they are not going away. They are going to be repromoted as Cremeblend blushes.

^Ladyblush and Posey.