Sweet Pop of Color Technique For Summer

I was over looking at the awesome Karen at Make Up and Beauty Blog. She recently posted about what the hell to do with the Tokidoki Liner in Pink . She swiped a thick line on her eyelid, and then a super thin line in black liquid liner. It's an awesome technique that gives a pop of color without being scary or overwhelming. I decided to try this out myself. I don't have a Tokidoki liner myself, but used the age old technique of a fine liner, some water, and bright eyeshadow. For my Black liquid liner, I used Elf's liquid liner. I got this free with an order once, but it's only a buck, and I am constantly surprised by how good it is.

For the first eye, I used MAC's Da Bling. This looks awesome - I love the sweet pinkness, and it contrasts nicely against the black liner. To get the liner this thin. I actually line the eyelashes, just allowing the tip of the liner to go against the lid. I used Elf's Eyelid Primer which I got in the same freebie pack as the liner, and again is a nice surprise. Elf is such a random brand - so much is utterly terrible, but there are a few hidden gems in there.

For the second eye, I used MAC's Humid. This is a permanent shade and is also part of the upcoming To The Beach collection. I really wish I used this shadow more often, as it's a beautiful, rich green that would make my green eyes pop if I ever remembered to use it! However, the shade here was too dark and didn't contrast enough with either the black, or provide the pop of color that I was looking for.

I love this technique! It's also so clean, quick, and easy. My next experiment with either be with a bright purple or sky blue. Have you tried this look before? Any other color suggestions?

MAC Art Supplies Haul

L-R, Black Line, Undercurrent, Dirty, Zinc Zone, Below Ground

I don't really know what happened here. Normally I am super on the ball at scoring MAC new releases on the day they come out, swatching them all and getting it online. I've been super looking forward to this collection since I scored my first Greasepaint Stick at Style Black, but something happened (well, real life really!), and I only got a chance to pick these up last Saturday, and then it was a whole week before I was able to sit down properly and play around with them. So sorry, and I feel bad myself.

Okay, into what I picked up. I could easily have all 8 of the Greasepaint Sticks, but even I know that that is unnecessary and there are only so many smudgy smoky eyes a girl needs. And it's not as if I have a mad crazy hectic social life that needs a smoky eye each night! So, I managed to restrain myself to just three:

(From top, Dirty, Zinc Zone, Below Ground)

• Dirty: This is a greyed taupe. It reminds me of Satin Taupe in a smudgeable form. I cannot wait to do a look with this. It's gorgeous, with a touch of silvery shimmer and yummy blendability
• Below Ground: A light-mid tone brown with a shimmered finish. Soft and easy to use. Not super overwhelming in terms of color. I can see myself using this one a lot, although maybe not coming into summer. 
• Zinc Zone: Granite gray. Think Knight Divine in smudging form. Will work for a more sophisticated smudged eye. Love. 

 Mini Grease Paint Stick Sharpener

Greengrease and Uniformly Blue looked fun as well, but I can't have everything!

I also picked two Pearlglide Intense Liners. Pearlglide Liners are really nice and soft and are nearly as good as Urban Decay 24/7s (let's face it - is there a better liner than the 24/7s?). Out of the six colors available, I picked two:

• Black Line: Supersoft black with gold shimmer. This is like a thinner, darker version of NARS Aigle Noir that came out at Christmas last year. I have that, and I never use it :(
• Undercurrent: a darkened shimmery teal. I cannot control myself when it comes to teal eyeliners. They are my all time favorite liner color. I looked through my liner stash, and I have nothing like this. Score! :)

Although I am mad crazy for lipstains, something made me not love the MAC ones - the reports of dryness, and the fact that when I buy a Covergirl stain, they dry out in months, so I decided to pass these. Strength!!

Did anyone else pick up anything from the Art Supplies collection?

Pret A Papier comes out on Thursday, and I'm going to go to the new MAC at Times Square to take a look at it. Although I love my Flatiron store, and I feel like I'm cheating on them! 

Everyone Loves a MAC Dupe: Hello Milani Liquid Liners

A couple of bloggers have recently pointed out the great drugstore find that is Milani Liquid Liner ($7). I have never tried anything from this brand. Get this for an example of my laziness: it is not carried in my Duane Reade (when I say my Duane Reade, I mean the one on the ground floor of my building. This Duane Reade is kind of sucky, with only L'Oreal, Maybelline, and other typical brands. There is a CVS two streets away, but I hardly ever go, because of, you know, the whole two streets thing. I just want to point out at this point that I do actually exercise and run and stuff, and walk my dog about a gazillion times a day, but for some reason do not make it to the exotic far away CVS.

Until last week. I managed to drag my sorry ass those extra 50 yards and headed in to score some Milani Infinite liners. I have MAC's Liquidlast liner in Aqualine, which is gorgeous and amazing and a complete disaster when it comes to actually trying to remove it. I've been meaning to pick up the Blue Horizon color for about a year, so when I hear of a real actual dupe, I get excited. I got Infinite (bright blue) and Eternal (olive green). The brush isn't great but it's not horrible. They come out a little thinner than the MAC ones, but it's not a huge difference. The colors are gorgeous - rich and vibrant, with a little bit of shimmer. They do dry quite matte (the pictures below are dry). Wear is good, though not as good as the MAC liner, and I did notice some fading after 6 hrs wear. However, I could actually remove these, unlike the MAC liners, which leave me with the same color for 48hrs! Some bloggers have complained that these take a long time to dry. They took about 2-3 mins to dry, but so do the MAC ones for me, so I didn't notice this as a major deal breaker. All in all, I think that these are pretty awesome liners, and I fully intend on picking up any other colors that come out.

Most Loved: MAC Rich Ground Fluidline

I am not an artistic girl. I do not have good hands. I cannot draw a straight line to save my life, never mind a perfectly even curved one along my eyeline. But once I got my little paws on MAC's Fluidline in Rich Ground, that all changed. The color is a gorgeous rich slightly shimmery brown, and the consistency is pleasantly thick and smooth, which makes it a dream to apply. I can use it to draw a line along the lower lids either thin, or thick, and it stays put like nothing else. I use this when I really don't have time to do anything to my face in the morning as it's a super quick way to make it look like I actually tried.