Saturday, December 31, 2011

Day to Night-EOTD

Hey dolls.  Here is an eye look that I created using my Urban Decay Anniversary palette.  This is a look that can easily transition from day to night by just adjusting a few colors!
 1.  Prime eyelid
 2. Take Chase and apply in inner corner
3. Take MIA and apply in outer lid
4. Take Ace and darken outer v. Blend into lid.
5. Take Blackout and darken even more
6. Go back in with Ace and blend into Blackout.
7. Blend, blend blend.  Layer Midnight 15 in inner corner.
 8. Add matte highlight color to brow bone.  
I used Max Factor in BFF.
9. Line lids with black liquid liner.
10. Add false lashes.  I used Sonia Kashuk full glam lashes.
11.  Go back and blend or add color if needed.
 12. Add mascara.
 13. Re-line lids with liquid liner to cover any glue.
 Finished look:
And here is the night look using the same makeup from above!
 I just took Ace and added more into the inner corner.  Then I blended out the rest of my eye with a little bit of MIA.
What do you plan on doing tonight?  I am going to dinner with family and then chilling at home with the Mr. and E.  Low key. ^_*

Happy New Year!

xoxo

Self Indulgence

Hey dolls.  Just wanted to pop in and show you all what I picked up from Walgreens this week.  I wandered in with an itch to just buy something, anything - and I found some awesome deals.  (Don't you hate when that happens?)


These Sally Hansen Salon Effects were on clearance and buy one get one half off! 
Then, I found the Rimmel display of the new Kate lipsticks!  Finally!  I picked up this one only-even though I really wanted the red one as well, but someone had swatched it already and it was the last one left.  ew.
It reminded me of Airy Fairy but this one is slightly different.  Comparison photos and swatches will be posted later. 
 
Also found this Rimmel lipstick in Rosette on clearance.  I can never say no to lipstick.  On.Clearance.  Yes, I have a problem.
Lastly, I got a new nail file from Sally Hansen.  Also on clearance.  I like how this one is curved to fit the shape of your nails.  
Reviews and swatches of products featured in this post will be in upcoming posts, so stay tuned! 

Also, I will be back later today with a makeup post for New Years Eve. ^_*

Love,

Friday, December 30, 2011

Spot the Fake-MAC

Hey friends.  I wanted to do this post because I know that there are a lot of good MAC fakes out there, especially on Ebay and other sites.  I only buy my MAC products directly from the website here or CCO's to avoid the fakes.

I recently received two fake MAC shadows from a give-away:  Lucky Green and Knight Divine.  Upon opening up my package, I immediately recognized that these were fakes.
 Swatches:  Knight Divine (top) and Lucky Green (bottom)

Here are the actual colors from MAC:

Link to Lucky Green on Temptalia's blog 
Link to Knight Divine on MakeupAlley.com

Just from looking at these pictures-you can tell that Lucky Green is obviously fake.  It isn't even close in color to the authentic!  The one I received is a metallic frosty moss color, whereas the authentic Lucky Green is more of a yellow-lime green.  

Knight Divine is closer in color to the authentic, but leans more towards a dark navy blue.  Also, a BIG indicator, Knight Divine is misspelled on the box.  (Double click on the picture above to see)  It is spelled Knight Divin.  Ugh-really?

In the following pictures, I am comparing the fakes to my authentic MAC shadow in Satin Taupe.  The authentic shadow is always the one on the right in these photos.  Also, compare the darkness of the MAC logos in these photos and the font on the packaging.
See the sticker on the back?  Authentic MAC shadows always have the finish listed on the sticker, right after the name of the shadow.  Satin Taupe has a frost finish.  Knight Divine(Divin?) only has the fake batch number in white font printed on it, and it doesn't even have the complete name on it, only Knight.  The batch number on the authentic MAC is not printed in white, it is in glossy black right under the finish indicator.  Also, the sticker is haphazardly placed on the package for the fake, whereas the authentic shadow is meticulously placed.

The MAC logo is also obviously darker and larger in the fake shadow.  Below is the Lucky Green fake on the left and authentic Satin Taupe on the right.
Otherwise, to the untrained eye, the packaging is almost exactly the same.  The name of the shadow though is in a different font than the authentic and the authentic is in all caps.  
The black eye shadow case though is very similar in finish, not matte but not too glossy either.  It also has the same small raised lettering on the bottom of the case as the authentic shadows.  

I also noticed that the weight in the products is different because of the packaging.  The authentic shadow is heavier in the hand (minus the cardboard packaging) than the fakes.  I don't have a scale to measure this, but trust me-you can tell!  Just hold the authentic one in your hand and then hold the fake one.  There is a noticeable difference.

The MAC blush she sent me is also a fake, but I don't have any MAC blushes in my collection yet so I can't do any photo comparisons.  I took photos of the all the fakes I received and had my friend, a licensed makeup artist for MAC, take a closer look at them to confirm that these were all indeed fakes.
I was, of course, quite irritated that this particular person had marketed these as real MAC products in her give-away.  I contacted her via email about the products she gave me and she promptly apologized about them not being legit but never offered to replace them with authentic pieces or alternate pieces.  

I decided to take this opportunity to do this post so that some of you are not duped by the many (and often good) fakes out there.  I would suggest buying directly from the manufacturer if you really want to purchase authentic MAC products instead of other websites that offer too-good-to-be-true prices.

Of course, it is up to you if you want to purchase from other websites.  I would just strongly caution against it because you never know what you will be getting! 
 
Hope this was helpful!

Best,

DIY-Light Box

Hey friends.  SO - I finally built my own light box.  After Christmas I found the perfect box to use, not too big and not too small. This became my little project.
What you will need:
CardboardBox 
*size depends on what you want to photograph such as food/larger objects.  I used a smaller box bc I am only photographing makeup.
Sharpie
Ruler
X-acto Knife
White tissue Paper/White cloth 
Tape
White posterboard
 
First, I took a ruler and measured 1 1/2 inches all around the frame on three sides of the box.  You can do this to your discretion, depending on how big of a box you use.
 
Then, I cut out the middle with an X-acto knife.  It doesn't have to be perfect because you are going to be covering it with tissue paper or white cloth anyways. ^_*
Your box should now look like this.  I also took off the three flaps off the top of the box as well.  I left one flap on because it will hold the extra length of white cardstock that I will be putting on inside the box.

The bottom of the box and one side of the box should be left in tact.  That is very important.  Then, I took two layers of white tissue paper and taped it over the sides that I cut out.   Some people use white cloth instead.  This is up to you.  I had tissue paper on hand so this is what I used.  Whatever material you use will diffuse the light differently-so experiment to get the look that you want.
*Sorry, I was super excited and forgot to take pictures of this step!

You should have three sides of the box that are now all covered with white tissue paper.  Now, you need a long continuous sheet of white paper to put inside of the box.  I had to go out and buy a sheet of poster board to do this because I didn't have anything long enough.  Measure accordingly.  It is important to not crease your paper to create a continuous background.
 Inside view:
Here is a test shot with natural lighting from my patio door. 
 
I did have to auto correct the white background with photo editor, but it still beats what I was doing previously!  

I went to Target and bought a cheap desk lamp for $5.99 to use as my lighting source.  I wanted a clamp on desk lamp, but they were sold out.
I had to use several boxes in order to make it tall enough for my light box.  I just have a regular 60 watt bulb in my lamp.  I had bought 100 watt bulbs too, but my lamp had a warning sign on it-so alas, 60 watts would have to suffice.
And here is another test shot with the artificial lighting from above:
Hopefully, I will have better, crisper photos to showcase the products that I want to feature on this blog!  

Storing this box has become a hassle in itself, but I love how my pictures will turn out-even with a simple digi camera!  What do you think?  Something you would like to try? ^_*

Always,