Sorry I’ve been so MIA faithful readers!

Last month the fiance and myself just moved into our new home.  Such a pain in the butt!  I knew home buying would be work, but I wasn’t fully prepared for all the work ahead of us — and we’re still working on it.

I hope your holidays have been wonderful, whatever holiday you celebrate.  I got a netbook as a combined birthday and Christmas present (my birthday is on January 2nd), so I’ll hopefully be updating a lot more for everyone now that I have something other than my desktop!

What have you been up to?  How were your holidays?  Any exciting beauty products?

FOU1_bottle

Price: $32-$45 per bottle (20 ml or 30 ml)
Availability: Some salons, many internet websites most specifically the Face Atelier website.
Rating: 5lippies
Product Details: (Taken from the Face Atelier website) 
The heart and soul of FACE atelier – an innovative approach to foundation that allows you to be in control.   Ultra Foundation is a silicone-based emulsion that floats on top of the skin, doesn’t crease or flake, and lasts all day long.  Hydrating yet oil-free, it masks tiny lines and pores to ensure a smooth finish.

Got those “I can never find my shade” foundation blues?  Only FACE atelier allows you to infinitely adjust your foundation shade.  Add a drop of Zero Plus to go a shade darker, or a splash of Zero Minus to lighten.

TRADE SECRET!
The silicone molecule is bigger than the human pore, allowing Ultra Foundation to form a lightweight, breathable second skin that is both moisture and oil resistant.  It is truly non-comedogenic and is ideal for troubled or mature skin.  Ultra Foundation’s sophisticated formulation creates an optical blurring effect that diminishes fine lines and wrinkles and gives the illusion of a smoother, more uniform and naturally dewy finish.

Product Pros:

  • Wonderful finish.  While I wouldn’t say it’s dewy such as in the description, I’d say it’s more of a natural or natural matte finish.
  • It’s long wearing!  While it wears off some when you blow your nose (as in pretty much any other foundation), it will stay put everywhere else.
  • It looks natural.  My biggest pet peeve is when a foundation looks or feels mask-like.  This is neither.  It feels very lightweight and looks like your skin — but better!
  • Zero minus and zero plus allow you to lighten or darken your foundation shade.  Being pale like me, this is essential — I can’t find my color any other way!
  • Doesn’t migrate or oxidize.  It doesn’t turn orange on my skin, or migrate into any fine lines.
  • All foundations have a yellow base to them.  I’ll delve more into this in a moment.
  • Website offers samples!

Product Cons:

  • May be too pricey for some individuals.
  • Hard to find in some areas, and purchasing on the internet can be a pain if you don’t know what shade you would wear already.

It’s taken me far too long to write this review.  This is the only foundation I’ve been sporting since August.

This is the foundation that Lady Gaga swears by.  I tried it after hearing so many wonderful things, and having issues (as usual) having a foundation to match my extremely pale skin.  The zero minus allows me to do just that by being white to lighten their #1 foundation so I can receive the perfect color.  Well, to put it directly I have to do a half to half ratio — yes, I’m that fair skinned!  I also like that it has a warm, yellow base.  For fair skinned ladies like myself, many foundations have a cool undertone to them.  This cool undertone only makes us look more pink, and foundations with a yellow undertone will help to neutralize it.  This is exactly what the Face Atelier Ultra Foundation does.  Quite frankly, I think warm foundations look considerably better on all skin tones.

It wears well, and doesn’t accentuate any flakiness — something that I tend to have.  I get compliments on my wonderful skin all the time, but really, it’s just this foundation.

I recommend if you have the money to spend on it to definitely try this product.  It’s excellent and I really can’t rave about it enough!

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We’ve all had it happen, that product you just love to hate.  What are your top 5 most regrettable cosmetic purchases?

Here’s my list of loathes:

  1. Revlon Colorstay lip stain.  Smells like paint, and comes off in chunks.  ‘Nuff said.
  2. Any Clinique foundation I’ve ever tried.  For various reasons.  One being they don’t make any light enough for my porcelain complexion, plus they all broke me out.  The only brand that has ever made a foundation that has broken me out…. Even MAC foundations don’t have this effect on me!
  3. Make Up For Ever HD Foundation.  I don’t care what anyone says.  This offers way too much coverage, doesn’t look like skin no matter how it’s applied (maybe a damp brush or sponge would work), and seems to be darker than comparable MUFE shades.  Didn’t work for me, and I’m far from a fan.
  4. Cover Girl liquid eyeliner.  The black looked blue, didn’t apply evenly, and wasn’t worth the $4 I spent on it.  If I would have bothered to keep it on, I doubt it would have worn well.  I’ve never seen a so off color in my life!
  5. Illamasqua eyeshadows.  With all the hype, I expected them to live up to the pigmentation and the hype — I wasn’t impressed at all by the pigmentation, and even with a base had a hard time getting them to apply evenly.  While the colors are wonderful, they don’t go on as brightly as they appear for me, and aren’t worth the price.  Maybe if the price were lower, I’d feel a little differently.

Related posts: Reader Poll: Top 5 Cosmetic LOVES!

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Uh oh, not another monthly favorites blog!

I’ve been pretty lazy when it comes to doing my make up lately, being busy with school and all.  So here are the products used to create my most basic look for the month!

  • Always my basic stuff…. Face Atelier Ultra Foundation, Maybelline Define-A-Brow brow pencil in medium brow (identical to MAC Lingering, in my opinion), Urban Decay Primer Potion on the lids prior to eye make up, and Urban Decay De-Slick mattifying powder to set the face.
  • Nixie eyeshadows in Night Falls and Violaceous (MAC duplicates are Satellite Dreams and Violet Trance).  I put Night Falls all over the lid, and then Violaceous in the crease and outer corner of the eye.
  • Nixie eyeshadow in Grace (closest MAC duplicate is Seedy Pearl).  I use this as a highlight, and have also been enjoying it as a cheek highlight as well as eye highlight!
  • Urban Decay Lip Envy in Envious.  I apply this lightly so as to not get too much color on my lips, but just to add a little pink.  This is my go-to daytime lip color.  For gloss, I’ll throw on Nixie’s Smashing lipgloss, a shimmery pale pink, right over it.
  • If I’m feeling adventurous, I’ll throw on a red lip with Nixie’s Mila lipstick (close to MAC’s Russian Red) with Nixie’s Rosie lipgloss over it (any opaque red lipgloss will do).  This is more of a night-time look for me, or if I’m looking for something more dramatic.  I don’t do red lips everyday, and touching it up can be tedious when working.
  • Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-On Pencil in Zero.  This is my favorite black pencil ever to be on the market.  You can even use a brush and wing it out on the top lid!  Otherwise, a gel liner is my favorite on the top lid.  Any will do from MAC, Smashbox, L’Oreal, Urban Decay, and Bobbi Brown.
  • Nixie eyeshadow in Gem for a blush.  This is a pretty pale pink similar to MAC’s Well Dressed, which would also work beautifully.  Slight shimmer, but not too noticeable.  For contouring my non-existent cheekbones I’ve been using Nixie bronzer in Montego Bay Glissen (a slightly pinky brozner).  I apply this VERY lightly seeing as I have fair skin, and don’t want to over do it!

For your homework, what are your favorite beauty products for this month?

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Ack, my first fashion blog!  Don’t expect many of these, because I don’t keep up to date on trends, but I will post pieces I love!

Thanks to Twitter, I recently came across Red Panda Jewelry (click to shop) — some gorgeous chainmail pieces that have my heart soaring.

Red Panda is solely owned and operated by a lovely girl named Jessica, right out of Nashville, TN.  Her work is absolutely lovely, and I adore the uniformity that chainmail offers — as well as the durability!

Here are some of my favorite pieces:

(Family, are you reading this?  Christmas is around the corner!)

What makes Red Panda even more accessible is the free worldwide shipping.  Yes, you heard me right, free.

If you’re interested in any Red Panda pieces, be sure to sign up for the mailing list by e-mailing redpandajewelry@gmail.com.  You’ll receive coupons, secret sale information, and other Red Panda updates!

And don’t forget to add Red Panda on Facebook, Myspace, and of course follow the company on Twitter and read the blog!

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