Monday, May 23, 2011

Prom look: Kylie

Before
After
Close up





This is a look I did on Kylie for her Senior Prom. I used gold, browns and black on her eyes which complemented her emerald green dress and brought out her eye color. I applied Ardel Wispies to her lashline to give a more dramatic look, countoured her face with a bronzer and added a peachy-pink blush that I custom mixed for her skintone. I also used a mineralized skinfinish to highlight her cheekbones, and finished with a pinky-nude lip and gloss.  

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Review: Olay Pro X Cleansing System





Set contains:
2-speed facial cleansing brush
Soft bristle replaceable brush head
(refills available)
Exfoliating Renewal Cleanser (20mL)





What it does

On Olay's site is says "The Advanced Cleansing System is as effective as a system sold by skin professionals for nearly $200.* Professionally and clinically designed to cleanse 6 times better."  I am assuming they are implying the Clarisonic Cleansing system which ranges from $149 - 225. Olay's system comes in at a fraction of that price, a mere $30. I have  heard quite a few people say that it is in fact comparable to the Clarasonic, but I do not have one to compare it to, so I can not tell you for sure. The system comes with a sample size of the cleanser, but I did not use it because I believe I would see better results and a bigger difference, if any, if I used the cleanser i have been using for a while (Neutrogena Fresh Foaming Cleanser).  

Usage & What it did for me:

I opened up the package and put in the batteries, which were included and stuck in the brush head. I applied one squirt of my Neutrogena Fresh Foaming cleanser and went to work exfoliating on the fastest speed. After exfoliating my cheeks for a while i took a look at the brush head and saw that in fact it was removing left over makeup, dirt etc. After cleansing the entire face, I rinsed my face a few times and patted it dry with a cotton towel. My skin instantly felt fresh, soft, and VERY clean.  

Final Rating:

My overall opinion of the system was that it was great and did what it said in the advertisement. I have been using it daily for about two weeks now and it has not dried my skin out at all. When cleansing my face with it, I have been focusing more around my nose where I get black heads and within two weeks I have already seen a difference. Most of my black heads have vanished and I have never seen such great results from exfoliation alone. All of you that have been wanting to try this out or saving your pennies for the Clarisonic, look no further and run to your nearest Wallgreens, Walmart etc and grab one! I am officially in love.

Get the Look: Eye Candy





Products:

*Face
  • Smashbox Photo Finish Primer
  • MUFE Mat Velvet Foundation - #45
  • Garnier Skin Renew Anti-Dark circle roller
  • Laura Mercier loose setting powder - Translucent
  • Rimmel bronzer -  027 Sun Dance
  • NYX mosaic powder - 03 Plummy


*Eyes*

  • Maybelline Define-a-Brow - Dark Blonde
  • Benefit Stay Don't Stray primer
  • MAC Eyeshadow - Goldmine (Frost)
  • MAC Eyeshadow - Stars N' Rockets (Veluxe pearl)
  • MAC Eyeshadow - Fig 1 (Matte)
  • MAC Eyeshadow - Blanc Type (Matte)
  • MAC Eyeshadow - Steamy (frost)
  • CoverGirl Lashblast Volume - Very black



*Lips
  • MAC Lipstick - Blooming Lovely (Amplified) (Limited Edition)
  • MAC Lipglass - Lychee Luxe


*Brushes
  • Sigma - F25 Tapered Face
  • Elf - C brush
  • MAC - 188
  • MAC - 224
  • MAC - 217
  • MAC - 219
  • MAC - 109
  • Sonia Kashuk - Kabuki


Application:

I started off by priming the face with Smashbox's photo finish primer, then applied MUFE foundation, both using the 188 brush. I rolled on my favorite under eye concealer, Garnier's  Anti-Dark circle roller and set my face with translucent powder with a kabuki brush. Then, I moved onto the eyes. I used Maybelline's Define-a-Brow to fill in my brows and primed my lids with Benefit's stay don't stray to help the shadows last all day and not crease on me.  For the eye look, I started in the crease, taking the MAC 224 brush I applied Stars N' Rockets eyeshadow using windshield wiper motions blending it high up towards the brow.  Then took the MAC 217 brush and defined the crease a bit with Fig 1, focusing on the outer third of the crease. I wiped the 224 brush off with a towel and then applied my highlight color, Blanc type.  Using Elf's C brush i packed on MAC's Goldmine to the center of the lid and then used MAC's 219 pencil brush to apply Steamy to the outer and inner third of the lid. On the lower lash line I applied MAC's Fig 1 with the same 217 brush I used in the crease to smoke the lash line out. I finished the eyes with Covergirl Lashblast mascara. To sculpt the cheeks I used Sigma's F25 brush, made a "fishy face" and applied Rimmel's bronzer under the cheekbones and blended it up throught my temples and in the hairline to give the face a more defined and 3 dimensional look. I applied NYX plummy to the apples of the cheeks with the MAC 109.  On the lips i used MAC's Blooming Lovely lipstick and Lychee Luxe lipglass to warm the color up a bit. 



Good Luck <3

Monday, May 2, 2011