Beauty Bucketeer

Favorites, Makeup, Skincare

April 2015 Beauty Favorites

May 6, 2015

I have a lot of awesome favorites to share with you guys this month! For some reason, I was very spendy last month – I shopped A LOT. Brands I shopped from last month included History of Whoo, Shu Uemura, MAC, Marc Jacobs, Creme Simon and Hourglass. So much new stuff have piled up yet I can’t play with most of them yet because I’ve got tons of other things I’m still in the process of reviewing! Ugh. It’s bittersweet. LOL.

Anyways, on to my favorites!

By Terry Ombre Blackstar “Blond Opal”

I’ve reviewed three of my By Terry Ombre Blackstars here.

I mentioned in my review that Bronze Moon is my all-time favorite, but for this month, the crown goes to “Blond Opal”, a gorgeous metallic golden champagne perfect for highlighting the eyes.

Check out my review for swatches.

I love using this in my inner corners and on the very center of the lids. It gives a very soft, luminous glow.

Covergirl Ready Set Gorgeous Powder

I raved about the Covergirl Ready Set Gorgeous Foundation here in my January 2015 Favorites post. However, I never mentioned the powder!

That’s because I never really used it much, until last month. I was in a rush doing my makeup and couldn’t find my usual setting powder, and the Covergirl Ready Set Gorgeous Powder was the only powder I could find in my stash, so I went ahead and used that to set my under eye concealer and spot concealer.

Needless to say, I’m glad I couldn’t find my setting powder that day because this powder is GORGEOUS. After application (I use a Sigma F35 Tapered Highlighter brush – my favorite under eye setting brush, and sometimes use the sponge that it comes with) the skin’s texture feels so much smoother! The powder also helps decrease creasing. It is a powder foundation so it does give extra coverage when used as a setting powder, which is awesome.

I highly recommend this powder, and it’s drugstore, so it’s super cheap!

Dior Gentle Toning Lotion

I have been struggling with acne for the past two months because I’ve been travelling a lot, and the climate changes isn’t helping at all, so I’ve been using my Proactiv Repair lotion and although it’s very effective, it can be very drying too.

This toner is so amazing for people with dry to normal skin with sensitivity/redness issues. Ever since I started using this toner before I apply my Proactiv Repair lotion, my skin never had any dryness issue anymore. It also helps alleviate redness around my nose/cheek area.

Plus, it smells so divine!

Giorgio Armani Eye Tint “9 Cold Copper”

I’ve reviewed this eye tint here and it’s just so amazing for days when you’re in a rush and in need of a quick eyeshadow application.

Cold Copper is my current favorite as it’s a very neutral all-over-lid shade. I love wearing this with my Tom Ford Eyeshadow Quad in “Cocoa Mirage”, which is also a favorite last month!

L – R: Giorgio Armani Eye Tints “9 Cold Copper”, “12 Gold Ashes” and “6 Green Iron”.

Check out my review for swatches!

MAC Lipliner “Dervish” & MAC Lipstick “Cosmo”

These two have been my go-to lip combo for a natural, MLBB color. MAC lip liners are very long lasting and MAC lipsticks in general are very creamy. Gotta love these two!

Marc Jacobs Blush “Promiscuous”

I hauled these three Marc Jacobs products when I was in Sephora Indonesia early last month and immediately fell in love with the blush and bronzer.

I’ve been eyeing the blush for almost a year, so I was glad I finally decided to get it. The shade is a gorgeous warm, medium pink. It’s slightly pinker than NARS Orgasm, and has much less shimmer. The blush has a luminous finish, much like the Clinique Cheek Pop blushes which I’ve reviewed here.

Marc Jacobs O!Mega Bronzer

I’ve also been obsessed with the bronzer, which is as big as my baby’s face. Yes, it is HUGE.

I love contouring with this because it’s not too muddy brown/orange, but it’s not too dull and grey. It really warms up the skin and applies so evenly and smoothly.

I will be reviewing these separately in the near future.

Maybelline Dream Wonder Foundation

Now, I do have a love-hate relationship with this one. I have dry skin, so I love it for use in hotter, more humid climates because it feels like skin and is very lightweight whilst providing adequate coverage.

If you have normal to oily skin, you will love this. 🙂

Check out my review on the foundation, complete with swatches and demonstrations!

Tom Ford Eyeshadow Quad “Cocoa Mirage”

Lastly, this probably has been the only quad I’ve used in the month of April. Words can’t describe how perfect this quad is. The pigmentation is spectacular, the texture is so buttery and smooth, the longevity is amazing, and the colors in the quad are so neutral – it’s such a dream to work with and is, hands down, my favorite eyeshadow quad of all time. Yes, of all time.

I will also be writing a separate review on this one. If it’s within your budget, this is definitely worth the investment.

So I hope you had a great month, and I hope May will be an even better month for you! Can you believe we’re almost halfway through 2015? Time flies!

See you next time, dolls!

Leave a comment

Makeup

Sisterhood of World Tag

April 25, 2015

Stephanie Casidy

I was tagged by Samileen from A Beauty Detour a while ago to do the “Sisterhood of World” tag! Her answers were so much fun to read, you should definitely check her post out!

1. It’s 2 am, what are you up to?

Fast asleep because whenever baby’s asleep, you should be too! (I would’ve probably said “being on Youtube, browsing through Pinterest, or having TV show marathons” if I were asked this last year! LOL.)

But sometimes I’d be feeding or playing around with my baby around that time. If he napped too much during the day he’d be very active at night! Yikes.

2. Are you an all-time-partier or home-body?

I stay home as much as I can! I’m so boring. LOL.

3. What’s your phone’s lock screen background?

Ha. Don’t judge.

This has been my wallpaper for the past 2-3 years. LOL.

4. Your dream vacation?

I honestly don’t enjoy hanging around doing nothing for too long, even with an incredible ocean view. I much prefer travelling around! I’m a globetrotter and love discovering new places. Currently on top of my places-to-visit list are Dubai and small, traditional cities in Japan!

5. What was your first makeup product?

This will come as a surprise for many, but my first makeup product ever was a traditional Arabic powder kohl eyeliner! It looked something like this:

My mom gave it to me because I wanted an eyeliner that isn’t too bold. I grew up in a private school where makeup was a strict no-no, so I didn’t start wearing makeup until I was about 18 or 19, and by the time I was ready to wear makeup, I was still a bit shy about stepping out with too much of it, so going the natural route was the way to go!

Powder liners look very soft (although it’s definitely buildable) and can be easily diffused, so I wasn’t too scared to wear it!

6. Five products on your wishlist?

I honestly have purchased everything on my beauty wishlist at the moment (Yay Sephora VIB Sale!) but I’d love to buy more Tom Ford, Cle de Peau and YSL products!

7. Worst social media site in your point of view?

I have to agree with Sami, I really don’t understand Twitter. 140 characters is way too short LOL. I used to be on it a lot though, but ever since I started using Instagram, tweeting seemed obsolete.

8. What freaks you out the most?

Anything scaly. Like fish and reptiles. Yuck.

9. How would you react if all your makeup got stolen?

Cry, of course. My house content is completely insured though, including makeup (thank goodness for home insurance), so I’d probably get a lot of it back (monetarily) but my initial reaction would definitely be an episode of inconsolable sobbing accompanied by mild hyperventilation because most of my makeup are either discontinued or limited edition!

10. Pet peeves?

People who can’t spell properly. Native English speakers should be able to differentiate between there/their/they’re, addition/edition, peek/peak (as in sneak peek), lose/loose… Seriously, people! It’s your mother-tongue! Unbelievable.

Well, that’s it folks! I’d like to tag all of my followers to do this tag, it’s a fun and simple way to get to know each other a bit better! Leave a comment below with a link to your post if you decide to do this tag!

Have a lovely weekend!

Leave a comment

Makeup

Review: Maybelline Dream Wonder Fluid-Touch Foundation

April 25, 2015

Stephanie Casidy

I have been testing out this foundation for a few weeks now and can confidently come with a final verdict! It honestly wasn’t love at first wear, but I grew to love this foundation and the key was in the application method. Read on if you’re curious!

Maybelline Dream Wonder Fluid-Touch Foundation

Texture & Consistency

The texture of this liquid foundation is very runny and rather oily/slick to the touch, but once blended on to the skin it transforms itself into a soft, satin powdery finish. It kind of has the consistency of liquid-to-powder products. It reminds me of the Hourglass Mineral Veil foundation primer a bit!

Maybelline Dream Wonder Fluid-Touch Foundation Swatch

Although it’s very smooth to the touch, whenever it glides on dry patches, it clings to it and accentuates them. Since this foundation is targeted for people with normal skin, people with drier skin types have to be cautious about this. Make sure you moisturize well a few minutes before applying this!

Coverage & Finish

The coverage is light to medium and covers minor flaws like faded acne scars and mild redness, but concealer is still required on inflamed, red acne bumps and other obvious flaws. I love it also gives the skin an airbrushed finish, diminishing the look of pores around the nose and cheek area.

Maybelline Dream Wonder Fluid-Touch Foundation

Can you tell which side has the foundation on?

You should be able to! The right side of my face (left side of the screen) has the foundation on (one layer) and if you look closely, my pores on the other side are still very obvious and redness around my nose is pretty prominent. The side with no foundation also seems slightly dull.

The side with one layer of foundation on looks slightly brighter and more airbrushed.

The finish is very skin-like when applied thinly (one layer), but it cakes up a bit when you add more layers and will accentuate dry patches more.

Longevity

I have never worn this foundation for more than 10 hours, so I won’t know if it lasts more than that, but for the multiple times I’ve been wearing this foundation for about 10 hours, it still looks great at the end of the day. No ugly patchiness at all, but it did transfer easily on to clothes and tissue (or whatever touches your face) during the day. I also notice it fading around the nose area by the 5th or 6th hour mark though, but that happens with most of my foundations anyway!

Note that I never set this foundation with powder because I have dry skin, but for people with oilier skin types, I recommend setting with a setting powder.

With the dryness issue, I carry a facial mist everywhere I go (I use Chanel Hydra Beauty Mist or La Mer The Mist) and never had trouble with flakiness every time I spray my dry areas with a mist.

Shades

These come in 12 shades, but only 8 are available in Australia, 80 Medium Buff (MAC NC40 equivalent) being the darkest. I wear the shade 40 Nude and my skin tone is around a MAC NC30.

Packaging

The foundation is nicely packaged in a glass tube with a dropper. I’m honestly not a big fan of the dropper thing but it doesn’t really bother me much. It’s just a tad unhygienic because the dropper doesn’t really “drop” the products fast enough, I usually have to pat it on my brush to apply it.

Maybelline Dream Wonder Fluid-Touch Foundation Applicator

I honestly prefer a pump!

Application Method

The instruction on the bottle says to drop some of the foundation on to the tip of a finger and blend it on to the skin with our fingers. I have dry skin and had trouble with this foundation the first few tries because of this application method. I don’t know why my skin feels so tight and dry after application even though I’ve already worn a thick moistrizer underneath (I wear Creme de La Mer).

Maybelline Dream Wonder Fluid-Touch Foundation on ELF Cosmetics Stippling Brush

However, I found out that I only get this “tight” feeling on the skin when I apply it with my fingers!

I experimented with it a bit and tried applying with a soft stippling brush (I used Elf Cosmetics Stippling Brush) and it blends the foundation away so nicely and doesn’t leave my skin feeling tight and dry at all. I don’t know the science behind this, but on my dry skin, it feels so much better when applied this way.

Maybelline Dream Wonder Fluid-Touch Foundation Application

I basically drop a few drops of foundation straight on to the brush and then dab the brush all around my face, then blend away in circular motions. It applies very smoothly and evenly, and application is so fast and easy!

Price

This retails for AU$21.95 at Priceline and supermarkets, and about US$9.99 (approx. AU$12.99) at Ulta and American drugstores.

Final Verdict

PROS:

Nice, smooth finish

Skin-like finish when applied thin, but can be built up to medium coverage (have to be careful because it may make it look slightly cakey)

No disturbing scent

Nice, even coverage

Good shade range (except in Australia!)

CONS:

Weird packaging (dropper)

A bit too dry for dry skin (but then again it’s targeted for Normal skin)

Rating:

I’m giving this bad boy a 4/5 because of its packaging and the fact that it’s a bit too dry for people with dry skin.

Repurchase?

I would personally repurchase this even though I have dry skin because I loved wearing this when I was in Indonesia (hot and humid tropical weather). I don’t think I would be able to wear this much when I’m in Australia or the States, but whenever I’m in places like Indonesia or Singapore, this is definitely my go-to foundation!

So, if you live in hot and humid climates, I think you will like this!

Leave a comment

Makeup

Pro Makeup Artist Essentials: 5 Products Every Makeup Artist Needs

April 13, 2015

Stephanie Casidy

Starting out as a makeup artist is no easy task and it’s partly because our “tools of the trade” can be extremely expensive. We need to cater for all types of skin tones, and buying every single shade of foundation can dry up our wallet – and we might not even end up using every single shade. Such a waste!

I’ve been a makeup artist for over 4 years now. Yes, I’m fairly new at this because I decided to pursue makeup artistry during my last year of graduate law school (which was driving me nuts!) but I’ve had my fair share of professional experiences. I’ve done makeup for magazines, runways and of course, special occasion. You can check out my portfolio here if you’re curious 😉

Challenges I’ve faced as a makeup artist inspire me to help out other starting makeup artists out there who are struggling to build their makeup kit, and believe me, no makeup artist needs to have every single shade of foundation, concealer and powder on the racks.

Read on to see the five items I feel every makeup artist should have, aside from a complete set of brushes of course.

1. Cream Concealer/Foundation Palette

Let’s start from the base because I’m all about that base. That stunning, flawless base.

As I said, no starter makeup artist needs to have fifteen to twenty different foundation shades in their kit. What I recommend is getting three to four foundation shades (lightest, medium, and darkest shades) and getting a concealer/foundation palette such as the Kryolan Dermacolor Camouflage Creme Palette.

Yes it can be expensive, BUT they have a multitude of uses!

So, what can these be used for?

1. Foundation: Find a liquid foundation that is the closest match to your model’s skin and simply mix it with colors from this palette. It’s easier and much more cost-efficient.

2. Concealer: Imagine also having to buy every single concealer shade out there! I’d be broke! This Kryolan palette comes with so many shades and is so high coverage that it can even cover tattoos.

3. Color Correction: Not only are these concealers, but the yellow, green and orange/salmon shades are color correctors. This means you won’t have to invest in a separate color correcting palette, which could cost up to $40 for only four to five shades.

4. Contouring: An Anastasia Beverly Hills Cream Contour Kit costs $40 for only six shades – with this you get 24 different shade choices for only US$99.95. I’ve contoured with this palette and the results are amazing.

5. Eyeshadow Base: These creams do not crease easily and can act as a “white base” for bright and vivid eyeshadow looks.

You can get this palette in the Kryolan website for US$99.95, but AU$220 in the Australian website. I fortunately got this in Indonesia for about US$110.

If you’re looking for something much cheaper, Coastal Scents has one and is only US$14.95, Zoeva‘s is AU$27.95, and Ben Nye’s MediaPro HD palette is US$80.

On top of this, I recommend getting a translucent setting powder instead of coloured setting powders so that it can be used across all skin tones. A makeup setting spray is also a good option.

2. Blush Palette

Every skin color requires different tones of blush, and having a palette with a wide range of color is always handy.

I highly recommend the BH Cosmetics 10 Color Professional Blush. It’s only US$16.69 (currently only US$9.95!) and you get 10 amazing shades – from cool toned baby pinks to bright, warm corals. There’s even a very dark shade for darker skin tones, which could also be used as contour for lighter skin tones.

Much cheaper than building your own MAC blush collection!

3. Highlighter

Dewy, glowy skin is currently trending and I believe it will always be on trend because it gives the skin such a beautiful, luminous brightness. So it’s important to invest in a good highlighter.

If you have a bit more allowance in your budgeting, I highly recommend the Charlotte Tilbury Filmstar Bronze and Glow (US$68 at Nordstrom and Beautylish) and the Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powder Palette (US$58 at Sephora and AU$76 at Mecca) because they create the most flawless highlighted looks.

If your budget is a bit tight, the Benefit Girl Meets Pearl (US$30 in Sephora) is amazing. I honestly have never found a good highlighter in drugstores, most I’ve tried are very patchy and artificial-looking. If you have a good drugstore recommendation, do let me know in the comments below!

4. Urban Decay Naked Palette

Yes, this is not just a general category, it’s a specific product recommendation.

I honestly haven’t been able to find anything much more perfect than the Urban Decay Naked Palette. This is one product I would feel lost without whenever I’m on a makeup job.

The shadows have astonishing pigmentation and incredibly soft texture. Very blendable and long lasting! It’s also very versatile and neutral-warm toned, which makes it very wearable for all skin tones.

This is an eyeshadow palette, but it has a number of other uses too, namely:

1. Eyebrow Powder
2. Cheek Highlight
3. Cheekbone Contour
4. Eyeliner (applied with wet brush)

In the photo below, I used “Buck” as an eyebrow powder and cheek contour.

Also… One of my first photoshoots was with a gorgeous African model, but I didn’t have a dark-enough contour shade for her in my kit. So what did I do? I mixed a bit of the foundation used with the shades “Creep” and “Darkhorse”.

And… voila!

They have shimmers but when blended in with foundation, they’re not too obvious. I love the end result!

5. Lip Palette

One thing I forgot to include in my photo for this blogpost is a lip palette. You will be asked to do colorful eye and lip looks every once in a while, and as a pro, saying “I don’t have” this and that is not an excuse.

To be safe, it’s always great to have a palette with a multitude of color choices such as the Coastal Scents 66 Lip Palette. It’s currently only US$9.95 and you get 66 different colors! How crazy is that?

If you have a bit more allowance, I highly recommend the Make Up For Ever Flash Color Case. It’s darn expensive at US$99 (Sephora) but if you’re going towards the commercial and high fashion direction, I highly recommend this. You can use this as blush, eyeshadow, contour, lip color and special effects makeup/face painting.

You definitely won’t need this if you’re going down the bridal/special occasion route, but since my focus is commercial and high fashion, this palette has been my best friend.

Check out this abstract face painting I did using this palette a while ago.

So, there ya go! I hope you somehow found that useful if you’re starting out as a makeup artist (or thinking of becoming one!).

Got more tips?

Do share and let me know in the comment section below!

Leave a comment

Makeup

By Terry Ombre Blackstar Review

April 6, 2015

Stephanie Casidy

I know these have been out for years now, and I’ve had mine for honestly over two years. One of these is actually the second one I’ve had because I finished up the first one I’ve got. I’ve had it for that long, even before I started blogging, and I’ve recently rediscovered my love for it.

Check out my By Terry Ombre Blackstar cream eyeshadows review below.

Leave a comment