Holiday Palette Picks of 2010

This year, I was able to sample quite a large array of holiday palettes, in part because several of them went on sale at Sephora right around Christmas, and then, as a VIB member (Sephora's membership rewards program), I received an extra 20% off of those palettes which were on sale.

One of the reasons I also really like shopping at Sephora is due to the user ratings/comments. If I see a set that has comments like: "really powdery and not very pigmented," I will skip sets even if I had been determined to buy them before. One example is of the Stila color wheel holiday set. Not only did it look amazing at regular price, it was a set that everyone reported to be much larger than they had expected it to be. Not the best traveling set, perhaps, but the colors (it was arranged into a color-wheel type format) and variety made it very tempting to me. Stila shadows are also known for their incredible pigmentation and velvety texture, and I have bought many trial or sale palettes in which the shadows were of superb quality. So although I was tempted to buy it, I ended up passing due to the user comments regarding lack of pigmentation. I have bought some items that looked to be of great quality despite comments about poor pigmentation, and the comments have always proved to be right. In those cases where I went ahead and purchased the item regardless of the comments, I ended up returning them because of the overall poor quality of the pigments.

So I have learned a bit about purchasing holiday sets over the last year. Another set that I passed on this year was the Tarte holiday gift palette. I bought the palette last year and was very excited about it - so much so that I ended up purchasing, in addition, a travel set with 10 shadows in a very cute and durable package. However, that was when I was still 'new' to using everyday makeup. Over time, I discovered that the Tarte colors tend to be powdery and lack staying power. I now have these large Tarte palettes that I can't use (I've even periodically tried them again just to see if my preivious assessment is still correct - and it always unfortunately is). So I will no longer purchase these palettes, despite the fact that I still see rave reviews for the 2010 Tarte palette on youtube. I'm not happy when I see the rave reviews, as I feel that the person is either not being honest or they just keep thinking (as I did at first) that the pigments were much higher quality than they actually are.

If there is one holiday palette that I would suggest others not to pass up on, it would be the Urban Decay book of Shadows. I believe they have put one out every year so far, and these are generous palettes that usually include deluxe travel size primer potions and a couple of 3/4 size 24/7 liner pencils. These palettes always sell out, and are of truly amazing quality - consistently. In fact, I would venture to say that any Urban Decay palette is worth having, though some are definitely better than others - ALL contain shadows that are of the same amazing quality as the full-size shadows.

Another brand which seems, so far, to consistently put out high quality shadows whether in singles, palettes, or holiday sets, are the Kat Von D palettes. The Tattoo Chronicles I, which was the 2010 holiday palette from her line, went on sale from its original price of $55.00 to $39.00. This was one of the items I purchased on sale with the extra 20 percent off, and it is beyond worth it! The shadows are beautiful and incredibly pigmented. It also includes a rollerball set of her perfumes Sinner and Saint, along with 3 travel size primers (in 3 different shades) as well as one very dramatic set of false lashes. The lashes probably aren't much good if you only like natural looks, but are very fun if you like to play with different looks. A tip, too, is that if a set of lashes look too dramatic for your taste, you can cut them so that they become three quarter or even just outer wing lashes. And these lashes are uniquely cut, so I look forward to using them. Best of all are the colors in the palette, which are diverse and incredibly velvety and pigmented. I love Kat Von D palettes, and the holiday set was no exception. The packaging is also adorable.

One item that I bought on sale that really wowed me in terms of quality of shadows but not at full cost, was the Tokidoki holiday set. The set includes only 12 shadows. So if it hadn't gone on sale for $39.00 + the extra 20 percent off, I would probably have passed. But for the sale price, it is definitely worth it. It also comes with 2 blushes/1 bronzer. And it is packaged into 3 different palettes which can be removed from the larger tin, and can be easily thrown into a travel bag or purse. Overall, very cute and handy, but probably not for you if you only like natural colors. One palette includes neutral shades, but the other two has some gorgeous brights like an acid green and some deep blues. So definitely a better purchase for a person who likes to play with color. And of course, if you're a Tokidoki fan, then it's definitely a win-win situation.

Of all the sets that I purchased, there were a couple which I was on the fence about. The Lorac Box-Office Sensation, which I have already referenced in another post, is a set that seems like a great value for the price, but I would say that the quality is so-so. Some of the shadows are amazing.. there is one blue that is probably my favorite bright blue of all the colors I own, for instance. However, some of the shadows are chunky and not as pigmented. The cheek colors are also so-so, in my estimation, and the lip colors are just mediocre at best. However, it's a cute kit and it is nice to have all the products in one little portable case. Unforunately, even though it has 36 shadows, it doesn't have a strong matte black (an essential in any palette, imho) and is missing a couple of other staple shades that I use, so I would have to pack other colors if I were to take it on a trip. That's unfotunate because if it contained everything I needed, then I could justify taking it on a trip. However, for the space it takes up, it doesn't hold enough product that I would need. So this is a 'maybe' palette, in my opinion. It's something that is fun and gimmicky that you can get some use out of, but it is not consistently great in quality and is missing a few key elements that would make it really great.

The last holiday palette that I'm going to bring up is the Makeup Forever 'Rock For Ever' Eyeshadow palette. This is one plaette that I bought despite the comments about lack of pigmentation - mostly because I have never had any Makeup Forever eyeshadows, and was dying to try some. Since it went on sale for $39 plus the extra 20 percent off, I went ahead and purchased it, and I'm glad I did. I don't think I would have purchased them at full price because the colors are definitely on the sheer side. I think that they will work wonderfully as blending colors (except for the black, which seems to be pretty pigmented), but mostly, the quality of the shadows still makes them a pleasure to use. The texture is soft and velvety and the colors are very smooth, if sheer. The packaging is also really handy as you can pop these magnetic shadow pans right out, and this is a standard size shadow for many brands, including Ben Nye, La Femme, and Sugarpill. So I'm able to pop the shadows out and mix them in with my larger palettes and I can use the case for individual colors when traveling - that makes it a great purchase overall, for me. However, it is not a purchase I would suggest for everyone, because not everyone has Ben Nye, La Femme and Sugarpill palettes which - for me - make the purchase really worthwhile.

I hope that this helps in holiday purchases for the upcoming year - putting reviews up for holiday palettes after the holidays is a little crazy because many of them have already sold out. However, I still find it to be useful to know which brands consistently deliver, and which tend to be more gimmicky and of less high quality when put in palette form. So good luck in future purchases, and again, my one word of advice would be to grab the Urban Decay holiday palette every year - because if you wait too long, they will sell out and you will miss out on the best (imho) set of the year!

Sparkling gold, pink and burgundy smokey eye

Products used in this tutorial:

1. e.l.f. foundation primer
2. Coastal Scents Diva Defense Primer (this is a powder that I used over the e.l.f. primer, and I really loved the way that the two looked combined.. more on these products later)
3. Korres Wild Rose Foundation (I used a sample, and the color was a little too dark for my winter skin, but it smells wonderful and looked great over the primers)
4. Sleek palettes: i-divine sunset, i-divine chaos palettes - These palettes are truly amazing. They're incredibly inexpensive (about 10 dollars a palette) and the color payoff is intense and vivid. I found out about it from watching http://www.youtube.com/user/pixiwoo .. these sisters are AMAZING! Love them. The hitch is that you have to order these palettes from the U.K. However, it is entirely doable, and Sleek actually will mail the products to you from the U.K. And if you order several products as once (really worth it considering the quality of the products) it makes the shipping economical. http://www.sleekmakeup.com/EN/index.aspx ... if you have a chance, check out these palettes! :)
5. Sleek contour/highlight palette in medium: this is a wonderful contour product, imo, and you can order it with a brush or by itself. The brush itself costs quite a bit more than the couple of extra dollars you pay for the combination of the contour palette with the brush- its' a dual ended highlight/contour brush. However, though cute and conveniently packaged, I still prefer my own brushes to contour and highlight.
6. Ben Nye pressed powders in Coral and Autumn Sunset as blush. Ben Nye pressed powders are my absolute favorite powders. They come in quite a large pan compared to MAC pans, for instance, and the quality is very high. They are very velvety and easy to blend without losing the original colors; incredibly pigmented and as a SUPER bonus, I found a site that sells Ben Nye products at a very reasonably discounted price (ie, the 12 powder palette that I own retails for 60 dollars but sells here - https://www.battsavl.com/product/13878/Ben-Nye-Pressed-Colour-Palette - for 48 dollars (!). Likewise, individual colors retail for 7 dollars, but are sold at this site for around 5.60. If you love Ben Nye, use this site - they're great in terms of customer service, and the shipping is a flat rate of 10 dollars... so if you order 150 dollars or 30 dollars, it's still the same. And at 150 dollars, you can get quite a good amount of super high quality product. The Grande Lumiere 12-pallete is also 48 dollars (!). The pressed cheek and eye colors are totally interchangeable, and are the same, very high quality. I'm going to do a review on Ben Nye soon, as they are one of my VERY favorite brands available.
7. Buxom lashliner in leatherette (black). For those of you who are as obsessed as I am about enhancing your lash growth (I used to have the most ridiculously sparse and short lashes, and they are now very long), this is a product which supports lash growth and health. Therefore, I always use Buxom cream liners when I have a choice.
8. Shiseido Lash Bone in Majolica Majorca: This is an Eastern product sold in Asia. My favorite mascara base is actually Shiseido The Makeup Mascara base, but they are a discontinued product (!boo!), so I've been diligent about finding a product that works similarly for those of us who need a primer to hold our lash curl. (If you're Asian with naturally straight hair, you'll know exactly what I'm talking about.) The Shiseido Lash Bone mascara base is a good product - not as good as The Makeup Mascara Base original formula, imo, but still quite good. You can find it one ebay - do a search that lists price from lowest-highest, and you can find the best deal on th product.
9. Diorshow Blackout mascara: I love this mascara for volumizing lashes, but unfortunately, I've come to realize that it definitely has a shelf life. Though my lashes are not very thick and I have not used up the product, it has gotten very thick sinceI bought it (probably 5 months ago or so?) and not as easy to use. I am still looking for my holy grail mascara, and I'll let you know when I find it!
10. Too Faced lipstick in 'Totally Nude.' This has been my favorite nude lipstick for a while now.
11. Cargo hi-definition lip gloss in Laredo: beautiful nude color, quite moisturizing, surprisingly as it's a very thin consistency. That's my only complaint about the cargo lip glosses - they're rather thin and need to be reapplied more often than my current favorite lip gloss brand, Buxom. But the color and the smoothness of the product looks beautiful.

I'm really excited, as my recent discovery of using pointed crease brushes has opened a whole new world for me, and I look forward to creating more tutorials with this technique applied in different ways. Thanks so much for stopping by, and have a fabulous day! xo, Isabelle

New Format...

When I created this blog, I wanted to have a separate page for tutorial posts - and there is a page for that. However, I didn't realize that you couldn't actually make individual posts for each video tutorial, so I think I'm going to change things up a little by making the tutorial page sort of a "favorite video tutorials" page. And then I will just post the tutorials in the blog, along with products used, anything special about the process that isn't in the tutorial, and just a little written banter on each video post. This way, anyone who refers to my blog after watching the tutorials can check on any further information that may be available if they want to!

Thanks so much for visiting my blog, and truly it's such a pleasure to be able to talk about something that gives me so much joy (makeup) and share it with other people who feel the same way. xo, Isabelle

Video Post on Using Crease Brushes for the Asian Eye

The Art of Makeup Brushes and the Asian Eye

Perfectly Pink Bullet Crease Brush:
Oooooh boy... When I started this journey a few months ago to really learn about the craft and artistry of makeup, I really had no idea how deep the journey goes. Like any other art or craft, the more time and energy one gives to learning, the more one learns how much more there is to learn. The best makeup artists, in my opinion, are the ones that - even at the pinnacle of their craft at the commercial (market) level, they are constantly seeking and striving to stretch themselves as artists. Meaning - they are not satisfied with just fulfilling the quota of how societal standards require makeup application to be - in fact, they tend to chafe when they keep doing the same standard looks over and over again, even though they are masters at that craft. Instead, they continue to experiment with color, light, texture, and all the tactile functions which cause makeup to really come alive. Samantha, of the Pixiwoo sisters on Youtube, frequently mentions that if she didn't do a tutorial now and again for the pure pleasure of creating, she would "go mad." And I think that this is true of any creative personality.

At this point in my journey, I am still seeking to master the techniques that are currently being used. I have invested into makeup, more than any other products - including clothing, shoes(!), handbags, accessories, and all those other fun girly things that I love. I have (as previously mentioned) even gone so far as to sell couture handbags on ebay so that I could purchase more makeup. I don't even want to really think about how much I have invested into this passion in the last several months, but I am happy about every purchase and don't regret not building on my wardrobe at all this year. One of the products that I have been purchasing on a mass level are makeup brushes. I have both Sigma basic and premium brush kits (which mostly dupe MAC brushes - and pretty well, from what I have heard, otherwise I wouldn't have purchased them), as well as various sundry brushes from Sephora, Crown brushes, Nyx, and various other companies through which I have made purchases.

I am sure that as I continue to learn about brushes, I will continue to discover more uses for them. However, this post is about a few breakthroughs in understanding which have happened gradually - and then with a current purchase from Crown brush of a bullet point crease brush, a whole word opened up to me which was heretofore closed.

I would like to talk, in particular, about crease brushes and how to use them appropriately for an Asian eye. Because those of us with smaller eyes, less deeply set than our sisters of different races (excluding Southern and Southeast Asia, in which one sees more deeply set eyes in Indian, Middle-Eastern, Philippino and certain other nationalities), if you have ever taken a blending brush and put it gently to your carefully applied eye makeup, only to watch it blend away into a muddy mess - you know what I'm talking about. It is only in the last couple of days that I finally made a breakthrough that I believe is taking me to a different level (finally!) in makeup application.

Let's discuss the Sigma E45, which is a tapered blending brush. I bought this brush specifically because it has a pointed tip and a round body. I thought that the tip would help me blend areas that I was unable to easily blend before. Well, the thought was correct, but my lack of technique made this brush pretty much useless for me. I didn't realize until I just received the bullet point brush from Crown brushes (see top pic) that the way to use these brushes is to insert the tip into the "crease" - which, for Asian eyes, actually means the eye socket. When you sink the brush into the socket, it then easily shades and blends colors to perfection. And re-watching some 'Makeup by Ren-Ren' tutorials today, I realized that you can really use a large variety of blending blushes as long as you know where to place the brush. And again, the place to put it is to sink it right into the socket.

It finally clicked for me when I used that bullet point brush: the small point sinks easily into the socket, and any color is easily deposited by the tip and blended out by the rounder body of the brush. And then it all came together: the E45 is meant to pick up a very small amount of color on the tip of the brush, and the fluffy body then distrubutes the color evenly throughout the surface of the eye. This morning I tested this theory by using a light brown shade, and it worked perfectly. The E45 blended the color into the perfect shape above the crease, and then using the bullet brush, I was able to add darker browns and then a little bit of black into the outer eye corner. Then using the E45 again, I blended out the colors to get just the right amount of smokiness into the outer corner of the eye. A shimmery light beige tone on the inner corner and on the lid created a textbook smokey eye. Eureka!

If you're Asian with a small lid and hooded or no crease, that's the trick to blending out a smokey eye. Don't be afraid to push down onto the eye with the brush. In the beginning, I was really afraid of blending out colors because I thought I would lose the vividness of the tone, so I tried to blend really lightly. There are times when you need to use less pressure, but for the first mid-tone, used as a background for the look, go ahead and dig into the socket with the tip of the brush and blend away! The bigger the brush, the larger the area that it will blend out. The bullet point brush, for instance, is a small rounded brush with a sharp tip. This is perfect for adding dimension to the mid-tone color by using deeper colors on top of it.

Ok, I'm not going to talk about it anymore, because at some point, I think you just need to see it and really register what's happening. I'm going to create a tutorial soon which shows this process.... but for now, I am just excited to share the knowledge. I was re-watching some of my older videos, and was painfully struck by how tedious it was for me to blend out colors - and that is because I didn't know how to use the crease (socket) to ground the brush and blend the colors out. I think this is going to change how I do my eye makeup in the best possible way - and if you are a beginner at makeup application and have been stumped about how to blend out the colors using your brushes on your Asian crease-less eye, keep an eye out for the next few videos as I plan on creating a video that will specifically point out this process.

The inverted smokey eye II

This is another version of the smokey eye. I wanted to do a comprehensive review of the Lorac croc train case holiday palette, so almost all the products used in this look were from that palette. Interestingly, the color I used in the middle of the eye, the bright blue (which is my favorite color of the entire 36 color palette - by Far!), is quite similar to the color I used from the Sleek palette for the original look. The main difference was the shimmer, which was in the Sleek palette color. However, this matte color pops more despite the fact that it is matte... maybe because it's matte. I'm not sure. I only know that it pops much more as you can see in the picture here. I was going to do a tutorial on this look, but frankly I got lazy, lol...

However, I would like to do some more looks using the Lorac holiday palette so that I can give a more well-rounded review of the set. As I mentioned in another post, the Tarte palette that I purchased last year has gotten very little use because I discovered that the shadows are quite powdery and have a tendency to lose the vibrancy of the colors. So far, the Lorac palette is showing itself to be superior by far, but I will continue to test the palette with different looks to see how the quality of the shadows hold up overall.

The Inverted Smokey Eye

This past week, my son has been sick which means that I have been running back and forth to the doctor's and to his school. Because I have fibro-myalgia/chronic fatigue, I get really exhausted and oftentimes, I can only pick a few things to do on any given day. With the extra running around for my son, I have found myself unable to do the things I need to do to take care of myself because I've been too tired to scrape up the energy. On the upside (silver lining to every cloud, right?) I have had a lot of time to sit in front of the computer and scour youtube.

So I found a tutorial by Julieg317 (love her makeup looks) called 'Purple Rockstar Eyes,' http://www.youtube.com/user/julieg713#p/u/54/XRmOCbaqy2s, which is basically an inverted purple smokey eye. I absolutely love Julie's eyes but sometimes, I just don't know if her looks will work out on my eye, being as that my eyes are much flatter and smaller than Julie's. Her eyes are deep-set, which gives all of her multi-dimensional looks even more depth. On my eyes, I have to fake depth or in this case, pretty much skip it. However, I still wanted to try this technique, so I used my Sleek palettes (these are amazing - the colors are soooo silky and pigmented... the only thing about them is that one worries about the colors breaking because the texture seems so soft. But at 10.00 for a 12-shadow palette, there's really not much room to complain. There is a steeper shipping charge, as these are made in the U.K., but frankly it's worth it, especially if you're able to purchase several palettes at once...) I found a really brilliant blue color as the inner focal-point, and experimented with different darker shades of blue to create the inverted smokey effect.

While I was playing around with products, I used my new Nyx crystal glitter liners in blue and black underneath the eye - and was astounded by the beautiful effect. I purchased these on ebay recently when I went to purchase a few more of the candy glitter liners and saw that there were these new crystal glitter liners - so I purchased 3 of them. But I didn't have a chance to try them until today, and I have to say - these liners are amazing. They are unlinke any other glitter liners that I own, and create an unusually pigmented, sparkly and very fine line. Gorgeous.

I also have a buxom lash liner in 'blue velvet,' which is a truly dazzling blue gel/cream liner with glitter particles. I used this on both upper and lower waterlines, and when all was said and done, I really loved the look. I think I'll try and do a tutorial on this look in the next couple of days. It's definitely not a look for the faint of heart (or for those with very close-set eyes.... the inverted smokey eye pulls the eyes inwards where they usually get pulled outward into a cat-eye effect), but the gorgeous colors and just a touch of glitter in the lower lid and the waterlines is really quite beautiful, I think. It's a bit goth-looking, but I could also easily envision this look on the runways. It's a very edgy, interesting effect, suitable perhaps for a club-night, or just for the individual who likes being an individual, unapologetically and unabashedly... and hey- that works for me :)