MakeupGeek Store First Impressions

Hey everyone! I am really excited about today's post - I received a MakeUpGeek order a couple of weeks ago and was just able to get some swatch shots in the sunlight. I ordered 6 eyeshadows and one of the only blushes that wasn't out of stock.

In the order that they appear in the photos below, I got: Peach Smoothie, Creme Brulee, Gold Digger, Chickadee, Moondust and Cocoa Bear. The blush I purchased was Smitten which is what I have on in the photo below (I am also wearing Cocoa Bear in the outer V). I also purchased a large black Z Palette from the MakeUpGeek Store. 

From my swatching, right off the bat, I can say that the shadows are really pigmented. The matte shadows are a little on the chalky side but are still really blendable and smooth to apply - just make sure you tap off your brush to avoid fallout. It is obvious she tried really hard to give us affordable dupes to many of MACs eyeshadows and  honestly, in my opinion, she succeeded! I think that the color pay off is actually better than MAC.

I have already done a couple of looks with the matte eyeshadows and found that they lasted all day with my usual eyeshadow base (Mac Paint Pot). I can't attest to the more satin but as soon as I play with them I will share my looks and report back! From what I can tell from swatching them, they are buttery smooth.

Descriptions:

Peach Smoothie: A warm matte peachy beige.

Creme Brulee: A soft sand matte shade with a hint of peach undertones.

Gold Digger: A warm metallic yellow gold.

Chickadee: Matte rusty orange.

Moondust; Metallic grey taupe.

Cocoa Bear: A matte medium deep brown with red undertones. 

You really can't beat the price of these shadows. They are $5.99 for the eyeshadow pans which is unbelievable given the high quality feel.

Eyeshadow Ingredients List here 

Onto the blush - Smitten is a gorgeous matte apricot shade. It reminded me a lot of Illamasqua's Lover blush which shattered on me last year (R.I.P. Lover). It's a lighter blush but really brightens up the cheeks nicely. As the product is blended into the skin the color transforms into a beautiful natural flush. Smitten was very long wearing on me. I applied it yesterday morning around 7:30AM and it lasted well through the work day. 

Peach Smoothie, Creme Brulee 

Gold Digger, Chickadee

Moondust, Cocoa Bear

Peach Smoothie, Creme Brulee, Gold Digger, Moonstruck, Cocoa Bear

Chicadee, Smitten Blush

Do you own any MakeUpGeek Products? Let me know your favorites in the comments!

Pink-Peach Ombre Nails

Hello lovelies! Today I am sharing a different take on an 'ombré' mani. I created this type of manicure a while back using different greens which you can see here: http://nicnacksnails.blogspot.com/2011/08/green-striped-mani.html?m=0

This time I brightened it up why using China Glazes Peachy Keen as the base. Then staring at the right side if my nails I applied a strip of Revlon's Passionate Pink followed by a strip of Sally Hansen's Coral Reef. 

I love this kind of manicure for when you want something fun to look at but you don't have much time for nail art. 

One recommendation I would suggest if you attempt to recreate this look is to use easy to work with, thinner polishes. These formulas were on the thicker side and if I had to go back a touch up I had to work with the polish so it didn't become a globby mess, if that's even a word. 

Thanks for stopping by!!

Don't forget to comment and follow :)

Peachy Keen Polka Dots

Hello! I have a July favrites post, I promise. My camera chip broke and I need to purchase a new one so I can take pics of my July favs!

I  have a dotticure to hold you over, though!

For the base I used China Glaze's Peachy Keen. The dots were

done with Color CLub's Alabaster and L'Oreal's Orange You Jealous.

I hope to have my Favorites up by the end of the week!

The Best of: Spring and Summer Lip Products

As the temperature rises, my lips get brighter! Right now, the drugstore has some amazing products that make me question whether I need to purchase another high end lipstick ever again. 

I get a lot more brave in the summer with brighter lipsticks/glosses..

Since everyone has been talking about the Revlon Lip Butter's I will start with those and get them out of the way! The lip butters are great for summer because they have a hydrating formula. I have two of the new colors - Juicy Papaya and Wild Watermelon. The pigmentation of these two are a little different -Juicy Papya is pretty sheer and needs a bit of layering to bring out it's warm peach/coral shade. I like to layer one sheer coat of wild watermelon so it looks like a red stain. The lip butters have a shiny finish and are really comfortable to wear. Revlon lip butters

The Maybelline Vivids are also really popular, with good reason. My go to shade this summer will definitely be Shocking Coral. The formula on these lipsticks is so amazing and the color range is great. I have a full post on the Vivids here.

NYX butter lip glosses are very pigmented glosses and feel really smooth once applied. I have two shades: Peaches and Cream and Cherry Cheese Cake, which is bizarre because the shade is orange. The texture of these butter glosses is really creamy. One coat gives a nice pop of color, but you can build these up to look really opaque. NYX's butter glosses have a decent lasting power, a couple of hours or so.

Finally, I am including a Victoria Secret Beauty Rush Sunset Kiss gloss in Orange Rush. I picked up on a whim the other day. I loved the ombre effect in the bottle and purchased it! Orange Rush is a sheer  gloss with gorgeous gold shimmer in it. It is a little thick for my liking - but a gorgeous gloss nonetheless. 

Swatches Left to Right: Maybelline Shocking Coral, Revlon Jusy Papaya, Wild Watermelon, NYX Peaches and Cream, Cherry Cheese Cake, Victoria Secret Sunset

what are your must have summer lip products?

Spring 2013 Makeup: Pinks and Peaches

Hello beauties. I am so happy to be writing this post because it means spring is here and summer is on it's way. Today I am going to share with you my favorite peaches and pinks to wear throughout the next few months. 

As far as nail polishes go Revlon's Passionate Pink, and China Glaze's Peach Keen, and High Hopes all scream spring to me. They are refreshing, bright shades! I have done posts on all of these colors seen here, here, and here.

I love coraly, peach blushes during this season! I think they just look so nice with bronzed skin. I just know I will be wearing Mac's Cream Soda blush that was recently released with the Archie's Girls Collection. This may be sold out online, but definitely check out your Mac counters or stores! Another blush I love for this time of year is Mac's Springsheen. On warm toned ladies, this looks really nice. This is a peachy shimmer shade that offers a really nice glowing cheek. This is a bit sheer but it's great for when you want a subtle peach glow. Swatched below I also have Illamasqua's Lover blush which shattered, unfortunately :( Lover is more of a apricot matte blush but so so beautiful and will look great on a large span of skintones

A few lip-products that I love during this season are Mac's Dazzleglass in Extra Amps, Benefits Ultra Shine lipgloss in Spiked Punch and Mac's Lipstick in Chatterbox. Extra Amps is great because it is so super sparkly and looks great when the sun shines on your lips. Benefits Spiked Punch has super little shimmer and is a really nice peachy sheer gloss.

Mac's Chatterbox is what I purchased to mimic True Blood's Sooki's hot pink lipstick shade she wore the first few seasons. Chatterbox is a cool opaque pink that's not super in your face bright, but it stands out at the same time

While, I don't have any pinks or peaches I wear on my eyes, I did not want to go on with this post without mentioning one shade I love to wear on my lids in the spring. Mac's All That Glitters is a shimmery beige that is so simple to wear along or with a lighter crease color like soft brown, or a deeper shade like Espresso. 

Top to bottom: Mac Extra Amps, Benefit Spiked Punch, Mac Chatterbox

From top to bottom: Mac Springsheen, Mac Cream Soda, Mac All That Glitters,  Illamasqua Lover

What are some of your pink//peach spring must haves?

xxx

L'Oreal Orange You Jealous? Spring 2013 Trendsetter Collection

Happy Hump Day! Normally I would have a March favorites post for today but honestly, I just used a whole bunch of different items this month. I will make sure to have plenty for next month though!

Today I have a polish from L'Oreal's Spring 2013 Trendsetter collection. This is Orange You Jealous?

As far as my past 3 manis go, the application has been less than perfect. With this polish it was somewhat disappointing because I have atheL'Oreal polish in Now You Sea Me sported here, which is perfect! Unfortunately, Orange You Jealous was streak and a bit patchy. However the color is just what I was looking for. This is a mix between a peachy coral, mango. MMM, mango. This appears to have some pink undertones which I think takes away from the orange shade it should which is fine because true oranges dont look tje best on my skintone be. 

Shade, no flash

 Sunlight, no flash:

Did you purchase any of the Trendsetter polishes?

Chanel Joues Contraste Blush In Love

I have gone this long without owning any Chanel JC blushes. I was lurking around e-bay a little while back and came across a seller of display size Chanel blushes, and all these other lovely Chanel products. Instead of paying the $42.00 for the standard packaging, I received this for $30. the only downside is that it is not as travel friendly (it does come with a plastic cover). But it was a beautiful color for a cheaper price so I though it was worth it. 

This bush is what I wanted Nars Orgasm to be. It is more sheet, and less glittery than Orgasm, which is why I love it so much more. Chanel's In Love is the same beautiful coral - peach color with golden shimmer that blends beautifully onto the skin. The texture is velvety and definitely worth the splurge if you have some spare cash!

China Glaze Peachy Keen Tape Mani

Hey everyone! Just posting a quick swatch/tape mani before I get lost in my Global Communication reading!

Today I have on China Glaze's Peachy Keen - a true creamy peach!

I'm not a big fan of the half moon mani so I did some white V's!

This was actually one of the more frustrating tape mani's I have done!