Highlighter: theBalm Mary-LouManizer

It's an absolutely gorgeous highlighter BUT it's a total multitasker! I use it on my cheekbones, my cupids bow, and my nose and chin. It really shines (pun intended) as adding a light reflection and brightening your face up. It seems to work with many skin tones, from the palest to the deepest.




I also use it as an eye brightener and a shimmer base for fun eyeshadow looks. It is also highlighted in theBalm's best of series "In theBalm of Your Hand Vol. 1"




There are 2 other colors in the series, and this one works best on pale-light skin. Get yours here! 



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Hourglass Ambient palette or E.L.F Illuminating Pallete?

I swatched the Hourglass Ambient powders a couple of weeks ago with my youngest daughter, I am kicking myself for not getting a picture. This E.L.F illuminating palette is spot on with another shade thrown in as a bonus.The pros are the pretty packaging for the hourglass one, but I am picking the E.L.F palette over the hourglass one, and not just because the 50 dollar difference. The hourglass one is hard and this is smooth as silk. It also has Argan Oil and Vitamin E❤. I love it! ‬

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Blush Collection, Expanded and Swatched.

So I got this crazy idea after sorting through my brush drawers for the umpteenth billionth time, that I ought to swatch or some how mark my blushes so I could know the finish, the color without having to open them all and taking up precious time. I get pretty tired sorting my makeup and sitting in the chair, so I decided to just sort them once and for all.

I sorted by color, first. Light/Brightest to darkest. I then grouped similar colors together. I swatched them on watercolor I managed to scavenge from my youngest daughter. The paper worked wonderfully, I was able to use my fingers to basically smudge the blush onto the paper and have it 'grab' the pigment and shimmer and/or glitter.

I discovered that I have far more coral blushes than anything else, and being a neutral/warm leaning person, that works out well for me. I discovered a few shades that I am particularly fond of and I discovered a few finishes I really enjoy and a couple that I wasn't a fan of.

Here's what the drawer looks like now. All of them are marked with a light pencil or eraseable frixxon pen so it's not overly evident from a distance. I lost count at 120 blushes. I think I might just be a bit of a blush hoarder...

Blush drawer of doom

I just realized that I haven't swatched my 'complete palette' blush like my Tarte Showstopper and I think I have a few more that I will get to later. I am seriously contemplating organizing my eyeshadows in a similar fashion, but I may go mad doing it! (grins)

What do you think about swatching blushes? Is it completely anal? Overly OCD?

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Pressed Pigments = Super easy to use eyeshadows.

Home pressed pigments

Top one to press is a pink shimmer mica, I have been dragging this around since my last bout of makeup creation. Beautiful shade, light with a purple shimmer finish. I got it as a mica tester back when I was formulating my own colors and I loved it.

Second pigment to press was an indie cosmetic creator from Fairfield from a consignment shop called The Rose, called TigerEye. It is a beautiful deep copper brown with a duochrome green effect. It reminds me of MAC Club and of a pigment I pressed earlier in my pigment adventures.

Third is called Lavender Dream. which has a beautiful silvery pearl effect and fourth is a highlighter/eye shadow called Swedish winter from yourMinerals Sweden. Gorgeous finishes.

The fifth is Nyx Ultra Pearl Mania in Oro,  a gorgeous coppery brown that is simply divine. Opaque coverage,

The sixth is from The Rose, as well. A shimmery pink brown called Nude that swatches a bit more sheer than Oro. I misplaced it while photographing it and you can see it's next to the number 5 swatch. Meep!

Why press my pigments? I find loose minerals do not adhere to the skin well, and they are messy. I don't have time for that.  Adding the binder to the also powder acts as an adhering agent, much like a very expensive primer. The one I use has 3 different silicones, lending a buttery texture to the pigments.

I use a 1 to 1 ratio with drops of binder and 91% alcohol to liquefy the pigments. I mix them up using a sanitized mini spatula and then I press into a godot (also known as an empty makeup tin), using tissue and a pressing tile or coin. I let it sit overnight so the alcohol evaporates. Voila! Gorgeous eyeshadows in the morning!

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