Makeup for a Night Out

I've only been bowling three times in my life. That's enough to discover that my bowling skill are extremely bipolar. I do really great--get spares and maybe even a strike. Then it's completely downhill from there. Or I get lots of gutters and suddenly get a spare.

What's strange is that I'll bowl the ball and it goes in this beautiful straight line toward the pins and I start feeling a little happy. Then, seconds before it hits the ball, it veers. I don't understand. If an object in motion is supposed to stay in motion unless acted upon by a force, what force is takes that ball out of its straight path?

I'll never know. What I do know is that I wore this makeup to bowling recently. It was a fun night and I thought it deserved fun makeup.

Except for the mascara, I only used the Coastal Scents Metal Mania Palette.

The blue is the color on the fourth column, seventh row. As the night wore on, the house lights came down and the blue neon lights came on along the lanes, making the place look more like a club than a family-friendly bowling alley.

The color in the outer edge is the one on the third column, sixth row. The bowling balls were brightly colored and looked like giant marbles. They would get stuck behind the pins and sometimes take a while to come back to us. They never felt quite right either. My thumb would get stuck and I could never get a good grip on it.

The red around my eyes in the one on the ninth column, eighth row. Red was the anger in my bowling mates' eyes as a girl came around offering them vodka shots over and over after they said no. After all, they had to drive home somehow.

That was the dichotomy. There were children having a good times with their families. But the music wasn't family-friendly and the alcohol roamed so freely that one would think that the bar had been closed so everyone had been forced to take the alcohol to the lanes.

The pink on the inner corner of the lower lashline and the browbone is the color on the sixth column, first row.

When the music is loud and the lights low, people start to loosen up as they let go of the stress of the week. But there's a tightness, too--tightness in the vocal chords because of all the yelling, tightness in the muscles because the legs are working harder to avoid slipping on the refurbished floors, and the tightness of competition as the mind races to tell the hand how to throw the ball and win the game.

I think going to a bowling alley during the day wouldn't present as many dichotomies. The question then becomes, would it be as fun?

Depends on what you prefer, so here's hoping you have a week filled with what you prefer.

Lying on the Grass and Looking at the Clouds

For this look, I used a lovely green from the Coastal Scents Metal Mania Palette (fourth column, third to last row) all over the lid except the browbone where I put a lighter color to highlight (third column, first row).

For the eyeliner, I used the black color from Avon's 12-in-1 Shimmering Eye Palette.

I put some Avon Ultra Luxury Eye Liner in Black on the lower lashline as well.

I'll admit this isn't my favorite look. I think I've blended better near the browbone, but I didn't see that until I saw the photos. But we make mistakes sometimes, and we can't stop learning from them. Interesting that applying makeup can teach that lesson sometimes.

And now for a few words about what this blog is all about. I started this blog as an outlet for my makeup hobby. I'm not an expert and I don't want to do makeup for a living (though I'd love to take a professional makeup course someday). Makeup is a way of expression my artistic side and keeping my life fun. I don't wear it to feel beautiful. I wear it to have fun.

So although I started this blog for myself, I want to give something to whoever is reading out there. And the only way I know how to do that is to tell stories. Over the past year, I rediscovered not only my love for makeup but my love for stories as well. So somehow or other, I'm going to try to tell a story in each post. It's what will set this blog apart from a few of the others and it's going to make it a bit more personal for me.

What kinds of stories? Perhaps a few will be things that have happened to me. A lot will be reflections about the books I'm reading or movies I've watched. And some might just be reflections on something I've been thinking about or the inspirations behind my looks. I'll find out as I go along. :)

Pink Metal

I love it when I go somewhere casual and I can wear some really fun makeup. I had that chance at a university event. I decided that it was a good time to use the Coastal Scents Metal Mania Palette.

For this look I used three colors in a basic three-shade look: on the lid is a pink (last column, third to last row) and a brown (last column, second to last row) with another pink (ninth column, first row) to highlight the browbone.

I used the brown color to line my lower lashline then went over the upper and lower  lashlines with Avon's Glimmersticks Diamonds Eye Liner in Sugar Plum, which magically became purple on the upper lashline. :)

Another look from this palette is coming up. And a new twist that I'm thinking of making to this blog.

Red and Gold Ablaze

The first day of school for me was yesterday but I didn't have any class. Instead I had two meetings and a social for my program. I wanted to make an impression but not with a meeting and a social. 

I used three colors from the Coastal Scents Ultra Shimmer Palette, which I fall in love with more each time I use it.

I loved this red colors. It was pigmented enough to give some drama, but light enough so that it wouldn't yell, "RED!"

I used the red (second column, last row on the palette) as an accent color for the outer corner and crease and blended it up past my outer corner toward the browbone. Across the browbone is a white color (first column, second row on the palette). The gold is first column, seventh row on the palette.

To define my eyes, I used Avon's Ultra Luxury Eye Liner in Dark Brown.

What I love about this eyeliner is that when I use it on my upper lashline, it's very subtle. Sure sometimes, I want some intense liner. But usually, I just want the color to be the focus without it washing out my eyes. This liner gives me just enough definition but also enough softness so that the look isn't too harsh.

Makeup is about the subtleties. Getting them right is challenging and one of the funnest parts of makeup.

Pink and Gold

So, I'm back after an extended break. I didn't know it was going to take so long. In fact, I had planned a look, but it didn't come out the way I wanted it to. I have been wearing makeup but only neutrals as that's what I've had time for while preparing to go to grad school.

Yesterday, I again didn't have much time, but I forced myself to perk up and create some kind of decent look. Here's what I got.

I used the pink and gold from the Avon Go Glam Color Palette, Avon's Mega Impact Eye Liner in Black Flash, and Avon's Ultra Luxury Eye Liner in Black. In retrospect, I could've made the liner on the upper lashline neater, but I was in a hurry, and now that I look back, I quite like the line.

To enhance the gold in the inner corner a little and add some color to the lower lashline, I used three colors from the Coastal Scents Metal Mania Palette. I recently bought this palette and Ultra Shimmer Palette in a fantastic sale: All the Coastal Scents 88 palettes for $8.88 for only 8 hours on 8/8/12. The sale was extended to 8:00 a.m. the next morning because it was so popular. The site was so sluggish that I had three computers on, trying to see which one would get me to checkout the fastest. I'm really looking forward to using these colors in the future. :)

A lady looked at my makeup and told me, "I love your eyes! Do you do makeup for a living? Are those MAC?" Thank you, no, and Avon. "Avon?! I didn't know Avon made those colors!" Indeed they do, and I can testify to the awesomeness of Avon. They have great-quality products at great prices. I love their eyeliners and am falling in love with their eyeshadows as I become more familiar with them.

Now that I'm starting grad school, I'm not sure how much time I'll have on my hands for this blog (though, ironically, I'll be wearing makeup more often), so there may be some gaps in between posts. But for the most  part, I'll try my hardest to post a look at least once a week. I love makeup too much to stop doing it, and I love talking about it on this blog.

Stay tuned. :)

Mint Chocolate

Whoever decided to combine chocolate and mint was a culinary genius. The smooth, decadent taste of chocolate combined with the cooling and fresh mint is one of those things.

So here's my look inspired by mint chocolate. Too bad it's not edible. Though . . . that would be gross anyway, so that's probably a good thing.

There are three greens, all from the Avon Go Glam Color Palette: dark green used as eyeliner, plain green on the lid, and a very gray green across the browbone.

The brown is used in the crease and is also from the same palette. For the wing and waterline, I used Avon's Ultra Luxury Eye Liner in Dark Brown.

At first I was going to use the brown eyeliner on the upper lid, but I didn't like the results. So I decided to dip an eyeliner brush in some green cream shadow and and then in the dark green shadow to make the powder shadow more luminescent.

This look is for the My Go-To Looks Competition sponsored by Sigma on Makeupbee. This is my go-to "fun glamour" look because of the colored liner and dark greens, which I love to do when I want to be fancy but not too fancy.

Stay tuned for more color!

Eat Your Veggies

In the past, I would look at colors and think, "Oh, that's pretty." Now, I look at color combinations and think, "Wow, I wish I could do that makeup? Could I? I don't think I have that color."

So the other day when I saw my dinner, it happened again. Mixed vegetables: corn, carrots, broccoli, and cauliflower. "I have those colors!"

The green, orange, and yellow came from mark's Super Flip Color Kit. The white is from Avon's Go Glam Color Palette.

As you may have guessed, green=broccoli, orange=carrots, yellow=corn, and white=cauliflower. Finally, there's Avon's Mega Impact Eye Liner. There's also yellow cream eyeshadow under the yellow and orange shadows and green cream eyeshadow under the green shadow.

So the next time you need color inspiration, look no further than your plate. :)

Braceface: My Sister's Braces

This is probably the oddest inspiration I've ever had, but I'm going with it because when I saw the pink and green bands on my sister's braces, I knew it would look good . . . but the colors came out completely different from her braces. Oh well, I had a nice time wearing this look.

The hot pink and shimmering pink are from Avon's 12-in-1 Shimmering Eye Palette. Though I had originally planned on using the pink by itself, I ended up adding a layer of the shimmering pink over it soften the color. I used a turquoise-can't-quite-tell-whether-it's-blue-or-green color as an accent.

The eyeliner is Glimmersticks Diamonds Eye Liner in Sugar Plum from Avon. I love, love everything about this liner, from the color to the softness to the sparkles.

At first, my mom thought I had a copper color on the browbone, and when I turned around, she was surprised to see it change color. That color's iridescence is my favorite thing about it.

In the future, look for looks inspired by characters from Phineas and Ferb, and more characters from My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, and Scooby-Doo. :)

Eyeshadow Inspired by Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole

When Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole came out two years ago, I was really, really skeptical that it was going to be good. I was like, "Owls? Being epic? Really?" However, my then co-worker said he really liked the movie, so I started to think it maybe wasn't that bad.


 


That was a year ago. I finally watched it a few weeks ago, and LOVED it! I loved the voice acting, I loved the story, I loved the characters, and I loved the animation. Oh my goodness, the glorious animation!


I was especially struck by the colors. Soren, the main character, is a barn owl who's golden, white, and brown. I was inspired by these colors to create this look.

I used the brown, white, and gold from the 12-in-1 Shimmering Eye Palette from Avon. I used Ultra Luxury Eye Liner in Dark Brown from Avon on the top and bottom lids. To soften the liner on the bottom lashline, I dabbed the brown eyeshadow on it.

I tried something new with this look. I usually don't put eye liner on my waterline because it just melts off, and I don't like dealing with it. However, my mom noted that some of my looks didn't look "complete" with a bare waterline. So I put the eyeliner on my waterline and then dabbed a very tiny amount of brown eyeshadow to set it, just an experiment to see if it would last longer. It actually kind of worked. Not perfectly but much, much better than the eye liner alone. It's definitely something I'll try again in the future. :)

This last photo was taken somewhat in the shadows, so the colors look a little different. I drew a little half-moon above my lid with the brown and blended it into the gold, which I used as a highlight across the browbone, down to the tear duct, and to the inner corner of the bottom lashline.

Until next time!

Tropical Flower Flash: Makeup Inspired by the Flowers in My Front Yard

My dad is the only person in my family with a green thumb but even he has trouble finding time to garden. As a result, our front yard is quite boring-looking with very dull green plants that never bloom.

However, there are two exceptions in the garden: two cactus-like plants that occasionally bloom a purple and pink spiky flower at the same time and this plant, which I've only seen bloom twice.

When I saw it, I thought, "This would look amazing as eyeshadow!" This is my attempt.

I used a two dark pinks: one from the Avon 12-in-1 Shimmering Eye Palette and another from the Avon Go Glam Color Palette. The orange was from the mark Super Flip Color Kit.


Here are two photos with slightly different colors due to the erratic lighting (never photographing in bright sunlight again).

I used white because of the white interspersed within the petals. The white is from the Avon Go Glam Color Palette. On top of the orange I used some yellow shimmer to make the pure orange more on the yellow side. I wasn't going to use another color but I decided that my eyes would look too washed out without eyeliner. I used Avon's Mega Impact Eye Liner in Black Flash.

This is another entry for the Tropical Looks Competition from Makeupbee. Coming up next is a little break from the pinks and purples as I explore some darker and cooler colors.

Fluttereye-Eyeshadow Inspired by Fluttershy from My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic

I love, love, love, the colors on Fluttershy from My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. She's the sweetest character but she's not a stereotype of "the shy one" and has extremes in her personality that make her all the more lovable.

http://mlp.wikia.com/wiki/Fluttershy

I combined several colors to create her yellow though I know that I didn't get it right. That's the beauty of saying this look is "inspired" by Fluttershy. ;)

I used a pink creme eyeshadow as a base for the lower lash eyeliner. I used a blue from the Avon Go Glam Color Palette (fourth column, second row).

For the yellow, I combined three colors: Taxi (yellow) from the mark Super Flip Color Kit, and the gold and white colors from the Avon 12-in-1 Shimmering Eye Palette. The pink is Peep from the mark palette. I used yellow creme shadow on the lid and pink creme shadow on the browbone as a base.

Couldn't post a look yesterday as I planned because my makeup was really, really boring: just some shimmer and light eyeliner. I bruised my lip and had to use a really dark lipstick to hide it. However, that meant I couldn't go intense with my eyes. The bruise is all better though so I'll try to post more looks this week. :)

Just a Spot of Purple

So I don't mean to constantly go back to purple and pink, but sometimes, it's the most useful combination whether I want to be casual or more glamorous.


So today, I volunteered at my church for a few hours and thought, "Might as well put on some makeup to blog about it." I was going to leave the pink on until my hand grabbed a blending blush and dabbed on some purple.

The pink is a neutral pink eyeshadow from Love and Beauty from Forever 21. Pink Icing is the closest I dupe I found for it on the Forever 21 website, so it's probably discontinued. That's really sad because I reached the bottom of the pot while doing this look, and it's a really great color that builds and blends beautifully.

The purple is Catwalk from mark and the eyeliner is Avon's Ultra Luxury Eye Liner in Eggplant. I think part of the look's softness is that I didn't bring the pink eyeshadow all the way up the browbone. The other part is due to the applicator. Usually, I use a sponge eyeshadow applicator to pack color on, but this time I used an eyeshadow brush to softly brush the pink onto my lids and a blending brush to apply the purple. Both colors are usually very pigmented when I use a sponge, and I was slightly surprised with the results. Lesson learned: if you want to use an intense color but don't want it to actually look intense, brush it on softly and don't pack too much color into the brush. 

Hopefully, I'll be able to blog five more times this week because I'll be volunteering every weekday and going out on Saturday.


On a side note, I recently joined Makeupbee! To check out my profile, go here.

Forest Makeup

Sometimes the inspiration for my makeup comes up after I actually do it. I randomly chose these three colors and then later realized that it reminded me of a forest.

The three colors are from The Color Workshop. I especially like the frosty light green/yellow I used from the crease to the browbone. The brown is slightly reddish, which I think complements the green nicely. It's the same green I used in this look.

I used Avon's Ultra Luxury Eye Liner in Dark Brown for the waterline though it's not good for that purpose (it's fading in the photos). Still, it adds a little color.

Beautiful color combinations are all around us, and I've got some other nature-inspired looks coming up!

Fourth of July Makeup

For some time now, I've been thinking about red eyeshadow and whether or not it would be possible for me to wear it and not look clownish. So when the Fourth of July came around, I thought that it would be the best time to use it.

Sadly, the red looks a little pink-like in the photos, but it was a darker red in more muted light.

I actually used a red blush for the red. I combined blue and white to make a slightly-less intense blue and used the same white for the highlight. These three colors are from The Color Workshop.

The eyeliner is Midnight Blue from Avon.

I ended up curving the red shadow in the crease and I like the little "lift" that created at the outer corner and made it a little more dramatic.

It would have been a good idea to put some eyeliner on my waterline, especially on the top. However, I really didn't feel like continually re-applying it throughout the day. Sometimes I sacrifice little things to enjoy myself a little more. Another thing I might do next time it put some white shadow under the blue eyeliner close to the tear duct. But that's the beauty of makeup. You can always wash it off and try it again.