Sparkled Beauty

I was inspired by Lisa Elridge's latest look she did on Cara Delevingne and thought I could incorporate things I love into it.

Minus the false lashes, switched out high end items (Chanel Illusion D'Ombre, Tom Ford Shade and Illuminate, etc.), here we go!

Last shade of 24 Annabelle TwistUps I have to show you since the beginning of the month, this is Vamp! It is dark, pigmented and smooth. I feel bad playing favorites, but Vamp might just be the IT shade for me this year, in the non-purple range.

I also used Stila Stay All Day waterproof liquid liner in Dark Brown from the Art of the Fine Line set and the lovely powders from the bareMinerals Complexion Superstars kit:
- Original Mineral Veil finishing powder to set the foundation and concealer
- Illuminating Mineral Veil finishing powder as highlighter, and
- Warmth All-over face color to contour, using the mini Full Flawless face brush.

Other products used:
- Annabelle CC Instant Perfecting base in Natural finish
- Vichy Norma Teint Anti Imperfection foundation in Sand
- It Cosmetics Bye Bye Under Eyes full coverage concealer in Neutral Medium
- Maybelline Color Tattoos in Gold Rush and Pomegranate Punk
Lisa reminded me that Maybelline Color Tattoos aren't just for bases on the eyes, so I used them by themselves here with no other eyeshadows
- Maybelline the Falsies Big Eyes mascara in Blackest Black
- Avon Ultra Luxury brow liner in Dark Brown.

So I did it, I finished the #24Days TwistUps series. It cost me a few weekends between doing the makeup and trying to take advantage of natural lighting for taking pictures.

Stay tuned for a giveaway, for all 24 shades I have been showing you. Do I have enough interest from those of you who live outside Canada and US to open it internationally?

I have been neglected most powder products, except for my finishing powder, as I couldn't be bothered with the mess. I am glad bareMinerals  Complexion Superstars arrived to revive my "attitude" toward powders.

The set includes 6 of the brand's best selling enhancers and perfectors. Who doesn't need to enhance and perfect their natural glow (or the lack thereof)? :)

A showcase of the shades on the outside package, hot pink box and an open window to showcase the products inside. Good presentation there!

The Stars include 5 powders, 0.07oz each:
- Original Mineral Veil finishing powder - translucent finish. It gives a soft glow to the skin, like the Hourglass Ambiance powders.

- Illuminating Mineral Veil finishing powder - soft luminous finish, sheer and versatile for all skin tones.

- Golden Gate blush - a silky, lightweight pop of colour on the cheek.

- Warmth All-over face color - brings a sun-kissed glow to the skin. Though the name says "all over", it is suggested to be used where the sun would naturally touch the face (forehead, chin, cheeks, bridge of nose).

- Clear Radiance All-over face color - offers a dewy youthful glow, brings out the skin's natural luminosity with a soft, sheer luster.

- Mini Full Flawless face brush - a tapered brush to deliver medium to full coverage.

The short handle is great for travel, and the brush itself is quite sturdy. The bristles work ok with powders but I kinda wish it were a bit more dense. When I was not careful, flyaway was visible during application.

Here's the cool locking mechanism on the container. It only takes a twist of the top until the 3 dots line up with the holes to get from open (left) to close position (right). No spilling hazard!

Swatches in the same order as above.

The Original Mineral Veil is hardly visible in photographs. The sparkles you see in the middle of the first row is from the Illuminating Mineral Veil, also very subtle. The Golden Gate blush is a light wash of coral pink but it is very buildable, trust me as I tried it :)

Sideway, at the bottom, are the Warmth and Clear Radiance All-over face colors. Warmth is a lovely bronzer, and also easy to build up. Clear Radiance has a pink undertone to warm up your complexion.

Here's a FOTD featuring a few products from the set I have been enjoying :) Available now at Sephora for $49 (values $126), Limited Edition.

Yes, hauls, plural. I was stalking Sephora's sale page for one thing (you'll see below) and other things just ended up in my cart :) It all started around the VIB bonus point event back in August, and I became a VIB Rouge because of it, shamefully.

From tarte:
- Gifts from the Lipstick Tree Achiote collection $35, reg. $85
- Amazonian Clay 12-hour blush in Flush, $17, reg. $31
- Maracuja cheek tint in Deep Berry, $12, reg. $30

- Off the Cuff Amazonian Clay 12-hour blush palette and bracelet, $50 (valued $132)
This palette would deserve a post of its own, in other words, it is a must have for those who are fans of tarte blushes.

I always wanted a blush palette from tarte, and they granted my wish in their holiday collection. We get 4 Amazonian Clay 12-hour blushes (Dollface, Dazzled, Darling and Crave) - 0.158oz each vs. 0.2oz full size, and Amazonian Clay bronzer in Park Ave Princess - 0.158oz vs. 0.32oz full size, plus a eco chic bow bracelet that fits my small wrist. Yay :)

It is LE, so if you want it, go soon!

- BareMinerals Ready 8.0 eyeshadow palette in The Star Treatment, $30, reg. $50
The eyeshadows are VIP, Connoisseur, Carte Blanche, Ritzy, Kudos, Bragging Rights, Elitist and Extravagance - 0.035oz each vs. 0.05oz full sized eyshadows. It also comes with half sized Prime Time eye primer (0.05oz).

- Urban Decay Urban Ammo eye palette, $15, reg. $46
Didn't plan to get this one, just couldn't turn it down because of the sale price.

Sephora Pantone Universe collections get me every year. I paid full price for the tangerine set last year and waited patiently for the emerald set to go on sale this year.

In the background is The Color of the Year collection, $41, reg. $82 (valued $135), with:
- Color Theory shadow block in Bionic
- Color Code Prismatic shadow block
- Lightspeed Glitter dust
- Graphic Sculpt Waterproof jumbo eyeliner
- Color Cube Lid stain
- Color Watt Highlighting mascara.

Didn't want to miss the chance to grab the Color Contour Face brush set either, it was on sale for $39, reg. $82. Synthetic emerald brushes, I gotta have them!

The set includes fan, contour, crease, large eyeshadow, cream eyeshadow, dome smudge, angled liner and short smudge brushes.

More Sephora eyeshadows from the Pantone Universe collection:
- Full Spectra eyeshadow palette in Night Fall, $23, reg. $46
Not sure I'll keep it.
- Light Storm liquid shadows in Caramel Cream and Tuscany, $11 each, reg. $22
There was the third shade, Smoky Grape, but it never showed up on the sale page.

A little collection of Sephora Color Token eyeshadows that went unnoticed - Pink Casino, Blue Casino and Gold Casino, $7 each, reg. $14. There is a Purple Casino but it wasn't available on the sale page either.

And the item that took constant stalking for me to collect all shades - the Outrageous Prisma Chrome metallic eyeshadows, $9 each, reg. $18:
- #1 Metallic Beige
- #2 Golden Peach (name on the product: Metallic Peach)
- #3 Golden Taupe (Metallic Bronze)
- #5 Purple (Metallic Purple)
- #6 Taupe (Metallic Taupe)
- #7 Taupe Silver (Metallic Grey)
- #9 Black (Metallic Black) and
- #10 Lilac (Metallic Lilac).

Cool surface pattern, sleek packaging, good pigmentation and beautiful finish, forgive me when I wanted them all. Lilac was the hardest to come by.

It is prime time for Sephora Favorites sets. Give Me Some Lip, $30 (a steal as the full sized item already retails for $28, valued $109) caught my eyes first with:

- NARS Lip gloss in Turkish Delight, half size (0.14oz vs. 0.28oz)
- Laura Mercier Lip glace in Bare Pink, 0.1oz (vs. 0.15oz full size)
- Fresh Sugar Tinted Lip treatment in Rose, 0.08oz (vs. 0.15oz full size)
- Buxom Full-On Lip polish in Dolly, 0.07oz (vs. 0.15oz)
- Bite Beauty High Pigment pencil in Rhubarb, 0.05oz (vs. 0.09oz)
- Tarte LipSurgence Lip luster in Glitzy (full size 0.1oz).

Later, Sephora brought out Give Me More Lip set that I might go for instead, $71 (valued $251, with 4 full sized items among 16).

The Sephora Black Magic palette, $19, was an impulsive buy. I like the darker blushes and 4 eyeshadows being matte (compared to the Desert Sunset palette with 1 light blush, 1 bronzer, only 1 matte eyeshadow, on sale for $11). We'll see about this one also.

Did you give in to the Sephora's summer sale? If you are in the US, you could get stuff from Sephora for cheaper too. Oh the luxury of being Canadians lol.

I always love to look at blog sales, to find things that I can't normally get from here. And a few weeks ago, I found some good stuff to buy :-)

The first haul is from Keri at Glimmer Gloss Glow. I was extremely happy with what I got, as belive it or not, these items are all the first of their kinds that I own.

The nail polishes are OPI DS in Fantasy and Vintage, and Zoya Matte Velvet in Loredana. I don't have any OPI, not mentioning the Designer Series. Always love holo polishes, so I hasd to get them. I haven't had any matte colour from Zoya either.

I also got some Bare Minerals pressed shadows in Firelight, True Gold, Fire Opal (first row), Aurora, Trinity, and Firefly (second row). I already put them in test runs a few times. The colours are gorgeous, but they don't stay on the lids as long as my pigments do, unless I put extra work in prepping the lids.

Keri included some extras too:
- Stila Convertible Color (Lip & Cheek Cream) in Peony
- Barry M Shimmering Eye & Lip Crayon in #7 Golden Bronze
- Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-on Eye Pencil in 1999.
My first Stila and Barry M too, and I was looking for a liner that is not black. So, perfect!

Another haul came from Sara at The Makeup Snob. I love the drugstore items that she had.

Here they are:
- Milani Wet/Dry shadows in Shamrock, Black Out, Girls Luv Pink, Leaf Green, and Blue Lagoon
- Jesse's Girl Baked shadow in Moonbeam
- Physician Formula Face Sculpting Trio in Tan Organics
- Revlon ColorStay Mineral Finishing Powder in Brighten
- L'Oreal Wear Infinite Pressed shadow quad in Petals of Promise and Bouquet of Strength (LE).

It's exciting to have new makeup to play with.

Visit my blog sale too, if you are looking for some MAC. I made a tab at the top of the page for it too, for easy browsing. Have a good day.