Color Series - Reds: A Ravishing Duo

I touched a little on red lipsticks in my About Face post and since Christmas is practically around the corner, I figured I would follow up with a little color series featuring the shade.  I have a few eyeshadows and nail polishes I'd like to share with you, but first we're going to start with the lipsticks.

The two lippies I have for you are both warm, or more what I would call "tomato-like" in shade.  They are not as blue-based as, for instance, MAC's Ruby Woo.  These warmer shades fit my complexion better than the blue-based, cooler ones.  

MAC's Russian Red

MAC's Russian Red is a warm and beautiful, robust red.  I love this lipstick.  It retails for about $15.  I would also, however, like to offer an adequate alternative to Russian for those that may desire one with Revlon's Certainly Red, which retails for about $8.

Certainly Red is part of Revlon's Super Lustrous lipstick line.  It is rich, full of opaque color and leaves a nice sheen/shine on the lips. 

MAC's Russian on the left, Revlon's Certainly on the right.

In a side-by-side comparison, Russian seems to look slightly darker or deeper in color.  Other than that, I would say that they are pretty comparable in shade.

Revlon's Certainly above, MAC's Russian below.

In direct sunlight: Revlon's Certainly above, MAC's Russian below.

Although MAC describes Russian Red as a matte, it is definitely not a flat matte lipstick.  As you can see from the pic above, it has almost as much sheen as the glossier Certainly Red.

There are many, many options out there for donning a red lip, from drugstore options like Revlon and CoverGirl to higher end brands like Make Up For Ever, MAC and Bobbi Brown.  Red lips are often considered sexy by the viewer and empowering by the wearer.  It is a bold, unapologetic color that has been known to dictate moods as well as attitudes and once you figure out what shade is right for you - cooler vs. warmer - you can really have fun with it.  I've shied away from its power for long enough... and now I'm ready to rock it unabashedly.

**Next up: an Urban red that cuts deep...

Sugar Lips

Hey, guys!  I just wanted to come in here with a quickie for you.  You know how Sephora has a little b'day gift for those that are signed up for their Beauty Insider or VIB (Very Important Beauty) program?  Well, I forgot to share with you that I picked mine up last week and this one, I think, is pretty cool.

If you've read any of my hair posts, you already know that I'm a huge fan of Fresh.  Their hair products are awesome and are an essential part of my holy grail haircare line-up.  However, I've never really ventured out and tried anything else from the brand.  I've been curious about their much talked about lip treatments, but never tried them because of the numerous miscellaneous lip balms/chapsticks I own and have yet to use up.   So, when I saw that Sephora was offering two of the minis as a gift, I figured it was worth fighting mall traffic to go and pick it up.

Fresh's line of Sugar Lip Treatments are made with real sugar as well as a blend of oils and waxes to provide your lips with long lasting moisture.  They are free of parabens, petroleum and other additives and have what I would describe as a lemony brown sugar scent, which is a signature of the brand.

The two Sugar Lip Treatments included in this mini-gift set are the regular (clear) and Rose (berry tinted).  They are both .08oz each, which is a little more than half of their full-sized balms which are .15oz.  (I put my full-sized .15oz Burt's Bees lip balm next to them as a reference.)

After seeing all the glowing reviews online and hearing people rave about them, I really can't wait to use them.  I don't have particularly dry lips, however, I do like to use a good balm before going to bed and as a base under lipsticks.  I know that besides Carmex, I prefer balms that contain wax rather than those that just deposit oils on the lips because wax helps to fill in the lines of your lips, thus allowing your lipsticks to apply and lay better - especially the drier ones which seem to amplify and exacerbate every dry crack and crevice.  So since these have wax in them, as well as nourishing oils, I have high hopes for this duo.  Plus, they smell delish!  And they were free!

I believe Sephora, Fresh.com and Beauty.com are all offering gift sets of the minis (.08oz) - price and quantity per set vary.  Otherwise, the full-size lip treatments (.15oz) retail for $22.50.

I will definitely give you an update on Fresh's Sugar Lip Treatments if they don't live up to expectations.  Until then, please enjoy your Black Friday weekend...  I already saw lines of people on the news ready to go HAM outside a Best Buy and I got three tweets from friends that were doing the whole "midnight shopping at the mall" thingy.  So glad it's not me!  But whatever you get into this holiday weekend, have fun and BE SAFE.   

About Face: Golden Eye, Scarlet Lip

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving and I don't know about you, but I don't want to be bothered with a whole bunch of makeup products just to look cute while I'm stuffing my face with an ungodly serving of candied yams.  I'm going to keep it simple, but festive.  I plan on wearing a little gold on the lid with a bold red lip.  Most save red for Christmas and such, but I'm going to go rogue and do red for turkey day.  Yep.  That's me, the rebel.  And I'm going to achieve this look with just a few products.  No fuss, no mess... just a look of uncomplicated simplicity.

For a very long time, I avoided wearing red lipstick because I never thought it looked good on me.  But, like all things, I learned that I just had to find the right shade of red that would work for me and my skin tone.  And for me, blue-based reds are not ideal.  I need a shade that is more "tomato" or warm like MAC's Russian Red.

MAC describes Russian Red's finish as a matte, but I promise that it is not a flat matte.  It definitely has a slight sheen to it.  I really like the finish on this lipstick.  And I will be pairing it with MAC's Nightmoth lipliner.

Can you see the sheen on Russian Red?

 Next up are the eyes:

I'll be using Wet N' Wild's Vanity palette - applying the gold on the lid, bronze in the crease.

I'll also be darkening the outer "v" with MAC's Carbon.  This is a matte black and although Carbon has been criticized for not being black enough, mine - as you can see below - is pretty sooty.   But I have had it for a while, so maybe it's from the old batch before they changed the formula?

So, do you think me a nerd for planning my face a day early?  I just didn't want to be fumbling around trying to figure it out the day of and then hauling a bunch of makeup around by default because I couldn't decide on what to wear on my face.  Turkey day is hectic enough with traveling, visiting family or having visitors that I wanted to at least keep this part frazzle-free.

Well, with that being said, no matter whether you're traveling for your meal, doing the cooking for a huge family gathering or maybe just a dinner for one, please have a safe and wonderful Thanksgiving.  Stay in good spirits and keep in mind that despite certain things that may be going on in your life (or not going on), you ALWAYS have SOMETHING to be thankful for.

Fall - Deep, Dark Blues

Winter is just about here, but I figured I would squeeze in one more color feature for fall before making the switch over.  So, let's take a look at dark blue, shall we?

How about some electric navy blue for your nails?  Blue nails?  Yes, blue!  If you so dare, you could really take your manicure to another level and do all ten digits or maybe just one as an accent.  Either way, a pop of blue polish makes for a daring, but fun way to rock the color.

Blue nail polish a bit too bold for you?  Ok, then let's stick to eyeshadow.  Yes, my dears, blue shadows aren't just for little old ladies any more.  Anybody of any shade can wear indigo lids and not feel like they're stuck in a time warp.  Wet n' Wild has a palette called Pride that has a nice set of blues - one matte and one pearl.  Let's look at the matte.

I have to say that I continue to be impressed by the quality of Wet n' Wild's eyeshadows and this palette does not disappoint.  This matte blue swatched very easily with one swipe, is very soft and super packed with color.

How about this deep blue pearl from Inglot - #428?  Again, a high quality shadow that's saturated with color.

And just to cure your curiosity, I put Inglot's 428 next to the pearl from the Pride palette for comaprison and they are a tad bit different (below):

Inglot (above), WnW (below).

Not sure if you can tell, but Inglot 428 has a darker navy undertone/base.   Also, on the skin it seems to "glow".   They're both gorgeous, though.  Is it a huge difference in shade/color?  No.  But there is a slight difference; one that can be seen better in person.

And did you know that blue can also be considered a neutral?  Yes!  Just think about blue jeans and jean jackets; both can be paired with just about any color!  So why not take that a step further and push the color envelope by updating your staples?  Instead of donning the traditional tan or beige trench coat, why not stand out in a dark navy one?

Let blue be your new "black" by putting your essentials in an indigo-hued leather satchel.

And how could you possibly go wrong with a pair of denim kicks?

This pair by Levi's has a cute little pocket in the back.  (Crisp one-dollar bill not included.)

So, are you inspired enough to inject some indigo into your life?   Are you finding the call for cobalt too compelling to ignore?   Good!  So your mission this week, should you choose to accept it, is to wear something blue (denim jeans and/or jacket don't count!).   Eyeliner, nail polish, scarf - it doesn't matter.   I've got my blue nails, y'all.  Now it's your turn.  How are you going to rock the indigo-go this week?

My Bloomin' Cheek

About a month ago, MAC made their line of Pro products available for purchase via their main website, thus allowing easier access to these items and making MACcosmetics.com a one-stop-shop for all things MAC, much to the delight of makeup fiends everywhere.  So, I just had to do it.  It was calling me, man.  And it was my birthday.  I just had to buy Azalea.

Azalea is described as a "bright, iridescent blue-pink".  I think that's pretty accurate.  The finish is a frost and it is just so pretty.  It's bright and potently pigmented, but blends down nicely.  It's not extra frosty on the cheek, but leaves a nice iridescent sheen.

MAC single pan blushes retail for $17 and come double packed in an envelope and a sleeve.

I don't have a lot of pink blushes so this is a well needed addition to my stash.  The only drawback for me is that I do not have a MAC pro blush palette to put it in, but I'll improvise and make it work.  Not a huge deal.

Oh, yes - Azalea is in full bloom over here and I love it.