Thursday, January 23, 2014

Product Review: Real Techniques Makeup Brushes




The brand Real Techniques is a project by popular UK YouTube vloggers/beauty gurus and makeup artists Sam and Nic Chapman. I've been a long time subscriber and fan of their channel. I have also owned two of their brushes (the Expert Face Brush and the 2-in-1 Kabuki Brush) for a few months and have found myself reaching for them on a daily basis.



Now don't imagine that these are my first brushes, I can assure you they're not even close. I have approximately 75 brushes in my collection (well, before I bought the Real Techniques sets) and they range from drugstore brands like EcoTools, ELF, Kirkland, Sonia Kashuk, and then move up to more expensive brands like Sephora, Lancome, Stila, Urban Decay, Nicka K, and MAC.

The Real Techniques sets retail for $17.99 in my local Ulta and drugstores. You can get them for cheaper online and I'll have the links below.

The first set I got is the real Techniques Travel Essentials Set which includes 3 brushes: an essential foundation brush, a domed shadow brush, and a multi task brush. From this set, I realized that:

eyeshadow brushes are purple 
face brushes are gold
multi-use brushes are pink

This color coding is extremely intelligent and useful when you're looking for a particular brush to put your makeup on in a vast collection! I really like this added organizational bonus. The bristles feel very soft to the touch - I would use the multi tasking pink brush for blush or bronzer for contouring, it's not quite as big as I would like for an all-over face powder, however so I'll stick to using my MAC 150 for that.

Top: Expert Face Brush, Bottom: Buffing Brush

I'm sure you can use the essential foundation brush for applying your liquid foundation, however, I actually prefer the Real Techniques Expert Face Brush for that application due to its buffing capability, it has shorter bristles and is very dense compared to the buffing brush from their Core Collection.









The real Techniques Core Collection Set consists of 4 face brushes: a contour brush, a pointed foundation brush, a detailer brush, and the buffing brush. The contour brush can be used for cream products and bronzers, the pointed foundation brush is great for putting foundation around your nose and under your eyes, and the detailer brush is amazing for applying concealer to specific areas. The buffing brush is as straight-forward as it sounds and lets you buff out your foundation, your powder, or your blush/contour - these brushes are always a workhorse in my collection. The pointed foundation brush is much smaller than essential foundation brush from the previous set. So you're really not getting any duplicates by buying all the sets.




The final set I have recently gotten is the real Techniques Starter Set. This set contains: a deluxe crease brush, base shadow brush, accent brush, fine liner brush, and brow brush. The names of these brushes are quite self-explanatory, you pack on your base eyeshadow color with the base shadow brush, pop the crease color on with the deluxe crease brush and use the accent brush for your inner corner highlight. You can use the liner brush to put your liquid or gel eyeliner and fill in your brows with the brow brush.

I really believe that if you get all of these brush sets, you would have a fabulous and inexpensive start to a really nice collection. The only addition I would make to the set would be to get the ELF large and small duo-fiber stipple brushes to supplement.




I also have to give an honorable mention and 5 stars to the 2-in-1 Kabuki Brush by Real Techniques because it is absolutely fabulous.  You might be wondering, why is it 2-in-1? Well, it is an angled kabuki brush (great for brush and bronzer) that opens up and turns into a fan brush, perfect for contouring! It snaps back into place very easily because it has a strong magnet. I'm a huge fan, it's perfect for traveling, and I use it *all the time*.
2-in-1 Kabuki Brush

If you're looking for affordable, synthetic, professional quality brushes that don't shed, are color-coded and come in perfect travel sized, convertible stand pouches, then these are for you! The bristles are super soft and flexible and they are so easy to clean!

Saturday, January 18, 2014

Red Winter Cheetah

I saw this dress on Modcloth.com recently and this look was inspired by a friend of mine. She's fun and girly and likes wearing dresses like me. She's eclectic and electric, classy and fierce all at the same time. I know this ensemble would make anyone feel like they're the belle of the mall. This is a look complete with accessories and makeup inspiration. A bold, golden cat-eye is the perfect addition with a dark brown winged eyeliner.
Red Winter Cheetah


Red dress
modcloth.com


Knitted dove coat
modcloth.com


Hue white tight
lordandtaylor.com


Vivienne Westwood suede boots
vestiairecollective.com


LeJu gothic jewelry
boticca.com


Oasis red hat
$13 - oasis-stores.com


Stila eyeshadow
beautybar.com


Friday, January 17, 2014

Ipsy Glam Bag Unboxing - January 2014

Hi guys,

Check out this Ipsy unboxing for January 2014 - it wasn't my favorite glam bag ever but I still think it was well worth the $10 price tag. Also sorry for my voice sounding awful, I've been sick for a while now >.<.



Sign up to IPSY: http://www.ipsy.com/r/1lfc

What I got in this month's IPSY:
Apothederm bright skin serum
Coastal Scents small foundation brush (BR-C-S22)
Mica Beauty tinted lip balm in Fiesta
Absolute! make-up cleansing tissues (10)
Yaby natural finish liquid foundation in Buff

Saturday, January 11, 2014

The History of Makeup

Check out this History of Makeup infographic I found! I find it extremely interesting which strange objects most makeup stems from and the trends/movements that caused makeup to evolve. 


Thursday, January 9, 2014

Julep Maven Starter Box Unboxing - January 2014

Seattle-based company, Julep, caught my eye about half a year ago but I have a plethora of nail polishes and saw no need to get more. However, while reading another beauty blog, I discovered they have a promo code "FREEBOX" which lets you get 1 free intro box and see what their Julep Maven Subscription Service is like. I literally received my box the very next day after I subscribed. Granted, the only catch here is that you have to pay around $4 for taxes and some shipping cost and they get your credit card on file (I have already sent customer service an email asking them to remove my card so that I am not billed for the following month).
If you want to sign up, click here: http://www.julep.com/rewardsref/index/refer/id/371425/

They have 5 different profiles that you can fit into (after filling out a short questionnaire): Modern Beauty, Boho Glam, Bombshell, Classic With a Twist, It Girl. I got "Bombshell" and I actually liked the box associated with my profile best (however, if you don't like your box, you can always choose any other box) - so you always know exactly what you're getting. There's also huge discounts for those who are purchasing other items (some can be as much as 40-50% off).
I received the following: 
Julep - Mighty Nail & Cuticle Serum Pen
Julep - Nail Polish - Zelda (pink champagne metallic)
Julep - Nail Polish - Kendra (an army green frost)
Julep - Blank Canvas - Mattifying Face Primer (sample packet)


This is what the polishes look like on:
Julep Zelda Nail Polish 
Julep Kendra Nail Polish
I really like their polishes, they're smooth and true to color, you can easily achieve the color that you see in the bottle usually on the first coat. I really enjoyed the cuticle pen as well because it didn't leave my cuticles feeling too oily like the "Solar Oil" I normally use but did leave my cuticles feeling softer and more moisturized.


Here's where you can buy the full sized products:

Glossybox December 2013 Unboxing


I'm rarely disappointed by Glossybox. Last month (November) I had a really irritating experience though. The majority of my products arrived broken and I contacted customer service and they sent a replacement box... which was *also* broken. So I contacted them again and they refunded my entire monthly cost, which is good but still kind of sad that I didn't get the products to show you guys what my box was.


So moving on to better news: This is the December 2013 Box! I received:

1. Anatomicals - You Need a Blooming Shower - Body Cleanser
2. Michael Todd - Pumpkin Rich Facial Mask
3. Nails Inc. Nail Polish - Victoria
4. Ardency Inn - PUNKER Eyeliner
5. Naobay - Oxygenating Cream Moisturizing



I love everything in this box! The Anatomicals cleanser has that classical rose scent and is a very affordable cleanser you can get - it's such a luxurious treat for your bath or shower, it's not sticky or gooey at all. The Michael Todd Pumpkin Mask I am very familiar with, as it was sent out earlier in 2013 in an Ipsy Glam Bag (I received it then too) and I'm happy to get it again. The color of the Nails Inc. polish is a deep burgundy red. You need to apply more than one coat to get complete coverage but I usually apply 2 and a top coat, so you'll be fine if you do too. The liquid eyeliner is in a chubby pen format with a felt tip (felt tips are my absolute favorite method for applying my liquid eyeliner) and you can get a thick line or a very thin line - it is a true black. The Naobay facial moisturizing cream is organic and natural - I love getting good-for-you products in these boxes and this will definitely be used!


This month's theme was "Gloss & Glamour" and I  think they really hit the nail on the head for the holidays with this one. The colors chosen were classy and perfect for any occasion.

Let me know if you would like an invite to Glossybox so you're not wait-listed!

You can purchase some of the products you see here:





Wednesday, January 8, 2014

Ipsy Glam Bag Unboxing Video - December 2013

Hi all,

I was on vacation until this week so I wasn't home to get my subscription services... so now I'll be bombarding you with what I've received! Hope you enjoy the video! If you want to sign up to IPSY, click here: http://www.ipsy.com/r/1lfc



Here's a quick snapshot of my Glam Room so you can see the products I received this month:



For similar products that you can easily order (or my personal favorite dupes), click on the links below:
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