FOTD, Duh.

Hello loves,
I'm still mighty proud of myself for continuing to keep up with this. As always keep the questions and comments coming. You can always e-mail me at: beautyreview@aol.com

Anyways, on to the FOTD. I have been having a hard time finding the motivation to do anything dramatic since I get up so early for classes and I have work most days, but today, I awoke bright and rejuvenated... thanks to a little friend called Lunesta.

Face:
Smashbox Color Correcting Primer - the green one for redness, eww!
MUFE Mat Velvet + in 55
MUFE Full Coverage Concealer in 4
Mac MSF Natural in Medium Dark
Nars Bronzer in laguna
Mac Mineralize Blush in Pleasentry

Brows:
Mac Brow Pencil in Stud
Urban Decay Brow Box in Brown Sugar
Mac Clear Brow Set

Eyes:
Mac Paint Pot - Bare Study
Mac Pink Opal Pigment
Mac Silver Fog Pigment
Mac Knight Divine Eyeshadow
Mac Carbon Eyeshadow
Mac Blacktrack Fluidline
Mac Feline Kohl Power
Mac Wolf Pearlglide Pencil
Mac Zoomblack Zoomlash

Lips:
Mac Slimshine in Intimidate
Mac Clear Lipglass


I'm hoping I'll have time for another post before I go to work today, but I'm just not sure.
<3 - Samantha

Foundation Primers

I can not stress the importance of a good foundation primer. A foundation primer not only preps your skin for "complexion perfection", giving your foundation a solid canvas that it can hold on to, it also fills in small lines and wrinkles, AND can smooth over rough patches of skin. Some foundation primers can even correct problematic skin, but I'll get to that later.

My ultimate favorite is Prime Time from Bare Escentuals, the makers of Bare Minerals... obviously. This primer is silicon based so it glides on effortlessly. I personally use this primer everyday and can't say anything but positive things about it. Living in south Florida, my skin is sometimes dry, it is sometimes oily, and sometimes it is combination, this primer, although it looks slick really gives a perfect finish to my skin without changing it. 

Now, Benefit makes an interesting primer called "That Gal". I had been on the hunt for a foundation primer, before I found Prime Time, and the lady at the Benefit counter convinced me to try it, I couldn't resist the cute packaging and cute skyline. Anyways, I bought it, brought it home to try it and was a little... disappointed - at first. I am assuming this product is water based because it doesn't glide on as smooth as any silicon based primer I have tried and it also didn't seem to spread as easily. With Prime Time, I use one pump and regardless of how dry my skin might be on that particular day, it is ALWAYS enough; with Benefit's primer, I felt like I was using a ton of the stuff to cover my entire face. The primer claims to brighten your skin and provide a base for foundation. I, personally, didn't see any difference in the coverage of my foundation or a change in how it looked. It didn't fill in any fine lines and it didn't cover any rough spots. With all these things said, I did find a positive use for this primer. I use it as an under eye brightener under and over my under eye concealer. It's pink pearly hue really does seem to give my eyes a well-rested look. While I don't recommend buying this primer if you are hoping for a really good foundation base, but I do recommend trying it out if you seem to have bags or dark circles under your eyes, because it really does make them disappear. 

Lastly, Smashbox Photo Finish Foundation Primer. This is and has been a cult classic since it came out. It glides on smoothly and is very similar to the Bare Escentuals Prime Time foundation primer. This foundation primer is a little bit different because it comes in a variety of types for different skin types. I have a small, slight, little, embarrassing case of Rosacea, (a reddish dry, bumpy, patchy skin disorder that tends to get worse with age. OY!) and using the Color Correcting line of the Photo Finish primer, (the greenish one diminishes redness in the skin) really did help the redness of my skin and it seemed to take away from the flaky feel that I often have when my Rosacea is bad. 

There you have it, kids. A basic rundown of popular primers. I strongly believe in always finding some sort of use for products, even when they don't do what they say they will do.

Like I've mentioned before...  please e-mail me with any suggestions or any specific products that you want me to try or even endorse if I like them. 

My e mail is :   beautyreview@aol.com   so drop me a line or comment any one of my posts. I will always try my best to get back to you and even give advice if I can. 

- Samantha

Smashbox Blush/Eye shadow Review: Radiance

I thought I would make my first blog post about one of my most fun and favorite products. This, ladies and gentleman, is Smashbox blush in Radiance.

These pictures do not do this product justice. It is a bright, neon pink. It is finely milled and pressed so that it can be applied sheer for a wash of color, or layered for a bold dramatic look. 

I first became familiar with this product while searching for a produce to replace my MAC eye shadow in Passionate, which is also a pink color, but has more of a red undertone to it. I thought that my mission was futile until I stumbled onto this hot pink wonder powder, and I couldn't have been happier!

This product is intended to be applied to the apples of the cheeks to give a fresh and healthy glow. I must say, it was a little intimidating at first. This bright pink blush has the potential to make the user look like a clown if used wrong or if over done. What do I recommend? Using a full but medium size powder brush and lightly swirl the color into the bristles and then tapping off the excess. (Similar to the approach made popular by Bare Minerals foundation) This should insure that not too much is used, it also allows me to go back and add more without looking foolish.

As amazing as this product is for adding radiance (hehe) to the cheeks and temples, my favorite way of using it is on my eyes. This color, used as you would use any other eyes shadow can create a very fun look, especially when mixed with colors such as gold, black, or white. 

Please, let me know how this works for you, or if you have a favorite multi-use product that you would like to share with me!

Feel free to drop me an email at: beautyreview@aol.com   and let me know what you would like to be featured on this site, as I am new and would really LOVE and appreciate the feedback. 

I will also post a picture of me wearing this product later tonight, as I am planning on wearing it for a night out on the town in South Beach!

- Samantha