The Essentials

I wanted to create a series of posts based on products I always use. These products are staples in my beauty routines. I may not mention them every post, but trust me they have been used.

First up, the essentials for prepping my eye before eyeshadow application.

Before any eyeshadow is applied to my eye I put two things on.

1. Too Faced Shadow Insurance - this is a liquid nude eye primer. It makes my eyes smooth, silky, and even. It also helps my eyeshadow stay on longer.

2. NYX Jumbo Eyeshadow Pencil - These are large creamy eyeshadow pencils available in an array of colors. I choose the color that best goes with my desired eyeshadow look. If I don't have a perfect match then white is always the best. I put this on all over my eyelid and smooth out with my finger. This not only helps my eyeshadow stay on longer, but intensifies the color to perfection.

Every time I post an eye look these 2 products have been used. I definitely recommend these to everyone!!!

L'Oreal HIP Showy

This is one of my favorite eye looks. The blues are just so pretty! When I did this look I got so many compliments. It's really easy too.

To do this look I used L'Oreal HIP eyeshadow duo in Showy. It's a gorgeous shimmery ocean blue and a matte navy. I applied the lighter blue all over my lid. I then applied the navy blue in the crease. I finished with Benefit Bad Gal liner and mascara

Orly Cosmic FX Swatches

This is one of those collections that I just love. I bought 5 out of the 6 piece collection. I didn't buy Halley's Comet because it's identical to OPI Catch Me In Your Net, which I own.

Rocket Science - A mossy golden green. Loaded with sparkle this is a great fall green. 3 coats.

Lunar Eclipse - Bright blue with purple and hot pink shimmer. The purple/pink effect is more noticeable in the bottle than on the nail. 2 coats.

Out of this World - Black base with grape purple shimmer particles. This will appear almost black at certain angles. However, when the light hits the purple shine just explodes. 2 coats.

Galaxy Girl - Deep burgundy base with blue and green shimmer. A very different color for anyone's collection. 2 coats.

Space Cadet - This color is so complex I added two pictures; one with flash, one without. This color is very different and I love it. The base is a teal blue, which you will see immediately upon opening your bottle and applying the first coat. Filled with a pinky mauve shimmer, this polish is definitely the most unique out of the bunch. As I kept moving my hand I would get flashes of green, gold, and pink. 3 coats.

This is a fabulous collection. All of the colors are fun and different. I love anything loaded with shimmer, so this was great. They applied easily and smooth. The only downside is these retail at $10 a bottle. However, Head2Toe Beauty has them for $5 each.

Have you gotten yours yet??

*Edit: These are now $10 a bottle on Head2Toe. In fact, they raised the prices of all their Orly polishes :(

OPI What's With The Cattitude?

First, just let me say I know this looks horrible! My left hand turned out worse than this. Also, I didn't clean up very well. I thought it was pretty nonetheless and still had to share!

I did this using OPI What's With the Cattitude from the Shrek collection. I then stamped the image using Konad plate m4 using Konad special white polish.

Golden Eye

Today's Eye of the Day is a golden eye done with MAC Pigments.

I did the gold using a MAC Pigment from their Spring '10 color collection. It is from the set of 4 metallic pigments called Stacked 2! I used the fleshy colored gold as opposed to the yellow gold in the set.

When working with pigments I like to use a brush that is a little more stiff and flat. I prefer MAC brush 242. Also, when working with pigments I pat down the color onto my eye. This helps prevent glittery pieces from getting all over.

After I applied the pigment all over my lid I then used a fluffy crease brush to apply a shimmery dark brown. The brown I used was from the MAC 2009 Holiday collection palette Devil May Dare. I blended it all through the crease and outer corner. Then I applied to my bottom lash line.

I finished with Benefit Bad Gal liner and mascara!

Essie Van D'Go

I love any easy nail design! This one is very easy and pretty.

Inside

Outside.

This was done using Essie polish in Van D'Go. It looks light pink in the bottle but actually dries to a peach. I then applied these little nail decals I found at my local drugstore. I thought they'd look really cute if done like a moon manicure.

After wearing this mani for a day, I decided to glitz it up. I added Sally Hansen Diamond Strength nail color in Diamonds. It's a clear base with lots of tiny silver shimmer. Great for turning any creme polish into a shimmer!

GaGa Oo Lala...

Last month I went to a Lady GaGa concert. It was amazing!!! I wanted to do a dramatic eye to match my outfit. I should have posted this look sooner, but I've been really busy lately.

I used three different shadows to create this look. I started with a light shimmery silver in the inner corner by L'Oreal. It's an older duo I got from their Wear Infinite line called Sterling.

I then used MAC's Creme De Violet all over my lid. It's a beautiful violet purple with hints of gold glitter.

Next, I used Beauty Marked by MAC in the crease and outer corner. This color is a black powder base with magenta glitter.

I finished with MAC Fluidline in Blacktrack winging it out in the corner.

For the lashes I used Benefit Bad Gal mascara and then applied fake lashes by Ardell. This was my first attempt at fake lashes and I believe I did a good job!

Here is my finished look and the top that inspired this eye!