Saturday, May 28, 2011

American Eagle Sale! 30% off + Free Shipping


Hey ladies and gents~

I figured you guys may be overwhelmed by sales right now and here's another one to throw at you!  I personally like to shop at American Eagle for undies, sweatshirts, and sometimes shirts.  I also only shop at the clearance section, just because I'm kinda cheap and don't really know how to shop for/appreciate clothes like I do with makeup.  30% off AND free shipping is about as good as it gets when it comes to American Eagle sales.  I love how most if not all of their clothing is 100% cotton, and when they're on sale they're about the same price as clothes from retailers such as Forever21 and Rue21.  I find the quality of the clothing there lacking in quality, even if they are cute and affordable.

I bought a shirt for about $10.50 and some sexy undies for a little less than $5.  Nothing like wearing something skimpy underneath to boost your mood/confidence for the day!  I'll probably not do a haul video cause I only bought two items and it's a bit weird showing the world your underwear.

Okay enough rambling lol.  This sale ends on Monday, and you can shop by going to http://www.ae.com/web/index.jsp.  If you shop through ebates (affiliate link), you can get a 3% cash back.

Happy shopping!

Thursday, May 26, 2011

A serious graduation talk with my sister

Me, big sis, little bro

For those of you who read my blog, I thank you for doing so.  It is very rewarding for me to be able to share my thoughts on all things beauty, and have those thoughts be either useful or entertaining for you.  As much as I love makeup and colors, I feel like this blog only lets you see a partial side of me.  So I'd like to share a conversation I had with my sister.  Just a little bit of background for ya: My brother and I are both graduating this year (from different institutions of course).  This is not as crazy as it gets, but this is a typical conversation between her and myself.


Janny:
    so i'm thinking about making dave (my younger brother who is graduating from high school soon) candy leis again
    don't tell him
    and i thought about filling them with carrots
Carmen:
    lol
Janny:
    it made me lol
Carmen
    LMAO
Janny:
    like baby carrots
Carmen:
    DO IT
    LOL
Janny:
    k =D
Carmen:    and packets of ranch
    AHAHHAHA
Janny:
    ranch is harder to find
    i'll have to go to mcdonalds
    for ketchup
Carmen:    OMG LOL
    DO ITTTTT
Janny:
    oh hot damn
Carmen:    this is my jam?
Janny:
    you think he'll wear it?
Carmen:    yes
Janny:    and when dave is done with it
    i'll wear it for my graduation
Carmen:    that's disgusting lol
Janny:    hm
    not really
    now if i filled it with mayonaise
    that'd be disgusting
    LOL
    GREAT IDEA
    EGGS
    we'll do an egg necklace!
    maybe i should hardboil them so that when they break they won't leak on him
Carmen:    ....
Janny:    well
Carmen:    he's gonna look like an easter bunny
Janny:    not a lot of eggs
Carmen:    you should make him ears
Janny:    maybe only 3
    they'll be heavy
Carmen:    eggs and veggies?
Janny:    hm
    speaking of which
    i should decorate my cap huh?
    but i won't have time
Carmen:    hrm
Janny:    well
    i figured we could make him more than one
Carmen:    hm
    we could
    we should make signs
    hmmmm
Janny:    we need a fog horn
    or a gong
Carmen:    or just the pots
Janny:    we'll have to hide them or they wont' let us in
Carmen:    :-(
Janny:    i wonder if we can bring mikey (my dog)
Carmen:    not cool
    LOL
    he'll get restless
Janny:    but he'll be happy
Carmen:    he will
    hmm
    maybe we can
Janny:   
      (copied and pasted from conversation with the baby brother)  : 
Janny:   
    hey are we allowed to brign mikey to your graduation?
Dave:    uh
    i'm not sure
    probably not
Janny:       =(
Dave:     why's that?
    we can bring mikey to yours?
Janny:       yeah
Dave:     oh
    lol
    into the gym?
    lmao
Janny:       yeah as long as mikey doesn't get anxious or pee
Dave:     aiyah
Janny:       you should ask
    lulz
Dave:     lol
    alright

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Black Rose Minerals' Haul, Swatches, and Look! (Picture heavy)

A while ago (and I mean a WHILE ago)  I purchased some mineral makeup samples from Black Rose Minerals.  They've got some fantastic deals and free shipping worldwide for samples, so I thought, "Why not?"  They also have a different 10% off code every month which I completely forgot to use.  I opted for the 10 sample baggies for $6 (+tax).  My package arrived within a week.

Packaging: 
Even though I was only ordering samples, my package arrived in a bubble mailer.  The products themselves were wrapped in multiple layers of bubble wrap, tissue paper, and plastic baggies.  Rose (the owner) was nice enough to throw in a few extra mini samples.





I got to work debagging these babies right away.  Here is my little work station.


I swatched the colors while I was debagging, so they're kind of all over the place.  To see all the swatches at once, keep scrolling down.  I swatched on bare skin, and with the side of a Q-tip/cotton bud.



Woohoo natural lighting!

I cut open the bags completely so no product would be stuck at the top.

Samples: Liberty, Saturn, and Insect.  No flash.

Snow, Basilisk, Nightengale, Pacific Oil Slick, Royal Orchid, Mome Rath

Frost, Lady, Were Me out, Earthen



Mome Rath, Frost, Lady, Were Me Out, Earthen. No flash.

With flash.
All product descriptions are from the website.  An asterisk (*) indicates my favorites.  
Snow--A true pearly white with a kaleidoscope of glistening highlights 
Basilisk*-- Wears well both dry and wet. More metallic 
Nightingale*--A mysterious and dark duochrome.
Pacific Oil Slick*--black base with a blue green shimmer
Royal Orchid*--A deep metallic violet with strong red tones
Mome Rath--Shocking violet with magenta undertones. NOT VEGAN.
Frost*--An iridescent violet tint in a white base
Lady--A beautiful shimmery blue-green with a gold shimmer
Were Me Out--Shimmery dark green
Earthen*--A deep chocolaty brown
Liberty--Like the lady, this green is very much like an oxidized copper. A little bit of pink glitter with a slight metallic finish. NOT LIP SAFE OR VEGAN
Saturn--Grey, almost silver.  I can't find this on the site so it may no longer be available.
Insect--a sparkly shimmery light neutral brown with lots of iridescence. String notes of green and gold. NOT LIP SAFE.

So many swatches...
My debagged samples.



And the look...








The BRM products I used were Frost, Royal Orchid, and Snow.  It's been so long that I can't remember any of the other products I used.  If I remember correctly, all colors were used dry.

What do I think of them?
It's kind of hard to say.  I'm not somebody who uses loose eyeshadows very often.  I want to say that they are not terribly pigmented, as I have used other brands (also mineral) before that offered AMAZING pigmentation.  But again,  these guys don't pack as much of a punch as I had hoped.  Please don't take this as a review of the products, because it's not.  I'll have to play with the makeup a lot more to have a final verdict. I WILL say that the colors are really beautiful, and if I can make them work for me, I will most certainly be purchasing some full sizes.

Thanks for stopping by :)

[I have nothing to disclose.]

Monday, May 23, 2011

Learning Experience: Doing prom makeup

My baby brother and me.
Last Saturday was my baby brother's prom.  I had offered to do his girlfriend's hair and makeup, but Dave told me that she wanted to do her own makeup, but would like me to do her hair.  I'm a little more comfortable doing makeup, so I begged my brother to convince some of his female friends to let me do their makeup.  

Meanwhile, the past weekend has been crazy hectic for me.  Dave and his friends were getting ready in the morning.  I woke up at an ungodly hour Saturday morning and drove the 1.5 hours home from my apartment on 5 hours of sleep.  I was so dead tired that his friends probably thought I was a mean hobag and just isolating myself from everyone lol.  In any case, my makeup and hair supplies were packed in a hurry, and I was working in a cramped bathroom to do hair for 2 girls and makeup for 1 of them.  I didn't include their pictures in this post because I don't want to seem like I'm bashing them, because this really was an eyeopening experience for me.  Here are a few things I learned:

1. Be ready for mishaps.
I had prepared for makeup mishaps with makeup remover and cotton pads, but obviously not for hair.  I spend over an hour curling one of the girl's hair.  It was very thick, and I had to keep the curling iron in for a little bit longer to retain the curls.  She wanted to do an updo with a braid clipped over her head like a headband.  I didn't know exactly what she wanted so I told her that I'd curl her hair and let her style it the way she wanted, since she seemed pretty sure of how she wanted her hair.  Well, as we were running out of time, her updo wasn't looking that good and she didn't hide the base of her braid so it stuck out funny.  Not to mention this was about 2 hours after I did her hair and she had messed with it a lot so the curls were falling apart.  I didn't have time to fix it or do a more elegant do, so I ended up popping her hair up in a messy bun, and pinning it down with bobby pins in random places so it still looked somewhat elegant.  For this do, I didn't have to curl her hair at all so that ended up being a waste of time.

2. Guard your makeup.
I don't know if it's because time was starting to be pressing or I was just lenient cause it was my brother's friends I was dealing with but one of them basically just expected me to supply makeup for her.  Again, I was dealing with two "clients" at once so while I was busy doing one thing, the other girl was asking me where my eyeliner and concealer was instead of asking if she could actually use it.  I was not as professional as I would have liked, probably because I was tired and I didn't want to seem like a stuckup bitch, so I let her have her way.  I still have to go about sanitizing my kit.  Which leads me to the next item.

3.  Have a separate kit for clients.
I actually had a sort of kit that I would use on clients only, mostly eyeshadows and blushes.  The problem is, I use my own makeup so often that I get to be more familiar with those colors and textures more so than my client kit.  Especially since I was in a hurry to get everything together.  Also, my client kit lacked dark colors for contouring and doing more dramatic looks, so I opted to use mostly my own makeup.  For things like concealer and foundations, I decided to use my own because I don't do makeup on other people often enough to make use out of those investments.  Not to mention the fact that I do not charge money for services at this time and I am currently unemployed so I can't afford these items.

4. Clients' wants come first.
This is by far the biggest issue I was struggling with.  I am not yet professional by any means, but I know a shitload more than the average girl.  One of the girls wanted all her hair up completely, even though it would have been a lot more flattering for her to have a strand of hair on each side to frame her face.  The same girl was also horrified at my version of "light makeup" because she felt the makeup would overpower her ivory dress.  She didn't like having eyeshadow applied under her eyes.  Her foundation was a tad dark and looked slightly orange on her but she wanted to use her own foundation.  I thought I was prepared to deal with girls who wanted light, natural makeup, but obviously not.  Looking back,  I've done makeup on other girls for clubbing, parties, and performances so my style and experience has leaned towards slightly dramatic.  The eye look I ended up doing on this girl was a shimmery wash of color over the lid up to the socket line with a slightly darker color pressed onto the lid and blended out.  Eyeliner was a matte brown eyeshadow pressed into the upper lashline only.  It's really frustrating for me as an artist to know that I could do so much more with the look, but be limited because that is ultimately not what the client wants.

5. Bring a lookbook.
This would definitely have solved a lot of problems.  I've been meaning to put together a lookbook of my own, but that would have helped clients pinpoint exactly what they wanted in terms of hair and makeup.  

I typed this entire blog during class lol.  And now class is over so I better get moving.  Thanks for tuning in everyone!

Friday, May 20, 2011

20% OFF INGLOT (Canada)




ATTENTION CANADIANS~

I am soooo excited to share this with you even though I'm sweaty and tired and have an assignment due in a matter of hours (lol)!  Print out this coupon or send a facebook message to Inglot Canada, and take it into any store for 20% percent off ALL freedom palettes.  There is no limit to how many freedom palettes you order!  If you don't live near a store, you can order through Inglot Canada's website, and they will ship to anywhere in the world.  Please take note that freedom palettes in Canadian Inglots are a buttload more expensive than in the U.S., so if you live in the United States, ordering merchandise from http://www.inglotusa.com/ will still be cheaper.  This coupon is only valid from May 20 to May 23 so take advantage of it while you still can!

Oh and for those of you who don't know....

Inglot is a cosmetics company that originated from Poland, and they originally only sold nail polishes.  Their product line now features pretty much everything that most cosmetic companies feature.

They have a Freedom System where you can customize your own palettes.  You can fill these with face powders, blushes, bronzers, lipsticks, concealers, and eyeshadows.  The eyeshadows come in both square and circular form (MAC size).  I think this picture will be most useful to you guys:

Note: The "promo" featured in this picture is outdated.



You can find a lot more Inglot pictures and a video tour of an Inglot store in Montreal, Canada through my blogpost here: http://sugarbumpkin.blogspot.com/2011/02/take-tour-inside-inglot-with-me.html

Happy shopping everyone!  Tell me what you end up ordering :D

[I have nothing to disclose.]

Thursday, May 19, 2011

Trading in the old for the new--A Sephora haul



When I was first organizing my blog sale, I discovered many items that I could have traded in at Sephora for new goodies, but decided it was better if I sold them and put the money towards my financial needs.  Well, for some reason everyone that bought products from the sale scrambled for the drugstore items leaving me appalled because the high end products were significantly discounted.  I haven't been buying any makeup lately because I seriously can't afford it, so I took the opportunity to round up the products and trade them in for new goodies.

Here are the old things...

And the new!

I had a massive list of things I wanted, but I tried to narrow it down to things I needed.  I sort of did that lol.  The NARS duo in Dogon was something I've been hearing a lot of raving about over the beauty community, and I must say it looked better in pictures than it does in person.  I'll have swatches of it and all the other NARS duos I have in my collection coming up soon (hopefully!).  I'm not sure whether or not I'll keep it.

The Laguna bronzer and Sephora blush brush were definitely NOT on my list.  I didn't get the hype about the Laguna bronzer even after swatching it several times in previous Sephora visits.  This time, I decided I may as well try it on.  I asked one of the sales girls that roam around the store for a brush so that I could try it on, and I just fell in love.  If I weren't dirt poor, this would probably be my go-to bronzer for the rest of my life.  I'm still going to finish my NYC matte bronzer which is maybe a little less than half gone, but I think for special occasions I'm going to be all over Laguna.  I also fell in love with the brush I borrowed to apply the bronzer.  It is called a blush brush but is AMAZING for contouring!  The quality is absolutely amazing, so soft yet so dense.  Definitely better than any other brushes I've used including Sigma.  It was quite a splurge, but I think for sure I'm going to be investing in more Sephora brushes when I do more professional work.

The Dior bronzer in Aurora was most definitely a splurge.  This is my first Dior item, and I definitely would not have spent so much on makeup if it weren't an exchange.  Again, I found out about this product through the numerous blogs that I've read.  I swatched it on the back of my hand and it looked really orange.  I threw it into my bag anyways because I figured if I didn't like it, I could return it.  I would have tried it on but I already put some Laguna on my cheeks.

The Laura Mercier translucent powder was recommended to me by one of the makeup specialists there, and I was leaning towards it from what I have seen from reviews.  I wanted a setting powder that I could use year round, on other people, and that would work for flash photography.

The Bare Minerals Well Rested Undereye brightener is something I've heard about from Emily Noel and Michelle.  I don't have anything like this, so I thought I'd give it a go.

I exchanged some things from The Body Shop too, but didn't take pictures.  I was too excited to get these pictures and this blog up!  The items are featured in the video, though.

I hope you guys enjoyed this haul.  I'm kind of so-so on doing these types of posts/videos but if you guys like them I'll keep doing them.  Hopefully if I get the position in Korea, I'll do more haul posts just so you guys can see different sorts of makeup!  Ah yes, Korea...that will be for another time.

Have a great day everyone!

Lotsa love,
Janny

[I have nothing to disclose.]

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

New haircut, same do

One of these days I'm going to switch up my hair style.  It's been the same for a few years already, and before that I had the middle part and hair cut straight all the way around.  I haven't experimented much with my hair so I'm always a bit chicken about changing it.

Anyways the length of the bangs and the split ends all around were bugging the crap out of me so I hacked a good bit of it off.  I would have done a video but I have no real technique for cutting hair.  Rather, I just hack at it with various tools until it looks somewhat okay.  I'm never happy with what it looks like right after the cut, but I eventually grow into it.  This time is no different.

I don't have any makeup on other than what I was unable to remove from the previous day.  It's funny how when you're used to seeing someone with makeup, or if you use makeup regularly, you tend to see all the imperfections on a clean face.

Before.

The tools.

Newspaper covering the sink to catch the hair.

The aftermath.

The glorious pile of hair.

And the result.

One of these days I'll get my hair professionally cut so it doesn't look like some monster was gnawing at my head.  I'm but tired but just wanted to share this with you guys.  

Cheese and cookies,
Janny

Sunday, May 15, 2011

April 2011 Favorites!




Oh my jesus yes I know I'm late with this. Sorry!  So I'll stop the blabber and get right to it.

1. Combination of MAC's Viva Glam Cyndi and INGLOT AMC Lip Pencil 21 is bomb.  I don't know why I stupidly covered the tip of the pencil in the picture, but it's the same color as Viva Glam Cyndi.  I love the color of the lipstick but since it's Luster, it's a bit sheer.  The combination of the two products is love.  Check out this FOTD post with these two products featured.

2. NARS Blush in Deep Throat.  A cult favorite, I know, but I can see why.  Gives just the most lovely glow to the cheeks and goes with many different kinds of looks.  It doesn't over power dramatic looks and complements simple looks.

3. NARS Multiple in Copacabana. Love this as a highlighter.  Goes from a cream to powder finish and so easy to blend.  It's my go-to highligher, but I sometimes have too much fun applying it and put on a little bit too much.  A little goes a long way so this will last me freaking forever.

4. NYC Matte Bronzer.  I've been using this for a few months now.  At first I didn't like it but that was probably because I didn't blend it out enough.  I'm reluctant to try out other bronzers for contouring because this one is so freaking cheap and works so well.  It's the first face product I've hit pan on.

5. Garnier Ultra-Lift Anti-Wrinkle Firming Eye Cream.  I did a lot of crying through March and April.  That combined with removing makeup stripped the moisture from the skin around my eyes to the point where it was kinda flakey.  I grabbed this eye cream because it was the cheapest one.  Applying it daily helped restore the moisture.  The best part is, it doesn't make my eyes all puffy like other eye creams I've tried, so I'm quite pleased.

Okay, that's all for now.  Have a fabulous day everyone!

Lotsa love,
Janny

[I have nothing to disclose.]

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

FOTD: Finally a use for Satin Taupe

This is yesterday's FOTD actually.  I've pulled this look before but didn't have time to document it.  I purchased Satin Taupe last Christmas with a few other MAC cult favorites.  It certainly is a beautiful color...but I couldn't find a freaking use for it.  I wanted to do something at least semi-dramatic with it, as I get bored of simple looks pretty easily (although I do appreciate the beauty in simple looks so don't get me wrong!).  Here is what I came up with.  Nothing extravagant but still a look that I was happy with.







When I came back from school, I decided to play around with a red lipstick since I had eaten all of Viva Glam V throughout the day.  I also popped the disgusting zit under my nose and concealed the crap out of it.  The result is actually quite lovely.








Face:
-Bobbi Brown Vitamin Enriched Face Base
-Smashbox Foundation in Light 3
-Cover FX Setting Powder in Light
-NYC Matte Bronzer in Sunny
-Benefit's Coralista Blush
-Stila Illuminating Finishing Powder in Gold
-Maybelline Dream Mousse Concealer

Eyes:
-UDPP
-Too Faced Lock Down Cream Shadow in Dramarama
-MAC Satin Taupe
-Inglot e/s in 376
-The Body Shop e/s in New Nude from Boho Beauty Palette
-UD 24/7 Liner in Zero
-L'oreal Voluminous Carbon Black - Waterproof
-Sonia Kashuk Brow Kit

Lips:
-MAC Viva Glam V l/s (day)
-Marcelle l/s in 750 Sensation

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Lotsa love,
Janny

[I have nothing to disclose.]