Category Archives: Makeup, Beauty

Recent favorites: April 2014

May 7, 2014Favorites, Makeup, Beauty, Perfume, Reviewsblush, favorites, lipgloss, makeup, makeup brushes, mascara, PerfumeCassie

I’ve been loving a bunch of products the past few weeks and I thought I’d share them with you all.

Here’s a list of the products I’ve been absolutely loving:

Vitagoods Spin for Perfect Skin brush, which comes with 4 different brush heads(Use the code BeautyC33 for a 70% discount on www.vanityplanet.com. The final cost will be $30 and includes free shipping for the United States & Canada.) This brush system has been amazing for my skin! In my opinion, it’s comparable to my Clarisonic Mia 2. It’s extremely gentle on my skin and removes all of the dirt and dead skin cells. I also love how it comes with 4 different brush heads. For a more info on this system check out my separate blog post reviewing it.
Next up is the @itcosmetics My Sculpted Face Palette. This bad boy is amaaaazinggg. Don’t get me wrong, I love my Anastasia Beverly Hills Contour Kit, but this one is more accessible since the ABH one is currently out of stock. The It Cosmetics palette can be found at ULTA for $38.00. Another reason I enjoy this palette is because the powders are waterproof. That really is essential for me since I live in the hot, humid South.
I’ve also been obsessed with my rose gold @luxielush brushes. First off, they’re gorgeous! But beyond aesthetics, they have synthetic hair and blend all of my cream, liquid, and powder products out flawlessly. I can’t get enough of them! Use the code Cassie for 15% off www.luxielush.com/
I also adore my @hairandmakeupaddiction brushes. They’re similar to the Luxie Lush brushes in that they’re both made of synthetic hair and are super soft. I love these guys as well.
Another recent favorite has been @tartecosmetics Amazonian clay blush in Captivating. This is the most perfect peachy, coral blush. It’s matte and long lasting. I’ve pretty much been wearing it everyday lol. Love it!
Next is @tartecosmetics Lights, Camera, Lashes mascara. If I recall correctly, I’ve been using this since November of 2013. I only wear it on my lower lashes since it doesn’t seem to hold the curl of my upper lashes. However, it looks stunning on my lower lashes! This mascara is great because it conditions your lashes as well.
My newest favorite is the @tartecosmetics Brazilliance self-tanner. I started using this April 24th and it’s pure magic! This was the first self-tanner I had ever used and it definitely changed my opinion of them. It creates such a gorgeous, natural looking tan and you see results within 8 hours of application! I have a before and after pic on my Instagram(with 3 applications). So, if you’re in the market for a great, streak-free, “long-lasting” self-tanner, check this out!
Next are the @anastasiabeverlyhills Pro Concealers. These guys are soooo good! (I have a separate blog post reviewing them). But overall, I love them because they provide such full coverage, work beautifully for contouring, and are great for under eye circles. I never experience any creasing(I always set my face, including my under eyes, with powder).
@anastasiabeverlyhills Brow Power Duo in Medium Brown has been a long-time favorite of mine. I’ve been using it for almost a year and it never fails me! It’s the perfect shade for my hair and has great lasting power on me.
@cultureshockcosmetics High Frequency Luster in Joy has been one of my favorite glosses lately since it’s a perfect coral shade for Spring.
Next, one of my all-time favorite nude glosses, @alexapersicocosmetics Naked Lip Velour, is something I’ve been reaching for whenever I do a dark smokey eye. It’s just a gorgeous nude!
@alexapersicocosmetics HD pigment in Pixi Dust has been another recent favorite, it’s such a beautiful shimmery golden color that I love to wear on my lid and lower lash line and pair with bronzer for an all-over glow-y look which is perfect for Spring and Summer.
The @urbandecaycosmetics Naked Palette, of course, makes my favorites list! I recently purchased this, I’d say, within the past few weeks–I know… I’m SUPER LATE in jumping on the bandwagon– and I’ve been reaching for it non-stop. It contains some of my favorite neutral shadows and is easy to create an everyday look without even thinking.
So, I’ve recently become a perfume addict and Florabotanica by @Balenciaga has become one of my all-time favorites(how many times can I say favorite? lol). I don’t even know how to describe it but I’ll try… It’s definitely a classy, mysterious, and sexy scent in my opinion. The scent definitely develops the longer you wear it on your skin. The lasting power is phenomenal on me(almost a full work day. Maybe even longer) and it goes extremely well with my body chemistry. The notes include: Carnation, Wild Mint, Turkish Rose Essence, Hemp Leaves, Vetiver Roots, and White Amber.
My last recent favorite is Moodstruck 3D Fiber Lashes mascara by @3dlashesbycandicec. I received this product for review a few weeks ago and now I’m hooked! It adds incredible length and volume to your lashes(I have an extreme before and after pic on Instagram). Overall, I love that it’s buildable so you can add minimal length and volume or go all out and achieve super dramatic lashes without falsies.

Review: New Violet Voss Eyeshadows

April 11, 2014Makeup, Beauty, Reviewseyeshadows, makeup, New, review, violet vossCassie

I received seven super pigmented eyeshadows from www.shopvioletvoss.com (@shopvioletvoss on Instagram) and they are amazing! I was tempted to buy the new Urban Decay Electric palette prior to receiving these but decided against it since these are so vibrant and blendable.

Some of the shadow do appear to have slight shimmer particles running through them but they aren’t noticeable when applied to the eyelids– they appear to have a matte finish.

The shadows I received are

Patty, a matte purple
Bridgette, a matte sky blue
Giselle, a matte green
Yvette, a matte yellow
Ophelia, a matte orange
Giana, a matte pink
Ryder, a matte red

Overall, I definitely recommend these shadows! They’re easy to blend and are matte, which I love! Sometimes it’s hard to find nicely pigmented brightly colored shadows(especially matte ones!).

Here are the swatches of all seven colors (Keep in mind I didn’t use a primer or base.) :

As you can tell, they are incredibly bright and beautiful!

I created a purple cut crease look using Patty, a gorgeous matte purple.

Here are some pictures– All product details can be found on my Instagram page, @BeautyByCassie93.

Review: Elegant Lashes New Collections for April and May 2014

April 10, 2014Lashes, Makeup, Beauty, ReviewsFalse Lashes, lashes, New, reviewCassie

I’m excited to let you all know that one of my favorite lash companies is releasing two new collections!

Elegant lashes–@elegantlashes on Instagram– is a great company that offers lashes in bulk at amazing prices! Their website is www.FalseEyelashesSite.com. For a FREE pair of #415 Black lashes use the code BeautyByCassie93 at checkout.

The “Black Velvet Collection” will consist of their new premium luxury lashes. It will be launching in May 2014. This collection will include four pairs of upper lashes–one is a pair of accent lashes– and two pairs of lower lashes. The lashes are all made of cruelty-free synthetic hairs and are extremely durable and jet black in color.

Here is the new “Black Velvet” Collection launching May 2014 (Click image to enlarge)

The next collection, “Sexy Undies,” consists of their three best-selling bottom lash styles and three NEW bottom lash styles. Each pair is made of 100% human hair.

If you were wondering, I’ve never tried bottom lashes before since I never feel the need to use them but I’m excited to try these guys out! 🙂

“Sexy Undies” Collection launching April 18th. (Click image to enlarge)

Review: Born Pretty Store

March 28, 2014Jewelry, Makeup, Beauty, ReviewsBracelet, eyeshadow, Eyeshadow Palette, Jewelry, Natural, Neutral, PaletteCassie

So I’ve recently come across www.bornprettystore.com and it’s awesome! They carry everything from makeup to nail accessories to phone cases to even colored contacts. And I haven’t even mentioned their prices… They’re great! Everything is such a steal. Born Pretty Store also has free shipping worldwide. And if that isn’t already amazing, if you use the code CASH10 at checkout you receive 10% off your order! 🙂

I received the 72 Matte Natural Colors Eyeshadow Palette and let me just tell you it’s fantastic. It has easily become my most used everyday palette since it contains mostly matte neutral shadows that blend easily and are nicely pigmented. I also like how it even contains a few vibrant coral and pinks shades.

Here’s a quick everyday look I created using the palette.

Another item I received is this cute antler bracelet covered in rhinestones. I’m absolutely in love with it and it fits me perfectly.

Review: New Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Pro Palette

March 6, 2014Makeup, Beauty, ReviewsCassie

I’m excited to share with you all the new Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Pro Palette which will be released on www.anastasia.net on March 15th for $88.00, which is an extremely good deal considering each Brow Powder Duo costs $23.oo and this palette contains 11 duos.

I do own the original Brow Pro Palette, which only has 6 Brow Powder Duo shades. Those shades include Golden Blonde, Taupe, Medium Brown, Dark Brown, Strawburn, and Ebony. It also has a concealer and brow wax. (I will be inserting pictures of the original Brow Pro Palette soon).

In contrast, the new Brow Pro Palette has 11 Brow Powder Duo shades which allows for more versatility. It includes Blonde, Taupe, Soft Brown, Medium Brown, Caramel, Auburn, Chocolate, Dark Brown, Ebony, Ash Brown, and Granite. The new palette also has a brow primer but no concealer, which doesn’t matter to me since I almost never use concealer to carve out my brows.

The palette includes warm, cool, and neutral shades.

Warm shades:

Blonde
Caramel
Auburn
Chocolate
Ebony

Cool shades:

Taupe
Medium Brown
Ash Brown
Granite

Neutral shades:

Soft brown
Dark Brown

Each of the 11 pans contains 1.6 grams of product, which is a nice amount. (I have a Brow Powder Duo single which I’ve been using pretty much daily since July of 2013 and I haven’t even hit pan yet!).

I’m absolutely thrilled to have the updated palette. It will be awesome for experimenting with different colored brows. In my opinion, this palette is essential for a makeup artist’s kit. The palette is extremely compact and thin which means it’ll be great for traveling. All of the shades come in round pans which are removable and magnetic. Anastasia will be selling the pans individually on her site which I think is extremely convenient.

Overall, I’m definitely impressed with the new Brow Pro Palette.

P.S. I will insert more pictures soon.

Review: Anastasia Beverly Hills Pro Series Concealers

March 5, 2014Makeup, Beauty, ReviewsAnastasia Beverly Hills, concealer, new produtcs, reviewCassie

As you all may have heard, @anastasiabeverlyhills will be launching 10 Pro Series Concealers on March 15th. I was lucky enough to receive them prior to the 15th so I decided I would do a mini review and swatch them for you all. 🙂

The concealers arrived with a little “handout,” if you will, which had all of the information regarding the product. It read:

“10 shades to perfectly match skin tones. The shades feature warm and cool undertones for perfect color matching and blending.”

Will not settle into fine lines and wrinkles.
Long wearing. Will not fade off or smudge.
Formula is extremely blendable and sets to a long-wearing finish.
Full-coverage formula masks all sorts of discoloration, blemishes, and even dark circles.
Formula “floats” on top of skin and will not cake or fade.
To conceal discoloration or dark circles, simply apply concealer with the tip of the ring finger and tap to blend. Be sure not to rub.

It also showed the available shades and their numbers. Another thing it showed, was how to “carve” out your brow with concealer.

Now for my thoughts…

First off, I want you guys to know that these are literally the creamiest concealers I've ever used in my entire life! No joke! When I dipped my finger in the jar I was so surprised at how smooth and creamy it was! Also, they really are amazingly moisturizing and blendable.

I really had to scrub this stuff off of my arm so it's definitely long lasting! These will be great for under eye circles, blemishes, and I would even use these to contour. To say the least, I'm in love!

I also want to point out the fact that Anastasia has really created a great range of colors for the palest people to the darkest ones. She even mentioned that she plans on releasing 7 more shades this coming June (exciting, right?!).

They will be available in 10 shades on www.anastasia.net on March 15th. Each one is $20 and contains 10 grams or 0.35 oz. of product so they should last foreverrr! The #18 concealer brush will also be available on March 15th(not sure about the pricing yet).

Here are swatches of the new Anastastia Beverly Hills Pro Series Concealers. FYI, these are raw and unedited photos so you can see the true colors. The first set of swatches is without flash and the one below is with flash.

P.S. I will be adding additional photos and updating this review after I’ve had some time to use the concealers.

Update: I’ve been using these concealers daily for the past 5 days and I’m absolutely in love! I’ve been applying them with my finger tips under my eyes and they are really great for dark circles. These stay put all day long as long as I set them with powder, which isn’t an issue since I always set any type of cream or liquid product I use with powder. These concealers are also great for concealing any blemishes or scars you may have.

My Go-to Everyday Look

March 4, 2014Makeup, Beautybronze, Everyday makeup, makeup, SimpleCassie

Dramatic looks and false lashes are not something I do everyday. I go for simple neutral looks for school and work. I mean, who really has time to get super dolled up every single day? Lol. Anyway, this has been my current go-to look as of late. It incorporates bronze-y tones which are always a good option and don’t require much thought, in my opinion. I can throw this look together and be out the door in no time. I enjoy looks like this because I want to look put together but not overly done during the day.

See below for product details.

Skin: Physicians Formula Mineral Wear Loose Powder and @tartecosmetics Amazonian Colored Clay Bronzer Blush in Pink Bronze.

Eyes: @alexapersicocosmetics Tuscany Sunset palette and @tartecosmetics Lights, Camera, Lashes mascara on lower lashes. On my upper lashes I did a coat of Maybelline The Rocket Waterproof to hold my curl and then Too Faced Better than Sex mascara over top.

Lips: @la_mir_cosmetics Lip Gloss in “Lavish Lies”

Brows: @anastasiabeverlyhills Brow Powder Duo in Medium Brown.

Brushes used: @hairandmakeupaddiction and @rccosmetics.

Review and Swatches of Tarte Spring 2014 Power Pigments

February 25, 2014Makeup, Beauty, Reviewslips, makeup, power pigments, review, spring, TarteCassie

How cute are the new Spring 2014 power pigments by Tarte?! As I stated in my previous post about the Tarte Spring 2014 Cheek Stains, the packaging is adorable. The power pigments have coordinating shades in the cheek stain line and each shade has matching packaging. The eight shades available are True Love, Natural Beauty, Exposed, Blissful, Tipsy, Blushing Bride, Flush, and Fearless.

These new power pigments are extremely pigmented and I really do enjoy them. In this post I’ll be showing swatches on my wrist and lip swatches.

If you were wondering if these are similar to the LipSurgences, they are similar in shape but they are definitely much skinnier and contain less product. A regular LipSurgence contains 0.10 ounces of product, while the power pigments contain 0.04 ounces.

The power pigments retail for $24.00 USD each for 0.04 ounces.

*Click images to enlarge.

Here are close ups of each power pigment.

First up is True Love, a sheer watermelon color.

Next is Natural Beauty, a sheer rosy red.

Then we have Exposed, which is a nude pink shade.

The next shade is Blissful, a warm peach color.

Next up is Tipsy, which is a sheer coral color.

Then there’s Blushing Bride, a rosy pink color.

Next is Flush, which is a sheer berry shade.

Finally, we have Fearless, a pink coral color.

Now, here are swatches of the colors on my wrist–in natural light and direct sunlight.

And now for the actual lip swatches (Click image to enlarge).

Review of Tarte Spring 2014 Cheek Stains

February 20, 2014Makeup, Beauty, Reviewsblush, cheek stain, makeup, review, spring, Tarte, tarte cheek stainsCassie

All of the 8 cheek stains for Spring 2014

Here are the new Spring 2014 cheek stains by Tarte. I’m really loving the cute new packaging! These cheek stains are nicely pigmented and can be built up to achieve more intense stain if desired. The eight shades include True Love, Natural Beauty, Exposed, Blissful, Tipsy, Blushing Bride, Flush, and Fearless. The rounded top cheek stains are gel based, while the flat top stains are a cream based formula. All of the cheek stains are easy to blend and can be applied with your finger tips or a brush. I prefer using a small stipple brush to apply them.

Besides wearing the cheek stains alone, I like to layer a similar powder blush shade on top for even extra lasting power. This technique is especially great for hot, humid Summer days.

Tarte cheek stains retail for $30.00 USD each and contain 0.5 ounces of product. Even though 0.5 ounces sounds like a small amount, the stains are very well pigmented therefore they should last a long time.

Each of the eight cheek stains have a coordinating Tarte Power Pigment shade. I will be posting pictures and swatches of the power pigments in a separate post.

*Click images to enlarge.

The first cheek stain is True Love. It’s a beautiful sheer watermelon shade.

The next shade is Natural Beauty. This is a sheer warm rosy red color.

Then, there’s Exposed, which is a nude pink. It’s formerly known as “Awakening”.

The next cheek stain is Blissful. This is a warm peach shade.

After that, there’s Tipsy, which is a sheer coral color.

Next up is Blushing Bride, a rosy pink shade.

The next stain is Flush. It’s a sheer berry color.

Lastly, we have Fearless, a pink coral color.

Tutorial: Smokey bronze eyes

February 14, 2014Tutorialsbronze, brown eyes, eyeshadow, lashes, mascaraCassie

Smokey bronze eyes using the @toofaced A Few of My Favorite Things palette, Demi Wispies by @ardell_lashes, and @hairandmakeupaddiction brushes.

First start off by applying Maybelline Color Tattoo in Bad to the Bronze to center of the lid and apply Maybelline Color Tattoo in Rich Mahogany to the outer and inner corner of the lid. Next, apply Chocolate Milk from the Too Faced palette to your crease. After that, apply Dark Chocolate from the palette to the outer and inner corner of the lid and blend into the crease. Next, apply Tinsel to the center of the lid. Then, apply Anastasia Beverly Hills Covet Waterproof Eyeliner in Noir to the waterline and smudge out. Next, apply Tinsel to the center of your lower lash line and Dark Chocolate to the outer and inner corner of the lower lash line. Later, line the upper lash line with Pure Glam from the Too Faced palette. Next, apply Jordana Best Lash Extreme mascara and Ardell Demi Wispies. Also, highlight your tear duct with Snowflakes from the palette.