Makeup Essentials | Lauren Slade

   
     Hello Everyone! I know that I have been away for quite some time now but I just needed another little break from blogging so that my content stays exciting! I have decided to change some things up like the font that my blog posts have and also the actual blog post title is going to have a slight change. Anyways... Today I want to talk about some simple makeup products that I have to have on a daily basis to make myself feel comfortable leaving the house. Keep in mind, I am an aspiring makeup artist and a makeup enthusiast so if you don't even want to wear makeup than you don't have too! 

     To start off I think it is important to have a base, so I make sure that I apply my foundation as I normally would (liquid foundation and set it with powder) and then I want to make sure that I look awake so apply an under eye concealer to awaken the face.

L-R: Covergirl Clean Oil Control in Ivory, Almay Clear Complexion Pressed Powder in Light
B: Hard Candy Glamoflauge Heavy Duty Concealer in Ultra Light

     Another thing that makes me feel beautiful is blush! Blush is one of those things that can completely transform your makeup look and add dimension to the face. I think the best option is to go with a light pinky blush (that is what I would use) or any colour that would look natural on your skin tone.  

L-R: Wet n' Wild Coloricon Blush in Pearlescent Pink, Laura Geller Blush - N - Brighten in Raspberry, essence Silky Touch Blush in Adorable  

     Now, lets bring some attention to the eyes. The eyes can be tricky because if you are just out running errands, you probably don't want or need an entire eye look (okay, not gonna lie, I do that sometimes) but most of us feel more comfortable with just a little somethin' on the eyes to make them pop and add dimension. I recommend using a brown eye liner and apply it however you normally would; brown is a great option instead of black because it is not as intense. After you have applied your brown eyeliner, my next step would be to apply mascara! I find that mascara is just another great makeup product that awakens the face even more.

NYX Retractable Eye Liner in Brown

     Okay so now we have pretty much all of our essentials but I know that I love having a great lip! Lip products are probably my favourite makeup item to buy and wear and I always leave the house with some form of lip product on. I think that it is important to own a nude coloured gloss that you can apply on its own to add extra voloume to your lips or just as a topper to lipsticks but when you want to go that extra mile you should pick a lipstick shade that makes you feel beautiful. I personally like bold lip colours the most so I tend to go for crazier shades.

L-R: Teeez Golden Glow Lipgloss in Silky Nude, Covergirl Lipstick in Feline, e.l.f Matte Lip Color in Rich Red, NYC Cityproof Twistable Intense Lip Color in Gramercy Park Plum, Rimmel London Lasting Finish by Kate Moss in 110, Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick in Black Cherry. ( These are just some of my favourite shades of lipsticks)

     The last thing that we need to put on before we leave the house is a BIG SMILE! Always remember that makeup is something that we should do as a hobby and to make ourselves feel fancy, but we do not NEED it! It is just makeup and everyone is beautiful no matter if they wear a full face of makeup or wear none at all. 

I also think brows are important so if you want to see how I do my brows, read through this post!
Love yourself!

     Love Lauren


Product Information & Other Links:

e.l.f
Covergirl
Revlon
Almay
NYX
Rimmel London 
Laura Geller
Wet n' Wild
NYC
essence
Teeez

First Impression | Tarte Rainforest After Dark Palette

     After all the hype going around Youtube over this limited edition fall palette by Tarte I figured that I would go on sephora.com and order it. I must say, ordering it was the right decision because this palette is BEAUTIFUL.

     This palette includes a stunning highlighter(Champagne), bronzer(Park Ave Princess), blush(Unleashed) and 6 eyeshadows(Bare to Explore, Make a Mauve, Plum Away With Me, Up to No Gold, Tan-gled Up in You & Don't Turn a Brown). The highlighter is my favourite product in the whole palette, it is gorgeous and the light captures it beautifully. The bronzer is warmer than I would usually use but it is still very pretty and it is great for bronzing but not great for contouring in my personal opinion. The blush is a very nice shade but I wish it was slightly deeper than it is, this colour will be a very nice everyday shade for fall but nothing bold.

     The palette has 6 beautiful fall eyeshadows that I have gotten to play around with a little bit and my favourite shades are definitely "Bare to Explore", "Plum Away With Me" and "Tan-gled Up in You". These shadows are very pigmented and blendable, but they do crease on me faster than a Urban Decay shadow would but keep in mind that I have oily eyelids and all shadows that I have tried crease on me at some point in the day. 

top L-R: champagne, park ave princess, unleashed, bare to explore, make a mauve
bottom L-R: plum away with me, up to no gold, tan-gled up in you, don't turn a brown

     I love the packaging of this product. It is made out of plastic and closes very nicely, it feels very sturdy. The lid has a beautiful snake design with a purple gem on top of the snakes head and on the inside it has a nice large mirror. Overall I have really been enjoying this palette and I will continue to play around with it. If I were you I would check out this palette before its gone! 

xo,

     Lauren    

      

First Impression | Maybelline Leather Color Tattoo

   
     If you have not heard of the Maybelline Color Tattoos you must be living under a rock. The Color Tattoos are a long wearing cream shadow that I have always wanted to try, but I have never before made the point to go buy any. Once I heard about the leather collection I HAD to go get some.

     
     This line of the Color Tattoos are matte which is what encouraged me to buy this one! I have the shade Chocolate Suede and it is the prettiest brown that I have ever seen. This colour is quite unique because it is in fact part of the matte line of colours but it has a pretty pink/purple shimmer in it but some how it is still matte and you will see that in the pictures.

     The Color Tattoos claim to be a really long wearing eyeshadow and I have put that claim to the test. I used a primer and then applied this to my eyelids without setting it so that I could get the true result (the only reason I applied a primer is because I always apply a primer no matter what). It is currently very hot where I live so I did experience some creasing but for the most part I always have creasing because of my eyelids and eye shape so don't let that throw you off. I would say that it would've lasted longer if I had of set it with a powder shadow. 

     This collection has 5 shades to choose from and the other shades that I want to have in my makeup collection are Vintage Plum and Deep Forest. I am thoroughly impressed with this product and I will continue to work with it and play around with it. Overall it passes my first impressions test!


xo,

     Lauren


---PRODUCT INFORMATION--- 

     
Maybelline

The Budget Blogger | NYC Expert Last Lipstick

     Hey guys! I want to start this little series about super affordable makeup products that I find amazing. I don't plan to have a schedule for this series but I want to make a special category for really affordable products, as even some drugstore products can sometimes be a little too pricey for what they are worth (in Canada at least).

     The product that I want to talk about today is the NYC (New York Color) Expert Last Lipstick. Now, I know what you are thinking... NYC? Really Lauren? But hey, I know NYC has a reputation of not being near the best but this product really hits it out of the park for me! Where I live I can get these lipsticks for around $1.79/$2.00 or at Walmart for 3 for $3.00 which is an amazing price. 

     These lipsticks are super buttery soft and glide on beautifully. I have 5 shades from this line out of the 20 shades that they offer. I own, Blue Rose, Candy Rush, Creamy Caramel, Coralista and Smooch. Personally I love all these shades and I would like to have all the shades from the whole line. Not only do these lipsticks glide on beautifully but they have one of the most amazing smells on a lipstick that I have ever smelt. 

top- Coralista, Candy Rush, Blue Rose, Creamy Caramel, Smooch

     Although I LOVE these lipsticks, there is one negative that I see in them. This negative is more towards a claim they make than the actual lipstick. The lipstick claims to last up to 6 hours, now I don't know about you, but I am a talker... I love to talk and I usually eat food within 6 hours so I have never experienced a lipstick lasting more than 3 or 4 hours on me and these lipstick are no different. So maybe if you don't really speak or eat with this product on, they will last longer but considering they are not a staining lip product of any kind, they don't last that long at all. 

      I also have a concern with the packaging. If packaging is huge selling point for you, you may not like these lipsticks for that one purpose... As you can see in my pictures, the labeling wears off and this gives the tube a "cheap" look. The lipstick bullet itself doesn't go fully down into the tube so you have to be careful when placing the top back on that you don't take a chunk out of the bullet. 

    In the end, this product is Lauren Michelle Makeup approved and these are some of the best lipsticks from the drugstore in my opinion and I will be purchasing more shades fro this line as time goes on.

xo,

     Lauren

---PRODUCT INFORMATION---

NYC Expert Last Lipstick 

Walmart

Product Review | Stila Single Eye Shadow in Java

     If you know me, you know that I am a drug store makeup girl at heart but that being said, my eye shadow is one thing that I like to splurge on. I spend the most money on eye shadow products (including primer). Ironically I did not pay full price for the product that I am going to talk about today but I would have if I had to replace this. Now, what is this product? You might be wondering... It is the Stila eye shadow in the shade Java.

     Long story short... this eye shadow kicks ass! Hello amazing pigmentation. Java is a deep matte brown. It glides on very easily and blends like a dream. It is super soft to the touch as well, which is huge plus to me. I wouldn't say that it is incredibly long lasting but keep in mind that I have oily eyelids.

     The main purpose that I like this for is as a definer shade. When using this shade I apply it to the outer half of my lid and blend the edges of the shade on the inner half with it so its not harsh and then I take my crease brush and continue to blend that colour into the outer part of my crease and sometimes for a more dramatic look, I will take that colour all the way across the crease. Keep in mind though that I didn't find crease work very easy with this shade so I suggest putting a transition shade underneath it like Naked or Buck from Urban Decay and then take Naked for your transition area. These extra steps just make it a little easier to work with if applying it fully to the crease.

**Swatched over a white base** All images are my own

     Overall this is one of my favourite definer shades and I really love the way it looks. I think it can be very versatile and usable for all skin tones. This is a Lauren Michelle Makeup approved product, check it out!      

xo,

     Lauren


--- PRODUCT INFORMATION---

Stila - Java
Buck
Naked

Product Review | L'Oreal Miss Manga Mascara

     The past few weeks have been kinda crazy for me... BUT in that crazy few weeks I have found a new mascara and guys, I cannot believe that I am saying this but it has beat The Rocket Mascara by Maybelline... it is the new L'Oreal Miss Manga Mascara. Now worry not, The Rocket is still the mascara of choice for my bottom lashes but for the top lashes this Miss Manga mascara is amazing.

     I was always a huge fan of rubberized silicone wands but this mascara has a bristle wand and I must say I think it makes a world of difference to the way the mascara is applied and the volume that you get from it. The wand from this mascara is also shaped a little differently with one end being thicker than the other, it is just magical!

     This mascara claims to give you 15x the volume with no clumps and I would completely agree with this. I have had this mascara for around a month now and I use it every single day. I also have very sensitive eyes and I have had issues in the past with other mascaras stinging and burning my eyes but this L'Oreal mascara is super comfortable to wear and incredibly long wearing for a non-waterproof mascara (I will be purchasing waterproof, they just didn't have it when I bought mine). 

All images are my own.

     Long story short this mascara is Lauren Michelle Makeup approved and if you see it in your drugstore make sure to pick it up and give it a whirl! 

xo,
     Lauren


---Product Information---

L'Oreal Miss Manga Mascara

Maybelline The Rocket Mascara

Why Do I Love Makeup?

                                          

     I always get the question "why?" when related to my obsession with makeup (yes I know I have an addiction to the stuff!) and sometimes it is very hard to give an answer, because "I just do" is not really a good enough reason, so I want to take a few minutes to try to put it into words. 

     In my earlier elementary school years my Mom and I would always watch "What Not To Wear" on TLC every Friday night. The makeup artist from that show is named Carmindy and I always admired her skills and just loved her personality and the way that she spread confidence onto everyone that she put her artwork on. When I was younger I thought to myself, "wouldn't it be so cool to be a makeup artist?" but then I realized that "I didn't wear any makeup so I probably could never be a makeup artist", so I moved on from the idea. A few years later in the 8th grade I started wearing some light makeup, such as a pressed powder and a little bit of mascara, but that was it! Once I started with that bit of makeup, I grew every school year after and now I am in the 12th grade of high school and making serious plans to go to school to be a makeup artist for the theatre and/or fashion industry.

     Makeup has become the centre of my life, everything revolves around it (I even picked out my eye glasses based on how they would effect my makeup). Words cannot describe how much confidence it has given me and it has made me realize that I have a talent and a natural knack for this kind of work. I grasp the concepts of makeup art quickly and I am always driven to know and learn more. Whether you know me or not, if you bring up the topic of makeup or ask me a question about it, I could talk to you about it for hours and hours; but after all this rambling is done and over with, I have an answer that I have always loved and I first heard it from Wayne Goss when he was discribing why he chose the career that he did. It is...

I just love it.

                                              

     Although I do love makeup, inner beauty is so important to me as well. The love of makeup is a choice I make for myself. No one truly needs it as we are all simply beautiful!

The Hills Are Alive | My Experience!

Image found on Google. 

     Recently I had the honour of being the make-up team leader for my high school's production of the classic musical "The Sound of Music". Firstly I want to say that the talent at my high school is AMAZING! We have some wicked voices (for security and personal reasons I am not going to state names or high school location). The girl who plays the lead role of "Maria" is an amazing talent who fit the role perfectly... and I mean perfectly... No one could have done a better job in that role (you go girl!).

     Now, let's get to my little taste of the limelight! No, I wasn't on stage or singing to the top of my lungs, but I very well could of been. This whole experience was a great taste of what I want my career to consist of. I learned so much from an amazingly talented local make-up artist and she showed me so many amazing techniques and gave me such great advice. I think I valued that most of all. It is so rewarding to know what you are doing wrong/what you could improve on and then be given the advice to help you move forward and advance that skill. 

     I want to just point out as well that I have had many career ideas bounce through my head... I knew that I wanted a fast paced job and a job where I wouldn't know what to expect day to day. I wanted a job where I would be on the go and get to meet lots of new and exciting people. I honestly believe that this kind of career will be able to do that for me. Throughout this whole experience I have had the chance to talk face-to-face with some pretty cool and amazing people that I would not have gotten to talk to before. I also got to share my passion and knowledge with a lot of the cast; as I was the go to girl for any make-up related questions that someone might of had.  

    Overall, I have realized that my passion is worth pursuing and this is what I want for my life. Working with this cast was honestly amazing and everyone was so welcoming.

I wanted to save the actual make-up products for the end because not everyone reading this will know what I am talking about: 

     For the make-up, basic stage make-up was used. Ben Nye & Mehron were used the most, as well as a few just standard drug store make-up products. Overall I liked working with these brands and they were fairly easy to work with. The only issue that I had, was with the Ben Nye concealer wheel. We used this wheel for both concealer and as a highlight. The blendability was a bit of an issue (mostly on the male performers) but other than that all the products used were very nice. I also had to do some ageing (A few being aged 45-50 & One who was being aged to around 70). For this I didn't do anything too intense, just a bit of work with some contouring around the "nasal labial fold" as well as creating bags under the eyes. More work with contouring was used on the ageing of getting the girl to 70, but it was all done using the same technique. 

     One last time I would like to congratulate the entire cast for doing such an amazing job and I would like to thank all the people that I personally worked with for letting me do your make-up, it really was great fun for me and I would do it again in a heartbeat!  

Products NOT Worth The Hype | eos Lip Ball/Balm

     I am sure you have seen the pictures of eos balms all over social media sites and in the hands of mall go-ers everywhere and I have to say I have not been the most impressed with this product. 

     When I first bought my eos balm, I have to say I was pretty excited! But as I soon realized... the formulation was not as good as the packaging leads it off to be. The way it's packaged is super cute but when you really get to the product it has quite a few downsides. Some of them being:

1. The taste is not the most pleasant thing; no I do not go around eating lip products, but I do get the flavour from mine and it is not that tasty. I love the smell of these things (and I cannot remember what the name of my flavour is) but the taste is not so nice. I guess this is not the most valid point because I have only tried one flavour, but I have a strong feeling that a lot of the flavours are this way.

2. "More is less" ... With this product I find that you have to apply A LOT of product at any given time to feel any kind of results at all... I have many lip balms that take effect after just one layer of application, but with the eos balms, you have to build and builD and buiLD and buILD and bUILD and BUILD... anyways you get the point! 

3.The packaging does in fact have a downside... It gets SO dirty! Yes, the material of it is nice and soft and yes when you first get it it's a nice pretty colour but after being in your make-up bag and on the go it starts to look very dirty.

4. The formulation is sticky, YES, sticky. Once you have applied all the layers that you need it tends to feel very weird on the lips and quite sticky and that is something I would expect and ignore from a lip gloss but not from a lip balm.

Found all Images on Google.

     I want to say that all these opinions are my own opinions and I have heard from some people that they do like it, but I think that the eos balms have too much hype around them for what they are really worth. Not going to lie... I do use it on occasion... I am wearing it right now actually... But I do not consider it a huge "+" to my make-up collection and I would for sure not repurchase it. To me it isn't much more than a pretty picture.