Sephora 2014 VIB Rouge Event Haul + Misses

My apologies for the bad angles in this video, bad focus and lack of editing. I have no editing skills whatsoever but I recently got a new camera and am in the process of experimenting. Having said that, here is my haul video. Feel free to watch it and if you wish, continue to read this post to find out which were some immediate fails. 

PS: There was thunder while filming!

Fail

I had used Make Up For Ever's Sens'Eyes in stores a lot. It's probably the most effective and quickest product to remove heavy-duty makeup. I took it home with me to use it on my eyes but I am saddened to report that this burned my eyes and left them feeling sore for hours. I'm going to have to return this one. 

Disappointment

I wasn't able to get Nars' And God Created the Woman last year, so when I heard it was going to be re-released this year featuring a new Nars brush, I was excited. Unfortunately this was a hit or miss. Some shades, especially the lightest one blended with ease while the darker shades were uneven, patchy, powdery and hard to blend. It's nice that the kit comes with the Smudge Proof Eyeshadow Base, however the included brush feels stiff and scratchy. It's a shame -- I really wanted to like this.  

Honorable Mention

I forgot to talk about one of my favorites from this haul -- the Stila Smudge Stick Waterproof Eyeliner in Turquoise. Oh my! First of all, the color is gorgeous. The best part though is that this does not budge. Literally. Once it sets, it sets. It's a beautiful shade that I think would compliment anyone, but especially those with olive undertones. I will soon be featuring an eye look using this and share it on the blog. 

Foundation SOS

We've all come a cross a few problems with our foundation... Here are some tips that might help you if your foundation isn't quite working well. 

Weekend Pop of Color

If you read yesterday's post, you know I've been pulling out my bright colors lately. I've been really inspired lately which I tend to reflect on the makeup I wear. 

I did my makeup while listening to one of my current favorite songs: Titanium (cover) by the band The Piano Guys which I discovered about a week ago. I've always wished I knew how to play the cello, violin or piano, so I fell in love with these guys. Enjoy the music video and read more to find out which products I used to achieve this colorful look!

My Highlighter Collection

Hi gorgeous!

I have a slight obsession with highlighters. I find them so versatile and so beautiful. They can instantly make a dull complexion look revived and glowy (note: there's a pretty big difference between glowy and oily). So today I'm sharing with you my highlighter collection. Enjoy! 

Father's Day Makeup (16.06.13)

Hi beauties!

I hope everyone had a great day today. I spent the day with my family for Father's Day. I'll be sharing with you the makeup I used today. Enjoy!

Nars Cordura Review and Swatches

Hi beautiful ladies! 

I feel like I haven't been here in forever! I'm so busy with school as I'm on my last year. But it feels great to be typing away. I missed blogging!

Back in April when I was in the States, I found myself walking by the Nars aisle at Sephora on and off. I had never owned a Nars Eyeshadow Duo before. To be completely honest, I had expected more from them, especially the beautiful, bright colors. I had the luck to have plenty of time to swatch each palette, and Cordura was one of my favorite ones. Hope you enjoy the review!

Friday Night Makeup: Lorac Pro Palette Smokey Eyes

Hi dolls! Quick post tonight to talk about last night's makeup which I loved. I was aiming for a dark, grungy-smokey eye. Enjoy!

May Favorites

Foundation Series: Kevyn Aucoin Sensual Skin Enhancer

I'll say it right away. This is hands down my favorite foundation. I call this my little pot of gold. Continue reading, you're gonna wanna!

Foundation Series: Dior Diorskin Forever Flawless Perfection Fusion Wear Makeup Review

Phew! My apologies for the long title. That's the entire name of this foundation. Fancy pants. Have you heard about this foundation before? Are you interested in learning more about it? If so, continue reading!

Summer Blushes

The sun seems to be shining a bit stronger these days as summer is just around the corner. I was tagged by Gorkem on Instagram to show my favorite Summer Blushes. I then decided to share it with my blogger followers. 

1. Illamasqua Excite: a beautiful matte peach powder blusher which I've reviewed here. The sweet Argentine beauty blogger, Flo, has also reviewed it here, in case you want to see more of it. 

2. Nars Orgasm: not much to say about this. It's gorgeous. It suits all skin tones. It never fails. 

3. Dior Diorskin Nude Tan Healthy Glow Enhancing Powder in 002 Sunlight: an "all-over" powder which I personally use as a bronzer. It's beautiful, and it does give you that "healthy summer glow." 

4. Tarte Amazonian Clay blush in Splendor: a very pretty rosy-pink with shimmer. Yes, it has shimmer, so I would stick to using this product when you know you'll be indoors or at night. It's beautiful, regardless. 

Which are your favorite summer blushes? Share! xoxo

Hourglass Immaculate Liquid Powder Foundation Mattifying Oil-Free Review

Hello gorgeous!

If you have combination to oily to very oily skin, you'll love this foundation. Why? Hourglass Immaculate is literally a liquid to powder foundation. If you're interested in it, continue reading!

Plum Smokey Eyes

I barely wore any makeup last week. It was one of those "blah" weeks, you know? So starting on Monday (yesterday) I decided I would begin the week trying out some make-up looks that had inspired me. I recently started following Little Kiva on YouTube and fell in love with her tutorials and her taste in make-up. One of the looks I liked the most was her Pink and Burgundy Make-Up Look, so I decided to create my own look inspired on it.

If you're interested in seeing the final results and a list of pictures of the products I used, continue reading!

Happy Birthday, Mami!

Hi my beauties!

Today (April 27) was my mom's 60th birthday... 

She's the reason why I'm obsessed with skin care, and she's one of the sweetest people on Earth. I've got a few pictures for you aside from, of course, my makeup.

My sister wasn't home on her birthday, which was on April 7th, so we celebrated both birthdays. It was very intimate-- only our closest relatives came over, but we had a beautiful day.

THE MAKEUP

You wouldn't believe it after seeing a bunch of products organized together, but I only had about 15 minutes to do my makeup today-- which is nothing to me, since I usually take a long 40ish minutes. 

I used the Make Up For Ever Aqua cream in the shade 15 as a base, which I applied with my ring finger. I have mentioned before how it's important to work with one eye at a time when using Aqua Creams, because they're completely waterproof and once they set, they set. Moving on to eyeshadows, I used the shades in the Givenchy Travel Palette, blending the darker colors into an outer V. I skipped gel liner today and just used a black kohl liner on the waterline-- Rimmel London Scandel Eyes in the shade "Black". After curling my lashes, I applied two coats of Benefit They're Real Mascara. I filled in any gaps on my already super dark eyebrows using the Clinique Super Fine Liner for Brows in the shsade "Soft Brown". 

I then moved to my face, which I primed with Smashbox Photo Finish Light. I mixed a dot of Kevyn Aucoin Sensual Skin Enhancer in the shade SX 08 with a drop of Fresh Seaberry Face Oil, blended both together on the back of my hand and then applied it on my face using a Real Techniques Buffing Brush. To conceal my dark circles, I used the Bourjois Healthy Mix Concealer in the shade "53 Dark Radiance", and then I set everything in place with the Face Powder in the Givenchy palette. I then sculpted my face with MAC Sculpting Cream in the shade "Richly Honed", applied the blush from the Givenchy palette, and highlighted the top of my cheekbones, bridge of the nose and cupid's bow with Benefit's Watts Up. 

I had already moisturized my lips using Lush Whip Stick Lip Balm prior to doing my makeup so they would be smooth by the time I applied lipstick. I used Nars Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in the shade "Dolce Vita".

PS: My nose was peeling due to a mask I had used the night before, and I didn't have time to exfoliate this morning, hence the flaky skin on my nose! If you already know about my OCDness, you then already know that, yes, the flakes are gone by now. 

MY FAMILY

My mom, Zulay, and my sister, Paola

That's it for tonight! Keep your eyes open for tons of reviews this week...

Thanks for reading! Have a lovely night and a lovely morning to my sweet followers on the other side of the world! XOXO

Face of the Day (26.04.13)

I am still in awe over the quality of the Wet N Wild eyeshadows. For $4, you get eight, yes, eight ultra pigmented eyeshadows. Today I used the left column in palette called "Comfort Zone" .

EYES

1. Urban Decay Primer Potion

2. Wet N Wild "Comfort Zone" Palette

3. Smashbox Jet Set Waterproof Eyeliner shade "Deep Black"

4. L'oreal Voluminous Original Mascara shade "Black"

5. Clinique Super Fine Liner for Brows shade "Soft Brown"

6. Rimmel London Scandal Eyes Kohl Pencil shade "Nude"

FACE

1. Clarins Beauty Flash Balm

2. Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua Compact Foundation shade 30 Beige

3. Estee Lauder Stay In Place Concealer shade Warm Light Medium

4. Benefit Hoola Bronzer

5. Nars Orgasm Blush

6. Nars Orgasm Illuminator

7. Make Up For Ever HD Powder

LIPS

1. Nars "New Lover" Velvet Gloss Lip Pencil

Final US Haul + Where Have I Been?

Hi my loves!

I know it's been a while since I last wrote a post, but I had been very busy getting ready for my brother's wedding which was on the 18th in Puerto Rico (which I LOVED). I came back to Miami on the 21st. The wedding was beautiful, and I'm very happy for my brother and my now sister-in-law, who is Puerto Rican. 

I will be going back home to Venezuela tomorrow, so I will be blogging again very soon. I have tons of info on products I have tested and liked, tested and returned. 

If you're interested in the haul and pictures from Puerto Rico, continue reading!

Aqualia Thermal 24Hr Hydrating Fortifying Lotion SPF 25 Review

Hi everyone!

I had been in the hunt for a simple sunscreen that wouldn't leave me with a white cast. Finding no good options anywhere around me, I went for a two in one product. Vichy's Aqualia range is one that I had tried before - I love their eye gel - so I figured I would try their moisturizer with SPF 30.

What is it?

A moisturizer with SPF 25.

Why is a sunscreen necessary? 
For a long time I used to hate the thought of sunscreen. It would remind me of funky scents and a white, greasy face. Not flattering. But wearing sunscreen daily is, in my opinion, the most important beauty advice. Not only are you protecting your skin against harmful UV rays which can lead to skin cancer, but you're also shielding it against premature aging. Yes, sun damage causes early wrinkles and hyper-pigmentation.

Use sunscreen on sunny days AND cloudy days as well. Everyday, all-year round.

Packaging
You get a good 50ml in a small, portable light blue plastic bottle. It comes with a pump which makes this a very hygienic product.

What is the texture like?
Creamy, but easy to blend. It doesn't leave any white streaks behind. The product does have a light fragrance to it - to me it smells like regular sunscreen, but it is not overpowering.

It's good to know that...

- It's oil-free and paraben-free.

- It contains Vichy Thermal Water and hyaluronic acid.

- It's allergy tested, so it's good for people with sensitive skin.

- It's non-comedogenic. 

What type of skin is this recommended for?

For those that are new to the blog, I have combination skin. My T-zone tends to get oily while the rest of my face is normal. I would say this would be good for people with dry, normal and combination skin. 

My thoughts?

I think this is an extraordinary daily moisturizer. It's very moisturizing, yet not greasy. It leaves my skin soft and plump and my favorite part of all: it doesn't leave any white streaks on the face. It's easy to blend across the face and it works great under makeup. It does not make my face shiny nor oily. Love!

What I'm wearing today

Vichy Aqualia Thermal UV Lotion

Benefit Girl Meets Pearl 

Maybelline Fit Me Concealer

Nars Laguna Bronzer

Bourjois Voluminizer Mascara Ultra Black

Dior Creme de Rose 

Embrace Good Skin Days (Video)

Hey beauties!

I recorded a short video giving some tips on how you can pull off a radiant look with no foundation. Make the best of your "good skin" days!

Face of the day (23.01.12) VIDEO!

Oh Lord. Did I just do that? Ok, so some lovely women encouraged me to start YouTubing. I was hesitant, but I gave it a shot.

I don't have a fancy camera, just a simple Sony Cybershot that records HD videos. 

I started filming. Yap, yap, yap, the lense shut. The camera died!

I had to record the video with my phone, so I apologize for the crappy quality even though I apologized like three times in the video. 

I wanted to make this more interactive for all of you. I hope you like it. Maybe I will make a nice YouTube one next time...

Here is a picture regardless, as well as the list of products.

 Face
1. Clarins Beauty Flash Balm
2. Dior Airflash Foundation in the shade 300
3. Laura Mercier Secret Concealer in the shade 3
4. Vichy Normaderm Concealer
5. Nars Laguna Bronzer
6. Tarte Amazonian Clay Blush in the shade Splendor
7. Benefit Girl Meets Pearl Highlighter
8. Dior Capture Totale Loose Powder in the shade 001 Bright Light

Eyes
1. Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Powder in the shade Dark Brown
2. Make Up For Ever Aqua Cream in the shade 17
3. Mac Cranberry Eyeshadow
4. Lorac Pro Palette
5. Revlon eyelash curler
6. Bourjois Volumizer Ultra Black Mascara
7. Sephora Waterproof Jumbo Crayon in the shade Black

Lips
1. Lancome Lipliner in the shade Mauvelle
2. Lancome lipstick in the shade All Done Up

I hope you liked the post! Have a lovely day! xx

Sephora Favorites: In The Glow

Christmas is coming soon and Sephora has released several sets with their "favorites" - which make a great gift to others or to yourself. The great things about these sets, is that you receive a bunch of samples to test out instead of committing to a full-size product you've never used before.

I love highlighters / luminizers. Personally, I think it gives that final touch that makes you look more radiant, awake and glowing, so this was a set I was very interested in. The only thing that bugs me is that contrary to other Sephora sets, this one does not contain a full-size product.

So are you interested in this Sephora set? Keep reading!