Essie Tart Deco

Tart deco definitely did not live up to my expectations. In the bottle, the color is a coral with peach undertones, but once applied it is much more orange. I did not apply a top coat, but when you do it's an even more muted neon orange. The formula is thick, so I found it was difficult to apply it in sheer coats. If you are looking for a bright coral shade, this is definitely for you. I, however, prefer Essie Van d' go, which is a pastel pink with a hint of coral. It also turns a little more orange with a top coat. Usually, essie polishes don't do that, so I'm not sure why tart deco keeps turning a bit more orange. Nonetheless, this will probably be a nail polish that I will be wearing a lot during the summer because I have to admit, tart deco looks so pretty in outdoor lighting!

Perfect summer palette

Urban Decay Get Baked: Comes with 4 eyeshadow shades (twice baked, half baked, flipside, baked), 1 travel-sized 24/7 eyeliner (bourbon), 1 travel-sized primer potion (sin)

All shades have a rich texture, intense amount of shimmer, and are highly pigmented. Perfect combo for summer, in my opinion. I'm currently on my second full-sized bourbon liner. This might be the only product I've bought where I am in love with every item. Usually, sets like this come with one best-seller and everything else is "meh". However, these are all quality items, in my book. The only downfall I can think of is that the shadows can be a little too powdery, which can cause fallout. Sephora does not sell this product anymore, but sometimes it's available from the Urban Decay website.

Baked, Flipside, Half Baked, Twice Baked

Primer potion (sin), 24/7 liner bourbon

Urban Decay's primer potion, in sin, is not as shimmery as my swatch. Once blended, it's a shimmery, champagne base. Bourbon liner is a flat, chocolate brown with a golden sheen.

Victoria's Secret Sublime (coral) Lipgloss

Sublime-sheer, light coral/pink

The formula is not too sticky and lasts me probably 2-3 hours.

Cheeky:MAC Hipness

MAC Hipness Blush

Limited Edition (MAC To The Beach 2010 and Fafi 2008 Collection)

Hipness Blush: Light pink with a bit of coral. It contains tiny specks of shimmer, but once applied, the shimmer disappears.

I applied a sheer application, but this blush tends to stay light however it is applied.

All pictures taken in natural lighting (no flash).

Revlon Peach Smoothie

Revlon's Peach Smoothie nail polish is antiqued nude, with tiny specs of shimmer that go away within minutes and leaves a gritty texture. I didn't play around with the scent too much because it took so long to dry. Then, I just decided to slather on a top coat. I was surprised at how opaque it is. I used about 2 coats.

Eye Candy

I'll be at the midnight premiere of Eclipse on Tuesday night! I don't care what anyone says, I will always be TEAM EDWARD. My summer break has just started, but I've been so busy lately. On Thursday I have a 5 AM flight to Arizona and I'm so excited. I know the weather is going to whoop my butt though. Any tips on staying cool?

xx

MAC pigment swatches

Clockwise from upper-left: Vanilla, Brash&Bold, Frozen White, Smoke Signal

L-R: Frozen White, Vanilla, Smoke Signal(LE), Brash and Bold(LE)

Swatch=Fail

L-R: Smoke Signal, Brash&Bold, Vanilla, Frozen White

(I had a difficult time swatching them. So messy!)

Frozen white: white with a blue and purple duo-chrome.

Really unique over a black base :)

Vanilla: Shimmery ivory-white.

Probably my most used pigment, but it is honestly quite dupeable.

Smoke Signal: Released 2007.

Deep, matte, eggplant color.

I have issues with the pigment forming clumps. Ew.

Very messy, but it creates beautiful smokey purple looks.

Stains my lids :(

Looks best when paired with silver, bronze, and even lilac.

Brash&Bold: Released 2009.

Intense fuchsia.

I saw a review on this on YT and discovered that it was really overhyped.

The product itself is fantastic, but I don't have much use for it.

This does, however, create the perfect hot pink lip when paired with a clear gloss.

Cheeky:MAC Blossoming

My first 'Cheeky' Post! Woo hoo!

I picked up Blossoming blushcreme pearl in 2009 from the Cosmetic Company Store because it just appeared to be the perfect semi-matte pink, with a hint of peach undertones. It is definitely not semi matte. After swatching the top layer, I found little bits of silver glitter. Not shimmer, glitter. Even after applying a transparent powder on top, by the end of the day you are left with colorless cheeks and a few straggling glitter particles. If they made finer particles, this would make for a perfect pink cream blush!

The color, on the other hand, gives you a beautiful rosy glow. Blossoming is one of my favorite cream blushes to wear all year round. It's definitely possible to have an intense pop of color or a subtle look to avoid anything too severe.

I discovered that the most effective way of applying this blush is by dabbing a small amount on the apple of your cheeks then take a brush like the MAC 188 (small duo fiber brush) and blend it out in small, circular motions.

Wears great with: tinted moisturizer, liquid foundation, powder blush (on top), transparent powder (on top)

Avoid: applying this on top of powder foundation (this will make it look cakey and not melt onto your skin)

Sheer layer, without setting powder

Bag Lady

My purse/bag seems to change at least twice a week. So, lets take a look and see what it is now!

Bag-Nordstrom

Hand wallet-Coach outlet

Cellphone

MAC select moisturecover concealer

Rosebud strawberry lip balm

Paris Hilton Can Can mini perfume

Allure magazine July 2010

Essie Lilacism

I was in need of a purple nail polish. I knew that Metro Chic from OPI by Sephora was very popular, but it just didn't grab my attention like this polish did. So, I decided to head over to Ulta and noticed they released the spring collection. I picked up 3 of the nail polishes, but this one especially caught my eye. Lilacism is a creamy lilac shade. Essie has definitely had a bed rep. because of its streaky formula, but I didn't notice any obvious streaks. There might be some in this photo because this is one layer of polish. Oops! I love this nail polish because it works with basically any outfit. Usually I don't wear any polishes that are out of the nude/peach shades, but this is a particularly unique purple nail polish. What nail polish are you currently wearing?

Welcome!

I use to have a blog, but it was kind of ridiculous because I made a new post maybe once a month. So, here is a fresh start!

Why is the name of my blog 'The Blush Bar'? Mainly because I love blush... and everything related to beauty!

Hope you enjoy my future posts!