Swatch Test: Urban Decay Ammo Palette

After a request from M when she heard that I ordered it, here is a post dedicated to Urban Decay's Ammo palette. I really like most of this palette so far. The colours go on easily when wearing a primer and they blend with each other with little to no effort. Unfortunately, I find it basically impossible to blend these shadows with any other brand which I think is very strange but that aside, I do really like UD eye shadows.

One thing I like about this palette especially is that it has the shadow sin included. I've been dying to get my hands on this shadow since I first bought the primer and I love the two together. Blending sin in with a darker neutral colour like smog (also in this palette) makes for a great work appropriate look for the day. The palette also features shadows like last call and grifter which are fun and interesting for an after hours look.

Anyway, without any further delay, here is the palette:

In general, I prefer shimmery shadows and not sparkly ones. I have another sparkly UD shadow and I find that it gets glitter everywhere which is incredibly annoying. That being said, I doubt I'll ever actually use oil slick or maui wowie. For reference's sake, I took a picture of my really pale arm so that you can see exactly what the colours are in the swatch test. 

The shades go as follows on my arm:

smog

mildew

oil slick

last call

chopper

maui wowie

shattered

polyester bride (which you can just barely see because I really am that white)

grifter

sin

Obviously these shades will turn out differently with a primer and on different skin tones. But there you have it, ladies and gentlemen, Urban Decay's Ammo Palette.

A Little Spot of my Own

So, after many weeks of absence, I have returned! I won't go into detail about where I've been (computer trouble, phone trouble, illness, etc) but I will say that I have something to talk about today! I find that having a safe, comfortable place to put on my makeup is essential for my daily routine. I always look me best when I have the luxury of taking my time and sit down and really look at everything that I have. Seeing it all is really important because I have about ten or so eye shadow palettes that all have very different colour combinations and sometimes I forget about one or two of them if I can't see them.

Months and months ago, my sister posted an interesting blog post on my facebook wall with a wonderful solution to a rack that sits over top of my toilet and didn't have the room I needed for all of my makeup. Ms Tapioca posted this way back in 2011 and do I ever wish that I had seen it before then! Now that I have, I have created a very similar spot for myself in my hallway of all places.

Here are some pictures of it:

Instead of purchasing the pull out trays, I just put all of my palettes there. I'm more of a fan of palettes than single shades since I like having variety of colours to choose from depending on my mood. I found the plastic lip stick holders at the dollar store of all places and they were unfortunately gone when I went back for more. It's a good thing that I bought two, since those things are insanely useful for placing small, sample sized products, lip glosses and my primer. I also like the larger plastic container because underneath the area where my mascaras and brushes are I can keep spare products for easy access when I run out of something already displayed. (As you can see, my eye primer is certainly almost done and I have a spare hidden nearby so that I don't have to leave my little spot to get more mid-application.) I have also put a small garbage can beneath the shelf for easy disposal. 

Now the only thing I'm missing is a mirror and maybe an extra light so that I can apply my colour matching BB cream there instead of the washroom, where I have four bright vanity lights. So far, I love this vanity and I really especially love that all my makeup is safe. There have been some definite mishaps with it falling off shelves (into the back of the toilet) lately and I am really not looking to replace something that was in perfectly good working order before being dropped or something. I highly recommend this design and would like to thank Ms Tapioca for sharing her idea!

Marcelle Face Powder

Hi everyone!

I thought I would just drop in and write a quick tribute to Marcelle's Face Powder. Usually, I don't even pay attention to powder. I put it on every day after my foundation dries and I don't think about it again until the next day when I brush it over my face again. Today, however, I somehow forgot to put it on before running off to work. Walking to work takes on average 20-25 minutes and in the summer, it's really warm, so naturally by the time I got to work, I was a little bit sweaty. Usually, when I remember to use my powder, there's a little bit of moisture at my temples but overall my face looks dry, if a little dewy. Today, not so much. The walk to work without my face powder was disastrous. I have come to realise that this stuff is essential for my look. It keeps me from looking like a gross, sweaty mess, which is important when you work in sales. So, thank you Marcelle, I was not aware of all the wonders you do for my face!

While my favourite part of this is that it really does make my foundation stay in place, I can't really complain about the price either. At the urging of a sales person at a Shopper's Drug Mart near my apartment, I only paid $13 for 70g (2.4 oz). So, it's not only affordable, but it keeps my face from getting gross and oily throughout two half hour walks and a full work day. Dear Marcelle, thank you for keeping my face looking beautiful and fresh. I will never ever ever forget to use you again.

Review: Eye Shadow Primers- Kat Von D, Smash Box, Urban Decay

So in this post we're going to talk about eye shadow primers. I'll talk about my experiences with foundation primers in a later post since it may take a little longer.

Now, I haven't used many eye shadow primers, seeing as I tend to find one I like and stick with it until I can't anymore. The first eye shadow primer that I ever used was Kat Von D's Stellar primer.

This is honestly by far my absolute favourite eye shadow primer that I have ever used. I used this primer for years. I honestly would be still using this primer if it hadn't been discontinued. I generally paired it with Kat Von D eye shadows since I am admittedly a bit of a fangirl. The point is, while wearing this primer, I never ever ever had to worry about my shadows going anywhere during the day. No matter what I was doing- working or out on the town- my eyes looked stunning for the entire day. It never made my shadow crease, the pigment of my shadow never faded and since the Stellar primer was tinged pink, it really did help with my pink and purple smokey eyes. I know I've already said it but I loved this primer. If anyone knows of anything comparable, I'm definitely willing to try it!

Now it's on to two not-so-good primers. These come in the form of the Smashbox's Photo Finish Lid Primer and benefit's Stay Don't Stray primer. As I stated in my first post, I have very bad skin. This is mostly due to the fact that I have oily skin and as such, it is difficult for me to find primers that don't crease. Additionally, both primers come in a 'skin' tone which never match my skin since I'm pretty much a ghost. Here they are, for visual reference:

Now these may work for someone with non-oily skin or a darker skin tone but unfortunately, the 'skin' colour is so dark on me that it shows even beneath my eye shadow. I don't even know how that's possible, but it happened. This is the Smashbox primer on my skin (I would do the benefit one as well but it is long gone by now):

So not only do these primers cause creasing, they are very dark in colour and I found that the benefit primer didn't last me the entire day and that it dried very quickly after application. Smashbox's lid primer stays most a bit longer but it's still not something that I can use, unfortunately. It's also very thick and heavy which makes it hard to blend with. Here is my unimpressed face: 

I also used the benefit primer for a Halloween zombie look one year, and the black shadow I used under my eyes faded quickly and even began to wear off in spots. In conclusion, I wouldn't recommend either of these primers if you want something light and long lasting. 

Finally, we come to the end of the primers that I am going to talk about today. Like I said earlier, I haven't used that many. This one is my replacement for Stellar. After doing much online research and looking into primers that had 'skin' colours and pigments, the closest eye shadow primer that I could find to my eye primer soul mate is Urban Decay's Eyeshadow Primer Potion in Sin. 

Even though I don't love this quite as much as I loved the KVD primer, it's definitely comparable. The colour is a light brownish/shimmery champagne that goes on slightly dark but then blends in to almost a clear shimmer:

Since I mostly wear shimmery eye shadows, a non-matte primer works best for me. With this primer, I can wear my look all day and I don't worry about creasing or pigment migration. The only issue I take with this is that I don't often wear neutral colours like browns and I would prefer a light pink shimmer eye shadow primer. I have the original version of their primer potion sitting in my closet as well, waiting for if I run out of Sin before I can replace it. I would have also liked to pick up Greed for a test but it sold out before I got the chance, unfortunately.

According to some close friends, Make Up Forever's primer is really good as well but I have personally never used it, so I can't offer my own opinion. The only thing I can say here is: Please Sephora and Kat Von D! Bring back Stellar! If this ever happens, I can guarantee that I'll stock up for my entire lifetime or something like that.

quick intro

Hi everyone!

I'm Trista, a full time cellphone sales woman and beauty/cosplay enthusiast. Now, I haven't done many cosplays myself, but I have done a heck ton of makeup so I'm pretty sure I know my stuff. Fantasy makeup also fascinates me and I and constantly researching different ways to do it and trying it out in my spare time. Here I'll tell you about stuff that I've used (likes and dislikes) and hopefully it'll help some of you out.

For the record, I am ghostly pale, have terrible skin (hurray adult acne!) so the stuff that I use is very specific to a certain set of needs. I am currently on the never ending search for the perfect foundation. I will write more about this later because it will be a long long long post.

So for now, just a hello and a short introduction. I just recently graduated university from English and Political Science- I like to read, clearly. I am about 25% covered in tattoos and I enjoy literature, film and other media that has horribly depressing themes, which makes me usually have darker/edgier looks (aside from when I go to work). Also, hey. I'm a vaporeon!

That is all for tonight. It's getting late and I have to work away for the man tomorrow morning. Hopefully I can get something of substance up tomorrow night or Saturday.