Gone Surfing...Lauren B Beauty Santa Barbara Surf

In Tokyo, August is the hottest month of the year, and based on the weather.com forecast, today is 95°(feels like 111°). My apartment feels like the epicenter of Hades itself. I long for a swim, and although I may not be able to cool down, at least I can wear a cool shade of nail polish.

Lauren B Beauty's Santa Barbara Surf is a bright, seafoam green with a shiny creme finish. The first coat has some streaks and unevenness (not unusual for a shade that borderlines on the pastel spectrum), and depending on my application, I'm able to get an opaque finish in 2-3 coats. Santa Barbara Surf's wear time is an average of 4-5 days.

I love how Santa Barbara Surf looks on the fingers and toes, against tanned-skin and white clothing (shocking coming from someone who only wears black). Santa Barbara Surf is a beautiful polish that's perfect for both Spring, and Summer.

Those Shadows Are Mine, Betch!

Wow. I knew it had been some time since I last blogged, but 3 months?! I didn't mean to take so much time off, Well, let me fill you in on what's been going on. Since my last post, someone whom I've worked with for over 10 years confided in me of her diagnoses of breast cancer. Her and I are very close friends, and I've been accompanying and aiding her in her treatments and recovery process.

That is what has been going on in my world. Now, on to the makeup. I'm going to start with the last post that was in queue: Tarte's Icy Betch Palette. Whenever I read or hear the word "betch," I can't help but think of Liam Kyle Sullivan's character, Kelly. If you don't know what what I'm speaking of, Google "kelly shoes," I'll also insert a video below:

Upon opening the palette, I was caught off guard by the product's pleasing vanilla fragrance.

From left to right: Veronica, Becky, Blair, Heather, Georgina.

Veronica: a white matte.

Becky: a matte mid-toned (yet bright) turquoise blue.

Blair: a midnight blue with micro silver and blue glitter shimmer.

Heather: a cloudy blue matte.

Georgina: a teal matte.

From left to right: Miranda, Cheryl, Aria, Regina, Vivian.

Miranda: a muted emerald green shimmer with a murky, yellowish-brown undertone.

Cheryl: a mid-toned olympic blue shimmer.

Aria: a indigo blue shimmer.

Regina: a gold shifting ivory highlight. I wish Regina had a blue shift to give it more cohesion with the palette.

Vivian: a  muted, deep petrol blue matte.

Look Breakdown:

Face:

Bobbi Brown Extra Illuminating Moisture Balm
Dior Star Studio Makeup Spectacular Brightening Weightless Perfection in 030.
Laura Mercier Candleglow Sheer Perfecting Powder in 2.
Laura Mercier Candleglow Sheer Perfecting Powder in 3 (to give warmth to my complexion).
Tarte Amazonian Clay 12-hour Blush in Exposed. 
Tarte Icy Betch Eye & Cheek Palette shadow in Regina (highlighter).
Eyes:

B & C Browlash EX Water Strong W Eyebrow in Grey Brown.
Nars Soft Matte Complete Concealer in Custard.
Mac Pro Long Wear Paint Pot in Utterly Becoming (used as a base).
Tarte Icy Betch Eye & Cheek Palette:
Veronica (on the brow bone).
Heather (in the crease).
Becky (in the crease and along the lower lashline).
Aria (on the outer half on the lid).
Cheryl (on the inner half of lid).
Vivian (blended into the outer corner and outer half on the lashline).
Regina (inner corner highlight).

L'Oreal Hydrofuge Voluminous Mascara in Carbon Black

Lips:
Mac Lip Pencil in Stripdown.
Nars Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in Decibel.

Already getting my Summer color.

Look Breakdown:

Face:

Bobbi Brown Extra Illuminating Moisture Balm
Dior Star Studio Makeup Spectacular Brightening Weightless Perfection in 030.
Laura Mercier Candleglow Sheer Perfecting Powder in 2.
Laura Mercier Candleglow Sheer Perfecting Powder in 3 (to give warmth to my complexion).
Tarte Amazonian Clay 12-hour Blush in Paaarty. 
Tarte Icy Betch Eye & Cheek Palette shadow in Regina (highlighter).
Eyes:

B & C Browlash EX Water Strong W Eyebrow in Grey Brown.
Nars Soft Matte Complete Concealer in Custard.
Mac Pro Long Wear Paint Pot in Utterly Becoming (used as a base).
Tarte Icy Betch Eye & Cheek Palette:
Georgina (patted on the lid, blended in the crease and along the lower lash line ).
Miranda (patted on the center of the lid).

Regina (inner corner highlight).
Black Up Le Khol Smoky Waterproof  Pencil in KS04 (on the waterline).

L'Oreal Hydrofuge Voluminous Mascara in Carbon Black

Lips:
Mac Lip Pencil in Stripdown.
Linda Hallberg Fantastick Lipstick in Pink Opal.

Albeit, the matte shadows are slightly thin in texture. The matte shadows, along with the other shadows in the palette are pigmented, layer, and blend well with one another. Also, they endure a 10+ hour work day, without signs of patchiness or fading. A surprise like of the palette was the highlighter, Regina. I don't think I've ever tried a highlighter from Tarte, but I really enjoyed Regina.

For $24, the Icy Betch Eye & Cheek Palette is a pretty good deal, especially for those who may not be familiar/comfortable with working with blues, and want to get into them.

Light it up Blue with Zoya's Twila

Hey everyone!

How have you been? Have you watched Game of Thrones season 8 episode 3 yet? Did your favorite GoT Characters survive?

April is coming to an end, and if you weren't aware, April is also Autism Awareness Month. Autism awareness isn't something we can do for just a month. Awareness and acceptance of individuals with ASD is something we can do every month, all year long. In support, I've been wearing a lot of blue polishes, and wanted to "light it up blue" with a bang using Zoya's Twila.

As per Zoya's description, Twila is a mixture of blue and silver bar glitter with holographic glitter accents. If you want to Jazz up your manicure, you can wear Twila as a topper or on its own, in two to three coats. When dry, the polish has a textured finish. So, if that's not your preference, or you just want added bling, apply a top coat.

Chaos is My Life...Nars Chaos Velvet Matte Lip Duo

As a lover of the Velvet Matte Lip Pencils, I was thrilled when NARS included 14 all new (but not original), exclusive shades within four different sets last holiday.

I've been meaning to catalog and post swatches of all my Velvet Matte Lip Pencils (among everything else in my collection), so I thought I would start with the ones I have been using recently.

First up in these jumbo pencil wonders: the Chaos Velvet Matte Lip Duo, Decibel and Zipped.

From left to right: Decibel, Zipped.

Decibel: a warm toned, muted mauve-tinged, rosy-brown.

Zipped: a cool toned, muted berry.

Decibel and Zipped have the same velvety texture, seamless opacity, effortless application, comfortability that stays put, without drying out my lips.

Aside from wearing Decibel and Zipped monochromatically, I love pairing them together. With Decibel all over, and Zipped applied to the inner part of the upper and lower lips, they create a beautiful reversed ombre lip that's perfect for Spring.

Luckly, both shades have made a smooth transition into Spring because I love them, and I don't want to put them away.

What are your thoughts on Decibel and Zipped? 

For Me To Call A Polish My Friend...Lauren B Beauty Griffith Gaze

A stylish shade for all seasons, Lauren B Beauty's Griffith Gaze is a neutral gray cream, with a swirl of pink, mauve, and purple undertones. Personally, I like wearing this gorgeous shade during winter, and spring. This is totally off topic, but I can't read Griffith without thinking of the character of the same name from the anime, Berserk. If you're into anime and, for whatever reason, haven't seen Berserk, finish reading this post (of course), then go watch it! It's one of my favorites.

Aside from being opaque, there are some minimal streaks with the first coat; however, this is corrected after a 2nd application.

The black polish used for the stamping is Lauren B Beauty's Paparazzi. 

I've been using many of the products from Nars' 2018 Holiday collection, and on another occasion, was inspired to pull out one of my MoYou Stamping plates in punk 06 (delving into the world of stamping), to give my mani some edge.

Fan The Flames...Smashbox Super Fan Mascara

Although it's been a while since I've used a Smashbox mascara, I do remember liking them. Sadly, this wasn't the case with Super Fan.

Smashbox describes Super Fan as a "lengthening mascara that gives you modern (whatever that means) fanned-out volume, 12-hours of length, lift, and volume without any heaviness or clumping.

Of all the claims, the only thing Super Fan did for my lashes was give them a nice splayed-out effect. In exploiting the product's only benefit, I layered it over other mascaras (it worked really well with one mascara in particular...that review is coming soon) to enhance definition.

Super Fan's formula is on the wet side; not an issue for me, but it may be for some. However, another disappointment with the mascara was how inconsistent it wore. Some days it would look great, but on others (more former than latter), it would be a flaky, smudged mess. Even with all the industry tips and tricks, I couldn't keep the mascara from flaking and transferring to my under eye.

I wouldn't recommend this mascara, and the only time I consider repurchasing Super Fan, is if Smashbox came out with a waterproof version...and this solely for comparison purposes.

Need That Picture Of You...Lauren B Beauty Paparazzi

Edgy, yet chic, black is a shade I like to wear during the latter half of Winter; thus, Lauren B. Beauty's Paparazzi is my favorite black polish.

Paparazzi is a glamorously intense ebony creme, with a lustrous patent leather finish. You don't have to go beyond one coat to get complete coverage. I've worn Paparazzi several times this season, and each time it wore for about 5 to 6 days without incident.