What's in your make up bag?

I did a make up bag post like this a few months ago. I think that it's always fun to see what people have in their bags. After all, the contents of all our bags change on a day to day basis.

The contents of my bag, for now, have minimized to the absolute basics and must-haves for an everyday application excluding foundation.

In my Betsey Johnson bag (had to get it because I'm a stripe lover!) are:

• Sally Hansen eyelash curler 
• MAC lip conditioner
• MAC paint pot in quite natural
• Jordana eyeshadow in black
• Maybelline lash stiletto voluputous
• MAC 266 brush
• Prestige eyeliner
• MAC eyebrow crayon in velvetone
• Loreal carbon black lineur intense
• Too Faced glamour gloss in pillow talk
• MAC lipstick in spirit

LOTD: mash up/review of Borghese, Jordana, Coty, Rimmel (LONG POST!)

So for the past many months that I haven't been blogging, my make up collection has been expanding (but that's not new!). Part of my collection is a bunch of Jordana color effects eye shadows as well as a set of Borghese brushes from Costco. They're great make up buys since the eye shadow retails for $1.69 at my local CVS and the ten-piece brush set for $23.99.

I like how the brushes have a label for usage, although most of the time brushes are indeed versatile. 

Included are:

Round foundation brush

Duo-fiber blending brush

Angled eye contour brush

Eye powder fluff brush

Concealer brush

Domed smudge brush

Eyeshadow brush

Angled eye/brow brush

Powder kabuki brush

Products used
Foundation: Rimmel Match Perfection foundation in 420 warm sand set with Coty airspun loose face powder in translucent
Concealer: Kat Von D concealer in almond
Lips: Jordana lipstick in mauve
Eyeshadow base: Too Faced shadow insurance and MAC paint pot in painterly
*Eyelashes: Falsies from eBay
Eyeliner: Stila smudge pot in black.
Blush and contour: MAC blush in blunt

Eyeshadows - all Jordana
Mauve my way
Gunmetal
Ms. brown
High maintenance
Creamy vanilla
Total blackout
Pretty peach

Brows
Wnw eye brow pencil in charcoal
Jordana color effects eye shadow in total black out

*Eyelashes: I personally don't like the eyelashes that I got. They're a boxed set of like a dozen lashes. They're too heavy for my single eyelids, so I wouldn't wear them out. I've used them for many of my past looks but just for the added dramatic look.


REVIEWS
Borghese brush set: Overall they're all great brushes. Some shed during the initial uses, but that's expected and it stops. The duo-fiber blending brush is practically a smaller version of E.L.F.'s stippling brush, of which you all should know by now is a highly-raved product although I haven't done a review of it. The eyeshadow brush and eye powder fluff brush were pretty big but still useable for blending. The powder kabuki brush is also HUGE! This is a total must for all you make-up lovers. Think of it as buying ten brushes for the price of one at Sephora, Nordstrom, or MAC! =)

Jordana color effects eyeshadow: Some are hits and some are misses so you don't necessarily get what you pay for. My favorite is total blackout and creamy vanilla, I guess because those are the colors that I use in almost every palette for personal use. I do believe that having a good eye shadow primer applied to your eye prior to usage is very important! It's VERY, VERY, VERY important, emphasis on very. I love UDPP and Too faced shadow insurance topped off with MAC paint pots. Try it out, you'll love it! And a little goes a long way!

Coty airspun loose face powder foundation in translucent: Great, great, great powder for setting foundation since it's very finely milled, and cheap! I've got oily and problematic skin, and this doesn't break me out so it's love. <3

Rimmel match perfection foundation in warm sand: It's a great drugstore foundation. A bit sheer so if you're looking for medium-heavy coverage this isn't for you. This type of foundation is my "everyday" foundation for when I go to work or school, meaning when I don't want to use my expensive foundations or don't have much time to put on make up I'll turn to this. It's hard to find a drugstore foundation that's the least bit closest to my skin color, but this one seems to blend in well even though it may be a tad bit light for me. I like going lighter rather than darker anyway.

Stay tuned for upcoming posts:

• Comparison of Borghese duo-fiber blending brush and E.L.F.'s stippling brush
• Swatches of Jordana color effects eye shadows

Phew, now that was a mouthful. I hope you all have a great Mother's Day weekend!

NOTD: Keroppi + Review: Beauty Secrets base coat and top coat

Before getting to my story, note that I have a history of having butterfingers. Shocking, right? For a person who seems to have a steady hand when a steady hand is needed. Hm, I guess I've got self-control when I set my mind into it.

Prior to painting my nails, I had dropped a tin box full of generic nail polishes... and when I say generic, I mean generic. One of the nail polishes, out of the many that dropped onto the floor, managed to break and on the worst way possible. The bottle had broke and its contents dripped all over some shelves as well as the floor. I had to act quickly as to grab some acetone and cotton pads to remove it from hardening where it shouldn't be. After that, I lost my mood to paint my nails, but I did because I had already brought my needed items out. 

Also, I wanted to review the Beauty Secrets top coat and base coat. These actually belong to my sister.

Products used (from left to right) 
Beauty Secrets top coat
Beauty Secrets base coat
China Glaze n/p in white on white
Sinful n/p in innocent
Jordana n/p in holiday red

Review: Both of these products are from Sally's Beauty Supply and they hold decent drugstore quality. They're just decent, not the best. It has already been past 30 minutes and my nails hasn't dried after putting on dry coat, I tested by touching one of Keroppi's faces and now it has my finger mark. I like the base coat more. I can't tell you the outcome of it just yet, we'll have to see how I like it in a few days. I'm new to the whole use of primers in all forms (face, eyes, and nails) so I'm testing out products to see what I like best.

China Glaze n/p in white on white

Sinful n/p in innocent - my favorite drugstore nail polish line next to Sally Hansen. Majority of drugstore nail polishes tend to run sheer, but not this one or Sally Hansen. They're both well pigmented and I usually only use two coats to get a vibrant color payoff. 

Jordana n/p in holiday red - I think that Jordana has to be one of those underrated products out there. I barely ever see reviews or blog posts about them, but Jordana was one of the first drugstore brands that was introduced to me. My grandmas loved using Jordana nail polishes because it was cheap, and came in their favorite color, red. I have a bunch of Jordana nail polishes and I love them.

 A coat of base coat.

 Two coats of white nail polish.

 This is my unoutlined keroppi.

 It's amazing what a solid line can do.

 Here's my finished product, until my pinky got stuck in my charger's wire.

 Instead of painting it again, I decided to just randomly paint it green.

 I left the other one blank because I can't draw on my right hand for sheez.

Review: Jordana fabuliner eyeliner pen

Besides drawing in my eyebrows, eyeliner is the next must have in my daily make up routine. I love how this simple thing can make you look so much more different... but not for me. It does make me look a little more awake because my chinky eyes are super small, it's just a must that magic should be done to my boring-looking eyes.

Jordana fabuliner eyeliner pen has a felt tip and to use it you just basically draw a line on your eyes. It dries fairly quickly and doesn't smudge too much. It does smudge a little because I don't wear an eye primer and my lids are super oily. What I love about this product the best is that it only costs $1.99. Application of lining your eyes takes practice, no matter what kind of tool you decide to use: pencil, pen, gel, liquid, etc. This was actually my first felt tip liner that I used and so far I'm loving it.

Sorry, I'm breaking out. It's that time of the month and I hate how I have hormones that never fail to break me out. I hope I grow out of it soon. :)

What's in your make up bag?

I was at work today and decided, instead of putting on make up, why don't I blog about what I have in my make up bag? This is pretty much what I carry in my make up bag on a daily basis, obviously more than needed because I tend to keep stuffing things in, even if they're in there already, but you know what they say "better safe than sorry." On the bright side, they're not heavy, like carrying around an extra textbook around school. Incidentally, these are some of my favorite make up products EVER. I tend to gear away from high-end cosmetics because they're pricey and so if I drop, break, or lose them while I'm on a go, I won't be too much at a lost although I do carry around some of them. 

Well, I hope you enjoy. Please do share what's in your current make up bag as well. :)

By the way, I'm decided to keep my pictures at this size (width at 640 pixels). I'll have to edit my html coding for my blog to better your experience on this site. Simply click on the picture (because they're currently cut off, I believe). I changed my layout, it's still simple (just the way I like it).

1. Make up bag - LeSportsac

I just took this from my mom. I think LeSportsac bags are too pricey for my price range, but their designs are always eye catching and flattering.

2. Eyelash curler - Earth Therapeutics

This is a decent eyelash curler, but I do want to try out Shiseido’s eyelash curler soon.

3. Concealer - MAC Studio Finish Concealer SPF 35 in NC42

I actually use this concealer to highlight my brow bone and to fix up my eyebrows on the bottom since it has quite thick consistency. I would also use this under my eye bags prior to putting on foundation. 

4. Lip butter - Korres in pomegranate

I love this! It adds the perfect touch of pink on my lips and moisturizers well. What I hate about this product is when I’m on the go and I have to put my finger in and its size gets in the way. Otherwise I just use a lip brush.

5. Bobby pins

These are just a must. I never know when my bangs are going to get in the way whether it’s because of the wind in the car or from having to look down at a book or write notes for school.

6. Mirror - Sephora (with gift card purchase)

I love this mirror for its slimness and when you open it, you get a great sized mirror. Great for on the go make up application. 

7. Tweezer - La Cross

8. Tweezer - Elf Professional

9. Tweezer - Earth Therapeutics

Sometimes when I pluck eyebrows I get tired of just using one, and so from time to time during the process I alternate tweezers. I don’t really have a favorite but these all get the job done. I do want to try the tweezers from tweezerman though.

10. Angled liner brush - Salon Collection (Walgreens)

11. Angled liner brush - MAC 266

12. Angled liner brush - Sephora 

I didn’t realize I have so many angled brushes in my make up bag, I use them all for applying my eyebrows. My favorite would have to be MAC 266. Sometimes I use the Sephora one for gel liner since it’s super thin.

13. Bent liner brush - Sonia Kashuk

I use this to apply gel liner and it’s fantastic!

14. Concealer brush - fake MAC 194

I just use whatever concealer brush I have to apply concealer to my brow bone and to correct my eyebrows. I actually got a fake MAC brush set from my Aunty who didn’t know anything about genuine MAC products, but it’s okay, I use the contour brush for contour and it’s great as well. The others just suck. 

15. Brow pencil - WNW in charcoal

16. Brow pencil - MAC eye brows crayon in velvetone

I apply this brow product containing wax onto my eyebrows before finishing it off with eyebrow powder to make it last longer. 

17. Eyeliner pencil - Prestige total intensity eyeliner in deepest black

This eyeliner is great for my waterline because it applies smoothly and easily. However, not many eyeliner products stay on my waterline for some reason and neither does this one. 

18. Eyeliner pencil - Revlon colorstay eyeliner in black

This eyeliner seems to last the longest on my waterline. The color is quite intense too so I like it for dramatic purposes. 

19. Eyeliner pen - Jordana fabuliner in black

This is actually my sisters. It’s a great eyeliner pen, the first one I’ve tried and I really, really like it. I hope I can get my hands on one soon. 

20. Liquid eyeliner - Loreal lineur intense in black

Great liquid eyeliner for my oily lids, it stays put all day. 

21. Mascara - Maybelline falsies in black

This is one of the best drugstore mascaras I’ve tried because it actually holds my curl up as well as adding length and a bit of volume. Love!

22. Lip moisturizer - Olay Henriksen fresh lips

Total waste of $15 because it feels exactly like Carmex, but I still use so my money doesn’t go to waste. 

23. Gel eyeliner - Smashbox gel liner in black

This is the best gel liner I’ve tried so far that doesn’t smudge or come off with my oily lids. It sets pretty fast too. 

24. Brow corrector - Make Up Forever eyebrow corrector in dark brown 

I hardly use this because it calls for a perfect application since it’s of liquid consistency. It really creates a pencil-like eyebrow look for me. Then again, all of my eyebrow looks look pencil-like. 

25. Eyeshadow (used for eyebrows) - Jordana e/s in black

Self-explanatory. Cheap so I love it. 

26. Lip balm - Blistex Lip Tone

This adds a bit of a pink color to my lips. I don’t like the taste though. :( 

27. Lip balm - softlips beeswax

This is similar to Burt’s Bees, except it’s consistency is thinner but with the same minty sensation. I like this one more than Burt’s Bees because I have a habit of puckering up my lips and it gives me a better feel when I pucker up. 

28. Oil blotters - Clean & Clear oil control film

Self-explanatory.