Beauty

Beauty related posts.

My top 10 MAC eye shadows

~ stashy ~ 21 Comments

This is a popular Youtube topic and I can understand why.  MAC is a very accessible line that is a bit of a “gateway” makeup brand for many people, myself included.  MAC offers high quality cosmetics in a wide variety of colours and finishes, at a reasonable price point (compared to department store or Sephora brands).  My makeup collection began with essentials from MAC, including lots of their eye shadows.  I now own 89 MAC eye shadow shades, which is roughly 15% of my total eye shadow collection.

These are my top 10 MAC eye shadows – unfortunately I can’t guarantee that all of these are in the permanent collection (in fact, one shade was in their permanent collection but now discontinued!)  Note that these are only MAC’s powder eye shadows, I will do a separate post on Paints / Paint Pots and Pigments.
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  1. Satin Taupe* (frost) – permanent
  2. Patina* (frost) – permanent
  3. Wedge (matte) – permanent
  4. Romp* (frost) – permanent (discontinued in 2012)
  5. Stolen Moment* (Extra Dimension) – limited edition (LE)
  6. Twinks (Veluxe Pearl) – permanent
  7. Style Snob (Starflash) – LE
  8. All That Glitters (Veluxe Pearl) – permanent
  9. Smoke & Diamonds (Starflash) – LE
  10. Vex (frost) – permanent

They’re roughly in the order of my preference and usage – the ones with the asterisk mean I own a back-up of them.
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I purchase most of my MAC eye shadows in the refill pans – the ones in the individual packaging are usually from limited edition collections (I debate back and forth whether I should depot them or not).  Below are swatches of each and more detailed descriptions.

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Empties: February 2015

~ stashy ~ 13 Comments

I didn’t expect to accumulate enough empties for another post so soon, but it does seem like things get used up in groups.  Here’s what I used up in February, and mini reviews on each:empties2015Feb1

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Nail polish stash

~ stashy ~ 27 Comments

All right, here’s the stash that started it all.  If it wasn’t for my growing nail polish collection, I would have never tracked any of my makeup in a spreadsheet. And out of everything I hoard, I would say that buying nail polish is the most compulsive for me.  They’re just so much fun!  No guilt. No commitment. And nail polishes don’t go “bad” per se – they can ALL be revived with thinner even if they thicken over time.  The oldest polishes in my collection are from the 90’s!  I’ve done a lot of purging over the years of duplicate shades or formulas that I don’t care for.  My current collection stands at 498 but if I count all of the ones I’ve given away (yes I track those too so I don’t repurchase by accident), the number would be closer to 570.

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I keep them sorted by colour in clear airtight bins.
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The larger bin measures approx 12″ x 8″ x 4″ and the smaller one is an inch shorter.
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Overhead view of a bin – one bin holds approx 60 nail polishes
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I have a few smaller bins for random colours.

Keep reading for more pictures of my nail polish stash

Swatching products

~ stashy ~ 9 Comments

Along a similar vein as how I photograph products, I thought I would do quick post about how I swatch products for this blog.  I’m not sure if people enjoy these “how I do things” entries, but I personally enjoy taking a peek behind the scenes on other blogs / youtube channels.howiswatch1This isn’t meant to be a how-to guide, it’s just to show you what I use to achieve the swatches you see on this blog.

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Untrieds: Kiehl’s Creme de Corps Coriander Whipped Body Butter

~ stashy ~ 11 Comments

This was a limited edition item from winter 2013… and just over a year later, I finally get around to opening it up!  This whipped body butter features one of my all time favourite fragrances: Kiehl’s Coriander Essence Oil (which is now discontinued.  Of course it is.  Everything I love gets discontinued…!)

I was quite excited to see the Coriander scent released in the form a body butter.  I had never tried Kiehl’s Creme de Corps lotion or body butter before, but I got over the initial sticker shock ($46 for body butter?!) and bought this during the Friends and Family sale (20% off).KiehlsCremedeCorpsCoriander1

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NeoStrata Hydra-Infusion 24 Hr Hydrating Serum

~ stashy ~ 10 Comments

This product has already been mentioned a couple of times on this blog in its short existence (my best 2014 discoveries and empties January posts) – I figured I should provide a more thorough review to explain why I enjoy this product so much.
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NeoStrata Hydra-Infusion 24 Hr Hydrating Serum $38 CAD for 30ml (available at Shoppers Drug Mart and Rexall)
This serum is a lightweight milky gel that I use in the mornings underneath my moisturizer – I use 2-3 pumps to cover my face; 1 dot per cheek and the rest spread over my t-zone where I require less hydration.

Read more about NeoStrata Hydra-Infusion 24 Hr Hydrating Serum

My Cosmetics Inventory Spreadsheet

~ stashy ~ 32 Comments

There’s curiosity about my cosmetics inventory spreadsheet so I thought I would devote an entry on how it came to be.  I created my cosmetics spreadsheet on Sunday July 26, 2009 (as revealed by the Excel file properties). At the time, it was primarily a way to track my growing nail polish collection so that I didn’t duplicate any of my Essie shades (at present count, I own 73 bottles of Essies – it is my favourite nail polish formula).

Eventually I expanded the spreadsheet to include the following tabs:

  • eye shadows
  • eyeliners
  • blushes
  • face products
  • lip gloss / lip balms
  • lipsticks
  • nails
  • tools (brushes)
  • skincare
  • hair
  • scents

The initial set up of the spreadsheet was a daunting task. If I had created the spreadsheet from the inception of my first beauty product purchase, it would have been a breeze. But I had to essentially do a full inventory of my stash to build the spreadsheet – item by item, line by line.

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L’Oreal Bare Naturale mascara

~ stashy ~ 21 Comments

You know a mascara is good when your coworker exclaims in a meeting, “Your EYELASHES! What mascara are you wearing?”  Or, when you are at Sephora, and the makeup artist compliments you on your eyelashes – not your eye makeup – she specifically says “I love your lashes!”  (I think she thought they were falsies?)  And by all accounts, I have dinky wimpy sparse eyelashes.  This is the magic that is L’Oreal Bare Naturale Mascara:
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But, before you proceed any further into this entry, I warn you: this wondrous miracle product is discontinued.  I’m sorry, so very sorry to do this to you. If you don’t want to suffer heartache and mental anguish, please turn back now…

But keep reading if you’re a glutton for punishment

Make Up For Ever Artist Shadows

~ stashy ~ 15 Comments

This entry is part Untrieds and part review – featuring the Make Up For Ever (MUFE) Artist Shadows.  I purchased a 3-pan customizable palette in early December last year to redeem my Sephora VIB $20 off coupon (minimum purchase of $50).  I really wanted to maximize the coupon’s value – I had to spend just $50 so that effectively, I was getting 40% off.  Lo and behold, a filled 3-pan MUFE palette is exactly $50.  Take THAT, Sephora – you only got $30 out of me!
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Then, during Boxing week, the MUFE Studio Case Eye Shadow Palette went on clearance sale for $45 – the regular price was $69 (the product value is actually $107).   I had been wanting this set since it launched but was talked out of it… at 35% off the regular retail price (and 58% off the value of the product!), I couldn’t resist!  This palette was a great way to add to my collection without too much commitment.  It sat in my Untrieds pile until this month.  I wore both the full sized and palette eye shadows interchangeably for 2 full weeks to see how they performed.

Keep reading for review and swatches

Winter hair rescue

~ stashy ~ 11 Comments

This is the companion post to my Winter scalp rescue topic – that entry was getting long so I thought it would be good to give your eyes a break by splitting it into 2 posts.

In addition to the scalp issue, in the winter months I also battle frizzies due to the dry air, causing static and fly-aways.  My hair is wavy and cut in long layers to just past my shoulders – luckily I don’t have particularly thick or unruly hair – but it can look frizzy if I don’t use moisturizing and taming products. These are some of my tried-and-true hair styling products:winterhair1

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