favourites

Favourite MLBB Tag

~ stashy ~ 55 Comments

I was tagged by Sandy of Lippie Obsession to do this and it’s right in my wheelhouse!  Since I pulled out all my lipsticks yesterday for the lip stash post, I figured I’d do this tag today.  For the Makeup Muggles out there, MLBB stands for “My Lips But Better” which means these lip products enhance the natural lip colour – usually a close match or slightly darker / brighter / lighter / shinier – whatever is “better” to you.

I do not wear lipstick regularly, but when I do, I typically choose a MLBB shade.  My lips are quite pigmented, so some of these colours may seem deeper than what you might consider a MLBB lippie.  I chose these lipsticks not only for the colours, but also for how much I like the formulas:
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From left to right:
• Illamasqua Glamore Nude Lipstick in Minx
• Elizabeth Arden Exceptional Lipstick in Breathless #17 (of COURSE I have to include this! See my post comparing the old vs new)
• Guerlain Rouge G de Guerlain Lip Color in Garance 06
• Shiseido Perfect Rouge in Dreamscape RD351
• Bite Beauty Luminous Crème Lipstick in Fig
• Shiseido Lacquer Rouge in Portrait RD203
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(That Guerlain tube was a PITA to photograph!)

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Club Monaco eye shadow brushes

~ stashy ~ 23 Comments

I briefly mentioned my Club Monaco #02 eye shadow brush in my brush stash post.  I called the brush as one that I would run back into a burning building to rescue.
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Club Monaco Beauty was a full range of makeup sold at Club Monaco (CM) stores in Canada and at Sephora in the US. [Fun fact: Club Monaco was a Canadian company until they sold it to Ralph Lauren in 1999] The makeup line included signature items such as the infamous Monica Lewinsky lipstick (Sheer Lipstick in Glaze), Eye Grease (cream eye shadows), and Cheek Dew (cream blushes) – all in sleek brushed silver and frosted lucite packaging.  I feel they were ahead of the time since no other makeup lines in the early 2000’s offered items like theirs. From the line, I owned an eye shadow palette, a powder foundation, a concealer, a handful of lipsticks and lipglosses, and even a metal eye lash comb (I wish I had saved the lash comb but it wasn’t very good).  I could go on about the history of CM but that’s for another time!  Today I’m here to talk about the eye shadow brush #02 which I acquired from the eye shadow palette:
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What makes this brush so special is that not only is Club Monaco Beauty no longer available – making this brush somewhat of a collector’s item – the quality of this brush is outstanding.  I’ve had this brush for at least 10 years and it has retained its shape and all its hairs.

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Breathless vs Breathless

~ stashy ~ 26 Comments

I had mentioned in The Lipstick Tag that my favourite lipstick is the Elizabeth Arden (EA) Exceptional Lipstick in Breathless (#17), which was sadly discontinued.  In the comments of that post, the fantabulous fivezero informed me that EA still had the shade Breathless in their repertoire, but in a new formula called Beautiful Color Moisturizing Lipstick (renumbered as #31).  I was SUPER excited!  I mentioned this to my co-worker and it turned out she had received an EA gwp which included Breathless that  she didn’t want.  She was planning on giving it to her mother, but instead she gave it to ME (sorry, mama).  So I decided to do a comparison of the 2 Breathlesses… (what’s the proper plural for that?)
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The original Breathless is a slightly warm toned MLBB shade in a hydrating cream formula.  It’s very comfortable on the lips yet manages to last a remarkable amount of time on my lips (~4 hours).  I wear this shade whenever I want to look polished and put together.

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Review: MAC 137 Long Blending Brush

~ stashy ~ 41 Comments

Finally, the actual review of this brush! For all the talk about lemming it, then buying it, now I can review it and stop pining for this brush!  I’ll cut to the chase: this brush is AWESOME!  The true test for me was when I first touched it to my face to apply blush, and immediately thought, “I must get a back up of this!” 😀

Firstly, this brush was released as part of the “MAC is Beauty” collection, and MAC describes it as:

A long-haired blending brush for the face made of natural fibres. This ultra-soft and silky tapered brush allows for a light dusting of any powder, making it perfect for an all-over wash of colour. M∙A∙C professional brushes are hand-sculpted and assembled using the finest quality materials. They feature wood handles and nickel-plated brass ferrules.

Here it is in all its unwashed, unused glory:
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The brush cost me $50.50 ($42 USD) and is made in Japan.
Tip: the country of origin information is no longer etched into the handles of MAC brushes, this information can now only be found on the clear wrapper / sleeve that brushes come in:
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My favourite pre-made eye shadow palettes

~ stashy ~ 33 Comments

Maybe I’m being too loose with the term “palette” since most of my favourites are just quads – but I suppose they fall under the umbrella of palettes? To me, a palette is anything more than a duo – so trios, quads, and quints all qualify.  What I’m trying to say is that I do not like large scale pre-made palettes. I know that within a palette, I will always end up with at least one dud, and the more shades within a palette, the higher the odds are that I will end up with many duds (so no, I do not own any of the Urban Decay Naked palettes!)
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My criteria for a good palette is one that I like most, if not all, of the shades, and one that I can create a nearly complete eye look from. They’re great for travelling and those days when I just want a one stop shop for my eye shadow look.  Here are my favourite pre-made eye shadow palettes.

Which palettes made the cut? Keep reading

PUFU update

~ stashy ~ 23 Comments

Earlier this year, I introduced my little project, called Project Use it the F*%@ Up! (or PUFU for short).  I had identified 2 products in my stash that I really love and enjoy using, however, they were neglected and risked spoilage before they were get used up.  So I set out on a mission to finish them up.
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A quick re-cap:
1) Mirabella Outshine lip gloss in Illusion
It was at 1.40cm used up out of a total of 6.2cm (7.5ml total volume).

2) Stella by Stella McCartney eau de parfum
It had 1.10cm left in the bottle out of a total 4.60cm (30ml bottle).

So how did I do? Read more to find out

Anti-aging products

~ stashy ~ 24 Comments

Let’s preface this post by saying that I’m not an expert on skincare – my opinions are just my anecdotal, personal experience.  I also don’t battle with too many skin concerns in terms of deep wrinkles or loss of firmness – I would say that I’m in more of a preventative and maintenance mode.

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Don’t want this to happen!

My current primary concerns are:
•   Fine lines: laugh lines, forehead, and under eye area
•   Sun spots, aka my freckles – I get comments on them [from mostly Asian sales associates] but I’ve had my freckles since I was young, so I’m not sure if they really are a sign of aging?
•   Sallow / dull appearance

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My key anti-aging arsenal.

I mainly use targeted anti-aging products at night before bed, for a few of reasons: typically these products are richer and I’d rather not have greasy skin during the day.  Also, when sleeping, the skin goes through a renewal process which lends itself to better absorb and utilize the anti-aging skincare ingredients.  Lastly, some anti-aging ingredients, such as retinods, cause sun sensitivity so I would rather avoid that if possible.  During the day time my primary focus is sun protection.

Keep reading about my anti-aging products

Brush stash

~ stashy ~ 24 Comments

Some of you expressed amazement at the amount of brushes I own.  Let me refresh your memory, I have:
•  202 eye brushes (of which 163 are eye shadow, 31 liner, 8 brow brushes)
•  126 face brushes (41 blush, 33 foundation, 25 powder, 18 bronzer, 9 concealer brushes)
I don’t think that’s too much, but my perspective may be a little skewed.

Here they are:

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Eye shadow brushes

Keep reading for more about my brush stash

Shiseido Sheer and Perfect Foundation (& comparison to other fluid foundations)

~ stashy ~ 19 Comments

I love the Shiseido Sheer and Perfect Foundation SPF 18 – $39 for 30ml (department stores) – it is my ideal everyday foundation.  I alternate between this and BB creams for a typical weekday when I don’t need high coverage or a super long wearing foundation.
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Keep reading for review and comparison

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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