I need to have a blog sale and just get rid of everything. I look at my makeup collection and see so many things going to waste that could really be getting loved by someone else. If my blog picks up some traffic, I will be actively loading things to sell on here. I've got everything from low-end to high-end so it will be interesting to see what sells and what picks up some interest...
Off to gather things...
Update of things to come... Most items are drugstore items that will be priced really cheaply to help move the product along and to help grow your stash!
Nail polish from tons of brands
Drugstore lipsticks that were only used to swatch or are still brand new
NYX jumbo crayons
Quads and palettes of varying sizes
Okay, that's it until I actually get some time to work through my collection!
Sunday, December 9, 2012
DIY makeup brush dryer
So... I, like many of you, used a rolled up towel to lay my brushes on to let them dry. I even had a post about it before! I also bought the Sigma dry and shape a while back and used that but it just wasn't cutting it. I went out to Lowes today and walked up and down every aisle there is to try and find a cheap solution. I know all about the rubber-banding your brush to something, or clipping it with clothes pins. I'm not sure if anybody else has done this, but voilà! This is just poly-foam that they sell near the pvc/pipe section of any hardware store. I bought 6' of it for just $1.39 + tax.
NOTE: all my pictures aren't great. I was so excited to share this tip that I just started going crazy on my phone's camera.
See how there is a spine to the tube?
I just pulled it apart with my fingers...
Then I cut the tube into equal pieces just so it was more manageable and ended up with four pieces that were approximately 1.5' each.
From here, you can either choose to just shove your brushes through or you can take an exact-o knife and cut little crosses into the foam where you want your brushes to go through.
I didn't measure or anything because, well, I never do... I just start in and hope that things work out! I made 23 cuts on this one piece for smaller brushes.
Annnndddd.... *drum roll* I made a second one to fit my face brushes - including my REAL TECHNIQUES brushes! For any of you that own these, you must know what a hassle it is to dry these brushes properly. Laying them on their sides makes one side all wonky and the handles are really too big to secure them to anything. Just cut larger crosses into a different piece of foam to accommodate these. I managed to make this piece fit eight face brushes. Again, sorry, no measuring.
To give you an idea of how well this foam holds... Pictured: Eco-tools bamboo bronzer brush (that has the thickest handle known to man), Real Techniques stippling brush, Coastal Scents flat top bionic buffer brush, Sigma F82, Mark. powder brush, Ulta Professional line sculpted brush, Sigma F80, and the Real Techniques powder brush.
My brushes are just hanging from an empty metal mesh basket I have but you can hang these suckers from practically anywhere. Cut and customize to suit your lifestyle... I'm actually thinking that if you take your time to measure them and cut the holes properly, you could take a small piece with you on vacation to use as a dryer and then flip it around to hold up your brushes. Don't trust me - I'm no engineer. BUT, if you try it and it works, let me know~
I'd love to see pictures and feedback from any of you that try this. Maybe even ideas on how to make this even better? Tweet me @soleseoulsoul
NOTE: all my pictures aren't great. I was so excited to share this tip that I just started going crazy on my phone's camera.
See how there is a spine to the tube?
I just pulled it apart with my fingers...
Then I cut the tube into equal pieces just so it was more manageable and ended up with four pieces that were approximately 1.5' each.
From here, you can either choose to just shove your brushes through or you can take an exact-o knife and cut little crosses into the foam where you want your brushes to go through.
I didn't measure or anything because, well, I never do... I just start in and hope that things work out! I made 23 cuts on this one piece for smaller brushes.
Annnndddd.... *drum roll* I made a second one to fit my face brushes - including my REAL TECHNIQUES brushes! For any of you that own these, you must know what a hassle it is to dry these brushes properly. Laying them on their sides makes one side all wonky and the handles are really too big to secure them to anything. Just cut larger crosses into a different piece of foam to accommodate these. I managed to make this piece fit eight face brushes. Again, sorry, no measuring.
To give you an idea of how well this foam holds... Pictured: Eco-tools bamboo bronzer brush (that has the thickest handle known to man), Real Techniques stippling brush, Coastal Scents flat top bionic buffer brush, Sigma F82, Mark. powder brush, Ulta Professional line sculpted brush, Sigma F80, and the Real Techniques powder brush.
My brushes are just hanging from an empty metal mesh basket I have but you can hang these suckers from practically anywhere. Cut and customize to suit your lifestyle... I'm actually thinking that if you take your time to measure them and cut the holes properly, you could take a small piece with you on vacation to use as a dryer and then flip it around to hold up your brushes. Don't trust me - I'm no engineer. BUT, if you try it and it works, let me know~
I'd love to see pictures and feedback from any of you that try this. Maybe even ideas on how to make this even better? Tweet me @soleseoulsoul
Thursday, November 1, 2012
Keeping Tabs on Crappy Eyeliners
Don't be offended if your holy grail eyeliner is listed here. I have the WORST eye type ever. I'm combo-skin but my eyes always tend to "glisten" a little. I have hooded eyes and they're incredibly sensitive and water close to constantly. Really, I might as well NOT wear makeup. Most eyeliners don't stay on past 30 minutes. By the time I put my makeup on and have gotten dressed to leave, I end up wiping all my makeup off because my eyeliner has smudged everywhere. I'm not exaggerating. One time, I found eyeliner on the tip of my nose and on the side of my face... It's THAT serious.
Lucky for me, my work schedule has changed quite a bit and I get to work from home Thursday-Saturday now. That being said, it gives me the perfect opportunity for product testing. I can't do one eye with this and one eye with that product because it varies day by day which eye wants to run the waterworks.
This list will be updated frequently as a service to myself and you, if you choose to use it. I will do the standard "put it on my hand, let it dry then rub it down" test but let me tell you that that doesn't stand a chance to whatever my eyes throw at it. If whatever combination of oil/water my eyes have come up with could be turned into a makeup remover, I'd be filthy rich...
***I do not have any of the original packaging any of the products come with because I usually throw that out immediately***
Rimmel London Waterproof Gel Eyeliner - Found here
Reminds me of the Revlon one as far as packaging. It comes with a little inkwell and the lid magically transforms into a brush. Although it's a neat concept and the brush wasn't horrendous, I prefer to use my own brushes so I did. The eyeliner itself is so watery and not very pigmented that I'm not surprised that it didn't last on me.
Lucky for me, my work schedule has changed quite a bit and I get to work from home Thursday-Saturday now. That being said, it gives me the perfect opportunity for product testing. I can't do one eye with this and one eye with that product because it varies day by day which eye wants to run the waterworks.
This list will be updated frequently as a service to myself and you, if you choose to use it. I will do the standard "put it on my hand, let it dry then rub it down" test but let me tell you that that doesn't stand a chance to whatever my eyes throw at it. If whatever combination of oil/water my eyes have come up with could be turned into a makeup remover, I'd be filthy rich...
***I do not have any of the original packaging any of the products come with because I usually throw that out immediately***
Rimmel London Waterproof Gel Eyeliner - Found here
Reminds me of the Revlon one as far as packaging. It comes with a little inkwell and the lid magically transforms into a brush. Although it's a neat concept and the brush wasn't horrendous, I prefer to use my own brushes so I did. The eyeliner itself is so watery and not very pigmented that I'm not surprised that it didn't last on me.
 |
| Picture taken directly after swatch |
 |
| Picture taken 10 minutes after swatch |
The swatch above on the left is heavily swatched and the swatch on the right is with one stroke. As you can see, it is very streaky and it is actually really hard to make it look "even". The nice thing is that the product dries to a matte finish. The bad thing is that it takes an incredibly long time for it to dry. What comes next will astound you...
 | ||||||||
| Whoop, there it is. All smudged. No water - just ONE swipe later... |
This smudges about as easily (if not more easily) than a pencil liner. What's the point in waiting 5-10 minutes if your liner is going to smudge like that? Of course, I tried again and got the same results. I DID find, however, if you let the liner set for about 30 minutes, it's a bit more difficult to budge. Yeah, that's realistic.
In terms of color, wearability, durability, and just ability in general, I give this product a big fail. What about you? Have you ever tried this product?
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
Urban Decay Book of Shadows Redux
So, I'm sure you've heard of Ulta. They just sent out an email about how they are carrying an Ulta-exclusive "Liimited Edition" Book of Shadows from Urban Decay. I guess it's limited in the fact that they have been having all these sales to get rid of all their old-formulation eye shadows. I bought the BoS Redux during their Friends and Family sale a couple weeks back.
It's possible that Urban Decay had to collaborate with Martha Stewart to have access to soooooooooo much glitter. If you're familiar with the older formulation of the UD shadows, you will know how gritty the glitter shadows are. Having said that, there are 16 shadows in this box and only 2 have unmanageable (to me) glitter: Oil Slick, Uzi and Midnight Cowboy rides again. It also comes with a mini primer potion in the old bottle and a mini 24/7 pencil in Zero.
I'm in a rush to leave town this morning for work so only swatched on paper and not on my arm as I didn't want glitter showing up on my face in the middle of the day out of nowhere. I'm sure you understand... These are my standard, two-swipe across the pan without primer, swatches. I can offer color descriptions if you're interested - just let me know.
The only colors I feel like aren't showing up that great in the pictures are Goddess and Ecstasy. Goddess is an almost grey/blue duo chrome with blue micro shimmer. Ecstasy is a very light, bright purple that leans a bit pink.
I'll be honest and tell you that I really only bought this BoS because I wanted Haight, Goddess, Stray Dog and Rockstar and didn't mind the idea of having a back up of Sin and YDK. By the time I thought I was going to spend $6 a piece on six shadows, I figured I might as well make the jump and try this book out. It wasn't a bad decision (especially at 20% off the new $39 price tag) but be aware that there is a ton of glitter and that it will get all over your shadows. Also, I'm not sure if it's just mine, but you can't pull the part with the shadows out like you can in the BoS V. It's not a huge inconvenience but you need to clear space up on your vanity to use it and that might be a quirk that you just don't like. If you end up purchasing, let me know what your thoughts are!
It's possible that Urban Decay had to collaborate with Martha Stewart to have access to soooooooooo much glitter. If you're familiar with the older formulation of the UD shadows, you will know how gritty the glitter shadows are. Having said that, there are 16 shadows in this box and only 2 have unmanageable (to me) glitter: Oil Slick, Uzi and Midnight Cowboy rides again. It also comes with a mini primer potion in the old bottle and a mini 24/7 pencil in Zero.
I'm in a rush to leave town this morning for work so only swatched on paper and not on my arm as I didn't want glitter showing up on my face in the middle of the day out of nowhere. I'm sure you understand... These are my standard, two-swipe across the pan without primer, swatches. I can offer color descriptions if you're interested - just let me know.
 |
| Pictures with the BoS V under to show size difference |
 |
| Ah ~ New York |
 |
| The whole palette |
 |
| Just the colors |
 |
| In order that the shadows are in the palette |
 |
| Same stuff, less shadowy |
I'll be honest and tell you that I really only bought this BoS because I wanted Haight, Goddess, Stray Dog and Rockstar and didn't mind the idea of having a back up of Sin and YDK. By the time I thought I was going to spend $6 a piece on six shadows, I figured I might as well make the jump and try this book out. It wasn't a bad decision (especially at 20% off the new $39 price tag) but be aware that there is a ton of glitter and that it will get all over your shadows. Also, I'm not sure if it's just mine, but you can't pull the part with the shadows out like you can in the BoS V. It's not a huge inconvenience but you need to clear space up on your vanity to use it and that might be a quirk that you just don't like. If you end up purchasing, let me know what your thoughts are!
Monday, October 22, 2012
Shopping... again?
I went to Walmart and discovered heaps of the new 2012 Hard Candy makeup. I stuck to what I know best. Neutrals. I purchased three of the new Single & Loving it shadows in: Attraction, Infatuation and Solo.
2. Infatuation - A champagne with the micro gold/silver shimmer. It's a really pretty, smooth as melted butter kind of shadow. Actually reminds me a bit of the Urban Decay formulas. Actually, if the Balm's Mary-Lou Manizer is a little too peach for your skin tone, this has the same base sparkle. This would work as a great multi-tasker for inner corner/brow bone highlight to actual highlight for your face.
3. Solo - Bronze with rust/brown tones and micro gold shimmer. This shade, in terms of smoothness, is right between the first two shades mentioned. Not particularly buttery but not as gritty as Attraction. The color is great and wears really well with minimal fallout.
All in all, for $3 a piece, these shadows are definitely worth a try. If you aren't a neutral lover like myself, then I'm sure you could pass on these as they aren't really anything spectacular/insanely special but if you're just starting to get in to makeup, it'd be a really get place to start.
 |
| ***The colors are the truest in this picture*** |
Again, I rough swatched these babies really quickly and the color in my pictures aren't fantastic but you get the idea. I swatched them on the paper so you could see the buttery or grittiness of each shadow. The color payoff is great on each one but I would say that they do fade after about half a day's wear. Each of the swatches is without any primer underneath and just 2 swipes across the pan.
1. Attraction - A taupe-y/bronze-y/brown with really fine gold shimmer. You can see in the picture below how there are "chunks" of eyeshadow. It blends out nicely in the end but has a bit of fallout because of the formulation.
All in all, for $3 a piece, these shadows are definitely worth a try. If you aren't a neutral lover like myself, then I'm sure you could pass on these as they aren't really anything spectacular/insanely special but if you're just starting to get in to makeup, it'd be a really get place to start.
Let me know what you think if you've checked these out!
Sunday, October 21, 2012
Here's the Problem
Do you see these jars of nail polish?
It's a sickness. It's also what I've accumulated over just the last month or so... I go out to Target, Meijer, TJ Maxx, Rite Aid or wherever to grab something and end up shamelessly perusing the cosmetics section and come out with one or a couple nail polishes. Darn season changes have great clearance, sales AND great limited edition collections that come out.
I've picked up a variety of all sorts. Some Essie, L'oreal, Sinful Colors, Butter, Revlon, Orly and Wet n Wild... I obviously can't swatch them all today (and possibly not even this week!) so stay tuned. I painted my nails red with this Sally Hansen Kook-A-Mango the other day and it completely dyed my finger nails so I'm giving my poor, brittle nails a break for a few days as I try to figure out how I want to format this my blog entries... any ideas?
I rough-swatched a single coat on the back of some sheet music I had sitting around to show you the color out of the bottle. Soooo pretty~
I realize my lighting sucks. I'll have to work it out. I'm just happy that I'm blogging at all! * smiles *
It's a sickness. It's also what I've accumulated over just the last month or so... I go out to Target, Meijer, TJ Maxx, Rite Aid or wherever to grab something and end up shamelessly perusing the cosmetics section and come out with one or a couple nail polishes. Darn season changes have great clearance, sales AND great limited edition collections that come out.
I've picked up a variety of all sorts. Some Essie, L'oreal, Sinful Colors, Butter, Revlon, Orly and Wet n Wild... I obviously can't swatch them all today (and possibly not even this week!) so stay tuned. I painted my nails red with this Sally Hansen Kook-A-Mango the other day and it completely dyed my finger nails so I'm giving my poor, brittle nails a break for a few days as I try to figure out how I want to format this my blog entries... any ideas?
I rough-swatched a single coat on the back of some sheet music I had sitting around to show you the color out of the bottle. Soooo pretty~
I realize my lighting sucks. I'll have to work it out. I'm just happy that I'm blogging at all! * smiles *
J.R. Watkins
Okay, these aren't quite a "swatch" but I recently realized that I hit whatever status it is at Rite Aid that allows me to get 20% off all the things I buy there... Awesome, right? I went a little shopping crazy these past few weeks (as usual) and purchased some of items.
I first became obsessed with the J.R. Watkins Hand & Body lotions after testing them out at a Cracker Barrel and found them at Rite Aid a week or two ago with +UP rewards. Yay! So, of course I picked two up - Mango and Lemon.
I'm not really into the whole "everything has to be natural" thing (not saying it's bad if you are~). I just hate reading labels... If I can't get myself to read directions to a bookcase that's gonna be packed full and hanging out by my bed, then I surely won't be able to get myself to read labels on lotions!
However, just in case you're interested:
I never got into the whole body butter thing either~ They were all a little too greasy-feeling for my liking. These are thick and moisturizing and just... well, lovely. I must prefer the Lemon Cream over the Mango but everyone has his or her own preference so you should try them out!
I first became obsessed with the J.R. Watkins Hand & Body lotions after testing them out at a Cracker Barrel and found them at Rite Aid a week or two ago with +UP rewards. Yay! So, of course I picked two up - Mango and Lemon.
I'm not really into the whole "everything has to be natural" thing (not saying it's bad if you are~). I just hate reading labels... If I can't get myself to read directions to a bookcase that's gonna be packed full and hanging out by my bed, then I surely won't be able to get myself to read labels on lotions!
However, just in case you're interested:
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| Same as Mango |
 | |
| Lemon Cream |
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| Mango |
I never got into the whole body butter thing either~ They were all a little too greasy-feeling for my liking. These are thick and moisturizing and just... well, lovely. I must prefer the Lemon Cream over the Mango but everyone has his or her own preference so you should try them out!
Friday, October 19, 2012
Keeping Up
Okay, so I know that I haven't really been good about "keeping up" with this blog. I admittedly suck at all things where there is some type of interaction but I'm interested in starting again. I think I spend too much money on things to not share with others. My hope for this blog is to keep it short and simple. Swatches. I want people to send in swatches of the same items I have or don't have so that it becomes a library of swatches for people to be able to see how the same product would pull on different skin tones. So, let's get it started. Swatchtober begins!
Thursday, February 2, 2012
I'm pretty sure I have a problem
So... I know that I'm completely and ridiculous addicted to all things shopping. I bought a new Deux Lux purse from Marshalls about two weeks ago and I have been LOVE LOVE LOVING it!!! BUT, I walked in to TJ Maxx the other day and noticed a Michael Kors xl tote that I had eyed at Macys over the summer but decided not to pick up... until I saw it at TJM. Gah... The real problem is that I went absolutely crazy over my 20% off coupon at ULTA the other week and bought about $200 in nail polish! AFTER the discount!!! Now, my lovely people, that means a crazy amount of swatching has to be done. I will finally take out my camera and take pics instead of trying to take some low-grade pictures on my stupid phone. Yay! Maybe I will include pics of the purses I bought as well if anybody is interested.
Please stay tuned for nail swatches... I will have a TON
Please stay tuned for nail swatches... I will have a TON
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Sexy Curves mascara
This mascara? It's okay. I have typical Asian lashes so it really didn't do anything for me except make me poke myself in the eyeball a bunch of times. I bought this mascara one month ago and when I bought it, I thought the formula was a bit runny so I let it sit for a month and gave it another couple of tries. Much better.... Still not fantastic.
The grooves on the brush, while it may be "sexy", the product tends to gather between the curves and then gives you crazy Frankenstein clumps for eyelashes. Although the 003 touts "extreme black" as its name, there isn't really anything extreme about minus the extreme pain you feel when you poke your eye with this modern day flail.
Rimmel London Sexy Curves Mascara in 003 Extreme Black (Purple tube) rating:
Size: 0.27 fl oz (8ml)
Color: ****
Lasting power: ***
Smudge-proof: **
Flake-proof: *
Would I recommend this product? No. But let me know what you think if you've tried it or plan on purchasing it!
The grooves on the brush, while it may be "sexy", the product tends to gather between the curves and then gives you crazy Frankenstein clumps for eyelashes. Although the 003 touts "extreme black" as its name, there isn't really anything extreme about minus the extreme pain you feel when you poke your eye with this modern day flail.
Rimmel London Sexy Curves Mascara in 003 Extreme Black (Purple tube) rating:
Size: 0.27 fl oz (8ml)
Color: ****
Lasting power: ***
Smudge-proof: **
Flake-proof: *
Would I recommend this product? No. But let me know what you think if you've tried it or plan on purchasing it!
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Washing Brushes
I decided to deep clean my brushes today and looked up the fastest way to dry them. It involved a bit of MacGyver-ing with home goods and office items so I passed. I had the traditional "lay it on a towel" method, but was feeling pretty lazy today so went with a spin-off of that. I just put in an order for a dry and shape from Sigma, but I think this worked great.
I just took a clean hand towel, and some empty paper towel rolls (which I save like they are going out of style) and rolled one side of the towel over it.
You get something like what I have in the pictures below. One side is lifted so it lets the water run DOWN and out so it doesn't damage your brushes and best of all? I'm sure you have these things around your house! No more figuring out how to hang them on a hanger like an acrobat or making faux brush guards... This is it, people. Well, until my dry and shape comes, at least.
In other news: I did a ridiculous amount of shopping within the past month and have tons to swatch and show! Look for them soon!
~JL
Monday, January 2, 2012
Welcome
Here it is.
My original resolution was to be more productive and spend less money... a lot less money. However, I know that's not gonna happen. I'm addicted. Addicted to shopping. Plain. And. Simple.
I'll spend my money so you don't have to spend yours and we'll start our shopping adventures together. I know there are hundreds of other blogs online dedicated to the wonderful world of makeup. Let's be real though. Most of us can't afford to keep up with the drugstore brands let alone all the new things that pop up in the high-end markets.
Welcome to 2012. Welcome to me. Welcome to swatchtopia!
My original resolution was to be more productive and spend less money... a lot less money. However, I know that's not gonna happen. I'm addicted. Addicted to shopping. Plain. And. Simple.
I'll spend my money so you don't have to spend yours and we'll start our shopping adventures together. I know there are hundreds of other blogs online dedicated to the wonderful world of makeup. Let's be real though. Most of us can't afford to keep up with the drugstore brands let alone all the new things that pop up in the high-end markets.
Welcome to 2012. Welcome to me. Welcome to swatchtopia!
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