Sunday, September 17, 2017

Top 5 : Makeup Products I'll Repurchase & Recommend

Hi Everyone,

Everyone has their favourites & I have mine too. Out of my favourites, I've picked out the Top 5 that I have restocked time and again. I have loved these & even recommended them to friends & family whenever I've been asked to suggest certain products.

So here's a list of my Top 5 Makeup Products that I will definitely repurchase in future & recommend to anyone who's interested -

1. Loreal MatMagique 12hr Foundation


Loreal MatMagique 12hr Foundation
This has become a very important part of my makeup kit. It's a great foundation for oily & combination skin types, as it sets matte & doesn't budge. Having said that, it's not thick in consistency like some medium to heavy coverage foundations are. Frankly, when I don't have concealer at hand, I use a lil extra foundation under the eyes to cover up the dark circles & it does a great job of that as well.

A couple of cons -
a. It sets very quickly. You need to work fast to blend it across the face & neck.
b. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone with dry skin as it's matte & would further dry up your skin.

2. Lotus ColorKick Kajal - Review HERE.
I've used other kajals in the market quite honestly but always keep coming back to this one. The price point & pigmentation of the product are absolutely amazing! I like the Maybelline SuperBlack Kajal as well & it comes a close second to the Lotus one, but I don't see Lotus budging from the no.1 position in my list of deep, dark kajals.

3. Rimmel London Stay Matte Powder - Review HERE.
Any oily/combination skinned makeup enthusiast who has used this lil piece of magic, would tell you they've loved it! And I'm no different. I love it so much that when I hit pan on my 1st powder, I used up all the crumbly left-over bits until THERE WERE NO left-over bits lol. Now I've hit pan on my 2nd Stay Matte Powder & I'm going to do just that...again!!!

4. Nivea Men After Shave Balm - Review HERE.
The Nivea After Shave Balm deserves every bit of appreciation it gets on the internet, within the beauty community. It works as an amazing, hydrating primer to soften the skin, prep it for foundation & hold on to that foundation when applied. Do check out the link above for the review.

5. Kryolan Derma Color Camouflage Creme


Kryolan Derma Color Camouflage Creme

You get all kinds of makeup EVERYWHERE nowadays, say those ignorant ppl, who don't know that I cannot just go to a store now & buy my Derma Color Concealer for Rs.350/- (price in 2015). I could EASILY do that in Mumbai or Bangalore. Unfortunately, I can't buy it anywhere here :-( I could get it online, but it's not the same. I use it sparingly now but will surely pick up a small tub in Mumbai, next time I'm there. This is a miracle product & a little goes a long way. You have to try it to believe it!!

Cons -
a. Heavy duty concealer, so use a very, very tiny amount.
b. Quite drying, so use a good eye cream before it & set it quickly with powder after applying, since it tends to crease soon.

TheLipztickaholicDiaries will be incomplete with the mention of my much loved product, "The Lipstick", right? Here's a bonus product that I love....

A very, very special mention to Maybelline Lip Gradation in shade Pink2, that I have loved for the past year & a half. The proof? I'm on my 3rd crayon right now....yep, its true! 3 crayons in 1.5yrs has gotta be some kind of record, right? So I'm ready & waiting for my medal...lol ;-)

I'd love to know about your top 5 makeup items that you absolutely love & rave about!! Tell me more about them in the comments section. Leave your questions, if any, there too!

Follow me on Instagram HERE for Everyday Makeup looks, Lipstick of the Day posts, Easy Eye Makeup, Product empties, mini-Reviews & much more!!

Until the next post, Ciao!

Monday, September 11, 2017

Date-Night Makeup Tutorial (Simple & Step-by-Step)

Hi Everyone,

Being parents to a very active 5yr old, we don't usually get to have date-nights. Either the kiddo tags along or we order-in & spend chilled out evenings at home.

So when the Husband & I realized that he has to leave for a tour on my birthday this month, we thought of going out to dinner. We called it an "Early Birthday Dinner + Date-Night". Since these evenings out are a rarity in my case, I thought of trying to put in a lil extra effort into my makeup look. It turned out really well & I was very pleased with it. It's actually very simple & with little practice, you could put this together in about 10mins flat.

Here's how I put it together -

1. Apply deep black kajal on the entire moving eyelid. Don't go above the crease though. Smudge out the kajal with a brush or your finger. This forms a nice base for the eyeshadows that follow. They'll stick on & last longer. If you're a beginner, I strongly suggest staying away from deep blacks & using a deep brown as they're more forgiving & easier to blend.

2. Apply a grey eyeshadow on the inner & outer corner of the eyelid. On the middle, dab a shimmery eyeshadow (I used a shimmery gold) with your finger. Blend the edges of 3 segments, to make it look gradient. So, they should look something like this - Grey-Gold-Grey lol I'm so sorry I'm really bad at describing this process.

The Gold in the centre of the eyelid, makes the eyes pop & looks beautiful. 

3. On the crease of the eye, you can blend in a deep brown or any earthy toned eyeshadow to deepen it. This will ensure an overall blended look. Tie-in the look by lining the lower lashline with the same deep black kajal & smudging it with a brown or black eyeshadow. 

So here's how the eye look turned out -


For this look, I used the New-trals Vs Neutrals palette by Makeup Revolution London. You could use any palette or single eyeshadows you own. You can also switch up the colours, while keeping the same technique to create a "Spotlight Effect" :-)

On another random note, I've been away for about 2 months now & it feels great to be blogging again. Hope you liked this simple tutorial I put together. I write at nights when my lil one's asleep & I do so on my phone. With his school schedule & everything else, the post takes sometime to make an appearance on the blog hehe, completely my fault...Guilty as charged!! 

Leave in requests for other posts & I'll be happy to come up with them!

See you all around soon! Ciao!