Quick & Easy Makeup Look (6 products only)

Hi Everyone,

I'm here to share a very simple look that I created today & ended up really liking it :-) The best part is that I used very few products for it. Multi-task with these & you're done in about 10 mins!! It's something that you can quickly put together when you're pressed for time. Here's the finished look & how you can go about it - 

1. Concealer & Pressed Powder

2. Black Kohl & Mascara

3. Bronzing Highlighter & Lipstick

1. Concealer & Pressed Powder - Skip the foundation or BB cream & use the concealer only where required. I used the Derma Color concealer & blended it on the T-Zone (Above & between brows, bridge of the nose, under eyes, cupid's bow & chin). Set the concealer with any pressed powder; I used the Rimmel Stay Matte powder for this step

2. Black Kohl & Mascara - Using your ring finger or an eye shadow brush, first apply the bronzing highlighter as an eye shadow all across your moving eyelid. This step will bring the light to your eyes & make the kohl (to follow) stand out! :-) I used the Revlon Highlighting palette in 030 Bronze Glow.

Using the kohl, line your waterline & lower lashline; remember to go slightly thick on the lower lashline. I used the Lotus ColorKick Kajal here. To ensure the kohl stays put, pick up the darkest shade from the bronzing palette on a pencil brush & use it to smudge the kohl on the lower lashline. Pick up more eyeshadow & repeat this if required as the eyeshadow will combine with kohl and hold it in place. The idea in this look is to skip using any liquid liner as it requires a certain amount of precision & time as well. Bring out the lower lashline with thickly lined kohl :-) Add 2 -3 coats of mascara to the lashes (I used the Maybelline Hypercurl Mascara) & later fill out the brows with the same kohl to complete the eyes (brows & mascara are optional steps!). 

I feel the thick kohl looks great from behind my glasses too & brings out my eyes... I wonder why 'silly me' completely forgot to click a picture with my glasses on .. **face palm** .. will put a pic up on my Instagram page soon... Follow me HERE.

3. Bronzing Highlighter & Lipstick - With a blush brush, apply the bronzer/highlighter to the apples of your cheeks & finish off the lips with your favourite shade of lipstick!! :-) I used the Sephora Color Lip Last lipstick in Meet My Pink (No.21).

This will most probably be my last post in 2015 :-) Before bidding goodbye to this year & stepping into the next one, I'd just like to say Thank-You for all the love & support you have shown to my lil blog. I started blogging just this year & I'm so overwhelmed to see the amount of appreciation that's been pouring in. It really means a lot to me!

For me, Makeup means 'Having Fun'! It makes me feel like a kid in an Arts & Crafts store. Makeup for me is about about playing around with colours, creating something new every time, being happy, creative & confident :-) Having said that, I'm confident even without a speck of Makeup on my face. So let's always remember, with or without Makeup - 

You are beautiful, You are YOU....Don't let anything change that :-) 

Have an amazing 2016!! Happy New Year!! 

Lotus Herbals Color Kick Kajal - Review

Hey Everyone, today I bring to you a review of the Lotus Herbals Color Kick Kajal.

I was looking around for a new kajal pencil at the store, when a bright pink pencil in the Lotus Herbals aisle, caught my eyes. I checked with the SA who told me that it was a new launch and went back to gossiping with her colleagues. Honestly, for me, this was a refreshing change; I get slightly annoyed when SAs keep on asking me if they can help. LOL Yes, I’m Neha, I love movies and long (undisturbed) walks down the makeup aisle!! ***wink wink***. 

Sorry sorry, back to the bright pink pencil that caught my eye. It was the Lotus Makeup Color Kick Kajal. At first, I was turned off by the packaging, a bright pink packaging for a black kajal? Weird! Nah..not interested!! But then Lotus Herbals was a brand that had never disappointed me in the past. I have loved all their sunscreens which I have been using since the beginning of time! I really wanted to try out this new kajal, so I got it! I was recently cleaning out my vanity box and realized this lil guy was banished to the corners for a long time. I brought him out and I’m sure he’s going to be a trusty lil companion this summer.

Price – At only Rs.199/- for 0.28g (I know, I know Lakme Eyeconic is Rs.200/- for 0.35g, but come on, I wanted to try something new!)

Packaging – A bright, hot pink body with a matching cap, that shuts tightly with a click. You will definitely not feel the need to look out for this kajal in the dark depths of your purse (Lol, we are women and we can carry our world in our purse..), this pink cutie will stand out from all your other makeup. A great plus about this pencil is that, it’s twistable and doesn’t need sharpening. I love this mechanism because seriously, how many of us ladies carry sharpeners around with us? (Yes, the world we carry, but not sharpeners!).

Shade, Texture & Longevity – It’s a dark, jet black colour and really pigmented. One swipe with a light hand will deposit great colour on your lashline. The texture is very creamy and soft. It sets in about 10 seconds of application to a smudge-proof finish and stays till the end of the day. Having said that, it doesn’t dry out and form those dirty lil boogers in your lashes. PS - I do recommend removing your kajal before bed-time. I never followed it myself; until I did and found that it really made a difference!

I use this kajal in different ways. Some examples of how I like to use this pencil - 

Used only half-way towards the outer lash-line
Opens up the eyes

Used to define complete upper and lower lash-line
Closes the eyes, but looks dramatic

Used to define only lower lash-line
Everyday look

Used as a smudged base for smokey eyes

Thumbs up -

• Price point
• Staying power
• Pigmentation

Thumbs down -

• Packaging (Cute pink pencil yet some of us maybe slightly turned off by it and not even give it a second look! To be honest, the pink packaging is not REALLY a Thumbs down, just a matter of preference with some)

      Hope you all liked this review..do let me know what's your 'go-to' kajal. If you've tried out a new kajal recently, let me know about it in the comments section below.

      Till then, Ciao! Have fun experimenting!!

Defined Eyes & Rosey Plum Lips - Makeup Look using March FabBag products

Hi Everyone,

I received my March FabBag yesterday. Tadaaaa! My March FabBag and the lovely products that came in it! Themed for Women's Day, the bag was full of natural products for makeup and skincare. 

I was so excited that I wanted to open up all the products and test them right away. But The Husband said, “Wait! Wouldn’t Baby D wanna “play” with your makeup too? Better wait until he’s off to school and you have your time to experiment with these!”. Now when your Man, holds back your over-excited self to give some great advice like this, you know you’ve married the right guy! Hehehe what say?

I waited and Gosh! It was great; I got plenty of time to create this look (Read - a good 15 mins without my toddler screaming Amma! Amma!). 

Here how I put together this look, with some of the March Fab Bag products, step by step –

1.  I used the InVeda BB cream as a base. It doesn’t give enough coverage per se, actually leaves a slight grey cast when you apply it, but smells divine! I used my Maybelline Dream Lumi Touche Highlighter pen to conceal the undereyes, nose, cupid ’s bow and chin. If you wish, you can skip the highlighting and concealing step.
2. Next I used the SoulTree Kajal in Pure Black to line the waterline. For the upper lashline, I used the Maybelline Collosal Eyeliner which I won in a recent YouTube giveaway. I have close-set eyes and it helps me give them an elongated look.
3. Then I used the Palladio Lipstick in Rosey Plum on my lips. I loved the colour but wasn’t comfortable with gold, frosty finish. So I used my Maybelline Lip balm over the lipstick to give it a glossier look and eliminate the frosty gold finish.
4. After having recently discovered my love for blush, I somehow can’t seem to do without it. I feel I am too pale anyway and with makeup and no blush, I look sick LOL. So I ran my ring-finger over the same lipstick and dabbed some on my cheek bones. Voila! Healthy flush!! **wink wink**

I’m yet to use the Sebastian Professional Hydre Shampoo & the Fashionography earrings from the bag, but I really liked the 3 products that I used viz. InVeda BB cream, SoulTree Kajal and the Palladio Lipstick!

This is a simple look with Defined eyes and Rosey Plum lips. It’s great for parties or special occasions and you can re-create this quick look when you’re pressed for time! 

Simple Makeup without Makeup Brushes

Hi Everyone,

Many of my friends ask me about the brushes that I use to create different looks. I tell them about the ones I have and they seem pretty surprised that I have only a few.

I am no "Makeup Guru" but I can assure you that to create simple, easy and daily wear looks, You dont need to have brushes!!. Yes, now calm down Baalikey and listen...ahem sorry read on! The funda, my friend, is simple - I use my fingers :-) and that works quite well for me. Let me tell you how I created this Green Eyes & Lilac Lips look without the help of Makeup brushes. 

1.  FACE –

a.   After cleansing, I used an oil-free moisturizer on my face to prep up the skin for the base makeup.

b.    Next, I used the warmth of my fingers to blend the Lakme CC Cream (Bronze) into my skin. This has become my absolute favourite for daily wear.

c.    I used the Chambor Radiant Touch Up Concealer on the dark circles under my eyes. Now although this concealer comes with an attached brush tip at the end, I took some product out on the back of my hand and used the ring-finger of the other hand to spread and blend this product under my eyes.

d.    Next, to set the base, I used the Chanel Illuminating Powder. I used this with an old sponge I had. This is the tricky part – applying powder to your face without a brush. You have 2 options – You can either use a sponge / powder puff, or simply use a foundation that sets to a powder finish (Lakme Absolute Mousse is a good foundation that does that).

e.    For blush, I used the Lakme Pure Rouge blush in Peach Affair. I lightly touched the blush palette with the middle 3 fingers of my hand and tapped them on my cheeks, where I wanted the blush to go. I blended the product by swiping in upward motions towards my temples and ears. Another option can be, to use Cheek stains instead of powder blushes.

2.    EYES –

a.    Revlon Shadow Links have small, easy to blend eye shadows that you can buy individually. I used the Khaki Green shade from this range on my eyes. I cleaned my fingers off the residue of the blush and used my ring finger to apply this shadow on my eyelids. Since the ring finger has the least pressure, it’s preferable to use it while swiping/applying the eye shadow. Your eyelids are saved from the tugging and pulling during application.

b.    For the crease area, I used the neutral brown shade from a local brand. I used my pointer finger to take this product & used ‘windshield wiper’ motions in the crease area, to blend the hard edges of the khaki green.

c.    Another tricky part is applying eyeliner without a teeny-tiny brush! No worries, I have a solution to that as well!! Use an eye kohl pencil instead. OK, so you have an eye pencil but it isn't the colour you want on your lash line? Then scribble with it on the back of your hand to make the tip a little blunt, so that you don't poke yourself in the eyes. Once done, dip this pencil into gel eyeliner or liquid eyeliner (of your choice) and slowly line your eyes with it. Remember to stretch a little and hold, from the outer corners of your eyes. I did that and got a nice finish.

3.    LIPS –

a.    The easiest part!! No brush required at all!! **hehehe** Swipe the lipstick bullet on your lips and purse your lips to evenly spread out the colour. With the edge of the bullet, sharpen the corners and outlines of your lips. DONE!!! I have used the Revlon Colorburst Lipstick in the shade 01 Lilac for this step.

Hope this detailed step-by-step post helped some of you out. I’d like to part with my “2-rupees Gyan” (LOL nope I aint a KRK fan!).

1.       Don’t be intimidated by makeup brushes and feel the need to own one for every step of your makeup.

2.       If you still wish to own brushes, get 2  – A good foundation brush for a flawless finish & a good eye shadow blending brush. 

     That’s all you need as Basics, my friend!  CIAO!!!

Plum & Copper Eyes

Hi Everyone,

Creating a new look and playing around with different colours is my thing!

I have worn glasses since the beginning of time and always balanced out my bespectacled face with a bold lip-colour. Not that it isn’t interesting, but I wanted to do something different with my eyes too.

Somewhere last year I began experimenting with eye makeup and gosh! I realized there was so much I could do…with or without glasses on! I will soon be coming up with eye makeup for glass wearers, but read on to see what I did when I was wearing lenses that day. You could definitely rock this look with glasses too!

This is what I did -

1. Once my base was done, I primed my eyes. (Read my post on how to cheat on eye primer with lip gloss, here).
2. I dusted my moving eye-lid area with a Plum shade. I used CoverGirl eyeshadow quad in Dynamite Drama 223.

3. I warmed up my crease area with a Copper shade. I used Revlon Colorstay Shadowlinks eye shadow in Copper.

4. I blended these 2 shades together with an Oriflame eyeshadow brush. I don’t have the blending brush, but this one serves the purpose. Keep blending, until the 2 colours seem to blend seamlessly into one another. 

5. I highlighted my brow bone using a matte White shade from the same CoverGirl quad.Next, I applied my eyeliner using Miss ClaireArtist Pen Eyeliner and winged it out a bit.

6. To finish off the eyes, I used Lakme Eyeconic Kajal in Brown to line the outer 2/3^rd of the eyes and a white eye pencil from a local brand to line the inner 1/3^rd.

Lastly, I used MaybellineColor Sensational Moisture Extreme lipstick in Bronze Orange as my lipstick. It comes off as a beautiful nude on me and remains understated so that the eyes do all the talking!

Hope you guys liked this look! Please do recreate it sometime and send me pictures! Ciao!