Review: City Color Cosmetics Intense Blush Quad Collection 1

  The

City Color Cosmetics Intense Blush Quad Collection 1

is AMAZING! WOW! I have never found a blush palette like this that is affordable for everyone.  The colors are so vibrant and they stay on the skin very well.  With these bright colors I like to apply them with a fan brush so it just lightly sweeps the color on the apples of the cheeks.  In the palette you will get different shades of pink from bright hot pink to a lighter girly pink. Did I mention the blushes are all MATTE? YES! MATTE! YAY!  My favorite shade is the 3rd shade it's more of a mauve pink that can go with any look you are trying to achieve. I am very pleased with this palette and really want to get the other set -

Collection 2 

which features peachy/orange/coral shades.  If you are looking for matte blushes with high pigmentation at an affordable price then this is for you!

Look at the colors!! I didn't even use a primer!

Speaking of primer ... 

City Color Cosmetics does have a great foundation primer.  I used it for the first time to create a look for the next Makeup of The Day and it left my face matte and shine free in my pictures.  I was very impressed! At first it was a little hard to squeeze out of the tube but once you apply it the product just glides on the face.  This paraben-free primer does not feel heavy on the skin (in my opinion) and I like how soft it feels.  I instantly noticed that my pores were not as noticeable and how smooth my skin looked even after I applied my foundation. 

 Take a look how great my foundation looks! Totally matte no shine! This was a look that I created for one of my MOTD's I will post more pictures and product listing later this week.  It is all City Color Cosmetics!

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Review: City Color Multi-Shade Eye Shadow Palette

I was given the opportunity to review some products from

City Color Cosmetics

.  It is an affordable brand with many products to choose from.  What's great about this brand is that the quality is great! I always like to be on the lookout for quality products that are affordable for everyone.  Please don't always think that expensive makeup will always get you better results.  In my opinion you can achieve great looks even on a budget - it is the way you apply it that makes a difference.

The first review is the

City Color Multi-Shade Eye Shadow Palettes.

  I received 3 of them

 Browns and Greens

Grays and Blues

 Blues and Purples

The eye shadows are placed in an acrylic palette, it is very sturdy.  Is also comes with a applicator but I usually toss these and use makeup brushes for more detailed application.  The variety of colors in each of the palettes really give you a lot of creativity to explore different looks from natural to dramatic. My favorite palette is the Blues and Purples, just because I love wearing purple eye shadows.  The two purple shades in the palette are gorgeous and are very different from each other. One is more warm and the other is more cool.  Great variety! 

I will be posting looks featuring these palettes so please check back! Working on them now :)

When I was swatching the colors I found that using a primer is a must have to capture the intensity of the shadow. I used the

City Color Shadow Primer

in Nude.  The primer was easy to apply - very creamy and non drying.   I find that some eye primers out there are so drying on the eye lids but this one was nothing like the others. 

Want to receive 15% off your City Color Cosmetics purchase? Enter promo code 13VT1B15 

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Can't wait to share some other products with all of you.. still have cheeks and lips .. stay tuned! 

MOTD: MAC Cosmetics Up The Amp Lipstick

Over the weekend I was cleaning out my lipstick collection and  I found  Up The Amp MAC Lipstick.  I always forget about this color and how beautiful it looks with plum liner. I remember when I use to work for MAC customers won't be so scared to wear this color! Looks fabulous on medium to dark skin tones ( I am a NC40 in MAC foundations). The plum liner complimented the lipstick very well by creating a deeper tone around the lip which created definition.

 For the eyes I Paired it with a smokey brown eye for fall and Faux Lash lashes in Sasha.  Can't forget about my brows.  My ultimate go-to brow products Anastasia Beverly Hills Brows Tinted Brow Gel Espresso and Brow Genius Kit in Brunette. 

I think I need to do more lip makeup of the days ... I have tons of lipsticks. Lol 

Review: Dinair Airbrushing System

YAY FOR AIRBRUSHING!!! So exciting you guys are going to love it!

What is airbrushing?

It is when makeup is sprayed onto the skin using an

airbrush

gun instead of being applied with sponges, brushes, fingers, or other methods.  It has become very popular with HD TV and film because traditional makeup (powders, liquid foundationr and creams) can settle in pores and fine lines which can be seen in HD TV.  With airbrushing the makeup is sprayed on, it settles on the skin as mini droplets of formula giving a more natural and non-heavy look. What's also great is the foundation will last ALL DAY, no touch ups needed, no need to worry about your makeup sweating off or transferring over to your boyfriend/husband/significant other.

I have been wanting to try out the

Dinair Airbrushing Makeup

system for a long time now.  It's nice to have something so mall and light weight for both personal and professional use.  My Iwata airbrushing compressor is so big that I hate taking it with me for on location work.  It's bulky and heavy but great for all over body airbrushing and FX work.

The system that I received is the Personal Pro Edition Kit, it has all your basic products for you to get started.  If you take a look at the website there are many options of different kits you can purchase, choose the best one that will fit your needs.

I am a MEDIUM with olive undertones ( I wear MAC NC40/NC42)

It is very easy to pick the right foundation color for you.  Just compare the models pictures with your natural skin tone and you will be set to you.  Keep in mind that you can customize the foundation by mixing colors together (more about this later).  If you are still unsure, visit their

Color Match

page and send them a pic of yourself.  You will receive an email with detailed information regarding all the products that would be best for you! Don't you love this? AMAZING customer service!!!!

I will be posting a  lot of about Dinair in the next couple of weeks from basic fundamentals of airbrushing to some makeup looks that you can create using the colors supplied in the kit. You can literally airbrush your whole makeup, - bronzer, blush, lip color, eye shadow, eye liner, eye brows!  YouTube videos will be supplied also (I think videos are great tools for learning!)

UNBOXING PERSONAL/PRO EDITION Kit

I was so excited when my kit came nicely packaged! I just wanted to jump in and start playing!

Good thing everything was packed seperatly in plastic.  One of my bottles leaked a little but it was easy to cleanup.

All the actual products that are included in your kit.  Basically everything you really need to start airbrushing away!

 A lot of education/product information for you to read to get to know your Dinair system.  Look there's even a DVD!

A handy dandy color chart of all the airbrush color makeups they carry.  This is great to keep when you want to order more colors. 

Look at the cute little pink compressor! You can customize your compressor with your favorite color or even an animal print.  It's light-weight and compact for easy storage and light for traveling.

The airbrush gun is very simple to use, you will get the hang of it in no time.  I really like how it has it's own case for storing and traveling.

This is just a short version of my review.  I will be updating more and also doing an introductory video on how to use the system! Please let me know if you guys have any questions.

Tutorial/MOTD: Black & Gold

Lately, I have been a lot of requests for black and gold eye shadow looks.  With all the Holiday parties coming this weekend along with New Years right around the corner I thought it would be the right time to make a tutorial.

[side note]

I am so into making YouTube tutorials now because of my new video camera and set up with my new lighting.  My goal is to make 1 video a week including reviews and how to segments.  My new Panasonic Lumix camera has been a great addition to my JVC video cam.  When I love something I want to keep playing with it hopefully it doesn't get old. lol

Here are the products that I used to create this look:

NYX White Eye Shadow Primer

MAC Eye Shadows - Ricepaper, Soft Brown, Espresso and Carbon

L'Oreal Infalliable 24hour Eye Shadow - Gold Imperial

Faux Lashes Alexia www.fauxlash.com

Sonia Kasuk Pointed Eye Liner Brush

Revlon Photoready BB Cream Medium (will do a review)

Benefit High Beam Highlighter (will do a review)

Smashbox Gingersnap Blush Rush

Ben Nye Banana Luxury Powder (will do a review)

Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics Lip Tar Trollop/Ophelia

Some tips for this look:

-Try not to blend the black into the gold this will turn the black green.

-If you do not have the colors that I used then use colors that are similar but with a MATTE finish.  If you use something with shimmer or frost it will be too much and you won't get the definition.

-Remember to get the Scotch Tape tacky (first run it on the back of your hand) before you apply it to your eye area.  If you don't do this before, when you take it off it will be painful.  I've done this and it's not a good thing!

-Have a clean extra blending brush handy to use to blend the darker shades so the colors don't look muddy.

I'm already thinking of my next video! If you guys have any requests please let me know ;)