Clearly, I love small European cars. Today's is the Mini. If I had to pick a (realistic) option from my list of dream cars, this would be it.



To create the look, I started with a base of Make Up For Ever Aqua Cream mixed with Make Up For Ever Primer and a bit of Smashbox Artificial Light. Over that, for a richer blue, I layered Buxom Stay There Eyeshadow in Bulldog, stacked Sheepdog above that, and blended. Then I made the stripes with my Sephora Nano Liner.



Products used:

Lorac Behind the Scenes Primer
Make Up For Ever Aqua Cream #20
Smashbox Artificial Light in Diffuse
Make Up For Ever Primer #0
Buxom Stay There Eyeshadow in Bulldog and Sheepdog
Sephora Nano Eyeliner in Pure White
Urban Decay 24/7 Liner in Deviant
Stila Major Lash Mascara

I've loved Fiats for a while. I don't know if it's the amazing car chase in The Bourne Identity that got me, or the fact that I've had a red one painted on me... but that's another story. My favorite one, though, is this version:



So, for today's eye look, I decided to incorporate those stripes. May I present: my first double cut crease!



To create the cut crease, I first drew a line with my eyeliner in my crease. To help guide me, I half-closed my eyes and put three dots along the crease, then just connected the dots to make a line. After that, I used a Sephora smudge brush to smudge out the harsh line toward the eyebrow, and then applied the Lancome Ciel du Soir over that. Then, I filled in with yellows and whites, lined the eye, and added mascara.

Products used:

Lorac Behind the Scenes Eye Primer
Lancome Color Design Sensational Effects Eye Shadow in Ciel du Soir
Manly Palette 2, 3, 5, 48
Make Up For Ever Aqua Eyes #1L
Stila Major Lash Mascara

When I first heard about Benefit's new foundation, I thought it sounded fantastic. It's packed with benefits: SPF 25 PA+++, anti-aging ingredients, and hydration. What more could a girl ask for?

Well, nothing. If you have yellow undertones.

I tried the Ivory and Petal shades. Petal was as yellow as yellow could be, and I ruled that one out; Ivory, which I regrettably put all over my face and wore for part of the day, was yellow enough to leave a line of demarcation even after blending. This foundation isn't going to work if you've got pink undertones at all. Also, I found that it rubs off quite easily. All in all, I was so embarrassed to have this on my face that I scrubbed it off and reapplied different makeup a couple of hours after putting it on.

Pros:

• Skincare benefits 
• Lightweight while providing coverage

Cons:

• Only good for complexions with yellow undertones
• Rubs off easily

Verdict: Might be worth a shot if you've got a golden undertone and not a lot of imperfections to cover. Otherwise, steer clear.

Car week continues with my cosmetic ode to my current car: a 2000 Dodge Neon. I genuinely despise this car. It's been with me since my short-lived Metro bit the dust, and has plagued me since the beginning. As a matter of fact, I'm going to have to replace the master cylinder this week. Soon, I'll have no choice but to tow it to a junkyard and find something new... it's approaching 200,000 miles and on its last leg.

It's purple... well, technically "garnet red," but it's purple... and there's a bit of rust on the side door.



Products used:

Lorac Behind the Scenes Eye Primer
NARS Soft Touch Shadow Pencil in Skorpios
Stila Eyeshadow in Rosette
Stila Smudge Pot in Bronze
Urban Decay Lush Lash Mascara

Today kicks off another theme week! This time, it's cars: cars I've owned, and cars I love. I'm going to knock out the two cars I've owned first, starting with the 1994 Geo Metro.

I learned to drive in my parents' blue Metro hatchback when I was 15. I loved it because it was great on gas mileage, it had no blind spots, and I could actually manage to parallel park in the thing ;)

When I turned 16, my parents took me to buy a car, and I picked out another '94 Metro, a carbon copy of the one my parents owned, except this one was purple. It lasted precisely twenty miles and died in the main intersection of my hometown.

So, for the year I spent driving the blue Metro, and the half an hour I spent driving the purple Metro, I've got a mostly blue lid... with a speck of purple.



Products used:

Lorac Behind the Scenes Eye Primer
Manly Palette 48, 80, 88
Urban Decay 24/7 Liner in Deviant
Make Up For Ever Aqua Liner #7
Stila Major Lash Mascara

Winter's finally kicked in here, and I'm longing for warm weather... I'm fantasizing about wearing things like this, about sandals and dresses and wide-brimmed hats, about curling up in my papasan chair on my deck with my cat and a good book. I can't bring warm weather to Minnesota, but I can bring a warm sunset to my eyes...



Products used:

Lorac Behind the Scenes Eye Primer
Sephora Nano Liner in Pure White
Manly Palette 73, 5, 12, 34, 40
Make Up For Ever Aqua Eyes in 0L
Urban Decay Lush Lash Mascara
 

This morning, lacking inspiration, I grabbed a handful of Nyx shadows and decided to play the cards I'd been dealt, which turned out to be pinks, purples, and Oro (which is something like a coppery orange). I sandwiched the two browns between the two purples for this:



Products used:

Lorac Behind the Scenes Eye Primer
Nyx Ultra Pearl Mania in Baby Pink, Purple, Lilac, Mink, Oro, and Walnut
Make Up For Ever 1L
Urban Decay Lush Lash Mascara

I wanted some high shine this morning, and I also wanted a neutral that would let me wear some bold lipstick. My solution:




Products used:

Lorac Behind the Scenes Eye Primer
NARS Eyeshadow in Mekong
Lorac Unzipped Palette in Uncensored
Urban Decay Eyeshadow in Baked and Half Baked
Make Up For Ever Aqua Eyes in 10L
Sephora Nano Eyeliner in Chocolate
Urban Decay Lush Lash Mascara

Today's eye comes to you courtesy of Lindsay at my Sephora. It was my day off today, and I walked in and told her to do what she pleased with my eyes, as long as they matched what I was wearing (a red, gray, and black dress). She gave me this:



She started with a silver eye primer all over my lids and up into my crease, then started at the outer corners with a sparkly black. In the corner, she used a matte black, then blended a silver-gray shadow between them; on top, she added some red. Then she used the new Urban Decay 24/7 Liner in Perversion (which JUST arrived at the store today... let me tell you, it is blacker than black and is not budging) and topped my already-coated lashes with Benefit's They're Real mascara.

Products used:

BareMinerals PrimeTime Eye Primer in Gunmetal
Make Up For Ever Eyeshadow #307, #99, #4
Urban Decay 24/7 Liner in Perversion
Stila Major Lash
Benefit They're Real Mascara

Over the holidays, I bought the Too Faced Sweet Dreams palette, which is super cute and loaded with eyeshadows, blush, luminizer, and bronzer. And I really haven't used it that much, which is a shame, since there are lots of possibilities in that palette. So this morning, I opened it up with a mind to create a look from the shadows inside; instead, I used two of the shadows in the palette, and two other Too Faced shadows.



I started on the outer edge of the lid with Poison Orchid, and blended Midnight Mist onto the other half. Above that, I went with Nice Stems, and blended a light layer of Nice Ash on top of that.

Products used:

Lorac Behind the Scenes Eye Primer
Too Faced Eyeshadow in Poison Orchid, Midnight Mist, Nice Stems, and Nice Ash
Make Up For Ever Aqua Eyes in 0L
Stila Major Lash Mascara

I love Bare Minerals eyeshadows. LOVE them. Until recently, I wasn't aware of exactly how many there were: I'd never been inside a Bare Escentuals store before, and only saw the selection at Sephora. But if you go to the Bare Escentuals website, there are literally hundreds of colors to choose from.

One of my favorite things about their eyeshadow is that it's so blendable, you can put any two colors together you want. Like today's eye, which features pink and green.



Products used:

Bare Minerals High Shine Eyecolor in Rose Gold
Bare Minerals Eyecolor in Soiree
Stila Eyeshadow in Bliss and Champagne
Make Up For Ever Aqua Eyes in 16L
Urban Decay Lush Lash Mascara

Hello all! Today I got to go watch the Minnesota Wild play the Boston Bruins at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul. Now, I'm not a fan of either team but, being a fan of the Colorado Avalanche, I really dislike the Wild. So I went in Bruins colors :)



Products used:

Lorac Behind the Scenes Eye Primer
Stila Eyeshadow in Champagne
Bare Minerals Eyecolor in True Gold
NARS Eyeshadow in Night Clubbing
Make Up For Ever Aqua Eyes in 0L
Make Up For Ever Aqua Liner in #1
Stila Major Lash Mascara

For today's eye, I used three of Buxom's Stay There Eyeshadows. I love them; they're between a cream and a powder, and they blend like nothing I've ever used before. And they're all named after dogs... so cute! :)



Products used:

Lorac Behind the Scenes Eyelid Primer
Buxom Stay There Eyeshadow in Collie, Golden Retriever, and Mutt
Buxom Lashliner in Suede
Urban Decay Lush Lash Mascara

Today's eye was an experiment to see what a bright eyeliner would look like paired with black eyeshadow. I sandwiched a NARS shadow between red shadow and red liner for this:



Products used:

Lorac Behind the Scenes Eye Primer
Hot Topic Eyeshadow in Red
NARS Eyeshadow in Night Clubbing
Make Up For Ever Aqua Liner #10
Make Up For Ever Aqua Eyes in 1L
Stila Major Lash Mascara

...yes, Hot Topic eyeshadow. I'm cringing as well. I couldn't find my Manly palette this morning, though (NO idea where it disappeared to... how does one misplace an entire palette?), and found that while digging through my drawer of random makeup. It did stay put all day, though, I'll give it that!

February's birthstone is the amethyst, and today's eye paid tribute:



Products used:

Lorac Behind the Scenes Eye Primer
Too Faced Eyeshadow in Violet Femme
Bare Minerals Eyecolor in Soul Sister
Stila Eyeshadow in Amethyst
Nyx Ultra Pearl in Purple Pearl
Make Up For Ever Aqua Eyes 4L
Stila Major Lash Mascara

When I sat down at my vanity this morning, I planned on creating a jewel-toned eye with some pretty blues, purples, and reds. For some reason, though, my fingers gravitated toward a Bare Escentuals Prime Time Primer Shadow, and that went out the window.



I covered my lid with the primer and blended it up into the crease, then used Too Faced Nice Stems from crease to brow. On the outer corner, I blended a little bit of NARS Night Clubbing (wish I would have had Night Porter for the green! Dang it!)

Products used:

Lorac Behind the Scenes Eye Primer
Bare Escentuals Prime Time Primer Shadow in Racing Green
Too Faced Eyeshadow in Nice Stems
NARS Eyeshadow in Night Clubbing
Make Up For Ever Aqua Eyes in 20L
Too Faced Perfect Eyes in Perfect Black
Stila Major Lash Mascara

Happy Valentine's Day, everyone! My V-Day has been pretty low-key, just the way I like it. Earlier today I went out for coffee with a friend, and now I'm at home with my husband, where we plan to sit around and watch a movie. I'd thought about doing over-the-top Valentine's eyes but decided to go low key on them, as well; I still went for romantic, though. :)



Products used:

Lorac Behind the Scenes Eye Primer
Bare Minerals Eyecolor in True Gold, Waterlily, Soul Sister
Bare Minerals High Shine Eyecolor in Rose Gold
Too Faced Eyeshadow in Honeymoon
Manly Palette #84
Nyx Ultra Pearl Eyeshadow in Lilac Pearl
Make Up For Ever Aqua Eyes in 0L
NARS Larger than Life Eyeliner in Campo de Fiori
Urban Decay Lush Lash Mascara

This morning, I was short for time so I opted for something nice and simple.



I got my Urban Decay Deluxe Shadow Box and covered my lids in Peace, then blended Ransom onto the outer edges. I lined with the 24/7 Pencil in Deviant, and put on a coat of mascara.

Products used:

Urban Decay Deluxe Shadow in Peace
Urban Decay Deluxe Shadow in Ransom
Urban Decay 24/7 Pencil in Deviant
Urban Decay Lush Lash Mascara

Today's eye was inspired by the glitter tattoo on my arm that's still looking perfect from yesterday...

Products used:

Lorac Behind the Scenes Eye Primer
Bare Minerals Eyecolor in True Gold
Rimmel Metallic Stars Roller Shadow in Star Studded
Manly Palette #100
Urban Decay Eyeshadow in Minx
Buxom Lashliner in Leatherette
Urban Decay Lush Lash Mascara

Today marks the end of Space Week, and I'm celebrating with a Firefly-themed eye. Firefly was a sci-fi show that only aired for one season, yet became a cult favorite and finally earned its own big-screen movie, Serenity, due to fans' demands for closure.

When I noticed that Too Faced had a shadow called Firefly, and Lorac had a shadow called Serenity, the chance was too good to pass up. I added in Urban Decay's Space Cowboy, which fit right in with the theme-- Firefly was pretty much a Western in space.



Then, at Sephora, I was playing with the fun new Glitter Body Art Kit and accented with a star...



Products used:

Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion in Eden
Too Faced Eyeshadow in Firefly
Urban Decay Stardust Eyeshadow in Space Cowboy
Lorac Eyeshadow in Serenity
Sephora Glitter Body Art Kit
Sephora Nano Liner in Chocolate
Urban Decay Lush Lash Mascara

Today's title comes from the name of the NARS shadow I used as a base. This is space-themed mostly because of the names of the shadows ;)



I used NARS Cream Shadow in Cosmic Girl as a base (over my Lorac Behind the Scenes primer), then dusted Nyx Ultra Pearl in Space Pearl on the inner corner, and blended it into Too Faced Eyeshadow in Neptune. Then I lined my eyes with NARS Larger than Life Long-Wear Eyeliner in Campo de Fiori, and tightlined them with Make Up For Ever Aqua Eyes in 3L. Then, as always, I finished off with my Urban Decay Lush Lash Mascara.

Products used:

Lorac Behind the Scenes Primer
NARS Cream Shadow in Cosmic Girl
Nyx Ultra Pearl in Space Pearl
Too Faced Eyeshadow in Neptune
NARS Larger than Life Long-Wear Eyeliner in Campo de Fiori
Make Up For Ever Aqua Eyes in 3L
Urban Decay Lush Lash Mascara

There's nothing in the sky quite as beautiful as the Northern Lights. I remember one particular occasion when I was sitting around a fire at my friend Holly's house, and we saw the glimmer of the aurora, so four of us drove out to the middle of nowhere in my husband's (then-boyfriend's) convertible and stared up at the majesty of the night sky for hours.



To create this aurora-inspired look, I started by covering my lid in Make Up For Ever Aqua Black, using a concealer brush, and blending up to my brows. Then I opened an array of Aqua Creams and set to work with the same (clean) concealer brush. I started halfway up my lids, the brush perpendicular to my lashline, and worked up toward my brows, creating what could only be described as stripes. The first color I used was the light blue (#21), and I filled in the gaps with emerald green (#22). Then I mixed some colors on the back of my hand. #21 and #4 were mixed together for a lighter blue, and #22 and #11 (gold) were mixed together to accent the top of the splash of color. Then I used a blending brush to tap a bit of Nyx Space Pearl on the bottom half of my lids. After that, I applied a little bit of Lorac Liquid Lustre over everything, lined with Buxom Lashliner, and finished with Urban Decay's Lush Lash Mascara.

Products used:

Make Up For Ever Aqua Black
Make Up For Ever Aqua Cream 21, 22, 11, 4
Lorac Liquid Lustre
Nyx Ultra Pearl in Space Pearl
Buxom Lashliner in Leatherette
Urban Decay Lush Lash Mascara

It's not only Space Week for my eyes; I'm currently watching Into the Universe with Stephen Hawking for the first time, which is extremely fascinating. They're discussing Europa right now, and the possibility of life existing beneath the fifteen-foot-thick ice.

Speaking of moons, that's the theme of today's eye: moonlight.




I started out with a base of Kat Von D Tattoo Concealer in Porcelain, then covered from browbone to lid with Lorac Liquid Lustre. I then mixed the colorless Make Up For Ever HD Primer with Make Up For Ever Aqua Cream #4 for my lids, and joined the two by dotting on Smashbox Artificial Light Luminizer in Diffuse. Then I tapped a little bit of Stila eyeshadow in Moonlight on the edges of my eyelids. Finally, I lined with Lorac's Front of the Line PRO in black.

Products used:

Kat Von D Tattoo Concealer in Porcelain
Make Up For Ever HD Primer #0
Make Up For Ever Aqua Cream #4
Smashbox Artificial Light Luminizer in Diffuse
Stila Eyeshadow in Moonlight
Lorac Front of the Line PRO in Black
Urban Decay Lush Lash Mascara

Space Week rolls on, and today my eyes are themed on the great expanse that we see while staring up at the night sky. I wish I'd have taken this without the flash on, so you could see all of the flecks of silver glitter against the black, like stars in the sky...



I filled the area from crease to browbone with Benefit Cream Eyeshadow in Strut, and blended it up to my eyebrows with my finger. On my lids, I used Make Up For Ever Aqua Black, and painted the sky with stars using my NYX Liquid Crystal Liner in Crystal Silver. I lined with a second layer of Aqua Black and applied mascara.

Products used:

Benefit Creaseless Cream Eyeshadow in Strut
Make Up For Ever Aqua Black
Nyx Liquid Crystal Liner in Crystal Silver
Stila Major Lash Mascara