My favorite e.l.f. mineral eyeshadows

e.l.f. has some colors that are MADE for me - all sorts of smokey browny purply grays. They look amazing with my skintone and I got me some more of them. First place belongs to Confident, runners up are Socialite and Royal - amazingly beautiful taupeish mixes.
They may look like nothing on the swatches here but on the eyes they really make my (blue) eyes pop! Third place belongs to golden green Earthy, currently not on the pic (btw ignore Seductive, it's rather boring dark color -  black (when dry) or grey (when wet); Smoldering is a dupe for TKB's Antique Silver).

On the other hand I'd also like to post this picture and ask e.l.f., wth? Why are some of the jars half empty? I guess they sell them by weight and some pigments are heavier then others but come on! This is ridiculous.

e.l.f'i mineraallauvärvid on ägedad. Kahjuks on nad vaid pigmendina ning pressitult ei pakuta - see annab tootele muidugi imelise sära kuid samas teeb algajal lauvärvide kasutamise väga keeruliseks (siin on väike nipp - tuleb võtta taskupeegel ja lauvärvide pelaekandmise ajal selle kohale kummarduda - põsed jäävad puhtaks). 

Soovitan soojalt - mõnusad värvid kuid hoiatan, et ilma meigi aluskreemita ei pea nad kuigi kaua vastu. 

e.l.f. Studio lip stains in Heartbreaker and Fashionista

I am no fan of lip products in general - I like sheer lipsticks with some added goodies like Joik's colored chapstick or e.l.f.'s mineral lipsticks in Pouty Petal and Rosy Raisin. I am a realist and therefore have no faith in longlasting lip products  - prefer to use stuff that fades gradually and unnoticeably. Your lips but better is the perfect trend for me.

These lipstains pretty much explain why I generally do not like lip stuff that much: first of all they stink. They continue to feel sticky for quite some time and have the tendency to become pretty icky on the lips (just look at the Heartbreaker swatch below) - to avoid this you are probably supposed to run around open mouthed for about 5 minutes until it dries solid. Colors are wonderful and if by chance you do not mess it up before it dries - it will look pretty good on you for an hour. After that you either need to reapply or run around with half painted lips. This is of course if you use the stain half alone. 

I strongly believe e.l.f. should rename this particular product as lip stain and remover kit - as this is exactly what the glossy part does - it melts the stain right off  and as a bonus adds some stickiness to your lips (which we all love, right?). I thought I'd use the stain bit alone but cannot - it's difficult to apply and absolutely REEKS.

This product receives no love from me. :S

Coastal Scents is having a store wide 30% sale until 5/5

Mothers day and all... Btw, have you noticed that Coastal Scents' brush selection has somewhat dwindled away? It seems so to me - it used to take much longer for me to browse through the selection...

Mitte et ma nüüd ahvatleks kõiki hirmsasti raha kulutama aga see on päris hea pakkumine... aitab veidi kompenseerida nende muidu nii hirmutavat saatekulu (suurematel tellimustel ka käibemaksu). Sil kirjutas blogis oma lemmikpintslist Pro Blending Fluff brush'ist nii palju head, et täitsa kaalusin, kas mitte jälle krediitkaardi kallale minna. Aga kuna see pintsel on JÄLLE läbi müüdud, jääb seekord vist CS hullus ära.  Kuidas teile tundub, kas pintslite valik on kuidagi väiksemaks jäänud? Mulle jäi küll selline mulje - valik on kuidagi kokku kuivanud... Varem võttis pintslilehekülje läbikammimine ikka märksa rohkem aega.

e.l.f. mineral foundations and concealers

A large collective e.l.f. mineral haul has arrived and I've done some swatching. We only ordered the three lightest shades. e.l.f. mineral powders are not for purists or people with bismuth allergies as the ingredients list states there's some in it. Tocopheryl acetate (vitamin E) on the other hand  is a very welcome addition.

Active Ingredients: Zinc Oxide 15%, Titanium Dioxide 10%
Inactive Ingredients: Mica, Bismuth Oxychloride, Titanium Dioxide, Tocopheryl Acetate(Ve), Boron Nitride . May Contain: Iron Oxides(CI 77491, CI 77492, CI 77499), Manganese Violet (CI 77742), Ultramarine Blue(CI 77007) 

Coverage seems to be rather sheer and it amazes me that Fair concealer seems sheer as well - usually concealers are a bit thicker in consistency. Powders are very finely milled and seem to sink into the skin well. I've also ordered some boosting stuff and blemish powders but I have to review those some other time.

Here are some pics in different lighting conditions, swatches are done wet. These powders will work very well for wet application. Melt like a dream.

size comparison between different brands - e.l.f. is medium

Later addition: mineral foundations in Dark and Deep,
Dark could easily be someone's summer shade 

e.l.f.´i mineraalpuudrid pole allergikutele ega puhaste toodete austajatele - vismut on sees. Kui mõnda nahaallergiat pole, siis saab kenasti hakkama (poekraami kasutajatel allergiat tõenäoliselt ei tekita, tundliku nahaga inimesed peaksid enne pikemat kasutamist toodet veidi nt käe peal testima). 
Katvus on kerge või keskmine, sama värvigrupi peitepuudritel ja mineraalpuudritel on erinevad toonid: Fair foundation on mu nahal hetkel liiga oranžikas, Fair peitepuuder aga sobib kenasti - hoolimata sellest, et swatch on VÄGA imelikku roosat tooni. Lisaks on see peitepuuder kas harjumatult vähekattev või teine võimalus - mu nahatooniga ülisobiv ja seetõttu ei paista nahal välja. Kahtlustan siiski esimest.
Mulle Fair concealer mineraalpuudrina täitsa meeldib - tekstuur on mõnus ja sobib nendeks päevadeks, mil tugevat katvust vaja pole. Nahatooni ühtlustab suurepäraselt. Nahk on vaid viimasel ajal nii õliseks läinud, et meik ei püsi enam kuut tundigi peal - juba 3 tunniga tahab ära ujuda. :S

e.l.f. mineral concealer in Fair as foundi,
Confident all over lid and Rose as blush

see how the skin gets dry if not moisturized beforehand? shrivels up something terrible
(e.l.f's mineral foundation in Fair and mineral blush in Joy, no moisturizer used)

H&M makeup brushes

I read in an Estonian beauty forum about H&M cheap makeup brushes and after buying some I have to agree with people, who found the brushes to be surprisingly decent. They are usually £1.99 or 1,95 eur a piece. 

I really like the chisel brush, crease brush is so-so. Liner end is a bit bendy but able to make a thin line. They are both more travel sized, drowning amongst others in my brush holder, seem to be made well and are pleasant to the touch. 

Chisel is fluffy, does not shed or stink, it's bristles grab my loose pigments perfectly. This is something Ecotools brushes suck at - applying loose mineral pigments with Ecotools stiff synthetic eyeshadow brush is not very comfortable. I have not tried the special 5 piece eye makeup brush set to compare. 

Soovitan H&M silmapintsleid, eriti seda üheotsalist - selle raha eest hea kvaliteet. 

And here's an EOTD with Coastal Sents's Paradise Rose Sky mica (sry about the lousy blending job, I also managed to get the eye liner all over the lower lids - it always smears so terribly - that's why I seldom use it):

This one is definitely for evening makeup, I was amazed how well red went with my blue eyes. Much better then pink that makes my eyes look terribly tired.

Apology

Dear readers,
I am sorry to be so silent in the recent weeks - I have been quite busy with my new "baby". Have plenty of pictures and stuff to tell but somehow I never seem to have the time to sit and write and crop the pics. I am looking forward to the upcoming 3-day weekend, hopefully then I can post most of the material. Thank you for bearing with me. :)

Pipa needs lots of attention, playing and walking and I'm happy to report losing 1,5 kg in the last 2 months ;)

Inspiration - The Emperor's Wife

I love this movie. It's one of the best (fantasy?) romance movies ever screened. Love the makeup on the heroine - red eyeshadow that goes subtly over the lines and becomes blush. Unfortunately I don't have the guts to try the same look :).
I might try one day... when I'm home alone.

And my favorite scene: when Sabah pretends to crown herself.
It was such a powerful, emotion laden scene!

I do apologize for the crappy quality of these pics - they we're all internet provided :S.

An old, low budget film... amazing.
IMDb

A mini grinder

I happened to read Lisa Lise's blog (warmly recommend) and she wrote about MMU tools... more specifically about DIYcosmetics store and this grinder:

looks like a small torchlight :)

Could not resist the temptation and am now a lucky owner of a small battery-charged hand grinder.

When I first attempted to make my own foundation I used my mum's old coffee grinder but that was much too big. This one seems  much more suitable for doing small batches of foundation, eyeshadow, blush - you name it. 

Uus mänguasi saabus üle-eelmisel nädalal - kahjuks pole veel leidnud aega mängimiseks :S. Lootused on suured - sõpsid küsivad mult matte põsepunasid aga kõik TKB punakad vilgusegud sädelevad/läigivad kui põrgulised. Oksiide aga käsitsi juba kokku ei sega...

Coastal Scents mica haul

I posted news of a CS sale recently - well, here are the goodies:

I think there's something wrong with me - I did not experience the usual excitement when ordering, receiving the parcel or even when swatching - it seemed so "same old, same old" to me.

Pigments look the same to me - now that I have Conservatorie, TKB and CS all lined up in my stash and ready to be compared. The excitement is gone. I miss that :s I think it's impossible for me to find something new and exciting from MMU wholesalers - it's time I'll really take initiative and start making more of my own mixtures.

I was so absent minded that I ordered Goldstone again - what was I thinking! I wanted to try Gemtone Topaz! The only color that made me go "hmmmm" was Satin Rouge, nice subtle warmish red tone, no sparkle and minimum sheen. I do not know what came over me - so many bronzes and beiges in this haul... I also have to add: the Paradise series micas contain cetyl dimethicone and I think this is also the reason why they're hydrophobic - do not mix with water.

CS Antique Gold is very dirty - it has lots of dark oxides in it and if used dry, there's a great chance the outcome will not look golden but just dirty dark. No love. Remings me of TKB's Verdigris Gold.

Sparkle Blue is exactly as name describes although the glitter  is not very prominent. When Metallic Pixie Purple is more of a blueish purple Orchid Shimmer falls more to the reddish spectrum but is not as red as TKB's Grape.

Hot Side Pink is baby pink with  blueish sheen.
Satin Bronze is a pleasant dark golden color, similar to Paradise Tropic Bronze.
Metallic Pearl Honey Tan is similar to Aruban Coral though the latter seems to have more coverage.
Australian Amber is less sparkly then the same pigment in TKB's selection, more satiny.
Paradise Sand is slightly more pinkish then Aruban Coral, lovely pinkish beige.
Camel is either Conservatorie's Gold Earth or TKB's Apricot, more thorough swatching will show later.
Dark red with a bit of old lady pink in it - that's Satin Rouge.
Paradise Rose Sky has plenty of metallic sheen. Must compare it to Conservatorie´s dark reds.
Ruby has less coverage and seems to be darkish sort of pinkish red. Lots of sheen.
Misterioso Bronze is another metallic beige, looks very much like Goldstone but the latter has more "gold" in it.
Paradise Breeze - copper red-orange. Like TKB's Copper Penny.

Here's an EOTD using Metallic Pearl Honey Tan and Australian Amber:

And a picture of stuff used:

Ma vist olen vilkudest väsimas - vedru on maha käinud... pole enam uusi ja huvitavaid kohanud. Ei jää muud üle kui ise suurema hoolega segama hakata.