I'm baaacckkk

I know I have been MIA for a good while but for good reason!! I am now living in S. Korea with the hubby and son. I've been getting settled in and used to my new surroundings. It's been so great seeing a new culture and country. But now I am ready to get back to the swing of posting some reviews, hauls, and looks! So stay tuned to see what shall be coming up in the next few days! Till next time! ^_^

theBalm is on Hautelook!

So for those who didn't know, theBalm is back on Hautelook again! If you're interested in getting products from the you should definitely hit up Hautelook today! They have the Nude 'tude palette, Meet Matt(e) palette, and much more on the site for 50% off!

I already took advantage this morning and put in my order for the Nude 'tude, Meet Matt(e), Mary-Lou Manizer, Frat Boy Blush and Down Boy Blush! If you're not already a member then just click here and it'll take you to the site using my referral, and it'll get my a $10 credit when you sign up and make your first purchase. If you don't want to use that link then just click here and it will take you straight to the website. 

FOTD using the UD Glinda Palette

I finally got around to being able to apply makeup to my face again, so I created this look with the Glinda Palette from Urban Decay. Hope you like it :)

1. Apply a primer, I used Urban Decay Primer Potion and then applied NYX Jumbo Pencil in Milk.

2. Apply Illusion to the lid.

3. Apply Tornado to the crease, and the outer V.

4. Blend Tornado out with Magic.

5. Ball South into the outer V for some extra definition. 

6. Then apply Tornado to the outer half of the lower lash line, and the silver half of Oz to the inner half, and then the blue undertone in Aura to the inner tear duct. Also use Rockstar in the water line.

7. Then take Rockstar and an angled brush to apply it to the upper lash line and wing out if you'd like, then take Tornado and apply it on top of Rockstar.

Then curl your lashes and apply your favorite mascara!

Done!

For the face I used my UD Naked Foundation in 7.0 and set it with my MAC MSFN in Medium Deep. For the under eye concealer I first used a peach tone concealer to cancel out the dark circles and then used MAC Pro Longwear concealer in NC30 to brighten up and highlight. I then set it with my Ben Nye Banana Powder. For the contour I used Too Faced Chocolate Soleil Bronzer, Blush is Nars Desire, and for highlight I used Nars illuminator in Copacabana. On the lips I used UD Super Saturated High Gloss Lip Color in Glinda. Then set it all with my UD All-Nighter Setting Spray.

I hope you enjoyed this look. I'll be working on the look using the Theodora Palette soon. Till next time, take care^_^ Also if you have any looks you'd like to see recreated just leave me a comment! 

Urban Decay Theodora Palette: Swatches and Review

Here's my swatches and review for the Theodora Palette inspired by the movie, Oz The Great and Powerful coming out in March 2013. Theodora is the good witch of the west in the movie, and she is played by Mila Kunis. She has an older, and extremely protective sister named Evanora who is played by Rachel Weisz. In the Wizard of Oz, the witch of the west is wicked, so this is the story before they became wicked. 

 Unlike the Glinda palette which is all bright and whimsical, Theodora is has a dark, sultry look to it. Now this palette is definitely my favorite between the two because I'm a neutral color, sultry look kinda gal lol. Now onto the palette itself with swatches of each color.

Again you get 6 full-sized shadows and 2 are duos, along with a travel-sized eyeliner pencil, and a full-sized Super Saturated Lip Color.

Broken: A pale cream satin finish eyeshadow. This would make a great inner tear duct color for that pop of brightness to open up the eyes.

Beware: A warm brown matte eyeshadow. This would be a great to use in the crease as a transitional color or just to give some nice definition to it. 

Bewitch: A dark charcoal brown satin finish eyeshadow. Another great crease color and a great way to darken up the outer V for some dimension. 

West: A deep metallic red brown eyeshadow. Another great crease color or a great lid color and blend out with Beware. 

Spell: First shades is a black satin finish with green and gold shimmer. Second shade is a gold metallic shade with tonal glitter. Now the gold in this palette is definitely better than the gold in the Glendora palette. 

Jealous: First shade is a dark green with a pearl finish. Second shade is a light green with a pearl finish. These could both be great lid colors, and crease colors or pop these on the lower lash line with a neutral lid for a nice pop of color. 

Now onto the eyeliner and lip color. Everyone who knows their UD would know about Zero. It is a black eyeliner pencil that is pretty creamy but Perversion is definitely 100x better! Now the lip color is in Theodora which is a bright red cream color. 

Like I said this one is my favorite out of the two, only complaints are the inability for the mirror to stand on its own and the fact that it comes with Zero as the eyeliner. I think they could have thrown in a whole different color or even a travel-sized Perversion would've been better. Overall I love this palette, and the fact that all the shades in both palettes are completely new! This also retails for $49 at www.sephora.com, www.ulta.com, and of course www.urbandecay.com 

Rating:

Packaging: 4/5

Pigmentation: 5/5

Blending ability: 4/5 

Price: $$

Overall: 4.5/5

Urban Decay Glendora Palette Swatches and Review

So this week Urban Decay launched two new palettes inspired by two witches from the new movie coming out, Oz The Great and Powerful. When I first got the email about these new palettes being released I jumped at the chance to get them. If you follow me on Instagram you'll see that I just got them in the mail today! So I am now going to review them for you.

So the first palette that is up for review is the Glinda Palette. Now if you don't know the original Wizard of Oz, and have not seen the trailer to this amazing new movie I suggest you check out the trailers they have online. Glinda is a good witch, so her palette is all bright and whimsical. 

With the Glinda Palette, you get 6 full sized eyeshadows, which two of them are duos, you also get a travel sized 24/7 glide on eye liner in Rockstar, and a full sized Super Saturated High Gloss Lip Color in Glinda. 

 Tornado: This shade is a deep purple shimmer. It is very vibrant, and blends great.

Aura: This is an iridescent white. One half has a blue tint and the other has a pinky red tint. 

Magic: This is a pinky-blue purple color with gold shimmer to it. 

Illusion: pale peach satin color with like a goldish hint to it. 

Oz: One half is a gold shimmer with that infamous UD glitter and the other half is a silver shimmer with silver glitter.

South: A taupe-y gray color with again silver glitter. 

Next up we have the Lip color and Eyeliner Pencil

Rockstar is a deep eggplant color, and Glinda is a pinky nude shade.

This also come with a get that look card.

Now I love the new UD formula for their eyeshadows, it feels so creamy like. The blend-ability is amazing for a good amount of their colors. Now that being said, my favorite colors out of this palette would have to be Tornado, Illusion, and the Silver half of Oz. My least favorite is definitely the Gold half of Oz because the glitter makes it hard to blend in a way, and it's just too chunky. If you've been a fan of UD you'll know what I am talking about lol. I love the fact that this comes with a eyeliner that isn't Zero, and I love the color of Glinda lip color. The lip colors don't have any scent to them which is a good thing for most people who cannot stand some scents that a lot of makeup companies have on some products. I know a lot of people look at this and think that the price range is pretty high. I did my math and for $49 you're getting a BYOP, 6 full-sized shadows(which two are duos), a full-sized Super Saturated Lip Color, and a travel-sized eyeliner pencil, which would originally cost about $154.50 for everything individually. So in my personal opinion this is definitely not a bad deal.

I love the tin casing but not a fan of the mirror not being able to stand on it's own, like how the vice palette holds up. But that and the glitter chunks in the gold half of Oz are my only complaints about this. Although personally I feel that I am a Theodora. I'll be posting my swatches and review on that tomorrow. I tried to get this up earlier but mommy duties come first lol. I was also going to do a look with this but unfortunately I am not wearing makeup for a few days due to some facial issues at the moment, but once that is done with I'll be posting a look for sure. I hope you enjoyed this review, and I apologize for the "eh" pictures I'm saving up for a DSLR Camera right now though. Until next time, take care ^_^

Rating:

Packaging: 4/5

Pigmentation: 5/5

Blending: 4.5/5

Price: $$

Overall: 4.5/5

1/22/2013 FOTD

Yay for my first blog post of 2013! Wooo! lol So from now on I am going to start posting my FOTDs when I choose to wear makeup. It's going to be part of my New Years resolution. 

Products Used:

Face:

Tarte Clean Slate Poreless Primer

Urban Decay Naked Skin in 7.0

MAC Prolong Wear Concealer in NC30

MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in Medium Deep to set foundation

Ben Nye Banana Powder to set concealer

Too Faced Chocolate Soleil Bronzer to contour

MAC MSF in Porcelain Pink to highlight

MAC Blush Ombre in Azalea Blossom

Eyes:

Sugarpill Heartbreaker Palette

Acidberry on lid, Mochi in crease, Velocity in Outer V

Urban Decay 24/7 Pencil in Perversion on waterline

Kat Von D Tattoo Liquid Liner in Trooper

L'Oreal Telescopic Shocking Extensions Waterproof Mascara in Blackest Black

Brows:

E.L.F. Brow Kit in Medium

Lips:

L'Oreal Lipstick in Fairest Nude

I hope you enjoyed and try this look out. Also you should follow me on Instagram where I always post pics of makeup love lol. My username is bookworm_la88 Till next time! ^_^ I also hope everyone is having a great start to this new year!!

Mail Call! Glossybox and Urban Decay

So today I was super excited for the mail and UPS to arrive because I finally got my Urban Decay box, and my Glossybox! If you're interested in seeing what I got then keep on reading =)

First up we have the November Glossybox! If you're unfamiliar with Glossybox, they are a subscription beauty box. This one is $21 a month, and you get 5 deluxe sample sizes and 1 full sized. I am in love with this subscription service. 

Products are listed from left to right, and all the information is from the card provided:

Perfumies - A solid perfume stick, a perfect travel companion, these slender and elegant sold perfume sticks allow you to touch up your fragrance on the go. These convenient perfume sticks have an all natural base, no preservatives, paraben-free and are never tested on animals. 

So far I like the scent of this little stick, and I love the convenience of it being a little stick. I don't ever bring my perfume with me on the go, and I definitely hate when the scent starts to fade away due to outside smells, and such. If you're into perfume and are looking for a convenient little way to take along your perfume, then this is probably for you!

Arganics by NuMe Argan Oil - A perfect compliment to any hair and skin care regiment, this Argan Oil is rich in Vitamin E and other beneficial fatty acids. Non-greast and specially formulated for rapid penetration, the oil brings a whole new level of shine and luster to even the most ravaged and damaged hair and skin.

Now I was able to try this out today and I fell in love with it. I have a review on a NuMe Curling Wand. I really do love NuMe products, but I find them overpriced. For the full size bottle it is $59 for 4 oz. I can go to Sally's and find the same size if not bigger for less than that and it still work the same. 

Illamasqua LTD - Lips & Eye Medium Pencil. Designed to glide over your skin and create a long-lasting highly pigmented finish, this creamy pencil lets you write a different story with every look. Use it to create sultry eyes and sensuous lips. 

I have yet to really try this out, and I know Illamasqua is a pretty good brand. I have a nail polish from them from a previous glossybox and I absolutely love it. So I look forward to trying this out.

Skin&Co Roma - Truffle Serum: Hydro-Toning Day Face Serum. Give your face a boost and slow down the sign of again using this Italian serum infused with Peptides, pur extracts of Tuber Melanosporum and Hyaluronic Acid. Use daily for a brighter, more toned skin. 

Now I have tried this out for a couple days and just love the way it makes me skin feel. It feels more smooth, and definitely softer. It is $36 for 1.01 oz, and I definitely think I will be getting this soon and do a better review on it.

Lierac - Gammage Sensoriel. This unique gel-oil texture scrub transforms into a milk upon contact with damp skin for skin-smoothing, toning, and invigorating exfoliation. A mix of three white flower extracts and four precious botanical oils regenerate and soften the skin. 

It is $30 for 3.5 oz, and this is another product I'll be getting soon too. After trying this out my skin definitely does feel a lot smoother and softer. I love the smell, it's not overpowering like a lot of other face products.

Overall, I love my Glossybox and I will continue to keep my subscription until I move or maybe even after and just have my mother in law send them to me lol. Glossybox is a great subscription service, and although it is a bit pricier than other subscriptions out there, it is well worth it. Like they say, "you get what you pay for" 

Now if you get emails from Urban Decay you'd know that they were have a sale a while back. If you were to buy 2 eyeshadows you'd get the 6 pan Build Your Own Palette for free! Now if you love UD like I do, how could you pass up an opportunity like that! So I took this opportunity and bought 4 shadows and got 2 palettes.

Tease is a matte pale brown. I love using this as my blending color/transition color. It is just a touch lighter than my skin tone.

Freelove is a shimmery golden vibrant peach. I love peachy colors and this just popped out at me.

Peace is a shimmery bright turquoise. I don't own many blue eyeshadows, and I just love the shade of this one. 

Mushroom is a shimmery warm pale gray. Ever since I first started using UD and saw this color I have always wanted it but never gotten around to buying it so I finally got it. 

Now if you don't know about the new UD individual eyeshadows, here's a little bit of info. These aren't ordinary ones. They can be popped out of their casing so that you can place them in the BYOP and create a variety of styles and colors for yourself. I love that they came out with this idea because I hate the work you have to put into depotting shadows when you get them individually. All you do is pop them out of the case and snap them into the palette and you can always switch out your colors and place the palette in your bag and go. Perfect for traveling. 

Here are the swatches of each eyeshadow. Now with the BYOP you get the shade Walk of Shame with it for free. It's a nice matte highlight type of color. I have two of them because of course I got 2 palettes lol. But that is okay because I do like this shade. Walk of Shame is also in the new Basics palette, it's part of UD's Naked line. As you can see Tease matches my skin tone almost perfectly lol. I love the new formula that UD has made for their shadows. They are so buttery smooth and creamy, and very easy to blend in my personal opinion. If you haven't tried out Urban Decay, then I highly recommend that you give them a try. I love them lol. 

I no way shape or form am I sponsored by any brand. I bought this all with my own money and all the opinions are my own. Thanks for taking the time to read and check out my blog. Subscribe for more hauls, reviews, comparisons and much more. Till next time, take care!^_^