E.L.F BeautyBook Neutral Eye Edition: a Basic Palette

Hi everybody,

This feels like an E.L.F week, doesn't it? Yesterday, I reviewed the one-dollar ELF eye shadow brush, which I think is the best eyeshadow brush for its price. Today, I am going to review the E.L.F Beauty Book Neutral Eye Edition. This is a part of the "Back to School" edition of the ELF display at Target. As I am a neutral eyeshadow aficionado, I could not resist this palette. It is $5 and you can still get it at ELF website.

E.L.F BeautyBook Neutral Eye Edition ($5 USD)

E.L.F Professional Eye Shadow Brush: One-Dollar Wonder

Hi everybody,

In this blog, it's all about sharing and caring. Although I've used the ELF professional eye shadow brush for a while now, I did not do a formal review yet. Well, it's better late than never and I hope you'll enjoy.

E.L.F Professional Eye Shadow brush ($1)

I am not exaggerating when I said this is a one-dollar wonder. For those who've followed my blog, you know I love cheap products that work. Why? Because if they don't, they are just junk. And who wants junks, right? Well, as far as a basic eyeshadow brush can go, this one is pretty good. After acquiring my first ELF eyeshadow brush (the white one) from Dollar General, I put my coveted MAC 239 to a "rainy day" brush roll*. The ELF eyeshadow brush has been my stand-in basic brush ever since.

So, what makes it so wonderful? Jump to find out!

Eye Creme: Less is More?

Hi everybody,

Confession time: I have never finished a tube or a jar of eye creme (not ice-cream, though!) I would use it for about 2-3 months. Then, the eye creme just plateaued and I would lose interest. The next thing I know, I have quite an expanding collection of half-used eye cremes in my bathroom.

"Ah, the eye creme, the eye creme, it doesn't work!"
("Home Alone" has nothing to do with eye cremes but this is too cute to pass.)

I wrecked my brain trying to understand this phenomenon. It only applies to eye creme because I actually finished full-size bottles of face wash, body wash, face lotion, body lotion, and bar soap before. Only the eye cremes are left unfinished. Then, one day it dawned on me: I haven't used enough of it.

Belly at Large: Black and White and Gorgeous

Hello home boys and girls,

Today is Friday, tomorrow is Caturday. I know, the weekend is near but that doesn't mean we should slack off. Au contraire, we should finish the week off as strong as possible.

I know I haven't been around. Vacation and Fashion Week was good but I miss you guys. And I have a question to you lot: who's black and white and gorgeous?

Me kissing my gun :)

It's yours truly, of course! Don't you want to touch my body?

As we're talking about black and white, don't you realize how under-appreciated these two colors are? Of course, I live with them. They are the two colors I wear every day. I manage to pull it off with attitude but truth be told, you can do a lot of things with just black and white.

Don't believe me? I have a case study for you. And I'm bringing in a big gun, too. Drum roll, please!

Let me introduce you Mrs. Obama in black and white. The First Lady brings sexy back with two basic colors.

The President and First Lady together. Love her check board dress.
Source

The President with his umm... mom pants(?!) but the First Lady looked hot. Also, love the ballet flats!
Source

The Obamas with the Queen of England. Mrs. O looked lovely here in an Isabel Toledo ensemble
Also, notice Queen Elizabeth II's choice of color :)
Source

Mrs. O in Spain, looking effortlessly chic
Source

With the ladies of "The View"
This White House|Black Market dress started the black and white trend
Source

Bold choice with a flowery black poka-dot dress
Source

I hope I convinced you about the wonder of wearing only black and white. These two colors bring classic beauty to the wearer. You can mix and match the pieces and many different ways and still look wonderful. Believe me, black and white fashion can be so easy.

Love, peace, and tuna fish,
Mr. Belly, xoxo

P.S: If you like my blog, please subscribe to my feed. Thanks a lot!

The Laziest Way to do Smokey Eyes: a Tutorial

Hi everybody,

In 2008, My Makeup Blog brought you the easiest way to do the smokey eyes. Recently, I've come up with a new way that's even easier. This novel approach does not require the use of eye shadows. All you need are two or three reliable and blendable eyeliners and a makeup brush. I've been wearing it out for a few times and I got compliments all the time.

Here's the look. It's still smokey but it's a lot easier to do.

Want to know how to do it? Jump!

L'Oreal Voluminous Million Lashes is Coming Soon!

Hi everybody,

I'm so excited! My favorite L'Oreal mascara is going to have a newer version. For those who have been following My Makeup Blog for a while, you know how much love I have for the original Voluminous. Then, I used Voluminous Carbon Black and my life has never been the same again. Hands down, if you want the darkest mascara that volumizes your lashes like nothing else, you have to use Voluminous Carbon Black.

Soon enough, you are going to see this guy everywhere: the new L'Oreal Voluminous Million Lashes mascara

L'Oreal Voluminous Million Lashes mascara (tentative price $8.99)
Source

Revlon Nail Polish in Midnight Affair is Dark and Mysterious

Hi everyone,

Those who know me really well understands how much I love dark colors. I blame my time living in the North for it. In cold weather, dark clothings keep you warm. I didn't realize how many black t-shirts I had until I moved to the South. I could comfortably live for two weeks straight on black shirts and t-shirts. Of course, they were in various styles but still, you couldn't really tell the difference.

The variation of the black shirt is the dark navy one. And yes, between the black and the dark blue, I could probably get by for three weeks without doing laundry. Of course, I don't encourage the practice but it was a difficult habit for me to break. And by habit, I mean buying dark tops.

My love for dark colors also transcends into dark nail polishes. Believe me, if you want to look marvelous and mysterious at the same time, go for the dark colors. I bought Revlon Midnight Affair last year, used it once, and totally forgot about it. Please don't ask me why, because I have no idea.

Revlon Midnight Affair nail polish

Custom Blend Foundation at Formula D Minerals

Hi everybody,

Recently, I got an opportunity to do a custom blend foundation for one of my friends. She's a strong supporter to Formula D Minerals, my tiny Etsy store, and she needed foundation. Selling mineral foundation is a lot of work as they are not fast selling items. Also, making mineral foundation is messy and requires a lot of tweaking to make it look right. Therefore, I decided to only do foundation whenever someone requested it.

Here's the foundation I made for her:

Customized foundation blend

The jar has a resealable shifter :)

Hauling Time: Sinful Colors Nail Polishes on Sale at Walgreens!

Hi everybody,

When I started blogging, I was not so much of a nail polish addict. To be honest with you, I didn't even remember if I owned more than 3 colors. And if I did, most of them came from the Dollar Tree anyways. Thanked to a couple of friends, my life had forever change. After they bragged about Sinful Colors this and China Glaze that, I started to become more and more curious about nail polishes. And like makeup, nail polishes are a lot of fun.

This week, Walgreens put all Sinful Colors nail polishes on sale at 99 cents each. That's half price, people! So I did a lil' haul myself: I bought four brand new polishes. And since I'm in a dark mood, my nail colors decide to match.

(L-R): See You Soon, Secret Admirer, Rich in Heart, and Daddy's Girl
Photo taken without flash

See You Soon: black nail polish with a lot of fine teal glitter
Secret Admirer: grey nail polish with an ample amount of white glitter. This color reminds me of Urban Decay Gunmetal eye shadow. Also, it's a favorite of my friend "Ink".
Rich in Heart: metallic dark burgundy. This color reminds me of a rich shiraz.
Daddy's Girl: dark purple jelly with fine purple glitter. The color looks sheer to me.

TV Shows in Fall

Sorry, folks. No FOTD today. Although I am not sick, I look bad and I feel even worse. There's been so much going on lately, up to the point that I don't feel like blogging anymore. But I can't stop blogging and that's a fact. So we're fine for now.

That's how Belly watches TV. He likes Oprah :)
Random stunt cat in picture, not the real El Gato Supremo (image source)

Every year, I patiently wait for the Fall TV season to start. After a long summer of reruns and bad reality TV, I can't wait to watch a new crop of new shows as well as the return of my favorites. This year, I have the list pat down.

Return shows:

Monday: How I Met Your Mother (CBS) and Castle (ABC)

I watched How I Met Your Mother since its very beginning and suffered through its close to dead after season 1. Then, Britney came to the show and it became one of the most comedy shows on CBS. It's a "must watch" if you love Neal Patrick Harris.

Castle is not a comedy and the synopsis is not even real. As a writer, I would not spend all my time working with a cop, bouncing from crime scene to crime scene because no police department in this country would ever let a writer do that. If you want some sort of insider information, you can work with a consultant, who's most likely someone who works or used to work in the force. Also, as a writer, you are supposed to buy some good glue bum and glue your behind to the chair and write write write. With all that said, Castle is still a good show. I love the characters' dynamic but please don't read Richard Castle's book "Heat Wave." Yup, it's actually published and it is a horrible read. No offense here, ABC. Love your show, but please don't publish any more fiction written by a fictitious writer.

Tuesday: NCIS and The Good Wife (CBS)

I'm a long time NCIS fan but I'm not into NCIS: Los Angeles very much, except for the fact that I want to know G. Callen's background.

The Good Wife was a new show last year and the writing was off the roof. I don't know why I like it since the demographic is veering toward the 45 and older group. Maybe the guy who played Mr. Big in "Sex and the City" is in it?

An Uncreative Way to Create New Perfumes

After years and years of watching and sniffing and buying and begging for perfume samples, I came to one conclusion: the folks who name perfumes are not that creative.

Right now, your reaction from my statement can be:

1. I know, right?
2. Girl, what cha talkin' 'bout?
3. What's happening to My Makeup Blog lately? That girl has been on a bashing trip. 
4. Really, I have no idea what you're talking about (preferably, the statement should be spoken with a British accent) 
5. Dude, I don't care!

Did you mark your choice? Oh, you did? Good, write it down somewhere, ok? Wait, don't tattoo it! I didn't say tattoo, I said write.

While browsing the perfume counter, that realization hit me square in the head. More and more perfume companies have created spin-offs from the greatest or slightly alter the packaging of their best-selling perfumes. I've sniffed a few and needless to say, they are more of the same. Below are the three examples:

Chanel no. 5 Eau Premiere (source)

Chanel no. 5 has a younger niece called Chanel no. 5 Eau Premiere: I know, it is still under the numero cinco umbrella but Eau Premiere is a kitty cat while no. 5 (especially the EDP) is a cougar. Did you get my metaphoric comparison?

CLEAN Anti-Bacterial Moisturizing Hand Cream Giveaway

Hi everybody,

After my review on CLEAN anti-bacterial moisturizing hand cream, the folks from CLEAN were kind enough to send three (03) full-size tubes of this product to me to give away to my readers.

Each winner will receive one CLEAN anti-bacterial moisturizing hand cream worth $10 USD

To enter:

1. Be a subscriber to My Makeup Blog via email (please verify your email address) or be a follower via Google Friends Connection
2. Leave a comment with your name and email address in the proper boxes in the comment section

Contest opens from now until 11:59 pm EST (GMT+5) September 21, 2010. U.S and Canadian residents only, please (I'm still recuperating from the exorbitant amount of shipping cost from my last giveaway.)

Good luck, everybody!

P.S: If you like my blog, please subscribe to my feed. Thanks a lot!

Hit or Miss: Dior DiorShow Mascara

Hello everyone,

Uh oh! Oh no, she di-dn't! How dare she!

I know, I know, I know. I would have said the same thing, too, if I were you. However, let me explain here: it's been a long long time since a nice mascara arrive at this turf of the land. My Makeup Blog is dying for a review of a good mascara here. And then, I won a giveaway from TummyCake.com, which included a mini DiorShow and a mini Lancome Hypnose. It is hard not to try them out a write reviews about them. If I end up being bashful, please forgive me. And I mean it. Forgive me now, oh faithful makeup fanatics.

DiorShow, the front

FYI: Urban Decay's Book of Shadow vol. III is Out!

Hi everybody,

After months of waiting, the Book of Shadow vol. III is finally arrived at Urban Decay website. It is OMG indeed! This month, I am joining the October challenge in 750words.com. The goal is to write at least 750 words a day for the whole month of October. I got to set my rewards and punishment* and guess what? If I completed the challenge, not only will my name be added on the site's "Wall of Awesomeness" but I also get to fulfill my dream of owning a Book of Shadow! (Nope, the folks at 750 Words will not give me the money, I'll have to buy it myself.)

Droolicious UD Book of Shadow vol. III, available here

I Provenzali Shea Butter Lip Balm Glides Like Buttah!

Hi everybody,

This is one of the reasons I love blogging so much: the people. Gio is one of the cool folks I've met since I started and so far, we've been exchanging emails and swapping with each other. During our latest swap, Gio sent me one of her most favorite lip balms from Italy: I Provenzali shea butter lip balm. She's a balm fanatic and I Provenzali got high remarks from her.

I Provenzali stick lip balm with shea butter

This product is 100% natural and highly moisturizing. Since the only lip balm I've used is Chapsticks, I was more than delighted to try it out.

Wanna know what I think about I Provenzali shea butter lip balm? Jump!

The Day to Chillax!

Hi everybody,

Happy balloon day!

Happy Labor Day to my U.S readers! What are you going to do today? Me, I'm going to chillax* and I think I need it. The cold has been horrendous to me. I would stay awake for up to 4 hours before crashing down again.

The last few days have been so much fun to me. I finally cleaned my apartment from head to toes. Yeah, I did it! It feels a lot better once it's done and I feel like I can breath a lot better afterward. Also, I practiced what I preached: I followed Trisha's advice on her "30 Day Ultimate Beauty Makeover" e-book and did a wardrobe audit. In the end, I sorted out 1/3 of my clothes for Goodwill. It's a refreshing action and I vow to do it at least twice a year.

Beauty Literotica: 30 Day Ultimate Beauty Makeover by Trisha Bartle

Hello everyone,

Thank you for your kind wishes. I am feeling a lot better today, although not 100% back yet. It is strange to have a cold when it's hot outside but I guess I need some rest after all. So the last few days have been filled with sleep and lots of it.

The 30 Day Ultimate Beauty Makeover by Trisha Bartle (e-book)
$8 USD until 9/15/2010; $13 afterward

Recently, my friend Trisha from Makeup Files sent me her newest e-book "The 30 Day Ultimate Makeover" for reviewing purposes. We have been each other's readers for as long as I can remember and she's very supportive.

If you are someone like me, who is somewhat up to date in beauty and makeup trends but clueless in many aspects of fashion, you are in for a treat. "The 30 Day Ultimate Makeover" starts with tips on cleaning out your makeup stash (day 1), then goes on to making a beauty list (day 3), and clean out your wardrobe (day 10).

Each day, you have a task to fulfill. If you think you need to spend an astronomical amount of time to complete your task, you are wrong. Each task is very simple. For example, on day 9, you need to fill out your makeup carrying case with essential on the go items. This task should not take more than half an hour. If you are quick, it can be completed within 10 minutes!