Worth the hype: Lip plumper?

Like the greats of Joan Rivers and Angelina Jolie everybody wants a sexy, full pout. And while mot of us arent willing to spend the money and the pain that is involved in lip collogen, we are given a simpler and temporary substitution: lip plumper.


Now before I share my opinion on this product, why don't we look strictly at the facts.

The good facts
For starters this product really does work, theres no question that when you put cinnamon and mint oils on your lips to give you that bee-stung look its going to work. The controversy in this product is not about how well it truly works because believe me, you will know when its working. Long-lastingg effects is also a component that you can rely on after all, you cant expect a bee sting to deflate right away now can you? Another good thing is that the ingredients that are used for the effect are usually natural, but then again hallucinogenic berries are also natural and I wouldnt put them anywhere near my lips,

The bad facts

For starters did I mention that it hurts?! Yeah I know the saying "beauty is painful", but i also know the makeup artist saying that "your clients should never feel pain", and well which one are you going to go with?! A red flag for this product would be if the description states that it "may cause pain or tingling sensation", and well unless you like that sort of thing that doesnt seem too appealing. Another turn-off is the actual ingredients in it.  Sure chili powder is natural, but do you truly want that on your lips?


My experience

I must start off by saying that I'm half russian, so thanks to my genes I've always had a lot of luck in the pouty lips department. However I wish my full lips had made me find this godawful trend uneccessary at the time, but being the beauty enthusiast i am you know I had to see what all the buzz is about. I've tried my fair share of brands, and I must say this stuff is PAINFUL. I've gotten fat lips before and I have to say I think I prefer those because you have an actual excuse for it, unless it was a bar fight in that case I say stick to a lie, hunny. I'm not sure if you've ever ate extremely hot food and then put an ice cube to your lips, but if you have that would be the feeling. I have to say I dont see what is so alluring about having pained lips? Guess its just another trend I won't get.

I hereby declare this product Maiden banned.

All-Nighter Spray Review

All Nighter Spray


I always say that 'fad' makeup products are rarely actually worth it, and in the spirit of my maiden-isms, this gem is a rare pokemon. The Urban Decay All Nighter Spray is an interesting product that sets makeup and keeps it in place, allowing you to party all night without having to worry about looking like a Panda. Here's what the site says:

"Is makeup meltdown ruining your midnight mojo? Mist on this weightless spray to give your makeup serious staying power. All Nighter keeps your makeup looking gorgeously just-applied for up to 16 hours – without melting, cracking, fading or settling into fine lines."

My thoughts

I have to say, I absolutely adore this product! I got the 1.0 fluid ounce smaller size for $14 which miraculously lasted me an entire year until I ran out of it recently. I'm lucky to have normal skin (thanks mom and dad!) and I only really use this when I know my face will need the extra boost. I mostly use this in the warmer seasons, when I'm going to be outside a lot, or when I'm at a concert or a club. Now you can either use this with a setting powder or just use it as a lone setting product, however I usually pair it with powder to get a flawless matte finish. When I go to concerts I use Bare Minerals legendary Mineral veil with spray on top which always seems to keep my makeup perfectly in tact. After moshing and sweating hard for hours at a time and having your makeup stay perfectly in tact afterwards is sort of a miracle to me.

The good:

I really admire how effective this product is. It really does everything it says and them some! There aren't very likeminded products on the market, and I have to admit I was skeptical at the beginning but it sure did prove me wrong. I also love how fresh this makes you feel when you apply it! Also not only does it keep your makeup on, but it keeps it staying there for a long period of time. The reliance this product has is amazing. As a Theatrical MUA I'm always putting this on the actors, and to be able to rely on a product to withstand sweating, bright lights, and lots of movement is amazing. I also like how these sprays come in two other different types: 'Chill' and 'De-slick'. Unfortunately, I've only tried the original so I cant speak for the others, but I'd love to try them!

The bad: 

I honestly and surprisingly don't really have much of anything to put here! One thing I dislike about this product though is that it has the potential to leak. Although I'm lucky to not have that problem my best friend actually had hers leak and lost the majority of the product--eek! I do have to say, this product could be a bit confusing or hard to use. The first I used it, I sprayed it way to close to my face and my makeup ran and it made me cry!

How-to:

To minimize the crying, make sure to hold the bottle farther away from your face. Hold it as  you would an airbrush compressor, around 3-6 inches away from your face. To make sure that it covers your entire face, do 4 seperate squirts while moving in 4 different directions. The instructions (and I) suggest that you do one spray horizontally, one vertically, and two diagonally.


Overall, I absolutely love this product! I'd recommend this to anyone really, but would be most beneficial to anybody who has oily skin or has trouble keeping their makeup intact. Its also good for anybody who is outside in the heat a lot. This is one fad product that is worth it and Maiden-Approved


Product: 10/10
Price value: 10/10(sample size) 8/10 (normal size)
Application: 9/10
Lasting: 10/10
Packaging: 8/10
Uniqueness: 9/10

Overall Grade: A


What are your experiences with this product? Comment below!

E.L.F Cream HD Blushes Quick Review

Hey guys, today i have a first impression for the E.L.F Cream HD blushes. I've been sick lately, so I have a lot of stuff that I've gotten that I need to catch up on. That being said, This isn't a full review but I will have one up ASAP. I picked up three of the E.L.F Studio HD Cream Blushes about a month ago during the 50% off best sellers and new items sale. The blushes were part of the "best sellers" section as they have been around for a while and have quite a buzz around them. These babies were designed to be a drugstore version of the Makeup Forever HD Cream Blushes which are now discontinued and reformulated. while I've never had any of the MUFE ones while they were around, I can say that by seeing pictures and doing swatches they are a very similar concept. These blushes come in a small, transparent tube with a black lid and pump and come in 5 colors.

Headliner: The lightest of all shades, a clean, fresh pink with a hint of coral and shimmer

Superstar: A midtone rosy coral with subtle shimmer

Diva: A bold fuchsia with subtle shimmer

Encore: A darker, muted tearose fuchsia

Showstopper: The darkest shade, a dark berry-wine



I like how the products were very directed towards professionals and those who take makeup seriously, the fact that elf is looking out for us diehard junkies and pro's says a lot! I also really like how comparable they are to the Makeup Forever ones. Not only is there a fallback to the MUFE kind now that they are discontinued, but the price difference between the two are literally unbelievable. These are $3 for 0.34 fl ounces (10mL), while the MUFE ones were $25 for 0.33 fl ounces (9.7mL). Its kind of unbelievable how you gain 0.01 of an ounce by  getting the Elf kind, and keep $22 in your pocket; even more if one of their fantastic sales are on. I also really admire how blend-able and versatile it is. It looks intimidating at first, but  with a good brush you can get it blending so nicely into your skin. Also, since its a cream product you could very much so use it on your lips as well. To make a unified look, why not try applying the same color on lips and cheeks, or for you fair faced maidens like myself why don't you use one as a lip product if you accidentally buy a shade too dark for you (psst- that's what I did with Diva!)

The biggest problem that I had with these is that all the shades had various textures and consistencies. Its weirs, because I've found that this has happened with me with a ton of other Elf products, but never any other brand. I'm not sure if this is due to pigments in each color, how its manufactured, or if its because I order my Elf stuff online, but I dont like it one bit. Its hard and it bugs me when I buy items blindly not knowing what consistency each  color is going to be. For all the three I got, they seemed to be widely different from one another. Headliner was very thick and creamy, Diva was extremely loose and liquid-y, and Superstar was a sort of combination of the two. I'm also very on the fence on whether or not I like the packaging. The transparent body is very helpful in finding exactly what color you want, however the pump is hard to control at times and you often end up getting a lot more product out of the bottle than you expected. You need such little product because of the pigmentation and amazing blending, that you end up wasting a lot of product. I also wish that they would change the name to something like convertible color or lip and cheek cream so that more people would know that you can use this on your lips.

Overall I admire this product, but I am not blown out of the water by it. Stay tuned for indepth reviews and swatches of the 3 colors i bought!!

My No-Nail Rant

When i think of an everyday beauty mogul i think of the total package: lustrous hair, perfect skin, fabulous makeup, and...flawless nails?! Ive always had a dilemma when it comes to nails. Not only do I rarely have time and patience to put nail polish on day in and day out, but long nails have never been a practicality in my life. And by that I mean anything longer than stubs has never really worked for me. See I'm a guitarist, so anything longer can really mess up my solo game. I've always wanted and dreamt of gorgeous, long nails but they just dont fit my style. I try to put some polish on whenever i have the time, and i do have to say it looks adorable when you rip an amazing slayer solo while wearing hot pink polish.

So my question of the day for you is: Has there ever been a beauty ritual that has never been practical in your life. Comment down below!

Spring Trends- Dewy Glow

I have to admit when I was first introduced to this trend I was a bit skeptical. I thought that the end result of a dewy face would end up looking  sweaty or as if you were prancing in the rain...so not sexy! However this trend has really grown on me, and im proud to say that i will be using this trend a lot in the upcoming spring months

In case you dont know, dewy skin look is the style of a fresh, bright, and non-matte face. Notice how I didn't use the word shiny to describe this look. Thats because the biggest struggle of pulling off this look is making sure that the final product is glowy and fresh, but not shiny and greasy-looking. The key to having the right balance of the glow and where you should feature it. Places such as all along your cheeks and nose are good, but put it on you forehead and you'll look like you sweat your brains out at a Blue Jays game. I've put together two ways on how to get about doing this, the highlight method, and the freshfaced method.

Highlight Method

The most important thing about doing a dewy look with highligting is that you need to know your limitations. A bit more shimmer and gleam than your usual routine can make you look fabulous, that is if you don't douse your entire face in half a bottle of high beam. A good tip for this would be to start out slow. Do a traditional highlighting, and then spread it over your cheeks more than usual and apply more if wanted. There are also plenty of highlighting and illuminating products in the market nowadays. To achieve this look i would recommend a liquid illuminator such as high beam or a concealer with illuminating elements such as loreal's lumi touch. That way it gives your skin the appearance of a fresh dew on a lovely spring morning.

Fresh-Faced Method

Of course, another method would be to use a product all over the face to give a unified, dewy appearance. This is good if you aren't looking to add more complicated steps to your routine and will also help if you are worried of overdoing it with the first technique. This look   can be achieved with a foundation with illuminating elements such as loreals lumi touch foundation, or a setting spray such as dew me or fix plus. A simple spray of  fix+ or the like will give your skin that fresh, lovely feel. Another good thing about this is that you can apply it throughout the day, so if you're having a rough day at the office and your looks are proving it, a simple splash of this baby will make you look like a born anew goddess.
 





I'll be testing out and sharing looks of me doing this techinques, so stay posted!


Shine on you crazy glossy girls,

Makeupmaiden

Pin Up Girl Look

Hey everyone! So i did a pin up look a few days ago, I absolutely love that style! And I just had to show it to you! So here it is.  Hope you're having a great friday everyone!

 

OCC Primary Lip Tar Pack Launch

Hey gurlies! Today I have great news for all you occ junkies out there... a new mini pack! Thanks to the success of the mini-packs around the holidays, occ has excited us with a new primary pack bound to hit stores for summer 2014. The pack includes the shades below, which are advised to be mixed together to create your own original colors. The pack also comes with color suggestions and ideas to get you started with creating your colors.





Nsfw- a true red
Traffic- a bright yellow
Rx- a sea blue
Tarred- pitch blck
Feathered- purest white
#10: precision lip brush


I have to say I've been excited to get new occ collections before, but this is by far the most I've been excited! As an art student, I've grown accustom to mixing colors so this pack is definetly straight up my alley.

 Occ has always encouraged their followers to mix the colors, and i feel like this pack will bring on some eager and amazing colors!


Question of the day: have you ever mixed any lip tars? If so post a picture I would love to see it!