Get the Look: NYE 2012

It's NYE! I don't know about the rest of you, but time just zoomed by! 2012 was an amazing year and like I say every year, the next year will be even better. I hope the rest of you Makeup Junkies have had a fantastic 2012 and I thank you for being apart of my world! Wishing you much love, peace and happiness for 2013!

Before I say peace out on my last post for 2012, check out some gorgeous NYE looks and beauty items you'll need to ring in the new year! 

NYE is the time to let loose, forget about all your 2012 woes, and get a little crazy. Go a little bolder with your makeup and have some fun with some jewel tones on the eyes and nails! 

1. YSL Pure Chromatics Wet/Dry Eye Shadow in Arctic Night: I am loving these new palettes from YSL. These satiny metallic powders are intensely pigmented wet or dry. Arctic Night is a collectors palette from the holiday collection. The shades are a mix of icy blues and a plum purple. For a NYE look that will get you noticed, apply the purple across the lid and the dark blue shade on the outer crease and along the lash line for a sultry effect. Highlight the inner corners with the icy silver-blue. 

2. Clinique Chubby Stick Intense in Curviest Caramel: I am all about the chubby lip pencils these days. The new Chubby Stick Intense lippies are amazing - pure pigment and shine. If you take a peek into my purse, you'll see a few Chubby Intense sticks in there. Curviest Caramel is the perfect shade for a jewel-toned smokey eye. Some might say it's the perfect nude lip. It has the right combination of pink and beige mixed together but leaning more beige. If you'll be snapping a lot of photos, you still want your nude lips to look visible! 

3. Maybelline Fashion Print Nail Stickers in Sapphire Jewels: Nail stickers are my new favourite mani-on-the-go. It requires no drying time and is really easy to do. Simply choose the right shape for your nail, press, and file to your nail shape. Thankfully the ones from Maybelline aren't terribly tacky and look pretty funky. I tried out Sapphire Jewels today and did it in less than 20 minutes while watching a toddler! Here's the only downfall: don't expect to be doing any outdoorsy activities with these stickers! They started to peel off as soon as I pulled my boots on before leaving the house. However, these are perfect for standing around and looking pretty at a NYE party! The patterns are sure to get conversations going and your nails will look like you actually put some time and effort into them! 

Before

After

Prefer something glam but a little rock 'n roll? Nothing says it better than a little smudgy liner and a bold lip!

1. Annabelle Roll On Eye Shadow/Liner in Brown: I was never a fan of roll-on eye shadows until now. I always found that the colour was hard to get out onto the roller or it was lacking in pigment. I don't believe this one from Annabelle is out yet, but be sure to add Brown to your must-have list. This shade is the perfect neutral and the intense shimmer kicks it up a notch. If you need more of the product just give it a little shake. If it rolls on to much in one area, take a brush or your finger and pat it across your lid. Always use a patting motion for loose shadows - you'll get less fall off and more pigment. To contour the crease, use a matte neutral shade to balance the shimmer. The liner fell a little flat for me. It was a little watery and needed a few layers to give it intensity. Otherwise, both the shadow and liner lasted all night on me! I used it for my family Christmas Eve party here. 

2. Marcelle Kajal Kohl Pencil: Kajal liners are becoming a new makeup staple. I am loving this water-proof, intense black from Marcelle. I don't think this has launched yet, but will be in the new year. For rock 'n roll glam eyes, you don't want a strong black smokey eye and a bold lip. It will look overkill. Instead, opt for smudgy liner by lining the top inner lash line otherwise known as "tight lining". Just flip your lid up and line the base of your lashes. Then line the bottom water line, close your eyes tightly, then line again. Load up on the mascara or use some falsies. 

3. Giorgio Armani Lip Maestro in The Red: Ok, so I'm kinda in love with the new Lip Maestros. My lips are loving the velvety smooth texture and the creamy, matte finish. They don't accentuate dry or chapped lips, but if you're doing a red lip it's always best to make sure your lips are in tip top shape. The slightly angled sponge makes the application easier, but if you do mess up don't try wiping it off with your finger (like I did). It'll just smear and these don't budge. It's best to take a cleansing water on a q-tip or moisturizer on a q-tip to remove it. Then touch up with a bit of a concealer. These also don't feather or bleed so while you're sipping on your champagne you won't have to think about your lips looking messy! 

What will your last look of 2012 be? 

Products were sent for editorial consideration and I truly love them. 

Fall Beauty Roundup

Makeup Junkie: Fall Beauty Roundup

It's November which means it's time to start dishing on my favourite holiday products and collections! But before I do, check out my fave Fall beauty products this season. What made your list?

I'm trying out a new site called Beauty Sets. It's similar to Polyvore, but this is made just for beauty bloggers and allows you to lay out your photos like a magazine. Pretty cool! You like?

And The Winner Is...

Webgrrl Toronto! Congratulations!

You have won all 6 Annabelle Cosmetics Studio Pigments plus 2 brushes! Makeup Junkie hopes you enjoy these fabulous pigments as much as we do. We will be contacting you shortly for your mailing address.

Thank you to all the Canadian readers that participated. We wish we could give you all a prize but don't worry! Annabelle Cosmetics is doing their own contest called the Ultimate Makeup Junkie Contest (we know it's unrelated but we're flattered Annabelle used our name!). The contest will be running from August 17 until October 12. Click here for more details.

www.annabellecosmetics.com

Beauty Feature: Annabelle Studio Pigment Give Away!

We at Makeup Junkie love quality products for a steal and we know our readers do too! Canadian cosmetic giant, Annabelle Cosmetics, will be launching the line's new Studio Pigments ($8.50 CDN) August 16 exclusively at Shoppers Drug Mart! If you love to express yourself using bright bold shades then you'll love these pigments. Recommended by the Makeup Artists in the Annabelle Studio, these pro performance loose powders are highly concentrated and super pigmented. Their incredibly ultra fine texture make these powders easy to blend together.

Available in 6 shades: Karma, Cobalt, Dragonette, Greed, LOL, and Magentini

Top Row L-R: Magentini, Karma, LOL
Bottom Row L-R: Dragonette, Greed, and Cobalt
The above image is a swatch of the powders dry. You can see they are still highly pigmented when used dry. The colours are beautiful and bold and all compliment each other nicely. You can create many different looks or use one shadow for a sheer wash of colour and use another shade wet as a liner! Use Annabelle's A-8 small shading brush and press onto the lid rather than back and forth. This will prevent any fall-off onto your cheek and help the colour go on a little bit heavier. Wet the A-14 angled liner brush, mix with the powder and line your lash.
Top Row L-R: Magentini, Karma, LOL
Bottom Row L-R: Dragonette, Greed, and Cobalt
The above image is a swatch of the powders used wet. The colours have double the intensity and are very long-wearing when used wet. The packaging is an excellent design. The powders are enclosed in a snap closure container that makes these pigments mess-free and transportable. When you open the container there is a small hole the size of a pea where the colour comes out of. These pigments definitely stand up to the quality of M.A.C.'s Pigment Powders but at a fraction of the cost! Hopefully Annabelle will add more shades to the line!

Now that we've gushed all about Annabelle's fabulous Studio Pigments, Makeup Junkie will give one lucky reader (Canadian residents only - sorry!) all 6 Studio Pigments plus A-8 and A-14 brushes! All you have to do is email us telling us you absolutely have to have this prize! Click on "Contact Us and Product Submissions" for our email address. Winner will be announced next Monday, August 17th, at 12 pm!

Annabelle Cosmetics available in stores all across Canada. If you are a US resident and would like to purchase Annabelle products you can purchase over the phone at 1 800 387-7710.

www.annabellecosmetics.com

Holiday Look: 'Tis the Season for Glitter!

It’s the season for tinsel so why not add a little glittery glam to your evening look? Try out these products to add a little bit of sparkle and a whole lotta glam this holiday season:

Annabelle Silverstar Glitter Mascara
As part of their recent Space Baby collection, Annabelle released a glitter silver mascara, aptly dubbed Silverstar. I initially was a bit taken aback by the idea of glitter mascara. Whenever I hear the word "glitter", I have flashbacks to the '80s and memories of dancing to Fame & Flashdance soundtracks and rocking the ever popular legwarmer look! Needless to say, glitter has come a long way. Glitter is no longer the chunky bits that churn up my memories of the 80s. Today's glitter is finely milled with more of a subtle, but still eye-catching, sparkle.

In a mascara though? Whodathunkit?! But after giving Silverstar a test run, it turned out I was pleasantly surprised and an immediate convert!! Once applied, Annabelle's Silverstar mascara made my lashes look like they had been kissed by diamonds! The effect is actually very subtle, but catches the light brilliantly as you blink and bat away those lashes (and believe me, you'll be batting them even more!!).

I tried the mascara on its own a few times and then tried it again with a black mascara as a base. I preferred the look with the black base coat of mascara first. The black base coat helped give my lashes the necessary oomph factor to stand out (they need all the help they can get!). From there, applying the glitter mascara was like the icing on the cake! Be warned that this mascara is highly reflective, so it takes a little bit to get used to seeing sparkles in the corner of your eye (think of when a snowflake catches your eyelash - similar to that feeling!).

Glitter mascara is definitely a fun and super easy way to add sparkle to your evening out. So pop in it that purse, add a coat or two and bat those lashes (and the night) away!!


MAC Reflects Glitter
Similar to MAC Pigment, MAC Glitter has the same staying power and potent shine, but with a larger sparkle finish. You can use this versatile product around the eyes, on the lips and on the body! Add it atop your eyeshadow, apply it over your gloss or mix in a tiny bit with your body lotion for a simply dazzling effect.

I was lucky enough to scoop up a container of Reflects Transparent Teal Glitter, which looks amazing when you add a tiny bit to your lotion for use as a highlighter. Teal Glitter also looks great atop blue eyeshadows so layer it on for an extra pop!

Here are some more options for glitter around the eyes (Note: Try only one glitter look on the face at a time…otherwise you may risk glitter overkill!):

1. Use glitter to highlight the inner corner of the eye. Layer it atop a highlighting eyeshadow for a stand-out look that makes the highlighting eyeshadow more visible from afar.
2. Use a tiny amount of glitter and place it on a tissue (you can control the amount better this way). Use the tip of your ring finger or a sponge tip eyeshadow applicator and lightly pat on the centre of the eyelid (where the eye is the most prominent). This gives a nice highlighting effect that truly makes the eye come forward.

Disclaimer: Glitter has its limits, so be sure to consult here on how to make glitter work for you!