Pretty and Effortless Makeup Tutorial

Hi beauties! I have been obsessed with this makeup look. Not only it is so quick and easy, but it really gives you a nice clean look. I wear this look a lot lately and I really really love it. It is perfect for the day, school, work, or whenever you want to look done but not overly done. :)

Lets get into the tutorial!

Products Used 

MAC Paint Pot in Groundwork, MAC Quarry, Philosophy Brown Eyeliner (Review here), Maybelline Falsies Lashes Mascara, MAC Shadestick in Gentle Lentil.
Brushes: Sigma E35, Urban Decay 24/7 Blending Brush 

 Steps by Steps

Finished Look 

Face Products 

Tarte Amazonian Clay Full Coverage SPF 15 Foundation in Light (Review here)

L'Oreal MAGIC Lumi Pen Highlighter in Light (Review here)

bareMinerals Original Powder Foundation SPF 15 in Light 

Too Faced Chocolate Soleil Bronzing Powder 

TheBalm Frat Boy Blush (Review here) 

Hope you'd like this look! Let me know if you're going to try it out. Don't forget to follow me on Twitter and Like me on Facebook. It will mean a lot to me :) 

Facebook: www.facebook.com/alexandraubymakeup 

Twitter: www.twitter.com/alexandrauby

Love ya! 

Alexandra 

Review: theBalm FRAT BOY Blush

You guys might get sick of so many theBalm reviews I have done, haha. I promised you this might be the last review of theBalm's product, at least for now ;)

So today's review is a powder blush called Frat Boy, which is also can be used as an eyeshadow. It is a medium peachy coral with a hint of pink. It has very slight shimmer and a subtle sheen finish. The texture of the powder is incredibly smooth, easy to blend, and very pigmented. You just need a little dab onto your blush brush, and you'll see the pretty color pop up on your cheeks. One sweep is usually enough for me, but you can also build its intensity. Even if you are messed up, you can always blend it with a fluffy brush or put a translucent or face powder over it so the color will be sheer. I found out that this blush is also long wearing, I am not sure for how many hours, but I wore this blush from morning and washed it off at night. Before I removed my makeup at night, I'd still be able to see the color on my cheeks.

Like other theBalm packagings, this shadow/blush is packaged in a cardboard palette with a mirror on the inside. The mirror is surrounded by football field and it says, "too many men, so little time..." HOW CUTE IS THAT?! LOL.

Overall, I love this blush not only because it has pretty color and a smooth texture, but also it is talc and paraben free (talc and paraben can harm your skin!). So it is pretty safe to wear it everyday, especially for the spring and summer. This peachy coral blush really screams for spring/summer, don't you think? :) You know I am in love with the NARS Blush in Exhibit A last month (I still do!), but I almost wear this every single day (I am kinda switching them back and forth). It is like my go-to blush because it will match with any eye look or outfit you have.

Where to buy: Sephora, theBalm, $21 for 0.3 oz. 


What do you think of this blush? What is your favorite peachy coral blush? Let me know in the comment below because it is like my favorite blush color! Please follow me on Twitter and Facebook as well, so we can be friends! 


Facebook: www.facebook.com/alexandraubymakeup 
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Love you! 

Alexandra 

theBalm Frat Boy Blush

theBalm Frat Boy Blush

theBalm Frat Boy Blush

theBalm Frat Boy Blush

theBalm Frat Boy Blush

Only one sweep of theBalm Frat Boy Blush

Josie Maran Argan Cleansing Oil Review

Hi all the beauties out there! I mentioned in my last month's How To Remove Makeup Completely that I am obsessed with cleansing oil because it really helps to remove all my makeup, dirt, and any impurities away. I think I now understand why I broke out like crazy before - it was because I did not remove my makeup completely! Usually I only used a makeup remover wipe, then wash my face with a facial cleanser. Apparently, not all cleansers can remove ALL the impurities, whereas they sometimes can strip off your skin (resulting in dry skin) or even after you cleanse your face and feel so refreshing afterwards, it does not mean all your makeup or dirt are removed either. So, the only solution to really get rid of those unwanted things on our face without exfoliating it is to use cleansing oil :)

I never tried to use a cleansing oil before but it came across to me when I was at Sephora. I saw this Josie Maran Argan Cleansing Oil all the time at the counter but I never thought I'd purchase it. Sephora sells so many cleansing oil from famous brands like Boscia and Philosophy. But, finally I decided to get Josie Maran because I love how natural Josie Maran products are and all of them contain Argan Oil, which is known for a great healthy ingredient to radiant skin and healthy hair.

The Argan Oil "restores the skin's natural moisture and pH balance while nourishing skin cells by replenishing essential fatty acids." In other words, this Argan Cleansing Oil not only can remove makeup and dirt, but also it is an amazing anti-aging moisturizing treatment. This product also contains almonds, safflower seed and grape seed oil that act as antioxidant and will help to renew every layer of the skin. This renewing process is important for me because I need a new layer of skin in order to get rid of my acne scars. I want all those top layers of my skin to go away, and to have my skin renews. However, this renewal process will take a very long time. If you have acne scars like me, all you need to do is be loyal to your products you're using and be patience :)

After I remove my makeup with a makeup remover wipe, then I will use two to three pumps of the Argan Cleansing Oil and gently rub it into my face. Then I will wet my hands with warm water, then rub it again. The box says to massage it into rich milk, so I expected to see kinda white creamy texture, but I never experience that. Even though it is a cleansing oil, this won't make your skin feel greasy, dry or tight. It will make your skin feel moisturized and fresh instead.

After I cleanse with it, I will wash my face once again with my regular cleanser. The reason why I do this is because I want to use my concentrated cleanser for my skin problem, while Argan Cleansing Oil will just help me to really get rid of makeup and any impurities and to moisturize my skin. My skin never gets dry anymore since I used this. I don't know if you remembered, but I ever mentioned in a post that my skin got so dry until it was flaky around my cheeks and lip area, it was horrible. However, after I use this cleansing oil, I never experience dry skin anymore :)

The reason why I really do believe that the Argan Cleansing Oil will leave your skin incredibly clean is I ever tested out by using a makeup remover wipe after I washed my face with it. I was so shocked when I saw the wipe was all clean, no makeup left at all. I even did not remove my makeup with a makeup remover wipe before I cleanse my face with it. So, this proves that it does really say what it does.

The downside of this product is it tastes so bitter. I really did not mean that I tried to drink it, but it gets on my lip all the time and I accidentally kinda lick it when I rinse it off. Even though after I rinse it off and pat it dry with towel, the bitterness will stay on your lip for a few minutes so you'd still be able to feel it. In my opinion, this bitter taste exists because this product is fragrance free and made with all natural and organic ingredients, so I wasn't really surprised and didn't really mind as long as it does a great job on my skin.

Overall, I love this product because of three reasons. First, it leaves my skin amazingly clean and soft. Second, it moisturizes my skin extremely well (bye bye dry skin!). Third, it does not break me out. I have a sensitive skin, which means my skin will act strangely if it does not like any product. In other words, I have acne prone skin and this baby does not make my skin acting weirdly.

Where to buy: Sephora, Josie Maran, $32 for 6oz. 


Have you ever tried to cleanse your face with a cleansing oil before? What is your favorite cleansing oil and why? Please share with me in the comment below. And please be my friend on Facebook and Twitter, I'd love to become your friends! 


Facebook: www.facebook.com/alexandraubymakeup 
Twitter: www.twitter.com/alexandrauby 

LOVE, 

Alexandra 

Spring Trend: Silver Liner ft. Stila Smudge Stick Waterproof Eyeliner in Silver Dollar. Tutorial included :)

One of the Spring trends this year is all about silver: silver eyeshadows, silver liners, or even silver lipsticks! So today I am going to share with you about my favorite silver eye liner and how I like to use it! :)

To be honest with you guys, I am not a fan of silver color, I'd rather use gold than silver. However, I looked into so many magazines featuring silver liners and it really got me into it. I usually did not follow the trend if I am not comfortable with it, but it feels like this silver trend screamed to me for trying it out! Haha.. So I decided to get out of my comfort zone and made a difference!

I only own one silver eyeliner in my kit, and it is from Stila Stick Waterproof Eye Liner in the color Silver Dollar. Among all cosmetic brands, I feel Stila has the best eyeliner, especially in the Kajal line. I like this Stick Waterproof Eyeliner because it is long wearing, creamy and waterproof! It is easy to blend and it won't smudge throughout the day giving you a panda eye look, haha. It also has slight shimmers to make your eyes stand out and the color is vibrant!

There are several ways to use silver eyeliners: with your bare eyes, line your upper lashline and lower lashline with your choice of silver eyeliner, and apply a good coat of mascara, or you can have a neutral eye look, but apply the silver liner either in lower lashline only or upper lashline, or even both!

What I like to do is to use silver eyeliner for brightening my eye dramatically. As you can see in the tutorial below, I apply the Silver Dollar starting from my inner tear duct, then go until a quarter of my inner lower lashline. This will give me an instant "wake-up" look. But one thing to note about is to have a neutral eye look and a dramatic liner at the same time, so it will be balance. But if you want to have a dramatic eye look with silver eyeliner in your upper lashline, please do so! I have no intention to limit you at all :) I like to have neutral eye look and silver liner because it is more appropriate for the day time or an everyday look.

Besides brightening your eyes, silver liner also gives you an "oomph" on your eyes. People might stare at you, but they will be like, "a silver liner? Cool!" or they might think you are very creative! :)

I highly recommend you to use a little bit of hint of silver on your day look. Silver eyeshadows might be too much for the day, so a silver eyeliner will be perfect! You can use any silver eyeliners you have or you can find at the drugstores, I know Maybelline Eyestudio Masted Drama Cream Pencil in Made of Steel is a good one. It is smudgeproof and waterproof too! :)


Have you ever tried using silver liner before? What is your favorite way to apply it? If you have not, will you try it out? Let me know in the comment below! Please be my friend on Facebook and follow me on Twitter as well :) 


Facebook: www.facebook.com/alexandraubymakeup 
Twitter: www.twitter.com/alexandrauby 

i LOVE you, 

Alexandra 

Stila Smudge Stick Waterproof Eye Liner in Silver Dollar 

Stila Smudge Stick Waterproof Eye Liner in Silver Dollar

Stila Smudge Stick Eye Liner in Silver Dollar 

 Steps by Steps 

Starting from your inner tear duct, line a quarter of your upper lashline with the silver line. You don't need to line it exactly a quarter, you can go all the way to a half or full of your lower lashline. 

Then smudge/blend it with a pencil liner. I used Urban Decay 24/7 Blending Brush.

See how it opens up your eyes and make them really stand out?

It brightens my eyes too! :) 

TAG! 7 Deadly Sins of Beauty

Photo is from here

Hi everyone!! I have never done a TAG post before, so I am very excited to do my first tag right now! This tag is called 7 Deadly Sins of Beauty - basically there is seven beauty questions that I am going to answer (well one of the questions is not related to beauty at all..). This TAG has been going around on YouTube about a month, and since I am not a vlogger, I am going to make this as a post instead. Lets start! 

1. GREED: What is your most inexpensive beauty item? What is your most expensive?

I have so many inexpensive beauty items because I love deals (who doesn't love deals?;)) But, I think I have to say my e.l.f eyeshadow palettes are my most inexpensive beauty items I have. Each palette contains four gorgeous eyeshadows, they are very pigmented, and they are only $1 each!! I really can't complain. You can get these at Target.

My most expensive one will be Clarisonic Plus. It was freakin $225 and I did not use that much anymore right now. I did not know what I was thinking at that time.. I purchased this nearly three years ago when Clarisonic was still really hyped in the air. There is no skin care tool like it, so I saved my pocket money to get one. 

2. WRATH: What beauty products do you have a love/hate relationship with? What product has been the hardest to get?

This is an easy question for me because I really do have love/hate relationship with nail polishes. I love to have my nails done, I love to see colors on my nails, I love to buy them too! But I am not a good manicure person... My nail polish will chip the next hour, or basically will do something that will make it look imperfect. Also, I hate removing nail polishes.. Usually I waited until it chipped badly (after two weeks mostly) then I'd remove it with a nail polish remover. And usually I won't repaint my nails. Oh, I paint my nails when really I have mood to do so. That's why you don't see many posts of nail polish on my blog, haha. 

3. GLUTTONY: What are your most delicious beauty products?

I know I have a lot of beauty products that smell really good, but I am not a big fan of fragrances. So, this question confuses me because I do not know what to choose! Haha.. So, I decided to say MAC Tendertone in Hush Hush is my most delicious product. It smells like strawberry kiwi and I love it! 

4. SLOTH: What beauty product do you neglect, due to laziness?

I'd say eye cream. I always neglect it, I do not why. Although my eye cream is right next to me when I am cleaning my face, I don't feel putting it in. I used a few different eye creams before and I never see big changes around my eye. I do have dark circles, but it is not so so bad. So, sometimes I just skip putting an eye cream on my eye, even though I know it will moisturize my eye area. 

5. PRIDE: What beauty product gives you the most self confidence?

Definitely foundation. I don't have a perfect skin, my skin is far away from perfect, and foundation really helps me to even out my skin tone, makes my skin look flawless, and of course it gains my self confidence. 

6. LUST: What attributes do you find most attractive in the opposite sex?

This is the question that I am talking about - the one that has no relation with beauty at all, LOL. My answer will be someone who can make me laugh because when I laugh, I am happy. In other words, someone who are funny, have sense of humor, but he knows when to be serious as well. I am pretty sure a lot of you will agree with me on this. Right beauties? 

7. ENVY: What items would you most like to receive as a gift? 

I would say gift cards from Sephora or Nordstrom, haha. I love to receive beauty products, but gift cards would be awesome!! Because I get to pick stuffs for free, haha. 

Now, I am going to TAG you!!!! TAG, You're It!!! :) 

Please please do this tag with me, I'd love to know about you too! You can leave in the comment below, or write it on my wall on Facebook. And please follow me on Twitter too! ;) 

How do you like this TAG? Do you want me to do frequent TAG posts? 

LOVE YOU! 

Alexandra 

Review&Demo: Missha M Perfect Cover BB Cream SPF 42 PA+++

Guess what?? Another review on BB Cream! I thought March was the 'BB Cream' month, since I have done so many posts about it. Well, apparently not. To be honest with you guys, this is the last BB Cream I have on my collection, and I am not planning on buying a new one until I finish them. But of course this is not a permanent plan! You know me.. If there's something good out there, or something you recommend to me, I could not control myself not to buy it! Haha.

So today's review is for the infamous Korean BB Cream called Missha M Perfect Cover BB Cream SPF 42 PA+++, I bought this BB Cream because it is (probably) the only BB Cream that can heal blemishes. I bought this BB Cream last year along with Lioele Triple the Solutions BB Cream, and I like the Lioele better because it has more coverage than Missha does. However, Missha delivers more great benefits than Lioele, so I like to switch it back and forth.

One of the benefits that Missha M Perfect Cover BB Cream and other Asian BB Creams give is the whitening agent. Missha M Perfect Cover BB Cream can lighten your skin tone in order to make wrinkles and blemishes look invisible. This is what I really need for my skin problem. I know I mentioned this a million times, but I have acne scars (it is like red marks that are caused by previous acne, so if you have any tips on how to get rid of them, I will appreciate if you can share with me), and the way to get rid of them is to lighten your skin so that these red marks become more and more invisible, almost like freckles. So, I am really happy that Missha can help me to lighten them up while I have makeup on.

Another great benefit of this is it can prevent skin aging through anti-wrinkle properties. Even though I do not have wrinkles yet, prevention is the key! Also, it has high SPF and PA, which will protect your skin from the UV rays or sun damage.

Now lets talk about the coverage... Like I said before, compared with Lioele Triple the Solutions' coverage, Lioele wins. However, Missha also gives a great amount of coverage, and really a little bit goes a long way. Lioele has thicker texture, whereas Missha has lighter texture but it is not too light either. What I am trying to say is Missha gives a decent amount of coverage in one pump, but usually I use two pumps, while I only use one pump for Lioele. As you can see in the picture below, you still can see my acne scars on my cheeks after one layer, but overall I am really happy for its coverage. Even sometimes when I am lazy, I just use one layer and then apply powder to set it, then I am good to go. You can definitely build the coverage, but I see the more you add product, the more cakey you look. Pretty and Cute's site says that you need to wait at least five minutes before you layer more product in order for it to set in.

Missha M Perfect Cover BB Cream comes in four shades: No. 21 Bright Beige, No. 23 Natural Beige, No. 27 Honey Beige, and No. 31 Golden Beige. No. 27 and 31 are fairly new shades, and I think Missha has the most variety of shades of all Asian BB Creams. I am using No. 23 Natural Beige, and I am NC 20 in MAC foundation for your reference. I am really fair with yellow undertones and No. 23 matches my skin tone perfectly. Also, the shade has a grey tint to it, Skin79 is more grey, whereas Lioele is more yellow, and Missha is kinda in the middle. Again, like other Asian BB Creams, you might look grey when the first you apply it, but it will oxidize to match your skin tone. So don't freak out! :)

Last thing I want to mention is I do not know if Missha BB Cream broke me out. All of sudden my face broke out here and there after I was using this - some on my forehead, my cheeks and my chin. I really do not want to say that this BB Cream is the reason I broke out because I am really not sure. Probably it is because my diet too, I eat so much sugars these days, I am just not eating right :( do you know eating too much sugars can cause acne? I am going to keep using this BB Cream and if I was still breaking out, then probably I might have to stop using it. I am gonna be really sad if this really causes me breakout because I really like it. It is supposed to heal your blemishes too, so how is it possible to give me more blemishes? :( Fingers crossed this BB Cream won't break me out or hopefully I am not allergic to its ingredients!

Missha M Perfect Cover BB Cream is packaged the same way as Lioele. It is housed in a plastic tube and comes with a pump. I like how it pumps out because it can keep the product more sanitized, but since I have this almost a year, the lid for the pump keeps falling off. It still fits but I think it loosens up. Also, it smells really really good!

Overall, I love love love this BB Cream as much as I love Lioele. I barely use my regular foundation and keep switching these two products. I just need a little bit of concealers to cover my imperfections that are still showing up after I apply Missha or Lioele BB Creams.

Where to buy: Pretty and Cute, $28.50 for 50 ml. 

Have you tried this BB Cream yet? What is your favorite BB Cream, and why? If you have not tried BB Cream yet, will you try it in the future? Let me know in the comment below! Please follow me on Twitter and Facebook too. You can always tweet me and post on my wall, I will always reply you because I love talking to you guys! 


Facebook: www.facebook.com/alexandraubymakeup 
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Love you so much!

Alexandra

Missha M Perfect Cover BB Cream SPF 42 PA+++

Missha M Perfect Cover BB Cream SPF 42 PA+++

After one layer of Missha M Perfect Cover BB Cream

The finished look - after I put powder, concealer, bronzer and blush. 

Updated Review: Boscia Luminizing Black Mask

Hi loves!! I just want to do a quick update on Boscia Luminizing Black Mask, as I promised. If you read my first impression on this mask (click here to read), you knew that I was not sure if I liked it or not. My main problem with it was the peeling process was such a pain in the butt and it causes redness on my face because it hurts so badly when I peel it off.

Well, I found the solution finally. The first time I used it I applied a thin layer evenly onto my face. A thin layer makes the peeling process harder and more painful. So, for the second time, I put on a thicker layer on my face. You can see the comparison on my first and second application, the second one is definitely thicker and more even. I waited until it is dry to the touch and I started to peel it off. Well guess what... it becomes really easy to peel off. Some parts fell apart during the peeling process, but it is not a big deal.

One thing that I noticed that the mask somewhat picked up my blackheads because I saw some of my blackheads were gone. The good thing about peel off mask is you can see the dirts from your face that is picked up by the mask, so I saw excess sebum that causes blackheads in the nose area on the mask. How cool??

The downside of this product is probably you will waste the products because you need to do a thick layer in order to avoid the painful feeling and to get easier peeling process. The thicker the layer, the more products you need. In addition, this mask is not cheap either. It costs $34 for 2.8oz. However, it has natural ingredients and no harsh chemicals inside, and it really freshen your face because all the dirts and toxins are picked up, so your face is clean and brightened up!

I am not gonna go over the benefits of this mask anymore because it will be too redundant. I don't wanna waste your time! :) So please read my first post here, I included more complete benefits of this mask, and what are the active ingredients that make this mask so good.


Where to buy: Sephora, Boscia, $34 for 2.8 oz. 


So that's it guys! Let me know what you think of this mask, or what's your favorite mask? Leave in the comment below, and please follow me on Twitter and Facebook. I'm looking forward to sharing anything beauty with you all! 


Facebook: www.facebook.com/alexandraubymakeup 
Twitter: www.twitter.com/alexandrauby 

Love you MUCH, 

Alexandra 

Like my Tinkerbell PJ? HAHA