FOTD/EOTD: Dark Pinup Look

I got in some items today from Beauty Without Cruelty, so I wanted to use them right away (of course!).  This look is a darker pinup look.  The only difference between this and a classic pinup look is that I ditched cherry lips for a deep plum.

On my eyes: Benefit Stay Don't Stray primer, MSC e/s Birfday Suit, Honey Rose and In the Buff, MAC eye kohl in Fascinating, Sephora Waterproof Kohl in Keep Black, Tokidoki Perfetto Liner in Sabochan, NYX e/s in 01 Black, Sephora Lash Plumper mascara in Black

On my face: Beauty Without Cruelty Creamy Concealer in Fair, MAC Studio Fix Powder in NC20, Too Faced Chocolate Soleil Bronzer, Urban Decay blush in Score; On my lips: Beauty Without Cruelty lipstick in Deep Plum over MSC lip bomb in Snoball

FTC: All items used in this look were purchased by me except: all items by BWC were sent to me for consideration, the Urban Decay blush in Score was a gift, and the Benefit primer sample was also a gift.  I used these items because I like them, and that is my honest opinion.

FOTD/EOTD: Candy Eyes

While recording my January favorites, I realized my eyes had a definite theme: candy.

Here's the overall face:

NARS Sheer Matte Foundation in Mont Blanc, MAC Studio Fix Powder in NC20, MAC Studio Finish Concealer in NC20, Too Faced Chocolate Soleil Bronzer, Jordana blush in 38 Coral Sandy Beach, & TKDK Perfetto Liner in Sabochan for the brows, TKDK prismagloss in Ciao Ciao

Here's the eyes up close:

Benefit Stay Don't Stray primer, TKDK eyeshadow in Killer Candy, MAC eyeshadow in Blue Candy, Wet N Wild eyeshadow in Brulee, MAC Fascinating eye kohl in Fascinating, TKDK Perfetto Liner in Sabochan, MUFE Smoky Lash mascara in black

Should I do a tutorial or is this one pretty straightforward?

FTC:  All items used in this look were purchased by me except for: the Jordana blush was sent to me for use and consideration, the Benefit primer sample was sent to me by a friend, and the MUFE Smoky Lash mascara and the NARS Sheer Matte foundations were items I received from work.  I was not compensated for this look.  I used these products because I like them, and that is my honest opinion.

REVIEW: Cruelty-Free Cosmetics

Back in October, I received a package from Cruelty-Free Cosmetics.  Now those of you who have been with me since at least October know that it was the busiest time of 2011 for me.  I was working fifty plus hours a week so even though I wore the pigments I received and took notes, I never recorded my review.  In November I started my job at Sephora and that led me into the Holiday Season of Retail Madness.  That carried into Return Hell January, and now we find ourselves in nearly February.  Where did the last three months go!?

So I wanted to come over here and make a blog post where I could post photos and swatches a little bit easier than a photo.  This is something new for me, so I welcome suggestions for improvement.  =]

Cruelty-Free Cosmetics was started by Natallia after she went vegan and wanted more cosmetic options.  She and I had prevously been youtube friends from her previous channel, so when she started her own line, I was very excited to try it!  She sent me four pigments to try out:

From left to right: Silver Taupe, Plum Potion, Spiced Cider & Heart of Gold

Swatches and my review after the jump...

Vegan Hair Dyes

I was recently asked about what hair dye I use by a girl I met at Sephora, and truth be told, I use the least desirable "vegan" option.  But the reason I'm posting today is because I do want to change that, and share what I find with you guys.

I'm currently using Revlon hair dye, which is technically cruelty-free (but the parent company obviously isn't).  It's cheap, it's easy to find, and it doesn't bleed much, which is important when you dye your hair black all the time.  I've heard that the other options available to me tend to bleed, which is probably because they're stains, not horrible chemicals to slather on my scalp, which is pretty close to my brain.

A simple google search led me to a blog post about vegan hair dyes.  This was posted in December of 2010, and yet this has never popped up for me as a search result.. it was meant to be.  I suggest you all go and read her article.  I'm going to look into the LUSH Henna dyes more because they're the easiest for me to get my hands on, but I think I'm going to end up going the Manic Panic or Special Effects route..

Fellow vegans, what hair dyes do you use?  I'm not even necessarily going to crazy color, I tend to keep things calm and black, haha.

Vegan List from Sephora

This list is very out of date.  Please do not use it as a shopping guide.  Check my list of cruelty free brands in the top bar.  I will be working on getting updated lists.  Thanks.

I do have a list specific to the Sephora I work at: http://bethbr00tality.blogspot.com/2015/07/cruelty-free-brands-at-my-sephora.html

I contacted Sephora and specifically asked for a list of vegan products carried by the company, and they responded with a rather long list, fortunately.  Unfortunately, she clearly stated that this list focused on which items were vegan, not whether or not they were tested on animals, so I'm going to have to go back & compare notes.  Also, I'm not sure how current/up to date the list is, which is another thing I have to check into as I compare notes.  But, regardless, here is the list I was given.  I added some formatting to make it a little easier to follow.  I know some items are missing because I know that Philosophy has a primarily vegan line, and they aren't on this list at all.  Their response is after the cut.

CO-CONTEST WITH MO!! =D

Hey guys!!  Mo and I are hosting a super exciting Valentine's Day contest!!  I hope you'll all check it out & enter!  There are two ways to enter, one being video submissions and the other photo, so there are no excuses to not participate!!  =]  All of the details are after the cut.

Sephora Lash Plumper mascara ftw.

Inspired by Mo's new post here about her favorite liquid liners, I decided it was nigh time I wrote about my favorite mascara. While I am well aware the liners and mascaras are hardly the same thing, just.. stay with me here.

It was the summer of 2010.  I was approaching my 23rd birthday and I got those emails to remind me, "Hey dumbshit, it's your birthday!  You get free stuff this month!"  Oh, glorious day!  I rounded up the locations where I was entitled to free-ness in celebration of my birth, and headed out the door.

I saved what is almost always the best for last: Sephora.  Sephora had an amazing gift in 2010 (and 2009, and 2011, and though it isn't my birthday yet, as an employee of Sephora I am well aware that the gift is pretty damn cool this year as well) and this gift literally changed my life.  Well.. it changed my life in so much as finding your holy grail mascara can.  I know, epic.

I won't lie, I had to cheat and look online to see what else was in the gift that year (and you can cheat and look here if you forget, too).  It was a silver green nano liner, a tiny size of Aspen Summit eyeshadow, and *cue harps* the Lash Plumper.  They were all Sephora brand, and in a quick rundown for a review:
1. Silver Green nano liner - good liner, horrid color for me
2.  Aspen Summit - I still have this tiny guy and he is doing doing a great job as an inner corner highlight
3.  Lash Plumper mascara - this changed me

This mascara is perfect [FOR ME].  It isn't too wet, it isn't too dry; and it's buildable.  It doesn't flake, it doesn't budge, but I do suspect it is the product at the end of the day that gives me a hell of a fight to remove.  It's okay, I still love it, and wear it every day without hesistation.

Since trying the product for the first time in July of 2010, I have tried other mascaras, always on the quest to try exciting, new things; but I have always returned to my beloved Lash Plumper mascara.  At a measly $12 a tube, it's not much more than what you'd pay at the drug store.  Yet it performs like so many of the high end mascaras that it is constantly surrounded and mocked by.  I don't know if I actually think the two are dupes, but it and the Tarte Lights, Camera, Lashes! mascaras are the only ones I've ever even considered repurchasing.

I guess there will be a comparison in the new future.  I can't just leave it at that, can I?

For nostalgia's sake: My full size I'm currently working on & the original tiny size I received for my birthday.

FTC:  Although I initially received the sample size of this mascara as a free perk, I have paid for all additional tubes with my own money.  These are my honest opinions.