November and December Skincare Favs!!!!..... The Best of Beauty According to Patrice

Hello Beauty Junkies,

Happy New Year's beauty lovers. I hope the new year is starting off  right.  It's that time again..... Beauty favs!!!! I have had an exciting 2 months in skincare and some awesome things to share.

So with out further ado, on to the madness...

SKINCARE

Clarsonic Mia in Berry
Dr. Dennis Gross Step 1 & Step 2 Extra Strength Alpha Beta® Peel Treatments 
Boscia Purifying Cleansing Gel
Shiseido 1 2 3 Pureness Oil Control Skincare Set

These four amigos have been my skins saving grace. My Clarsonic is the bomb.com. I got it during Sepora's friends and family sale. I use it twice a day,  for one minute on my face and one on my neck and décolletage (yeah, I used a fancy french word). I have been loving my skin.  My clarsonic has a deep pore head that has been working miracles. I have noticed a significant pore reduction, more even skine tone and  alot less acne.

As far as cleansers go, I am always changing cleasers because I do believe that my face get used to one product and it stops being effective. In November,  I had been constantly reaching for the Borsica cleanser. Using it in conjunction with my clarsonic, left my skin feeling super clean and removed makeup well. I did notice a little drying but I could live with it. However, in December, I decided to switched to the Shiseido Oil Control Skincare set. OMG I'm in love! This foaming cleaser cleans without drying and makes your face feel like new. The ph balance toner hydrates your face without the burn of most toners. The mattfiying oil-free mositrizer has a serum like consistancy, and feel great on the face. Now, I have tried alot of 3 step systems, but I am most impressed with this one. They seem to work well together and are super gentle on the face.



The Box



The cleanser, toner and moistrizer...



Now Dr. Dennis Gross Step 1 and Step 2 Extra Strength Alpha Beta Peel treatments have been the most impressived with over the past 2 months. This treament claims to be  "especially suited for stubborn skin conditions that have not responded favorably to other anti-aging treatments, this peel diminishes fine lines, reduces pores, and treats breakouts. Regular use can visibly improve dark spots and skin tone."

  An indepent study reports that:

 - 70% of women tested noticed a reduction in the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles
- 100% of women tested reported an improvement in skin texture and tone
- 100% of women tested noticed an improvement in skin radiance and glow
- 95% of women reported that they would recommend the products to a friend or family member
- 85% of women tested reported that they were likely to purchase more products from the line



The individual packages



As for my expereience with it, I have been most impressed with the reduction in pore size, treatment of my acne, and the best of all improvement of the dark spots.  I first recerives 5 treatments free with my clasonic. I used one day randomly and notice that my skin look and felt better. I had not read the package properly to see that it was a daily treatment, so I waited a few days and tried it again. I woke up washed my face and saw an improvement. After I used up the treatment I had, I ran to the store and got some more. I have been using them 2-3 times a week since then and my face had never looked better. I can barely see any of the old dark marks that bothered me so much in the past. The are so light that my sheer foundation can cover them. I no longer have to spend so much time blending concealer over the multiple spots all over my face. I now can just hit my under eye area and go. I also enjoy the face that if I have a random breakout, I can just complete a treatment and notice an significant improvement the next morning.



Ingredients 





Directions



 



I am super excited with my skin care finds and I hope to have found my HG (holy grail) products for my sensitive, acne-prone, and super oily skin.

Until next time stay beat,

Patrice



The Naked Palette 2 is coming....

***clutching pearls****




Hello Beauty Junkies,

I'm about to fall out with happiness. My favorite neutral palette is coming out with a second installment. My soul screams yes and I'm too excited.

Urban Decay Naked 2 palette come out on 12/1/2011 and I will be online to get it. They have been teasing us with pictures on facebook and twitter for the past few days. Pinch of Pretty  confirmed it existence on 11/18.

I will be online tonight waiting in anticipation.

Love, Hugs and Kisses,

Patrice....

Youtube Debut!!! Sephora Friends Family Haul 2011

My Haul... Hope you enjoy!

Please remember to rate, comment and subscribe!!!!

October Favs!!!!..... The Best of Beauty According to Patrice

m

Hello Beauty Junkies,

Love, Hugs and Kisses to all of my beauty junkies out there. Can you believe it is November already? Time is surely flying and it's getting colder as we speak. But never fear, I have my makeup to keep me warm. I have had so much fun this month with makeup that I wanted to share my favorites with you today.

So without further ado, lets get to it:

Face


I am not a foundation kind of girl. I prefer concealer and powder as my foundation choice. This month my favorite powder and concealer is

Makeup forever Full coverage concealer in color 12 works great for my under eye circle and acne scars. Covers everything with one applications and no need to build the coverage. I have been using this tube everyday for 4 months and still have plenty left because a little goes along way. 

MAC Careblend pressed powder in Medium Dark is a great powder to set the concealer, the color is great and control the oil like a champ. I have no complaints about it. 

Eyes

 I love to play up the eyes. So its a no brainer that I have a lot of faves in this section
.

• Urban Decay Hi Performance Revolution eyelash curler (yeah it's a mouthful). This cageless design on the curler allows me to get the end lashes curled with no crimping. 
• Benefits They're Real Mascara has made me fall in love with my lashes all over again. This mascara make my long full lashes look amazing. I love the brush and spike ball at the end allow me to define my end lashes  like a pro. 
• Milani Infinite Eye Liner in Everlast is the longest wearing liquid eyeliner at the drug store. This is truly a 24 hour liner and only comes off with a good makeup remover. Love the brush. 
• MUFE Brow Seal is excellent a laying down my unruly eyebrows and sets my powder or pencil when I want extra definition. 
• Milani Liquif'eye eyeliner and Stila Eye Kohl are the best waterline eyeliners on the market and I have the worst runny eyes. 

• I love, love, love my Inglot 20 pan freedom palette. Excellent pigmentation and price ($4-7per shadow)
• Urban Decay Naked Palette is super great for neutral looks. Beauty Must Have period.
• Mary Kay Eye Makeup remover is the best in the business at removing the toughest, longest wearing eyeliners and shadows. Gentle on the eyes and no burn what so ever. Can't live without this.....

Cheeks

These two Milani Baked Blushes in Red Vino and Fantastico Mauve are excellent. Amazing color payoff and great color selection.










Lips

EOS lip balm is great for keeping your lips smooth and condition year around, especially now that the weather is getting colder. Lemon is my favorite flavor.







My favorite lipgloss and lipstick combo for October has been Illamasqua lipstick in Underworld and Illamasqua lipgloss in Tantrum. Now these two were instant favorites. The fateful day that i say these in Sephora was amazing. I walked around for more than an hour trying to talk myself out of buying them. I left the store without them and I haunted me for weeks.

 I ran back and had to make them mine. Now I
wear them all the time.

Milani Lip Flash in PhotoFlash saved my Halloween makeup by serving as an eyeshadow base and lipstick. Highly pigmented and full of shimmer, perfect for nights out and playing dress up (wink, wink).








Brushes

MAC 226, MAC 227 and Enkore/Crown Contour Blush are brushes I use everyday. The MAC 

is an excellent tapered blending brush that lets me place serious details in my crease for a defined, dramatic looks. The MAC 227 is great for setting my under eye concealer with powder and packing shadow on the lid. The contour brush is my absolute fav for applying blush to the apples of my cheek and contouring the hallows of my cheeks. 

Fragrances 

                Aquolina's Pink Sugar, Viktor and Rolf's FlowerBomb and Rihanna's Reb'L Fleur

• Aquolina's Pink Sugar is all time favorite. It smells of sweet things and baked goods. It has notes Bergamot, Sicilian Orange, Raspberry, Fig Leaves, Lily of the Valley, Licorice, Strawberry, Red Fruit, Cotton Candy, Vanilla, Caramel, Musk, Wood, and Powder.

• Viktor and Rolf's Flowerbomb is my favorite date night/nightclub perfume. It is a sexy fragrance that last all day. It has notes of Sambac Jasmine, Centifolia Rose, Cattleya Orchid, Ballerina Freesia,and  Patchouli. 

• Rihanna's Reb'l Fleur is a spicy fragrance that surprised me alot because I hate Rihanna. But the fragrane is on point it had notes of Patchouli, Vanilla, Amber, and Musk. 

Wooo ok... I am all done. 

I have covered all my favorites for the month of October. I hope that this list help you. If you need or want a more in-depth review of something please leave a comment below and I would be more than happy to oblige. 

As always, Rate, comment, subscribe and share. Also stay tuned for Halloween Makeup, Drugstore favorites and Sephora friends and family haul post. 




Until then stay beat,

Patrice

Beyonce's "Countdown" Inspired Look...

Hello Makeup Junkies,

So I usually don't do celebrity looks but my friend and fellow blogger/vlogger Jasi Baker (http://www.letmetalkmyish.com) posted a video of her doing Beyonce's :Countdown Look.

I was really inspired by her work and I wanted to try another look from the video. It is similar yellow cat eye but a little different. Here is her look:

and this is the look I did:

Please ignore the brows!!!!!! lol

List of the products used:

• Eyeshadow Base: NYX eyeshadow base in White
• Brow Highlight : Giella Eye M Glam
• Crease Color: MAC Sparkle Neely, Sparkle! (brown), Inglot 391 (matte black)
• Lid Color: Ingot Rainbow 103R (yellow)
• Eyeliner 
• (for cut crease and waterline): Stila Kajal Eyeliner in Onyx
• Top line and wing: Milani Infinite Liquid Eye Liner in Everlast (black)

Let me know what you think of my look and what looks you may want me to recreate....

Until then stay beat, 

Patrice

P.S. Best of the drug store post coming up next.....

MAC & Miss Piggy Collection debuts Nov. 14th

OMG I'm so excited about this collection. Miss Piggy is my all time favorite Muppet. I will debut online only on Nov 14th, 2011. Ladies and Gents start you engine. Thank to Temptalia for the info.

Miss Piggy in Couture Rocker Chic...

Miss Piggy Pink Mid-tone blue-pink (Frost) (Limited Edition) $15



Penultimate Liner Rapidblack $17.50 & #36 Lash $15



MAC Review: MAC Me Over Collection....

Hello Make-up Junkie,

It's your plus sized cutie on duty, Patrice, to bring you another facinating haul/review for MAC's MAC Me Over Collection. I believe once again MAC had brought us a large collection with something for everyone.



I have 4 lipsticks, two eyeshadows, 1 lipgloss, and 2 brushes from the collection.  I have another lipstick and lipgloss on my wish/want list. Ok on with the review....

First up is Runaway Red.

I. LOVE. RED. LIPSTICK. I will admit it. I'm not scared. I said it. I am a true lover of red lipstick and this one sure delivers. This deep rich red is very retro and chic. This blue toned red is and great fall color and  can be worn across the color spectrum from fair to deep dark. It is darker that the bright red cousin Russian Red (see this picture here). It is a satin finish with great pigmentation. I'm in love and an instant fav in the collection. I prefer my reds with a brown liner like Cork or wine color like Vino or Currant. Lip gloss suggestions are MAC Venetian or MAC Bold and Brash Dazzleglass 

Next up is Rebel.

This bright berry fuchisa is sure to please. This satin formula lipstick goes on smooth and last for hours. I love that is is semi opaque and a few more swipes can make it truely opaque. I love it. I have nothing bad to saw about it. I would pair it with a brown or bright pink lip liner like Cork or Magenta respectively. For more shine I would add a swipe of MAC Just Add Colour or NYX's Africa Lip Gloss.

Next up is Peachstock....

Now this it the interesting one of the bunch. I pick this on up in the Liberty of London Collection (hence the different packaging) I usually don't do nudes because I so light. But this one, I like. It's another satin finsh. This peachy nude lipstick is opaque and can be a bit tricky to work with.  It's so opaque that it can be overwhelming. I tone it down with a brown lipliner like Cork or Chestnut. For gloss, I lean to Illicit, from the MAC Me Over Collection (shown later) to keep it peachy nude, NYX Golden Pink to get the pinky gold finish, or Revlon's Continuous Coral to play up the orange shade.

Next is Oh, Oh, Oh...

This is a ok color for me. I'm not totally sold on it and I would have returned it but I threw away the packaging. It may grow on me but for now, it's going to sit until I get inspired to play with it and make it work. This lipstick is a lustre finish plum bronze with perlized pigment. It's not impressive in the tube and looks better swatched. I have not been inspired to make it work yet... I'll come back with a better review for this one.

Now on to the lip gloss, Illicit.

This is a great nude lip gloss. I like it because it could be worn alone, with a great lipstick like MAC Peachstock, or could be used to tone down or nutralize another lip gloss.

Eyes are next and I purchased Mythical and Carbonized.

These two make a beautiful smoky eye. When this collection debuted, I make an appointment to have a color consultation with this collection. Then young lady that did my make-up used these two colors and I fell in love. I originaly had question marks next to these two shadows but after the eye look I could not resist. Mythical is described as a frosty coppery red, while Carbonized is a frosty dark brown. The picture shown above is are swatches are shown with and without a base. They are both veluxe pearl finish and a dream to work with. Super creamy and soft textures make these a no brainer.

Lastly from this collection are the 226 and 211 brushes.

First is the 226 brush. It is described as a small tapered blending brush. It is considerably smaller than the 224 and more densely packed and tapered. This truly a great blending brush if you have a smaller crease and crave more detail and control. This has been my go to blending brush since I purchased it.

Last and certainly not least the 211 brush.



Borrowed from Temptalia....


This is a ultra fine pointed liner brush. It is more denser at the base and has a much finer tip than the 209. I haven't used it much. But if you have a pretty good technique, using this brush with gel or cream liner should be a breeze.


Over all I would say that this was a great collection and really help me plug in some of the holes in my collection. I didn't have many lipsticks to begin with and now I feel like I have plenty of each family. My only regets for this collection are not getting the dark lipsticks Prince Noir and Smoked Purple. I liked them but wasn't sure it would work with my skin tone.


Ok... That is all for now. Comming up next is Hauls and September favs.


If you have any request for product reviews or suggestion for blogs or content... leave the comments below....

 

 

Until then stay beat, 

Patrice

Mac Collection Haul and Reviews: MAC Bloggers Obsession

Hey Make-up Addicts,

The plus size cutie on duty is back.... I so sorry I have neglected you so. Work and life has been keeping me busy and I have not been able to devote as much time as I would like to this cause. I will do better in the future. I promise....

So without any more delay, I will jump right into the mix. MAC has released two collections that I have been super excited about: MAC Bloggers Obsession and MAC Me Over. O.M.G. Some very beautiful and unique items came from these collection. 

First up is the MAC Bloggers Obsession. I went bonkers over this collection and raved about it here. The first time it debuted I was out of the country (in Canada for a wedding) and missed out on all the items I was in love with. So I ended up buying All My Purple Like and Sonoran Rain on ebay, for not much more than retail so I was happy.

This two amazing lipglass look great alone or with lipstick and liner. All My Purple Life is a semi-opaque, dark purple lig glass with silver and white simmer. I love to wear All My Purple Life with my Jaguar Cosmetics lipliner is 108 (plum) and either MAC's Violetta or NYX's Orchid.

For Sonoran Rain (opaque, orange-red w/ fuchsia, ruby red, and gold shimmer), I have alot of good pairing options. If you didn't know, I. LOVE. RED. LIPSTICK!!!! and I have 5 or more to prove it. But getting back on topic, this lipglass will look good on top of any of them. My favs are MAC Ruby Woo, Russian Red, Runaway Red (new, and will discuss later post) or Heartless. Nyx Jaipur is also a great option.

As you can see, I fell in love and fell hard. I was still sad I did not get my Jealousy Wakes but I was waiting for it. Luckly for me, a few weeks later MAC decided to re-release the collection again and I was able to get all the shadows I missed out on and another lipglass. I got Jealousy Wakes, "Sparkle, Neely, Sparkle!", Parisian Skies, and Nitro:Licious 2046. 

Again, you know me and the red lipstick, I could turn down that wonderful vinyl red lipglass to go with my red lippie collection. I needed it. This one also pairs well with all reds I previously mentioned.

Jealousy Wakes, "Sparkle, Neely, Sparkle!", and  Parisian Skies eyeshadows are to die for and the finishes are amazing. They are very easy to blend and great color payoff. This picture is with no base and the colors still pop. I love to pair Jealousy Wakes on my lids and  "Sparkle, Neely, Sparkle!" in my crease. It make for a beautiful eye. 

The only regrets I have with this Bloggers Obsession collection is not getting the remaining pieces Hocus Pocus e/s and Caqui lipglass. They haunt me and I keep saying I will buy them, as they are still available on the MAC website. I haven't loved a collection like this since the Disney Venomous Villians and Wonder Woman came out. But who am I to lie. I am a make-up addict and will find something in all these collections to tickle my fancy!!!!

Next Post up is Review of the MAC Me Over Collection.....

Until then stay beat, 

Patrice

Make-up Mondays: MAC Blogger Collection

So once again, MAC is releasing a new collection. But I'm not completely upset. This amazing collection is 4 shadows and 5 lipglosses created by some of the most popular bloggers in the beauty community. These amazing ladies  traveled to Toronto, Canada ( Aileen, Amber, Karen, Lesley Ellen, Lianne, Lily, Patrice, and Wendy ) toured production facilities  and worked with a MAC chemist to actually start the develop these signature colors.OMG.... I would have given a limb to have gone.





These colors are simply stunning and beautiful in there own right.  I am excited for "All My Purple Life", "Nitro:licious 2046" and "Jealousy Wakes." This collection goes on sale June 21 and I will be placing my order early.....

You can read about my fav beauty blogger experiences at Patrice's Afrobella Page  and Christine's Temptalia Page. It's great to hear about from there own voices.

Ok ladies and gents . I will be back soon to highlight my May and June Favs.

Love, Hugs and Lipsicks,

Patrice

April Faves and Haul

Hey Make-up Addicts,

I know it's been awhile but I have been working like a Hebrew slave.  But I wanted to stop in a give you the highlights of my April finds....

Ok... first on the block is my  NYX Ultra Pearl Pigment...

I love this very much. All the colors are very pigmented and wonderful. I purchased the case at walmart for around $8. I removed the pigments from the bottles, because the openings were too small to put brushes in. In the picture (lower left), I swatche the Penny Pigment, dry and wet (using Mac Studio Fix +).

I also got some lip glosses from Hautelook.com. I ended up getting 35 lip glosses for $53. WHAT. A. DEAL??????  NYX is quickly becoming my favorite low cost make-up brand. I got the regular brush on and the diamond sparkle shine glosses.

Now Ebay is my cosmetic warehouse. Anything I'm looking for in the store and I can't find, I look for it on Ebay. With that being said, the thrill of the hunt is also great. I get a rush wining auctions. Hautelook.com is a great place to find really good deals. I will have a review for these in a month or so.

Soooooooooooooooooooooooooo..... I am in love with the Mac's Venomous Villains collections. I am so pissed with myself because I walked past it like 100s of times and never bought anything. And then it sold out. I paid close attention and had to have certain thing.

I went on ebay and hit the jackpot. I won to auctions and got everything I wanted plus some cool collector boxes.

I loved these two collections... AMAZING! I loved everything in them and can't wait to play in paint. The collector boxes were a great added bonus.

And the last of the April Haul, Is the ELF deal of the century. I got all the great eye shadows, brushes and mascara for the low low price of $19.  53 pieces for 19 dollars....

I did have a shipping casualty, but its all there and I know how to fix it.....

Ok Beauty Junkies until next time ....

Love Hugs and Kisses,


Patrice