30 in 30: Question #12What's Your Favorite Mascara?

My answers to 30 makeup questions in 30 days! Today's question is:

#12. What's your favorite mascara?

This is a tough one, simply because I really don’t have one. Mascara has a short a shelf life, and I’m a fickle being, so I can’t tell you the last time I bought a repeat.

My one standard, though, is black. Eye lashes are such a minuscule part of your over-all look that almost everyone can benefit from the extra definition a black mascara brings. The only exception to this, in my opinion, are people who have extremely fair lashes, where applying a black mascara leaves an obvious gap at the root of the lash where the base is blonde, for instance, and the length is black. In this case, a softer brown is preferable, but otherwise, black is the way to go!

Some of my recent favorite mascaras include (in no particular order)

• Maybelline Lash Stilleto Ultimate Length Mascara
• Yves Saint Laurent Volume Effet Faux Cils Noir Radical
• Chanel Inimitable
• Flirt! Far Out Lengthening Mascara

All of these mascaras give great definition without clumping, flaking or smearing- what more can you ask for?

Product Review:e.l.f. Studio Lip Lock Pencil

Designed to "keep your lipstick, lip gloss and lip liner from feathering, traveling or budging" e.l.f. Studio Lip Lock Pencil is a colorless, crayon like pencil meant to be drawn around the outside of the lips, rather than on them like a traditional pencil.

The idea of reverse lip liners have intrigued me for a while. My dry skin seeks out any moisture it can find, so any slick lippie I put on is generally bound to be soaked up by the surrounding skin, creating lovely rivulets of bleeding color around my lip line (darnnit, lips, can't you tell there's color in that moisture?!) Consequently, I consider lip liner a must with any highly pigmented lipstick, and to my disdain, glosses are virtually impossible for me. Enter e.l.f's Lip Lock pencil.

For testing purposes, I grabbed the bleediest lip color in my collection- Chanel Rouge Allure Laque in Dragon. Beautiful shade with a beautiful finish, but for me, impossible to wear without looking like Mommie Dearest after a bender.

This is my lovely Dragon, applied without any liner. Sexy, no? Oh...No? After only 15 minutes of wear, the lip color had begun to pool at the corners of my mouth, giving me a slightly Joker-esque appearance. This photo was taken at the 30 minute mark; the bleeding is quite apparent and is definitely past the point of embarrassment! So, can a $3 pencil really improve a $32 lipstick? You bet:

Muuuuuch better, right? Believe it or not, this pic is not the freshly applied "before" version- this is how the same exact Dragon Lip Lacquer looked on me after over an hour of wear when applied with e.l.f. Studio Lip Lock pencil.

Lip Lock Pencil couldn't be easier to apply; you simply draw the product on around the outside of your lip line, rather than on it like a traditional liner. I appreciated that I didn't have to be ultra-careful about accidentally going up onto my lips- I had no issues with lipstick refusing to "grab" onto areas where I may have strayed a bit. The pencil is clear but not chalky, so it will work on all skin tones. It's waxy texture did leave an ever-so-slightly visible line where it clung to the fine hairs around my lips; all I had to do to remedy this was run a fingertip over it lightly to blend and all was well.

The only issue I had with this product is one with the packaging, rather than the performance. Not exactly a pencil in it's true form, the "lead" of the Lip Lock is actually encased in a crayon-like tube, and twists up rather than sharpening. No problems there, until I uncapped my pencil one day and the entire lead fell out onto my counter. Luckily, the formula is solid enough that the pencil wasn't damaged- I was able to slip it back into the crayon and have continued to use it with no problems. For the price, I don't even consider this an issue, but it's definitely something to mention.

Would I recommend this product? In a hot second! Though it is part of e.l.f.'s pricier Studio line, $3.00 is still a steal for such a great product (similar products by DuWop, Cargo and Urban Decay run more than five times the price!) This is a great option for any look, but especially for those who need the benefits of a liner but don't want the look of one. It's a great option to keep sheer glosses in place without altering the shade like a traditional liner would, and it completely eliminates the horror of "ring around the lips" that colored liners can leave.

Pros:
- keeps lip color from bleeding or feathering outside of the lip line.

- clear pencil can be used on any skin tone.

- can be used with any lip product without altering the shade- especially great for hard to match lipsticks or sheer glosses.

- It's only $3.00 (kicks but in the value department compared to similar products!)

- fragrance free and vegan

Cons:
- e.l.f. can be tough to find in brick-and-mortar retailers (I shop on the e.l.f. website).

- product may not be secure in the tube. My lead fell out and, while it was easily fixed, it's an issue that certainly needs to be addressed.

Lime Crime Look:The Phoenix

This incendiary look is an update of an old signature look of mine that came to be known as fire eyes. When I first created this look, you simply couldn't find red eyeshadow; I used blush and lip liner to create the flame's vivid red. Now, in honor of Xenia and the launch of her fantastical Lime Crime Makeup, I've been inspired to revive fire eyes. From the ashes of old arose- the Phoenix!

I created this look with eye colors exclusively from Lime Crime Makeup, using only 2 shadows and a glitter for the entire look! Read on for all of the details, and make sure to click here to read my complete review of Lime Crime Makeup.



As always, I started by priming my lids from the upper lash line up to the eye brows. Using a small eyeshadow brush, I applied bright yellow Circus Girl to my lid, starting at the inner corner of my eyes and extending it just up to (but not in) the crease, leaving the outer third of my lid blank. I was very careful not to take the yellow into the crease or outer "V" of the eye, since I wanted the red to be as pure as possible.

Placing my pencil brush in the crease at the outer corner of my eye, I worked Siren (a warm, satiny red) along the crease, extending it just past the center of my lid, blending it slightly into the yellow shadow. Switching to a fluffy, domed shading brush, I used the brush clean first to blend the red crease shade lightly into the yellow, being careful to leave the inner corner pure yellow and the outer corner pure red. Then I applied the smallest bit of red pigment to the brush and applied it lightly it to the center of the lid and out. As you can see in the closeup, the result was a gorgeous coppery orange tone.

As an update to my old look, I added a bold blue "flame" along my lower lash line with sapphire blue glitter. I moistened a flat, angled eyeliner brush with a mixture of glycerin and water, dipped it into the glitter and placed the sparkles just underneath my bottom lashes, thinning and winging the line up slightly at the outside corners. Then, I used a moist smudger brush to apply a bit more glitter to my tear duct, extending it up slightly onto the inner corner of my lids. I applied a deep blue liner to my waterline, and finished the look with black mascara, false half-lashes, and a thin line of black gel liner to disguise the lash band.

Since this look is more editorial than daily wear, I chose to match the boldness of my eyes with a bold red lip. I applied a cherry red shade to my lips, patting a bit of Circus Girl pigment on top before applying clear gloss. When I ventured out on a shopping trip later in the day, I did switch to a more toned down lip, filling my lips with a nude liner before topping it with a bit of Circus Girl mixed into clear gloss.

Product List:

Eyes
Base: Urban Decay Primer Potion
Inner Lid: Circus Girl Magic Dust (Lime Crime Makeup)
Outer Lid & Crease: Siren Magic Dust (Lime Crime Makeup)
Lower Lash Line, Tear Duct, and Inner Corner: Unicorn Glitter (Lime Crime Makeup)
Top Lash Line: Blacktrack Fluidline (MAC)
Waterline: Blue Jay Duo Eye Pencil (Vincent Longo)
Mascara: Chanel Inimitable in Black
Brows: Automatic Brow Pencil Duo in Soft Brown (Estee Lauder)
Eyebrow Mascara in Auburn (Bourjois)
Lashes: Andrea Accents #305 in Black

Cheeks
Fusion Soft Lights in Dusk (Smashbox)

Lips
Pro Longwear Lipcolor in Lasting Lust (MAC)
Circus Girl Magic Dust (Lime Crime Makeup)


Brushes
MAC 239 (small dense eyeshadow)
MAC 219 (pencil brush)
MAC 222 (fluffy, domed shader)
Estee Lauder 7E (flat, angled eyeliner)
Lancome #10 (small smudger)