Halo Eye

Halo Eye Eyeshadow Tutorial + Lip Option

I've been really wanting to try out doing a halo eye look, and the shade Girlie in the Hard Candy Look Pro Neutral Eyes palette looked like it would be perfect for a pop of shimmer in the middle of the lid, so I created this look using that palette. I experimented a bit with using shadows wet as well, so I'll note which shadow I did that with when we get to that step.

Using a blending brush, buff the shade Chatty into and above the crease as a transition shade so that your crease shade will blend easier and look more gradient.

Put the shade Toying in the crease, working in light layers and slowly building up color.

Sorry this picture is out of focus, I didn't realize until after I had completed the next step so I couldn't retake it. I took the shade Philander and placed it on the inner and outer thirds of the lid, staying away from the middle of the lid entirely. I did take the color up into the crease a little bit.

Next, I wet my brush with the Hard Candy Fast & Fabulous Setting Spray and dipped into the shade Girlie before putting it on the middle third of my lid. I wet my brush so that the color would be more intense and metallic looking. It doesn't look nearly as good on camera as it did in person, but believe me, it makes a huge difference. Make sure to blend the edges of the lid colors together.

After that I blended my crease some more so that everything looked more put together.

I put the shade Coy on the lower lashline because I think it makes everything look a lot more complete.

Adding the shade Bashful as an inner corner and browbone highlight pulls everything together nicely!

Blend some more, add liner and mascara, and you're done!

For the lips, I applied Wet' n' Wild's Mega Last lipstick in Just Peachy under Stila's Stay All Day Vinyl lip gloss in Nude. I think this look would also look nice paired with a red lip.

Eye Look

Hard Candy Neutral Eyes Palette Look

In a recent haul I showed you the Hard Candy Neutral Eyes palette I got from WalMart. I wanted to do a look using the pretty copper-gold color in it, and I decided to do the look using only colors from the same palette.

Use the shade Chatty as a transition shade, making sure to blend it out well and get it all over the crease and a bit above. This gives the crease shade something to blend into.

Use the shade Toying in the crease, blending it up into the transition shade.

Put the shade Coy all over the lid, blendig it into the crease slightly for a more blended, less harsh look when you close your eyes.

Use the shade Bashful as an inner corner and browbone highlight. This shade reminds me a bit of the shade Champagne Truffle in the Too Faced Chocolate Bar palette, which I also use as an inner corner and browbone highlight a lot.

Use the shade Frisky on the lower lashline to pull everything together. I think this look looks much better with something on the lower lashline.

Add finishing touches like mascara and eyeliner and the look is done!

I paired this eye look with the Hard Candy Velvet Mousse Matte Lip Color in Sweet Pea. I haven't tried it out much yet but so far I really like it. I haven't worn it long enough to know if it dries matte yet, but I'll update you on it in a later post.

Chocolate Bar Look

Eye Look Using The Too Faced Chocolate Bar Palette

I've been falling back in love with the Too Faced Chocolate Bar palette lately, so I wanted to do a look using it. I've done many looks on this blog using this palette, but I wanted to do one more before really exploring other palettes.

Use the shade Milk Chocolate as a transition shade. I blended it out so that it was very light rather than fully pigmented.

Put the shade Semi-Sweet in the crease. I blended this out as well as I could for a smoother transition between shades.

After that, use the shade Amaretto all over the lid and blend it into the crease. I've never really played around with this shade before and I'm glad I finally did because it's actually really pretty.

Next, use the shade Cherry Cordial in the outer v and blend it onto the outer half of the lid and into the crease a bit. All the blending will make it look more put together and seamless.

Get the shade Candied Violet on your brush and apply it onto the lower lashline. This adds a subtle pop of color that still goes with the look.

Use the shade Marzipan as an inner corner and browbone highlight. I like to use a shimmery shade for this most of the time because I prefer how it looks compared to a matte shade, and I often use this one because I think it looks extra nice.

Cleaning up the edge of the shadow is optional, but I prefer how winged liner looks with a harsh edge rater than a blended one, so I chose to do that. Add liner and mascara and you're done!

Experimental Look

Experimental Smokey Look

I was just playing around with my Makeup Revolution Essential Mattes palette and decided to post this look I came up with. It's nothing spectacular but I was happy with it so I thought it was worth posting.

Use the 2nd shade from the left as a transition shade.

Blend the 7th shade from the left into the crease.

Use the 6th shade from the left in the crease to darken the look a bit, and to give the next shade something darker to blend into.

Apply the 10th shade from the left all over the lid and blend really well.

Put the 8th shade from the left on the lower lashline to tie everything together.

I put the 4th shade from the left on my inner corner, but it doesn't show up very well on me. It would probably show up better on darker skin.

Apply mascara to finish the look. I think this would look good with a red lip.

All Matte Eye Look

All Matte Eye Look + Lip Option

I don't know if I've done an all-matte eye look on my blog yet, so I wanted to make sure I had at least one! I love a shimmery shade all over the lid, but mattes are really nice sometimes. I only used one palette for this look - the Makeup Revolution Essential Mattes palette. It has lots of really pretty mattes in it so that's what I chose to use.

I used the 5th shade from the left as a transition shade. It's dark enough that you can see it but light enough that it works as a transition shade on my skin color.

Next I used the 8th shade from the left in my crease and blended it into the transition shade. I'll keep adding small amounts of this shade as I blend other colors into it so it doesn't disappear.

Since I'm going to be using lighter colors on my lid, I wanted to put a white cream base down first. This way the light colors will show up better.

I used the 12th shade from the left (the rightmost shade) all over my lid and blended it into the crease shade as well.

Next I put the 9th shade from the left in my outer v and blended it out really well. I also blended it onto the outer half of my lid.

After that I took my brush, sprayed it with setting spray, and used it to apply the 11th shade from the left on my lower lashline. It doesn't show up as well unless you wet your brush, but if you do it looks much more intense.

The last shadow step is to use the 1st shade on the left as an inner corner and browbone highlight. I would usually use a shimmery shade for this because I prefer how it looks, but a matte shade works for a more subtle effect.

Add liner and mascara and you're done!

I paired this eye look with the Bite Beauty Luminous Creme Lipstick in Pepper. This look is more on the cool-toned side and this lipstick isn't too warm so I thought they looked good together.

Valentine's Look 3

Valentine's Day Cut Crease

For my final Valentine's Day look, I wanted to attempt a cut crease. I've technically done one on here before, but that was before I fully understood what a cut crease was. Now that I actually know what a proper one looks like, I decided to try it again, and made it pink for Valentine's day. I used the Makeup Revolution Iconic 3 palette and the Urban Decay Naked Smoky to create this look.

First, I put the shade Combust from the Naked Smoky palette in my crease and blended it up really far, being careful not to blend it onto the lid at all.

Next I put the shade Whiskey from the Naked Smoky palette in my crease, this time making sure it didn't go up as far and still not blending it onto the lid at all.

After that I put the 5th shade from the left in the Iconic 3 palette all over my lid, making sure not to blend it into the crease.

To make it a cut crease, I put a line of the shade Black Market from the Naked Smoky palette in my crease and blended it upwards only. I need to practice not making the line as far down but for a first attempt it isn't bad.

The next step is taking the 2nd shade from the left in the Iconic 3 palette and putting it on your inner corner and lower lashline.

The last things I did were use a makeup wipe to make a straight edge, apply eyeliner, and apply mascara.

I paired this look with the Urban Decay Revolution High-Color lipgloss in Anarchy. You could also use a nude gloss or lipstick if you want all the attention on your eyes.

Valentine's Look 2

Valentine's Day Eye Look

This is the second Valentine's Day look I'm posting this year, and I'll probably have at least one more. I don't like this one quite as much as the first, but it's more light and it doesn't have a bright pop of color like the last one, so it's suitable for if you want a more subtle look. I used the Too Faced Chocolate Bar palette and the Urban Decay Electric palette to create this look.

Start by putting the shade Salted Caramel from the Too Faced palette in the crease lightly. I didn't want it to be too bold so I didn't make it as opaque as I usually would.

Because we're using a light lid shade, you may want to use a white base so the lid shade is more visible. I used the L.A. Colors Jumbo Eye Pencil in Sea Shells.

Apply the shade Champagne Truffle from the Too Faced palette all over the lid and blend it into the crease shade for a more seamless look. My iPhone camera doesn't pick up on shimmer very well most of the time, so this picture doesn't really do the shade justice. It's really pretty and shimmery in real life.

I decided to put the shade Strawberry Bon Bon from the Too Faced palette on my lower lashline, but this step is optional. You could also use any other shade you want.

I also used the shade Revolt from the Urban Decay palette as an inner corner highlight. It's very glittery but I like it a lot.

Apply liner and mascara and you're done! You could pair this eye look with pretty much any lip color and I think it would look nice.