High-End Foundations

Hi everybody! Guess what - I am finished with all my finals for the semester, which means that I have time to write a new blog post.

Today, I'm going to be talking to you guys about my high-end foundation collection. These are all liquid foundations that work for my skin type personally, which is combination/oily and mildly sensitive. I do have some redness in my skin, but I find that each of these foundations covers that up without any problems.

Also, just a disclaimer, I bought my first high-end foundation about a year ago, and I have been building up my collection ever since. I did not buy these all at once, and I have had time to test each of them out and give you a full and honest review.

Makeup Geek Eye Shadow Haul + Collection

Since it has been 3 billion years since I last uploaded anything to Magpie Beauty, I'm not going to get into a novel-lenth apology or try to explain how busy I've been the last few months. Instead, I'm going to get right into this post.

I have not been buying much makeup lately, so I decided to reward myself by adding 5 Makeup Geek eye shadows to my collection. Before this purchase, I had 7 of them in a palette already. These eye shadows are $6 a piece, which is half the price of MAC eye shadows, and they are such high quality. I have only tried the matte formulas, but they are super pigmented, and they also blend out really easily.

Making Over my Friends

Hi everyone! Last night, I did something I've never done before - I gave two of my friends makeovers. Now, I know I have shown some Before and Afters on this blog before, but they have always been pictures or tutorials of me doing my own makeup. My beautiful friends, Jane and Patricia, both have blonde hair and blue eyes unlike myself, so I thought this would be something different and something fun. The only person I have ever done makeup on besides myself before is my sister, so this was a fun way for me to practice doing makeup on other people, and I think the makeovers turned out pretty well! I'll be showing some pictures, and then I will list the products I used on each of them.

First, we have Jane!

 

Summer 2015 Fashion/Beauty Haul

Hello again! Today's blog post is going to be something I've never done before, and I'm not sure how it will work out in this format because, usually, hauls are done in video format. I'm hoping this won't be too boring for you all, but I've been doing some shopping over the past month or so, and I wanted to share with you everything I've been stocking up on for this summer. It is all either fashion or beauty-related, and, as I don't have access to my university's filming equipment while I'm at home, I thought I would take some pictures and put them all in a post.

There's the collective haul! Some of this I ordered online, and other things I bought in-store. The places I shopped from include Forever 21, Torrid, The Limited, Swimsuits For All, Ulta, Sephora, and Lush. Let's get started!

Estee Lauder Double Wear Stay-in-Place Makeup Review

The Estee Lauder Double Wear foundation has been a staple in the makeup world for years, but what makes it so great? I have been trying it out and all the hype is completely justified. No drugstore foundation comes close to the quality of this product.

Drugstore Skincare Ingredients Pale in Comparison to High End

Skincare is the most important part of any beauty routine. A quality regimen can make a huge difference in a person’s complexion. The question is, why do high end products cost so much more than the ones from the drugstore?

           

The answer comes down to ingredients. That $5 face wash from CVS is so cheap because it contains many basic – and even some harmful – ingredients.

“I don’t bother with beauty products from the drugstore anymore. They just don’t cut it, and a lot of them have really harsh chemicals like parabens, phthalates, and alcohol that strip the skin of all its nutrients,” said Jessica Arnold, an esthetician from the Esteé Lauder counter at Younkers in the Coral Ridge Mall.

The most common paraben found in low-budget skincare is methylparaben. According to the Environmental Working Group’s Skin Deep Cosmetics Database, it is a preservative that can disrupt the body’s hormones and natural cellular levels.

The products below all have benefits, but the First Aid Beauty cleansers and the Clinique moisturizers have had the biggest impact on my skin.

Eyeliners and Lip Crayons: Drugstore vs. High End

Hi everyone! I'm so sorry it's been two weeks since I put up a new blog post, but I went home to celebrate my birthday last weekend and didn't have time to post any new content. Don't forget to follow my Instagram and my Twitter accounts (both @_magpiebeauty) for daily beauty pictures and to find out when I post something new immediately!

I've started collaborating on this niche site with my Digital and Social Media class, and I have a lot of exciting ideas for new stories coming up.

Today I wanted to talk about some new products I've been trying out lately. The first two items I'm going to be comparing are liquid eyeliners.

Winter Glam Makeup Look

Hey everybody! I hope you're all doing well. I know it hasn't been a full week since my last post, but I don't have class on Fridays, so I had some time on my hands yesterday!

Today, I'm going to be showing you the products I used to create the makeup look above, and talk you through how I used everything. Almost all of the items I used are from the drugstore, so if you feel like recreating the look, you might already have some of the makeup in your collection.

New Items from Milani Cosmetics

Hi all! I know I've been putting up a new blog post about every 4 days or so, but I'm back at school and work now, so my schedule probably won't allow for more than one blog post a week. I'll try to post pictures on Instagram (@_magpiebeauty) at least every other day though so follow me there if you want to see mini product reviews and makeup looks more often.

Onto the imporant stuff! Today I'm going to be swatching and reviewing some new products from Milani Cosmetics that I finally got my hands on! They came out with a few new collections a couple of weeks ago, and I couldn't find them anywhere when I was home, but thankfully, I found them at the CVS near where I go to school.


The items I was dying to pick up the most were the Color Statement Moisture Matte Lipsticks.

The Products from Origins that are Saving my Skin

Hello everyone! I hope your week has been going well - fear not, Friday is almost here. Since my last blog post (All About Makeup Brushes) was so ungodly long, this one is going to be a much quicker read.

I haven't been using either of these products for very long, so this isn't going to be an in-depth review, but I just wanted to let you guys know what products I've been loving lately that are really helping out my skin.

So here they are.

All About Makeup Brushes

Hi all! Today I'm going to be talking about makeup brushes - how to use them, which products they work best with, and how much they cost. This certainly won't cover every kind of makeup brush ever made, not even close, but I'm going over the majority of my personal collection. I have more brushes than I'll ever need, but what's a girl to do?

I recently washed my brushes, and I figured this was as good a time as any to photograph them. I'd also like to thank my cousin Grace for the idea to do this post. This is going to be a long one so feel free to skip ahead to the section your interested in.