EOTD: Lime Crime Venus Reds...

Let's talk about red eyeshadow - not every gal's cup of tea, but it's not as scary as you think, and with careful placement and the right shade, it can be stunning. On the other hand, get either of those wrong, and you can end up looking like you've been howling all night and folks will ask "are you ok?". Trust me, I know - I've played with it for several years now, and precision is the key...

Not many companies do red pigments, but the Lime Crime Venus palette is a great place to start. They're not true reds, more like "reddish" than fire engine red, but there's a beaut mix of mattes and subtle shimmers...

I've only experimented with two so far - Venus & Muse. The formula is silky soft, they blend dreamily and the pigmentation is bold and sassy...

For this look I used Muse - a gorgeous deep claret, but I softened it by using Eye of Horus Bronze Amulet Goddess Pencil as a base, and brushed a wee bit of MBA Cosmetics Silk FX Pressed Shadow in Sangria over the top. This gave it a slight shimmer and made it not quite so intense. When wearing red eyeshadow, and especially at my age, it sure helps if you line your waterline with anything other than a light shade - I find that the pigment can travel, and if you use white or cream (or nothing) on the waterline, you can end up with a pinky rim, which then makes you look like you haven't slept lol. Here I used Eye of Horus Emerald Tabula Goddess Pencil as a contrast, and to bring out the green in my eyes...

My foundation was Australis Stayput - loving this already, it sits and lasts beautifully, and the colour is a great match for my skin tone. Cheeks were Laura Geller Blush-N-Brighten in the shade Berry, and lips were Maybelline ColorDrama Intense Velvet Lip Pencil in Berry Much, one of my all-time faves...

And here's the jewellery I wore - the cream fabric is my puffer vest, and the dark red is my jeggings. For what it's worth, when I put outfits together, I try to match the textures as well as the colours ♥

And here's Venus, also over the top of Eye of Horus Bronze Amulet Goddess pencil. I deepened the outer corner with MUA Midnight, and Eye of Horus Scarab Sapphire was my choice for the waterline...

When creating both of these looks, I cleaned up the hooded area with a cotton bud coated in concealer, and then patted on Australis Banana Powder to counteract any hint of pink - it works really well ♥

Again this is the Australis Stayput Foundation, cheeks were ModelCo Blush in Peach Bellini, and lips were David Jones Moisture Cream Lipstick in Terracotta...

My accessories featured another of the fantabulous bead necklaces from Lovisa - these are normally around the $30 mark, but they recently had a sale and I picked up several for half price or less ♥

So how do you feel about red eyeshadow - is it part of your repertoire, or do you give it a miss?

Take care of you,

kats xxx

Christmas EOTD: Lime Crime Red & Eye of Horus Emerald...

Ahh Christmas Eve - love it! I usually spend at least half the day (and night) wrapping gifts and making them look as pretty as possible. I have quite a large extended family, some of whom I only see once a year, so there's a stack of birthday gifts to parcel up as well. I breathe a huge sigh of relief once they're all done, and then I can relax and enjoy the rest of the evening at home. Most times I'm makeup free (including tonight), so here's an EOTD I created a little while ago to get me in the mood for this special time of year...

Chi Chi Like A Virgin (white) Waterproof Gel Eye Liner was my base, and I patted down Lime Crime Muse and Rebirth from the Venus The Grunge palette, concentrating the lighter shade (Rebirth) close to the lashes. Just adore the bricky reds in this palette - I have absolutely nothing even vaguely like them in any of my other collections ♥ I softened the black eyeliner along my lower lashline with Icon from the same palette, and then lined the waterline with Eye of Horus Emerald Tabula Goddess Pencil. Trust me gals this is THE eyeliner, and I'll be getting my mits on the whole set eventually. Actually tragedy struck last week and I lost my Jewel Amethyst pencil - I reckon it rolled off my bench into the bin (which has now been moved) and it went to the tip. A sad day...

For my Santas-Little-Helper face I used Mirenesse Liquid Silk Foundation, cheeks were DB Cosmetics Desire Lip & Cheek Rouge dusted with the brightest red from the bhcosmetics Glamorous Blush palette, lips were W7 Ruby Lipstick topped with Chi Chi Money Bags Chandelier Gloss...

How do you spend your Christmas Eve - do you do anything special?

Take care of you,
kats xxx