Red & Gold Makeup Look

February 7, 2018 / thecorkedreader89 / 4 Comments

One of my goals for this year is to experiment more with makeup and really work on improving my eye makeup game. Winged eyeliner is definitely a component of this, so be prepared to see more wings! This makeup look is from Sunday and the motivation behind for me is a little trip down memory lane. Sunday was, as you all know, was the Super Bowl. Sports are not my thing, I think it’s great that people are into watching them but I’ve just never had any desire to get into it. However, it did get me thinking that the last football game I watched was when I was in high school when I would regularly go watch my school’s team, the Hammarskjold Vikings, with my friends. Some of my best and worst memories were at those games so today I’m sharing with you the red and gold (our school colours) makeup look I created inspired by these memories.

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Limited Edition Palettes That I Still Love

February 5, 2018 / thecorkedreader89 / 6 Comments

Limited edition… those two words that are meant to feel like you have to have something because someday it won’t be as easy to get your hands on. I have to admit, I’ve been hit by the urge to buy something because of those words. Particularly if it was something I was already interested in, the limited-edition-ness would simply seal the deal. This is because I have been burnt by missing out on a limited edition product that I really wanted because I waited too long. I try not to post about limited edition items when they are no longer available because I prefer that if something sparks interest with a reader, that they would be able to go out and purchase it. However, limited edition items need love too so today’s post is all about four limited edition palettes that I still love and use quite frequently. That’s the thing about limited edition items… sometimes they end up forgotten, no matter how much you felt like you needed to have it.

Anastasia Beverly Hills | Self Made Palette

The Anastasia Beverly Hills Self-Made Palette was the first ABH eyeshadow palette that I ever purchased and it really sparked my love for their eyeshadow. For that reason and just how great this palette is, it has a very special place in my heart. I pull this palette out quite often because it has a great variety. My favourite combination is Sherbert in the crease with Hot & Cold all over the lid and Hot Chocolate in the outer-v and under my eye. However, the shade Isla is also gorgeous and fun to use! Continue reading →

January Favourites: Makeup, Skincare & More!

February 3, 2018 / thecorkedreader89 / 8 Comments

January was a pretty great month. I started off the month (and the year) in Paris, France with my husband so the rest of this year is going to have a hard time stacking up to January. I started getting into experimenting with makeup a bit more again, trying out a few different looks which I’ve posted here. It’s going to be a great year, I can just feel it! But, on that note, let’s take a look at which products were getting the most love in January!

Makeup

Zoeva | Cocoa Blend

I picked up this palette from Sephora in Paris since I haven’t really seen it in Canada but I’ve seen it all over YouTube over the past few years. It is definitely more of a neutral palette, but what drew my eye to it was the purple shade, Delicate Acidity. I posted a look using the Zoeva Cocoa Blend Palette last week mixing it’s warm and cool tones. I’ve been using it a lot this month and have been really enjoying it. I’ll be sure to dedicate a post to it and swatch it soon! Continue reading →

Mixing Cool Tones and Warm Tones

January 29, 2018 / thecorkedreader89 / 6 Comments

After sharing a glittery makeup look last week using the Urban Decay Heavy Metal Glitter Eyeliner in the shade Glamrock last week, I was inspired to use it again. This time though, I wanted to use it as a pop of glitter in an eye makeup look that would combine both cool tones and warm tones. I knew that my brand new Zoeva Cocoa Blend Eyeshadow Palette was up for this task. I don’t often blend cool tones and warm tones but after creating this look, I am questioning past practices because I am in love with how this look turned out! I’m also questioning why the heck I don’t do winged eyeliner more often, but enough of me gabbing about the look, let’s take a look at it, shall we?

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Q4 Empties: October to December 2017

January 27, 2018 / thecorkedreader89 / 4 Comments

I’m a bit late on posting my final empties for 2017 but they have been sitting under my vanity and I am ready to get rid of them. A lot of these are repeat offenders but I do have a few new empties as well. I thought it might be easier to separate out the repeats so that I’m not boring you guys in each empties post. So, with that said, let’s check out what I emptied during the last quarter of the year!

Makeup

Revlon | Mega Multiplier Mascara

I was sent this item in an Influenster Vox Box complimentary for review and spent a great deal of time testing it out and wearing it regularly. It was probably at the end of it’s reign when I did my last empties post but I wasn’t quite ready to get rid of it yet at that point. You can read my full review on the Revlon Mega Multiplier Mascara but essentially, I did enjoy using it. Would I repurchase it? While it probably isn’t my favourite drugstore mascara, I would probably repurchase it at some point. Especially if I saw it on sale! Continue reading →

Glitter Eye Makeup Look: Urban Decay Heavy Metal Glitter Eyeliner

January 22, 2018 / thecorkedreader89 / 6 Comments

December was a busy month, I had meant to post more holiday inspired makeup looks but only managed to get one up. However, I’ve been wanting to do a silvery/purple makeup look with the Urban Decay Heavy Metal Glitter Eyeliner in the shade Glamrock that I picked up in December. So, since I had a birthday party to go to I decided to create the look that I didn’t get a chance to do for the holiday season. I had also meant to post something using the Anastasia Beverly Hills Prism Palette so this worked out perfectly!

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YSL Rouge Pur Couture Lipstick

January 20, 2018 / thecorkedreader89 / Leave a comment

Last spring I won a YSL Beauty Box Giveaway hosted by beauty editor, Dave Lackie. In this prize was a YSL Rouge Pur Couture Lipstick, a formula I hadn’t tried before but obviously was excited to test out. Somehow it took me this long to do a proper test but I’m ready to share my thoughts on this product with you today. I received shade #201, Orange Imagine which is a beautiful matte orange red shade.

The gold packaging of this lipstick feels very luxe and has a bit of weight to it. The square shape of the tube, while not completely unique, does make it stand out a bit more in my collection of mostly classic round tubes. YSL Rouge Pur Couture Lipstick has a faint scent to it, I want to say it might be roses? The scent doesn’t last on the lips so you don’t have to worry about that if you are sensitive to scented products. Continue reading →

Best of 2017: The Game Changers

January 10, 2018 / thecorkedreader89 / 8 Comments

I always find end of year favourites to be such a challenge. With so many products to choose from it’s hard to come up with a concise list that doesn’t miss anything. In keeping with how I did my best of 2016 post, I’m going to stick to what I considered to be game changers. These are products that I tried for the first time this year and loved enough to consider them “game changing”. Continue reading →

Benefit Cosmetics Benefaves Vox Box

January 8, 2018 / thecorkedreader89 / Leave a comment

Benefits Cosmetics is a brand that is no stranger so my vanity, but I have to say I was pretty excited when I found out that I would be receiving a Benefit Cosmetic’s Vox Box from Influenster complimentary for review. Appropriately titled the BeneFaves Vox Box, this box contains four of their most loved products. Two were new to me and two were not, but none of them have previously been reviewed here so today I’ve got four mini reviews for you. Are they all really BeneFaves? Keep reading to find out!

Ka-Brow!

As an avid user of the Anastasia Beverly Hills Dipbrow, I was excited to receive Benefit’s Ka-Brow! to try as I had heard some positive things about it. It’s a cream brow product with an interesting twist… it comes with a brush inside the lid! It’s pigmented, easy to apply and the included brush make this a win for me! A little bit goes a long way and I find that my brows look the same at night as they did when freshly applied. I actually think I might like this better than Dipbrow! Continue reading →

Fenty Beauty Stunna Lip Paint

December 20, 2017 / thecorkedreader89 / 4 Comments

‘Tis the season for red lips and I have to say, I was pretty excited to try out the Fenty Beauty Stunna Lip Paint in the shade Uncensored for the occasion. It is a liquid lipstick that promises weightless longevity that “stays kissably smooth”. It is also said to be a universal red that looks good on everyone. So, in my usual Love for Lipstick style, I’ve not only done a review for you, but I have also done my usual wear test photos so you can see for yourself if it keeps up with it’s claims.

The packaging is very unique for a liquid lipstick and has a definite luxurious quality to it. The applicator has a unique curvature to it and was very easy to use to get a precise application of this highly pigmented formula. Continue reading →