Category — Eye shadow

Ever wonder if your horoscope had anything to do with your makeup and color choices? Total Beauty has given us a full workup on makeup by your zodiac sign. Pretty cool, huh?! I guess I never gave it a second thought, but the results really seemed to fit with me being a Capricorn.

My result: Brown. Tee hee! It really is my favorite eyeshadow color since it’s so versatile. I can wear a little for just a quick look or REALLY glam it up with glitter and liner and smoked out eyes. But I still love my purples and greens (and well navy and gold and just about every other color of the rainbow. Ha!).

And if you’re really a horoscope fan, grab your full (and FREE!!!) natal chart from Cafe Astrology. Gala Darling introduced me to this website and now I’m hooked! Just in case you’re wondering (gee, I’m sure you are) my Sun is in Capricorn, Moon in Virgo, my Mercury & Mars are in Capricorn, and my Saturn is in Leo.

Ladies… what’s *your* sign and do you think the eyeshadow color suggested by Total Beauty fits?

Your Makeup Horoscope

Find out your best beauty look for 2009

Try a new makeup look and improve your life at the same time by choosing makeup colors that mesh with your zodiac sign. See what you should be wearing in the new year. See eyeshadows

How’s that for alliteration?
And now, on to the article… I have been wearing lots of color in my eye shadows lately. It seems my winter clothing is mostly subdued, so I get a tad bolder in my eye looks. Today, I’ll share a very simple purple eye shadow look using Purely Cosmetics’ cream to powder eyeshadows.

For this look, I started with the Pink cream shadow. I used a taklon brush and applied the pink across my entire upper eyelid. Then lightly blended it into and slightly above my crease. Purely Cosmetics’ Pink cream shadow has slight flecks of gold. It’s not too visible once applied, but it makes the shadow ‘bounce’ light around.

Next I used Plum cream-to-powder shadow (a gorgeous deep plum with self-colored glimmer). Plum is one of my absolute favorite shadow colors from Purely Cosmetics. I wear this color alone, with greens, as a liner, etc. It’s very versatile. But for this look, I applied Plum (again with a taklon brush) to my outer half of my eyelid. And then used the same brush to smudge the Plum under my lower lash line.

I kept my look very light. When we went out later that night with friends, I just popped another layer of Plum on top, and added some eyeliner on my upper lashline. These cream-to-powder shadows are extremely buildable- making it easy to get a subtle look or a very dramatic eye-catching creation!

You know how everyone raves about MAC paint pots? This is the better, hand-made version. Seriously- every makeup fan needs these eyeshadows in her collection. The duo’s are easy to pack along in your purse (so you can easily make the aforementioned day-to-night change). There’s no mess or spilled powder, no wandering/flaking, just pure color!

Pick up the cream-to-powder eyeshadows at Purely Cosmetics in duos ($15.95) or 10 count palettes ($39.99). Each color is HAND-CRAFTED so they are basically all limited editions. Definitely a Bionic Buy!

(**Bionic’s Note: My cream-to-powder shadows in the photograph above were pre-release samples. They come in nice compacts when you purchase.)

I know I have a quick, personalized makeup routine that takes me absolutely no thought to create. It’s basic, yes, but it also suits me for most days.

Do you have something similar? A makeup creation that’s your “signature look”?

Here’s what I use on a normal day in Bionic-land…

• Light application of foundation. My makeup of choice is a relatively new discovery for me… Purely Cosmetics “Pure Silk Mineral Foundation” in California Blonde. LOVE it!
• Deep brown eyeshadow. I’m wearing Milani’s Java Bean, but some days I switch it up with L’Oreal’s HIP pigment paints in Gutsy (very, very similar colors).
• Of course, I coat my lashes with my favorite mascara: Physician’s Formula Mineral Wear in Ultra Black.
• Lip color in a neutral color such as Bobbi Brown’s Aubergine lipgloss (which I’m wearing in the picture) or another fave L’Oreal’s Color Juice Stick in Chai Love You (for days I want less shine).

Now it’s your turn. Share your signature look, colors or products in the comments below!

You know I’m a total fan of Purely Cosmetics (here’s my recent review). The customer service is perfect, the mineral makeup is my holy-grail of makeup, so it made sense for me to try out the eyeshadows.
Here’s a look I created using three of the Purely Cosmetics “Versatile Powder” loose shadow pigments.

Read on for colors, details and such…

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Clinique’s latest launch involved a whole slew of super gorgeous, and on-trend, matte shadows.

Their official name is “Color Surge Eye Shadow Stay Matte”. In my opinion, they do live up to the Color Surge… packing a whollop of color! And I love the matte look. It’s so fresh after years of shimmer and glitter.

Above you can see the colors in my current makeup rotation.

• French Vanilla- while it doesn’t show up well in my swatch photo, it makes an excellent inner eye corner or brow bone highlighter. It’s a gorgeous cream color. I worked French Vanilla into my old-hollywood glamour look.
• Martini- This is a khaki brown with a green base. It’s warm and prefect for fall. It’s a great color for a one-shadow look. I used Martini and French Vanilla in my autumn “dark lip look”.
• Stone Violet- I adore this color for a smoky purple eye. Just a bit on the upper lid and blend it outward from the lashline. Then use a small smudge brush to line your lower lashline. Done!
• Dark Denim- Another super, amazing color! This is a very wearable blue. Think you can’t pull off blue eyeshadow? *This* is the one to try. Goes great with jeans and T-shirt. This is another color I use regularly to create a smokey eye.
• Midnight- The classic black, but finally without glimmer. I wore this on date night with the Bionic Hubby. You can tone it down by blending out, while keeping the impact and density of color focused around your lash lines for a high-impact look. I got a ton of compliments on this eyeshadow!

All these colors are worth a look-see. I love their color payoff, blendability and of course, the matte effect (did I mention I like the matte?) They don’t wander, flake or crease. Ask for some for the holidays, they’re the perfect size for stocking stuffers (hint, hint)!

Each shadow comes in a beautious classic silver Clinique case complete with mirror. They run $14 each and are available at Clinique counters or Clinique.com, you can pick from 9 colors.

Long wearing eyeshadows can sometimes be a joke. I’ve found that those who claim “water-proof” and “sweat resistant” are cakey and clumpy, or the color is just blah. And most cream-based shadows melt in the Florida humidity.
Not so with Loose Lips NY’s Indelible Cream eyeshadows. I may sound like a commercial here, but hey… this eyeshadow even successfully made it through a day of gardening and a dunk in the pool!

I’m wearing the new Fall 2008 shade, Plumkin in the photo above. Plumkin is a deep purple with very slight silver shimmer. It’s easy to apply and blend and it sets quickly. Plus it washes off easily with makeup remover or a little face wash and water. I LOVE the high pigmentation of this shadow- that’s just one small dip of my brush in the picture above.

I recommend applying any cream shadow with a Taklon brush- those are typically the ones that have the smooth “blonde” bristles. They seem to work best for any cream type product (including concealer, foundation, etc).

Available in 5 shades from Loose Lips NY. One pot of shadow runs $16 but it will last you over a year with daily application. Just be sure to keep your brushes clean!

Breaking news for Bionic Beauties!

e.l.f. Cosmetics (eyes.lips.face) has launched a whole new line of makeup tools with their Studio “Professional Line”. Sleek packaging, dual-use items but with a slightly higher price- $3 instead of their usual one dollar. Still cheap-O on the grand scheme of things!

Here’s what the new collection includes so far… (**note: You can click the images to go direct to elf’s page for that project. I tried to make it easy for you to check colors, ingredients, etc.)

eyeliner and shadow stick - (these look SUPER cool. Eyeliner on one side & coordinating thick shadow pencil on the other. Available in pearl/glow, black/smoke, brown/basic, green/moss.

eyebrow treat and tame - Available in light, medium & dark to suit all brow colors. One side holds a “treat” gel to help ‘grow your brows’ (???) and the other side is a tinted mascara to color & tame them.

eyebrow kit - each compact comes with a tinted wax & a colored ’setting’ powder to get full & tame brows. Did I mention this compact looks JUST LIKE Nars’ eyeshadow duos??? This item is really intriguing me since most brow waxes are *much* pricier.

There’s lots more products… yep, I’m giving you the WHOLE rundown on the new makeup collection, so keep on reading!

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