Tag: Vegas
Vegas Birthday
As many times as we’ve been to Vegas – I’ve never been on my actual birthday!
My lips were getting dry and I forgot to pack extra lip moisture. I dragged my husband into Sephora, with the intention of buying a mini Bite Beauty Agave Lip Mask (like I did last time), but they did not have any of the minis in stock and I didn’t feel like spending $26 on lip stuff. My husband had shown me a Kiehl’s Lip Balm for $10, which was what I was getting until I saw the bin of Smith’s by the checkout. Grabbed two Rosebud Perfume Co. tubes: Rosebud Salve in a Tube ($7) and Menthol and Eucalyptus Lip Balm ($7). They were very moisturizing and I could share with my husband.
I also used this opportunity to pick up this year’s birthday gift. I was gonna wait and order online to get the Jo Malone sample, but I decided to go ahead and get the Sol de Janeiro Bum Bum Cream and Coco Cabana Cream Set – that stuff smells so good! There were also gifts from Milk Makeup and Briogeo available.
$316 to VIB…
T is for Tinsel
I wanted to use the rainbow-y looking glitter, but Queen Lilith demanded that I use that polish last…so I picked China Glaze “T is for Tinsel” for my Las Vegas trip.
“T is for Tinsel” is a packed silver holographic glitter, with a little bit of blue litter scattered within. This is full coverage in two coats, over Glisten & Glow Ridge Filling Base Coat and under Glisten & Glow Top Coat.
I feel like I was disappointed in the wear power of this polish, but that might not have been entirely fair. After just five days of wear, several of my nails were ~50% chipped away! Las Vegas is so hard on fingernails – the dry environment, plus washing my hands so much with cheap casino soap. I’m going to give this polish the benefit of the doubt, since I haven’t had performance that poor with any other shade of China Glaze.
Viva Las Vegas!
Vegas – Summer 2018
We did it! The bestie and I lived through a trip to Las Vegas in the Dog Days of Summer!
Seriously, walking outside was like walking into an oven…an oven full of melted plastic tourists. I went several stretches of 24+ hours without going outside, and even then – only at night. It’s 99 degrees outside at night. Anyone who says Texas is a hellscape during the summer has never been to Nevada.
Strangely enough, my skin loved the Vegas weather. Or maybe it loved that I did not go outside and sweat in my car? In any case, the breakouts on my chest and back disappeared and my skin was lovely. Even my hair decided to behave in the humidity-less desert. The one problem I had was my lips – they were so dry that my upper lip felt like it would split at any moment. I brought probably a hundred liquid lipsticks, but I couldn’t wear ANY of them!
Sephora to the rescue! We bopped into the Miracle Mile Location and begged for help with our parched pouts. The castmember immediately led us to try the Bite Beauty Agave Lip Masks ($24). DOH! I still have a sample of this at home and didn’t think to pack it. I also asked to look at some Fresh products, but another lip balm wasn’t going to do the job. She then showed me the Bite Beauty Nude Lip Essentials Set ($15), which came with a mini tube of the Agave Lip Mask and a tube of Amuse Bouche Lipstick in “Pepper”. It was a smoking deal, so I grabbed it. I swore I looked all around for something else to buy, but this location didn’t have any Jo Malone to check out. Another castmember directed me to the Sephora in The Venetian…but that would require too much walking.
The one thing about shopping in-store – usually no samples, but this time we got samples of Drunk Elephant Lala Cream. Nice!
Sally also made a GlamGlow purchase, but gave me her points, so just $384 until Rouge. I just saw that the 20% sale is coming next week – August 24th…is there even anything left I can buy???
Oh, did you know there is a Morphe store in Vegas now? Yup, just a few hundred feet away from Sephora. Sally was finally able to get her hands on the Jeffree Star Blood Sugar Palette, although they were sold out of most of the new summer collection – the Thirsty Palette was no where to be seen and all of the good lipstick colors were gone. We were also able to see the Laura Lee and Manny MUA Palettes up close…ugh, we were not impressed.
I was THRILLED to find that my bestie brought me a gift all the way from Scotland – the new Pressed Glitter Palette from Makeup Revolution!
I’d been seeing demos on Insta for a bit, but I did not realize how much I needed it in my life. There’s a wide variety of fiery pinks, reds and golds…although I’m a bit scared of “Inflamed”, which appears to be red/green glitter.
We tried out the glitters over the Jeffree Star Blood Sugar Palette. We used Urban Decay Primer Potion as a fixative – worked like a charm. The primer kept it from flaking all over our faces.
One caveat…I AM still finding random pieces of glitter on my face…four days later.
I had a fun trip with the bestie – it was our first time spending so long together, but it felt like we’d been doing it for decades. It’s a relief to know that there a like-minded people out there who just want drink ridiculous amounts of rum and people-watch, as opposed to those who want to hump anything that roves into their field of vision. Vacation partners for life!
Vegas Nails, Take 4
And here’s the last of my $1.74 Ulta Haul – China Glaze “Ma-Holo at Me”.
“Ma-Holo at Me” is a slate blue holographic polish. I figured this is the perfect polish to get me through a trip to Las Vegas – shiny and will match ANYTHING.
Sure, this polish looks nice NOW, but the application was SO problematic. I started with Glisten & Glow Ridge Filling Base Coat. The first coat was super streaky, but that wasn’t the problem. The problem was that each brush stroke made the polish glob onto the previous brush stroke and left weird bald spots. I did the best I could to get a thin, even first coat. The second coat was slightly better, filling in some of the bald streaks, but not all of them. It was SO weird. Without the top coat, the polish was somewhat matte. If I wasn’t going a week without changing my polish, I might have tried it out. Luckily, Glisten & Glow Top Coat is very, VERY forgiving and his most of the bald spots and flaws. My nails ended up looking so much better than they should have.
I’ll be going on hiatus for a week or so while on vacation. Enjoy this spiffy new WordPress theme while I’m out. Vaya con dios!
Another Sephora Makeover
Back in Vegas this past week – a sort of early 40th birthday celebration. I don’t know if I’ll ever hit Rouge status again, so I’m going to take advantage of the free makeup services while I can. If nothing else, I figured it would be 90 minutes that I wasn’t stuffing my face or losing money in a slot machine.
I scheduled a 90 minute Beauty Consultation with 2 goals – to get better at applying bright eye shadows (unless it’s natural colors, I tend to feel a bit like MiMi from The Drew Carey Show) and to find another BB Cream (since Urban Decay Naked Light has been discontinued).
Tasha started with Too Faced Eye Shadow Primer and a neutral base from the Too Faced Natural Matte Palette. She taught me to start with a matte before adding the color – I had no idea. She then used a combination of Make Up For Ever and Buxom shadows to create this shimmery turquoise look – I felt like a mermaid.
On the BB Cream front, we tried Benefit first – that one was a big fat NOPE. It collected in my pores and made me like I had polka dots. It didn’t work with a layer of The POREfessional either. None of the Bobby Brown colors worked, so Tasha moved on to the Smashbox BB Cream. It was a bit better, but there were still a few odd orange flakes. I decided to wear it for the night before I decided to buy.
I was also excited that Tasha wanted to try the new Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Definer in “Caramel”. I usually use “Soft Brown”, but she suggested trying a lighter color – it looked great on me. She also used Sephora Color Corrector in “Peach” to correct the dark circles under my eyes. Genius.
My final purchases were rather moderate, if I do say so myself. I picked up the Brow Definer ($23) and Color Corrector ($14), but I also grabbed a Travel Brush ($15) since I forgot mine – DOH!. I also decided to purchase the Skin Inc Get Glam Holiday Set ($65), which includes a full-size Skin Inc Pure Revival Peel and half-size Pure Deepsea Hydrating Mask. A Skin Consultant put both on my face before my the makeup and both felt amazing. I don’t usually spend much money on skin products, but I figured I’d give it a spin since I was using my 10% off VIB code.
I also got the Rouge Welcome Kit, which includes a new RED card and special Marc Jacobs “So Rouge” lipstick. Since my birthday is just around the corner, I also got to pick my birthday gift – I chose the Fresh Set with Soy Face Cleanser and Rose Mask. So, so happy with my purchases and gifts!
The Vegas Challenge
So…my dear skeptical husband didn’t think I’d be able to last 5 days in Las Vegas without painting my nails. That sounded like a challenge to me!
I’ll admit, I cheated a little bit. I was careful to choose very light polishes that would wear well…but that doesn’t mean I couldn’t have had a freak slot machine accident that mangled a nail. I started with Sinful Colors Base Coat and then a single coat of RUFFIAN “Sahara”. I then sparkled up with THREE coats of Nicole by OPI “Pick of the Glitter”. THREE. I was hoping for fuller coverage, but it’s not bad. I’m still gonna need a chainsaw to get it off. I finished up with “HK Girl”.
Just in case, though…I took “Pick of the Glitter” with me, in case I needed a touch-up.
Turns out, I didn’t need any touch-ups. Although there is major edge wear – there were no major chips. Actually, the new growth and my cuticles look worse than the tips.
Toodles, I’m going to go look for my chainsaw…
Vegas Recap
So…I already shared my Sephora Makeover, but I thought I would share a few other highlights from my Vegas trip.
First, I’ve gotta talk about my nails. I had no idea what I was going to wear, so I picked a neutral polish – Julep “Rachael”, graphite shimmer. I accented “Rachael” with Julep “Kirby” – silver jagged glitter top coat – on my thumb and ring finger. I had to use the Chandelier Bar at our hotel, The Cosmpolitan, as a background – it was just too perfect. I started with Julep Oxygen Bonding Base Coat and ended with “HK Girl” – and my nails looked pristine the whole weekend.
Next up…I made the mistake of letting myself get pulled into a skin place at our hotel called Skins 6/2. Before I knew what was happening, some chick was putting crap all over my face. Turns out it was SNAKE VENOM and according to her, it was like all-natural botox. I’ve gotta admit, it momentarily seemed to work. Of course, they were having a one day sale on their Forever Flawless Snake Venom Serum – just $500 instead of $1,500. Really? Did she really think I was going to fall for that shit? My bullshit scam meter was on high alert, so I high-tailed it out of there. A quick google gave me this and this and this. Looks like I managed to avoid a really nasty rash at the very least. Oh…my wrinkles were back by that evening.
Fast forward to the next day…walking through the Miracle Mile shops and a girl at a kiosk tries to get my attention to sample something. I am still irritated by yesterday’s snake oil, so I ignore her and keep walking until my slightly alcohol addled brain realizes that it was a moYou kiosk. I immediately take two steps back and say, “Is this THE moYou?” Yup, it was moYou nail stamping. I’d been wanting to try nail stamping and moYou London is the Cadillac of nail stamping, but I was under the impression that it was only available in the UK. Well, not anymore – they even have a US website now.
I picked up the starter kit + french manicure kit and the saleslady even threw in a free corrector pen and black polish, all for $90. So brace yourselves…nail stamping is coming!
Vegas Sephora Makeover
When I made VIB status at Sephora, I got a voucher for a free custom makeover. Even though there are Sephoras everywhere here, it’s not like I have the time to schedule a makeover. I had nothing but time while I was in Vegas this past weekend, so I figured – why not now?
I scheduled my makeover at the Miracle Mile Sephora, right on the Vegas strip. (I was too lazy to walk all the way to the Forum shops.) I told my artist, Glenn, to start me over completely. He used Sephora PANTONE Color IQ to get my exact skin tone – 1y06. He tried the matching shade of Make Up For Ever Ultra HD Invisible Cover Stick Foundation in “118 – Flesh”, but it was a bit too dark, so he went with “115 – Ivory”. The Color IQ system is AMAZING – now I’ll always know the right color for me!
Glenn taught me the error of my ways – all along, I had been putting foundation first, then doing my eyes and getting eye shadow fall out everywhere. He showed me how to do my eyes first, then use eye cream to clean up the fallout. The eye cream sucks up the makeup, plus freshens under your eyes. For my eyes, he used a combination of the Kat Von D Shade & Light palette + Metal Crush eye shadows in “Raw Power”, “Thunderstruck” & “Symphony”. For the liner, he used Kat Von D Tattoo Liner (which I’ve got). Mascara was Dior.
My eyebrows…are a WORK OF ART. They’re bigger than my usual, but ON FLEEK. Glenn introduced me to the Hourglass Brow Sculpting Pencil. I’m breaking up with my Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz!
He then went to work on my foundation with the Make Up For Ever system. First was the Skin Equalizer, then the stick foundation. He used a foundation brush and it blended beautifully. He finished with NARS Light Reflecting Setting Powder and Make Up Forever Setting Spray. He did go a bit nuts contouring with bronzer, which is not my usual look, but I don’t look like Kim Kardashian, so there’s that.
For my lips, he went neutral with liner and lipstick from Buxom. Glenn was an absolute rock star. My makeover was supposed to be 45 minutes and he spent an HOUR and 45 minutes with me. We spent the whole time talking about our shared interests – John Waters, Face Off & Rocky Horror.
Since I was fresh off a $250 Gremlins slot machine win, I went a little nuts…but not TOO nuts. I got the Make Up For Ever Skin Equalizer & Ultra HD Invisible Cover Stick Foundation. I held back on the Kat Von D Shade & Light palette (it’s so similar to my Monarch palette), but I did get Kat Von D Metal Crush Raw Power. I also got the Hourglass Arch Brow Sculpting Pencil in “Warm Brunette”. I also got a Sephora lip brush – I think it will allow me to use Kat Von D “Piaf” without looking like a lunatic.
The best part? They let me use my VIB 10% discount again!
The next day, I used the techniques that Glenn taught me. I used my Beauty Blender with the foundation stick and the results were even better – I was able to get thinner, more natural coverage. I was right about the lip brush – I rocked “Piaf” on Saturday night and didn’t look like a freak!
Vegas Nails
This is one of my favorite paint jobs since I started painting my fingernails again recently. (I had always kept my nails painted…until I had kids. I spent so much time with my fingers in mouths that I stopped painting my nails and just concentrated on toenails…until I discovered Julep.)
We took the kids on their first trip to Vegas over Xmas break and I decided that I needed something snazzy, so I started with a base coat of Julep “Nellie” and topped with Julep “Aviva.” No top coat! For just a two coat application, this paint job went without chips far longer than I expected – a full week. That’s what I love about Julep – it is absolutely the longest lasting polish I have encountered.
Those who know me in person have learned to expect a lot of fuchsia. Ever since I bought my “Furious Fuchsia” Challenger, I go to great lengths to get stuff that matches my car. Yes, I have been called RIDICULOUS on more than one occasion…but I LOVE fuchsia.