Seven Days of Mascara: Pixi Lash Booster Mascara

We're coming up on the end of our Seven Days of Mascara feature. I know it wasn't seven consecutive days, but you know. I do what I can.

This time we've got Pixi Lash Booster Mascara in Blackest Blue. I picked it up only because I wanted a mascara that was the same exact color of my hair, and this one matched it perfectly. I absolutely love the color. That's all well and good, you say, but move along - is it all clumpy and awful?

I am so pleased to say NO. It's not. Thank goodness. Because if I came across one more of those I was going to give up on mascaras altogether.
We've got another good, old-fashioned spooly wand, which I think I might love more than anything, and while it's not fat, it's long. It is easy to hit all those lashes with this brush. And how does it look? It's not clumpy. And while it doesn't go on as thick as I personally like, it sure is buildable. This picture has only two coats.

Now, Pixi isn't the cheapest mascara you can pick up at Target - I paid a whopping $19, which is a lot to me while shopping at Target. However, it's considerably cheaper than what I usually spend at Sephora. But I'm going to be using this one a lot - especially with my Make Up For Ever Lash Fibers as a base. It gives some nice curl and buildable volume, and that's all a girl can really ask for.

Someone asked me recently what sort of camera I was using to take the photos, and I'm embarassed to say that it's just my iPhone 3GS camera. I should have broken out the Canon, but I was just too lazy and/or in a major hurry when I needed photos. I had to make a few adjustments in iPhoto, because my yellow bathroom just threw the whole color balance thing off.

So, did you find any new mascaras to try? I hope I've made it easier for you to wade through the "just pass" items out there. Leave me a note and tell me what you're loving on your lashes right now. I am still in search of that perfect product!

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Experiments with Emerald Coast

I'm really having fun playing around with the new Max Factor Vivid Impact Eye Shadow Duos. This one is Emerald Coast, and it's a bright blue/green combo.

I started with MAC Paint Pot in Groundworks, and used the blue from the Eyeshadow Duo. In the inner corner of each eye I brushed the green in, blending it well with the blue. Then I took my blending brush and lightly went around the entire eye, going underneath to pull it all together. I decided I needed some sort of highlighter towards the brow bone, so I used my new MAC Colour Forms Richmetal Highlighter in Rose Boullion. I did a very thin black line around the entire line with Too Faced Lava Gloss Eye Liner just because my day isn't complete without some sort of actual eyeliner. And because I was just feeling this whole blue/green combo, I did one coat of Make Up For Ever Lash Fibers then added my under-used Chanel Inimitable Waterproof Mascara in a teal color that is no longer available, unfortunately. Then I finished off the eyebrows with my Urban Decay Brow Box. Love that thing.

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Cover Girl's Firecracker: FOTD

I normally wouldn't even play around with an eye shadow palette that features white, medium-dark pink, and lime green. Those are not colors that I usually wear, but you know what? I need to break out of my comfort zone. Someone mentioned to me the other day that I was only wearing neutrals lately, and they are right - when you invest in that much of Chanel's summer collection, you really want to wear it all summer long. But today I was in the mood for something a bit different, and this fit the bill.

I used Cover Girl Eye Enhancers 3 Kit Shadow, in Firecracker for this look. I used the white all over the lid, the pink from the lash line up to the crease, and the green as a liner on the top lash line and the bottom. Then because I thought it was very mod looking, I took my Rimmel Liquid Eye Liner in Noir (black) and did a medium thick line right at the base of my eyelashes on the top. Then a coat of Make Up For Ever Lash Fibers, and then two coats of my new Max Factor Vivid Impact Mascara in Blazing Black. As a finishing touch, I used Benefit Cosmetics Miss Popularity in each corner of my eyes, blending it with the green from the Cover Girl palette. What I really needed to finish this off was a cream pink lipstick, but looking through my lipstick bag, I see that I don't have a single one that would fit my total mod look going on. What does that mean? Yes, it means that I should probably head to a makeup counter. After all, one cannot be without the proper lipstick, now can they?

As a side note, I'm really into matte eyeshadows and creme lipsticks and nailpolishes right now. Don't take my word for it, but I suspect that you're going to be seeing a lot more of it - shimmer has been popular for several seasons and I think the pendulum is swinging the other way. The Cover Girl Eye Palette is completely matte, there is no shimmer to it at all, and I found myself really liking it.

Thank you to the random seller on ebay who is letting me use her photo of the Cover Girl eye palette. I forgot to take one, and I will replace it with my own just asap.

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A Max Factor FOTD

It's casual day today. I mean, clothes-wise. It's never casual day when it comes to my makeup. Must feed the addiction, you know.

I started with MAC's Paint Pot in Groundworks. Then I broke out Max Factor's Vivid Impact Eyeshadow duo in Two Cents. The lighter shade went all over the lid and the darker shade went in the crease. I blended it with my standard shadow brush and applied Kat Von D Autograph Eyeliner in Turbo Lover. Love that stuff, although it's not the type of liquid liner you can smudge afterward. It's all about the precise line.
Next, I grabbed my Max Factor Vivid Impact Mascara in Blazing Black. I decided to put a coat of my Make Up For Ever Lash Fibers on first, and I'm glad I did. Because, truly, that makes every mascara better. I applied two coats of the Max Factor mascara, and then one coat of the pink "highlighter" that comes with it. You can't see it, and that's okay. It's very subtle, which is exactly what pink mascara should be - no need to walk around with bright pink lashes, no matter how great Carmen Electra looks with them.

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Make Up For Ever Lash Fibers

I'm addicted to mascara. Well, perhaps I should rephrase that: what I'm really addicted to are making my lashes look so big and fat that they could be mistaken for false ones. Although I wear false ones often, I'm always on the lookout for something that will just blow me away when it comes to mascara.

Make Up For Ever's Lash Fibers ($20, only at Sephora) are awesome. I picked this up the other day when I was at Sephora for the grand opening, and just had the chance to play around with it today. I love this stuff. Two coats of this plus two coats of DiorShow, and I am ready to roll. It plumps up my lashes beautifully and I will probably never use mascara without it, I love it so much.

But I have a secret for my budget beauty divas: you can get the exact same thing with L'Oreal's Volume Shocking 2 Step Mascara. Yes, it's true. Just like L'Oreal's product, Lash Fibers is just a base to use underneath any mascara you choose. For about $13.50, you can get both the base and a mascara from the drugstore. If memory serves, it's actually a great mascara, but the comb (versus a brush) is a little awkward to use and requires some practice.

So now you got two reviews in one post! It's your lucky day!

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