L.A. GIRL PRO CONCEAL HD CONCEALER: TEST RUN & REVIEW

Hello again! I apologize for being MIA for a while, but not to worry, the Beauty Adventuress is back in business!

Now, onto the good stuff.

So I had recently been hearing awesome reviews on the L.A. Girl Pro Conceal HD concealer, and I really wanted to give it a go. It was supposed to be an amazing formula for such a little price and perfect for highlighting and contouring! And to add to the amazingness, it comes in over 20 shades! Now, many reviews said that this concealer is difficult to find...and boy were they right. I had to buckle down and order online, but it is said to be sold in some dollar stores and beauty supply stores (not Sally's though). I ended up purchasing 3 shades, (two for concealing and highlighting, one for contouring) for $10.82 from iKatehouse.com. 

When they arrived, I was estatic to try them out! But unfortunately, (here's the sad part), the colors were not what I thought they were. The darker shade in the color Medium Bisque is a lovely color (but I have got to learn how to contour properly before I show you guys). The lighter shades, well they had an extreme orange-y undertone. Keep in mind though, I am EXTREMELY fair skinned and the light shades may work beautifully on other skin tones.

Classic Ivory is just way too peachy for me. The shade Natural though, has less of that peach tone so I decided to give it a try. 

These concealers certainly did blend beautifully, and the orange-y tones were not as noticeable once they were on the eye area. I may use them as a base for my regular Maybelline undereye concealer, so that the orange hues of these concealers cancel out the purple on my dark circles.

Overall, these are not bad concealers, especially for the price. I just wish that the colors had worked better for me. I encourage everyone to give them a shot because they are lovely and the shade range is huge, just not so much for the extremely fair-skinned. 

Staying Power: 7/10

Shade Range: 9/10 

Blendability: 10/10

Overall: 8/10

If you have tried these concealers, please let me know how these worked for you!

Thanks for reading, come back by again soon! 

- Anna xx

Losing a pet, and how to cope.

Hi lovelies. Unfortunately this post may have a more sorrow tone, but I feel it's necessary in order for me to deal with what's going on in my life currently.

Sadly, I lost my dear kitty of 11 years recently, and my heart is absolutely broken.

Animals are so special. Their love is so unconditional and precious, and it breaks my heart to think of animals who are not fortunate enough to have somebody to love. But for those animals who are, it can be a very close and special relationship between them and their owners. We wish that they could be by our sides forever. Unfortunately though, they are not meant to be around forever. For us, they are a chapter of our lives, but for them, we are their whole lives. And because of that, it is important that we, as their humans, put their needs first. It can be so difficult to let go of an animal that is ill, but is it fair for your animal to suffer and lose quality of life, only because of our selfish but understood desire to keep them around? I personally do not think that is fair. So that is when we have to learn to let them go. It is heart breaking and devastating, but something that has helped me is the "rainbow bridge" legend about pets transitioning into their afterlife.

Despite your beliefs, I hope that the promise of your beloved pet being out of suffering and into the ultimate paradise can comfort anybody in their time of grief. It certainly has helped me. 

Another thing that may help you with your loss could be to donate to an animal charity or shelter on the anniversary of your pet's death every year. Or if you just need a distraction, or a comfort source, I suggest surrounding yourself with loved ones. Or just distracting yourself with whatever makes you happy. However you choose to cope, always remember your pet's love and presence. They so dearly loved us, and as their caretakers, we are forever responsible for giving that back to them.

  I send my condolences and wishes of joy and peace of mind to anyone who may be dealing with a loss of an animal, or a loss of any kind, at this time.

And in honor of this technically being a beauty blog, here is my kitty being pampered one afternoon with a few "fur curlers" ;) (no animals were harmed in the taking of this photo.) -Anna xx

                      R.I.P. Elmo (2003-2014)

CURRENT BEAUTY FAVES!

Hello again! Lately I have been really loving a few beauty items, so I gathered them up to give mini reviews and of course to rave about them! So, let's get started!

My first beauty favorite is the L'oreal Voluminous Miss Manga mascara ($6-$7). Let me just say that this mascara is AWESOME. I was pushed into buying it after reading several reviews, seeing it in various tutorials on YouTube, and of course seeing it in every store with its eye-catching packaging! This mascara performs beautifully. It definitely gives a full-lash effect, so if you're more into natural lashes, this is probably not for you. The only negative thing I have to say is that the brush is a bit irritating. It has a hinge on it that makes it a bit flimsy. I have difficulty really locking onto my lashes like I would prefer. Also, it can look quite clumpy if you're not careful! Other than those minor issues, it is perfect! Rating: 8/10

My next beauty favorite is the Wet 'N' Wild Mega Liner liquid liner ($2-$3). I used to be in love with my Urban Decay Ink For Eyes liquid eyeliner, but after it started flaking and not wearing like it should, I went on a hunt for a better drugstore eyeliner. Then I found this little beauty tucked away at Walmart. This liner is my new holy grail for liquid eyeliner. Seriously. It is SO pigmented, dries with a beautiful matte finish, and lasts all day with no running or smudging whatsoever! Rating: 10/10

This is the Maybelline Fit Me! Concealer in the color 15 Fair ($5-$7). This concealer is the bomb you guys. I am very picky about my concealers, and after a long run with the Hard Candy Glamoflauge, I found that it had just gotten much too thick for my under eyes. But this one, this beauty right here is the perfect formula. It's nice and thin, so it's easily blendable. And the coverage is out of this world! It is a great concealer for under eyes and highlighting, but for blemishes, I feel like it would possibly not be enough. Rating: 9/10

This is the Beauty Pro Revive Makeup Applicator and I purchased this for $3.99 at Tj-Maxx. This is your average Beauty Blender dupe, but I find that the advantage is that this has the same tear drop shape, which is great for smooth blending in my opinion, as opposed to the typical hour-glass shaped Beauty Blender dupes out there. It performs nicely, cleans well, and seems to be a great dupe. Although I hope to purchase the real Beauty Blender one of these days, this is an awesome substitute in the meantime. Rating: 8/10

My last beauty fave is not actually an item, but rather a YouTube channel and a specific video from that channel. I have been absolutely loving the uploads of Goss Makeup Artist on YouTube. His channel has amazing, and lots of completely unknown makeup tips and tricks! One in particular, in which he teaches you to use loose face powder BEFORE your foundation, has indeed (like the title says) CHANGED MY LIFE!! My skin feels so much softer and more natural when I'm wearing makeup. Also, it makes my foundation last a lifetime longer! The link to that video is right here:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=EyQsVyGadbY

I highly suggest that you check out not only that video but also his whole channel. Amazing!

Thanks for reading once again,

-xx Anna

MANIC PANIC: VIRGIN SNOW WHITE TONER

If you read my last blog post, you know that I dyed my hair platinum blonde...annnnnd it turned out a bit, well, let's just say too "golden" for the look I was going for. So I tried out purple shampoo to help it a little, but that just wasn't enough. I took a trip up to my local Sally's and stumbled across this Manic Panic White Toner. 

It is safe to use on freshly dyed hair because it contains different chemicals than the ones that are in permanent dye. 

This toner is intended for light blondes, artificial or natural. That being said, it works best on bleached hair, it will turn it pure white. Which is exactly what it did to the bleached highlights on my hair! The instructions say to leave it on for 30 minutes, but I left mine on for an hour and a half, with a blast from the hair drier as well.

 I loved the way everything turned out. The dye really canceled out some of the yellow tones, and I'm pleased with the result. I would reccomend this dye for anyone with completely or partially bleached hair that wants yellow or orange tones removed. If you're hair is not bleached, honestly it will not do much, but it could be worth a try anyway! 

- xx Anna

REVIEW AND FIRST USE: Matrix Total Results Color Care So Silver Shampoo

Hello readers! Recently I took the plunge and went PLATINUM BLONDE! Or at least, tried to. I had my hair professionally dyed and highlighted, and I was hoping the results would be an ashy pale blonde color. Well, it turned out a tad yellow.

Now don't get me wrong, the stylist did a good job. I just think that parts of my hair we're not light enough to smoothly transition to such a light blonde color. 

Out of desperation, I purchased the best purple shampoo I could find in the hope that it would fix my woes. I purchased the Total Results Color Care So Silver shampoo from the brand Matrix. I know this is available online and possibly at Ulta (?). I happened to purchase it at my local beauty store.

(For those of you that don't know, purple shampoo is made for the intent to remove unwanted yellow or brassy tones from silver, artificially blonde, or natural blonde hair.)

Now I used this shampoo in the shower and left it on for around 18 minutes. That is longer than recommended but hey, I was desperate! While it was processing, I could really tell a difference! It looked a beautiful ashy blonde color. After being washed off...not so much. WARNING: this shampoo will dry out your hair. Mine felt like straw! Don't freak out though, with proper conditioning, the dryness will go away. Now after the shower, I could still tell a slight difference, but not anything spectacular. 

Overall, I think this is a good purple shampoo. But then again this is my first time using one so I am not an expert on how all the different brands work. 

So to close things off, what's your experience with purple shampoo? Did it rescue your yellow hair or was it just, meh? Let me know in the comments!

-xx Anna

REVIEW: Urban Decay Naked 2 Palette

I know I'm a little late on the band wagon, but I just recently snagged a Naked 2 eyeshadow palette by Urban Decay, and I could not be more excited.

Now for some swatches!

With flash:

Without Flash: 

The eyeshadow palette contains 12 neutral shaded colors, with 9 containing some kind of shimmer, and 3 matte shades. The shadows are perfect for everyday use and can easily be transformed into a dramatic nighttime look. The pigmentation is beautiful, which is to be expected of Urban Decay. The 

price is $54, which is a bit of an investment, but personally I feel that the quality is worth every penny. 

My favorite shades are...

-Booty Call: a gorgeous pearly pink color with just the smallest hint of shimmer. Perfect for an all-over lid color, or an inner-corner/brow bone highlight.

-Tease: a matte, light taupe shade. Ideal for the crease and lower lash line.

-Verve: a shimmery mix between silver and taupe. A perfect all over lid color! 

If you are considering purchasing this palette, I highly recommend that you do! Thanks for reading!

- xx Anna