12/29/09

Farmgirl Beauty Secret #6: Fake a lit-from-within glow.

Feeling and/or looking sallow? Lightly dust cheeks and décolleté with a pink-based mineral blush in the color families shown above (if there’s shimmer that’s even better!). Then, liberally apply your favorite moisturizer to your cheeks, rest of face and décolleté. Voila, instant envy-worthy glow!

12/15/09

Farmgirl Beauty Secret #120: dark liquid foundation+body lotion=ultra-sexy legs.

Get your gams holiday dress-ready with this simple fix: Mix 1-part dark liquid foundation (regardless of the shade you are- use the darkest shade you can find) and 5-part body lotion. Apply the mixture to the entire length of your legs and smooth out thoroughly.

This concoction evens out skin tone (think: liquid panty hose) and magically adds definition and contour to your legs. It doesn’t turn your skin a gaudy shade of orange like bronzers do. Bonus: it’s fairly transfer-resistant (if you are wearing light colors or are worried about any transfer, opt for a transfer-resistant foundation). The secret is in using only a small amount of foundation. For extra oomph, lightly dust the length of your shins and knees with any shimmery champagne eyeshadow you have on hand.

12/8/09

Product-analysis: 100% Pure Blackberry Pigmented Gel Eyeliner, 100% Pure Fruit Pigmented Satin Eye Shadow in Barbados

It’s official: I am head over heels in love with 100% Pure. As a little farmgirl, I dreamt of making my own cosmetics. 100% Pure Fruit-pigmented Cosmetics encompasses everything I wanted in my dream color line and more. Not only are their products pigmented with antioxidant-rich fruits, vegetables and cocoa, every item from tinted moisturizer to eyeliner more than qualify as skincare treatments. Instead of mixing pigments with fillers, waxes and silicones, they use only awesome ingredients such as aloe vera, anti-aging resveratrol and peptides as the base of their cosmetics. This is completely unheard of in the cosmetics industry- imagine eyeshadows and eyeliners that have more potent, anti-aging ingredients than your average eye cream. Excuse me while I hyperventilate! I can be quite dramatic when I find something I LOVE, but how can you resist from swooning when you see an ingredient list like this?
Ingredients: Black Tea, Aloe Vera Gel, Rose Hydrosol, Blackberry Pigments, Blueberry Pigments, Candelilla Wax, Hydrogenated Jojoba Oil, Red Wine Resveratrol, Extracts of Oregano, Thyme, Rosemary, Lavender, Goji Berry, Acai Berry and Goldenseal, Peptides of Snow Pea, Black Rice and Hibiscus, Vitamin C (ascorbyl palmitate), Vitamin E (a-tocopherol), Rice Starch, Mica, Japanese Honeysuckle Extract

100% Pure recently expanded their color line so I knew I had to get my hands on them. I was instantly drawn to the new Gel Eyeliner in Blackberry. Aside from the fact that it’s an anti-aging treatment makeup, I was also super excited to see that they use black tea, blackberries and blueberries to pigment this liner. This works great as both a liner and an eyeshadow. The color is the most gorgeous deep plum that looks stunning on my brown eyes. The color is both electric and subtle. It’s laced with the slightest hint of fine gold..er, let’s call it “shimmer” for a lack of better words. The shimmer is so microscopic and few that it looks completely shimmer-free unless you look extremely close. I have the hardest time finding purples/plums that looks good on me. With this, not only does it work but it provides the most flattering contrast.
The Satin Eye Shadow in Barbados is equally eye-catching. The ingredients in the Satin Eye Shadows are very similar to the Eyeliners in that they both have treatment ingredients (yay!). The texture of this potted cream shadow is like butter, soft-solid in the pot but it gives way to the brush when I dab at it. Like the Eyeliner, this applies like a dream. The shade in the pot is a muted coffee taupe shimmer but when I apply it to my lids, the color transforms to a gorgeous rose gold taupe. It has a beautiful copper glow but it still gives some definition like a taupe shade should. I love pairing Blackberry and Barbados together. When mixed together, I get the most amazing shade of plumy brown that actually defines as oppose to wash me out. The 2 shades look vibrant but not over-the-top, which makes the perfect holiday look! I’m addicted to the look of both together and haven’t reached for any other eye color as of late.

If I could change 1 thing about these products, it’d be the packaging. As much as I love glass containers, I always have it in my head that potted cream makeup products will eventually dry out. If these came in plastic tubes with a skinny neck, that’d be awesome! Nonetheless, I don’t think anything is going to prevent me from collecting more of these fruit-pigmented beauties.



Here’s my disclaimer: I write extremely researched reviews after extensive, self-conducted testing. I do not review products I dislike; it's a waste of time and typing skills. This review contains gratis sent by company due to interest in feedbacks. My first priority is to my readers; company gratis does not guarantee placement. Affiliate and non-affiliate links may be provided to inform readers of where to purchase products. All in all, you can be sure that items seen on my website are the very few products that qualify for recommendation after rigorous testing.

12/1/09

Must-share Etsy Finds: Spork & Teacup sterling silver necklaces from Marymaryhandmade!

Squeal!! Look what I got in the mail! They are absolutely too adorable for words. Marymaryhandmade from Etsy makes the cutest sterling silver necklaces. I usually do pretty well resisting the adorableness that is Etsy, but as soon as I laid eyes on these one-of-a-kind kawaii trinkets, I knew I had to have them. Each of these custom necklaces were made fresh upon order. I can’t stop grinning back at the happy spork and teacup!
Ok, I’m sorry I just can’t get over how cute the spork is. I’m a HUGE fan of eating, which is why I chose this necklace (you can eat ANYTHING with a spork; it’s the ultimate utensil!). Definitely going to buy a few more for the holidays- this is the perfect gift for proud foodies like myself. Mary also makes a friendly ghost necklace(!!).

Marymaryhandmade’s necklaces have gotten me all riled up for Etsy once again (we all know Etsy frenzy comes in spurts). Tell me: what else I should check out on Etsy?


**Edited to add: I showed my necklace review to Marymaryhandmade today and I'm very excited to share that she is offering 15% OFF when you type "farmgirl" in the message to seller section @ checkout! 15% will be refunded via your PayPal. Enjoy, fellow farmgirls!**