Crazy Cupcake Lady

Okay, you're either going to love this or hate it... and it will be picture-heavy and epic.

My Collection of Cupcake Stuff (not including t-shirts/pajamas)!

 Thirteen necklaces

 One bracelet, two rings, and twelve pairs of earrings

 Jewelry box

 Two Liplicious lip glosses, three balms, and nineteen different cupcake-shaped glosses

 Gift bag from a cupcake-scented bath set, two limited-edition Steamcream tins, cherry hand cream, strawberry hand cream, and a soap dispenser

 Bandaids tin, one of the bandaids, slide-open pocket mirror, blotting papers, cupcake floss, cupcake-shaped soap, cupcake-print hairbrush

 Pocket tissues, two manicure kits, nail file, compressed hand towel, nail file keychain

 Jessie Steele cupcakes pot mitt, oven mitt

 Sandwich bags, water bottle, sandwich case, cupcake carriers

 Red Velvet Cupcake scented candle from Target (I always buy and burn cupcake scented candles; this is just the current one!), eleven ceramic cupcakes

 Felt stickers, celo-stickers, magnets, photo holders, rubbers (heh), notebook, notepad (I am always buying cupcake stationery and using it up)

 Buttons, wallet, coin purse, lip balm cap keychain, i <3cupcakes keychain, eleven keycaps

 Blue and Pink cupcake earbuds!

Neff Cupcake beanie, cupcake mittens(you can still get them from Urban Outfitters), Scentportable from Bath & Body Works

Bath & Body Works socks rolled up into cupcake ornaments!

 Cupcake Princess ornament I happily snatched up in last year's White Elephant gift exchange >:D

 I was so excited when I got this little teapot/cup/saucer set from Borders before they went out of business for $10!

 Treats tower and wine glass

Nesting bowls

Indeed.

Bonus: Blogs I found because of my cupcake obsession:

Nars Cupcake Beauty Blog

Cupcake's Clothes Fashion Blog

Caught Up in Cake Fashion Blog

Cupcakes & Cashmere Lifestyle Blog

The Cupcake Princess Cupcake and Cookie Blog

Chef Chloe Vegan Chef and Winner of Cupcake Wars on Food Network



Perfume Collection

The weekend is so close, I can smell it!  Or maybe that's just my DKNY Pure?  I don't know what a 'normal' number of perfumes to have in rotation at any given time is, but my current collection is the largest I've ever had:

Victoria's Secret Love Spell Fragrance Mist (freebie), Parlez-Moi d'Amour by John Galliano (was this ever released in the U.S.? I ordered it off eBay from the U.K.), Dior Miss Dior Cherie, Viktor & Rolf Flowerbomb Hair Mist, Harajuku Lovers Super G, Harajuku Lovers Mermaid G, Benefit So Hooked on Carmella (full size and mini), Benefit Ring My Bella, Versace Bright Crystal mini, Paco Rabanne Lady Million mini, pureDKNY mini rollerball, Stila Creme Bouquet rollerball, Mary Kay Exotic Passionfruit (gift from parents-in-law)

Harajuku Lovers Wicked Style Collection Love, Angel, Music, Baby, and G

Do you have any of these?  Victoria's Secret Love Spell is cloyingly peachy, and Parlez-Moi d'Amour is cloyingly blueberry-y.  I have to be careful with these because it's easy to go overboard and then I just feel nauseous!  Ring My Bella is a lightly-floral grapefruit scent to me. Super G is also strongly fruity, but fades quickly. I just love fresh and fruity scents like these!  I didn't like Creme Bouquet by Stila originally, but it has grown on me a lot.
I think my favorite of the bunch is a tie... Mermaid G is long-lasting, subtle and clean.  So Hooked On Carmella is my other fave because it is sweet but not overly so, and just a little sexy.  My husband likes it a lot! 

He also loved when I wore Guerlain Insolence (I went through TWO 1 oz. bottles in a year! There were too many other fragrances I wanted to try at the time, including the original lineup of Harajuku Lovers Fragrances -I love original G and Angel- so I haven't re-purchased yet, but I'd love to go back to its young, fresh, raspberry goodness!)  The other perfumes on my wishlist currently are Harajuku Lovers Jingle G (of course), and Burberry Brit Sheer (smells amazing, I just can't justify buying it while I own all of the above!). 

What perfumes are in your current rotation?  What past loves are you longing to buy again?  And what new scents are on your wish list?

REVIEW: Jouer Weekender Collection is Hmm... Half of a Hit!

When I signed up for Birchbox, I bought a year subscription so that I'd get bonus points worth $10 towards a purchase. I combined my points with a 20%-off deal they ran a few months ago to buy the Jouer Weekender Collection.  Even without the discount, at $58 it seems like a deal for nearly a full face of makeup:
It comes with a "shimmering copper" lipgloss in Ginger (I'd call it champagne with a copper tinge), a matte translucent face powder and matte bronzer in Sunswept, a little pan of Cinnamon Tint cheek cream next to a Champagne cream highlighter, and a matte eyeshadow trio in In the Suedes.

I realize this set is sold out most everywhere, but I think it exemplifies the packaging of the brand and ultimately I can say I would avoid the powder products from this brand.

The Good:
The lipgloss has a doe-foot applicator and no scent or flavor.  It is the kind of color you can apply without a mirror,  though this set has three (one in each mini compact).  The shimmer of it lasted through a scone and a cup of coffee, but the emolience did not last.  That is par-for-the-course for lipgloss. I think it's a pretty solid product.

I really like the "tint & highlighter" compact. I like that they are a complementary duo and they last a long time and blend very well. I would consider the cheek tint to be a cream blush rather than a tint or stain.  The color is not super-pigmented; subtle, but buildable and universally flattering. I think it wouldn't show up on darker skin tones, though.  The highlighter would likely look great on any skin tone and adds just a glowy sheen.  Neither disappeared on my oily skin and also worked great on my dryer complexion when I was in the desert (Las Vegas).

The packaging is a dull, gray-brown shade. I would have preferred a more luxe chocolate, sleek black, or just about anything else. I think this color is a bit old-ladyish.  Is it too juvenile to expect a more exciting color from a brand called Jouer?  Maybe with the "jouer" text they were going for a beige-and-brown Louis Vuitton feel.  I think it brings down the fun factor.
However, the little compacts that interlock is a great idea. You don't need a makeup bag but your makeup stays together inside your handbag, which is convenient. It's also kind of fun to pull them apart and put them back together, and so on again :-) I guess that's the point of the name "jouer."
None of the mirrors are really large enough to be particularly useful for putting on the full face, though. Maybe the mirror in the powder/bronzer compact is tall enough, but it's still too narrow.  They are all okay for checking teeth/applying lipgloss so it isn't a total waste.  The packaging does feel quite sturdy and not flimsy at all, but as you'll see from my powder review below I wound up feeling I'm paying for the packaging more than the cosmetic product.  Also, the powder products have no applicators so I'd have to bring a bag of brushes along for them, anyway.

The Bad:

The powder products are nearly impossible to pick up.  Even when I run my fingertips across or use a sponge, they are sheer and chalky as all gitout!  The "bronzer" is way too sheer to use for contour and to be honest none of my brushes could pick up the bronzer or the powder with any notable success.  The mattifying powder didn't control my oil at all (that is, assuming any actually wound up on my face), and the bronzer all-over didn't really add any color either. They're just too dry or hard-packed.
I had the same issue with the middle shade of the eyeshadow trio. Rub as I might, I couldn't pick up any of it.  The lightest color is passable as a browbone highlight and can be picked up by my brush, but it hardly justifies the other two colors.  The darkest can also be picked up by a brush but it doesn't blend well.  I wind up with kind of a splotchy look on my eyes each time I use this.  No likey.

In the future I would consider purchasing a similarly-packaged interlock set from this company, but I'd stick to cream products! They really need to reformulate their powders.  Also, with such a portable package concept/design, I wish they had just stuck to products that were finger-applied such as a sheer cream shadow that won't crease (it appears they have such a product on offer).  Looking at their website I see they have a creamy concealer compact as well.   I understand wanting to sell powder products, but these are inferior and drag down the brand's image in my opinion.  Also, a no-applicators-necessary set would have gotten a much more positive review from me!

REVIEW: Too Faced Holiday 2011 Sweet Dreams Makeup Collection Photos and Swatches

Sometimes a dream is a little sweeter than reality.  For example, I don't think I should be surprised that I'm a little bit disappointed with the Sweet Dreams Makeup Collection by Too Faced for Holiday 2011.  I LOVED, as in practically dreamed about, Too Faced Enchanted Glamourland from 2010's Holiday Collection. I took the time to find dupes for each shade in the eyeshadow palette using two Coastal Scents Palettes.  I never wanted to be without those color combinations!
(Off subject, but if you would like to know the Coastal Scents dupes of the Enchanted Glamourland Limited Edition palette from last year, please let me know in the comments below!)

The velvety softness and smoothness we've all come to expect from Too Faced eye shadows is evident in their 9-pan eye palettes (Naked, Natural, Smokey, Romantic, and Matte Eye Collections).  Every shade in the Matte Eye Collection I reviewed was silky and smoothly pigmented.  Sadly, the eyeshadows in the Sweet Dreams palette are harder-packed, which cuts down on their softness. In spite of this, I found they kicked up a lot more little balls of eyeshadow dust when I dipped in with a brush or finger.  They didn't feel as soft as the Enchanted Glamourland or Matte collection pans of shadow.  Several of the shades, as you may be able to see from the swatches, applied a tad unevenly and, dare I say it, chalky?  Fall-out can be an issue.  This is simply NOT the soft, buttery pigmentation I expect and now DEMAND from Too Faced because I know they can do it!

Warm indoor light

Overcast natural light

In the Buff, Peach Fuzz, Smolder, and Honeymoon.  Smolder didn't want to apply smoothly, grrr.  Honeymoon was less pretty on skin than in the pan.

Copper Peony, Teddy Bear, Label Whore, Nice Stems.  Nice Stems didn't apply smoothly, and Copper Peony was disappointingly sheer though it built up okay.

Lovey Dovey, Satin Sheets, Cop a Teal (darker than it looks in the pan, no?), First Dance. It might be in part the lighting's fault, but I just felt that the shades lacked dimension.

Satin Sheets, Cut the Cake, Party Girl (blue glitter made this apply so unevenly and chunky, but if you work with it patiently it's the most new/interesting shade in this palette), Nice Ash (chalky, but okay if built up)

Disappointment put aside, these color combos are great.  I'm happy Too Faced mixed up the shades a little (only four are repeats of last year, and are good for illustrating the quality decline).  I haven't tried the looks from the cards as of yet, but they also differ from last year's looks.  I wish they had explicitly stated color placement, but the cards are a much better representation than last year's.  I feel more like I will be able to figure it out by looking at them.

To be honest, the diminished pigmentation may in fact make these shades easier to deal with for a novice.  I found even the chalkier shades to be easy to build, so the shortcomings of this palette can be overcome.  I know my disappointment lies in extremely high expectations; I set aside last year's gift money to buy this year's Too Faced Holiday release! 

Please don't think I regret buying it, either.  I think the packaging is even cuter than last year's with the scalloping detail and addition of a mirror.  It is actually made of rigid children's book material though mine arrived to me slightly crimped on the top scalloping.

This palette would not be ideal for travel, as was last year's.  They are not meant to be compact or particularly sturdy, and for only $52 for all these shades at even this quality level I still think it's a steal.  Adorable packaging aside, it's $2.60 per pan of product (including a full-size shadow insurance which retails at $18), and you would only find this quality of eyeshadow single at the drugstore in Wet n Wild for $1.99.  The Wet n Wild trios and six-pan palettes are not as good as this palette (I am adding this opinion just to show that despite my critique of the shadows, they still rate pretty high compared to other brands).

As for the cheek colors, these were all Aces in my book!  Chocolate Soleil is blendable and yummy-scented, exactly like the single (which is $29).  I don't have the single of Candlelight Glow, but I want it now!  It offers a golden sheen without shimmer and is much prettier than E.L.F.'s supposed NARS Albatross dupe Let it Glow!  Both Cocoa Rose and Sweet Pink blushes were smooth and pigmented but blendable.  I'm not certain but I think they would do okay on darker skintones, if the colors didn't appear too pale.  Both blushes have warm and cool tones in them, so I think they'd work for either.  All the cheek colors went on smooth but sheer at first and built up very, very nicely.  These and the Shadow Insurance are probably worth the price of the palette alone!

Do I think, in spite of this palette's shortcomings, that you should RUN to the nearest Sephora and pick it up?  Absolutely YES!
But let us remember fondly palettes past:

Enchanted Glamourland Eye Shadow Palette

EG In the Buff, SD In the Buff, and so on for Peach Fuzz, Teddy Bear, and Label Whore

As you can probably see, In the Buff was more pigmented last year. This year, it's also stiff and chalky... but sheerer.  That is not actually such a bad thing with a nearly-white shadow. It can make a decent matte highlight either way.  Peach Fuzz was really close between EG and SD.

Teddy Bear, another matte, was also smoother and more pigmented in EG.  SD's version is the same color, but not dreamily soft to the touch and must be built up more. It doesn't blend as well, either.  Sigh...
Label Whore is kind of stiff in both palettes, and like Peach Fuzz didn't change much.