In Which I Pretend to Know Something About Make Up

I bought some make up. I just spent the last twenty minutes writing different intros to this post, including one that descended quickly into a treatise on gender roles and what exactly is "feminine." And then I smacked myself in the face. So here's my intro: I bought some make up. I don't usually buy or wear much make up. I like the stuff I bought. I would like to tell you about it. Oh, and I make things much more difficult than they need to be. End.

Temerity Jane has posted a few times recently about make-up and I love how she calls herself a hobbyist. I've always liked the idea of make up and have even enjoyed applying/wearing it, but I'm not very good at any of that and I've always felt I "failed at being a girl" (like there's some standard measurement of girlness and there are gender cops out there who are going to ticket me for my lack or surplus of girlness...) But, as she often does, Kelly simplified the issue: do it for fun.

So. In that spirit, I went on a little shopping spree right after PJs at TJ's, since she introduced me to e.l.f. and I'd loved it so much. Unfortunately, my Target didn't carry e.l.f. that week. [I have no idea either. They had a whole display the NEXT time I went that I know for a fact was not there when I went with the express purpose of giving them all my monies for e.l.f. products. Whatever, Far North Target, you are drunk.] So I bought a whole bunch of other stuff on crazy clearance and then tweeted this picture:

Look at those stickers!

I am notoriously cheap, so I was really excited about these prices--I didn't spend more than $3 per item. The two eyeshadow crayon things are FANtastic. I kind of don't want to go back to power eyeshadow now. The mascara is brown instead of my usual black or brown-black and it flakes off my lashes by the end of the day in a way that irritates my eyes, so I'm not crazy about it. The lipsticks are both pretty good, but I've always been bad with lip stuff. I spend a lot of my time eating and drinking (new to exactly no one) and I don't like the feeling of it in contact with my food, so I'm constantly removing it and reapplying (no matter what kind I use) and I kind of hate that. I chose relatively neutral colors because...I have a fear of color? I don't know, but neither of them really adds that much to my face, so what's the point?

Eventually, I acquired a few e.l.f. items as planned:

The black eyeliner & shadow stick was a "gift" from Kelly/myself with the leftover registration money from PJs at TJ's. Sister got a brown one, so when we got home, she bought herself a black one and me a brown one so we'd stop stealing each other's, because we LOVE them--further confirmation that I need all of my eyeshadow in stick/crayon form from now on. The brush was a dollar and is falling apart in about six different ways, but is very helpful and WHY HAVE I NEVER USED BRUSHES OTHER THAN THE ONES THAT COME WITH THE MAKE UP THIS IS AWESOME. The primer is brand new and I haven't used it yet, but I hear good things about its staying power for the price you pay (about $2, I think). The eyebrow kit is from Erin, because it didn't work for her. I have yet to try it, but Linnea promised to teach me at some point.

And can I just interrupt here to say that living with Linnea has helped immensely with the make up stuff? If there were Make Up Olympics, I'm not sure she would qualify as an amateur. Anyway, she's a make up hobbyist and she's teaching me all kinds of things. Seriously, if any of you feel like you "fail at make up" and want to enjoy it, move in with her. Or, well, I'm not sure I'm authorized to invite people to live in her house, so ignore that. But. She's pretty awesome.

AND she introduced me to Ulta. A whole store devoted to cosmetics? Yes, please! (I have been pretty deprived in Far North). Anyway, I bought these on my first trip there:

The top one is a lip crayon in "fashionista." Crayons. I'm telling you. The BEST! All I needed was to go back to kindergarten, apparently. Anyway, this shade is a lot bolder than I would usually choose for myself, but Linnea looked at the shelf of testers and was like, "There's not a single color here you couldn't wear." Which is both validating and freeing. So I chose something completely unlike my instincts because my instincts are not to be trusted. It took some getting used to when I looked in the mirror, but after two or three wearings, I'm loving it and I'm becoming less and less enchanted with my milder tones. The tinted lip balm ends up looking very similar to the crayon, but with a nice shine, so sometimes I put it over the other to add a little something. I have no idea what I'm doing, is what I'm saying.

The day I bought those, I signed up for Ulta's email list. Because of course. And just as they planned, I'm sure, I got sucked back into the store with an offer of a "free gift worth $88 with a $19.50 purchase." Since I already wanted more crayons and other face drawing implements, I jumped at the chance to have even more make up to play with. Here's what I purchased:

I spent about $21 total with tax. Because I may be a sucker, but I'm a frugal sucker.

The top is a lip gloss called "sangria" and it was being discontinued or something, so it was cheap. It's a lot more red than I usually wear, but as is the theme of this post, what I usually wear is boring and I'm looking for something different. The next one is another lip crayon in "doll face." This is actually paler and pinker than the one I got before and not nearly as bold, but it adds a finished look to my lips with a little extra tint, so I'm happy. The last one is, you guessed it, another crayon. It's an eyeshadow called "birthday girl" and comes with a smudging end. I really like this. I've been drawn to whites and ivories in eyeshadow lately, though I'm not really sure why. But with a brown eye liner and some gold or other warm tone, it gives a nice highlight. Plus, it's a CRAYON YOU USE ON YOUR FACE!

With the puchase of those three things, I got this bag of goodies:

It came it two color palates and I chose this one, because the other was hot pinks and I always go for hot pinks and I was denying my instincts. I am, however, regretting how nude some of these colors are.

The bag is cute and, uh... holds the make up really well. That's all I really have to say about that piece--I'm satisfied with it; it's a good bag. The nail polish is a pretty coraly peach called "OH!" whatever that means. I haven't tried it yet, because I had just painted my nails when I bought this. The brushes are...brushes. I'm still new to this "separate brush" thing, but I like having them. My only complaint is that they're a little coarser than I expected and they don't feel all that great on my skin. But. If the point of a brush is to get make up on your face, these are A+ brushes. The lipstick is called "perfect nude" and really lives up to the second part of its name. It's nude. Slightly pinkish nude. It doesn't add much. The blush is... Well, I'm chronically pink cheeked (hot, cold, tired, angry, embarrassed, happy--no matter what, my face is flushed) so blush is a bit useless for me. But Linnea said to use it as eyeshadow, because she is a rule breaker and a rebel. I never would've thought of doing that, but when she used it on me, I liked the effect. The lip gloss is called "flirtini" and is a pretty typical gloss. A little sticky, but not gummy, adds a nice shine, not a lot of color. Everyday kind of wear, I'd imagine, if I knew what I was talking about. The mascara is really good so far--it's true black, adds volume, and doesn't flake off as far as I've noticed. I've only used the foaming face wash once, but it took the make up right off and I haven't noticed a skin reaction (I have notoriously sensitive skin and rarely wash or moisturize my face for fear of irritation and break-outs). Overall, I like this bag of goodies.

In addition to the bag, I also got to pick an eyeliner and an eyeshadow:

I chose brown eyeliner and an eyeshadow called "plum smoke." The eyeshadow is more reddish-purple, in addition to the gold tone that the photo picked up. They're both fine. The eyeshadow is less pigmented that it looks (according to Linnea, who knows these things), but it seemed to blend well with the blush. I haven't played with it much myself, but it's not a crayon, so it's already behind the curve for me. I'm sure it'll work out, though.

And this concludes the Epic Journey of Elise's Make Up Purchases, Volume I. In 1575 words, my God. So. For about $50 or so, I have a nice little stash of things to play with, along with the other things I'd accumulated over the years. Now if only there were classes to teach you how to apply it all. Well, I guess that's what I have Linnea for. And a lot of trial and error. Speaking of which, I think I'm going to go play with all of this now.

[As always, no one paid me to say any of these things. Nothing on this blog is sponsored unless otherwise noted. Which is to say, nothing on this blog is sponsored. At all. I don't even have a job that "sponsors" my ability to purchase make up. So. No monies here. Okay?]