IMATS New York - Gurus Celebrity Sitings! Meeting Some of My Favorite YouTube Beauty Gurus!


I know what you're going to say.  I'm so slow to report on my IMATS trip!  But I still have a lot of great coverage to share.  One of my favorite parts of IMATS was meeting some of my favorite bloggers and vloggers in person.  I felt completely star struck by seeing all of my favorite gurus that I spend hours watching.  Everyone was so sweet and welcoming!   I totally felt a little fanatical!   Thank you to everyone I met!  I hope you will be in IMATS LA!

Koren from EnKore Makeup was at a Make Up For Ever Pro social I went to on Thursday and again at IMATS.  I had actually lost my voice because of allergies and had to really muster up my strength to say hi!  He was so sweet!

 BEATFACEHONEY (love her!) and me
I absolutely LOVE Tatiana Ward, aka BeatFaceHoney.  First, she does some really gorgeous tutorials and has a beautiful voice.  Second, she has one of the most entertaining personal channels on YouTube.  Her friends are all so fun and adorable, plus you gotta love a Philly girl, right?  Subscribe to her makeup channel here and her personal channel here.   She put up a video on her IMATS experience on her personal channel and here as a tutorial!
 E, Julie G and me
I was so excited to see one of my favorite YouTube gurus, Julie G.  She is so delightful and sweet in person.  The same bubbly personality you see on her videos is how she is in person!
 Julie G, she's so pretty!!!!
She did a great video on her channel that covers her experience at IMATS.  Click here to see it.  Don't you love her coral dress?!
 Lauren aka Queen of Blending.  Look at her amazing cat eye!  Rrr!!
Seriously YouTube royalty!  The Queen of Blending was working the Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics booth.
 Queen of Blending's bling bling nails and phone!  Don't you love her more?
 Queen of Blending.... blending on Miss January at the OCC Booth.
I could imagine that he was totally at home at IMATS.  I love his tutorials!  He does such amazing artistry stuff.
Miss Teen USA, Kamie Crawford, loves makeup too!

Ahhh I just love revisiting these photos!  IMATS was such a blast and I can't wait for LA!

China Glaze Crackle Collection - Photos, Swatches, Review, Color Pairing Ideas, Troubleshooting and New Video!

Pelican Grey with Broken Hearted.

Pictures say more than I can about these polishes.  See the photos below and check out our video on your YouTube channel.  If you haven't subscribed, please do! 



Pelican Grey with Broken Hearted.
Visit Me In Prism + Broken Hearted.
Sci-Fi with Broken Hearted.
Lemon Fizz + Cracked Concrete.
Sugar High + Cracked Concrete.
Cosmic + Cracked Concrete.
Let's Do It In 3D + Crushed Candy.
Calypso Blue + Crushed Candy.
DV8 + Crushed Candy.
Not sure why it didn't crackle well over DV8.  Crackle colors seemed to work well over foil and holographic finishes, but colors from China Glaze's OMG Collection seemed to result this way.  Did anyone else have this problem?
Cheers To You + Lightening Bolt.
Sugar High + Lightening Bolt.
Flying Dragon + Lightening Bolt.
Four Leaf Clover + Lightening Bolt.
I found that the white had a tendency to pick up color from the base shade.  Notice how Lightening Bolt has yellowed here.
Cheers To You + Fault Line.
Caribbean Blue + Fault Line.
Heli-Yum + Fault Line.
Let's Do It In 3D + Black Mesh.
For Audrey + Black Mesh
Flying Dragon + Black Mesh
 Get cracklin'.

Check this video to see China Glaze vs. OPI Black Shatter.

Eyeliner Road Test! Giorgio Armani vs. Stila vs. Tarte - New Video!

 Eyeliners from our road test.

Eyeliner technology has really advanced.  I used to never be able to wear eyeliner for fear of raccoon eyes, but the chemistry that goes into these products has really improved.  Waterproof isn't just a dream anymore.  Some products really do resist smudges, tearing and actually stay put.  I took three different brands with similar gel-style formulas and tested them against each other.  See the video to see who won!

Giorgio Armani's La Femme Bleue Long Wear Waterproof Eye Pencils are limited edition for Spring 2011.  KarlaSugar raved about these, so I had to check them out for the road test.  These are $27 each, which seems pricey for an eyeliner, but considering how much product you actually get in comparison with these other two brands, it's actually a better value.

Stila Smudge Stick Waterproof Eyeliner and Tarte emphasEYES Aqual-Gel Eyeliner both boast long wear and high pigmentation.  But, if you watch the video, you will see that the Armani beats them out in value and beats the Tarte in wear.

Let's geek out for a moment and do a math break down:
Giorgio Armani - $27 for 0.04oz, 1.2g = $22.50 per gram
Stila - $20 for 0.01oz, 0.28g = $71.42 per gram
Tarte - $18 for 0.003oz, 0.1g = $180 per gram

 We tried them out.... check the video for results!

  Black, Bark Brown, Leaf Green.
 Black, Bark Brown, Leaf Green.
GA's Bark Brown on the eye.


Giorgio Armani La Femme Bleue Long Wear Waterproof Eye Pencils are $27 for 0.04oz, 1.2g and available at www.giorgioarmanibeauty-usa.com.

Stila Smudge Stick Waterproof Eyeliner is $20 for 0.01oz at ulta.com and stilacosmetics.com.

Tarte emphasEYES Aqual-Gel is $18 for 0.003oz, 0.1g at tartecosmetics.com and qvc.com.

Eve Pearl HD Dual Pressed Powder Review and New Video on Our YouTube Channel!


You have heard me rave about the Eve Pearl's HD Foundation, click this link if you haven't seen this review! It's a luxurious cream foundation that feels like skincare, photographs beautifully and creates a flawless finish. As much as I love this foundation, sometimes I need to just apply something fast and run. In this type of situation, I have typically reached for powder foundations formulas. However, I confess, I have never been a huge fan of them.  I find that powder foundations to be a necessary evil when you are in a pinch, and I had never found a powder foundation that gave a real "skin" finish until I found Eve Pearl's Dual Pressed Powder.





Eve Pearl's Dual Pressed Powder is a dual color compact powder foundation that works gorgeously with their cream foundation, but it also works on its own. Check out my video (above) and Eve Pearl's video (below) on how to apply.  With the two shades, it's easy to blend to get a color match.  The compact that I purchased at the end of November and received in December already has hit the pan from tons of usage.  Whether it's setting my foundation or using on its own, I love how this powder looks on my face!

In the video, I'm also using some other products by Eve Pearl that I've loving.  The Eye Palette in Au Natural is a handy set of warmer neutrals.   Click this link to see my review and swatches of Au Natural and Diva Eyes (not in the video).  I also use the Salmon Concealer and Treatment, which is an amazing undereye corrector.  The Photo Finish Press Powder in Neutral sets everything to look picture perfect.



HD Dual Pressed Powder is $42 for 9g, 0.3oz and available at www.evepearl.com.

How do you feel about powder foundation?  Is it a necessary evil or necessity?

Sally Hansen Salon Effects Real Nail Polish Strips - Laced Up - Tutorial - Our First YouTube Video!

Sally Hansen Salon Effects in Laced Up

New Year and new stuff at Beautyburg!  We created our first video on YouTube.  I had to create a video for Sally Hansen Salon Effects.  This is a drugstore version of nail polish strips, like Minx and Incoco.  The cost is $9.99, which is similar to other brands, but the advantage is that the distribution of Sally Hansen is much more accessable.

The reason I wanted to create a video tutorial for these was mainly because I had no idea how they worked!  I had never applied a dry nail polish strip before, so I thought that I couldn't be the only one.  I hope it's helpful!

 The box.

Sally Hansen Salon Effects come in a variety of shades and patterns.  There are neon shades, glitters and printed patterns.  Each box comes with 1 application and contains: a mini nail file, a cuticle stick and 16 nail polish strips. 

 The contents.

 
Prep: file and shape, then buff.

Wipe nails with nail polish remover.




 The finished product.

I personally found the process a little labor intensive.  For $9.99 for 1 application, you could go to a salon and get a manicure.  But I loved the funky patterns, and I received a compliment almost every where I went.  Sally Hansen claims up to 10 days of wear, but I found it was closer to 5 before tippage and peeling took over.   I would recommend this for a special occasion or if you want to try nail art without the hassle of Konading or attempting freehand. 




Watch our video here!

Do you think Sally Hansen Salon Effects are worth the effort?  Do you like patterned nail polish?  Would you like to see more videos from Beautyburg?