Modern Renaissance

Okay, it finally arrived. Unless you know absolutely nothing about makeup, you most probably have heard of the Modern Renaissance palette, by Anastasia Beverly Hills. I can't even express how much I adore this palette. I just really love it so much. First of all, the products are high quality, very buttery, very pigmented. Even though the packaging has received a lot of criticism, due to the velvety exterior getting dirty quite easily. I personally can confirm that yes, fallout does cling to the palette, but as long as you are careful, and keep it in a place where it won't get dirty there shouldn't be a problem. The shades blend seamlessly, and are long wearing. It also comes with a dual-sided makeup brush, that even though it isn't like the high end brushes, does a pretty good job in my opinion. 

Now lets go on to the real reason I love this palette, and knew I had to have it. As the name states, it is inspired by the Renaissance art period, and boy, I am a huge art geek. So as soon as I heard about this palette, I was just so happy. Bringing art into makeup? Yes please!! So from an artistic point of view I love so many things about it. First of all, I really like the selection of colors. All were colors that were very present during this time period, but they chose just the right ones that would make a nice palette that could be used for everyday looks, just as well as anything more glammed up. Also, I love the little detail of the names, whether they be referring to certain painting mediums, artist, or paintings... as an art lover I couldn't be more content. So ever since I laid eyes on this palette, I had this idea, of comparing it to actual renaissance art, so one can truly tell the influence and how much detail went into this. So I did it! 

The palette next to the famous painting "Primavera" by Sandro Botticelli. In the photos above, it's pictured with the painting "The Birth of Venus", also done by Boticelli. 

Golden Ochre (left) and Tempera (right) next to details of "The Birth of Venus".

Primavera (left) Vermeer (right) next to details of the painting "Primavera"

Venetian Red (top) and Buon Fresco (bottom) next to details of "Primavera"

Cyprus Umer (top), Burnt Orange (middle), Raw Sienna (bottom) next to details of "The Rape of Europa" by Paolo Veronese

Love Letter (top), Realgar (bottom) next to details of "La Cantoria" by Luca della Robbia

Realgar (top), Warm Taupe (bottom), next to details of the painting "Minerva Expelling the Vices from the Garden of Virtues" by Andrea Mantegna

And for the complete swatch of the palette I had to pair it with one of the most famous paintings of the renaissance period: "Mona Lisa" by Leonardo da Vinci. 

So I guess to finish this post I just have to say that this palette, in my opinion, is a work of art in itself. I couldn't be happier with it, as both a makeup and an art lover. This was also incredibly fun to make!

Take care,
~Rose

P.S. I forgot to give Antique Bronze it's individual swatch, but you can see it in the full swatch.

Things I Want

So, considering that I have a job now (sort of), I decided I should probably make a list of the things I have been wanting to buy for a while... most of it is makeup-related, and the last one is a far cry from what I probably would be able to afford. But it's nice to dream, right? I would have added a plane ticket to france, but I like to keep things somewhat realistic. So here goes: 

➀ Lime Crime's VENUS the Grunge Palette

➁ Tony Moly's Peach Handcream

➂ Pantone Universe Palette

➃ This makeup brush set

➄ Mushroom Magnets

➅ instax mini 90 Neo Classic

take care,
~Rose

Crayon Lipstick

I'm a fan of nonconventional coloured lipstick and broke… not a good combination. So when I heard about this DIY for making your own lipstick I thought I'd give it a shot. 

*This is not a tutorial, since I'm not 100% happy with the how it all came out. I did, however, want to share the process with you guys because of the interesting results. Remember this is for fun and I'm no expert. *

After researching a couple of recipes online and looking in the cupboards I finally decided to use the following ingredients:

• coconut oil
• cocoa butter
• lanolin
• crayon (of desired colour)

I decided to make a black lipstick, so in a heat proof container I added 1/2 of my black crayon, 1 heaped tsp of coconut oil, almond sized amount of cocoa butter and a pea sized drop of lanolin.

I then improvised a bain-marie so I could melt the ingredients, stirring occasionally with a popsicle stick. 

Excuse the steam, but here you can see that the ingredients are all melted and mixed.

I then poured the liquid into two different lip-balm containers, and put them in the freezer for about 10 minutes for them to cool and solidify. And there you have it!! 

After trying it out I have to say that I was rather disappointed... although the pictures of tutorials I saw online showed something that resulted in lipstick consistency and results, this ended up much like the first result in this video. It ended up being like a lip gloss, and not so pigmented, so when I applied it it left my lips with a slight grey tone. After combining it with different lipstick and colours I discovered that although it can't really be used on it's own, it does work like an excellent lip top coat, darkening the base colour. It gives results much like the V'amped Up! Lip Top Coat from NYX (according to reviews). It darkens the colours and gives it a glossy finish. 

*   *   *

Overall, although the results were not what I was expecting I still ended up liking what came out and it was really fun to make. Sorry that I didn't include and photos of the lipstick on me or even swatches, but my camera broke so I didn't get the chance to take any. However I can get a hold of a camera, so if your are interested in seeing the results tell me in the comments below and I'll make a follow up post!

Blessed be,

~Rose