Brushing it like pros - the essentials

Remember the time you bought your first eyeshadow pallet and the only tools at your disposal were the spongy applicators? Awesome at packing on color, but horrible for multiple uses and washes. Yep. Been there.

So down the road of self-education I learnt about the world of makeup brushes. So many types for numerous uses; it's very easy to get lost in the boundless choices. I'd find myself ogling at large sets, yearning to have them. Kind of excessive and unnecessary for a non-professional.

Stick to the Basics. Don't over-horde what you don't require.

(Had I known this, a certain drawer of unused brushes wouldn't have existed.)

Trial and error have aided me in narrowing down a small number of brushes I use daily. Pretty much Holy Grail quality, these brushes make makeup application (for me) flawless.

E.L.F Powder Brush - ($3 at eyeslipsface.com)

This brush is dense and incredibly soft. Absolutely no prickly feeling on the skin nor do the bristles splay out or shed. It has gone through the powder and liquid application trial and excelled. In my opinion, this brush is worth more than its current price, but that's also a reason why it's a MUST-HAVE.

Sigma Blending Brush E25 - ($12 at sigmabeauty.com)

As the creator intended, this is a dupe to the MAC 217. Soft white bristles that are packed, yet do a brilliant job of blending eyeshadows. It can give a sheer application on the lid if too much color isn't your thing. Personally, I don't own a 217, but this is still on my MUST-HAVE list.

Spoolie

I honestly don't know what my brows would do without this. I have fairly thick brows that like to splay out this way and that after showering. A spoolie brushes them back in place.

Mikyaji Eyeshadow Brush(es)

One of the very first brushes I owned - and definitely one of my favorites. It picks up color amazingly well and packs it on with as minimal fall out as possible. They come in varying sizes and I love the dense, stiffness for an opaque application.

Mikyaji Small Smudger Brush

This brush head is incredibly small and stiff - perfect for smudging eyeshahow or liner on the top and bottom lashline. It can also be used in detailed eyeshadow application. However, I use it for my gel liner. I can be as precise with the line and wing. Unfortunately, the gel clumps up the bristles after a while so I need to wash it.

5 brushes in total that make up my 'Essential Brushes' list. Only 5? Well, yes, for everyday use. Concealer, foundation, eyeliner and lipbalm. Period. (Eyeshadows for special occasions.)

Less is always more.

An essential brush list varies from person to person, naturally. You don't need the brushes on my list - you may not even need any brushes at all. Your fingers are your best tools. Effective, free of cost, easy to clean and travel friendly.

Yep. Less is definitely more.

-L

Some pictures want words.

He sang to her a song of fire, she a song of ice. 

And every dragon she bore in heat, he slayed with shards of cold. 

Neither gave in. 

But fused together a melody. 

Now they freeze us with their flame. 

“I’ll suck your soul out.”
"I'll drag you down with me."
"I'll fly away."
A human approached.
A shutter snapped, froze the frame, glued the butterfly to the flower.
"Fly away then."

"Will Santa come with presents tonight, Mummy?"

"Only if you're a good boy and sleep early, darling."
Santa never made it in time.
And so we stopped believing.

The sight enraptures us to its beauty;

The greenery and molding of our Earth.

Yet beneath the bewitching image,

We overlook the essence of its birth.

And she gazed upon the distant heavens; the sparkling gems of the sky. 

Nothing obscured her sight. 

Nothing called for her attention. 

She was drawn into the abyss of this glittering spectacle; she fell into the wonder of our lives and our world. 

What a glorious fall it was.

How would the light touch my soul, if I cover my body?

How would the stars feel my skin, if I coat my flesh?

How would I be free, if I live like you.

Battle weary as the years fly by,

Facing the wither and wear of life alone.
Despite many warm lights shining upon you,
You, my warrior, have a heart of stone.

The cheerful laughter that filled its halls,
The happy family that dwelled within.
Now plants slither against its walls.
But those joyful echoes never dimmed.

There is little that can behold the wonders of Mother Nature than the human eye.
Moreover, there is little that can exaggerate that same wonder than the camera lens.


Photo credits: M
Text credits: M & L

A collaboration by M & L

Nothing is something.

In his dense excerpt of 200 pages, Lawrence M. Krauss has expounded on the principles that govern our universe. To read his book, one has to constantly keep a pen and paper by their side; everything he says stays in your mind until you reach the next paragraph. For the general public, like us, it is undoubtedly a stimulating read. However, certain aspects of his writing have, probably rightly so, stirred disagreeing comments among critics.

As claimed in the title, Krauss succeeds in convincing the reader that the universe did indeed come forth from ‘nothing’. This introduces the notion of nothing actually being something. Although, Krauss explains it in the opposite order; scientists did not begin with theorising that nothing is something, in fact they tried to understand if there is something within nothing. And if there is something in nothing, then what is it, and how did it appear into nothing.

Matter is a subject fully explained in every students Physics text book. We have gone through our school system understanding how everything that is anything is made up of matter. Physics text books were simple, they dealt with what was there, what could be seen, what could be physically experimented on. Albeit, at the stage where most people in my age group abandoned physics, it got complicated. Krauss takes us through this complication.

If the universe is made up entirely of matter, and matter as we all know ultimately succumbs to the pull of gravity, we can confidently conclude that this universe is sucking itself in. If it took an explosion, such as the Big Bang to create it, it is the Big Crunch that would destroy it. Except when Hubble invented his namesake telescope, we learned that the universe was expanding. This is did not concur with the previous concept of everything made of matter. For the universe to expand, Krauss states that something that negates gravity would have to exist. If gravity was what pulled objects in, something had to exist that pulled them away. From here came the idea of the shape of our universe. 

Krauss states the universe can be present in three forms; closed, flat or open, depending on the ratio of matter to dark matter. A flat universe is the one that would keep expanding, and since Hubble had already proved that, scientists needed to prove that the universe was indeed, flat. This was further proved by the hot and cold spots on BOOMERANG.

If scientists were able to measure the two matters, and calculate how much one outweighed the other, they would essentially be able to calculate the life span of our universe. Through Einstein’s theory of relativity, scientists understood the possibility of gravity being bent in space. If gravity existed in space, then space could be curved too. Using this principle, far away galaxies were measured simply by viewing the light travelling through that curved space. Once they were able to calculate the light, they could do the same for space and furthermore for gravity. Now if they subtracted the force of gravity on matter, they would ultimately end up with a figure that pointed to the dark matter.

Of course the issue with this experiment was that they measured only the matter that was visible to them. Krauss explained earlier how if we looked far enough in light, we should be able to see the Big Bang itself. Even if this were somehow possible through the use of advanced apparatus, the plasma formed by elements at that time would not allow radiation to pass through and we can only see things in the presence of radiation. Similarly, there could be galaxies beyond our viewing possibility, and the results of this experiment could be gravely flawed.

Nevertheless, it was carried out and concluded that the level of dark matter present in the universe significantly outnumbers that of visible matter. This explained the expansion of our universe. Yet, it still didn't explain where this matter and dark matter came from.

Krauss then introduces us to Quantum Physics. The uncertainty principle guided the scientists to the idea of something coming out of nothing. It states the certain particles can spontaneously appear in space, react and disappear before one has the chance to record them. Hence the thing that we call ‘nothing’ is unstable in being, and must become something. In the case of the creation of the universe, the reaction could have led to a by product before the particles could disappear. The expansion of the universe into what it is today could be explained by the expansion of the space inhabiting these particles. The expansion would have to be faster than the speed of light, which even though isn't possible for anything; it is in the case of space, since light travels in space.

Ultimately Krauss successfully guides us through the process that leads him and other scientists to conclude that the universe did come from the ‘nothing’ that contains something.

As well equipped as Krauss is with his scientific research and data, his book seems to lack the objectivity one would expect from a man so passionate about science. His views on string theorists directly state, “First, one throws the dart against a blank wall, and then one goes to the wall and draws a bull’s-eye around where the dart landed.” He failed to understand that this is exactly what he himself has done several times in the book. The idea of nothing was his dart, and the uncertainty principle the bull’s eye. How certain can he be of the Uncertainty Principle is acting here. I agree that it makes sense, but when Krauss’s introduced the concept of a universe from nothing, he makes it sound like literally nothing. 

By the end, when he has given the reader sufficient knowledge to arrive at the same conclusion as him, he wavers in determination of defining nothing as just nothing and insists that something exists in nothing, and that something lead to the creation of the universe. This bothers me as a reader; it sounds as if he insisted on making the reader expect a universe out of literally nothing to instigate excitement and curiosity in our minds, however by the end it sounds like no amazing phenomenon. I find myself in agreement with the idea of something erupting from nothing, what I don’t like though, is being misled to believe that he had uncovered a controversial law of physics. Techniques such as this are adopted by fiction writers, not scientists in my opinion.

Another angle of his book that was disconcerting was his constant efforts to discuss religion. In his book, he neither proved nor disproved the existence of God. Yet he insists that this discussion leads one to accept that God has no important role in our world.

“I find oddly satisfying the possibility that, in either scenario, even a seemingly omnipotent God would have no freedom in the creation of our universe. No doubt because it further suggests that God is unnecessary-or at best redundant.”

Having read his book to the best of my ability, every time he mentioned religion, it took me by surprise. As a reader of a book of scientific theories I made sure to read objectively, and the reminder that these theories proved/disproved religion made it frustratingly difficult to do so.

In hindsight though, I see these issues holding little significance in comparison to the vast amount of information and knowledge Lawrence M. Krauss’s book has given me access to. It is as exceptional collection of data, one that does not deserve to be read just once.

Review: Revlon PhotoReady Concealer

Pimples, scars, unsightly discolorations and dark under-eye circles - the hunt to eliminate these facial monstrosities is never-ending. Although heavy duty foundations are enough to cover the stubborn anomalies, spot treating alone would be enough for most. And so we turn to concealers.

Concealers in the low end market tend to be watered down. It's very difficult to find a product that works on one's skin and gives flawless coverage. It was much like a treasure hunt - and I believe I've found one of the gems. This is a review on the Revlon PhotoReady Concealer.

This product was released along with its foundation counterpart. It comes in a black twist up tube (much like a lipstick) with a transparent cover. The packaging is sleek, sophisticated looking and sturdy. However, the transparent cover and the black color tends to get messy during use. Nevertheless, it is compact and easy to toss into your makeup bag for any touch-ups during the day.


The shade variety is fairly average, ranging from the Light to Deep and 4 other shades in-between. The consistency is creamy and blends like a dream as long as you have an even skin texture (a primer is recommended otherwise). This compact tube packs some highly pigmented coverage that is medium to buildable. The travel friendly tube contains 3.2 g of product. Considering the amount of pigment, this product lasts quite a long time.

Personal experience and conclusion

I have gone through 2 tubes of this product. I have severe dark spots from pimples that I would pick at (yes, a nasty habit) and it was insufferably frustrating to find any drugstore full coverage concealers in the Middle East.

At AED 40, this concealer is worth the price.

One layer - patted in - is enough to cover faded spots. 2 layers is enough for the darker ones. I use the shade medium, although it is a tiny bit lighter than my skin tone. I apply it over my BB cream and underneath my powder foundation.

Pros: No break outs from this. 

         It doesn't slip and slide unless you consistently touch your face. 

         Doesn't contribute to any oiliness (I already have oily skin). 

         It lasts an entire work day (8+ hours). 

         Fairly inexpensive.

Cons: Shade selection is very limited.

          Lack of hygiene-focused packaging.

          Tends of emphasize dry spots.

          

Other than being a slight shade lighter (easily corrected by the powder) and the occasional dry skin patches, this concealer is definitely worth a try for one plagued by discoloration and spots.

However, the question lies on the 'need' of it. It is repeatedly advised to let your skin breathe and heal properly. Hence it falls under the desire to eliminate blemishes. 

                      All you need to do is decide where your priorities lie.

                                                    - L

Standardised tests.....

PSAT, SAT, ACT, GRE, GMAT, MCAT, DAT; the list of standardized tests is never ending. No matter where you apply or what you're studying these annyoing tests will pop up! pages & pages of answering techniques, supposedly designed to make your brain work faster...Studying for the MCAT & the SAT non-stop for 8 months with no uni work to give me a break has officially driven me crazy! If I don't ever see an MCAT prep book ever again I will be ecstatic!!

Studying for one standardized test is bad enough, studying for two a bloody pain; studying for two tests at different academic level: FLIPPING IMPOSSIBLE! Your brain is constantly being pulled apart in two different directions!! To quote Ron Weasley its bloody insane!!

Aaahh...but the peace you feel when you finish the last question on the exam, its like sinking into a warm bath  after a long day. And, alas, I have finished with them so now I can look forward to something other than studying!

Review: Garnier Skin Renew Anti-Dark-Circle Roller

One of the worst things to wake up to are those dark crescents under the eyes. Although you made sure to sleep early the night before and drink plenty of water before bed, that reflection in the mirror says otherwise.

This is a common problem among many people - and there are numerous solutions to it. But for those desperate for a quick fix, this one may be for you. This is a review on the Garnier Skin Renew Anti-Dark-Circle Roller. (Now that is a mouthful.)

I have a medium skin tone so the medium shade suited me better. It was pretty inexpensive. A little back story on my eye circles/bags. They became prominent once I began university (late nights and early mornings). My bags and circles are both fairly dark and puffy. It varies a lot. So on most days, I NEED that extra coverage

 

Now back to the product. The packaging is a curvy tube that was designed for better gripping. The cap screws off to reveal a metallic roller ball that dispenses the product. This ball also provides a somewhat soothing massage when rolled under the eyes. (But don't roll it for too long. You'll be using WAY too much.)

The product itself resembled a liquid concealer with surprising pigmentation. A little goes a long way to diminishing the darkness, but it can be buildable to an extent. It is easy to spread and blend. I find that it can also brighten up the eyes a bit for that 'awake' look we desire in the mornings.

The perks: it's small, travel friendly and easy to use in a pinch. Plus it will last you a VERY long time. (believe me)

The downside: limited shade range, it won't be enough for people with darker circles and it tends to be messy (the excess product goops up in the cap and around the ball)

Personal experience and conclusion

Overall, I do like this product. Despite it being a little off-color for my skin tone, watery-ish and messy, it still does a fairly decent job in covering up my dark circles. It's not a miracle product (hardly anything is), but it does the job.

I apply this every morning before work so to avoid using heavy concealer under my eyes. I find that it lasts a very long time for just 0.5 fl oz of product. I apply this after my moisturizer. I roll it once or twice under both my eyes and pat it gently in and around the eye area. It takes me seconds to do this. I then carry on with my normal foundation routine.

I find this product essential for quick fixes and 'on-the-go' days. But I also noticed that it creases under my eyes. It's not a big thing though. But it does get annoying.

Is it worth buying? It depends on your requirements. If you're normally in a hurry, but need to look fresh and awake, then yes, this is worth it. 

But remember to embrace those little dark circles you may have. They're the battle scars of adulthood after all.

-L

It SITS on your SKIN

In today's society, perfect skin is a rarity. To be a person born with naturally contoured, even-toned, flawless skin is much like being on the endangered species list. Perhaps as children we were blessed with it. As adults, there have been reasons we could no longer maintain it. And therefore we chose to create an illusion of it - we turned to makeup.

Pictures from Google Images

One of the most basic skills in make-up application is foundation and concealer. Acne and pimples are the bane of teenagers because of hormones, nasty fried fast foods and the habit to pick at Mount Everest that sits on your nose ready to explode (but don't... just don't). 

Consider this post a rant than a tutorial. There have been plenty of make-up application disasters I've witnessed where I've had the urge to walk up to a person and offer a tip or two. Why? Well, for starters, they look like they're aspiring to be clowns.

Many ladies - Asians especially - tend to use foundations 2 shades lighter than their natural skin tone. I apologize, but unless you're aiming to role play as a Geisha, then you need to change that foundation. The rule here is to match the foundation to your neck so the natural color is continuous throughout instead of appearing mask-like. If you must use a lighter foundation, use it under your eyes to create a brightening effect.

This also applies to ladies aiming to obtain that 'bronzed' look. Look up tutorials for the proper way to apply bronzer. Don't use it all over your face. You're meant to achieve that tanned glow, not appear over-cooked.

Yes, it's a lot of work, research and you will encounter the inevitable hit and miss / trial and error along the way. But the result is worth the effort - right? If it isn't, then make up isn't a necessity. It's a choice. Love the skin you are in.

After all, beauty is more than just skin deep.

-L