Day Lipstick VS Evening Lipstick - Part 2

Knowing that two or three lipcolours is all I need is actually making me giddy and happy!  I've decided to go through my makeup case again and de-clutter it (yet again).  I decided that for over-all function, MAC's Chili is much better as an evening lip shade than So Chaud for most occasions.  Chili is more of a classic evening look vs So Chaud is more evening 'glam' - I'm keeping all three in my makeup case, but have decided to post two photos of a complete day vs evening makeup look.

Here is a classic day look with Mocha lipstick and very neutral eye makeup (I used Gingerly blush and on my eyes, I used makeup for ever #10 shadow as a base, soba by MAC lid to crease, Teddy liner smudged with NARS Galapagos and Zoom lash mascara by MAC in lofty Brown):

Chili is a very sophisticated/elegant colour for evening because it has a spicy depth.  So Chaud is more of a brighter orange red, while Chili is an orange-brownish red.  Here is a link to the blog post where I first created this look - all the makeup that I used for this look are listed: http://renata-beautyandelegance.blogspot.ca/2011/10/whole-lotta-spice.html

My goal this year is to really make my makeup and style functional - make it personal and unique to me.  This year is about simplifying my life, decluttering what doesn't work and thereby, making room for what 'does' work - these two lipsticks have never steered me wrong and look great with my entire wardrobe.  So I'm making a pact with myself - no new lipsticks for a whole year other than Mocha and Chili - I really need to get out of my makeup buying obsession and focus on creating a signature look that is chic and elegant.  If I do purchase makeup it will only be for my makeup artistry kit or to re-stock on something I use up.  This should be really interesting for me, as I can't go to the mall without going into MAC or Sephora, but I want to prove to myself that I can do this - I can make this work and I'm actually excited to venture into the world of 'simplicity and elegence'!!!  What will I do instead?  Start focusing on style, fashion, creating a simple and functional wardrobe that is true to my best colour palette!  If you have any blog requests for me also - I'd love to hear!!! :)

Day Lipstick VS Evening Lipstick

I have really settled into the idea that I don't need 50+ lipsticks to be happy - In fact, I love the simplicity and elegence of having one or two shades that I can just swipe on and go and know that they work with everything in my wardrobe.  That's just another reason why knowing your colours is so amazing - you can have one of two shades that will literally work with 'everything' that you own in your wardrobe.  If you have a rainbow of colours in your closet, you're more likely to need more makeup to suit each outfit that you own - that's just plain silly!!! 

I have blogged before about my all time favourite, go with everything natural day lipstick - Mocha by MAC - here I am wearing Mocha with Gingerly blush by MAC on my cheeks and slightly blended on top of my lipstick (using your blush shade on top of your lipstick helps it last practically all day - I love using this trick!)

For an evening look, nothing beats knowing your best red.  For me that red is an orange-red shade called So Chaud by MAC - So Chaud is extremely pigmented, so I use Brick lipliner ever so lightly applied as a base before swiping on So Chaud.  In this photo, the only other makeup I'm wearing is Gingerly blush:

I would love to know - what are your favourite day and evening lipsticks???

Power Colours

For those of you who follow my posts regularily, you're already familiar with my current obsession with David Zyla's concept of power colours.  I have always admired women who have embraced a signature colour of signature look.  I decided to do a little 'colour archeology' and dig deeper to find what I know to be 100% true:

1) My best colour palette is TRUE AUTUMN
2) Every style test/quiz etc that I take always leads back to some various of 'city-chic', 'urban-chic' or 'euro-chic' - which leads me to beleive that 'chic' is something I need to embrace
3) My Kibbe style type is a 'soft classic', which is classic (or chic) with a romantic influence
4) My current power colours are: Golden olive (this colour is present in my eyes, skin and my hair definitely has a golden undertone to it), Teal (my best dramatic colour) and amber-gold (my best tranquil colour)
5) THe combination of knowing your colours and best style is the KEY to being and looking your ultimate BEST!!!

So the question now is - What's Next?  How do I take all this information and use it become that sophisticated woman I know is within me??? 

I think the key for me is to start looking for evening wear and dresses in my warm teal shade (wearing a striking spicy-orange-red like MAC's Chili to compliment the look).  For everyday, I am going to look for golden olive toned clothing - tops, sweaters, jackets, pencil skirts, a classic trench coat etc and accent the golden olive shade with my tranquil colour - amber-gold, golds - i.e. jewlery, belts, scarves, gloves etc etc - I can't wait to start keeping my eyes open for my power colours!!! 

My Colour Journey

My personal colour journey has been filled with many ups and downs, tee-tottering between seasons, self-doubt, uncertainty etc etc.  The great thing about this journey is that I now have a new sense of gratitude about finding my best colour palette - I feel like all those years of trying different palettes, all those 'What NOT to wear' moments, have prepared me for the moment when I can FINALLY be at peace with my true palette - I now feel like I can breathe easy, like the whole process and journey has been WORTH every second, every not so great makeup purchase - I feel like I have really grown and come into my own - I finally feel 'Mature' in this stage of my colour life!!! Its a fantastic feeling!  I wanted to share a little bit of my journey with you.  Here is a collage of me wearing the 'not so great' colour for me:

And finally, here I am embracing all that is amazing about my best colour palette - True Autumn - all the doubt, tee-tottering between Soft Autumn and True Autumn and feeling of uncertaintly are OVER:

I finally feel like my best self - like I've found my true colour harmony!!!  Its now time to stop the guessing and searching and more forward towards a new sense of personal growth within my true autumn season!  This is truely a day to celebrate - I am proud and honoured to embrace True Autumn!!!

Golden Brown and Warm Peach

I wanted to create a natural yet very warm makeup look - I've always loved the combination of golden browns and warm peaches, so I used this as my inspiration.  MAC's current Style Seeker collection includes an eyeshadow duo called Marche Aux Puches - amazingly, the colours in the duo are a warm orange-golden-peach and a medium toned golden brown.  I used this eyeshadow duo everywhere for this look - on my eyes and the lighter golden peach shade on both my lips and cheeks - check it out:

SPicy Mustard and Orange

I was inspired to create a very spicy autumn makeup look. I used a lot of orange/golden brown and gold based shades and teamed the makeup look with a warm, spicy mustard coloured top - here is the makeup I used for this look:


Face: Mineral Fusion Foundation in Warm, MAC NC 30 concealer and 'Matte Bronze' bronzer as a powder. I applied Gingery blush and then used the orange shade in the 'Marche a...ux puches' eyeshadow duo as a pop of colour on the cheeks

Eyes: I mixed brule and retrospeck and applied this as a base and then mixed the two shades in the MAC Marche aux puches eyeshadow duo and applied from the lid into the crease. I used MAC's Coffee eyeliner and smudged NARS galapagos into the upper lash line. I finished the eye look with MAC's Zoom lash mascara in Lofty Brown

Lips - I mixed NARS Autumn Leaves with MAC's Chili for a spicy orange-red shade:      

Eye Colour Harmony

Since reading David Zyla's suggestions for how to find your perfect Energy Colour (check out my last post for more details) - I've become a little obsessed with trying to figure out the different colours that are in my eye.  My eyes have always been difficult to determine colour-wise because they are green-hazelish that seemed to be a combination of khaki, grey-green, olive, with amber flecks AND to make things more complicated, my eyes seem to change colour depending on the weather, what I'm wearing etc etc etc.  I decided that instead of looking at a photo of my eye on its own and trying to figure it out, its probably easier to use my Soft Autumn and True Autumn swatches to see if I can't find a winning colour and put the mystery to rest.  Here is what I came up with:

I decided to swatch the True Autumn Khaki/greyish shade next to my eye, as I always thought my eye had elements of this colour and it seems that it does, but there is definitely some green in there that is screaming to get out, so I decided to swatch the SA grey-green shade next:

The grey-green shade of the SA swatch seemed a little muddy next to my eye - the colour in itself seemed like a closer match, but there is still something more green in my eye so I tried another SA greenish-grey shade:

 I noticed a golden element that was lacking in the SA khaki-green and grey-green shades, so I decided to try a TA golden-olive swatch:

As soon as I saw this comparison, I thought BINGO - this is it - my closest match!  That golden olive shade is in perfect harmony with my eye-colour and I understand now why David Zyla would call this your 'energy' shade - there is something about this colour that makes my eyes 'come to life - my eye colour seems to POP next to this swatch and any dullness disappears!

I found that trying this eye colour harmony/swatch test was very 'eye-opening' - LOL (pun intended) - it really made me more aware of how much I need that little bit of extra golden influence that the SA green-khaki and grey-green shades seemed to lack - I recall being draped in this shade last year when I was draped as a TA and this colour was one of my best - I regret not taking a photo of that shade during the draping process, but I'm definitely going to play around with this shade as my 'energy' colour!!!