Carolina Braina

Are You a Makeup Collector?

May 11th, 2016 by Carolina Braina 42 Comments

KIKO Gossamer Emotion Creamy Lipstick 130 Black — I got the KIKO Gossamer Emotion Creamy Lipstick in 130 Black simply because I wanted to have a black lipstick in my collection

The other day, Marcella shared with me and the rest of the MBB-gang a Buzzfeed article on a rainbow highlighter, asking if we’d ever wear it.

Since I don’t even use traditional one-color highlighters that much, I said that I probably wouldn’t wear it, but it would be something cool to have.

Which got me thinking…

Am I a makeup collector?

Well, to a certain extent I undoubtedly am.

I mean, I’m not the type of collector that would get a product and never use it to preserve the design embossed on the pan. To me makeup is something to touch, test, and play with. So I guess that if I really got that rainbow highlighter, I would somehow use it, at least a few times.

But I definitely am a collector in the sense that sometimes (ahem… most of the time) I buy makeup products simply because I want to have them in my collection. Which doesn’t mean that I won’t use them. It just means that I don’t need them.

At this point I could go off on a major tangent and tell you that when it comes to makeup nothing is really needed. I mean, it’s not like makeup is one of the basic human survival needs, right? But when I say that I need something in relation to makeup what I actually mean is that I’ve finished a product, like mascara or foundation, and need to replace it.

Yeah, that’s what I classify as a need.

So, going back to what I was saying before, I often buy new makeup products even if I don’t need to replace anything, which I guess makes me a collector.

I’m pretty good at keeping my foundation, mascara, concealer, and highlighter stash very streamlined, but I definitely have more than I need in all the other product categories, with lipsticks being my most purchased items.

Makeup Collection — I didn’t actually need any of these products, but I got them because I liked the packaging, or because my collection was lacking a specific shade, or because I wanted to have at least one thing from a certain brand

Please, excuse the rambly post, but I don’t get many chances to chat about these types of things in the real world. Well, I mean, sometimes I do tell my partner (AKA Mr. Page) about my makeup musings, but 10 seconds into my monologue, he starts staring into nothingness, and I can clearly picture a cymbal-banging monkey inside his head à la Homer Simpson.

So please, bear with me and tell me… Are you a makeup collector? Or do you only buy things you really need? And what’s your most purchased type of product? 🙂

Carolina Braina

Hey, ladies (and gents), it’s Carolina here, reporting live from Bologna, Italy, to bring you the latest and greatest in beauty from the good ol’ continent! For an extra dose of that timeless Italian glam with a touch of humor and self-irony (because, you know, laughter is the best makeup), come say hi at carolinapage.eu and Instagram.

5 of My Spring Beauty Essentials

May 10th, 2016 by Carolina Braina 17 Comments

I always say that summer is without a doubt my favorite season.

But then spring comes around, and I’m not so sure anymore… I mean, I love the endless possibilities that come with long summer days, but the feeling of rebirth that spring brings is pretty hard to beat.

It’s so invigorating.

I love it when the freezing wintery air shifts into that warm spring breeze. You know, just taking a walk and soaking in the sun puts me in a better mood. The smell of freshly cut grass and new flowers is mildly intoxicating… In spring, I feel like I’m on a constant high.

I think that what makes me like spring so much is that it’s a big moment of change. As human beings, it’s usually the moments when (good) changes happen that give us that utter sense of joy. Later on, most of us tend to get used to what we have and lose that feeling of ecstatic excitement.

Besides the changes in the scenery and weather, spring also brings along changes in my beauty routine. There are a few products I always rediscover at this time of the year, and today I’m sharing them with you.

The Fake Tan: Clarins Liquid Bronze Self Tanning ($38)

Aside from the occasional dusting of bronzer here and there, most of the time in winter I tend to embrace my corpse-like complexion, but once the sun comes out of the clouds and the leaves grow back on the trees, I’m all about that healthy, sunkissed look. Since my face and neck are usually a shade lighter than the rest of my body, in the spring and summer I like to use a self tanner to make sure everything matches.

The best one I’ve tried so far is the Clarins Liquid Bronze Self Tanning lotion, a lightweight lotion that gives me a nice glow in two or three applications. The effect is pretty gradual and not too dramatic, so I think it’s well suited for fair/light complexions.

The Sunscreen: La Roche-Posay Anthelios Dry Touch Gel-Cream SPF 30 ($19.99)

Being an oily-skinned gal, I can’t just grab any random SPF and slather it on my face… Some of them tend to feel pretty heavy and greasy, you know? But luckily, these days, there are quite a few options for us shiny girls in the sunscreen department! My current favorite is La Roche-Posay Anthelios Dry Touch Gel-Cream SPF 30, because besides looking perfectly matte upon application, it doesn’t make me oilier over time.

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Where Do You Stand on “Matchy-Matchy”?

May 4th, 2016 by Carolina Braina 26 Comments

Nails Lips Color Combination — Wearing Tom Ford Lip Color Matte in Flame on my lips and MAVALA Nail Color Cream in 103 Cobalt Blue

Having just completed my third decade on this planet is making all sorts of existential questions pop inside my head. Like…

Where am I going?

What am I doing?

What is the meaning of life?

Chicken or egg?

Jess or Dean?

To rent, or to buy?

To dream, or to earn?

To match nails and lips, or not to match nails and lips?

The list could go on and on, but I’m sure you’ll agree with me that this last question is the one that needs to be answered first. I mean, how am I supposed to figure out my place in the universe if I can’t even decide what lipstick to pair with my nail color, right? 😉

So, let’s see… In my earlier makeup-loving days, I had a phase when I would often wear red lipstick and red nail polish at the same time, but, now that I think of it, these days I definitely tend to avoid that. Instead, I prefer to use two different shades that go well together. For example, I like pairing orange and blue, like I did today.

I also tend to avoid wearing the same color on my fingers and toes. Something I do pretty often in the summer months is wear a bold shade on my fingers and a neutral on my toes, where my nail polish tends to last longer. This way, when the polish on my fingers chips, I can change it without having to worry about the new shade not matching well with the one on my toes.

Fingers Toes Nail Polish Combinations — L-R: Formula X Nail Color in Monumental, Essie Nail Lacquer in Fifth Avenue, Smith & Cult Nailed Lacquer in Doe My Dear, OPI Nail Lacquer in Incognito in Sausalito, Collistar Gloss Nail Lacquer in 521 Caramello Golosa, KIKO Milano Power Pro Nail Lacquer in 07 Peach

Where do you guys stand on the whole “to match or not to match” conundrum? Do you have any favorite color combinations to share with me? Sandal season is just around the corner. I need inspiration! 😉

Carolina Braina

A Spring 2016 Diane Von Furstenberg-Inspired Face of the Day Feat. the Urban Decay Electric Palette

May 3rd, 2016 by Carolina Braina 24 Comments

Every day is a good day for a turquoise and green eyeshadow look! 😉

Raise your hand if you’re a proud owner of the Urban Decay Electric palette or a similar bright eyeshadow palette!

OK, now, raise your hand if you don’t use it as much as you wish you did!

HA, I see quite a lot of you have raised your hands both times, just like I have…

But frankly, the UD Electric is too beautiful a palette to just gather dust in my makeup drawer, and I’ve decided I want to change that!

So I’m thinking this is the perfect time to finally try the turquoise and green color combination I fell in love with last fall, when I saw the gorgeous look Pat McGrath had created for Diane Von Furstenberg at NYFW Spring 2016.

And if you, too, want to show your brights some much-deserved love, why don’t you get ready with me today? 😉

After applying primer all over the lids, pack a vibrant green shadow on the mobile lids with a firm brush, and blend it out just above the crease using a tiny bit of the same shadow on a fluffier brush, creating an elongated shape in the outer corners. Then prime your lower lash lines, apply the same green, and blend out the edges really well – we don’t want any harsh lines.

Now, wet a shader brush and use it to line the upper lashes with a turquoise shadow. Then blend the edge between green and turquoise so that the two colors merge together.

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The Best in Beauty From the Boot, Vol. 8: PUPA Milano

April 29th, 2016 by Carolina Braina 22 Comments

PUPA I'M Lipstick 405 Electric Fuchsia PUPA Vamp! Mascara — Wearing PUPA I’M Lipstick in 405 Electric Fuchsia on my lips, and PUPA Vamp! Mascara on my lashes

Hi everyone, I’m back with a new installment of the one where I show you my favorite makeup brands from this boot-shaped country of mine, AKA Italy. I have to admit that I’m really enjoying playing the Virgil to your Dante while we travel through the Italian beauty heaven! 😉

Today we’re talking about PUPA Milano, a mid-range brand that can be found in lots of beauty and department stores across Italy.

One of my earliest memories about PUPA is this makeup set that one Christmas, many moons ago, made me a very happy middle school girl. The Milan-based cosmetic company used to be very famous for that type of sets. Well, it actually might still be, but I’m too old to know! #soontobe30 ?

These days, it’s their more ordinary creations, like the ones I’m showing you today, that make me one very happy girl!

PUPA I’M Lipsticks in 301 Poppy & 405 Electric Fuchsia

Pupa Milano I'M Lipstick 301 Poppy Swatch — PUPA I’M Lipstick in 301 Poppy

Pupa Milano I'M Lipstick 405 Electric Fuchsia Swatch — PUPA I’M Lipstick in 405 Electric Fuchsia

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When Doing Your Makeup, Do You Reach More Often for Cream or Powder Formulas?

April 26th, 2016 by Carolina Braina 23 Comments

Hmm… If you’d asked me a few months ago, I would have definitely replied “powder”. You know, as someone with oily skin, for years I thought that using powder products for my base was the right thing to do. God knows how many pans of Shiseido Pureness foundation I went through in my late teens and early twenties…

Then I moved on to liquid foundations and never really looked back. I still kept using mainly powder bronzers and blushes, though, more out of habit than anything else. But over the last few weeks, I’ve been obsessed with achieving the most natural-looking base as possible, one that would be undetectable on the skin even when using a magnifying mirror.

Well, I’m happy to report that I’ve found the perfect product combination for that, and they’re all cream or liquid formulas.

Primer: Since these days I only powder the areas I conceal, I find that using a mattifying primer helps my foundation stay put longer, so the Make Up For Ever Step1 Skin Equalizer Mattifying Primer has earned itself a premium spot in my everyday makeup bag.

Foundation: My most recent base product crush is the La Roche-Posay Effaclar BB Blur. You may read all about it here, but basically it’s a silicone-based BB mousse that is AMAZING at minimizing pores and fine lines while blurring the look of imperfections. AND it doesn’t require powdering.

Bronzer: My favorite bronzer at the moment is yet another blurring product, and it comes in the form of the YSL Les Sahariennes Sun-Kissed Blur Perfector. It’s a balm-to-powder formula that melts into the skin and makes you look like you’re glowing from within. I apply it all over my face and neck, focusing on the areas that tan first, and it gives me the most subtle, natural-looking radiance. I just can’t get enough of it!

Blush: The Chanel Le Blush Crème de Chanel is my all-time favorite cream blush formula, but sadly it seems to have been discontinued. The shade I’ve used today is Affinité, a beautiful cool-toned pink with a satin finish that lasts way longer on my oily skin than any powder blush I’ve ever tried.

Highlighter: As a finishing touch, I like to dab a couple of drops of the Revlon Photoready Skinlights in 100 Bare Light on my cheekbones. Again, the result is pretty subtle, but in real life you can definitely see a juicy sheen whenever the light hits the area.

Cream Makeup Products — In case you’re wondering, the lipstick I’m wearing today is MAC Fusion Pink

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The Best in Beauty From the Boot, Vol. 7: KIKO Milano

April 20th, 2016 by Carolina Braina 31 Comments

KIKO Milano Italian Makeup — It’s KIKO time! 🙂

The grass is always greener on the other side, isn’t it?

Well, it’s actually not always greener on the other side, but I think it’s human nature to want what we don’t have and take for granted what we do have.

Look at me for example: I always lust after makeup products I don’t have access to, but often ignore those I have within easy reach.

You know, like, KIKO stores here in Italy are literally everywhere, and I can easily walk past them without even entering (sometimes, LOL). But if, say, a ColourPop store magically appeared in my local mall, I’d get as excited as when I heard there would be a Gilmore Girls revival on Netflix (any fellow fans out there?). That is, super. Freaking. Excited. Bordering hysterical. 😉

Which, you know, is totally unfair to KIKO, since they actually make some truly kick-*ss products, like the ones I’m showing you today, for example. Definitely worth getting very excited for!

KIKO Gossamer Emotion Creamy Lipsticks in 106 Mauve & 117 Papaya ($12)

KIKO Gossamer Emotion Creamy Lipstick 117 Papaya 106 Mauve — If you click the golden button at the top, the tube comes out the bottom… NICE!

KIKO Gossamer Emotion Creamy Lipstick 106 Mauve Swatch — KIKO Gossamer Emotion Creamy Lipstick in 106 Mauve (which to me doesn’t look mauvy at all)

KIKO Gossamer Emotion Creamy Lipstick 117 Papaya Swatch — KIKO Gossamer Emotion Creamy Lipstick 117 Papaya

The gorgeous packaging is what first drew me to the Gossamer Emotion Creamy Lipsticks, but I was delighted to find out that the formula is not half bad either. Their texture is creamy in a non-slippery way, so that they’re comfortable on the lips, but you don’t need to worry about getting lipstick all over your face and teeth.

Shades 116 Mauve and 117 Papaya are nicely pigmented and pretty long-lasting, but I’ve heard that some colors (the range features 30!) are sheerer and have a shorter wear time than others.

Actually, now that I think of it, I also have 130 Black, which I used for my 2015 wearable Halloween look, and it definitely is sheerer. And, by the way, if you want to go black (or any other very dark shade) on the lips, I’d recommend opting for a matte formula, so that you don’t need to worry about it smearing or getting on your teeth. Just saying…

KIKO Flawless Fusion Bronzer in 03 Cinnamon ($18)

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Unsung Makeup Heroes: Chanel Les Beiges Healthy Glow Sheer Powder SPF 15

April 19th, 2016 by Carolina Braina 13 Comments

Chanel Les Beiges Healthy Glow Sheer Powder 50 Review — For a subtly sunkissed look, I love wearing Chanel Les Beiges Healthy Glow Sheer Powder SPF 15 in shade 50 dusted all over my face, focusing on the areas that would naturally tan first

The long-running Unsung Heroes series here on Makeup and Beauty Blog features some of our all-time favorite permanent collection products.

Have you ever seen the Gisele Bündchen ad for the Chanel Les Beiges Healthy Glow Sheer Powder? She’s literally glowing! I think it was that and the amazing-looking beige compact that made me want to buy it… And god, am I glad I did… I mean, it’s become one of my favorite makeup products of all time. It’s definitely my favorite bronzer of all time. You know, with it Chanel invented a new concept of bronzer… A sheer bronzer that’s impossible to overdo. Like, you really need to load your brush for it to show up, but that’s what I like about it, because, really, you can pack it on as much as you want, like you can keep packing it on, and it’ll never look too much.

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