The Beauty Spotlight Team Takes a Look into the Kit of an Adventuring Rogue! What’s in Syl’s Bag?

Greetings from that moment where your char says ‘too much clutter’, fellow rogues!

The Beauty Spotlight team has been taking a peek into the different members’ bags recently, discovering what equipment and loot they carry along with them on their daily adventures! Now it’s my turn…

I should probably mention that what you’re about to see technically only represents 1/3 of my daily schlep. When you’re an adventuring rogue and a long-suffering grad student and a ballet fanatic, there is some serious potential  for excess clobber. Since you can probably guess some of the other clutter I usually have about me (laptop, pointe shoes, smoke bombs, 6-inch thick stack of journal articles, leotard , extra dagger poison, laser safety goggles, bun-pins, hinge grease, omgetcetera), I’ve boiled it down to the essentials!

And so, without further ado, let us sally forth into the bottom of a rogue’s kitbag!

The *simplified* rogue’s kitbag. Seriously, you would not believe some of the tonnage I sometimes haul about with me… when in doubt, everyone just hands their extra stuff to the rogue!

Ze Bag:

Now, the other Beauty Spotlight Team ladies pretty much all have breathtakingly, envy-inducingly elegant handbags. I have a cotton shopping tote that I got during a conference adventure at the British Museum! 😀 All style here, all the time, right? You have to appreciate its simple, uncluttered functionality though, and it is nice and lightweight. If not waterproof…or rip-proof…where was I going with this? At any rate, I am a big fan of canvas/cotton totes…

I should take a moment to mention the phone here, as I felt it was a bit too boring to photograph separately – it’s a Samsung. Yep, that’s pretty much it really. Despite being a very internetty person,  I am not a very mobiley person – I like to hunt peope down and talk to them in person *sinister grin*. 😉

Ze Gold Purse:

A gold purse. May or may not (let’s be honest, probably will never) contain actual gold. The dragon wouldn’t get off it, even when we asked really nicely. Hmph.

Can’t really go adventuring without gold, now, can one? Or plastic, possibly. Everything is a card these days – cash, credit, dwarven armoury loyalty card, transport pass, you name it. The dungeon loot/e-money converters must be making a fortune! Anyway, this is my wallet, and is my best candidate for leatherbound elegance. Love me some bue/embossing…

Ze Sunglasses:

Despite the amount of time we spend in dark places, sometimes a rogue needs sunnies too…

These aren’t just good for overland adventuring – do you have any idea how bright it gets in the magmadragon’s molten lair? Spoiler alter: it’s bright. These are my preciousss, my Chanel beauties, the only pair of sunglasses I’ve ever even remotely looked good in. They were a gift from my parents, too, which puts an extra shine on their magnificence. If you’ll excuse me, I’ll be over here, wearing them, stroking them, and looking disturbingly fabulous. (Side note: the case isn’t really my taste, actually, but it is damn near indestructible, which is exactly the sort of armour such beautiful treasures need).

Ze Makeup Pouch!

Makeup and Hairties and Flash Drives, Oh, MY! (Warning: may also occasionally contain dagger poison). Do pardon the slight blur – the light at the moment in wintry and absolute arse for taking photos when you have my *cough* limited skills with a camera!

Yes, the stalwart little polka-dot cosmetic pouch you can see in the first pic has been with me for a while now, and it has never failed. The *makeup* contents are on an ever-changing rotation, but it always conceals at least three thesis-related flash drives and some hair ties.

The current makeup consists of:

• A Collection (Collection 2000 as was) concealer in the shade ‘as pasty as possible’ – just kidding, it’s the lightest one, 01. I haven’t reviewed this one yet, as it’s relatively new to me, but I am impressed. It combines variable coverage, undereye suitability and sufficient paleness with affordability, so there you go!
• A Lancome matte eyeshadow single in Tres Chocolat, which does double duty as my portable mirror and favourite eyebrow powder.
• An EOS lip balm in Honeydew Melon flavour. I haven’t officially reviewed ths either, but here’s the gist: it’s OK. The most fun part, actually, is progressively sculpting the dome into a sort of nipple shape that you can amuse/terrify people with.
• A comparatively modest collection of lipsticks (for me, at any rate), consisting of (click the name for a full review/swatches!): Revlon Lacquer Balm in Demure, Marc Jacobs Lovemarc Lip Gel in Have We Met?, Stila Stay All Day Vinly Lip Gloss in Nude Vinyl, Too Faced La Creme Lipstick in Naked Dolly, YSL Rouge Volupte Shine in #17 Rose in Tension and Guerlain Rouge Automatique in Rose Lip!

Bottom line: no rogue can ever have too many lipsticks with them. We have to be adaptable, flexible, and ready to soothe dryness or add shine at a moment’s notice. This is really the bare minimum, people. As you can see, there’s a bit of a pink theme going on there – if you’d like to see some of the other pink lipsticks that rotate through my daily kitbag, you can reconnoitre here…

Ze Miscellany:

I expect you’re probably surprised that an adventuring rogue doesn’t take a full on first-aid kit with her. I do, actually, but most of the sticking plasters, burn cream and anti-necrotic-damage-spray were used up when I went to take the photo…

Painkillers. ‘Nuff said, amirite, ladies/dungeoneers? Also, access card and keys, with the dag end of a promotional lanyard that gave up years ago. Some equipment you never manage to upgrade, no madder how many random loot drops you get.

Well! There you go – that was the essential contents of a rogue’s kitbag. I expect you are enthralled, and I apologise for not posting all the rest of my clutter at the same time. If you’re interested in the ballet stuff, simply holler, and I can post something about that in the future. My smokebomb and dagger collection will have to remain a trade secret for now (very competitive scene, rogueing), and the journal articles no-one but me should have to suffer through! 😉

What are your daily adventuring essentials? Anything you just can’t leave the tavern without…or something you wish you could pitch into the depths of a gelatinous cube, but have to carry anyway?

Until next time, fellow adventurers, don’t forget to check for traps!

Syl

I am an adventuring rogue, not a mercenary for hire, and as such, all opinions expressed here are my own, based on a genuine fondness for/interest in any product. If you have any queries or suggestions, please do not hesitate to pin your parchment to the board (contact me) at thepaintedrogue [at] gmail [dot] com., or use the contact form provided! All images and text on this blog are the property of The Painted Rogue unless otherwise stated. If you nick off with any of it, be prepared to find that your morning hot beverage tastes a little…different than usual. Didn’t the rogue say something the other day about that new poison that makes your inner ear itch maddeningly for the rest of your life? I think she did…

RogueGyver?! WWARD?! The (Ridiculous) Beauty Scenario Tag

Greetings from that place halfway between the shadows and the light, fellow rogues!

Today is a special day. My wonderful Wizard (husband) is submitting his (amazing! Two volume!) PhD Thesis, the bastard. ❤ ❤   😀 Since I am, as you are probably tired of hearing by now, STILL engaged in battling the Thesisbeast – albeit in the very end stages – this means that doing anything academic today has been rendered impossible because of thesis envy. MASSIVE, CRIPPLING THESIS ENVY, with inevitable accompanying feelings of hopelessness and woe. 😀

As you know, however, you can’t keep a good rogue down, and I decided to indulge in a bit of bloggy goodness. Since I am still at work, and don’t have access to all my photos to make a new review post, I am choosing to seize on an awesome tag I just saw over at EyeHeartIt. This is the stronghold of Larie, an awesome fellow scientist and makeup aficionado. She has many wonderful posts, but I’m refusing to stop hugging her at the moment for posting this one. The Internet needs more Laries, is all I’m saying.

Without further ado, then, let’s see what a rogue would do (WWARD?) in these moments of beauty crisis… 😀

Well, What would YOU do when surrounded by green-eyeshadow emitting spiders? Hmm?

1. You have to get rid of all of your foundations and only keep one high-end and one drugstore; which do you keep?

 One of the funny things about adventuring is that, in general, you spend a lot of time in area where the selection isn’t all that great. I mean, sure, your average adventuring general store will be able to hook you up with any number of morningstars and as much rope and lantern-oil as you can carry, but their selection of foundations tends to be pretty abysmal. And that’s if you’re human. Can you even IMAGINE trying to find that right shade of greyish green if you’re an orc?

With that said, the problem is sort of moot for me, as I only own high-end foundations. This is mostly because I’ve never tried any drugstore ones, because they still cost $40 a bottle here so there’s no real saving when you go through as little as I do. My current favourite foundation is still YSL’s powder foundation compact, but recently I’ve been enjoying some excellent skin days, just putting on a dusting of Chanel powder to even things out.

2. You go for an interview, and the lady interviewing you has lipstick on her teeth. Do you approach the subject or ignore it completely?

It kind of depends. If the interviewer seems like the type who might not handle a personal comment, then I won’t mention it. This is most of them, honestly. Either that or the person interviewing you is the lord/mayor/vizier/king/emperor/etc of the immediate area, and probably isn’t wearing lipstick, gender and adventure stereotypes being what they are.

3. You’re not feeling yourself and need a pick-me-up lipstick. Which do you go for?

At the moment it’s Bite Beauty’s Palomino, but really any lipstick makes me feel pretty good. ALL HAIL THE LIPSTICK. *OoOoOoOoOoOo*

Sigryin, staring down the candidates for Best Inoffensive, Battle-Appropriate Lipcolour’. Judging these sorts of things is a true beauty adventuring challenge…

4. You go back in time for a day to your teenage years; how would you do your hair or makeup differently?

Ah, the teenage rogue years. Those halcyon days of missing handholds while scaling eldritch towers because you forgot that you actually have a bust now and can’t get as close to the wall as you could before, and focusing all of your stealth and camouflage skills into your concealer wand. *sniff*

I’m pretty sure my hairstyle hasn’t changed (ponytail or bun), although the length certainly has (shoulder-length to ‘I can use it as a scarf now’). As for makeup, all I wore in my teen years was a bit of concealer here and there, and Estee Lauder Crystal Baby lipstick – if anything. Eye makeup was a completely foreign concept to this rogue, probably because all my RogueMum ever wore was lipstick, with a bit of powder for special occasions!

5. You ask your hairdresser for a shoulder length Pixie Lott haircut but they hear wrong and give you a pixie cut – what would you do?

A) Smile, say thank you, call your mum and cry hysterically
B) Cry in the chair and things get awkward
C) Complain to the manager and demand a refund

I don’t know who that is… *googles* – oh… a trim to shoulder-length and then a tub of ‘make it look wavy and messy’ wax? (Full disclosure: I don’t even know from hair products).

Anyway, here’s the thing; no-one gives a rogue a haircut they don’t want. It’s one of the benefits of the class, actually. Along with increased DEX and the ability to disappear in a cloud of smoke, you get the innate class skill ‘Hairdressers will listen EXTREMELY carefully to your wishes, and then give you the haircut you want, not the one they felt like giving you’. 😉 Let’s be honest though, why go to the hairdresser when you can, um, ‘encourage’ the wizard to learn a haircutting spell?

Chatting at the office water cooler, Ogg and Grogg suddenly realised that they had fundamentally different views on eyeliner. Their friendship was being tested to the utmost.

6. Your friend surprises you with a 4-day city break and you have one hour to pack. Which ‘Do it all’ palette do you pack in your makeup bag?

I *own* some ‘do it all’ palettes (a couple of Lancôme Absolue Voyage ones), but I don’t use them much for that purpose, actually. As much as a rogue must be economical in her kitbag-management to make sure she has room for all the hempen rope, hinge grease, lockpicks and smoke bombs as well as her makeup, I prefer to just grab a couple of essentials. Besides, pretty much every device of conveyance that I own has at least one lip balm or lipstick in it, so I’m usually covered.

Since we’re going to an actual city (much excite!) on this break, I can probably get anything I forget. Dungeons require a bit more forethought.

7. Your house has been robbed. Don’t worry, everyone is safe, but your beauty stash has been raided. What’s the product you really hope is safe?

This is a bit of a moot question, really, since obviously I caught the thief. You can’t steal from a rogue. It doesn’t happen unless we let you, and if we do that then you’d better worry INTENSIVELY about why we might have allowed you to do that and how short your life is probably going to be from now on. 🙂

Since we’re talking in hypotheticals, however, I wouldn’t mind too much if that was all they took. I have quite a small beauty stash actually, and very, very little of it is LE or discontinued. Probably the only thing I’d really aggro over at the moment is my Tom Ford Stavros!

8. Your friend borrows makeup and returns it in awful condition. Do you:

A) Pretend you haven’t noticed
B) Ask them to re-purchase it
C) Secretly do it back to their makeup

Again: no-one borrows my makeup. If anyone is using any of it, it will be something like liquid foundation/BB Cream that can be dispensed, and they will be using it in my presence. Makeup is not really the sort of stuff I share, partly for hygiene reasons and partly because it is so expensive here and each piece is, in its own way, rather hard-won on my student rogue’s budget. No to mention all the artefacts that I have to literally jump over lava/past dragons/through poison spider groves to retrieve.

With the hypotheticals though: if they messed up my makeup I would confront them about it. Not aggressively, but they need to know that such things are not OK. Knowing my friends though, if they messed up some of my makeup, I would be handed a brand new item with profuse apologies in the first place, because my friends are lovely, lovely people. It’s what I would do too!

Right, well, there we have it! Thank you all for letting me distract myself from thesis envy for an hour or so, and for putting up with my rather shadowy presence as of late! If you would like to do the tag, please feel free! Do remember to go check Larie‘s blog out though, because you can never have too much awesome. 🙂

Until next time, fellow adventurers, don’t forget to check for traps!

Syl

I am an adventuring rogue, not a mercenary for hire, and as such, all opinions expressed here are my own, based on a genuine fondness for/interest in this product. If you have any queries or suggestions, please do not hesitate to pin your parchment to the board (contact me) at thepaintedrogue [at] gmail [dot] com., or use the contact form provided! All images and text on this blog are the property of The Painted Rogue unless otherwise stated. If you nick off with any of it, be prepared to find that your morning hot beverage tastes a little…different than usual. Didn’t the rogue say something the other day about that new poison that makes your inner ear itch maddeningly for the rest of your life? I think she did…

Back From the Shadows! A Quick Post-Quest Status Report…

Greetings from the end of a long journey, fellow rogues!

In case you’re wondering what happened to this adventurer over the last week or so…I went to a conference! It was a wonderful conference on the latest sneaking techniques, the best ways to use smoke bombs without making your clothes smell funky, and how to manage problem paladins. I myself gave a presentation on the finer points of dagger polishing!

(Actually it was a science conference, but you know what I mean 😉

Luckily, even after being exiled to the forsaken continent of Wraeclast, she was still able to use her interior decorating skills.

Anyway, although it was a large conference (>500 people), the town it was held in was small, so…basically we broke the internet. This meant NO POSTING OR COMMENTING OR INSTAGRAMMING FOR A WHOLE WEEK OMG. It was hard, I’m telling you. So if you’ve been wondering where I’d gone to, there’s your answer! I will be back at my usual rogueish games soon, so expect posts, comment dumps  and general rogueishness from tomorrow – I’m looking forward to catching up with all the reading I’ve missed while I was away. 🙂

Speaking of science, though, the one thing that has hit my social media feeds once I got out of the dead zone was the news that my fellow scientist and blog BFF Jaa had her paper accepted for publication in a kickass high impact factor journal! ❤ Congrats Jaa!  ❤   😀

Until next time, fellow adventurers, don’t forget to check for internet dead zones! Also traps.

Syl

Consult the Unpainted Oracle! What’s Your 2015 Beauty Adventuring Horoscope? :-D

Greetings from the start of a brand new year of adventures, fellow rogues!

First of all: Happy New Year! May your 2015 be filled with adventure, laughter, loot, love and lipsticks! 😉

About this time last year, I posted a little quiz to let people find out what sort of beauty adventurer they were! Not long after that, I added one that you could take if you were curious which dungeon-dwelling monster you most resemble. 🙂 This year, I thought I’d go one step further! I hiked through the Mountains of Mystery to the Grotto of Enigmas, walked through the Archway of Portents and under the Overhang of Omens (these were all helpfully signposted, by the way). Why did I go to all this trouble friends? Why, to visit the Unpainted Oracle, and bring you back your 2015 Beauty Adventuring Horoscopes, of course! 😀

Dramatic shadows. The Unpainted Oracle is big on those…

So here’s how it works: if you already know which Beauty Adventurer you are, read on! If you need to find out, please go right ahead and take my little quiz, then pop back to find out what 2015 has in store for you ❤ If you do go take the quiz, please feel free to comment, letting me know what you got! I’m thinking of making some more such quizzes, so let me know if it tickled your fancy! ^_^

Note! If you discover that you are a multiclass individual, say a Rogue Wizard or Warrior Druid, then you get both of those horoscopes! If you have a large proportion of ‘rogue’ in your build, you will probably choose only to take what you want from each of them. Technically this is not allowed, but, well… 😉

The Rogue

2014 was a despicably busy year for you. 2015 will probably be even busier, so no rest for the wicked, hah! You will go on a long journey, and take on profitable jobs from mysterious new quest givers. Your blush stash will suddenly expand for reasons that will only become clear once you have stacked them in three equal piles and danced around them while invoking the name of Moradin and quaffing ale. Your stance on gelatinous cubes and orange lipsticks will begin to soften after one rather sudden Monday; your stance on paladins will not. Do not buy primers in March, or your face will fall off. Lucky Number: 6, Lucky Monster: Beholder.

The Warrior/Fighter

February will bring a brief period of minimal blood-saturation – enjoy it while it lasts, as it is also the ideal time to invest in new foundations. You will meet a tall, attractive stranger with a fondness for nougat. Three eyeshadows will captivate your soul in April – do not forget to ask for it back, or you’ll never see it again. You will gain a new appreciation for the colour of dungeon mould. Do not buy lipsticks in August, or your lips will fall off. Lucky Number: 9, Lucky Monster: Mindflayer (note: the Oracle had a funny smile on her face when she said this…)

The Paladin

You will continue to feel suffused with the light of irreproachable holiness. Do not let this goad you into making unwise mascara purchases. June will bring a new penchant for exaggerated browbone highlighting. You will rock it. Quests will take on a new and more (nec)romantically meaningful aspect in late September. Proceed with caution, lest you anger the Gods. Do not buy moisturiser in November – all your eyelashes and eyebrow hair will fall out. Lucky Number: 3, Lucky Monster: Gelatinous Cube.

Shalmanassar, in mid fireball.

 

The Mage/Wizard

You will find new energy in a long-term beauty quest. A potato shaped like a goblin will herald a new period of prosperity in October, so make the most of it. Three of your fellow party members will irritate you, but only one of them is doing it intentionally. Your cream eyeshadows will appear dull in mid-July. This is a good time to invest in cosmetic glitters. Do not buy blush in May – your arms will fall off. Lucky Number: 8, Lucky Monster: Orc Shaman

The Ranger

You will spend less time in the trees and more time in the mountains this year, so invest in a good moisturiser. March will make you feel optimistic, so put on a bold lipstick and take the opportunity to make your bid for leading the party. Avoid dungeons that begin with the letter Q. A close friend will tell you a secret in December. If you reveal it, all your cream blushes will curdle. Do not buy mascara in January, or your eyeballs will fall out. Lucky Number: 7, Lucky Monster: Goblin Rat Knight.

The Druid

2015 will bring many changes in your daily routine, and you will become short-tempered with your familiar. If it is an owl, it will retaliate by regurgitating rat remnants in unexpected locations. You will learn to do your makeup in under 30 seconds, with your off-hand. You will discover an incredible new cruelty-free indie lipstick producer in August, and suffer a period of temporary but enjoyable insanity. Do not buy contour/bronzer in April, or your cheekbones will collapse. Lucky Number: 9, Lucky Monster: Red Dragon (note: again with the creepy Oracle half-smile?)

That was all the Oracle gave me on that trip, adventurers! I wanted to ask about more classes, but she said she needed a cup of tea, a lie-down, and something to get the zombie chicken entrails off her dress with. I hope you’ve had a bit of fun here, and feel better prepared for your 2015 beauty quests 😉

What do you think, fellow adventurers? Which beauty adventurer are you? How was your horoscope? What are your beauty and quest plans for 2015?

Until next time, fellow adventurers, don’t forget to check for traps!

Syl

I am an adventuring rogue, not a mercenary for hire, and as such, all opinions expressed here are my own, based on a genuine fondness for/interest in this product. If you have any queries or suggestions, please do not hesitate to pin your parchment to the board (contact me) at thepaintedrogue [at] gmail [dot] com., or use the contact form provided! All images and text on this blog are the property of The Painted Rogue unless otherwise stated. If you nick off with any of it, be prepared to find that your morning hot beverage tastes a little…different than usual. Didn’t the rogue say something the other day about that new poison that makes your inner ear itch maddeningly for the rest of your life? I think she did…

Laboratory Beauty! Makeup for Awkward Workplaces…

Greetings from the INCREDIBLE NOISE of a cleanroom, fellow rogues!

As well as a rogue, I am also a scientist. Or, at least, I play one in grad school 😉 Over the last few days I’ve been spending a large amount of time in a cleanroom, which brings with it a few unusual challenges when it comes to makeup. As I sit here waiting for a particularly recalcitrant alchemical instrument to do its job, it occurred to me that it would be neat to have a chat about laboratory beauty, and ask you guys if you have any unusual challenges that crop up in your life/workplace that necessitate tailoring your beauty routine! I’ve already had my little moan about the fragile relationship between makeup and grad school, so this is more about getting adventurous, and finding ways to make sure you still get your beauty fix in!

The many faces (well, eyes) of the academic rogue…some more wishful than others.

Just like dungeons, laboratories come in many shapes, sizes and varieties. There are also unique challenges and dangers inherent to each one, and they pretty much all force you to jiggle your beauty routine around to fit with them. The following are a few little things I’ve noticed. I should mention that this is partly joking, partly serious – I’m keen to hear if you have any similar situations or tips, so make sure you let me know in the comments! 😀

The Laser Laboratory

The main thing about laser labs is that they tend to be dark. Sure, there are lights, but you hardly ever turn them on and the places are usually in windowless basements to begin with. Just like a dungeon! ^_^ On the one hand, this is nice because you don’t have to worry if something gets smudged, or if you’re not wearing any makeup at all and it’s 3 am and the oscillator isn’t working and you look like sh*t… wait, I may have gotten sidetracked…anyway, it has its plusses. On the minus side, you’re going to want to avoid anything that could possibly have fallout. I’m talking eyeshadow, powder, mascara that you’re trying to use up even though it kind of flakes a bit… all of that has to go. Optics need to be dust-free, and when you’ve gone through the delicate process of getting everything aligned and set up, the last thing you want is to unblock the beam and smell burning as your no-longer gaussian beam bakes mascara chips onto the sapphire crystal you were trying to generate supercontinuum in. If this does happen, make sure the mascara was waterproof, so you can at least have a little cry about it.

Additionally, if your laser lab is anything like mine, the relative humidity is going to be kept at around 45%. This is, of course, for the benefit of the crystal lasing media, which tend to be hygroscopic, but it is *really* hard on the skin and lips. Make sure to hydrate well with water and use moisturiser, and keep a lip balm handy. On the plus side, it gives you an additional excuse to wear a neverending parade of fabulous hydrating lipsticks! 😉

Pros: It’s pitch black in here. No-one will see if you’re having a bad skin day, and the laser doesn’t judge. Clearer skin and an excuse to wear fabulous lipsticks!

Cons: No glitter 😦  It’s also drier than the Gobi desert in here…

 

Hydrating Dior Lip Glow with its pretty cap. Also, a freshly-captured wild mango (no eating in the lab! 😉

Despite being surrounded, Sigryn knows she’s among hydrating friends. Left to right: Revlon Lip Butters in Sweet Tart, Peach Parfait and Wild Watermelon.

The Organic Chemistry Laboratory

The big one here is that you can’t wear nail polish, and expect it to survive unscathed! Aside from the fact that you wash everything in pure acetone, there are a whole host of other organic solvents that are even more effective at removing polish – although you should be avoiding getting any of these going through your gloves, kids (not like some of them  give you a choice). Aside from that, you might also have to be a bit careful about the jaw/neck transition of your foundation. Labcoats tend to be white (so you can see when there’s something spilled on them), and the collars can be high, so makeup stains may occur! A non-transferring foundation or  keeping a bit of distance between the two should help 😉 On the same foundation note, remember that you’ll be wearing safety goggles all the time which may mess with the makeup on the bridge of your nose and cheeks, and touching your eyes will be difficult (high fives to anyone who’s ever done the classic but awkward ‘use-my-shoulder-to-rub-my-eye’ maneouvre). The plus on this is that you won’t accidentally smear your eyeliner, and you can use the time to give your nails a bit of a rest from polish if they’re getting yellow – the gloves will cover it up!

If you’re sensitive to humidity with your makeup, take note in summer if your lab has a lot of waterbaths (for rotary evaporators and the like) – they can make things pretty sticky and gross, especially when you’re stuck in a labcoat and gloves, quietly baking like a potato while the ether squeeze bottle is squirting violently of its own accord. On second thought,maybe we should all just go home… 😀

Pros: Chance for nails to recover, pristine eye makeup

Cons: Carcinogens, sweaty summers, tricky labcoat collars.

 

This manicure sparkles and glitters something fierce in the sunlight – to be enjoyed away from the lab!

 

Some nice base products – light coverage, great staying power, no transfer or obnoxious sticky feeling under those safety goggles!

The Cleanroom

This place is what started it all off, because I’d been posting lip looks recently on Instagram (where you should totally follow me for daily rogueish goodness #shamelessplug) and using the handy-dandy radial blur tool to only have my lips in focus because I wasn’t wearing any base (HELLO PORES!). The reason for me not wearing any makeup was because I was about to spend several hours fully suited up from head to toe to go and do cleanroom things. Like the laser lab, the cleanroom is a no-go for glitter or powder or fallouty stuff. I mean, you can’t even take paper in there  in case tiny particles get loose. Like the other labs, you’ll also be wearing safety goggles all the time, as well as a full hood or hair covering, so you have to do battle with lines in your foundation. On the plus side, you don’t have to worry about styling your hair, and can totally get away with it being, perhaps, a day overdue for a wash (depending on your personal regime). Like the laser lab, the humidity is low, so you have to moisturise. Unlike the laser lab (generally) the noise of the extraction vents can get really grim, which means nice fluoro orange earplugs. These are never sexy, but you could opt to exploit the lipstick angle. Perhaps a nice vibrant colour to match the earplugs? It’ll keep your lips hydrated too. 😀 Sometimes (depending on the class of your cleanroom/what you’re doing in there)you will have to wear a full face covering. In this instance, you might choose to play up your eyes with a nice waterproof, non-flaking mascara and some matte, reliably waterproof eyeliner. In this instance, you don’t even have to worry if your skin is playing up, because you’re basically a pair of eyes and nothing else at this point ^_^.

Pros: Ultra-clean air great for allergy/asthma sufferers, don’t have to style hair, fabulous lipstick.

Cons: Earplugs are never sexy, desert-like humidity. Amusing but unattractive bunny-suit and hair net/facemask. No glitter.

Glitter’s out – it’s time to get funky with lipstick instead!

Syl’s Stages of Lash Preparation: curl, then mascara. As you can see, the difference (for me) between curled lashes and curled +mascara’d lashes is small, but the mascara has gone on very cleanly, and has done noticeable things to the length.

So! What did we learn from all this? What are my Rogue’s Tips for Laboratory Beauty?

• Focus on the one feature that’s still visible – probably eyes or lips or brows – a good non-flaking mascara, a hydrating lipstick, some defined brows and an eyelash curler will help fill your lab beauty kitbag!
• Avoid glitter, dust, powder or anything that might fall out or smudge off (or be high maintenance).
• Waterproof and long-wearing are your friends – hello stains for blushes and lips, thin layers of long-wearing, non-transferring foundation and matte eyeliner!
• Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate. Then hydrate some more. NO! Not *in* the lab, jeez. Take your cup of tea outside and drink it 😉
• If makeup is a total no-go, take comfort in and enjoy the fact that you’re probably so covered up that you don’t even need to care about what your skin is doing or what your hair looks like! Bask in the liberty! 😀 Or just wear whatever you want underneath all the suiting and enjoy it in private ^_^.

I hope that’s been an amusing little roguish diversion for you 😉 What are your experiences? Do you have any tips for Biology/Medical research lab makeup (eh, Jaa? Eh, Aditi?) What about YOUR workplace or hobby – does it affect how you wear your makeup at all? Let me know! 😀

 

 

Until next time, fellow adventurers, don’t forget to check for traps!

Syl

I am an adventuring rogue, not a mercenary for hire, and as such, all opinions expressed here are my own, based on a genuine fondness for/interest in this product. If you have any queries or suggestions, please do not hesitate to pin your parchment to the board (contact me) at thepaintedrogue [at] gmail [dot] com., or use the contact form provided! All images and text on this blog are the property of The Painted Rogue unless otherwise stated. For example, the cover/featured image of two of my fellow, spiffy scientists is the property of the University of Auckland, New Zealand, and can be found here. If you nick off with any of it, watch out for the pixies that come in the night and snap your eyelids against your eyeballs while droning nursery rhymes at you.

Interrogueation! Liebster Award + A Fun Questionnaire for All! :-D

Greetings from the local tavern-based adventurer’s award ceremony, fellow rogues!

Recently, the lovely Dee over at HowDoesDeeDoIt nominated me for the Liebster Award. Dee is a true hardcore adventurer, combining beauty, brains, and an incredible physique. She even rocks a mean jewelled bikini! (<3_<3) I’m very honoured that she considers my little Bag of Holding A Rogue’s Nonsensical Ramblings (blog) worthy, and I’m happy to answer the snazzy questions she posed. Technically, I think that by having >200 followers, and already having received the award once, I may be disqualified, but what kind of rogue would I be if I let that stop me? 😉 

SHAZAM!

Right, so here’s how I’m going to do this, because I’m a rogue and I have no shame. 😀 Below are my answers to Dee’s questions, and then I’ve made up ten questions of my own that I’m putting out there for everyone who wants to to take them on! If you’d like to do it as an award on your blog, go right ahead! If you’re not blogging, but would like to answer some or all in the comments, please do! I just love hearing from all of you lovely makeup adventurers out there 🙂

The Skeletal Necromancer and ‘friends’. With friends like these, adventures are guaranteed!

My Answers to Dee’s Questions!

What made you want to start a blog?

In blunt terms: Christine of Temptalia! Hers was the very first beauty blog I ever read, when I was hunting for reviews of Urban Decay’s 24/7 eyeliners! 😀 The idea grew on me, as did the desire to have something with which to procrastinate while writing my thesis. I also decided that there weren’t nearly enough rogue voices out there in the beauty blogging community, and thus my niche was born. 😉

No actually all of the ‘MLBB’ pink lipsticks I own. Yes, I may have a problem. Zip it, you.

 

If you could change something about the beauty blogging industry right now what would it be?

Uh…it’s an ‘industry’? What?! *looks around wildly* 😛 Just kidding, adventurers! So, since I earn exactly zero $$ from my blog, I don’t really feel as though I’m *inside* the industry, as it stands. Sometimes I fantasize about making my blog into a job, but that’ll have to wait till I graduate my PhD, at least, LOL! Rambling aside, from my perspective as someone who blogs beauty, but is outside the ‘industry’ portion of it… I can’t think of much? I mean, of course I could say something about honesty in reviews/PR samples, but I just don’t read blogs that I don’t feel are up to scratch in that area. The only quibble I might make is that occasionally I see a surprising lack of photo quality in swatch/reviews even though stuff has apparently been sent by a company. I assume that the blog has professional aspirations and a following (hence accepting/being sent PR samples), and the actual text of the review might be great,  but the photos are literally dark and blurry, or taken in artificial light so yellow as to render the colours moot and the swatches nearly useless. I’m not even demanding Jaa quality here, and I don’t see it very often, but it really jolts me out of things when it does! 

 

Arnan the Barbarien, trying to decide which size bread is more appropriate for his post-skull bashing appetite. For reference, Arnan is about 30mm/1.2 inches tall.

Anyway

You have 5  seconds to choose between your favourite lipstick and your favourite eyeliner – which one do you pick?

There is no choice. O_0 *clutches lipstick to self*

…searching for the Magical Artefact of Writes My Damn Thesis For Me… 😉

 

What’s your MOST favourite lipstick  of all time?

Probably Chanel Rouge Coco in #40, Charme. It was my wedding lipstick, is a perfect MLBB pink, and makes my lips feel better after it wears off than they did before I put it on :-).

Remember this? I can even make my eyes look jewel toned and sparkly if you give me MS Powerpoint and 10 minutes!

 

You’re given 500$ to spend. You have to choose between clothes, makeup, shoes , books and a geeky gadget. What would you spend it on ?:)

Easy 😀 ~$200 goes into a pair of Gaynor Mindens (pointe shoes), and the rest goes into adventuring equipment. It’s not enough to get a dwarven-forged dagger or anything, but it’ll keep me in hinge grease and lockpicks for a few more quests.

One of the benefits (?) of natural light photography is that occasionally you don’t even need a computer to achieve arty, semioverexposed shots…

What’s your favourite vacation destination?

Anywhere adventurous, that probably involves hiking! Favourites so far have been Egypt and the mountains of Southern France, but really, I just love travel. Next on my WANT list are Nepal, and Guatemala and Peru, but for a more relaxed time I love the little hill towns in Tuscany, or the museums of Paris, Berlin and London. I should take a moment to mention here that I have a special fondness for hiking and adventuring right here in Middle Earth. After all, I can actually say with complete honesty that I have crossed the mires of Mordor and scaled the slopes of Mt Doom (Sauron was out for lunch or something). Tongariro National Park, with Ruapehu for skiing and Tongariro and Ngauruhoe (Mt Doom) for hiking, is a place near and dear to my heart, and it’s only a 4 hour drive from Rogue HQ, as opposed to 2 days of flying!^_^

Do you have special skill/talent that we don’t know about ?

I can’t remember if I mention these things, and actual ‘talent’ in all cases is debatable (I personally think they just haven’t the heart to throw me out yet) but: I have played the cello first desk in a semi-professional orchestra? Um… I can speak German fluently, French functionally and Japanese enough not to die if I went to Japan? I can read Egyptian hieroglyphs? I can get supercontinuum out of almost anything (fs pulses help, tbh)? I can waggle my eyebrows independently of each other while waggling my ears?  Is any of this even a genuine talent? ROFL! 😀

Without the name slip…feast your eyes, adventurers! Another great palette for autumn!

Would you rather be in : A pretty dress and heels / jeans  and sneakers ?

This is actually a really hard question. Obviously, the dress and heels, because I have been all about the pretty dresses since I was born. In practical terms, however, all the things I enjoy doing in life, with the possible exception of cello and ballet if we disregard the ‘heels’ part (like science, hiking, videogames, etc) is better done in the jeans and sneakers realm…

The druid, selecting lipsticks near the Spring of Suitable Presents for Sisters. Fabulously helpful place, that.

 

Are you a brand snob ?;)

Yes and no. Yes because often the ‘high end’ brands I’ve tried have genuinely given me a better result/experience, but no because it’s hard to be too ‘snobby’ in a land where your choice tends to be between (in practical terms): branded makeup that is not cheap – this includes my beloved Revlon, which will set you back $30 a lipstick here – and cheap makeup that has no brand, no ingredients list, no provenance, and there is no way I’m putting it near my body. 😉

 

DOUBLE CUDDLY SWEATER ATTACK! The fluffy one is more awesome, but the black one showed off the polish better… #rogueproblems

 

What was the last life-changing  tip that you received from someone? ( makeup or non-makeup related)

Perfection is the enemy of good enough, people. Especially when it comes to theses… 😉

 

The Ballet Monster, complete with her weapon of choice.

 

Tell us about an app that you love !( can be a game, a photo-editing app..anything!)

While I’m not the appiest person in the world (ba-dum-TISH), I do get a lot of mileage out of the Podcast app on my iPad. I am a huge fan of the Stuff You Missed in History Class podcast, among others, so I use it a lot! Also Instagram. Does Instagram count? I may have gotten a little hooked…

 

And now – My Questions for YOU! Muahahahaha!

Remember, this is for everyone, both my stalwart readers and valiant fellow bloggers – answer as many or as few as you like, in the comments below or on your own adventure board!

1. It’s character selection time! Your choices: a human/elf/dwarf, who is a fighter/wizard/rogue. What do you choose for yourself, and why? What would your partner/sister/mum/dog/thesis advisor/whoever be?
   
2. Is there a colour (could be clothes, makeup, hair, whatever) that you struggle to wear, but are determined to pull off somehow?
3. What is on your lips RIGHT NOW? (can be ‘nothing’ or ‘pizza sauce’ or whatever, but we should probably keep PG, folks. LOL! 😉 )
4. Have you ever had to/tried to pick a lock? 
5. What’s the most dangerous adventure you’ve ever undertaken?
6. If you could go to university, for free, (again), with no career pressure right now, what would you study? If you’re still at uni, is there something you secretly wish you could be doing a degree in? Feel free to be serious or tailor it imaginatively (e.g. ‘Bachelor of Balancing Spoons on my Nose’). 
7. Pineapple on pizza: what’s your take on this thorny issue?
8. How many druids does it take to open a locked chest (the rogue was on leave)?
   
9. If you could be awesomely talented at any one thing (that you’re not already, of course, you fabulous adventurers, you!), what would it be?
10. Why do the skeletal undead always waste time arguing over lipsticks when they have no lips? Nostalgia? Optimism? Because lipsticks work just as well as ‘maxillomandibular sticks’?
    

 

So there we are! Thanks again to Dee for the nomination 🙂 I hope you enjoyed reading my typically rambly answers, and I hope you’ll take a stab at a few of the questions I’ve offered above!

Until next time, fellow adventurers, don’t forget to check for traps!

Syl

I am an adventuring rogue, not a mercenary for hire, and as such, all opinions expressed here are my own, based on a genuine fondness for/interest in this product. If you have any queries or suggestions, please do not hesitate to pin your parchment to the board (contact me) at thepaintedrogue [at] gmail [dot] com., or use the contact form provided! All images and text on this blog are the property of The Painted Rogue unless otherwise stated. If you nick off with any of it, be prepared to find that your morning hot beverage tastes a little…different than usual. Didn’t the rogue say something the other day about that new poison that makes your inner ear itch maddeningly for the rest of your life? I think she did…

Who Do I Want on My Adventuring Team? <3 Blogs I Love, Part 2! <3

Greetings from the heart of a band of true and noble adventurers, fellow rogues!

As you know, the most important part of an adventurous quest is not the loot, all the glittering treasures you clasp to your jerkin as you outrun a dragon’s searing annoyance. It’s not the glory, the foaming tankards of ale that you  throw over your shoulder as you try to master quaffing. It’s not even the frisson of danger, the tingle that keeps you sharp in the face of hidden blade traps and disgruntled drow…  😉

Nope, it’s the band of true and noble adventurers you have at your side: the rogue who disarms the traps and pops up out of nowhere to backstab the orc trying to behead you. The berserker who rampages past, shedding goblin heads like autumn foliage as she cuts through the crowd that threatened to overwhelm you. The cleric who purges the undead from the battlefield in a burst of searing radiance just as that zombie was about to bite your face off. You get the idea – without our friends,  our fellow treasure seekers, we’re faceless, headless, and covered in goblins (no, I didn’t know how to round that off either). 😀

Every adventure is better with stalwart allies. And a birdman, obviously.

On that slightly overwrought note, let me introduce you to a few more bloggers that I absolutely adore. As you can see above, this is a ‘Part 2’,  so I’ve already mentioned three amazing adventurers here, and there are more amazing adventurers to come! I made a little list, and threw the names into a hat, and these were the second 3 that came out. This is also a valid method for putting together your quest party, but of course it helps when you only have the finest quality adventurers in the hat anyway!

There’ll be some familiar faces here, but if I manage to introduce even one reader to the magic of these bloggers, that’s treasure enough for me :-).

Click on the photo to visit the corresponding blog!

(P.S. Being a rogue, I shamelessly stole the forthcoming pictures from the blogs in question, but of course they are the property of the respective bloggers! (The one above is mine))

The Wizard(ess) Sunny (Mostly Sunny)

 

Sunny, wielding her signature Coral Lip of +1 to Flawless Fresh Elegance

 

 

Sunny is all the things, really. She’s a linguist, a beauty blogger, faultlessly elegant, and so nice it’s almost offensive to boot. Because of all this, I have hired her into the party as our wizard(ess)! You need a high intelligence stat to be a good wizard (especially specialising in linguistics), and Sunny’s is through the roof, so I figure whether we need her to identify tricky arcane artefacts of lipstick, or be the translator in some tense negotiations with the Goblin King, she’ll have us covered! In either case, you also need to visit her blog, like, yesterday. ❤

The Swashbuckler Liz (Beauty Reductionista)

 

All fabulous, all the time.

 

Swashbuckling is absolutely a class. What’s more, it’s a fabulous class. Liz is the perfect example of this, combining down to earth beauty buzz, a wicked sense of humour and unparalleled skill with a scimitar (presumably), all while rocking red lipstick. Her piratically practical charm is so unmatched, she has even compared sea salt hair sprays, so you don’t have to. Like our wizard(ess), she’s also a top notch sweetheart, just to put the doubloon on top of the sundae, so to speak. Her blog. Check it. ❤

The Well-Read Ranger of Auxiliary Beauty 

 

Navigating the jungles of grad school, lipstick by lipstick .

 

Like yours truly, Auxiliary Beauty is currently working her way through the specialised type of horrortainment jungle dungeon known as grad school. This generates a lot of fellow feeling, but I’m hiring her into our party as the ranger for more than just someone to talk #gradcore with. She’s sharp as a razor, very well read, has gorgeous green eyes and always look like she fell, perfectly imperfectly, out of the 1930s (damn her). If there’s anyone who can navigate jungles and hunt down theses/dinner/literary jokes/fabulous taupe eyeshadows, Auxiliary Beauty is it. If you’d like to bask in her wit and talent yourself, please do visit her blog. Now. ❤

 

So! Those are the second three adventurers out of my Hat of Awesome. I hope you enjoy (or are already enjoying!) their blogs as much as I do! 😀 Stay tuned for more in upcoming editions of this post…

 

Until next time, fellow adventurers, don’t forget to check for traps!

Syl

I am an adventuring rogue, not a mercenary for hire, and as such, all opinions expressed here are my own, based on a genuine fondness for/interest in this product. If you have any queries or suggestions, please do not hesitate to pin your parchment to the board (contact me) at thepaintedrogue [at] gmail [dot] com., or use the contact form provided! All images and text on this blog are the property of The Painted Rogue unless otherwise stated. If you nick off with any of it, watch out for the pixies that come in the night and snap your eyelids against your eyeballs while droning nursery rhymes at you.

What’s in The Rogue’s October Beauty Wishlist Chest? Charlotte Tibury, Holiday Loot and Wicked Lippies!

Greetings from my imaginary world of awesome, fellow rogues!

I’ve been seeing so many epic new beauty artefacts and loot recently, that I think it’s time for another wishlist! A rogue’s got to get it off her chest at some point, you know? This time it’s split into three areas, and I should mention right now that this isn’t technically an exhaustive list! I’m thinking of doing some additional wishlists for geek stuff and ballet, so if you’re keen to see those as well, let me know. 🙂

Without further ado, these are the shinies…

 (NB: all the images were taken from the respective brand’s official website, or the Nordstrom one in the case of the LM and BL sets)

*drools*

Starting with Charlotte Tilbury…

Obviously, as a famously lipstick-addicted rogue, I’d rather like all of the two lipstick lines that Charlotte Tilbury has designed (barring a couple of too-nudes). However, for the purposes of this post, I have limited myself to two pretty pinks and two vampy purples! The pinks were brought to my attention particularly by the irrepressible Stacey and the illustrious Jaa, as well as (naturally) Christine of Temptalia. Christine is also responsible for my current hyperventilation over the The Rebel eyeshadow quad – I don’t really own many greens, especially ones that aren’t effectively just teal or turquoise, and the colour mix in this one just stole my heart. The Glamour Muse palette is, well, it’s *purple* people. Honestly! 😉

I have kind of a soft spot  for the beautiful sculpt/highlight palette that Charlotte also has in the range, but despite the gentle colour of the bronzer and the stunning packaging, if I’m brutally honest with myself I probably won’t actually use it. I know this is a *wish*list, and that it’s totally OK just to want something because it’s pretty, but there’s a part of me that wants to keep it to things I know I would actually put on. … anyway! Moving swiftly onward… 😀

Holiday Goodies…

 We’re starting to see the avalanche of Holiday 2014 sets and specials emerge (well, sets and specials exclusively for the US, mostly, but a rogue can dream!), and a few have caught my treasure-keen eye! Given my recent discovery of a Holy Grail product in Laura Mercier’s Amethyst Caviar Stick, the idea of trying out a bunch more of the shades seems rather appealing! Accordingly, the LM Caviar Stick set from Nordstrom is on my little list.  From the same page on Nordstrom comes the Butter London LE Steampunk collection. As both a geek and a lover of historical things, Steampunk is RIGHT UP MY VICTORIAN ALLEY. For those not familiar with it,  it’s kind of Victoriana meets Jules Verne style science fiction meets magic and steam power and clockwork. Did that make sense? Probably not. Nevertheless, it’s awesome, and I want that nail set! 😀 Thirdly, as a lover of brightly coloured eyeliners and Marc Jacobs lipsticks, I feel that the MJ Highliner set for Holiday 2014 is right up my alley – I’d love to try his eyeliners, and the shade selection is nice!

Who *doesn’t* want to be able to sport a metallic khaki lip?

My wishlist was going to end with the Holiday sets, actually, but as I was drafting the post, an email from Nyx popped into my inbox, informing me that they had just released a set of unconvnentionally colored metallic lipsticks, presumably to capitalise on the success of their recent pastel Macaron Lippie range. Because this is so new, I haven’t seen a single real review or swatch, so I have no idea if these are *really* desirable or not, but I do know that I’m 100% behind anyone releasing more blue and purple lipsticks into the world! I’d go for pretty much all of them, but Betrayal, Immortal, Risque, Envy and Sinful are topping the list (no surprises there, right?) ;-).

So! That was my little wishlist for October (although it kind of covers September as well, really, since we’ve only just entered October).

Does anything catch your eye on that list? Have you tried some of the things there? What are your thoughts on steampunk? How do you feel about metallic khaki lipsticks? 😀

Until next time, fellow rogues, don’t forget to check for loot as well as traps!

Syl

I am an adventuring rogue, not a mercenary for hire, and as such, all opinions expressed here are my own, based on a genuine fondness for/interest in this product. If you have any queries or suggestions, please do not hesitate to pin your parchment to the board (contact me) at thepaintedrogue [at] gmail [dot] com., or use the contact form provided! All images on this blog are the property of Syl unless otherwise noted. They may not be reproduced without permission – if you do, I’ll send goblin hordes after you. Plague-ridden ones.

The Perfect Purple Treasure: HG Goodies with Laura Mercier Amethyst and African Violet!

Greetings from the site of another(?!) Holy Grail, fellow rogues!

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a blogging rogue in possession of a large pile of loot must be in want of time to review it all.

As part of my continuing quest to make it through all the lovely things I collected in Dubai, I’m bringing you a rather special, shiny pair of treasures today! Laura Mercier was a brand I was *very* keen indeed to get my rogueish little mitts on, and I was fortunate to be able to amass a tidy collection of pretty, wearable pinky purple things from it. I have already reviewed the pinky lip things here, and today we’re tackling the purple eye loot! Yes, I know what you’re thinking: ‘Syl, you have so many purple eye-related things already! Now there are more?!’ to which I would gleefully reply: ‘DUH!’ (I’d try for something more eloquent and polite, but, come on – it’s purple we’re talking about here! ;-)).

Although I’d had my eye on probably half the Laura Mercier line before I went to Dubai, there were a couple of things in particular that sparked my interest. One was the famous African Violet eyeshadow that I’d seen in assorted LM palettes on the venerable Temptalia, and the other was the Amethyst Caviar Stick that I’d seen on Sunny’s beautiful blog. Accordingly, these were the first two items I hunted down.

Lura Mercier Loot! Eyeshadow single in African Violet, and the Caviar Stick in Amethyst…

First up, let’s take a look at the glittering, golden pinky lavender that is African violet:

The rogue rummaged around in the corner of the dungeon, finding a grate with a broken statue, many spiders, and a mysterious, shiny brown chest…

 

Although I considered several gorgeous palettes that contained this shadow, it was most economical for me to just buy the single I was interested in. I don’t have many shadow singles (I think the only others are a red KIKO one and the brown Lancome one I use to do my brows, off the top of my head), but I’m glad to add this one to the roster, as I see it getting a lot of use! The packaging is a sleek, slightly purpled dark brown colour, and is…well, a totally normal eyeshadow single compact. Sometimes, a treasure chest is just a treasure chest, fellow adventurers!

Flipping her lockpicks deftly back into her jerkin pocket after opening the mysterious chest, the rogue marvelled at the wondrous shininess obscured by the mysterious, inscribed inner cover..

 

Inside the compact is the eyeshadow in a square pan, covered with the usual clear plastic slip. I removed this, and instantly lost it. I’m not too cut up about it, but there is a part of me that hates to lose pieces of things, no matter how useless… *twitch* 😉

Having removed the sheath, the rogue cautiously approached the shinies, alert for any trap…and admiring her stylish pants in the large, clear mirror that occupied the chest’s lid…

 

Let’s just take a look at this gorgeous little slice of purple shininess, shall we?

 

Ooh… one kind of raking light. Here it looks more silvery/lavender…

Ooh, another kind of raking light! Here it looks a little darker, more warm violet/gold…

 

African Violet is a shimmering, almost-glittery-but-not-quite eyshadow with a smooth texture and light to buildable pigmentation. I don’t want to say ‘sheer’, because it’s not. It doesn’t have that thick, buttery opacity that, say, UD Half Baked does, but then I don’t think that’s the idea.  The name of the product is ‘luster eye colour’ (in an odd mix of English and US spellings), and that’s exactly what it does – it provides a wash of shimmering colour that illuminates the lid, but doesn’t stray into heavy metallic territory. I’m probably explaining this quite badly, so let’s take a look at some swatches! There’s a quick eye look, too, at the bottom of the post.

Swatches of African Violet (left) and the Amethyst caviar stick (right). The three pictures are showing the two in varying angles of light, to give an idea of the range of shimmer. As you can see, African Violet isn’t dense, but it ain’t patchy-sheer either!

As you can see in the swatch, African Violet on my skin is more of an African Lavender – a delicate, warm toned lavender with a shimmering light golden overtone. *drools*. I’ve been lusting after this shadow for a long time, friends, and it doesn’t disappoint! 😀 I think it would be perfect for anyone who wants a shadow they can just sweep over the lid for a casual, easy look, pop into the inner corner or the centre of the lid for a hint of lavender shimmer over another colour or layer onto the lower lash line for an ethereal touch to an eye makeup look. As you might guess, this describes 90% of my daily eye makeup. The other 10% is, of course, this.

In another corner of the same dungeon: more broken statues in crates and a mysterious brown log! No, it’s not what you just thought… (fortunately)

The Caviar Stick somes in a sleek, swivel-up pen format, with a click on lid, in the same colour as the eyeshadow compact. Helpfully, the back end of the pen shows the colour of the shade inside.

Two domes: one rogueish, hooded head, one caviar stick in Amethyst…

 

As you can see in the picture above and the swatch photo, Amethyst is…well…brownwithlavendershimmerovertones. It’s really quite hard to describe, actually! 😀 At first swatch you’re like ‘oh. It’s…kind of a mahogany brown?’ and the visions of glittering purple geodes vanish from your mind. On closer inspection, however, you notice the ethereal purple shimmer that accompanies the brown, and your interest is reawakened… (well, assuming you like ethereal purple shimmer, but, I mean, who doesn’t?).  The swatches are shown again below, for your convenience…

Swatches of African Violet (left) and the Amethyst caviar stick (right). The three pictures are showing the two in varying angles of light, to give an idea of the range of shimmer.

Amethyst has two very important features: firstly, it’s is almost offensively wearable and easy to work with. You can use it as an all over shadow, You can use it as a liner. You can smoodge the edges out, or not as you like. It doesn’t smear, It doesn’t feel tight. The colour is never too much, but holds its own. If only all paladins were so versatile! Secondly, this thing wears like IRON on me. Seriously – even without primer (my lids aren’t especially oily), I wore this for FOURTEEN HOURS, two of which were intense, sweaty ballet, and when I looked in the mirror at the end of the day the caviar stick on my lash line was *perfect*. Not just ‘decent’, not just ‘respectable’, but *perfect*. I’m almost ready to start looking for sorcery here, people. Bring me a mage! I need an Arcana check! Melissa? Where are you?! 😉

Essentially what I’m saying here is that Amethyst is phenomenal. It’s basically entered my daily routine, and competes even with the great and mighty UD Demolition. Obviously, they are two different kinds of product (Demolition is a matte dark brown pencil eyeliner), so one won’t replace the other, but I now have two things I reach for on a daily basis, and for me, that’s impressive! Yep, Amethyst is officially in my adventuring essentials kitbag, with newly minted HG status! 

Now, how about a look? This is a quick look I happened to take some photos of (does anyone other than a beauty blogger ‘happen’ to take photos of eye makeup?) – one that I tossed on on a Sunday to wear to ballet. I was in the mood for something a little ‘undone’, but still ethereal and pretty – kind of like a Bard who had a big gig on Saturday night, but still wants to look put together for her visit to Corellon’s temple the next morning. Accordingly, I have dubbed it ‘The Sunday Morning Rockbard’…

Why can’t I take pictures of both of my eyes together where I don’t look like I’m in a trance? Mysteries, mysteries…

I cropped my brows off because I’m just that little bit extra lazy, and don’t tidy them before ballet always. The eyebrow stubble isn’t noticeable until you take closeup photos… speaking of which, I should mention that these were taken on a mobile device, as the camera was out of commission, hence the lower quality. Hopefully, you can still see what I was going for! 😀

This makeup look took me literally two minutes. I cannot stress how effortless and versatile these two products are… I love both of them, and all in all I’m very, very pleased with my Laura Mercier goodies. I was very excited about the brand, and it has entirely lived up to my expectations – in the case of the longevity of Amethyst – far surpassed it! I can most definitely recommend these two products, if you’re in the market for some ethereal purple goodness! Honestly, I kind of want to collect ’em all with those caviar sticks… *sigh*

 

What do you think, fellow adventurers? Have you tried any of Laura Mercier’s eyeshadows or caviar sticks? What’s your favourite effortless eye makeup? How much do you love ethereal, shimmering purple things NO IT’S NOT A LOADED QUESTION, NO, NOT AT ALL?

The practicalities: Laura Mercier eyeshadow singles cost US$24 each for 2.26 g / 0.09 oz, and the Caviar Sticks cost US$28 each for 1.4 g /0.05 oz. Both of these shades  are permanent, and may be acquired from Laura Mercier counters in the US, Europe and Dubai, as well as from www.lauramercier.com and www.sephora.com (the links aren’t affiliate, just here for your convenience!).

Until next time, fellow adventurers, don’t forget to check for traps!

Syl

I am an adventuring rogue, not a mercenary for hire, and as such, all opinions expressed here are my own, based on a genuine fondness for/interest in this product. If you have any queries or suggestions, please do not hesitate to pin your parchment to the board (contact me) at thepaintedrogue [at] gmail [dot] com., or use the contact form provided! All images and text on this blog are the property of The Painted Rogue unless otherwise stated. If you nick off with any of it, be prepared to find that your morning hot beverage tastes a little…different than usual. Didn’t the rogue say something the other day about that new poison that makes your innear ear itch maddeningly for the rest of your life? I think she did…

Interrogueation! Sisterhood of the World Blogger Award + A Fun Questionnaire for All!

Greetings from the local tavern-based adventurer’s award ceremony, fellow rogues!

Recently, the lovely Michelle over at Wonders Reviews nominated me for the Sisterhood of the World Bloggers Award. I’m very honoured that she considers my little Bag of Holding A Rogue’s Nonsensical Ramblings (blog) worthy, and I’m happy to answer the cool questions she posed. I also think that, if you’re in need of a fix in terms of gorgeous high end makeup shinies, you should definitely check Michelle’s incredible stash out! The woman has an actual toolbox full of Tom Ford and Chanel – this is an adventurer that means business, people!

Bloggy, awardy goodness!

Right, so here’s how I’m going to do this, because I’m a rogue and I have no shame. 😀 Below are my answers to Michelle’s questions, and then I’ve made up ten questions of my own that I’m putting out there for everyone who wants to to take them on! If you’d like to do it as an award on your blog, go right ahead! If you’re not blogging, but would like to answer some or all in the comments, please do! I just love hearing from all of you lovely makeup adventurers out there 🙂

The Skeletal Necromancer and ‘friends’. With friends like these, adventures are guaranteed!

My Answers to Michelle’s Questions!

How did you choose the name of your blog?

Quite simple, really: as a fan of tabletop RPGS (and videogames, and miniature painting, etc) who always rolls a rogue if given the choice and has an unhealthy fondness for lipstick, ‘The Painted Rogue’ just kind of naturally followed. As a bonus, there is the rather weak pun on ‘rogue/rouge’ that I’m irrationally proud of, although I can’t be the first person who’s pointed that out 😉

My first pointe shoes *sniffle*. Broke the shank by foot-power alone before I even properly munched up the platform satin!

How long have you been blogging for?.

I can hardly believe it, but I only started blogging (on a whim, actually) in late December 2013, making my quest about 9 months old! I’ve met (blogmet?) so many lovely and wonderful and smart and funny people this way, that it feels as though I’ve been blogging forever. The people who support my inane ramblings and provide me with awesome comments and amazingly fantabulous blog posts of their own to read are my absolute favourite things about blogging. They are living proof that the Internet is actually full of superlative people, which is a feeling that can quickly get lost amidst the trolls and general noise. I ❤ every single one of you, be you fellow blogger or adventurous reader! WARMFUZZIESINCOMIIIIING!

One of the first ever pictures in my first ever post. Aww. The Skelemancer is *really* amazed by that lipstick.

Anyway

What are your HG (holy grail) products? The ones that you purchase and repurchase?

Well, since my makeup quest really only started in earnest a year or two ago, I haven’t actually *finished* that much to repurchase! However, I can definitely give you a list of things that I would absolutely repurchase and consititute my ‘HGs’ in each category:

Foundation: YSL’s BB cream.

Concealer: Still looking, but the Collection one is impressing me at the moment, and it was only $11 😀

Eyeshadow: Tie between Urban Decay and Sleek.

Eyeliner: Urban Decay’s 24/7 liners for sure! Especially Junkie and Demolition.

Lipstick: This is kind of a hard one, as I have MANY awesome lip products. My favourite formulae are Bloom, Guerlain Rouge Automatique, Revlon Balms and Butters, Chanel Rouge Coco, and Urban Decay Revolution though.

Blush: It’s a tie between Clinique Cheek Pops and Chanel cream blushes.

Mascara: I…haven’t really found an HG yet. YSL’s is good though, and this Clinique one is nice!

Nail polish: My favourite brands are OPI (especially Rose of Light) and Chanel (especially Rose Insolent).

Despite having been sealed in a catacomb for milennia, the lipsticks were all cobweb-free and ready to go…

What’s your latest beauty/makeup splurge?

I’m not sure that a $26 total including shipping really qualifies as a ‘splurge’, but my most recent makeup purchase was an eyeshadow, a blush and a brush from Makeup Geek! They’ll be coming soon to the blog 😀

Palettes! Can anyone say ‘addiction to cool toned purply things?’

How does your DH/BF (or any male relative if you are single) react to your addiction to makeup?

Hah! 😀 The wizard has his own unhealhy addiction to miniatures, so he’d definitely be in a glass house if he decided to start throwing stones, LOL! fortunately for me, he is entirely supportive. He even gives me pedicures, carefully choosing the base colour and the appropriate glitter topcoat, and is a fan of my lipsticks, the darker and vampier the better! He’s even volunteered to be made up (partially) for a project I have on that you may or may not eventually see here on the blog…:-D

Full on Zegana! This was way to much fun to do, actually.

What’s your makeup advice?

Wear what you want to, how you want to, and don’t take sh*t from anyone. Obviously there are going to be occasional restrictions, but getting into the mindset that you have to keep it a certain way for other people is a terrible road to go down. Embrace your creativity and have fun!

Also, own at least one teal/turquoise eyeliner. They look awesome on everyone, IMHO. Glitter is optional, but you know…UD Junkie has your back 😉

Butter London Come to Bed Red on the nails of a rogue, with a ring finger accent courtesy of Etude House Play Nail Polish in #147.

Are you organised or messy? If organised, what’s your secret?

It kind of depends. When it comes to food, makeup and laboratory work, I try to be as organised and tidy as possible, because my health and safety depends on it. Obviously, a bit of clutter builds up sometimes, but nothing is ever *dirty*. I feel a lot better after tidying things away and organising them though!

When it comes to my work desk, books, papers, journal articles etc, I am hopelessly messy and badly organised. I won’t even use EndNote, preferring to do all my references manually. SHUT UP OK? I KNOW! ;-).

Eyeliners! Trippy!

Which beauty products are you most disappointed by?

This is easy – mascaras and concealers! I’m always on the search for a mascara that actually impresses me, as opposed to being just ‘nice, functional etc’. When I say ‘always on the search’ I mean ‘always cadging samples to try’. When it comes to concealers, Ihave yet to find one that is really perfect for my undereye area, and pale enough for face blemishes. It’s an ongoing search, although as I mentioned the Collection one is pretty good.

Does anyone ever manage to get the tops of their lashes mascara’d without clumping up the whole thing and flattening the curl?

What are your favourite colours to wear for Autumn/Fall?

PURPLE. ALL THE PURPLE. JUST PURPLE. DID I MENTION PURPLE? GOOD.

PURPLE LIPSTICKS OMGWTFBBQ ARRGHSQUEE! Uh, yes. Purple Lipstick. *cough*

 

What do you love most about makeup?

I love the colours and the artistry of it. Even if you’re beginning, and you don’t think you’re an artist with makeup, you are. You have your own style, your own preferences, ways of using things, tips tricks, the lot. Embrace your art! Also the fact that it gives me a reason to wear more glitter on my person at all times. Because sparkles, yo’. 😀

When I said I was a vampire…

 

And now – My Questions for YOU! Muahahahaha!

Remember, this is for everyone, both my stalwart readers and valiant fellow bloggers – answer as many or as few as you like, in the coments below or on your own adventure board!

1. What is your absolute dream job? Do you already have it? Is it: ‘Raiding dungeons with my best friends?’
   
2. Is there one makeup product that doesn’t really work well for you, but you just can’t let it go because you love it too much for other reasons?
3. What was the first makeup product you ever bought for yourself?
4. What’s your number one undereye concealer? 
5. Do you make a hilarious face while applying eye makeup (especially tightlining)?
6. Can you speak or understand more than one language? How often do you use the second/third/fourth one(s)? If not, which one would you like to learn?
7. If you could design a makeup collection, what would the items and theme be?
8. How many paladins does it take to cook a proper steak?
   
9. If you could dance any role in any ballet (or do any role in any musical) what would it be?
10. Why do Mindflayers always try to extract your brain first, and ask questions later? Hunger? Vindictiveness? Lack of social skills? Neurokleptomania?
    

 

So there we are! Thanks again to Michelle for the nomination 🙂 I hope you enjoyed reading my typically rambly answers, and I hope you’ll take a stab at a few of the questions I’ve offered above!

Until next time, fellow adventurers, don’t forget to check for traps!

Syl

I am an adventuring rogue, not a mercenary for hire, and as such, all opinions expressed here are my own, based on a genuine fondness for/interest in this product. If you have any queries or suggestions, please do not hesitate to pin your parchment to the board (contact me) at thepaintedrogue [at] gmail [dot] com., or use the contact form provided! All images and text on this blog are the property of The Painted Rogue unless otherwise stated. If you nick off with any of it, be prepared to find that your morning hot beverage tastes a little…different than usual. Didn’t the rogue say something the other day about that new poison that makes your inner ear itch maddeningly for the rest of your life? I think she did…