Skincare Organizer ~ Rose Gold

I wanted a portable skincare organizer which isn't acrylic or plastic + would look alright on the vanity, and I think that's sorted for now. You don't know how many times I almost knocked these bottles off the table, because I was keeping them all over the place!

This basket tray is actually real stainless copper.

I keep cotton pads in that tin container, which was a birthday gift from my friends.

Real Copper Organizer Tray & Pop-up Cotton Swab Dispenser: From Viny Pop, a store like Miniso Japan.

Copper Organizer: Rs.550 

(They had a whole set of copper organizers too - pen/brush holder & a smaller basket tray like this)

Cotton Swab Dispenser: Rs.250

If you're interested, you can check out some rose gold organizers on Amazon India HERE

If you're new, and eyeing my skincare products, you can check out my skincare post HERE

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Makeup Haul ~ New Launches + Drawer Organizers

I always get weird looks from the counter people at Lifestyle when I'm buying makeup. I don't know why. Maybe I appear too eager, maybe I walk from counter to counter a bit too crazily - sometimes back & forth to "compare", maybe I look too flustered, maybe I take too long to decide which shade I want, maybe I move to another counter while they are bent over those bottom cabinets looking for a product I asked for (they come back up & hey, where'd she go?!) maybe I ask "New launch? New Launch?" like a vendor in a train - "Bhel puri? Bhel puri?" 

Okay, okay, I'll control myself next time. Before I set foot in the beauty floor, I'll coach myself first:

 "Be cool. Breathe. Neutral facial expression. Walk graciously. Duchess Of Cambridge....."

First counter - Maybelline!

The Magnum Barbie Mascara ~ This is similar to The Falsies Mascar, but with a slightly more slender brush & the formula is more packed with fibres. First Impression: Could clump & smudge easily, but if you can handle that like a meticulous woman, false lash kind of volume & length!

Price: Rs.399

Color Sensational 3D Eyeshadow Palette in Rose Quartz Pink ~ A little palette of 5 eyeshadows, in which there is a top coat shimmer eyeshadow. Available in 4 shades. 

Price: Rs.575

Color Show Big Apple Reds Nail Paints ~ A collection of 4 red shades. I picked up R2 Big Apple Red. 

Price: Rs.145

Fit Me Concealer in #20 Sand ~ This is a repurchase. I'd got the first one in the same shade from UK, and they are both the same.

Price: Rs.500

Color Show 3D Eyeshadow Palette in Rose Quartz Pink

Best Buys & Bargains Feat. A Makeup/Jewelry Organizer

Hi Everyone! Hope you're all doing good. Where have I been? I took a break from the internet. Detox. I hope my posts this week will make up for the slack these last couple of weeks - starting with this penny-saving post! You know SALE Season is on full swing here in Delhi, and although I haven't specially gone sale shopping yet, I stumbled on a few bargains. These are some of the things that I thought might interest you snazzy lot.....

New Cosmetic Organizer Tray

A recent find that I'm absolutely in love (lob!) with is this organizer. Don't mistake it for those acrylic 'Made In China' ones. This one says it is Made in Taiwan. The quality is top-notch! Super clear, shiny & thick, much much better than the 24 Lipstick Holder I got from Ebay (Remember that? Posted here). I was over the moon when I found it in a shop, that too amongst many other designs/types!

I have not thought about what I want to keep in it, so I just arranged random things for now just to show you how they look.

Makeup Vanity Organizing ~ Before & After

How you keep the things around you reflect what's going on in your head. When you see the state of my vanity before, you'll kind of get a peek into my head. About 2 weeks ago, I realized I was wasting at least 5-8 mins of my makeup time just searching for stuff: where's that color tattoo? taupe one, not this black! where are the scissors? where's that lip crayon? the fuchsia one, not this orange! why do I keep finding the same things I don't need?! now where did that black kohl go? not this one, the other one! 

Those thoughts are usually followed by words I reserve only for scenarios like these. A variety of words in 3 languages - my mother tongue, English & Hindi. So you can imagine how m-a-d I get. The main reason for all this is because I don't have my stack of drawers like I do in India. I can't even buy some here, coz I know I won't be able to take them.

Okies, now let's take a look at the transition.....

• 1st Pic: That's how it looked last to last Friday. Yes, utter chaos. I don't know how it got that way. Hair products...Q-tips....hairband.... my shame. 
• 2nd Pic: Clear out the table.
• 3rd Pic: Clean and wipe table with a damp sponge & some cleaning liquid.
• 4th Pic: Re-arrange stuff. 

Eyeshadow Palettes in a stack on the extreme left. | Cotton buds. | Coconut Candle. | Brush Cup: Reduced to one, and I keep only the brushes that I use more often. | Face Products ~ Foundation, BB Cream, Concealers, Etc. | Highlighter & Bronzer. | Real Techniques Blush Brush & Expert Face Brush. | Most-used Blushes. | Maybelline Color Tattoos & MAC Paint Pots. | In the front are tools & necessities: eyelash curler, eyebrow scissors, tweezers, mascaras, eyeshadow primer, bronzing powder, blush (that doesn't stand like the other ones.).

Right side: Jewelry stand: TU from Sainsbury's. More pics here.  |  Perfumes: Escada Cherry In The Air, Juicy Couture Viva La Juicy, Marc Jacobs Oh Lola Sunsheer, Marc Jacobs Dot. | Lipsticks that I like looking at, and some that I'm currently using.

Tip to keep it organized: Put back the stuff on the same exact spot you picked them up from. Simple =)

I know in my Vanity Stage 1 post here I said I'd add some stuff here and there, but turned out I was running out of space, and decided to put the products that I use often out in the open so I don't have to search for them crazily.

I guess this is the last time you'll see this vanity table, because I'll probably not live here anymore in a couple of months. It's kind of sad, but let's hope the next one will be something I picked out & designed myself. This came with our rented apartment. You know, I wondered why the owners would place that wall mirror so high up. Then one day, I met the couple, and the wife was very tall, maybe 5'8" or 5'9". Now I understand why... hehe!

Basic Eyeshadow Blending Tutorial & Tips

I have been meaning to do this post for a long long time! I did do one last year in September (!!!), but I did not like the photos & the lighting & my brows looked so untidy....let's just say I wasted a few hours & a pictorial.

When I say "What is blending?" I can't help saying it like Channel [V] VJ ~ Lola Kutty:

"Whaaht ees theese blanding?", with a hand gesture to go with it.

The reason I'm doing this tut is because I feel silly writing in my tutorials: "Blend well/ blend the edges" I always imagine someone reading my blog thinking- "Yes woman, blend, but howww???" I would be thinking the same if I didn't already know. Like in cooking, you can't just say "Cut the tomatoes julienne" without explaining how to do it. I don't really know what 'julienne' means, I learned the word from Monica Gellar. You remember her job interview with the creepy perv? "Are they, uh,  firm?..... I like it dirty" - about tomatoes & lettuce.

The main aim of eye shadow blending: To blur out the prominent edges so you don't really know where the color begins and ends. In most cases, the goal is to make it look like a gradient. Blended eyeshadows look more natural, especially when bold colors are used- a vibrant blue eyeshadow looks less trampy when blended well. With good blending, you can make 10 colors look like 3-4 colors.

I use only 2 blending techniques: 

Blending Technique 1: Windshield Wiper Motion- Place your blending brush on the line, and starting from outer corner of your lid, move the blending brush in a windshield wiper motion. Left-right-left-right......moving with the curve of your eyeshadow. This won't be hard to do if you have a deep defined crease. Most times, this technique is not enough, so you do the next technique in-between or after, whichever way you are comfortable with.....

Blending Technique 2: Swirling Circular Motion- In this, you make little circular swirls quickly. Start from outer corner and work your way inwards. This blending technique works well especially if you're applying one color on inner half of lid & another on the outer half, and you want to blur the prominent line in the middle where the two colors meet.

My Vanity Organizer

Most times when I'm getting ready, about 5-7 minutes are wasted on searching for the products I need. I don't find my eyeshadow primer...my mascara...my black gel eyeliner (you tend to want the one that's not in sight)....my brow pencil...my everyday nude-ish lippie...you do the math.

Then my eyes saw this Vanity Organizer 2 weeks ago while I was looking for a wedding gift. My heart literally skipped a beat, and I gasped. You'd think that type of feeling is exclusively for diamonds & man candy, but not for me- I feel that way about utensils too...shhh.

Ohmigosh, this thing is like a pacifier! It has made my getting-ready time a whole lot calmer. It can hold all my everyday makeup products. I now call it my everyday makeup station....and it is mobile too- I can easily carry it from one room to another (not to mention the terrace, balcony....hospital?) Yes, it shall be with me on a deserted island- after I load it a leetle bit more, of course :)

It has 6 sections:

Top left ~ Foundations, foundation primer, BB Cream.

Top right ~ Brushes, eyelash curler, eyeliner pencils, mascara.

Middle left ~ Eyeshadow Palette (Too Faced Naked Eye), TFSI, Bronzer.

Middle right ~ Compact powder, Blush.

Bottom left ~ Buffer brush, Brow kit, Gel liner

Bottom right ~ Concealers, Lip products