12 Steps to Fabulous: FOTD: Bronzed and Gilded

I wanted to do a look to get me out of my winter rut. It's been so nasty and cold out and I just wanted to bring a little bit of sunshine and warmth back into my life. I decided to load up on fake tanner and bronzer to help me achieve that. Here's a rundown of what my desk looks like when I get an idea for a makeup look and/or blog post...(don't mind the Tim Ho's coffee cup)

First thing's first: I wanted to a get a good, solid tan base before I dived into this daring look. Just because you put a bit, or a lot, of bronzer on your face doesn't mean the rest of your body will pull off the bronzed look without a little help. I used the St. Tropez bronzing mousse all over my face, neck, and chest to get an even tanned look.

The reason why this bronzer is so great is because a) it's a mousse to it blends really easily and seamlessly into the skin and b) it's got a greenish hue to it. Most bronzers are slightly more orange, leaving that oh-so-snooki fake n' baked look. When it's got more green undertones, it looks browner against the yellow/pink hues in our own natural skin tones.

In person, this look is a lot more bronzed. The sunlight coming in from my window is slightly washing me out.

FACE:

1. foundation: Garnier Skin Renew skin perfector bb cream in light/medium (full review here)

2. concealer: Bourjois Healthy Mix concealer in 52 medium radiance - this concealer is super easy to blend and covers blemishes and dark circles alike

3. bronzer #1: Soleil Tan de Chanel bronze universel - the best and only cream/gel bronzer on the market

4. blush: Maybelline Dream Bouncy blush in peach satin (also used in a previous FOTD post found here)

5. highlighter/bronzer: NYC Blushable Cream Stick in Urban Spice (full review of these cream blushes coming soon)

6. highlighter/concealer: YSL Touche Eclat

7. highlighter #1: Benefit High Beam

8. under-eye setting powder: Benefit Powderflage

9. setting powder: MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in Medium

10. bronzer #2: Rimmel Natural Bronzer in 021 Sun Light

11. highlighter #2: Physician's Formula Shimmer Strips in Vegas Strip

12. setting spray: Urban Decay "All Nighter" long lasting makeup setting spray

As you can tell by the number of of highlighters and bronzers I used for this look, I was really focused on a glowing bronzes look that would stay put all day. Layering gels or creams with powders ensures the staying power of a makeup product. I finished up my face makeup with a setting spray to seal everything in and really ensure everything would stay.

EYES:

primer: MAC Paint Pot in Rubanesque (a really beautiful peachy-gold that's a great base for shimmer shadows)

shadow: Physician's Formula Custom Eye Enhancing Shadow in Nude (below are the two colours that I used for this look. I'll have a review of this palette coming soon)

eyeliner #1: Urban Decay 24/7 glide on pencil in Demolition (worn in the lower waterline)

eyeliner #2: Benefit "Gilded" (technically this product is marketed as a "tangerine gold highighter" but I'll just say eyeliner for simplicity. I used this product on my lower lash line to add brightness)

Mascara #1: CoverGirl lashblast 24hr (upper lashes)

Mascara #2: Maybelline Lash Discovery waterproof (bottom lashes)

Eyebrows: Maybelline MasterShape eyebrow pencil in Blonde (the colour of this eyebrow pencil is the exact same as Omega by MAC, my go-to eyebrow colour. Having a pencil helps to speed the process along on days when I don't have a lot of time to pull a look together or if I'm just plain lazy)