Image Heavy: Weekend of AWESOME

So there's a lot that happened this past weekend on the geeky front that I thought I would share with you, my readers. I went to MatsuriCon on Friday without a badge and a total stranger was nice enough to buy me a badge for Saturday! It made my night/day and I had an amazing time.

First of all, my cosplay:

That's me on the left as Pichu from Pokemon. In my 12 years of costuming, this was by far one of my most popular for others wanting to take photos of me. It makes me proud to have done something that so many people want photos of no matter what the reasoning. This was my Friday costume.

As you can see, there was an amazing showing of Pokemon fans. This may have been in part of Veronica Taylor (Ash Ketchum) and Eric Stuart (Brock and James) being guests of the con but it was so much fun to see the creativity that ran rampant.

Saturday was kind of a last minute thing and me just having fun. The other guests of the con were voice actors from Hetalia: Axis Powers. So the more I thought about things, the more I thought that nowadays, Italy as portrayed in Hetalia would be hitting up the con scene and geeking out. So this is my Modern Italy cosplay from Saturday.

Sunday involved some Steampunk adventure with the crew of the Airship Archon. A lot of the members had never been to COSI before so I proposed that we go there and start off in the Adventure exhibit as it's something I knew was right up their alley. We went to most of the exhibits and I hadn't been back to COSI since I volunteered so it was a nice bit of nostalgia for me. I need to work on retranslating some of the writings and redoing my notes.

FOTD: Simply Steampunk

Okay, so now, I thought I would move into creating some of my own looks. I'm still very new at this so please excuse the photos being at weird angles. I didn't have anyone to assist me in taking photos today.

This look is one that I wanted to create for both everyday as well as when I wear my Steampunk outfits. It's pretty simple and natural looking.

Items used:
Face:

• Smashbox Foundation Primer
• Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturizer SPF 20 - Nude
• MAC Iridescent Powder

Eyes:

• Laura Mercier Secret Concealer (used as a primer/base on the eyelids)
• MAC Eyeshadow - Omega
• Laura Mercier Eye Liner - Mahogany Brown (It's a potted brown powder liner)
• Rockeresque Cosmetics - Loose Eyeshadow - Beating Heart
• MAC Pro Longlash Mascara - Burnt Umber

Lips:

• Laura Mercier Lipstick - Violet
• Rockeresque Cosmetics - Beating Heart

Above is a photo of the completed look. I'm really pleased how this turned out since this was my first time putting a look together. It's very natural but also has a wow factor in certain light. My mom commented on how the copper of Beating Heart stood out when we were outdoors in broad daylight.

Now for the look I started off with Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturizer SPF 20. I use this because it doesn't go on too heavy but it definitely helps to even out my skintone for applying makeup. To finish off the foundation I lightly dusted it with MAC Iridescent Powder. A relatively simple start for an awesomely simple look.

For the eye, I started off by patting on some Laura Mercier Secret Concealer. I actually borrowed my mom's because since we're using it as a primer, it doesn't need to match your skintone exactly. Then, I patted on some MAC Eyeshadow in Omega. This goes all over the lid. Next, I take my detail brush and go into the crease with Rockeresque Cosmetics Loose Eyeshadow in Beating Heart. This color isn't due out until later this summer but I know that Rockeresque loves to send out samples of upcoming colors so you may luck out with your next order. ;) For the lashes, I put on two layers of MAC Pro Longlash mascara in Burnt Umber. I also went along the lashline with Laura Mercier Eye Liner in Mahogany Brown. I tried to keep the liner dramatic but still somewhat subtle.

For my lips, I put on a single layer of Laura Mercier Lipstick in Violet. I kept it nice and sheer but added some Beating Heart for some subtle shimmer.

And that's it for this look!

Review: Rockeresque Cosmetics - Eyeshadow - Beating Heart

So, before I begin, I want to note that this sample was sent as part of my joining Rockeresque Cosmetics' loyalty program. I had actually never used their products before but I knew that I wanted to eventually buy and try them out and since joining is free, even if I don't end up using it there's no harm and no foul, right? Well, when I received my membership card, I found a tiny baggie sample of Beating Heart. So I decided to review it as it's also a new shade coming soon. More to come before I ramble on about my whole review here but I wanted to at least disclose this from the start.

 Beating Heart with Flash

First of all like I disclosed in the first paragraph, the sample was a random reward for joining a loyalty program and not for publishing this review. I decided to do this on my own with no outside influences.

Second, when I saw Beating Heart, I fell in love. It's an intense orange copper eyeshadow with a lot of copper sparkle to it. Being a Steampunk, I fell in love. I swatched it on the inside of my arm over foundation primer and my tinted moisturize to let it stick. I love the orangey copper tone and it's relatively true to how it looks in the bag. It's great to just lightly dust on the eyes for a day look and can even be combined with other colors for a natural look as well.

 Taken in Natural Light

When I applied it to my eye for my Face of the Day (coming soon), there was a little bit of fallout which is to be expected but it was very easy to wipe off of my cheeks without ruining the rest of my makeup. This is quite hard to do with most shades that have glitter because they tend to leave behind that metallic and glittery shine behind even if the color is gone.

 The color itself has been done in many ways and many forms but is an amazing go to color and I can see why it has been redone so many times. I think I own about 3-4 copper or bronze colored eyeshadows and all of them are very similar they're just of different levels of availability. I will be milking this sample for as long as I possibly can since I won't be able to afford the full-size but I know as soon as I have the money I will be rushing to get the full-size. Speaking of, it's actually not even out yet! After I e-mailed the company, they said it will be released this Summer so be sure to be on the lookout!

This is my Simply Steampunk look that I will be writing a FOTD post this week about.

Final Verdict? OMG YES! ;)
To check out Rockeresque Cosmetics go here - http://www.rockeresque.com/

New Vintage/Costume Store Purchases

 Okay so there is a new vintage and costume shop here in town which makes me so excited. I went to the grand opening and found two absolutely gasp worthy items. One of which, I didn't even realize it's worth until I got home.

As a steampunk as soon as I saw these vintage gloves I knew they had to be mine. I wear a lot of khakis and assorted browns and these fit me amazingly well. The fit is what blows me away because I have very petite hands and it's so hard to find gloves that fit me let alone leather ones.

 My second amazing find was this Batman charm bracelet. Upon more research, I found that it was a piece of merchandise from 1966 stemming from the Batman live action series with Adam West. Most of the sites I've seen are trying to sell it for $45-90 depending on the condition. It was $8.50 at The Alley.

Here are some various close-up shots. The charms are Batman, Robin, Riddler, Penguin, and Joker. The enamel is definitely worn but I still think this is an amazing find and will love it for a long time. The other thing is that it mainly caught my eye because the main metallic color is gold. I've been wanting an old-fashioned charm bracelet for a while and gold goes with more of what I have. It wasn't until 5 minutes later that I realized just who was on it.