Chi-Town Beauty

Well folks I’m wrapping up my business trip in Chicago. I’ve been pretty much consumed from the moment my plane landed…but finally this afternoon, with the work day done, I was able to take in a wee bit of the windy city!

First stop –

BRAND SPANKIN’ NEW MAC Pro Store

I was practically salivating as my cab approached.

When I arrived the store was empty…which I loved! This meant the makeup artist could give me her undivided attention. I forget the makeup artist’s name but she was a very lovely lady, wearing the heck outta the new blue mineral eye shadow combo, Sea & Sky. Boy, is the color rich. I have this product at home and need to do a face of the day ASAP!

Anyhoo, the Chicago Pro Store is amazing. Make it your business to check it out if you’re in town. I bought a bunch of stuff that I’m not going to list because I feel some type of way about advertising my “haul” (“haul” – this is what us beauty addicts call our big time purchases).

[I’m actually going to digress for a second because I’ve received several requests for pictures of my complete makeup collection and this is a good time to address those requests]

Not to get on a soap box, but I have a LOT of makeup. I mean HUGE QUANTITIES….and I feel some type of way putting it all on display on my blog. First and foremost I am a collector of beauty products – I love interesting packaging, antique packaging, beauty books, limited edition items and much more. My collection started out as an interest/ hobby. Luckily this interest/ hobby has manifested into a fun and exciting freelance makeup artist side hustle. So while my makeup partly represents my personal interest/hobby, it also facilitates my professional creativity as a freelance makeup artist.

With gas over $4 a gallon and millions of people struggling to make a dollar out of 15 cents…I just have to draw the line somewhere. I completey recognize that my makeup collection is a hobby that I am very fortunate to be able to maintain. So having said that, unless I’m reviewing a product or product line you will probably never see a detailed “haul” of things I purchase or snap shots of my ridiculous amounts of makeup. So if I haven’t digressed enough (classic) back to Chi-Town, baby!….

Next up on my list was Garrett’s Popcorn. Their popcorn is orgasmic!

But much to my disappointment, after walking every inch of the Magnificent Mile in magnificent pumps (boo), Garrett’s (Michigan Ave loc) was closed down. Now thats just cruel!

From there I journeyed to Sephora on Michigan Avenue. Now of course we have Sephora in NY/ NJ but you sometimes find different selections in different locations. And sure nuff I found some cool NARS colors that are always sold out in NY. It was a good day at Sephora!

After Sephora I hit up Nordstrom to check out their Anniversary Sale Beauty Exclusives.

I picked up a couple of MAC/ Nordstrom exclusives from the Colour Forms and Starflash collections. Here’s some stuff I really like and will review soon:

Colour Forms Collection, Rich Metal Highlighter in Quick Flash –

A beautiful golden highlighter that can be used on eyes, lips, and face

Star Flash Collection,

Smoke&Diamonds eye shadow –

Even though this eye shadow collection is all about the frost, which I generally do not like, I describe this collection as ‘refined frost’. The blend-ability factor is high. I think these could be applied with finger tips…that’s how smooth the texture is. The shimmer flecks are somewhat subdued and will work on many skin tones.

Smashbox tried to talk me into this very lovely Beauty Exclusive but I decided to pass because the colors are just a bit sparkly for me. Don’t get me wrong, very beautiful stuff (and generous offering for the price) – but just a tad too sparkly for me and too similar to products I already own.