How to: De-pot MAC eyeshadows

This is the easiest way I've come across to de-pot eyeshadows. No fancy tools, just things you can find around your house! And they don't necessarily have to be MAC eyeshadows either, it can be anything with similar packaging.

Here's what you will need: the eyeshadow (obviously. lol), a candle, tweezers, scissors (or you can you a knife but that's more dangerous), something to poke through a small hole (I used a chopstick), something you can put hot metal on (I just used the lid of the candle), and lastly a palette to put the eyeshadow in (I used a MAC pro-palette [$10 at MAC store + $2 for insert])

The example I used shows the eyeshadows going into a MAC pro palette in which you don't need separate magnets but if you're putting them into a Z- palette or something like that you will need magnets as well!

You're going to start off using your scissors and with one side of the scissors you're going to wedge it just above where that prominent line is in the middle.

Put pressure pushing in while twisting it back and forth and you should see the top layer of the black plastic start to come loose.

It will pop out like this! (Some come out more easily than others)

Congrats! You're half way done :)

I forgot to mention that you need a lighter but I'm sure you already figured that out when I mentioned that you needed a candle but I don't know I'm just trying to be thorough. Haha. But also, if you use a candle with multiple wicks like I did, make sure to only light one because you do have to put your hand relatively close to the candle and you don't want to burn yourself.

Using your tweezers, hold the eyeshadow above the flame a couple of inches. Do this for about 30 seconds or so (it varies) so check back every so often because you don't want to over-burn the plastic.

Once the plastic forms a little hole like this, it's done! Sometimes the hole doesn't always form but when the plastic is indented, it's usually ready.

Then use your poking tool to push through the plastic to get the little metal pan out. Make sure to do this over something that can handle heat and make sure not to touch the metal pan for a minute or two because it will be veryyyy hot. 

Then you're basically done! WHOO HOO! :)

Pop the shadow into your palette and you're good to go!

You can also put the plastic you took out back into their original packaging and return it to MAC for their "back to MAC" program. You can exchange 6 empty products for 1 brand new lipstick or lip gloss. Check with your location to make sure that they will except the eyeshadow packages without the metal pan as not all locations do.

I hope you found this somewhat helpful! It's kind of hard to explain via blog so feel free to ask questions! Hope you're all having an amazing weekend :)

Thanks for putting up with me <3

-Ashley

My Top 10 Fall Lip Colors

Even though it doesn't feel much like fall in Southern California, I still wanted to get into the spirit! Here are 10 lip colors that I love for this time of year:

I have chosen a good variety of both high-end and drugstore products and a also variety of shades so hopefully there's something for everyone! :)

NUDE SHADES

From left to right: Makeup Forever Aqua Lip pencil in 3C, L'oreal Colour Riche lipstick in 800 Fairest Nude, NARS lipstick in Honolulu Honey. and Benefit Ultra Shines lip gloss in Life On The A list.

• Aqua Lip: Perfect my-lips-but-better type of color though it's more drying because it's a pencil so I prefer to put it on after I've applied lip balm.
• Fairest Nude: Classic pinky-nude and perfect for everyday wear.
• Honolulu Honey: A good skin-color type of nude. I like to pat this onto my lips and then blend with my fingers so that it's not so intense.
• Benefit lip gloss: Can be paired with any of these colors or worn on it's own. The formula is nice (not too sticky but stays on well) but the applicator is weird so it sometimes can come off a bit gloopy. (is that a word?) I just apply some to my lips and blend it with my fingers as well.

PLUM SHADES

From left to right: Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain (could they have made that name any longer?) in 005 Crush, Revlon Lip Butter in 085 Sugar Plum, and Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick in 473 Mauvy Night. Side-note: I didn't realize they were all Revlon products until now, like right this second as I was typing all the names. Haha. Well, apparently I really enjoy Revlon lip products :) 

• JBKBS (yup, I just made that an acronym): I love the formula of this and I have so many colors. They last forever and my favorite thing about them is that even when they do eventually fade they don't look patchy at all and it just becomes a lighter version of itself.
• Sugar Plum: Love this because it's moisturizing like a lip balm and shiny like a gloss so it's a good quick fix. Though the color is sheer it's still visible on your lips and it's the perfect in-between level of intensity. 
• Mauvy Night: Probably my favorite out of all of them. It's a delicious mauvy-plum color and it's perfect if you want a more "vampy" style of lip without looking over-done. 

RED SHADES

From left to right: Maybelline Color Sensational lipstick in 615 Summer Sunset, MAC matte lipstick in Charmed I'm Sure (from the Marilyn Monroe collection), and L'oreal Colour Caresse Wet Shine Stain (another long name) in 190 Endless Red.

• Summer Sunset: If you're new to red lipstick then this is a great color to start with. It's a lot more subtle than most reds. I consider it to be like a really deep neutral color. 
• Charmed I'm Sure: My deepest apologies for throwing in a limited edition color. But I love this because it's the perfect deep red with a slightly berry undertone. And it's super matte! Plus, if you'd like to tone it down, apply it and then blend with your fingers. They no longer sell it at MAC but I've seen it on eBay and other sites online. If you know of any good dupes for this shade, please let me know!
• Endless Red: This is such a great formula. Very similar to the YSL glossy-stains but like 1/4 of the price. (Also, L'oreal is within the same company as YSL so the formula is probably actually almost the same)  It's like the pigmentation of a lipstick in lip gloss form and once it sets it has quite the staining effect. (like this swatch is still partially on my hand even after washing it off) The color is also build-able so if you're not satisfied after the first layer, let it dry and then add some more!

So that's everything! I will probably be rotating through all of these colors for the rest of the season. I am absolutely loving them. Some are newer to me than others but some of them I've been using for years. I always say that if something works, I might as well stick to it. Most of these shades are pretty universally flattering too! Also, if I didn't write an extra tip on how I apply it, that means I just apply it straight from the applicator/tube to my lips and don't do anything special to it. Hope this was helpful and if you'd like to tell me your favorite fall lip colors, please feel free! I'm always on the hunt for new things :)

Thanks for putting up with me <3

-Ashley

My very first photo shoot!

So on Friday I did makeup for a photo shoot for the first time! It was my first truly professional job. It was extremely scary but I had so much fun and the designer seemed to approve of my work. This was not for any big fashion company or anything but it was just so cool to be a part of something like that. It was for a clothing line's online store called Jazzmin (check out the website for photos from the shoot coming soon) The designer is a friend of my mom's and has seen my work before but it was still such a surprise when she asked me as she usually hires a professional makeup artist and I feel like I am far from professional. She made my hobby seem like an actually attainable profession and I will always be grateful for that. Auntie Janis, if you ever read this, thank you so much for always encouraging me and supporting me and for trusting me enough to give me this opportunity. It honestly solidified the fact that this is definitely what I want to do for the rest of my life.

Enough of the mushy stuff, here are some photos from the shoot! :)

Okay so here are some close-ups of the model's makeup. Her name is Shelby LeDuff and she's such a sweet girl. I didn't get any before pictures (because I was nervous and wasn't thinking fully) but she looks great without makeup also :)

Products used:

-Hourglass Immaculate foundation

-MAC pro-longwear concealer in nc30 (for under the eyes)

-Rimmel Stay Matte powder

-MAC blush in Harmony (contour)

-MAC blush in Ripe for Love

-Benefit High Beam highlighter

-Benefit brow powder in Medium

-NARS eyeshadow primer

-Maybelline Color tattoo in Bad to the Bronze (all over the lid up to the crease)

-MAC eyeshadows in Patina (all over the lid) and Phloof (inner corner highlight)

-Lorac pro-palette eyeshadows in Taupe and Sable (blended into the crease) and Cream (highlight under the brow)

-MAC pencil eyeliner in Coffee (lower lash line)

-Maybelline gel eyeliner in Blackest Black (upper lash line)

-Lancome Hypnose Drama mascara

-Loreal lipstick in Fairest Nude

-Benefit lipgloss in On the A List

Sorry for not taking more photos at different angles up close! I promise I'm going to get better at this :)

Some sneak peeks from the shoot! ;)

Not going to lie, the food was a great perk of the job! Delicious food from California Chicken Cafe! :)

And I will leave you with some photos of me touching up Shelby's makeup on-set. It was such a fun day and it went by so quickly! I feel so lucky to have gotten this opportunity and to think that this is just the beginning absolutely amazes me. 

Thanks for putting up with me <3

-Ashley

An Introduction.

So I just wanted to give a bit of an introduction to both me and what this blog will be all about!

My name is Ashley Tani and I was born and raised in Torrance, CA. It's a part of LA county and I love where it is because it's about 10-15 minutes away from the beach and 25 minutes away from the heart of LA. I am 21 years old and I have 2 older siblings and 5 nieces and nephews so life gets crazy and hectic sometimes. I love my parents and I owe everything I have to them. They are the most amazing supporters in the entire world.

I somewhat recently made the decision to stop my college education and pursue a career in makeup. I am finishing up this semester but after that I plan to go to cosmetology school to get my esthetician's license. I basically just went to regular college because that's what I thought I was supposed to do and that's what all of my friends were doing and I thought I would be judged if I did anything else. But I was just so unhappy with where I was. So after talking to my parents, they told me to just go for what I want so that's exactly what I plan to do!

Makeup-wise I've done a lot of proms, weddings, homecomings and everything but nothing further than that. But today, I did my very first photo shoot! It was very exciting and there will definitely a post on that going up soon! It was so fun and it just made it even more clear that this is what I want to do.

On this blog I will include jobs that I work, makeup tips, (maybe) some fashion, hauls, and just little sneak peeks into my everyday life as well :)

So to make a long and very wordy story short: I'm just chasing my dream and I'm going to be posting all about it. It's going to be a crazy roller coaster but I would love to take you along for the ride.