The other week I mentioned how much I love Origins products and how I feel like I've really found a combo of three products that have really started working on my skin. Now that my skin is on the mend, I feel like it's time to start working on my make-up collection. The make up I'm putting on my skin is just as important as any cleaning regimen I might have, if not more important! (+ I've been working hard to drink lots of water to keep my skin healthy from the inside out too)

That's when Natalie introduced herself and the Maskcara Beauty make up brand to me. I was skeptical at first, thinking this brand couldn't be as great as it looks, but after I watched a few videos and read about the founder of the product, I realized there was real heart behind the brand. Cara, the founder and owner, and Natalie really want to make women feel beautiful by enhancing our natural features with minimal time and effort.

I love that because I need sleep and I also want to look presentable, the time it takes me to get ready usually leaves me lacking in either one area or the other! Plus, the brand is really cute! I guess that's not important in the grand scheme of things, but HEY the cuteness helps! So Natalie sent me a few items to try...

I'm going to go through a few of the items from Maskcara and then show you guys how to put it on. There are lots of videos out there to help you too, so I'll link to a couple throughout and at the bottom of this post.

BEFORE AND AFTER

I think the most important thing to take from this is that you can mix this product in with things you're already using. The first time I tried this product was for this post and I used only Maskcara on my face, then added my own eye make up. Ever since then, I've been using my normal foundation as the base and then I always find myself reaching for Maskcara to swipe on a little bit of the dark contour & using a little blush (which is the most PERFECT naturally-blush looking pink) on my cheeks and lips.

However, this product is made to be used completely on it's own and it works. Just add whatever eye make up you like. Even the lips are already taken care of. I love it because I travel so much and because my friends live all over town. There are so many days when I practically live out of whatever bag I brought with me & it's so nice to have an entire face's worth of make up in one kit.

The products featured here are:

1. One compact case at first I thought it was initialed just for me! Haha no, it spells HAC (Highlight and Contour)

2. Four color inserts (Contour, Highlighter, Blush, and Illuminator) The magnets in the compact are awesome because they keep your make up from falling out. And the cream-based make up itself means you won't ever have a cracked powdery mess when you open it up!

3. One double sided application brush

4. One Perfector (beauty blender)

Putting together the products is easy! The makeup slides right out of each tin and magnetically snaps into the compact. That way your makeup doesn't fall out if you drop it. If you're anything like me, you drop things all the time. I'll take any extra help I can get!

The first step in all the videos I watched is to apply the contour first. I applied it under my cheek bones, under my jaw line, under my chin, and close to my hair line on my forehead. This is basically to shape your face, to add definition to places that look nice with a bit of a shadow, and draw attention to the center of your face.

I applied the contour on fresh skin the first time, but, like I said, I have been applying the contour on top of my normal foundation as I've been getting ready during the week.

The Highlighter totally works to cover everything you need it to, though. I applied the Highlighter next: under my eyes, on my chin, my forehead, and on top of my nose. This is to highlight and bring attention to the center of your face (everywhere you didn't put contour).

Next, I applied Blush to the apples of my cheeks. A little bit goes a long way so I dabbed carefully first. You can always add more make-up but it's tough to take it away. So start small!

I dabbed a little Illuminator just above my blush, under my eyebrows a little, and I did a quick swipe on my forehead, chin, and nose so you can barely see it. I didn't want to be super shiny so I used just a little bit.

Finally, I soaked the beauty blender in water, squeezed it out so that it was only damp, and dabbed in circular motions where the different shades met. The Perfector gives your make up that finished, air-brushed look so that you don't leave streaks behind.

I started off this post with a before and after shot side by side - here's one more! BEFORE AND AFTER #2!

That was quick, looks great, and feels even better.

A lot of different kinds of make up can definitely give you this same look, contouring is not new, but what I like the best about this set of products is it's compactness. I don't need a big bag of lots of different kinds of make up. I just need this and some eye make up. I can literally whip out one brush because it's really got two and one pallet and give myself as much or as little of a contoured look as I want to.

I definitely recommend checking Maskcara Beauty out if you've been looking for an easier way to contour or to apply make up in general.

Thanks for stopping by!

How To Video

Robe + Tank: Violet Fashion Hour

* Thank you Natalie from Maskcara Beauty for sponsoring this post!