Halloween: A Dark Fairy Tale Look

This is the first of what I hope will be many Halloween looks I'll be posting, as the only thing I love more than cosmetics is October 31. I'd consider this a gothic fairtale princess sort of look; I think it would suit those hideous short skirted costumes that are everywhere in the Halloween stores these days. You could be any sort of Fairytale princess or character costume, and this look would work, especially if you're not the pink and glittery sort. For someone like Snow White, you'd probably want to go darker and more matte on the lips. Think of this as the anti-Disney princess makeup look.

Eyes:
MAC Paint Pot in Quite Natural, a chocolatey brown, on the lid as a base color; using a brown underneath the black gives a warmer undertone to the black shadows. This was blended out in the crease with MAC Eyeshadow in Folie, which is a reddish brown. Both were applied heavily underneath the eye, too.
MAC Typographic eyeshadow on the lid. I chose this color, not only because it was a blendable black eyeshadow, but because it wasn't the blackest I have. This was applied more heavily at the lash line and blended into the crease. Also, this was applied heavily underneath, and blended at the outer corner to crease a big circular eye shape.
Around the outside of the black, in the crease and underneath, Make Up For Ever 49, a reddish plum color, was blended into the edges.
Make Up For Ever Aqua Black on the upper lash line, upper and lower waterlines. The top was blended with Urban Decay Blackout from the 15 Year Anniversary Palette, and a small amount underneath.
Urban Decay Vanilla (from the same palette) highlighted the brow bone and inner corner.

Ardell Wispies lashes finished off the eyes.

Eyebrows were filled in with MAC Coquette, a grayish brown.

Skin:
Make Up For Ever HD Foundation in 115.
Make Up For Ever Full Cover concealer in No. 4.

Blush:
Make Up For Ever HD Blush in No. 2--a bright raspberry red--as a base, high on the outside of the cheekbone, just under the outer corner of the eye.
The same No. 49 Eyeshadow was applied on top, blending down from the eye.
This was topped with Illamasqua Panic, a cherry red, then everything was blended forward towards the front plane of the face and backwards towards the hairline, but not down.
Contour was NYX Taupe blush.

Lips:
A mixture of Tarte Lipsurgence Natural Lip Tints in Lust, red, and Moody, berry, were applied and blotted slightly, for a dark red tint.

Fall Nail Polishes

The usual suspects for fall nail polishes include the usual vampy creams, shimmery bronzes, browns, etc. This season, break out of the box and try one of these alternatives. They're still autumnal, will go beautifully with traditional and trendy fall clothes, and will have you staring at your nails for hours. Not that I did.

Chanel Peridot and Chanel Graphite

I stick these two together, partially because two Chanel polishes on my list was pretty cruel, and partially because I think they suit different skin tones. I don't like Peridot on me, though I think it's a beautiful nail polish anyway. It's a metallic gold with flashes of different shades of green; on me, a brassy gold dominates, and it doesn't look as nice as it does in the bottle. Graphite, however, does suit me, and it's a glittery steel color. Either polish (or both, if you're inclined) are perfectly on trend for the fall, and continue Chanel's reputation for trendsetting nail colors.

China Glaze Trendsetter

Speaking of trendsetting...terrible pun...China Glaze's sparkly mustard yellow green is a sincerely cool color. It might be one of my favorite polishes of all time. It's smooth, multi-colored without a lot of shine. I would probably wear this everyday if I didn't have so many nail polishes.

OPI It's My Year

Sort of the color version of Chanel Graphite, this glittery sheer (this is three coats) purple polish is full of microglitter in shades of green and gold. It strikes a balance between sophisticated and fun, and I think it would work if you're afraid of color or addicted to it.

Butter London God Save the Queen

If you like neutrals with a kick, but have grown tired of the variations on purple-greige polishes that have been around for a few years, God Save the Queen (formerly McQueen), is the answer you've been looking for. A relatively neutral light taupe, this nude polish kicks things up with holographic glitter.



Illamasqua Vice

If this are just too out there for you; Illamasqua Vice is a traditional fall color, but the finish of this deep raspberry polish is an unusual rubberized finish. No shiny top coat on this polish, though hand lotion etc. can ruin the finish.