Santa cutie, there's one thing I really do need...

The Stila Makeup Player

It is part makeup case and part media player docking station with speakers. It is a portable vanity where you can play your favorite music and receive makeup tutorials.

Simply download tutorials from http://www.stilabeautytube.com/ onto the mobile device of your choice, dock it into the Makeup Player, and unleash your inner artist with the press of a button. Once your look is complete, pull up a playlist and let the Makeup Player blast out your favorite tunes while you finish getting ready. Right now there are lessons for natural look, smokey eye and many more to come- perfect leading up to the holidays when you want to be your own pro makeup artist and try out some new looks.

The docking station makeup case with Stila products retails for $69.90. This is a great gift for a beauty junkie or your favorite makeupalley regular.

Beauty and technology going hand in hand!

40 Days and 40 Nights of Beauty Cult Classics
Day 16, Stila's Diamond Lil Eye Shadow

This is an eyeshadow that I had to hunt down. For a solid year it eluded me until one day by sheer luck or fluke it appeared in a drawer at my local Nordstorm. I did a little jig and created a palette around it.

Diamond Lil is a mushroom taupe that has the added bonus of green and gold shimmer. How does it differ from Lancome Erika F?
Erika F has more shimmer and less of a gold base. Diamond Lil has more slate.
Stila has an incredible velvety smooth texture that feels like you are applying cashmere to your eyelids.

Disclosure: I purchased this shadow along with this palette at my local Nordstorm store.

40 Days and 40 Nights of Beauty Cult Classics
Day 12, Stila's Kitten Eye Shadow

Stila's Kitten eye shadow has a high shimmer factor with a smooth creamy texture. The pigment and lasting power rate very well in comparison to other brands. There are many workhorse shades in the Stila catalog including kitten.

Kitten is a peachy champagne shade with a whole lot of frost action. The frost aspect has scared away many a makeup junkie. A light hand and a love of shimmer is required.

This is not my favorite Stila shade. That review will show up later in this series. It will not surprise you knowing my love for all things taupish mushroom.

Let me know what your thoughts are on this Stila shade and any others.

Credit:Blogdorf Goodman
Graphic: Melanie Parker
Disclosure: This eyeshadow was purchased by me at either Sephora or Nordstorm.

Brushed With Greatness Project

Stila brushes by Cavewoman

When I was gathering my Stila brushes for this review, I surprised myself by how many of them I have and use! I surprised myself because at this moment, I only have one Stila product, a blush, and I rarely even use it. But back to brushes, that's what we're here for. Stila's loose powder brush is the floppiest powder brush I've ever seen. I'm not sure why Stila made this brush so floppy, but it feels nice and soft on the face, and I use it more for applying pressed finishing powder than for loose powder. I reach for the flat shadow brushes every day, and they work well with applying a wash of color from lash to brow. The bristles are shaped to fit nicely from the inner to outer eye, and they can hold a good pack of color better than just about any other shadow brush I have. This brush isn't for subtle effects, detail, or crease work. Every day I reach for this brush to apply my base color (usually Isadora Gleaming in Seashell, or MAC Seedy Pearl.) After years of daily use, I did re-glue the ferrule which had come a bit loose from the handle. Back to the workhorse brush cup it went, with no problem at all.

Stila offered a short-handle brush set several years ago, and I took this set to Italy with me. I don't know if Stila offers these shorter sets of brushes now. I don't even stop at the Stila counters. I'm sure that's MakeupAlley blasphemy!

Disclaimer: These products were purchased by the reviewer, Cavewoman.