As a kid, I remember having many dreams about what I'd be when I grew up. Becoming a teacher and a violinist are some of the ones I remember most clearly. But every four years, I'd watch the Olympics with my dad and every time the women's gymnastics program came on, I'd be glued to the screen and mesmerized. I'd do tumbles and leaps all around the house for days until my mom told me to sit down and read before I knock over yet another expensive vase.
This year was a bit different and I've been avoiding watching the Olympics. However, my mom turned it on last night and we watched the women's team event and being the makeup junkie that I am, I was mesmerized by Simone Biles' eye makeup. The colorful glitter pop on her lower lashline felt fun and patriotic at the same time. I'm a bit too old to be doing tumbles and leaps so instead, I wanted to recreate that look for you. I'd post the photo for you but I've just been reading about copyright so I'll link you to the photo instead, hehe.
Basically, she has a light golden satin eyeshadow all over her upper lid with a cat eye. On the lower lash line, she has red glitter on the outer corner, silver glitter in the center and blue glitter on the inner corner. There's different variations of this look but I like the one using the U.S. flag's color scheme the most. So, let's dive into the makeup!
I'm not the most patriotic person out there but because Simone is competing for the U.S. team, I decided to use makeup made here in the good ol' U.S.A. I'm using a mix of cruelty and non-cruelty free products but I did substitute wherever I could.
FACE
- PRIMER -- I'd imagine that doing all those cool tumbles and moves would work up quite a sweat so a primer is a must! The Smashbox Photo Finish Primer w/SPF 20 Dermaxyl Complex* is a silicone based primer and has a slightly mattifying effect while smoothing out my pores. I've been having a few breakouts on my chin so this helps my foundation glide over those spots.
- FOUNDATION (product smackdown)-- The Urban Decay Naked Skin Foundation is the one I turn to whenever I want a long-lasting finish. It's lightweight and offers a light to medium coverage but is great on oily/sweaty skin as it does not break down, looking patchy. It does have a matte finish and while Simone's skin looks dewy, I can always add highlighter later (which I did in the end).
- CONCEALER -- With the long hours spent practicing and the intense pressure of competing on an international stage, if I was in her shoes, I'd be sporting major dark circles. The Bobbi Brown Face Touch up Stick* is meant for the face but I like using it under my eyes because it is pigmented and creamy, covering up those shadows but not emphasizing fine lines. I also use it around my nose to cover redness and contemplated covering my spots but I let them be because I don't want to smother my skin.
- HIGHLIGHTER -- Simone's skin was positively glowing after her amazing team performance so I wanted to mimic that sheen of hard work without actually getting on a balance beam myself. The Nyx Bright Idea Illuminating Stick is very subtle so I applied one layer, blended it out, then went in two more times for that glow. It didn't look quite the way I wanted, so I did go over with my trusty Benefit Watt's Up*. I don't like applying highlighter all over my face because it doesn't look right on my skin so I only did it over my cheekbones. Which, when you're looking head on, isn't visible but looking at the side view, is absolutely gorgeous.
EYES
- PRIMER -- The UD Primer Potion is my holy grail, ride or die eye primer. I've tried two or three others but I like this one because it's on the stickier side. If you have problems with creasing or eyeshadows not being pigmented enough, this is your guy. I've moved onto the full size and I expect it will be around for ages as the mini lasted me over a year!
- EYESHADOW (review) -- Simone had a light golden champagne color on her eye but I didn't want to use a thousand palettes (I ended up using 3) so I mixed Rosé and Beige for a skin toned eyeshadow. Next time, I would go with my all-time favorite Lt Bronze from the LORAC Pro Palette.
- LOWER LASH LINE -- It looked like she used glitters for the lower lash line. I didn't have any glitter liners handy so I improvised with the most metallic shadows in my collection. I used a mixture of Cobalt (LORAC Pro Metals), Arctic (UD Vice 4) and Silver (LORAC Pro 2) for a cyan in the inner corner. She had a red glitter on the outer corner but I used Fast Ball from the UD Vice 4 Palette, which is a pinky red. For the center, I used Silver from the LORAC Pro 2. I think it looks alright, no?
- MASCARA + LINER -- For long and separated lashes, Buxom Lash Mascara is the one. I've been wearing it tons and am almost ready to write my review, so keep your eyes peeled! I'm not great at doing winged liner, but the Kat Von D Sinner Liner makes it infinitely easier. The one I used was from a limited edition kit but I'd definitely buy her regular liners after this one dries up.
LIPS
- LIPSTICK -- She had a berry toned lip with a sheen that looks natural on her skin tone. But I wanted to go bold and patriotic. With Urban Decay Revolution Lipstick in F-Bomb, I definitely felt like a pin-up girl. It's a bright red with a pink undertone and looks great on various skintones. They did carry the shade over to the new Vice Lipstick line so check it out if you're looking for a long-lasting bold red.
So, a big congratulations to the Final Five for a team gold at the Rio Olympics! Their athleticism and poise on and off the floor is inspiring and I wish them much success in the future. Let me know if you've been keeping up with the Olympics and which team/sports you're rooting for.
(*) denotes a brand that is not cruelty-free.
(**) denotes a brand whose cruelty-free status is unknown/unverified.
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