I don't know about you, but I always want that extra punch of color out of my eye shadows. And that means mixing mediums. I've tried out quite a few and here's my two cents on these three.

DuWop
So, DuWop's Payoff is mostly just water and glycerine itself with a couple of other preservative type stuffs for good measure. Instructions are to drop a bit directly into your eyeshadow and use like always.
Pros: Easy to travel with, easy to use, decent staying power.
Cons: Potentially unsanitary, not quite as much pop to colors.
Overall rating: 3/5 when used as directed, 4/5 when you dip the brush directly into a drop of Payoff. (I like to use the kind of painting palette you can get at places like Michael's.)

Glycerine
Typically, glycerine gets watered down with at the very least equal parts water. My particular mix is a drop of glycerine to four drops of water.
Pros: Incredibly inexpensive, very good color payoff and staying power.
Cons: Difficult to get a consistent mix, not as easy to travel with as DuWop.
Overall rating: 4/5

Plain Old Water
Some people wet the brush directly, some people mix some water with some eyeshadow before the brush enters the picture. I wet the brush directly and dip it right into any color that I don't ever plan to use on anyone else. I also make sure to keep the shadow open until it dries to minimize the bacteria potential. If I might ever use the shadow on someone else, I put some into a painting palette and mix it there.
Pros: Basically free, easy, excellent color payoff.
Cons: Pain in the butt when you're not working in a bathroom, slightly less staying power than a glycerin mix.
Overall rating 4.5/5

All in all, the only thing I love above DuWop is the bottle. When I use it up, I'll probably keep the bottle and keep my own glycerin mix in it for travel. But on a regular basis, plain old tap water gives me the best color payoff and is easiest. Any longevity that glycerin has is mostly overshadowed by the color payoff of water. Plus it mixes better with stuff like Kryolan Aqua Paints.

What works best for you guys? Has anyone tried using other unconventional products as mixing mediums?

So. Many of you voted and the clear winner in my poll was Airflash. I listened and I was liking it pretty okay.

Until I decided to apply it with the Sonia Kashuk blending sponge.

They recommend you apply Airflash with a kabuki brush and when you do that it goes on smooth and gives good coverage. But I hated the extra work to get it into every nook and cranny of my face, especially the sides of my nose and my inner eye.

This thing makes all of that headache a thing of the past. I bought it on a whim on vacation in Destin because it was funky looking and I haven't regretted it since. It gives me all of the control and precision I was missing with the kabuki brush.

So in case you've been wondering whether this thing is worth the $8.99 given that you could buy a bag of disposable sponges for much less, the answer is totally "yes." It even takes to washing really well, but I'm thinking of buying another one so I can let it really dry well when I clean it.

So, I was in a Pathmark buying some finishing touches for my wedding, centerpiece accessories, bathroom loot, stuff like that. And what did I see? e.l.f. in a store, in a "bargains" aisle instead of the makeup aisle, no less.

For those of you who aren't familiar with e.l.f., it's fair to good quality makeup and brushes for $1 each.

So I rabidly snapped up one or three of everything (this was a pain in the butt in the self-checkout line, but ultimately worth it) and gleefully plotted returning all of the disposable makeup applicators I bought from Sally for the wedding.

I had never before seen a single e.l.f. product in a store. Two days after my wedding, I discovered more e.l.f. in a random non-chain drugstore in my neighborhood. (A lot of the best stuff was already entirely sold out, boo! But I did get an eyelash curler and a couple of other things. Because why not?)

Anyway, have you guys been seeing e.l.f. around? Where?

And for those who were curious, there are links to full picture sets from my wedding at my blog.

Guys, I need your makeup remover recommendations desperately. I currently use a combination of Johnson's Baby Oil and Pampers Sensitive wipes to remove my makeup. It takes the makeup off really well, but there's the whole oily residue issue.

I have messed around with a Dior makeup remover and I really like it, but I'm not sure it's for me long-term. I've also tried a bunch of drug store stuff and all of it burns my eyes.

So, what can you recommend for removing heavy eye makeup on sensitive eyes? I would like it to also take off the rest of my face makeup with no weird residues, no extra rinsing beyond my normal skincare, all that good stuff. Help!

Okay. These are all popular products that can be used as eyeshadow primers. I own all three, so I decided to pit them against each other and see which one gives me the most bang for my buck.

I used approximately the same eyeshadow application with the same tools, except that I applied Paint with a brush and De-Crease and UDPP with their wands and my fingers. Paint doesn't have a wand and it goes on thicker, so, brush.

For your reference, I have normal/combination skin and I prep all of my eye makeup with La Roche-Posay Active C for Eyes.

De-Crease
Ease of application: 5/5
Longevity: 4/5
Pros: inexpensive, convenient
Cons: not the longest lasting, doesn't help bring out color pigmentation

UDPP
Ease of application: 5/5
Longevity: 4.5/5
Pros: goes on smooth, brings out color pigmentation, convenient
Cons: completely wasteful bottle

Paint (I used a neutral shade since I was just testing use as an everyday primer here)
Ease of application: 4/5
Longevity: 5/5
Pros: pops colors, comes in colors that can further enhance shadow pigmentation
Cons: goes on cakey and dries quickly if you don't apply it very quickly

In the end, UDPP is my go-to choice on a regular basis, De-Crease is what I take with me when I travel and Paint is what I use when I need my makeup to stay put like holy cow.

PICTURE RESULTS
De-Crease after 8 hours:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3271/2843977515_bb9fa2fa85_m.jpg

UDPP after 8 hours:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3223/2858899725_04ffb8bdba_m.jpg

I didn't have time to get a picture of Paint, but I can update with one another day if anyone is interested.