Tuesday Tips: Wear Makeup For YOU!

Today I wanted to address something that has a more personal meaning to me. Working in cosmetics can be really fun, but sometimes it just makes me realize how insecure women can be about themselves. Not everyone has to wear foundation and powder and eyeliner and mascara and eyeshadow and every other makeup product imaginable.

I think society makes women believe that we need to wear makeup to be beautiful. Wearing makeup is not a requirement and you should only wear if you want to. I just think some women don't fully understand that or maybe need to be reminded of it sometimes.

Personally, makeup makes me feels good about myself. I struggled with feeling very insecure about myself throughout my middle school and high school years. It maybe even started before that. Makeup became something that made me feel good and for the longest time, I thought I needed foundation and everything else because I felt it made me more beautiful. It took many years and a lot of growing up to realize that I don't need to do anything to please anyone but myself. 

Hahaha I found them gem on good ol' Facebook. I thought I was super cool.

I obviously still wear makeup today, but I wear it for the right reasons. I wear makeup for my own pleasure and not to impress anyone. I don't do it for the compliments and I don't do it to get anybody's attention. I do it for MYSELF!

Basically today's tip is to love the skin you're in. Wear the makeup you want to wear and don't wear makeup for anyone else but YOU. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise!

I hope you all have a great New Year's! Stay safe and have fun! I can't wait to see what 2014 brings! :)

Ulta Cyber Monday HAUL!

This is kind of late, but better late than never right? Here is my Ulta.com Cyber Monday haul. I haven't used very many of these products yet, so I don't have any in depth reviews of them, but you can at least see what I got.

Revlon Colorburst Matte Balm in Unapologetic

I just had to try these and they were buy one, get one 50%, so I thought now was as good of a time as any. This shade is a little lighter than I expected, but I still love it. It is basically a bright pink with a hint of orange. The color payoff is AMAZING! The matte aspect is what really attracted me to the product (that, and I just love Revlon products in general). These are $8.99 at Ulta.

I've Been a Bad Blogger...

I suck. I have been really slacking on posts lately. I've been crazy busy these past couple of week (excuses, excuses), but I am slowly getting back in the swing of things.

I'm sorry and I'm trying my best to just put together as many posts as possible so that I can post things periodically every couple of days. Thanks for your support, views, etc. :)

Tuesday Tips: Don't Go Overboard With Bronzer

This tip is going to be pretty short and sweet.

If you use bronzer, please try not to go overboard with it. I see too many women walking around with bronzer all over their face, looking very unnatural and orange. You are beautiful just the way you are and your makeup should be used to enhance your features or play up some features.

Also, bronzer is not a foundation, so please do not put it all over your face like so UNLESS the rest of you is somehow way darker than your face or if your foundation is too light for
your face and you need to compensate a bit.

I'm not bronzer expert by any means. These are just my tips and opinions. There are hundreds of Youtube videos that you can watch on how to wear bronzer if you aren't sure.

I hope everyone is having a good week. I have my last final tomorrow, so hopefully I will be able to post some things I've been meaning to post now that I will have a little bit more time, so look for a new post or two later this week.

Fortune Cookie Soap HAUL! (Nightmare Before Christmas Collection)

I ordered a bunch of stuff after Fortune Cookie Soap's launch party a few weeks ago and finally got it all last week. The downside to me ordering all this stuff is that I hadn't gotten my Soap Box at the time, so I had to guess which scents I would like best. Some of the scents I like better in the Soap Box I wish I would have gotten more products of. Oh well.

I also ended up winning a sort of contest FCS did during their launch party. They ask questions and have you answer them on their Facebook page. Then they randomly pick winners for each question. I won a free fortune cookie soap of my choice from the collection and the holiday worlds mini fortune cookie soap set.

Here is a look at everything I purchased/won. Just a warning: this post is VERY picture-heavy. I have talked about the actual scents in my previous post about the Soap Box, so you can check that out for scent descriptions there or look on the FCS website.

Oogie Boogie Fortune Cookie Soap
It's earthy brown with a bug sticking out of it. How perfect is that? 

Jack Fortune Cookie Soap
Pretty self-explanatory how this captures Jack. The specks on it are glitter from other products that kinda got everywhere.

Tuesday Tips: Don't Overdo the Perfume

Have you ever walked by someone and been gagged almost to death by their perfume? I'm sure you have because I have experienced this way too many times.

Here's the thing: you don't need to douse yourself with perfume. If you have sprayed yourself with with it and can't smell it after a while, that doesn't mean it has worn off. Beautylish had posted an article a couple weeks ago where they talked about this:

It’s normal to lose the ability to smell your signature fragrance.

Apparently, everybody gets accustomed to their own perfume, in the same way that we get accustomed to other elements of our direct environment. (Think about how you can smell something stinky when you first enter a room, but that over time, your nose sort of adjusts.) According to Malle, once you get accustomed to your fragrance, you’ll only smell it when you spray it, or when consciously trying to pay attention to it. But that doesn’t mean others can’t smell it. Therefore, Malle warns strongly against putting on even more to compensate. “I always suggest to remember how many sprays you applied when you first started to wear that fragrance, and stick to it. Maybe one extra ‘pshitt’ for special occasions but not more!” he writes.

So my tip for you is to spray a perfume on yourself a few times (remember how many times you spray it), wait an hour or so, and have someone smell you. If they can still smell the fragrance on you then you don't need more. Stick to that number of sprays when applying it in the future.

Tuesday Tips: Beware of Salon Products Sold in Drugstores

I've decided to start giving a weekly tip that may or may not be beauty-related. They will mostly be beauty-related in some way, but I might throw in something else every once in a while. I will do one every Tuesday, hence the name Tuesday Tips.

My first tip comes from reading this article written by a hair stylist. I don't really ever buy salon hair products at a drugstore, but this makes me never want to start. It's worth the few minutes it takes to read.

http://www.xojane.com/beauty/why-you-should-avoid-salon-products-at-the-drugstore

If you really don't want to read the article, here is what I think you should know:

"What happens is that the world's least threatening black market underlords (actually, they call it the 'gray market') will buy salon products from a legitimate distributor, then set them aside in a warehouse for years until the barcode expires so they can't be tracked.  During this time, not only does the barcode expire but so does the product inside, warping from heat or just the cruel sands of time into something that is an ineffective shadow of its former self."

I would suggest not taking any risks and buying salon products from an actual salon. You can feel better knowing you are getting the real deal and you can get advice about what products to get from your hair stylist. That is a win-win situation! :)

Have you read my November Favorites blog post yet? Check it out here!

❤ November Favorites ❤

Woah. Where did the freakin' month go?!

By the time the end of each month rolls around, I usually feel like the month went by pretty fast. November seemed to fly by so fast though that I feel like it should still be the middle of November.

The new month means it's time to share with you what products were my favorites in November. Let's take a look, shall we?

Revlon Lash Potion Mascara

This mascara is actually pretty dang decent! It doesn't really clump, has a good brush, and it holds a curl while volumizing my lashes. I have noticed a few times that it does flake slightly. It doesn't do it all the time though, so I don't know if it's common with this mascara or not. It's still a part of my favorites for November though because I used it almost every day and I think it's a good mascara for a drugstore brand.

Fortune Cookie Soap Nightmare Before Christmas Winter Soap Box

The anticipation of waiting for my first ever Soap Box from Fortune Cookie Soap was killing me, so I was extremely happy when it showed up on my doorstep Monday!

If you already know about Fortune Cookie Soap and their Soap Box, skip down and see all the goodies from the box!

For anyone who doesn't know about Fortune Cookie Soap, it is a company based out of Oklahoma that makes fun and unique bath and body products. They have expanded their line greatly over the years and have everything from room sprays to body scrubs to bath salts- all made by hand. FCS has a huge range of scents to choose from. This includes seasonal collections and themed collections.

Each season (Every 3 months), FCS releases a Soap Box, where they send samples of each fragrance from their new collection in different products that they have. It is a great way to preview the new collection before it comes out, a great way to try some of their products if you've never tried them, or it's a great gift to have sent to someone. You subscribe to the box for $19.99 ($28 for Canada and $34 for international) and then you are signed up for all future boxes unless you unsubscribe. The idea is similar to other subscription boxes like Birchbox. Like I said, this was my first time getting one of these and I am pretty happy with the things I received.

This collection is based off of Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas! Take a look at all the goodies that came in the Soap Box!

Bath & Body Works Candles and Scentportables Haul

Bath & Body Works had there 2 for $22 deal on their 3-wick candles a couple weeks ago, and I had been wanting to get some for a while because I haven't used their candles in a few years. I am not a huge Christmas-scent lover, so I wasn't feeling a lot of the scents that they had in their candles. However, I ended up with two candles.

Cranberry Pear Bellini smells delicious! The scent description is, "Bubbly and delicious - a bright blend of sparkling cranberry, sweet pear nectar and luscious blackcurrant - Cheers!" It smells like a fruity drink or cocktail. I liked this one because it doesn't smell like "Christmas" per-say, so I can use it after the holidays if I don't get a chance to use it before then. Also, this was my boyfriend's favorite, so I we kinda had to get it. :)

New Posts Soon!

My life has been super stressful lately with finals approaching, tons of projects and assignments, and other stuff. I haven't had much time to sit down and do any blogs, so I apologize for not updating in over a week. I do have a few ideas, but I just need to find time to actually do them. I will hopefully have at least one blog to put up by this weekend. Please let me know if you have any ideas or things you would like to see me talk about or do.

To make sure you don't miss anything when I do post something, stay in touch with me by subscribing or following me on one of the sites I have linked in the sidebar. You can also enter your email in the sidebar to receive emails when I update the blog.

Have a great next couple of days and I will have some things for you this weekend! :)

Look of the Day: Betrayal

The Vice 2 Palette is my most recent obsession. I cannot stop using it! My absolute favorite color in this palette is Betrayal. Partly just because it is purple and I love purple and also because of the uniqueness of the shade. It is a bright purple duo-chrome with a blue shift. I think this color sums up who I am.

For this look I wanted to kind of make Betrayal the center of attention. I also wanted to use my other new obsession, the Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick in Wild Orchid. These products and the rest of the products I used to create this look are at the end of this post.

Quick Look: Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick in Wild Orchid

I have been loving this lipstick lately, so I wanted to show it off its awesomeness.

I bought this Revlon lipstick a month or so ago, and I'm finding it difficult to not use it every single day. I try to keep myself from using one shade of lipstick too much for a few reasons: I don't want to get bored with a color, some shades (like this one) don't go with every makeup look I do, and I just have too many lipsticks to use one color too often.

October Favorites

It's that time again where I tell you all what things I used a lot in October. My list seems shorter than usual, but I tried so many new things in October and used so many different products that I didn't have too many actual "favorites" or products I used a lot.

Jack Black Lip Balm

The writing is slightly scratched off because I keep it in my purse and it scratches against a lot of things.

I started using this stuff last year and it is awesome! It leaves my lips feeling moisturized pretty much all day and helps sooth dry, cracked, or chapped lips. It also has SPF 25 in it, which is always a plus. The mint flavor is not too strong, but can still be tasted/smelled. There are other flavors, some of which I also have. Last year I got a gift set from Sephora with four different kinds of the balm in it. They have this set again this year, but they have some different kinds in it than they did before. I might have to get this set too because I want to try the Black Cherry one. Jack Black Lip Balm is $7.50 a tube, which is pretty decent considering how long a tube lasts and how great it makes my lips feel.

Urban Decay Ocho Loco 2 Eye Pencil Set, Shadow Lockdown Duo, and Revolution Lipstick in Jilted (Swatches Included)

Urban Decay had their Friends & Family a couple weeks ago on their website, so I obviously had to buy things. I'm such a sucker for their products, especially their new stuff. I ended up buying the new Ocho Loco 2 Eye Pencil Set, the Shadow Lockdown Duo, and a Revolution Lipstick.

Let's take a look shall we?

First up is the Revolution Lipstick I bought in the shade Jilted. It is a bright pink with violet undertones. I love the packaging of these lipsticks and the lipstick itself. The wear is pretty good and I wish I could have gotten more shades, but maybe another time. UD's Revolution Lipsticks are $22. It's more than I usually spend on lipsticks, but I just love the color selection and the wear of these, so I am willing to spend a little more on these lipsticks.

Real Techniques Brushes Review

I have heard so many good things about Real Techniques brushes over the past few months that I decided I needed to try them out. Ulta occasionally has this brand on sale for buy one, get one 50% off, which is what they were on sale for when I picked some up. I bought them a few weeks ago, but I wanted to wait to show you all until I had used all of them.

I got this Travel Essentials set thinking it was the one I had heard and read such great reviews on. Oops. It's actually the Core Collection that I was wanting to try out, but I ended up keeping this set because I really like it. The 3-piece set comes with a foundation brush, a domed shadow brush, and a multi task brush.

Look of the Day: Enchanting Woods

It's been awhile since I have done a look of the day or showed any make up on my face at all for that matter. It started snowing today here in Iowa, but I just want it to be fall forever. I'm going to pretend like it's not 33 degrees and like there is not a dusting of snow outside and show you a look I wore on Sunday.

For this look, I was inspired by the woods and fall. I stuck with browns and greens for the eyes to keep it earthy. The lips are a darker berry shade, which is my favorite kind of color for fall. I posted some pictures below with a list of the products I used to create the look.

Bath & Body Works Soaps

I go to Bath & Body Works waayyy to much. I just cant't help myself. When I can make it out of the store without buying anything, that is pretty big for me.

A few weeks ago I went there and came out with four lovely hand soaps. I thought I would share with you all what ones I got and why I like their soaps so much.

Estee Lauder Fall Gift With Purchase 2013

Estee Lauder's gift with purchase starts today, October 15th and it is pretty great gift. If you spend $35 or more, you get an awesome 7-piece gift. Keep in mind that this gift is going on at Younkers, Elder-Beerman, Carson's, Herberger's, Bergner's, Boston Store, and Bon-Ton. Other department store have gifts at other times during the year.

There are two options as to which gift you will receive: subtle or bold. I have both pictured below along with descriptions and swatches. Take a look!

Lack of New Blogs

Hey everyone!

I'm really sorry I haven't any new blogs recently. I have midterms this week and next week, I have a wedding to go to on Saturday that I am doing some makeup for, and I have a bunch of other little things that have been keeping me tied up. I have so many ideas and things to show you all, but I just haven't had the time to do blogs for them.

I will have a new post up as soon as I can, which will probably be Monday or Tuesday. Thanks for all your views and in the meantime, don't forget to follow me on at least one of the sites I'm on that are linked in the sidebar. Have a great weekend!

September Favorites

HAPPY OCTOBER!!!! :)

Another month has ended, but I can't say I'm sad to see September end. September was alright, but I am so excited that October is finally here! October is one of my favorite months because it finally starts to feel like fall, the colors in the trees are beautiful, fall recipes are awesome, and Halloween is in October. There is just something magical about this month. Before we get too far into October though, here are some of my favorites from September, both beauty-related and not.

Clinique Haul

Now that I work for Clinique and have to wear Clinique makeup to work, I realized I need more products so that I can have more of a variety of looks. Basically this means that I decided to spend some good money on Clinique products and now you all get to see the cool stuff I bought.

I have quite a few Clinique lipsticks, but none of the Chubby Sticks for lips. These are pretty awesome. They are like a big crayon that twists up. I find them super easy to use and fairly moisturizing as well.

I got two Chubby Stick Intense lip colors - one in Roomiest Rose and one in Grandest Grape. These are two of the Intense shades, which are a little more pigmented than the original Chubby Sticks.

Roomiest Rose is a soft, warm pink. I fell in love with this color the first time I tried it on. It looks nice with a lot of different looks. Grandest Grape is berry, violet-toned shade. This is a perfect color for fall!

Roomiest Rose and Grandest Grape

I also bought two Chubby Sticks for eyes as well. I have always been pretty skeptical of cream shadows or anything close to that because my eyelids are super oily and I have a problem with pretty much everything creasing on my lids. These, however, have worked pretty well for me so far. They are really easy to apply, especially if you're in a hurry. They can be worn alone or as a base for eye shadow. The two shades I got are Massive Midnight and Lots o' Latte.

These have a much rounder, flatter tip than the Chubby Sticks for lips because that makes them easier to apply. Plus, can you imagine trying to apply them with a more pointed tip? Ow!

Lots o' Latte is a taupe shade. It's a great base for almost all colors of shadow and it looks good alone too. Massive Midnight is a deep blue shade that I seriously love. I also want to mention that you can use these as an eyeliner too. Massive Midnight is a gorgeous eyeliner.

Lots o' latte and Massive Midnight

I picked up three of Clinique's new All About Shadow in the colors Rock Violet, Graphite, and Pacific Coast. These are better pigmented than their old eye shadows and look amazing on top of the Chubby Sticks for eyes.

Pacific Coast is a teal shade that is pretty vibrant. Rock Violet is a gray-violet that photographed more pink that it looks in person. Graphite is also a gray-violet but much darker. It also didn't photograph very purple. 

Pacific Coast, Rock Violet, Graphite

The last thing I bought is Clinique's Acne Solutions Clarifying Lotion. I love this stuff and if you want to learn more about it, you can read my blog post about Clinique.

I went to Ulta this week for one thing and came out with several things, so I will have some more stuff to show you as soon as I get a chance to photograph them all. Stay updated by following me on one or more of the sites I'm on, which are linked in the sidebar.

Small Lancôme Haul

Okay, so I don't know if you can really even call this a haul, but I did buy three things from Lancome last week. They have their Fall Gift With Purchase right now, which I talked about in a post Sunday.

I am so excited about this first product I bought. Lancome has some of my favorite eye shadows ever. They are always nicely pigmented, wear well, and they have a great color selection. Well they have these new Color Design eye shadows that are super glittery and awesome in general.

I, of course, fell in love with the purple shade, which is appropriately named Statement Piece. It is freaking amazing! The shadow is very glittery but doesn't skimp on pigment. I wouldn't expect anything less from Lancome. I cannot wait to do an awesome look with this shadow!

Lancome also has brand new Artliner 24H liquid liners. I already loved their original Artliners, but now with a 24 hour wear and more vibrant new colors, there is even more to love. There are a total of 10 shades in these new liners. I wanted them all, but my wallet said no, so I ended up with the two lovely shades below.

The first one I picked out is called Chrome. It is one of four metallic shades in the collection. This color has so much dimension than any other chrome or silver liners I've seen. It spoke to me when I tested it on my hand at the counter, so I had to get it. The swatch below doesn't show all of the dimension to it, but I promise it is worth a look the next time you hit up a Lancome counter.

The other shade I bought is a purple liner (shocking, right?) called Amethyst. It is a blue-violet and is gorgeous. These liners stay vibrant and in place all day. They have a flexible felt tip on them that makes them easy to apply also.

Chrome and Amethyst

I will also have a Clinique haul posted within the next couple of days, so stay updated with the blog so you don't miss out! To do that you can follow me on a few different sites that are linked in the sidebar. You can also subscribe to my blog or enter your e-mail address in the sidebar to receive an e-mail when I update the blog.

Lancôme Fall 2013 Gift With Purchase

It's that time yet again! Lancome has their fall gift with purchase at Younkers, Carson's, Bergners, Herbergers, Boston Store, Bon Ton, and Elder-Beerman and you should definitely consider getting some things to get this one! To get the gift, you need to spend $35 or more.

Here's the scoop on this awesome gift:

Cosmetic Bag - Like most gifts that cosmetic lines have, this gift come with a makeup bag. However, Lancome is all about choices, so you can choose between a black or a berry-toned pink bag. The signature Lancome rose is on the bag in a soft, velvet print.

Skincare Trio - The next choice you get to make is which skincare trio you would like. There are three options and each comes with a serum, eye cream, and moisturizer. Each "set" is based on what your main skincare concern is. I choose the trio that has Visionnaire, High Resolution Eye Refill-3X Cream, and High Resolution Night Refill-3X Moisturizer.

Color Design Lipstick - You also get a choice between three of the Color Design Lipsticks. The options are Red Stiletto, Vintage Rose, and Pretty Burgundy. Vintage Rose (a dusty pink) was in one of Lancome's previous gifts that I received. I already own Red Stiletto, which is a bright, true red, so I picked Pretty Burgundy. It is a beautiful plummy red violet shade.

Hypnose Drama Mascara - The gift comes with a sample size tube of Hypnose Drama Mascara. I really like this mascara because it adds a lot of volume to my lashes and makes them stand out, hence the name "drama".

Cils Booster XL Primer - This lash primer also comes in the gift and it's amazing. It really helps mascara go on better, stay on better, and stand out better and saves your lashes a bit from the harshness of applying and removing mascara everyday.

Another added bonus to this gift is if you spend at least $70, you get some other extra goodies. Here is what those extras are:

Bifacil Eye Makeup Remover - This makeup remover is super awesome. You just put some on a cotton ball, hold it on you eyelid for 10 seconds and wipe. It works amazingly.

Definicils Mascara - This mascara is also part of the extra items. Another great mascara from Lancome. It is actually the number one selling mascara in the world.

Juicy Tube Lip Gloss - Last but not least you can choose to either receive La Base foundation primer or one of three different shades of Juicy Tubes. I have La Base primer already and it is a great primer that I would recommend trying. I also have two of the three shades offered in the Juicy Tubes. Moulin Rose (a bubblegum pink shade) and Magic Spell (a pretty rose shade). Both. I ended up with Tickled Pink, which is a nude, rosy pink. 

This gift goes through October 6th, but I would recommend getting yours ASAP because there are limited quantities, especially with the extra "step-up" gift.