Beauty Do's and Dont's

Today I am going to answer some age old questions concerning makeup. All of us have had these same questions at one time or another. So this if for my makeup newbies. 


1. Is it ever okay to sleep in my make up?

- No its not a good idea. Makeup will clog your pores and make your skin oily if you sleep with it on. Always try to remember to wash your face before bed, if you cant do that then reach for a makeup wipe or wet wipe. 

2. Is it okay to wash my hair everyday?

-Its not going to hurt you, but it can damage your hair. When you wash your hair shampoo strips the natural oils in your hair. This can lead to dry and damaged hair. It is ideal to wash your hair ever 3 days and dry shampoo in between. 

3. How often should I wash my makeup bushes?

- Many people wash their brushes 1x a week, however experts say that washing them 1x a month is fine. You should not go longer then 1 a month though as dust, dirt, and germ, can build up on them and be transfer to your face. This can cause breakouts. I recommend baby shampoo to wash brushes safely, gently, and effectively. 

4.  Is it okay to pump my mascara?

- Goodness we have all been there, what fun it is to pump away at our mascara; but unfortunately no its not okay.  When mascara is pumped it puts excess air into the tube and it is sealed inside. This air will dry out your mascara very quickly. Avoid pumping your mascara, I roll my wand around the inside to make sure its good and coated. 

6. Is it okay to keep my lip stick after having a cold?

- Yes its perfectly fine to keep your lip stick after a cold. By then your body has developed and immunity to whatever it was that was making you sick and you are indeedly over it. There's no reason to throw out your favorite lip color. :) 

7. Do I have to wash my face every day?

- You wont get arrested if you don't, but your face will love you if you do! Its a good idea to clean your face daily as this removes dead skin cells and revives your skin, especially if you wear makeup daily. If you don't have time, grab a makeup wipe or wet wipe.

8 Night Time Beauty Hacks

1. Vaseline:

- Apply a coat of Vaseline to your feet before bed. Cover them with socks. You will wake up with softer, smoother feet in the morning. 


2. Treating puffy eyes:

- If you have puffy eyes, add an extra pillow under your head at night and sleep on your back. The extra height will help drain the excess liquids from your eyes and you will awaken less puffy. 

3.  Waves over night:

- Simply braid your hair after a shower and sleep on it. In the morning you will have easy no fuss beach waves. 

4. Dry Skin:

- In winter months try sleeping with a humidifier in your room. This will put extra moisture in the air and it will also absorb into your skin. 

5. Silk/Satin Pillow Case:

- Treat your self to a silk case because it has many uses. It will prevent wrinkles, bed head, and split ends. 

6. Baking Soda:

- Whiten your teeth at bed time by brushing your teeth with baking soda. It will work to fight stains over night. Do not eat or drink for an hour after this. That's Why I recommend night time. 

7. Leave in conditioner:

- Applying one before bed will give you extra moisture through the night. 

8.  Softer hands:

- Apply lotion at night and wear gloves to bed. This will give you super soft hands over night. 

7 Neat Makeup Tips No One Ever Told You

1. Tanning Streaks:

- Is there anything worse? If you find streaks from tanning spray, don't worry. Grab a loofah, wet it, sprinkle it with baking soda and wash the area. This will blend it in perfectly.

2. Cold sore:

- If you feel a cold sore coming on, dab on some aquaphor or another thick cream. This will keep the cold sore from growing and spreading. You can think of it as smothering the cold sore.

3. DIY Scented lotion:

- If you don't want to pay gobs of money for scented lotion. Buy a cheap bottle of unscented and add 2-3 drops of your favorite perfume to it. This works great.

4. Decorative soap: 

- If you have some adorable decorative soap and you can't bring your self to use it, just toss them in your dresser drawers. This will make your clothes smell amazing.

5. Awesome Cheek Bones:

- If you want awesome cheek bones, try contouring with a grey eye shadow. Makeup artists use this trick all the time. Grey more naturally mimics shadows on the face. Just use a little and build it up as needed. 

6. Eye shadow primer:

- If you are out of primer, you can use a dab of concealer or even a pressed powder will keep your shadow from creasing.

7. Redness and irritation:

- If you are having trouble with redness and irritation, try seeping some green tea bags and then applying them to your face. The antioxidants in green tea will soothe irritated skin and remove redness and swelling.

Purple Eyeshadow Tutorial

Hello everyone! Today I was asked if I could do a purple eyeshadow tutorial. Since I had not put my face on yet, and I had a new purple eyeshadow palette I wanted to try; I thought why not. I tried to do a shot of each step but they turned out really bad, since the lighting in my room is so dark. :( I will try to work that out soon before my next eyeshadow tutorial. I ended up having to shoot these in front of my living room window. I am hoping to get a light set soon. 

 The palette I used for this look is the "W7 In The Night Smokey Shades, Eye colour Palette". I can't say enough good things about this company. You cannot find this palette in the U.S. as it is manufactured "Across the pond" in England. This palette is very reasonably priced and you can find it on Amazon.com for $7.00 with FREE shipping. I have a few of these palettes and will go into detail about them in another post. Lets just say I am a Big HUGE fan! These are easy to work with, pigmented, and blend like a dream! I highly recommend them to all my friends, family, and anyone who will sit still long enough for me to gab about them. 

Here are the main colors I used for this look. I did use a few different items and I will list them below.

Here is a swatch of this palette.

Perfectly Purple Eyeshadow Tutorial:

1. I primed my eyes with Urban Decay ($12) eye shadow primer potion.

2. I began by applying "Razzamataz", all over my eye lid from above the crease to the lower lid.

3. After blending it out, I applied "Lady Luck" all over the lower lid.

4. Once I got my lower lid nice and sparkly, I applied "Top Hat" to the outer 3rd section of my lower lid and extended it through my crease.

5. Next, I applied "Dusty" to my brow bone. Once again blending all of it out.

6. Next I used the white shade from my NXY Waiting for Tonight Palette ($ 23.99) on the inner corners of my eyes. I like to extend this under the lower lash line to about the middle of my eye. This helps conceal more of the bluish color on the inner corners. You can find it HERE.

7. With my liner brush, I applied "Razzamataz"  to my lower lash line, about 3/4 of the way from the outside in. Then I used my smudging brush to lighten it up.

8. Next I applied Rimmels white eye liner ($3.47) to my water line. With all these dark colors this also helps my eyes appear bigger. Its a favorite of mine. You can find it HERE.

9. Next I applied Bellapierre's Water Proof Gel Liner in "Ebony" ($14.99) to my upper lash line, from the outer corner to the inner. I applied this sparingly as I wanted to see the pinkish purple of "Lady Luck". I adore this gel liner. You can find it HERE.

10. And last but never least.....Tarte's Lights, Camera, Lashes Mascara.  If you want to find out more about this awesome mascara check out this POST!

Here is the finished look. I think it turned out pretty good for a first attempt. 

The white eyeliner and purple shadows really make my eye color pop. 

On the rest of my face: All of these are linked, just click on the item to view it. 

1. Milk of magnesia as a primer.

2. Maybelline Age Rewind Concealer in "Light".

3. Revlon Color Stay foundation in "Ivory". 

4. Rimmel Stay Matte Pressed Powder in "Sandstorm".

5. Anastasia of Beverly Hills Contour Kit in "Light to Dark".

6. Pacifica blush in the shade "Flushed" from the Solar Complete Color Mineral Palette.

7. NXY Butter Lip Stick in "Hunk". 

8. Urban Decay 24/7 glide on lip pencil in "Ozone". 

9. Elf Makeup Mist and Set Spray.

10. NXY Eyebrow Cake Powder in "Brunette" 

I hope you all enjoy this look as much as I did coming up with it. As always let me know it there is anything else you would like to see :)

$1 Primer That Will Keep You Matte All Day!

Today I have a great tip for you. Some of you may have heard of this trick before, for those of you who have not, I promise I am not crazy. Milk of magnesia is a common laxative people take for bowl discomfort. It is suspended in water and has great skin benefits.  It combats oily skin and will leave your face looking matte and shine free all day long. Seriously! With summer just on our heels in the states, I wanted to get this out there for all of you. 

Start off by heading to your local pharmacy or store to pick up a bottle of MOM, It is under $5 at most stores for a huge bottle. I suggest going to the dollar tree though, as I got mine for $1 there and it is a 12 oz bottle. A little goes along way and this bottle should last me 6+ months. Make sure you by the regular brand, not flavored. Flavored may irritate your face. If you still think I am a little Coo coo, you can check some reviews on Makeup Alley, you will have to sign up for an account first. There are hundreds of reviews with people swearing by this. 

Image: MakeupAlley

I have been doing this for weeks now. I have noticed that it keeps my makeup on all day, with no melting. I have also noticed a decrease in the amount of breakouts I usually see. If you are looking for MATTE, then here is your answer. I promise you will be matte all day. I recently wore my makeup for 12 hours and had to do no touch-ups. 

When I apply this I shake the bottle and put a very small amount in the cup that comes with it and apply it onto my face with a foundation brush (After applying moisturizer). You can apply this to just your T zone or any areas where you get oily. Then I rub it in until you cannot see it any more.  Allow it to dry. I usually do my eyebrows at this point and its dry when I am done. 

If you put on too much, you will have a white chalky residue on your face. Don't worry just rub it off. It will come off easily. It will feel firm at this stage, but after you apply your foundation it will feel normal. You can apply a primer after if you want and are only doing your T zone areas. But you don't have too.  If you have very oily skin you can do 2 coats also.

When you apply your foundation start by stippling it on. This way you wont rub off the MOM. Once your face is covered with foundation, you can buff it if you want.With this tip, you will no longer have to re-powder your oily spots all day long. This will keep you Matte and shine free. :)

Check out this hilarious video by Macshadowcombos, she does a full review on this technique at 6 and 10 hours and also shows how she applies it: 

Now I know some of you may be wondering if this is safe for you to use. Don't  MOM is less damaging then benzoyl peroxide , hydrogen peroxide, salicylic acid and vitamin A retinoids which are common methods of the treatment of excess oil. All bodies are different and if someone is experiencing adverse effects is maybe due to a sensitivity to the magnesium. So as always, spot test before use, just to be sure you are not sensitive to magnesium! 

*Extra Tip:

You can also use MOM as a face mask for acne. Simply apply a thick layer to your face and allow to dry. Wash off in 15 minutes with cool water. 

Magnesium is a natural ingredient that comes from the earth. MOM is just a liquid suspension of it. It is very similar to clay and has ingredients that will help fight bacteria and remove oil better then clay can.  

Disney Inspired Makeup

I was strolling around the webiverse today and stumbled upon these. Arn't they just adorable. I found all of these images on Trusper.com. I do not want to take any credit for them as I just found them. These are so beautiful and creative. I cant wait to try a few of these out on my daughter when we are playing dress up. Probably not in as much detail though because that would take forever. 

May Glam Bag!

It's that time of the month again. I got my Ipsy Glam Bag in the mail last week and I finally got a chance to try it all out. I know I have been slacking the last few months, but I wanted to go ahead and post this one. I was beyond excited when I got my sneak peek of my bag this month. Early on I was able to get a sneak peek of 5 items and I would receive only one of them. I saw a blending brush in the list and hoped I would get it. Ipsy bags can be a fickle beast. Some months your LOVE them and others you get a few awesome products and a few so so. Occasionally I get something I can't use and I trade it for something else.  

Well when I got my sneak peek, I got more then what I hoped for. I got all the things I wanted, including the blending brush. Here is what I got:


1. Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-on Lip Pencil: 

This thing works like a charm. It matches any lip stick color and you can use it as a liner or a lip primer. It does make my lipstick last hours longer and is comfortable. 4 stars!  

Urban Decay

2. Luxie Rose Blending Brush:

I am very impressed with this brush. It does a wonderful job of blending out my eyeshadow. Its hard to believe, but I honestly feel like it does a better job then my Sigma brush. I am in love with it and highly recommend it. 5 stars!

Luxie Rose

3. Pixi Bronzer: 

To be honest I have 5 bronzers and I really don't need another one. So I traded this one for a 24 hour waterproof gel liner. My mother also got this bronzer and I swatched it, its very pigmented and goes on really smooth. Based on the swatch I will give this 4 Stars! 

Pix!

4. Breakups To Makeup Mini Clutch: 

I was so excited to see this months bag. It is adorable and is my favorite bag from ipsy so far. I will be carrying this for a long time. I think its the perfect statement piece and it fits my personality well. 5 stars! 

Makeup Clutch

5. Briogeo Rosarco Milk:

 This is a reparative leave in conditioner. I used this on my daughter and myself today. It made brushing her hair a lot easier and it makes your hair smell amazing. I wish I could describe the smell, but I can't. It smells natural and refreshing. Not tropical or floral. However I cant see paying $20 just for these reasons when I can buy some from the dollar store for $1. I don't think the sample is big enough to see any reparative results. I used 5 pumps in my daughters hair and 3 in mine and half the sample was gone. So I can't really say if it repairs or not. :( 3 stars! 

Briogeo

6. It Cosmetics CC+: 

I know I am going to make someone mad for saying this so I will go ahead and apologize. I have received 3 samples over the past year from It Cosmetics and I am not impressed with any of them. 
Now maybe its ipsy's fault but I have ivory skin and they always send me an orange color from It Cosmetics. I hate it, I cant use it, and the next time I meet one of the girls walking around with and orange spray on tan, I'm gonna offer them to her. I just cant do anything with it. My biggest problem with it is that even though it is orange it still does not cover any redness or the darkness under my eyes. However, the company claims that it will and it does. I even watched the video tutorial on the It Cosmetics web page as soon as I saw that I was getting it, so I could put it on correctly. Nope still an epic fail. This brand and I are just not compatible and I will not spend hard earned money to try any of it.  1 star! 

It Cosmetics

Well thats all of it I hope you guys enjoyed a view into my glam bag this month. If you would like to give ipsy a try here is there link: Ipsy It's only $10 a month and that includes shipping. Ipsy is a great way to try new products and see what is out there that you will love. I have found many awesome products this way. 

Mega Savings at ULTA + My Ulta Haul

Hey everyone! I found a huge sale at Ulta.com and wanted to share it with you! I received a $10 off anything in the store or online card in the mail this week and waited patently till payday to order.  I wanted to see how much I could get for under $30 and I spent most of my morning selecting and deselecting items in a crazy random order. I was looking for quantity and quality. Its hard to find both for such a small dollar amount, but we are heading out on vacation in a few weeks and I am being frugal. 

The first thing I want to tell you is that they are having a memorial day offer. 
You can get 2x or 3x points from 5/22-5/30. Platinum members get 3x. This is amazing because you can save up the points to receive dollar amounts off of future purchases.  You have to activate this offer to receive extra points to do that: Go to the top on the page, next to your name click the downward arrow and select "my account". When that page opens click the "my reward tab" above the big welcome text that says "WELCOME YOURNAME" it is toward the top of the page. Then scroll all the way to the bottom of the page and you should see this:

 Just click on the button to the right and activate the offer. Now you will get the extra points when you place your order. Here is a breakdown of the point system:

Image: Ulta.com

Ulta also has a huge sales going on in all departments. Here is a breakdown of their sale items You can also find it HERE on their site:

Image: Ulta.com

Image: Ulta.com

 I took advantage of the NYX eye cosmetics buy 1 get 1 50% off. But there are so many options depending on what you are looking for.  

Image: Ulta.com

 I was able to score some pretty amazing items for very little money here is what I am getting: 

1. Tarte Eye Opening 12-piece Amazonian Clay Eyeliners:  

This Is my most anticipated item. It was on sale for $25. Which is a steal because usually 1 Tarte eyeliner is in the $20 range. The manufactuers suggested retail price is $192.00, so I jumped on this deal. I believe QVC had it on sale a few months ago for $50. I can't wait to get these and swatch them for you guys. 

Includes:
0.0423-oz eyeliner in Nude
0.0423-oz eyeliner in Bronze
0.0423-oz eyeliner in Brown
0.0423-oz eyeliner in Chocolate
0.0423-oz eyeliner in Plum
0.0423-oz eyeliner in Antique Gold
0.0423-oz eyeliner in Hunter Green
0.0423-oz eyeliner in Jungle Green
0.0423-oz eyeliner in Navy
0.0423-oz eyeliner in Charcoal
0.0423-oz eyeliner in Black
0.0423-oz eyeliner in Golden Plum
Sharpener
Roll bag

Image: Ulta.com

It comes in this adorable case. 

Image: Ulta.com

2. Nxy Jumbo Eyeshadow Pencil in the color Milk: 

This was $4.49 but I used the buy1 get1 for 50% off so the total was $2.25 for this. This is a multi use item and I can't wait to give it a try. 

Image: Ulta.com

3. NYX Automatic Eyebrow Pencil : 

This was $ 4.99. I have heard rave review about this item so I decided to go ahead and give it a try also. 

Image: Ulta.com

4. Pixel Single Pan Eyeshadow & Build in Applicator:

I have never heard of this brand before. When I was looking around I noticed each pan was on markdown from $3.99 to $0.49 each. Then I looked at the reviews, it has 4 1/2 stars on ulta, which says a lot about it. I rarely see items over 4 stars. They currently have 15 shades and I bought 7 of them. I couldn't help my self with the price. 

Image: Ulta.com

Here is the review category and ratings from Ulta:

Easy to apply (30)
Good value (28)
Good pigmentation (26)
Long lasting (25)
Versatile (18)

Here are the colors I bought:

Image: Ulta.com

Image: Ulta.com

Image: Ulta.com

Image: Ulta.com

Image: Ulta.com

Image: Ulta.com

Image: Ulta.com

Once I get a hold of all of these items I will swatch and review each one. :) So all in all I got 10 items (if you count the liner, case and sharpener separate I got 24 items) and with my $10 off card, the only thing I actually paid for was the Tarte 12 piece eyeliner set. My total order price was $25.67. I think I did pretty well considering my budget price.