No Reason To Pay So Much…

Hi ladies!

If you are an avid YouTube watcher like me then you probably have heard the raves about MAC pigment, one of which being Tan by MAC. Everyone has been talking about this pigment for a while now because it is beautiful. This is one of those pigments that will honestly look good on every single eye color eye single skin color and just make your entire eye makeup look more glamorous.. For about $21 you can go and purchase one of these amazing pigments but you should also pick up some kind of adhesive for our pigments to stick to or else they will be sliding all over your eyes. These adhesives can be anywhere from $10-30 depending on the brand and type. With my MAC pigments I will use Fix + or some kind of glitter glue. Honestly though, I don’t use pigments all that often… When I’m doing my makeup in the morning the last thing I have time for is spraying a brush a couple of times with Fix + then dipping the brush in the pigment then packing the pigment onto my lid, sorry but I’m too impatient to do this. Paying $21 for something is fine, as long as I get a good use out of it and honestly I haven’t been. After realizing that I was probably over paying for this pigment I decided to go on a hunt for a similar color and texture.

Disclaimer: I’m not saying that this is an exact color match to MAC but I do think it has the same sheen, shimmer, and overall look to it. It is a bit darker but if applied lightly you get a very similar color.

I was going through my makeup collection one morning when I wanted to do a simple eye look and can across my NYX Cream Shadow which comes in what looks like a lipgloss tube with an applicator… I had forgotten all about this product! I bought this about a year ago at Ulta and bought the shade musk because I really love gold toned browns. I think I might have only used this once the entire time I have owned it but decided to try it out. This product comes out so creamy and so opaque, you don’t need to reapply or continue to add layer upon layer, you add one layer and you have a beautiful creamy color on your lid but not overly creamy where it will crease or run down. This product is an incredible all in one. It seems like with the MAC Pigment you need to do so many steps just to get the color onto your lid but with this cream shadow you simple swipe it on with the applicator and your done! I always find myself wondering why I don’t use more NYX products because they are so affordable and they are always incredible products that put high end items to shame. Another highlight about the NYX cream shadow is that I ran my hands under water just to see which of the products could with stand a little water and the NYX cream shadow did not even move! The water actually made the shadow look even prettier! On the other hand with a little water applied the the MAC pigment it started to look less vibrant and when I wiped both colors with a napkin the NYX stayed perfectly and the MAC pigment wiped right off.

If you are interested in MAC pigments head to your local Ulta or CVS and make sure first that NYX doesn’t already make a cream shadow in a similar shade!

Verdict: Save your money and try a cream shadow, you will love them! Also no primer needed!

XOXO

Summer Skincare Routine…

Hi Ladies!

Summertime is currently upon us but sadly it feels as if it is already leaving… During the summer months my skin always gets a little crazy with the sunscreen, sun exposure, late nights my skin honestly takes a beating during these months. In the last few weeks though I have found a skincare system that works wonders on my skin and I think you all can find that some of these products will be amazing if incorporated into your skincare routine.

The Basics:
I used to use a straight proactive treatment and I just never got the exact results I wanted, mind you I think the entire system is AMAZING it was just way to harsh on my skin (I used the Original Proactive Extra Strength Formula). I was also washing my face with an Aveeno facial cleanser which I liked but it wasn’t as hydrating as I would prefer. When I began to think about changing my skincare regime entirely I knew I wanted to focus on a couple of things hydration, acne treatment, and brightening. With my current routine I have seriously found such a nice combination which gives me everything I have been missing with other products.

Removing Dirt & Makeup AKA Face Wash:
Every night I started with the same first step, removing my makeup or just cleansing my skin. To remove the surface of my makeup I start with makeup wipes ( any brand works for me) this step is only to remove the first layer of makeup and should not be used as your only cleansing step. Then I go in with my Ponds Cold Cream Cleanser which I picked up from my local CVS. OH MY GOSH you guys, this product is incredible. It is a white cream that you scoop out of the jar and lather onto your face, you should put it on like you are applying a facial moisturizer and then once it has completely covered your face you take a soft towel or tissue and wipe off your face and your makeup will glide right off onto the towel or tissue. After this step, your skin feels like you just put on a really nice moisturizer. Then I go back in with a makeup wipe just to ensure I got it all off of my skin. I use this product both morning and night time because it really deep cleans.

Removing Eye Makeup:
After my skin is completely free of any makeup I go in with an eye makeup remover. It’s important to use a cleanser or cream that is designed or gentle enough to use on your eye area because many cleansers may be too rough to put around your eyes. Recently I have been obsessed with the Benefit They’re Real Remover. This product is also a cream and I just put a small amount onto my ring fingers and massage both eyes and eyebrows for about a minute then I take a cotton pad and gently wipe off the cream and melted makeup. I only use this product if I have been wearing makeup on my eyes so at night.

Toner:
Once your skin is nice and clean you want to apply a toner onto your skin and this step is the most important one and most exciting for me because of the product that I use for this step. Recently I started doing some research on the benefits of Apple Cider Vinegar and I found that if you dilute it, it can be an amazing product to apply onto your face as a toner. The vinegar helps to restore your PH levels, keep your skin clear, and also is not drying. To make this toner I take a small travel container that has a removable lid on it and fill it with a little less than half of tap water then I take straight Apple Cider Vinegar and fill the rest of the container with it. You can use a spray bottle, jar, or whatever you have laying around the house as long as you can either spray it onto your face or soak a cotton pad in it. You also want to make sure that whichever ratio of vinegar to water that you use you always end up with more vinegar. It took me a few times to find the right ratio for myself but now that I have, it’s amazing! I only use this product at night because of the smell.

Serum:
This is a step that I regulate, I only apply a serum every other night because it is a Vitamin C Serum so too much of this would not be good for my skin. The one I use is from Mario Badescu and I have loved this product ever since I got it and it really does last forever because I am only using it ever other night. I just apply a small amount onto my skin and allow it to sink into my skin before applying any other products.

Acne Treatment:
I don’t suffer from really bad acne but the acne that I do have is always very stubborn and hard to get rid of. Recently I have been loving the Clearasil Rapid Action Vanishing Treatment Cream. It’s important to apply this straight onto your acne marks so I will put this on either right after my toner or right after my serum because if I try and put it on over a cream then it won’t sink into the pimple as well. Once my entire face routine is done I will then take the Proactive Solution Refining Mask which I use as an acne spot treatment. I apply this after the rest of my face products because for me this can be very drying.

Eye Cream:
I recently started using an eye cream in order to hydrate my under eye area because they were getting very dry and my concealer was really settling into those dry areas. I have been loving the Clinique All About Eyes Cream which is actually more like a gel. It is supposed to reduce any under eye puffiness but I just love it for the hydration that it’s been giving my under eye area. I apply this product in patting motions all around my eyes and even onto my lids.

Day & Night Moisturizer:
During the day time I like to keep my face nice and hydrated but I don’t want to use anything that will make my foundation slippery when I put it onto my skin. I picked up the Hawaiian Moon Aloe Lotion at Phame and this product honestly isn’t anything incredible but it’s been helping to keep my skin hydrated and soft throughout the day. For night time I have another product that I am excited about which is Coconut Oil. I started using raw coconut oil as a night time moisturizer about a week ago and it has made such an incredible difference for my skin. I buy raw organic Coconut Oil from my local Whole Foods and just use a spoon to scoop some out onto my fingers then I warm the product up into my hands until it is a watery consistency and then I apply that all over my skin and it just provides the most intense natural hydration.

XOXO

Amazing Skin…

Hi Ladies!

I’ve been so busy recently with jury duty and everything going on during summer I have barely had any time to even put on makeup! I decided on Tuesday though to treat myself and go to Sephora to pick up a few new products. I went into Sephora with the intention of getting a few foundation but honestly came out with so much more.

If you have yet to try out Sephora’s Colors IQ you are seriously missing out… I was originally going to get a YSL foundation that I have heard wonderful things about but couldn’t find a color that really matched my skin.I asked one of the sales associates to match me and instead she did the Color IQ test. Since forever I have always though that I have very very pink and red undertones but to my surprise I am completely yellow, almost to the end of the yellow scale! I was shocked to say the least because everything that I buy has some kind of pink tone to it…which would explain why sometimes I feel like my skin is just so blah and has no life to it because I have been using the wrong undertone for WAY to long.

When Jennifer (Sephora sales associate) asked me what foundation I was interested in I told her the YSL one but instead she recommend the Estee Lauder Double Wear foundation because I told her that I love the way the Tarte Amazonian Clay foundation lays on my face I just wish it actually lasted 12 hours for me. So I decided to try the Double Wear Foundation in a bit darker shade than I would usually get and also in a very yellow tone. Before you even finish reading this you just need to know…this is by far the best foundation I have ever used. I am such a fan of full coverage but I don’t want it to be too full wear it starts to look cakey on my skin and make me look like I am wearing a complete mask. This foundation glided onto my skin and although it is more of a dry foundation and sets to a powder finish it made my skin look so healthy and luminous I can’t even explain how. As you know, I have very dry skin and recently my forehead has been very patchy with dry skin but this foundation did not sink into my dry areas and accentuate them it covered it so well. I noticed that I only needed one layer of foundation and it completely covered every single blemish. I applied this foundation with a Makeup Geek Buffing Brush (which is my new holy grail foundation brush) and it looked airbrush. Another thing I loved was how the rest of my products worked so well on top and underneath the foundation, even though the foundation was thick it wasn’t hard to blend in concealer or bronzer. I put the foundation on at about 7pm and when I came home around 3am my face still looked airbrushed and perfect. I found that this foundation seemed to hold the rest of my makeup in place throughout the night to which I loved.

Will You Love It?
If you have dry skin or oily skin this product will be amazing for you. I think people who have oily skin will really appreciate this because not only is it oil free but it just creates such a nice matte canvas to your skin you really don’t need to worry about touching up because you get oily throughout the day. If you have dry skin honestly this foundation could be a hit or miss, if you prep your skin well with a moisturizer and apply this about 20 min after you won’t have a problem but if your skin is VERY dry I would say to exfoliate and moisturize and then try out this foundation. Also this is very full coverage so I would recommend using this foundation when you will be taking a lot of photos and being out for a long time because it sits very nicely on your skin in photos and in person for a long period of time but if you like a natural finish this won’t be your favorite foundation.

The photos posted have absolutely no edit so you can completely see how perfect my skin looked with the foundation. Also if you would like a complete product list just let me know!

XOXO

Glitter & Gold…

Hi Ladies!

The title of this post seriously explains my two favorite things, glitter and gold. I attended PHAME last weekend which was such a great experience if any of you live in the LA area you need to make a trip to it next year but don’t worry I have an entire post coming about the expo. Anyways while I was there I stopped by Makeup Geek to pick up some new pigments and more importantly ones that are ALWAYS sold out on their site. The first pigment I went for was Utopia (if you have seen this pigment then you understand why) then I got a few other more neutral colors but picked up one called After Glow on a whim. When I first swatched this color onto my hand I thought it was just going to be an everyday beige but this color really surprised me in a good way.

The Look:

Yesterday I decided to experiment with some new goodies like my gel liner from Inglot and my new pigment from Makeup Geek. I started with a neutral base for my eyes and a light crease color using all Makeup Geek shadows then I sprayed a flat concealer brush with Mac Fix + and applied the pigment After Glow onto my lids and let me just tell you…It was beautiful! This pigment has so many different colors packed into it but what really stands out when it is applied wet is the gold shimmer in it. This pigment was very easy to apply and did not flake off at all, I also did not have to put a color underneath it because it was so pigmented. I finished the look off with some dramatic eyeliner and lashes. I’ve really been trying to step out of my comfort zone recently when it comes to makeup so I’ve been forcing myself to use gel liner (I used to just use powder or a pencil). While I think gel liner can be a little too much for my eyes sometimes and I prefer the soft lines that my black shadow creates its been a nice transition from what I usually do. Another new thing that I have been trying if you have yet to notice is instead of cutting my lashes basically in half and applying them that way, I have been applying the entire strip which for me is scary every time I decide to it but I’ve been loving the results of this more right now. I have found that if I let the glue get really tacky and then apply them onto my real lashes (with no mascara on) they glide right on and I have no problems with them.

Let me know if you guys would like an entire product list and step by step also! 

XOXO