New Product Post…

Hi Ladies!

I went to Sephora yesterday with my boyfriend to take back my collection of primers that I am no longer using and to restock on a few items. I’ve been a fan of the entire GlamGlow line for a while now and I seriously swear by all of their masks but honestly spending almost $70 for a product every once in a while is not okay with me because for some reason I go through my masks so quickly and end up using them in a few weeks. I really wanted a hydrating treatment and a very deep hydration one because my skin was getting so flaky and exfoliation wasn’t helping so I knew that I needed some intense hydration. I found the Tsubaki Deep Hydration Mask by Boscia and last night was the first time that I used it. When I saw it and looked at the reviews online I found a lot of people comparing it to the Thirty Mud Mask by GlamGlow and some people were even saying that they liked it better and honestly I can tell why… 

For $34 you are getting a seriously amazing product! The mask is more like a lotion in a squeeze tube and should be used like you would use a nighttime moisturizer. Sephora claims this mask is, “A deeply-hydrating overnight sleeping mask that intensely moisturizes and protects to deliver long-term anti aging benefits and smoother, baby-soft skin.” This mask is also formulated without parabens and sulfates so you know you are getting a really high quality product and this mask is packed with vitamins and antioxidants, one of which being Vitamin C (which you guys know I love because of it’s hydrating complex). Anyways I started my normal skincare routine with washing my face, then toner, then pimple spot treatments, an eye cream, and then layered this over all of it. A lot of reviews said that this mask was so thick so only put a small amount on because it will just end up all over your pillow but honestly I don’t know if my skin was so dry or what but it just soaked the product right up and my skin just looked like I had a moisturizer on. Also, some reviews had said that the mask helped with minor breakouts and I can definitely say I agree. Yesterday I had a little monster on my cheek and this morning the redness was completely gone it was considerably smaller than it had been this past week. If you have sensitive skin you are absolutely going to love this mask because it is alcohol free, preservative free, and has no added fragrance. Also this product is gluten-free which is an interesting move that many skincare companies are taking. There is currently a lot of testing going on for the effects that keeping gluten in a skincare or makeup product may have. While many are skeptical about whether having ingredients in your skincare that contain gluten actually effect your health if you have an allergy to gluten, many brands are taking it upon themselves to remove gluten from products (another great reason this product is amazing for sensitive skin). 

After I woke up today my skin looked so healthy and beautiful, it had a really natural glow and looked so youthful and plump. I decided to skip my exfoliating face wash and go with my gentle one and now with makeup and everything else on my face, my face feels so hydrated and healthy. Usually, after I put on my foundation my skin will feel really tight but today it feels awesome so I can not wait to use this product again tonight. I would definitely recommend it to someone who has dry or sensitive skin, it may be a little too oily for someone with oily skin. 

 

xoxo

Contour & Highlight in One Perfect Palette

These are the two shade options available

Hi Ladies!

So as we all know contouring and highlighting is as essential as drinking water these days. Whether you’re Kim Kardashian or anyone else, the benefits that contouring and highlighting can have is simply phenomenal. While to some, it may seem unnecessary you can get a serious transform in a matter of minutes with just a little dark powder and cream.

I recently attended IMATS in LA this past January and was overwhelmed with the amount of cream palettes that all of the big makeup brands were offering. I ended up choosing a wonderful palette from RCMA Makeup. The palette comes with 18 shades of concealer ranging from dark to light (mind you there are two of these palettes depending on your skin tone, since I am fair I chose the VK #11 because it had more shades to compliment me). This palette is phenomenal! It was seriously worth every penny I spent (I don’t remember the exact price because the IMATS prices were a little different than the normal prices but it currently retails for $27.00)

Although the palette can seem intimidating at first I would definitely recommend trying a cream contour. Concealer palettes make this easy because they offer you such a light shade and then one that is much darker than your normal skin tone. This concealer is formulated to be very creamy and sheer so you will need to build upon it for a more intense highlight. If you are a pro, this kind of palette is ideal because of the price and also the variety of colors that you get because it is so versatile.

 

How I Use It:

I start with my normal foundation routine but I usually apply a thinner layer when I know I am going to contour with cream. After my foundation I take a MAC 189 concealer and dip into some of the lightest shade (if you are using this palette on multiple people then scoop the product onto something separate) I then take the lightest shade and draw a triangle under both eyes down to my cheekbones, a triangle in the center of my forehead, a swipe on my cupids bow, and a triangle on my chin. Next I take a beige color from the palette and swipe it onto the hollow of my cheeks, on the sides of my nose, the area that was not covered by the highlight on my forehead, and on my jaw. I then take any duo-fiber brush and lightly blend out the highlight and then take my beauty blender to blend my contour in ( I like using my beauty blender for this because I want the dark product to stay exactly where it is, if you move it too much you can change the shape of your face and make it look bigger or wider.) After everything is blended I set all the creams ( for my highlight I set with MAC Pro Emphasize powder & for my contour I set with Benefit’s Hoola.)

 

In case you can’t get your hands on this palette try using a light concealer from the drugstore, I like the Maybelline Age Rewind (so blendable and comparable to a high-end concealer) and for contour try the Sonia Kashuck Undetectable Cream Bronzer (there are two shades). If you want more of a liquid contour try a few shades darker than your skin tone in the L’oreal True Match foundation (beautiful foundation from the drugstore)

 

XOXO

What’s The Deal With Primers?

Hi Ladies!

Recently I started the task of trying to find a perfect primer one that truly did everything it said it would and would live up to the expectations that I had. To start, my initial belief is that I need a primer. My skin is dry but it also gets oily in my T-Zone during the day. For some reason almost every primer that I have used has inevitably broken my makeup in certain parts of my face and made my face look worse with makeup than it does without. I started thinking, do I actually need a primer? Are they worth the extra $40 and time in the morning? If you follow Jacklyn Hill on YouTube you know that she does not use a face primer, just a good moisturizer and goes from there and her makeup looks flawless on and off camera. She said that as long as you treat your skin well then you should have no problem simply applying foundation straight to your face. Thinking back to middle school and early high school years, I never used primer or did I know anything about it, it wasn’t until magazines and make-up counters started saying that women NEED it. Over my hunt for the perfect primer I had a lot more bad skin days then I did good.

I started the hunt a few months ago when I started using Hourglass Veil, the primer seemed to glide onto my face and give me a very airbrushed finish. I started developing some intense blemishes quickly after using the primer (and a few new skincare items) so I changed it immediately. I then started using the Benefit Porefessional Primer which honestly is one I always seem to find myself going back to. If you have yet to try the primer, it gives you the most flawless silky skin and I always found that my skin looked best an hour after my foundation had been sitting on it. It was when it got to the fifth or sixth hour that my skin was almost peeking through, I was oily and blotchy, and extra touch-ups just made my skin look worse. Basically this primer did not last long at all. So I set out to find a primer that gave me the same immediate results as the Benefit Porefessional Primer but just lasted longer. So I tried the Too Faced Primed and Poreless Pure primer which was formulated without oil for sensitive skin. This primer to say the least was a waste of money, I was better off with my Benefit primer. Lastly, I rediscovered an old favorite, the Smashbox Photo Finish primer. As I am writing this post I am currently wearing the primer and asking myself why in the world I am. The primer broke up my makeup almost immediately with two different foundations and made my skin look like I literally caked on my makeup. If I could wash it off now without destroying the hard work I’ve done on my liner I would.

So now I am left to return the Smashbox primer and go back to the racks to find a new one… Some of you may say that I am expecting to much from a primer to withstand the wind, sweat, and sun for up to 10 hours but let’s be real I put on my makeup in the morning to last me ALL day… I don’t have time to come home between work or school and wash off my hard work, PLUS thats another four or five pumps of foundation that I am wasting…

If you guys have any suggestions for the next primer I should try just let me know!

XOXO

The Beginning to Something BEAUTIFUL

Hey Ladies,

Have you been in Sephora for hours trying to find which under-eye cream will be your new holy grail products or have you tried so many different mascaras that your poor little eyelashes are exhausted? Well my name is Sara and I will be your new beauty guru! During your time on my blog I will teach you some makeup tricks, help you pick out your new goodies, and give you a little inspiration everyday. Beauty to me is a form of expression and makeup is our personal paint brushes, I want to share the love that I have for the makeup industry with all of you lovely ladies. You get out of makeup exactly what you put into it but that does not mean I will be making you spend thousands of dollars on eye shadows and foundations, I want to this blog to be a place for women from all walks of life, skin tones, skin types, and financial situations to find peace and help in. So please continue to check back for a new beauty post.

XOXO