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

Details Details Details…

Hi Ladies!

I received some really positive feedback on my last post about my “bad day” makeup so I wanted to list some of the products used and also tell you guys the steps I took in order to achieve this look because it’s honestly so simple and you can spice it up very easily! 

EYES:

• Base/Primer: MAC Paint Pot in Painterly applied with a concealer brush and blended out with my finger (I put this from my lash line up to my brow bone because I have product on my brow bone later on) 
• Setting Powder for Eyes: I personally like to set the paint pot with a cream shadow one that matches my skin tone because I find that it makes it easier to blend out my crease colors but this set isn’t necessary. I applied this with a domed shadow brush from Real Techniques and used a MAC Skin Finish in Light (you can use these powders for multiple things, not just to set your skin).
• Crease Color#1: I then went in with my first crease color which is Cocoa Bear from Make Up Geek, I personally love this shade but you should swatch it out before you commit to it all over your crease. If you find this color is too orange for you then use a light shade of brown like Brown Script from Mac which has a slightly orange undertone but it is more brown so you might feel more comfortable if you aren’t yet used to shades like Cocoa Bear. I applied Cocoa Bear into my crease with a MAC 217 brush, I started with a very light layer and then started to build up but I always focused the product into the outer edge of my eye and then swept whatever was left onto the brush further into my eye. 
• Liner: I started with Maybelline Gel Liner in Black I used a MAC eyeliner brush that is now discontinued but I recently found out that the MAC 226 Small Angle Brush is an exact replica for the original one so if you are on the hunt for a new liner brush definitely try this one out. I personally love this one because it does all the work for you, it creates a really nice tapered edge at the edge of the wing and because it is small it is so easy to be precise. I just started with small strokes from my inner corner to outer and then I put the brush tip on the edge of my eye facing up from my brow bone and draw the wing then I connect it back to the rest of the liner…Sounds confusing but you just need to practice some wing sizes and lengths to figure out which one works for your eye shape the best. 
• Inner Liner: This part I’m still struggling with my I took some extra gel liner onto my brush (barely any) and drew the point in my inner tear duct area… I don’t have a lot of advice on this yet because it was my first time doing it and I definitely need some more practice with this style liner. 
• Crease#2: I took MAC eye shadow in Embark and used the MAC 217 to apply this right above the outer wing of my liner to darken up the crease. 
• Lashes: I slightly curled my top lashes and applied Miss Manga Waterproof Mascara in Black to my top lash line (I did two coats) then I applied Ardell Lashes in 109 (perfect dupe for House of Lashes Iconic) and used Duo lash glue in black. I wait about 40 seconds to apply my lashes to really let the glue start to dry then I take tweezers with a longer handle and start by adhering them to the center of my lashes and then adhere them to the back and front of my lashes. Then I hold them down with my finger and they should be completely dry and held to your lashes. 
• Bottom Lash Line: (I did this after my foundation). I started with a definer brush and packed on embark from back really close to my lower lash line from inner to outer corner then I took a pencil brush with Cocoa Bear lightly on it and blended from inner to outer corner really well so that my eyes just had a smokey bottom lash line.
• Liner: Then I went in with L’Oreal eye liner kohl in dark brown (amazing drugstore liner) and applied this to my inner lower lash line and also tight lined my upper lash line. 
• Mascara: I finished off the bottom lash line with the same Miss Manga Waterproof Mascara in Black.

FACE: 

• Base: I started with a base about 30 minutes before after I washed my face which was Philosophy Hope In A Jar For Dry Skin.
• Foundation: Once my face was done I went in with Makeup Forever HD Foundation, I applied some Jose Maran Illuminator to the foundation on the back of my hand and then pressed it into my skin with a beauty blender.
• Concealer: I used IT Cosmetics Bye Bye Under Eye Circles Concealer and blended this in with a beauty blender. 
• Setting Powders: I used MAC Skin Finish in Light to set my under eyes and Ben Nye Powder in Buff for the rest of my face. 
• Contour: I went in with Anastasia Contour Kit using the lightest shade to bronze and then used Benefit Hoola Bronzer to lightly contour my face with a MAC 209 for both products.
• Blush: Then I went in with a coral shade from Ben Nye blush palette and applied this very lightly to the apples of my cheeks with a Real Techniques Multi-Task Brush. 
• Eyebrows: I used Anastasia Dip Brown in Auburn and set it with Anastasia Clear Brow Gel. 

Trust Me On This…

Hi Ladies!

So I can not tell you how many times I have seen someone discuss or review the Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara and honestly I used to be one of their most loyal followers. I currently have three tubes in my bathroom and one is still waiting to be opened, so yeah I loved the mascara. Recently though I just felt like it wasn’t doing ANYTHING for my lashes and more often than not my lashes looked worse with the mascara on than they did without it so I knew I wanted to try something new. When I first started doing some research on the best mascaras out there all I saw were high end ones but recently I’ve been on the hunt to replace my expensive makeup with cheaper alternatives since I wear makeup everyday and go through it all so quickly so my search quickly lead my to CVS to pick up some new ones. 

My Favorite: 

I came across the L’Oreal Miss Manga Mascara and before I say anything else please stop whatever you are doing and go buy this! If you are exhausted from spending money and fancy mascaras that don’t make you as beautiful as they should then this mascara is for you! The mascara has a flexible wand head which really helps when trying to get all the way down to your lash line and then wiggle up and the wand is a cone shape so it gives you a very flirty look to your lashes because they have so much volume and length at the ends and then get a little less dramatic as it goes in, it’s so flattering. I got the waterproof formula (just because I think it holds a curl longer but you don’t need to get this one) and purchased it in blackest black. Recently I have only been wearing mascara to work so I don’t mind a really dramatic and dark mascara because it brings out my eyes when I have no shadow on. I wore this mascara in my last post but I put lashes on over top but I don’t think I even needed the lashes because this made my lashes so voluminous without clumping them AT ALL. This mascara also has more of a dry formula which I really like because with most wet formulas your lashes with start to clump and you can’t build volume because it gets to clumpy and all over the place but this mascara let me build three layers and still looked perfect.  This mascara is incredible to say the least and I vow to not go out and spend money on the Too Faced Mascara because this beats it in every way. 

XOXO

On The Bad Days…

Hi Ladies! 

So have you ever had one of those days when you look in the mirror and it seems like every part of your makeup looks pretty terrible? Yesterday my skin was so patchy, my eye shadow was not blended well, and my lashes looked tiny. Needless to say, when you have one of these days all you want to do is run home and wash off all your makeup and crawl into bed but sadly that is not always an option. So when I got off work early I headed over to CVS to pick up some new face wash (I knew I was going to need something more than what I was using lol) and some gel liner. I decided in the CVS makeup aisle that when I got home I was going to try a look solely based on gel liner because honesty, liner in general terrifies me. I’ve always loved the way it looks on me but for a perfectionist like myself when your two wings don’t match up you might as well not wear makeup. SOOO when I got home I went to work with some Maybelline Gel Liner, a Mac liner brush, and some good crease colors and this is the look I cam up with. I actually really loved it! Sometimes when you do a bold liner your eyes can look kind of funny but with the crease color (it’s just a red brown color) it really made my eyes stand out and made them look so much bigger! I knew I wanted to do something interesting to I took the liner into my inner corners which for the first few hours I really enjoyed but after a while it seemed to bleed and look like a mess so I wiped it off before the night ended. If you guys have any ideas on how to make that not happen please let me know! I was thinking that if I set the inner corner with black eye shadow also it would keep it in place, but that just seems like it could get messy really quickly. I finished the look off with some dramatic Ardell lashes which are my current fave and a serious dupe for the House of Lashes Iconic ones. 

If you guys would like to see a step by step of how I got this look just comment below and I would be glad to, also let me know what you think about the liner in the inner corner!

XOXO

New Skincare Obsession…

Hi Ladies!

This week I went to the Dry Bar at Fashion Island which is basically just a fancy place to get your hair washed, dried, and curled but it seriously looks better than anything that I could have done. While I was walking to the hair salon I passed by Lush and decided to take a look inside due to all the wonderful reviews and comments I have heard about the entire store. I am always looking for great companies who use completely natural products and also do not test on animals, those two things are very important to me when searching out a brand that I am going to invest some serious money in. After watching Jacklyn Hill’s videos on Youtube I knew that I wanted to try a few products from the store but ended up leaving with only one mask because I wanted to start off small. 

The Mask: 

I chose the Mask of Magnanimity in the 4.4 oz container. This mask is designed for use on your face but it can also be used on your back. Inside of the mask there is China Clay and Peppermint which do some serious deep cleaning and make sure that every pore you have on your face is rid of any gunk. This mask is also packed with aduki beans which help to exfoliate and soften dry skin, there is also vanilla and honey to help calm down redness and make your face feel soothed and not too dry.  Although this mask was wonderful when I used it, it is a serious deep cleaning mask so you do not want to put this into your normal skin care regime because even though it is packed with hydrating beans I do think that the more often you use this the more of a chance you have at really drying out your skin. When I first used it I started off with clean skin and let the mask sit all over my face for about 20 minutes (the mask says 5-10 but I got distracted) then I rinsed it off with warm water. After the mask had been sitting it was becoming quite flaky so it was very easy to rinse off and I just gently exfoliated my skin by lighting rubbing the mask in circular motions. After the mask was off my skin felt incredibly soft, my pores looked smaller, and my entire face just had a really nice glow to it. With dry skin, I am always afraid to use anything to rough on my skin because it will just dry me out more but this seriously hydrated my skin and gave me such a nice layer for the rest of my skin care routine. When I woke up the next day I could still smell the minty scent the mask left (which I love) and my skin looked brighter, some of my blemishes were smaller, and my skin was incredibly smooth. I really would recommend this mask to everyone. If you have sensitive skin you will love this product because it has all natural ingredients, there are no chemicals or preservatives added so as long as you are not allergic to the products your skin should love this mask. If you have oily skin this mask will not only help remove some of that oil from your skin through the exfoliation but it will also keep the oil down by adding good hydration. If you are dry, this mask will get rid of any rough patches and smooth while hydrating your skin. For $12.95 this mask is a holy grail in my life now! 

XOXO

A Little Glamour…

Hi Ladies!

One of my favorite things to do is get all dressed up for a dinner and movie night with my boyfriend. I use these nights to experiment with some new products and styles of makeup. I wanted to show you guys my go to brown smokey eye and heavily contoured face (that seemed to not come up in photos). Products will all be listed below! 🙂 

EYES:

• I like to start with my eyes before the rest of makeup just because I tend to be messy and use tape to get a precise line and I don’t want to pull off any of my foundation and hard work I have already done on my face. 
• Prime: MAC Paint Pot in Painterly ( I put that on with a concealer brush and just blend it out with my finger, I usually put it from my lash line to my eyebrows.) 
• Set: I like to set that cream with just any cream shadow, I used my MAC Skin Finish in Light. 
• Crease: MUG Coco Bear ( I build it up and blend it in with a MAC 217, take your time with this shadow and really build it up). Then I take MUG Creme Brulee with the same brush and build up that color so I have a warm crease, it should be darker at this point and should really define your crease but you really just want to focus the colors in the outer part of your eye so put the brush there first and blend out whatever color you have left on your brush into the inner part of your eye. 
• Lid: Then I go into my Anastasia Lavish Palette and take the darkest brown shade that has shimmer in it and pack it onto my lids with a Sigma E55 brush. When I’m doing a smokey eye I like to use shimmer on the lid because it makes it more flirty and a little more soft, I am personally not a fan of an all matte eye. 
• Touch Up: I then go back in with my MAC 217 brush sometimes I have product on it (left over creme brulee) but this time I went in with it clean and just blended the shimmer color into the crease so there was no harsh lines. 
• Liner: Then I went in with Maybelline gel liner and a thin pencil brush from an art store. 
• Lashes: I started with DUO glue in Black and use the Ardell 419 Curvy lashes. 
• Brows: I used Anastasia Dip Brown in Auburn with her eyebrow brush and set them with her brown gel. 

FACE: 

• Prep: I started by moisturizing my face with the Philosophy Hope In A Jar for Dry Skin and Clinque Eye Cream
• Prime: I added just a tiny bit of the Tarte Flawless Primer to my skin just on my cheeks. 
• Contour & Highlight: I used my RCMA palette taking the white shade to highlight and the second darkest brown shade to contour around my face. I then took my beauty blender and just blender the edges of this into my skin. I applied this to my face using a flat concealer brush from Bare Minerals. 
• Foundation: I took my Tarte Amazonian Clay 12-hour Foundation on my beauty blender and put the foundation lightly onto the areas I highlighted first and then blended it into the contoured area very lightly. 
• Extra Highlight: Since the concealer palette hide any dark circles or imperfections I then took my MAC Prep and Prime pen in Radiant rose and blended this into the areas I put the white concealer area for some extra highlight. 
• Set: I set my under eye with MAC Skin Finish (using the contour brush from real techniques) in Light and contoured area with Hoola Bronzer from Benefit (using a tapered brush from sigma)  and the rest of my face with Buff from BEN NYE (using a large powder brush from real techniques) 
• Contour: Taking a MAC 109 I used the Anastasia Contour Kit to contour my cheeks, forehead, and nose. 
• Blush: I used the tapered brush from Sigma again to apply a coral color from my BEN BYE Cheek Palette. 
• Powder: MAC soft & gentle, I used my finger. 

LIPS: 

• Prime: I started with Vaseline about 30 min before. 
• Liner: Lined my lips with MAC Strip Down and colored them in lightly with the liner also.
• Gloss: Urban Decay Liar 

The War Of Highlighters…

Hi Ladies! 

Sorry I have been MIA for a while, I was busy with my family these past few weeks but now I am back with a few great products that I have had the time to test these past weeks. One of the hardest things to find is a good highlighter one that will not wash you out, one that is not to strong, and one that just emphasizes your best features. So many people have the belief that you need to purchase a tiny tube of pink or yellow product at ridiculous prices but I have found a great alternative for all of you with a pink undertone to your skin. 

WHY IS HIGHLIGHTING SO IMPORTANT: 

• Highlighting will basically illuminate the best areas of your face. If you start to choose the right shade to highlight with (either a pink, yellow, or salmon) your skin will look healthy, your eyes will look awake, and the overall appearance of your face will become more youthful. It’s just as important to match a highlighting pen to your undertone as it is to match your foundation to your skin. Finding your undertone is easy, one of the most simple ways is to look at the veins in  your arm  and if you have blue veins you are cool (red & pink) but if you have greenish veins then you are warm (yellow). If you also just Google how to find your undertone there a million of tests you could take at home to see your true undertone. Highlighting in this sense is not using a shimmery powder or illuminater, it is using some kind of product with no shimmer to put on either over your concealer and foundation or used solely as your concealer. While I give you two great options of highlighters it is important that you go to the drugstore or beauty store and test some out for yourself, mine are simply suggestions but everyone may not like them the way I do. 

 

MAC Radiant Rose: 

• If you shop at MAC then you know about two of their most popular products, their highlighting pens. There are actually three pens but everyone seems to gravitate towards either the yellow shade or the pink shade (there is a salmon shade but I would recommend that to people who have extremely dark skin tones). I chose the Radiant Rose shade because I have more of a pink undertone but in reality I am just very neutral in my skin tone, I chose pink most of the time those because I like the way it makes my under eye look. I really enjoyed this product, it is currently my second tube of it and honestly it lasts me for about 4-5 weeks when I am using it everyday either as a light highlight or a full face look. This product can be used on top of your makeup or you can put it underneath as a primer to add brightness from within to your makeup. I like to do my foundation and concealer, then I take the pen put a triangle under my eyes all the way to my hairline (you always want to continue your concealer and highlight to your hairline because it is like a mini face lift) then I add a triangle in the middle of my forehead and drag it down my nose half way, then I add a line on my cupids bow and a triangle on my chin… Depending on how you feel about your face you can alter this, I like to highlight these areas but if you feel that you have a large forehead then skip putting it on your forehead and so on for the rest of your skin. This product did not crease, and my concealer settled well with it. For $25 though, I felt that I could find a more affordable product to use everyday and a product that would provide me with the same results. 

Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Dark Circle Eraser:

•  I started using the normal concealer version of this product a few months back (this is a highlighting product but they have concealers also) and I really liked the concealer it was comparable to MAC Pro Long Wear but honestly I liked the way the Maybelline one sat on my skin. When I went to purchase more concealer I found this new product and I do not think that I could tell you enough good things about this product. You twist the product up from the bottom and it comes up into this puff ball and then you drag that onto the areas you want to highlight (don’t love that idea, but you could simply take the puff ball off and apply the product to the back of your hand). This product blends in like a dream, it has no shimmer and mixes well with all kinds of concealers and thick concealers. It was so simple to use this product and I felt like I had a steal because of the price I paid for this but I enjoyed it more than the MAC pen. The color is a bit darker but that’s just because I got the wrong shade but they have a wide variety of pink shades and also yellow shades. For $8 it seems crazy that I would ever pay for the MAC product again because Maybelline not only provides you with a great drugstore product but also one that beats a high end highlighter. If you just want to experiment or use some different shades I would say purchase this product, also if you want to stop paying almost $30 every few weeks then please check out these highlighters, their amazing. 

XOXO

Here you can see the MAC pen on the left and the Maybelline on the right.