Sephora Luster Matte Long Wearing Lip Colors | Review & Swatches

Ever wanted a gloss that turns matte, doesn't come off on your drinking glass and stays on perfectly for 5+ hours? So have I, and for $16 a piece you can find them at Sephora!

Ever since discovering these Glosses I try to buy one every time I go to Sephora (which isn't often) because these are the true definition of what staples in your collection should be.

The pigmentation is out of this world, and surprisingly these do not dry out my lips whatsoever. Of course, because they dry to be matte I would recommend using a lip liner to really get a precise line but if you use lighter colors like "Fig" then you could really get away without it.

These are perfect for the girls who leave the house with so much to do that the last thing they want to do is worry about how their color looks.

As much as I love Ruby Woo, and although it will always be my favorite it's really nice to know that I can apply a similar color like "Scarlet" and not have it patch up on my lips a few hours later.

The colors I've purchased so far are:
1) Deep Plum
2) Scarlet
3)Fig

Next time you go into Sephora make sure you swatch one of these! The reason I fell in love with them was because the color payoff was remarkable and it took a few hand washes to get it completely off!
I hope this review was helpful xxx

Fall Favorites | Beauty | Accesories

 

 

 

 

Fall/Autumn, is and will always be my favorite time of year. Whenever It comes around I become overly excited with the colors, themes, and coziness that it gives off and year after year I find that this is always the particular moment where I take time to analyze who I am and where I want to be.
Although I struggle with creating "Favorites Posts" on a regular basis due to my semi-large collection of things and my insistence on routinely changing the products I use in order for them all to get their fair share- I don't however struggle with creating a solid post in the Fall. I just LOVE everything about bold, dramatic artistry and what better way to exhibit your passion than on your face, right?

 

I am currently obsessed with the Taylor Swift "Wonderstruck Enchanted" scent because it's soft and girly. Since the air tends to become thicker in the cooler months I try to stay away from strong, Musky scents knowing that I'll be around other people. I've had this little charm for around two weeks now and I wear it everyday, many people have complimented me since then which certifies that I made a wise purchase :) 

I just need to say that after purchasing this foundation I don't think that I will ever stop repurchasing. This has changed my entire life and I am so thankful that I FINNALY splurged. This is the Yves Saint Laurent Le Taint Touché Éclat foundation which retails for $57. Yes the price is a downside but this water based foundation is phenomenal for people who have drier skin. One pump will get you a light coverage with a dewy finish, and two pumps will get you medium coverage, with your imperfections blurred, and a beautiful dewy finish that does not make your face look oily whatsoever. If you do have oily skin this foundation might be a bit too dewy for you and will accentuate your oily spots rather than illuminate your face.  

 

During Fall and Winter my house will smell like some sort of man; although I don't like having musky scents on me whilst I'm around other people I do appreciate a good man scented room when I walk in. Black Tie and Mahogany Teakwood are my two all time favorite scents that I hoard until fall and Winter arrive. Today I'm only showing you Black Tie because It's the one I burn the most during fall, and as you can see I'm down to my medium sized candles and I only have one of these left before I completely run out (I'm hoping that the winter scents come out soon so I can stock up again).

 

 

I usually go for gold jewelry year-round but during Fall especially I feel it REALLY makes a statement on absolutely everyone. My go-to gold pieces at the moment consist of my two tone Michael Kors watch in Gold and Silver with the jewel detailing on the edge, and a little dainty flower bracelet that I think stack perfectly together, although I do change the bracelet every now and then. This is a perfect duo that accompanies any outfit perfectly whether I'm going to class in the morning or to a nice Restaurant at night. 

As stated previously I am utterly obsessed with bold makeup for fall, I think that a strong contour, some cat eyes and most importantly a dark lip are must haves and my favorite lip shade right now has been this MAC matte lipstick called 'Diva' which I believe is a holy grail for the majority of the members on the internet-Beauty community. Unlike Ruby Woo, this Matte color is not overly drying and has a really good lasting power which is impressive because most dark lipsticks just tend to go everywhere rather than stay on the actual place they're intended to be on- your lips. 

I am totally guilty of purchasing shadows and then neglecting them but this is the Urban Decay Vegan palette that I purchased when I first started blogging around two years ago and it is still one of my favorites. For some reason I never use a brush when I utilize this palette because the colors are so stunning that I want the true pigmentation to appear on my eyes. The bottom three are my favorite for everyday use.

Anastasia Dip Brow is one of those products that I have been eyeing for a very long time  but never bought and then surprisingly enough it was gifted to me one day by a dear friend while we were out shopping. I suppose she saw the lust I had for it better than I could feel it for myself. I don't know how I ever lived without this baby. My brows have never appeared so perfect and I swear to you they are waterproof. I wonder if this would make a good eye-liner? 

Long, long, long ago I used my very first 100 point perk from Sephora on a sample of this High Impact Clinique mascara, fell in love with it, and never bought the full size. Recently though I was out shopping with a friend and I decided to buy it on a whim. I forgot how much I really enjoyed this product and the dazzling effect it gives my lashes.

 

These are all of my fall faves and I hope you all enjoyed it! I'm not going to be doing a fall segment because I feel that living in Florida is a bit of Debby downer for fall fashion. I can sit here and show you all my favorite pieces but I doubt that I'll actually be wearing them especially since the weather is SO bipolar here. I rather save my pieces and show them off to you all in OOTD's which I know you wont mind.

I hope you're all enjoying your lazy Sunday's xxx



$13 ebay Brushes?! | Review

Hello, everybody! So a couple of weeks ago I was surfing the web as they say, and I remembered hearing/reading something about ebay brushes... I can't tell you who or what it was from but It did arouse some curiosity and I found myself scrolling through some sets. I finally came across this one which I liked because it shipped from the US instead of from China and it was a complete face set, which means all buffing foundation brushes and buffing concealer brushes that I didn't previously own.

My initial reaction when I felt these brushes was incredulous because I could not believe how soft they were, they felt smooth and I even tried tugging at the hairs to see if they would fall out and they didn't. They don't feel cheaply made, the handles aren't coming off or anything of that sort which is really, really good. The larger face brushes are a dream to work with, I used the rounded buffing brush as my first trial of these brushes and it did such an impeccable job. My foundation looked good beforehand but the density in the brush allowed it to give even better coverage which is something that I really appreciate.

I then went on to use the little angled, stippling brush for my concealer and this too was lovely to work with, it didn't leave streaky traces on my skin or irritate under my eyes. I also used the rounded concealer brush on my eyes because I couldn't find my blending brush at the moment and I was really surprised at what a good job it did!

These brushes are a total steal, if you're in the market for some good brushes and don't want to spend $100+ on Sigma ones, I would highly recommend purchasing these. They don't have any writing, or foreign brand name on them, they just look like classic brushes that would look absolutely beautifully all bundled up together in a beaded brush holder, as the gold detailing makes them look a bit luxurious. For $13 you really cannot pass this up!

I hope you all enjoyed this little review and find yourselves saving some pennies because of it!



A Few Ways to Organize Your Life

1) Purchase a Planner/Day Runner

Something that I will always and forever preach about is investing money into a planner; whether it cost you $7 at Target or $50 custom made at an online shop I highly suggest you purchase one. I never knew the difference they would make in my life until one of my 10th grade teachers made it a requirement in her classroom and ever since then I can honestly say, that I haven't gone a day without one.

Inside my planner, I write down my work schedule for the week (for obvious reasons), my bills for that week, and any other miscellaneous responsibilities that I have to look forward to. I have built a routine for myself in which I separate my bills into two lists, one for the first paycheck of the month and the second for the other; This allows me to not get super overwhelmed, yet always keep track of what I can and cannot spend. Being a blogger is especially overwhelming because we tend to crave innovation, we're always looking for the next best thing which can be highly useful for our blog yet increasingly problematic for our wallets which is why I set up monthly allowances for strictly 'blogging' purposes.

Speaking of Blogging, Does anyone else consider this to be like the coolest job/hobby ever? This leads to my second tip:

2) Don't lose contact with what brings you joy for the sake of sticking to a schedule

Sometimes it's hard to find a balance between considering this a job or a hobby simply because in my head it's a hobby that I want to turn into a job. One of the most efficient ways of keeping my sanity is pre-planning the topics that I want to talk about but never pre-writing them unless I really, really have to. This helps me consider this a job due to my strict posting schedule of Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday yet also consider this a hobby by continuing to serve the excitement that I feel every time I write up a new post.

I would be lying if I said that on some Tuesday nights I don't sit on my bed, scratching my head, while trying to come up with SOMETHING for the following day because lets be honest, it happens. Something that has really helped me is planning topics ahead of time which requires writing them down in a list formation, and whenever I feel a little lost I can go to my notepad and pick something from the list that most excites me. If for some reason I don't feel particularly motivated to post then I just wont. I never want to give anyone something that I didn't think was 'ready' or 'good enough' and this applies to all aspects of life and career paths. Giving myself 'in-between' blogging days as well as weekends gives me time to refresh and come up with new ideas, I've been writing for enjoyment since I can last remember, believe me when I say that I know what writers block is and it ain't pretty.

3) You can't buy any more time, so be a little selfish and invest the one you've got in yourself

Yes, I understand that it's easier said than done but actually separating time for yourself is a big part of organizing your life. Remember that it is YOUR life, YOUR sanity, and no one knows your happiness or weaknesses better than you do. I am a strong advocate for pamper days/evenings- alone or with a close friend (but mostly alone). Use your time wisely by relaxing and meditating on your own persona, once you clear your own mind, you can tackle outside demons but it's hard to think straight with other things clouding your judgment.


                                                                                              4) Don't overwhelm yourself

It's really, really hard to admit that we CAN'T do something (especially as women) but sometimes we really just can't. I'd say it's actually within our nature to feel like we can conquer the world because I suppose that if we really tried we actually could but in reality we're all just human and if we couldn't beat a battle it doesn't necessarily mean that we lost the war. Admitting to ourselves our own weaknesses is a huge STEP to organizing our lives because we're weeding out all of the bad and simply trying to cultivate the good.

Obviously I'm no life expert and there's a million other ways to go about this process but through trial and error I feel as though the steps mentioned above are the ones that have worked best for me. The first one is obviously technical while the others focus more on inner peace and strength.

Everyday Work Makeup-Look | Tutorial

 

 

 

First off, this is technically my first time showing my bare face to a wide audience- so stay with me I know it's scary, But I wanted to show you all a step by step picture, makeup, tutorial- type of thing about my REALISTIC everyday workday makeup.

 

Yes I do realize that I did not use a primer or a setting powder because it's really easy to forget when you're rushing for work and as I stated above, I'm aiming for reality here.

 

First thing I do is apply a good foundation, especially if I know that I'm going to be at work for 8+ hours and I need something reliable. So today I used my Maybelline Super Stay Foundation in the color 'nude'. I hear that this is their most popular shade, because the range only has about 5-6 colors to choose from and this one is the most versatile. I completely agree, this blends into my skin beautifully covering up some imperfections yet still allowing my skin to breathe.

Second thing I do is tame my brows. I use a regular dark brown eye shadow- this routine changes constantly but my brows pretty much always end up the same. On occasion if I have an extra minute I'll go over them with Maybelline's brow gel.

For shadow I'm using a standard NYC eye quad that consists of neutral colors which are what I tend to lean on most when I have to go to work. These colors are not extremely pigmented but lately I've just been reaching for this palette like crazy because it just gets the job done.

To complete my eye look I trace my water line with a black eyeliner pencil from a company called 'Starlet' and then apply one coat of both Maybelline's Mega Plush & Colossal Mascaras.

A step that I barely ever miss is concealing/highlighting. Again, the concealer used to do this process changes all of the time but for the past couple of weeks I have been OBSESSED with Maybelline Instant Age rewind in the lightest shade. It gives me extra coverage AND highlights all in one.

Next, I bronze and color my cheeks with Benefit Hoola (I use this everyday and I still  have not hit pan on it, Amazing right? ) and NYX blush in Mauve.

Lastly, what I consider to be the most important step: my lips. I line a little outside of my natural lip line with MAC's Whirl and then fill them in with MAC's Cosmo. This lip combo is perfection and long wearing.

And, voila I no longer look like a corpse!

Lorac Glosses | Why I Love Them

Ever since I was around 13 or 14 and getting into makeup Lorac Cosmetics was just one of those brands that I loved but couldn't buy because at the time they were too expensive, but as I grew older and started working- you better believe that I have splurged my fair share of times.
Whether they came in Kits or have been bought individually, their glosses have really grown to be products that I LOVE. The pigmentation is honestly out of this world, and the lasting power is truly amazing.

Above I have three glosses that I love and have been using a ton this Summer. The top one is called 'Retro' and it's from their Couture Shine line, this one I would have to say has the strongest lasting power. I have applied this before going to work around noon and then checked up on it around 5 and it is still there. It is very shiny, although a bit sticky but that's something that has never bothered me.

The second one is called 'Ruby Lustre' and it's from their Lip Lustre Gloss line, I purchased this one on a whim when Lorac was 50% off at Sephora and I was really excited when I bought it because If you look closely enough at the first picture it has some light shimmer reflects inside of if and it really reminds me of China Glaze's Ruby Pumps nail polish- which I love. Then when I tried it on in the car because I was so happy I couldn't wait to get home, I noticed that it took two coats to get the pigmentation shown above which was perfectly okay with me. Later on that night I was messing about with some colors and noticed that this gloss looks amazing above any red lipstick, and that's when I knew for sure I had purchased a winner.

Last but not least Is a gloss that came along with the Mint Palette that was exclusively sold at Ulta and then Hautelook in the color 'Christian' from their Lips With Benefits line. This one is probably my favorite one, I just simply adore the color, it goes beautifully over MAC'S Candy Yum Yum and it's just an overall really fun and bright color to put on when you're going out to run some errands during the day or on top of a lipstick when going out at night.

I hope this was a helpful review to any of you who are wanting to try out Lorac Glosses!
I don't know about you all but I have REALLY been wanting to try out their PRO Matte Lip Colors; right up my alley!

Casual Summer Day | OOTD #1

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is just and easy summer outfit that can be interchangeable with different pieces, and easily brought from a day to night look. The shirt itself is very versatile, if paired like shown above it s ideal to be worn on a hot day out where errands need to be made but you still don't want to look like you're careless. Equally as easy, this shirt can be paired with black shorts and some strappy sandals and worn out to dinner which is why I love it so much especially during Florida's summer heat.
These High waisted shorts are my everything during summer; I took them on my cruise and wore them both days; they are SO comfortable, it had taken me a good while to finally invest in a pair but I'm really glad I did.

Outfit Details:
Top- Wet Seal
Shorts- Wet Seal
Cross body- Arizona
Shoes- Calvin Klein

Makeup Details:
Foundation- Rimmel Wake Me Up
Concealer- Rimmel True Match
Brows- Kelly Osbourne MAC Duo
Eye shadow- Naked Palette
Mascara- Rimmel Lash Accelerator
Eyeliner- Urban Decay 24/7 'zero'
Setting Powder- Rimmel Stay Matte
Bronzer- Benefit Hoola
Blush- Bare Minerals 'Rose Gold' loose powder
Lips- Mac Ruby Woo

One Brand Haul | Rimmel

The other day I was out running errands and felt like spontaneously buying makeup but for once I decided not to venture out through the various isles and just focused on one brand. I'd never done this before so I chose to go with the brand that I knew least about which in this case was Rimmel. The way I went about it was buying enough products from the brand that could potentially create a makeup look and therefore give me somewhat of an idea as to what the overall potential of the brand is. I didn't buy eye shadow because that is the only product from Rimmel that I did previously own and I find it to be pigmented and long lasting although the shimmer in the eye shadows comes off to be too chunky therefore needs to be applied with a light hand.

 I stepped out today for a few hours in the morning and decided to apply all of these products and really test them out in the dry Florida heat and I have to say I was pleasantly surprised.

I applied the primer all over my face concentrating particularly on my T-zone, cheeks, and chin - placed the concealer under my eyes and on the places where I wanted to highlight - then patted the Stay Matte powder all over. This is something that I wouldn't do if I were going to work or out somewhere for several hours but I would use these steps if I were just running errands like I did today or going off to my college classes.

Afterwards, I applied the Kohl eye liner that came along with the mascara on the outer part of my water line not reaching my inner corner and applied two coats of the mascara. I find that the Lash Accelerator reminds me A LOT of Benefit's "They're real" which is awesome considering that there's a large price difference.

I lined my lips with the "070 Enchantment" lip liner and filled it in with the Kate Moss lip stick in "107". I can tell you right now that I am OBSESSED with this lip combo; I've worn it two days in a row (Last night, and this morning) and it is just so beautiful it makes my lips look juicy and plump and totally ties the whole look together making up for the lack of foundation and blush- which by the way I think Rimmel is the only brand I've seen at the drugstore that does not have blushers. How weird is that?

Top Swatch is the Kate Moss lipstick in '107'
Bottom Swatch is the lip liner in '070 Enchantment'

I'm enjoying testing out this mascara, the formulation is a bit wet but it's something I can get used to considering the volume and length that it adds to my lashes.

I was really impressed with this eye liner when I first swatched it because as you can tell it is very black and the formulation was smooth- I didn't feel it tug my water line.
But when I wore it today I realized about three hours after applying it that it had completely disappeared. It didn't smear anywhere or form those little black spots on the corners on my eyes but it literally just vanished, all that was left was my mascara! I'm upset hat it didn't last but I'm impressed that it didn't smear. Make sense?

Overall I think that this brand is affordable and reliable, the Stay Matte powder along with the primer prevented my face from looking oily, The concealer did not crease, the lipstick did not budge until I ate in the afternoon, and the mascara looked flawless up until a few hours ago that I washed it off with ease.

I plan on doing more hauls like this one both drugstore and high end because it persuades me to try different products from the same brands! It was a lot of fun trying to figure out which products I should buy and I look forward to doing it again really soon :)

Mascara Duo of the Moment

Maybellines's Colossal Mascara & Lorac's Pro Mascara are pretty amazing on their own but together they make up a beautiful combination.
The Colossal Mascara is extremely volumizing but has a very wet formula which I hate and the Pro Mascara is ridiculously lengthening but has no other function.
The way I work with these two is by adding one coast of each starting with the Pro Mascara. I tried it the other way around but the wet formulation from the Colossal mascara was still smudging on my eye shadow.

I love the wand on the Pro Mascara because the smaller tip allows me to get into the inner corners of my lashes and my bottom lashes which is perfect!

Even though I loathe the wet formulation, I have to give it to Maybelline for fiving true black mascaras, the pigmentation is thick and long lasting.

And this is the final outcome!