Hey guys!
I wanted to share with you some real quick room updates!
When it comes to spring and summer, it's a time when I crave lots of yellow, white, and brightness in the design of my rooms. Even though I know we'll have lots of snow storms in the course of the next month, at least my room can feel light, airy, and spring-like!
With the help of Instagram and Pinterest, I've been lusting over more of a shabby chic, feminine design lately. I have no clue why, but suddenly it's really appealed to me.
One of the biggest changes to my room is bedding. I decided I wanted to invest in this fluffy, Simply Shabby Chic comforter from Target. I love it so much! It's brightened up my room so much and is absolutely perfect!
I really love how the bedding came out. I refreshed the look a little bit with navy blue gingham sheets from Steinmart, I used my favorite set of pillows (the yellow flower is from Target 2010, yellow texture pillow is from Target Winter 2014, and my homemade Riley Blake navy chevron pillow). The comforter from Target is such good quality! It feels like something from a fancy hotel!
Another huge change happened to my dresser area.
I picked up the Ikea Ung Drill Mirror the other day and then spray painted it white so it would fit in better with the rest of my room. It's amazing how much light this mirror reflects and what it looks like!
So those are the changes for now! If you like my decorating posts, make sure to check out an entire page I have about the decorating I do, featuring my dorms and changes here at home.
Hey guys!
When I first started using makeup, there was always one question I was faced with that seemed really daunting: do I have oily or dry skin?
For people that have been using make up, this might seem like a silly question. But when you are new to things, it can be really hard, since this is usually a question that only you would know.
It really helps when you do know the answer, because it can help you pick the right kinds of makeup and skincare product for you.
I thought that maybe I could help out a little.
Signs of Oily Skin:
-You notice shinny spots on your skin: especially on your forehead, nose, and chin.
-You feel like you need to wash your face several times a day.
-You often get pimples
-You have an oily scalp: meaning you wash your hair or need to use dry shampoo often.
-You feel your makeup sliding around your face during the day.
A quick way to tell if you suffer from oily skin: buy a pack of oil blotting sheets (my favorite are the Deep Clean ones by Neutrogena). Press a sheet against your skin. If you turn the paper into something that looks like the picture below: you've got oily skin.
A few tips for people with oily skin:
-Even though you might not want to, moisturize! Skin becomes oilier the more it dries out. I like the First Aid Beauty Daily Face Cream.
-Choose face products that say they are oil free and mattifying. I like It Cosmetics CC Cream and the Smashbox Photo Finish Light primer.
-A good powder is your best friend. I love MAC's Studio Fix Plus.
-Finding a good cleanser that cleans deep into pores is super important. I love the Neutrogena Clear Pore and First Aid Beauty Skin Rescue Deep Cleanser.
-Blotting sheets like the Deep Clean ones above, are so helpful!
-When all else fails, Urban Decay's DeSlick spray literally works miracles.
Make sure to check out all of my latest posts: My Nail Polish Collection, My Everyday Makeup, MAC First Impressions/Haul, and Covergirl 3-1 Foundation Review.
Hey guys!
It should be no surprise that I love nail polish.
Unfortunately it's something that I've always struggled with storing. I personally have never felt compelled to invest in those wall racks you see in salons. But recently I got an idea about a cute, easy way to store my rather large collection of colors.
Hobby Lobby had these small photo boxes on sale for 50% off this past weekend and they just so happened to have this cute navy geometric print in stock. I decided that four boxes would definitely fit my collection and would make my book case look a lot more organized and cute!
I think it came out really good and I just put a few things that I had just sitting around next to them to make my shelf look a little bit more put together. Also, I think you'll notice just a small fraction of my always growing candle collection beside the boxes...
Anyway, here's a quick look in the boxes. Three of them have polish in them and the fourth is actually empty! It'll eventually probably begin to store more polish eventually though.
This box is my most full since it stores mostly my reds, pinks, and purples.
The next box holds my grays, greens, and blues.
The final box is where I put polish I just purchased, currently loving, or planning on wearing. I think it's good to have a separate box for this purpose because often times I forget about certain colors I've just purchased. I also store my nail polish remover in here too so it's out of site.
How do you store your nail polish? Do you prefer racks or having your bottles out of the way?
Hey guys!
There's no doubt that I love MAC makeup. It was the first high-end makeup that I dabbled in, and I still continue to find that the brand as a whole is great quality and (when compared with other high-end brands like NARS) relatively affordable.
I've been struggling with my face makeup recently. I love the It Cosmetics CC Cream, but I find myself wanting more coverage and something that holds up better with oily skin.
I thought about trying out the Amazonian Clay Tarte foundation, but found myself just wanting to try something really different. Enter the MAC store. I really like the MAC counter that's here in my hometown, but I truly love going to the full-fledged store about an hour away.
Anyway, in the store I received great customer service and walked away spending about $70 more than I was originally planning on, but overall I think I picked up some great stuff.
I picked up five things at the store, four face products and one eyeshadow!
Cork Eyeshadow
Over the past year or so, I've collected enough products to finally exchange for the Back-to-MAC program (which I view like an incentive program). I knew that for my free eyeshadow, I wanted a nice brown color that would look great with my NARS Alhambra duo and this shade is perfect! I can't believe I didn't own Cork before now.
Select Cover-Up Concealer
I've been using the Make Up Forever Full Cover concealer, but when the makeup artist used this on me, I could truly see how much better this is. I love it so far. It looks amazing under my eyes (conceals all signs of dark circles without getting cakey or making my face oily) and is great on blemishes and redness on the rest of my face. It's thicker and creamier than the MUF version. The MAC website says that this concealer blends in to be invisible and I must agree, I don't even notice it on my face. In case you are wondering, I was matched to NW25.
Studio Careblend/Pressed Powder
I'm gonna be honest and say that before I purchased this powder, I had never heard of it. When I asked the makeup artist about a new setting powder, I thought for sure she'd lead me to another Mineralized Skinfinish Natural (which I loved), however, she recommended this one because she said it's great for sensitive skin, blots up oily perfectly, adds little coverage, so no need to worry about a cakey look. So I can use it all day to touch up any oiliness that might appear. Plus, after using it a couple of times, it feels so amazing! I love this stuff. It takes away any shine or oil, but still gives my face a glowy look. (By the way, I'm in the shade Light Plus).
Matchmaster Foundation
Knowing that I was curious about MAC foundations, I did some research before I went into the store and discovered this guy. I thought it sounded promising, but I wanted to see what the MUA would suggest. After telling her that I was interested in a medium-full coverage foundation that would last through-out the day and not make me oily, she brought this one to me. Guys, I've only worn this stuff three days now, but I love it. A lot. I've faced absolutely no problems with oiliness, it looks great and glowing on my face, and literally feels like I'm not wearing anything. But it covers up my redness while still not looking cakey. It's amazing. Plus, it has lasted 8-10 hours just as promised. If you have oily skin, you need to check this stuff out. It has SPF 15 and I'm in the shade 1.5.
Powder Blush in Peachykeen
After having the MUA also apply this to my cheeks, I couldn't help but get it too. It looks so pretty for spring and I think it looks really good with my green eyes. The site describes it as a baby peach with a little shimmer and I'd have to agree. It's natural and perfect for spring.
I'll give updates and do full reviews on some of these products, but I just have to say, that when it comes down to it, I'm always impressed with MAC.
What spring things are you picking up?
Hi guys!
I'm really excited because right now I'm on spring break, so that makes me feel like I finally have time to take care of so many things in my life and relax!
One of the things that I've already tackled is reorganizing my daily makeup collection.
It had started to get a little out of hand and I wanted something that didn't look nearly as cluttery. This past Saturday, my mom and I were shopping at the store Garden Ridge and I found a couple of these cosmetics drawers. Although they aren't exactly the heavy quality of something from the Container Store, they were only $20 each and they fit all my everyday makeup a little more.
I love how clean and put together my dresser top now looks thanks to these drawers.
Let's take a super quick look at how I organized these four drawers:
The first one is dedicated to my liquid products. In here I have:
-Aveeno Smart Essentials Moisturizer
-First Aid Beauty Daily Moisturizer
-Urban DeSlick Spray
-Covergirl Foundation
The next drawer is dedicated to my face products like foundation and blush such as my It Cosmetics CC Cream, Smashbox CC Cream, Rockateur Blush, and Make Up Forever Full Cover Concealer.
Another drawer is dedicated to my eye makeup like primers, eye shadow, mascara, and eyeliner.
And the final drawer is actually kind of empty, but right now it holds a few hair bands, lip balms, and cotton rounds.
Having my everyday makeup organized in drawers instead of a makeup bag just makes me feel so much more permanent and less nomadic, plus I love being able to see everything when I'm getting ready. Plus these cute little drawers give me a chance to display my pretty perfume bottles on top of it too, which makes me so happy!
Right now, there's a few things that I can't get enough of.
1. I'm obsessed with Pure Seduction Bloom from Victoria's Secret. Not only is the packaging freaking gorgeous, but it smells like spring in a bottle. I couldn't help but go out and buy the shower gel as well.
2. I'm equally crazy about this nail polish from Vicky's as well. I think this is the most perfect mint nail polish. It's the color "Lucky."
3. Don't get me started on Benefit's They're Real mascara. This makes my lashes look like they are a million miles long. Plus it goes on without a single clump. It's truly one of my favorite mascaras ever.
4. My first NARS eyeshadow duo in Alhambra is so pretty I can't stand it. This pink and sparkly gold combine to make the prettiest all over lid color ever. I can't believe I've lived without this for so long!
5. My boyfriend. I can never get enough of him.
Hey guys!
It was within the last month I finally became brave enough to not only try out a full coverage foundation, but to try a drugstore one at that.
I've heard great things about Cover Girl's 3-1 Foundation, especially for people with oily skin, so I decided this was the one I wanted to try.
Let's just say that I loved this stuff at first. It seriously gives the most natural full coverage face. It lasted at least 10 to 12 hours, and definitely had a powdery finish, perfect for my oily skin.
Everything about it is amazing, except for two things:
1.) The color selection is truly awful. In MAC I'm a C3. I'm definitely on the fair side, but I have a slight yellow undertone. Not orange. Not pink. Yellow. This foundation refuses to believe that anyone could be anything other than orange or pink. Everything was way too orange or pink. I went through four colors until finally deciding that 810 (Classic Ivory) was the best match I could get, but it still wasn't great.
2.) This broke me out like you wouldn't believe. At first it was all fine and dandy. And then four (4!!!!!) huge zits all popped out at once. One was the size of a nickel. I couldn't believe it. I've spent almost all of February and March trying to get my skin back to normal. But a couple of weeks ago I wanted to try it out again...thinking maybe it was a face wash or something else that caused it. And proceeded to get another 2 pimples.
Needless to say, I've given up with this foundation. It's not worth the breaking out and it bums me out that they don't offer a yellow toned version of fair.
That being said, if you have any recommendations for a medium-full coverage foundation that doesn't break you out and is great for oily skin, let me know. Drugstore or high-end would be great!
