Patriotic Red, White and Blue "FOTD" and "NOTD"

Happy 4^th of July everyone!  I hope all of you are having a great holiday.  I’m getting ready to head out to be with some great friends, but first I just wanted to share with you my patriotic “Face of the Day” and “Nail of the Day”.  Neither one is a full tutorial, however I have included all products used to get the look.  I hope everyone likes it.

On Eyes:

Maybelline Color Tattoo in Too Cool

Hot Topic eye shadow in Red

Crown Brush "Smoke It Out" palette – blue shades plus white

Loreal Carbon Black Intense Liquid eye liner in Black

NYX Slide On eye liner in Sunrise Blue (SL14)

Tarte Gifted Amazonian Clay Mascara in Black

On Face:

Too Faced Primed and Poreless primer

MAC Mineralized SatinFinish in NW35

Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Protector Finishing Powder in Honey

MAC Mineralize Blush in Warm Soul

MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in Soft and Gentle

MAC lipstick in High Tea

MAC Tinted Lipglass in Nymphette

Nicole by OPI Kardashian Kolor in “Kourt is Red-y for a Pedi”

Pure Ice in ”Starry Nites”

Kiss brush on nail art in “White”

Again, I hope everyone is enjoying their 4^th of July celebrations!  Have a great rest of the week and I’ll talk to ya’ll later!

Weekly Wrap-Up

Hi all!  I hope everyone’s weekend went well.  It was pretty good here.  Today is my and Aaron’s 6^th anniversary.  Hard to believe we’ve been married this long, seems like it’s only been about half that time.  Here’s what he got me:

Black and white diamond heart necklace--Helzberg Diamonds

He’s horrible to shop for so when we go to Kansas City in a few weeks he’s gonna pick something out at the outlets.

Moving on to weight loss, it’s not going so well.  I’m up almost a pound from the last weigh in.  It’s my entire fault, I admit.  I’ve been eating crap and not working out at all.  This changes tomorrow, definitely.  Back on the elliptical!

As for beauty purchases this week, my “Blizzard” palette from Crown Brush arrived this week!  I’m so excited; the colors in it are so pretty.  Check out a few pictures:

Front packaging

With flash

Without flash

I also stopped by Ulta yesterday and grabbed 2 new nail Sally Hansen nail polishes from the HD Hi-Definition collection, “Spectrum” is a blue-to-green-to-purple changing color and “Byte” is a pink-to-purple changing color.  I also picked up a new lipgloss from NYX.  It’s one of their new “Pump It Up” lip plumpers.  I got the “Lindsay” color which is a light sparkly pink.  It doesn’t really plump, at least not on me, but the color is cute.

Finishing up tonight are my few fashion purchases.  I made a quick stop at TJ Maxx because I was looking for a new pair of sandals.  I did find a cute pair for only $14.99 that are black with sparkles.  If I”d only had an extra $60 I’d have a pair of silver Michael Kors ones but I was good and didn’t spend that much.

I did, however, find a new pair of Coach sunglasses in glittery purple for more than half off what they are in the boutique.  This is the first time I’ve actually found anything Coach at TJ Maxx so I was very excited and snatched it up as soon as I saw it, lol.

Well, that’s it for tonight.  I hope everyone has a great week ahead!  Talk to ya’ll later! J

Weekly Wrap-Up

Hey everyone!  Well, it’s Sunday again, how was everyone’s weekend?  Mine was pretty good, did a little shopping, celebrated Aaron and Becca’s birthdays, now just getting ready to head back to work on Monday.  I was on vacation this week so I’m sure I’ll be a bit behind on things tomorrow but I get to see my awesome coworkers so that makes up for it, lol.

So, since I was on vacation this whole week I really have no idea if I’ve lost, gained or maintained any weight.  I’m gonna guess gained since I have not worked out nor eaten well at all.  Starting tomorrow I’m gonna have to get back in the game.  I’ll be honest, I just really didn’t care.  My plan this week was to sit and not do anything I didn’t want to do, so that’s what I did, lol.  My schedule changes on the 7^th of May and I’ll be getting off work 30 minutes earlier so I’ll have a little more time in the evening to work out and cook healthier things.  It will also give me a chance to use the workout room at work which gives more exercise options.  Wish me luck, I’m gonna need it J.

I did manage to pick up a few beauty items at Ulta on Friday.  I got 3 new eyeliners.  One was a replacement for my Loreal Carbon Black Intense liquid liner.  This is my favorite liner of all time.  It’s just really easy to use and a great starter liner for anyone who’s never used liquid liners before. 

I also grabbed a Revlon Colorstay Liquid Eye Pen in “Blackest Black”.  This one is more like a fine tipped marker.  I’ve seen a lot of reviews that state this eyeliner is the best to use for winging so I decided I’d try it out.  It’s very similar to MAC’s Penultimate which I’ve tried before but for quite a bit less money.  I’m hoping it lasts longer than the MAC one did.  That one either dried out fast or had very little product in it to begin with.  I’ll be sure to let everyone know what I think.

The last eyeliner I got was one of NYX’s Jumbo Eye Pencils.  The one I got is called “Purple Velvet (623A)” which is a dark metallic purple.  I actually don’t use these as eyeliner but more as base for different shadows.  That’s really what these work the best as.  I have two others, “Dark Brown (602)” which is a matte dark brown obviously, and Rust (619) which is a dark metallic red.

The next thing I picked up was a new essie nail polish in “Sure Shot”.  It’s a bright magenta pearl.  It’s actually what this week’s manicure is so the picture will be below.

The final item I picked up at Ulta was the new NYX “Crimson Amulet” palette that was inspired by the new Dark Shadows movie.  It has 24 eye shadows in a wide variety of colors from darks to lights to neutrals, 5 blushes, 4 lip glosses, an illuminator, a small tube of eye shadow primer and a small liquid eyeliner.  I haven’t tried any of the colors out but from my experience NYX eye shadows are quite pigmented so I have high hopes for these.  I’ll be sure to get swatches up this week and start working on some new looks.

The last beauty item I purchased this week I don’t have yet.  I ordered a new Crown Brush palette from Hautelook.  This one is called “Blizzard” and has 28 “shimmer” (frosted) colors.  I’m really excited about this.  I love my Crown Brush “Smoke It Out” palette and I’m positive this one will be just as awesome.

Moving on to fashion purchases this week I stopped at Target and got some colored denim crops by Mossimo.  The color on the tag says “orange” but I think they’re more of an orange-coral mix.  To go with them I got a white three-quarter sleeve peasant style top and a pair of coral colored sandals, both by Mossimo.  I also have a light/foam green lightweight Mossimo scarf I ordered on the way as well.  I think this will turn into a really cute outfit and will probably end up as the “Outfit of the Week” the first time I wear it, lol.

My last purchase for the week isn’t really a beauty or fashion purchase but I do love it.  I got a new tattoo on Thursday.  My friend Jared helped design it and the tattoo artist, Bryce at Addictions in Ink Tattoo and Piercing, adjusted it some more.  It’s a crow with eyes in the wings, based off the graphic from the cover of The Crow movie/CD jacket.  I chose this as a tribute to my late friend Aaron who passed away 10 years ago last month.  I had it put on my right calf and the detailing in it is absolutely amazing.  I had originally planned on having it on my right wrist but it never would have fit and looked good.  I think it turned out just AWESOME and I LOVE it!

I’ll finish up tonight with my manicure, “Sure Shot” by essie.  Like I said above, it’s a bright magenta frost that looks really great for this time of year.  I’m also including a shot of the cute pedicure I did myself.  I just thought it was pretty!

Well, that’s it for this week, I hope everyone has a great week ahead.  I hope to have a new tutorial up sometime this week.  You would have thought that with a whole week off I’d have a slew of looks to show everyone but really, I did as little as possible this last week, lol.  If anyone has any suggestions for things they want to see or know, whether it be looks or just topics in general, let me know in the comments and I’ll put something together! 

Again, everyone have a great week and I’ll talk to y’all soon J.

Pink and Purple Valentine's Look

Happy Valentine’s Day (tomorrow anyway) everyone!  Love is in the air, flowers are being delivered and boxes of chocolate are all around.  I hope it’s a good day for all my readers. 

For this day of hearts and cupid I have created a cute pink and purple look that’s great for daytime and should still look nice as evening comes along with dinners and movie dates.  It’s sweet, romantic and has some added sparkle.  Check it out, enjoy and I’ll talk to everyone later!  J

Products used:

Eyes:

Too Faced Shadow Insurance Eye Primer

Crown Brush “Smoke It Out” Palette

NYX Glitter Mania in Pink (GP04) and Purple (GP07)

Loreal Carbon Black Lineur Intense Liquid Eye Liner

NYX Slide On Eyeliner in Pink Suede (SL01)

MAC Mascara X in Black

Face:

Smashbox Photo Finish Primer

MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Liquid Foundation in NW20

MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Baked Powder in Soft and Gentle

Stila “Love at First Blush” Blush Palette

Too Faced Pink Leopard Bronzer

MAC  Iridescent Loose Powder in Silver Dusk (as a highlighter)

Revlon Colorstay Lip Butter in Sweet Tart

Pretty in Pink

The past year or so I’ve been wearing mostly dark, smoky looks which have become rather boring and predictable, so when my new Crown Brush palette arrived last week I was very excited to try out some new looks.  The palette has some really pretty bright and pastel colors and so far I have come up with two new looks to share with everyone.

Tonight’s look I created using 5 of the pink shades in the palette.  It’s a mostly pastel look with a bright pop of pink in the corner.  It’s a very nice day look that can be turned into more of an evening look by just adding a bit of glitter.  Check out the video below to see how to achieve the look.  I’ll talk to everyone later!  J

Eyes:

Too Faced Shadow Insurance Eye Primer

Crown Brush “Smoke It Out” Palette – Pink shades only

Loreal Carbon Black Lineur Intense Liquid Eye Liner

NYX Slide On Eyeliner in Pink Suede (SL01)

MAC Mascara X in Black

Face:

Smashbox Photo Finish Primer

MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Liquid Foundation in NW20

MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Baked Powder in Soft and Gentle

MAC Sheertone Blush in Pink Swoon

Stila “Empowered in Pink” Palette Blush in Pink

Too Faced Pink Leopard Bronzer

Revlon Colorstay Lip Butter in Sweet Tart

Weekly Wrap-up

Sunday has rolled around once again and that means it’s wrap up time.  This week wasn’t very productive so this should be fairly short.

In the weight loss department, I was only down 0.8 pounds.  A little disappointing but I haven’t been working out the past two weeks or so.  I don’t expect to be down any this coming week either, in fact I’ve probably gained some weight.  I was so stressed out trying to get the tutorial up all week all I wanted to do was eat, so I did.  I just know that this coming week I have to get my butt in gear and keep on track.  

As a team at work though, we are ROCKIN’ it!  I’m so proud of everyone I work with and am so glad we all support each other every day!

Moving onto beauty items, I only had a few purchases this week but it was more than I planned.  I stopped at Ulta yesterday since I had a 20% off coupon that was set to expire and there was a new Stila blush in the most recent ad.  Unfortunately, they didn’t have the blush in yet so I’ll have to check back.  The only items I ended up getting were a new Loreal Carbon Black eyeliner, some Physicians Formula Conceal RX concealer (I haven’t bought concealer in years so hopefully this is a good one) and I got two new NYX Glitter Mania eye glitters, one in pink (GP04) and one in purple (GP07).  I’m hoping to use these soon with some new looks.  That’s it for new purchases this week, hopefully I’ll have the new blush by next week’s wrap-up.

Finally, my new Crown Brush “Smoke It Out” palette arrived Friday.  So far, I’m very pleased with it.  There are 36 colors in shades of browns/golds, greys/silvers, greens, blues, purples and pinks.  I already have a new look to show everyone with the pink shades that I plan to have up by Wednesday.  The shadows themselves are quite pigmented and don’t seem to have a lot of fall out.  Hopefully I will stay pleased with it as I experiment with the other colors.  Below are some pictures of the palette.  It, along with several others, can be found here.

Without flash, colors labeled

With flash

Well, that’s it for this evening.  I hope everyone has a great week ahead.  I’ve got overtime scheduled so mine’s going to be long, lol.  Talk to everyone later! J

Weekly Wrap-Up

Once again it’s Sunday, time for this week’s wrap up.

Starting out with the weight loss progress, I’m down another 1.4 pounds this week.  I probably ruined that this past few days, though, as I haven’t been eating well.  Weekends are the hard part, mostly because I’m not eating regularly.  I usually only eat something  for lunch and then dinner so I want to snack a lot in the evening.

During the week I eat on a regular basis.  For example, I have a yogurt for breakfast, on my first break I have a cheese stick and an orange, I then have a healthy lunch and finally on my last break I have an apple.  These are spaced out about every 2 hours.  I then go home and make supper, which may or may not be the healthiest, I’m working on that, and then before I go to bed I’ll have a light snack.  All of this keeps me from being hungry all the time so that I don’t just eat everything.  I really need to find a way to do this on the weekends too and I’ll be good.

Moving on to beauty purchases, I filmed a haul video that you can find at the bottom of the post.  Because of this I’ll just quickly mention what I got.  I picked up 3 of the Revlon Colorburst Lip Butters (2 at Ulta and one at Target) in Sweet Tart, Peach Parfait and Crème Brulee, all very nice colors and I plan on having the swatches up this coming week. 

I got some new Conair hot rollers and some roller clips to go with them.  I’m going to try curls in my hair rather than my usual straight look.  I think I’m gonna need to practice a bit first though, lol.

I also got a package of the Say Yes to Cucumbers (I say “carrots” below in the video by accident) facial towelettes.  I really like these, they’re great for sensitive skin and they’re not perfume-y, they just smell like real cucumbers. 

I bought a nice light pink nail polish from Essie called “Raise Awareness”, a left over from Breast Cancer Awareness month in October.  This was in the clearance bin at Ulta for $3.99 instead of the normal $8.00 Essie usually sells for so that was nice.

Lastly, I was able to get some more cotton rounds at Ulta since 2 weeks ago they were all sold out.  I prefer these ones over any other, they’re priced nicely and they don’t fall apart leaving cotton pieces all over. 

That’s it for beauty purchases this week, check out the video below to see the products.  Next week I’m hoping to have my new Crown Brush eye palette to show everyone, along with another one possibly.

 This week’s manicure is Neeka by Zoya, from the Smoke and Mirrors collection.  It’s a pretty pearly purple with grey undertones.  It’s a very nice for fall and winter.

So that’s it for today.  I hope to have a tutorial up possibly tomorrow or Tuesday on a grey smoky look.  I’m still trying to find the best place to film but I think I’ve got it figured out.  Anyway, hope everyone has a great week, again check out my video below.   Talk to everyone later! J