Ulta/Target Haul!!!!

Hi guys,
So I know I went on a no makeup buying thing buttttt I got a new job and celebrated with a small makeup/tool shopping. I have no regrets about it though so its fine lol.

I only got a few actual makeup products, mostly eye products.

Here they are:

Maybelline Dream Fresh B.B. Cream- haven't really tried this one yet at all... was waiting for my Ulta order with my new brushes.

Cover Girl Clump Crusher Mascara- So far I've been LOVING this mascara along with the rest of the makeup world... another win for CG.

Rimmel Stay Matte Transparent- I've used the coverage version of this before and was looking for something transparent and reallly light and heard great things about the transparent version of this. Haven't tried it yet.

I bought some new NYX eye shadows, all in really neutral shades.
Aloha, which is a pinky taupe color with a pearl finish.
Silk, a light beige highlight color which also has a pearl finish.
And a trio from the "Love in Rio" line called Amazonian Babes; which has a taupe, a pink, and a deep brown.





I got 2 single neutral Covergirl eye shadows.
French Vanilla, a mostly matte white which is actually a little more harshly white than I had hoped.
Tapestry Taupe, which I've heard great things about and is truly beautiful.

I bought two new Prestige Total Intesnsity Eye Liners in Black... best waterline liner I've tried.







Tools:
I finally bought some Real Techniques brushes!! I've been hearing about them for so long I just had to do it when I had some money.  I bought the eye starter set and the expert face brush.

I bought the Sonia Kashuk crease brush I've been looking at at Target for forever.

I also grabbed the Custom Coverage Buffing Brush by Ecotools, which reminds me of a slightly smaller version of the ELF powder brush.

It's a Wrap - 2012

Hey all,
So this year has been pretty big for me and I wanted to find a way to kind of wrap it up (hence the title) without just doing one of those "Best Products" tags that seem pretty generic. So instead I came up, with the help of a few questions from those tags, my own tag/questionaire about the year and made it pretty all inclusive rather than only doing it about beauty. I'm mostly doing this for myself to look back and reflect on but I hope that you all think about your own experiences in 2012 and maybe take some tips or suggestions from my experiences. Thanks for reading and Happy New Year

Personal:
Best book you read in 2012? 
I read the Hunger Games in the early spring of this year and fell in love with the trilogy, the movie was good but nothing compared to the books, the best writing I've read in a long time. 

What was your best month? Worst month?
My family went on our first real, week long vacation in August of this year, and it was overall just a great month.  I left my job that I had been hating and it was just a good month, but then we had to drop my brother off in Kentucky for college and that was rough on us.  So it was kind of the best and the worst wrapped into one. 

What’s something you learned about yourself?
I learned that I'm really great at working with kids who are a little rough around the edges.  I also learned that I have a serious problem with spending money and need to marry rich or curb this problem. 

What is one thing you regret from this year?
I regret not going back to school. It's one of the things that is really holding me back in life, so it's on my to do list for this year. 

Did you have to go to the hospital? 
I actually don't think I went to the hospital at all in 2012, but I was there yesterday if that counts.

How did you earn your keep?
I spent the first 8 months of the year working at a home for kids who had expereienced severe trauma/neglect.  That was an amazing experience, I worked there for 2 years and it was a great place to grow and learn but they way it was run was  pretty ridiculous and I ended up exhausted and worn out.  When I left there I decided to take a hiatus and decide what I want to do in the end.  I have been nannying since September, which is a weird experience but the money is good and I'm learning a lot. I will probably stick with nannying until the end of the school year and work on getting back to school and finding a job as a teaching assistant/paraprofessional. 

What was your favorite movie?
I must say my favorite movie of 2012 was probably the Hobbit, although there were a few great ones, including Trouble with the Curve, Breaking Dawn (P. 2), Brave, The Campaign and the Hunger Games. 

What was your favorite song?
Favorite songs are always hard for me to pinpoint.  I loved Taylor Swift's new Album, Red. And my favorite song off of it was All Too Well. I also loved Gary Allan's Every Storm Runs Out of Rain. 

What was your proudest moment?
I paid off most of my credit card debt that I'd accrued over the years so that was pretty exciting for me. 

Beauty Related:

What was your favorite drugstore brand/product of 2012?

I think Maybelline took the drugstore by storm this year.  Between their variety of great mascaras, babylips and my all time favorite Color Tattoos, I seriously don't know what I would do without them.  My favorite product was definitely my Color Tattoo's. I love the white one most but also love the new pink and the long time bronze. 

What was your favorite fragrance of 2012?

I'm still in love with my Taylor Swift Wonderstruck fragrance. I also love Secret Wonderland and Forever Red from Bath and Body Works.

Most used beauty products of 2012? 

I must say that if I had to narrow it down to just a few items I used constantly in 2012 they would be the following: Babylips Lip Balm, my ELF Powder Brush, my Aussie Split End Cream and My Sonia Kashuk small powder brush.

5 best eye products of 2012?

Maybelline Color Tattoos

Prestige Total Intensity Eye Liner in Black

My ELF 32 pan palette in Warm

Revlon Carbon Black Collogen Mascara

Urban Decay Primer Potion

5 best face products of 2012?

This one is probably the hardest question, because I really don't use much face makeup. But here it goes. 

Maybelline Age Rewind Dark Circle Eraser 

Covergirl and Olay Simply Ageless Concealer.  

ELF high definition face powder

ELF mineral blush in Joy

Garnier Skin Renew Miracle Skin Perfector BB Cream

My 2013 Bucket List:

Complete a "No Buy Challenge" from now until March 30, 2013.  This is bound to be a challenge for me buttttt I need to use the products I have and save money.

Work on budgeting myself, save a few thousand before the end of summer. I need to get on track to being an adult, meaning less going out, more saving and making more safe and conscious choices. 

Go on a trip, somewhere I've never been. This has long been a goal of mine but it's really seeming like this might be there to do it.  I'm considering becoming and overseas Au Pair for a few months or just taking a trip somewhere with friends.

Get back to school.

Find a job in the education field. I really need to start  moving forward in my career, so this and going back to school go hand in hand, as I need the field experience and the classroom experience to become a certified teacher in MA.

Keep up with the blog!

December Favorites

Hi All,
So first off I need to apologize for the 5 month disappearance! My life got really really hectic and my computer has been out of commission.  I got a new laptop for Christmas (Thanks Mom!) so I'm hoping to keep up with my blog among other things now that I have a working computer. So I hope I still have people reading but if not I'll kinda be acting like this is a brand new blog, posting it out. I hope you all will share this too!

1. Primer - So I have finally fallen into the Urban Decay primer potion trend. I have tried so hard not to fall into high end trends for so long buttttt I got a sample of this in a palette I got on Hautelook in early fall.  I rarely use the palette but fell in love with the primer.  It's like now that I've tried something this good I can't go back.  Now ELF's primer that I had loved for forever feels gross and greasy and nothing really holds it own anymore. Now I have to find more because it's almost empty =(.   I have also been using the ELF mineral infused face primer to prime my face, although I'm working as a nanny now so I am rarely doing full face makeup.

2. Eye Shadow - This month I have been sticking to some very neutral eye looks, between the holidays and work I have tried to be natural and just perfect the blending of the eyes more than add too much color. I have been loving the Covergirl Shimmering Sands trio that I got last year during a sale at CVS. I'm really close to hitting pan on at least 2 of the colors, the lighter and the medium colors. I have also been using the Maybelline color tattoo's as base colors and I love them so much.

3. Eye Liner - This month I have continued to love my Prestige Total Intensity eye liner in black for my water line and a few of the Sephora Nano eye liners for my top lash line.

4. Foundation -  I haven't really been doing much foundation this month but have been loving my Loreal Frutis BB Cream in light/fair as well as my ELF mineral foundation in porceline.

5. Concealer - I am still in love with the Covergirl and Olay Simply Ageless Concealer.  It is so creamy and thick enough that it really does cover dark circles.  I literally use it ever single day.  I also have been loving the Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Dark Circle Eraser.  It literally ERASES my dark circles without being cakey or too thick.

6. Blush- I  haven't loved any blushes this month really, but I have beem reaching for my ELF mineral Blush in Joy, which is a mauvey/pink shade, which isn't too shimmery.

7. Palette -This month I didn't really use any stand out palettes.

8. Face Applicator - this month I found myself reaching for the E.L.F. Powder Brush for EVERYTHING!

9. Eye Applicator - This month I've still been using my Sonia Kashuk Small Powder Brush. This brush will be a forever forever favorite.

10. Hair Product - I've been loving Argan Oil for the last few months, and along with my mom have gone through about 3 bottles in 3 months.

11. Perfume - Last month, when I went out black Friday shopping, I picked up a sample of the new Bath and Body Works scent in Forever Red and literally not gone a day without it. Got a larger roll on sample size for Christmas that I'm super excited for since I just finished my little sample. 

12. Mascara - This month a friend of mine got me the Loreal Extra Volume Collagen Mascara in Black, which she had been suggesting for months but I never bought it because I liked the mascaras I'd been using.... man was I missing out!

13. Moisturizer - This month I have loved the Bath and Body Works triple moisture body cream in the scent Secret Wonderland.

14. Lip Products- This month, with such dry, cold weather, my main goal with my lips has been to keep them from being dry and cracky.  I have loved my Nivea Lip Balm in Honey and Milk, as well as their kiss of Shimmer lip balm.  I have also been loving my Baby Lips from Maybelline. I have two of those, the grape colored one and the shimmery peach color, both which work wonders for me.  And lastly I have been loving my Sugar Fresh Sugar Plum tinted lip treatment, which I have been loving for months now.  It is a beautiful color and provides so much moisture.

So those are my favorites and most used products of December.

My Favorite Lip Balms

Fresh Sugar Lip Treatment- I originally received this as a birthday gift from Sephora and was hesitant about it because my friend who had it was not a huge fan.  Well Idk why she didn't love it but I sure did.  This lip balm that comes in six different colors, five of them are tinted and one is clear.  The tints are not overpowering, but very lightly pigmented and leave a thick layer of moisture that lasts for quite a long time, hours.

Baby Lips-These lightly tinted lip balms from Maybelline are one of my favorite products, period.  I love these. The color is very light, just a sheen but the sheen is beautiful.  The moisture that these balms I love this so much, desipte the childish packaging. There are 6 shades that all range between $3-4 and smell/taste amazing.




EOS Smooth Sphere Lip Balm- I love this as a constant moisture renewing lip balm.  I love the egg shaped packaging and the flavors/smells are fantastic.  There are 5 fruity flavors and 1 minty one.  My favorites are the Strawberries and Cream and the Sweet Mint.  I always have one of these on my person and they are so fun to use and talk about.




Carmex- I had to include Carmex in this list as it is such a consistent and reliable brand of lipbalms.  These are great for when your lips are legitimately chapped and need some medicated treatment. These come in many different flavors and both stick and jar balms.  I prefer the stick balms as they tend to be more travel friendly, cheaper and more convenient. 

My Top 5 Favorite Mascaras

Mascara, the most flattering of all makeup and my personal everyday necessity.  I have tried dozens of different mascaras in my time wearing makeup and here are my top five mascaras. 

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CoverGirl Lash Blast Length - $6.97 at Target
This has been a long time favorite of mine and I have rebought this mascara multiple times.  This mascara is great at separating  and pulling out each individual lash. If you are looking for something to make your lashes look more long this is the one but do not expect any volumizing effect from this. I usually use this with the Lash Blast Volume overtop of it.

Urban Decay Super Curling Mascara- $20.00 at Sephora
I received a sample size of this mascara in the Book of Shadows IV Palette that I bought off of HauteLook a few months ago and to be honest this has been my favorite thing about the palette.  This mascara give a great hold and really does curl the lashes. This wand is curled and reaches every lash from the inner to outter corner and is housed inside the most beautiful mascara packaging I've ever seen.

L'oreal Voluminous Million Lashes-$7.00 at Target

I have been using this mascara regularly over the last month or so after hearing about it from a friend and I do love it.  It does the work of both a lengthening and volumizing mascara and it also separates and pulls out lashes, naturally making your lashes look fuller and longer.

Maybelline New York Lash Stiletto Voluptuous Black Sequins- $7.00 on Amazon.com

This mascara has the most unique wand I have ever seen and the formula is lightweight, dry and includes small flecks of shimmer. I have tried a lot of the different shimmering mascaras and have always loved the effect they give to the color of my eyes but this is my alltime favorite because aside from adding sparkle to the lashes, which accents your eye color and creates a fuller look.

CoverGirl Lash Blast Volume- $6.97 at Target

My go to volumizing mascara, this makes your lashes look so full, long and priceless.  I love this stuff so much.  I have used all the of different kinds of the Lash Blast line mascaras, the luxe, the fusion, the length and the volume. All of these formulas are great but this one is my favorite, it the most dramatic of all the others in my top 5.  I use this primarily overtop lengthening mascaras or ones that need some extra fullness. the brush is big and chunky when allows it to coat every lash and it is just overall great for the price.

Ulta/Easter Haul

Hey everyone so for the very first time, I visited Ulta! OMG heavenly!! So I am just going to list and picture of each item. Please comment below if you have any of these products. 

Disclaimer: These were all a gift from my wonderful parents for Easter!

Ulta Secret Garden Collection

Maybelline Color Tattoo in Too Cool 

Essence Stay All Day Cream Eyeshadows in Stars and Stones & Glammy Goes To...

NYX Lipsmacking Fun Color in Rose & Galaxy

Ulta Bountiful Lash Fortifying Mascara in Soft Black

EOS Lip Balm in Honeydew Hibiscus 

NYX Eyeshadow Trio in In the Woods

Prestige Soft Blend Khol Eyeliner in Jet Black

NYX  Jumbo Eye Pencil in Cottage Cheese & 

Strawberry Milk

LASplash Lipgloss in Catch Me

Prestige Total Intensity Eyeliner in Daring Green

Essence Eyeliner Pen in Black

Essence Brow and Lash Gel in Clear

Physicians Formula Eye Definer in Ultra Black

 
Ulta Eye Liner Brush

Giving into the Hype- New Product Haul

Hey guys, so this weekend I finally caved and purchased a few of the newer hyped up products that I haven't stopped hearing about. SO here are the products I purchased and my first impressions of them.

Maybelline Eye Studio Color Tattoo Cream Eye Shadows in the colors Tough as Taupe, Pomegranate Punk and Bad to the Bronze- $5.84 ea. at Walmart

Top-Bottom- Bad to the Bronze,
Pomagranate Punk, Tough as Taupe

Impressions:
Tough as Taupe- This is the only Matte Color I saw in the collection and is incredibly pigmented, goes on smooth and has a very cement like look to it.   I liked this color but it was not my favorite of the three.  It is very gray and I'm not a huge gray fan, I just don't think it compliments my complexion but I am sure I will make use of it.

Pomegranate Punk- This color was my favorite, a very wearable berry color with a beautiful satin finish.  It was a little more splotchy than the other two colors but I loved it just the same.

Bad to the Bronze- This was the most creamy of the three colors and it spreads so smoothly and perfectly onto the lid.  I used this as a base more than once and it is so amazing and works great with other colors overtop of it.

Stock Photo of Dream Bouncy Blush in Pink Plum

Maybelline Dream Bouncy Blush in the color Pink Plum- $8.29 at CVS
Impression:
I hateddddddd this blush and returned it this evening.  The color payoff was terrible.  The consistency of the product was very interesting but The product itself sucked.  There was no color, the product didnt spread and was not smooth at all. This is the worst of the products I purchased and I will not be trying any more of these products but do hope to try other cream/mouse blushes in the hopes that they would be better pigmented.

Sorry for the lighting!

Hard Candy Take it Off Makeup Remover- $5.00 at Walmart
Impression:
This may be the best makeup remover I have ever used.  For years I relied soley on cold cream for makeup removing and I really liked the way it instantly reliveed your face but became frustrated with how it made my skin, particularly my eye area feel after using it.  This creamy product is very similar in consistency but does not leave the heavy grease feeling that I had experienced with the cold cream.  I love that is a lotion and that it is specifically formulated for erasing "glitter, waterproof and long lasting products", as these titles are on most of my favorite products and liquid makeup removers never seem to be able to completely remove them.

Garnier Skin Renew Miracle Skin Perfector B.B. Cream in Light/Medium- $10.00 at CVS 

B.B Cream in Light to Medium

Impression:
Okay so we know that there's a huge trend spreading through the beauty world surrounded the B.B Creams that have come out recently.  I had been hearing a lot about them and wanted to find a cheap alternative to try, especially with summer coming up.  I work in a pretty high activity job and need to use makeup that won't be too heavy, wear off through the day or melt if I'm in the heat but I also need some coverage.  I looked around at the different high end B.B. creams but I didn't want to spend 30+ dollars on a cream I wasnt even sure I would like.  I love my foundation combination that I have been using lately and I didn't want to commit to another product.  So I picked up this cream when I saw it at my local CVS the other day and have been LOVING it so much the last week or so. It gives this awesome dewy look and sheer enough that you can see all of my freckles but enough coverage that it helps to even out my skintone.  I use this with my Covergirl/Olay Concealer and they match together so well that it's just straight up gorgeous!

Overall aside from the horrible blush I am super satisfied with my purchases and hope that you find these mini reviews useful and helpful.

Please comment and follow!