3 for $10!

Sephora by OPI

Get 'em while you can!!

My Reading List

All of these lovely ladies have made me want to start my own blog and after years of reading such amazing (or worthless) beauty advice i've finally started my own to share!
These are some that i go to at least a few times a week. So after months or years of following them i feel like we could be neighbors or something!

She recently stopped blogging which is really something to cry about, but if you haven't been to her site just make some pop corn and block out about 5 hours and work your way back! Her photography is amazing, closet is to kill for, and passport should be mine ;) - http://bycelina.com/
i stink at doing my own hair but she makes things easier and beautiful! Kate also has simple make up ideas and i really like her taste. Congrats on her pregnancy too! http://www.thesmallthingsblog.com/
Mommy blogger from GA. She uses a wide variety of products (drugstore/MAC/counter etc.) and gets rather creative. i love knowing that after i have 3 kids and a million things to do a day that it is still possible to look put together! i feel like we would be super good friends and have quite the collection between us. i also get the idea that we have the same outlook on makeup; it's not something to cover imperfections, it's an art and a form of expressing yourself - http://www.jennysuemakeup.com/
Cara has to be the most positive person on earth. And her makeup application/make overs are usually the most impressive - http://www.maskcara.com/maskcara/
Best for Last! i hope to one day be this good! - http://www.makeupandbeautyblog.com/

Others: http://imabeautygeek.com/ - http://thebeautydepartment.com/ - http://www.kandeej.com/ http://www.missnattysbeautydiary.com/ - http://www.chalkboardnails.com/ -

Hot Lips!

Way back when The Beauty Department first talked about these i began coveting them and knew i needed to get my hands on some of these! (Or rather get these on my lips;)

So i waited. And waited. More waiting.. All my searching only left me with finding them in 4-packs online for $50ish and i couldn't justify it for something i didn't know if i would like.  i try to be reasonable with makeup purchases and with all the costs of life i couldn't do it. Then Sephora picked up the line and started selling them for under $20 i thought "Well hey! My favorite store, free to test it out, great return policy, Why not!?" So i started with Queen and then Memento and then mixed them in varying amounts and i love them both!

The only down side of these are that they are not as wearable as other lip products. By that i mean that Lip Tars are more high maintenance than a lip stick since a lip brush is required and don't you dare try to apply with out a mirror! ;D They are very pigmented so they last a long time

Here's my routine when i use them.

- Start with a generous swipe of Fresh Sugar all over 

- Apply the rest of my makeup (to let it do its thing)

- Buff it off for super smooth, moisturized lips

- A thin coat of EOS since it's a good primer

- Sometimes i use it straight from the tube but this time i mixed them so a tiny drop does the trick

- The lip brush it comes with is okay but i usually use my own

- Start in the middle and work your way out

- Blot with tissue

-Repeat

See my nearly colorless lips? They need all the help they can get!

Normally i also do a quick clear lip liner but skipped that for the sake of time

Another important step is to dust a setting powder along your lip line. This can go over onto the Lip Tar and hold it in place longer since these can have a tendency to bleed or smear within the first 10 minutes.

BAM

This is after about 4 hours! Look at that staying power!

Food for Thought

Most of us have heard about the toxic, cancer linked, pore clogging, drying, nasty products that are in a lot of hair care / nail polish / makeup etc. that we should avoid but what i found eye opening is what the USA still deems "ok" to put in vs Europe! i love R29 and they usually are really informative with what they put on their site so i thought i'd share here. Sometimes i think ingredients can get a bad rap or it's blown out of proportion however things like Vaseline or this Rosebud salve or this -anything Petroleum based - it's all derived from crude oil byproducts! There's nothing moisturizing about it! You might as well slather on some Crisco from your pantry because it's the same idea. All it does is lock in the moisture your skin already has and doesn't let it breath properly.
My 2 favorite moisturizers at the moment - night a little goes a long way - day nice and light and quickly absorbs. My husband likes it too since it's fragrance free. Then this eye cream every other night
Something i'm dying to try! Have you used this?
This is my rant for the day. :)

First time for everything

I might be a little late to the nail sticker party, but it was worth the wait!

I thought it might be overwhelming to have so many colorful zig-zag lines so I matched the colors and i thought it came out really well. This is after 3 days

Pink & blue are Zoya, green and purple are Sephora by OPI

My first love

Before I ever got into makeup (and what 3 year old is allowed to, or spends the time?) I loved painting my nails! This Zoya bottle is a new favorite!! What a great idea by Zoya to have an Earth Day exchange see here to get rid of cheap/old/toxic polish! It has a pretty gold/yellow duochrome in it that I love and makes people take a second look

This is Happi after 3 days (2 coats + a top) and I  couldn't be happier! So feminine and light. If my memory serves me right I think it's incredibly similar to Nars orgasm polish.

Stay tuned for the others coming soon!

Xo

Moe