A Splash of Color

So here lately I have been stepping outside of the box and been inspired by colored eyeliner.!!! I always thought I have no idea how to wear this...so then I got brave and started with a navy blue pencil. I thought Its not much different than a black or brown so I bet I can wear it the exact same way. I layered it on top of a brown smoky eye and WOWZA! The difference was suttle but beautiful! The first day I wore it I had numerous comments on how pretty my eyes were. I lined from the inner top corner to the outer corner of my eye but making sure to give it a slight swoop at the end so it would open my eye. I then lined from the outer bottom corner of my eye to right under my pupil when I was looking straight ahead. Lined the inner rim as well and added a couple coats of very black mascara!

I also found that dark purples and plums are really really pretty with browns. Or even a black infused with purple which is what I use with a black smokey eye. It just gives that hint of something special.

Today I am wearing a brown liner on top of my eye and an emerald green on the bottom again just placed from outer corner to center under my pupil. Then I added a white/ivory color liner at the waterline of my eye to open and brighten since I am slightly tired today. Instant wake up!

Here are the three pencils I use the most so far:

Rimmel Exaggerate waterproof eyeliner in 250 emerald sparkle

 

The liner on the left or bottom is Loreal Double Extend Eye Illuminator in Black Sapphire. Its a pretty navy color with a ivory color on the other end.

The liner on the right is by Pixie (from Target). Its called Black Tulip and is a really pretty black infused with purple color.

Murad Face

SURPRISE! I am back! I have proven to be a slacker at the blog lately so I am making it one of my new years resolutions to be better at it (2 people just cheered...one probably my mom lol). Anyway I have a new product to review! I recently quit using ProActiv. Mainly I just couldn't pay that much for facewash anymore. AND it had stopped making my face "glow" for lack of a better word. So a sweet sweet friend of mine told me she had used Murad in the past and really liked it. I thought why not give it a try. So I cancelled my subscription and took the leap of faith. I purchased mine off of Ebay for 24.00. It came with a 30 day supply of face wash, exfoliating acne gel, acne on the spot treatment, and an all over repairing moisturizer. It was like I had won the lottery when it showed up yesterday in my mailbox. I literally ran in and washed my face ;) Let me tell you it has only been two washings and my face already looks brighter, clearer, and more evenly toned and my face feels soooooo smooth. So far so good! It hasn't dried me out (at least not yet) and I am currently using all four steps twice a day. Even the handful of blemishes I saw after stopping my previous wash look much better after two washes. All in all I am highly excited about this new "relationship" with my face wash. If you are looking for something new check it out. You can purchase it on Sephora or through Ebay like I did. It retails in the store for about 35.00 so I got a pretty good deal especially since shipping was free for the holiday.

BB Cream...

So the new rage in make up is a BB cream. What is a BB cream you ask....yeah I had no idea in the beginning either. BB (Blemish Balm) creams are creams that do multiple things at one time! They prime, offer sunscreen, smooth, an combat redness or uneven skin tones. They are light enough to use under an additional foundation or to wear over some concealer as a tinted moisturizer. I have been hearing the hype and was tempted to try a cheap drugstore one but decided to sample Smashbox instead. I don't tend to like foundation that is from drugstores (I am picky like that) so I assumed I wouldn't like a BB Cream either. Anyway, After my shower this morning I sat down to do some make up. I used my Lancome eye cream and then applied the Smashbox BB cream. Now personally I have strange pigmentation from my last pregnancy so it didn't offer enough coverage for me personally to wear alone as a foundation but I think if you have pretty skin to begin with it would be great in place of your tinted moisturizer. I used my fingers and found it was easiest to apply that way since it warms up with your fingers and blends beautifully. I was slightly skeptical after putting it on but once I put my bare Minerals on top of it I decided I might be hooked! My skin feels great. It doesn't feel oily or feel like I have on heavy make up.  It made my skin smooth and soft and I am hoping that it will make my makeup last longer! I even added a tad bit to my eyelids and my eye shadow went on effortlessly. It is fairly pricey so I suggest sampling before you buy it  but if you want it run on over to your local Sephora or Ulta and pick some up!

ALSO the girl said the shades run a tad dark so to go down a color....I went with fair and honestly I think it is too light so I say stick with whatever color you normally wear. The fair is fine because it is up under my makeup but to wear it alone would never have worked for me.

http://www.sephora.com/camera-ready-bb-cream-spf-35-P300339?skuId=1387000

Eye cream anyone?

So I have been on the hunt for an eye cream that would tighten and firm (instantly and over time) and break down the dark circles that comes with not enough sleep and being tired from taking care of two very hyper little boys all day. My last trip to my local favorite make up store rendered me leaving with a sample from Lancome.  I decided instead of blogging right away to start using it twice a day for a couple weeks before giving my review.  I wanted something light enough to wear under make up that would soak in and not leave me feeling dry or worse oily. My new beauty friend at the store highly recommended using Lancome's High Resolution eye cream
(it's all I use she said)! She said it is her favorite so I gave it a try! It so far has been GREAT!  It firms instantly so no more bags under your eyes and it helps lighten those dark circles so that you can easily cover your lighter raccoon eyes with concealer. So far no regrets here and am going to purchase when my sample runs out... You can check it out here. I will warn you its fairly expensive but I promise that jar will last you FOREVER!!! I had just a teeny little container and it has lasted me over a month and possibly will last me close to another month.  Enjoy!

For my first post...Philosophy anyone?

As some of you know I am about to head to Chicago in a few days and stopped by my local Sephora to see if I could convince beg them to give me  tons of sample sizes to put into my carry on for the plane. My old friend George at the Sephora in the Galleria used to hook me up but since I was in Pville he would't be much help :o( Anywho I went in to get some samples of perfume to carry with me and walked out with a handful of Philosophy skin care samples as well. Now, I am a LOYAL ProActiv girl so the thought of trying something different made my face want to break out...I decided to go ahead and give it a shot and boy was I surprised!!!!

I was given a sample of their Purity face wash and gave it a shot first. While I am a combo skin kinda girl I found that it kind of dried me out in certain places. I think if you have sensitive skin it would be fine but I think the oily skinned people would probably benefit more of it.  It was nice and creamy and removed all my make up and most of my mascara (those bottom lashes are a doozy). 
 
Now drum roll please......I was also given a sample of this:

Oh my goodness! It is gentle enough you can use it every single day people!!!!! The first time I used the Microdelivery exfoliating wash I was SHOCKED at how good my skin looked afterwards!!!! My skin was nice and soft and wasn't dry and flaky (granted I only used it once a day...still using the ProActive in the morning). It also gave my skin this nice glow of healthy skin! I loved it so much I squeezed every bit of it out of that package I could and am now going to purchase a big bottle! I wish I had taken before and after pictures to show the difference. I highly highly suggest this product! You can get it at the above sites or you can purchase from Sephora (which I almost always use since you get 3 free samples with EVERY order).

 

Run on over to your local Sephora and get a sample or two. Once you try it let me know what you think! I am pretty much hooked and might even stop  using my proactiv to use strictly this in the future ::gasps::