Currently loving...

I haven't done a 'products i'm loving' sort of post since my monthly favorites for May and i've been meaning to share/briefly review a few products on here, so i thought i'd do a 'currently loving' post!  These products are all really ones that have been in my collection for a while & i've rediscovered, or products i've just gotten in the past month or so and have become staples for me.  There's a mixture of hair, eyes, face, & lip products, so a bit of everything!  Hope you enjoy. :)

♥ CHI Silk Infusion - I typically wash my hair at night & let it air dry, but lately i've been washing my hair in the morning and blow drying it instead (usually too tired/lazy at night!).  So i've been putting in a little bit of this into my damp hair before i blow dry it, to protect it from the heat.  This makes my hair super soft and healthy-looking, and i noticed my hair dries faster with this in.

♥ Got 2 B Guardian Angel - My phase of wavy/beachy-hair loving has ended and i've really been enjoying wearing my hair poker-straight.  Once my hair is dry, i spritz a bit of this in before i straighten it.  It smells gorgeous and makes straightening my hair a breeze since it really does protect the hair well and makes it super soft and shiny.  This is probably my new holy grail heat protectant. :)

♥ L'Oreal Voluminous Carbon Black mascara - I've fallen in love with this mascara!  I was running out of my go-to Clinique High Impact mascara, but felt like trying something new and ended up trying this one, which is literally a third of the price of the Clinique one.  It's super black and makes my lashes look amazing, almost like falsies.  Just like the name implies, it's really volumizes the lashes.  Two coats of this and you have *the* perfect eyelashes.

♥ Revlon Brow Fantasy Pencil/Gel in Dark Blonde - My Rimmel brow pencil was getting smaller & smaller so i went to go pick up a new one, but it was nowhere to be found!  So i ventured to find a new one & my mom actually spotted this one for me.  I was a bit hesitant to get this because i don't really like 'gimmicky' products like this, with two different products in one 'thing', but thought i'd try it anyway.  It's a lot less red toned than the Rimmel one (i used to one in Hazel) and goes with my hair color a lot more.  The gel is amazing as well.  Will be repurchasing this over & over!

♥ Urban Decay Primer Potion - I know i did a post on how i had converted to using Too Faced Shadow Insurance instead of UDPP, but i got another tube of the primer potion with the Naked palette and it just reminded me of how much i love this stuff.  I got comments on that post about how UD had started making the primer in tube form, so i think when i use up the Shadow Insurance, i will definitely be purchasing the tube form of UDPP instead!  Don't get me wrong, they're both great primers, i just find UDPP works better with my eyeshadows & my skin for some reason!

♥ Sephora Collection Professionnel Mineral Powder Brush #45 - I got this brush as a gift from my sister back in March and i can't believe i haven't blogged about this yet!  I use this to apply/buff in my Bare Minerals foundation and it makes doing so a dream.  It helps to build up the coverage and is super soft.  I know some people use this for liquid foundation as well, but i use it for powder.  It washes up really nicely as well & dries quickly!  Can't recommend this brush enough, it's hands down a must-have for me.

The flash washed out the color quite a bit, but it's deffo a bright coral. :D

♥ Maybelline Color Sensational Lipstick in 525 "Peachy Scene" - Kinda bought this on a whim on my first ever trip to CVS.  I've raved about this range of lipsticks so many times and they are definitely the best i've tried.  I added yet another shade to my collection and this isn't a color i'd usually go for.  I'd describe it as more of a bright coral than a peach, and it has a bit of a sheen to it.  It's so nice for summer & i've gotten lovely compliments on it!  If you don't want to do a full on red lip but want to venture out from nudes & pinks, i'd definitely recommend going for corals! :)  Really adds a bit of color & interest to an outfit.

♥

Retail therapy.

As you can probably gather from the title, i did a little shopping last week (again) to make me feel a bit better about myself.  I stopped by Forever 21 and Sephora, then decided that it would probably be smart to not even take a peek at any other stores.  I'm going to make the effort to get my spending under control during the next few months.  I don't think it should be too hard to save my money during the rest of the summer as Summerfest is ending today (*tear* :( ) and i don't really have much else planned that involves spending a lot of mooolah.

These are the purchases i made last friday morning.. i was feeling quite crap as i had quite the sloppy (to say the least o_o did have an amazing time though!) before at Summerfest, but was excited to get a few new goodies.

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Forever 21

Tribal-y sheer button down tank top - $19.80, sheer drop-waist top with awesome unicorn print - $13.80

Red botanical print dress - $24.80, plaid button down top - $7.80

I also got a crop top that says 'weekend warrior' on it ($12.80) but i wore it out to the Flaming Lips show i went to last night, so it's in the wash!  I saw a girl wearing it at Summerfest and i just had to get it when i saw it at F21.  I had broken my favorite sunglasses the night before, so i bought an identical pair to replace them - $5.80.

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Sephora

Urban Decay Naked Palette - $48

I had walked past the Urban Decay section of Sephora not even thinking of the Naked palette.  I figured it would be out of stock until my mom pointed it out.  It was a complete impulse buy, i just kind of thought "omg, i have to get it, end of".  I am so, SO excited to use this, the colors are absolutely stunning and so 'me'. UD eyeshadows are really nice quality as well so i think i'll really get my money's worth out of this.  So excited to experiment a bit with this. :)

NARS powder blush in Deep Throat - $27

I was running out of my go-to Clinique blush that i got in one of those free gift sets with purchase and had been considering diving into more high-end brands.  I've heard many good things about NARS blushes (i was between NARS & Benefit) and i don't own any peachy blushes, so i decided to get Deep Throat, lovely name, no?  It's my first NARS purchase as well, so i'm quite excited to give this a go.

 ♥

christmas come early

I've been feeling really down lately (a combination of stress, hormones, and impatience), but i've received two things in the mail this past week that have helped cheer me up a bit!  My mom treated me to some Sephora goodies and i also won Amy's 100 follower giveaway, and just got her package yesterday :).  This will hopefully hold me over till Christmas!

Amy at Glamour Rouge's Giveaway Prizes

01. Awesome bedazzled nail file

02. Amy makes & sells some lovely jewelry and hairpieces on her Etsy, and gave away one of her three-strand headpiece - unfortunately my massive head is too big for it, boo :/.  I do think it would look so cute & quirky though!

03. Two L.A. Colors nail polishes - in shades Berry & Metallic Copper.  Can't wait to try these out, they look really nice.

04. MUA lip gloss in shade four & MUA eyeshadow in shade eleven pearl.  I was particularly excited for these two products, after hearing really positive reviews from Kate at Dollybowbow.  The eyeshadow actually reminds me a lot of MAC's Satin Taupe, which i love - can't wait to try these babies out!

Thanks so much again Amy :) ♥

Sephora & Walmart goodies

01. Revlon Fantasy Lengths False Lashes - 91002 Intensifying.  These are admittedly my first pair of fake (blah, hate that word) lashes, but i figured i'd get them as they were on sale at Walmart.  Excited to try these out, but i know i'll be a total failure at applying them properly!

02. Too Faced Shadow Insurance.  I'm nearly out of my Urban Decay Primer Potion and thought i'd try something new.  I do like UDPP & it works really well for me, but it's such a hassle getting all the product out (i know SO many people have the same problem), so i thought i'd try this which is said to be just as good.

03. BareMinerals Mineral Veil - original.  I was running out of this, just a repurchase!

04. Benefit Creaseless Cream Shadow/Liner in R.S.V.P.  I'd been really curious to try out one of these creaseless cream shadows ever since i heard Gemma first rave about them.  R.S.V.P. is just a neutral shade, reminds me a lot of Urban Decay's eyeshadow in Sin, but so far i quite like it.  Probably not worth $19, but it's nice.  I've only worn this with a primer, so i'm not sure how it is on it's own, i'll try that out eventually :)

Hope you all have a lovely weekend.  Eight days till Christmas!

xoxo

♥

What's in My Makeup Bag? ♥

Now i'm one of those girls who tends to carry her life around in her bag, but recently i've tried to minimize the amount of quote-unquote "crap" that i carry around with me - to save both my shoulder & my sanity.  Whilst rummaging through my bag and trying to make sense of all the mess, i first & foremost stumbled across my makeup bag and thought it would be a good idea to downsize the amount of junk i tote around in there.

I came to the conclusion that i really didn't need to carry around 50 hairbands & an entire palette of eyeshadows 24/7, so i took out all the unnecessary & excess baggage - resulting in a minimal, yet efficient makeup bag to tote around all the essentials i need on a daily basis :)

What are these essentials you ask?

I guess i'll let you all take a little peek ;)

The bag itself

This bag actually came free with a subscription to Teen Vogue.  I like to switch up my makeup bag quite a bit, but this is the one i'm currently using!  It's spacious on the inside & easy to find in my handbag.  It's not the most gorgeous thing ever, but i think it's quite nice & is easy to clean!

01. Compact mirror - Very handy to have a mirror (obv!) - for touching up makeup, fixing your hair, etc etc :)

02. Tresemme Travel Size Tres Two Hold Hairspray - Another very handy thing to have for long days at school and running about town.  Tres Two is my go-to/everyday hairspray, but the bottle is absolutely massive & definitely not something you would want to have to carry around!  If you live in the States, Walmart always has a little travel section with sample size products & such, which is where i got this bottle!

03. Eyelash curlers - I don't really like reapplying mascara, so i take my trusty eyelash curlers around in my makeup bag to give my eyelashes a little perk during the usually long, dragging day!  These particular ones are by Maybelline, but any would be fine :)

04. Facial tissues - aka Kleenex!  I have a little thing of tissues in my makeup bag at all times, even if i don't have the sniffles!  I can't tell you how many times i've went to the bathroom in a stall that didn't have toilet paper!  Very useful thing to have in those situations haha.

05. Clinique Stay-Matte Sheer Pressed Powder - I can get quite oily throughout the day, so this is an essential if i want to prevent looking like an oil well!

06. Bobby pins - Pretty self-explanatory :)  My hair is usually a mess, so these definitely come in handy.

07. Lip products - I put the lip products (lippie & lip gloss) i'm using in a particular day into my makeup bag to touch up throughout the course of the day.  These two are my very well-loved Revlon Matte in Pink Pout & Maybelline Color Sensational in Pink Please - two you've all heard me rave about before, which are the two most likely to be floating about in my makeup bag.

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That's honestly all i carry around!  What do you girls always have to have with you in your makeup bag?

My next post will probably be on the few bits i got from Forever 21 yesterday.  Until then, hope you're having a lovely weekend!  ♥

Ask me anything / Tweet tweet!

♥

Tag: What's In My Bag? ♥

This tag is a classic, it has been going around for years and it's a favorite of many!  I've done this once before but i think i deleted it yesterday when i was going on a deleting-my-old-cringey-posts spree ;).  Anyway, i thought i would update you all with what's in my bag :).  I was also reminded of this tag by Holly, who did this post recently!

I was also tagged agessss ago by two lovely girlies, Alexandra and Julianne, to do this so yeah, two more reasons to do it!  Haha.

*Time to show off the bag i suppose.*  So yes, this is my bag (many people call it a suitcase) from Urban Outfitters which i got on sale for $38 i believe.  This puppy has been featured in a couple of my posts now so some of you ladies might recognize it.

I also use this as my school bag (which is the main reason i bought it & also the reason it's so big!) but i took out all my school stuff, so i'll show you all what i carry around when i'm going out for the day!

♥ Back row, left to right: Victoria's Secret makeup bag, wallet, Forever 21 sunglasses

♥ Main row, left to right: water bottle, The Catcher in the Rye book for English class, planner, peanut butter crackers (haha ew), Trident gum, bobby pins, BlackBerry (her name is Daisy :), iPod (her name is Gemma :), and hairbrush

The contents of that Victoria's Secret makeup bag:

♥ another little Clinique bag that holds that Bare Escentuals brush & mini foundation

♥ Germ-X hand sanitizer

♥ Tresemme Tres Two travel size hairspray

♥ Vera Wang Princess perfume

♥ Maybelline Color Sensational lipstick in 025 Pink Please (or whichever lipstick i was wearing that day)

♥ Maybelline eyelash curlers

♥ Sephora compact mirror

♥ tissues

The contents of my wallet - note all the hearts, lips, & stars covering things haha - just for safety!  There are creeps in the world...:
♥ Yaz birth control

♥ Sephora Beauty Insider card, American Eagle All Access Pass, Borders Rewards card, Hot Topic frequent buyer card, nail salon discount card

♥ Starbucks, Urban Outfitters, Borders, PacSun, & movie theater gift cards

♥ spa discount card, AT&T phone card

♥ school ID

♥ library card

♥ movie ticket for How To Train Your Dragon (so cute!)

♥ Culver's Scoopie Tokens (haha)

♥ money

♥ pictures of one of my sisters & my cousin

♥ coupons

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I take anyone that fancies doing this :)

Put a link to your "What's In My Bag" in the comments if you've done one!

♥

FOTD: Girly Nautical - Lush Times & an Award!

I feel like this posts contains waaay too many photos of me...hope i don't seem conceited :O

So as you may have read in my previous post or on Twitter (same on you if you don't follow me! Click here if you don't already! ;), i dyed my hair!  I'm still loving it & i've really enjoyed styling it :)  I thought i'd show you all one of my favorite looks i've had this week.

I felt so girly wearing this & actually had an "i feel pretty today" kinda day ♥  I wore my sailor shirt (i haven't worn this in for.ev.er.) which is fitted & very flattering and i wore my anchor earrings to match which i actually made myself, as well as a bow i made.  My hair is messy & looked better IRL than these pictures show..haha oh well.

I feel like my FOTDs are pointless because i pretty much do the same makeup look everyday..i just thought i'd post this anyway.

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F A C E

Bare Escentuals Prime Time primer

Revlon Mineral Mousse Foundation in 010 Light

Bare Escentuals Foundation in Fair to set

Bare Escentuals Warmth as bronzer

CoverGirl Cheekers Bronzer in Golden Tan to contour

CoverGirl Cheekers Blush in 110 Classic Pink

Bare Escentuals Mineral Veil

E Y E S

L'Oreal Lash Boosting Serum

UDPP

Urban Decay "Midnight Cowboy Rides Again" e/s (all over lid & into crease)

Lancome "Lezard" e/s (outer corner blended into crease)

Sephora "Aspen Summit 23" e/s (inner corner & eyebrow bone highlight)

Bari Cosmetics liquid eyeliner in Black Tie (upper lashline)

Love My Eyes by Bari Cosmetics Kohl-Kajal Eyeliner Soft Crayon in 808 White (lower lash line)

CoverGirl Lash Blast masacra in Black

Maybelline Define-a-Brow Gel

Rimmel Eyebrow Pencil in 006 Hazel

L I P S

Maybelline Color Sensational l/s in Pink Please 025

H A I R

Tresemme Heat Tamer Spray

straightened with Remington straightner

pinned shorter layers up with bobby pins

Tresemme Tres Two hairspray

DIY bow

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I was flicking through my Lush Times the other day and came across this!  I LOL'ed & just had to take a picture to show you guys :).  It's a spoof on Twilight featuring one of Lush's Massage Bars!  Too funny ♥

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I also was given the Sweet Blog Award from Brooke, she's such a sweetie!  Thanks sooo much dollface :)

♥

Review: Urban Decay's Alice In Wonderland Book of Shadows

I'm sure you've heard SOO much hype about this product, & if you've had enough, i'm sorry. I just wanted to share with you guys my view on it!

Time to reveal what was in the box! I hope you guessed right, though i did give quite the subtle hint ;)

As you saw from the title, i got Urban Decay's Alice In Wonderland Book of Shadows!!!!

I also recieved some fragrance samples - Ralph by Ralph Lauren, Be Delicious & Red Delicious by DKNY, & Kim Kardashian's new perfume, Kim Kardashian (great name right....).

Oh just a quick note, i sprayed Kim Kardashian & at first i liked it, but after a couple seconds it smell like straight up public restroom o_o

Oh...look!  :D

I have to say, i really don't like the excess packaging Sephora uses.  There were two huge layers of tissue paper surrounding the Book of Shadows.  I know that they don't want any of the products broken, but it just kinda bothered me.

A close up!  The packaging is soo gorgeous.

I can't believe i forgot to take a picture of the 3-D display on the top :O.

Here's a LINK to a picture - it's soo cute!

Here's an overall view, all 16 sparkling shadows (names below), two mini eyeliners (Zero & Flipside), & a micro bottle of the famous UDPP :)

And here are the shadows, they are all either frosty, or glittery.  I'm not going to be posting the swatches because every post seems to have them!  If you want the swatches, i would Google it :)

Here are the names & they're original names (from left to right)

Row 1:

Underland = Flash

Alice = Painkiller

Oracculum = Baked

Queen = Last Call

Row 2:

Chessur = Chopper

White Rabbit = Polyester Bride

Wonderland = Maui Wowie

Curiouser = Grifter

Row 3:

Muchness = X

Mushroom = Mushroom

Midnight Tea Party = Midnight Cowboy Rides Again

Vorpal = S&M

Row 4:

Absolem = Homegrown

Drink Me Eat Me = Sin

Mad Hatter = Twice Baked

Jabberwocky = Oil Slick

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The Packaging

Okay, you have to admit the packaging is, well...AMAZING!  A 3-D pop-up display on top of a magical drawer of Urban Decay products?!  In the words of Rachel Zoe, BA-NA-NAS.

It's not only visually awesome, it's also functional.  The drawer is easy to open & close, & i don't really use the mirror that's on top, but it's soo cute anyway!

Review On the Shadows

First off, pigmentation.  The pigmentation is amazing, what you see is really what you get, & it's also buildable.  They are very easy to blend & last all day, without fallout, as long as you tap off the excess on your brush before applying.

You get such a big range of colors, making the possibilities endless.  You can create smokey, neutral, colorful, & more looks with this one palette alone.  I hate to sound like a salesperson, but what i say is the truth! :)

Although if you aren't a shimmery/frosty/glittery type of person (which i honestly wasn't until i got this) then you probably won't like this, but who knows, you may change your mind, like me!

Review On the Liners

In the palette, you get 2 of Urban Decay's famous liners, Zero, which is black, & Flipside, which is a bright turquoise.  I've only used Zero so far, & i absolutely love it.  It goes on soo smoothly & it's the only black liner i've ever used on my waterline that stayed all day.  When i run out of this, i'll most likely be purchasing the full size.  Flipside goes on smoothly as well & probably has the same staying power.

Overall thoughts

This palette is $52 & honestly, it's worth every penny.  It's my first Urban Decay purchase ever - besides the Primer Potion - & it definately won't be my last.  (Jeez, i'm really sorry that i sound like such a saleswoman!).

If you own any of the other Urban Decay palettes, you probably won't need to buy this one since all of the shadows are repeats, but if you're just starting to build up your makeup collection, you just want to try out some Urban Decay products, or you just plain love Alice In Wonderland, this should definately be on your list.

I'm soo happy that i have this in my possession, seeing as it will last me a long, long time, & i now have SO many new shades to play with!

Lookout for & Requests

LOTD's using this palette, i already have one lined up!  If you have any requests for looks using any of the colors in this palette, go ahead & leave me a comment or e-mail me, & i'll happy do them :)

♥