My Favorite Go To Makeup Products

It has been quite a while! I am always hoping that I will get better at blogging each time I post, but it has not been the case. It probably won't get any better because the craziness of college is about to start for me and has already started for Rhiana! My post today is just going to be about my favorite go-to products and a small review of each.

I'm not loving either of my foundations at the moment but I think it is just because my skin is not looking great right now. My go-to foundation is the Revlon Colorstay one. It feels nice on the skin and gives a nice, even coverage. It is supposed to last all day but I find that it slips off my oily skin quite a lot by the end of the day no matter what powder I set it with. I prefer any foundation more in the winter because my skin is pretty oily in the summer, but this is the one I usually reach for year round. I have found that it applies great with my Real Techniques buffing brush. As for concealer, I still haven't found one I love but the Maybelline Instant Age Rewind one is not bad. It is moisturizing and creamy, just not quite pigmented enough to cover my dark under eye circles.

I have used so many different powders, but the one I am absolutely loving is the Rimmel Stay Matte powder. Tanya Burr of pixi2woo on youtube raves about it and uses it in every tutorial lately so I decided to purchase it. It is so inexpensive and works very well! It mattifies the skin but doesn't leave it looking cakey or powdery at all, and it smells so nice, which really adds to my love for a product. I like to apply this with my ELF Powder Brush, which is also a really nice and inexpensive product!

I don't really have a favorite bronzer at the moment, but I love Hoola Bronzer from Benefit when I am a little more fair skinned. My face is a little too dark right now to use it to contour but it adds a nice glow to the face. A good, cheaper dupe for it is NYC Sunny. Both are matte. My favorite go-to blush is Tickled Pink from ELF. It looks really nice on the skin and gives a warm, pretty glow. I have not tried many highlighters, but I absolutely love The Color of Grace highlighter from Philosophy. I received it as a birthday gift and I use it all the time! It gives the nicest glow to the skin, especially when it is looking a little dry, and it smells so so nice. I like to use a contour brush and blush brush from Sonia Kashuk to apply the blush/ bronzer and the Real Techniques Contour Brush for highlight or more definition when I contour.

 I love the simple details on this beautiful highlighter. Above: The word "grace" printed right into the product. Below: "philosophy: where there is grace, there is beauty" printed onto the mirror.

I would definitely say my favorite go-to for eyeshadow is my Naked 2 palette from Urban Decay, hands down. I also received this as a birthday gift from Rhiana and I have fallen in love with it!! Every color is silky, pigmented, and beautiful. I use it ever single time I do my makeup. I also really like the Metal Mania 88 palette from Coastal Scents. I probably use gold, brown, purple, and shimmery white shades the most, so both of these palettes are great! My go-to brushes would definitely include the Mac 217, the Shading Brush and the Deluxe Crease Brush from Real Techniques, and the ELF Eyeshadow "C" Brush. Also, I have not tried many primers but Urban Decay's Eyeshadow Primer Potion is amazing and I never do my eyes without it!

 From left to right: Real Techniques Deluxe Crease brush, RT Shading brush, Mac 217, ELF "C" brush.

My favorite eyeliner is the Maybelline Eyestudio gel liner in Blackest Black. It applies smooth and black, and works well for winged eyeliner when applied with a tiny, thin brush. My go-to brushes are the eyeliner brush from Target and the Loew-Cornell #1 brush, which is a paint brush I bought from Michael's but I absolutely love it for eyeliner. My two favorite mascaras are One by One and Illegal Length from Maybelline. I use One by One first because it really separates out the lashes, and Illegal Length after because the little fibers make the lashes longer and thicker.

And last is lips. I have become so obsessed with lipstick lately! I would have to say my favorites are definitely from Wet n Wild and Revlon. My favorites from Wet n Wild are Purty Persimmon and Bare It All. They are matte and super pigmented but the texture is a little bit dry so I find that they work best applied over a lip balm. Bare It All has become my everyday go-to lip color. And they are only $2! Revlon lipsticks are also really pigmented and creamy. My favorites are Siren, Fuchsia, Berry Haute, and the Tutti Frutti Lip Butter. I don't use lip gloss as often but I do really like Maybelline's Touch of Toffee gloss and Revlon's Lilac Pastelle gloss. (Picture in order as listed.)

I think that is all! Ended up being a long post but it makes up for the three months of nothing haha. I hope you enjoyed!

Naomi

The Importance of Eyebrows

I'm a big fat blogging failure, I know :( I don't have an excuse really, except that maybe beauty blogging isn't my forte. Anyway though, today I wanted to do a post on maybe the most important beauty-related thing to me: eyebrows.
In about third grade, I started becoming acutely aware of how bushy my eyebrows were. I had a bit of a unibrow, and I would beg and beg my mother to let me get them waxed. She wouldn't let me, so I would do things like clip them with nail clippers (not kidding, and yes it was bad). She finally gave in when I was 10 or so, and I was so much happier. It wasn't a super frequent thing, but I was no longer The Girl with the Unibrow. Then, the summer before my sophomore year, I got them waxed, and the girl made them extremely tiny. I didn't know much, so I kept them that way- I tweezed them to have a big start and a very small middle section and tail. Here's proof:

I did this all through 10th grade, despite how rude (or so it seemed) my family often was. Comments like "you look like you do drugs," or even "what's wrong with your eyebrows?" only made me like tweezers more. Finally, that summer, I was starting to get into makeup and realizing more about eye shapes and what brows can do for the face. It was a painful, patchy process, but they slowly grew out over the summer months. Luckily for me, my eyebrows grow really fast- I've heard stories of the hair never growing back the same once they've been plucked/waxed/whatever enough. Once they grew back in sufficiently, I just let them be and never really did anything. Then, this year, I started realizing that I looked a bit like my third grave cavegirl self, and I started filling them in for a more clean look. And now, even if I'm wearing no other makeup but am still going out, I'll fill my eyebrows in. Here's a picture of my current brows:

Not anything too spectacular, but for my large eyes, big brows are necessary. To fill them in, I use an eyeshadow about 4 shades lighter than my hair, and sometimes, a wax pencil from Revlon that I'm not overly impressed with. I use an angled brush and light, feathery strokes.
I really do believe eyebrows can have the most effect on a face, whether that be good or bad. Now, I don't let anybody but me near my brows, and I've been happier for it. I still tweeze every day, because for reasons unknown to me, my eyebrow hair grows at an extraordinary rate, unlike the hair on my head. I just go with the natural shape though.
If you're 15 or younger, I'd say ask somebody you trust to help you, or watch videos on it. If you can find somebody at a salon you like, fine- just make sure they know what you want or what would truly look best on you. A person's natural brow shape, following the bone structure is typically most flattering. Unfortunately, that's different for everyone, which is what makes eyebrows so tricky and such a personal thing. Babies don't really have eyebrows, which is what makes their heads look so large and their faces so young. If you look at photoshopped pictures of people without eyebrows, it really is weird and sort of alien-like.
Anyway though, it's almost summer! With the hot weather we've been having, expect more outfit pictures. I also got a friend ready for prom, so I'd like to do a post on that. Hope everyone had a great weekend! :)


-Rhiana

New Clothes

With college approaching in only a few short months (well 6 but time is passing so quickly!), I have started shopping for new clothes. Rhiana offered to take some pictures for our blog and I thought it was a great idea. I was kinda nervous about it, but Rhi helped me put together some outfits and the pictures turned out pretty cool. We went to an old abandoned grain factory right here in our little town!

Tank: Target; cardigan: Wet Seal; belt: thrifted; shorts: So from Kohl's; shoes: Soda; necklace: Forever 21.



I am so pale :(. Rhiana took this cool picture below!!


Tank: American Eagle; denim jacket: Forever 21; skirt: Lapis; shoes: Target; necklace: Forever 21.


Broken furniture makes for cool pictures haha.



Click this one to enlarge it :)


I curled my hair and did brown and green eye makeup. :)


I almost forgot a funny one. This is me about to take off in flight... something I have started doing that makes Rhi so crazy hahahah. ;)



I really enjoyed doing this and I hope Rhiana and I will do it more often. Hope everyone is having a good week. Break is almost over :( but the weather is warming up!

Naomi

Personal Style

Finally, the post I've been meaning to do for about a million years! Naomi and I talked for a long time about taking pictures, and this weekend, we committed to finding a cute location (no easy feat, mind you), and the willpower to stick to it. She took pictures, and I picked out a few of my outfits. I really liked doing this, and am planning on doing it again sometime soon. Enjoy, and like always, don't mind my awkward poses! :)


First, my makeup. Just a shimmery gold eye with thick black liquid liner and gold underneath. I am never satisfied with a picture of just my face, hence all the eye shut pictures.


Shirt: Victoria's Secret; jeans: American Eagle; shoes: Vans; bracelet- gift from Naomi, necklace: gift (jewelry is same in all pictures); sunglasses: Fossil, from either Macy's or Nordstrom, I can't remember; belt: American Eagle.






Only difference is that my shirt is from Target :)


...And here's a picture of me holding a stick. I should model, yeah? :)
Nails in all pictures: OPI's Are we there yet?


Tank top: American Eagle; cardigan: American Eagle; jeans: Charlotte Russe; shoes: Sperry topsiders; belt: American Eagle.




I've had my purse since the summer, I got it at a tiny gift shop that I don't remember the name of :/

I get a lot of my clothes from American Eagle (their jeans are really good for petite girls!), and I wear a ton of white. I promise I don't always roll my jeans, but I like to do that too. I guess I also wear shoes without socks a lot (I know, ewww), but in my defense: I hate socks. I dress differently from a lot of girls in my town- leggings and boots are really popular. While I don't have every single thing I want (a blazer, for instance), I am mostly happy with my style. I might do a post on things I've learned about petite shopping- at only 5'2ish, it has taken me a long time to figure out what (sort of) works. Anyway, hope everyone had a great weekend! Now that I got this post out of the way (for some reason, I avoided it like the plague), I have a lot of ideas! :)

-Rhiana

Beauty Resolutions and Acne Solutions!

So I know January is almost over but still think that posting my beauty resolutions is a good idea. Posting things on the internet usually makes me follow through on them ha. So here they are:

1. I must take better care of my hair! In the past I have bleached it and colored it pink, which I liked at the time but it ruined my hair and took forever to grow out. I finally got the bleached parts cut. No more of that. I still love the idea of pink or turquoise hair but there are less damaging options like the Colorbug. I would love to try it in the summer. I am going to put heat on it less, and use a heat protectant when I do. My hair is short but long enough to put into a ponytail, which makes it much easier to not style everyday. Rhiana wants me to stop washing it everyday but I don't know if I can do it. Maybe I will try. Maybe. Probably not.

2. I want to do my eye makeup more often. I get up so early and don't like to put on much makeup in the morning, but I really do like the way I look when it is done. And as Rhiana said, experiment a little more. I always say I want to try new things but I usually go back to brown and gold or just mascara.

3. This one is not exactly a resolution but kind of a goal. I want to find a red and an orange nail polish that look good on me. I search for a while... and then give up and purchase yet another blue or pink nail polish that looks similar to about three others I already own. This must stop.

4. Paint my nails more often. I have like 60 polishes but I don't use them. Why?! I have no idea. Not much else needs to be said here.

5. Stop dressing like I don't care. I haven't resorted to sweat pants yet (and I never will. NEVERRR.) But I get up late and throw on whatever. Jeans and slippers every day. With a ponytail. It's a good look. I would love to curl my hair for school more. It's a little cold for dresses but when the time comes, I have a few that I would like to wear.

I think that is a good start. And now... Onto something I have been kind of excited to post on here. My skin through the years and how I fixed it. I have had acne since I was like 12. It has gotten worse over the years and was the worst from July to about November of 2011. I have used so many different products to try to get rid of it.

December 2010:


Dec 2010:


Jul 2011 A few weeks before I started using Clinique Acne Treatment:


Jul 2011 The day I started Clinique:


August 2011 After I had been using Clinique for about a month:


It really hurt my skin and it was so expensive, so I started seeing a dermatologist. She prescribed me oral antibiotics and topical creams that cleared up my acne within a month. I also switched my foundation, face wash and moisturizer.

December 2011:


Jan 2012


Jan 2012


Jan 2012


I went from trying all this....



To (alongside my antibiotics) finding success with this...





Now that my acne has cleared up, I am much happier and a lot more confident. My attitude greatly improved, and now I don't have to spend so much money! I am thrilled. :)

Hope everyone has a great week :)

Naomi

Beauty Resolutions 2011

I'm a little late in posting this, but I'm not big on "new year" changes anyway- I'm of the group that believes that changes can be made any time, regardless of the date. Anyway though, I have some bad habits I'd like to break that involve beauty.--

1) I've got to stop chipping my nail polish off. This is my first one for a reason; it is easily my biggest problem. For as long as I can remember (even as a little girl), every single time my nails have been painted, I pick it off. I'm such a perfectionist about my nails that I just can't keep polish on, no matter how much time I spend on it. If I'm stressed or bored and my nails are painted, they will soon be destroyed. I own a ton of polish, and as Naomi always tells me, it's going to waste because of this habit. So... I almost hate to write it, because it might be a promise broken. But. I am going to try to stop picking my nail polish off.

2) I'm going to exercise daily or at least every other day. As is the consensus, a healthy body makes for a more attractive person. Plus, I have a lot of steam to burn, and it makes me feel better.

3) I'm going to try more new things with my makeup. I love doing my eye shadow, truly. I have no problem making time for it, but sometimes I find myself getting stuck in a rut. I have difficulty finding styles I like that will flatter my weird eye shape, so I end up doing the same neutral eye frequently. When I first got into makeup, I was all for experimenting. I want to go back to that! :)

4) I want to be more well-rounded in my collections. I get really into one color of nail polish, or really into one style of clothing, and lately, I haven't been buying much new makeup at all. I have a lot of eye shadow, and that's about it. Until I can save some money to buy some other things, I need to stop adding to my nail polish collection (especially if it's a deep purple), and buying shirts/jackets/cardigans.

Does anybody else have any resolutions? I don't make personal ones, but if I did, I guess I would want to finish my last semester of high school with straight As, and enjoy the things around me more. Hope everyone has a great weekend! I'd love to do a fashion post next- it's easily the most neglected aspect of this blog.

-Rhiana

My Beauty Life Lately: Pictures

Long time no write! Once again, I've broken a promise on here. I have so many ideas for posts (eyebrows, beauty resolutions, tutorials for all sorts of eye shadow, fashion, etc.), but laziness always wins. I have been newly inspired lately by Pinterest, a virtual "pinboard" of sorts, where users can post inspiration for a variety of things.
Some of the makeup and nails are truly gorgeous and they push me to try new things. I've recently made a big change hair wise as well- I stopped washing my hair every day, and now only shampoo every other. Though it was hard at first, my hair adjusted within a few weeks, and it saves a lot of time. Now if only my hair would start growing more quickly... I do notice changes in terms of health though, which I'm happy for. We're on Christmas break now, which will hopefully translate into some new posts- I have a lot to say, but often can't be bothered to take the accompanying pictures. I know, that's no excuse. Anyway, here are a few of the more recent things that I've managed to photograph. Enjoy! :)


Nothing super special, just sort of a new technique: using brown eyeliner as a base and mainly dark colors on the lid. Brown on brown eyes is underrated :)


My Thanksgiving makeup! I didn't go anywhere, but I still wanted to do my makeup sort of holiday-ish, hence the fall colors.


Tonight's project, galaxy nails! Excuse my horrid edges- and that's after cleaning it up. These really do look so cool, and aren't as time consuming as a lot of other detailed nails. It takes a lot of nail polish, and a sponge (I use clean makeup applicators, available for purchase at most stores), but other than that, nothing special work wise. I've got to stop picking my nail polish off- I like doing things like this, but it's usually wasted because of how quickly I pick it off.
Anyway, I really do hope to write more this week. I've let my other blog go as well; the past few months have been rough, but things are getting a lot better. Hope everyone is having a good almost Christmas :)

-Rhiana