A Sometimes Beautiful Adventure

Short Revlon kissable balm stain Review

2012-06-20T03:43:00.001-04:00

Lately, Revlon has really been hitting it outta the park when it comes to new and innovative products. The Photoready line...the lip butters and now these kissable balm stains are becoming all the rage here on youtube and in stores. I wonder how they do it?

The kisable balm stain was the newest craze released by revlon. Its suppose to be a hybrid balm/stain product. I love that even when it feels like the product has worn off, it still leaves a beautiful stain. It's a twist up chubby pencil so no sharpening. Some people have been comparing it to the tarte lipsurgence pencils, though I havent tried that tarte product so I cannot personally compare the two. On the stain balm, I like the twist up idea, I guess I dont like the chunky packaging. The actual product doesn't fill up the full pencil, so dont mislead consumers revlon.

A couple of days ago I picked up two of the kissable balm stains. One a mid tone pink and the other a coral red shade. I forgot the names of the colors...but anyways. Heres my pros and cons:

Pros:
Glides on smoothly.
Isnt sticky.
Not tested on animals.
Stain lasts long time.

Cons:
Expensive at $8-10.50/piece
Not too much product in the package.
Kinda bulky.

7/10 stars.

Na night.

Alleigh

My Foundation Matches

2012-04-01T22:48:00.001-04:00

For my use and maybe your use, I am going to write a blog about my foundation matches for my natural skin color, and for when I'm tan. The foundations I've been matched to, range anywhere from drugstore brands, to a couple of MAC foundations.

When I'm not too tan and I have my natural skin color I use products like:

Revlon Colorstay in 150 BUFF
Revlon PhotoReady in 002 Vanilla
Rimmel Match Perfection in 260 Natural Ivory
Covergirl TruBlend in 410 Classic Ivory
MAC Studio Fix Fluid in NW20
MAC Select Sheer Powder in NC5

When I'm tan or it's summer I use products like:

Revlon Colorstay in 200 Nude or 240 Medium Beige
Revlon Photoready in 004 Nude
Covergirl TruBlend in 425 Buff Beige
MAC Studio Fix Fluid in NW22
MAC Select Sheer Powder in NC20

Haul & Spring NAILS

2012-04-01T21:49:00.002-04:00

Did you know you can find affordable makeup brushes at Micheal's and Joanne's Craft Stores?

Yesterday I went to Micheal's Craft Store to see what I could find in their paint brush department that could double as a handy makeup brush. I ended up finding three brushes for about $11. I'd say that's a good deal considering makeup brushes aren't cheap! I would say though, before you go in make sure you know what you're looking for and know what you really need.

(L to R : In order as read)

    1. I am always looking for dome blending brushes and happened to find a semi soft large dome brush that is similiar to MACs 217...just bigger! It will have a dual purpose in my collection. It will make a great contouring brush and also a large blending brush since I have decent eyelid space. Cost $6.99.
(Artist'sLoft Level 2: Artist 1/2" Mop)

    2. I picked up a small thin dome brush for my lower lid and along the eyelid. This brush is small and will be serving as a more detail oriented brush. This brush is kinda smiliar to MAC's 219 Pencil Brush. It's pretty soft and I've already used it once! I really like the control it gives me on the lower lash line when applying eyeshadow close to my lash line. Cost $1.99
(Loew-Cornell 3/16" Detail Mop)

3. Finally, I found a brush on clearance that will serve as a straight edge eyebrow filler/eyeliner brush. The hair on the brush are probably setup at about 1/4" wide x 1/4" long. As you can imagine the brush is quite tiny. I like that the handle is a bit thicker. It also works in the inner corner of the eye when applying a highlight color there. The brush is similar in style to MAC's 212 flat definer brush. Cost $2.99
(Robert Simmons E60S Chisel Blender 4)

   Okay...so onto Macy's where I did some shopping at my local MAC counter. On a side note...I think I won't be going to this counter (Southland Macy's) anymore. The one girl was talking about her Saturday night getting blitzed drunk to the girl who was helping me....almost getting arrested and blah blah. Kind of unprofessional in my opinion. Anyways, they weren't very helpful so I think I'm going to go back to Fairlane's MAC counter.

    I picked up two eyeshadows to add to my ever growing MAC Palettes and a lipstick courtesy of the Back2MAC program. I wanted a skin tone matte color and ended up going with Blanc Type. Spotted the eyeshadow Aquadisiac. It's a pretty aquamarine color and figured it'd be a good addition to my color palette. They were both $15. Shane bought me one to celebrate my THREE months without (sobriety) pop. Ughh, it's been a hard 90 days, but I've beat the bubbly sweet tasting beast thus far.

For the lipstick, I wanted to get a cool pinky color in celebration for spring. I ended up picking out Speed Dial which is a cremesheen. The color is quite pigmented, maybe a bit more than I had wanted but I guess I'm not the biggest lipstick wearer. I think my lips are too pigmented to get away with wearing lipstick without a lip liner...but even then, I'm still iffy.

I had today off, so I figured I'd make my nails all cute and festive so I did a bunny and a chick on them. They're so cute! Super easy to do too!

my first nail bunny. He looks kinda sad. :(

One bunny and 2 baby chicks:]

Thanks for reading.
Alleigh

Favorite Spring Nail Polish Colors!

2012-03-03T11:33:00.001-05:00

I've been watching a few videos on Youtube and looking through all the new nail polish all the brands are releasing, and I wanted to do my own Spring Nail Polish Colors! I only picked out four colors so it's nothing fancy, but they're all affordable and available at most drug stores. :]

L To R: Verbena, Turquiose & Caicos, Pink Chiffon, 24/7

The first color is called Verbena from Sinful Colors. I think it's part of their 2012 line, but I'm not particularly sure. It's not a lilac and that's what I like because I personally won't wear a lilac color, but it's a pastel-y spring purple which I will wear! I paid about...$1.99. I love Sinful Colors. Great quality and great brand. Only took two coats to get the color I have in the picture!

L To R: Verbena, Turquiose & Caicos, Pink Chiffon, 24/7

The second color is called Turquoise & Caicos from Essie. It's a light colored Robin's Egg. It was a splurge at $7.99 but I tested it for a week or so, and it hardly chips. I was pretty surprised considering more nail polishes I've tried chip after a couple of days. 3 coats.

L To R: Verbena, Turquiose & Caicos, Pink Chiffon, 24/7

The third color is called Pink Chiffon from Revlon. It's a pretty pale pink but is pretty opaque so several coats are needed to get a strong color payoff. I love any color pink basically but this pale pink is so whimsical and girly. 3 Coats needed!

L To R: 24/7, Pink Chiffon, Turquoise & Caicos, and Verbena

Finally, the fourth color isn't necessarily a traditional spring time color, but I love it. It's called 24/7 from Sinful Colors. It's a bright neon pink, and I love it! Although, when you put your two-three coats of it on, it's comes out as a matte nail polish rather than a glossy. Honestly, matte isn't my cup of tea...ever. So of course, I absolutely had to put a glossy top coat on. 3 coats needed, plus a for sure top coat.

Any spring time favorites that you'd like to recommend? I'm open to suggestions! :]
Alleigh

Beginners Drugstore Make-Up Kit

2012-02-02T01:49:00.000-05:00

If you're just looking to get into makeup or you want to try some new makeup products but not spend a pretty penny, this blog is just your cup of tea! I will list all my favorite makeup products from foundation, to mascara to eye liner...all at affordable prices.

Foundation

Revlon is my most favorite drugstore brand for foundation. You can't get a better bang for your buck. Specifically, Revlon's PhotoReady foundation. It's super comparable to MakeUp Forever's HD Foundation except it's a quarter of the price! It blends well, can be found at every drugstore and usually you can find a coupon to get yourself a couple bucks off the price.

Revlon Photo Ready Swatches

Fancy huh?

Concealer

Once again, Revlon comes on top for me when it comes to concealer. The matching Photo Ready Concealer also provides an air brushed effect. It won't make your face feel oily because it's oil free and fragrance free. It comes in six shades and has an SPF 20. It's not more than $6-7 and can also be found at drugstores nationwide.

Powder

You absolutely need a powder to set your foundation. Setting your foundations helps keep your foundation put especially if you don't want it running away from your face. Powder also helps with giving your face more of a matte look. I think when someones face looks dewy, they're walking a fine line between having their face look naturally dewy, and having it look oily. To close for comfort for me! Personally, I like loose powders over pressed powders. Now this powder doesn't necessarily have to match your skin tone but just has to be in the right color area ex: light, medium, dark. There are also translucent powders that are color-less. From the drugstore, I recommend Cover Girl Loose Powder. They're affordable , around $6 and come in a variety of colors. Plus, they get the job done.

Don't use the puff. Use a brush.

Bronzer

I'm going to sound like a broken record...but NYC Smooth Skin Bronzing Face Powder in 720A Sunny will always have my vote. It's SUPER affordable...only $3 (if not cheaper) and amongst drugstore bronzers, you'll rarely find a matte bronzer, let alone one for this price! It's a dual product, you can not only use it for giving yourself a healthy glow, but you can also use it for contouring your face.

I threw away the stupid sponge (read: bacteria holder).

Eye Primer

Okay okay. This will be-I promise- the ONLY product I recommend that you splurge and pay the $18 at Ulta. Purchase either Too Faced Shadow Insurance or Urban Decay's Primer Potion to be guaranteed your eye makeup will NOT crease, even after dancing hours upon hours at a local night spot or just trying to get through the work day without having a make up melt down! You won't use that much product each time you use it, so even though the product doesn't look like there is much, it will last...trust me!

Add caption

Eye Shadow

There is only one brand that I can recommend you spend your hard earned dollars on when it comes to drugstore eye shadows. ANY Wet N Wild eye shadows, and I mean any of Wet N Wilds eye shadows will work. The colors are so pigmented and are amazing quality for the price. Sometimes, Wet N Wild can go 50% off, which makes the deal even sweeter! They have many colors, and sell colors individually or sell them in palettes of 3, 6, and more.

So many colors <3 Yet so pigmented!

Eye Liner (Pencil)

My favorite eye liner pencil at the moment is NYX Eye Pencil in 901 Black. It doesn't tug too much at your eye lid when applied and won't break the bank. I still can say though, I haven't found my holy grail pencil eye liner, so this will do for the moment. :]

Mascara

Everyone's eyelashes are different just like everyone's hair type is different. What works best for you, isn't necessarily what works best for me and visa versa. I will say this though...I only purchase mascara at the drugstore. I refuse to pay top dollar for a product that I can buy at the drugstore and get the same quality. With this being said, I recommend Cover Girl's Lash Blast Fusion. This mascara, along with the others in the Lash Blast line are fabulous. It doesn't have a funky smell and doesn't look clumpy. It volumizes and makes my lashes look longer, without using false eyelashes.

Yahh.

Product Spotlight: NYX Jumbo Pencils & Swatches!

2012-01-11T02:10:00.003-05:00

I was sharpening my NYX Jumbo Pencils and it hit me, I should do a blog about these little babies! Most of you who aren't obsessed about makeup, probably are wondering...Uh I've never heard of the makeup brand NYX, let alone their Jumbo Pencils. In my previous blog-torial (the favorite going out look) I mentioned the NYX Jumbo Pencil in black bean. I used it as the base for my black eye shadow.

      Well what are they?...They are these thick eyeliners that also double as a base for your eye shadows which work amazingly (especially the white one!) NYX frequently sells out of the white jumbo pencil, called "Milk". Milk is frequently recommended on Youtube amongst users as a product they can't live without as a eyeshadow base for any eyeshadow color they want to make brighter. Milk, specifically is a great inner corner color to make your corner pop too. :]

    They have a very creamy consistency and go on SUPER smoothly. They cost about $5/each and can be found online at NYXcosmetics.com or at Ulta.

    To use as an eyeshadow base: apply one swipe and use your finger to blend to the desired area. Don't over blend or the color will disappear! Also, don't worry about it looking messy. It's a base! You're putting more color over it!

      I own 6 different colors: 604 Milk (Bright White), 601 Black Bean (True Black), 622 Yellow (Sunny Yellow), 621 Hot Pink, 623A Purple Velvet (Medium Dark Purple), and 611 Yogurt (Medium Sparkly Champagne color)

If wearing bright colors isn't your cup of tea, I suggest you only pick up one pencil and that's the NYX Jumbo Pencil in MILK. It will boost even the least pigmented eyeshadow you have no matter what color it is. :]

SWATCHES!:

Have an amazing week!
Alleigh.

Easy How To: Extremely Kissable Lips!

2012-01-04T18:29:00.000-05:00

It's winter time here in Michigan, and chapped dry lips are quite a common occurrence! Did you not get kissed under the mistletoe because you had those dry chapped lips?! This How To is super easy so you'll have NO excuse not to keep your lips soft and moisturized. Plus..we're just around the corner from Valentine's Day so you will for sure need to make sure your lips are kiss-ably smooth for that special someone...or to attract the guy you've had in your eyesight ;]. I've done some research and these are two easy and cheap ways to help get rid of dry lips! Enjoy <3

What you'll need:
Petroleum Jelly (name or non name brand, doesn't matter)
Sugar
A toothbrush
A clean dry towel

The essentials to extremely kissable lips!

Version 1:

1. Take some petroleum jelly on the tip of your index finger and take about a half a teaspoon of sugar and kind of dump it onto the petroleum jelly to have a nice coat of sugar on the jelly. If you don't get all of the sugar on your finger, that's fine.

2. Scrub your lips until you're happy with the results.

3. Wipe off with a towel. The sugar will act as an exfoliating agent and it's sweet to the taste too! The petroleum jelly acts as a moisturizer. You can even add a little bit of just petroleum jelly after you've wiped the mixture off as a lip balm. :]

Version 2:

1. If you don't have sugar or are in a rush just apply a layer of petroleum jelly to your lips.

2. Use your toothbrush to scrub off your lips.

3. Wipe off.

4. Hydrate with your favorite chapstick, tinted balm or even petroleum jelly to help protect those now extremely kissable lips from the cold weather and indoor dry heat.

Hope this helped. It's super easy and I thought it would come in handy to those who get chapped lips, especially since the wind and cold are biting outside! Chapped lips are no fun, so please remember to keep those babies moisturized!

Happy January,
Miss Alleigh

Favorite Beauty Products of 2011!

2012-01-02T04:23:00.000-05:00

   For this entry, I've compiled a few of my favorite/most used beauty products of 2011. These products I would recommend to pretty much everyone and I will continue using and loving into 2012. <3

Ponds Wet Cleansing Make-Up Removing Towelettes

     For $5 you get 30 towelettes that remove makeup and dirt after a long day. They even remove waterproof mascara. The towelettes are textured and have Vitamin E. Vitamin E is very important when it comes to skin care. It's most important quality is the prevention of skin cancer. This occurs because of its sun protection qualities and its antioxidant properties which also helps reduce or prevent sun damage. I personally like them because they remove my makeup fairly easily, my skin is not left dry after using them and they don't burn my eyes when I remove eye makeup. Found at drug stores.

Biore SkinPreservation Even Smoother Microderm Exfoliator

       While this cost about $14 for 3 oz, it's worth all the money! It might seem like a lot, but a little goes a long way! I exfoliate 1-2 times a week if not more especially during the winter with about a pea size amount and the tiny crystals that make up this product help remove dead skin but isn't too rough on my sensitive skin. My skin actually feels CLEAN after I use it. It definitely smells like white tea. Not only does it contain white tea, but it also has shea butter. Found at drug stores.

Garnier Nutristioniste Moisture Rescue Lightweight UV-Lotion

       I know I've mentioned this lotion before, but after discovering this moisturizer I will never go back to any other moisturizer and believe me, I've tried my share of moisturizers. The smell is amazing and for the price (about $7) you get 4.5 oz which is a decent amount for a moisturizer. My moisturizer needs to have three qualities for me to consider it my holy grail moisturizer. 1. At least an SPF 15 2. Not leave my face feeling oily. 3. Make my face feel healthy and actually be moisturized. You think it'd be super easy to find a moisturizer to meet those three criteria...NOT! This one has met my expectations and then some. :] Found at drug stores.

Juicy Couture's Viva La Juicy Eau de Parfum

        I hate describing a perfume, because who the hell remembers what sandal wood, jasmine or what honeysuckle smells like? Or when combined? Smell descriptions don't do perfumes justice. According to Juicy Couture Viva La Juicy is described as "Lively fragrance features notes of wild berries and juicy mandarin followed by honeysuckle, gardenia, and jasmine. Viva La Juicy eau de parfum spray by Juicy Couture finishes with notes of amber, caramel, vanilla, sandalwood, and praline." Can you imagine that smell? I can't either. But...I do know it is my favorite perfume of all time. It smells amazing and within the past year or so, I've went through three bottles of the smaller bottle and will continue purchasing it as long as I have the means. I usually purchase the 1 oz size at Meijer for about $25. I got the last bottle for $20 on sale ;]

Urban Decay Naked Palette

       This I can say is my most used palette I have. The colors are so versatile and are matte textured to shimmery textured. Everyone, no matter what race, age or skin type can benefit from the use of this product in their makeup routine. The best thing about this palette is that you can do an work appropriate look, transform into a summery bronze look or a night club sultry look in a matter of a few colors. The packaging is fabulous and along with the palette you get a basic eyeshadow brush (cruelty free!) and a travel size primer (who doesn't need one of those?). It cost me about $48 but once again, is worth every single penny. I bought my at Ulta, but you can also get it on the Urban Decay website.

Maybelline Lash Stiletto Mascara

       Newly discovered, this has quickly became my favorite mascara of the year. I probably have...6-7 mascaras in my collection, and I can't say I have a favorite out of those, but once this one came along, it had became my only grabbed for mascara since. It voluminzes and lengthens but doesn't get clumpy or flaky.

MAC Studio Fix Fluid Foundation and MAC 187 Stippling Foundation Brush

I've moved to department store foundation and I'm not looking back. The finish and even blending that this team of foundation and brush do can not compare to anything the drugstore has to offer. Don't get me wrong, there are foundations that are sold at the drug store that are high quality for the price like Revlon's Photoready Foundation, but when compared to MAC's Studio Fix Fluid, MAC wins hands down. MAC's Studio Fix Fluid foundation cost about $26.50 which is on the cheaper side of department store foundations but gives me the most amazing matte look while evening out my skin tone, eliminating redness. The brush helps too, a bit pricey though at $42. If you have that kinda money or don't know what to get for your birthday or christmas and your getting serious into the makeup game, may I suggest that brush? Found at MAC counters, Pro Stores and online.

Review: Broadway Nail Dress Stick On Wraps and How to Apply Them!

2012-01-01T18:55:00.000-05:00

So whilst browsing the HBC area in Walgreens I noticed they had these Broadway Nail Dress Wraps that I've always wanted to try but wasn't willing to pay the $6 cost for something that may only last a couple days. They were on clearance for $2.79 and that was just low enough for me to pick up two of 'em. :]

There are 28 nail wraps (stickers) in 14 different sizes. They will fit over natural or artificial nails. It's a nail sticker essentially. The style I got was the gold foil leopard print. You also get a miniature nail file with a smoothing side and a filing side. The nail stickers were fairly easy to apply in my opinion but it definitely takes some practice to apply them just perfectly without any creases or wrinkling.

What you'll need:
Nail Wraps
Clear Nail Polish (topcoat)
Optional: Cuticle Stick

How to Apply:

Step 1: Make sure your nails are 1000% clean. Use acetone based nail polish remover to make sure any straggling nail polish is removed.

Step 2: Match your nail with the right size nail sticker. Bend the flim to match nail shape for accurate sizing.

Step 3: Use tab to just lift off the sticker.

Step 4: Apply rounded edge near the cuticle and smooth away any wrinkles with the edge of the nail file or if you have a cuticle stick use that. I found it a lot easier since I had the cuticle stick, to get into the edges and make sure the sticker was all the way on.

Step 5: Fold down the sticker at the edge of your nail and use the rougher side of the nail file to file off the excess sticker. Make sure you do it in a downward motion and that will keep it from messing up the edge of the sticker.

Step 6: Make sure you apply a top coat to seal on the sticker to your nail and make it last longer.

To Remove: simply just peel it off. :]

PROS: easy to apply, you get enough for 2 full applications, several colors/styles, available at drugstores, not as expensive as Sally Hansen's Nail Wraps.
CONS: Easily get wrinkles/creases if not done right, still a bit too expensive in my opinion for only two uses

I will update and let you guys know how long they lasted. So far I'm on day 2 and they look great still.

Happy New Year!

Miss Alleigh

My favorite going out to the bar/club/for the night look or in this case, New Years Eve Makeup Picture Tutorial!

2011-12-31T00:51:00.005-05:00

I've been pondering this past couple week what kind of NYE look I was going to do and if I was even going to do a "picture" makeup tutorial for it. I finally (last minute) decided that I was going with my basic smokey eye/jersey shore-esque inspired look. I suggest though, only wear it out on a night on the town..it's pretty dramatic to say the least! When it doubt..smoke it out :]

Here's the look...if you wanna see how I created it, keep reading!:

1. I suggest you do your eye makeup before anything else because black is a very potent color and you don't want to have to re-do your whole face makeup because of some black eyeshadow fall out on your cheek bones!

2.Apply a primer to your eyelids and lower eyelids. I prefer Too Faced Shadow Insurance.

3. To make the black eyeshadow not so harsh and to give it a semi gradient effect, I use three different shades of brown with my crease brush (the one with the silver ferrel). I apply the lightest brown from the crease up to just before my eyebrows. Next, I will use the medium brown from the crease to the half way spot between your brows and crease. Finally, the darkest brown I will only apply in the crease.

These two bottom browns work fabulously as the medium and dark brown. They're both discontinued from MAC. Showstopper and Cross Cultural.

The top left corner is the light brown I use. It's MAC's Wedge.

The regular eyeshadow brush from ELF and a Crease Brush.

4. Apply a black base to your eyelid with your finger, avoiding your crease, but make sure it's spread out. I like to use NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil in Black Bean. Don't worry. It WILL look messy. It will be fixed up/covered up later with the black eyeshadow anyways.

NYX Black Bean

This is how your finger should look after you have blended. Hah.

5. Use the regular eyeshadow brush (all black one in the picture) and start patting on the black eyeshadow. Once you think you have a nice layer of eyeshadow, start to blend it with the darkest brown eyeshadow. If you need to go back with either color, you can. Just remember, you can always add color, but it's really hard to subtract it!

I used Creep as my black eyeshadow from the Naked Palette from Urban Decay.

6. Blend some more. Make sure everything is even on both eyes. Clean up with a makeup wipe/Q-tip if necessary especially in areas like the corners of your eyes, or if you have any fall out on your cheek bones.

7. Use this angled fluffyish brush (it's from elf...cost $1 at Target!) and pickup a skin colored eyeshadow to blend out the very top where the edge of the eyeshadow ALMOST meets your eyebrows. You don't want a sharp edge where the eyeshadow ends and your bare skin begins! Use the lighter color to not only fade/blend the eyeshadow line, but if you think you went a bit too far up with the shadow, you can tone it down with this skin colored eyeshadow. Spread evenly and blend!

I used the top right cream white color. It's Shroom from MAC.

8. Line your waterline, curly your eyelashes and add your favorite mascara (Two coats!)

All Done!

9. Optional: I love falsies so I will be adding them on NYE but you don't need them :] If you do want to add false eyelashes click right HERE for my blog on How to Apply False Eyelashes!

And this is the final look. This is my go to look when I'm in a rush to go out and need something real quick. It's fairly simple and amazingly dramatic. <3

let me know if you have any questions, comments, or suggestions.

Happy New Year!
Alleighkins