Dayabrandini

LA Haul

2011-08-28T16:01:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone!

It's been too long, but I'm baaaaaccckkkk!!! After a hiatus concerning some personal issues, I am back! *Cue the music* LOL...anyway, I had the pleasure of going to Los Angeles last weekend and OMG IT WAS SOOO FUN! We mostly hit up the Fashion District and ChinaTown only but I plan on going back really really soon. Anyway, to see some pictures of the overall trip, please click here to go to my other blog.

But, here on this one, I'm going to show a couple of things that I bought. These were my "Essentials" that I needed new of.

Black Hidden Platform Pumps

Flower Loafers

Beige Stilettos

Hot Red Stilettos

Statement Rings and a Bowtie Necklace

So these are just some basics to pull an otherwise "bland" outfit together. The black hidden platforms cost only $15, the beige $5, the red $10 and the jewelry were all $1 each. I have another necklace that I bought which is a bolder bowtie, but I can't find it :( I bought that for $5. Yes, I am very into bows this season.

Examples of how you can add these to your wardrobe to FAB up your DRAB?

Pair a white button down shirt tucked into a pair of tan skinny leg pants and pair with the black or beige pumps. Add the flower ring to one hand and you're ready to go. For makeup, go for a natural eye look with pink lipstick; curl your hair Kardashian style and go! Professional, yet stylish look.

For a relaxed, Sunday brunch look, grab a solid tunic, put on a pair of boyfriend jeans, throw on the loafers and put on the bowtie necklace along with the bowtie ring. Keep your face matte by applying Tinted Moisturizer, the Rubenesque Paint Pot all over your eyelids and light brown eyeliner with a nude lip and rosy cheeks. Put your hair in a side braid, and you're finished. A relaxed, yet pretty look.

Next, for a night out on the town, grab that LBD (little black dress), and pair it up with the hot red heels! A one shoulder with a sleeve would look absolutely gorgeous! Next, slip on the angel wings ring, and curl your hair and tease it to make it bigger a la Carrie Bradshaw at the end of the Sex and The City movie (the first one). Go for a light smoky eye and bright RED lipstick to match your shoes! Add in some gold/silver braclets to the side of the hand w/o the sleeve and you're ready for a night on the town!

Next time, I'll actually pair up the outfits and take pictures, but that's another project. Have a great day y'all!

Review: Mary Kay Satin Lips

2011-05-21T18:06:00.000-07:00

I know that winter time is over but I still get chapped lips. I've tried most lip balms from chapstick to even the medicated ones and Burt's Bees and the Sally Hansen lip treatments, etc but nothing seems to work well at all. A couple of years ago, I discovered the Satin Lips set from Mary Kay and OMG I love it! You know, you hear about exfoliating for the face, skin, etc, but I don't know if anyone had heard of exfoliating your lips. Well, if it's worth it to get those flaky, dry, chapped lips smooth again, you gotta get these babies and even better news? Instant results!

The steps couldn't be any easier. Take the lip scrub and squeeze about a small amount (a little goes a long way) onto your finger.

Then apply it on your lips and massage onto your lips in a circular motion to get rid of all those dead skins. It doesn't look like it but the product does actually have microbeads in it that work to scrub.

After you're done scrubbing your lips, take a wet cloth and wipe the product off your lips

Afterwards, apply the lip balm over your freshly scrubbed lips

Please excuse the runny eyeliner and the tired looking face. But anyway after you're done with the balm, you lips will be shiny and smooth!

Yes, I know I have lines in my lips but trust me, my lips were smooth for DAYS! Find a Mary Kay consultant or click here to go to the Mary Kay website to order the product online. Also, if you want to help support a local beauty consultant, search for one in your area. I support one of my friends and order from her. She's AWESOME!

Review: Montagne Jennesse

2011-05-20T16:28:00.000-07:00

Recognize the name? Probably not. But I’m sure you’ve seen these babies around.

I usually see them in Wal-Mart and Target. But a couple weeks ago, I was browsing through the clearance section at my local Wal-Mart and happened to see these babies on sale…for 25 cents each! I couldn’t believe it. I’ve never seen these before and for some strange reason in my mind, I never wanted to spend the $1.99 price for them. I know, I know, I spend way more on others, but yeah. Anyway, I got one of each (there were a bunch) because I didn’t want to get a whole bunch and if I ended up not liking them, I didn’t want to be stuck with a whole bunch.

So I finally tried one of them (the Mud Pac Anti Stress) tonight and here are my thoughts along with my face with the product on. When I first applied it to my face, I wasn’t too pleased with the smell. It reminded of old toothpaste, but despite the smell, I lathered it on my face.

By the way, if I look exhausted, its because I am. I was soo tired and I've been fighting an eye infection, so that is why my eyes are super red.

The package says to leave it on for 10 to 15 minutes or until dry, which I did. As I waited for it to dry, I felt my face tightening up. Once dry, I washed the mask off with warm water just as instructed. So let’s see if this mask lived up to its’ promises.

On the package, it states that the purposes of this mask was “to ultra deep pore cleanse” while using “sea kelp nutrients and dead sea mud to draw out impurities and open blocked pores to leave skin feeling cleansed and soft”. Let’s start with the name of this particular mask. It’s supposed to be anti-stress, I guess it makes you feel relaxed and helps unwind. Honestly, unless it provides a masseuse, I don’t think it really helped with the anti-stress part. It is in no way like a facial.

Next, ultra deep pore cleansing; my pores are so large and probably always full of dirt and oil. But while I was sitting down watching Idol (GO LAUREN! Woohoo!), I could feel my face tighten up and actually feel a little tingle that really felt like it was scrubbing out the insides of my pores.

After washing it off, I decided not to put on moisturizer because I wanted to see if it would leave my skin feeling cleansed and soft. About 15 minutes later, I touched my face and to my surprise, it was VERY soft. Just like if I had put on moisturizer. It felt clean and not oily-like at all. Overall, other than the light smell, this was great! I think it’s even worth the full $1.99 price. I’m going to try the others and pick up my most favoritist. Super awesome!

Mary Kay Samples

2011-05-03T19:00:00.000-07:00

I know y'all have heard of Ms. Mary Kay. I've heard about the Mary Kay products for quite awhile now but have always thought they were for the "older ladies". You know, the ones from church who wear the kuh-ray-zee hats and wears the really LOUD outfits and too much perfume. That was the image that came to mind when I thought of Mary Kay as a teenager.

I'm proud to say that I no longer think of them that way. Mary Kay is actually a REALLY good brand. I'll be honest, I don't know if its because they've changed their line or if they've always been like that, but I'm quite proud to say that there are a couple of products that Mary Kay carries and NO OTHER line can quite compare when it comes to price and most of all, quality. My favorites include the Satin Lips duo (OMG, IF YOU'VE NEVER TRIED THIS OUT, DO IT!), the Satin Hands trio (LOVE!), and my favorite, can-not-live-without product, their oil mattifier. I've tried others from all other brands, and no one compares.

Another surprising find (maybe not so surprising for some of you) but none other than their eyeshadows. I know, I know, everyone and their mother has a ton of eyeshadows (myself included) that we'll never run out of, but the vibrancy and shades that Mary Kay offers definitely sets them apart.

Take a look at some samples I got from my girl Teresa. I LOVE THESE SAMPLES!

And finally, all together:

Can't wait to use these. LOVE THEM! :D

DIY - Exfoliator

2011-05-02T21:08:00.000-07:00

Hi Everyone,

It's been awhile since I've showcased a DIY on here. I've been doing this for the longest time. Since I saw it Kandee Johnson's Youtube Channel and you know what? It's really super great! I stopped for awhile because I kept forgetting lemons and I like using fresh lemon juice for this.

The best part about this? It's cheap! It's easy! So...check it out.

First, get a lemon:

Slice up a wedge:

Get a cotton pad and squeeze the lemon juice onto it. I usually only use one slice, but use however many slices you need. (Sorry about the seed)

Get some sugar

Sprinkle it generously onto the cotton pad. The acid in the lemon is used as the cleanser and the sugar crystals are the scrubbers. Although sugar is nice, don't go crazy because the sugar is what is going to be doing the scrubbing and can be rough if you use too much. So sprinkle liberally but don't pile it up. The sugar will melt into your skin and the lemon juice and will give your face a nice glow after washing. TRUST ME!

SCRUB, SCRUB, SCRUB!!! I couldn't take pictures while I was scrubbing so this is all I have. Don't worry, my skin is bad but it's not this bad, this is with my makeup on. If you want to, you can wash your face first, but I like to do this and then use a mild cleanser. But anyway, here, as you can see, I had to use two pads. I love the fact that these are all natural ingredients. C'mon, sugar and lemon juice. It's super easy. Try it out.

And here I am from behind the camera in my bathroom after freshly scrubbing my face. LOL. Take Care!

Benefit - Stay Put Kit

2011-04-11T18:00:00.000-07:00

Hola! Como estas?

If you didn’t know, I’m trying to learn Spanish…so if I get start speaking or writing Spanglish, please forgive me. Anyway, have you heard of Benefit cosmetics? I’m sure you have. But have you tried it? I just recently have and I know the exact reason why I never did before…because their dolls/mannequins in their ads scare me. If you do not know, I AM EXTREMELY, EXTREMELY afraid of dolls, mannequins, clowns, etc. Uggh…I shudder just thinking about them. Childhood trauma…okay, moving onto my original point…have you ever tried Benefit? I have to say, I am pleasantly surprised with their products. One of my favorite things to purchase especially when trying out a new high end brand is to buy some of their trial sizes or “introductory” kits. I see ones from Smashbox, Benefit, Tarte, and many many more at Sephora and Ulta all the time. Well, one day a couple months ago, I was at Sephora checking out and right on their counter, I spotted this for $10.

(Sorry it's so dark, took this with my cell phone)

$10!!! I had to get it just to try it out. If I didn’t like it, okay great! I didn’t lose too much money on it, and if I did like it, hooray! I’m going to go and get a full size one!

The Benefit To Go: “Stay Put” set I got came with Stay, Don’t Stray Eyeshadow Primer, Benefit’s Erase Paste, and one of their cream shadow/liner in R.S.V.P. I will admit, after I got home and opened up the package and took out the products, I didn’t know what to do. I knew these were “primer”-ish products, but it didn’t come with any instructions or the purpose of the products, which I was surprised at. I had to call Sephora back and ask them what the intent of each product was. After a couple weeks of toying with it, I have to say, hmm….I’m surprised.

The cream eyeshadow/liner didn’t excite me much because, well, it’s just a cream liner/eyeshadow. So let’s start with the Stay Don’t Stray review…UHHH-MMMAAAZZZZIIINNNGGG!!! The product itself was so thick and not thin and runny like other mini eyeshadow primers (lookin’ at you UD mini primer potion!). It was very creamy, thick, and satiny and smooth! I could go on and on…and you know what? It works! It works just as well as UD’s Primer Potion (in full size), in fact, it’s a lot creamier than theirs. It dries super fast so you can apply eyeshadow right away and it really really stays. It’s also safe enough to lightly dab under your bottom lower lashline to avoid runny eyeliner. I LOVE this product!

Next, the erase paste…I’m a little mixed about this one. At first, I thought it was just a concealer, I mean, the name sort of implies that it is a concealer right? Erase paste. Well, my friend, it is a concealer, but it is more than that. In fact, this is Sephora’s description on their website:

Erase Paste

What it is:

A brightening camouflage for the eyes and face.

What it does:

Benefit Erase Paste is a concentrated, creamy, blendable concealer that instantly brightens and camouflages all-in-one. It has an innovative formula which makes sure signs of stress and fatigue are a thing of the past. These three brightening neutral shades give every gal correction perfection.

As much as I wanted to like this product, I really couldn’t take it that far. Does it do what the cosmetic companies say it’s going to do, yes, but when it comes to makeup, it has to be what works for each individual. Although I like the idea of it’s goal and purpose, it didn’t work for me. I naturally have oily skin already, so when I used this as a concealer, it didn’t bode well for my already, naturally shiny face. First, the “brightening” of it “brightened” my face in a way that made me look oilier and it didn’t really camoflauge anything. I’m not sure if it’s because the shade didn’t match me (you don’t get to pick the shade, it automatically comes in a medium, which is usually my shade too) or if it was its texture versus my skin texture. Also, the actual product isn’t very creamy to me. It was difficult for me to blend and to use it with my foundation to make my skin look clearer. I don’t think I will be purchasing this product again, but I’m glad I’m able to try it at least.

So in conclusion, for ten bucks…yeah it was worth it. I got to try out three new products I’ve never used before and I am going to go back for one out of three. Maybe I’ll head back to the Benefit counter and ask for help on using the Erase Paste, afterall, I’m sure they’d be willing to show me the exact purpose. I’m not perfect, maybe I just used it wrong…

Plus Size Fashion...Extinct?

2011-04-10T22:10:00.000-07:00

As you all may know, I am a plus size, full figured gal and although I have insecurities from time to time, I've learned to accentuate what I do have and appreciate myself. Some time last week, I was looking into my drab wardrobe after unpacking all my clothes from the move and felt that I needed a new wardrobe. So I took to the internet for inspiration and realized that I need to dress more "sunny" and "cheery" like. After all, spring is here and summer isn't too far away, the flowers are blooming with gorgeous colors and I already have to wear dark colors (other than beige and white) to work, so when I don't have to be in uniform, why shouldn't I go glam and sunny?

In my closet right now, I have ONLY solid colors. Before I felt like I couldn't pull off prints because it would make me look bigger; I avoided horizontal stripes and just to be sure, I avoided stripes and polka dots altogether. My closet has a couple of pinks and purples here there but was decorated mostly with blue, silver, and black. Don't get me wrong, the pieces are cute, but after looking through what others had online, I was EMPOWERED and MOTIVATED to do away with just solids and look more towards, bright, fun, and cheery. One thing that I noticed was that a lot of gurus shopped from Forever 21, so since there were 2 new stores opening my area, I decided to hit them up. Around where I live, there are three Forever 21 stores altogether, one in Salinas, a new one in Monterey, and a new one in Gilroy at the famous Gilroy Outlets.

It was rather disappointing to find out that they did not carry any plus size clothing at the shop in Gilroy, and the Salinas and Monterey storesonly carried a few select items. Items such as capri shorts, sweat shirts, long (hippie like) skirts and some bedazzled shirts. When I was in the Monterey store, I was thinking, "Seriously??? That's all? In this 2 story, at least 5000 square feet building, you have a tiny little section for plus size clothing only and this is it?" I was really really disappointed, and surprisingly embarrassed, and although I wanted to walk out without buying anything, I saw a Hello Kitty (obsessed with her) I Love Nerds sweatshirt that I had to buy so I grabbed it and headed to the lines to check out. I remember being in line and thinking, wow, I sort of feel like the odd girl out, the big chick, the "fat friend" in this store. The only thing they carry in my size are sweats...SWEATS. Was that intentional? Was Forever 21 trying to tell me something? And then I realized, everyone else was in a straight line waiting for the other cashiers to finish and call them to go check out and I was the only person behind a cashier line. I was out of line, so like a fool, I took what felt like a walk of shame and went to go join the long line contemplating if I wanted the shirt badly enough. Interestingly, yes, I've been looking for a Hello Kitty I Love Nerds shirt for awhile...

Soon after I went to the back of the line, one of the managers came out and looked at the long single file line which was now starting to block the entrance doors and shouted "Can everyone please form lines behind each cash register", so of course everyone scrambled. I stayed where I was at and became the second person in line at the register. At that point, I had an epiphany. I wasn't the odd one out, I was actually doing the RIGHT THING. I was the one who did form a line where I was supposed to and then conformed to everyone else because I was second guessing myself. I should've never stepped out of line, and I should've never second guessed myself and felt bad that this store did not carry something other than sweats in my size. I can't believe that I let a store define me and made me feel bad and embarrassed over something so stupid.

Still I was disappointed that Forever 21 had such limited choices. As I went online to search for new wardrobe, I noticed that there aren't a lot of retailers who sell plus size clothing in a brick and mortar store. Other than Torrid and Lane Bryant, I couldn't think or find any other company, and Google Search didn't help much either. All the sites they took me to were UK based sites that would take awhile to ship over to the States. I came across a couple of stories though that surprised me...First of all, reasons why retailers do not carry plus size clothing in stores? It said, "Plus size women are too embarrassed to go to a store and try on clothes" and "Plus size women feel better when they shop online" and another said "Plus size women don't feel comfortable with the sizes listed on the tags" WTF??? Seriously? I know LOTS and LOTS of plus size women who would PREFER to shop in a brick and mortar store! We'd rather save the shipping and handling cost since we already have to pay the extra $2-$5 for being an extended size. And now, not only do we not have as many as options, news reports are actually labeling us and putting words in our mouths? In these stories, there weren't even any reports of a survey study or anything to support their claims. Another story I found that was quite disappointing was that H&M was coming out with a plus size line BUT it would not be available in their stores AND it would only be available in the UK. Why not in the US? Supposedly (this is not a formal statement from H&M) it is because they don't have eCommerce in the US yet and EVEN THEN, the line is a one-off collection meaning that they will only make a certain amount and once it sells out, THAT'S IT. Also, Old Navy has made it clear that they will only sell plus size clothing on their website and no longer in-store. However, I will sometimes find a few size 16 and 18 here and there, but once again, the choices are rather slim.

Please don't get me wrong and think that I'm just pissed because I couldn't find anything that would fit me (which is not the case because I do have cute clothes that I've purchased before). I am reminded of an episode of Drop Dead Diva where Jane sues a clothing store because they didn't carry a dress she had wanted in her size and Kim tells her, "Poor pitiful Jane is crying because they don't carry a dress in her size". Well, if you watched the episode, you'll know that although it was how it started, the reason why Jane sued was because of the way THEY TREATED her in the store. They treated her thin friend Stacy by offering a smoothie, smiles, and when Jane asked for help, they glared and talked to her with an annoyed expression and tone. I'm not complaining just because these stores don't carry a dress in my size and the employees were nice when I dealt with them, but more of the fact that it is so hard to find decent clothing and then when I go online, I see reports and they have all these false claims, it just ignites my fire even more. I am going to remain hopeful that Forever 21 will bring in some cuter options and that there will be more options at other retailers, AND that news reports will get their information right. Until then, I'll stick to my usual Ross, DD's Discounts, Torrid, Marshall's, and Target. I'm not sure if I want to purchase online yet just because I am a little nervous that the clothes would not fit correctly. But, like I said, I am going to remain hopeful and positive and not just because ASOS Curve has some cute items I might try. :D Sorry for the long rant, but I just had to let it out.

Lazy/Sick Day MakeUp

2011-04-09T14:40:00.000-07:00

Hi Everyone,

I've been under the weather for a couple of weeks now but I'm finally starting to recover a little bit to bring you this quick makeup tutorial. This will be a short one, but this look was designed in mind as an alternative to the everyday process. It's quick (took me about 5-7 minutes) to complete the look from start to finish. Normally if I'm sick and I'm just home, I'm not putting on any makeup, but I've been very sick for the past few days so I've gone w/ very little makeup and/or like yesterday, absolutely nothing. But today, I actually had to get out of the house. I had to go to the doctor and then to Target to fill my prescription. I wanted a look to brighten me up and I figured, if I put on makeup to look "fresh" and "awake", I might feel it too...I didn't want to use a lot of products and drag out all my brushes and color choices, so I went with just a couple of products and the best tools EVER that are free. MY FINGERS! Yes, I did not use any brushes or cotton swabs or pads...just my lovely ten fingers...but make sure yours is clean (I washed my hands before and after the application and had a makeup remover towel I used to wipe my hands in between). So let's proceed.

Face:

Since I have SUPER GINORMOUS pores, I always have to use a primer AT LEAST to conceal them. I just so happened to grab the first one I saw today because I was still in such a haze and it happened to be the Rimmel Fix & Perfect. Now that I think about it, this one was a good choice because it has a peachy tint to it so it helped add a little more coverage and color. Next, I opted for the e.l.f. Tinted Moisturizer...I LOVE tinted moisturizers because not only they eliminate the foundation AND provide moisturizer, IT'S SUPER QUICK! Anyway, I just used my fingers to blend it all over to avoid streaks and provide coverage. While I waited for that to dry and sink in, I did my hair. Very simple, take a look:

I'm sure everyone knows how to do this look but all it is is just a low bun with some volume up top with a headband to secure the front fringe/bangs. Very simple. I used the set of Goody Spin Pins for the bun, and then bobby pinned the hanging strands to the back. Surprisingly, I didn't have to tease the crown either. To complete the crown part, I gathered my bangs and some front part of my hair (like if you were going to do a pouf) and clipped it with a claw at the top of my head. Next, I slid the headband on and then I did my bun After the bun is secured, I just release the claw clip and then pin the strands down to help create the volume. Easy right? Yuppers.

Next onto the rest of the face makeup...the cheeks. :D I used the Sally Creme Blush (don't remember the color, it's in one of my blogs from the CVS Haul) dotted some color to help contour my face and then using my fore and middle finger, just blended it up and out...That's the best way to blend. Now if you're sick like me, you don't want to use too much. You should already have some natural redness in your face already so you just want to use a light dots and strokes and away from the nose area.

Next, onto my eye makeup. Instead of using a eyeshadow primer, I opted for a paint pot instead. I used my favorite: MAC's Rubenesque. I ABSOLUTELY LOVE the peachy shimmer it has. It sparkles through and that is why I use it so often. And on days like this, it makes it so much easier and faster. Next, I used the cream shadow palette from Wet 'nWild. I don't know if they make these anymore but I think they're called Custom Creations. As you can see, it comes with four cream eyeshadows and then a creme blush on the left. To start off my look, I dipped one of my fingers into the green (bottom right) and dabbed it along my "crease" (I have monoids, so I hardly have a crease) and blended, you guessed it, "up and out". Next, I take the darker purply-gray (above from the green, or upper right) and set it just above the green to blend the two colors. However, with this color, I'm not going to take from outter corner to inner corner. This is more like the crease shade. So, in a windshield wiper motion, blend this along the outter corner of your eye and create a small outter "V". Next, I take the bronzy color (upper left) and use it just lightly enough to blend the two colors together, and finally the light, shimmery cream color on the bottom left as my eyebrow highlight. To color in my eyebrows, I used the e.l.f. Studio Eyebrow Duo. I love this one and for $3, it's GREAT! Next, I grabbed my UD 27/7 Liner in Zero (came with Naked Palette), although any kohl black liner will do and lined my upper lid. I did this thicker than normal because I'm going to smudge it to increase the smokiness of this look. Afterwards, line your lower water line and then LIGHTLY go over the bottom lash line focusing more on the outer corner and tapering it as you get closer to the inner corner. Next, apply mascara, let that dry and then use a finishing spray to set your makeup and voila! You're done! Now, I did skip the lips because my lips feel very dry and irritated, so I've just been using that vaseline chapstick for the lips, but if I wasn't sick, I'd go with a nude or light pink lip color because you want the focus to be on the eyes in this look. Anyway, here is the completed look, hope you like!

Click on the picture for a full size photo which will show more color on the eyes.

A Couple of FIrsts

2011-03-27T22:03:00.000-07:00

So...this weekend was quite interesting...while on a trip with some friends (read more about it here, we stopped by Ulta since there's not a super close one in the Monterey area...well, I'll do a haul for all my new Benefit stuff later but I needed to show you guys this...

First...the confessions. I've never been waxed before. I've never done it before because I always thought it was uber expensive and even more painful. I discovered eyebrow threading and went with that since it was cheaper and less expensive. Well, this weekend while at Ulta, I finally noticed Benefit's waxing costs and it wasn't much more than threading so I decided bravely to give it a try. Kim (one of the friends with me) was nice enough to "document" this for me.

My before picture....uggh...gross and my brows are already small and yucky. BTW, I have a very very difficult time growing and shaping my brows because my hairs there don't grow a lot together but as the lady at the Benefit counter said, I had a lot of peach fuzz. It's not visible in this picture (I'm sure you've noticed in my other pictures) but I had a lot of straggly hairs.
Here she is shaping my brows...

And I guess this is the finishing of shaping? If only my brows were that full :( BTW, if anyone has any suggestions on how to make your brows grow in thicker and fuller, PLEASE LET ME KNOW!

Next came the actual waxing, which did not hurt that bad at all! It tingled for a bit but Benefit uses a cream wax and it was quite soothing..Not as bad as I thought.

Gosh I look so weird in these pictures...hahaha

And now...be prepared to be grossed out...here's what the strips pulled out:

Hahaha...well there is a first time for everything right? And now...onto something less disgusting:

After I got my wax done, I got a free face makeover. So I let the Benefit gal put makeup on me and I decided, since I'm getting this for free, I should go for something that I hardly ever do. BRIGHT RED, FUCHSIA-ISH looking lipstick. She also used the Bad Gal eye liner (which was perty cool) and the POREfessional and the Playstick on me which I absolutely loved. (Oh, and see the eyebrows now? More defined and shaped and even looks longer and a little more fuller than it was) I also really liked the way how she applied it on me, which I will be doing in a upcoming tutorial very soon. But for the rest of the day, I was getting compliments on my uber red lips. Which I loved! So I think I'll be doing red lips more often. Yay!

Z Palette

2011-03-24T21:48:00.000-07:00

Hello all!

I recently got my Z palettes in and finally had some time to depot some old eyeshadows that were just taking up space. I also had some single pan refil shadows from MAC that I needed to store, so I decided to put it all together. I have to say, I am quite surprised at how well It's holding up. I love that it already comes magnetized and also how durable it is.

One of my main concerns was that the shadows will fall through the clear top. The cover is quite durable and once you have it in your hands, it's easier to tell that all your precious eyeshadows will be safe. So just throwing mine together, this is what it looks like:

What I did was, I basically used the eyeshadow singles whose lids had broken off. As you can tell, they have dents in them from both me depotting them and from other corners and ends digging into them. I'm going to be taking this with me on a trip real soon and I think I have a pretty good array of color choices here. I have Carbon by MAC (upper left corner), a gorgeous blue from Revlon, Cranberry by MAC (underneath Carbon) and some neutrals Cork (Right of Carbon) and Wedge (underneath Cork). Both are from MAC and then I have the CG Drama Eyes Palette underneath my Ulta eyeshadows (the small rectangles) and of course the large Ulta eyeshadows I've had forever. The copper one (large orange circle) doesn't come out as beautiful in picture, but it's really a gorgeous copper and not so orange. It looks GREAT with warm undertones and the pink is absolutely gorgeous as well as a highlighter or even on the innercorners. I think my favorite would definitely be Shamrock (the large green one by Ulta). I did a makeup look with it awhile back but will do another one just because I love that shadow so much. Okay, well, that was a look at my Z palette. I will be filling up the other one soon. I gotta go to sleep because I have to work tomorrow! Thanks for checking in! Good night!

SO SORRY!!!

2011-03-20T21:26:00.000-07:00

Hello and thank you for reading this...so if you can see from my dates, I've been MIA for about almost a month and really lagged on my last couple of looks. And for that I apologize. Let me explain what's been going on...

The move was HORRENDOUS!!! The place that we thought we were going to get...well it turns out that it was going to take much longer than what the managers originally thought. Plus the old apartment place wasn't being too understanding or nice, so I thought I was going to be homeless for awhile. Thankfully, the new apartment place had another apartment vacant, albeit, smaller that we could move into while we waited. Well, the thought of moving twice just about keeled me over. I had no idea how we would orchestrate that and where in the world I would find time to move AGAIN...so we decided to just stay put in the smaller apartment. It is cheaper and I kind of like it better anyway. So now we're into about two weeks into March and just when I thought things were about to slow down, I get a several phone calls (very early in the morning too) and text messages about there being a tsunami warning. Well, I'm sure you've all heard about the earthquake in Japan and the tsunami's that followed after.

Well, I live in Marina, CA (which is about 5-10 minutes north of Monterey) and literally, all that separates my apartment and the beach is a medium mountain and a couple of houses. It takes me about a 2 minute drive probably or 10 minute walk to get to the beach from where I live, so of course, I had all sorts of family and friends from out of state and city calling my husband and I. Just in case there was a real danger, we decided not to unpack (in case it all went to waste anyway or in case we'd have to pick up and move again). So, after the scare of the tsunami, we started unpacking lightly and finished yesterday! Yay! Right??? Well....things always happen for a reason...

My hubby noticed his office chair was wet and when he looked up, there was water dripping from the ceiling. He just about had a heart attack. It was BARELY missing his prized computer (he's an IT Geek). Of course, this was about 11PM so I had to call the emergency maintenance line and put a bucket there to catch all the water while my hubby quickly took apart his computer in fear of the slooooowwwww drip maybe hitting his prized possession. Anyway, maintenance guy said that he'd be in in the morning to check it out as long as it wasn't a waterfall gushing down. So that brings us to today....he came and said that he had to let the water drain out and yada yada yada before he could fix it. To be honest, I wasn't really listening. I was still super sleepy but my hubby was there to take in everything. All I know now is that it will be fixed tomorrow morning. So today, I decided to unpack my makeup goodies that have been stored away for about two months now and was going to do a makeup look....but decided to rest my eyes first since I woke up super early...and of course the few moments of rest turned out into 4 hours. So sorry...but there will be more activity from me again. Promise. :D

Makeup Challenge...Day Four

2011-02-24T20:31:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone,

Okay, I know I skipped yesterday but I had a VERY good reason...I couldn't see. LOL...well, I couldn't see anything up close. I got my eyes dialated but I was able to drive home because I could still see large things from far away. Also since I was up at 5 AM, I was more tired than I thought. I forgot to take a picture after I got ready and then last night fell asleep at 7PM. My husband was supposed to wake me up when he got home from work from my mini-nap but he didn't. LOL...

So anyway, moving onto today, here is my look:

Excuse the shine, I just took it when I got home. I forgot this morning again, well, I was rushing this morning but the makeup still looks the same :D

Anyway, the face is the same as everyday (see day one) and I literally had my hair in a bun all day today. For the eye makeup, I used my primer potion, then layered on my paint pot from MAC, rubenesque, and then topped it off with Half Baked all over my lid and then used Smog on top of that. Taking a large fluffy brush, I blended it up and out (like I always do!) and then use Toasted along the lash line and then used Naked in the middle between eyelid and eyebrow to make it look more natural. You may not be able to tell but I used Sin as my eyebrow highlight underneath the arches.

Forgive the shininess, but as I've ran out of my oil absorbing sheets, and packed my shine powder, and promised this to be real, this is what I have to offer. LOL. Anyway, lets see what tomorrow offers :D Thanks for checkin' in!

Makeup Challenge...Day Two

2011-02-22T21:05:00.000-08:00

Hola Mi Amigos Y Amigas.

Como estas? Okay, that's all I know. I'm trying to learn Spanish at work. :D Anyway, continuing on my challenge to use just what I left out of packing. If you have no idea what I'm talking about. Click here to go back to my post to explain why I'm doing this. And you can click here for yesterday's look.

Today, I was in a bit more of a rush so for hair, I threw it up in a ponytail. Now, keep in mind, I DID NOT USE HAIRSPRAY. I don't have any out. LOL. What I did use were some bobby pins I found in my car :D So I basically split my bangs from my hair to the side, tied it with a hair tie at the nape of my neck, leaving it a little looser at the top but not completely loose. It also helps that my hair has a lot of layers at the top, so it is a little easier for me to create that illusion. But it's not all just bobby pins, you do have to do a little creative work here too. Anyway, before I put in bobby pins, I take both my hands and lay it on the back of my hair (I know, I should've taken a picture of this, sorry) with your thumbs touching the top of your ears and point your fingers towards each other. GENTLY tug it and push it up. Do not do it so much that all your hair falls out of the hair tie. You only want to create the illusion. If you wanted to, you can also tease the bottom to help fill it up. Mine looks like it, but underneath it, it's nothing, it's "hollow". LOL. Use the bobby pins to pin down any loose strands and curve it so it creates the roundness some more. Anyway, hopefully this is easy enough to understand and follow. Let me know if I need to do more descriptive pictures. Here's a picture of what it looked like when I was done. I know this sounds complicated but once you've done this over and over like me, it'll take you five minutes tops!

Next onto the makeup...

I took some step by step photos but they were NOT flattering on me at all, so I am not going to post them. LOL. I never realized the faces I made while putting on my makeup but trust me, IT WAS NOT ATTRACTIVE! It's funny because I read in Cosmo and all those other woman magazines all the time to allow your boyfriend/husband watch you get ready because it's so sexy....LOL...yeah, no. Hehehe..anyway, moving on, the look I did today kinda looks similar to the one yesterday, but it's not. Yesterday, I used brown shades with a cranberry-ish tint towards the top. Today, I used "gunmetal" which is a dark, silvery gray and pat a LOT of it onto my lid. Don't bother trying to blend it right now, just pat it on! You're trying to get a smoky look! Anyway, once you have all that color patted on, take a large CLEAN fluffy brush and BLEND, BLEND, BLEND! And don't forget to blend up and out! The gunmetal color finishes off a smooth clean, shimmery sparkle as you blend up and out but still dark enough to create spectacular color at the bottom. Next, I took the shade "buck" which almost matches my skin tone and swept it across the middle between my lash line and eye brow. This helps even out the shade and makes it blend in more. Buck is a matte shade so it helps the natural look even more. Next I flip my smoky duo brush around and pick up some color from "Creep" and brush it along my lash line. Because I have monolids, it's more flattering on me to do this because it helps INCREASE the depth of the color I am aiming for. I use the eyeliner duo that comes with the palette to help the intensity. I line top and bottom water lines and my upper lash line. Once again, I take my smudge brush and dip it into Creep and draw it along my bottom lash line to make my liner look less harsh. Top it off with blush and lipstick, define the eyebrows, spritz on some perfume and then haul a$$ out the door. LOL. At least that's what I did this morning.

So today, I got my bottle of Model In A Bottle makeup setting spray. I've been contemplating SO long on whether or not I wanted to try this product. I've tried different setting sprays and although I liked them, they can get pricey. I've seen Model in a Bottle all over, and finally decided to purchase it last week. I totally forgot about it and it arrived in the mail today. So I will try it out (including tomorrow) and will also do a review in the near future.

Tomorrow, I have to be at work EARLIER than usual so I will be up at 5 AM instead. I will try my bestest to create a nice and different look. Wish me luck!

And just cuz I wanted to show off, heres the above picture edited:

http://dayabrandini.blogspot.com/2011/02/moving-challenge.html

Makeup Challenge...Day One

2011-02-21T21:54:00.000-08:00

Okay peeps, here goes. Please don't be scared. Keep in mind that I wake up at 6 AM and usually don't go to bed till about 12-1 in the morning. So, you can really tell in my pics and you'll also see how not perfect my skin is. However, after looking at the after pictures, I realized that my makeup does a really good job of hiding my pores. Take a look! But beware....

Ok...here's me at 6 am after getting dressed and ready to do my hair. I always do my hair first just because if I run late, I can finish my makeup in the car or do light dabs of makeup at work, or on the way to work in the car, but I can't exactly plug in my irons in the car (or heaven forbid at work) and start curling away, so I do my hair first. Because I am trying to grow my hair out and I have layers, I separate them and just start at the bottom. I don't have a certain style I do, just curling my hair b/c on it's own, it's an ugly wave :(

All done. Not bad for just a couple of minutes. Normally, I'd add hairspray at this point, but since I don't have any, I just left it alone. Next, it's time to start applying makeup. First I use the Mary Kay Oil Mattifier and dab and rub it into my face. This helps control the oil and shine throughout the day.

Next, use a brush, (I use my favorite, the SigMax High Def Round Top F82 by Sigma) and work the foundation onto your face. I don't have the foundation on in the picture above yet, I just wanted to show the foundation. I have Revlon's PhotoReady foundation and OMG it works excellently! I think even better than MAC's Studio Fix liquid foundation. Now that I think about it, I'm glad that I left out the PhotoReady foundation instead because I hate those streaks that regular foundation leaves in photos with flash. Yech...anyway, after working in the foundation, I use primer on my lids and concealer on my problematic areas and then top off with a light powder. I use MAC's Studio Fix Powder to help absorb and set the foundation.

Next, I use my favorite eyeshadow palette, NAKED by Urban Decay and pat the color "Hustle" all over my lid, and use a large fluffy brush (the one in the picture in fact, and it's the smoky eye duo brush from Wal-Mart) and blend it up and out. Next, I turn the brush around and dip the top of it into "Dark Horse" and blend along the inner corner to the outer corner. Since I have monolids, I have to create a very unique blend. Although this is a light look, I use the darker shadow closer to the white to create an illusion to make my eyes look bigger. This is the reason to blend out the first lighter shadow up and out so that you don't lose that color. Next, I take a crease brush (the one from ELF is the one I use) and dab it into "Creep" and pat it on the outer corners about 1/4 of the way in. Now when I say dab, I mean DAB! You do not want it to be all black because the pigmentation is so strong that if you use too much, you will not get the effect that you are looking for. Next, I take the fluffy brush again and blend up and out to create an outer V. Remember that you want it to look more intense as it gets closer to your eye, but lighter as it gets closer to your eyebrows.

Next, I take my Sonia Kashuk bent eyeliner brush and dip it into the cream eyeliner by Maybelline and line my eyes from top to bottom. On the bottom, I try to keep the line closest to my waterline. To make it pop, but not have such a sharp line, I use Sonia Kashuk's smudge brush and dip into "Crease" again and lightly dab it along the lines I just created. This helps the "smoky" effect really come into play and will make your lower eyeliner look a lot less harsh.

Next, add blush/bronzer (I had to really dig into what I had left in my duo compact) to highlight and contour your face, define your eyebrows (if you haven't done so yet) and add lipstick and you're all done! So far, day one wasn't too bad. What do you think?

*Sorry, I had taken pictures of the process but then when I looked at the clock, I realized I was running really late so I stopped. I will try tomorrow. :D But please remember that I love my sleep and it's hard for me to get up earlier than I need to. LOL. See u tomorrow!

Moving Challenge

2011-02-20T21:43:00.000-08:00

Thanks to a dear friend (Richard) I am going to challenge myself makeup wise, until I move. I am moving from my apartment in exactly 8 days and although I am only about 25% packed, I have packed up my beauty stuff first. I planned to leave out some "essentials" but accidentally packed up my hair straightener, hair spray, teasing comb, face primer, and bronzer just to name a few. Instead of re-opening the boxes, I decided that it would be better for me to go without those for the next 8 days and see how I cope. I still have to work so I still have to look presentable, so I'm going to have to do with just these until then. Below are the ONLY beauty-related items I have to work with until March 1st.

So here, we have: Neutrogena Makeup Remover, Mac Fix+, Brush, my Remington curling iron, Maybelline lipstick, a couple of eyeshadow and face brushes, my NAKED palette, my MAC Studio Fix Powder, Revlon PhotoReady liquid foundation, Benefit's Erase Paste, Sephora's Daily Brush Cleaner, my ELF Studio Bronzer/Blush Duo (I ran out of the bronzer in there already), my Urban Decay Primer Potion, Mary Kay Oil-Mattifer, Maybelline Eye Studio Cream Eyeliner and MAC's Paint Pot in Rubenesque. So this is my chance to get crafty and creative. I will do my best to post up a face of each day (except for weekends, I don't wear makeup on the weekends unless it's a special occasion or doing a blog look) of my "creation". Wish me luck!

I'm Inspired...

2011-02-19T19:13:00.000-08:00

I have to write this while I'm still in the feeling. Unfortunately, my "high" goes away fast so when I want to do things, I have to do it when I'm in the "want" mode. I just joined Netflix and decided to stream it on my computer and chose to watch Julie and Julia. I am so inspired from that movie; obviously as a blogger (I don't consider myself a writer), you want to think that people, whether it be friends or family or strangers, are reading what you have to say. I always said to myself that if I started writing a blog, I would always follow these rules and never sell out:

1. Be myself and blog about what I want to and not what the current "trend" is.

2. Accept the fact that no one may ever read this except for me. This is my therapy.

3. Never, ever stop doing this because I didn't have any readers. Market this baby!

So from watching that movie, I've learned that it's okay to have mistakes, it's okay to have meltdowns, it's okay to be nervous about "publishing" your words, and that from time to time, not everyone is going to like what you have to say, but it's okay, because I, myself, don't always like what others have to say. I'm very glad that I didn't fall asleep watching this movie, because I feel happier. :D

Gel Nails...Update

2011-02-13T19:54:00.000-08:00

Hello all!

So before I get started, let me first say that I am moving! Well, not far, just closer to work and I've been transferred to another office which will actually be closer to where I'm going to live. Well, it's closer to where I live now, but my drive time is gonna go from 30 minutes to 10 so thats good. I hate traveling...I mean, I love exploring new cities and actually being in new places, but the actual traveling part, the car drive, the train ride, the plane, I HATE ALL OF THAT! I get so bored that I get super sleepy, yes, even while driving, yes even just a 30 minute drive. I know...I know..anyway, my reason for telling all you this is because I'm busy packing and adjusting to the new office, I'm going to try my bestest to do as much as I can to post, but b/c I do work a full time job, it is rather difficult to also do the blog after a full 9-12 hour day. But I will try my best!

And now, onto my post. An update on my gel nails. So if you read my previous post (click here if you haven't) about my struggles with artificial nails, then you'll want to know that they're still on! No lifting! After one whole week and one whole day!

I wasn't going to post up the second picture, but you know what? I did because I wanted this to be real. Yes, my hands were very dry and therefore my cuticles look absolutely horrible, but this is real people! LOL. Anyway, I posted up the pictures so that everyone can see that the nails were still on and that they haven't lifted yet. I'm so excited, I don't know if it's because of the gel nails or if it really was Jessica (my nail artist) who did such a great job, but I'm totally stoked. Yes, I know I need a fill soon, but it's only been 8 days. I do plan on going back next week to get a fill and possibly a new design. I loved the zebra stripes, but spring is going to be among us now, so I may go for a "spring-y" look. LOL..

DIY From Amber!!!

2011-02-06T14:10:00.000-08:00

Message from Maya: Hello All! My wonderful and talented friend Amber who is an aspiring Makeup Artist/Cosmetologist wanted to share some AWESOME tips. These are really great. Check it out!

This is great for oily skin, I'm sure you'll enjoy it. It's inexpensive and easy to make!

BANANA MASK FOR OILY SKIN

Ingredients:

1 ripe Banana

1 Tbsp Honey

A few drops of orange or lemon juice

Directions:

Mash banana with honey, Add lemon or orange juice (only a few drops, or it'll be runny!) Apply to face for 15 minutes and remove with a steaming warm washcloth.

(Steaming washcloth can be achieved by putting a damp washcloth in the microwave for 8-10 seconds)

If it seems too runny, throw in some oatmeal until it holds together better.

Here's a good one for your acne prone fans!

ASPIRIN SPOT TREATMENT

Ingredients:

1-3 Aspirin (depending on how many spots you need to treat)

Warm Honey (Please be careful WARM does not mean HOT, honey is really mean when it's too hot)

Few drops Coconut, olive or almond oil

Directions:

Crush aspirin, add a couple of drops water to make a thick paste, add a teensy bit of honey and a drop or two of the oil. Spot treat those pimples, allow the paste to dry and wash off after 10 minutes. This also works for itchy spots!

For Dry Skin :D!

AVOCADO HONEY MASK FOR DRY SKIN

Ingredients:

1/2 Avocado

1/4 cup Honey

Directions:

Mash avocado, stir in honey. Apply and leave on skin for 10 minutes. Remove with cool washcloth. Yes, it was THAT easy!

To brighten up dull skin..

OATMEAL AND LEMON SKIN BRIGHTENER

Ingredients:

1 Cup Cold Water

1/2 cup Oats

Juice of 1 lemon

Directions:

Bring 1 cup of cold water to a boil. Add 1/2 cup of oats and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low. Add lemon juice and stir. When mixture comes to a simmer turn off the heat and let mixture stand for 20 minutes or until cool stirring occasionally. After it is cool, apply to skin and relax for 20 minutes. Rinse and apply regular moisturizer. (If you use regular oats vs. quick oats, you will want to blend the oats before cooking to reduce the size.)

THATS ENOUGH FOR MASKS AND FACIALS FOR ME!!!

Now onto the ever important NAILS!

My top ten favorite tips and tricks of the trade!

1.Before polishing clean nails, soak a cotton ball in nail polish remover and swipe across nails. This will remove any excess oils or soap than can cause peeling once polish is applied.

2. After using a nail file use a nail buffer to smooth out any rough edges your nails might have developed after filing (GO GET YOURSELF A BUFFER NOW, they are cheap, and they'll save you from snagging on stuff!)

3.Before going to bed apply Vaseline on your hands and cover them with cotton gloves. Your hands will feel as smooth as butter the next morning.

4.One trick for applying nail polish: Hold the brush between the thumb and middle finger while resting your forefinger on the top of the cap

5. To maintain a fresh polish, add a fresh layer of topcoat every other day.

6. Here's a good one to help give you stronger nails. Chop up one clove of fresh garlic and add it to a bottle of clear nail polish, Let it stew for about a week and a half. (IT WILL SMELL WEIRD but this too, shall pass) {I put it in my base coat!}

7. Square nail tips can make your fingers look chubby! The most flattering nail shape is "squoval"; not quite square and not quite oval.

8. Don't shake the nail polish bottle, instead roll it between your palms. This mixes the polish without causing air bubbles. (The air bubbles make your polish get goopy faster)

9.You should not use Acetone nail polish remover because this will eat your nails. So always use non-acetone instead.

10. PLEASE KEEP YOUR NAILS OUT OF YOUR MOUTH! Yes I am serious. You wanna know what spreads bacteria and germs more than anything in a salon, or anywhere else for that matter? STICKING YOUR HAND IN YOUR MOUTH EVERY 5 seconds.

Beauty Quote of the week!

"There is certainly no absolute standard of beauty. That precisely is what makes its pursuit so interesting." - John Kenneth Galbraith

DIY #1 – Egg White Facial

2011-02-06T14:04:00.000-08:00

I have huge pores, I’ve come a long way and I have decided that I’m just going to have to live with the fact that it’s something I cannot change at the moment. But it’s okay, because I’ve learned to manage it. Since I was a young-in, I’ve had acne problems and although my acne has cleared up immensely, I’m still left with the after effects such as acne scars and large pores. I do use cover up to help minimize them, but trust me, even with the cover up, they are still lightly visible. So, anyway, to help minimize the looks of my pores, I use an egg white facial. Also, when I was a lot younger with a ton of pimples on my face, I used to do this facial about every other day. It’s quite simple.

Take one egg and separate it from the yolk. If you’re baking or are going to be consuming this, then yes, go back and forth using the shell, or use some kind of separator, but in this case, it’s going on your face, so forget about going back and forth, and finding a gadget and then clean it later, JUST USE YOUR HANDS! ;) Crack the egg into one of your hands over a small bowl and toss the shell and yolk away. Take a fork or a whisk if you want and whisk the egg whites. You’re not going for a meringue, just until it’s frothy and breaks up some of the goo. Then, just take it in your hands and slather all over your face. Of course, you can use a brush but definitely DO NOT USE a sponge applicator. However, for the sake of time, I just use my hands and fingers. Once it starts to dry, you’ll feel it tighten up. Go about your business until it’s ALL DRY. It feels great! Whatever you do, DO NOT SMILE, or wince, or crinkle your eyebrow, NOTHING! EXCEPT BLINK AND BREATHE. Do not move any muscle in your face, or you will break the facial. You will look a little funny, but it’s okay. Once it completely dries all over, it’s time to wash it off. It’ll leave your skin very soft, and with longer use, your pores and acne scars will minimize over time. As with all other facials, a clear and poreless face WILL NOT happen overnight.

Now, moving on…I’ve read some reports online that egg white facials are temporary and do not work. I highly disagree. It worked on me, it helped clear up my acne and it really does minimize my pores and acne scars. It really depends on your skin type. I have super oily skin so I do this quite often, however, if you have dry skin, I recommend once every two weeks or so. For oily skins, I’d recommend about once every week, and for super duper oily skin (like me), I do this every other day. Anyway, while the tightness is temporary because it dries up on your face, the after effect does last. I don’t know the science behind all of this because I’m not a scientist nor a dermatologist so I’m not able to explain why it dries up your face and then leaves it soft, but it does for me. Try it though…it’s just one ingredient, an egg, it’s cheap enough to try. Have fun!

Mini Reviews...

2011-02-05T21:32:00.000-08:00

Instead of boring everyone with lengthy reviews, I'm going to just do a couple of mini ones at a time. The first are the following:

RIMMEL Clean Finish Foundation
The promise is labeled right there on the front: 100% Poreless. Although I liked their approach, I have to say....epic fail! I would be the PERFECT candidate to test this product and unfortunately when I did, it did not work for me. My pores were still as visible as any other foundation. However, it is not all negative. The formula is a lot thicker than regular liquid foundation but not as thick as the cream or mousse/souffle foundations. Also, the applicator was quite interesting. I think this is probably my favorite part about the whole product. Check it out below. I love that there are holes in it so that you really can get all the product and it doesn't go to waste. You will still have to use a sponge or foundation brush to apply it and blend. Although it's not 100% poreless, for the price I got it for ($3.64) at Wal-Mart, it was very nice. I can see myself using this again in the future. I'll even save the paddle brush. :D

MAC Paint Pot in Rubenesque

I saw this at the MAC counter and thought it was a really nice shade. At first, I wanted to get Chilled On Ice from Cham Pale collection, but of course, it was sold out. It was actually sold out everywhere :( So I decided on this one instead. Plus I've seen Emily from Beauty Broadcast use it and she highly recommends it, so I decided to try it out. OMG...awesome! I love it! I love the peachy color with the frosty, pearly touch to it. Plus, with my tanned skin, when it dries on my lid, it looks absolutely fan-TAB-ulous! Love it! I've used it along with other cream shadows and also as an eyeshadow base. It works so well, that when I use it as a base, I don't even need to put on shadow primer, which is great! Plus, I love the sheen I get in the "background" when I put shadow over it. I plan on going back and getting more shades :D

HIP Eyeshadows

My younger sister swears by these. HIP eyeshadows are her absolute favorite. She claims that they are just as good as MAC's and for half the price. I have to admit, I've never tried them before now because the color selection just wasn't as diverse as I liked it to be. Plus, I wasn't really too much of a fan of some of the shades. However, when I saw them for 75% off at CVS and for only $2.75 (ish) each, I decided this was a great time to try it out. And the final result???

Ehhh....I'm still a little iffy. I still stick with my opinion on the colors, but as good as MAC's? I don't know about that. Although they are pigmented, I wouldn't compare them to MAC's. I haven't used the two purples yet, but I have been using the Poppy one. But just the brown. I didn't particularly like the yellow. Since my skin is darker and tanner, the yellow didn't pop up too well against the color of my skin. I can see myself using them again in the future, but I don't think I'll be purchasing any more unless the colors just absolutely wowed me.

Sally Hansen Sheerest Cream Blush in Rosy Rose

I ABSOLUTELY LOVE this blush. I hadn't found a cream blush I liked until this one. I did get it at the CVS clearance sale, so I hope that they aren't going to be discontinuing these or even this one. The color looks really deep in the pictures, but when you apply it on, it's not actually that dark. It is actually very light and the pigmentation it brings out, I mean WOW! I've been wearing it everyday since I've gotten it. It gives me just the right hue on my cheeks to make it look rosy and natural. But, now that I think about it, my skin is a little darker, so if you're a Warm Beige (foundation-wise) or lighter, you may want to go a little easier on it. But other than that, ABSOLUTELY FAN-TAN-BULOUS!

Well, I hope you all enjoyed these mini-reviews and found them helpful. I'll be posting some more really soon, but I am going to be moving, so I will definitely try to find the time to add this in. Bye LOVES!!!

Gel Nails

2011-02-05T19:03:00.000-08:00

I got my nails DID! Seriously, I took this picture in my car in the parking lot with my cell phone...LOL...I've never done a zebra print or any animal print before but I've seen it on others and thought, it actually looks kind of nice. So I chose a zebra print, and of course since it's me and I love SPARKLES and TWINKLES, I decided to have them add in some silver glitter stripes too. :D

Anyway, there is a point behind this post, I promise. I'm not sure how many of you out there can relate, but my nails are...SPECIAL. I have wider, flatter, and smaller nails, so in the past, everytime I went to go get my nails done (a full set), they wouldn't last more than a couple of days before the sides start lifting. I've tried EVERYTHING that everyone has suggested and still the same. A lot of people have also told me that it's depending on the nail artist and how skilled they are. Well, I've been getting my nails done on and off since I was sixteen and have always had this problem. :( In fact, I've never gone to the same nail artist twice because of this.

A couple of years ago, a new trend started, the gel polish top coat. Because it was newer, it was an additional $5-$10 just for this polish, but it was sold to me as the following:

1. NO LIFTING

2. Much faster drying time

3. Longer lasting

4. Looks more realistic

5. Healthier for nails

Honestly, in my case, the only thing that became true was #2. It did dry A LOT faster, almost instantly in fact. It was dried and ready to go before I even paid. So that was great because you don't need to worry about carefully getting your keys and making sure not to get it scratched, etc. But as for the other selling points, they did not make a difference to me between gel polish and no gel polish. Now, this leads me to the newest sensation...gel powder instead of acrylic powder.

This is a recent trend but a lot of people have been trying gel nails and have agreed that they're a lot better than regular old acrylic powder. With acrylics, the natural nail needs to be buffed prior to applying acrylic powder so that it can grab on and hold onto the nail, whereas with gel powder, it stays on easier and does not need as much buffing, which is great news for your natural nails. Also, gel powder makes the nail look more realistic and the staying power is much much longer than regular acrylics. Yes, I know, same ol' story as with the gel polish. Here's something else though...with gel powder nails, you can actually paint over your design with nail polish and change the style however you want it and if you don't want it, you can use nail polish remover and remove just what you did. That seemed interesting enough for me.

When I went into the salon and talked to the nail artist, she explained to me the "differences" but pretty much stated that it was all about preference because it was pretty much the same. However, since I've already done all the other options and there wasn't a severe price difference between acrylic and gel, I decided to try the gel ones. So...we will see...She also told me that if my nails lift before the two weeks is up, I can go back and she will fix for free. So, once again...we will see...I'll keep everyone updated!

My Oily Skin

2011-02-03T22:08:00.000-08:00

After some research on the internet and friends, I've come across a couple of 'recipes' that have worked really well. Some old, some new, but most of all, they've worked! Well, let me re-phrase that...IT WORKED FOR ME! LOL...I don't mean to sound rude, or selfish, or anything negative, but everyone's skin is different therefore their reaction to certain products will be different.

Let me start off with a little background...I have SUPER OILY SKIN. I lived in Fresno, CA before moving to Monterey, CA, and the summers were brutal; it would get to over 105 degrees every summer! I lived in Fresno for a total of 8 years on and off (lived in Visalia before that, which is only 45 mins away), and every summer, my face would go crazy! Between having super oily skin and unbearable weather outside, it didn't help that out of those eight summers, I spent about 5 or 6 w/o AC for about three quarters of each summer. Needless to say, all of that together did not do well for my skin. My face was so greasy and oily that you could probably scrape the oil off and throw it on the cement and add in an egg and scramble it. I know, I know, that sounds disgusting.

Anyway, last summer, I decided to make an appointment with a dermatologist to discuss my skin troubles. After meeting with Dr. Kardashian (yes, Kim Kardashian's aunt, but by marriage), I was informed that the oil glands in my face produces more oil than the average person. There's not a cure for that, but as far as managing it, it's just like normal maintenance but a little more often. Also, because of the overproduction of oil, it's left me with some spots and acne scars from my adolescent age. After years of dealing with these types of issues, I've come across a couple of things that have really helped me over the years. I do have a lot of things I've tried and then other stuff too so I'm going to re-visit those 'recipes' and share with you the ones that have worked for me. I won't be posting them out all at once, but I will be posting the ones that have helped me. I hope that you will try them and most of all, I hope that they'll all work for you too. :D

Simply Natural Look

2011-01-26T18:35:00.000-08:00

Hello All,

I thought it was about time that I posted another makeup look. Now this one, I will admit is probably one of the looks that I wear more often to work. Just because it's super easy for me and no muss, no fuss. Working with the Military (I'm not in, but I work with them), there are certain limitations on HOW I wear my makeup. So, I experiment and use colors, but I don't go overboard. This one is a look that I do when I'm in a rush and need to get out the door, but don't want to go totally makeup-less. Hope you enjoy!

This is the completed look, and for the sake of not scaring others, I won't post up pictures of what I look like before. LOL. Anyway, the picture below is of the products I used:

Let's start off with the eyes. I like doing my eyes first so that if I mess up, or have shadow fall onto my cheeks, I can wipe it off with a makeup remover without wiping off all th e product I've already used on my face. I started by making sure my face was clean, and then putting on moisturizer. I forgot to put my foundation primer and moisturizer on here, but I use Clinique's Moisturizing Gel (#3) as a moisturizer and Smashbox PhotoFinish Light for foundation primer. Anyway, let's move onto the eyes. Because I have such oily skin and eyelids, I use an eyeshadow primer to help my eye makeup stay on and LAST! I cannot stress how important it is to use eyeshadow primer. I've found that if I go without it, in about 2 hours or so, my eye makeup will start to "melt" and my bottom eyeliner will also making my eyeliner look like a dotted line, or it gets smeared. Not a cute look. I just lightly dab the wand of my primer potion on my lids and my lower lashline. Make sure you rub it in and let it do it's thing.

Next, for the eyeshadow, I used the sparkly white highlighting shade from Love & Beauty (from Forever 21) for 3/4 of my eyelids from starting from the inner corner. I don't use a lot because this shade is SUPER sparkly and very loose. I just want the sparkle, not so much the color because I'm going for a natural look here. Next, I take the brown shade from my HIP duo and use a medium crease brush and LIGHTLY dab it in and then brush in a windshield wiper motion starting at the outer corner of my eye and following what would be the crease. It is VERY IMPORTANT that you do not pile on a lot of eyeshadow on this because you will be working in LAYERS. That will help build the effect and make it look blended. Make sure you go about three quarters of the way towards your inner corners but as you get closer to the inner corner, DO NOT curve it down. Anyway, keep lightly dabbing and applying the color until you get the richness/intenseness that you'd like to stay with. By the way, this is a matte brown that I'm paring with a super sparkly white, so it all balances out. Oh, and don't forget to BLEND!!! I usually take a CLEAN, large, and fluffy crease brush (MAC #224) and use it to blend in the lines and push the effect upwards towards my brows. By doing this, it will make my colors blend more into each other and more into my skin avoiding harsh lines.

Next is the eyeliner. I take a black kohl liner (L'Oreal Super Intense Liquid Eyeliner Pencil) and line the top of my lashline. DO NOT MAKE THIS THICK. In fact, you can skip this step if you do not have monolids. I do this with EVERY LOOK because it makes my eyes look bigger. Anyway, I draw a very thin line along the top of my lashes and let that dry. Next, I line my water lines, both top and bottom, and then I'll take the brown HIP creme eyeliner (CVS Haul!) and then line my lower lashline tapering it from the outter corner in. Meaning that the line should be thick along the outer corner but very thin as it gets towards your inner eyes. Next, to seal the eyeliner, I take another clean angle liner brush and dab it in the brown eyeshadow and lightly pat it along anywhere I put on eyeliner (except for my water lines). While doing this, you can also smudge your eyeliner so that it doesn't look so harsh. Next I fill in my brows and now it's time for the rest of the face.

The face is fairly simple. I use my Sigma F82 brush and lightly apply my foundation (use whatever you have, I just happened to have my PhotoFinish one that day) all over your face. Use concealer where you need it and blend in as well. Because my pores are rather large, I use a pore cover up. I used to use Clinique's Pore Minimizer Instant Perfection, but I've been trying out a new product. Dr. Brandt's Pores No More. So far, I'm loving it (review on that soon). I didn't take a picture of it because I still have just the sample I got from Sephora but will probably be purchasing it in the near future. Anyway, instead of using your regular powder, I use Maybelline's Shine Free Loose Powder. I take the ELF All Over Brush and lightly swirl it around and shake off the excess and apply it all over my face. Next, I use the creme blush from Sally Hansen (another awesome find from my CVS haul), and just using my fingers, I dab it along the apples of my cheeks and then take a kabuki brush (any one will do) and swirl and blend it in so it doesn't look so harsh. This next step is optional, but you can also LIGHTLY dab some of the highlighting powder along your upper cheekbones and lightly in between your eyebrows. Some people like to dab a tiny bit along their cupid's bow (right above the middle of your upper lip).

Next, apply false lashes if you want (I did), and then top off with a light, peachy, nude color on the lips. I used a sample lip gloss I received from Ulta (forgot the name of the color) and voila! You're done.

Because this is all written down, it may feel like it takes a long time to actually do this, but trust me, it really doesn't. I usually take about 30-45 minutes to do my makeup (just makeup, not hair included) in the morning but with this particular look, it takes me about 15 minutes tops to do. Enjoy! I hope you try this one out on you and see how you like it.

***I'm so glad that I used some of my new products from my CVS haul. So far, I LOVE these products I used on this look. I did try out some other and did not enjoy it too much. But I will do another post on those soon. Thanks for stopping by!

CVS Clearance Haul

2011-01-23T01:02:00.000-08:00

First, I have to credit Gianna from Nouveau Cheap. I wouldn't know about this event if it weren't for her. She has excellent tips on savings and excellent information about weekly sales. Check her out by clicking on her blog name.

So if you haven't heard already, you've heard now. CVS is having a MAJOR clearance haul. There are some products that could possibly be discontinued and so to gain some kind of profit back, they're put on clearance at 50% or 75% off. This means major savings for us beauty junkies. Below are pictures of the products I got and how much I spent and saved.

So, the picture on the top is a shot of EVERYTHING I bought. I did make two trips and this is what I've accumulated so far. On the bottom, I have the receipts from those purchases. I had to black out the addresses and phone numbers to the stores I went to for security reasons. However I did highlight the total cost (before taxes) and the amount I saved. In total, I spent $70.97, BUT I saved.....are you ready for this???

$195.90!!!!

That is amazing! I got a WHOLE bunch of stuff that I've never tried before and saved that much money! I'm still shocked myself. Now, I know that I am on a No-Buy promise to myself, however, I made sure to only purchase products that I've never used before! Yes I've never used any of these products before EVER! Of course I've used these TYPES of products but not these actual ones themselves, so I am excited. Plus there are some interesting ones that I can do reviews on. Such as the Rimmel Lash Maxxx (the pink one). It has a very different brush than most mascara brushes. It looks like a comb and it claims that it will not CLUMP up your lashes, so we shall see. Plus I've been wanting to try the Physician's Formula eye shadow strips. I do not have blue eyes but the one I got is intended for blue eyes, but c'mon at $2.00, am I gonna pass that up? HECK NO! And then there's the Revlon Cream EyeShadow and believe it or not I've NEVER USED any HIP products other than their cream eyeliner which I wasn't too pleased with because it was dried out when I got it for the first time. So I'm excited to try out the HIP eyeshadows as well.

So that is all for now I am going to sign off and enjoy the rest of my weekend here in San Francisco. I'm going to use this week to test out these products and then will get back to everyone during next week (my brother's wedding is next weekend) to give my thoughts and reviews on all of these products, and if they're worth the extra money or even the sales price. We shall see....

Have a great weekend y'all! Much love from SF!!

Golden Globes 2011 - Top Ten Best Dressed List

2011-01-22T23:05:00.000-08:00

Hello, Hello!

Tonight, I am writing from the beautiful city of San Francisco, CA atop Twin Peaks, where my lovely cousins reside. My brother is getting married next weekend, so he and his new wife are here this week for celebrations! Anyway we're doing a movie night and thought I'd put in some blogs real quick. To finish off my list, here are my picks for Best Dressed for the Globes.

#10 - Guiliana Rancic in Zac Posen

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First, can I just say that I ABSOLUTELY LOVE HER!!! I watch her show all the time and can definitely relate to her difficulties and sadness of trying to conceive. But anyway, let's focus on happy things. Mrs. Rancic looks absolutely great in this black number. Although it's black, she definitely stood out. She looked better than most of the other celebrities (see my previous Worst Dressed Post) that she interviewed on the red carpet. Because Guiliana is tall, the slim lines of the dress with a small train at the bottom looked great on her without overly-accentuating her height. Plus check out the details of the neckline, super cute! The drapery works well with her and the fact that it's cinched in the middle makes the flair of the gown work to her advantage. It's subtle, yet enough to make a dramatic difference on the dress. Excellent pick!

#9 - Diana Agron in J. Mendel

AWESOME!!! Her character on Glee is a self-absorbed, conniving teenager, and with this look, Diana looks just the opposite. She looks sweet, innocent, young, but mature and classy. I love the soft light pinkish hue of her dress. In this picture, it really makes her stand out on the bright red carpet. Her makeup makes her look so polished and although her hair isn't in an updo, it matches well with the tone of her overall look. Plus, another thing I noticed is that she's not spray tanned! Which is a GOOD THING! Some celebs overdo it with the spray tan, and it's nice to see that not everyone feels they need tanning to look good. Could you imagine this whole look if she had orange skin? Not cute but thankfully, Ms. Agron made a better decision against it.

#8 - Mandy Moore in Monique Lhullier

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OMG!!! It's been awhile since we've seen Mandy on the red carpet. But she looks GOOD! The blue on her was an excellent color choice. Once again, someone who doesn't feel the need for a spray tan! Good job ladies! I love the mermaid style dress with the tulle starting at the thigh/knee area and flowing gorgeously down to the bottom. It makes the gown look elegant enough for the event, but not so formal that it's overdoing it. She paired it off excellently with limiting her accessories, and adding the focus to her dress. I'm not sure if anyone else noticed, but I love the mesh above the neckline. Looks sooo good on her! I wished she would've done a little more with her hair; maybe some loose curls would've topped it off better, but not bad, Ms. Moore-Adams sure looks smokin' hot!

#7 - Kaley Cuoco in Katherine Kidd

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First, let me say that I am a HUGE Big Bang Theory fan, and I was cheering like crazy when she announced Jim Parsons (her co-star) as the winner for Best Actor in a Comedy/Musical series. It was super endearing to see her sort of choked up as she presented his award to him. It's like she was super proud of her big brother. :D Anyway, moving onto the dress. OMG! Normally, I think her character on the show can dress better, and she in real life can make some better choices too, but she looked absolutely amazing in this number. The petal-like layers just looks so heavenly on her and fits her body shape very well. Her diamonds were totally gorgeous and I love her long hair, but I'm glad that she put it up to show her beautiful face. Excellent!

#6 - Mila Kunis in Vera Wang

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I'm so glad to see Mila Kunis back where she belongs! On top! And what's even better than that? To see her back on top IN STYLE! I totally LOVE the green on her here. OMG! What a way to stand out right??? She totally overshadowed her co-star Natalie Portman, but in a good way! This dress looked so great! The color is the best to me. I've always loved one shoulder dresses and shirts, so this won me over some more, but what sets this normal one shoulder apart is the sweetheart neckline that goes with it. I really like that. I'm not too much of a sweetheart neckline fan, but this one is subtle enough that it works, plush I'm in love with the train on the dress. What a way to make a comeback!

#5 - Olivia Wilde in Marchesa

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First of all, I LOVE Marchesa. I love their dresses so much that I wish I had events EVERYDAY just so I can wear them. But I also wish I had the money to buy them. HAHAHA. But if I did, I wish I looked as great as Olivia does in this number. Tied with this look, I love her dress from the 2010 Academy Awards. The one with the sheer back and wild front with ruffles. oooh I get chills just thinking bout it. LOL. Anyway, look at her shine in this one though! Literally. LOL. I love Olivia's style and her adoration for Marchesa. I love the straight top with the princess-y feel at the bottom. I'm not usually a huge "glitter and sparkle" fan, but on this dress for her, it WORKS! Her makeup artist deserves huge kudos. I love how the smoky eye is done in coordination with the dress, and her hair. Oh her hair, how great it looks straight and with bangs (take note, Sandra Bullock). Very simple, but very chic!

#4 - Jenna Ushkowitz in Rebecca Taylor

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Can I just say how much I love the fact that the BASIC colors are coming back in style? Look at the different hues of this dress and Mandy Moore's. Look at Mila Kunis' and Catherine Zeta-Jones. I'm so happy that these beautiful, bold colors are back and these girls are ROCKIN' that. Jenna looks amazing in this gown. I am in love with the tiny ruffles, the folds, the belt, the train, the neckline, EVERYTHING! And her lipstick...genius! Most Asian girls feel they can't pull off the red lipstick look, but look at this picture and you shall see that it is possible. Oh, and I LOVE her hair. Very "Kardashian" of her, but it looks just as great on her. Good job girl!

#3 - Eva Longoria in Zac Posen

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Whew...Tony Parker, eat your heart out! Looks like someone's still got it. Let's take this look into analysis from top to bottom: hair, gorgeous, sweet classic bun. If I remember correctly, it looked like a French twist (which a lot of people were wearing). But it's a good thing because it really let the dress shine through. Speaking of the dress, I love the neckline cut out. Sexy enough to show some cleavage, but nothing hanging out. The lighter shaded belt, CLASSIC! And of course, the tight fitting around the hips, thighs, and then BOOM! An all out flare...I was COMPLETELY shocked when I saw this dress. I'm so happy that she was able to pull it off and that someone made it look good. Especially with that someone being Eva Longoria. You've done us proud Eva, you've done us proud!

#2 - Amber Riley in Oliver Tolentino

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GORGEOUS! FABULOUS! This right here, ladies and gentleman, is PROOF that you can be gorgeous at any size as long as you are CONFIDENT about the way you look! This also shows that us plus-sized girls can rock the red carpet and look just as good as those skinny girls that look hungry. Wow. I'm so amazed at how well Amber looks, I can't even put it to words. UH-MAZING!!!

and...the winner of the BEST DRESSED LIST....

justjared.com

Anne Hathaway in Giorgio Armani Prive

Anne Hathaway and Rachel Zoe...great job. Excellent job. I'm reallly at a loss for words as to how great she looks. I mean...talk about va va voom. It looks sweet and darling from the front, and then she turns around and WHAM! Even more than if Kim Kardashian, Shakira, AND Beyonce turned around. Sexy! Stunning! Show-Stopping! In the words of my FRIEND, Joey Tribbiani, "You look hot! Like, stop eating hot! And that's the Hottest of all!"