Shimmer's Beauty Blog

How To: Get Rid Of Dark Circles!

2013-01-27T08:01:00.001-08:00

hello beauties!

in todays post I wanna give you some tips to get rid of dark circles.
if you wanna watch my step-by-step tutorial, then click here to watch it on YouTube.

first you need to know the causes. one of the most common beliefs is that they appear due to lack of sleep, or because of your genetics e. g. if you have thin skin under your eyes (like me)

here I have some tips for you:

- Stay hydrated. Most people do not drink enough water throughout the day. It is wise to drink 6 to 8 glasses of water daily to avoid improper hydration and the occurrence of dark circles.

- Get Enough Sleep. make sure to sleep at least 8 hours per night. Deep sleep allows your skin to heal. Lack of sleep may interrupt this healing and cause skin to sag.

- The tone of your concealer should be the direct opposite of the tone of your under eye circles: For example, if the skin under your eyes looks purple, find a concealer that has yellow tones. For blue circles, use orange tone concealer.

If your circles are brown, a blue or purple tone concealer is your best bet.

And if you have red tones under your eyes, then a green or olive tone concealer is for you.

- Cool your under eye area. Cucumbers are fantastic for this. Simply cut off two slices and relax for 10-15 minutes. or like shown in my video, put a spoon in a freezer for a few minutes and hold it on your eyes. I've also heard that tea bags help to reduce dark circles.

- use a sun screen. using a sun screen (or foundation with at least 15 SPF) everyday will prevent dark circles because the rays from the sun are extremely dangerous to your skin.

hope you liked this little blog post!

Happy Sunday, my lovelies :))

Love Alpha Mascara Review!

2012-12-11T13:29:00.000-08:00

Hello beauties!

so I just uploaded my Mascara Routine on YouTube featuring the Love Alpha Mascara! Here I wanna show you some pictures
but first off - I'm not being sponsored, nor affiliated and I bought this product with my own money. Just thought I should throw out this here ;)

so I got this mascara from Ebay for $6.99 and it took about a month to arrive, since it's from China!
you get one case with 2 mascaras. btw, the mascaras and the case are in leopard print design. hate the design. :/

the bigger mascara is the transplanting gel, which you apply first.
the small one are the natural fibers, which will stick after applying the gel.
then you apply the gel again, so the fibers will stay in place.
you can repeat these steps as many times as you want for a more dramatic result :)

Best Drugstore Brushes For Under 10 Dollar!

2012-08-11T04:13:00.001-07:00

so as you can tell by the title of this post, today I'll show you amazing high quality drugstore brushes for under $10!!

pic from elfcosmetics.com

ELF Eyeshadow Brush - $1
this eyeshadow brush has so many good reviews on different blogs.
this brush has very dense bristles even though, it is very cheap. it also packs on colors very well and doesn't scratch your eyes at all!

NOW FOR BLENDING BRUSHES:

here I have 2 favorites:

pic from elfcosmetics.com

ELF Blending Brush - $1
really soft and dense brush. it is good at applying color to the crease and blending out harsh edges.

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pic from target.com

Sonia Kashuk Small Multipurpose Powder Brush - $10.79
do you want to spend 79 cents more? :)
this brush is more expensive than the other ones, but I really wanted to feature it, since it's an amazing brush! It is called multipurpose powder brush, because you can use it for your face and your eyes - but most people love using this brush as a blending brush. this brush also reminds me of the MAC 224 brush, because both have tapered heads and long bristles. so if you're willing to invest more than 10 Dollars for a brush, then buy this one!

FOR THE FACE:

pic from elfcosmetics.com

E.L.F Studio Powder Brush - $3

another brush by ELF :)

even though it is called Powder Brush, this brush is an amazing brush for liquid foundation! first off, this brush is reeaally soft and it doesn't shed! it gives you an airbrush finish and is a great dupe for the MAC 184 Stippling Brush! If I had known about this brush prior to the MAC brush, I would have never gotten the MAC one.

you can also use this brush for mineral powder! absolutely a high quality brush!!

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pic from ecotools.com

Ecotools - Bamboo Blush Brush - $8.49

earth-friendly blush brush recycled from aluminium.

very soft and get just the right amount of blush you need. if you don't use blush (like me) you can also use it as a powder brush to set your foundation!

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pic from essence.eu

Essence - Blush Brush - $3.99
you can use this brush for contouring and highlighting your cheekbones.
it has a curved edge and it's also a great brush for travel! oh and look at that cute packaging :')

BRUSH SETS FOR UNDER $20

ELF Essential Professional Complete Set of 12 Brushes - $12

Set includes:

Concealer Brush
Blush/Bronzer Brush
Foundation Brush
Blending Eye Brush
Smudge Eye Sponge
Eye Liner Brush
Total Face Brush
Defining Eye Brush
Eyelash & Brow Wand
Lip Defining Brush
Brow Comb & Brush
Eye Shadow Brush

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Japonesque Touch Up Tube 5 Piece Travel Brush - $20

Set includes:

Foundation Brush
Lip Brush
Two Eye Detailers
Blush/Powder Brush

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Real Techniques Starter Kit - $17.99

Set includes:

5 full-size brushes + case:

Base shadow brush: applies a smooth, flawless foundation of color
Deluxe crease brush: soft, oversized design for effortless contouring
Accent brush: designed for precision detailing, spotlighting, highlighting, and smudging
Pixel-point eyeliner brush: tapered cut is ideal for dense or fine eyeliner application
Brow brush: distinctive shape easily defines eyebrows
Panoramic brush case is a 2-in-1 case + stand

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Eco Tools 5-Piece Mineral Brush Set - $13.59

Set includes:

Mineral Powder Brush
Concealer Brush
Eye Shading Brush
Baby Kabuki
Cosmetic Bag

hope I helped some of you, with this post :)

stay tuned for another post about best drugstore makeup products!

take care xx

-not sponsored & not affiliated-

OPI Rainbow In The S-Kylie - Kardashian Collection (DUPE for Rainbow Connection)

2012-08-03T12:01:00.000-07:00

in my last NOTW post, I mentioned OPI's Mermaids Tears Nail Polish. I also wore OPI's Rainbow In The S-Kylie on my ring finger as you can tell:

I originally wanted OPI's Rainbow Connection Nail Polish from the Muppets Collection but I couldn't find it anywhere so I bought this one, since they both look really similar.

so Rainbow In The S-Kylie is a mix between small colorful glitter and large colorful glitter. some people wear this nail polish on all nails, but I like to apply this only to my ring finger ^^

but let me warn you: this nail polish is a pain to take off -.-

you can buy it here

*pictures taken with iPhone4

-bought everything. not sponsored-

OPI 18 Karat Real Gold Nail polish "The Man With The Golden Gun"

2012-07-28T05:29:00.000-07:00

holy macaroni, has anyone seen the facebook post from OPI about their new nail polish??

"In celebration of James Bond’s Golden Anniversary we are releasing our first-ever 18 karat gold leaf top coat “The Man with the Golden Gun”

Inspired by the world of 007, this stunning top coat contains real 18 karat gold and comes packaged in a special limited edition collectable gold bottle – the ultimate holiday gift! Available this October"

gosh. I really want this nail polish but I won't probably get it, because I've read in the comments that this bottle will cost $30! :(
$30 for a nail polish is INSANE. I already feel bad when I spent $8 on OPI nail polishes LOL

-not sponsored. pic and description from OPI's facebook page-

Forever 21 Haul!!

2012-05-19T02:20:00.003-07:00

today, I wanted to show you what I ordered at Forever 21 last night.
usually, I wanted to tweet about this but then I thought "hey, why not blog about it?!" :)

so the first thing I got, is this BEAUTIFUL one shoulder colorblock bodycon dress:

ahhhh I'm so excited to wear this dress!!

I think I'm going to wear it with a nice cardigan and black tights on colder days. I'm in love with this dress ♥

I also love this trimmed blouson top:

recently, I've been loving tops with cutout shoulders haha :')

look at this gorgeous lace tank top:

I looove ruffle tops and lace tops and this one is even combining these two! :)

now for the bottoms..

such a beautiful skirt! it's a white mesh skirt:

and these shorts are so cute!! there are called lace trimmed denim cutoffs:

of course, I've been eyeing some jewellry ;)
a cute dove & heart charm necklace:

bow studs: ♥

beaded drop earrings:

hope you liked this post :) xx

Essie Mint Candy Apple Dupe! Essence "53 You Belong To Me" Nailpolish Review

2011-05-16T11:19:00.002-07:00

Hey everyone,
today I wanna do a little review on an amazing nailpolish which I bought last week at the drugstore!
It's a nail polish from the brand "Essence" in the colour "53 You Belong To Me" It's a baby blue/turquoise colour.

it's the same colour like MAC's Mischevios Mint Nail Polish (about $14.00) & Essie's Mint Candy Apple Nail Polish (but this one is a bit greenish) (about $5.00) :D

you can get this nail polish for $0.99 at ULTA

I took the pictures two days after applying the polish and I applied two coats of it :)
tbh, It didn't dry that fast, but I loooove the result *-* this nail polish "belongs to me" :')

(bought this product with my own money. I'm not affiliated with this company & not sponsored) :)