5 Must Have Brushes!

Now let me just say, if you don't have good makeup brushes, your makeup application just won't be nearly as good as it could be. Good brushes can completely transform your makeup - making it look more natural, more blended, more flawless and are just easier to use. I love buying and trying new brushes. You, by no means, need to have a huge collection of brushes (like I do :p), but here are my top 5 must have makeup brushes for beautiful and flawless makeup!


1. Kabuki brush for foundation
Having a great foundation brush is the absolute number 1 brush everyone should own! There are so     many different foundation brushes (stippling, , or even your fingers!) but the brushes that I feel work the best with blending your foundation are kabuki brushes. My favorite is the Sigma F84!

2. Fluffy Brush
Fluffy brushes are very versatile. They can be used for powders, bronzers, color matching your face to neck, etc. I usually use mine to color match as well as to set my foundation with a powder. The key is to find a super soft one - like my favorite, the Real Techniques Powder Brush!

3. Contour brush
Contour brushes can also be versatile. I love being able to change the shape of my face with a simple sweep of matte bronzer and some blush right above it. I use a contour brush to create this look. My favorite is the Sedona Lace FB05!

4. Basic Flat Shadow Brush
This brush is kind of a staple to have if you use eyeshadow. These brushes are perfect for putting on an all over lid color as well as adding a highlight to your brow bone! My favorite is E.L.F's Eye Shadow Brush! By the way, this brush is only $1!!!

5. Crease Brush
Being able to define your eye crease is another one of my favorite makeup techniques. I do this every single day (even if it's the only eye shadow I put on)! It gives your eyes a much more awakened look, adds a little bit of color and gives more shape to your eyes. My favorite is the Urban Decay Crease Brush! (this brush comes with the Naked 2 Palette too!)

The BEST Drugstore Foundation

Now, I love drug store foundations and I love high end foundations. There is obviously an upside and a downside to both:

Drug Store Foundations:
-low price
-convenient
-can have good formulations


High End Foundations:
-color match/wide range of colors
-amazing formulations
-pretty packaging



However, above all else, my absolute FAVORITE foundation is found at the drugstore, is a low price, and has the most color selections of any foundation I've ever seen. What is this miracle product, you ask? Not only but the L'Oreal True Match Superblendable Makeup. At just $8 - $10, this formulation works with all skin types: oily, dry, combination, normal, etc. I have extremely oily skin and this foundation keeps me matte all day long! Furthermore, I have blotchy skin that I want to cover up and this foundation gives an amazing amount of coverage without making you look cakey.

You start off by deciding if your skin's undertone is cool, neutral or warm. Then choose from the 33 different colors to find your perfect shade!

Overview

-Low price
-Great coverage
-Color for every skin tone
-Great for all skin types
-Oil free
-Easy to blend
-Contains SPF


If you haven't tried this foundation, I highly suggest that you take a trip to the drugstore immediately! You won't regret it!

Think Pink in February!

Is tomorrow already February?!? Wow, time flies! February is the time of pinks, reds, love, hearts and, of course, Valentines Day. Now, I don't wear a lot of pink but during the month of February, I just can't help myself but wear a little too much pink! Whether it be my clothes, my makeup, nails, etc., I always have some form of pink on. Here are a few Valentine-y products that I'm absolutely obsessed with this month! Let me know some of your favorites in the comments below :)

Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain

Mac Blush in Pink Swoon

Forever 21 heart sweater

Nordstrom wedge sneakers

Miss Dior Eau de Parfum

Essie nail polish in Lovie Dovie

Soap & Glory's Glow Lotion

How to Lift & Brighten Your Eyes

I love how makeup can give you a completely different look. Certain makeup techniques can give a 'face lift' appearance and make you look younger if done properly. By using these few products and steps, you can instantly make your eyes look wider, brighter and lifted :)

First of all, always always always prime your face! This will prevent creasing and help your makeup stay on all day :) If you have a bluish-purple tint under your eyes, apply a salmon colored concealer and gently pat it under your eyes with your ring finger. The salmon color will correct any blue/purple colors. Since this is such a different color from skin tones, it might appear orange under the eye but don't worry, we'll fix that later! A great product to reduce bluish tints is Eve Pearl's Salmon Concealer.

After you apply your foundation, apply your concealer in an upside down triangle shape. I like to apply this with a damp Beauty Blender. You want to find a concealer that is much lighter than your skin tone. I have a medium skin tone and I use a light or fair concealer. My favorite concealer is Tarte's Smooth Operator Amazonian Clay Waterproof Concealer in Light. The consistency is so buttery smooth and it blends flawlessly. If you don't want to spend that much, a great dupe is Revlon's PhotoReady Concealer in Light

                                      

To set your concealer, I would recommend using a yellow-based powder (for darker skin tones) or pink-based powder (for fair/ivory skin tones). Many people use a transleucent white powder under their eyes which can make their face look white casted in pictures. My favorite powder that won't give you that white look is Ben Nye's Luxury Powder in Banana. I also pat this in with a damp Beauty Blender. Ben Nye's products are used for photo shoots and movies (and is also used by Kim Kardashian), so it will stay put and stay matte all day!

Last but not least, two of my friends here on Blogspot, Jenna and Lynette are hosting a Link Up on February 1st called Once Upon a Date Night which bloggers will give date ideas, outfits, makeup, etc. I linked it by my banners on the left -- go check it out!!

Ipsy Glam Bag January 2013

I LOVE the products in the January Glam Bag! This month's cosmetic bag was black with blue and white stars on the inside and is the perfect size to throw in your purse! Here are the products I received from left to right:

1. Soho Concealer Brush - I was actually thrilled to get a concealer brush because I haven't found one that I actually loved, so hopefully this will be a good one! I needed to replace my old concealer brush anyways :)


2. Pacifica's Tuscan Blood Orange Body Butter - I can always use more lotions to put in my purse or to travel with and Pacifica's Body Butter smells absolutely amazing and it's super hydrating!


3. Josie Maran Argan Oil - I was so excited to see this product! You have probably heard me talk about this product in previous blogs and this is something that I will NEVER be without. So I was super excited to have a backup when my full sized oil runs out!


4. Nailtini Nail Polish in Bloody Mary - This nail polish is such a beautiful red and I love the brand name - Nailtini! I'm moving more towards spring colors for my nails but I'm sure I will use this product a ton next winter and fall!


5. Big Sexy Hair Spray & Play Volumizing Hair Spray - I have heard so many great things about this hair spray so I'm very excited to use it! I love Big Sexy Hair products and I can't believe I haven't even tried this hairspray yet. I also love that it's the perfect travel size that you can take anywhere :)


(For those of you that don't know, Ipsy is a monthly subscription service that sends you about 5 products each month. Some of them are full size products and some are sample size. These products all come in a cosmetic bag as well {and who doesn't need more cosmetic bags?!} I love Ipsy's Glam Bag and I can't wait for next months products!)

Freeman Feeling Beautiful Face Masks

Have any of you tried these masks? They're only $1 - $2 at Wal-Mart so I couldn't pass them up!

Here's the names of the masks in the picture from left to right!

-Cucumber Facial Peel-Off Mask (clarifies & renews skin)
-Dead Sea Minerals Facial Anti-Stress Mask (clarifies & renews skin)
-Mint & Lemon Facial Clay Mask (deep pore cleansing)
-Acai Facial Purifying Clay Mask (purifies & soothes)
-Avocado & Oatmeal Facial Clay Mask (purges pores)


I tried the Mint & Lemon Clay Mask last night and, let me just say, my face felt AMAZEBALLS afterwards! My face felt a little tighter (not in a painful way) and extremely clean & refreshed. I hope I love the other masks as much as this one! This Mint & Lemon mask will definitely be a repurchase :) Let me know if you like these masks or any other masks that you would recommend!

NEW Maybelline Color Whisper Lipstick

I am a lip color fanatic - I've recently started collecting different lip sticks, glosses, liners, etc. And if the packaging is *cute* and if it says "New" on it I will be 99% likely to buy it. However, with these new Maybelline Color Whisper Lipsticks, I wasn't too thrilled on the "New" factor. Maybelline didn't market these lipsticks as well as I thought they could've. I didn't know anything about them except that they were new. Plus, I felt that the packaging could've been much more eye-catching -- it looked like their previous lipsticks but in a skinnier tube. 

After hearing YouTubers rave about this product, I finally bit the bullet and picked up two of the Whispers. And let me tell you, I was more than impressed :) :)

These Color Whispers are a like a one stop shop for lip colors. You don't need to layer your lip products. These lipsticks give amazing color pigmentation and leave a glossy finish as well! It's almost like a 2-in-1 lipstick/lipgloss product!

The first color I picked up was Pink Possibilities. It was just a perfect warm-toned pink color for everyday, which is usually the color I gravitate towards. The only thing I suggest with this color is to mute out your lips with a concealer or some type of lip primer in order to get the full effect of the Pink Possibilities color.

The second color, which I'm the most excited about, is Oh La Lilac. I don't have anything quite this color and it looks absolutely stunning on the lips! Since this product isn't super pigmented, it just leaves your lips with a cool toned lilac glossy tint to them. If you are debating on a color to get from this line, I'd 100% suggest Oh La Lilac!

(top is Pink Possibilities, bottom is Oh La Lilac)

Overall, my only suggestion to Maybelline is to market this product more effectively and to show the customer how this can be an easy-to-go lipstick/gloss for everyday!

What do you think about the Color Whispers??