October Favorites

     Can you believe that October is already over? It's absolutely crazy that there are now only two months left in 2014! As sad as I am to see this beautiful fall month go, I am so incredibly excited for November! November is my birthday month (helloooooo, 21st birthday!!!) and Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. November is also the month that I start doing all of my holiday shopping, and who doesn't love that?!
     This month I've been rocking the same look almost every day that I wear makeup. I've been following the trend that many of us have been following, and that's the Kylie Jenner big lips, cat eyes, 90's look. I am completely head over heels in love with this look! It's so effortless and absolutely everyone can wear it. To perfect my own KJ inspired look, these are the products that I have been loving.

      At the beginning of the month I finally splurged on the Hourglass Ambient Lighting palette. I was a bit skeptical about spending almost $60 on a highlighting palette, but I am so glad that I did! These powders make you skin look absolutely flawless. I love using the 2nd lightest shade, as an under eye setting powder so give my under eyes a soft focus look. I like to use the middle shade as an actual highlighter on the high points of my face. This isn't your typical "in-your-face" highlighter, but it's perfect for every day. It gives the most beautiful glimmer of light to your cheek bones. I like to use the darkest shade to help kind of bronze up my fair skin.  I have very dry skin, so I am not one to shy away from glowing skin!

     For lips, I have been all about that Kylie Jenner nude lip! I can't do the normal nude lip, as it washes my olive skin out too much. I love this KIKO Precision Lip Liner in the shade 302 to line and fill my lips. It is an exact dupe for MAC's Whirl which Kylie uses. Best part? It's less than $5! Of course it's only readily available to those of us who live in Europe, but the rest of you can order it online. 

   When I placed my order for my Hourglasss palette, I also bought a number of other things, including a trio of mini Sugar Lip Treatments from Fresh. It came with a red, plum, and this translucent shade. I like to use this on top of my KIKO liner so my lips aren't quite as matte and so they stay hydrated during these colder months. 

     For eyes I've been focusing a lot on bold liner and lashes. I have never tried a gel liner and when I was growing the KIKO store, I decided to pick this one up. OMG is it AMAZING! I'm talking the blackest of the blacks, totally matte, and lasts for 14+ hours without budging. I have problems with the Kat Von D tattoo liner after about 5 hours with rubbing off. This one doesn't move at all. It's even hard to get off with my Clinique Take Off The Day makeup remover. It's so perfect in all aspects! It's also less than $5 as well. PERFECT! 

     In my September Ipsy bag I received the Urban Decay Perversion mascara. This stuff is amazing! It gives my lashes length and volume and makes them incredibly black. This is something that I will be picking up as soon as I run out. 

      

      One non-beauty favorite this month is kind of cheating, since it came out the last weekend of October, but I couldn't pass up talking about it. I'm sure you've all heard about Taylor Swift's new album 1989 by now. And for good reason! This is by far her best album to date and I already see her taking home tons of awards for it. It's so different than anything she's ever done before, and while it was a bold move, it was the best move she could have ever taken.  I was very timid to buy the album because I was concerned that it would be 13 tracks of Shake It Off, but I decided to try it anyway, and I am so happy that I did. Shake It Off is very different from the other tracks on the album. It is with all intents and purposes a pop album, but not an in your face dancey, Shake It Off filled album. My favorite tracks from the album are Style, Wildest Dreams, Clean, and Out Of The Woods. I won't go too in depth about each track since, let's face it, I'm lawful at explaining thing, but it is definitely worth your time! I have had this album on repeat since I bought it on Monday and I don't see myself taking it off anytime soon. 

     What were your most used products this month? Do you have any music recommendations for me? TV? Books? Anything? Let me know! I love hearing about new things! 

My Pamper Routine

     Over the past month or so, I've been developing a weekly pamper routine. After trying many different products, I think I've finally found what's working the best for me. This little routine currently only involves my hair and face, but I do plan on adding to it to include the rest of my body as well. This routine focuses on my dry skin and hair. As the weather is getting colder, both of those things seem to be getting dryer. These are the things I've been using to help combat that dryness.

Before I start with my face, I like to start with my hair so it's able to soak up all of the conditioning goodness of the hair masque for a bit longer. This deep repair masque is packed with oils like macadamia, tea tree, and argan just to name a few. It works to reconstruct dry, damaged hair, which is exactly what I need. I like to leave this on my hair for at least thirty minutes, but preferably an hour. This conditioner does wonders with restoring the moisture and shine in my hair. It leaves my hair feeling incredibly smooth and silky. It's a bit pricey, but it's definitely worth the splurge. 

After I've washed out and rinsed the masque, I like to finish it off with the ECRU Acacia Protien BB Cream. This cream is full of oils and amino acids to help strengthen, protect, and restore the shine to your locks. 

     For my face, I've been sticking to more natural things. I made a trip to Lush earlier this month and I picked up a few things that have turned into forever staples. I start off with the Cupcake (Terra-madre) Fresh Face Mask to help with my hormonal chin acne. I've had a lot of flare ups this month so I needed something to help with that and the saleswoman recommended this to me. The Rhassoul mud helps to deeply clarify the skin. Best part? It smells like chocolate with a bit of a mint twist!
After I let this dry for about 20 minutes, I rinse off and follow up with Let The Good Times Roll cleanser. This also smells absolutely incredible! It's so sweet! The corn oil in this helps to deeply moisturize my dry skin. It's also exfoliating, which helps to remove all of the dead skin. The masque is a little harsh and can be a bit drying, so afterwards I could definitely use the help from this little beauty. After it's all done, I like to finish off with my Eau Roma Water Toner. I like to leave this in my fridge so it's even more refreshing. The rose water and lavender help to hydrate and even out skin tone.
 
     I like to do this routine on Sundays, to help cleanse everything from the week before and start the new week with freshly pampered skin and hair. Starting the week feeling beautiful is so important and this really does the trick for me, as far as appearances go. What special things to do you like to do to help out your skin and hair? Let me know!

 

July Favorites

  July was an incredibly busy month for me, and because of that it was rather simple in the makeup department. My husband was visiting home in Louisiana the first part of the month, we traveled to South Carolina for a bit, and then the last couple of weeks was spent getting everything packed and ready to move back to the good ol' Italy. 
  I realize I'm a bit late on posting my July favorites, but hey, better late than never! The few times that I have worn makeup/done my hair this month, I was trying out a few new products, instead of sticking to my old favorites. Most of these have squeezed their way into that position though. :)

       For makeup, I've been repeatedly picking up the same few items all month. I am currently dying over the Lorac Pro 2 (no, seriously, I'm dead.)  It's so beautiful and the shades are all super smooth, pigmented, and buttery. I can't stop using it! As far as my face goes, I've been pretty basic. I slap on a BB cream of some sort, my Maybelline Fit Me concealer, the Balm Down Boy blush, and the Balm Mary Lou-Manizer highlighter. The blush is a pale, natural pink shade that gives the perfect everyday flush of color. The Mary Lou-Manizer highlighter is a must for that summer glow, err, sparkle. I'm one who likes to be highlighted, and this definitely does the trick. If your goal is to look like a Cullen, this is the product for you. All jokes aside, it's a beautiful product! For eyes, I've fallen head over heels for the Too Faced Better Than Sex mascara. It really gives you the most va-va-voom lashes ever! The bareMinerals Marvelous Moxie lipgloss in Hypnotic has been my go to. Can you possibly get better than a holographic lipgloss? Didn't think so.
    This month I got a major haircut, which has put my hair in the best condition ever. To keep up my super soft locks, I've been using the Healthy Sexy Hair Argan Oil every day. It leaves my hair soft and shiny, without leaving any greasiness behind. I've also jumped on the Macadamia hair mask bandwagon. It's safe to say I'm never going back. No hair mask has ever left my hair feeling so heavenly in my life. This is definitely a forever staple for me! I was also lucky enough to pick this one up at Marshall's for $9.99! Score!
   I hope you enjoyed my favorites! What products could you not get enough of? Let me know!

What's In My Bag

After looking into my purse, I realized how much of a hoarder I am. I thought it was funny at first, but now I realize that it's actually a problem. Before making a major downsize (you'll see of what) I decided that I should do the ever so popular "what's in my bag" post. I've never done one of these 

but I've always enjoyed glimpsing into everyone's bag. It's kind of socially acceptable way of being a total creeper, and I love it! 

My bag is from the line Call It Spring. This brand has been around at JCP for about 5 or 6 years now, and I believe they have their own stores as well. My bag was about $50 originally. But this girl got it for 40% off plus I had a $10 reward from shopping at Sephora inside JCP. So, I got this cute little number for $20! Not too bad, if I don't say so myself! 

I love the colors in it. The cool and warm hues make it perfect for every season. The bow adds an adorable, fun touch. The size of this bag is absolutely perfect and fits everything that I could possibly need inside. 

You can see from the above picture that I carry most of the basics, and you also get a glimpse of my ridiculous obsession. 

 Yep, that's right. You counted 17 lip products. I told you it was scary! Obviously the NYX Butter Glosses are my fave. Other than those I've got the essentials-notebook and pen for jotting down lists and thoughts, my iPhone and ear buds, wallet with necessary Bath & Body Works hand sanitzer (this one is a camera that flashes! how cute?!), random change, ponytail holder, AE Rewards card, and dog biscuit. And of course, last but not least, my gym essentials including my Polar FT4 heart rate watch and lock for my locker. I can't hit the gym without them! 

Well, now that you've seen what's inside my bag, let me know what's inside yours! Do you have anywhere near as many lip products as I do? Please let me know that I'm not as crazy as I think I am. :P 

Until next time, 

A Fuchsia Frenzy

Since coming back home, I've been really into bright colored lips. Especially those of the hot pink/fuchsia/bright purple variety. I just love how a bright lip can change everything about your makeup and outfit. It adds so much fun!

The three shades that I've been loving the most have been the three pictured. NYX Butter Gloss in Sugar Cookie, NYX Matte Lipstick in Shocking Pink, and the Almay Liquid Lip Balm in Pink Pout. 

Pink Pout is definitely the most toned down and least frightening of the three. It is much more of soft, natural pink color on the lips than it is in the tube. I love this formula so much that I plan on doing a full review of all the colors that I own. 

Sugar Cookie is a beautiful bright fuchsia. It's super pigmented so you can wear it alone for a bright pop of color. The NYX butter gloss is my favorite formula of lip gloss ever!

Shocking Pink is quite true to its name! I love this color so much. It's so bright and fun; perfect for spring and summer! This lipstick is so creamy and feels amazing on the lips. 

What spring/summer trends are you most excited for this season? Are you a bold lip lover like myself? Let me know! <3

An Ulta Haul

Hey, hey! 

Being back in the States, I've got the luxury of shopping at Ulta Beauty. After seven months of having not set foot in a beauty store of any sort, I went in and went a slight bit crazy. 

I got a couple of essentials, a few new things for spring/summer, and one bigger splurge. 

The first thing that I wanted to pick up where a few lippies from NYX. I had went in with intent of getting a couple of the new macaron lipsticks, but they hadn't quite gotten them in stock. Instead, I got a few fuchsia goodies from various collections. I also couldn't resist picking up a few of my favorite drugstore eyeshadow trios and two twin packs of lashes. I've been wanting to see what all of the hype was about, so I got two travel size pouches of the Macadamia Oil masque. 

My splurge of the trip was the LORAC Unzipped palette. I absolutely love my LORAC Pro palette, so I couldn't resist to get this beauty. The texture of these shadows are incredible, and the rosy neutrals are lovely. 

This was the damage done. I guess it could have been worse, but I tried to control myself a bit. ;)

I absolutely adore Almay's trios. They're so smooth and pigmented. They're the best drugstore eyeshadows I've tried thus far. The eylure eyelashes are incredible! I'm not a big eyelash wearer, so these are perfect. They are so natural!

I'm most excited about my palette, the lashes, Too Faced Melted liquid lipstick, and the NYX lipstick. Obviously I'm into bright lips right now. 

If you'd like any in depth reviews, let me know! I have a couple already planned. 

Now that I'm back in the States and have a lot of free time on my hands, I plan on keeping up with this blog a lot more. I've gotten so many new products since I've been home the past three weeks. I can't wait to share them all with you! 

March Ipsy Bag

Hey hey! 

Back in January I decided it was time to subscribe to my first subscription service. After reading reviews, watching videos, and scouring the sites, I chose Ipsy. At $10 a month, you get a plethora of beauty items, ranging from deluxe samples to full size! Ya read right, full size products for only $10 a month! Each month you get 4-6 items to try out, that are picked out just for you, based on the quiz you took at sign up.

January was a decent month, containing mostly skin care items to pump that "new year, new you" feel. February was all makeup for me, which I loved! This month, I received fewer items (only four) but all but one item was full size, so I really can't complain too much. 

This month I received a nicely sized sample of Bare Minerals Marvelous Moxie lipstick in the shade Get Ready, NYX eyeshadow trio in No Tan Lines Allowed, Chella Eyeliner Pen in Indigo Blue, and the Pixi Beauty Brightening Flawless Beauty Primer.

*I'm the worst at photographing swatches.*

I really love everything in this month's bag, minus the highlight shade in the trio, as it's barely noticeable *see above.  But all in all, it was a great month for Ipsy! The lipstick and eyeliner are great and highly pigmented, and the shadows are smooth and creamy! I can't wait to put everything to good use in the coming months! I know the brightening primer will be especially great under a lightweight foundation during the summer for an added glow. 

What did you receive in your March Ipsy bag? Let me know your thoughts!