Cara Delevingne Look : Tutorial

 

I feel like this has been a long time coming since I posted the reference picture on Facebook earlier this week. I had found a picture of Cara Delevingne back stage at a fashion show and I loved the makeup that they had done for her. I decided to recreate it with a slightly more wearable twist, so keep reading to find out how to do it!

Skin Care : Real Talk

I've told you guys about my favorite makeup removers, but I think it's probably time to talk to you about skin care. Obviously, your skin is very important and what you do to it in your skin now will show on your face in your later years. Taking care of your skin does not mean slathering it in anti-aging products, it just mean doing what it calls for.

I have combination skin, so I'm going to walk you through my skin care routine. I don't have the greatest skin, I have visible pores and occasional acne, but I continue my routine regardless of breakouts. Keep reading to find out what I do

Giveaway!

Hello my dear readers. I've been thinking of doing a giveaway and have decided that I will do one in a few weeks (probably for Valentine's Day). What would you want to see in a giveaway? What type of products are you most interested in? I'll do an accompanying tutorial for the products in the giveaway, but I need your input on this. Comment down below or hit up my Facebook page here and let me know!

Bisous,

Allison

Suscription Beauty Boxes : Real Talk

As many of you probably know by now, there are lovely services out there that, for a fee, will deliver a box of goodies to your door each month. These range from Bark Box for dogs to Love with Food for foodies, but my personal favorite is the beauty box. I currently have three subscriptions, so I will talk about those the most, but know of many more that I can also speak about. Keep reading to catch up on all of these boxes.

Smudged Smoky Eye : Tutorial

I feel like I need to post tutorials every Tuesday so that I can coin it "Tutorial Tuesday". Regardless, I thought it was time for another tutorial and today, we are going to venture into the world of the smoky eye. The greatest thing about a smoky eyes is that even the most simple smoky eye can look sexy as hell. This smoky eye is incredibly easy to achieve with minimal tools. Keep reading after the jump to see what you need and how to get this look.

Tuesday Round Up

Here, in the magical land of Oz, we've been having very weird weather; it gets very nice and pleasant and then switches back over to cold and horrible. For example, it was in the upper 60s yesterday and today, it is rainy and about 35°. Due to this, I wanted to just be outside yesterday and today, I have no motivation to do anything. So, for today, we are going to do a Tuesday roundup (usually reserved for the weekends). There will still be a tutorial coming later today, but expect it late tonight. Keep reading after the jump for more on the things cheering me up on this dreary Tuesday.

L'Oréal LeGloss : Product Review

Lip gloss, product that I do not buy often because I don't really like it. It's such a difficult product to navigate; sometimes it's too sheer, sometimes it's too pigmented, sometimes it comes off in one fell swoop, and the absolute worst, it's too sticky. Sticky lip gloss is the epitome of horrible makeup problems (for me, at least) because you can't do anything with sticky gloss; it's just setting you up for failure. 

Anyway, sometimes a gloss will suck me in because it's really pretty and then I'm just stuck with it. Luckily for me, Le Gloss by L'Oréal is a good product and if you keep reading, I'll let you know why.

Maybelline One by One : Regrets

Maybelline One by One : Never Again

Here's another new post topic; items that I have purchased, used several times, and would never repurchase. I need to clarify right now that, like everything else on this blog, that this is my opinion and you may find that this product works wonders for you. Most of the time, I love Maybelline mascara; Full 'N Soft, Great Lash Millions of Lashes (not the original brush), the Falsies, etc., etc., but this one is absolutely horrible. Keep reading after the jump for more on this mascara.

Revlon Nearly Naked : Product Review

Growing up, I had one type of foundation that I used and I never veered away from it. It was perfect for me at the time; it matched my skin, it was really affordable, and it covered up my breakouts (it was CoverGirl Smoothers Aqua Smooth in Ivory or Classic Ivory). These days, I jump at the opportunity to try out a new foundation because my skin is under control and I love to explore what the makeup world has to offer. The newest foundation that I picked up is Revlon Nearly Naked in Vanilla. Here's a spoiler: I love this foundation. However, keep reading after the jump to see why I actually like it.

Haircut : Real Talk

Here it is, the haircut!

Face of the Day : January 25

 

I've shown you all what I do for my everyday makeup, but what about the days that I break from the norm? Well, for those days, I have a post titled "Face of the Day" (FOTD) where I show you what the look is and what products I used to create the look.

For today, I decided to stay pretty natural, but change it from my regular "natural" look. I played around with my blush, added a lip color, and changed the eyes. Keep reading for swatches and the products used for this look.

Zoya Nail Polish : Real Talk

Zoya Nail Polish : Real Talk

For someone who previously wrote that I'm not that in to nail polish, I feel like I'm making a mockery of myself. However, this is something that I can't pass up writing about. Each year (or at least for the last two), Zoya has done a deal where they "give" you free nail polish, all you do is pay for the shipping. Last year, I believe it was just two polishes, but this year the deal was for three. The shipping and, presumably, handling charge was $10, but that is still a very good deal for three Zoya polishes (reg. retail $8/bottle). Check out what shades I picked up after the jump!

Black Eyeliners : Real Talk

Longwear Black Liner : Comparisons

Black liner. This makeup product is constantly being used, improved, and remarketed. I think that the latest batch of black liners have become something amazing; they're incredibly pigmented, they apply smoothly, and they last for hours. Keep reading to check out how these 5 liners compare to one another and how they wear.

Look to the Right of this Post

And you guys will notice that I added some links! I linked my Facebook page, my Instagram, and my Twitter accounts so that you can find me more easily. I also added a subscribe button at the top so that you can follow me in your RSS feed if you find it easier to track your blogs that way. I just want to send out a big Thank You to everyone that's been reading this. I look at my stats every day to see what you guys like the best and what I can do to bring you more of that.

bisous,

Allison

Everyday Makeup : Tutorial

A few days ago, I had a post about my everyday makeup, where I showed you what products I use most days. After posting that, I realized that maybe it would be helpful to show you how I use these products. This look is fairly natural and it takes me about about 10 to 15 minutes to do the entire look. The full tutorial after the jump!

Milani Baked Blush : Favorites

Milani Baked Blush : Luminoso

Just like with lip color, I think that it can be somewhat difficult to find your holy grail blush color. There are shades that are universally flattering (NARS' Orgasm comes to mind), but whose to say that it's going to be your favorite? I found my holy grail blush last year thanks to watching some YouTube beauty videos; Milani's Baked Blush in Luminoso.

Makeup Removers : Real Talk

Oh, makeup remover. You are the best friend and worst enemy of makeup lovers. When the day is coming to an end, it can feel so nice to remove all of your makeup and wash your face. Sometimes, getting all of your makeup off your face is the last thing that you want to do, especially after a night of drinking and it's say... 4 a.m.? I can only reiterate what everyone has told you your entire life; don't go to bed with your makeup on. I'm not here to babysit anyone or force you to wash your face, but at the very least, please take your makeup off each night. Today, I am going to explore the realm of makeup removers and share with you my favorites and my least favorite. Join me!

Neutrogena Hand Cream : Product Review

Neutrogena Hand Cream : Norwegian Formula

A few weeks ago, I decided to try a program called BzzAgent. It's a very simple program that you sign up for and then are occasionally selected to do market research on items. I'm not here to tell you all about BzzAgent, if you have any interest, it's free and you can check out there website here. I was chosen for a Neutrogena campaign and I have to say, I'm extremely glad that I was. I was sent a complimentary Norwegian Formula Hand Cream to try and give them feed back on... and let me tell you, this stuff is awesome. More info on this after the jump.

Red Lips : Tutorial

The red lip. It's a classic look that is can be used for practically any occasion. For this tutorial, I'll show you two different methods to achieve a red lip. The first look is for a more traditional red lip while the second tutorial (which only requires three steps) is for a more modern red lip. Keep reading for more on how to achieve these two looks.

What's in my Bag?

What's in my Bag?

For reasons unknown, I find it incredibly fascinating to know what other people carry around in their makeup bags or purses. I've decided to share with you what I carry in my makeup bag for every day use. This isn't every item that currently sits in my bag, because some of those things I barely use or are really boring (i.e. tweezers - I used Tweezerman by the way). The picture above is my current makeup bag, which is a LeSportsac bag I picked up on clearance at DSW about 2 years ago. I've decided to break this up into categories, so let's dive right in!

Weekend Round Up

Weekend Roundup is simply a post to wrap up the week and let you guys know about new things I've picked up and am excited to use. This weeks roundup has two drugstore products and one high end product. Click though for more info!

Better than False Lashes : Product Review

Better than False Lashes : Too Faced

False Lashes. These two words may strike fear into your heart. In fact, I think that out of all makeup products, there are two that terrify people the most. One being the eyelash curler, which I fully understand*, and the second being false eyelashes, which I used to fully understand. False eyelashes don't scare me, I think that they're actually fairly simple to use, but I get why people don't like them/don't know how to use them. If you've ever worn falsies, you know that the process of putting them on/taking them off can be a little time consuming and some days, you just don't want that. Since eye makeup is my absolute favorite thing of the makeup world, I was intrigued when I found the Too Faced Better than False Lashes product. I put off buying this for a long time because, well, it's expensive. This system is $35 and I really didn't want to buy it and then be disappointed. Keep reading for a full review and fun-sized tutorial.

OPI Liquid Sand : Product Review

Liquid Sand : OPI

Nail polish isn't something that I generally get excited about because quite honestly, I'm horrible with it. I can apply it decently, but it's such a tedious process: basecoat, let dry, first coat, let dry, second coat, let dry, top coat, let dry for 343746762 hours or you will get a scuff. I get impatient and even when I use a fast dry top coat, I always end up ruining the polish. Then, it chips off slowly and I damage my nails because I like to help expedite the process by peeling it off due to my hatred of nail polish remover. Basically, I paint my nails sometimes and it lasts about a day. When I saw these polishes from OPI, I got excited because they are very different than your typical polish.

Line Stiletto : Favorites

Maybelline Line Stiletto : Hit Pan & Back Again

Another new post topic? Yes. I think that product reviews and tutorials are important, but I also think that it's important to tell you guys about products that I buy again and again aka my favorites. There are items in my makeup arsenal that are monthly favorites or seasonal favorites and then there are my all time favorites. I'm a liquid liner kind of girl; if I wore makeup every day (which I don't, I usually take a break on Sundays), I would say I wear liquid liner 6 days of the week with the 7th day being the occasional pencil or gel day. I'm very picky when it comes to liquid liners and I can tell you all about the kinds that I don't like, but I'll refrain.

Teal Shadow : Tutorial

A lot of people stay away from bold colors when it comes to their makeup; some are scared to use it because they fear they'll look like a clown while others are simply conservative when it comes to color. I, however, fully embrace bright colors and think that they can be used very lightly for a pop of color or boldly for a more daring look. Follow the jump for a tutorial on two different looks using teal shadow.

Dry Shampoo : Real Talk

Dry Shampoo : Down & Dirty

Can I admit something here? I love taking showers and in turn, I love to wash my hair. There is something amazingly ritualistic about showering and it makes me so happy to end my day by rinsing off all the dirt. However, I know that washing my hair every day is not good for it and the older I'm getting, the more apparent my daily abuse* has become. I started using dry shampoo in 2011, but didn't become a full convert until 2012. Here's a breakdown on a few brands and how they work.

$20 Makeup Challenge : Tutorial

The $20 Makeup Challenge

I've seen this all over Youtube and have wanted to do this for a while, but I wanted to do it for a blog rather than a vlog. I ended up spending $19.51 (before tax) on my products, but there were definitely some misses in my group of products. I wanted to do this challenge to see if I could actually get a complete look for under $20. In my daily routine, I use a healthy mix of high end and drugstore brands, but I don't often think about how much those things cost. If I tried to recreate my daily "makeup bag" for someone, it would cost well over $150. I did my shopping at Target for this challenge and after having done this, there were some products I liked and some I would recommend to no one. (Before and After photos at the end... so keep reading!)

Color Whisper : Product Review

Color Whisper : Maybelline

I always get excited when I see that the drugstores are getting new product and I saw new end displays at Target about two weeks ago. The first item that caught my attention was the new Maybelline Color Whisper. I am a huge fan of the Revlon Colorburst Lip Butters and these looked similar, so I thought I should pick some up.

The Bronze of Champions : Product Review

The Bronze of the Champions : Benefit

I got an email from Sephora a few weeks ago about new sets from Benefit ranging from eye kits to primer sets. My love affair with Benefit is long and wonderful, so I decided that I absolutely needed a new kit from them. I scanned through all of them and decided on The Bronze of Champions... even though I'm extremely pale. And that's ok, because this kit works for those of us who are melanin deficient.