Face of the Day: Bright Eyes, Soft Lip

I had meant this post to include a video but the video turned out blurry and terrible. So disappointing! Since Spring is definitely here and Summer is just around the corner, I thought it was high time that I brightened things up a bit. This look was inspired but the brights in my sweater (and jeans). Read on to see more!

 

On my eyes, I used shades from the IT Cosmetics Naturally Pretty palette (find it here for $42). I’m wearing Sheer Joy from the lashline to the brow, Love on the lid, Sunset and Soulful in the crease, Mocha in the outer “V” and a combo of Sheer Joy and Transforming Pearl on the tear duct. It’s hard to see in these photos, but Sunset is a warm, orange/terracotta that picks up the orange/red tones in my sweater. These shadows last and last. I’ll be reviewing them soon!

To finish off the eyes, I’m wearing Urban Decay’s Ink for Eyes on the upper lashline and Mac’s Zoom Waterfast Lash on the upper lashes. On my eyebrows, I’m using my old standby, Anastasia of Beverly Hills’ Tinted Eyebrow Gel in Espresso.

The rest of my look uses the following: Revlon CC Cream in Light Medium; IT Cosmetics Eye Lift in a Tube; Hourglass Ambient Lighting Blush in Diffused Heat; Illamasqua Cream Pigment in Hollow (for contouring); Julep Lipgloss in Graceful; and I finished it all off with my favorite NARS Light Reflecting Setting Powder.

I’ve also been trying to grow out my hair with the idea of getting it long enough and then figuring out what I want to do. It’s long enough now to put into a french braid so I did a messy braid and the results are above. This will be great for the hot, humid Virginia summer!

Are any of these products your favorites?

Face of the Day: No Makeup Makeup for Summer

I love a natural makeup look! Especially one that can be applied in 5 minutes and lasts all day. And since I had not posted a Face of the Day (FOTD) in quite awhile (at least it feels that way), I’ve done one using some of my favorite products from this summer. The great thing about this one is that I’ve used a mixture of drugstore and high end products. I’ll also be doing a give away of a few of the products I used in this look so check back later today!!!


OK, here’s what I started with. I’ve already applied my skin care products AND sunscreen so I’m working with a clean slate. Since I always start with mascara (because I’m messy), I curled my lashes and applied Bare Minerals Lash Domination Volumizing Mascara in Black. Then it’s on to the foundation and concealer which were Mac Face & Body Foundation in C3 ( single, light layer) and Revlon Photo Ready Concealer in Medium.

After that, I applied a very layer of Nars Light Reflecting loose powder just on the areas that I concealed (under eyes, on either side of the chin and a dark spot on my cheek). Once the concealer was set, I used Anastasia’s Tinted Brow Gel in Espresso on my eyebrows for grooming and to conceal my white hairs.

For a subtle, yet polished, eye look, I used Wet N Wild’s Color Icon palette in Silent Treatment, applying the lightest (it says “browbone” on the surface of the shadow) from lash line to brow and a light application of the medium color (“eyelid”) in the crease. Clinique’s Quickliner for Eyes Intense in Intense Chocolate was applied to my upper lash line.





For cheeks and lips, I used the absolutely perfect 3 Custom Color cheek stain in Simply Beautiful and Revlon’s Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in Honey. These products are wonderful for a “no makeup” makeup look!






What’s your go-to routine for a more natural look?



Don't forget to check back later today for the giveaway!!

Budget Face of the Day

I started this blog as an outlet for myself and a resource for women roughly my age and older who are dealing with issues concerning body image, aging, elderly parents, children , finances, health and beauty. I’m no writer but it’s been a great experience and being the beauty junkie that I am, I absolutely LOVE when I can find an inexpensive product that works. In the beauty industry today, we’re bombarded with messages like “you’re not thin enough, pretty enough, or young enough but if you want to be those things you need to spend $$$$$ on THIS product in order to be worthwhile.” OK, not really those exact words, but with all of the Photo Shopped images in magazines and insanely expensive beauty products out there, things have gotten a little ridiculous.

The other day, I posted a “face of the day” that used all high end products. I love all of those products but the price tag on that entire look was pretty high (I didn’t even add it up---I just know it was “a little much.”). So in the interest of being balanced, today’s post uses all drugstore products and many of them are very inexpensive!




I start out with mascara, because I almost always make a mess that has to be cleaned up. For this look, I used Neutrogena’s Healthy Volume Mascara in Black/Brown. At $7.49, this is an excellent budget pick and makes my lashes longer and thicker (and it doesn’t smudge!!!).

Almay CC Cream in Light

My next step for this look was the application of Almay’s new CC Cream in light. This is a new product and so far I like it as a tinted moisturizer. It costs about $9.99 (give or take) at your nearest drugstore. Wherever I needed “correcting,” I applied Maybelline’s Instant Age Rewind Eraser Dark Spot Concealer + Treatment ($9.99). Then I set my face with Revlon’s Nearly

 Pressed Powder ($9.99).





OK. Now back to the eyes where I found some GREAT budget picks! From the lash line to the eyebrow, I applied Wet N Wild’s Color Icon Shadow Single eye shadow in Brulee ($1.99!!!). This eye shadow is SOOOO great and it’s my go-to base shadow for many, many looks. If you didn’t know better, you’d think it was a high end shadow! On the lid I applied NYX’s single shadow in Taupe ($4.99) and Dark Brown ($4.99) in the crease. Surprisingly enough, all three shadows lasted all day without creasing and I didn’t even apply any eyelid primer, which I usually have to wear. Next I lined my upper lids with L’Oreal’s Voluminous Smoldering Eyeliner in Black ($8.99). I’m still testing this one out so I’ll let you know if it’s a great product after more testing. On the lower water line, I used Rimmel’s Scandal Eyes Waterproof Kohl Eyeliner in

 ($4.49). This step is a way to brighten your eyes. Most eyeliners don’t last on my waterline but this one did a reasonably good job, although it does require a touch up after a few hours. Last but not least, I applied some of the mascara to my eyebrows to cover up the white hair!





On my face, I used Revlon’s PhotoReady Bronzer (about $10.50), which is an excellent, matte bronzer that includes four shades. With this product, I contoured my jaw line and cheeks as well as used it on my forehead at the hairline. The last products I used were a real value from Elf. Their powder blush in Tickled Pink ($3.00), paired with the All Over Color Stick in Pink Lemonade ($1.00), provided a nice flush that lasted most of the day with just a little bit of fading. I also used the All Over Color Stick on my lips.











At just over $68, these products were good budget picks. Most (not the mascara or the all over color stick) will last for 6-12 months, depending on how often they are used so I think that they could be excellent choices for a woman on a budget. But while I’m thinking of it, I’m wondering if it’s possible to do a full face for under $25? Hmmmm….maybe that will be a future subject for a face of the day post!!!

Do you use any of these products? If so, what do you think of them?

High End Makeup of the Day

I’ve been playing around a lot with some items I’ve had in my collection for awhile. Some are things that I’ve received as part of various subscription boxes (so i didn’t pay separately for them) and some I purchased at a retailer. Since I’ve also been using the St. Tropez self tanner on the rest of my body, I thought I’d do something summery on my face. All of these products are so called “high end” products.





First things first---foundation. Becca’s Luminous Skin Colour Ultra Sheer Foundation is a new product for me. I have been wanting to try this product for awhile so I finally purchased it at Sephora (here). Retailing for $42, it comes in a fairly large 1.7 oz bottle. I got it in Olive, which is about two shades darker than my complexion.. This worked perfectly against my chest since I have been using the self tanner. It’s also really sheer so even if it’s darker than two shades, it’s pretty hard to mess up. At some point I’ll do a full review of this foundation as I think it’s great for summer.





Since the foundation is so sheer, I not only used concealer under my eyes but on a few darker areas of my face. For this, I used Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics Concealer in R1. This is another new product that, again, I purchased at Sephora (here). This particular shade works well for my “tanned” look, but that’s sad because there’s only one color lighter than this one so that says a lot about my level of paleness! It’s a good product and at $20, I think it’s a good price point for a high end concealer. I’ll also review this one in the future.





Over that I applied the Nars Light Reflecting Loose Setting Powder (reviewed here), which I already had in my collection. Next up was Bobbi Brown’s Matte Bronzer in Medium 2, which was also from my collection. I like this bronzer because it’s matte and it’s also more red based than orange/brown based like a lot of bronzers. The red undertones are important because when I tan, my skin has a red undertone rather than yellow. That means that this color of bronzer tends to look more natural on me. You can check out this bronzer on Bobbi’s website here. It retails for $38 but you get a lot of bronzer which will last a long time. I used the bronzer to contour my cheeks, along the edges of my jaw and at the top of my forehead and down the middle of my nose.

As for blush, I had received a full size Be a Bombshell Blush in Sweet Cheeks as part of one of my subscription boxes. Since I had never even heard of the brand, I was anxious to try it. This is a really nice blush and I’m looking forward to trying more of their products. Sweet Cheeks retails for $16 and you can see more here.





Now on to the eyes. I used Mac’s Blanc Type powder shadow (from my collection) from the last line to the eyebrow. In the crease, I used Nars Cosmetics’s Ondine shadow, a plummy browny yummy color. Both of these colors are great for everyday wear and look good with all eye colors.








For mascara, I used The Balm’s What’s Your Type? Body Builder mascara (here for $19) and I also used The Balm’s Schwing black liquid eyeliner (here for $17).






Last but not least, I used a Paula Dorf eye pencil in Baby Eyes Enhancer on my lower rims. I received this in a subscription box but this retails for $20 (I also like this product).

Finally, to finish things up, I used Make Up For Ever’s Aqua Rouge in 20 Baby Pink. I love this product and must review it soon!









That’s my latest summer “high end” face. What do you think? Have you used any of these products? Are there any you want to try?

Face of the Day: Spring is Here!!!

Spring is here and I've been testing out all kinds of products! After spending two weeks in Florida, I thought it was time to break out my Spring clothing, even though the weather here in Virginia hasn't been exactly Spring-like. As part of that, it seemed like a good time to try on a lighter, brighter makeup.

Some of these products have been reviewed but most haven't and I'll be posting reviews of them over the next few days. Here's a list of what I'm wearing:

• Almay Smart Shade Mousse Makeup in Light
• It Cosmetics Bye Bye Undereye in Light
• CoverGirl Lash Blast Volume (the orange tube) Mascara
• Wet & Wild Eyeshadow in Petal Pusher
• Cailyn Line-Fixx Gel Eyeliner in Black
• Manna Kador Blush in High Five
• Nars Light Reflecting Setting Powder
• Maybelline Color Sensational Lipstick in Pink Freeze (805)

What makeup looks are you wearing this Spring?

Face of the Day: Drugstore Brands

I've been working for the last few days to get back on track after being away for over a week. Today was the first day that I actually took the time to put on makeup so I thought it would be a good time to do a Face of the Day (FOTD) post. 

Every item I used today is from the drugstore. Just about every item I used has not been reviewed yet so you can look forward for more reviews of some quality drugstore products. Click below to see what makes up this look!

Face of the Day: A Luminous, Lifted Look

Lately, I've been interested in makeup looks that revitalize, tired, dry skin. Since it's winter, my skin is dryer than ever and it just feels "blah." That's really the best way to describe it. A couple of months ago, I started trying new products that add luminosity to the skin. At the same time, I had the opportunity to view a new video from my favorite make up artist, Lisa Eldridge here.  Click below to see my variation of her look!