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Sunday, December 16, 2012

Get NAKED!!!

So I have been wanting the Urban Decay NAKED and NAKED  2 palette for sometime now. Since I asked for them for Xmas, I have not bought them myself. However, since I could not resist the lure of such great makeup, I caved and bought the NAKED Basics yesterday at my local Ulta and I LOVE IT!!!! I am positive I will use this palette everyday. It has 6 great matte shades (ok, a bit of a lie Venus has a bit of shimmer to it) that work on all skin tones and all ages. I love the fact that this palette is matte since a lot of older women can use this palette without looking silly/calling attention to their wrinkles. It's the mommy/daughter palette. I walked into Ulta to check the palette out initially because I was scared that the lighter shades would not work well on tan/olive and darker skin tones. Some light colors can look chalky against a dark background. However, I was excited to realize this was not the case with this palette. Luckily, there was also a consultant on hand from Urban Decay, to help me figure out how to blend the lighter colors so they look good on darker skin. The colors are highly pigmented which I am a fan of especially because I have darker skin. The case feels like rubber to me, but it seems very durable and the palette is very travel-friendly. I could easily fit it in a clutch for a holiday party or my jeans pocket since it is the same size as an iPhone or Blackberry.


Description of colors
Venus-pale skin tone color with a bit of shimmer. It looks practically the same as Foxy except it has shimmer.

Foxy-pale skintone like Venus without the shimmer (matte). It also looks less pink.

W.O.S-Pale skin tone shade, matte, more pink undertones than the two previous colors

Naked 2-Pale brown/taupe-y matte

Faint- light milk chocolate matte

Crave-dark brown matte, almost black. It's like looking into a cup of coffee without cream.

Here is my personal look that I wear using my Naked Basics Palette via a step by step guide:

1) For darker skinned girls apply WOS across the lid and follow up towards the brow bone. For lighter skinned girls use Foxy.

2) Take Naked 2 and apply it all over the lid.

3) Take Faint and blend it into the crease and the outer edge of the lid. You can also add a bit under the lower lashes if you are feeling adventurous.

4) Repeat the above step with Crave for a really well defined eye.

5) Add a dab of Venus to the middle of the top lid and into the inner rim of your eye to brighten it up a bit. Again if you are feeling adventurous, you can add some below you eyelashes starting from the point of the arch and out towards your ear. This will give you a luminous glow and highlight your face.

Enjoy! If my step-by-step guide is unclear feel free to comment! (or if you have anything else you'd like to know about.

XOXO, Haylee :)

PS Check out our Current Giveaways page for our latest giveaways!

Post Holiday/New Year's Giveaway

So Anna recently went to the Stila warehouse sale where she got some awesome stuff for herself, me and several people on her Xmas list including....YOU!!!! That's right guys we have a new giveaway that will end Jan 31st. Enjoy!

The giveaway includes Stila's "Under the Mistletoe" palette with 3 of their holiday lip glazes (Left to right): Jingle, Joy, and Holly. The palette is an $85 value and Stila lip glazes sell for $22 each, so the entire package is valued at over $120!



a Rafflecopter giveaway


XOXO,
Haylee :)
Wednesday, December 12, 2012

Beauty Bar/Sample Society November 2012 Box

I am very excited to say that today I got my very first BeautyBar.com Sample Society Box! Yay!

A little bit about Beauty Bar, Sample Society, and the box:
As a subscriber, you pay $15 a month to get a year subscription to Allure magazine and a box delivered to your door featuring 5 sample size high end beauty products.

What I got in my box:
A coupon code
Mini Allure magazine with beauty tips
Diptyque eau de toilette in Volutes (0.06 fl oz/2ml valued at $3.11)
L'Occitane en Provence Dry Skin Hand Cream in Shea Butter (0.3 oz/10 ml valued at $1.62)
Dermalogica's Precleanse (1 oz/30 ml valued at $6.86)
Mini (and I mean MINI) lipstick in Satin Pink #29 by Diego Dalla Palma
Bamboo Smooth Kendi Oil Dry Oil Mist by Alterna(1 fl oz/30 ml valued at $5.71)
Total Value (without lipstick): $17.30
What I paid: $15.00----not a super great bargain in this box compared to Julep or some other boxes but they have some nice products and I got a bit more than what I paid for.

Reviews:

Mini Allure magazine-I was really excited about this and it was one of the selling points in the box for me. I like guides and tips on how to use my products and this definitely came through with what it had promised. The only problem I have with this is that the first page talks about the new trend of crimson lips whereas the actual box did not send users a crimson/deep red lipstick sample. The colors found in the boxes were a standard red, orange-pink, and a pale-ish pink. I can understand why Sample Society did this, however; most women might not like the "on trend" lip color especially in deep almost-black red.


Diptyque eau de toilette in Volutes-I LOVE this scent. The name is French and apparently means the smoke from a cigarette. I know that makes the scent sound horrible, but it is meant to evoke images of women on Titanic era ocean liners, elegantly dressed and smoking. The only drawback is that the regular size of this perfume retails at a whooping $120. Actually, make that two drawbacks. I was a bit disappointed that Sample Society would chose to send me a perfume sample that I could jsut as easily pick up at the perfume counter of my local department store. I actually got TWO free samples of this perfume from my local Nordstrom's counter when I asked to smell the perfume.


L'occitane en Provence Hand Cream-This hand cream is apparently a brand bestseller; according to the company, one is sold every 5 seconds somewhere around the world. I was not super thrilled with recieving this product since I could have gotten it for free right now with the company's Facebook promotion. I will not be buying any products from this company right now, however, due to their customer service. I never got my coupon for the Facebook promo even though I applied TWICE. They never responded to me about this problem the first time I asked customer service about it. The second time, they said they ran out of coupons and that I should walk into my local store and just request a sample free of charge. I did walk into my local boutique and--as expected--I did not get a free sample because they did not believe that customer service had told me to just walk into the store and ask for one. Because of this fiasco with L'occitane, I was acutally happy to recieve a sample of the cream in my Sample Society box since I went to a lot of trouble to try the product. I will tell you more about the actual cream itself when I try it out.


Dermalogica Precleanse-Haven't tried the product yet, but I have heard wonderful things about it from other girls and I cannot wait to try it.


Diego Dalla Palma Lipstick in #29 Pink Satin- I am not thrilled at all about the size of this sample. It is only 1.5 inches tall. I do love the color and the consistency of the product. If you want to see what the color looks like on me, you can do so on my Youtube review of this box. The lipstick is very smooth and brings out the natural color of my lips. It stayed on during my ENTIRE dinner and since then has lasted 2 hours and counting. I will be buying more of these. The drawback is that the full product is $34.

Kendi Oil by Alterna-Great sample size of 1 oz. I love spraying this in my hair when my scalp/hair get really dry in the winter months. It helps add and lock in some extra moisture that I would not otherwise have and really keeps my hair from drying out and my scalp from itching/irritating due to large amounts of styling.

XOXO,
Haylee :)
Tuesday, December 4, 2012

I'm on Youtube!!!

Subscribe to my new vlog on Youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_yqAP8A65mMERazplQbcHQ?feature=mhee

This gives you an extra entry into my Holiday Giveaway!!!!

PS If this link doesn't work, please let me know so I can fix it :)

XOXO,
Haylee :)

Influenster's College VoxBox

Hey guys! So today I am really excited to announce a post for Influenster's College VoxBox. I got my box before leaving for Thanksgiving to visit my family so I am sorry this post is a little late. Influenster is a company that pairs up people that are passionate about certain hobbies with companies that sell particular items so that the company's products can be reviewed. I was invited to join this company by my follower Lauren so a big THANK YOU to her :). As a member of Influenster, you are never promised a box or product to review but participation and doing surveys on the website enhance your possible selection as a reviewer. I know Lauren got the Beauty Box to review a while back from them and now I am getting their College Box. I would love to have you guys subscribe as well so if you are interested, I have 5 invites to share. Just leave me a commment down below if you want to be invited and I can give you the info. On to the box...

PRODUCTS IN MY BOX:
Impress Press-On Manicure
NYC New York Color ShowTime Glitter Eyeliner Pencil
Necco Tropical Wafers
Pentel EnerGel-X Campaign pen
Energy Sheets

REVIEWS:

Impress Press-On Manicure-When I saw these were included in my box I was super excited. I was going to actually buy some for my trip to Vegas so that I would have nice nails for a few nights. These nails are $5.99 for solid colors and $7.99 for prints. I love these as an alternative to getting my nails done at a salon. They make my nails look nice for a fraction of the salon price. In my box I recieved Space Cadet which was an ok print in my opinion. I think everyone else that saw them thought they were cooler than I did. I just thought it looked kind of like cow spots so I was not to thrilled with the pattern. They do have other nice patterns which I have shared below and I have purchased the french manicure before. Unfortunately, I don't have a picture of me wearing them since I took the nails off and just now remembered that I needed to snap a picture of them. :( Broadway, the company that makes the nails, says they have a longevity of about a week. Mine lasted 5 days before I decided to take them off (the long nails hinder my ability to work in a lab), but I have had mine last up to a week and a half before. I did notice that the design on the tips tends to wear down after 2 days or so. They did last a whole weekend in Vegas (including clubbing) so they are very durable.



Eyeliner Pencil-I was kind of apprehensive about this product when I first recieved it since it seems like the type of product that could be really amazing or really bad. I do recommend NYC Color as a brand. I have been using their nail polish as a kid and I used their makeup back in middle school and high school. Recently I haven't bought anything from the company, but this eyeliner pencil might change that. The liner I recieved was in black but they do come in other colors (a blue and a brown, I believe). Unfortunately, they are only selling the black one at the Target near my house. The liner is long lasting and non-smudging. I wore it all night while clubbing in Vegas. It might be a little too long wearing, however, since I had problems getting rid of the glitter specks with a facial wipe that night while getting ready for bed. I still had sparkles around my eyes when I woke up in the morning.


Pentel pen- I got this pen in the color purple. At first I was a little upset by the way the pen wrote. It was a bit hard to use it while writing on my desk at home. The ink did not form a solid line. However, as I kept using it, the ink started flowing smoothly and the pen writes like a dream. In fact, I am thinking about sticking to ONLY this pen--it is that good. I normally use the PILOT G-2 07 pen which is another gel pen. As a lefty, it is important for me to find nice pens that won't smear when my hand passes over the ink. This Pentel pen does not smear. In addtion, the gel consistency is nicer than that of the Pilot pens. I really don't know how to characterize this difference other than it is "nicer." It just improves the writing experience. This pen is definitely one I will keep using in the future.
 
Tropical Wafers- I have never seen products from this brand at any store I have been to. If anyone knows where to find them, please let me know. The wafers are addicting. I tried the banana flavored one and the green one, and I can't stop eating them. I am saving the rest for when I need a little pick-me-up during the work day.


Energy Sheets- I haven't tried the energy sheets yet. I will try just one for the sake of review, but other than that I plan on passing them along to a friend who is ok using them. I tend to not use energy boosts since I consider them unnatural and unsafe. I like my caffeine to come from coffee or tea. Maybe I am just old fashioned.


Have a wonderful day guys and don't forget to enter my Holiday Giveaway(you can find it under current giveaways). Which of these products would you try/have you tried?

XOXO, Haylee :)
Monday, November 26, 2012

Julep November 2012 Maven's Choice Box

So I am finally posting what I got in my Julep box this month and my review of the products. It took a bit since I actually had the box mailed to my boyfriend's house. He's been looking for a good foot scrub and I wanted him to try Julep's since I know they have really great products all the time. On to the box...

So as most of you know, Julep has a Maven program where they send out a box of polish and/or products each month for $19.99. It's a great deal because every month you get about $40 worth of product for half the price.

Honestly, however, I would not have ordered any of this month's boxes since I was not super into any of the boxes (the majority contained suede polishes which are all the rage this fall but I am not a fan of them) nor do I need any more polish. I just wanted my boyfriend to have a nice food scrub. Initially, I was so-so/sometimes excited about my box and this quickly gave way to a bit of disappointment. My Youtube review will probably be more positive than the review I am about to do here only because now I have had some time to try the products and have had some time to observe the product. I ordered the Julep Maven's Choice box this month and it came with the following:

Julep Pink Grapefruit Body Scrub
A Scrub Towel and Mitt
Trina Nail Polish
Donna Nail Polish
Matte Polish
3 Trial Sized Nail Polish Remover Pads

Here are my individual reviews:

Julep Pink Grapefruit Body Scrub-I have no picture of this product because it is actually at my boyfriend's house. I like the smell of this scrub since pink grapefruit is my favorite scent and I was hoping this product would remind me of Neutrogena's grapefruit face wash (which it does). Also I looked forward to this product since Julep did a scrub in the past as well (that one was pomegranate). The product is very grainy and smells wonderful which are both positives when it comes to a scrub. The downside to the product is that after using it, there seems to be a bit of residue left behind. I don't know if this is normal just so that the product sinks in so it can work better. I don't mind the feeling. However, my boyfriend who uses the product as a foot scrub dislikes the "extra residue" feeling and washes his feet with soap after using the product. In his mind, this is an extra step that he should not have to do. Overall, this product is great and meets it's purpose, but there is something lacking with the left over residue that must be washed off.

Scrub Mitt and Towel- At first I was excited about the scrub mitt and towel. I thought it was a great and thoughtful addition to each box. However, when I recieved the towel and mitt, I was a little disappointed. The two are very pretty and a bit rough (they are for exfoliation). The roughness might be a little excessive for some individuals. Also, the towel and mitt are not thick or comfy which leads me to believe that they are cheaply made. They definitely are not things I would proudly display in my guest bathroom since they are not as nice as my bath towels. At first this might sound a bit holier-than-thou to say that I would not put these out for others to use since they are better than my regular towels, but I am a student on a budget so I have nice towels but they aren't towels from Bloomingdale's or Barney's. I don't think it would have been super difficult to make a nice scrub towel.

Trina Nail Polish-I think this is a good polish, good quality, and it holds up to the usual Julep standard of good polish. I was not a fan of the color for me personally since they added a bit of shimmer. I compare the polish to OPI's Lincoln Park After Dark. Julep's Trina is a tad bit lighter plus the shimmer. Overall, a great winter color. The only thing I dislike about this polish coming in one of the boxes is that it is an older polish that can be bought on the website and has been debutted before. The point of the Maven program is to be able to get access to NEW polishes that have yet to be mass marketed. The insert in the picture is the polish on my nails with my new striping tape! :) (not part of Julep)

Donna Nail Polish- A new-to-Julep polish that I was very excited to get. I was a bit let down when I actually received the polish since it seemed a bit more blue online in the initial pictures that Julep posted. I still love the color. It is similar to OPI Nicole's collaboration polish with the Kardashians, Khloe Had a Little Lam-Lam. The OPI polish is more green-blue whereas the Julep polish is more blue-green (does that make sense? :P ). My BIG peeve with this polish is that after I set it on the shelf for a day and it wasn't rolling around, I realized that Julep didn't fill the bottle up and I recieved a partially empty bottle. It doesn't bother me since I have never finished an entire bottle of polish in my life so I probably don't need the extra polish. However, I feel that it shows a big hole in the Julep product and customer service since technically, I paid for a full bottle. This used to never happen with the company so I feel they are on a downward trend for right now. I think they should continue to do what they do best and just stick to polish. I have talked to Julep customer service about this and have yet to recieve a response from them about this issue. Normally they are very on top of this kind of situation so I do not know what is going on. :(
 
 
Polish Remover Pads-I haven't tried these yet, but I hope to get a chance over my Christman break when I will be traveling to visit family.


Matte Polish-I love this product! It made my nails look super cool. Check out the pictures below for a comparison of Donna with and without the matte polish.
 

Hope you guys enjoyed your boxes! What was your favorite product?
XOXO,
Haylee
Saturday, November 17, 2012

Covergirl Lip Find

I was browsing magazine websites this weekend when I read an article on Allure about some tips to get the perfect lip color and how to maintain nice lips. The article talked about nude lips which I have been dying to try but just have not been able to find the perfect color for me. The article recommended Covergirl's LipPerfection lipstick in Delish for olive to medium skin tones. So what do I do? I stopped by my local Target to pick up a tube while running some errands. I went home and tried it out and have not been disappointed. I like the how the color compliments my skin and gives me a great look when I do really dramatic eye looks. The tube design is useful as well. I like how the bottom of the tube is a "swatch" of the color; however, I think the swatch is a little more red than the actual lipstick. The price was a great deal as well since Target carries it for $5-7. I only wish that when I swatch it on once on my lips I get enough color to cover my natural lip. I have to use two coats but this might be because my natural lip is a bit darker than this shade of lipstick. I cannot wait to try out more of Covergirl's lipsticks especially in the nude range.




Also as you guys might have noticed, I have added a "What I Want NOW" tab to my blog to kind of serve as a page of things I am craving right now (to my friends and family: these make great gifts, hint!hint!) Also check out my Current Giveaways tab for two giveaways that are currently ongoing.

Have a wonderful day! XOXO,
Haylee :)

PS What Covergirl products do you like? Is there a product in particular I should review?
Saturday, November 10, 2012

Weekend Nails!

This is just a quick post to share what I'm wearing on my nails right now. I was inspired by my nail artist at my local nail salon.  The colors are 2 For Tea by PIXEL which, unfortunately, chips very easily so I don't recommend this particular color from their line and Butter London's West End Wonderland. Enjoy!

 
XOXO,
Haylee :)

P.S. I have no idea why some of my pics upload backwards/upside down :(

MAC Haul: StyleSeeker Collection and Other Finds

So I know it is a little late to review the StyleSeeker collection since I got the products in September; however, I really like these products and MAC in general so I really want to spotlight my finds.

What really attracted me to the collection was their promo poster with two of the models. I liked the look on the dark skinned model and asked my local MAC counter to recreate the look for me.

(picture found online)
 
Unfortunately, the eye palette on the model (Marche Aux Puces) was sold out like so many of the MAC collection products are. But my amazing artist at the Los Angeles MAC counter helped me recreate the look using other colors that are part of their standard line. I know these colors are a good representation of the actual look because we used the demo palette from the acutal StyleSeeker line to come up with the comparable colors.

(picture found online)

The gold color on the palette is very similar to Goldenrod from Mary Kay which I currently own. For the reddish-brown color in the palette, I was recommended MAC's Swiss chocolate. To get the model's eye look, apply the gold color to the lid and then apply the brown color to the outer edges of the brow and drag out. Line the eyes with a dark eyeliner or a MAC kohl pencil  and apply mascara. :)

 
(MAC's Swiss Chocolate,  Mary Kay's Goldenrod plus swatches (left is Swiss Chocolate))

The model on the left is wearing Hidden Treasure on her cheeks. I love how bright and foreceful the color is on her face. I did manage to buy the cheek color and I have wore it EVERYDAY since the purchase. In fact, this was  a great collection. I have worn at least one product from the collection since buying it and the artisit helping me at the MAC counter told me the same thing when I bought the collection so I HIGHLY recommend it.

(Hidden Treasure blush; swatch is below, the first one on the left)

I also picked up the On The Hunt shadow duo from the collection. I put the color on the right on my lid and apply the color on the left to my crease and kind of drag it out. It flatters/compliments my olive/brown skin well.
(On The Hunt eyeshadow swatches)
(Hidden Treasure blush, On the Hunt pink/red swatch, On The Hunt shimmery mauve)

My final find is a blush in Gingerly(NOT part of the styleseeker collection). It's a peachy/ligh pink blush that is great for when I want to wear blush but don't want something too overpowering.

(Gingerly blush and swatch)

What are your favorite MAC products from the collection or otherwise?

Have a great day! XOXO,
Haylee :)

P.S. Be sure to check out MAC's current holiday collection Glamour Daze (Days?) which is out in stores now and selling fast! :)



Monday, November 5, 2012

October's Breast Cancer Awareness Nails

Again another late post...I need to really get these up in time :(. This one is in celebration of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Ladies go get yourself checked! Also sorry the clean up job on the nails did not turn out as well as I had hoped. I am still trying to get over messed up nails from my trip to the salon.



XOXO,
Haylee

Halloween Nails!

So here are some Halloween nails I did for October 31st. Sorry this post is late guys :(. I have been busy with life outside of blogging, but I hope you enjoy! Also stay posted for my upcoming Julep Maven November 2012 Box review. Until I post my review here, you can watch my impression of the box on Youtube:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hxXr9wWJ2aY&feature=colike


XOXO,
Haylee :)
Monday, October 29, 2012

Holiday Giveaway!!!

Here's a new giveaway to get everyone into the holiday season! Enjoy! Remember that you MUST be a PUBLIC follower to be eligible to win. A picture of all the prizes is shown below. This giveaway is valued at $25.


Enjoy! XOXO,
Haylee :)

a Rafflecopter giveaway








 

My Beauty Must Haves Part II

So first off I want to congratulate Jessica S. for winning my Halloween Giveaway!!!! She was super sweet and she said she plans on using the polish to do her homecoming nails so I hope they turn out great and I would love it if you shared how they turned out with us! For everyone else, stick around because there will be a November/Christmas giveaway that I will be posting soon. :) In other news I have subscribed to some beauty boxes in addition to Julep so you guys will get to see those boxes when I open them as they arrive in November. Also for my foodies, I have some exciting products you guys should try coming up. But now on to this post...

So I ended my last beauty must haves post in the middle of the post since I was in a rush but I will continue it here:

8. Mary Kay eyeshadow in Goldenrod
I love is shadow. I got it as a kid when first exploring makeup and I still wear it all the time. Unfortunately, the last shadow I have of it is running it and I don't think they make the shade anymore which is a shame.  The color is a very nice bronze-gold. I find it very compare able to a few shades that MAC has put out and regularly use it has a substitution for some of their colors. By the way, sorry if there a typos I this post; I am trying to correct them as best as I can but the iPad I am using is kind of hard to type on :(. Anyway back to the shadow. I find it to be a great staple especially being South Asian; it gives me a great shadow to work with for very natural looks. Also it is pretty pigmented which I like since I like to have a lot of color to work with. Some brands like Stila just don't have enough pigmentation to work with the more olive/caramel skin tone.

9. Neutrogena's Oil-Free Acne Wash in pink grapefruit.
I don't have problems with acne now that I'm in my twenties, but I use this product to just maintain my clear skin and because I love anything scented pink grapefruit. My boyfriend actually was the one that got me into this product after I tried it out at his place. The invigorating smell is so refreshing  in the morning and it definitely combats breakouts. I use it twice a week to just refresh my skin. I would use it more often but since I don't have acne I try not to use it often since the main ingredient is salicylic acid. I like to save the acid for when/if I really need to fix my face.

10. Maybelline 24 hour lip color
So I've reviewed this product when I bought it but I wanted to list it here as well even if it is a fairly recent product since I like it so much. My sister and her beauty guru friend picked it out for some of the girls in their college color guard to wear. I was running through her makeup when I picked this product up and immediately fell in love with it (meaning I ran to the store that night and picked up a few colors I liked). The color lasts the entire day and goes on really smooth. The included lip balm also helps keep lips smooth and crack free which i love since my chapped lips always get worse when I wear gloss/lipstick.

11. Clinique's All About Eyes cream
Again this is another product I've reviewed on this blog, but I want to mention it here as well since I do use it everyday. I keep mine in the fridge and it does a great job at removing my under eye circles, which are genetic, and depuffing my eyes. The other day I had horrible allergies so my eyes were super swollen. I put some of this cream on under my makeup before work and it dramatically reduced the puffiness. I swear I was starting to look like I had marshmallows for eyes.

12. Lip balm
As I mentioned earlier, I always get really chapped lips so I am a fan of any good lip balm. My favorite brands are Chapstick and Blistex but really anything will do. I tend to put it on before I apply lipstick or lipgloss as well just to keep my lips hydrated and help the product go on smoother. My school had an organic food fair/ farmer's market this past week and I picked up a watermelon lip balm there which I am excited to try. :) I love anything watermelon.

13. Victoria's Secret VS Pro Lasting FX Eyeshadow Primer
I got this product for practically free after using a Secret Rewards card. The price is around $10. I had never used primer before but now I can't stop! I got it to use under some of my Stila eye colors to bring out the pigment. It does a better job of bringing out the pigment, but it does a really good job at making my shadow last all day.
 
14. Simple Face Wipes
I love this Bristish? company for their sensitive skin products. I believe they are more natural than other companies out there but I could be misinformed so don't quote me on that. I am the type of girl that will go out late on the weekends and come home to tired to take off my makeup. These wipes come in very handy at those moments when I can just reach in and grab a wipe to remove my makeup. Also they never irritate my skin which is a great plus since I have sensitive skin.


15. Eco Brush Set
I bought this set at Walmart for fairly cheap but I have seen it at Target and Ulta and I'm sure it can be found in other stores as well. This is my go-to brush set. It works well and comes with all the basic brushes: blush brush, shadow brush, concealer brush, eyebrow brush/eyelash comber, and one other brush I cannot for the life of me remember right now. I highly recommend it as a starter set. I use it every morning to do my makeup. The brushes are also very easy to clean. Just wash the brush with a bit of soap and leave it tilted downwards to drip dry.

16. Goody Hair Clips
I have a lot of hair (thick and long) so I like having good tools to pull it back with. These two sizes are perfect for pulling my bangs back and just putting my hair halfway up. It also comes with very neutral shades to match anything in my wardrobe.

17. MAC Blush
I will do a more in-depth review of my individual colors, but I just have to share how AMAZING these blushes are. They are one of the best blush buys around as far as ratio of product to price: $20 for one compact or 0.0105 oz/USD. I love all MAC products for how pigmented they are and this fact extends to their blushes. In addition, they have a great range of colors for any skin tone or occasion. I do not think I have stopped wearing mine since they day I brought them.
Monday, October 22, 2012

Mismatched Manicure

So I finally painted my nails after a very long break. I went to the salon a month ago to get some french tips done since I was getting bored of doing my own nails (shock! :o) This happens to me sometimes since I always do my own nails about once a week. Sometimes it is nice to go to a salon and just be pampered and have someone else do my nails for once. I had a hard time getting the gel mainicure off so I had to clip my nails a bit shorter than I normally would. The edges were also a bit jagged so I decided on a manicure that would hide the uneven edges a bit: polka dots.

The nails have a very nautical theme and match one of my Jason Wu blouses. I decided to make my left hand blue with polka dots and leave my right hand solid blue...so I now have a mismatched manicure. The real reason behind me just having one polka dotted hand is because I got sick of fighting my shaky right hand when it would mess up the dots on my left hand. That being said, I will proudly rock my mismatched manicure. At first I felt like people would think I'm crazy, but I've decided I'm ok with that. After all Bibhu Mohapatra recently had his models walk down the runway with one nude hand and one painted hand in honor of his mother who, being a traditional Indian, would only paint one hand so she could eat her food with the other hand and not have to worry about messing up her manicure.

I used China Glaze First Mate with NYC Color's white for the polka dots.

PS My Halloween Giveaway ends Friday!!! Check out my giveaways tab to enter! Also how do you guys feel about mismatched manis? Share your thoughts in the comments! :)

XOXO,
Haylee :)
Thursday, October 18, 2012

My Beauty Must Haves

So today I will let you guys have a peek into my beauty regime and share with you my beauty must haves. A lot of my girlfriends ask my what beauty products I use all the time so I thought I would share a few of my favorites with you guys! :)

1. Burberry Brit Sheer
This perfume is my all time favorite go to scent. When I was first shopping for a fragerance several years ago, this scent captured my heart from the very beginning. I love fruity and floral scents so this perfume was a winner from the start.  It has notes of pineapple, litchi, mandarin, grapes, pink peony, and peach blossoms to name a few. Since then it has been my signature scent so much so that my sister (who is also in love with this scent) is dying to get a bottle herself. The only thing holding her back--it reminds her of me so much that she feels she can never make it her own.

2. Mary Kay eyeliner in Sable or Deep Brown
When I first started using makeup, my mother took me to see a Mary Kay consultant. I have always loved their eyeliners especially their Sable shade. Unfortunately, they no longer make Sable so recently I have been opting for Deep Brown. It's the perfect shade of dark without being black so my eyes look bold and alluring without looking overly done. Most people say my eyes are my best facial feature so I like to accentuate them when I'm doing my makeup.

3.Victoria Secret's Strawberries and Champagne Lotion
I have been in love with this scent ever since I was a little girl and picked out a gift set in this scent as a Christmas gift for my mom. I feel very sweet yet very sexy when I wear it and it gives me a nice clean feeling when I step out of the shower.

4. Tresemme Shampoo and Conditioner
I am blessed with thick, long dark hair but I'm South Asian so maybe it's in the genes. If it's not, Tresemme does great things for my hair. I've been using it since I've been in middle school and I love that they have a natural line with lower sulfates.

5. Victoria's Secret Body Scrub
I will take their body scrubs in any scent, but Mango Temptation is my favorite. I love how gritty the scrub feels. I don't like scrubs that are not super gritty (a scrub should SCRUB) and this one meets all my exfoliating needs. My adorable boyfriend also loves this scrub after recently using it to scrub his feet after having his feet inside a pair of smelly sneakers one day. :)

6. OPI's Mrs. O'Leary's BBQ
I am a nail polish addict. I don't think my nails have ever been polish free since high school. This red is the perfect shade and it works well for all skin tones and all occasions. I find it even funnier since I actually know a Mrs. O'Leary (I have never had her BBQ).

7. Revlon 1? inch straightener
I have had this straightener since I began college (I've been out for several years now so that's saying something). I love how inexpensive it is($20!) and how fabulously it works. When I broke mine a few years ago, I ran out immediately to purchase the same one all over again. I will put a disclaimer on this straightener for my super curly haired/African American gals out there since I have it on good advice from one of my African American friends that it does not straighten super curly/coarse hair as straight as some of ya'll would like yours to be. However, mine comes out pin straight.

8.  Mary Kay eyeshadow in....

TO BE CONTINUED...

P.S. My Halloween Giveaway is still on! :) You can check it out under the Giveaways tab!

XOXO,
Haylee :)
Saturday, October 6, 2012

Julep Maggie

So back in June or July I got a Julep mystery box for myself that came with Maggie. Here is a swatch of the polish on me. It has a very Halloween feel to it, but I'm not loving the color. I think I would have liked this polish more without the glitter.


PACKAGING: I love the rectangular bottles. They pack a lot easier than most other polish brands which carry a rounded bottle. Also I just feel like the rectangular bottles give a polish collection more maturity.

PRICE: $14.99/.27 fl. oz. or $11.99 with the Maven discount. This polish is a bit pricier than most brands but when you take into account that they are free of major carcinogens (four free) and that most of the polishes are highly discounted through the Maven program, the price does not seem as bad.

APPLICATION: Easy two apply. Two coats gives the optimum opaqueness desired.

LONGEVITY: A week

Check out my Halloween Giveaway guys! :)

XOXO
Haylee :)
Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Maybe She's Born With It...

Today I'm going to share with you one of my favorite Maybelline products that I just found out about from my sister and her wonderful, makeup obsessed friend, G. I was over at my sister's place a few weeks ago getting ready for a football game, and like all sisters, I was going through her makeup bag and sampling her products to see if there was anything I did not already have when I came upon Maybelline's Super Stay 24  Color Lip Gloss and Balm Duo. I have to say I LOVE this product. I wanted it so bad after I tried it that I made my boyfriend drive me to the store after the game so I could pick up a few of these for myself.

I am a fan of lip color, but I cannot find colors I like (I tend to prefer nudes) that last as long as I want them to last. This all changed with the 24 Color Duo. My sister had the "Unlimited Raisin" duo which was my favorite color. Apparently every female on the planet agrees with me here because I have been to two separate stores in two separate months looking for "Unlimited Raisin" only to find it SOLD OUT TWICE. Clearly, it is a phenominal color. I did buy the product in two alternative colors: So Sienna and Perpetual Plum (my natural lip color, just prettier).

Here is my breakdown of the product:

PACKAGING: Nothing super exciting here. The product has a lip gloss on one end and a lip balm on the other end. The gloss end is clear so that you can see the shade of the color you are picking out if you toss it into a makeup bag or box.

APPLICATION: Put on the gloss, wait a few minutes for the gloss to dry, and then put on the lip balm for long lasting wear.

PRICE: Fairly reasonable. I can't remember the exact price. I think it was about $7, but I know that Target periodically has a sale where the price of the product goes down to $6.

COLOR SELECTION: A decent selection of colors; there are maybe fifteen to twenty different colors. There are not as many colors as there are shades of Maybelline lipstick.

LONGEVITY: At least twelve hours. However, I feel like this is hit or miss. The first few days I got the product, the gloss lasted a long time, but yesterday when I went out to a dinner date, the gloss was off in a few hours. The nice part about the Maybelline product is that it does not come off on glassware so if you go out to eat on a date, the gloss won't end up on your glass or even your date. :P

I will try to get a picture of the product up here as soon as I can. In the meantime, check out my Halloween Giveaway for some cool stuff!

XOXO, Haylee :)

Friday, September 28, 2012

Halloween Giveaway!!!

NOTE: To have a LEGITIMATE entry into the raffle, you must follow me by clicking "JOIN THE PARTY AND FOLLOW ME" on the right of the blog. Make sure you show up as a member or your entry won't count. You MUST be a PUBLIC follower.

a Rafflecopter giveaway



RULES:

1. You must follow me publicly to win.
2. If the winner does not respond after a week, the winner forfeits and a new winner will be chosen.
3. Contest is only open in the US and Canada.

THE PRIZES:




  • OPI So So Skullicious Mini 4 pack




  • NYX Golddigger False Eyelashes




  • Caramel Pumpkin Pie Coffee from WorldMarket




  • Twinings of London Pumpkin Spice Chai





  • Sally Hanson Salon Effects Polish Strips in Candy Corn




  • China Glaze Ghoulish Glow
  • TOTAL VALUE: (approx. $40)
  • Thursday, September 27, 2012

    PIXEL polish

    So over the summer while browsing the aisles at my local Ulta (which I tend to do A LOT), I found a great bargain: 2 dollar nail polish AND it was a brand that I had not heard of until that moment. You guessed it; I bought myself some PIXEL nail polish. I actually bought several colors but I will only be reviewing two here since my camera with the rest of the pictures is broken and I have not be able to pull the pictures off of it.

    PACKAGING: PIXEL did not do anything super exciting with their packaging. The bottles are shaped in the traditional polish bottle shape. I do like the fact that the bottles are small (.17) so that they can act as travel sized bottles. Also this allows you to sample a color you might be attracted to, but it gives you the option of being able to not commit to a large amount of polish the way brands like OPI and Essie do (I do know they come out with "minis" but not every color can be found as a mini). It really stinks to buy a large bottle of polish to try and then hate the color or have to go bad before you use the entire bottle.

    PRICE: When Ulta has their special going for $2 a bottle, the price comes out to be 0.085 fl oz/US dollar. This amount per dollar actually gives the buyer more polish than Butter London (0.028 fl oz/ US dollar) which I talked about in another post. I like a deal as much as the next beauty guru so hi-five to PIXEL for having affordable polish.

    COLOR SELECTION: PIXEL does not have the range of colors of OPI or Essie, but they do have a fairly large range. I believe there were about 60 or so polishes at my Ulta. If they are a new brand, however, the small range is to be expected at the beginning.

    APPLICATION:  This polish is easy to apply but requires at least three or four coats to work well due to the sheerness of each coat. The buildability of this polish is commendable since it works for women who like opaque polish as well as women who want something on their nails but shy away from bold color on their nails. A few people have complained about the size of the applicator brush since the bottle is small. I had no problem with this, but it might be because I have smaller hands than most people. Someone I know suggested that it would be a great "first polish" brand for kids since the tiny brush easily accomodates their hand size as well as allowing them to explore their polish likes and dislikes without parents having to spend a fortune on a collection they might grow out of when they get older.

    LONGEVITY: The polish lasted 4 days chip free before I took it off to wear another color. I hardly keep my polish on for longer than a week.

    Individual reviews:

    PUBLIC DISPLAY OF AFFECTION: I would like to take a moment and publicly display my affection for this polish (sorry for the corny joke). I wanted a nude polish, but I could never find the perfect shade. This color is my favorite from the collection so far and I am super tempted to run out and buy five more bottles of this color.

    CUDDLE TIME: Another nude polish in a soft brown/tan color. It would be one of my favorites as well except I feel that it matches my tan skin tone too perfectly so that it looks like I have no nail beds. It looks paler when photographed below so it does not look quite as similar to my skin tone in the picture.
     


    ITSY BIT-SY: A dark salmon pink which I thought would look flattering on my skn tone, but turns out it does not (at least in my opinion). When I put the color on my nails, I couldn't wait to get it off. Sorry for the upside down picture :(. I cannot figure out how to get the picture to upload the right way.

     


    Have a wonderful Thursday night everyone! It's almost the weekend (yay!).

    Haylee :)