Archive for September, 2010

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Gorgeous deep purple, which is almost eggplant but isn’t.  Essie’s website considers it “an oh-so-deep iridescent currant.”  I reckon I can go with that… All I know is I bought this back in March or April because it reminded me of the White Queen’s nails in “Alice in Wonderland” (I think she used Essie Wicked).  I’ve waited ever since to use this because I just didn’t feel it was right to use in Spring and Summer… I normally don’t care about rules, but I wanted to wait for “Vamp Season.”  It’s almost similar to OPI Yes… I Can-Can, but it’s not as dark and the shimmer is more obvious.  If you don’t have this, then you need it!

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Posh is a gorgeous matte red that has subtle microshimmer, and looks insanely gorgeous when a top coat is applied. I think this just moved up into my Top 3 for reds! In addition to being quick drying, this polish applied like a dream. I’m not sure what happened with Harlow yesterday, but she gave me the most trouble so far. I still have three more mattes from Zoya to use, so we’ll see if they give me any problems!

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I decided to keep with the Zoya Mattes theme for the week, and opted to go with Harlow for today. It’s a gorgeous jewel-toned matte, though I’m not too sure if I like how it looks on me. The shimmer’s more apparent than with Dovima, but it also doesn’t look as shiny/glossy IRL as it does in this pic with a top coat. Maybe the color itself, though beautiful, just doesn’t look right on me… Or I’m just getting more used to my vamps right now that I’m just not feeling this. Who knows! It’s still pretty either way!

Last December, I did a post on my favorite beauty products, which you can view here.  It’s been almost a whole year of looking for new beauty faves, and unless something drastic happens between now and the year’s end, it’s safe to say the following products are my 2010 Must-Have Beauty Products (links included):

NYC Smooth Skin Translucent Powder (Loose and Pressed) ($3) – My combo skin seems to prefer being oily more so than anything, and I’ve needed a good powder that will eliminate shine and keep it at bay.  After reading the glowing reviews on MUA, I decided to take the whole $3 plunge and get this LOL!  I’m so happy I did!  My shine is kept away for at least 3-4 hours, so I only need to touch up once during the day.  I hate touching up, but if I only have to do it once, I’m good with that!

Maybelline Define-A-Brow Eye Brow Pencil in Dark Brown ($6.50) – There was a point in my life where my eyebrows were plucked into non-existence.  Luckily, I was able to grow them back!  While they’re still sparse, good ol’ Maybelline helps me make them look fuller without looking fake!  And at half the price, this is a MUCH cheaper alternative to MAC Brow Pencil!

Too Faced Shadow Insurance ($18) – UDPP and I didn’t get along well, and Lumene is just like UDPP.  I was WAY happy when this lovely squeeze-tube of goodness came out!  My eyeshadow rarely ever creases when I use this, and if it does crease, it’s been seriously hot and my oily lids said, “Um, crease party!”

Stila Bouquet Eyeshadow ($18) – A perfect matte pink that’s almost more of a skintone pink.  It doesn’t really pop on me, but it gives a nice pinky matte look that I love.  Makes me think of a retro look with my black liner.  (This is possibly being discontinued, so I’ll have to cry!  Thankfully my friend found two of them for me at her Nordstrom Rack for only $7 each, and I just opened one of them.  I should be okay for about a year, or a bit more… It’ll suck if I have to find a replacement!)

Revlon ColorStay Eyeliner in Black ($7) – I gave up on finding an eyeliner for my waterline… And I got to lazy to put liner there anyway.  However, I finally caved after a friend suggested I try Revlon ColorStay Eyeliner.  I’d always heard good things about it, but I didn’t ever fall into its trap.  I have no idea why because I’m in love!  I can apply my mascara, wait a few minutes, and use my lash curler without losing ANY liner!  Everything else I tried came right off when I curled my lashes – Even MUFE Aqua Eyes!  This really does stay on as it’s normally after using eye makeup remover or the next morning that I finally get it all off!  Even Philosophy Purity Made Simple can’t get this off on its own in one shot!

Maybelline The Falsies (Washable) in Blackest Black ($7.50) – I read a few reviews from UK ladies on this before it came out in the USA, and so I didn’t really think much of it.  But, I’m glad it was released in the USA!  You can read a full review I did on this here.

Barielle Growth Activator for Natural Nails ($16) – Thank goodness for Marshall’s and TJ Maxx!  Because otherwise, I’d have to pay retail for this gem!  Luckily, I’m able to get it for a quarter of the price at only $4!  Yes!  If I use this daily, by the end of the week, my nails are just as long as they were at the beginning of the week.  If not longer!  Once I quit using all other nail treatments and just use this, I’m good without any peeling or breakage.

Nubar Diamont Seal & Shine Quick Dry Top Coat ($7.50) – Seche Vite and I had to break up since I was soooo tired of it giving me major shrinkage!  And it’s really too much of a PITA to use a top coat before this to prevent shrinkage.  Let’s not forget how thick this gets before I’m even halfway through a bottle!  UGH!  My trusty Nubar Diamont doesn’t give me any problems with shrinkage, which I appreciate it!  As for thickening, I think that’s just a thing fast dry top coats have, but at least with Nubar I was a little under halfway through before it started, and I’m not using thinner daily!  Even better is that I can get an 8 oz. refill bottle of this for only $40… That’s 16 bottle refills for $40 as opposed to the $120 those separate bottles would cost!

I’m still looking for a new foundation.  I was using Urban Decay Surreal Skin Mineral Makeup, but I ran out and started finishing some Laura Mercier Mineral Powder Foundation I was given.  I’m not sure what ingredient it is, but something in that makes my face itch like it’s being bitten like red ants when I sweat.  So, I’ve been dabbling here and there with various brands.  Right now, it’s looking like I might either go with Revlon ColorStay with SoftFlex SPF 6 for Combination/Oily Skin in Natural Tan or Revlon ColorStay Mineral Mousse SPF 20 in Medium Deep.  Both are nice coverage, but I think ColorStay Mineral Mousse keeps me matte almost all day, which is a feat for my skin!

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Zoya Dovima is a gorgeous black matte with subtle silver shimmer.  However, since I like my shimmer slightly noticeable, and I can’t NOT use a top coat, I used my trusty Nubar Diamont over it.  Isn’t it pretty?!  Using a top coat makes the shimmer more apparent, and it brightens the color a bit too (obviously).  I have to say, I truly like Zoya polishes.  The brush is perfect, and I rarely ever have any issues applying Zoyas.  They might be as close to polish perfection as possible… Though opinions will vary on that thought.  And, since I do have their other mattes, I might just use one everyday this week… I picked this one for a specific reason today, which I’ll share a bit later today

I wanted a nice warm dessert the other night, and decided to make apple crisp, which I’m a HUGE fan of. I’d never made it before, so I looked around on Food.com until I found this recipe. It’s absolutely divine, and a lot simpler than I imagined it would be!

Allow to cool, or immediately serve warm with vanilla ice cream for an added “yum” factor!

Recipe and picture courtesy of Food.com Recipe #82925

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Essie Sew Psyched is a gorgeous sage green color with barely there shimmer, and it applied like a dream!  I seriously might’ve been able to get away with only one coat, but I did two anyway.  My picture doesn’t show it as dark as it looks on my hands, and I still think my pictures look brighter/washed out once I’ve uploaded to Flickr.  (Speaking of which, any good ideas for photo storage BESIDES Photobucket?)  Sew Psyched is supposed to be a close dupe for RBL Diddy Mow and Chanel Khaki Vert, so if you don’t have either and don’t wanna drop $$$, then get yourself a bottle of Sew Psyched!

I have opened shipping to anywhere in the world.  Please write with what you’re interested in, and I’ll give you an actual shipping quote.  For a list of everything, check here.  Thanks!!!

I remember when I couldn’t wait for my daughter to start crawling… And she did, and then moved on to walking faster than I could run!  Then came the desire for her to begin talking, and she hasn’t really quit since she started… And just yesterday she started the first grade and today I went shopping for her 6th birthday!  I can still remember when I had her!  Amazing how time flies, isn’t it?

{Small story that leads to the connecting story about my DD: I’ve been doing a lot of perfume hunting lately.  I settled on pureDKNY, but I wanted something else.  So, I ended up getting Versace Crystal Noir.  I love it, but my friend isn’t a fan.  She does like Nina by Nina Ricci, which isn’t bad, but it’s too sweet for me.  If I could find something just like it but a little less sweet, I’d be happy.}

Today in the mail I received samples from another Makeup Alley member who has been gracious in helping me learn more about perfumes.  She sent me samples of Bvlgari Omnia Crystalline and Omnia Green Jade.  Both are lovely scents, and are definitely on my list to purchase for this upcoming spring.

My husband has recently informed me he could care less about my beauty habits, but I still made him smell the samples.  Surprisingly, he liked them both, especially Green Jade.  To me, it smells a lot like Johnson’s Baby Wash and reminds me of the way my daughter smelled after a bath when she was a newborn.  So, I think in honor of my daughter, for her birthday tomorrow I’ll wear Bvlgari Omnia Green Jade.  Even better since the weather will be nice and spring-like even.

(In case I’ve made inquiring minds want to know more, I listed links to the perfumes I mentioned below.)

pureDKNY | Nina by Nina Ricci

Bvlgari Omnia Crystalline | Bvlgari Omnia Green Jade

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Last night I had my first pedicure at a salon in ages! I normally do them myself, but I felt the need to have a good pedicure now that summer has left NY (or so it seems for now). Made me feel good when the guy told me I had great feet that I take very good care of! I think part of it is the Nivea lotion I use daily, as well as using a pumice stone and scrub at least once a week. Anywho! I picked OPI Midnight in Moscow, which I surprisingly don’t own! Imagine that! So, when I was debating on my mani, I opted for OPI Black Cherry Chutney since it’s similar in color and an untried. Black Cherry Chutney is a gorgeous vamp, and it truly makes me think of black cherries… Funny enough, in the bottle it almost looks purple, but on my nails it looks maroon. Gotta love a color like that!