My lovelies, I just first of all want to announce and congratulate the winners of my Mineral Magic Cosmetics Giveaway. In order, Prize #1 goes to hana, Prize #2 goes to Miss (Daniela), and Prize #3 goes to Young. I will be sending you an e-mail shortly, so please let me know your addresses so I can send off the prizes! I really appreciate all of the entries, and I think these ladies really deserve these gifts!

I also wanted to mention that I decided on which platform sandals to keep. An overwhelming majority voted for the pewter and although I do love the blacks too, I must agree that the pewters actually look more flattering on me. Oh well, we petites should try to stick to the rules that make us look best when we can. ;)

Speaking of shoes, I recently bought another pair of shoes that I am really stoked about. As a size 4, it is actually rather difficult to come across basic black heels that should be pretty standard for work wear. I never see size 4's at Marshall's but I happened to quickly run into one and couldn't pass up these cute buckled heels for only $34! The stacked heel isn't too high and I am -such- a fan of buckled toe details on shoes.


I decided to pair it with this thrifted Victoria's Secret slip, long charcoal cardigan from Forever 21, and my favorite grey skinnies from Abercrombie kids.


I also apparently wore that same zipper-flower headband from F21 with this outfit (which you may remember from a previous post on lipstick). Obviously, I am ridiculously behind on posting.


I loved wearing this outfit! Many compliments. I chalk it up to these totally amazing lace leggings from Forever 21. They are a thicker lace, similar to fishnets, so they feel more sturdy.


A close-up of the leggings.


Since the leggings are already a bit flashy on their own, I tried to balance out the "sparkle" factor with this amazing sequin belt from Target's girls section. Easy way to find a waist belt!


You may also notice that I kept the rest of the outfit relatively simple. The purple tank dress was from Marshalls and the charcoal cardi is the same as the previous outfit. No necklace, just some lavendar rose earrings and the headband to bring some attention up from the legs to my face. It's all about balance. :)



This entry is already getting long-winded, but I also decided on this particular day to whip out my Dazzleglasses to swatch for you all. Can I just take a moment to say that I LOVE these? Yes, they are sticky but the effect is just ridiculous in a good way. GLITTERBOMB! And I have had some glitter last to the end of a workday, even through lunch with no reapplication. I won't write much, just post pics of the awesomeness.

Money, Honey. Great for everyday looks.


Love Alert. Redder than my pic shows, and very sweet.


And saving the best for last, Funtabulous. Friggin purple glitter. I cannot tell you how hot this looks over fuscia lipstick. Even by itself, it is a show stopper!


This is how it looks on me. I just love it so much. It really pops! If you have a favorite Dazzleglass, let me know what you recommend in the comments since I'm sure I'll want more in the future.



Anyway, that's all I have for now. Hope you all have a great weekend!

I wanted to share with you guys a cool site I came across that sells nice cosmetics products on the cheap, beautyticket.com. It seems they get discontinued and limited edition makeup from companies like Smashbox, YSL, and Too Faced and sell it waaaaaaay below retail price which is totally awesome for ladies (such as myself) who love a good deal. Who doesn't in this economy, right?

I actually ordered a couple months ago so unfortunately most of the items I have here are no longer for sale but I thought I would still share what I got in case you wanted to snag it on eBay. It also seems there is ALWAYS something new I want on Beauty Ticket. Not sure if that's a good or bad thing!

Anyway, gotta say I am super happy with my purchases. Highly recommend this site and the products they carry! On with the pics!

My haul


Smashbox blush from the wicked lovely collection. LOVE the packaging. Color is a burnt dusty-rose. A little more brown than I'd usually wear, but I'll probably use it a lot more come fall. The flip-out mirror is a nice touch.


This Smashbox tinted lip treatment lipstick is a cool idea-lipstick and balm in one. The color goes a bit Barbie pink on me, but the balm part makes it sheerer and more wearable. It feels nice. Not crazy moisturizing, but not drying either.


These are my favorites of my haul, the two glosses. Absolutely in love with both colors. Cactus flower is a purse staple gloss, perfect for any look and any occasion. My new favorite everyday MLBB (my lips but better) gloss. Dragonfruit is actually another purse staple that is SO COOL and unique. It's like a pale nude that flashes red in sunlight. From far away it simply looks like a pale pink gloss with oomph.


Hand swatches in direct and indirect sunlight. See the ridiculous amount of awesomeness Dragonfruit has? So sad it's discontinued but so glad I grabbed one! The Charm blush has a nice glint to it also.



My order also came with a freebie lipgloss keychain from Hard Candy


And this coupon for 10% off (which I'm sure they won't mind if you use too!)


My face with my new makeups :D


And a close-up of my lips with the Smashbox Tinted Lip Treatment in Shine with Estee Lauder Crystal Gloss in Dragonfruit over it. Yay for healthy pink lips!



Let me know what you guys order if you get anything from there. I'm pretty positive I'm going to again -very- soon. I can already feel the pull... Oh no... Oh lawdy...

Hello dahlings! Don't you love when you had some item that you've had for a while and grew away from, but then rediscovered it to find that it is an awesome product? I think I feel that way about this eyeshadow. It's from L'Oreal's Wear Infinite line of shadows in color 310 Glistening Sea. I'm sad to say that this color is discontinued (because I don't even remember how long ago I bought it) but I am really happy with the pigmentation and texture. It's a sea foam green with gold pearl which I don't think is necessarily a unique color, but it is the perfect shade of sea foam green on my skin because it shows up and is still light-colored at the same time.

Here is my swatch. Look how the cover is cracked. :p



I looooove greens and this one is so pretty especially when I am going for a really clean look. Which is exactly what I was going for in this FOTD! I used Glistening Sea on the lids, my NYX mosaic highlighter under brows and on the tops of the cheeks (or even go all out and apply to bridge of nose, chin, and near the hairline on the forehead.) Man, can I just say that I love highlighter? It makes you look especially alive and fresh and the NYX mosaic powder one is my absolute favorites.

Anyway, apply black eyeliner, mascara, and a bit of white on the tear ducts (I used NYX jumbo shadow stick in cottage cheese.) Put a pop of pink shadow on the apples of your cheeks and a pale pink gloss on your lips and you are done!




The gloss I used was Lancome's Color Fever gloss in Femme Petale which is a gorgeous pale pink cream shade. I dont love the slight cosmetic smell, but the formula feels very nice and moisturizing and you can't smell anything after it's on your lips. And did I mention I got it at Marshall's for 8 bucks? Normally retails for $25. :D



This isn't really related to anything else, but I wanted to share the view out my window this morning. Gross and depressing snow. Only in the midwest do you get 68F one day and snow two days later. :[

SPRING! Where are you! I miss you!



Hope your weather isn't as bizarre as mine. Feel free to complain about your own weather, or tell me your favorite lipgloss brand in the comments. Peace out.

Hey everyone! I hope everyone had a great Valentine's day (or singles empowerment day!)I had a fabulous time spending a few hours with my hubby just chillin' then getting a delicious steak dinner at Texas Roadhouse. I have a few other FOTDs to post that came before this one but I wanted to post this one soon because I really liked this look. I was really inspired by Nessa's V-day look so I tried to do a toned-down version. Warning, this is pic heavy!

I used 4 eyeshadow colors for this look: NYX hot pink, cherry, black, and a highlight color similar to MAC shroom that is a creamy, pinkish taupe pearl.

I started with UDPP over the whole lid, then applied cherry in an almond shape on the lower half of the lid. One tip is to apply the color high enough that you see a line of it when your eyes are open but not so high that it recedes into your eye socket. I then applied hot pink on top of cherry on the inner half of the lid to make it more pink and shimmery. Then I applied black to the outer corner and contour, and also along the bottom lash line. I also tightlined my bottom waterline with black pencil liner. Apply your highlighter to the brow bone and tear ducts, and blend everything so it is nice and smooth. Add blacktrack fluidline and mascara, and the eyes are done!




Look! Big smiles again! ;)



The light in my bathroom was washing out the color. This gives a better indication of what it really looked like:



Close-ups:




For lips, I used my new Hello Kitty Mac lipstick in Big Bow which I LOVE. It's a reddish hot pink with a blue sheen in the glaze formula. I applied it fairly sheer but it can be applied to be VERY pigmented too. I'm not a huge lipstick person but this one doesn't feel dry at all and it wears for a long time. I feel like it blended well with my pigmented lips and I could wear it during the day. It's such a cute color!



Speaking of Hello Kitty, I happened to snag the last brush set + cup from my local Nordstrom's and it is also freaking adorable. I also picked up Tippy and Fun & Games blushes. :)



You may have noticed but I got a new vanity mirror which makes sweet reflections and nice lighting for photos. I'm still experimenting with it, but what do you think? It's quite glossy!




Now for a little Vday camwhoring fun!

Thank you for the gorgeous vday bling, honey! My birthstone, blue topaz. <3



Love my shisem falsies. :)





xoxo

First of all, I apologize for my scruffiness but it was a super casual retro polo kind of day. I wanted to share a couple of my most favorite purchases as of late. I haven't had a post about nails for a while and although it is completely not the season (unless you are an Aussie ;) I have been completely obsessed with a color from China Glaze called "For Audrey." It's the color of Tiffany's blue! I had been scouring for this color everywhere... Ever since I saw one of my favorite Zipia.net models wearing it, it was lust.



Just a simple creme light turquoise polish, and I had come up with disappointment after disappointment until I found this. It's so love! I wanted to see the color so I just did one quick layer but even with just one, it's so opaque! I was impressed. I also bought Red-Curl Grl and Blushing by China Glaze but I have yet to try them out. For anyone wanting to get polish online, I bought mine from http://8ty8beauty.com/ and they shipped quickly and safely.




I also recently discovered a Cosmetics Company Store about 20 minutes away from my house and in the excitement of the new discovery, bought MAC 3D Glass in Racy. Apparently the 3D glasses were less sticky and more moisturizing than their lipglass brothers. I have to say, I really love it. Racy is a sheer yet pigmented hot pink-red color that really brightens your lips. My bathroom is dark so you can't tell, but it's a stronger color than it looks here.




With my good fortune I have to ask, what awesome products have you picked up lately? I'd love a couple of good recommendations. :)