Current Favorites

Currently My go to products consist of (not surprisingly) the original Urban Decay Naked pallet, liquid eyeliner pens, Maybelline Instant Age Rewind under eye concealer, Neutrogena Healthy Skin foundation/Covergirl Outlast Stay Fabulous foundation, MAC Studio Fix concealer (not pictured) and the Proactive skincare system.

I use all of these products on a daily basis and highly recommend all of them.

The eyeliner is a long time favorite due to ease of use and effect. The pen gives more control while still giving the definition of a liquid.

The under eye concealer works wonders. It covers very well without any cakeyness.

The Neutrogena concealer gives a little lighter coverage while keeping my skin clear. Lately thought I have been using the Stay Fabulous more. I enjoy the fuller coverage and the staying power. I pair this with the MAC concealer and I'm good. I generally use a matte setting powder to ensure oil control and lasting coverage.

The Naked pallet is long raved about and I am on that band wagon. I love the selection as well as the performance. Urban Decay shadows are wonderful in terms of pigment and texture. They also make it throughout the day better than any other eye shadow I have tried. You can't beat the colors either. There is a nice selection to go subtle or sultry.

And my saving grace: Proactive. I have struggled with keeping my skin in check for years. Proactive has worked well for me, but not for all. Some experience over drying and irritation. I haven't had much problem with this as long as I use a moisturizer after. I use the entire 3 step system and occasionally add or swap out for a mask, exfoliant or Burt's Bees toner.

Have you ever tried any of these products? What do you think? What are your current favorites?

Justfab

I got my Justfab order in the mail yesterday. I have used this site once before and it seems to be consistent. I used a different email to take advantage of a new member deal in which you get two pairs for the price of one. 

I didn't go crazy and get all of the fun incredibly high heals I reluctantly admitted to myself I'll never wear. Instead I bought two of the same pair of wedges. *Sigh, there I go buying duplicates again.  When I like something I get every color. I got a nude (blush) and a pair in black.

I have not worn them out yet, however I did manage that oh so attractive different one on each foot, walk around the apartment in pajamas and heals deal. 

-So far so good. They aren't difficult to wall in and they didn't hurt my feet to wear our in the 45 minutes I was wearing them.  Now, we'll see how they hold up to an all day wear. 

As for the quality... The "patent" material looks cheap and plasticy, I didn't expect much more for the price and from my experience from the last purchase. I'm very forgiving though,  who can tell from that far away unless they are staring.  I can only say that because I'm not a big spender on shoes though, so to each their own.  

If you're not looking to spend a fortune on some cute shoes for the season, I would recommend trying one of their discounted new member deals. There is a catch though.  Signing up as a member means that you will in the future be charged every month.  I avoided this by canceling my membership as soon as the shoes shipped.  Unfortunately it's not as easy as it sounds, they really do try to avoid people doing this clearly, and you can't do so in the click of a button. You must call and decline about a hundred attempts by the phone operator to get you to continue as a member, this took me about 10 minutes. 

So as I said, a good deal, but also quite a hassle.
Most was forgiven as soon as I received the package though :)

St. Patrick's Day Nails

Short and sweet. 

I did a festive nail theme for the holiday. Nothing too difficult as I feel it's such a waste to spend too much time just to have it chip :( As usual to simplify things I used Sharpies!

Left Hand: 

Thumb: Gold with green Sharpie clovers

Index: Green with gold glitter diagonal stripes

Middle: Green with green glitter

Ring: Cream with green Sharpie dots

Pinky: Green with gold multi-glitter french tip

 Right Hand:
Thumb: Cream with green glitter
Index: Green with Sharpie rainbow and bot of gold
Middle: Green with gold glitter
Ring: Gold with green glitter tip
Pinky: Green with gold Sharpie dots

What I used:

Base: China Glaze Strong Adhesion Base Coat
Green Base: Revlon Posh (571) -true green glossy polish
Green Glitter: Sinful Colors Call You Later (932) tiny gold glitter and small green glitter
Gold Art Polish: Nail Art Gold Glitter -small very yellow gold glitter with long nail art brush
Gold Glitter: Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure Golden Rule (120) -small gold glitter
Multi Glitter: Nailtini Millionare -Gold small round glitter and gold, green and blue rectangle glitter
Metallic Polish: Essie Penny Talk -gold/bronze metallic
Cream Polish: Nailtini Frappe -light neutral cream polish
Top coat: Diamond Dry
Sharpies


Let me know how you're celebrating St. Patty's!

-C

Nail Design Made Easy- Chevron Nails

There is a huge market out there of special nail pens, brushes and tools to create fun designs and tips the DIY way. Well from my experience those really aren't all they're cracked up to be. They don't deliver the precision and control my unskilled hands are looking for.

Now, I've had this idea for a while and finally tested it out. If you can doodle, you can design.

Here is my chevron accent nail design

"How?" you may ask? Easy. Sharpie.

All you do is paint your nails as normal. Base, two coats of color....and then Sharpie. Once your color coats are completely dry you are free to create all you want with whatever sharpie you want. Let the sharpie dry for a minute or two, then add top coat and voila!

In this picture I used the bronze color from the metallic pack. It shows up beautifully on dark nails.

The color I used was Wet n' Wild Megalast in Haze of Love. I love the color and the wear is amazing for the price. The polish went on smoothly and covered well. As far as last, it works for my short thin nails as well as anything else, even the likes of Essie or OPI and it's a fraction of the price at a cool $1.99 found in any drug store or super market in a variety of nice colors. PLUS it's usually on sale!

As for base coat, I used China Glaze Strong Adhesive base coat. In my opinion it's nothing special. For top coat I used Diamond Dry Top Coat Brilliance. This top coat dries quickly and gives a hard finish. Both can be found at Sally Beauty Supply.

Tip: I always apply an extra stroke of top coat right over the tip of my nails to prevent chipping.

Let me know what your favorite polish is or what you use for your nail designs.

-Cheers