We all fell in love easily with gorgeous packages and design of luxurious make up brands such as Chanel, Tom Ford or Guerlain, and we know that we will get (well, in the most cases) what we payed for. But when it comes about beauty products that are much more affordable it's not easy to pick them and find good quality. So, today I wanted to share some of them that I like and use: 1. NYX blush // Bourgeois Pig - I bought this product recently and I'm really satisfied, highly pigmented, a little goes a long way, vivid color but yet wearable. 2. NYX matte lipstick // Shocking pink - I bought it also recently, with the blush and it's gorgeous color, great for every season (especially summer), wore it HERE. 3. Deborah nail polish // 161 - love this color, I wear it almost every day during this cold season (see it HERE on my nails) and it really last long. 4. Golden Rose lipsticks // 120 (red color- wore it HERE) and 57 (pink color- wore it HERE and HERE) - these two lipsticks are probably my all time favorites among this budget products. I'm using them for years and they are perfect! 5. AVON eye liner // true black - also one of the products that I'm using several years, and it's great for my sensitive eyes. 6. Deborah blush brush - I wanted this brush for highlighters and to contour my cheekbones but I'm not satisfied like I am with the one from Bourjois. I will give it one more chance (I got this brush recently), but this is definitely the product that I would not recommend for now.
And that's pretty much it! Tell me, what's your budget beauty favorites? Do you have some products that you like? Share it, can't wait to read! :)
p.s. all these products are cheaper than 10€, most of the prices are around 5-6€!
This season I am all about bold, intense lips. I went on the hunt for some fall lipsticks a couple of weeks ago, and found some of my new favorite lipsticks. During fall, I love wearing deep reds and purples, but I also like to switch things up every now and then by throwing on some bright pinks.
I have always been a believer in paying more money for higher quality brands, such as MAC, because I know that I am getting the better product. However, throughout this lipstick search, I came away with a new favorite brand of lip products: Milani. I am absolutely obsessed with their lipsticks! They are so pigmented, they last for quite a while, and they smell so good! [I want to eat the lipstick every time I put it on...Haha!] And, most importantly, they are only $7 or $8 compared to MAC's $15. Love everything about Milani lipstick, so if you haven't tried them out before, I definitely recommend it!
**Disclaimer: I am a member of the Collective Bias Social Fabric Community. This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias and their client.
I love to curl my hair. I wear it curled almost every day, and currently use my straightener to do so. I have a curling wand, but am absolutely TERRIFIED to use it. I've used it once before, but the entire time, I kept burning my fingers and was afraid that my hair was going to melt off like the girl in that video... When I heard about Conair Curl Secret, I admit I was intrigued. The curling iron is not like any other curling iron I've seen before, and it is designed so that you can't burn yourself!
So I picked it up from Walmart this week [where the price is only $99 compared to $150 at www.curlsecret.com], and my sweet niece begged me to let her be my model while using the Conair Curl Secret. I took a short video of the process, to show you all, however the camera focused more on the background than on what we were doing. [Of course.] But you still get the idea. Basically you insert your hair into the Curl Secret and close the curling iron, it wraps your hair up in it, and beeps at you when it's done curling. It was easy to use and saved so much time! I was quite impressed with this and can't wait to do a tutorial using it on my own hair!
During the video, Lana kept saying, "I'm just worried that people are going to think I'm lazy because I'm sitting here getting my hair done and muching on grapes." That girl... :]
Here is Lana's hair before, right after, and then once we brushed it out a little bit. She absolutely loved it, and I'd say the Curl Secret works pretty darn good!
Be sure to follow along with Conair for other fab tutorials and inspiration via Twitter and Pinterest.
Thanks so much for reading, and for supporting the sponsors that support this blog! xoxo,
Happy Friday! I actually ended up having 2 days off this week, so this week was a good one! To celebrate, I thought I would bring you another amazing giveaway. In my opinion, there is nothing better than shopping for fall/winter so I've teamed up with some lovely ladies to give away a $300 Nordstrom Gift Card for you to pick out a whole new fall wardrobe. To enter, scroll down below and enter as many ways as you can for more chances of winning! :]
BUT FIRST: My hair curling tutorial! Unfortunately I am still new at this, and had the camera facing the wrong way, so it only takes up the middle section of the screen. I swear that next time I'll get it right. Hopefully I'm not too awkward in the video and hopefully it helps some of you. :]
CLICK TO SEE MORE Today I wanna share with you updated version (old post Here) of my favorite make up and facial care products: 1. The Body Shop - Seaweed pore-cleansing facial exfoliator - which is my favorite face scrub of all time. 2. The Body Shop - Seaweed mattifying day cream - light perfect for sunny days 3. The Body Shop - Vitamin E moisture cream - I use this during the whole year and prefer it more than the Seaweed. 4. I love Raspberry and blackberry - body lotion 5. Bourjois Little round pot blush - 34 (using it for years) 6. Bourjois Healthy mix Foundation - 52 during the winter, 54 during the summer period 7. Bourjois Loose Powder - 02 - best loose powder ever 8. Dior Diorshow Blackout mascara (using it for years) 9. Avon Kohl eye liner - black - with my sensitive eyes I more than satisfied with this product 10. L'Oreal Glam Bronze Duo
These are my favorites, how about yours? What's one item you can't leave your house without? :)
If you couldn't tell, I decided to pull out my extensions today. I haven't worn them since maybe Christmas time [because I cut my hair] and I decided it was time. My hair is still too short to wear down with the extensions, but it's getting there. I love the look of the bun with extensions because it just looks so thick and full, and I've missed my hair being that way.
I love this ILY sweatshirt that I grabbed from the cute Laura [from Walking in Memphis in High Heels.] There's nothing I love more than showing off that I'm a wifey! :) Here are few of my other ILY favorites!
Thanks so much for stopping by! Don't forget to enter the KENSIE giveaway and to follow along with me via Bloglovin! [I'm almost to 1,000 followers! :]
Oh hey, I made another skirt! For those of you who asked if I used any tutorial: I just took a skirt that fit me nicely [my fav Hello Fab skirt] and used that as a guide. Just trace the skirt, sew the two sides together [inside out], and hem the top and bottom! You can put elastic in the waistband, but I haven't yet on this one, which is why the top looks a little unfinished still.
Guess what? Only one more day left until it's Friday!
Guys, I am kind of embarrassed to even show you this picture. But for the sake of keeping it real, I will tell you that the nasty, dusty, hairy, Mary-Kate and Ashley hair dryer you see below, is indeed mine. I have had this baby for about 5 or 6 years now. I have always had thoughts of purchasing a new hair dryer in the back of my mind, but it was never a necessity, you know? It did what any hair dryer was supposed to do. [Even if it took 5 times as long and didn't ever stay hot.]
A few weeks ago, a Misikko representative contacted me and offered to send me a new hair dryer--the HANAair Premiere Hair Dryer, and I was actually pretty ecstatic. When I finally opened up the package, H and I couldn't believe how pretty it was. Seriously. The packaging was so nice, and how amazing does the hair dryer itself look??
My normal routine after the shower is to wrap my hair with a towel for about 10 minutes, and then dry the rest with a hair dryer, which usually takes 15+ minutes. I was excited to try out the HANA because I had heard such rave reviews from one of my blogger friends, Emily from The Sweetest Thing. [See her post HERE.] H snapped a few photos while I dried my hair, and we were so impressed with the quality of this hair dryer. The hair drying itself only took 5 minutes! [We timed it!] The cord is super long, the hair dryer is very quiet, and plus, I swear that my hair felt soooo much softer afterwards. H agreed. [Though, he has a tendency to agree with pretty much anything I say, so who really knows. ;]
Here are a couple of funny moments that H caught on camera, that were just too good not to post. Because I'm sure I'm not the only one who looks like this while blow drying my hair. Right......?
[I apologize for the awful bathroom lighting, and for the fact that my shirt and skin blend in with the wall!] But the point is, if you are in the market for a new hair dryer, I highly suggest the HANA Premiere Hair Dryer. Plus, it's on sale!
But ANYWAY. My Messy Bun tutorial. Finally.
And please forgive how awkward I am in this video. I have seriously filmed it 3 or 4 times, and this one was the best one, so you'll just have to deal with it.
Any fun 4th of July plans?? My family is going up to Wyoming for a family reunion, but H couldn't get off work, so we are stuck here. Someone invite me to their awesome party??
One of my blogger friends introduced me to the Blog Every Day in May challenge, and I am going to try it! The topics are all pretty interesting, and I haven't done much writing on here in a while, so it might be good for me. [Since I forgot to start yesterday, I'm cheating a little bit and going back to add it into yesterday's post. Check it out HERE.]
Today's topic is: Educate us on something you know a lot about or are good at.
Well, you see-- something that I'm quite fond of [that my husband isn't] is spending money. For real. I have this insane ability to spend money anywhere and on anything. I;m so good at it, that I can't help myself. I just feel this need to shop. [Maybe I should go to therapy?] But it's not just spending money on clothes. It could be shoes, groceries, craft supplies, pens, plants, fabric, accessories, paint, etc. I could seriously go into Staples and spend hundreds of dollars. [Not that I have. But I could.] So now let me just go ahead and educate you all on how to spend money:
First, you go into a store [any store--Forever 21 to Home Depot] and just start putting things into your cart. It doesn't matter if you need it. Just buy it. That's my philosophy, anyway. Oh, 50 pounds of PVC pipe? You could definitely use that for something. Buy it. Those 15 necklaces that you probably will never wear? Put it in the cart. All organic flax and granola? Yup. It doesn't matter what it is. You just buy it. Really guys, it's not that hard to spend money!
Okay so obviously I'm exaggerating a lot. I'm not that bad. I do like spending money, but I'm pretty good at only buying what we need. [Or what my closet needs. ;] I do wonder though, if anyone else has a similar problem? A craving for buying things? Please tell me I'm not the only one!!
And on a separate note-- I thought I'd add on my Makeup Must Haves. Quite a few people have asked me about my makeup routine, so I thought I would post the items that I use every day. [I switch back and forth between foundations, but I love them all.] I highly recommend all of these products, and if you'd like a tutorial or a review of any of these products, just comment and let me know!!
What are some of your makeup must haves? I know that most of these products are a little more expensive, but I haven't found any drugstore product that I love enough to repurchase [with the exception of the L'Oreal True Match Foundation.] I would love to hear if you have found a cheaper drugstore product that you love! [And I'm sure H would love it too! ;]
Okay. So I'm sure that you've all seen the Dove Real Beauty Sketches that have been going around. If not, here it is:
Okay, I am completely in love with this video. It is so amazing and inspirational. I know that if every single one of us were to participate in this challenge, we would all have similar results. Because we don't realize how beautiful we really are. There have been so many times when a family member, friend, or even my husband will see me [or a picture of me] and comment on how beautiful I am. And what do I do? Downplay it. Oh, no I'm not. You're crazy...That's not even a good picture of me... I didn't even get ready today... I look so fat... I am totally breaking out and I look awful... etc. We all come up with excuses or reasons as to why we aren't that beautiful. We are our own worst enemies. But if we could only see ourselves through everyone else's eyes [not to mention God's eyes] we would probably be surprised at how much more beautiful we are than we really think.
Such an amazing message, right?
Now here is something that makes me upset. THIS article. In this article, the writer starts talking about how this video isn't all that great because "people of color" are only shown for all of 10 seconds in this video, or because Dove only chose blonde haired, light skinned, blue eyed people for this video and therefore implying that particular look the definition of "true beauty." And then they say that this video makes it seems like women are invaluable if they are not beautiful in a certain way. That because one of the women says that she "should be more grateful for her natural beauty, because it affects everything" that she is saying that our beauty affects our personal life and career.
Okay, first of all, what? And second of all, WHAT? That is so annoying. Why do people have to go in and take away from something so amazing? The only point of this video was to make women see that they are beautiful. Because guess what? Every woman IS beautiful. And they should recognize it, and they should always feel confident about it. [And I know for a fact that the way you present yourself doesimpact your personal life and your career. If you go into a job interview and you are self conscious about how you look or about your qualifications, you will not be able to present yourself in the best light. It's the same with dating. You just need to be comfortable and confident in your own skin!] I had a guy friend in high school who used to always say "every girl is attractive, I'm just not attracted to every girl." I love this. Because it's so true. Every woman is beautiful, even if it's not in the way that the world perceives beauty or the way that a certain person perceives beauty. Things like this really frustrate me.
Anyway. Enough with my rant.
I am obsessed with this video, and it is something that we should all remember. I have this friend who I used to work with who is literally one of the most beautiful girls I have ever seen. Ever. [You know who you are.] And it always makes me so sad every time I would compliment her because she would just play it off. She doesn't even realize that she's stunning, inside and out, because she is only focusing on the flaws that she sees. But the thing is, no one else even sees them, you know? And I think most of us are the same way. We compare our weaknesses to everyone else's strengths, ultimately setting ourselves up for failure. Instead of dwelling on the things that we may not like about ourselves, we should focus on the things we LOVE about ourselves.
I challenge ALL OF YOU to post 5 things that you love about yourselves [physical attributes OR personality traits] on your blog [or if you don't have a blog, comment on this post. Or simply write it in your journal, or somewhere that you will see it everyday.] And every time you think of something else you really like about yourself, add it to the list! I think it's so important to realize all of the wonderful qualities and traits we are blessed with and to focus on those. Be positive. Be happy. Be yourself. Don't be too hard on yourself. Dwelling on the negative will get you nowhere.
This is not something that I have completely mastered yet, but this video has definitely helped me put things into perspective. So I am going to start this challenge myself. I hope you all participate!
5 Things I Love About Myself:
1. I love my curves. For the longest time I struggled with my body and thought that I was fat because I had a big chest and a big butt. But guess what? Now I LOVE them. [And so does my husband! ;]
2. I love my sense of humor. I love that I can laugh at things and not take too much offense to things. I love that I can just be happy and enjoy life.
3. I love that I am smart. I love that I can learn things quickly and I love that I am great at spelling. [2 time Spelling Bee champ right here!]
4. I love my feet. I know that it sounds weird because feet are gross. And I hate them. But I really like my feet because they are pretty cute. [Okay for real this is getting weird.] But I like them. And I think they look really good in any type of shoe. [Like, should I be a foot model or something? Molly--picture me acting like that hand model. Ew.]
5. I love my hair. I love the color [even though I change it from time to time] and I love how thick and full it is. I love that it holds a curl well and I love the volume.
[This is a "Before and After" makeup shot that I took back in December before I cut my hair. Something that I have come to realize is that both pictures are beautiful.]
Embrace the beauty that God has blessed you with and do your best to recognize it, because everyone else does!
Lot's of you have been asking me about my little splurge in Paris, so here it is! 1. Glitter sneakers - H&M 2. Sweat pants and stripped cardigan - H&M 3. Facial products - The Body Shop ( new, updated post about beauty products which I'm using will be soon) 4. Bag - MICHAEL Michael Kors Hamilton Large tote 5. and in the next one, I will show you what's inside of this special Isabel Marant box!:)
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