Random Thought - 1

I tend to have a lot of random thoughts. I'm sure we all do. So, I thought (another thought) that it would be fun to share them here too with you. I usually don't post at the end of the week, but I think this could be a fun little something before we all have to jump start the week! So, you might see more of these if all goes well. We shall see :)

Marc Jacobs Nail Lacquer - Review

You probably already know that I kind of freaked out and bought a ton of stuff from the Marc Jacobs Beauty line when it launched. I tried to stick to buying things that were different than what I already had in my collection to justify the purchases. (You know what I mean?!). So, when I saw the nail lacquers I figured, I can pass. I have way too many already! But then I saw some great reviews and it was so enticing. But I stuck to my guns. Well, you obviously know that somewhere along the way all of that got lost and one of those little polishes went straight into my basket and is now living at home with me. Sigh. No self control. I picked up this super iridescent dark blackish green color named Sally which I LOVE! It's gorgeous and another great color for fall/autumn that could carry over into the winter months. Aside from the color, the formula is great. Very opaque and has great shine even without a top coat. It was said to be inspired by the high shine of lacquered tables and it's so spot on. I also love the packaging. It feels high end with the pull off top and then twist cap underneath it. Also still loving the rounded edges that this has like the rest of the line. From what I hear, the bottom of the bottle is supposed to curve like a smile. After knowing that, it's all I see - a pretty little bottle smiling back at me.

Loving this look - Dark Eyes for Fall

Just between yesterday and today I finally feel like Fall is somewhere in sight here in LA. I love makeup in the colder months. I feel like with all the layers we wear and more buttoned up we are, we can get away with bolder makeup looks. Summer is really all about quick and easy with pops of color. Fall, on the other hand, is about the bold and sultry makeup. I personally love doing a messy dark smokey eye. I think to keep it modern and edgy, the less perfect you do it, the better. And not using false lashes, winged liner or going overboard on the face keeps it focused and not fussy. I started out here with Burberry's Midnight Brown all over the eyelid blended up into the crease of the eye and they smudged down underneath the eye from the outer corner all the way into the tear duct area. Midnight Brown is one of my all time favorite eyeshadows. It's the perfect cool toned brown with really subtle fine silver shimmer running through. You can get a soft sheer wash by using a fluffy blending brush (like the MAC 217) or a more intense application with a flat shader brush. I like to use the flat shader and then blend the edges with the 217 to get rid of the harsh edges. I then went in with Midnight Black eyeshadow and applied it to the outer corner of the eye and a little on the inner corner leaving the center of the lids untouched. I did the same pattern underneath the eye and then blended the black and brown just a bit so that there are no harsh lines. Next I took M.A.C's Coffee eye pencil and applied that into my waterline and smudged it into my top lash line. And to finish off the eyes, I applied Diorshow Blackout mascara which is perfect because it's volumizing and really really black!

To keep the face effortless and light, I used Chanel's Vitalumiere Aqua foundation and then applied the Clarins Graphic Expression Face & Blush Powder to my cheeks and slightly up into the temples just to warm up the face. And last, but never least, I used Tom Ford's Pink Dusk lipstick which is the perfect subtle nude pink color.

This is a really bold look, but easy. The less you try to perfect the eye, the more modern (I think) it will look. Great for a night out!

Click through for Product List

Hourglass Immaculate Liquid Powder Foundation & Veil Mineral Primer Review

About a week ago (maybe longer) I talked about the By Terry foundations and raved about how amazing they are, but I had to caution those of you with oily skin that you might want to steer clear or to just be ready to touch up throughout the day. Which seems to be the disclaimer with most products you hear everyone talk about. So annoying and frustrating to have oily skin. But to be honest, if you have oily skin you are probably already used to blotting and powdering all the time. I really feel you. I have had oily skin for a long time. It's just now becoming more combo and I just get oily through my T-zone area. But it sucks to see everyone using all these different products and never finding the one that suits you. Or that will still look good after a few hours.  If that sounds like you, I think I might have a possible answer for you. The Hourglass Immaculate Liquid Powder Foundation (long name!!). This may be the perfect oily skin foundation I've ever tried. Hands down!

YSL Classy Palette - Review

Somehow my Sunday afternoon turned into a scavenger hunt to locate this palette. I spotted it a few weeks ago online and knew it was one I needed. Yes, needed! I've never been really keen on YSL eyeshadows. Not that they're bad, just that I never really gravitate towards them. When I saw this one, however, I think I might have drooled a little bit. Amongst their Fall 2013 collection, YSL introduced two limited edition eyeshadow palettes. What initially caught my eye was the packaging. It's very bold. The Classy palette (colors represented in the image above) is paired with black and gold packaging. The second one is a beautiful magenta color paired with the gold. Very graphic and so beautiful. Of the two, Classy is the more classic wearable color way. The other one is pretty too with navy blues and a pop of bright green, but this one is so my cup of tea. Classy is really a great name to represent the colors. I can just see the chic, modern city girl out on the town drinking champagne in a killer outfit wearing this. The colors include a rich brown, a shimmering champagne, a warm medium brown and a beautiful steely grey. They all have a fine shimmer to them, very sophisticated. They can be used both dry as usual or wet. Dry, they are pretty, but wet them and they really come to life. Rich and powerful pigment. Just dampen a flat synthetic shader brush and dip it into the shadow. They're easy to use, blend well and are just plain gorgeous! I know I will definitely get my money's worth out of this one! Although I won't want to throw it out after I finish it as the packaging is so good! I suggest that if you're looking for this, you call beforehand and place the product on hold. The only place I've seen it available online is on the Barneys website. I was super determined to find it and ended up going to South Coast Plaza in Orange County, hit every department store and then had to place it on hold at another mall that same day. So, I then drove to Irvine Spectrum to snatch up one of the last two at the Nordstrom there. Dedication I tell you (or insanity... take your pick!)! Anyways, it was so worth it!

Click through for both dry and wet swatches.

Alpha H Liquid Gold - Review

When I decided to change up my skincare routine a few months ago, I really wanted something that would help smooth my skin texture and help get rid of some scars and dark spots. I scar really easily on my face. Even if I never touch a break out, even if it's teeny tiny, it always leaves a mark. So annoying. And it's really hard to find good products to help get rid of them. It takes forever and some of them don't even really do much. So, I had heard about Alpha H Liquid Gold and thought, why not? It's had so many amazing reviews that I figured I might as well give it a go. I'm so happy that I did, because this will forever be a part of my skincare routine. It's seriously as good as you might have heard. It has helped even out my skin tone and has done so much more that I wasn't even thinking about when I purchased.

This product targets to resurface the texture of your skin, brighten it, tighten/firm it, even out tone, help with wrinkles and helps keep your skin clear of breakouts. Wow! Really?! Sounds like such a gimmick. I swear it's not. It's really helped me personally with all of those things. Aside from wrinkles as I'm too young to have any I can't attest to that yet. Ask me again in 10 yrs (or 30, if I'm lucky!). To give you a little background, Glycolic acid is a natural acid. It comes from sugar cane. What it does is loosens dead cells on the surface of your skin. Basically, exfoliating your skin with a concentrated dose. Getting rid of those dead/old skin cells will allow cleaner, newer skin cells to show at the surface giving the appearance of brighter and more renewed skin. I did notice the first few times of using it that I don't look much different when I first wake up, but as soon as I wash my face I can see what it did for me. It's sort of like you need to wash off all those loose skin cells and then you'll see the difference. I find that my face looks more radiant, pores look tightened and less noticeable, skin tone looks more even and texture is more smoothed. I think that this has evened out my skin tone more than any other product. I've been using this for three months and it's made a significant difference. I actually started noticing results with that after the first week or two of using. It works fast!

Ok, onto how to use this. It's important to apply this in the evening before going to sleep. It suggests using every other night which has worked well for me. You apply it to clean, dry skin. Dry skin is important. Dry your face after washing and do not use any serums or creams when you use this product. It needs to go onto your dry skin so that it can penetrate and work it's magic. So, for liquid gold night, use this and only this so you get proper and maximum results. I just pour out some of the liquid onto a cotton pad and apply it over my entire face and down onto my neck. It tingles very slightly. I almost don't notice it personally. I do, however, like to use my jade roller beforehand to get the blood flowing in my face and I tend to feel the liquid penetrate better and tingle a bit more. I feel like it works better that way. It's not at all uncomfortable to me. Then I go to sleep! I do want to note that it's important to use sunscreen the following morning. Because you've just done this exfoliation, your skin is likely to burn more easily. So, be sure to protect it and use SPF.

Overall, I think this is a brilliant product. It is a bit more difficult to locate in the U.S. so I order it online from CultBeauty.com. I pretty much would recommend this to anybody. It's really good!

Quick & Easy - The 5 Minute Face

So, recently with the birth of this new blog, I've had so many people asking me questions. Some of the main ones I get are "Do I need all of that?!" "OMG, I've never contoured, am I supposed to?!". No, you don't need to contour or highlight everyday. You don't need to do most things to be honest. I have drawers full of makeup, but any normal person really should be able to fit all their makeup in a bag. There's no need to freak out about getting millions of products and get caught up in all the fuss. A lot of makeup is just for fun or for special occasions or just added layers,  but not a must do. And makeup isn't everyone's cup of tea. I happen to enjoy it like no other. When I can't sleep, out comes all my makeup and I end up looking fab at 3am for no reason. Crazy, I know. It's like what knitting does for people. It calms me down, allows me to focus on something and be creative. (Did I really just compare makeup to knitting?!!!) But I can definitely relate to someone who doesn't love it like I do because there are plenty of days when I'm rushing and the last thing I'm going to do is be playing with glitter and lip liner. Hell no. And it can be so confusing with tons of options in the market. So, I put together my top things I think are the essentials. What every girl should do when she wants to look pulled together with the least amount of products and the least amount of effort. Because, let's be real, not many of us have time to contour and highlight and liquid line our eyes, etc, etc. Let alone do some of us care. These are the items that will enhance your natural beauty without any of the unnecessary extras. I think this is great for when you're rushing out, for beginners who aren't familiar with makeup or for someone who just likes to keep it simple. Let's get started...

Fall/Autumn Nail Polish Favorites - Part II

By now I think the cat is out of the bag and you all know that I'm obsessed with nail polish. Pretty much like everything else on this blog. Yesterday I posted some of my favorite colors I'll be wearing this fall from Essie and today I have my other favorites from Butter London. I love their polishes as well. Really opaque and they have a beautiful shine to them. My favorite polishes to get from them though are their glitters. OMG, the glitters! They are the best glitter polishes I've come by. It will cover your nail in two coats without a base coat needed. Your nails will literally look like you've dipped them in glitter. I always get compliments wearing them as it looks like a super fancy manicure. I will note that they are a B*&$@ to remove. I guess that comes with the territory of glitter polish. The easiest thing to do is soak a cotton pad with nail polish remover and let it sit on your nail for a minute or so before you start trying to rub it off. Otherwise, you'll just shred the cotton pad and be super annoyed that you ever decided to put on glitter nail polish! But it's so worth it. Here are some of my Butter London favorites for the Autumn/Fall seasons. I have a few glitters, a metallic and a nude shimmer. All beautiful.

Click through for colors....

Fall/Autumn Nail Polish Favorites

If you live in California, it's a bit strange thinking of Fall/Autumn right now as we're in the middle of some heat wave. It's been so warm here, but with the fall fashion issues out for all the magazines and new collections being released, it's hard not to get excited. So, I've been slowly collecting things in preparation for the season. Nail polish seems to always be one of the first things I gravitate towards. Maybe because one bottle of nail polish feels like less of a commitment than say, a jacket. So, this weekend, I pulled out some old favorites and added in a few new purchases from the last couple of weeks to show you my favorites for the coming season. I love the darker deeper colors in the fall as well as the more subtle taupes and neutrals. All colors in this post are from Essie. I tend to buy a lot of their colors as their formula is good and I love seeing all the matching bottles together! I'll be adding a follow up of some others tomorrow from Butter London that are more sparkly and metallic! But let's start with these that I'm loving!

Click through for colors....

Catching Up

Hi there. It's just me today. I thought I'd take a minute to just have a little chat. Last week was quite hectic. With schools getting back in session, traffic has been crazy so getting to work has been quite the adventure which honestly wore me out in every possible way! I have a long commute and traffic added on top of that means I'm spending about two and a half hours one way. It's crazy, I know. Luckily, it's was a lovely 3-day holiday weekend if you live in America. Yay! So, I had some time to recuperate and get my head back on straight (literally). Which also meant I have had the chance to get some posts fleshed out for this coming week. Last week was a bit sparse, I'll admit. And even though I've only been blogging for a few months, I actually really missed it. I'm really enjoying blogging. It's exciting to have an idea, draw it up or photograph it, write about it and share it somewhere. 

Speaking of Photography, anyone who knows me knows that I'm much better at designing, directing or just drawing/illustrating than I am holding a camera. I can literally make someone cry about how they look from a terrible picture I've taken. Know someone whose head is too big (figuratively speaking, of course)? Just find me to take a picture of them. No joke. So, I have been trying to learn how to position and angle myself to get good compositions. And also have been learning more about all the manual settings that every photographer should know like any driver knows where the gas and break are in a car. From aperture to shutter speed and ISO. Oy! It's so much to think about. It's a bit overwhelming, but I've been challenging myself to take my camera out with me more and just have some fun with it. Change up the settings and see what happens. Do it again and see what happens. And then again and again. It's the only way I'll ever learn, so I'm trying to get with it! As you can see, that's me in the image above with my trusty camera. If camera's had feelings, I swear mine would be thinking "really?!... her?..." haha. It's OK. Soon, it will be proud. Fingers crossed.