Smashbox Shades of Fame Reflection High Shine Lip Gloss Set - Swatches & Review

Who loves lip gloss? I do!

And who loves mini lip glosses? I do!

I love anything mini sized, mainly because I haven't found a product that I love enough to finish a full size of and I'd rather have more options and smaller sizes. So when I see sets of mini lip glosses (or anything really, let's be honest) I have a compulsion to buy it. This was no exception!

e.l.f. Haul and Swatches

Hey beautiful! I recently purchased a few items from e.l.f. and I got some extra goodies! This is a PIC HEAVY post. Just warnin' ya!

This is what I purchased....

Deborah Lippmann duo set $9.95 on HSN

Who wants some Deborah Lippman polishes in their life? And who wants TWO for $9.95?

Hellz yeah.

HSN.com has two duos on sale for $9.95 each (for FULL SIZED polishes)!

Duo #1: Dancing In The Sheet (deep purple shimmer), Let's Hear It For the Boy (creamy powder blue)

Duo #2: Almost Paradise (pale chartreuse) + Footloose (orange red)

PLUS they have another duo on sale for $19.95.

Don't Tell Mama (mood ring blue/green shimmer)+ Dream a Little Dream of Me (cupcake frosting pink sheer shimmer)

I'm seriously thinking about getting the blues duo because they look super pretty and I can't think of anything close to it in my stash. PLUS I have ZERO Deborah Lipmann polishes. I may just get them all because they're on sale! =)

Summer Challenge!

Barielle BFF Sweepstakes

Milani Shadow Eyez Swatches & Review

Have ya'll seen the new cream eyeshadow stick by Milani? Granted, the name is kinda hokey, but the product is pretty cool.

Milani Shadow Eyez are the latest release of Milani products and it's a set of cream eyeshadow pencils (a la Urban Decay 24/7 Shadow Pencil). They've got a variety of cool colors, ranging from basics (brown, black, white) to brights (blue, green). I'd seen these on a few blogs and knew I had to try them!

I picked up two colors - Brown Deluxe, because you know I love my neutrals, and Aquatic Style, just to get something different than my usual fare.

Make Up For Ever Mat Velvet + - Swatches + Review

Hiya beautiful!

I have been really awful about posting and commenting lately, and I'm truly sorry. Things have been busy and work has been driving me nuts lately. My poor husband is bearing the brunt of my bad mood, poor guy. But I have been playing with makeup and taking pictures so I am trying to work on putting together some posts. I'm also contemplating a youtube video, but I think I'm way too shy and nervous to do something like that. So I'll live behind my computer screen. =)

Today I wanted to share with you a favorite foundation of mine - Make Up For Ever (MUFE) Mat Velvet +. This is an oil free, water resistant, non-comedogenic (non pore clogging), full coverage liquid foundation.

Buxom Lashliner in Sequins & Blue Velvet: Swatches + Review

Buxom Lashliner came out awhile back and I bought the two glitter forms (can we say duh?) and I used the blue one a few times and then put it aside. I started using them again when I went through the insane process of documenting my beauty stash and I remember how much I love them.

Buxom claims it not only defines your eyes but is a lash conditioner that makes your eyelashes longer and thicker. I have no idea if this is true because I haven't used it consistently on a long enough basis to test that out, but thought I'd mention it. They come in a sturdy little glass pot with a metal lid. They're not very big but they're rather bulky for the amount of product you get. Granted you don't need much, but it seems 2/3 of the pot is just glass or extra packaging. Seems kinda wasteful.

The liners:

Tips & Tricks: Revive dried gel eyeliner

I was going through my stash of products and I found a Buxom Lashliner in Sequins that I had forgotten about. Sequins is a black with silver glitter. Very pretty. And now very dried out.

Bummer.

So I, like any good person with internet access, googled "rescue dried gel eyeliner" and got tons of hits. Most of them were useless (like, close the jar every time you use it to help it not dry out - uh, yeah, thanks for that piece of brilliance) but a few were helpful.

It seems there are two main ways to do it: adding a liquid (glycerin, eye drops, water, mixing medium, etc) or heating it (blow dryer, microwave, hot water, etc).

Original gel liners:

Bath & Beauty Products Stash Craziness

While I was doing my previous post on April's Goodbyes, I decided I needed to take a good look at all the products I have to make myself realize it's way too much. And because it's crazy, I thought I'd share. I'm a blogger, it's what I do. I take pictures of my life and share them so people can feel better about their own neuroses.

So now ya'll can see the insane amount of products I own and use...

Bath Products

Bayberry Naturals Review

I've got some awesome products from Bayberry Naturals to share with ya'll today! I'm super excited to tell you about them because I don't think they're very well known, but they should be! It's a company that was founded by Nancy Liddell and they specialize in organic and vegan spa products.

Created to satisfy the growing demand for 100% all-natural skin and hair care products, Bayberry Naturals is a complete line of cleansing essentials designed to meet the needs of men, women and children. Founded by mother of three, Nancy Liddell, Bayberry Naturals consists of plant-based beauty products that range from shampoos, conditioners and shower gels to cleansers, lotions and liquid hand soaps.  Free of sulfates, parabens, phthalates, artificial fragrances and dyes, each product in the collection is as effective as it is natural. www.bayberrynaturals.com.

"Simplistic in its packaging and basic in its premise, I designed it for men, women, and children to cleanse and nurture their bodies without fear of toxins and unnatural ingredients." Nancy Liddell, Founder

Julep Kylie

I got my May Julep Maven box in Friday! I'm an American Beauty, so my box contained Kylie, Ellie, a polish magnet, and The Best Pedi Prep Ever with a foot file. I'm not sure what I think about Ellie, but I'm intrigued by the pedi combo, and I tore into Kylie already!

Disclaimer: This is the first time I've used a magnetic polish. I do have three China Glaze Magnetic polishes, but I got them and then sort of set them aside. I still hadn't used a magnetic polish until this one. I think I may be addicted, but I also think I suck at it.

Julep Kylie is described as a "sultry violet magnetic polish." The magnet that came with it is kinda fun, it's got a handle! I do have the China Glaze magnet that has more designs, so I may see if that one is any better...

April's Empties!

I've decided to give a recap of products I've used up during the previous month to give you guys an idea of how much crap bath and beauty products I have and use! And hopefully it will motivate me to use more products up since I'm moving soon and I don't want to just throw it away, but I don't want to move it either!

So here is what I was able to use up during April ...

Essie Pink-A-Boo

I saw this polish the other day at the store and grabbed it. It looked so gorgeous, like a pink version of Sinful Color's Cinderella. It's a beautiful light baby pink with magenta and blue shimmer. Perfect for spring, right? Right? No?

I was disappointed with this baby, that's for sure. It was no Cinderella. This was an evil step-sister. All that beautiful shimmer is mostly lost in person, and definitely in the pictures. It's super runny and sheer, below is five coats, yes FIVE and there was still an obvious visible nail line. Blah. I would have kept going but my painting hand was cramping at that point.

Thank you

I wanted to say thank you for all the thoughts and warm wishes I've received since my last post. I'm sorry I was such a downer, but he really was a member of the family. I keep pictures of my pups on my phone and show them to people as if they were my kids. You guys are the greatest, and I was overwhelmed (and a little teary) when I saw the messages. :-*

On a side note, 5/2 was my birthday... My last few birthdays have kinda sucked. My best friend of 10+ years broke my heart the day before my birthday last year and we haven't really talked since, and I miss having my friend, but it's just not the same. So I try to maintain a low profile when it's this time of the year. This year seemed to bite me in the ass anyway. But thanks for the birthday wishes on FB! =)

On a happier note, here are the flowers and romantic card my hubby gave me.

Boys. =P

RIP Hunter

Last night my dog Hunter lost his battle to cancer. My parents were with him when he took his last breath, and while I'm thankful he's no longer hurting, I miss him so much already.

I truly do hope all dogs go to heaven.

RIP boy. I miss you so much. I love you.

Holo & Orchids

I have a fun layering combination to share with you today!

When I was trying out the LASplash nail polish, I also may have happened upon a large and expensive nail polish lot on eBay that I quickly purchased but am too ashamed to admit how much I spent. Needless to say, I now own all of the China Glaze OMG Collection and half of the Kaleidoscope collection. Sigh. Who needs money anyway when you have holos? Can I get an amen?

So here we have a beautiful layering combination that was meant for each other ... LASplash Retro and China Glaze He's Going In Circles. LASplash Retro is the perfect background because it's the same color so it doesn't alter CG HGIC at all, just makes it more opaque with less wastage. Yes, I just made wastage a word.