Monday, April 4, 2011

makeup I can't live without


I'm a huge makeup nut but unless the occasion calls for a heavier look I tend to stay pretty natural. Everyday I start off with my three Smashbox essentials which are primer, tinted moisturizer, and finishing powder. I actually just recently switched over to Smashbox from Victoria's Secret. VS makes really amazing foundation for super cheap but I wanted to switch over to something a little lighter because the summer heat was making my foundation feel cakey on my skin. I'm loving this Sheer Focus tinted moisturizer, though, it gives enough coverage to even out my skin without feeling piled on. The only product in my Smashbox trifecta that I'm not crazy about is the finishing powder. I'm obsessed with finishing powders so I've tried out quite a few different brands. This one gets the job done just fine but i feel like Laura Mercier's Invisible Loose Setting Powder is where it's at. That one just leaves my skin feeling light, airy, smooth and overall perfect. Once I've got all of those basics out of the way I dust on some blush from e.l.f's blush and bronzer duo. The picture up there absolutely doesn't do this product justice. The colors are much more pigmented and it's actually a pretty perfect and much, much cheaper dupe of Nars' Orgasm/Laguna duo. I don't use the bronzer in this little set very often but the blush is a perfect shimmery coral shade that brightens without looking too intense. 

Moving onto eyes, I always wear Urban Decay primer. I've tried other brands (most recently Victoria's Secret and Smashbox) and nothing beats their formula. Once you've got that on your lids anything else you put on will for sure stay put. This doesn't just go for my natural looks, I've used this for smokey nighttime eyes and crazy Halloween makeup and it still works marvelously. For the longest time I used the original color but i've moved onto Sin which is a shimmery champagne shade that can actually be worn on its own and still looks really nice if your in a hurry (which I often am). Unfortunately I wasn't able to link to the eyeshadow I use because it's sold out on MAC.com  but it can probably be found on eBay and I'm sure there are tons of dupes floating around out there. Sweet Joy was one of the Cruella shades in last Fall's Venomous Villains collection. I actually fell so in love with this color the second I put it on that I went back to the store at bought two more. This color isn't as pigmented as it may appear. it's very light and leans more towards an off white and a yellow when you put it on. Once my shadow is in place I swipe a little e.l.f highlighter under my eyes (and some concealer if I had a particularly rough night). Finally, I top off the eyes with mascara. This is the one thing I really don't skimp on at all. I have serious Kim Kardashian lash envy and I pile this stuff on until it looks like I've got falsies on. It's an amazing mascara that builds well without flaking all over the place. 

Lips and perfume are the quick and easy part. I'm all over e.l.f's lip stain in birthday suit which is a perfect summer pink. It's bright without looking neon which I think is perfect and it stays on really well. Perfume-wise I wear Daisy almost every single day. It has definitely become my signature scent in the last two or three years. All in all it takes me about ten minutes to get through this little process most mornings. 

Friday, April 1, 2011

Treat Attack!


I just got home from the gym and I'm absolutely starving. My little hippie creep didn't teach yoga today, instead we had this insanely flexible little old guy that was super intense. It was such a great workout and I feel so stretched out now. I had a Naked berry juice smoothie and a birthday cakepop for lunch but I'm still fiending for treats. I don't know what's wrong with me. Maybe I just need to go to Panera and have a delicious salad for dinner to get my mind off of Misha's Cupcakes and French macaroons from Whole Foods.

The Ballet Thursday that never was

So this picture was actually taken on the way home from ballet quite sometime ago. I've been so out of the swing of going for so long now because the dance studio my friend and I take classes at is literally about an hour away and there's never enough time in the day to get there. Last night we headed out about a half hour before class started and soon after realized we were only trying to fool ourselves if we thought we'd get there on time. I did find us a much closer studio on the way home though that offers an adult ballet class twice a week. The only down side is that you need to pay by month and I really love the financial convenience of paying by class that the place we go to now offers. Soon enough Ballet Thursday may become Ballet Monday and Wednesday, though, so exciting things are on their way.