Easter Egg Nails

 

Hi beauties,

With Easter coming up this weekend, I wanted to show you my favorite Spring nail polishes which I like to refer to as my Easter Egg Nail colors! I love pastel nails, and as soon as spring rolls around, I am always  eager to pull out my spring nail polishes. (Although who am I kidding, I've been known to rock the pastels in a mid-winter snowstorm!) 

Without further ado, I give you my favorite polishes for achieving "Easter egg nails"! 

[L-R]: Sinful Colors- Unicorn, NYC- French White Tip, Flower beauty- Gorgeous Gerbera, OPI Rumples' Wiggin', Revlon-Minted.

 Sinful Colors "Unicorn"- I would describe this as a buttery or new born baby duck yellow. It is a cream polish and is very opaque. I do have to warn you,  that if you wear this polish for too long it WILL stain your nails yellow. I have found that if you put a white polish underneath it, you won't have that trouble.

NYC "French White Tip"- You may be wondering why I would include a white polish, but I think that white polishes are key to making pastels "POP". Simply do a coat of white nail polish under your pastels to help them pop and be more true in color. This white polish is great, and super affordable.

Flower beauty "Gorgeous Gerbera"- this is a true pastel pinky peach. Perfect for spring and looks killer with a tan! 

OPI "Rumples Wiggin'"- I will admit that this is my FAVORITE nail polish of all time. Just a true pastel lilac that is creamy and never streaky. It is just all around perfect.

Revlon "Minted"- I will admit that this needs several coats or it will look streaky (which I think is due to the applicator!) It is a true mint green and reminds me of pistachio ice cream!

 

[L-R]: OPI Coney Island Cotton Candy, OPI What's with the Cattitude, Sinful Colors Starfish, Sinful Colors Paradise, China Glaze For Audrey

 
OPI "Coney Island Cotton Candy"- I like to call this a "Noticeable neutral". It is work appropriate and is a peachy nude. I think it is a work friendly pastel color that makes your nails look really clean and put together.

OPI "What's with the Cattitude"- This is probably my favorite blue polish of all time. It is just a true pastel baby blue. It is a cream finish which is my favorite and is a really nice pop of color.

Sinful Colors "Starfish"- Although it is coming up more on the pinky side on camera, this is a nice pastel mauve. It is really a nice combination of pink and purple and is very subtle.

Sinful Colors "Paradise"- This is a true Sky blue! I like to wear this for an accent nail when I wear what's with the cattitude. It is probably more bright than most would consider pastels to be, but it looks great paired with a pastel, so I had to include it.

China Glaze "For Audrey"- This is a polish that many people talk about on YouTube and on blogs. It is a true Tiffany's box blue and is blueish green and is very understated. I love this!

So there you have it! My favorite shades for Easter Egg nails! I'd love to hear what your favorite polishes are for spring!

XOXO,
Erin

Review: GHD Hair Straightener

Hi beauties,

 

Today I'm going to share with you my new favorite hair straightener! The GHD Classic 1" styler.

For Christmas this year, my main present was a ghd Classic 1" styler, and I'm officially obsessed. 

 

 

 

My previous hair straightener was a 1" CHI. My only issue with my CHI was that it was plastic, so I couldn't curl my hair with it. It was the pink plastic version, so it was so girly and cute, but in the end it didn't have all the abilities that I wanted in a straightener. I also have very thick curly hair, which since it is long and heavy now, has turned into waves, (When my hair is short, I have ringlet curls.) and it took a long time to straighten my hair with the CHI because it didn't get as hot as the ghd does. 

 

The ghd's description says: "The ghd Classic 1" styler is the perfect tool for all your hair styling needs. With universal voltage to ensure you can look your glamorous best wherever in the world you are and automatic shut-off for peace of mind, the ghd Classic styler has all your hair styling needs covered!" "All-in-one styling tool with ceramic technology, Perfect for straightening and smoothing hair and creating curls, twirls and flicks."

 

I have to say that the ghd lives true to saying it smooths hair! I don't blow dry my hair because it is so thick that it takes a long time, and also that I don't want to add extra damage to it, so I miss out on the smoothing step of using a round brush to smooth and polish my hair while blow drying. My hair is so smooth after straightening with the ghd, that I couldn't believe the results. With my CHI I was having to constantly to add a smoothing serum to my hair after straightening it, and it's nice to not have to do that with my ghd!

 

 Here is what my hair is like naturally:

  

And here is what my hair looks like straightened with my ghd (sorry for the grumpy face- haha)

 

I should have brushed it out beforehand, but you get the idea ;)

 As you can see there is a pretty huge difference! I'm really liking using the ghd because it has given such great results. It also takes much less time to straighten than it did with the CHI, and the results last longer as well. I use the It's a 10 as my heat protectent if you are wondering. To be honest I haven't tried curling my hair with the ghd yet, because I have been loving the timelyness and look of my hair straight. I shall experiment with curling with the ghd and report back. :)

 

BONUS: I wanted to share with you something neat that my mom made me to store my straightener when it is cooling down after use. It is especially useful if you are doing your hair at a friends before a night out, or going on a trip. She found this idea on pinterest. What you do is take a pot holder and then on your sewing machine, sew up two of the sides until you have a little pocket to store your straightener in. It works great and is a cheap alternative to the straightener storage that is available on the market now. (You can find pot holders at Dollar stores!)

 

 

What is your favorite hair straightener? 

xoxo,

Erin

I'm Sick...

Hi beauties,

I'm sick.. I've been feeling so icky that I haven't even put makeup on since Friday! (I think that is a record for me.) I wanted to share some things that have been making me feel a little better, both beauty and non-beauty related.

1.) Keeping Hydrated!

My skin has felt extra dry and tight due to the fact that I have been resting and napping a lot more than usual, so I haven't been drinking enough fluids. To cure this, I have been enjoying my beloved Garnier Nutritioniste Anti-Sun-Damage lotion for my face because it sinks in quickly, and really makes my skin feel less tight. I also find the smell of it really uplifting. I'm sure you guys are tired of hearing me talk about this product, but it is just HOLY GRAIL status for me. I love it so much.

 For my body, I have been using Jergens Ultra Healing body lotion which is a thick lotion that does take a bit to sink in, but I find that if I use it when I'm still damp from the shower, it absorbs a lot faster. It is unscented which is also nice.

Can I just say that my hands have been ridiculously dry compared to normal? I guess it's from all the extra hand washing and sanitizing that I've been doing (which is probably reaching germaphobe status since I already wash them constantly on the normal day.) For my hands, I have been enjoying Paris Amour body lotion from Bath & Body Works. It smells really girly, and sinks in quickly to relieve dry hands. It also keeps you feeling hydrated for a long while after it is applied, and the scent really lingers nicely.

I have also been drinking Lemon-Lime Gatorade to keep hydrated, which is have been drinking out of my double insulated reusable cup from Starbucks. These cups are a lifesaver as they don't get condensation everywhere, and they also help to remind me to drink more fluids! My water intake has probably doubled since I purchased it.

2.) Entertainment.

My number one source of entertainment while being sick has been catching up on reading my favorite blogs and watching my favorite YouTubers. The channel that I have been watching the most is TheSchuermanShow, which is Sam Schuerman's vlog channel. I've been catching up and have watched over 20 episodes throughout the weekend. If you love her beauty channel and haven't checked out her vlog channel, you need to. It is a MUST WATCH, and one day when I have kids, I hope to be the kind of mom she is to her kids. Such lovely vlogs!  [Link: Here]  P.S: I will definitely be uploading a video to MY channel this week. Sorry that it has almost been a week, I've been feeling icky! Link to my channel Here.

I've also finally had time to catch up on the magazines that I've had lying around that I subscribe to but haven't had the chance to read. I have been reading two of my favorite magazines which are Cosmopolitan and HGTV Magazine. I've also been reading a new subscription of mine which is Elle Decor. I really like it so far, but the items and products that they talk about are WAYYYY out of my price range. Even so, thanks to all the decor magazines I've been reading, I officially have Redecorating-fever! I want to redecorate everything and I have so many great ideas from the inspiration in these magazines. YAY!

Finally, I've also had time to catch up on the sometimes neglected DVR. I've been watching a lot of Ghost Hunters, Syfy's new show Stranded, and also a new mini series on History Channel called "The Bible" which is very interesting and well made. I've also been watching some old favorites like The Following (OMG I'm so addicted! Is anyone else watching this show?), 2 Broke Girls, The Big Bang Theory, and Finding Bigfoot. I also have a strange fascination for the Investigation Discovery channel which is mainly true crime stories.

Other than that, I've been sleeping and resting as much as possible, hoping to kick whatever this bug is. Hopefully it's gone soon, and I can get back to my makeup wearing self (my nails aren't even painted!) 

I'd love to hear if you have any home remedy type things to help cure both a ton of congestion AND a tummy bug. I've heard Lemon and Honey tea might do the trick, and even though I have a huge dislike for honey, I might put my feelings aside and try it out for the sake of feeling better.

xoxo,

Erin

A Peek Inside: My MAC Palette

Hi beauties,

I thought it would be fun to share a look into my MAC palette. It took me a long while to collect enough pro-pan shadows to fill up my palette, and I looked at blogs and YouTube videos when I was deciding which eyeshadows to pick, so I thought it might help other people out to see what I picked and what they look like swatched. 

I believe that MAC has changed the look of their pro palettes, but mine was the original 15 pan pro eyeshadow palette. 

 If you buy the Pro-pan eyeshadows, then not only are they cheaper, but they also come already backed with a magnet. If you buy it in original potted form and decide that you want to depot it, you would need to attach a magnet to the back. 

Antiqued is described as a "Ash brown with bronze" it is a Veluxe Pearl finish. I would describe it as more on the copper side, and think it is a gorgeous shade for girls with brown eyes.

Cork is a "Muted Golden brown" and is a Satin finish. I think this is a universal color that looks great in the crease or for blending out colors. I've also had friends in the past that have used it for their eyebrows and really liked the outcome.

Electra is a frost, and is a "silver with icy shimmer." I love to use this when I do a really dramatic smokey eye as an all over lid color. It is a VERY pigmented silver, which is a rare find.

Humid is a color that I wear all the time, even though it is dramatic. It is also a frost finish and is described as a "green with shimmer." I LOVE wearing this on my lower lash line, and think green is probably the most flattering color on brown eyes.

Mythology is a Lustre and is described simply as "Copper". I really hardly ever find myself reaching for this eyeshadow because there is a lot of glitter that really doesn't do much beside contribute to glittery fallout. I'd also say its more on the pinker end of the spectrum rather than a true copper.

As you can see, the most used eyeshadow in my palette is Naked Lunch. It is a frost and is "Minimal pink with shimmer". It looks gorgeous as an all over lid color or as a highlight on the brow bone.

 Parfait Amour is great for brightening up a purple smokey eye, or for a fun pop of color on the lower lash line. It is a "Blue-violet with shimmer" and is a frost finish.

Patina is another one of my must have eyeshadows. It is a "taupe brown with golden pearl" and is a frost finish. (Can you tell that frost finishes are my favorite?) This is great for an all over lid color or even in the crease for days when you are going for more of a neutral eye look.

Sable is another great shade if you want more of a deeper color while still staying on the neutral side of eye looks. Sable is a "Gold plum with bronze pearl" and is a velvet finish. I like to wear this in my crease or or on the outer corner of my eyes.

Plumage shows up on camera much different than it looks in real life. In the picture you don't see the deep peacock-ish tone blue that you see in person. Plumage is a matte shade and is described as a "dusky peacock". It can be hard to work with and really takes a bit to build up color to get a true color payoff.

Shadowy Lady is another color that I use when doing a purple smokey eye look.. It is described as a "blackened plum" which I would totally agree with. This is also a matte shade and can be hard to work with and to build up color with.

 Sumptuous Olive is described as "Khaki with pearl" and is a Veluxe Pearl finish. Its great for a neutral everyday eye look. I love this color and actually prefer it over the beloved Woodwinked eye shadow.

Typographic is a go to for when I'm doing smokey eye looks, I have also used this as an eyeliner, and it stays put really well. It is described as "Asphalt black" and is a Matte2 - Matte squared is much easier to use than the regular matte formulation in my opinion. I actually like Typographic better than the hyped up matte eyeshadow Carbon as it is much easier to work with.

Twinks is described as "Deep Plum with pearl" and it is a Veluxe Pearl finish. It is gorgeous in the crease or I even like it all over the lid (lightly of course!) on my lazy days.

  Finally we have Wood Winked which is a "warm antiqued gold" and is a Veluxe Pearl finish. This eyeshadow is talked about a lot on both YouTube as well as on blogs, and I will agree it is a gorgeous color, but it is one eyeshadow that I don't find myself reaching for very often. I need to make it a point to use this eyeshadow more often. 

Now on to the SWATCHES!!! : 

That is it! I hope you enjoyed a peek inside my MAC Palette. I'd love to hear if you have any recommendations of MAC eyeshadows that I should check out! 


XOXO,
Erin

Update Skinnygirl Daily Bars - Influenster

Hi beauties,

I just wanted to give a little update on the Skinnygirl Daily On-the-Go Bar that I featured in my Influenster SweetHeart Vox Box unboxing blog post from a few weeks ago. I received the COCO-NUT with Peanut Butter flavor, and I was pleasantly surprised by this. Like I had previously mentioned, this bar offers 8 grams of protein in a 180 calorie bar which is amazing for a vegetarian like myself who doesn't always get the protein that they need. This COCO-NUT bar was SO delicious. The flavor reminded me of the Caramel Delight Girl Scout Cookies, except at only 180 calories. I highly recommend that you try these out, and I will definitely be purchasing some more. I've already looked into the water powder mixes as well, so expect a post on those soon once I order them.


Have you tried an Skinnygirl products? I'm curious to learn more and get recommendations to try out next. (I've had the Skinnygirl Cocktail in Peach Margarita- and it is YUMMY - F.Y.I! hehe)

XOXO,
Erin

Confessions of a Hand Sanitizer Hoarder..

Hi beauties,

My name is Erin, and I'm addicted to hand sanitizer. I am a substitute teacher, and I learned my lesson my first year on the job, because I was sick all the time from not washing my hands as much as I should. My fix was adding a hand sanitizer from Bath & Body Works to my work lanyard ID. I haven't gotten sick as much this year, because having hand sanitizer on my all the time reminds me to use it! My sister is my enabler, because she recently bought me a TON for a St. Patrick's Day/Early Easter present. I thought I would share with you, in case you are in the market for something to help keep the germs at bay.

The first 2 were technically in a 3 piece bundle, but the Luck O' The Irish mini hand sanitizer is already on my work lanyard. The Luck O' The Irish foaming hand soap was something I was really excited to see. I am planning on saving it until I move into my apartment in a few months. The LOVE Shamrock and Heart sanitizer smells like pink lemonade which is awesome. I can't wait to use it next!

These tropical themed sanitizers also came in a bundle. They smell incredible, and already have me counting down the days until summer! The mango is probably my favorite, but they all smell amazing.

This was another bundle which was party themed. It came with 3 "Party" sanitizers and 2 "I heart cake" sanitizers. Thankfully I really like both of the scents, so I don't have to worry about wasting any. The I heart Cake sanitizer is really realistically cake scented. Usually, food scented items tend to smell very artificial, but that isn't the case with these!

 The next sanitizers came in an "I heart.." themed bundle. They all smell great, however the I heart cookie dough is kind of artificial smelling. I was hoping it would be realistically scented like it's I heart cake counterpart, but unfortunately that wasn't the case for this one. I will use it though.

The final bundle was filled with "Fresh Picked" sanitizers. These smell so amazing and truly live up to their name of smelling like they are "Fresh Picked". I can't get over how fresh they smell, and I am currently carrying the Fresh Picked Strawberries one on my keys!

So that is the end of my Bath & Body Works show and tell. As you can see, I am really stocked up on hand sanitizers for a while. Do you guys have any favorite sanitizer scents that I should check out?

Talk to you soon!!

xoxo,
Erin

FOTD: St. Patty's Day Inspired Green Smokey Eye

Hi beauties,

I have heard that green eyeshadow is very complimentary to brown eyes, but I had never been brave enough to try it out. I thought St. Patrick's Day might be just the time to venture into the green eyeshadow realm. I did a trial run yesterday, and wanted to share the results, as I was quite please with how it turned out.


Products Used:

Face:
-Garnier Nutritioniste Anti-Sun-Damage Moisturizer
-Revlon Age Defying Concealer - Light
-Rimmel London BB Cream - Light
-MAC Studio Fix Powder - NW20
-Benefit Hula Bronzer (Contouring)
-Rimmel London Natural Bronzer - Sunlight
-MAC Prom Princess Blush

Eyes:
-MAC Constructivist Paintpot
-Wet-N-Wild Trio- 382B- Cool As A Cucumber
-MAC Humid Eyeshadow (outer corner)
-Jordana Fabuliner - Brown
-Covergirl Lashblast Length Mascara
-Fresh Supernova Mascara

Lips:
-L'oreal the Balm- Caring Coral

FOTD: Flower Beauty Smoke and Mirrors Shadow Play

Hi beauties,

I wanted to do a FOTD using the Flower Beauty "Smoke and Mirrors" Shadow Play eyeshadow quad that I featured in a previous blog post. It was really rainy and yucky out yesterday, so I wasn't feeling wearing any sparkley/glittery eyeshadow. I have never been one to wear completely matte eyeshadow looks, but I really liked how it looked yesterday. It also lasted all day when paired over top a MAC paint pot!

 Products I'm wearing:

Face-
-Garnier Nutritioniste Skin Renew Anti-Sun-Damage Daily Moisture Lotion. (Since I have dry skin, I never really wear a makeup primer, and just use a lotion!)
-Revlon Age Defying Concealer in Light
-Maybelline Dream Smooth Mousse in 180 Nude Beige (applied with Real Techniques buffing brush)
-MAC Studio Fix Powder in NW20 (dusted LIGHTLY to set foundation with a Crown powder brush from Hautelook)
-Maybelline Age Rewind Dark Circle Eraser in Neutralizer
-Benefit Hula Bronzer (used with Real Techniques contour brush to contour cheekbones)
-Rimmel London Natural Bronzer in 021 Sun Light (all over bronzer, applied with the same Crown powder brush in the E 3 technique!)
-MAC Prom Princess Blush
-Hard Candy Baked Blush in Living Doll (applied with Sonia Kashuk duo-fiber brush to highlight tops of cheekbones)

Eyes-
-NYX Push-Up Bra For Your Eyebrow (Highlight side for highlighting brow bone)
-Benefit Bad gal Brown Mascara (applied with Real Techniques brow brush to tame eyebrows)
-MAC Paint Pot in Constructivist
-Flower Beauty Smoke and Mirrors quad (dirty gray matte shade all over the lid, matte smokey blue/grey in outer corner and into the crease, matte cream shade in inner tear duct area, and on brow bone.)
-Jordana Fabuliner in Brown
-Fresh Supernova Mascara
-Covergirl Lashblast Length  

Lips-
L'oreal  the Balm in Caramel Comfort 

I know that it seems like a lot of products and work, but I have this routine down and complete it in around 10 minutes. I'm loving the Flower beauty quad and have found myself using it everyday in one way or another.

Hope you have a great Tuesday!

xoxo,
Erin
 

February Empties 2013

Hi beauties,

Have you seen my latest YouTube Video? It's a February empties! Take a look! :)

XOXO,
Erin

Not Your Mother's Beach Babe Texturizing Sea Salt Spray

Hi beauties,

If you saw my unboxing post of my Influenster SweetHeart VoxBox, then you saw that the Not Your Mother's Beach Babe Texurizing Sea Salt Spray was included in the box. I wanted to give you a more in depth review, now that I've had this product for several weeks and have had time to test it out. 

This product is described by Not Your Mother's as "Now everyday can be a day at the beach...minus the sunburn. BEACH BABE has everyone fooled into thinking you just left the beach (you little liar!). It adds sexy, tousled waves and a light matte finish to any hair type. Infused with natural dead sea salt & sea kelp this salon formula has you and your hair on the boardwalk all year long." 

I have naturally curly hair, which due to the length of my hair it is now so heavy that it's more of waves than curls. (When it's short, I have ringlet curls!) I also have frizzy hair, which can cause a bit of curl chaos. 

The Beach Babe Texurizing Sea Salt Spray enhances my curl without weighing it down or making it feel "crunchy" like other sea salt sprays tend to do. It also tames frizz, even in rainy/snowy conditions. It also smells delicious (coco-nutty and tropical! It reminds me of a day on the beach!) I will definitely be purchasing a larger bottle once I finish up the trial size. I highly recommend this, and can see it becoming a staple for my hair routine in the summer months.

    

Embracing the beachy messy waves. LOVE IT

What do you guys think? Have you tried out any Not Your Mother's Products?

*I did receive this product for free inside my Influenster SweetHeart VoxBox.- THANKS INFLUENSTER!!!


XOXOOXOX,
Erin