Beauty Steal: Michael Kors Nail Polish

I have been cleaning out all my drawers of polish to make room for colors I will use more and replacing old bottles with new ones. I've gotten rid of a lot and I'm learning what colors I lean towards when painting my nails. Lately I've been going for more neutral colors like greys and skintones, as well as leaning more towards shimmers and placing a matte top coat on everything. When I do go for colors I tend to lean towards jewel tones and deep colors. I used to pick warm colors over cool shades, but lately that has switched and I have been on the hunt to buy more cool toned polishes.

I picked up some beautiful jewel tones from Nordstrom Rack recently. I wasn't keen on buying anything from a higher end company at first because I'm completely satisfied with drugstore brands, but I was blown away by how beautiful the colors were and had never seen anything quite like them.

I purchased 3 shades: Cabaret, a wine red that had a golden shimmer(unfortunately no gold when dry)
                  Thrill, a beautiful teal green, more on the green side and unlike anything I own
                  Femme Fatale, a deep royal blue almost to the point of navy
(photos are below)

Instead of being 18 dollars a bottle it was only 7, so I decided that I would give them a try. the packaging was really cute at first, but when I went to open the bottles to use them I was annoyed to find that the gorgeous gold topper for the lid is just a cap you have to pull off before unscrewing the brush from the bottle.
While I don't think there's anything special about them to convince me to buy them full price, I find that I did enjoy the colors, and with a thick first coat they went on pretty opaque. The polish was shiny and had a nice fine metallic in it. With only one coat of polish and a top coat it lasted for about 3 days before it chipped. It probably would last longer if I wasn't working in a warehouse using my hands all day.

All in all, I would definitely run out and buy a few more colors of these from Nordstrom Rack if I could find some, but it's nothing to write home about and is hardly worth ordering the 18 dollar colors from the Michael Kors company unless there's something truly unique that I can't get somewhere else. I was dissapointed in how some of the finishes changed as they dried, and it was unfortunate that my favorite polish, Cabaret, morphed into something so normal compared to how it looked in the bottle. 0.3 fl. oz. seems like a pretty large amount of polish for me and I'm happy I got the chance to play with some of these shades before they disappeared.

Although I had higher hopes for some of these than they delivered, I am not at all disappointed in what I got for the price I paid, and if I see more colors of these in my local Nordstrom Rack I will be picking them up for sure.

Holy Grail Products for 2015

Perfume: Outspoken by Fergie, sold by Avon

Lotion:
Face: NYX Tea Tree Balance Elixir
Hands: Vitabath Shea Butter Hand Cream in Spring Green
Body: Skin So Soft Lotion, Sold by Avon
Feet: FootWorks Healthy Intensive Deep Moisture Cream, sold by Avon

Primer:

Eyelid: NYX Eye Primer in Nude (for neutral looks) and White (for bright looks and bold colors)
Under Eye: Wet N' Wild color corrector wheel (yellow)
Lip: NYX Lip Primer in Nude
Face: ELF Face Primer in Clear

Lip Exfoliator: ELF Lip Exfoliator

Foundation: Maybelline Fit Me Foundation Dewy and Smooth in 115 Ivory

Concealer: Kat Von D Tattoo Concealer in Sand

Blush: NYC Blushable Creme Stick in 649U Berry New Yorker
Contour: Covergirl Powder in Rosewood (No Longer Available)
Bronzer: Covergirl Powder in Copper Pennyfrost (No Longer Available)

Brows:
Pencil: I don't use one

Gel: ELF Wet Gloss Lash and Brow in Clear

Eyeshadow:

Nicka K Perfect 10 Palette AP021
NYX The Natural Shadow Palette TNS01
Sleek Makeup i-divine Ultra Mattes V1 Brights 

EyeLiner:
Cream: Essence Liner in Midnight in Paris 01
Liquid: NYC Liquid Eyeliner in Black 887
Pencil: WarPaint Beauty Wing Tip Liner Pencil in Black or Milani Eye Pencil in True Black and Dark Brown

Lashes:
Mascara: CoverGirl Lash Blast Volume Mascara in Black (Waterproof)
False Lashes: Ardell Fashion Lashes in Natural 110
Lash Glue: Duo Lash Glue in Dark

Lips:
Lipbalm: Burt's Bees Original Lip Balm
Lipliner: Avon Glimmerslicks Lipliner in Clear
Lipstick: Hard Candy Plumping Serum Lipstick in 866 Anonymous
Liquid Lipstick: Covergirl Outlast All-Day Wear Lipcolor in 661 Cinnamon Stick
Lip Gloss: Hard Candy Fierce Effects Daring Lip Gloss in 968 Adrenaline

Cleansers:
Face: St. Ives Naturally Clear Green Tea Scrub (light abrasion), St. Ives Fresh Skin Apricot Scrub in Invigorating (heavy abrasion)
Body: Bath and Body Works 2 in 1 Superfruit Body Scrub and Wash in Pure Passion (back, chest, shoulders and arms), Summer's Eve Cleansing Wash in Simply Sensitive

Makeup Remover: 

Wipes: Huggies

Liquid: Simple Micellar Water

Longwear spray: Elf Makeup Mist and Set

Brush Cleaner: The Brush Guard Set

Brush Set: Crazycity Professional Cosmetic Makeup Brush Set with Bag, Sold by Amazon (Imported from China)
ELF Contour brush
HOSL Flat Contour Brush (Sold on Amazon)

Nailcare: 
Nail Polish: Milani Color Statement Nail Lacquer in 03 Lady-Like Sheer
Nail cream: Burt's Bees Lemon Butter Cuticle Cream

Facing Stigma: Inked Nation

Recently, I encountered something I have only ever heard of. I suppose it was only a matter of time before it happened, but I never expected it to happen to me personally. I never expected to face this kind of stigma, let alone have someone my age be on the other end of it.

Ever since I was little, I have been in love with tattoos. I used to sit glued to the TV watching artists like Ami James and Chris Garver sharing their art and their clients' stories on TLC's Miami Ink. I knew all about the kinds of negative perspectives on tattoos and their artists, but something inside me always knew that would never stop me. In the past, tattoos have always been given a bad rap because of stereotypes about those with tattoos.

I never thought I would be stereotyped against not only for having my one tattoo, but for my plans to have more as the years go on. But the most shocking part of it for me was that it was someone my age who had said something about it. My tattoo is the most meaningful thing I have ever had done, and with every hardship I face it has been given that much more meaning. Every tattoo I plan to get has the utmost personal meaning behind it, but that hardly matters to naysayers who still believe that only criminals and rebels have tattoos. To those kinds of people the only thing my tattoos will be is meaningless blobs of ink that suddenly make me a criminal, incapable of professionalism, and a horrible parent (when I have kids) or role model to others. Because of this stigma, I have been very careful to only get the tattoos I want that won't be able to be seen by prospective employers so that I can hopefully avoid these issues when in the work place. I personally don't feel like I should have to be worried about whether this will come up in conversation, but for the sake of employment I'm willing to wait to get my arm tattoos done for a while.

My hope has always been that as the younger generations like mine grow up, these old stigmas would die out, but I was shocked to find out recently just how wrong I was. It surprised me to learn that a man no older than myself who I adore, suddenly is uncomfortable with the idea of dating me, not because I have a tattoo, but because I plan to have more of them. It was heartbreaking to find out that my tattoos, both present and future, could keep me from having someone in my life. It made me feel like I have to predisclose that I have tattoos before someone truly knows me in case they will be upset by it later when they find out. But this isn't fair. As long as they aren't vulgar it shouldn't matter to anyone whether I have them or not. It's my body and I can do with it what I want. To know me is to truly understand the meaning behind my tattoos, and to be able to see past them and into who I am on the inside.

Oldie But A Goodie

I found out today that I'm almost out of my favorite nail polish by Revlon. I can't even tell you how old it is, but it's a gorgeous duo chrome silvery purple that in some lights comes across almost green. It's a long time favorite of mine for my toes when I just need a little shine. Unfortunately, they no longer make the shade "030 Silver Switch". It must have been a seasonal shade because the whole "color illusions" line is gone. It makes me sad to know that once it is gone I can't get any more of it, but it will give me a reason to hold on to it a little tighter and use it less. They have a color out now called "Wild" that seems similar but it's darker and shows mostly green based on pictures. I will be picking it up and comparing them soon. I would love to see Silver Switch make a return to shelves so I can stockpile it.

My 'Unexpected Event' Kit

I have this little kit that I keep in my car with some items in it for those times when you get stuck somewhere overnight, something comes up out of the blue, or you just simply are in a rush and forget something important. I keep beauty items, lifestyle items, and even some health items in it along with a few things that are just useful . I'll make a detailed list below of what I keep in mine so you can use it to make a kit for yourself. My bag is big enough to hold everything I need, but also still small enough to fit under my drivers seat. Most of the products in this bag are small samples only good for one or two uses or one use testers. My kit isn't meant for daily use or for extended use like on trips, but it is useful for those unexpected nights away from home or impromptu plans with friends.

Along with this kit, I keep a bag in my trunk with a change of clothes I don't mind getting dirty in (in case changing tires or going under the car hood and getting greasy needs to happen), an outfit that looks a little dressy just in case I decide to go out and don't have time to go home and change, and in the winter I keep a couple of jackets and a pair of sweats in case extra layers are necessary to keep warm in emergencies.

Beauty Items
- Bobby Pins
- Tweezers
- Nail Clippers
- Body Lotion
- Face Lotion
- Shampoo
- Conditioner
- Body Wash
- Face Wash
- Deodorant
- Chapstick
- Cotton Pads/ Q-Tips
- Makeup Brushes
- Nail File
- Eyeliner
- Eyeshadow (Trial Card)

Lifestyle Items
- Hairbrush
- Hair tie (even though my hair is too short to need one)
- Mirror
- Tampons/Pads

Health Items
- Toothbrush
- Toothpaste
- Mouthwash
- Floss
- Hand Sanitizer
- Wet Naps

Useful Stuff
- Pen
- Pad of Sticky Notes
- A plastic card to clip my rings on if I take them off so I don't lose them
- Eyeglass Cleaning Cloth

Other Useful Items in my Car
- Blankets
- Car Jumpstarter Cables
- Mini Generator/Air Compressor
- Car Jumper Box (because you don't need someone else's car to jump yours this way)
- Matches
- Hook Bungee Cables
- Pocket Knife
- Screwdrivers

I hope this is a helpful list of things that you might wish to put in an 'Unexpected Events' kit for your car to be prepared in any situation that my crop up.

Stay safe, Explore the World, and As always Stay Beautiful.
BNB

My Holy Grail Products from 2014

We all have those go-to products we always use despite the occasional change in routine. Despite experimentation with other products I always come back to these, without fail these products work the best for me, and none other will compare. Every other product I try falls short in one way or another, and I always come crawling back to my tried and true favorites. Here's a list of the products I swear by:

Perfume: Outspoken by Fergie, sold by Avon

Lotion:
Face: Garnier Moisture Rescue Refreshing Gel-cream
Hands: Vitabath Spring Green.
Body: Outspoken By Fergie, sold by Avon
Feet: FootWorks Healthy Intensive Deep Moisture Cream, sold by Avon

Primer:

Eyelid: NYX Eye Primer in Nude (for neutral looks) and White (for bright looks and bold colors)
Under Eye: Revlon Photoready Eye Primer and Brightener
Lip: NYX Lip Primer in Nude
Face: ELF Face Primer in Clear

Lip Exfoliator: ELF Lip Exfoliator

BB cream: Garnier Miracle Skin Perfector BB cream in Light/Medium

Foundation:
Full Coverage: CoverFx Cream Foundation and Pressed Mineral Foundation, both in N10, sold by Sephora
Medium Coverage: CoverGirl Clean Pressed Powder for normal skin in Buff Beige (summer) and Classic Ivory (winter)

Concealer: Kat Von D Tattoo Concealer in Sand

Blush: CoverGirl Shape N' Blush in Perfect Rose (Now a "Vintage" item, which is kind of scary)

Contour/Bronzer: Maybelline Blush/Brush II in Cinnabar/Copper Penny Frost (Also, scarily a "Vintage" item)

Brows:
Pencil: Avon Glimmerslicks Brow Definer in Dark Brown

Gel: CoverGirl Professional Natural Lash in Clear

Eyeshadow:

MAC eyeshadow single in Beauty Mark

ELF Studio Ultimate Eyeshadow Palette (144 shadow palette: The Rainbow One)
ELF Essentials Brightening Eye Color in Drama

EyeLiner:
Cream: ELF Cream Liner in Black and Brown
Liquid: NYC Liquid Eyeliner in Black
Pencil: WarPaint Beauty Wing Tip Liner Pencil in Black or Milani Eye Pencil in True Black and Dark Brown

Mascara: CoverGirl Lash Blast Fusion Mascara in Black and Brown

False Lashes: Ardell Fashion Lashes #110
Lash Glue: Duo Lash Glue in Dark

Lips:
Lipbalm: Burt's Bees Original Lip Balm
Lipliner: Avon Glimmerslicks Lipliner in Clear
Lipstick: Nyx Matte Lipstick in Nude
Lip gloss: Liplicious Flavored Lipgloss in Mulberry

Cleansers:
Face: St. Ives Naturally Clear Green Tea Scrub (light abrasion), St. Ives Fresh Skin Apricot Scrub in Invigorating (heavy abrasion)
Body: Bath and Body Works 2 in 1 Superfruit Body Scrub and Wash in Pure Passion (back, chest, shoulders and arms), Summer's Eve Cleansing Wash in Simply Sensitive

Makeup Remover: 

Wipes: Garnier The Refreshing Remover Cleansing Towlettes

Liquid: Wet N' Wild Eye Makeup Remover

Longwear spray: (I haven't made it through my first bottle yet and it's been years but I'll give you it's name anyway) Icing by Claire's 

Brush Cleaner: Sephora Daily Brush Cleaner

Brush Set:

Crazycity Professional Cosmetic Makeup Brush Set with Bag, Sold by Amazon (Imported from China)

Hope you guys enjoyed seeing what products I repurchase every time I run out of them. Stay tuned for reviews of these products, and more!

Stay Beautiful.
BNB

This Year's Upcoming Posts

Okay, Ladies! It's 2015. I'm working on a post currently that should go up tomorrow which will list all my Holy Grail beauty products I swear by and will always reach for when I purchase. After this post goes up I'm going to work my way through the list and review the items one by one in posts throughout the year. I may insert a post here and there that is not on the list simply because you guys know I'm always buying more stuff and trying new things, despite having my tried and true products around. I'm doing my best to get every type of beauty product I use onto the list, complete with names and color or number codes whichever the brand has. Some things I listed a category for, but I haven't got a particular product I reach for, because I'm always experimenting. And some things, like lip liners, I just started purchasing about 3 months ago, and since I have only tried one brand I didn't deem it fair to label it my Holy Grail product because I have no idea if I truly find it to be better than any other products out there.
I'm going to try and do a small segment on men's products as well closer to the end of the year. (I have to try and rope my lovely man into trying products for me and giving me his thoughts though, because I'm not sure me trying the products will yield the desired reviews. Men think differently than I do.) Post comments or email me your thoughts and any products you might be curious about for your men, if this is something you guys would be interested in me trying to get working.

Stay tuned for my Holy Grail list, and more product reviews!

Stay Warm and Beautiful
BNB

Beauty Product Wants

As Christmas is coming and I'm making a list for my family of things that I would want for our family gift-giving I'm noticing it's mostly makeup products. I'm not expecting most of my family to be buying them for me, but it's become a hobby of mine to find products to play up my edgy style, while playing with color.

1. I'm in love with bold, bright colors, so finding the Sleek makeup palette in V1 was awesome, they're all matte finishes (if you've read most of my posts you know this excites me because I dislike glitter with a passion), and the bold neons are a must have for me.
2. I saw the Intense Pro Palette in Earth from Mehron, and I instantly fell in love with it. The swatches of the colors looked gorgeous. This palette is a must have for my coming independent photoshoot (which I will be sure to post some photos if I can get my hands on a good one) where I'll be doing a Native American war paint inspired makeup. This palette is more mattes, which are something I'm always looking to get more of, because it's often hard to find only mattes.
3. I found a single person selling MAC's Ombre Blush in Vintage Grape, which I've wanted since the day I saw it launch, but I've never had the kind of money necessary to spend on it until recently. I'm so happy to see it still exist, This could be the perfect edgy, unexpected blush color for my skin. But, since it was limited edition, I only have one shot at it on the internet for way higher of a price than I think it originally costed, buuuuut... I think I'm pretty hooked and willing to splurge.

These are the things I want the most. A lot of the new palettes coming out these days don't excite me because I have the colors already, but this stuff caught my eye!

Stay beautiful!

BNB

I'm an Influenster!

I joined Influenster.com today after hearing about it from one of the beauty bloggers I follow on YouTube. It is an amazing way to put my opinion out there about all of the products I use in my daily life, outside of just beauty products. I've had so much fun already, and I've only been on the site for two hours. You can comment on stores, brands, specific flavors/colors. It's a great way for opinionated consumers to get their opinions heard. It's free to join, and you don't need an invitation. You can earn rewards, in a sense, simply for you honest opinions on products you purchase all the time.
Every month or so, the company chooses a group of site users, and sends them a gift box of items that they can review. You don't get chosen every time, but you can get good stuff from it for your hard work. This site is by no means something you sign up to do if you don't enjoy giving your opinion on products, because you don't get paid to do it, but you do get rewards like promo codes to get money off of items you shop for and other small things like that, but this is not a check in the mail every month site.

Super Cool News

I've been slowly working on prying all of my eye shadow pans out of their singles and small palettes. I pulled a few face powders out a couple days ago that have really big pans, 2.5 inches roughly compared to the 1 inch Zpalette pans that you can purchase online. And when I searched for larger pans they didn't exist, so I decided that I would shoot customer service at Zpalette an email. It went along the lines of this:

I noticed today while shopping on your site that you guys only make eye shadow pans for putting in your palettes. As someone who has a lot of loose face powders I'm looking to pot and put in palettes I thought I might bring this up with you guys and offer the suggestion that making foundation and blush sized pans would be a cool thing. I would love to get a bunch of them, however it seems they are not being made by anyone yet. I love having the ability to change out my colors and customize my palettes, but I currently have no way of putting these loose powders into pans so I can add them to the palette. I know you guys probably get suggestions from your customers all the time, and it's hard to keep up with all of them and make everybody happy. I love your products, and look forward to maybe hearing back from you guys at some point!

And they actually responded within about 48 hours. They thanked me for my suggestion and told me they would take the idea into consideration in the future. Which is pretty freaking awesome if you ask me. I don't often have ideas that haven't been done before, so it was pretty cool to feel like I came up with something useful. And just the fact that they even responded at all made me feel quite amazing.

Along with this email they also said they would be releasing a product in the near future to allow Zpalette users to put loose pigments in their palettes. Which is also pretty awesome because I was deciding if potting all my pigments was a task I'm willing to undertake, and I might just wait until this product is released instead.

Thanks for listening Zpalette. You get an A+ for customer service and all around politeness from me!

Stay beautiful everybody. BNB

DIY Project: Makeup Palette

I undertook a giant project in hopes of downsizing the amount of space all the makeup I hoard will take up, without having to actually throw things away that I still find useful. I may not use the products every day, but I'm not ready to let them go just yet. So I decided that maybe my best bet was to pull all of the makeup pots out of their palettes and place them in a magnetic palette, much like the Z palettes you can buy.

This process was a lot harder than I expected in some cases... Some palettes are better constructed than others for sure. Depending on the type of glue and how much was used simply prying the pots out may or may not be your best option. A lot of the cheaper palettes I actually heated up with a lighter and softened the glue enough to pry it off the trays, but for the ones that didn't work for I had to use nail polish remover, or simply pry at the pots and hope for the best. I cracked a few shadows and bent a few trays, but I got them all out. The cracked ones may or may not stay in the same trays, a lot of them are sort of weird shaped (whoever decided it was a good idea to make triangle trays I hate you...).

The next part of the process involved building the palette base. I had started out putting magnets on the bottom of the pots themselves and putting them in a metal box, but realized that the actual Z palette brand has a magnet palette base and metal pots, so I quickly changed my plan and glued a magnet sheet to the bottom of my one plastic palette I wanted to use and stuck the few trays I had that were metal in it. I only did this because if I want to buy a Z palette at any time I want my pots to be compatible with it without any issue.

I have to figure out how I'm going to go about making the cheaper aluminum pots react to magnets. I thought about washers, metal paint like you put on the walls, buying a thin metal sheet, using magnets that will attract to the base, or simply just splurging on the little metal stickers from Z palette when I buy the empty trays to finish my potting adventure.

I still have a bunch of lipsticks, loose shadows, and cream eyeshadows that have to be potted into metal trays so that I can put them in the tray as well. I don't intend to put many of my lipsticks in the case, as I much prefer applying them from the bullets themselves, but there are a few that I hardly every apply that I figured might be better off as part of a palette rather than taking up space in a drawer or just sitting in my train case hoping that I remember they exist one day and using them.

I haven't tried the potting process for loose shadows or the melting process for lipsticks and cream shadows, but I will post a little blurb once I have time. I only have one empty pot at the moment so I have to wait for my Z palette pots to come in the mail before I can undertake this part of the process.

Hope this is helpful!

Have Fun and as always Stay Beautiful!

BNB

Sorry for the Delay in Updating

I've been hitting a delay in updating my page due to travels over the summer and a back up of work needing to get done. I will be continuing to update as close to daily as possible from now on. Now that I have gathered my materials for the rest of this year and decided what to give feedback on I will be more frequently posting reviews of products and hopefully posting more looks.
By tomorrow I will have another review up for a product, and I will also be posting a new look later this weekend.

Makeup Tips: Part Two

Blush and Bronzer:
1. Buying a contouring blush kit not only gives you the option to experiment with contouring, but it also gives you three shades of blush to mix and match for your ideal look.
2. Using a bronzer should be a daily addition to your foundation in the summer, and if you need that "just off the beach" tan use it every day of the year.
3. Your bronzer should be applied to your temples, underneath your cheek bones, and across the crease of your chin blending out into your jawline.

Eyeliner
1. Use a liquid or gel liner on your upper lid. It allows for more control of the thickness and dries on to avoid smudging on your crease and eyelid.
2. When buying a liquid eyeliner, buy one with a brush, not a foam or felt tip applicator. The brush type does not dry out as you begin to run out of liner, as I have found that the foam and felt tips do.
3. Lining your upper waterline is a challenging feat, but it makes your lashes look darker and may give you the option not to wear mascara during the day. Or you can add the mascara with the liner to get an even bolder look.
4. Line the outside edge of your lower waterline and smudge it into the edge of your lower lashes, try to keep from lining too far back, as it will just simply end up in your tear duct after you blink a few times.
5. Using a red liner around your eyes, just peeking out between your eye and your actual liner, attracts attention to your eyes, and makes the color of your iris stand out.
6. Using a white eyeliner in the inside corner of your eye around the edge of your tear duct and lightly swept below your eye will counteract dark circles and make you appear more awake.

Eyeshadow
1. Always use a gradient of shadows, never just one solid color all over. A gradient adds dimension to your eyes.
2. Extending  your shadow beyond the crease of your eye elongates the shape of your eyes.
3. Use the brightest/lightest shade of eyeshadow on the inner third of your eyelid. Cover the last two thirds with a medium shade, and shade the outer corner and crease in with the darkest shade of your color palette.

How I Do My Makeup: Tips From an Amateur Makeup Artist- Part One

Here are the rules at which I live by, some of them are more of personal rules, and other's are things I've picked up along my way and from friends:

Moisturizer
1. Always buy oil-free lotion specified for facial use. A built in suncreen is also a nice idea to think about.

Primer
1. Before you prime, always moisturize. It will make all your makeup brighter, and help it blend into your skin easier create a flake free environment.
2. Primer is your best friend on a hot summer day. If you prime your makeup, it won't run when you sweat.
3. Buying an eyeshadow primer is a must. It helps prevent creases and fading of your makeup, and it will also add shine.

Concealer
1. Buy a concealer a shade lighter than your skin tone. It's useful for covering dark circles under your eyes as well as brightening up eyes and any other darker spots.
2. Investing in a second shade of darker concealer allows you to mix them if your skin tone changes slightly.
3. Never use a liquid concealer. They go on cakey and require much more blending than a stick concealer.

Foundation
1. Always apply your foundation after your eye shadow to avoid fall out from your eyeshadow caking or smudging into your foundation if there's any on your skin.
2. A liquid foundation is better for your skin if you need heavier coverage to hide blemishes, scars or dark spots.
3. If you have oily skin you would be better off with a powder foundation, because it will help cut down on makeup run off.
4. A finishing powder is a nice addition to set your foundation, but it is not necessarily a must. It's an acceptable idea to reapply if you decide.