My First Makeup Geek Order

I took the plunge, I made my first Makeup Geek order and it was magnificent. If you're in the beauty industry there is a good possibility that you've heard of the newer brand, Makeup Geek. It is made by a beauty blogger and has the quality of high end brands with the price tag of your drugstore favorites. 

I scoured the site for hours (almost 30 minutes) trying to figure out what I should place in my cart first. So many options! I ended up deciding on 5 eyeshadow pans, 1 pigment and 1 Z Palette. 

Cremee Brule, Sea Mist, Peacock, Cocoa Bear, and Cosmopolitan were the pan eyeshadows that inevitably ended up in my cart. Each pan was $5.99...you read that right. A whopping 6 buckaroos, tell me that's not a bargain. 

I also purchased one of the oh-so-famous pigments in the color Utopia, for a total of $6.99. This is a gorgeous black/gold pigment that is almost an exact dupe for Stila's Vintage black-gold Magnificent Metals Foil Finish shadow that cost $30. 

I am so impressed with the quality, color pay off and price tag of all the items. The hype is worth it, seriously. This was the first of many Makeup Geek purchases for me. Next on my "to buy" list will be her brushes, I've heard they rival MAC and beat out Sigma too. Only time will tell! 

Xoxo, 

Haley   

fotd-pastel pink

You know the one color in every palette that is still standing long after the other colors have fallen and hit pan? The one color that begs to be used but is forever receiving the side eye from users? You know the one.. the pink eyeshadow that is included in almost every palette, the one color no one ever uses. Yeahhh, that one. Poor guy. 

This is the color I've been playing with more recently, spreading the love, if you will. I wore this look the other day to work and received a ton of compliments, the light pink surprisingly has quite a brightening effect when placed in the inner corner. To add to the pastel-ness of the look, I used a mint green liner in the inner rim for an extra pop. 

Eyes: Lorac behind the scenes eye primer. Toofaced Chocolate Bar palette. Stila Smudge Stick: Mint Julep. Stila Stay All Day waterproof liquid liner. Tarte Lights, Camer, Lashes mascara. Benefit Gimmie Brow: light/medium. 

Face: Nars Sheer Glow foundation: syracuse. MUFE matte bronzer 40. MAC soft and gentle highlighter. Covergirl Instant Cheekbones blush.

Lips: NYX Butter Gloss: tiramisu 

Don't be afraid to try the pastel pink guys, it's spring. Give it a go! 

xoxo,

Haley 

S.S 7

Happy Sunday Y'all! 

The tides have turned my friends, inspiration in the makeup department has been re-struck. Do you also hear the angels singing? Good, glad I'm not the only one. The moment you break free of a rut and rediscover your love for something is quite the magical moment. That's what this past week has been for me, hallelujah. Onto the stunners: 

Stila Smudge Stick Waterproof Eye Liner: Alpine 

I've mentioned the smudge sticks from Stila before but they are ah-ma-zing. Seriously, best inner rim liner I've tried. It stays on all day and is truly waterproof. I've put it to the test, all in the name of beauty. 

I use this white color all the time to make my eyes look bigger and make my eyeshadows pop. Not to mention the color range for these liners are insane, I'm dying to try the canary yellow one!

First Aid Beauty: Ultra Repair Cream

This is your all purpose cream, the Mr.Get-it-done of the cream world. I use this on my face as a morning moisturizer, as a soothing cream when my tattoos were healing and on any dry skin on the body. It's perfect for if you have sensitive skin like me, no paragons or fragrance just a gentle, lovely cream.   

Peter Thomas Roth: Oilless Oil 

I have recently been giving this "oil" a go and I've got to give a slow clap to Mr. Roth. We've got a winner on our hands, ladies and gents. This is an anti-aging oilless oil that is actually made from sugarcane and helps to improve elasticity and radiance while preventing water loss below the skin. It's moisturizing without making you feel like a grease ball. 

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

I am a certified nerd, I would rather live in Middle Earth than this one. Zero shame in my game. I loved all of the Lord of the Rings trilogy and I find The Hobbit to be amazing too. If you haven't yet tried these movies you really should, they are beautifully shot all the while transporting you to an entirely wonderful, magical world. 

Have a wonderful week and find something stunning! 

Xoxo,

Haley 

Venting: College

Whether we like it or not college is a huge part of society. It starts at a young age with teachers asking us what we want to be when we grow up, then in later years it turns to preparing us for college, testing for college, touring colleges, financing for college, starting college and then you may or may not finish it. College is heavily pushed upon students, at least it is in America. You are almost shunned if you don't attend any higher level place of education, people think you're a drop out and that you're not doing anything with your life. Mostly because for years leading up to college we are told that if we do not attend we will fail in life, we'll be poor and will end up making minimum wage our entire life. It's harsh. 

Going to any college or university is expensive, very expensive with the cost raising every year. It costs thousands and thousands of dollars to get an education that we apparently "need." We are told to pick a major that will eventually turn into a career. Basically, you are investing copious amounts of money into an education that is supposed to in turn get you a job that will make you even more money. It is an investment. The thing is, it's a risky investment; you are not guaranteed to get a job in the field you studied. For example, I work with a girl that majored in International Affairs. She went to school for five years and then couldn't find a job when she graduated; she now is in debt and works selling at a makeup counter. Her time and money invested in college has since then been a waste. 

So we are to invest thousands of dollars into a school that will in turn train us for a career, that we may or may not get once we have graduated. Nothing is guaranteed, no job, no future, nothing. All you can do is hope that all of your hard work has paid off. So, is it worth it?  

For some jobs I think yes, definitely. Certain jobs require extensive training and it's necessary to receive higher education. Although, I do think the price for schooling is absurd. I do not think people should be in debt 30 years after they've graduated. For many companies they require a degree, it doesn't necessarily have to be any particular degree but just to show that you completed something. 

I personally think experience is more important than a piece of paper saying that I know how to pass a class. You can get all A's and still not know a thing about the subject you "studied." But that opinion doesn't really matter if I can't get a job and pay the bills. Our society has made college necessary, so is it worth it to you?

Ohh, the gems I find on twitter. 

*picture is not my own. Link:http://www.funnyonlinepictures.com/funny-pictures/graduation-dog/ & https://twitter.com/ColIegeStudent/status/453930175575519232*
*Excuse my venting, sometimes ya just gotta get it out. Also excuse my grammar in the post, some of you are probably thinking "damn. she needs to go to college"* 

Most Loved Drugstore Lipsticks

Ye old faithful, that's what these lipsticks are. Sometimes you can fork out $25 for a lipstick that you just know is the one. You just know you're going to wear it like everyday and wear it like everywhere. It's the one. But then something crazy happens, the $25 stunner isn't what you're reaching for; you're reaching for the $4.99 badass from Target over the one. *gasp*   The $4.99 badass from Target is one you've had for well over a year and it's been wrangled down to nothing more than a nub but it's ye old faithful. 

I have two of these said faithful lippies, the Revlon Lip Butter in Pink Truffle and the L'Oreal Colour Riche Balm in Nourishing Nude. These two lipsticks are quite similar; both have a nourishing balm like texture, are sheer neutral colors and go with basically any look you could think of. They are my most loved lipsticks from the drugstore and you can bet your ass I'll be repurchasing them. Sometimes that's just how the cookie crumbles, cheap and cheerful wins again! 

I hope all of you are having a wonderful day, night, morning, afternoon, whenever you're reading this. Let me know if you have any drugstore favorites that you reach for over your high end products! 

Xoxo, 

Haley 

S.S 6

Beauty ruts are one of the worst type of ruts to get in, at least when you work in the beauty industry. When you just start doing the same look over and over again because it takes the least amount of time, hence the lack of makeup goodies on todays weekly stunners post. But hey-ho I still found some stunning things this week so here we go:

Formula X Dry Spray: 

If you paint your nails you need this in your life. Simple as that. This is a spray that dries your nail polish within seconds, seconds I tell you. Better than any "fast dry top coat" out there. Just whack your polish on then give those puppies a few spritz of the Formula X Dry Spray and BAM you're ready to rock and roll with your freshly painted claws. Get it girl, get it. 

Fresh form the Garden: 

There is something so magical about being able to walk outside, go to your yard and pick your own dinner. No having to drive to the closest restaurant, just simply pop into your garden and there you have fresh food ready to consume. It's crazy to me that this is how we now think, but years ago people would have been in awe of the fact that almost no one has gardens anymore and we all have to go buy pretty much all of our food. It's funny how times change. 

Friends and Family:

I know I'm not alone in pushing quality time with friends and family to the side. But sometimes we need to push work to the side and appreciate the people we have around us 

I hope you all have a wonderful week, let me know of any stunners you have!

xoxo,

Haley  

Quick Tip for the Occasional Breakout

Almost every girl is guilty of the mini/massive freakout pre, during and post breakout. We've all been there; you can feel it coming. At the first signs your heart starts to race, you rack your brain for every tip and trick you learned years ago from scouring those beauty bible teen magazines. But, it's inevitable... Mount Kilimanjaro is about to sprout out of your face in the form of the least sexy zit ever. Great. 

We've all been there. Everyone gets a pimple, I mean everyone. If you've never had a zit you haven't lived. The occasional breakout, that everyone gets, doesn't mean that you have acne prone skin. 

My quick tip for you today is that if you get the occasional zit don't dry your entire face out. 

Do not go running to an entire acne system, do not start scrubbing your skin off and for heavens sake do not start skipping your moisturizer. This has an adverse affect and causes your skin to overcompensate and produce more oil, therefore leading to more acne and flakey skin. That's really not cute. Your best bet is to spot treat the pesky pimple at night, something like a sulfur spot treatment works wonders. You can also do a weekly exfoliating treatment that features salicylic acid or a weekly detoxifying mask. Finally, please be sure to use a moisturizer, this won't break you out but rather balance your skin and help to calm it down. 

I hope this tip helped a bit for anyone who gets the occasional breakout and tries to scrub their face off to get rid of it.

Xoxo,

Haley 

The It Primer

I, Haley, am a believer in primers. I feel like they make a difference in my skin and I think when I go without a primer my foundation slides right off my skin. But that's just me, no shame. Since I practically throw my money at any primer that boats to be amazing I had to try out the It Cosmetics "Feel The Moment" primer. And whoa mama, I'm "feelin" it. I have no shame in being cheesy either. 

This primer claims to be a sensory awakening primer-serum hybrid that provides perfectly poreless, hydrated and airbrushed like skin. Apparently they're "feelin" themselves too, those are some pretty big claims It Cosmetics.  

And after trying it out for a week and a half, I gotta say, I like it. This primer is different; it has a serum like texture and does in fact add an extra layer of hydration to your skin. "Feel the Moment" is made with a ton of different skin helping/loving ingredients, thus making it anti-aging too. While it doesn't make me look airbrushed it does help with my pores and I'm "feelin" it y'all. I'm "feelin" it. 

If you have dry, flakey or aging skin I would highly recommend this primer; it feels amazing on the skin, really helps to minimize pores and has a relaxing herbal aroma to it. Although, if you have oily skin stay far far far away from this product. It will be entirely too heavy and will not help to mattify your skin or hold foundation. 

I hope this little review helped some of my fellow primer lovers out there! Let me know if you have any primers you love or if you think they even work. 

Xoxo,

Haley 

Love at first Bite

Hello you lovely bunch! Today I'm bringing you a stunner of a lipstick. Excuse me, not just a lipstick, an entire lip product line. It was love at first application, or shall I say love at first Bite. 

Yes, pun intended. Like love at first sight, ya get it? Yes, I laughed at my self. 

 Bite Beauty is a natural lip care company that makes products that are actually healthy enough to eat, they use food grade quality ingredients. Whaaat, amazing, I know! Also, most products have resveratrol in them, the same antioxidant that is in a glass of red wine. What?! So it's anti-aging too? Insane. While Bite is all natural it offers an incredible product lineup, from lip sticks to lip creams, to amazing lip treatments. 

This lipstick pictured above is the Luminous Creme Lipstick in Granache, and it is spectacular. The product is creamy, nourishing, highly pigmented and has some serious lasting power. The color I chose is a particularly radiant orchid-esque shade, and if you're not sure what that looks like think of a blend between a bright purple and pink. It took me quite awhile to pick this shade, they have a TON of color options in all different formulas.   

While I only own one Bite product (for now) I would highly recommend their lipsticks, it truly was love at first Bite.  On my to buy list is their Agave Lip Mask, Cashmere Lip Cream, Whipped Cherry Lip Scrub and their Honey Lip Lacquers. I'm lucky enough that where I work carries Bite so I've gotten to play with it quite a lot and it is impressive! 

Next time you're in the market for any lip products go give Bite some love, you won't be sorry you did!

Xoxo,

Haley 

All About Brushes

Brushes are a necessity to any makeup wearer, while quality brushes are an investment for any avid makeup wearing lass or lad. That being said choosing the right brush can be a headache, there are so many on the market that I've decided to share my favorites and some quick tips about choosing the right brush for you. 

Quick Brush Tips: 

1. Synthetic v. Natural bristles: Synthetic bristle brushes are typically used for cream or liquid products as they do not absorb as much of the product, making them easier to keep clean and they are also less likely to be damaged from heavy usage.  Natural bristle brushes tend to be a bit fluffier and work amazing for powder products because the bristles have a bit more movement, although the bristles will adsorb product faster and need to be washed frequently. 
2. Dense v Fluffy: Dense bristles or ones that are "more tightly packed" will give you more pigment payoff or fuller coverage. While the fluffier the brush the less pigmented the application will be, this is why most eyeshadow and blush brushes are fluffy so that they give you a soft application. 
3. Tapered v Flat: Any tapered brush (one that has a slight point at the end) will give you a more precise application of product while a flattop brush will apply coverage in larger area's rather than a specific place. 
4. Quality doesn't mean expensive! Real Techniques and Sigma brushes are wonderful affordable tools that out preform brushes that cost twice as much. 
5. Washing your brushes is important, but make sure when you wash your brushes you point the bristles down away from the water so that the glue does't get wet causing the brush to shed.  

My Favorites: 

From left to right 

Sigma Small Contour F05: I love this brush for blending in my bronzer, it's quite small so it's perfect for getting right under the cheek bone to contour with.

Sigma Tapered Blending E35: This brush is wonderful to get right in the crease and blend out shadows. 

Sigma Blending E25: This brush is a well known babe to any makeup lover. It is a dupe for the MAC 217 and is simply a dream for blending out shadows all over the lid and in the crease. 

Sephora PRO Precision Smudge 29: I absolutely love this brush for smudging out liner to get a smokey effect, as well as smudge my eyeshadow on my lower lash line. It's a beaut, really! 

Sigma Flat Definer E15: This brush is great for giving any look a precise edge. I specifically use it to trace my brows with a lighter concealer, the flat edge is perfect for this. 

Real Techniques Blush Brush: Hello fluffy, this brush is so soft and fluffy it's like a cloud, I love to use this pink handled gem for my setting powder as well as my blush. 

Real Techniques Expert Face Brush: I adore the brush for foundation, it is so dense that it gives any foundation a flawless application. This is probably my favorite brush that I own, I use it every day! 

EcoTools: There is no name on the brush for what kind it is but I use it to pack on eyeshadow, it gives a nice even application and costs only a few bucks. Talk about cheap and cheerful. 

Sephora Must-have angled liner brush 90: This brush is from Sephora's more affordable "classics" line, I use this angled brush for my brow powder. It is such a fine tipped angled brush that provides excellent control. 

There are so many different types of brushes that have different uses and so on and so forth that I could do multiple posts about brushes. Let me know your favorite brushes and if there are any I should try out! 

Xoxo, 

Haley 

     

S.S 5

Happy Sunday Funday! 

I skipped my Sunday Stunners post last week because there wasn't too much I was loving. But here we are, yet another Sunday. This weeks stunners were...

Photo 1: Salon Perfect nail polish in the color Perfectly Peach, this is a cheap and cheerful one. It breaks the bank a whopping $1, incredibly expensive. I know. Next, we have Deborah Lippmann's glittery goodness in the color Stronger. Beautiful, yet a total beeyotch to get off. And finally the Nars lippie in the shade MayFlower. Hello holy grail. 

Photo 2: I like to call this one baby Dior plays in a field of rose petals. How classy, how demure, how enchanting. In all honesty this little buddy was given to me as a sample and I've been using it every day this week. Not my fav but I don't hate it. 

Photo 3: Hullo smexy smelling candle. This Tobacco & Patchouli scent is a total babe. It's a scent unlike any other, if you're near an Urban Outfitters stop by and give it whiff.  On a serious note what the heck is patchouli and is this why the cancel smells so delightful? 

Photo 4: The Beauty Blender, ahhh the infamous BB. I must admit I recently have fallen head over heels for the pink egg looking thing. It blends in foundation and concealer like a dream, making it look totally natural. It really is worth the hype. 

I hope you lovely people are having a simply splendid Sunday, please do let me know if you've been loving anything this week!

Xoxo, 

Haley   

Melon.

The sun is finally shining again and you know what that means! Bright lips. Bold lips. Fun Lips. 

Today I bring you the melon lip, its fun and bright. A double whammy. What more could you want? Besides a never ending supply of Oreos and Peanut Butter.. 

Back to the point, this particular color is none other than Aurora from Rimmel London's Show Off Lip Lacquers and I find it truly wonderful. It is affordable, long wearing, moisturizing and a beautiful color.  What a champion, Aurora. You go girl! 

On my face: 

nars sheer glow foundation in santa fe. smashbox bb cream for eyes in light. benefit bronzer in hoola. benefit blush in coralista. urban decay all nighter setting spray. 

Melon is such a funny word, the more you say it the weirder is sounds. Excuse me while I go say melon fifty more times like a creep. Toodles. 

Xoxo,

Haley 

The Best in Class

I recently did a post concerning my least used products; so I wanted to counter that somewhat negative ramble with a post about my most loved babies. These are products I use pretty much every time I do my makeup, no matter what look I'm going for these are my go to. They complete any look and haven't failed me thus far. Have I professed my love enough yet?!

MAC Mineralized Skinfinish in Soft and Gentle: This is my every day highlight, it looks gorgeous over any blush and is stunner stand alone product too! It gives you a soft, lit from within glow. You can also use this on the inner corner of your eye to give you a bright eyed effect. 

Maybelline Dream Lumi Touch Concealer: This lovely little twist up concealer is what I use for a cream highlighter on my cheek bones, chin and forehead. Like the name says it's a dream. 

Make Up For Ever Mat Bronzer in 40: I use this mat bronzer as my powder contour, it never looks chalky or too orange. An added bonus, I've had this since november and haven't even made a dent in it!

MAC Paint Pot in Soft Ochre: This beaut is what I use for my eye primer to prevent creasing and increase shadow pigmentation. It gets the job done and I would recommend it if you have issues with for shadow staying put. 

Lancome Cils Booster Xl: This is Lancome's lash primer, it is a white potion that you coat your lashes with prior to mascara to give you mega volume and length. I absolutely love it!     

I hope you lovely people are having a splendid Wednesday or hump day, as some like to call it! Is there any products that you use everyday, no matter what? 

Xoxo, 

Haley