Beauty Gift Guide

Hello loves,

It has been awhile since i last posted on my blog. Oops :/

Well, seeing as the holidays are literally right around the corner, I figured a gift guide would be a good re-entrance into my blogging scene.

Most of the stuff will be female oriented. Maybe I can help someone out there with ideas for their mom, sister, grandma, girlfriend or even themselves :)

 

Ill start off by listing off some of the things that I have had for awhile and have become essential to my everyday life. (well maybe not EVERY day, but you get it.)

 

First off is a product I mentioned a while ago, but I still love

 

ST TROPEZ Bronzing Mousse

As of late, I have become obsessed with protecting my skin. So needless to say I have been avoiding tanning beds like the plague. But my love of being bronzed hasn't faded with a little help from this baby. I got mine from sephora.com and it runs about $40. In the summer I would use it about once a week to maintain a nice glow. Now that the winter months are upon us, I am attempting to come to terms with my natural paleness. But this guy has helped me on those days that I'm feeling less than glowing. Plus when class resumes in January I can just slap some of this on and fool all of my new classmates into thinking I went somewhere exotic over break ;)

 

Speaking of skincare...

 

Origins makes a very nice moisturizer called

VitaZing with SPF 15

 

I liked it because it has SPF, I LOVE it because it is slightly tinted. But it isn't a tinted moisturizer. It is supposed to adjust to almost any skin tone with little micro beads infused into the moisturizer itself. I have very acne prone skin, and to make it even more difficult to maintain, my skin is combination dry and oily. But this moisturizer doesn't leave my skin feeling too greasy or too dry. And as an added bonus, the slight tint helps hide all of the dark marks my acne leaves behind.

 

I also have very fine hair that is also pretty dry (because I bleach the you-know-what out of it) so I tend to use a pretty heavy conditioner. Which can weigh my hair down making me look like a little kid that just crawled out of the swimming pool. So it should come as no surprise that Big Sexy Hair is one of my favorite brands. I have used a few of their root lifters but I have a new favorite.

BIG SEXY HAIR Blow Dry Volumizing Gel

 

 

As you can see, my little sample is all used up, but I have already asked for the bigger one for Christmas :) Thanks Mom!

 

As for make up, I have found two brands I LOVE.

 

First is Laura Mercier. This woman can do no wrong in my eyes. I have tried her eyeshadow, concealer, mascara, tinted moisturizer and I want to try more. But so far, my favorites are...

the Secret Concealer (in #2)

and the Full Blown Volume Lash Building Mascara

 

As I said earlier, I am acne prone and Laura formulated her concealer to hide just about any blemish. I haven't found another concealer with a similar consistency. It may sound weird, but it is almost gummy. It isn't liquid but it isn't solid but it covers and blends phenomenally. The mascara I cant say enough good things about. I already have relatively long dark lashes, but when I treat myself to wearing this, it feels like I am wearing false lashes instead of just mascara. Simply wonderful.

 

The next brand is NARS.

Again I have tried a lot of different products from this line. I know the lip gloss isn't every ones cup of tea because it is sticky and tastes plastic-y but I like it. However, I loveeeeee the bronzer and blush.

My favorites being

NARS Laguna bronzer and

NARS Orgasm blush

 

As you can see, my bronzer is especially well loved. These two together give such an amazing glow. The bronzer creates a natural shadow where I contour and the blush is a very natural color on the skin. I read on their website that the blush is supposed to mimic the glow you can only get in the *ahem* bedroom, hence the name Orgasm.

 

Now some things that are on my own wish list.

 

First of all, I have a new love of taking luxurious baths. So anything from LUSH would be a safe gift for me (hint hint). Lush products are all handmade, many are animal friendly and some are even vegan friendly. Using all natural products to make bath time extra nice.

Bath bombs fizz in the tub, leave your bath water whatever color the bomb is, send out a very fragrant aroma of your choice and moisturize while you soak.

This is the dragon egg bath bomb

Bubble bars are amazeeeeing too. You run them under the faucet and it leaves a very fine bubble in your bath, tints the water and is super moisturizing.

 

 

The French kiss bubble bar

 

 

This last product is something I have heard rave reviews about, but just cant bite the bullet to buy for myself.

The YSL Touche Eclat radiant touch.

 

I have always felt that I have dark under eye circles and this product is supposed to perform miracles. It is supposed to cover and highlight your under eye area. I currently use Maybelline instant age rewind dark circle eraser. It works well enough, it is supposed to be the dupe for this YSL one...but I would still like the touche eclat.

 

Hopefully I gave someone out there an idea of something to get that special person out there.

 

Happy Holidays!!

Lots of love from my computer to yours.

 

Alyssa

My top 5 favorite nail polishes for fall

Hi everyone!

I know it has been awhile since my last post, August flew by! I can hardly believe it is already September.

But on that note, the only season I like more than summer, is fall. I love how most days are still sunny, the air is crisp and cool. The leaves turn a beautiful array of colors and its time to break out the sweaters and boots again.

 

So here are my TOP 5 FAVORITE NAIL POLISHES

 

 

For fall I like to wear neutral and dark colors. I will occasionally still spring for the bright pinks or pastels. But dark, not-quite-black colors are my fav.

 

First up, is by the brand Savina and is called Pedal to the Metal.

On your nails, it is a gorgeous metallic silver/rose.

 

Second, is NARS Bad Influence. This is a nice flat brown color that matches with almost anything.

 

Third, is Essie Devil's Advocate. It is an almost black dark purple/maroon.

 

Fourth is Nicole by OPI, it is a part of the Kardashian collection and is called Khloe had a little lam-lam

 

 

Fifth (and last) is OPI Dulce de Leche a nice pink-y nude.

 

 

 

 

 That's the last of my favorite polishes. I had the day off yesterday and went a little crazy giving myself a pedicure just for fun.

 

 

I painted them completely black, then put a small pink gem on the outside corner of each of my little toes. Then on the big toes, I made a row of tiny pearls at the top to mimic a french pedi.

 

 

Well that's all for now, hope you enjoyed my favorites and maybe inspired you to get a little creative!

 

Lots of Love,

Alyssa

Nail polish collection and storage

Hello beauties,


As some of my close friends know, I am somewhat addicted to nail polish. I love finding original colors as well as classic ones. Trying new brands and finishes is like a hobby for me.

I have also found a way to store all of my polish that I really like. So I thought I would share just what nail polishes I have (so far) and how I keep it all contained.

This is the carrier that I keep everything in. I got it at Target for like $12, gotta love Target. It is the perfect size to store nail polish while keeping them all upright. It fits nice under my bed too so it stays out of sight.

In the top layer, I keep all of my nail care related products. In the top left I have two nail files, on the right I have three different sizes of nail clippers. The yellow case is a travel nail care case my Nana gave me when I went away to college. I have both nail polish remover and cotton balls. The bottom right is a nail decorating kit that has a bunch of different jewels. I also keep my base coat and top coat in this container. I use OPI nail envy nail strengthener for my base coat. I like OPI top coat for... well my top coat.

In the bottom part, I keep all of my nail polishes. I kind of organize them by brand. I noticed that OPI and Essie are my favorite brands. I also have a lot of sinful colors, its hard not to, they're only $2. My collection may not look very big, but it is swiftly growing. Just today I received my first Butter London nail polish in Cheeky Chops from amazon. I am really excited to use it! It is a nice banana yellow.





I also swatched all of the polishes and tried to write in my best scrunched sharpie handwriting.

I took these photos on my phone. I also used natural light, there are no filters used on the pictures. It is kind of difficult to tell the actual color of some of the swatches, but it is helpful for when I, or a friend of mine is looking for a particular color.

I have a feeling I am going to have to buy another container soon to keep my collection contained.

That's all i have for now

Lots of love,

Alyssa

Take a Trip to St. Tropez

Hello lovelies,

Take a trip with me to the gorgeous beaches of St. Tropez and gaze into the crystal blue waters of the Mediterranean off the coast of southern France..... (le sigh)


Or we can at least look like we did.

May I introduce you to....

This is the St. Tropez bronzing mousse.

It is the ONLY self tanner I have found that is completely streak free. I've always been very weary about self tanners because of all the strange colors I have ended up or the tell tale white blotches that I missed. In the past I have opted for gradual tanners, like the very so popular Jergans gradual tan lotion. But it never had the color pay off I was looking for. Also I would frequently forget to put it on, so the gradual-ness was lost on me.

So for the past year or so I have been looking for an affordable self tanner. And after a bit of research I decided to try out the St. Tropez bronzing mousse. The mousse has such a light and airy texture. The formula glides on to your skin.

It has directions on the back that are easy to follow.

1) Exfoliate

2) Moisturize rough areas such as hands elbows and feet

3) Protect hairline and eyebrows with additional moisturizer

4) Apply from top to toe (it even hints to use generously to ensure no missed areas)

5) Air dry (aka: run around naked) for 60 seconds

6) Keep on for 4 hours then shower the excess away.

When I got mine, I didn't realize there was an option to buy the mitt that they sell. I really wish I had bought one. I just use my hands for now. The first time I used it, my hands were a bit discolored because I didn't wash them quick enough. The second time I used it, I washed my hands too well and ended up with stark white hands. The mitt is supposed to eliminate this problem. But for now I make do.

This is my arm and hand BEFORE St. Tropez bronzing mousse.

It looks a little more pink than white, but you get the idea.

This is after! This is only one coat of the tanner. It can be built up to be much darker as well.

I took these pictures outside so you can get the best idea of the color in natural light.

Well, that seems to be all for now!

Lots Of Love,

Alyssa







For all of the "fat" skinny girls

Hello lovelies,

This post I dedicate to all of us "fat" skinny girls. You know what I am talking about... the dreaded C word...... No not that that one (I know what you're thinking!) I'm talking about cellulite.

Even some of the tiniest girls out there have those awful little dimples on the back of their legs. Even worse, bikini and shorts season is here. Never fret, I have done some research and have personally tested a product that gives serious results!

Now I feel that I am pretty self confidant, but I am not confidant enough to post the back of my legs on the world wide Internet. So I apologize for not doing a before and after photo.

But I WILL show you my new summer essential.

This little duo by Bliss is their fat girl slim and fat girl sleep creams. If you cant already tell, one is for the daytime and the other is for at night. Working together, they give you smoother trouble areas. Now I'm not saying this will make you skinnier. It uses caffeine along with a multitude of other products, to make your skin firmer. Essentially "puffing up" the dimpled skin that has collapsed.

I started off using this product every day twice a day. And it worked really well. But it is a pretty pricey item to continually use. Now I use it before I know I will be in a swim suit or short shorts. Like any cream, it doesn't deliver permanent results. But after I quit using it every day and started using it two or three times a week, it seems to be enough to maintain a look I can live with.

Well, that seems to be all I have to share for now.

'Till next time lovelies,

Alyssa

Sephora Love

Hello loves,

The other day I received my little order from Sephora and thought I would share with you what I got.

This nail polish is called Slushied by Sephora by OPI. It is from their Glee collection, but when I put it on, all I see Smurfette haha. It is soooooo blue!

I also got this mask from Origins. It is the Clear Improvement Active Charcoal Mask to Clear Pores. On the back it says "Active Charcoal acts like a magnet to draw out deep-dwelling pore-cloggers". The mask its self is black so it looked a little silly lol. But after I washed the mask off, my skin felt kind of dry and tight. So I felt like it really did dig deep and draw out all the nasty-ness in my face. I just had to be sure to moisturize well.

The last thing I bought was this Too Faced Chocolate bronzer. I loveee how this makeup smells like a mug of hot chocolate. It is a pretty dark bronzer, fair skinned makeup lovers beware. I like it a lot, but I think I still like NARS Laguna better.

Lastly, Sephora is having a 15 days of beauty thrills contests/giveaways. I placed an order on the very first day which featured Make Up For Ever. With any purchase of more that $25 they gave away a free, FULL SIZED black aqua eyes eyeliner. My MAC eyeliner is quickly dwindling, so I jumped on this because it is regularly $20 for one of their eyeliners.

Welp, that concludes my newest Sephora loves :)

See ya next time.

Lots of Love,

Alyssa

A Case of the Monday's

Hi there,

Have you ever had one of those days where it hard to roll out of bed to start your day, then you look out the window and see a grey, gloomy, cloudy day?

It's called a case of the Monday's.

This morning I woke up with a bad case of the Monday's. I pressed the snooze button three times on my alarm. The weather is icky, dark and rainy. And I have to start my day off sitting in math class.

Insert now, my cure-all for a case of the Monday's

I ran over to Safeway for a hot bowl of Mac and Cheese, M&M's and Elle magazine. I poured myself a cup of hot coffee and wah-lah! My day is instantly better :)

Now I am going to watch the season 7 premiere of Keeping up with the Kardashians and turn my day around.

Everything in life might not be going perfectly, but right now, I am happy.

Lots of love,

Alyssa

e-nuf is e-nuf!

Hello lovelies,

Hope today has been nice and relaxing for you. If not, take time to kick of your shoes, put your feet up and chill with a cold beer and some trashy T.V.

When I was at the grocery store the other day, this nail polish immediately caught my eye.

It is called e-nuf is e-nuf by essie.

Its a bright red-coral color perfect to accent your (spray) tan skin this summer. I figured I would thow this on my blog because I'm feeling inspired by pinterest at the moment.

It is very bright, so I toned it down with some silver glitter as an accent nail on my ring finger.

(not pictured)

Are there any other colors you think are your go-to summer nail polish colors?

Love,

Alyssa

A Day in the Life...

Hello everyone,

One of the things that has always drawn me to blogs, is that you are getting the chance to look into someone else's thoughts. Some express how they feel, others talk about the things that they like, and others talk about their families. What every single one of them has in common, is that you are getting the chance to glimpse into the life of the person behind the key board.

So I decided to let you guys into a typical day in my life.

You may like it or find it devastatingly boring. Either way, enjoy.

Tuesday, May 8th, 2012.

This morning I woke up before my alarm (ugh). I am NOT a morning person. So instead of getting up and starting my day off productively, I slip in and out of a sort of half sleep. I was actually able to remember one of my dreams too!

I was transported onto the Titanic as it was sinking. I was running across the ship with Brooks searching for a life boat. But only women and children were allowed on. I was tossed on to the boat and it was being lowered down. I was screaming for Brooks, scrambling to try and get off to get to him (in a very rose-esque kind of way).

Then I woke up to Abu whining and barking to be let outside to go potty. Generally this is Brooks' job since he is closest to the sliding glass door we have in our room. This makes it very convenient letting him out in the morning.However, my roommate Bryce is babysitting his brothers two dogs. One is a big Doberman Pincher.

 He may be as dumb as a box of rocks and the biggest coward I have met, but he is a lover none the less.

The other is a Golden Retriever/Pit bull mix.

 This poor thing was badly abused before Bryce's family adopted him. As a result, he is an assassin to anything smaller than itself (they learned this with some neighborhood chickens). So needless to say, Abu isn't allowed to play with them. So Brooks meanders over to the door and checks to make sure the yard is empty, watching him the whole time. While I roll over and try to fall back asleep.

Suddenly I am jolted away by the endless screeching of my alarm. In a grumpy way I throw my covers off and make my way to the bathroom to wash my face and brush my teeth. At my closet, I choose a loose flowey white tank top, a jean vest to go over it, my blue tribal print maxi skirt. I continue getting ready slathering sunscreen on my face and neck (it is a 75 degree day today! Woo hoo!). I apply my makeup and put my hair half back. I have an exam in my first class. So I get my coffee started and sit down to go over my notes one last time. It is for Psych 362 which is stats in psychology.... sounds fun doesn't it.

The clock strikes 10:50 and I am off. I feel pretty confidant during the exam, but we will see when I get my grade (I got an 80% :) not too shabby for me). I return home for a two hour break. Hungry, I decide to go get lunch from the local Thai restaurant. Chicken Pad Thai yummm.

To kill time before class I turn on Netflix and finish watching season three of The United States of Tara. Bryce wakes up (like a hibernating bear) and joins me without complaint. I know I like to watch some pretty weird shows, but I have sat through what feels like endless hours of MLB on the PlayStation.

Two-O-Clock, time for Family Studies 235.

 It is about communication. The first half was pretty typical. Lecture mixed in with a few class activities. It is a two hour class, so we take a break half way through. Once we return, one girl speaks up asking if we can finish class outside since it is so nice. None of us expect our professor to take the bait, but surprisingly he agrees! So we head out side to a courtyard just outside of the building. We spend the last 45 minutes there, gathering stare from passing student (of obvious jealousy :) ) and chasing away the occasional bee. It is a slightly breezy day, making my maxi skirt all the more fun to wear.

I go home again, this time for an hour break. My friend Dani comes over and we shoot the shit for awhile before I have class again at 5.

At five on the dot i sit down in Psych 473, Psychology of language. Another long class. It can have some pretty interesting class discussions, but because of it being between 5 and 7 my tummy is almost always rumbling.

After class is over I drive over to Fred Meyers in search of a particular DVD, the Titanic. But they didn't have it in stock, so I settled for Moulin Rouge instead. I got a few groceries, shampoo and conditioner, and a sandwich for dinner.

At home I settle in to enjoy my sandwich, flaming hot Cheetos and A&W root beer while doing homework for my FS 234 class. This class is about family and marriage. Moulin Rouge is playing in the background. Dani comes over again and we have a little homework party in the family room. I finish my homework about 20 minutes before midnight. Brooks is already in bed. He got a concussion at football practice the other day, so he has had a headache that has been bothering him.

I turn on my side lamp, wash my face, brush my teeth and change into pj's. I pop a melatonin to wind down from my homework brain. And drift off to sleep a little after 12.

It may not have been a particularly exciting day, but hopefully you guys have read this far.

Lots of Love,

Alyssa

New Brushes!!

Well Hello!!

A couple weeks ago I received a package in the mail that I have long been waiting for.

It was from Sigma brand makeup brushes. I have needed new makeup brushes for awhile. I will buy one here or there. But honestly, I have needed a new set. I didn't take good care of most of my brushes from high school and most leave me with a "beard" from all of the fall-out.

So I did my research and MAC brushes seem to be the best on the market. However there was also a lot of hype about these Sigma brushes. Not to mention they were much more affordable than a set of MAC brushes. So one day I found myself online (weird I know) and decided to just go for it. No more putting off the inevitable and I got the Complete kit as well as the dry n' shape holder-thing.

This is the complete kit. The pink brush to the side is the free gift that they sent me! While I am grateful, I had already bought this same brush except full size in the kit. Anyways, the kit comes with 4 face brushes and 8 eye brushes.

I wanted to try them all out for awhile and decide how I liked them before I did a blog post about them. I must say I am pretty impressed!

But out of all 12 brushes, 1 has severely disappointed me. After I spent a butt-load of money on makeup brushes, I expected them all to be at a certain standard. But the F50 brush leaves more stray hairs behind than my old brushes! (it is the second on the left in the top row)

I am determined to make it work though, I use it exclusively for stippling on foundation and then spreading it out with a different brush (which is from Costco and is better quality)

Hmmpphffff.

(Me pouting)

Other then that, I love the rest of them. Especially the F30, E70 and E40. I use these daily.

Well, now that I have invested in my brushes, I need to take better care of them.

I am very impatient when it comes to washing my makeup brushes because I feel like they take forever to dry. Then I can't use them the next day because they are drying and my whole makeup routine is just off.

Insert the sigma dry n' shape system.

It has 12 different slots that come in different sizes for different brushes. Then at the top there are individual elastic bands where the bristles of a brush slide into. I have used is a couple times and so far lives up to its claim of drying brushes in 4-6 hours. However I usually wash my brushes at night and leave them over night to dry.

Well I am off to Olive Garden with my Hunny for our four year anniversary date :)

As my Nana says, LOL

or

Lots Of Love,

Alyssa

1950's Barbie look

Over the past few days, I have been pondering over what I wanted to do for a blog post. I came to the conclusion of doing some sort of how-to look.

But what look to do? Something normal? Something costume-y? Something pretty?

Yeah, something pretty. But what kind of pretty? Something classic, and what is more classic than Barbie?

First I applied a heavy coat of liquid foundation. Then covered any remaining imperfections with concealer. I took extra care under my eyes because I wanted my skin to look flawless. 
Then I set everything with a translucent powder.

Next I added a light dusting of a red/pink blush to the apples of my cheeks.

For my eyes, I first dusted a matte blue eye shadow to my lids and blended upwards. Adding a shimmery blue shadow closer to the crease.(Ignore or laugh at my funny faces:) )

Next a swept a black over the blue on the lid and left the blue peaking out on top.

Then, I took more of the black and blended it into my lash line on the lower lid and swept it out into a wing.

Next I added a thick line of black liquid liner to the top lash line and winged that out as well.

After that I filled in my brows and added mascara.

I filled in my lips with a red lip pencil, went over that with red lipstick and a little bit of clear gloss.

Then a little magic from Instagram and TA-DA!!

Barbie :)

Lots of Love,

Alyssa

A perfect little pink pout

Well hello again,

It has been a while since my last post, I know. I have just been a little preoccupied with finals for school and work. But now it is spring break and time to relax... even if it is only for a little while.

Anyways..... Last week I made a little trip to a MAC store and picked up two lip presents.

The first I have been wanting since it came out weeks ago. The second, the lady working there ever so easily persuaded me to try. And I am very glad I did. :)

I just got the iphone 4 (not the 4S) and so I have been experimenting with the instagram app. This is me wearing the new lip products. My mom said that its too barbie pink for her and reminded her of lip colors from a different era. That just means that it's perfect for me!

I used three products to get the look that I am wearing.

First is the MAC pro longwear lip pencil in "In Anticipation" that the MAC lady "persuaded" me to buy. It isn't exaggerating when it says longwear. The lipstick and gloss may fade away through out the day, but the pencil never needs to be re-applied. It seriously lasts 24 hours!

Next is my intended purchase. From the MAC VIVA GLAM collection, it is the Nicki Manaj color. It is a bright pink with yellow undertones and is perfect for day or night time.

Last is the NYX soft matte lip cream in Addis Ababa (how fun is that name?!) Its a hybrid mix between a lip stick and lip gloss. Its my first one, but I think I'm gonna go back for more colors. I really like the texture of it. Plus it's only like $5.

I swatched each of the products on the back of my hand.

The top is the NYX lip cream

The second is the Nicki lip stick

Last is the lip pencil.

Together, they create a beautiful pop of color to any look.

Luscious Pink Love,

Alyssa