How I Do My Eyebrows + GIVEAWAY!!

Hey guys!! I hope you're all enjoying your weekend so far. I've been doing a lot of style things recently on this blog which has been really fun, so I thought today I'd kind of bring it back and do some beauty! Since I'm giving away a few of my March Favorites (details below!!) including the Maybelline Brow Drama, I figured I'd show you a little tutorial of how I like to use it. I'm not pretending to be any type of brow expert, but this is just what I find works for me. I do like quite a strong brow too, fair warning!!

I like to keep my Brow products separate from the rest of my makeup, so I keep in this cute little Rebecca Minkoff makeup bag I got from Ipsy!

1) Pencil in my brows. The first thing I like to do is line/ fill in my eyebrows with a pencil. I find that this step is really where I define exactly where I want my brows to be and just how strong/dark I would like them, which is probably most important. I've been using the NYC Classic Brow/Liner pencil in the shade Jet Black, which is a huge bargain for 99 cents for two! My hair is quite dark, so the darker colors/ blacks work well for me.

2) Fill in my brows with eyeshadow. After I've finished penciling in my brows, I like to go back over them with a dark eyeshadow. I find that this serves to fill in any gaps, and to also make them look more natural and less harsh. My favorite is the accent color in the Neutrogena Nourishing Eye Quad (shade 140, Sea Shell), which I think has been discontinued, but there are definitely several suitable alternatives in the Maybelline the Nudes Palette! I just use a cheap (but very cute!) angled brush from Forever 21, and I find that's perfectly suffice, but it would definitely be nice to spring for a MAC 266 when funds are less tight!!

3) Ensure brows stay in place with an eyebrow gel. My very last step is to go over my brows with an eyebrow gel, just to make sure they stay in place all day and also to tame any stray hairs I may have. The one I've been using is the Maybelline Brow Drama in the shade Deep Brown, which I am giving away (amongst other things!!) The brush has quite a unique shape, with a little ball on the end of the wand, and the way I like to use this is to start at the end of my brow closest to my temple, take it lightly against the hairs torwards my nose, and then go in the opposite direction in a windshield wiper motion. This gel has really amazing staying power, I really find that my eyebrows look the same at the end of the day as they did when I did them in the morning!

And that's it!! It's really very awkward to take a picture with only one eyebrow done, but I really wanted you guys to see the difference, so I've done this for you.

And this is my makeup done! As is the story of my life, one eyebrow has come out infinitely better than the other. Doing my brows is one of my favorite parts of doing my makeup, I just think it really adds structure to your face and makes everything feel complete. I know this tutorial was very picture heavy, but it was my first one, so let me know what you guys think!! 

And now, for the giveaway: I will be giving away a Naked Basics palette, a Maybelline Brow Drama (shade of your choosing), and a L'Oreal Paris Magic Lumi Highlighter (also in the shade of your choosing), all in a little makeup bag, and I will be shipping anywhere in the world! This giveaway will be open until the last day of April, good luck!!

I hope you guys have enjoyed this post, please don't forget to enter my giveaway if you haven't already!! 

Stay beautiful!!!!

- Whit 

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October Ipsy Bag Reveal!!

I've got my favorite candle of the moment burning (Gardenia Lily!) and I'm ready to do one of my favorite posts of the month... My Ipsy bag reveal!!

the bag: Ipsy

cost: $10/ month

contents: full size/ deluxe size makeup products

I'll have a referral link down below if you're interested in checking it out :)

First product- the Doll 10 H2Glo Highlighter in the color Champagne (Full Size $30, received just under a half size for a value of $13.50): I'm So excited to have a cream highlighter!!! Ever since I've fallen back in love with cream blush, I've felt it's about time to hop on that cream highlighter bandwagon, so imagine my joy at receiving this product in my bag this month! The packaging is so sleek and classy, and the product just looks gorgeous inside. Pray that I love this, because I was looking online and they have this product in a rose gold shade, and I'm not sure I can imagine something more gorgeous!!

Skyn Iceland Glacial Cleansing Cloths (Full size for $15, received 1/3 size for a value of ~$5): Face wipes are a basic necessity in life. I can tell these are going to have a really crisp, clean kind of scent to them, and the travel size is going to be perfect for when I head to Philly in November. Definitely no complaints here!!!

City Color Be Matte Lipstick in the shade Cappuccino ($5): When they say matte, they aren't kidding! No shimmer or sparkle to be found here. Still, the lipstick is a very pretty, dusty rose kind of color :) My mom's eyes practically bugged out when she saw it, it's so pretty. She (very cutely, I might add) asked if she could have it, and so, of course, I handed it over. This woman gave me life! My mom is the kind of person that really loves a product to death, too, like the Nars lipstick I gave her back in June is VERY well loved, so I know this lipstick is going to find a nice home in her makeup collection!

Figs & Rouge Mango & Mandarin Shea Butter Hand Cream ($6.56): This stuff smells absolutely amazing!!!! It literally smells like a mango popsicle or like a mango smoothie from Jack in the Box. SO GOOD. The packaging is so cute and bright, and it's the perfect size to throw in a purse or backpack for after washing your hands. And around this time of year, my hands are always dry, so I can tell this product is going to be a godsend for me!!

Volumeyes Extreme Black Mascara ($20): This may potentially be a full size product, I just can't be sure. But let me just say this: I. AM. A. MASCARA. JUNKIE!!!! If I received a new mascara in every Ipsy bag, I'd be a happy camper. I've yet to receive a bad one, so we'll see how I like this one :) The brush shape looks very promising, and I'm definitely here for that jet black.

NYX Bronze Smokey Look Kit ($12): I received this extra in my Ipsy bag this month as I had accumulated 1000 points. You get points for reviewing products and the such :) I think this is going to be the perfect little palette for traveling, it's got 9 gorgeous neutrals in (a mixture of matte and shimmery shadows) and then two lip glosses. I'm really not too crazy about the bronze lip gloss, but the consistency is creamy enough it could work well for a base while traveling, so in that case I'll still get a lot of use out of it! And really, can't get enough of that NYX packaging. 

And lastly, the bag itself this month was a very cute teal, quilted pattern, which I will also be giving to my mother so she can carry her makeup around in it :) Went along well with this month's theme of beautycandy. 

So this month's approximate value comes out to be $50.06, without the NYX kit. Can you believe that? I paid 1/5 of that price!!! Do you get ipsy? How'd you like your bag this month? :)

And here's a referral link if you're interested in checking out Ipsy!! 

Nail Polish faves!

It's always nice when you have a minute to sit down and paint your nails. I think when you have your nails together, people are more inclined to think you have your life together, haha. :) Anyway, here are the colors I've been loving recently, I just repainted my nails these colors and I practically never do that. What are your go-to colors for fall?

- Odette by Zoya ($9)

- It's Genius by Essie ($8.50)

September 2014 Ipsy Bag Review!!!

I was super happy with all the picks I got this month in my ipsy bag!! For those of you who don't know, Ipsy is a subscription bag that sends you 5 deluxe/ full size beauty products in the mail once a month for $10. Each of the picks in your bag is supposed to be specialized for you based off of your beauty preferences.

This month I felt that all of the picks I got were so usable and perfect for this time of the year, and I'm definitely very excited to incorporate these products into my beauty routine :)

If you're at all interested in Ipsy, you can sign up here! http://www.ipsy.com/home

Also, I apologize for the iphone quality pictures, hopefully I get my hands on a quality camera soon!!

the bag: Ipsy

cost: $10/ month

contents: full size/ deluxe size makeup products

The Bag: The bag this month was a super cute silver faux leather makeup bag, to go along with the "Street Style" theme. I have to say, I have a bit of a love/hate relationship with the Ipsy makeup bags. As cute as they are every month (and look at this studded one, so cute!!! So punk rock!!!) they often just end up cluttering my room. However, a handful of them have found practical uses; for instance, I have two that I'm using in my school bag. I really like this one though, so perhaps I'll put some essentials in it and bring it to concerts!!! 

NYX Hot Singles Eye Shadow in Chandelier ($4.50): I'm always a bit apprehensive about NYX eye shadows, because I feel they're so hit or miss. Sometimes the color pay off is phenomenal, other times it's horrid. I'm still up in the air about this one, to be frank. I was pleased that Ipsy sent me such a neutral color (let's be real, I wasn't about to work those deep purples), however, I feel like this one is really particularly sheer and shimmery. Because of this, I don't know how much I can say for the color payoff, but it really makes a lovely inner corner highlight, so I know I'll get a lot of use out of it!!! And the packaging is cute too, so that can't hurt :) (color swatch below)

Briogeo Don't Despair, Repair! Deep Conditioning Mask ($26.00 for a full size of 5.25 oz, received 1 oz for ~$4.95): I've gotta say, I am ALL ABOUT hair masks and treatments. As you would probably expect, seeing as I've bleached half my head. I was particularly interested in this mask, as the Brigeo line is actually going to be launched in Sephora stores in the near future!! And the nice thing about Ipsy is that you actually recieve a good enough size that you can get a few uses out of it, and really get a feel for whether or not you like the product. After washing my hair (on Tuesday) I found that it didn't weigh my hair down at all, and that my hair seemed shinier and more voluminous for days afterward (it's Thursday and I'm still impressed by my hair days!!). I'll keep you posted, but if all go wells this may become a staple in my hair care regiment!

Cailyn Art Touch Tinted Lip Gloss in Love Affair ($19): When I first saw this lip gloss in my Ipsy bag, I'll admit to being a bit disappointed that I had been sent the deeper shade, rather than that more natural pinkie tone being offered this month. But as soon as I put it on, it was love at first sight. Coming from someone who really shy's away from vibrant lip colors- this one is absolutely lovely. It's a very pretty wine color, and it's a bit more sheer than it appears in the tube so it's not overwhelming. Despite being a novice when it comes to lip colors, I think that I'll definitely get a lot of use out of this when fall hits southern California, and it's not 100 degrees out!! (swatch below)

Pacifica Natural Water- Proof Eye Pencil in Fringe ($11 for a full size, received a half side for ~ $5.50): Tried this pencil out today, seems very creamy. It went on my waterline like a dream, but it was awful on the tightline. That may just be because I'm very picky about eyeliners I'll put on my tightline though. There was a time where I was very into brown eyeliner on my waterline, so we'll see if this product can rekindle that love in me!! (see swatch below)

Crown Brush Infinity Shadow/Crease Duet Brush ($17.50, on sale for $6.99): I love getting makeup brushes from Ipsy!!! Adore this one. The Shadow/ Crease duo makes it PERFECT for traveling, and if it's sale it's an incredible deal. It's so soft :) Definitely going to get a lot of use out of this, I can never have too many eye shadow brushes! 

This makes the total value of my bag $40.94, which is 4x more than the price of $10 that I paid. The lip gloss alone was almost double the price!! I think it's so worth the price and already know that all of these products will end up being fall beauty favorites for me. What about you? What did you guys get and how did you like your September bags? :)

April Ipsy bag, 2014!

I'm so incredibly happy with my Ipsy bag this month! Every product I pulled out just made me even more excited. Some months are really on point and I've got to say, this is one of them!

I scored a travel size Urban Decay 24/7 velvet glide-on eye pencil in the shade black velvet (retail price: $20 for a full size), which is especially nice because I own the two other shades (Perversion and Zero). These eyeliners are some of my absolute faves, for sure.

I also got a Coastal Scents Medium Shadow Brush (retail price: $2.49) which I can't complain about (who doesn't love eye shadow brushes?). 

I got a lip pencil from Starlooks in the shade Naked (retail price: $14) , and it looks a little bright for a "nude" color, but the wear seems incredible, the swatch on my hand from when I looked at it a few hours back is still visible, despite me trying to rub it off.

I received an Elizabeth Mott pop! goes the shadow eye shadow in the color Champagne (retail price: $12.99) which I'm really happy about, because I've been looking for a good everyday champagne color for a while and I'm excited to give this one a shot.

Lastly I got a sample size of a skin exfoliant from Dr. Brandt, called the microdermabrasion (retail price: $78 for a full size), which looks super promising. I'm all about exfoliating my skin!

I'm super happy with my bag and I LOVE getting these in the mail! Did anyone else get something they're excited about? :)

Makeup Monday!

So I hate to be negative or critical of things but the time has come in life where I need to be. Well not really, but something has really kind of irked me enough for me to need to be. So today is going to be a product I regret buying :(

I saw these in Target and had heard really good things about the "yes to... whatever" brand so I figured I'd try it, since the travel pack was only like $2.99. 

I just.

The very first thing that I noticed the first time I used these wipes were that they felt really dry coming out of the packaging. And maybe this is just a placebo effect, like maybe they can be dry and still effectively remove makeup; but to me, it really just felt like I was rubbing a dryer sheet on my face. Well, it wasn't quite THAT bad but really. The Sahara.

I suppose they smell alright. They smell like cucumbers and freshness, as wonderfully accurate as that is. It's very much what it says on the packaging, nothing overly aromatic or sweet or fantastic. It kind of just is what it is.

But the worst part is that they actually don't seem to do all that good of a job removing makeup. I mean, it'll take my eyeshadow off alright, but my mascara and especially my eyeliner kind of just end up all over my face, and by that I mean smudged under my eyes.

I just feel like when it comes to facial wipes these really aren't worth the money (not even the $2.99) because in all honesty, a kleenex and some mosturizer would probably remove your makeup better and feel nicer on your skin then these do.

I dunno, has anyone else had a better experience with these?