Review: Essie Clearly Matte with Love and Beauty Nail Polish

All I have to say is I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, Essie's Clearly Matte Topcoat. Its really hard for me to find a nail polish that actually stays on. It seems to make the polish color you're coating more saturated, in this case, it made Love and Beauty's Neon Pink, more neon! Essie polish can get a tad pricey to collect but I grabbed this one off of Hautelook's Rock and Republic Cosmetics sale. The ONLY con about this topcoat is that the layers get heavy, and it'll chip with a quickness once you wash your hair out or do anything around the house where you're putting more pressure than usual on your fingertips. 

It gets 3.85 out of 5 Moxie kisses LoL, I'd recommend it more for some fab weekend nails! 

Personally, OPI and Sally Hansen polishes have never worked out, they've always been a one way ticket to Chipsville. The only color on my nails that I've loved have been by MAC, Confetti, Wet and Wild, Island Girl, and Sinful Colors. In my opinion, in the 'nails did' department, you want to spend the big bucks on your topcoat and/or your base coat if your nails need it. When I was shopping the other day, an electric hot pink caught my eye. Forever 21's dabble in the cosmetics department has been getting pretty positive reviews. So far I've tried nail polish and faux lashes from them and love them both! With only two coats the color was vibrant. I would suggest everyone to check them out, at only $2.80 a pop, you can afford to have a whole rainbow in your bathroom cabinet!

It gets 5 out of 5 Moxie kisses, they come in every color and can last about a week!

*don't mind the choppy application, hahaaha*

yay!! I've won a blog award!

First off I'd like to say thank you to the ever-so-stylish Amrilove for this award!

The way this award works is...

1. Thank & Link back to the person who gave you the Award. -check

2. Share 7 things about yourself. -see below

3. Award 15 people's blogs that you have discovered whilst blogging   

    -done, please check 'em out, even though I'm SURE you have : )

4. Contact these bloggers to let them know they have been given the award. -will do right after I post this

Seven things about myself (facts not in my post about some LITTLE KNOWN FACTS)
1. I'm a shorty, measuring up to 5 whole feet and 3 inches! Most people don't notice because I'm almost always in heels. hahaha What sucks the most is my nephew is almost a year old and everyone laughs when I carry him, he's half my height already!
2. I have a baby-ish face, especially without makeup. I'm always the one that gets IDed whether I'm buying lotto tickets, which you only have to be 18 for, or I'm simply trying to order a drink at the local watering hole!
3. I have an odd appetite, sometimes I can demolish what feels like a whole large pizza and still be walking back to the kitchen an hour later, other times I'm rather bird-like and am kewl with my fave Kashi bar in the morn and a PB sandwich for dinner.
4. I love scary movies. If a movie trailer involves an exorcism, haunting, abduction, or psycho killer on the loose, I'm there.
5. My favorite ice cream flavor is Mocha Almond Fudge, MmmmmMMm, the Baskin Robbins version is what its all about!
6. During my tenure at MAC Cosmetics, I had the pleasure of  being an assistant manager and later a manager. Trust me, there's wayyyyy more that goes into the job description then makeup and trying to keep the tears from rolling down your chin from your 7th hour in stilettos : )
7. I have the most caring, patient, understanding, and loving (I could go on for hours) boyfriend in the world!!! Umm...insanely charming, handsome, and smart as well!! --that's right, I said it hahah

Now for the fun part, awarding 15 (this was hard) of my fave, in no particular order:

                                       1. jomakemeblush
                                       2. dulcecandy
                                       3. cherylsbeautyblog
                                       4. giddyprincess
                                       5. expensive-pink
                                       6. ladydangermakeup
                                       7. prettyprettypetals
                                       8. thehollywoodheels
                                       9. makeupbytiffanyd
                                       10. abrilliantbrunette
                                       11. beautybroadcast
                                       12. makeupaddict-sabina
                                       13. makeupbyrenren
                                       14. makeupbygucci
                                       15. hardcoremakeupjunkie

Too cute, I want a million!

Ok, I know I'm behind on updating everything--I've been crazy busy and my health isn't where it should be, sooo blehhhh! j/k  I just needed to take a bit of my day to rant and rave about PZP Creations.

Photo shoot with the owner of PZP Creations, makeup and hair by me

Parisa Ziarati is the owner and the creative mind behind PZP Creations.  I've known her since she was in the womb and have had the pleasure of watching her grow up and blossom into an incredible young adult.  She recently created her own little shop on Etsy so her staple Kouture Hair Kisses and adorable crocheted creations could be easily available for purchase.  I was prompted to right this up when she sent me pics of her latest custom order.

Purple & Black Custom Unicorn

OMG!  Isn't the little guy adorable????  In addition to these type of crocheted stuffed animals, her line of Kouture Hair Kisses hair adornments are pictured in the collage above.  Christmas is right around the corner, and if you have someone on your list that needs a dose of cuteness in his or her life, hit up PZP Creations.  I love how this MacGyver of the crochet world can make anything from beanies to blankets, she can dial it out by either hearing a description of the item requested or being inspired by a pic!

Custom Frog she gifted to my sis for my nephew's nursery

Dia De Los Muertos Couple, two of her most popular items (so cute as cake toppers or displayed on your coffee table)

Review: e.l.f. haul update (part 2/3)

Alrighty... I've had a little over a week to review some of the e.l.f. products I had purchased...
  So far I've tried out the Studio High Definition Powder, Mineral Blending Brush, and the Mineral Eyeshadow Primer, enough to write up a true review.

e.l.f. Studio HD Powder I really like the packaging.  I would never use the powder puff, but it serves as a great barrier to keep powder from slipping between the cracks when closed, I HATE THAT!  The texture is ridiculously silky smooth!  It is supposed to be great for all skin tones, but I would hesitate to use it on a client with a deeper skin tone than Beyonce (I usually use celebs as references for skin tones, versus foundation #s).  It has no coverage whatsoever but it serves great as a "wearing makeup for about 5 hours max" setting powder.  I would not recommend it for oily skin, mature skin, a humid environment, or if you plan on breaking into a heavy sweat.  It is not oil/moisture absorbent and it tends to settle in even the finest of lines.  Overall, it leaves skin with a natural satin finish.  I will reach for it for clients that have annoyingly perfect skin, use as a sublte "bridal" cheek highlight, in place of a beauty powder (which I use to keep blush from getting blotchy), and for setting my makeup on any days when I'm only wearing it for a few hours.

It gets 3 out of 5 Moxie kisses and I'm still debating if I'd buy it again.

e.l.f. Mineral Blending Brush

I was happily surprised by this brush!  Normally I steer clear of discount priced makeup brushes.  I believe finely made makeup brushes, along with their steep prices, pay for themselves in the long run.  Just think, the more you have to replace one, the less money you can spend on new stuff!  Like I said in my prior post, I ordered it because it appeared to be the little sister to MAC's #222 brush, but when I received it, it was more like the #217.  It grabs product well, its made of synthetic brush fibers, its well made (I tried to take it apart under hot running water-I know that's pretty psycho, but if a brush comes apart under that test it sucks), and it has multiple uses.  You can use it for detailed powder dusting, nose contouring, concealer, and blending.  The handle is not very long (the longer the handle, the easier the blending) so you have to work a little harder on your blending, but it works great for defining and concentrating color in the crease.  I think I am going to buy a million more, especially because softer brushes, especially white/cream colored ones, take FOREVER to dry.

It gets 5 out of 5 Moxie kisses and like I said, I'm going to buy a million more!

Mineral Eyeshadow Primer

  I was most excited to try the Mineral Eyeshadow Primer.  I used the primer 5 separate occasions, we all know I'm a skeptic and I had to put it to the test!

  The first time 2 times I applied it with my #252 MAC Brush (the orange larger sized firm bristle brush), big mistake!  It has a doe foot applicator (which does nothing in terms of helping you apply it smoothly), so I added three small gobs of it and spread it out with the #252.  Both times I used MAC eyeshadow over it, if anything is going to crease or fade you are going to notice most on your eyelids, so besides my other shadows, I packed Melon Pigment (frosty finish) on the lid one day and Brule (satin finish) on the other.  Come hour 3 or 4 the creasing began...bOOOoo!  I still wanted to keep trying it out because it was easy to blend over and wasn't fast drying nor did it made my eyes look "parched" like Urban Decay's Primer Potion.  I figured I had to buckle and use my finger to spread it out (I hate using my fingers around my lid, it makes for premature wrinkles), but I was super surprised the primer smoothed out easily and evenly.  Over the next couple of tries I was truly impressed, who would have thought it would work well doing the whole finger thing instead of a brush?  I have abnormal eyelids LoL they are extremely sensitive, they tend to be dry towards the inner lid and surface of the brow bone and can get pretty oily in the inner crease.  I would recommend this primer for any occasion on eyes that don't tend to get oily, or for combination type of eyelids for days when you won't be in a humid environment or sweating.  I absolutely love this for more mature eyes and will be using this on my clients.  Its also great because my shadow didn't fade.  If I was doing a super colorful and pigmented look, I would layer a creamier primer over it (primarily on the lid).  When I used it, the longevity was just as awesome as my "go-to" primer MAC's Paint in Untitled.  Best $3 I've ever spent!!

It gets 4.5 out of 5 Moxie kisses and like I said, I'm going to buy a million more!

 

  

Sorry about the crappy quality of these pics, my camera was ruined by a Red Bull spill in my purse. *tear* So I had to use my web cam that came standard on my laptop.  These were taken in the wee hours of my insomnia-tic mornings, after about 12 hours of wear.  I couldn't believe this discount primer lasted! 

  

I like to call this look the "Lazy Smokey Eye" LoL because its so easy and fast to do. 

I used these products to create my look:

Face:

MAC Studio Moisture Fix (mixed with)

  MAC Micronized Airbrush Foundation

MAC Studio Finish Concealer

e.l.f. Studio HD Powder

Cheeks:

Physicians Formula Powder Palette Bronzer for contouring

MAC Beauty Powder in Blush Of Youth for an "airbrushed" cheek

MAC Blush in Don't Be Shy for color on the apples

Eyes:

e.l.f. Mineral Eyeshadow Primer

MAC Eyeshadow in Grain (on the lid), Tete-A-Tint (in the crease)

MAC Pigment in Fairylite (brow highlight), Gold Dusk (inner lid)

MAC Fluidline in Blacktrack as liner, blended into MAC Eyeshadow

  in Print (not further into the crease, just to fade)

e.l.f. Mineral Eyeshadow in Golden (to soften the outer edges of Blacktrack)

Rimmel Maxx Volume Flash Mascara

MAC #3 Lashes

MAC Fluidline in Dipdown to define my brows

Physicians Formula Powder Palette Bronzer to fill in my brows

Lips:

MAC Viva Glam GaGa Lipstick

Smashbox Lip Gloss in Champagne

Please ignore both the "Thug Life" pose (was trying to show the majority of the lid) & the half-sucked-in lip (bad habit). Thanks! haha

OMG OMG fellow makeup lovers...we may have a new eyeshadow primer!!

Our favorite Unicorn Queen Doe Deere does it again!  Lime Crime is bringing us a "Candy Eyed Eyeshadow Helper Eyelid Primer."  Geez, this stuff needs a waterproof makeup remover at the end of the day, WOW!  Lime Crime is claiming it intensifies color,  prevents creasing, and is moisture-resistant.  They say:

"No other primers work for you? Meet your new BFF: the Eyeshadow Helper! Formulated to withstand extreme heat, moisture and even the oiliest of eyelids, this primer is guaranteed to keep your eyeshadow on! In fact, it's so potent our lab says you will need waterproof remover just to get it off.  Comes in a highly giftable turquoise box."

This product took 6 months to develop and Lime Crime says you can swim with it on.  I just put my order in because its available in limited quantities, don't forget to preorder yours today... (enjoy: "fb10" gets you 10% off)  I feel like a kid waiting for Christmas morning, I can't wait to try it!

e.l.f. Haul

 

I had to do it guys--I had to finally use those eyeslipsface.com coupon codes flooding into my inbox.  Overall I saved about $16.00, and in eyes lips face product, that's tons of dough!  I'm super skeptical about products with such a low price point, being that I've spoiled my face with some of my favorite pricey/finely jet milled/MAC-alicious/baked in Italy/Smashbox-ed type of stuff, so I hope I don't end up throwing these items in my "mom, these are free game" box (Momma G has been known to snoop and scoop up products out of my kit).  It took about a week and a few days to arrive.  When I opened the package I was a tad concerned because the boxes looked a bit beat up, luckily all the product was fine.  Anywho, a review is mos def to follow after a few days of play time with it all...   

WHAT I BOUGHT:  

  *Glitter Limited Edition Studio 11 Piece Brush Collection ($30)-  My BFF cousins and I have been really curious about e.l.f.'s brushes... I decided $30 for a set of their Limited Edition Brushes was a steal!

  *5 Mineral Eyeshadows ($3 each)-  After seeing their mega sparkle on a few blogs including The Hollywood Heels, I knew I had to try them-ugh once again-its just so cheap!!!  I picked out some shimmers in Golden, Celebrity, Angelic, Socialite, and Innocent, which has a matte finish.

  *Mineral Blending Brush ($5)-  This brush called out to me because it looked like my favorite #222 MAC Brush online, but I was completely surprised when I saw it in person...so far, just by the looks of it, I'm not impressed.  Its basically chopped in half and the bristles aren't as densely packed, bOoo, super disappointed...

  *Studio High Definition Powder ($6)-  I'm an "HD" powder addict, I've tried them all and just had to check this one out!

  *Mineral Eyeshadow Primer ($3)-  I've heard this is an e.l.f. must! Once again I'm skeptical-but who knows?

  *Mineral Lip Gloss ($3)-  OOo Pageant Princess, is a dreamy light pink hue and for the month of October all proceeds went to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation, just had to get it!