Reviewing Recent Drugstore Beauty Purchases

June 17, 2019 by Virginia 6 Comments

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I know I sortof dropped off the face of the Instagram planet for a few weeks, but if you follow me there, you know that I was in Georgia this weekend. I totally snagged $84 round-trip flights to visit my sister! That great deal happened to coincide with her birthday so, in order to spend as much time as possible with her and not worry about finishing up a blog post, I thought it was a good time to share some reviews of recent drugstore beauty purchases.

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First-Time Drugstore Beauty Purchases

New Foundation – This foundation came highly recommended and is insanely inexpensive. It is full-coverage and does not stick to fine lines. However, it’s not my favorite.

Though one of my favorite youtubers is a huge fan of this foundation, I feel like it’s sticky and too thick. Plus, I feel like it sits on top of my face rather than blending into my skin. As such, when it rubs off around my nose, it’s very noticeable. I’ve tried to apply it with a makeup sponge and my favorite foundation brush but it’s very hard to blend. The sponge applies it best but it also makes the sponge get gunky really fast.

New Concealer – I’m always looking for a good alternative to my holy grail concealer and this is a great drugstore option. It is definitely not a replacement for my main concealer, but it is a close second place. It’s full-coverage and blends well. My only complaint is that it blends better with some foundations than others. I have found that over the course of the day with some foundations I can see the concealer sitting on top of the foundation. Sometimes the foundation breaks down while the concealer remains.

But, in a time when drugstore beauty products are rising in price, this concealer is surprisingly good and affordable even for the drugstore.

Brush Shampoo – As I explained above, my new foundation made my makeup sponge and brushes very gunky, very quickly. Then, I ran out of my makeup cleaner. After some research on affordable brush shampoos, I decided on this one and I’m so glad I did!

This stuff is awesome. It’s somewhat thin but a little really does go a long way and it cleans so quickly. The price is affordable and you can pick it up at your local Target. It’s going to take me a while to finish the bottle but I expect this will be a regular repurchase.

Spray Brush Cleaner – I have had this for awhile (and I mentioned it a while back on Instagram), but this has been another game-changer for my brush routine. It also can be picked up from Target, but it’s not cheap. That being said, it’s amazing. I spray it on a paper towel and then swirl my brushes in it. It magically takes off most of the makeup, reducing how often I have to clean my brushes! Even better, you don’t have to wait for it to dry! I spray, rub, wait a few seconds and I can seriously use it again! It’s pricey but totally worth it!

I tried to find a video that would show you how amazing it is, but I couldn’t find one! So, I will just have to show you my own rough video because truly, seeing is believing with this!

Makeup Revolution

I am finding that I have bought, and been happy with, quite a few Makeup Revolution products lately. I will likely try more.

New Contour Palette – I have been using the edges of the pan of my Anastasia Contour color for ages while I researched other options. It didn’t make sense for me to repurchase that entire palette for just one perfect color (the middle one). This contour palette was so reasonably priced and had great reviews that I could justify buying a whole palette even if I don’t use all the colors. Happily, I like the rest of the palette too!

The shade I use (bottom, far left) is warmer than my Anastasia shade but I honestly couldn’t find a perfect match at Ulta. I really enjoy the yellow powder to set my under-eye concealer and the highlight isn’t too over-the-top. I can see the other shades being used as bronzer in the summer. Last week I actually used the bronze shimmer and darker brown for an eye look. It turned out great!

My one complaint about the palette is that the mirror keeps falling out and has kept falling out since the second time I used it. Still…this sucker is cheap, and GOOD so I deal with it.

Foundation – This is not new, but it is another Makeup Revolution favorite. I first tried this foundation back in the fall. It ran out recently and since I wasn’t fully satisfied with the new foundation above, thought I would repurchase. I’m glad I did.

You can find my full review here. I will note that since that review, I have confirmed that about 5 minutes after I apply this foundation, it definitely sinks into my forehead lines, making them more prominent. However, it applies so smoothly to the rest of the face that it doesn’t bother me as much as it used to. I am a shade F4 and this is my regular, every day foundation.

Becoming Holy Grail

Liquid Lipsticks – I could have sworn I wrote about these in my last beauty review post but they aren’t there! I fell in love with these in the late winter/early spring after a recommendation from Brooke. The shade “Lover” is my favorite and I was pretty much wearing it every day. In fact, in most of my pre-May blog photos I’m probably wearing this shade. When it comes to drugstore beauty products, these take the cake. This formula is comfortable, doesn’t feel drying on me and lasts ALL day. Like, sometimes I feel like it must have come off because my lips just feel like lips (with no coating). Then I look in the mirror, and the color is still there!

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Due to my success with Lover, I grabbed Dreamer and Loyalist for the late spring. Dreamer, in particular (#7 above) is the perfect spring nude shade for me. I love these swatches by The Happy Sloths that I found on Pinterest. You can read her review on these lipsticks here.

I’m probably forgetting something but if so, I’ll save it for next time! Please let me know what your favorite drugstore beauty products are right now! I’m always looking for new favorites!

Have a wonderful week, friends!

Virginia

Makeup Tips: Little Things That Make a Big Difference

April 22, 2019 by Virginia 18 Comments

A month or two ago, while I was doing my makeup in the morning, it occurred to me that there are makeup tips I’ve picked up over years of beauty-youtube-watching that can take a makeup look from “eh” to “wow”. They’re little things, but they make a face look more chiseled and put-together.

So, I made a list of these little makeup tips and planned on sharing them with you. I’m going to be the first to admit that the photos below are not great. This was one of those times where schedules and daylight hours just didn’t cooperate and I had to shoot on my own. The tripod just wasn’t working and so you will see a lot of cell phone selfies. I decided to post it anyway because the tips are good and I have no need to impress the internet. I believe we can all give each other a little grace sometimes.

For each tip below, I made the change to one side of my face and left the other side of the face plain, without the “tip” being employed. I did my best to highlight the changes when possible in the picture. Even if you can’t quite tell in the picture – try it yourself! You’ll be surprised what a difference it will make in your look!

Draw in the Lower Brow Line and Give Your Brows an Arch

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Long ago my friend and her then-boyfriend, now-husband studied profiles on hotornot.com. Anyone else remember that site? lol. She told me that they determined that well-shaped eyebrows make a big difference in a look and she was right.

My eyebrows are not perfect but one tip I use to look more put-together than I actually am, is to draw in the the lower brow line and fill in the sparse areas. I love THIS eyebrow pencil because the shape of it makes it easy and quick to fill in the brow. I turn it on its side and use the flat edge to draw in the lower brow line. Then I turn it and use the triangle shaped tip to fill in the part of my brow closest to the nose. You can see that process in the picture to the left.

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Then, I give myself an arch. The tip here is to use a makeup brush or your brow pencil and set it next to the nose. Looking straight forward, position the pencil so that it goes right from the corner of the nose through the pupil. That is where your brow “peak” would normally be. Now that I know, I use my brow pencil to make sure that tip is clear.

The best way to see the difference this makes is to scroll down to the section on Highlighting the Inner corner. I show a “with brows shaped” and “without brows shaped” there too.

Use Bronzer as Eye Shadow Just In the Crease

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Often I don’t have time to apply eye shadow. When I’m in hurry, an easy way to elevate your look and make yourself look put-together (even when you’re not!) is to use a little bit of bronzer on your crease brush and add it to the crease. It’s a little thing but often makes a big difference, especially if you’re like me and have a more hooded lid.

For more on eye shapes (including hooded lids) see this post.

In the picture below you can see what a little bit of definition in the crease does.

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Highlight the Inner Corner of the Eye and the Top of the Brow Arch

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This is my best tip and the one that originally generated the idea for this post. I tried to point out the difference in the pictures above and below, but taking a little highlight on a small precision brush and running it under the arch of your brow and right at the inner-corner, makes you look so much more awake.

When paired with the other two tips, I think it makes a huge difference. It’s a little thing but just look at the before and after below. Even with the bad lighting and cell-phone photo you can tell!

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Contour Your Nose

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To round up our list of little things that make a big difference, I give you nose contouring. In general, contouring adds definition to your face, making you look like you have model-caliber, prominent cheekbones. See examples here.

When it comes to nose contouring, you are generally adding lines down the edge of your nose to “thin” it out. You’re giving yourself a nose job without having to go under the knife! Be careful! A little goes a long way.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by #MAKEUPCITYX (@makeupcityx) on May 17, 2018 at 3:51pm PDT

Here is a great before and after. I definitely don’t contour as much as this example, but even just a little contour down the sides of the nose can give you a more chiseled look.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Brittany Barragan (@brittanybearmakeup) on Apr 4, 2016 at 3:49pm PDT

THIS is a good palette to try out contouring (and highlighting) if you’re a beginner. Regular contouring takes more time but nose contouring can elevate the look with very little time invested.

So, those are my top makeup tips for little things that make a big difference in a look. I could add more but the more steps you add, the more time you take to get ready in the morning and that’s not my goal!

Tell me, what are your makeup tips that take a look from “eh” to “wow”?

And while I am at it, thank you so much for all of the congratulations and encouragement last week! It meant the world to me! Hope you have a wonderful week!

Virginia

Holiday Gifts for the Girl Who Loves Color!

December 6, 2018 by Virginia 5 Comments

I’m going to be the first one to admit it, I definitely went overboard collecting these 40 holiday gifts for the girl who loves color. I’ve read all the tips and advice articles about how your gift guide should be simple and limited, but the truth of the matter is: I. LOVE. COLOR! Once I got started, I just couldn’t stop.

I haven’t had a lot of time this year to make a bunch of gift guides. Sorry for that. But frankly, I still stand by the ones I made in previous years (you can find them HERE 😉 ) so I have just updated the links. Before I decided I wasn’t going to make a bunch of new gift guides, I had already started saving ideas. When I looked at the list I realized that I had a TON of brightly-colored things.

There’s just something about a pop of color that makes me go all heart-eyes! That’s when I decided that maybe the girls who love bright colors need a gift guide too!

Holiday Gift Ideas Girl Who Loves Color_Gift Guide for the Color-lover
Once I was on a mission, I just couldn’t stop. I kept saving and saving. And maybe I should have stopped at 12 items and made it simple, but I just couldn’t pare down the list. They were just TOO good. So today, I share with you my mega guide of holiday gifts for the girl who loves color, broken down into categories.

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Colorful Accessories

Accessories are a great way for a girl who loves color to add a pop to an otherwise neutral wardrobe! There are so many fun bright accessories out right now! One of my favorite places to shop for bright accessories is Baublebar or from their Sugarfix line at Target. You can always count on them to have a fun, bright, statement earring.

See some of my favorite finds in this category below.

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1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 (also here and here) | 12 | 13 | 14

Bright-Colored Makeup and Clothing

Girls who love color can often be found expressing it in their choice of clothing. As a color-lover myself, I dream of owning one of these coats in every color! But for now, I’ll just rock my bright lipstick and rainbow skirt (see me in mine HERE).

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1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16

Pops of Color for the Home/Office

I love the idea of pretty colorful kitchen accessories like this mixer (comes in 15 colors!!) and I definitely use throw pillow cushion covers to add some colorful fun.

As a teacher, colorful pens are a MUST! These are my favorite (because they don’t smudge) but when I started looking around I found so many other great options. These come in 120 unique colors and I can’t believe you can get all these for just $10! What a great gift idea for the color-lover in your life!

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1 | 2 |3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10

So, there you have it: my top 40 holiday gift ideas for the color-lover in your life! If you are a girl who loves color, let me know what’s on your list below!

(A few more)

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

~Virginia

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