DIY Sparkly Reindeer Crunch!

This post is PERFECT for those of you with kids in your life, whether your a mommy, dad, babysitter, nanny, sibling, anything!

I remember doing this when I was a kid and it being so much fun! But this year, my mom had the great idea (gotta give credit where credit is due) to make a special "reindeer crunch" for the kids I work with.

Basically all this Reindeer Crunch is is smashed up cereal with glitter and a Jingle Bell. And let me tell you, yesterday I gave the kids a handful of small gifts including cookies and ornaments, but nothing compared to their special Reindeer Crunch!

So lets get started! The best part? You'll be done in 5 minutes!

Things You'll Need:

A few handfuls of Frosted Mini Wheat Cereal (or honestly, whatever you have on hand)

Some Red and Green Glitter

A Jingle Bell

A Plastic Bag

A Ribbon

Step 1: Take your plastic bag and crumble up some of the Cereal into the bag. You can crumble as much or as little as you want.

Step 2: Add in some glitter! We used red and green but feel free to use any colors you think your kids will enjoy!

Step 3: In the bag, add in the Jingle Bell. Mainly for Decoration, but of course there is a reason in the story (you'll see in a little bit!)

Step 4: Tie the bag tightly with a ribbon and tell your little "holiday helpers" this...

"To help Santa find his way to your house, sprinkle this special Sparkly Reindeer Crunch" on your front lawn on Christmas Eve Night, just before you go to bed. The glitter will sparkle so brightly that it will catch Santa's Reindeer's eyes while they're flying high in the sky. While Santa is giving you all your presents, they can crunch on their special Reindeer Crunch! The Jingle Bell is very important, it's to help you remember to put it on the lawn on Christmas eve. Santa is going to be so pleased that you were thoughtful enough to give his reindeer such a yummy snack that maybe he'll give you some extra special gifts!"

This could be fun to do with your kids, or just to give to them. We are keeping ours tucked into the Christmas tree so that we won't forget and so that we can tell everyone that looks at our tree what it is. Room moms: this is a super simple class gift to give each of the students! And if you're clever enough, you can even write a cute story on a little tag and tie it to the ribbons.

This is just a jumping off point, get creative with it! The kids in your life will love it and maybe it will even become a family tradition!

Hoping your Holiday Season has been bright thus far! 

November Favorites! 2013

Hey Everybody! Just uploaded my November Favorites! Man oh man, I have sooo many great lip products to share with you! I was also house sitting when I filmed this so I apologize for the dog's jingling collar, he wouldn't stop scratching his neck. 

Favorites

Face

Lancome Teint Miracle Foundation (N Bisque)

Maybelline Age Rewind Eraser (Light)

Bobbi Brown Concealer Stick (ivory 01)

Nars Blush in "Sin"

Eyes

Avon Mega Effects Mascara

CoverGirl Lash Blast Fusion Mascara

Skin

Glam Glow Youthful Tingling Exfoliant Face Mask

Lip 

Soap and Glory "Great Kisser" Lip Balm

Milani "Chilled Brandy" Lipstick

Milani "Sangria" Lipstick

Milani "Uptown Mauve" Lipstick

Mac "Nightmoth" Lipliner

Mac "Rebel" Lipstick

Mac "Diva" Lipstick

Mac "Plink" Lipstick

Covergirl Outlast "Tempt" Lipstick

Random

Casey Homes (itsbl0ndie) on Youtube

1D Day

One Direction Midnight Memories Album

Deep Burgundy Lips--Four Fun Picks!

Hey guys! I finally have a new beauty post to get up. This was hard because I had a couple I wanted to pick up and buy but I couldn't because I was participating in "No-Buy November". But, now that it is December, I have FOUR really fun deep lip colors for you guys to try out!

Deep, red/plum lips are really in this season and I think they are really wearable and anyone could pull them off. Just be brave and commit, I think you'll be happy with the results! 

In general, I'm a huge fan of red lipstick but something about burgundy, wine, and plum colored lipsticks is just so perfect...save those candy apple red lipsticks for Christmas to make a statement! 

This is the shade "Rebel" by Mac. This is like a cult favorite--everyone loves it and I am no exception. It leans towards the purple side of burgundy but is really versitile. If you use a lipliner, it can really transform the color. Worn lightly, it appears as a lipstain, but the coverage can be built up. This has been a favorite for 2 fall seasons now!

A nearly exact drugstore dupe for "Rebel" (dupe alert, dupe alert) is Milani's lipstick in the color "Sangria". I think the pictures speak for themselves; these two shades are definitely twins! Milani makes my favorite drugstore lipstick, I think that they are great, smell good, and are really comfortable. 

Above is "Diva" by Mac. I love this deep, vixen-y red color. Here I wore it alone, but over a lipliner (a personal favorite being "Nightmoth" by Mac), it takes on a whole new level of vampyness. I absolutely adore this shade. Don't be taken back by the "matte" label on it either, this particular shade is very comfortable on the lips. I highly recommend this to those who want a red but are a little nervous to go bright red. This is a good medium blue-toned shade. 

Last but certainly not least is my new FAVORITE lipstick. I adore this shade so much. This is Milani's "Chilled Brandy" lipstick. Oh my goodness. I wasn't expecting to like this at all because it is shimmery and I haven't had much good luck with Mac's shimmery line (the "Frost" finish lipsticks). This shade has absolutely blown my mind. I have reached for this everyday since I've bought it. It is a deep red color with a gold sheen in it and it literally looks like a Christmas ornimant. It's drop dead gorgeous and extremely wearable. I think this may be the most wearable red I have ever found (and trust me, I have bought a LOT of red lipsticks).

I hope you guys found this helpful and will go out and try a new shade of lipstick! It can be really fun stepping outside of your box and trying out something you haven't before, especially around the holiday's when you have fun events to go to and lots of people to impress. 

A HUGE Cosmetic Purge

It's about that time of the year where you will probably be given lots of cosmetics, clothes, fragrances, etc. as gifts. While searching for a scientific calculator the other day, I found myself throwing out so much old makeup that I never even use anymore. I hope you enjoy this type of video, I thought it may be interesting to see what it is that I'm tossing and maybe it'll help you to clean out your collection!

Fall Drugstore Makeup Tutorial (FULL FACE!)

So heres to the longest video I've made yet. Honestly, I can't imagine anyone wanting to watch a nearly 18 minute video but in case you do, here is one I made that is a full face drugstore tutorial. All the products used (except a few brushes) were from the drugstore. I encourage you to search through your collection and work with what you have; I didn't buy anything new for this tutorial and just worked with what I have. I think you'll be surprised if you can rediscover some oldies but goodies in your collection. I think I may have even found some of this months "favorites" while filming this. Enjoy!

The Mac Counter--Why I Hate Going There

Here I am again with yet another rant. These seem to becoming more and more frequent here on Beauty and Blogging but this is definitely a beauty subject that needs to be addressed. Especially because while researching some of my material on google such as "do Mac employees work on commission?", my search results were flooded with forums saying "because they sure are bitches!"

And you know what ladies and gentlemen, I am going to have to agree.

I do want to make a point right now loud and clear; this is not meant to be a hasty generalization. I'm speaking from experiences of my own and through others. This is not to say that there haven't been times when I've gotten great service at the Mac counter (meaning the counters or the free standing stores, by the way) and had someone who was willing to help, not pushy, and easy to talk to, but these times have been few and far between.

As a cosmetic junkie, I find myself in Mac quite often. I really do love Mac Cosmetics. I love my Mac palettes, adore my Mac lipsticks and liners, lipglasses, blushes, the whole nine yards. What is really important to realize, is I do not just wander into a Mac store to "browse" anymore. I know that place like the back of my hand and always go in with specific things I want to pick up. I never walk in NOT to buy. My bestie put in best in her blog (check it out! She rocks) the Mac counter is like an adult Crayola Crayon box. You cannot beat the selection of colors and finishes at Mac. With all these times that I am in the Mac store, I very rarely spend less than $50; I like to think I am a good customer. Apparently the majority of employees think otherwise. 

I always walk into the store and go to the display of things I'm planning on buying. I'll swatch them out and compare them to a few other shades and what not and wait patiently for someone to come help me. Most of the ladies and men working in there just gaze over my head like I'm not even there. If I'm feeling not quite annoyed enough, I'll sometimes ask "excuse me, could I get some help?" and they will usually say "Sorry, I'm helping someone else". That's fine, could you send one of the 7 ladies behind the register my way to help me?

Of those 7 ladies behind the register, maybe one is actually ringing things up? Whatever. So I go jump in line with a bunch of other people who are waiting to be rung up; the only difference is the majority of them must look like high rollers because all of the items they would like to purchase are behind the counter with a sticky note with their name on it. 

The worst part of the whole experience is when I get to the front and they ask what I want from the back, they never apologize for the lack of assistance that I recieved. Then, they ALWAYS have the audacity to try to up-sale me. 

"Oh, well you know, buying one pigment is almost as much as the set" 

"I know, Just the one pigment please"

"Well, I would just like to make sure you understand that for only 12 more dollars, you can get the whole pigment set"

"yes, I understand, I am educated, I can read the numbers, I've already told you just the pigment"

"Now, You're sure you just want this ONE pigment, instead of the set?"

OH. MY. GOSH. YES. I. AM. SURE.

"do you have a lipliner to match this lipstick, or do you need to purchase one now"

"yes, I do, at home"

"what brand is it? what is the shade?"

I cannot take the up-sale. ESPECIALLY after receiving bad....not even bad, actually, it's non existent service. 

It also drives me crazy when they run out of products; you are responsible for ONE brand, how are you ALWAYS out of the things I need? 

Why would I buy the empty palette without the insert? WHY? So I have to come back and deal with more poor service? How are you out of the inserts, but not the palettes? 

The whole deal about ALL of these events is that they are not one time occurances. I usually never get helped, usually one of the several items I'm purchasing is out (there have been occasions where all 4 things are out of stock...how?!), and I'm always a victim of the up-sale. 

I'm not sure is Mac employees work on commission, but I'm sure they do. I would think they would want to impress customers and try to build a retention with them so people will continue to come to the same employee and purchase items through them. Maybe I'm wrong. I do know what it is like working in an establishment that runs on commission, and though it wasn't my favorite way of working, at no point under any circumstance was I ever rude to a customer. I also would never ignore a customer; upon walking in the door, you should be greeted by an employee even if you are not able to assist them right away. 

Does anybody else experience this at the Mac counter? I would LOVE to hear stories down below in the comments =D

De-potting Mac Eyeshadows [Video Demo Included!]

A few months ago I wrote a blog post on how I depot my Mac eyeshadows (catch that here!). I wanted to make a video to show the procedure so that you would be able to get a visual. I hope you find it helpful! Please Enjoy =]

Faded Purple Lip Tutorial

Hey Everyone! Late last night I posted a super quick and easy tutorial on this faded purple lip look. I have been wearing this A LOT lately and keep getting compliments and questions on what color I am wearing. If you are interested, be sure to check it out and subscribe to youtube.com/beautyandblogging

My First Empties Video! AKA Dakota's Dumpster Dives

Hope you guys enjoy my very first "Empties" video! I did a bit more of an extensive post about filming it Over Here on my "daily doses" blog. If you aren't subscribed for updates for that blog go check it out at dakotasdailydoses.blogspot.com; I post daily! I hope you guys had a really nice weekend!!

October♥Favorites 2013

Hey Everyone!! This is my first monthly favorites video, I hope you enjoy it! Be sure to give it a thumbs up and subscribe (it would mean SO much to me!)

PS tomorrow is Friday, Hooray!

Youtube.com/beautyandblogging

Oh, Sorry I'm "Fashionably" Late...

So, this post is coming completely out of the blue and was inspired by an article I read this morning on my way to class on the light rail. It was actually quite funny because I usually arrive at school with at least a half hour to spare because I like to be sure I am in my class room on time. I do not want others to wait on me and I want my teachers to feel that I am engaged in their class and care enough about their time and efforts to at least be there on time. This particular morning I was "running late", which, by my standards, means I was going to be at school with only 15 minutes to spare. Nonetheless, I was experiencing a racing heart, increased blood pressure, and irritability because I really hate being late. I remembered how I took extra time this morning to pick out my outfit, change my lipstick, and create a more elaborate eyeshadow look. I was, by definition fashionably late.

Ughhh, those words make my blood boil. The article I was reading can be seen here by the Huffington Post, written by Greg Savage, and basically he is making a point saying that "fashionably late" is just an excuse for people who lake respect for others or have no manners. Ain't that the truth. The very expression "fashionably late" makes a statement that you don't mind making others wait on you, just as long as you have the perfect shade of red lipstick and a triple-foam latte in your freshly manicured hand. 

I'm not saying I'm perfect, I am a human and I do run late from time to time. Sometimes there are accidents that happen or other things that cannot be avoided that make you unavoidably late, I completely understand that. What I don't understand is when my time and efforts are not taken seriously and I am left waiting 15 minutes for you to show up to coffee. Also, your text that tells me you will be there in 5 minutes means nothing to me, because by 5 minutes, you really mean closer to 10 I am sure, which means I could have deposited my check at the bank before I met up with you. I am a busy individual, I'm sure you are a busy individual, lets all be adults and take each others loaded schedules seriously and just BE. ON. TIME.

Try to put it into perspective this way; we have all experienced that doctors visit that they advise you to be at 15 minutes early, yet don't even take you back until nearly half an hour after your scheduled appointments. By that time, the person before you is likely running late, you are running late, the person behind you is kept waiting and will be running late, it's a slippery slope! The excuse that the doctor is "very busy" means nothing to me because we are all very busy and the last place I want to spend my non-busy life moments is in a germ ridden waiting room with a crying child, a cell phone talker, and two gossiping receptionists. 

As a college student, I loathe when I arrive to class perfectly on time (even with time to spare!) and people walk in late because they were busy printing out the assignment that was assigned a week ago, but they chose to print out two minutes before class. It goes along the same lines as procrastination, which is another thing that makes my head spin. What about on days of tests when you are in your chair waiting to be given the test that kept you up for the past three nights studying and your teacher says "I'm going to wait five minutes for the rest of the class to stagger in". How about no we just start the test and when they show up five minutes after class starts, they can just lose those 5 minutes off their test because CLEARLY they found that smoking their E-Cigarette was far more important than their awaiting exam. I find that these tend to be the same students that you are assigned to do a group project with and they continually arrive to group meetings tell you that they haven't yet written their section of the speech on an index card, but it will for sure be done. Please, do not waste peoples time with this kind of bull crap! Have your stuff written, ready, and rehearsed so you can practice together as a group and dominate the speech! Those of us who are ready do not want our grade to suffer because you procrastinated. We are all students, we all have full schedules with lots of classes, many of us also work on top of all that school work, so the least you can do is pull your own weight and do not make others wait on you. 

This looks like it took a turn from being about lateness to procrastination, but they both seem to be knots in the same string to me and they are both huge pet peeves of my own. Oh, but one last piece of lasting advice: If you're going to be late, and you bring everyone coffee, you are no longer late ;)

theBalm "Vanilla Oil Absorbing" Face Moisturizer Review

Hey Folks! Maybe you recall a few months ago I did a post about a haul from a few brands on HauteLook; one of said brands being theBalm Cosmetics. I have several rave reviews for many products I have tried from theBalm, but I haven't really ventured into their skin care line. Actually to be honest, I didn't even know they had a skin care line! Most YouTubers that I watch that use theBalm mention how wonderful their blushes and their eyeshadow palettes are, but I've never heard anything about their skin care line.

Well, today I was getting ready and I hit that dreaded point in my daily moisturizer where I have to pump to top several times just to get the tinniest bit of product to come out. "Oh No" I think, "I'm getting close to running out!" It is at that moment that I know that the product I am using is Holy Grail product. Sometimes it gets exciting getting to the end of a product, especially if you have your eye on something else or if you really didn't like the product much to begin with. I really hadn't even given my daily moisturizer much thought, until this morning when I was frazzled at the fact that I am almost going to be throwing this bottle into my "empties" collection. 

theBalm White Tea Vanilla Oil-Absorbing Face Moisturizer is honestly AMAZING and highly underrated. Also, quick point off topic, when I tweeted to the company today that I think this product is amazing, they favorited my tweet! I absolutely love when a company is actually interactive with their social media community, I find it makes me want to keep purchasing their products and communicating with them. Anyway, I have in the past used Bobbi Brown Oil Control Lotion and I found it to be nice, but never repurchased. I like the scent of it although it irritated my skin in the slightest way because of the Seaweed Extract; I think it was the scent caused my sensitive skin to turn bright red. With this Oil-Absorbing lotion from theBalm, I find that I do not need to blot or touch up my face with powder all day. My skin is combination to Oily, but can have extreme dry patches, very acne prone, and extremely sensitive. I don't find that this lotion is too drying on my skin when it is drier and I find that it has held up in even the hottest weather conditions I've been in--Reno, Anaheim, Canyon Lake, Sacramento, you name it. The scent on this is absolutely lovely. It is very natural and subtle. I hate when things are labeled "unscented" and it smells like a scent of "unscented" (does that even make sense? is it just me?). This smells like the ingredients in it without added perfumes. I also like that it isn't a "matte" formula, it makes the skin look so much more natural and radiant. It also has not caused me to break out and it is paraben free, cruelty free, phthalate free, and synthetic dye free. 

Another great thing about this product is, and I kid you not, but there are some days where I put this on with my Tarte Maracuja C-brightner eye treatment and feel totally comfortable and beautiful walking out the door without a trace of make up on. It makes the skin look so fresh, clean, and bright. 

The packaging is gorgeous glass and looks very high end if you ask me, and the pump detail is nice too. The best part? This product is only $20! Which is a steal if you ask me as you could easily go to Target and find an Aveeno moisturizer that isn't half as lovely for $15 or more dollars! 

All in all, it is easy to see that I really love this product, even if it wasn't so obvious to me before I nearly ran out, I now see that I am going to need to order this stuff in mass quantities because I never want to be with out it. If theBalm was ever to stop making this, I honestly do not know what I'd do. I find it to be a really unique product that is highly underrated. 

As I always recommend with theBalm products, keep your eye out for them on Hautelook, I think I got this moisturizer for only $10 when it came around! 

Shimmering Amber Eye Tutorial

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Review: Tarte "Off The Cuff" Blush Palette

As I've stated several of times over here on Beauty and Blogging, Tarte is one of my favorite brands to browse at Ulta and Sephora. While there are dozens of products by them that I have yet to try, the few that I have tried are some of my all time favorites that I own in my collection. Of these favorites are definitely their blushes. They are highly pigmented and last a really long time. They come in a variety of finishes and look quite natural which make them photograph really well. They are one of the easiest blushes I've found to work with, especially for beginners, as I find that since they are not really powdery or buttery it doesn't come across streaky or ever worse, clown-ish!
Last year, Tarte released a Holiday Collection that contained 4 miniature blushes that were limited edition colors. Needless to say, I had to have it! I bought it for myself and immediately fell in love with all of the colors. To this day, I use all 4 all the time and they still look brand new; these things last forever! They also came out with another really fantastic Holiday Collection that came with lipglosses, a blush, a brush, an eyeshadow palette, and a finishing powder all bundled together in a travel case that I use every single time I travel. Bottom line, Tarte comes out with the absolute best holiday collections.
This year they recently released a blush palette that contains 4 blush shades, 1 bronzer shade, and a cuff bracelet as the palette is so properly named "Off The Cuff". While I'm not positive it is part of their "Holiday Collection", it is now available for a limited time at Sephora.

The packaging is very flashy and shiney. I think it is very pretty but I don't really like the texture of the palette's cover fabric. I feel like it will snag and get dirty really quickly.

The cuff bracelete is also a little cheesy; I probably will not wear it, but it did look cute wrapped around the palette. 

Now into the good stuff! The palette comes with a really large mirror and very substantial sized blushes/bronzer. I know that Dollface (the 4th shade) and Park Ave Princess (5th shade) are permanent to the collection, but I'm not sure about the other three; I don't think that i've ever seen them but I could be wrong. Anyways, I wanted to snag this up quickly since last year after I realized how much I loved my blush collection I wanted to go pick one up for a friend and it was nearly impossible to get my hands on. I also do not own any blush palettes and missed the boat on one that Nars released a few years ago and have never really gotten over it. I always travel with several blushes in my caboodle so I figured this would be a really good thing to have. I've tried all four of the blush shades and would love to give some quick thoughts on each:

Crave: described as a pink peach. I really like this shade a lot, it is my favorite of the four. It is a fantastic shade to wear in the fall and winter as it is fairly neutral but really warms up your cheeks which makes your complexion look flawless. Paired with your favorite bronzer, this shade is absolute perfection.

Dazzled: described as a soft rose. This is a neutral shade with shimmer. It is much darker than the other rose blush by Tarte called "exposed". I really like this shade as it leans a little bit on the red side and reminds me a little bit of my favorite Nars blush in "Lovejoy". This shade would look great with perfected lashes and a deep lip shade. 

Darling: described as a nude melon. This shade is what drew me to the palette in the first place and ironically it is my least favorite of the four. I do not hate it, but I don't find that it does much for my skin or complexion. It is a little bland. To give it more dimension, I put "Crave" onto the apples of my cheek and it made it look more interesting. 

Dollface: described as a light pink. This is a great shade of blush for everyone to have in their collection. Light pink blushes are very natural on the cheeks and make you look like you've just been out in the cold (in a good way!) I've never purchased this blush by Tarte before, even though it has been getting rave reviews since the beginning of time, but I am so glad they incorporated it into this palette. It is one of those shades that would be flattering on anyone. 

I have yet to try the  Park Avenue Princess matte bronzer that is in the palette, but I'm sure it is gorgeous and very usable. Everyone on YouTube and blogs across the internet have been raving about it for years now, and I love the Tarte matte bronzer in "Hotel Heiress" so I'm sure this one is no different. 

(Left to Right) Crave, Dazzled, Darling, Dollface, Park Ave Princess.

This palette comes in at $42, which given the fact that a single blush is $26 and a bronzer is $29, I think that this palette is a really good price. Each of the powders inside the palette are full sized so you're getting the 5 for the price of two! This would make a great gift for a friend (or yourself!) But I recommend getting your hands on it quick, I have a feeling it will sell out fast!

One Direction Style Steal!

Be sure to read the whole disclaimer; don't forget to subscribe and if you like it please give me a "thumbs up" so I know =)

Youtube.com/beautyandblogging

Hey Everyone! So after endless hours of devoting myself to my Youtube channel today, I finally have a CUSTOM DOMAIN name which I am thrilled about! It took me a lot of google searching and research to figure out how Youtubers get all the stuff so unique and put together on their pages so if you guys have any questions regarding Youtube please let me know because I would be happy to help and even make a blog post about questions people have about Youtube. Some of the things I've learned today include but are not limited to
1) Using a watermark image in your videos
2) Changing your URL to your own custom domain
3) Adding websites to your channel home page
...and much more that I cannot remember off the top of my head!

Any who, from this point on, you can find me HERE on Blogspot, over on Wordpress, and at www.youtube.com/beautyandblogging

Thank you all so much for your continued support, I'm having so much fun blogging and VLOGGING, I'm excited to see what all I can create =]

Get Ready With Me|very NEUTRAL everyday make up

Here is another "Get Ready With Me" video! This one is going to be an extremely neutral look that is perfect for work days. I hope you guys enjoy it =]

Also, sorry for no voice over, I've lost my voice this week so I didn't want to annoy you guys with a raspy sick voice.
If you have any suggestions for future videos be sure to let me know in the comments below! I'd love to consider them =]

Michael Todd Antioxidant Toner

Hey guys!! I wanted to give a review on the third Michael Todd Toner that I've tried. Michael Todd true organics has 3 toners and now that I've tried all 3 Ivan confidently say that the Cranberry Antioxidant Toner is my favorite! It is supposed to be hydrating and have anti-aging benefits. I like using anti aging products when possible just as preventative measures for wrinkles an dark spots. This toner really is hydrating too; I find that my skin look more radiant and plumper when I use this toner. I think that this toner in comparison to the Algae toner and Lemon toner has more benefits and has the same benefits that the other two offer. It is more hydrating than the Algae toner and is quite brightening, very comparable to the Lemon toner. It smells fresh and clean and makes your skin feel extremely clean. 

In conclusion, this toner is AMAZING. As a self proclaimed toner snob, I think this one is the greatest daily toners that I have tried. I highly recommend all 3 of the Michael Todd toners, but this one is my absolute favorite. 

Get Ready With Me! Radiant Skin For Fall

Hey Everyone! Sooooooo, this happened! I uploaded my first Youtube Video! It's just a simple get ready with me, but it took a lot of time and it's reallly out of my comfort zone, but I'm also really excited about it! I hope you enjoy it =]


PS A HUGE shout out to Casey Abrams, I love this song so much, you guys should totally check out the rest of his album =]

"But I Can't Afford To Replace My iPhone Over One Broken Button"

These are the words I'm sure several of you iPhone owners have said before, and if not, maybe one day you will. iPhones are notorious for buttons breaking and things going wrong, but for some reason, we keep going back and getting the latest and greatest Apple product. Maybe it's just me? I'm not sure.
Well yesterday the top lock button on my iPhone stopped working and I really did not think too much of it...until later on that day when I couldn't turn off the screen on my phone. Keep in mind, this button jam was completely out of the blue, in fact, it isn't even jammed down into the phone, it looks perfectly normal.
Any way, today I was about two steps away from throwing my phone out the window of my moving car and never turning back. I was sick of walking about holding my phone screen up waiting for the screen to automatically shut off, praying that no one would text me and make the time start over. Also, I was at school so I was listening to the music on the phone therefore the screen timer must be longer or something because it was the absolute longest minute of my life. Most days of my life I don't feel like two hands is enough, let alone having one of those hands dedicated to babying a cell phone who's screen will not shut off. Ugh, just THINKING about it is upsetting me.
Desperate, I was searching the web for quick fixes; I was using force, I was prying at the button with tweezers, I was seconds away from removing the backside of the phone. Nothing was going to unjam this button. I was so frustrated. I reached out to all my Facebook friends when somebody commented and told me how her iPhone is broken in the same way and how you can get a "circle thing" to make it better. What does that even mean?
I looked further into it and this is what she told me to do:
Go to Settings
Go To General
Go To Accessibility
Under the "Physical & Motor" option click AssistiveTouch
Turn the "off" to "on"
A little circle will now appear on your iPhone.
In my case, I have to go to Device and click Lock Screen, but there are several options. You can use Siri, the Home Button, Screen rotate, screen shot, volume, pretty much anything. So even though it is annoying, it is a temporary fix that I'm extremely happy about. I never thought I would appreciate putting my phone in my pocket so much.

So I hope if anyone is having issues with this or any of the buttons this can help them out. I know I certainly don't have the money to go buy a whole new phone just because one button broke so I'm thrilled about this feature that I previously had no idea even existed!!
Also, I realize this doesn't have anything to do with beauty and the usual topics that I talk about...but the stress of a broken phone can cause break outs, so this feature of the iPhone can prevent that! ;-)

Beauty Blender Thoughts...

First off, let me begin by saying I want to cry because I let eleven days slip out from underneath me without blogging about anything. I'm at this point where I have so much to post about that I'm having a hard time narrowing down what to talk about first. On top of that, I'm working on getting a YouTube channel up (soon, like, soon soon) and everything is just all so crazy! Also, quick note, how is September almost over?! I literally just wrote a post about how hectic August is and now it is nearly November. Oh my goodness, time is just going too fast and pretty soon Sephora, Ulta, and the drugstores are going to start releasing Holiday collections and then the reviews and blog posts are REALLY going to be flowing.
But until then, let me tell you my thoughts on the extremely popular and well known Beauty Blender.

This little pink egg of squishy goodness is like nothing I've ever experienced. I've never been a fan of using a brush or a sponge to apply my foundation. I'm more of a blend-with-my-fingers kind of gal. I have never found a brush or sponge that I found to do an amazing job that was worth ditching my extremely convenient hands behind, until now!
What I really love about the Beauty Blender is that it is small and compact and really precious and pink...until you squeeze some water into it and it expands to nearly twice it's size. At that point, it has no more room to absorb any liquid, so when you dip it into your foundation, it doesn't all get sucked up and end up being a huge waste of money. It truly does blend foundation like a dream, and it doesn't end there! I then go in with my concealer and brightener (down my nose, under my eyes) and blend it in quite quickly with the pointed tip of my Beauty Blender. Within seconds my face is covered with a natural finish that I absolutely love. It's unreal.
I also love that after I use all my powder products like bronzer and blush and highlighter, I can take the large rounded side and just go around the outline of all my contouring/blushing/highlighting and make all my lines look totally seamless. I even take the extra time to contour my bridged nose because the Beauty Blender can quickly fix the extra product that I've applied to heavily or darkly.
Cons to the beloved Beauty Blender would definitely include cleaning. OH MY GOSH, it's like having a child or a pet, you cannot just ignore it and hope it gets cleaner or you'll get used to it because it does not happen. It just keeps getting grosser and dirtier and soon I'm sure the stains are probably irreversible and then you have to go out and buy a whole new $20 sponge. 
Also, truly think about it...you are putting a sponge all over your face, getting it wet, putting it all over your face, getting it wet, and repeating over and over again without cleaning. Um, talk about a breading ground for bacteria. No Thank You. So you really do have to clean your Beauty Blender every single day, which is quite the responsibility, especially if you are anything like me and absolutely dread the thought of even cleaning one cosmetic brush.
Also, another obvious con is the $20 price tag...yikes! I had a really difficult time coping with the price issue of the Beauty Blender because breaking it down you really are spending a whole Andrew Jackson on a sponge that is neon pink. I figured "it can't be worth it". For me, my Beauty Blender was worth it. It gives me something to look forward to each morning when I apply my make up and I use it every single day. I also did not let it be an impulse purchase. It sounds silly to say I saved my money to buy a $20 Beauty Blender, but I really kind of did. I actually returned something I had sitting in my collection for a few months that I never used and exchanged it at Sephora for my Beauty Blender.
Final Thoughts it you are looking for a refreshing change to your make up routine, I would highly recommend looking into the Beauty Blender. I could live without it, but at this point, I wouldn't want to. It blend out foundation so nicely and comes in handy all through out my make up application process. It really is unique and quite useful, but not an immediate necessity.


Quick Tip: I clean my Beauty Blender with the Mac Brush Cleanser (thats what I use and have laying around, when I run out I may look for a cheaper alternative). The greatest Beauty Blender tip that I can give is to clean it when it is dry. I clean mine in the morning before I apply my make up, not after. The reason this works better is because the sponge is not full of liquid, so all the foundation in it is pushed towards the surface thus making getting it out of the surface much easier than if the sponge was already filled with water. I pour some cleanser on it and massage the whole Beauty Blender in my hands and then run the water. I continue squeezing and drenching the BB in cleanser/water until the squeezed out liquid is not the color of my foundation and is clear water instead. I do this process every single morning before I take my shower. 

How Benefit Brow Bar Redeemed Themselves...

As some of you may remember, in August I wrote a review on my Benefit Brow Bar experience (if you didn't read it, you can catch it here). My review was clearly unimpressed by the service that I received (or lack there of, actually). I'm not a fan of bad customer service and certainly am not one to give second chances often. I don't believe doing your job well and being kind to customers is difficult, and if you find that it is then you probably should consider finding a less interactive job. *End Rant* 
So the other day I found myself in Ulta walking around and looking for a few things I wanted to pick up. Both the items I went in to get were sold out and since I was in the mind set to spend some money, I started talking to one of the sales women. She was in the high end section of the store and was really casual and comfortable to talk to; she was giving several customers personal opinions on products and being extremely helpful. I knew from that moment I wanted to buy something from her because she was such a proactive employee. Do these types of impulses happen to other people? Just me? 
I approached her and was asking some questions about products and mentioned my horrible customer service the last time I was at Ulta to get my arches done at the Benefit Brow Bar. She totally agreed with me on my feelings of how they should still do a free Birthday Arch service and how dumb it is for them not to. She then mentioned how she does brows and since it wasn't busy, I asked if she had time to do mine that I would really appreciate it. She was happy to take me in and give me a shaping. She took her time and walked me through the whole process with the measuring of the arch, beginning, and tail of my brow. Then she filled them in to show me what they are going to look like. She was sure to mention that I would probably need to do the process at least 3 times to get the exact arch that I want because some areas need to grow in before we wax other areas. She would do a section and then show me in the mirror and make sure everything was looking good to my standard.

• I loved how sterile the process was; a new stick of wax for each section
• The wax is MUCH more gentle than what I'm used to at the nail salon
• She was chatty but not rude; she didn't mention how badly I needed to get my brows done, what a mess they were, or how sensitive my skin is
• She made sure I wasn't allergic to anything that could be in their products
• Most importantly, she didn't let me leave looking like a mess. She applied make up over the waxed area, filled in my brows, and fixed up my make up. I was able to run errands after my appointment without my face being bright red and oily. It was AMAZING.

So this experience was MUCH better. I was even told that day by some friends that my brows looked really nice and more arched (which is what I've always wanted!) Everything about my second time at the Brow Bar was so much better. I plan on going back once I'm due for a touch up. If you are unsure of your local Brow Bar, I suggest looking up reviews on Yelp. Usually I wouldn't just hop into a seat and let someone alter my face without checking other people's experiences, but this just had a really good feeling about it. 
I'll put it this way...I plan on buying this woman a Christmas present because I'm so happy with the way my brows turned out. 

I hope this helped some of you guys out!

Have a great week, XOXO

My HOLY GRAIL Break Out Product

I have suffered from acne and break outs since early-mid high school. I am now in my 4th year of college at 21 years old and still have problems with acne. It can be so frustrating getting break outs when you are essentially an adult in every other way. I've gone to dermatologists and tried just about every product on the shelfs to prevent and reduce acne. Some have done nothing while others have literally burned the very skin off my face and left me with peeling, red, bleeding skin. Trust me, there have been some nightmares, including taking prescription pills that were supposed to help but instead just caused me the sun burn so painfully that I couldn't even sit in the seats in my car. Ugh, thinking about all these horrible events is making me cringe. Acne is emotionally, socially, and physically painful. Ain't that the truth, though...

The best product, hands down, that I have ever found is the Neutrogena Oil Free Acne Stress Control Toner. You guys, I swear, I rave about this product to absolutely everyone. Anyone that says they are breaking out or have problems with acne, I literally get so excited to tell them all about this product. I use this every single night after I wash my face and on mornings when I'm dealing with a break out. It has significantly reduced the amount of break outs that I get and I have repurchased it over and over again. I'm pretty sure this is my 4th bottle. I've even got my brother and my best friend hooked on it. She even told me that she stopped using it and when she went back to it couldn't believe that she stopped using it in the first place. The active ingredient for this is salicylic acid, which seems to work better for my skin type as opposed to benzoyl peroxide. The bottle will last you a few months also, and it has never dried out my skin to the point where it is peeling. Sure, it will make your skin feel drier, but I haven't had any severe dryness since using this product. If Neutrogena ever discontinued this, I literally think I would die. I've even stopped using the acne medicated gel that I've been using for the past 4 years because this has worked so many wonders for my skin. The best part? It's under 5 dollars! Perfect for teenagers and acne strugglers on a tight budget. 

CalNaturale Svelte Review (It's Protein!)

Anyone who knows me knows that i'm borderline Vegetarian. Not because of any health reasons or beliefs, but because I just simply do not enjoy chicken and other meat sources. I love carbs like pasta and rice and would chose either of those over a steak any day. 

Another way many people make sure they get enough protein in their diet is by drinking protein shakes. I absolutely hate the idea of a protein shake; it is mostly the consistency of the actual shake that gets me. If I can move past that, I start to notice the smell and that alone is gag worthy. Again, this is all personal preference. 

I also do not drink regular milk as it makes me sick, instead I always drink soy milk or coconut milk. Many store bought protein shakes and beverages are made with low fat milk so I can't drink those even if I wanted to. 

With all that said, I have found something that is new to me and I am absolutely in love! As with cosmetics, I am a huge sucker for packaging so when I saw these precious shakes at Whole Foods, I knew I had to try them. 

The CalNaturale Svelte Protein Shakes are made with soy milk and contain 16 complex carbs that help keep you full and energized all day. They come in 4 flavors, chocolate, vanilla, cappuccino, and spiced chai. 

The first flavor that I tried was just the chocolate one. I love how it says "Hello Beautiful" on the front, it can really brighten your day by seeing a simple message on your protein shake. This shake tasted like your standard chocolate protein shake; not really my cup of tea, but it wasn't horrible. I prefer dark chocolate flavors too so this was a little "sweet" as far as chocolate goes. Again, not great, but not bad. 

I then tried the spiced chai flavor. Contrary to this quote, this shake was most definitely not my style. I love chai and it is one of my favorite flavors. I love the spice and the sweetness all mixed into one delicious beverage. Unfortunately, this was not the case here. This tasted horrible, I'm not sure if it was too sweet or too spicy, but it was just not a good flavor. I would never EVER repurchase this one.

Now, onto my favorite (and the one that I'm currently sipping on). The cappuccino flavor quoting "enjoy yourself" is exactly how I feel when I drink this. It does not seem like a protein shake at all, it's more of like a thick coffee beverage that is actually enjoyable to drink. I continue to buy this flavor over and over because it is by far my favorite. 

These Svelte Protein Shakes keep me energized much like how a cup of coffee does, so on mornings when I'm feeling anxious and the last thing I need is caffeine, I like to grab one of these. They also do not need to be refrigerated (although I do keep mine chilled) which can be handy for work or school to just keep in your bag. The packaging is sturdy and very quality. They also keep me really full and really energized! I love these before or after a work out, or in between meals when I'm at work. 

The places I have found these is at Safeway in the Nutrition Isle and at Whole Foods, so the next time you're there, be sure to check them out! Also, you can find out exact locations where these are sold by going here!

Favorite Fall Lip Products

Hey There! Today I want to get a post up about all of my favorite lip colors for fall. With August ending and Autumn quickly approaching, I figured now is the perfect time to to post this so if you see anything you like you can run out and get it and feel well prepared for fall. Also, I find that Fall (as well as Winter) are the best months to take advantage of lip colors because it isn't so dreadfully hot that you have to keep it light and minimal in fear of it literally melting off your face.
Personally, I prefer deep and dark colors much more than nude or subtle colors. I tend to wear very minimal eye make up so I like to play up my lips a lot. Also, with a lipstick collection as extensive as mine, I might as well get as much use out of all of it as possible. So lets dive right in and talk about some of my favorites!

The first color I want to talk about is not featured in my swatches because I've actually been wearing it these past few days. I picked this up last winter and was devastated when the hotter months got here because I wasn't ready to put it away for fall. It's still summer and I cannot wait any longer; I've decided to just start wearing it during the lead up to Fall because I cannot contain myself any longer. I think this color is great for this awkward transition period because it is a deep plum color, but it isn't too dark or too pigmented to wear you look scary

Revlon Sugar Plum

I ADORE this color. It would look great on anyone. This is my number 1 fall recommendation for lipstick.

Now for the rest of them...

Mac Lipstick "Rebel"

Mac Lipstick "Viva Glam III"

Mac Lipstick "Up The Amp"

Mac Lipstick "Twig"

Revlon Lip Butter "Red Velvet"

Revlon Lip Butter "Fig Jam"

Clinique Almost Lipstick "Black Honey"

Revlon Kissable Balm Stain "Crush"

Revlon Kissable Balm Stain "Honey"

Mac Lipglass "Russian Red"

Revlon Colorstay Lipgloss "Sun Baked"

It's pretty clear I like to gravitate towards the darker neutrals and plum colors for fall (I prefer to save reds for winter, with the exception of the Mac Russian Red Lipglass). Out of all these, I wear Revlon Lip Butter in "Sugar Plum" and Revlon Balm Stain in "Crush" the most, the literally live in my purse in the fall. I think glosses are a fun for days when you wear your hair in a high pony to give a really polished look. Also, the great thing about fall is that deep lip colors work really well on a variety of skin tones and they can be much more wearable than bright reds and pinks. The drug store has many wonderful options so go check some of these out!

One Direction FLOG(?!)

FLOG (n): a blog written solely for fun.

Well, I guess technically all my blogs are written for fun, but this one is just going to be a quick brief reaction to One Direction: This Is Us movie.

Now, the story behind going to see this movie is actually quite funny (at least to me). Being a semi-recent fan, I was asked by my best friend if I was planning on seeing the movie when it came out and I told her 

"It's one of those things where you don't just go to see

the movie. You know? If you're going to go ,

you have to go to the midnight showing, get their 

early, sit in line, get good seats, and fangirl the whole

time."

It was pretty clear I wasn't going to go because 1) I never go to movies and 2) I'm an old lady and don't like being out late. Well, me and the best were out getting crepes on Thursday night and remembered that This Is Us was coming out at midnight. We immediately looked up tickets and were like "we have to go, it's like a sign that we remembered it was tonight, we are already out and we are looking for something to do"

So we went to a movie theatre nearly 30 minutes away from where we live, got their early, we were first in line, got great seats, and of course, fangirl-ed the whole time. 

I want to reserve this cardboard cut out for when the theatre is done with it; the poor boys don't deserve to be in a dumpster. 

The movie was really great, I love the boys more than I did to begin with. If you're an on the fence fan, GO SEE IT. 

Anyways, I hope you guys have a really nice Labor Day Weekend and have a lot of fun.

Also, Tyler Oakley (whom I love, I'm obsessed with him) JUST posted an interview of One Direction and he did awesome! Go check it out at www.youtube.com/tyleroakley . 

And if you have any question over who is my favorite....I love Harry =]

August Matters

Hey Everyone! I wanted to get a quick post up in regards to the end of August approaching, school starting back up, the end of the year not too far off in the future, and the holidays quickly approaching. I feel like August is always a crazy and insane time of the year, but at the same time it is always exciting because it feels like the home stretch of the year because so much is beginning again. That probably only makes sense to me, but lets roll with it...
I transfered to a University this semester and I was really anxious about the whole thing because I was really comfortable at my Community College and since I plan on getting a masters, I need to get a BA and I didn't know what to get it in so I randomly chose communications. I had no idea what to expect. Well basically, it is amazing and I'm loving every single second of it! After studying so many hard sciences, it is nice to be working on something more extroverted and social. I like how the things we talk about are relative to today and things that I can relate to.

How many people can say they watched "Blurred Lines" by Robin Thicke, at a teachers request, during class, on a projector screen?
I would assume not many, but these are the things I'm really appreciating about communications. Mostly looking at Robin Thicke, ha!











I always stress in August also because I know that the holidays will be here in no time and the holidays are ALWAYS a really stressful time. I don't understand how people do not get stressed at the holidays because I always freak out. Between baking and saving and shopping, I just cannot handle the pressure! Not to mention, I feel like I'm the worst gift giver in the world.

I'm not quite sure where I'm going with all of this but I wanted to try to reach out to anyone who may be sharing any of these feelings (even just a smidge) because it always helps me when I'm stressed to know that I'm Not Alone. So anyone with these stressful feelings that come along with the end of August...You're Not Alone, Either!

My Favorite De-Stressers:

Go somewhere beautiful and do something you love!
I love to blog, so when I feel drab and stressed out, I pack up my computer (and sometimes my best friend) and head over the hill to Santa Cruz and bust out a quick blog post.
Who wouldn't feel great looking at the gorgeous view while blogging and sipping on a coffee?

Speaking of coffee, grab a cup of coffee! I don't mean while you're rushing to work or walking to class, I mean take a few minutes for yourself to go to your favorite coffee shop and grab a cup of coffee. Then, the most important part is to take your time to actually enjoy it. This is something that I find I can do at least once a week to just rejuvenate myself and take a bit of "me" time.
PS If you're ever in the SF bay area, look up the nearest Philz Coffee, it's really the best.

Last but not least, get things that make your morning brighter. I find that when I have a good morning, I set myself up to have a good day.
My favorite nutrition bar is a Luna Chocolate Peppermint Stick, it tastes so good and keeps me held over until I have time to prepare a good nutritious breakfast. This are super quick and easy to eat on my way to class, on the light rail, or in my car going to work.
Also, I'm obsessed with One Direction as of some what recently and their CD "Take Me Home" really puts me in an awesome mood, especially in the mornings when I'm tired and sleepy and the last thing I want to do is listen to radio hosts talk on and on and on

I really hope you all are having a great week, and if you're looking for a reason to smile, I hope some of my tips could help you out; I know they always help me when I'm feeling down. Stress Season is only beginning, so keep your chin up!

XOXO

YSL Babydoll Mascara...Worth The Hype?!

What does Tim Lincecum have to do with mascara reviews?!
Keep reading to find out =]

Hey Guys! Okay, so YSL is known for having really luxurious products that people really love and cling to. Their lipsticks are a cult favorite and their mascaras are said to be the best. I personally only own one of their Candy Sheer Lipsticks and have never tried their mascara. While part of me wanted to know what I was missing out on, the other [rational] side of me was really unwilling to spend at least $30 on a mascara if it wasn't going to work out for me. With my track record, most mascara's that people love, NEVER work out on me. While everyone is raving about all the Maybelline mascaras, I'm over here trying to separate my lashes and keep my eyes from watering from the awful black mess Maybelline mascara leaves on my face. I was really torn between wanting to try out YSL Babydoll mascara, but not wanting to spend the money.
After my birthday, I got some gift cards to Sephora and I wanted to treat myself to something I wouldn't typically buy for myself. Now was my chance to try the YSL mascara that so many YouTuber's are going crazy about!

The brush is a rubber bristle brush, which I tend to prefer because I can get closer to the root of my lashes while I try to build volume. The issue I ran into with this mascara, is no matter how close I get to the root of my lashes and how much I work to build volume, I cannot get my lashes any thicker or fuller! It drives me crazy because I get amazing length and great separation, I can really maneuver the brush into the inner and outer corners of my eye, and when applied to my lower lash line (which is something I very seldom do), it almost doubles as a liner, but does not smear under my eye and really does open up my eyes and make them look really wide and "babydoll" like. I just cannot get enough volume! The main thing I look for in my mascara is mega volume with some lengthening qualities as well. This is not cutting it. 

I find myself wearing this mascara on days when I want a more "natural" look, and while it is a look I go for often, I do not need a special mascara to achieve a natural lash and especially not one that costs a pretty penny. 

What I do like about this mascara is that it works well with others. I've been wearing it under a heafty coat of my beloved Tarte Lights, Camera, Flashes mascara and it makes my lashes look fake! I'm not kidding, the other day I was taking shameless selfies at a San Francisco Giant's game and I was amazed at how full my lashes looked, even in pictures. 

My final consensus on this mascara is that it is a Pass. It is not worth the hype and I would not repurchase it. While it is not horrible, I am most definitely not loving it and the price is just not doing it for me. 

You can actually see that I have eyelashes in the photograph; I was amazed!

PS. HI CHAD!

I told you...shameless selfies.
GO GIANTS!