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Sunday, September 25, 2011

Let's get WILD...

Wet and wild to be exact. Ok you guys remember wet and wild, you know that cheap makeup that your mom would buy you just because it was so cheap. For me, it was my first makeup! Well I haven't bought any in a LONG time, I had written it off as just cheap, no good makeup. Recently I heard that they had redone their formulas and were producing some decent products, so I decided to buy a few things and try them out. So, this is my little wet and wild makeup review. ( I got several nail polishes, but that's a different review for a different time.)
Here's what I got...
 They are a little dirty from being in my makeup bag, but it's one pallet of six, and one pallet of three, then three eye pencils.
The pallet of six is called : Pride - Cost: $4.99
The Pallet of three is called : Sweet as Candy - Cost - $2.99
The pencils are called : Turquoise, Cool Green, and Amethyst - 
Cost: $0.99 ea.






I have to say that I have been pleasantly surprised by these products. I really think Wet n Wild has stepped up their game. First let's talk about the Pallet of six. Here are the swatches...
 Basically, in this one pallet you get two separate trios. There is a matte one on the left, and a shimmer one on the right. The matte colors are super pigmented. They go on very smooth and are very blendable. (my computer is telling me that blendable is not a word.... LIES!) Anyway, the first matte color is a sharp, cool, white, the swatch is one swipe! It makes a great contrast for the other two colors. The middle color is a matte teal that I LOVE and have found that it looks great with these other two, or just by itself. The third color, is a matte navy. I haven't really had a chance to really wear this color, because I feel like it will be best warn during the winter months. Not to mention I have this terrible fear of turning into Mimi from Drew Carrie the instant I put on blue eye shadow. Anywho, this color, like the other two, is super pigmented. My advice is be careful, start out small with these bold colors and then build up the color, trust me it won't take much!

Next are the Shimmers. The shimmers are the swatches on the bottom part of my hand. I took this picture hoping that the light would catch the shimmer, and make it standout a bit more. The colors are the same as the matte except.....shimmery! First the white. Now, I like this color as an inner corner highlight, or maybe even a brow highlight depending on the look. However, it takes a lot to build up the color. This pic is just with one swipe, and you can barely see it! I think that the shimmery green has to be my fav from this pallet. it kind of looks darker, and more olive, then teal with the shimmer. I love it. Then the navy is nice too....however, the same applies from the matte section. I'm going to try it when its cooler probably.
Alright next we have this lovely little trio called, Sweet as Candy. Here's the swatches...

Now, I love everything about this pallet, well almost everything. This whole trio is shimmery, so the white is the highlight, and it looks good in the inner corners, but I have to really be careful on the brow bone... it is so pigmented that it gets very clown like very quickly. That has to be the only complaint I have about this entire pallet. The crease color is a warm chocolatey brown that is the perfect contrast to the light shimmery pink that is the lid color. I have been wearing this pallet almost daily I love it so much. The longest I have had the color on is about 15 hours, and it was still lookin good. I have found however that it works a lot better with an eye primer. After about 12 hours it starts to crease a bit. The best part is that each pan has stamped in it where you should put the color!! So, even if you think you can't blend and mix color's this product makes it almost fool proof. (unless you can't read....then you need a friend to help you out.)
Ok so lastly we have the eye pencils.

 So, these are the pencils.They are great! They go on smooth, and stay put. These colors wear for 12 + hours. 

They are creamy, and glide on smooth. They work great by themselves, or as a base. They are very blendable. I have to say, the purple is my fav!!





So, I hope you guys found this helpful, and try some of these products out. They have TONS of colors, and I can't wait to get my hands on some more. I mean for that price.... really you can't beat it.
Jen :)

Monday, September 12, 2011

IT'S ARTS AND CRAFTS TIME!!!

I am absolutely in love with the headband trend.. In fact I never leave the house without one. So, as you can imagine I have  a LOT of headbands. Every size every color, with bows, without bows... and the list goes on. I have been keeping them in a basket on my dresser for some time now. That worked wonderfully when I had a modest collection, now however, it looks like this......
So, I went searching the web for ideas on what to do with my headbands. I got this really great idea from my FAV plus size fashionista, TheStyleSupreme, on youtube (you guys gotta check her out!) She came up with the idea of taking oatmeal cans and decorating them! Here is her video on her headband holders that she made; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0fd5JZnrHyQ.  This inspired me to make my own headband holders So, I went to the dollar tree (man I love me some dollar tree), and was able to purchase absolutely everything I needed for my little crafty project for under $10!! As you can imagine I was personally stoked. If you want to know how I made my very own headband holders then stick around, and read on down.... (hey that rhymed)
Here's what you're going to need...
Two 1lb cans of oatmeal (or three or however many you think you'll need. Each one holds roughly 10 headbands, depending on the size)
Some wrapping paper (or fabric, or shelf liner, anything will work, as long as it's wide enough to to cover the length of the can)
Tacky Glue
Ribbon
and something to decorate the cans with. ( At the dollar tree, in the home good section they have these awesome wall stickers. They are large and in charge. So, I got 2 different patterns. They have several to choose from. )


Now for the procedure...
You are going to need something to put the oatmeal in. Or if you eat it on a regular basis and you already have the cans empty, then you're one step ahead. We however do not eat oatmeal on a regular basis (until now) so i needed a vessel in which to place my oatmeal. Two actually....



Then, you are going to remove the paper from the outside of the cans. (make sure to keep one of the wrappers hole, and in a drawer somewhere if you are anything like me and don't know how to make oatmeal, thank God for directions.)









Next, your going to need to measure out the width of the can and mark it on the paper, as well as the length of paper it will take to cover the can.












After you have your piece of paper cut out, if it is not self sticking, then you are going to use the tacky glue to adhere the paper (or fabric) to the can. (I didn't take a pic of this because I forgot.... sorry) I have found, to prevent the paper from getting that wet look from the sections of glue, that one strip of tacky glue along the length can for the first half of the paper, and one strip along top of the paper where they meet will hold the paper on just fine, as well as prevent the "glue" look.

OK, next you are going to want to tuck in the ends around the bottom and top.


I used a glue stick to run along the inside of the can, and then fold down the edges.






Alright, now can decorate your little can.
 First, I took ribbon and glued it along the top, and bottom seams. This covers up any uneven cut lines on the paper.
 Observe the gluing of the the ribbon...

**ooooo.... ahhhhh....**

Then I added my stickers. I ended up putting 4 on all together.

(I love frogs.... and peace....)





OK, that's it, here's the finished product...

I had added that flower. Then later decided against it.









And here they are with all my headbands on them. It's great to because I am able to place things inside the cans, and clips around the edge. This really cleaned up my dresser!!






I hope you guys enjoyed this little crafty project, and try it for yourselves.... Leave me a comment or a pic of yours if you try it.
Talk to you guys later
Jen
**PS - let me know if there are any products that you would like me to review, or tutorials that you are interested in.**

Friday, September 9, 2011

How To: Clean your makeup brushes

Makeup brushes.... ah yes we use them, we abuse them.... and now I'm going to show you how I clean them! I feel it's important for the life of your brushes to keep them clean. Some makeup can be very drying, and can make your bristles brittle, and break. Some makeup, like foundation, or cream based products, can weigh your bristles down. This in turn makes the application of your makeup somewhat less than desirable, causing streaking, or clumping (that's sexy!) Then there are those rare occasions when we decide to wear a different color eye makeup, then when we switch back and our eyelid is multicolored.... you can say you are just trying to explore the color wheel, but we all know the dirty truth! So, here's what you'll need...

1.) Dirty Makeup brushes... (or brand new ones. You should ALWAYS wash a new brush before use. It keeps the bristles from falling out)
  
2.) A plastic cup... (or for you super green people out there a glass cup, or something more biodegradable, whatever, I'm for it!)
3.) Baby shampoo... ( your brush is made out of hair, rather it be synthetic or natural animal hair, it's still hair and needs to be cleaned with something that is gentle. Now, you can purchase soap that is made just for cleaning makeup brushes, but in my experience it's the same thing. So, I say save yourself a buck or two where you can!)
4.) A sink... (or a hand pumped well if that's the how you roll.)
Ok! now we are ready to start washing! Here's a little step by step action for ya...

1.) Put a small dime to nickle size drop of shampoo in the bottom of the cup. (don't over do it! Just like your hair, the more shampoo you put in it, the longer it takes to wash out.)
2.) Fill the cup up with water, just below the brim. (Caution: it will be bubbly!!! I LOVE BUBBLES....)
3.) Insert dirty brush.
4.) Scrub a dub dub...( I feel like I get more makeup out of the brush if I push the brush into the bottom of the cup kind of in a back and forth motion-ish.)
5.) Remove brush, look at it, is it clean? If so, rinse it off in the sink. ( or the hand pump well.... if that's how you roll)
6.) Repeat! ( with a different brush of course! Now, if your brushes are super dirty, like mine were, you may have to change the water. You want the water to be clear, it will of course have color to it but you should be able to see through it. Otherwise your just going to make your dirty brush....dirtier.)

Dirty water
7.) Last but no least... Lay them out to dry. ( I have found that laying the brushes out on a flat surface with the ends hanging over the edge is the best option. It's not a rule carved in stone, but I feel like it keeps the bristles in their normal shape. 
That's it! I have found that it typically takes a few hours for the brushes to dry, so my advice is to wash them at night and leave to dry overnight. In the morning I just "fluff the bristles on my hand, and then use!! 
Hope this helps.....
Until next time,
Jen

Thursday, September 8, 2011

A quick review...



So, I recently created my own version of the "fairy mask" look inspired by MissChievous on youtube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9AtkeWlgyKk) there it is if you would like see it! And here is mine...
It needs some work, but still pretty cool. Well, as you can imagine this look required A LOT of makeup.... liquid eyeliner, Ben Nye stage paints.... etc. So, when faced (get it... faced!) anyway, when faced with the challenge of removing my mask I had a couple options. I could used a harsh bar soap and a wash cloth, I could cover my face in cold cream and use half a roll of toilet paper to remove the grease.... or I could use my makeup remover wipes I got from Wal-mart. Now I've used these wipes before for everyday makeup removal and I have always thought they were pretty good, but today, since the other options I had didn't seem so great and would require a lot of work, I decided to put my Equate Original Clean Facial Towelettes to the ultimate test! Well, I am here to tell you they impressed me greatly! I was blown a way by how much they removed and how fast they removed the makeup with NO scrubbing! I am thrilled at how well this generic product stood up for the job, I venture to say that they worked better then the Neutragenea makeup remover wipes. For the cost you can't beat it either! You can buy a 60 count that comes in a refillable pop top box for around $4.97ish


Then once you have used that you can buy the value refill pack, which comes with 2 60 count refill packages that fit in the little box for only $5.97!! I think it's one heck of a deal myself, and I would recommend it to anyone. I have very sensitive skin and breakout at a glance of anything harsh or chemically so I have to be careful of what I put on my face, and i have never had problems with this product.
So, that's my review of some makeup wipes, I hope you have found this helpful....
Until next time,
Jen