Target Haul

It's no secret that I am a total product junkie.  Over the weekend, I walked through Target for what seemed like hours.  I was out of mascara, so of course I found myself up and down every cosmetic aisle three or four  (or ten) times. I ended up with all these different products in my buggie (yes, in the South we say buggie) and figured I may as well do a blog post about it.  Most of these I had never used before, so I was excited to get them home and try them.  Here we go.  :)
1. Target Brand Cotton Rounds:  I love these things.  They are so easy to take off eye makeup, dab on powder, clean up makeup mess-ups, etc... love, love, love. 2. Neutrogena Naturals Face Wash & Makeup Remover:  I had never tried this before, but I was looking for a quick way to wash my face at night before bed.  I instantly loved the way this smelled so fresh and made my skin feel soft after I used it.  I will definitely keep using this. 3. Biore Ultra Deep Cleansing Pore Strips:  I have a very strong love/hate relationship with these strips.  They make my nose feel so smooth and cleansed after I use them, but actually using them is a true bitch.  Peeling that strip off my nose is pure.torture.  They hurt, but they work. 4. Maybelline Clean Express Makeup Remover:  I love Maybelline.  I use a ton of their products and I think the jury is still out on this one.  I've only used it once and I didn't have on my normal amount of eye makeup, so I'm not really sure how well it works.  We'll come back to this one later. 5. ELF Mineral Primer in Green:  I have been using a couple of different primers, but I thought I would try this one because of it's green tint.  I have a lot of redness in my cheeks and face, so this is perfect to neutralize that.  When I used it, it neutralized my redness a good bit, but my powder stuck to it so much better than my other primer's, which I loved.  You only need a tiny bit and for $6, it's a true steal.  I'm pretty pleased with this purchase. 6. NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil in Yogurt:  I am no stranger to the NYX brand and have had many of these pencils.  My only complaint with these is that if you don't use eye primer before you apply it, it will crease throughout the day.  They are cheap and last a long time and the creasing can definitely be prevented with a little primer. (most days I wear this to work and I don't even bother with a primer, especially since I wear glasses all day.) 7. Que Bella Lavender Relaxing Face Mask:  I haven't tried this yet, but I absolutely adore face masks.  I fully intend on taking a hot bubble bath with my lavender salts, bubble bath and slather this all over my face.  So we will have to come back to this later. 8. Maybelline Baby Skin:  This is extremely similar to Garnier's 5 Second Blur, which I love.  It truly only takes a TINY bit, which I of course learned the hard way.  If I had to compare the two, I would say the Baby Skin works just as well and covers my pores even a bit better than the Garnier.  Also, the Baby Skin is $10 cheaper. 9. Maybelline The Falsies Big Eyes Mascara:  You can't tell from the picture, but this mascara has a regular brush for top lashes and a teeny brush for bottom lashes.  The tubes on each end are smaller, so this may not last me that long, but it definitely made my eyes pop.  So far, I'm digging it. 10. Maybelline Mega Plush Volume Mascara:  I've used this before and it truly makes my lashes look thick and voluptuous. When I want that mega dramatic lash look, I use this on top of whatever normal mascara I've already used, especially at the base of my lashes.  
Have y'all tried any of these products? What are some of your favorite drug store/Target finds?

everyday makeup routine

Okay boys and girls (do any boys even read this blog?) it's high time that we talk about something other than weight loss around here!  Dontcha think?

I was emailing back and forth with Meegan and Nadine the other day about our makeup routines.  I really wanted to post a video with a makeup tutorial, but I can't figure out how to use the video editing software.  WHY does it have to be so difficult!?  (If anyone wants to help me out with that, feel free to advise me on how exactly to edit and "splice" a video.  Because I'm clueless as they come over here.)  So since I couldn't figure out the video stuff, I figured I'd just do a post explaining what I use for each section of my face and how I use it.  Sooooo here we go.  :) 

• First things first-  invest in some good makeup bags.  The blue one is from Bath and Body Works for $6 and the big one (with all the amazing compartments) is from Target for about $20.  Totally worth every penny.

• Second, invest in some good makeup brushes.  One part of my conversation with M&N was about washing our brushes... New flash:  I've never washed mine!  I don't see what the big deal is.  I shake them off when I'm done and they look good as new.  Nonetheless, splurge a little for some good brushes.  Sigma has good ones for pretty good prices.  These three are my staple brushes.

• I don't use foundation or concealer, so I do my eyes first.  It may sound weird to some people, but it's true.  I do save mascara for last, but the rest of the eyes go first, including primer and wrinkle fillers.

step 1: prime eyes with Revlon Wrinkle Filler (red top) and then dab the 5 Sec Blur over that.  I only do this around the side of my eye and under my eye-  it makes a big difference!

step 2: fill in eyebrows with eyebrow stick (the lid has a sharpener!) and then brush with brow brush 

step 3:  line eyes inside top and bottom waterline with black pearl eyeliner from Almay (white stick/black top)

step 4:  use NYX shimmer stick in Iced Mocha to cover full eyelid

step 5:  curl eyelashes- be careful not to pinch your eyelid!  it happens to me more than I'd like to admit.

*remember to save mascara for last!*

• The next step is my powder.  First I use the Revlon ColorStay and then the Revlon Age Defying powder.  I use my flat top brush for this because it fills in better.

brush the ColorStay powder on until face is fully covered.

take the brush and fill it with the Age Defying poweder.

instead of brushing on, dab it all over face for full coverage and to fill in those wrinkles where we used the wrinkle filler/5 sec blur.

• Next comes bronzer and shimmer.  I use the big powder brush for this because I very lightly sweep my whole face with bronzer, followed by the shimmer powder only on my cheeks.  Otherwise your whole face will look oily.  Using it on the cheeks gives you a little extra glow, especially for Spring/Summer.

sweep bronzer over face in light, circular motion.

when using shimmer, also use a light circular motion.

once over each cheek is enough for a perfect glow.

• Next is blush.  I use the cream Dream Bouncy Blush by Maybelline with my fingers and top that with a light coat of the E.L.F. blush, using my anguled brush.

with your fingers, sweep on the cream blush using a back-and-forth motion.

with your brush and powder blush, lightly top the cream blush with circular motions.  use a light hand!

• Before I apply my mascara, I do my lips.  I hate not being able to find the right shade for my lips-  one that isn't over bearing and one that isn't too light.  So I mix either the pink and the nude or the red and the nude.  The pink and red Revlon colors are sheer, so they aren't too bold.  I put one of those on first and then top with just a bit of nude.  When I rub my lips together, they mix into the perfect color.  It's not pictured, but I always top with Revlon Lipgloss in Crystal Water.

• Lastly, add 1-2 coats of mascara.  The Maybelline Full & Soft mascara is great because it gives your lashes fullness without feeling like you've caked the stuff on.  Your lashes stay dark, curled and soft all day.

voila!

I know this seems like a lot of information, but it really only takes me about 10 minutes to do my makeup.  I do this routine every.single.day.  And at the end of the day, it all comes off with a few swipes of a Target brand makeup remover wipe.  

Easy peasy!