Monday, April 25, 2011

April Musts!

I love Spring! Things are starting to get more colorful outside, a little warmer too, but unfortunately I live in Indiana where it likes to rain and be random with the temperature, so my kids and I sit inside and watch "SpongeBob Squarepants" all day and playing with cars and dollies. But when I do get a free moment to myself I have been getting some things that have been bringing some "life" back into this rainy April weather.


First off I got this amazing ring! I normally don't wear giant rings but I saw this one and I loved it and it was the last one so I snatched it up!





I also get these gorgeous earrings! Which look small but are actually huge on my ears.









Then I am in love with nail polish right now so I have been scooping it up left and right. My collection is outgrowing my little bin I have it all in so I am going to have to get a wall rack to organize it all. Anyway I got these plus several others but these are my favorites. I love these Insta-Dry by Sally Hanson. They dry so quickly and last forever. They are great with my 2 yr-old daughter because she loves nail polish but won't wait for it to dry. She loves the bubble gum pink one called "Fuchsia Flare". I love this silver color called "Silver Sweep", and the baby pink color is called "Beige Blast". It is really pigmented and it lasted for more than 5 days when I used a basecoat under it.

This gold color by Nicole by OPI is the perfect shade of Antique Gold. I got it at Walmart and it's called "The Next CEO".Then I was at ULTA and they had this buy two get two free deal. So I went crazy. I bought a whole bunch of colors, but what I really love are the X-Dry, Clear/Topcoat, and Basecoat. They really help the polish last a long time and doesn't cost a fortune.


Next I got this Nail Enamel Dryer by DeMert which they carry at ULTA but I got it at Meijers for around $2.50. A lot of nail salons have it at their dry stations for people who need a quick dry session. Just let your polish sit for a 1-2 minutes, spray on your nails and your good to go. It works even better with the Insta-Dry Polish!





Now I haven't tried this yet, but because I am a larger girl I use more product than most so I can't afford the more expensive self-tanners like St. Tropez all the time. So when I was at ULTA I asked if they had any recommendations and they said they had a lot of girls buying this product. Now of course they are going to promote their own brand but I trusted the girl because it was only $10 versus $40. So we shall see.






This has been out for quite a while with MAC but I just got it and it is the MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in Soft and Gentle. It is GORGEOUS! It leaves this beautiful glow to your skin. It's definitely my favorite product by far from MAC so far.


Next I got this pigment by MAC called Violet cause I love working with purples. So I thought I would give the pigments a try and start with colors I am most familiar with working with.





 I also got these eyeshadows while at MAC. Top Row is Retrospeck, Goldmine, All That Glitters, and bottom row is Twinks, Mulch, and Silver Ring. Silver Ring looks amazing along with Knight Divine.



I have been working on making my own makeup brush cleaning solution because for 2 fl. oz. bottle it costs almost $10 and if you clean them off everyday like you should that will last you maybe 2 weeks. So I made my own which I will do another post on later how to do it for really cheap, it produces a lot of solution, and works extremely well.







I saw the movie and thought it was incredible so I'm starting the book "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen. And my kids were being naughty and going through my sister's room and brought me one of her candles (Sorry Courtney!). I smelled it and it was heaven! I didn't use it so don't worry Court, but I am definitely going to go get me one from Bath and Body Works and it's called "Sparkling Mojito".


My lovely husband bought me this awesome HD Camcorder so we can start recording memories of our kids and I can start making youtube videos. I'm still working on figuring out how to use it but I hope to start getting videos up next month.






Finally, I have started a workout regimen. So on those rainy days the best thing is my treadmill and my Brooks running shoes.








So there you have it. My April Musts! I can't wait to see what May brings. My husband gets out of school and starts summer semester. We will have a little more time as a family, YAY! But until then we just keep on going.
~LOVE~ Dani

Monday, April 4, 2011

You Don't Need a Ton of Makeup to be a Makeup Guru!


So I started this post at 4am Monday morning and because I couldn't sleep so what better time to write a post. I have been watching a lot of youtube makeup "Gurus" lately to get some ideas on what I should start making tutorials on and the one thing I have noticed is each one eventually does a "makeup collection/organization" video. You wouldn't believe the amount of makeup some of these girls have. Yes, some of them are makeup artists for a living, but they still have an awful lot of "personal" makeup. I'm going to tell you girls I don't have a ton of makeup. As of right now I have this container that I keep the makeup that I use most often from Target, its 14" L x 10" W x 6" H and that is it. I'm slowly growing my collection, but makeup has a lifespan. Some of these girls have so much makeup there is no way they could possibly use it all by it's expiration (the expiration date starts after you open it, so if it is still sealed, if should be fine).

Makeup Lifespan:
Mascara: 3 months
Foundation: 1 year
Concealer: 12-18 months
Powder: 18 months
Blush/Bronzer: 18 months
Cream Blush: 12-18 months
Eyeshadow: 18 months
Eyeliner: 18 months
Liquid Eyeliner: 6 months
Lip stick/lip gloss: 12-18 months
Lip liner: 1 year
Nail Polish: 1 year
Makeup Sponges: Wash after every use/discard after 1 month
Makeup Brushes: Wash after every use/discard when frayed

If you don't follow this time-line you run the risk of developing eye infections, and face blemishes. Here are some links to some girls' makeup collections that are out of this world but impossible to keep up with.. this is Ramnari7:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X6NXrN4aSAc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uxa1lbYQsqA&playnext=1&list=PL52CCF3E3287A3E8F
This girl has WAY TOO MUCH MAKEUP even for someone who is trying to become a makeup artist. The key to being a good makeup artist is being able to take what you have to work with and turning it into something beautiful, you don't need an entire room full of makeup to do so.

AllThatGlitters21:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=crJD-NYTPGA&feature=related
Even though I am not a fan of her attitude, this girl has a little more manageable collection.

JuicyStar07:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5MrZ8OtSis4&feature=fvwrel
Again this is a smaller more manageable collection, great for doing youtube tutorials, but a lot of money invested.

But this girl is one of my favorite. She is very classy. Has good ideas, and variety of makeup but isn't ridiculous! It's MakeupByTiffanyD and here is two of her makeup collection/storage videos.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=exl4oEM_lMs&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/user/MakeupByTiffanyD#p/u/47/D2Sw7x0x2FA

So here is what I have to offer...not much, but I can do A LOT with what I got!!!!





Crown Brush Set (made right here, in Crown Point, Indiana!), a Bare Essentials Bare Minerals Face Brush, and a Sonia Kashuk Stippling Brush

My Blue/Green MAC Palette
Top Row:Freshwater, Aquadisiac, Bitter
Middle Row: Atlantic Blue, Deep Truth, Tilt, Swimming
Bottom Row: Contrast, and Humid

My Neutral/Purple MAC Palette
Top Row: Quarry, Blanc Type, Naked Lunch, Hush (I LOVE THIS ONE!), Beautiful Iris
Middle Row: Scene, Goldmine, Parfait Amour
Bottom Row: Carbon, Knight Divine, Shadowy Lady, Nocturnelle

My Blush MAC Palette
Blunt (great non-shimmer bronzer), Fleur Power, Dollymix

So there you have it. I have some other "junk" in a box upstairs in my room. I keep this downstairs in my kids playroom so they can play while I do my makeup at the desk. I'm trying to build my collection, but good quality makeup is expensive so it will happen as it happens
~LOVE~ Dani