A Sparkle and a Smile

Wednesday, August 6, 2014

July Favorites!

Hello Beautiful Ones!

Another month and another post full of the things I'm loving lately. The summer months are very quickly flying by (we're already 6 days into August and I honestly don't even know how that happened). There will be leaves falling and football games being played before we know it (please don't leave me summer sun!). Fortunately for me, there's still a little summer left! Now let's get to the favorites:

Makeup & Beauty





This brush has been a long time favorite of mine. I love that it is so big and fluffy. I use it for both blush and powder foundation. Although, it is well used it has still held up well. I also just love the sleek love of the clear handle (even though that has nothing to do with the usefulness).



Can I just start by saying that the packaging on this one is stunning. Seriously, can we all just take a minute to enjoy the chic-ness? I love the sleek square bottle that fits easily in my purse and the applicator that makes touch-ups easy even if you don't have a mirror handy. Now on to the actual product: I love a good gloss, but especially one that will stay on my lips for more than a few minutes. This one is longwearing and super moisturizing, just as advertised. Also, it's not too sticky. A definite must have! I picked up the shade London Posh, which is kind of a peachy nude. Here is a color swatch:




I am always looking for a good brow pencil, especially from the drugstore because I'm all about the bargain! Lately I've really been enjoying this one from Maybelline. I like that it's long wearing, I can put it on in the morning and then not worry about it all day. I also love that the pencil itself is very small and thin so you can get into those little fine places on your brow. My only complaint would be that I don't find the little plastic comb on the end of the wand all that helpful, but it's not a big deal I just use another brow brush. At the end of the day it's totally worth the price! 

Milani Baked Bronzer in 04 Glow- $9


I'm going to be honest with you, I feel like I'm still trying to get the hang of bronzer. But I've been using this one lately to add a little extra glow and some very simple contouring. As you can see in the picture it comes with a cute little brush that fits in the compact under the bronzer which is handy for traveling but when I'm at home I usually use a Kabuki brush to apply it. Here's a color swatch:


e.l.f. Essentials All Over Color Stick in Persimmon- $1


I know I've talked about this one before, but I just can't get enough of it. This is a small little stick of color that can be applied all over your face, eyes, and lips. I've used this on my eyelids for a pretty shimmer on light makeup days, but lately I've been using it on my face daily as a highlighter. It's just a really pretty light shimmer that can be used for basic contouring. Here's the color swatch:




I picked up this baked eyeshadow at ULTA a few months ago because it was on sale and since then I've gotten a lot of use out of it. I really love wearing this with a little liner and mascara on my lighter makeup days for a really natural and pretty look. I sweep the lighter color all over my lid and then use the darker side for the outer corner of my eye and the crease. It wears really well all day long. Here's a swatch of the colors:


I've said this before, but I just love buying mascara in travel sizes because mascara goes bad so quickly all you really need is a small one and that way you can save yourself some cash. This one just goes on really easily with very few clumps and really opens up my eyes. As you can see I've used this one so much the writing has started to rub off the bottle (the ultimate sign of a beloved product). This is a must-have!


Again, I know I've talked about this one before but it's still one of my all time favorite products. I use this all the time when I'm dealing with any kind of redness whether it's from breakouts, a sunburn, or just irritated skin. Smoothing this over your problem areas before you put on your foundation will make the redness easier to cover up. You can use it as an all over face primer or just on the red spots. Definite lifesaver! 

Music & T.V.

This month I thought I'd throw in a few bonus favorites for you guys! So here are the things I couldn't stop listening to and watching this month:

Music

My taste in music is a little all over the board. This month I'm all about boys with smart lyrics. There are two new albums that I haven't stopped playing this month. 
  1. In the Lonely Hour by Sam Smith
  2. X (Multiply) by Ed Sheeran

 Seriously, both of those albums just make me feel so many feelings.

There's also a single that I can't stop playing. It's a country song, but even if you don't like country I think you should seriously give it a try because the lyrics are brilliant. It's A Guy Walks Into a Bar by Tyler Farr. I was just hooked after hearing the first 30 seconds.

T.V.

This month I've been all about an old summer T.V. favorite and a brand new guilty pleasure. Actually these are both guilty pleasures (whoops)!

The first is my all time summer fave: Big Brother. I know it's ridiculous, but that's what I love about it. If you aren't familiar with Big Brother it's a reality show that drops strangers into a house for an entire summer to compete for a half million dollars, oh and every single thing they do is recorded by cameras. You can guarantee that they all lose their minds and brilliant drama ensues.

My new guilty pleasure is Reckless. This is a law drama set in North Carolina. And it's chock full of soapy goodness and relationship drama. I'm all over this one. In my opinion good summer time dramas are hard to come by, but this one is pretty darn good.

Sorry this post got so long! Lots of lovely July things to talk about. I hope you all had a fantastic July. I can't wait to see what August has in store for all of us. Let me know what you all have been loving this last month.

XO- Brittney


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Wednesday, May 14, 2014

Beauty on a Budget: e.l.f. Products Review

Hello Beautiful Ones!

I don't know about you, but I enjoy a good bargain! Of course when it comes to makeup the drugstore stuff can be completely hit or miss. So I thought I would start this Beauty on a Budget series to try and give you some tips on what I think is a great deal at the drugstore! Let me know what you think!

I mentioned in my last post that I recently took a trip to Target and went a little crazy in the e.l.f. section of the makeup department. My intention was to go to Target to buy food that would help me get through my week of finals... but do you ever just find yourself itching to buy new makeup?! I decided that the safest thing for me to do would be to try some new e.l.f. products since they are in general so crazy affordable (I could feel less guilty that way). Plus the universe must have been on my side because the Target I go to usually doesn't have their e.l.f. products very well stocked, but on the day I went the shelves were completely full! You can't argue with destiny right?! I've spent the week so far trying these four products out, so let's get on with the review!


Matte Lip Color

I sort of picked this product up on a whim. To be honest the packaging drew me in right away because it's so sleek! Don't get me wrong I love a good gloss, but matte is all the rage right now and I wanted to give it a try. I was also needing a nice nude lip color so I picked up the shade natural. I've been wearing this for a few days and I really love it! The color is a really light pink, but it looks pretty nude when it's on my lips. The texture is very smooth and creamy. Here is  a swatch of the color:


Bottom line: This is a winner and definitely worth the money ($2)! I want to try it in more shades!

All Over Color Stick

The next thing that caught my eye was the All Over Color Stick. The package says that this is a 3-in-1 color stick for eyes, lips, and face. I love products that can serve as more than one function. Who doesn't love to multi-task right?! I was trying to decide between the two shades: Pink Lemonade and Persimmon, but then I realized that they were only $1 each, so why not get both?! I'm really glad I decided to do that because they're both great! Pink Lemonade is a really pretty rose gold color. I've been using this mostly on my cheeks. The only slight negative about this shade is that the color is very saturated. A little bit of this product goes a long way. I would suggest putting the product on your fingers and then rubbing it in, so you have a little more control over where the color goes. The shade Persimmon is also lovely! This is a very light shimmery color that works as a perfect highlighter. I've also used this on my eyelids for the days when I just want a little bit of shimmer, but not too much color. You can see the colors swatched in the picture below (Pink Lemonade on the left, Persimmon on the right). 


Bottom line: Both of these shades are extremely pretty, and you could certainly find many different uses for both of them. Totally worth the $1 price tag!

Lip Exfoliator

I've been eying this baby on Pinterest (this link is a shameless plug for my Pinterest profile) for a while now, but it was always out of stock whenever I looked for it. I'm pretty sure that when I saw it on the shelf I snapped it up as quick as I could! The first thing I noticed when I opened the cap was the heavenly smell. I'm not joking you guys... this stuff smells amazing! It is very similar to the Bath & Body Work's Warm Vanilla Sugar scent. Aside from the great smell, this product is also practical. It's like a body buffer for your lips! I've been using this before bed and I really like it. I can already tell this is going to be a winter staple for me! 

Bottom line: Get one of these, the hype is real people! 

All in all I was really happy with the products I tried. I've owned a few e.l.f. products in the past, but I would definitely like to try more. I love that their products are affordable, but also good quality. Isn't that the dream?! I hope you enjoyed this product review... if there are any e.l.f. products that you think I should check out please let me know in the comments! 

XO- Brittney

P.S. I would love to see your beautiful faces (in a non-creepy way) on Twitter!

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