Inventory Sale Still Going On!

I'm having an inventory $ALE!!

Everything on this list below I have on-hand and can be yours for 25% off!

You can contact me at my *NEW* Mary Kay email address: nicoleformarykay@yahoo.com to order, comment on this blog, or find me on Facebook or Twitter (nsykes0921).

3-in-1 Cleanser- Normal/Dry

Acne Treatment Gel

Age Fighting Lip Primer

Age Fighting Moisturizer- Normal/Dry

Beauty Blotters Oil-Absorbing Tissues

Blush- Citrus Bloom

Compact Cheek Brush

Compact Mini

Compact Powder Brush

Concealer- Beige 1

Crème Lipstick- Red

Crème Lipstick- Shell

Day Solution

Eye Applicators

Eyeliner- Black

Eyeliner- Deep Brown

Eyeliner- Olive

Eyescicles Eye Color- Island Bronze

Eyeshadow- Black Pearl

Eyeshadow- Blue Metal

Eyeshadow- Iris

Eyeshadow- Lemon Grass

Eyeshadow- Midnight Star

Eyeshadow- Precious Pink

Foundation Primer

FREE GIFT WITH PURCHASE- Color Burst Mini Eye Brush Set

FREE GIFT WITH PURCHASE- Premium Tweeze & Soothe Set

FREE GIFT WITH PURCHASE- Satin Hands Trial Set

Liquid Lip Color- Cherry Coffee

Liquid Lip Color- Malted

Mineral Powder Brush

Mineral Powder Foundation- Beige 0.5

Mineral Powder Foundation- Beige 1

Mineral Powder Foundation- Beige 2

Mineral Powder Foundation- Bronze 3

Mineral Powder Foundation- Bronze 5

Mineral Powder Foundation- Ivory 0.5

Nourishine Lip Gloss- Berry Sparkle

Nourishine Lip Gloss- Fancy Nancy

Nourishine Lip Gloss- Starry

Oil Mattefier

Oil-Free Eye Makeup Remover

Satin Lips SET

Subtle Tanning Lotion

Trial Miracle Set- Combination/Oily

Trial Miracle Set- Normal/Dry

Ultimate Mascara- Black

Waterproof Mascara- Black

Weekender Eye Pencil- Classic Navy

Weekender Eye Pencil- Sage

Weekender Eye Pencil- Turquoise Waters

Weekender Eye Pencil- White Wash

Weekender Lip Pencil- Pink Sand

**$5 flat shipping rate on all orders, no matter what all you order! -- That is IF I have to ship it to ya, but I'll try to meet up with you to give you the order myself! :) 

ENJOY! 

Target & Ulta Haul - My 1st Cosmetic Haul Blog Post

Warning :: This is a super long blog about inexpensive cosmetics. :)

Last night, me and a couple of my favorite co-workers had a girls night doing nails, hair, and makeup. I love our girls nights! It's good to know you have friends, married or not, that will always take time after work to hang out every now and then. You should never be too busy for your girlfriends! Anyways, this girls night just happened to fall the night before payday, so, I just had to make a trip to Ulta and Target to get some new cosmetics while I was in Gastonia the next day.  I'm pretty excited about my new random items, so I thought I'd share them with you! :) Let me know if you've ever tried any of this stuff, and send me any suggestions you have for next pay period! ;) I know my next big purchase is a Sigma Essentials Brush Kit. I can NOT wait for this, but, that'll be coming in a few weeks. For now, I bought 13 inexpensive items to try! :) 

#1 :: e.l.f. Studio Makeup Mist & Set - $3 

Ashley, who basically needs to just needs to become a cosmetologist, was using this setting spray. She swore by the stuff and showed us a "before" and "after" of what the stuff does. The BEST thing about this stuff was that it was a whopping $3 at Target! It's worth that just to try! I'm horrible at explaining things, so I'll copy & paste to you the website description of the stuff.

"Wish you could have a product for your makeup like Hairspray is for your hair? Well…keep your makeup staying in place all day with a radiance boosting invisible hold with our new Makeup Mist & Set. The invigorating mist moisturizes and soothes the skin with key ingredients Aloe, Green Tea, Cucumber and Vitamins A, C & E. The lightweight, comfortable and alcohol free formula improves makeup wearability and prevents color from running or fading."

She just sprayed some sprays on our friend's face, told her to keep her eyes closed, fanned her face for a couple seconds, and was good to go! I can't wait to try the stuff on myself. Remind me to let you know how I like it. [Y'all know I'm bad at following up.]

#2 :: John Frieda Frizz-Ease Shampoo and Conditioner - $5.39 each

Y'all know I'm all about trying new hair products lately, especially after my "body wave" incident. I saw this at Target for $5.39 and it had 30% more (13 oz. versus the normal 10 oz.) and each [I got the shampoo & conditioner] came with a free trial size Frizz-Ease product! That's a great deal!! Plus I need an alternative shampoo to switch up with my current K-Pak shampoo & conditioner. I got the trial sizes of the Frizz-Ease 3-day Straight Semi-Permanent Styling Spray & the Frizz-Ease Moisture Barrier Firm Hold Hairspray. 

#3 :: e.l.f. Luscious Liquid Lipstick - $1

For only ONE dollar, it's worth it to try! I'm always looking for cheap lip color to stash here & there. I got two shades, Pink Lemonade and Baby Lips. 

Top: Pink Lemonade
Bottom: Baby Lips

They feel a bit sticky (on my hand) so my guess is less is best! My guess is this $1 lip color is like a gloss that [hopefully] lasts longer than usual. We shall see.

#4 :: NYC Matte Me Crazy Mattifying Top Coat - $1.99

I've been browsing the selection of NYC nail polishes when I'm at Wal-Mart or Target lately. I'm fascinated by all the NYC-related polish names and y'all know I love me some NYC. I saw this Matte Me Crazy top coat and for less than $2 I just had to try it. I've been wanting a mattifying top coat, just to play around with polish colors. Here's a blog that reviewed the polish & provides a pic to show you the difference in matte polish and...regular polish?

Here's the pic

#5 :: Lip Smacker's Strawberry-Scented "Liquid Lip Smacker" - Super cheap

This is just my to-go-to, super-cheap, make-me-feel-like-I'm-a-kid-again lip gloss. I always buy it when I see it sold individually. It's a decent gloss and smells ohhh soo good. :) Can't beat the price either!

#6 :: e.l.f. Studio Blush in Tickled Pink - $3

"The soft sheer texture blends into the skin for a silky finish. Designed to be worn alone or layered for more depth. Highlight your complexion with a subtle healthy glow!"


#7 :: e.l.f. Studio Contouring Blush and Bronzing Powder duo - $3

"Create a healthy and natural glow all year long. The Blush highlights the cheeks to add a flush of color, while the Bronzer accents and contours cheekbones for beautiful definition."

The only mistake I think I made was buying a blush that almost matches the blush here in this duo.  Ah well, it was $3. Lesson learned! :)

See?

#8 :: e.l.f. Studio Angled Eyeliner Brush - $3

"This new anti-bacterial, synthetic-haired Taklon brush is softer and more absorbent and can be used with wet or dry products. Be a professional makeup artist and create a flawless look with this e.l.f. Studio brush! This thin pointed brush creates even and accurate color application in one fluid movement. The perfect angled tip of the brush provides exact placement for concentrated color right up to the lash line. Use to apply eyeliner for perfect color application."

I'm going to try it with my new matte black eyeshadow (#11) for my lower lash line which is such a pain for me! Wish me luck!

#9 :: e.l.f. Waterproof Eyeliner Pen - $1

"Get no smudge with no-budge eyeliner, which creates a fabulous and fresh look of precision that lasts for hours. The smooth pen applicator easily glides on color for very fine to bold lines for effortless beauty."

For one dollar, why not try? I'm always looking for a new favorite eyeliner, especially for those lower lash lines! I'll have to try this tomorrow while I'm laying out by the pool :)

#10 :: Maybelline Eye Studio Master Shape Brow Pencil - $6.99

I THINK this is what Ashley had. Either way, I wanted to try it. She swears by visible eyebrows, but I'm so afraid I'll look like I was meant to have a unibrow, but just waxed my brows! [Do you know that look?] I'll have to try it with and without my Anastasia Beverly Hills brow stencils from Ulta and see if I have a clue what I'm doing.

#11 :: L'Oreal Hip Matte Shadow Duo in Dashing - $8.49

I really wanted a matte black eyeshadow, and went straight for the single eyeshadows in the NYX brand today at Ulta, but the one that the store had was broken [dumb] so they directed me towards this product. Hey, I mean, it's two colors instead of one, and I still have my matte black, so, I'm not too upset that $8.49 was most expensive thing I purchased today. :)

#12 :: NYX Eyebrow Cake Powder in Brunette - $5.99 ($4.50 on sale with the BOGO 1/2 off)

I'm not gonna lie. I accidently bought the Auburn/Red shade today, but will exchange it for the Brunette next time I'm in Gastonia. I previously got the Dark Brown/Brown shade(s) for Christmas, but the brows are just too dark and out-there-screaming for my liking, so I'm going to pipe it down a notch and see how much I like this "visible eyebrows" look.

And last by not least...

[Lucky] #13 :: NYX Collection Noir Skinny Black Liner - $5.99 ($4.50 on sale with the BOGO 1/2 off) 

Ah, what the heck? Ulta had NYX items at Buy One Get One 1/2 off and as I've said a couple times already in this blog post alone, I'm looking for the perfect eyeliner for my lower lash line! "Skinny" sounds like what I'm looking for, so, why not?

That's a lot of makeup! And the most expensive thing I bought was $8.49! I think I racked up and did well! Now it's just time to play in all my new makeup & see what I love, what I like, and what I can live without.

Thank you for surviving this long blog post...
I hope you got some suggestions of your own to try and again, if you know of anything that you love that's inexpensive, let me know! I'm always loving to try new things! :)

♥,
Nicole

My Current Favorites

Oh, you know.... took a nap after work & am up at 2:00 AM for the first time in forever.  That nap was much needed but now I'm realizing it may not have been my *best* idea.

So, why not share with you some of my current favorite things?? :-)

::: My new Thirty-One bag :::

 I lucked out & got this yellow monogramming before they retired that color. Why in the world they would retire this pretty gold color is beyond me. And I think they retired this print too!! Crazy!! But, this is 31's Retro Metro bag, and it is the best for carrying all my books and folders and crap to work & back every day!! The ONLY thing it lacks is a sturdy bottom. But, I'm going to carry this thing until it falls apart...and so far, it's handling this heavy load PRETTY darn well if I do say so myself.

::: Mary Kay Lash Love Mascara :::

mypinkchic

I {still} LOVE this mascara.  When I began selling Mary Kay, I began using their Ultimate Mascara.  It was my new favorite mascara. Then Mary Kay came out with Lash Love Mascara, and I have not used their Ultimate Mascara since! {No offense, Ultimate!} This stuff gets the exact effect I was looking for in a mascara.  My lashes are darker, thicker, longer looking, and not clumpy! I'll be honest... I would absolutely not recommend the I♥BROWNshade because it is the lightest brown shade of mascara I've ever seen! I would only recommend that if your eyelashes are whiteish blonde & you're not looking for the blacker than black mascara look. BUT- if you want a fabulous mascara, the I♥BLACK of Mary Kay's Lash Love Mascara is a win!!!

::: My Caboodles Neat Freak Grande Train Case :::

 The black faux leather case has just enough room for now to hold my cosmetics! I got it at Ulta and it was on sale for $36 instead of $48! I love me a sale, especially on things I searched EVERYWHERE for!

::: Special K Caramel Chocolate Protein Meal Bars :::

Enough said.

 ::: New Girl on Fox :::

This seriously is one of the funniest shows on TV right now! I love watching it & haven't missed an episode. Alex tries to act all big & bad, acting like he doesn't love the show, but he sure does "LOL" right beside me every week. And Schmidt and Jess are SO going to be TV's favorite couple in the future. Who's with me???

::: K-Love Radio :::

94.1 from Charlotte, NC is such a... "positive and encouraging" radio station (no really, it is).  Some of the DJs are a little corny, but what are ya gonna do/say on a Christian radio station?? I love hearing the stories about how K-Love has helped bring people to Jesus!! And I am always loving their song choice!! Check out the channel on your I Heart Radio app if you aren't in the Charlotte, NC area, plus it doesn't have all the commercials.

Alright, I think those are random enough for ya! Just a few of my current favorites! Nothing totally original, off the wall, or super interesting, but- that's me. :-)

Mary Kay Expiration Dates

Hey hey! I'm back with another completely random blog post! This one's especially for y'all who purchase beloved Mary Kay products & wonder when the heck they expire!

We all hear about products expiring after a certain amount of time, or know we're told not to use certain types of products after certain time periods, but not really knowing how long is too long and what the exceptions are. Well if that's you, then this blog post is for you! Also, consider reading this if this is NOT you but you have to admit you've noticed that your friend's Mary Kay products come in different packaging than the Mary Kay products you're currently using. ;)

I was wondering about a certain Mary Kay product I had purchased a long time ago. I was thinking it was too old to continue using, but wasn't too sure, so I did some investigating.  I went on the Mary Kay InTouch website {for consultants} and found the following information. Hopefully it'll be as helpful to you as it was to me!

NOTE:  this system only applies to Mary Kay products. I have no idea how other companies note their expiration dates, or in this case, the date of manufacture.

I'm going to re-cap the info I found for you:::

Every Mary Kay product is labeled with an "easy to read" code right on the packaging. Yes, it's on the packaging, yes you can read it, but without these helpful hints, you won't know what you're looking at. Every product has it's product name on it, including the shade name, a six-digit part number (that you won't need), and here it is- a four-digit code.

That four-digit code is the product's date of manufacture. You can interpret the day code using the following legend:

Character 1: Letter representing the year in the decade in which the product was produced.

• R = 2008
• T = 2009
• V = 2010
• 1 = 2011
• 2 = 2012
• and for future reference... 3 = 2013, 4 = 2014, and 5 = 2015.

Character 2: Letter representing the month of year in alpha order, as follows (please note that the code skips some letters to avoid confusion and mistaken identification):

• A = January 
• B = February 
• C = March
• D = April 
• F = May
• H = June
• K = July 
• M = August
• R = September
• T = October
• V = November
• X = December  

Characters 3 and 4: Numbers representing day of month. For example, 01 = the first day of the month, 15 = the 15th day of the month, 31 = the 31st day of the month.

So, if you can put 1 + 2  + 3 together, you can figure out when your product was born!!

Most Mary Kay® products are produced to have a shelf life of three years from the date of manufacture. This is the standard for the cosmetic industry, not a regulation. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates the shelf life of over-the-counter (OTC) drug products such as sunscreens, antiperspirants, etc., as follows:

• If the shelf life is less than three years, then the expiration date of the product must be clearly indicated on the package. This is not required if the shelf life is greater than three years.

So, some Mary Kay® products may have an expiration date because they have a shelf life of less than three years. For these products, it is particularly important to check the expiration date before using them. These products are: 

• TimeWise® Day Solution Sunscreen SPF 25†
• TimeWise® Age-Fighting Moisturizer Sunscreen SPF 15†
• Acne Treatment Gel†
• TimeWise® Even Complexion Essence
• MKMen® Moisturizer Sunscreen SPF 25†\
• Mary Kay® Lip Protector Sunscreen SPF 15†
• Mary Kay® SPF 30 Sunscreen†
• Subtle Tanning Lotion
• Mary Kay® Tinted Moisturizer With Sunscreen SPF 20†
• Mary Kay® Tinted Lip Balm Sunscreen SPF 15†
• TimeWise Body™ Hand and Décolleté Cream Sunscreen SPF 15†
• Mary Kay® Cream Eye Color
• Mary Kay® Foundation Primer

† Products indicated with a single dagger identify over-the-counter drug products. Customers should carefully read and observe all warnings, indications and directions for use on the labels of these products.

So, UNLESS there is a blatant expiration date on the product, you can assume the product has a shelf-life of three years. It'll say something like: "EXP 4/12" if it does, and in that case, the product should be thrown away in (for this example) April 2012.

Unfortunately not all Mary Kay products have the dummy version of when to discard your products, so, this info will be good info to know so you can crack the code & see if it's been three years or not!! Lord, I hope not!! ;) Mary Kay products are great & always improving! New products are coming out & things change so so much in three YEARS so if it's been that long, find your consultant & get an updated facial! It'll be worth your time to pamper yourself & see what fabulous new products the company has come out with!

Side note: Someone remind me to blog about their new products & products I'm loving right now!! ;) I know I need to keep a list of things I need to blog about. Otherwise I'll just get distracted & make false promises! And I don't have time right now this second or I would blog all night!! :)

I hope this is helpful to someone out there. I know it was helpful to me! :)

PS: If you're a Mary Kay consultant & looking for this information yourself, here it is. And the info given in this blog is up-to-date as of today.  If you're viewing this five years from now, things may or may not have changed. Just sayin'...

Tis the season...for new makeup!

I went for a good month probably without wearing eye makeup to work, because, quite frankly, I got lazy and thought I could substitute wearing eye makeup for eyeglasses. Hey, it worked for me! But, I accidentally snapped my glasses in half...yep, right between the eyes...totally ruined them. So, there went my brilliant idea! Good thing I'm back in the makeup mood!! ;)


DISCLAIMER: Yes, I still sell Mary Kay makeup. No, it's not a crime to sell one brand of makeup and love others as well. ;)

Side note: My friend & co-worker, Ashley, introduced me to this FABULOUS website, Makeup Geek, and I'm currently spending my Saturday night watching tutorials online & learning all kinds of girly things! I love it! Also, if you're looking for a good tutorial site, check out Makeup By Tiffany D. I learned so much from her site as well. What I love about these two girls if not only do they use nice, expensive makeup brands, but also things you can find at your local drugstore or you know, at Wal-Mart if you live in a small town like me!


Mom took me to Ulta last night to get some Christmas shopping done! First, let me say that I am so glad that I work in a city where there is an Ulta! Living in a small town has its perks but being able to find great makeup usually isn't one of those perks. The following was definitely on my to-buy list:

Hoola Bronzer by Benefit Cosmetics

Hoola Bronzer has changed its packaging since I last had to purchase it! I am digging the improvements...The lid flips up instead of having to be removed completely {like that's a hassle or something} but I am super digging the new mirror that is included on the new lid!! Great idea, Benefit Cosmetics!

ULTA Eye Shadow in Sable

Ashley told me to help smudging my eyeshadows I need a nude-colored eyeshadow & she recommended ULTA brand eyeshadows for this. ULTA had them Buy One Get One Free so that was great! I got two in Sable, thinking it'd match great. It did on my hand, but it's looking a little dark for my winter white skin! I appreciated the sale because I really want to work on having two makeup kits: one for my bathroom that I can keep organized & one to keep for in the car, or in my purse, or for travel. I know I can return the Sable shade, but I think I'll just go test another shade & get two of those while this sale's going on...that way I can just add my {growing} collection. ;) I used this eyeshadow tonight though and LOVED it. Ashley was right: it's a great, highly pigmented inexpensive eyeshadow! I like eyeshadows that are packaged separately from other shades...I hate colors getting mixed in with one another when you keep them all together. That's a problem I'm having with my Mary Kay mineral eyeshadows. I know there's a solution...I just haven't gotten motivated enough to implement my solution yet! ;)

NYX Eyebrow Cake Powder in dark brown/brown

Ashley recommended this AWESOME product for shading in your eyebrows!! I got the "dark brown/brown" shade instead of the "brunette" because I knew I'd be coloring my hair soon & didn't know how dark I'd need. The fact that this comes with two colors, mini brushes, and a wax for $5.99 is AMAZING!!  AND ULTA was having a Buy One Get One 50% off sale...so I got two! ;) Ashley is really convincing me that shading your eyebrows is a big deal & makes a world of difference. For someone who has never gotten their eyebrows professionally done, and have tweezed their eyebrows MAYBE three times in their entire life...you can see how this is a big deal for me. But, I took the first baby step in buying this product!! Next up on the list that I will HAVE to buy is Anastasia Beverly Hills' Eyebrow Stencils. Otherwise I would have an all kinds of jacked up pair of eyebrows!! I am NOT an artist, y'all!!

Also, this wasn't on my to-buy list, but after chit-chatting it up with homegirl at ULTA, this very well be my new favorite makeup product ever:

Lancome Aquatique

This stuff!! I can not rave enough about this stuff!! Homegirl at ULTA showed me a demo of this product and I would have not bought the stuff without the demo. {I would have purchased Benefit's Stay Don't Stray, which I've used & loved before, & was coincidentally homegirl's #2 choice.} This stuff only comes in one shade for us white people, but it's okay because shade of the primer isn't going to alter the color of your shadows; it will actually enhance the color! Homegirl applied this stuff to her hand, then put some pretty but very bright purple eyeshadow on top of the Aquatitque. She then went, applied some water on top of the shadow & rubbed. That stuff did not move! I was shocked! I told her I should have videotaped her doing that to show my blog readers. {All five of you.} But, I didn't videotape it- so I'll just tell you now. The stuff if amazing! I am six hours into wearing my eyemakeup and it hasn't budged a BIT!! {Yay!} For $25ish...you can't beat that!! For as sparingly as you have to use this stuff, even using it every day, you will go a VERY long time before you need another. Homegirl did warn me though: you HAVE to make sure the lid's on tight, because it's a water-based product & it will dry out if left open!

I think Mom bought a couple extra Christmas presents for me without my knowledge, because her total was probably $40 more than I had calculated it should be. Sneaky, her!! ;) Gotta love Santa Claus!!

What new products have you tried & loved lately?? Do share!! :)

Dear 16 Year Old Me,

This video is being passed around Facebook and it's so great, I can't not share it!

It really does make you think! And it makes me think that I really need to find a sunless tanner that isn't horrible and doesn't break the bank!

What sunless tanning suggestions do you have?

Homemade Hand Scrub

So my friend and classmate, Monica, told me of this really great Christmas gift idea. I know, it's after Christmas & I'm just now getting around to telling you this...but you'll have to forgive me & use this as a present for....whatever holiday of yours is next on the list! ;)

I was a little Christmas elf this year, "cooking" up some homemade hand scrub for some ladies on my Christmas list. It was super simple & such a great idea! Thanks Monica!

All it takes is 2 ingredients, a container, & some ribbon! 

First, take some lavender scented Epsom salt (however much you want)...

Note: I only found it at 2 places... Walgreen's had some of their brand, a 3 lb. bag for $4-$5. Target also had some, but you would have never known it! It's not with the other Epsom salt...it was in the beauty section! If you're at Target and looking for it, just go ahead, find an associate, head to the beauty aisle...and look for this:

It's also a 3 lb. bag for $4-$5 (can't remember exactly how much). I prefer the Dr. Teal's because the crystals are a little larger and the scent is definitely more powerful, I mean...relaxing.  :)

Ok, so you take your Epsom salt, and mix it with extra virgin olive oil! There's no certain amount...put as much as you prefer in there to mix with the salts!

Place in a container and add a cute ribbon for good measure and voila! You have a really cute, practical, sweet smelling gift!

I found these containers at Hobby Lobby for $1.99-$2.99 each depending on the size....and, of course, Hobby Lobby had a 50% off sale going on....so I purchased them for half off!


I also am NOT a "bow maker" by any means...so I was sure to purchase some ribbon (also 50% off at Hobby Lobby) with some wire ends. That way I could just wrap it around the container, double-tie it tight, and cut the ends off short & "sculpt" them into something that resembled a bow{tie}. :)

I have never been a crafy girl but this was fun, inexpensive, and a thoughtful gift for some great ladies!

Not forgetting to mention that it makes you hands SUPER soft. Just grab some scrub, scrub your hands with it, and rinse! It's as simple as that. Enjoy!!!

New Makeup!

I can't believe it...but I left North Lake mall Saturday with MORE makeup!

Homegirl did a makeover on me. I asked for an everyday look she could sort of teach me to do. Well, that's what I got! So for that, I can't complain.

I was on a BUDGET though, so I had to be sensible when doing this makeover. I brought my current most-used makeup products with me, to prevent me from buying something I already had. 


I recently got foundation and concealer at Target, so, I'm still trying them out. She used the concealer on me that I had but then tried some Make Up For Ever HD foundation and powder on me. Since I just bought foundation, I didn't purchase the foundation she used on me, but I did buy the HD finishing powder.

 It is a translucent microfinishing powder that will fit any skin tone.  It sets foundation and slightly mattes skin without changing its natural contours. It's so soft, maybe even softer than something like baby powder {but obviously it's translucent}. It just leaves a flawless look over top your foundation. I like it so far! My only pet peeve is with any type of mineral makeup or powder, I feel like it gets everywhere {all over my counter as I'm tapping it out of the container and into the lid or onto the brush}. I feel like I waste so much product! 


I am big on eye makeup, especially eye liner and mascara. If I am not wearing at least mascara, people will start to ask me what's wrong, or tell me I look sick! haha.... It's amazing how a little mascara can make your face look drastically different! Anyways, I told homegirl {who did my makeover} that I had an issue with my current eyeliner and that was that it always "came on" really thick and I looked like a raccoon! She showed me a new technique that really works to make your lines thinner! If I was awesome like Tiffany D then I would do a little video for you to show you, but.. I'm not, so I can't, so I won't. :) 

Another pet peeve of mine I have is having my bottom eyeliner or mascara {yep, just one eye} not run, but almost like smudge, or hit my cheek as I smile or something, and it looks a bit raccooney. She suggested using some primer to set the liner and mascara. I eventually wanted Benefit's Stay don't Stray because it doubles as an eye shadow primer and a concealer, but it was $28 alone so, I didn't. I spent my money on other things! :) I told homegirl about the eye shadow primer I had recently bought. I wanted to try something out before I got Benefit's Stay Don't Stray, to see if I could find something that worked, for cheaper! So I headed to Victoria's Secret of all places and bought some of their eye shadow primer for, get this, $8! I was thrilled! I was even more thrilled to see that the stuff actually works!

I've been trying to apply it to my lashes and eye line to prevent the running in that one eye, ha, but, my allergy fit at the pond last night definitely kicked my sweet little primer's butt. :/ But! It serves it's purpose for keeping my eye shadow on for a long time. So, it gets an A in my book! I've been watching some YouTube makeup reviews and it is totally comparable to Too Faced Shadow Insurance which runs for around $17! {FYI}


Hmm...what was next?? OH! So I was telling homegirl about wanting to keep my bottom eyeliner in place & wanting thinner lines. She explained to me how normal it was for people to wear one type of eyeliner on their top lid and another type on their bottom lid. That's what she did on me and these were two products she had me sold on.


The first one she used on my top lid with an eyeliner brush- which she was very helpful in assisting me master my technique! ;) She used Smashbox's cream eye liner in Caviar. Basically it looks like this --> but in jet black! It goes on smooth & lasts a long time! I've heard so many makeup fanatics rant and rave about Smashbox, and now I have some Smashbox products of my own. I hope this doesn't start a trend. :)


But, it might...because as I was checking out the "sample area" I came across another Smashbox product- their Photo Finish foundation primer. I have heard so so so many good things about this stuff. Apparently it keeps your makeup going strong all day long! Smashbox products are a bit pricey {I'm not gonna lie} so I surely wasn't going to buy any foundation primer, until I saw the sample size.

Honestly, homegirl used it on my skin and I could tell a definite difference of the texture of my skin before she put any foundation on. I liked the stuff! I just didn't want to pay $36-$49 {depending on if you bought 1 oz or 2 oz}. Since I was just trying the stuff out, I bought the sample size, which is 0.5 oz. for $16! I thought that was a good deal, considering I'm just trying the stuff out. Can I just say that I love Sephora's little sample section?! It's great for trying things out for cheap{er than usual}.


I also tried out Too Faced Lash Injection Mascara for less than $10. The guy at the counter was telling Jodi & I about how it comes off in tiny little tubes, won't clump and is weather proof. I had heard good things about Too Faced products before, so I thought what the heck! and tried it out.

I am rotating now between that and Benefit's Bad Gal mascara {which I also got in a sample size for less than $10!} My friend Amber said she used it in her wedding, so I thought, hey! That must be good stuff she trusted! It has a huge wand so I know my lashes will be big and bold using it. I'm digging it as well. :) Now that I put pictures of both of my new mascaras up, I see their packaging looks a lot alike. Don't you think?? Interesting!

But anyways...like I said, she used one type of eyeliner on my upper lid, and another type on my lower lid. She used a pencil on my lower lid. She used {and I bought} this --> 
Sephora's Keep Kohl! waterproof eyeliner. I got it in "Keep Black." Sephora's website describes it as a "deeply pigmented, richly-hued pencil that smooths on in seconds and stays put all day- even through a good cry or a quick dip." I actually did a double take when blogging about this, because all I can remember is last night, sneezing 2346345 times at the pond, and my eyes watering ALL over my face. My mascara didn't run, but {it must have been} my eyeliner that smudged a bit during my allergy attack. I thought to myself, "Man! I should have bought the waterproof, and then I looked at the eyeliner, and I DID!" Dang...I guess my allergy attack would consider to be more than "a good cry or a quick dip" haha...Oh well, while I'm NOT going sneeze-crazy, the stuff works and looks good!