Rescue Me!

What do you do when a lipstick gets smashed or breaks? Do you just toss it or try to salvage it? Apply it with a lipbrush or with your finger? When it happens to me, I make it into a gloss.

You'll need:

Smashed or broken lipstick
Rosebud salve, Vaseline, or lipbalm
Small container



I use approximately two parts lipstick to one part rosebud salve.



Mix, microwave for about 45-95 seconds, then mix again to make sure it's a homogenous mixture. Using the rosebud salve (or vaseline... or lip balm...) gives the gloss moisturising properties and makes it a little sheer, so application is practically goof proof.



Finally, something to do with my Bare Minerals containers ;)

XOXO,
Ashleigh

Quick lipstick tip

The holiday season is quickly descending upon us, bringing with it parties, merrymaking, frivolity, and the occasional drink. Now, you and I know that more often than not, if we're wearing lipstick, it leaves that tell-tale mark on the rim of your glass. On one hand, at least you know for sure which glass is yours. On the other... it's a little tacky looking. So what do you do? If you (discretely) lick the edge of your glass before drinking, it won't leave a lipstick mark. Honest. You may want to practice this at home before you try it in public, else you may be known as "the rim licker," which could bring up a whole slew of issues.
If, even after practice, you can't quite get it down, use a lip stain. Revlon's Just Bitten lip stain is great, long lasting, and comes with a super conditioning balm. L'Oreal has the Infallibile gloss, which dries down to a stain-like finish, but be warned, after eating and drinking, it does fade pretty quickly. If you need to change your stain quickly, or you want to get it all off before bed, try eye make up remover.

XOXO,
Ashleigh

E.L.F Haul!

I'm so excited! I just got my order from E.L.F and there's all kinds of gorgeousness to see! Now, forewarning, this is going to be a very picture heavy post, so we're just gonna go ahead and put all of the fabulousness behind a cut.

Purse Inventory

Yesterday I was sitting in the Starbucks on campus with one of my friends and I pawed through my purse for about five minutes looking for my lip balm. After five minutes, I gave up and just started pulling everything out, piece by piece, determined to find that darn Eos lip balm!
Scattered through my purse and in my make up bag I had:
12 red lipsticks/glosses
5 nude lipsticks/glosses
1 plum lipstick
2 lip balms
3 black liquid liners
1 purple liquid liner
1 navy liquid liner
5 eye shadow duos
1 Too Faced eye shadow palette (Naked Eye)
5 mascaras
1 lash curler
1 brow pencil (blonde)
2 eye shadow brushes (medium brush and crease brush)
1 pressed powder
1 bronzer/highlighter compact
1 face brush
1 concealer/highlighter
1 moisturizer
1 pack of make up remover wipes
2 nail polishes
2 perfumes


It took up the entire table. Seriously


Who needs this many lipsticks?


At least they're all pretty!


I have no explanation for this.

I may be a touch crazy after all. What's in your purse?

Xoxo,
Ashleigh

Plum Perfect

As I mentioned in my "favorite things" post, I'm in love with plum shades of lipstick. We all know that I frequently wear the bold lip, and plum is nice alternative to red, especially as the temperature dips lower and lower here in San Antonio (thank you tropical storms and cold fronts!).
Last night I went to Walmart and picked up Plum Perfect from Maybelline's plum line, went out to the truck and applied a quick swipe, and fell in love with the creamy, deep berry shade. I test wore it around campus today and received several compliments from ladies AND gents, so I think Plum Perfect has earned itself a permanent spot in my beauty arsenal. It may not take the place of red, but it's pretty darn close.

"
Swatch on my hand


Tube, a pretty shade of grape-y purple.

Since it's Maybelline Colorsensational, the color applies true-to-product and crisply with minimal feathering and lasts without significant fading.

Xoxo,
Ashleigh

First Day of Fall!

Happy first day of fall, ladies! To celebrate the start of my favorite season, I thought I'd do a quick post about some of my favorite things!
Maybelline has some lovely plum lipsticks out right now that have a perfect shade for every skin tone, with rich, full color and a long lasting formula. I know a lot of ladies look at plum as strictly a "night" shade, but there are a lot of shades of plum that are surprisingly wearable that will transition well from day to night.
Sephora has some GORGEOUS sparkly black liner that applies smoothly, lasts a long time, and adds a little bit of drama to your day-to-day make up without looking too made up. Keep in mind, though- if you're emphasising your eyes, keep your lips light, and vice versa.
And of course, dark and glittery nails are making a come back, like they do every year. Vampy shades of red, plum, navy, and even darker shades of grey will be great manicure choices.  OPI's Swiss collection will be great to draw influence from; I've got my eyes on Glitzerland, From A to Zurich, and even Cuckoo for This Color.
Make sure your pampering your hair, because as the air gets drier, your hair will get drier and no one wants lackluster hair that looks like straw. I've mentioned Ojon as a great hair mask before, but Garnier's 3-Minute Undo works almost as well, for a fraction of the cost.  Just slather it on, allow it to sit for three minutes (or longer!) and rinse to reveal beautiful, moisturized and healthy hair.

Happy Fall!
Ashleigh

D.I.Y: Lip Scrub

Hello, lovelies! As we all know, having smooth lips is a beauty must have! Well hydrated lips retain lip colour better and longer than dry lips, and smooth lips make lipstick look so much prettier.
There are several lip scrubs on the market, most of them ranging upwards of $10, but why buy one if you can make it at home, using items that most people already have in their pantry? Making a lip scrub at home means that you know EXACTLY what's going into it (and on your lips), and you don't have to worry "Oh, what if I accidentally get some in my mouth?"
I'm quite fond of mixing sugar with olive oil, or almond oil, when I make my lip scrubs. Sugar is a natural exfoliant when in it's crystallized (i.e. 'regular') form and olive oil is wonderful for adding moisture, since it's full of fatty-acids.

Obviously, you will need:

• Small bowl (for mixing)
• Measuring spoons
• Olive oil ( I recommend Extra Virgin)
• Sugar
• Food colouring (optional)

Start by measuring out about a tablespoon of sugar and pour into a small bowl. Follow by adding approximately two teaspoons of olive oil over top. Using your finger (or spoon!) mix the two together until the mixture kind of "clumps" together. If you'd like your scrub to have more of a paste like consistency, add a bit more olive oil.

Since I like colourful things, I usually add a few drops of food colouring to mine. If you add food colouring, be warned: some may stain your lips for a few minutes. Be sure you spot test this!

I, of course, made mine red. :)

Once your scrub has been mixed well, dip your finger in, and lightly rub over your lips in a circular motion to slough off dead skin cells. Rinse with warm water and follow up with your favourite lip balm.

I would post an "after" picture of my lips, but they were photographing with some super glare because of the lighting! Trust me, they're soft and ready for a gorgeous shade of classic rose.

Cost: Free, since most of us already have sugar and olive oil at home

Grade: A. It's super effective, and best of all, you didn't have to spend any of your hard earned money on it.

These Boots Are Made for... Your Pucker, Actually!

Boots Stay Perfect lipstick in "Classic Rose"

I love a good rose shade of lipstick and “Classic Rose” is no exception. Boots hit this one way out of the park when they made it. The Stay Perfect lipstick goes on very smooth and creamy and actually stays on very well without the excessive drying that many lipsticks that claim to last seem to have.



According to the Target website, Stay Perfect lipstick comes in 16 different shades, ranging from nudes to pinks (including a coral looking shade called "Gay Geranium." Love it!) to nice vampy reds ("Cherry," I’m looking at you). Since I am so enthralled with “Classic Rose,” I may be picking up more of these lipsticks in the future.
My favourite part of the lipstick may be the actual tube itself, if I’m completely honest. It’s very sleek, but has a slight vintage flare to it with No7 stamped into the tube in gold. Definitely a pretty tube that you wouldn’t feel bad about pulling out in front of other people.






Cost: $9.99 at Target
Is It Worth It: Very much so.

Two for the Price of One, Kiddies!

Tutorial and Review Rolled Into One

Today I was at my local Walmart, browsing the make up aisle for some good steals, when I came across the Hard Candy display. To say that I was flabbergasted would be an understatement. Hard Candy? In Walmart? I believe I made a “buhhhhhh?” noise. I wound up getting Ginormous Lash Volumizing Mascara and Painted Lady Lip Color, because they were both super cheap (six dollars and five dollars respectively) and the packaging was adorable. Truth be told, I’m a sucker for great packaging and gimmicks that promise you the moon, even though I know you shouldn’t judge things based off of appearance.
I was torn between doing a straight up review of the two products or doing a tutorial that I’ve been thinking about doing for a while when I decided to just roll the two into one post. Killing the proverbial two birds with one stone. The look we’re going for is a classic pin-up inspired one. Think luxe lashes, winged liner, red lips, and smooth, even skin with flushed cheeks. Tres chic.

Step 1: Moisturize skin. I know that this usually goes without saying, but it’s something you absolutely cannot skip. Well hydrated skin is the most important part of any make up look.
Step 2: Use concealer where needed, then follow with foundation to even skin tone.
Step 3: Use eye shadow primer. It smooths out the surface, evens out the colour, and helps your eye shadow stay on longer without the dreaded crease marks.
Step 4: A beige or a taupe shadow make a great base shadow to sweep across the entire lid.



Step 5: A lighter shade, such as a white or a very pale pink, makes an excellent highlighter shade to be used across the brow bone and in the inner corner of the eye.
Step 6: A darker shade, like a brown or a gray, is perfect for the crease of your eye to add depth. I also smudge a little of it across my lash line. Make sure you blend your base shade and crease shade to avoid harsh lines.




Step 7: Curl lashes, follow with 2-3 coats of mascara on top and bottom lashes. Use mascara comb afterward to ensure no clumps.




Step 8: A liquid liner is going to give you the best result for this look. Follow as close to the lash line as possible and end the line with a slight “wing” at the end. If you are not comfortable with liquid liner, it is easiest to draw small dots along your lash line and connect them instead of trying to draw one continuous line. If you mess up, use a little make up remover or mineral oil on a q-tip and try again.





Step 9: Emphasize eyebrows using a brow powder and a slant brush. Brow gel is optional



Step 10: Apply blush to the apples of your cheeks. A peachy pink gives skin a naturally flushed, healthy look.



Step 11: Line lips with a pink or red liner, depending on the colour of lipstick you plan on using, and fill in the entire lip. This gives your lipstick something to hold onto and when your lipstick starts to fade throughout the day, it won’t be as apparent.

Step 12: Finish off with some great lipstick.


Items used in tutorial:

Olay Total Effects moisturizer
Rimmel Stay Matte Clarifying Matte Foundation
Estee Lauder Stay In Place Eye Shadow Base (splurge, worth it)
Maybelline ExpertWear Eye Shadow in Mocha Motion
Revlon eyelash curler
Hard Candy Ginormous Lash in Black Out
Revlon ColorStay Liquid Liner in Navy
Studio 35 Brow Powder
Rimmel Powder Blush in Santa Rose
Clinique Quick Liner for Lips in Soft Rose (splurge, worth it)
Hard Candy Painted Lady lipstick in Kitten

Review: I absolutely loved both Hard Candy products I used. The mascara went on very well with no clumping, nor with too much definition of individual lashes to give that awful "spider leg" look. The lipstick went on very smoothly as a rich, creamy red with no hint of dryness.

Cost: $6 for mascara, $5 for lipstick at Walmart
Is It Worth It: Yes :)

Fall back in love with colour

The air is getting crisper with a little bite to it, the leaves are starting to change to brilliant oranges and rusts and Halloween is a week away. It's time to take the trench coat to the dry cleaner, pull out the gloves, and take a cue from nature. Fall is a great time to start experimenting with colours that are a little darker, a little more saturated than you would normally wear.
Revlon Super Lustrous lipstick in Rosewine is an amazing muted red that Revlon categorizes as a 'Rose' shade. It goes on very creamy, with full pigmentation and a slight matte finish. It's perfect for people who want to start wearing reds and aren't quite ready to wear vibrant, brick reds, but it's also great for those of us who just fancy a bit of a change. I've seen this shade on a couple of people I know, with varying skin tones, so I can pretty confidentially say it will suit just about everyone.






Cost: $7.99 at Target
Is it Worth It: Yes

A disappointing purchase

A few weeks ago, I started seeing commercials for Revlon ColorStay Ultimate Liquid Lipstick. I was hooked as soon as they said that it was last all day without being drying, since it was supposed to have a moisturising topcoat built in. I promptly went out to the closest Walgreens to find the perfect one for me to test out. I chose Top Tomato, a red, which to me is always the right choice, went back out to the car and started applying.
To say that I was underwhelmed would be an understatement. ColorStay has a doe-foot applicator, which I usually love, but I feel like a brush would have given better control and product distribution in this case. The doe-foot seemed to give a more pronounced line at my lip line and it was hard to fill in the center of the lip. I also found the ColorStay formula to be EXTREMELY drying and it made any lines in my lips stand out, making my lips look like they belonged to a 60 year old.
I dislike this product so much, that I'm not even going to post a picture of it being worn.

Price: $10.99
Is It Worth It? Absolutely not. Buy a nice matte lipstick and just use a base of foundation and you'll get much better results.