MAC Haul

A few weeks ago I attended on of MAC's from Street to Runway makeup classes.  I bought a few items and wanted to share them.  All of these products were first time purchases for me.  I have been using them for a few weeks and love all of them!

Let me know if anyone would like a full review on any of the products.

Prep+Prime Skin Base $28

Prep+Prime Translucent Finishing Powder $23

Studio Moisture Cream $32

Naked Pigment $20

Matchmaster Foundation 1.5 $32.50

Select Moisture Cover Concealer NW20 $17

Mirrored Makeup Brush Holder

I have a pretty large collection of makeup brushes and I am always on the hunt for new brush containers or ideas.  I love the mirrored effect and have a few pieces of mirrored furniture.  I thought it would be a cool idea to create my own mirrored makeup brush holders.

Here is how I made my containers:

Materials that I used

• Some type of a glass jar or container (I used old mason jars)
• Newspaper
• Looking Glass Spray Paint (I found mine at Michaels for about $16)

First I took my empty mason jar (making sure that the inside is clean) and the Looking Glass Spray Paint.  This particular spray paint needs to be shaken very well and you spray in short thin coats.  (I learned the hard way that you should not apply too thick of a coat.  It ends up blotchy, uneven, and takes a long time to dry.)

To get the mirrored effect you MUST spray paint the INSIDE of the jar. While wet, the paint is very sparkly, silver, and non mirrored.  As the thin coats of paint dry, the paint dries with a mirrored effect and you are left with a mirrored mason jar.

It takes a thin coat of paint about 5 minutes to dry to the touch.

To get the effect of the jars I painted I used six thin coats of the Looking Glass spray paint.

Hope you all like the idea.  Let me see pictures of your creations!

Tweezerman Floral Mini Manicure Kit

During my most recent trip to on of my favorite stores, (Target!) I came across this super cute mini manicure kit.  It comes with three mini manicure tools and a clear plastic case.  There is a full sized fingernail clipper, a mini 2-in-1 cuticle pushy & nail cleaner, and a mini nickel-plated nail file.

The small clear case is perfectly sized to easily fit into your purse or bag and you will always have manicure tools in case of an emergency.

Let me know what you think of this kit!  What beauty tools do you always have with you?

Totally cute and portable.  I picked my up at Target for $9

Nail Polish Addict

Anyone else out there consider themselves a nail polish addict?  I sure do.  I am obsessed with perfection when it comes to painting my nails.  Mix that in with a lot of impatience and I always end up painting my nails too fast with too much polish and smear the polish before it has a chance to dry.  My wonderful friends and coworkers have welcomed this habit as part of me (Thankfully because sometimes I can paint my nails six or seven times in a day).  My friends tell me that I will not have fingernails by the time I'm forty, haha, hopefully this is not the case.

Anyone else out there addicted to painting there nails or am I only in this silly addiction?

Miracle Oil!

I was first introduced to Virgin Coconut Oil (VCO) a few months ago while trying to find a moisturizer for my dry skin.  I have tried out several other oils such as argan oil, jojoba oil, and almond oil.  While the other oils are found in liquid form, the VCO is solid at room temperature.  VOC melts at 76 degrees and goes from a white solid to a clear liquid.  I love that the oil does not have a oily feel to it.  It feels more like water or a serum to me and is quickly absorbed into the skin.

I have now been using the oil on a daily basis.  I use it to condition my hair, as a body lotion, a makeup remover, and as a facial moisturizer.  It has a light coconut smell that does not linger.
Coconut oil is useful in preventing dry skin and is a great preventative measure for aging skin.  Lauric acid, capric acid, and capryilc acid are the magic ingredients that have antimicrobial, antifungal, and antibacterial properties.

VOC can be found at most grocery stores in the health food section.  The uses of this oil are endless, from cooking to beauty.  It is amazing stuff!!

MAC Complete Comfort Creme Review

Growing up I never had problems with my skin.  That is until my sophomore year of college.  My once clear, smooth skin started erupting in painful cystic bumps.   No matter what I did my face would not clear up.  Along with this unpleasant change, the texture of my skin also changed.  Add in daily use of Retin-A and most mornings I wake up with red, peeling skin.  Now a week away from turning 25 (yikes!) my skin has returned to its clearer state, but is now extremely dry.

At my last visit to my local MAC store searching for an under eye concealer, the MUA suggested I try MAC Complete Comfort Creme US $32.  The creme is a light peachy color and smells exactly like Fix Plus to me.  The creme is thick and my skin cannot seem to get enough of it.  I have a tendency to over apply just about everything.  I follow the "more is better" train of thought even though that rarely seems to be the case!  I have over applied this creme many times and end up with a mess of balled up lotion all over my face.  When used in moderation (I really need to learn this) the Complete Comfort Creme leaves my skin feeling silky smooth.  I have also noticed a decrease in the overall redness of my skin.  This is great because I am asked year round if I have a sunburn, nope just my unfortunate normal skin tone.  While the creme does leave my skin feeling hydrated and smooth, the effects tend to wear off after a few hours and my skin feels slightly dry again.

 MAC describes the creme:
A moisturizer formulated to instantly rehydrate the skin and provide immediate and ongoing relief from redness and irritation. Ultra-creamy, provides high-comfort wear while providing sensitive skin with the soothing benefits associated with its calming plant-and marine-based formula.

Price: $32

My Rating: A (Love the smell!)

Day One: MAC pigment decisions

I cannot begin to add up the hours I have spent looking at other beauty lovers blog postings.  I have a desk job that allows me endless hours in the work day to feed my growing addiction for all things beauty.  So far today I spent at least an hour and a half looking at different MAC pigment swatches.  I have been trying to decide between the MAC Vanilla pigment and the Frozen White pigment.  I am trying to decide which shade will work best to highlight my NW20 skin.  I have several other highlight shades ranging in brands from MAC and NARS, to drug store brands, but always seem to be searching for more.  Without seeing the colors in person I think I will go with the Vanilla color.  Swatches of Vanilla pigment and my other highlight colors to come very soon!

MAC Frozen White Pigment

MAC Vanilla Pigment

Coming soon, my review on MAC Complete Comfort Creme.