NOTD - Turquoise Chevron

I've seen these nails around pinterest quite a bit and I finally decided to try it out myself!

What I used:

Essie Protein Base Coat

Essie "Good to Go," topcoat

L'Oreal "Not a Cloud in Sight"

Sinful Colors "Snow Me White"

Expo Dry Erase marker, black

I didn't have a black nail pen or a regular fine tip marker, so I decided to just use my dry-erase marker. I mostly wanted to see if I could pull it off. I think it came out pretty ok!

My tip for...using a dry erase marker...is wait for it to dry a bit, then lightly apply a topcoat. I did this twice, as the topcoat did remove the marker very slightly.

Here's the dreaded left hand:

Not so bad!


The inspiration:

credit to: hiyapapaya.com

From the picture, you can see she used nail tape for the look. Bear me with me, because I used none!


Have you tried out chevron nails? Show me your pictures!

-Claudia

Zoya - Color Your World in 2013

A few weeks ago, Zoya had a promotion to receive three nail polishes for free (just pay shipping). As a newbie to nail polish, I thought this would be a great opportunity to try out some more colors. Thank you, Zoya!!

 Here's the official promo ad from Zoya.

The colors I received are: 
Kylie 2
Sooki
Toni

{Kylie 2}

 In the bottle, Kylie 2 seems like a very coral pink. Once applied, however, it turns a bit more reddish. I think this one would look better if applied on top of a white base. 

{Sooki}

I'm a pretty huge True Blood/Southern Vampire Mysteries book series fan, so I thought it'd be cool to own a polish named "Sooki."I own a few reds, but none like this orange-tomato toned red. 

{Toni}

I picked "Toni," because of it's beautiful plumness. It's that oxblood color that everyone seems to go crazy over during Fall. I realize that we are just coming out of Fall, but I thought this color was so beautiful. 

You can purchase Zoya nail polishes {here}  

Did you pick anything up from this promotion? What are your favorite Zoya colors?

-Claudia

VIB Tarte Trio & How-to

Hello guys! I wanted to show you something I recently came across that is pretty amazing. Last month I received the Tarte "High Performance Naturals" kit through Sephora's VIB program. Though it's no longer available, these items can still be purchased in stores.

(credit - Sephora)

{The kit included}:
Pure Maracuja Oil
Lights, Camera, Lashes 4-in-1 mascara
MultiplEYE Lash Enhancing primer

 Pure Maracuja Oil

I don't know what it was about this bottle that made me want to take a nice, big whiff of the oil, but I did and it smelled...oily. I think it's because the bottle itself is very pretty. It could almost pass for a quirky perfume bottle. The packaging itself doesn't explain how to use the Maracuja oil, which is a bit disappointing. I'm assuming it is like most of the oils I've tried and can be used for various things; from your hair to your face and all the above. This oil is very nice on my hair, but I can't say that it's any better from the oils I've tried previously, though I haven't been using it for too long. 

Lights, Camera, Lashes 4-in-1 Mascara 

& 

MultiplEYE Lash Enhancing Primer

I'll admit I don't know too much about mascara. All I can tell you is "this one made my lashes clumpy" and "this one did not!" Basically, I can tell what looks good for my lashes, but I couldn't explain to you the different brush types or the why's. This mascara and primer duo work amazingly well together. My lashes look well-curled in a way that is not too obvious -- no lash clumping here! I know I said before I'd found my HG mascara, but this one is just so good! I would recommend this duo for someone with lashes that doesn't need volume, however, because these don't do too much for that.

________________________________________________________________

{Four steps to curl my lashes today}:

1. I started by curling my lashes with a Revlon curler. 
2. I followed with Tarte's MultiplEYE Lash Enhancing primer and let that sit for a bit. 
3. I then applied Tarte's Lights, Camera, Lashes 4-in-1 mascara, using a wiggling motion. 
4. Lastly, I ran a lash comb through my lashes to get rid of clumps. 

 Here are my eyelashes before and after curling my lashes

 Here's a better picture showcasing the length of my lashes before and after curling.

My lashes are pretty long already, but this mascara added a bit more length - NICE!

This was a pretty good set of minis! I had never tried out any of Tarte's products. I'm glad I got to try this out, because I'd happily shell out for all three of these in stores. 

Have you tried this set? What did you think?

-Claudia

ipsy - January 2013

Subscription purchased by me, affiliate links within post

Click below for more on this month's bag!

Birchbox - January 2013

{In this month's box}:
Embyolisse: Lait-Creme Concentre - 24-Hour Miracle Cream
Number 4 - Clarifying Shampoo
theBalm Cosmetics - Hot Mama
Aerie Shimmer Fragrance

**Extra**Deborah Lippman - the Stripper to go
"2013 - Best Year Ever" Booklet

Embyolisse: Lait-Creme Concentre - 24-Hour Miracle Cream

I've been dying to try this cream out for a while, ever since I discovered it's considered a "holy grail" item for some makeup artists. A few months ago, this brand was actually introduced into Birchbox and I crossed maybe all my fingers and toes hoping to get the cream in my box. I didn't! So, I decided to use my stockpiled points to get it from the Birchbox store instead.

...

Well, I wasn't expecting to get it this month, but it's nice to have a backup. The cream itself is very nice. It can be used as a primer, moisturizer, and face wash. I haven't used it as a face wash, but I do use it as a combination moisturizer and primer, and it works pretty well. It is a bit heavy on my dry skin, so if you have combination or oily skin, don't overdo it. 

Number 4 - Clarifying Shampoo

I'm not overly excited about this shampoo. Shampoo is not something I necessarily change up too often and I've been burned by shampoo samples before (see Glossybox - July/August), so these types of samples make me a bit skittish. At first smell, I was surprised by its nice, soft perfume scent, but as the smell settled into my hands (ok, maybe not the best test spot!) it began to smell more like a sweet-smelling hair dye. I'll update this later once I've tried this out.

theBalm Cosmetics - Hot Mama

Hot Mama is quite nice! I've been really taken with all the samples from theBalm I've received. Hot Mama is a duo blush and highlighter in a "universally flattering shade." I'm not sure about the universal part, but it could potentially be used as simply a highlighter for darker skinned girls. On me, this blush is almost on the cusp of being too light, but not quite there. It reminds me a bit of NARS' "Orgasm" and MAC's "Stereo Rose." I'll definitely be doing some comparing later! The sun has set, guys :(

Aerie Shimmer Fragrance

OOF. This one is a bit strong for me! I loved the packaging, though! The perfume sample came wrapped like a piece of candy. Cute!

**Extra**Deborah Lippman - the Stripper to go

Apparently these are nail polish remover mitts. I'm not sure yet what that means or how easy this'll be to use. I am switching nail colors soon, so this will be interesting to try out!

**Extra**"2013 - Best Year Ever" Booklet

This month's box came with an expandable booklet 25 tips to the "best year ever." It comes with some pretty cool tips and drawings. I'm already looking for a place on my wall to hang it up. I really appreciated receiving this booklet!

This month's box had some pretty nice things and some iffy things. I really loved the theme for this month. All in all, I think it a was a good start for Birchbox 2013!

You can subscribe through my referral link {here} or just go to Birchbox.com

What did you think about this month's Birchbox? What was in your box?

-Claudia

My Christmas and New Years - 2012

I didn't want to write too much about Christmas/New Years, because losing my brother made this year's holidays difficult. I did, however, want to post a few of the pictures of the happier moments from Christmas/New Years.

Click below for more!

Maybelline Color Tattoos - Permanent Collection

I'm ending my Maybelline Color Tattoo swatchfest this week with the color tattoos I own from the permanent collection. Hope these swatches have been helpful!

Click below for swatches and more!

Christmas Nail Inspiration - 2012

Christmas 2012 has a lot of people upping their nail art game. My Christmas nail art can be viewed here. 

Here are some truly spectacular nail art photos. I pulled them from Instagram and Beautylish, if you'd like to look into the makers. 

So many great ideas in this one...

Click below to see more inspirational pictures!

Maybelline Color Tattoos - Jewel Tone Collection 2012

The Jewel Tone Collection from last summer recently became available throughout some CVS/drugstores, so check your local store to see if they're in stock!

Click below for swatches and more!

Recently Spotted - Wet n Wild 2013

I stopped by Walgreens looking for Maybelline's new color tattoos a few days ago. Instead, I found a giant Wet n Wild display featuring their new Fergie Centerstage collab collection.

Click below for more previews!

Maybelline Color Tattoos - Fall 2012 Collection

I'm on a Maybelline-Color-Tattoo-reviewing rush right now and I thought I'd review their Fall 2012 Collection. Although this set is no longer available in stores, you can still find the bases online or use these swatches as references for future purchases. Hope this is helpful!

Click below for swatches and more!

Maybelline Color Tattoos - Metal Collection

Click below for swatches and more!