Side Dutch Braid

Now that my hair is SUPER long again, I love braiding it. I have always had trouble with side braids because my hair is layered and pieces always fall out. This solution was inspired by the wonderful, popular YouTuber Fleurdeforce. I recently wore my hair like this for internship interviews!

Inspired by: How To: Giant Messy Side Braid!

Makeup can be found HERE!

-Courtney

Summertime Blues

Hello!

I've been so busy with school work and life in general. The day I finished my finals, I decided to sit down in front of my window, relax, and put some makeup on my face. I've thought about doing something with blue eye shadow for a while now, and I finally got the chance.

Products

-NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil in Milk
-Urban Decay Naked2 Basics Palette (for blending): Frisk, Stark, and Skimp
-e.l.f Disney Ariel Treasure Within Beauty Book: Tropical Wave and Brilliant Sea
-Lorac Pro 2 Palette: Snow, Cool Gray, Plum, and Navy
-Maybelline The Falsies Flared Mascara in Very Black

-e.l.f. Liquid Eyeliner in Midnight
-Rimmel ScandalEyes Eyeliner in 001 Black
-Skin79 Super+ Beblesh Balm

-Soap and Glory One Heck of a Blot Translucent Powder
-Rimmel Match Perfection Concealer in 230 Fair/Light 

-Urban Decay Naked on the Run: for blush, bronzer, and highlight

-BareMinerals Marvelous Moxie Lipgloss in Maverick

-Courtney

Simple Eyes and Bright Lips

To be honest, I haven't put on much makeup since I returned to school. The few times that I have worn makeup in the past month, it hasn't been extravagant in the least. After applying my eye makeup one day, I decided to test out some Christmas presents (Lip Tars) and take pictures!

Products

-bareMinerals 5in1 BB Advanced Performance Cream Eyeshadow (I got it as a sample without the color name, but from the swatches I see online, I think it could be Barely Nude)

-e.l.f. Liquid Eyeliner in Black

-Maybelline Mega Plush Volum' Express Waterproof Mascara in Very Black

-NYX Incredible Water Proof Concealer in Porcelain

-Soap and Glory One Heck of a Blot Translucent Powder

-OCC Lip Tars Harlot mixed with Nylon

-NYX Butter Gloss in Peaches and Cream

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-Courtney

NOTM #2: Barry M Cappuccino

Nails of the Moment #2

Base: Esmalte Endurecedor para Unas

Color: 2 coats of Barry M Nail Paint in Cappuccino

Top Coat: Essie Good to Go Top Coat

There was a time in my life when I wouldn't even think about wearing a color like this, but I've been expanding my horizons in the last year. This is a purple-toned grey that looks more purple in the bottle than on the nails. It's really nice and I highly recommend it. Unfortunately, I don't think it's available in the US. I had a friend who went to England for a semester get  (smuggle) it (and a few other things) for me. I wear it quite often and it's a nice, but different neutral.

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-Courtney

My 2014 Favorites!

Happy New Year! The ball dropped and everyone's back in school/back to work. I had a few products that I loved in 2014 (the whole point of this post), and I'm really interested to see what collections come out in 2015.

Eye Primer: Urban Decay Primer Potion

This one is in the shade Eden, but admittedly, I just got this one. For most of the year, I used the original shade and it's great. I used up a LORAC sample and immediately went back to this one.

Eye Shadow Palettes: LORAC Pro Palette and Naked Basics Palette

The LORAC Pro Palette is beautiful. Period. 10 matte shades and 10 shimmery shades that blend wonderfully. I just got the LORAC Pro Palette 2 and I'm excited to start playing with it. The Naked Basics Palette is the holy grail of all holy grails. I use it almost every time I do my makeup. I love it enough that I got the second one of this too.

Eye Liner: elf Liquid Liner

Cheap. Easy to apply. Long lasting. What more could you ask for in a liquid liner? TIP: Wipe of all of the excess on the rim and dip the tip of the brush into it before applying to avoid getting eyeliner all over your face. This was actually the year that I started wearing liquid liner on a regular basis. Practice makes perfect.

Mascara:  Maybelline The Falsies

I've never been one for spending a lot of money on high end mascara. This mascara gives the perfect amount of volume and length at the right price. 

Concealer: NYX Waterproof Concealer

I really like this concealer because it's easy to apply, and I can use it under my eyes AND on blemishes. I don't use foundation, so I need a good concealer.

Lip Products: Revlon ColorBurst Balm Stain in Honey and Caudalie Lip Conditioner

I don't wear lip products very much, but if I did through out the year, it was either/both of these. The Revlon ColorBurst Balm Stain is a great neutral color with a minty taste and you don't need a mirror to put it on. I got the Caudalie Lip Conditioner in a gift set this past year and I use it all of the time. The taste isn't strong and it does it's job.

Nail Polish: OPI Got the Blues for Red and Barry M Nail Paint Cappuccino

Got the Blues for Red is significantly more dark than it photographed. It's a dark garnet that I wore to many football games (Go Noles!) with gold glitter polish. Cappuccino is a purple-toned grey. I used to never go near colors like this, but now I kind of love it. Definitely worth the extra effort of transporting it over an ocean.

I hope everyone who reads this has a wonderful 2015! Happy reading and be beautiful.

-Courtney