Hard As Nails!

Hi! I have written about my bad habit of nail biting and I have had this bad habit for years! And when I say years I'm saying over 20 years! I couldn't kick this habit! I tried the hot sauce trick, tried to get my nails done, put a rubber band on my wrist and snapped it when I caught myself biting them, I even bought this expensive nail polish that tasted AWFUL when you bit your nails. That last one actually worked for a while until I ran out of it and didn't want to pay for another bottle. Not to mention who knows what was in that to make it taste that awful and put such a disgusting taste in your mouth (yikes!!!). Not only do I bite my nails but I also pick at the skin around my nails so not only do I need to keep my nasty little finger nails out of my mouth but I also need to keep my nails, cuticles and hands hydrated so I don't get dry skin and pick at my nails.
People have this idea that since I'm an aesthetician I have amazing soft hands since I'm always diving into amazing beauty products and all sorts of hydrating stuff...and I get to do that but to cancel out all those amazing beauty products I get to hydrate my hands with I also wash them CONSTANTLY to stay sanitary at work and during facials I use hand sanitizer and 70% alcohol to spray my hands with to sanitize so that seriously dries them out! If I don't put some sort of cuticle oil on or lotion on my hands after every time I wash them my hands get super dry and then I start picking at them again and there goes that vicious cycle of me biting and picking my nails again. I would use the Neosporin at night, if you're wondering what that's about look back at my previous blog posts it's a little cheap trick I do. That little trick works wonders but I just got tired of being in pain with every move of my hands and fingers. Biting your nails and picking at your cuticles can be painful! So I just got so tired of painful fingers I decided to do something about it!

This is the first part of my solution. This product here is by Naturally European. It's their Milk hand lotion. We sell it at my work, The Cosmetic Market, and it's only $9!!! Naturally European also has a Sage, Lavender and Verbena scent if Milk is not your thing. I like the Milk scent because it's really light and I am really particular about scents and this one does it for me, I love it!!! It's definitely a must on a road trip especially during the winter!! The second beauty to helping me kick my bad habit is this!!

This is by Essie. We actually sell Essie products at our store but we do not carry this product. I got this from Target and it was only about $7. This is an amazing cuticle oil! The one major selling point is the applicator tip of this cuticle oil. It's really easy to apply and mess-free! Sometimes you get a cuticle oil in a nail polish-like bottle and then the bottle gets all greasy and it's just a mess, I don't have this with this product. The full name of this little gem is Essie Smooth Trick, and like I said I got this one at Target and it's amazing!!! I use both the hand lotion and the cuticle oil together and it has gotten me to completely stop biting and picking at my nails!! That is HUGE!! Now my nails are so long I don't even know what to do with them!! I have never in my life had to clip my nails and I hate filing them! Actually filing gives me the chills and I can't stand it, and hearing people clipping their nails almost makes me nauseous. Those two things are two of my biggest peeves! I hope you try these two out, it's a like a manicure in a bottle these two beauties!!

A lipstick for non-lipstick lovers!

I love a great bold lip, but for some reason I don't wear a bold lip often. I look at people that wear a bold lip and most of the time I like it. I don't like certain bold lip looks, and this is just a personal opinion. If you feel like you have a big nose, then don't wear a dark, bold lip. Look at this picture of Sarah Jessica Parker with a dark lip and a light lip and see how pronounced her nose looks when she has a darker lip.







See what I mean? I couldn't get a good up-close picture of her from the wedding on the movie, but you get the picture. So, if you feel like you have a bigger nose, or you don't want to draw attention to it-don't go for a dark lip. You can go for a shade or two darker than natural lip color but I wouldn't go crazy.
Now back on personal opinion for a darker lip, I don't really like a dark lip with a dark smoky eye. I know that's such an old school rule-either chose one, dark lip or dark eye. I usually don't go for a lot of makeup rules but I do get this one. I actually like a dark, bold lip only when most of my makeup has kind of run off and I don't look as made us. So if I'm going out after work or something and most of my makeup is still on and I don't have a lot of time to touch up, I will just throw on a bold lip and I think it looks good.





This is my opinion of the best way to rock a bold lip. See how they don't have much makeup on so they don't look too made up but they still look beautiful and put together? I love it!! I don't love this-



Kim is a BEAUTIFUL woman but I hope you can see how different a bold, dark lip can make you look. I just think you have to lighten up on certain areas when you do a really bold lip.
I love wearing a beautiful color lipstick but sometimes it's hard to get used wearing a bright lip so this lipstick will be a perfect intro to wearing lipstick:


This is Revlon's new Lip Butter. They are beautiful and feel great!!! I bold a really light color called Creme Brulee which is a beautiful, light every day color. It's something that looks really good and light and would be a great color to wear when you do want to wear a really bold, dark eye color. The other one I got was a little brighter and it was called Pink Truffle and I love it!! These two are awesome and I want to buy every single one of them! The next blog I'll write about will be a good lipstick for the bold lips, I'm loving the bright pink lip! Also-if you're still wanting to ease into a bold lip try out those Revlon Just Bitten Lip Stains, I love those too!!

Intensify the Eyes

I just wanted to write a blog about my favorite liquid eye liner. Liquid eye liner can be really tricky and I have found very few that I truly like and that are easy to apply. I work in a cosmetics store and I have very few there that I like. Most of the pricier brands tend to have a brush-like applicator and those are really hard to use. The brush tip is really soft and I just have a really hard time applying a nice, clean line and liquid liner is tricky enough! My favorite is Revlon Liquid Liner. The applicator is like a sharpie pen so it's a stiffer and easier to get a really clean line. It's the only one I will use!! Even if I'm doing makeup at the store I work at or other places, I always bring that with me, it's a must!!

The way I apply liquid liner is this:
First I use a black eye shadow or powder liner on the lash line where I want the liquid liner to go.
Next I apply a pencil liner exactly where I applied the powder liner. This will help fill in the tiny areas between the lash and the skin that sometimes gets missed when applying liquid liner alone. There are a few things that drive me crazy with makeup and having uneven lined eyes drives me nuts!! Doing the powder liner and pencil liner will cover all the areas that need to be lined and it makes your application much easier. I know adding more steps seems annoying but doing these 2 steps before applying liquid liner will help you not have to touch up or fix anything after. I usually line the inner rims of my eyes with the pencil as well. I always line the upper rim if you want drama then line the bottom rim as well.
After using the pencil I apply the liquid liner. I'll make a video on how to apply the liquid liner as well! I line my eyes in sections. Instead of trying to do one swift sweep of liner it's easier to really focus on inner, middle and ends of the eye and just connect the lines together.

I hope this suggestion of liquid liner will suit you and I hope my pointers on getting the perfect lined eyes helps!!!

Quick, Cheap Nail Tip!

So, I have a major bad habit. I bite my nails and pick at the skin around them, I know that is so gross and such a bad habit but I have done it since I was 5. I am continually trying new ways to stop biting and picking at my nails but the only thing that helps is getting my nails done and I just don't do that. I don't have time and when I'm going to spend money I'm going to buy some Lululemon clothing or something like that. So, I have come to deal with pretty unsightly nails with really dry cuticles and just all around ugly fingernails...I've come to deal with it. But-I have a little, cheap trick for your nails that I love and it has really helped!!



Yep. It's that little baby right there, Neosproin. I keep it in my nightstand and I put it on my cuticles and all the skin around my nails. Even if I have picked them like crazy and they are sore and look ungodly, by the time I wake up my nails have already healed greatly! I was really impressed at the HUGE results and how cheap it is!! I use it every night and it really does help hydrate and heal your nails! Go buy some and try it out!! You'll love it!

Everyday Lips!

I hope everyone had great holidays! A happy New Year to you too! I had a wonderful Christmas with my awesome family in Indiana, went too fast for sure!! Most of the time we spend up in Indiana is eating and chatting around the kitchen table as well as reading up on tons of magazines! So since I got stuck over the holidays reading TONS of magazines so I pretty much went through every single magazine and made a list of magazine makeup suggestions sold in drugstores. I started first with a lip liner and gloss. I am always looking for a perfect, glossy lip that really pops. I like a natural pop most of the time. Natural pop to me is a nice neutral liner with a pretty, shiny, sheer gloss and I think I've found it!! The lip liner I tried was L'Oreal Infallible Lip Liner in Rose. The liner is great because it's one of those liners that you just twist instead of sharpen which I really love! The liner goes on really smooth and creamy so that means you will get a flawless liner and no mess-ups! I really like the color I think it will be really universal for everyone and any color you use!! It's only around $7.00 you definitely need to go out and get it!!! I paired it with the Rimmel Stay Gloss in Non-Stop Glamour. It'll set you back about $8.00. It goes on so creamy and not sticky at all!! I hate goopy, sticky gloss....gross!!! This one is a beautiful neutral gloss with a tiny splash of color and lots of shimmer which I love!!! I feel like the gloss has a multi-faceted look like there are bits of shimmer throughout the gloss so that really makes your lips pop without looking like you're trying too hard. This is my recipe for a neutral pop-slightly darker than lip color lip liner and a nice shimmery lip gloss and viola!! Try these two out together as a pair they are amazing!!!

Hair Raising Secrets!

Hi!! Ok I want to write about hair! Here are a few little supplements and treatments I do to keep my hair strong. I really love long, beautiful, strong hair and that's what I want myself so here are a few little tips and tricks.

Phyto Phytophanere Dietary Supplements-These little beauties will help fortify your hair. Two of these little natural elements will provide you with nourishing vitamins, essential fatty acids and antioxidants to help your hair grow, strengthen nails, help your skin look radiant, and lengthen your lashes! Not only do these pills add density and shine to your hair, but your overall health will be great!
These little babies you take once a day and I truly believe these have helped my hair a ton! I take two in the morning as well as taking folic acid. Now, I have no idea if folic acid really helps your hair but my grandpa, Pops, takes folic acid every day he told me if I wanted thick, strong hair when I get older then I needed to take folic acid every day. So, like I said I don't know if it does anything but my grandpa has an amazing head of hair so I'm going to take it! Not to mention, if it doesn't really help your hair who cares it's still good for your health! So I take those 2 in the morning. I also take a swig of Carlson's Cod Liver Oil. I get the lemon flavored because let's be honest, you just need to cover up the cod liver oil flavor. So I take a very small sip of that, that's all you need anyways.Cod Liver Oil gives a ton of health benefits as well as gives you great skin and hair. At night I take Biotin which is really great for your hair as well. I think these supplements really help keep your hair and skin tip-top.

Another thing I do is use Phyto's Phytoplleine Universal Elixir. This is a blend of 100% essential oils that will help stimulate and purify the scalp. This blend of essential oils will help energize the hair and will balance your scalp so I truly believe this product is great for everyone. If you have oily hair, this will balance the oil production in your hair, dry hair-this will help produce more oil to balance, itchy, dry scalp-it helps for that, this product helps with it all! This product also helps with thinning hair if that's what you're worried about! All you have to do is put this in your hair, which this bottle has a very easy applicator, leave it on for 20 minutes and then wash your hair like normal. Your hair will smell amazing as well!!!

www.phyto-usa.com

The good and the bad, in products that is

It has been a while since I have written. The holiday season just rolled up so quickly and I haven't had a moment to even relax and breathe let alone blog! But-I have been trying products out the whole time even though I haven't been blogging lately. Lately I've tried a few things here are two, one is great one is not so great. We will start off with the not so great one so we can end the blog on a positive note!--i dont know what i did to make this blue and underlined!!! oy!

I usually use a yellow concealer to help lighten the dark circles and redness around my nose. I have tried and LOVED the Cover Girl Simply Ageless Anti-aging yellow corrector. I really love it! But it can be a little pricey for drug store brands, it usually runs around $10 or so. But it goes on really creamy and smooth and doesn't dry out your skin and really gives a flawless look to your makeup application. I ran out so I went without the yellow corrector for quite a while but I realized I really needed the yellow corrector. I just didn't have that flawless complexion that I was going for without it. So-I tried this one out: Maybelline Cover Stick Concealer in Yellow. It's about $3.50 and it's really not that great. :( I wish a $3.50 concealer stick was amazing but it's just too drying. I have to do a lot of maneuvering to make my application not look too drying. I really like a flawless finish on the concealer and foundation and this does not cover, conceal or give an even finish that I like. So pass on this one! The concealer that I do use is amazing though! I have written about it before it's the Maybelline Fit Concealer. It is amazing!!!

The other product I tried out lately was the N.Y.C. brow powder and gel. It's called Browser Brush-on Brow kit and it's only about $3.95. It has the brow powder and a gel to hold your brows in place and the color looks amazing on and the gel keeps everything in place.

I have tired a few different brow pencils and I just can't do pencils. I am too heavy-handed and the brows don't look natural. I think it is so much easier to use a brow powder, I know it seems like it's more intimidating to use a powder over a pencil but it's so much easier! Powders last a lot longer and it gives more of a natural brow look! A lot of the other colors I use drugstore brand or higher-end brands are hard to find a good color to match your brows but this one isn't too red or orange and it really is a beautiful natural look! Try it out it's so cheap, will last a long time, give you the pop you need for your face and will keep your brows in place!