Empties!

I figured that today I would show you some things that I have recently finished up.  I want to tell you my final thoughts about them and let you know what I liked and didn't like.  Don't ask me why my BB Cream is in the photos with my bath items (I couldn't tell you the answer to that).

To start off, I finally finished up my Herbal Essence "Honey I'm Strong" shampoo and conditioner.  I wrote about this a little bit ago discussing my love for the product.  I have always had pretty thick hair and when I started changing my diet, I did notice that sometimes my hair would fall out.  I figured trying a shampoo and conditioner that was formulated to make  hair stronger would be a step in the right direction and I was 100% correct.  Naturally, when your hair is a little thicker, you tend to need more shampoo and conditioner and I found that to be the case here.

I quickly moved onto the Garnier Fructis "Fall Fight" line and fell in love with that as well.  I never really believed people when they said that your hair could get adjusted to the shampoo and conditioner that you were using and that you should change it often, but it is definitely true (as I have seen in probably the past year or so).  This was a great system to use after the HE "HIS" system.  The follow up is great because it feels like the hair shaft is being conditioned and bonded so that it literally is much stronger.  I would recommend trying these one after another.

I also have the Clean&Clear "Blackhead Eraser" Face Wash here.  I have to say, I bought this product with semi-big expectations because I heard some good things about it on YouTube.  I really don't like it.  For the first day after I used it I said to myself that it could maybe work, but it was just the first day.  After the first week, I realized that it was doing absolutely nothing for me and actually it was making my skin have random pop-ups of a blemish here and there.  No, thank you!  I would much rather stick with my St. Ives Apricot Scrub (that I am sure is only meant to really be for exfoliating).

Next you can see that I have my Suave "Ocean Breeze" body wash.  I mean, theres nothing more to say about this except that I just love it.  I get it every single time I need new body wash and it never disappoints.  The best part about it?  The smell.  The second best thing about it?  The price.  I don't think it's more than $2 at Target and it's the best thing ever.

So I guess I will talk about my Maybelline BB Cream down here with these mascaras.  I wrote a post about BB creams a while ago and told you guys that I was trying this one out and liked it.  I still stand by that.  I really enjoyed this BB cream.  The formulation is great and so simple for application.  The cream lasted a really long time and did not make my face feel oily or dry by the end of the day.  Because it is a BB cream, you really cannot expect much out of it as far as coverage goes, but it does help give the skin a semi-flawless finish (did I just make that up?).

I really didn't like the Illegal Length Mascara, I found it truly pointless.  The formulation did not help my lashes at all and it didn't give them any length.  On the contrary, I do love a good old Cover Girl Lash Blast Fusion.  I don't think I have ever met someone who doesn't like it.  My eyes always look curled and voluminous when I use it.

Well guys, I hope you enjoyed my first "empties" post!  Send me a tweet and let me know what you used up this month!  What should I try?  Thanks for reading!

Xoxo-Brit.

Fab finds Friday!

Hi everyone!  Taking a bit of a break from the massive overload of DIY's that I have been posting lately to bring you "Fab Finds Friday."  I figured thats fun and I wanted to show and tell some of the amazing things I found while shopping today.

First, I wanted to go to the mall so bad because I feel like it's been a century since I have been to the mall that I normally go to.  I have caught myself at places like Target, Old Navy and other things near my house that don't require the mall recently, I don't know why.  I'm not complaining and neither is my wallet.  For my birthday in January, my dad got me a gift card to H&M which was absolutely amazing!  I used some of the gift card in January when they had a big sale and I was looking forward to using it again.

I had my brother in tow because he wanted to get a few things, so that was almost like an added stress because he needs validation on every single outfit that he picks out, but I am not complaining.  Love him!  So the first place we went ended up being H&M.  I saw that they were having another sale where they had tons of things out priced between $10 and $30.  There were dresses, tops, pants, blazers and a ton of other things.  As I was glancing at stuff and rummaging through the racks, I wasn't really impressed with what they had on sale so I started to move on.  Sometimes I feel like H&M is a zoo or something.  There is so much great stuff everywhere, but you can't seem to stay focused because you are always distracted.  

After not being amused at the stuff in the sale section, I moved on and saw that all of their spring stuff is out and I was loving it.  There were great sweaters for $10 that felt really nice and they were adorable colors.  I didn't want to get myself another sweater though because I have so many of them that I already picked up from Old Navy and Forever 21 when I was shopping in the fall.  I quickly gravitated over to this amazing oxblood colored dress with a peter pan collar.  Holy cannoli, I am in LOVE.  The dress is absolutely amazing and there are so many things that I love about it.  

First of all, there is a peter pan collar (!!!).  Not only this, but high-lo hemlines are my weakness.  While this is true, I haven't found anything that I have been dying to own, until this dress.  I love the color, the collar and the hemline.  Also, check out the back!  I love that the collar doesn't just stop in the front like some dresses do.  This one goes all the way to the back of the neck and then fastens with a button and  a little mini slit so that the back is exposed just a litttttle bit!  If you want to wear a normal bra with this, just stick a bandeau on underneath and you are good to go.  I absolutely love it, it's perfection.  

Another great thing about this is the price tag: $24.95. 

My second amazing H&M find was a blazer.  Now anyone that really knows my style, knows that I LOVE blazers.  I have written about them on here before, but I just love the sleek look, the relaxed look and the professional look of a blazer.  I have a couple of them but I have recently been looking for a black one that is worthy of entering my collection.  Welcome to my life black divided blazer from H&M, I have finally found you!  Like you can see in the photo, there is nothing special about this blazer but it's just perfect.  The fit is a little boxy, but that is what I was looking for.  The reason I like this style and prefer it is because its professional and comfortable without sacrificing one or the other.  Amazing, amazing, amazing price tag on this of $15!  As you can see on the tag that I also have pictured, that is down from $24.95, AHHH!

My third finds at the mall was at Bath and Body Works.  Now I absolutely love this store and it's a store that I can't leave the mall without going to, if that makes any sense at all.  The candles are 2/$22 right now and that makes me soooooo happy.  The sale used to be 2/$20 but it hasn't been that way in a really long time, and I don't know if they'll end up bringing that price back.  With all that being said, I actually ended up not picking up my candles today, I plan on going and getting them tomorrow.  While I was in the store, I picked up these amazing Scentportables.  I LOVE these things, they are so adorable.  I remember when Bath and Body Works first launched them there were a couple of different shapes and they were a fun accessory to have in your car.  Now, they have a ton of different colors, shapes, animals, decorative things and more!  I got the scents pictured above for mine (which is currently a flamingo, my favorite animal ever!).  Usually the deal is buy three and get one free; today's deal was buy four and get two free, how can you pass that up?  The discs are $3 each!

My final stop of the evening was Target and it was here where I picked up a couple of things worth mentioning in this little haul of mine.  First of all, I needed two new toothbrushes!  One of course for my teeth, and one for my lips.  I hope I'm not the only weirdo that exfoliates by brushing her lips, but not with the same toothbrush I use for my teeth!  Secondly, I picked up more Crystal Light Liqud.  Now I know these things obviously aren't the best for you but they are a great way to add a little flavor to your water and spice it up a little.  The Dasani Drops are great too as you can see (I couldn't even wait to take photos, I had to open two of them!).  Finally, I got my absolute favorite trail mix, "A Handful of Everything," it has all of the amazing flavors listed on the packaging and is under 200 calories.  I like this for dessert on the weekend sometimes!

I hope you all enjoyed this little haul or Fabulous Finds Friday! :)  Is there anything you think I MUST try?  Have you guys just purchased anything interesting?  Send me a tweet and let me know!  Thank you for reading.

Xoxo-Brit.

DIY Accessories Holder/Organizer.

Hi everyone!  How are you all doing today?  I was traveling into the city today and it gave me inspiration for a blog post that you will see in the future but today is the second installment of my DIY series!  Today I want to talk to you all about organization.  When it comes to organizing things, I usually describe myself as "organized chaos" because when you come into my room, things are almost always ALL OVER THE PLACE, but I know where each thing is if you were to ask me!  Do you know what I mean?  Anyway!  I hope you can follow me and learn how to make my DIY Accessories Holder/Organizer.

Overview of the DIY Accessories Holder/Organizer.

 There are a few things that you'll need starting with a large piece of wood that will act as the back board for your organizer.  For this, you can use the same size as you used in the nail polish racks, 2ftx2ft.  The next thing you'll need is some wire so that you can wrap it around the corners and half way down the back board as seen in the photo.  You can get both of these things at Home Depot and if you need help, the people there will help you.  Like I said, being a girl in Home Depot is a severely unique experience.  Finally you will need cork material to put in the middle of your organizer to stick you earrings on, I got mine at JoAnn's Craft Store.  Aside from these essentials, you'll need a nail gun and make sure that you are CAREFUL with it!

The left corner.

The right corner.

This is extremely easy and affordable, like the nail polish rack and thats why I love it, so let's get started.  With the back board, lay out where you are going to want to put the wire in the corners.  You don't really need a ruler for this because you can measure them to your liking and they even can be different if you want them too on each side.  Once you are done, make sure you make the wire long enough so that it wraps to the back of the board and staple it there.  Sometimes it helps to staple it once, fold over the excess on the end and staple it again to make sure it stays there.  

Once you are done with the two corners, go ahead and decide where you want to put the wire in the middle of your board for (in my case, see the photos) the headbands.  Do the same thing that you have done for the wire on the top.  Measure, fold & staple and then fold & staple once again.  Once you are done with this, you could always add more wire on the sides if you would like, but for now I kept it with two on the top and one in the middle.

Now it is time for the cork board.  Like I said, I purchased my cork board at JoAnn's and it came in roll form.  I simply unrolled the cork and measured it to the size that I wanted.  As you can see in the photo, mine is basically right in the middle, about 1.5ft.  I like this size because it is absolutely huge and a large surface area.  There is a lot of room for a ton of post and dangly earrings.  I found it to work great when you put your dangly earrings on the bottom and the post at the top (although this is probably not a surprise to you).  As you can also see in the photo there are some dangly earrings that are hanging in the top left corner because they are some of the newer ones, I tend to put the newer ones higher.

Headbands.

Also, make sure when you are stapling the cork roll to the back board that you do two layers.  This will make sure that the earrings can stick through and will not fall when you peg them into the cork.  If you only do one layer of cork, they will not stay because the portion of the earring that goes through the ear is way too long.

As you can see, I have my bows on the left and some hair barrettes on the right.  The headbands are on the bottom and the earrings are in the middle.  The best part about this is that you can see everything!  I wanted something that displayed everything that I had for when I chose outfits in the morning, that way I don't rule anything out!  Being able to see everything that you own is a great way to incorporate all of your pieces into your outfits.

Feel free to round the edges if you'd like and decorate them to your hearts content.  Another great option for this is to add a small nail on the back that will support the weight of it and a ribbon to hang it on the wall.  I feel like this would add an adorable touch and make it such a cute fixture for either a little girls room or anyones bedroom!

Earrings.

That is all I have for you guys today!  I hope you really enjoyed this second installment of my DIY series, the DIY Accessories Holder/Organizer.  I love making these pieces because they are so personal and customizable while they are also  inexpensive and practical.

If you try this out or my first DIY piece, the Nail Polish Rack, please tweet me with a picture!  Thank you for reading as always.
Xoxo-Brit.

Does dry shampoo really work?

Hi everyone and happy Friday!  I am so happy that it's the end of the week but at the same time, I want it to be Monday again so that my job hunting for my new job can continue!  Anyway, let's get cracking for today.  Now I know that not everyone really cares that much about something like this, but I want to talk to you about dry shampoo.

Lush, "No Drought" Dry Shampoo.

For me, I never really thought about dry shampoo because I never went a day without washing my hair.  After all the of the reading that I did about how it is not good to wash your hair everyday, I still washed my hair everyday and completely ignored everything that I read.  With that being said, about a year ago I drastically changed my diet.  I began eating extremely clean and exercising, drinking more and more water (not that I didn't drink so much normally, just saying).  While you can imagine that my body was changing from my diet being changed, I really also noticed a change in my hair, skin and nails.

While my nails were getting stronger and my skin clearer, my hair just seemed like it was getting a little bit thinner but at the same time it was becoming stronger.  The process that my hair was going through was so strange but i realized that it was getting a little bit worse, before it was getting better.  To accommodate this change, I began to skip washing my hair every other day.  While this was really wierd to me, I knew that there was a slight possibility that it may help me and it really did.

With skipping every other day came the obvious problem of oily hair.  I absolutely hate when my hair gets oily but it never really did because I washed it every single day and never gave it a chance to.  Now that I was skipping a day, it started happening more often.  With that thought, I decided to actually try a dry shampoo.  Now I distinctly remember one of my friends talking about a dry shampoo that she had picked up from the drugstore and said she loved so I resorted to trying that one.  I found that it didn't really help me.  I looked it up online and found that it was extremely hyped up and I was wondering why.  The Tresemme dry shampoo she was using was just not working for me at all.  I tried a second one from Suave and I hated that one too.

Online I was looking around for other ones that might work and I came across one that Lush sells.  A little pricey, I was concerned but it wasn't terrible.  After a while I found myself using it more and more and it really grew on me.  After looking up on youtube the proper way to actually put it in your hair thinking I was doing it wrong, I realized that it wasn't me.  The Lush dry shampoo is an actual powder as opposed to the others from the drugstore that are in an aerosol can.

What I like about the Lush dry shampoo that is conveniently called "No Drought," is that it is buildable like any good make-up.  When you put it in your hair, because it's a powder, you can really rub it in and see that its rubbed in before you chose to put more in your hair that you may not need.  I found that it was way easier to work with more so than the aerosol cans because of this.  I have blonde hair so blending the powder into my hair is a lot easier than it would be on a brunette.  While I do say this, I must also say my hair is ombre styled so the roots are a little darker and I still have no problem.

Overall, I love the texture of No Drought.  I love that I can put it in my hair and actually feel that it is taking effect.  With the aerosol cans I wasn't able to do that.  I also enjoy the smell of it.  The cans seemed like they smelled more of a "fake" product than the powder.  The citrus scent is great because its not overpowering and once you put the product into your hair you aren't left smelling it forever and a day like you are with aerosol cans of dry shampoo.

Check out Lush dry shampoo, "No Drought" at Lush stores or on the website.  That is all I have for you guys for today, I hope you enjoyed it.  Do you use dry shampoo?  Which one do you use?  Which one should I try?  Leave me some suggestions of what to try in the comments or tell me your review.  You can also send me a tweet and let me know what you think.
Xoxo-Brit.

Pop of color in the winter via Cargo's Laguna Blush

Hey guys!  I hope you are all having a great day today!  Like yesterday, it was absolutely freezing out.  I had contemplated not leaving the house once again (because I was off from work), but I stopped at a friends house and went to Target.  I wanted to tell you today about a great blush that I decided to wear because I was craving the summer time!  

Cargo, Laguna blush.

Cargo Laguna is an amazing blush.  When you apply it though, start with a light hand.  Especially because of the color of this one, it can get dangerous.  If you dip a blush brush into the color and tap it off a couple of times then brush it lightly on your hand, THEN apply it, you're good!

The fact that this color is so versatile is great.  What I mean by this is that when applied lightly, the cheeks actually look so natural and glowy.  I love it.  The color is also buildable, meaning that the more color you add, the more it will look like the color in the pan.  

The worst thing about this blush is that I believe Sephora has stopped carrying Cargo but you can still get it online, check it out!  Also, Cargo products can be found at Ulta and Macy's.  That's all I have for today, sorry it is so short!  Send me a tweet and let me know your thoughts!  Have you ever tried Cargo?  

Xoxo-Brit.

Shampoo and conditioner for healthy hair!

Hi everyone!  How are we today?  Like I said yesterday, I absolutely was not lying it is FREEZING!  The current temperature outside is 18 degrees!  I mean, we had to know it was coming because it has been beautiful the past couple of days.  We also got some snow and it actually wasn't that much.  The local kids had no delayed opening and everything was business as usual.  I figured today I would talk to you all about some amazing shampoo and conditioner that I recently found and absolutely love.

Herbal Essences Honey, I'm Strong Shampoo and Conditioner.

Now my intentions here are not to sound gimmicky because I am the queen of hating gimmicks, but I really love this duo of haircare.  For as long as I can remember I have been using Herbal Essence hair products and I have always liked them but I really never found them to do what they said they would do on the outside of the bottle.  Am I alone in this?  I just really couldn't understand the claims that they made because I always fell victim to picking up the latest formulation and trying it out (didn't I just say I hated gimmicks?).  

While this is all true, recently I picked up Herbal Essences, Honey I'm Strong shampoo and conditioner.  Now the absolute best thing about these is that they are so incredibly affordable.  Let's be completely honest with ourselves, are we going to want to spend a million dollars on hair care when we can be spending that money on fantastic makeup?  For me, the answer to that question is fairly easy.  I love saving a little here, so I can spend a lot there; if you know what I mean!  

Anyway, this formulation is absolutely wonderful.  On the front of the bottle in huge numbers is "10x stronger in one wash!"  I think that after one wash my hair was most definitely stronger but I don't know about 10x.  Another thing the shampoo promises is that it will strengthen while conditioning and nursing back to health already damaged hair.  The reason why I like this shampoo and conditioner so much is because I agree with that statement.  Two years ago during the summer I took horrible care of my hair.  I would go swimming and come out and never condition my hair (don't ask me why), and it never got better.   I have been looking for something to help me combat that and after I started using Moroccan Oil, it helped drastically but I could never find a shampoo/conditioner to work with the MO until now.  This duo does it.

I found that after one wash my hair was increasingly stronger but after one week of using it, my hair was feeling significantly stronger and my ends were even better.  I could feel the strength in my hair when I run my fingers through and when I straighten it I can see how shiny and different it looks.  Call me crazy, but I can also see how it is making my hair grow.  Around Thanksgiving, I cut my hair to probably 1/4 in above my collar bone and now it's about 2.5 inches below my collar bone.  I largely attribute the growth to this shampoo/conditioner.  

The ONLY thing I don't like about this shampoo/conditioner is the smell.  Now this is wierd for me to be saying because I normally absolutely love the smell of almost ever Herbal Essence shampoo/conditioner (especially the blue one that smells like coconut), but with this one I beg to differ. I feel like they tried to smoosh the smell of honey with a floral scent together or something, ew.  I mean, it's not absolutely horrific or disgusting and you can't really smell it until you rub it in, but its definitely noticeable.  

With only one bad attribute, I really like this shampoo.  It has taken me a really long time to find something that is worth using alongside my MO for healthy, shiny, strong and growing hair.  Try out Herbal Essences Honey, I'm Strong from target.  I think I got mine for around $3-$4.

Thank you for reading!  Let me know if you enjoyed by leaving a comment in the section below.  Do you use this shamp/cond and do you like it?  If not, what do you use to get these results?  Send me a tweet and let me know!
Xoxo- Brit.

What is a BB Cream?

Hi everyone?  How are we all today?  Like I said yesterday, it is absolutely freezing today.  I don't think the temperature went above 36 today but I shouldn't be complaining about that because the lows are going to be incredibly low and tomorrow it is supposed to be colder (I think).  Also, I believe were going to be getting some snow and more over the weekend.  I am NOT happy about this.  Anyway!  Let's get cracking with the rest of the post because I really want to talk to you guys about BB cream.  Have you ever used one before?  If so, please let me know what kind you've used and which ones you like in the comment section below!

Maybelline Dream Fresh BB Cream, Revlon Photo Ready BB Cream, L'Oreal Magic Skin Beautified BB Cream.

BB cream stands for "beauty balm" cream.  The formulations in BB creams are not supposed to be super heavy and they are not really supposed to give you full coverage, but they have so many other benefits that you may not realize.  BB creams are supposed to help essentially make your face an even canvas.  What I mean by this, is that the BB cream (applied like a foundation) is more of a tinted moisturizer.  Although it is not a foundation, it provides very minimal coverage but moisturizes the skin and assists in helping with discoloration, hyper-pigmentation and more.  I would recommend BB cream for anyone who doesn't want to try foundation just yet, or who doesn't really know how to apply/use foundation.  I would also recommend it to anyone who just wants a light coverage for every day that they can apply quickly with their hands and doesn't require much effort.  

I am lucky to have pretty descent skin that doesn't have very many breakouts (knock on wood) and this is the reason why I primarily (pretty much exclusively) use BB cream.  The BB creams that I am going to be talking about in this blog post are from the drugstore and they are absolutely wonderful (well most of them.  I am going to talk about three; two of them I like (one more than the other) and one of them I can leave.

First I want to talk about L'Oreal's Magic Skin Beautifier BB Cream in Light.  I absolutely cannot stand this BB cream for a couple of reasons.  First of all, the color match must not be right for me.  With this being said, I feel like if I was to go back and get another color, it would be too dark or too light.  Also, if I was to change it for another color I still wouldn't like it because the color payoff is rather orange when applied to the skin.  Another thing is that when the product comes out of the tube, it is a white color and a sandy consistency.  I didn't think this was going to bother me at first, but I think that may be whats making me not like it more.  You don't know the color pay off until it is on your face, making it really hard to know what it will look like; therefore making the product almost a complete waste.  I definitely would not repurchase this product.  I got mine for about $8-$9 at Target.

L'Oreal Magic Skin Beautifier BB Cream.

Next, I want to talk about Maybelline's Dream Fresh BB cream in Medium Sheer Tint.  I really like this  BB cream.  The coverage is pretty good and the formulation is not too bad, the product is SPF 30.  When applying it on your skin, the product tends to feel a bit more watery than the next one that I will talk about but not too much that it feels too thin.  This does a great job at concealing redness which is huge for me because I have a lot of redness on all of my face, not just my cheeks.  The product really doesn't smell like anything and that can be a good thing.  When coming out of the tube, the product actually looks like what it applies on your skin which is great because there are no surprises at the end of the day.  The application is quick and it doesn't take a while to settle into your skin.  The packaging is small and says that there is only 1.0 fl. oz. of product, but it lasts so long because you really only need a little bit.  I would definitely re-purchase this from Maybelline!  I got mine for $7-$8 at Target.

Maybelline Dream Fresh BB Cream on the left,  Revlon Photo Ready BB Cream on the right.

Lastly I want to talk about Revlon's Photo Ready BB Cream in the color 020 Light Medium.  I really love this BB cream and it is probably my favorite out of the three.  The only downfall that I want to talk about first is that it can be a liiiiiittle bit oily for the skin so if your skin is oily to begin with, this may not be for you.  Aside from that, the product is awesome straight out of the packaging.  The formula is a little more dense than the Maybelline BB cream.  It seems that this one is slightly lighter as well than the Maybelline BB cream but it matches my skin like a dream.  The smell is probably my favorite thing about it!  I love when products smell like something tropical or the beach and this one smells like sunscreen, omg instantly in love.  Revlon's formula is SPF 30 so that is great and you can tell that the product lasts all day long, even when you apply it earlier in the morning.  I got mine at Face Values for $7-$9.

Okay that's all I have for BB creams right now!  If you have any comments, please leave them below and let me know what you think.  You could also send me a tweet letting me know what kind of BB cream you use or think I should try.  I haven't tried any high end BB creams so maybe that will be next on my list.  Talk to you all soon and as always, thanks for reading!  If you liked it share with a friend.

Xoxo-Brit.

Winter Skincare/Nail Polish favorites!

Hey all!  I hope you're having a great day.  I just wanted to go ahead and continue with my "Winter Favorites" series by showing you some of my favorite skincare and nails of the winter so far.  Let's get started!

First I want to start with some skincare.  Now I went to the drugstore to get a new moisturizer when my Hope In a Jar ran out because I was trying to see if I could get something less expensive, but just as good!  The reason for this is because I tend to go a little heavier with moisturizer in the winter, like I am sure most of you do.  I tend to use Aveeno Positively Radiant Daily Moisturizer.  This moisturizer has an amazing consistency and it actually has a great scent, while being unscented (if that makes any sense!).  Although that tends to normally be my favorite from the drugstore, I wanted to try something else.  I picked up a Neutrogena Oil Free Moisture for combination skin, horrible decision.  The moisturizer made me swell up underneath the eye, I had an allergic reaction to it overnight!  When I woke up, my face was blown up, I couldn't believe it.  I believe it was $10 on sale at my Target when I picked it up, but I would not recommend it.  I didn't even notice a difference in my skin the next morning other than how huge it was.

Ponds Dry Skin Cream

Needless to say, I finally ended up going back to Target and picking up the Ponds Dry Skin Cream Rich Hydrating Facial Moisturizer.  This was $5 at Target and is probably the best kept secret of all time.  Now to be honest, I thought immediately of old ladies and moms when I looked at the Ponds products.  For some reason, I always think of older women using Ponds products, so as someone that is only 23, I was swallowing my pride a little bit with this purchase.  Let me tell you something right now, Ponds did NOT let me down.  I put the cream on my face the same day that it swelled because of the Neutrogena moisturizer and the next day that I woke up, the swelling was down, the dry skin was gone and my face was amazingly moisturized.  I was NOT expecting this at all, but I was accepting of it nonetheless.  If there was one thing I could change about the product it would probably be the scent.  It's not terrible, but it's not the best, it really just smells clean.  The back of the container says that it's Hypoallergenic, Suitable for sensitive skin, and it won't clog pores.  I completely agree and would recommend it to absolutely anyone!

Deborah Lippmann, "Billionaire" and "It's Raining Men."

Now moving on to some of my nail favorites for the winter thus far.  Maybe this is harping on the past but I just must go there, Christmas nails!  I can never get enough of my Christmas nails and this year I just wanted to go back to basics with it.  As you can see in the photo, I used two Deborah Lippmann colors in Billionaire and It's Raining Men.  I love them because they are true colors to Christmas and they are just beautiful.  These polishes are a little steep in price about $16, but they are completely worth it.  The color pay off is great, its bright, lively and fun.  The red here is a true Christmas red and the green and mossy, forest green.  The brushes on these polishes are great for application and the formula is a dream!  I tend to like this classic application technique, red on all the fingers except for the ring, where theres a green surprise!

My "Brown to Tan Ombre."  

The next nail design (or play on colors) that I have to share with you is my "Brown to Tan Ombre."  The reason i share this with you is because I have just been loving rocking it.  I think this is so appropriate for school, the office or even just everyday wear.  I love that it adds pizazz to the nails without really being obnoxious and taking it too far.  I wish I could remember the names of the polishes that I used but even looking at the photo I just cant remember which polish is which, I have way too many!  If you would like to know, please leave a comment below and I will try to look them up.  I posted a photo to my instagram and everyone seemed to love it!  If you try this look, tweet me a photo!

American Apparel's, "Peacock."

Finally, I wanted to show you this amazing color.  I tend to call it a "teal denim" because it reminds me of teal colored jeans.  I love the color and think it's perfect for winter for that pop of color for the season.  I love American Apparel polishes because they are very practical, and to be honest I love the unique bottle design and packaging.  The application of this polish is amazing and the opacity of the color is amazing with one coat!

Okay all, that's all I have for you today!  Look forward to another installment of my winter favorites coming tomorrow and if you have any questions please leave a comment below or send me a tweet. If you haven't already, check out the first installment: My Winter Beauty Favorites. Also be sure to check out my instagram and follow me there for outfit of the day photos, nail insta's and other random stuff!  Love you all and thanks for reading! 

Xoxo-Brit.

Winter Beauty Favorites!

Hi everyone!  I hope you are all having a great week so far.  I am lucky enough to have off until Saturday this week.  My normal school schedule is that I have off from Tues-Thurs during the week but now that school is over things will change eventually.  Then of course I also took off Thursday and Friday because I need to go and pickup the tickets for my graduation ceremony and my cap and gown! I am so excited!  Anyway, let's get on to the point of this post!  I figured that I wanted to share with you some of my favorite things for the winter.  I was going to call it, "Current Favorites" or something, but I think I like the way "Winter Essentials" sounds better, way cuter! ;)  Let's get on with it.

I'll start with some beauty favorites.  I have been recently obsessed with Revlon's BB Cream.  Now when I was new to BB Creams, I was looking for something with the perfect amount of coverage for me, which means not full but not lacking in coverage, so medium (if that makes sense).  I didn't want my face to look like it was caked out in make-up because seriously, who does?  Not attractive.  So when i saw that Revlon came out with something, I had to purchase it and try it out because they are my absolute favorite drugstore brand.  This one is amazing.  When I first started getting really interested in skin care, my skin was more of a combination, but now as I am getting older it gets very dry, very fast and this BB cream is great for that.  I like the way it sits on the skin, it doesn't feel heavy which is essentially the point of a BB cream.  I also absolutely love the smell of this formulation, it's like you are putting sunscreen on your face.  The coverage is great and it blends in perfect with your skin, the color I use is 002 Light Medium.  The only reason I would say not to use this is if you have oily skin.

Next, I want to share with you this Laura Geller Dream Creams Concealer & Highlighter Palette in Regular/Tan.  I got this before the summer started and normally I don't tend to wear concealer on my face in the summer so I never used it.  What I do find, is that a mixture of the two colors on the right (the darker and lighter) is a perfect match for my skin and it makes it an amazing under/around the eye concealer.  The best thing about this?  It stays all day long.  I honestly have never used an under-eye concealer that stays all day long like this one with the creamy consistency.  As far as the left side of the palette, I don't really use it.  I would recommend this palette in the winter for under-eye concealer for long-lasting wear and great coverage!

The next couple of things I want to talk about are mascaras for the winter.  Now normally I am not that picky about when I use certain mascaras because it honestly has absolutely nothing to do with skincare, but I just want to point out these because they are doing great things for my lashes.  Maybelline Great Lash is just a classic, I love it!  The Lots of Lashes formulation is great and the brush is perfect, it allows you to get those inner corner lashes so that you look wide awake.  The Maybelline Colossal Volum' Express in the middle is awesome because I feel like it not only gives volume, but for me it lengthens!  The NYC High Definition has been a favorite of mine for a while.  This mascara really provides the volume that every day wear is perfect for.

Next I want to talk about some lipstick.  Ugh, lipstick is my absolute weakness.  If there is anything that I can't leave the store without its lipstick.  These two are from MAC; one is a Matte (my favorite ever!) and one is a Satin.  The Matte color pictured is Chili.  This color is literally perfection, I don't know where to start.  Because it is matte, the color stays on your lips forever and ever.  The color is this warm red that I wore on Christmas.  If you are easing yourself into red lips, this is the perfect way to do it because its a matte color but it still makes a statement.  The second color is Hot Chocolate and its a Satin color from the Apres Chic line at MAC thats out now.  It may or may not be limited edition so if you like it, go and pick it up!  This color is unlike anything that I have so I love it for that.  I describe it has the perfect combination of brown and purple, 

and a perfect hint of color.  Love it!

Okay so maybe this is lipstick overkill but like I said, I am absolutely obsessed. To this day, my dad still hates me for walking out of the house everyday with lipstick on because I'm his little girl and he can't believe that I'm growing up. Are any of your parents still like that? Haha! I just turned 23 and he does this to me all the time, sorry for that little sidebar. These two lipsticks are from Covergirl and they are amazing. I heard about 305 Hot Passion from beauty guru on Youtube, Missglamorazzi. This color looked a little too bold for me but I said that I would try it anyway and I ended up loving it. I wear the color to work almost all the time and I get so many compliments. This color is a little more glossy than the Chili. Best thing about the color? There are no sparkles and no glitter in it, I hate that in lipstick. If I wanted that extra glitter or sparkle I would put lipgloss on. The second color, 305 Tempt Seduction is amazing also. The color is more of a pink, not quite a hot pink. No extra sparkle or glitter and just the perfect amount of fun. Both of these colors stay on all day and there really is no 

need to reapply.

The next couple of things I will talk about are blushes.  The first two are from Nars with their ever so inapropro names.  The first one is Deep Throat.  I wrote about this color as a great color for the summer which is true, but I really love it all year long!  This is my first year or so having it in my collection and I love it so much.  The color looks like it has a ton of glitter but when you apply it to your face there really isn't that much.  This blush is a perfect wash of color to the cheeks especially if you don't like wearing a ton of blush or color.  The pink is perfect.  The second blush is Liberte.  I am obsessed recently with the wash of color over the cheeks that makes it look like you've been outside and the wind kissed your cheeks!  I was looking for something perfect to achieve this look and Liberte was that blush.  Now I have freckles so trying to get this look is hard with any color, but it's a step in the right direction.  I love this rusty color, perfect for the fall/winter season.  Lastly, I want to share my personalized MAC palette.  You can make your own palette and fill it with pan shadows at any MAC Pro store and I love it.  In here, I have Dollymix and Springsheen.  I believe I also wrote about these as great blushes for summer but I love them now!

Last but not least, I want to talk about the best thing ever! Viva La Juicy has been my absolute favorite scent. I will probably wear this all year long but I love it so much that I thought you should know about it. I don't even know how to explain the scent other than: best one ever. I got this for Christmas from my amazing father and I have had it before but ran out. I can't imagine my life without it ever again, hahaha. The scent is more mature and not sweet, perfect for everyday wear. I love how amazing the bottle looks and I will continue to use it forever!

Okay guys!  Thank you so much for sticking with me!  I am going to be posting a series of these, "Winter Favorites" for the next couple of days that will show you some things that I have been loving.  I hope you enjoyed the beauty post, tomorrow look forward to the nails/skincare installment!  If you liked this post, please leave a comment or send me a tweet.  If there is anything that you think I must try, let me know and I will!  Check out my Instagram as well, I post outfit of the days and other things there!

Xoxo -Brit!