April 2017 Favorites

Happy May! April was full of goodies for me. I think I’m mentioning like four pairs of shoes, so don’t read the Style section if you are trying to save money. 🙂 Sorry for not posting much last week, I had a little medical emergency where my thumb got in the way of a kitchen knife at the beginning of the week, then I headed out on vacation.

Beauty

It’s a 10 Silk Leave In Spray / Technically I bought the Sally’s Generic version of the It’s a 10, but this leave in conditioner has changed my hair. When my hair is damp I comb it through the length and ends.  The SILK version is what makes a difference.

Burt’s Bees Lip Shimmer in Guava / I used to use this product back when I was in highschool so I honestly picked it up out of nostalgia reasons. If you like shimmery lip products, this is a good one because Burt’s Bees has a famously moisturizing lip balm formula.

Sephora Bronzer Spray / I have mentioned this product a lot on my blog and I have to give it another shoutout since Summer is coming up. This spray literally fixes everything and makes your face look like bronzed summery perfection.  Don’t mistake the self tanning mist for this one, it’s not the same!

Conair Hot Curlers / I’m on a hot roller kick at the moment.  After seeing many Youtubers recommend the $120 T3 version, I searched for a budget- friendly dupe. These $25 curlers work VERY well and are easy to put in. I have a lot of hair so it only takes care of about the top third, but I just take a curling iron and do the rest really quick while the curlers set my hair and give me volume at the top. I’ll be doing a thorough review soon!

Touch In Sol Margaret / This is Touch In Sol’s Metallist Liquid Foil & Glitter Eye Shadow Duo. These are an extremely pigmented glitter eyeshadow that comes with a liquid on one side, loose glitter on the other. All of the colors available on the Sephora website are stunning!

Orange Eyeshadow / This is more of a particular look than a product. I love using orange and warm bronze eyeshadows to bring out the color of my eyes. It never fails to look nice and it’s my go to look when I can’t think of what makeup to do!

Morphe R2 / I hate to admit that Jaclyn Hill sold me on this brush. This bronzer brush is AMAZING and helps powder go on perfectly every time. This was a great price and beats out all the other fluffy brushes I have used to do bronzer in the past.

Viseart Warm Mattes Palette / This is the palette I have been reaching for daily to do matte eyeshadow looks and transition shades. I feel like I have gotten my money’s worth out of this too expensive palette, so I thought it deserved mentioning.

 

Giorgio Armani Sun Di Gioia Perfume / I never was a fan of GA Acqua Di Gioia, the more famous perfume from the brand. I ordered this on a whim because I had never heard anyone talk about it and I’m on a beachy coconut sunscreen-ish perfume kick at the moment. This one is so different from what I imagined it would be, but in a great way. If you love perfumes like Euphoria by Calvin Klein, Flower Bomb, and other deep intense but bright and caramelly (worst description I know!) you need to try this. It is only available online sadly but trust me!

Estee Lauder Bronze Goddess Perfume / Another beachy perfume, but this one is more true to the beach essence than the last one I mentioned. It is very light and fades out to leave you with a scent that reminds me of vacation.

OPI Let’s Be Friends / This is an adorable LIGHT pink nail polish that everyone needs in their collection. It’s pretty much white but has just a touch of blush.

Stila Dusty Rose Metallic / I’m a big lover of shimmer eyeshadows, and this one is a classic. The Magnificent Metals Foil Finish Eyeshadow is great for all over the lid, inner corner, or anywhere you feel like adding intense glitter. Stila just needs to release this color in their Glitter and Glow line and I’d be set!

Stila Caramello liquid lipstick / This is a perfect light nude lip color. It leans on the cool toned side, but doesn’t look like you’re wearing purple or grey lipstick.

Colourpop Sculpting Stix / I go in and out of phases with doing cream contour under my normal contour, mostly because I can’t tell that it makes a huge difference. This one totally does, especially when I just do a bit under my bottom lip to make it look larger! The trick is to use a good brush- something like a small duo fiber works very well to blend cream contour where you need it.  The one I have came out in a collection released forever ago, and now their website doesn’t show as having the Stix available… sometimes they re-release products, so keep an eye out.  I use the shade New Renaissance with a Reql Techniques stippling brush.

Dark hair / I dyed my hair dark sometime in the past few months and I really like it. Sadly red fades pretty quickly, but I’ll be doing a touch up soon to get it back! I used L’oreal Mega Reds MR4 with a Level 10 developer just on the top half to keep my ends light.

Spot concealing / I went through a horrible skin week last month and am still in the healing process. Instead of going for a full coverage foundation all over my face, I love to just go in with concealer or something heavier just in the spots I need it, keeping the rest of my face fresh.

Into the Gloss Top Shelf / If you feel like getting sucked into a website, check out Into the Gloss’ Top Shelf series, where celebrities are interviewed about their favorite skincare and makeup products. I spent an entire afternoon going through different articles, and I loved every moment. If you ever wanted to know what Emma Watson uses to get flawless skin, this is where it’s at.

Maybelline Baby Lips Toasted Taupe / I have wanted this for so long but all the stores I shop at with affordable makeup (Target, Walgreens, etc.) never had it in stock. I love having a moisturizing yet super nude lip product that is affordable. If anyone out there from Maybelline is reading this, please come out with more wearable colors!

Tarte Rainforest of the Sea Colorsplash Lipsticks / This has replaced my Bite Amuse Bouche and Nars Audacious lipsticks as my favorite creamy formula. The color range is neutral heavenly perfection, the names are all vacation themed, and the blue marble packaging is beautiful. I am really hoping this is a permanent product from Tarte because it is amazing!  Imagine a beautiful neutral lipstick with just the right undertone, ultra pigmented, and light as air. My favorites are Rum Punch and Beach Babe.

Maybelline Dream Matte Mousse / Unfavorite. This foundation is what nightmares are made of for oily skin. Check out my review here.

Random

Ouai Instagram / Totally not a big deal to some, but I screamed a little when Jen Atkin liked my photo on instagram. She does Khloe Kardashian’s hair, how could I not mention this!!?

Starbucks Hack / I’m all about saving money, especially on something I purchase so often. Here’s my new trick- go to starbucks and order your typical iced drink, but with NO ICE so you get more coffee. If you are on your way to work, use your work mug and fill it with ice, then pour the starbucks into that mug. It makes a grande drink into a trenta pretty much. Never getting ice at Starbucks again!

13 Reasons Why / I read this book a couple years back and was not excited to hear they made a show from it on Netflix. I was so wrong and this show sucked me in by the first episode. It is 1000x better than the book, which is a rare find!

Bath & Body Works Waikiki Beach Coconut / I had that awesome moment where I was walking through the mall and the scent wafting out of Bath and Body Works drew me in.  It was Waikiki Beach Coconut. The candle and wallflower scents are very strong, which I love.

Portland, Oregon / I went to Orlando this past weekend, and just want to give say how glad I am to live somewhere with cooler temperatures. If someone reading this lives somewhere hot and loves makeup, I applaud you because I couldn’t do it. I went ultra light on foundation, mascara, and all products really, threw my hair up in a pony, and lived in shorts. How do people wear denim? Wear their hair down? I seriously couldn’t handle it. I will say that the sunshine brightened my mood though. 🙂

Starbucks Venti Mug / The traveler mugs from starbucks are my everyday work mug of choice, and they finally released a venti size version! Less trips to refill my coffee/ tea with this bigger mug is fabulous.

Black Mirror / This is a Netflix series that I am obsessed with. Each episode is it’s own little movie, so you can start anywhere in the series that you want. Netflix has three seasons up, and the basic theme is the consequences of technology advances on humans. Just don’t start on season one, episode one. Trust me.

Style

Le Specs The Prince sunnies / Did I need another pair of sunglasses? No. These are so flattering though, and on the lower end of the price spectrum in terms of how much sunglasses run for. I have been wanting these since Christmas and I finally bit the bullet.

Birkenstock Weather / I love freezing cold sweater weather, but I also am happy for the rain to subside so I can get my Birkenstocks out.  I have been wearing my white pair all the time this month.

Sorel Wedge Boots / I’m lucky enough to live near Columbia Sportswear and have my work give out guest passes to their employee store. I picked up these boots at half off and love them so much. They are perfect for when I want to go out on more casual nights or day drinking moments and don’t want to be too casual in sneakers, but heels aren’t right. They are SO comfortable to walk in too and I’m super fussy. 
F21 Denim Jacket / This was a great find from the men’s department of Forever 21. The moto jacket perfectly matches the look of the Blank NYC moto jacket if you are familiar with those, but way more affordable, and in denim!

Checkered Vans / I wore these all day to Universal Studios and my feet never hurt! They are so cute to make a boring outfit more fun, and ultra comfortable. I went for the UltraCush Lite ones, they are more lightweight than normal Vans.

Blog Post / I wanted to throw in this post because I’ve been loving absolutely everything I mentioned. I didn’t want to put the items in a favorites yet because I bought them quite recently, but I have been getting a ton of use out of them- especially the MUFE Brow Liner!

The end.

-Kim