End of the Year Declutter

Hello lovelies, recently I decided it was time to update my inventory. I am so pleased that I have managed to cut my collection by a third. I decluttered before my move to Florida in May and haven't bought much makeup (until recently) and I have just been using a lot of it up. Anyway, while I was taking my inventory I thought I would do a last round of decluttering for the year. It wasn't much, but here are the few things that I have chosen to get rid of.

Rimmel Stay Matte Primer - This was on its last legs. I had previously been trying to pan this. It is a fine primer but it smells like glue. This was something that I could ignore before, but with super pregnancy nose I can't ignore any smell.

Temptu Liquid Bronzer - I enjoyed this while it was good, but it went bad. It smells of alcohol and no matter how much a shake it before use it still comes out separated.

Cover FX custom Cover Drops - This was a sample that was way too dark for me from the start. I tried to use it to darken foundations but there was so little product in here and it has always been hard to get out of the bottle. This also turned bad and is a little clumpy in there.

Colour Pop Super Shocked Matte Shadow in Hanky Panky - I was attempting to use this up, but it just crumbles and makes a mess when I try to use it. I have so many cream shadows to go through that it really isn't worth the effort.

Rimmel Moisture Renew Lipstick in Piccadilly Pink - getting rid of this because I really don't like the color and don't see myself wanting to even try to use it up.

Covergirl lipstick in Sultry - While I love this color it has gone bad. Just a reminder that I need to be using my lipsticks more instead of buying while I have so many.

Covergirl lipstick in Delicious - Again it went bad before I could finish using it up.

Hikari lipstick in Cabernet - A lipstick I got from ipsy a while back. I have never been a fan of the color. If it is gonna be a dark lip then I want it to stay that way. This fades into too bright of a pink for me.

So there are teh few products that I decided I didn't want to take into 2018 with me. I have plenty of products that I will be working on so hopefully a few more will be out before the end of the year.

Project 10 Pan

Hello lovelies. I have fallen out of step with project panning. I find it such a shame that I let life completely take over and dropped all my projects that I had going at the beginning of this year. To be fair to myself though I have not been purchasing much makeup at all and even decluttered a bunch. However, as of late with the Sephora VIB sale and Ulta sales...well I have managed to do some damage. So this new project pan is a little bit of a redemption for myself. Hopefully I will have these items out of my collection or my goal met before my little man is here in February. There is no actual time line for this project. I just want to finish or reach my goal on 10 products. I think I may be adding in new products each time I finish to keep me constantly working on products until I reach 10 because I know a couple of these products have a long way to go on them. Anyway I am rambling so I'll just get right to the products I have chosen.

1. Maybelline - Better Skin Foundation - I love this foundation. I am starting at the orange line. As you can see there isn't much left in it. I love how this doesn't feel heavy on my skin and when it is really hot and humid here in Florida I really appreciate it. It is very natural looking and just makes me look really good.

2. Smashbox - Primer Water - I have had this for some time and lately my skin has been feeling dehydrated so I have actually been enjoying using it. I don't know that it actually prolongs the wear of my foundation, but it feels good.

3. NYC - Liquid Lipshine in Nude York City - I can't mark where I am on this, but I know that I have used it more than a handful of times so it can't be that full. I enjoy how this doesn't stay sticky or gloopy on my lips but adds a pretty long lasting shine. This nude is great over an lip color or on its own.

4. Maybelline - Color Tattoo in Bad to the Bronze - The cream shadows that don't die. I know I won't finish this nearly as soon as any of the other products, but I want to get more use out of my cream shadows. This is a great one for the looks I have been going for so I hope to get a lot of use from it.

5. Urban Decay - Naked Basics - Venus goal to hit pan - I know I am really close on this one. especially since I target my brush when I use it. I love this as an inner corner highlight. 

6. Urban Decay - Naked Basics - Foxy  goal to hit pan - This has a pretty significant dent in it as well. I prefer W.O.S. to this, but it works as a base to set my primer and as a brow bone highlighter.

7. Jordana - Liquid Eye Pencil in Espresso Last - This will take me forever to get through, but I have been enjoying using brown eyeliner instead of black so I am excited to get some use out of this. Its a really creamy pencil.

8. Essence - Lip Liner in Satin Mauve - I have a backup of this and I really don't need to have 2. I love the color of this and it is a really good lip liner. It isn't too creamy or too stiff. It is that perfect in between.

9. J Cat - Big lip pencil in Caramel Mocha - I really just need to get thru this already.

10. Tarte - Cheek Stain in Dazed - Not much left in this and I thought it was a good product to use up. I know it will take me a while but I like a cream blush on an easy day or even under my powder blushes to make them last longer.

11. Tarte - The Sculptor - I know I can get this out of my collection if I just focus on using it more. I just forget to use my cream products before I set my face.

So 11 products to get me started. Not sure whether updates will be biweekly or monthly. I usually do monthly but I feel like I should be able to see some actual progress since these are all pretty basic daily products.

Sephora VIB Sale Wishlist

Hello lovelies, here is a list of products that I have my eye on for the Sephora VIB sale. If you are a rouge member the dates are 2 weekends: 11/3 - 11/6 and 11/10 - 11/15 with 20% off. VIB members dates are 11/10 - 11/15 with 20% off. Beauty Insiders dates are 11/10 - 11/15 but with only 15% off.

Sephora Favorites Superstars Everyday Must Haves Set. At $75 this kit is a great value, but if I am able to get it for an even better price then why not? These sets come with so much to try. I have only tried a couple of these products so it is definitely worth getting it for me so I am not paying so much for each of these minis individually. 

Huda Beauty Contour and Strobe Lip Set. $25. I plan on getting this is the shade Muse/ Angelic. I think this is such a beautiful set. Again this is something that I haven't tried again. I like holiday sets since they are a good value. I have heard such good things about Huda Beauty lip products and figured this would be a good way to try them out for myself. I also like the color of this and figured I would actually be likely to wear it.

Sephora Favorites Glow For It. $40. I am a sucker for these Sephora Favorites sets I swear. I bought one of these highlighter kits a year or two ago and it was a purchase that I did not regret. Benefit Highbeam is the only product that I have from this set so I know I won't be disappointed with this purchase either. I love a good highlight and I love trying different forms of highlight so I knew I wanted this right when I saw it. 

Nars Soft Matte Creamy Concealer. $30. I don't know that I would pay the full price for this concealer, but with 20% off I think it is worth a try. I have sampled this before but I just couldn't get myself to buy it because I always had too much concealer. I have been working through my products so I think that it is ok for me to get a new one to add to me collection. 

Nars x Man Ray: Love Triangle Blush/Lipstick Set. $24. I love the Nars Audacious lipsticks. I haven't tried the blushes though so I thought this would be a nice little set to get. I want to get it in the Deep Throat/Barbara set. I think this is the best combo that they have to offer. 

So there are the products that I have on my wishlist to purchase on the 10th. Are there any products you think I should add to my wishlist?

Top 10 Fall Must Haves

Hello lovelies, seeing as it is fall I thought it would be a good time to share my fall must haves. In no particular order here are my top 10 must haves for fall:

1. Cable, some sort of streaming service, anything to watch all the new fall premiers of basically every TV show. Some of the shows I look forward to watching are Arrow, The Flash, Gotham, and Jane the Virgin to name a few.

2. Some good books to curl up with. Something about the weather getting a bit crispier and not as sunny (something that is only just starting to happen in Fl!) just makes me want to read more. I typically get into moods about reading and it is during the fall that I usually feel the need to read as many books as I can.

3. Grungy makeup look. I love a good grungy, messy eye shadow look pretty much any time of the year, but I feel like I can get even darker and messier with it in the fall. My personal preference is more for a dramatic eye than a bold lip that I feel is often the trend in fall.

4. Tea. I am not a pumpkin spice kind of girl. Never have been and probably never will be. I much prefer a nice warm  mug of tea. I am a long time lover of chamomile and pretty much any relaxation type of tea with a spoon of honey as opposed to sugar. A warm glass of tea really warms up the soul.

5. Ankle boots and leather jackets. These are the epitome of fall fashion for me. Ankle boots and leather jackets are staples in a wardrobe. They are something that can be worn in a casual manner as well as adding some edge to an outfit that is a little more put together looking.

6. Nude and dark nail polish. I mainly paint my nails in the fall and winter because I am not too crazy about loud colors on my nails. There's also the fact that I really begin to lose any sense of a tan in the fall and I really like the way dark polishes look on pale skin.

7. Sweatshirts.  A little less glamorous than ankle boots and leather jackets, but I love the fall because it is the perfect time to bust out the crew neck sweatshirts and hoodies that I basically live in. This hasn't been something that I have indulged in much as of yet seeing as Florida still believes that it is the summer, but I am promised that it will get that cold eventually. Luckily the ac is always running and so I get to wear them indoors at least.

8. Fall scented candles. Moving to the south I definitely lost that fall air a bit, but I am compensating with candles that smell like falling leaves.

9. Beauty releases. I love that so much new makeup is released with the new season. It is a great time to really experiment with makeup.

10. Redecorating. Getting rid of the bright colors of summer and embracing the warm reds and golden colors of fall is one of my favorite things. I embrace fall tones so hard when it comes to decorating my apartment. There is something about that it that makes everything feel more homey.

What are some of your fall must haves?

Its Been a While

Hey lovelies, this post is way too overdue. 7 months is a long time to be MIA for, but life managed to get away from me and I haven't been in the mind space to get back into writing. A lot has happened actually since the last time I posted. I survived student teaching, graduated with my Bachelors Degree, got married, and moved to Florida. Life was just kind of moving, moving, moving, and then I finally got to just stop. And stop I did. I felt that I really needed to kind of take a moment for myself and kind of refind myself again. But now I am in a place here I am ready to get going again.

I want to get back into writing because it is something that I enjoy doing regardless of whether or not anyone is actually reading what I have to share. That said, I don't know what I should write about. I have some ideas that I have been jotting down, but if you have any ideas about things you would like to see feel free to let me know. I look forward to getting myself back out there and for you all to read what I've got to say. Hopefully I will be able to get some content out that is on a more regular basis. Until then I hope you all stay happy and well.

Project Ipsy February '17 Update

Hello lovelies, another month has passed and that is another months worth of progress on my project ipsy items. To be honest, it has been a pretty off month in terms of progress for me. I didn't really reach for a lot of these products. Here is the update I have anyway.

2 products are being crossed off my list.

Be a Bombshell - One Stick in Sunset - I have decided to declutter this because I have had it for 4 years now and the smell is off. I have cream blushes that are newer and that I like a lot better than this one to be honest. No sense in me fighting to try and get through this by the end of the year.

Bare Minerals - 5 in 1 eye shadow base - This is a pretty nice base. It is taupey color. I don't know that it made my shadow last any longer. I wouldn't purchase it in a full size, but it was nice to try. 

Here is an update on the products that I actually used this month.

 NYX - Butter Gloss in Creme Brulee - I think I am about half way through this now since it was a part of another project pan. I have been enjoying it, but I don't know that I will repurchase it. I'm not the biggest fan of lip gloss though.

Absolute - Lip Balm in Green Apple - I am working my way through this. I want it gone by the end of April so I am definitely going to be focusing in on this lip balm.

J Cat Beauty - Big Lip Pencil in Caramel Mocha - I have been enjoying this a lot. It is super easy to just throw on in the morning and it goes with a lot of the makeup looks that I do for work.

Now for the new products that I am adding in.

 Be a Bombshell - Eye base in Submissive - I am a quarter of the way through this product. It is going to take me a while, but I think I can get through it this year. It is a great bronze color. Very similar to the Maybelline Color Tattoo in Bad to the Bronze.

Marc Anthony - Hair Spray - I may have used this once before. It will take a while to get through it since I don't use hairspray that often, but I am going to try and make some effort.

Pixi - Fairydust - I haven't used this that much, but I like it. Mainly because of the name if I am being honest.

Bella Pierre - Mineral Shimmer in Celebration - This is a loose pigment. I doubt that I will get through it, but I am going to enjoy using it. It is a really beautiful bronze gold.

I had made the decision to add 5 products each month, but the fifth item on this list I decided to go ahead and declutter. It was another eyeliner. It is silver with glitter in it and I know that I won't use it over the Mally one that I already have in this project. So far I have used/decluttered 8 products. Not bad for 2 months in my opinion. I hope I actually use more of these products on the list already this month.

Project Ipsy January '17 Update

Hello lovelies, here is an update after a month of working on these products for project ipsy this year. I am a little disappointed that there isn't nearly as much progress as I thought there would be. But the year is young and I have plenty of time to work on all of these.

 Ofra - Universal Eyebrow Pencil - I haven't really finished this product as you can clearly see, but I have decided to declutter it. It was causing me to breakout which is really weird. I mean it made my eyebrows really irritated. However my sister likes this and is gladly going to take it off my hands.

Sexy Hair - Spray Clay - I didn't get around to using this at all.

Zoya - Nail Polish in Mason - I used this once and used it on my niece twice. I don't see any actual progress but I think that is because my line is too thick.

Bella Pierre - Mineral Shimmer - I have been using this as an eyeliner. It is such a beautiful navy with shimmer, the shimmer isn't really detectable. I wish it wasn't such a mess to use though. I need to remember to put on my face makeup after I use this.

Starlooks - Eyeliner in Amethyst - I used this a couple of times. Still just as beautiful and shimmery as the day I got it. It has a real brightening quality to it because it is lavender with really fine glitter running through it. I wish it didn't leave glitter on my face for days after I used it though.

J Cat - Big Lip Pencil in Caramel Mocha - I used this a couple of times. I have been working on lip products in other projects though so this was unnoticed for a lot of the month.

be a bombshell - The one Stick in Sunset - I think I used this once or at least swatched it. I am working on another cream blush for a different project so this was pretty neglected.

Mally - Eyeliner in Starshine - This silver eyeliner has been a great base for the loose eyeshadow. It makes it so much brighter on the eyes. Definitely a winning duo for me.

Zoya - Nail Polish in Odette - I didn't draw the line correctly on this for the intro and I didn't think it would be that big of a deal, but alas it was an issue because now the marking it true to where it needs to be.

NYX - butter gloss in Creme Brulee - I have been reaching for this a lot actaully. More than I thought I would be. I am able to see through the packaging when I swirl the product around in there. I think I can actually finish this up this year.

The pink lines are the intro, the purple lines are this months updates and intro.

And now the products I am adding in this month.

Absolute Lip Balm in green apple - I look forward to getting this out already so I am really going to try using it up.

Bare Minerals 5 in 1 base - this is a nice taupe eye shadow base. I think it is close to being done though so if I try with this I can actually get it done in the month of February.

Hikari lipstick in Cabernet - I don't think I am going to even come close to finishing this before the year is done, but I look forward to giving it some actual use.

OPI nail polish in Feeling Very Cherry - This is one of my favorite nail polishes that I own. You can't see the mark on there but I am about a third of the way through with this nail polish already.

It Cosmetics bye bye undereye concealer - I am almost out of my Mac Studio Fix concealer and this is the only other concealer I have that can actually cover my dark circles so I look forward to using this up.

So there is all the update and new products I am adding in. As a reminder, I did decide that no matter how many products I was using up per month I would be adding 5 new ones in. Hopefully I can start pushing products out or my updates are going to get ridiculously long. So far I have finished 3 ipsy products out of my goal of 50.