One Brand Makeup Look / MAYBELLINE

Hi everyone! Today's post is a makeup look using just one brand, Maybelline! Maybelline has consistently been one of my favorite brands because of their amazing products and affordable prices. Since I have so many amazing Maybelline products, I thought I would do a fun makeup tutorial using them, and them alone. 

To start this look, I primed my T-zone using the Maybelline Baby Skin Primer. It leaves a perfect base for the rest of your makeup. I didn't want a heavy foundation so I used the Dream Fresh BB Cream to create a seamless base. Next, I went in with two concealers. First, to conceal my blemishes and dark circles, I used the Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Concealer (no surprise here!) and then the Better Skin Concealer to add a bit of brightness under my eyes. It's great because it's so lightweight that it doesn't feel heavy to add onto the other products. 

To finish off my face, I set my under eyes, forehead, and the rest of my T-zone with the Dream Wonder Powder. 

Next up, I'm using The Nudes Palette to create this beautiful gold eye look. But before that, I used the dark brown matte shadow in the palette to fill in my eyebrows. I used a spooli brush to comb through them, making the hairs appear more natural!

For my eyes, I first went in with the light brown matte shade into my crease, blending it until the color got darker and darker. To give it more definition, I went into the crease with the same brown matte shade I used for my eyebrows, darkening it further. When I found it was dark enough, I then went in with a flat eyeshadow brush and packed the gold shimmery shadow from the palette onto my lid. To give it even more shine, I wet my brush beforehand, making the color pop. 

To finish off my lids, I blended some of the gold and browns into my lower lash line, to bring the look together. 

Because I wanted the gold shadow to be the main attraction for my lids, I chose not to use liner for this look. If I had decided on it, I would've used a brown pencil liner to smudge out the look.

Next up I used Maybelline's Great Lash Mascara in 'Blackest Black' to lengthen and volumize my lashes. This is one of my favorite mascaras of all time because of its consistency and ability to keep my lashes looking thick and lengthened all day long. I love it!

For a bit of face shimmer, I went in with the shimmery white shadow from The Nudes Palette to give my cheeks a bit of highlight. I love this palette because as you can see, I used it not only for my eyes, but my brows and cheeks! It's incredibly versatile.

For a final touch, I wanted a bold lip so I used my favorite lip product at the moment, the Maybelline Color Sensational Vivid Matte Liquid Lip in 'Orange Shot'. It's so easy to apply, looks amazing, and stays all day!

I hope you guys enjoyed this Maybelline makeup look! Do you have some favorite brands that you could do a #OneBrandLook with as well?

xo Emily

New In: Maybelline Brow Drama Sculpting Gel

Hey guys! I've got a new product to talk about today. I recently picked up the Maybelline EyeStudio Brow Drama in Soft Brown, which is one of the first tinted brow gels for the drugstore. I really was excited to try this out because I wanted a more affordable alternative to the Benefit Gimme Brow, which is over $20. 

 

This runs for about $8 at the drugstore and comes in three shades; blonde, soft brown, and deep brown. It looks like a mascara wand and the soft brown shade actually fits my brow color pretty well. I like how easy it is to use, all you have to do is follow your natural brow arch with the wand, and it just fills in your brows with extra color and fibers. 

It's a good product if you're on the go and don't want to have to shape and maintain your brows too much. It's fast and easy, and in a rush, it'll get the job done and make your brows look fuller and will keep them in place all day. 

{A closeup of the gel in action}

{My left eyebrow without the product, my right brow with the product}

What I don't like is that it doesn't completely fill in my brows the way I wanted to and definitely isn't as effective as Benefit's Gimme Brow. It will fill in some of the gaps but still leaves some parts sparse. Also, if you put too much product on your brows, it'll leave them feeling stiff and cakey, which I really don't like in any sort of brow product. 

Overall, I think it's great in a pinch and I have been using it every so often since I got it. It's a great alternative to the more expensive brow gels, but it does have some flaws.

♡

xo Emily

NARS Creamy Concealer Dupe

The NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer is one of the most coveted and well-loved concealers out there, and I had been wanting it for ages. It's one of those products that beauty bloggers, vloggers, and experts alike sing their praises to. I finally bought it and it did turn out to be a fantastic product but I'm not sure it was worth the whopping $30 it cost me. 

I thought I'd share with you a dupe of this product, the Maybelline Fit Me Concealer, which will cost you only $7, saving you $23 dollars in the process.

I'll show you some swatches and compare the products below.

Product Review: Maybelline NUDES Palette

Hey guys! I'm coming to you today with a Product Review! Today I'm going to talk about the New Maybelline NUDES Palette. It's one of the first really substantial, affordable, drugstore palettes and I was so excited when I first heard about its release! I was really excited to pick it up!

Maybelline finally got this product out! I was so excited to try it out so I went to Target and picked it up. 

This palette runs from about $7-$10 which is super affordable, especially because Maybelline eyeshadow quads run for around $6. That means you get a lot more product, for a lot less!

It comes with 12 shades - 6 matte and 6 shimmer shades.  

As you can see below, you get a really good variety of nude, and neutral shades. These are the eyeshadow colors that you can use for every single look, especially for everyday!

Here's a closer look at the shades. As you can see, they're so gorgeous.

Below I have swatched the 12 shades. They actually swatched really nicely, except for some of the lighter matte colors. The shadows are just like the ones that come in the normal Maybelline Eyeshadow quads, so they have the same formula. They're a bit chalky but blend really nicely and have a pretty great pigment for what they are. I especially like the shimmer shades, because they're really beautiful on the lid and blend amazing and don't have much fallout on the under-eye area!

I tested out the palette as soon as I got home and below I'll share the look I created!

I started off by using a light, matte, pale white shade all over my lid as base, then took a fluffy brush and took the light, matte, soft brown shade into the crease and blended it with windshield wiper motions until there's soft definition. 

Next up was to take the matte, dark brown shade into the crease to darken it up. 

To finish off the crease, I took a shimmery, dark brown shade and took that with the same fluffy brush and blended it with the same windshield wiper motions.

Lastly, I took the shimmery, white shadow in the corner of my lid to highlight and bring a little more glitter and brightness to the makeup look!

Here are all the shadows I used to create the look!

 

Maybelline has done it once again with this palette. It's one of my favorite brands and I adore this look!

 Hope everyone is having a fun weekend!

xo Emily

Product Review: Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Radiant Firming Foundation

Hey guys! Today I'm coming to you with a product review! Today's product is the Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Radiant Firming Foundation. As anyone whose ever met me or visited my blog might know, I am a massive fan of Maybelline products. It probably makes up over 50% of my makeup bag at any given day and I have no qualms about that. They just make absolutely incredible products - some of my all time faves. 

So with all that prior knowledge, I decided to pick up the new Instant Age Rewind Foundation. I have been obsessed with the Instant Age Rewind dark spot and under-eye concealers for a long time now so I thought that it would be a good idea to try out the foundation version. 

This foundation runs for about $9 which isn't a bad price and I got the shade 

'Classic Ivory'. It matches your skin tone really nicely, especially since I usually have so much trouble matching my skin tone, I was happily surprised at how it matched mine!

Excuse my nails! Yikes

I also love this foundation because it evens your skin tone, firms your skin, and has Goji Berry and Caffeine. It also has SPF 18 which is just ESSENTIAL during summer. It's so nice to have SPF in foundation, especially during summer. Skincare and protection against the sun is so important so I love this foundation. 

To apply this foundation, I decided to use two different ways to apply it, with a brush and a beauty blender! 

First, I put about a quarter-sized amount on the back of my hand and then used my Real Techniques Buffing Brush and dotted it across one side of my face. I just blended and buffed that into my skin until I had a flawless finish. I then grabbed my damp beauty blender - mine's from Ricky's and 10$ cheaper than the original beauty blender - and blended in the foundation on the other side of my face. After using both applications, I think I prefer the beauty blender. It gives you a smoother finish and really melds with your skin.

The foundation looks really natural and nice on the skin, as you can see above.

After applying this foundation, I found that I really loved it. It matched perfectly with my skin and wasn't sticky, heavy, or too wet. I put on the rest of my makeup after and really love how it ended up looking.

Here's how the foundation looks with the rest of my 'face' on!

My face in natural light:

I went about the rest of my day as normal, even going on an hour long walk and the foundation held up really nightly. It didn't sweat off my face and really made my skin still look flawless, even after 8 hours. (As you can maybe see in the picture below)

Overall, I 100% recommend this foundation. It's quickly becoming one of my favorites. 

I hope everyone had a great day! I sure did! Look at the lovely view of my walk!

xo Emily 

Face of the Day

Happy Sunday! And Happy Father's Day!

Today's post is pretty simple. It's my 'Face of the Day'

The look is really simple and easy to accomplish! Other than my base routine (primer, bb cream, concealer, powder, blush) all I used was the Maybelline Eyeshadow Quad in Lavender Smokes. I don't buy Maybelline Eyeshadow that often but I loved the purple in this so I thought I'd try it out! 

In addition to the purple shadows, I used NYX's Butter Gloss in Vanilla Cream Pie which is such a nice, soft pink that goes lovely with the purple.

All I did to accomplish this eye look was to take the light pink shade and spread it all over my lid. I also spread the bright purple shade and spread it all over my lid, pushing it into the crease a little. Next I took a big, fluffy blending brush and took the 'crease' color which is a gray-purple and took that color and worked it into the crease. Finally, I took the darkest purple shade and lined my upper and lower lash line with it. 

To finish it, I applied a black liquid liner and mascara!

Voila! My 'Face of the Day'

xo Emily

Whats In My Makeup Bag!

Hello hello!

I am finally, finally finished with my room organization (a long, drawn-out process), and that means I have all makeup and beauty items organized as well! I thoroughly went through all my products and decided what I loved, what needed to go, and wound up with a set of products to put in my makeup bag! 

I thought I'd share and show you how I organize my makeup bag and what I deem the most essential! Hope you enjoy!

First off: The Bag. I'm using this Sonia Kashuk Floral Print Makeup Bag which I picked up from Target for only $10. 

I'm really loving this bag so far. My previous makeup bag was nice, but this one has more space and is longer, which means I can fit brushes in without them getting all smushed. It also has two, small inner pockets on each side which are great for organization.

In addition to the space and quality, the bag is super cute and I think the roses are sooo pretty!

Let's open it up!

I have two ways that I usually organize my makeup bags. If I know I'll be applying makeup at home then I organize my bag in one way. If I know I'll be applying my makeup somewhere else, (on a trip, late for work/school) I have another organization.

The first way, (which I employ at home, when I have time and space to do my makeup) is the 'throw everything in there and hope it doesn't get too messy' method. This method, although not preferred for efficiency and organization, is easiest when I'm at home. For this, I just dump everything in without a care because I will just be dumping it out to sort through my products anyway! 

The second way, which as you can see above, is so much prettier, is when I place items in my bag in the order that I will use them. This means that I place the items I use last in my makeup routine (eyeshadows, eyeliners, highlighters) at the bottom and items I use first (primer, foundation, concealer) at the top of the bag. Although this is ideal, it doesn't often end up happening. A more honest description is, 'put everything in there in the most organized and efficient way and then hopefully put it back the same way to avoid wasting time and space' method. 

That was confusing. But basically what I do is put eye shadow palettes, highlighter, blush, and pressed powder at the bottom and then on top I stack primer, foundation/bb cream, concealers, and large brushes (my powder and blush brush). In the two little pockets that I mentioned, I put my smaller eye brushes in one and then eyeliner, brow products, and mascara in the other.

So let's get into the products in my makeup bag!
These products are some of my all-time and current favorites. For example, you won't ever find my makeup bag without the Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Concealer or the Rimmel Pressed Powder, but I will switch up certain eyeshadows, eyeliner, and blush! (Current faves are Benefit's Rockateur blush and the Tarte Golden Days and Sultry Nights palette)

Here's a list and description of products in the order I usually apply them.

Base:

Maybelline Baby Skin Instant Pore Eraser - This is a new product for me and I think it's Maybelline's take on the POREfessional primer. I am loving it so far. Since it's summer, I usually apply this to where I sweat or get oily the most: the T-zone, under my eyes, and a bunch on my chin.

Maybelline Dream Fresh BB Cream in Light - Not a new product, but a favorite. This has low coverage (which I love), contains SPF, and goes on really easy. 

Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Concealer in Fair - Another old favorite. It's just a great product for covering up dark circles under your eyes (of which I have everyday)  

Maybelline Fit Me Concealer in Fair - Another new product, so I'm giving it a chance in my makeup bag. I'm not overly impressed at the moment, but time will tell.
Rimmel Stay Matte Pressed Powder in Translucent - The absolute BEST translucent pressed powder. Just....go buy it. So cheap, so much product, SO AMAZING!


Cheeks:

Rimmel Natural Bronzer in Sun Light - I'm liking this so far, that's why it's in my makeup bag. It was a 'Friday Find' last week and has been performing ever since I got it. AMAZING.

Benefit's Rockateur Blush - Loving this product at the moment. It was in one my 'Friday Finds' posts and I elaborate on it here if you care to read.
Sephora Baked Illuminating Powder in Light Beam - My most favorite highlighter EVER (well, one of the only ones I've used so time will tell). This is a great product and I swear I will never run out of it.

Eyes:

Tarte Golden Days and Sultry Nights Palette - Another very very new product (I only picked it up a few days ago) but I am LOVING it so far. I did a whole entire post on it on Tuesday and you can read that here.
Urban Decay Naked Basics Palette - I think of all the Naked Palettes, the basics palette is the one you should purchase. Six perfect shades, simple and important for makeup looks. I use each of these shades regularly. It will never go out of style.

Smashbox Full Exposure Mascara - This is just a great mascara. On the higher-end of the mascaras, but I think it's well worth the $20.

Maybelline Falsies Mascara - I think everyone and their mother loves this mascara and it's obvious why: HUGE lashes and an affordable price! Sold! 

Anastasia Brow Wiz in Soft Brown - Well loved across the beauty community (or so I'm told) but new to me. I'm liking it so far, the color comes out really natural and the applicator is small, which I think is better for natural color and easy color-building.

Milani EasyBrow in Dark Brown - A cheap alternative to these higher end brow product and a personal favorite. I love the spooli brush that comes with it! 

Sonia Kashuk Brow Gel - Just your average brow gel. One thing I must say is that it's not my favorite - everytime you close the lid, it seeps out! No good. I need a suggestion for a new gel!

NYC HD Liquid EyeLiner - Cheap, easy to apply, dark as my sisters cat Toby (that's a good thing, he's really really black). I love this stuff! 

Brushes:



On the left: Real Techniques contour brush, Jessup pointed foundation brush, RT buffing brush, RT blush brush, and Jessup large powder brush.

On the right: Sonia Kashuk blending brush, RT accent brush, RT deluxe crease brush, RT base shadow brush, Jessup angled eyeshadow brush, Jessup crease brush.

Most of these brushes are Real Techniques and if you want an affordable, durable, and great makeup brush, you should really check out these brushes! You can get the core face and eye collections for around $15 which is absolutely amazing. I love them!

The other brushes are Sonia Kashuk and Jessup which is a dupe for Sigma brushes. They're obviously not as good as Sigma brushes but they're only $6 and really do work. Here's the ebay link if you want to check them out.

So that's it: my makeup bag! For some reason, I LOVE organizing my makeup bag and putting new and fun products inside. I'm weird though.

I hope everyone enjoyed!!! 

xo Emily

P.S. I'm just noticing how many Maybelline products I have in here. Wow.

Friday Finds: Magnificent Maybelline

Hello!!! It's another Friday (THANK GOODNESS) which means another addition of Friday Finds!! I know you're like SO excited....

This little 'Friday Finds' post that I have already done a second installment in, is potentially very disastorous for my wallet.... But alas, now I have an excuse to buy more.

All five of the beauty items I bought for today's post were purchased at Walgreens during an AMAZING SALE!!!!! This all didn't cost me that much. The four makeup items were only around 15 dollars - which is insane. 

Here are the lovely things I've purchased! 

1. Maybelline Color Tattoo in the shade 15 - Audacious Asphalt. First off, that name is amazing and I never thought that asphalt could in fact, be audacious, but maybelline has proved me wrong apparently.  I've only used Color Tattoo a few times and it's not my favorite product but it was on sale for $3 which I thought was a great deal. I love silvery/grey eye colors so I thought I would give it a go! 

2. Rimmel's Natural Bronzer in 021 - Sunlight. I've been branching out with bronzers recently, actually making an effort to try a few different brands in order to find a product I really love. Walgreens had this a dollar off today so I decided to try it. I really like Rimmel products and I'm a huge fan of their translucent setting powder so I hoped this would be similar! I hope this works out!!

3. A tried and tested favorite - the Maybelline Falsies Mascara - was my third Friday Find. As many people can probably attest, this is a great mascara. And I was incredibly lucky that these $9 mascaras were on sale for FOUR dollars today. I had to restrain myself from buying about 30 more because I LOVE Maybelline mascaras. 

Just look at the difference this mascara makes. It's just a really quality product!

Look at my left eye!!! Madness!!

4. Maybelline Master Shape Eye Pencil in Soft Brown. I know I'm a self proclaimed lover of the Milani brow products but I decided that since this brow pencil was on sale for just about $3, I would try something new. I really like the color!

5. Lastly, I purchased the John Frieda Hair Dye in Medium Natural Brown. Right now I've got a few different colors in my hair and I am really really ready to go back to my brown hair. I've used this dye before and have been pleased with the results - especially for a box dye.

That's it for todays Friday Finds!!! I will definitely start using these products and let you know which ones I like - they might even become a part of my June favorites! 

Happy Weekend!!!

xo Emily

Friday Finds: Blush and BB Cream

Happy Friday!!! The happiest day all week! 

It's especially happy for me because I've purchased a few new things that I am going to share with you in a post (that will probably be repeated, hence the alliterative name) called 'Friday Finds!"

These are just a few beauty related things I've bought recently that I want to share!

1. Benefit's Rockateur Blush - Now I know this blush is pricey ($28) and I think that there are other, more affordable blushes out there that are just as pretty, but I've had my eye on Rockateur for months now. Everytime I'm in Sephora or Ulta, I go by and brush some across my cheeks in envy. So I decided to take the plunge and buy it. I'm very pleased because I know this will last me a long time and the color is stunning! As you can see above, it's deep and shimmery and peachy and pink and just lovely!
2. To pair with my fancy new blush I got the Real Techniques Blush Brush - I am a HUGE fan of Real Techniques and when my (not so good quality) blush brush fell apart a few days ago, I went straight for my favorite brush brand. I absolutely love this brush. Using it is easy and product goes on flawlessly. And to top it off, it's really affordable. This brush only put me back $9.
3. Maybelline's Dream Fresh BB Cream - I love this BB cream. In fact, this is a repurchase, as I ran out of my last bottle. It's light, smooth, and feels great on my skin. I don't use foundation regularly but it's nice to have some light coverage all over to even out my skin tone and this does the trick!
4. Next is another Maybelline winner, the Instant Age Rewind Under Eye Concealer. -This should come as no surprise, as this is my favorite under eye, dark circle concealer out there. It's cheap, lasts forever, and comes in tons of shades as well as a brightener. This is my third or fourth repurchase of this awesome product!
5. To verge away from makeup, I picked up the Pantene Smooth Lisse Argan Oil Serum. - This stuff is magic. It's a more affordable version of Moroccan Oil's Argan Oil - which I have used and liked a lot - but it's cheaper, less greasy in my hair and smells awesome. This stuff lasts me a long time as you don't really need much (only a  small squeeze or two into the ends of your hair) and it's only $8 bucks. Plus, you get more for that $8 bucks - whereas with Moroccan Oil you get a much smaller container for more money! 

These 5 products are some of my old favorites and soon to be new favorites and all totally worth buying. I hope you guys enjoyed seeing some of my friday finds and I would encourage everyone to check out some of these because they're all really great - and mostly affordable!

Have a great weekend!

xo Emily