Friday, February 28, 2014

February Favorites 2014


Beauty

Simple Cleansing Wipes: I've been using the Neutrogena ones for the longest time but I absolutely hate the residue it leaves behind! And I'm not sure if it's my imagination but it sort of stings my skin?? Anyway, I have heard lots of amazing things about this brand so I thought I would give their makeup wipes a try and I really like them! I won't one is better than the other but I will say that the residue it leaves behind isn't as... Hmm... Thick as the other ones, plus it doesn't sting my skin. (I wash my face in the shower and I only use makeup wipes to wipe away any extra mascara that didn't wash off in the hot water). 

Sonia Kashuk Concealer: I bought this back in July of last year at Target for around $10 and I really liked it. Since I am kind of a concealer freak I kind of forgot about it and started using a different one, especially when the colder seasons came around because this shade was a bit too dark for me. Since my birthday trip to Oahu, I came back visibly darker (Even though I'm brown and always will be brown, I prefer myself on the lighter end of the spectrum, however when I came back from Oahu I was really loving my tan!). I accidentally left my usual concealer jar in my friends purse so I decided to open this one up again and I fell in love all over again. It's super creamy, nice coverage, and matches me perfectly. It's long lasting (for me at least) and it covers blemishes and discolorations on my face left my pesky pimples up really nicely. Love it! I apply it using my EcoTools concealer brush. I don't have a Target on my island but next time I am near one I will definitely be picking up another jar! From what I remember there are only four shades to choose from which sucks but oh well, and if your wondering, I'm (currently) using the shade Wheat. 

Love&Beauty Beauty Blender Sponge: This is another item I purchased on my birthday trip. I was waiting in line at Forever21 to purchase some things and just for kicks I snatched it up. I had no idea I was going to love it this much! I can't compare it to other knock off brands and the actual Beauty Blender, but for $3.00 or whatever I paid I seriously love it. The color is super cute too. I use this to blend in my concealer. It's much faster this way and it's easier to hold than my usual sponge. 

Benefit High Beam: Nothing much to say about this other than I have been using this for a while and I still love it as much as I did the first day I got it. I never thought highlighters would actually do anything, I just thought it would be fun to put on, but seriously it makes your skin just look so... pretty in lower lighting and in regular lighting... Love it. 

Benefit Hoola Bronzer: This is a little sample size I received but I never used it. I recently just started conturing (just a bit... it's really fun to put on) and I actually really like the way it looks. It's matte which I love, but I do have to layer it at least twice to make it visible on my skin tone. After I run out of this sample size, definitely going to purchase the regular one! Oddly enough this travel/sample has lasted me a while! I apply this with my EcoTools powder (?) brush which is just barely tapered, and on top of that I pinch it sometimes to get a more define edge before blending. 

Benefit They're Real: Alas. Another Benefit sample size. On top of being a concealer freak I'm also a bit of a mascara freak. I bought this mascara on top of three others but for some reason I didn't like this much at first but I recently started using it (I think sometime towards the end of November) and I ended up really liking it... I don't know what I was thinking?!?!??! It's amazing?!?!!? Why didn't I like it before?!?!?!?!

Tarte Matte Lip Crayon in Fiery: Ok. I spent way too much money on this damn thing ($25 mother frikin dollars on a jumbo crayon for your lips) but I don't regret it at all. I was frantically looking around Sephora, trying to find one more thing to buy just because I'm weird and the Tarte packing is so beautiful so I was sucked in.This color is freaking amazing. It's looks like your standard red but when you actually look at the product and actually wear it, it's a bit darker than you expect it to be... I don't know how to explain it. It's beautiful. It also lasts a hell of a long time (wore it all day today. From 11:00 AM to 6:00 PM) and when you apply it... It smells weirdly pleasant... Sort of like menthol. I hope to pick up more from this line in the future. 

EOS Lip Balm: I'm obsessed with these spheres. The last two weeks of this month have been brutal to my lips so I've been applying this every night before I go to bed and I love it so incredibly much. It's sort of... A dry texture, if you know what I mean. I have some chapsticks from Blistex that just feels like I'm applying an oily layer to my lips, whereas EOS is more on the... I don't know... Dry side? It's so hard to explain but I like the product and how it feels on my lips. Bottom line; love it. Going to use it tonight again. Not entirely crazy about this particular scent (summer fruit) but you can barely smell it. 

Dot by Marc Jacobs: This was the birthday gift I received from my best friend and I couldn't have been happier with the scent she chose! To be entirely honest, It doesn't really smell like anything special in the bottle (it's just a nice scent), but I feel like it mixes in with your natural body chemistry, producing something really just... Pleasant. That's all I can say. It's nothing spectacular it's just something that you enjoy smelling and you want to be around.




Miscellaneous

Rings: I love rings in general but this month I found myself gravitating to these two. I don't wear them on the same hand, but on the opposite. I purchased these in a set of three rings from Pacsun for around $10. I originally got it specifically for this horseshoe ring, but sadly I lost it. I think it went down my friends sink drain but not entirely sure and to be honest I'm too lazy to dig for it. 

Grey Aero Hoodie: I am not the type of person who likes clothing that has the brand name plastered everywhere (cough, Aeropostale, cough) but I went in there because my friend fancied some jeans (WHICH LOOK AMAZING ON HER THEY FIT HER PERFECTLY AND THEY WERE ON SALE FOR $9 EACH) and while I waited for her I came across these half priced PLAIN hoodies. For some reason I really wanted to get it in large (so I did) and I practically lived in it. It's so soft and cosy and it goes past my fingers and ughhhhhh. Loveeeee. It's actually been really cold here and this keeps me nice and warm. But on the other hand it's not super thick so I can use it on regular days without overheating (like today. It was sunny but had chilly winds and I wore this with some shorts and slippers). What I really like about it is how tragically basic it is, but what I love even more are the details that make it special. The first one being the hot pink little... Plastic ends of the drawstrings (does anyone know what those are called?) and the tulip cut sides. Little details like that make me happy. 

Forever21 Tee: Another utterly basic piece. Black charcoal tee shirt, crew neck, loose, front pocket, cuffed sleeves, semi burnout, soft. I wear it all the time. What I don't like about it is that the dye is like... Running? Especially around the areas where it's sewn. Thinking about buying some dye and just fixing it. 

Paper Towns by John Green: I don't want to ramble too much but I enjoyed this book a lot more than I anticipated. Had some suspense and really opened my eyes to how people and friendship work. Definitely recommend checking it out! I mention it to everyone I meet! 

Bath & Body Works Candle in Peach Bellini: They were having a sale on the mini's (3 for $10) so I couldn't pass it up. I somehow winded up getting both a soap and candle in this scent but seriously I'm not even upset this thing smells amazing! Almost halfway done! It smells so yummy and fresh and just frikin fabulous. Go and check it out next time your near a B&BW.

Music Favorites:

1.  She Looks So Perfect by 5SOS. 

Holy frikin crap I love this song. It makes me smile and want to dance and Calum's solo makes my heart melt. The music video is fun to watch as well. Michael (my bae) makes me swoon ughhh he's so cute. 

2. Somewhere in Neverland by All Time Low

Ok I had a really hard time with this second choice. Tbh it's sort of a tie between Love Like War, Get Down on Your Knees and Tell Me You Love Me, The Irony of Choking on a Lifesaver, and this song but I decided to go with Somewhere in Neverland simply because the lyrics are so incredibly sweet. 

"Wendy we can get away
I promise if you're with me, say the word and we'll find a way
I can be your lost boy, your last chance
Your "everything better" plan
Oh, somewhere in Neverland"

3. #GETITRIGHT by Miley Cyrus

Thanks to an amazing website called Spotify, I'm easily able to listen to all these albums I'm just really lazy to Youtube or listen to the previews on iTunes. I prefer just starting from the first song and just having the album as background noise as I clean or... Use the inter webs. Anyway, Bangerz was one of those albums and seriously this song (although a bit risqué if you listen to the lyrics) is sooooooo fun to dance around to. I find myself humming it all the time. 





That's pretty much everything I have been absolutely and unconditionally loving this February. This was really fun for me to write, and hopefully this is the first of many monthly favorites posts to come!  Please let me know if you would be interested in me continuing this! 

And please be sure to type me a comment telling me something you've been loving as well! I'm curious! 



xoxo,
                                          
                   Kelly


Wednesday, February 26, 2014

Time to Try and Put a Spring in My Step (And Some Color)



If you didn't already know, I'm sort of an undercover Goth because I always lean towards black and grey when I dress myself. 

Spring is when the flowers come out and the sun finally peeks through the thick clouds so why not join the Earth and slowly sprout in color? These are just simple steps that I am going to attempt to do to slowly ease into color for when Spring comes around.

Clothing: Cardigans are some of my favorite things in the world. Honestly. I think they would be an easy and fun way to get into the Spring mood by maybe going out and buying some bright colored ones or printed ones and pairing them with whatever I usually have on. 

As for tops, I definitely want to try and start wearing more white. I have been seeing so many beautiful white pieces both on fashion bloggers and on the runway, I sort of want to join in and maybe this might help in cleansing my cold black heart hahah (just kidding I'm a nice person, I swear).

Nothing much going on in the shoe department except that I really want to branch out and try different styles. 

Makeup/Beauty: I usually don't care about lashes all that much despite being the type of person who purchases way too much mascara, but I think I might double up a bit because I'm loving the look of longer lashes lately. 

Another beauty product that I think I might go crazy on this Spring is definitely highlighters. I use highlighters religiously but I always put it on rather sparingly. Like the mascara, I might just use a bit more. 

Lastly, I want to start wearing more nude shades or bright colors on my lips like pink or something. I usually just go bare or use a berry color or dark red so I am going to try and wear something bright.  Yet another simple way to add color to my outfit. 


What about you? How are you planning to shape your Spring wardrobe? Any goals? Or are you like me who is trying to break away from the hold the color black seems to have on me?




xoxo,
                                          
                   Kelly

Monday, February 24, 2014

Nails | Spring is coming!


Not sure of the names but I can check if you like! 

Zuza, Kelly

Mermaid Tears, Planks-a-Lot, Steady As She Rose

Mint Sorbet, Haze

Clouds, Orion

In celebration of Spring being on it's way I thought I would make a quick post of some nail colors I want to bust out and start wearing again. Call me cliche, but Spring usually means pastels for me. To balance everything out, I added two dark colors, one of them being a navy glitter color by Ciate and Zoya Kelly (my name hehehe). Despite being a dark grey, Kelly has a heavy purple base to it which I think makes it at least a bit appropriate for Spring. 

Probably the main color I want to experiment with is different variations of white. Mine comes from one of my most favorite brands ever called Bettina which originated in Puerto Rico and are sold in some Walmarts over in Florida I think... Not entirely sure. Long story about how I came to obtain them but I have a whole bunch and I love them so dang much. Clouds by far is the best white I have ever used. The formula is creamy and not super streaky and is basically a dream to work with. I really suggest investing in a good white color because the formula can really make or break it. Most whites I've purchased in the past are super chalky and disgusting and instead of looking like polish it just looks like I painted my nails with white out. 

A bit nervous because I use my Bettina polishes so much (Especially Clouds and Haze) that I don't know what I am going to do when they run out since I can't exactly get them again unless I order them or something. Hmmm... 


Do you have any favorite colors for Spring?



xoxo,
                                          
                   Kelly

Fashion Week Highlights | Isabel Marant Spring 2014

From Isabel Marant we received a really fun and flirty Spring collection filled with ruffles, chiffon florals, and bitchin' shoes. 

These are some of my favorites. 






Seriously though... The heels. Are. Bitchin'. 





xoxo,
                                          
                   Kelly



**Disclaimer: All photos are from Elle.com**

Friday, February 21, 2014

Fashion Week Highlights | Dolce & Gabbana Spring 2014

As you know, it's time for the Spring collections to be released so all the designers have been debuting their Spring collections via fashion week. 

One of my favorite collections was from Dolce & Gabbana who seemed to have this sort of... Roman strength theme going on. Loved it. These were some of my favorite looks;






The outfits prepared had a lot of gold, a lot of crochet, fur, prints, and polka dots. What I especially appreciated about this collection was the vibrant colors (specifically in the fur), and the cuts of the clothing. Some pieces were flared and other parts were cut straight. 

And can we please talk about the detail?! Look at these shoes! 



But my favorite thing out of the entire collection would have to be the flowers and coins the models wore on their heads. 






Look at that! It's literally so beautiful!!

Between the gorgeous jewelry and the flowers... I am in awe. Hands down my favorite collection from Fashion Week. They definitely took the cake. 

What about you? Did you like this collection as much as I did? If not, who was your pick?


xoxo,
                                          
                   Kelly




**Disclaimer: All photos are from Elle.com**

Tuesday, February 18, 2014

Beauty | Small Sephora Haul

For my most recent birthday I was lucky enough to have received a gift card to heaven on Earth; otherwise known as Sephora. On top of getting some major lemmings, I also received a small birthday gift that held two mini-sized items by Makeup Forever. 


First off I finally got my hands on the Naked Flushed Palette! Seriously been wanting this for the longest time. It includes a bronzer, highlighter (la la love highlighters) and a blush. 




The highlighter is absolutely gorgeous. It reminds me of High Beam by Benefit but the sparkles are more chunky. 

The bronzer is lovely but seems to blend in with my skin tone... Or at least my hands. I tried it yesterday for the first time and although I had to build it a bit, it was noticeable. It's a bit on the sheer side but I think that's only because they wanted the shade to be universal and build able so it could be worn by many people of many shades. The bronzer has little flecks of shimmer spread sparsely throughout. 

Lastly is the blush which is a gorgeous... Sort of rose toned color definitely on the warm side. This too has the sparse flecks. 

Right: Makeup Forever Artist Natural Lipstick in Rouge N6 (?) | Left: Tarte Matte Lip Stain in Fiery 



Lastly is the concealer by the Sephora brand which I just picked up. Decided not to swatch it simply because it's just concealer, and plus I haven't actually used it yet. It's sort of a tradition to always pick up a concealer whenever I go to Sephora (by the actual Sephora brand... No particular reason why) so I went with this one. I usually get the liquid formula but I noticed that they didn't have any... Did they discontinue it? 

I will say that I used my friends concealer the other day (same one as this one, different shade), and it was a bit dry... But then again it had only been used a couple of times so maybe it'll be more creamy once it gets more use. 

If you have any more specific questions about any of the products, don't hesitate to ask! 

Also wanted to mention that more in depth reviews and thoughts on some of these products will be expressed in my February favorites post which should be up in the last days of this month. 

xoxo,
                                          
                   Kelly


Monday, February 17, 2014

Press Release | Spring Lookbook for ZARA

A Zara newsletter popped into my inbox about 5 days ago and I was just looking at right now and decided to share it with you... It's too pretty not to. 






Seriously, the Spring collection looks like it's going to be absolutely gorgeous! Between the clean cuts and the gorgeous flesh tones.... Ah! I'm so excited to see everything! If your not signed up for the newsletter I highly suggest you go to their website and sign up now. They're photography is always on point and lovely to look at.

xoxo,
                                          
                   Kelly




**Disclaimer: Photos taken from Zara Newsletter**