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Avoid At ALL Costs Gurl | Controversial Brands

Makeup tea0

Branding is everything today, especially for me. As an advertising major, I can figure out what a brand’s goal is and what tactics they’re using to execute those goals. Being involved in advertising and the communications industry has helped me look beyond a brand’s strategies. I feel like I can’t be fooled by brands.

My major has also taught me that brands work somewhat like people because brands try to relate to consumers and create relationships with them. As with people, if someone is doing things you deem as unethical, toxic or problematic, you would ideally distance yourself from them. This is applicable to brands, even more so I think, because brands have the ultimate goal of profiting. Are you going to fund something problematic? Do you feel comfortable investing your money into unethical agendas?

Those questions led me to be very wary of the brands I support. I elaborated on this and shopping with a moral compass in a previous post. I compiled a list of controversial brands that you should consider avoiding on AirTable, a site where you can create spreadsheets online and share with others.

The brands I list are the ones I find to be controversial. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. I’ll list why I find these brands to be problematic, my proof, whether or not I have bought from them and why, and anything else I think is relevant. I let you know whether or not I have supported them and will continue to do so. Some of these brands rectified their controversies and have gained my trust back for the time being. Brands are also capable of great things and that is something worth noting.

If you have any controversial brands to add to this list, not just makeup, let me know! Comment on this post or on any of my social media pages: Instagram Twitter Facebook. This list will automatically update itself as I add more content to it, so look for this in my Makeup Talk section on my blog or pinned as a top post on my Facebook and Twitter pages. If I ever unpin these posts from Twitter and Facebook, I can always tweet you a link or you can search “controversial brands” on my blog.

My list: https://airtable.com/embed/shrdQVvtV0DDLrv3g?backgroundColor=blue&layout=card&viewControls=on

Click on the box of a specific brand for all the important to show. If you feel like voting with your dollars isn’t enough, consider contacting these companies. Call them, email them and send them letters. We have to let them know what’s wrong with their actions. If enough people care and contact companies, there will be change. We have the power! Trust me, it may sound cheesy, but if we’re able to voice our opinions to brands, we will garner the confidence to voice out our opinions for bigger causes. We live in a capitalistic society, but we’re not obligated to uphold it or deal with its consequences.

My friend Rachel (she’s a blogger, too! Click her name for her blog link!) inspired me to start contacting brands. I will email them and post a transcript here on the blog. Don’t say quiet. Vote with your wallets!

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Shopping with a Moral Compass | Culture of Overconsumption

Makeup tea0

Social media has really transformed the way information is spread, gathered and presented. This closely relates to everyone one of us. We’ve all seen public figures marked with shocking scandals. We’ve also witnessed candid and sometimes graphic recordings of violence and racist encounters in the streets. Social media has created a culture of exposing harsh realities. This has even been translated to permeate business practices, and marketing strategies and tactics.

Social media has radically transformed brand reputations and their customer service. Anytime that a brand slips, we will know. Someone will @ them on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram. If it is controversial  enough, it’ll gain traction and spread like wildfire. Others will join in too to share their similar experiences with said brand and their product or service. After being bombarded with non-stop notifications, these brands will be forced to react. We no longer live in a world where we just have to deal with things, especially those that we pay for (Well, that’s how it should be and it’s not always the case, but that’s a conversation for another day).

I have become very aware of this in the makeup industry. Brands have totally transformed and attuned themselves to everything makeup aficionados say on social media. We even see drugstore brands kicking their products up a notch to look, feel and compete with high-end makeup. They’re really listening to us.

That realization led me to think about other ways makeup brands behave within this social media exposure culture. When makeup brands have a scandal or some sort of mishap, their actions following that incident really makes or breaks my relationship with them.

As a college student simultaneously working a part-time job, I have really taken into the account the value of money. As an advertising major, I have noticed that consumers truly vote with their dollars. Subsequently, the purchases I make with my hourly $9 wage must be worthwhile. Why use my limited income to support contentious brands? It’s like I’m working to support their impropriety.

At that point, I decided to not support controversial brands. I defined controversial as:

  • Brands with bad customer service and unethical practices.
  • Brands with over zealous and quite possibly paid support from top influencers. This always rubbed me the wrong way. I am all for paying people for any work that they do, but not when it’s falsely fabricated. These influencers will ignore the product’s faults and only regular consumers and smaller influencers will point them out.
  • Brands that blatantly steal ideas from others and give no proper credit are also a no-go for me. Art is my second major and I’m very passionate about giving proper credit. I’ve seen artists have their work stolen from them without any remorse.
  • Brands with consistent scandals and bad PR/ failure to address it with the public are also a no-go for me.
  • Brands that make gimmicky products are on my Avoid at ALL Costs Gurl List. I’m paying for makeup, not pretty packaging!!!! This one gets me the most because brands think a $50 palette with very poor eyeshadow quality is justified if the exterior looks real cute…and consumers fall into that trap. Sounds familiar? ?

Other things to consider when buying makeup is whether or not the brands are cruelty-free, vegan and if they donate to any questionable causes. I’m guilty of purchasing non-cruelty free brands because drugstore makeup isn’t totally cruelty-free. Luckily, my favorite drugstore brand, and actually favorite brand of all time, is Wet N Wild and they are cruelty-free. Vegan products are nice to have as well because I find these products to have the least harmful ingredients. Also, donating to questionable causes is a big thing for me because the money I spend is indirectly supporting those causes. Is it worth having a product if it supports a larger, darker picture?

It’s important to know the brands we purchase products and services from. This is not only about or relevant to makeup. If a brand’s morals don’t align with yours, they don’t deserve your money. However, brands are tactical and know that not everyone can afford to deviate from them. If it possible in your financial situation to shop ethically, I encourage you to do so. If enough people are voting with their dollars, brands will change. It’s not fair for consumers to receive subpar products and customer service or to just know that their money supports malicious activity.

Something to keep in mind when shopping ethically is that brands can change. Some brands take a while to own up to their mistakes, but when they do, it’s refreshing. Whether or not you give a brand a second chance is up to you. I have given brands the benefit of the doubt and I have not regretted my decisions. Brands are bound to make mistakes because nothing is perfect, but their response to those mistakes is what truly matters.

It’s up to all of us to decide what questionable brand behavior we can tolerate. We decide what’s aligned with our moral compass. If someone supports a brand you deem to be unethical, ask them why. Having a healthy discussion about brand behavior can broaden our horizons and help us make better purchasing decisions. We hold the power, so researching brands before we support them is our duty.

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I think compiling that Avoid at ALL Costs Gurl List would be a great idea. I want to add on to it as time passes and I’d like your feedback on it as well!

Also, what do you think of the new logo and site aesthetic? I’ve been on a creative kick lately! Please don’t hesitate to provide me with any feedback!

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Decluttering Makeup | Project Beauty Share

Makeup tea0

My mother got me into makeup. Aside from that, she got me to believe that everyone should give back to their communities. I kept this in mind when she told me that I should declutter my makeup collection about 2 weeks ago.

I took her advice and took out quite a few items. Decluttering made me think about how saturated the beauty industry is and how beauty influencers partner with companies to make us think that we need all the makeup being released into the market. I have nothing against these beauty influencers, but it’s important to note the nature of their careers. Granted, not all of them shove countless products down our throats, but the most popular ones usually do.

Something I feel that many top influencers forget to consider is that they get most of their makeup for free. Very few bloggers mention the cost of products sent to them coupled with the product’s quality and worthwhileness. That’s really important to mention and discuss because the people that will buy the makeup is us. We need to know if this is worth our money. We can’t afford everything that they mention. This failure to mention the price of products inadvertently leads to an obsession with buying products. They should help us pick and choose. I mean, isn’t that their job?

Last night, beauty influencer and blogger Jenny Ruiz (@jen_ny69 on Instagram) mentioned that she has so much makeup and only uses the same products every single day. She wants to become a minimalist beauty collector. That really clicked with me because bloggers don’t really mention that. All of them seek the latest makeup, use it once and I never see it on their channel again. Trying out new products and reviewing them is a part of their jobs, but no one really mentions that buying makeup is becoming extremely excessive and possibly addictive.

I feel like many of their followers and subscribers follow the same patterns. I sometimes sift through the comments of popular bloggers to see what people think of them and their content, and many of them try to buy everything that these bloggers mention. Many of those followers regret their purchases based off of influencer reviews. Many people also mention that most of their money goes to buying what these famous bloggers mention. I feel like this creates a culture of mass consumption and normalcy follows it without shame. Makeup is great, but we don’t need to buy everything in the market. Makeup is shifting from something to make people feel nice and confident to an expensive hobby and competition with others to have “what’s in.”

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The only blogger I’ve seen that declutters their makeup and frequently is Kathleen Fuentes (@Kathleenlights on Instagram). She films them on Snapchat and YouTube and mentions why. I decided to follow her pattern and style of decluttering when decluttering my own makeup.

I don’t own nearly as much makeup as these bloggers, but I do own quite a good amount of products. My vice is lipstick and I own nearly 80 or even more ?  I went by section (blush, bronzer, eyeshadow, etc.). I had a small bag full of makeup and showed it to my mother to see if she wanted to keep anything. She kept a few items and then decluttered her own makeup collection.


Once I had rounded up all of the products, I immediately knew that I wanted to donate it. Taylor (@thataylaa on Instagram) partnered with the non-profit Project Beauty Share and made a YouTube series to raise funds for them. She reviewed 15 foundations for 15 days, dubbing the series 15 Days of Foundation. (This was her second time executing this series, but the second time is when she donated funds to Project Beauty Share). Her mom made shirts to sell in relation to this series to fundraiser for this organization, and she donated more than half of the proceeds to this group.

Project Beauty Share collects new and used makeup, toiletries and hygiene products for women’s shelters. This is fantastic and unique because women’s shelters usually only accept new makeup because many of them lack the resources to sanitize makeup. Having an organization that helps facilitate more donations to women’s shelters is amazing because it helps them get more resources for these women.

I was really happy to donate small package full of makeup to Project Beauty Share! It made me consider my spending habits in regards to makeup. I like to buy makeup, but I buy what I could afford and what I will use. The products I passed along were things I only used a few times, but forgot to return, or things that I was gifted.

I encourage you to declutter your makeup! There is definitely something in each of our collections that we don’t use. Try to see if you can exchange it or pass it along to a family member or friend. If you can’t, consider donating it! It doesn’t have to be donated to Project Beauty Share. Check to see if there’s a similar organization in your area first.

If you’re interested in donating your makeup and giving back to women’s shelters, visit www.projectbeautyshare.org! They give specific instructions for donating. I shipped out my package to them via USPS. Giving back to our communities is important and can be done in a variety of ways!

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Happy New Year | Holiday Looks | Updates

Beauty, Fashion0

Good evening and happy New Years! I hope that you all had a great holiday season with your loved ones. Unfortunately, the holidays are pretty much over and everyone is back to their grind, but there is some positivity to that. We can embrace new opportunities and delve into things we kept putting off. It’s silly to wait for a new year to begin new things, but sometimes that construct of newness is motivating.

I’m guilty of waiting until the new year to do new things as well. I hope to really expand this blog and begin a YouTube channel. I learned a lot about myself and what I want during 2016 and I feel more confident to chase it. With that being said, let’s get started and talk about my holiday makeup and looks!

Thanksgiving 2016


This is beyond overdue, my apologies! For Thanksgiving, I figured that I would dress nice and practical. A loose dress was ideal for me because I could eat without restraint and not feel like my clothes were eating me instead by the end of the night. I purchased this dress at Forever 21 for $15! I have mixed feelings about Forever 21 now, but I think that you can find nice and affordable items if you sit and look through their site. Their website is shifting towards Urban Outfitters vibes, if you ask me ? anyway, this dress was super comfy and I recommend it!

Now, onto the star of the show: those knee-length boots! These boots are the most exciting part for me. I got these for $33 including shipping @ Lola Shoetique! If you have an Instagram, you know that Lola Shoetique is THE place for shoes. Well, that’s what they and influencers want you to think ? I was pleasantly surprised with the quality of these boots. They were originally $50.

Lola Shoetique has a 50% off tab on their site with really nice shoes. I was lucky enough to find them in my size because the shoes featured there are usually really tiny or very large. I’m a size 8, a fairly common size. The boots felt so nice and sturdy, so I would definitely buy from them again.

Lola’s prices are okay — I honestly expected it to be more expensive. They’re not totally out of reach, which is nice because they ship fast and feature really trendy shoes. Their clothes are really expensive in my opinion, though. I’ve yet to try them.

One last thing that I like about Lola Shoetique is how each shoe tells you what size the model wore and whether or not the shoes run big. I think that’s extremely helpful and it’s the first time I see a brand do that. Props to you, Lola!

As for makeup, I basically threw on all the matte browns in the Morphe 35O. I was going for a nice, warm, brown smokey look, and I think I achieved that nicely. It was soft, but really completed my look.

One last thing: my highlight was beaminnnnnnnn’ ✨✨✨

The stars of my makeup:

  • Morphe 35O Eyeshadow Palette
  • L.A. Girl Pro Coverage Illuminating Foundation
  • Wet N Wild MegaGlo Highlighting Powder in Precious Petals
  • Ofra Cosmetics x Kathleenlights Miami Fever Liquid Lipstick

Christmas 2016

Christmas is the one holiday I over dress for without shame or thinking about it twice. I just love to be all glam and take pictures by the Christmas tree.

I also picked up a dress from Forever 21 for Christmas. It was on sale for less than $10!

I was really feeling oranges and red this holiday season! My Christmas dress’s color was very similar to my Thanksgiving dress.

I love open-back outfits. They really do it for me. That’s one part of my body I feel comfortable showcasing at all times. I have a couple of spots on my back, but I don’t find them unappealing or anything like that.

These shoes were also on sale! They were $13 with free shipping on Charlotte Russe’s website on Cyber Monday. They’re the first Valentino-inspired heels I like. They were surprisingly very comfortable and easy to walk in. I’ve really been into tie up heels and sandals. I think these could even be paired with slacks to spice up an office outfit!

I feel like my makeup was the finishing touch. I used glitter for the first time and it was surprisingly successful!

The stars of my makeup:

  • Anastasia Beverly Hills Master Palette by Mario
  • J. Cat Beauty Rockin’ the Night Sparkling Powder in Gold Road
  • L.A. Girl Pro Coverage Illuminating Foundation
  • Jeffree Star Cosmetics Skin Frost in Peach Goddess
  • Lena Lashes Michael Liquid Lipstick

New Years 2016

I decided to be more “trendy” for New Years. I’ve been eyeing black see-through and mesh tops for a while, but I was always skeptical because I didn’t feel comfortable wearing a bra with it and that being clearly seen through the shirt. I didn’t like that look for myself and I didn’t have a thick enough bandeau to work with that shirt. I couldn’t find one either.

I came across this top in a random sale at Charlotte Russe’s website sometime in the first week of December. It’s was only $6 with free shipping!!

I thought it was perfect because I love crop tops and stripes. The top came with that black part that didn’t require my bra to be exposed. I got a looser fitting top because I prefer loose tops with tight bottoms or tight tops with loose bottoms.

Not my picture! It’s from the store’s site.

My heels were also a steal. I got these trendy, clear heels for only $23 (including shipping) from Ami Clubwear online! These surprised me a lot like my Christmas heels. They were comfortable and sturdy. I was concerned that clear heels wouldn’t be sturdy or well-made because I assumed the straps would be too thin.

And my makeup was also surprising to me! I tried out a new product, the e.l.f. Studio Matte Lip Color. A good friend gave it to me for Christmas and I fell in love. She gave me four colors and they’re all amazing. They are creamy, super pigmented, extremely long lasting, non-drying and comfortable. I ate and drank frequently on New Years and these didn’t budge at all!! In this picture, these are my lips at the end of the night without retouching the lipstick!

Granted, these lipsticks transfer because they’re not a liquid lipsticks. That doesn’t bother me. If you line your lips, these lipsticks don’t feather or slip and slide on your mouth.

The stars of my makeup:

  • Anastasia Beverly Hills Master Palette by Mario
  • Rimmel London
  • Becca Cosmetics Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed in Pearl
  • e.l.f. Studio Matte Lip Color in Berry Sorbet

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One of my resolutions for this year is to be more fun with my outfits. I get scared to rock certain looks or wear certain things. I’ve been told that I make risky and interesting fashion choices, but I want to take it further. I want to make these decisions and feel comfortable about it. I also want to document them better!

I hope you enjoyed this recap! Expect more this year. More blog posts and Youtube coming up!!!!

Thank you for reading. Please subscribe and follow me on Instagram @yolauralikesbeauty ?

TooFaced Chocolate Bon Bons Eyeshadow Palette Review

Makeup Product Reviews, Treat Yo Self0

Many of the beauty videos on YouTube geared towards beginners in makeup suggest either an Urban Decay Naked palette or the TooFaced Chocolate Bar Palette as a staple and cobblestone for any and every makeup collection. I agree because I own the Naked 3, and it’s heavenly.

Because of all those videos I watched on YouTube, I decided to purchase a TooFaced Chocolate Bar palette. There are 4 kinds – the Chocolate Bar, the Semi-Sweet, the Sweet Peach and the Chocolate Bon Bons. I went with the latter because I don’t really have cool toned palettes in my collection.

My coworkers generously gave me a Sephora gift card for my birthday, so you best believe that I ran to my local Sephora to pick this up. I picked up an Anastasia Beverly Hills Lipstick that day as well. I reviewed it here.


I hate to give a negative review 2 days in a row, but I didn’t like this palette.

Granted, I was awestruck at first. I was so excited to finally own a chocolate bar palette that I forced myself to love it. I stopped using it for about a week or so because I just wasn’t in the mood to wear makeup. When I picked it up again, I wasn’t in love anymore lol.

This palette’s smell is pretty nauseating. I’m not really sensitive with smells, but I couldn’t stand this one. The only smell I can’t tolerate is pineapples, coconuts and a combination of those two. I’ve heard people rave about the smell and it straight up smells like a sugary nightmare. It’s not a pleasant smell. It doesn’t even really smell like chocolate.

Once I get over the smell, I realize that the eyeshadow quality is pretty mediocre. I’m pretty pale and some of the matte shades barely showed up on my eyes. Some of the shimmers weren’t the best either. I had trouble blending some of the mattes, so my eyeshadow looked patchy. You’d think that a $50 eyeshadow palette would blend itself ? My favorite eyeshadows were Molasses Chip and Cafe Au Lait, which were both shimmer shades.

My last gripe with the palette was that an eyeshadow was missing. I got my palette at Sephora so this could’ve been an issue on their end. I didn’t notice at first because the pan was the tinted the same color of the eyeshadow. When I tried picking up the eyeshadow with a brush, I struggled. I inspected the palette and realized that the pan was empty ? I was stunned that a whole eyeshadow was gone. Another shade had a fingerprint on it, and it wasn’t mine, so now I’m very curious about Sephora’s quality control ?

However, I had my dad and brother look at the pan of the missing eyeshadow. They thought the eyeshadow was there, but that the formula was so stiff that it felt like nothing was there and that I’m scratching the pan ?

My 2 cents on this palette — skip ⏭ If you’re looking for a cool toned palette worth the bang of your buck, check out Morphe Brushes palettes. The quality is good for the price, you’re given 35 eyeshadows and pan sizes are huge. The 35K palette is a stunning cool toned palette. Also, open your selected palette inside of Sephora to make sure no one touched it. The eyes are a very sensitive area and you don’t know if the palette has germs because of whom touched it. Only trust pre-owned palettes if it’s been confirmed that it was sanitized.

Let me know about your experience with TooFaced Chocolate Bar palettes! Maybe mine was a dud or maybe the original Chocolate Bar is just the best. Tell me in the comments ???

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Anastasia Beverly Hills Liquid Lipstick Review

Makeup Product Reviews0

Anastasia Beverly Hills seems to be one of the most coveted high-end brands. Literally ANYTHING they launch sells out very quickly. I think their liquid lipsticks are one of their, if not their most, popular products. Their fall collection last year was sold out for many months.

I decided to jump on the bandwagon and purchase one of their liquid lipsticks from their spring collection. I picked up Stripped; I was seeking a nice, light brown nude. The color looked gorgeous in swatches and I was confident that I would love it.


I hate to say it, but this product was such a disappointment! This formula is extremely drying. This settled into every fine line I could possibly have on my lips. I feel like this created even more fine lines. I wore this twice and I hated it both times. I tried taking a picture of it on my lips, but it looked terrible.

The application was better when I wore it over NYX’s Rose Brown lip liner. It felt slightly less drying, but it wasn’t enough. The formula feels and looks dry on the applicator.

I’m not sure why these sell out. I’ve worn what people consider to be some of the most uncomfortable liquid lipsticks (yes Colourpop I’m looking @ u) and it was wayyyyy more hydrating than this.

I think I’m accustomed to more liquidy liquid lipstick formulas, and ABH is far from that. I only know one popular beauty influencer that didn’t like it either – Jamie Paige Beauty. (She’s great and gives good reviews.)

This product was a fluke for me, but I really respect the brand. For those that don’t know, Anastasia Soare owns this brand and her daughter Norvina is very involved in the manufacturing process, quality control and thinking up of new products and subsequent shades.

I admire this brand for trying to genuinely cater to different skin tones. This product just didn’t cut it for me, but I’m still interested in trying out other products!

I returned this to Sephora and purchased something else that I loveeeeeee wayyyyyyyy more! I also returned another cult favorite – come back on tomorrow to find out what else I returned 😉

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Go-to Glowy Glam

Beauty, Makeup looks0

My go-to makeup as of late has been anything to make me look glowy. I feel like that’s when my skin looks its best and healthiest. I contour my eyes just a little bit, warm up my face (I loveeee orangey bronzers) and pack on the highlighter in a circular motion to get a glow that seems to stem all over.

I feel like this look can be worn regardless of the season. It can be played up and varied by changing the lip color. I love this look best with a glossy lip, but I’ll show variations of this look with fall appropriate lip options soon!

I’m a little extra and I wore this to school, but I felt like it’s wearable enough to wear it everyday! I even think that the lashes are suitable for everyday ?

Product details:

  • NYC Smooth Skin Bronzing Powder and Liquid Eyeliner
  • BH Cosmetics Nude Blush 10 Color Blush Palette (second darkest shade for bronzer on top of NYC one)
  • NYX Strobe of Genius Highlighting Palette and Dewy Setting Spray
  • L’Oreal Brow Stylist Definer in Brunette
  • Wet n Wild UltimateBrow Mascara in Nothing But Bru-Nette
  • Kat Von D Shade and Light Eye Contour Palette
  • Wet N Wild MegaSlicks Lip Gloss in Sunkissed
  • Falsies I ordered off of eBay

Are you into glowy looks this fall season? Or do you prefer vampy makeup? I feel like I need both lol. Expect a vampy look soon ?

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Blue Smokey Eyes + Nude Lips

Beauty, Makeup looks0

I decided to be a little extra and wear blue smokey eyes and pink, nude lips for class ??  to my surprise, it didn’t look tacky and I got a few compliments.

My boyfriend got me an amazing eyeshadow palette with nice, pops of color for my birthday. This is one of the few times I’ve dug into the more dramatic shades. This eye look is a nice pop for neutral-colored outfits! It’s a nice, lil look for start off the usual fall, smokey eye trend.

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Good lighting was on my side ??

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For this look, I used:

  • BH Cosmetics Smokey Eyes 28 Color Eyeshadow Palette (lid) and Nude Blush 10 Color Blush Palette
  • Kat Von D Shade and Light Eye Contour Palette (transition, crease and brow bone)
  • e.l.f. Studio Cream Eyeliner in Black
  • Jordana Best Lash Extreme Volumizing Mascara
  • L’Oreal Brow Stylist Definer in Brunette

  • Wet n Wild UltimateBrow Mascara in Nothing But Bru-Nette

  • Blue Ice from the Anastasia Beverly Hills Moonchild Glowkit (highlight, brow bone and inner corner)
  • NYC Smooth Skin Bronzing Powder in Sunny
  • Jordana Easyliner Retractable Pencil for Lips in Rock N’ Rose
  • NYX Lip Lingerie in Baby Doll
  • Maybelline FitMe concealer in Fair and Eyestudio Master Precise Skinny Gel Pencil in Defining Black
  • NYX Dewy Setting Spray

Expect more colorful smokey eyes from me! I got some new, vibrant eyeshadows ?  Show me your colorful eye looks; I’d love some inspo!

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First Cut Crease/ Catching Up/ Flashback Friday

Beauty, Makeup looks0

Long time no see!! I was busy this summer with 2 internships, work, 2 classes and 2 vacations. Things kinda settled now, so now I can be more devoted to the blog!

Since I was on hiatus this summer, I thought I’d show you the looks I documented and never posted. I’ll also fill you in about some cool things that happened this summer {not like u asked but :-))} I turned 21 this summer and attempted my first cut crease ? I gave it my own spin, and I must admit that I slewww ???


Product list:

  • Morphe 35O
  • Maybelline FitMe Concealer in Fair
  • Wet N Wild MegaSlicks Lip Gloss in Sunkissed
  • NYX Slim Eye Pencil in Electric Blue
  • Milani Brow Fix Kit in Medium
  • Kiss Lashes in Shy
  • L’Oréal Telescopic Mascara (Gold tube) {not sure what the differences are between each tube color; I’ve seen 3 ?}
  • Rimmel London Lasting Finish 25 Hour Foundation in 101 Classic Ivory
  • Maybelline Instant AgeRewind Erased Dark Circle Treatment Concealer in Fair
  • NYC High Definition Liquid Eyeliner Pen in Ultra Black

This look was all drugstore/ affordably priced! Don’t let people tell you that you can only slay with high-end makeup.Let me know what you think of this look in the comments below! What kinds of looks did you create this summer? What did your first cut crease look like? Do you have any suggestions for me?

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L.A. Girl Concealer Review

Makeup Product Reviews0

I feel like the L.A. Girl Pro Conceal HD Concealers are the most raved about item on YouTube. Every single person that mentions it in their videos is beyond obsessed with it. It’s given the brand L.A. Girl a lot of hype. It’s prompted me to try their other products.

I hate to be the needle in the hay stack, but I really detest this product. I bought the yellow corrector because I was basically brainwashed by YouTube that I need to color correct, although I barely have under eye circles or bags (that’s a different topic altogether — YouTube is a strange, yet great place. I’ll talk about that in a future post.)

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This concealer is not for me. It creases beyond relief. I liked putting it under my Maybelline FitMe concealer. It creased a lot at first, but then after like 2 weeks, it worked well for about a week. I would make sure my under eye area was well-hydrated. Then, I’d go in with the Real Techniques Miracle Complexion Sponge. (I’d like to point out that I would never dampen the sponge, although that’s recommended.) Afterwards, I’d set it with the NYC Smooth Skin Loose Face Powder in Translucent.

I’m not sure what happened after a week. I religiously repeated the same routine, and even switched up my setting powders because I thought that might’ve caused the creasing. I also tried blending it out with a brush, and I still got the same results. I think I got just got lucky the week that it worked. This product emphasized fine lines that I didn’t even know I had. It became very hard to work with, so I had to drop it.

I have very dry skin, and no other concealer creases this much in my under eye area. Not even using a primer on my under eye area could save me with this product. Baking was a fail, too. It only worked once during that successful week I had with the product.

I’ve heard people complain about the applicator, but I think that’s its best feature (besides the $5 dollar price point); it reminds me of a small concealer brush, allowing to appropriately and precisely place the product on my face.

It is worth trying because it seems to work on many people and it’s very affordable. However, the creasing ruins it for me. I won’t try other shades because of this. This is another YouTube product that failed me.

If you have any suggestions for making this work, please tell me in the comments in below. I want to love this 🙁 What other L.A. Girl products are phenomenal to you? I think their retractable lip liners are everything.

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Nevermind Cosmetics Review

Makeup Product Reviews0

Makeup is poppin’ and so many brands are up and coming. There’s more to the makeup industry than what is sold at the local drugstore, Ulta and Sephora, so I thought it’d be cool to try a new brand. As a result, I purchased a metallic lipstick from Nevermind Cosmetics.

I was really excited about this purchase because this company is based in Miami, and I’m a Miami native (well Hialeah, but whatever ?). Also, I was excited because this company only sells lipsticks (for now as far as I’m aware) and they’re affordable. The metallic lipsticks are $13 each and the matte ones are $15 each; you get a $5 coupon for signing up for their cute and non-obtrusive mailing list. When a company only sells one kind of product, I’m given the impression that they specialize in this. I get the same impression from Bite Beauty. I think it’s okay for a brand to only sell one kind of product because they’re able to dedicate all of their resources to continue producing it at a high-quality.


This was my first metallic lipstick and I was very impressed. The lipstick shape and feel is unique. It felt firm, yet creamy enough to glide on my lips. It could totally survive a Third World War with how firm and well-made it feels. The packaging is also very cute. I’m not one to really address packaging because I mostly purchase drugstore-priced makeup. I can’t really expect much out of packaging if the product is very affordable.

The presentation of this product is also stunning. The mailing package was baby pink and covered in Lisa Frank stickers! When I opened the package, it was filled with the type of confetti (I think?) that’s used to fill Easter eggs. In addition to receiving a lipstick, I got a baby pink choker and a handwritten note! This was the sweetest touch and shows the value of my purchase to the owners of this company.

I think Nevermind Cosmetics is definitely worth checking out. They have sales every so often, making their products even more worthwhile. I rate their lipstick a 5/5!

Which local brands have you tried and recommend? Which indie brands do you love? Let me know in the comments below!

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Teal Eyeshadow Look

Beauty, Makeup looks0

Summer calls for summer makeup! My second summer look for this summer is a teal eyeshadow look. I thought it’d be cool to go for a pop of color. This teal shade made me feel like a mermaid ??


I think this look would look good on anyone, regardless of their age and skin tone. Teal is a universal and very wearable color. I spread the teal all over my lid, but it can be washed down with some brown or black eyeshadow, depending on your preference. I’m going to recreate this on my mom to show you what I’m talking about; my mother has a deeper skin tone.

Here’s my product breakdown:

  • 2014 e.l.f. Cosmetics Holiday Palette
  • New York Color High Definition Liquid Eyeliner pen
  • Benefit Cosmetics Goof Proof Eyebrow Pencil in 03 Medium
  • Maybelline Eye Studio Brow Drama Scuplting Brow Mascara in Soft Brown
  • Wet N Wild MegaGlo All-In-One Highlighting Stick in Marigold Round (my highlight is so strong ✨)

What summer-y looks have you tried? Are you fan of a pop of color? Let me know in the comments below!

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