Christmas Party Pics! & J Simpson Ken Paves Extensions Review (A much delayed post)

I had an amazing Christmas this year. I spent it with my boyfriends family, and later on with my family. The weekend prior to Christmas, we went to a nice Christmas party at a bar/restaurant, but I felt TERRIBLE. My throat was progressively closing up, and it was so sore I couldn't speak or swallow my own saliva the whole nigh. So I missed out on the dinner/dessert and drinks. :( It was still a really nice time.

This is the gorgeous tree my boyfriends mom decorated

George and Me at the Christmas party!

My future mother-in-law and Me :)

And you all know I was wearing my extensions.. and curled my hair with a flat iron.


I attempted to take pictures of my makeup, but I got really shiny and gross by the time I got home.




What I had on:
MAC Select Cover up NW25
YSL Touch Eclat #1
Estee Lauder Double Wear Foundation in Tawny, mixed with Make up Forever HD #128
MAC Blot Powder Medium Dark
NARS Lovejoy & Albatross Blushes
MAC Refined Golden Bronzer

Sephora strass #05 eyeshadow all over lid
MAC Folie eye shadow in crease
MAC Carbon smudged in lashline
Stila Eye Kohl in Amethyst smudged into lashline
Covergirl Lash Blast Mascara
Ardell Lashes (can't remember the #, they are only half strips)

MAC Stripdown Lip Liner
MAC Creme Cup Lipstick
MAC Like Venus Dazzleglass


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Jessica Simpson HAIRDO (Ken Paves) Hair Extensions
I had some requests asking me if I tried these. And yes, I tried the synthetic hair extensions, as well as the human hair extensions. I purchased them off ebay for a fraction of what they were being sold for at my local ULTA. I think they went to clearance because I don't see them anymore.

Here are my thoughts:
21" Human Hair Extensions in the shade R10 Chestnut
I had these in my hair everyday for a year.

Here are the PROS:
- The extensions are layered, so it blends in VERY well with your real hair unlike other extensions that hang like strands
- They were thick and gave my hair lots of volume
- After dying them, the condition still stayed great
- Very minimal shedding through shampoos
- They stayed good through lots of heat styling and styling products
- It held a curl well, unlike many I've tried
- You can style it as you would you real hair. For example, I would wash my hair, apply hair gel and diffuse it with the extensions in my hair and it looked exactly like my real hair.

CONS:
- The piece was too large for my head, so it hung onto my neck a little (this may set me back from purchasing it again) Its suppose to be form fitting.. but it wasn't for me.
- It is heavy, so it puts strain on your roots

Here is a picture of me wearing them last year straight:


Here they are curly:


This is how short my hair was without them (picture taken the same week) gahh my hair was so fried!!


Now, the Synethetic 23" Wavy Extensions in R6 Dark Chocolate

PROS:
- Super long
- Very silky when you first buy them
- Layered to blend in with your hair
- Not overly shiny like a lot of synthetic hair, so you couldn't tell it was fake
- The piece fit my head well, unlike the human hair piece
- Light weight
- Curls stayed in place, even when washed

CONS:
- Can't heat style it or put products in it
- Lasts only for a couple weeks or less with daily wear
- Once you wash them the consistency turns coarser
- They don't last longer than 2 weeks. They turn to ratty barbie hair.

I would recommend these if you're going to wear them for a special occasion or event to look your best. Because they only look the best the first few times you wear them.

I don't have many picture of me wearing these. But here is one:

horrible pic.. ignore the pimples. lol

If you have any other questions about these just ask!

Fashion Trend: Fingerless Gloves.

I am loving the fingerless glove trend. I really want the ones from Topshop, but they don't ship to the US. :( (12/30 - woohoo I was wrong, they do ship!!) I don't own any leather ones.. just knitted ones.







These are the ones I purchased from forever 21 this past month..




Do you own any fingerless gloves? Where'd you purchase yours?

Stila Good to Glow - A Steal!! + Swatches!

Stila Good to Glow Illuminating Finishing Powder Set

Last week when I was waiting in checkout at Sephora, the $10 price tag on these baked powders caught my eye. I made the super quick decision in purchasing it. That's $5 each for a huge Stila baked powder. Pure Awesomeness. The lighter color (rose gold) is a shimmery light pink.. it reminds me of a MAC MSF. Perhaps Porcelain Pink? But prettier in my opinion. The darker color (bronze) is a beautiful red bronze. The pigmentation is wonderful, especially on bronze. You only need a little bit. I'm already thinking about buying backups.. but these things are SO big, I can't imagine using them up. Definitely recommend these!

Click here to view product info on Sephora.com
Click here to view all of Sephora's "Sweet Steals" under $10

I might just try to grab the NARS concealer duo if they have it at my Sephora :)

Dyed my hair & added 18" long extensions!

I used Garnier 100% Color in #501 Medium Brown

My color was fading A LOT so I decided to dye it again last Friday. I used the same color, but I know I didn't keep it in my hair long enough to get the actual color I was suppose to. I only used one box and I concentrated mainly on the top half of my head where my hair was the lightest shade of brown(where I had my bleach accident) and didn't focus much on the bottom half of my hair or underneath. I massaged it into my hair & left it in for 20 minutes, rinsed & shampooed.

It turned out the way I wanted it to :) A medium/dark brown that's a little lighter on the bottom. Some of my old highlights underneath are still visible.. and I really like that. I'm thinking about adding a small handful of golden blonde highlights underneath my hair.



This was my hair after BEFORE i dyed it:


I liked it but it was fading fast and my roots were growing in really dark.

I also purchased a pack of extensions from my local Sally's Beauty Supply. I got the Euronext Remy 18 inch Clip-Ins in Dark Brown. It was $89.99 or $79.99 if you have a club card. This is the 2nd time purchasing these. I had trimmed my older ones and they are now the same length as my hair since it has grown. I really like them. They feel natural, last a long time, you can color them (I've highlighted them and they still stayed good), they are light weight and the clips stay in my hair very well (I've had bad clips that would slip right out). I had them previously when my hair was a lot shorter and I thought that there wasn't enough hair & it looked stringy in my hair. So I would always put my hair halfway up in a clip so you couldn't tell. But this time around it blended so nicely and it was a perfect amount. It comes with 8 pieces.. a few longer rows and a few 1 1/2" strands. It's a good amount of hair and I used all of the strands because my hair is so thick.

For reference, I've also purchased Satin Strands a few times and I like them too, but you have sew in your own clips, they're heavier and in my past experience they would always go flat. I did like them though, but their color choices for brunettes is kind of poor. I have also purchased Sassy extensions and It was a complete waste of my money because they are incredibly thin & I doubled the tracks and they were still too thin. It looked like thin strands coming from my hair. I ended up tossing them after 1 use.

My best friend has tried all of the brands that Sally has to offer and she agrees Euronext are her favorite. In addition from the brands I tried, she tried the Revlon ones (which turn to ratty barbie hair after a few uses) and the Paris Hilton extensions (which also turn to ratty barbie hair after a couple uses).

Here's a picture with them clipped in and curled with my flat iron.

Nails: OPI Haul! La Paz-itively Hot, Dazzled By Gold & Purple with a Purpose!

I bought two at $8.50 each and got one free, plus used a $5 off $10 coupon. So, I paid $12 for 3 polishes! Woo! Great deal. I think it goes through till the 24th?

 At my ULTA, all of the latest collections were completely sold out! I couldn't believe it. They didn't have anything from the Suede Collection, only a couple bottles from the Matte collection and absolutely nothing left from the holiday collection (except for the gold one I bought) :(

These are the polishes I got..

Right now I have on La Paz-itively Hot.. and I LOVE it. I like it so much better without a clear top coat. I applied a shiny top coat and it really altered the color. I'll know for next time. :)

With a clear top coat and Dazzled By Gold for tips!

Rant: snow, snow go away.

I dread the winters in Chicago.

Q: Why do I dislike the winter?
A: I don't like being cold (unless its summertime and I have the A/C blasting), I always slip on the ice and hurt myself (This happened twice already), I always get sick (I've been sick for a consecutive two months now), Waking up and its still dark outside, Brushing the ice and snow off my car that accumulated through the night, warming up my car for 10+ freezing cold minutes, driving under the speed limit so my car doesn't do a 360, Leaving work and its dark outside,

And I can't take product pictures!!!! As you may notice, I take all of my product pictures outside to get the most accurate colors, clarity, etc. Soo, I went in my backyard like usual and snapped some pictures of the NARS blushes in the previous post.. and I could no longer feel my hands. And since we don't have many hours of sunlight, it makes it twice as hard. *sigh*

This is what my backyard looks like. And no, I didn't make this picture black and white. That's how lifeless it is outside. lol

oh well.

George + Natty <3

NARS Lovejoy & Albatross Powder Blushes Review!

NARS Albatross and Lovejoy Blushes

Lovejoy is a beautiful, shimmering bronzed rose. When applied, it instantly adds definition and warmth to my face.

The pigmentation is amazing, and you only need a light touch of the brush for a natural flush of color. Because it's so pigmented, using a duo fiber brush works best and lightly dabbing the powder across the cheeks.

This shade particularly goes really well with my tan skin tone, and I highly recommend it for medium, olive and tan skin tones! This is now one of my favorite blushes!

Albatross is a sheer, light golden powder used for highlighting the cheeks/face.

I'm not going to lie - Albatross looks a bit intimidating in the pan. Nars is known for providing some really pigmented blushes, so I had always assumed Albatross was going to be a pigmented, frosty white (in which I could use any of my white loose pigments). But, don't let the looks of it fool you. If you look closely, you'll see that it has a golden-yellow pearl.

When applied to the face, it goes on as a sheer, golden yellow sheen. It gives a very nice glow to the cheeks without looking shimmery or frosty. It's great for highlighting the top of the cheekbones, and it looks great layered over blushes.

A little goes a long way - my favorite way to apply this powder is with a fan or duo fiber brush.

Kim Kardashian's makeup artist uses Albatross to give Kim a radiant glow. She's wearing it in the photo below, across her cheekbones and it looks like she may be wearing it heavily on her neck.

[photo was taken from Mario's blog]

Here are a couple pictures of myself I took in the car last night. I was wearing Lovejoy & Albatross. If you wanna know what was on my whole face, post a comment :)

Nars Blushes retail for $28 and can be purchased at Sephora.

What are some of your favorite NARS blushes? I want them all!

All Cosmetics Wholesale Review!

http://www.allcosmeticswholesale.com
It's basically a site that sells High End Cosmetics, as well as some drugstore cosmetics at a fraction of the cost. There are brands such as MAC, YSL, Stila, Urban Decay, etc. I found a ton of great things.. but I only ordered a couple. I received my order about 5 days later. Everything was correct.. and I very happy with my purchase. I would recommend ordering from this site.

Onto what I purchased:

STILA Convertible Eye Color "Onyx" $7.99 Retail $22
LANCOME Le Stylo Waterproof retractable Long Lasting Eye Liner "Noir" $9.99 Retail $23.50
LANCOME Le Crayon Poudre Powder Pencil for the Brows "Taupe" $7.99 Retail $23.50

Stila Convertible Eye Color: One side is a retractable eye liner, the other side is smudge tool & you can unscrew it from the middle, and out will pop out a smudge applicator with a frosty white shadow. So this is a really a neat product thats very handy. You can line your eyes and apply a highlight in the corners. The pigmentation of the eye liner is really good. It's really creamy and extremely black.

Lancome Le Stylo: This is a black retractable waterproof eye liner. It isn't the most intense black.. but it's really good and lasts all day for me. It reminds me of the Revlon Colorstay Retractable Eye Liner. The opposite side has a smudge tool which is very useful. I always soften the lines so my eyes don't look so harsh.

Lancome Le Poudre: I've heard this product is amazing. I purchased a color that is way too light for me because they were sold out of the color I needed. The formula is very light and powdery, so I can tell its a really nice product and won't go on as harsh as a regular brow pencil. I'll be looking into purchasing the right shade. (I didn't swatch it because I have it up for swap)

CLARINS Self Tanning Face Cream $10.99 Retail $32

Clarins Facial Self Tanner: The reviews for this were really good, so I decided to give it a try. It's a light brown cream lotion that reminds me of my Banana Boat and Coppertone self tanners I used when I was in Middle and High School. It also has the strong self tanner smell that reminds me of Off Bug Spray. Because its a tinted lotion, you instantly have a little color to your face. I've been using it all week and I have mixed feelings about it. I really don't see any difference in this compared to putting Jergens on my face. It gives VERY subtle golden color by morning that almost all washes away once I washed my face. I prefer using my SUN labs self tanner on my face, which gives my face a deeper brown color. It's not a bad product, but its not the best. At this point, I don't think I'd repurchase. I would be on the lookout for another facial self tanner. Any suggestions?

Have you purchased anything from this site? Any products you think I should try? Let me know! :)

Revlon Lip Glosses

Revlon is probably one of the few drugstore brands of makeup I'd actually buy. So when my Local Drugstore (Jewel/Osco) had Revlon Mineral Lip glaze on sale for 50% off, I bought a back up (Unlimited Nectar) and two other shades. And, Walgreen's had all Revlon Beyond Natural Cream Lip gloss on Clearance for around $3 each, as well as Revlon Colorstay Lipstick in "Smooth Nude" (which happens to be another favorite of mine) Revlon Lip gloss in Life's a Peach was on sale for $4.99. So yay! Lots of goodies.

 From Left to Right: Revlon Colorstay Mineral Lipglaze "Neverending Nude 505", Revlon Colorstay Mineral Lipglaze "Everlasting Blush 515", Colorstay Mineral Lipglaze "Unlimited Nectar 520", Revlon Super Lusturous Lipgloss "Life's a Peach 110", Revlon Beyond Natural Cream Lipgloss "Peach 110" and Revlon Colorstay Lip Color "Smooth Nude 350".

"Neverending Nude" with MAC Stripdown Lip Liner

Revlon Mineral Lipglaze: I've said it before, I absolutely LOVE these. "Unlimited Nectar" is the shade I wear just about every day. I love it because it's not sticky on my lips, the color doesn't flake off and it doesn't make my lips peel. It's very moisturizing and it lasts for HOURS. It leaves yours lips with a slight shine without looking "flat" like many lasting lip colors do. Its definitely a lip gloss that is good for when you're somewhere where you can't keep pulling out your lip gloss to reapply. Neverending Nude is a creamy light mauve, Everlasting Blush is a frosted pink and unlimited nectar is a creamy beigey peach. I'm very happy with all three.

Revlon Super Lusturous Lipgloss: "Life's a Peach" is one of my favorite lip glosses. I love wearing it with any nude color to add shine and a hint of peach with a pink pearl. It really makes my lip color "POP". It is also non sticky and moisturizing on my lips.

Revlon Beyond Natural Cream Lipgloss: I love the color of "Peach" it is a very vibrant peach and really suits my skin tone. The formula is a little thick, and if you apply too much you will end up with gooey feeling lips. But with a thin coat, it makes your lips feel really smooth and no stickyness what so ever. I really like this and would repurchase if it was the clearance price. I probably wouldn't repurchase for the regular price.

Revlon Colorstay Lip Color: This is a back up. I mentioned this in previous posts, but I'll do a quick overview. This is one of my few favorite drugstore lipsticks. It's a nude coral/light pink/mauve with a pink pearl. It is similar to the much talked about "Nude Attitude" but it is a little more sheer. It goes on extremely smooth and glossy and will dry to a semi matte. I love how this looks when I apply a little concealer to my lips prior application.

If you like peachy pinks, I would recommend all of these!

Small MAC Haul! (Creme Cup Lipstick, Like Venus Dazzleglass)

I bought a few things at my recent trip to MAC. I didn't end up getting any of what I came for, but I did get a couple goodies that have been on my wish list forever! I was going through the lipsticks, picking out all of the colors I already owned.. lol and then I picked up "Creme Cup", a color I've been wanting for a really long time but never really had the chance to view it in person. I didn't know it was a Cremesheen, which made me extremely iffy, because I do not like the Cremesheen formula at all. All of my Cremesheens have broke.. Either completely smashed, have slanted or melted. It's not like a Glaze or Luster that goes on smooth.. you have to apply a little pressure to get the color on your lips (at least for me) and you can't apply too much pressure otherwise your lipstick will tilt. Anyway, I took a chance and got it. AND, I purchased "Like Venus" Dazzleglass. I also dislike dazzleglass because they run out so quickly and the color doesn't stay on your lips very long, but I thought paired with Creme Cup, it would be very pretty.

I really like Creme Cup. It reminds me of a more intense "Hue". It's a very "wearable" pink. And it is really hard for me to find a wearable every day pink. I don't like pinks that are too cool (have too much of a blue or purple tone to it). I like my pink to be slightly warm, and this one is. :)

Left: Bare Lips with Creme Cup

Right: Creme Cup w/ Like Venus over it

Also, I purchased another bottle of Mineralize Satinfinish Foundation in NC37. I'm a NC40 in Fix Fluid, but NC40 in Satinfinish goes on a tad too orangey for me. NC37 works great. I love this foundation on my more natural days when I want my skin to look radiant and glowing.

And last but not least, I purchased the 224 brush! Ever since I saw pixiwoo using this as a concealer brush, I wanted it. I don't like the regular concealer brush that much that just smears it under your eyes, and I don't like applying concealer with my fingers because my nails are so long and my concealer will end up in my nails (yuck!) Sooo, I am very happy I bought this. This brush is amazing.. it's definitely one of my new favorite brushes. It applies my concealer flawlessly and buffs it into my skin so perfect. It's very dense and it doesn't smoosh or bend during application. It's very sturdy. I absolutely love it. Well worth the $28 in my opinion. You can use it for so many things too.. you can use it to highlight areas on your face.. blend your shadows, contour your nose, etc.

That's all for my MAC haul!