Happy New Year!!

Hey Everyone!! I didn't get a chance to properly wish you all a Happy New Year.. I had posted Happy New Year on my twitter, but not even 1/4 of my followers follow my twitter.

I can't believe how fast this year went by.. It really just blows my mind. Remember when your parents or guardians have told you to not rush growing up & cherish your time being young because once you get older time will fly by faster and faster? I've been really understanding that the past couple of years because with each year I've gotten older.. time seems to be passing me by and I have no idea where it all went. I remember last New Year very clear and I can't believe it was 12 months ago! Time is so precious.. and it should be enjoyed at every moment of the day. I do think you should live for the day (not financially of course.. LOL) and be spontaneous. I am guilty of being a little bit of a bore at times and when my friends want to go out.. I end up staying solo. This year I want to change that and create a bucket list of all the things I'd like to do in 2011 and work hard at checking them all of my list. This year I don't want to sit around and be depressed.. I want to make the most of my time and do all of the things I enjoy!

I think you should try making a bucket list too if you lack motivation! It's much easier to get things done when they're written down on a checklist :)

Happy 2011!

What did you do? Did you party all night? Go out on a romantic date with your significant other? Spend time with your loved ones? Stay inside and relax in your PJ's? Or knock out before midnight because you work in the morning.. lol

This New Year I spent with my best friend, boyfriend and his family. We snacked on a lot of yummy things and basically just chatted away all night and relaxed. I didn't dress up since we weren't going out... I was a little bummed that I didn't get to get all dolled up and go somewhere nice.. but I really enjoyed my New Years and wouldn't have it any other way! Except having the rest of my family together.. :)

Me & Rocky! haha

NOTD: OPI Lucerne-tainly Look Marvelous Nail Polish & Revlon Belle Nail Polish!

OPI Lucerne-tainly Look Marvelous & Revlon Belle Nail Polish

I'm still in the holiday mood, so when I saw this glittery topcoat at Walgreens last night, I decided to purchase it and pair it with a charcoal nail polish.

I've managed to break three nails in the past three days so I cut down all of my nails pretty short. (Btw, none of my nail polish had chipped from my previous NOTD.. but since I cut them down I thought I'd do  polish change) It doesn't bother me much.. I actually like having shorter nails because its easier to apply concealer :)

I used 2 coats of OPI Lucerne-tainly Look Marvelous & 1 coat of Revlon Belle. Then, for my top coat (even though Revlon Belle is a top coat) I used Sally Hansen Insta-Dri.

They didn't turn out as well as I would of liked them to. I applied too thick of layers of Lucerne-tainly Look Marvelous and it took forever to dry. Usually OPI takes a minute between layers and I waited 10 minutes between layers and I managed to smudge a few afterwards. So my advice is to apply a thin layer. I also wish my nails looks more glossy.. they look kind of dull to me. I didn't show my thumb because Rocky was being mischievous and when I grabbed him.. I ultra smudged my thumb. I'll probably redo it later on..

In other news, I'm working on a few posts.. one of which is the hair post I promised. But I'm sure it will take me a while to put together.. So I thought I'd post a NOTD in the mean time :)

Urban Decay Naked Palette Review, Photos and Swatches!

Urban Decay Naked Palette

PRODUCT DESCRIPTION: You can look great NAKED! This long, lean, seductive case is packed with  twelve (12) gorgeous neutrals. Shades range from delicate champagnes to dark, gritty gunmetal, and feature five (5) new shades with names like Darkhorse, Virgin and Buck. We've also included a range of textures: everything from glitter to shimmer to matte. 

The chocolaty velvet case is emblazoned with the word "NAKED" in gold foil lettering. (Just wait 'til your friends see you pull this sexy thing out of your bag. Jealous!) The mirrored case also includes a professional quality, cruelty-free Good Karma Eyeshadow Brush, AND a travel-size Eyeshadow Primer Potion in original formula. This is a shadow palette everyone can use, and a truly spectacular gift. Experiment with office-appropriate neutrals, summertime bronzy looks, or sultry smokiness. With such a diversity of neutral shades at your fingertips, there's more to neutral than meets the eye.

The Urban Decay Naked Palette, as stated above contains twelve (12) shades: Virgin, Sin, Naked, Sidecar, Buck, Half Baked, Smog, Darkhorse, Toasted, Hustle, Creep & Gunmetal.

The palette retails for $48, which sounds expensive, but is an extremely good value. Each shadow weighs in at .05 oz - which is the SAME size as a a regular Urban Decay full sized eyeshadow ($17 each) and actually, .01 oz larger than a full size MAC Eyeshadow (.04 oz, $14.50 each). In addition, you are getting a good brush, and a travel size Primer Potion.

Virgin, Sin, Naked, Sidecar, Buck, Half Baked

Smog, Darkhorse, Toasted, Hustle, Creep, Gunmetal

Swatches

Most shades in the Urban Decay Naked Palette are shimmery or frosted. The only two matte shades in this palette are Naked and Buck. Naked and Buck are actually two of my favorite shades in this palette - both being great blending shades and natural crease colors. Buck also works on my brows as a filler.

My favorite shades of all (and the ones that get the most love on a daily basis) are: Naked, Sidecar, Buck, Half Baked, Smog and Darkhorse. All of the shades are pigmented and apply smoothly. 

 Here's a recent eye look I did using only the Naked Palette. The main colors I used were Darkhorse, Half Baked, Buck and Creep.

I guess the only downside I can say about the palette is that there aren't enough matte shades, so for "daytime" looks, there aren't as many options. I also kinda wish the black was a matte black, rather than a shimmery black.

Also, I'm not a fan of the packaging. It's pretty for a short period of time, but soon after, the velvet attracts dust and the gold lettering starts to wear off.

Overall, I am very happy with it and I think it was very much worth the investment.

Do you own the Naked Palette?

L'Oreal Telescopic Explosion Mascara. Have you tried it?

L'Oreal Telescopic Explosion Mascara + Covergirl Lash Blast Mascara

Do you ever layer your mascara?

My best friend has been complaining about how terrible this mascara is, so she passed it on to me to try. I already had on a coat of my Covergirl Lash Blast, but I applied this over that. Right away my lashes were thick and clumped together. Quickly, I grabbed my Tweezerman Lash Comb and combed out the clumps. I applied two coats and combed my lashes through. And wow! I had some major volume. When I went out that night, I got asked if my lashes were real, which is really rare for me. I didn't have any smudges or flakes by the end of the night.

I did the same thing today as well and I loved the results again. I love that you can reach the corner lashes really well and that you can build so much volume so quick!

I haven't tried this mascara on its own and I'm not too sure if I will. But, I know I will continue using this as a layering mascara to build very dark, voluminous lashes.

This mascara has a terrible rating on Makeupalley (Currently 2.6/5 stars with a 34% repurchase rate). The main con reviewers are complaining about is that it's very clumpy. I think a metal lash comb is the way to go for clumps - It's definitely a must-have if you're a fan of thick lashes..


Here were my results today. I didn't go too thick. I applied one coat of Covergirl Lash Blast and one coat of Telescopic Explosion.

So I'm curious. Have you tried this mascara? What did you think of it??