Upcoming Posts!

REVIEWS
NuMe Couture Tourmaline Flat Iron - I've been using this iron daily for a little under three weeks, so I feel I'm now able to give my full opinion about it.
Reviva Labs Products - I was given the opportunity to try out several products from Reviva Labs, and I can't wait to share my thoughts about each one with you! I will have individual reviews up for Reviva Labs Makeup Primer, Light Skin Peel Exfoliant, Hyaluronic Acid Serum, Alpha Lipodic Acid Vitamin C Ester & DMAE Cream, Collagen Fibre Eye Pads w/ Myoxinol and Collagen Fibre Skin Brightener Pads. So far, I've tested everything but the Collagen Pads.
Sigma Make Me Up 12 Brush Kit - I've had these now for a few months and I will give my thoughts about each brush individually as well as the set as a whole.
Sigma Flat Top Synthetic Kabuki F80 (for liquid foundation)
Sally Hansen Instant Cuticle Remover
Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua - I picked up a sample today - a very small sample though. Hopefully it will be enough product to adequately review, or at least share my initial thoughts.
Chanel Glossimer in "Mica" - I picked this up today, and will be posting swatches and a review soon.
Fotolia.com - I was given a complimentary trial to Fotolia.com (stock photo website) and I'll be sharing my thoughts about the site as well as giving a few promotional codes to those interested in trying it risk free for themselves.

HAULS

Ulta - Essence Products with reviews & NOTD's to follow (nail polish and lip gloss).
Forever 21 - Mostly Accessories

MISC.
Current Face Routine (Moisturizer, Primer, Concealer, Foundation & Powder)
Top 5 Summer Nail Polishes
How to: Contouring
Overview: Foundation Brushes
Makeup Collection - I'm not sure when this will be up because I'm currently trying to revamp my makeup storage, but it's a highly requested post.

If you have any requests, post in the comments below!

Sigma Launches New Eyeshadow Palettes!

Dare Eyeshadow Palette

The Sigma Beauty DARE palette includes the perfect mix of vibrant and neutral shades represented by warm and cool tones. This palette contains beautiful yet unexpected hues from neutral corals to deep reds and includes surprisingly wearable yellow and gold tones. DARE allows you to create colorful looks that can be easily accentuated with bright or deep colors. Go from day to night in seconds! Includes Sigma Beauty’s best-selling E20 and E45 in an exclusive dual-ended brush. Contains matte and satin formulations

Bare Eyeshadow Palette

The Sigma Beauty BARE palette is a must for everyday use. Ideal to create classic neutral looks, BARE is perfect for accentuating your best features without too much color distraction. Highlight inner corners, emphasize your crease, brighten your brow bone and enhance your lash line. With BARE’s color selection, you can easily create day and night looks seamlessly and as subtle or as bold as you wish. BARE is perfect for a natural yet improved you! Includes Sigma Beauty’s best-selling E30 and E25 in a unique dual-ended brush. Contains matte and satin formulations.

Flare Eyeshadow Palette

The Sigma Beauty FLARE palette contains a beautiful combination of greens and purples, combined with browns and beiges that are perfect to create fun and colorful looks! This palette includes beautiful iridescent undertones, which offer a must have selection of bright, yet sophisticated hues. FLARE is perfect for those days when you want to highlight your eyes with fun and flirty colors! Includes Sigma Beauty’s best-selling E55 and E40 in a practical dual-ended brush. Contains matte and satin formulations.

Each palette retails for $35 and are all available now on the Sigma website. So, it's a little over $3 for each shadow and brush. What do you think about them? If I had to choose one, I'd choose the Bare Palette, as it's the most suitable for neutral, every-day makeup looks. I wonder what the quality is like?

VIEW SWATCHES HERE!

How to Start a Beauty Blog: Some Pointers!

So, you're a beauty practitioner who has picked up some awesome tips and information along the way. You want to share your knowledge with all of the other beauty fanatics out there and you just don't know where to begin.

Throughout the past couple of years, I've been asked often how I got so many followers and what are some tips I can give to create a successful blog. So, I thought it was about time for a post! Keep reading for some tips and pointers to aid you in your beauty blogging endeavors!

1. YOUR NAME. More importantly, the name you'd like to be known as. Keep it simple. You want it to be something that is fairly easy to remember. If your username is "XoBeautyGirl674Xo", it's not going to be something that someone will remember and it's not going to be something easy to find on Google. Don't lose sleep over choosing a name, but make sure it's something you think you'd still like, even a few years down the line.

2. YOUR LAYOUT & BACKGROUND. Again, try keeping your layout fairly simple. Try not to pick designs that are too distracting or difficult to read. At one point, my blog had a black background with white and pink text, and it was a little difficult for some to read the letters. It's always fun to reflect your personality through layout decor, but let your personality shine through your writing more than anything.

Two of my favorite sites for blog backgrounds are http://shabbyblogs.com/ and http://www.thecutestblogontheblock.com/. (not affiliated)

3. MUSIC IS A NO-NO. Katy Perry E.T. may be your favorite song, and you listen to it at every chance you get, so you decide to add it to your blog. Well, it's not everyone's favorite song and probably 8 out of 10 times, a person will prefer no music. Several times, your readers may check your blog at work or in a setting where music can't, or shouldn't be played. If you insist on adding soundtracks to your page, don't set it to Auto-play - Leave it up to the viewer.

4. PHOTOS. We all love to see photos! If you are going to post photos, please do the following-

• Take your photos in a well lit area. The most accurate lighting is natural sunlight, but not everyone is able to take photos during the day. If you are taking photos at night and you will be using a flash, try out this awesome tip from Chloe of The Hollywood Heels. Place a tissue over the flash, to avoid over exposing your subject. (Click here to view the detailed post)
• Use the flower (Macro) setting for taking photos of products. This will keep your subject from photographing blurry.
• Crop and/or Re-size your photos (if necessary). If you don't have a program on your computer to do this, there are several free online photo editing sites you can use. A popular one is http://www.picnik.com/. You can find others by searching "Free Photo Editor". 

 FOR MORE TIPS, CLICK READ MORE!

NOTD: Sprinkled Donut/Confetti Nails w/ Wet n Wild Party of Five Glitters Nail Polish!

Wet n Wild Party of Five Glitters is an awesome clear based nail polish with 5 different colored glitters. There are small red and green glitters, medium green, light blue and purple glitters and large silver glitters. Although I didn't try this polish on it's own, the possibilities are endless with what you can layer with it.

I didn't really have an initial idea, I sort of came up with it as I was painting my nails. I first started out with painting my nails with one coat of Essie Mod Squad, then painting 1/3 the way down my nail (unevenly to look like frosting) with Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Bubblegum Pink, then 2 coats, about 1/2 way down my nail with Wet n Wild Party of Five Glitters. Lastly, I finished off with one coat of Seche Vite Top Coat. 

I think it's a really fun look for a the summer, a birthday or holiday!

READ MORE FOR ADDITIONAL PHOTOS + OTHER LOOKS..