NOTD: OPI Pamplona Purple

Sorry for my absence everyone.  Moving isn't easy though I'm 90% settled in my new home.  There are a few straggling boxes that take up some space, but overall, I'm happy to be in the new house.  My mother- and brother-in-law drove up over the weekend with most of their furniture from Florida.  So it's been busy moving BIG furniture and unpacking item after item.  I haven't had any chance to follow up on fellow beauty blogs and channels on Youtube.  The only reason I have this time is because 1) my daughter is napping and 2) everyone is lounging in the living room watching tv.  I figured I could do a quick post on my latest polish obsession.

Meet Pamplona Purple from OPI.  I'm not over winter just yet so I'm trying to make much use of all my dark, winter nail polish colors.  I remember purchasing this at Ulta thinking this is a great plum color.  It's not too dark like eggplant purple and not too royal purple.  I only needed 2 coats for full opaqueness.  This does dry a tad bit darker than what it looks like in the bottle so definitely test the color before you purchase it.

Happy painting!

NOTD: OPI Euro Centrale Collection

You know that I'm a big OPI nail polish hoarder so this comes as to no surprise that I have a couple of new polishes from their latest collection.

This collection showcases colors that are playfully named after a few cities throughout Europe.  Two colors that I picked up are Can't Find My Czechbook and Polka.Com.  The first color is my first ever turquoise polish.  It's vibrant and is a true turquoise color.  You need 2 coats to make it opaque because 1 coat will leave streaks on your nails.  The second color is a top coat with big and micro glitter chunks of blue, magenta and purple.  Layering this color on top of the turquoise makes the blue glitter really stand out.

(L) Can't Find My Czechbook; (R): Polka.Com

After reviewing a few swatches from other bloggers, I think I might pick up a few more colors.  You can purchase these at any local beauty store at $9.  Have you tried any of these?

DAILY GRINDS

♥ What drew me to this specific collection is the name of the turquoise nail polish.  I had the privilege to travel to Europe during my senior year of high school.  One of the cities I went to was Prague in the Czech Republic.  The city is absolutely PHENOMENAL!  It's a city that I want to go back to with my husband and daughter some day.

Prague, Czech Republic 2005

♥ Lately I've been busy trying to be a productive Mary Kay consultant.  I started this adventure back in October and I'm starting to take advantage of the makeup products as a makeup artist.  I challenged myself to do 30 makeovers in 30 days which I was just short of my 30 makeovers.  Outside of my family and circle of friends, I hope to create a bigger clientele pool and maybe get some wedding/engagement gigs for the summertime.  It isn't easy taking care of a 3 person family with only 1 income.  Maybe I should look into how to become a successful salesperson...

♥ My moving countdown is now at 9 days.  Time is flying!

NOTD Valentine's Day ♥

Happy Valentine's Day everyone!

How appropriate is this day to share my nail art from new nail polishes I picked up for spring.

(L) Mariah Carey by OPI in A Butterfly Moment
(R) CoverGirl Outlast Stay Brilliant in Tickled Pink

Mariah Carey and OPI partnered up to create a new collection inspired by the singing sensation herself.  This is limited edition and comes in 8 beautiful shades that seem to reflect Mariah's personality.  When I visited my local Ulta and saw MC's new polish collection, I was immediately drawn to this color called A Butterfly Moment.  This is a beautiful pearl pink with a noticeable gold sheen.  The formula is a bit thick, but I can't complain about how lovely it looks on my complexion.  This is a great neutral color perfect for spring.  If you have olive skin tone or warm undertones, I think this will work great for you.  Two coats is perfect enough for smooth coverage.

I was watching eleventhgorgeous review a couple of CoverGirl products recently. (watch here) The girls had a high review of the nail polishes that I had to pick up one color.  The one I have is Tickled Pink which is a hot magenta.  These trendy polishes allow you to skip the top coat because the formula leaves a long lasting shine.  I'm surprised by the price of these polishes; it definitely blew my mind.  I don't own any drugstore polishes so I'm really happy with this one.  The packaging is similar to Dior polishes where the top is removable.  The same goes for the Butter London polishes.  I definitely want to purchase more from CoverGirl.

Even though my nails look simple, the heart on the ring finger is a perfect touch for today.  I also have a video posted on my Youtube channel for you guys.  It's all about my favorite lip products that are suitable for today's holiday.

Enjoy your Valentine's Day everyone! Sending lots of cyber love ♥♥

February Beauty Makeup Haul

The beaming sun through my window is giving me energy to start my day on the right foot.  Also, it reminded me to post my latest beauty haul on my YouTube channel.  This is a massive haul of makeup products that I purchased towards the end of January.  The purpose of these items is to replace the makeup that I have finished or tossed out which turned out to be a lot.  Isn't that a reasonable excuse to purchase more makeup? LOL... Anyway, I'm starting to reach into my makeup caboodle (yes, I store a majority of my makeup in my leopard print case) and pull out items I haven't used in a while.

So, don't judge me for these purchases!  I already returned a couple of items because I have a duplicate from a previous purchase and/or its twin has been stashed away in my closet.  And others have turned out to be a disappointment or I just wanted my money back because buying into the label wasn't worth it.  Don't forget to check out the video!

DAILY GRINDS

♥ My husband and I are going to a beer convention tonight with a few friends.  I figured I'd be DD since I'm not a heavy drinker.  But later realized it'd be pointless for me to go if I go as DD.  So tonight we'll be sipping on beers from around the world.  Cheers to Beerfest!

♥ I'm constantly searching for a makeup vanity for my new house.  I've stumbled upon different kinds from a simple desk to very ornate ones that are over the top.  I want one that has a decent size mirror, a drawer under the table and maybe a side drawer so I don't have to purchase a lot of storage units.  Where can I find a decent vanity???

♥ I'm rooting for the Baltimore Ravens this weekend!!!

NOTD: OPI Schnapps Out of It!

It's September and already the transformation from summer to fall in fashion and beauty has arrived in a blink of an eye.  Everyone can say that the summer flew by so quickly that people are still in summer mode post Labor Day.  Well I'm not one of them- I LOVE FALL!  I already started picking up a few items that are perfect for the fall including a new nail polish by OPI from their latest collection.

The OPI Germany Collection includes 12 new shades that were inspired by what fashion editors are calling "Europe's hottest new fashion metropolis".  It embraces elegance as well as the avant-garde essence of modern Berlin.  Personally having travelled to Berlin over 7 years ago, I love the boldness of each color and the names are quite catchy.  These shades are great transitional colors into fall and are perfect for any activity, day or night.

Being a loyal OPI consumer, I couldn't resist purchasing at least one of the new polishes.  Among all the new colors, Schnapps Out of It! is a color that caught my attention.  It's a beautiful mauve/brown color with red and grey undertones.  There's a super fine hint of silver glitter and shine that's nearly noticeable after applying 2 coats of polish.  I don't know why but this color reminds me of rose petals.  When I first swatched it at the store, all I could this of was rose petals and potpourri (weird, I know).  Anyway, this color is great for those who are still holding onto their summer tan (guilty to that!).  The color on your nails is warm and very fall appropriate as the weather starts to get cooler.

   

Have you tried any of the shades from OPI German Collection?  Let me know.  Happy painting!

HAUL: Makeup & Other Beauty Products

It's been a while since I've blogged.  My (lame) excuse is that I've just been completely lazy & have been uninspired with some of my cooking last week.  But, I've accumulated a lot of items in the past few weeks that I wanted to share with all of my viewers.  I tried doing a YouTube video last Friday while my husband was out of town and my daughter was in school.  I did roughly 5 takes & realized I'm not meant to be in front of the camera.  Just doing a small introduction to the video was painful to watch.  I'll try a different approach some time soon where I'll just do a voice over.

Anyway, the following products that I'll share below are from Ulta(1), HauteLook.com(2) and Sephora.com(3).

If you are a happy consumer of any of these products, please share your experience with it.

(1) From L to R: John Frieda Root Awakening Nourishing Moisture Shampoo & Conditioner for Dry Hair, Benefit Cosmetics B. Right It's Potent Eye Cream, 2 Benefit Cosmetics freebies, OPI nail polish in DS Glow & Melon of Troy, Tarte Maracuja Divine Shine Lipgloss in Tipsy.

*I purchased the eye cream just so I can get the sample of the Cha Cha Tint which I'm pretty psyched to try.  With the Tarte lipgloss, I was suppose to get a Deluxe Sample of Maracuja Oil which I assume the store ran out of.  Instead they gave me another Benefit sample which is the skincare So Radiant.  I heard great things about the maracuja oil so I guess I'll have to purchase it next time I step into Ulta.

(2) From L to R: NYX Eye Glamifying Set, NYX Blush Set in Pretty Natural, NYX Haute Jersey- Leopard Couture Set

*I purchased these items on Hautelook.com because it was one of their special deals.  If you itemize these products, you definitely are saving 40% or more when purchasing them on this website.  With the eye set, it came with the Provocateur Boudoir Mascara, Collection Noir Liquid Black Liner, Collection Noir Skinny Black Liner & Slide On, Glide On, Stay On & Definitely A Turn On Water Proof, Extreme Shine Eye Liner in Black Sparkle.  Annoying that the name of this product is long but that's what's on the pencil.  With the blush set, the 3 blushes are Mocha, Angel & Mauve.  My last item of the bunch is this leopard makeup palette that screams Jersey girl (which I am- well I'm from Jersey but definitely not a "Jersey Shore" Jersey girl if you get my drift.)

When you open the book, there are 24 eyeshadows on your left with 4 eye applicators & a mirror on your right. 

When you flip the mirror, you get another mirror but on the left side.  On the opposite side are 2 lip glosses, 4 bronzers & 2 blushes.  This palette will come to use whenever I want to head down to Bar A or DJais.

(3) From L to R: The New Black Runway- Color Barometer 8-Piece Nail Polish Set, Sephora Collection Marbling & Dotting Nail Tool, Josie Maran Made with Love Kit, Korres Goddess Lip Collection

*The nail tool was on sale online and lately I've been purchasing nail polishes as if I was a kid in a candy store.  A new tool deserves new polishes to go with.  I had a sample of Josie Maran 100% Pure Argan Oil & wanted to try other products of her line.  Korres is a Johnson & Johnson product which my sister works for.  She has a couple Korres makeup products & is happy with them.  I hope I can be happy with these.