Let’s take a quick break from fashion week for a product review!!
I received a free sample of Motions Deep Conditioning Masque via a Twitter give-away! Oh how lucky am I?!
After using this product twice and following the directions almost to a tee…I’ve decided that I’m hooked! Consider it a done deal that I’ll be making my way to a beauty store to purchase a full-size jar!
Made with shea butter, coconut and avocado oils, this practically weightless conditioner smells absolutely delish!!
I have thick, long, curly and sometimes straight (has a mind of its own) hair that doesn’t like to be messed with! That being said, I’m a real skeptic when it comes to hair products. If it isn’t a well-known brand Ms. Rena won’t be using it. Call me picky but I love my hair and my hair dresser might just hurt me if I do damage to these tresses!
So, what do I think?
Motions promises this conditioning masque “significantly increases moisturization, shine and strength of your natural hair.” I think it definitely gave my hair a boost and it “feels” happy.
Combing through my hair at the end of a busy day can sometime be a task but I can say, after two applications within two weeks, my hair wasn’t as easily tangled. I’m no expert but that has to mean it has retained some type of moisture and gained strength through the strands.
After the holiday and “The Ugly Christmas Sweater Mani” it was definitely time for a change. I never know what exactly my nails will look like once I pull out the polish unless inspiration finds me somehow. That’s just what happened last night!
While online in search of some leggings to wear under a few shirts purchased (on sale) from Old Navyduring the holiday break. I found myself scrolling through hundreds of leggings on Only Leggings. While this was happening, I came across these……
Galaxy leggings have been popular for most of last year and doesn’t look like they’re going anywhere any time soon. I’m semi OK with that. Semi because, I want a pair so they can’t go out of style until I get a pair and wear them. Deal? Deal. Anywho, these leggings gave me the perfect inspiration for a nail design! Here it is!
From start to finish: Keep scrolling to see the steps!!
Step 1: Grab and use any color polish you want and some type of spongy applicator.
Step 2: Paint your nails using any color. I chose black as my base and a fuchsia color for my ring/accent nail.
Step 3: Use your spongy applicator. Drop polish unto the sponge until saturated.
I used disposable eye make-up applicators (cheap cheap only $2 for a set of 24 from Target)
Seriously, they are a beauty chicks best friend!
Step 4: Dab saturated spongy thingy onto DRY nails.
Step 5: Finish with a clear/iridescent glitter top coat and voila!
There’s a quick and colorful mani that will definitely stand out from the crowd!
Remember way back when we got sweaters as gifts? We’re talking about those hideous, ugly sweaters with balls and glitter and quite possibly needed a battery! The 80’s and 90’s weren’t very nice to some of us if we can remember those days!
Let me refresh your memory just in case you forgot…
Thankfully and not so thankfully we don’t have to endure those days anymore. Well at least not in total horror. That’s because it’s become a trend this time of year to find one of those “ugly sweaters” and throw a kick-ass party! Invite all of your friends who are silly enough to wear one of these monstrosities and have a ball!
Katy Perry is doing it!
Thinking of these colorful and bobble filled pieces of wearable cotton, I had an idea! It’s starting to become quite the tradition around Curves and Coffee, for me to do a holiday mani. Yes, I sit around for weeks trying to come up with the perfect idea to attempt on my nails. Seriously. Soooo without further delay…
“Ugly Christmas Sweater Mani”
The Outcome
I used all polish by Julep! I wanted the one “Ugly Sweater” nail to stand out so I painted the rest of the nails in gold then used a matte top coat so all you see is the sparkly goodness is Christmas!
Hope your holiday/turkey day/rest day/whatever you had the previous week! Mine was absolutely delightful! I was able to get a haircut (if you follow me on Twitter, you saw the hair falling pics), enjoyed and cried at the Detroit Lions football game during that awful call and horrendous overtime loss. Oh and I can’t forget the yummy food we cooked and stuffed our faces with…pretty sure I gained about 16 pounds during this one week LOL! Back to the diet drawing board.
Anywho, while I was away from blogging this week, I managed to do a little bit of shopping (not a lot like I wanted to because a girl has bills and a vacation to save for!) and NO, I did NOT participate in Black Friday. Normally, my mother and I go out in the madness just to be in the spirit but this year we decided waaaay before that Friday we weren’t gonna go out in the craziness. Thank goodness for that because it seems as though Black Friday is losing its’ luster of holiday spirit and becoming more about people fighting over televisions and Barbies.
I know I’m probably sounding like an old lady who yells “Hey you kids, get off my lawn!” haha I promise I’m still young. Just want to be able to enjoy the holiday season and shop like it should be done…safely.
OK, I know you’re dying to see my new haircut so here it is…(plus a little bit of filter because I was a tad shiny and sleep deprived on Thanksgiving game day… don’t shame me)
Yes, I have bangs!! And a two-inch trim off the bottom! Scary day guys, scary day but I made it through the hair shears snipping in my ear…whew!
I’m a little late posting these goodies because it took me forever to make it to my PO Box! The last two weeks have been hectic, you guys. Since I was late, I won’t make you wait! Hey, that rhymed!
There’s nothing I enjoy more than a beautifully packaged box of goodies and Julep does just that!
Inside the beauty: Julep Pink Grapefruit Body Frosting (soft, whipped cream that looks like a light pink fluffy cloud) smells divine!
The polish!
(which also came with polish remover pads…1 pad seriously took off polish from ALL 10 nails!)
A couple of weeks ago, I had a thought about doing a post full of my favorite things. This came about for several reasons…
1. I’d like for you guys and gals to know me a little better.
2. It’s fall and “The Sound of Music” always comes on and I instantly revert back to elementary school. I was in the choir (along with other things) singing “These are a few of my favorite things, when the dog barks, when a bee stings…when I’m feeling sad…” (yep performing my entire life…I’m THAT girl.)
3. I like the letter “F”…it’s the first letter in my last name and Friday Favorites has a nice ring to it.
Sooo, just as I had that random thought, I saw a tweet from one of my absolute favorite (see what I did there) beauty bloggers… Kandee Johnson! I started loving Kandee way back when she made videos about cutting up your old t-shirts haha! That should tell you how long I’ve been a fan. Well, she recently did her faves vlog on YouTube which she was trying out a new format. All of this happened at the same I was contemplating this favorites post! Since I’m a believer of signs and stuff…I knew I had to do it!
But feel free to watch whichever one of her videos shows below 🙂
VVVVVVVV
Now, I love the whole video blog concept but it’s just not for me. I’d looooove to do one but editing, lighting and me not looking like a total goofball are all factors. Yes, all those things sound like it’d be the perfect recipe for a viral internet video but that’s almost like becoming famous for being a Kard…..never mind that thought. My point is, I’d have a struggle just getting ready to make a YouTube video LOL I’m entirely too clumsy for something as technical as that!!
So I digress…
My current faves are all make-up related since I’ve been doing a lot of spending in the beauty department and Sephora. These are all in the “affordable” category and by that I mean, drugstore prices and not department store prices except for one.
(only I can possibly pick up a lip color, not know the name, then get home and find out it’s called “Lovesick” smh there is absolutely no hope for me lol)
This is really my absolute favorite thing to put on my lips (next to Burt’s Bees) When I wear this, I don’t need to put any balm on because it’s mixed into the stained lip color itself. It stains. Seriously. One swipe on the bottom lip and a half swipe on the top lip and I’m honestly good ALL DAY! Double bonus…it’s minty! It only comes off if I wipe it after a meal and drink. Even after wiping, my lips have a nice rose/pink tone to them which looks totally natural….I am in love!
I’ve always been a wary chick when it comes to anything with a time limit on it. Not that I think something is wrong with it but that I never believe it would actually work! Being a Beauty Blogger, these are the things we write about…will this 14hr lipstick last 14 hours? I’m going to test this claim when I need to wear this gorgeous cranberry color all day. The thing I have tested, is wearing it for a couple of hours…its a matte color (totally not fond of…give me some shine, gloss or hint of glitter ANY day!) Bonus: this lipstick smells delish! It’s sweet and sugary almost like cranberries. I wanted to lick my lips a lot those few hours it was on.
Being black or having darker skin tones is a major challenge when it comes to finding make-up. Especially finding colors and shades and brands that actually show up on our skin! Well, this is thee one! I put it on my arm where it’s lighter underneath and darker on the top of my forearm (I’m kinda a rainbow like that lol) and as you can see the color definitely shows up outstandingly! I did test this out while I was at home for a few hours, it looks gorg on the lids and it absolutely lasts all day! When I went to bed that night, I was washing my wash and it wouldn’t come off LOL literally had to use remover…fun times!
Speaking of make-up remover…this is my favorite of favorites! Having sensitive skin is a bummer for just about everything! I have to be careful about what touches my skin or it could get ugly…real ugly and really fast. I first tried BI-FACIL when it came packaged as a free gift with another Lancome purchase (btw…I’m a sucker for “free w/purchase” stuff…marketing departments definitely know what they’re doing!) I’ve been hooked ever since! It’s two liquids that only work after you shake the bottle to mix them…science is fun kiddos! Use this with a cotton ball and one or two swipes, depending on how much you’re wearing of course and it’s all gone bye-bye! BI-FACIL isn’t even the one for sensitive skin….there’s another one called EFFACIL for sensitive users!!! So that’s an absolute bonus! No residue on your lids, no stinky smell, no oily fingers…nothing = perfect!
“…I simply remember my favorite things and then I don’t feel so bad.”
I spent the weekend trying to figure out what type of Halloween nail art I could come up with that wasn’t too hard. See, I love DIY’ing my nails but sometimes I get a tad too ambitious and things get a little crazy…I think it’s the polish fumes.
So this idea popped up! It started with…
“How about I just do black and silver and make a spider and web?”
“Naaah that’s entirely too complicated for a Saturday afternoon.”
“Hmm, you could do something red, ooh like blood!”
“Oooh! Dripping blood like you just killed something!”
“Yes, that’s it!”
Unhuh…that was my entire thought bubble….hey, when creativity happens, we just go with the flow! 🙂
Now, moving on to the actual mani…step by step with pictures for all to see!
What I used:
1.
Brush (this came in a set of 10 for around $6 at Sally Beauty)
Julep-Trina Turk Edition in Delauney (red)
Julep- Leslie (black sparkle)
Confetti-White Wedding
2.
Confetti- Silver Slippers
Julep Silver Glitter
Julep Quick Dry Nail Drops
1.
a. Start by painting nails with base color (here I used 3 coats white and 2 coats black sparkle for accent nail)
Don’t worry about clean up til you’re all done…things always get messy!
2.
a. On the white nails: place a drop of red polish in a scattered pattern only to mid-nail.
I put a big drop so the end result would give me a 3D effect.
b. Let nails dry just a tad then take nail brush (dipped in red polish) and pull polish from the dot to the tip of the nail.
c. Paint rest of the nail tip with red.
d. Do the exact steps with the accent nail. In my case, black with silver drops.
Seal with a clear top coat…and quick dry drops.
And VOILA!
I call these “Blood Splattered”
Think I’m all set to walk into the building with blood on my hands haha!
If you’d like to become a Julep Maven like ME and receive polish and gifts every month for less than $20 just like the products above (except the Confetti brand) remember to click on the blue box pics to the right of this post labeled “Become A Julep Maven” or
I decided to lighten things up with a little lilac sparkle!
This was the easiest and quickest mani I’ve possibly ever done…could have something to do with my utter disdain for the upkeep of a dark mani.
The color I chose still has a little “Halloween” to it…
Here’s what you need:
1. Any color polish you want, I chose Wet-n-Wild “Hallucination” & Confetti “Belle of the Ball”
2. Prep nails by buffing (makes the polish go on smooth, a must!)
3. Apply your base color to all nails (Lilac in my case.)
4. Pick any nail you want to be the “accent” nail using the clear glitter (hallucination) or do all 10 for a super sparkle effect! I applied TWO coats of the sparkle on top of the lilac to catch the light.
5. Let dry, then apply a clear topcoat to seal in all that shine!
Voila!
You’re left with a mani that looks amazing in any light without doing any hard work! I should probably call this my lazy mani lol!
