Random Funny Quote of the Week

"A man touched me.

His hand..my thigh.

I touched him too.

My fist...his jaw."

- Joseph Gordon-Levitt, The Tiny Book of Tiny Stories, Vol 1

I came across this quote on Instagram and I just had to look it up. It's funny, but it's not funny at the same time. 

Moral of the story: Defend yourself, ladies (and gents) !!!

<3<3<3

Ulta Haul: 21 Days of Beauty Steals

My temptation: Anything beauty related.

My weakness: Anything beauty related...ON SALE.

So I knew that when Jerlyn Phan's (aka Makeupfreeek) video Ulta 21 Days of Beauty video went live, my credit card would be taking a blow. As much as I love beauty products, I do pride myself in being able to control myself...most of the time. Check out what's on sale here.

There was only ONE thing that I really really wanted from this Ulta sale. It was the 4oz IT'S A 10 Miracle Leave-In Conditioner Plus Keratin. This bad boy retails for $19.99. For me, that's expensive, especially when it's considered a drugstore product. The beauty of this Ulta sale was that if you spend $20 between March 16 and April 5, you got this IT'S A 10 leave-in conditioner for free...FOR FREE!!! I've been wanting to try this line of hair products, but never wanted to splurge. I needed a few essentials (moisturizer, toner, and concealer) that would easily add up to $25...but of course, I left with way more than that...oops.

This is what I walked away with...As you can see, I left with way more than just moisturizer and toner (they were out of stock for my concealer).

Let's first look at the products I am overly excited about:

Benefit's Hoola Bronzer. I have been wanting to purchase this for years...yes, years! But spending $28 for a bronzer just did not seem justifiable for me. Though, not too long ago, I told myself that I can buy one after I finish my current drugstore bronzer...obviously, I didn't wait. You have all seen this all over YouTube and beauty blogs. This is one of the beauty community's favorite bronzer. 

Benefit's Posie Tint and High Beam. I bought this trial size duo. Benefit was having  promo of spend $35, get a free makeup bag. This was the cheapest product that I could get that would bring me to $35. I have always wanted to try the tints so I was happy to purchase this. I gave the High Beam to my mom. 

Mally Beauty Perfect Prep Lip Scrub. I have been in the market for a lip scrub. I love lipstick, but my application gets a little bit crusty looking throughout the day (TMI?). I wanted to exfoliate for a smoother look. The sales representative showed me a lip scrub by Tarte, which I actually really liked. To my dismay, Ulta was sold out. 

Red Carpet Manicure French Tips. I saw this on clearance for $.99 so why not? The reviews on Ulta are awful. I do not have high hopes for this product. Who knows? Can't knock it til I try it.

ARDELL. Lashes. MMmm. I have been loving lashes since the first day I wore the in July 2013 for a wedding. I was a bridesmaid. That was the first time I have ever worn lashes and I have been addicted ever since. These lashes aren't as va va voom natural as I typically go for. They're just natural. I shall see and for $2, can't be the price to try.

Argan Oil of Morroco. Trial size for when I go to the Philippines in a week and a half. The weather there is so humid, my poor dry hair will need some help for hydration and protection.

The essentials:

Aveeno Positively Radiant Tinted Moisturizer. My daily moisturizer that evens out my skin tone. I have been wearing this for years and it works for me.

Neutrogena Clear Poor Oil-Eliminating Astringent, aka toner. I use this daily at night after washing my face. 

And last but not least, my freebies!

IT'S A 10 Miracle Leave-In Conditioner Plus Keratin.

Benefit's Cosmetics Bag. 

Happy shopping!

<3<3<3

As Seen On YouTube: Two-Strand Braid

It is ridiculously awesome and crazy how technology and social media have evolved in the new millenium. The phrase "Google it" is used on the daily, every hour, and even possibly every minute by someone somewhere.

The internet has created a new way to be resourceful. YouTube is no exception. Want to learn how do something? "YouTube it." This phrase is the new "Google it" for how-to's.  I, myself, am probably one of YouTube's biggest fans. My friends say I talk about YouTube so much, I should be getting paid...you hear that, YouTube?! I should be getting paid! I wish... :D

One of my current favorite go-to hairstyles is the 2-strand braid. I learned this from Nee whose channel is bebexo. I absolutely love her videos! They're short, straight to the point, easy to follow, and are creative. Thank you, Nee, for giving me new ideas for hairstyles!

Please, please check out her tutorial for this hairstyle below. And while you're at it, go ahead and check out her channel. She has lots of great ideas for any occasion! 





<3<3<3

Sticker Selfies: PhotoGrid App

I, like many others, have trouble sleeping at night. I am not one of those whose head can hit the pillow and that's it! Sleepyland. Nooooooo. Not me. I'm the one that tosses and turns, thinks and talks to myself, plays with phone because staring into darkness is boring after an hour, and grunting because I know it's late but I still can't sleep. 

One late night, I was up tossing and turning. I decided to play with an iPhone app called PhotoGrid. And in my inability to sleep, I discovered that the app is pretty darn cool :P

This selfie was taken the day of the baby shower (see previous post). Girls tend to send each other selfies to get makeup and hair ideas...this was one of those.

I took this picture and added stickers using the PhotoGrid app. Because every girl is a princess, I added a crown. You know I love bears. I love bows. And you can never go wrong with sunnies.

I hope this random post finds you well.

If you haven't already, check out the PhotoGrid app on iPhone. 

<3<3<3

OOTD and FOTD: Baby Shower (again)

I'm in that age bracket in which most [ by history's tradition] people start to get married and/or have children. A few weeks ago, I attended my 3rd baby shower since December. That's 3 baby showers in 4 months. YEEE! A reminder that I am getting old. Whompity whomp.

I wanted to showcase my outfit which is a beautiful beautiful teal dress that I found at Target. Do any of you see something that you love, but tell yourself not to buy it, but you can't stop thinking about it?? That is me ALL the time...ALL ALL ALL the time (yes, I'm working on it, hehe).

The dress on the left is the dress that stole my heart. I saw it as I was leaving the checkout line.Holy canoly! Isn't it gorgeous?! I had to snap a picture so that I could forever remember the beauty that is this dress. Of course, I could not get it out of my mind. I looked it up on the Target website. It was $24.99. Not a bad deal, right? I convinced myself that I didn't need it. Days went by and I couldn't stop wanting (needing) that dress. One day, after hanging out with a girlfriend, she, without much effort, convinced me to end this longing for the dress and go get it! We drove to two different Targets in the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles to find my size. Lo and behold! There it was! I bought the teal dress. As beautiful as the pink is, the color did not compliment my skin tone.

Now here is me flaunting the dress. I know, I know. I look silly, I look stupid, but HEY! WE ALL DO IT, DON'T WE? Admit it. ;] Gray and white blazer on top, nude kitten heels down below.

I love the dress! It's very "Stepford wife" which I'm starting to realize is very much my style when it comes to dresses...Oh well :D

Here is my creepy eye make up shot. I used the palette below from Urban Decay. It's an old palette that I bought over the Black Friday sale at Ulta. It was $10. What a steal!

Picture source: Ebay 

The palette is called Urban Decay Deluxe Shadow Box. It came out a few years ago so the price has gone significantly down. I bought because it was only $10 and I thought Why not? When I first got in it in the mail, I was freaking out just a bit. The pigmentation on the vibrant colors is (to be redundant) vibrantly pigmented. However, I learned to use it lightly, build, and blend. It is currently my go-to palette for soft neutral looks with a pop of color. 

There are two lessons to be learned in this post:

1)  If you like something and if it's reasonably priced, BUY IT then and there. Sure enough, someone else liked it just as bad as you did and grabbed it instantly causing you to drive all around town to find it. 

2) Try something out of your comfort zone. It just might end up being a beautiful thing ;]

<3<3<3

Nails of the Week(s): Mini Gallery

Lately, I've felt as though I've been losing my mojo in doing my nails. I'm running out of ideas and haven't been inspired by any nails posts that I've seen. Still, life must carry on and I cannot leave my nails bare during the week so I do my nails anyway.

Below are my nails that I thought were picture worthy:

 Here are my most recent nail design and the design that I currently have on as I type this (hey hey!). On my left hand: Royal blue with a silver dot in the center to resemble a stone. It happened to match my blouse at work :D  Right hand: Mermaid green, pearl white accent with a rosary. I was not having a good week and wanted to wear my "faith" close to me

 I saw this design on Pinterest. I used a nail art pen which made mimicking the fade of the model brush stroke impossible. Then I have just simple flowers on my left.

I am actually quite proud of this one. I mixed a dark taupe brown with white to get a lighter taupe. I used a toothpick to pile on the dots.

I hope this shows you that you don't have to be amazing at doing your nails. Practice makes it easier. But at the end of the day, if doing your nails makes you happy, do itttttttt

<3<3<3

Valentine's Day Goodies

Aloha! 

This past Valentine's Day, I was surprised with Valentine's goodies from my little Valentine, my little 17 month old nephew. AHHHH. He's so freakin cute! Of course, him being 17 months old meant his mama making the Valentine's goodies. Nonetheless, it is such a sweet gesture. Growing older and having kids around makes holidays a lot more fun.

Here's what I got:

 A cute little tin pail filled with chocolate delights, bath salts, a strawberry kit, and a Rimmel Kate Moss lipstick - my first Rimmel lipstick!

Here are multiple shots of the lipstick. Sorry, I was a bit too excited and had to take snapshots of this beauty in all kinds of angles! I LOVE IT. I'm not so much of a bold lip-wearer because I love bold striking eyes. I'm very much into the "Your Lips But Better" color. This color is definitely it!

Swatch

Definitely my new FAVORITE lip color right now. I am so happy my best friend knows me so well. She actually bought this for herself and when she tried it on, she knew she had to buy one for me. She drove to two different CVS'es to find it. THANK YOU! It's the perfect nude pink that I love. Before this, I was in love with the Wet n Wild lip color "Bare It All" (902C). That love came and went real quick. At first, I thought it was a nude pink then I saw (in better light) that it's actually a nude peach. Peach does not compliment my skin tone at all. It makes me look like I have orange lips. I still love my Wet n Wild lipstick. I wear it beneath my L'Oreal Infallible lipstick in "Intensely Mauve." To read more about my obsession with lipsticks and my current collection, click here. Wet n Wild lipsticks have great long wear which aids in keeping my lip color last for hours :] The only downside of the Rimmel lipstick is that it wears off too quickly. Boo. 

I hope you enjoyed this post about my Valentine's Day goodies. I hope your Valentine's Day was a lovely one.

<3 <3 <3