HOLY BROWS!!! Quick guide on how to shape your brows.

For me the greatest beauty always lies in the greatest clarity. ~ Gotthold Epharaim Lessing

I was never really intending on doing a post on eyebrows: the do and don'ts, the how to's, and the what to use. However, lately at work (I am a sales representative in a mall) I have been noticing the things people do to their eyebrows. Now this is not just women its men too. To be honest there is only so much eyebrow fails that I can take that I thought it would be a good idea to do this post so that others out there do no make the same mistake. So lets get this started!

Little Lesson on Eyebrows:

Before you start doing anything to them take a while and look at your eyebrows. Some people are lucky enough to where all their eyebrows need is a little bit of a clean up and they are set and others, like myself, are not so lucky. The thickness of your eyebrows are pretty much determined on your facial features and yourself.

   I would say to not do them any thicker than the Brooke Shields. (pic below)

And not any thinner than Gwen Stefani's eyebrows.

Tools To Shape Your Brows:

Some tools you may want to use or get to shape your eyebrows:

*Tweezers-to help pluck any unneeded hairs

*Mascara Wand- to have better control on your eyebrows

*Cosmetic Scissors-to cut any excess length

Beginning, Arch, and End:

To determine where they should begin, end, and arch is a very simple task. For this you may want to grab a pencil and maybe an eyeliner as well. Using the pencil place it besides your nostril, like shown in the picture below marked as "A". This right here will determine where the eyebrow will begin. To help you you can use the eyeliner and make a mark at this point. Next you will place your pencil at about a 45º angle. It should be right on the corner of the pupil. This right here will be the highest point in your eyebrow, the arch ("B" in the picture). Once again feel free to make a mark as well. Finally "C". Align your pencil with the edge of your nose and the outer corner of your eye. This here will tell you where your eyebrow should end. Now with the end of your eyebrow ("C") make sure to not make it point downward. Keep this part high will give you a more awake and youthful look.

Like I had mentioned before you decide the thickness of your eyebrows. Do not make the space from the start of the eyebrow to the arch too thin. If anything all you have to do is clean up around the marks to give your eyebrows form. 

After placing your marking use the mascara wand to put the hairs into place. Using the tweezers pluck away any hairs that are unwanted. Do a little at a time. If you have an issue with the small amount of pain it costs you can grab a cotton ball and soak it with water and apply the water on the area being plucked. This will with the pain. Now if you want to trim the length from your eyebrows take the wand and brush the hairs upwards. Anything that goes past your defined eyebrow cut. Do a little at a time and be very careful. Last thing you want is to end up with a bald spot on your eyebrow. I would recommend trimming your eyebrows when no one is around so you can avoid any distractions that may cause a little problem. 

Defining the brows:

Now onto defining your eyebrows. If your brows are like mine you have certain areas in your brows that have a lot less hair than the rest of your brow. Defining and filling in the brow will not only give you a more complete look but give a little more focus to your face. Here are some of the tools you want to use for defining and filling in your brows.

*Eyebrow pencil or shadow-to fill in and define the brow

* Angled brush(for the shadow)-If using a shadow you want the angled brush to apply the shadow

*Brow Gel-Keep those brows in place

*Mascara Wand-Shape them into place. If you don't have one yet don't throw out the mascara wand from your empty mascara tube. Keep it and wash it. Its reusable :)

When filling in your brows you want to use the mascara wand to place them in shape. Next take your pencil or shadow and feather in the areas that are "bald". After feathering in those areas feel free to take your shadow or pencil and do a soft outline around your brows. If you feel that you made your brows a little too dark do not fuss. Take the wand and comb your brows out a little. This will help some of the color stick to the wand. If they are still too dark for you take a kabuki brush and brush your brows. Finally to keep them in place use the brow gel and do a coat over your brows. Its very easy to do and like I mention before makes your look be more complete and your eyes pop.

What NOT to do:

Chola brows: This is a big NO! For one they make her look angry all the time and they are too thin and dark.

Bushy and Uni brows: Not only is this unappealing but it does not accentuate her face at all.

Hockey brows: And yes I said hockey. Look that the shape. Its similar to the hockey stick. The arch is way to close to the beginning of the brow. They are way too thin for her face. They also make her look like she has a bigger forehead.

Another set of Chola Brows or Sharpie brows. They are way way too close together, uneven, too dark, and once again give the appearance of a big forehead. 

Smiley Face Brows: If you look at the brows alone they look like the eyes from a smiley face. They are not only uneven, have no real shape, too dark, and one is higher than the other.

Sperm brows: These are just a type of brows that I would recommend no one to do. They seriously look like sperm.

Finally the tattooed brows. Whether its a design like the one about or tattooing actual looking eyebrows dont. You are going to regret any type of eyebrow tattooing when you are 60 and have sagging skin and the grandchildren ask you what you were thinking.

Anyways these are just a couple of suggestions on how to shape and fill in your brows. There are many great products out there and services to help you achieve this if you do not want to do it at home. I personally love to save money so I pluck my eyebrows nearly everyday to keep them clean and I also decided to invest in a wax warmer and supplies so I can also wax them at home. Hope you guys enjoyed this blog. :)

Ulta Cosmetics Review

A witty woman is a treasure; a witty beauty is a power. ~ George Meredith

So I recently did an online purchase on the Ulta website. I had gotten an email on a deal they had at the moment. If you have an Ulta membership card and get/read their emails you probably remember this deal. The deal was to purchase $17.50 in Ulta brand makeup and you received a free makeup bag of your choice with 17 pieces of Ulta cosmetics. I have never tried on the Ulta brand makeup since we recently got an Ulta in our town so this to me seemed like a great deal and opportunity. An opportunity to try more than one Ulta brand cosmetic. 

For this being my first online purchase from Ulta I was very impressed. Not only with the cosmetics but with the shipping time. Whenever I purchase anything from Sephora online it take over a week to get here since I live close to Montana. However with the Ulta purchase it was here in a little less than a week. I was really impressed with that. Now onto what I purchased and my free items.

Like I had mentioned before, in order to get the free makeup bag I had to purchase $17.50 in Ulta brand cosmetics so I decided that I really wanted to try out their blushes. Most of the blushes I own have some shimmer to them and I was really wanting to get some that were matte. I was also wanting to get a lipstick in a bright color. Below are the 3 blushes I purchased and the bigger one is one of the free products that came in my makeup bag. On the top left there is Girlie and right besides it is Sweet Cheeks. The bottom left is the free blush or Cheek Color in Afternoon Delight and right besides it Afterglow. 

Now just looking at the blushes in the picture you can tell that some have shimmer in them. Mind you I was in search of matte blushes. Well to my discovery when my order arrived only one blush was matte, Girlie. I decided to keep them anyways because the colors were really nice. I must say that the online pictures do not do them justice.

The picture above is a little swatch of the blushes. From left to right we have the free blush Afternoon Delight, Girlie, Afterglow, and Sweet Cheeks. Now onto my review and lets start with the free blush I got. Afternoon Delight is a very creamy and shimmery peach color. This I found perfect to use as a highlight for the cheeks or to put in the inner corner of your eye to give it a nice pop of color. It is a very pigmented color so I usually apply it with my finger. 

Girlie is a nice matte pink tone. This particular blush is not extremely pigmented but it still gives that nice summer glow. I do get a slight smell and it smells very powdery but it is not powdery at all. 

Afterglow is one of my favorite blushes from the four that I have been using this almost every single day. Once again it is a pink tone but it is darker and has shimmer. This is more pigmented than Girlie and the shimmer is subtle  This is a very good color that would look good on any skin tone. 

Sweet Cheeks is a shimmer dark pink blush. This one I like to use whenever I want to get a natural glow. It is summer time and I did get really really dark so this is the closest to a summer glow color that I could find. 

Overall the colors are amazing but do not let the online color fool you. Online it lacks the description so you are not sure if what you are purchasing is a matte or shimmery blush. I would recommend to go into the store and look at them first. I still like these colors regardless of the matte or shimmer finish.

Now onto the lipsticks. I purchased on and the other one was a free lipstick that came in the makeup bag. 

The lipstick on the left was the free one in Iced Cappuccino. The one on the right is the lipstick I purchased in Fuchsia Fever. I did swatches on the white paper but here are the swatches on my skin.

Starting with Fuchsia Fever. This color is a bight deep pinkish red color. It is so smooth and glides on so easily. It also has a subtle smell of fruit in my opinion. Although it glides on so easy it rubs off as easy too. I don't really mind that because it is so smooth when you apply it. Now the Iced Cappuccino is also a color that glides on easily and looks great on any skin tone just like the Fuchsia Fever. The Iced Cappuccino does have a subtle smell that is not pleasant. I cannot describe the smell but I don't like it at all. Other than that I cant complain much because it was a free lipstick and no one can argue with free, right? 

The free makeup bag came in three different colors that you could pick from. There was True Blue, Natural Wonder, and Wild Side. Once again if you got in on this deal you will probably recognize the lip stick to come from the True Blue collection.  

I think the makeup bag can double as a clutch too but its all up to you.

Now onto the eyeshadows. The free 17 piece bag comes with 2 quads. Depending on what bag you choose you get a certain color of eyeshadows. 

This is one of the quads that came with the bag. Starting once again with the top two from left to right its Polished & Black Ink. Right underneath them from left to right is Truffle and Smoke. Now one thing that I noticed from both quads is that the names on the back of them are switched around. I actually had to go online to find out which name went to which color. 

As you can tell from the swatch these colors are all shimmer colors and very very well pigmented. I did find one small problem with it they are just slightly hard to blend. It took me twice as long to blend the colors but they look great on. This quad is perfect for a smokey eye. It consists of manly browns with the one black shimmer color. 

The second quad I received is also a great quad for a blue smokey eye. 

From the top row left to right there is Moonbeam & Sapphire. Underneath them from left to right there is Silk & Peacock. Both quads come with the sponge tip applicators brush and a really small mirror. 

These set of colors are extremely pigmented and creamy. They are shimmery as well and combined make a perfect night time smokey eye. I have nothing bad to say about their eyeshadows and I am looking forward to trying more out and maybe matte eyeshadows from them. 

Also for free a dual ended eye liner with Black on one side and Indigo on the other. 

These are extremely smooth and glide on easily however I do not feel like they are quite as pigmented and don't have quite as much staying power as my other eyeliners but these do work okay.

Along with the dual ended eye liner it came with another dual ended lip & eye liner in the color Mink and Deep Brown.

Mink is a nice red brown color and dark brown is well dark brown. They also glide on easily and are pigmented.

In the picture above from left to right we have black, indigo, mink, and dark brown.

There was a dual ended lip gloss in Lovely and Princess.

Princess is the color on the left and it is a sheer pink color. The one on the right is Lovely which is a nice brown color. I found these lip glosses to work well and not be sticky at all. These can be worn alone or on top of lip stick to give it a nice shimmer and pop. Personally I love to wear both of the colors alone.

Also included in the makeup bag was a small fingernail polish. Its in the color Diva.

This color is very very sheer and has a subtle subtle hint of glitter. Looking at the bottle it is a pink color with tons of glitter, but like I said before, once you apply it you can see it is very very sheer. You do get a subtle hint of pink and glitter when the light hits it just right. I found this perfect if you want to do a french manicure and have the all over nail color be glittery. I used this on my goddaughter and she absolutely loved it! 

I also received a a free mascara and 3 free brushes. The mascara is in Jet Black and its their Lash Blow Out. I have not yet used the mascara so I can not give a full on review of it yet.

 The three piece brush set is an angled blush brush, a sponge tip applicator brush, and an eyeshadow brush.

These brushes are okay. The angled blush brush does shed a bit and its not the best out there but once again for free I can not complain. I do use it a lot for applying my blush. The sponge tip applicator I have not used at all. The only use I have for them is to pack on color. The eyeshadow brush is not bad. I have mostly used this to apply  loose pigments and glitter since I noticed it does not do so well with eyeshadows. 

Over all I am content with my purchase and would recommend almost everything to my friends and family.I am looking forward to purchasing more Ulta brand cosmetics and writing more reviews on them since I noticed that when I myself was looking for Ulta brand cosmetic reviews I only found a few. Hope this is helpful to all of you. More reviews to come soon :)

Price List:

*Ulta Cheek Color (Afterglow, Girlie, Sweet Cheeks) $7.00 (Ulta)

*Ulta Lipstick (Fuchsia Fever): $8.00 (Ulta)

*Ulta Eyeshadows-(These are not sold in quads but individual full size) $7.00 (Ulta)

*Ulta Lash Blow Out Mascara: $10.00 (Ulta)

*Lip liner & eye liner sold individually and full sized: $8.00 each (Ulta)

Golden Goddess Look

"When you reach the heart of life you shall find beauty in all things, even in the eyes that are blind to beauty." ~Kahlil Gibran

By now I think we all know that one of the summers biggest trends is the bronze golden look. It is fun, subtle, and flatters any skin tone. There are many variations on how to create your own golden look and I finally decided to go for it and do my take on it and here it is!

I know the lighting sucks but you can still see what my finished product is. It is very simple to create this look and it can be done using gold and brown eyeshadows you already have or spending less than $10 to buy a quad that is nothing but gold and brown colors. It is a perfect look for a night out with friends, a date night, or just for work. If you want to learn how I did this look and what I used keep on reading :)

PRODUCTS USED:

FACE:

*Laura Mercier Oil free Face Primer (Sephora)

*Benefit Cosmetics The POREfessional Primer (Sephora or Ulta)

*MAC Studio Sculpt Concealer (MAC)

*Lancome EFFACERNES Waterproof Protective Under Eye Concealer in Medium Bisque (Sephora)

*MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural (MAC)

*Laura Mercier Bronzing Pressed Powder in Golden Bronze (Sephora)

*e.l.f. Mineral Blush in Rose (e.l.f. and local Target)

*e.l.f. High Definition Powder (e.l.f. and local Target)

EYES:

*Urban Decay Primer Potion (Sephora or Ulta)

*Almay Intense I-Color Powder Shadow Trio for Brown Eyes (Ulta or any drugstores)

*Cover Girl Eye Inhancers 3 Kit Shadows in Golden Sunset (Ulta or any drugstores)

*Flirt! Cosmetics Dream Eyes Eyeshadow in Solid Gold (Flirt! Cosmetics or Kohls)

*MUFE Aqua Liner in #7 (Sephora)

*Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil in Zero (Sephora or Ulta)

*Benefit Cosmetics Browzing in Dark Brown (Sephora or Ulta)

*MAC Zoom Fast Black Lash (MAC)

LIPS:

*MAC Lustre Lipstick in Sweetie (MAC)

*e.l.f. Luscious Liquid Lipstick in Baby Lips (e.l.f. & Local Target)

HOW TO ACHIEVE THE LOOK:

Once you have put on your foundation, bronzer, and blush apply your eye primer. I used the Urban Decay Primer Potion.

Next use the first (and lightest) color in the Almay Color Trio and apply over the entire eye. This works as your highlight and base color. 

Next we are going to use Flirt! Cosmetics eyeshadow in Solid Gold. Using the sponge tip applicator provided with it or a small eyeshadow brush apply this color over the eyelid. I only like to use the sponge tip applicators when I want to pack on a color and this is defiantly one you want to pack on.

Now using the Cover Girl trio in Golden Sunset use the dark brown color for the crease. This color is not a very pigmented or strong color so you may want to go over it more than once. 

It should look a little like the picture above. Now because I wanted to add some color I went in with my MUFE Aqua Liner in #7. #7 is a very deep violet color with shimmer. Perfect for summer time and the added bonus is its waterproof! I also lined my water line with Urban Decay 24/7 Liner in Zero, this is of course optional. Finally I put on mascara.

Excuse the messy hair (this was taken before I flat ironed my hair (was waiting for it to completely air dry)).This is the end result. I hope you guys like this look. Like I mentioned before it is very simple but also a versatile look. 

**Coming Next will be an Ulta Cosmetics Haul and review...maybe some different looks using the products.

Haul Time!

"The difference between pretty and beautiful is-pretty is temporal-whereas beautiful is eternal." ~ Unknown

So recently I decided to try some new products that are very inexpensive and are amazing! I went to my local Target for e.l.f products and Sally Beauty Supply for Palladio products. I apologize beforehand for the horrible quality of the pictures since I took them last night and my lighting totally sucked. Once again prices and links to where you can purchase these products will be listed at the very end. So lets get started! 

                                       

So in the picture above is all the things I bought. I believe all this was for under $35 dollars which is a pretty great deal since most of my makeup is $30 and up for a single item. So from left to right starting at the very top I have the Palladio Natural Rice Powder in translucent & the Palladio Herbal Eyeliner Pencil in White. Next is the Palladio Eye Ink in black, Aveeno Essential Moisture Lip Conditioner with SPF 15, e.l.f. Lipstick in Classy, 4 e.l.f. Luscious Liquid Lipstick in Baby Lips, Pink Lemonade, Maple Sugar, and Ruby Slippers. Finally 2 Palladio Herbal Tinted Lip Balm in Golden Pink and Cotton Candy. So now lets get into what I think. I have only tried these items once or twice so if need be I can keep you posted on how I feel about these products after I have used them for a while. 

First lets talk about the Palladio Products!

Lets start with the 2 Herbal Tinted Lip Balms I have. Like I mentioned before the colors I purchased are Cotton Candy and Golden Pink.

 I was honestly impressed with these two tinted lip balms, well, one more than the other. Golden Pink is such a beautiful color that gives my lips a nice tinted pink color with gold shimmers. Totally love it! Cotton Candy was very very shear I was only able to see the shimmers and nothing else. Cotton Candy I would recommend to people with fair skin or anyone that wants a nice shimmer to their lips. Over all I did like the feel of the lip balms. It went on so easily and made my lips feel super soft. The packaging was okay, nothing too flashy. Finally they have a very subtle smell and its a very pleasant smell too. 

Next the Palladio Eye Ink in Black. This liquid eyeliner is just amazing and completely affordable! It has a felt tip which is great for precision work and for people just starting to get into liquid eyeliners. 

 I was very impressed with how dark the eyeliner is and how quickly it dried. I actually have this eyeliner on today and I love it! Even my husband mentioned how well the color pay off was. I am looking forward to trying the other colors they have available and see how those work.


The Palladio Herbal Eyeliner Pencil in white is something I purchased because I have no white eyeliner. In case you don't have one you should totally purchase one! White eyeliner is perfect for applying in the inner corner of the eye to give the eyes a little bit of a pop and also on the water line to help whiten the eyes and give them a pop at the same time. It makes them appear bigger and make you look wide awake. I tried the eyeliner on and it does go on very smooth and is white. I will have to try it on for the whole day and let you know who it works but so far it is okay. 


Finally the Palladio Natural Rice Powder in translucent. This is the main product I have been wanting to try for quite a while. I have heard and seen many great reviews on this product and it totally impressed me! It is an amazing setting powder that leave my skin looking matte and not cakey at all. I have not had a problem with it at all. I have noticed it helps control my oily areas and stays on all day long and my face looks amazing. I have heard people say its messy or makes their face cakey but not for me. They may just be using too much product. I totally recommend this product for combination and oily skin. It is simply amazing!


Next onto the e.l.f products! I want to start with the most amazing lipstick I have found for only $1! 

This lipstick is from their Essential Line, in which every product is only $1! I must say the quality of this lipstick is just amazing. The color I purchased is Classy, which is a soft classic pink that is perfect for any skin type. I actually was influenced to purchase this lipstick by EmilyNoel83 (Click Here to see her video). She was doing a video of her favorite M.A.C. Lipsticks and their dupes. This particular lipstick in her video is a dupe for M.A.C. Angel. 

Any who, since I don't own any pink lipsticks I decided to give this one a try since it was only $1 and I LOVE IT! It is so creamy and goes on easily. It has a pleasant smell but it doesn't last all day long. I don't mind reapplying though because of its creamy texture. 

Now onto the e.l.f. Luscious Liquid Lipstick. These are also from the Essential Line. 

The four colors I purchased are Baby Lips, Pink Lemonade, Maple Sugar, and Ruby Slippers. These are simply amazing for their very inexpensive price. They are not sticky at all and give a beautiful shine to the lips. These that I purchased have some good pigmentation on them. They last quite a while on and smell minty! 

This a picture of the swatches I did of the four colors and I love them. They look even better on the lips. Baby Lips and Pink Lemonade give me a subtle hint of pink, nothing too exaggerated. Maple Sugar only gives my lip a nice shine, the color is very subtle. Ruby Slipper is beautiful and would look amazing on top of a red lipstick. Over all great product for an amazing price. 


Finally my Aveeno Essential Moisture Lip Conditioner with SPF 15. I purchased this item because that day I left my house without a lip balm and my lips felt super dry and needed some TLC. 

This lip balm is super amazing! It smells like vanilla to me and makes my lips feel super soft and moisturized. I feel no need to reapply constantly, which is pretty amazing! The SPF is just a huge plus. I have actually started applying this before I apply my lipstick so that my lips don't look dry and flaky. It also makes my lipstick last longer then usual. First I exfoliate my lips with my C.O. Bigelow Mentha Lip Buffer. Once my lips are dry and clear of the buffer I apply this lip balm. I then take a tissue and blot my lips, it may seem pointless but I do this so my lips are moisturized and dry not oily. Finally apply your lipstick. It works wonders for me! 


Well I hope this haul helps and maybe makes you want to go out there and try some new products. Talk to you guys soon :D


Price List:
*Palladio Herbal Tinted Lip Balm: $3.99 each (8 colors available) (Sally Beauty Supply)

*Palladio Eye Ink: $5.99 (6 colors available) (Sally Beauty Supply)
*Palladio Herbal Eyeliner Pencil: $2.99 (9 colors available) (Sally Beauty Supply)
*Palladio Natural Rice Powder: $4.99 (available in Natural,Warm Beige,& Translucent) (Sally Beauty Supply)
*e.l.f. Lipstick: $1.00 (7 colors available) (eyeslipsface.com or a local Target)
*e.l.f. Luscious Liquid Lipstick: $1.00 ( 11 colors available) (eyeslipsface.com or local Target)
*Aveeno Lip Nourishment with SPF 15: $2.79 (aveeno.com or any drug store)

Road Trip/Vacation Makeup Must Haves!!!

“It is better to be beautiful than to be good, but it is better to be good than to be ugly.”~Oscar Wilde

Its summer time and everyone knows what summer time is...ROAD TRIPS AND VACATIONS! They are super fun to plan but how do you go about packing your makeup?  Do you carry full size products or travel size minis? Well I myself was planning and packing for my road trip and came across the same question. So after a lot of research and thinking (yes thinking, have to think about what all you need and what not) I came up with this list of makeup road trip/vacation must haves! 

STEP ONE: Location, Location, and Climate

Yes, step one. This step is determining where you are going on your road trip or vacation. Once you figure out where you will be traveling you want to determine the climate. Nothing is worse than taking your new favorite lipstick on your trip to  Phoenix, AZ and discovering you lipstick melted due to the extreme heat. So location and climate due play a big part in your makeup packing.

STEP TWO: Storage Space

How much space for makeup will you have? Ideally for a road trip or vacation try to keep it all in a single makeup bag, unless you are going to a resort or something. Then a train  case would be a good idea...maybe.

The Urban Decay Quinceañera Bag is a good sized bag to fit your makeup. This bag is a bit pricey but there are others out there this size but for almost half the price. Try Sephora, Ulta, or even Wal*Mart.

STEP THREE: BRUSHES OR NO BRUSHES, THAT IS THE QUESTION.

Determining if you want to take your brushes on the trip or not is a difficult question to answer. If you are going to be doing simple makeup application or no makeup at all just some tinted moisturizer than brushes are not needed. Think about the locations you may visit on this road trip or vacation. Concerts, dances, fancy dinners? Or just camping, hiking, and exploring? Depending on this you will determine on yes to brushes or no. Maybe just sponge tip applicators. So think this through...

Now onto what you must have on you for this trip! 

1. Sunblock -I put this as the number one thing because it is summer and summer means being in the sun and you do not want to burn! Finding a good sunblock with good SPF is key. I prefer using Aveeno Continuous Protection Sunblock for Face in SPF 30. It is specifically designed for the face. Leave your face protected and doesn't leave it greasy at all. This product does go up to 

For the rest of my body I like to use Coppertone Ultra Guard Sunscreen with SPF 30 as well. You can use something higher if you would like.

Along the same lines as sunblock you also need some for your lips. Nothing is worse than having sunburnt lips. A good chapstick or lip balm with spf 15 is ideal. I have been using Neosporin Lip Health Daily Hydration Therapy.

Not only does it hydrate your lips but it also has and SPF 20. This is one of my new favorite lip balms. Its also perfect for hot climates because its already melted in a tube. Works wonders!

2. Moisturizer- Although this may just be a relaxing trip you do have to take care of your skin. For moisturizer I took along Aveeno Clear Complexion Daily Moisturizer. This product can be used as a day and night time moisturizer. For day just apply the face sunblock before the moisturizer.

3. Facial Cleansing Wipes- Nothing is more disgusting than the feeling of sweaty oily skin and if you have makeup on its even worse. Investing in a travel size of facial cleansing wipes is a good idea. I recommend Neutrogena  Makeup Remover Cleansing Towelettes. They work as a facial cleanser and makeup remover. Makes any makeup remover liquid as one less item you have to pack and carry.

(If you want to read my review on this product click here.)

3. Toner- I had to throw toner in here because you want to still take care of your skin. A lot of different brands actually make travel sized toners. Since I didnt want to spend a lot of money on a travel size item I went to my local Wal*Mart and purchased a small spray bottle from their travel/mini section. I just filled it half way with my favorite toner, Origins United State. 

I actually did a mini review on this product in another post (click here!). Like I said in my previous post I love this product. Perfect for combination skin! 

4. MAKEUP! - Now this is where you decided what to take and what not to take. For my roadtrip I packed the following:

*Primer- I am a huge fan of primer so I did pack my all time favorite primer, The Porefessional!

 It is really up to you if you want to take a primer. If you are going to a concert in say, i don't know, Phoenix, and want to get all dolled up for it then primer is a must!

*Foundation- I decided to pack the Josie Maran Argan Matchmaker Serum Foundation. 

This product is just amazing! (I will do a review on it soon!) It comes in 3 different color combinations. It blends right into your skin so you don't need to fuss over any color matching. However it is on the pricey side. So if you are not wanting to spend so much you can pack your own foundation or maybe a tinted moisturizer. 

*Bronzer/Blush- I was wanting to go for the nice summer tan look, so I took 2 bronzers with me. I took the NYC Bronzer in Sunny. 

This is a matte bronzer that looks great on any skin color. The other one I took with me was the E.L.F. Contouring Blush and Bronzing Powder. 

The reason why I took 2 bronzers is because Sunny is a matte bronzer, perfect for contouring and giving you a very natural tan look. Now the E.L.F. was a two in one. It works as a blush (subtle shimmer) and the bronzer is perfect for contouring and has again a subtle shimmer. 

*Eyeliner- I actually took only 2 eyeliners and both were liquid. Since, once again, I was going to a very hot place I wanted something that wouldn't melt, like a regular pencil or gel would. I recommend taking two colors. Your basic everyday color, which for me is black, and a nice metallic color. Metallic colors are perfect for the summer since they give you a fun look. I took the Palladio Eye Ink in Black.

This is a very inexpensive but great liquid liner. It is small so its perfect for travel. The other eyeliner I took was the MUFE Aqua Liner in #7 (Diamond Black Purple). 

Added bonus to this liquid liner is that it is waterproof. So I could wear this swimming or in 100 degree weather. A great waterproof liner for about half the price is Milani Infinite Liquid Liner, which are also waterproof (review on these to come soon as well :)).

*Mascara- Mascara is a must! So for mascara I took my waterproof L'Oreal Voluminous.

This mascara is great for lengthening and giving fuller lashes. It is one of my favorites!!!

*Eyeshadows: Now this is a step that is up to you. If you want to take eyeshadows you can. I feel that small palettes work best for traveling. A good example of a great, inexpensive, and small eyeshadows is E.L.F. Brightening Eye Color in Day 2 Night.

This quad is small and so inexpensive. Its perfect for creating both day and night looks, hence the name of it.

*Lipstick/Lip Gloss/ Liquid Lipstick- This is also something that is totally up to you and depends on the weather. Like I mentioned before nothing is worse than finding your favorite lipstick melted from the extreme heat. So besides accidentally taking my Laura Mercier lipstick I brought along my E.L.F. Luscious Liquid Lipstick in 2 tones: Baby Lips (a soft subtle pink) and Ruby Slippers ( a nice deep red).

These work perfect for very hot climates because they are just like a lip gloss expect more pigmented. Nice thing about them is they have a mint smell. Makes your lips tingle.

*Brushes/Tools/Applicators- Like I had mentioned before it is completely up to you if you want to take any of these and well for me, I had to take my brushes. I actually took my MAC Travel Sized brushes that my husband got for me Christmas '09. They do come handy! 

*Setting Spray/Powder-I actually took my MAC Fix+ Spray with me for my setting spray. 

It was very handy and refreshing to use. Urban Decay makes a travel sized setting spray and if I remember correctly MAC does too. Now for my setting powder (which helps control oily spots) I took my travel size HD Microfinish Powder from MUFE. 

This setting powder works wonders and is very small it does not take up much space. However it is very pricey for the amount of product you get so for a less expensive alternative E.L.F also has a HD Setting Powder less than half the price of MUFE. It is quite bigger but works just as great and you get a lot more bang for your buck! 

Now you must be wondering if you should pack full sized products or not. Depending on how long your trip is you can actually place all the item (except eyeliner, mascara, eyeshadow, and sunblock) in travel size bottles or jars. Like I mentioned before I packed my Fix + spray and toner in a travel sized spray bottle.

They are inexpensive, small, and compact. You dont have to fill the bottle all the way up. Just enough for the length of your trip.

For the foundation and moisturizers I used a little jar. 

You can either purchase these or even the sample jars that MAC and Sephora give out will work too. Like I said it all depends on the length of your trip how much you need and if its even necessary to take the full sized product. You can also go out and purchase all the products in travel size if you would like, but if it were me, I would rather spend as little as possible and save that money for the trip.

I hope this helped a lot of you! If there is anything you would like to know more about or reviews on anything just let me know. Take care and have a fun and safe trip!!! :)

PRICE LIST:

*Urban Decay Quinceañera Bag: $26 (Sephora or Urban Decay)

*Aveeno Continuous Protection Sunblock for Face SPF 30: $8-$10 (Local Drugstore)

*Coopertone ultraGuard Lotion SPF 30: $7-$8 (Local Drugstore)

*Neosporin Lip Health SPF 20: $4-$5 (local Drugstore)

*Aveeno Clear Complexion Daily Moisturizer: about $13 (local drugstore)

*Neutorgena Makeup Remover Facial Towelettes: $4-$7 (local drugstore)

*Origins United State Balancing Tonic: $19.50 (Origins)

*Benefit Cosmetics The POREfessional: $29 (Sephora or Ulta) 

*Josie Maran Argan Matchmaker Serum Foundation in Light/Medium: $42 (Sephora)

*NYC Smooth Skin Bronzing Powder in Sunny: $1.50-$2.99 (Local Drugstore)

*E.L.F. Contouring Blush and Bronzing Powder: $3 (E.L.F. or Target)

*Palladio Eye Ink in Black: $5.99 (Sally Beauty Supply or Ulta)

*MUFE Aqua Liner in #7: $23 (Sephora)

*L'Oreal Voluminous Waterproof Mascara in Black: $4-$6.99 (Ulta or your local drugstore)

*E.L.F. Brightening Eye Color in Day 2 Night- $1.00 (E.L.F. or Target)

*E.L.F Luscious Liquid Lipstick in Ruby Slippers & Baby Lips: $1.00 (E.L.F. or Target)

*MAC Fix+ Spray: Travel size-$10; full size: $20.00 (MAC)

*Travel Size Spray Bottles & Jars: $1.00 ( Local Drugstore)