FOTD: A Holiday Look

Hello everyone! I hope you had a wonderful and happy Christmas.  Today I bring you  a holiday look that's easy to do and is done with a color that compliments every skin tone- bronze/gold!

For my foundation I used my favorite Revlon Photo Ready foundation in Ivory and then topped it off with the Rimmel Stay Matte powder.  For blush, I used my new E.L.F. HD blush in Superstar and, wowza, do you need a light hand and very little product! This blush is highly pigmented and the most minuscule dot goes a long way and gives you a nice flush.  Just be careful or you could wind up looking like a clown!  For my eyes, I used the Color Tattoo pigments in Breaking Bronze and then for my crease I used the darkest bronze color in my BH Day to Night palette.  For my eyeliner I used Urban Decay 24/7 eyeliner in Purple (personally I think it's more an eggplant color but whatever) to line both my upper and lower lids.  I then used my Rimmel Scandaleyes Curve Alert Mascara to get my eyelashes nice and big.  For my lips, I used the new Revlon chubby stick lip color in the second to lightest pink, sorry I can't remember the name of it.  Have you used any of these products?  Would you like to see a video tutorial of how I do my makeup? XOXO

2013 in Review!

As 2013 comes to a close, and 2014 arrives like a looming cloud, I have decided to look back on the year with these lovely ladies and do a Year in Review.  I know this is a beauty blog, but sometimes it's nice to do a life related post.  So let's get started! (NONE OF THE MONTH WORD IMAGES ARE MY OWN, ALL WERE FOUND ON GOOGLE)

With January came my first experience at stage management.  I was one of the assistant stage managers for the production of The Tempest and it was one of the craziest and most stressful times of my life, and I learned so much from it.  This was also the month I first dislocated my right knee.

 With February came my very first true snow fall and along with it, my first 'snow days' off from school.  I go to school in the midwest but am from the west coast, which meant waking up to find snow on the ground made me flip.  I enjoyed playing in the snow but would never want to live where it snows so much, just, nope.

 March was the opening of The Tempest and the end of my sleepless nights.  It was also home to the 'Nerd Dance' where I proudly dressed myself as a Dalek from my favorite TV show, Doctor Who.  This was also home to the much needed spring break, where I enjoyed going to Universal studios for the umpteenth time.

As far as events went, April was by far one of the best.  We auditioned and were cast in the shows at the Okoboji Summer Theatre and I had the honor to meet Dawn Wells who had gone to Stephens.

 May was chocked full of events, such as saying goodbye to the dean of our department and watching my 'brother' graduate.  I also pulled 3 days with no sleep so as to attend my cousins wedding as well as strike the final show of the year and load the semi-truck that drove up to Okoboji.  After my cousin's wedding, I got to go up to New York for the day and be at peace with myself in the city.  At the very end of the month I finally arrived at Okoboji Summer Theatre, and proceeded to have the time of my life.

 June was my first full month at Boji, and in that time I was in the first children's show, started work on the second, celebrated my 20th birthday, and had a huge flat (wall) fall on my head.

 July saw, firstly, the fourth of July celebration at Boji which involved a parade and plenty of fireworks.  I also opened the last two of the shows I was in, Chicken Little and The Importance of Being Earnest.  Earnest introduced me to John Watkins, who has become my mentor and friend, and I got one last chance to perform with John (Lampe) who had become my big brother over my time at Stephens.

 And just as the summer ends with August, so did Boji.  It was a time and a place I will never be able to forget with people I will always remember.  I had the final opportunity to work on the show The 39 Steps, and got to see some fine comedians in action.  August also marked the first tattoo I have ever gotten and the start of my final year of college.

September came with a slew of activities, as well as registering for graduation.  It also came with my first big mainstage sound design for the show Almost, Maine.

 In October, the rain came, but we still ran the Color Dash at Stephens Lake Park.  I also had my directorial debut which, coincidentally, also landed me in the hospital due to exhaustion for a few days.

 November was an uneventful time because all of the adrenaline from the month prior had worn off.  I visited the Magic Tree in Columbia with some friends and finished a 15 page paper.  See, nothing eventful.

 December came with the much needed Christmas break, and my favorite time of year- CHRISTMAS.  Getting to spend time with family and friends, old and new, is what makes it my favorite.  And this is where I leave the year in review.

WHEW! If you made it to the end of this post, congratulations, that was a long one!  This has been a year of ups and downs, first loves and heart breaks; the year my hair went from red to blonde to black to red to blonde to red again.  I learned limits and I pushed my boundaries, and I have become a better person for it.  I hope you review your year too! XOXO

How to: No Heat Curls

Here we have another simple trick to make your hair look nice without you having to fry it with a flat iron (guilty) or a curling iron.  I first found this trick on pinterest last year and have been doing it ever since if I want to have curly hair without all of the muss and fuss.

All you have to do is put a sweat band around your head, so it looks like it could be a really bad fashion statement, and then you take a section of hair and loop it around the band once.  Then you add a little bit more hair to that firs section and wrap it again.  You keep doing this until all of your hair is wrapped around your head on this sweat band.  You should do this when your hair is still slightly damp but not completely soaked, nor totally dry.  If it's totally wet, your hair will never dry then you just have a damp mess on your hands and if you do it when it's completely dry the hair will not stay on the band.  Each person's hair is different though, so I suggest trying a few different versions of dampness to see what works best for you.  This is what the finished product should look like:

The curls that come out of this are pretty messy, so it's a good style to do half up half down in my opinion.  It does give your hair a good amount of volume as well, especially if you use a volumizing mouse.  I hope you enjoyed this how to :) XOXO