Throw It In The Bag II

I have fallen head over heels for lipsticks. This is a new love. I cannot stop myself from buying a new one every single time I enter a store. It's my latest habit. I realized that I seem to buy shades in the purple, pink and burgundy family. I think they are my favorites because they look so good against my brown skin. I have been searching for this one lippie for months now. I finally found it last week. I was so happy, especially because I had 2 coupons which would be $7 off!! The shade is Revlon ColorBurst Matte Balm in Shameless. It is the most perfect shade of purple. I am in love with it. I am glad that I purchased 2 of these when I had the chance because the racist remarks of the CEO of Revlon means that I will not be supporting this brand any further. I am sickened by his stupid and ignorant words. That won't stop me from loving this lipstick though. Great purple shade for a brown skinned Black girl.  

Wet 'N Wild Cinnamon Spice is a lipstick I picked up on a whim. I wasn't sure if I was really going to like it. Plus, I had a coupon so it was cheap. Imagine my surprise when I really liked it. It has more of an orange undertone and I think it works well for me. 

NYC's Violet Shine is a pink lipstick that I have to get used to. It's a tad bit more metallic than I would like. I mixed it with a brown lipstick that I already had. It made a new shade that I liked more. Someone got this for me so I want to make sure I use it.

Maybelline's Brazen Berry is a lipstick that I had to hunt down for a while. I was so excited to find it. I thought it would be more purple on my lips but it's lilac in color for me. I still love it. This is definitely one of my absolute favorite shades. I always feel happy when I wear it. 

And, finally a new fave has to be Wet N' Wild's Cherry Bomb. I love it because it is a deep burgundy shade. It reminds me of NYC's Mahogany. I absolutely love the way it looks on me. I wear this at least once a week. It never fails to get me compliments. I promise that I won't purchase anymore lipsticks for a while. Well, with one exception, if I find the Wet 'N Wild's Sugar Plum Fairy, I have to buy it. Other than that, I am done for a while. I will wear and enjoy all the lippie's I've purchased over the last few months. What's your newest favorite lipstick? Tell me about it. What's in your makeup bag, ladies?

Throw It In The Bag

Decided to take a trip to CVS and grab a few things. I have decided that almost 35 year old me needs to invest in lipsticks and commit to wearing it. So, I am starting with drugstore brands to find what shades I like and that work with my complexion. I only purchased one shade that isn't right for me but I had fun mixing it to come up with something that works. First up is my favorite of the bunch. It's the NYC lipstick in Mahogany. It's dark and vampy and amazing. It's the shade I've worn the most in the last two weeks. I paired it with a Wet 'N Wild lip liner in Brandywine. I love the way this combination compliments my skin tone. This lipstick lasts for hours without me having to constantly reapply. Purchasing this shade again is a no brainer. It's a winner. 

NYC Mahogany. Wet n Wild liner in Brandy Wine. 

My second purchase was a NYC Liquid Lipshine in Honey on the Hudson. No, this isn't a lipstick but I am a sucker for a good lip gloss. I was already a fan of this line because I've been wearing the Nude York City shade all year. I love Honey on the Hudson because it is a richer, deeper nude shade. I am a huge fan of a nude lip. It is my go to look. I paired it with my favorite lip liner by Bare Minerals in copper. Perfect combination for me. It's a quick and effortless look for me. 

My third pick was something totally out of the norm for me. I've been reading a lot about pink  lipsticks with blue undertones and how they would work well with my complexion. So, I grabbed the Wet 'N Wild Fuchsia with Blue Pearl lipstick, which at $0.99 is a steal. I loved it instantly. I loved how bright it was. I paired it with a Covergirl lip liner in pink and it was golden. It garnered many compliments at dinner that night. I love how cheap and accessible the Wet 'N Wild & NYC lipsticks are ($0.99 - $3.29). That's great for someone like me who is experimenting with shades. I am going to purchase a MAC Heroine and Maybelline Brazen Berry soon. 

My final pick was Milani's Lip Intense Liquid Violet Addict and the Fuchsia lip liner. I absolutely loved the liner. The lipstick was another story. It was way too punk for me. I mixed it with a brown lipstick to dull some of the color. It helped a lot. It toned down the brightness of the shade. It's just ok to me. There is a purple that Milani has that I should've purchased instead. I will be grabbing some more shades this weekend. I cannot wait to try out different looks. I've successfully worn lipstick every single day for the last almost two weeks. This is a huge deal to me. This has been great for me. I love the way lipstick makes me feel. Ladies, what's in your bag? Tell me all about it.

Get Into It: Eyebrow Kits

In my world, eyebrows are very important. I love mine. Getting my eyebrows threaded make me feel like a new woman. I remember the first time I got them arched as a teen. I felt like it made my face brighter. Since then, I have had my brows tweezed, waxed and now threaded. I prefer threading. I have the best brow lady in my city. I like the clean look of threading. I also love that getting my eyebrows threaded lasts longer than waxing. I can go almost at least 6-8 weeks in between appointments. Recently, I have discovered brow kits. These kits include wax (either colored or clear), powder and a brush. Some come with tweezers as well. I have tried two to very different results.



The first brow kit I tried was the e.l.f. Studio Eyebrow Kit in medium. It retails for $3 which is super affordable. I purchased it from Target. The packaging is gorgeous, sleek and black. I love that the kit has a mirror for on the go brow upkeep. This kit includes wax, powder and a two sided brush. I loved that the wax was brown because so are my natural brows. I am not that fond of the powder though. It made my brows look great and very natural. I loved the ease of the brush. In the end, I wasn't overly impressed with the results. So, I went in search of another brow kit. 

This led me to the NYC Browser Brush On Brow Kit in Brunette. It retails for $3.99 at Target. It contains brow grooming wax,brow powder, brush and a tiny pair of tweezers for grooming. Those tweezers are a win for me. The packaging isn't as great as compared to the e.l.f. kit. There is no cute and useful mirror. But, that is the only thing that is lacking. I love the color of the wax and the powder. The powder makes my brows look much more natural. The brush is functional and practical.Everything about this kit is a win. I loved it so much that I have gone through two of these and I still have the e.l.f. one. It is my new favorite makeup product. I use it daily. I may not do a full face of makeup daily but I will always make sure my brows are on point. My daily eye makeup includes: brow powder, eye liner, eye shadow and mascara. For that reason, I would recommend the NYC brow kit. It's affordable, readily and widely available. Great product at a great price. Get into it!

Get Into It: Target's Beauty Box

I LOVE a good deal. I couldn't buy this one quick enough. Target is offering their Beauty Box for $5 and free shipping if you use their RED card. The Beauty Box is filled with 5 beauty products. A mascara, a lip gloss, a BB body cream, a dry shampoo, and a hair spray. 5 products for only $5?!? How great is that! I was most excited about the mascara. I do like makeup but I love to do my eyes the most. I am all about eye shadow, mascara and eye liners. I am always on the hunt for great mascara. The beauty box is a great investment. 

Beauty Box Includes:

1) TONI&GUY Casual Sea Salt Texturising Spray (2.5 fl oz): Want beachy hair without hitting the surf? Spray from root to tip for salty, sultry texture and subtle, windswept waves.

2) L’Oreal Voluminous Butterfly Mascara (.22 fl oz): Stretch and lengthen lashes for a fluttery, winged-out look with this unique mascara formula and revolutionary asymmetrical Butterfly Brush.

3) Herbal Essences Naked Dry Shampoo (1.7 oz): Give hair a rejuvenating boost with this paraben and colorant-free formula made with natural tapioca to instantly absorb excess oil with less residue.

4) COVERGIRL Smoochies Sizzle Gloss (.44 fl oz): Pucker up. Sheer color meets sizzling shimmer in a moisturizing formula that’s always stunning, never sticky.

5) Jergens BB Cream Light (2 fl oz): Finally, a multi-tasking beauty cream in a quick-drying formula that goes on sheer and delivers visible results in just 5 days.

Of the five, I am in love with three of them the most. The L'Oreal Voluminous Butterfly Mascara is my hands down favorite. I love the coverage of it. It does not clump and it separates my lashes. And, it lasts all day long. I have ditched my normal Revlon mascara for this one. It is a win. The Jergens BB Cream is great. I love the way it makes my skin look and feel. I love it so much that I am looking into a BB cream for my face. I am also planning on purchasing a full size of the Jergens BB cream. The Covergirl gloss is cute. It smells great and has great coverage. I am not that big of a fan of the glitter in it but I still like it. I used the Herbal Essences Naked dry shampoo last night. I am on the fence about it. I don't know if I truly feel like my hair is clean. I will give it another try soon. I have not used texturizing spray yet. But, I will. All in all, this is a great deal for $5. Get yours before they are all gone! Get into the Target Beauty Box.

An Ode to Black Girls in Red Lips

#Blackgirlsinredlipstick was a topic on Tumblr a while back. Until a few years ago, it was not a shade I purchased. I am just getting into red lippie's. I had to fight all those stigma's I've heard all my life about dark skin and red lips and that only loose women wear red lipstick. Red lipstick just never seemed like something a brown skinned girl such as myself should wear. Shaking all of this off, I decided to step out on faith. I am in the habit of putting on red lipstick just to clean the house. I wear it doing random things to make myself more comfortable with the idea. I take pictures of myself in red lipstick for the same reason. I just feel happier, lighter and more fierce when I have on red lipstick. It does something to my attitude and ego. I can't fully explain it, it's just a feeling.  

 It isn't about how others think I look in it or what they think about me. This is about me accepting myself in everything. So, if I want to wear a red lippie, then damn it I will. And, I will be fierce doing so because nothing is sexier than intelligence and confidence. I happen to possess both by the boat loads. Since I am a red lip novice, buying the right shade of red for a brown girl was a task. I spent at least 45 minutes in Target agonizing over two shades. I purchased two different shades from two different companies. One was a "Oh hell no" and I had to give it to my cousin who is two shades lighter than me. But, the second was a total win. It was the Kate Moss line by Rimmel. The shade has no name, just a number: 107. It is a berry red that compliments my skin tone. I desperately needed it for my brother's red and black color themed birthday party almost two years ago. Since then, I've worn it sporadically. 

 I'm getting more comfortable with shades of red adorning my lips. Just last night, I was hit with another red lippie dilemma. My cousin's all white bridal shower also called for everyone to wear red lipstick. I needed a new shade. I instantly knew that Revlon's Colorblast in Fire was a win. I loved that it was a lipstick and a gloss all in one. I loved it so much that I wore it again today. I am really digging the way it looks on me. It is very glossy which I am always looking for. This is how this Black girl learned to embrace a red lipstick for the greater good. Here's hoping you guys find your perfect shade as well.