What's in my bag?!

Hey everyone! I know i've neglected this blog a bit lately, and that time has got to change!

I'm really hoping to pick up my tutorials and such again for you! But i also want to use this venue to chat to you about some other makeup and beauty related things, current product trends, upcoming trends, product reviews, etc maybe without videoing everything. Videoing is easy... editting, not so much! haha! And with a full work schedule and 2 little guys at home, the editting part gets put to last and well, then there is nothing going up on the blog!

So here's something new... every month or so (i'm going to try to shoot for the first of the month! haha) i'm going to do a little bloggie post about "what's in my bag!" This is going to just be what my current top picks are... the stuff i use daily, etc. Hopefully this gives some insight to what some rockin' products are and helps you plan what you might like to try out next!

So.... What's in my bag?!

Let's start with my basic skincare routine.... my skin is super dry and even worse in the winter months, but i still have some combo oily areas.... joy.

I wash my very sensitive dry skin with Aveeno Ultra Calming Creme Cleanser....

As you can read on the package... it has no fragrance which is good for those with skin sensitivies... it also has feverfew which is fabulous for those with roseacea problems (thankfully, not a problem that i have) and it's a cream base which is good for those with very very dry skin. They also make a foaming cleanser that i havent tried, i don't do the suds.

Next at night i use pure Evening Primrose oil. I'm old school. If it worked for grandma then it can work for me! My grandma is 95 and looks 15-20 years younger than her age. I trust her. haha! But seriously, if you have skin as dry as mine and is sensitive, a lot of the moisturizers you might be using may actually make your skin more dry believe it or not. There are some pure oils that are fabulous for your skin, and are natural oils so they wont blog your pores. :)

Another skincare line i use a lot is Aloette.... Its a fabulous skincare line. Their enzyme peel is AMAZING! Its super gentle so it doesnt irriate my skin at all (which is hard not to) and just gets rid of all the flaking dead skin cells on top. I often use this on clients before i apply their makeup to get the smoothest possible start. You only need to use this once a week or so. THe price seems high, but i promise this stuff lasts forever!

And one more skincare product that i just have to mention is my new love for a moisturizer! I mean this stuff boots my others (except for my evening primrose oil for the super dry days!) to the curb! It's by RareMinerals (a branch of the Bare Escentuals company)

It's a super lush feeling lotion that is paraben free (major bonus!) but does not feel even the slightest bit oily to me. I had no flakey skin issues for the entire day the first day i tried it! Love this stuff! I definitely recommend it!

Ok, so thats that for the skincare routine! Now let's move on to my current everyday makeup routine. Now remember, my daily wear is not extensive! I'm a mom! Just an everyday mom who does a lot of other stuff, so i dont have a lot of time to spend dolling myself up for the day especially if my biggest plans are to hit Target. I barely even get dolled up for a makeup job anymore! haha! I keep it basic and save all the fun stuff for everyone else! hahaha!

Ok, so here is my current makeup choices....keep in mind the weather plays a major factor in what i choose for makeup. I do plan on doing a special video tutorial on dry skin makeup application. :)

Foundation... i love the new Stila One Step Foundation.

Bugger is it doesnt come in a tone of colors so finding your shade might be tricker. But the new release of the larger size bottle provides 8 different colors... which i havent tried all of yet, but my guess is it'll be easier to match than i might think. :)

Next is cheek color and in dry months i usually always opt for a cream color. My current favs are the Nars Multiple in Malibu and the Stila Convertable cheek color in

There are other cream blushes out there of course, but these are my 2 favs and in my 2 fav colors. :)

My favorite eyeshadows remain the velux or satin mac shadows. I dont even use them on a daily basis (a litte cream blush on the brow bone is fast and very fresh looking, check out my 3 minute makeup video - that i need to reshoot... haha) for more info on that!

But my favorites in these shadows are

Rice Paper, Arena and the Notoriety Quad (skipping the 1st color, i dont like the lustre finish)

My favorite mascara is by sheer cover because it doesn cake on and removes easily without a black runny mess down your face, though from what i've read and heard from others, the closest rival is the new tubes mascara by Loreal. I just havent tried it yet.

And last but not least, my favoritest lipgloss.... i fear i'm going to have to pick a new fav soon because mine is almost out and the color is no longer available! But the lipgloss is sheer and not sticky, truly beautiful! It's by Bloom Cosmetics and my favorite color is Dolce. :)

So thats it for this edition of Whats in my Bag! :)

Tune in next time... hehe.

Bridal Hairstyle Trend

Oh my! I have been bad bad bad about blogging makeup! I've been worse about filming tutorials! I do apologize! With the travel and the holidays i just havent been working on them. With the start of a new year, I always have a lot of bridal consultations. I think all brides just think, oh it's finally the year i'm getting married and get into gear with their consultations, etc. I had 3 consultations this week alone! And each of them wanted to try out a "half up" hairstyle. So maybe that will be a bridal hair trend this year?

Here are some hair pics from this week's hair "trials"...

Feel free to use the pictures as inspiration or to take to your own hairstylist if it's a style you like. :)

Lauren's Wedding

I finally get to post some pictures from one of my favoritist bride's i've ever had the pleasure to work with! Lauren is just an awesome girl and I had so much fun in the process of her wedding from consults, bridal portraits and then her wedding! She is an absolute doll with a classy personalty and clean, simple but still elegant style.

Her wedding was so exception. She was married on her family's farm (which if they asked me to move in with them i would in a heart beat! It was gorgeous!). She really had all the details down! Her photographer i mentioned before in my posting about her bridal portraits but I just cant say enough about Altmix photography! They are based out of Atlanta Georgia and their photography skills are AMAZING! they are able to capture such beautiful and intimate moments without it ever looking posed. You can see many more of the photos from Lauren and Matt's wedding by seeing the blog post at Altmix Photography

Here are some of my personal favorites (of course they show off the bride... hehehe)

Subtle Purple Smokey Eye

Ok everyone, i'm so sorry it's been a minute since i've posted a video! We've been redoing and remodleing and painting and i've even tried taping some videos but just havent had the time to edit them!

Anyhoo - here is a super fun one using PURPLE! I love purple. I've tried to say i dont (high school color, i think i OD'ed on purple in highschool) but truth be told, i just really love the color purple! Not lavendar as much, i'm talking deep rich purple. Love it! The great thing about purple as an eye color is it truly works well with just about any skin tone! It's a great way to pull off a color look without going overboard.

This video makes a very easy smokey eye using purple but it's also not over the top so ANYONE can wear it! Check it out!

My apologies...

I am so sorry for the lack of posting! My wonderful husband was repainting my master bath at my request. I wanted a better wall color that wouldnt wash out the video tutorials so much. So that meant the filming would move to the next best list room in my house... the kitchen. Then he decided to start painting the kitchen! So needless to say, i havent had a good place to film. And with the shoot for McAulley's and the fashion show (which by the way went great and Lela Rose is the most down to earth designer i've ever met!), it's been a hectic week! I did take the time to reorganize my makeup closet and go thru all my brushes so that i could do the best brush review to my ability! I actually filmed it, but left out something i wanted to talk about. WOOPS!

SO, thats all coming, bare with me while i get back into my groooooove. :) Photos to come from the shoots earlier this week soon! :)

Lela Rose Fashion Show!

What a weekend, what a day, and it's not over yet!

Sorry for the lacks of posts this past week! I've been cuh-razy busy! Some of you know i own a stamp company called Paper Makeup Stamps (appropriate, huh?) Well, in any case, we had a new release on saturday, so a big part of my week last week was getting ready for that.

I also am doing makeup for the Lela Rose fashion show tonight! Here, in G-ville baby! It's always very exciting when someone from New York or LA comes here! So i'm way pumped for that! Part of this past week was also dedicated to preparing for that. The show is tonight! If you are local, you should come! Fashion, Food, Drinks, i mean, whats not to like? Oh, and you get a goodie bag! hehe.

I also did makeup for a fashion shoot yesterday for McAulley's Unique Boutique which is in Anderson South Carolina. Once i get some of the shots from that, I'll post em.

But for now, i'm off to get some models ready for the luncheon with the designer. Not like America's Next Top Model where they have to do their own makeup! (ok, so usually models DO for luncheons and what not. I'm just being helpful, i.e. not getting paid. hahahahahaha)

Ok, chat with ya'll on the flipside!

coming up...

So i had a client come over on saturday for a super fun makeup... and who forgot to take a picture? Yep, that'd be me. *sigh* oh well, it was a very "halloween-ie" makeup anyway.

Here's a fun look using some deep plums and purples. I looooove plum and purple and they look great on so many different skin types. The trick for me? Keep it warm. The warm purples wont wash you out as the weather gets cooler and skin tones get more pale.

Tip 2, keep some lighter shadow towards your lashline. The effect is pretty, but it also helps to "open up" your eyes! Too red of a purple right around your eyes wont help the whites of your eyes if they are a bit bloodshot. :)

I did try to do a film tutorial on this but i think the lighting was not the best. We'll see how it looks though and I'll get it up as soon as i can!