EXTREME MAKEOVER: Makeup Vanity Edition

Okay, okay! I am really bad about putting back my makeup and makeup brushes after I'm done with them. So on Monday I decided, "it's the beginning of the week Marissa, it's time to get organized!" This led me to going on a cleaning spree and I am EXTREMELY pleased with the outcome! 

Before (really embarrassing):

See???? Gosh I feel like a terrible makeup owner! I wasn't even using my Muji drawer set. I love that thing! But, I worked hard and got everything spick and span. 

After (drum roll please!):

So pleased! I am thinking about rearranging my brushes and lipsticks because of being right handed, but honestly, it hasn't slowed me down in the mornings so far, so my brushes may stay put. 

I got my lipstick holder on amazon. It's acrylic and tiered so I can see all of my lipsticks that I'm encouraging myself to use this season. Would you like to see a blogpost on my favorite fall lip products? That will be my next post. I organized my Muji drawer like this: 

Drawer 1. Face product essentials

Drawer 2. Eye products (individual eyeshadows, mascaras, brow products and eyeliners)

3. More eyeliners and cream eyeshadows!

What are some of your favorite ways to keep yourself organized? 

Xoxo,

Marissa 

August Favorites!

Time to dust off the 'ol blog! And what better way to do that than by gathering up my favorite beauty products from this past month? I found myself reaching for some really awesome goodies in the month of August, a few of them are all time favorites that I've been using for quite some time now.
 In no particular order, let's get into these bad boys!

-Hourglass Ambient Lighting Palette
My favorite color in particular is the middle highlight shade, Incandescent Light. It's so beautiful, it adds such a youthful glow to the skin without being over the top. A little bit goes a long way, you just need to hit the high points of the face.

-L'oreal Infallible Shadows in Bronzed Taupe, Amber Rush, and Iced Latte
Stunning shades, amazing textures, great staying power, you need these in your life. Period.

-Nyx blush in Taupe
Perfect contour shade for fair to medium skin tones.

-Tarte Park Avenue Princess bronzer
I use this to put some warmth in my fair skin. Lovely bronzer.

-Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powder in Diffused Light
This is an amazing setting powder. I bought this quite a few months back and it quickly replace my previous favorite Rimmel Stay Matte powder.

-theBalm blush in Fratboy
This shade is B-E-A-U-T-I-F-U-L. Stunning peachy pink shade with a satin finish.

-Benefit blush in Bella Bamba
This color is actually a similar shade to the Fratboy blush expect this one is slightly more pink with a golden shimmer shot through it. It gives the cheeks such a healthy look, no need to apply a highlighter with this. Plus it smells so good!

-L'oreal True Match foundation
Lovely medium coverage foundation, blends effortlessly, semi dewy finish. I've been loving the look it's been giving me and I can tell it's going to be my go-to foundation in the upcoming fall and winter.

-Maybelline Dream Lumi concealer
This is my fourth tube of this stuff, needless to say, it's pretty darn great.

-MAC Studio Finish concealer
An oldie but a goodie. I love to use this for pinpoint concealing blemishes.

-Anastasia clear brow gel
This is some serious brow gel, talk about hairspray for the eyebrows! This stuff does not go anywhere in the Texas heat.

-L'oreal Lash Out Butterfly mascara
I finally found a new mascara that I actually like! I still love the Covergirl Clump Crusher, but this one is great when I want a long, fluttery lash look.

-Clinique Bottom Lash mascara
I finally repurchased this and remembered why I loved it. The tubing formula is a God-send for those of us who have an issue with mascara smudging on the bottom lashline.

-Nyx Butter Gloss in Peaches and Cream
Adorable color, creamy formula, and smells super yummy! Great gloss!

-Maybelline Color Whisper in Cherry on Top
The name says it all, I love a nice pop of cherry on the lips. This one is nice though because it's very wearable, not a crazy in your face color at all.

-Jersey Shore Sun Mongongo lip balm
Holy moly, this lip balm works wonders! I got this in my August Ipsy glambag and it is a total winner! It actually improves the texture of my lips rather than just moisturize them and it smells delicious!

-Dr. Brandt Pores No More primer
Also from my glambag, this is my new favorite primer. It really does reduce the appearance of my ginormous pores and it keeps my makeup lasting longer than most of my other primers.

-Layla Cosmetics Ceramic Effects nail polish in CE74 Pop Pink
Perfect pink summer color with a purple duo chrome. SO pretty! I have it on my toes for the second time this month!

I loved getting all of my favorite products together from this past month! I can't wait to see what my new favorites are going to be going into the new seasons!
Chelsea

Review: Wet 'n Wild Mega Protein Mascara

I went to Walgreens yesterday and while I was there, I decided to purchase a little  set from Wet n Wild that included their MegaProtein mascara and the "Walking on Eggshells" palette. 

It was an awesome deal! I basically got the mascara for free!! Now, I have very thin lashes that are naturally straight, but aren't stubborn (see below). I love mascaras that are semi-wet. If the mascara is too wet, my lashes will fall down, if its too dry, they will not get a lot of volume. 

On to the review! I first noticed that the mascara has a nice brush and thought, "this'll be good!" But then I reminded myself that sometimes, the brush can be decieving and it's the formula that truly matters.

 Well....

The formula is literally nothing. It felt like I was painting my lashes rather than adding volume or length. I also noticed that if I tried adding another layer, my lashes started to fall down! That ladies, is not a good thing. I couldn't leave the house looking like I had no mascara on, so I decided to use my Cover Girl clump crusher mascara to layer over the top and it worked much better. One last note about it, the color isn't even black, it definitely is more on the charcoal side.

So far, I'm not going to repurchase this when I use it up (if I use it up), but it was an extremely cheap purchase and I can't say that I'm disappointed. Definitely pick up the eyeshadow palette, but pass along the mascara! 

I hope this review was helpful! ;-)

-Marissa