May 2012 Favorites!

Hey everyone!

Make sure you all go enter my giveaway!  It ends June 4, which is coming up SO soon!! You can win lots of goodies from Bath and Body Works, NYX and Maybelline!  

Can you believe it's the end of May already?! It's officially June, which means it is time for a May favorites post!  I don't usually do 'favorites' posts, but this month I've discovered a ton of new products that I love, so I have to share! :)

My first favorite for the month is my new Conair You Curl XL Wand.  If you all have read my Conair Hot Rollers Review, you know that the wand was never really my thing.  But now that I've broken down and bought one, I love it.  It takes a little longer than hot rollers or a regular curling iron, but I really like the way it makes my hair look.  I got mine at ULTA for about $27.

Next is all of my makeup favorites.  I will have reviews of most of these coming soon--so I'm just going to go over them quickly!  

First is Benefit's Erase PasteConcealer.  I'm obsessed with this, it works so well under my eyes.  It's extremely creamy and blends so well with my skin!  Mine is in the color Medium.

Next is Covergirl's Lashblast 24 Hour Mascara in the color Very Black.  I'm not usually a huge Covergirl fan, but when it comes to their mascaras, I'm obsessed.  This literally does stay on for 24 hours but it still comes off with a normal makeup remover (you don't have to use waterproof makeup remover).

As you all know, I love NYX cosmetics and neutral eyes, so when I ran out of my NYX Trio Eyeshadow with Aloha, Mink Brown and Deep Bronze (which I'm giving away one of HERE!!),  I ran to ULTA and picked up this one in the color set "Dune".  It's the perfect shimmery neutral palette for summertime and I'm loving it SO much!

Now the Maybelline blush is actually something I've had for about a year now.  I just found it when I was cleaning out my makeup and started using it, falling back in love with it!  It's in the color "Pinch o' Pink".  It's such a cute pink color for a little rosiness on your cheeks for summer nights, with a little shimmer in it as well!

The only nail polish I've been using lately is essie's 790 A Crewed Interest from their A Spring to Invest In collection.  It's such a pretty, light peach color that looks good on all skin tones!

Finally, I couldn't forget to mention the Maybelline Baby Lips products!  The one pictured is the clear one, Quenched, but I also love Pink Punch and Peach Kiss.  If you enter my giveaway, I'm also giving one of these away! :)  They're super moisturizing and perfect for the summer months.  They also have SPF in them, so they protect and moisturize at the same time!

I only have one favorite left, and it's my favorite of all favorites!  It's my Lemon Mint Leaf candle from Bath and Body Works.  If you follow me on twitter then you know I've been tweeting about it nonstop since I bought it!  It literally makes your room smell like a sweet yummy lemonade stand!  The mint isn't super noticeable, but it helps to even out the super sweet lemon smell!  I'm seriously obsessed, I need to stock up on them!

I hope you all enjoyed!

What are your favorite products lately?

Comment and let me know!

**DON'T FORGET TO ENTER MY GIVEAWAY! :)

xo Sarah

Review: NYX Stay Matte but Not Flat Powder Foundation

Hey everyone!

I hope you're all having an amazing week so far!  I've started my summer job again (as a lifeguard), and I'm loving it! :) I've been really busy though, which is why my posts have been lacking a little! I'll try to get better! :)

Remember, there's less than a week left to enter my giveaway! You can enter it here!  It's full of Bath and Body Works Candles, NYX lip gloss and more!

Anyway, as you all probably know, NYX is one of my favorite 'drugstore' brands, but the only store I could actually find their products at was ULTA.  Well, recently, they started carrying a larger selection of NYX products, so of course I had to try some out!  I had never tried their foundations before, so that was the first thing I went for.  I grabbed a bunch of products, but I was most excited to try NYX Stay Matte But Not Flat Powder Foundation!  

With flash

Without Flash

Unblended

Blended

So, as you can see, I've hit pan on this product.  The reason I bought this in the first place was because summer was coming, and even those like me with super dry skin can tend to get oily in the summertime (especially if you're always outside in the sun!).  I wanted something that could keep me from getting shiny.  

Although some say that during the summer it's not good to wear powdery face makeup (because if you sweat it can look cakey), I've found that wearing powder is a LOT less heavy on my skin, making it more wearable in the summer.  I've always been a fan of the Bare Minerals Matte Foundation, I wanted to try something a little less expensive and see if it works.

Price: I believe this was around $8 or $9 at ULTA, but you can also purchase it on the NYX website for $9.50.  It's pretty standardly priced for a good drugstore brand face product, I think.  

Quality:  Honestly, I think it was a little too cakey on my face during the winter and early spring, mainly because I tend to have extremely dry skin.  It has decent coverage at first application, but it is easy to build.  As summer has started and I've been in the sun & sweating more, my skin is more hydrated so the product seems to cover my skin better than when it was cakey and dry.

Alternatives: Like I mentioned earlier, the Bare Minerals Matte Foundationis my holy grail product for the summer if I'm looking for a very light, daytime matte coverage.  It is pricey though.  NYX also makes a liquid version of their Stay Matte Not Flat foundations, but I have yet to try it out!  Let me know if you do!

Overall:  This product was exceptional, but not great.  When I was primarily using the product, though, I did not have the ideal skin type (aka dry) for using a matte foundation.  Now that my skin is hydrated though, I'm enjoying the product more.  If I run out, I may repurchase for the summer just to see if I really do like it better on my non-dry skin!  Overall, I would definitely recommend this for people with shiny or oily skin, because it seems to soak up all the extra moisture on my skin!  If you have dry skin, I wouldn't recommend this for you, just because it didn't absorb the right way into my dry skin.  But, feel free to try it and let me know if it works better for you! :)

What's your favorite matte summer foundation??

Comment and let me know!

DON'T FORGET TO ENTER MY GIVEAWAY!! <3

xo Sarah

*Find where to contact me here

How-To Hair: Mermaid Tail Braid

Hey everyone!

First, make sure you enter my giveaway!!  It ends June 4! Anyway, today's post was so fun for me, it's a hair tutorial on how to get a "mermaid tail" braid.  It's super easy and doesn't take long at all!  I've been getting tweets and comments asking for more tutorials, and I love braiding my hair when I'm bored, so here's what I came up with! :)  I hate wearing my hair down if I'm not going out at night or something, so I braid/fishtail it all the time.  I typically go for a braid though, because honestly I hate doing my hair if it takes more than 10 minutes on most occasions.  I hope you all enjoy this tutorial! Comment and let me know if you want to see more! :)

Here's the finished look:

First, make sure there's not knots in your hair.  Then, pull all your hair to one side.

Split your hair into two sections and tie one of them back

Now, you're going to do an inverted braid on one of the sections.  An inverted braid is just like a normal three strand braid, except you're going to cross each strand underneath instead of over the middle piece.

Do the same with the second section

Now that your braids are done, you're going to pull on the braids and loosen them up a little.  Next, you're going to take bobby pins and pin together the two braids.  Do this all the way down your braids

This is what your braids should look like before you push the bobby pins together.  Make sure to place them in your hair from the back so there's minimal visibility of them from the front.

Push your bobby pins together, and use a hair tie to combine them together at the bottom.  Then take our the two hair ties that were holding your braids together separately and you're done!

Like I said, this is an extremely easy look to achieve.  You can wear it on a casual day or dress it up at night by pulling out some stray pieces and curling them!  

If you try this look, send me a picture!! :)

Let me know if you want to see more hair tutorials!

xo Sarah

*Find where to contact me here

Outfit Inspiration: Memorial Day Casual

Hey everyone!

As most of you all probably know, this weekend is Memorial Day Weekend!  Which for most people means cooking out, swimming and hanging out with friends and family--and if you're from the South, a big bonfire!  If you're me, you're working, but at least I'm a lifeguard so I'll be having fun!  Regardless of your plans, Memorial Day is a day to be comfortable and enjoy yourself!  Here's some ideas of what I would wear for a Memorial Day cookout/bonfire!

Of course, maxi-dresses are totally in style right now, and those would be an awesome option for the weekend as well.  I usually end up running around like a little kid though, so it's safer for me to have shorts on ;)

I hope you all enjoyed!

Have an amazing Memorial Day weekend!

What are your plans?

Comment and let me know!

Enter my giveaway!!!

xo Sarah

New Product Alert + Review! PlumeLoops and PlumePearls

Hey everyone!

Before I start this post, go check out my Giveaway!! Enter if you like it! :)

So, this post is extremely exciting for me!  I'm going to be doing a product review + a launch announcement for the new line from PlumeIt Feather Fashion Accessories.  If you all remember my Feather Hair Extension Review post from last month, you'll know how much I was raving about my new feather accessories.  Well, PlumeIt reached out to me and was kind enough to send me some samples of their new line of feather hair extension earrings.  They already have a line of multiple colored feather hair extensions to pick from, as well as some straight, dangling earrings.  This company has two types of earrings coming out--the PlumeLoops and PlumePearls.  I was sent one set of each, both in the color "natural."  Here are some pictures of the products:

PlumeLoops in the color natural

PlumePearls in the color natural

As you can see, the PlumeLoops are the bigger of the two, and the PlumePearls are much smaller.  In the packaging, I liked the PlumeLoops better, and I thought the smaller ones looked like fishing lures. When I actually put them on, both pair were very cute! I love how funky the PlumeLoops are--they're perfect for a super chic, boho look, which is perfect for summer!  I also really like how the PlumePearls are understated, so if you don't want it to be obvious that you have feather earrings on, this is the way to go.  I didn't include a picture of the packaging in this because the company assured me that the earrings were not in their final packaging.  So, now let's get into the review.

Quality:  The company says that Plume feathers are all-natural, and are the highest-grade feathers on the market.  Now, let's be honest.  I have no way of knowing if all of that is true, but I believe it is because these feathers are so soft!  They are especially great because they don't poke the side of your face while you're wearing the earrings.  I seriously can't get over how soft and high-quality they are.

Selection: There are five different color choices for both styles.  They are natural (which I show above), tropical passion, neon, think pink and white.  I'm in love with the natural ones, but I would also LOVE to have some in white!! I think they're SO pretty!

Price: PlumeLoops: $26.00 

PlumePearls: $16.00

I know this may seem a little expensive compared to the types of feather earrings you can get at Target or Forever21 for less money, but the quality of these earrings (in my opinion) is much better than those!  Just from opening mine and playing around with them, I can tell that the feathers themselves aren't going to fall apart easily.  

Honestly, I don't know if they're waterproof, but I wouldn't take that chance on ruining them.

Now here's my FAVORITE thing about the company.  They've partnered with World Relief, which is an organization that helps refugees from all over the world come to the United States and settle here.  Plume currently has refugees from 4 countries employed.  With every Plume feather accessory you purchase, Plume donates a portion of the proceeds to World Relief!!

Availability: You can buy these products starting tomorrow, Thursday May 24, 2012 here!  They're also having Free Shipping on orders of $35 or more! :)

Customer Service:  The customer service at Plume is amazing.  I have been emailing back and forth with multiple employees for a few weeks, and each one is so sweet and understanding.  They are willing to work with you and answer any questions you may have!

Overall, I really enjoyed these products.  The PlumeLoops are more my style than the PlumePearls, but both are cute and I plan to wear them.  I would LOVE to have more of these--especially the PlumeLoops (especially the white pair ;) ), so I may be ordering myself some tomorrow! :)

Do you like feather earrings?

Leave a comment and let me know if you would wear these! 

Make sure you enter my Giveaway!!!

xo Sarah

*Find how to contact me here

Get The Look: Emmanuelle Chriqui

Hey everyone!

I've gotten tons of positive responses on my "Get the Look" posts, so here's another! This one is of Emmanuelle Chiriqui.  I think she's absolutely gorgeous, especially in this look.  It's perfect for the spring/summertime, almost reminds me of a Greek goddess on her!  I hope you all enjoy!

Here's what I came up with:

Now, I love the look of turquoise with gold, but I added a little more gold than Emmanuelle had at first.  I love this look! It's super easy, a maxi dress with gold accessories! Find everything I picked out here:)

Enjoy!

Make sure you enter my giveaway!!

Follow me? 

<3

xo Sarah

300 Follower Giveaway ft. NYX, Bath and Body Works, Maybelline

Hey everyone!!

I know I've been promising this giveaway post for a while now, but if you've been reading my blog you know I was waiting for my camera to be fixed! Well, it's not, but I have another I can use for now!  Anyway, this giveaway is just for all of you as a thank you for reading my blog and following it--it means the world to me!  I honestly can't believe over 300 people are interested in my blog enough to read it!  So, thank you thank you thank you <3!!  To say thank you for all of your support, I'm doing a little giveaway for all of you.  

First, lets go over the rules.  

1. You must be a follower of my blog

2. You have to be 18 or older.  If you're not, you must have parent permission to give me your address to ship the prize to!

3. This giveaway is open to US residents only--I know a lot of my readers are from the UK, but my next giveaway will probably be international, I'm sorry this one isn't!!

4. All you have to do to enter is leave a comment on this post telling me what kind of posts you want to see more of and what you're doing this summer--it can be anything--fun or boring! :) Also, include your twitter handle in the comment (if you don't have a twitter, you can just leave your email).  If you win, I'll either DM you on twitter or email you.

The giveaway will run from Monday May 21, 2012 until Monday June 4, 2012!  I'll announce the winner in a post on here as well as emailing/DM them.  The winner will have 24 hours to contact me back, or another winner will be chosen!  I will be using random.org to pick my winner!

The prizes!!! :)

For this giveaway, I decided to give you all some of my favorite products!  The winner will get a NYX Soft Matte Lip Creamin 'Istanbul', which is my everyday, go-to color for a nice nude-pink lip!  You will also get a NYX Trio Eye Shadowwith the colors Aloha, Mink Brown and Deep Bronze--perfect for an everyday neutral look!  One of my summer must haves is the Maybelline Baby Lips Moisturizing Lip Balmin Peach Kiss.  These products have SPF in them, so they're perfect for wearing in the summer to hydrate and protect your lips!  Finally, you will be receiving three mini sized Bath and Body Works candles, from the Slatkin&Co. brand.  They make my favorite candles, so I wanted to share three of my favorite scents with you all!

I hope you're all as excited about this giveaway as I am!  If it's successful, I'm going to be doing more of them in the future! :)  Make sure to follow and comment below to enter!! :)

xo Sarah

*Find where to contact me here

Style Crush: Kate Middleton

Hey everyone!

First, I want to thank you all SO much for getting me to 300 followers on my blog!  I literally can't believe that many people want to read this thing, but seriously, thank you!  I know I've been saying I'm going to do a 300 followers giveaway, which I am, but I want to wait until my camera is fixed before I post that (but I might get too excited and post it later anyway;) ).  Regardless, make sure to follow so you can enter that when I post it!! :)

But, to hold you all over until I'm able to get my giveaway up, I thought I'd do a post on who my current "style crush" is, Kate Middleton.  I know you are all probably as obsessed with her as I am, so I had to do a post about it!  Whether she's walking a red carpet or at a rodeo with the prince ;), she looks absolutely gorgeous and totally classy.  These are just some of my favorite outfits of hers.  I hope you all enjoy :)

What's your favorite look of the Duchess'?

Who's your style crush?

Comment and let me know!

xo Sarah

*Find how to contact me here

Photo Credit: here