rainkissed leaves from bath & body works.

yawl know i love my lotions - soft, supple skin is a must. the hotel we stayed in last week offered bath & body works toiletries. a plus. the scent was rainkissed leaves and i'm a fan.

let me digress for a moment and reflect on the genius of bath & body works. i think it'll be around forever. it has to be #1 in sales during christmas. i know each of you get at least one gift from b&b per year.

anywho, there's a little something for everyone there. some of the scents are a little too much. back in the day, smelling like a georgia peach was sexy to me - i rocked the peach scent faithfully. but now i go for less bold scents. well sometimes. it just depends.

rainkissed leaves is a part of their signature collection. it's subtle, light, fresh and clean. there's a hint of a grassy, cucumber smell that's great to wear in the spring or summer or just a sunny day. i use it as a hand lotion but at some point i may pick up the eau de toilette or fragrance mist to wear as an every day scent.

just thought i'd share. what are your favorites from b&b?

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my new favorite perfume.

while on our beach vacation last week, hubby and i decided to replenish our smell-good inventory. i fell in love with christian audigier (you know, the guy behind the ed hardy collection) and decided that it had to leave with me.

i wasn't quite sure how to describe the scent to you other than to tell you that it smells good. but the experts describe it as: "top notes of blackberry, pomegranate and tangerine; middle notes of coconut, magnolia and orchid; and a base of indonesian sandalwood, amber and woods."

so yeh, what they said. i can also add that initially i thought it was an evening scent but i am now convinced that it can be either day or evening. it's not too heavy.

what's your favorite perfume?

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at last: the magic potion for zits.

ladies (and gents), that 1 oz bottle pictured above is the not-so-secret solution to zit control. trust! it's acne treatment gel by mary kay. a dab goes a long way and dries up blemishes within a couple days. note: i recommend using it directly on blemishes, not all over your face - it'll dry you out.
7 bux. cop it here.

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it's beginning to look a lot like fall.

... so i'm switching up my nail color and opting for more fall'ish colors. i'm up on the bandwagon for the gray hued nails. i love the look but my nail salon is slipping on their polish options. i think i'll have to bring in my own. i love the color options from chanel.

les khakis de chanel is a new trio of limited editon colors perfect for this time of year. my favorite is khaki vert, a greyish/greenish color:

the other two are khaki rose - a pinkish-beige color - and khaki brun - a taupe color.

$25 each at chanel.

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sephora's studded make-up bag collection.

love, love, love.

studded limited-edition ensemble comes in 5 different colors. each piece can be bought separately. price range $20-$52. check it out here.

and i'm due for another make-up bag.

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crazy nails.

i like tumblr. i think i want to join. i came across this tumblr page dedicated exclusively to funky nail colors and designs. admittedly, i am generally anti-designs. but that's in the traditional sense - you know the standard looking designs that the nail shops are always trying to get you to pay "10 more dollar" for? the peacock with little rhinestone eyes or the palm tree - yeh, i'm not for all that. but i'm getting a kick out of the creativity of the designs i see these days. fun.

flintstones:

sesame street:

many more where this came from ... over 150 pages! check it out: fuckyeahprettynails

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tried and true: maybelline's great lash mascara.

1,500 empire beauty students voted maybelline's great lash mascara as the best drugstore must-have.

this mascara has been around for ages. i remember seeing this pink and green tube in my mom's make-up bag as a little girl. and i buy it from time to time now.

i've heard others rant about this too. and at $5.99 a tube (if that) beauties on a budget can't beat it.

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source

moody nail polish.

remember mood rings? they'd change colors depending on your mood. well perfect formula will be launching mood nail polish. same concept. your body heat triggers the different colors. that's pretty hot.
it's supposed to launch some time this month. i checked the site, nothing as of yet, but keep checking in.

source

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american apparel nail polish.

in case you're not totally put off by the latest news of american apparel's hiring practices, specifically what kind of brown chicks they should and should not hire, you may be interested in knowing that the store sells their own line of nail polish. i somehow missed that memo, not that i'd necessarily be rushing to buy nail polish from aa. nevertheless, cool to know that they sell 18 cool shades for $6 a bottle.

check it out here.

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sephora by opi.

did you know that sephora and opi have collaborated to create sephora by opi, a collection of nail care products sold exclusively by sephora? yup.

the nail color collection is called havana nights and goes for $9 a bottle.

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the wonders of blotting paper.

so me and the girls had a fabulously full day last saturday celebrating candice's 30th: mani's, pedi's and 'tini's at the nail salon; a huge (no gigantic) dinner at maggiano's and a little moet back at the hotel suite before heading off to a night at the club. we were cute. had our faces all made up. but in less than a half an hour inside the club, the champagne (and ok, yeh, maybe the lemon drop shots) had us burning up.

thank God for the rice paper blotting sheets that 2 of the girls had. i was impressed that the sheets removed the excess oil without removing the make-up. i don't remember the exact brand they had but i came across these options:

matte blotting film, 50 sheets for $10, sephora

clean & clear oil absorbing sheets, 50 sheets for $5.99, drugstore.com

palladio rice paper, 40 sheets for $3.99, sally beauty

there are tons of options out there so pick what works for you. i'll definitely be grabbing some this weekend ... i think i'm gonna go with the clean & clear sheets.

urban outfitters expands into beauty.

just got an email from urban outfitters announcing their expansion into the world of beauty. you already know that urban outfitters is a fun, offbeat type of store so after a quick scan of their site, their beauty products seems to follow a similar format.

they now carry lines such as anna sui, lipstick queen and stila and have everthing from makeup to perfumes to accessories and tools to hair and skin care.

smart move on their part. very.

check it out here.

p.s.
free shipping 'til 6/8 on any order that includes their beauty stuff.

beauty 101: long lasting lipstick.

times are hard on the boulevard so we want to stretch our dollars and get the most out of whatever we're spending money on. like lipstick. mac's fresh brew is my absolute favorite. can you believe the stick broke on me after like a week? it's getting warmer so lipstick tends to soften. i'm still using it - broken and all.

julyne derrick from about.com shares a tip that may prevent that from happening.

she says: if you store lipstick in the refrigerator, it will last longer.

i think i've heard that before but i'll definitely be doing so.

another tip she shares: if you want your lipstick to last longer during the day, shade in lips with lip liner before applying lipstick.

make-up shelf life: how long has that make-up been in your bag?

i bet we all have about 3-4 items in our make-up bag that have been there for way too long. we either sometimes use it or swear we'll use it one day. well I'm declaring today "national clean out your make-up bag day." it's time to let go and replace because make-up does have a shelf life. and if you're having a hard time parting with that old mascara that you're keeping for whatever reason consider throwing it away as a good excuse to go make-up shopping. i'll definitely be cleaning mine out today.

courtesy of julyne derrick over at about.com, i'm sharing a list of the shelf life of our favorite make-up products.

concealer: up to 12 months
powder: 2 years
cream & gel cleansers: 1 year
pencil eye liner: sharpen regularly. will last up to 3 years
eyeshadow: up to 3 years
sponges: wash weekly and discard monthly
foundation: a water-based foundation will last up to 12 months, oil-based will last up to 18 months. if your water-based foundation dries out before it's expiration date, add a few drops of alcohol-free toner and shake to mix it in. you won't need to do this to oil-based foundations. because they contain oil, they will tend to separate; you just have to shake it.
brushes: wash every 2-3 months in a mild detergent
lip liner: up to 3 years.
lipstick: some experts say 1-2 years; others say up to 4 years. if it stinks, throw it out! it's spoiled.
mascara: mascara expires the fastest! throw out after 4 months. to keep it from expiring too soon, don't pump the wand in and out. this exposes it to drying air.
nail polish: up to 12 months, depending on the quality. i am definitely guilty of holding on to nail polish way too long. like i'll probably never wear that bright orange polish that I bought a year ago. why do i still have it?

a lip liner tip.

i love this beauty tip from julyne derrick over at about.com. thought you would too:

skip the push-up lipliners. they're expensive, tend to break and you never really know how much you have left until you run out. no need to spend money on lip liners, there's no secret to greatness for this product. save your money for powders and foundation.

agreed!

estee lauder bronze goddess solid perfume pendant.

i think i like the idea of a perfume pendant because it sounds so old school. like something your grand or great grandma used to rock back in her heyday. agree?
i don't know how many times throughout the day i'd reapply since i have anxiety about wearing too much perfume, anyway. (long story short, i used to share an office with someone who wore an old, cheap perfume daily! smelled like something from the 80s. sweet lady and i knew the perfume was her favorite but it was way too much for the day time in an office. it literally gave me a headache.)
but cool, nonetheless.
$75, esteelauder.com (click image to shop)

sally hansen 14 day nail shield: but does it work?

i was instantly hype when i saw an ad for the sally hansen 14 day nail shield in the cosmo magazine. although my first name means patience in arabic, i am ridiculously the opposite. i love getting my nails done but i'm ready to bounce as soon as i'm painted.

i initially thought they were strips that you placed over painted nails for a quick dry. instead they are pre-treated, sheer color strips that bonds to your nails for an instant manicure.

they are sold anywhere nail products are sold. ulta sells them for $7.49. however, based on reviews, i think i'll pass. 5 out of 6 people on ulta.com seem only frustrated by the product. one reviewer says "i can't believe i spent $ on this horrible product." the one lone rave reviewer sounds like a sally hansen employee and says "... the results were just exceptional ... these are flying off the shelf."

i'll pass. have you tried these? if so, what's your verdict?

laura mercier tinted moisturizer.

laura mercier, you got this right. because the tinted moisturizer i just dropped $42 for this afternoon is the best i never had.

my hairdresser put me on to it. i always complimented her when she wore it because it gave her face a fresh, even and natural look. regan and i headed straight to the section in sephora. the associate made our faces and we were immediately sold.
i know i rave about a lot of things but i promise you, this is the ish. spring is here and as it gets warmer i won't be able to do the heavy foundations. this is oil-free, contains spf and is lightweight. the color (mocha for me) was a perfect match for my skin. a flawless finish.
i'm hype. now i want to go out this weekend just so i can wear it.

budget beauty.

let's face it. although things have gotten a little better compared to this time last year, we're still feeling the effects of the recession, depression, whatever you want to call it.

but you gotta love how we still manage to stay fresh and look good. it's what we do. right? right. don't you love when you can be resourceful and find a dual purpose for something already in your medicine cabinet. i do.

toothpaste! can't get around it. everyone's got a tube (and if you don't, we need to talk ... actually, we don't).

did you know that toothpaste can be used to combat pimples? yup. now i can't tell you the scientific explanation behind it, nor do i have time to google it but i can say for sure that it helps to dry out zits. probably the menthol ingredient. just put a dab on that pesty pimple and by the morning it'll diminish. i certainly don't recommend using it all over your face. that could be a disaster and that's what proactiv or mary kay is for. but for an on-the-spot, occasional treatment, it's pretty effective.

you're welcome.

i'm going make-up shopping.

me and one of my favorite chicks (heyyy regan) are going make-up shopping next week. yup. time to refresh the collection. of course we're hitting mac. maybe ulta. and most likely sephora.

and sephora just sent me a 15% off coupon for in-store and online (4/12-4/19). the online code is:

MADNESS

thank me later.

oh and they offer 3 free samples with every purchase, free shipping over $50 and free returns. that's what i'm talking about.