Summer Outfit & Summer Makeup Look!

Hello beautiful babes,

I finally made post on the "fashion" side of my blog, my Summer Outfit/Summer Makeup Look. Knowing me I always have to incorporate some type of makeup aspect to my posts. I've been meaning to to do a fashion post but didn't know how to come about it. Every girl has a different type of style and preferences in clothing. I don't even know what to call my style. I'm all over the place to be honest. I love comfort but I also like dressing up. This look is definitely more on the dress up side but still super comfortable, it's an outfit I'd wear to go to the Pier, the beach, the park or a theme park. This look is very versatile as well as the makeup look so I hope you girls enjoy and get something out of it no matter what type of style you are!

The Summer Outfit 

The Crop Top: I purchased this floral crop top at Macy's a couple weeks ago. The original price says $34 but I'm pretty sure I got some type of discount. Summer is the only time of the year I like to experiment with colors. I'm a "black" outfit type of girl so when summer comes around I know I have to add some life back into my closet. Floral prints have been very trendy over the past years. Make sure you have a couple floral prints in your closet this season. 

The High Waisted Shorts: I admit it, I'm a high waited shorts/jeans addict. Lately this is the only type of style I've been wearing. I make sure to wear high waisted anything whenever I wear crop tops. I don't like to show too much skin. I got these at T.J. Maxx for $16.99 

The Sun Hat: These big Sun hats for women have definitely become a trend during the summer of 2014. I've been seeing them a lot more often. They're perfect for music festivals or just when you need to protect your face from the sun's UV rays. I got mine at Target for around $10.

The Sandals: It's always essential to stock up on many different kinds and styles of sandals. I wear sandals throughout the whole year (I'm not kidding). I can walk miles in them, I blame my flat foot. These sandals are nude with an accent of gold. Make sure to buy some nudes ones if those are the only ones you buy (they go with everything). 

The Earrings: I paired these gold Egyptian looking hoop earrings with the outfit. Since the sandals have gold accents I wanted the earrings to be gold as well. 

The Bracelet: I didn't want anything heavy for my bracelet. Since my earrings are bold, I wanted to keep the rest simple. It's just a thin rusted gold bracelet. 

The Rings: This is just pure preference for me. I like silver rings over gold. I chose two knuckle rings: (left) one with a bow and (right) one with a black heart. 

The Summer Makeup 

Overall Makeup tips for Summer: Try not to use foundation, those tend to melt off because of the hot sun. Try to go easy on makeup over all, you're going to be sweating, going inside of the water, and whatnot. 

On Top and Under your face. 

Primer: ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS apply a primer.  No matter what season it is. That's the first thing you should apply when you start doing your makeup. Makeup in general will last longer if you apply a primer. You need makeup to last longer because the heat will work against that notion. The one I use during my daily summer days are (RIGHT) Maybelline's Baby Skin Instant Pore Eraser that retails for $7. 

Evian Mineral Water Spray: (LEFT) I talked about this product in my ALL ABOUT SKIN BLOG POST. It's a water spray that you apply after you put on makeup that restores moisture into your skin. Apply this throughout the day. This product is essential for me during the summer. Retails for $12

"Coverage"

B.B. Cream: (RIGHT) This is Boscia's B.B. Cream Broad Spectrum SPF 27 PA++. I lean towards B.B and C.C. Creams during the summer season. It's light weight on my face and gives me the coverage I would get with a foundation. This also protects me from the sun's powerful and harmful rays. Retails for $38 in Sephora. 

Luminizer: (LEFT) This is the Buxom Divine Goddess Luminzer in Venus that retails for $28 in Sephora. I love to wear luminizer's in the summer because it gives my complexion an incandescent glow and sheer lightweight creaminess. You achieve that glow and sun kissed appearance for the summer. Apply it alone, under, or over your foundation. 

 Eyeliner: Make sure to purchase a waterproof eyeliner if you're going to use one. You can totally skip this makeup step in the summer. But knowing me I always have to rock a dramatic wing eyeliner. This one is my current favorite, Maybelline's Eye Studio Master Precise Ink Pen Eyeliner in Black that retails for $8 at any drugstore. 

Mascara: Mascara is a must in any type of makeup look. Make sure you purchase a waterproof one for the summer. My favorite waterproof mascara that I know won't come off in the pool or beach is L'Oreal Paris Voluminous False Fiber Lashes Mascara is Blackest Black that retails around $7-8 at any drugstore. 

Eyeshadow: In general, not just summer, I've always been a neutral eyeshadow type of girl. I leave the experiment with colors to the true makeup artist, my sister. But for summer especially I try to stick to the gold, brown, and pink shades for eye shadows. I think these are just great to keep that gold and bronzed look going. I know some girls actually like to prefer experimenting with brighter eye shadows for the summer, and by all means do yaaa thang girl! But for this look, if you remember the outfit I chose, the shirt is already colorful. So to keep this completed look balanced, go for a more neutral palette. The one I chose was KAT VON D True Romance Eyeshadow Palette that retails at Sephora for $36. ***This palette also comes with KAT VON D black eyeliner (sorry I took it out and didn't include in the picture) 

Highlighter: I never use to wear a highlighter under my eyes, about a month ago I started to and let me tell you, one of the best things I have done yet. Highlighting the high points of your face (nose, upper cheeks, chin, and forehead) brightens your overall face complexion. The one I chose for this look was MAC Prep+Prime Highlighter. You can use this over makeup for highlights and under makeup to brighten and prime. This retails for $25 at any MAC store or their website MAC COSMETICS

Powdered Highlighter: Whenever I use a liquid highlighter I make sure to set it with a powdered highlighter. TIP: always set liquid foundations, highlighters, blushes, and bronzers with a powder. I use the shade on the (RIGHT) "The Shinning Moment" from bareMinerals READY Luminizer to set the MAC's Prep+Prime. A lot of ladies don't prefer shimmer highlighters or bronzers but for this look I think it's perfect. This highlighter retails for $25 at Sephora or $24 in their website bareMinerals

Blush: You can never do a makeup look without a blush. My skin tone prefers blushes with yellow and orange undertones. For the summer peach and coral blushes are definitely a trend. These shades go perfect with my skin tone because they have those yellow undertones. A coral blush will be great with most summer looks. This one is NYX Powder Blush- Pinched that retails for $5. 

Bronzer: Bronzer IS life. This is my favorite part of any makeup look (it use to be applying mascara). For summer I lean towards bronzers that have a dark chocolate feel. But for this look I thought it was necessary to dim it down and shimmer it up. For this look I chose E.L.F.'s Healthy Glow Bronzing Powder that retails for $3.

Eyebrows: You can totally skip this step during the summer. Try not to go heavy on filling in your eyebrows in general but be really careful in the summer. You don't want your eyebrows to wipe away haha! Use powder to fill them in if necessary, this gives you the most natural eyebrow.  I chose Benefit Cosmetics-Brow Zings that retails for $32 in Sephor. I rave more about the Brow Zings in my Benefit Cosmetics Favorite Products post, check it out if you're interested in knowing more about this amazing product.

Lips: Lips color is something I tend to go all out with. Everything from this look has been settle and natural. I wanted to give a POP of color to the makeup so I went with a fuchsia lip color. I use to be totally against brighter lip colors because I was scared I wouldn't be able to pull them off but seriously, any girl can! Summer is the perfect time of the year to grab yourself a bright pink or purple lipstick and rock it. The one I chose for this look was part of the Sephora Collection Cream Lip Stain- Forever Fuchsia that retails for $13 in their store and website Sephora

The look is now complete!..... BUT! you can't leave the door without ...???

Perfume: This is essential ladies. We should be smelling beautiful all the time but always be more conscious of it during the heat. Body odor is not pretty my darling so spray on! The one I chose was Victoria's Secret PINK Secret Spring Break Passionfruit Hibiscus Body Mist that retails at Victoria Secret for $18. 

That's it guys I hope you enjoyed it! 

If you have any questions don't hesitate to comment below

or ask in my "Contact Page" 
Stay Connected With Me! 

Yours truly,

Benefit Cosmetics: Favorite Products Review!

Benefit Cosmetics Favorite Products Review

Benefit Cosmetics was founded in 1976 by twins Jean and Jane Ford. Initially founded as a beauty boutique, the shop specialized in quick-fix products for beauty dilemmas. You can find their products in stores like Sephora, Nigel's Beauty Emporium, small boutique's in San Fransisco, Macy's, Ulta, Bloomingdales, and their website http://www.benefitcosmetics.com 

Products Review:

1. Benefit's "Stay Flawless 15 - Hour Primer" $32

I love the application of this primer. I use it for occasions when I need my foundation to stay extra long. It is not my most favorite primer from Benefit but it is definitely great for having your foundation stay on for hours. I would not recommend you use this primer for daily use since it can clog up pores. The packaging for this product is to die for and convenient! The application is a primer stick and you directly apply it to your skin. Make sure to apply your foundation right after you apply the primer since it can dry out rather quickly.  

2. Benefit's "The POREfessional" Primer" $31

This is the BEST primer I have ever used. Benefit states that this primer will "quickly minimize the appearance of pores and fine lines for a smoother-than-smooth skin!". I'm not sure that it minimizes ALL my pores but it sure does a good job of blurring out some from my nose and cheeks, since that is where I have the most visible pores. I use this primer for every day wear. This is hands down the best and worth the $31. Since it is so expensive I try to switch up my primers and maybe you this primer when I have a full face of makeup and not when I need to make quick errands to the grocery store, etc. Lately I have been using the "Baby Skin Instant Pore Eraser Primer" from Maybelline since it's a lot cheaper than the POREfessional primer. The direct link for the product is right here: http://www.maybelline.com/Products/Face-Makeup/Primer/Baby-Skin-Instant-Pore-Eraser.aspx. 

3. Benefit's "That Gal" Brightening Face Primer" $29

Before I start, the price $29 is for the larger package of "That Gal". I have the mini version that came in a duo with other mini products. I could not find the pricing for the mini one since Benefit doesn't sell them separately. For a view of how the $29 product looks like I'll give you the direct link here: http://www.benefitcosmetics.com/product/view/that-gal. Okay, I love having the mini version of this brightening face primer. I personally don't use it that often since I also use other products that relatively do the same thing. This is a pink primer that you apply with your fingertips. It has light reflecting pigments that ensure your face of a more brighter and less-dull completion. For mornings when you wake up with not enough sleep, this is the perfect product to apply to your face before you add any other makeup to it. This is also a product that you can wear by itself. Perfect for the spring and summer. 

4. Benefit's "BADgal Lash Mascara Mini" $10

I personally bought the mini mascara because I prefer drugstore mascaras over any high-end mascaras. I wasn't sure if I would like this one so I made the safer buy and purchased the mini one. The full size mascara retails for $19. This mascara is perfect if you need volume and fullness! I have rather long and curly natural eyelashes so I use this mascara whenever I want fullness. I have noticed that this mascara can seem to clump up sometimes if I decide to add extra coats to my eyelashes. Not my favorite mascara but it does the trick every once in a while.

5. Benefit's "They're Real Mascara Mini" $10 

I got this mascara as a gift last year and I think I have the old packaging because the new packaging is a lot more prettier. Again this mascara is mini size but because the person who gave it to me was not sure if I would like it. The full size mascara retails for $23. In comparison the "BADgal lash mascara" this one is A LOT better. This mascara is perfect for separating my eyelashes. I have WAY to many eyelashes so I need a brush that can get in there and separate them! This mascara does not clump up if you add extra coats to your eyelashes. I definitely plan on buying the full size bottle since my mini one is about to run out. 

6 and 9. Benefit's "Coral My World" $12 
I decided to combine Benefits "Sun Beam" golden bronze complexion highlight and Benefit's "CORALista" blush. This a set called "Coral My World" that provides mini products of the full sized products. Sun Beam" golden bronze complexion highlight full size retails for $26 and the "CORALista" blush full size retails for $28. I don't know about you guys but THAT'S A LOT OF MONEY for a highlighter and blush. I thought it would be just fine if I payed half of each product and got a little taste of both. 
Benefits "Sun Beam" is a highlighter that adds a little sun kissed glow to your face. I recommend wearing this product on days that you decide to go to the beach and want a little bit of pop! I also recommend this product for ladies with a more lighter skin complexion. My skin tone is a little on the medium to sand tone and I barely get any "bronze" feel to it. I use this more as a highlighter than a bronzer. Dot and blend it to your cheekbones and cheeks for the perfect glow!
Benefit's "CORALista is one amazing and beautifully tinted blush! I am currently fascinating over this product. Hands down, one of the best blushes for the summer! It has warm colored pink shades that give you that tropical flush to your face. I have the mini one but I wouldn't mind buying the full size blush one day! 

7. Benefit's "WATT'S UP Highlighter" $30
Okay once again I couldn't find the price value for the mini sized version of this highlighter. The full sized highlighter can be found here to give you better view of what $30 can get you http://www.benefitcosmetics.com/product/view/watts-up . In the beginning I didn't really like this highlighter and I think it's because I have the mini version of it. Since the application is stick I really didn't like when I applied this product it was just a little streak of highlighter. After a while I started playing around with it and found different ways to apply this highlighter onto my face. Once I did, I began to love it! This creme to powder finish works wonders! Hand down one of the best highlighters I have. You can build this highlighter with other highlighters to have a more dramatic finish. 

8. Benefit's "Girl Meets Pearl Liquid Luminizer" $30
I think I got this mini sized sample with the "That Gal" Brightening Face Primer". To get a picture of what $30 can get you click here http://www.benefitcosmetics.com/product/view/girl-meets-pearl I am so glad I have the mini sized version of this product. Even though I really like this product I don't think I would ever run out of it to buy the full size version of it. This liquid luminizer is soft pink that also has light reflecting pigments that give you a dewy glow. I recommend this product to people that have dry skin and not oily skin. Naturally oily skin can give you an already dewy glow so if you add this luminizer it might be a little TOO much! I lean more towards the oily skin so mini size is perfect. Perfect for the summer! 

10. Benefit's "Boi-ing Industrial Strength Concealer" $20
This concealer comes in five different shades: light, light/medium, medium, medium/deep, and deep. I use the shade medium. I do not use this concealer as a highlighter like other concealers I own mostly because this formulation is very dense with is not good for highlighting. This concealer is great to conceal blemishes. It comes compacted so all you have to do to apply it is just rub your fingertips with the product and dot it on to an areas that need it. The website says that this is good to camouflage dark circles but I'm not exactly sure it is. I don't think this product is meant to apply in a large surface area of your face, it tends to crease, especially under the eyes. I have also used this concealer as a base for my eyelids when I don't want to wear any eyeshadow but I want a little pop. This product has multiple uses and I definitely recommend it! 

11. Benefit's "Brow Zings Brow Shaping Kit" $32
This brow kit is amazing for everything that it comes with! This kit comes with a pigmented wax for shaping your eyebrows, a powder for setting your eyebrows, tweezers, a hard angle brush, a shading brush, a mirror and a lesson on how to perfect your eyebrow look. A tip, mix the wax and powder for maximum color pay off. This kit comes in three different shades: light, medium and deep. I have the medium color because my eyebrows are extremely black. HAHA. The wax isn't the best ever but it works perfect with the powder. You can also use the powder as an eyeshadow for a beautiful brown. The brushes are great if you don't have your own angle and shading brush of your own. The tweezers are amazing and handy for on the go! Not only does the kit leave amazing eyebrows it is also great for traveling! 

12. Benefit's "Erase Paste" $26
I literally have three of these pots in my makeup kit, two of them are in the shade medium and one in the shade light. I love this concealer, and I speak as a college student! This formulation is less dense and more liquifying than the "Boi-ing" concealer. I use this to conceal more of my dark circles under my eyes. Because this formulation has melon undertones it really makes your eyes a natural pink bright tone. This is also great for discoloration. If you're a college student like me and the stress is getting to you, this product hides all of the physical appearance of stress away!

That's it guys!

I hope the Benefit Product Review Helped!

I have other Benefit products but these are really amazing!

I recommend you trying each one of these and like myself, don't hesitate

to buy the mini size products. Benefit can be a little pricey but a lot of their products

are definitely worth it! If you have any questions don't hesitate to comment below

or ask in "Contact" Page.
Stay Connected With Me! 

Yours truly,