Milani Bella Eyes {#5, #7, #16, #24} Review~!

Hey Guys~!

Last week I went to CVS and I saw a few displays of new drugstore products. One of the ones that caught my eye was a collection of single eyeshadows from the brand, Milani. I've never really tried anything from the brand before, and there was a 50% off sale on anything from the Milani line, so I decided to get four to try out. I've been testing them out to review. So let's start~~!

The packaging is okay. Like everything from Milani, the packaging is fake looking gold; which I personally don't like cause it looks cheap. It's also a bit clunky compared to other single shadows I own. The compact is very secure though, so if you drop it there's no chance of it opening or breaking.

On the Milani website, there are thirty different shades to choose from. These range in color, both neutrals and colorful shades, and finishes, such as; matte, metallic, satin, shimmer, and iridescent. I love seeing a huge variety in an eyeshadow collection because then there is something in everyone's comfort zone.

I bought mostly neutral colors, since I knew I'd get a lot of use out of them. I got four and they are #5 Bella Taupe, #7 Bella White, #16 Bella Champagne, and #24 Bella Bronze. All of them have different finishes, which I was excited to work with.

Here are some swatches of these shadows. According to the website, they're supposed to have rich, vibrant color both wet or dry with just one swipe. So I first swatched them both dry and wet.

I noticed that when dry, the white is kind of sheer and feels a little chalky. All of the others are fine though.

When these shadows are wet, they are beyond amazing~! They have a smooth and creamy, almost gel like consistency, and they are is super pigmented. 

You would think that with such nice pigmentation and quality that these eyeshadows would be kind of pricy. However individually they are only $4 a piece. Like I said before, I got these buy one get one 50% off, so they only cost me around $12. And I think that's pretty reasonable.

Packaging: ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤
Color Range: ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤
Texture: ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤
Pigmentation: ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤
Price: ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤
Overall: ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤

I really like these eyeshadows. They just as nice as some of my more expensive ones in texture and pigmentation. I'm not fond of the packaging, but the product is so great that I don't really care. If you're looking for a great drugstore eyeshadow, or have never tried anything from Milani, this is a great start. I now want to try other Milani products too.

So that was my Milani Bella Eyes review. If you have any recomendations for other Milani products or you enjoyed this review, let me know in the comments below. Thank you guys so much for reading and I'll see you in my next post.

xo

Alyss

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Face of the Day: First Day of School~!

Hey Guys~!

School started for me this week ;_; and I wanted to show you the makeup look I wore today. I will also be posting an Outfit of the Day for my first day of school too, but that'll be a separate post.

I wanted my skin to look clean and flawless, so I used my favorite high coverage foundation, Revlon Color Stay. I used the Normal/Oily formula since it's still hot where I live, making my skin still oily. I applied it and blended it out using my hands to help my product look more natural. Then I used my ALMAY Wake Up concealer under my eyes. The color is lighter than my skin tone, therefore brightening up the face. Then I applied my powder, Rimmel Stay Matte all over my face using the ELF Complexion Brush. I just wanted to add a little color to my face, so I used my Dandelion Benefit Boxed Powder. It's a light pink blush, and looks natural on my fair skin tone. 

First I primer my eye lids using an eyelid primer from ELF in the color Sheer. Then using my Milani Brow Fix Kit, I just filled in the sparse parts of my brows.  For my eyeshadow look, I used colors from the Urban Decay Naked Palette. I applied the color 'Sin' onto my lid using the ELF Eyeshadow Brush,  Next I applied 'Naked' into my crease using the ELF Blending Eye Brush. With the same brush, I applied 'Buck' into my outer eye corner and blended it in. Then taking an angled liner brush, I applied 'Naked' on my outer lower lash line. Using Rimmel Scandaleyes in Nude, I lined my water line. With my pinky finger, I applied the color 'Virgin' to my inner corners and my brow bone. Lastly I curler my lashes and applied Revlon Lash Potion to them. 

For my lips, I just applied my Nivea Kiss of Cherry Lip Balm to my lips. The color is a sheer cherry red and it can me build-able. 

So yeah that was my makeup look for school. Comment if you guys want an outfit of the day post for my first day. See you guys at my next post xo

August Favorites 2013~!

Hey Guys~!

It's already the end of August ;_; School starts in two weeks for me, so I won't be able to post as often as I do. But I'll try to.

Anyways I'm going to show you guys my monthly favorites. I have a bunch of stuff to tell you guys about so let's get started~!

Makeup

Like last month, I've been into wearing light, natural looking makeup. Although I did try experimenting with some new products and techniques.

I've been loving my Skin79 B.B. Cream this month. I haven't worn any foundation this month because I like this so much. It has SPF 25 PA++ which is great since I burn easily. It feels light and applies well with either my hands or a damp sponge for a natural skin finish. It doesn't conceal too much though, but I don't mind that in the summer. If you want to hear more about this B.B. Cream, I did a review on it here.

When I was on vacation, I had an uneven tan, so I used bronzer on my face. This one is by NYC and it's their Smooth Skin Bronzing Face Powder in the shade #720A Sunny. What I like about this is that it's a matte bronzer, so it looks more natural. Also it's extremely affordable. If you're pale like me, you can use this as contouring. But you have to be light handed with it or else it'll look like a huge mess.

My eyebrows were waxed incorrectly a few weeks ago, so I've been filling them in. What I use is the Milani Brow Fix Kit in the shade #1 Light. It comes with two brow powders, a taupe and a brown, a highlighting powder, a sponge applicator, an angled brush, and a mini tweezers. I've just used a mix of the two powders to fill in the sparse areas and I like how it looks.  

I haven't been into eyeshadow a lot this month, but I have been tight lining and lining my waterline. For my tight line I've been using Rimmel Scandaleyes in #4 Taupe and for my waterline I've been using Rimmel Scandaleyes in #5 Nude. I talked about Nude in my last favorites post and I talked about both of these in my drugstore makeup kit.  They are both super creamy and pigmented. Also they last really well because they are waterproof.

For lips I've been wearing a lot of different Revlon products. My favorite though is the Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in the shade #25 Sweetheart. It's a bright, kind of electric, pink which I like for the summer. It smells minty and applies smoothly. I don't build up the color too intensely though for everyday, but it still adds a nice pop of color.

Skin Care

Before applying my makeup, I've been using the Clean and Clear Morning Burst Hydrating Gel Moisturizer.  I'd been searching for a moisturizer for a while and when this came out, I decided to try it. It comes with 3 oz of product and is oil-free. It feels light and moisturizing without being too greasy. I love how soft it makes my skin feel and I do think it makes a great base for makeup.

I broke out really badly this month, so I tried a lot of facial cleansers. The one that cleared up my skin and I've loved in the past was the Neutrogena Rapid Clear Foaming Scrub. It comes with 4.2 oz of product and contains 2% Salicylic Acid.  It is nothing like any other face wash I've tried before. At first it feels like a scrub with all the beads. But if you rub it in more with water it foams up and turns into more of a cleanser than a scrub. I like a lot of products from the Rapid Clear line, but this is one of my favorites.

My last skin care favorite is my new exfoliating mask. It is the Freeman Feeling Beautiful Facial Polishing Mask with Charcoal and Black Sugar. I've tried A LOT of the Freeman Masks and I love all of them that I've tried. When I saw this at my local drugstore, I knew I had to try it. It is supposed to be, according to what it says, oil absorbing and an exfoliate. I have weird skin problems in the summer, so I've been using this twice a week, on Wednesday and Saturday, to help exfoliate my skin. The texture isn't to harsh feeling which I like, since I thought that it could possibly irritate my skin. It didn't and it's been my favorite mask.

Fashion

This month I've been wearing floral printed shirts a lot. I have two that I've been wearing constantly. One of them is by Love Change and I got it at TJmaxx. It's a grey, spaghetti strap tank top with a cut out down the front, covered in an ivory lace. The flowers are pink roses with green leaves. I don't remember how much this cost since I bought it a while ago.

The other top is by the company Eyeshadow and I also got it at TJmaxx. It's a turquoise color with pink and yellow flowers. It's a spaghetti strap tank like the other one.  It's cinched in under the bust line and the top has vertical ruffles. These two tops are both casual and super comfortable.

My most reached for bag has been this plaid patchwork one from the Bass Outlet. I got it last summer and I've been wearing it a ton. I've always liked plaid and for some reason this is the only plaid thing I own. There are so many colors in the plaid that it goes with a ton of different outfits. It has a ton of pockets making it easy for me to organize my stuff in it.  I don't think it's on the website anymore, but you can probably find something similar on Amazon or Ebay.


And those are my monthly favorites. I hope you guys enjoyed the post and comment at the bottom of the post with what your favorites were this month xo

Rilakkuma Nail Art Tutorial~!

Hey Guys~!

I hope you're excited cause I have a nail art tutorial for you. This tutorial is inspired by Rilakkuma. If you don't know who that is, basically he's a cute bear made by San X. I love Rilakkuma, I even have a Rilakkuma hat.

Anyways for this tutorial you'll need. . .

Base Coat

 
A brown, tan, or orangey brown nail polish

 
 Any nail polish color of choice

 
 A black nail polish

 
 A white nail polish

 
 Top Coat or Clear Nail Polish

 
 A dotting tool or a pin



Gather up all those polishes and let's get started (>w<)

First paint you nails with a base coat. I'm using Revlon Calcium Gel Nail Hardener. Using a base coat will help prevent the polish from staining your nails. Wait for your base coat to dry completely before continuing. 

Paint your ring finger in a brown polish and the rest of your nails whatever color you want. For my brownish orange color I'm using Life Preserver by China Glaze and for my color of choice I'm using Bikini so Teeny by Essie. It's a pretty blue color. Apply 2-3 coats of each color, so it's opaque and wait for it dry in between coats. 

With your dotting tool, make an oval with the white polish in the middle of your nail. The white polish I'm using came in a french manicure kit by Sally Hansen, but really any white nail polish will do. My dotting tool is from Sally's Beauty Supplies.

While that's drying make dots on your other nail with the same white polish. The dot's don't have to be organized like how I made mine. You can really do any sized dots in any pattern you want. I just did mine like this because I think it looks cleaner.

Once the white oval is dry take your dotting tool, clean your dotting tool before changing colors, and dip it into the black polish. The polish I'm using is a nail art polish from Milani. It has a thin brush, making nail art designs easier to make. Make two dots on the side of the white oval and one dot on the white oval like this. 

With your dotting tool or your nail polish brush, draw two diagonal lines from the bottom of the nose. These two lines will create his mouth.

 When everything is dry, apply either your top coat or clear nail polish of choice. 

And that's it, we're done~!

 I hope you guys enjoyed this nail art look and comment with any other nail tutorial ideas. See you at my next post xo