The Company Style Blogger Awards 2013

Hey ladies! I have been nominated for the Company Style Blogger Awards 2013 - Best Personal Style Blog - Newcomer. I am super excited, and I really would love to win. It would make me so happy I can't even put it into words. This blog is my baby, I love it and am putting my all into it. 

So I'm asking all my lovely readers who think my blog is fabulous to go to this website http://www.company.co.uk/magazine-hq/stylebloggerawards2013 and put in a nomination and/or vote for my blog. No pressure or anything, but I would really appreciate it.

Update: It has come to my attention that you need my email address to vote/nominate me. My email is d.hughes221987@gmail.com

Wish me luck ladies! Til next time!

Colorful Cut Crease EOTD

The prolonged winter weather is finally starting to break over here, which has me in a terrific mood. The sun is shining and we're at 40 degrees Fahrenheit, and the snow is all gone. Finally! And this happy weather has me feeling colorful and creative. So for you all I have a colorful cut crease!

Products Used: e.l.f. Eyelid Primer; e.l.f. Essentials All Over Cover Stick in Apricot Beige; NARS Sheer Glow Foundation in Mont Blanc; the blue cream eyeliner and the yellow, orange, blue, white and bronze eyeshadows from the Sephora LE Color Daze Blockbuster makeup palette; Sephora Collection Long Lasting 12 HR Wear Eyeliner in Black; e.l.f. Essentials Natural Lash Kit; Sephora Collection Full Action Extreme Effect Mascara in Black.

I hope you guys liked this look! I rarely do cut creases that turn out proper like, so I was pretty happy with myself this time. But I have a little lady who wants her lunch, so I'm off. Til next time!

Weekly Makeup Tag - Rainbow

Alright, this week I decided to motivate a bit and got back to doing the weekly makeup tag hosted by Aqeela. This is her 28th weekly makeup tag and the theme was Rainbow. I was totally stoked by the theme because it just sounded like so much fun to do, and I really wanted to see what the other girls came up with as well. Everyone did fabulously, and if you want to go and check everyone's look out click *here* and it will take you to her post.
Now, I decided to go all out for this look and I am pretty darn pleased with the result. I'll list the products I used at the bottom, and I hope you dig this look.

Products Used: e.l.f. Eye Primer in Sheer; e.l.f. Studio Concealer and Highlighter duo; e.l.f. All Over Cover Stick in Apricot Beige; NARS Sheer Glow Foundation in Mont Blanc; orange, yellow, blue, light shimmery blue and purple eyeshadows from the Sephora Collection LE Color Daze Blockbuster makeup palette; blue and green cream eyeliners from the Sephora Collection LE Color Daze Blockbuster makeup palette; Make Up For Ever Aqua Lip Waterproof Lipliner Pencil in 8C; e.l.f. Essentials Eye Widener;  Collection Extreme 24 Hour Felt Tip Liner in black; e.l.f. Essentials Natural Lash Kit; Sephora Collection Full Action Extreme Effect Mascara in black.

Okay, now I did use a lipliner on my eye as I don't have a proper red. I'm not going to encourage anyone to use lipliner on your eyes because there's always the chance of a bad reaction.
And to get my eyebrows the vivid blue, I used the e.l.f. Eye Widener, which is a white pencil, and I ran it through until it was really thick and even. Then I took a blue eyeshadow and worked it through over the white pencil. Eyebrow wax would probably work better than the white pencil, but I used what I had.

I hope you all enjoyed my rainbow inspired look and take some time to check out the other girls' looks on Aqeela's page. Next week will be Goth themed makeup, and I'm sure we'll get some really great looks there as well. Please do let me know what you think in the comments below, I love hearing from you guys and I reply to each and every comment. Til next time!

Spring Fling NOTW - Tutorial

Okay, I don't have a lot of time to type this post up, so if it seems a bit rushed I do apologize. But as many of you know I was involved in an Easter beauty swap this year, and last Friday my package arrived!! I was partnered with a lovely girl in the UK named Stefi who is also a beauty blogger at Stefichop's Beauty Blog (for a link click *here*) and after we both have our packages we will be doing posts on all the goodies in our boxes. But she's still waiting on her package to arrive, so I'm going to have to otherwise occupy myself until the post catches up to her.
But, I was in the mood to do my nails today and Stefi got me these absolutely adorable colors from Barry M, so I say screw it, I'm using these pretty colors. They're perfect for spring. I'll just wait on the review and un-boxing post. So everything is out of order because I have the patience of a 2 year old. But onto my nail tutorial!!

Start by applying a base coat. Then after the base is dry, wrap Scotch tape around your nails to make nice lines.

Then apply a nude polish, I used ONS Nail Lacquer in Moon Rock, and wait for it to dry.

After they dry, slowly pull the tape off. Then take fresh tape and wrap it around the tip of the nail. We're moving to the middle color.

Take your second polish, I used Gelly Nail Effects GNP 11 (Dragon Fruit) by Barry M, and apply starting at the end of the nude polish and pulling towards the tape. Wait for it to dry.

Once dry, slowly peel the tape off. Then take the third color, I used Gelly Nail Effects GNP 12 (Green berry) by Barry M, and apply starting at the end of the second polish and pull to the end of the nail. Wait for it to dry.

Apply a top coat and wait for it to dry.

And you're done!!!

I hope you liked this quick little tutorial! I don't paint my nails nearly as often as I should... But this is how my nails should look all week, perfect for Easter and spring weather. And according to the weather guy, we should be having decent spring weather in the next couple of days, thank goodness. But I'm moving towards rambling and I have a lot of randomness to do today, so I'm off. Til next time!

The Liebster Award... Again!!!

Last week I was nominated for a Liebster Award by Megan Alexis (view her blog *here*) and I was totally stoked. This is the second time that I have been given this award, and it totally thrills me that people care enough to nominate me for such things.

For those of you who don't know, the Liebster Award is passed from one blogger to the next as a way to get to know other bloggers and give out some serious love. The Liebster Award has a few rules to it, as it is for blogs that aren't huge yet. To qualify for the Liebster you should have around 200 or fewer followers, though these rules aren't really enforced and it's nice to show love to everyone.

The Rules:

• Each blogger posts 11 random facts about themselves.
• Answer the questions the tagger has asked you.
• Choose 11 new bloggers to nominate and include their links.
• Come up with 5 new questions to ask your nominees.
• Let your nominees know about the award. 

Alright, let's get this started with the 11 random facts about me:

1. My favorite part of being an adult is being able to have mashed potatoes as a full meal instead of as a side dish.
2. Orange is my favorite color.
3. "The Safety Dance" is my favorite song from the 80's.
4. Desperate Housewives is my favorite tv show.
5. I hate waterproof makeup; it's a total pain to remove and makes my eyes puffy and sad.
6. The only pie I really like is Key Lime.
7. I make amazing snickerdoodles.
8. I named my daughter after a Beatles song.
9. I'm terrified of elevators.
10. I have 13 tattoos.
11. After my daughter is a bit older I'd really like to do a holiday in Europe and pick up a ton of foreign cosmetics. XD

And now to the 5 questions Megan had for me:

1. Why did you start blogging? Because it sounded like fun. I like playing with makeup and trying out new products, so I thought I would share my thoughts and looks.
2. What is your dream job? Honestly, my dream job is and has always been, to be a performer on Broadway. It's not very realistic, but that's why it's a "dream" job, so don't hate.
3. What confuses you the most about health/fitness? I honestly don't find myself that confused by health and fitness. I know what I'm supposed to do for the most part, I just don't always do it.. But I guess I get pretty confused when I go on a random pizza binge and I don't gain weight. It doesn't happen very often, but sometimes even when I eat really bad and don't work out much I don't gain weight, but other times I do. The lack of consistency there is rather boggling.
4. How would you describe your style? I dress pretty casually. I love wearing jeans with a tank top and a sweater/jacket. And flip flops. I plan on sprucing up my wardrobe in the near future, but I still prefer really casual wear. I like to be comfortable in my clothes.
5. What makeup item can you not live without? Mascara. My eyelashes are really quite nice, but they're also so light that you can't hardly see them.

And now for my 11 nominees!!!

Beauty By Shortylegs       
Makeup Demon       
My Beauty Junction         
Steph's Beauty Boutique
Makeup by Hanna           
PixieVita               
My Beauty Full Adventure     
Makeup Love
KewTeePye                         
Girl, Uninterrupted                     
BeautyQueenUK

Now for my 5 questions to you:

1. How often do you go to the salon?
2. What is your hands down favorite facial product/brand?
3. Do you do makeup for a living or is it just a hobby?
4. Are you a cat person or a dog person?
5. What's your spring workout regimen? 

Thanks again to Megan Alexis for nominating me!! And I can't wait to see the responses my nominees have for my questions. Til next time!

                               

Hospital FOTD

Yesterday I got some unfortunate news from my mum; it turns out my grandmother had a stroke yesterday morning and was brought to the hospital. She's going to be in the hospital for a few days and then she's going to a rehabilitation center for a week, but the doctors suspect that she will make a full recovery. 

So today my brother and I went to the hospital to go visit with her for a while and try to cheer her up a bit. And being that I was going out, I decided to share my look with you guys because that's what I do. Plus, it keeps me distracted from thinking to hard on what's going on. I'm hormonal and quick to tears at the moment, so distractions are pretty necessary for the next day or two.

Being that I was on my way to a hospital, I kept my makeup rather subdued, but I did actually bother to contour my face a bit which is pretty rare for me. Hope you like this one!

Face Products Used: NARS Sheer Glow Foundation in Mont Blanc; e.l.f. Studio Contouring Blush & Bronzer Cream; e.l.f. Studio Under Eye Concealer and Highlighter; e.l.f. Essentials All Over Cover Stick in Apricot Beige.

Lip Products Used: MUA Lipstick Shade 4; Collection 2000 Lock N Hold Lip Gloss in Body Pop 1.

Eye Products Used: MAC Pearled Earth; White shadow from the e.l.f. Essentials Brightening Eye Color in Punk Funk; Collection Extreme 24 Hour Felt Tip Liner in Black; Sephora Collection Full Action Extreme Effect Mascara in black; Clinique Indelible Brow in Blondi.

Hair Products Used: Aveda Elements Defining Whip - Light and 3 bobby pins. I have had a few people ask about my hair so I thought I'd let you know how I style it. Basically I towel dry my hair and wrap it up in a towel while I do my makeup. Then after I finish I let my hair down, still damp, and run a little bit of wax through it with my fingers. Then I just pull my bangs back, or sometimes to the side, and pin them. Then I just kinda finger comb the sides and back of my hair until it looks right. And I do just use a tiny bit of wax; it's mostly just to keep some lift in my roots and to hold my bangs in place.

I know there were a lot of weird faces in this one, but in all fairness I'm in a bit of a weird mood and for whatever reason most of my normal faced pictures turned out really blurry. So, yeah, I just kinda ran with it.

Now I want to take just a second here to give a big shout out to Gemma (@Makeup_Magpie) for being so kind and supportive to me today. She barely knows me, but she saw that I was having troubles and she reached out to me with some very kind words. I feel like it's rare to meet someone who is so empathetic to someone who is practically a stranger, and when you do you should give them some serious credit. I encourage all of you to check out her blog and let her know how awesome she is. To go and share some love, click *here*. 

I hope that all of you have had a wonderful day! And just keep in mind how important your loved ones are and be sure to let them know the incredible impact they have on your life. Til next time!

Make Up For Ever Rouge Artist Intense Review

Today I have the last review from my last Sephora haul for you guys. And this would be the lipstick from the 3 Steps to a Perfect Lip Kit, which is Make Up For Ever Rouge Artist Intense in 15 which is a pearly violet. This product sells at Sephora for $19 USD for 0.12 oz and comes in a wide variety of colors.

Disclaimer: I purchased this product with my own funds. I am not being paid or compensated by the company in question. The opinions here are entirely my own.

The packaging is pretty standard, black with white print on the outside, twist up lipstick. And the color of the lipstick in the tube is just gorgeous.

The color is indeed intense! It's a very pretty shimmery bright violet that I really love. The color is very buildable, so you can wear it with just a light swipe of color or a deep vivid blast of color. The only thing that I've noticed that I'm not overly fond of with this lipstick is that it has a rather rough texture and you really have to blend it to make it look nice. It's also a tad bit drying on the lips and if your lips are chapped or anything it will really make it stand out.

Here I applied the lipstick very light to just give it a lovely hint of color. When applied lightly the shimmer is quite subdued.

It looks beautiful with a clear gloss over it. Adds a bit of hydration and really makes the shimmer pop.

Here I applied it quite a bit heavier and it's absolutely lovely. The color is highly pigmented and really intense.   And the color lasts for quite some time without a lip primer. This color easily lasts 8 hours, though if you want the intense shine to last you'll need to reapply every 4 hours. It doesn't smudge or feather after wearing it for hours, which is pretty awesome being that the color is so bold.

This is not my favorite MUFE lipsticks as the texture is a bit off and it's rather dry, but I still love this lipstick. The color is absolutely phenomenal and it doesn't smell strongly of anything and it lasts for hours. I did pair it with my Tokidoki eyeshadow in this picture and it looks great together.
And even though this lipstick does dry your lips out a bit, if you use a sugar scrub and a really good lip balm before you apply it you shouldn't have any issues. This is the only lipstick from MUFE that I've had issues with drying out my lips, and it's also the only one of the pearly colors that I've tried. And I have a feeling that the other pearly colors have the same textural issue. So if you can't deal with a lipstick that dries your lips at all, I would definitely recommend one of the satin finishes instead as they are super moist.

So would I repurchase this lipstick? Probably. I really like this color and I can deal with it being a bit dry as I have pretty nice skin on my lips.

Would I recommend this lipstick? It really depends on the person. If you have really dry lips that are prone to chapping and cracking, you should find another lip color. But if you don't have any issues with dryness, I would say go for it. This is a gorgeous lipstick if you have smooth lips.

I hope you enjoyed my quick review on this lipstick, I plan on picking up a few more to do a more in depth review of this line. I'm in love with this lipstick at the moment and have a feeling that this is going to be my go to lipstick for spring. But it's late and I'm starting to ramble, so I'm off to bed; got a busy day tomorrow. Til next time!

Throwback Thursday

I was recently introduced to the idea of Throwback Thursday, and it seemed like a bit of fun so I decided to partake.

This picture is of the first pet I had after I moved out into the world. We found this guy at the pet store in the feeder rat bin (for snakes and such for those who don't know what that is) and we decided to rescue him so he didn't become snake chow. We named him Brian and he lived with us for 3 years before he died, we suspect of some sort of cancer. He was an amazing companion and we loved him dearly.

But now I'm all feely and such, so I'm going to wrap this up. This was my Throwback Thursday, and I would love it if you shared yours as well. Til next time!

Looking for Some Healthy Advice

Alright ladies, I am looking for some serious healthy advice here. I gained a ton of weight when I was pregnant with my daughter, and until recently I haven't really worked on losing all that weight. I've been working on eating better and doing little bits of exercise when I have extra time, and I lost around 20 lbs (around 9 kilograms) which is great, but I've plateaued.
So I really need to add something to my current weight loss regimen to get the last 20 - 30 pounds off. I've been thinking that when the warmer weather starts rolling in, I should start jogging. But I'm not really sure how to get started with it. I know that sounds silly, it's just running, but I'm still dreadfully out of shape and I've never been a jogger and I'm sure that I need to pace myself and do certain stretches and what not to avoid injuring myself.
So please, if you have any advice on how to get into jogging, drop me a comment below or hit me up on Twitter @KashmirSeaside and let me know. I'll really take any advice on how to drop weight and keep it off because I really want to be healthy for me and my family. I want to be able to set a good example of healthy living for my daughter. Thanks in advance! Til next time!

Prep Your Feet for Spring with a Pedicure - DIY

Well, spring starts in 2 days now and I am so beyond ready for it. So I decided to get my toes prepped for my favorite season with an at home pedicure, and I took pictures step by step to share with you. Do keep in mind that this winter was really rough on my skin, hair and nails, so my feet do not start off pretty. But I fix that pretty quick.

Alright, to get started you're going to want a bowl large enough to fit your feet into or a proper foot bath filled with warm water, antiseptic, essential oils, or epsom salt to go in the foot bath, nail polish remover, cotton swabs and cotton balls/rounds, toe nail clippers, a foot or body scrub, a nail file, a pumice stone or foot grater, cuticle oil, lotion, and nail polishes.

First you need to clip your toe nails to the length that you like and file them and shape them. I like mine square.

Then take the polish remover and a cotton ball and remove all your old polish. Now is also the time to apply cuticle oil if you need it and massage it into your cuticles.

Soak your feet in the foot bath for 5 - 10 minutes, or until you feel like taking them out. You really just want to soften up the skin to make it easier to slough off the dead/excess skin.

Take your foot grater (I don't know what the proper name is, so feel free to correct me on that) or pumice stone and slough off all the dead skin and callouses that you may or may not have. Then rinse in the foot bath. Also, this is the time to push your cuticles back if you need to.

Use your scrub and work it into your feet and up the ankles to buff out the skin and make sure that your feet are super smooth.

Take your lotion and work it into your feet and up the ankles. This is the part people tend to love, so take your time and really work it in, taking time to relax your feet and such. You deserve it.

And voila! Happy healthy looking feet! No more icky dead skin or callouses going on here.

And all that's left is to paint your toe nails. I used a base coat, 2 coats of a nude polish, a white polish for the tips, and I used a pink polish for the flower.

To make the flower, I just took my pink polish and put 5 dots in a little circle for the petals, pulling the polish in toward the center. Then I took an orange wood stick and dipped some white polish on it and sliced it through the center of the flower for some oomph.

And this concludes my DIY at home pedicure, I hope you liked it. There really is nothing like a pedicure to get you ready for spring. I'm ready to go get my flip flops, don't know about you. So what do you guys do to get ready for spring? I'd love to hear about it in the comments. And don't forget to check me out on Twitter @KashmirSeaside and on Facebook @KalamityJaneKosmetics. Til next time!