Beauty Blender

To be honest, I wasnt even going to review this product because i didnt think it was even worth my time. but recently i picked it up and it changed my mind, well kinda. i'm going to go over the pros and cons of this product and tell you if its worth all the hype. 

how you use it:

1. run dry beauty blender under water

2. squeeze it a few times to evenly soak the beauty blender

3. squeeze dry

4. wrap in towel or tissue and squeeze again 

if you take proper care of your beauty blender it should last you about 6 months. you will know when its time to retire your beauty blender when it no longer dries to the normal size

how to properly use your beauty blender:

when using my blender i used the cover girl 3-in-1 foundation. I applied small dots of foundation over my face and then took the damp beauty blender and bounced/patted the beauty blender in circular motions. this allows the beauty blender to distribute the foundation evenly. 

time to be real, this took forever. i used the beauty blender for about a week and a half and just couldn't take it anymore. applying foundation is a timely process to begin with so this just made it take even longer! i'm not going to lie, this process made my face book flawless and smooth. but to do this even day was just getting annoying.

concealer & other products:

i recently picked up my beauty blender again and thought i would give it a second chance... but this time with my benefit porefessional. porefessional usually works best when it is patted into youre pores, so why not use the beauty blender for this step! i dont even know why i didnt think of this earlier because the appearance of my pores shrunk even more by properly applying this product with the beauty blender! it regained my hope in the beauty blender

next i figured why not try it with my concealer. my concealer has never looked better! i have super dark circles under my eyes and the beauty blender helps the concealer go on smooth and evenly to cover my dark circles and make the concealer look natural and not cakey. i have also noticed that my concealer has not creased since using the beauty blender. 

cleaning your beauty blender:

the brand beauty blender sells a pretty big size sponge cleaner from anywhere between $15-$20, which i have yet to buy because i feel like that is ridiculous. I have a brush cleaner that I use to clean my beauty blender. I have even heard that facial soap does the job. 

luckily i received a sample of the beauty blender cleanser in a birchbox awhile ago. which was used up after about 3-5 washes. you really should clean your beauty blender after every use because germs can collect in the sponge and ultimately be transferred to your face. i'm not going to lie here... aint nobody got time for that. I clean mine at the end of every week. 

overall thoughts:

if you haven't been able to tell, i have a love hate relationship with this product. do i regret buying it? no. do i neeeed this product? no. i will continue to use my beauty blender everyday for my concealer and primer and only use it for foundation when i have time to use it or for special events. the beauty blender to me has some pros and cons. one of my biggest cons is that it gets stained by foundation and concealer, i'm super OCD about things like that so this is a huge con for me. if you have money to blow and want to try it out go right ahead and get it. but if you dont have a ton of money its truly not a big deal. this product is hyped up to the max when i truly dont believe it should be. I understand makeup artists that use this on clients because their clients have hours to sit in the chair and get their makeup and hair done... but for normal peasants like you and me, its not a must have. 

Back to School: Glam

[ ae cropped t-shirt, love culture studded shoulder bag, forever 21 faux gemstone bib necklace, motel leopard print flippy mini skirt, gojane stretchy chain mail sandal]

when creating this glam look i tried to channel my inner beyonce/kim kardashian. surprisingly i found making this glam look was quite difficult, glam is not a huge trend right now. it seems to be more edgy, more studs than glitter. but none the less i looked to my eight essential glam pieces and put together this look. i feel like leopard print can be done in a glam way instead of a trashy way, you just have to make sure your accessorizing it right and that the leopard print isnt over powerful. so pairing this leopard print skirt with a plain black top helps balance the look. adding some bling sandals and a necklace glamify this look. instead of a backpack try an oversized tote to carry your books in!

Peach Cobbler

For the past 3 days i have made this peach cobbler twice, I was supposed to make it for my neighbors as a gift but ended up eating that one so I obviously had to make theirs again. I thought I would share this recipe with you guys because it has become my obsession over the past couple days.

ingredients:
1/4 cup butter
4 cups peeled peaches (this was about 5 large peaches for me)
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon plus 2/3 cup variety baking mix (pancake mix)
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 tablespoons firmly packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons milk

directions:
1. in a medium mixing bowl combine peaches, sugar, 1 teaspoon baking mix and cinnamon. once combined then place mixture in a 9 x 9 pan.

2. in a separate mixing bowl, mix remaining 2/3 cup baking mix with brown sugar. once combined add in butter until mixture is combined completely. to moisten the mixture add milk

3. drop spoonfuls of the crust mixture onto the peaches mixture. i noticed that the crust mixture will be doughy so you might need to use your fingers to get it onto the peaches

4. bake at 400° for 30 minutes or until toothpick inserted into crust comes out clean. let stand 5 minutes

this makes about 6 servings, or if you're like me you will devour it in a matter of minutes... just kidding, or am i?

let me know if you try this out and how you like it!

Back to School: Indie

[chicnova irregular hem loose modal t-shirt, brandy melville black bullet stone necklace, brandy melville finn knit, ae high-rise festival shortie, vans original classic authentic, brandy melville gold three ring set]

awhile ago i did a series on eight essential pieces a certain style should have their wardrobe. i thought i would bring it back in the form of back to school! i'll hopefully keep up this "series". the series will consist of: indie, glam, classic, boho, edgy, and girly. first up is indie!

i really like this look because its carefree, comfortable, and still put together. i recently bought a festival shortie from american eagle and they are some of the most comfortable shorts i have ever owned. pair it with a baggy top that you can either tuck in or wear as it is. add a pair of converse and you have a complete look. if you live somewhere cooler you can add an oversized cardigan to give you some warmth. if you want to add some bling to the outfit add a necklace and some knuckle rings.

Elie Saab Fall 2013: Couture Collection

while looking for formal dresses in my price range i somehow started looking at dresses not so much n my price range. elie saab is one of my favorite designers so of course i began to look at his fall collection of gowns. this seasons gowns were a bit more simpler than last seasons, well i say simple but i probably couldn't make anything like this. maybe a better word is the dresses look effortless. This season was inspired by jewels in a crown: ruby, emerald, and sapphire. when designing he is a big believer in monochromatic, red sequins on red fabric, blue gems on blue chiffon and so on, which is why his last dress was such a surprise to many when the model walked out in head to toe multicolored beads, needless to say she left an impact.

out of the collection these are my favorite dresses, yet all of them were stunning it was hard to choose. I think i enjoyed these the most because they were the most wearable ones I saw. once of my favorites was elie saabs bridal dress, which i didn't add to this group because you need to see it large in all its glory. she was truly stunning, there were layers upon layers of tule embroidered with quartz, crystals, and glitter with a veil to match. i'm not sure if this is my favorite collection of his but it was definitely beautiful. my dream is to wear a dress by him, maybe a wedding dress ;)