Thursday, February 23, 2012

Elf Mineral Eye Shadow -- Enchanting!



Hey Everyone!  So today I have a review about the Elf Mineral Eye shadow in Enchanting.  When i saw this color on the website I thought it would make a wonderful color to define the crease.  At first I thought it was a fully matte color, but upon further inspection it does have a little frost when applied.



I found that this shadow was a little chunky but the clumps are easily breakable.  Overall I really like this shadow, its a great neutral color to have. 




When I applied it wet it really picked showed a lot of the frost.  I personally wouldn't wear this color wet though.   




Sorry for the quick post!  Thank you all for reading!!

xoxo~Johnna

Sunday, February 19, 2012

Elf Mineral Eye Shadow -- Flirty!


Hey everyone! I am back with another color from the elf Mineral Eye Shadow line.   The color I have for you today is Flirty.  It's a gorgeous purple and I absolutely love it!



This color is so bright and fun, and if you love purple you will love this eye shadow!  I didn't expect this to have such great color payoff but it's absolutely amazing.  The quality is fantastic and is finely milled.  




The staying power of this eye shadow is great as long as you use a good primer.  I notice that if I use it dry it will only last a few hours.  The retail price is $3 but ELF has a lot of sales and you can usually get it for even cheaper!




Well that's my review of Flirty.  I would definitely recommend this eye shadow for anyone who is on the lookout for a great purple.  Thank you so much for reading! 

xoxo~Johnna

Friday, February 17, 2012

Elf Mineral Eye Shadows - Sweet!


I'm just going to say it, I absolutely love these elf Mineral Eye Shadows!!!  I have 12 of the 27 colors and so far I love them all.  So I decided to share my love for these and do a review on all the colors I have.



The one I have for you today is the color Sweet.  This is the first "pink" I truly enjoy!  I have used it on my lid as the base color for a pink smokey eye and it looks wonderful!  




This color has shimmer but applies almost like a frosty color.  The shadow has a fine mill to it, there have been no clumps that I've encountered.  The staying power is great and will last all day with a good primer.  When used dry it only makes it a few hours before it's all gone.



These shadows are definitely worth the money for me and if you can catch them when they are 50% its and even better deal!

Well I hope you enjoyed this post.  Thanks for reading!

xoxo~Johnna

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

My February Birchbox!!!

I am so excited to get my very first Birchbox!!! Until recently I was unaware there were any sample subscriptions like this out there.  For those of you that don't know, Birchbox is a subcription where you get 4-5 deluxe beauty samples for $10 a month.


I am really excited to try these products!  I always love the chance to sample new products for a low price.  Plus there is no commitment to a full size container if you don't like it! So this is what I got in my Birchbox.


I didn't realize it but every box can be different.   I would have loved to be one of the lucky ones to get the Beauty Blender, but I am still happy with my box.  Here are some close ups of each product and the descriptions that come on the card included. 


  • colorescience pro - glow and go Travel Puff
Use these handy, powder-filled puffs to keep your skin shine-free and luminous while you're out on the town.  Full-size compact, $50


  • EYE ROCK - Designer Liner
Stop wrestling with the liquid liner and achieve a perfect cat eye with these single -use stick-on liner strips. 2 packs of 4, $13


  • Jouer - Moisturizing Lip Gloss in Birchbox Pink
We teamed up with Jouer to create this custom fuchsia shade.  Wear one coat for semi-sheer pigment or layer it for a bright pink pucker. Full-size, $20


  • Juicy Couture - Viva La Juicy
This scent will bring out your inner girly girl.  Wild berries flirt with mandarin and soft floral notes to creat a fragrance that's fun and happy. Full-size, $69-$89


  • Showstoppers - Designer Fashion Tape
Celeb stylists swear by these double-sided tape strips, which will ensure that your attire stays perfectly in place. Full-size, $9.99

You also get a code for 6 free downloads from Green River Ordinance.  I have never listened to them before but I am always willing to try something new!

So far I have only tried the lip gloss and the perfume and I have to say I really enjoy them both.  The lip gloss has some good pigment to it and it works really well with my skin tone.  Perfume is such a hard topic to blog about since you can't smell it, but if you like sweet fruity smells then I would give a sample of this a try.  When I try out the eyeliner and powder puff I will let you know.  I will do a quick blog post to show my experience.

Thank you so much for reading!

xoxo~Johnna

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Revlon Colorburst Lip Glosses!



So a few weeks ago I picked up some Revlon Colorburst lip glosses when I picked up the new Revlon Lip Butters.  I chose the colors Peony-008 and Sunset Peach-022.

(Peony)

Peony is a wonderful pink color with a gold glitter and Sunset Peach is exactly what it says, a warm peach color also with some gold glitter.  

(Sunset Peach)

They both have a great texture and are not gritty from the glitter.   The lip gloss doesn't have a super long wear time but it's tacky enough that it doesn't slide off your lips.  The color does transfer onto the lips very nicely giving a slight hint of color that won't over power your look.  




Overall I am really happy with these glosses and will probably pick up more colors soon!  I hope you found this helpful. Thanks for reading!

xoxo~Johnna

Friday, February 10, 2012

E.L.F Beauty Eye Manual- Bright Eyes swatches!


Hey everyone!  I recently placed an order with eyslipsface.com.  One of the items I purchased was the Beauty Eye Manual in Bright Eyes.  I was really excited about all the bold colors included in this set. It was $5 and includes 12 shadows an eyeliner and sponge tip applicator.  It also has a page of application ideas and even opens up so you can put your own makeup ideas on it.



(right out of the box)
 All of the shadows are really smooth and have either shimmer or glitter in them.  I did experience a little fallout with a couple of the shadows but nothing too severe.




 The following swatches are in same order as pictured above.


(row 1)

This picture doesn't do all these neutrals justice but overall they are really nice.  They would make great blending/highlight colors. The only one that didn't have a very good payoff in this row was the third color which is a pink lilac color.


(row 2)

 I was really happy with all of these colors!  The green is my absolute favorite. The brown at the end did take a few swipes to build up the color.

(row 3)
Now this row I had no issues with it. I love the silver, purple and the red.  The black is just always great to have. Overall I am happy with my purchase.  For $5.00 I got 10 really good shadows and only 2 were duds.  I've spent more on 1 shadow that turned out to be terrible!   Thank you so much for reading!

xoxo~Johnna



Thursday, February 9, 2012

Adventures in Whitening...Will have to continue another day :(

Hey everyone!  So this morning I was doing my normal routine of brushing and using my mouthwash.  Everything was okay until I was on my way to work.  I noticed that there was this strange substance in my mouth and I couldn't quite figure out.  I was moving my tongue around to try and feel what it might have been,  so I started moving it around the inside of my cheeks.  It turns out that the substance, was the top layer of skin inside my mouth!  I couldn't believe it! So I googled my symptoms and found numerous results for the same issue I was having.  Now I am not sure if this would happen to anyone else but I wanted you guys to know what happened to me.  I now have small blisters on the inside of my mouth from the product.  I was really hoping this would have worked out.  But if I can save someone else from going through the same thing then its worth it.  I caught on early so its not so bad .  The products I used were Crest 3D toothpaste and Crest 3D mouthwash.  

Also this was only after 3 days of using the products.

I hope you all have a wonderful day!

xoxo~Johnna

Wednesday, February 8, 2012

My very first China Glaze Polish!!

Hey everyone!  Before I was introduced to the beauty world I always thought all nail polishes were terrible.  It seemed like every nail polish I would use would either streak or be too gloppy or run all over the place.  It wasn't until I discovered the wonderful world of "beauty blogs", that I realized I was just using REALLY bad nail polishes.  I didn't even know China GlazeZoya or any other higher end nail polishes even existed! Even some inexpensive nail polishes work great.  I was just choosing the wrong ones.


So for my very first China Glaze purchase I decided to go with the color "Seduce Me".  I thought it would be perfect for Valentines Day!  The color is like a deep deep magenta with red undertones.  I really love it!  I decided to add some sparkle with my Sally Hanson Diamond Strenght in "Diamonds" (catchy name huh?).

I applied this with a good base coat, 2 layers of "Seduce Me", 1 layer of "Diamonds and a good top coat.

(with flash)

(without flash)

One thing that I really like about this polish is in different lighting it takes on a new personality.  When out in the sun or under bright lighting  it looks like the top picture, very bright and eye catching.   When under low lighting it looks like the bottom picture, very sultry and romantic.

I am really happy with my purchase. Just to let you know, China Glaze will be releasing 12 new colors called "Capitol Colours" for the release of the young adult book turned movie "The Hunger Games".  I am such a fan of the books and can not wait for the movie!!  Which means I am even more excited about the nail polishes!  So I will be picking up all the colors and doing a post here.


Thanks for reading!

xoxo~Johnna



Adventures in Whitening-- Day 2

Hey everyone!  I am checking in for Day 2 of my whitening adventure. If you want to see Day 1 results check here. I have to say I am really liking the effects.  I can see a luster to my teeth that was never there before.  So here is my update:


Day 2:



Before:

Thank you so much for checking in! Have a wonderful day!

xoxo~Johnna

Tuesday, February 7, 2012

Adventures in Whitening-- Day 1

Hello everyone!  I am here to check in with an update on my teeth whitening adventure.  I also wanted mention a little bit about my daily routine.  I brush twice a day, each time for 2-3 minutes.  Then I use the mouthwash twice a day after I brush my teeth, and I swish that around as the directions say for 60 seconds.


Now during the day, I have to admit, I am an avid soda drinker.  It's just something I'm not ready to give up quite yet.  So I don't defeat the purpose of whitening I drink all of my soda from a straw and make a true effort not to move the soda around in my mouth.  I am not straying away from any certain foods that may stain my teeth.  I want this to be a true test.  There is no way I would be able to stay away from Lasagna or Spaghetti!!!


So here is Day 1:


Before:

I actually can see a little whitening going on here.  I really hope this continues to work!  I really want to avoid strips since they make my teeth super sensitive.  If this keeps them pearly white I will definitely make this one of my essentials!

Thank you all so much for checking in, stay tuned for Day 2!

xoxo~Johnna



Milani Minerals Blush---Review

Hi everyone!  Last week I picked up a bunch of Milani products since CVS was clearencing them.  One of those products happens to be the Milani Minerals Blush.  I picked up 4 colors: Luminous, Mai-Tai, Sweet Rose and Sunset Beach.


(Left to right Sweet Rose, Luminous, Mai-Tai
and Sunset Beach)


All of these blushes have great pigmentation!  They are silky smooth and last for a long time.  They come with a brush, but I find that of no use.   So for 75% off this was a great steal!

Here are some swatches:


(From Left to Right: Sweet Rose, Sunset Beach,
Mai-Tai and Luminous)



Luminous is light pink with a gold undertone and has a little shimmer to it. (It looks a bit brown in this picture but I couldn't get my camera to take a decent one)


Mai-Tai is a matte peachy pink color.



Sunset Beach is a bold matte terracotta color.


Sweet Rose is an amazing matte plum pink.
  


I have to admit I love these!  You don't need much at all and I mean that! They would make a great addition to any ones collection. I am really glad I bought these.  If anyone else picked these up let me know your thoughts in the comments.

I hope you all have a wonderful day!

xoxo~Johnna



Monday, February 6, 2012

Adventures in Whitening

Hi everyone! Today I was at Walmart and I picked up some new products.  No, not makeup, but teeth whitening products.

I have been wanting to try some new teeth whiteners, so I decided to give it a shot.  I picked up two products, the Crest 3D White Mouthwash and Crest 3D White Toothpaste.  The claims on the toothpaste say it "can remove up to 90% of surface stains in 14 days".  The mouthwash is there as an extra boost and it states that it has the same ingredients as Whitestrips.


I will be posting an update each day of the 14 days.  Here is my before:


Tomorrow will start Day 1!  Have a wonderful day!!!

xoxo~Johnna



Sunday, February 5, 2012

BH Cosmetics brushes-Quick overview

Hello everyone!!! I just wanted to do a quick post on one of my new favorite brushes.  Recently I had placed an order with BH Cosmetics.   I love all the brushes that I ordered.  They work great and are super soft.
(from left to right-Small angled blush brush, All over brush,
Highlighter brush, Blending brush, Precision eyeliner brush,
Small smudge brush and angled definer brush.)
But there is a brush that is totally HG material for me, and its the Small smudge brush!  It is really small and it works great to smudge eyeliner or eye shadow under the eye or for smudging top liner.  I also love using it to define my outer "V" with a darker color. It's also great for smaller eyes.  I was having a hard time finding a brush small enough for me.  When I saw it on the website the picture looked a lot bigger, but I was so happy it was this small.

(Small smudge brush)

It was a great steal for all theses brushes. I got these when they had 35% off all their brushes. The prices range from $2.96-9.95, with most of the brushes being on the lower end.

So if your new into makeup or on a budget, this is a great choice. I definitely would recommend these brushes. I hope you all have a wonderful day!

xoxo~Johnna

Welcome!

Hi! I'm Johnna, and I just want to go ahead and thank you and welcome you to my blog.  I am truly excited to start blogging. I have never done this before and it will be both a learning and rewarding experience!

I also wanted to tell you a little about myself.  I am 23 years old and the wife to my wonderful husband Justin and mother to my beautiful daughter Emma (1yr 4mo).  I live in the beautiful state of Montana.  I love it here (especially since its been a warm winter).
(Our Christmas 2011 family photo)


Within the last year I really started getting into makeup.  Before that, I had never known the right way to apply makeup.  I didn't even know there was such a thing as Primer! I never felt confident about it and it always looked horrible. So I started watching a lot of YouTube videos and reading a lot of beauty blogs.  I really noticed the difference in how I looked. I was even a lot more confident.

My blog will be a mix of beauty, life and everything in between. If I can help at least one person then I know it's all worth it.

I really hope you all enjoy it. Thanks for reading!

xoxo~Johnna