NYX Eyebrow Cake Powder // LOVE THIS. When I colored my hair black I was a little nervous about the eyebrow situation. My hair is naturally light brown and my eyebrows are slightly blond, so it’s very easy to look like I’ve drawn them on. I wanted something that made my brows look defined and matched my hair, but wasn’t incredibly obvious. This did just the trick! I apply it with a stiff, flat eyeliner brush. It’s quick and easy to apply and I don’t think I’ll ever go back to using a pencil again.

Maybelline Voluptuous Lash Stiletto // I’m super picky about my mascara and tend to test three or four before landing on something I like. My sister and I have both been using this one for months now. Length, volume and hella black, just the way I like it!

Badger Cocoa Butter Lip Balm // I’ve been fighting some major chapped lips ever since the weather changed. Burt’s Bees and Alba were not even helping. So on a trip to Ulta I found Badger Balm and decided to give it a shot. Let’s just say, me and me lips are very happy now.

Ulta Cocoa Velvet Truffle Body Creme // On the same trip to Ulta my sister and I spent far too much time smell all their baked goods scented lotions. Holy moly do they smell good! I’m always a fan of smelling delicious and the cinnamon roll one is drool-worthy too.

* No one paid me to write about these products. I love them and use them all on a daily basis.

This weekend I had a little too much time on my hands and painted my nails to look like cupcakes!

Here’s how…

1. Paint two coats of the base color. I used Nicole by OPI in Blue Lace.
2. Using white polish make three or four lines of differing lengths from the tip of your nail toward the bottom and then add more polish to round them out. I put on the white fairly thick to keep it bubbly looking. I used Sally Hansen polish.
3. Once the white is dry, use nail glue to attach red rhinestones. You could also make dots with red polish.
4. Use glitter polish to add ‘sprinkles’ – I used NYC ‘Starry silver glitter’, which has tiny silver sparkles and larger pink and blue glitter which I placed where I wanted it.
5. Finish with a top coat. I used Essie ‘No Chips Ahead’

I’d love to see pictures if you try out this tutorial – post your link in the comments :)

I’ve never been a perfume wearer. It always sounded like a lovely idea and I’d go to Sephora or Ulta and smell every perfume on the shelf, but never found anything I liked. They were all too flowery, too musky, too old lady-ish.

On a recent trip to Ulta they had a display of little roller ball perfumes. One by one I smelled them and finally, there it was, a scent I actually liked. It’s sort of sweet and vanilla-y. And I feel a little silly admitting that it’s by Jessica Simpson. The girl can make shoes and apparently she’s got a talent for perfume too! Now I can’t help but discretely smelling my own wrists and reminding Pants that I smell really good.

What’s your favorite perfume?

After eying this bright purple liner on multiple trips to Ulta and telling myself I don’t need another purple liner in my collection I gave in and bought it. It’s NYX Studio Liquid Liner in Extreme Purple and it was totally worth the five bucks. I’ve found with a lot of purple liners and shadows the color doesn’t go on as bright and/or fades throughout the day. But I love this liner – it was easy to apply and stayed bright all day long. I use their lip gloss as well and for as cheap as they are, NYX puts out some quality products.

Wearing it with L’Oreal HIP shadow in Platinum, Maybelline black liquid liner (super thin on top) and Maybelline Lash Stiletto mascara.

* No they did not pay me to write this or send me free stuff…but they should :)

It’s lovely and sunny outside today (though still a little cold) so I spiced up my generally all black wardrobe with bright pink. Revlon lip stain in Flame and Sally Hansen Hard as Nails in Dahlia w/ OPI Shatter on top.

And danced around to Green Day while I got ready for work :)

Applying them was fairly easy. I had no issue getting them close to the cuticle or making them straight. Though I found they didn’t stick to the edges of my nails well, which is possibly because I keep my nails fairly short.

It took me about 40 minutes to put them on, though with some practice I could probably do it in 20. The middle stuck really well, but my the end of the first day the corners had peeled off on a few nails.

After six days they had chipped quite a bit, but I’d say they lasted longer that regular nail polish, which usually looks like this after about three.

They cost $10 at Ulta, which is a bit expensive for one-time use. I can do solid colors, sparkles and stripes on my own, but would definitely use them again for leopard and lace on special occasions or nights out when my nails need help but I don’t have a lot of time.

Eye Shadow Tutorial from Silly Grrl on Vimeo.

I had some questions about makeup, so I put together a quick tutorial on my usual eye shadow routine. You can essentially use any two colors to achieve this look. Sometimes I’ll use silver and shade with a dark blue or start with black on my lid and shade with a dark purple. If you have any questions feel free to leave them in the comments. Enjoy!

These are the products I used:
L’Oreal HIP Metallic Shadow in Platinum
Maybelline black waterproof liquid liner
Cover Girl Perfect Point Plus black pencil
MAC Paints in Stilife
L’Oreal Double Extend mascara in Carbon Black
Foundation: Maybelline Dream Matte Mousse
Blush: Rimmel Lasting Finish Blendable Powder Blush & Highlighter in Autumn Catwalk

I painted my nails all stripey for Christmas. I used Orly polish in Dazzle, then drew on stripes with a white Sally Hansen nail art pen and sealed it with a clear top coat. It takes a steady hand (or a friend to do it for you!) but I love how it turned out. Sort of like a classy shimmery candy cane :)

Here’s the loot I picked up from Ulta this weekend. That store is kinda awesome – all the drugstore bands in one spot plus a few high end brands like Two Faced, Benefit and Urban Decay. I’ve been to two locations and one was organized into sections, all the lip products in one aisle, eye makeup in another – makes it waaaay easier to shop for new product.

I’m still searching for the perfect mascara (Cover Girl Lash Blast Fusion..bad, very bad) and so far L’Oreal Double Extend is working pretty well. EDIT: After using this for a month I’m not a fan. It made my bottom lashes look super long and my top lashes look super short. No matter how I applied it I couldn’t get any length. Switched to Maybelline Lash Stiletto instead.

I also got L’Oreal HIP shadows – I wear the silver/black one every day. NYX Mega Shine lip glosses (Sweet Heart and Sponge Cake) get an A+ from me – almost has the stickiness of MAC glosses, but so much cheaper. Orly nail polish in Royal Navy – trying that tonight. And finally, Urban Decay 24/7 liner in Lust – LOVE! Finally found a liner that is as vibrant as it looks.

I figured I talk about Just Bitten and dry shampoo so much I should probably give my lovely readers a chance to try them. So…one lucky winner will receive a Just Bitten Lip Stain in Gothic and Big Sexy Hair Volumizing Dry Shampoo.

I love love love these products and use them on a weekly basis. Just Bitten goes on super smooth and stays on all day – pretty much like coloring your lips with a Sharpie, but without the smell. The color I’m giving away is blood red, like delicious vampire makeout red (True Blood style, not Twilight).

Big Sexy Hair dry shampoo is the reason I’m able to go an entire week without washing my hair. You spray it on your roots where you hair is starting to look oily, let it dry for a couple minutes and then brush through. I like this product better than other ones I’ve tried because it adds volume, which mid-week my hair really needs.

HOW TO WIN:
1. Leave a comment on this post telling me your favorite favorite favorite beauty product.
2. Tweet about this giveaway and leave a second comment linking to your tweet.

The giveaway runs today 11/29/10 through midnight on Friday, December 3, 2010. A random winner will be picked and announced on Monday, December 6, 2010.

Disclaimer: I’ve received no compensation for this review and giveaway. I love the products so I went out and bought them just so I can send them to one of you.

Blue shadow is London Dungeon from Aromaleigh (who happens to be going out of business and has some great deals) with black liquid liner along the lash line (under the shadow) and silver L’Oreal HIP shadow over top. I got the Falsies mascara to work a little better, but it took about 5 coats.

I’m planning a very relaxing weekend involving cookie baking, Sons of Anarchy watching (rewatching seasons 1 & 2 before the 3rd season starts on Sept 7 woo!!), hanging out with a cute dude, learning new circus tricks, swimming, and shopping with mom. Breathing a sigh of relief just thinking about it. Happy Friday :)