Nude Glam | Get Ready With Me

The most recent video I posted on my channel featured an every-day nude glam look. I kept both the eyes and lips nude and used velcro rollers to achieve the bouncy, casual curls you see in the picture above. This is usually my go-to look for daytime and can be easily altered to be more or less dramatic. I used my two FAVORITE shadow palettes of the moment -- the Lorac Pro Palettes (both the original and the newest one), my Anastasia brow products, and my Clinique Acne Solutions foundation, just to name a few.

>> I started this look by prepping my face with the L'Oreal Revitalift Miracle Blur (amazing), then went ahead and put my hair into velcro rollers. I always do the rollers first so they have time to set and cool while I do my makeup.

>> Moving onto my eyes, I primed them with Maybelline's Instant Age Rewind concealer in the shade neutralizer. Next I used a few different nude shades from each of the Lorac Pro Palettes, then lined my eyes with my favorite L'Oreal liquid liner. Once my eyes were complete I applied my foundation using my Sigma F80 brush and concealed my under eye area with my Maybelline concealer, blending in with my beauty blender.

>> To set my makeup I used an NYC pressed powder under the eyes and MAC's Pressed Blot Powder all over the face. Then I went in with my contour and blush, finished the wings of my liner and filled in and set my brows. I topped off my lashes with mascara then moved onto lips.

>> For lips I used a nude liner from Clinique and MAC's Myth all over. I used my Urban Decay All Nighter setting spray to lock in my makeup, let my hair down and my look was complete!

You can see a complete list of products that I used by clicking the 'read more' button below. To see how I got this look sit back, relax, and enjoy the video! :)

Coconut-y

I have a deep love for coconut oil. I am obsessed with it.

Months ago I read an article about oil pulling and I was hooked. For anyone who is not familiar with the technique, oil pulling is done by taking a spoonful of solid coconut oil and swishing it around in your mouth for approximately 20 minutes. Done first thing in the morning -- before eating or brushing teeth -- oil pulling pulls out the bad bacteria that lives in our mouths that gives us bad breath and causes other issues. This practice can also help those of us with jaw pain due to clenching the teeth, and it can actually whiten your teeth as well. 

Coconut oil also has healing benefits -- it can help scrapes and burns heal up faster. It is also an excellent moisturizer. I love using it on my lips as well as on the heels of my feet to soothe and hydrate dry, cracked skin. 

But one of my favorite things to do with coconut oil is to use it as a hair mask. If you are a regular on the beauty blog/YouTube circuit I am sure you have heard of other women using coconut oil in their hair. 

In my opinion, it works best when it is applied to damp hair, after the oil is microwaved for about 10-15 seconds to allow it to liquefy slightly. I apply it all over, leave it on for an hour or two, then shampoo and condition as normal. It's also great to use overnight -- just be sure to wrap your hair in a towel or an old t-shirt to prevent this miracle oil from getting all over your pillow.

My hair always comes out silky smooth, shiny, and just healthier looking every time I do a coconut oil treatment. I filmed a video the other day of how I go about this process -- I hope you check it out and enjoy!

Oh, and you can find coconut oil at nearly any grocery store. Opting for organic, extra-virgin, unrefined coconut oil seems to be best for hair masks, oil-pulling, and the other various uses it has!

Back At It...

Life sometimes gets in the way of the things we enjoy most. The past several months have brought some unimaginable ups and downs. It wasn't until a few weeks ago I got back into filming YouTube videos, and I think I am ready to jump back into blogging again. With that said, I want to share my most recent video with you!

In February I decided to ditch my dark locks for my usual blonde. I loved having dark hair but I'm so used to being blonde that I actually missed it. Now I feel like me again. In the video I explain exactly what I did, how I did it, and what products I used. Going from such a dark color to a much, much lighter color is no joke. If you're about to make the move, do your research! If you're a first time hair dye-er I'd recommend just heading to a professional. It took me hours of research, several trips to Sally's, and a TON of patience to get back to my usual blonde -- but is absolutely do-able. If you have any questions please feel free to leave them below or holla at me on twitter @glamcandyxo 

Hope you enjoy the video :)

PS -- It feels great to be back!

8 Steps to Looking Better When You're Sick

Ok I promise after today I will be off my sick soap box and on to something better -- this cold has just been consuming my life lately so it's putting all these ideas in my head and been the topic of conversation the past few days. My apologies. 

If you haven't visited my channel lately and seen my latest video, I uploaded a tutorial yesterday for how I attempt to make myself look somewhat normal when I'm under the weather (if you haven't seen the tutorial you can watch it below).

When I'm not feeling well I don't want to take an hour to get ready and I certainly don't want to pack on the makeup. I sure as hell won't be doing a smokey eye or a winged liner. I'm lucky that I can even lift a makeup brush to my face. Here are the 8 simple steps I take to look like myself again:

1. Moisturize. My nose (and for some reason) my eyelids get super dry. I like using Cetaphil's Ultra Hydrating Lotion for Sensitive Skin all over my face, concentrating around my nose.

2. Conceal. I don't even bother with foundation when I'm sick. I use Dermablend's Smooth Indulgence Concealer in nude because it covers up EVERYTHING. You can also use a concealer with a green tint to help hide redness, but make sure to apply a regular concealer over top as well. Don't forget to do the under-eye area! Concealing is absolutely necessary if you're applying makeup when you're sick.

3. Set. Depending on where I'm going I will set my concealer with a loose powder (I feel like loose powders provide more coverage than a pressed powder), that has a tint to it so my face doesn't look so pale. I love Bare Minerals for this step (I used a Maybelline loose powder in this tutorial because my Bare Minerals powder is a couple shades too dark for me right now).

4. Contour & Blush. Call me crazy but I hardly ever skip this step. I think applying a contour and a blush just helps to warm up your complexion, bring color to your face, and makes you look much better than you feel. In this tutorial I used a matte brown shadow for my contour and a pink baked powder from Milani for my blush. You can definitely skip contouring, but at least add a little blush to bring some color back into your face.

5. Eyes. I always like to have a little something on my eyes besides mascara. I use a matte shadow (either grey, brown, or whatever you prefer), and apply it to my upper lash line using an angled brush. To finish, I apply a couple coats of mascara. I used my favorite, the Maybelline Rocket Volume Express.

6. Eyebrows. No matter what I will always take at least 30 seconds to do my brows. For this look I skipped the Brow Wiz and used a powder from Lorac to just lightly fill in my brows. I set them using Anastasia's Brow Gel in Brunette.

7. Lips. You can totally skip a lipstick and just apply any chapstick or lip balm and be good to go. I love Burts Bees chapstick because the kind I use has a minty/tingly feeling that makes me feel like I put Vicks Vapo Rub all over my lips (despite the description it is actually a pleasant feeling). Sometimes I'll apply a nude lipstick over top just to give me a hint of color.

8. Hair. All I can say is: Keep. It. Simple. If your hair isn't a messy grease ball, go ahead and leave it down. For me, I think pulling it up just gives you a more polished look. My go-to is the sock bun and you can see how I achieve this look in the video.

 

What do you do to look better when you're sick and have to leave the comfort of your bed? I'd love to hear your tips!

xoxo

Foundation 101 | Everything You Need to Know!

The task of finding the perfect foundation can be daunting and overwhelming. How are you supposed to know what undertones are in your skin? What type of coverage are you supposed to look for? How do you apply it? Well, I have (hopefully) the answers to all those questions and then some! Watch the video below or read on to learn how to find your perfect foundation.

Finding the Perfect Shade
Do you need a warm, cool, or neutral toned foundation? Finding out the answer to that question can be a little tricky but there are a couple things you can do to arrive at the solution. Look at your skin tone -- all over. If you see more olive, yellow, or gold undertones, you will most likely benefit from a warmer foundation. Pink undertones? A cool foundation may be better for you. If you have a mix of both a neutral foundation is a great place to start. Still not sure? Head to Sephora, Ulta, or your favorite makeup counter to get color matched. They will be able to tell you exactly what you need.

Color Matching
A huge mistake women tend to make is attempting to match a foundation to the color of the back of their hand. To that I say; NONONONONONONO!

The best place to test a foundation is your jawline down to the top of your neck. You want to make sure the color matches along your jawline and blends nicely into your neck in order to avoid that "mask" look. I highly recommend trying out a couple different shades by blending the foundation slightly (all you need is a small swatch) into your jawline/neck area, letting it dry, and comparing the colors to determine what is best for your skin tone.

Finish & Coverage
Foundations can leave a natural, dewy, or matte finish on the skin after application. The type of finish you want to have is entirely up to you. However, I would definitely recommend matte foundations for those who have oily skin (like me!), and dewy or luminous foundations for those with combo or dryer skin.

Determining the type of coverage you would like is also personal preference. In my experience, it seems that most foundations have a medium coverage, but there are also foundations that provide light and full coverage. The types of coverage are pretty self-explanatory...a foundation that is medium to full coverage is going to cover up more than a light coverage foundation.

Drugstore or High End?
I've had much more experience with drugstore brand foundations and I must say that they definitely get the job done. I don't think you can go wrong with Revlon's Color Stay Whipped Foundation, L'Oreal's True Match (and True Match Lumi if you have dryer skin), and Covergirl's 3-in-1 foundation.

As far as high end is concerned, I am OBSESSED with Make Up For Ever's Mat Velvet + foundation because I am super super oily. I love it and it was well worth the investment. I will certainly update when I have tried more high end brands.

Tools
While your fingers are always a great tool for applying makeup, my hands down, holy grail, best brush of life ever is the Sigma F80 Flat Top Kabuki brush. I could go on, and on, and ON about this amazing tool. My foundation goes on so much smoother, easier, and has a flawless appearance when I use this brush.

Another great line of brushes is from Real Technique -- I know they have them at Ulta and are very inexpensive. My favorite foundation brush they make is the Expert Face Brush. Another great option!



Hopefully this post helped you if you are in the market for a new foundation! If you have any questions, don't hesitate to leave them below or e-mail me.

xoxo

Dramatic Smokey Eye

Hello beauties! This tutorial is WAY longer than intended, but it gives you a super in-depth, step-by-step tutorial for how I get this dramatic, go-to smokey eye look. I love doing my eyes like this, and it's definitely a versatile look that you can switch out with other shadow colors, lips, and hair styles. Watch the video below or read on for a list of products I used. Also, check out my new page on beautylish, too for detailed product information, photos, videos and more! Hope you enjoy!

Get Ready With Me | Full Face & Hair

Hello lovlies & Happy New Year! Today's video is a typical get ready with me -- how I get ready for work, a night out, etc. It's super easy to do and is totally versatile. It would look great with a bold lip or bolder eye shadows. If you don't want to watch the video but want to know what products I used, read below. Hope you enjoy! 

xoxo

It's Judy Time Palette Look | Update

Hello lovelies! It has been a hot minute since I blogged or filmed a video -- I started a new job, which I love, but it's consumed most of my life as of late. I also was unfortunately in a really bad car accident a little over a week ago and was injured so I've been laying super low trying to recover. I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday! I'm anxious to get back into the swing of blogging and filming makeup tutorials so stay on the look out for all that!

For Christmas one of my favorite gifts was my It's Judy Time eyeshadow palette. If you don't know who Judy is, you MUST check out her YouTube channels -- she is amazing! She has a vlog channel with her husband Benji and sweet little cutie bear daughter Julianna. She uploads daily vlogs and I have to say I'm completely addicted. She also has a mommy channel and a beauty channel. Recently she worked with BH cosmetics to create her own eyeshadow palette and it is BEAUTIFUL! Watch the video below or read on to see the look I created using her palette.

xoxo

2-in-1 | Holiday Hair & Gold Glammed Up Eyes Tutorial

I've been loving this gold eye look lately that I created using the original Urban Decay Naked Palette. It is so incredibly easy and versatile -- definitely one of my favorite looks for the holidays. I also included a holiday hair/retro wave tutorial in the video. Watch below or read on to see how I did it :)

Glam Holiday Makeup Look

I'm loving bold lips for the holiday season so I decided to film a makeup tutorial using Urban Decay's Vice 2 Palette and two bold lip options. Watch the video from my channel below and read on for more information about the products I used! :)

Oh and by the way, I linked-up with Kristin over at Your Beauty Fix for her new link up Tell All Tuesdays! Check it out :)

Holiday Hairstyles | 3 Tutorials for This Season

I was just thinking about how I wanted to wear my hair for Thanksgiving and decided to sit down to play around with some ideas, so of naturally I decided to film them. They are relatively easy and quick to do. Watch the video below to see how I got these three looks! :)

xoxo

How I Wash My Hair Extensions

Most days I rock my fake hair. I just clip it right in and I instantly have long, beautiful locks that I miss so much. Since I wear my extensions so frequently, I like to wash them every one to two weeks just to keep them looking semi-normal and not so much like a rats' nest that they can sometimes resemble. Watch the video below to see how I wash my extensions or read on for more information! 

Neutral Eye Look | Day to Night

I filmed these two eye looks using Urban Decay's Vice 2 palette. Although both are neutral looks, I added a couple things to take the first look up a notch for a more night-time smokey effect. Watch the video below or read on for more information!

Easy, Pretty Hair with Rollers!

Remember that post I did on velcro rollers a while back? Well this time I filmed a video and didn't have in my extensions. Watch the video below or click the link here to refer back to my original post! Enjoy! :)





xoxo