My Take on Beauty Basics.

Hey Everyone! As posted in my previous blogs I will be attending cosmetology school this coming September and it got me thinking about beauty basics. I want to share my take on beauty basics and share what I know and what I will learned from school. Now, for me, beauty basics start right down at skincare so that’s what I will be talking about. A lot of this stuff is common sense but it’s still fun to share. Feel free to comment on your take on beauty basics and share what you know!

The one important thing I’ve learned about skin care is to find your skin type. I believe they are five basic skin types; oily skin- skin that is really shiny especially on the T zone area. The T zone is your forehead, nose, and chin. People with oily skin might have enlarged pores or are prone to blackheads and breakouts due to the overproduction of oil producing gland.The second is dry skin -skin that has a dull, rough complexion. It can have red patches, less elasticity, more visible lines and almost invisible pores. Dry skin can also be sensitive when exposed to drying factors and can become itchy irritated and inflamed.
Third is combination skin. This is a mixture of both oily and dry skin. You’ll mostly find oily on the t-zone and dry on the cheeks. It’s also more acne prone on the forehead, nose and sometimes chin and can have overly dilated pores and blackheads. Combination skin tone may also make your skin can also be shiny.The fourth kind of skin is ‘normal skin’, or skin that has no or little imperfections. It’s not too dry and not to oily. It has no severe sensitivity, barely visible pores, and a radiant complexion.The last type of skin is sensitive skin. If you have sensitive skin its best to find out what triggers it so you can avoid them. Sensitive skin can show up as redness, burning, itchiness and dryness. A good way to find out what type of skin you have is to wash your face and wait an hour or two as by that time your skin will go back to normal by producing its natural oils and such. See how your skin feels; if it’s really dry or irritated you can take a tissue and pass it on your t-zone to see if it’s overly oily and judge from there. They have a variety of facial care products that target your specific skin type. If this leaves you feeling overwhelmed with what you should buy, look into a day moisturizer that has sunscreen SPF 15 or higher. At night, a cream that will contain the vitamins your skin needs to help replenish itself while you sleep is also a good tip. Cleansers help a lot and if you don’t have a Clair sonic, which is a type of exfoliating machine, buy an exfoliating cleanser to at least exfoliate your skin. This should be done at least twice a week to help renew your skin. Afterwards, a skin toner helps restore the PH balance in your skin. What the toner does is help balance our skin by providing the right amount of oil.
One of the best skin care brand I’m currently using is ‘Simple’. It’s from the UK and it’s just recently came to the U.S.. You can purchase it at drugstores Wal-mart, CVS, Rite-Aid, etc. What’s great about it is that it’s made for sensitive skin but the products are natural and they don’t use any harsh chemicals or fragrances. This product also has good vitamins that any skin type can benefit from it. I will put the link to the Simple website just click here if you want to learn more on this product and it’s affordable.
 Another way to help your skin is of course to be healthy drink lots of water. It’s always best to help your body on the inside as well as the out. I’m now just starting to do this but you know what they say, ‘better late than never’. Just take a baby step, that’s what I’m doing.  I’m being more health conscious and with simple things like eliminating soda I’m starting to look and feel great! I’m going to start exercising as well, staring with going for a jog or a walk just to get me more active.I hope you guys enjoy my take on beauty basics benefit from the information I provide. Again, feel free to comment or suggest topics!

Cosmetics on a Budget.

Hey everyone just wanted to share some website I like to shop from when I don’t have extra money to splurge and have to stick to a budget. Trying to become a makeup artist is hard when you’re a mother of two and you have a lot of priorities when it comes to your money. It can sometimes hinder you in trying to build your makeup collection. That is why I normally shop drugstore. don’t get me wrong I do love my high end makeup but sometimes you can find something just as good or better from drugstore such as Wal-Mart, Target, CVS, Walgreens ext. A lot of the drugstore brands I learned about was from watching and reading emilynoel83 blogs and videos (click to check them out). She is also one of my inspirations that led me to start a blog and get my thoughts about beauty out there.

These sites I learned about from watching videos and I just researched some products they were using and found out where to get them. Now there are times that even drugstore can get a little pricey. $50.00 can get you one or two items from the drugstore and like one item in a high end store. I like these websites because you get more for your money. You can easily get twice as much products and they are also very good quality. Most of my collection I bought from BH Cosmetics it’s kind of like Coastal Scents just a little cheaper. Coastal Scents have a little more options with their products but they both have the same concept they have eye pallets of like 88 colors plus. Price range anywhere between $10.00 and $20.00 depending on the count you get. These pallets are great if you’re just starting out like me. They have shimmery pallets, neutral pallets, matt pallets; the colors are pigmented and last long. They also have a lot of face makeup and brushes. Now the brushes I haven’t purchased from Coastal Scents but I have purchased from BH Cosmetics and my honest opinion they were ok quality. From my experience on brushes I say just spend the extra to get a good quality that will last your longer then go the cheaper rout. If you can’t put the extra money like I can’t many of time E.L.F is a good brand for brushes. This leads me to my next website E.L.F Cosmetics. Now I’m not too fond of their pallets but they do have some good products. Don’t just take my word I know some people love their products. It’s a learning experience on what works for you. Their brushes are good they have the elf studio line which I recommend. they are built better than the E.L.F essentials brushes and the price for the brushes are not bad they’re $3.00 and $6.00 for a kabuki face brush. The next two websites are more for hair facical care and nails. They do sell makeup they are beauty supply stores/websites. The first is Ulta. I love Ulta it’s like a one stop shop from high end to drugstore products. Like I said in my previous blog I wish I lived close to a branch I would love you visit the store. They always having sales buy one get one half off. They also have promos where they give away free items if you spend a certain amount like $30.00 or $50.00 depends on the product. You just gotta look out for the sales. And last but not least Sally Beauty Supply. Another one I love they do have some makeups but they focus more on the supplies for hair, nails, and face care. One thing I love about Sally Beauty is that they have many different discounts. They have the regular reward card for loyal customer. They have the pro discount card gives you great deals and benefits. But what I really like is that they have an educational discount and benefit card. it gives discounts to students in beauty school its free. All you have to do is show your school pass or proof that your attending school. One more awesome thing they have a school saving so let’s say you want to open a school or a salon they give you discounts and help get your name out there so you can build up your students or client list. So with those discount options it makes it cheaper to shop for your hair nail or facial care produces.

I hope you enjoyed my little tidbit of information on my 5 favorite budget friendly beauty website. I will put the links down below please click and check them out they’re awesome and a lot of them are having sales for end of summer and back to school so don't miss out.

 http://www.bhcosmetics.com/

http://www.coastalscents.com/

http://www.eyeslipsface.com/

http://www.ulta.com/

http://www.sallybeauty.com/

Small Bday Goodies Haul

Hey everyone, I had a great birthday weekend. I spent some time with friends and family and had a blast talking about my goals and my passion for makeup. I got some birthday goodies from Ulta courtesy of my husband. Sadly I had to order online because I have no Ulta stores near me :(  I would love to visit one. It’s very hard for me to go shopping being a stay at home mom of two. We kind of have to budget our money. I’m sure a lot of you are on the same boat and can relate. So when I get my chances I take them and slowly add to my makeup collection. In which I will share on another blog.

Ok so let’s get started before I buy any makeup product I always do research. Reason being like I said I’m on a budget and I want to get the best out of my money whether it's from a high end brand or drugstore brand I always find reviews on the product. The first item I got was the Lorac Pro pallet the price $42.00

And I have to say I was not disappointed in this purchase the colors are beautiful. It has got your shimmery and mat colors. It’s perfect for those natural looks. A lot of my favorite beauty tubers and bloggers have this pallet and love it. Having it physically to see for myself I see why. It’s also perfect for bridal makeup. (This is something I want to do when I graduate.) The colors are very pigmented and soft not chalky at all I love it.

The next item I bought was the Urban Decay Deluxe Shadow Box

I love Urban Decay it is one of my favorite brands. The packaging is cute and the colors in the pallet are beautiful and pigmented. I love the bright shimmery colors and was happy with the way they applied. For the price I couldn't go wrong it was $10.00.

The last item I got was the starter set from real techniques.

Now with brushes it’s always hard for me. I’m always trying to find the right kind for my eye type. I have hooded eyes so it’s hard to find a good size brush for my eye lids but I make do with what I have. I would love to know if anyone knows good brush brands that also work for hooded eyes. Sigma brushes are supposed to be great for hooded eyes because there eye brushes are small enough for the crease and big enough to blend out easy. The only thing about sigma brushes is that they’re pricey Overall this brush set that I got from real techniques were ok. The price was ok for the quality at $17.99 and it came with a nice case so it was convenient to travel with. The blending bush was a little too big for my eyes but I made it work. I used the blending brush as a concealer brush to blend my concealer. The eye shadow bush was actually a perfect size to blend my shadows nicely in my crease. I also use the small flat detailed brush to pack on the product to my lid and also as a smudge for my lower lash line.

I got to try out my new stuff on my birthday did a nice natural look using the Lorac Pro

 I used the color Sable all over the lid and just a little above the crease, then took the color espresso and blended into my crease and used the shimmery nude as my high light.

My Intro

I am trying to follow my passion and dream while juggling two kids under 3 years of age and being a wife. I always had a passion for art. All forms of art cooking, drawing, painting, sculpting, crafting. Ever since I was young I always been artistic I would draw characters from manga books, anime and video games (that’s where my geekiness came in handy) I went to college and studied culinary arts but found it wasn’t my passion. Although I love cooking I couldn’t see myself doing it as a career so I changed my major to fine arts. I liked it but again didn’t feel that strong passion. I noticed although I rarely wear it I always loved makeup. So I decide to look into this world of makeup and cosmetology and I fell in love. What is cosmetology but just another form of art? I looked up vids and learned about different brands and brushes from a lot of different beauty tubers (A few beauty tubers stood out to me Michelle Phan, Goldiestarling ThatGirlshaexo, MakeupGeek, and Bubzbeauty) and I got inspired. With the information I learned and inspiration I gathered I went out and bought some makeup and started practicing. I did makeup on myself, friends, and family and loved it. They did too of course. My passion for art became a dream of becoming a makeup artist and eventually get well known open my own salon or crate my own line. And that’s why I’m starting this blog, to gain a more learning experience and to share my experiences with a community that shares the same passion I do. And with the community I hope to build here and the support of my loving husband who kept pushing me and motivating me I can see this dream coming true. I am actually cosmetology school this year and I’m so happy and grateful for this opportunity that helps me Open the door further so I can further a career in my dream.