How the Glitz Stole Christmas

 

I have to confess, I signed up to do the blogger Christmas swap hosted by Lindsey and Raven, and then completely spaced it until I got an email from beautiful Sheena!

I have to say, I met a pretty amazing girl through this swap and it helps that we pretty much think alike.

Look at how gorgeous this girl is!!!

I was way excited to get my package from her, and even more exited when she practically read my mind and got me the one thing I’ve had my eye on for weeks.

I literally had my eye on this polish since OPI came out with the collection. It looks absolutely fantastic on and I did a little jig when I saw it. Thank you Sheena for the amazing gift! I love getting snail mail, especially when it’s such a thoughtful present.

Now head over and check out Sheena’s little blog! She’s such a sweetie, and the best part, she’s from Arizona … you know… where we’re moving to.

The Right Shadow For Your Eyes

 

Today’s guest blogger is one of my first bloggy friends. Lindsey is an incredibly sweet Texas girl who I cannot wait to meet and hang out with once we make our big move. She blogs over at The Bargain Blonde and has some of the best finds in the world. Not only that but the girl is incredibly pretty and funny! If you haven’t heard of her yet, you are missing out, and as proof of what you are missing out on, here is Linds:

Hello Zara fans!  I jumped at the chance to guest blog for our little miss Zara when she asked if I was interested.  I mean, DUH!  She's only one of the sweetest girls I know.  Of course I was interested. I'm Lindsey by the way and I have a little bloggity blog by the name of The Bargain Blonde.  I blog about ballin' on a budget whether it be fashion, beauty, organization, decor, etc.  Today I'm talking about how to enhance your eye color using the right shade of eye shadow.  Then I'll provide y'all with some affordable shadow options from my favorite make-up line, e.l.f.  If any of you read my blog, you know my extreme (& almost unhealthy) obsession with e.l.f.  And if you don't, then go here, here, here and here to see just what I'm talking about.

So let's get to it, shall we?  I found this chart, which I think says it best:

 

[via]

I have blue eyes and I used to only wear greys and charcoal eye shadows.  I can attest that when I switched to brown, I noticed a HUGE difference.  My eyes definitely pop more with browns. Like woah.  It's crazy what a difference the right shadow can make.  Moi wearing a brown smokey eye:

First seen here.

Now, let's get to the fun part.  Here are some affordable shadows for your eye color.  I own this $3 e.l.f. shadow in coffee bean and I wear it almost every day.  I love it! For your baby blues:

Saddle - BUY

For your beautiful browns:

Mystic Moss - BUY

For your gorgeous greens:

Amethyst - BUY

For your glittering greys:

Wild Wheat - BUY

I'm curious.  Do you follow the color chart?  Or are you a rebel and wear whatever shade you want?  I personally tend to mostly wear browns myself, but definitely will rock a dark smoky eye for nights out on the town.

Thanks for having me Zara, let's do it again soon!  Have a great Thursday y'all.

See what I mean?! The girl is awesome! So head over to The Bargain Blonde and get some more amazing deals and a ton of laughs.

Linds, thanks so much for blogging over here. You are the bestest! <3 

Make-up Tutorial: Smoky Eyes

I would like you all to meet another one of my blog friends, Veronica Grace from Knitful Dezigns. She is a very talented and beautiful gal, and has some mad skills when it comes to make-up. So here she is with her first every tutorial!

Hello Everyone! If you don't already know me my name is Veronica grace, I've been given the awesome privilege to guest blog today. I've made you all a short video of a basic smoky eye look, perfect for any occasion. I've used four colors to achieve this and I'll be posting everything I've used in the order I used it below. ***this is my first ever makeup tutorial, so I was a tad bit nervous jeje*** ENJOY

• Painterly Paintpot by MAC (as a primer)
• Pixie epoxy (shimmer primer)
• Bride sparkly shadow by My pretty zombie
• Ravenwood Manor eyeshadow by My pretty zombie
• Coffin Critters eyeshadow by My pretty zombie
• and White Lines eyeshadow by My pretty zombie (as a highlight and for blending)
• also I used ravenwood manor underneath my eye with a normal eyeshadow brush
• Black eyeliner
• Falsies (using ardell glue)
• and a light pink lipstick by Maybelline * unfortunatley the name rubbed off *
• The blush I used at the end is Warm soul mineral blush by MAC

I hope you all enjoyed the small tutorial :) And thank you Zara for the awesome chance to guest blog!!!

Veronica Grace <3

Thank You Veronica for the awesome tutorial! Head on over to Veronica Grace’s and check out all the cool things on her bloggy!

Hope you all have an amazing Weekend, and use this tutorial!

A Top 10

 

The beautiful Veronica Grace at Knitful Dezigns, has given me a blog award and I couldn’t thank her enough. It is such an honor to get these little buttons to add to my small collection, and to know that people actually enjoy reading my gibberish! So thank you Veronica Grace!!! From the bottom of my heart!

The idea behind this award is that you list your top 10 cosmetic choices and then tag other bloggers so that they can also do the same.  

Here are my top 10 products that I use almost daily:

Since this is asking me about cosmetic products I’m only going to include makeup, later on I might do a post about skincare since I just got a new moisturizer that I am in LOVE with.

[ONE] – Benefit Boi-ing

This might be the best concealer that I have ever used. It’s a bit price at $18.00, but lasts forever and blends perfectly with my skin tone. It also works amazingly well with my BE foundation.

[TWO] – bareMinerals Matte Foundation

This is also a bit pricy ($28.00) but worth every single penny. A container of bareMinerals should last anywhere from 3 to 6 months. If you are using the right brushes they will last 6+ months. I use to use this foundation on my face daily, and never had issues with breakouts or any other problems. Mineral foundations are healthier for the skin because they are light and allow for your skin to breath. Also, it helps that this foundation comes with 15 SPF.

[THREE] – Prime Time

Another Bare Escentuals item. This primer is magical. I’ve tried a whole line of them including Too Faced, Smashbox, StudioGear and a few others, this by far is the best out of them all. The primer not only smooths out your face but also locks in moisture making sure that your skin is super soft throughout the day. 

[FOUR] – BADgal lash Mascara

I have this in all four colors that the mascara comes in. Usually I’ll wear the black with plum or blue. Sometimes I’ll just do black, sometimes a dark brown. Anyways, this is by far the best bang for your buck! There are a few other mascaras that I like, but for everyday wear BADgal does not dry out your lashes and comes off super easy. I also have the waterproof version for vacations, swimming and other watery activities. However, I wear the regular to the gym and have no issue with it smearing all over my face and giving me raccoon eyes.

[FIVE] – brow zings

My beautiful friend Laly does my brows, and with a little help of this guy from Benefit they look perfect until they are overgrown and completely out of control. I love this little kit because it’s not just powder to fill in the brows but also a colored gel to get the color to set in and your brows to stay in place.

[SIX] – Urban Decay Glided Bronzer

This is one of the BEST bronzers I have ever had the pleasure of working with. I originally started using Urban Decay when I started doing make-up at Ulta. The eye shadow colors are to-die for, especially if used with a primer to bring out the pigmentation. This bronzer is no different, its my go to in the summer because it gives a total sun-kissed look, with a bit of shine. For a day out, I usually tone down the shine with some foundation or mineral vial over it.

[SEVEN] – Urban Decay Liquid Liner

I loved the old Urban Decay liquid liner much, MUCH better then this one. BUT again, this is better then a lot of the other choices out there. The application wand works for me, so it makes life a great deal easier since liquid eyeliner is a pain in the tush to apply. I usually stick with black liquid liner.

[EIGHT] – Stila smudge stick waterproof eyeliner

This one is really a splurge item for me, and I got hooked on it when I did makeup for the Stila line. Each one of these beauties will run you about $20.00. *hangs head in shame* and I am more than willing to pay for them. I got several for free, and was literally hooked. The colors are beautiful, I LOVE the purple tang, bluefin, and the peacock for a night out on the town or to add a hint of color to an office look. 

 

[NINE] – Too Faced Shadow Insurance

Again, I’ve tried several different shadow primers including Urban Decay and Benefit, but this seems to be the best out of them all. Especially if you mix it with a drop of silk hair serum. The primer just glides right on, its not oily or too dry and makes the pigmentation in the shadows really come out.

[TEN] – Urban Decay Naked Eyeshadow palette

LOVE at first sight. I assure you this will be the best investment of your lifetime. I really love Urban Decay eyeshadows and own a million individual ones, but its so hard to travel with them or locate the color you need when they are all dumped into a drawer. This palette is perfect because it includes all the colors you need for a day at the office or a soft natural look.

And there you have it! The 10 cosmetics that I use on a regular basis.

Finally, here are the bloggers I am tagging:

Kristin at Asymmetrical Joy 

Meghan at Little girl in the big world

Megan at A Suitcase and Stilettos

Lindsey at The Bargain Blonde

Sherry at Sweet and Sassy

Leah at Happily Hitched

Sarah at Living, Laughing and Loving Life