Big Birthday Post!

Hey guys!

I am no longer blogging as a 20 year old, because I am finalllllly 21! My birthday was this past Thursday (the 7th) and I am super excited to finally be truly legal! The world is now my oyster! Ha! Anyway, I have tons and tons to blog about, including my Sephora free birthday gift, as well as new makeup I treated myself to. I also wanted to share some pictures of my outfits, the nail polish I wore throughout the weekend, some gifts, and celebrations! It is going to be kind of a big post, but a fun one, and I hope you enjoy it! 

I was presented with these balloons by my parents at 6 in the morning. I love them, and they are still currently in my room.

I wore this pin last year on my birthday, and I busted it back out again Thursday. My mom found one that said 21 on it, so when I went into work, I wore both. Obnoxious, I know.

So my parents led me to believe that I wasn't getting much because they paid for my On The Run Tour ticket, and I was fine with that. So that morning they only gave me a new Alex & Ani bracelet, (doing a post on my collection soon), and the MAC Rihanna Viva Glam Lipglass. However, they surprised me with a new Michael Kors bag later that day.

Sorry it's a little blurry. I could not for the life of me get it to focus properly.

I did get a chance to wear it, and I really like it. It's great for when you don't want a lipstick, but do want some shiny color. I really like it.

For my nails, I wound up not wearing the Julep color that I said I was going to. I don't know why, but I wanted something brighter. So, I decided to wear the Geranium Essie color I posted about in my New Beauty Buys post. I was never one for red nails, I guess mainly because I felt red made my hands look old. However, I realized that I wasn't getting the right red polish for me. I needed to be wearing a more cherry red with like orangeish undertones. I went and got a mani pedi with this color the day before my birthday and I'm glad I did. It looks really good, and is a very classy color. To me it said, "21." Ha! Anyway, here are some pictures of the color. 

I touched it up myself today to keep it nice, but it honestly had only 2 little chips, and it was still shiny for the most part. Very long lasting polish, which is great. I'm going to keep this on for another few days.

The evening of my birthday, my I went to the Cheesecake Factory, and in the mall where it is, there is also a Sephora and MAC counter. I went into Sephora to get my free birthday gift, and I decided to treat myself to a new MAC lipstick.

The Sephora birthday gift came with a lipstick, and a mascara from the Make Up For Ever line. I have yet to test either out, but the lipstick is a very pretty color, and the mascara brush looks like it is going to work very well. The MAC lipstick I got is Velvet Teddy which is a very pretty matte nude. 

Again, I apologize, I could not get the camera to focus, but the lipstick color is called Rouge by Make Up For Ever.

I LOVE this color. I've decided I like matte nudes better than like frost or creme one nudes. They stay on a lot longer, which is expected of matte. I wore this color to brunch with my boyfriend Saturday morning, and to church this morning. I love it. Gives a very natural look. And it's a darker nude which suits me better.

Also, I picked up a new Nars concealer because the last one I got was just too dark. I grabbed the wrong one and thought I could make it work, but I couldn't. So my mom was using it so I just gave it to her and went back to get a new one. I'll post about that later. 

I have two outfits I want to share, the one from my actual birthday, and the one I wore out with my friends to Dave & Busters Friday night. 

Shirt: TJ Maxx
Skirt: Forever 21
Sunglasses: Forever 21
Bag: Michael Kors 
Sandals: If Carrini (I believe I got them from Nordstrom Rack or Ross)
Pin: Icing
Lipstick: Ruby Woo by MAC

Shirt: TJ Maxx

Pants: TJ Maxx

Clutch: Hobo

Sandals: Coach

Necklace: Charming Charlie

Pin: Icing

Lipstick: Ruby Woo by MAC

Well, I hope you guys enjoyed the post so far! I know there's a lot in it, but I thought it would be easier to get everything in one post! Here are some more pictures from the weekend!

I know this is a little different from my normal posts, but I just wanted to share some parts of my birthday with you all. I hope you all enjoyed the post and thank you so much for reading! Until next time!

XO,

Kandace

What's In My Makeup Bag/ Updated Daily Makeup Routine Products!

Hey everyone!

I decided to do a post on what I have in my makeup bag, and combine it with an updated post of what I use in my daily makeup routine since what's in my makeup bag is basically what I use everyday, and because I've gotten some new products since my last post. Most of the products in this post are mentioned in previous posts, so at the end of the post, I will link all of the previous posts that may have mentioned these products, as well as my previous daily makeup routine post! So, here we go!

Yes, this looks like even more than before, however, it still does not take me long to do all of this, I promise. (Ignore the MAC lipstick, I had that on today and did not take it out of my makeup bag. Look forward to a MAC lipstick collection post soon!) 

The products on the left are the ones that I do not carry with me all of the time, but I use everyday. The ones in the pile are what is in my makeup bag currently. (I literally just dumped it out) 

Y'all all know how much I love this stuff. I use it everyday before I put on my makeup. It is a makeup primer to help control the shine that accumulates after a day long of wearing makeup. It is by Bare Minerals, and I have posted about this previously. You can find the link at the bottom of this post. This comes highly highly recommended from me.

Lips are very important to me, as you can see. These are all of the lip products I carry with me on a daily basis, but it is not half of what I have. I have the EOS lip balm, Vaseline Lip Therapy, and lipglosses by Sephora, NYX, Bare Minerals, and Wet N Wild. On days I don't have on lipstick, I have on one of these for sure. I always have some sort of gloss on if I don't have lipstick. I use the EOS and Lip Therapy frequently to avoid my lips getting chapped. 

These are the compacts I carry with me. The one on the left is translucent powder from Bare Minerals, which gives your makeup a matte finished look, while helping protect your makeup from sweat and water, and all that stuff. The one on the right is just a regular compact mirror from Victoria's Secret. 

These are all of the concealers I use. The first one is from NARS; shade Cacao Dark 2, which is a little too dark for me and I realized too late I got the wrong one, so I just have to blend it a lot with lighter shades, and the other two are from Mary Kay, shades Bronze 1, and Bronze 2, which I mix together in that little container to get the perfect shade. The concealer brush is from Bare Minerals. Make sure to always blend your concealer with a brush and not your fingers. Brushes apply it better and keep bacteria and dirt from spreading on your face.

These are the products I use for my eyes. I have the Bare Minerals Well-Rested under eye illuminator and face brightener. I. LOVE. THIS. STUFF. It works wonders! It eliminates the dark and puffiness under your eyes, and brightens them so well! It makes a big difference, trust me. I have the Rimmel by London Extra Wow Lash mascara which I like a lot. I have two eyeliners, Maybelline's Define a Lash Ebony eyeliner, and a Lancome eye pencil which I mostly use for filling in my eyebrows on occasion. I also have the sharpener for the Lancome pencil. 

The eyeshadow palette is from Sephora. It's the Moonshadow Baked Palette: In the Dark. One of my best friends got this and the Urban Decay eye primer for me for Christmas our winter break of our freshman year of college, which was almost three years ago and I still have them both! The primer is amazing. It is gold and can even be worn by itself. As you can see, I've abused this palette. I have like 3 other huge eye palettes but I guess I use this one most because I has a lot of the colors I use daily. Not that the others don't, but because it's so small, it's easier to use quickly. The eyeshadow brush is from Elf. I don't carry these everyday, but I do use them everyday. 

This bronzer is by Nicole Miller, and I get compliments on it a lot when I wear it. It looks really pretty on, and it stays on practically all day. The powder from Smashbox can be used as a bronzer, highligher or even eyeshadow. It is the From Dusk Til Dawn powder. The highlighter is by Benefit from Sephora. I use the Benefit highlighter on my browbone and sometimes my cheekbone. I don't carry the Nicole Miller bronzer with me, but I use it everyday which you can probably tell. 

These are the kind of random but essential items in my bag that didn't really have a category to go in. I have MAC brush that I use to apply my bronzer. Tweezers because you never know when you're going to need them, an eyebrow brush to make sure all hairs are going in the same direction and Viva La Juicy travel perfume and lipgloss. 

I know all of this looks like a lot, but it takes me 10-15 minutes to do all of this. I realize that for some people that is too long, but I just have come to the point where I work it in my getting ready routine so that it isn't too much to me. It's not heavy makeup because I like lightweight makeup to get the daily look I want. Some days I may not wear every single product, but at the very least I have on concealer and lipgloss. 

Here are the links to the posts that many of these products are mentioned in:

My Daily Makeup Routine Products

Bare Minerals Goodies

Weekend Beauty Grabs

New Beauty Buys

Thank you guys for reading! I hope you enjoyed!

Until next time!

XO,

Kandace

My Daily Makeup Routine Products!

Hey guys!

So I decided to do a post about products I use in my everyday makeup routine. People always tell me they don't know how I have time to do my makeup everyday, and truthfully, it takes me no more than 10 minutes, and on a bad day, 15. I guess because I've made it apart of my routine, I think nothing of it. With that being said, I'm going to show you the products I use everyday to get a simple natural look. I make my makeup look very simple and subtle. There are some of these products in this post that I don't use every single day, but most days, I use them. I'll be sure to note that when I show each item. So, let's jump into it!

I know this looks like a lot, but it's really not I promise. Each one of these products does not take long to apply at all. I have chap stick, and different lipglosses I choose from, concealer, bronzer, eyeliner, mascara, highlighter, and a eyebrow brush. (I forgot to show the eyeshadow palettes I use, but I figured that could be another post.)

I'll start with the lip products I use. So, I always start with chap stick, and this is the basic chap stick you can find anywhere, the kind that everyone has. I just ripped my wrapper off so you can't tell what brand it is, but it's the basic brand. I have Sephora lipgloss, which came in one of my many birthday presents that I get from Sephora. I have Wet N Wild Megaslicks, and I don't care what anyone says, I love this lipgloss. This color is Bronze Berry I believe, and it adds a tint and a shimmer to my lips. And lastly, I use this Ellen Tracy lipgloss which I found in Marshalls one day, and I love it because it's sheer and shiny, just how I like my lipgloss. As you can see I really like it because the cap is wearing down on me. I always have on lip gloss of some sort, if I don't have on lipstick. I chose not to show my lipstick because I don't wear it every single day, and I figured that I could do a separate post of my lipstick collection. 

Next, I have concealer, which is by Mary Kay, shades Bronze 1, and Bronze 2. My skin complexion is closer to Bronze 2, but until I get that teeny tiny kiss from the sun, I mix both shades together to get the perfect shade. Although I could go with just Bronze 2, I usually mix both if I have both shades at the time. Bronze 1 is way too light to wear by itself. Mary Kay is one of my favorite concealers to wear. It lasts long, and it's only $10. I'm also a big fan of MAC and Nars concealer. I use this under my eyes, and for small blemishes on my forehead. It conceals really really well. This product comes highly recommended from me. If you can, try to always apply concealer with a brush because using your fingers can spread germs and bacteria all over your face. Also, brushes apply it better. 

This eyeliner is by Lancome, and even though I like it, my favorite eyeliner ever is by Maybelline, the one with the green cap that you don't have to sharpen. (I can't think of the proper name right now) This eyeliner gets the job done though, and truthfully when I ran out of Maybelline eye liner, I found this unused Lancome pencil in my house, so I figure I'll just use it until it runs out, then I'll go back to my favorite. I always have on eyeliner, even if I don't have on eyeshadow, which I usually do. Sorry this eyeliner looks so unattractive, I literally use it everyday, so it's a little worn. The only thing I don't like about this eyeliner is it does have a tendency to smudge, but other than that, I like it. 

This mascara is also from Sephora, and I got it in my birthday present from there also. I actually really like it, but Maybelline makes my favorite mascara ever which is the Falsies one in the purple packaging. I ran out of that, and I've been using this since then. Though I really do like this one, when this runs out, which will most likely be soon, I will go back and get my Falsies by Maybelline. However this mascara really pulls my lashes out, and I would definitely get it again. 

This bronzer is by Nicole Miller, and my mom recently gave it to me because she never used it. I really like it, and majority of the time I've had it, I've worn it since then. I like the shimmer it gives my skin, and since I don't really use blush, this is a good fit for me. I don't use this if I'm just running out somewhere, but if I'm hanging out for the day, or going to church or something, I'll wear this. 

Lastly, I have this highlighter, which also came from Sephora, and yes, you guessed it, came in my birthday present. I really adore this stuff. I usually swipe it under my eyebrows, and if I'm not wearing bronzer, I'll swipe across my cheek for a subtle shimmer. I use this very often, and I love it, love it, love it. I've had it for a year, and I still have a ton left because you don't need much. Too much of this will give a very "fake" look which we don't want. Just a little swipe will do. I will definitely be getting another one of these whenever it runs out, which won't be anytime soon.

I know all of this stuff looks like a lot to do, but I promise it's not. It will give you a very pretty look in a short amount of time. Even if I have on nothing else, I always have something on my lips, eyeliner, and concealer. It's very rare you catch me without those three items. Like I said, I typically have on eyeshadow, but I didn't post about it in this post because I have enough to do a separate post, same goes for the lipstick. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this post!

Until next time!

XO,

Kandace

P.S. I know my nails are a different color from the color I last posted about, but stay tuned for a new nail post soon!