Queen Helene Mint Julep Mask

Ever feel like your skin is too dry to exfoliate but looks dull or your pores feel clogged? This happens to me in the summer when I've been using sunscreens, aloe vera, been in chlorine, have been sweating more, etc. I'm going to tell you what I like to do for that! First, I remove my eye makeup using a moist towelette or an eye makeup remover and cotton swab. Then I use:

It's perfect for summer as it has a cool, tingly quality that won't irritate your skin (that might be recovering from excessive sun exposure) like an exfoliant. All you have to do is spread the product on your face and allow it to dry. After it's dry it becomes taught, less green, more white and kind of crusty. I like the water from my sink to warm up just a bit and then I cup some in my hand and gently moisten the dry mask to dissolve it. After I get most of it off, I like to use a daily facial towelette and gently exfoliate to make sure I get all of the mask off and whatever eye makeup may be remaining. I usually do this at night so I have one more face washing before I put on makeup or go out with patches of forgotten mask. After washing, I pat my face dry with a wash cloth and then apply a light moisturizer. My skin is left radiant and refreshed! What are your skin care tips for summer?

Review: Revlon ColorStay Moisture Stains

A small picture at ULTA of a model wearing Barcelona Nights caught my eye and I HAD to have it! Thankfully, they had it in stock! Here are a couple of pictures of me wearing it.

I also bought India Intrigue. Here's a comparison swatch:

(Top: Barcelona Nights, Bottom: India Intrigue)

As you'll notice, they're pretty similar and hard to differentiate, but I wasn't sure if the packaging was down playing their differences or if they were being slightly dramatic in making Barcelona Nights seem brighter and India Intrigue deeper. Now you and I know you don't need both!

It has a broad but thin applicator...

The product itself is very wet, cool, spreads easily but doesn't run, is highly pigmented, has a shiny finish, has a paint-like smell when first applied, but goes away, is long-lasting and wears fairly well, but the shine fades leaving the lips pigmented but not as pretty.

I haven't tried any of the other colors, but I love the quality of this product and would definitely recommend it!

Have you tried any of the other colors? Did you like the product?

LORAC PRO Palette 2

I'm all about navy smokey eyes, and I loved the Navy this palette had, so I gave it a shot today. I used Silver, Beige, Charcoal, Nectar and Navy. I like it! What looks have you come up with using the LORAC PRO Palette 2?

LORAC PRO Palette 2

I used Rosé all over my lid, then Mocha from the middle of my lid out and then used Cocoa in the outer V. I blended it out with Nectar and used Snow as a highlight. Simple, but oh, so summery! To keep with the summery, shimmery look I sprayed my blush brush with Fix+ and used my Milani Baked Blush in Dolce Pink and put Bare Escentuals' Buxom Lip  Gloss in Kanani lightly on my lips. I just used Ulta's automatic liner in Black/Brown and Blinc mascara to finish my eyes.

For my face I used Urban Decay's NAKED Skin foundation in 3.5 and bareMinerals foundation in Medium to set it. Before my blush I used Too Faced's Chocolate Soleil Bronzer to warm up my skin.

I hope you're all enjoying this beautiful and time of the year! Thanks for reading! Now go out and get some fresh air! :)

LORAC PRO Palette 2

I bought the LORAC PRO 2 Palette and it came the other day. Here's a look I created using it:

I used LORAC's Behind The Scenes eyeshadow primer first. Always use a primer!! It makes a huge difference! First shadow that caught my eye was Chrome, so I set out to use it. I pat it on my lids and brought it into my crease. Next I pat Plum in the outer part of my eye and also brought that into my crease. I then took a clean, fluffy brush and buffed it out. Then I used Nectar and softened the line even more. For a highlight I used Snow. Who would have thought I would have snow on my face in July?! I thought this created a nice look that is very casual and everyday, yet looks put together. I look forward to created and experimenting more with this palette.

Organization: Closet

Before:

After:

The shoes are still a mess, and I did get rid of a few clothing items and ditched the dress bags, but these hangers are fabulous! I'm working on putting my skirts on these next!