LOTD: Independence Day

Happy Independence Day!!! My love for America can't really be put into words but it swells in my heart as I experience all the carefree moments that I am able to enjoy because of the liberty this country possesses thanks to so many sacrifices made by others!

In patriotic fashion, I present you with my Independence Day look, a navy smoky eye:

For any eyeshadow look I always start with Urban Decay Primer Potion! I used Nooner as a blending shadow (UDN3), Downfall as a base (UDV3), Reign on the inner and outer thirds (UDV3), Houdini on entire lid (MUG), Center Stage on entire lid (MUG), Unbridled (LORAC UNZIPPED) blended above blue shadows into Nooner, Magic Act in a triangle shape just above my iris (MUG), Heroine (UDV3) pat on the outer side of Magic Act, Evidence (UD Smoked) pat on the inner side of Magic Act with In the Spotlight (MUG) as a highlight below brows and in then inner corner of my eyes. I finished off this look with eyeliner, mascara, my usual face makeup, filling in my brows, and Bite Beauty Luminous Crème Lipstick in Pomegranate.



Thanks for reading! I hope you're all enjoying the freedoms of this country with your loved ones!

Haley Awards: 2014

I don't know about you, but 2014 was a pretty epic year for me! I graduated from college (finally!!!) and have had lots of fun with my time when I would normally be worrying about class, homework, studying, books, commuting, etc. so that has been nice and I'd say I've adjusted well! :) The year 2014 brought more make up my way to review as well and yet I've relied heavily on no-brainer products when in a rush. I thought it would be fun to start doing Haley Awards for products I think stood out in the crowd and became no-brainer-go-to products. So to you, I present these products...

Best Facial Exfoliator
PMD Personal Microderm Pro: I had used exfoliants and scrubs on my face for years but nothing has improved my skin like this has. I purchased this in September and since I started using it as instructed, my skin is looking revitalized, healthy, and now has a nice glow. I still have breakouts, but not as extreme or for as long.

Best Facial Moisturizer
dōTERRA Essential Skin Care Hydrating Cream: This has helped my skin stay nourished this winter and has helped my skin rebound from the microdermabrasion treatments quicker than anything I've previously been using.

Best Face Primer
Smashbox Oil Free Photo Finish Foundation Primer: Even though the PMD has greatly helped my skin, it is still exfoliating and causing abrasions to promote healthy skin renewal and with that comes some flaking and uneven skin at times, so this primer became necessary to create a smooth canvas for my foundation.

Best Cream Foundation
Make Up Forever HD Foundation (N115): It was certainly a splurge but I have found a foundation that doesn't feel cakey, look cakey, provides excellent coverage, photographs well, and yet doesn't feel like I'm wearing it. It pairs perfectly with the Smashbox primer as well!

Best Powder Foundation
bareMinerals Original SPF 15 Foundation (medium): I have been wearing this for years but have started wearing it over my cream foundation and it it warms up my skin a little while setting my foundation.

Best Concealers
bareMinerals Original SPF 15 Foundation (fairly medium): For slight acne or red areas, this works perfect. Stick concealers wear oddly on my skin and later on in the day they tend to emphasize the blemishes and even appear flakey, which is even more disgusting than a little red area, so I've started patting this foundation on the area and because it's lighter in pigment than my bareMinerals foundation and it's covering an area darker than my normal skin, it blends a lot better. With that said, for blemishes more intense, I use benefit Fake Up (01 Light). It has a clear product surrounding the concealer and although I haven't researched it, I have gathered that it aids in blending the concealer and making in last longer.

Best Bronzer
The Body Shop Honey Bronze Bronzing Powder (Light Matte): This is truly perfect for winter! I am more fair but still need to warm up my skin and this does the trick! I think I'll try a darker shade for summer because the formula is that great!

Best Blush
e.l.f. Blush in Berry Merry: This blush goes well with any look and is what I tend to use day after day because it's a no-brainer!

Best Mascara
blinc Mascara Amplified: This mascara's unique technology of "tubing" lashes is revolutionary! I would reach for this on the many mornings that I was in a hurry or didn't want to have to think about which mascara to use. I stare at computer screens all day and my tired eyes would inevitably cause flakes of mascara to fall onto my cheeks and either unattractively stay or get smeared. After long shifts, I would walk away not realizing I had looked like that for who knows how long UNTIL I started using this fabulous mascara. I have even more recently started putting it over Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara because it provides great volume but flakes like cray! Ain't nobody got time fo' dat! It has helped, but I still get some flaking if I don't cover all of the Too Faced Mascara with it.

Best Setting Product
Make Up Forever HD Pressed Powder: This truly does set not only the foundation, but also the blush and highlighters I have on.

Best Enhancer
MAC Fix +: This makes any blush or eyeshadow last longer, photograph better, or give a foiled appearance for a different look. (BTW, did they change the name of it?!)

Best Brow Pencil
MAC Automatic Eyebrow Pencil (Lingering): It's not only the fact that the color that was suggested to me is on point (so important!), but the formula is as well. This lasts all day and I don't worry about it running, clumping, or fading.

Best Eye Primer
Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion (Original): This formula leaves me never wanting to try another primer! It blends well (never looks weird on my fair skin), keeps my eyeshadow in place, makes the eyeshadow more true to color, and never causes creasing.

Most Used Eyeshadow Palette
Urban Decay NAKED 3 Palette: This is still my favorite go-to because it makes my blue eyes pop, creates a natural look, and just always looks good no matter what I'm wearing!

Favorite Eyeshadow Palette Released in 2014
LORAC PRO 2 Palette: Although the NAKED 3 Palette is a no-brainer, this palette is one that also creates a number of looks that can be used everyday! LORAC's eyeshadows are so fragile and need to be used gently, but they are highly pigmented and this particular palette is very diverse and wearable!

Best Lip Exfoliator
e.l.f. Lip Exfoliator: Winter time comes and my lips get rough! This scrub works great and I have made it part of my lipstick application routine!

Best Lipsticks
Bite Beauty Luminous Crème Lipstick: These are so creamy and yet stay on! The pigmentation is to die for!

Best Lip Primer
Lush Honey Trap Lip Balm: I haven't ever used a legitimate lip primer, but after I exfoliate, I put this on and it's perfect to create a smooth canvas for my lipstick. It is great to put on by itself too!

Best Body Moisturizer
The Body Shop Body Butter: I received this as a gift from the BFF, and oy! It sure prevented my skin from getting so dry and having to play catch up most of spring!

Best Tools
2X Sigma Spa Brush Cleaning Glove: This made brush cleaning fun, much easier and more effective for me! I just use dish soap and follow the steps on the glove. So simple!

Benjabelle Daisy Brush Tree: After cleaning my brushes, I put them in this tree and it helps dry them so much quicker! Gravity is working in your favor with this product!

Best Brush
Sigma F80 Flat Kabuki: I use this to blend my foundation after I have applied it. It makes a big difference in ensuring that the foundation is smooth and evenly applied on my skin and it's super obvious on my fair skin when it's not blended well!

As you may have noticed, Haley Awards 2014 was mostly high-end products. I think sometimes quality is more important than quantity. I guess it was a year of "treat yoself!" If you read this far, you're a trooper! Thank you!! I would love to hear which products were your favorites during 2014!

LOTD: Peachy Pink

How did I get this eye look you ask? I used all Urban Decay eyeshadows but first I used Urban Decay's Primer Potion. The first eyeshadow I used was from the original NAKED palette called Side Car. Then I used Sin as a highlight. I used a flat shadow brush with MAC Fix + sprayed on it and pat Dust from the NAKED 3 palette over Side Car. I used Side Car as a base to ensure my eyes didn't look super pink because my blouse and skirt were more peachy, pale pink. Over Dust I pat Buzz and Burnout over, using the same Fix +'d brush. As a crease color I used Nooner and as a transition shade I used Limit. It's a different look for me because I would normally use a darker shade in my crease, but I wanted this to be really subtle and soft. I finished the look with Sephora's Full Action mascara, Blinc Mascara over that, and Ulta's automatic black eyeliner.

For my face I used Urban Decay's NAKED Skin foundation, bareMinerals foundation, Too Faced Chocolate Soleil Bronzer, Maybelline Dream Bouncy Blush in Pink Frosting with Milani's Baked Blush in Dolce Pink over it. For my lips I used an EOS lip balm first and then Bobbi Brown's Rich Color Gloss in Pink Sorbet 9.

I thought it was a lovely Sunday pretty pink! What are you wearing today?

NAKED 3 Palette Review

I have to say, I am in love with this palette! I was a little unsure at first because I really loved the original NAKED palette, but I didn't love the NAKED 2 palette as much (but I still love it). So I figured the NAKED 3 palette could go either way. Some of the things I love about the NAKED 3 palette is that it is so different from the other two. The other two have overlap in shades so I always felt a little jipped. The NAKED 3 palette has this "rosy gold" theme, yet the shades vary in depth, dimension, and hue. There are lovely matte colors, but my favorite are the shimmery. Glitter makes everything better, after all. I think Darkside and Blackheart stray away from the rosy gold theme slightly, but they do have hints of it and are a great addition to the palette making it one that can be used for everyday looks as well as bolder night time/date night looks. My only complaint is that there is only a matte highlight. To me, a highlight has a satin finish or is shimmery. Of course there are times that a matte highlight is nice, but I would much rather ditch Limit because it is so similar to Nooner and have a shimmery highlight much like the ones in the other NAKED palettes. I will definitely be posting more looks using the palette soon!

LOTD: NAKED 3 Palette

This is my LOTD. I think it's a nice and simple everyday look!

I used UD Primer Potion, then Burnout on my lids, Mugshot in the outer third of my eyes and then pat Darkside over Mugshot. I used Strange as a highlight and wanted something shimmery so I put Too Faced's Silk Teddy over it. I think that’s my only complaint about this palette—I like shimmery highlights, so I usually have to use one from one of the other palettes.

Give this look a try and let me know of any looks you may have come up with for this palette! Have a great day!

LOTD: NAKED 3 Palette

This look really makes my blue eyes pop! I used Primer Potion, pat a combo of Trick and Buzz and Dust in the inner one-third corner of my eyes, and then packed Factory in the crease and on the outer two-thirds of my eyes. This was a base for making the outer portion of my eyes pretty dark. I then put Darkside over Factory and then put Blackheart over that. I love Blackheart! It really helps create a soft smokey look. I finished by using Sin from the original NAKED palette as a highlight.

Thanks for reading!

LOTD: NAKED 3 Palette

I first used Primer Potion, then packed Liar on my lids, bringing it into my crease slightly. I then used Blackheart in my crease and Strange as my highlight. Super easy, everyday look.

Thanks for reading!

LOTD: NAKED 3 Palette

I got this in the mail:

And heard this was coming out during the time the coupon could be used:

So, Caitlyn's Corner and I made a special trip to get ours!

And, I love it!!! Today I got to use it and this is the look I came up with:

First, I applied Urban Decay Primer Potion all over my lids and then pat Mugshot from my lashes to crease. Then I put Buzz and Dust over it in the inner one-third of my eye. Next, I used Sin (from the original NAKED palette) as a highlight in my tear duct region and below my brows. To intensify the look, I took a creas brush and applied Darkside in my crease and then took a flat shadow brush and pat Blackheart from the outer corner of my lids in slightly. This made a small V of packed color. Lastly, I took a clean, fluffy crease brush and blended my highlight and crease colors. I finished the look with mascara, eyeliner, and lip gloss.