Face Chronicles: Take 5

Products Used 

All MAC unless noted 

Face: Refined Skin Zone, Oil Control Moisturizer, Prolong Concealer, Studio Finish Corrector, Ben Nye's Banana and Topez. Covergirl Queen bronzer, Cinema Secret #11 Palette 

Eye: Groundwork, Iman Brow Pencil, Zoom Lash, Girl Boy, Smolder eyeliner, Soft Matte Brown, Saddle, Blunt, Reflects Gold Pigment, individual lashes outter corner

Lip: Nightmoth, Punk Couture lipstick

Love <3

I adore dark bold lips! My teeth look super white!! I decided to wear my brows a little darker than I've been wearing lately. The overall look came together nicely, my goal was to tone down my highlight and brows and I think it was a success. 

Ehhh Not So Much

I really love this look definitely  one of my favs but if I had to pick one thing out it would be my sculpted brow. In person my brows didn't look sculpted at all however pictured tell a different story. I'm really trying to move away from that look. 

Raw Coconut Vinegar

Benefits 

Amino Acids
Vitamin C
Vitamin B vitamins
Neutral PH
Promotes Digestive Health

My Experience

I've been drinking Apple Cider Vinegar for years but one of my clients suggested that I give Coconut Vinegar a try. I've been drinking it for a month and it's definitely a milder taste. I think I started off drinking too much because I like the taste so much.

 I love that the iron content is higher than ACV. 

I drink it with a glass of water daily. It definitely promoted digestive health however I'm not seeing the same skin and hair benefits that I've seen with ACV. I'll continue to drink Coconut Vinegar because of the higher vitamin content and digestive benefits. 

$5.99 Whole Foods 

Face Chronicles: Take 4

Products

All Products unless noted

Face: Studio Moisture Cream, Lightful Serum, Prolong Concealer, Studio Finish Concealer, Studio Fix Powder, Ben Nye's Banana and Topez. Covergirl Queen bronzer, Magnetic Appeal, Cinema Secret #11 Palette 

Eyes: Mehron Cream Base, Humid, Saddle, Embark, Smolder eyeliner. Iman's brow pencil, Girl Boy, Showoff, and Zoom lash.

Lips: Spice Lip liner & Velvet Teddy

Love <3

I love a green smokey eye! The Velvet Teddy isn't as light in person, it's one of my favorite nudes.

Ehhh Not So Much

Usually not a fan of concealer over my brow but I used a little to clean it up a bit. I'll have to be careful of that halo. 

Face Chronicles: Take 3

Products

All MAC unless noted 

Face: Refined Skin Zone, Studio Moisture Moisturizer, Prolong Concealer, Studio Finish Concealer, Studio Fix Powder, Ben Nye's Banana and Topez. Covergirl Queen bronzer, Magnetic Appeal, Cinema Secret #11 Palette 

Eye: Groundwork, Sketch, Embark, Saddle, and Smolder eyeliner. Iman's brow pencil, Girl Boy, Showoff, and Zoom lash.

Lips: Vino lip liner 

Love <3

I love love love my lip! I'm a sucker for a bold lip so the deep blood lip gave me life and I received a lot of compliments. I was having a good hair day as well but I'll stick to makeup lol

Ehhh Not So Much

I see a few consistency mistakes so I'll have to be careful of those in the future. 

Ain't No Fun If The Homies Can't Have None....

Current Read....... 

Face Chronicles: Take 2

Products

Face: MAC Studio Moisture moisturizer, Lightful Serum, Prolong Concealer NW40 and Studio Finish Corrector Ochre, Ben Nye Powder Banana and Topez, MAC Richly Honed sculpting cream, Magnetic Appeal, and Studio Fix NW45, Covergirl Queen Bronzer

Eyes: MAC Bronze, Saddle, Embark

Brows: Iman's Brow pencil, Mac's Girl Boy

Lips: Mahogany Lip liner and Cherry Glaze Lipstick

Love <3

I love the overall soft clean look and my brows are toned down but you can see still see them lol

Ehhh Not So Much

I can't pinpoint anything that I don't love about this look. I could look more enthused to take the picture I guess lol 

Face Chronicles: Take 1

Happy New Year! I'm not big on resolutions however I set a goal to blog more in 2014. I'm starting a series called the "Face Chronicles". It's very simple, my daily makeup looks over the next 30 days. I'll include products used, what I loved and didn't love about my makeup that day. We're already a few days into the new year so I'm going to play catch up. Below are a few of my makeup looks over the past few days. Enjoy!

Day 1

Product List

Face: Mac Matchmaster #8, MAC Prolong Concealer NW40, Studio Finish Corrector Ochre, Ben Nye Powders in Banana and Topez, MAC Fix NW45, Cinema Secret foundation palette #11, Covergirl Queen Bronzer, MAC's Magnetic Appeal

Eyes: Urban Decay Eyeshadow in Oil Slick, MAC's Saddle, Embark and Razin. MAC's Smolder eyeliner

Brows: Iman's brow pencil, Mac's Girl Boy

Lips: Mac's Spice lipliner and Huggable lipstick in Fashion Force

Love <3

I love the overall look here, very clean despite having a black smokey eye.

Ehh Not So Much

The camera flash really brings out my under eye highlight so that's definitely something I have to be careful of in the future. I've been trying new brow techniques that I'll post about later. This was day one and although my goal is to ahve a lighter brow, I think these were a little too light for me. Hey you live and you learn lol.

Internal Skincare

Like many people, I have a couple of dark marks here and there that refuses to fade and the dreadful dark muzzle -__-

I try not to worry myself too much about my skin because I never wanted to wear makeup so much that I forget what I actually look like. 

For the past two months I've been trying to even my skin tone and improve its elasticity. The elasticity is important because I'm not the youngest gal at the ball so preventing premature wrinkles is a necessity. 

I love a natural glow to the skin but this past winter was dreadful. My skin was very dry and flaky and no matter what moisturizer I applied, it would just sit on the surface never penetrating. 

The first thing  I decided to do is evaluate what my body was lacking. After a quick visit to my doctor I found out that not only I have an iron deficiency (already knew) but my potassium levels were low, and I was dehydrated. Along with my daily multivitamin, I began taking an iron supplement. I also added fish oil to my daily vitamin cocktail, which consist of biotin, folic acid, and a multi vitamin. 

It didn't take long to see the effects of adding the supplements and increasing my water intake. My skin was much brighter. 

Around the same time my man friend decided to step our weight gainer shakes up a bit by adding soy protein, kale, bananas, carrots, flax seeds, strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries. My goodness This heavenly concoction changed the skincare game for me! Not only was my face glowing but my entire body felt and looked different. I had energy, my nails were stronger and grew much faster. I've always loved flax seed oil but we happen to have a whole bag of flax seeds after an attempt to make flax seed hair gel. Unfortunately what I didn't know was I needed to ground the seeds prior to blending to make them as fine as possible for absorption. However I've switched back to flax seed oil since.

So now my body was getting iron from the kale and potassium from the bananas as well as beta carotene from the carrots, and more than enough omega-3 fatty acids from the fish oil and flax oil (fiber).

The true test was yet to come, the dreadful PMS breakout. Every month I get a huge zit on the side of my cheek and no matter what I try to do it won't go away. Thankfully I haven't seen her on my cheek for the last two months! Yes yes yes! 

I'm continuously trying new shake recipes incorporating green leafy vegetables and fruits. I really love my skincare regimen. I may not have the best eating habits but I'm a firm believer that if you want clear skin you have to correct internal issues and well as topical.

**Remember to contact your Doctor before adding supplements to your diet. What works for me may not work for you. Allow 6-8 weeks to see results of any skincare regimen.

Feel free to share your favorite skin care recipes, tips, and products below :)

Natural Hair Merry Go Round // Text Only//

It has been an uphill battle with my hair. This past winter wrecked havoc causing my dry brittle strands to snap off and I retained little to no length. I usually have this hair care thing under control but much like other things in my life, it switched up on me. While I have found some products that have helped I'm still on the hunt for that one inexpensive product that will swoop in and save the day.
I'm a die hard protein user, always have been. I love how it whips my hair back into shape especially after using heat. Maryland cold weather doesn't play well with protein so I added moisture into my regimen.
Fast forward to hot dry summer days, I think I've found some promising products including Wen Conditioning Cleanser.
I was introduced to Wen back in 2008 and remember thinking there was no way I was giving up shampoo. Traditional hair washing was working just fine for me and if it wasn't broken why even bother. I finally tried Wen and my new growth melted! My hair was super soft until the next wash. The only other product that offers that kind of softness is Joico's Moisture Recovery Treatment Balm. Now I must admit, I've yet to experience the results I'd gotten the first time I used Wen, but I continue to chase the high I got the very first time by splurging on different Wen flavors.
Yesterday I cut, colored, deep conditioned, and my hair. I've also introduced glycerin based products into my regimen which have been keeping my hair moisturized and acts as a humectant so it pulls moisture from the air. The only downside to this is the added moisture from the air has no respect for curl definition no matter how many curl defining products I may use with it. Oh well, I'm willing to make sacrifices for the sake of retention.
In the future I'll have to resort back to my early natural days and find new products that work for me through trial and error. For the sake of my pockets I pray I find my holy grail products soon.

It's 5:35a I'm going to attempt to get some rest, signing off Nakira Bradshaw (Lol)

Q.U.E.E.N. Makeup Product List

Eyes:

Mac spiked brow pencil

Smashbox eye primer

Mac Saddle e/s

Mac Razin blush

NYX milk pencil

MUFE Aqua liner

NYX eyeliner pencil

Mac Zoom mascara

Lashes blue box #117

Face:

Embryolisse moisturizer

Kiss BB cream (medium dark)

Black Opal stick foundation (heavenly honey)

MAC Prolong concealer (NW40)

ELF translucent powder

Mac mineralized skin finish (medium dark/Sunpower)

MAC Razin blush

Sephora pot of gold loose shimmer powder

Lips:

Mac Night Blook lipstick

NYX Deep plum

Original look created by makeup artist Saisha Beecham for Janelle Monae's Q.U.E.E.N. video

RIP //Pour A Little Out For Samoa Silk//

Lid: Samoa Silk

Crease: MAC's Raizin Blush

Brows: MAC Brow Fluidline Deep Dark Brunette

Lashes: MAC's Extreme Dimension 

Skin: MAC's Fluid Liquid x Black Opal Foundation Stick

Powder: Ben Nye Mojave Powders (Camel, Sephia, Adobe, and Topaz)

Highlight: NYX Mink loose pigment

Lips: NYX Deep purple liner

MAQ Pro Eye Lip & Face Palette (Light pink color)

MAC's Pink Fade Lipglass (limited) 

DIY Flaxseed Gel {Review}

Lately my braid outs haven't been lasting throughout the day so I began my search for a new holding product. Flaxseed gel was on my list of things to try but hadn't gotten around to making it. Some of the claims of flaxseed gel are shinier hair, curl definition, nourishes hair, and cost effective.

What I Used:

1. 1/4 Cup Organic Flaxseeds

 2. Plastic Container w/ Lid

   3. Knee High Stockings

4. 2 Cups of Water

     5. Wooden Spoon

          6. Aloe Vera Gel

       7. Olive Oil

How To:

Combine flaxseeds and water in a pot and bring to a boil.

Stir frequently with a wooden spoon to prevent flaxseed from sticking to pot

Mixture will turn frothy white and gel like texture.

IMPORTANT: Turn off heat while gel is a thin consistency, no worries it will thicken later.

The thicker the gel the harder it is to strain.

Stretch stocking over the top of the plastic container.

Pour gel into the stockings.

Gel should strain into plastic container while flaxseeds will remain in stockings.

Add Aloe Vera Gel and/or Essential oils (Optional)

Let cool and thicken.

{My Thoughts}

I did my usual braidout however I felt the gel gave my hair a little too much hold. It really took some work plucking my hair out and making it bigger.

I believe this would work much better on a wash and go, which I will try again in the spring once my new growth grows out. The consistency reminds me of Kinky Curly Curling Custard.

On the plus side my hair held all day and was shiny.

Bye Bye Curl Definition

Big messy braidout

Normally I'm a salve to curl definition. Gels, Denman brushes, Tangle Teezers I've done and used just about everything for that perfect curl. 

A few nights ago I didn't have any full bottle of styling products so I had to go into my stash of samples I'd acquired from different natural hair events. I asked my Instagram followers if they had ever used any of the products and I received some great feed back. One if my followers and friend in my head suggested I try a water and conditioner mixture. I was a little leery about the results so I added a little Design Essential's Daily Moisturizing Lotion, sectioned my hair into four sections, and plaited each section. 

Fast forward to the next day my hair was big and soft!!! 

I loved the amount of definition, it looked effortless. 

Within a couple of hours my hair was HUGE!!! It just kept getting better and better. That's when I decided I was over flat limp curls and would rock a mega fro for a while. 

Eve Pearl's Concealer Trio B Review

Eve Pearl Concealer Trio B and MAC Prolong Foundation applied with Beauty Blender

Concealer is set with Ben Nye's Banana Powder Foundation set with MAC MSF

If you follow me on Instagram you've seen the Eve Pearl Trio B concealer I snagged during her 40-60% sale. I've heard so many great things about this concealer and it's used by many industry professionals.

The claim

This luxurious,lightweight cream provides the most versatile sheer - medium - full coverage with a non-greasy texture that glides on the under eyes area or face, while allowing your skin to breathe. It blends into the skin and the universal spectrum of color in the pigments adapt to the skin tone and the changes caused by body chemistry, weather and sun exposure. Ideal for use when flawless precision is required with High Definition Cameras, Lights and REAL LIFE…for all ages.
CosmeNutrients®: Innovative Technology combining Vitamins, Minerals, Proteins, Peptides and Antioxidants into Multi-Functional Cosmetic Formulations.

 

Astaxanthin/AstaReal® ingredient benefits:

·       A powerful antioxidant 500 times stronger than Vitamin E

·       Packed with Omega-3

·       Hydrates,protects & rejuvenates your skin’s natural texture and elasticity

·         Anti-inflammatory properties to soothe, treat and protect against sun damage

Price: $52.00 

Pros:

• Creamy texture
• Buildable coverage 
• Pigmented

Cons:

• Too pricey 

My Thoughts

I could not wait to try this concealer after hearing so many great things about it. Eve Pearl is known for her salmon concealers that are good for correcting skin discolorations especially dark under eye circles. I ordered Trio "B" because I prefer my concealer to be a shade lighter than my actual skin tone so it doubles as a highlighter. 

The consistency is very creamy and it has great pigment. It blends really easy with a brush or a sponge. This concealer works like a charm for concealing dark circles, I instantly fell in love!!! The colors are perfectly neutral  not to warm or cool. 

The only drawback of this product for me is the cost. That's the reason it took me so long to purchase it. My only regret now is that I didn't purchase more products during the sale but I definitely will next time!

Product Review:: OCC "NSFW" Lip Tar

A couple of months back one of my Instagram luvs put me on to a daily deal from Lucky Magazine. They were offering 60% off of a Lip Tar kit which included four colors and a lip brush for $29.50!

It took me a while to get around to playing with the colors but when I finally did I fell head over heels for NSFW. 

I use to struggle finding the perfect red lip that flatters my complexion, until I met MAC's Ruby Woo and  we've been inseparable since. I hate orange based red lipsticks and I usually prefer a matte lip. 

NSFW is a blue based red pigmented gloss. If your familiar with OCC's  lip tars you know the moisturized feel they give your lips due to the Vitamin E and Hemp seed oil in them. They are very long wearing and play well with each other and other formulas so you mixologist can create many different looks.

I've worn NSFW with my beloved Ruby woo as well with a bold red lip liner (pictured below)

Earlier this week OCC announced lip tars will be available in Sephora stores nationwide Fall 2012.

Girls Night Out