July Favorites

Another month has come and gone... How is that possible? July went faster than the previous months, in my opinion. But fortunately for me, August is what I'm coining my "fun month". Finally, all the wedding festivities I have been talking about are at my feet. I can't wait to celebrate! 

This month, I was all about a quick and easy beauty routine. If I wasn't at the lake enjoying the sunshine, I was either out for a run or tackling my online classes. But like all months, I picked up a few new products, and they quickly made their way into my "omg, I'm obsessed with this" stash. ;) 

Here are the products I was loving this month...

Hourglass blush in Luminous Flush 

This blush is like a 2-for-1 type product. If you are familiar with Hourglass, you may remember their hyped up Ambient Lighting powders. What's cool about the blushes is that one of the powders is swirled into each one, giving it that ambient lighted finish. This particular color, Luminous Flush, has the Luminous Light powder inside. Pretty genius, huh? 

Garnier BB Cream for oily skin in Medium/Deep

About a year ago, I bought the original Garnier BB cream and absolutely hated it. It made me look like a grease monkey, and so I returned it. Since then, they came out with a version for combination/oily skin. I continuously heard people raving about it and how great it was for a drugstore BB cream. I finally broke down and jumped on the bandwagon. This product is simply perfect for those days you want to skip a heavy, full coverage foundation, but still want good coverage...if you feel me. I know most people say to apply these sorts of products with your fingers, but I am all about my Beauty Blender right now. 

NARS The Multiple in Altai

Three words. Cream contour perfection. While I have a handful of drugstore foundation sticks that work in the exact way as this NARS product, there really is no comparison. The consistency of this product is what makes it a home run. It blends well & has great color, without being too muddy. If you have been wanting to try a cream contour, I highly recommend this product. (I also love to use this on my eyes!)

Urban Decay 24/7 Velvet liner in Black Velvet
Giorgio Armani Eyes to Kill mascara

 I have never been a huge fan of pencil liners. Mostly due to the fact that I refuse to line my lower water line. I just can't do it. But as of late, I have really been into lining my top water line, to create a fuller lash line appearance. This product is great for that. It glides on so smoothly and is jet black.

Giorgio Armani...you are love...in mascara form. *Swoon* This is hands down my favorite mascara of all time. I'll say it again. Of ALL time. It volumizes, lengthens, and everything else you could want a mascara to do. I bought this when Nordstrom was having their mascara sale and am so happy I did. However, I am a bit upset that I'll always be wanting to purchase this spendy sucker.

Buxom Full-On Lip polish in Sophia
Milani lip liner in Nude

I picked up this Milani lip liner per recommendation of Nicole Guerrio. She is the queen of lip products and I always trust her recommendations. I like to wear this liner as my lip color. Is is somewhat creamy at first, but sets nearly like a stain. 

This Buxom lip gloss was a perk I got with the Sephora point system. I have many of these glosses and love every single one of them. This shade, Sophia, looks so good paired over top of the lip liner. I have been wearing this combo all month long!

Living Proof Perfect Hair Day 5-in-1 Styling cream

I use this each time I wash my hair, prior to drying and styling. It think it works best as a smoothing agent & give my hair nice body. And it smells amazing!

Sephora Makeup Brush Cleaner

Between deep cleaning sessions, I like to spot clean my brushes before each use. This gives my makeup the best application, leaving all products true to color....and not a mix of the 7 other colors I used last week. 

Sally Hansen eyelash curler

Until a few weeks ago, I wasn't into the whole eyelash curling business. I mainly didn't like to do it because the curler I previously owned didn't fit the shape of my eyes. [Maybe you didn't know this, because I didn't either, there are many different shaped curlers on the market. Choose one that matches your eye shape!] Now that I have a proper lash curler, I am enjoying the results it gives me. 

What products have you been loving this month?

As always, thank you for reading!

XO, Carrie

Fall Beauty Trends 2014

While some of us want to hang on to summer forever, fall is here in the fashion and beauty world. Fall fashion has hit stores and beauty trends are already leaping off the runway onto faces near you. I am always excited to see what textures, prints and colors will come to stores, but I am even more excited to see how ladies will be rocking their fabulous face. Harper's BAZAAR has the scoop on what is hot for fall beauty trends. Check it out...

Color

Defined liner

Metallics

Flaunt the bare minimum 

Fresh, flawless skin with a glow

New & improved 'French' manicure. 

I am excited to play with metallics this fall! Which of these trends will you be brave enough to rock? 

Thanks for reading! XO, Carrie

via 

Makeup Geek Eyeshadows: Swatches & Review

Hey loves! Today I am bringing you my thoughts on the Makeup Geek eyeshadows that I own. When choosing single eyeshadows to purchase, I like to think about what shades I don't already own, and which shadows would be nice to have in my collection. (Which is quite tough, since I love palettes!) However, Makeup Geek shadows have continued to amaze me with their pigmentation, creamy texture, and uniqueness in shade range. While I am always drawn to warm neutrals, these particular shadows are much different than any shadows in any of the Naked palettes or even the It Cosmetics Naturally Pretty palette. I own 10 individual shadows from Makeup Geek and have thoroughly been enjoying them all. Take a peek...

Beautiful pigmentation

Unique shade range of gorgeous neutrals

Shimmer & matte shades are equally creamy

Left to right: Shimma Shimma, Cosmopolitan, Homecoming, Moondust, Prom Night,
Peach Smoothie, Creme Brûlée, Frappe, Taupe Notch, Last Dance

Beautiful, right? Marlena has done an amazing job formulating these shadows. She has over 60 exclusive shades, each of which are very unique. Not to mention, the price point is amazing. These are MAC quality eye shadows (if not better) but sold for a fraction of the price. ($15 vs. $5.99) You can purchase these shadows from Makeup Geek. They are sold in pan or compact form. I chose to put mine in a Z Palette, which can also be purchased from Makeup Geek's website. I highly recommend these shadows!

Have you checked out Makeup Geek yet? What shades are your favorite?

XO, Carrie

[editors note: these photos are taken with my new camera. i finally am a proud owner of a Nikon DSLR camera!]

Currently Craving

It's mid summer. And currently the best time to shop...in my opinion. Summer sales have hit stores in attempt to make room for new fall items to fill the shelves. I'm a sucker for a good deal & rarely pay full price for clothing & accessories. However, I still like to window shop and see all the new goodies.

Here are the items I currently have my eye on...

Boohoo Tropical Playsuit // in love with rompers and playsuits lately. this print is playful, yet has a polished structure

Fossil Sydney Satchel // i can see this purse being the perfect transition piece for summer to fall

Jessica Simpson 'Minti' Bootie // loving this stacked heel + peep toe combo

Gap Contrast Sleeve Sweater // i have this in the cream & find it to be the perfect summer sweater

Kendra Scott Danielle Earrings  // 'mother of pearl' pairs perfectly with so many looks

Billabong Dress // breezy & easy 

Free People Mercury Sunglasses // fun karen walker look-a-likes for a great price

What things are you currently craving?

XO, Carrie 

A Week in Photos...

Hello & welcome back. It has been about a week since I blogged last, but with good reason! It was a holiday weekend, as you know, and I spent it with friends and family at the lake. We had such a great [long] weekend that I was sad to see it leave. Following the weekend, I headed back to DM for a school event. It was so nice to be back in my little apartment for a few days and shop do the things I like to do in Des Moines. I had dinner with a good friend & got to hang out with my older brother too! Over all, it has been a very busy and enjoyable week. Here's a peek inside...

Although we are unsure of our date, we are calling this our "anniversary month" :)

This may have happened... When in Rome, right?

I finally got to see my bestie!

Burke & me keeping things festive on the 4th

Burke's cousin is a pilot & landed this plane on the lake.
It got an insane amount of attention!

Oh how I missed my little apartment!
The chair is such an eyesore.. But the room is still a work in progress. 

Typical "getting hair done" selfie... ;)
I tried out a new salon really close to my apartment.  I enjoyed my visit and found it to be VERY affordable!
Check out Estilo if you are in the West Des Moines area. 

I'm heading out of town for a bachelorette party this weekend. The attire is LBD so a new pair of heels was in order.
I picked these up at DSW for a whopping $19. I must say, I was feeling rather thrifty.
[Now let's hope they are comfortable.]

Via recommendation of Alex Garza, I picked up these Joico shampoo and conditioners at Ulta.
Color therapy can never hurt & K-PAK means it contains keratin. Which also can't hurt, right?
She says she has used it for 3 years, and it helped her grow her hair long and strong!

I popped into VS to check out their self tanners that I have heard so much about.
Just my luck- they were offering all tanning products for $10 each. They normally are $15 and up.
I picked up the Self Tan tinted spray and the Exfoliate body prep smoothing scrub.
I have already tried both & am in LOVE! Is it bad if I like this better than my [more expensive] St. Tropez? NO.

A few other things...

I wore this outfit a while back & have been wanting to wear it again and again.
I paired a cream, lightweight summer sweater with denim cutoffs, gladiator sandals, and a fun chain necklace.
Easy as that!

I have been drooling over these Sweet Tea Jewels bangles.
You can find them on Facebook & place your order there. 

I am a crazy huge fan of Honey We're Home & Honey We're Healthy. Both written by the lovely Megan.
She recently competed in a NPC bikini competition & has been inspiring so many of her readers.
She is a beautiful, humble woman of God, and was not shy to share her secrets along the way.
I loved following her journey, but especially loved her food prep/meal guide posts.
pic via her instagram

Last but not least,  of course I have to share a picture of Miss Sidney. What a joy in our life!

I hope you all had a great holiday weekend! Thank you all so much for your support & your generous comments! I appreciate all of you taking the time to read!

XO, Carrie