Comparing Mascara

I wanted to take the time to start comparing mascaras, and in these photos you will see how my blonde natural upper lashes look with each one. There is no additional lash combing, eyeliner, fake lashes, extensions, curling, etc. done to my lashes in these photos, this is just each mascara on its own using the mascara wand it originally came with. I will be applying several coats of mascara (as I see fit) so that you can see the full potential of each product. These images are not enhanced, nor am I being paid to review them, etc. I will probably be adding more mascaras to this post in the future.

Rimmel - ScandalEyes Lycra Flex Mascara

Too Faced - Better Than Sex Mascara

NYC - Big Bold Curl Mascara

Loreal - Manga Mascara

NYC - Big Bold Volume Mascara

Tarte - Gifted Amazonian Clay Smart Mascara

Benefit - They're Real Beyond Mascara

CoverGirl - LashBlast 24hrs

Peachy Polish Dupes

I went into Target the other day and as usual found myself in the beauty isle looking for Essie in Tart Deco (after seeing how pretty it looked online). Then I thought to myself "how unique is this color.. I mean really?" and "jeez, this is $8.59 a bottle.. I wonder if there's a cheaper dupe around here?". In no time at all I came across 3 possible dupe contenders which all cost less than the Essie polish.

From left to right: NYC in Hampton Peach, Sinful Colors in Hazard, Sally Hansen in Peach of Cake, and Essie in Tart Deco.

NYC and Essie were the most similar polish shades to one another except NYC's was a smidge brighter. Sinful's was the darkest of the lot and was more of a pumpkin peach shade in comparison. Sally's was the lightest and more of a pale peach orange shade. I ended up getting NYC as it was such a similar shade of polish to Essie's and it was also the cheapest polish of the lot at $1.72 (that's practically 5 bottles of NYC polish for the cost of 1 bottle of Essie polish). Honestly the NYC polish applied very similar to Essie's, and my nails were fully painted in 2-3 coats. For the low NYC price I ended up buying some more polish and got NYC's matte topcoat.

From left to right: NYC in Hampton Peach, and NYX in Matte Me Crazy.

As a side note... these peach shades don't photograph well on the iPhone5 as this polish has a bit more pink to it than the above photo shows (it's much prettier in person).

Miu Miu Sunglasses - Dupe

I fell in love with a pair of tortoise colored Miu Miu sunglasses this past week however, I did not fall in love with the price tag ($335). In my mind I just can't justify spending that kind of money on a pair of sunglasses which (knowing my luck) would probably end up scratched or damaged in just a short matter of time. Originally I liked the "Noir" style on Miu Miu and I didn't find any sunglasses like them while surfing the net, but I happened to find a dupe for the "Culte" style while at... Target! So without a second thought I bought these sunglasses for a mere $16.99 (you can also find these for under $10 on eBay), total WIN. As a side note... the arms of the Target sunglasses are gold colored, not sure why they look silver in the photo.

Dupe it Out

Click to Enlarge

Do you find it odd that paint colors of mint aren't actually the true colors of mint? Paint color mint is generally more of an aqua shade (light blue-green), while actual mint plants are more of an olive shade (green-yellow). That aside I ended up finding I had 2 polish colors I felt were polish dupes in terms of color. Essie in "Mint Candy Apple" applies much thicker than Wet n Wild in "Hush Hush/Ultra-Secret" although it's cheaper in price.

Physicians Formula Organic Wear Mascara - Review

The other day I 'tweeted' about having received a sweet compliment about how lovely my lashes looked and it happened to be the same day I changed mascaras, and from a perfect stranger. That being said I was glad I found this Physician Formula Organic Wear Fake Out Mascara at Walmart which was a 'buy one get one free pack' at the store so, for under $9 for 2 it was coming home with me.

I would probably compare this mascara to CoverGirls LashBlast mascara's, although I find the PF to be a bit more on the wet side, less eye irritating, and it does remove more easily (for once I was wishing to find a waterproof version of this mascara but it doesn't appear one exists). Since the formula of this is wetter than the CG I find the PF to provide better/easier lash coverage. The main thing you may also like about this mascara is that it is natural, hence "organic wear".

Physicians Formula Mascara after using a Maybelline lash curler

*EyeShadow used is Maybelline's eyeshadow duo in Indian Summer.

For another online review I found on this product checkout the link below!
http://theflaxenowl.com/natural-swap-mascara/

Hawaiian Macaroni Salad - Recipe

Having traveled around Hawaii before I've recently been trying to recreate L&L Hawaiian Barbecue macaroni salad. There are a million different ways people have tried to replicate this but they've all fallen flat in my opinion. That being said, this recipe I put together tastes the most similar to it in my opinion... so, until the actual recipe for it is ever divulged I hope you can at least enjoy mine in the mean time!

Ingredients
1 1/2 Cups - Elbow Noodles
1/2 Gallon (plus more for rinsing) - Water
1 Tbsp - Sea Salt (or 1/2 Tbsp - Table Salt)
1/2 Cup - Hellmann's Mayonnaise/Best Foods Mayonnaise
1/4 Cup - Carrots, pre-shredded matchsticks (chop slightly)
1/2 Tbsp - Morton's 'Seasoned Salt'
1 Tbsp - White Sugar
1 Tbsp - Half and Half (or Whole Milk)
2/3 Tbsp - McCormick's 'Molasses Bacon' seasoning *Optional*

Directions
Pour the water into a large pot and bring to a rapid boil on High-Med heat. Add the salt and noodles, bring water to a rapid boil again (be sure to stir noodles occasionally to prevent sticking). Rapid boil the noodles for around 25 minutes (or until fat and soft).

Noodles are almost done cooking

Drain noodles from the hot water and run under cold running water until noodles are cool, and drain well.

Sauce Mix

Combine the other ingredients in a bowl, stir until blended, and wait several minutes to allow the sugar to dissolve. Add in the noodles to the mix and stir together. Refrigerate for at least an hour or until the mac salad 'sets'. Stir the mac salad before serving.

Side Notes:
I believe I've mentioned before on this blog that all mayonnaise does not taste the same. If you live in Hawaii, their version of 'Hellmann's' mayonnaise is called 'Best Foods' mayonnaise although, I believe certain mainland states they also have it labeled as Best Foods mayonnaise.

With this recipe I made it's really easy to add in additional ingredients to alter this to your personal liking... such as some diced hard-boiled egg, sweet relish, etc. My personal favorite is to add in McCormick's grill mates in Molasses Bacon to the sauce mix (as you may have noticed in my above recipe), which makes for a great side dish to accompany some BBQ (although this is not in a typical Hawaiian mac salad... although I think it should be, haha). If you want your mac salad a bit more on the tangy side than cut down on the mayo a bit and add in some sour cream in its place.

The hardest part to making this dish is the noodles, it's very easy to have them be under-cooked for a mac salad as the cold water does seem to make them firm up and shrink a bit (most the time I cook my boxed noodles for 15 min, but that wasn't working for my mac salad so, you end up having to basically overcook the noodles).

If you're asking yourself "what's so Hawaiian about this dish?" well, to people in Hawaii there version of "Hawaiian" doesn't mean it has to consist of pineapple, Asian ingredients, fish, etc. Sometimes it's more about simplicity, cost, and how to feed the masses. Besides, you'd probably get burnt out on the stereotypical Hawaiian ingredients if you lived in Hawaii... or not? ALOHA!

Light Fluid Iceberg - Perfume Dupe

I recently purchased this perfume hoping it would be a dupe for Imporio Armani's discontinued scent called White (for her). Honestly it does smell very similar and has the same essence as White (both are a spicy oriental scent) but the story of it is a smidge different. Light Fluid when first sprayed seems to have this quick sting of citrus that shoots out and rapidly turns into a billow of black pepper for the first minute or so (I don't care too much for that part but it does quickly change!). Once the pepper smell subsides it turns into the nice soft scent that White has which is a subtle musk that is soft and a tad sweet, almost like Downy sheets minus any fresh laundry smell (heh). Light Fluid is also less inexpensive than White as I got this 3.4oz bottle on eBay for 15 dollars in total. Some people say that Light Fluid doesn't last that long but I sprayed on several sprays before leaving the house and over 12 hours later I could still smell this on myself so, that's good enough for me! I like that this scent is not one that's overpowering and it just makes me feel a bit more peppier throughout my day ;)

Macadamia Natural Oil Deep Repair Mask - Review

Awhile back I had came across a YT Vid by JLovesMac1 on this product and I FINALLY happened to come across on it an a trip over to Rite Aid so, I snatched it up without a second thought!

This product states it is a "revitalizing hair reconstruction for dry, damaged hair" as well as "produces miracle-like hair rejuvenation" and it's an "intense treatment". So, I am not too sure as to what those claims will do specifically given only those explanations on the container but it should hopefully benefit dry damaged hair and some how rejuvenate it (in other words make it better/healthier, heh).

To use the product you basically use it after shampooing, comb it through wet hair, leave on 7 minutes, and rinse... it also says "don't use more than twice a week". If you're like me than you may be wondering..."will I have to follow it up with my conditioner after rinsing it out?" (I can almost live without shampoo but when it comes to conditioner I'm pretty picky!). For me I definitely did not feel the need to use my conditioner after using this product, it's actually a bit hard to really feel like you've rinsed it all out because it is very hydrating with all those oils in it but it didn't leave my hair oily because it is sooo softening. I do feel that this product would be more beneficial for my hair during dry winter months rather than hot humid summer days because when my hair is too soft it's more sensitive to humidity.

A few of the ingredients in this product are... glycerin, castor seed oil, algae extract, tea tree leaf oil, anthemis nobilis flower oil, aloe barbadensis leaf extract, macadamia ternifolia seed oil, and argania spinosa kernel oil. So, I found most of those ingredients to be really appealing to me. It is also a No Animal Testing/Cruelty Free product. The fragrance in this product just smells like a generic clean shampoo/condish type of smell... nothing offensive or unique in my opinion (some say it smells like Herbal Essences but I think it smells more like Neutrogena's conditioner). A cheap and similar product to this would probably be Aussie's 3 Minute Miracle Deep Conditioner although I don't find Aussie to smell as pleasant after washing, nor as hydrating. I did like the fact that I could heat style my hair and have my hair still smell like the product where as majority of hair products I've used don't seem to do that and I'm left with my hair smelling like it has just been flat ironed, etc.

Overall, I didn't find that this made my hair any shinier after the first use of this although if your hair isn't over processed with heat and hair dye than you may find it appears shinier. My hair did seem like it was fuller looking after using this but by the next day my hair just seemed to be back to how it'd usually look after a day without washing it. I did find it to be a good and softening deep conditioner as I feel like the ends of my hair feel softer and smooth as well although it may be a little too conditioning for hair sensitive to humid weather (like my naturally curly haired self). After the first day of using this product I could smell the product in my hair which did smell nice although it didn't seem to last into the next day. The fact my hair smells nice throughout the first day of using this I'm feeling a little bummed out that it doesn't smell that way the next day so... I just might have to buy some other products by them which I could use daily although this product alone cost me around $32 (also, Organix sells a possible dupe of this called "Hydrating Macadamia Oil Intensive Moisture Mask" for only $8).

MAC Dupes

This weekend I decided to try and find a few MAC dupes using eyeshadows I currently own, enjoy ;)

MAC Next to Nothing - Maybelline Quad in Designer Chocolates (Lid shade)

The Maybelline one is slightly more tan/gold while Next to Nothing is a bit more white. I think I actually prefer Maybelline's color although these two shades are very similar and I have "hit pan" on both eyeshadows.

Click to Enlarge

MAC Dark Edge - Revlon Rich Sable

These two shades are very similar although Rich Sable may have slightly more red to it, I do feel this is a nice dupe regardless. Over the two colors... I actually prefer the MAC because I think it applies soft/smooth during application and the Revlon feels a bit dry/chalky in texture and applies a bit more unevenly.

Click to Enlarge

MAC Tempting - Maybelline Urban Brown

Urban brown applies a bit more dark than Tempting, the shade may look drastically more dark in one of the photo's but in person if you applied this on your lids, I really don't think you'd notice much difference between the two. Tempting does appear to have more shimmer to it than Urban Brown but once swatched I couldn't really notice a difference in shimmer. I think Urban Brown applies slightly better than Tempting as it's more pigmented, and I had to build up Tempting's color a bit to look as intense as Urban Brown. I do feel this is a good dupe if you're wanting to darken Tempting as much as the Urban Brown, but if you want a shade that starts off lighter but can go darker than choose Tempting, although you could probably blend out (or apply less) Urban Brown to appear lighter.

Click to Enlarge

I Dream of Greenie

I recently purchased Wet N Wild's "I Dream of Greenie" trio, so I decided to share my swatches. The top shade is the browbone color which is a sheer green but appears more blue to me. The center shade is the crease color which I think looks nice with the browbone shade, and for some reason this color is a bit chalky/flaky during application. The bottom shade is the eyelid color which is a lovely pigmented lime green with yellow shimmer and it's definitely the stand-out shade in this trio.

Click to Enlarge

I was curious to see if my MAC Sharp eyeshadow was similar to the Wet N Wild bottom eyelid shade but it really wasn't what I'd consider a dupe as Sharp is much more yellow than it is green and it does not contain the yellow shimmer like the WnW one. The last swatch here is a combination of both colors.

Beauty Dupe List

A work in progress!

Here you can hopefully find the closest possible dupes for different eyeshadows (primarily for MAC) and a link to all credited pages for the dupe/s, enjoy!
---------------MAC - EyeShadow-----------------

MAC All That Glitters - Wet N Wild Gilded Age Trio (Top), NYX Champagne, CoverGirl Mink
MAC Beauty Marked - Wet N Wild Lust Quad (Center Row, Right Side) - NARS Night Fever
MAC Carbon - Wet N Wild Greed Quad (Bottom Row, Left Side), CoverGirl Shimmering Onyx
MAC Dark Edge - Revlon Rich Sable
MAC Deep Truth - Wet N Wild Pride Quad (Bottom Row, Right Side)
MAC Electra - Wet N Wild Spoiled Brat Trio (Top Browbone Shade)
MAC Embark - Wet N Wild Vanity Quad (Bottom Row, Left Side)
MAC Era - CoverGirl Tapestry Taupe
MAC Espresso - CoverGirl Brown Smolder
MAC Expensive Pink - MAC Paradisco
MAC Eyepopping - MAC Sharp
MAC Fig. 1 - Wet N Wild Lust Quad (Center Row, Left Side)
MAC Filament - CoverGirl Snow Blossoms
MAC Gesso - Wet N Wild Pride Quad (Top Row, Left Side)
MAC Goldmine - Wet N Wild Vanity Quad (Center Row, Right Side)
MAC Humid - Wet N Wild Envy, Wet N Wild Sensual Sage, NYX Mermaid Milani Clover, and Ulta Shamrock
MAC Knight Devine - Wet N Wild Lust Quad (Center Row, Right Side)
MAC Llama - Wet N Wild Brulee, MAC Brule, CoverGirl French Vanilla
MAC Lust - Wet N Wild Lust Quad (Top Row, Left Side)
MAC Malt - Wet N Wild Vanity Quad (Top Row, Left Side)
MAC Manilla Paper - Wet N Wild Vanity Quad (Top Row, Left Side)
MAC Mulch - Wet N Wild Gilded Age Trio (Middle), CoverGirl Swiss Chocolate, Milani Java Bean
MAC Newly Minted - Wet N Wild Pride Quad (Middle Row, Left Side)
MAC Next to Nothing - Maybelline Designer Chocolates (Lid Shade)
MAC Shadowy Lady - Wet N Wild Lust Quad (Bottom Row, Left Side)
MAC Sharp - MAC Eyepopping
MAC Sound Trip - Wet N Wild Golden Goddess Quad (Bottom Row, Left Side)
MAC Steamy - Wet N Wild Pride Quad (Center Row, Right Side)
MAC Tempting - Maybelline Urban Brown
MAC Tete-A-Tint - Wet N Wild Greed Quad (Center Row, Left Side)
MAC Paradisco - MAC Expensive Pink
MAC Vanilla - Wet N Wild Lust Quad (Top Row, Right Side)
MAC Woodwinked - Wet N Wild Gilded Age Trio (Bottom)

---------------Urban Decay - EyeShadow-----------------

Urban Decay Chopper- Wet N Wild Dancing in the Clouds Trio (Bottom)
Urban Decay Flash - Wet N Wild Dancing in the Clouds Trio (Middle)
Urban Decay Maui Wowie - Wet N Wild Dancing in the Clouds Trio (Top)
Urban Decay Smog - Wet N Wild Comfort Zone (Left Side, Crease)

----------------YSL - Nail Polish----------------

YSL in Gris Underground - Rescue Beauty Lounge in Concrete Jungle

YSL in Blue Cobalt - Dior in Tuxedo

----------------NYX Lipstick----------------

NYX in Power - Kat Von D in Requiem

NYX in Tea and Cookies - Anastasia Beverly Hills in Lovely

For more possible dupes you can checkout this list here! For more possible WnW dupes click here and here. If you have any great dupes you'd like to submit/share just leave a comment with a link to the pictured page and I'll try to get it added to this list, thanks in advance :)

MAC Quite Cute Dupes

I recently hunted for a MAC Quite Cute Quad dupe and ta-da!

Revlon ColorStay 12 Hour Eye Shadow, Wildflower 370

Cheap makeup FTW again! Save yourself a good $29 ;D BTW a lot of people are disappointed on this MAC quad because the shades are sooo light, C- on the reviews for it. However, I'm not sure the second shade on the Revlon palette is a dupe for the pink shade.

As for possible MAC QC nailpolish dupes...

MAC in Mischievous Mint

MAC in Ice Cream Cake

MAC in Litte Girl Type

Click to Enlarge Swatch Chart

I decided it's time to create a real color chart for all the dupers out there so that we can finally stomp out all the rumors of what dupes and what doesn't, decide for yourself from these actual swatches :) enjoy!

Blue Leopard Nail Dupe *Redo*

I found this lovely sparkly multi-toned leopard print nail design while browsing the net and fell in love! I'm not sure what was used to acheive this look but I decided to take my hand in replicating it, so here goes...

How To...

Step 1 - Apply a clear polish base coat (I used Barielle Nail Hardener), let dry.

Step 2 - Apply 1 coat of Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear in Blue Me Away!, let dry.

Step 3 - Apply 2 coats of Sally Hansen HD polish in DVD, let dry between coats.

Step 4 - Using a black Sharpie marker create the leopard print pattern as big or small of a pattern as you like, then add the dot pattern and allow ink to dry.

Step 5 - Apply 2 coats of Confetti polish in Tiara, let dry.

Step 6 - Apply a clear top coat polish (I used Seche Vite) and let dry completely.

"On the Scene" Eye Makeup Tutorial

This eye makeup look is by MAC "In the Groove" series and this one is called "On the Scene". Since I really don't like their makeup tuts on how to acheive these looks I've created a similar how-to tutorial on how I think this exact look can be more easily acheived and without using MAC products, enjoy ;)

Step 1: Prime entire eye area using Loreal De-Crease.

Step 2: Line entire upper lashline using Styli-Style Waterproof Liquid Liner pen in Blackest Black.

Step 3: Apply an under brow highlight color in cream (or similar skin tone) colored eyeshadow, I used Maybelline eyeshadow single in Linen.

Step 4: Using Coastal Scents 88 Shimmer Pallete I applied a Medium/Light shade of blue (5 across and 1 down). Apply this to inner top half and blending up past crease of lid and entire lower lash line.

Step 5: Using the Maybelline quad in Hushed Tints I applied the orange shade to the outer top lid insuring to blend the color up toward the brows and also applying it to the middle of the lower lash line.

Step 6: Using the same Maybelline quad in Hushed Tints I applied the dark brown shade to the lower outer top lid lightly just to add some subtle dimension to the eye and also applied it over the middle of the lower lash line of the orange I just applied. I also used this color to fill in my brows.

Step 7: Apply several quick coats of Rimmel Sexy Curves Mascara in Extreme Black to entire top lashes and middle of bottom lashes.

MAC Lady Gaga Dupe

Recently I saw Lady Gaga advertising this makeup look by MAC and decided...to find some cheaper alternatives...as usual ;D

Eyes

Instead of MAC Eyeshadow...

L'Oreal HIP Bright Duos Shadow, Brazen 118 $7.99

-Similar to MAC Eyeshadow in Sushi Flower and Antiqued.

and

Maybelline Expertwear Single Eyeshadow, Linen Shimmer Finish 15 $2.99

-Similar to MAC eyeshadow in Mylar.

and
NYX Shadow For Eyes, Black ES01 $4.29
-Similar to MAC Eyeshadow in Carbon.

Instead of MAC Paint Pot...
Revlon Illuminance Creme Shadows in Precious Metals $6.50
-The last 2 colors to the right of this palette seem close to MAC Paint Pots in Groundwork and Artifact.

Cheek

Instead of MAC blush...

Neutrogena Mineral Sheers Blush For Cheeks, Rare Rose 40 $12.99

-Possibly similar to MAC in Well Dressed.







Lips

Instead of MAC cremestick liner...

Revlon ColorStay Liner For Lips, Sienna 635 $7.99

-Similar to Sublime Culture

Instead of MAC lipstick...

Revlon ColorStay Soft & Smooth Lipcolor, So Blushious $9.99

-Similar to Pink Nouveau(Satin)

Instead of MAC Viva Glam Gaga...
Revlon ColorBurst Lipstick, Baby Pink 020 $8.99

Instead of MAC Clear Lipglass...
Wet 'n' Wild Glassy Gloss Lip Gel, Reflection 311 $2.99
-This product also contains jojoba just like MAC's.

Rugged Warehouse Shopping *Updated*

One of my more recent fave haunts to shop at this year has been Rugged Warehouse, a store where name brands are less expensive. Most people have seen Miley Cyrus trending this plaid top around and you've probably found similar ones at Wal-Mart for $12 recently, but this one from RW(plus size) was originally $12 and I got it on sale for $10 which is knee length on me(I'm 5'4). The downfall to most of these is aside from looking like a cute country picnic tablecloth you may appear maternity-ish(as the top flares out a bit from under your boobs), hah. BTW the necklace in the pic I recently bought at KOHLS which is by Axcess although I like it more when I wear it with this other necklace I picked up with it.I recently saw this $2495 Valentino rose handbag on MySpace, thanks to Britney Snow who showed us her closet. While out shopping at RW I saw a purse by Alexia Crawford(her name doesn't seem to be written on the purse itself but on the original price tag) that kinda reminded me of it and for $20 bucks it was going home with me(it happened to be the last one). I just adore the circular pattern on the inside of this bag ;P Its strap is adjustable so it can be a handbag or worn long shoulder-strap style, the pull ends can also be tucked inside the bag if they bug ya hanging out.While looking through the Valentino purses I noticed I had an EXACT replica of this $795 silver clutch which is the only clutch I own(it's pretty awesome because the bow part that sticks up top allows you to slide your wrist through so you aren't totally hand carrying it, although the satin fabric can easily get dirty) but I spent $38 for it at Macy's! So my Steve Madden dupe was A LOT less then the Valentino(I always get compliments on it) and I think I love my clutch even more now! Also appears that even Jessica Simpson sports the same clutch in a stripe pattern ;DPlease ignore my WHITE legs but I also picked up these $10 heels at RW which were practically love at first sight and don't they look sooo similar to the 2010 summer fashion show from D & G(pictured above my shoes) and the ones from Ageha! I'll prolly trim the excess lace off cuz its pretty long and odd looking. BTW these look like a lot of work to lace up in the front but once they're laced all you have to do is unzip the back of the heel so...its sorta a one time deal.