The Sephora VIB sale is starting in 2 days on Thursday April 16th, 2015 and will go until Tuesday April 21, 2015 both online and in store. The sale is 15% off your entire order if you use the code VIBLOVE. There is a VIB event – VIB Early Access Day on Thursday April 16, 2015 all day at all stores and VIBs can bring a friend to share in early access to 15% savings, mini makeovers and new trends, personalized advice from brand ambassadors, and a free Sephora foldover clutch.  As a reminder- in order to become Very Important Beauty Insider (VIB) status at Sephora, you must be a registered Beauty Insider (which is free) and spend $350 on merchandise either online or in store during one calendar year (January-December). If you log-in on Sephora.com you will be able to see your status. There is also VIB Rouge for those that spend $1000 per calendar year, but there aren’t any additional perks during this VIB sale that Rouge members don’t already get everyday (like free 2-day shipping on every order and Rouge Only exclusive products). If you’re ordering online don’t forget to go through Ebates they’re offering 4% cash back bringing the VIB sale up to 19% savings! To do it just 1. Sign up with Ebates 2. Search for Sephora on Ebates and click the link 3. Order from that link in order to get your 4% cash back on PayPal! I can’t remember the last website I shopped on that didn’t have Ebates cash back it’s seriously the easiest website ever. You can even add all of the items to your cart on Sephora while logged into your account, then close the window, open it again through Ebates and all of your items will still be there and then you’ll get the discount! Here’s what my savings looks like so far:
Spring is here! And so is my Easy Spring Makeup video tutorial. I use the term “tutorial” very loosely, but this spring makeup look is so easy that even a beginner wouldn’t need too many instructions to nail it.
For this easy spring makeup look I used mostly drugstore products and did bright fresh skin with a pop of sage green on the lids and a coral pink lip. This spring makeup look is so easy it would make a great Easter makeup look, it could be work makeup with a pop, or weekend makeup when you don’t want to give yourself the full drag queen beat-down.
Check it out as well as a list of the products mentioned:
Today I have a fun new video for you and in it I teamed up with one of my good friends Rachel who is better known as the porn star and feminist extraordinaire Tasha Reign. Tasha Reign has been in the adult film business for over 4 years now and one of the things we first bonded about when we met at a dinner party was our love of makeup! I love me some HEAVY glam. You better believe I have told a MAC artist before to make me look like a porn star! When I said that I meant bronzed, smoked out, contoured for the gods, a frosty highlight, and a baby pink lip, but from talking with Tasha Reign I have realized that now there is no such thing as “porn star makeup.” The industry has changed and they have really dialed down the glam and want more natural looking girls and a wider range of looks now. Rachel is still a glam girl at heart so her day to day makeup is pretty, girly, and definitely “made up.” In this video she teaches me (and anyone else who wants to learn!) her usual makeup routine when she’s going for “Natural Glam” step-by-step. She talks about her favorite products as well as tips and tricks she has learned from working with so many professional makeup artists over the years. There’s also tons of cameos by her 6 month old chihuahua poodle mix named Cinderella. Part of Tasha Reign’s job is to interact with her fans via social media so she posts lots of fun selfies daily (follow her on Instagram @mytashareign and on Twitter (NSFW)@tashareign). This also means that she knows how to make makeup look great on camera.
Today I have another new video for you! I filmed this a couple weeks ago while I was getting ready for a first date. It shows me going from my work clothes to first date ready. I thought it would be fun to combine the beauty + dating info. I hope you like it! Please don’t forget to subscribe, like, comment, share etc. so I can reach more people 🙂
I’m so proud to announce that I FINALLY have created my first ever HD makeup tutorial! I have been wanting to make YouTube videos since before I started the blog so I’m ecstatic that I finally have all of the equipment and was able to do this. It took about 6 hours to make in total and I had a blast editing it and adding all of the music. I hope you guys like it!
Products Used/Mentioned:
Armani Luminous Silk Foundation in 4.5
Loreal True Match Lumi Foundation
Beauty Blender
NYX HD Concealer in CW02
Benefit Highbeam
Anastasia Beverly Hills Dipbrow Pomade in Taupe
Ben Nye Luxury Powder in Cameo
Airspun Loose Face Powder in Luminous Translucent
NYX Matte Bronzer in Light
NARS Guy Bourdin Palette (LE)- Laguna bronzer, Deep Throat blush, Devottee highlighter [similar]
Real Techniques Blush Brush
ELF Fan Brush
Mally Beauty Voluminous Mascara
MAC Vanilla Pigment
MAC Creme Cup Lipstick
So now that I’ve had a chance to use my purchases from the 2014 Sephora VIB sale I wanted to give a quick review on them and let you know what I think. I especially wanted to get this up because Sephora sent out another perk for VIB members which is $20 off your purchase of $50 or more and the holidays are coming up so I’m sure you want to know what gifts are worth it.
1. Smashbox Photo Finish Pore Minimizing Foundation Primer ($39) – So far I’m happy with this little guy. The product is a little thick so you have to warm it up on your finger tips before you apply it. You then want to kind of push and roll your fingers into your skin to best cover your pores. When I’ve applied it and look in the mirror there’s no huge “WOW where have my pores gone!?” reaction, but it feels silicon-ey and smooth and blurs your face a tiny bit. The main thing I like about it is that I think it controls my oily skin without making my face too dry which is a delicate balance. My foundation maybe looks slightly better on top of this vs. without it, but it’s not anything that a slower more intentional application of the foundation couldn’t replicate or beat. It maybe keeps my makeup on a tiny bit longer as well, but again no huge day and night transformation. It’s supposed to last for up to eight hours, but I usually have my makeup on for about 12-14 hours per day. Overall I’d recommend this if you’re oily, if you’ve liked Smashbox primers in the past, and if you aren’t counting on it to change your life. It would also be good if you’re sweating or somewhere that’s humid because it’s supposed to be resistant to those things.
2. Sephora Cream Lip Stain in 07 Dark Berry ($13) – I got this because I want to be Samantha aka ssssamanthaa on Instagram from Batalash (see video below), but instead I look like I’m failing miserably at trying to look like Lorde. I’ve only worn this around the house to try it because it is BOLD as hale. It smells really nice like the Stila Stay All Day Lip Colors a nice cake scent. It stayed pretty well and I don’t remember my lips feeling too dry and crispy. I hope I’m brave enough to wear it out into the world one day, but we’ll see. The color is really cool and I’d recommend it if you want to try something new and fun I just don’t know if I’m cool enough to rock it yet.
3. L’Occitane Voyage En Provence Set ($39) – Ugh I haven’t used all of the products in this set so far, but so far I’m super disappointed. I had very high expectations for this especially for the famous She Butter Ultra Rich Body Lotion and it was nothing special. The scent was whatever and it’s not super thick or long lasting or curative to very dry skin or anything like I was expecting. I would not recommend this and I’m wary of buying more products from L’Occitane now even though so many people are obsessed! I’d recommend this to no one because I hate it and I’m pissed. The more I think about it and write about it the more I think wow why am I not returning this to Sephora I don’t need products to travel with so desperately that I need to keep this $39 set!
4. Urban Decay Naked Skin Weightless Ultra Definition Liquid Makeup in color 2.0 ($39) – I knew this guy was not going to be the perfect fit because it’s a luminous light weight virtually invisible foundation and deep down I’m a full coverage kind of girl. It’s very thin and fluid-like and reminds me of the bareMinerals bareSkin Pure Brightening Serum Foundation in that it’s luminous and nice for a day that you want to look natural and take a break from full cake face mode. This would probably work better for me at night because when I wear these luminous foundations during the day I get oily and then they’re a mess, but the problem is that I want full coverage when I go out at night. This does have build able coverage though which is good. I need to experiment with it a bit more to figure out how it can work best for me. I wish it had sunscreen in it. I’d recommend this to someone that wants to look younger (a more sheer, luminous foundation will make you look younger than a matte full coverage one), someone that already has pretty good skin and doesn’t need a ton of coverage, and someone with dry, normal, or combo skin.
5. Urban Decay Good Karma Optical Blurring Brush ($25) – This is a vegan brush that was developed to work with the Naked Skin foundation and overall I like it a lot. It blends out the makeup quickly and evenly. I have used it with both the super thin Naked Skin foundation and the super thick BECCA foundation. I’m back to using my tried and true Beauty Blender, but when I mix it up I love using this guy. I’d recommend it to someone looking for a good foundation brush to use with liquid foundation. I think the price point on this is great and very reasonable for the quality.
6. BECCA Ultimate Coverage Complexion Creme in Buff ($44) – YASSSSSSS hunny. I am absolutely loving this foundation and I’m using it everyday and at night for going out as well. It is super full coverage and gives you a very flawless finish. I normally use a generous amount of foundation so when I accidentally put two whole pumps on my beauty blender and then went to blend it out and I was wearing a serious mask (which was fine for that day, but meant I don’t need to use as much in the future  because it’s so pigmented). This foundation is easy to blend but the only thing you have to look out for is once it dries (relatively quickly in 1-3 minutes) it is DRY and SET so don’t try to blend it out again because you will just mess it up. This foundation lasts me all day and/or night long and keeps me relatively matte without drying me out too much. Once it’s on it doesn’t feel super heavy or cakey which is nice for how full coverage and pigmented it is. I spent at least an hour trying to figure out online which color to get in this and while I like to think I picked the best match I do definitely have to blend it very well down my neck and blend very very well if I’m wearing my hair up. This foundation color is also super yellow which I like because I think it balances out my redness, but I know not everyone likes super yellow foundation. I would recommend this to anyone that is looking for a full coverage foundation with great coverage and staying power who has normal to oily skin. This is my favorite thing I bought. This price tag is a little high, but I’m hoping that since it’s so pigmented that I will use less and it will last me longer (fingers crossed!) Here’s a pic of me wearing it:
Pic I posted on Insty of me wearing BECCA Ultimate Coverage Complexion Creme www.blushinginhollywood.com
It’s the most wonderful time of the year… the time where Sephora sends those of us who have spent way too much (aka Sephora VIB) at their stores a 20% off all purchases coupon. I spend hours researching, reading reviews, watching YouTube videos, adding products to my “loves” list then to my shopping cart then take them out again. I deliberate over what I “really need” and then finally make some decisions and spend a bunch of money. Let’s back-up if you’re not familiar with Sephora VIB program.
Sephora VIB Rewards Levels:
1. Beauty Insider – Free to join, no minimum purchase, you get a free gift during your birthday month, and a few other perks. You do not get the 20% off coupon in the mail every November, but you can use a friend’s coupon in store or they actually have AMAZING gift with $25 purchase options. Honestly I’m pissed that these aren’t available to VIBs because I really want all of them. You can sign up to be a Beauty Insider and shop immediately. Even though you won’t get the 20% off these gifts alone are worth a purchase. (Edit: These gifts were available at the Sephora VIB Sale in Fall 2014)
Sephora free gift with $25 purchase for Beauty Insiders
Kat Von D liquid lipstick, Pharrell’s new fragrance, UD eyeliner, MJ lip lacquer, like are you kidding me??
When I was in middle school I read a lot of women’s magazines- Cosmo, Allure, Glamour, etc. and they would often times have features on how to transform your makeup from day to night or how to take your look from the office to happy hour drinks. I used to think these articles were so dumb. Who couldn’t figure out this very simple task!? Put on more eye makeup- eyeliner, shadow, extra mascara, etc., a bold lip, a little perfume and bam you’re done.
Now that I’m a grown up and actually have to do this task I realize it can be very difficult. Most YouTube gurus and makeup artists will tell you to just wash your face and start all over again. Who has time for that!? Especially if you’re going on dates during the week you need to take your 6am makeup and transform it into date-ready 8pm makeup and FAST. I have yet to see a YouTube tutorial on how to do this (there are many where they do one makeup look and then immediately change the lip color and say now it’s a night look! But that leaves out the whole your foundation is coming off and everything is patchy problem).
I know my friends do this because we all joke about throwing on a “second coat of paint” which is to say we just put foundation on top of what we’re already wearing and start all over again. Sometimes this works great for me, other times it looks insanely heavy or patchy or accentuates my wrinkles. Here’s an example:
Friday nights call for a quick second coat of paint
Do I look terrible? No. Are all of the lines on my forehead and everywhere else accentuated? Yes. My face also turned out super white which made my blush and lips look all that much more intense. I still went out like this, but I didn’t feel great.
A few weeks ago I went to the Nordstrom Fall Beauty Event and asked my artist if he had any tips for me and he gave me a great one: use a different type of foundation than the one you used the first time. OMG brilliant!! This totally makes sense too! In the AM I tend to use a matte foundation so if I put another coat of that on top with powder it’s going to totally age me! Now I give my face a quick spritz of Mac Fix+ or the Boots Rosewater Spray I mentioned in my September favorites and then apply a luminous foundation like my Armani Luminous Silk right on top of the makeup I was previously wearing. From there I will apply concealer, bronzer, blush, more mascara, and a little powder to set everything. This has been an awesome little trick and I feel like it has really helped me.
