It's been a long day with you my friend

Hey hello! It's been awhile I have been busy busy. Let's catch up! 

I went to Washington to visit Mocha! She graduated from High school. I am so very proud of the beauitful young lady she has grown into. 

We had so. Much. Fun. In Washington. Me and my boyfriend went and he got to meet that side of my family for the first time which was really cool. We thourghly enjoyed ourselves. Washington is a beautiful state and Seattle is a beautiful city. When I got back and thought about writing this post I don't know why I didn't vlog it? I vlog everything else? I did, however, take loads a pictures so here is some of those. 

So much fun. 

If you follow me on Instagram you already saw that me and my sisters recreated some old family photos. They turned out hysterically perfect if you ask me. 

Before our Washington trip we took a trip to Virginia Beach with some friends. I don't have a whole lot of pictures from that trip but it was nice to go back home for a couple days. 

As far as blog related things I filmed a couple short hair hairdo ideas videos. Those will hopefully go up in the next couple weeks. And I also took pictures and did a look for my May ipsy bag. Which I'll just quickly tell you about and show you now. You know, since it's almost July!! 

Hair thing - awesome but It's a 10 still my fav. 

Matte lip cream - great color and ok finish. Not the best quality and terrible staying power

Eyelashes - eh too long for my taste other than that pretty natural looking 

CC cream - awesome I love it! I love the SPF. Really considering actually purchasing 

Eyeshadow - so pretty. I wished they'd send an eyeshadow that wasnt some kind of variation of brown. 

That bag though! I love it! I think everyone did. Now for the look: 

Last cool thing I've done recently is I got to see Betty Who live! She's one of my favorites. Her music puts me in a good mood and makes me want to dance around my room like an idiot. Good chore music. She's never been to Charlotte or North Carolina at all until now! She was so entertaining!! My boyfriend went with me who isn't a big fan like myself but could still admit she was entertaining to watch live. 

I really want to get back to doing some Mocha Monday type stuff. I miss writing. Since work lately has me either busy or too tired to think. I haven't been able to write anything in a long time. So hopefully I'll gain some mental strength soon. 

If you are reading this I love you. Thanks. 

Flash Back Friday - Moo and Brew

So what have a I been up to the past few weeks? A lot actually.

I have been working quite a bit. We are currently short handed so that has been taking up my time. I had a nice schedule of post to come out but work kinda messed with that. But I'm never not doing something for this blog. 

A couple weeks ago when my dad was in town we went to a burger and beer festival here in Charlotte called Moo and Brew. It very similar to Oktoberfest here just with a little less beer and add burgers. You get a little glass to sample as many beers as you like. I put together a little video of the festivities, that will be at the end of this post. 

I've also been working on random things and upcoming posts. So here's some previews of the things to come: 

Hope you had a great week and I hope you have an ever better weekend!

 

April Ipsy Bag

I got my April Ipsy bag and I'm thrilled about this one!! Get ready because I love everything.

Ok first things first the bag. Favorite one so far. The theme this month was bohemian. It reminds me of those hand woven place mats. (If you're Filipino you know what I'm talking about) 

What I got: 

KCO Colors By Beauty Brands in Natural Born Beauty - full size 

Hikari Cosmetics Blush in Tango - full size

Lather Ultra Light Face lotion - sample size

TheBalm Cosmetics eyeshadow in Flirty - full size (I think) 

Jor'el Parker fragrance in Femina - sample size 

-Ok first the lipstick. I love this color. It's a great nude for me. Colors that are too light or too pink aren't really nude for me. I'm not sure what else to say about it other than I've worn it everyday (that I've worn lipstick) since I got it. Love it! 

-The blush is so pretty. Really pigmented though, only the slightest bit on a brush is all you need. This seems more like something that should have been in last months back. It's bright and very spring. It doesn't scream bohemian to me but I still love it. 

- uh oh a moisturizer. If you read last months Ipsy bag review. (Found here) You know me and moisturizer don't work well. I also didn't realized I had moisturizer checked to recieve. So I went ahead and removed that but, this one works for me! What!? Yea it doesn't irritate my skin or make my skin red at all. When it says light it means it. It's light and leaves my face feeling clean and moisturized. It's currently sitting in my makeup desk. And I use it before I put my makeup on. 

- I was very excited when I saw I was getting this eyeshadow! I LOVE TheBalm. I have the Nude Tude palette which was the first palette before Nude Dude, which is where you can find this eyeshadow. I love this color. It's like a slightly purple bronzey brown. It's so pretty. I already wanted the Nude Tude Palette and now I really want it. 

- I am obsessed with this fragrance. It's not too feminine or strong. I love it. I've even gotten complements on it when I've worn it. I love getting little fragrance samples because I can throw it in my purse and always smell good with out having to spray myself in public. 

As always here's a look I created with the products. I went for a more natural everyday look since this that vibe I got from the products. I've been embracing my freckles and imperfections lately I've been reaching less for full coverage foundation more sheer. Probably thanks to better skin care. 

Do you get monthly Ipsy bags? Would you like to? Let me know! 

Who are you?

I watched a YouTube video the other day and at the end she talked about really thinking about the question "who are you?". And not where you work or your hobbies or your education or the outcome to buzzfeed quizzes or what your Netflix que says about you. Just who are you? I loved this and I've really been thinking about it recently. In interviews you are often asked "Tell me about yourself?". Usually you'd answer in a way that made you seem like a good candidate. Maybe work experience and your personality traits that make you a good employee and likeable. I bet you haven't been asked (or at least not often) who are you without feeling like there is a right or wrong answer. Come to think of it I don't think I've ever been asked. So I'm asking myself who are you? 

I am an artist but I can be lazy. I'm kind but I come off cold usually on purpose as a defense mechanism. I am an optimistic worrier. I often feel like I have more thoughts than words. I am emotional and I am self conscious, but between my own pride and confidence I won't show you that. I believe in myself and my strength. I am ambitious but question myself particularly, if I have the ability to succeed creatively. I am faithful. I am outgoing but sometimes I just want to be a turtle. Despite my faults I like who I am. 

And that is who I am. 

Now, I'm asking you. Who are you? 

I encourage you to really meditate on that and answer that question today. No right or wrong. 

Are you who you want to be? 

Who are you? 

Get Ready With Me!

The other day I filmed my first ever beauty related video. I've been told I should make beauty videos and it's just not something I think I really want to do, I don't know but this felt more like a vlog to me so it was fun! Hope you like it!

Ombre Lips

One makeup look I've been in love with is ombre lips. I'm not sure where I first saw it and loved it but I know the obsession for a lot of people came from Korean makeup trends. Koreans know how to do it!

Then a few days ago I got super excited when Tarte posted this on their instagram! 

So here is my current favorite combination and how I do it. 

I like using lip stains it makes the ombre last longer. So I'm using the Revlon lip stains.

I love this look when you want a colorful bolder lip without being overly dramatic. Some call this look the popcicle stain. You can see why. This is perfect If you've been wanting to experiment with lip colors you've never tried before. Here are two other colors/looks I tried. 

Purple because I love purple.

And a brighter pink 

I think this is a perfect fresh look for spring. Let me know if you try it out!

March Ipsy Bag

I got my March Ipsy bag! I'm happy about this one! 

It came in a floral bag which I love anything floral. Much better than last months bag!

Sample size: Pūr-lisse - pūr-delicate gentle soymilk cleanser and makeup remover.

Sample size: Leeani Eco - 3 in 1 revolution light (moisturizer) 

Full size-ish: Pixi by Petra - Mesmerizing Mineral duo in Apricot Glow

Full size: NYX Cosmetics - Butter Lipstick in Little Susie

Full size: Crown Brush - infinity shadow/crease duet brush 

   Ok let's start with the only thing I did not like from this months bag. The moisturizer. I wouldn't describe my skin as sensitive but when it comes to moisturizers, for whatever reason, my skin is really sensitive. This moisturizer like most moisturizers made my face turn red and made the uneven parts of my complexion more noticeable. This is something that happens from time to time with moisturizers and my skin, so I wasn't surprised. 

   The face wash/makeup remover was fine. It worked and removed my makeup. Nothing fabulous but did its job. Ill use it until its done but it didn't give me and further interest in the brand of product.

   On to the really good stuff. I have two other NYX butter lipsticks so I was excited to see I was getting another one. I love how these lipsticks feel. They don't have great longevity but it feels more like a chapstick than a lipstick, so I'm ok with that. I love the color I got, it's very spring. I can see myself wearing this often this season. Not to mention Essie Button from youtube (channel here) used the color I got in her recent 'No Makeup' tutorial video. I love her videos and her blog (found here)

  I'm am loving the eyeshadow duo. The lighter shade is a perfect everyday color. Both colors are so pretty on. 

  Last but not least the brush. I am in looove with this brush. Both ends are fantastic. One end is a great eyeshadow brush staple. It's wide and dense great for all over application or crease. The other end is my favorite. It's like a combination of a small angled brush and a pencil brush. So great, not to mention awesome quality. 

Here is the look I put together. I went for a simple bronzey spring look. 

Other than the moisturizer I loved this months bag! If you are thinking about getting monthly Ipsy bags let me know! If you already do let me know your thoughts on your bag. 

If you want to see someone else use some of these products (and coincidentally did a very similar makeup look) and who usually does a makeup look once month with Ipsy products check out Ingrid Nilsen!