BA STAR Smoky Eyeshadow Palette

BA STAR is a cosmetics company that makes makeup for cheerleading, dance, and everyday occasions.
They were super-generous to send me their Natural Shadow Palette. It's comprised of 3 super-versatile mineral eyeshadows and 2 fun glitter gels.
Check out the swatches and the look I put together below.


From top to bottom: Nude, Bronze, Cocoa, Gold glitter, Crystal glitter.






I blended all three colors and used the gold glitter gel on my lash line. The mineral shadows are extremely creamy and feel so nice when you apply them. They are very pigmented and shimmery, which I love. It lasted all day (including running to the car in the rain) without budging. At $8.75 I definitely would purchase this palette in different colors. That's a steal for eyeshadows of this quality. I would say the quality is comparable to Urban Decay's shimmery eyeshadows.

I like the idea of the glitter gel because loose glitter is so hard to get where you want. The gel made the application precise. The only issue I had was after a few hours the gel dried out and the glitter migrated. I don't mind because I don't wear glitter a lot. The palette is worth it just for the shadows.

Overall, I love this palette. The three very wearable shades are very high-quality and the glitter gels are fun. You can shop BA STAR smoky eyeshadow palettes HERE.
Use the code BBSMOKY to get 50% OFF!
Talk about a bargain!

oceanside

Threadless tee, Missoni for Target cardigan, H&M skinny jeans, Luella sunglasses, thrifted flats and purse.

Saturday in Ocean City was sunny and warm (well, as warm as 55 degrees can be). I could have stayed on the beach forever. I love the ocean and modeled my outfit after that. You can't tell from the photos but this awesome tee has a boat on it. HERE'S a better look. It was very fitting for being by the sea.
Brian and I had so much fun on this day. We strolled along the ocean, went to the Ripley's Believe It or Not museum on the boardwalk, and gorged ourselves on an amazing buffet.
One of the best vacations ever. Even though it was my second time there, I have to go back.

I hope your week is going well. I'm still adjusting to being back home.

WebRep

currentVote

noRating

noWeight

beach vacation

Forever 21 pullover, two-tone jeans, and thrifted Timberland boots.

Sorry for the lack of updates! I was away in Ocean City, MD for my five year anniversary with Brian.
These photos were taken in the hotel room before our first full day on the boardwalk.
I've grown quite fond of sweatshirts/pullovers like this one. They're just so easy to wear and are super warm. I got this cute Mickey one on sale for $5 in January and can't stop wearing it. I love the color; it's so bright and springy.

I kept things simple so I could stay warm and I did. I had so much fun on my vacation and I can't wait to share some more photos with you!
I hope you had a great start to your week.

dollar tree beauty finds: elf eyelid primer

When I spotted this ELF eyelid primer at a Dollar Tree, I knew I had to try it. This particular product is a dollar everywhere it's sold, so it's an extremely good deal.
I didn't really know what to expect because I'm not too familiar with primers (I normally use a cover stick to prime my lids).
I love it.
As you can see by the swatch on my hand, it's translucent. It comes with a handy wand, which I use to dab the product on. I then blend it in with my fingers. It's not too greasy or too thick.
It honestly creates the perfect canvas for eyeshadow. It makes all bright eyeshadows more vibrant. The sea foam color I'm wearing in the photos normally takes a ton of effort to get a color payoff. When I tried it with the primer, it took way less product and looked brighter.
The primer also makes the eyeshadow last all day. I'm talking about through naps, dinners out, and until 3 am.

If you wear a lot of eyeshadow this product is perfect for you. Especially because it's only a dollar; most good primers cost $20 and up.

I hope this helps and I hope your week is going well. I'm leaving for vacation on Thursday and couldn't be happier to leave the snow behind!

the devil wears prada

So on Wednesday something magical happened to me. I bought my first Prada for 76 dollars at a local consignment shop (that's a miracle price!). Luckily, it's pre-loved, because I have the tendency to accidentally ruin things I love (darn clumsiness). 

Here's the beautiful bag:

Bonus photo!

Plinko the cat is a little "special."

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend and sorry about my lack of posts. My busyness has to due with an exciting announcement. Stay tuned.
For now I'll be watching Toby Turner videos all night. Man is crazy.

you look like a sheep

Thrifted sweater, thrifted shorts, thrifted leather bag, Target tights, Lane Bryant sunglasses, and Sam Edelman Zoe boots.

That one strand of hair caught on my purse strap in these photos kills me. I didn't notice it until I uploaded them that it had happened. It's my OCD showing.

I've noticed that lately on the weekends my outfits get more relaxed. It's probably because I like to dress up during the week. I used to like dressing up on the weekends. It's funny how things change.

I love this sweater; it's been my companion for two years now. When I put together this outfit, Brian came in and saw me dressed and ready to go. The first thing he said was, "You look like a sheep." I try to explain to him every time I wear it that it's a popcorn sweater. Big grandma sweaters are something boys will never understand.

I hope you had a good start to your week. I have a lot of crazy things to do!

casual friday

Thrifted pullover, H&M jeans, gifted scarf, thrifted leather bag, Target boots, and vintage Ray-Ban wayfarers.

Just a quick and causal on the go outfit that ended up being unintentionally patriotic.

I have a dinner party to get ready for so have a wonderful weekend!

that house on rowley street

Calvin Klein satin cargo jacket, thrifted silk blouse, Forever 21 two-tone jeans, and Acne Atacoma boots.

While running some very important errands in the city, my mom and I decided that the perfect place to take photos would be in front of my dream house. A perfect pale-pink Victorian that looks like a giant dollhouse. I'm so obsessed with it I have it set so Zillow will email me if it ever goes on the market. Hopefully, that will be a substantial amount of years from now when I have the means to buy it. Of course, this is all dream talk.

I wanted to keep my outfit casual yet professional today and I thought one of the best pieces to wear would be my new Calvin Klein jacket. I happened to get super-lucky and was at the outlet mall when they were having a MAJOR blowout sale. Half of the store was $5. I ended up with this jacket and an amazing pair of two-toned slacks. I couldn't believe they were only $5 each. Crazy.
I also got to break in my new boots! I couldn't be in love with a pair of shoes more. They are so comfortable and I couldn't stop looking at my feet all day. I still can't believe I own them. I was going through old blog posts and found a dream shoe list from back in 2010. These boots were on it and now they're on my feet. I'm mystified.

I hope you're having an amazing week. Mine is pretty exciting, but more on that later.