So I've been internet shopping for the past hour or so.. or more :) And I thought I'd just put a little outfit together for you guys. Just a little taste of what I'm loving at the moment!

 

I am absolutely in love with maxi skirts! I think they are soo cute, and nothings better than the perfect boho look. The bright blue of this Water's Edge Skirt from Anthropologie is amazing! It's simply perfect. I would just pair this with a simple white tank like this Sparkle & Fade Drapey Tank. You do a simple pattern as well, but I like to keep it pretty basic.

These Sam Edelman Kellan Woven Lace Up Wedges are to die for! They are a cut up bootie type look and will easily transition right on into fall. I absolutely adore the lace up bootie look and the perfectly natural color!

Vamoose has some of the cutest jewelry ever! It's all handmade and it's so simple and chic! These Layered Metal & Gemstone Necklaces are great and veryyy versatile. I would probably choose the peachy one for this outfit, but any would do just fine! Any simple necklace would be alright, but I would stick to something that's going to be short and up around your neck. With the skirt being super long you wouldn't want everything to be so lengthy.

As far as accessories go I would keep it pretty neutral. I love golds and natural colors, plus the skirt is pretty darn bright in itself. This is the Coach New Poppy Leather Pushlock Satchel in Sand. This is an all around fabulous bag that I am DYING to have! I don't really care for bracelets, but rings for me are a must! This little gold Heart Flower Ring from Forever21 adds the perfect sweet girly touch!

Well I hope you liked my quick little outfit! And I hope you had a fabulous Fourth of July!
xoxo

Miss USA's Emerald Eyes!

 

As I am sure most of you know, the Miss USA 2011 pageant was held on Sunday. All of the contestants were absolutely stunning and flawless! I could willingly spend hours scoping out every single girl's makeup for the show, but unfortunately that would take entirely too long. So, instead I'm going to highlight the big winner, Miss California, Alyssa Campanella. I loved her entire look, and I love her feisty auburn hair, even if she is a natural blonde.

Very smokey eyes were a pretty solid trend for the pageant this year, and I can definitely see why. Smokey eyes bring out the best in everyone. It is a sultry look that brings on the hotness! Alyssa's take on it was perfect too. Her dress was a beautiful emerald color, so she followed that through in her makeup. It's not a strong green though, just a hint to make everything come together.
As usual, start with a primer (Urban Decay is my faithful fav) all over your lids and up to your brows. Then I would cover the entire lid with NARS shadow in Night Porter. It is a deep greenish-black with amazing emerald glitter. If I were to do it, this would be my main color for this look. You can always go lighter or darker to suit your taste.

Follow this with any black shadow. I would probably pick a matte to offset the lid and highlight color, but anything will work. Place the black shadow in your outer corner and make sure to blend it really well. Take a small brush and apply the same black on the outer lower lash line. Connect this up to the crease and blend it up into your brow bone for a cat eye effect. I would use the Night Porter again and apply it over the rest of the lower lash line and into where you placed the black- just to make sure everything blends together. A little dusting of Urban Decay's Urb on the inner corner would really make your eyes pop. It's a perfect light green!

MAC's Blanc Type, or any matte beige will go great as a highlight on the brow bone. I definitely would keep it matte for this- anything else will be too overwhelming.

Top all of this off with black liner on the upper lash line. Sweep it out a little to go along with the cat eye. I would probably use liquid, like Urban Decay's Liquid Liner in Perversion, but anything that is blackest black will do. A curl of the lashes and two coats of DiorShow mascara would finish this fabulously!

Image Sources: www.crushable.com, www.polyvore.com, www.sephora.com, www.urbandecay.com

Beach Bumming!

I am spending this week in Naples, Florida for vacation.. spending my days at the beach and loving life! Going to the beach is fabulous, but you can't relax too much! You still want to keep your skin and hair healthy. You also want to keep your makeup routine at its simplest! Here are a few of my favorite beauty products to have at the beach or on vacation-

1. Supergoop 30+ Everyday Face & Body Sunscreen- SUNSCREEN, SUNSCREEN, SUNSCREEN! I can't stress sunscreen enough. I use a moisturizer with SPF protection everyday, but being at the beach calls for extra measures. Lather this on your face before you go out in the sun and reapply about every hour.

2.Joico K-PAK Intense Hydrator- Using a mask or extra hydrator every other day while you're at the beach is a super idea! Your hair can become dry and damaged from the sun and chlorine in pools. To help keep my hair shiny and smooth this is my go-to product. I use it after I shampoo and leave it in for about 4 minutes. I rinse and follow up with my regular conditioner.

3. bareMinerals SPF 30 Natural Sunscreen Powder- This product is great if you have a few blemishes you want covered up but don't want to cake up your face with makeup. Its a simple powder that you buff onto your face. It contains SPF 30 and comes in different shades If you want light coverage during a day out this is great too!

4. Pond's Morning Refresh Towelettes-  There is nothing worse to me than a grimey dirty feeling face after being at the beach or in the pool all day. These easy towelettes are perfect for a quick clean up that is refreshing and isn't too harsh on your skin!

5. Burt's Bees Sun Protecting Lip Balm SPF 8- When you're going to be in the sun you can't forget your lips! I pretty much use this balm throughout the whole summer. There is absolutely nothing worse than sunburnt lips!

5. Floppy Hat- Floppy hats are great for the long summer days! I have one that I have been wearing at the beach and it's perfect! It keeps my face from getting burnt and also blocks the sun so I can see my book, magazine, or cellphone sooo much better!

 6- Sunglasses- You can't forget your sunglasses! I have wayy too many pairs, but for the beach I highly recommend using a cheaper pair. This is because sand can easily scratch up your lenses, and you don't want to ruin your expensive pair! I have been wearing a pair of peach colored sunglasses from Forever21. They were only $5 and are so fun! I love colored sunglasses, but if I am coughing up any larger amount of money I always tend to stick to neutral colors. This is a great opportunity to go out on a limb with colors and styles since they are super cheap!

A Slight Change- MakeupTalk Writer!!

       As some of you may have been noticing, I haven't been posting every single day like I have in the past. This is because of a really exciting opportunity I have been given. I applied and was chosen as one of MakeupTalk's blog writers! For those of you who don't know, MakeupTalk is a makeup and beauty forum website that has some AWESOME reviews and conversations about every product you could possibly imagine! If you haven't already, you should totally check it out HERE.  I am beyond thrilled about this, but it's going to cause some slight changes around here. To fulfill my job "requirements" I have to post 15 times per month, or every other day. My goal is to continue to blog every day but with one day on here and one day for MakeupTalk. Of course there will be occasions when things don't go as planned.. but I'm going to try my hardest! I am still doing my giveaway of course :) So please invite people and spread the word! I will add one entry into the giveaway for each person you get to follow me! Just have them comment on a post saying they were referred from you! I'm still so excited about this giveaway along with my new "job" and where it will take me! Please Please Please follow the MakeupTalk blog HERE! The most recent post about Marilyn Monroe's makeup look is from yours truly :) So please follow, you will be missing out on sooo much information from me if you don't. The majority of my posts on there will be celebrity geared, so if you enjoy that type of reading you should definitely check it out! The other cool thing is not only are you just getting info from me, there are tons of posts of quite a few other writers as well. It's like one blog for a group of incredible bloggers!

The Drop of Shame

Unfortunately in the beauty world there are many products out there that aren't worth ranting and raving about. I have a handful of products that have taking the drop of shame into the dreaded trashcan. Just like most of you, I love reading about products that others have tried and love.. but even more than that would have to be reading reviews on products that I SHOULD NOT Purchase. So I've decided to share my not so fortunate experiences with you guys. Close your eyes and this page if you don't want to hear my fairly strong opinions about these loved-by-some products.

This would be Neutrogena's SkinClearing mineral powder with Micro Clear technology. This is by far the most horrible product I have EVER used. And let me tell you, I've used a ton of products. The packaging is nice, and it comes with this odd powder puff applicator. One side claims to be for fuller coverage, and the other for mild. Neither one did anything for me. I couldn't even get this powder to stick to my face. You might think I only used it this one time, maybe I did it wrong, maybe there was something that I had put on my skin that caused the repulsion.. but no. I tried this product about three different times and never had anything close to success. I obviously can't even comment on the whole "skin clearing power" considering I couldn't even get it to go on my face.

ELF shadows. Most love them.. I, on the other hand, do not. Yes, they are extremely affordable, but I don't care for these shadows at all. If they were all you could afford I would buy them over nothing, but they really aren't all they're cracked up to be. They aren't pigmented at all. The few times I tried wearing them it took forever just to get something that looked like color to appear on my lid. Once I was able to get it built up enough they were very inconsistent and would be very dark at one spot and barely there on others. And no, it was not the application that ruined it.. I used MAC brushes every time. I'm not completely dissing this line, but I just don't care for it. I would spend a little bit more money to get a much better quality product for sure! 

Every few months I always end up giving a different drugstore product a chance in hopes of saving some money. Unfortunately my most recent attempt failed miserably. About a month ago I purchased Covergirl's Cheekers Blush in Snow Plum. Now before I unleash my hate towards this product I have to say that it was only $3, so it's not like I broke the bank to get this. With that being said, it is completely worth investing more for a better blush. This doesn't even show up on my skin. Not even in a swatch on my hand. It's just a tiny hint of shimmer and an extremely strong perfumey smell. The smell is awful, and made me feel like I had sprayed perfume on my face. I definitely would never reccommend this product.

     I'll leave it at those three for now only because this post is getting a little long. I'll do a part 2 sometime in the near future!

Saturday Update!

So I just left Ulta and I got several great items for the giveaway! And of course I got a few things for myself too! A hunt for a subtle yet bright coraly-pink lipstick was set in my mind.. and I think I found just that! NYX's Femme has hopefully solved my problem. I also grabbed Benefit's Carmella Eau de Toilette. It's in a cute little margarita bottle.. and Carmela is my best friends name, so I had to purchase it :) I got a sample of the Macadamia Deep Repair Masque, and some NYX shadows! I'm super excited about these products and can't wait to give you guys reviews on them!

Blood Orange Summer Lovin'

Blood Orange Summer by LaurrElizabeth featuring satchel handbags

 I love everything about blood oranges. The color, the taste, the smell.. I love it all. And I find them to be even more fabulous in the sweet summer time. Spicy orange and red are such fierce colors and they accent any summer glow! Pacifica's Tuscan Blood Orange line is absolute heaven. I have the roll on perfume, the body butter, and the body wash. I use all three every day. It's an indescribable smell.. fruity, but not so fruity you can't wear it as a scent. I get complements every time the smell lingers from slathering on these products. The Bliss sugar scrub is something I've never tried, but when you're wanting silky smooth legs for summer this would be great for exfoliating! Corals, Oranges, and Reds are super hot this season! From your lips to nail polish to accessories.. anything goes! I can't go through this post without including Ciao Bella's Blood Orange Sorbet. Oh. My. Gosh. This is hands down the BEST ice cream/sorbet/gelato of any sort that I have ever put in my mouth. Plus, it's a lesser calorie option for cooling down on those long summer days.

(I'm not sure why the orange crop top wasn't linked, but it's from ASOS!)

New Things Are Fantastic!

 I am most excited about my two new polishes.. Brazilliant and Absolutely Shore! I know you guys know what these look like in the bottle.. but I completely forgot to take a picture to upload earlier. A picture of my nails will be posted tomorrow! Promise :) I can tell you this though, these will be the two colors I will be wearing ALL summer!

     JewelMint's Aqua Bomb Ring was my discounted piece that I picked out last week. I chose a ring based off of how I usually wear jewelry.. I don't wear many necklaces and I wear the same Tiffany's bracelet and earrings every day, so I picked this funky ring! It's a bold yet minimal piece. I love the aqua ends too.. they are great for summer! This piece was only $9 I believe which is incredible. Also, if you do purchase this ring and can't decide on a size.. go bigger! This ring is slightly adjustable, always a plus! 

About a month ago I purchased several Lorac items from Hautelook, and they finally came today! Yes, the wait was killer, but completely worth it! Each item was only $2! That's about 80% percent off! So I bought 7 thing.. an On Screen Duo in Fame and Fortune, two eye pencils in black and brown, three lipglosses, and one Baked Matte Satin Eyeshadow in Posh. Unfortunately, the Lorac site no longer has the lipglosses that I purchased available. I will post a picture tomorrow though.. one was for me, one for my aunt, and one for my mom. The On Screen Duo and Shadow are both on sale on the Lorac site for $2, and the eyeliners are $3! These products are being discontinued, but you can still get your hands on them for now! The On Screen Duo is fabulous! It has a shimmery powder highlighter in the top and a creamy liner in the bottom. I wore both of them along with the Posh shadow today, and they all worked great! The reason I say "creamy" liner instead of gel is because it's honestly not a gel. I don't want to lead you in the wrong direction. The consistence is awesome though, and it stays on just like a gel would! Posh is a good summer's day shadow. You could use it as a highlight or a crease color, so it's very versatile! 


As I mentioned in my post earlier today, I also received a bracelet from BaubleBar. The picture of it is unavailable on the site until you are offered the free gift.. so I can't really show it to you guys. But it's an absolutely adorable light brown leather wrap bracelet with little gold studs on it. I only had to pay shipping for this item, a mere $4! It's a great layered look for summer and very on trend. If you want this free offer you HAVE to be invited by a current member.. so here's my invitation link if you are still interested!



I hope you guys enjoyed my post :) I will be doing reviews and pictures of these products soon enough. Let me know if you've made any new little purchases lately! Getting a great deal is so rewarding!

Ahhhh!

Today has been fabulous! I received my free gift from BaubleBar, my discounted piece from JewelMint, and my Lorac makeup from Hautelook! Essie's Braziliant and Absolutely Shore are now in my possession after scouring every store in knoxville, and of course my nails are debuting one of the summer shades! I can't wait to take pictures and show you guys! And there will definitely be a review coming for the makeup! Get excited :)

Lippy of the moment!

I am a chapstick-aholic. I'm constantly slathering up my lips with something and right now my go to tube would have to be the Sally Hansen Vita-E Lip Soother. The lipstick shape lured me in, and I haven't stopped using it since! This would have to be the first lip product that I've ever ran out of. It's silky smooth and has just a hint of Vanilla sent that I love. I put this on under any lipstick or gloss and the light texture gives the perfect natural, not dried out in the least bit, look! To top off the incredible product, the packaging doesn't get much better than this! Recommending this product would be an understatement.

Lulabell Loves: JewelMint!

JewelMint is having a 70% off sale on any one piece of jewelry! All you have to do is sign up through my invitation code at the bottom of this post, choose a piece of jewelry from your showroom, and plug "jewel8" into the coupon code at checkout. This means you'll get one of JewelMint's gorgeous pieces for only $8.99! And a little extra bonus.. FREE SHIPPING! But act quick, the sale is only going until tomorrow! Happy Shopping :)


My invitation:
http://jmnt.me/kPU2Oo

Everyday Eye Tutorial!

     After trying several times to get this just right, I have for you.. a tutorial! I'm not completely comfortable doing videos yet.. that might be taken into possible consideration down the road. But for now I have taken pictures throughout my routine and will give details for each step below. This was a bit of an iffy thing for me, so please give me feedback.. positive or negative! Well I hope you enjoy!

     By the way, I desperately needed my eyebrows waxed when I took these, but I thought you guys would probably want to see them anyways. My eyes are really puffy because I did this at 5 in the morning, and the lighting is crazy because the sun was coming up. And.. Yes, I have really big pores. I never claimed to have perfect skin :) I'll also go ahead and apologize for the lengthiness of this post! 

    

   

Apply any brand of eyeshadow primer from your lid to your brow bone. My favorite is Urban Decay's Primer Potion.

Apply any medium goldy/pinky color. I used Benefit's Creaseless Cream Shadow in RSVP. I use a cream shadow brush from Bobbi Brown, but any stiffer brush would work.

     

Next, Apply any brown shadow into your crease. I wouldn't use anything too dark. This is MAC's Tempting and a MAC 275.                                      

     

Apply a light color from your crease to your brow bone, blending out any harsh crease lines. I chose to use Too Faced's Heaven, a matte cream color, with a MAC 217.

 I use Urban Decay's Half Baked and Midnight Cowboy Rides Again as accent colors for the lid. This will just bring a little more depth and pop to your shadow. For this I just used a stiffer drugstore brush.

 I apply Midnight Cowboy Rides Again in the center of the lid, just above my lash line. The Half Baked is used in a triangle-like shape from the upper corner of my crease down to where I put MCRA. 

                               

 

 I line my upper lash line with Urban Decay's LiquidLiner in OilSlick. Then I use a Sephora white eye pencil to line my water line for a fresh daytime look. 

 

Then I go on my lower lash line with NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil in Yogurt. I meet that line with a Jumbo Eye Pencil in Milk and take it up around my inner corner. I also apply a little of the Milk under the arch of my brow and then blend it in with my finger

Sephora Macro Eye Pencil in white. NYX Jumbo Eye Pencils in Yogurt and Milk.

  

      

       I use the same drugstore brush to make the crease a little more dramatic with Too Faced's Ever After. This is applied just on the outer corner and blended up into the crease. My finger comes in handy when I apply Too Faced's Satin Sheets to my inner corner over the Milk.

   

       

I curl my lashes and apply two coats of L'oreal's Voluminous Million Lashes Mascara. 

The finished look :) 

     Again, sorry for the funky lighting, but I hope you liked it! Comment and let me know! But cut me a little slack, considering it is my first try :) I also forgot to mention at the beginning that I don't use any particular brushes. The MAC brushes I have are from a set I got a while back. I just gave you guys the numbers because I know some people pay attention and believe strongly in that.. I on the other hand do not.