Five Favorites: February 2013

Sorry , I know this post is a little late, but to be honest with you this month flew by so quick and I forgot to pick my favorites for the month. I know, I'm horrible lol. Well, better late than never, right? Here are my 5 most used and favorite products from February.

Beauty Blender

I kept hearing so many great things about this product so I first bought a knock off version at CVS a few months ago. I wasn't impressed with it at all so I finally gave in and bought the real thing this month and now I understand what all the hype is about. My foundation is so much easier to apply with this and I can see a big difference in how my foundation looks too. Its really easy to clean and I can't see myself using anything other than the beauty blender to apply my foundation. I purchased the beauty blender set for $35 on Sephora's website. The set comes with the beauty blender sponge and the beauty blender cleaner. It was worth every penny!

Burt's Bees Garden Tomato Toner

I started adding a toner to my skin regimen over the summer and I would try different kinds from drugstores and didn't see much results. So for Christmas my mom surprised me with this product. Mostly every Burt and Bee's product I've tried hasn't disappointed me so I was hoping this would be the same. I've never used any skin products with tomato in it but I guess there really good for your skin. Within a week or two of using this daily I noticed that my skin stopped getting oily towards the end of the day and I also noticed less breakouts. I've read a lot of mixed reviews, some people hate it, some people love it. I guess it depends on your skin type. I have combination skin, more dry than oily and I love it. They sell this at my local Target for around $20.

Remington T-Studio Pearl Ceramic Curling Wand

I've never bought one of those expensive curling wands, for example,the Enzo and after using this curling wand I would never spend that much money on one. This Remington Ceramic Curling Wand gives me really pretty curls that actually last. It comes with a wide variety of temperature settings and one of those heat resistant gloves so you don't burn your fingers. I really like that you can achieve different types of curls; tight ringlets, bouncy curls, beachy waves, etc. If I didn't already know how much I paid for this I would have guessed it cost a lot more than $25! I highly recommend this if your looking for a good curling wand but don't want to spend a lot of money. I got mine at Walgreen's but have also seen it at other drugstores. 

Tweezerman Stainless Steel Clippers

My nails tend to grow very quickly so I need to cut them down almost every 3 weeks. I don't like to use a nail file to cut them down because I feel like it weakens them so I use a nail clipper. I've been looking everywhere for a nail clipper that has a flat straight edge instead of the usual slight curve edge. When I use the regular nail clippers it makes it a lot harder to keep the shape of my nails square. So I finally came across a pair by Tweezerman on Amazon for only $5 that have a complete straight edge. These are actually toe nail clippers but I use them on my nails so I get a nice even straight cut and not a curve. It makes it so much easier to shape my nails the way I want them now.  If you're looking for a pair like this and haven't found them at a store, go on Amazon.


e.l.f Studio Powder Brush

I bought this brush before I bought the beauty blender, but I wanted to add it to my favorites because it really is a great brush. I've used this brush to apply powder and liquid foundation and it works really well with both. I was surprised at how soft and dense the brush was and that it doesn't shed. I have brushes like this that cost way more that shed everytime I use them. Even more, it always picks up the right amount of foundation and deposits the pigment evenly and flawlessly! For only $3 this brush is definitely worth it!! I found this brush at Target with all the other elf products.

Have you tried any of these products? What were your most used products of February?

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The Nail Files....

When it comes to filing your nails there are certain nail files that will do the job more than others, there's also right and wrong ways to file your nails. I've learned a lot of great tips and realized which nail files are suited for my type of nails. 

Today I am so excited to share what I know and hopefully give you guys some tips you might have not known on Beauty by Arielle's Blog. Thank you again Arielle for letting me guest blog on your site!

Make sure you guys check out the post here!

REVIEW: BURT'S BEES Lemon Butter Cuticle Cream

BURT'S BEES Lemon Butter Cuticle Cream

What is it? 

This is a cuticle cream that has ingredients such as lemon oil, Vitamin E, beeswax and sweet almond oil. All of these are supposed to strengthen your nails, moisturize your cuticles and lock in moisture. It promises to leave your cuticles softer and nails stronger while you notice immediate results. 

Five Favorites: November 2011

I'm not going to say the usual "I cant believe it's already December" like I usually do every month bc its true. I am going to say that I'm happy its December, its my favorite month of the year. I love the holiday season so much plus my birthday is right after Christmas!
My favorite products this month are mostly new ones I bought and I think there's only one that I've had but started using again. 

SECHE VITE
Dry Fast Top Coat

I actually just purchased this yesterday but I already know I love it. After reading on so many nail blogs about how great this stuff was I had to see what all the hype was about. I went to Sally's Beauty Supply and they had it. I applied one coat of it on my already painted nails as soon as I got home. I swear it dried in less than a second! Then I noticed how shiny my nails looked. I have a very pretty blue  color with flashes of pink and purple shimmer on  and it made the color 10x more gorgeous. I've heard other bloggers say that it's the best top coat ever and they didn't know how they even painted there nails before they found this stuff. Now I totally understand what they mean. My mom also said to me later in the day, "Your nails look so gorgeous, it looks like shiny glass" lol. I told her about the top coat and she of course wanted to try it and loves it too. It guarantees not to yellow your nails from dark nail colors and promises to keep your color last without any chipping. The price was a little steep, it was around $9 but if you order it on the Sally's Beauty Supply website you can get it for only $7.99, or a dollar less if you are a member. It was well worth the money for me though. I cant wait to use it with every mani I do.  

REALLY EASY TRICK TO REMOVING GLITTER POLISH THAT WORKS!!

LOVE GLITTER POLISH?

ME TOO!

HAVE A HARD TIME REMOVING IT?

ME TOO!

WELL NOT ANYMORE THOUGH BC......

Taking Care of Hand and Nails: My Way

As you probably know the key to achieving attractive looking hands and nails is more than just the color of nail polish you choose or how well you apply it. Just like having a skin or hair care regimen, it's also important to have a good regimen for your hands and nails too. Let's be honest, we all probably feel better about ourselves when are nails look nice and groomed, right? In order to accomplish this you have to take care of your nails to keep them healthy. Thankfully you don't have to go to a nail salon to achieve this. I am in no way a professional or do I claim to be, but over the years I've developed a routine that has helped to keep my nails strong and healthy. I'm not saying the products I use or the things I do will work best for everyone, but they do for me! If anything, I'm hoping this can help to serve as a guide for your own routine. Here's what I do:

Wednesday's Beauty Tip

Beauty Tip of The Week

Use Efferdent Tablets to Whiten your Nails

Efferdent tablets are known for cleaning dentures, retainers and other dental appliances. These quarter sized tablets are strong enough to clean the toughest stains. When wearing nail polish for a long amount of time sometimes your nails start to look a little yellow. It's perfectly normal though. Luckily, there are a few tips to whiten your nails and using an Efferdent tablet is one of them :)

Wednesday’s Beauty Tip

Beauty Tip of The Week

FILING NAILS!!

 I like to file my nails with nail polish still on; not when freshly painted but before I remove the old polish. I do this because I find it the easiest way to shape them evenly and the way I want them.  When I file them without any polish on I tend to follow my nail beds and the white tip of the nail (that are not always even), then I end up having uneven lengths and different shapes.  I know this is different from the way most of you probably have been taught to file your nails, but if you give it a try you might see a difference  

Try to use a glass nail file as opposed to the regular ones. Glass files cause less tears and chips in your nails. Always file in one direction only and don’t over file your nails.

How To: Give Yourself The Perfect Manicure Step by Step

We all love pampering ourselves by getting a manicure at the salon. However we all know it can get a little expensive if your hitting the salon up weekly. If your looking to save some money, you can easily learn how to get a professional manicure by doing it yourself.

Things you will need:

*Acetone free nail polish remover

*Emery board/Nail file

*Nail buffer

*Cuticle trimmer

*Cuticle cream/oil

*Orange stick

*Hand lotion

*Base coat

*Top coat

*Your nail polish of choice

*Cotton balls

*Bowl of warm water

*Nail cutter (optional)

*Nail dryer (optional)

Preparing the Nails:  

1. Start off by getting rid of any traces of nail polish with your acetone free nail polish remover and cotton balls

2. (If needed) trim nails with a nail cutter to your desired length.

3. File nails with an emery board or nail file so that the edges are smooth. File towards the tip and only file in one direction. Never file to deeply onto the sides.

4. Soak your fingertips in a bowl of warm water to remove the nail residue from filing and to soften the cuticles. Leave in for 5 to 10 minutes then dry your hands with a towel.

5. Drop a trace of cuticle oil onto the base of each nail to loosen the cuticle. Then massage the nail base with lotion and use the orange stick to gently push back the cuticle of each nail until the dead skin loosens up. Use the cuticle trimmer to carefully trim away the dead skin around the nail.

6.  Buff your nails to file the ridges and to add shine. Again, only buff in one direction. Wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water to get rid of any cuticle residue. Dry hands and apply your favorite hand lotion and massage your hands.

Polishing Nails:

1.  Apply a base coat to protect your nails from chemicals and help make your nail polish last longer. Do one stroke down the center of the nail then one on the right and one on the left.

2. Before applying polish rub the bottle between your palms for a few seconds to warm it up for easier application. Never shake the bottle, this will cause tiny bubbles. Paint the nail in three strokes – one down the center and two on the sides. Be careful not to paint the cuticle. Repeat with a second coat but make sure to let nails completely between coats.

3. Touch up the edges of your nails by wrapping a small piece of cotton around the orange stick and dipping it in nail polish remover.

4. Apply the top coat. Use one coat of polish for each nail. The top coat makes the color last longer and gives the nails a brilliant shine.

5. Dry your polished nails for at least 30 minutes. To speed up the drying time use a nail dryer spray. Spray 6 inches away from your nails.

Easy, right? Just make sure you have enough time dedicated for this and especially to let your nail polish dry completely. Nothing would suck more than going through all that just to chip your polish because you were in a hurry. Hope you guys liked!!! xoxo

**See updated post by clicking here!**