Archive for 2015

Hello, it's me...

Haha, hey guys! Today I just have a quick blurb of, well I don't know what you might call it, life advice perhaps? So I was in Starbucks the other day, and I overheard this girl talking on the phone to who I'm assuming was one of her friends, and she was basically saying something to the effect of " =I can't go shopping alone, and I need XYZ item!"

This got me thinking..

When I was younger, I would be terrified to go shopping alone, even last year I was scared. I would beg my friends on end to come with me to the mall, or grocery shopping even. Don't get me wrong, I am extremely independent but for some reason, shopping was the vulnerability. And then, early February, I had to run to a friend's birthday party and I realized that I had forgotten to get a card. I was already on my way and so I had to go stop by the store by myself. Now looking back on it, that sounds so stupid but I think that really was the first step into shopping by myself. I was terrified, how could I shop without someone else, or someone else's opinion?

Now, almost a year later, I find that shopping by myself is an incredible way to have "me" time. I don't know about you guys but I cannot sit in a bath for more than 30 minutes at a time. I found that in that time where I didn't have to rely on what my friends thought on that skirt or that shirt or those bananas, I really developed my own sense of style and fruit preferences (that one was a joke). Weirdly enough, I found myself venturing out more and trying things that I normally wouldn't. I also learned in this time that no one cares about what you are doing. Not in the meanest way, but if you swatch something or pace an aisle a few times or drop a box, no one seems to care. It used to seem like the biggest ordeal and that everyone was staring at me but I really learned that they are too self-absorbed to notice. Well, that goes for people in general, not just the people at Sephora. These are all lessons I wish I would have learned at an earlier age.

So I guess the point of this post is to say, try shopping by yourself, you may just end up liking it. Now, don't completely ignore your family/friends. it is also incredibly fun to shop with them as well. Like everything in life, it's about maintaining a healthy balance.

Have you shopped alone? If so, did you end up learning/noticing anything about yourself in the process?

xx,

India

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Hi Hi Hi! Sorry Sorry Sorry Sorry for not posting after I made a big stink over how I was going to start posting regularly again. I am back and better than ever.

Today I have a quickie review on Benefit's creaseless cream shadow (Or so it says...)

Ok so on black friday (that feels like ages ago, wow does time fly), I went to Ulta and totally stocked up on all of their doorbusters (which some are still available and cheaper!) and one of their deals was all of Benefit's eyeshadows and lipsticks were 50% off! Also, I believe they had a cream blush, but I swatched it and didn't like the shade. Anyway, I was psyched because I had seen some of my favorite beauty bloggers rave about the creaseless cream shadows and they looked so pretty online. I decided that I would just pick up the one shade that I knew I would wear the most, because I have way too much makeup(who am I kidding, you can never have enough), and the shade I picked up was called RSVP.

So it comes in this really cute but totally impractical packaging made out of printed cardboard. The actual product is inside the "tube" with a compact-like packaging

($20 at Ulta, shade: RSVP)

Inside there's a really cute looking eyeshadow encased in a thick plastic covering and a white exterior (it looks like a muffin tin right? or a pie crust?) The shade itself is shown online as very peachy but in real life it's a light champagne color with a light tinge of pink.

So I'll just be blunt here, it creased. I was beyond disappointed when it creased not even two minutes later. The color payoff was beautiful and the little shimmer it did have showed up. The color was gorgeous but I tried to apply the shadow with a flat brush that I always use for packing on shadow but it applied better with my finger or even a sponge tip applicator.

Overall, I thought it was OK, I think that the NYX shadow sticks do a much better job and have the some of the same shades and texture. I do think for a product that said it wouldn't crease, the fact that it did was really disappointing and may have affected my view of the product. But, if it's ten dollars, it's not bad, just maybe not for me.

Have any of you tried it and if so what's your opinion on it? Leave your answer in the comments below!

xx,

India

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Hi everyone, I'm sorry I've been gone for a little while now, I promise I'll be better at posting from now on and not skipping two months at a time :) I had a hectic schedule there for a while but everything's settled down now so you can expect at least a post a week and if I don't post, I give you fill permission to comment angrily demanding me to post. Also on the note of comments, I would love it if you guys would comment anything you would like to see so I can give y'all content that you want to see.

So long tangent aside, I thought I would make a post on how I like to save money on makeup, and well just in life, because who doesn't love saving money on makeup? Also, lets be honest here, buying new makeup (or beauty products in general) can be realllly expensive. So without further ado, here is how I like to save money on makeup.

Tip 1) TJ Maxx, Marshalls, and Nordstrom

So the first tip I have for y'all is to buy all the makeup/beauty products you need from these places. TJ Maxx and Marshalls both sell a lot of high end makeup products for a slightly lower prices, which can be nice, but their real gems are the drugstore/ medium price products. I buy all of my nail polishes exclusively from these stores. The nice thing about them is they have a wide range of colors and brands, not just the ugly colors no one wants. I bought this gorgeous Butter London nail polish from my local TJ Maxx and it was only 2 dollars. 2 DOLLARS. Now Nordstrom is a fantastic place to go for higher end makeup and beauty products. The nice thing about Nordstrom is that they price match everything, so you always get the best deal. I bought a bunch of Batiste from their website for 5 dollars each. Plus they also offer no minimum free shipping and 3 free samples with every beauty order. It's like Sephora but better. Currently, I've got my eye on the Naked on the Run palette that they have for 39 dollars marked down from 54 elsewhere. Also they do a lot of gifts with purchase so be sure to check that out before buying.

Tip 2) Coupons, coupons, coupons

I cannot say it enough, coupons are a girls best friend. Every Sunday paper I've ever had includes a huge pack of coupons and more than 25% of them are for beauty/ makeup products. Coupons almost always work on top of sales and sometimes there can be really high value coupons in the inserts and even online. This brings me to my next point.....

Tip 3) Do your research

Right before I head out of the door to go shopping, I always check for online printable manufacturers coupons, places that are having sales and check my email for any exclusive sales/promotions.

That's all I have got for you today, If you want to see more posts like this, let me know below!

Again, thanks for your patience, I really appreciate it

xx,

India

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Hey everyone, sorry I've been gone for a little bit but I'm back and ready for action! So, one thing I've realized recently, is the lack of awareness for world issues and politics, in most people, especially young women. Now, I started thinking to myself, Why wouldn't people want to know what's going on? Are they just trying to be ignorant? But what I realized was that it wasn't that people didn't care or didn't want to know (for the most part) but that they:

A. Got confused by all the complex language that is used

B. The information was confusing

C. They didn't think it affects them

D. They didn't follow the story from the beginning but no one

gave a timeline of events or an outline of what happened

E. The information was just plain boring

So how do we fix this problem? Well I thought to myself, well, I like beauty and products but I also like politics, the news, the law, technology, and you know, generally nerdy stuff. What if I combine these two, to make one super fun cool amazing fantastical post that can help spread this important information, in a humorous way, without the crazy language so it's easy to understand, while cutting the tension of the(sometimes depressing) news with a new beauty purchase/mini review. I think this is a great way to arm women with knowledge that we can use to advance our world.

Now, onto the good stuff. So since it is the first one of this series, I figured I'd start off with a a light hearted and non threatening piece. ( It's not scary, I promise)

Strike on the tube

So I think that something really important going on overseas (coming from America here), is a workers strike on the tube. The tube in Europe is like the subway in New York. It tends to be the main source of transportation, then bikes, then cars,etc. So when there's a strike and the tube isn't operating, it causes a huge issue for people who need to go places and do things and rely on the tube for transportation. So, that leaves the question of why did the workers do this?. Well the main reasoning behind the strike is a new work contract that the workers believe doesn't let them have a reliable schedule, rest time, and so they think it affects their ability to make sure everyone is safe. So the drivers union, Aslef, decided to start a strike. Now, I think that that is a pretty good reason for a strike, but some people think that these workers are being selfish by interrupting hundreds of people's means of transportation, so it leaves the personal question of what do you value more: reliability of your transportation or the safety of it all. Ironically enough, either side you choose, the workers situation is easy to understand. If you choose reliability, you have to think about how if you wanted to have reliable transportation think about how the workers want a reliable work schedule. For the safety answer, well safety is a major part of the reason they are striking in the first place.

Do you have any other opinions on this issue, do you think the workers are in the wrong, or the company that gave them the contract is in the wrong, or is nobody wrong, please leave them down below so we can have a discussion.

New product

(Rose et Reines fragrance, http://usa.loccitane.com/rose,82,1,29225,0.htm)

I recently went to an outlet mall in Texas, where I went a L'occitane store ( no idea how to pronounce that name, even after 4 years of French class). So as I do in most scent-y, bath-y stores, I went around and sniffed every fragrance to see if I liked anything. Everything smelled, well, normal, nothing I couldn't find in any old store. That is, until I found the Roses et Reines fragrance. Good gosh, this stuff is addicting. I bought a mini travel size lotion of the fragrance to test out how much I liked it, and if I should buy a bigger size. It was around 5 dollars, but everything travel sized was 5 dollars in the store. It smells like the dusty old rose scent you think of when you think of old perfume, so it does have a very vintage, elegant vibe to it but (here comes the twist) it has a very sweet, almost sugary undertone. I've never smelled anything like it before, it's a very unique scent which will definitely be noticed (not for the shy). The lotion itself, well nothing too remarkable about hydration, but it does absorb really fast and the bottle is gorgeous and makes you feel really fancy.

Leave your opinions down below, what else would you like me to cover in the future?

xx,

India

Read More About The Strike Here: http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2015/aug/03/tube-strike-wednesday-unions-reject-offer-24-hour-train

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Hey everyone I'm back with a mini Ulta haul. I absolutely love Ulta, honestly it's like one of my favorite stores. Not just because of their really good loyalty program ( you get cash off instead of crappy samples) and how they always have coupons but because they combine drugstore and high end products. Now when I go into Sephora, I always have to take pictures of my swatches to compare them to cheaper drugstore items to see if it's worth it. But in Ulta the products are all right there. The one downside is that Ulta doesn't have any of those salespeople who are really helpful like at Sephora (at least at my Ulta) so I have to get all my info online. Also Ulta has clearance sections which who doesn't love sales? Anyway I'm going to stop rambling and get on with the mini haul, emphasis on the mini.

(Rimmel Scandaleyes Gel Eyeliner, 4.99)

The first thing I got was a new gel eyeliner from Rimmel. Just your standard run of the mill liner, however it does stay rather matte and black if you are looking for a liner that does that.

(OPI Nail Lacquer in An Affair in Romantically Involved, $4.95)

Next I got this bright red nail polish from OPI, it's a standard cherry tomato color maybe leaning towards a brick color, so nothing too special but I love OPI nail polish because of the durability and how fast it dries. It isn't the most opaque nail polish but it does provide high shine even without a top coat

(OPI Nail Lacquer in Sleigh Parking Only, $8.25)

Then I got another OPI nail polish in this very vampy purple. Very summer appropriate right ;) This nail polish gets

very dark, very fast, like if you put on three coats, it looks black. So I guess you can call it a multi color nail polish.

(Zoya Satin Nail Polish in Leah, $9.00)

Lastly, I got this beautiful lilac grey color nail polish from Zoya. It really reminds me of the off white nail colors that are going around right now, but done with grey instead. It's a very muted color but it looks beautiful and applies like a dream, it is a matte shade and since I'm not the biggest fan of matte colors on my nails ( I don't think I can pull them off), I put a really shiny top coat on top and you wouldn't know that it was originally a matte shade.

Leave me a comment down below letting me know what you last bought!

xx,

India

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Hey everyone, I'm back after a long trip to New York. Sorry about not posting, I forgot to bring my laptop with me and only brought the charger, stupid I know. Anyway, here's what I've been loving this month, I know that it is a little bit early but this is what I like so far.

So my first favorite of the month is this bracelet from Ann Taylor. It's this beautiful antiquey bronze color with a lacey floraly pattern with a light pink pearl in the middle. It's stretchy so almost anyone can wear it. It's not very heavy and it can look expensive and elegant or rustic and quirky depending on the outfit it's paired with. I can't seem to find it online, but I bought it at Ann Taylor so you might be able to find it in stores.

(Nars Satin Lip Pencil in Rikugien $26, Mary Kay Lip Liner in Soft Blush $12)

My next favorite for this month is this pairing of lip products. The first product is the Nars satin lip pencil in Rikugien, it was one of the Sephora birthday gifts this year and I'm in love. It's a very silky and moisturizing lipstick with a natural finish, in a mauve and pink color. The second is the Mary Kay lip liner in Soft Blush. This is almost a perfect match in color for the lip pencil, and it's very smooth so I love to pair them together for a very neutral yet present splash of color to the lips, perfect for the work or school.

(Victoria's Secret Fragrance Mist in Dark Orchid, not the actual link but same fragrance lotion)

So my next favorite is this fragrance mist from Victoria's Secret. I love Victoria's Secret fragrances normally because I tend to love floral fragrances that still smell modern, does that make sense? Like I love Rose scents but not a musty rose, more like a fresh rose. Anyway, this stuff BLEW all my other fragrances away (even my absolute favorite scent, Daisy by Marc Jacobs). I got a little free mini rollerball with a purchase a few years ago, I smelt it, and I was obsessed but I could never find anything in this scent in store. Until now when I found it on sale in my Victoria's Secret store, I also got it on the semi annual sale, so it was like almost around $13!!! The packaging is beautiful and gives off a beautiful and elegant vibe and the bottle has an ombre pink thing going on that reminds me of a crystal, it's just so beautiful. I guess I should attempt to describe the smell now, it smells very warm and floraly (like an orchid, who would guess?) with slight sweet undertones. I highly recommend this fragrance to everyone and I have literally worn no other scent all month long.

(CeraVe Face Sunscreen, SPF 50, $8.39)

Now I normally despise sunscreen, I know I know that everyone is supposed to wear sunscreen but I always have hated the smell of sunscreen and it always irritated my skin and broke me out. So I would always just skip the SPF whenever I would go out, but then I would always burn. This one however, absorbs really fast into the skin and you only need a little bit to cover the entire face, it doesn't break me out and I don't burn as often, this also has no annoying smell but it does leave a little bit of a white cast on your face.

(SunBurnt After Sun Gel)

So if I ever do get sun burned, I always always use the Sun Burnt after sun gel to heal the burn. It's an amazing product, and I swear by it. This stuff is like even better than aloe and it's homeopathic too! It does have a slight scent but it's not obnoxious and it smells very clean. When you first put this on, I would recommend putting on a thick layer and sit under a fan for an hour. It feels like a mask if you put a lot on and it burns for 10 second and then feels very cold. However, If you put only a little bit on, it's not noticeable under makeup. On bare skin, it will look a little shiny. The packaging is cute but they updated it and it's eh.

(e.l.f. foundation brush, $2)

My next favorite is this foundation brush from e.l.f. I hate this brush for actual foundation ironically, but it is PERFECT for applying face masks. I bought this brush all excited to use an actual foundation brush not just a buffing brush but it never worked for foundation any way I would try. I even tried it for contouring and it sucked. But it is perfect for putting on face masks without getting your fingers dirty. Yes, I know you could just use your fingers, but this flat brush is ideal for getting all the spots you might miss.

(Bath and Body Works White Tea and Ginger Shower Gel, $3.50)

My last favorite for this month is the Bath and Body Works White Tea and Ginger Shower Gel. This is one of their flashback fragrances and I'm obsessed. I bought it during their semi annual sale so it was only like 3 dollars!

(Bath and Body Works White Tea and Ginger Shower Gel, $3.50)

Now I go against the rules and use shower gels as bubble baths because they always create a ton of bubbles. If they had come out with a bubble bath in this fragrance I would have bought that instead but they didn't :( So I started to use the shower gel in place of a bubble bath. One thing I've always noticed is that bubble baths are more expensive than shower gels, yet they tend to make the same amount of bubbles. I'm the kind of person who loves a ton of bubbles in a bath so I go through a bottle in about 7-8 baths. Also for 3 dollars, I can run through a few bottles before I start to feel guilty.

(Bath and Body Works White Tea and Ginger Shower Gel, $3.50)

This smells very citrusy and fresh, like a spa. I love the smell of ginger and it's very relaxing, but not overpowering. It's beautifully subtle and really reminds me of Origins ginger scent. This scent is amazing and it's perfect for creating tons of bubbles. I highly recommend the shower gel, or anything else in this line. Also, I don't understand how people don't like to take baths, they're so relaxing and bubbles. Just bubbles. How can someone hate bubbles. All right well that's the end of my spiel so I'll leave you right here. Leave me a comment down below letting me know what's was your favorite product this June?

xx,

India

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Hey everyone! I'm baaack with a little mini review for y'all. So I went to Target yesterday to buy groceries, but somehow ended up in the beauty section. I got hooked into buying some new products, one of which is the e.l.f. powder brush. See I had never heard of this brush, but in the packaging, I thought it was a contouring brush because the bristles were pressed flat. I know that a lot of e.l.f.'s brushes have different intended purposes but I never expected this brush to be almost a flat top kabuki. Anyway, let me stop rambling and jump right in.

This brush is part of their "Studio Line" of brushes, marked by a very sleek and professional handle, which tend to be around $3 each, which I think is a steal for the quality. So this brush is marketed as a "Powder Brush", honestly I think it is a flat top kabuki because it's very very very dense but

surprisingly, really soft.

Like I want this on my face forever.

I believe this brush is marketed for powder foundations, but I like to use it for liquid because it buffs liquid foundation out like a dream. Since this is a synthetic hair brush, it doesn't steal any of your product, which is always a plus and the brush is more durable through multiple washes.

However, I tried to use this brush with a whipped foundation to see if it worked better with whipped products, and it kinda worked, it didn't blend the foundation very well which was weird considering it caused a airbrushed finish with the liquid.

For the price, I think this brush is amazing for buffing foundation out, and I think for the price it's worth trying it out. I think that this is a great drugstore brush that won't set you back too much and you end up with a decent brush because I know how difficult it is to find good brushes at the drugstore.

That's all I've got for you today!

Have you tried this brush yet? Or do you have a favorite drugstore brush?

Leave a comment down below letting me know!

xx,

India

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