NATURACTOR FOUNDATION SHADE #170

NATURACTOR FOUNDATION SHADE #170

I've been getting a lot of questions about this one so I want to show you guys how I cover up my acne and blemishes using the infamous Naturactor Cover Face from Meiko Cosmetics, Inc. in Japan.  This concealer-slash-foundation comes in various shades for different skin tones but I personally use Naturactor #140 and #171. I have medium to fair skin with yellow undertone.

What is Naturactor Cover Face for?

• To cover pigmentation, scars, blemishes, acne, and eye bags. It covers up my tattoos, too!
• To protect the skin from UV rays which can cause pigmentation.
• To make skin feel soft, smooth, and beautiful.

What it claims...

• Easy to use and non-sticky.
• Holds up to 8-12 hours (case-to-case basis)
• Does not clog pores.
• Used by professional makeup artists.
• Suitable for shows, weddings, photoshoot, etc. for natural and flawless makeup.

You can buy this online at naturactorfoundation.com. A jar contains 20g of the product so I guess this should last me a long time because you only need just a little bit for cover up. 

It gives you a near perfect skin and hides blemishes and scars really well. It is not drying and not oily either. It does not cake up like other concealers that I've tried. It is really an HG product for me. 

After moisturizing my face, I used a Beauty Blender to apply #171 to my blemishes and acne scars. You can still see some blemishes as I only applied it thinly. If you layer it some more, I believe you can get FULL coverage. 

You can also use your clean fingers or a concealer brush. I find it easier to just dab it on specific areas using my fingers. A Beauty Blender or a damp sponge is best used for applying Naturactor Cover Face for dark circles under the eyes as it gives really neat and flawless finish.

As of now, I'm truly happy with it and it is one of the best purchases I've made as far as beauty is concerned.

OVERALL RATING: 

I can't give it 5 stars because it's not available locally and the cost of buying varies from seller to seller. Have you used Naturactor or are you planning to buy it? Please share your experience with me and if you have any other recommendations or suggestions on how to cover up acne scars and blemishes, do leave a comment below. Thanks for visiting my blog!

Beauty Steals at Big Lots!

Beauty Steals at Big Lots!

Hi everyone!

It's always a good news/bad news situation when you find your favorite beauty products at Big Lots. It's great to see those items at such a low price, but at the same time, you know they're at Big Lots for a reason... they've been phased out of the brand's regular line, and that's why they're in sale mode. On Saturday, I got a tweet from Beauty Broadcast viewer @LindsayGoodrdge about some great things she found at Big Lots...

Thanks for the heads up, Lindsay! Since I was heading out that night to pick up a few things, I figured I'd swing by Big Lots to see what kinds of beauty products were lurking in the aisles. You really need to stop in to Big Lots periodically, because you never know what you'll find. 

I also was able to find the Revlon PhotoReady bronzer! WHY would Revlon discontinue this fabulous product?! Maybe they'll just repackage & re-release it. Who knows! What's important is that this bronzer is normally $12 to $13, and it's selling for $3.50 at Big Lots! This was my Emily Award Winner this year for best drugstore bronzer. It combines 4 tones, is entirely matte, and it's great for contouring. Snatch it up! 

I also spotted lots of ELF Mechanical Eyelash curlers! This is my favorite kind of lash curler, and while I've been able to find these for $1 at Target (with white handles), some people have told me that their Target stores no longer have them. ELF's website isn't selling them either. So I made sure to pick up an extra. The 5-cent discount isn't huge, but I think it's still a major steal for such a great lash curler. 

This is an INSANE deal! I didn't buy one of these since I already have these products, but if you missed out on the Wet n Wild 6-pan palettes-- now is your chance! The palettes in Lust and Greed have been re-packaged along with a couple of liners. I really wished Wet n Wild wouldn't have let these palettes go-- they have the same fabulous pigmentation you would expect from Wet n Wild, and each palette is half matte, half shimmer. And it's only $3.50?!?! 

♥

Also at Big Lots- I got a bag of Valentine's Tootsie Pops -- ALL CHERRY. Score! Anyway, thanks to Lindsay for tweeting me about her Big Lots finds, and hopefully you can find these great deals and more at your local stores. 

Pretzel Hugs - Click for Recipe

Pretzel Hugs - Click for Recipe 

These are so, so cute and I've been meaning to try them for a long time! You basically just melt the Hershey's Hugs on the pretzels and then pop an M&M on top! It's a great sweet and salty treat, and I'm planning to send some of these to work with Tyler so he can share them (and prevent me from eating the entire container). Isn't it cute how they almost look like zebra print? I let these cool in the refrigerator, and then just put them all in a plastic container and they don't get melty on top of one another. Many people told me they make these with Rolos and pecans, which sounds delightful! 

Confidence in a Thumbs Up, Thumbs Down World

Confidence in a Thumbs Up, Thumbs Down World

Hi everyone!

This blog might seem a little out of the blue, but it really sums up my feelings about creating YouTube videos, the judgement we subject ourselves to, and how to feel confident anyway. I recently watched a very enlightening video featuring vulnerability researcher, Brene Brown. My friend David shared it with me because he thought it applied to my experiences on YouTube. Brene's words completely resonated with me. I watched the video twice yesterday and woke up at 4:30 this morning with even more clarity about what I do in the online world. (After I went to the bathroom. That was the initial reason for the 4:30 wakeup). I popped open my laptop, and just started typing. This is pre-coffee, so hopefully it makes sense. I'm not trying to be some sort of social media expert... this is just kind of a "what I've learned" type of post. And there's nothing like organizing your thoughts in writing. So I thought I'd share, and hopefully it will be helpful to anyone who has ever "put themself out there".

It's so easy to try to gauge your success by numbers-- views, comments, subscribers, likes, dislikes... if you're getting tons of views, you must be doing something right, right? How often are you really focusing on the things that don't have a number attached? Like the content of what you're saying/doing and the quality of what you're saying/doing. It might seem like common sense, but if you make videos on a routine basis, it can be easy to go on video-making autopilot and overlook these things. And it's just harder to gauge those things that don't have a clear number attached. If you're willing to be honest with yourself, you can figure it out. You don't need a comment to tell you. We're all not only capable, but pretty good at being critics of ourselves. You know about the effort you put in, the originality of your content, the deep down joy- or lack of joy- that you felt when putting it all together.  

Why is this so important to think about? Because the content is what is actually impacting those who see what you're doing. The numbers might be for you, but the content and quality is for others and should be looked at closely, regardless of how high your view count is. You can't control how many people had time to turn on YouTube that day, or who was having a bad day and took it out on you in a comment, or who just has a vendetta against your eyebrows. But youcan control what YOU do and how you FEEL about what you do.  

There will ALWAYS be people out there bringing negativity your way. No amount of "adjustments" will change it. As Brene said in her talk, a consequence of putting yourself out there and being brave is that you will get your ass kicked. I've been doing videos for 6+ years, and for awhile, I tried catering to some of the non-constructive, personal criticisms about me that I found in the comments section. What was the result? Always a new criticism- and a less authenticfeeling about myself. A TRUE sense of satisfaction with yourself needs to come from inside. That's what's powerful, and what will really fuel what you do. 

If you're willing to take an honest look at how you feel about what you do, I believe you will gain insight into whether you're on the right track or if something needs to change. Nothing translates through a computer screen like real joy and attachment to what you're discussing. How passionate are you? I'm not talking about just "acting excited" - some people are deeply engaged in their topic without seeming to bounce off the walls about it. Joy toward what you do can come across in different ways, but I don't think it can be successfully faked. It needs to come from the inside, not put on. If that's missing- what needs to change to bring it there? 

Before you get going on a new creation, ask yourself some questions. Are you excited about it? Are you looking forward to the process of creating it? Are you confident in the things you'll be talking about? If comments, thumbs up/down, or view counts were invisible- how would you feel about what you posted? We let everyone hold us accountable with numerous ways to rate/provide feedback. Don't forget to hold yourself accountable as the one creating the blog, video, or whatever it might be.

None of those questions in the paragraph above asked if you thought what you were doing was perfect. It won't be- you're a real human being! There's a definite beauty in being real and having flaws. Sharing your vulnerability with the world is what allows people to relate to you. Get in a habit of gauging your happiness toward what you publish to the world. If that feeling is there, it will flow through you and it will be undeniable. 

Thanks for reading!

Jane Mineral Shadow in Red Rocks & Jane Eye Zing in Clubbing

 Jane Mineral Shadow in Red Rocks & Jane Eye Zing in Clubbing

My all-time favorite Jane eyeshadows! I think that Red Rocks duo was even an Emily Award winner back when that series began. That matte plummy/brown was the BOMB. Also- who didn't love the Jane Eye Zings?! These were next-level drugstore eyeshadows, and Clubbing was my smokey eye must have in COLLEGE. It takes commitment to totally use up a black eyeshadow, but I accomplished the task with this bad boy. The one in the picture is actually new, because last year Hautelook was randomly selling old Jane stuff, and, you guessed it- for "sentimental reasons"- I needed to buy a new one. 

Wet n Wild Mega Eyes Eyeshadow in Fine Wink

Wet n Wild Mega Eyes Eyeshadow in Fine Wink

Before Wet n Wild was making it's fabulous Color Icon palettes, the brand was much more hit & miss... but this particular shadow was a total hit, and it was a cult favorite on the first makeup-related websites I remember going to (MakeupTalk & MakeupAlley). This shadow was gorgeous rose gold before rose gold was cool! :) The texture is impeccable and as good as any high end shadow I own. 

Milani Eyeshadow Singles in Illusion, Flare and Java Bean

 Milani Eyeshadow Singles in Illusion, Flare and Java Bean

Remember these little gems? I remember allowing myself to pick up one of these from Walgreens every so often... maybe 2 if there was a buy one, get one deal. I have 7 or 8 total, but these shades were some of my favorites. These shadows were so smooth and pigmented, and had a great reputation in the early online makeup world. They were so often compared to MAC and other high end brands. With shadows this good- it makes you wonder why the brand would ever stop making them. I remember a bittersweet day when I saw some in a bargain bin at Big Lots and I snatched up several- knowing they wouldn't be back in Walgreens again. Definitely makeup hall of fame material! :)