Throwback Thursday: Kylie Jenner revived 90's lipstick, and I don't hate her for it.

image via Byrdie

Last Wednesday it was cold and rainy. Despite the fact that the calendar was telling me it was spring, it felt like winter, inspiring me to apply my ColourPop Ultra Matte Liquid Lipstick in Kae; a dark, rich, velvety brown. Admittedly a rather aggressive color, I received compliments from four of my coworkers. (Embrace the bold, people!)

It has been just over 5 months since Kylie Jenner launched her break-the-internet lip kits, and the brown lipstick trend seems only to have gained momentum. In fact, it has become so ubiquitous, that I eventually succumbed to its siren song and purchased the 90's throwback hue.

And you know what? I kind of love it. So much so that I have added allll of the below shades to my ever-growing lipstick collection. And, lucky for you, each one is budget friendly (duh):

Revlon Chocoliscious
Revlon Mink
ColourPop Kae
ColourPop Limbo
ColourPop Beeper
NYX Beauty Mark
NYX Sandstorm

While the temperatures may be (slowly) rising, and it no longer feels like the season for brown lips, you'll still probably find me rocking the look because, whatever - it's da bomb.

Fast Post Friday - Game. Set. Match.

When it comes to fashion and beauty, there are those that love to follow the rules, those that live to break them, and those that don't believe rules exist at all. (<== me)

So, when getting ready for work yesterday morning, high on some recent Harmon makeup purchases (dude, drugstore makeup is the best) and freshly painted blue nails - I began debating the age old question "Is it okay to match your shoes to your bag?"

While the fashion world may be torn on how "right" or "wrong" this practice may be, I realized there is nothing out there (at least not after a cursory Google search) about matching your eyeliner to your nail polish.

So you know what I did?

I'm pretty sure you do.

Rebecca: 1
Rules: 0

Precisely Right

Apparently this year I have added beauty blogger to my repertoire (nail polish and lipstick costs less than shoes, you know), so I guess it is only fitting that I write a quick post about my favorite black liquid liner. My beauty routine has evolved to a point where my everyday "face" usually means winged liner and a bold lip, and the Maybelline EyeStudio Master Precise Liquid Eyeliner is the perfect way to achieve my look of choice.

While a winged eye can take practice, Maybelline's felt tip liner makes it so much easier...and at $8, it doesn't cost too much to experiment. Despite trying to find an even cheaper alternative, after two failed attempts, I happily went back to the Maybelline.

With a nearly fool-proof application at the right price, it is now easier to master the perfect liquid cat eye.

Hair Apparent

Now for what you've all been waiting for (with bated breath I presume)...

Before: (looking much redder than in reality)

After: This picture shows minimal gradient, but in reality the color is a bit more obvious.

After: Curls, back

After: Curls, side.

Above photos, color and curls by Jamie.

Curls, closeup

Curls, closeup 2

I love love love the finished product. While I made Jamie deviate a bit from the package instructions, it came out perfectly. As my hair was pretty light to begin with, the overall result looks a bit more natural and therefore not so drastic.

Ombré looks better with curls and I have much still to master, but I can't wait to play with my new hair. Boredom averted.

Hope everyone had a great weekend!

Exp-hair-imenting

When it comes to my beauty routine, I get bored easily. This is clearly exhibited by more-massive-than-necessary make-up and nail polish collection. I don't have an everyday "face," (read: I spent a fair amount of time playing with eye and lip colors in the morning) and a few years ago I dyed my naturally blonde hair dark brown on a whim. And while I absolutely loved it, in less than a year I was ready to make another change, slowly finding my way back to light blonde.

Unsurprisingly, I am currently stuck in a hairstyle rut. I wear it straight every day. I have not seen my colorist in almost two years. It is safe to say that I am suffering from complete hair ennui. (Boredom sounds so much more sophisticated en Français, non?)

In an impulsive attempt to remedy the situation, I picked up a curling iron at Target on Sunday. Then, on Tuesday, I marched myself over to CVS and bought the new Feria Wild Ombré for a "DIY Dip Dye" home hair color experiment. I may be light years late on the ombré hair trend, but it seemed like the easiest solution to my hair color conundrum. So many French words! I'm sensing a theme...

The Tools

This weekend I have enlisted my friend Jamie to help me with both the bleaching process as well as to teach me her masterful ways with the curling iron. (I have tried to use it 4 times this week, all complete and utter disasters.)

I am hoping for a final result similar to this:

Oh hi Lauren Conrad, I like your hair! Image Credit LuLu ♥'s Makeup

Stay tuned...

My Kind of Beauty Secret

I have been a beauty junkie since the 8th grade. This is no secret. Back then I owned (and wore) Urban Decay blue lipstick. I was avant garde: Lady Gaga before Gaga even existed. To this day I still love experimenting with crazy makeup -- maybe not blue lipstick -- but lots of colored eyeliner and of course, nail art. And while I do own my fair share of department store cosmetics such as Chanel nail polish, Armani mascara, and YSL lipsticks,* that does not mean I don't know where to score some bargain beauty booty. I have an arsenal of drugstore products that I use daily and while I have previously shared some of them, it never hurts to do a little recap:

- Neutrogena Oil Free Acne Wash
- Neutrogena Healthy Skin with SPF
- Palmer's Cocoa Butter Stick
- Maybelline brow pencil
- Revlon Lipstick
- NYX Liquid Liner
- NYX Mega Shine Lip Gloss
- Pssssst dry shampoo
- Sally Hansen nail polish (Xtreme Wear is my favorite)

Horrible picture of some of my faves: Revlon lipstick in Siren (creme) and Pink Pout (matte). NYX Studio Liquid Liner in Crystal Gold, Extreme Silver and Extreme Sapphire, NYX Mega Shine Lip Gloss in Nude Peach, Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear polish in the amazing Pacific Blue. And lying out front is Maybelline Expert Wear brow pencil in Blonde.

But what is better than drugstore products? Knowing where to find them at a truly great price. Amirite?

This is where I let my fellow Manhattanites in on a little secret. Okay, it isn't really a secret, I talk about it all the time, but I don't think many of my NYC friends truly comprehend the greatness of...here it goes....Bed Bath & Beyond. It is not just for vacuums and pajama jeans my friends!

First of all, Manhattan doesn't have an Ulta. Or many beauty supply shops in general (there are a few, but I may keep those to myself, even though they are fully google-able), and Target isn't super convenient to everyone in the city. But there are three locations of Bed Bath & Beyond (Lincoln Center, Chelsea, Upper East Side) and at least two of them (Chelsea and UES) have large internal drugstores known as Harmon. The pictures below speak for themselves:

Bed Bath Price

Duane Reade Price

Bed Bath Price

Duane Reade Price

Bed Bath Price - blurry but reads $4.99

Duane Reade Price

Now you know where to go. Go now. Just make sure you don't buy the same things I do, I need them to not sell out. Thankssomuch.

*Ed Note: I work for a department store that offers me 20-36% off on cosmetics, so I am able to procure designer products at a lower price. However I would never recommend a product that I wouldn't pay full price for, budget permitting.

**Ed Note Note: My last blog post raved about Kérastase products. I do believe 100% they are worth the price but my recent spending concerns would normally prohibit me from making such an expensive purchase. I happen to be lucky enough to have a Hair Fairy Godmother (otherwise know as Mom) who feels the same way towards Kérastase and was happy to help with the cost. 

Bottom line: I believe in the products I promote, but no cosmetic item is ever worth breaking the bank for.

Spin Dry

Laziness is a recurring theme in my blog. There are just certain things I don't like to spend a lot of time on, and my haircare routine is one of them. I present you with the following evidence:

Exhibit A: I get my hair cut and colored twice a year.

Exhibit B: I don't use any product (No spray, no mouse, no serum. Sometimes a little gel --currently in my purse is Dep -- for uncontrollable flyaways).

Exhibit C: Up until about 4 years ago, I didn't own a hair dryer (I still rarely use it).

Exhibit D: I shower at night, I comb my hair (otherwise comb or brush usage is infrequent), sleep, wake up, flat iron.

Exhibit E: Any product I do use, comes straight from the drug store (or its cheaper alternative/my favorite place ever: the beauty section of Bed Bath & Beyond).

Now that I have made my case, let's start with some recent hair product discoveries (look Ma, I made a legal pun!) turned obsessions.

1) Dry Shampoo

2) The Goody Spin Pin

Dry shampoo has been around forever. Really, since the 70s! And while I haven't been around that long, I am certainly baffled by the amount of time it has taken me to test drive this amazing invention. It is the lazy girl's DREAM. I can't tell you how much money in countless headbands to cover up greasy roots I could have saved had I known the true wonder of this product. When I first took a foray in to the realm of waterless cleansing, I bought a more expensive brand (Klorane) from Ricky's. After that ran out, I turned to the cheapo, original brand Psssssst! from Bed Bath and have been just as happy. So now how do I feel if I am not able to wash my hair? Not Guilty.

Next on the docket we have the Spin Pin. It. Is. Amazing. Hi, have we met? I have fine hair. I have tried for YEARS to perfect the art of the bun, but have failed miserably every time. Bobby pins fall out, layers jump out, pony tails holders can not contain it. Then I saw this television ad-- it was like the "hair thing" (what does everyone else call this product genre?) equivalent of a Kindle commercial. (If you haven't seen the commercial, this comment makes no sense at all, so, translation: it was cute and whimsical, I liked it!) I scoured the Duanes, CVSs, Rite Aides, and Walgreens of Manhattan but seemed to have trouble spotting this elusive device. Then one day, magically in Duane Reade, it appeared, and I have been a convert ever since. Bobby pin what? The double helix shaped pins hold your hair in place, and it stays in place. I recommend. 5 out of 5 stars!

Objection! You have never used the star rating before, so it holds no validity. (Sustained)

And there you have it: the lazy woman's haircare routine. Case closed.

About Face

Contrary to popular belief, I hate buying makeup at department stores. It is like walking into a war zone, attacked from all angles by sales professionals armed with weapons of perfumed tear gas and sharpened makeup brushes. Each counter is a land mine, with the possibility of a surprise attack lurking around every corner. For this reason, I prefer not to purchase products from large retailers. Unfortunately, my love of luxury products (and my employee discount), compel me to buy certain basics such as mascara, foundation, and many a lipstick at a department store. However, when it comes to the staples of my beauty routine, I am just as much a patron of Duane Reade as Bloomingdale's.

A sufferer of acne throughout my teens, I have used a multitude of prescription and over-the-counter products, with my only success resulting from Accutane. It was not until I reached my mid-20s, that I determined my most effective skincare regimen came quite cheaply.

Let me first state a disclaimer: I am not a dermatologist. I do not know your skin type. I just know what works for me and that it works well - so I'm sharing my experience, hopefully for your benefit. That being said, here are my favorite (and inexpensive!) beauty products:

1) Neutrogena Oil Free Acne Wash: It is orange. It is just under $8. You can get it at any drugstore. And it works. My skin has never looked better.

2) Neutrogena Healthy Skin Lotion w/ SPF: Sunscreen is key. It's not too greasy either, especially for my combination skin. It's around $14, but, even with everyday use, usually lasts a long time.

3) Johnson & Johnson Clean & Clear Advantage Acne Spot Treatment: The commercials don't lie when they say 100% (yes, that's right!) of people in clinical testing showed improvement within a day. It's about $8 and it effectively eliminates surprise breakouts.

My last drugstore obsession coincides with my infatuation with lip products: balms, glosses, sticks. You name it, I've tried it. As a younger girl, I had quite the Lip Smacker collection. But that doesn't surprise you, I'm sure. If a new lip product was marketed, I had to have it. (Does anyone remember the chocolate flavored glosses from The Body Shop?) If it was innovative, made lips glossy, or hell even just made them smell, I bought it.

As I got a little older, I was swayed less by the novelty of a product, and more by claims of being a great lip balm. I moved from Chapstick to Lip Medex to Kiehl's to Rosebud Salve. And while all of these are pretty good (Rosebud would be my top choice), none of these products come close to how great my favorite lip balm is, and you can get it at the drugstore for $3.50! Behold Palmer's Cocoa Butter Stick. It smells great, feels amazing, and, like many lip balms are, it is not addictive. Sure, it looks more like a glue stick than anything, but I'll take the stupid observations over dry lips any day.

The bottom line is this: I love luxury products. Unfortunately, expensive skincare is not in my budget, and most of the time I find that the effort (and body armor) it takes to find a product worthy of its insane price tag is much more than I'm willing to commit. Instead, I have proven that you don't have to spend lots of cash to get great skin and soft lips. Sometimes a simple regimen is all you need. Now, don't you feel just a little more...

At Ease?