Fall is here as we all know it - and I decided to do a little nail polish shopping to match this perfect weather outside! I initially wanted to buy pale pink, nudy colors (that is almost like my nail color but with a pink tint to them) for school and work because it's much more appropriate than wearing blue or purple nail polish. But I ended up loving the Espana collection, and some great staple colors! You all know I already bought the Lincoln Park After Dark and Lincoln Park at Midnight shades at Ulta - but I did a little shopping on 8ty8beauty.com! I don't like their customer service, because they don't tell you your shipping until after they've shipped your items, and they don't process your order until DAYS later! And I hate that!! I did find another website last summer I think, called Transdesign.com which sold cheap OPI and China Glaze nail polishes - but they've gone up in price. 8ty8beauty sells OPI for $4.48, and Transdesign sells OPI for $4.99! I went the cheaper route - 8ty8beauty. These are the shades that I purchased: *From left to right - Lincoln Park after Dark, Lincoln Park after Midnight, Kangarooby, No Spain No Gain, Tijuana Dance?, It's Sheer Luck, Suzi & the Lifeguard* Lincoln Park After Dark Lincoln Park after Midnight Kangarooby (LOVEE) No Spain No Gain Tijuana Dance? It's Sheer Luck Suzi & The Lifeguard From Bottom to Top - Tijuana Dance?, It's Sheer Luck, Suzi & the Lifeguard (WITH FLASH): From Bottom to Top - Tijuana Dance?, It's Sheer Luck, Suzi & the Lifeguard (WITHOUT FLASH): Needless to say - I love all the colors :))))) **Swatches of the last few colors will be better once I get a chance to try out the colors fully** Love you, Cynthia

I bought some clothes from Target (mainly long sleeved cardigans), and some layering long sleeved shirts. Target is such a great place to buy things like that <3 I won't show you pics of my cardigans bc I have nobody here to help me take a pic of them..but I can show you the shoes that I bought from Bakers and DSW :) Bought at Bakers: Bought at DSW: I also did some shopping online (Sephora.com) and bought my first NARS products EVER! I'm so happy!! The random eye makeup remover wipes were because with like 2 more dollars I could get free shipping on my order - I always get sucked into those gimmicks!! LOL Nars Orgasm blush along with Nars Chihuahua Lipgloss :) Swatches: *I compared the lipgloss to my Bobbi Brown Beige 21 one - because they looked so similar. I think, atleast :)* Nars Chihuahua Liplogss: Love you all :) Cynthia

Hey girls so you all know how much I love my MAC Rubenesque Paint Pot as a base. But I never really had the chance to wear it for 8 straight hours until I started teaching. Let me tell you, at the end of the day - my eyeshadows look NASTY! By nasty, I mean horrible creasing! My daily routine consists of applying Rubenesque all over the lid, then I apply a light shadow over the paint pot, then a nice dark crease color for the outer corner. I apply my makeup at 6:30am, and I don't get home until 4:30pm. So that's more than 8 hours of wear - and Rubenesque just can't hang with me. So I decided to do a little test, I applied Rubenesque on the right side (really my left..but the camera flips it the opposite direction)..then applied a Bobbi Brown Beige eyeshadow over it. On the LEFT side, I applied Urban Decay Primer Potion FIRST - then Rubenesque ontop of it. And Bobbi Brown eyeshadow follows. Here is the before pic: Everything looks fine right? Well, when I got home today - this is what my makeup looked like: Both show a little creasing, but UDPP still has most of my eyeshadow in place. *I tried to capture the horrible creasing on my camera..but I just couldn't make it do it any justice. But you will just have to trust me on this one!* The Rubenesque side - most have worn off.... I know most people probably don't use Rubenesque paint pot as a base, more as a color base to help make eyeshadows more vibrant - but I really wouldn't trust these paint pots as an 8 hour base. That's why I love my trusty UDPP! Love you all!! Cynthia

I was browsing the web for the difference (Difference in shade) between "Lincoln Park after Dark" and "Lincoln Park after Midnight" - and came across..nothing. lol! So guess what I did? I purchased both at Ulta today :) First I bought Lincoln Park after Dark (MATTE) version..and after realizing it was matte, I decided to give it a try even though it wasn't what I was looking for. After trying it on - I HATED IT!! It looks DISGUSTING! The way it dries..just looks horrible. The bottle even recommends that for their matte nail polishes to not use a base, or a top coat - which I don't know why..this thing looks horrible. Check it out for yourself... *Sorry for the messy application..it was so ugly I didn't even want to fix it. haha!* So I ended up returning the matte one, and bought the regular Lincoln Park after Dark nail polish. Both nails were coated just ONCE. So here are the two side by side (Click pictures for larger image): *Again..sorry for the sloppy application..I was in a hurry..I know it looks ugly - but I promise you I can do it well! LOL* The one with the label on the top is Lincoln Park after Dark. They both look almost identical..don't they?? Lincoln Park after Dark is slightly lighter (plum-ier) than Lincoln Park after Midnight. I like both actually, they are both gorgeous colors, but if I had to choose one color over the other? It would be Lincoln Park after Dark. ONLY because when I got my first manicure at a spa - the color that I had done on my toes and fingers was Lincoln Park after Dark. hehe fun fact :) Anyway - hope this was somewhat helpful! Have a great week! Cynthia

This is my personal preference as to what I would like to have as my drugstore starter kit! Please keep in mind that we all prefer different things, and place certain cosmetic items as different importance! Definitely need a good moisturizer! Not only is SPF good for you skin because it protects you from the sun's harmful rays - but also it adds a good base to your makeup :)I chose the Olay Complete moisture lotion SPF 15 because it's not thick at all and still does the trick. As for foundation, I still went with my trusty Maybelline Mineral Power liquid foundation. Liquid foundation doesn't end up cakey on me - and since this particular liquid foundation is really light it adds the right amount of coverage for me. If you want something a little bit more heavy try out the Revlon Color Stay liquid foundation :) For blush, I chose Almay's Smart Shade in Berry. This stuff ROCKS!! It conforms to the warmth of your body and gives you the perfect berry, fall blush color. I love liquid or creme blushes because it lasts longer and the color pay off is wonderful! This stuff was pretty expensive for the little bottle ($9.99), but so worth it!!! Also note that a little bit goes a LONG WAY! The consistency of it is like a mousse - which is pretty cool :) For an eyeshadow base, I like to use creme bases because it adds color and neutralizes your skintone around your eye so your eyeshadow will look even. I chose the Revlon illuminace creme shadow in Skinlights, and Not just Nudes. These give you different variety for different colored bases. It holds eyeshadows and adds vibrancy to them as well. A little bit goes a long way for this as well because it does tend to crease on you :/ As for eyeshadows, I chose my trusty little Maybelline Chai Latte quad! This thing is awesome. It comes in four neutral shades that add different textures to your eye. You get matte and also a little bit of shimmer! Swatches below :) Then for eyeliner, I really enjoy using liquid and gel liners rather than pencil eyeliners because of the vibrancy of liquid and gel liners produce. I chose the L'Oreal Lineur Intense Carbon Black liquid eyeliner. The tip has a felt tip, and it just glides over your eyelids. The black is truly a BLACK! I don't like liquid eyeliners that try to be black, then fades - this stuff really stays. Mascaras are tricky. I like ot have ones that hold my curl. And as my viewers suggested - waterproof was the way to go! I went with my Cover Girl Lash Blast Waterproof mascara! Expensive , but I got it on sale for $6.00!! Always check out the deals ladies. I love this mascara so much!! Now I understand what the hype is all about! For lips, I really do enjoy my Maybelline Moisture Extreme Lipstick in Nude Blush. Perfect nude color, which means my lip color but BETTER! So moisturizing, no need for lipgloss on top and the staying power is incredible! It even has a fruity smell to it, yummy! Lastly, brushes. I have always loved my Essence of Beauty brushes!! They have never failed me <3 I bought mine in a bundle pack, which means they are two sided which is cool but hard to store. Never tried Eco Tools, but i'm sure they are great as well! Those are my pics! Let me know what you think! Sorry for the lack of updates - life intervened. lol And i'm sick on top of that <3 Love you all very much!! Cynthia

PROS - ~ A lot of neutral shades to choose from (great for a person like me) ~ Applies smoothly, and blends well - feels really velvety ~ Different finishes (shimmer, satin, matte) ~ REALLY CHEAP! ~ Great for beginners, great staying power :) CONS - ~ Container/packaging design is horrible. (Can't screw lid back on properly) ~ Horrible creasing ~ Not a lot of pigmentation (in my own opinion) ~ Can't find this brand in a lot of places (I traveled to 4 different locations to find these suckers) ~ When packed in, it looks CAKEY!! Overall, will I buy this product again? NO! Sorry Jane fans..this just isn't what I thought it would be. And I really wanted to like this product, because I just ADORE the Jane blushes. I would rate this product a 2 out of 5. Yuck. **Don't bother putting on a primer underneath these..they still crease.** These are just my opinions though, I just don't see what all the rave is about these eyeshadows! Pictures are shown applied without a base, with a base (Urban Decay Primer Potion), and applied wet (Fix +). The 4 eyeshadows that I purchased are: ~Champagne (Yellow-ish color eyeshadow with TONS OF GLITTER..nothing like champagne. It's too pale) ~Sungloss (Taupe color, with some shimmer) ~Browny points/Hazlenut (Browny Points: Matte dark chocolate brown / Hazelnut: peachy light brown shade with some shimmer) ~Gold/Copper (Gold: light beige color with shimmer / Copper: Penny colored with shimmer)