Spring Nails: Lilac

Spring is the best time of the year to rock out pastel colors and my new go-to nail polish shade is LILAC. I love it because it reminds me of lavender and brings a sense of serenity and calmness to my mind. Besides, its such a beautiful color! You can use it alone or add a subtle nail art such as white spots which I think will look absolutely amazing yet keep them looking subtle and very feminine. I bought this Bettina nail polish in the shade Haze and have been using it constantly.

In a perfect world we would have all the time of the world to go to a salon or give ourselves complete manicures to show off perfect hands at every moment. But sometimes life gets in the way and you only have like 30 minutes or less to make your nails look decent. So to make your mani extra good looking when you have no time to spend, use a cuticle balm to moisturize the skin around your nails which can get a bit dry at times. I have been using the Sally Hansen Cuticle Eraser + Balm which has been recommended in several beauty magazines. The instructions say it should be used daily, but lets get real...who has time to give themselves a cuticle massage daily?!...At least not me. So I try to use is at least 1-2 times per week. Below you can see the Before and After cuticle balm shots. This balm is very creamy and thick so I use it AFTER my nails are polished and dry to prevent the nail polish from chipping faster than usual. After applying the balm in each finger, remove the excess with a cotton ball and voilà! Healthy, beautiful looking mani in no time.

You can see in the Before photo how the skin around
my nail looked dry and sort of flaky.

Which is your favorite Nail Polish this Spring?!

New Garnier Oil-Free BB Cream Review

I've been a fan of BB creams since they made a boom in the US stores because I love the idea of a lightweight cream that will hydrate my face, protect it from the sun with SPF and give me a little coverage to perfect my skin tone. I was using the regular BB cream from Garnier and I really liked it, but by the end of the day my oily face would look REALLY shinny. To counteract that downside I used a shine-control powder and it sort of did the trick. So when Garnier released their new Miracle Skin Perfector Oil-Free B.B. Cream I was SO excited, and even more excited when I was sent a free sample from BzzAgent to try and review.

What the company claims

• Controls shine (through an oil-absorbing substance called Perlite)
• Minimizes pores
• Evens skin tone
• Hydrates
• Protects with SPF 20 Sunscreen
• Non-comedogenic (won't clog pores)
• Non-acnegenic (won't cause breakouts)

My personal experience

Since the first day I tried it I felt as if I was in BB cream heaven! This thing is amazing for oily skin because it contains almost the same benefits from the original product but with the added benefit that your skin will look great throughout your entire day. The product kept my face shine-free without looking dull and the lightweight coverage did not fade away, even without a primer underneath. I still use a shine-control powder but very slightly over my T-Zone instead of over my entire face as I used to. The product comes in 3 shades, I used the light/medium one which when I initially put it on looks a bit too light for me but somehow after the product sets it ends up looking just right for my tone.

Cons

• The product did not minimize the appearance of my pores
• The hydration is not as great, I still use moisturizer before applying the BB cream

Final Verdict

If you have combination or oily skin as I do, you should definitely give it a try since there are not many products in the drugstore beauty market that will give you all of these above mentioned benefits without controlling shine. This is a MUST TRY!...Specially for the hot Summer weather which is just around the corner!

So, have you tried BB creams?!...If you had, which is your favorite one?

Fresh Spring Makeup

Spring is finally here! Even do the seasons are not very evident where I live at, I still think this is such a beautiful season. Everything is very colorful and flowery. Here are some makeup ideas that are totally in for Spring.

1. Flushed Cheeks

The winter cold is out and the sun finally comes through...at least in the cold places because here were I live the sun is up and shinning everyday! A great way to translate that Spring energy into your makeup is by using a pinky peach blush. Apply it right on the apple of your cheeks and blend it up a little into your cheek bones. It gives a fresh and healthy look, just as if you had come back from a nice picnic day. Because I wanted to achieve a natural look, I left my eyes and lips almost bare with minimal makeup. You could use a beige eye shadow to correct imperfections on your lids and for your lips just apply some tinted lip balm or a subtle lip stain.

2. Lush Lashes

I'm not going to lie to you, until a few months ago I was SO scared of false eye lashes. Just thinking about my previous failed attempts of applying them and the thought that everyone would instantly notice them terrified me. But those days are long gone now. I decided to buy a pair of lashes just to try them out again. After following a few tips (which I'll mention in a moment) I got into the mood of trying this hot trend that was seen in many Spring/Summer 2013 runway shows. One of the most important tip when applying them is to apply the glue to the lashes and wait a few seconds until the glue gets less liquid and more viscous. That way when you place them onto your lids they would stay in place and wont slide away...which can be extremely annoying and needless to say frustrating. Also draw a black line as close as possible to the lash line before applying the falsies. This will help disguise the band that holds the false lashes and make them look a bit more natural. And if you are worried that they will still look like false eyelashes...the heck with it! They will still look amazing and would pump up the intensity of your makeup. I still have a long way to go with false eyelashes, but I'm loving the look and I would definitely keep trying to further perfect my application. Definitely give them a try!

3. Colored Eyeliner

Another very popular trend for this Spring is the use of jewel tone colors on the eyes such as sapphire blue or emerald green (Pantone's Color of the Year!...see my post about it here). I decided to apply some blended brown eyeliner in my upper lid in combination with this green eyeliner on my lower lash line to make a more interesting look that could work for either day or night. I know it's a bit daring for many (including me) but hey it's Spring! Time for new beginnings and an opportunity for change.

4. Natural Glow

How do the mega movie stars look like they have a facial every single day? Ohh, the magic of highlighter. Apply highlighter to the top of your cheek bones, on the brow bone, on top of your Cupids bow, on the bridge of your nose and voila! Instant healthy, radiant, and dewy looking skin without the need of that expensive facial (which still we all love). You can select any type of formulation you like; liquid, powder, or even paper! Yes, paper! As the one in this previous post of mine.  

5. Bright Colored Lips

If haven't notice this trend going on for a while you are definitely living under a rock! Bright, high impact colored lips have been THE thing for a while and are still going strong for this Spring. Using a very pigmented lip color such as berry, coral, pink or red is a very easy way of looking fabulous without having to invest a lot of money or time in makeup. So go out, look for a bright lip color that compliments your skin tone and show the world your fab lips!

Which of these trends will you be trying this Spring?!

PS. Special thanks to my wonderful boyfriend Jimmy Pabón for taking the pictures! xoxo