2 Easy Nail Trends to Try - Caviar Nails & Matte Nails

Hello everyone! As you know from my previous nail blog, I'm super into all sorts of different styles of nail art lately. All the different trends I read in my beauty magazines, trends I've seen on celebs and different things my own friends have tried has been really inspiring. I personally spend at least one night a week vegged out in front of the TV giving myself a mani and pedi. While I always manage to get it on cuticles it becomes a special way to spend "ME" time and allows me to get creative. Not to mention I feel so pretty with clean, well groomed nails. That being said... let's get on to the two new and easy nail trends I tried recently.

*CAVIAR NAILS*

Have you heard of Caviar nails? This is the latest trend I've found out about last week. The art of it came from London to the states about a month ago and began selling in Sephora. It's a simple two step process that consists of painting your nails and pouring beads on top of the wet coat so they stick. Easy enough right?

NOTE: It's best to leave your nails to dry for at least 15-20 minutes and I've read that you should NOT to apply a top coat. The top coat tends to distort the color.

The brand is called Ciaté and they come in sets that contain a little bottle of beads and a base color. You can find this at Sephora. There are currently 3 colors out right now. Black and blue, Multi colored and white. See the pictures below.

It looks kinda weird when you first see the pictures but it looks so cool on. I promise you. 

Don't the muti-colored ones look like sprinkles?!?! YUMMMM!!!

Heads up if you do purchase this from sephora (like I almost wasted my money doing) it'll run you $25.00. That's a little much for any nail polish look so I did some searching online and came across a cheaper idea thanks to my favorite blogger (The PolishAholic). She found micro-beads at Michaels for much cheaper. Hooray! These are the sets of micro-beads she found that I went to purchase this weekend.  They were $3.99 for a set of 6 or you could get a larger version of 1 color for $1.99. I got the set on the left and tried the black micro-beads yesterday. I'd post a picture but my camera wouldn't take a good detailed picture of it but it looks like the pictures above. 

*MATTE NAILS*

The other look I tried today was MATTE nails. For some reason I've been in the mood to wear a non-shiny nail. I don't like super sheen nail polish as it is anymore but I wanted to make my nails look flat  and opaque. I heard about Essie's "Matte about you" nail polish which is a top coat that you can put over any regular nail polish you have to make it flat looking. 

Check out this picture below. This is a regular black nail polish with "Matte about you" on it.

This is the look I tried today. I really love white nails in the spring/summer, especially with white nails. 

And I decided to try the "Matte about you" over white. It made my nails like flat like the black above and almost chalky. What's sweet is once you put the top coat on it dries super quick and your ready to go!

Here are some pictures of matte nails in several different colors

Here are some pictures of matte nails in several different colors.

This top coat is $10.00 at Ulta but I got it off of ebay for $4.50 with free shipping.

Hope you enjoyed this blog! These are some easy and fun things to try!

Legally Bronze Kit by Benefit Review

The older I've gotten the more I'm looking for a sun kissed, natural every day look for work. I wake up everyday and have a 5 minute make-up routine which consists of eye cream, day cream, concealer, mascara and blush/bronzer. If you're lucky I throw on eyeliner and eyeshadow but I sit behind a cube all day staring at a computer and I don't really find a point in putting those on most days.

I have heard many great things about Benefit and have used a few of their products in the past but found this great make-up kit which includes:

- 0.45 oz High Beam (luminescent complexion enhancer)
- 0.28 oz Hoola (bronzing powder)
- 0.08 oz Gilded (tangerine gold highlighter)
- 0.19 oz BADgal Brown (deep brown mascara for mile-high lashes)

more

You get a whole look for $38!! All 4 products are full sized and if you're looking for a nice, easy, summer day look this is well worth it. The bronzer costs $28 by itself and the 3 other items cost around that as well so I didn't mind spending an extra $10 for 3 additional full sized products.


Part of the reason I purchased this set is because I read reviews all the time on the best bronzers, mascara's, eyeshadows and other products. The reviews on the "Hoola" bronzer were all positive on several different websites and this has become one of the most popular bronzers out right now. So thanks to all the good feed back I've heard on this product I bought the makeup kit around this product. I'm always looking for a good bronzer and I'm not really liking what I've been currently using which is NARS's "Laguna" bronzer. It's much to light for my skin tone and would probably look better on someone with fair skin.

The other reason I wanted this set is because who doesn't want a J.LO glow? I mean come on!? She always has such a pretty luminescence to her skin which keeps her looking so youthful and dewy. I have heard about "High Beam" being an amazing complexion enhancer/highlighter which gives you that look and I'm so glad I finally tried it. It comes in a little bottle and has a nail polish like brush. A little bit goes a long way. I like to use this under my eyebrow, high up on my cheek bones and a little near my temple. It really gives just enough luminescence to highlight in the light and not make you look overly shiny or glittery. I've also tried to put it on instead of eyeshadow and it looks pretty cool! Have fun with it!

NOTE: It's better to apply this BEFORE the bronzer otherwise it leaves a little bit of a streak when apply it over the powder which obviously isn't flattering.

The Mascara included in this kit is a great medium brown color, with a thin brush great for separating/lengthening. I use this on my lower lashes only and user a different mascara on top cause I prefer more volume on my eyelashes than length. I do recommend this to anyone with thick, full lashes who doesn't need a lot of volume. It's a great mascara for a day look that doesn't clump and comes off with make up remover easy which is a plus when buying a mascara.

The last product in the kit is "Gilded" which is a gold highlighter pencil. You can use this as eyeshadow, highlighter for the brow or even on the lips or cheeks to golden things up a little bit. It's not an over powering gold which is why I like it. It's a product that is very versatile.

All in all I really like this set for Spring/Summer 2012. I'm still a little pale from Fall and this is a nice day look to brighten up my face and have a sun-kissed look that I wish I had year round.

Here is a picture I took after applying the "High Beam and the Hoola Bronzer". 

It blended in beautifully and wasn't too much on my skin. 

Hope you enjoyed reading! Click this link to purchase online! Buy me NOW!

You get free shipping and 3 samples when you purchase over $50 at sephora.com. 

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Makeup Artist Spotlight-Joanna Bastermajian

A couple months back I went to dinner with my girlfriend Joanna and she was telling me of her dreams to become a makeup artist and how she was going to go to school to pursue it. I was so excited for her because hearing her excitement over it, knowing her strong work ethic, and dedication I just knew she'd be amazing.

She has learned all the necessary skills in her classes to be able to do all sorts of looks. She learned how to prep the skin, how to match foundation and concealer perfectly to the skin. Also, she learned how to properly blend eyeshadow, different methods of application, contouring, techniques, tips, and airbrush application. Below are two pictures of looks she tried in school.                                    

Color blocking

Camouflaging the eyebrow

Joanna had a few of us over recently for a girls night out and beforehand she did make-up for 4 of us. She did such an amazing job in a short amount of time. She was able to match our foundation colors effortlessly, pick the right color palettes for our eyes, faces and lips and make us look beautiful. I was so impressed that when she asked me to be her makeup model for her last makeup class I was more than willing to help my friend out not to mention flattered she asked me.

 Each girl in her class was assigned a color to revolve their makeup around and Joanna got the color green. She came over the night before the final class to play with my hair, accessories and makeup beforehand so she had a game plan in mind. 

The day of her final class a group of girls sat in this room with huge mirrors and bright lights as each make up artist transformed their friends. It was a really cool experience. Joanna handled herself with grace and once again did a great job in a short amount of time. She used several different green eye-shadows on me, foundation, concealer, bronzer, a pink gloss and threw my hair up high above my head and stuff a few peacock feathers in it. She finished with a mesh, green bow around my neck and I must say I felt like I was stepping out of a "Vogue" magazine! It was so fun!

After the makeup was finished we went upstairs to have this photographer photograph me for her portfolio. He was such a funny guy. He kept telling me to let loose and pose "like this and like that" while being super expressive. He had better poses than me! His goofiness eased my nerves a little bit and while I'm not an experience model but we were able to get some really nice shots for Joanna.

Here is one of the shots the photographer took.

I asked Joanna a couple Q&A today that I wanted to share with you:

Me: Why did you want to get into the makeup industry?

Joanna: I always was interested in playing around with new products and experimenting with colors.

Me:  What inspires you about makeup?

Joanna:  I love going out side of the typical makeup trends and discovering new or even reinventing old looks. 

Me: Where do want to be as a makeup artist?

Joanna: I would LOVE to work full time as a freelance artist, weddings, special events, photo shoots, etc. or even be represented by an agency.

If you interested in getting your makeup done by Joanna please see her contact information below-

Phone: 847-902-0592

                            E-mail: j.bastermajia313@gmail.com.






**Note to Joanna: Thank you Joanna for including me in your portfolio and asking me to be apart of  your makeup class assignment. I had a great time and know you will do great things moving forward as a makeup artist. I'm so proud of you! Keep up the hard work!**

All about Nails!!

The concept of nail polish began a long long time ago when the first groups of women to wear nail polish were the Chinese, Japanese and Egyptian who first began staining their nails with henna or other herbs to give there nails a different look. Then nail polish was born back in 3000 BC by the Chinese and made out of Arabic gum, egg whites, gelatin and beeswax. Royal Chinese woman were typically seen with painted nails that were silver or gold. Cleopatra was said to have worn shades of red nail polish. The stronger the shade of red an Egyptian woman would wear the more power she possessed. Cleopatra must have had some pretty red polish.

Fast forward a bunch of years to the 20th century and Charles Revson and Charles Lachman had the idea to come up with the idea to sell nail polish which later became Revlon. (They took the "L" from Lachman to combine it with Revson to come up with the name.) Thanks to these guys great idea, nail polishes started selling in 1932. It went from being sold only in nail and hair salons and worked its way down to department stores. Soon enough, nail polish being sold in drug stores.




Nail polish became a big trend fast thanks to Hollywood. (No surprise there.) Once colored movies and TV shows were invented women were filmed wearing red and mauve nail polished and that's when women around the world caught on to the craze of painting their nails. The trends have changed through the years beginning with reds and pinks, to more neutral colors being popular to nail polishes coming in all colors, then stickers, then press on and the list goes on. But as the trends have changed so has the economy.

During some of our countries harder economic times, women would continue to treat themselves to a new lipstick or a new nail polish to boost their mood because they were cheap and it gave them different color options to help them stay positive or feel pretty during hard times. It has even been said that nail polish is the newest recession proof trend. In 2008 it's was up 65% in sales. I specifically remember 2008 in the beauty world because I worked at a department store selling three make-up lines. I remember gas was where it's at now at nearly $5.00 a gallon and no one was shopping at the mall I worked for. It was a really sad time. But women still came even if it was a few to get there favorite lipstick color that they'd been wearing for years, or their favorite eyeshadow or face cream. Estée Lauder said it best:

"We have long observed the concept of small luxuries, things that can get you through hard times and good ones." 

(Miss Estée Lauder herself)

Now that you have had some historic background on nail polish I wanted to share with you what I've been doing in my free time. My girlfriend Joanna got me these Migi Nail pens recently and I've been playing around with funky nail art. Check out the site (http://miginailart.com/) 

If you buy these pens and sign up online you get unlimeted refills on the paint for life. How cool is that? Not to mention you can each color separately as nail polish and a nail pen. So much fun!! They come in a pack of four pens for $24.99. There are 4 different color combos to choose from as well.  

 

Check out the designs I've made on my nails recently. I've been having a blast sitting in front of the tv and painting my nails with these things and just had to share it with you. 

Here is a little slide show I created. 

For more inspiration you also got to check out this other nail blogs I love!!!

http://www.thepolishaholic.com/

http://the-swatchaholic.com/