January 29, 2013

DIY Glittery iPhone case!

Okay this is out of context but I just had to share with you guys my exciting DIY story.
I love DIY crafts, jewelry, nail art and everything else I find on Pinterest! But as another beginner to this side of me I have only known about Mod Podge this past couple of days!

I am always on a look out for a nice shiny iPhone case that won't break my wallet. I have seen tons from different phone case manufacturers but I was not about to spend $30 and up just for a case that is only good for looks and not really protecting the phone from drops or scratches! Where my sister lives, she took me to a store that sells cute cases for $5-10 and those I have accumulated with my old phones. But I swore to myself when I got the iPhone5 I was not gonna go buckwild buying those cheap cute looking cases and instead invest on a protective case. *For the record, I have never really dropped or broken my past cellphones (knock on wood)

And so I had kept my phone with this awesome case that still shows the new awesome aluminum backing of the iPhone5, Poetic Atmosphere Case. It's slim and doesn't add bulk to the skinny new iPhone5. It does it job from protecting it from scratches and drops, which have happened actually. But knowing me I couldn't resist seeing all these nice shiny, colorful, sprakly new phone cases out! I was itching to dress up my phone. I felt like my phone's looking bland and boring. I needed to do something and that's when I see a lot of DIY on Pinterest!

Pinterest is basically a virtual pin board. You can make as many pin boards as you want and share it to the Pinterest communite. You can search through other pin boards too and re-pin it to your own pin boards.
Check mine out here. I have made boards from DIY Projects, to Hair and Nails, Storage ideas and more! It's pretty addicting and it gives me a lot of inspiring ideas...On that note let's go back to Mod Podge!

I also have been watching a lot of Youtube DIY's and most of them seem to be using Mod Podge on everything! I had to do my own research on this Mod Podge and found out how easy this is to use! Not only it's a strong adhesive to get your DIY's last pretty long but I see how this can also be used as your sealant for the project. I recently got a free iPhone case from Victoria's Secret and the case is pretty cute and glittery, but I felt like it looked too young looking for me.*Sorry I don't have a picture of the case before I did my DIY on it.
And so I went to the craft store got me a jar of Mod Podge and glitter. They're pretty big jars of Mod Podge and Gold glitter because if this works well with the iPhone case I am planning to tackle a bigger project and glitter it gold! Hehehehe! And so here's a picture of how the case came out...

Here's a QUICK how-to:

I did this over a cardboard on the floor for easy clean up afterwards from the glitter. You can use newspaper or anything to cover your floor that is easy to roll up then just throw in the trash.
1- clean case with a cotton dipped in alcohol
2- with a sponge brush spread a thin layer of Mod Podge on your case. Cover every area you want to have glitter on.
3- sprinkle glitter over the case, just like putting sprinkle on top of cupcakes(?). Shake off the excess onto your cardboard. Let it sit for 10-15mins and don't be shocked if there are areas that aren't covered with glitter. I sprinkled too lightly in my case so I had "bald spots" on my phone. But if you think you have reached your desired glitter at this point then there's no need to repeat this process after 10-15 minutes!
4- again spread a layer of Mod Podge onto the case, sprinkle more glitter BUT this time I pressed it on with my old subway card. This will help to keep the glitter flat and not sticking up as it dries. *You can use a gift card or old credit card or cardboard. Something not too flimsy to use.
5- shake off excess and let it rest. if at this point the case is still not fully covered with glitter just repeat the process and don't forget to PRESS.
6-  After 10-15mins. To fully seal your finished product, brush on a good layer of Mod Podge on top of the dried glittered case. I did this two-three times every after 30mins because I wasn't sure how good the seal is with the Mod Podge, so for security reasons I overdid it I guess. Let it sit overnight.

The next day the case dried out great! The case doesn't look bulky with the ton of glitter and Mod Podge on it! It looks just as I want it, glittering gold!

It's been more than a week and the glitter case has been holding up! I don't see any fall outs at the bottom of my bag or anywhere on my desk. Mod Podge has impressed me well and will be definitely using this to my next future projects! I love how my case turned out. It is pretty golden glittery and that screams more of me than the generic VS logo-ed case it was before.



January 26, 2013

*UPDATE* First Impression Review: Wet n Wild Fergie Nail Polish


Updated polish after three days!
UPDATE: So it's been three days, since I have put on this polish my nails still looks awesome! I have been washing dishes without gloves and I don't see any chips! Only at the cuticle area I see no polish but that's because my nails are growing. All in all, I would get more from this collection. It has great staying power and it looks great! 

I was really on the lookout for Fergie's lipstick collection when my husband pointed me out this box! I first saw the gunmetal color polish but I really am not a fan of dark polish on my hands. Toes are ok. So I went through the display and I saw they got a few different ones of the set! All of the sets are paired with a Top Coat and the choices at my Walgreen's were a neon pink, gunmetal colored fine glitter, chunky (big size glitters) cobalt blue glitter, chunky red glitter and the one I picked which is the gold fine glittered polish *called Gold Album (how appropriate for Fergie!)
I got this set since if you buy the polish itself, it's actually more ($3.99) and this with Top Coat included it's only $3.49! So try to get this one if it's available in your store since one can't have enough Top Coat polish anyways for the bargain!


After dinner that night I took off two of my colored nail polish and tried this awesome metallic gold glitter on ma nails. I didn't see anywhere indicated how a base coat isn't required so I just put on my Essie base coat first before putting this on.

I have never owned a Wet n'Wild nail polish so I am pretty surprised with how thick the brush is! Being a noob/ newbie to this I had to clean around my pinky nails since the brush kept going over it. No biggie really, I still love how opaque it goes on that I only did two coats with the second coat being just a light touch up. Then of course topped it of with the included top coat. Top coat also had the same thick brush and with polish went on smoothly and dried really nice! With my other top coats I would usually get bubbles even if I have not moved from my seat for a while with this one it feels smooth and looks nice and shiny over my nude and glittering gold nails!

I would have done all my nails if I were going to some fancy party or a fancy schmancy restaurant, but just for testing how long lasting these are, two nails will do just fine with me. I wouldn't mind walking around the city with my two sparkly gold metallic nails hehehe! Wish she came out with a nice Rose Gold one, unless you ladies know one - comment below if you got any suggestions!

WnW Ferguson Crest Cabernet
I will update you guys on how this is and also on her lipstick collection. I only got one right now called Ferguson Crest Cabernet which is an awesome deep plummy red and just did a swatch so look out for an upcoming review on that too. I'm still on the hunt for a few more lipsticks.









January 17, 2013

*UPDATE* January 2013 Ipsy/ MyGlam bag


This will be more of a first impression review on this month's Ipsy bag so I can give you the discount codes before they do expire. It is actually not in the card that comes with the bag. It is on their Ipsy site and I will link every product name below to the site so you can check out the discount codes yourself. The products have different expiration dates so be sure to check each one!

"A True Star Will Always Shine" is what this month's bag theme. I guess for one to truly shine they will be needing the products in the bag to feel and look like a star! Or more of in the lines of how to keep a great looking skin for the winter since our skin usually looks dull and dry during this season. Whichever it is, I am loving what's in the bag!

This time it came in a tall, dark blue zip up bag with white and blue stars lining in it. They also have recently been tagging their pouch bags with "Ipsy". I guess these bags are especially just made for Ipsy? That's pretty awesome don't you think?!? It's a nice pouch I would definitely use this for my bathroom essentials for my gym bag or overnight since that lotion fits perfectly in there. And those hotel shampoos and conditioners bottles that I have hoarded will fit just perfect in this pouch!



January 2013 Ipsy Glambag

Josie Maran 100% Argan Oil (5ml):  I am very excited to get this! My face has been so dry and I have heard so many good things about Argan Oil and Josie Maran's brand. I was actually looking around for a night moisturizer since my skin has been very dry. I have only used it last night and just this morning and I can tell my super sensitive skin seems to love it! It doesn't feel greasy and has no smell to it. Though I have deep acne scars around my cheeks and my dermatologist have told me there's nothing we can do about it. I am hoping this oil will improve my scars if not 100% but...better than how it is now. I will update later on how this is working for me! $14 for this bottle.
UPDATE: It's been two weeks and my skin feels so soft and smooth! With this crazy New York Winter weather, my skin WAS super dry. My dry patch on my left cheek is gone! Around my nose is still a little dry since I can't help but rub it still but overall this has improved my skins appearance! My severe acne scars are still there, which my derm did say is hopeless right now. But maybe a few more weeks with this oil and it will improve still? *just hoping* I much highly recommend this to all you ladies who have dry and sensitive skin. Surprisingly this didn't made me break out knowing my skin is so picky with what I put on!

Nailtini Straight Up Color Nail Lacquer: In November's Ipsy glambag click here was my first Nailtini glitter nail polish. And from winning the Nailtini Ipsy Challenge I was able to receive their Mani/Pedi bar products (review on it here) and I am just in awe with this brand! They have two colors featured for this months bag and I received the Frappe nude color polish which I'm excited to try! I can't wait to get my mani done this weekend and put this on! A nice break from all the glitter and dark polish I have been doing all Fall and early Winter. $13 for the full bottle.
UPDATE: I love this nail polish! This will be one of my go-to brands besides Essie and OPI. No chipping after three days and it dries great, no visible streaks at all. And this color especially compliments my tanned skin very well!

Pacifica Tuscan Blood Orange Mini Body Butter: I actually already am using this exact body butter all winter. I love this lotion besides my Palmer's Cocoa Body Lotion. It is truly hyrdrating, my hands have not looked better in the winter besides wearing gloves out. I am in love with this scent since it takes me back to Maui. This New York winter weather really makes you wish you are out by the beach. No dry elbows or cuticles here! For those who are curious and concerned, this is a 100% vegan product, no animal ingredients and is not tested on animals. Paraben and phthalates free product. This is $7 on their site.
UPDATE: Like I have mentioned above I already do have this lotion and love it! This has been great with my skin with this crazy winter season so I do highly recommend this brand. I have not own any of the other scents so I can't say much with the rest of it's line.

Sexy Hair Spray & Play Volumizing Spray: I see this a lot on Youtube and highly recommended by the Youtube beauty gurus, but since I am not a frequent hair spray user I am not sure how many times I will be using this. Probably on very special occasions. This claims to be humidity resistant and provides fullness, lift and incredible shine. Maybe I will try it out this weekend before my weekend errands. See how it holds up! Updates later in the blog! This is $6 at Ulta.
UPDATE: Unfortunately I am not a big hair spray girl so I really can't say much about this sample. When I sprayed it for a quick test, this has a very streamed lined spray versus to a cone-shaped spray- basically it has a very precise spray to get that hold you want, I guess.

SOHO "Get a Grip" Concealer Brush: This has nylon bristles and has an ergonomic design for easy grip and blending makeup. I have seen SOHO brand brush in the drugstore but comparing it to the price of the other makeup brushes they have I usually end up grabbing the EcoTools brushes because it's cheaper and the brushes aren't bad. I am excited to try this out though since I am very intrigued with all that ergonomic design stuff! This cost $9.99 at my drugstore.
UPDATE: This has synthetic bristles and it was easy to use with my liquid concealer under the eyes and around the nose. The ergonomic easy grip was a little awkward with me the first time since I really don't hold my brushes that close. It takes time getting used to it.

*All in all, I love this bag! These are pretty pricey products and I am glad I am able to sample them and I will not hesitate to buy them in the future now! 

So that's all what's in this month's Ipsy Glambag! This bag alone is more than what I just paid for ($49.99)! How crazy is that?!? Michelle Phan and Ipsy do really hook up their members well. I say this will be a great year for Ipsy and I already can't wait for next months!
Updated review on the products, I will post right here in a few weeks so don't forget to check back!

January 10, 2013

Nailtini Awesomeness!





I received this awesome Nailtini goodies from winning a challenge on Ipsy's website.
Check Nailtini out here: Tini Beauty, their Facebook Page & their Instagram

Ipsy is a monthly beauty subscription bag that has 2 deluxe samples and 3 sample size beauty products, and every month they put a challenge on Ipsy.com incorporating the products that is in the bag. For the month of November 2012 they had Nailtini Millionaire for us to sample. The nail polish came in full size and it was just full of glittering gold! The bottle is screaming "paartaay" with its awesome gold glitters with a few tinsels of blue and green in it. This was really fun to wear over the holidays and any special occasions coming up.
(left) my Millionaire Nail Art winner; (top right) prize pack; my winning look is called "Dot Me Glitter" on Ipsy's site



Let me give you my first impression on these awesome Nailtini products for your Mani/Pedi needs. 
First off the Nailtini Cocktail Napkins: There's 40 citrus scented square acetone free polish remover pads in this cute little container. I love how it is acetone free! I have actually switched to acetone free polish remover since it is less harsh on my cuticles! Like it says on the package it  conditions your cuticle and has aloe essential oil in it! I don't suggest using it to remove glitter polish but 1-3 squares can actually remove regular polish from all my ten nails! That's what I like about this oil based polish removers, it lasts more than two or three finger nails, not harsh at all to my cuticles and it smells oh-so gooood! 
So after I removed my polish I wanted to take a break from all the polish and just let my nails breathe and go au naturale for a week. I noticed that my nails do turn yellow after wearing those dark polishes for a long time. I was wondering before if there's teeth whiteners products or bleach to give your hair highlights and brighten your whites (Clorox Bleach that is!), why can't there be one for nails? There was a time I wore a cheap polish and when I removed it, my nails looked so yellow that I was so embarrassed to go out without polish on! After that though I am sticking to DBP, toluene, and formaldehyde free polishes. 
Anyways when I saw this Nailtini Club Soda Fizz I thought ooh a little bubble bath for my hands! But while my hands were soaking I was reading the bottle and lookie lookie! This will actually help remove that yellow stain on my nails! Though my nails aren't as stained as before, I actually did see an improvement with how my nails looked! I love this product! It's a mini-spa get away for my nails and they do deserve it!


Nailtini Dry Martini


Nailtini Bar Basics
I lasted only a few days going bare naked with my nails and had to put on some new nail polish that I just bought. Plus I get a chance to use the Nailtini Bar Basics: which is a top and base coat. It looks like those double ended lip glosses. So on one side is the very sticky base coat, stickier than my usual base coat, and I see that it helps to keep the polish  longer than usual. And then when you top it off with their top coat on the other end, it has this nice glossy finish to my nails! After 30-45 seconds though spray the Nailtini Dry Martinithe nail polish drying spray. This has nice sweet citrus smell to it too. It sprays very fine so all you need is one spray for each hand and not only the polish dries faster my hands smells great too. This one also has that sweet citrus smell to it. 

Doing my mani/pedi never smelled this sweet!These products definitely helped my mani/pedi looked oh-so prettier and smell so sweet. I would not have heard of Nailtini if not for Ipsy. Again, thank you to Nailtini for picking my nail art and for this awesome prize! 













January 8, 2013

My Final Thoughts on Influenster's Cosmo2012 Voxbox

So last month I received my Influenster Cosmo2012 Voxbox *here's a quick run down on what's in the box 
So after a month now I can give you guys more an in-depth review of these products that was sent for free by Influenster. If you guys like to sign-up, you need to be invited by a member. I have four invitations left so just comment down below with your email and I will send you an invite!
I am not sure how often you will be sent one of their boxes, for me it took a while and only at the time I was very active online with all my social apps and on their website that they sent me a pre-qualifying survey for a box. So it takes a lot of patience to receive one of these boxes, but anyways let's get to the review!


1- Forever Red Exclusively at Bath&Body Works: I would not have thought of purchasing this if I tested it at the store since it's not really my type of scent to wear daily. Any fragrance with vanilla in it, I actually stay away from because I just don't like the lingering smell of sweet vanilla on me all day, but this fragrance is pretty subtle. It doesn't have that strong musky, overly sweet vanilla smell as you spray it on and as the day progress the smell gets "softer" ?!? That might not be the right term but in short it's a scent that is perfect for the winter season, not too heavy not to light of a scent.






2- FriXion by Pilot Pen in Black and Purple: I wish I had these pens when I was in school! I have always used Pilot pens since I stole my first one from my Dad when I was 7 I think. I love how smooth this FriXion pen writes! And the no-mess eraser works like magic! You will not find a trace of your mistake with this eraser and none of those little rubber dusts everywhere. I've been using this to get one of my 2013 Resolution done which is to write my husband little love notes everyday. My only concern is, I'm a push pen kind of gal so hopefully in the future this comes out in a push pen style so I don't have to take off the cap when I need to use the eraser, and I would hate myself if I lose the cap on this awesome pen.


3- Gilette Venus Embrace Razor & Venus Olay Refill Razor: Both razors have 5 blades in them and that scared me a little bit. I am not a hairy monkey that I need a 5-blade razor to shave but these weren't that bad! I've always used Venus razors and I always go back to them after I try out the other brands since this is the only brand that shaves so smoothly. The Embrace Razor though was too much for my skin that it did irritated my skin afterwards. But the Olay Razor is awesome! I wet the blade to lather up the moisture bars before I start shaving! My skin feels great, no irritation and no razor bumps. I will definitely going to be repurchasing the Olay razor! *apologies for not having a picture for this. I forgot to take a picture of it before I used them.



4- Ghirardelli Gourmet Sea Salt Escape Bar: I wasn't sure about this bar when I saw it had almond bits in it. I am not a fan of chocolate with nuts in them unless it's the M&M Peanuts, but everything else is a no! With my first bite, I was...eh! I can taste the sea salt in the milk chocolate and would love to taste that more if only the almond bits weren't in the way! The next day I gave it another try, even my husband who doesn't like nuts ate two squares! The mix of the sea salt and the almond bits actually breaks up the sweetness of the milk chocolate that you can actually finish this bar in one seating! Just be prepared to floss after eating since the almond bits do get in between the teeth.

My favorites, I gotta say are the FriXion pens and the Gilette Venus Olay razor from this box and would definitely would be purchasing and recommending them. 










January 3, 2013

Fave Products in 2012

This will be a list of my favorite products in 2012. These may be products that have been out for years but I didn't get to try them out until just last year. These are products that I couldn't live without in 2012 and possibly going to be repurchasing and hoarding them for years to come...well until a better formula comes out!

*If you click on the name for each product it will take you to their official website and you can get more info there, instead of me trying to explain to you all that stuff.

1- Macadamia Deep Repair Mask: I need to restock on this product since this has given my hair strength, shine and moisture while I was growing my hair to waist long for two years. When I stopped using this for a few months, I saw split ends! My hair was just dry and frizzy. I was using different hair oil products and none of them could repair my very damaged ends. I haven't even colored my hair for two years and I used a flat iron like once or twice a week and the damage was just getting worse!
I have recently got a haircut to get all the damaged ends nipped and start 2013 fresh! My hair surely loves this product so I will definitely going to be stocking up on this!

2- Karma Organics Nail Polish Remover: I bought this at Henri Bendel's Semi Annual Sale and I am in love with this nail polish remover! You don't even need a lot on a cotton ball to remove all polish on your 10 nails which amazes me since I would go through five cotton balls with an acetone nail polish remover with both hands! This does not leave my cuticles dry because it's soy based ingredient and I also have noticed how my nails don't look that yellow from the nail polish. I need to find out where else they are selling this  brand besides Henri Bendel. 

3- Fresh Soy Face Cleanser: I love how gentle this cleanser is and yet it takes off all my eye and face make-up, and you don't even need a lot! I know this is in the pricey side compared to Cetaphil and Cerave that's why I have Cerave too! I usually use the Fresh Cleanser on days I would be wearing heavy make-up a few days in a row and use Cerave on most days I have less to no make-up at all. This is definitely a splurge for my face and I do use it sparingly like on days I want to give myself a nice at-home facial. 
*During Spa Week check their deal for a $50 Facial since that gets credited to be used in their store too! A regular facial is around $125 that also is credited to be used in the store which is a great deal to get a facial go home with Fresh products you're interested to try!

4- Palmer's Cocoa Butter Lotion: I got a sample of this at a Chocolate Show Event two years ago and have not stopped using it! Not only I smell like chocolate after putting this, but it does keep my skin moisturized all summer and winter! It doesn't leave that greasy feel on my skin either! It really kept my skin soft and smooth just like what the bottle says!








And in the non-beauty department, here's what I have been loving in 2012:

5- Gaggia Classic Espresso Machine: My husband bought me this for 2011 Christmas and I have been using this a lot to make myself lattes, cappuccinos and other espresso based drinks! I am no expert at all on coffee, I just love coffee! He chose this one because it is a great machine for espresso beginners, it's semi-automatic so I do steam my own milk and create that froth for lattes. 
I have been practicing my latte art with this machine *use the Latte wand not the Panarello Wand that comes with it, I have learned a lot about coffee having this machine at home and have tons of respect with coffee baristas since it is not an easy thing to make latte art and  pull that perfect shot of espresso! I may have turned into a coffee geek because of this machine but who wouldn't be when you have an awesome machine to play with!

6- iPhone5: Love the LTE that comes with. The faster processor is a huge difference from the older iPhones since it is faster to go from one app to another. Great camera front and back, I actually have been using it here on my blogs (except for the "Day to Night Look" pic). This definitely has taken over my point and shoot camera since it's so easy to shoot and load it here! Apple definitely have stepped up their game and I can't wait what else they will be improving for the future iPhones, but for now I am very satisfied with my iPhone5!

7- Xbox360 Kinect: This has helped me moved my butt out of the couch and make me sweat and just move! We bought this in 2011 but not until last year that I was using this more often than before. And I will definitely going to be using this a lot in 2013. I don't have a lot of room at home for two players, it's really just enough space for one to move around for Zumba or Kinect Sports. It really has great tracking of your movements, also it is based on the game you are playing. Most games now have improved their tracking than when it first came out, but I don't suggest using this to do Yoga or any heavy exercises since you might injure yourself still. A personal trainer for yoga or pilates beginners such as myself is highly recommended than Xbox Kinect. 

So these are a few of my all time favorites for 2012. I may not have a specific goal for 2013 but I definitely would love to have more favorites this year. Products that will help my body and lifestyle improve for the better. What's on your list?