Wearing Makeup Everyday/ Loving Who You Are

I first started wearing the tiniest bit makeup when I was in 6th grade. I remember asking my mom if I could start wearing mascara because me and my 12 year old self was finally becoming a mature woman. At least that’s what I thought when I was that age. She said yes, so the two of us walked into target and I picked out the only mascara brand I new existed; the one my mom wore. I went home to try it and I’m pretty sure I immediately poked myself in the eye with it. That didn’t stop me though, I continued to wear that mascara everyday. Eventually I added more and more to my daily makeup routine and by 8th grade I had mastered perfectly blended eyeshadow, again at least I thought, and applying eyeliner. I woke up at 5:30 in the morning almost every single day just so I would have enough time to do my makeup and hair.  Even if I was exhausted, I didn’t care I had to look good for school.

That routine continued well into sophomore year of high school. I woke up early everyday to put on makeup, the only difference being a newfound love of winged eyeliner. There would be days I would wake up and wish I could sleep in at least another 20 minutes, but would force myself awake because I had to have time to get ready. On those days I would look at myself in the mirror and wish I could just go to school without wearing makeup. Then I started to think, why can’t I go to school without wearing makeup? There are plenty of people who do and they look fine. Would I look fine? Of course I would, I told myself, but I had worn makeup everyday for so long I didn’t know what people would think. Then I started to think, why do I care what people think? But the fact is I did care because I liked the compliments I got on my eyeshadow or my hair or even the fact ‘i had my life together enough’ to do my eyeshadow and my hair everyday. I still loved to do makeup, I think it’s fun and creative, but the problem was that I was getting tired of doing it, but why couldn’t I just stop? I realized later it was because I had somehow forgotten who I was without it. It was a security blanket, some sort of false confidence, I felt less like myself without it than with it. Even when I wanted to just skip one day and leave my face totally bare, I couldn’t.

I know there are so many more girls out there feeling like they have to wear makeup everyday to feel pretty or accepted or for people to like them. We’re told almost from day one that being pretty is the most important thing a girl can be. It’s fed to us on a silver spoon from the time we are old enough to play with barbies. It’s in the way women make up only 5% of CEOs of America’s fortune 500 companies. It’s in the way we turn on the TV to see a girl half naked modeling socks. I don’t buy into it one bit anymore. It took some growing up to realize that I’m more than the way I look. I think it’s important for everyone out there to come to that same realization too. That loving who you are with or without makeup feels so much better than only with. Because that confidence can be wiped away quicker than it can be be put on.

I’m not saying that I’m 100% confident with myself all the time because that standard is just as unattainable as always looking like a photoshopped model. I’m also not saying that I stopped wearing makeup all together because it’s something I love to do. I think it’s expressive, and artistic, and it’s something I’m good at, something to be proud of. I am saying that if I’m tired and don’t feel like getting up to get ready I wont, and I can feel as good about myself as if I did. Getting to the point where you can be fine with yourself is hard, but for me it just took one day of wearing absolutely no makeup to school to realize it was going to be easier than I thought.

First Impression: Smashbox Studio Skin Foundation

Last week I wandered into Ulta looking for a new foundation. I immediately went over to the Urban Decay section to pick up my favorite foundation: the Urban Decay Naked Face, but much to my disappoint it was sold out. Again. I had been in there a couple of other times trying to pick up some more but apparently getting ahold of this stuff at my local Ulta is not an easy task. I would’ve checked Sephora if the closest Sephora wasn’t 30 minutes away. I asked one of the workers when the next shipment was going to arrive, but she told me it’s possible it might not even arrive at all because they basically just put whatever they get sent on the shelves, without any input. However, she did offer to match me for a different foundation to try and I was in desperate need so I agreed.

I ended up buying the Smashbox Studio Skin 15 Hour Wear Hydrating Foundation in the shade 1.1 (the lightest one) for $42.00. It is a bit on the pricier side so I left with high expectations and a little bit of worry that I spent money on something that I was going to hate and never use again. A week later though, I am pleasantly surprised.

First I would like to mention my absolute favorite thing about this foundation. It dries completely matte. I’ve tried many foundations in the past claiming to dry matte but usually dry a little bit shiny or feel sticky leaving me to have to fully set it with powder. With this Smashbox foundation I don’t even need to set it with a powder because it dries matte and stays matte for the whole day. Even though it does dry matte, It does not leave my skin feeling dry or stiff in the slightest.

The lady at Ulta told me this foundation is medium to full-coverage, but I would say it is more on the side of full coverage. My skin can be kind of red under my eyes and on the bridge of my nose, but this foundation covers it entirely. I also like that a little bit of this product goes along way. I don’t find myself having to keeping adding more to build up the coverage that I want. I usually don’t buy full coverage foundations because sometimes they feel heavy or just too much for everyday wear, but I’d have to say I have not experienced that with this foundation. It feels pretty natural on the skin, of course not as light as say a BB cream, but for being medium-full coverage it looks natural enough to wear everyday. Also, it stays on from the time I apply it until the time I take it off. I don’t know if that’s because it’s truly 15 wear, or because I also use a primer.

The one concern I have about this foundation is that it is quite thick. Which is to me expected with a full coverage foundation, however it’s a little bit hard to blend out. I like to apply my makeup with a beauty blender which works best with products that are runnier. It’s not impossible to apply though, it just takes a little bit longer.

Overall, my first impression of this product has exceeded my expectations. I will most likely continue to buy it because the coverage is great while still feeling natural and staying matte. 

Homecoming Updo Tutorial

My school’s homecoming was just this weekend, and I was asked by a few of my friends to do their hair, which gave me the perfect opportunity to try out some cute up-dos. My favorite one that I did was on my sister. It is a loopy bun with a braid that would look good not only for homecoming, but prom, or any other formal event.

First, I started by parting the hair deep to the left side. The side of the part doesn’t really matter but it determines what way the braid will be going.

Next, I loosely curled all of the hair with a curling wand, a regular curling iron will work just as well, but i prefer to use a wand because it saves time. The curls do not need to be perfect, or all the same, because they are only needed to give the bun texture and fullness.

After I finished curling the hair, I sectioned off about a 3.5 inch section, starting from the part and going all the way back to right behind the ear, and clipped it off to the side to be used in the braid. With the rest of the hair, not going to be in the braid, I started at the crown of the head and teased it. I did about 3 sections making sure to apply hair spray to the roots after each one. Then I smoothed out the top of the tease and pulled the hair into a half up-half down ponytail using a clear elastic. Make sure to secure it low and not too tight or else it will be hard to cover up later. You could skip this step but I found by applying the elastic to the teased section it kept more volume when I made the the bun.

Now onto the bun. I actually did this hairstyle two separate times and the first time (shown in the picture above) I made the bun more centered at the back of the head, which I think looks pretty, but my sister was worried the bun wouldn’t show in pictures. I ended up doing almost exactly the same thing but moved the bun to the left. In both looks I gathered the hair into a ponytail at the nape of the neck( where you place the ponytail determines where the bun will be). Then I took about 1 inch pieces from the ponytail, twisted it around loosely a few times to give it definition, then looped it up and pinned it against the head. I continued this until all of the hair was arranged in the bun.

The last step is to add the braid. I unclipped the previously sectioned hair and began dutch braiding at the part. A dutch braid is almost the same as a french braid but instead of bringing the outer strand of hair over the middle strand, you bring the outer strand under the middle strand. Just like a regular french braid, keep adding in sections as you go. When you run out of hair to add in, continue braiding normally the rest of the way down the hair. Before tying the end of the braid with a clear elastic, I pancaked  the braid to make it fuller and fluffier. To do this, hold the end of the braid in one hand and with the other hand gently tug on the outside of the braid. Start at the bottom and work your way up each individual loop of the braid, making it bigger. When you have the braid to the fullness you desire tie the end with a clear elastic. Next, all you have to do is wrap the braid around the top of the bun, pinning it down as you go, until you reach the end. Make sure to place the braid over the elastic from earlier, so that it’s hidden.

When everything is in place smooth down any fly aways and spray the whole head with hairspray.