Flashback Friday: Pink and Blue Eyes

Happy Friday!!! There was more sunshine this week, and it was harder to be stuck inside at work:( But! I'm looking forward to the weekend and hoping for some more beach days! Yay!!

When I was younger, I was very impressionable when it came to reading magazines. If Cosmo told me that boys liked girls who wore gorilla suits and pink mohawks, it's quite possible I would've done that. (thankfully, I never read an article that said that;) What I did read, however, was that blue eyeliner made brown eyes pop!

Now, for most of my life, I was convinced my eyes were the color of muddy puddles. You know what a muddy puddle looks like right? Just a dingy brown.. maybe some scum or mold floating around in it... ew. Gross. And that's how I felt about my eyes. They were brown.. but not a pretty chocolate brown. Not some deep color boys would get lost in, lol. There were flecks of green/hazel in them too. And sometimes a yellowish tint... I'm getting sad just thinking about how disgusted I used to be with them (update, I have since grown to accept and enjoy the unique color that is my eyes;) Anyway, if Cosmo said blue would make them pop, I was going to make my eyes pop!

From then on out, it was the same beauty routine on my eyes all the time. Day in and day out. Bonne Bell Eye Style Shadow Box in Girlie Pink (shocking, right? Some things never change... lol) and Wet 'n Wild eyeliner in Deep Blue (or Navy Blue, I can't remember the exact one I was using then. But the eyeliner that was pretty much 99 cents at CVS lol). I rarely used mascara.

I was still all about wearing eyeshadow the "right" way. I would use the lightest pink on my brown bone, the medium pink at the bottom over the lid, the dark pink in the crease for contouring, and the silvery color on the inner corner of my eye. This was my eye routine for my junior and senior year of college... and probably part of my post college life, too...

So... why do I bring this up now...? Maybe it's regression, but.... I'm doing it again. Haha.

Now, I've definitely matured it some! (I'm now using purples instead of pinks; and have upgraded to Maybelline's Define-A-Line eye liner in Navy Blue) But some wisdom from Cosmo is ever enduring, and I really do think that the blue makes my eyes pop!

How about you? Do you ever go back to beauty trends you used in the past? What are your thoughts on colored eye liners?

First Loves

So today is the 28th birthday of high school boyfriend! Happy Birthday to him!!! If he and I were still together the total amount of time would be... 11 years 9 months and a few days lol. Oh, how far we've come and changed over that amount of time. He really was my first love and will always hold a special place in my heart.

There are other "firsts" in my life that also will always hold a special place in my heart. I remember vividly my first *real* lipstick. It was by Bonne Bell "Lip Gear" and came in a grayish tube.. the shade was called "Honey" and it was a very soft, light brown. I loved it so much, I got another of the same brand just another color--that one was "Pink Lemonade" and as expected was a light pink color. Lipstick was the first makeup I was actually "allowed" to wear. And it was probably because it was so much like lipgloss (which I'd been using my entire life;) I've searched high and low for pictures of these first lipsticks and I can't find them anywhere! I did however see a multitude of other Bonne Bell products that were also very early products for me. I had the lip sheers lipstick (in "Wine Cooler" which was a deep burgundy wine color and another brown one I can't remember the name). All of my lipsticks back then were really matte and simple. :)

How about first nail polishes?? I can't remember exactly which ones were first, but my first three were a dark blue and a silver glitter from Wet 'n Wild and a hot pink I'd bought at Claire's. I used these polishes ALLLLL the time. My dad didn't really like the blue one 'cause it made me look trampy or something lol, but the glitter was totally okay and I wore it so much the bottle was almost empty!

Years have past and I don't have any of those firsts in my life any more, just the pictures and memories. But even though times have changed (and so have I) I still find myself enjoying some of those firsts--I still have a lot of Bonne Bell items in my makeup collection; most of my lipsticks are still pink and brown; and I now have multiple pinks, blues, and glitter polishes:) Maybe some things never really change...

What were some of your firsts? Do you ever find yourself reverting to the age old staples?

Soft as a baby's.... lips??

So everyone has heard (and probably used) the phrase "soft as a baby's bottom." I'm not sure how often we say, "soft as a baby's lips"; but I imagine baby lips are probably pretty soft! That's the plan behind Maybelline's recently released Baby Lips Moisturizing Lip Balm, which touts accomplishments such as "82% visibly less dry, 94% less rough lips, 77% more supple, and 77% better looking lips." Who wouldn't want to enjoy all those things??

Now, let's back up just for a moment for a little background on the lip issue. Lip gloss has been a part of my life for as far back as I can remember. My first glosses were Bonne Bell Lip Smackers in orange and watermelon--and maybe 'cause it was my first, but to this day, some 20+ years later, Lip Smackers are still my go to choice of a basic lip gloss. I claim that my lip gloss "addiction" started around 8th grade... it was again Bonne Bell, but it was a little jar of "Watermelon Falls." That went with me everywhere! I was using lipgloss first thing in the morning, throughout the day, and of course right before I went to bed. I had the softest, smoothest, most kissable lips around! When I was sixteen or so, my mom found this article in the newspaper that talked about lip gloss addiction. OMG! That is what I had! The article said it was all "psychological," but I knew better. I knew the burning sensation I had if I went too long without reapplying. I knew how fidgety I got if my lips felt dry. I'd never smoked, but I figured this is what it felt like to try to quit smoking. There was no quitting this addiction, I was hooked.

I've been through a variety of brands and flavors and at one point even had a "lip gloss inventory" which I documented every tube I had, how full it was, when I got it, and rated it on a 5 star system. (lip gloss dork alert!) 

The point is, I'm kind of a (self proclaimed) lip product connoisseur, and when I saw the advertisement in the November 2011 issue of Cosmo, I knew I was going to have to try "Baby Lips."

It comes in six different "flavors" and I chose "Pink Punch" which is a pretty, light hot pink color. It comes in a pink tube with yellow letters. All the packaging is really catchy which makes the product fun and girly! At Wal-mart, it's $2.97 so even if it were horrible, I wasn't going to be out a whole chunk of money. Reading all the claims, I was pretty impressed to start. However, my lips were already "less dry" and "less rough" to begin with, so I wasn't really sure what results I could expect from it. The smell and flavor is sweet and just like a tropical punch. It goes on smooth and is not too thick or heavy. It does have a hint of color, which I haven't decided if I like or not. As a balm, it is not shiny or glossy but does feel very nourishing. The 20 SPF sunscreen is a nice touch!

Since the claims are all based on a "clinical study after four weeks of use," I've decided to do my own "not-so-clinical study of four weeks of use" and document the status of my lips.  Today is day 3. I'm expecting at the end of these four weeks, I'll have lips much more supple--like those of Angelina Jolie. Will keep you posted and give a complete review of the product at the end:)