Canon T3i my new baby

Canon T3i... OMG.. It is finally in my hands. I have been really looking at this camera for a long time and here it sits in my room. My mothers boyfriend saw it on sale and asked her if it was alright to buy it for me. I can't wait to get to play with it. I did start taking pictures with my new baby.. I think her name is going to be Emma. Named after my favorite Marvel Character.. so you will hopefully be seeing a lot more pictures, and possibly of better quality.

The camera has so many functions, there is so many different things I can do with it. I will be using it not only for my review photos, and swatches but while I start my makeup line. I know that some of you know this is my intention. I have so many ideas and this small step is in the direction that I am so excited to be. I am going to start buying the supplies and organizing my area to get started. It's the most exciting adventure I have taken on.

I will be taking photography classes, so you will get to see me grow. I have the most supportive people in my life, everyone rooting for me in my corner. I am so happy with the people I have now. I want to be the same for the people in my life. I love seeing friends and family members flourish. What are you accomplishing this year? Are you trying to lose weight, start a business, eat healthier, going back to school? Let me know let's see how we can be beneficial and helpful to each other. I love you all.

Jedi Elvis Benefit Concert

This last weekend. I had the greatest of pleasures of attending a benefit for the victims of Oklahoma Tornados, put on Jedi Elvis and the Red Cross at the Covina Performing Arts Center. I am friends with Jedi Elvis, funny story, he and I performed together on that very stage 13 years before in the musical Joseph and the Amazing Technicolored Dreamcoat.

I wore my Slave Leia star wars dress, so glad to have a chance to wear it out for a day. I have so many geeky outfits that I hae been aquiring. I am doing a lot of Charity things, and more as I come across organizations I want to work with.

This wonderful event for me not only was a great chance at helping others, but I made quite a few friends at the event and I am thankful for the chance to find more people in the communities that I love that are friendly, helpful and full of the desire to help each other. You might even see pictures of them at other events since we are making more plans to spend time together.

The event had 3 acts. Al'coustic, a Weird Al performer, he was quite good and very funny. He was enjoyable to watch. I like listening to Weird Al songs so it was a fun time for all. You can find him here.

The next band was Apartment 14. They were a cute group. I liked the song they wrote about Vampires and Werewolves. Here is there facebook page. Please look them up. They are worth listening to.

Raffle tickets were sold and there was a Silent Auction. I donated a giftbag of makeup worth about $150 to the silent auction. I bought 20 raffle tickets, and gave them out to people when the numbers got called, I didn't really need raffle prizes, I took some things home to my roommates and boyfriend and got a WonderWoman comic for research reasons, since a few know she is one of the costumes that I am in the process of working on.

There were lots of fun, in chance raffles. Lots of fun items were given out. Heroes season 1, a Squirel Deadpool, Thor's Hammer (which is living in my room at this time) and so much more. Even a signed copy of a Huey Lewis CD.

Great times were had by all and Jedi Elvis was the main act, who brought down the stage. He is such a wonderful entertainer and a great man. The life in the theatre was so amped up and enjoyable. Jedi Elvis parodies Elvis songs and makes them Star Wars related. I loved the choices he made.

Check out Jedi Elvis on these platforms and go to youtube and listen to these 3 performing groups. They were all delightful. I am so happy to have been a part of the benefit.

Alcoustic - Alcoustic's facebook fan page

Apartment 14 Apartment 14 facebook page

Jedi Elvis Jedi Elvis Facebook

Miss you guys

It's been 13 days since I last posted. I am so sorry. I have been in school full time and working full time, so my time has been so nuts that I just haven't had the time for much, much less a life. So I am gonna get some up on my blog for the next week. I love you all. I will be emailing the winners of the contest because I totally forgot about it, so I can get the bracelets out to the winners shortly.

CVS Mini Haul

I had some coupons for free BodyWash over at CVS so I went over and to grab the body wash and the Red Coupon Machine gave me some coupons to use. They sent me a $3 coupon to use towards anything.

I saw there was a coupon for $1 off large Dove bars, I remembered that there was some on sale for $0.59 so I grabbed 2 of them.

Then they had a coupon for $0.25 off a Pepsi Product, so I grabbed a 2 liter of Mountain Dew, with 5 people in my household we go through far too much soda, it is my vice for sure.

I found the Maybelline Color Show Denims on half price. So I picked up the two different colors they had Styled Out and Demin Dash. So $4 for 2.. YAY

I also grabbed City Duet 2 in 1 Lip Color by NYC in The Hot Pinks. I grabbed Wet N Wild's Spotlight Red. I have heard so many people talk about it that I knew I had to grab it.

I got CVS brand Body Wash in Romance and Energize. I like the smell of both so I am quite excited. They were free because of the coupons they gave out.

I got a limited edition Olay cleansing wipes in a cute container. I wanted to try them and I love boxes, so I had to get it.

Overall I spent $13.73 and I saved $18.84. I am pretty pleased with how I made out in this one.

I used a $3 coupon they emailed me, 2 bodywash coupons from the Facebook page (1 for me, 1 for my bf), a coupon off the body wash bottle, and 2 coupons from the Red Coupon Machine in store.

School Started Today

I started school today. First time in a long time since I have been in school. I am working hard at getting my life on schedule. I worked on homework all day, making flashcards for school and got some of my homework done for my classes.

Proactiv Gentle Formula my journey starts here

While at Generation Beauty I met up with a rep for Proactiv. Now I have for a long time been trying to get my skin under control. It doesn't get like crazy bad, but I am not happy with where it is at now.

She gave me a couple of things to try out and she told me we would talk in the future about other products and what is and isn't working for me, or other things I would like to try out.

I received a 3 step set of the new Gentle Formula. I tried out the regular formula and it didn't really work for me. So I am looking forward to see how these products work for me.

I got the Clarifying Cleanser, Clarifying Toner, Clarifying Day Lotion, Advanced Blemish Treatment, Refining Mask and the Green Tea Moisturizer. I will be working these all into my routine and see how I like it. I really am very excited to try it out.

So here is my Before picture.. don't be too mean. I will be posting again in a month to show you my progress with the brand.

So follow me on my journey to getting clearer nicer skin.

2nd Attempt at Crayon Lipstick - Black w/ Copper Shimmer

So I did my second attempt at Crayon Lipstick in a Black with copper shimmer. I used cocoa butter, coconut oil, cinnamon oil, olive oil, the crayon and a little bit of moisture chapstick.

This time I realized I need to mix the cinnamon oil with something because it no longer smells like crayon but it smells like a burning cinnamon candle. I don't really like the smell, but it's all trial and error until I find the best formula.

EdgeWater Inn by Michael Pe

Another Guest Post from my photographer friend Michael Pe.

Planning on a little vacation or just want to have a little stress free zone “ME” time? I am currently traveling for work and my latest destination stop is right here on the beautiful sunny California: Pismo Beach! Let me tell you, It was one of the most relaxing time I’ve had in years. I recently stayed at the beachfront hotel called Edge Water Suite and Inn. The hotel is literally right on the beach and walking distance to downtown Pismo Beach. My suite had a nice view of the beach which I enjoyed while doing my paperwork. My suite has a large flat screen TV which came in handy so I wouldn’t miss any of the TV shows such as NCIS. It has a mini fridge to cool down some store bought margaritas and pina coladas which I truly enjoyed at the hot tub after a hard day at work then snooze off on a very comfortable King Size Bed.

The beach is somewhat private as there are not a lot of people when I went, exactly how I want it, so I was able to relax without being disturbed. The beach has a lot of nice scenic views which I’m not even going to describe as there are no words that will give it justice to describe it. Just take a look at the pictures.

Edge Water Suite and Inn is located in the beautiful city of Pismo beach on 280 Wadsworth Pismo Beach, CA 93449. Phone Number : 888-248-1354

View from my window

Some photos of the Beach

Too Faced BB Cream Vanilla Glow

I grabbed some of the Too Faced Beauty Balm in Vanilla Glow. I had really wanted to try out this product since I like the Smashbox BB cream, I knew I wanted to try this, because I want to try out all the BB Creams that the companies are making right now.

I like the new product because it definitely feels nice on the skin, it has a bright glow to it. It is slightly tinted. The smell of it is very makeup smelling, but it doesn't smell to strong.

It matches my skin pretty well. For me it is too oily and shiny. That is the last thing I am looking for in a face product. I like the glow but it is far too much for me.

Since I don't like it for use alone. I put it underneath Smashbox's CC Cream. I know double layering, but it looked very nice on my skin. It made my skin looked great.

This color is called Vanilla Glow. It blends in really well. I like it overall.

My new series What Exactly is and Why do I need it? #1 BB Cream

So I decided to start this new series because I hear a lot of people say What exactly is this and why do I need it for so many products. I wanted to share with you about the products that seem to be new and interesting and share with you what it does and why you should be using it.

So here goes my first installment. BB Creams. This new trend of a Korean product is taking the USA by storm and almost all the companies have jumped on board.

A BB Cream is a multitasker it helps with anti aging, blemishes, hydrating. It really makes your skin healthier and isn't that all we are looking for in a product.

I use Too Faced Beauty Balm in Vanilla Glow as a primer under my Smashbox CC Cream. It isn't too heavy and looks beautiful on my skin gives it a nice glow.

There are so many brands with BB Creams out, so it is hard for someone who doesn't use it to make a decision. I always say start with the cheaper brands since losing $5-$10 is nicer for your wallet then trying $40-$60. Another great way is if you live near a sephora they can make you samples, or a makeup counter.

You might use a foundation now, but with the makeup trends constantly changing this is a product you should check out.

Nicole by OPI Dotticure

So today I got the chance to play with some of the Nicole by OPI colors. I thought it would be fun to do a little dot mani with the colors. They had soo many cute colors to play with but I thought I should go with blue and pink because they really stood out.

I kept my accent nail, in Nicole by OPI's Gumdrop color in A-nise Treat.

I used Candid Cameron from the Morden Family collection for the base. I used Spring Break for dotting. I liked the way it turned out very cute. I really like all the dot manicures.

The colors went on really easily and dried pretty quickly.

The Incredible People I met at Generation Beauty 2013

This was my mom getting her makeup done by Colleen at the PIXI booth. She was a sweetheart.

This is a group of the ladies I met on Friday for our dinner before we hit registration.

Here is Kyma of ATrueLady

Here is another group of us hanging out on Saturday.

Again we were hanging out for the treasure hunt.

Here is another picture of more of the ladies I met. All incredible.

This is me with the makeup artist from Bare Minerals who did my hair.

Here I am with Doe Deere of Lime Crime. SOOO excited.

Here I am with Amy from SugarPill.. I am in love with her eye shadows and her kitty mascot.

Hanging out with my new friend Diana.

You can find all these great ladies at these links :

YouTubes:

OneUniqueTruLady

TMSocial

FinesseAndFashion

MissDolphinglam

Bffabulous

DianasFaceIllusions

TheSirenSingsSoSweet

ConfessionsofaMUA

LoveFranTV

Facebook Pages:

ATrueLady

MagzFashion

BellezzadiVita

Generation Beauty by Ipsy Day 2 - Friends, Networking, Red Lobster, Shopping

So I thought the event on Sunday started at 10am.. but I was wrong it actually started at 9sm. So I was a little later then I expected getting out of the house. It was ok, I got there grabbed my sneak peak challenge paper, filled it out in like 30 seconds and ran over to claim my prize. They gave us one of the older makeup bags from months past at Ipsy and some makeup products. I was super happy because I ended up with 2 bags I didn't have so yippee.

I then met up with some of my new friends and helped them get there sneak peek goodie.

I went over to the Sheer Cover booth and when the Makeup Artist saw me she grabbed me and told me she wanted to do my makeup, so I let her and she gave me some goodies. I can't wait to play with them. Yay.

I ran around talked with different bloggers, vloggers, vendors. I had a fabulous time. Finally the time came for our Happy Hour. I split the tickets with my mother and we ran around getting all the goodies. I was super excited. SOHO ran out of brushes, but they are mailing us brushes so I am excited to get them.

Here are some pictures of the area and the gift goodies

And all my goodies

Generation Beauty by Ipsy Day 1 : Friends, Idols, Gifts and More.

So sadly this is not up today on Saturday. It will be posted on Tuesday night, I left my camera in the car of my partner.. so no pictures. Let me tell you though, today was amazing. I am so blessed that the community is so overwhelming welcoming, friendly, helpful and just in general awesome. I spent so much time talking to other bloggers, vloggers, makeup lovers about my passion. I couldn't be happier in a place like this. It's so exciting and amazing and I am so glad I got the chance to be a part of this event. I look forward to next years.

I got to the event extra early and met up with some of the other ipster's I met yesterday and we ran around and completed the Treasure Hunt. It was a quick time, but the prize pay out was wonderful. I really want to show off todays bag of prizes. I can't believe the amount of stuff that they gave to us. I was a bit worried at first about the event but just today really made it for me. It was such a wonderful experience and I still have a day to go.

I walked around and talked to all the vendors, talked with attendees, let me mother get her makeup done by Pixi (she looked beautiful). Then I watched Michelle Phan talk a little bit. (She would be the founder of Ipsy and a beauty guru).

I then went and sat down and waited for my makeunder with Bare Minerals, they were giving away a full size foundation and foundation brush for getting your makeup done. I was over the moon. It was a $57 value.. WOW. The Foundation runs $29 and the brush $28. The best thing is I was just looking at getting a brush just like this, this weekend. Now I am set, and that money can go to other things like, more makeup, lol.

Me and my Makeup artist at bare minerals

Amazingly I got to meet both the creators of LimeCrime and SugarPill. I was beyond excited. Doe came over because she loved my dress and asked to take a pic with me. Squeal. Amy commented on the picture of her and I that she wanted my dress, made my day more then I can say.

I had an amazing time and I can't wait for the next event.

Here are some photos of the different booths as we walked in.

The last picture was my mother getting her makeup done over at the Pixi Booth.

Here is the freebies I got from the event.

Old Navy Activewear Crowdtap Sample Share

I love Crowdtap. I have been with them almost 3 years and in that time I have been given so many sample share programs and so many amazing opportunities. I got to last summer meet Luke Perry because of them.

This newest sample share I did for them was Old Navy Activewear, this was actually my 2nd time doing it. I am in love with the compression pants. They are incredible. They are comfortable and wonderful for working out or just wearing out. I own I think 5 pairs now, I just can't get enough of them.

For this sample share they gave me two coupons one for me and one for a friend to grab each a pair of bottoms and a top. I got myself a pair of the compression pants and a zipdown top in black. I wear them quite often. She got herself a pair of the compression pants and a pink running shirt.

Everything fits super comfortably, it looks good and is super affordable.

I am so pleased to be a part of Crowdtap for all the opportunities they give me.

Nicole by OPI GumDrops

So this weekend I got to play with the new Nicole By OPI GumDrops. I am totally digging on the textured polishes and was super excited to try it out. I really love OPI's LiquidSand so I figured, from the same brand I would adore these. They aren't as textured as I thought they would be. I used My Cherry Amour (Red) and A-nise Treat (Black) as accent nails. They are textured matte glitter.

They didn't dry super fast so I messed them up three times before I got them to dry without me screwing them up. I love the colors, but felt there wasn't enough texture to them.

I know kinda funny when I felt the Sally Hansen had too much texture, and OPI Liquidsand is my favorite at the moment. I haven't had the chance to try them all but I promise to keep you updated.

I did not purchase these or receive them, I was just given the chance to play with them.

There are 6 colors in the set, I only had the chance to play with 2 of them. So if you get the chance, they are beautifil polishes and worth the money if you like the micro glitter look.