July 2013 Favorites | Makeup, Skincare, and More

Hello beautiful people! It is ya girl, Nicole, all up in yo face! How is everyone doing today?

This weekend was jam packed for me. On Saturday I went with my family to the tattoo convention in New Jersey.

Me and momma bear!

My family loves tattoos. My dad is almost covered in them. My mom has her fair share of them, and my sister, Sam, had like 5 by the time she was 20. My other sister, Erica can't seem to stop getting them. She is crazy. Love you, E! As for me I only have two, but I want more. I'm just thinking up my next one ;)

The convention was also right on a boardwalk so we got to enjoy some of the beauty. 

Then on Sunday I went with my mom and Sam to a Zumba party in Chelsea Pier. 

It was a fundraiser for HIV/AIDS. It was really fun because we took some Zumba friends along. Plus 90 minutes of Zumba is pretty much the best thing ever. I was exhausted by the end of the weekend though because I also took a Zumba class in the morning. I'm a little crazy too I guess ha ha. 

Onto the favorites! July is coming to an end so I thought it would be cool to show you guys what I have been loving. I will talk about the products in the picture from left to right. Lets get started! 

Face: 

Givenchy Mister Light Concealer and YSL Touché Éclat Highlighting Pen- I have one word for these works of God. Yes! I have been using them like crazy because they highlight and conceal all the redness and darkness on my skin. They never look cakey and feel nice and light. 

Givenchy Gold Primer- Like my sample jar? Ha ha. I took a sample of this because I wanted to see if it really does take away oil while still adding radiance. And girl, yes it does. This primer has flecks of gold in it, which is what gives it that ability. 

Josie Maran Matchmaker Foundation- Yes, another sample jar. I don't know about you, but I break out sometimes when I try new foundations, so I took a sample. I love it so far. It gives awesome coverage while feeling light. One of my coworkers actually came into work when I was wearing it and was like, "Oh my god! Your skin looks amazing." So yeah I will most likely be buying this. 

Milani Baked Blush in Luminoso- Go to my CVS Haul post to read my proclamation of love for this amazing-ness. 

Eyes:

Makeup Forever Smokey Extravagant Mascara- In a previous post I said that I did not like the wand of the mascara and still preferred my Urban Decay one. Well I retract that statement. I still love my urban, but this mascara is the shit amazing (gotta keep it P-G) ha ha. My lashes look fake and perfectly fanned out. They actually show through my eyeliner. BOOM!

Kay Von D Tattoo Liner in Trooper- This little guy has popped up on the blog before, but if you follow me on Instagram then you know I have feeling the cat eye a lot this month. 

Stila purple liner- Thanks to my previous post  we all know that purple liner is a way to make brown eyes pop. I also find that when I am in a rush adding some color makes it look like a tried super hard ha ha. 

Maybeline Great Lash Clear- This was featured in my eyebrow post and has been a real life saver for my brows and keeping the pencil from fading away.

Skincare:

Fresh Lotus Eye Gel- My eyes have been brighter over the last couple of days :) I'm excited. 

Fresh Umbrian Clay Oil Free Lotion- It leaves my skin feeling moisturized without being weighed down. 

Korres Wild Rose Cleanser- It has lite exfoliating beads that do wonders on the oil that builds up during the day. Wild rose is also packed with vitamin C and my face looks so much more glowing and bright lately. 

Lips: 

Revlon Just Bitten Lip Balm in Rendezvous- My go to coral with staying power! 

Revlon Lip gloss in Bellini, Revlon Lipstick Pink in the Afternoon, and L'Oreal Lipstick Unending Nude- The best nudes and pinks ever! Again, go to the CVS post to read my reviews on them :) 

Random: 

Sabra Roasted Garlic Hummus- It is delicious with baby carrots and sliced peppers. 

Goji Berries- Super food. Super nutritional. Taste like candy. Pretty much a win all the round :) I love putting them on my oatmeal or on some yogurt. Yummers!

Nails:

Essie Nail Polish in Mint Candy Apple

Tart Deco

and Go Ginza.

Pastel nails are very 'in' for the summer time since they look so stunning on tan skin. So long, bright neon nails! I have been wearing them all month long :) These are my favorite colors.

Tattoos. Love them or hate them?

Zumba. Love it or hate it? Oh wait. That's a silly question ;)

Well that is pretty much it for this post. Let me know in the comments if you try or have tried any of these things! Love y'all.

 'Till next time...

Nicole xo.

Struck by Lightning

Hey guys! :)

If you are wondering why I am smiling it is because I have the day off and finally have been able to do things that I want. I have mostly just been working on my social media things and things with the blog. In case you don't know I also have a Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. So if you want to be updated on posts you can follow me on those :) I put lots of the pictures that are on the blog on all those as well, so definitely check it out. I will link everything down at the bottom.

Today was not so bad, weather wise. The heat wave has finally passed! It is still nice and warm, though. Since the weather was nicer today, I was feeling the very light summer air and decided to go with a light makeup application. At work yesterday I made a sample of Josie Maran's Matchmaker Foundation:

And Josie Maran's Argan Infinity Cream:

I used the cream as my primer and put the foundation right on top. It literally feels like nothing is on my face! Plus all of Josie Maran's products are organic and infused with Argan Oil. I know you guys are thinking that putting oil on your skin is bad. Not true. Good oil takes out bad oil. Especially in these summer months, we are constantly letting moisture out of our bodies and have to replenish that moisture. When our skin does not quench its thirst, it will go into survive mode and make more oil. This causes, obviously, oily skin and outbreaks. The foundation is cool too because it actually goes on white and adjusts to your skin as you blend. I thought it was b.s. too, but it really works guys! My skin looks so radiant, not oily or shiny.

And on my lips I wanted something more natural too. I have had this Revlon Kissable Lip Balm for a couple months, and decided to pop it on since it had that light coral I was looking for. 

They look like this, in case you wanna grab one. You know you do :) Mine is the third from the left called, Rendezvous. On to add a little shine I put on my Revlon Lipgloss in the color, Bellini.

I'm also really excited to share with you guys how I do a very special eyeliner trick. Yesterday I put these photos on Instagram and got a lot of positive feed back:

That's right baby! Lighting eyeliner. I did it once before and this time around came out so much better. So don't be intimidated. When I did it over again today for you guys it came out even better-er. Practice makes perfect :) So grab your favorite liquid liner and get ready. Okay so here is how I did it. First start out with a regular line on the top lash line. Go as thick as you want.

Now starting from that line, make another line going to the crease. Like so...

Note: The inside does not need to be perfect because we are gonna fill in later. Now you want to draw a line from that one going into the crease, making a Z like formation.

From that line make a straight line going up and out. Use the end of your brow as your guide. Go out as  far as you want.

Start from the tip of that line and work your way down, mirroring what you just did. 

 Boom.

 Bam.

Until a the lightning bolt shape is formed. Now open your eyes, and just like in cat my cat liner post, place the liquid liner tip at the outer most corner of your lower lash line. From there make a straight line to connect and close the lightning outline.

I think it looks pretty cool like this too, but I was not super neat on the inside so I simply filled it in.

Cool, huh?

See how different the eyes look!? I love it. I got a lot of compliments on it yesterday. That was my proof that I didn't look completely ridiculous and thought I'd share something different with you guys. I think I might actually do this look, like, all the damn time ha ha!

So give it a try and don't be afraid. You are fabulous! Oh and if you wanna get the eye shadow look just click here to see my tutorial post on it. 

My Info!

Facebook- Like it: https://www.facebook.com/pages/NGMthatface/165305723647945?ref=stream

Twitter- Follow it: @NGMthatface

Instagram- Follow it: @NGMthatface

E-mail- Send it: ngmthatface@gmail.com

Yeah, so there you go guys! We covered skin care, foundation, lips, and liner all in one day. That's a lot. I'm actually quite tired ha ha. Not to mention you all now know how to stalk reach me :) You know how I love to hear from you. So please, comment or send me a message! 

Besos!

Nicole xo.

Monday Madness and Masks

Hello everyone! I hope your Monday is going splendidly. My Monday has been nonstop. It started with breakfast and a leg workout. Then I went to clean my room. Don't you just love the feeling after you clean? I love when everything is nice and neat. Anyways, I was quite hungry after my clean-fest and made myself a yummy lunch of a tuna fish sandwich. 

It was a winner. Then I tmade my dinner for later since I'm working late tonight. Then I did my laundry because its been a good two weeks. After that I finally took a shower. I know I'm a gross human being. After the shower I did a mask. You already know from my skin care post that I am so passionate about taking good care of the skin. I don't care how much makeup you have. If your skin is not up to par your makeup will not look good. The mask I did was from a company called, Glam Glow. I heard good things about this mask and was very excited to try it. 

This. Is. Cool. It's a mud mask and goes on this doo-doo gray color. But after ten minutes it changes to an almost light green. When I took it off my skin looked bright and glowing. My skin does not feel oily either. Score. It's a winner guys! 

While in the shower I tried something new too. 

It's a cleanser from Zorres. They are a Greek brand and are completely all natural. This cleanser contains wild rose which is full of more vitamin C than an orange can even dream if. And the smell is so nice. Seriously you guys it smells like Jesus. Not Yeezus. Jesus. 

What masks do you enjoy?

Are your Mondays always madness?

Well that is all for today's post :) Talk to you guys later!

Nicole xo.

Eating for Beautiful Skin

Hey beautiful!

Today was a crazy day to say the least. I attended my first funeral ever this morning. It wasn't for anyone in my family. My mothers friend/co-worker's father passed away. I also consider him to be my friend since I hang out with him and my mom sometimes for lunch and stuff. He is a really good man. 

As I said, I had never been to a funeral before and it was more difficult than I thought it would have been. It also taught me that one person can bring so many people together. That if you are kind, genuine, and positive the people you left behind will be better for it. I won't go into too much detail, but the father was taken very suddenly from his family and it made me realize something. Life is precious. We must spend every waking moment with the ones we love around us. And at the moments where life gets in the way- school, work, sleep, etc..- we must spend that time being the best versions of ourselves. It also taught me to appreciate everything I have much more. It taught me that the family, friends, and even past friends in my life are a blessing and I am thankful that they are/were in my life. And of course I am thankful that I have you guys. Anybody that takes time out of their day to read my blog means the world to me. So, thank you so much for stopping by today! You are pretty awesome :)

Now on to today's post. I have been told a lot lately that I have great skin. I don't know how true this statement is since I have makeup on when people tell me this (lol), and strategically put highlighters to make my skin glow. But, I have noticed an improvement in my skin over the last two years. You see in high school I ate a lot of this:

Aaaaaand this:

Now these things all taste hella-good. And it is definitely okay to enjoy once in a while, but they destroy your skin when taken in in excess. The reason for this being is that they are filled with artificial coloring, simple sugars, and grease.  Now, I am not telling you to not eat these foods. I am simply going to show you things that you can add to your meals everyday to help clear out the skin. It is also better for your health, in general to incorporate some of these foods. You might also find that the foods I will talk about today might actually begin to replace a lot of the foods above, until they are not even missed. You also will notice that the list is mostly fruits and vegetables. The reason for this is that they are full of water. And as we all know water is key to staying hydrated. So by doing that your skin will always look plump and smooth. Think of grapes and raisins. The difference is that one is full of water and the other isn't.

These are also foods that I try to incorporate into my meals daily that make me, my skin, and my body feel good.

Tomatoes: These babies contain something called lycopene. What this does is protect your skin from       sun damage. Think sun spots, wrinkles, hyper pigmentation. Its like a sun block, but it works from the inside out. 

Flaxseeds: Flaxseeds are packed with omega- 3 fatty acids. Not all fats are "bad" for you. These fats help to reduce wrinkles and keep the skin better hydrated since they allow more moisture to go into you skin cells. This makes them firmer. Following me, ladies? Firm skin is young skin.

Spinach: Aids in the repair of DNA, fighting the chance of developing cancer cells. Pretty cool, right?!

Tuna Fish: If you are a fish lover like me, you're going to love this. Tuna helps to protect from free radicals that cause UV damage and they help to hold on to the elastin in the skin. Elastin is what gives your skin that bounce back instead of the sag down.

Kale: Provides your skin with ample amounts of omega 3's and 6's. It also has Vitamins A, C, and K. Vitamin K is essential in the prevention of dark circles under the eyes. And get this, it has more calcium than milk. Calcium helps with cell renewal so that wrinkles don't form. The Vitamin A will also keep your skin smooth and hydrated.

Carrots: Also have Vitamin A to make the skin glow!

Apples: Apples contain Vitamin C to help you preserve the collagen in you skin and produce more.

Berries: Antioxidant powerhouses! These help you fight off many cancers and are amazing for your skin. Berries are the key to having that radiant glow that we all want. The antioxidants also protect our skin from free radicals.

Oatmeal: This is my favorite. I'm not kidding when I tell you that I eat it every morning ha ha. It is great for the body, and since your skin is part of your body, it will also reap the benefits. Oatmeal has omega-3's, thiamine, iron, beta-glucan, and antioxidants. These all help with inflammation, regulating sugar levels (aiding with acne), and giving your skin the nutrients it needs. 

Avocado: The love of my life! I eat avocado everyday. The oil in these little gems is essential to skin. It has been used in many face creams actually. The fat in avocados also contains a lot of the amino acids the skin craves. Eat these!

Now that you know the benefits of everything you're probably like that's a lot of damn food, Nicole. Nobody has time to put that together. Well all you non-believers I will show you what I do and hopefully it will give you some ideas. 

 

Chicken Salad with:

Spinach and berries

Greek Yogurt topped with:

Apples :)

Wrap served with:

Apple and carrots.

Turkey avocado wrap with tomatoes and spinach.

Oatmeal and blueberries

Chicken Salad with flaxseeds and strawberries.

Tuna sandwich on whole wheat bread.

Steamed kale with carrots and cranberries. 

Whole wheat toast with avocado.

You see? It is not that hard. So instead of buttering your toast, top it with mashed avocado. Instead of adding sugar to your oatmeal, top it with some sweet berries. Instead of getting the fats in your meal from only dressing, do half dressing half flaxseeds. When eating a sandwich have carrot sticks on the side instead of fries. Want something sweet for desert? Have an apple! Have a water on the side of the chicken noodle soup, girl. :)

 And there you go. I still eat foods that I love, but that will benefit me in the long run. Trust me, I still have a slice of cake on my birthday or have a piece of pie at a barbeque, but this is pretty much what I eat. My skin, hair, nails, and body agrees with my choices as well. If you are still having doubts, just think of it like this: Make your plate as colorful as possible :) And by that I don't mean skittles. 

At my job there is this picture that I love it shows a fruit bowl with with the phrase, "Nature's skittles" written on it.

It looks something like that and if you think about it, it makes total sense. So go on, enjoy the foods you already eat, but try to include these too. Your skin will thank you for it.

*Disclaimer: I am not a dietitian. Not all foods work for everybody and everyone has different health needs. This is simply what works for me and what has been proven to work on the majority.

What are your favorite fruits and vegetables to eat?

How do you include them in your life?

With love, 

Nicole xo.