Top 13 Beauty Products from 2013

Wow!
    Today is the last day of 2013! I learned so much about myself this year and really enjoyed life. This year I finished Freshman year and ended halfway through sophomore year, travelled in January, discovered my love for Korean makeup earlier in January and overall my makeup abilities. I grew in my relationships with my family and friends, and I learned to accept the love that people have given me. Speaking of love, today is all about the products that I have loved throughout the year. That is why there was no monthly favorites for December (: Lets get started on this mega review!

Face
1.
        

    This is my holy grail BB Cream. Seriously, when my acne was like horrendous (I'll do a blog post about how I cleared up my skin soon), I used this BB cream and it really helped to make my skin look better. I still you it now and i absolutely love it. Nature Republic is a line that I have only tried a little bit, but I really enjoy this BB cream. It has a natural finish and makes your skin really soft to touch. I definitely recommend this product to everyone! I like to apply it in small dots across my skin and then blend it all out with a kabuki brush. Its like one step to a flawless face.

2.

     This is probably one of the best concealers I have ever used (and believe me I have used a lot). It is a really solid kind of concealer, like the kind that you would expect in a stick form, however for this product you can either use your fingers or a brush. I like to warm it up with my skin, so I usually use my fingers to blend it all out. This can cover anything! I'm convinced. The truth of the matter is that it is simply amazing. I've used it on my friends when I've done their makeup for Formal (basically like Homecoming and Prom) and it always has made their skin look great. Plus it looks good in photos.

3.

     I rave about this powder all the time. I'm addicted, what can I say? Ha ha, so this is one of the best powders I have ever used. Its not coarse on your skin and it blend in seamlessly. I've talked about this powder in one of my videos on YouTube, so I'll leave y'all a link in the down for that video, in which i explain which powders fit which skin type. It has no talc so its great for sensitive skin and it won't clog your pores like most powders. I use this mostly in the summer seasons because it also has sunscreen in it as well.

4.

     This is the Laura Geller Baked Blush in Bora Bora. It is the perfectest peach-y pink I have used so far! It gives such a natural flush to your cheeks and the finish is gorgeous. It makes your skin look fresh and dewy, while including a subtle shimmer. I could honestly talk about it forever, from the texture to the hue, but then this would be a very long post (; Lets just say that it is amazing.

Eyes:

1.

     One day I'm going to suck up and buy the MAC paint pots, but until then, I'm going to keep talking about the Maybelline Color Tattoos. I really like this one in Barely Branded, which is a really pretty champagne tone that really compliments any eye look that your trying to achieve. This is a great base and I especially love to use it when I'm going to be out for a long time, since it's supposed to last all day. Overall amazing base product.

2.

      I love me my neutral eye shadows, so its no wonder that I fell in love with this creamy palette from L'Oreal. Seriously when i say creamy, I really mean it. I almost like these eye shadows better than my mac ones! Almost. They apply very well to your eyes and are completely matte. When I go to the drugstore its hard to find really good quality eye shadows, but now I'm just collecting from L'Oreal since I have found the best drugstore eyeshadow palette I've ever used.

3.

     FAVORITE EYELINER ALERT! Sorry I had to get that out of my system. This is one creamy waterproof eyeliner. It applies like butter and stay put no matter what your going to be doing. This little guy has made tight lining so much easier! I have a few other black eyeliners, but nothing can really compare to this ones staying power. Good job Urban Decay, you have made my life so much easier now (:

4.

     Look no further for mascara. If you want zero clumps, volume, lift  and length, this is the mascara for you. Cover girl mascaras are my favorite for their formulations, and this one kinda takes the cake. I have tried so many mascaras and none have been as amazing. I mean honestly, I like it so much more then the Benefit They're Real Mascara. I find that that one has an unpleasant smell and it too liquid-y. Cover girl has completely spoilt me. The formula is nice and medium so not too thin, and not too thick either. It applies so much easier and isn't messy like most.

5.

     Too Faced Shadow Insurance is a great eye primer. It really keeps your eye makeup in place, whereas otherwise it would be sliding around (i have fairly oily eyelids). When I use this, I have complete confidence that everything will stay in place and not smudge. I definitely think that this is worth the price (which isn't "that" bad, for high end) and that everyone should add this guy to their collections, that is if you want a smudge proof base for your makeup.

Lips:

 1, 2, 3.

     This has proven to be one of the best lip glosses i have ever used! the formula is so nice. Not too gooey, not too thin either. Uber pigmented and so smooth, they really add a gorgeous sheen to the lips. Normally I don't like a lot of glossy products, but this turned out to be a great surprise. I definitely couldn't just pick one of them as favorites so I just decided to show you all the ones I own. I do plan on picking up more next time Ulta has a 3 for 15 sale, but for now these are mine (:

4.

     Last Product is this amazing lipstick! It is a multi-toned flesh toned pink. That's right, its Revlon Colorburst Lipstick in Petal. This is my go to MLBB (my lips but better) color. It looks so pretty an natural. It make my lips look very pretty and plump for kissing. Keke, just kidding, my brothers would kill that poor guy (: It has a really nice moisturizing feel to it, leaving a moist finish on your lips.

     Alright people! Last post for 2013. I can't believe that this year is done! I just got used to putting 2013 on my papers and now I have to relearn that skill. UGH! I really hope you guys have made your resolutions and are ready to stick to them. I'll see you all next year!!

Gracie

p.s. I might do a year anniversary giveaway. Tell me what you think about that in the comments bar. Oh and don't forget to 1+ this if you're excited for future posts (:

New Years Eve Makeup Tutorial

Hello Darling,
     Alright so New Years is upon us and each year there is one thing that happens that always stands out, the midnight kiss. This is a makeup tutorial inspired by that magical moment at midnight, it is also a great look for wherever you're going this new years eve. Its a much softer look than most new years looks, but I think it it's perfect for that single fleeting moment. Lets get started, shall we?

Face:

    1
      When you kiss your face is really close to another persons (obviously), so lets make sure that our pores are completely invisible. This is such a nice pore primer! It make even the biggest pores shrink down to size. So apply a little bit to your fingertips and then pat into your skin. Focusing mainly on where your pores get the largest. After patting all over, spread the rest across your face for and overall poreless look.

2.

  We are going to be using a mousse- type BB cream for our skin, to create a moisturized look to the skin. This particular BB cream has honey extract in it, so it is ultra hydrating to your skin. Apply to the back of your hand, then make dots; three on each cheek; one on the nose; three on the forehead; three on the chin. Blend it all out with a beauty sponge.

3.

    Now since my dark circles are horrid, I'm going to apply some under eye concealer. This one has salmon oil in it (I know it sounds gross but trust me, its great :) I'll put my review at the end of this post), which helps to brighten your under eye area. Apply with your ring finger underneath your eyes and inner corner, blend out with your beauty sponge.

4.

     I don't want our skin to look too dewy, so take a powder and pat it into your skin. Patting keep your brush from smearing product everywhere. Don't worry, take a powder brush once you've patted it into your skin and dust off any access.

     This highlighter is so beautiful. It adds a beautiful, cool glow to your skin. I like to take a foundation brush and start on the inner portion of my cheek, then work it up onto my cheek bones and temples. it just gives your face such an elegant look.

5.

      Taking a cream blush to maintain a soft look to the skin, Apply it to the apples of your cheeks with your fingers. Take a blush brush and blend it out afterwards to make sure it's all blended nicely.

Eyes:

1.

      Eyeshadow primer ensures that the color will pop and last all night long, which is what you want on night like New Years.  Here I'm using this Too Faced primer and applying it with my ring finger to my eyelid, patting not rubbing, so as we won't have wrinkles there when we get older.

2.

     Taking a vanilla shade, I'm going to apply it all over my eyes with a fluffy brush. This will be our base color, which all the other colors will play off of. The vanilla color is softer than a white shade and will make us look more awake even if we only got five hours of sleep the night before.

3.

      Start by taking Wrapped Up (from the Sleek Oh So Special Palette) on an eyeshadow brush and apply it to your upper lash line, blending it out up into the crease. Take Glitz and apply it the the lash line and into the crease blending to give it a soft look. Lastly take Celebrate onto an angled brush and apply it to the outer edge of your upper lash line and onto the outer portion of your lower lash line.

4.

     Take a glitter eyeliner (here I'm using the Etude House Tear Drop Eyeliner in #1) and apply it to your "Cute Spot" which is the chubby part underneath your eyes when you smile and also on to your inner corner. This will give your eyes more of a glamourous look while still keeping it subtle.

5.

      Take a gel eyeliner and apply to your upper lash line in a medium/ thick line. This also will add some much needed drama to the eyes. Wing it out if you want or keep it natural, your choice.

6.

    Curl the eyelashes then apply one coat of your favorite lengthening mascara (here I'm using the Nature Republic So Big Curling Mascara). Also apply a good coat to your lower eyelashes as well. Go over it all with a mascara fixer to give your lashes a smooth, perfect look (here I'm using the Etude House Dr. Mascara Fixer for Perfect Lash).

Lips:

1.

      Apply a moisturizing lip balm to your lips. Here I'm using the Chapstick Moisturizer lip balm to give my lips a smooth moist look, perfect for kissing ;)

2.

    Apply a shimmery light pink lipstick all over your lips for a nice nude touch. This one I chose has silver glitters to it, since silver is the whole undertone for this look. 

3.

     Take a lip pencil (here I'm using NYX Jumbo Lip Pencil in Pink Nude) and apply it to the center of your lips to make them look fuller.

Finished Look:

      I really hope you guys enjoyed this look. If you did, make sure to 1+ it so your friends can see it as well. I hope you have a great New Years and I'll see you guy in 2014! (almost my 1 year anniversary on this blog!!),
Grace

P.S.  The Skinfood Salmon Dark Circle Concealer Cream Review Link:
http://gracesbeautydiarykeke.blogspot.com/2013/08/skinfood-salmon-dark-circle-concealer.html

D.I.Y Chocolate Body Scrub

Hi!
     Okay so, A lot of us have new years resolutions to eat healthy, drink more water and stuff like that, but for the chocolate lovers out there, this can be a hard task. One thing that I love to make though is a chocolate body scrub. In some way I feel as though it tricks your mind making it easier to not crave chocolate as much. Maybe it's just me. Anyhow, lets get started!

Ingredients-

Whats in it for me-

Chocolate- believe it or not, chocolate helps with clearing up your skin when applied to your face. It detoxifies your skin while sloughing of the dead skin to reveal the beautiful skin underneath. It really helps to add a nice glow to your skin because of all the antioxidants it has in it. It protects the skin from the sun (because, believe it or not, you can still get sunburned in the winter) which helps with blocking out harmful UV/UVB rays as well as skin cancer.

Sugar-  Sugar is a natural exfoliate and it won't clog your pores if you use it on your skin (like what we are doing here). It helps to get rid of blemishes and acne as well as restores the balance of oils on your skin.

Olive Oil- Olive oil is great for moisturizing dry skin as well as amping up the glow on your skin. It helps protect the skin from UV/UVB rays.

Directions-
Mix 1 cup of brown sugar in with 1 cup of white sugar in a small container. In a separate container combine 1/2 cup of olive oil with 1 tsp of vanilla, 1 tsp of cinnamon and 1 tbsp of baking cocoa. Mix the liquids and then combine it with the sugars.

Finished Product-

     I love this body scrub and I hope you guys do to! If you have any review requests or tutorial ideas (: See ya soon!!
Grace

p.s. expect a new years eve party tutorial soon!!!!

2ne1 CL Missing You Makeup Tutorial

Annyeong!
     Okay so this tutorial is for my bias in 2ne1, CL. Her look in this video is very classic and I'm starting to see a trend in korea, winged eyeliner. Anyway, I loved her look and while doing Bom's doll-like look would've been really fun, this one is a little more wearable. Lets jump right on in!!

Face.

Step 1.

     Instead of applying a primer, for this makeup look, I decided to use a sunscreen. This helps to give the skin a more luminous and pale complexion, which is perfect for this makeup tutorial

Step 2.

      Next using my favorite facial spray of the moment (as you can tell by how little is left in the bottle) I just spritz that all over my face, usually I only need three sprays. If you follow my blog you know that I rave about propolis. Basically what it does, is it evens out your skins tone and texture and allows your skin to really flourish and also helps clear and protect your skin.

Step 3:

     Take a matte foundation (or in my case BB Cream since I have a thing against foundation), and apply that in small dots all over your face and blend it out with a beauty blender, or a sponge. Using the beauty blender will really help to give your skin a more natural coverage. This BB Cream I'm using helps to brighten up your skin and also helps with dark spots too.

Step 4:

     Since I have really bad dark circles (thank you chemistry for making me stay up late studying :p) I'm using an undereye concealer that help not only to conceal but also prevent dark circles as well, so I'm going to apply it with my ring finger, then blend it out with my beauty blender for a natural finish.

Step 5:

     Now I'm setting everything with a pressed powder and pat that onto the places I've concealed and any areas where I get oily. If your not sure what kind of powder to use, I'll put a link at the end of this post that will help you to determine which one is right for your skin.

Eyes:

Step 1:

     Before anything, I have to do my eyebrows. I find that my looks really aren't complete without my eyebrows filled in, which brings the focus onto your eyes. So just follow the natural shape of the brows and you're good to go.

Step 2:

    Prime your eyelids to ensure that the color will really pop when you apply them.

Step 3:

     Taking a bronze brown color and apply it into the crease, then blend it out to make it look more natural.

Step 4:

     Taking a shimmering eyeliner, apply that to the inner corners of your eyes and the "Cute Spot" which is the puffy part of your eye when you smile.

Step 5:

     Take a shimmery vanilla color and apply that to the inner corners, cute spot and brow bone with your finger, to really pack on the color.

Step 6:

     Take a gel eyeliner and wing it out. The line on your upper lash line should be medium/thick.

Step 7:

     Curl the eyelashes and apply a volumizing mascara. After the coat dries, go over the lashes with a curling mascara to really open up the eyes some more.

Cheeks and Lips:

Step 1:

    All that I'm going to be doing for the cheeks is take a highlighter that has gold shimmers, and apply that to the high points on my face (i.e. cheekbones, cupid's bow, top of your nose, the space above your eyebrows).

Step 2:

     Conceal your lips with any kind of concealer or lip concealer. Apply it to the outer portions of your lips, prepping it for lipstick.

Step 3:

     Apply a nude pink lipstick to your entire lip and blend in with your fingertips to give it a more natural finish.

Step 4:

     Take a shimmery lipgloss and apply it to the center of your lips, to give them a fuller appearance.

The Finished Look:

    That's it! I really hope you all enjoyed this and if you have any request, leave me a comment and I'll get back to you as fast as I can! I'll see ya'll soon!!
Grace

p.s. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KoEb6_NQ_Cs