Vacation Time!

Hello Beautiful people! This is my last post until next month. It's not a beauty post but just wanted to let you know I'll be on vacation. I'm taking a cruise, we're going to Bahamas, St. Thomas and St. Maarten. I can't wait!!! Hopefully, I'll have some pics of the trip and makeup I'm going to do for the formal nights.  Take care!

All the Best,
Gabriel!

Lipgloss of the Week, Month? (Another Lippie Post)

Mac Revealing lip glass and Cork lip liner

I got this idea from another beauty blogger, Mocha Mish Mash, (her link is below and under the beauty blogs of interest column) she gets a blog award for coming up with this idea. I love her makeup photos of the day and her beauty product reviews, especially the drugstore makeup reviews the most. I was reading one of her posts and she posted that she has a lot of lip glosses (like me) that she doesn't use. So, she gave herself a beauty challenge! She challenged herself to wear 1 of her lip glosses for a full week. So, I'm challenging myself to do the same. I'm not good with persistence at times, so I don't know if I'll be able to keep this up every week, maybe I'll try for lip gloss of the month :)

This week I'm wearing Mac's Revealing lip glass. I've paired it up with Cork lip liner. Revealing is described as "rich caramel" but to me it comes off as the perfect nude lip gloss. Cork lip liner is described as "muted golden brown." Below are the swatches.

Cork lip liner on left, Revealing on right

Here is how they both look together!

Finished look

I love this lip glass. It's the perfect everyday gloss. I've been wearing it every day to work, because it's neutral in color it looks great with a dramatic, smokey eye look. 

To purchase these products visit http://www.maccosmetics.com.

To view Mocha Mish Mash's blog click here http://mochamishmash.blogspot.com

Viva Glam (My Favorite Lipstick)

Viva Glam happens to be my favorite lipstick ever, because of it being my favorite lipstick and because Viva Glam means "glam lives" are a few reasons that I gave myself the blogger screen name, Ms. Viva Glam! I thought it would be great to swatch my all time favorite lip stick and to show you all a few of the lip combinations that I created with this lipstick. For those of you who may not know, Viva Glam lipsticks and glosses are made exclusively by Mac cosmetics. Every cent of the $14 that you pay for the Viva Glam lipsticks and glosses are donated to the MAC Aids Fund to support men, women and children living with HIV and AIDS.

Viva Glam VI Special edition on left, Viva Glam Gaga on right

These are the two Viva Glam lipsticks that I have in my collection right now. The Viva Glam VI Special edition which is described as "soft blue pink" and the Viva Glam Gaga (named after celebrity spokesperson, Lady Gaga) which is described as "cool blue-pink shade." Below are the swatches for each color.

Viva Glam VI Special edition on left, Viva Glam Gaga on right

I've played around with both of these lipsticks for a while now and here are a few lipliner and gloss combinations that I've came up with.

Viva Glam VI Special edition

In this picture, I'm wearing the Viva Glam VI Special edition lipstick. It looks great with a berry lip liner, which I have on in the pic, you can see some remnants of it. The lip liner I have on in the pic is Currant by Mac but any berry lip liner will do. I also have on a golden-pink lip gloss over top, to give it that extra oomph! The name of the lip gloss I'm wearing over it is Nymphette by Mac, again, any golden pink colored lip gloss will look great with this lipstick.

Viva Glam Gaga

It seems like I could never get a good picture of this lipstick but in this picture I'm wearing the Viva Glam Gaga lipstick. This lipstick is pretty to wear but it has a bit of a ashy look when you photograph it, with that being the case I definitely had to add some lip liner with this. I'm wearing a brownish-honey lip liner. It's called Nutmeg and it's by NYX cosmetics. This lipstick also looks great with a berry lip liner as well.

All of the Viva Glam collection lip products are a must-try in my opinion. The lipsticks are moist and long-wearing, the colors look good on any face, race and complexion and the $$$ goes to a great cause! If you wear lipstick or gloss the Viva Glam collection is worth a try. If you're a makeup artist this lipstick needs to be in your kit.

Have you already tried the Viva Glam lipsticks and glosses? What are your thoughts on the collection?

My Skin Care Routine

I thought it would be beneficial to share my skin care routine and the products that I use on a regular basis. Some of these products you may have seen before and wondered how they work and other products may be totally new for you, either way I'll explain how they work and my honest thoughts on them. Most of these items can be found right on the shelves of CVS, Rite Aid and Walgreens! Just a warning my skin care routine is a bit more complex because I'm a complex person :) Here we go!

CLEANSE

I use Ambi's Cocoa Butter Cleansing Bar. This bar is great because the price is $1.99 and it lasts forever. It lathers up well and it gently cleanses to get rid of dirt, oil and makeup. I like that it has cocoa butter because the cocoa butter is a natural moisturizer and it helps even even your skin tone. I have hyper pigmentation, which are dark spots and scarring on my face left over from acne. (I still suffer from acne at 26!) Since I've been using it I notice the dark spots are fading and I don't have to use a  lot of concealer like I used to.

TONE

Next, I tone my skin with Neutrogena Alcohol-Free Toner. Toner helps to remove any excess dirt, makeup and debris that cleanser leaves over. It returns the skin back to it's natural pH level and it preps the skin for moisturizer.  It looks small in the picture but it's 8.5 fl oz and I bought it for $7.99 from CVS. I was pleasantly surprised when I bought this toner. I bought it in a hurry because I needed a toner and I didn't want to buy any of the other toners that smell like alcohol and witch hazel. It has a nice, fresh smell to it and best of all it's alcohol free. Alcohol is a main ingredient in a lot of toners, and alcohol does dry your skin out. After using this toner my face doesn't feel like it needs moisturizer because there is no alcohol in the product. I think this product is great for any skin type. 

MOISTURIZE

My next step is that I moisturize. Here is where the variety comes in because I use several different moisturizers. Above, are the main two that I use regularly. The first is The Body Shop's Vitamin E Moisture Cream, $16. I use this day and night. It works well on all skin types. Second, I use good old-fashioned 100% Cocoa Butter Stick for $1.39 from CVS. I just rub the cocoa butter stick all over my face. It moisturizes well without leaving my skin greasy and it smells great too!

TREAT

Ambi Fade Cream on left, Wise Woman Eye Cream on right.

I also treat my skin for to prevent future skin issues or to help treat current skin issues. I use Ambi's Fade Cream. This was also purchased from CVS for $4.99. I use the fade cream to help with the dark spots from my acne on my face. It does help but results take about 2 weeks or more to really see a difference. I also use The Body Shop's Wise Woman Eye Cream $24. I apply it under my eye and also in my eye crease area. I use it to prevent eye puffiness and fine lines around the eyes.

MASK

Peel of mask on left, Warming Mineral Mask on right

Lastly, I use a mask on my face. It's suggested to use a mask on your face once a week but I'm guilty of not doing this. I often do it once a month or once every 2 months, I know that's bad! The importance of skin masks is that they deep clean your pores, exfoliate your skin and revitalize it. I love peel off masks because I hate rinsing all the gook off my face. I've found great peel off masks in Rite Aid which is pictured above. I also like clay masks because once you rinse off the mask you can immediately see the difference in the appearance of your skin. My favorite mask is The Body Shop's Warming Clay Mask $16.50. It feels so good. As soon as you slather it on your face it immediately warms up. It feels like a face massage. For this mask I leave it on for 5 minutes and then I rinse it off.

That's my skin care routine in a nut shell. It seems like a lot of products and steps but it normally takes me about 10 minutes to complete.

What does your skin care routine consist of? How long does your skin care routine take? Be sure to vote on it in my poll on the top right corner.