Simple, Neutral Valentine's Day Makeup Look

<3 Valentine's Day...

is just around the corner, and whether you want to go out, stay in, if you have a date, or not....there's nothing wrong with wanting to look pretty! This look is a more neutral one, I never usually like to go too too crazy on Valentine's Day. To be hones,t I am not much of a Valentine's Day person, I used to be when I was a lot younger...but now, I like to keep the day pretty simple. As long as I am spending the day with the love of my life, then I am good :). Even though I like to keep it simple,  I do still like to look pretty for him, of course. 

This look is inspired by the lovely Tanya Burr, she gave me most of the ideas for this look. She is a very popular YouTuber and blogger. 

I decided to keep it rather neutral, with a nice sheer red lip, nothing too heavy. You can always use a darker red colour, or a pink - anything really goes with this makeup look. However, I did do a very bold liquid liner and I made sure my brows were sculpted very well. Before I put any of my makeup on, I used my new "ARBONNE" primer, which I absolutely LOVE! My foundation is Covergirl's "Outlast Stay Fabulous 3 in 1" in the shade "Ivory" and I patted this on my face with a damp "Beauty Blender". Pressed powder  is Maybelline's  Fit Me in the shade "120".

For my eye makeup, I used NARS' bronzer in the shade "Casino" as the base, used Urban Decay's shade "Buck" (from the Naked Palette) for the crease and under my eyes, and then to add some shimmer - I used my MAC's "Mineralize Skinfinish" in the shade "Soft and Gentle" - I made sure to put this in the corners of my eyes to brighten them up and along my brow bone. To fill in my brows I used my brow tint  kit from Visage, I mixed the lighter and darker colours together and I used my angle brush in order to make it precise (sorry I can't be more specific with that one, the labeling on the packaging isn't very clear). I tight lined my eyes with Covergirl's "Perfect Point Plus"eyeliner in the shade "Black Onyx". Liquid eyeliner is Maybelline's "Master Precise Liquid Eyeliner"  in the shade "Blackest Black"and for mascara I used L'Oreal's "Butterfly" mascara in the shade (surprise, surprise...)"Blackest Black" (love this mascara by the way).

For my cheeks, I used Milani's baked blush in the shade "Luminoso" very lightly on my cheek bones. For contouring I went very simple and used my N.Y.C  "Smooth Skin Bronzing Powder" in the shade "Sunny". For highlighting I just used my MAC "Mineralize Skinfinish"  in "Soft and Gentle" once again.

For my lips I used Revlon's "Just Bitten Kissable" balm stain in the shade "Romantic" (quite fitting, isn't it? lol). I didn't want to go too crazy with my lips.

So that's all there is to what I am going to be wearing this Valentine's Day...very simple! You could make it a little more drastic by adding a darker colour to the crease of your eyes...or even totally change the colours up by adding some pinks or rose golds to your lids in order to make it a little more girly and flirtatious! 

<3 cheers, and I hope all of your Valentine's Days 

go just the way you want them to <3.

amy, xo. 

Brand Focus: ARBONNE

Monday

     Monday

             Monday...

Two very different ways of looking at the first day of the week...either you can totally hate it because it is the first day back into the grind, back to work or school...relaxing Sunday is officially over. OR you could look at this day as a fresh start to the week, a new beginning - if you had a crappy last week, oh well, it is Monday - time to have a good week :)

With that in mind, I have a new brand to share with all of you. I have recently been introduced to this particular brand. ARBONNE has made its way to Canada and I have attended a few parties that were dedicated to introducing the brand. 

ARBONNE is very focused on creating healthy products that everyone can use. There are a lot of people in my family that have certain allergies, which cause them to react to some things that are found in makeup and skin care products. ARBONNE has made it so they do not  have to worry about these things. This brand has promised that their products are completely free of: animal products/by-products, parabens, formaldehyde, PABA, synthetic dyes, Triclosan, Hydroguinone, and Gluten. As much as I am a beauty product fanatic, I do realize that a lot of products have unnecessary additives that are injecting our bodies with things that are not so healthy for us. Such as Parabens...chemicals that have been scientifically proven to be connected with cancer (especially breast cancer). A lot of makeup and skin care companies use these chemicals in order to preserve their products. I am not going so far as to change all of my skin care and makeup products over to this brand, simply because I just love to collect and try everything in the beauty world. However, I figure even if I change a few of my beauty products over to ARBONNE, can make a bit of a difference.

I purchased some of ARBONNE's shampoo and conditioner, everyone at the parties were raving about this shampoo and conditioner and how it made their hair feel really soft, even if it was colour treated. I have recently started highlighting my hair again, and so my hair has become a little bit brittle. I have used this shampoo and conditioner for a week now, and I do not notice much of a difference, I don't know if I have to use it a little more to get the "soft hair" effect. I am going to see how the rest of the bottle goes before I completely give up on it. The scent of both the shampoo and conditioner is quite refreshing and naturally citrus-y.

I have never owned a very good toner before, but I have been getting some pretty bad break outs around my chin area, and I noticed that after I took a shower or washed my face...my skin would be quite red. This "Clear Advantage Clarifying Toner" (this particular toner is directed towards acne treatment, ARBONNE has toners for other skin types as well) has totally made a difference! I am absolutely in love with this product. It has helped with both the break outs and the redness! There is no scent to this product.

Oh ARBONNE, your makeup primer is supreme! It leaves my face feeling so soft and smooth, completely filling in any pores, creating a flawless surface before I apply any makeup. I give this makeup primer about 10 thumbs up! This will be a holy grail product within my skin care routine. There is no real scent to this product either. 

Lastly, I needed a new body scrub, so I decided to give this a try. It really isn't anything too special, the scent is very refreshing (nothing I would rave over though) and the exfoliating beads leave my skin feeling very soft and moisturized. Just like any other scrub...but remember, the bonus is there are no additives whatsoever!

OVERALL

I am quite happy with these purchases, obviously I am more excited over some than others...but I think I am planning on purchasing more from ARBONNE, I am definitely open to give it all a try :)

T'was a long post again, thank you for sticking with me!!

cheers && here's to starting the week off fresh!

amy xo.