Having a blue day...

I found this gorgeous dress from forever 21 and had to have it...

I've decided to let this dress be my birthday dress. The problem now is that I need to come up with a makeup look.

Any suggestions?

Makeup of the day

This look was done using my coastal scents hotpots!

For the lips I used a combination of a nude maybelline lip butter and a pink milani cosmetics lipstick.

Sedona Lace

Sedona Lace is an awesome company that sells some amazing makeup brushes. One set in particular has been calling my name for the longest. The MakeupByRenRen Vortex brushes to be exact. Because these brushes were $90, I was a bit iffy on making the purchase. I'm not by any means afraid to purchase quality but being since I couldn't touch and feel them before purchasing I was a little apprehensive.

On Black Friday, Sedona Lace had a repeat of its last years sale. 50% off the entire site! I decided to take the plunge and buy this brush set. I'm kicking myself for not purchasing the one with the zipper brush belt but since I have a MAC brush belt that I like, it's okay.

The shipping was extremely fast! I made the purchase late on Thursday thanksgiving night and received them on the following Monday afternoon!

I haven't had the opportunity to use them for long but I can tell you that they are very well made and sooo soft! At only $45, I'm glad I made the investment!

I also picked up one of the brushes from the midnight lace collection called the synthetic eye shading brush #305. It is soft as well. As a free gift for being one of the first 4,000 orders on Black Friday, I received a black liquid eye liner pen.

If Sedona Lace runs this sale again, I will purchase ALL of the brush sets.

Make Me Over

I wanted to amp my look up a bit but still keep it simple... This is how it turned out...

It's truly amazing what a little colored eyeliner can do to a simple smokey/neutral eye!

What have you done differently in your makeup routine lately?

Gold & Brown

Here's a little iCandy for you....

I hope you enjoyed! Until next time!!!

Look Here

If you don't follow me on instagram (Charmming) then you are missing out!!

I wanted to just sprinkle a little look I did a week or so ago....

Hope you enjoyed!!!

Face of the Day

Today one of my co-workers asked me to maybe do her makeup for graduation. I felt all honored and such because makeup is what I really would like to do as a career.

I'm also planning on doing my best friend's makeup for her birthday! In excited to be doing someone else's makeup. I've gotten a ton of practice on my own face but I really need more practice on different skin tones and eye shapes! I also plan on applying to sephora in hopes of gaining even more practice and knowledge in the world of makeup!

Revlon Cosmetics

Recently I purchased some items from totalbeauty.com. This was my first time purchasing and I can say I will definitely go back for more. It only took four days to ship to me from Cincinnati, OH.

They had a deal on a box of full sized products for $15. I did some simple calculations and came to the conclusion that it was a bargain!

I was able to get an additional 10% off with code "woot", bringing my total to $13.50 with free shipping! If you haven't checked the site out then you just don't know what you're missing!

Picture time:

Ben Nye Face Powder

There has been so much talk of the banana powder that Kim Kardashian uses. So much in fact that I decided to try it for myself.

For those of you that don't know what these face powders are, they are basically setting powders but in color.

I thought about getting the same one she uses but then I saw they came in other colors. I decided to try a shade darker and selected topaz to use as my concealer setting powder. I then purchased ebony to use as a contour color. Because it is a translucent powder, I'm not sure how it will stand alone. If it does not show up well then I will use it to set my cream contour.

I've done a lot of searching and reading of reviews that I feel confident that I will find a use for these powders. Depending on how well they hold up, I just might go back and purchase all of the colors for myself and future clients!

I purchased these face powders from makeupmania.com. The shipping was inexpensive and super quick. I ordered on jan 31st and received the products on feb 4th. I'd say that's better shipping than most places. Each powder cost $5.95 for 1.5 grams of product. The banana powder was a little more because it is more popular, but only a couple of dollars more.

Overall I am happy with my purchase and I will be posting a look soon using these products.

Face Time

For a while I was in love with MACs Fix+ spray. That was until I found Evian. At first I was like, "Don't they make water?". Lol. Well yes they do but they also make a special version for beauty addicts like myself.

It works just like Fix+ but in my opinion because its made by a "water" company, it's much more refreshing for use in the summer time.

I like to purchase the smaller travel sizes for my purse during summertime. This big size is for use on my vanity.

I use it exactly like Fix+; as a setting spray and when I want to use a product wet. I just spray a little on my brush and viola!

If you've never tried it then you are missing out!!!

Cosmetics 101

Have you ever purchased cosmetics that didn't live up to its claim? I know I sure have. Too many duds to name. About two years ago I got the notion to start my own cosmetics company. I wanted to specialize in eyeshades that were so pigmented that it could be seen on the darkest of dark shades of people. I went as far as to get a business tax ID and looked at companies that could help me develop the line but I quickly got discouraged at how much money it would take.

I am going to start the process again! I am more excited this time around than I was last time. I plan to do ALOT more researching and developing. I'm going to have to write a list of all the things I will need to do along with the estimated capital needed to start.

If you or anyone you know has ever started a business then any advice would be great! Stay tuned for more to come... I just might have a contest for a brand logo where the winner would get to try some products out!

Can you tell I'm excited just thinking about it!!!!

Makeup By T Nicole part 2

So continuing with where I left off....

My main reason for geting started in makeup was to hide my ugly acne scars. It wasn't until college that my interest took off. I became obsessed with eyeshadow. Since I felt I knew all about foundations, this was the next step. I'm such a sucker for sparkles and bright colors but I find myself sticking to nudes for work. Lately I've been trying to incorporate one bright or at least a color into my makeup.....

So for my next post I will put up some pictures of a simple look that i have created....so stay tuned!