Make-Up 101: Smokey Eye Make-Up Tutorial

Hi Shine and Sparkle Report Readers!

I recently did this blue smokey eye make-up look below and posted it on my instagram (which forwards to my facebook and twitter feeds--shameless hint to follow me on social media).

I actually got a few comments on this and thought that for this weeks post, I'd let you know what products I used to get this look (with little mini reviews of the products).  It's also a general report on how to get a smokey eye look.  Lots of people are trying out the blue smokey eye since the overrated Kim Kardashian wore it in a recent post.  However, feel free to be creative with your colors!

Here is a great eyeshadow diagram from nerdygirlmakeup.com* (so you know what I'm talking about in the instructions I give.  I also like that she has monolids (like me!) so it is easy to compare to my make up look.  Check out her post for all the basics to apply eyeshadow like a pro!

nerdygirlmakeup.com is the source for this picture. If this credit isn't good enough, I'll gladly take it down! But it's just so useful to not reinvent the wheel on my blog when great blogger have done it before me...#amitoolazy?

Step-By-Step Blue Smokey Eye:

1. Base of eyeshadow primer all over my eye area (up to the brow and even below my eye.  I like  Urban Decay Anti-Aging Primer Potion.  I love this stuff.  It's a bit pricey at $24 but it works great and I can't deny that I'm sucked in by the idea of not needing an eye cream on heavy eyeshadow days because of this product.  Killing two birds with one stone.  Hurzah.
2. Covered my whole upper eye area with a wash of white eyeshadow (up to the brow) to make sure everything applies smoothly for the following steps.  I used Make Up Geek shadow in "White Lies" but any matte white shadow you like is fine.  
3. Water proof dark blue eyeliner on the lid.  I used this as an additional base to make sure my shadow stayed exactly where I wanted it and to maximize the pigmentation on the lid.  I used the Marcelle Mini Waterproof Liner in "Blue Lagoon" because I got it in my BirchBox.  But again, any navy blue, waterproof liner will work great.
4. Set with navy blue matte eye shadow.  More insurance that this bold eye look doesn't turn into a blue raccoon eyes/looking like you got punched in the face.  I use a blue powder eye shadow to set this.  I didn't want to spend a whole ton of money on blue matte shadow so I used a cheap one I had that I don't think is made anymore because I can't find it on google.  But you get the idea.
5. Blend black matte eye shadow into the outer-v and crease.  This is a bit tricky.  It takes some practice to learn your eye shape and how to best blend the outer-v and crease to look right.  Start with less product and build up.  I used Make Up Geek shadow in "Corrupt".
6. Used Highlight to highlight inner corner, tear duct, brow bone, and further blend the black.  To do this I used Make Up Geek shadow in "Shimma Shimma".
7. Slightly Winged Liner on Upper and Lower Lash Line.  I used my all time favorite long wearing liquid liner for monolids by Clio (post here!).
8. Blue eyeliner in the waterline.  I used the same liner as in Step 3 to line my water line.
9. Curl Lashes. I might do a post on this in the future.  For right now, this is already a long post!
10. Mascara.  I have a post on this! Phew!
11. Done. 

The great thing about this Make-Up 101 post is that you can be as creative as you'd like with colors!  Have fun and experiment with this way of getting a smokey eye.  Hope you found this post interesting and as always,

Shine & Sparkle!

*I am not paid or contacted by any of the companies mentioned in this post.  These are my honest feelings and opinions.

How To Keep Natural Nails Healthy Under Acrylic Nails

WAZZZUPPPP Sparklers?

I just wanted to shoot you a quick tip about keeping your natural nails healthy even when you have acrylic nails over them.

If you follow me on Instagram, you have probably seen this picture and all of my past pictures since I got addicted to getting my nails done at the salon again.  

I recently got asked this question:  "Acrylic nails look great and are great if it is hard for you to naturally grow out your nails, but is getting acrylic nails bad for your real nails?"

In a nutshell, the answer is: Yes, some of your natural nail gets filed away to keep the acrylic nail looking natural on your fingers and covering your natural nail so that it doesn't breathe or get moisture as well as is normal are not great for your natural nail.  

BUT...you can minimize the damage by taking the following steps!

#1-Don't Use Them As Tools:

Acrylic nails are much stronger than your real nails.  It is very tempting to start using them to open soda cans, try to retighten bolts on furniture, and all kinds of other things that put way more stress on your natural nail than what they were built for.  This can result in severely damaging your real nails, or even ripping off your real nail all together! EEEEK!  Long story short, baby them, even if they feel super strong.

#2- Have Them Professionally Removed (by the same salon that did them):

It is tempting to not spend the money to remove acrylic nails at the salon when you are ready to be done with them.  I highly caution against this.  While there are many tutorials on YouTube, there is no replacement for a professional who will know the best method for the products that they used.  Also, I know I have damaged my nails horribly even when I do it the "right way" in tutorials.  It is worth it to go into the pros.

#3- Oil Your Cuticles & Under Your Nails:

While water still is the enemy with acrylic nails lifting (just like polish), you can safely and effectively keep your nails hydrated by applying oil to the cuticle/nail bed and under your nails as often as possible. The only place your real nails can access moisture is at the cuticle/nail bed and underside of your nails when the tops are covered in acrylic.  It is important to keep these as moisturized as possible.  I like to soak/cover them in oil after I get out of the shower.  My favorite is using the dropper than comes with my 100% pure argan oil to apply just the right amount.  But coconut oil, olive oil, jojoba and vitamin e oil work well too.  I massage the oil all over concentrating on the underside and cuticle areas.  I like to do this before bed so it can sit on my hands over night, or I let it sit for as long as possible before I have to wash my hands.  I like to follow up oiling with lotion for extra moisture.

I know, it seems a little high maintenance, but hey...you signed up with high maintenance with acrylic nails with the bi-weekly fills anyway *wink*  Hope this helped and...

As Always,

Shine & Sparkle!

3 Healthy Chicken Marinades

Hi Sparklers!

Again, I'm so sorry about the infrequent updates but life throws you curve balls and sometimes you just have to roll with it.  That being said, we a full force into summer.  This means BBQ time!  I recently had a request for my chicken marinade recipes so I thought I would share these 3 marinade recipes to keep your healthy eating interesting (those boneless/skinless chicken breasts get awful boring without fun bold flavors!).  I also really wanted to do this post because I have noticed that a lot of marinade recipes online are not strong enough to impart a lot of flavor into the meat.  I really like my marinades to be strong and bold so that once the meat gets cooked, it really has a lot of flavor, rather than just a hint of taste.

Each of these marinades are for 4 chicken breasts, but other pieces of chicken or other proteins can be substituted.  Squiggles would prefer if you did not eat guinea pigs.  I typically put my meat in a ziplock bag with the marinade and let it sit in the fridge for at least 2 hours, preferably overnight.  Then cook with your favorite meat-cooking method.  Mine is the BBQ! Mini-Tip:  Mix marinade before adding meat.  This way you can taste it to make sure it's delicious! 

Chinese Five-Spice Marinade:
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup shao hsing wine (or dry sherry)
1 tbs Chinese 5 spice powder
2 tbs raw sugar or honey or the sweetener equivalent
2 tsp fresh grated ginger
1 pinch of cayenne pepper
4-5 cloves of garlic (finely minced)
1 tsp white pepper

Chili-Lime Marinade:
1/2 cup lime juice
1/2 jalapeno finely diced (taste a small piece of the pepper before adding to the marinade to make sure it is not too spicy!  Add less if it is very hot, add more if you love the heat!)
2 tsp onion powder
1 tbs chili powder
1 pinch of cayenne pepper
4-5 cloves of garlic finely minced
2 tsp salt
2 tsp black pepper

Lemon-Turmeric Marinade:
1/2 cup lemon juice
1 tbs turmeric
2 tsp onion powder
1 pinch of cayenne pepper
4-5 cloves of garlic finely minced
2 tsp salt
2 tsp black pepper

I hope you try out these recipes and I also hope that you do not take Squiggle's advice on healthy eating...unless you are a guinea pig.

As Always,

Shine & Sparkle!

Make-Up 101: How to Apply Mascara to Get Different Effects

Greetings Shine and Sparkle Report Readers!

It's been too long since I did a "Make Up 101" report.  I really wanted to get into talking about how to apply mascara to achieve the effect you want. I did do a Basic Report of Mascara waaay back in the day.  Like the little paint drawing? Yeah it's cute.  Even though this is more of a technique post than one about what brands work best, I will be telling what brands I used in the pictures in case you are curious.  Anyway, there are lots of tricks to share about using mascara, so lets get straight into it.

Natural Look:

For a natural look you want to have you lashes look like natural lashes but a bit longer and a bit more full.  Depending on your natural lashes, you might not even need mascara for this!  You might just need a good eyelash curler.  My favorite is the Shiseido Eyelash Curler*.  If your lashes are already long and the hairs not to coarse, just curling them might give you just the extra natural boost you are looking for.  For a little more impact or to hold the curl in coarse lashes, top it off with a water proof mascara.  Brushing from the base of underside of the top lashes up.  Wiggle the brush into the base a little before brushing up to really help distribute product evenly.  Same with brushing the top side of your lower lashes.  If you have very very sparse lower lashes or want less drama, you might consider not applying mascara to the bottom lashes.

Medium Drama Look:
For this look I would highly recommend curling the lashes.  I then would set the curl in place by applying a water proof mascara to the top lashes.  Then I would apply a second coat of mascara that does not smudge (waterproof or non-waterproof, depending on the weather and your preference).  For this look I also tend to take my "Maybelline Lash Discovery Mini-Brush Mascara" (because my lashes are too small to do this with a regular mascara wand) and also apply mascara to the top side of my upper lashes and bottom side of my lower lashes.  This is to ensure that all possible lash surfaces are coated in mascara. Also, applying mascara with the wand position vertical (rather than the typical horizontal) can result in more product delivery to your lashes if you feel like it needs more oomph.

Seen here: Curled lashes with with one layer of Maybelline Rocket Volume Waterproof mascara on top lashes.  Layer of Maybelline Lash Discovery Mini-Brush Mascara on both sides of upper and lower lashes afterwards.  I also like using Benefit's "Yes They're Real" mascara when I'm doing the vertical trick because the mascara brush has points all over the tip of the brush. It's pretty cool.

Max Drama Look:
Follow Medium Drama Steps above.  Then apply fake lashes.  Fake lasshes are a whole world of fun!  There are tons of styles and brands.  You can be as subtle or dramatic as you desire.  I tend to prefer thin/invisible bands on the base of my lashes for maximum comfort.  Make sure to blend real and fake lashes with a quick swipe of any non-waterproof mascara.

Mini Tip: My current favorite lashes Ardell Glamour in "Wispies-Black".  I find Ardell to have great and comfortable lashes quite affordability for under $4 a pair.  M.A.C and Benefit also have excellent lashes but they are $15 a pair.  If you are tempted to order 10+ Pairs for less than $2 off of ebay from China, I would caution against it.  They aren't dangerous but they are really uncomfortable.  They also do not stand up to re-use (see my post on "Fake Lash Quick Tips".)

Ah another successful full length, report style Make-Up 101 post.  I'm so happy that I have had time to put another one of these together for you all!  Hopefully you found it helpful! Please feel free to comment or ask any questions!  I love hearing from you.

As Always,

Shine & Sparkle

*I am not paid or contacted by any of the companies mentioned in this post.  These are my honest feelings and opinions.