Unofficial Length Check

It is almost about that time for a yearly length update. As you all may notice, I don't post much about my hair journey; mainly because of pure laziness. I have numerous of half done posts that for some reason, no matter how much I would like to share them with you all, I lose interest midway through the post. Nonetheless I would like to improve in this area.

My goals for 2012 was to retain length and reach bra strap length (BSL), as well as, thickness. So did I meet my goal? We will have to wait and see. In the meantime here is an unofficial length check on semi straighten hair. This was taking about two weeks ago and I had no intentions on straighten my hair so everything was done really fast and in big sections.

To view last year's length check, click here.

Are you on a healthy hair journey? If so, how often do you perform length checks?

 Did you mean your goal?

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My Christmas

Hey everyone!! I know, long time no update from me (I'm sorry). Work has been kicking my butt lately. Working 10-12 hours shifts doesn't leave much free time but I wanted to come in real quick and take advantage of my off day and do something productive instead of sleeping the day away.

Hope you all have a wonderful and blessed time with loved ones on Christmas. Christmas for my household was pretty laid back. For some reason, neither my mom and I was really into the Christmas spirit this year' however, it still was a great day. We enjoyed each others company and stuffed our faces with baked ribs, cornish hen, rice and cheese covered broccoli.

I also spent most of my time creating my kinky curly u-part wig with a closure. I ordered two closures a few weeks ago (tight curly and bodywavy) and will be sharing with you all updates on it soon, as well as with the kinky curly hair. For the meantime, here is a few pictures of how I rocked the wig today.

Luxurious Loc's Malaysian Kinky Curly and Queen Weave Beauty Ltd Malaysian Curly Closure

Until next time, happy holidays everyone! Wishing you and your loved ones a warm and blessed holiday filled with joy and unforgettable memories!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Source

Happy Thanksgiving everyone. May your day be rich with love and gratefulness,

not only today but every day of your life.

What I'm Loving

1. Leopard print shoes, similar here. | 2. Gap Ankle Zip Legging Jeans, here.  | 3. Essie Fall Collection. | 4. Estelle Shine, here. | 5. Gap Suede Loafers, here.

This is a new feature that I am considering adding to the blog. If you think I should keep it or toss it, let me know. What are a few things that you are loving as of lately?

Until next time, have a wonderful weekend!!

Breast Cancer Awareness and My Story

As you all know October is Breast Cancer Awareness month and I wanted to take a moment to remind you all how important it is to to pay special attention to your breast, and generally your health period. Far too many times, Breast Cancer goes without being detected until its too late.

A few months ago, I had a scare with Breast Cancer and although it turned out not to be cancerous, I was scared out of my mind. Yes, I'm 25 (at the time I was 24) and these things are not suppose to happen to young ladies as myself, but it does! Breast Cancer knows no age nor sex nor race. Imagine walking around with a lump in your breast that you knew about and your doctor at the time felt during an annual check up and did nor said anything about it, to see a new doctor that raised a red flag about it. So much so, that less than a week later, you was in a room getting ready to have a mammogram and a biopsy. My lump turned out to be a Granular Cell Tumor. Although these types of tumors are not harmful nor cancerous, it was removed a few days later.

I said all of this because you never know. Listen to your body and if your doctor doesn't seem phased about something, get a second or even a third opinion. You only have one life and one body, and you should take care of it as best as you can.

To find out more about Breast Cancer, visit Cancer.org's Breast Cancer page and to find out more about Granular Cell Tumors, visit here.

Ways in which you can join the fight and show your support to help find a cure Breast Cancer is by:

•  Saving pink Yoplait lids and/or General Mill's products and submit the codes to Savelidstosavelives.com.
• Participate in a Susan G. Komen for the Cure Race near where you live, here.
• Or donate directly to your local Susan G. Komen for the Cure Affiliate, here.

Quick Update: Facelift!!

I finally got around to updating the look and feel of the blog. I have been wanting to do this for the longest now and I finally got it done (yay!!). I grew tired of the old look and I didn't feel like it represented me too well. Oh well, hope you all like the new look. I will be updating a few more things, hopefully, by the end of this week if laziness doesn't settle in (again). I love to design websites and such things but I have noticed that since I graduated, the thrill of creating something has sightly...well dwindled. Hopefully something will spark my love for it once again.

Until next time, have a wonderful evening!

Hair Growth Infograph

Ran across this lovely infograph via Naturally Curly and thought I should share it with you all. Hope it is encouraging for someone.

Which brings me to ask, do love free stuff? I know I do! Have you entered Naturally Curly's 31 days Contest, Embrace Your Beauty?  Today's contest is sponsored by Hair Rules! There are about 21 more days left to their month long contest so what are you waiting for?!

Happy Tuesday everyone! Hope you have a blessed week!

Be Back Soon!

It has been a while since I have updated the blog but I promise that I will be back soon. I'm in the process of making some changes and adding more features so be on the look out for that.

Until then enjoy your Monday and have a great week!!

OOTD: Birthday Glam

Last Thursday I celebrated my 25th birthday and since my birthday was somewhat in the middle of the week, I ended up celebrating it that week. I was meaning to get a few pictures of my outfit but with all the rushing and being extremely tired once I made it home, I couldn't bring myself to do so. So here is a snapshot of my outfit and makeup, minus me.

MUFE Concealer sample in #18 and MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in Deep Dark (face),

Wet n Wild Comfort Palette (eyes), Sugar Kisses in Rose (lips)

The Big 25!

 I can't believe today I turned the big 2-5! Although my birthday didn't go as I planned, I am thankful to see a new day and to be a year older.

Hope you all are enjoying the rest of your week and looking forward to the weekend.

Review: Hawaiian Tropic Silk Hydration Lotion Sunscreen

Being of an African American decent, most people wouldn't think sun protection is really important for us, however, skin cancer/diseases doesn't discriminate and it is highly important that we too, important our skin. Since I haven't found a skin screen that I absolutely love, I was a little nervous but excited when I received this one in my Influenster Summer VoxBox. Here are my thoughts...

 

Hawaiian Tropic Silk Hydration™ Lotion Sunscreen SPF 30
Also available in SPF 12, 30, 50!

Claims: With its ultra-luxurious hydrating silk ribbons, Hawaiian Tropic Silk Hydration™ lotion sunscreen nourishes and pampers skin while providing broad spectrum UVA and UVB protection, and 12-hour moisturization when out in the sun.

Where to Buy
You can find Hawaiian Tropic products at most major retailers.
Suggested retail price: $8.99 for a 6oz bottle

My Thoughts
The first thing I noticed when I opened the bottle was the scent! Although I can't quite put my finger on what it smells like, it was really refreshing and summery. Granted the scent can tend to be heavy when you first put it on (think perfume lotion), it doesn't bother me. It really calm down and leaves a light scent throughout the day. I love that this sunscreen isn't like other popular brands out there. It goes on creamy like lotion and feels great on your skin. It isn't greasy and doesn't leave a cast on your skin. Very lightweight without sacrificing coverage and moisturizing! Leaves your skin soft all day.

Bottom line: Is it worth the money? Yes. Will you buy it again? Definitely! 

Rating: 5 out of 5!

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Disclaimer: I received these products to test for free through the Influenster VoxBox program. To find out how you can be apart of this program, visit their website at Influenster.com

Room Makeover feat. Istagram

So I have been biting by the diy (do it yourself) bug and have went crazy making over my room. Here are some of the things I have been working on from the past week or so.

1. Sunbrust Mirror. Plan on making 3 more for my room. This one is in the dinning room.
2. Plush inspired headboard...this picture does not do the headboard justice! It looks so good, if I must say so myself!!
3. Wall panels
4. Stained night stand and drawers
5. More stained drawers
6. Canopy
7. Headboard and canopy with special guest
8. Me and my best friend, my drill :)

Influenster Summer Beauty VoxBox 2012

Hey everyone! Hope you're weekend is going well. Just wanted to come in real quickly and share with you all my second Influenster VoxBox. I'll be back with reviews on the items once I have a chance to test them out.

What was included in the box?
1. Hawaiian Tropic Silk Hydration Lotion Sunscreen SPF 30
2. Tampax and Always Radiant Collection
3. Quaker Soft Baked Bar in Banana Nut Bread
4. Sally Hansen Magnetic Nail Color
5. Sally Hansen Nails and Cuticles Hand Creme

Disclaimer: I received these products to test for free through the Influenster VoxBox program. To find out how you can be apart of this program, visit their website at Influenster.com

Revisit: No. 7 No Shine Primer

It has been a while since I last made a post and boy has a lot of things happened since I have been gone. Maybe I will write a post about it later. Hope things is going well for you all.

For the past few weeks, I have been giving the No. 7 No Shine Primer another try and I can honestly say that I actually like it now. Although I haven't used it with foundation since the review, the primer has cut down the shine that I would normally would have when I decide to wear blush and has worked well with my eye shadow primer. I have visible pores on my cheeks and without the primer my cheeks would be so oily within a hour or so. Maybe the purchase of this primer was worth it after all.

What are some of the things that you use to reduce shine and control oily skin?

Quote of the Day

Happy Hump day everyone!

Hope you enjoy the rest of the week!

Versatile Blogger

I was nominated for the Versatile Blogger award by Kiwi over at Kiwi-Fashion and Beauty.

Award rules
1. Nominate fellow bloggers.
2. Inform the bloggers of their nomination.
3. Share 7 random things about yourself.
4. Thank the blogger who nominated you.
5. Add the Versatile Blogger Award pic on your blog post.

7 random things about me
1. I'm 5 foot 2 inches tall
2. My favorite color is purple
3. 4.30 will mark the first year since I graduated from college
4. I have lived on both the east coast and west coast
5. I love the beach
6. I hate math
7. I love putting puzzles together

In no particular order, I'm nominating the following bloggers are: Koos, Kai, Joanne, Polished By Beauty,

That's all from me on this happy Thursday! 

Yay, the weekend is almost here!

Tag you're it: 7 Deadly Sins

I saw this on a fellow bloggers, polishedbybeauty's blog and thought it would be fun. So here we go...

GREED. What is your most inexpensive and expensive beauty item?
Inexpensive would be NYC eyeliner. Most expensive would be my MAC MSF.

WRATH. What beauty products you have a love-hate relationship with?
Face primer! I love how they can help to control oil (depending on which one you get) but I hate how some are hard to blend and leave your face with a white cast.

GLUTTONY. What is your most delicious beauty product?
My Alba Botanica lip balm in Pineapple Quench. The taste isn't bad and it smells so yummy!

SLOTH. What beauty product do you neglect, due to laziness?
Eyeliner. Some days I just put on some eyeshadow and mascara and keep it moving.

PRIDE. What beauty product gives you the most self confidence?
Mascara!! I love how my eyelashes look when I have mascara on.

LUST. What attributes do you find most attractive in the opposite sex?
His smile. A guys smile can tell you a lot about him, as well as, his personality.

ENVY. What items would you most like to receive as a gift?
Any kind of makeup, especially some of the high end makeup like MUFE, Laura Mercier and Nars.

I am tagging all of you guys.
I am curious to reading your 7 deadly sins!

Review: Gillette Venus & Olay Razor

Hey everyone, two posts in one day? Yup! Today I have a review of the Gillette Venus & Olay razor I received in my Influenster Love VoxBox. When I saw that this was in my box, I was thrilled. Here are my thoughts...

Claims: Moisturized skin while having a close shave
For the first time ever, Gillette Venus, a global leader in female shaving, and Olay, a global leader in skincare, are coming together to deliver a gold standard in shaving with the new Gillette Venus & Olay razor. Venus’ best shaving technology works with Olay Moisture Bars, offering women best-of-both-worlds shaving and skin expertise. Olay Moisture Bars help lock-in moisture to your skin for less dryness, and with every smoothing stroke, Venus’ five blades shave you close. 

Product Details

• Venus’ five-bladed razors shave you close and adjust to women’s curves for a smooth and comfortable shave, even over tricky shaving areas like knees and ankles.
• Olay Moisture Bars contain skin-enhancing elements found in Olay products: Petrolatum helps lock in skin’s moisture for less dryness and Glycerin helps offer that goddess glow! Just wet the razor to release a light lather – no separate shave cream required.
• As with most Venus razors, new Venus & Olay also features a rounded, pivoting head designed for women’s curves, and a soft-grip ergonomic handle for confident control, even in wet and soapy environment.

 My Thoughts 

The first thing I noticed when opening this razor was the smell from the moisturizing bar. It was a refreshing and soothing fragrance of Vanilla, which I really enjoyed. Since I personally dislike shaving creams, I was happy at the convenience of not needing one because the razor came with a moisturizing bar. The razor glided with ease and since it had 5 blades, I received a very close shave. I loved how silky smooth my legs felt afterwards. Sadly I wasn't thrilled at how fast the moisturizing bars dissolved while I was shaving in the shower. By the time I finished one leg, the bars was half way gone. 
Bottom line:  Is it worth the money? Yes. Will you buy it again? Definitely! 

Rating: 4 out of 5 because of how fast the moisturizing bars dissolved in the shower.

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A refillable Venus & Olay with one replacement cartridge sells for approximately $8.99-$10.99. Packages of three replacement cartridges are available for about $14.99 - $19.49.

Gillette Venus & Olay Razor is now in stores and can be purchased in food, drug, convenience and mass merchandise stores throughout the United States.

Disclaimer: I received these products to test for free through the Influenster VoxBox program. To find out how you can be apart of this program, visit their website at Influenster.com

NYX Collection

Finally, after many weeks has passed since I said I would share with you all my growing collection of NYX products, I finally gotten around to posting it. Many of my purchases has been made over the last few weeks and has been with Ulta has them on sale (buy one, get one 50% off and or 40% off). The sale is even better when you are able to catch the sale during their buy $10 worth of products and receive $3.50 off. Since getting back into makeup, I have been wanting to try out NYX products and see what the hype was about. Since their line is pretty affordable, I thought why not.
Here are some things that I pick up and their swatches. Swatches was done without a primer or base.

 Left to right: Deep Bronze, Dark Brown, Rust, and Sahara. 

 Left to right: Skinny Dip and Blame It On Midnight

 Left to right: Dusty Rose and Terra Cotta.

Left to right: Eyeshadow Base in Skin tone, HD Eyeshadow Primer, Jumbo Eye Pencil in Milk, Dark Brown and French Fries, and Retractable Eye Liner in Gypsy Blue. 

 Left to right: Mega Shine Lip Gloss in Natural and Smokey Looks and Lip Smacking Fun Colors in B52.

Have you tried any products from NYX? Do you like their line?

One Month Later

I'm sure by now, you all have heard about the 17 year old teen that was killed by a neighborhood watch member last month. Words cannot express how this situation makes me feel. In fact, I can barely keep up with the case simply because it literally makes me sick to my stomach. I cannot understand how someone can take an innocence person's life. Rather or not the situation was racially motivated, I believe justice needs to be serviced.

George Zimmerman needs to be arrested simply because he did not follow proper orders in which he was giving- both by the law in which he is trying to hide behind and by the police operator. If I'm not mistaken, the "Stand Your Ground" law, states that you must be in harms way in order for it to protect you. Mr. Zimmerman was not in harms way when he started following Trayvon. I can understand if the tables were turned and it was Trayvon who was following Mr. Zimmerman, but he was not. In fact, I personally believe that Mr. Zimmerman was seeking a reaction from Trayvon in order to justify his actions. Once the operator told Mr. Zimmerman to stand his ground and not to go after Trayvon, the law should have been non in void.

Trayvon Martin could have been anyone's son, dad, grandfather and any race, Caucasian, Hispanic, Asian...you name it! Please show your support, violence and hatred of any kind, it needs to end here.

Today marks the one month anniversary of Mr. Martins death and I pray that it does not go in vain. My heart goes out to Travyon's family. He should not have to go that way.

Wishlist: B. Makowsky Addison Satchel

While I was browsing through some blogs earlier today, I came across Nicole of The Seventh District blog and she had a picture of her B. Makowsky Addison Satchel purse. Now I have never been the one to fall in love with a purse, let alone a big purse, but lately it has been all I have wanted (other than more makeup). I'm drooling over this purse but not the price. It's a whipping $250.99!! Yes, that's an ouch to someone like me who hates to pay full price for things.

I was able to find it on sale at zappos.com for $235.99 and for $199.95 at DSW, but of course it is sold out.

B. Makowsky Addison Satchel

Influenster: Love VoxBox

This post is a little late but I have been busy lately. Last Thursday I received my first Voxbox and I just wanted to share with you all what came with it. I can't wait to try these products out!

What came inside:
Gillette Venus & Olay Razor
Kiss Nail Dress - Fashion That Sticks
Stash Tea Herbal Tea Sampler
Ghirardelli Gourmet Milk Creamy Devotion Bar
Truvia Natural Sweetener

Disclaimer: I received these products to test for free through the Influenster VoxBox program. To find out how you can be apart of this program, visit their website at Influenster.com

Quick Update

First I would like to thank everyone for following my blog and for commenting. It really means a lot to me and I appreciate the love.

Wow, can you believe March is here already?! Seems like yesterday it was the beginning of January. Just wanted to make a quick post about some items that I purchased last month that I absolutely love and will be making reviewing on soon; which are: City Colors Lip Balm in Mauve, NYX Mega Shine Lip Gloss in Smokey Look and the Neosporin Lip Health (actually purchased in January).

Last month Ulta had a buy one, get one 50% off sale on NYX's products and I picked up a few eye shadows, a eyeshadow base and a blush. Not sure on how I feel about the purchase just yet, but I must say that I love, love, love the blush in Terra Cotta. It gives a natural glow to my face whenever I wear it. This is the second blush that I have own since I gotta into make up so I really need to stock up on a few more.

What are some of your favorites from last month and some of your favorite blushes?

First-Thoughts: Revlon Photoready Foundation

Recently I decided to give the Revlon Photoready a try and I must say that I absolutely love it (without my primer of course)! Although I feel the shade is slightly too light for me, I believe it works pretty well and blends in perfectly. Plus, my face (actually just my nose) didn't start to get oily until 5-6 hours after wearing it. So is the photoready good for oily skin? We must wait and see. Check back soon for my official review on this foundation.

Whats on my face? Eyes: Wet 'n Wild Vanity Palette, Wet 'n Wild Don't Steal My Thunder (crease color), Loreal Voluminous Naturale, Wet 'n Wild Coloricon in Dark Brown; Eyebrows: Wet 'n Wild Coloricon in Dark Brown, E.L.F. Wet Gloss Lash & Brow Clear Mascara;  Lips: Revlon Shiny Sheers in Sheer Coffee Glaze

Review: No. 7 No Shine Primer

Claims: Shine Free All day matte...
Keep shiny skin under control all day long, with this mattifying oil-free base. Light-reflecting particles helps disguise fine lines and flaws, oil absorbing Biopol helps minimise blemishes and blot away shine without blocking pores. Contains watermelon and cucumber extracts to help soothe and cool your skin. Formulated to be non pore blocking. Hypo-allergenic.

Ingredients: Aqua (Water), Hydrated silica, Butylene glycol, Stearic acid, Palmitic acid, Ethylhexyl palmitate, Dimethicone, Alchol denat., Montmorillonite, Cyclopentasiloxane, Cetyl alchol, Triethanolamine, Sodium C8-16 isoalkylsuccinyl lactogloblin sulfonate, Cyclohexasiloxane, PPG-5-ceteth-20, Mica, Methylparaben, Alpha-glucan, oligosaccharide, Propylene glycol, Propylparaben, Allantoin, Triclosan, BHT, Alcohol, Phenoxyethanol, Fructose, Glucose, Hamamelis virginiana (Witch hazel) distillate, Cucmis sativus (Cucumber) fruit extract, Citrullus vulgaris (Watermelon) fruit extract, Salvia officinalis (Sage) leaf extract, Sorbitol.

As I sit here typing the ingredients for you all, I realized that if I had read the ingredients BEFORE purchasing this product, that I would have left it at the store. A lot of the ingredients explains why this product acted the way that it did when once it was on your skin. Although it does help to minimize shine, it doesn't completely block it and leaves your skin very dry. Which also explains why they suggest you to moisturise your face prior to using the primer (however, that is a given with any primer). The primer is white and has a smooth but grainy texture; almost powdery.  Sadly this product doesn't blend into your skin very we and will leave a white cast if on dark complexions.

For me, the less of the primer I used, the sooner my face would become oily. Without this primer, my face would be oily within 2/3 hours. With the primer, I can go about 5/6 hours without having to worry about shine. Since the primer is hard to blend, I have had problems where my face had a ghostly appearance in photos and sometimes my foundation or powder would cakey up on some areas of my face (mostly my cheeks and my nose).

Bottom line: Does it work? Yes and no- it won't keep your face from being oily/shine all day but it will keep it at bay for the most part. Is it worth the money? I'm not sure. Will you buy it again? Probably not.

Price: $9.99 at Target
Rating: 3 out of 5 because it is hard to blend.

The Game Season 5 Premier!

I have been a huge fan of the show since season 1 and I can't wait to see what is in store for season 5. Although I am not a big fan of BET version of the show, I will be in front of my tv again this season. 

Are you looking forward to the season premier or do you pass this time around?

Hair Goal(s) for 2012

I have came a long way with my hair journey since this time last year. I have experienced some set backs and is still struggling finding the right products for my hair. I must say that I am proud of myself; this is the longest my hair has ever been and for the first time I was able to retain length without it breaking off.

I only have two goals for 2012:

1. Increase overall thickness
2. Reach bra-strap length by December 31, 2012

Comparison pictures: (left) December 2011 vs (right) January 2011

Happy New Year

Wishing you and your family a safe and wonderful new year. May this year be filled with blessings, love and success.