They're Real - Mascara by Benefit

If you have an Instagram and any interest in makeup, chances are you have seen the infamous They're Real mascara by Benefit. After seeing 92750 girls and makeup artists posting about mascara, I finally dropped the $18.99 to give it a try.

PROS: 

It absolutely gives great eyelash coverage- the tip of the wand is a little spikey ball to get to even the corner lashes. I didn't notice a huge difference in volume- it gives me more of a long, thin lash look, which is okay with me, but I am not incredibly amazed by the results- only slightly amazed ;)

CONS: 

It's so hard to get off. Like so hard. I don't usually use makeup remover, I just use water to take off my makeup and then wash my face, but water doesn't do much with this mascara. I have to scrub my eyes raw to remove it. I may have to buy makeup remover for the first time in my life! But I really do like the results, so it may be worth the extra work. 

BOTTOM LINE: WOULD I BUY IT AGAIN?

Nope. I returned it! Once I tried a sample of the Clinique High Lengths mascara, I was hooked. I lost way too many lashes to trying to get They're Real- not cute!!

Currently listening to: "Do You?" by iFFY the Bad Man

Wedding Day Makeup

I've never felt more beautiful than I did on my wedding day, and this was largely thanks to my friend Kristina and her fantastic makeup skills. I received more compliments on my makeup that day than I can count, so I figured, why not start this blog off on the right foot and do a full out review and breakdown of my look that day?

I purchased most of the products ahead of time, which allowed me to have some control in my makeup.  My friend is the manager at Clinique, so she has been doing faces forever, and being a product junkie myself, I follow a bunch of makeup artists on Instagram who are always recommending new things to try, so naturally I had to go buy them all.

WEDDING DAY MAKEUP

• Benefit Stay Flawless primer- my face makeup really did look flawless all day- I only touched up once... because I was sweating so bad. Ugh. Apply with fingers and make sure to put both caps back on immediately so it doesn't dry out.
  
  
  
• Clinique foundation in Champagne- great coverage, perfect color match.
  
  
  
• Clinique shadows and blush- unfortunately, I don't know what colors she used. I wanted a glam, smokey eye, but my face tends to turn a little red and gray shadows make me have raccoon eyes, so she stayed with diff shades of brown, but blended them in a way that gave me the smokey eye look.
  
  
  
• Clinique eyeliner- black, in a pot with an angled brush.
  
• Benefit High Brow- apply in a straight line under brow and another straight line under tail. Smudge into eyebrow for a great highlight.
  
  
  
• Benefit Browzings in Light- I tried both the dark (too dark), the medium (too red) and the light (just right for my black eyebrows, as I like to knock them down a shade so they're not so harsh). Wipe both sides of brush in wax and then powder. Apply in straight lines at the bottom of the brow and tail, then brush upward.
  
  
  
• MAC false lashes- Apply after eyeliner but before mascara.
  
  
  
• Bare Minerals Waterproof Flawless Definition mascara- Apply over false eyelashes once they have dried. My mascara didn't run all day!
  
• THE LIP!!! I was in love with my crimson lip, which is hard to see in these photos as it had worn off before the photo was taken. I used MAC in Dubonnet with MAC liner in Auburn. It was striking and gave me that vintagey, old Hollywood feel. Absolutely loved it, and it showed up great in the other photos.
  
  
  
  
  I couldn't have been happier with my makeup that day- every bride should feel like a celebrity on their big day! All products purchased at Macy*s.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Currently listening to: "Still Into You" by Paramore

Welcome / Daily Routine

When it comes to products, I've tried them all. I have or have had subscriptions to Birchbox, Bulu Box, Ipsy Glam Bag, all those great monthly boxes filled with glorious tiny samples of high-end product I typically wouldn't buy in full size. But there's a new product on the market, I probably have tried it in three different brands, whether its a charcoal face scrub, BB Cream, CC Cream, doublestick tape, lip plumper, the list goes on.

For being fairly low maintenance in my appearance, and not a huge fan of globbing on the makeup, I know a lot about products and what is worth buying, what works, and what doesn't. I have forever been the friend that buys anything and everything, whether or not I need it, so I figured- hey! My wedding planning is over, why not start a blog that maybe no one will read, but at least I'll have a new hobby!? I'm down.

I suppose I should start with my daily routine, which is pretty much mechanical and rarely changes. This is my routine every day whether or not I am going out. If I am going out, I will add shadow, pencil liner, a few diff mascaras, some brow color... my "going out look" takes about 10 minutes versus the 3 I usually spend on a typical day.

DAILY FACE PRODUCTS

• Proactiv facewash and acne lotion- I have been blessed with very, very good skin, but I love how freaking clean Proactiv makes my skin feel. I also have some redness and Proactiv helps with that a little.
• Proactiv Green Tea Moisturizer- I love this lotion because it's oil-free. I recently switched to Clinique lotion because I ran out of Proactiv, so I shall post a review soon!
• MAC Studio Fix Powder- again, I am lucky enough to not need a lot of face makeup, so I use this daily to cover up a little redness and just give my skin an overall flawless look. I've used it since I was 20 and will probably never switch to anything else. It's just perfect for my needs. I wouldn't recommend this alone if you need a lot of coverage.
  
• Eyeko liquid liner- I have been using liquid liner for ages and I love Eyeko because it has a pen-like top which makes it really easy to get a good clean line. I got it in my Birchbox about a year ago and it has yet to dry out- knock on wood! 
  
• Mascara- I typically use any mascara I have on hand because I get a lot of samples in my subscription boxes, but I have recently purchased a bunch of makeup from Benefit, with the They're Real mascara being on of them. I love it, but it's hard to wash off... more on that in a later post.
• Brow gel- the $1 gel by e.l.f. is available at Target and rocks. It's perfect for my thick ass eyebrow hairs and... it's $1. 

DAILY HAIR ROUTINE

Please note- I do not put heat on my hair Sunday thru Thursday, so if you're heavy with the hot tools, you might want to try something more. I also never, and I mean EVER use a hair dryer.

• Shampoo & conditioner- the jury is still out on these. I switch it up all the time so when I find some I can't live without, I'll post. Right now I am using CLEAR shampoo and conditioner with some Aveda conditioner on my ends.
• Dove Hair Therapy Nourishing Oil Care- I live and breath by this stuff. My hair gets greasy super easily so I have spent years trying to find the perfect products that won't weight my hair down. This stuff is so light I can't even tell there's product in my hair. When I get out of the shower I spray it about 15 times around my whole head before combing my hair out. 
   
• Beyond the Zone Smooth Criminal Hair Primer- this is a newish addition to my routine, as my hairdresser told me I need more product (I know right? ME? More product? Pshhh!) so I bought this from Sally's and it's kind of a knockoff of the Catwalk brand. It doesn't weight my hair down, which I love, and it also protects from heat.
  

So that's it! My daily routine is pretty simple and literally takes 10 minutes from beginning to end. My husband is always proud to tell our friends "Cady just got home, so she will be ready in 20" on weekend nights, so I commend myself on having gotten my routine down to a science. Can't wait to post more product reviews here and hopefully help some of you ladies with new additions to your routines!


Currently listening to: "Holy Grail" by Jay-Z feat. Justin Timberlake