Brush It Off Bombshells

I love the ambition that comes with starting a new year. Once I get my Christmas decorations down and clean my house, I start getting into other things, like my makeup drawer.

I decided it's about time I cleaned my makeup brushes, it's only been about 5 years or so, disgraceful I know. At first I thought I should just buy new ones, but then my mother insisted I could just wash them and they'd be good as new. So smart that lady :-) Washing my makeup brushes seemed like sound advice, so I went for it.

Note to my fellow bombshells: do NOT do this right after cleaning your sinks, otherwise you'll just have to clean them again (a lesson I learned a little too late).

STEP 1: Fill sink with warm water & hand soap (the water was clear when I started, yikes)

 STEP 2: Add brushes/makeup pads and let them soak

 STEP 3: Use your hands to ring out water /makeup on pads, rinse and repeat until clean

(for brushes, I swirled them around in the water so I didn't ruin the bristles)

STEP 4: Set pads/brushes on a towel and let air dry (this takes about 24-48 hours)

When you're brushes are dry, you won't believe how incredibly silk smooth they are....AND bacteria free (yay!). Makeup artist Rachel Devine of Ontario suggests doing this every 2 weeks. I think that's a little excessive, but certainly more than every 5 years would be best (oopsie). Rachel also suggests throwing out you mascara every 3 months (another thing this bombshell fails to do). Sigh. Maybe that'll be my New Year's resolution :-) Having clean brushes can help reduce breakouts (I almost typed breakups...now wouldn't that be nice) by eliminating bacteria and it also allows your makeup to go on smoother... and who doesn't want that?!?

Clean Brushes = Clean Skin

 Brush off that old makeup and clean your beauty tools bombshells!

XOXOX The BoiseBombshell

PS: The 70th Annual Golden Globes are Sunday, January 13th on NBC 8ET/5PT, MARK YOUR CALENDARS!

Poppin' Pout

I love "The September Issue" for countless reasons. I love all the perfume and makeup samples, I love the couture fashion, but I especially love the rockin' deals! This years "September Issue" had incredible offers by Covergirl, including a $4 off 2 lip products (gloss, lipstain, lipstick, etc.). With so many option to choose from, I had a tough time narrowing it down to just 2.  :-) I spent countless moments browsing the Covergirl products at Target, to my husband's despair, but I eventually decided on 2 Covergirl LipPerfection Lipcolors. I ended up picking this fabulous color, 325, "Spellbound" (featured in the images below).

I also purchased lipcolor 410, "Delight." Bold lips are a BoiseBombshell favorite!

The best thing about this lipstick is that helps nourish your lips, while still looking fabulous. The Covergirl LipPerfection Lipcolor helps moisturize and soften lips in a weeks time. My lips have been rather chapped lately, thanks to having to run to A/C all the time, but I must admit after using this lipcolor for the past week my lips are looking better. I found that the color stays on for a decent amount of time, considering it's not lipstain. I was impressed that I only had to reapply after finishing my coffee and of course after lunch.

These products were reasonably priced at Target for less than $5.50 each, then add in the coupon and you've got yourself a bombshell deal!

 

Find the best CG lip color for your bombshell pout. Check your "September Issue" for great deals, I think there's at least $12 worth of Covergirl coupons in the issue, so it's definitely worth purchasing to get the deals, plus the fabulous fall fashions. I'm loving this "Spellbound" color. Bewitched yet? 

XOXO The BoiseBombshell

*My sincerest apologies for being MIA in the cyber-world this week. Classes started back up on Monday and I've had countless homework assignments since the week BEFORE classes began. Seriously, who assigns homework before you've even started class?!? Rude. Then again who cares, when you have such enchanting lipstick :-) *

Scrunchies make me scrunch-up my nose...

Watching all the Olympic gymnastic heats and finals, I have been dieing over their hair (not in a good way). The gymnasts go to run their routine and all I see are barrettes, scrunchies and messy buns. The multiple barrettes clipped on each gymnasts' head looked so disheveled. These girls were practically ready for the Alexander McQueen runway.

http://beautyeditor.ca/2011/03/14/paris-fw-11-hair-accessories-are-your-friends-here-are-4-supremely-useful-and-on-trend-ones-to-add-to-your-beauty-toolkit/
http://fulltwist.net/russia-names-olympic-training-squads/

Okay, so maybe the gymnasts' didn't have quite as many clips, but they were well on their way. My other issue with the gymnastic hair regime was the scrunchies, I mean what in the world!?! Tradition or not, those things have got to go. It reminds me of the "Sex in the City" episode where Carrie and Berger fight about scrunchies and whether or not it's an appropriate accessory this day and age. It's probably the real reason they ended up, splitting, plus he's whiny and insecure (a BoiseBombshell pet-peeve), but that's for another time.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9B-e6UsrOsM

I just feel Olympians take such amazing care of their bodies, so why not show a little love to your hair too. Right? Take out the scrunchies, gel back the hair, glitter spray it to death and THEN go do your bouncy, twirly, flippy tricks and win gold medals. Geesh girls, priorities. :-)

I know it's ridiculous to have such a fetish over people wearing scrunchies, but I dunno...scrunchies just make me scrunch-up my nose. Apparently, I do not stand alone on this matter. My feelings were justified today via the Today show blog on the London  Olympics. When I saw this I felt relieved to know I was not the only one.

http://todayinlondonblog.today.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/08/02/13071341-why-some-olympic-athletes-still-embrace-the-scrunchie?lite.

Read it, I know you'll agree :-) If you don't, then you probably own a scrunchie, hehehehe. Though right now my own hair is thrown up in a pony tail, so I don't have much ground to stand on.

XOXOXOX TheBoiseBombshell

A Touch of Velvet

http://www.ciate.co.uk/

Ciaté® has done it again! A British based nail fashion brand, known for innovative nail art designs and techniques, has created a velvet manicure kit. That's right ladies, actual crushed velvet on your fingernails (it's okay to get excited about this, I practically peed my pants)! Velvet is one of my favorite fall fabrics, so when I found out about this velvet manicure set I was in heaven!

The color choices are limited, but still fabulous. They have cute names too like "3am Girl/Blue." Although the blue is a stunning choice, I think I'd go with "Berry Poncho" myself. Crushed velvet on your nails  sounds pretty luxurious, maybe even a little pricey? Fear not, this manicure set is only $19 at Sephora (http://www.sephora.com/velvet-manicure-P375461?skuId=1445105). Less than $20 for crushed velvet fingertips? Sign me up!  I cannot wait to run down to Sephora and purchase my kit. You can also find this new fall obsession of mine at Nordstroms. I encourage everyone looking for anything nails to shop directly from the nail ninjas themselves at http://www.ciate.co.uk/. Ciaté® was founded by Charlotte Knight, who currently serves as the company's creative director and for good reason too, this lady is a nail genius.

http://www.sephora.com/velvet-manicure-P375461?skuId=1445105

One of Knight's most memorable nail fashion creations is the "caviar manicure". Yes, it is just as fabulous as it sounds. Ciaté® offers the caviar in multiple colors, including rainbow, which makes your hands look like they're covered with ice cream sprinkles (a great summer look). Go to http://www.ciate.co.uk/caviar-manicure.html/ to find out more about the caviar manicure. I'm not sure if I could ever manage to eat caviar, despite the instant high-class effect i think it contains, but I am definitely open to putting a caviar-like substance on my nails.

http://www.ciate.co.uk/caviar-mancure-set-rainbow.html

 Feeling fancier already? I know I sure am. ENJOY!!!

XOXOXO Amanda

Beauty Breakdown

Hey Ladies! I've been testing out some new products and I've become completely obsessed with a few. Lately I have become really picky about my skincare and foundation products. My latest regime includes, in order of application: Olay Complete SPF 30 Defense ($12-$15 at local grocery or drugstore), Too Faced Prime & Poreless Pure ($30 @ Sephora) Makeup Forever Mat Velvet + ($36 @ Sephora), bareMinerals Matte ($27 @ Sephora). I've never used primer before, but I noticed that it really helps give a smooth/poreless appearance.  First, I apply the Olay sph 30 to my face, neck and hands. I let the Olay dry on my skin for a few minutes before applying primer, then I do the primer on my face and the Makeup Forever liquid foundation. I let the liquid foundation sit for a minute or two and then brush on bareMinerals powder on face and neck in a circular motion to help the liquid set. LOVE LOVE LOVE the results!

My other new favorite thing is Maybelline's "The Mega Plush Volum' Express" mascara in blackest black. It was less than $6 at WalMart, plus I loved the color of the bottle :-). My only complaint is that I wish the brush was curved, but I do love the bristles. I always curl my lashes BEFORE putting on the mascara.

Okay this is my last favorite thing, I promise... well at least for now ;-) The Victoria Secret Makeup kit, was featured in their catalog last fall (somewhere around $50). They no longer offer  the same one I have, but they do still carry a mini-version of the one I have. Mine has 64 eye shadows, 16 lip glosses, 16 lip stains and 8 blush colors to choose from. It's perfect for traveling too! The smaller version is offered online: http://www.victoriassecret.com/beauty/makeup/hello-bombshell-makeup-kit-vs-makeup?ProductID=21872&CatalogueType=OLS.

XOXO Amanda