tip of the day | coconut oil

Hello lovelies, how are you all? This is my second attempt at writing this post. I wrote out the whole post on my iPad and it did not save! I was pretty upset. Anyways, I have been neglecting my blog this past week because of midterms, tons of homework, and being sick. I had a severe allergic reaction on Tuesday, not sure to what, which triggered my asthma. Believe me, it was not fun barely being able to breath on top of having a swollen lip and eye. Thank God, I am now feeling a lot better.

For today's post, I'd thought it would be helpful to give inform you all of the benefits of using coconut oil, if you do not already know them. Coconut oil has tons of Vitamin E, which is good for skin healing, and it is VERY moisturizing! I use the organic coconut oil, which I would definitely recommend if you are using it on your body to avoid any pesticides or other harmful stuff. 

Hair treatment - This is my favorite way of using coconut oil. I have been doing this for about three months now and have noticed a huge difference in my hair. I apply it liberally throughout my hair, focusing on the roots, and leave it on for 30 minutes before washing it as normal. My hair is less frizzy because of the amount of moisture it gives. Coconut oil is also great for hair growth. I recently chopped off a lot of my hair and since then, my hair has grown about an inch, if not more! 

Eye makeup remover - Coconut oil is great for removing eye makeup. It is gentle on the eye and, of course, moisturizing. If you are concerned about under eye wrinkles, I would definitely recommend using coconut oil. I will admit, it takes a bit longer to remove my eye makeup, especially since I wear tons of mascara, however, I love how smooth my under eye area feels afterwards. 

Facial moisturizer - Do you see a little pattern here? Well, yes, coconut oil is just a great moisturizer overall. I am not sure if it is safe to use coconut oil in the sun, but it is great for those nights when you need a little extra moisture, like during the cold weather. 

Supplement - Coconut oil is great when used from the outside, not imagine all the benefits you will receive when taking it as a supplement? I will admit, I am not a big fan of using it for this method because of the taste, but if you do not mind it, then go for it! If you are like me and do not like the taste, you can even cook with it! Now, I am not a doctor, so do consult with your physician before taking this as a supplement. 

These are all the benefits that I know of, but if you know of any other, please leave it as a comment down below! I would love to know more ways in which I can use coconut oil.

Have you ever used coconut oil?

review | MAC Rebel

Hey lovelies, how are you all doing? I have had one of the busiest week ever filled with midterms and all. Worst news? They are no where near over, hence why this post is a little late. Anyways, here is my review of my new favorite lipstick, MAC Rebel!

Before purchasing this lipstick, I read countless review of this beauty. I wanted something that looked great during day or night and perfect for autumn. This, my friends, is the one. Rebel is a midtone plum that looks absolutely lovely on any skin tone. It has a satin finish which means it is not drying. It lasted about up to 7 hours before I had to reapply, however, that was on a day where I literally drank my meals (I like to juice every once in a while). On regular days, it last roughly 5 hours, before I feel the need to reapply, which is good enough for me. What I love about this lipstick is that it is buildable so I can wear it during the day smeared out a bit and build it up for the night. This is definitely a lipstick I would repurchase in the future! 

Update: I decided to take a selfie in the bathroom before removing my makeup with this lipstick, and yes I did reapply my lipstick just for this picture! Sorry that it is not the best picture, but it is in the bathroom! :)

What is your current favorite fall lipstick? 

current wish list

Hello lovely people! How is your Columbus day going? Baby and I have stayed in all day, watching TV,  napping (baby not me), and eating. Today has seriously been the most unproductive day of the year, which is why I am bringing you this post today, my current wish list. 

Yes, I have two purses, but seriously they are my obsession! Both are Michael Kors, one is the Michael Kors Large Selma Studded Saffiano Tote and the other is the Michael Kors Jet Set Medium Saffiano Travel Tote. Both are so beautiful and classy and would look absolutely lovely with any outfit! Chances are, I will not be owning these anytime soon, but there is nothing wrong with wishing, right? I have also been eyeing the Origins Antioxidant Moisturizer with White Tea. I will be honest, the only high end moisturizer I have tried is by Clinique, which works great for me, but I have just been curious since I have been reading so much about this one. Surprisingly, there is only one nail polish on my wish list at the moment, which is the OPI Wonderous Star from their Mariah Carey 2013 Holiday collection. I first saw this on Amy's Blog and fell in love! Lastly, Benefit Rockateur Blush. I am sure you have all seen these, and are most likely tired of it, but it just seems like a beautiful everyday blush that I am dying to get my hands on!

Have you tried any of these products (or bags)? What are your thoughts?

FOTD | red lip on a rainy day

Hello lovely people! How are you all doing today? Today is such a gloomy and rainy day. Personally, these days are one of my favorites, to cuddle up with your loved ones and watch a movie or two. What is your favorite rainy day activity?

It will officially be the end of the week for me once I finish taking an online exam for one of my classes. While I waited, I figured I do a quick FOTD post. Because the weather is so gloomy, I wanted something simply, but not boring. Here is what I came up with:

Blush: Mixture of Nars Orgasm and MAC Plum Foolery

Bronzer: Nars Laguna

Brows: Benefit Brow Zing in Dark

Lashes: Mixture of L'Oreal Voluminous Carbon Black and Maybelline One by One

Lips: MAC Russian Red

And there you go, a quick and easy look for a rainy day. I did not even apply tinted moisturizer or BB cream as I wanted it to be THAT simple.

What kind of looks do you like for rainy days?

haul | mac cosmetics

Hello lovely ladies (and gents, if any)! How was your weekend? Mine was pretty good, got tons of school work done and spent some time with my gorgeous girl (my daughter haha). I also received of couple of packages in the mail, one of which was from MAC RiRi Hearts Mac Collection.

I picked up two lipsticks from the collection, Talk That Talk and RiRi Woo (I will not include the lather as I picked it up for a friend as a gift). I also purchased Rebel since I have had my eyes on it for some time now. These two are seriously perfect for the fall!

Talk That Talk is a dark plum with a retro matte finish. Now, I am not exactly sure whats the difference between retro matte and matte is, but I will say that this lipstick is very difficult to apply. It is a gorgeous plum, but seeing how difficult it is to apply, I am not sure how often I will use it. Because this lipstick is a limited edition, it is encased in a gorgeous gold packaging with Rhianna's signature on the cap. The lipstick also has her signature on the actual lipstick. I will continue playing with this lipstick and see if I can find an easier way to apply it.

Rebel is a midtone plum with a satin finish. I have seen this lipstick on tons of ladies with different skin tones and it amazes me how well it suits everyone! Definitely recommend this color to anyone, no matter their skin tone.

Did you pick up anything from RiRi Hearts Mac Collection?

top 5 fall nail polish

Hey girlies! It is finally Friday, seriously! This week was super quick for me, but it was just so stressful and tiring! I had two exams, a lab report, and two quiz. On top of that, I woke up two hours earlier yesterday, so I was super exhausted! Definitely happy that I am done for the week!

Anyways, since my last post was such an unhappy post about Essie and how they rename a color, I figured I do my top five fall nail polish. Because I do own so many polish, this was a really hard decision, but I managed to pick five.

Essie Armed and Ready: I purchased this polish last year and wore it about twice. I am not sure why I did not wear more often because it is an absolutely gorgeous color, in my opinion. Currently on my nails, it is an olive green with golden shimmers. The shimmers are not very visible when not in a well lit place, but when you are able to see them, they are lovely! One thing I will say is that I am not a big fan of the small brush on Essie's nail polish, but it is something I am willing to overlook.

Essie Carry On: My first nail polish was a burgundy, not sure why as it is a pretty dark color for a 14 year old, but I loved it. I felt so mature and wore it all the time. Essie Carry On definitely reminds me of that color, but a little more on the purple side. Nonetheless, it is a gorgeous color for the Fall. 

OPI Dulce de Leche: In my opinion, this has to be one of the prettiest nude pinks ever. Honestly, I think it can be warn year round, but I included it here because I personally like to wear lots of neutral colors during the Fall. Summer and Spring are the time where I like to experiment with bright colors that are more out there. And unlike Essie, OPI has a much larger brush, making the application much smoother and faster.

OPI Lincoln Park After Dark: A deep purple, almost black. I love wearing this because it is not just a plain old black and makes my hands look so nice and polish. This is definitely one of my all time favorite dark fall color.

Julep Boris and Nicole: This is a gorgeous red-orange with sparkles that I love wearing during November because it reminds me so much of Thanksgiving! There is an Essie color that can be a dupe for this Julep, which is the one I originally purchased, but I missed place it and purchased this one. I honestly can't remember the name of the Essie polish. One thing I love about Julep is their packaging, it is so different from any other polish I own.

What are your favorite polish for the fall?

NOTD | same color different names?

Hello lovelies, how have you been? I'm been pretty busy these past two week, with my daughter getting into the swing of head start, school assignments, and getting a dog about a week ago! The story behind the dog is kind of funny actually, my family and I wanted a puppy and a friend of ours was giving his away because he just couldn't take care of her anymore. Well, we jumped at the opportunity, thinking she was a young dog. We were told she was 11 months, then 8, but then gave us a paper dating back to 2011. So we aren't sure how old she is, and won't know until the end of the week when we take her to the vet. We still love her very much, she grew on us pretty quickly! My 13 month old is still getting used to her, but we know she will absolutely love having her in her life.

Anyways, enough rambling and let's get to the point of this post. So I recently picked up two new color from Essie's 2013 Fall Collection,  Vested Interest and For The Twill of It. I fell in love with both when I saw swatches of them online so I had to pick them up. The same day that I received them in the mail I decided to pull out all of my fall colors, and what do I find? Essie School of Hard Rock from a collection released in 2011, the exact same color as one of my new polish, just renamed!

I know, I am being such a drama queen, but seriously?! Why would Essie release two polish from different collection that were the EXACT color just different names? I decided to test out my theory and painted my nails with both polish. On my left I applied Vested Interest and on my right School of Hard Rock. Well, the colors look the same on the bottle and on my nails as well.

School of Hard Rocks on my right

Vested Interest on my left

I was a bit disappointed that Essie would do that, but I guess its my own fault for owning so many nail polish! Either way, both colors are beautiful grey-green and perfect for fall! I would say that Vested Interest lasted a little longer without chipping, but it could just be because I use my right hand more than I use my left. 

What new colors have you picked up recently?