This is the makeup look I wore toady.  I went for a very subtle smokey eye with a lip color that I made by blending different products together which I will show you how to do now! You can substitute any of the products you already have, but I will just show you the ones I happen to have that I used.

STEP ONE: Apply a plum lipliner to the edges of your lips.  This is actually meant for the eyes, but I say that makeup is makeup so feel free to use products in different places than just what they were meant for, as long as it works.  This is ULTA's eye crayon in the color 'Wild Berry.'

STEP TWO: Fill in the lips with a light pink lipstick or lipliner.  I used this one from MAC called 'Angel.'

STEP THREE: Blend the liner and lipstick together.  You can do this by rubbing your lips together, or using a makeup brush, Q-tip, or even just your finger!

STEP FOUR: Add a nude shimmery color to the very center of you top and bottom lip to add a little extra dazzle, this will also make your lips look bigger.

This is what it should look like so far.  STEP FIVE: Make sure to blend everything together after this.

STEP SIX: This is the last step.  Make sure everything is blended together, then add a

tiny bit of a shimmery shadow to the center of the lips with either a brush or your finger.

And this is a closeup of what the final lips should look like!

 I hope you have fun if you decide to recreate this and make your own custom lip color!  Remember to smile because you never know how much that could brighten up someone else's day :)

My Favorite Summer Nail Polishes

I am seriously loving this summer so far!  I've gotten to hang out with my friends, go swimming at the lake, spend time with family, and focus on my hobbies and doing things I really love.  As you probably know from this blog one of the things I absolutely love doing is makeup and everything to do with beauty.  I have always loved art and the colors that are used in artwork.  So there is no surprise that I love nail polish! All of the different colors that you can get away with wearing on your nails is really fun.  I've always enjoyed going to the store and picking out a new nail polish shade.  I even remember when my older sister and I were little we would paint our little brother's nails and each one would be a different color haha! He always got super mad and demanded we take it off... oh the joys of sister hood :) Anyways. that's kind of what all of these pretty summer colors remind me of and I hope you enjoy!

(excuse the messy bottles, you can tell I've used these a lot)

From left to right here are the names of the colors: Loreal 'New Money,' Sally Hansen 'Barracuda Blue,' Sally Hansen 'Pacific Blue,' O.P.I. 'Strawberry Margarita,' O.P.I. 'Lucky Lucky Lavender,' Covergirl 'Lingering Spice,' Essie 'Turquoise and Caicos,' Essie' St. Tropez.'

If you want you can follow me on Pinterest here:http://pinterest.com/albert13/boards/

My Makeup Brush Must Haves

When I first started using makeup awhile ago I started with only using my fingers and maybe one or two brushes.  But as my love for makeup grew I started experimenting with using more makeup brushes in my routine.  I was amazed at the different results I saw and how they really help take your makeup to that next step of looking flawless!  If you already use makeup brushes then maybe you can consider adding some of my favorites to your collection.  And if you haven't tried makeup brushes already, then these are the perfect starter kit to add to your routine! Side note (Most of these brushes are MAC, I'm sorry if that bugs you, they just happen to be one of my favorite, if not my most favorite, makeup brands, so most of my stuff is MAC)

This first brush is a MAC 266 angled brush.  I use this everyday for my eyebrows and when I do gel liner this is just the brush to do the trick! 

This is the MAC 217 blending brush.  This brush is great for sweeping shadow across the lid and I sometimes even use it for smudging shadow on the lower lash line.  It has many different purposes such as blending concealer, so I would say it's a great all around brush.

This is the MAC 224 fluffy brush. It has to be my favorite brush! It's great at blending all eyeshadow looks together, which is a must.  This brush can also be used for concealer.

This is the E.L.F. Powder Brush.  I use this brush everyday for my foundation and it blends it in very nicely.  If you are on a budget then definitely get this brush because it is a super cheap price at a great quality!

This is the MAC 128 brush.  I use this for powdering my whole face after applying foundation.  I also use this brush for blush. It has a great application, but I have noticed the brush hairs tend to shed a bit more on this brush than my other ones.  I'm not sure if that is just the one I got, or if it is true to this brush in general.  Nonetheless I would still recommend this brush!

My 5 Summer Makeup Essentials

I have been enjoying minimal makeup that brings out that inner summer glow.  These are five products that I have been using every day and that I think will work for almost anyone!

This is MAC's Mineralized Skinfinish Natural in the shade 'Light.'  I tend to use this on my skin when I don't want a heavy foundation suffocating my skin.  It controls oil and offers a very light coverage which is great for your skin in summer when it has that natural glow that can shine through.  Also if your sweating a bunch your foundation is not just going to melt off your face.  I think this would be great for all skin types!

This is MAC's eyeshadow in the color 'Naked Lunch.'  I take a fluffy brush and dust this across my entire eyelid to add a little dimension and draw more attention to the eyes.  A lot of times I don't want to do a heavy eye so this ultra natural look looks great and is super fast.

This is my go to mascara right now, Loreal Voluminous Carbon Black.  It is build-able without getting too clumpy which is great for drawing attention to the eyes.  

Of course my always trusty Burt's Bees Beeswax Lip Balm helps keep my lips moist in the drying weather.  Nobody wants to try to rock their favorite lipstick with cracked and dry lips! 

This is just a sample I received of Benefit's Whatts Up highlighter.  I fell in love with it and will definitely be purchasing it when the sample runs out! I swipe it on by cheek bones and blend it in.  It gives an amazing extra glow to the skin!

I hope everyone found this helpful and might even try adding some of these products to your summer beauty routine!