Cosmetics

Au Natural but with Polish

May 11, 2013 By Moe Leave a Comment

When I was in college self-expression via your nails was pretty much discouraged but I liked to have a more polished look then just clean cut nails. For me, a French Manicure was still too bold and every time I looked down at my nails I thought they looked like little white beacons.

One day I discovered, quite accidentally, the natural manicure which is basically a French Manicure with a sheer white instead of an opaque white. It produces an au natural finish with a polished look — if your tips and nail beds are not defined it will give a brighter appearance without being extreme. Over the years I have come back to this look again and again.

Do not be scared off by the term “French Manicure” this option is easier and more forgiving.

Sheer French Manicure How To by Moe

Here is a five minute video I recently created sharing the products I use and how I do it.

It does not make a considerable difference but it does make a noticeable difference, if that makes any sense. I hope you will give it a try.

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Moe

Maureen (Moe) Wood has been writing for the Large and Lovely site at BellaOnline for over nine years. Her plus size shopping blog, My Favorite Things, will celebrate its sixth anniversary this summer. Read more about Moe on her about page or follow her through her social network links below.

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Gift Idea for Mom

April 29, 2013 By Moe Leave a Comment

If you are stumped with what to get Mom for Mother’s Day take a look at the gift package Julep put together to make shopping easier. The Helping Hand is chock full of product.

The Helping Hands gift set includes the Glycolic Hand Scrub, Julep Essential Cuticle Oil (currently using and like), Rock Star Hand Creme (have not tried yet but heard on Instagram that it is awesome), Sienna shimmery gold nail polish, January tomato red nail polish, a black make-up bag, AND a $25 gift card so mom can pick a few more favorite color polishes for herself.

Julep's Helping Hands package for Mother's Day.

There are two great colors of polish you can borrow from your mom *wink*. The regular price for this gift basket is $84 but if you become a Maven (takes seconds) it is $64 plus you get free shipping right to mom’s door (US and Canada). They have smaller gift sets too!

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* Get your Mother’s day gift from Julep
* My first Maven experience
* My second Maven experience

Moe

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Ally Blue Nail Polish

April 25, 2013 By Moe Leave a Comment

These lovely blue nails are from Julep's Ally nail polish.

My add-on polish for my April Julep package is called Ally. And I simply adore her. Seriously, I was constantly looking at my nails and thinking, “I LOVE THIS COLOR”. I know blue is my top favorite color but I really enjoyed this one.

It is similar to the Blue Iris form Jin Soon I was coveting and finally purchased from Sephora but different. It has a very fine sparkle to it.

I applied two thin coats of the Ally nail polish over two coats of base color because you never know with blues (or reds) if they will leave a residue (it did not). I applied Julep’s Freedom Polymer top coat (quickly becoming my fave) but it was super shiny beforehand.

The polish lasted about five days before I chipped it doing yard work. Bear in mind that I have been heavily conditioning my cuticles and nails (I find this produces early chipping) and file them every day to keep me from picking at them.

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* Shop polish at Julep or become a Julep Maven

Moe

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Revlon Lash Potion Review

April 24, 2013 By Moe Leave a Comment

Revlon sent me a tube of their new Lash Potion by Grow Luscious. It is a volume and length mascara that offers “spell-binding volume and length”. With a name like “potion” it has to be magical right? Let’s see.

The shade of mascara they sent is 001 Blackest Black. Normally I wear a brown black because I am sort of blonde and it looks more natural to me but I recently went bold dark brown so this color actually works for me.

According to the Revlon packaging this mascara formula has “strengthening proteins, amino acids and essential vitamins that revitalizes lashes”. It goes on to say that the “Illusionist Wand” will drench lashes for dramatic volume and comb through my lashes for a clump free length. This is not my favorite kind of wand. It is very fluffy and I feel it pushes my lashes more than it combs through them but as you will see it gets the mascara on the lashes.

There was nothing on the package saying it was OK for sensitive eyes or contact wearers but I wore it anyway and surprising to myself, no irritation whatsoever. Here are my lashes without mascara — you can tell they are there but they are pretty much invisible.

Obviously, because I do not normally wear black I noticed that first. But after I got over the color one of the first thing I noticed was the lift this mascara gave my lashes. I am not an eye lash curler kind of girl — a mishap in high-school swore me off them forever so my lashes kind of do their own thing; but I definitely noticed a lift upwards.

Here are my lashes with one coat of Revlon’s Lash Potion. I would be perfectly happy with one coat. It provides enough definition to make my eye stand out.

And here is my eye with two coats of Revlon’s Lash Potion. For some reason I decided to put it on my bottom lashes. I never put mascara on my lower lashes as I tend to touch that area a lot (to put in eye drops, itch or whatever). But for some reason I did. A few hours later specs of mascara from me touching it were on the under eye instead of the lashes.

The formula is not waterproof or even moisture proof (it does not claim to be). I suffer from dry eyes from past eye surgery so being able to apply eye drops throughout the day is a must. Earlier today I actually forgot that I had this mascara on and wiped my eyes after drops, not thinking, and had smudged mascara everywhere. Eye drop tragedy aside when I cleaned up my eye area I was impressed to see I still had enough color on my lashes to look made up.

And just to prove I do have more than one eyeball with lashes, here are both of them.

If you can keep your fingers and moisture off your eyes Lash Potion produces a great looking lash with nice color, length, and added lift. I have only worn it a few times so I cannot comment on whether my lashes feel less brittle because of the “conditioning formula” but I will add an update in a few weeks.

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* Learn more about Revlon costmetics
* You can purchase Revlon cosmetics from Amazon

Moe

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Pink Cover Girl Nails

April 18, 2013 By Moe Leave a Comment

I have been pretty in pink this week with Cover Girl’s Outlast Stay Brilliant nail gloss. At first I did not think they had color names as there was a big 140 on the bottle but in very, very, small print it says it is called Pink-finity. I have had quite a few compliments on it. One person asked me if it was one of the gel polishes which I thought was funny because I do not even have a top coat on it yet.

In the bottle it looks like pink with a tint of purple. It is just a coincidence that it matches my iPod cover. Coincidence I tell you!

The polish is in a stubby bottle so it has a shorter brush and a wider cap than I am used to. It took a few minutes to get used to it but I do not think it hampered my painting abilities, such as they are. It started off as a thin consistency but as I kept working it felt thicker. One coat coat comes out splotchy with thick and thin areas so two coats is a must. The polish dried much faster than I thought it was going to.

I am enjoying the soft pink after a few weeks of dark and brights.

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* Learn more from Cover Girl
* Purchase Cover Girl Nail Polish from Amazon

Moe

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Lip Trends

April 18, 2013 By Moe Leave a Comment

The latest every day lipstick trends from Julep Maven.

Lipstick is a great way to play with color trends without committing to the cost of a new wardrobe. In this new video Leigh Dawson, Beauty Coach from Julep talks about their hottest lipstick for spring and how to play with it.

I am kind of excited about the Matte Classic Red lipstick. It was hinted in an recent email that it might be in the May Maven box. It will not be for sale online until April 25th and quantities will be limited. Have you tried Julep lipstick?

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* Become a Julep Maven or shop at Julep

Moe

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April Brights Nail Polish

April 12, 2013 By Moe Leave a Comment

This month’s Maven Box highlights April Brights nail polish. Because I am a Boho Glam maven they sent me a teal polish called Lena and a neon orange polish called Kaylen. My beauty product for this month was the Mighty Nail and Cuticle Serum.

One Coat of Nail Polish

The teal polish was greener than I expected but I still love it. It is thick and pretty opaque only requiring one coat for total coverage.

The orange is called a creme but as you can see it is a little transparent after one coat.

Two Coats of Nail Polish

I applied a second coat of the neon orange polish. I probably could have gone for three but I am a two coat kind of gal — usually dries quicker than three.

This is my second experience with a dull polish, the first being last week when I went for a pedi and the polish the esthetician put on was dull. I know most of us put on a top coat to protect and add gloss but I still think it is weird.

Followed by the Top Coat

The top coat really makes the orange pop. I have enjoyed wearing these two colors together and have been thinking of other ways to play with them.

I think it would look neat as a french manicure with orange tips on the teal or vice versa and will probably experiment with that when it gets closer to the end of this manicure.

It has been a fun week with my April Maven box!

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* Become a Julep Maven

Moe

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Petra and Lisa Nail Polish

March 22, 2013 By Moe Leave a Comment

Last month I became a Julep Maven. If you are not familiar with Julep it is a “toxin-free nail color” company with a reward program called Julep Maven. In a nutshell, for $19.99 a month (free shipping) they well send you a nail polish/beauty box with $40 worth of product. You also get 20% off any other product they have, any additional orders you make also have free shipping — I just ordered a birthday bundle for my goddaughter which included a nail polish with her namesake.

According to their fashion tastes survey I took when I joined I have a Boho Glam style. For my first box they sent me a medium grey called Lisa and a fine sparkle red polish called Petra. My add-on choice was a clear multi-sparkle called O-Canada ($4.99). The Maven package also included an essential cuticle which I have not tried and a sample foot lotion.

The past few weeks I have been playing with the polishes from my first Julep Maven box as well as my first add-on polish.

Lisa Nail Polish

The Lisa nail polish is thick and even though it said to use two coats, I only used one for an opaque appearance. I did not find it overly glossy on its own and of course added a top coat for extra shine and protection. I am not a perfect nail polisher and had to use a Q-tip to clean up the skin surround the nail — I found it incredibly hard to remove the polish from skin. A week later when I removed the polish from the nail it came off easily.

I topped Lisa with one layer of O Canada, when it arrived a week later (add-ons are shipped separately), for a little spark and I must say I enjoyed the color a little more this way.

Here is a close up of the O Canada sparkle. This is only one coat. I love the different sized sparkles.

Petra Nail Polish

Oh my gawd! I love this color. Love it. I am definitely going to wear this one a lot. It is kind a purplish wine with very fine sparkle. It was a little thinner than the Lisa polish so I put on the recommended two coats. Both the polishes smell like any other polish to me. They do not go on streaky and the color looks the way it does in the bottle. I do wish the brushes had more fibers though.

A Note About Wear

About eight days into wearing these I started to notice some wear along the nail tips and the cuticle edge. But please bare in mind that I am trying to retrain my cuticles and am using a lot of oil cuticle conditioner (minimum twice a day) and am filing my tips a lot to keep them ultra smooth and ward off picking — a really, really bad habit I am trying to break. Also because my nails are quite short it is too hard to wrap my tips without making a complete mess. I think all these affect the duration of the polish.

I am not sure why but I am very excited about being a Julep Maven and receiving the monthly boxes — there must be some underlying need that tickles my psyche. I received an email this week letting me know what would be in this month’s box (a bright teal and a neon orange, so looking forward to playing with those two.) Anyway, I am excited for more.

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* Become a Julep Maven

Moe

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Favorite Tool: Glass Nail File

March 12, 2013 By Moe Leave a Comment

One of my favorite nail care tools at the moment is the Quo glass nail file that I picked up from the drug store. I have been reading tweets and other posts about how phenomenal they are but had no intention of buying one. The Revlon file was over eight dollars and this little beauty was comparable in price except it was on sale for only three and it came with a little storage case so it will not snag on the inside of my purse — where I plan to store it once I am finished playing with it.

This glass file has a very fine grit, even with the tips of the fingers it feels relatively smooth but when applied to nails you can tell there is some pull that is perfect for smoothing out those stray edges that flare up — or if you are meticulous — getting into a routine of daily filing to keep the splits at bay. It creates an extra smooth nail edge without taking off too much nail like a regular emory board would.

I still have not put it in my purse yet — I feel so special and princessy using it. What about you, have you fallen in love with glass nail files yet or do you hate them?

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* Get your glass nail file online at Amazon

Moe

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Saran Wrap Nails

February 25, 2013 By Moe 1 Comment

When I saw this video I knew I had to share it with you. It is so bloody easy! All you need is two complimentary colors of nail polish and a little bit of saran wrap! You apply one coat of the first color and let it dry. You apply one coat of the second color over top and while it is still damp you dab at it with a scrunched up ball of plastic wrap. Watch this how-to video by Mattania from QTplace to see how easy:

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* Visit QTplace for more nail art ideas

Moe

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Christmas Nails Tutorials

December 24, 2012 By Moe Leave a Comment

The internet has been abuzz with holiday nail ideas, here are a few of my favorite nail tutuorials for Christmas:

This one is a super easy one, remember it is not about the brand of nail polish they are using but their technique, use what you have. For example if you do not have a dotting tool use the end of a bobby pin:

I love scribble art and this is a great way to add a little holiday spirit to your nails. If you do not have a nail pen try pouring a little of your dark nail polish on a piece of plastic wrap and dipping in a bobby pin to do your scribble art:

My absolute favorite this season is the reindeer look; so simple and SO cute:

Do not forget to put a top coat over all your nail art so it will last longer.

Have fun!

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* More of my favorite holiday simple nail tutorials

Moe

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Getting the Cleopatra Look

September 28, 2012 By Moe Leave a Comment

This year Buy Costumes has three plus size costumes for the Egyptian Queen ranging in price from $40 to $80 (not including any discounts you may find on their site).

My absolute favorite is the Queen of the Nile which is new this year. I like it because it gives the Queen a darker look than we have seen in the past and I love the details put into the cape, neckline and waist band. The costume kit includes dress, cape, collar, and headpiece. It is currently available in 2x and 3x.

plus size Queen of the Nile costume from Buy Costumes

As I mentioned Buy Costumes has a few, the traditional white Goddess of the Nile is very pretty but something tells me there may be some concern with the the sheerness of the white so proper undergarments would be a must. The Egyptian Jewel in teal is gorgeous too but I think it might make it awkward to go up stairs and sit comfortably. But both costumes come in separate sizing of 2x or 3x.

plus size cleopatra costumes from Buy Costumes

Channelling Elizabeth Taylor

If you want to channel Elizabeth Taylor, one of the best movie icons of the Nile queen, then the best way to do that is with the make-up –perfectly detailed for you by Pixie-woo:

And in case you have not seen Cleopatra with Liz Taylor here it is in its entirety. Scroll through to see the different costumes she wears as well as the changes in hair and make-up.

But, “What about the jewelry?”, you ask. I was just over at Etsy and they have a huge selection of Eqgyptian inspired pieces sold separately if you want to make your own or already transformed if you are not feeling crafty — there is a huge range of prices and styles to choose from.

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* Get your plus size cleopatra costume from Buy Costumes
* Check out Egyptian jewelry on Etsy

Moe

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Ombre Costumes

September 6, 2012 By Moe Leave a Comment

First it started with ombre hair, then scarves, then nails, then maxi dresses and jeans… Nothing is above being ombre-ized, not even costumes. Some of the hottest costumes featuring the ombre technique tend to be Gothic in nature like vampires and witches but you can find really nice ombre goddess costumes too.

plus size ombre costumes from various retailers
From left to right:

* Blood Vamp Adult Plus Costume (16 to 24), $38 from Costume Super Center
* Plus Size Magical Witch Costume (16 to 20), $47 from Costume Craze
* Ombre Hooded Adult Cape, $20 from Buy Costumes
* Plus Greek Goddess White & Blue Costume (16 to 24), $40 from Costume Super Center
* Plus Size Venus Goddess of Love Costume (16 to 20), $40 from Costume Super Center
* Plus Size Gypsy Costume (18 to 20), $88 from Costume Craze

And to go with the ombre dress how about ombre eyes and lips! Here is a tutorial from Pixiwoo to practice: