Urban Decay Naked Line Holiday Favs

Happy Thanksgiving Eve! I can't believe the holiday season is officially upon us. Tomorrow I'm ready to enjoy this feast, and relax with a game night complete with wine and Christmas movies. With all the parties and sales on the horizon, I wanted to share my favorite Urban Decay picks from their fabulous Naked line which create the perfect party look complete with holiday sparkle.

Naked Illuminated - I picked this up last year for holiday parties, and loved the subtle shimmer it gives. I apply to my cheekbones, chest, and shoulders for extra sparkle.

Naked Skin Beauty Balm - Flawless BB cream that provides amazing coverage while perfecting the "no makeup look".

Naked on the Run Palette - I just received this gorgeous palette from the VIB sale. I love that it has everything I need in one palette for traveling or for after work touch-ups.

Naked3 Palette - Still in love with the rosy hues of this palette. Perfect for rose gold holiday looks.

Naked Smoky Palette - my new favorite eyeshadow palette! I blended several shades the other night at a friend's "Kick off to the Holidays" party for the perfect smoky eye after the palette's namesake.

Naked Flushed Double-Ended Brush - Perfect for my new On the Run palette to use on the blush, bronzer, and highlighting powders for that holiday glow.

Gwen Stefani Eyeshadow Palette - I could not be more excited about this palette, it'll have me walking in the spiderwebs and singing "I'm just a girl". How gorgeous are the "Baby" and "Pop" shades?

Naked Skin Weightless Concealer - after all those holiday parties and extra happy hours in the coming weeks, I'll be needing concealer to cover-up those pesky under eye dark circles.

Don't forget to check the Sephora app for a preview of their $10 limited edition Black Friday Beauty Deals!

Have a Happy Thanksgiving with friends and family!

beauty Naked Palette Sephora Urban Decay

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New Beauty Favs

I've been meaning to round up my recent beauty purchases. They've all been beauty raves, and are some of my new favorites.

DryBar Mai Tai Spritzer

DryBar Triple Sec Dry Shampoo

DryBar Lemon Drop Brush

I can't rave enough about the DryBar line available at Sephora and Nordstrom. The Lemon Drop Brush does wonders on my hair even when it's wet, and no more breakage from forcing my brush through tangles.

The Triple Sec Dry Shampoo is the best smelling and long lasting dry shampoo that I've tried. I've liked some others, but never loved any until now. A bit pricier than drugstore brands, but worth every penny!

And last but not least is the amazing Mai Tai Spritzer Sea Salt Spray. I try not to use heating tools on my hair on a daily basis, so I let my hair aid dry most days during the week. I like to apply this spritzer when letting my hair air dry because it keeps my natural waves without them feeling sticky or crunchy. Win-win!

Glamglow Supermud Mask

As I raved last week about this mask, it leaves my face feeling and smelling amazing! Am I the only one who gives bonus points to products that also smell great?

Urban Decay Naked Smoky Palette

Ever since I got my first Naked Palette (the original candy bar looking palette) in 2011, I haven't been able to get enough of these amazing palettes. Everything from the packaging, to the pigmentation, to the gorgeous shades, and the best part is how easily blendable they are for day and evening looks make each of these palettes amazing. My favorites change all the time, but I love the rose colored hues in the Naked3 and the originals from the first palette the best - especially Sidecar. 

Other than Oahu, the Vineyard Champagne Kiss is my favorite lotion at Bath and Body Works. Because champagne. 

I still can't thank Katie enough for introducing me to this primer which has been the only product to stand up against the Florida heat and humidity and keep me matte. (My full review can be found here.)

YSL Rouge Pur Couture #9 Rose Stiletto

YSL Rouge Pur Couture #19 Fuschia Pink

I've always found lipstick to be hit or miss with me, as they'll either disappear quickly while out and leave me with that in-between look or they'll dry out my lips. So, I was excited when Influenster asked me to test out two of YSL's shades from their Rouge Pur Couture line because I knew they'd be fabulous - and they did not disappoint. I still can't get over how gorgeous these colors are!

What are some of your recent beauty favorites?

Bath & Body Works DryBar Glamglow Make Up Forever Naked Palette Urban Decay YSL

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Weekending + UD Naked Smoky Giveaway

Another beautiful summer weekend has come to a close, but I feel like I get much more out of my Sundays in the summer with it being light out later and getting out out to have more fun and enjoy the weekend to it's fullest.

I may not have been able to get to the movies this weekend to see this adorableness, but I did catch the original Despicable Me on tv Friday night which got me excited for the new Minions movie!

Friday was nice and low key, I enjoyed a cool lime refresher (my first one in cool lime - YUM!)

...aaaand the beautiful Naked Smoky palette came in. *see giveaway at the end of this post*

I also recently received some Keihls goodies in the mail along with a sweet note from Marie. So many great samples that I can't wait to try out. I've only ever heard amazing things about this line!

Saturday started off with this adorable face looking up at me at the breakfast bar while I enjoyed my coffee and oatmeal. "But mom.. I want some oatmeal too".

Then it was off to B-cubed to pick up a donut pan to make homemade funfetti donuts for a friend's birthday on Sunday *recipe coming tomorrow* in Emily and I's recipe swap. That evening, I headed out for a celebration for my boss. We had a fun night full of laughs and some competitive rounds of foosball. Glad to know I am still on fire in that game!

Sunday, I packed up the homemade donuts and an 18 pack of the birthday boy's favorite beer - yes that would be PBR and headed down to a pool party for the celebration.

Joining Biana for Weekending

and

Erin for Weekend Snapshots

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I'm more excited each time Urban Decay releases a new Naked Palette, with Naked3 being my favorite so far. So, when I heard about the new Naked Smoky I knew it would be an amazing palette and I was right! When this beautiful palette arrived on Friday, I couldn't get over how gorgeous it was! I can't wait to play around with the different shades, nine of which are exclusive to this palette and three which are from past palettes.

I love the Naked Smoky so much that I've teamed up with some fabulous ladies to giveaway one of these gorgeous palettes to a lucky winner! 

This palette contains: 

- 12 Naked Smoky Eye shadows in High (champagne shimmer micro-glitter), Dirtysweet (medium bronze), Radar (metallic taupe iridescent micro-glitter), Armor (metallic silver-taupe tonal sparkle), Slanted (light metallic gray), Dagger (medium charcoal micro-shimmer), Black Market (jet-black satin), Smolder (deep plum-taupe), Password (cool taupe matte), Whiskey (rich brown matte), Combust (soft pink-taupe), Thirteen (light beige satin) 
- Double-ended brush 
- Lookbook 

Pink and Fabulous | Dream Big and Buy the Shoes | Martinis and Bikinis |A Little Glitter | Green Fashionista | The Sequin Notebook | ElleSees

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Blog Giveaway Naked Palette Urban Decay

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Beauty products that last

Do you ever get frustrated when you spend a lot of money on beauty products and they don't last very long?

Here are some of my favs that do last....

Urban Decay Primer Potion

I picked up this tube over a year and a half ago! And I use it every.single.day! A little goes a long way and it is hands down my favorite product ever! I'm only just now about to run out and I lucked out by cashing in my 500 point reward the other day and got a free refill :-D

Benefit's Erase Paste

It takes me about a year to go through this little jar. I use a concealer brush to dab it under my eyes to cover up those unsitely undereye circles. 

Suave's Moroccan Oil *purchased at Target*

I use this Moroccan Oil every time I blow dry my hair and again a little goes a long way. I've had this bottle for a few months and still have a majority of the bottle left. Bonus points that it's cheap and can be found at Target.

Sephora Bronzer Sun Disk *currently sold out so unable to link*

I've been wearing Sephora's bronzer for a while so when the sale associate suggested I go bigger and get the sun disk for only a couple dollars more I of course went for it. She couldn't have been more right. This has lasted me a lot longer than the regular sized compact. I've had this disk since February!

NARS Albatross

I use this as a highlighter, and this has lasted since December. I don't use this every day, but a few times a week. Great lasting power! I haven't even hit the pan yet, which surprises me considering I hit the pan so quickly with NARS Orgasm.

Naked Palettes

Naked Palette

Naked 2

Naked Basics

I got the original Naked Palette in January of 2011, the Naked 2 palette for Christmas 2011, and the Naked Basics palette in December 2012. The only shade I've hit the pan on so far is Sidecar in the original palette. And I use colors from at least one of these palettes every day. Love that these shades are great for day and/or night.

Benefit Eye Bright

I've had this pencil for almost 2 years, but to be fair I use it only in the inner corners of my eyes to brighten them up during the week since I'm usually tired. 

Maybelline BB Cream *purchased at Target*

I picked up this BB cream for summer days out in the sun. I wanted something that would provide me coverage without feeling heavy or "looking like makeup". Another bonus is that it contains SPF 30 in it so I love using it for beach or pool days. 

What are some of your fav products that have lasted much longer than you thought?

Naked Palette NARS Sephora Suave Urban Decay

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UD Naked Palette 2

What is this you say? 2 posts in a row? I was super excited about my Kitchen Aid mixer, I just couldn't contain myself! But... I've been meaning to do a post all day about the new Urban Decay Naked Palette 2 that was released today causing the site to crash since so many people were trying to snag one. After the hugely popular Naked Palette last year, Urban Decay decided to re-vamp it and release a sequel so to speak.

The new palette consists of Foxy, Half Baked, Bootycall, Chopper, Tease, Snakebite, Suspect, Pistol, Verve, YDK, Busted, and Blackout. 

Half Baked is the only shade to be in both palettes and is one of my favs!

Comparison of the original Naked Palette and Naked Palette 2 (original is on the bottom)

I definitely love the new palette, but I honestly don't see myself running out to get it until after all the hoopla of the holidays is overwith. My original palette is still going strong, and I've been creating new looks with it lately. 

The new palette seems to be more shimmery, and may be better for nights out and special occasions than for every day, but if it's anything like the original, then it can create tons of different looks suitable for day or night. 

Was anyone able to grab one today? Are you planning on hunting one down before they're hard to find like the original?

Naked Palette

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Weekends Should be Longer

Why do the weekends always go by so quick?! I feel like it was literally just Friday afternoon and I was so thankful that my horrendous workweek was over and it was the weekend and alas here we are on Sunday night and I'm getting ready for my OC ladies to return at 10:00 on Bravo.

The weekend was good, it felt so great to sleep in and have some "me time". Yesterday morning I left for my spin class and when I got to the gym and asked for a pass for the class the guy at the desk said he had given them all out, I was so upset and shocked that I asked "Really?" and he reassured me the class was filled up even though I showed up early as I always do. So, I decided to go over to the cardio area and give myself my own kick-butt workout. I ran for 1/2 an hour and then did some strength training. It felt good to get a great workout in even though I missed my favorite class. After showering and having some lunch, H and I went over to visit our lot and see the progress. They staked out our lot so now we know how far back our land goes, and there's more than enough room for our pool and to have plenty of grassy area leftover. We also got to meet some of our future neighbors who are closing later this week (jealous).

I decided to use a YouTube tutorial to achieve that "smoky eye" look to go out last night using my Urban Decay Naked Palette. I thought it came out great, just not as much "pizazz" as the girl in the tutorial of course. I didn't use false eyelashes, but I still feel like I should have achieved more of the look.

I liked her tutorial I'm just bummed I'm not artistic enough to fully achieve the look. Below is the tutorial I used.

Today was more relaxing, I got a bunch of housework done and made a pot of sauce for dinner and I tried a new recipe for dessert. I got a cake recipe out of my In Style magazine. Every once in a while a recipe in one of my magazines catches my eye. I tried a pasta dish last week that neither H or I were too crazy about. It came out ok, but wasn't good enough to try again. But I tried another recipe tonight called Cocoa Pebbles Crunch Cake and it was GOOD!

Cocoa Pebbles Crunch Cake

1 oz. (approximately 1 square) semisweet chocolate

8 tbsp (1 stick) unsalted butter

1 1/4 cups sugar

3 large eggs

4 tbsp, plus 1 tsp vegetable oil

1/2 cup plus 1 tbsp buttermilk

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups cake flour

2 tbsp cocoa powder

1 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

2 8" cake pans

4 cups Cocoa Pebbles loosely packed

1 16 oz jar of Marshmallow Fluff

1/4 cup milk

Heat oven to 350 degrees

Heat chocolate in a microwave safe bowl for about 40 seconds until melted, stirring every 15 seconds

Using a mixer, cream butter and sugar

Incorporate eggs

Mix in oil, buttermilk, vanilla, and melted chocolate

Scrape down sides of bowl, add flour, cocoa, salt, and baking powder

Mix on low speed until batter is smooth

Spray cake pans with nonstick spray

Divide batter evenly among pans and bake cakes for 20 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean

Cool cakes in pans

In a large bowl, mix Cocoa Pebbles and 1 and 1/4 cups of marshmallow fluff. 

Brush bottom layer of cake with milk, top with crunch/fluff mix

Place next layer of cake on top 

Recipe calls for more fluff/crunch mix on top, but I used a can of white frosting instead which H and I thought turned out better. 

Refrigerate any leftovers. 

Naked Palette Recipe

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