NYX Matte Setting Spray:

The other day I was casually shopping and I decided to stop at the NYX make-up section.  I've never purchased anything by NYX but I've always wanted to, so I decided on two items, this setting spray is one them. 

Now, I've never used a setting spray before, so I really didn't know if I wanted a matte or dewy finish. I decided on matte because when I think of dewy, I think of sweaty.  I also didn't know if I was wasting my money because I don't use foundation.  But I figured I'd try it out anyways. 

To be honest, I'm not sure what my final verdict is.  I've had it work and I've had it not work.  I carry it around with me when I go out because of it most of the time not working for me.  Maybe it will work for me during other seasons, but in the hot, humid summer, definitely not.  

I like the idea of a setting spray.  I've never really had an issue with my makeup falling off, but my skin does get shinny after a few hours.  I thought that this spray would control that, but I guess I thought wrong.  Hopefully I can make this work when it's not sticky and gross outside. 

Pros: works if I'm not going outside, nice price considering others I have seen, 

Cons: Not for humid weather, 

Am I doing something wrong, or is the humidity too strong? Let me know! 

xx

Recipe: Sweet and Sour Tempeh

I saw this odd looking brick of seeds in the grocery store the other day and I thought "What is that?"  so I went to my handy dandy Pinterest and looked up recipes for it, and I found this one.  I wasn't sure if I was going to like it, but it's really not that bad.  Tempeh is a soy product, and to me it just tastes like dense nuts.  Now I halved the recipe, so down below is a 1/6th of a cup serving, since I don't have such a cup, I just eyeballed it with a 1/3 cup.  Pretty easy.  I also didn't include the peppers or the pineapple.  If you would like to do so it's 1 large green pepper seeded and diced, and 2 cups fresh pineapple chunks.  You add them to the recipe when you cook the tempeh.  

Ingredients: 

1 tbsp Soy Sauce 

1/2 tbsp Cornstarch 

1/6 cup Rice Vinegar 

1/8 cup Ketchup 

1 tbsp Brown Sugar 

1/4 cup Water 

1 tbsp Coconut Oil 

1 (8 oz) Package of Tempeh 

2 Garlic Cloves 

Cooked White Rice 

Directions: 

Whisk together the soy sauce, constarch, rice vinegar, ketchup, brown sugar, and water.  Set aside. 

Slice the tempeh into slivers. 

Heat up the coconut oil in a large skillet over medium high heat.  Add the tempeh.  Cook until beginning to brown.  Around 5-7 minutes.  

Whisk the sauce again, and then add it to the skillet,  Cook until the sauce has thickened.  Then for another 2 minutes.   

Serve over rice.

Enjoy!  

xx 

Maybelline New York Color Tattoo Metal 24 hour Eyeshadow Review:

Wow, that is a long title.  I've been using this eye shadow for a while now.  I'm usually not the biggest cream eye shadow fan, I've tried others in the past and they just weren't working out for me, but this one is actually great.

  I have one from L'Oreal that is basically in the same packaging.  (They're so alike I got them mixed up when I first purchased the L'Oreal one.)  So, I decided to purchase this one to compare it a little bit. (Not in this post though.)  

I got this eye shadow in the color 55 Inked in Pink.  It's a really nice shimmery dusty pink.  I've tried in in a few different ways.  By itself, with primer, and with other eye shadows paired along with it.  My favorite is pairing it.  This eye shadow NEEDS a primer.  There are no if ands or buts.  It just can't work without one.  

This shadow is in the metal line, which means it's shimmery, but there is also a solid color line called leather.  I plan on trying this one soon.  

When paired with a primer, this eye shadow has quickly turned into one of my favorites. It's true to color and  in the past month I've been reaching for it more and more.  In this pinky color,  I can pair it with anything and it looks great.  

Currently on the Maybelline site it costs $6.99 a jar.  

Pros: Long lasting with primer, lots of colors, 

Cons: I'm not sure I have any...

Have you tried this eye shadow?  

xx 

Recipe:Spinach, Tomatoes, Eggs, and Feta Cheese Pita

This recipe is more of an eye baller than actual measurements.  When ever I make it, I ball park it.  If you want to have less calories, then use just egg whites.  You can also chop up the tomatoes more, but it's all pick and choose. 

Ingredients:

1 egg 

1 egg white
2 Tbsp Milk 

2 Cherry Tomatoes, halved 

1 cup Baby Spinach, chopped

1/2 Whole Wheat Pita 

Salt and Pepper

Sprinkle of Feta 

Olive Oil 

Directions:

Combine the eggs and milk.

Add the spinach, tomatoes, salt and pepper.

Pour into a lightly greased pan.  

While that is cooking.  Put a little bit of olive oil on the pita, both sides, and warm it up in a toaster oven or oven.  

After the eggs have fully cooked, sprinkle in the feta cheese and fold over the the omelette.  

Take the pita out of the oven, and stuff in the omelette. 

Enjoy! 

xx 

Rimmel London Scandal Eyes Curve Alert Review:

I've been wearing this mascara for about a month now.  I got it because it says that it "lifts and plumps" every lash and gives "12x more volume."  But I haven't really seen that much volume.  It's a thicker formula compared to the other mascara I've been using, so the looks are different, but I don't see a difference between this one and my other voluminous mascara.  

It also claims "no clumps," and that's not true at all.  I find this mascara to actually clump often, if you're not careful. It's not as bad as a cheap mascara, my lashes don't look like spider legs, but there is some clumping. 

This mascara is also flaky.  After it's been on for a few hours, it starts to flake off.  It's not the worst I've ever had, but it's still annoying when you look in the mirror and you have little flakes on your cheeks.  

Even with the flakes, I still like the mascara.  I didn't get the look I expected, but I don't think I can get the look I expect by just using mascara alone.  But I wouldn't buy it again.  There are some mascaras that I've bought that I hated so much I could keep using them, this is not one of them.  

Pros: Light feeling, Looks nice

Cons: Clumpy, Flaky

Have you tried this mascara?  Do you like it?  Let me know! 

xx 

SmartCoffee App Review:

A little while ago, I was asked to download a coffee app, test it out, and to order a bag of coffee.  

The app is called SmartCoffee.  I was really surprised when I was able to download it because my iPod is five years old now, and I can't get a lot of newer apps because my iOS is not up to speed, and for a second there, I wasn't sure if the app was going to work, but I figured it out and got started. 
The SmartCoffee app is free, easy to use, and it comes with a whole lot of information on coffee and picking out the right blend for you.  

This app has a few different sections: coffee 101, glossary, Smart Coffee, picture gallery, and blend archive.  

Coffee 101: in this section there is a bunch of information about coffee, and how the founder of SmartCoffee started his journey to personalized coffee.  

Glossary: I'm pretty sure that the title gives this away, but the glossary holds all of the information in the app. 

Smart Coffee:  This is the section where you can go through  three sections picking out your perfect cup of coffee and after you find out what blend is right for you, you can purchase a bag. 

Picture Gallery and Blend Archive, again, pretty much explain themselves.  

I asked for help from my mom and my sister because they drink more coffee than I do, so I figured why not?  We decided on bright, gentle,  caramel, toasted marshmallows, and cedar.  After the app processed our selections, it picked out a blend called Albion River Inn Blend.  Buying the coffee was easy, and it took a week for  it to arrive.  It arrived exactly on the deliver date. 

The coffee itself is nice. My mom was the first to try it, and when she tried to make it the way she does her regular coffee it was weak.  So, now we just make it with a little bit more.  

SmartCoffee is a great new way to try out different kinds of coffee blends.  You can order to your specific tastes or you can mix it up a bit and find yourself a brand new favorite.  It's easy to use, and the coffee is priced (I think) fairly.  My bag came out to $14.50.  

10/10 would recommend! 

xx

Recipe: Vanilla Protein Balls

I found this recipe on Pinterest.  I've been trying to cut back on sugar, but sometimes I have a little sweet crave.   I don't want to spoil all of the small changes that I have made to my diet, so I go looking for healthy alternatives, and that is when I found theses.  I did cheat by using sweetened coconut shreds, but that is what I had in my fridge from a different recipe.  The recipe says that it makes 10 balls, I ended up with 12.  

Ingredients: 

1/2 cup Rolled Oats 

1/4 cup Shredded Coconut 

2 Tbsp Ground Flaxseed

2 Tbsp Vanilla Protein Powder 

1/4 cup Dried Blueberries 

1/4 cup Almond Butter 

2 Tbsp Agave Nectar 

1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract 

Directions: 

In a large bowl combine the oats, shredded coconut, flaxseed, protein powder, and blueberries.   Stir.  Then add the almond butter, agave nectar, and vanilla extract. 

 Blend together with your hands.  When the mix is finally mixed, roll into 1 inch balls. 

 Store in an air tight container in the fridge. 

 It should been good for a week. 

Enjoy!

xx 

Maybelline Master Conceal Camouflage Concealer Review:

I've had this concealer for over a month now, and I still don't 100% love it, but I'm getting there.  

The coverage is spot on, I love the coverage but it does get a little build-upish (maybe creasy  is a better word for it...)  It seems like a foundation, and I'm not a big fan of foundation for exactly that reason. Maybe I'm using a little too much.  I'm not sure. 

When I first got it I thought it was a little heavy for a concealer, this is where I got the foundation-like feel.  I got it in the lightest color, fair, and it matches very well with my skin.  With my other concealer sometimes I feel as if  it's a smidge too dark.  I don't use a face primer at the moment so it currently lasts around three to four hours.  

I haven't worn it much in humidity, but I don't think it would feel very nice after being in the sun all day.  Humidity is make-ups worst enemy.  

Pros: color, pigmentation, coverage 

Cons: feels like foundation, build-up

Would I suggest this concealer to a friend? Absolutely.  I really like it and, if I have to, I'll wait until its cooler outside to use it. 

xx