Free Eyelash Giveaway

I'm sending one lucky reader a set of free J. Cat false eyelashes with eyelash glue. All you have to do is subscribe to my blog and make a purchase of any amount by clicking on one of my banner ads. Check back every Friday as I will be giving away more beauty products this entire month.

Contouring For Beginners

*** UPDATE** Products I Used.

Foundation- Cargo liquid foundation in "Warm Beige"
Highlighter- My all time favorite is YSL Touch Éclat but it's expensive.
Bronzer- This is what I use to create the contour. To make features look less prominent. I use MAC liquid foundation Studio Fix in shade NW40.Or you can use a bronzer you like.
Blush- Cargo blush in "Bali." I'm convinced Cargo carries the best blush even better than MAC.
Lipstick- MAC Myth
Lipliner- MAC  Naked

Eyeshadow- Cargo "Cyprus" it's a gold plum color.
Crease Shadow- MAC Sketch
Lid Shadow- Cargo "Green Bay" and "Pasadena" I mixed the green and pink color together to create a beautiful shade.
Powder- MAC Studio Careblend in Light Beige

Contouring isn't difficult and if you think it is you're probably reading into it too much. The rule of thumb is highlight areas you want to bring forward and darken areas you want to appear less prominent. I like to darken with a foundation 3 shades darker for a more natural contour. Otherwise you can also use bronzer. I darker just below the apples of my cheeks, top of my forehead, jaw line and the tip of my nose. Darkening the tip makes it appear shorter.

Then I highlight along the bridge of my nose, under my eyes, my chin, forehead and just above my lips. Then I blend with a beauty blender sponge. Beauty product list to follow. 

Close up on the eyes

 

 

I lost 5 pounds in One Week

So I was supposed to post my pic on Monday but I've been in my period and bloated. TMI but it's true. So after 1.5 weeks I think the pictures tell the truth. The diet and working out with the heart monitor has been a Godsend. See for yourself. Here is the link to my original post. http://www.vodkanlace.blogspot.com/2014/02/start-of-my-fitness-journey.html?m=1

American Idol "This Is Me"

Tonight the contestants get to choose songs that are about them and how they see themselves as artists. I think this is finally the best and most important theme they've ever had in all of the seasons. Once again Jennifer Lopez looks flawless. That hair style and the lace dress is everything tonight. Side bar not that it matters but did anyone else notice she's wearing color contacts? I'm not blogging about people I think were so so or boring. I'm only going there about memorables. So who's the first good or bad on my list?

America please vote off Malaya Watson. She is so freaking annoying I can't even deal with her. Her voice sucks as well by the way. Did you hear her sing this Bruno Mars song? I've never even heard of it and I never want to hear it again. My boyfriend was in the kitchen while she was singing and thought it was a boy. Whoever her "handlers" are need to tell her to stop, it's too much. Bye Malaya.

Kristen O'Connor ok wow. This is the voice I remember from Hollywood week. Last week she wasn't that good. This week singing Kelly Clarkson "Beautiful Disaster" was much better. Not as good as Kelly Clarkson I think but she deserves another week at least. I'm afraid that people are going to be turned off by her as a person other than her voice. Sounds mean but maybe as the weeks go on if you don't understand it you will.

CJ Harris is one of my favorites. OMG and his family how cute are they? It definitely wasn't as good as Darius Rucker but you could tell he felt comfortable and was having a good time. That being said no one has "wowed" me yet. I think he will move on to the next but he needs to do something else. I say a country rock song would work best for him.

Wow MK was totally making a joke about the single ladies comment and wow American Idol got so scared they pretended not to get the joke. MK is different in a way that she is the first openly gay person on the show. However, did you watch and hear her tonight? It was way too Justin Beiber for me and I think other people are going to agree. Just because she put makeup on she still looks like a good looking boy which is fine.  When you're going to look like someone who no one really likes right now..eeeh? I don't think it's a good idea.

The longer I watch this the more I cringe and can't believe some of these people made it through others that got cut last week.

Jena Irene I liked from before Hollywood. I also like her song choices but!!!!!!!!!! Her voice is now way to Katy Perry for me. I can tell why the judges picked her because she's different but that doesn't make her good.

Alex Preston I call the weird one with old school 90210 hair. I like him a lot. He sounds so effortless and he's still original. He compares himself to Jason Mraz but he's not. He has a different sound. He's going through and he's likable.

Then there is Jessica Meuse the country chick with purple hair. She's iffy to me because she has a good voice but I think she has insecurity issues. This tonight was the perfect song for her. She sounded like one of the recorded country artists I hear on the radio. However, she stands there at the mic like she's uncomfortable. Hopefully the AI staff will help her with that. She's going to make it far I think. I predict the top 5 then she will be booted off.

It's not a secret Emily Piriz is my favorite. She chose a Pink song that is slow and is in a key that's slower than her capability. I don't think it was good for her voice but I think it was good because Pink is popular right now with her tour. Not only that she sings it better than Pink does. Sorrry bye PINK

Robin Thicke Divorce over Miley Cyrus

Robin Thicke may have lost the love of his life all because of Miley Cyrus? Paula Patton in my opinion, is one of the most beautiful women I've ever seen. Not only that she has such an energy and vibrant personality. I was so surprised when I found out she wanted out of her marriage. We all saw the disgusting display that was Robin and Miley at the MTV VMA's. If I was Paula I'd be pissed too. However, I saw her recently afterward on the show What What Happens Live on Bravo and Andy Cohen asked her thoughts on it. Paula responded that she didn't think it was a big deal and doesn't understand what all the fuss was about. She also said she knew about it before hand I'm assuming seeing it during rehearsals.  TMZ is reporting that Paula didn't know about it and she was actually humiliated by the performance. She went as far as to tell Thicke he humiliated her on national television.

Recently Robin was photographed grabbing some randoms ass at a club and it's gone down hill from there. Paula has decided to separate and hasn't filed for divorce just yet. Robin flew to be by Paula's side in a desperate attempt to save his marriage but so far Paula's not feeling it. The two have known each other since high school and have a son together. 

UPDATE. Crochet Maxi Skirt for Spring

***UPDATE***

I spoke with a rep from Jaide Clothing and the skirt is coming back as part of their summer collection so stay tuned!!

I found the perfect skirt for Spring. Not only is it crochet which is going to be hot this year it has an awesome accent belt. This skirt looks great on any figure. It's currently sold out at Jaide clothing for $59 but you can join their mailing list to get the first dibs when it's back in stock. I personally plan on buying both colors. http://www.jaideclothing.com

Products for Great Skin

I got an amazing facial the other day with Dermalogica products. I've used Dermalogica in the past and forgot how fresh and glowing it made my skin. I have dry and sensitive skin that tends to be on the red side.  The Age Smart Overnight Repair Serum is a Godsend get it here . The morning after I've used it my skin is glowing and looks flawless. I almost hate putting makeup on my skin looks so great. I also use the exfoliating brush to slough off dead skin cells when I cleanse my skin with their gentle cleanser.

Another serum I like to use under my moisturize in the mornings is the Bioelements Oxygen Cocktail found here. It helps boost your skins oxygen uptake, fights aging and helps bind moisture to the skin.

Lastly to help fight the redness and increase the flawlessness I use Gunilla of Sweden Pore Minimizing primer found here. It's one of the only products that I have tried that actual minimizes my pores. As I've gotten older I'm extremely self conscious about my pores. I stare at my skin after I put foundation on and I can't stand seeing the little holes all over my face. This stuff WORKS and it's only $35!! Trust me with every day use it will last you at least 6 months. That's like $5 a month for extraordinary skin.  It's plant based and also fights redness and inflammation. When I don't feel like wearing face makeup this product is all I needs. I simply can't live without it. Hopefully these products I have listed will work for you like they did me. I find they are cost effective and worth every penny.

You can use the following link to get 10% off here.  Great Skin is an awesome site to buy all your skincare products and mineral makeup. You get loyalty points every time you purchase which turn into free money to use on more products!

Friday Fashion Mermaid Sundress

I found a new web site I love http://www.shopdailychic.com The clothes are very Bebe-esque and reasonably priced. I live in California and even though it's February the weather feels like Spring. So I've been all about searching for Spring trends now. Check out this beautiful dress. I love mermaid style dresses and this one is only $44!!

Another favorite from the same site is this beauty. When you're thinking of Spring this season think white white white! 

Start of My Fitness Journey

So I'm 34 years old and I had my first baby 10 months ago. Thankfully I've been able to lose all but 5 pounds and am at my pre-pregnancy weight without breast feeding. However, I was 15 pounds overweight before I got pregnant. I went from 145 pounds to 200 pounds by the time I had my baby. I'm 5"4 with a small build so I was huge. These last 3 months have been so hard for me to lose even 2 to 3 pounds and I got discouraged. I'm not going to lie. I love my alcohol and going out to eat. Luckily our baby has the best temperament that he allows for us to go out a lot as a family. My fiancée and I went to Las Vegas for a brief weekend after Thanksgiving where it seems like I gained 5 pounds in three days. Anyway I decided since I'm working out, eating right and drinking alcohol a few times a week and not losing weight this isn't working. I decided to give up alcohol completely until I lose (we will see how long this lasts) and cheese my serious weakness. 

I started this new "diet" 3 days ago and so far have lost 2 pounds. I only weigh myself on Wednesdays and Sundays. I feel like weighing myself twice a week keeps me on track and motivates me to keep going even if it is just water weight. I want to see the scale go down regardless. I also measure myself which I feel is extremely important! I have enclosed my before picture which I am embarrassed about but who cares, we all have our insecurities. The enchilada recipe I posted I ate last night and still am losing weight. It was also cheese free. So far it's been 4 days including today without alcohol and I feel great.

The plan I follow was given to me by a personal trainer and nutritionist from Miami who trains some of the most beautiful people in the world. It's the best way to learn to eat and exercise healthy and lose weight in the quickest amount of time. I feel like any mother can find it easy to follow this plan. As far as time for working out that will vary from person to person. I have one child and know how hard it is, I can't imagine for moms out there that have more. I have 5 months to lose 20 pounds before my wedding. I will be posting my plan from my trainer this afternoon when my son naps. I will also post weekly pictures so make sure to subscribe to my blog. Thanks mommies!

UPDATE**** Here is where you can find my sample meal plan from my celebrity personal trainer.

http://haternation8.blogspot.com/2014/02/my-meal-plan.html

My meal plan to Lose 20 Pounds Fast

First let me say I am not a Dr., nutritionist or professional. This is simply a copy of the diet I follow as a mom that works for me.

For starters you need the proper supplements. Not just to build lean muscle but to help boost your metabolism. I use Isopure Zerocarb protein shakes and Max Glutamine. 

The Max Glutamine is an amino acid which is depleted during training, stress or poor diet. It's important for metabolism. I take one scoop 2-3 times a day as directed. 

The next thing you need is a heart rate monitor if you want to make sure you're not wasting your workouts and that you're pushing yourself. The best for the money is the PT 40 monitor. I absolutely love it and wrote a whole article on it. 

The cheapest place to find it is on Amazon here.

 http://www.amazon.com/Polar-Womens-Heart-Monitor-Watch/dp/B0035XOYH4/ref=as_li_tf_mfw?&linkCode=wey&tag=haternation09-20

So what's the diet? I'll give you what I was given then later I will post my choices, recipes etc.

Morning (around 7:00 am)

1 scoop Max Glutamine

3-4 egg whites scrambled with leftover vegetables from the night before
(sometimes I'm not hungry or don't feel like cooking eggs so I'll have oatmeal with Isopure protein shake.) You can even mix in the protein powder with your Oatmeal and then add hot water.

1 packet Quaker instant oatmeal

Coffee with non fat milk and one Truvia or Stevia sugar packet

Morning snack (around 10:00 am)

1 scoop Isopure protein shake 

Or

One piece gluten free toast with peanut butter

A handful of almonds or salt free peanuts

Lunch (12:30-1:00)

1 scoop Max Glutamine

Lettuce with some type of protein (tuna, or chicken)

1/2 cup Quinoa 

Any vegetable except sugary ones like corn, carrots or peas

Afternoon snack (4:00)

2oz smoked salmon teriyaki (or tuna) with 5 saltines and 1 cup of any vegetable 

Or

1.5 cup Skinnypop popcorn and 1 scoop chocolate Isopure 

Or

1 string low-fat string cheese and 1 cup of any vegetable

Dinner (7:00pm)

1 scoop Max Glutamine

5-6 oz Lean protein (fish, chicken, steak or lean ground beef or turkey)

1 cup vegetables

1/2 cup brown rice or Quinoa

Sundays- Cheat Meal Day !! (The best day ever!)

Now please note it's a cheat MEAL not a cheat DAY. Choose breakfast lunch or dinner for your cheat meal. I usually pick dinner and below are my favorite cheats:

Donuts, McDonald's two cheeseburger meal with large fries, Taco Bell Nacho's bellgrande meal, Italian food lasagna or cheese tortellini with garlic bread, Mexican food two cheese enchiladas with rice and beans drenched in mole sauce.  Also this would be the day should I decide to partake in alcohol.

It's important to have a cheat meal at the end of the week.  It tricks your body into thinking you are not in starvation mode and helps as to NOT store food as fat. It's great for your metabolism trust me. Just don't turn your cheat meal into a cheat day or have a cheat meal more then once per week.
There are so many varieties of foods you can eat on this diet, what I posted was my example from my celebrity trainer.  I will continue to post variations of what I eat throughout the week for examples. Feel free to email me as well with more questions. durbs8@yahoo.com

Emily Piriz American Idol Season 13

I predict Emily Piriz will be the next American Idol if it's not a male.  Otherwise she will be in the finale. She was amazing and flawless! That voice! She sang Grace Potter & The Nocturnals "Oh La La" one of my favorite songs. Here's my quick recap of everyone else. Not many people ever agree with my opinions on the American Idol contestants but it's still my opinion. First let me say I feel like this is the best judges panel of all seasons. HCJ and Keith Urban are hilarious together. I've never liked Jennifer Lopez more. There is no ego between all of them they are just simply great as a unit.

Majesty Rose - She had great energy before she made it to the stage then when she sang what happened? Adam Lambert told her to slow it down when she sang Pharrell's "Happy" and I think she took it too literally.

Kristen O'Connor the nurse from Florida- she thinks she has it in the bag already. She sang Turntables and it started off pretty rocky. She has a great voice and I love when she hits certain high notes like when she sang Katy Perry "Unconditionally." However, she's no match so far for Piriz.

Briana Oakley- She sang "Warrior" by Demi Lovato and I'm not feeling the whiny tone in her voice.

Jena Irene- I liked her voice throughout auditions but it was just weird to me this performance. She sang "Painted Black" by the Rolling Stones and it just wasn't a good song choice for her. Too safe.

Bria Anai- first thing, I find her extremely annoying. She was the better singer so far out of the first 5. I do agree with the judges though when they said it sounded like she was screaming the song at the end. It was just too much.

Marialle- ok this girl I have always said was the black Miley Cyrus wannabe. She made a horrible choice in choosing to sing Katy Perry's "Roar." The song sucks and she sang it awful. She was off tune the entire performance and even fell out of her shoe at the end. She's going home and should after that.

Jessica Muese- The country singer with pink hair. I liked her in the beginning, as the competition has gone further I feel her country voice isn't that strong. What she has going for her is an edge because of her hair. I love the song she sang "Drink a Beer" from the Zac Brown Band but there was nothing special to it. It could have been better but I think she's going through.

Emily Piriz- Hands down the best.

MK- The openly gay contestant (first ever by the way) from San Francisco. I wasn't expecting her to knock my socks off and she didn't but she was still good. She has a big fan base and will easily move on to the next round. She sang "All of Me" by John Legend.

Malaysia- The contestant with braces and crazy hair. I'm sure a lot of younger kids think she's funny and cute but here's another one I find to be annoying. She needs to learn to keep her mouth shut when she talks too much because her over confidence is going to turn people off later down the line. I predict she will get voted off and the judges will bring her back as a wild card. Her voice is hella whiny and it's not my taste.

PT 40 Heart Rate Monitor Has Helped Me Lose Weight

both

;">Check it out, this is the women's PT 40 heart rate monitor. This monitor pushes me harder and harder each day like I have my own personal trainer. It comes with a chest strap that fits so comfortably. I was worried it would slide off me but I've had no issues. I bought a cheaper monitor on Amazon and it sucked. I threw it away after two days. The PT 40 is so simple and straight forward. It takes less then 30 seconds to find your heart rate before your workout. Then it updates your rate frequently throughout. At the end you get your exact calorie burn. You can purchase yours here http://www.amazon.com/Polar-Womens-Heart-Monitor-Watch/dp/B0035XOYH4/ref=as_li_tf_mfw?&linkCode=wey&tag=haternation09-20 Or from my "I recommend" items on the banner to the right. I promise you won't be sorry.

Mackenzie Ziegler Girl Party Song

It's the episode after the biggest blowout in 'Dance Mom's' history. Paige, Brooke and mom Kelly Hyland are out. It's obvious Christi Lukasiak and Chloe are going to be her next targets. The show starts off with Abby Lee telling her staff to send Kelly a letter formally forbidding her from the premises. Now Abby is pushing a new and amazing dancer Kalani from her spin off show 'Abby's Ultimate Dance Competition.' You can't lie she's a beautiful dancer, I personally think she's better then Abby's coveted Maddie. I still find it hard to believe these kids learn their competition dances 2-3 days before the actual competition. Anyway we are about 10 minutes into the episode and it's basically been all about the Hyland kids. There's no need for Abby to continue to trash them when they're gone and not only that, they had no control over their mothers actions. Melissa is such a kiss ass. She has the moms over for wine and cheese sans Christi of course but that's by her choice. I think Melissa wants to get as close as she can to her future enemy Kira (Kalani's mom). Did you notice Mackenzie was taking vocal lessons at Abby Lee's studio? Total proof that Abby was pissed that Brooke didn't want to use her as her manager. Now that she's gone Abby has her hooks on poor little Mackenzie. Melissa is out of control. This is obviously another reason why she pulled her kids out of school. What kind of mother puts show business ahead of education? Oh I know......Britney Spears mom, Lindsay Lohan's mom, Justin Beiber's mom need I go on Melissa? Mackenzie has a number of YouTube videos out in Internet land of her singing. Again, I'm wondering how much mom was behind that one as well. I am pulling for these kids though. I always thought they seemed like good kids. I think as the seasons of 'Dance Moms' goes on you can see a little ego and cockiness in both Maddie and Mackenzie that I don't like.

Healthy Enchiladas on a Diet

I allow myself one cheat meal a week but I usually save that for Italian food or McDonalds. Mexican food especially enchiladas is by far my favorite. I found a way to use up my healthy leftovers in my fridge and make a guilt free version.  Please note the two on the right are mine. The 4 on the left are my fiancées. I find when I cut cheese completely and alcohol I drop weight quicker. This is what I used and it's so simple.

1 Green Bellpepper diced (you could probably get away with two)

1/2 diced yellow onion.

1 small package of ground turkey meat

1 large can mild red enchilada sauce

Parsley for garnish

5-6 Medium size tortillas 

Spray a baking dish with canola oil. Pour enchilada sauce in dish just to coat it.

Brown turkey meat in pan until slightly brown. Then add the onions and bell peppers and season with salt free seasoning.  Let cool a little bit. Take a tablespoon and scoop about 3-4 scoops in the middle of the tortilla. Roll it like a burrito and repeat. Lay enchiladas in pan and pour remaining enchilada sauce all over tortillas. Sprinkle parsley on top and lightly sprinkle low fat cheese if you wish. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes and broil for 5 minutes. Tell me what you think!

Izea Make Money with Social Media

Idea is starting a new program where you could make really good money just from using Twitter, Facebook, Foursquare, your own blog, Wordpress, Instagram and more. Sign-up now here

https://izea.com/r9fD

Dance Mom Kelly Hyland Sues Abby Lee Miller

If there wasn't already enough drama on the hit Lifetime television show 'Dance Moms' there's more. Kelly Hyland, mom to dancers Brooke and Paige Hyland slapped teacher Abby Lee Miller and pulled her hair during an argument over her children. Abby had Kelly arrested and now Kelly is fighting back with a lawsuit against Abby and the producers of the show 'Dance Moms.' While Hyland seemed to already have one foot out the door of Abby's dance studio due to constant confrontations she was having with the teacher regarding the treatment of her daughters. Now it seems Hyland and her children could get a big payout for saying sayonara. Legal documents were filed last week listing Kelly, Brooke and Paige as the plaintiffs and Abigail Lee Miller and Collins Avenue Entertainment LLC as the defendants. Kelly is claiming she attacked Abby only in defense of her being defamed and assaulted by Miller herself. Kelly made the following statement: "The producers of the show [Collins Avenue Entertainment LLC] in an effort to attract ratings and viewership, encourage and facilitate conflicts between Miller on the one hand and the young girl dancers and their mothers on the other." Sounds a little like a hunk baloney to me. Kelly has been on the show since day one and if she didn't like it then she could have pulled her children out a long time ago. While I do not agree with Abby Lee's tough love approach to her students I believe it's the parents own fault for subjecting their children to this "abuse" over and over. It seems to me like the parents and even the children are more excited about being on television and the popularity that comes with then the way Abby Lee Miller makes them feel. Kelly is asking for 5 million in damages claiming Abby Lee also defamed her when she made an appearance on 'The View.'