The Boyfriend Jean

I'm a small girl, at least that's what I am told, so for awhile I never thought that I could partake in the boyfriend jean trend. I had seen so many wear this baggy jean with such confidence, but whenever I would try it, I ended up looking like I was drowning in denim. Then came the American Eagle Tomgirl Jean.

These jeans fit amazing for someone of my size. I don't feel like they are too baggy or overwhelming. I'm 5'3" and pretty slim by nature, always have been. These just look great on! I have gotten so many compliments as of late and I feel so great in them. They are very comfortable and just give a casual vibe to my outfit that I love to go for, especially with the distressed element to them.

I would definitely recommend these boyfriend jeans for anyone looking to get into the boyfriend jean trend. Now that the weather is nice, I will be donning these babies as often as I can from running errands to a night out. I cannot wait to make these a staple in my wardrobe.

The Nude, the Vamp, and the Red Lip

Sorry for the lack of a post last week. Things have been pretty crazy with my doctor’s appointments, family engagements, and work. But I am back this week with a post for all of those who fancy a chat about a pop of color on the lips.

Lip color is such a fun thing to do! Sometimes, I’ll pop on some lipstick just for the fun of running into Target when I know that I shouldn’t. For me, I have three go-to style of lip color that I will wear: the nude, the vampy, and the red. My favorite would have to be the vampy even though I only break it out on a special occasion. I’ll show you my two go to colors for each of these looks in order of the swatches above.

THE NUDE

MAC Touch paired with MAC Chestnut Liner

This nude the definition of nude in that it matches my skin tone to a T. I had been on the hunt for the “perfect nude” for a while with no success. I wanted a color that looked natural, but did not make me look washed out. When the kind lady at the MAC counter suggested I try this on, I was blown away by how much I loved the color on. I was so obsessed; I wore it every day for a good two weeks. Now, although this does not look very natural, it is my favorite go-to “nude” lip. I love this lip paired with a neutral eye look. It is such a bold nude lip that is so different, yet so gorgeous. I have gotten many compliments on this color and I just love it.

Laura Mercier Crème Smooth Lip Colour in Spiced Rose paired with MAC Chestnut Liner

When I first got this lipstick, I think I was enamored by the fact that it was Laura Mercier and did not pay attention to how much it actually washed me out. I felt bad for not liking it when I got home because it was a gift from my best friend and I had claimed that I loved it on so much. This lipstick had been sitting in my makeup bag for months before I thought, why don’t I try this with a brown liner? Low and behold my life changed. I absolutely adored this lip color once I applied a brown liner to help blend the color. It looks absolutely marvelous on.

THE VAMPY

MAC Smoked Purple

OH. MY. LORD. This is my all-time favorite lip color ever. End of discussion. My best friend mentioned above had purchased this and I was so in love with the color on her, I had to buy it for myself. Whenever I am in the mood for a dark lip, I immediately grab this. It looks great with a purple smokey eye look or with no eye makeup at all. It steals the show and makes me feel like a vampy goddess the Spice Girls would be glad to sing about in “The Lady Is A Vamp.” Yes, I referenced the Spice Girls when talking about my most beloved lipstick.

Revlon ColorBurst Matte Balm in Shameless

First of all, Revlon, how is this a balm? This is so pigmented, it should be a lipstick. I love this balm so much because it has such a high color payoff and is still so hydrating, yet matte. I don’t understand how it works, but it does the job. This was my go-to vampy shade before I discovered MAC’s Smoked Purple and I still will sometimes choose it over Smoked Purple when I want something a less dark, but still just as bold.

THE RED

Nars Matte Lip Pencil in Cruella

I received this lip pencil as a sample size as my birthday gift from Sephora and, wow, this blew me away. I had always seen Anna of Vivianna Does Makeup rave about the Nars matte lip pencils and had been dying to try them, so when I saw that that was my birthday gift, I ran to my nearest Sephora and picked it up. It is so lovely and rich in color that it has instantly become a favorite of mine in the short month that I have had it. I definitely plan on purchasing the full size. It is not as bright as my Stila liquid lipstick but it gives that brilliant red that instantly reminds you of the infamous Cruella de Vil. What a beauty it is on!

Stila Stay All Day Liquid Lipstick in Beso

I had always been looking for the perfect red lipstick to put on on days where I felt I needed an extra boost. One day, I received my BirchBox and there it was staring back at me. This liquid lipstick is amazing. It’s so pigmented and gorgeous and makes me feel like I can light up the whole room. It’s a very bright red that steals the show and really makes your lips pop. It is a matte lipstick, which is how I prefer my lip colors, but it doesn’t feel drying. I rarely need to touch it up because it really does stay all day. This is my all-time favorite red.

When I’m not throwing on a little balm and running out of the house, you can bet that I will have one of those six shades on. What are your favorite lip colors to rave about? I’m always looking for a new shade to purchase.

I hope everyone has a lovely week and I will be back next week with a new post!

Monthly Favorites: March 2015

This has been the winter of me trying to combat the lack of moisture in my skin. It has been absolutely terrible this winter and I felt like there was nothing that I could do to help it. Luckily, I had made some purchases and received some gifts that have really helped out a lot. This has also been a month of me remembering how much I love Drake and discovering new hobbies!

BEAUTY FAVORITES

My Moisture Restore Combo: The Body Shop Vitamin E Starter Kit & Vaseline Lip Therapy Cocoa Butter

This duo has helped my skin so much this winter. The Vitamin E Starter Kit comes with a gentle facial cleanser, toner, and moisturizer. I use all three daily and it has helped add so much moisture to my skin.  Now, unfortunately the Vitamin E Starter Kit that I had purchased in store is not available online; fortunately for everyone, myself included when I go to repurchase, the Vitamin E Starter Kit that I did find comes with an additional item that I had not received, which is a night cream.

When I finish, I add my Vaseline to my lips either prior to applying my makeup or just because. It is the only product aside from Carmex that actually keeps my lips hydrated. I am so grateful to my dear, dear friend for buying that for me after witnessing my struggle of having chapped lips this season. I love to prep my lips before applying a bold lip color by exfoliating then applying my Vaseline. It really helps for the color to pop and not stick to dry patches.

The Body Shop Camomile Silky Cleansing Oil

This has been the best product that I have found for removing my makeup, even waterproof liquid liner and heavy duty mascara. It is amazing how fast and efficiently it can remove my makeup without a trace. The only thing that I don’t like about it is that it leaves my skin feeling a little too oily, but that is easily fixed with my Vitamin E gentle facial cleanser that I use immediately after the oil. Also, I do not like how whenever I type "camomile," spell check thinks that I have no idea what I am talking about.

NON-BEAUTY FAVORITES

“If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late” by Drake

Do I really need to explain? Drake is bae and I cannot stop playing this record. I listen to it all day every day. "Jungle" is by far my favorite track on the album, but I love every single track. I’m attending a Drake themed birthday party this weekend and I am hoping that this is played on repeat the entire time. Pictures with Drake balloons will be taken.

Blogging

I have loved blogging the past few months since starting AWT with my friends and TITK as a solo venture. I know that I only post once a week on this blog and once a week on my other blog, but I love the feedback that I get from friends, family, and readers. I like being able to talk openily about my interests and share my love for so many things. I was so nervous to blog because I thought that I would not be taken seriously or people would think that I was wasting my time, but the support has been great and I am so grateful. It’s really nice and I cannot wait to see how the blogs grow over the next year and so on.

I do not have a lot of favorites this month simply because everything that I have been using this month are things that I always use and have been using for years. I am trying to branch out and try new products that will hopefully become new favorites to rave about. I'm excited to see how my favorites change next month!

Minimalist Everyday Makeup

I’m a minimalist for everything in my life, especially when it comes to my makeup. That was one of the main reasons that I wanted to start blogging. I found it hard to find POC bloggers who did not put so much effort into extreme highlighting and contouring and focused more on a simple, wearable, every day face. Sometimes a simple base and eye look is just what you need to really make your face glow. I thought that I could help out other POC who are not too into very extravagant makeup looks and opted more for a minimalist look.

My every day makeup look is bare bones neutral everything. I may do a pop of color with the lip, but my base and eyes stay the same most days, unless it is a special occasion or I feel like trying something new.

BASE

I typically stick to my bareMinerals bareSkin Pure Brightening Serum Foundation in Bare Espresso and bareMinerals Stroke of Light Eye Brightener  in Luminous 4 for concealer. I have been using bareMinerals SPF 15 Mineral Foundation in Medium Dark (or Golden Dark in summer) since 2009. I have never used another foundation since because I felt like if it wasn’t broke, why fix it? I opted to switch to the liquid foundation because I trusted the company but wanted to try something new. I recently purchased their Complexion Rescue and am excited to try that for a while and give a review. I set my face with bareMinerals Tinted Mineral Veil. That is my go to setting powder that I have never strayed from.

I do not to any highlighting or contouring, simply because I have yet to find a bronzer for my skin tone that will add warmth to my face. Also, I’m afraid that if I do a highlight it will be too shiny. Any tips or suggestions would be great. I am still in the market for a good minimal contour, bronzer, highlight routine.

My go-to every day blusher is theBalm Instain blusher in Swiss Dot. It is so super pigmented, so a little bit goes a long way. I just love the flush of color that it gives to my cheeks. I recommend that to anyone who loves a nice peachy glow on your cheeks!

EYES/BROWS

For brows, I use my Anastasia Brow Wiz in Ebony and set that with Benefit Gimme Brow in Medium/Deep. I recently purchased L’Oreal Brow Stylist Plumper Gel Mascara in the shade Medium to Deep as a dupe for Gimme Brow, so I hope that goes well!

My eyeshadow, I keep very bare bones and basic. I use the shades Naked on my lid and Buck in my crease from my Urban Decay Naked Palette and my Tarte Gifted Amazonian Clay Smart Mascara for my lashes.

LIPS

For lips, I normally just use Vaseline to give my lips some moisture and then touch them up throughout the day with whatever lip balm I have thrown in my bag. I only do color on special occasions and for that I love a vampy dark lip.

I'm excited to try these new purchases. I will have a full review on how I feel about them as soon as I try them!

How My Lashes Became Smart and Gifted

Back in November, I purchased the Tarte Gifted Amazonian Clay Smart Mascara. Whew, what a mouthful! I am in love with this mascara. Let me just tell you how this changed my entire life. This formula is amazing and it gives my lashes just the perfect amount of feathery goodness that is perfect for an everyday look or a night out look. This mascara gives such definition and volume that I constantly get compliments on my eyelashes, and immediately after I say my thank yous, I rave about the product and tell people to buy it. The packaging is absolutely beautiful. It comes in a bamboo barrel and the brush is so simple and thin, but does the job perfectly. I just love it and I wear it every time that I wear makeup. I would recommend it to anyone really.

Why is this mascara so smart and gifted? According to Tarte's website, the mascara is said to work with your lashes to give you extreme length and volume, while also promoting healthier lashes in the long run. The eco-friendly formula uses no harsh chemicals and helps to build strong lashes over time with continued use.

The only downside to this mascara is that it does hurt the wallet a bit. The retail value of this mascara is $20.00, but it is so worth it, in my opinion. However, if you want to just sample it, Ulta sells a mini travel size Gifted mascara for $10.00! How lovely is that? It really is great and it has transformed my makeup look over the past few months. I have also noticed a difference in my lashes! I can’t wait to try more from this brand because it is beginning to become a favorite of mine.

So, Who Is The Key

Hello! My name is Keyerra, also known as Key, and this is my blog for expressing my love of all things makeup, beauty, style, and anything else that I feel I should discuss.

Me on my birthday two weeks ago. I was so excited to have a sombrero!

Let me state a little disclaimer: I am nowhere near eligible to be a makeup artist, beauty guru, or style icon; I just love beauty and style as a hobby. I can spend hours watching beauty and style videos on YouTube, just getting completely lost in how amazing each look is and how everyone has their own take on different products. It’s absolutely amazing to me.

I was worried that being 24 was too old to start blogging; that this was something that you started in your teens and became a staple by your early twenties. However, my friends gave me the confidence to start this blog as a new hobby and I am very excited to start this new venture. I love talking about beauty and style, so much so that I wanted to start writing it.

On my 22nd birthday, attempting to lock down the sexy pout. Did I do it right?
P.S. Kylie Jenner got her overdrawn lip inspiration from me.

I got into makeup and beauty around four years ago, after I went through a rough breakup. Before that, I had never cared much about how I looked. I played sports in high school and found myself living in sweatpants and workout clothes. Not that there is anything wrong with sweatpants and workout clothes, but it seems to become a problem when you have two drawers full of sweatpants in your room. Dressing up for me was wearing a plaid button down, jeans, and flip flops. What was the meaning of a dress? I had no idea until I got to college. After my breakup, I decided that I wanted to try to learn how to use makeup, do my hair, and started experimenting with developing a sense of style. My style is always changing and I am always developing new loves or every day staples, so I figured that sharing this with others with the same passion would be a great outlet for me.

When I am not running this blog, I also run another blog with two best friends of mine called A Witty Threesome. That blog contains rather personal posts from the three of us and is a great outlet for me to talk about posts that are more opinionated and deeper than your typical beauty post, so I started this blog because I felt these posts would be out of place on AWT.

I am so excited to share this experience with everyone. I hope that you find as much enjoyment reading about my views on different products as I enjoy talking about it every Monday at noon EST!

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