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Review: e.l.f.’s $5 Smoky Eye Kit
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Hey friends!
My deepest apologies for my absence. I’ve been very busy but I promise to do my best to keep up with my weekly entries from now on.
Today I’m going to be talking about the smoky eye. I’d be lying if I said I’ve mastered this smoldering look (when it’s done right, it can be quite smoldering). But I have discovered that there are many smoky eye kits you can buy, which provide a lot of guidance. I’ve purchased the e.l.f. (eyes lips face) “eye catching” smoky eye kit, for only $5.
The e.l.f. kits provide instructions that are easy to follow (even for those of us who aren’t great at doing makeup), quality products that last through hours and hours of wear, and beautiful end results. See?
But what I love the most about the e.l.f. kits is that they come with so much but cost so little. The $5 e.l.f. kit “eye catching” smoky eye includes the following.
+ e.l.f. Regular & Waterproof Mascara Duo (sold individually for $1)
A good mascara, which comes with waterproof mascara on one end of the tube and regular mascara on the other. It does a solid job of lengthening, thickening and darkening lashes.
+ e.l.f. Wet Gloss Lash & Brow Clear Mascara (sold individually for $1)
One side of the tube is for eye lashes and the other is for eye brows. It’s a good tool for taming messy brows and lashes.
+ e.l.f. Brightening Eyeliner Duo (not sold otherwise as a duo, but colors sold separately for $1)
This eyeliner is a rare find because goes on so smoothly, which is unusual for cheap liners. One side of the pencil is a purple-ish, bronze-ish color. The other is black. I highly recommend this eye liner and all other e.l.f. liners. They hold their own next to other designer eyeliners.
+ e.l.f. Eye Pencil Sharpener (comes free of charge with all eyeliners e.l.f. sells)
+ e.l.f. Eye Shadow Duo “Black Magic” (sold individually for $1)
A pretty silver and black duo eye shadow that blends creates a dramatic smoky eye. I actually opted for the more natural smoky eye and used the other eye shadow duo instead, so I’m yet to try this duo.
+ e.l.f. Eye Shadow Duo “Purple Haze” (sold individually for $1)
I love this purple duo. It provides a less dramatic look than “Black Magic,” but purple is a great color which makes brown eyes pop. I didn’t have any problems with it smearing or running throughout the night, which is always a sign of a quality eye shadow.
+ e.l.f. False Lashes (sold individually for $1)
Easy to apply, quality false lashes. Like most disposable lashes, they work best for only one use. However, because e.l.f. sells them for so cheap, I bought a few pairs. If you’re going to be wearing false lashes often, I would recommend buying better quality lash glue than what comes with the kit. I am not a fan of the e.l.f. lash glue. It was messy and difficult to remove at the end of the night. MAC makes a really great lash adhesive, which I would recommend.
Overall, this kit is awesome for girls like me, who simply want to test out the smoky eye look without feeling too committed.
Sadly, it appears that e.l.f. has stopped selling the specific kit I purchased, but has started selling similar smoky eye kits which I’m confident are just as good, if not better because they’ve been updated.
In fact, because I had such a good experience with the e.l.f. kit I purchased, I’m going to use it at my New Year’s Eve eye makeup. Now that’s trust in a product.
E.l.f. “Get the look” eye makeup kits can be purchased for $5 here on the e.l.f. website. And at Target stores around the United States.
XOXO,
Sarah
Your PJ
Disclaimer: This item was acquired though my own purchase.
New: FAQ page
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I’ve just added a Frequently Asked Questions page to this website. Check it out!
How to make your hair grow faster
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Trying to grow out your hair (like Blake Lively) or simply keep it healthy?
Unfortunately, there’s no INSTANT hair growth technique. (Except extensions!) But there are things you can do to maintain the health of the hair you already have so that length happens a lot quicker.
Here are some tips:
1) Switch to sulfate-free shampoo.
2) Shampoo your hair every other day, at the most.
This is important for maintaining the natural oils in your hair and keeping it from breaking. I know it might seem like your hair needs to be shampooed every day to keep it from getting oily, but this is a myth. Your hair plays a sort of trick on you when it’s used to being shampooed every day. Your scalp actually produces more oil than is necessary, in order to make up for the oil that is being removed with daily shampoos. It might take a week but your oil production will slow down once you stop shampooing your hair every day. So, give your hair a rest every other day.
3) Massage your scalp for five minutes every other day.
This one sounds pretty weird, but apparently getting the blood flow going helps your hair grow!
4) Give your hair a break from heat every few days.
This one is pretty obvious. Blow drying and straightening your hair causes breakage. The less you attack your hair with heat, the healthier your hair will feel.
5) Use a heat protector.
6) Comb your hair in the shower while you still have conditioner in.
This helps to prevents breakage. It is way easier to work a comb through your hair while it has conditioner in it, making combing your hair way less of a stressor for your hair. I actually keep a comb in my shower for this exact reason. It’s amazing how much better my hair feels when I get out of the shower, if I’ve already combed it while I was in there.
7) Rinse the conditioner out of your hair with cold water, instead of warm.
The cold seals the cuticle of the hair, helping to prevent split ends. You don’t have to freeze your butt off but you should turn the temperature down for a few seconds while you’re rinsing your hair.
8 ) Use a mayo treatment.
9) Sleep on a silk or satin pillowcase.
Cotton can be rough on your hair because of the way it’s woven. Strands of hair can get caught in the weave and this causes tangles and breakage. Using a silk or satin pillowcase is great for ALL hair types, but it’s epically beneficial to curly hair, which is more prone to tangles, frizz and breakage.
10) Get your ends trimmed every two months.
This gets rid of split ends. If you don’t cut off split ends, they will continue to split up your strands of hair causing them to become weak, tangled and eventually break off.
11) Take hair growth vitamins like Phyto Phytophanere Dietary Supplement- Hair & Nails or Hairtopia vitamins.
Eventually, I’m planning on blogging about these, so I’ll talk more about how they work then.
These are the tips and tricks I’ve picked up through research and my own experiences. I’ve tried most of these tips and have been pleased with the results.
