Yes!!
I’m still a bundle of nerves about the whole thing, but I know that with more practice… it’ll all get better.
Please be kind and Rewind!
Stay Awesome,
Clare
Author: Clare
Albertini Skin Care Review
Hello My Fellow Goo Horders!
I’ve recently gotten into skincare.
I’ll admit it. I slept in my makeup for almost 20 years.
Probably not the best thing to do, right? So, at the behest of a good friend, I started paying more attention to my skin. I figure that I want my skin to be good to me for at least the next 40 years, I better begin caring for it a little more, now. It’s been a year of hits and misses.
I was intrigued when I was contacted to review a couple products from Albertini’s skin care line!
Ready to find out about some fantastic items?
Let’s do this….
Rough Love. This is a body exfoliator. Wonderful scented with Rosemary and Eucalyptus oils. I love the fact that this scrub doesn’t smell sweet, it smells natural and earthy. Perfect amount of grit coming from the salt and dark mud combination. It’s the perfect exfoliator before a self tanner for me! It will feel like you have new skin. I’m an exfoliator lover (From way back, yo!) and this one is one of my new favorites! You’ll be so soft, like a baby’s bottom.
Warm Love. A Pumpkin Exfoliating Mask. OMG! Another product that I never knew I needed in ma life. My favorite holiday is Thanksgiving. This is warm pumpkin pie and whipped cream in a face mask. When you apply it starts to warm and you feel the creaminess and smell the spices, it’s just so homey and comfy and and and…. I like to use this one before bed a couple times a week, smooth it on and rub it around after I’ve washed my face and keep it on while I brush my teeth. I’ll wash it off amount 10 minutes later, after finishing the rest of my nightly routine. It feels luxurious and I feel fancy using it. In the picture below you can see the exfoliating bits.
My face feels soft and my skin looks brighter, happier. It’s all the goodness of Thanksgiving dessert in a face mask and none of the calories! It’s heaven in a tube.
Last but not least….
Pure Love. This is an oil cleanser that blends olive oil, argan oil and jojoba oil. This stuff is magic! Dissolves makeup including waterproof mascara. Emulsifies with water to rinse cleanly. There’s no film or greasiness at ALL! Gentle enough to use morning and night. Tough enough to really clean. There’s a gentle fresh warm scent to it. It’s really nice not having tight skin. I grew up being told that tight skin meant clean skin. This is so not the case! My skin feels amazing after I use this. I want a body cleanser like this. Seriously, I want to bathe myself in Pure Love!
I’ve noticed using these products that my skin is happier and more glowy. Who doesn’t want that? I’m always nervous trying new things because of my weird sensitive skin. I’ve not had one problem with any of these products. This makes me a happy woman! These will stay in my current rotation of skin care. Not only to I like using them, I’ve seen results.
Until next time, Stay Awesome!
Clare
*Items were provided for review. My opinion is mine, mine, mine and mine alone. *
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Be a Bombshell Review 2015
Hello My Fellow Goo Horders!
It’s been a bit since I’ve told you about some serious makeup stuff, hunh? I apologize. I’ve been spending sometime with my wonderful parents and…
I went to Cosmoprof North America 2015!!!
And I saw some of my favorite folks in the industry. Be a Bombshell Cosmetics. Of course, they handed me a couple items to share with y’all.
Let’s light this candle!
There are 4 lip items, an eyeliner, an eyeshadow quad and a blush!
Starting with lips…. Specifically their new lip liners!
I have two: Temptress and Drop Dead Red. These are mechanical pencils with a drier formula. I love this fact! They will less likely migrate around your mouth! I love a lipliner that is going to stay put and keeps an actually line!
Temptress is a wonderful mauve-ish nude. Simple as that.
Drop Dead Red is just that a drop dead red.
Now, the Tinited Lip Balm in Darlin’! It’s moisturizing and scent free. Feels great on the lips… and this wine-y color on me is a perfect YLBB. It’s perfect for those days that you just want to do No makeup makeup. Also, great for on the go. This is going in my purse.
Ready for lipstick?! I have color Hollywood. I love the formula is creamy and light. This lipstick reminds me of Classic Hollywood in color and look. It’s a satin finish and very comfortable.
Let’s chat about their mechanical eyeliner. I have S’more. It’s a cool dark brown. Lurve it! I’ve been looking for a cool dark brown liner. Most on the market are very warm. Formula is creamy and doesn’t skip. And for staying power? I still have a shadow of it on my swatch arm after wiping it off! Sweet!
Second to last we have an eyeshadow quad call Las Vegas! I love the fact that I got this in Las Vegas. Makeup Memories Made! There’s a shimmery blue green and a green grey matte shadow. The purple is shimmery and the dark grey/almost black is matte. This quad is a wonderful cool tone group. Reminds me of mermaids. Formula is silky and pigmented.
Last, but not least this BLUSH! I have it in Sugar Plum. It’s the perfect name. This blush fantastic. This shade is a PLUM! A shade that adds a great healthy sheen to the cheeks. This is definitely going into my blush rotation. The formula is soft and silky. So fresh looking.
Here are the swatches:
From Top to Bottom: Lipliners, Eyeliner, Lipstick, Lip Balm and the Blush
There you go! Some new items from Be a Bombshell!
Go to their website and see even more new things. They are growing beautifully.
Please follow my Instagram: eyelinerandbourbon to see these items in action. I’ll also have the two nail polishes from Be a Bombshell up there soon!
Stay Awesome!
Clare
Cosmoprof North America 2015 : Add me to Snapchat
I’ll be Snapchatting here at the conference today.
I’m: eyelinerbourbon
See what I see!
Stay awesome!
Clare
Shrimp Sausage Sandwich – Banh Mi Coda/Coda Bakery
Yes, this entire post is about a sandwich. Well, it’s more than that. It’s a little bit about how weird life can be, too.
Backstory. Growing up I had a pretty unusual name. I didn’t meet a lot of Clare’s. I never had a personalized pencil or pin. I didn’t meet my first Cla/ire until College. I took me years to love my name. Stranger even.. One of my dearest adult friends… She’s a Claire. (Yes, it’s confusing. We lived together for a couple years.) A couple of years ago, my folks moved to Albuquerque (to be known as ABQ from here on out, for forever!) I walked into a store and lo and behold a Clare!! Spelled right and everything! This has never happened before. Of course, we had to be friends. Thank goodness for Facebook.
You good? Got the history?!
This trip out to ABQ we (Clare of ABQ) met for lunch. We were going to go to a different restaurant, but they were closed. I think, Clare (not me) and the Universe knew I needed this sandwich. (You knew it would get back to the sandwich, right!?)
She ordered for me. Which I don’t mind as long as peeps know the parameters. No cilantro, mushrooms or raw tomatoes. She ordered and this simple, yet absolutely perfect sandwich showed up in front of me.
So much so….. I had to bring my Mom to have it.
More Backstory. When I moved to California, my Mom and I had this amazing Shrimp Sausage on Sugar Cane thing. It was a crazy day of adventuring. And I’ve never been able to find the Westminster restaurant again. I’ve been craving that perfect bite for 20 years.
A few days ago I shared the sandwich with my Mom, that Clare shared with me. Mom feels re same.
It’s simple, yet perfect….. but complicated all in one bite. I need to have my Mom try it… it could just be Clare and Clare that think this is awesome. Apparently, this is known to be a great sandwich, by more than just us.
Here, take a gander:
Vietnamese cuisine is a very strange, yet wonderful balance of Asian and French. And I love it. The bread on this sandwich is crun-chewy… like the best breads should be. And all the other ingredients just work so well together like a well crafted piece of music. Symphonic. There’s carrots, cucumbers (cilantro, if you want it) and I think diakon. The orange sauce is like crack. The main star this 11″ x 1/2″ delicate slab of shrimp and pork amalgam full of mouthwatering yum.
That my Mom! And the drink you need to have to wash down the star if this blog #9. Number 9, Number 9, Number 9.
The limeade. Just do it. Put these two in your mouth!
Here’s the rest of the menu:
This just added a another flavor for me of ABQ. Added to the list of green chile, ginger ale, my parent’s cooking, fresh eggs, Joe’s Pasta House and Chardonnay on Ice.
This where you can get this sandwich (and I’m sure other tasty bites):
Banh Mi Coda Bakery
230-C Louisiana Blvd SE / ABQ, NM 87108
If you are in ABQ. Go. Have a sandwich and a limeade. You’ll have a happy mouth.
Thank you, Clare. Next time lunch is on me!
*This blog brought to you by Iggy Azeala’s Walk the Line at 30,000 feet with a Fat Tire.*
Stay Awesome,
CLARE
Happy Fourth of July!
Happy Fourth of July!
I hope you spend the day with family and friends appreciating this country!
I know, I’ve been kind of silent here in The Bloogy World. I’ve been in ABQ, NM with my folks for the last month. It’s been a month of work and family time.
When I get back to CA, I’ll be turning around and going to Cosmoprof in Las Vegas.
After that…. I’ll be up and at ’em here! I’ve been trying out a new skincare line and can’t wait to tell y’all about it!
Stay Awesome!
Clare
EDITED!! Arawak Foods Review
A bit ago, I was contacted to review some foodie items. Who am I to not take one for them team? Right? The struggle is totally real. 🙂
A little backstory of Arawak Farms:
The founder, Lloyd J. Vassell, was inspired by The Arawak Indian Tribe of South America. Using herbs and spices found in the meat/fish and vegetable dishes of the tribe, he developed a line of pepper sauces, spicy fruit spreads and dry rubs.
All of Arawaks condiments are all natural, vegan, gluten-free, non-GMO, low-sodium and low sugar. These are healthier alternatives to a lot of the sauces and the on the market.
First, we tried The Sweet Ginger Basil Pepper Sauce. This was a Monday Night Meal Saviour. Seriously. I made a super quick, super yummy Thai-esque Stir Fry. Ready for this? Chicken, a bag of stir fry veggies, a cup of water, a tablespoon of cornstarch and THIS SAUCE! Bam. Dinner. The Boyfriend ate it up. The ginger and basil were wonderfully balanced. The brightness of sweet heat from the habanero perfectly rounded out the dish.
Second was The Blue-Blackberry Spicy Fruit Spread. (Disclaimer: I’m going to integrate into this into a recipe, other than add a spoon to the jar. And it will most likely show up here.) I tried to make a dipping sauce for coconut shrimp. A little rice wine vinegar, soy sauce, garlic and this deep fruity sauce. My attempt failed. I’m okay with this. Cooking is like chemistry many ways. I’ll experiment with this spread, again. The rich, smooth flavors deserve it.
EDIT: I just made a wrap with spinach, cream cheese (out of goat cheese), turkey and this spread. AMAZING!
Third condiments? A spice blend. Dry Rub – Blend #1. The ingredients are Paprika, Sugar, Garlic, Salt, Allspice, Cumin, Cinnamon, Ginger Root, Thyme, Mustard Seeds and a touch of brown sugar. It was the brown sugar that inspired me to pack this on a piece of salmon. (One of my favorite salmon dishes is has brown sugar and garlic in it.) Heat up a pan, add a little oil and sear away. When the fish was almost done I flipped it. Cooked until done. We were rewarded with a unique flavored Spice Encrusted Salmon. Added bonus? The kale in the garden was ready. I can’t wait to make this again. And I want to try it on chicken.
EDIT: My mother requested this for dinner, again. Second time just as good as the first!!
In closing?? I really enjoyed these condiments. There are a couple more that I’m craving to try! The Boyfriend and The Parents enjoyed them, too!
If you want to try them GO HERE: ARAWAK FARM
There are a ton of recipes on the site, too!!
**Items sent for consideration. Opinions all my own.**
L’oreal Telescopic Shocking Extensions
Hello All My Fellow Goo Horders!
It’s not very often the I do a post for one item. So, it must be good right!?
Yes.
Let me tell you how I ended up with this mascara. A late night online Ulta Haul. Couldn’t sleep and “throwing” stuff in my cart. Didn’t give it much thought. I figured it would be good for my lower lashes.
Little did I know that this would become my HG lengthening mascara.
Since, I’m in New Mexico…. Y’know the chiles are plentiful. And the mascara is hot! (See what I did there?)
The brush is skinny, slightly hourglassed and has that perfect little wiggle. The formula for this one is waterproof, but it’s the perfect consistency. It’s not too wet, not too dry.
So, there you go. If you are in the need of a wonderful lengthening mascara….. go search this one out.
You prolly want to see it in action? Here’s an action picture (This is My Dad, he’s not able to make a non-funny face for the camera):
I went more natural this day. It does build rather well. I love that you can coat behind your lashes!
(I finally got the big shine phone I wanted. It makes blogging on the go…. so flipping easy!)
Cheers and Stay Awesome!
Clare
GenBeauty Stories!
Hello My Fellow Goo Horders!
I’m currently reporting from the great town of Albuquerque, NM! My folks moved here several years ago. I fell in love. It strangely balances me when LA/OC get to much for my East Coast small town upbringing.
Here’s a view from their backyard. Seriously!!!
Before, I landed in ABQ…. I went to LA.
My bestie, Claire/Wrongish (go find her here on WordPress) and I are Ipsy subscribers! When GenBeauty came around again we decided not to miss the chance!
Friday night, I packed. I have no idea why local overnight trips stress me the F out!
Saturday morning, The Loving Boyfriend made coffee and shipped me off with a travel thermos. I picked up Claire. Backstory: We have the same first name, dark hair, blue eyes and similar shape. Without knowing what our names are, people think we are related.
And then sometimes we share a brain.
We both wore freaking maroon/burgundy-ish tops!!! Not planned in the slightest.
We get to LA and register for GenBeauty. Seamless. At 10am we looked at the line. We are rather fair skinned and standing in the sun is not the best idea. We found a cocktail and a bagel with lox & schmear!
We arrived back at LA Live just in time to walk into the tent! Oh all that is Goo Holy! I’ve been to two Cosmoprofs in LA… That somewhat prepared me. The standing in line was impressive, but not at all unfruitful!
My first stop was to visit ma girls at Be A Bombshell. I truly lurve them. Just wonderful and fun peeps! It was so awesome to see them! I hope goo Horders fall in love with their products, like I have.
As we made our way around the tent. We found China Glaze. They we featuring their Neon Nailies.
Can you tell it got a little warm. I tend to revert back to a ponytail, almost without thinking.
I turned around at one point and saw one if my fave YouTubers! WhatWouldLizzyDo!!!! How amazing is she?! So gracious and funny and sweet!! And patient.
I just gotta stop with my fangirling. Dafug. You’d think I’ve never met a famous person.
I just get a wee bit cray. Makeup and YouTube has just made me a better/happier person. (I got into a bit on my Jaclyn Hill Favorites Palette post).
And then. AND Then. Topaz herself appeared. Maybe, just maybe it’s the East Coast Crazy Girl inside me that just relates so much to Nicole/YoungWildandPolished, but I just got my weirdo all over her. Can I ever just be a normal girl?? Just once? She did though refresh my perfume. Luckily, I think I redeemed myself a tiny bit in Sunday….. I don’t have a picture of us together. Total effing fail.
Claire and I headed over to Smashbox for a makeup refresh. It seemed to take a long time to get from the head of the line to a make up chair. We found out why……
I’m so sorry to Freaking Lustrelux for this vaguely obscene photo. We got seated with Tuesday from Smashbox. Yes, Her Wonderfulness is named Tuesday! We chatted about a whole mess of things. She was so insanely cool.
And this is about when Saturday’s portion of the show was over. After, my trusty Beetle had a not so trusty electrical problem……We had some dinner, cocktails and people watching at The Hotel Figueroa. Our waitress, Amber was the bombdiggity.
Then this happened:
Sunday, Sunday, Sunday!!
With the whirlwind that was Saturday, we powered up. And they spelled my name wrong. You think that I would be over it.
We were pretty lucky we were successful in our line standing the day before. With “bingo cards” in hand we went once more into the brink!!!
A couple companies took the actual perforated square, some just X it out. Claire and I might have yelled, “BINGO” a few times. I think we were the only ways playing.
Towards the end of the day, I spotted Nicole/YWP. This was my chance to try not to be an effing space effing case. I think I succeeded. Occasionally, I swear, my ADHD saves it’s self up to just embarrass me.
Let me ‘splain…No, there is too much. Let me sum up. We came, we saw, we conquered.
I have some awesome products to review. I saw some people that I have wanted to meet. People even recognized my little blog!!! I spent quality time with one of my BFFs.
Total WIN!
FTW GenBeauty!!
Next year in LA.
Cheer and Stay Awesome,
Clare
PS. While in Albuquerque, I’ll be posting from my little iPhone 5s. To think I’ll be editing small mistakes is as giggle inducing as bloopers on a YouTube video.
The Jaclyn Hill Favorites Palette Review and Love Note.
Hello My Fellow Goo Horders!
If you have watched any Beauty Ninja videos on YouTube, you’ve most likely seen Jaclyn Hill. She currently has 1,977,242 subscribers!
When she announced that her sold out palette from Morphe Brushes was coming back one more time… I set myself a reminder on my phone and waited… and waited. The day came, I ordered. VICTORY! Then I waited and waited… and then it arrived in my mailbox like Christmas! VICTORY!
Theres’s a reason why I get very excited for YouTuber collabs. It’s not much, but I get to give back to them. They have no idea what they have given me.
Story Time.
Several years ago, I was very sick and in an incredible amount of pain. I ended up in the ER seven times and hospitalized overnight once. Each time, It seemed I went home with a slightly different diagnosis. I had enough prescriptions to kill a goat. And was in a medically induced haze. After about a year and a half of the worst of it, my mom, a friend and The Boyfriend decided that it was time to have a little detox. It was probably the worst few weeks, ever. When, I came out of the fog and started to feel better, I looked my worse. This is when I turned to YouTube makeup videos. I loved watching the process to before to after. I started to strategically put on makeup to help me feeling even better. FAKE IT UNTIL YOU MAKE IT! Until one day, it all just balanced out.
One of those YouTubers that I’ve watched since coming out of the fog has been Jaclyn. She helped me transition (along with my family and friends, of course!) back into feel better about the outside. Which in turn helped with everything else.
I know she will probably never see this, but… Thank You, Jaclyn! Your tutorials videos go far beyond teaching folks to blend eyeshadows.
Now that I’ve given you some back story. Let’s dive into these shadows.
Seriously? These shadows frackin’ ROCK! Morphe Brushes is no joke. Whatever they do they do with gusto. Yes, GUSTO!
Their texture is like silk. Smooth. Buttery. Pigmented. Creamy. Luxurious. Everything you want in a shadow. Individually these shadows are $2. You read that right, $2!! (I want my $2!) This palette was about $28 for 28 shadows. Yes, I said was. Unfortunately, it’s not available anymore. Don’t fret, though! You can still get every single one of these shadows and a palette from Morphe. Just use the guide of the photo below.
I very excited that she included a variety of neutral browns, oranges, purples, cranberries and even a green.
Let’s do some swatches! I’m going from top row to the bottom, left to right.
First Row:
Second Row:
Third Row:
Fourth Row:
Srsly! It’s such a lovely palette. There’s so much you can do with this. Everything from simple everyday looks to Gurl, Let’s Hit the Town! Great for extended trips, just bring along the Naked Basic or The W7 In the Mood Palette (Hunh, funny I should mention the W7 palette, I might just have a blog about it coming soon!) You’ll need a matte cream and black to subsidize with.
There go you. A palette of great shadows from a great YouTuber/MUA and a story.
Thanks for listening!
Stay Awesome!
Cheers,
Clare
eyelinerandbourbon.com 