So Goodbye

I'm here to say goodbye.
After much thought, I've decided to leave this blog for the time being [don't know if I'll need it again in the future].
Reason being, I simply can't go to school, go to work, manage 2 blogs, a youtube channel, AND have a life outside of the internet. I've simply decided to cut back on this blog to give myself more breathing room =)
My personal blog will be updated more often because of this and I am happy.
It will be filled with personal AND beauty related things as well.
So sorry for jumping back and forth with ideas, I hate yet love trying out new things like this.
You never know what possibilies lie ahead.
The posts that I do on here will be found on my personal blog so do follow!

The Daily Ramblings of Me! Love, An

AND I've been doing well with my new youtube channel so please give your support and subscribe !

Goodbye and see you on the other side!

Valentine's Day/Romantic Date Night Tutorial!

Drugstore Haul Video + Review!

Hey! Here's my 2nd video! Sorry I haven't been blogging lately, been super super busy! I'm in love with filming & editing videos!<3



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My Youtube Channel!

Hey guys! Omg I can't believe I started my own Youtube channel.
So new & clueless!
I wanted to try something new and after watching all of my favorite youtubers, I decided to join in on the fun.
Let's see where it takes me =)
Please watch & support by subscribing!


Username: SoAnLoves

Sucks that you can't choose your own custom thumbnail unless you are a youtube partner, blah!

Thanks!!

My Makeup Vanity Area

I always love watching youtube videos of people's vanity areas/makeup collections.

Thought I'd share mine just for the heck of it =)

Here's what my jewelry/perfume section looks like!

And this beauty here is where I keep all of my makeup!

I love it so much! I've wanted it for a long time and finally got it! It's super sturdy and holds so much.

The bottom 2 drawers are my nail supplies & nail polish! [Separate post on that later!]

Here is my entire vanity area

This is my favorite part of my entire room. Where all the magic happens, teehee!

I was planning on reorganizing it but who knows when I'll get to it.

Everything is from Ikea. ~

Hope to see some of your vanities one day!

Product Review: Benefit's Hervana Blush

This is my favorite blush so far out of the many that I own. Although I love makeup in general, hoarding blushes is probably my guilty pleasure =)

Today, I will be reviewing the Hervana blush from Benefit, my favorite brand!

photo credit

I've wanted it ever since it came out at work. [I used to work at ULTA]

Then, lucky me, I got to pick some gratis and there it was, free to take!

[I should have taken 2!]

Benefit's packaging never fails. Cute as ever.

Price: $28 at ULTA & Sephora. Expensive in my opinion, but worth every penny.

Packaging - 5 stars.

A lot of people complain about the box and how it's not compact, but I never take this blush out of my house  so I think the packaging is cute. Swirling my brush around it is fun and prevents the dust from flying everywhere.

Color - 4 stars.
It is a light princessy pink that really complimented my skintone. It will make you look dolly, especially if you put a lot on. Swipe a few layers of it on for a natural flush! I gave it 4 stars because it takes a while to build to the shade you want.

Without flash. 

As you can see, it's very very light. I had to put a few layers on just for it to show on camera.

With flash.

With 1 layer on.

This picture was taken last spring. Usually the blush won't show in pictures so this is the only one I could find =(

I try to rotate between my blushes, but I find myself reaching for this one the most because it goes well with almost every look!

Look how much I've used up! Need to stock up!!!

Lasting power - 3 stars.

Since it's so light, it does fade throughout the day, HOWEVER, it does last for a quite a few hours before it does. If you're going to work for 4-5 hours, it'll be there when you get off. Any longer and you will have to reapply.

BONUS: Not sure about the other Benefit blushes but this one smells SOOOOO DIVINE. Had it for about a year now and it still smells amazing every time I go to apply it!

I recommend this blush to girls with fair to olive skin. Unfortunately, it does not suit darker skin tones =(

Also, even though I use this almost every day, you can see that it'll still be a while before I run out. That's why I say it's worth the steep price of $28. I love Hervana!

Disclaimer: I was not paid for this review.

Weight Loss Message To All Girls [& Guys] read read read!

Post taken from my personal blog. I wrote this in April 2011. I still stand by it today which is why I'm reposting it here on my beauty blog!

I've had the biggest realization the other day and I was like "damn".....so I want to put this on my blog for everyone to read, maybe it'll help some of you and save you some time.

As a lot of people know, I was on the quest to get my IDEAL body. I was really close to it, a half inch away on various body parts from MY idea of my perfect body. I don't know if I've reached that goal or not yet, since I haven't gotten the chance to measure myself this month but I don't really care anymore.

I've worked my ass off, always watching what I ate, exercising like crazy, doing toning sets when I didn't feel like it, always ALWAYS thinking about my body image. Let me put this out there first; it does pay off. I'm really proud of what I've done and can see the difference from before.

But now my chest & butt got smaller from the weight loss and guess what? I was still not satisfied. To get it all back guess what I have to do? Gain weight. So I was thinking to myself, "after all that hard work for the past few months, I'm just going to have to gain weight again?" HELL NO. Because then I'd be back at square 1, wanting my ideal look. *sigh* I think that no matter what, you're never going to reach your "perfect" body unless you accept that your body right now is beautiful. No body is perfect. Then you can go on to working on shaping and tweaking to enhance it. All of my family members keep telling me that I've gotten too skinny and that my butt got smaller, etc. In my mind I'm not as skinny as I want to be. I can still grab a bunch of fat from my stomach so how can I be too skinny? But fine, I don't have a personal trainer, and my life isn't dedicated to working out 24/7 so I will never look like some famous ppl in magazines. 

I'm not a photoshopped person, I'm real and I guess real people have fat. Which is perfectly fine. 

I was so upset over it one day that I asked myself, "am I happier now or was I happier back then when I was curvier?" "Be slightly chubbier with a butt/chest or slim & slightly flatter?" "FLAUNT MY CURVES OR BE HAPPY THAT I'M THIN??"

Honestly both come with their own happiness. But personally I think I was a tad, teeennnssy bit happier a few months ago. And I should've been happier. Why did I stress over it so much? Why, whenever people complimented that I have an awesome figure, didn't I listen? Instead, I took all of the comments on how big my arms were and how fat I was to heart and let it rule my mind. Now that I think about it, I've gotten 39845345x more compliments than insults. Even to this day, after people comment on how I lost weight, they still add in "but you were already perfect before". I feel pretty stupid, and probably wasted a lot of time & energy over it. I took my body for granted, shame on me. Now I wish for it back. You gain some you lose some.

Ask yourself, do I really want this? And really think about it. If the answer is yes, then go for it and work hard. If not, be happy!! 

Extreme weight gain and weight loss is very very unhealthy for you. I don't want to become like that, changing my mind all the time. You'll also get ugly stretch marks, which I already have =___= so annoying.

What's my plan now? Well, I'm just going to say that I've reached my "ideal" look. This is good enough. I've worked hard, and I like what I see. Now I'm going to do a bunch of different work outs to maybe get my butt back. =((( Still going to work out & stuff but not as psychotic as before.

All teenagers, mostly girls, get VERY hung up over body image and go through hell trying to figure out what they want & what to do with their bodies. That's why I wanted to share this with everyone. 

Just be glad you were born with every body part working effectively. Why always complain over fat calves when someone out there was born with none? 

Eat healthy, try to stay active, put in your all when you're working out and you'll look fine. I hope I always follow my own advice. When I feel fat & not happy I'm going to remember that I wrote a blog entry about this! No more internal battles, I AM BEAUTIFUL!

 Please show your support by following my blog for more beauty & health related posts =)

Zoya 2013 Promo!

Posted this a few days late but better late than never! Ends Jan 13.

Only pay $10 for shipping and pick out 3 polishes of your choice!

Type in code: ZOYA2013 at checkout.

Here are the colors I chose!

photo credit

Zuza

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Barbie

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Cassi

So SO excited for them to come!! I am so ready for spring colors!! <3 What will you get??

Product Review: Too Faced's Summer Eye Palette!

Post taken from my personal blog.
This was written when the palette first came out in the summer. Perhaps some people have not yet been exposed to it or heard much about it! Still a new palette!

 It looks gorgeousss! I was so excited when it finally arrived in the mail!

Came with a free mini mascara & a sample of their new bronzer.

Kept forgetting to do swatches so here is Beauty Junkie's picture.

I'm personally obsessed with the last 2 pinks. 

I've only tried 2 looks so far from this palette. Both are pretty neutral for everyday wear. I wanted to try more but didn't have enough time to experiment yet. I only have work to wear a lot of makeup to and I'm not really the type to wear dark heavy makeup just to cashier lol. The blue is really pretty though!

First look I did, I used Peach Fuzz, Coral Crush & Cocoa Beach which are the coral, light yellow, and light brown colors. Excuse the horrible lighting =___= I really need to step it up a notch!

[I also don't know why I look like an alien here]

For a phone camera, I'm surprised you can see any details.

As for my next look with the pinks [Sugar Sand & Plumeria], I realized that I don't know what happened to those pics. FAIL! I only have one and you can barely see! Unless you look verrrryyyy closely.

So sad. My apologies. I'll post more pics when I do those looks again. =)

Love that this Summer Palette has bright colors for spring/summer yet they're not neon or super dramatic so that it can be used for everyday wear for a fresh happy look!

Here are 2 more pics that I took on the same day I received the palette. Got a little camera-happy =)

I totally need to invest in a pro camera. Perhaps in the near future!

Hope I get more awesome things soon, trying out new products is so fun!

Follow me on Instagram! antran24

Christmas Nails! 2012

Red is "Curve-acious" Sephora by OPI

[ it's a little darker in real life which I really like ]

Glitter by L.A. Colors

Product Reviews: St. Ives body wash and lotion!

Post taken from my personal blog.

Hello!!! I'm going to try to do a quick review for St. Ives's body wash & lotion because I love those two things and have been wanting to tell everyone about them for a while!

St. Ive's has a few different types of body washes. I haven't tried the others but my job [Ulta] had this kind so I grabbed it since it was on sale for $3.49! I fell in love. I thought it wasn't going to have a smell since it's just the regular collagen kind but it smells soooo good. I feel like I'm in heaven everytime I use it in the shower. I can't describe it but it's a very calming, pleasant, and soft smell. I also like the texture..? of it, very pearly. Feels great when you lather yourself up with it. Since the time I bought my first bottle, I have already purchased 3 more so now I'm stocked!

5 stars for St. Ive's body wash!

This is the St. Ives collagen elastin lotion. It also has a faint calming smell to it and I LOVE the texture of this lotion. It's almost like a gel, nothing like other lotions that I've used. It says on the bottle that it's fast absorbant and non-greasy. 100% true! I am extremely fond of the packaging for the lotion & body wash. Very "clean" and simple. Both include collagen to help you achieve younger looking skin! Not sure if it's super effective but gives me peace of mind that I'm doing something hehe. The lotion also tends to go on sale and my entire family loves this lotion. Can you say WIN!? Another 5 stars for the lotion!


I can't say I love all St. Ive's products because I hate and am against the use of their Apricot scrub. BAD! Don't use! But, if you're looking for inexpensive body wash & lotion, try these 2! I heard that Walmart doesn't carry St. Ive's anymore..??? Either that or my mom can't find it anymore but hey, Ulta carries and I'm sure Target and other places carry it so check it out!

Product Reviews: Too Faced Primed & Poreless + Too Faced Lashgasm Mascara

Post taken from my personal blog.

So first will be the Too Faced Primed & Poreless Powder.

What it is: It is a translucent powder that you can apply under and/or over your makeup. You wear it under to minimize the looks of your pores and it acts as a primer for foundation. Wearing it on top of makeup is for it to act as a finishing powder to set your makeup and to keep the face looking matte for a long period of time. Comes in powder form & liquid form. [Liquid can only be used under makeup, which is why I prefer the powder one]


Ingredients - I don't know because I threw away the box it came in hehehe, but if you really wanted to know I'm sure you can google it.

Packaging - 5 stars. The packaging for all Too Faced products are super pretty to me because most of the time it's pink and girlie. I like how the container feels in my hand and I like that it has that lock thing so that you can "lock" the container when you're traveling so powder doesn't spill everywhere.

Price - 2 stars. It's a whopping $28 at Ulta. I only have it because I got it as gratis.

The reason why I love this product so much is because my nose tends to get a lot more oily than the rest of my face during the day. I hated it and tried a bunch of different products and carried around oil blotting sheets. I still do, but I hated using them. After using this product, I only have to blot my face 1 or 2 times if I'm out all day & need to look nice. I only use it on my nose & a little on my cheeks so the product will last me a long time. After putting it on, whenever I felt my skin, it gave a very silky or velvety feel and I love it! After I finish with my makeup, I'll apply a little more and then I'm done. It creates the beautiful matte finish that I've always craved and takes a longg longg time for my nose to get even a little oily. It's not a miracle product that will STOP the oil from coming but it keeps it at bay & that's all I can ask for. <3

Overal rating - 5 stars

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Next is the Too Faced Lashgasm Mascara.

Packaging - 5 stars


Price - 3 stars. It's priced at $19 which is what a lot of our prestige mascaras cost but I think $19 is expensive for a mascara.

If you can tell by the wand, you'll know that this mascara doesn't really give a lot of volume. Especially for my barely-there Asian lashes. I like it because it applies better than my other mascaras since the wand is so thin. It coats my lashes evenly and although it doesn't provide volume, it provides length. If I wanted volume, I have to put on a million coats of it so that's when I'm like "screw this" and use my Smashbox mascara. As for holding the curl, it's just average. Nothing amazing that I know of.

I tried to take a picture of it on me today...but couldn't get a good angle.
Here is a googled pic. Credits go to whomever the picture belongs to. And I got it off this link.

Overall rating - 3.5 stars.

That's it for now, let me know if I should review a certain product!

Product Review: Garnier Moisture Rescue Moisturizer !

Post taken from my personal blog.
This is a review for the Garnier Moisture Rescue Moisturizer!

Garnier Nutritioniste Moisture Rescue 

Lightweight UV-Lotion

SPF 15

Before this, I had been using Aveeno's Positively Radiant moisturizer SPF 15 which I really liked and used for a while before I saw that during the winter, it doesn't provide as much moisture as I wanted. [I have ezcema]. Now my bf uses it teehehehehe.

I also want to put out there that I am very picky with moisturizers [and about everything else]. It can't be too heavy because I have to put on make-up right after, can't have too much oil, must have SPF, etc. So, needless to say, I was not too pleased to be on the hunt for another morning moisturizer. 

Of course, I looked up a bunch of reviews on various products, read ingrediants, price, etc. I was debating whether or not I should try the Olay hydrating one but didn't like that it was a bottle and not a pump. While I was at Ulta looking through the moisturizers, Garnier was next to the Olay so I quickly scanned over them too. I saw the Moisture Rescue which I had read reviews about and decided if I should try that one since it had a pump and the bottle looked "refreshing". I remember thinking in my head "this thing doesn't have SPF ughh!" Then I saw it in the corner..........SPF 15 in small letters. HECK YEAH! I immediately grabbed it and took it to its new home. I kept the box and tried it for a week to see if I would like it or want to return it. Threw the box away, it is here to stay! From the first pump it was love at first.....application. =P 

What it's supposed to do : Locks in moisture. Blocks out dryness and provides UV protection. Skin is deeply hydrated and smooth for 24 hours. 

YES! So light & cool on my skin.

And a bonus: IT SMELLS SOOOOOOOOO GOOOOOD.

And I don't know how to explain it but it just feels so amazing to put it on every morning, I swear it makes my mornings a little bit better.

Price: $7.99 at Ulta stores

Will last a long time since a little bit will have your skin feeling smooth, soft, and hydrated!

It's only been about 2 weeks of using this so I hope that my skin doesn't randomly decide that it doesn't like it anymore because I like it T___T

Such a super inexpensive moisturizer that works great!

Side note: I realized that if you have more severe dryness in the winter, I wouldn't recommend this product. Just use it for spring/summer!

Product Review: Butter London Horse Power Nail Fertilizer

Post taken from my personal blog.
This is the Butter London Horsepower Nail Fertilizer!

I never planned on talking about this product. It was just something I received after completing the training for this line at work, but it's so awesome that I wanted to share with everyone. If anyone paints their nails as much as me, he/she knows that nail polish does stain your nails yellow, especially if you use a dark color. When I'm at work people always ask me how to get rid of the yellow stain on their nails. First off, you can't get rid of it completely. If your nails are already stained then all you can do is wait until your nails grow out and cut them.

To lessen/prevent staining, rub half a lemon on your nails for a few minutes & wash. You can also buff your nails but again, the stain will only be lessened. To prevent, obviously skip a week or some time between painting your nails. BUT, I can't do  that lol. When my nails aren't painted, I feel "incomplete" O_o. So I recommend this product for people who always always have to have their nails painted.

It works as a base coat as well =) Well, it pretty much is a base coat but it's loaded with extra ingrediants to help grow stronger nails. Not sure if that part works but all I know is that when I wiped off my nail polish, my nails weren't yellow. I've only been using this product for a few weeks and never really inspected my nails after I'd wipe polish off. This time, somehow, I did examine my nails and they were clear/pinkish as if I never painted my nails. So cool! It also applies really smoothly & lasts forever for some reason. I really really like it! I'm going to be so sad when I run out =( I know Butter London in general is pretty expensive for nail polish & stuff, but, you don't have to buy the nail colors [but they really do last a long time & apply very very well] just get the nail strengtheners & stuff. They also have their own polish remover [guess it removes polish really easily], and a moisterizing stick for people with cracked/dry heels.

This Horse Power Nail Fertilizer is $20 at all Ulta stores, prices vary at other places.