My Friday Five #6

The Body Shop Camomile Cleansing Butter - I recently finished my cleansing balm and was in the market for a new one.  I was strolling through The Body Shop and saw this and feel in love.  I love the buttery texture and how my makeup just glides off my face.  

Nars Blush in Sin - It is finally fall and I am in full fall makeup mode.  This blush is such a gorgeous maroon shade and looks great on my pale skin. 

By Terry Ombre Blackstar in Misty Rock - I was watching Tanya Burr the other day and she had this on her eyes so I thought I would bring this out of the arsenal.  I use this all over my eyes and just blend it out.  I love how it makes my blue eyes pop. 

Maybelline Color Tattoo in Caramel Cool - If you hadn't noticed I love a cream shadow.  I love to wear this shade by itself.  Sometimes I line my lids with a plum liner when wearing this. 

Chanel Glossimer in Crushed Cherry -  I love a good vampy lip and this gloss in the best!! It is a beautiful deep plum color that stains my lips.  

I am also so excited that my new 2015 planner came in.  I picked up the Day Designer from Whitney English and I can't wait to use it.   And I have been obsessed with HGTV magazine.  

What have been your favorite this week ??

Love, 

City Styles 

Nails Inc NailKale {Bruton Mews}

Nails Inc recently released a new formula, NailKale ($14).  I was pretty intrigued by it so I picked up the shade Bruton Mews.  In all there nine shades and a base and top coat.  The whole idea behind the NailKale is that the polish is infused with Vitamins A, C, and K.  These vitamins help the production of Keratin which helps the nails grow harder and stronger.  I really like the whole concept, a nail polish that helps your nails.  

  

Now let's talk about the wear.  The first time I tried this out it lasted for four/five days.  No chipping at all.  Pretty good!  I did feel like while I was wearing the polish that my nails were harder and less brittle.  I used two coats but, with this shade you only need one.  The brush is the big downer for me. It is the size of my nail.  For me it's just too big.  

Overall I am very impressed by this polish and I am thinking of getting a few more shades and maybe testing out the base and top coat.  I really like how long it lasted and how my nails felt with it on. 

Have you tried this new formula ??  What do you think ??

Love, 

City Styles  

My Friday Five #5

Sephora Rose Mask - I tried this out and I am love with it.  My face felt extra hydrated afterwards.  I need to pick up more!

Herbal Essences Naked Dry Shampoo - I was in the market for a new dry shampoo and saw this one. It really helps me with day two hair.  It  gets rid of any grease and smells pretty good too. 

MAC Definitley Defined - Unfortunately this was limited edition but, if it every comes around again you need to pick this up.  This is my go to highlighter.  I use it everyday.  It is a powder product but, it feels more like a cream.  

Top Shop Macaroon Lipstick - I recently picked this up and I feel in love with it.  It is such a beautiful coral pink. 

JinSoon Farrago - I never tired this brand before but, I saw this shade in Sephora and I knew I had to have it.  It is a gorgeous purple with some silver duo chrome.  It looks amazing on the nails.  

What are your Friday Five ???

Love, 

City Styles 

Blogging 101: Inspiration

After you have been blogging for a while you can get stuck in a rut and forget why you started blogging altogether.  Every few months this happens to me and that's when I step back and try to get inspired.

Tumblr & Pinterest 

I love tumblr and pinterest.  I could just sit and scroll for hours on end.  They have given me some great ideas for the blog.

Magazines 

I love to flip through Allure or People's Style Watch.  They are always talking about something new that I have never seen before. 

Retail Therapy

I love, love, love to go shopping in NYC.  Sometimes all I need is a good walk through Sak's or Sephora and I am inspired again.  If you don't live near any department stores just go to their website.  Sometimes just looking in the What's New section gets me excited. 

Other Blogs 

I love reading other peoples blogs (daily reads in the side bar).  Sometimes they use a product in a different way or they picked up a product I was looking at and never purchased.  I love looking at how other people layout their pictures.  

These are just some of the ways I get out of my blogging rut.  What are some of yours ??

Love, 

City Styles   

Fall Nail Polish Picks {2014}

Fall is almost here and I am so excited !!  I just love this time of year so much.  So, I thought I would share my top nail polish picks with you guys.  These ten polishes look great during the fall season. 

• YSL Beige Gallery - A beautiful nude shade that gives the look of mannequin hands.
• Zoya Kendal - A lovely muted lavender shade that looks great throughout the year but especially nice in the fall
• Formula X Uber - We all know I love a good red nail and this one has a hint of orange in it. 
• Chanel Coup de Couer - This maroon shade reminds me of the pretty fall leaves
• Zoya Paris - Such a nice vampy shade and totally reminds me of The Hills when LC would wear a nice dark nail.  

• Nars Crossroads - This a beautiful dark creamy plum shade.
• Chanel Magic - This shade is deep royal blue shade that is almost navy and makes your nails look ultra sleek. 
• Dior Junon - I love this shade so much!  This is a great summer to fall transition shade!
• Butter London Bossy Boots - A lovely muted green shade that reminds me a bit of pistachios.
• Nails Inc Bruton Mews - I have a feeling this is going to be on my nails all fall long.  Such an amazing deep green shade that reminds me of a Christmas tree.  

What are your favorite fall nail polish shades ??

Love,

City Styles 

YSL Blush Volupte {8 Heroine}

I had been stalking these YSL Blush Volupte's ($47) on Sephora's website for a few weeks.  I wanted to see them in real life before buying any so I finally made a trip to Sephora.  And of course I fell in love with them.  I decided to buy 8 Heroine.  It is a beautiful light coral shade.  And I knew if would look great on my pale skin.  I really like this new blush formula.  I never had a YSL blush before.  They just never appealed to me.  But these are just gorgeous.  They buttery smooth and not chalky at all.  I swatched most of the shades in the store and they all seem pigmented but not overly pigmented (think Nars blushes not Sleek ones).  I like to mix the outer shade and inner shade together to get a beautiful sheen.  Overall I am very impressed by these and I am thinking about getting another shade!     

      

Have you tried these blushes yet ???  What is your favorite shade ??

Love,
City Styles 

Diorskin Star Foundation {10 Ivory}

Dior recently released their new Diorskin Star Foundation ($50).  I was browsing in Bloomingdale's when I spotted it.  I immediately knew it had to be mine.  Dior claims this foundation is brightening, diffuses light, and reduces the appearance of dark spots and redness.  I have been testing it out for a week and have some thoughts. 

I like the consistency of this foundation.  It doesn't feel heavy or cakey on your skin.  It sits nicely.  I do wear a primer underneath (my Chanel Le Blanc de Chanel).  The coverage is nice.  I would say it's a medium coverage and you can build it up a bit.  I like all these factors.  But, what I don't like is the fact that it wears off in a few hours.  The first time I wore this, within 4 or 5 hours my foundation was  breaking down, especially in the chin area.  So, the next day I tried it with a good primer and powder and it lasted longer about 7 to 8 hours, which is more to my liking.  But, I still want a 10 to 12 hour wear.  My average work day is 10 hours plus the hour before I get to work.  So, this will have to be a weekend foundation because I really like the dewy look it gives me and the coverage.   

Have you tried this foundation yet ??  What do you think ??


Love,
City Styles 

Blogging 101: Getting Started

I have been at this for over a year now and want to share some tips to the new comers or to those who are thinking about starting a blog.

Pick a Topic 
A topic could be beauty, fashion, decor, diy, gardening, baking.  Just make sure it is something you enjoy.  If you don't enjoy the topic you are blogging about readers will notice and it won't be fun for you.

Name
Your blog needs a name.  Love, City Styles came from my existing Etsy shop.  It has nothing to beauty but, I do love it.  Try and come up with something catchy and run it be a few friends or family members and see what they think.

Blogger vs. Wordpress
I went with blogger as my hosting site just because it is what I knew.  Wordpress looked like a scarier place to me.  Blogger is powered by Google and I knew it would be easy for me to use.  Check out both sites and see what you like better.

Content
Now that you have a topic and a name get to blogging!  Always try and put out quality content.  I believe in quality vs. quantity.  If I have a post that I am not happy about, the pictures came out wrong or I am at a loss for words when writing then it does not go up.  I'd rather put nothing up then something I don't feel my best about.

Consistency

Try and be consistent with your posts.  I try very hard to do this.  Every week I aim to put out 5 posts.  Some weeks that goal is met and other weeks, well not so much.  Blogging itself can be very time consuming.  I take photos, edit the photos, and write the post.  Taking photos and editing them can take hours.  So some nights I am just to tired after work to come home and write a post.  But I do and that is what counts.  

Quality

I am a stickler for quality photos.  I understand that not everyone has an amazing camera but, you do control what goes into your photos.  I like to take photos on a white background or a magazine or something fun.  But I don't want to see you sweaty gym clothes or your open food in the background. Most computers come with free photo editing software and you can download tons of free apps.  Please use those! 

I hope this helped some people.  Next week I will be talking about how I take photos. 

Love, 

City Styles 

3.1 Phillip Lim for Nars Polishes {Crossroads & Dark Room}

Phillip Lim recently teamed up with Nars to create 9 beautiful nail polishes!  I was able to get my hands on two of them.  And let me say they are so gorgeous!  Each bottle retails for $20 and they can be found at Sephora or Nars Boutique's.

Dark Room is a creamy dark teal shade.  It is opaque in one coat and lasted about five days on my nails.

Essie Bobbing for Baubles - Essie Go Overboard - Nars Dark Room - Chanel Magic

Crossroads is a beautiful deep plum shade.  Again it is opaque in one coat but, I personally enjoy two coats.  This lasted about four days on my nails.  

Chanel Charivari - Nars Crossroads - Essie Carry On - Essie After School Boy Blazer


I really enjoyed these shades but to be honest I am not the biggest fan of Nars polishes.  The brushes on them are just to large for my taste.  I like a brush more like Chanel or Essie.  But that is me.



Have you picked any of these polishes up ??  What do you think ??



Love,
City Styles  

True Life : I am Addicted to Coral Lippies !

If you have been around for a while you know I love anything coral, especially coral lip products.  So I wanted to share my top coral lippies.  These range from light coral pinks to deep reddish corals.  And I don't hate I have equal love for glosses and lipsticks.  And to be honest I have no other words for these products other then I LOVE THEM!   

Dior Candide - Tom Ford Frolic - Chanel Murmure - Hourglass Origami - Givenchy Croisiere Coral 

YSL Grenade Pepite - Armani Peony - Hourglass Nectar - Burberry Mallow Pink - Tom Ford True Coral 

Favorites
YSL Grenade Pepite & Tom Ford Frolic

Best Formula
Tom Ford Frolic & Burberry Mallow Pink

Best for Work
Dior Candide

Best to Go Out
Tom Ford True Coral & Armani Peony



What is your favorite lip shade ??  What is your favorite lip product shade ??



Love,
City Styles 

Formula X The System

My beloved Revlon Colorstay base coat was recently discontinued so I needed to find a new holy grail product.  I have heard some good things about the Sephora Formula X The System ($32) so I decided to give it a go.  And I am so glad I did.  Altogether you get a cleanser, a base coat, a polish of your choice, and a top coat.  I have been testing these out for a few weeks now and I think they are AMAZING.  I love the fact that this set has a nail cleanser.  The cleanser soaks up all the oils and grim on my nails and helps my polish last so much longer.  The base coat dries a bit sticky so it adheres to the polish and the top coat gives such a nice shine.  I even prefer this top coat to my Seche Vite.  The Seche Vite tends to be goopy and when it dries fully it shrinks in size.  The Formula X top coat is nice and thin but, really helps my polish from chipping. 

   

If you are looking for a new base and top coat I would highly recommend these!  And the fact that you can also get a polish too is great!  I will do a review on the polishes soon.


What are your favorite base and top coat ??   Have you tried this set ??


Love,
City Styles 

My Friday Five #4

Another week has come and gone so here are my favorites!

Maybelline Fit Me Concealer - Ughhh I don't think I could live without this.  It is the absolute best concealer ever.  It covers my dark circles yet isn't cake and hardly creases.  And it is extra cheap.  Win win situation.  

Sonia Kashuk Blush Brush - This brush comes from her 15th Anniversary set.  It is so amazing and I actually don't have a blush brush like it.  If you don't know I collect blush brushes.  I have so many different ones and love trying new ones.  

Tom Ford Nude Dip palette - Unfortunately this seems to be sold out everywhere.  I was lucky enough to pre-sale it.  The palette is gorgeous and a neutral lovers paradise. 

Chanel Le Volume de Chanel mascara - Months back when I first bought this I hated it.  It was to goopy and just clumped all my lashes together.  Now that it has dried out a bit I am in love.  It gives great volume to my lashes and also lengthens them a bit. 

Formula X polish in Uber - We all know that I love a red nail!  This reddish orange shade is gorge and the Formula X range form Sephora is the bomb diggity!  They last a long time and there are so many shades to choose from!!  

What are your top products this week ??

Love, 

City Styles 

Too Faced Perfect Lips Liner {Perfect Nude}

I have never been one for nude lips.  I always feel I look washed out since I am pretty pasty.  But, I was recently in Sephora just perusing and this Too Faced Perfect Lip Liner ($17) stood out to me.  There was a few different shades but, I remember Tiffany D talking about the nude one.  So off to the checkout I went.  Well let's just say that this liner is a major game changer.  This has helped me become a nude lip lover.  Everyday I am so excited to use one of my nude lipsticks.  I am especially happy to report in that this has helped me wear Tom Ford Spanish Pink.  I was never able to wear it before but, with this lip liner I have been wearing it all the time.

Now what is so special about this liner.  To be honest I am not exactly sure but I do think it is the combination of the pinky nude shade and the consistency.  It's like a primer for your lips.  It is a bit waxy but not too much and it doesn't dry out my lips either.  It is truly an amazing product. 

I tried to do lip swatches but they didn't come out that good.  If anyone has any tips please let me know! 

What id your favorite nude lip liner ??

Love, 

City Styles 

Tom Ford Nude Dip Color Quad {Fall 2014}

Tom Ford's fall collection recently hit stores and online retailers and sold out very fast.  I was lucky enough to pre sale this bad boy at Saks's.  The bad boy I am talking about the the new color quad in Nude Dip($79).   It is sold out online at all the department stores so you will have to call around to your local counters and see if they still have any available.  

The quad is just gorgeous.  I only have one other quad by him, Cognac Sable.  I enjoy that palette but, I don't reach for it often.  But, this I have been reaching for on the daily.  The shadows are so smooth and different from his other palettes.  These remind me a bit more of the new Chanel quads that are out.  They are more satiny then creamy.  The only thing this quad is missing is a transition shade.  But I don't mind reaching for another shade.  I would totally snatch this up if you get the chance cause you will definitely regret it if you don't. 

Nude Dip is very similar to Chanel's Raffinement quad and Bare Mineral's The Truth quad.  

What are your thoughts on the Tom Ford Fall '14 collection ?? I kind of want to get one of the blush duos and the nail polish.  But we will see. 

Love, 

City Styles 

Dior Junon

A few months back I reviewed these Dior Gel Shine & Long Wear Nail Lacquers.  Since then I have picked up another shade, Junon.  It is a beautiful muted blue shade.  It is the perfect color to transition into fall with.  I had my nails professionally done with this shade and it lasted for five days.  It would have last longer but, I took a fall down the stairs after seeing Guardians of the Galaxy.  And that resulted in a few chipped finger nails.  I was so disappointed because this color is gorgeous.  I can totally see myself wearing this throughout fall.   

What nail colors are getting you excited for fall ??

Love,
City Styles 

August Favorites

August has come and gone and soon enough fall will be here.  But, right now I am sitting in my sweltering room wishing it was 70 degrees out instead of 83.  Anywho let's get on with the show.  I have found some really amazing products this month and want to share them with you all.  

1. Valentia Even Glow Serum* - I ran out of my Ole Henriksen Truth Serum and decided hey why no try something different.  So I did and fell in love with this.  It is a Vitamin C serum that just leaves my skin feeling so nourished.  I have been using this for about a month and don't know what I would do without it.

2. Tom Ford Traceless Perfecting Foundation - Ughhh this stuff is AMAZING.  I have not found a foundation that I truly loved this much in a long time.  It gives you medium coverage but, doesn't feel like you have anything on your face.  It gives a bit of a dewy look but, doesn't make you look like a grease ball.  It lasts all day long.  I usually put my makeup on at 7:30am and I don't come home 'til 6:30pm and my face is still intact.  That my friends is amazing.  

3. Lorac Pro 2 Palette - If I had to make a choice between my Naked palettes and my Lorac ones well I would for sure pick my Lorac ones.  I have reached for this palette daily.  I love the first four neutral shades.  They look great in the crease.  And I love the first five shimmery shades.  They look great all over the lid or in the outer corner.  The shadows blend so easily and they feel buttery smooth.  

4. Bobbi Brown Blush in Coral Sugar - We all know I have a thing coral.  Well this month I have been all about this blush.  It is a nice mix of pink and coral.  And if compliments my skin tone so well.  

5. Malin + Goetz Lip Balm - I received this in my Glossy Box and I am in love.  I think I enjoy this more then my Jack Black lip balm and that is saying a whole lot ( I have gone through at least 4 or 5 tubes of Jack Black).  The Malin + Goetz is so moisturizing and keeps my lips moisturized for hours.  

6. L'oreal Glossy Stain in Coral Tattoo - Glossy Stain is not the real name of these.  The name is not on the packaging either.  That annoys me a bit but, the product itself is amazing.  It stays in place for hours without budging.  Only when I eat do I have to re-apply.  

7. Formula X The System - Since Revlon discontinued my favorite base coat I thought it was time to try something else.  I haven't dabbled to much with the Formula X range from Sephora but, I have heard such great things about it.  And everyone is right.  The System includes a nail cleanser, a base coat, your choice of a nail color, and a top coat.  These have really helped my manicures last longer.

8. One Truffle Clarity Pouch - This is the best makeup pouch around town.  It fits so much but, is still so sleek.  It leaves so much room in my purses for all my other junk.  I am contemplating buying a few more in various sizes.  

    Some of my other favorites this month :

The Killing - A Netflix original. It is such a great show.  If you are into shows like Dexter and Sherlock you will enjoy this. 

#GIRLBOSS - My mom bought this for me on her Kindle and I have not been able to put it down.  Such a good read for someone who wants a job outside the norm and wants to be their own boss.

LG G3 - I finally got myself a new phone and it wasn't an iPhone.  Don't get me wrong I love iPhones but, I hate the quality of their cameras.  Androids have such better camera quality.  And having a blog based on beauty I wanted to get a phone that has the best camera quality out there. 

What are your favorites this month ??

Love, 

City Styles