So....Ahna's been seriously M.I.A. lately, but that shall change soon! I'm on vacation right now as well as moving into my new apartment with my roommates and just getting ready to start my 2nd year in university. Hope you all had a great summer.

Mine was pretty good, can't complain. Not excited for school though, but who is. What I am excited about is fall!!! Fall, although its the bitter season that has to end summer, is still a great fashion season for someone like me, who likes to accessorize, likes layers and knits, and LOVES boots! In terms of makeup, the general "picture" for fall/autumn has always been warm but dark, with shades of brown and black as well as burgundies and dark blues. I'm a neutral girl who likes wearing dark colors, so this is right up my alley!!

I shall be making fall must have videos when I'm back in the city, but for now, a blogpost will just have to do. That's fine right?

It appears that the popular fall 09 accessories include, leather everywhere (yes, even dresses!). Articles of clothing with fur trim, such as a vest, or a pair of gloves, if you don't want to get accosted by PETA (hey, faux is not a faux-pas). Big jewelry, as well as mixing metals. Speaking of metals, studs on jewelry and clothing is very in this season. Lastly, my favorite trends, big oversized warm cardigans or sweaters that are reminiscent of the Olsen twins, and BOOTS. Over the knee boots are making it big this year, but any boots are hot. 

For makeup, less is more this time around. As always, a matte skin is preferred over dewy in the fall. Muted tones of blush and matte bronzer. I always think of this season as being very Victorian and gothic, although not the gothic we think of today (no spikes in nose and black lips). The palette that I'll be using a lot this season is my Spiced Chocolate quad from MAC, which in my opinion, embodies fall. This quad includes a hershey bar brown, a shimmery burgundy similar to a dark Cranberry by MAC, a copper like Coppering by MAC, and a highlight color with a pink duochrome. Also, smudged liner along the lashline for an easy smokey eye is always in season, as is the classic winged liner. For lips, any shade of berry or red is gorgeous, but bright pinks and oranges are also making an unexpected debut these next few months. Neon colors have been featured in magazines, but I would personally save that for clothing rather than makeup.

I'd love to hear what you guys are excited about for fall.

with love,

A

- Eyeshadows, obviously. Great texture, long-lasting, good color payoff.

- Lipsticks. Great variation and smell nice. 

- Studio Fix Powder. My first foundation from MAC, and something I would buy again and again. Gives a smooth finish to the skin, mattifies, and adds coverage. 

- Studio Fix Fluid. I've been using this foundation for the past 2 years, and I love it as much as the first day I wore it. Works well with oily skin, has great coverage, gives a flawless finish when applied with a brush such as 109 or 187. 

- PlushLash mascara. Now I know MAC hasn't done a great job with their mascara formulas, but I do really enjoy the plushlash. I never believed in the "false-lash effect" that people where talking about until I used this. 

- Blot Powder. I keep this in my makeup bag all the time and use it with a tiny powder brush to set my makeup in the morning and to touch up once during the day. This has made my makeup stay shine-free for alot longer than it would have without it. Also, I've had the same one for about a year and a half, and I still have over half of it left.

- Paint Pots. Revolutionary, genius. And since they are so easy to work with and can be built up to different degrees of pigmentation, even the most inept makeup user can rub a bit of a paint pot such as groundwork or blackground on their lids, apply mascara, and be gone. On the other hand, the pro can also use this to intensify colors and bring out different tones in eyeshadows. 

1. Cut your q-tips in half. Chances are, you only use one end of them at any one time right? Cut them into two and they become single use q-tips. Doubling your money's worth in an instant. Also, don't buy the name brand q-tips. Buy cotton buds from the dollar store, its an unbelievable savings. Same goes for cotton pads. 

2. Baby oil as eye makeup remover. A big bottle costs less than 5$ and will last you at least 3 years, trust me. 

3. Nivea creme for feet and hands. If you are on a budget, avoid the temptation of buying expensive creams and lotions, as well as products meant for specific body parts. Creams such as Nivea (the thick stuff in the blue tub) will provide uber moisturization to heels and cuticles. 

4. Buy things on sale even if you dont need them at the moment, if you use it regularly, u will use them at some point

5. Don't open too many mascaras at once, your just wasting them and money. They dry out.

6. Buy cheap translucent powder, who's gonna be able to tell the difference?? Ladies, its called translucent because it's transparent!

7. Read reviews on makeup or beauty products before you buy them, i started doing that and its saved me TONS of money, no joke. I like to google "product name review" as well as check out makeupalley.com before I buy anything. Do your research, even on cheap products, because even if research saves you from buying a few cheaper products, it'll add up and you can save alot. 

8. Use Vaseline as lip balm and eye cream. Youthful skin is hydrated skin, and scientifically speaking, the stronger the barrier, the better the moisture is kept in the skin. Vaseline works great as a lash conditioner and an eye cream for that reason, and if you are young but worried about eye wrinkles, use vaseline as your first eye cream. You have the rest of your life to buy expensive eye creams. 

9. Baby shampoo as brush cleaner. No brainer.

10. Don't throw away makeup you don't use or you hate just yet! I hold on to my makeup until I find a use for it. That gives me my money's worth as well as teaches me a lesson about buying makeup without thinking. 

11. Lipstick wasn't what you thought it was? Cream blush!

12. Buy drugstore highlighting shadows. They tend to look the same on the skin and if there are differences, they aren't large enough to justify spending 15$ on a "pink shimmer" and a "yellow" shimmer highlighter. The ones from CoverGirl will do you just fine. 

You guys have any tips?

Your girl,

A

I was going to make a video, but decided a blog would be better because I don't really like those tribute videos to be honest. I find them boring. I thought I'd save you the pain. And just say thank you. It really means the world to me that I have people interested in what I have to say and I do notice the subscribers to comment regularly and those people make me feel very special. So thank you YT.

xoxo

Ahna

I do.

I most definitely do.

Namely, Chrome Yellow, Bitter, Da Bling, and some others I would rather not mention. Those eyeshadows get very little love from me, but I'm just going to have to try harder to use them. Which gave me the idea of reminding you guys can you can wear any color... with a little bit of black.

Which is the key to wearing brights if you aren't a bright type of girl. Looks nice in the pan, but on your eyes... you feel safer going for a warmer color, less shocking. But you shouldn't let the makeup go to waste. Simply wear the bright on your lid and smoke it out with a dark color (black works with everything, but you can also try a dark grey or a dark brown) in the crease, wear dark liner and mascara, and voila, you have the "pop" of color everyone's talking about without looking like a clown. Save your money ladies! And think twice before you buy that aqua color that looks like it should be on your toenails instead of your face.

A lot people suggest wearing the "pop" of color as a liner, but I find that a little trickier because certain colors just don't work that way and I find that black liner really is key in defining and "caging in" the bright, if you will. Keeps it in its boundaries. Hence I never use bright colors as liner. However, to each his own. It must work for somebody eh?

Luckily, several of the pigments I own are relatively neutral or face friendly colors. Which means that I'm not limited to the eyes. Which means they have now become multifunctional, and I LOVE multifunctional products. The uses I have discovered (though not purely through my own thought process) are as follows:

Tan pigment --> I still use it for shadow, but I can also mix it with my moisturizer for a faint bronzy glow before I apply foundation. I can also do the same with my body lotion. And it adds a really subtle shimmer that looks great. I really love this.

Melon pigment -> This has now become a good summer cheekbone highlight for me because it has gold and peach and pink tones which are perfect for this season. I find that this color is too shimmery for the eyes though, so it will have to be solely my highlighter.

Vanilla pigment -> Now everyone and their pet gorilla has come up with multiple ways to use this mystical little powder, and here are my two cents: eyeshadow, cheek highlight, mix it with face lotion for a glow (like tan pigment), mix it in hair products like shine mists or texturizing spray to add shimmer to the hair. 

My other pigments that I did not bring with me are Teal, Copper (which I should have brought, it would be great for summer!!! fml), Silver Metal, and Clear Sky Blue. I also have Grape, which I did bring with me, but I haven't found any uses for it other than shadow, so not much mention there. I am planning to use silver pigment as a shimmery topcoat to bedazzle nail colors like royal purple or dark blue or black, maybe even pink. As well as mix it with hair products for the ultimate hair shimmer.

From now on, I'm sticking to pigment samples.

Will be posting vids soon, check out CompassBlue on YT ppl!

Ahna

Now, I guess I should give you a bit of history about my skin. When I first starting caring for my face and washing it regularly (middle school?) I used Clean & Clear a lot. It was cheap, it was effective, and it was fun. Then acne started to get the best of me (or the worst) and Clean & Clear just wasn't cutting it for me anymore. You see, Clean & Clear is good for people who have virtually no skin issues. Its a gentle, non-complexing skincare line, that cleans the skin but doesn't treat it. Even the acne washes didn't work for me. So I changed my ways and went down another path (but that is a whole other kettle of beans in itse

lf).

Recently I've been able to get my skin under control somewhat, and was looking for a gentle morning cleanser that I could just use to wash off the night cream and zit cream if any. Proactive is too harsh for me to use 2x a day. So I bought this cleanser, 

even though it was makeup dissolving and I knew I would be using it in the morning, but I like foaming cleansers, and this was cheap.

It claims to remove makeup, oil, and dirt, and by golly it does. I used this one night because I was too lazy to use Proactiv, which takes a tad bit longer because I have to exfoliate for 2 minutes they say. And it was great. I toned my face to check for leftover makeup or residue, and nothing. This is good s*%^ ladies. It says it removes eye makeup too, but it didn't do that for me. However, I wouldn't suggest using a foaming cleanser around your eye area anyhow. 

I've been using this at night more regularly now, and using proactive when I feel I need a deep clean. It works great at cleansing the skin and removing all face makeup, and it feels really gentle and is non-drying. I guess Clean & Clear managed to win my heart back.

This product would appeal to those who don't want to spend 10 minutes at the sink washing and cleaning their face before bedtime and want a quickie wash that will still be effective. 

Mind you, it is not an acne cleanser, so don't think it will improve your skin any. Unless of course you break out due to traces of makeup being left on your skin, in which case this might clear it up.

If your looking for a new cleanser, give this one a go!

Other products by Clean & Clear I enjoy:

Morning Burst facial scrub (orange one)

Facial Blotting sheets

Your girl,

A