So you think you can sculpt? (Bee's Signatures Free makeup training contest)

Hi there,

You know how I love to empower women right? I've decided to do something again, I'm hosting a give away via Bee's Signatures academy, my makeup school.

I remember doing a pictorial on brow sculpting (read it here) and a video also (watch it here).

Now here's the contest.

Create a picture collage of you sculpting your brows using a brow pencil, gel or powder. 1 picture of before, 2 of the process and one of after. (making a 4 picture collage).

Upload it to instagram, follow and tag @beessignaturesbeauty  or upload it to www.facebook.com/beessignature like, and invite your friends to like both the page and your picture(you can only choose either facebook or instagram, not both) .


Once you've done that, come here and leave a comment on this post to let me know you have posted it.

Post with the most likes at the end of the contest wins.

Contest runs from now till the end of September.

The winner gets a free two weeks makeup training at Bee's Signatures academy 

Terms and conditions
Prize is not transferable and redeemable within 2 weeks after the result is announced
The training covers tuition only, which is N30,000 (training products are available at the studio but you must come with your own tools.
The contest is open to females only

What's in your makeup purse? (product edition)

I get asked a lot of times "you are an expert makeup artist, what staple products would you recommend that I buy for my personal makeup purse?"

This post is in response to that question.

Enjoy!

There are scores of makeup products out there and one who is not so into makeup can get really confused. If you are one of those (I know a lot of us are almost makeup artists now and this might not be new to you), then read on.

I would group the essential products into Face, eye and lip products.

1. Face products: Face primer, Powder, foundation, concealer, blush

A primer helps minimize the appearance of pores, makes the face smoother, and allows easy makeup application and blending. The primer you would buy depends on your skin type. If you have smooth skin, a primer and powder might be all you need to look really good.

Powder can be either loose or pressed. For a makeup purse, pressed powder is better. It takes up less space and won't spill and mess up your purse (assuming it stays intact).

maybelline clear smooth all in one powder

Foundation: liquid, cream, cream to powder, stick. Foundation comes in various forms. Confirm from your makeup artist or vendor the one that would suit your skin best.

marykay medium coverage foundation

TIP

To maximize space and products, you can buy a 2 in 1 powder that offers the benefits of both powder and foundation.

Concealer: if you have dark under eyes, spots and pigmentations, then you should consider buying a concealer that is one or 2 shades lighter than your skin shade. If you have been bitten by the Highlighting and contouring bug (lol), then you will also need to buy one that is exactly your shade for spots and one two shades darker.

LA girl pro conceal (concealers and correctors)

blush: This is not compulsory for everyday use. But if you are a blush lover, get one that is close to your skin tone. 

Eye products:

The most important eye products are:

ELF liquid pen liner

Eye liner pencil (preferably black for the upper and lower lash line)

Mascara (black would do too)

milani runway lashes mascara

Eyebrow definer (pencil, powder or gel). For a beginner, pencil is easiest. Though gel definers look rally pretty and last all day.

Hegai and esther brow definer gel

If you have extra space and or money, you can add an eye shadow primer and different colours of eye shadow.  A palette of natural colours as below is a winner any time.

Zaron eye shadow and blush palette

3. Lip products:

stock photo

Lip liner pencils to define lips, optional

Lip sticks to add colour to lips. Use colours that suit you.

Lip gloss to add shine to the lips. (please skip gloss if you have thick lips, they would only make them look thicker)

Summary:

Face primer

foundation

concealer

powder

blush

eyebrow definer

eyeliner

mascare

eyeshadow primer

eyeshadow

lip liner

lip stick 

lip gloss.

Hope this list helps next time you wish to revamp or update your makeup purse. Watch out for the tools edition soon.

xx

Olubunmi

Nigerian beauty blogger.

Why you sometimes wake up tired and groggy ( I do too!)

Ever wondered why you wake up and feel like you didn't have enough sleep  when indeed you did (or like you had a royal rumble match with a lion in your sleep)?

Here's what i found out from wikihow:

source

• When you sleep, you cycle between REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep and non-REM sleep. Non-REM sleep comprises three stages: N1 (Transition to sleep), N2 (Light sleep), and N3 (Deep sleep). You usually slip into REM sleep 70 to 90 minutes after falling asleep, and this is when most of your dreams occur.^[10]
• Each sleep cycle lasts roughly 90 minutes, and repeats four to six times over the course of a night. If you are awoken in the midst of N3 deep sleep, you may feel groggy and disoriented. You want to wake during the lighter, more active stages of sleep, especially REM or N1.
• Try setting a wake-up time that's a multiple of 90 minutes away from the current time.

• Consider using a sleep-cycle calculator like [THIS] to plan out the best time to wake.

I used the sleepy time calculator to calculate when i need to sleep if i had to be awake by 5:30am and here's what i got:

You should try to fall asleep at one of the following times:
8:30 PM or 10:00 PM or 11:30 PM or 1:00 AMPlease keep in mind that you should be falling asleep at these times.
The average human takes fourteen minutes to fall asleep, so plan accordingly!
sleepyti.me works by counting backwards in sleep cycles. Waking up in the middle of a sleep cycle leaves you feeling tired and groggy, but waking up in between cycles wakes you up feeling refreshed and alert!

I'm definitely going to use this and see how it works!

Do you have any tricks up your sleeves that you can share with us?

Cheaper alternatives to MAC ruby woo

I love MAC ruby woo! Who doesn't right? But not everyone can afford to splurge over N4000 on a single lipstick.
That's why I decided to do my research as a beauty blog owner came up with these cheaper alternatives that though aren't  exactly the same and might not last as long as the famed Ruby Woo, look very identical to it and are beautiful in their own rights.



1. Milani color statement lipstick in Matte Iconic
Here's what Milani says about it:
Meet your matte. Your fantasy matte. The matte that not only feels great (yes, you read that right – it’s actually comfy) but also lasts for hours and has “a-mazing Instagram selfie” written all over it. Infused with grape seed extract imported from Italy, this smear-proof lip soother delivers mega color that won’t budge, even after a close encounter with a cappuccino cup.

This retails in Nigeria between N1600 and N2500


2. Jordana Red #10:

Matte Lipstick

 

• Opaque Matte Coverage 
• Non-Drying, Comfortable 
• Long Wearing & Non-Feathering 
• Velvety-Smooth Feel 
• Made In USA

Retails in Nigeria between N500 and N1000

3. Revlon super lustrous lipstick

Ultra-creamy saturated lip color that delivers beautiful, lightweight matte color without any dryness, caking or fading.

Retails between N2000 and N3000

There are more of course, which include NYX matte red lipstick, Arike matte red lip gloss, Maybelline superstay in ravishing rogue, Wet n Wild MegaLast Lip Color in Stoplight Red and more

Have you tried any of these?

XX 

Olubunmi

Product alert! Beauty lift herbal skincare range

I'm a fan of natural skincare so when I got a visit some weeks ago from Mrs Funke Aderinto, the owner of beauty lift herbal skin and hair care range, I was pretty excited.

She came with two sample bowls of her new herbal skin and hair care range.

I took the blemish control black soap for myself and gave out the skin brightening glow soap to a faithful reader, Mrs Blessing Nwachukwu.


After less than two weeks I actually really noticed my hyper pigmentations reduced a lot. I've been battling those for a while.

She also sent in these testimonials from her clients

You might want to try it yourself. You can get a bowl for as low as N500. To purchase or for more enquiries, please click on the beauty lift flyer on the right corner of your screen.

NB.

If you have allergies to certain natural products please tell her before purchase so she can recommend the right products for you.

What's your nail type?

More often than not, we take care of our face, body and totally ignore our nails. I've been guilty as charged so you are not alone. Many of us get away with it because we have normal nails.

source

However, ignoring your nails can have its own consequences.
Ugly looking nails have to be hidden from the glare of the public!
 Plus it tells a bad story about one's level of hygiene and health status.

There are 5 nail types

Normal nails: 
look good, rosy and shiny. Bend easily at the corners

Keep nails looking good by
1. Applying conditioning hand cream
2. Avoiding dipping hands in hot water
2. Avoid dipping nails in harsh detergents

Dry nails:
Do not bend easily, lack lustre and look dull
Occur as a result of dehydration
Thumb drags slightly when run across dry nails instead of sliding smoothly

Treatment for dry nails
Rehydrating and treating using vitamin E (cut capsules and rub oil into the nail as often as you can)
Always use a moisturising base coat
use moisturising hand wash instead of normal soaps

Brittle nails: 
do not bend when gently pressed
lack flexibility
shatter easily

treatment for brittle nails
In addition to Vit E, boost flexibility by using almond or olive oil on nails every night
Avoid using nail hardener always use a moisturising base coat.

Damaged nails:
flaky and split easily
caused by severe dehydration or abuse of nail products

treatment for damaged nails
always use a treatment base coat, fill in all crevices wit the base coat
stop all artificial nail fixing to allow proper healing
Avoid the use of dark colours on nails

Soft nails
bend too easily
dont grow past finger nails (cut off easily)

treatment for soft nails:
Rub oil often especially before dipping in water to coat nails and prevent nails getting soaked
dry nails thoroughly after every wet dip
use nail hardener
paint hardener and nail paint inside the tip of the nail to make it harder.



To learn more about the skin, the nails, makeup, good nutrition, fitness and more, visit Bee's Signatures beauty and wellness academy where we teach girls and women how to look good from the inside out.


NB
Do you you own a blog, are you Nigerian? Submit your blog URL in the new directory of Nigerian owned blogs here

Directory of Nigerian owned blogs

Hi

Are you a Nigerian and a blogger like me? If yes, this might interest you.

There's a new directory of Nigerian blogs where you can upload your blog by categories.
It's called Nigerian bloggers link. You won't loose anything by adding your blog, in actual fact you have a lot to gain.

 More traffic, direct links and you get to network with other bloggers and more.
If it sounds like something nice, click here to sumbit your blog URL.

Tata!
xx
Olubunmi