Luuux

Nail polish & Travalo Haul!

So I know you guys know I have been on a no buy because my Birthday trip is 13 days away!!! So it has been crunch time for my weight loss and the only thing I have been allowing myself to buy is clothing for my trip. But you all know I am addicted to nail polish and can't pass up a pretty shade. So the other night I went to Rite aid and FINALLY my Rite aid got the JulieG nail polishes!! I seriously wanted to buy half of them lol but I had to tell myself I already have similar color so I just went for the ones that I really wanted and were more Summer friendly shades. Rite Aid: *JulieG polish in Fierce & Fab- This is such a GORGEOUS bright purple. It is a matte finish but I just wear top coat because I love the color but am not a fan of matte finish polishes. *JulieG Polish in Bikini- This was the first one I wanted when I saw her video swatching her polish line for us! I grabbed it and never let go it is a bright pinky/coral shade! Soooo pretty! *JulieG Polish in Royal Rebel- I have purples but none like this. It is a slight metallic finish which I like with bits of shimmer in the polish. Walgreen's: *Sally Hansen's Hard As Nails Coral Reef- I picked this up because I remember someone on Youtube as well as luuux buying it a few months back (I want to say it was Lyndsay) and I was like "going on my list" lol This is a gorgeous shade light coral shade! Totally love it. FaceBook: *Travalo Refill Atomizer- I am so glad I finally won one of these I use to try once every few days and stopped. Then I randomly tried one day and WON! The best part they sent me a gorgeous color. A Royal Purple!!! I have my Marc Jacob Fresh in it now!! Love it! So there you have my mini haul of the things I can not resist..nail polish LOL Question: Have you guys picked up any of the JulieG Polishes? Pictures and Content are mine.

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• MaX Factor Silk Gloss, colour: 330...

BuzzAgent: Flora by Gucci!

A few weeks ago I was so excited to see that I was one of the first people to get invited to the BuzzAgent Gucci campaign!! I could not wait for my kit to arrive. First thing this morning it was on my doorstep!! You know I ripped it open fast LOL!! Included in the kit: Gucci: The Flora Garden Collection *Everything came in this beautiful decorated box!! So chic I love it! *A box of samples you would find in a magazine that tells you the notes of each perfume!! *A Flora By Gucci Card *Samples of all three perfume to hand out to your friends *Glamorous Magnolia 0.16 oz bottle- This is the same size bottle you would get as a deluxe sample from Sephora. Just to give you an example. THIS is my favorite out of the three. It just smells so devine!! Notes: Freesia, Peony, Magnolia and Sandalwood! *Gorgeous Gardenia 0.16 oz- This is my second favorite!Notes: Recreation of the gardenia graceful white blossoms, red berries and pears, frangipani flower, patchouli & brown sugar!! *Gracious Tuberose 0.16 oz bottle- This is a okay scent but just not my type. It honestly reminds me 100% of my mother. She wears all expensive perfumes ever since I was little and she always picked up ones that smell quite similar. Notes: Violet Leaf, tuberose heart, base of cistus and white cedarwood. This kit is perfect and I already know I will be purchasing two of them! You guys all know I am addicted to perfume Lol!! If you guys have yet to check out BuzzAgent go check it out!! I have gotten great campaigns from them. This is top notch for sure!! Pictures & Content are mine *Everything was provided by BuzzAgents for my review. I am not being paid and all thoughts are my own!

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• MaX Factor Lipstick, colour: 510...

ShadesofSteph Blog Sale!

Hey guys I just wanted to let you guys all know that today my blog sale started! I am selling some of my items that I just don't get enough use out of because I have similar items or because the shades just don't go to great with my skin tone. Shades Of Steph Blog sale list: *Urban Decay *Sleek *Sigma beauty *Too Faced *Lorac *Nina Ricci *Bare Escentuals *Benefit *Make Up Forever *BH Cosmetics *Coastal Scents *Tarte *Laura Geller *The Balm *Rock & Republic *Clinique *Josie Maran Everything is either slightly used or just swatched and never used again. If you guys have any questions feel free to email me here on luuux or comment down below=D I hope you guys check it out ShadesOfSteph Blog Sale! Pictures & Content are mine

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• MaX Factor Lipstick, colour: 827...

BuzzAgent Kit: Neutrogena Cosmetics!

So my most current BuzzAgent Campaign to arrive was my Neutrogena Cosmetics kit!!! I was so excited when I saw that I was invited to this campaign! 1. you guys all know how much I love my Neutrogena Healty Skin Foundation so an invite to try anything else...super excited! BuzzAgent Kit: Neutrogena- Included *3 Neutrogena Revitalizing Lip Balms in the shades: -Healthy Blush -Sunny Berry (My favorite) -Petal Glow So far I really like these. The shape is different but yet it works! I really love Sunny Berry! The other shades are great too pigmentation wise but Sunny Berry is just the perfect shade for me! *Neutrogena Healthy Skin Brightening Eye Perfector with SPF 25 in the shade Light- Matched my skin perfectly. I have been using my Maybelline lumi pen. I love it but 1 I found that packaging...well cheap. The writing rubbed off the package within a day and a half and it took like 20 clicks to get any product out. I love the product but it is not as illuminating as the Neutrogena one is! I found this one to be more illuminating which is great for me and my dark circles!! All in all this one has better packaging and product! *Neutrogena Nourishing Eye Liner- The thing I was so excited about was that this comes with a sharpener inside and it tells you that on the packaging itself! *Coupons for $2.00s off anything from Neutrogena that I have already given away. *Information booklet that tells you everything about the products. Even the retail value!!! Not googling here!! Buzzagent is such an amazing site if you guys have not checked it out you must. The next campaign I am waiting for (which I actually got before the one) is the GUCCI perfume campaign!! So excited for that package to arrive!!! **FTC: These products were sent to me for review. I was not paid for my thoughts, all thoughts expressed are my own. All Pictures and Content are mine=)

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• Max Factor Earth Sprits Eyeshadow

Stephanie's Weight Loss Journey!

Okay I am doing this post for the wonderful Miss Lilliana Lopez who requested to know how I was loosing weight. I wasn't going to originally post this on Luuux not because I didn't want to but because to me it was kind of out side of my world of blogging. But after sharing on IG a picture of my workout for the day (P90X) on of my followers asked me to post pictures. Now I started my journey on January 10, 2012 The first 4 weeks I DID NOT work out. I believe in having a great mind set and understanding of what task I was about to take on. I took a step back and told my self Stephanie you have to start from scratch you need to reteach yourself how to eat! Now I had two children very close together and that took such a toll on my body but my eating habit are what took me so far I had a hard time recognizing myself! I watched my calorie intake for the first 4 weeks and along the way gave myself little short term goals. #1 was drink water!! Now I have always loved water nothing has ever quenched my thirst but water. Well I noticed I went 4 days with zero water and that is when I knew I was in trouble!! So of course that was my first goal that was on January 10, 2012 today it is April 28, 2012 and I haven't touched a soda since the beginning. Not clear sodas nada!!! lol The next goal I gave myself was to work out for 10 minutes a day. Easy enough right? Not for someone who was 202lbs! It took me pushing and I made myself do it. Then before I knew it I was doing my favorite Jillian Michaels DVD the 30 day shred! I started at level one and in about a month and a half so I mastered all three levels. So I told myself I had to bump it up another notch. So I picked up the P90X system and I have been doing it ever since. I work out anywhere from 1hr & 18 minutes all the way to 2 hours a day 6 days a week. I follow a mixture of the P90X diet and how I have taught myself to eat. Now let's get one thing 100% clear I did this for NO ONE other then myself. I have been called fat (and way worse names) when I was a lot smaller. I am 5'4.1 inches tall (yup my postures way better these days so I gain a bit of height! LOL) 170 on me looks a lot different then someone who's tall. If I was tall I would be thin. But god did not gift me with height! He gifted me with a lot more and I am blessed with what he did give me. I learned my lesson a long time ago that you never loose weight to appease anyone but yourself. I did that and obviously when you make it about someone else it comes back and then some. I know, I have been there done that (at age 22). I basically malnourished myself to the point where my vision blacked out every now and then! YEAHHH never again!! So I knew the next time I made a change it would be 100% for me and I would do it slowly. When we dive into a diet we only tend to look at the end result and get frustrated when the scale doesn't say what we want it to fast enough. MY TIPS: *Best App: Spark People- Helped me track everything from my work outs, food intake, weight, & has a great community! *Do not weigh in all the time! Seriously you fluctuate so crazy in the beginning of the diet. Some people loose a lot of weight (water weight) in the beginning (around the first month/ month 1/2) The bigger you are the more you will loose!! Then become so disappointed when the next time they step on the scale the weight loss had dropped drastically. I literally took my starting weight and didn't weigh in again for almost 2 months!! *Measure yourself- Get a measuring tape!! Track your inches from your neck, chest, midsection, hips, 1 arm & 1 leg (quad & calf). Do it every week to 2 weeks! This is a better way to get a feel for how you are loosing. I gained 17 lbs of muscle! & you have to remember muscle takes up less room then fat! So I am glad I didn't stare at that scale! LOL So if I hadn't of gained that muscle my scale would say I was even smaller. But I love having muscles! Not crazy body builder. But toned body and of course biceps! Lol *EAT!!!- I see so many people who want the quick fix and starve themselves! The minute they go back to eating they gain it all back! YOU MUST EAT to loose weight! Sounds confusing I know but it is 100% true! RULE: Put in less then you put out!!!! You need carbs. They are for sustained energy (perfect before workouts!) then you eat a protein afterwards! My rule is I focus my carbs in the beginning of the day before I work out! **Please pick a diet that you can maintain! If you pick something just for results you will FAIL and will be back on this journey AGAIN in no time! Yo Yo dieting is so bad for your heart! Your health is not worth temporary results! *Water- I make sure I drink 8-10 glasses of water a day! I have a bottle that measures my ounces! I take it with me everywhere! Lol *Day off- When working out hard you must give your body a day to rest! You can literally overwork your body! Causing yourself to plateau sooner! Keep your workouts different and inconsistent. Muscle confusion can be your best friend when working out! *Get Rest!- I am not a sleeper! Lol I use to go on 3-4 hours of sleep and sometimes I would go up to 3 days without sleeping. Your body needs to rest! Again something I had to teach myself to do. I get up earlier so I get tired sooner. I have to do this because it's the only thing that works for me. *Get creative when cooking- I know how hard it can be to not get bored while dieting. So I always try to mix it up! I love protein, turkey, fish, veggie burgers, carbs, fruits & veggies. One thing I have loved is figuring out ways to make things I use to love just more healthy! *Take pictures- It really does help to see your progress and keep you motivated! *Get a support system!- You must have positive people in your life. I have a great bunch of friends both on IG and Luuux and here at home that are so positive and always encourage me!! We even have a FB page!! *Always Challenge Yourself- When you think you can't do even one more push up. Breath, pause, remember what you want to see in that mirror and finish! I was invited to become a P90X coach for beachbody just because of how much passion and drive I have. I never expected it and that was never my goal But the fact that I got noticed just for believing in myself made me think I have an even bigger purpose on my journey! To help others! If you guys have anymore questions feel free to ask or even email me here on luuux!! Starting weight: 202 Current weight: last weight in 171 lbs 2 weeks ago I don't weigh in for a few more days! Blue shirt is current front view picture & also grey shirt is current side view picture!! LAST PICTURE I JUST ADDED FROM 4/30/2012!! Pictures & Content are mine do not take!

Haulin: Rite Aid!

So today I ran to rite aid just to see if they had any new goodies and I was so happy to see that items that I have had on my list since the collections came out made it to my local rite aid!! I got everything I wanted!! I even went back one more time because I got Up rewards at the bottom of my receipt! Lol Rite Aid: *Revlon Photo Ready Cream Blush in Pinched- I was so excited when I saw this display!! Because I have been on the look out for these for the last few weeks! I really like these cream blushes because they don't leave that dewy finish that some can. They feel a bit like the MAC creme blend blushes. But they are more matte in finish. I wore this color today!! It is a gorgeous peachy shade! *Revlon Photo Ready cream blush in Coral Reef- MUST HAVE shade!! It is very nicely pigmented but blends out very easily!! Right now these are BOGO 1/2 off so it's a great deal. These retail for $12.99 a piece. *Maybelline Illuminator in Blissful Pink- Now I will say that when I swatched this I was a bit disappointed because it is chalky and glittery. But I went ahead and applied it with my Sigma F35 and it transferred more shimmery onto my cheek bones. I will not call this a must have item. But I am sure I will use this up during the Summer months. *Maybelline Dream Bouncy Bronzer #90 Sun Glow- This is soooo pretty! Now I do like my Bouncy blush in coffee cake it applies very nicely with my fingers but no other way. But this bronzer is very nicely pigmented and leaves a gorgeous bronzed glow!! I don't even have to apply hardly any pressure to get the right amount of product! So another must have for me. *Revlon Color Burst lip butter in Peach Parfait- I have passed on this shade a few times. Due to the fact that the glitter/shimmer to me looked big and I tend to go for more cream finishes on lip products. But this one is shimmery but not crazy shimmery to were it is distracting. This will look very nice when I get my tan! *Wet N Wild Color Icon Nail Polish from the Bejeweled Collection in Bow In My Presence- Now they had all the shades and I had to make myself put back the other ones. Simply because I don't need all the glitter polishes. I still have a few I have picked up and have yet to use. But I did grab this one as it was the most appealing to me. *L'Oreal Polish in Silver Sparkle- This is such a gorgeous polish and the last one they had! I am so glad I was able to get my hands on it!! *Revlon Nail Polish in Sheer Sea Foam- Now mind you this does say sheer in the name. But even with that. I don't know what Revlon was thinking when they put out this polish. Even with 4 coats I could still see the whites of my nails. This is a no go. If you see it...just walk away! Lol *The picture of the swatch is of the Maybelline Dream Bouncy Bronzer with 2 swipes, the 1. All in all I think I had a very successful shopping trip and I had like 5 coupons and up rewards so considering I did great price wise as well=D Pictures & Content are mine. Do not take=)

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• Max Factor Earth Sprits Eyeshadow

Nail Of The Day: No more film on Wednesday!

So a few days ago my free polish from Zoya arrived and I was so excited because the color is just gorgeous so I instantly put it on. Well a few days went by and I did not want to take it off because it was holding up so beautifully! So I looked at my stash of polishes I have picked up recently and instantly knew what combo I wanted to wear. So this is what I decided to go with!! Nail Of the Day: *Revlon Color Stay Base Coat- This has been my go to base coat since I picked it up. I have already used half the bottle Lol *Zoya polish in Wednesday- This is such a gorgeous soft green/blueish shade. It is darker then mint green obviously. This only took one coat on initial application but I did add a second coat when I revamped the look for the third day wear. *Essie No More Film- I love this shade this is my second time wearing it. It is this gorgeous cream dark purpley/ blue shade!! And so opaque!! I just brushed it slightly on like you would when doing a gradient but I decided not to use a sponge jut the brush. *Wet N Wild Spolied polish in Pet My Peacock- This glitter was the perfect texture and colors to bump the accent nails up a notch!! *Revlon Color Stay Top Coat All in all I loved this mani! I finally took it off today. But kind of already miss it. I am loving this time of year and being able to wear anything from bright and fun to dark and mysterious. Because this weather has been so back and forth the last few weeks. I swear my mood for polish shades is going right along with it LOL! Pictures and Content are mine!

Mini Haul: CVS & Walgreens!

So I been pretty much on a no buy for the last month since my birthday month is May & we are going on our trip that month=DD I am so excited but have been more focused on buying clothing and beauty items just here and there. I have also been not posting a lot because I have been concentrating on working out and trying to get swinsuit ready for that same trip. I did however manage to pick up a few little goodies I couldn't resist! Walgreens: *Essie Polish in Camera- This is from the Poppy-Razzi Collection I got this a few days ago and have worn it once. It is such a bright and fun Summery jelly textured polish it does take about 3 layers to be opaque. Which is okay considering it isn't thick. So it doesn't look like you have on three layers. CVS: *Milani Shadow Eyez 12 Hour Eyeshadow in 02 Brown Deluxe (Pearl Finish)- This is such a gorgeous bronzey shade and once I swiped these on they did not budge!! *Milani Shadow Eyez 12 Hour Wear Eyeshadow in 03 Champagne Toast (Metallic Finish)-I love this shade!! When I first put these up the night before last on Instagram Lily Munoz from Luuux told me these looked like good dupes for the Urban Decay Shadow Pencils! Which I never even thought of! I love that this one is a Metallic finish. I wore it on my lid today and it is just such a pretty color that is great for your lid without having to be a cream shade. *Essie Polish in No More Film-This is a must have color for me. #1 it is opaque in one swipe!! It is a gorgeous deep purpley blue color. I have it on now and am just loving it! Out of the collection this was the one I wanted and could not find. I got the last bottle and was so happy when I found it!!=D It is a creme finish polish! Also Milani is BOGO 1/2 off at CVS so its a perfect time to pick up products from that line!! So there you have it my mini haul from this past week. I can never do a no buy fully but I try LOL I am going to try to get back on when I have time. I truly love blogging and do miss it even though it has only been several days it feels like months LOL Pictures & Content are mine please do not take!

Beautylish is Launching an online Shop!!

I have been on Beautylish for almost a year now and I love it! They have made some great new changes to there site! The coolest new one is they are Launching a new SHOP!!! If you guys read my blog either here on Luuux or on Blogger then you know I haul....A LOT LOL I love being part of the Beautylish community and if you guys have not become a part of this great community of beauty lovers and bloggers you must check it out. Beauty is my passion and I love learning and sharing my love of products with my fellow bloggers and followers! Beautylish is unlike any site out there. You can write reviews, like photos, engadge in conversations with other members under their "talk" section and start your own topic. You can watch videos on anything from nail to hair tutorials! Read amazing articles the list goes on and on. So if you have yet to check it out go here and sign up to become part of this great beauty community and to take advantage of the shop once it opens up!! To check it out or sign up:BeautyLish!! First Picture is my print screen from Beautylish & the second is my picture from one of the few times my reviews were featured on their main page. Don't take.

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• Max Factor Flawless Perfection 44ml...