Sugar

May Favorites 

Hello Lovelies. I'm Jordan Nicole :) May has been a great month for me. Something about those summer vibes. Even though it rained here almost the entire month, there were still some really beautiful days. I am looking forward to what the rest of the summer has in store for me. Here are a few the things I was really loving for the last month! 

Fashion

High Waisted Adjustable Bikini Bottom 

I ordered this bottom online from American Eagle a few weeks ago. I have been looking for a high waisted black bottom for a long time and was very excited to find this. I really like the adjustable element. I even got my best friend Amanda to go out and buy a pair after she saw mine :) 

Accessories

New Cartilage Earring 

After my last final I wanted to do something spontaneous. I thought about all of my options and very quickly landed on finally getting my cartilage pierced. I left my apartment, got in the car, and went straight to Claire's. Fifteen minutes later I am walking out with my brand new piercing. I already had my cartilage done on my left side but I got this one lower down on my ear. I have a few friends who have it there and just thought it was so cute. I love it so far. It is still healing but I think it is going to be so cute with another earring :)

Beauty

Maybelline Fit Me Matte & Poreless in 112 Natural Ivory 

I had been hearing about this foundation nonstop lately and when Kathleen even mentioned it on her channel, I knew I needed to give it a chance. I was very pleasantly surprised by it when I finally did. The coverage of this foundation is a good medium without feeling as if it is. It is light on the skin and feels very breathable. The claim of giving a matte affect is not false either. It does add a matte look to your skin, which I appreciate, though in the summer I tend to go for more of a dewy look with me skin. I think this will be my perfect fall/winter foundation. My favorite element of it is that as you blend it with your brush it almost starts to feel more like a power and dries to easily. I don't have to let it dry before I put of my powder. It is such a cool formula. For any of you with really dry skin, I'd be sure to use a moisturizer or a primer before using it, but I think it would work for you even. Plus another bonus in this line is that is offers shades that are very light. Sometimes when you are really pale it is hard to find a good shade, that isn't too dark. This range is considerate of that.

Urban Decay Half Baked Eyeshadow

Half Baked has always been my favorite Urban Decay eyeshadow. It is in my Naked 2 palette, which I purchased a very long time ago, and it is in my Naked palette. It is my most used shade from the two, but in the past month it has been my most used shade from all of my palettes. My favorite Youtuber, Zoe Sugg, has been rocking a lot of gold eyeshadow and it has just rubbed off on me. It is such a pretty look in the summer time :) She even did a great tutorial on a gold eye and coral lip look. You should head to her channel and watch it if you haven't yet. This gold is perfect for any eye color and will make them stand out, guaranteed. 

Entertainment

Castle

My cousin Ellie has recommended Castle to me for years. I love Law & Order and Bones so it just seemed like a show I should have been watching. Well this month I decided I wanted to start but it isn't on Netflix or Hulu. I checked how much the first season was on iTunes. It ended up being $15 and so I bought it, figuring that if I didn't like it then it wasn't to much money wasted. It turned out to be a great purchase. I am now on season 5 in just a few weeks. School has been done so I've been taking some down time. It's a great show. Funny, witty, quick. The chemistry between Beckett and Castle is just phenomenal too. 

Girl Online by Zoe Sugg 

I have had this book since it was released but I just hadn't gotten around to reading it. I finally started it this month just before I went on vacation to Washington DC. I brought it with me and finished it on the trip. It is such a cute story and a great read. I am really looking forward to the second book coming out later this year. I love Zoe Sugg, she was the first person who really hooked me on Youtube a few years ago. I think she is immensely talented and that shows in her book. The paperback is coming out later this year as well, so if you don't want to spend the money on the hard cover then you could wait for that :) 

Amber Fillerup's Instagram 

Amber is a Youtuber & Blogger who has a wonderful talent with braids. She has the cutest little family and I follow her on Instagram. She travels the world with her husband and little boy. She posts so many gorgeous pictures of her adventures. Her Instagram isn't the only thing worth checking out though, head over to her channel too. She has amazing hair tutorials!

The May list of favorites isn't very extensive but that's just how it goes some months. I have been very busy with school ending and then going on vacation to Washington DC. I fell behind on here a bit but I will be catching up all summer long. I hope that if you graduated in May that you got to celebrate your accomplishments. You should be proud! If summer has started for you then I hope you are enjoying the sun shine and summertime :) 

Come See About Me

Benefit Cosmetics Gimme Brow Comparison & Review 

Hello Lovlies. I'm Jordan Nicole :) My best friend Amanda gave me Benefit's Gimme Brow for my birthday a few months ago and I was so excited. I had really been looking forward to testing it because I was not into brow products at the time. She decided to buy me the light/medium shade because that is the one she uses and she felt like it would work for me as well. When I tried it however, it was a good deal lighter than my eyebrows. I'm a natural red head but my eyebrows are a deep brown and the light/medium shade was very visible against the natural color. It has a gray undertone that my eyebrows are lacking.

Armed with this knowledge and the desire to be able to really use Gimme Brow I decided to purchase the medium/deep shade. Amanda felt that it would be to dark but after testing it while I was in Sephora one day I decided that I really liked the effect it gave. Seeing as I was torn between which shade would be the right one for me to purchase before Amanda bought me my present I thought that others might be on the fence about which shade to buy too.

I decided that since I own both of them then maybe it would be helpful to do a post comparing the two and just reviewing the product in general.

Light/Medium Shade

The lightest shade available in the Gimme Brow line, the light/medium it greatly suited for anyone from natural blondes to light brown hair. I think that you can get pretty far into the browns before you really need to go darker than this. It has an undertone that feels cool toned and gray. This helps it feel like it would work for blondes that have cooler tones in their hair. Even lighter brunettes who have a mousy brown or dirty blonde hair color would be better off going with this shade.

On the other hand, if you are a darker brunette but aren't a fan of bold brows then this might also be the pick for you. When I applied it to my darker eyebrows I felt that it gave them a dusty look that made it clear that I was wearing a brow product. Amanda didn't agree with this though and said that if I had blended it better with a brow brush that I would have liked it. So I think that if your brows are darker but you want a more subtle look than you could make this work.

Medium/Deep Shade

This shade is clearly for anyone who had darker hair or at least darker eyebrows. My hair isn't dark, I would say it is right between light and dark, but my eyebrows are very clearly dark. I think that this medium/deep shade really compliments them and makes them feel full. I am a fan of a strong brow though, so my opinion of this shade is a little influenced by this fact. 

No matter your opinion on eyebrows, this shade is a true, deep brown. If you have a medium to deep brown hair color I think this would be the better option for you. It is also deep enough that I think it would work for people who naturally have black hair. If you are a typical red head then you would probably need to stick with the light shade, but for me (I have auburn hair) the dark is perfect.

The Overall Product

I am a fan of this brow gel. I think that it does exactly what it claims to do. It make my brows look fuller and bolder. I typically add this step after I have also filled in the ends of my brows with powder. The combination really gives me the look I am trying to achieve.

This is a picture of me wearing both shades. The lighting made it a little difficult to really see the difference but I think it is still pretty obvious that the product adds a lot to the overall look of my makeup. I think it is also obvious that on the left I am wearing the medium/deep shade and on the right I am wearing the light/medium shade. If you can manage to look passed the awful face I am making (I think I was tired when I took that picture) I think that they really show the effect both shades give.

I hope that this little comparison/review helped you if you have been considering purchasing the Gimme Brow product. I really want to start doing more comparison posts because I know that when I am looking at makeup I always want to know the answer to the question "but what is the difference between the two?". Let me know if you've tried Gimme Brow and which shade you prefer for your own eyebrows in the comments below! :)

Benefit's Gimme Brow is available online at benefitcosmetics.com and online & in stores at Sephora and Ulta. 

Eyes Open

Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara Review 

Hello Lovelies. I'm Jordan Nicole :) Simply put I can sum up this entire post in one sentence; this is the single best makeup product I have ever purchased. I just wanted to make it clear up front that the rest of this post will be spent raving about this mascara. I am sure that you have heard plenty of people rave about it but if you'd like to hear my reasons for raving, and my warning about flaws then you can keep reading my post :)

My best friend Amanda steered me away from this product. She had received the sample size in one of her epsy boxes and was not a fan. For that reason I put off buying this mascara for a while. I knew that I wanted it and I knew that people I really trusted loved it but Amanda is my best source of information when it come to makeup so I wanted to listen to her. I finally gave in and bought it after the temptation was just to much and I am so glad that I did. It is amazing. I can see how it wouldn't be for everyone. My Mama tried it and was also not a fan. I completely understand where the flaws could be big enough to make someone not like this product. When you first start using it the brush can be quite overwhelming. It is an intense product and with certain eye types it can be easy to make a mess, this is the problem that my Mama had. I tend to be a messy mascara applier so I had to learn how to apply it in a neat manner. From time to time I will get it on my eyelid but this is thankfully easy to correct with a q-tip.

The pros to this product are that it has a brush that applies mascara magically. I have long eyelashes so my aim with a mascara is never a lengthening brush. I want volume from a mascara. This one does that for me on a level no other mascara can. The closest I have come to the level of volume is Maybelline's The Falsies, which is my favorite drug store mascara. Now saying that this mascara gives me the volume I am looking for does not mean that it doesn't lengthen as well. It does. That just isn't my main concern when it comes to a mascara. The formula of this mascara is also quite wet so it is easy to manipulate my lashes while applying it. Sometimes I find that if I put on a mascara and my lashes are a bit wonky the formula is to dry to really reposition them. With Better Than Sex I can get every lash into place and when it dries I know that they will stay put. It is also an intense black. Some mascaras, even ones labelled very black, just don't have the color payoff I am looking for. If I wanted anything other than black then I would buy a brown mascara. When I buy a black one I am looking for pure black. I want my eyelashes to stand out and to make my eyes pop. That is definitely accomplished with this product.

I already stated this at the beginning but this is the best makeup product I have ever invested in. It is $23 which is very comparable with other mascaras in its league. If you have been thinking about buying a more high-end mascara then I would highly recommend starting with this one. It is my all time favorite.

Other Makeup I'm Wearing:
Primer- Maybelline Baby Skin 
Foundation- Maybelline Fit Me Matte & Poreless in 112 Natural Ivory
Under Eye Concealer- Rimmel London Wake Me Up in 230 Very Fair/Light
Powder- Rimmel London Stay Matte in 011 Creamy Natural
Blush- Covergirl Cheekers in 150 Pretty Peach
Eyebrows- Benefit Gimme Brow in Medium/Deep
Eyeshadow Primer- Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion in Original 
Eyeshadow- Lorac Unzipped Palette
Tight Line & Water Line Eyeliner- Rimmel London Scandal Eyes in 001 Black
Mascara- Too Faced Better Than Sex
Lip Gloss- Tanya Burr Cosmetics Lip Gloss in Aurora
*All Linked When Hovered Over*

Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara is available for purchase online at toofaced.com and online & in stores at Sephora and Ulta. 

Love Me Like You Mean It

April Favorites 

Hello Lovelies. I'm Jordan Nicole :) April has come to an end. I'm not quite sure how that happened so quickly! Summer is nearly here. At least in Texas it is. I have been loving the spring so far though. It has been a great month and I'm looking forward to all of the things coming up in May. As always, this is my month favorites. Just some bits and bobs that I have been particularly enjoying this month :)

Fashion

Black Floral Kimono

Last year when kimonos really exploded in popularity, I wasn't fully aboard the train. I wasn't sure I thought that they were cute. By the time I had decided I wanted one, it was already getting cold and I didn't want to buy one if they were going to go out of style by the time I could wear it again. Then spring rolled back around and they had managed to stay in style. I found this one at Target and I adore it. It is so pretty, and obviously the floral pattern is what pushed me over the edge on buying it. I do love a good floral outfit :)

Target Boyfriend Jeans 

I bought these when my Mama got a gift card to Target from work. I wasn't really that sold on them (or Target jeans in general) when I got them, but I wanted to buy something that I wouldn't usually spend my money. I didn't have any boyfriend style jeans, plus I don't own a lot of light wash jeans. Anyways, I bought them and then they proceeded to spend a few months in my dresser not being touched. A few months ago I pulled them out again and when I put them on they just fit better than they had when I purchased them. I have been wearing them a ton lately. I love to throw them on with a top and some Keds. I think they are really cute and a great piece to have.

Accessories

Navy Floral Keds 

My Mama just got me this pair of Keds while we were buying her a pair of Sperry's out at the outlet mall. I had wanted this pair when it was originally released, but had never managed to get my hands on them. They are so adorable, and again that floral pattern snuck in there and stole my heart. They were on sale, which is awesome. I have worn them a ton already. I am now up to six pairs of Keds. I think the obsession is real.

Beauty

Lorac Face Primer 

I got this as a sample when I purchased my Lorac Unzipped Palette earlier this month. The palette itself comes with a sample of their eyeshadow primer but Lorac was giving a sample of their face primer to anyone who bought one of their products. I tried this, not expecting much, one day and was so pleasantly surprised to see that it is wonderful! I have never tried the Benefit POREfessional, so I can't make a comparison there, but compared to the Maybelline Baby Face primer, it is so good. I may just have to purchase the full size, which is saying a lot for me.

Real Techniques Expert Face Brush

I bought this brush after I purchased the Real Techniques stippling brush and their version of the beauty blender. I loved those products so I figured I should try their most popular brush out. When I first got it I was using it for my blush and bronzer, but one day this month I decided to try it with my foundation. It is AMAZING. I love the finish it gives my face. It makes my foundation apply so evenly. I also use it for my concealer and my blush. It is such a multipurpose brush. I need another one desperately. I highly recommend you try this one out.

Home

Vanity Stool

Earlier this month I had my Mama bring me my old desk from back at home so that I could use it as a vanity in my apartment. I got it all set up and was loving it, but the only thing I was missing was a stool. My Daddy looked online and we were pretty sure that it was going to cost at least $50. We nearly purchased a $75 one even. Then I went to Ross with my Mama & Grandma one day, and we found this vanity stool. It was $25! This adorable vanity stool was only $25. It was such an exciting find. This stool being so cheap actually helped me be able to purchase the next item in my favorites even.

NYC Picture 

I have a fairly large (for a college student) apartment and the ceiling in the living room happens to be vaulted. This makes it look extremely empty. I have a picture hung in my dining room but the walls in my living room were predominately empty. When I saw this picture on our trip to Ross I was so excited. It is so pretty and at $25 it was quite the steal. I hung it above my couch and it has really added a lot to the room.

Entertainment

A Little Something Different by Sandy Hall

I picked this up in the book section at Target one day when I was just browsing. I'm not sure why, but I decided to buy it. I very rarely do that because I have such a long list of books I want to read that buying one that I just saw for the first time doesn't typically happen. I usually just add it to my list and move on. Well with this book I bought it and started reading it a few days later. It only took me two nights to get through it. It is so adorable! Such an original concept and such a cute love story. You are really routing for the characters to be together, alongside the 14 people who tell you the story. Instead of the two characters in the love story telling you what happens, 14 people that are around them watching the story unfold tell you. It is so good. If you are looking for a new and original book to read, pick this one.

KathleenLights' Youtube Channel 

I watch a pretty big amount of Youtubers. I have such a large lineup that I don't haphazardly add to my subscriptions. I just don't have the time. When I cam across Kathleen a few months ago, I instantly liked me. I hit the subscribe button half way through my first video. I have loved her ever since. I look forward to her videos all week. I just think that she is so gorgeous and then on top of the fact that she does the most gorgeous makeup looks, she also has an amazing personality. She is so bubbly and warm. I feel like I know her, and that is not a quality that every Youtuber has. She is also so unique. I can't say that I am subscribed to anyone else who could replace her. You should check out her channel!

Love Me Like You Mean It by Kelsea Ballerini 

My Mama showed me this song when I was visiting home one weekend, thinking that I would really like it. She said that it perfectly described a relationship situation I was in at the time. I just rolled my eyes and looked it up. I am so glad that she showed it to me! It is so cute. The video is adorable too. If you are in your late teens or early twenties then I think you will really relate to this song. My favorite lyric is "If you're going to say it make me believe it." She is referencing saying I love you. It is just a really great song.

Girl Crush by Little Big Town 

I just found this song this past weekend but it has so instantly become my new favorite that it has to be included in my monthly favorites. There has been some controversy over it because people are misinterpreting the message behind the lyric. At its core, this is a song about a girl wishing she was more like the girl who is with the boy she wants to be with. She figures that is she was more like her, then he would want to be with her instead. It is so heartbreaking and relatable. There are just some amazing songs on country radio right now. I'd recommend listening to all of the songs in the top 50 country charts on iTunes.

This month was a little long, but I just happened to be loving a lot! I hope that your April was filled with more flowers than showers and that your May follows suit. Let me know what your favorite things in April were in the comments :) 

Suspicions

Urban Decay Perversion Mascara Review 

Hello Lovelies. I'm Jordan Nicole :) When it comes to makeup my favorite product has to be mascara. In all of the years I have been wearing makeup, it is the only step in my makeup routine that I hate to skip. If I could only put one thing on in the morning, mascara is what I would grab. Seeing as mascara is my favorite product, I tend to try out a lot of them. I only recently started trying the more expensive mascaras. I used to only true the drug store options.

I love Urban Decay so I really wanted to try out their mascara. I knew that I thought the brush looked amazing from all of the times that I opened the tester at Ulta and Sephora, but I wanted to see how it compared to some of my favorites. I only bought the sample size, just in case I hated it, but I am happy to report that I will definitely be buying the full size when my sample is gone.

The brush on this mascara makes it give such a cool effect on the lashes. It does not add an excessive amount of volume (like Too Faced Better Than Sex) or a ton of length (like Benefit Roller Lash). It is actually a part of its own category in my opinion. I have heard a lot of people on Youtube say that they aren't fans of this mascara, and I can understand where they are coming from, but I don't agree. I think that it gives me the perfect option for a natural, no makeup makeup day.

The thing is that it isn't the blackest formula and it doesn't transform your natural lashes into looking like you are wearing false lashes. It simply gives you extremely fluttery and natural looking lashes. I love this effect. I think that my eyelashes look so gorgeous fluttery, and this mascara is the ultimate fluttery option. It makes them look long and wispy, but without overpowering your eyes with black.

I have never used anything from the drug store that replicates this mascara, and none of my higher end ones do it either. I think that this is the perfect choice if you are just starting with makeup and you don't want to have a harsh transition from not wearing makeup to wearing it. It is a nice, natural and subtle way to start wearing mascara. And for those of you that have been wearing makeup for years but have never found the perfect mascara for those natural makeup days, this is it. You will enhance your lashes without looking to done up. I love throwing this on when I am just have a laid back kind of day. I think it makes my lashes look so pretty.

Urban Decay's Perversion Mascara is available online at urbandecay.com and online & in stores at Ulta and Sephora.

Please Remember Me

I Wrote This For You  

Hello Lovelies. I'm Jordan Nicole :) This week I was feeling a bit blue so I did something to treat myself a little. We all need to treat ourselves to something every now and then. My spurge was to buy a book that has been one of my favorites for a long time. I first purchased it on my kindle one late night and then proceeded to read the entire thing that night. I can honestly say that reading it changed me. Every once in a while you find a book that just speaks to your soul in a way that nothing ever has before. This book was that for me. I have always wanted to own it in its physical form, but had never managed to purchase it for myself. 

I Wrote This For You isn't really a book. It is more like a collection of poems. The most eloquent and magnificent poems you will ever read. It isn't poetry in the classic sense of the term. You aren't going to read it and compare it to Walt Whitman, but it is something that has touched my soul. Along with each poem there is also a photograph. All of the photography was done by Jon Ellis, and it is the perfect touch to complete the book. The author chooses to go by the pin name, pleasefindthis. If you read I Wrote This For You, you will see that this pin name is very moving. 

I know that this isn't my typical post but I figured that if I have found this thing that is so amazing, then shouldn't I share it? I have personally read through this book six or seven times. I think that says something. It also happens to be poetry month, so this is a way to celebrate it :) 

In order to share a taste of how amazing it is, I thought I would include a handful of my favorite pages.

The Bibliography Of Strings
And you taught me what it feels like. And the how it feels to lose it. And you showed me who I wanted. And then who I wasn't. And you ticked every box. And then drew a line. And you weren't mine to begin with. And then not to end with. And you looked like everything I wanted. And then became something I hated. And you get thought of everyday. And then not in a good way. And you let me leave. And then you wish I'd stayed. And you almost killed me. But I didn't die.

The Point Of Contact
And then my soul saw you and it kind of went "Oh there you are. I've been looking for you."

The Ghost Train
And if you can't say yes, answer anyways. Because I'd rather live with the answer than die with the question.

The Fragile Arc
It may have just been a moment to you, but it changed every single one that followed for me.

The Needle And Ink
Look at you, like a new tattoo. Because I might not always have you but I'll have the feeling of you for the rest of my life.

The Forgotten Feeling 
I know there was something before you. I just can't remember what it was.

The End Of That 
If you thought that was our second chance, you're wrong. It was our last.

The Bridge From Solitude
Just like you mistook lust for love, you have mistaken being alone with loneliness. So I'm fine. Thank you for asking.

The Tales From Bar
You're just another story I can't tell anymore.

The Next Stop
Only because it's still so raw and real. Soon I'll just be a series of images that sometimes flash through your mind, when you least expect. And after that, only a few will stay. Then, one. A memory of a memory.

The City Rises And Falls 
You were a dream. Then a reality. Now a memory.

The Seconds Before Launch
This isn't me missing you. This is me missing the me I used to be. This isn't me.

The Fragments Belong Together
Things just break sometimes. Maybe we should blame that third personality we became, that personality we shared together. Maybe it's their fault because you're a good person and I think I'm a good person too. We just weren't made for this.

The Refracted Night 
You forget that, in the dark, we must move closer together in order to see each other. You were never alone.

The Rain Was Once A Cloud
Know someone as much as you can. Hold onto the moments that define them. Then when their body leaves, they won't.

Those are just some amazing segments from an even more amazing book. If you are a fan of observations about the world around you then I would say this is a must read for you. 

I Wrote This For You is available in both digital and physical forms. You can purchase it on amazon.com or from Barnes & Noble.