Katie Rudder South Carolina I'm a Senior Marketing major with a minor in Health Promotion, Education, and Behavior at University of South Carolina! Go Gamecocks! In addition to writing Let's Be Preppy, I am active in the Carolina community, work at a South Carolina Lilly Pulitzer store, serve as an marketing intern for the American Red Cross and lead tours for prospective students at USC. Any questions or comments? Email me: katie@letsbepreppy.com
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I change cosmetics usually when I need a new one, mostly because I can't remember what current product I have unless I am over the moon about it. Mascara is something I definitely change a LOT. I also feel like you never really see the same types from brands as repeats on the shelves.
Recently, this L'Oreal Telescopic Mascara caught my eye. I've always read that these ball-ended mascaras are well reviewed. I found that this mascara has way increased control in where and how you could apply the mascara. I really liked the consistency of the mascara itself also. The main drawback to this telescopic type was that it could get clumpy. Not an awful clumpy, but I definitely noticed it if I didn't get all the excess mascara off from the day before. It always looked best on "fresh"/freshly-cleaned lashes!
I lost the tube of the ball-ended mascara and in an "essentials" trip to Target when I got back to Columbia, this L'Oreal Telescopic Mascara in Carbon Black seemed to be a decent replacement. Both of these telescopic mascaras focus more on length of lashes instead of volume, which I think is what I like. I am a HUGE fan of this second telescopic mascara choice! It really shows up well on lashes and the rubber applicator doesn't get messy or smear on your skin as much as a fat brush. You also get far LESS excess mascara on the wand which I love.
I am a big fan of these L'Oreal drugstore mascaras! They are worth looking up if you're running low in your tube or just want a change of pace!
Yesterday, as I was running errands with my sister, we ran into Ulta so I could snag more foundation. While browsing the aisles, I remembered reading some magazine (People, Lucky, something along those lines) where they were RAVING about a lipstain called "Lovestruck". After narrowing it down to Revlon, I finally found it!
It looks VERY purple in the tube, but goes on MUCH less dramatically. I learned that stains are a lot more transparent and you have tons of control of how dark you want it. I did a simple swipe on and added some clear gloss and called it a day.
I used it last night when we went to the Hippodrome, and I. Am. Hooked. It's smooth and goes on like nothing's there. It doesn't feel sticky like lipstick and I'm never worried about it getting on my teeth (that's actually my least favorite part of lipstick). I also go another color, "Sweetheart":
I'm equally excited to try this one! I've seen it sold online and on most websites this color is designated as a "bestseller". I'm tempted to go back to Ulta and buy a red one too! At $8.99 they're super affordable that you can try all of them if your "Sweetheart" desires!
What's perfect for the girl who has everything? Something to put it all in!
A great choice for a girly gift is a makeup bag!
Capitol Letters on Etsy is giving away a makeup bag to a lucky winner!
Not only is this a great gift, but a good makeup bag is a holiday essential for anyone traveling. Do you spend Thanksgiving with your maternal grandparents and Christmas with your dad's parents? Do you go from coast to coast? Do you fly or drive?
SO MUCH TRAVELING around this time of the year! That's certainly one major thing I've learned since traveling a lot to and fro college and home!
I love the fun, whimsical details on the bags too!
In order to qualify for this week's Giveaway Monday giveaway just use this Rafflecopter widget:
This is no recipe, no soup, but instead, a new beauty favorite.
Y'all know I love Bare Minerals. This is the MUST have product by them though. Since I've had some run-ins with acne, especially as the seasons change, I've noticed that a concealer is more and more important.
I haven't ever really used concealer in the past, but I LOVE "Bisque" from Bare Minerals. It has GREAT coverage, and goes on so smooth. The color is great for my skin, and they have PLENTY of options if you have darker or more fair skin.
This is my absolute favorite product by Bare Minerals, and I really do encourage everyone to go get one if you're looking for a new product or concealer!
Summer is in FULL swing and I love it! I have a few things during the summer that I cannot live without:
Tervis Tumbler
Y'all knew this was coming! I love my TT's and they go everywhere with me. You'll find a few in my room, one in the bathroom, one in my car, one next to my pool bag, they're everywhere!
Platinum Jack Rogers
Duh, the shoe that goes with EVERYTHING. Dresses, shorts and a t-shirt, my bathingsuit, and I have no problem if they get wet!
Seersucker
It's cool, looks good, and matches most everything. All of those are perfect for summer. I love seersucker and have versions in pink, blue, and white! Khaki is definitely next on my list!
Ocean Potion Baby 50
I can't use a lot of face products with all my acne lotions, so I have to use the gentlest, most protective sunscreen. AKA Baby sunscreen. I take this everywhere in my purse and I always have it when I go to the beach! I forgot to put it on one day when I went to the pool and I'm still regretting it!
Bare Minerals
With the heat and humidity of South Carolina, I can't really use liquid makeup. It gets sticky and wipes off on sunglasses, clothes, and everything else. YUCK. I've stuck with Bare Minerals for over a year now and I don't see a big change happening in the foreseeable future! I love it!
Swimsuits
What's summer without a good swimsuit? For Christmas I was given a Vineyard Vines gift card and spent it a few months ago on this Vineyard Vines bathing suit! It is super cute and I am excited to wear it!
At any given time during the summer, chances are I'm wearing or using most of these! What are you summer staples?
Recently, though, I've been using some of the different products than usual. "True" is one of those new and favorite products. It's a shimmery pinky-brown bronzer that can go all over! I am SURE it looks good on all skin tones and gives you a fresh, glowy all-over color!
In addition to true, I've been adding "Vintage Peach" to the apples of my cheeks for a little extra color!
This coral-y, pink is perfect for spring and summer and light enough that it doesn't weigh down your face with that yucky cakey makeup feeling! I love how creamy it looks once it's on!
This has been my regiment for the last two or so weeks but I tend to change it all up pretty often!
What's your usual routine? Do you wear a lot of face makeup?
Awhile back, I won a giveaway with Miss Sarah from "Too Much is Never Enough" and she was giving away tons of Mary Kay products. I won a mascara and was pretty excited just to see what it was all about. I was totally expecting a travel size mascara, not the full size.
Well, let me tell you, "Lash Love" Mascara by Mary Kay is easily the BEST mascara I've ever used. The only drawback for me is that it's not waterproof, but the minute that MK comes out with a waterproof version it will be PERFECTO! Anyway, I've always used drugstore brands of mascara, posting about some of my favorites here. I've dabbled in Clinique and Lancome brands from department stores and I've liked them as well. I have extremely long eyelashes so it's really easy for mascaras to get very clumpy on me.
With Lash Love, I have had more people than EVER come up and ask me if I'm wearing fake eyelashes! It really has become my absolute favorite mascara! My Mom even said something about it so many times that we got her her own tube as a Christmas gift!
I wear mine in the "I (Love) Black" (the "Love" is actually a heart in the name) shade but they make a brown shade for those of you who prefer brown for lashes. Anyway, I totally recommend Lash Love for anyone in the market for a new mascara or looking to switch!
There are a multitude of reasons I don't really like winter. The obvious: it's cold. The not so obvious: everything GET SO DRY. I always seem to forget that. My hair gets dry and static-y, my skin gets dry and my lips get so chapped! Thankfully the wind isn't too bad at school, but at home since we're so close to water 99% of the time, it can get pretty windy too.
One of my absolute favorite, cannot go without is chapstick! I've tried a few and Burt's Bees is a great go-to. It's tried-and-true, works every time and makes your lips all tingly. A new favorite of mine is the Eos brand! I have the strawberry daiquiri flavor and summer fruit flavor and I've gotten my two at Ulta and Target respectively.
They're really funny, egg-shaped domes of chapstick but they are AWESOME! My favorite is the Strawberry flavor, but my sister swears by the mint one! I'm not quite ready to trade in my BB mint one yet, but I'm willing to give this one a chance for sure.
Have y'all ever tried these? Do you love them as much as me? I just HAD to share them with y'all if you haven't had a chance to check them out yet!!
In the words of one of my favorite pump-up artists, Ke$ha, "Throw some glitter make it rain..."! I was just shopping yesterday at home and I was making the rounds to the usual places. One of my favorite places to raid is our local Ulta. Ulta has great sales and freebies for most popular products. Just yesterday I qualified for a free OPI topcoat or basecoat AND a freebie from Bare Escentuals. Ulta is also great because it's one-stop shopping. I made my way over to the Ulta brand cosmetics counter to check out what they had and it was full of bogo's. I opted for a 2/$6 for items that were usually $6 so it was basically buy one get one free. I picked up this nail color:
Pinata-Yada-Yada
It is a $6 alternative to one of my most lusted after colors out there, Happy Birthday by Deborah Lippman of Lippman Collection:
I just can't really bring myself to spend nearly $20 on nail polish...ok it's actually $18, but I digress. I was so excited to have come upon this other color that seems to be very similar! One of the big differences in the Lippman Collection color, atypical of other glitter polishes is it's very large pieces of glitter. Pinata-Yada-Yada has those exact same ones! There were a BUNCH of the bottles just like the one I snatched up (probably 9-10 left after mine) but it's not listed on the website so run to your Ulta to see if it's there!!!
I know it's not always the classiest, but glitter is SUCH a guilty pleasure of mine...if only you could see my toe right now!!
I'm sure you all can remember when I had my acne issues over the summer and started using Clinique Acne Solutions. When I arrived at school, it was MUCH too heavy and I was sweating it all off under my sunglasses and around my hairline. I consulted friends about what to switch to and no one had any great suggestions.
I used to use Bare Minerals when I was like a junior in high school but it was so messy at the time and had a really weird scent that I stopped using it. I remember one year literally ALL of my friends got the starter kit for Christmas and we all compared our shades and what eye shadows we all had! So funny, I remember like it was just yesterday!
Anyway, I went to the Bare Minerals store here in Columbia and had a real consultation and had the wonderful lady help match my skin tone and make recommendations for me and my situation about two months ago, right when school started. She was so nice and not pushy at all which I found very refreshing for a makeup store! We settled on a color, added it to the new and improved kit and then I got a fun shimmer for going out and the Bare Minerals version of blush. She LOADED me up with freebies including eye liner, eye shadow and lip gloss, all FULL SIZED, not just the teeny tiny free sample sizes.
I had a great experience with it and I'm still using the kit I got. I really like the way it feels on and find that sometimes, even the "Mineral Veil" tends to cool my skin. I haven't been broken out from it and I find that it has great coverage for when I need it!
Does anyone else use Bare Minerals? Do you swear by a certain makeup? Is there any part of the product line that I just HAVE to try? (Product line...I have a marketing test tomorrow...can you tell?)
Summer is good for a lot of things: re-evaluating, starting fresh, getting serious (or not), catching up, catching sun, cleaning (or not), clothes collection, tons of stuff. It's also great for learning what you like. I've learned a lot about myself this summer, some of which are my absolute-no-matter-where-you-live-must-haves:
1. Front Runner and Most-Compliment-Getter of the summer, ladies and gents I present you with, Sinful Colors Pink Forever 313:
Never in my life have I gotten as many compliments on my nail color (weird thing to notice, am I right?) as I've gotten wearing this puppy. Might be the best $1.99 I've spent, at Happy Harry's nonetheless, all summer long.
I'm a FIRM believer in the 5'' shorts (Michael if you're reading this you can laugh at the 3 vs. 5 inch debate we had a million years ago) and Lilly does it particularly well. I have 2 pairs from last summer and have added 3 pairs this summer that I adore. They're the tall girl's short shorts...
Along those same lines, I've hit it big with this shirt. I WAY missed the boat with the navy and didn't snatch it up in time, but I have the white and the pink and I try to convince people to at least try it on daily. If you don't have a Wiley grab one "wiley" you still can!
I have never been a makeup girl. I'm a get up and go girl. Until this summer when I was diagnosed with adult acne. Sista needed a little help and the lovely ladies at Clinique did exactly what I needed and fast. I've relied on this with Sephora Brand Primer and it's great!
4. Croakies, Croakies, and more Croakies
If you give a girl a croakie...
5. Ke$ha
New K-E-Dollah-Sign-HA (as Glee's principal says) fave. We'll say Kesha and I have connected. Because we're the likeliest of pairs...I like it!
6. Steamers:
I steam a lot at work. We get new shipments in weekly and they all need to be freshened and given a bit of life after they come out of the boxes! We joke with our UPS men that they're always delivering gifts to us! I love to steam all of our goodies and have started browsing them with my boss for our own personal use...professional grade steamers...for our personal use...you know you work in retail when.
7. Movies:
Although not my favorite of the summer movies I've seen, I've seen a bunch and have a hankering to go to one this weekend. Not sure which one, but I want to go to a movie, and veg out for 2 hours in someone else's way too cold AC. Sounds so nice after these summer steamy days we've been having!
8. Shopping for formal dresses (that I don't need):
I literally have ZERO need for a floor-length or remotely dressy dress. I don't go to proms anymore, I'm not in a sorority and don't have formal, and none of my friends are having black-tie weddings, so I'm at a loss. Does it stop me from fancy dress shopping? Absolutely not.
9. Carolina Gamecocks
No matter where I am, I'm cheering for the Gamecocks. Having been through this week, I think this is enough said.
It has never been easier to connect with Gamecocks, alumni, school friends, Lilly lovers, random friends from high school, Charlestonians, bridal companies, and so many other people than through Twitter! I have had a blast using it and learning it's ways--and tweeting my way through the College World series!
It's been one heckova week in my life. Major up's and down, and I have a lot to be thankful for.
1. I am thankful for all of my friends. We were all reunited in a big event this week and it was great to see the high turnout. High school guys and gals I'm really proud of the class of '09, showing up in big numbers and with a lot of pride. Rally, and rally we will.
2. I am thankful for the lady at the Clinique counter at Macy's for being so efficient with helping me in my major foundation confusion. I've never been a face makeup girl, but in a pinch needed some for Monday. She was so helpful and kind and understood exactly what I was looking for. A great shopping experience indeed!
3. I am thankful for meaningful work that I enjoy. I have a great job that I love with people that rule. Does it get better than that?
4. I am thankful for a new Sally Hansen nail polis color that I bought over the weekend. It's exactly the same as OPI's Strawberry Marg for about 1/4 of the price...yes that's $1.99 a bottle!
5. I am thankful for all of the small moments I get to spend with my parents. Just the past few nights my dad and I have watched some TV shows together and it's times like these I have to learn not to take for granted.
6. I am thankful for the Econ take home test we get tonight. I'll be able to take it at my own pace on my day off on Saturday which will be nice. In the meantime, I had another test yesterday in my second class! Eight weeks is sure to fly by at this pace...
7. I am thankful that gas at the beach was $0.20 cheaper per gallon than gas at home. This girl is ridin' dirty (any Chamillionaire fans out there? Throwback tunes party of 1.) with a full tank.
8. I am thankful that my new facecare routine is starting to show signs of changed. Sistagirl here has been super broken out (and since diagnosed with "adult acne"...gulp.) and I'm finally seeing some facial progress!
9. I am thankful to get the chance to start my new book! LOVING all the South Carolina bits!
10. I am thankful for 2 friends who have a ONE YEAR anniversary coming up SO soon! I like to think of myself as a 3rd member of that relationship. Man, this is the week of anniversaries! I LOVE it!So happy for y'all...xoxo
Liz from Avon contacted me last week to see if I wanted to work something out and it occurred at the perfect time! We're pairing up to giveaway the cutest case in the world with two Avon nail polishes of your choice!!
How great is this bag to toss into your bag if you're running fast somewhere and to still stay organized!
This is the Avon nail polish we're giving away too and you get to pick not 1 but 2 of the fabulous shades!
Leave a comment with your two polish choices for 1 entry and visit the Avon site and pick one other item for 2 more entries!!
Liz is also put together a special deal for readers: In the spirit of giving I've put together a holiday gift bag for one lucky customer to win. The holiday gift bag includes eyeliners, mascara, makeup remover, hair products, Anew Clinical Luminosity Brightening Serum, and more all wrapped up in a red and gold cosmetic bag. For every $15 you spend between now and December 29 your name will be entered once into the drawing to win! Just enter the code CHRISTMAS33 when you order to have your name placed in the drawing.
If you need to do any Christmas shopping for your BFF, Mom, Big or Little, (actual) Sister, Grandma, Babysitter or whoever, definitely shop with Liz, she's a doll!
So for the long labor day weekend, my friend Laura invited me back to her home in Charlotte, NC. It was so refreshing to have a trip to a HOME with a family and parents and even a dog (and to everyone who knows me personally, they know how much I don't do dogs!) to play with! We headed up to Charlotte Saturday morning and it was a very easy trip. We listened to my old CDs and I could tell Laura exactly when they were from (Junior year summer, when I liked so-and-so, you get the idea) and it was a lot of fun! When we got there we visited with Laura's family for a little while when I met her sister and mom and then got our nails done at a local salon.
After that we headed back to her house and then went to the EpiCentre which is a big "venue" in the heart of Charlotte. It's "doughnut shaped" as I describe it with an open middle but three stories of restaurants and bars! We ate at an awesome Italian restaurant called Libretto's and we both got DELISH pizzas. There was even a live band that provided us with great entertainment plus we got awesome peoplewatching done too. There were four bachelorette parties that passed by us too!
This was our view of the small band and part of the EpiCentre!
This was the view of a few of the bars/restaurants where we were sitting. Enso seemed like the place to go if you were somebody and I kept thinking that someone like Scott Disick was gonna walk out of there any minute. Two of the bachelorette parties walked in there and were definitely dressed to the nine's! It was on the bottom floor and was rocking quite a vibe.
This was the view as the night rolled around. We asked our waitress if it was alright to just sit around for a little while and she was awesome and happy to have us even though we were finished with dinner and all set. We totally got more of a bar feeling once the night hit and the crowd certainly changed a little.
Later that night, we stayed in Laura's house, and hung out in her pool and hot tub for awhile and then got ready for bed. Sunday, we hit up a big mall that was actually a mile full circle with a HUGE food court. I spotted some of the MAC in LillyLand makeup at one of the stores:
This eyeshadow palette was only $13.75 at the Company Cosmetic Store (or "the cosmetic outlet" as my sister and I call it)! I thought about getting one, but figured that I don't wear eye makeup enough to wear it (or even any pink/green eyeshadow ever I think) to buy it. I had to snap a photo anyway though!
I had such a fun weekend with Laura and her family! It was a great break away from campus and just far enough away to enjoy ourselves and "unplug" from everything here! I'm feeling refreshed and ready for the next week and our UGA game Saturday!!
I was looking at the Kate Spade contest on Polyvore, and included in one of the entries was this ADORABLE powder blush:
Intrigued, I followed a slew of links that finally took me to the online MAC counter at Nordy's online. I pretty much love beach-themed anything. I'm a sucker for starfish, I swoon for seahorses, and I could really go on with about six more of the corny aquatic alliterations. The beachy-fabulousness continues:
Starfish Lipglass! I find that some MAC Lipglass-es can be too tacky (especially if you were actually going to wear this on the beach) but I do love the pale pink shimmer. This is just too cute!
I don't ever wear bronzer because I can't seem to find a good color. I like a little bit of sparkle (I had a friend Taylor, during my freshman year of high school and I was always jealous of her bronzer. She looked SO pretty. She ended up switching to a big rival school of ours and I never got a chance to ask her!). I would definitely trust a beach themed bronzer to give me that beachy look...either that or I'm just a huge gimmick girl. There's also a creme version:
So far that shell is one of my faves!
I don't do lip pencil, nor do I ever intend on doing so, but the coral detailing on this pencil is to die for! I would love some cloth material on that. How cute!!!
I also don't wear lipstick but I had to post this because the color is called "Funbathing". Yes, please. (Funny story: two of my friends this summer didn't have jobs. One just graduated and another got laid off after her camp realized they had too many workers and they were calling their lifestyle "funemployed". That's a keeper.)
I haven't the slightest what "lustre drops" are, but it sounds quite fabulous. I'd like to feel a little lustre-y now, so maybe I'll pile on the LD's. I don't even know where you'd put them let alone what they do, so if you do know anything about them, please fill me in.
I'm LOVING this beach inspired line from MAC. Between their Lillylovers line and this beach theme, they're on my list. Kudos MAC!
