Bath & Body Works Haul

Even though I just spent $30 on an online order from Bath & Body Works, I dragged my mom to the mall today to check out the in-store deals! There's definitely a wider selection of stuff in stores during their "Hello,Yellow" 75% off sale, so I recommend getting to one as soon as you can!

-Summer Vanillas Body Lotion in Lemon
I was surprised to see this on sale since it wasn't online, but the lady told me it was only $2.62, so of course I'm going to get it! My mom, who hates vanilla, surprisingly got one too because she loved how lemon-y it is! I'm so happy with this purchase, it was cheaper than most of the travel sized body lotions. I also think this smells similar to the EOS Lemon Drop!

-Summer Vanillas Fragrance Mist in Lemon
I love to layer my scents, so of course I'm going to get the same body lotion in the mist! And this was also 75% off, so it was around $3, a HUGE deal if you ask me!

 -Orange Sapphire Body Butter
In my online order I got my mom a Orange Sapphire travel sized body lotion because she needed a new lotion for her purse, and she saw this at Bath & Body Works (also 75% off!), which of course ended up coming home with us. I don't know how good their body butters are, but I'll be sure to ask her if she likes them.

-Travel Sized Twilight Woods Body Butter
My brother has terrible skin on his hands, it gets so dry that it cracks and bleeds. I always feel bad when he complains about it, so I thought getting him a body butter would be a good idea! My mom smelled around and thought the Twilight Woods scent was fairly manly so we got a little one for him to try out. These are also 50% off!

-Black Amethyst Eau de Toilette
I saw this on the Bath & Body works website, but I had never smelled it before so it was too risky for me to buy. But in the store I took a whiff and it's actually a really good scent, and it was of course also 75% off of $30, so it was about $7.50 when I checked out. This is the fourth new perfume I've gotten from them in a week so I really don't think I need to get anymore for a long time, but saving $23 is just too good to pass up!




-14.5 oz Candle in Mint Chocolate
All the candles are 50% off right now, so of course my mom and I went around smelling them all. This one was by far our favorite, it smells exactly like mint chocolate ice cream (which is also one of our favorite desserts). I can't wait until she burns it, the house is going to smell delicious!

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Bath & Body Works New Scents: Bali Mango, Hawaii Coconut, and Fiji Passionfruit

I received these new fragrances from Bath & Body Works for Christmas! I always love fruity smelling things, so I was super excited to try these new scents out. But I am a little confused as to why they released these in the dead of winter? Maybe it's because people are going on tropical vacations? Beats me.  Their last new fragrance, which was Secret Wonderland, was available in a $1 travel sized body lotion and a $2 travel body spray. But this time around these are only available in the travel body lotions. I recently checked out the website to see if these were still available for $1, but they are all sold out! So you may be able to get them in stores, but it seems like they were snatched up pretty quickly.

Bali Mango:

The little flower packaging on this bottle is so cute and tropical, it makes me wish there wasn't a snow storm going on outside my window! The tops on these new scents are also different than the regular ones, just a straight cylinder instead of the one that flares at the top. As for the actual smell, I'm a little disappointed. Bath & Body Works usually nails it in my opinion when making original scents, but I know I have smelled this Bali Mango in some other product before, I just can't remember what. The fragrance reminds me of Suave products, it's just that "cheap" sort of smell. It also resembles the Herbal Essences None Of Your Frizzness Smoothing Leave-In Creme, which I wasn't a fan of that scent in the first place. When you first take a big whiff, you can tell there's some mango, but there's also a hint of a strong perfume-y smell. I think you could probably find a ton of dupes of this fragrance, it's nothing original, not a must-have.

Hawaii Coconut:

Again I love the bottle, the blue sky and brightly colored leaves are a great cure for the snow blues! When I smelled this, my first thought was that it's just like the Twilight Woods body lotion, but a little sweeter. If you like Twilight Woods you'll most likely enjoy this scent, its like a less intense version. I'm not a huge fan of coconut, food wise, so I thought I wouldn't like the smell, but this is actually probably my favorite of the three, as I think it has the most distinct smell. I've never really taken a whiff of any coconut things because I think they make me sick, so I don't have much to compare this to, but In my opinion it's a really great fragrance because you won't immediately know what it is; it takes some thought to figure out!

Fiji Passionfruit:

Surprise surprise, I'm in love with this bottle too! This one reminds me of a tropical rainforest with the green leaves and red flowers. I still kind of have the same problem with this scent as I do with the Bali Mango because I could swear I've smelt it before. But, it's not as generic, a little bit of mystery is in there. I wish this was more fruity, when you first take a whiff it has that classic "lotion smell" that like I said before a lot of cheap brands such as Suave have in their lotions.

These body lotions were a great deal for only a $1 a piece, but the only one I think I would repurchase would be the Hawaii Coconut (and only if it was on sale). In my opinion, none of these are really must haves, so if you missed out on the deals, don't sweat it!

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Tips for wearing purple dress

Confused about how to wear a tough color like purple? This rich tone looks great on everyone, mixing the best qualities of red and blue to flatter most skin tones.

Here are the few tips that show, how to wear it right:

- Pair with black or other dark neutral color like charcoal. A purple blouse under a dark suit looks great for work.

- Strike up purple by wearing with eye-popping bright like grass green or lime. A purple sweater with a dazzling green scarf radiates personality.

- Balance purple tones with purple eye shadow, just keep the shadow very sheer and light (too-dark purple eye shadow sometimes gives you a black eye look).

- Play purple off of similarly strong prints. A bright purple dress with zebra (black and white) print shoes is fun and funky.

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Merry Christmas!

I just want to take some time and wish everyone a Merry Christmas! I had a great day with my family and I hope you all did too! Tomorrow I'll put up a post about what I got for Christmas, and I look forward to reading everyone else's posts on their Xmas gifts.

Sorry for the lack of blogging, it's been a VERY hectic month, and it's not over yet. So I will try and get as many posts as possible up in the next few days because that's probably all the time I'll have to blog until the semester change on January 31. Fingers crossed that I'll be walking into a much more relaxed semester, this one definitely had me in tears at times, which is no surprise since I've heard Junior year is the hardest. But keeping all my grades above a 90 will be worth it if it gets me into a great school in two years!

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Ahead of of Fashion: The basics of Style

Have you ever seen someone trying clothes that are very fashionable and very nice, but the person is just not pulling them off? They're proof that even great clothing does not equal great style. And that lack of a few simple basics will impair any look. How can you avoid this problem? It’s Simple. Chase a few basic guidelines.

Good grooming

This has got to be the number one way to make or crack a look. Prada was not meant for pit stains. No one looks good with straggly, greasy hair, chewed up fingernails, gross skin, unplucked eyebrows, and leg stubble. Take care of your skin. Take care of your hair. Take care of your cleanliness. Take care of your nails. In other words, take care of yourself.

Nice clothes

I'm not talking about luxurious clothes. Style is priceless, but doesn't have to be overpriced. I'm talking about taking care of your clothes, as you should yourself. PEOPLE - USE AN IRON. An iron is your friend. More notably, it is your clothing's friend. Love your iron. It loves you too!
Also, don't forget lint rollers, shoe polish, safety pins, and a good, strong stain remover.

Moderation

Please, do not do accessory overkill. I saw a girl the other day wearing giant hoope earrings, a beaded fringe necklace, a lariat, bangle bracelets, and those gross little butterfly hair clips. ALL IN ONE OUTFIT. Words cannot describe how wrong this is, so I'll let you use your imagination.

Find What Works

Like Cher in Clueless, I don't believe mirrors. Pictures are much better indicators of how you look. So find a really good picture of yourself, one you really like. Why do you like it? Think of what is satisfying you, whether it's the color red, a great hairstyle, good lighting, or falling in love. And make the most of it with every outfit.

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L'oreal HIP Jelly Balm

Discover the secret for sheer, mouthwatering color. HIP Studio Secrets™ Professional Jelly Balms deliver a pop of sheer, tempting shine in a light, soothing balm. You'll get a fresh, sweet look that leaves lips soft and conditioned.

Expert Application Technique:

Play up your look with luminous, shiny lips. Wear balm alone or layer over your favorite lipcolor for a shiny, tempting finish.

Available in 6 Shades:

• Delectable
• Luscious
• Plush
• Ripe
• Savory
• Succulent

These were bought in my All Cosmetic Wholesale Haul, so for all the information on buying this set, check this post out! I got mine in a set of three, "Savory 420" an orange-y flesh tone color, "Luscious 720" a deep wine almost brown looking color, and "Plush 120" a bubble gum pink color. My L'oreal HIP Jelly Balms have sat in the back of my makeup drawer for a while, but I recently broke them out and have absolutely fell in love. A lot of people compare these to the MAC Tender Tones, which I've never had, but I think this L'oreal product holds up well by itself.

Left to Right: Plush, Luscious, Delectable

Pros:  I'm a packaging fanatic, and I love how these are designed, they look so sleek to me. These lip glosses smell delicious, exactly like vanilla. When you put them on, you get a sheer wash of color, and insane shine. They feel super smooth all day long, and are pretty long lasting. This lip gloss has nada, none, zip shimmer, absolute flat color, and it makes me love it that much more. My lips always feel super moisturized when I wear this and when it wears off.

Cons: I don't think it's very sanitary to be sticking your finger in a product to get it out, plus it means I need to wipe my hand off afterward. These are pretty pricey for the small amount of product you get, so I would never buy these at the drug store for $8.99 a piece, try to find them online for good deals. Though the packaging is cute, it's a little too heavy to just pop in your pocket or bag. They all give off a nice color except for the color "Savory 420" which might do something on a darker skinned person, but it's just like a clear gloss on fair skin.

I have heard these are being discontinued (not sure if that's true since they are still featured on the L'oreal website) but regardless if they are/aren't, I would recommend getting some of these, they won't end up on your products I regret buying list!

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Sally Hansen Smile Brightening Lip Treatment

My mom took me to Big Lots after school today, and they didn't really have much in terms of good makeup, but I did find this Sally Hansen Smile Brightening Lip Treatment for only $2! Mine is in the color "Radiant" which looks like a gorgeous sparkly, ruby red gloss in the tube. On the back of the package it comes in, it says "You Have Yellow teeth, a dull smile and dry lips. You Want Teeth that look whiter, a brighter smile, plus smooth, soft lips now. How It Works Specialized color pigments in this lip gloss shade counteract yellow tones in teeth, making them look whiter. Optical Brightening Pearls, Borage and Cornflower Extract help create the effect. Shiny gloss glides on smooth, not sticky. Botanicals and Vitamins A, C & E soften and condition dry lips. Pleasant vanilla mint flavor freshens breath." I've only had this for a couple hours, but I've been wearing it non-stop.

Pros: The packaging looks really cool with the big circle-ish things on the side of the tube, and the silver part can double as a mirror. This gloss smells amazing, it's a mix of mint and vanilla, which is personally two of my favorite scents. I really did notice that my teeth looked whiter, and who doesn't want that? The application of the gloss is a little sticky, but once its on, it really feels nice and smooth. It takes a while for this to wear off too, which I love. The color looks really shimmer-y in the tube, but on your lips its just the perfect subtle glow.

Here's a quick swatch on my hand.

Cons: They claim the vanilla mint flavor will freshen your breath, but honestly I don't notice a difference in my breath, and I'm certainly not going to eat this gloss just to see if that will work. The application is a little tricky, the gloss is slightly stick when you put it on so that makes it hard to get the edges of your lips look right (which is important with such a bright colored gloss). This is sort of a pro in my opinion, but the color looks more vampire-y red than glamorous red in the bottle. The little hole you pull the gloss wand out of is really quite small, you kind of need to tug to get it out, which in return you end up getting gloss all over the plastic stopper.

I'm in love with this color, the effect this gloss gives my teeth, and I really recommend you go out and try it for yourself!

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MassachuettsMask Site Update

If any of you have checked back here in the past week, you might have noticed I've been playing around with MassachusettsMask's site layout. I had that vintage runway background, the shopping bag background, the blue towels background, and tons more. None of those were really working for me, so I went back to my very first background, with some tweaks on the layout of the site. I think I've gotten it to something I like, but let me know what you think!

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Outfit Of The Day

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Bath & Body Works, Aeropostale, Journeys, And Dick's Sporting Goods Haul

My mom surprised me with a trip to the mall today, so I thought I'd post a haul of the things I bought and some other previous purchases I've been meaning to post!

Bath & Body Works:

I mainly wanted to go here just to smell some new stuff so I'd know what to put on my Christmas list. I ended up falling in LOVE with Twisted Peppermint, ugh, greatest scent ever. I wasn't planning on buying anything, but my mom thought the 5 for $5 on hand sanitizers was a great deal, so we picked some of those up.

We got Cup Cake Lemon Glaze, Twisted Peppermint, Comet's Ginger Mint, Dasher's Apple Mint, and Vanilla Bean Noel.

Aeropostale:

I usually never find anything at Aeropostale, but my mom had a gift card here, so we stopped by. She didn't end up buying anything, but I found this AMAZING jacket marked down from $90 to $20! Seriously how can you beat that? It's more of a fashionable jacket, so I won't be wearing it on the days I'm walking out of the house in sweats, but it will be great for when I'm feeling dressier. They had two colors, this navy and white, or a purple mix of colors. I probably would have gone with the purple, but it didn't come in my size (I like my jackets to be big and roomy so I can layer under them). I must say I feel kinda awesome walking around in a $90 jacket :). But yeah, if you hurry to an Aeropostale near you, these might still be there (they aren't listed online, by the way.)

Journeys:

I found an Ugg Cleaner Kit here online a super long time ago, so we popped in to see if it was still there. To my surprise, it was and was only $20 for everything you need to take care of Uggs. It comes in a super cute slide out style box that you can store anywhere. I'm so happy I can finally wear my Uggs in ceramics class without having a heart attack every time someone drops some clay! If you have Uggs, I would definitely recommend checking this out (it cleans old ones too).

Dick's Sporting Goods:

I actually placed an online order here November 10th, and was surprised to see it come in on November 15th. They said it could take up still the 27th, so I'm really impressed with their service! I ordered a Jansport rightpack backpack in the color "Red Curtain". I haven't used it yet (I'm waiting until next semester) so it won't get all dirty from my ceramics class. But I already love it, and it will be great for my back, since a one shoulder bag doesn't cut it with 9 pounds of books. This is hands down, in my opinion, the most fashionable backpack you can get. It was $55 with free shipping, in case you want to go get it yourself!

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How to become a successful fashion photographer..?

Do you want to be a fashion photographer? Fashion photography is an exceptionally tough market to break into, but if you are ready to work hard, have a good imagination and embrace the ability to take great images you are off to a good start.

A fashion photographer must be excellent in two photography disciplines. First, you need to be a great portrait photographer - second, you need to be able to create images for the advertisement market. You must be able to join the two if you are going to make it.

To be a successful fashion photographer you must also have a love of superior design clothes - without it you will never attain the heights that bring success. A fashion photographer must go up to date with all the latest fashion and have the skills to use his/her imagination to sell new designs.

Selling is the key - the fashion photographer must be able to sell his images to the fashion editor. Fashion photography is advertising and selling clothes.

To set up a reputation in fashion photography, the first thing you must do is set up a portfolio. Your portfolio should exhibit your best work and be your first selling point. The second, and equally as important as the first, is to set up an online portfolio - your own private Website.

To set up a portfolio you first must hire a model. Contacting your local modeling agencies can do this. You don't need to hire a famous model for your fashion portfolio - you need someone who will act well in front of the camera.

To be very successful you need to build a good relationship with models. Some models can be hard to work with so people psychology will play an important part. If you plan to shoot from your home studio supply a changing room for them.

If a model becomes unhappy for any reason, the photo session will be a waste of time. Let your model make his/her own suggestions - regardless of how trivial it may be, it will help to keep them relaxed and you may get results that may be useful.

Once your portfolio is created you need to get publicity for it. If you have previously published work - use them as a statement with the picture editors. You need to set up a good working relationship with all fashion editors that you'll be working with. So be professional.

Fashion photo editors are looking for brief images that clearly communicate an idea. You must, as a fashion photographer, have the aptitude to create unique settings. When you do gather a large amount of fashion images, submit them to a fashion agency: Women's magazines all over the world buy hundreds of stock shots every month. Photo agencies exist to sell photographers images - some of the larger fashion agencies have buyers all over the world. Some agencies can also re-sell your work in several different markets, and others will give you great career advice. Keep up to date with fashion magazines, study the market and always be on the lookout for varying fashion trends.

Don't be afraid to take the first step. If a fashion editor has no interest in your work - don't worry - try contacting different magazines or agencies - most great photographers have their work rejected some time during their career.

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