Tahitian Pearl Necklace

My mom just got me this beautiful black pearl necklace from Overstock.com. It was on sale and less than $100! I really love it and think it's perfect for work or special occasions. However, I would be careful because the chain is extremely delicate, so I would recommend getting another more sturdy chain for it.

Some pics:

Thoughts?

NOTD: OPI Lincoln Park at Midnight

Today's nail is OPI's Lincoln Park at Midnight. It is a beautiful shimmery dark purple and is Lincoln Park After Dark's more glitzy sister. I do love the After Dark, but the Midnight one has more glamour. It depends on what mood you're in, but in my opinion they're both fabulous.

Thoughts? Which is your favorite?

Here's a swatch:

My Spring It Review

I've been using the My Spring It tool lately, and I really like it. If you have facial hair that you want to remove easily, I would recommend this. It's pretty easy to use- all you do is roll it up and down in a U shape where you want to remove hair (I mainly use it on my upper lip area). It removes hair from the root so hair grows back thinner. One downfall is that it's hard to control exactly which hairs you want to remove if that makes sense, so I would not use it to remove hair from your eyebrows. It hurts of course, but it does the job and it does it fast- it only takes a few minutes.

Here's a pic:

It's $15.99 from MySpringIt.com and shipping is $0.99 in the US.

JewelMint Review!

So there's something similar to the Sole Society website, except it's for jewelry. Kate Bosworth is behind the JewelMint site, where she and stylist Cher Coulter design jewelry together and sell each piece for $29.99. It's obvious that a lot of work and detail goes into each piece- every piece has a video that talks about the story behind it. In addition, if you don't like your personalized picks, you can click show me more and add what you want to your showroom. After you place your order, they ship it the next day and for me it took about 5 days to receive after that. I ordered the Coachella Chain and the Mumbai Bracelet.

Coachella Chain:

Mumbai Bracelet:

I think the Coachella Chain is perfect for that hippie-boho look and will come in handy for the summer. You can wear it as a necklace or wrap it around your wrist as a bracelet like I did. The Mumbai Bracelet is really beautiful and I love the ethnic feeling it has. I think it's a very versatile piece that would go with any outfit. Both items are of really good quality and I can't wait to wear them! Overall, I love the site and actually made another order so when I get it I'll post more pictures.

Use the code YTV1 for a limited time and get 50% off your first piece!

*Update: Be careful as not to get the Coachella Chain wet when you wear it. The silver will wear off. It happened to a small section of mine, so it's not too noticeable but keep it dry!

Seche Vite vs. Sally Hansen Top Coat

I've constantly been on the hunt for the best top coat for my nails. I have been using the Seche Vite Dry Fast Top Coat for awhile now. It does make your nails dry very fast, but it has a lot of issues and it's not really up to my expectations. I know many people have said great things about it, but it's just not working for me. The first few times I used it I was in love with it, and then I began to notice a few things.

First, after a few days, my entire nail (not my literal nail, but the whole nail polish part) would just peel right off. Second, over time it became thick and goopy in the bottle and difficult to apply. Finally, when I would apply it, it would sort of shrink back and not cover my whole nail, which I think had to do with the thick texture.

I had heard positive things about the Sally Hansen top coats, so I gave the Sally Hansen Mega Shine Top Coat a try. The texture is a lot more runny, which I prefer, and it made my nails shinier. It was also much easier to apply than Seche Vite. Make sure to apply a thin layer because otherwise little bubbles form on your nails. Out of the two, I prefer the Sally Hansen because of its easy application, but I'm still looking for the perfect top coat.

Thoughts? What is your favorite top coat?

Great Moisturizer for Oily Skin

Clinque's Dramatically Different Moisturizing Gel

for Combination Oily to Oily Skin

I'm sure most of you have already heard about this product, but I just recently discovered it. I tried a sample and loved it so I just picked up the regular size. I have very oily skin - within an hour of putting on my makeup, my face starts to shine. This gel feels so lightweight but is moisturizing at the same time. I noticed that once I put it on it leaves minimal residue and shine compared to other moisturizers. It also goes on very smoothly and has not caused any problems with my acne prone skin. In combination with my Revlon Colorstay foundation, my face stays shine free much longer throughout the day. I definitely recommend this for everyone with oily skin! It's been a lifesaver!

For those of you with dry skin, I believe Clinique has another product similar to this except that it is a lotion instead of a gel. I have heard great things about it, so check that out as well!

MAC Lady GaGa Viva Glam

I recently purchased the new Lady GaGa Viva Glam lipstick, and I have to say I absolutely love it! It is a beautiful nude, and I think that it would be flattering on almost all skintones. If you are into nudes, you will definitely love this product. The lipstick goes on smoothly and is very creamy. It is quite matte though so I would recommend wearing a lip gloss over it if you are not into the matte look. Also, make sure that you wear some chapstick because it can be a bit drying.

The color on me (I have ~NC30 skin):

In addition, the lipstick is for a really great cause - raising HIV/AIDS awareness. So definitely go pick this one up!

Sole Society Review!

HauteLook has created a new shoe shopping service called Sole Society. I have checked out other places like ShoeDazzle.com but the quality of their shoes did not seem that great. Sole Society is more expensive but seems to have much greater quality. So first, you take a style quiz so they can pinpoint what types of shoes you would prefer. Then, they send you their selections and you pick the shoes you want to buy, if there are any. They offer free returns, but you only receive credit on their website. If you want a refund, there is a small fee.

My results were that my style was sophisticated, modern, and chic. However, I did not love all of my selections. I have been needing some regular pumps so I opted for the coral suede heels called Kayle. Upon receival of the shoes, the texture was different from what I expected. It seemed suede in the picture, but the material was not really suede. Other than that, I would have to say that they are cute shoes so I will probably keep them. I haven't worn them yet, but it looks like they are well made and will not be too painful! They were $40 with a coupon code (SS10).

Here are some pictures of the shoes I ordered!

Pros
Relatively fast shipping (ships the next day, shipping took ~3 days)
Personalized picks every month
Easy returns
Good quality

Cons
Material different than pictured (could just be the case with this pair)
Price is steep considering they are not designer shoes

Overall Verdict: I will still check out my new selections every month but only purchase if something really stands out to me.

NOTD: Essie Jazz

Today I am rocking Essie Jazz on my nails! This is a natural beige color, which is perfect for work and when you want to make a toned-down statement with your nails. The consistency of this one was really great and very easy to apply. In the picture, I have three coats but you probably only need two.

Have you tried Essie Jazz? Let me know your thoughts!

Welcome to Le Noir!

Hello all!!! Welcome to my blog! I just decided that I should start a blog so I could share my love for beauty and fashion with others! I follow a lot of other blogs and thought it would be a great idea to start my own. Stay tuned for my future posts- I have some great reviews coming!