bailey bee

beauty, home and lifestyle blog

Natasha Denona Mini Gold Eyeshadow Palette Review

The Natasha Denona Mini Gold Palette

Ever since I saw the sneak peeks for the Natasha Denona Gold palette, I have been waiting for the mini palette release. I still, to this day, want the full-sized VERY badly. That price tag is the only thing standing in my way.

Anyway, I was so excited to pick up this mini version when it released a few weeks ago. From what I had heard, this was one of Natasha’s best mini palettes to date. I knew (from swatching in-store) that the brand has incredible shimmers but what I was most impressed with in this palette were the two matte shades. They are so well pigmented and the tones bring a lot of depth for two fairly “medium” shades.

The Natasha Denona Mini Gold Palette swatched on-arm

Oh, man. Bia. How pretty is Bia?! It and D’or were the two shades that made me want this palette. Although D’or swatches a bit chunkily it is a strangely wet formula that applies beautifully to the lid. Additionally, Antheia is a beautiful duo-chrome with an incredible pay-off from the get-go and is a more traditional shimmer formula.

Lastly, Lodge is the ideal transition shade for my skin tone. Having it plus three other “winners” (Bia , D’or and Antheia) make this mini palette worth stashing for me. I’m going to utilize this a lot over the coming months to create some classic looks, some smokey as well as some funky– I’m thinking Bia as a structured, winged eyeliner? OH yes.

Even if it has a slightly different color story, it’s hard to pass up this $25 baby palette in place of its $129 counterpart. One day I WILL get that full-sized gold palette, though! What are some of your faves from ND?

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A Weekend in Dallas for Oklahoma v. Texas

This past weekend I flew out to Dallas, Texas to partake in one of the best parts of my year: Oklahoma/Texas weekend. This weekend is focused around the Red River Showdown game between the two rival schools. The game is played at a neutral site between the two school’s cities at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, Texas– centered inside of the Texas State Fair.

To say these two events together are EPIC is truly an understatement.

This was my third OU/Texas weekend. My first was during my freshman year at Oklahoma before I transferred away and my second was last year with my dad and my sister. This year was extra exciting because we added Charlie to our crew! We all got in Friday afternoon and spent our days watching sports, sports and more sports (the Washington Nationals are currently en-route to the World Series and we had to keep our eyes on them this weekend as well!)

Me and my family at Oklahoma v. Texas football game at the Texas State Fair, top. A view of our tickets, bottom.

The better the teams, the earlier the game. Oklahoma was ranked #6 last week and Texas sat at #11 so this game was early at 11am. We got up briiiiiight and early to get to the fairgrounds by 9am but not without setting the weekend up right the night before by attending the OU Club of Dallas’ pep rally in Addison. This is THE official pep rally prior to gameday. The band stops by at the end of the night to really get everybody ready to rumble. Even Boomer and Sooner, Oklahoma’s two mascots, show up!

Top photo is of me and my family with the Oklahoma Sooners Ruf-Neks, bottom photo is a close-up of Oklahoma's mascot Sooner and his painted hooves.

The mission of the day on gameday is to…

  1. wake up, eat breakfast
  2. roll out, step foot in the fairgrounds (takes awhile)
  3. grab your tickets, head over to the media
    • last year we had College Gameday in attendance and this year it was Fox Sports
  4. drink as much as you can, play some games before the crowds
    • this year was the first time alcohol was allowed within the entire stadium so, thankfully, future years will involve less chugging at 10am
  5. get to your seats, BEAT TEXAS
Oklahoma v. Texas football game at the Cotton Bowl stadium
we had some incredible seats this year. shoutout to my dad for tracking them down!

Once Texas has been rightfully silenced (hopefully), you get to roll out and eat some crazy fried foods and meander your way out of the fair. My go-to is the fried cheesecake and this year I fell in loOove with the fried mac and cheese. This year we made our way out of the fair into downtown Dallas to watch the Nationals beat the Cardinals for the second night in a row. We then ventured home and began to plan our final day in town.

Otto's Coffee & Fine Foods at The Adolphus hotel in downtown Dallas.

On Sunday we hit up the Adolphus hotel where we grabbed coffee and goodies at Otto’s Coffee & Fine Foods. The Adolphus had just undergone a $100mil renovation in 2018 and holy. c-r-a-p. It is BEAUTIFUL. My dad told us some fun stories of when he stayed here back in 1972. To imagine my 18-year-old father romping around this insanely well-manicured hotel was beyond what my mind could handle. Clearly some things had changed over the years— haha.

A view from the seventh floor overlooking Dealey Plaza where JFK was assassinated, as showcased by painted X's on Elm Street.

After starting the day off at The Adolphus and Otto’s we walked over to The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza. Dealey Plaza was the location of President JFK’s assassination in 1963. The museum brings you on an audio tour throughout the sixth floor where Lee Harvey Oswald barricaded himself in to shoot and kill the 35th U.S. President outside of a corner window. This view from the seventh floor (above) allows a sightline above the now-mature trees to see painted X’s on Elm Street that show the specific spots Oswald shot at the President’s motorcade.

The museum charges $18 per adult for the audio tour. If you have a couple of hours to kill and even the slightest bit of interest in this massive event of American history, I highly recommend.

Full table spread of tacos at Torchy's Tacos and the "Let Them Eat Cake" neon sign at Bird Bakery in Highland Park.

Throughout the weekend we ate at a couple of places in town but none better than my favorite, Torchy’s Tacos. There are few fast or fast casual restaurant dishes I love more than Torchy’s fried avocado tacos on corn tortillas. Above you will see that during our first meal in town I had three massive ones.

MmmmMMmmmMmmm YUM.

On Sunday before we headed to the airport we found ourselves wandering around the ultra lush Highland Park neighborhood. I grew up in a fairly affluent area but I had never laid my eyes on the kind of stores that were in Highland Park Village. To name a few, they had Chanel, Balenciaga, Celine, Christian Louboutin, Jimmy Choo, Tom Ford and wow, yeah, I could go on. Highland Park Village is the epitome of luxury and within all of that is Bird Bakery, owned by Armie Hammer’s wife Elizabeth. It’s a refreshing spot where you can experience opulence while spending under $10.

Oklahoma and Texas Coke bottles at Walgreens with the Texas bottles turned upside down to shot an upside-down Longhorn.
Before heading out to DFW, we spread a little mischief at a local Walgreens. I was born with a hatred for the Longhorns— what can I say?

Texas is the one of all states in the United States that I continually travel to. There is so much to do and Dallas is the central zone of all there is to do. I’d challenge anybody to find something that you cannot track down in the Dallas/Ft. Worth metro area. It’s on New York City levels of density and I doubt you’d ever run out of plans. I’m sure I’ll be back before my next OU/TX weekend but we certainly will be back for that in 2021. Our wedding is the Sunday after the game next year so we won’t be in attendance but rest assured, we will be watching at our rehearsal dinner!

Where is the one place that you don’t have any connections to that you continually find yourself in? I’m curious to know!

Breakfast Nook Inspo + Table Roundup

Me and Charlie are sooooooo close to getting into homebuyer mode. I desperately wish it were TODAY but we’re trying to buy smart and to be smart we must wait until the end of the year. My mind is always on home design but it’s amped up lately with the anticipation. In my most recent moment of getting swept up in design I realized I liked something I never had previously: breakfast nooks! and what’s a breakfast nook without another item that I was never huge on? round dining tables!

In my perfect scenario I would not rely on my nook area to be the only dining area. I’d love to have a formal dining room (unlike seemingly every millennial I see on HGTV) in addition to a nook. This way I manage to get the seating amount I seek while still getting to indulge in these cozy banquet seats:

chic black and white banquet seating breakfast nook
modern vintage banquet seating breakfast nook

Banquet seats are a super easy DIY project and they pair perfectly with a chic, statement round dining table. I have compiled some of my favorites below.

my favorite round tables, perfect for a breakfast nook
A. Anthropologie Quillen Dining Table / B. Kling Dining Table / C. Cb2 Shoreditch Dining Table / D. West Elm Silhouette Pedestal Round Dining Table / E. Wisniewski Dining Table / F. Round Black Wood Keanu Dining Table

I see breakfast nooks as a place to not only eat breakfast but hang out, do homework and more. Something about them seems home-y and that’s all I’m striving for these days. The countdown is on. Tell me: yay or nay on breakfast nooks?

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Paula’s Choice Skin Perfecting 2% BHA Liquid Exfoliant Is the Real Deal

Paula's Choice Skin Perfecting 2% BHA Liquid Exfoliant
Paula’s Choice Skin Perfecting 2% BHA Liquid Exfoliant

Yep. This is one of those. Guys, my skin was SO. BAD. this summer. A new job plus that job being seriously one of the more stressful times I’ve ever lived through… My skin was hopeless all of July and August. I’m on the tail-end of things now and am just recovering some dark spots and small bumps on my forehead. I’ve been so desperate to get my skin back to “normal” that I was consistently found on Friday nights in my bathroom Googling “make small bumps on forehead go away.” Everything led me to Paula’s Choice Skin Perfecting 2% BHA Liquid Exfoliant.

I am/was so desperate that I bought a travel-sized bottle on a whim to see what happened. Be advised, don’t get this stuff off of Amazon. The product sold on Amazon seems to be a rip-off. I rarely buy anything beauty-related outside of Sephora, Ulta or Nordstrom but I think something like this is best to get straight from the source.

I slathered this stuff on my face early in the evening and let it stay on all night as guided by the countless online reviews I read through. It does feel and appear oily so I would never, ever imagine wearing this during the day. Once the morning comes, you’ll wash the residual product off along with any pesky texture that you had on your facial skin before. My skin looked and felt so incredible after just the first application.

As with any exfoliating product, be wary of sun exposure (in general, but especially when using this!) I was so self conscious of the bumps on my forehead and I’m going to hype this stuff up as a miracle product because of how good it made me feel after using it. I got really excited and tried using it every day or two but my skin reacted poorly so I’ve been limiting myself to just once or twice per week.

The closest product to this that I have tried would be Pixi’s Glow Tonic. It gave me the same slough after the first application but seemed to fall off after that. Am I late to the liquid exfoliant game? If so, please let me know which products I have missed out on! I’m also curious to know which Paula’s Choice products everyone recommends for me to try out next. It seems I’ve been living in the dark!

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My Target Anniversary Collection Picks

My Target Anniversary Collection Picks

If you can even believe it, Target has only been around for 20 years. To think there was a time where people furnished their homes (and themselves!) without the option of Target makes me sad. I know we all have a soft spot for our fave red store and most of you likely remember the days when Target collaborated with top designers to create exclusive lines at the store. Target still does this today but not nearly as consistently as they did when they partnered with the likes of Isaac Mizrahi, Missoni and Philip Lim. Although there are a decent amount of throwbacks, they are even paying homage up into the early 2010’s with Lily Pulitzer and the recent Marimekko collab.

Target is celebrating their 20th birthday with a release of limited edition styles from some of their most iconic fashion and home partnerships over the years. Everything is labeled limited quantity and set to drop on September 14th. Today I wanted to share with you the things I am eyeing to pick up from the look book released on their site.

A. Women’s Snap Detail Short Sleeve V-Neck Shift Mini Dress – Zac Posen for Target Navy – $60

B. 3.1 Phillip Lim for Target Mini Satchel Handbag – 3.1 Phillip Lim for Target Black – $35

C. Women’s Lace Long Sleeve Ribbon Detail Shift Mini Dress – Anna Sui for Target Ivory – $60

D. Women’s Sleeveless Metallic Boucle V-Neck Shift Mini Dress – Anna Sui for Target Silver – $60

E. Women’s Long Sleeve Tulle Bow Blouse, V-Neck Lace Cami and Mid-Rise Lace Tulle Mini Skirt – Rodarte for Target Magenta – $25, $20 and $30

F. 7.1oz Colored Zig Zag Glass Jar Candle Tuscan Sunrise – Missoni for Target – $12

G. 72″x40″ Beach Towel White/Black – Marimekko for Target – $25

Which items are you most excited to pick up? I know 100% I am going to try to get that Philip Lim bag over everything else but fingers crossed it doesn’t fly off the (virtual) shelves before we’re able to grab all that we want.

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Announcing: Shop Bailey Bee

Hey there! I am so excited to announce that my Bailey Bee shop opened TODAY! My first products are hand painted doormats. I hope to expand my designs in the coming weeks and even open up to taking on custom commissions. Please feel free to take a peek at the shop here.

Below are some of my favorites released so far…

all are welcome door mat by shop bailey bee
All Are Welcome
trick or treat door mat by shop bailey bee
Trick or Treat
gather door mat by shop bailey bee
Gather

For all of you loyal readers, thank you for all of the continued support.

My Favorite Shampoos for Leaving Hair Smelling Great

one of my three shampoos that smell great - Briogeo's Scalp Revival
via Briogeo

My hair doesn’t hold onto scents. It just doesn’t. I figured everyone else was in the same boat until my sister one day boasted she was on day six of no-washing and her hair STILL smelled like her shampoo. I couldn’t believe it! It is because of that convo that I wanted to write this post for all of you. This is not for me because, as previously stated, my hair doesn’t hold onto scents. This is my list of scented shampoos for those of you whose hair does!

First up is Briogeo’s Scalp Revival. It markets charcoal and coconut oil as the main two ingredients but this stuff actually smells like MINT! It’s so refreshing and really fun to apply. It’s a bit gritty in order to clear away build up on the scalp. Aside from just the scent, I really like this shampoo in general.

Next, I received Gloss Moderne Clean Luxury as a sample from Sephora a few months back and I still think about it from time-to-time. It was such a pleasant cleansing experience! It has a fairly heavy vanilla scent that will be a dream come true for the right vanilla-loving person. It’s also just a really fancy, high quality shampoo in general.

Last is the previously-reviewed The One shampoo by Kristin Ess. This shampoo has such a strong floral scent that I almost thought I wasn’t going to be able to use it when I first tried it. To be fair, I’m pretty sensitive to scents and live my life pretty scent-free. I think my nose simply wasn’t used to it. I eventually did get used to it and ended up really enjoyed this stuff. This is the shampoo that has lingered post-shower the longest of all shampoos that I have tried literally in all of my life.

Let me know your favorite scented ‘poos below! I’m curious to see if any can unseat Kristin Ess’ in linger–ability. I’m always game to try out new brands of hair cleansers and conditioners.

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The VERB Ghost Haircare Line

The VERB ghost haircare line

Before we get chatty over all things hair products, I wanted to mention that I received these items courtesy of VERB over the past few months. Although they did send them to me, I chose to receive these items specifically and as always, the below opinions are my own.

I’ve been a fan of VERB hair care since my college years. The low price point sucked me in but my love for the brand has only grown through the years. My go-to lines are typically the hydrating and sea salt ones but it’s no secret that the Ghost line is by-far their most popular. I’ve gotten a chance to try most of the Ghost line, minus their most popular within– Ghost Oil. The products I am reviewing today are their Ghost shampoo and conditioner, Ghost Prep, Ghost Hair Mask and Ghost Dry Oil.

If we categorized hair the same way we do skin, I would be “normal” (not dry, oily or combo.) I don’t have any particular hair needs so I have not needed intense hydration before but figured it couldn’t hurt. Now that I have tried the Ghost shampoo and conditioner, I’ve now tried all three lines of cleansers by VERB. My favorite is still the regular ole hydrating line. I don’t feel that I get any crazy differences using the Ghost line. As for the Ghost Hair Mask, the same applies. I don’t feel like my hair has been masked when I wash this product out. If it were to come down to deciding whether to purchase or not, I’d say pass. Unfortunately, I’m not super impressed with the in-shower side of this line however…

future Bailey edit: since trying out the Ghost shampoo and conditioner, I moved
onto the Amika Normcore shampoo and conditioner because it is what my hairdresser
uses and I've never minded it with her. I'm not even halfway through the bottle
and I've already found myself going back to the Ghost line! My hair feels so
much more refreshed and bouncy with the Ghost cleansers-- looks like I needed to
try something else in comparison to truly appreciate it.

I love the styling products! The Ghost Prep is my favorite product for holding down my wild, wild hair after I sleep in it overnight. I have a bad habit of sleeping in completely soaking wet hair… it’s pretty wild looking when I wake up. Plus, my baby hairs randomly thinned out a couple of months ago and I have been working to grow them back out ever since. I love using this stuff to slick everything back in a tight, chic bun. And when I want to wear my hair down and curled? The Ghost Dry Oil is great for sprucing up some old, overgrown hair and giving it the sheen it needs. It also keeps things sleek while allowing curled hair to maintain bounce.

To recommend some prods out of this line would be to recommend the styling prods. They’re definitely my favorite of the bunch and the ones I think you all should try as well. With the current Sephora sale happening this week, why not? VERB is nice and affordable but have the quality ingredients and chic marketing that can keep up with the fanciest of brands.

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