The Naked Three Story

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Black Friday at Ulta

Every year there is a time that stores are in complete chaos. You all know what I'm talking about. Black Friday, and now Grey Thursday are huge for stores around the country, and cosmetic and beauty supply stores are no exception.

There are two important things to survive this time of year. The most important is to set a budget. I made the mistake of not setting one last year and ended up kicking myself for the month of December. This year I set a budget for each store that reflected my own finances and what specials each store I went to was having.

The second important thing is safety! I usually go with a group of people and wait for 10 to 15 minutes after the stores official opening to go in. This may mean I lose something I had intended on purchasing, but it's better to lose out than get trampled by the mob trying to get into the store.

This year my group selected Ulta for one of our stops. Naturally I was thrilled. I set a budget for Ulta at $100. I would have gone higher, but we had plenty of other stores on our list.

When I walked in to Ulta I wasn't 100% sure what I was going to get, so I looked at each sale table and grabbed what I deemed a must have.

Amanda's November Subscription Box Review

Hey guys! Apologies again for Ashleigh and I not keeping things updated. We have both had one crazy month. Thankfully everyone is safe and sound so we can get back to it!

I realize it's the last day of the month, but I thought I would sneak these in before December rolls around.

Each month Ashleigh and I get subscription boxes with makeup and beauty products. I personally subscribe to two, though Ashleigh has opted to have more.

The two subscriptions I have are to Birchbox and Ipsy. For $20 a month total I get anywhere from 8 to 12 deluxe/full size products to sample. It's a great value and I can't tell you how many products it has helped Ashleigh and I both discover.

With that being said here is what I got this month and what I thought of each product.

Sorry!

I just wanted to take a second to apologize for the lack of posts from Amanda and I recently. We've both got a little crazy going on right now. Amanda is busy with work and raising her dogs and my house was broken into and my laptop was stolen.

Once everything settles down we'll both be back!

<3 Ashleigh & Amanda

Perfect Palette Tag!

Tag time! Today I wanted to participate in the Perfect Palette Tag!

Amanda's 2013 Holiday Palette Pick

It's that time of year again! Holiday seasons are a great time to purchase makeup and skincare products. Companies put together exclusive and limited edition palettes that give you opportunities to try out new products and save money. 

With so many options out there it can be hard to decide which set(s) to buy. You can spend a fortune on holiday palettes that may meet your expectations or leave you disappointed. Here is my top pick for this holiday season.

The Tarte of Giving Collector's Set & Travel Bag

 Sephora Exclusive $59 (a $490 value)

Ashleigh's October Favorites & Fails

Hey Everybody!

Today I wanted to do my October Beauty favorites & a couple fails, so let's get started!

Dancing into the Past

Hello everyone! This week was a little bit different for me. The dance studio I teach at had parent watch week and on Tuesday night all of the students dressed up in their costumes for Halloween. Not only did the students get to take class in their costumes, the teachers got to teach class in their costumes too!

This presented a little bit of a problem. I had no costume planned for this year. I didn't have anything I could just throw on and call a costume. This meant I had to figure something out, and fast. Thankfully my new haircut held the answer.

Pop of Olive Eye Look

Hey Everybody!

Today I decided to do my eye makeup with a pop of olive so I thought I'd share the look as my first post!

Meet Amanda

Hello, my name is Amanda. I breed and train German Shepherd dogs. In addition I'm a farmer and dance teacher. That makes me the Arcadia half of this blog. I rely a lot on online shopping as I'm located in the middle of nowhere Iowa. My closest neighbor is at least a mile away. That's a long walk to borrow some sugar!

My daily beauty routine is fairly simple. Working outside in all weather keeps me changing what products I use and how I use them. You can bet when it comes time for our livestock to produce offspring I'm not spending more than 5 minutes on my hair and makeup. Some days it's roll out of bed and go, go, go. It keeps things interesting! I love natural and organic products and even make some of my own.

Below is my simple profile so you can see the differences between Ashleigh and I.

Skin tone: Light/Medium

Pantone color IQ number: 2Y06

Skin type: Sensitive!

Hair color: Dark Brown

Hair type: Fine

Eyes: Green

There are some products I don't know what I would do without. My face cleanser by Liz Earle is front and center on my counter. It is the one product that gets used year round no matter the weather or what my skin is up to.

If I had to name my favorite beauty brand I couldn't! I have far too many favorites.

I have to give all of the credit to my beauty addiction to Ashleigh. As a retired ballet dancer I knew stage makeup application, but that was it due to my Mother never wearing makeup. She helped me transition from stage to street and I can't thank her enough.

~Amanda

Meet Ashleigh

Hi everyone!

My name is Ashleigh and I guess I'd be the Urban part of this blog equation. I live in Nashville, Tennessee and work for a tour company here in town. While not the biggest city in the country, Nashville is definitely evolving and has such amazing history. 

My daily routine changes so much that it's impossible for me to pinpoint something I do DAILY without altering it in some way. For the most part I just love to experiment with beauty products and since Nashville has amazing places to purchase products I'm never at a loss for something new and exciting to try. It's impossible for me to think of myself as a beauty guru because I watch and follow so many other bloggers but I guess depending on your comfort level with products anyone can be a guru for someone else, and I think that's pretty awesome.

My simple beauty profile for your reference in the future:

Skin Tone: Light/Medium

Pantone color IQ Number: 3Y06

Skin Type: Combination (aka Won't Make Up It's Mind!)

Hair Color: Brunette

Hair Type: Thick

Eyes: Hazel

My current can't live without it products? Sephora Instant Radiance Foundation (my color is 20 Cream) and my Sigma/Mac brushes. That foundation just gives my skin an amazing natural glow and has really buildable coverage. I'm pretty sure it's been discontinued but I have two backups. As for the brushes, I'm a huge believer that the tools you use sometimes make all the difference. These brushes were the best investment I made into my collection.

Some of my favorite beauty bloggers are Emily Noel of Beauty Broadcast and Kaley of Letsmakeitup!

I'll stop rambling now and end this post. 

Thanks so much for taking the time to read our blog and hope you stick around!

<3 Ashleigh

Welcome to Urban Arcadia!

Hello and welcome to Urban Arcadia Beauty.

We created this blog to share with you something we are both passionate about, and that's beauty.

The two of us have been best friends for over 10 years and it's a topic that gets brought up frequently in our conversations. After months of going back and forth we finally decided to take the leap and start a blog and youtube channel together.

On our blog and youtube channel you'll find product and subscription box reviews, tutorials, diy projects, and much more. Skin care, nails, makeup, hair...we'll cover it all.

What you will find that makes us different is our content. You'll be getting two different perspectives on everything we do. The reason goes back to the name we selected.

ur·ban

adjective \ˈər-bən\

: of or relating to cities and the people who live in them

 ar·ca·dia

noun, often capitalized \är-ˈkā-dē-ə\

: a very pleasant and quiet place or scene

We live in two completely different worlds that help drive our daily and seasonal beauty routines. What this means is if you're a beauty minimalist or a high trend guru you will find something on this blog for you.

In our next posts you'll get to meet us and learn a little about who we are. We hope you enjoy our blog and look forward to your comments and questions.

Ashleigh and Amanda