New Blogging Series: Undercover Blogger

Hello! I hope you're having a great day. I'm sure you're wondering what the heck Undercover Blogger is. If so, you clicked on the right post. I have been talking about it for a little while now but I haven't officially presented it in a post yet. So I thought I would go ahead and do that. I would hate it if everyone was confused when I posted this series for the first time. Enjoy!

What is it about? Over the past year I have found that bloggers are treated differently. People don't trust what they say or always expect them to know everything. To be honest, before I started blogging I thought bloggers should everything but now I realize we're all only human. I like to think I know everything but I don't. For instance, sometimes I just don't know if a product is good. I haven't personally tried every product on the market. So this where this series will come in handy. If I'm curious about a product, then I'll ask a crowd as an undercover blogger. This will also come in handy when I review a product but hate it becuase of my skin type. I don't want anyone to dismiss a product just becuase It doesn't work for my skin type. So I'll do a poll on it and report back here using the undercover blogger series! 

It's not just limited to that specific group of questions. I also want to use this series as an experiment. For my first post (which will be up soon), the question I will be asking is "Do you trust beauty bloggers/ vloggers?". If I was to ask that as a blogger people would probably answer differently or not even answer at all! But when a fellow beauty lover asks it, the honest answers are told and that's what I'm after. 

I'm sure as I further this series it will change a bit. I still have some things to work out. I also have moments where I ask myself if this series even makes sense. If it doesn't work out, then atleast I tried. I'm just really hoping that it does becuase I feel like this could be a fun series to work on, write and read. 

How can you participate? If you have a fun question that you would like me to research either leave a comment on one of my posts or send me an email. I have a very open mind. So ask anything! 

What should I do if I find one of your secret accounts? Please, don't say anything! Feel free to tell me and maybe you can get involved. Or I you can leave feedback on the accounts without telling me that you know who I am. 

Will people's names be included in the feedback from the social media? No, no ones name will appear on this site. Everything is anonymous. 

How often will a new post be uploaded? I would like to say 2-3+ times a month. It really depends on the feedback I get and how many questions worth researching I come up with. But like I said before, the longer this series goes on the more information I will have. The first post should be up on the blog later this week or early next week. Right now I'm trying to figure out the best way to format it. 

Sneak peak!!

The first post will have feature the question in the picture below!

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 What do you think of Undercover Blogger?

Do you have any questions? 

Leave a comment below!

Makeup looks using the basic colors: white, brown & black- part one

Hello!

If you follow Taylorpiebeauty on social media, then you probably already know about this new series. If not, keep reading to learn more about.

Have you ever watched a tutorial for an eye look that you love but don't have the matching shades to recreate it? Well that's what this new series is all about. Pretty much everyone and and their momma has the basic colors: white, brown and black. If you do, you can recreate any look that I post within this new series. The majority of them will be easy to recreate and you'll already have everything you'll need. I really hope that you all enjoy this new series and learn something from it. I'm really excited for it. Please, feel free to ask me any questions you may have and requests are welcome for consideration. 

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My inspiration for this look came from the "basic eye with bold lips" that everyone is raving about. So basically it's just contouring for your eyes. I highlighted my eye lids, contoured the crease of my eye and deepend  my outer V.  If you're looking for a natural look, then you're in the right place. It's natural but still beautiful. It enhances the eye but doesn't attract too much attention. So grab your favorite lipstick and pair it with this new look that you're about to recreate!

Now let's get Started!

1. Apply primer to your eyelids. I prefer using a primer that cancels out redness when I wear simple looks like this. A good primer choice would be Urban Decays primer potion but if you don't have their primer, concealer will be fine. 

2. If needed, apply tape along the outside of your eye where the liner wings out. Be sure to put the tape on your hand before you apply it to your eye area. The last thing you want to do is irritate your eyes before applying makeup. 

3. Now set your primer or concealer with a translucent powder. This will help you blend your shadows later on. 

4. Pick up a light brown shade with a crease brush and apply it to your crease. I find that using wind shield motions is the easiest method for this step. Once applied, buff that out using circular motions on the outer part of your eye only! 

5. Next, use your same brush and pick up a darker brown and apply it to the outer part of your top eyelid. 

For this step I prefer using a wiping motion toward the middle of my eye but don't actually drag it all the way to the middle of your eyelid. Then blend in very small circular motions on that area only. 

6. Optional, lightly apply black shadow to the outer V. Basically, just do the same step as five but don't take it out as far as the brown shade. Leave it on the very end out your outer V. This step is just for extra definition. I didn't do it in the picture provided but I do it most of the time when I wear this look. Especially when it's a night look.  

7. Use a flat brush and apply a white shade all over your eyelid. Start in the inner corner and work your way into the outer corner. Don't apply as much of the white shade to the outer corner as the inner corner. We still want the definition on the outer V. Be sure to stop where your crease begins. We want to avoid getting the white shadow in the crease. Reapply the white on the inner corner until you reach the desired brightness. 

8. Grab the crease brush from earlier and apply a little more brown shadow to the outer V. It doesn't have to be a lot. Just enough to deepen the V back up after applying white eyeshadow all over the lid. 

9. Grab a clean fluffy brush and very lightly blend the brown shade into the white shade. Do not drag it all over the lid! Imagine a line where they both meet and stay on that line. Do not go past it. Swiping motions with a flick work best for me when I do this step. 

10. Use the same clean fluffy brush and blend out all of your work. I use circular motions above the outer V and wiping motions above the inner corner. By above I mean the the crease. Not directly in the crease but the top part of the crease where the shadow needs to have a gradient appearance.  

11. Remove your tape. 

12. Apply your liner and mascara. If applying eyeliner is troubling, then don't remove your tape before you line your eyes. 

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Are you going to try this look?

Do you have anymore tips to share?

Let me know in the comments below!

Blogging Tips for Beauty Bloggers

I have read so many posts about blogging tips. I have learned a lot but most of all I have to say I was inspired. I love how bloggers support each other. Sometimes I feel like the the beauty world can be a dog eat dog world but bloggers who share their secrets always remind me of the support in the blogging community.

I really dislike it when bloggers are all about growing their own blog. When I was thinking about my impression to other bloggers I realized I haven't done my share of supporting.

So thats why I created this post. Let me know if any of my tips help you and feel free to let everyone know your tips in the comment section below.

Use an IPad to write posts-  Sometimes I just don't want to tote around me huge laptop. What suffers? My blog, which is not a good thing. Now I get a lot more done. I can blog on the go, in my bed, pretty much anywhere. At first when I blogged with my IPad on Bloggers website I had some difficulties with glitches. So I did some researching in the apple store and found a resourceful app that I  like to use to write posts. It's called Blogtouch Pro for Blogspot and Blogger. I believe it cost me around 3-5 dollars. There's also a version for WordPress that costs $4.99. I cant say whether or not if that one is good but if it's anything like the Blogger version, than I definitely recommend it.

Just keep in mind that I don't recommend adding pictures through Blogtouch Pro. The quality is much more superior when pictures are added from a laptop directly to bloggers website.

Take photos in bulk- This is a tip I have read before but cant stress enough. Don't get me wrong, I love taking pictures but it can be a pain in the butt when I have a toddler running around. Bright lights+ pretty makeup+ a toddler= a stressful disaster. So naturally, if I don't have any pictures for my posts, then I don't blog until I have the time to take more photos. I recently just started doing this and now I have seen a huge spike in the number of posts I have created the past couple of weeks. Taking photos in bulk is a great habit to stay organized with a blog and more importantly, to stay on schedule. This tip is also good for editing photos. I despise the task of editing photos in bulk but my goodness it such a relief when I have all the photos I need for an entire week.

Create unique series on your blog-No one likes blogs that have mediocre posts. I know every blog has to post reviews, makeup tutorials, ect, but every blog also needs a unique series that has never been seen before. For example, I just started a new series on my blog called "Undercover Blogger". It hasnt been seen before and It will attract new readers. Plus, it also gives your blog a uniqueness and will show that you have something new to offer to the table. The more unique series you have, the better.

Here are a few series that are only found on my blog ( that I know of)

Undercover Blogger
Makeup Looks Using The Basic Colors: White, Brown & Black
Monthly AllStar winner
The good and the bad (of a cosmetic brand)

Plan your posts in a weeks advance- No brainer. It makes your blogging experience more organized and advanced planning keeps you and your blog on schedule. 

 Planning and writing an entire post in one day is the wrong way to go about it.  I also think it's easier to write a post when you have had more time to think about it. For one, you'll have more notes for your posts and for two, you'll know exactly what you want to talk about. 

On Sunday, I write down everything I want to talk about on my blog in a weeks advance. When I have everything planned out I don't have to take the time to come up with an idea for a new post. Instead, I can have hours or even days to take notes for each post. This allows my posts to be more detailed and well rounded. For Monday's, I usually already have that post planned out from last week. If I have any unwritten posts on the current week schedule, I'll add them to next weeks and just fill in the rest of the days that are missing a post. I guess my system is kind of like a blogs version of a cellphone companies rollover plan.

Edit your photos!- I know some people refuse to edit their photos, and that's a good thing. To an extent. Please, don't think I mean photoshop your face or whatever else you're thinking. I actually mean photos of productsyou're  reviewing. When I first started blogging less than a year ago I didn't edit my photos at all, and trust me you can tell. The lighting was yellow and the products didn't look as good. Not only does this hurt your chances of loyal readers but it can also ruin your chance of working with companies.

 I'm sure a lot of you are thinking you dont have the budget for an advanced photoshop editor or an expensive  camera. The truth is you don't have to have any of that. I actually use a free photo editor for my blog (Picasa) and I use a small digital camera. My camera doesn't take the best pictures but editing mostly makes up for that. Even the best cameras can benefit from edited photos... But when youre able to I suggest upgrading to a better camera if you want to take your blog more seriously. I know a new camera is on my wishlist!

If a product you want to review has been on the market for a while make a fun post out of it- Whew, that was long. I know sometimes I feel like I need a product but then I stop and think about how I should probably save my blog budget for new products.
Example: If you bought Mac's Pro Longwear conealer but you know a review on it is pointless. then include it in an inspired post similar to the following...

Different ways to use Mac's Pro Longwear concealer
Why I love Mac's Pro Longwear concealer
Why Mac's Pro Longwear concealer is the best on the market 

Don't let the  duties of a blogger keep you from trying products that are on your wishlist. Trust me, your readers really don't mind. 



Show your followers you care about them- No one likes a blogger who just blogs and never replies to comments or emails. It makes everyone think you dont care about anyone but yourself. It also looks bad to companies. If you dont have a relationship with your readers, why would they listen to your recommendations? Be sure to keep a look out for their questions on your blog and the social media accounts associated with your blog. I also recommend asking questions at the end of every post. It makes your readers feel more connected with you and gives them the feeling like they can express their opinions too. 

Follow other bloggers for inspiration- Everyone needs inspiration in their life, even bloggers. Inspiration is what keeps your blog going and growing. Without it your blog will be dull and boring. Follow other bloggers for inspiration and in return you'll inspire other bloggers. Your posts will be more creative and your photos will probably look better if your inspired by other blogs photography. Inspiration promotes improvement and if that's what your looking for, then you need to do exactly that. Get inspired and improve. It's as simple as that. 

Advertise your posts on social media-  Ok, I'm almost positive you have heard this one before. If you're looking to increase traffic, this is your best bet. Make an account for your blog on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest. Let your social media followers know when a post is uploaded on your blog. Make them curious what the posts are specifically about. When you add a link to a new tweet make the tweet intriguing. Don't just say "Hey, check out my new post:)!!". That's more likely to be skipped over than a tweet that says "Here's a new post about blogging tips that you seriously NEED to know". You'll get more views and followers that way. If you do use Pinterest, then make sure each blog post has a cute photo to pin. Fellow pinners are more likely to repin your pin if they're drawn in by a cute photo provided. 

Host a giveaway atleast once a year- This attracts new loyal followers and helps your blog grow. This also falls underneath of showing your followers you care about them. Hosting a giveaway is a bloggers way of giving back to what matters most. The readers. If you're on a strict budget and cant afford a giveaway, then I  recommend doing a giveaway once a year only. A good way to go about it would be saving $1 each week and by the time that year us up you will have over $50 for your giveaway. Maybe that idea would be good for your blogs anniversary.

Post regularly- I'm sure you have heard this before, in fact, I know you have heard it before. There's a reason for it too! If the last post you posted was a month ago a new viewer might think this blog isn't worth following. If the author doesn't update a couple times a week, shouldn't they just follow a blog that does? Not only does posting regularly help increase your amount of followers, but Google Search will have a better chance of picking up your blog.

Make your blog easy on the eyes- Colored backgrounds are cute but not necessary. Actually, not just unnecessary but a huge no no for serious bloggers. Colorful blogs can be distracting and hard to read. When I come across a blog I have to stuggle to read I almost immediatly exit off of it. Light backgrounds and black font are the best designs. No, I dont mean make everything look boring but keep it sweet and simple. Go read a few blogs and see what I mean. The best ones are the easiest on the eyes. Also dont forget to jazz up your blog with cute photos. The first thing people notice is the visual part of your blog and that certainly includes your photos! 

Think of your blog as a magazine- This is a tip I and my blog have lived by. If I never heard of this tip, I think my blog would be very different and not for the better. Magazines contain the latest gossip, fashion, quizzes, how to's, interviews, appealing photography, information on the newest products, ect... Your blog should be the same way. Think of all the possibilities. Your blog could go from just average to innovative and outstanding. 

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Do you have any tips you would like to share?

Which tip from this post helped you the most?

Let me know in the comments below!