Sephora & Ulta Haul!

After three months of using up tons of products, I finally accumulated enough reward money to do some shopping! In case you are curious, in order to curb my shopping and encourage myself to use up things in my collection, I use a reward system where I get $4 for every full size item I finish, $2 for every deluxe/travel size item, and $0.50 for foil packet samples. The rule is I can't buy anything if I haven't accumulated the money to purchase it. On a limited budget, I made use of some of my ULTA rewards as well as their BOGO sale on NYX items to keep myself in check.

The goodies!

As you can see, I went a little bit crazy with lip products but I am super pleased with all of them! The palette is from Mally and it's a blush/bronzer/highlight palette which I thought would be great for travel purposes.

First up, the Mally Shimmer, Shape and Glow palette ($40, 11.4g). I chose the "Deeper" option, but the "Lighter" option is very similar with a more champagne highlighter, a slightly lighter bronzer, and a pink blush. The highlighter is a really nice gold, sort of similar to NARS Albatross. The bronzer is a cool brown with a matte/satin finish, which is similar to Benefit Hoola. The blush is a gorgeous peachy coral with some subtle gold sheen. It's the perfect combo for the summertime!

  

I've been seeing reviews for the Too Faced Melted lipsticks ($21, 0.4 oz) all over the internet, and for once, the nude shade is one that doesn't wash me out! This is a really rare thing, so I knew I needed to snatch this up. This is a browny pink nude and the formula is divine. It's smooth and non-drying with a fuzzy felt tip applicator which makes application a snap.

Believe it or not, these are my very first NYX Butter Glosses ($4, 0.27 oz). The original line didn't have any colors that appealed to me, but NYX recently doubled their color selection and I went straight for two of the nude options, Praline and Ginger Snap. Praline is a pinky brown, while Ginger Snap is pretty much just a brown. I love the texture and scent on these, though they aren't very long wearing. These are perfect to wear on their own, or to pair with light nudes or brights that you want to tone down.

This was a new display in Sephora, and it's called the Luster Matte Long Wear Lip Color ($16, 0.14 oz). It was basically love at first swatch with this product. They are super slick and although they dry somewhat matte, they still have a really nice natural slickness to them and don't look dry. The formula is smooth and moisturizing, and doesn't emphasize fine lines. This color is a fall one, but it was the one I was most drawn to. Who cares about makeup rules, I'm gonna rock this vampy color whenever I feel like it! I hope to pick up some other colors once I use up more products.

I also picked up a Nano lip liner in Chic Choco ($5) from Sephora, but I couldn't get it to stop rolling long enough to take a close up picture. It is however swatched in the picture below :)

Everything in the haul is super wearable, and I have already started incorporating these products into my daily routine!

Empties: February 2014

It's time for another round of empties! I've got a mix of different makeup products that I have managed to use up and have well-formed opinions on to share :)

Let's start with the face products:

• Revlon Photoready Color Correcting Primer: This is a lotion style primer, and I really did enjoy it. I think it's the best drugstore primer I have tried thus far (though I have my eye on the Rimmel Matte primer) and I love that it came in a glass bottle with a pump. Not sure it really color corrects, but it definitely helps your makeup last.
• Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturizer (Caramel): I have a love hate relationship with this. It's a fantastic match for my skin and wears really well in the winter time, and in humid weather. But, if it's hot, it will not last. Even with a good primer I can't make it work. For now I'm going to hold off on re-purchasing this and try out other tinted moisturizer formulas.

Next, to my lonely lip product:

• Buxom Full On Lip Polish in Sugar (sample size): Oh man, this is my absolute FAVORITE formula of lip gloss. They come in tons of colors, are really glossy with only a slight tacky feeling, and they have this wonderful minty plumping sensation. I will always always repurchase this product. PS: My friends who I've told about this say their boyfriends request it for makeout sessions ;)

And lastly, what I go through the most, eye products:

• Diorshow Maximizer Lash Primer: Hot damn, this stuff is really good. Honestly, I was kind of hoodwinked into purchasing it but it really makes a difference. Since using it, my lashes are softer and fall out way less. The lashes on the very inner corners of my eyes have also grown significantly while using this, and they were non existent before. I'll repurchase when I can get 20% off.
• Eyeko Skinny Liner: Basic felt tip liquid liner. The tip isn't very flexible so it's not amazing for winged liner, but its solid for any basic liner you would wear regularly. I won't repurchase since I have a $3 Jordana liner that I love more than this.
• Tarte Lights Camera Lashes Mascara: Really nice and volumizing formula to this mascara. It doesn't give much length, but it's good at not being clumpy. I have purchased a full size.
• Smashbox Full Exposure Mascara: The brush on this thing is GIGANTIC. Because of that, it took me a while to figure out how to use it. It gives good separation, but not enough volume for my liking. I won't be repurchasing.
• Lancome Hypnose Drama Mascara: LOVED this mascara. It's quite a wet formula and gives you both volume and length. The only issue is that since it's wet it can get a bit clumpy, but this is easily sorted out using a lash comb. I have another two sample tubes of this and can't wait to use them!

All righty, that's it for now. Hopefully in the upcoming months I'll be able to have some interesting products like blush or eyeshadow since I'm shopping my own collection.

Deal Alert: ULTA Get Ready for the Party

I stumbled across this boxed set on a display in ULTA and was truly intrigued. I wasn't even aware that ULTA created little packaged sets like Sephora's popular lash stash and fragrance sets, so when I saw it and noticed some great products, I had to pick it up. This normally retails for $30 (while the boxes value is $95) but when it rung up at the cashier, it was only $19! Pretty awesome if you ask me. So, what's inside?

You get 3 full size products and 3 deluxe sized samples. The full sized products include a Butter London glitter nail polish in Rosie Lee (a gorgeous red/pink sparkle), a Laura Gellar City Lights lip gloss (clear with beautiful golden glitter) and a Napoleon Perdis Loose Eyeshadow Dust in Pink Champagne (beautiful metallic pink). I've actually never tried anything from Napoleon Perdis, or the lip gloss formula from Laura Gellar. I own only one other Butter London polish which is a metallic finish, so it's nice to get to try a glitter.

The 3 deluxe sized products included in the set are a Tarte Lights Camera Action mascara, a Pur Minerals bronzer, and a Lorac Behind The Scenes eye shadow primer. I've used a sample of the primer before and love it, so I wasn't unhappy about getting a repeat product. I have never tried the Tarte mascara, but am really excited to since it has so many rave reviews and touts some big claims (400% increase in lash volume). As for Pur Minerals, this is yet another brand which I have never tried, though if you read my blog you know I am a big fan of mineral makeup (Bare Minerals <3).

Below, I've swatched the bronzer, lipgloss and eye dust. Overall, I think this is a great sampling of some good products at an excellent price point. If you're interested in trying some new items, this is a set you should definitely consider picking up.

Wantable Box: November 2013

I cancelled my Birchbox subscription quite a while ago because I just wasn't getting the kinds of samples which justified the price tag. After canceling I did quite a lot of searching on the internet for other subscription boxes (Glossybox, BeautyArmy, etc) and ended up settling on a Wantable box. I have to say I was a little bit hesitant because of the hefty $36 price tag which could easily equate to a splurge item at Sephora or several items at the drugstore. However, this is my second month of getting the box and I am REALLY pleased with the items I've been getting, so I thought I would share what came in my box and how the process works.

The best thing about the Wantable makeup box is that you can specify what you like and dislike in your profile. If you list something as dislike, you will never receive that kind of product in your box and this is the BEST feature about the whole service. On top of that, there are details in every category (ex: blush) which ask you your finish and color preferences as well. You can also skip any month at any time, which is a good feature as well.

My customized quiz on Wantable (I don't actually dislike nail polish or mascara, I just have plenty so I don't want to receive them through the subscription box)

The eyeshadow quiz, with a ridiculous number of options you can specify

On top of that, you basically always get about 4-5 full sized items and the occasional sample sized item thrown in. 4-5 full size products means you are paying  between 7 and 9 dollars per item if you average it out, which is just like shopping at the drugstore. However, I haven't received any drugstore items in my boxes, and in fact more often than not the items are mid-high end products which make the value of the box quite a bit more than the $36 you pay for it.

So, this month I got the following products:
1. Face Stockholm Contouring Kit: 28g, $32
2. Bella Il Fiore Shine On Lip Gloss in Marie Antoinette: 15ml, $11
3. Starlooks Single Eyeshadow in Conquest: unsure of size but bigger than a MAC shadow, $12
4. Girlactik Beauty Cream Blush in Coral: 2.5g, $18
5. Skiin Instant Skiin Tightener and Line Filler Sample: 3ml, $8 (full size is 15ml for $40)

That brings the value of my box to a grand total of $81. I don't know about you, but that seems pretty ridiculous and awesome to me! As for the products themselves, I've been wanting to try products from Skiin, Face Stockholm and Girlactik for quite a while now but always give up since I'm not sure what I should try first. I think it's great that I could have someone select products from those lines based on my preferences to give me my first taste. I've been playing around with all the products and couldn't be more pleased; I can see all 5 products being incorporated into my makeup routine and I actually think all the items in the box can be used together in one look.

Overall, I am really satisfied so far with this subscription so I think I will be going forward with it for at least a few months. I can't wait to find out what else I can discover through this!

Photos of Products and Swatches Below!

Review: Maybelline Color Elixir

I was browsing the makeup section in Bed Bath and Beyond earlier this week (really quite extensive and always seems to have the newest products with plenty in stock) and came across the Maybelline Color Elixir lip glosses. The display had 20 colors in it, and I ended up getting two of them both of which I really liked for the fall. At Bed Bath and Beyond they retail for $6.49 a piece, and contain 0.15 oz of product. They come in small glass vials, and have the shape of a lipstick if you turn them upside down.

Maybelline claims that they "deliver the color of a lipstick, the care of a balm and the glass shine of a gloss". I think I would agree with the last two statements, but they aren't quite as opaque as a lipstick. For a lip gloss though, they are definitely on the pigmented side and aren't your sheer color. I have a dark spot on my lip which is almost nearly concealed by these glosses, so I would call them semi-opaque. I selected number 50, Caviar Couture and number 70, Intoxicating Spice. Caviar Couture is a deep berry plum shot through with some fine sparkle, but doesn't feel gritty at all going on. Intoxicating spice is a lovely browny-red and is a cream. The applicator for the glosses is a doe-foot with a very pointy tip which I love for precision application. They slide on very smoothly and feel comfortable to wear on the lips. I don't find them particularly sticky and they last 2-3 hours on the lips so long as you aren't doing any heavy eating and drinking. I'm not sure if they truly have the care of a balm, but my lips never feel dried out when wearing these and I don't feel the need to reach for my lip balm in between applications every few hours.

Overall, I am quite pleased with these glosses and love the variety of colors that were available in the display. Perhaps in the spring time I will pick up a few of the brighter colors to add to my collection :)

Photos of Products and Swatches Below!